In relationships at work or at home, remember that assumptions remain in your own mind.  Explicit requests are spoken or written in detail. And most people will rise to the occasion if you give them the requirements and expectations.  

Inevitably, things pile up, and I end up not keeping a commitment. When this happens, I notice a loss of personal power and a reduction in my happiness and self-expression.  Basically, I feel bad for not keeping my word.  The biggest trap here is that all the attention is on myself.  I can hear my inner critic judging and evaluating myself for not being good enough.

Serving the Customer also means doing the right thing. This is a review of a Future Frontiers meeting with Conscious Capitalist John Mackey and the premise of doing the right thing in business as a service to the customer.

Needing to speak up at work? Here are some tips:

1. Start with your commitment to the person, the department, and to the outcome of the conversation, with an intention to forward the action.

2. State the facts of the situation. Separate the facts from your interpretation. 

3. Share the impact the situation or their behavior has had on you. Frame what you have to say from your own perspective and point-of-view.  

4. Be authentic and believe it or not, you can’t lose if you speak straight from the heart. It helps them to listen generously, especially if they have had an unintended impact on you. 

5. Leave the conversation with a resolution. It may not be fully resolved, just start somewhere and go from there. You may have to make a request or two and possibly negotiate some new promises between each other.  Focus on finding a solution, not who is at fault.

It’s hard to catch your own errors. This can be something as trivial as transposing the letters in “the” to “hte,” or something as significant as omitting the core explanation of your article.

Our brain generalizes words & letters as we re-read our work in favor of creating sentences and meaning, and this is where a partner is crucial to double check your work

Ask yourself, “Where am I playing small?  Where am I not letting my own light shine?” Take a look at your own judgments and limitations that get in the way of generously listening to the people you interact with the most every day. Become aware of your impact. Take accountability for how you perceive. Be the example of what you want to see.

There are growing movements seen in tech, with designers, and leadership that are making consciousness a welcome “buzzword”. We are in an upswing where people are mindfully using technology, mindfulness practices, meditation, and experiences to not only expand their mind and well-being, but to also nurture their business.

Find a way to take personal responsibility, to be innovative, assertive, and take initiative in creating the culture that you actually want

A conversation for action is what is required in order to execute on the strategy. It is the simplest, and yet, often the most difficult for teams to stay on point to address WHO, WHAT, BY-WHEN. It involves two things:

Requests and Promises

I’ve noticed that when I:

1. Let go of control

2. Allow others to figure it out

3. Give others a chance to speak up

4. And listen generously

…I am then BEING my best as a leader. It’s no longer about me, about my personality or leadership characteristics, my new focus is on those I care about impacting: our clients, our team, our family and friends.