Coach Andrea

Coach Andrea’s Intro

Inspiration, insight, intuition? Are you the type of leader who regularly listens to information that comes to you in this manner?  This week’s Tip by Simon Tyler reminds us that there is a wealth of guidance that can be gleaned by tapping into your own wisdom.

Quote of the Week

“Success is really about being ready for the good opportunities that come before you. It’s not to have a detailed plan of everything that you’re going to do. You can’t plan innovation or inspiration, but you can be ready for it, and when you see it, you can jump on it.”

~ Eric Schmidt

The Perfect Consultant

By Simon Tyler

Whatever your life, career or business situation, input from a valued, experienced, knowledgeable consultant will always be welcomed.

But who is that consultant, where do they reside, how can you contact them, and would they be willing to consult on your situation?

The answers to these questions lie closer than you would think.

The potential perfect consultant to you and your circumstance is… you!

Potentially.

Inspiration comes from within. Insight, from within. Investigation, introspection, inklings, invention, influence, incentive, and most pertinently, intuition, all from within.

Warning – a consultant who is negative, asks poor questions, or simply spouts opinions is soon ignored and their advice given little or no consideration. If this is your current version of personal consulting then it is no wonder you find yourself unfulfilled, searching the world for better, more accurate and reliable advice.

The Perfect Consultant (you) may well require some skill evolution. Here’s one upgrade idea that will have incredible impact on the consultant’s performance:

Upgrade the consultant’s question

Many of our self-posed questions begin with “Why…”. This provokes a “…because…” response, and rarely leads to new or creative input. Stop whying!

Actively begin your self-posed questions with “What…” or “How could…”. These questions create space for your brain to source its own answers (i.e. inspirationally, intuitively – from within).

For example, after any encounter, event or situation that went well or badly, ask:

• “What could this teach me?”
• “What do I want to do with this outcome?”
• “How could I use this event to help me?”

Ask the questions and allow the ‘in-consultant’ to respond. For best effect, make notes of his or her suggestions and review later.

Good luck and keep it simple.

Simon Tyler is one of the world’s leading business coaches. His work simplifies the lives of business leaders and owners. He is an incisive consultant, inspirational writer, provocative public speaker and master facilitator. To learn more about Simon, visit http://simontyler.com.

Coaching Call To Action

What will you do this week to develop your inner guidance? I am reading the book The Art of Intuition: Cultivating your Inner Wisdom by Sophy Burnham.  She gives exercises and step-by-step instructions to guide you to develop your own intuitive powers.

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

Your mind is very powerful. You know how when buy a new car you start seeing that same car and color everywhere?  Were those cars all hiding in their garage a week ago or has your perception changed?  You have expanded your awareness, changed the way you look at things, and the things you look at have changed. This week Simon Tyler applies this concept to the areas of your life where you don’t like what you see.

Quote of the Week

“Only in quiet waters do things mirror themselves undistorted. Only in a quiet mind is there adequate perception of the world.”

~ Hans Margolius

If You Change the Way You Look at Things… the Things You Look at Change.

By Simon Tyler

One of my favorite Wayne Dyer quotes and often astoundingly true.

Most of us have convinced ourselves that our perception is like a torch that reveals a truth, when in actual fact perception does most of the work to create a truth, rather than shine on what is there already.

The lesson in this has struck me over and over again in recent weeks and months.  I have also been able to be inspired by it and change the way I look at things and no surprise, the picture began to shift and reveal itself differently (much more pleasantly too).

Are there situations, relationships, places in your world that don’t match up with what you really want? Maybe they have even led you to become disappointed, frustrated, tense, anxious, and angry about them.

Once you are in this place the Reticular Activating System (RAS) in your brain gets to work to only focus (the torch) on evidence that whatever you have set to be true is true. You will brilliantly find more and more fuel for you fire, grinding you ever more deeply into an unhelpful and even damaging state and attitude.

Immediately review all the areas in which you do not like what you see. Ask yourself the question (and write down your answers for maximum effect):

• How else could I view this situation?
• What else might be true?
• How would I really want to view this situation?

Work to find evidence that your alternate viewpoints are partially true, too.

Repeat this every hour for a day, then 3 times a day thereafter.

Things WILL begin to change, people begin to surprise you, situations become easier, clearer and a way ahead opens up.

For an even deeper fix put yourself in situations, conversations, places where the alternate view is more likely to come into focus.

Simon Tyler is one of the world’s leading business coaches. His work simplifies the lives of business leaders and owners. He is an incisive consultant, inspirational writer, provocative public speaker and master facilitator. To learn more about Simon, visit http://simontyler.com.

Coaching Call To Action

Last weekend I found myself caught in the area where I didn’t like what I saw.  I was cleaning up from the Nor’easter that dumped inches of wet snow on my leaf covered trees.  There were many downed branches and trees.  And did I mention there was no power?  The conversation I was having with myself was not pretty.  I wish I had read Simon’s article earlier and could have used his questions to shift my thinking.  Are there places in your life where you are seeing things like I did this weekend?   Take some time to shift your perception this week.  It’s worth the effort!

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

Periodically, the most important action you can take to improve your results is to stop.  Then assess, looking both forward and backward. This week’s Tip by Dr. Alan Zimmerman provides a simple exercise you can do whether you are sitting down with your first cup of coffee for the day or taking your first sip of wine watching the sunset. Grab your journal and pen and answer the questions below.

Quote of the Week

“Progress is the product of human agency. Things get better because we make them better. Things go wrong when we get too comfortable, when we fail to take risks or seize opportunities.”

~ Susan Rice

Seven Questions to Ask Yourself to Get Better Results

By Dr. Alan Zimmerman

We’ve all heard the motivational speakers preach the message of “Ya gotta have goals.” And they’re right. “Ya gotta have goals.”

That’s a very important start in any endeavor, but it’s not enough to guarantee your success. In addition to HAVING some goals, you’ve got to do some PERIODIC CHECKING to see if you’re going in the right direction and making sufficient progress towards your goals.

I recommend the following seven questions. They’ll keep your goals in the forefront of your mind, and they’ll help you stay on track … doing the right things to achieve your goals as you avoid the inevitable pitfalls.

1. What three things could prevent you from achieving your goals in the next six months?
2. What is the single biggest opportunity you will have to grow personally and professionally in the next twelve months?
3. If you were able to do last week over again, what one thing would you do differently to have better results?
4. If you were able to do last month over again, what three things would you do differently to have better results?
5. Are you spending your time in a way that delivers the best possible results?
6. What one thing can you stop doing today that will give you more time?
7. If it were entirely up to you, what would you change in your work?

They’re great questions. And every time you ask yourself these questions, you’re going to get a payoff.

As published in Art Sobczak’s Smart Calling newsletter and from Dr. Alan Zimmerman’s Internet newsletter, the ‘Tuesday Tip.’ For your own personal, free subscription to the ‘Tuesday Tip,’ go to http://www.DrZimmerman.com

Coaching Call To Action

Alan has provided great questions that I’m going to spend time answering Monday afternoon as I do my monthly business planning. How about you? When will you set aside time to assess your business?

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

“What, you want me to schedule one more meeting?” This might be the response you have when you start reading this week’s Tip, however, please pay attention. If you are not scheduling regular time for yourself for planning, thinking, and strategizing, you are only hurting yourself. I have one client who at the start of the day has started a new habit of sitting in a comfortable recliner and thinking for 10 to 15 minutes. Taking that time daily has him know that he’s addressing the most pressing issues and thinking strategically about his life and business.

Quote of the Week

“We need quiet time to examine our lives openly and honestly. . . spending quiet time alone gives your mind an opportunity to renew itself and create order.”

~  Susan Taylor

The Most Important Meeting

by Simon Tyler

A quick view of your calendar for next week will undoubtedly reveal days full of meetings, back to back on some days with no breathing space between.

The culture of many companies in which I have been involved seems to dictate the meeting thing. They are invaluable, most of the time in achieving an objective or two, but I have observed the meeting habit consuming teams, divisions and even entire companies. But one particular type of meeting, potentially the most valuable to you and your journey, gets forgotten.

My challenge for you this week is to schedule the most important meeting. It is simply a meeting with you. The You-on-You meeting can be strategic or tactical, and have similar intent to the plethora of meetings you attend every day.

We convince ourselves that we do have meetings with self, but until they are formally included in your schedule they almost always are sub optimal! They occur as you walk between other meetings, to the car park or train, the journey itself, fitting in the gaps, no agenda, no focus, random thoughts, open to every possible distraction, in utterly inappropriate environments. Would you seriously allow your team or project meetings happen like that? If you did what result would you expect from them?

Get it?

If you want to shift your thinking, your performance, your results, then you need a “you-on-you” communication plan. Your meeting need not necessarily be in a conference room with PowerPoint slides, just set it up in a way that you will be at your meeting best. A quiet place, for as long as you can handle being with the participant. And don’t complicate it, just have one or two agenda items/thoughts to focus on (one is my favourite).

10 minutes a day? An hour a week? You could even invite expert guests (your coach, mentor or development buddy). Create some frequency, perhaps even make notes (Einstein did). Just stop putting off this incredibly valuable investment of your time.

I’ve written about this in different ways in previous tipsletters, have a look at Focus On One and Pause.

Simon Tyler is one of the world’s leading business coaches. His work simplifies the lives of business leaders and owners. He is an incisive consultant, inspirational writer, provocative public speaker and master facilitator. To learn more about Simon, visit http://simontyler.com.

Coaching Call To Action

To be the most effective leader you can be, it’s imperative that you take time to deal with the important/not urgent issues in your work/life. What will you create in your schedule this week to honor this most important meeting with yourself?

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

Putting together this week’s Coaching Tip was an activity on my to do list before I went on vacation for the week.  My process is to scan articles and see what jumps out at me.  At first I thought this Tip should be shared at the beginning of the year in January, but as I read on, listened to the birds singing outside my window, felt the fresh breeze on my face, and the sense of Spring, I became more and more inspired by Michael Neill’s words. I hope you will be, too!

Quote of the Week

“It does not seem to be true that work necessarily needs to be unpleasant. It may always have to be hard, or at least harder than doing nothing at all. But there is ample evidence that work can be enjoyable, and that indeed, it is often the most enjoyable part of life.”
~  Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Your Most Enjoyable Year Yet!

by Michael Neill

Since 1994, I have begun each year by going through a wonderful process developed by Jinny Ditzler called Your Best Year Yet.  I would review my achievements and failures from the year before, look for any limiting beliefs that might be holding me back, check in with my values and set my goals for the year ahead.  And year after year, I have had my best year yet.

Which is why it was such a surprise to me when my friend Robert Holden asked us a simple question during his weekend at Supercoach Academy last June:

Imagine it’s one year from today and you’ve had your most enjoyable year yet… What’s happened?  What have you done?  What’s different in your life now?

Somehow, that tiny shift from looking at my “best” year yet to my most enjoyable one shifted something fundamental.  My most enjoyable year yet would be filled with things I stopped doing, not new ones that I started. Instead of a new list of achievements to pursue, I found myself with a list of things to let go of. And so I began to look at the activities of my life in a new way.

I created an ABCD grid for myself:

• “A”s were things I wanted to do regardless of whether or not they paid well or worked out the way I hoped.
• “B”s were things I enjoyed doing and would happily say “yes” to if they fell into my lap, but had no desire to try and “make” happen.
• “C”s were things I was only doing for the money
• “D”s were things I just flat out needed to stop doing

Once I had my list, I didn’t really know what to do with it, but I had a sense that I’d glimpsed something significant, so I just sat with it for a week or so, taking it out from time to time and reading back through it, waiting for inspiration to strike.  And strike it did…

Suddenly it dawned on me that if I only did my “A” activities, but I did them really, really well, I could actually make as much or more money than I had been making running myself ragged trying to do the whole alphabet. And in that moment, a plan was hatched.

My business manager flew out and we redesigned the business, streamlining things that would no longer be needed and building in structures to support the successful implementation of a straight “A” life.  I eliminated the “D”s, started saying no to the “C”s, but left enough time in my schedule to say yes to any “B”s that came along which appealed to me.

And over the past 9 months, as if by design, I have had my most enjoyable year yet. By miles and miles and miles. That’s why I wound up turning down the shot at a national radio show that would have upped my profile but taken all the free time out of my schedule.

And why I’ve created the new retreat, Learning How to Thrive, where people can come together and learn the principles behind creating a wonderful life for themselves. It’s why Supercoach Academy 2012 will be the last one for at least two years, and I’m currently designing advanced programs to support the transformative coaches we’ve already created instead of plowing ahead to create more and more.

It’s also why the thing I’m most looking forward to in the coming months is a road trip with my son, driving down the west coast of America in a Mustang convertible and stopping in at Universities he might want to attend.  I do love my work – but even more than that, I love my life.

Earlier this year, I came across a story about the Reverend Fred Craddock, who was visiting family when he struck up an unlikely conversation with an old greyhound dog his niece had recently adopted…

I said to the dog “Are you still racing?”

“No,” he replied

“Well, what was the matter?  Did you get too old to race?”

“No, I still had some race in me.”

“Well, what then?  Did you not win?”

“I won over a million dollars for my owner.”

“Well, what was it?  Bad treatment?”

“Oh, no,” the dog said.  “They treated us royally when we were racing.”

“Did you get crippled?”

“No.”

“Then why?” I pressed.  “Why?”

The dog answered, “I quit.”

“You quit?”

“Yes,” he said.  “I quit.”

“Why did you quit?”

“I just quit because after all that running and running and running, I found out that the rabbit I was chasing wasn’t even real.”

The true joy in life is not in achievement, though achievement certainly can be fun.  It is not in fame or fortune, both of which open some doors while closing off others.  But if you’re willing to slow down and create a little bit of space, you might find it inside you right now.

And wouldn’t it be a shame to have a wonderful life and not notice?

Copyright 2011 Michael Neill, author of Supercoach: 10 Secrets to Transform Anyone’s Life.  All rights reserved – Read more tips at www.Supercoach.com.

Coaching Call To Action

Periodically, we need to stop and assess how we are spending our time and what we are doing with our lives.  We get into the habit of doing activities that may no longer serve us.  By the time you read this, I will have created my ABCD list.   Next week, I’ll share some insights from what I learned.  Will you commit to doing the same?

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

I’ve just come back from a week of vacation where my time was very fluid. My husband and I agreed that we would spend the week as if we were retired. Fun! Lots of Self and Inspiring time that Simon Tyler speaks of below. I chose not to participate in Drain time. Now that I’m back at work, I’m going to put time on my calendar for Self and Inspiring so that I continue investing my time wisely.

Quote of the Week

“You have to allow a certain amount of time in which you are doing nothing in order to have things occur to you, to let your mind think.”
~Mortimer Adler

The Return on Investment of Your Time

by Simon Tyler

Many of my clients have such packed schedules; they feel like they are being whipped along in a fast flowing river, with little power to change direction. A frequent result is that some weeks they feel good (and inspired), others they feel bad (and drained) and all points in between. Are you fatalistically allowing the river and its course to have control?

Becoming more deliberate about where you invest YOUR time can in effect become a tiller to steer your journey along your river.

Where do you spend your time?

What is the impact on you during those investments?

Take last week. Let’s say, for arguments sake, you worked 50 hours, what is the split of your time across the following investment categories:

• Self - time in your own space, unhindered, uninterrupted, focused or unfocused, reflecting or in action, just time with you.




• Inspiring – with people or in places that inspire or motivate you, which cause you to think differently, garner new ideas, or feed your reflective time.




• The Turf – with people or in places that is your current ‘turf’, you know it, occasionally challenging, mostly in control of the situation.




• Drain – with people, or places, or tasks that simply take your energy levels right down.

It doesn’t take Sherlock to make the link between your time investment and the feel good or feel bad result.

Become aware, then shift your schedule, minimize ‘Drain’ time immediately. Increasing ‘Inspiring’ time takes a little extra thought and effort, seeking out opportunities. This happens in ‘Self’ time – get some of that, now!

Good luck and keep it simple.

Simon Tyler is one of the world’s leading business coaches. His work simplifies the lives of business leaders and owners. He is an incisive consultant, inspirational writer, provocative public speaker and master facilitator. To learn more about Simon, visit http://simontyler.com.

Coaching Call To Action

Where will you add “Self and Inspiring” time on your calendar this week? If you are already providing this time for yourself, I’d love to hear what you are doing.

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

The PaperRoom Process that I offer to my clients is about gaining access to your perceptions, beliefs, habits, expectations and assumptions, which leads to greater awareness. This week’s Tip by John McGuire and Gary Rhodes reminds us what is possible when we “get a bigger mind”.

Quote of the Week

“Let us not look back in anger, or forward in fear, but around us in awareness.”
~James Thurber

Getting a Bigger Mind

by John McGuire and Gary Rhodes

By increasingly opening up your awareness and beliefs, you can be more conscious of and about the decisions you are making and the impact of those decisions on your behaviors and practices. We call this process “getting a bigger mind.” It expands your awareness of what’s really going on and enables you to perceive more complex interconnections and respond with both long-term strategic acuity and elevated knowledge of how your next decision brings the environment you want to create more fully into existence (McGuire & Rhodes, p. 48).

McGuire, J. B. & Rhodes, G. B. (2009). Transforming Your Leadership Culture. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass

Reprinted with permission from the OSU Leadership Center, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, (614) 292-3114, http://leadershipcenter.osu.edu.

Coaching Call To Action

What process do you use to step back and “get a bigger mind”? Do you brainstorm with your business partner, go for a run, sleep on it?

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

Happy New Year!

Are you ready to make 2011 your best year ever? Art Sobczak’s questions prompt you to look at your business and life and COMMIT to actions that will make a difference for you.

Quote of the Week

How to Make 2011 Your Best Year Ever

By Art Sobczak

Today’s Tip has been a New Year’s tradition for about five years now. It’s usually one of my most popular issues of the year, and most-visited in the archives.

If you’ve seen this before, don’t quit reading. People who are serious about self-improvement know that it is a result of consistent action, not one-time exposure to something. I didn’t approach the door of the health club at 5:30 a.m. this morning and say, “Oh, I’ve been here before,” and then turn away.

If you’re serious about having your best year ever in 2011, TODAY is the best time to start. I do suggest you take some time to sit down with these questions. Think about your answers. Challenge yourself. Write them down. Then go to work!

It’s quite simple: if you want to be better in 2011, YOU need to do more than simply WANT it. You need to make some changes. Start now.

What are you going to do to improve your industry and product knowledge in 2011?

How many inactive customers will you revive and turn into regular customers again? What do you need to do to make that happen?

What will you do to ensure you’re protecting your best customers, and adding more value to the relationships? How will you sell even more to them?

How many new customers will you bring on this year? How do you plan to do that, specifically?

What will you do to improve your physical health in 2011?

What, specifically, are your sales and production goals for 2011? How does that break down into quarterly and monthly goals?

How much more money will you make in 2011? How will that happen? What will you need to do, today, to take the first steps in that direction?

What will you need to do to increase THAT number by an additional 10%?

What are you going to do every day to keep your attitude at a high level?

How much time are you going to spend, daily, to improve your own sales skills? What will you do?

How many referrals will you get in 2011? How will you get them? From whom? What will you do to turn them into sales?

Speaking of referrals, will you please forward this issue to two others who would also benefit from these weekly Tips? (OK, that’s one of mine.)

How are you going to maximize the use of your time? Where will you cut out the time-wasters in each day?

What have you been putting off that you will take care of within the next two weeks?

Who can you help to feel special every day?

What challenge, wish or desire–that you’ve never attempted before–will you finally achieve in 2011? How will you do that? Why?

Where are you going to write all of this down so you can review and revise your plans regularly?

What will it LOOK like when you accomplish everything you’ve just been thinking about?

How good will it FEEL?

What will it SOUND like when you achieve these things?

Why COULDN’T you do all of this?

Any answer to that last one is not a reason, but rather a self-imposed limitation, excuse, or lack of desire or effort. The biggest deterrent to success looks us in the mirror every day.

Now, go out and plan to have, no, COMMIT to YOUR BEST YEAR EVER IN 2011!

Art Sobczak, Business By Phone Inc., provides how-to ideas and tips for rejectionless prospecting, selling, and servicing by phone. Get the free ebook, “29 Sales Tips You Can Use Right Now” at http://www.BusinessByPhone.com.

Coaching Call To Action

You know Einstein’s definition of insanity, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. What changes will you commit to making in 2011 so that this year will be the best ever?

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Coach Andrea’s Intro

As we come to the close of another year, it’s time to step back and look at the year behind us and the year ahead. Steve Straus provides a simple reminder to enjoy the destination and the journey!

In order for me to enjoy my own family this holiday season, this is the last Coaching Tip of the Week for 2010. Look for your next Tip on January 7, 2011. I wish you all the love and happiness this season can bring and may the New Year find you healthy, happy, prosperous and full of joy.

Quote of the Week

“I’ve come to see that I’m both traveling and arriving in every moment. My life is a journey in which I’m constantly arriving at my destination, which is here and now. And I’m also traveling onward into a future that will become here and now.”

~Tim Freke

Journeys and Destinations

By Steve Straus

“Arriving is a point on a continuum of traveling. Traveling is a process of constantly arriving.”

There has been much written about “enjoy the journey, don’t just get caught up in making it to a destination.” Freke’s quote (and the entire book, for that matter) is a nice reminder to enjoy BOTH the journey AND the destination by seeing them as interwoven, inseparable threads. Have you
learned to live in a journey through time…while maintaining an awareness of Now?

Copyright 2010 Steve Straus. All rights reserved. Steve Straus can be contacted at http://www.StrausUSA.com

Coaching Call To Action

First and foremost, enjoy this blessed holiday season with family, friends, and loved ones. Secondly, look back at 2010 – did you enjoy the journey and reach your goals? Thirdly, plan for 2011 using the information below.

Ideas and Information

It’s time to get started on your master plan for 2011. Give yourself some quiet time, put on some relaxing music . . . and begin. First, acknowledge all that you have accomplished in 2010. Next, write down your goals for 2011. Open your mind to ALL the possibilities. Start each goal with “I am” or I will”. Don’t even THINK about restricting yourself. This process may take two hours. It may take two weeks. Remember, you’re building what you want in your life. To help you with this process, here are some key questions to ask yourself: