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Today is the first day of the Chinese New Year. When I lived in San Francisco, the parades and festivals celebrating the Lunar New Year were among my favorite. This is the year of the Water Tiger, the least reckless of the five types of tigers, according to karmaweather.com. Here are some interesting predictions: "The New Year of the Water Tiger 2022 symbolizes determinism, spontaneity and novelty. It is a period which draws its strength and growth, despite adversity, from dynamism and enthusiasm. The Chinese year 2022 is synonymous with unforeseen changes and surprising developments." Several people in my network made recent announcements about job changes. Some are just joining the #greatreshuffling, leaving their corporate positions in search of new energy and vigor, while others are returning to traditional jobs or changing companies.
I applaud everyone overcoming their drive for safety and security to seize control of their career and pursue self-fulfillment. I equally celebrate the contented who stand firm in their current employment. During my time at Gap, Inc. in San Francisco, many brilliant women made brief appearances in my peer group. I was having a pinnacle moment in my career, and they celebrated it with me while also feeling vexed that the company wasn't the right fit for them. Home is personal. I've left many jobs during my career. Often I was ready to make a change because I felt boxed in by the politics or business conditions. It always felt similar to breaking up with a boyfriend—somewhat awkward, somewhat guilt-laden, and somewhat relieving. Being welcomed back was uncertain and likely not the path to happiness. Additionally, I've always sought change over fixedness:
A different home, fresh job, and new city and friends fed my need to grab life by the tail and live it fully. I wanted adventure and novelty. It wasn't until my children were born that I lost my energy for change every 2-3 years. Now I fill that need through my work. Consulting is the perfect fit for me because I welcome change with open arms. I love that every job and client is unique. No two days are the same, and the only rote things in my work have to do with bookkeeping. But here's the thing that is always constant—me. Just like the Water Tiger of 2022 has positive traits (kind, adventurous, and enthusiastic) and negative ones (aggressive, short-tempered, and anxious), so do we. Knowing who you are, what you want, and what you need to be successful is essential to making the perfect career move for you. No matter where we go, there we are. While it is true that our environment may draw out specific characteristics more readily than others, we never get to escape the truth of who we are. However, the more honest and intentional we are about the way we show up, the more control we take over our satisfaction and success. With all the talk of Mercury in retrograde and the challenges it brings, it is nice to have a zodiac horoscope filled with optimism and ambition. If you've been waiting for a sign to make a bold move, perhaps the Water Tiger is it. If you've made a bold move, lean into it and draw strength from the energy of the Water Tiger. I predict that 2022 will bring more changes for the majority of us. Which reflection will you see, the kind and adventurous tiger or the anxious and aggressive one? In this Chinese New Year of the Water Tiger, I challenge you to choose who you want to be and SHOW UP as her to yourself and your team each day. Want some help? Join my #ShowUpPositive mailing list and get a new spark of positivity delivered to your inbox every Monday. No sales funnel, no pitches, just genuine support from me to you. Give it a try and just hit unsubscribe anytime you want to leave—no hard feelings, I promise. My first client of the new year is one of my favorite ideal client stories. She started her business as a freelancer, using her professional expertise to help out family and friends. At the five-year mark, she left her corporate position and officially formed her business. At ten years, she added staff. Now at year eighteen, she is experiencing another growth spurt. As I listened to her origin story during our initial consultation, this metaphor came to mind.
Are you like my new client? Is 2022 the year you stop playing small and step into the CEO role your company needs? My client has 30 days before she faces the next stretch of class four and five rapids that will consume all of her attention for the next three months. In that time, we will
She is ready to make 2022 a memorable chapter in the epic of her business journey titled "The Year I Became A CEO." How about you? Are you in? Let's build your custom roadmap to lead your business to more success without the sacrifice. 
Welcome to December!
Last week I celebrated Thanksgiving and disconnected from work for three days to enjoy my time with family. To control my stress, I spent the prior weekend taking care of all the cleaning chores and planning the menus. Then I took time out of my day on Monday to do all the grocery shopping. When everyone arrived Wednesday evening, I was calm and present. Despite all of the cooking and holiday decorating we did over those days, this was one of the happiest Thanksgivings. I ended the weekend feeling rejuvenated. It turns out that when we stay in the moment, versus allowing our mind to focus on stressful things like our to-do lists, our happiness increases. Check out this staggering fact from the research data of Matt Killingsworth. We're mind-wandering at least 30 percent of the time, which suggests I think that mind-wandering isn't just frequent; it's ubiquitous. It pervades basically everything that we do. In other words, mind-wandering very likely seems to be an actual cause and not merely a consequence of unhappiness.
I stayed in the moment because I had a plan and didn't need to worry about when things would get done. I'd given myself permission to not work until Sunday and was confident that I wouldn't be behind.
The upcoming weeks are the most packed in the year. It is easy to feel splattered and scattered, not a happy place. I encourage you to look ahead and craft a schedule for the to-do items that draw your attention away from the present and elevate your unhappiness. With each holiday party and event, you have a moment to share joy with others. However, science tells us that you're sabotaging the opportunity if you can't be fully present. Listen to the full interview with Matt Killingsworth here:
Wishing you a peaceful and happy holiday season,
PS - if you are in Lousiville, please stop by my holiday open house this Saturday hosted in my beautiful co-working space that has 3 openings for 2022. We'd love to have a copywriter, social media, virtual assistant, graphic designer, or bookkeeper share the space and form a power-partnership with us.
 I spent last week in Florida. The weather was mostly sunny with a couple of beautiful beach days. I stayed with a friend whose neighborhood is inland a few miles. There are beautiful older trees and lots of tropical plants, but you'd never know it was the end of October looking at the foliage.
My return flight arrived after dark, so this morning I was awestruck by the progress of the fall trees. Gorgeous red and orange leaves shown like fire in the morning sun. And thanks to recent storms, the denuding of many trees was well underway. As I processed my wonderment at the difference in one week, I realized that the stark contrast between my view last week and this morning was a gift. Had I spent last week at home, I would likely not have been as observant. Today, I appreciated the beautiful fall more because my perspective was fresh. Similarly, working every day in your business creates tunnel vision that limits your ability to see your situation with freshness. You are not alone. Nearly every owner I know is working harder than ever before and struggling to find relief. Unfortunately, working harder isn't the answer. What you need is to get every area of your business working more effectively for you. Realigning job duties, streamlining processes, and automating operations bring sustainable relief. But let's be honest, it is hard to see the answers when you are stuck in the trenches. Here are two tips for getting the fresh perspective you are missing. ONE. Use the holidays to disconnect so you can come back with fresh eyes. You may not have the freedom to take a break right now, but the holiday seasons are approaching fast, and you can use that time to your advantage. TWO. You can replicate my startling change of scenery by inviting an outside perspective. This choice illuminates the highest pay-off opportunities quickly. And, as an early holiday gift to you, use this link to schedule your complimentary consultation with me. [My rates increased Nov. 1st, but this is your opportunity to purchase at my prior rates.] You have two months remaining to achieve every goal you've set for the year. You may be basking in your success and banking the abundance, or you may be pushing with all you have to end the year on target. Either way,  IT'S HERE!!!
Listen to my conversation this week with TODD K. MEADOR, MBA, CFP®, CTFA and Vicki Rogers as we discuss current business trends and the 3 essential things to do now so that you hit the ground running in January. Listen now 👉 https://bit.ly/3nePPrY or wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoy it, be sure to share and subscribe. |
Archives
January 2023
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HoursBy appointment
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Telephone502-235-6791
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LocationMellwood Arts Center
1860 Mellwood Ave Suite 117 Louisville, KY 40206 |