goal-setting Archives - Page 3 of 4 - Carpenter Smith Consulting, llc

From Overwhelmed to Outstanding

December 26, 2016

One of the things we know (and we do mean KNOW) is that moving from Overwhelmed to Outstanding is critical if you’re going to feel happy, productive, and effective—and it’s pivotal to leading people in your organizations who need to be passionate, committed, and innovative to create success. People who are overwhelmed get focused on the next thing on their to-do list rather than thinking broadly about what they’re doing and how it contributes to a larger vision. They isolate…

The Value of Hindsight

December 19, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

We’re at the time of year when people start to think about their futures and what they want the next year to bring. It’s often a feeling of a fresh start, a blank page, an open door. Yet, for many of us, we make that start with a list of resolutions or goals that barely make it to week two. And, that makes sense when you think of what it takes to create the life you want to live. To…

The Road to Nowhere…

October 31, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

One of the key aspects of being a good leader is determining the road forward and figuring out how to stay on that road despite the sometimes unfavorable conditions. We often meet individuals who turn off the road to success for what appears to be an immediate gain without considering how this short-term diversion will impact their long-term goal. Each of these distractions puts them on the road to nowhere. We’ve been working with a lot of organizations of late…

Cleaning the Back of the Refrigerator

October 17, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

Linda was recently describing the experience of doing her PhD dissertation research. She said that although she was interested in the question she was studying, she felt fearful and incompetent about taking on such a large project knowing that it would require her to do a fair amount of work that simply didn’t interest her. So, instead of tackling her dissertation she cleaned the back of the refrigerator—literally! As she scrubbed, she realized that in the face of…

Prepare for Success

October 10, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

Last summer there was an article by Kathryn Schulz in the New Yorker called “The Really Big One” about the scientifically based prediction of a devastating earthquake that is overdue in the northwest. Living in Portland, OR, we took notice. At this point, over one year later, there is considerable effort going into preparing for this potential disaster. Most people understand the need to prepare for disaster even if they don’t do it. What most of us forget is that…

Bouncing Back

August 29, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

This is our final post in our series on Choosing Happiness. If you haven’t had an opportunity to read the last few posts, please do! They can, in fact, help you to choose happiness. We began with an overview of the research, taught you to Notice Your Life, explored two core practices, Gratitude and Forgiveness, spent some time helping you get to Know What You Want and last week we talked about the power of Kindness and Service. This week we want…

Kindness and Service

August 22, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

This month we’re focusing on Choosing Happiness. We began with an overview of the research that shows what the happiest people do in their lives, then we worked through some key ways you can increase your happiness. We started by teaching you to Notice Your Life, then focused on two core practices, Gratitude and Forgiveness, and last week we offered you an exercise to help you Know What You Want. Interestingly, doing this series on Choosing Happiness has brought a lot of…

Knowing What You Want

August 15, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

Three weeks ago, we began our focus on Choosing Happiness. We began with an overview of what the research shows that the happiest people do in their lives. Then we started by teaching you a simple and powerful way to Notice Your Life. Last week we focused on two core practices to support you choosing happiness, Gratitude and Forgiveness. We have heard from a lot of you during this series and clearly gratitude and forgiveness struck a meaningful chord with…

Never Give Up

February 1, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

“All you can do is give it your best shot.” We often hear people say this as a bit of a throwaway, not fully understanding what it can mean in your life. We know that life is filled with challenges. You started the new year and whether you made a list of resolutions or not, you likely had some thoughts about how you would like 2016 to go. Since that day, less than a month ago, more has happened than…

Make 2016 Your Best Year Ever!

January 4, 2016

Monday Morning Business Coach

Welcome to 2016, the year that you are going to claim your individual power! But how, you ask? Not by making resolutions. Instead, we want to you have 2-3 specific goals that you can achieve this year, goals that enable you to create your best life. Come on, let’s get started. Spend a few minutes thinking about the following areas of your life (if there are other areas you want to address be sure to include them in the “other”…