Welcome to The Second Act

By Sandy Burgham Reflections on lessons learnt from my late mother As my 50th birthday loomed, I experienced the usual angst mixed with incredulity that I had probably passed the halfway point. The wake-up call was also due to my own mother having died in her 50s. At the time, she had seemed so old, but as I crept toward

By Sandy Burgham Nearly all of the individuals that I coach are senior executives in their mid-life, and seeking help in exploring leadership issues and opportunities. By pulling back and observing their work experiences in the greater context of their life, breakthroughs in leadership thinking and being can occur. We all overuse a particular word, and mine is “journey”. I

By Sandy Burgham Mid-life reinvention is a double-edged sword. While there is already a lifetime of experiences, and if lucky, a financial foundation to build on, with age comes some unconscious habits, which can sometimes unwittingly hold a person back.   One of the keys to discovering patterns of thinking that may be holding back an individual from change is

By Sandy Burgham   The trick, says Sandy Burgham, is to take your New Year resolutions one step at a time You know the drill. Make a resolution to start a new behavior in January, overcompensate for it first in December, enjoy the first couple of weeks before you find yourself backsliding by February. You and 92% of other resolution

  I love Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg’s nonprofit organization, LeanIn.org,  They have just announced a partnership with Getty Images, one of the biggest providers of stock photography, to offer a special collection of images that it says represent women and families in more empowering ways.   “When we see images of women and girls and men, they often fall into the stereotypes that

By Sandy Burgham As a girl I used to ask my Dad what he wanted for Christmas and he would always answer emphatically, “All I need is love”. I remember thinking “what a stupid, boring request — who does think he is, a Beatle or something?” I couldn’t wait to be older so I could afford to buy chocolate biscuits,

Here is an interview with Gill South (who incidentally is a fabulous woman as well as a great journo) that appeared in the Herald online Nov 2012 about women entrepreneurs.   Executive coach Sandy Burgham, Sandy Burgham & Associates talks to Gill South about women entrepreneurs. She spoke at last week’s Co.OfWomen summit in Auckland, a group designed for women who work

By Sandy Burgham When I last sat tertiary exams at around 20 years of age, I remember thinking how much I was looking forward to be grown up so I wouldn’t have to sit exams again. I never would have predicted that some 30 years later I would opt to do precisely that of my own accord. My motivation to

By Sandy Burgham Returning to the workforce is a very personal journey, writes Sandy Burgham I collect personal stories of reinvention, mid-life change and reawakening. It is part of what I do as a coach but it is also of great interest to me as a former researcher. One of the micro-trends I have witnessed over the last five years

By Sandy Burgham Scientist, social entrepreneur and all round favourite New Zealander Sir Ray Avery has a unique, if not sobering, way of looking at life. “When you’re born, you’re born with 30,000 days,” he has said. “That’s it. The best strategic planning I can give to you is to think about that.” At 65 he estimates he has around