Most of us can recall an event in our life that shaped us—something that if asked about you could say, “Before the event I was that way, and after the event I’m this way.” Most of these before and after scenarios weren’t necessarily by choice. It usually takes something pretty big for people to be moved from one state of being to another. In fact, most people have a before/after that is related to something where they had little…
There’s a lot written on following your passion in work and life. Yet, unfocused passion won’t get you where you want to go. Think for a moment about the things you’re passionate about. Recently, when we asked several clients about their passion, they listed a wide range of things, including great food, dance, the qualities of good coffee, cheese, wine, etc. When we work with clients to define their purpose, it’s often a compelling and active list. Purpose…
This week, we got a call from a client who asked to meet immediately. He came into the office and said he was “freaked out” after a meeting with a key client. He explained that, as a consultant himself, he’d gone to meet with a client—an important and quite large corporate client—and the COO had implied there were concerns about a project he’d worked on for the company. He said that he’d been professional and open in the conversation, but…
Over the past few years, one of our great privileges is running small groups for women in the process of claiming their power. Taking small steps consistently over time, these women make major changes in their lives and their world. This week, in one of these groups, one of the women talked about the surprising twists of this last year and seemed to almost feel apologetic for how difficult her life has been. Quite often, we see our clients…
One of the hardest things about being human is that sometimes life hits us with very powerful and very painful experiences—emotions that we can’t just ignore. Emotional pain is one of the great disrupters in life and in the workplace. Good leaders don’t ignore pain, but they don’t succumb to it either: they lead through it and they find ways to help others do the same. When confronted with pain, a good leader will acknowledge it and then determine the…
Many of us spend a lot of time trying to hide the ways that we’re broken. We hide the wounds we have from our family of origin, we hide the ways we feel stupid or unsure, and we’re always trying to cover up the wrinkles and age marks that reveal that we’ve lived. You’re probably thinking to yourself, “Of course we do!” And, it’s true that for many people it’s simply too scary to show the world your scars…
This year we’re focusing on how to help our clients move from Overwhelmed to Outstanding. Today we want to talk with you about a very serious topic: how chronic overwhelm will cause you to burn out. What is Burnout? Burnout is a very real set of physical symptoms, cognitive challenges, and emotional reactions that can be quite debilitating—in some cases even lead to depression and suicide. And the tricky part about it is that it can come and go, making…
We want you to matter in your own life. Period. If you can create a purpose-filled, rich, and satisfying life then everyone and everything you touch will be better for it. Your energy, mood, creativity, and openness are enhanced when you see yourself as valuable and worthwhile. That same energy, mood, creativity, and openness matter to the people you live with, work with, or even bump into on the street. These are challenging times in our world and our…
Most of us understand the importance of grieving the loss of a person or a pet that we loved and were attached to. What’s harder for many of us to understand is the importance of grieving the loss of a desired or imagined future. You see, when you’re planning a future and it doesn’t materialize, there’s grief in that too. Before you can grow from it, you must grieve it. Let us explain. An executive coaching client of ours had…
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…