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Happy Holidays, Family and Friends!
I hope this email finds you well and you are preparing for an enjoyable holiday season.
As you know, last year I restarted my career as an Executive and Leadership Coach. This fall I completed the Leadership Coaching certification at Georgetown University; and my practice, Coach In Motion, LLC, has been in full gear.
At this time, I would like to welcome you to the first installment of Mind In Motion, a quarterly newsletter for the active pursuit of excellence. I hope you will take a pause from your busy schedule to read and reflect on the messages. And if you know of others who would enjoy, and could benefit from this newsletter please forward it! If you wish not to receive future editions of Mind In Motion, please follow the unsubscribe link near the bottom of this message.
As always, I welcome your feedback, questions, and insights. Please feel free to contact me. And if you would like to give (or receive) the gift of coaching this holiday season, please contact me for further details on a complementary coaching session.
Always the best,
Kim
Shifting from Resolutions to Revolutions
Please allow me to get a jump start on the influx of New Year's resolution articles that will be heading our way in the next few weeks. We read the articles, make resolutions, post it to our computer screen (mirror, back of the office door, or more typically- file it in a drawer), and then pay attention to the top 1 or 2 on the list for a short period of time...very short.
Do resolutions last? Popular opinion shows that New Year's resolutions last 3 hours to 3 weeks long. In fact, I gauge my time at the gym by this trend. Those first three weeks in January are brutal for getting exercise equipment, a slot in group classes, a lap in the pool, and a shower. By February 1, many of the "posers" have given up on the get-in-shape-and-lose-ten-pounds resolution and have fallen back into their old habits. This is when those committed to a consistent fitness routine resume coming to the gym.
What is a revolution? In all fairness, New Years is a great time to make resolutions. But wouldn't creating sustainable change, a.k.a a "revolution," be more productive? To distinguish, according to Dictionary.com, a resolution is a "course of action that is decided on or determined." True, a decision is made, but not necessarily a commitment to act. I may decide to leave the office at 6:00 pm every night, but does that motivate me enough to do it? On the other hand, a revolution is "a radical or pervasive change". Now that sounds more like what those year-end promises should deliver. It's not just about making a pledge, but committing to change the way we think and act.
Plain and simple, creating revolutionary change requires an assessment, commitment, and action. Accordingly, it is a cyclical process intended to keep the momentum going.
So let's briefly address these:
Assessment - Before deciding what the goal is, you must first know what needs to change and why. The revolution begins with exploring where you are now, and where you want to be. Using our example above, "I work late a lot so my family misses me and I want to spend more time with my children before they go to bed." Keep in mind that if your assessment is thorough, you are more likely to shift your beliefs and change your behavior.
Commitment - Basically, create a realistic and stimulating plan that you can stick to. First, you must have energy around the desired results. No energy, no change. Next you need to prepare for obstacles, set milestones and targets, identify and reward success. "I will commit to leaving the office at 6:00 pm at least three nights a week (because I know 5 nights will be unrealistic, and I need to leave room for urgent situations). We will go out for a nice dinner every month I meet my commitment."
Action - Getting down to, and staying in new action requires conscious, consistent practice and time. As you may remember from Steven Covey, it takes 21 days to create a habit. Yet even after you've mastered the new level of performance, be prepared for setbacks. And again, celebrate accomplishments in a productive way. So don't reward new behaviors with old behaviors, as in giving yourself more time in the office next week because you met your goals this week.
In the cycle, the action continues back around to assessment again. Have you achieved your goal? What do you attribute that success or failure to? Now what?
Perhaps the first and only resolution you should make this coming year is a commitment to yourself for attainable and sustainable improvement. In this holiday time of giving and receiving, it is truly the best gift you can give yourself, and others. So what will be your New Years Revolutions?
Coaching is a great way to inspire lasting change. It is also a unique and wonderful gift to give yourself or those around you. To learn more, call Kim at 703-821-8518 or email at kim@mycoachinmotion.com.
The Active Pursuit. . .
Turn those resolutions into revolutions. These questions will help you on this journey:
 Assess:
What do I desire?
What is getting in the way?
What will success look like?
Commit:
What shifts will I need to make in my beliefs, routines, and behaviors?
What will be my obstacles?
What can I realistically commit to doing?
Act:
What specific actions must I stop, start, or continue doing to achieve this?
What are my support systems and structures?
What will I do if I get off-track?
How will I track my progress?
. . .of Excellence
What we're raving about now . . .
 Into the Wild (1996) by Jon Krakauer (2007 movie directed by Sean Penn)
The story of Chris McCandless's journey after college is both sad and inspiring. His detachment from civilization unnerves me, but his passion to pursue his dream and stay on track is admirable. No matter what his travels brought, he had one goal- going to Alaska to walk into the wild. His focus, patience, and determination pursuing his goal and living his dream are heart-felt and astonishing.
 The Ultimate Question by Fred Reichheld
"Would you refer us to your friend?" is all you need to ask. It is a simple metric to gauge your customer loyalty called the NPS (Net Promoter Score). The concept makes a strong correlation between increasing your NPS and increasing your profitability. Reichheld makes a valuable distinction between good profits (customers that are wowed by your product or services) and bad profits (customers that are not really fans).
Ideas in Motion
Did you know that the average American will gain 2 - 5 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day? What can you do to beat the odds?
"Make sure you visualize what you really want, not what someone else wants for you."
-Jerry Gillies
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