Good Grief: What is it you need?

Dan Levy is so good. I recently watched Good Grief on Netflix and loved it. Written and directed by Levy (he played David Rose on Schitt's Creek), he also stars in it.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Levy was asked what he does for self-care. “I spend a lot of time with friends. When you're single and you're 40 and you live alone, friends are such a great support system.”

Oh Dan, I hear ya!

When I was 40 I, too, was single, lived alone, and spent a lot of time with friends. My circumstances have changed, but his words resonate. Friends are the butter to my popcorn, I wouldn't be the same without them.

Knowing where to find support is as important as knowing how to use it, which brings me to my question this week,“What kind of support do you need?” 

Whether it's a personal intention or a professional target, knowing what support you have when setting a goal can be what makes the difference. What does your support look like?

Is it a confidence boost you're after or do you need to feel challenged? Perhaps it's accountability. Or maybe it's not a person you need, just some space and time to think clearly. You tell me. There are no wrong answers.

As your coach, I do what I can to support you. 

I also help identify your unique support systems – the people, places and things available to you that help elevate your performance in your career and in your personal life, and keep you moving forward. 

From one friend to another, let's do this! Are you ready to get started?

What Is The Least You Can Do?

“If the minimum weren't good enough, it wouldn't be the minimum”  is not a phrase I'll be using in future marketing materials, but it might be something I say to myself today.

As February chugs along, I'm wondering how many of you have maintained the level of enthusiasm with which you greeted the new year. Did you make a resolution? How is that going?

Years ago, I resolved to become a “morning person”. I didn't keep that resolution for reasons I can explain another day, maybe in a newsletter about procrastination.

But today I want to talk about the small wins. Whether you sprint across the finish line or you walk, you still competed and that's worth something.

Sticking to new routines or developing new habits is a challenge, and it can feel discouraging when the anticipated changes come slowly.

As your coach, I can help you measure and see your progress, even when it comes over time in fits and spurts. Even when it feels like you are making no progress at all. 

It's not a pep talk I'm proposing, it's real accountability, or as the writer Anne Lamott puts it, “benevolent pressure” to help move you forward.

So ask yourself this question, “What is one small action I can take?” 

Is it a phone call? A networking appointment? A walk in the fresh air, or 35 burpees on your coffee break? You decide. 

It doesn't have to be a leap – saving up the leap jokes for the 29th, so get ready – it just has to be one small step you take in service of your larger goal. That's it. It may be the minimum, but it counts as progress.

Good luck with that, whatever it is, I'm pulling for you.