Bullying Advice

Every bullying situation is different. Bullies have a knack of finding out what buttons to press to get the reactions they want from you. So you have to be adaptable. Use the following general ideas by adapting them to suit your situation. Realise that bullying is ALWAYS ABOUT THE BULLY. I can´t stress this enough. People bully because they get something out of it. Sometimes it´s a feeling of control, significance, power or even inclusion. If they... Read More

Ignore bullies?

When training teachers in schools, I like to have them reflect on how they currently deal with bullying. I ask this: “When a child comes to you and tells you someone has said something nasty to them. How do you treat this child? How many of you would tell the child to “Just ignore” them?” Cue a sizeable group of teachers putting their hands in the air. Then I ask the question: “Which child is the one being ignored here?” The... Read More

Case Study Part 2

I found Charlie and his Dad, Ian, very easy to work with. They were very keen to learn new skills and were very open minded with the concepts I was putting across. This made the training session relatively short. We did about 5 hours actual training time. (A maximum time would typically be around 7 hours). First of all, we did a couple of exercises on how to feel good under any circumstances. We used body language, imagination, rapport, facial expressions,... Read More

Bullying in Schools

It is very likely that more school pupils suffer from bullying than any other group of people. Children are in the process of developing their social skills. They are learning what they can and can’t do in social situation, what works and what doesn’t and what they can or can’t get away with. This completely natural process, where everyone is discovering their possibilities and limitations, is bound to breed bullying behaviour. Teachers and... Read More

Why I like martial arts

Firstly, I’m not a martial artist. Also, I don’t think that children need martial arts training to stop the bullies. So why do I like it? Martial arts training almost always develops good emotional skills. With a good instructor you learn discipline, respect, confidence and self esteem. The physical skills don’t matter much as far as bullying is concerned. I actually disapprove of Dads who send their kids to martial arts classes... Read More

Get in The Corner to talk about bullying

Yesterday, ‘The Herald’ newspaper published an article on a poll by ‘The Corner’. The main outcome showed that: “Young people have a high awareness of bullying, but often don’t know what to do about it, or who to turn to” I have become increasing sceptical of bullying awareness campaigns. It is important to know what is going on in schools and workplaces, of course. But no bullying awareness campaign will... Read More

Bullies

In order to change the behaviour of bullies it is important that we understand them. Most people find it difficult to comprehend bullying. How could people be so cruel? What would make someone want to hurt people? In this article, I would to offer you some insight into the mind of a bully so that you have a starting point for designing some ideas which can help to change the way they behave. Most bullies don’t know they are bullies. They don’t... Read More

Being Bullied

An incredibly common question for victims of bullying to ask themselves is “Why is it happening to me?” Often this leads to a second, and an entirely unhelpful, question: “What’s wrong with me?” Unsurprisingly, the answers you come up with can lead to low self-esteem, a lack of confidence and reclusiveness. None of this will make the bullying stop. In fact, it’s far more likely to make you an even tastier target for the bullies. The question... Read More

National Bullying Helpline

The National Bullying Helpline is a charity set up to help eradicate Bullying in all corners of our society; in the Workplace, the Playground, in the Home and in the Community. BULLYING IS DISCRIMINATION. BULLYING DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE … any one of us may be targeted Call 0845 22 55 787 for help The National Bullying Helpline was initially founded to assist those who struggle with bullying at work. There is much focus today on Workplace Investigations,... Read More