Debra Kasowski

EPISODE 67 – Raise the Bar of Excellence

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“If we don’t fight for what we ‘stand for’ with our passionate words and honest actions, do we really ‘stand’ for anything?”
―Tiffany Madison, Black and White

It is not until you start working with others that you realize that not everyone has the same work ethic as you do. Sometimes I hear people complaining and wishing that they had more in life yet they’re not willing to examine the obvious. It is easy to see what’s outside of us versus looking inside. What if you did something different? What would your life really look like? Remember you’re in charge – when did you hand over the keys or the reins on how you choose to live your life?

Are you settling for what you know you deserve? Deep down you might even question your worth the time. Don’t be fooled. You are worth much more than money could buy. You deserve everything that life has to offer. The trouble is too many people are waiting for someone to rescue them or hand them a Silver Platter instead of putting in the work required to get it. What gets you frustrated? What are you not willing to tolerate anymore? What is your repeating you that you wish you could change?

Don’t worry what others think – what do you think? People will pass their own fear passed you in hoping you won’t take this risk that they decided not to take. They are looking for the comfort that someone else won’t stretch like them. Will you be satisfied with your choice to not go after what you want?

No one’s going to hand it to you and the Prince Charming you’re looking for to rescue you IS actually you. It’s time for you to do something different in order to get different results. It is time to shift your mindset and raise your own bar of excellence. You are probably thinking – how do I raise the bar?

Expect more from yourself.  It is so easy to pick out what others are doing wrong or how they are not working hard enough. It is important to focus on ourselves. When you develop and focus on mastering the different facets of your life, you can inspire and motivate others to do the same and theirs. Stop getting caught up in the drama of what everyone else is doing. When you think of what you’re not willing to tolerate any longer or where you are frustrated with yourself, you can start making a change. It all starts with self-awareness and really paying attention to the choices that you’re making and checking in to see if there aligning with your ultimate goal.

Think more about what you believe. Whatever you believe to be true is your reality. What happens if your thought is wrong? You may make the wrong choice or make choices that will sabotage your success. I’ve had some of my coaching clients share some of their big audacious dreams only to say, “I don’t know if it’s possible all.” It is only once we work through those self-limiting beliefs that they are amazed by what they are capable of accomplishing. I think many of us forget that we’re all works in progress.  If you doubt your capability, shift your thinking to “I am in the progress of…”  not only is it believable, it is happening.

Consider dropping the words “try” and “can’t” from your vocabulary. These words are disempowering. You can’t try to do something. You either do or you don’t – it is as simple as that. When you say you can’t you are saying that it’s not possible. It is often said before you even put in some effort but it may not have been 100% effort. You can do this. Focus on what you can do. Find yourself a mentor or someone who has been where you want to be or hire a coach that will help you shift your perspective and challenge some of the assumptions that you’re making.

Strategize more. People plan their vacations more than they plan to execute their goals. Take time to create a specific action plan to achieve what you know you want to achieve. You might say I don’t know what to put in the plan. Here are some questions to help you.

  • How do you want to show up in the world?
  • What qualities do you believe that you need to have in order to reach your goals?
  • What knowledge skills and abilities do you need to possess to get there?
  • To get to a new level requires strategic action, what actions do you know you need to take?

Map out the milestones and celebrate those successes along the way and evaluate whether you’re on or off track. There is no perfect time adjust your course as you go.

What is the one step you need to take that you know will be the game changer toward achieving your goals?

We would love to have you subscribed to the Success Secrets newsletter on my website at www.debrakasowski.com where you’re going to get us free MP3 download 10 Surefire Strategies to Power Up Your Productivity and Performance. 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 mp3 download today! www.debrakasowski.com

Time: 08:37 min

Keywords: goals, achievement, raise the bar, expect more of yourself, examine your beliefs, self-doubt, action plan, strategy, achievement, execution, find a mentor, hire a coach

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

9 Great Reasons to Hire a Coach

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The world of coaching is a growing profession. You can hire a coach for many different areas of your life. Olympic athletes have a coach. Businesses hire business coaches to build their leadership team. Life coaches can help you through life’s challenging lessons or transitions. Career coaches can help support you in discovering a new career or changing your existing one. Coaches help you see challenges from a different perspective and see situations from a more forward thinking position.

Coaches provide a safe confidential space for you be share your challenges or barriers holding you back from the outcome you desire. They ask the right questions to help you get unstuck and move forward to get the results you want. Coaching is about working in partnership helping individuals work toward a common goal.

Courtesy of Posterize/freedigitalphotos.com
Courtesy of Posterize/freedigitalphotos.com

Coaches help you to:

  • acknowledge your successes
  • encourage action steps
  • hold you accountable for following through on what you say you are going to do
  • brainstorm strategies to move through challenges
  • improve performance and productivity
  • develop clarity when assessing decision making and direction
  • set clear goals and achieving them faster and for effectively
  • move ahead professionally
  • create balance and improve well-being
  • increase your income

The coaching experience is about gaining awareness about what your priorities are, creating strategies to create a life or business you want, and knowing how and when to shift gear when you get off track. The action comes from you. Coaches do not have done what you are planning to do to support you.

Coaches ask the right questions based on what you share that you want to discuss. Coaching is an investment but the return on investment can be infinite and overflow into many other areas in your life. My experience with coaching was positive. I learned to get clear about what I want, set boundaries, speak up for myself, or as Sheryl Sandberg would say, ‘Lean In to the Table” and let my voice be heard. You would be surprised how coaching sparks the motivation to go after what you want. Hiring a coach has been of my best investments in myself and my business.

What gets me is that there is so much support to be had from coaches but not everyone takes advantage of the opportunity to have someone there to help take them to the next level of reaching their goals.

What have you gained from a coaching experience?