Success 2.0

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• We are more connected than ever. Even outside of the pandemic, this leads to more stress and anxiety than ever before.
• We give ourselves the worst pain because the worry and anxiety about the future is worse than the pain of the moment.
• It starts with acknowledging the problem. We have to admit that we are obsessed with controlling the future.
• The work-life balance is a myth. The minute you can take work home, you are able to work from home. Don't respond to or check emails after a certain time.
• Plan your time off. Whether it's spending time with family, or reading a book, or watching a movie, but don't leave it unstructured because you will quickly fall back into glancing at your email or opening your laptop.
• Instead of using your cell phone as an alarm, spend the $10 and buy a small alarm clock. If your phone is next to your bed, you will check it.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• Today's promise: Tonight, I will get caught up. Guess what happens? You don't. So, then, it becomes Tomorrow's Promise: Tomorrow, I will get caught up.
• You can overcome this anxiety and stress. However, these tactics, while simple, take discipline.
• Embrace the fact that you will never be caught up. This paradigm shift is critical before moving on to the next tactic.
• Once you recognize that you cannot get everything done, you begin to prioritize your tasks. Identify a small number of particularly important personal and professional goals.
• Before the week has started, set aside 10 minutes to plan how you will spend your time.
• Critical questions to answer: How much of your calendar is open? How much of that open time do you control?
• Resist the urge to plan a 70-hour week.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment
• Patrick Lencioni, "If everything is important, then nothing is important."

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• Take The Achiever's Compass for a personalized report of how you can start finding joy in the journey.
• As achievers, we are wired to 'win.' There is an upside – more money, more vacations, more opportunities. However, if we don't stop comparing our success to others, we will never be able to find joy.
• Comparison forces you to constantly raise to goal. No matter how much you have, there will always be someone else who has more.
• Social media has aggravated this issue, inundating us with constant reminders of other people who have outachieved you. But you don't have to let this take control of your life.
• Consider redefining success this way: Your ability to utilize your unique talents, build meaningful relationships with people you care about, and live in the moment.
• Embrace your uniqueness. Recognize the fact that there are paths you do want to take, and do not want to take, in light of that uniqueness.
• Stop and recognize when you do it. Don't try to stop doing it altogether, because it's impossible to repress the initial thought.
• Live gratefully, give generously. It is difficult to compare yourself negatively to others when you are truly grateful for what you have.

What We Discuss in this Mini Episode:

• In 1992, CJ discovered that he had chronic anxiety after he couldn't bring himself to get out of bed, or leave his house. That started a lifetime of helping professionals manage stress and anxiety. During this pandemic, stress and anxiety is on the rise. But it doesn't have to be this way.
• In Buddhism, stressed and anxious minds are referred to as a "monkey mind." The thoughts just swing from tree to tree, back and forth, and sometimes it can be absolutely overwhelming.
• No goal is more important than enjoying the present moment (unless you're in a survival situation).
• Fighting anxiety makes it worse. When you are mindful, you are an observer of your thoughts. This practice lessens the pain that your thoughts cause create. It reduces stress, increases happiness and self-esteem, and improves your relationships and immune system.
• Here's the secret – stop trying to be mindful. It's not an award you can win or an item you can check off your list. It's simply a state of being.
• Start small. Try driving in silence the next time you go somewhere. Roll down the window and listen to the wind. Count your breathe for 30 seconds. Resist the need to interact with anything while standing in line at the coffee shop.
• When you struggle to be mindful, forgive yourself. You cannot keep thoughts from coming into your mind. Tell yourself that you are doing your very best, then try to make small improvements every day.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment
• "Ordinary thoughts course through our mind like a deafening waterfall." – Jon Kabat-Zinn
• Lake Odessa, Colorado – totally worth the hike
• Headspace meditation app

Since founding her consulting firm in 1980, Eileen McDargh has helped organizations and individuals transform the life of their business and the business of their life through conversations that matter and connections that count. She believes that resiliency is a critical life skill and one that requires the energy of connections.

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• Burnout is "to exhaust one's resources by attempting to live up to some unrealistic expectation imposed upon you by yourself or society." – Herbert Freudenberger
• There are several causes of burnout. One is our own inner voice demanding that we do more, be more, accomplish more. Another is loss of focus we have through constant interruption and distraction with digital devices. Further, the sense of disconnection and loneliness only exacerbates burnout.
• Amidst the global pandemic, people are working longer and harder at home. We no longer have the space to detox (commute to and from work, for example), and we are worried about proving how hard we are working based on our results.
• To deal with burnout, you must first recognize it in your life. Expand your understanding of your options by changing your inner voice from, "I have to do this," to "I choose to do this."
• There are some people who are more instantly resilient than others. However, we can be taught to be resilient. Eileen's definition of resiliency is, "to grow through challenge or opportunity so that you end up wiser, smarter, on the other side."
• To build resiliency, start small. Identify small things that are within your control and let go of the things that are not. Understand where your time goes. Doing something kind for someone else expands our resiliency.
• What are the small ways you can make small improvements to slowly and steadily move yourself in the right direction. "An inch is a cinch. A mile takes a while." – Eileen McDargh
• "The only place I have any power, is this moment right now." – Eileen McDargh

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Burnout to Breakthrough, by Eileen McDargh
• Herbert Freudenberger
• Otter Products
• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment

You can reach Eileen at:

Twitter: @macdarling

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eileenmcdargh

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professional-Speaker-Eileen-McDargh-CSP-CPAE/405748766188727

Website: https://www.EileenMcDargh.com

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: 949-496-8640

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• In 1970, the person who works the hardest wins. But it's 2020. Effort and "being busy" no longer equals achievement. Production toward what matters most equals achievement. You must prioritize and plan your week in advance.
• Can you put your phone away, or does it control your life? Addiction to anything negatively impacts your quality of life. Take your social media apps off your home screen. Don't take your phone with you everywhere – or, take a small step by turning on airplane mode every once and a while.
• Get intentional about practicing gratitude. "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend." – Melody Beattie
• "You're the average of the five people you spend the most time with." – Jim Rohn
• "Life is only about relationships." – Dr. Greg Sipes However, not every relationship in your life is equally important. Who are the top ten most important people in your life? Seriously. Write down their names.
• Having hobbies allows you to spend time doing things that are not related to work. Further, it opens you up to sharing time with other people, who might have different backgrounds and perspectives from yours.
• When you feel connected to others and to a higher purpose, you experience more peace and contentment. Give a community of faithful people a chance. Build some quiet and meditation into your life.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment
• Melody Beattie
• Jim Rohn
• Dr. Greg Sipes
• When Good Things Happen to Good People, by Dr. Stephen Post

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• Resist the urge to judge yourself – no one is perfect. Perfection is your enemy. Make it your goal to make small improvements every day.
• Money is the easiest way to measure success. Because of that, watch your environment – if you're with people who live lavishly to 'keep score,' you will be guilted into spending lavishly. "Comparison is the thief of all joy." President Theodore Roosevelt
• Amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, we are asking if what we are doing matters. Ask yourself, "Where do I want my career to go?" and "If everything in my life is going perfectly three years from now, what are you making, what are you doing?"
• The food you put into your body fuels the energy you have in the day. Eat small meals throughout the day of fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and whole grains.
• Exercise reduces your stress, increases your endorphins, and changes how you feel. Block one hour in your day for exercise. Keep yourself accountable by signing up for a race, or working out with a friend.
• Living in the moment is the single greatest factor that impacts our happiness. It is also the most difficult tactic to practice. The less you multi-task, the easier it is to be in the moment. Block time in your day for silence, perhaps meditation. Using silence trains your brain to be in the moment, to still the outside noise.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• We want to go back to the 2019 economy and keep our business exactly what it was. We crave consistency. But the world has changed. How do we approach the future and capitalize on the upside of updating your business model?
• Your clients and customers want you to bring the most uncertainty as possible. But, that's just the tip of the iceberg.
• Becoming an expert in your client's industry will take some time, research, and getting out in front. It will take energy and intentionality on your part - but, be sure - your competition is already doing it.
• Pivoting is not easy. You will not be able to do it immediately after reading a 250-word article, or, dare I say it, listening to this podcast. But CJ will give you the two critical questions that you need to start playing with to change your anxiety to excitement.
• Embrace the realization that you are better at change than you think you are. Focus on what you can control in the next 8 hours. That's all you have to do.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

• Take The Achiever's Compass Assessment
• A Beautiful Constraint by Adam Morgan and Mark Barden
• The Road Less Travelled by M. Scott Peck

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• In any crisis, we ask, "What am I doing with my life?" and start the process to find meaning and purpose in our lives.
• The fear that if we stop achieving – for even a moment – that it will hinder our growth.
• Decreasing stress and anxiety is tied to the chase for perfection. If you don't stop chasing perfection, you will not discover your true purpose.
• Why relationships are critical for your success – and happiness. As Dr. Greg Sipes says, "Life is only about relationships."
• Unfortunately, we don't live forever. Mental health and physical health are cornerstones to your sense of well-being.
• The one tactic that will help you increase your awareness of others and increase your sense of purpose.

Mentioned in this Episode:

• The Second Mountain, by David Brooks
• Why Good Things Happen to Good People, by Dr. Stephen Post
• Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

What We Discuss in this Episode:

• Who were we before we experienced COVID-19
• We want our society and our businesses to get back to winning. How do you win in the second half of COVID-19?
• How to shift your professional mindset from offense to defense, safely
• Tactics for shifting your mindset to grow your business and your career
• The power of your words and how that impacts your professional trajectory
• Clarifying your value, product, service, so that you can answer questions from customers
• Shifting your paradigm from big goals to smaller, daily goals