What I Learned This Summer Part 3: You'll Know When Its Time

Time to read: 36.25 seconds

Last week I told you I took the month of August off. The truth is I was bone tired. Not burned out because I love what I do, and after the pandemic and a bunch of personal stuff, I needed to put everything down and recover.

I was unmotivated. I slept until 8:30. Going to the gym was a victory. Major sources of entertainment were walking my dogs, hanging with friends, and reading. I could not muster the energy for anything related to work. I couldn't even talk about it. (You'll hear more about that next week.)

A little voice wondered if my drive would ever return. If my new normal would be nothing but dog walks and tea.

Then, in the past week, as I've started seeing clients again and planning for a new cohort of my signature group program, Clarity U (more coming about that later), I started to imagine a couple of free online events and what I wanted to write in my newsletter. Ideas started flowing, and I'm excited to create events and content for you.

The takeaway for you is that you can trust yourself to know when it's time to turn it off. And when you're ready to turn it back on. Your motivation and energy ebb and flow. Be ready to move when it flows, and honor your need for the ebb.

You can get more information and sign up for Creating U here and Energizing U here.

What happens when you do less?

Time to read:

Hydroponic herbs. A perfect example of more with less.

An amazing thing happened this week. I did less and got more.

Before you scream, "Not the phrase 'do more with less," read on. This isn't a ploy to cut your resources.

Here's the story: I do strategic planning sessions for each person in my Clarity U group program. To prepare for the session, participants answer a set of reflection questions, send me their answers, and I prepare before we talk. My preparation involves reading their reflections multiple times and crafting a series of questions to draw out the core of their goals. The prep takes 30 minutes to more than an hour.

I had two strategic sessions today, and both clients submitted their materials a minute before our call. So, I arrived unprepared. Both sessions were deep, meaningful, and revealed exactly what the clients needed in order to establish their purpose for a year in Clarity U.

Upon reflection later, the truth is, "unprepared" is incorrect. I had believed I needed to work hard, put in the effort in order to bring value and be "ready" to help my clients. Instead, something more powerful happened.

• I entered the conversation with no preconceived notions about the person from reading their materials. Everything I learned was in the moment and brought up directly in the session.
• We trusted our relationship and our shared wisdom.
• Because I didn't have any planned questions, the clients led the call. They started where they wanted and determined the course of the conversation.
• We got to the purpose of their reason for Clarity U swiftly and efficiently, and they left with exactly what they needed.

I'm a recovering over-performer and thought I had mitigated most, if not all, of my over-performing tendencies. Then here it was today, by necessity, I did less. And the end result was so much more.

I leave you with a challenge: Find a place in your life where you can do/prepare/perform/plan less and instead, trust/relate/listen/connect more.

I hope this helps.

Reach out anytime. I always love to hear from you. Email me here

Is It Time To Assess Your Life And Career?

Time to read: 10 seconds

In the past couple of weeks, I've heard a common story: You have lost motivation, are missing meaning, and feel like you get up each day, go through the motions at work and then drop in bed exhausted each night. You long for more fun. You long to enjoy work.

You wonder if you need to change jobs, change industries, start a business, or take a break.

You tell me you worry that making a change would simply be out of the frying pan, into the fire. Meaning, a big change won't fix it, and you're right. When you change the scenery, all you've done is, well, change the scenery. For things to be different, you have to shift your relationship to work so your career is filled with ease and elegance rather than harder work and burnout.

I haven't offered any services for many months. My coaching schedule has been bursting at the seams. It's summer, and I can feel that a lot of you are ready to evaluate where you've been, where you are going, and to formulate a plan to breathe new life into your career.

So, I have opened a few spaces for Work and Life Strategic Planning Sessions this summer. If you are curious to find out more about this stand-alone process, please hit reply to this email, and we'll find a time to chat.

The process involves an inventory of everything in your life and career by answering a series of questions and short assessments. Then we talk live about all the things and start to create a plan of action. Finally, I send you a written report that details what's working and what's not and a list of actionable recommendations to help you put work and life back on your terms.

If you want to know more, let's chat. Shoot me and email, and we'll find a time for a short chat.

Do you know someone who could use an evaluation of their life and career? Share this newsletter with them or have them email me! Anyone can sign up here.

Are You Aligned With the Future You Want?

Time to read: A little over one minute to read the newsletter. Maybe 4 minutes if you actually do the exercise.

I am aligned with THIS future!

Before you read any further, please do a quick exercise.

For two minutes, tell a story about the thing that has been on your mind the most in the past two weeks. (You can tell the story out loud or in your head.)

Go ahead. I'll wait.

Now, take a quick inventory of the story you just told. What was the energy? What are a few key words from the story?

Got it? Great.

Now you're going to learn something cool. I heard a concept recently that completely blew my mind and of course, I immediately thought of sharing it with you!

It is this:

Your reality is not created by your past. Your reality is created by your future.

What?! Doesn't it make sense that your current reality is created by a combination of events from the past? Like your parents who told you you could be anything you wanted? Or your competition with your older brother? Or the teacher who told you you weren't smart enough for advanced math? Or that time you got fired?

Try this on instead. You have a million and one possible futures. You can probably envision a thousand potential futures. You are aligned around a potential future right now, and it may or may not be the future you actually want.

Here are examples to help this make sense:

• Imagine you are dealing with family issues which have left you angry and exhausted. When you talk about the future you want, that future is full of connection, peace and home. However, the future you are currently aligned around is filled with judgment, blame and depletion.
• Now imagine you are making a huge life change. It's scary, and you're excited and motivated and relishing the thrill of the mystery and discovery inherent in the unknown. You are aligned around a future full of possibility.

Do you see the difference?

Now imagine the future you want. Where are you? What are you doing? How can you dream that future to be even bigger? Bolder? More vibrant? More alive?

Think back to the story you told a minute ago. What future are you aligned around right now? Is it the future you want? If it is, great! Keep going. If it's not, what do you need to change to align yourself and your life right now around the future you do want?

This exercise will help you get closer to the future you want by creating that future starting right now.

I'd love to hear what you discover in this exercise. Email me at christina@boydsmithcoaching.com and tell me all about it.

With rebel love,

Christina

P.S. Do you have a friend who wants to get aligned with the future they want? Forward this newsletter to them. Then invite them to join you by signing up for weekly wisdom for work and life right here.