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Leadership

The big eek!

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One of the things we talked about on our Intersection call last week was the big ‘Eeek!’

And how one of the ways we know we are tapping into our zone of genius – our calling – is that it comes with some Eeek! attached to it.

It feels scary. Risky. It might even feel downright terrifying.

Why is the big Eeek! a part of this process?

There are a couple of reasons:

1) Our resistance/ego is triggered when we come face to face with our calling – and it is going to stir up ALLLL our stuff. All our worries, doubts and fears. All the reasons why it won’t work and “have you lost your mind?”

The role of our ego is to keep us where we are at – because the KNOWN is safe to the ego (even when it’s not desired.) And boy oh boy can our egos kick up a stink! Imagine they are fighting to the death to keep you where you are at… it can feel that extreme.

And yet, the ego doesn’t really have power over us when we shift our focus to spirit. The more we build our spirit muscle, the less power ego has over us. ?

2) Our calling matters. Deeply. And tapping into our zone of genius brings us face to face with the deepest part of ourselves. Our truth.

Part of the lure of the zone of excellence is that it doesn’t really matter that much – that’s part of the ‘trap’ that keeps us there.

“Oh well, if this doesn’t work out it’s not that big of a deal. I’ll find something else.” <– that’s how you know you are in zone of excellence.

When this clicked for me my zone of genius became SO much clearer… because it scared the crap out of me!

I ran from that for a long time (years). Until I embraced the fact that there is no way to step into our zone of genius without the big Eeek! Without feeling like I might want to barf some days.

There is no way to step into the zone of genius and bring our ‘control freak’ nature with us. The part of us that wants to lay out a plan, see all the steps and wrap their arms around every variable, so that it doesn’t feel so risky.

Stepping into this space requires faith in the unknown and the unseen.

It requires support for WHO we are – people who are also on this journey and have our back. Who are there to remind us of our truth and that all is well.

I’m putting together a small group to explore this space and walk this path together. To navigate YOUR intersection of spirit and business – would you like to join us?

Tina

4 questions to ask yourself when you are too busy

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“Help me Tina! I’m too busy and something needs to change…”

I get it. Being too busy isn’t sustainable and doesn’t serve you or your clients. The good news? It’s fixable, so grab your to-do list and ask yourself the following questions.

Question 1: Does this really need to be done? (If yes, now or later?)

We often have things on our to-do lists that either:

  • don’t need to be done at all – they are ideas, maybes or “wouldn’t it be nice ifs”. They are things we are thinking about, but that we haven’t actually made a firm decision on yet. Ideas are not to-dos – create a separate idea list and get those things off your to-do list!
  • don’t need to be done NOW  if you aren’t strategic about planning ahead, then as a default everything on your to-do list feels like it needs to be done NOW. Work through each item and ask yourself – when does this really need to be done? Could it be put off until next week? Maybe even next month? Take your list and put realistic due dates beside each item.

You should be left with a list of things that are actually do in the next week or so – and a list of things that aren’t due yet (or are ideas and are no longer on the list!)

Question 2: Do I need to be the one to do this?

If you are anything like I was for years, as a default you feel like you must do everything. You are good at what you do. You are used to being the one to get it all done, but now things are starting to fall behind and slip through the cracks.

Run through your list again and ask yourself – could someone else do this for me? Be aware of the following when you answer:

  • “Well yes, someone else could do this for me but it’s only me so I have to” If you don’t have anyone working with you right now this could be true, and you also have the power to change that. Growth dictates that you will need to hire help at some point – when you do it is up to you.
  • “But no one can do it as well as me – so I have to be the one to do it” This is a dangerous spot to get stuck in, because as long as you believe it to be true, it is… and it could be the thing sucks the life right out of you. Yes, you may be the best at doing something but that doesn’t mean you can’t train another person to be as good as you or find someone who does it already and bring them on board.

The goal here is simple – identify the things that others could do for you. It doesn’t mean you have to hire a bunch of people tomorrow, but at the very least you can look to give more to the people you have already and plan ahead for getting more support (which becomes a light at the end of the busy tunnel!)

This second question can be a doozy as it brings up all kinds of stuff for many of us – it can have our inner control freak kicking and screaming! I highly recommend getting the support of a coach or OBM to help you here if you go through your list and still have your name beside every task. An outside eye can often see what you can’t.

Question 3: How can I create more space?

At this point you should have a realistic list of what needs to be done in the next week or so. Now you want to ensure you have the space and time to get it done. Here are two of my favorite tips:

  • Plan ahead –book the time in your schedule to get stuff done. You might book in specific tasks, or you might book in time for types of tasks (ie: writing time, client time).
  • Set boundaries – distraction is the death of productivity. Be it team, clients, family or social media – every time you get distracted it takes you off track, and for many people it happens all day long! Close your door. Turn off your phone and email. Let people know when you aren’t available and when you are. And get really good at saying no (because they will test your boundaries!)

Question 4: Do I need to renegotiate any deadlines?

If you are truly in over your head and can’t get everything done, then you need to revise your deadlines with clients, team members or whoever may be waiting on you. I get that this sucks and you may hate having to do it, but it’s better for you to own up to something ahead of time vs. having people get upset with you because they are waiting/asking.

To simply say to someone “Hey, I got in over my head here and that’s on me. I won’t be able to get X to you until next Monday and wanted to let you know.” Yes, you might need to make concessions for being late if this affects their timelines.

Even if they are frustrated, people will respect you for stepping up and being real with what is going on – and quite often they are OK with adjusted timelines if they know ahead of time.

The beauty of these 4 questions is that you can use them over and again. Every time you find yourself too busy work through this process, and ideally overtime you won’t need to anymore.

Let me know how it goes k?

Tina

When you aren’t getting the results you want

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“The best way to know what you are thinking is to look at your results” – Brooke Castillo

Pause for a moment on that.

If our thinking creates our results – then what are your results telling you about your thoughts? 

If you think that you can’t find enough clients, then you won’t find enough clients.

If you think that no one will pay your higher rates, then you will struggle to get to a yes with your higher rates.

If you want to hire but secretly think that no one can do it as well as you, then you won’t find anyone who can do it as well as you.

I’ve coached hundreds of service providers in the past 10 years and I know this to be true.

It ALL starts with our thoughts.

I’ve had clients tell me all the reasons they can’t/won’t achieve their goals and they are often proven right. Until we tweak their thinking.

And I’ve had clients create goals that seemed almost impossible given their current situations, but because they believed it was possible they made it happen.

I’ve seen a person charge $20/hr and another person charge $120/hr for the exact same thing.

I’ve seen people tolerate clients who aren’t a fit for them for years, while others find amazing clients seemingly overnight.

It’s easy to think they have “something special” or just “got lucky”. Nope.

They just think differently than those who aren’t getting the same result.

Our thoughts lead our actions which create our results. If our thoughts are misaligned with what we desire our actions will be misaligned (or non-existent) and we won’t see results.

What are your results telling you about your thoughts?

And what needs to change in order to get different results?

Highly recommend listening to the episode of Brooke’s The Life Coach School podcast called Results Truth – it’s a doozy! In a good way.

Tina

letting go of a long term client

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We had this question posted in our Certified OBM Facebook group the other day:

“When do you know it’s time to move on from a client?”

People come into our lives for a reason, season or a lifetime.

The same is true with clients.

We may work with a client for a ‘reason’ – a specific project or objective that has an end date in place right from the start.

We may work with clients for a ‘season’ – ongoing support without a planned end date.

And outside of being an owner (or partner) in a business, it’s rare that you would have a lifetime commitment to a client. 😉

We are meant to stop working together at some point, but it’s not always easy to see when that point has come! 

There are two questions I recommend asking when you are wondering whether or not to leave a client.

1) Am I still EXCITED about the client? Do you enjoy the work you are doing? Do you look forward to hearing from that client? Plugging into the vision of what they are creating? Boredom can be a sign that it might be time to move on…

2) Am I able to do my BEST WORK? Do the current needs of the business match what you do best? Are you able to grow and expand your skillset within the work you are doing together? The thing you were hired for originally may not be what the business needs next. Likewise, as you continue to grow and evolve you may find yourself wanting to focus in areas that the business doesn’t need from you right now.

The bottom line is this.

Nothing is meant to last forever, even when we wish it could! But staying past our ‘expiration date’ is a disservice to you, your client & the business. Staying when you are no longer excited about the business or able to do your best work is going to show itself at some point, and probably not in a positive way.

And it’s also really hard to leave! Especially when we love the client and care about their business.

Honor the season and let it go when the time is right.

Tina

Are you hiring to the task or the vision?

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There are two different ways to approach hiring.

You can hire to the TASK.

Or you can hire to the VISION.

When you hire to the task you – and the person you hire – are focused on WHAT needs to be done. On the specifics. The nitty-gritty. The stuff.

When you hire to the vision you are focused on the WHY. The bigger picture. Bringing the pieces together.

Traditional hiring is very task focused. Create a description of the role. Find someone who has those skills. Hire them and manage them to make sure stuff gets done.

Vision based hiring takes it to another level.

It’s about first being crystal clear on the vision of your business. Why you are doing what you do. Who you are impacting.

And first looking to find people who CONNECT with your vision. People who are aligned with the mission and excited about the possibilities.

Then looking at tasks of the role, and either hiring to the needed skillset OR being open to training someone to the role. (I’m a huge fan of training someone up into a role when they are aligned to the vision and bring the enthusiasm and energy we are looking for.)

When you hire to the vision you hire people who CARE.

Who care about whether or not things get done, because they see the bigger picture and know their part in it. They are willing to go the extra mile when needed. To look at additional ways to support at a higher level.

They bring the best of who they are to the table, because they are plugged into something that matters.

This is the kind of team that rises up and makes a real difference in the world.

This is the heart of my new book Hire Up – where I’m exploring the impact of connection & collaboration in teams.

All things are possible when we come together. Work together. Laugh together. Create together.

Wouldn’t you agree?

Is it you or is it them? (team issues)

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I do a lot of work with people around their teams – and what I’ve come to see is that it’s a 50/50 split when something isn’t working.

50% of the time it’s a “wrong person was hired for the role” issue.

And the other 50% of the time it’s a leadership issue – not leading them effectively so that they can do their best work.

As a leader, it’s easy to default to assuming the first part is the problem – it’s them. Although this can be true, I recommend checking first if it might be a leadership issue.

Vs just saying “this person isn’t a fit” and looking to hire again, which can be costly in terms of time, energy and money!

To come from a place of curiosity and ask ourselves:

Is it possible to take a different approach to leadership that might bring out the best in this person? That might make it work?

Have I been the best leader that I can possibly be here?

The beauty of leadership is that it’s often the little things that can make a big difference. Slight tweaks in the way we engage with our team members can – at times – change everything.

I’m thinking about writing a series on what some of these little leadership tweaks are – if you are interested, comment and let me know k?

Tina