Women in Financial Services
Understanding behaviour and managing emotions to become a better leader
Rhian Bowler / 22 Nov 2017
E2W members and visitors were treated to a rare, insightful talk recently on understanding behaviour and managing emotions to become a better leader. The event was kindly hosted by the Bank of Montreal and delivered by respected executive coach Fiona Murden of Aroka.
There are many myths around behaviour and how we manage our emotions. We can’t, and arguably, shouldn’t try to control our emotions, but instead learn to recognise our pressure points, resulting emotions, and how to manage them. Young children are often told to stop crying or don’t feel sad but the more we try to suppress a thought, the harder it is not to think about it. “If I tell you not to think about a white polar bear, what happens?”, challenged Fiona! Can you stop thinking about it?
Understanding your own behaviours and how you manage your emotional reaction to situations will start to set you apart from others. It was accepted that the more senior you become, the more likely it is that you will need
- to identify more than one respected leader with attributes to which you aspire, and
- to create your own authentic style that is informed by your enhanced emotional intelligence and self-awareness.
By the end of the session, experiences were shared (with some oohs and aahs!), insights noted and a mental note made to help develop a new tool kit to manage emotions. We were all left wanting more!
New E2W member Suki Notay, a commodities broker at GFI Group, attending her first Leadership Event, commented,
“I found it very interesting and informative. Fiona herself was very engaging and the information was all well presented. I was particularly interested to hear about her work within different organisations, such as the Houses of Parliament. I'd rate this talk 9/10 as it was very well organised and well presented.”
Other comments included:
“It really made me stop and think about how I manage my emotions in difficult situations.”
“I loved the camaraderie in the room and sharing stories so we could learn from each other.”
Detailed notes on this event can be found in the E2W members’ library. For more information about our E2W membership and future events visit our website.
Rhian Bowler is the E2W career coach with many years’ experience of human resources and coaching at leading organisations. She finds supporting individuals considering their options after school, identifying their first jobs, changing career paths, and returning to work after career breaks very rewarding.
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