The Positive Energy Workplace

I got my lead/beek/run "aha" this a.m. before I even stepped into the hot room. Driving in I noticed how neutral I was feeling. Neutral and present and calm. Open to whatever the morning brought; in everything from the morning class, to the morning client calls, to the morning run (yes, it's time to start amping up my running), and the morning projects (I am in the middle of a big project, which you will soon see the fruits of on this blog.)

Getting what we want and creating lives we love can be a complex process, but most often not as complex as we think. I find over and over again in my work with clients a couple of very common themes. (After all, being human beings, we tend to have common threads of growth and it makes it really convenient to help us learn together.) A couple of these helpful themes are: 1) get quiet, breathe, 2) look inside for answers, trust your inner knowing, 3) directly engage, don’t waste your time in “he said/she said,” making stuff up, and gossip, 4) take excellent care of yourself in the process, and, 5) just do…after contemplation, due diligence and decision making – action must occur.

Whether I’m working with someone on their leadership, their business or their personal life, I believe that it is necessary that we look inside ourselves for answers, that we take great care of ourselves while we do it, and that we put it all to good use focusing on action, outcomes and results. There’s the “being” of life and leadership, and the “doing”….one cannot escape the other, as much as we might try or believe it can work (in a sustainable and peaceful fashion!) There’s an integration of the being and doing, and an opportunity for a very holistic approach to all of it. When we stop, implement even one or two of the five things I mention above, and move forward, we become more aware, leadership happens, our life unfolds even more. It’s a beautiful thing.

I’ve come to call the work that I do with clients and teach in seminars, “Bootism.” It’s easy to remember, offers a kicky and unique style, and it’s fun. I find that it sticks, puts a kick in one’s step, and it’s sticks because it’s congruent with the individual – after all, they choose their path, their plan, their action. It’s theirs. It’s not hard, but it’s effective. It’s not complex, but it’s powerful. And it’s not for me to say WHAT exactly it means for you, but it is yours to find.

So what is Bootism? In a nutshell think Eastern Philosophy (wellness, spirituality, joy, peace) meets Western Philosophy (business, great results, leadership, bottom lines, growth), add in "boots, hugs and cupcakes" as core secret ingredients, and you have a way of creating sustainable results, authentic leadership and joy in the process.

There was an article in Crain’s Chicago a couple of weeks ago about the toll entrepreneurship takes on relationships, etc. how “hard” it is for entrepreneurs and “balancing it all.” It was a good sized piece and I was happy to see the “soft” stuff being given this attention in the press. This is often the stuff that I notice gets disregarded or put off as it’s not clearly linked to numbers and bottom line results, etc. It’s also often the stuff that is the most difficult to tie to value and “return on investment” with organizational clients. Once they do the work, they get it, but up front, it’s more ambiguous and hard to see where it ties in. I get it. You can’t actually “see” balance or the impact it has as clearly as you can see a P&L sheet and the story the numbers tell... But it’s so there. Everywhere you look, even if you can’t see it, this idea of “balance” and the impact it has or does not have, is there….in our relationships, our health, our teams, our joy factor, etc. It’s there. Now, I don’t actually call it balance, or even believe in balance, I actually invite clients to laugh in the face of balance, but I do have a pretty good hypothesis of why it’s so hard for people to achieve it…so read on….

Engage your health, energy and stamina to create the vitality and presence you need for powerful conscious leadership. Buddha said "To keep the body in good health is a duty otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear."

Some of the most important work I do with business coaching clients is in "clearing the decks". By this I mean creating the space for them to stop for a moment, be present and get clear on what's important to them. To actually get clear on what the impact is that they want to create. Doing this requires doing things to help themselves be as "clear", focused and conscious as possible. One of these things is self-care.

Did you know that 21% of the global workforce considers themselves actively engaged in their work right now (loyal, passionate, positive, enjoying their work)? 38% are actively disengaged (meaning they're complaining, bringing morale down or looking for another job). And the remaining 41% aren't sure where they stand. Wow!

Does that surprise you? Surprised me, but then not too much because I've watched chaos, scheduling, technology, travel and the demand for instant results increase dramatically over the years. We are busy! We can get a hold of each other in ways now that make one dizzy. Technology in many cases is replacing face-to-face contact. Travel on Sunday for a Monday morning meeting is becoming quite the norm. So, as an executive coach, it doesn't surprise me that we are bumping up against the following performance improvement challenges.