Christian Woman Leadership Podcast with Esther Littlefield & Holly Cain

Have you ever set goals and then a few weeks later completely abandoned them? Or perhaps you even forgot what goals you were supposed to be working on? You're not alone. And the reason so many goals are abandoned is because we forget to create a plan for how we're actually going to accomplish them.

In this final episode in our Purposeful Goal Setting Mini-Series, Holly's going to talk you through creating an action plan for your goals. She's giving you real-life examples and some helpfup tips and tricks to make sure your goals don't just become something collecting dust in the back of your closet.

Tools & resources for creating an action plan:

• Episode 31: The Key to accomplishing your goals

• Books (affiliate links)

  • The Twevle Week Year

  • Atomic Habits

  • The Power of Habit

• Calendar - iCal, Google Calendar, paper planner, goal sheets

• PowerSheets [affiliate link]

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

If you've done the first 2 steps of reflection and dreaming, you're ready to start setting some goals. But how? What if you're not sure where to start?

In this episode, I'll walk you through some key principles of goal setting and some helpful tips that have worked for me. We'll also look at the differences between project goals and habit goals so you can determine which type of goals make sense for you.

Finally, I'll share with you the PEACE Goal Framework that my friend Christa Hutchins originally shared with us on Episode 181. And we'll talk about what to do next!

Tools & resources for goal setting:

Episode 28: Three Approaches to Goal Setting

Episode 30: How Your Personality Affects Your Goal Setting

Episode 181: Peace Goals

PowerSheets (Affiliate Link)

Blank Pads of Paper (Affiliate Link)

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

After reflection, are you excited and ready to jump into setting your goals for the next year or season? Before you do, there's one more thing you need to do: take time for dreaming and casting a vision.

In this episode of our mini-series, Holly will walk you through what it looks like to dream and create a vision for your year. This is a chance to allow God to inspire you and lead you into something different or better than you could come up with on your own.

• Episode 26 of the Christian Woman Leadership Podcast - The Importance of Dreaming

• PowerSheets [affiliate link]

• Bucket List Tutorial from Polly Payne

Connect with Esther:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Is it really necessary to reflect before setting your goals for the year or the next season or phase of your life? Why does it matter, and does it impact whether your goals are effective?

John Dewey says: "We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience." And while you can go straight to goal setting, I have found immense value in first reflecting on the past before creating goals for the future.

In this episode, I'll share with you why reflection is important, what you should reflect on, and how to do it. Plus I'll give you some of my favorite resources for reflecting.

Links mentioned:

• Episode 128: Processing 2020
• Episode 130: Processing Your Circumstances
• Episode 131: Processing Your Relationships
• Episode 24: What You Should Do Before the New Year Begins
• PowerSheets (affiliate link) - Get 10% off your order with code "ESTHERLITTLEFIELD"
• My favorite pens (Amazon affiliate link)
• Big Post-Its (Amazon affiliate link)
• FREE Processing & Reflection Guide

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Yes we are in January - but perhaps, like me, you've struggled a bit to get your 2024 goals on paper.

Maybe your 2023 dished out more than you could handle. Or perhaps life hasn't slowed down enough for you to think through your goals. It could be that goal setting really isn't your thing, and that's okay.

This week on the podcast, Holly & I are coming to you with a mini series about goal setting. But what it's really about is choosing to live with intention. And as leaders, being intentional is key.

So we want to help you do that by walking you through our 4 step framework for Purposeful Goal Setting.

1. Reflection

2. Dreaming & Vision Casting

3. Goal Setting

4. Create an Action Plan

Get ready and make sure you're subscribed, because we'll be dropping a new episode over the next 4 days.

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Have you ever heard a word or phrase that made an impact and stuck with you for days or weeks to come? Perhaps someone said something directly to you or maybe you heard it in a podcast, read it in Scripture, or it came up in a conversation with a friend.

Words have power, and over the past year, I've been collecting phrases and words that have helped me immensely. Today, I'm sharing some of those with you.

Plus, I'm sharing 3 things you can do with your words, regardless of your leadership role or title.

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

What does it look like to disagree in a healthy way as Christians? Can we consume content from people who hold different views from us, or should we try to limit our exposure to varying beliefs?

What exactly is deconstruction, and is there such a thing as a healthy or good version of it?

In this replay of episode 194 of the podcast, our guest Joel Muddamalle, Director of Theology and research at Proverbs 31 Ministries, shares about the importance of humble theology and much more.

For the full show notes, visit https://estherlittlefield.com/episode194

Connect with Esther:

• Website
• Instagram

Do you ever feel like you need to stuff your emotions down in order to be an effective leader? Or maybe you prefer not to talk about emotions and you'd rather just get stuff done. What if there was a way to deal with your emotions in a healthy way, rather than stuffing them, letting them take over, or ignoring them?

In this replay of episode 180, Jessica Hottle shares about a 5-step process to manage your emotions as a leader. This will help you no matter where you find yourself on the spectrum of emotions!

For the full show notes, visit the original post for episode 180 here.

Connect with me:

• Website
• Instagram

The difference between who we say we are and how we actually live impacts not just us personally, but also everyone we lead. But how can we learn to identify this gap and begin shrinking it?

In this replay of episode 121 of the CWLP, Holly and I talk with our guest Terra Mattson, about this issue, which she calls an integrity gap. We dive into what this means, common symptoms of an integrity gap, and how to start closing this gap. In addition, Terra sheds light on why unresolved trauma is common in leaders and what leaders need to do about it.

We also discuss with Terra whether we should address integrity gaps when we see them in other people. Finally, we explore why speaking up is so important, even when it's risky and what it means to become a wholehearted leader.

This is an important conversation for every leader, whether you are just getting started or whether you've been in leadership for years. As Terra reminds us in the conversation, this is an ongoing process and none of us are immune to integrity gaps.

For the full show notes for this episode head to estherlittlefield.com/episode121

In the past few weeks, our country has been reminded of the reality of racism. As Christian leaders, how should we as the church respond? And what can we do on an individual basis?

While some of us may not be affected by or see racism on a regular basis, the issue was brought to light in a significant way in recent weeks due to the death of George Floyd (among other incidents). As I considered this issue, I knew this was something I wanted to address on this podcast. Yet I knew that I needed to invite someone who has the expertise to speak to this topic.

In this episode, I'm talking with my friend Dr. Shannon Polk. Shannon shares her leadership journey and how she ended up as a lawyer, associate pastor, wife, and mother. Despite being encouraged in her leadership gifts for most of her childhood and young adult years, she still faced doubts about her gifts and leadership ability later in adulthood.

For the full show notes for this episode, head to estherlittlefield.com/episode103

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