Advice

While facilitating a Building Leadership Capacity seminar last week, we talked about “practice areas”—those actions or language we want to implement in order to more likely move toward our goals…the changes we know will get us there. “Choose” to implement is more accurate—because our steps in any direction are always a choice. The more we focus and repeat our choices, the more likely the changes that we desire become real.

Commitments seem easy when we’re away from the environment that drove us to the learning event in the first place: we’re with friends, we’ve shared war stories, we’ve discovered some new tools, and we care enough about our work that we want it to be better. Our intentions are good.

We intend to make the changes, and we do the first day and maybe the second. At some point—usually sooner rather than later—the overwhelm of stuff and work and emails and bosses and coworkers and customers consumes us and we’ve forgotten our good intentions or at least pushed them aside. And so the return on our investment (time, money, work backlog, etc.) is reduced long before our choices around change becomes real…or lasting.

When we’re accountable only to ourselves, our follow-through is greatly reduced. Yet, we’re adults: we know how to make changes, we know how to change behaviors, how to work new things into our lives…at least that’s the story we tell ourselves. So if we’re adults and capable of deciding and following through, why don’t we more often keep our commitments to change?

Because we’re human. And the pace of our lives today and the stretch and pull of different directions is such that our love of “the known” is greater than our infatuation with the change. Even when we know it’s in our best interests. Even when we know that we’ll be happier, more effective, more efficient, a better ___________ [fill in the blank]. 

When we’re accountable only to ourselves and life gets in the way, we let ourselves off the hook. We talk ourselves out of doing something different, of making the change, of having different expectations…because the challenge is bigger than the perceived outcomes. Back in the work/home environment, we don’t have the support, the encouragement, the reinforcement that helps change ‘take.’ 

So being accountable to someone else when we’re committing to something different is key. Without that external source of ‘kindred spirit,’ making the changes often becomes a Sisyphean challenge. In fact, being accountable is most effective with not only a partner, but also with a plan, a timeline, and scheduled check-in dates, times and methods.

Sound like one more thing to do that’s takes more time than it’s worth? It’s not…and I have a “practice areas” form that you can use to structure your commitments with a partner. If you’d like a copy, drop me an email (janine [at] careerowners [dot] com) and I’ll send it to you!

So stop with the stories you tell yourself, and work within your human nature to recruit one or several accountability partners. Why not create the structure to follow-through and make changes that will improve your doing, your being and your life? That’s what ‘cowgirl up’ is all about.  

Have a great week!

Janine

While I’m not psychic, I’ll say that one of two articles sums up your career thoughts. One, a blog on Harvard Business Review: “Why You Won’t Quit Your Job” and the other, from Forbes, “Why You Will Quit Your Job This Year.”  Both are worth the read and beg the question:  “Well, which am I?”

Both articles, in their different ways, note the necessities for owning your career: Confidence & Courage; Realistic Perspectives and Options; and Support.  Considering these, how do you stack up? Are you ready when the time is right for you? Have you taken both of these actions below to be ready?

       Yes    No    1. I have a professional development plan and I follow it; it’s the best                                long-term investment I can make in myself.

• What’s your development plan for the next 12 months? What additional information do you need and what new skills will increase your value to your employer…current or next? What certification or licensure indicates that you’re on the leading edge of your profession? And, while long term plans may change, what’s your potential career path for the next three years? In addition to learning directions, what projects or work will you take on to move toward your next career step? It may supplement your professional learning plan or it may be the project that helps you explore a new or parallel path.
• Investing in yourself means paying for the learning you need to bolster your career direction. You might expect your employer to pay and that may happen. If it doesn’t, what investment account are you growing to ensure you stay current in your profession? Start this month—this leap year—with $50 or $100 a month put aside for your development. Talk with a financial advisor to identify annual payout goals that you can work toward as you move along the career path best for you.

       Yes    No    2. I have mentors and strong relationships in place that offer support,                                         objectivity and accountability.

• Mentors and sponsors offer more than support…they offer perspectives that you won’t get without them. They offer experience, different world views and perspectives and likely learning that may keep you from making similar mistakes! If they are inside your current organization, they can give political counsel; and if they’re outside, they can provide objectivity as well.
• Objectivity comes from someone who has your professional interests at heart; someone who will ask the tough questions and give the direct feedback that grows your confidence in yourself and the courage to step into your power. Strong, effective coaches hold you accountable for moving forward: for making commitments that grow and stretch your thinking and being, and for coaching you to get out of your own way! This is most often a coach who is trained in the changing world of work as well as the subtleties of querying and feedback. The right coach invests as much in you as you invest in you!

    If you’d like an article on how to find your perfect coach, drop me an email and I’ll get it to you!

Adding these actions to the four covered in my previous two posts gives you a platform from which to establish a tailored yet flexible career plan backed up with preparation and momentum. So if you haven’t already, take the bull by the horns and get moving!

Janine Moon

This time of year, whether you have a significant other in your life or you don't, it's always important to love yourself. DO NOT dwell on the negatives but DO get in touch with and appreciate yourself. Here are some ways to do that:

Don’t Judge Yourself

Whatever feelings and thoughts you have during this time, they’re ok. Don’t berate or judge yourself for being lonely or sad. Allow yourself these emotions really try to get to the root of where they come from.

Do Treat Yourself
Be with yourself in the moment. Treat yourself to something special — something you’ve had your eye on or an experience you’ve been wanting to try. Don’t worry if you don't have someone to do it with. Doing it by yourself will increase your self-intimacy and self-love.

Do Accept the Kindness of Others
When we are open to honoring ourselves, we experience more of our power. Try taking in the kind gestures of others — the people who acknowledge you every day — and see how you feel about yourself in turn. Is your attention more on the one person who is grumpy and takes their mood out on you? Or is it on the person who thanks you for holding the door open for them? By appreciating these small gestures, you can appreciate yourself more.

Do Find Your Passion
By knowing and reflecting on yourself, you can find your passion. As you search and grow, you’ll be more connected and appreciative of yourself instead of wishing you were with someone. You deserve to live fully and creatively! 

Adapted from Helene’s new book, In Her Power, now in stores and on Amazon, Barnesandnoble.com and Powell's.

If you’re looking to make the leap to a better position, the grass isn’t always greener somewhere else! Just because you don’t find a job posting to suit you, or your boss isn’t giving you the feedback you want, you have options right where you are! If you haven’t done your homework on your organization, then how do you know there’s something better out there? The fact is…you don’t know, and you’re telling yourself a story about that somewhere else. It’s time you cowgirl up and consider your options based on fact…starting in your current organization.

Take a look at these action items…and ‘fess up:

        Yes         No            I am well-versed in my organization’s industry, market, competitors and the strategies it has identified to be successful.

• If you don’t know the “business” of the business you’re in, then you don’t know how the business makes money, or develops enterprises or what strategies work best in your market. If you don’t know these things, you know little about what makes the company tick…you’ve secluded yourself in your own little world or silo. And career and growth opportunities go to those who are interested in helping build the business.  If you haven’t done your due diligence, then it certainly seems that you don’t care about building a partnership—you care only about you and taking home your paycheck. 

• Where do you find this information? Start with industry publications and associations, competitor web sites, financial and government sites and daily online news sources that focus on your industry. Make connections in other areas of your organization, especially with sales and R&D folks. Find out what’s happening in their worlds—which competitors are the strongest and what new products or services customers want.

• Get the financials for your company and learn how to read them. Determine which revenue streams are exceeding goals and which are not; determine how expenses align with enterprises or not. Look at your company from a partner’s perspective: is your money working well for you, giving you good or great returns? Find a mentor who can teach you how to form sound business conclusions.

        Yes          No           I know my value to my organization and regularly talk with my manager about how I deliver value plus what I’m doing to increase it.

• Your value is what you contribute to the organization, the results you bring that no one else can. It’s your worth as a resource, and the greater your value the greater your contribution. The greater your contribution, the greater your reward. You must learn to calculate your value.

• Don’t confuse your value with your activities: your work provides or contributes to results. The value of the results can be measured or estimated, and your part in the results can be, too. Your value can be assessed based on quantity, quality, time, costs avoided, or other means. If you completed a project one week earlier than scheduled, what are the costs avoided by that early completion? Do your customers say that they return because of you? What is that additional business worth?  When you trained a co-worker and she avoided spending two days out of the office, what dollars were not spent to get her up to speed? All of these examples have dollar value that can be calculated and provide some estimate of your specific value to the company.

• When you calculate your value, you must “speak” it…let your manager know what you are providing that makes for a great business partnership. This might be in weekly review meetings, or you might stop in her office to pass along a compliment and the dollars you saved, or in monthly value reports. No one will ask you…you must become comfortable letting others know.

So, before you leap out…cowgirl up: begin with yourself…do the work…complete these two action items and increase your value to your present employer. You may be surprised at the response from your manager and mentor(s)…and you may discover areas to which you can provide great value. Your initiative and business savvy may help you create a much shorter leap than you thought possible!

Make sure you stop back…more action items to come. In the meantime, why not leave a comment? Would love to hear from you!

Janine

Janine Moon

Master Certified Career Coach

Career Ownership

Do you know the phrase “Cowgirl Up”? It’s like “Put on your big girl panties and deal with it” or “Suck it up and move on!” It means to step up your game, take the bull by the horns, tackle something head-on, and stop whining about it. It’s about taking initiative and making your own way, rather than waiting or expecting someone else to do it for you.

If you’re among the more than half of employees (December 2011 survey) who are dissatisfied with the lack of career growth opportunities and you find no fit with internal job postings, what can you do but leave to find greener grass, right? Well, no, actually…there are many things you can do right where you are. In short, you can actively take responsibility for your own career growth and direction without the extreme of leaving your current job. Both you and the organization will be better for it. If you think you’re entitled to someone else saddling up your career ride, you’re wrong…so cowgirl up!

Measure yourself on each of these action items (I’ll be providing others throughout February's blog posts) and if you can’t answer a loud and resounding “Yes!” to each, then you have plenty of career work to do right where you are.

        Yes         No       1. I know my values, motivators, skills and best work environments.

• If you do know these things, do you consciously use them in your work? If you don’t, how can you better bring them to bear? When we align with who we are (authentically), then both our satisfaction and contribution are greater.
• If you don’t know these things, then wherever you work likely won’t work well. Your career direction will always be in someone else’s hands because you don’t have the reins if you don’t know the territory. It’s your values and motivators and other unique characteristics that give you clarity on direction; once you’re conscious of them, you can define outcomes that satisfy your career and professional goals.

        Yes         No        2.  I recognize my talents and know how to leverage them at work.

• Talents are our innate capabilities that make us really, really good at certain things. Using them allows us to shine, and our work provides huge value to both us and our employer. With our talents in play, the work we do is more satisfying, we have a strong commitment to the best possible results and we enjoy what we do…it’s like play. For employers, strengths-based work means highly connected workers who go the extra distance to ensure success.
• If you haven’t taken the Strengthsfinder assessment  or the VIA Character Strengths assessment, do it! You’ll get a specific set of those behaviors and characteristics that make you your best. With strengths in mind, you can identify when and where you use them most often as well as the business areas where you could provide value. 
• Recognizing and leveraging your talents gives you clues to the kinds of work and projects that will be satisfying and challenging. Most organizations have multiple enterprises and looking into win-win opportunities before making a leap to another company is a smart career move. 

So…cowgirl up! Don’t just turn and run thinking anywhere else is bound to be better. Begin with yourself. Do the work. You’ll find that your frustrations diminish, your confidence increases and career satisfaction is yours for the discovery. 

And stop back…we’ll discuss additional action items in future blogs. In the meantime, why not leave a comment? Would love to hear from you!

Hello, Everyone: Janine Moon here, your February Career Coach...I'm delighted to be a resource for you on workplace and career-related issues over the next few weeks.

Success in today's workplaces requires different capabilities: rather than searching for the "right answers," successful women step into their authenticity: they know who they are; they live their values and embrace their talents; and they continually align their professional value with their organization's strategies. They develop the confidence to step gracefully into the changes that so define business environments.

So, what about me?  My authenticity stems from my long-ago reign as Ohio’s Pork Queen (!), my time as a teacher, women’s rights advocate, wife, mother, executive, marathoner/half-marathoner and career changer…called ‘job hopper’ back then! I have learned the “hard truth about the soft stuff"…that as human beings, we don’t leave our emotions at the door; and organizations and individuals are most productive when we have a deep commitment to the work we do. When organizations recognize "what got us here won’t get us there," I coach them in how to keep their talent—by getting good with the "soft stuff" of coaching, mentoring and workforce engagement.

I’m a refugee of corporate America, having spent years moving through the ranks and getting to the C-suite. I learned relationship building and enterprise growth and created, managed and implemented change. I am always delighted to challenge “we’ve always done it this way” thinking so people can sync outdated beliefs with the reality of today’s global marketplaces. My clients include manufacturing, finance and insurance sectors, associations, professional services firms and government agencies.

As one of only 5 Master Certified Career Coaches in the U.S., I help people take responsibility for lifelong and satisfying career direction. When my clients surface and nurture their identity—their authenticity—they discover their foundation and build on it. The approach—Career Ownership coaching—is the work of my book, Career Ownership: How to Create ‘Job Security’ in Any Economy. 

I completed my Master’s work at The Ohio State University, serve as an adjunct faculty member at Franklin University, and continue active involvement in the National Speakers Association and the International Coach Federation. I live in Columbus, Ohio with my beautiful rescue black lab, Shelby; while my daughter, Lara, lives a short distance away with my grand-puppy, Bailey!

I would love to hear your questions and workplace issues to include them in my blogs this month. Until I hear from you, I’ll blog on how to measure your career assets, owning v. renting your career, and likely some things on the voice inside our head—that voice that often puts us directly in our own way! 

Janine Moon

PS: Who among you gets to celebrate your birthday this month on its real date, February 29? Please leave your name in the comments area so we can all wish you a Happy Birthday on your day!

Last night my husband and I attended a parents’ group aimed at developing some successful strategies. As a consultant and executive coach, I have always concerned myself with knowing how to build empathy skills. After all, empathy is critical for leaders at any level to develop for influencing, managing conflict, and effective interpersonal communication in general. I learned firsthand that the most challenging component of successfully expressing empathy and sympathy is validation. We learned how to verbally and nonverbally validate ourselves and others. This was really difficult for me. When I am emotionally triggered, this is the toughest skill I have ever tried to master.

What is validation? Validation communicates to another person that his or her feelings, thoughts, and actions make sense and are understandable to you in a particular situation. Remember that validation is not agreement. Validation does not necessarily mean that you like or agree with what the other person is doing, saying, or feeling. Validation means that you understand where the other person is coming from.

Why is validation helpful? It improves relationships! It makes empathy and sympathy truly work for the communication. Validation shows that we are listening, we understand, we are being nonjudgmental, we care about the relationship, and conflict is possible with decreased anxiety.

How can we validate others? 

1. Actively listen, make eye contact and stay focused with the other person while they are talking. It’s important to be mindful of both verbal and non-verbal reactions in order to avoid “invalidating” their feelings (e.g. rolling eyes, sucking teeth, walking away, saying “That’s stupid, don’t be sad,” or “I don’t care what you say”).
2. Observe what the other person is feeling in the moment. Look for a word that describes the feelings. Paraphrase what you hear or think they are feeling based on a past experience with them, i.e, “I know how much you get annoyed when someone is late.” Also, demonstrating a spontaneous expression of your validation such as saying, “I feel the same way when that happens,” or saying, “oh no!” or give a hug - which is an expression of “radical genuineness.”
3. Show tolerance, especially when you are feeling emotionally triggered. Look for how the feelings, thoughts, and action make sense, given the other person’s (or your) history and current situation, even if you don’t approve of the behaviors, emotions, action themselves.
4. Respond in a way that shows you are taking the other person seriously (with or without words). If someone is crying, give a tissue or a hug. If someone is presenting a problem, start problem solving immediately (unless the person wishes merely to be heard).

We can validate ourselves as well!  Self-validation involves perceiving your own feelings, thoughts, and action as accurate and acceptable in particular situations. This is, in fact, critical to being able to successfully validate others. We want to be authentic when we validate - and validating our own feelings will help us be present and non-judgmental as we validate other’s feelings.

Try this out yourself:

Your teammate didn’t follow through on a promise and is complaining to you about being judged harshly by the manager.

1. Now write down your first response (the one you naturally might make). 
2. Now write down a validating response. 

What did you write? My first response was “well that’s what happens when you don’t communicate you’ll be late.” My validating response: “That must have felt awful!”

Try this with some other challenging situations and build your “validation muscle.” Empathy and sympathy is much more powerful when others feel you “get” them. It lays the foundation for trust and problem solving, especially when emotions run strong.

I am always on the lookout for simple and practical strategies for regaining internal balance during the times when I am feeling overwhelmed, afraid, and generally stressed. Our thoughts make up our experience of the world - moment to moment - and being aware of them is important. A wonderful tool we can use to expedite the process of internal growth and balance is the practice of Mindfulness. 

Mindfulness is a way to manage our attention - attending to our mind, body, heart, and spirit. It involves a self-reflection on core values and feelings, and helps us reconnect with ourselves and the world. 

Having a self-reflective practice we can use on a daily basis, especially in those moments when our stress is high, challenging emotions run strong, and our internal negative voice is gaining ground, is a powerful way to build resliency. This 4-step mindfulnelness practice helps us be present in the moment and connect with all parts of ourselves. It only takes two minutes!

1. Show up for yourself by turning inward. Sit comfortably, close your eyes and turn your attention inside your body. Breath deeply from your center or "core." Bring your attention to each part of your body and then move your attention to your heart - feel compassion for yourself and others around you.
2. Pay attention to what is going on within your mind and body by naming it. What is the emotion behind the thought?
3. Tell the truth. If the emotion is fear, embrace it. Be honest with yourself about what is behind your emotion. If it is fear, for instance, our need is for safety. Ask yourself, what threat am I committed to neutralizing? If it is anger, ask yourself what right am I committed to asserting? Your answer will provide some strategies to meet your important needs for this moment.
4. Release any attachment to the outcome. It is through release that we can get to the other side of the challenge. Know that your emotion has served an important purpose. Thank it and bid it farewell for now. When this is done with intention, it works surpirsingly well.  

The most frequent reason I let myself off the hook on these kinds of practices is lack of time, when I'm running back-to-back with meetings, projects and other commitments. But we can take a minute or two to do this. Don't we all go to the bathroom during the day? Use this time to self-reflect. This mindfulness-oriented practice can help you take your power back, courageously face barriers, and increase your resilency muscles. 

What are your favorite practices to build your resiliency?

Warmly,
Andrea Zintz, Ph.D.,
President
Strategic Leadership Resources
Shaping the Future!

I am a big proponent of optimism. Perhaps it's because I come by it naturally and have personally found it helps to get me through most challenges. However, many studies indicate that a general orientation towards optimism has a powerful impact on performance and happiness. 

But sometimes, the most optimistic of us can fall prey to our own negative interpretations of events, which then result in painful feelings. For instance, when I heard that some of my close colleagues thought I was not supportive of them because I had been distant, I remember my feelings of anger and betrayal. Why talk about me rather than to me before making up a story? However, I realized that constructing an alternative perspective might empower them and me. I had been totally immersed in a project, and I saw that this caused them some uncertainty. I realized my relationship was valuable to them, and that they made up their own reasons for my withdrawal since they didn't understand it. This alternative interpretation gave me a foundation for a new strategy: by giving them an explanation and showing caring and appreciation for their colleagueship, I could strengthen our relationship.

So can optimism be developed if we don't naturally see the glass has half full? How do we develop a habit for optimism? We start by practicing the habit "shifting to a positive interpretation." 

Write in your journal for two minutes every day as you move through these steps:

• Step 1: Begin to challenge negative beliefs or thoughts you have about a situation, yourself, or another person.
• Step 2: Consider the alternative possibilities and list positive actions you can take to move forward and stay empowered. For example, let's say you missed your workout routine for three days and feel incredibly guilty. How can you shift to a more positive interpretation? Remind yourself that you are still healthy and just need to get back on track with actions such as: taking a few challenging classes at the gym this week to make up for it; eating healthy and cuting back calories for the next week; walking after work.

In building the “Shift to a positive interpretation” habit, it can feel like negative emotions should somehow be removed as "not OK", but this is NOT SO! Instead, simply try out looking at the situation differently. Shifting to a positive interpretation alters your emotions, leading to more rational decision-making and outcomes that are likely to be productive. This is like pressing a "pause button." In the moment when you are feeling negative emotions, pause to identify an alternative interpretation. See if you can come up with multiple positive possibilities and notice how you might take a productive action to move forward. This builds our natural optimism.

Shifting thinking when challenges arise in our lives can create win-win outcomes and generate creative solutions to move forward.

Warmly,
Andrea Zintz, Ph.D.
President
Strategic Leadership Resources
Shaping the Future!

Check out Sylvia Hewlett's article on Hone Your Skills. She gives excellent advice about finding sponsors and differentiating them from mentors.

To add to her wonderful advice, I'm promoting the concept of learning to be the “perfect protégé,” a person who others are attracted to and want to mentor. Mentors provide a trusting supportive relationship for seeking advice, feedback and coaching. A "perfect protégé," for example, knows the value of listening over talking. An important aspect of making yourself attractive to sponsors and mentors alike is to be able to take negative feedback.  We can only learn if we get feedback from others. If you bristle at criticism, teachers won’t want to teach you.

Here are several ideas on mentoring that will help you attract those who can help most.

• Think mentors, not mentor. All work relationships are potential resources for addressing your developmental needs. There is probably no one single person who can help you at all stages of your career. Typical mentor-protégé relationships last two to five years. The more different types of "teachers" you have in your developmental network, the more you can draw from their different strengths. Some may turn out to be great sponsors, sounding boards, and friends.
• Not just about career. Some mentors can help you advance your career by introducing you to the right people or by acting as a buffer. But you also need people who can offer coaching and feedback that develops you from the inside out – to help enhance your sense of competence and effectiveness in a professional role.
• Consider development when evaluating job choices. Seek out positions and organizations that provide an opportunity for establishing supportive developmental relationships. Be sure to have alliances of both genders in your developmental network.
• Don’t confuse networking relationships with mentoring. In the Hone Your Skills article, Sylvia distinguishes sponsors from mentors. Add people to your network when the relationship can be mutually beneficial. When we pull people into our network, it is usually transaction-oriented (I need a job reference so I’ll call Bob.) Mentoring is a deeper commitment on both sides and isn't about doing favors for others. If you want a mentor to find you, you’ll have to signal your commitment to the relationship.

Build your network with Mentors, Sponsors and folks with whom you can ask for referrals and favors. Be sure you can attract the right mentors into your life by being the "perfect protégé!"

Warmly,
Andrea Zintz, Ph.D.
President, Strategic Leadership Resources
Shaping the Future!

Susan was always nervous speaking to groups. In presentations, her “performance anxiety” kicked in and her mind would go blank. Her knees would shake and she felt completely off her game. How many of us can identify with this? 

 Do you want to improve your performance in certain situation? I suggest a technique called "pre-play events." It's a habit that works effecitively and naturally to improve performance and involves visualizing what you are going to do perfectly and confidently prior to doing it. This practice vastly increases the likelihood of high performance.

A study completed by Kathleen A. Martin and Craig R. Hall demonstrated that golfers who used  visualization set higher goals, spent more time practicing, and adhered to their training programs better than those who did not visualize. Now, athletes use this technique all the time to improve their performance.

For five days prior to her presentation, for two minutes each morning, Susan wrote a description of herself delivering the presentation with confidence and poise, answering tough questions articulately, and feeling great during and after the event. When the time actually came, she performed her presentation confidently and successfully.

Pre-play events to raise your game every time!

Warmly, 

A powerful habit I encourage you to take on now is: Focusing on What’s Good.

The good news is that we have our subconscious mind, which in contrast plays possibilities, creativity, solutions and inspiration. When you’re tapping into it, it takes you from feeling distracted and overwhelmed to being focused and in control. It can be described as your natural state, which is also your zone for peak performance.

Our mindset is within our control and that we have opportunities to increase our levels of happiness by how we think and what we do on a daily basis. We can develop habits that increase the time we use this peak performance zone to tap into our best thinking and performance.

• Exercised 33% more
• Had fewer physical symptoms of stress
• Felt better about their lives
• Were more optimistic about the upcoming week
• Were more likely to have made progress toward goals

If you are already positive in your general approach, consider news headlines read or heard, or the obstacles faced daily at work or in your personal life. Each day we are hit with negative influences that challenge our positivity, resilience, and our ability to handle adversity and stay on track to our goals. By building the habit of focusing on what’s good, we are creating a built-in shield or buffer to the negative influences that inevitably arise in all our lives.

We know that social networking is critical to developing our careers and ourselves. Maybe you're on this site now as a way to connect with others for good ideas, useful tips, and new information. How do we make these connections truly pay off for our personal and professional development goals?  Doesn’t social media tend to produce vast shallow networks – and not the deeper, more meaningful connections that produce friendships and sustainable commitments in our lives? How do we use these networks fruitfully?

 I am currently reading a fascinating book by David Brooks, a New York Times columnist, entitled The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement. I am particularly struck by these ideas:

• We are largely the product of our unconscious mind. This part of us organizes our thinking, shapes our judgments, forms our characters, and provides us with the skills we need in order to thrive.
• We thrive in fellowship with others. We become fully ourselves through the interplay of our networks, while seeking to establish deeper and more complete connections.
• Through these connections we have with others, we collect more wisdom. These relationships are the essence of how we flourish as humans.

So social networking is a powerful way to expand our selves. Being part of groups gives us a space to play, to help each other out, to learn from each other, to share thinking, memories, reactions, complaints, engage in coaching and debating. Also, much research shows how almost everything is contagious – and if your friends are happy, you’re more likely to be happy (the converse being true as well).

My suggestion is to:

1. Choose networks that arouse your passions, to be where others share your interests, with those who are largely positive and optimistic about our possibilities and the future. 
2. Limit your choices to a few groups rather than many – where you can feel more present and known by others. This is where the meaningful and sustainable commitments can flourish. This is where you can feel most nourished in your personal and professional life. 
3. Participate – add your voice while also listening to what others contribute. 
4.   Have a blend of in-person groups and online groups. We can get more personal                              nourishment from in-person settings, and online groups can supplement this. 

Warmest regards,

Andrea Zintz, Ph.D.

Strategic Leadership Resources

Shaping Our Future!

Happy New Year Everyone!   

I am Andrea Zintz, Career Coach for January 2012. I am once again happy to be your resource as you pose questions, ideas, and experiences about navigating workplace, relationships and career. 

A little about me: I specialize in executive and high potential leadership strategy, succession and development. I have over 30 years experience in Leadership Development, Change Management, Human Resources Development and Training. For 11 years, I have consulted to large corporations on leadership, team, and organization development. 

I cultivated my experiences as a coach within the diversified healthcare and pharmaceutical, defense, and retail industries. As Vice President of Human Resources and Management Board member of the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, Ortho Biotech, Inc., I helped lead the growth of the company from $40 million to $500 million in a 6-year period, and launched breakthrough biotech products. I also led executive leadership development for North American from J&J Corporate. My special interests include executive women's advancement, diversity/inclusion, and mentoring. My doctoral dissertation was about mentoring: What constitutes effective mentoring for women who are stuck in their careers within large corporate settings? I received my M.A. and PhD. from Fielding Graduate University.

Today my clients include J&J, Sun Products, Allianz Global Investors, Boehringer Ingelheim, GE and Trinity. A specialty of our company is crafting powerful and strategic questions we can ask ourselves (and others) to access the best thinking. Since questions are a powerful leverage point for thinking, if we change our questions, we can encourage our best answers and this can help our thinking, decision, behaviors and results.

I enjoy coaching and my goal is to make a difference every day. I live in New Jersey, am married to an elementary school teacher and have two wonderful daughters, 16 and 19.

During this month, I will blog about topics such as:

• Using our unconscious mind and emotions to become more happy and resilient.
• How our questions can be used to access our best thinking.
• Developing our executive presence.

I hope you will feel free to comment and add your own experiences!

Warmly, 

Andrea Zintz, Ph.D., President

Strategic Leadership Resources LLC 

Shaping the Future!

Hello Womenworking.com members:

Being a confident business woman in the workplace is the first step in climbing the ranks within your company. It is always looked upon highly when you are able to take on tasks, understand guidelines, and work independently – these are fundamentals to any task in life, not just business. The problem, however, is when a woman becomes arrogant--she might actually prevent herself from getting a promotion, simply by her manner.

An arrogant woman might push boundaries and not listen to others' opinions.  She may be perceived as unapproachable, pushy or head-strong. The inability to discuss issues or problems with others can lead to detrimental effects on a career.

The trick is maintaining your ground on a subject while making other opinions heard, processed and actually discussed. Employers want to see someone who listens, appreciates the difference of opinion and incorporates all ideas into a project – not someone who will only hear what is in their own head.

_________________________________
Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis
President/CEO
Deline Institute for Professional Development
Website:  www.delineinstitute.net
Email:  women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net

"Finding Your Best Inside"

Hello Womenworking.com members:

Deciding whether or not inter-office dating should be permitted in the workplace is often a heated conversation. While many argue it is an adult decision to decide relationships — that it should have nothing to do with employers — it can cause tension between co-workers. The idea of inter-office dating is important for many, yet the after-effects of a bad breakup should be contemplated as well. While it may seem easier as a manager to allow the practice and avoid the dreaded “why not” conversations that might ensue, it is important to consider the entity of the business first, and the objections of the staff second.

Determining your policy on workplace romance is vital to the success of a business. Without firm guidelines in place, it may become a source of contention and tension should a relationship turn sour. That is not to say it should be banned all together, however, placing limitations on the relationships (perhaps preventing same floor, same department or section relationships) might make it easier on everyone.

______________________________
Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis
President/CEO
Deline Institute for Professional Development
Website: www.delineinstitute.net
Email: women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net

"Finding Your Best Inside"

Hello Womenworking.com members:

Every job has specific stressors. Understanding these stressors and utilizing certain methods can help reduce the overall affect it has on you throughout the workday, and help you maintain a calm working environment, for the most productive day possible.

Planning is imperative to succeeding in any task in life, and it also applies to the workplace. Imagine trying to buy a house, without planning on the down payment, mortgage or utilities – it would be catastrophic. This scenario hits home with a lot of people and yet, when it comes to deadlines in the workplace, many go full steam ahead without even considering the implementation of a plan.

Start by actualizing each individual piece of the project, assignment or deadline, and deciding how you are going to tackle each piece (one at a time now) and how long each might take you to complete. By starting at the beginning and breaking each piece down, you are more likely to stay on track of the stress, instead of allowing it to build without any idea of how to fix it.

_____________________________
Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis
President/CEO
Deline Institute for Professional Development
Website: www.delineinstitute.net
Email: women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net

"Finding Your Best Inside"

Hi Womenworking.com members:

There are many tips and tricks on the Internet that claim to help a woman climb the corporate ladder, and while these might be useful, seldom do these tips transpire into successful CEO’s, managers and supervisors at the end of the day. The reason is simple. These tricks can actually prove to be successful on paper, but the main idea often missed throughout them, is determination. Unless you have the drive and determination to become successful in your career, no amount of tips will help you succeed.

Understanding the difference between determination and dedication is often a fine line, however, goal setting is the preliminary step in helping to actualize your dreams of becoming the next CEO, manager or the like. A simple plan on how you are going to get to the top, followed by an accurate dedication to follow those steps can help the average business woman go from just a thought to climbing the corporate ladder much more efficiently than any tip.

_____________________________
Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis
President/CEO
Deline Institute for Professional Development
Website:  www.delineinstitute.net
Email:  women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net

"Finding Your Best Inside"

Hello Womenworking.com members:

While life will always throw us obstacles, many women in the workplace are confronted with co-workers who are less than amicable. This tension often leads to conflict, creating uncomfortable situations and unwanted stress throughout the workday. It is important, however, to consider how you hande this conflict to maintain a positive image to both your superiors and your management team. Mishandling disputes or confrontations can not only ruin the working relationship with that person, it can actually deter your employer from promoting or advancing you within the company. Superiors are always monitoring progress and skills of their employees, and conflicts are an area your boss might be keeping an eye on, without you even knowing it.

Staying on top of these problems without resorting to bickering, fighting, or other malicious methods will help keep you in the clear of any further problems and will continue to help your chances of finally getting that stellar promotion you have been wanting.
_____________________________
Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis
President/CEO
Deline Institute for Professional Development
Website:  www.delineinstitute.net
Email:  women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net

"Finding Your Best Inside"

Hi Womenworking.com members:

Deciding to take the leap from workplace to at-home business is a scary feat, often chartered with unsteady feet and caution. The decision to make the dive into working from home should carefully be considered, preventing financial distress, hardship and burning out after discovering the decision was based on a hunch instead of a carefully constructed plan – leaving you stressed, deterred and frustrated.

It is important to consider the type of environment your business requires to be successful. If your business is primarily customer-based, looking into where your meetings and appointments would be held (whether in home, or renting out an office space) can save some headaches when it comes to meeting with clients. The ability to also separate your work and home life is also a difficult feat for many business women. Having the desire to continue working after hours for additional sources of income may seem like an easy out, but consider whether or not your family will suffer from not having you participate in activities on a frequent basis.

Although these may seem like minor decisions, they are important obstacles often overlooked by many self-employed women entering into self-business, and often lead to additional sources of stress and frustration long-term.

____________________________

Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis
President/CEO
Deline Institute for Professional Development
Website: www.delineinstitute.net

Email: women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net (women [at] delineinstitute [dot] net)

"Finding Your Best Inside"