Are you on track to reach the goals you set?
Do you have someone to hold you accountable?
Jill Hutchison, Evolve Dynamic
Perth Executive Coach | Strategic Conversations and Confidence for Leaders
How to kiss….
In the list of most highly searched terms on Google is “how to kiss”.
In Google’s “a year in searches” we see that Robin Williams, World Cup rugby, Ebola, Malaysian airlines, Brazil vs Germany, iPhone6 are all at the top of the list. Who would have guessed?
So what does that have to do with business, or your personal goals?
Whether you are looking for a job or wanting more customers, or looking for a partner or more friends – it’s about marketing yourself in a very specific way.
This is where the ‘dating model’ comes into play. The connections we build up and how we ‘date’ the other party are far more important than how to “kiss” them! If you don’t do the early steps right, you won’t ever get to the crunch point.
Just like you can see when someone just wants to go in for the kiss, (and more), in a personal relationship sense, it’s obvious in business too – and it’s really off putting. In fact it could be what is costing you the next job or the next project.
In Perth right now there is a wave of job losses, restructuring and retrenchments. Not surprising given that iron ore went from $150/ tonne to $50/tonne. The oil price was over $100 a barrel and is now around $45.
These are two major drivers in the Western Australian economy.
I see people looking for jobs and going about it in a way that guarantees they will be looking for a while. I see business owners trying to find new customers and the next project, but they are pushing business away without realising how their approach is costing them income.
If we don’t adapt and change the way we do things, we aren’t going to get the results we want. We won’t get to “the kiss”.
Here are a few things to remember:
If you give others what they want, you can very often get what you want. But if we give with the intention of getting, the whole energy is out of whack and it simply won’t work. Give freely and trust that somewhere along the line it will come back to you.
How you can position yourself so your next employer sees you as an attractive person: i.e. A person who will add value to their business. Gone are the days of guaranteed employment or giving business to the person who is in front of them.
Now all businesses large and small want and need people who add value, who are assets to the organisation rather than simply costs.
Then look around and see how you can add value to others around you.
It’s also a clue what your natural strengths are.
Find someone who you can bounce ideas off and will give you and honest assessment of your ‘dating’ strategy. When I showed this model to one of my customers the other day, he said “it’s no wonder no one has been returning my calls! I can see why I haven’t been getting anywhere. From now on I will approach it completely differently!”
This is especially important if you have moved from another country or city!
It’s easy to beat yourself up. When is now a good time to make a list of everything you’ve achieved? Every little thing you’ve done right. Confident people tend to get more success – so start rebuilding your confidence.
If you have any questions I’d be happy to answer them.
Have a great week.
With love and gratitude
Jill
At the 2015 Annual General Meeting held in Perth, CEO of BHP Billiton, Andrew Mackenzie said “we want to make sure employees can bring their whole self to work”.
That’s quite a concept for anyone who though they had a personal life and a work life and thought they had to keep it seperate! We have one life, and there has been a growing awareness that when we allow our strengths to shine through, all areas of our life improve.
There are two parts to this:
Are you in the right organization and the right role for this?
Are you doing what you love to do or do you dread Monday morning?
Have you reset your goals in alignment with where you are now and what your responsibilities are?
If you are responsible for managing a team, have you got any strategic interventions planned that are designed to bring out the best of your team?
Human capital is the biggest asset of many companies (and your mind is your own personal biggest asset!). Let me know if you’d like more information on how you could experience a turning point in your organization.
Why is it important from a personal point of view to bring your “whole self” to everything you do?
When a disaster happens, it makes us question everything. Life is too short to spend time doing stuff that doesn’t add value to your life in some way.
When is now a good time to get clear on what you want, and to take the actions to get there?
This week has been very sobering indeed. Don’t wait for something external to force you to make changes. Start with being grateful for those you love and for what you have. Look at your “whole self” and appreciate everything it entails.
When you can bring your “whole self” to the table, you give permission for everyone around you to do the same.
Whether you are leading a small team in one location, or regional managers in remote locations, there are some fundamental principles for success.
Getting everyone round the table in one location is worth the time and investment that it takes.
To get sustained results, it’s important to have an ongoing focus on achieving these results. Is your team on the same page regarding which results are most important?
Results also come from re-evaluating past performance, taking stock of where you are right now and setting goals each person can get passionate about. Three days works best if you haven’t done this before. If your team know each other quite well, then we can cover your strategy adequately in two days.
For your core team – if you would like better results, then critical and strategic conversations is the only way to do this.
You know your business better than anyone else does – When did anyone challenge your thinking?
Do you buy into the same limiting thinking that everyone else in your industry does?
By getting an outsider to challenge that thinking, you can establish what the facts are, and which of your thoughts are based on limiting beliefs or paradigms.
If you want to make the most of the time with your team, engaging a skilled strategic facilitator will keep the conversation on track and also challenge conventional thinking. In order to flesh out a robust strategy, you can’t keep doing things the same way you’ve always done them. Whether you have had some quick growth or been through a challenging time, it’s important to allow each member of your executive team to have their say.
Strategic Conversations with Jill Hutchison has a number of benefits:
Each person has a unique set of skills, experience, perspective and personality. To ensure you cover all the bases that are needed in business, you need a diverse team. You also need to appreciate what each person brings to the table. As I heard recently: We believe in gender and cultural diversity because it allows us to tap into all the talent we have in our staff. If we don’t, then we only get part of the value. It becomes a business imperative to engage and encourage diverse view points.
If you would like to energise and engage each person on your team, then you need to be energised and engaged. Does your attitude do this? Attitude is determined by our thoughts, feelings and actions. It’s our thoughts that determine our actions and hence our results.
If you, as a leader, can tell me where you want to be, I can help you get there. Do you know what kind of person you need to be to get there and what you can be doing right now to move in that direction? You will succeed in anything you set your mind to, provided you take the right actions. If it’s in line with your own values and personal purpose, then you’re more likely to do what it takes to get there.
Are you wondering whether you should be looking for a business to buy, or talking to headhunters about your next interview prospect?
Transitions can be exciting. They can also be tough. We start with a buoyant attitude, and then as we look around and start investigating the options, it seems that the economy isn’t as great as we first thought. During the light of day we feel the optimism and know this could be the most exciting stage of our life. Late at night it feels as if we have exhausted the options.
I’ve spoken to enough people at this stage to know what goes on in your head and your life! Yes, I’ve experienced living with someone who has been through retrenchment and I’ve also coached others who have been through it too. There are so many factors at play that even though you might be naturally a positive go-getter and an achiever, there are times when you feel that you need a bit of help.
Do you need a career coach? Or is it a business coach you need? Perhaps you just need a sounding board and a thinking partner. Someone who will ask you the tough, awkward questions to help you reveal what you really, really want. It’s important to have a confidential space in which you can explore ideas, uncover your strengths, skills and talents and boost your confidence. When your confidence is solid, that’s when you can market yourself properly – whether it’s to a prospective business partner or a future employer (or a life partner!)
Do you want answers? Would you like to discover the secret of success?
Ask yourself: What is the most important thing to me? If everything else was stripped away, what is the one thing that I absolutely want?
If your car is empty (needing fuel) – do you spend hours pondering over what went wrong when it was younger to cause it to need petrol?
Do you decide to simply press on and not worry about filling it with petrol (my husband might tell you that I have on occasion done this – never run out of petrol but it came close!) – or do you simply fill the tank up at the next opportunity?
How often have you ignored the little red light that comes on warning you that you don’t have much fuel left in your own tank?
I love deep thinking – but I do think there is a time and place to keep things really simple – and simply put into your life what you need. Time and time again I hear people saying it’s their limiting beliefs that are holding them back. Now that you know your limiting paradigms have held you back, you can change them! By repeating them, you’re making the decision to hold yourself back rather than move forward!
Sometimes we forget the basics and look for more complex answers, when we aren’t seeing the bright side of life because we are tired or hungry!
Arianna Huffington, author of The Sleep Revolution, says “I have one piece of advice for you: sleep your way to the top.”She also adds: “I had dinner recently with a guy who bragged that he had only gotten four hours of sleep that night. I didn’t say it, but I thought to myself ‘If you had gotten five, this dinner would have been a lot more interesting”.
We get inspired when we exercise. Get the blood flowing round your brain so you can think more strategically and see the opportunities that life presents. If you want to get fit, then strap on your trainers and get outside! Or put your bathers on and head for the beach. I get inspired when I have my toes in the sand on Hillary’s dog beach, or when I’m swimming down at Waterman’s bay. If you’re lucky enough to be near ski slopes, then hit the slopes and enjoy the snow!
If you’re not feeling healthy, then go and see a naturopath or homeopath (at least see a qualified medical person who will look at your body as a whole) – and get an action plan to become more healthy.
If you’re not happy then decide what it would take to make you happy – and do it. (Clue- it’s an inside job). Engage a life coach who will assist you in getting clear and setting your goals. When you set the right goals, you have the motivation to achieve them.
If you’re frustrated by those around you, make a decision to either change your attitude towards them or move away.
If you’re feeling lonely – then start with getting connected to yourself and your maker in a positive way – then go and make a difference to others. Ask a friend where you can volunteer to make a difference in other’s lives – it often changes the perspective on your own.
When is now a good time to make a decision to live the life you really desire?
You can either spend hours upon hours trying to find the causes of problems in your life, or you can ask the questions that will empower you and find the right answers. Spend a bit of time deciding what a great solution would look like.
By focusing on what you want, not what you don’t want, you will get exactly that. As Napoleon Hill tells us in Think and Grow Rich:
“Whatever idea is held in the mind, whether feared or revered, will clothe itself in the nearest physical equivalent”.
Decide what you want, and take the actions that you need to take to get it. Don’t wait for someone else to change, or to do it for you – you’re the only one you can control – you’re the only one that can take the actions you need to take. However, you don’t have to do this alone. Having strategic conversations with an expert, who dares to ask the tough questions, ensures you get to the right decisions quicker and more effectively.
Jill Hutchison
Strategic Conversations – Daring to ask the Tough Questions.
Buy your Attitude of Gratitude Journal here:
http://www.jillhutchison.com/gratitude-journal/
“Go and ask Dad”, I said. She stood there with her tousled gorgeous curly hair, hair straightener in one hand, other hand firmly planted on her hip. To cut a very long story short, visiting fox terrier, Eddie, had gnawed his way through Sylvia’s hair straightener cord, so she had been given this one as a replacement.
Only problem was that it had a UK plug on it.
“Go and ask Dad” I said again – mainly because I really didn’t feel like having to find the screwdriver, explain to her how the colours worked and fiddling with that silly awkward silicon top that they insist on using on plugs here. (Aparently Google only gave her answers like “is it legal to rewire plugs?”)
BUT – then it hit me. Here I was implying that her father (male!) would do a better job at teaching her how to rewire a plug better than I (female!) could. Simply because it was convenient for me to slot nicely into this paradigm. What am I teaching my 13 and 15-year-old daughters?
Now don’t let my track record fool you. Yes I have been known to sever the cord from a hedge trimmer in one swipe while trimming the lavender, that story provided enough fuel for my engineer husband’s safety share on Monday morning…. but I digress!
Diversity and gender equity is getting a lot of attention these days. I am doing research with high level women in several countries about the beliefs that they have around themselves and others.
You see – it’s the beliefs that we hold, sometimes because it’s convenient – that also hold us back. Sometimes it’s handy to give an excuse outside of us so we don’t have to do something.
I didn’t really feel like stopping what I was doing to help Sylvia – being the one to show her how to change a plug, so used the gender stereotype to get out of it.
Sometimes it’s easier to pass the buck, with an excuse that is culturally acceptable. I wonder how many stereotypes around women are used by both sexes, because it’s convenient?
I was quite shocked at my own experience – especially when I’m really passionate about individuals being the very best they can be, regardless whether they are male or female.
This week I’m going to be thinking about where I am tempted to use stereotypes as justification for my own actions. Would you like to do the same? Let me know where you have caught yourself saying something that doesn’t actually fit with where you want to go, I love to hear from you.
Enjoy the rest of your Chooseday!
Kind regards
Jill
Ps: If you would like me to run a focus group with women in your office on the topic of diversity, I’m looking for some anecdotal commentary on the gender gap and what we can do to progress even further in this area – so am looking for some research volunteers – if you’re in Perth, then we can meet face to face, if you’re elsewhere, then Skype is wonderful way we can still meet face-to-face! Email me, I’d love to hear from you.
“It’s over, the mine’s closing – we’ve got to move.” These were the words I heard on January 21st 2009 at 7:49am when my husband called me from work. Three months later, nearly 2000 people who worked at the nickel mine were out of a job, including my husband. We were half way through building our home there …
This is the time when I truly realised how important it was to deal with emotions and to decide which feelings and emotions will serve us best to get us where we want to be.
I also realised how crucial it was to have a coach or mentor to hold me accountable to my goals, particularly at a challenging time like that; Someone who could focus my attention on the opportunities that this unique situation was presenting to me.
Are certain emotions bad? Are there some that we shouldn’t feel? What about the positive thinking fans – are they saying we should be happy all the time?
All emotions have a purpose. In my opinion all emotions are good and healthy!
No-one can tell you which emotions are the ones that are best for you at any point. You are the only one who can control your emotions by selecting which thoughts to plant in your conscious mind.
I use the word “control” lightly – I believe in controlling emotions through selective thoughts that create the feelings. If there is strong emotion due to a great event, it’s important to acknowledge it rather than try and push it down. What happens when you put a lid tightly onto a pot boiling on a stove? It tends to stay on there till the pressure is too strong, at which point it will burst right off. Feel the feelings and verbalise them if you can – channel them in a productive way.
If you are standing on a ledge on the 11th floor, then fear is probably a good emotion to have – it may make you cling to the building and shrink back inside or ask for help. With no fear at all in this instance, you might not live very long! (or is that the reason you were up on the 11th floor ledge anyway?)
Sometimes anger and/or frustration are what you need to get you out of your comfort zone and into action. Complacency keeps us where we are and doesn’t move us anywhere.
The key with emotions and feelings is to recognise that you have the ability to select which emotions you choose to feel for most of the time. Obviously if something happens – a disaster, losing a loved one, the instant reaction is to feel sad, scared or various degrees of upset.
Thoughts cause feelings. You can choose the thoughts that occupy your conscious mind on a daily basis (you can’t always prevent outside intervention from delivering an event that elicits a powerful emotion).
Think of a blackboard – was there a time in your school life that you had blackboards in your classroom? (You may not want to admit that you’re part of that age and era!) Do you remember when someone scraped their nails down the board and sent shivers down your spine? You can probably feel those shivers right now, even though you are no where near a blackboard! All I have done is planted a thought in your mind, and you instantly feel the feeling. This is how powerful your mind is!
You have the power to choose whether to have the TV on or off. You can listen to any radio station or YouTube channel you choose. If one of your loved ones is watching something that gives you a feeling you’d rather not have right now, then you can walk away – you don’t have to sit and watch it!
Where do you really want to end up? What do you choose to do or to be for the rest of your life? If you want to be more successful in business, and are facing some economic challenges, then you might want to screen the information coming into your mind.
Bad news sells media more successfully than good news does, that’s simply a fact of life.
If you are listening to doom and gloom stories on the news, and dwell on these, you might feel down and despondent. Will this be the catalyst you need to get into action to find the role that is right for you? In some cases it might, but in most cases, this causes procrastination and a sense of feeling “what’s the point?”
Which emotions or feelings are going to serve you going forward? Positive uplifting feelings (gratitude, happiness, laughter, optimism) are more productive than the feelings that create a lower vibration, such as sadness, fear, anger.
Following that memorable call, I experienced first-hand the effects of selectively choosing my emotions. We could dwell in the thoughts of how unfair the situation was (we loved living in this beautiful little coastal village – and had only settled there 18 months before) or we could focus on what outcome we wished to experience. I chose to focus on the outcome, even though there were days where I would rather have yelled and screamed and got more frustrated!
As a new business owner, I recognised that one of the solutions was to increase business coming to me. The funny thing was that on days where I was focused on this aim, I was amazed at how many successful phonecalls I made, how I was invited to speak to businesses and groups far and wide. On days where I chose to go into town and chat to everyone, hearing all the stories of challenges various families were facing, even though I still felt optimistic – those were the days where I made little progress in my business.
You see, when our vibration is low, we don’t feel like taking the action to do the things that get us results. Put a thought into your mind, it creates the feeling, the feeling affects the action we take – and it’s the actions that get results.
When everything is hunky-dory, you can absorb a lot more than you can when you’re facing a challenge. Bad news is like water off a duck’s back when everything is going as you wish it to. But when you are faced with a challenge that you want to overcome or turn into a benefit, then you need to selectively only entertain thoughts that serve you to get where you want to go.
I would like to challenge you to think of which feelings and emotions are serving you right now? Are you feeling like a victim? That the company you worked for gave you a really raw deal? Perhaps they did – but your feeling like a victim and allowing it to eat into your soul is not doing anything to them – it’s only destroying you.
Do you feel like no-one appreciates what you do? Perhaps you’re not appreciating what you do! Bitterness twists your soul – and sours all the relationships you have.
If you would like to feel greater happiness, better business success and a more rewarding life, then you will probably decide to focus on the things around you that are going right. What are you grateful for? What thoughts do you need to think to get you there?
When your mind is occupied by positive thoughts, you are much better equipped to deal with the challenges life throws out. If you’re dwelling on the injustices, another challenge is going to feel like you’re drowning at sea and being hit by yet another wave.
Put everything into perspective:
What is the problem not?
Less than a month after the news of job losses and mine closures were announced, everything was put into perspective for us.
Bush fires in Victoria, Australia, claimed thousands of lives and homes – and went on for days. My heart went out to the families that lost loved ones, lost their homes and pets in the fire. The little issues we were facing were so tiny in comparison.
Look at whatever challenge you might be facing right now and identify what the problem really is, and what it’s not. Is it a matter of life and death? Is it a matter of health? Is it about money? Is it about relationships? Is it about business?
What positive memories or events could come out of this that could make a wonderful difference in your life? Sometimes it takes losing someone near and dear to us to shock us into valuing those left behind.
Have a wonderful day,
Kind regards
Jill
“When we change the way you look at things, the things around you begin to change” Wayne Dyer.
Jill Hutchison, +61419194323
For resilience, culture or diversity group workshops.
“We want to make sure employees can bring their whole self to work”.
Andrew Mackenzie, CEO BHP Billiton
At the 2015 Annual General Meeting held in Perth, CEO of BHP Billiton, Andrew Mackenzie said “we want to make sure employees can bring their whole self to work”.
That’s quite a concept for anyone who though they had a personal life and a work life. We have one life, and here has been a growing awareness that when we allow our strengths to shine through, all areas of our life improve.
There are two parts to this:
Part One: What are you doing to ensure you can take your whole self to work?
Are you in the right organization and the right role for this?
Are you doing what you love to do or do you dread Monday morning?
Have you reset your goals in alignment with where you are now and what your responsibilities are?
Part Two: What are you doing to create an environment for your team and colleagues so they can bring their whole self to work?
If you are responsible for managing a team, have you got any strategic interventions planned that are designed to bring out the best of your team?
Human capital is the biggest asset of many companies (and your mind is your own personal biggest asset!). Let me know if you’d like more information on how you could experience a turning point in your organization.
Why is it important from a personal point of view to bring your “whole self” to everything you do?
When a disaster happens, it makes us question everything. Life is too short to spend time doing stuff that doesn’t add value to your life in some way.
When is now a good time to get clear on what you want, and to take the actions to get there?
This week has been very sobering indeed. Don’t wait for something external to force you to make changes. Start with being grateful for those you love and for what you have. Look at your “whole self” and appreciate everything it entails.
When you can bring your “whole self” to the table, you give permission for everyone around you to do the same.
Mindset is one of my favorite topics. What I’ve realised from coaching business owners and executives is the relationship between what we put into our mouths and what goes on in our head!
This week’s video is all about the myths we have previously believed in.
You can choose what to believe, you can also choose what goes into your mind and your mouth!
Have a great week!
Jill
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