The Guiding WorkLife Mindset- What is Yours?
Deanne came to me because she was deeply frustrated with her career. She felt overwhelmed most of the time as she juggled two kids, their activities and managing a home. As a single mother she felt alone in the journey of life and living. While she enjoyed her role and work, her boss was distant and rarely communicated beyond emails asking her to take on more reports. Since covid she has been working from home which was nice at first but recently has become another source of disconnect and mounting, unclear, expectations.
Deanne came to me because she was deeply frustrated with her career. It wasn't her career we actually talked about until many coaching sessions later.
Many times we think our source of frustration is one thing when really it is a byproduct of something else. Have you experienced this?
After a customer submits a negative google review you go home and snap on your partner when you notice the kids haven't been fed yet.
Your Friday has been a sh*t show after two employees called in sick (again) and when you realize your grande latte does not have the pump of caramel in it, even though you clearly asked for that said pump, you unleash your mounting disappointment on the barista.
Ahhh the examples are endless. Can you relate?
WorkLife Synergy Question: What in your life is a source of disappointment?
Deanne was deeply disappointed that, after everything she had hoped for and dreamed of, her broken marriage and life as a single-mother was her reality.
Unknowingly she had taken on an identity of "I have no power". Everything became a byproduct of this mental mindset.
The kids schedules were too busy. Her boss didn't care about her stress or success. Life was not going to work in her favour. Disappointment was to be expected.
Deanne was, by all accounts, a very positive and forward-thinking person. So when she became aware of this guiding WorkLife Mindset she intuitively knew it was draining her momentum (and that she desired better for herself).
AWARENESS FUELS CHANGE.
Together we created a simple WorkLife Flow that challenged her guiding mindset. She started each day with a plan for managing her schedule with focus on time boundaries and realistic expectations. The simplest of tweaks in her flow and habits made big changes to her life experience. For example she got up early twice a week and walked the dog for 30 minutes. This time became her breathing space and allowed her to feel less stressed about the busy day ahead. Plus the fresh air was revitalizing!
Deanne became aware of how she was giving her voice and power away. She booked a meeting with her boss to ask about creating better communication processes so she could more effectively plan and execute what needed to be completed. During that meeting she also asked for feedback on her performance and was surprised when her boss not only shared what is working great and ways for improvement, but also talked about opportunities coming down the pipeline that she may be a great fit for.
Slowly, with awareness and intention, Deanne transitioned from a guiding WorkLife Mindset of "I have no power" to "I create my experience". This is an elevated way of living that starves resistance/frustration and feeds momentum/fulfillment.
What can you learn from Deanne's story? What is YOUR guiding WorkLife Mindset? How can you tweak it to ELEVATE your WorkLife Experience? It's not about radical transformation...but rather small changes and in how we think, live and lead our lives.
