January for me is usually about setting goals, doing a vision board, and casting a vision for my future self this year. While 2020 was not exactly what I was expecting, I still managed to accomplish many of the goals I set out to hit. Here are a few that were on my list:
- Get married
- Get a promotion at work
- Help my son stay focused in school and finish the semester
- Finally hang up all my artwork on the actual walls
A few more that were on my list that didn’t happen:
- Travel more
- Marie Kondo my house
- Run 5 5k’s
- Get a dog
This year, 2021, I’m thinking is even more uncertain than last year; should I even set goals? Maybe I’ll just see how it goes…the zen of “the best goal is no goal” is a nice thought, and sometimes appropriate in the moment. And then I think of how many times a week do I use Waze or Google Maps? All. The. Time! And when I’m using them, how often do I look at the map, or listen to the directional prompts? All. The. Time! So, if that’s true for just going to the grocery store or the DMV (which is never open anymore!) then it must also be true for my goals and the future vision of who I want to become this year.
As most of you know, I work a 9-5 job as a Senior Manager for a candy company, and I also have a side-hustle as a woman’s empowerment business coach. As part of my side-hustle, I run a twice a month group coaching session (click here to sign up) for women who are stepping up at work and changing their trajectory. Last week, our session was all about personal branding and creating a style guide for how you want to be seen and remembered.
It was a fascinating workshop, as we started to dive into our beliefs about ourselves, what we see and what other people see in us and whether they are congruent visions. The interesting part of self-discovery is always the experiments we get to test out, I get a lot of energy from trying something new, and so I challenge my coaching clients to do the same.
The workshop I teach once a month involves a workbook I created. Once we finished the workbook and our quick Canva vision boards, I got quite a bit of feedback on how fun the exercise was, which is interesting because while we all had something different, the one thing that was the same: Authenticity.
I pride myself on showing up in integrity, transparent, vulnerable and funny if possible. And creating a safe environment for others to do the same is important to me, both at my 9-5 and in my coaching business. I am also a big believer in working in my “Zone of Genius” not my “Zone of Competence” although I sometimes find myself working in my “Zone of Excellence” which I’m learning more about in “The Big Leap” by Gay Hendrick this month in my book club.
The “Zone of Competence” are things you can do, but many times someone else can do them better. Action: Delegate
The “Zone of Excellence” are things you do really really well, and maybe you have been doing them for awhile so you love it! It’s easy to hang out here, it’s reliable, easy for you and where most folks are comfortable. But it’s not deeply satisfying and if you stay here you aren’t reaching for your dreams and true ambitions. Action: Dream a little, create a higher self vision board, imagine what you would do if you won the lotto.
The “Zone of Genius” is where only you can do what you do, like you do it. This is where only your special gifts and strengths are truly utilized and rewarded. “By age forty, many of us have tuned out the Call to Genius and are getting loud, repeated alarms hidden in the form of depression, illness, injuries, and relationship conflict.” (from The Big Leap by Gay Hendrick)
Action: spend more time in your life today, heeding the call of your special gifts, your natural genius and sharing them with the world. Find your flow of doing that thing you love and see where it leads you.
In my opinion, this is truly the magic elixir to life. If you were to look for the Fountain of Youth, I would say, find your genius zone now, and you will always feel young and exuberant. Think of how often you find yourself lost in the moment doing something you love…oh, you can’t remember when that was? Time to find it, even if it’s only for 30 minutes a day to start, do something that stirs your passions and look forward to that time of recharging energetically. It might be getting back to paper crafting, painting, writing that screen play you’ve been putting off, creating a 30-piece capsule wardrobe that makes you smile every time you get dressed, or maybe it’s planting an indoor herb garden because it’s snowing outside.
Whatever it is, find ways to get into it daily, if possible, you will be surprised at how much energy if gives you for the rest of what you have to do during the day. While I love what I do at work and the folks I work with, I also get a tremendous amount of joy from my side-hustle, helping women find their way in their own lives to a place that brings them joy and seeing their transformation gives me hope that no matter where you are in your life, no matter what age you are, you can find joy and happiness today. And there is hope for you, and you can get to where you want to go, start small and watch the tiny habits build up this week, create your own vision board in Canva and see what happens!
Cast a vision for your future self of 2021 and see where you get to. I’d love to hear about your progress and if you ever need a sounding board, I’m hear to listen (pun intended:) And if you’d like to work with me as your coach, or schedule an initial 45 minute discover call click here and let’s connect through zoom!
