Hi, I'm Daria
I worked in corporate leadership roles for 15 years and saw organisations create both good and bad transitions into leadership for their new leaders.
And I was struck by just how bad the bad transitions were – and how common. Over 80% of leaders I have surveyed didn’t receive any real training, mentoring, coaching or support until they were well into their leadership role.
They were handed a new job description and expected to magically develop effective leadership skills and strategies. As though being an excellent individual contributor is exactly the same as managing the workloads, personality, needs, preferences, strengths, and career plans of other individual contributors.
No transition plan. No training and development. No coaching.
So these new leaders had to make every mistake in the book. They had to learn everything for themselves. And they were stuck in a feedback desert, never knowing what their boss thought of their performance until their annual review.
And their teams were frustrated at the lack of leadership, guidance, and development they receive.
No one wins with this approach.
I knew there had to be a better way. So I made it my mission to develop leaders for good.
No more "promote and hope"
To get a solid return on investment when you promote people to leadership roles, you need to make early, smart investments in their skill development.
To do this well, you need:
- team members with leadership potential,
- a clear leadership development strategy, and
- expert leadership training and development resources
It's time to do leadership development differently
Preparation for effective leadership starts well before the actual promotion, and continues long after the shine has worn off the new job title.
When you send someone on an expensive external course once in a blue moon, their development is slow and patchy, because they’re trying to absorb everything in one go, and they don’t get a chance to practice and embed their new skills. Your people and your business will benefit when you provide potent, timely, and frequent development opportunities.
For in-house programmes, I offer a fully-customised solution for your needs – no off-the-shelf stuff here! We assess the current leadership capability in the organisation, identify your ideal future state, and then I deliver a programme that helps you close the gap.
For first-time leaders, I created The Lightning Leadership Lab to help new leaders learn the practical skills they need to step into their new roles competent, with confidence that they can lead well, and with a built-in community of peers to strengthen their learning and provide ongoing support over their careers.
Read on to find out more about my approach, and the services and products I offer.
Services at a glance
Click on any service to visit the associated page for more information.
In-house development programmes
Your very own in-house development programme can be run with as few as five participants, right up to as many as 30 in a session.
The programme focus on what will shift the dial for your people and your organisation.
I have over 20 years experience in leadership development, and draw on a wide range of skills, models, and strategies to build a tailored programme that gives your current and future leaders what they need to succeed.
The Lightning Leadership Lab
First-time leaders are often expected to step into their role with no specific training on how to manage, lead, and guide their team members.
The Lightning Leadership Lab is an online programme targetting the skills your new leaders need to lead well today, and into the future.
Covering leadership and management essentials like feedback, delegation, coaching, and goal-setting, the Lab is heavy on practical skills that can be applied immediately.
Coaching
Choose from a short-term programme for focused results, or an ongoing engagement to build your capability.
Sessions are 60 minutes, and you choose the frequency that works for your schedule and budget.
Coaching creates space in your schedule for reflection, insight, inspired action, and celebration of your progress and achievements.
Training & facilitation
Don’t get stuck with off-the-shelf workshops that don’t meet your needs.
I offer fully-tailored workshops for your team or organisation. Whether it’s training in leadership, teamwork, communication, or continuous improvement, or facilitated workshops to develop a strategic plan or transform your culture, you’ll get what you need, and see results fast.
Personal Mastermind Book club
Join a group of friendly, supportive, deep-thinking women from around New Zealand in the Personal Mastermind book club, as we deep-dive into a new book every two months.
Each week, we discuss 1-2 chapters of a book, and look for ways to apply the insights to our life and work.
The Personal Mastermind Community is supportive, encouraging, and down-to-earth. And it’s full of people committed to their personal and professional development.
The Strengths Deck
Feeling stuck, disillusioned, burnout and disengaged at work? These are all signs that you’re not working to your strengths.
The Strengths Deck is a 3-step process that helps you identify and work in your Zone of Genius.
With a clear understanding of your strengths, you can more easily work in your Zone of Genius, and be more motivated, passionate, and productive as a result.
Work with me
Strengths for
TEAMS
Empower your people to bring their best selves to work – operating from their Zones of Genius – making them more productive, engaged, and energised, so that they and the business can thrive.
Strengths for INDIVIDUALS
Get unstuck in your career with a clear path based on your strengths. From making a few tweaks to landing a new role that’s a better fit, you’ll enjoy the benefits of your strengths for years to come.
Strengths MASTERMIND
If you’re done with being ordinary, join us as we learn, grow and develop our personal mastery. We meet regularly to discuss and apply new knowledge and wisdom, and we’d love for you to join us.
Read Unleash Your Awesome
I wrote ‘Unleash Your Awesome’ to help you identify your Genius strengths and spend more time living and working from your Zone of Genius.
Because there’s more to life than hard work!
‘Unleash Your Awesome’ is your tool to find clarity on what you love, what you’re great at, and how you can achieve more without burning out.
In fact, you might even discover that you can build a fulfilling career out of doing what you’re great at and love!
Built for motivated, busy people, this handbook is your practical, easy-to-implement guide to identifying and leveraging your strengths.
‘Unleash Your Awesome’ is based on my popular and fun strengths-discovery tool, The Strengths Deck.
And to help you get the most out of your read, I created a free downloadable workbook – all the details are inside the book.
Unleash Your Awesome is available as a paperback, eBook, and audiobook, on all your favourite platforms. The Strengths Deck cards are available exclusively from The Strengths Deck shop – grab the cards and book for a special deal with the ‘Unleash Your Awesome bundle’.
What clients are saying
When people work in their Zone of Genius they are more engaged, passionate and productive.
If you think I can help but you’ve got questions, book a free 30-minute discovery call to see if my approach is right for you and your team.
* Note: links to products or services on this website may contain affiliate links. This means that, if you purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.