A New Planner Will Not Save You

WEBVTT
00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:33.399
Hi everyone.
00:00:33.560 --> 00:00:35.079
Welcome to the Path to Leadership.
00:00:35.159 --> 00:00:35.640
I'm Dr.
00:00:35.719 --> 00:00:36.039
Katie.
00:00:36.359 --> 00:00:37.960
And I'm Rhonda Jolene.
00:00:38.519 --> 00:00:41.159
We're so thrilled to have you.
00:00:41.399 --> 00:00:42.359
Welcome back.
00:00:42.600 --> 00:00:44.200
Welcome to our new listeners.
00:00:44.359 --> 00:00:45.879
We're excited to have you.
00:00:46.280 --> 00:00:47.000
Absolutely.
00:00:47.159 --> 00:00:54.840
I know we've been getting more international listeners lately, and we appreciate everyone who has shared, liked, and rated us.
00:00:55.239 --> 00:00:57.480
We are here for you all.
00:00:57.640 --> 00:01:03.000
We would do this anyways, but it is so much more fun with you all listening in.
00:01:03.320 --> 00:01:03.640
Yeah.
00:01:03.799 --> 00:01:04.200
Yeah.
00:01:04.439 --> 00:01:08.519
Well, and it's it's been so we shared on last week's podcast.
00:01:08.599 --> 00:01:13.400
We got together, we went to top golf and spent some time outside together.
00:01:13.640 --> 00:01:20.280
And as we were talking about upcoming episodes, we were like, if this is a conversation, we need to revisit.
00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:22.680
We had it last year, we need to do it again.
00:01:23.400 --> 00:01:24.519
Absolutely.
00:01:24.840 --> 00:01:30.039
Because it's towards the end of the year, we're in November.
00:01:30.519 --> 00:01:38.920
And I was telling Katie that I tend to still think about things in semester periods.
00:01:39.239 --> 00:02:04.359
So in the United States, we have semesters, and I tend to, and I think a lot of people do this as well, when it comes to November and December, I get into holiday mode, senioritis, and sometimes it's easy just to say, you know what, we don't really need to work from November to January.
00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:13.400
And I know when I was in corporate America, a lot of people either took that entire time off and or they didn't really get a lot done.
00:02:13.560 --> 00:02:17.800
Now, as entrepreneurs, we don't really have that ability.
00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:24.759
And I think, as Katie will talk about, we've learned that there are better ways to use our time.
00:02:25.719 --> 00:02:44.759
And I was really interested when you brought up this topic because you have ways of helping people transition into the new year, not just in the general way of resolutions, like people traditionally do, but even earlier than that.
00:02:44.920 --> 00:02:50.519
And I know I could use a refresh of that, especially kickstarting things earlier.
00:02:50.920 --> 00:02:51.319
Yeah.
00:02:51.560 --> 00:02:51.879
Yeah.
00:02:51.959 --> 00:02:57.000
And it's it is crazy as we're, you know, this is our first first week in November.
00:02:57.079 --> 00:02:59.959
And it's like, where, where has the the time gone?
00:03:00.040 --> 00:03:02.199
And we really see it in that fourth quarter, right?
00:03:02.279 --> 00:03:07.399
We see people starting to slow down, starting to, you know, ramp, ramp down a little bit.
00:03:07.560 --> 00:03:12.439
Yeah, it's the end of the year, people will start saying, which is it still makes me crazy.
00:03:12.600 --> 00:03:14.519
Well, we'll tackle that in January.
00:03:14.759 --> 00:03:20.120
We'll we'll do some, you know, retreats and things in January.
00:03:20.279 --> 00:03:22.120
We'll get started in January.
00:03:22.279 --> 00:03:27.240
And it's like they can't make decisions uh until January.
00:03:27.319 --> 00:03:30.920
And it's like that January's too late for us to be doing that.
00:03:31.079 --> 00:03:38.680
We need to be laying groundwork now so we can start 2027 really strong, hit the ground running, keep going.
00:03:39.240 --> 00:03:39.720
Right.
00:03:39.959 --> 00:03:55.560
So explain a little bit more about what you're discussing because we're not talking about you and I as entrepreneurs, we're talking about setting leaders and organizations up for success, whether it be as teams or individually, right?
00:03:55.959 --> 00:03:57.399
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
00:03:57.480 --> 00:04:03.399
And I see this, you know, as you mentioned, there is some psychology around, like it's the end of the year.
00:04:03.480 --> 00:04:06.759
And so let's slow down and let's reflect.
00:04:06.839 --> 00:04:08.519
And and that's really powerful.
00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:11.160
I think we should be doing that.
00:04:11.480 --> 00:04:17.720
But it's what we see so often, especially in the United States, that's kind of my lens that I come from.
00:04:17.959 --> 00:04:21.639
There's almost like this pause in productivity.
00:04:21.800 --> 00:04:29.959
There's this like, let's let's close out the year, let's not make any new decisions, let's not pivot at all.
00:04:30.120 --> 00:04:35.720
Let's, and it it's we've talked about this when we make goals and resolutions and stuff like that.
00:04:35.879 --> 00:04:46.279
It's like, okay, if if my my personal goal is to eat healthy, and then on Tuesday I don't eat healthy, then it's like, oh, well, I'll restart it on Monday.
00:04:46.360 --> 00:04:47.639
I've already eaten bad this week.
00:04:47.720 --> 00:04:50.120
I'll just continue to eat bad all week.
00:04:50.360 --> 00:04:52.199
And we see that in business, right?
00:04:52.280 --> 00:04:56.280
It's like, oh, well, we're okay, well, we we're working on this.
00:04:56.439 --> 00:05:00.120
Let's not let's not distract ourselves from from that.
00:05:00.360 --> 00:05:04.199
Let's let's wait until January before we pivot or change.
00:05:04.360 --> 00:05:10.360
And we don't have to wait for these clean calendar breaks, these clean quarterly breaks.
00:05:10.600 --> 00:05:15.720
Like we can, we can keep going, we can change when we accomplish our goal.
00:05:15.879 --> 00:05:18.360
We don't have to wait till Monday to start a new one.
00:05:18.439 --> 00:05:21.240
We don't have to wait until January 1 to start a new one.
00:05:21.480 --> 00:05:25.720
We can put a new one in place and get moving.
00:05:26.520 --> 00:05:48.439
Clean calendar breaks is such a visual that is tied in my brain to even going back to fifth grade, having an agenda, yeah, and thinking about how yes, I can't do anything unless it's within this compartmentalized time.
00:05:48.759 --> 00:05:49.080
Yeah.
00:05:49.319 --> 00:05:59.800
And so you're right, we can lose so much time in between certain time periods like November and December, starting back up in January.
00:06:00.040 --> 00:06:05.080
And as a side note, Katie and I are all about intentional celebrations.
00:06:05.240 --> 00:06:09.319
We've done whole podcasts on how celebration is very needed.
00:06:09.400 --> 00:06:15.240
And so we're not talking about holiday celebrations or team success celebrations towards the end of the year.
00:06:15.480 --> 00:06:31.879
We believe in lifting people up, and yet it sounds like you're saying that we need to do both at the same time because there is a fall in productivity during these next two months.
00:06:32.199 --> 00:06:33.000
Yeah, yeah.
00:06:33.160 --> 00:06:40.600
And it's interesting, I just wrapped up a series with the Leewood Chamber of Commerce here in Kansas City area.
00:06:40.759 --> 00:06:43.800
Um it's a program called Cars and Coffee.
00:06:43.879 --> 00:06:47.560
It's their young leaders, their emerging leaders program.
00:06:48.120 --> 00:06:53.400
It it's host, it's it's sponsored by a car dealership, so that's why it's Cars and Coffee.
00:06:53.800 --> 00:07:04.360
But we really talked about today the or to the spoiler, we're recording this the day I finish this, and then this will come out in a couple weeks.
00:07:04.680 --> 00:07:09.080
But I really talked about in the session, like we need to do some reflection.
00:07:09.240 --> 00:07:10.600
What did we do well this year?
00:07:10.759 --> 00:07:12.120
What are we proud of?
00:07:12.280 --> 00:07:14.759
Let's celebrate that, let's say it out loud.
00:07:14.920 --> 00:07:20.680
And so I actually started the session by having them turn to the person next to them and say, This is what I'm really proud of.
00:07:21.240 --> 00:07:23.720
And I challenge them because we don't do that enough.
00:07:23.879 --> 00:07:25.960
We talked about that in a previous podcast.
00:07:26.199 --> 00:07:35.000
When they meet people in networking, it doesn't have to be right now in November, December, but I think there's a really cool conversation to say, what are you proud of?
00:07:35.160 --> 00:07:36.680
What's going really well?
00:07:36.840 --> 00:07:40.439
You know, what what are what's something really cool that you're working on?
00:07:40.520 --> 00:07:40.680
Right?
00:07:40.840 --> 00:07:43.480
Let's let's go to the to the positive.
00:07:43.720 --> 00:07:51.160
Um so we spent the first part of the session doing reflection, but then okay, how do we reset?
00:07:51.319 --> 00:07:52.600
What do we want to leave?
00:07:52.759 --> 00:07:53.960
What do we want to stop doing?
00:07:54.120 --> 00:07:58.520
What do we want to leave in 2026 that's not serving us anymore?
00:07:58.759 --> 00:08:00.040
You know, what am I proud of?
00:08:00.199 --> 00:08:01.160
What have I done well?
00:08:01.319 --> 00:08:03.160
But also like, what is dragging me down?
00:08:03.319 --> 00:08:04.680
What is slowing me down?
00:08:04.840 --> 00:08:06.280
What do I need to stop doing?
00:08:06.439 --> 00:08:14.280
And so doing that real intentional work in November and December allows us to go really, really hard in January.
00:08:14.920 --> 00:08:26.680
I'm writing down these questions because they're they hit something in my body that make me think these are the right questions to ask.
00:08:26.759 --> 00:08:29.240
And you know, I love an R-E word.
00:08:29.560 --> 00:08:32.519
So reset is such a great word.
00:08:32.759 --> 00:08:37.080
And I do think that people leave it towards the end of the year.
00:08:37.240 --> 00:08:42.279
And let's face it, January 1st has become such a busy time.
00:08:42.600 --> 00:09:03.159
Holidays are overwhelming, and you could get a head start, not just from a productivity angle in November, but also from a having an intentional time and doing this for yourself as a leader, doing it for your team, and doing this even throughout the year.
00:09:03.240 --> 00:09:07.320
So making this a time where you answer these questions.
00:09:07.480 --> 00:09:17.879
We've talked about this before, you know, having reset times, many little renaissances, as I call them, rondisances in your day.
00:09:17.960 --> 00:09:31.960
They don't have to be where you, you know, go on a cruise, which I know you are doing to reset your whole life, but you can just do this in a little mini session.
00:09:32.120 --> 00:09:36.600
You can go to a networking event, like you said, and that can reset everything.
00:09:36.680 --> 00:09:41.960
I don't think that we have to make it any time period, even November and December.
00:09:42.039 --> 00:09:44.279
We don't want that to become a reset time.
00:09:44.519 --> 00:09:48.600
If you do it throughout the year, then it just becomes a part of your habit.
00:09:48.680 --> 00:09:55.399
And as we know from atomic habits, what you do habitually is who you are.
00:09:55.879 --> 00:09:56.120
Yeah.
00:09:56.360 --> 00:09:56.680
Yeah.
00:09:57.320 --> 00:09:57.800
Absolutely.
00:09:57.960 --> 00:10:03.560
And you know, it's so interesting because it's like we wait until January.
00:10:03.720 --> 00:10:07.639
And those people that are paper planner people are used to be those people, right?
00:10:07.800 --> 00:10:12.440
That you get a planner and you get the new pins and you get all of this stuff.
00:10:12.519 --> 00:10:17.800
And it's like, you know what, you're not going to be a different leader just because you have a new planner in January.
00:10:17.960 --> 00:10:21.480
Like just because you got some new pins, right?
00:10:21.639 --> 00:10:23.639
It's that doesn't make you a better leader.
00:10:23.720 --> 00:10:28.120
And those aspirations without action, they're just wishes, right?
00:10:28.200 --> 00:10:33.000
They're just things that we want to do, but we're not putting any action behind it.
00:10:33.080 --> 00:10:38.759
And so that's really where throughout the whole year, we need to make sure we're doing that.
00:10:38.919 --> 00:10:41.480
We need to be putting our actions in place.
00:10:41.879 --> 00:10:43.000
What do we need to do?
00:10:43.159 --> 00:10:44.680
How do we need to do it?
00:10:45.000 --> 00:10:54.039
And to be a strong leader, we can't take a month, two months, three months off to pause.
00:10:54.200 --> 00:10:56.680
We've got to, we gotta keep going on this.
00:10:58.200 --> 00:11:14.200
So what is what are besides the questions, the reflect questions or reflection questions, what are some things that people can do today that would be really easy to start setting themselves and their teams up for success?
00:11:14.600 --> 00:11:15.399
Yeah, yeah.
00:11:15.560 --> 00:11:25.159
Well, and I did part of the session I did with the the Leeward Chamber was I had them start with the reflection.
00:11:25.240 --> 00:11:27.320
Like, what did I do really good this year?
00:11:27.480 --> 00:11:29.560
What are the things I'm most proud of?
00:11:29.800 --> 00:11:40.840
And then it's I always the way I do this is now the next step is at the end of 2027, what do I want my life to look like?
00:11:41.000 --> 00:11:48.200
Like when I'm sitting in that same room and saying, this is what I'm proud of from last year, what what do I want to say?
00:11:48.360 --> 00:11:49.639
What do I want that to look like?
00:11:49.800 --> 00:11:53.639
And we've got to we've got to decide what success looks like.
00:11:53.800 --> 00:11:55.639
We've talked about that in many podcasts.
00:11:55.800 --> 00:11:57.399
What is that success?
00:11:58.120 --> 00:11:59.240
What do I want?
00:11:59.480 --> 00:12:00.680
Where am I today?
00:12:00.919 --> 00:12:03.000
What really truly matters?
00:12:03.159 --> 00:12:05.000
And what am I gonna do next?
00:12:05.159 --> 00:12:08.360
What is the action behind that?
00:12:09.080 --> 00:12:12.680
And so often people are not doing that.
00:12:12.840 --> 00:12:15.399
They're just the perfect example.
00:12:15.560 --> 00:12:19.960
Is for years, I would always say, you know, I want to lose weight and I want to save money.
00:12:20.039 --> 00:12:24.120
And it's like, okay, let me let me see the work that you're doing behind that.
00:12:24.279 --> 00:12:27.560
And it's, you know, I wasn't doing the work behind it.
00:12:27.639 --> 00:12:29.080
I was just that's what you say, right?
00:12:29.159 --> 00:12:39.240
And then you get a planner, and then you get a habit stacker, atomic habits, all that kind of stuff, but you're still not doing the work to get it done.
00:12:39.560 --> 00:12:45.560
And so for me, we need to be doing the intentional work.
00:12:45.720 --> 00:12:49.879
We need to decide what it is, and then we need to get it done.
00:12:50.120 --> 00:12:53.879
And sometimes that's removing things that are getting in our way.
00:12:54.039 --> 00:12:58.919
I've been doing a lot of talks lately about, you know, think about everything as a backpack, right?
00:12:59.080 --> 00:13:00.360
You have this backpack on.
00:13:00.440 --> 00:13:05.560
And what are the things that are filling your backpack that is weighing you down, that's overwhelming you?
00:13:05.800 --> 00:13:07.320
And what are the things that need to come out?
00:13:07.480 --> 00:13:10.919
What are the things that you've said yes to that's not serving you anymore?
00:13:11.159 --> 00:13:15.399
What are the things that you took on that nobody asked you to take on?
00:13:15.639 --> 00:13:18.759
What are the things that you have put in your backpack?
00:13:18.919 --> 00:13:21.720
And it just keeps our our last podcast.
00:13:21.800 --> 00:13:23.720
We talked about the research rabbit hole.
00:13:23.879 --> 00:13:29.879
What are the things that we're researching that are pulling us down and getting in the way of us doing what we need to do?
00:13:30.039 --> 00:13:37.720
Start taking stuff out of the backpack, start giving it back to other people so you can take that weight off of you and move forward.
00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:40.039
I love that visual of the backpack.
00:13:40.120 --> 00:13:47.240
You're really good with the visuals, and I think that that helps people to be able to recall when they need to.
00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:56.039
So then what else do you think that leaders need to be thinking about during this time that maybe they aren't thinking about?
00:13:56.440 --> 00:14:02.120
Yeah, I think we need to think about, and school is a great example.
00:14:02.279 --> 00:14:03.639
You talk about semesters.
00:14:04.200 --> 00:14:09.240
And I went to school for a little while in Germany when my dad was in the military.
00:14:09.560 --> 00:14:16.120
And some schools in the United States are doing this, not all of them, but year-round schools are very powerful.
00:14:16.279 --> 00:14:20.680
Whether you agree with them or not, we're not going to get into political or financial debate, whatever.
00:14:21.000 --> 00:14:31.879
But the theory behind why they work is you're not having to spend the first term, the first three months relearning what you've already learned.
00:14:31.960 --> 00:14:33.080
You're continuing to go.
00:14:33.159 --> 00:14:36.600
And so you're taking these mini breaks throughout the year.
00:14:36.919 --> 00:14:39.720
And it's the same when we talk about work.
00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:45.240
Like when we take a month or two months off, then we're spending all of January ramping back up, right?
00:14:45.320 --> 00:14:54.120
We're spending all of January going back through emails, responding to things that we couldn't respond to before because it was November, December.
00:14:54.360 --> 00:15:00.680
And so where might you be causing yourself more work, causing your team more work?
00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:13.000
Where might you be putting barriers to their success and your success because you're putting stuff off because of a arbitrary calendar date in the world?
00:15:13.159 --> 00:15:13.639
I love it.
00:15:13.720 --> 00:15:17.480
I have a client that wants me to do an engagement on January 2nd.
00:15:17.560 --> 00:15:19.240
And they're like, Are you working January 2nd?
00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:21.080
And I'm like, Yeah, why not?
00:15:21.240 --> 00:15:21.800
Why not?
00:15:22.039 --> 00:15:22.279
Right?
00:15:22.519 --> 00:15:26.440
If that's if that's what serves you well, then let's let's do it.
00:15:26.519 --> 00:15:31.240
And they're like, Well, I've talked to several people and they're you know taking the whole first week in January off.
00:15:31.320 --> 00:15:34.519
And I'm like, work still has to get done.
00:15:34.680 --> 00:15:37.080
Yeah, yeah, definitely.
00:15:37.720 --> 00:15:44.759
Well, and then what if you know, some people are going to be taking vacations?
00:15:44.919 --> 00:15:47.480
Just that's how we roll with this.
00:15:47.800 --> 00:15:49.480
So, yeah, and we believe in that.
00:15:49.560 --> 00:15:51.960
We believe in the reset, if you will.
00:15:52.200 --> 00:16:01.159
So then what can individuals be doing on their mini breaks so that they don't have to ramp back up, as you say?
00:16:01.560 --> 00:16:03.000
Yeah, and I think it's great.
00:16:03.159 --> 00:16:07.320
I I've shared with you, and I might have shared on the podcast, but I might not have.
00:16:07.480 --> 00:16:12.680
You know, I'm taking a solo cruise for a week where I'm doing this reset, right?
00:16:12.759 --> 00:16:14.519
I'm doing this reflection and reset.
00:16:14.600 --> 00:16:17.320
I'm taking the time to really now, this isn't intentional.
00:16:17.399 --> 00:16:18.279
This is not a vacation.
00:16:18.360 --> 00:16:22.680
This is very intentional of where am I headed?
00:16:22.759 --> 00:16:23.320
Where am I going?
00:16:23.480 --> 00:16:24.519
Where do I want to be?
00:16:24.759 --> 00:16:34.360
But when you're taking that vacation time, when you're with your family, when you're with your friends, I think there's great power in if you're gonna shut it down, shut it down.
00:16:34.600 --> 00:16:39.800
Don't answer the emails, don't put the out of office on and honor your out of office.
00:16:40.120 --> 00:16:43.080
There's there's a lot of research behind that as well, right?
00:16:43.240 --> 00:16:49.720
What are you telling your team if you're like, take your PTO, but also respond to my emails, be available at all times.
00:16:49.879 --> 00:16:57.560
Like there's definitely cultural conversations we can have about how you, as a leader, are impacting the culture of your organization.
00:16:58.200 --> 00:17:05.639
If your your team members are taking vacation to be with their family and you're expecting them to work.
00:17:06.519 --> 00:17:09.399
So, you know, put those boundaries into place.
00:17:10.200 --> 00:17:16.919
And I do know some people that they have so much PTO that they take the whole month of December off.
00:17:17.720 --> 00:17:25.960
That's that is a small amount, I think, of society that are fortunate enough or unfortunate enough to do that.
00:17:26.200 --> 00:17:29.639
So, in those special cases, send me an email.
00:17:29.799 --> 00:17:31.799
We'll we'll talk about what you should be doing.
00:17:31.960 --> 00:17:32.599
Yeah.
00:17:33.879 --> 00:17:50.119
But for those of you that are just taking off between Christmas and New York, New Year's or taking, you know, mid-December to end of December, you can still be doing the work up to the day that you go on vacation.
00:17:50.279 --> 00:17:56.679
You don't have to stop working December 1st because you don't want to make any decisions before you go on a vacation.
00:17:56.919 --> 00:18:00.519
Make the decisions, let people know, delegate, right?
00:18:00.759 --> 00:18:03.319
There's power in delegation.
00:18:03.639 --> 00:18:08.599
There are people that are working that can cover for you, that can do the job.
00:18:08.759 --> 00:18:13.639
So the work doesn't have to come to a screeching halt because you're not sitting at your computer.
00:18:13.879 --> 00:18:14.359
Mm-hmm.
00:18:14.919 --> 00:18:25.000
Senioritis is just procrastination and another love label and just puts things off and makes you feel bad at a future date.
00:18:25.399 --> 00:18:25.719
Yeah.
00:18:25.959 --> 00:18:27.000
Yeah, exactly.
00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:27.639
Exactly.
00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:41.799
And and you know, I I always am sad when people come back from vacation and then they need a vacation from their vacation because they have a million emails and they have all this work that they didn't do beforehand and all that stuff.
00:18:41.879 --> 00:18:44.759
And it's no, I was very fortunate.
00:18:45.000 --> 00:18:49.319
The last few years that I was in the corporate world, I'd said her name before.
00:18:49.399 --> 00:18:53.479
I had Jenna Scott working for me, and Jenna is heaven.
00:18:53.559 --> 00:18:58.919
If you know Jenna Scott, if you're in the Kansas City area, I could trust her with my voice.
00:18:59.079 --> 00:19:00.439
She worked for me.
00:19:00.839 --> 00:19:03.159
She had had my full voice.
00:19:03.319 --> 00:19:08.279
She knew how I moved, she knew what I expected, she knew how I would behave.
00:19:08.519 --> 00:19:10.919
So she would respond to emails for me.
00:19:11.159 --> 00:19:13.240
She would do the work for me.
00:19:13.399 --> 00:19:17.799
And so nothing stopped just because I was not there.
00:19:18.359 --> 00:19:30.679
And for the longest time, I would work on vacations, I would work on holidays, I would work at nights because I didn't have that trusted colleague that I could trust.
00:19:30.839 --> 00:19:38.439
And so to build that relationship with someone, unless you're so special and there are special people out there, brain surgeons.
00:19:38.759 --> 00:19:43.240
There's someone that can step in and do brain surgery when when you're away.
00:19:44.279 --> 00:19:48.679
But the world doesn't have to stop just because you're taking care of yourself.
00:19:49.000 --> 00:19:49.639
Right.
00:19:50.119 --> 00:20:03.959
So as we're coming to a close, can you talk a little bit more about protecting energy and moving with intention, but also with momentum?
00:20:04.919 --> 00:20:05.319
Yeah.
00:20:05.479 --> 00:20:05.799
Yeah.
00:20:05.959 --> 00:20:11.399
And and there's some really important pieces there, talking about that backpack, right?
00:20:11.639 --> 00:20:14.679
What are the what are the pieces that I need to add?
00:20:15.079 --> 00:20:17.000
What are the pieces that I need to remove?
00:20:17.079 --> 00:20:18.599
And then where do I need to protect?
00:20:18.759 --> 00:20:28.919
And so looking at our calendars, looking at our intentions, looking at who we say we want to be, and what is really getting in the the way of that.
00:20:29.159 --> 00:20:33.479
And so I do this with some reflection.
00:20:33.719 --> 00:20:42.519
I do it once a month, where okay, my definition of success is taking care of myself, taking care of my business, taking care of my friendships.
00:20:42.839 --> 00:20:45.479
And so am I living that each month?
00:20:45.639 --> 00:20:47.240
Am I making those decisions?
00:20:47.319 --> 00:20:50.439
And so pausing to do some of those reflections.
00:20:50.519 --> 00:20:52.839
And then what was getting in the way of that?
00:20:53.000 --> 00:20:58.359
What did you say yes to that forced you to say no to something else?
00:20:58.599 --> 00:21:00.279
Where did you overcommit?
00:21:00.839 --> 00:21:03.959
I was just sharing with someone earlier today.
00:21:04.359 --> 00:21:12.919
There was a board that I was going to serve on that is not serving me, it's not aligned with my values.
00:21:13.399 --> 00:21:20.119
There's no benefit for me to give them 10 to 12 hours of my time a month.
00:21:20.359 --> 00:21:24.359
And so that's something I'm taking out of my backpack for 2027.
00:21:24.919 --> 00:21:28.359
Before I was going to say yes because I felt an obligation.
00:21:28.599 --> 00:21:34.519
And now, with this reflection and this pause and this reset, it doesn't serve me well.
00:21:34.759 --> 00:21:43.959
I would rather say yes to something else that serves me personally, professionally, and my relationships.
00:21:44.199 --> 00:21:51.479
And so doing some really hard analysis and self-reflection is wildly important.
00:21:51.799 --> 00:21:59.000
And then surrounding yourself with people that will get you there, that will tell you the truth, that will be brutally honest with you.
00:21:59.159 --> 00:22:04.679
We've talked about advisory committees before, whether they be mentors, friends, champions.
00:22:04.919 --> 00:22:05.159
Right.
00:22:05.399 --> 00:22:11.240
I'm surrounded by some really fantastic people that will be brutally honest with me.
00:22:11.399 --> 00:22:15.079
And they will say, that doesn't align, or that doesn't make sense.
00:22:15.319 --> 00:22:20.599
You and I have these conversations quite often where it's like, this doesn't feel right.
00:22:20.759 --> 00:22:21.559
Does this look right?
00:22:21.639 --> 00:22:27.159
And you're like, no, or vice versa, you know, or give me some advice or tell me the truth.
00:22:27.319 --> 00:22:30.199
And we know we can trust each other, tell us the truth.
00:22:30.359 --> 00:22:32.119
And other people, I'm surrounded.
00:22:32.599 --> 00:22:34.839
By people that will be honest with me.
00:22:35.000 --> 00:22:38.359
And quite frankly, there's people that I've removed from my life.
00:22:38.519 --> 00:22:42.839
I know you shared people you remove from your life that won't tell you the truth.
00:22:42.919 --> 00:22:56.519
They're going to blow smoke, or they're going to tell you what they think they you want to hear, or they're not going to push you to get to that next level because they're they have ulterior motives or they need you for something else.
00:22:56.599 --> 00:22:58.919
And so they're they're dragging you back.
00:22:59.000 --> 00:23:07.319
And so now's a perfect time to even look at who you're surrounding yourself with and get an alignment there as well.
00:23:07.959 --> 00:23:09.559
That's really good advice.
00:23:09.639 --> 00:23:14.119
And I think obviously people don't give themselves enough time to think.
00:23:14.279 --> 00:23:15.719
There's so many studies on that.
00:23:15.799 --> 00:23:30.279
I don't have the specifics right now, but this could be a really cool time for people to give themselves time to think and to reevaluate as they reset, and especially with points like that.
00:23:30.599 --> 00:23:31.000
Yeah.
00:23:31.159 --> 00:23:31.639
Yeah.
00:23:31.879 --> 00:23:34.039
And you know, we should be doing this all the time.
00:23:34.119 --> 00:23:35.240
We're not doing it enough.
00:23:35.319 --> 00:23:36.759
I hear this all the time.
00:23:36.919 --> 00:23:42.919
And so I don't want you to think, okay, I've got to do the whole year right now, right?
00:23:43.079 --> 00:23:43.319
No.
00:23:43.479 --> 00:23:45.079
Let's look at where we're at right now.
00:23:45.240 --> 00:23:47.240
The point is, where are you?
00:23:47.399 --> 00:23:48.679
Where do you want to go?
00:23:48.919 --> 00:23:53.159
And you can do this on a weekly basis, a monthly basis, the quarterly basis.
00:23:53.399 --> 00:23:56.599
Let's just keep every day just getting a little better.
00:23:56.759 --> 00:24:02.679
And so I recently had a group do this like self-assessment of where are they as leaders?
00:24:02.839 --> 00:24:04.519
Where are they in their goals?
00:24:04.679 --> 00:24:07.240
And it's like, what if we could get one point better?
00:24:07.399 --> 00:24:10.279
Not 10 points better, one point better.
00:24:10.439 --> 00:24:16.279
What do we need to change just to be able to say yes one more time to get us closer?
00:24:16.599 --> 00:24:18.839
Like, what is that one step better?
00:24:19.000 --> 00:24:21.719
What is that one percentage better?
00:24:21.959 --> 00:24:30.119
And if we if we keep trying that one to two percentage better each day, where are you gonna be after 365 days?
00:24:30.439 --> 00:24:31.719
I really like that.
00:24:31.959 --> 00:24:46.039
That small step to helps to combat burnout, which, as we know, when you are burnt out, you don't have as much creativity, your brain just can't even get there.
00:24:46.199 --> 00:24:55.799
And that is something that teams today are really struggling with, especially with the advent of AI and the increasing usage of that.
00:24:56.039 --> 00:25:02.439
So definitely want to encourage team members to have this reflection time.
00:25:02.759 --> 00:25:03.719
Yeah, yeah.
00:25:03.959 --> 00:25:11.000
So I would say, I mean, the big message that I wanted to share in today is it's never too late.
00:25:11.319 --> 00:25:13.479
Also, there's no reason to stop now.
00:25:15.079 --> 00:25:16.359
Let's keep going, right?
00:25:16.599 --> 00:25:35.959
Let's keep moving, let's let's keep trekking along and you know it just care about yourself, take care of yourself, take care of your business, take care of your teams, and keep the momentum going because I I just think every day is an opportunity to get one step closer to where you want to go.
00:25:36.919 --> 00:25:42.519
I love it, and I hope that people try to implement some of this this year.
00:25:42.839 --> 00:25:49.240
And if you aren't and you want more information on how to, please reach out to us.
00:25:49.399 --> 00:25:55.079
Katie has done this a lot, and I have done some reflection activities.
00:25:55.240 --> 00:25:58.119
We are happy to answer any questions you may have.
00:25:58.279 --> 00:26:02.599
And if this is something that you try this year, we would love to hear your stories.
00:26:02.919 --> 00:26:13.240
We are happy to have you on or just read your stories, leave a comment in the your review, rate us, review, DM us.
00:26:13.879 --> 00:26:18.039
We read everything that you send, and we are here for you.
00:26:18.199 --> 00:26:23.479
The audience is why we do this, but also because Katie and I love each other and love talking about this stuff.
00:26:23.639 --> 00:26:25.719
So we do, we do, we do.
00:26:25.879 --> 00:26:27.959
Well, and we love our listeners.
00:26:28.199 --> 00:26:31.879
New listener from Springfield, Missouri, which is close to us.
00:26:33.079 --> 00:26:40.279
New listener from I just closed what I was doing and lost it.
00:26:40.839 --> 00:26:50.439
We talked about on the last episode we had listener from Amsterdam, which is super fun, and Kyoto, Japan.
00:26:51.159 --> 00:26:52.519
Oh cool.
00:26:52.759 --> 00:27:00.359
I know we we gotta we need our listeners to help build this up so we can do an international tour, right?
00:27:00.439 --> 00:27:02.279
We just need to, yes.
00:27:03.639 --> 00:27:06.039
We need to, and we don't need Laura, like right.
00:27:06.199 --> 00:27:11.240
This the whole point of the podcast is it's a coffee talk, it's what we would talk about when we were having coffee.
00:27:11.399 --> 00:27:21.000
So if we could just have our international listeners continue to to lift this up, then we can just go to your local coffee shops and and have these conversations.
00:27:21.399 --> 00:27:23.719
My gosh, that'd be so fun.
00:27:24.439 --> 00:27:27.799
And then we can try the local coffees.
00:27:28.599 --> 00:27:29.719
Oh my god.
00:27:30.119 --> 00:27:36.439
See, but this is kicking into my what we talked about last time, my wonderment, my possibilities thinking.
00:27:36.519 --> 00:27:38.439
I'm gonna go down a research rabbit hole now.
00:27:38.599 --> 00:27:39.799
Thanks a lot, Katie.
00:27:40.919 --> 00:27:43.799
Yes, find all the places that we need to travel together.
00:27:45.799 --> 00:27:46.679
Oh my gosh.
00:27:46.839 --> 00:27:47.719
Well, thank you so much.
00:27:47.879 --> 00:27:49.000
Such a fun conversation.
00:27:49.159 --> 00:27:52.839
We appreciate everyone listening and sharing, giving us feedback.
00:27:53.159 --> 00:27:56.279
Keep telling us what you want to hear, what's going on in your life.
00:27:56.519 --> 00:28:00.199
It helps us as we're, you know, having these conversations.
00:28:00.439 --> 00:28:04.919
Thank you everyone for listening, and we'll talk to you next time on the Path to Leadership.
00:28:05.079 --> 00:28:06.199
Bye, everyone.
00:28:06.519 --> 00:28:07.000
Bye.