As the New Year hits, most of us turn to recapping the year behind us, then setting goals for the year to come. Goals are fantastic as they help us set a direction. If you don't know where you are trying to go, how do you ever know if you get there?

When I think about resiliency as a goal, I think of being resilient as building a better foundation, so that we are more able to adapt, flex, and grow through the things life brings our way. Being resilient means demonstrating our ability to effectively and easily navigate our lives.

We have all heard the motto; "It is not what happens to us, but how we respond that matters." I am forever working to increase both my own and my children's level of resiliency. I want us to be prepared for those times when we may be knocked around, or even down. I want us to get back up, dust ourselves off, and have a reserve of energy to make what we want happen.

If you wish to take a look at your level of resiliency (or how well you bounce back), try taking a look at some of these aspects of your life.

• How healthy are the key relationships in your life?
• Are you able to nurture a positive view of yourself?
• Do you accept change as part of living?
• Do you see crisis as an insurmountable problem (perhaps it is part of our journey)?
• Do you know your goals and continue to move towards them by taking decisive action?

Try to slow your pace a little. Stop, look, and listen, so that you understand what is really happening vs. what story you have built around the situation. The story is not tangible but will drive our emotions and therefore our actions. Be deliberate in the things you focus on.

Resiliency is a great goal. With a little focus, you can build it and be a better person for having it.

All the best!

Find out more about Jenna here.

 

Are you ready to boost your career...and earnings? 

Learn how the Power of Neuroscience can help.







© 2015 and beyond Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.

In the Coaching Crucible yesterday, we taught people how to use "Taylor's Task" to think bigger. Gary also mentored everyone on how to build a successful business by focusing on a few powerful areas. Enjoy!

Find out more about Greg here.

 

Are you a high performer? Please tell us why below. 



This program will help you become an even better peak performer!

     Coaching In The Workplace



© 2014 and beyond Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.

Quick…

What one skill is the most important for a manager?

Are you sure?...

It’s coaching!

What about all the technical stuff? Spreadsheets, product knowledge, etc.?

It ALL takes a back seat to coaching.  Here’s why…

Human Capital (your people) is more important than all of the technical stuff combined. They are your most important asset. They are the biggest line item of your budget. Shouldn’t you treat them as the most precious asset that they are?

Huh? Have you really thought about that? Better start thinking now…

Because, according to a recent poll:

• 51% of your best people are actively looking for another job! The simple truth is that if you coached them they wouldn’t be.

• According to a recent Gallop Poll, employee engagement levels in North America are an abysmal 30%.

How much money do you think that is costing your firm?

• In the U.S. alone it’s costing organizations $360 BILLION a year!

Coaching can help with all of these issues…and if you have coaching skills it can help you look like a rock star!

According to a recent Harvard survey, "Coaching skills for managers is the most important skill required for success in the next 10 years."

Got it?

Now, what are you going to do about it?  It’s only your career…

 

This program can help! Coaching In The Workplace



© 2013 and beyond Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.

Do you spend a great deal of energy trying to make things perfect?

You can’t let go of this project until it’s perfect...

You can’t have this discussion until your comments are perfectly rehearsed...

You can’t move forward until you know how it will all play out... 

Really? 

How much of your energy is spent thinking, and re-thinking, about the action you want to take?  How much time are you wasting working toward perfection?

Has being perfect become an excuse for you? Perfection can move from a need, to a wonderful excuse for not moving forward, in the blink of an eye.  Lack of perfectionism isn’t about being lazy or doing things half way, it’s about understanding the natural progression some things take.  How are we possibly going to know how a situation will play out unless we make our first move?

If you are spending too much time analyzing and rehashing the situation, you are stuck in your thinking mind.  This loop will create zero momentum.   Step out of your thinking mind and connect to your higher vision...and take inspired action!

Inspired action is based upon trust. Trust in your instincts. Trust in your talent. Trust in the fact that everything will be o.k. Take action based upon knowing these things.

Our thinking mind, the one that loves perfection, can truly limit your grow---and success. Yes, you may fail at some things. Yet you will never have any chance of success unless you take action. Any action equals progress.

And remember, there is really no such thing as being perfect. Be perfectly happy knowing that.

To your continued success!

It’s true. You may not know it. You may not want to own it. But it is true.

All of the following facts come from the scientific community; folks who study the brain. Here’s the reality:

•     We have 60,000 thoughts a day.
•     95% of these thoughts are the same ones we had yesterday.
•     71% of these thoughts are NEGATIVE!

What???

The reality is…we are talking ourselves into failure!

YOU are your greatest foe.

YOU own your thoughts.

YOU can change them!

It’s all about awareness…

Here are some techniques to shift this destructive cycle:

•     Own it! Say to yourself: “I own my thoughts, no one else.” This is a major shift which brings the power and ownership back to you. You, no one else, owns your thoughts. Look inside for the answers, not outside.
•     Start acknowledging each negative thought you have. Stop (mentally) and soak in the thought. Don’t avoid it. Stuffing it back inside is like continually putting pop back into a bottle. At some point it is going to explode. The same will happen with you.
•     Close your eyes (stay with me here, this really works). Imagine clouds floating in the sky. Now place your negative thought on a cloud. Send it good thoughts. Thank it for the awareness lesson it provided. Tell it you don’t need it any longer. Watch it drift away.

Try doing this for just one day. See how you feel. See if your thoughts start to change. If you keep this up you will DEFINTELY change your thoughts, which in turn leads to a change in your actions.

If you truly want to change your patterns of behavior you first have to change your thoughts. They are the building blocks for everything.

This negative self talk is your ego’s way of trying to keep you small. Don’t let it! YOU own your thoughts, not your ego. Take back ownership of them, and…

TALK YOURSELF INTO SUCCESS!

P.S. - If I see any of your words on a cloud I will make sure they continue on their journey.  ;-) 


Want to know more about Executive Coaching? Click here.



© 2013 and beyond. Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.

We all know the kind of conversation I’m talking about.  The kind you would gladly trade for a root canal at your favorite dentist or that “routine” exam by your proctologist. Yes, anything but that conversation!

Most of us will wait until the emotion surrounding the conversation becomes so heated or toxic that when we do finally say what is needed, the true message is hidden in anger, frustration and disappointment.

What is the “true message?”

Is it a litany of the wrongs the person has committed?

Is it a list of everything the person didn’t do that they should have?

In other words, is the “true message” focused on how the person has failed in your eyes?

Unfortunately, usually the answer to all these questions is “yes,” when it should be a resounding “NO!”

A “crucial conversation” is nothing more than a powerful opportunity to convey our current concerns to someone whom we care for greatly.

Did you get that?  We have “crucial conversations” out of our intense caring for another – otherwise why expend the energy?

How much more effective might our conversation be if we perceive it not as a negative thing, but the opportunity for a “powerful conversation” with someone we care about?

How much more effective might our conversation be, if we didn’t shirk away and become complicit in the difficulty the conversation needs to address (because the less we say the more complicit we are)?

True servant leaders will hold a powerful conversation using these steps:

• The night before the conversation write down all the reasons you care for the other person.
• Then write down what the most positive outcome looks like – what would each of you walk away with?
• Just before the conversation review #1 and #2, take three deep breaths, and smile.
• Begin the conversation with something like “I wanted to meet with you today because I am very concerned about   you.” End the conversation with “Thank you for taking your time to meet with me today and thank you for being a part of this resolution.”
• Follow up the conversation with some correspondence reaffirming your commitment to the person and the pathway agreed upon.

Take responsibility for having the right approach, and these “crucial conversations” will become a powerful interaction that benefits both parties.

*Find the classic book Crucial Conversations by Patterson, et al. here.



© 2013 and beyond Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.

Executives of companies are intelligent, confident, innovative, and efficient. They inspire people and lead them to move mountains. Stress is not even in their vocabulary. So the term "Executive Coach" almost seems to be an oxymoron. How could these supermen/superwomen need to be coached? If they do, isn't that a sign of weakness? Executive Coaching is for Wimps.

As the CEO of a rapidly growing company, I know those thoughts crossed my mind when my COO brought it up as an idea. It seemed to have the stigma of a person going to a shrink and not wanting to talk about it. At the same time, I was intrigued. Behind every great athlete is a great coach. Could it possibly be the same for great executives?

It has been a year and a half since I had those thoughts. I have been working with an executive coach on a weekly basis since then. As a busy executive, the experience has proven to be invaluable and has changed my company and my life. A strong executive coach is not only a one-person board of directors with whom you can vet out strategic and tactical approaches; he/she is also an individual that constantly pushes an executive to perform at a higher and higher level every day.

Executive coaches focus on the individual to ensure that he/she is on top of their game on a daily basis, not just in preparation for the quarterly board meeting. As with any investment, what has been the return so far? In my company, the following tangible results have been achieved directly or indirectly by working with our executive coach:

•   A  rock-solid foundation of values, vision, and mission. 
•   A re-organized company that is customer-centric with self-directed, empowered teams.
•   More effective leaders – ratings of the leadership capabilities of our executive team increased significantly. 
•   Improved  employee  satisfaction  –  increased  over  9%  in  our  latest  survey. 
•   Improved customer satisfaction and product quality. 
•   Increased profitability by 28%.
•   Developed and improved sales capability. 
•   Launched five new products.
•   Ranked as one of the fastest growing technology companies in North America.

Our executive coach now works on a weekly basis with each of my executive staff members and on a regular basis with managers and staff.

Is Executive Coaching for Wimps? No!

Executive Coaching is for those who are courageous and confident enough to push for individual excellence and performance every day.




© 2013 and beyond Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.

Click here to schedule a session to see if coaching is a good fit for you or give us a ring: 1.800.526.6038

Are you ready for a coach?   

"Nothing happens without personal transformation."
~W. E. Deming

Do you have a certain “point of pain” in your life or career?

Are you ready for more happiness and fulfillment in life and work?

Do you:

• Want a better work/life integration?
• Have a desire to take the next step in your career and need to polish your leadership skills?
• Need a “sounding board” who can give you a seasoned outside perspective?
• Find yourself at your wit's end trying to figure out your Millennials and need some help connecting with them?

Which one of these fits your need? Something else?

We admire your courage to start investigating whether coaching will help you. We know it can help most folks…not all, but most. You see, the key is whether you are ready to change. If you’re not, please don’t waste time going down the coaching path. It won’t work. If you are ready, then let’s talk and see if we are a good fit.

We have coached and trained thousands of people in 39 countries and pride ourselves in serving others through coaching. We stand ready to assist you in your desire to grow personally and professionally.

If you’re ready, don’t delay…take action now! It all starts with a conversation. We will be your guide.

Click here to schedule a complimentary exploratory session with us. Feel free to call us at 1.800.526.6038. We are here to serve. We look forward to doing so!

1-1 Coaching Packages

MasterMind Group Coaching

Proven areas of specialization

Our Proprietary Process

Coaching Success Stories

10 Reasons to Retain a Coach

Coach...Show Me How!

Coaching Priorities

Leadership Proficiencies

Harvard Executive Coaching Project
(Which Drayton was a part of)

Articles on Coaching


For more information email us at Support@ExecutiveCoachU.com   or 1.800.526.6038

 

“Ac·count·abil·i·ty “

Webster’s Definition:   an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions

The word “accountability” seems to be getting more and more air time as you look around the world of business (and politics) these days.

The problem is that most of the focus is usually outside of the person looking for more accountability!

As enlightened servant leaders, let us do a quick exercise to identify the one place in this world where accountability actually begins.  I want you to peer into a window, monitor, or mirror that is close at hand -- really look deeply – whoever is peering back at you is the true source of accountability. You!

As with everything associated with leadership, accountability is an inside-out process.  How can we, as enlightened servant leaders, expect others to value the process of accountability if we do not demonstrate how we value that process ourselves? 

As a collective, let us not fall into the false thinking that accountability is only associated with deadlines, tasks, dashboards, and any other way we measure productivity.  As leaders, we must hold ourselves accountable for EVERYTHING we think and do!

You, and you alone, have the ability to control your thoughts, feelings and behaviors.  Whether you actually hold yourself accountable for exerting that control, rather than externalizing that ability, is another issue entirely.

Do you hold yourself accountable for your words and actions, insuring alignment with your values?  Do you actively accept responsibility for expressing those values and providing space for those around you to express theirs?  

Has your organization adopted accountability as a cornerstone of its culture?  If yes, how is that expressed?

Utilizing the principle of accountability within our lives provides us a tool to insure we are living in a manner in which our purpose will be fulfilled. 

Accountability keeps us on the right path.

Are you on the right path?

Greg Styles
Director of Special Projects
Executive Coaching University



© 2013 and beyond Executive Coaching University. All rights reserved.