Debra Kasowski

EPISODE 134 – Scheduling Your Priorities

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“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” – Stephen Covey

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Your priorities are determined by what’s most important to you. People often have a long list of things to do but they do not always stop and prioritize what they need to get done. Why are you doing what you are doing? Is what you are doing getting yourself closer to achieving your goals? If not, you will want to start thinking about why you are doing what you are doing and looking at the list and determining what your priorities are. Many people are reacting to life as it comes. Sometimes dodging hazards and getting overwhelmed by all there is to do. Is that you?

Start by taking a BIG breath. Let’s disrupt any negative thinking and get you back on course. When people get caught up in negative thinking it is hard for them to think beyond tomorrow let alone the next 7 days.

Stop reacting and organizing chaos. Envision what you want the end result to look like. See it. Describe it. Make a list of all the things you need to get done. Get it out of your head and onto paper. Group the list based on what NEEDS to get DONE within the next 24-48 hours, 7 days, 2 weeks, 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days. Is there anything on the list you can delegate? You become responsive when you begin with managing yourself and what you need.

Focus on intentional planning. Now focus on the planning for the next 24-48 hours and block time in your calendar to tend to that. You can then look at the next 7 days. Again, you will block things into your calendar! And so on. When you start being intentional with what you need to get done, you will become more productive and your performance will soar.

Success comes from when preparation and planning meet opportunity. Preparation is key in executing the plan. What do you need to prepare for your plans to come together? Is there anyone you need to contact? What resources will you need? How much time do you need to allocate to prepare, plan, implement, and re-evaluate or course correct?

Hold yourself accountable. At the end of each day, review what got done and what did not get done. Don’t beat yourself up. Were you specific about what needed to get done? Were you realistic with the time frame and resources? Do you need to ask for help or carry something over to tomorrow?

Remind yourself what will happen if you don’t get it done. In most cases, no one will not die or go to jail. There may be a delay in getting the results you want. What is your worst-case scenario? What are the consequences of not achieving what you want to get done? Imagine that you did not take out the trash. Things would get piled up and start stinking! What would your pile of things you need to accomplish look like? Would it cause a sour picture?

You are in charge of your results!!! Why are your results important to you? What are you going to do about them? Set your priorities and stick to them. You will have far fewer things to dodge in the process because you are planning with intention.

“Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.”― Stephen R. Covey

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We would love to have you subscribe to the Success Secrets newsletter on my website at www.debrakasowski.com where you’re going to get my just release FREE e-book about the 21 Habits High Achievers Kick to Achieve Success. I would love to hear about this podcast has impacted your life. E-mail me at Debra@DebraKasowski.com. Thank you for listening to The Millionaire Woman Show where we talk about leadership, business, and human potential to help you live rich from the inside out. Subscribe to The Millionaire Woman Show. Share it with Your Friends. Give us a 5-star rating!

DEBRA KASOWSKI, BScN CEC is an award-winning best-selling author, transformational speaker, blogger, and Certified Executive Coach. She has a heart of a teacher and is certified in Appreciative Inquiry and Emotional Intelligence. Her writing has been published in a variety of print and online magazines. Debra Kasowski International helps executives, entrepreneurs, and organizations boost their productivity, performance, and profits. It all starts with people and passion. Sign up the Success Secrets Newsletter and get your free e-book download today! www.debrakasowski.com

Why Aren’t There More Goal Diggers in the World?

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“You were born to win, but to be a winner you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win.” ― Zig Ziglar

Everyone has a goal or dream. The goal is something that you want to accomplish or do, become, or have. The goal is an intention. Intentions are wonderful but without a plan of action they’re meaningless. We often hear people talk about some of their goals and dreams or organizational strategies however not everyone takes the time to plan and prepare to execute and make things happen.

Excuses, objections, and reasons for not pursuing goals are numerous.

Time Some people will tell you that they don’t have enough time. We all have the same 24 hours in a day it is how we allocate that time. I remember when I decided to go after my graduate certificate in executive coaching that I questioned the amount of time I had available. I knew I needed to block off every Wednesday from 5-7 p.m. that time was dedicated to online classroom and working with my team. I realized that what I had to drop off my children to their activities an hour before it the start time that I had time to sit and do my readings or go to the gym instead of visiting and sometimes getting drawn into gossip. It ended up that it was better that I walked away from those conversations and focused on what I was doing. At the end of the program, I realized that I had this extra time on my hands which I thought I didn’t have before. When you block or allot time to something and maintain that commitment you can get things done and your results will be because of the compound effect of your efforts.

Money   When discussing goals you will often hear people talk about how they don’t have enough money to invest in themselves. What I have observed is they have money for the daily cup of coffee or tea, lunches, the latest outfits, or vacation. Pay attention to what you spend on groceries and the gas your spending when you’re running errands. There may be ways where you can organize your lists and your errands so that there are ways to save you money. When you have a goal in mind sometimes you need to sacrifice what you want but you’re not willing to do so. Part of this resistance is that it requires you to change the way you do things. Many of the things that you currently do are due to habit. When you start becoming aware of where your money is coming and going, you start to recognize ways in which you can improve your situation and start putting money aside to goals.

Smarts and Resources There’ll also be those people who tell you that they don’t believe they’re smart enough or don’t have the resources available to go after their goal. It may be that someone has told him that the goal that they have is not reasonable. I believe if you know you need to do something with your whole heart that you will find a way to achieve it. The most successful people in the world don’t know everything but they know where to find the answers that is what makes them truly successful. They’re not afraid to ask for what they need or for help when necessary. That is where true smarts come from.

Where I see a lack is that people are not clear on what it is they want to do. They lack intention. Without intention, you can’t make a plan and prepare to take action. People are overwhelmed by the variety of choices that they don’t always stop and take inventory or truly assess where they are at in their lives. This is often referred to as the midlife crisis and it can occur at any time. For some people, they suddenly evaluate their life and realize that they’re not doing the things that they thought that they would be doing. They ask themselves, “Is this what I want?”

I want to encourage you to be a gold digger. Someone goes after what they say they want. When is the right time you ask? The right time is now. Don’t wait for someone to fulfill one of your dreams or goals. What you want is in your hands.

Goal diggers set goals. They think about what outcome or desired result that they want to achieve. They use this as a target. This part it helps improve their focus and provide direction. When they focus on this target they are better able to make decisions and take actions to move toward what they wish to achieve. When people set goals they actually deepen their commitment to what they say they want to do. I actually writing down your goals and breaking it down into smaller pieces and tracking the progress of your goal you will start seeing evidence of getting closer to your target and this will create a momentum and motivate you to work toward what you said you wanted to achieve. Goal diggers will sometimes declare their goal on social media or they’ll hire a coach or find an accountability partner. When you have someone to be accountable to, you are more likely to push yourself and achieve more. By tracking and checking your progress and paying attention to numbers you become more informed and make better decisions.

The reason why there are not more goal diggers in the world is because many are afraid to fail and some may not want to put in the effort. It is not just the destination is the journey that you take to get there that will be the most meaningful and fulfilling. Imagine how satisfying it will be when you reach your goals. If you’re not going to do it now, when will you do it? There is never a right time other than the present moment. Seize your goal digging opportunity.

DEBRA KASOWSKI, BScN CEC is an award-winning best-selling author, transformational speaker, blogger, and Certified Executive Coach. She has a heart of a teacher and is certified in Appreciative Inquiry and Emotional Intelligence. Debra is the host of The Millionaire Woman Show podcast focusing on leadership, business, and human potential. Her writing has been published in a variety of print and online magazines. Debra Kasowski International helps executives, entrepreneurs, and organizations boost their productivity, performance, and profits. It all starts with people and passion. Sign up the Success Secrets Newsletter and get your free mp3 download today! www.debrakasowski.com

 

7 Reasons Why You Should Hire a Coach

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14461375_lAre you ready for a change?

If you knew there was one action you could take that would accelerate your success, help you gain clarity and focus, and challenge your assumptions, would you do it? Athletes are not the only group of people hiring coaches. Hiring a coach is one of the pivotal actions you can take in achieving your goals. More and more individuals are working with coaches internally within an organization or externally so that they can get promoted, grow their business, and get unstuck where they may be sabotaging their own success.

 

Reasons why you should hire a coach:

1.  You are more likely to achieve your goals. When working with a coach, a coach will help you create an action plan and hold you accountable to what you say you will do. A coach does not do the work, you do. The belief is that everything you need is already inside of you – you need the coach to ask the right questions. You will develop greater clarity and become more focused on what you need to do to achieve the results you want. Let’s face it. Some people are intrinsically self motivated but most people will fall into patterns of procrastination or jump into the next best thing leaving plans or projects started and unfinished or worse – not started at all.

2.  A coach can offer a fresh unbiased perspective. Coaches often see what you cannot see because you are in the midst of your situation. Family, friends, and colleagues may have their best interest at heart and offer advice or share their concerns as they do not want you to fail. They may not have experienced the power of working with a coach and how asking questions can get you out of your own way when you default to old habits. They themselves may be holding themselves back by not taking a risk in their own development.

3. A coach can challenge you to stretch out of your comfort zone and help you see your blind spots. Coaches hold a safe place to challenge your assumptions and potentially challenge you to take actions that make you feel uncomfortable (only because it is against the grain of how you routinely do things). These challenges are to empower you  and for you to start to discover how much more potential you have inside of you – if you would only tap into it.

4.  You will achieve your goals faster than if you did it all by yourself. A coach will help guide you and help you decide what goals are most important to you. One or two sessions may work for some people but for others they may need up to 6 or more because they have new goals to work on or other issues surface that are sabotaging their success. One thing I have learned in being coached myself, you need to actively participate and trust the process.

5. Coaches can act as a sounding board or share in brainstorming new ideas. I have had clients say that it was great to have someone to share what was on their mind without any judgments and to share ideas that would not be taken for their own use and promotion.

6. Coaches create a confidential safe environment. You are able to get further ahead when you feel safe to be vulnerable enough to share your audacious goals or sticky situations that you need help with. By having this environment, you are able to dig deeper and come out stronger than ever before.24609569_l

7. Coaches can celebrate your successes with you. They know how hard you have been working on achieving your goals. A coach can help you stop in the moment to “really smell the roses” and pay attention to your successes. Too often, people reach a success and they are already off and running to the next action on the to-do list. Take time to stop and acknowledge your success; it builds momentum and keep you motivated.

Coaching can be a transformational experience if you are willing and open to the possibilities that lie in store. The future is bright!

If you are interested in working with a coach or learning more about what coaching can do for you, contact Debra

7 Secrets to Staying Motivated to Reach Your Goals

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Staying motivated can be tough. For some, the idea of setting goals can be simply overwhelming. The extra demand that would put them over the edge. Achieving your goals does not have to be a daunting task and it should not be.

Courtesy of Stuart Miles/freedigitalphotos.net
Courtesy of Stuart Miles/freedigitalphotos.net

There are challenges that arise. The challenges should not stop you as the sweetness of success alone should propel you. Think about what is really stopping you: not getting enough sleep, the belief that you need to look and talk a certain way, or even the money in your bank account. Look around you – there are people sleeping more or less hours than you and achieving goals. There are people of all shapes and sizes creating the life of their dreams. There are people with more or even less money than you but they are unstoppable. What is your excuse for not rising to the challenge?

The secrets are out! The solution is a lot easier than you think.

Here is what you can to to stay motivated:

1.  Make IT a game- FUN! Bust out of the routines. Break patterns of boredom. Create strategies or even make a game board so you can have a visual representation of your goal or journey. Make it real! Consider blogging about your journey or sharing it on social media platforms.

2.  Create a compelling reward. What would make the challenge worth your while. Is a day at the spa or a day of golfing and dinner at the clubhouse? What would it be for you?

3.  Celebrate the”small” successes. As you acknowledge all the small tasks or steps you are taking you create a momentum to fuel you through any challenges.

4.  Take at least one action step every day. When you know you are taking action every day you know that in one month you have taken 30 action steps toward your goals. You may have even gotten excited and accomplished more. Do you think you could take one action every day? They do not have to be monumental steps or huge leaps of faith (they can but do not have to) to make an impact. Imagine what could be accomplished in the here and now!

5.  Ink your goals. Write them down on a 3 x 5 business card and keep them in your sight to remind you of what you want to accomplish. This action will help you keep focused and can be used as a tool to make decisions based on your priorities.

6. Find an accountability partner. Achieving your goals can even be more fun when you are helping someone reach their goals at the same time you are striving to meet yours. They can call you on your excuses and challenge you to step up to the plate and push through your fears. They can be there when you need someone just to listen to you as your mindset plays tricks on you (and we know it will).

7. Be aware of your emotions. Do not let how you feel hold you back from the action you know you must take. Sometimes you need to do the things you need to do even when you do not want to. Think about the trash in your home. You may not want to take out the trash but if you did not…what would happen over several weeks? I do not recommend you experiment with this. The point being – you need to do what must be done even when you so not necessarily feel like it.

Motivation is the key to pushing through to success. It helps you  challenge assumptions and dispel any myths you may have been telling yourself. The journey itself is where the greatest excitement occurs. When focusing on accomplishing your goals, reaching the destination just seals the deal! Whatever you do – do not quit!

What do you do to stay motivated when trying to reach your goals? I would love to hear what you do! Share this post with others.