The Authenticity Coach

What should you do if you do not have a vision of where you ideally want to be? How do you advance if it is impossible or impractical to move directly towards your ideal career or life at this time?

Shift your focus to doing what would make it better. Learn to ask yourself: What is best for me now?

Recognize that choosing not to brutally push yourself does not mean that you are playing small. Giving yourself what you most need right now may seem to be taking a step backwards, but it is more likely than not actually laying the foundation for your ultimate leap forward.

Learn to think in terms of a dial. What would be more? What would be less? What would be more liberating, interesting, nurturing, authentic, healthy or fun? What would be less oppressive, dysregulating, boring or draining? Consider your work, social life, community involvement, habits & hobbies. What step could you take to make things better? Strive for better -- whether a tiny bit or much. From that somewhat better place, you can then move to what would be even better. You do not have to be moving towards an ideal -- at this time or ever. Just take a step to what is better.

Do you struggle to deliver difficult messages? If so, this episodes is your guide to being a competent & confident communicator. Diamond-caliber communication will be yours when you follow the 4Cs of color, clarity, cut & carat.

See the color of what is really going on & weigh the true magnitude of the matter. Learn to speak with direct clarity & convey your point with well-cut precision. Be intentional about what you share, in order to maintain your power & support your purpose. Learn not to JADE: Do not justify, argue, defend or explain. Develop your proficiency at communicating difficult messages & gain a greater command over your career and life.

Are you being bullied by your inbox? Are you too bombarded by nonstop email messages, distracting tasks & urgent requests to focus on what really matters? If you want to stop being in a constant state of triage, this episode is for you.

High achievers who achieve next-level success in profitability, scale or innovation -- & stay sane while doing so -- have systems that protect their energy & direct their focus. Learn the straight-forward 4-part filter system that you can apply to invitations, opportunities, responsibilities & whatever else appears in your inbox -- or your doorway. Make it your practice to run everything through this filter & decide what you will: do, delay, delegate & delete.

Know your priorities. Protect what matters most. And be able to produce the results that will grant you the satisfaction, recognition & compensation you deserve. Ask yourself: Is this meant for me? Be intentional as to what you do, delay, delegate & delete -- & capture the rewards of greater success.

What does it mean to be "authentic" at work? If you are looking to strike the right balance between authenticity & professionalism, this episode is for you.

Learn practical standards that you can apply -- & you can help those you lead & guide to apply -- to be both authentic & appropriate in the workplace. Understand the difference between having to keep something about yourself secret & constantly shining a spotlight on your identity & interests -- & why both are unacceptable distractions. Explore the type & degree of connection & community that you are expecting the workplace to provide & examine whether it is reasonable. Be able to distinguish between frankness & honesty. Understand why it is so important not to conflate self-expression with self-awareness.

Be the colleague, leader & mentor who recognizes that authenticity is about knowing what you most value -- & taking action to protect those values.

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If you do not have what you want, it may be time to ask yourself: Do you really want it? Do you want to do what must be done in day-to-day life in order to actually have & hold what you say you so ardently desire?

Wanting is not only about having. True wanting is about being & doing. To receive & joyfully engage with what we want, we must be capable of handling it.

Learn to determine whether what you say you want is something you do, in fact, want. And if it is your true desire, recognize the need to shift your focus from asking to have to asking to be. Gain tips for preparing yourself to be the type of person who is ready to meet the deeply wished-for opportunities. Identify what needs to change within you, in order for vastly new experiences & far greater abundance to be yours. Begin to take brave steps to transform your identity. Be open to shedding old mindsets & habits & become willing to shift into new beliefs & behaviors -- in ways that will allow you to engage fully, enjoy thoroughly & succeed enduringly in the life you want.

If you hate your job & you have decided that you will leave it, this episode is for you. Learn the three things that you need to do in order to get through until you can get out.

Do not be one of those high achievers who finally comes out of a crushing role, only to find out that they are in no shape to participate in the life they had so desperately wanted. Protect your enthusiasm, energy & ability to deliver top-level excellence. Follow this guide to survive this horrible time in a way that positions you to thrive.

Give up the all or nothing approach of living a complete Nightmare now & looking forward to a Fantasy future. Develop a realistic game-plan to shift this very difficult period from terrible to tolerable. Gain practical tips to empower yourself via self-talk, self-control & self-care. Learn to identify the compelling reasons for why you are staying at the job for now, set boundaries & create temporary lifestyle changes that will enable you to recharge.

Acknowledge the hardship of your current situation. Give yourself permission to show up differently. And position yourself to be able to be the best version of yourself when you leave this job & enter the next phase of your life.

No one is coming to save you. If you are overworked, overextended & overwhelmed, it is time to stop waiting for someone to come to your rescue or give you permission to make a change. To avoid disaster, you must save yourself. And the first step to coming to your own rescue is knowing your own limits.

This episode will help you to calibrate the spectrum of your stress & see where you stand. Understand how much is "too much" for you & access how close you are to the edge. Learn how to recognize signs, distinguish reality from denial & use time as a litmus test.

Tap into the power of acknowledging how bad it is. Stop focusing on the straws that are breaking the camel's back and identify what is actually pushing you to the verge of your limits. Everyone has limits. When you get honest about your limits & realistic about how close you may be to exceeding them, you will be on your way to rescuing yourself. Reclaim your well-being & be ready to make the real decisions that will create a sustainable way of living.

Do you tend to presume that others have positive, negative or neutral intentions? There is so much that we do not know about what others are thinking, feeling & doing, yet we make assumptions about people's intentions all day, every day. And the intentions that we impute influence our mindset &, in turn, determine how we react to & interact with those in our lives.

Identify your overall inclination to presume good or bad intentions. Become attune to the presumption you are holding at any given time. Learn to gauge whether you would be better served by having a positive presumption. And become aware of when the reality of less-than-good intentions calls for you to have stronger boundaries. Experience the advantages of choosing to have a rebuttable presumption that others have positive intentions.

Do you want to be the job candidate who interviewers love? For an interview to be successful, you need to be three things: likable, credible & compelling. Creating strong impressions in each of these areas paves the way for receiving sought-after job offers.

The winning interview candidate has clear intentions & thoughtfully prepared soundbites. Learn how to design your custom game-plan. Establish rapport & demonstrate your competency. And be ready & able to express your passion & share why you are the ideal, unique candidate.

Feelings of peace & fulfillment come when we do what is good for us. If these feelings are eluding you, this episode is your guide towards greater satisfaction. We begin with identifying where you are stuck. Do you need help knowing what is good for you, wanting what is good for you or doing what is good for you? If you would like to make good decisions, actually desire what you know is best for you & effectively carry out your intentions, start with recognizing where you are stumped or stalled.

Learn to determine what you need the most. Is it the clarity to be able to know? The support to foster your desire? Or the practical skills to be able to take the right actions? Understand why you are likely to make the most progress if you focus your attention on knowing, wanting or doing -- rather than if you divide your efforts between two or all three. Gain practical tips to request & receive the type of guidance that will be of the greatest value to you.