Saturday morning. Six miles into our long run with the club, one of the runners shared her frustration: "I can't get under 4:00 hours, whatever I do. I've tried everything. I'm stuck."

Two days earlier, I'd heard almost the exact same words from a Director navigating a career transition: "I keep being passed over for promotion. It's just not fair. I've tried everything. I'm stuck."

Whether I'm coaching runners or senior leaders, I hear these three lines again and again: I keep missing my goals. I've tried everything. I'm stuck.

Here's what I've learned: when someone says "I've tried everything," they usually mean "I've tried everything I can see from where I'm standing." Being stuck isn't about lack of effort - it's about lack of perspective. The answer isn't working harder. It's seeing differently.

It's a cold January morning, and I'm reflecting on my first full year focused on Taggart People.

Three simple questions from the world of cycling have me thinking about what 2025 taught me, what I'm after in 2026, and how I'll get there. What are you carrying forward into the new year?

I got a tattoo this week. Four and a half hours in the chair, and yes, it hurt. But the pain wasn't the point. The story was.

It's Mont Ventoux - the climb that nearly broke me, and the moment I understood something crucial about leadership that 25 years in corporate life never taught me.

When you're halfway up a mountain in 35-degree heat, legs screaming, lungs burning, there's no corporate theatre. Just you, the road, and a choice: keep going or quit.

If you're a senior leader right now - carrying the weight whilst everyone looks to you for clarity, navigating change you didn't ask for, expected to have answers you're still figuring out - you know exactly what that feels like.

Here's what I learned on that mountain about reading the conditions, leading from different positions, and why the strongest leaders don't climb alone. Sometimes the best leadership insights don't come from business school. They come from knowing what it takes to get to the summit.

"I help adults become better adults." A phrase borrowed from Andrew Shorter at JLR that captures exactly what leadership development is really about.

Not fixing broken people - just helping us all become better at handling complexity, understanding ourselves, and leading others.

What happens when the career you thought you'd have doesn't match the one you're living?

A personal reflection on drifting, finding home, and why the gap between who we thought we'd be and who we are might just be information we can use.

Connecting with people is my thing. I often say it's my 'superpower'. But you can't force it.

After leaving my last role 11 months ago, I'm reflecting on how easy it is to lose touch with people who mattered.

I'm sat in the optician's chair, trying contact lenses for the first time at 51 years old, and I can't shake the feeling that something fundamental has shifted.

Not just my vision (though that's definitely different). It's deeper than that. My face comes with glasses. Has done since I was 17. They're part of who I am. Without them? I look like a stranger to myself.

But when you're cycling on busy roads and the Garmin's getting blurry, the coffee menu's unreadable, and that car or tree is just a touch too undefined - you adapt, or you risk something worse than discomfort.

"What use am I?"

That hit home. I hear you, and I am you.

My client had just said that out loud in a coaching session. We were exploring purpose – that most fundamental of topics that comes up time and time again in my leadership work. Specifically, we were unpicking the tensions between what we want to be doing and what we feel we must.

It was a powerful moment for him. Led us into an impactful discussion about what makes us happy, how we define ourselves, and the pressures we put on ourselves.

What landed differently for me was how close this conversation was to home.

Because I was there. Not that long ago. Sitting at my desk thinking the exact same thing. Have I hit my level of incompetence? I can't go on like this, but I don't know what the alternative is. People rely on me. I can't let them down.

If you're carrying that question right now, here's what I learned about finding purpose when you're stuck...

Yesterday, I returned to facilitate a team session at a company I'd left 2.5 years ago. They'd changed, I'd changed, but what struck me was how this team had created something rare - a space where people could be themselves completely and deliver brilliantly through their unique strengths. It got me reflecting on my own journey back from some of the lowest points in my career, and what I've learned about taking ownership when you're feeling stuck.

A lot gets written about purpose these days. It's one of those words we throw around without really thinking about what it means. But when I was asked "why I set up on my own" this year, it made me dig deeper than expected. Here's what I learned when I stopped giving the polished elevator pitch and started being honest about the journey - from running away from corporate games to finding a purpose that bridges personal authenticity with genuine service to others who feel stuck.

A coaching conversation reveals why servant leaders struggle to identify their own needs - and what it takes to lead with both heart and clarity.

Why does corporate life drain the joy out of work? In this post, I reflect on what so many leaders are searching for—and how coaching can help bring it back.

Wading through the sands of corporate life left me drained and stuck. Coaching helped me - and now I help leaders find clarity, traction, and joy in the journey.

Ever feel like you’re waist-deep in something, unsure how to move forward? This reflection explores purpose, coaching, and what it means to wade into the work — fully.

What if the biggest barrier to your leadership growth… was the story you’ve been told about what a ‘real leader’ looks like? Let’s rewrite that myth.

A group ride. A punctured tyre. And a team that quietly stepped in. In this blog, I reflect on the myth of carrying it all and what high-performing teams do instead: share.

Whether I’m coaching runners or senior leaders, the principle is the same: it’s not my session. This blog explores the quiet power of showing up in service of someone else’s growth.

Three months into life outside the corporate world, I sat down to write — no overthinking, no filtering. Just a list of 15 things I’ve learned so far. From Sunday night dread to the power of saying no to bad clients, here’s what’s surprised me, grounded me, and kept me moving forward.

Many leaders feel stuck — not because they lack skills or drive, but because of limiting beliefs they’ve internalised over time. These beliefs shape how we see ourselves and what we believe is possible. As a leadership coach, I’ve seen firsthand how powerful it can be when clients start challenging these internal narratives. In this blog, I explore how coaching helps surface those beliefs, reframe them, and unlock new possibilities — using tools like Byron Katie’s four liberating questions.