Join me as we explore my latest coaching insights.

In the southern hemisphere, summer brings a unique opportunity every year. First comes Christmas when our work life is (almost) forgotten as families reunite, share food and gifts, and we anticipate a New Year and a fresh start. Then comes January, now almost gone, with quiet roads and empty offices, gifting us the opportunity to reflect, largely unencumbered by work concerns, about how we want to live our lives. Small wonder that most New Year resolutions are about giving more to those areas of life we've neglected - our health, our family, the people we mentor, our spiritual self.

I was interested to read in the Harvard Business Review last month an article entitled "The relationship you need to get right" (HBR, Oct 2011) - all about how the relationship between sponsor and protégé works best when it helps both parties. As you can read in my previous post on this blog, "Making the Master-Apprentice model work for you", I 100% agree. The authors even use the same words as I did: "a two-way street".

There’s a proven and centuries-old way of building intellectual capital in organisations. It is one of the most efficient ways for staff to cultivate their learning capacity and remain engaged and motivated. It’s the Master-Apprentice model. The theory is simple: as a master, you develop others, and as an apprentice, you learn from your supervisors and mentors.

It's an exciting time. I'm building my practice, Beaton Executive Coaching, and have just launched my new website. And I've also decided that after years of writing ideas down on bits of paper and filing them away, I'm going to start writing them down here, to share with friends, colleagues and clients. It's a new adventure and I hope you'll join me on the journey.