This week we're thinking about quitting! Yep, you read that right. And, we're
deciding what to drink when we do it. Here's to giving you that little boost to help you make the most of the rest of the week.
- Ricki Braswell, CAE, President, Beyond Coaching
So Let's Talk About Quitting
I read a short article in Real Simple magazine a few months ago that had me feeling like Alice after she dropped down the rabbit hole. I wasn't looking for enlightenment or expecting to encounter a mind-shifting moment, not while I was flipping pages looking at examples of expertly styled homes and gardens and reading recipes for meals I will never make.
But, this article, written by Mary Laura Phillpott, gave me a real kick in the assumptions. And it started when I read these four lines, "…maybe the trick isn't sticking everything out. The trick is quitting the right thing at the right time. The trick is understanding that saying, 'No, thank you' to something you're expected to accept isn't failure. It's a whole other level of success." WHOA!!
I read it a second time. And my brain was doing this frantic little skipping back and forth between what I was reading and EVERYTHING I've ever told myself about commitment and success. Quit something, anything, before I've completed it? This doesn't connect. I've never even stopped reading a book in the middle, even when I didn't like it! I just slog right through.
But this article explores, "the importance of bowing out," and my perspective is forever changed. All of a sudden a lightbulb, one I didn't even know was in there, flickered on and then shone brightly in my brain. These are the words I'm taking with me as I forge ahead in my growth process: "Trying out something you expect to love, realizing you don't really love it, and giving it back - that takes guts. It means understanding that success isn't about nailing every role; it's about choosing the roles you'll play and how well you want to play them."
Thank you, Ms. Phillpott, from the bottom of my overachieving heart!
If I could only drink two beverages for the remainder of my life I would happily select water and champagne!
Don't judge, especially if you haven't given good champagne a real try. I'm not talking about a bottle of $7.99 fizzy that you grab off the end shelf at the grocery store the day before New Year's Eve. No, no, no. What I'm referring to something that is cultivated and curated by people who have been coaxing deliciousness out of grapes for years (decades, centuries even!).
Each and every time I hear the soft pop and smooth sigh of a cork being released it makes me want to clap for joy!
Which brings me around to the inspiration for this share. My very favorite champagne is Veuve Clicquot. Normally, the distinctive, lively yellow label is reason enough to attract my admiration, however, the folks at Veuve are fond of dressing up their reserve bottles of La Grande Dame and this lovely bottle, and the box which cradles it, was designed by Yayoi Kusama and brings another level of fun to the party. As we roll into the holidays, I hope you feel the same sense of festivity, excitement and anticipation I feel every time a bottle of champagne is opened.
You're probably familiar with the advice, "prioritize your schedule." It is advice I worked really hard to follow for years. Like many people, and most of my clients, I was juggling kids and a career and, well, life! And somehow, no matter how hard I worked at prioritizing my schedule, I seemed to be in a continual rotation of frustration and disappointment.
The break through happened when I began to schedule my priorities. Here's the difference - by scheduling my priorities I decide what is important and what goes on my schedule.
By blocking out time for my priorities I ensure that I devote my time to the things that are most important. I'm proactive and intentional, instead of being reactive and having to prioritize the things that are thrown at me.
Examples of things that are important but were not being scheduled as priorities are: 1) Scheduling specific time to work on priority projects rather than trying to fit them in between answering emails, phone calls and interruptions from other members of my team. 2) Time to be with my family: leaving work at a certain time, rather than hoping I can leave and scrambling to make it home at a decent time. And of course, the one that I overlooked most frequently, 3) Time to take care of myself: exercise, meditate, yoga, a soak in the bath, reading quietly, alone time. These are just examples and are not encompassing and you're probably thinking of your own by this point, so here are so of my tips for how you can schedule your priorities and kick off 2021 in a whole new way!
Tip for how to start: take your shiny new January calendar (electronic or paper, it doesn't matter) and select a week. Add type (or write) in the tasks you want to do on specific days. You don't have to fill a day or the week, but begin with one or two things. For me it is adding in time for daily exercise and also blocking off 3 hours a week or marketing.
Tip for how to hold yourself accountable: I have to remind myself that the time I've devoted is as important as anything that I do for a client so I don't allow myself to move (or reschedule) the appointment time for the task more than once. If I move it from 10 am on Monday to 1 pm on Tuesday then I have to do it on Tuesday. No one else will value your time or your priorities if you don't.
This year! What can I say that hasn't already been said?
2020 is drawing to a close and I am ready to link arms and bid it adiue (the French word meaning goodbye forever).
Ready for a new year and want to focus on how to achieve a new level of success in 2021? Schedule a virtual coffee! This is a (FREE) 45-minute session to explore how success coaching can support you in clarifying and reaching your goals.
Don't spend another year struggling to reach your potential. Schedule today and move Beyond!
If you are enjoying Beyond A Pep Talk please share with friends and suggest they sign up! Also, I'd love to hear what you want to learn more about so that I can create content just for you. Email me at Ricki@TransitionBeyond.com with your thoughts, comments or just to share a chuckle.