Having an Intense Week? 3 Things to Help You Survive (And Maybe Thrive)

While you are reading this newsletter, I am at the Deepak Chopra Center for a week-long meditation and yoga retreat that I gave my husband for his 50th birthday. (Oh, how convenient. It's a present for me, too!) If you take your vacation time (and if you don't, we need to talk), you know that the week prior to said vacation can be particularly intense while you make sure everyone has what they need in your absence and to set yourself up for an easy re-entry.

Other times can be intense, too, like when you launch a new product or implement a system change or any number of special corporate fire drills. Weeks like this can be frustrating and hard to get through, but they don't have to be.

Here are three tips to dealing with a particularly intense week:

1. Be conscious and acknowledge that you are entering an intense week.That way, your body and mind know what you're dealing with, and you don't grunt through the week resisting and being annoyed at how busy you are. Being conscious enables you to focus, do what you have to do, and move efficiently to the next thing with clean and clear energy.
    
2. Find small moments to refresh. In an intense week, your spinning class might go out the window or you don't have time to cook. And, you can absolutely find 5 minutes to be quiet at your desk, step outside for a bit of sunshine, relish your morning shower, or grab quick cup of coffee with a colleague. Eat lunch! Take care of the physical and mental machine so it can work for you.
    
3. Keep the end in sight. Imagine the beach, picture the martini in your hand, anticipate the celebration at the end of the big project, or hold onto the plan for a lovely dinner with friends over the weekend. When you can see the end and it's soooo pretty (even if it's a tiny bit pretty), you are more motivated to do that next thing. And the next one. And the next one.

Of course, if all your weeks are intense and stressful, that's a different conversation. (Say hello to saying no, self care, and prioritizing). That much intensity is not sustainable over the long-term.

Here's to thriving during an intense week!

OM!

Christina
 

A Surprising Take On Opportunity

Last week, I attended a presentation at a big company as part of a coaching gig in their women's leadership program. The women in my coaching group were shocked by something one of the speakers said. I want to share it with you so you can experience the same sense of liberation my group did.

He said,

It's ok to say no to opportunities.

What? 

Really?

Most of us are trying to maximize opportunities, seek out new ones, and generally advance our careers on a pathway of YES! Saying no to an opportunity seems counter-intuitive. 

This comment reminded me of a long-buried personal story:

Years ago, when I worked in HR, one of the directors I supported offered me a management position to lead the team that was strategizing the technology and processes needed to leverage mobile IT for our company. The offer came with a $1000 per month raise. (I still dream about that raise.)

I said no.

I wanted to be in management, but honestly, mobile IT held no juice for me. Yes, I'd make more money and be catapulted up the leadership chain, and I'd spend my days dealing with tech and systems that bored me. I stayed in the HR role I loved and moved into management through a different path.

Just because an opportunity is an opportunity doesn't mean it's YOUR opportunity. (ooohhh…Tweet that!)

Evaluate each opportunity according to your goals and plans for your career, your family, and your life. And if you don't have a clear vision for those goals and plans, that's ok. Trust your instincts. Listen to your gut and make your choice.

You can say no. And trust that the right opportunity will come along.

Oh yeah!

Christina
 

Rebels Get to Do Weird Things

Have you ever had one of those days when you felt like it was time for the day to be over already?

Yesterday was like that for me. It was a fine day, not great, not bad. Truth be told, I was crabby on the inside and doing an ok job of looking harmless on the outside. And by the end, I was tired. Like dragging-my-feet-not-an-ounce-of-energy-dog tired.

I checked my email one last time, fed my family a yummy-enough dinner and at 7:30, announced I was calling it quits on the day and going to bed.

I'm a grown woman, not a 3-year-old, so a 7:30 bedtime is a little extreme. A few years ago, I would have pushed through, told myself that I could be productive, or at least friendly, for a few more hours, and instead of listening to my body and intuition, I would have stayed up until 11:00.

Today, I get how crucial self-care is even if a 7:30 bedtime is a bit weird. I was solidly out by 8:15 and woke up at 5:30 refreshed and ready for the big work day I had planned.

I share this with you, because I know how easy it is to ignore the subtle messages that say, "rest, go home, seek some quiet, take care of yourself."

Here's a challenge for you: By the end of this week, listen to one of those messages and take off a little early from the office, go out with friends you haven't seen in a while, call your brother, or get the mondo dose of sleep you need!

And with that, you just experienced a challenge like the ones in a big project I've been creating for you this winter - The Everyday Rebel Challenge. When you join, you'll receive a daily short video via email with a quick-to-understand, fun, and good-for-you challenge that you can implement that day without adding stress to your bursting to-do list.

The Everyday Rebel Challenge starts March 27. Join us here! 

(If you tried to join earlier this week and got an error message, you can thank a major outage at Amazon. Who knew that Amazon was back in there somewhere! Try again. I've been told it's fixed.)

Questions? Contact support@boydsmithcoaching.com

Let me know the weird thing you decide to do. As always, I love hearing from you!

With rebel love,
Christina

Be the light in the darkness. I dare you!

Estimated read time: 45 seconds (55 if you read slowly)

Let your light explode! Or shimmer! Or twinkle!

I was at a meeting this morning and before we began, one of the committee members (who is aptly named, Joy) asked each of us to reflect on where we find joy and light in the darkness. After each of us shared touching details from our lives, Joy said,

"It is a defiant act to be the light in the darkness."

If you watch international news or live in the North, you know that there is plenty of darkness to go around right now - literally and figuritvely. People have told me they feel guilty for wrapping gifts or making plans for holiday travel. They feel guilty for experiencing joy when there is so much darkness.

We need joy now more than ever. Being joyful is a radical act. Being joyful isn't about being complacent or blind. Joy is about harnessing the power of love, spirit, and fun to serve yourself and those around you.

We need your unique light. How will you bring your defiant light to your work and home?

Here are some ideas for inspiration:

• Laugh early and often.
• Take a treat to the office (baking is my personal favorite).
• Tell someone how much you appreciate them.
• Watch a funny movie. (Elf, anyone?)
• Give yourself full permission to enjoy the holidays (or not, if that suits you).
• Be inspired by the beauty in nature.

Choose one way you can add your light to the darkness. What will you do? I'll be baking, delivering treats to neighbors, and road-tripping with my family.

Email me at christina@boydsmithcoaching.com and tell me all about your joy. I love to hear from you!

Stay warm!

Christina

P.S. If you know someone who would like to receive this newsletter, they can sign-up for The Corporate Rebel Video Podcast and Newsletter HERE.

Speeding toward the holidays? Stay on track with these productivity tips.

Estimated read time: 1:02.81 minutes

It sounds weird. And seriously, this tomato-inspired strategy will help you get more done starting TODAY.

In the late fall, the pace of life and work speeds up. This year, there is much happening on the national and international stage. It can be exhausting. Things accelerate - annual reviews, holiday parties, travel, year-end analyses, family visits, and project deadlines. Does it feel like this in your world?

In response to the pace of the wider world, we are keeping things simple here at Corporate Rebel HQ.

I'll spend the next few weeks teaching you techniques for efficiency and productivity so you can focus, do excellent work, breathe, and have more time for fun and festivities.

Here's the first one, inspired by a process called Pomodoro. (Yes, the Italian word for tomato.) This super productivity strategy was developed by Francesco Cirillo who was inspired by his tomato-shaped kitchen timer.

I use a modified version of Francesco's process which you can implement immediately to make your work more productive. Here's how it works:

1. Text or instant message a friend or colleague who will be your virtual pomodoro partner. (You can also do this process alone.)
3. Tell your friend exactly what you are going to work on for the next 25 minutes. Choose one thing.
4. Shut off your email, FB, and phone ringer so you can focus.
5. Set a timer for 25 minutes.
6. When you're both ready, text Go! and start the timer.
7. Focus for the next 25 minutes.
8. When the timer goes off, account your progress and/or completion to your colleague. Celebrate!
9. Take a 5 minute break - grab coffee, step outside, throw in a load of laundry, listen to music.

Rinse and repeat as many times as you like.

I used this process to write this newsletter and am now going to take a break to make breakfast for my kids before school.

Let me know how this process works for you!

I hope this helps.

Warmly,

Christina

P.S. If you know someone who would like to receive this newsletter, they can sign-up for The Corporate Rebel Video Podcast and Newsletter HERE.

The way you spend your day….

Estimated read time: 1 minute

I want to check in with you about how things are going in your job.

I know you struggle with burn-out, overwhelm, and what to do next. You keep thinking things will change if you just work harder, take on more responsibility or give the changes in your company more time. Being stuck is a total drag.

These struggles have me thinking about a funeral I attended for a colleague from my corporate days. He worked hard, sometimes staying at the office on Christmas Eve, traveling internationally, sacrificing for the company and putting many things off “until retirement.” The church was simultaneously crying and laughing hysterically at the stories his children told of the things their dad was finally doing in his retirement. He was just beginning to enjoy all the things he had worked for when he died 2 years in.

When I hear you say, “I’ll wait until next year. Maybe things will get better on their own,” or “I can put up with anything until my kids are out of college,” it breaks my heart. Time is short. Your life is valuable. The time to bring back joy, balance, health, and meaning is NOW. Retirement is too far away. Even next year is too far away.

This quote makes me think of you everyday:

How you spend your days is how you spend your life. ~Annie Dilliard

You are the one with the power to make things better for yourself. Waiting for your company to make things better for you is only going to make you another year older.

If you are:

• waiting to see if things will get better on their own;
• procrastinating on making a change because you’re scared of the financial consequences;
• skeptical that things can ever be better in your job;
• wishing you had the roadmap to professional fulfillment,

Let’s hop on the phone. Email me at christina@boydsmithcoaching.com to schedule a session with me.

I promise you they can be better. Don’t wait another year to create your life and work on your terms. The time to be happy at work is now.

We’ll spend 30 minutes creating an inspiring and empowering plan for things to be better NOW.

Whether we end up working together or not, I can't wait to connect.

Happy Halloween!

Christina

P.S. If you know someone who would like to receive this newsletter, they can sign-up for The Corporate Rebel Video Podcast and Newsletter HERE.

Let your rebel flag fly AND succeed in a corporate job. In fact, it's vital!

Estimated read time: 2.5 - 3 minutes depending on your reading speed

The Muppet Yip-Yips can make you successful at work, too!

Let's jump right into a story this week about the amazing results you get when you let your unique, rebel flag fly at the office.

Meet Matt. (Matt is my client's REAL name. Matt said this morning, "I’m happy to hear my story is helpful for others" and is ready to "take the plunge" to share it.)

Matt didn't get to pick me as his coach. I was hired by his company (a large, multi-national financial firm) to coach high potential managers, and the HR team matched us up. Matt's management felt that things were crunchy with his team. The ways he was interacting in meetings wasn't always, shall we say, productive. Shared anxiety was affecting his team's performance.

As Matt and I started working together, it became clear that much of the anxiety was stemming from him. (Yup. He's the leader. Makes sense.) We quickly uncovered three things:

1. He is deeply creative and has an elephant's brain. It's a groovy circus in there - full of connections, hilarious metaphors, and a steel trap memory.
2. He believed that only a buttoned up, carefully controlled version of himself was going to succeed as a corporate leader. He literally visualized a wall on his commute to work where he turned off big parts of his identity in order to become the person he thought would be effective at the office.
3. He ran his life on a tight timetable and set of expectations that was making Matt all work and killing his sense of fun.

Our work was clear: expose the beliefs that were holding him back, uncover the amazing way he already operates, leverage those funky, rebel-y mental processes to bring him success at work, get clear about what he wants in all areas of his life, and teach him how to take care of himself.

If anyone had been a fly on the wall in our coaching sessions, they would have wondered what the heck we were doing. We talked about the ninja on his shoulder, used Sesame Street as a point of reference (yep, the alien Yip Yips), and cleaned out the metaphorical clutter in the attic of his brain. He did homework: meditation, turned off all of his clocks for a weekend to enable him to experience his own pace, and experimented with ways to open up at work. We had a blast.

At the end of 6 months, Matt had worked diligently in coaching to grow himself and created real, practical results for himself and his team. He quelled the anxiety. He lost weight. His team got happy and productive. (In our final status meeting, his boss commended the amazing change in Matt and his employees.) His retention was secured. He started exercising and hosted grilled cheese lunches for his group at his desk. He took walks during the day when he needed to clear his mind. And, (I LOVE this part), he went to a concert with his new open attitude and met the love of his life. They got married a year later. His success has led him to be courted for a new challenging assignment full of interesting risk and potential. Giving himself permission to be his full self created real, lasting, tangible results.

I asked Matt to comment on this story and here's what he said today:

"One thing that came to mind in reflecting on our time together...was the magnitude of the positive impact you had on my life centered around you guiding me on how to get out of my own way. I had and others had 'everything necessary to be successful.' (I remember you repeating this a number of times in our sessions). You cheered me on as I tackled that mental clutter, associated fear and uncomfortableness with the 'unknown and hard to describe,' and helped me realize the value in being my genuine self (and how much easier and fun it was to be)."

I can't make this stuff up, Christina. When a client does something incredible for themselves, I still shout with amazement from the rooftops, "this shit really works!" And it sticks. Matt and I worked together years ago, and the changes he created are still true today.

You deserve to be happy at work. You deserve to understand the fun and funky ways you operate so you can leverage them for your success. You deserve to feel like what you do every day matters and brings you a sense of meaning and joy. (Ok, most days. Some days are still gonna suck. Not gonna lie.) You deserve to let your rebel flag fly loud and proud.

Let's get your rebel flag in the air and get you happy at work. Hop on the phone with me for 30 minutes. We'll strategize your personal situation and transform the way you're thinking about your leadership and your work. Email me at christina@boydsmithcoaching.com to set up a time to talk.

Seriously, this shit really works. (I hope my mother-in-law doesn't read this. I promise I don't teach my kids the "s" word.)

Christina

P.S. Please forward this email to anyone you think could use some support or consider a session for one of your employees. Being fully yourself is vital to your success. P.P.S. If you know someone who would like to receive this newsletter, they can sign-up for The Corporate Rebel Video Podcast and Newsletter HERE.