Career Strong

You did it! You got the promotion and now manage a team. It doesn't matter if it's a team of 1 or 100 your skill set must shift from doer to leader. While many a doer get promoted, few take on the actual characteristics of a leader. Instead they stay in doer mode causing frustration, resentment and turnover in their organization. This is what I refer to as "death by doer." Killing all hope, creativity and productivity of a team. Don't become the grim reaper of your team. Instead adopt these simple behaviors to ignite passion in your group and share your doer gifts. Stop doing and starting teaching Why were you such a successful doer? Because you thought differently than your peers. It's time to share that thinking with your team. As a leader it's your job to teach your team how to think, not what to think. Many a leader get caught up in micromanaging tasks. They believe there is only one way to accomplish a task and it's theirs. This is the u...

I didn't coin this phrase but I believe it's the best description for the process I'm about to share with you. Have you ever had something hit you so hard you couldn't move? You were informed of the death of a relative, you were let go from your job, you had devastating news about your own health. Or maybe you didn't get into that dream school, you failed an exam or you screwed up at work. Any of these can knock you down. While I firmly believe in rising above the hurt and pain you feel I want to focus on the part before the rising. The part that the majority of people try desperately to skip over, 100% feeling the hurt, the anguish, the betrayal, the failure. This, my friends, is "leaning into the suck." If you asked me what eats at most people I would say it's their inability to lean into these emotions. We are in such a hurry to move on and "be strong" that we rush right over feeling and into solving. The Danger Why is it dange...

Each week I bring you a tip in the hopes that you not only enjoy the writing but you also implement positive change in your life. After months of planning I'm ready to take this a step further. Making the SHIFT It all started when I received my undergraduate degree and entered adulthood. I began to see something akin to an illness all around me. No matter how many promotions I received or how high I climbed the corporate ladder it was still there, in every level of management.  Even after receiving my MBA surrounded by some of the smartest people I've ever met, there it was, the plague.  What is this disease I refer to? The lack of sustainably* successful leadership.  I threw myself into biographies, podcasts and personal development books with the sole purpose of understanding what made a sustainably successful leader tick. Why were there so few? In July of this year everything fell into place. During a corporate event, Brendon Bruchard spoke ab...

My husband thought it would be fun to bring home Krispy Kreme donuts (my version of heroine) for the kids. I immediately made these peanut butter energy balls to stay away from the donuts. You can make these in minutes in case you have the same sugar emergency I did. Ingredients 1/2 cup peanut butter 1/2 cup vanilla shakeology mix 4 tablespoons raw honey Directions Mix ingredients together in a bowl using a spatula. Once mixed roll into 12 balls. Store in fridge (if any survive, they go fast in my house)

Have you ever looked back at the person you were and thought, who was that?  When I do this I see 3 distinct lives, some overlapping.  The Kid Life I owe my parents a long letter of apology, and a maybe a giant edible arrangement, for somehow not killing me but also being patient with my 10 million questions, crazy decision-making and temper tantrums.  I loved being a kid, experiencing travel from an early age and feeling free to be what I wanted to be. Could I go back there though? No way, I love my independence and seeing the other side of childhood through my parent eyes.   The Awkward Life Who am I kidding, I'm still technically in this phase of my life and will always be to some degree. The real awkward phase I'm referring to is adolescence and right through my 20s. That time  for me was spent sandpapering my proverbial square edges to fit in the round hole known as middle school/popular/cool.   Our teens and twenties have been ...

I used to think having a side dish that takes 5 minutes to make, tastes delicious and includes veggies was a pipe dream, until I found this little gem. With it being Apple picking season I thought it was time to share my favorite easy healthy side dish. Warm Apple-Cabbage Slaw I'm going to make this simple for you where you only have to slice an apple. Ingredients 1 bag cole slaw mix 1 apple, thinly sliced 1/4 cup water cider vinegar, to taste Yep, just cheap cole slaw mix (no mayo, it's simply the cabbage and carrots) Directions Place cole slaw mix, sliced apple and water in a medium skillet, heat on medium low, cover and cook until tender.  Stir in cider vinegar to taste and serve The finished product in the pan after 5 minutes of cooking