On the 4th of July, we had the rare privilege of having our 17-almost-18-year-old at home for a change. So I asked him to take me out on a 420 sailboat. (He is a fairly competent sailor and racer and he agreed.)
For those not familiar with sailing a 420– it is a two-person performance trapeze and spinnaker racing dinghy. The word dinghy says a lot– it means a very small, unstable, fast boat.
Off we went on a beautiful summer day. I quickly needed to adjust to the small surface and the fast, smooth sailing required to keep the boat moving and upright!
Here are three important lessons I learned that day:
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- Expert Leadership: Whether you want to or not, there are times and situations where the team member with the expertise needs to be in charge. There was no room for parenting here. I was his student and his crew– (though I am being skipper in this photo–under his guidance). There was no hierarchy or age. On this day in this boat, he called the shots. Period. And I had to follow.
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- The Gift of Learning: There was no need for me to leave my cozy hammock to be on a fast, unstable boat that day! But I will remember that afternoon forever— as it taught me new skills, showed me the beauty in continuous learning, and gave me a window into my oldest son’s world. (He spends most of his life on a boat year-round).
- You Can’t Blame Your Crew When You Crash: Yup, I took my turn as skipper and I crashed into a supporting boat. I proceeded to yell at my son because we were crashing and he calmly looked at me and said, «Mama, you are in charge. You have the tiller. You are making us crash.» Many times I get frustrated with my team when something does not go as planned or a project is not completed in the way I wanted. But they can only be as GOOD AS MY LEADERSHIP! If YOUR team is NOT performing–it’s YOUR fault! You either HIRED WRONG or are not LEADING SUCCESSFULLY.
Do you want to plan an opportunity to grow and stretch? Take a minute and complete this exercise:
Let me know how you did and have a great rest of your week.
Earlier this week I was working with one of my clients when I realized that we were going in circles on one specific topic and that we were not really accessing new insights or shifting our thinking. While I say we, I mean me in a supporting/coaching role and my client as the center of the conversation.
At some point, I stopped the conversation and I invited my client to move beyond a logical conversation and engage another player. My client’s intuition. You can call it intuition, inner genie, higher voice, inspiration, whatever it is that you call that voice inside that sometimes has the best ideas. That typically, when you stop, breath and listen, knows the best way to move forward, solve the problem, address the issue.
This is what I want to invite you to access today. Whatever you are struggling with writing it down on a piece of paper. It doesn’t have to be a «BIG» struggle, it could be what you are making for dinner or how to deal with a difficult client, how to communicate with your spouse or relate to your team. Whatever your issue might be, write it down on a piece of paper.
Then take a minute, close your eyes, sit comfortably and listen to this recording that will guide you towards your own intuition.
Once you finish and staying as much as possible in a relaxed state… write three ways to go about the issue that you stated earlier.
Try it out, if nothing else, out of curiosity and see what comes up.
You can also use this WORKSHEET to take notes. If you are interested in learning more about ways to go deeper and work on yourself then just click: I’m Interested and I’ll take it from there.
Let me know how you did with this exercise, have a great rest of your week,
- DO YOUR RESEARCH: Before you start a conversation, do your homework and get CLEAR on:
- What exactly are they looking to learn/ accomplish/ explore?
- What may get in the way of their objectives? What is their pain point?
- What language do they use? From ACTUAL language (Spanish, English, Chinese) to more technical, cultural or age-appropriate language.
- FIND A WAY TO CONNECT EMOTIONALLY: What details of their lives can you study so you can begin with true RESONANCE? If you are talking to a child, what video games/ movies/ trends are they into? Start with that. If you are speaking in a new community, what can you learn/observe about their way of life which you can bring to the conversation?
- DON’T START WITH YOU: NEVER ever begin a conversation or a speaking engagement talking about yourself, your accomplishments or even using the word «I» in the first 60 seconds. (See if you can purposely wait 120 seconds before using the word «I».) To meet your audience where they are, you need to focus on THEM!
If you are interested in more «speaking» tips then check out my last webinar:
5 STEPS TO ROCK A STAGE & LAND A TEDx TALK
I’m off to deliver MY TALK to my audience here in the state of Washington!
Have a wonderful rest of your week.
She explained how the process of growing her business can sometimes be overwhelming– but she had just realized that all she has to do is stay connected with her PASSION as she takes the necessary steps to succeed.
Her compliment stayed with me and made me think about the journey of launching and running a business. I see many entrepreneurs who get discouraged and disheartened. They begin to dream of a full-time job as a diversion or escape. (Trust me, I’ve been there too!)
Running a business requires BOTH sides of the brain! The left, which is logical, analytical, strategic and the right– the creative, passionate, intuitive side.
Many times, in an attempt to “do things right” or “push hard” entrepreneurs forget to honor their right side– and they lose their CONNECTION to their IDEA. They lose the capacity to feel inspired, moved, driven and motivated by the idea that started their business.
So today I want to remind you WHY you need to bring your HEART back into your business if you want to reach those stretch goals:
- Speaking: Nothing is more powerful than someone who presents their product or service with passion and a clear conviction of its value proposition.
- Networking: Who wants to connect with someone who does not love the work they are doing? Nothing is more attractive than someone who lights up when they talk about their work.
- Customer Relations & Product Development: If you are passionate about what you do and the impact your business has in the world– then you are passionate about the experience your market has with your product or service! You are more likely to be engaged in continuous improvement, development, creative thinking and better servicing that experience for your customers.
This all sounds wonderful– but if you can’t find your HEART anywhere in your office, then my best advice is to start with: WHY?
Check out Simon Sinek’s TEDx talk and you’ll know what I’m talking about.
I found my WHY when I gave myself permission to openly take a stand for Ideas that Impact the World. So if you need help getting your IDEA to impact the world on a larger scale, then let’s talk!
Have a wonderful rest of your week.