mindset

  • Blog, leadership, mindset, personal development

    Where are your assumptions holding you back?

    Where are your assumptions holding you back?

    There’s usually not a day that goes by that I don’t say the word ‘assumption’ to one of my clients.

    The reason being is that if we’re not careful our assumptions can stop us from taking action.

    The thing is this is probably costing you in the long run.

    Like my client who resisted sending an email to a contact because of an assumption that they wouldn’t be interested – That e-mail led to them booking 6 figures worth of work.

    Or my client who wanted a promotion but had made the assumption that they wouldn’t get it…that conversation later turned into their dream promotion.

    Or my client who avoided posting on her social media about her services as she thought she’d look pushy. A week later she was celebrating 2 new clients.

    Or my client who made the assumption that a member of their team didn’t want to develop and then when they asked them it turned out they had big ambitions and were more than ready for that next level.

    Assumptions can come in all shapes and sizes and can be stopping you from getting the results that you really want.

    The trick is to start getting really good at spotting them.

    Here’s how…

    1. Look out for where you’re NOT taking action…is it because of a specific reason?
    2. Ask yourself if the reason is actually true? And how do you really know it’s true? If you need to, talk it through with another person and see what they say.
    3. See what would happen if you took action anyway. If there’s no real risk give it a go, and see what happens without any judgement.

    And finally, today be on the look out…what’s the assumption that’s holding you back right now?

  • Blog, Business, confidence, leadership, mindset, personal development

    Are you ready to stop making things so hard?

    This is the sentence that I said to a client the other day….

    “Are you ready to stop making things so hard?”

    ​

    I see this all the time, ways that we block our own success without even realising it.

    ​

    • Leaving big projects to the last minute and then having to work late or all weekend.
    • Going to meetings that we don’t really need to, just because we think we should be there
    • Saying yes when we really want to say no (for the millionth time)
    • Reacting rather than hitting the pause button and thinking about what we really want to say
    • Believing our inner imposter, rather than trusting ourselves
    • Getting involved with things that our team are doing when they’re more than capable to crack on
    • Getting busy on the small stuff rather than moving the needle
    • Staying quiet in that meeting, when you’ve got something to say.

    ​

    ​

    This list could go on an on…and I’m sure you know exactly what your favourite flavour of ‘hard’ is for you.

    So today, I’d love to invite you to see things differently.

    What would happen if you chose another way?

    What would happen if you chose easier?

    And what would easier actually look like for you?

    Feel free to hit reply and let me know if you’d like some extra accountability

    ​

    Have a fab weekend

    ​

    Barbara

    ​

    PS – I currently have only ONE space available for my 6 month 1-1 coaching programme – ELEVATE starting in May. This is for you if you’re a business leader and you’re ready to catapult your development.

    I have ONE space available starting in June for my 12 month THINKING PARTNER programme. This is one to one exec coaching where we meet regularly every month to keep you on track so that you achieve your goals as a leader.

    Get on the wait list for the next cohort of Smash Your Own Ceiling – a group programme where you’ll do just that. No more holding yourself back, imposter syndrome, getting in your own way…it’s time to own your space at the table!!

    Or if you’d like me to run a workshop for your leadership team, I only do 2 of these every month and I’m now taking bookings for OCTOBER.

    Click here to book a call for more info

  • Blog, Business, leadership, mindset, personal development

    Don’t make today a repeat of yesterday!

    Don’t make today a repeat of yesterday!!!

    As humans we’re creatures of habit.

    We get up at the same time
    Have the same breakfast
    Take the same route to work
    Do the same walk around the office
    And look at our emails first

    You get the idea

    But if you think that our habits are just actions on repeat…And our actions create our results it might be time to switch things up a bit.

    Plus if you’re feeling a bit… meh, exhausted or you’re describing your day as spinning plates or being stuck on a treadmill… this is also going to make you FEEL so much better.

    Give these a try to get you started ????

    1. Instead of going straight to your inbox, give yourself 60 mins to do the thing on your list that will really move the needle (you know what it is)

    This alone will make you feel like dancing round the street!!! ????????

    2) Take that walk at lunch time and let your brain let out a big sigh of relief.

    3) Turn your team meeting into a hive mind to focus on solving one problem. Get the creative juices flowing and see the energy shift in your team.

    Bonus…. Watch out for that voice in your head telling you that you can’t do something different. Instead ask why not?!

    Inject some change into your day and see what happens.

     

    Have a fab day

    Barbara

    PS – Ready for those next steps?

    Complete the Confident Leaders Assessment

    Join the 1-1 coaching programme

  • leadership, mindset

    How are you making things harder for yourself or your team?

    *How are you making things harder for yourself or your team?*

    I asked this to a group of Senior Leaders… it went quiet… and then the lightbulb moments started..

    *Jumping in and fixing everything*

    *Taking everything on myself because I think its quicker*

    *Over committing cos I don’t want to let people down, then I end up working weekends*

    *Being scared of failing so I hold back*

    *Not speaking up in meetings*

    I could go on…

    But this is why mindset plays a HUGE part in the work that I do.

    Because you might be a leader but you’re still HUMAN!

    And the way you think and feel creates your actions, and then your actions create your results (and also your habits).

    Which is why I see so many people relying on ways of working they’ve used before not realising its actually making things A LOT harder than it needs to be… AND it’s slowing things right down!

    And then we blame the amount of work
    And that there’s never enough time
    And the team needing you so much

    When actually making some small shifts can make a MASSIVE difference!!!

    Giving you more time, balance and breathing space
    More confidence
    And a much more empowered team

    This is what we do on The Elevated Leader full day workshop where we talk about:

    – The impact of your daily habits on your results (in and out of work)
    – The small shifts you can make to get more time, and have a more empowered team
    – How your mindset is affecting your actions under the radar
    – How to start to elevate and feel more confident as a leader without working any harder or sacrificing your life.
    – How to remove the blocks that are holding you back.

    For Senior Leadership Teams only

    I’m getting booked up before the summer so only have 4 days available for May & June.

    16th May
    22nd May
    11th June
    19th June

    Send me a direct message and I’ll send you all the details.

    PS if these dates don’t suit let me know to get first dibs on Sept – Nov.

  • Blog, mindset, personal development

    What’s your self sabotage?

    What’s your self sabotage?

    I was running a workshop about this recently and we had a fantastic conversation about what I call our *Success Blocks*.

    The way we put on the brake pedal when we’re doing something that’s taking us out of our comfort zone (and most of the time we don’t even realise it as it’s happening under the radar)

    Some of the most common ones I see coming up with my clients are:

    1. Getting busy on the small stuff and not tackling the things that would really move the needle.

    2. Believing assumptions or excuses (One of my faves was not sending an email because *it wasn’t the right time* which resulted in a 6 fig contract ????)

    3. Self doubt, imposter syndrome, feeling like you’re going to fail.

    4. Playing small or hiding (this is a sneaky one)

    5. Getting stuck in the weeds of the day to day

    6. Fixing things for the team and constantly jumping in.

    7. Starting again – lurching from one idea to the next

    8. Always being available – saying yes when you want to say no and not letting anyone down.

    I could go on… there are loads of ways we inadvertently sabotage our success, but when you start to see them it becomes so much easier to sort out.

    What’s yours?

    Have a great day

    Barbara
    ———

    PS – Ready for that next step?

    – Join the 6 month ELEVATE Coaching programme

    – Book a group coaching session for your senior team

    – Book a workshop for your leaders – topics include (uncovering success blocks, confidence at work; productivity booster; or success habits for leaders)

    Book a call to discuss this further

  • Blog, mindset, personal development

    How to get off the hamster wheel

    Want to know how to get off the hamster wheel?

    Stop

    Resist the thought that it has to be done

    Go do something else

    Take the day off

    Do something that makes you happy

    Learn something new

    Get outside

    De-clutter something

    Hide your phone

    Date your partner or your kids

    Visit a friend

    Go to a nice coffee shop and people watch

    Drive down some country lanes with your favourite music on

    Smile… or even better laugh

    Watch an old black and white film

    Take the dog for a walk in a different place

    Remember what makes you… YOU!

    And while you’re doing that… you’ll get clarity, lightbulb moments, inspiration, ideas… or just peace and happiness like you’ve had a good holiday.

    Either way, it’ll be a day well spent.

     

    Have a fab day

    Barbara

     

    PS – Ready for the next step?

    Join the 6 month coaching programme – ELEVATE

    Book a workshop for your Senior Leadership Team

    Click here to book a call to explore this further

     

  • Blog, confidence, mindset, personal development

    How to speak up in meetings when you’re feeling like an imposter

    *I don’t feel like an imposter anymore*

    Of course you don’t!!!

    When I first met this Exec the first thing he said…

    *I’m tired of feeling like I don’t belong in meetings, and I’ve had enough of staying quiet*

    I get it’

    Staying quiet is EXHAUSTING….

    Because you’re not ACTUALLY staying quiet.

    You’re having a mental battle in your head that goes something like this…

    You: *speak up*

    Also you: *What if I’m wrong?!*

    Also you: *speak now!*

    Also you: *Everyone’ll look at me*

    Also you: *Now… go… go*

    Also you: *You’ve missed it now*

    And then Jim says the thing you were going to say and you kick yourself all the way home.

    But not now…

    Oh sweet sweet release….

    No more *Am I good enough*

    No more mental battle

    Because you KNOW you’re good enough!

    You’re now the one who says what they wanted to say.. and it feels INCREDIBLE!

    And not just that… other things happen too….

    You get asked your opinion more often

    You get invited to *bigger* meetings

    You get more opportunities

    And… YOU FEEL AMAZING!!!

    It’s like you’ve gone up a level in the game… because YOU HAVE!!!

    You’ve ELEVATED

    This is why I LOVE working with execs one to one in my 6 month programme.

    Because we get to talk about this stuff without it looking like a weakness.

    Because you get to see everything from a completely different perspective. Think lightbulb moments and *why didn’t I think of that?*

    Because we sort out the things that have been holding you back. Think old habits, ways of working that just don’t work anymore…

    And because you’ll see the ripple effects happen fast, like a lot more time, more time with your kids / other half, no more working weekends, feeling happier, your team doing well, your business growing…it’s all connected.

    ———

    Hi I’m Barbara and I LOVE seeing business leaders ELEVATE

    Get rid of self doubt, feeling like an imposter and fear of failure
    Get out of the weeds
    Empower your team
    Get the success you want in and out of work

    Book a call to explore jumping into the 6 month coaching programme

  • Blog, leadership, mindset, personal development

    How to actually FEEL like a leader

    *I want to actually FEEL like a leader*

    Someone said this to me the other day.

    I knew exactly what they meant.

    They were sick of:

    Holding themselves back in important meetings

    Looking round the room and comparing themselves to their peers

    Struggling with self doubt, feeling like an imposter and fear of failure, that it’s all going to come crashing down

    And spinning all the plates ????

    You might even find yourself thinking that it’s not right for you and maybe you need to do something else.

    I hear this all the time because even though you’ve worked so hard to get where you are today, and you really deserve it, you can still feel like a little kid thinking *who am I to be here?*

    And then you stay quiet when you want to speak

    Or get nervous when you need to be confident

    Or play small and hold back as its safer

    Or work harder because it’s our natural default.

    And it’s all because we’ve not acclimatised to where we need to be.

    You’re relying on old habits to keep working – but the saying *what got you here isn’t going to get you there* is true.

    You’re trying to control the situation by working harder on the things that aren’t going to move the needle or that others can do.

    And you’re sabotaging yourself under the radar as your subconscious mind is trying to get you back to your comfort zone.

    But when you start to see your actions and thoughts from a different perspective it becomes so much clearer.

    ????????????????

    This is what I do in my 1-1 programme where you’ll learn how to elevate so you feel like the leader you are, take action with confidence and own your seat at the table (on the inside as well as the outside).

    Plus you’ll learn how to:

    Lead yourself
    Get in control of your time
    And empower your team.

    And you’ll not only FEEL different, you’ll show up differently.

    I’ve seen this so many times.

    If you’re a Director, Business Owner, Exec or Senior Leader and you’re ready to unlock your leadership potential book a call for more info on my 6 month 1-1 programme. 

  • Blog, leadership, mindset, personal development, time

    3 things to do before starting another week

    Do these THREE things before diving into another week. Trust me… they’ll make all the difference…

    1) Spend 10 minutes (its just 10 mins) REFLECTING on how things went last week in two columns… positives and improvements (so you don’t just zoom in on the negatives) ????

    2. PLAN – what do you want to achieve this week? Focus on just 1-3 things that will really move the needle and you’ll be dancing round the street if you do.

    3. BOOK – get your diary out and book 30 mins in on Wednesday to see how you’re doing and stay on track.

    If you’re thinking *chance would be a fine thing, have you seen my diary?!* then lets talk ????

    ————

    If you’re a Business Leader and you’re ready to get out of the weeds, side step self doubt and elevate as a leader feel free to book call for more info on how I can help you or your team.

  • Blog, mindset, personal development

    Why feeling like an imposter is actually a great sign

    Why feeling like an imposter is actually a great sign

    *Congratulations you’re feeling like an imposter* is probably not something you hear everyday ????

    But what if I was to tell you it’s not all bad

    Firstly feeling like an imposter doesn’t automatically make you one… but it does feel rubbish and can stop you in your tracks and make you play a much smaller game.

    That said…

    So… what does it mean and why is it actually a great sign??

    It actually means that you’re up-levelling, stretching your comfort zone and doing something new. ????????????

    As my mum used to say *you’ve grown!*

    Fantastic news right??!!!

    And that’s why it’s causing your subconscious mind (SM) to have a mini melt down because it doesn’t know it can keep you safe where you are now.

    It’s trying to be nice…

    Which is why the next step is to ACCLIMATISE at your new level. Make it your new normal.

    This is just who you are now!!

    So today own your seat at the table
    Celebrate where you are
    Be excited about that big meeting
    Be proud of what you’re doing

    And if you’ve really had enough ping me a message and I’ll send you a pdf to help you out.

    —————

    If you’re a Business Leader and you’re ready to take that next step to get out of the weeds, and get the results you really want in (and out) of work click here to book a call