One of my past executive clients, who is a very strong advocate for this work and a trusted mentor and adviser, said to me recently, as we discussed some of the opportunities of this work: "Why would people think they need to build and save up for retirement and financial well-being, but not build and 'save up' for their every day health, resiliency and energetic and emotional well-being? It's no different. Why would people work so hard to grow their careers and businesses, and even their people, yet not commit to growing themselves internally, in their leadership, and in their relationships? Again, no different." I have to agree. It all seems quite important to me.

The work that I do is kind of a funny thing. People often don't realize they need it until they're in some kind of a situation where the pain of not doing something about it is greater than the comfort of staying comfortable. Or on the flip side, they want it, right from the get-go, because they want to optimize, sustain, and push the limits of what's possible.

It's kind of similar to health, which is one of those things that 1) people often take for granted until something happens, or, 2) don't realize just HOW GOOD they can feel when they start attending to it, or, 3) know they feel/perform well, and want more. When I used to work in health and productivity and with heart disease patients, people often didn't come to the "party" until there was some kind of cardiovascular event that got them to the "party"...and fast. When I worked with athletes, they'd come to the "party", because they needed it - they wanted to optimize their game. Years ago, when I worked in Corporate America, we got people to the "party" in order to help them lower their health care costs and prevent illness and injury. Sometimes they came to the party because they wanted to feel or look better. There were several different entry points to the "party of self-care" for all of these, but often it wasn't the most obvious entry point. And always, they realized once they got there, how much better they felt and what was possible.

What is possible? And how does it apply to your leadership?

Fast forward to today where I work with business leaders to help them enhance their leadership presence, lead their energy, improve their health, optimize their relationships and culture, and really come from a place of authenticity and fulfillment...I've chosen, yet again, a "party" that many folks might not realize they want or need to attend (especially given the busy-ness of business and the long list of other-focused responsibilities!) They don't realize they want or need to attend, until they attend it, and discover the want that is there. Or until they need it, and again, discover the want that is there. And again, as always, once they attend it, they realize how much better they can feel (internally and externally.)

What I find over and over again, with just about every client who comes to this work, is that the "being" goes with the "doing" - you can't separate them out. The sooner clients get this, the more successful they are. The "being" of you as leader (which includes your mental mindset, your presence, your internal energy, and how you show up), lies underneath the "doing" of your leadership (your actions, your words, your external energy, your impact)....you can't separate them out. Whether you are a business leader, an employee, a parent, a colleague, a friend, a coach, or all of the above, the "being" serves as the glue that holds it all together. If the glue is good and "responsive", your impact is more positive and powerful. I find over and over again that once clients "get this", and engage with it authentically, their effectiveness as a leader, not to mention their own sense of internal peace, increases exponentially. This is a big deal.

And it's such a big deal, that for a limited time I am offering a complimentary "Being/Doing of Leadership Breakthrough Session" to help people start to bridge the gap between how their "being" ties into their "doing" and how they can optimize both. If you are interested in this, please contact Gina, at Gina@DareToEngage.com. I am making these 30 minute sessions available to people in this community, for the month of September, to the first 7 people who sign up. No obligation, just an opportunity to talk and engage in a healthy "game". The only criteria is that you are curious, you want to be more effective in your leadership, and you know - or have a sense - that leadership is an evolving art and that "what's gotten you here, will not get you there" (words of wisdom from Marshall Goldsmith) - there's much more you can do!

This is a limited time offer and I don't do these often, so please email Gina if this "pulls" you. As always, please do forward this on to those you believe could benefit from this rare opportunity. And if you do, please tell them to tell me you sent them, I promise to treat them well!