The Evolution of Success

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” ~~Ursula K. LeGuin~~

Success is a moving target. It keeps evolving. As I achieve a goal or reach a destination, I find there is always more that can be achieved and reached. The way I achieve said success, then, needs to evolve as well. My destination keeps changing and therefore so must my path.

I often write about enjoying the journey. So, it seems fitting that today, what would have been my “attitude” day, that I was inspired to write about this. It’s sometimes hard to keep that positive attitude when you feel overwhelmed by change. But, since I strongly believe that it is “mission critical” to stay positive and rise above the stress I work hard to maintain that attitude.

I also strongly believe that change is good. It keeps us moving, helps keep us motivated, and often drives us to be the best we can be. Change keeps me on my toes, keeps me sharp, and enables me to adapt, learn, and grow. While it can be scary, when you trust your instincts, believe in yourself, and do your best, it can also be very empowering.

So, here’s to change! Here’s to the evolution of success! Here’s to enjoying the journey!

I’ve been doing a lot of research on transformation lately. Transformational Leadership, Culture Transformation… so I thought I was going to be clever and coin the phrase “Transformational Success”. Turns out others have already done that… but I am going to adopt the phrase. I look forward to where it will take me, and I look back with pride at how far I’ve come.

I urge you to look at your path. How have you defined success for yourself in the past? Is it still the right definition for you? If it is not, how can you transform the definition to better suit you? And, how can you alter your path? I believe you’ll find the evaluation enlightening, freeing, and exciting!

Note to my readers: I haven’t written in a while. I am contemplating changes to this blog as I contemplate changes in my own journey. I will always write to motivate others. That’s my passion. That being said, if there is anything that you would like to see more of, less of, or not at all, please feel free to let me know. I value your input and thank you for the support over the last few years.

Goals: On Being Overcommitted

“If you’re going to overcommit, you best at least be committed to it.” ~~Jennifer Scott~~

If you know me well, you, I’m sure, will agree that I have a tendency to take on a lot all at once. I believe that I can do anything, and was recently reminded that while that’s very true, I can’t do *everything*. Yet, in the honor of Stress Awareness Month, I am committing to being overcommitted.

I am committed to taking on however much I take on and just getting it done.
I am committed to not being “stressed out” about the amount I take on.
I am committed to doing as much as I can, in the best way I can, and knowing that it is exactly as it’s supposed to be.
I am committed to achieving my goals, accomplishing my to-do’s, and being the greatest “me” I can be, in all my overcommitted glory.

I hope that I can inspire you to be as much as you can and want to be for yourself and everyone around you. And, just remember to breathe!

Motivation: Finding Your Balance

“Just as your car runs more smoothly and requires less energy to go faster and farther when the wheels are in perfect alignment, you perform better when your thoughts, feelings, emotions, goals, and values are in balance." ~~Brian Tracy~~

It makes sense; when you feel balanced, you feel in control. When you lose your balance, you feel out of control. I watched my almost 5 year old on a balance beam last night when I picked him up from daycare. It was cute. He was so proud to be able to walk the beam, arms outstretched, without falling. One of his friends was even able to walk backwards on the beam without as much as a wobble. That balance is hard to find. There are certainly external activities that can help you gain that balance when you feel off center… E.F.T., yoga, meditation, relaxation, affirmations… all things I write about a lot, but sometimes forget to practice. I am looking for balance again. I’ve been feeling overwhelmed and a little out of control this week. I discovered yesterday, with the help of my accountability group, that it was really time to regain balance and control. Watching my son on that balance beam helped me see how important that balance really is. I don’t want to fall. I don’t even want to wobble. So today I practice what I preach. E.F.T. (tapping) this morning, music on now, blogging before working to put that balance out to the world, and affirmations coming soon.

What will you practice today to help you find your balance?

Goals: Taking a Detour

“Establishing goals is all right if you don't let them deprive you of interesting detours.” ~~Doug Larson~~

I obviously believe in the power and necessity of goal setting. That’s not news. But I also have recently (read: yesterday - Thanks to Stephanie Dalfonzo!) agreed to free myself of the guilt associated with not accomplishing everything on my list.

Here’s the general scenario: I’d set a goal, something unplanned came up, and I’d feel guilty for not achieving the goal. Sound familiar? Apparently, I’m not alone in this scenario. Life happens. But it didn’t seem to matter if the unplanned thing was really, really positive and helped me to be successful in some other way; I still felt like I failed in some way. Now, I am specifically referring to shorter term goals here, not my 10-year plan, but that actually made it even harder, because it was happening a lot… I’d plan to get something done, would have to take a detour which often actually led to an even better place, and while I was thrilled about it, I’d still feel overwhelmed and sometimes downright rotten for not getting everything accomplished. Today, I continue my quest for personal freedom from guilt and will allow room for interesting detours. Are you in?

For more information on Stephanie Dalfonzo, visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniedalfonzo or http://stephaniedalfonzo.com/

Preparation + Taking Responsibility

“Change your thoughts and you change your world.” ~~Norman Vincent Peale ~~

I could have worked all weekend. That’s a powerful statement for me, because a week ago, I might have said, “I *should* have worked all weekend.”

I could be entirely stressed out right now… and I’m not. I am prepared to tackle the challenge of fitting a week’s worth of work into two days since I have chosen to go on vacation.

I started to stress last night as I was preparing for my week. I started to feel “overcommitted” and was wondering how I would get it all done. But, I stopped. (Kudos to me!) And, I took a deep breath. And, I remembered that I myself set these deadlines. I myself set the priorities. I not only *can* get it all done, I will get it all done. I am prepared. I am focused and efficient. (Yes, that one is still going strong!) And, I have help! There will be no slacking off. There is no need to stress out. Being overwhelmed doesn’t help the situation. I am motivated to achieve, thanks in part to my awesome new accountability group, and thanks in part to some new acquaintances I made (soon to be friends I am sure!) But even more, thanks to me! I am happy that I remembered to stop and breathe. I am grateful that I took the time last night to prepare for today. And I am proud that I believe that I can and WILL get it done. My thoughts do affect my actions, and I am in control of my thoughts!

Goals

Physician, heal thyself.

So, I snapped last night. In a good way, I think. While wallowing a bit in self-doubt (and self-pity) my wonderful husband reminded me that all I really needed was a swift kick in the pants! I write all this great stuff in here! I know WHAT to do… I just actually have to do it. How many times have I said that preparation is critical? And yet… I was feeling unprepared. I know that focus is necessary and I know how to minimize distractions, and yet I was feeling “all over the map.” I have a great attitude (most of the time) and I certainly know how to motivate others… so allowing myself that pity party was just unacceptable! I have a confession to make; I’m human. I make mistakes. I say I’m going to do something, and it doesn’t always get done. I have intentions that don’t always get realized. The best laid plans…Well, so what?!?!? I’m human. Good. That makes me real. That means that I have room to improve! That means that I can grow, and learn, and be excited, and have passion! So, I turned over a new leaf last night. I am actually going to take my own advice. All of it. I will do what I say I will do. I will practice what I preach. No more lip service. I am determined. And, oh yeah… I am focused and efficient! I achieve my goals!

Preparation

“A winning effort begins with preparation.” ~~Joe Gibbs ~~

A little preparation goes a long way! I had an odd expectation last night. I expected to be stressed. I expected not to sleep well. I expected that I would lay in bed and not be able to stop thinking about how much work I had to do today, about how far behind I was, about what I *should* have done over the weekend… I am happy to say that I was WRONG! And I believe this is why:

I planned out my week on Friday. I made a list of everything (and I mean everything) I have to do this week. Personal, work, holiday-related, you name it, I wrote it down. On paper, it just didn’t seem so bad!

I got a lot of my “honey-do” list completed on Saturday. My husband jumped in, and we just got so much accomplished. So, cross off some of that personal stuff, and some of that holiday-related stuff… Nice! And then I RELAXED yesterday. I mentally prepared for this week. A little rest, a little E.F.T. (Thanks Stephanie Dalfonzo!), a little meditation, a lot of visualization…

I slept quite well, and I woke up this morning ready to attack my day! I will accomplish all I set out to do. I am not stressed out. I can get it all done, and it’s not nearly as overwhelming as I expected that it would be. The tools work! A little preparation, both mental and physical, really does go a long way!

Goals

“The world is moving so fast these days that the man who says it can't be done is generally interrupted by someone doing it.” ~~Elbert Hubbard~~

Prioritizing your short term goals can be a challenge this time of year. I, personally, am finding it difficult to get everything that I want to do, done. I say things like, “There just aren’t enough hours in the day!” when what I really mean is that I’d rather spend time decompressing in the evening than I would doing a little extra work. Yes, this may be both true and necessary all of the time, but I find it especially true and frankly, critical, this time of year. I have daycare commitments (PTO, class mom), holiday commitments (we celebrate both Chanukah and Christmas in this house), philanthropic commitments, networking commitments… and then there are competing work demands themselves. The holidays seem to be the time when everything happens all at once and people come out of the woodwork. You know they’re all important, and you know they will all help you achieve at least one of your goals in some way, and this time of year you get an overwhelming desire to be helpful to others…but how do you decide what to say “yes” to when you can’t do it all?

Here’s what I’ve come up with. If you know where you’re going it’s much easier to know how to get there. Write everything down; your goals, your commitments, some scheduled family time, events or parties, any deadlines (including getting the shopping or cooking or prep work done), and anything else that you feel you just “have to” do. Then, make a plan. Once it’s all on paper it’s easier to see what the “musts” are, and you can make them a “priority one.” Rank the rest and you will have a plan you can live with! See which tasks align best with your goals and make sure you do those first. And don’t forget about the procrastination tip: Do the one thing you want to do least early on and just get it out of the way. With a slight attitude adjustment, you may even enjoy doing it! Stay calm, add in some time to relax, and make sure you take care of yourself. You will be no good to anyone if you aren’t healthy, alert and calm.

This time of year can get you down… take some action now to prevent the stress, and enjoy!

Motivation

“Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.” ~~Walter Anderson~~

I’m going to semi- (and probably mis-) quote my dad again. It’s not the first time I’ve heard him say it, or, maybe it really was… Anxiety (fear) is the same emotion as excitement. The day I wrote about changing my internal dialogue (http://hireeffect.blogspot.com/2010/07/preparation.html) we had this conversation. And, it’s been on my mind ever since. I think I’m really getting it.

I love feeling excited about things; whether it’s a meeting with someone I haven’t seen in a while, or it’s a celebratory event, that kind of excitement is a lot of fun. Well, why can’t the anxiety I feel about the amount of work that lies ahead, or the challenges I’m facing be called “excitement”? Why not choose to feel “excited” about all the things I have on my plate? Why not choose to have my work be a source of fun? Anxiety really does go away when you “just do it”. And it’s so much easier to do things that you’re excited about than it is to do things you’re anxious about. What will you have fun with today?

Motivation

“I CAN is 100 times more important than IQ.” ~~author unknown~~

I know I can, and therefore I will. Challenges will always present themselves. If everything was easy, life would get boring. I always say that I’m happy in the chaos, because when chaos is NOT present, the chaos I create in its place is always so much more chaotic than that which would have been there naturally! So, in the presence of chaos, in the face of the fear of “there’s just too much going on”, I am motivated by the fact that I CAN. And, I will. How about you?

Preparation + Taking Responsibility

“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.” ~~Dietrich Bonhoeffer~~

As I prepare for the work-week ahead, a short one at that, and look at the sheer magnitude of my TO DO list, I admit, I’m a little overwhelmed. This post is really to help me remember that I am 100% responsible for myself and my actions. I can freak out, or I can be thankful that I have so many opportunities in front of me. I can blame my circumstances for not getting as much done last week as I had hoped, or I can appreciate that I had some extra time with my family and get busy now. This post is to help remind me that I can accomplish whatever I set out to accomplish, because I believe that I can, and I am ready to take responsibility for my success. Are you ready to take responsibility for your success?

“You can awaken each day to obligations you never chose - or you can decide now to choose them.” ~~Robert Brault~~

Motivation

“Little by little one walks far.” ~~Peruvian Proverb~~

Today I am reminded to take it one step at a time. With so much going on and some goals just seeming as if they are almost unreachable, it’s very easy to feel overwhelmed. It’s very easy to almost become paralyzed by the sense that there is no way to accomplish it all. When the tasks at hand seem like they are just too big, when things look like they are near impossible, just take them one at a time until you whittle them down. I had a conversation with a candidate yesterday who offered a great perspective. We were actually talking about Lean principles (operational excellence and continuous improvement). We were discussing something called “Hoshin Kanri”, a Lean method used to capture and cement strategic goals, and she said in the scenario that I presented, that would be like trying to run a marathon before you learned to walk. You have to learn to crawl; then take your first steps; then walk; then run; then train; and then maybe you’ll be ready for that marathon… One step at a time. First things first. Little by little. You will reach your destination!

Monday: Preparation

“The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

One step at a time… Put it all on paper, lay it out, and then take it one step at a time. When it just feels like there is too much to do, planning and preparation are more important than ever. I’ve written many times about the challenges of prioritizing priorities, especially when everything is a “Priority One”! But when you really examine your tasks, when you really evaluate the priority, you need to ask yourself, “is it”? Will it really matter in five years, or even in five weeks? Usually not! The important thing is to get them all done… but that doesn’t mean they all have to happen RIGHT NOW! One of my mentors used to tell me not to worry… it will all still be here tomorrow. I’m not suggesting that you blow things off. I’m certainly not suggesting that you ignore your responsibilities. I am, however, suggesting that when you feel overwhelmed, you need to prepare, plan, and then check things off as you go. You’ll get there!