The Grass Is Greenest Here
Itâs wise to observe ourselves just as we observe others. This is how we build self-awareness and executive presence. But when we insert judgment into the equation the sum ends up in the red. Judgment negates everything we work for. Many of my clients start out riddled with self-doubt and an inner critic that is difficult to harness. If that is you, observe the feeling and tell yourself, âOh, thatâs just me doubting myself,â as opposed to judging yourself for feeling that way. We can let go of that which we own. That which we turn away from chases us down forever.Â
Observe for the purpose of gathering information. Â
Observe as if you are watching yourself or another on TV.Â
Observe for the sheer purpose of allowing the truth of the situation to be evident without any editorial judgment.Â
Someone or something may be upsetting you. Donât attach an assumption to it or a story that is biased.Â
Water the grass where you are today and stand back and watch it grow.
- If you want an acti ...
Being Alone
Our natural state is to be connected to others - not separate and detached. This is not to negate the fact that we all need alone time to recharge our energy. When we repeatedly withdraw and are alone we arenât fulfilled. It takes courage and humility to put down our guard. It takes self-acceptance, vulnerability and abandonment of perfectionism to create an open mindset of kindness.
Leaders who are real are relatable. Leaders with executive presence arenât artificial. Their presence isnât a facade. They have feelings just like everyone else. They just know how not to allow emotion to cloud their judgment and affect their behavior. They notice the emotion - doubt, anger, fear, sadness - realize it is likely an assumption and let it go before it takes over. Negative assumptions sabotage our connection with others and ourselves.
As humans we have the ability to mindfully observe our thoughts, situations and emotions from a third party perspective so that we may make a conscious choice ...
Stop Those Thoughts
You are so much more than your than your thoughts. Who would you be without the head trash that came from life messages you adopted as truths? These thoughts are only assumptions triggered by a needy ego. Needy egos have terrible executive presence.Â
- Tell your ego youâve got this, and that it can take a rest from trying to protect you out of fear of rejection. Youâre open and ready. Â
- Notice that there are other people who might be feeling the same thing right now.Â
- Reach out and give them assurance that you think they are awesome. Â
- Remind yourself that youâre awesome too. Â
- Take a long mindful walk with deep breaths and awareness of your surroundings.Â
- Make time to eat something healthy. You matter. Â
- Sleep. Prepare for sleep without using electronic devices for three hours before bed. Read something soothing and peaceful before you fall asleep or listen to a guided meditation for sleep.Â
- Repeat.Â
If you want more career tips hereâs a link to...
I Am Struggling
I am struggling with what weâve been seeing in the world - the blatant lack of respect for fellow human beings. Iâve read everything I can on it, talked with close friends, ordered books that I think will help make sense of it all. It wasnât until I stopped âseekingâ answers and turned inward that I found what I was looking for.Â
I got out my watercolors, sat down on my front porch and painted a favorite scene of Hilton Head Island from a photo I had taken  recently. In the solace of this mindful activity clarity began to emerge.
The world is full of scarred souls - souls who donât know how to love because theyâve never been loved or feel they donât deserve love. Love is the very basic of all emotions. Everything emanates from there. So if we canât love, we canât connect, be open, grow, be happy, feel liked, love others etc. When we are void of fulfilling emotions and don't turn inward to work on what needs to be resolved, we notice an outside nagging sense that we aren't worthy and...
You Get It First - Just Released my FREE Report on Leading Through the Uncertainty of COVID-19
I'm so excited to have finished this report for my clients and my newsletter list. So many of you have told me the struggles you are dealing with in this pandemic. I've been working for weeks on tactics and strategies you can apply right now to lower anxiety and build peace, relationships and effectiveness for yourself, your team and your family.Â
FREE Report:Â Leading Through the Uncertainty of COVID-19
> Avoid the most common mistakes leaders make in a crisis.
> Trade the treadmill to nowhere for a revered strategy.Â
> Build influence dynamics that make your team want to succeed regardless of where their office is.
> Execute a plan that anticipates opportunities in spite of adversity.Â
Wishing you peace and effectiveness without worry today. Enjoy my free report on Leading Through the Uncertainty of COVID-19.
Your coach,
Mary LeeÂ
For more FREE Career Resources go to >>> www.MaryLeeGannon.comÂ
P.S. Feel free to forward this email to someone who could benefit from it. We are...
Four Things You Can't Get Back
We all have regrets. Itâs healthy to reflect on what weâd do differently. I certainly regret some things Iâve said and done as I was figuring out the art and science of parenting. Iâm still figuring it out and my children are in their twenties and thirties.đ I regret how self doubt showed up in my behavior at work early in my career. I overreacted, withdrew and often blamed myself far more than was helpful. Â
Corporations today value, promote and hire for self-awareness because it makes the employee coachable. The more self aware we become the more we can release assumptions that hold us back before we adopt them as mantras. âHeâs never going to respect my work.â âIâm always the one left out.â âEvery time I try harder the same thing ends up happening.âÂ
Notice the thread. âNever...â âAlways...â âEvery...â Absolutes are deadly to progress. If you hear yourself saying or thinking in these terms youâre victimizing yourself, grasping for perfection as you lean out from humility, and boxi...
COVID-19 and Your Staff Meetings
I work in a hospital setting where everyone is on site and the COVID-19 crisis has people worried. This week at my staff meeting in addition to insuring good social distance I opened it with, âThis is a difficult time. Let's just stop for a minute and share how weâre feeling about whatâs going on with us right now.â That moment of reflection allowed everyone to step back, take a breath and exhale all of the emotional churn that had built up. Â
In this safe space I witnessed a human sigh of authenticity. There were tears. There was fear. There was frustration. And after all of the emotions were out, shared, and discussed there was compassion. People offered to help each other, solutions to personal concerns and shared meaning. We saw each other instead of just ourselves. Compassion was king.
What was even more amazing is that then we were able to get some innovative work done with total focus on a crisis management plan and how weâd work together on our projects remotely if that were ...
How to Deal with Anger from Your Divorce
I spent a lot of years angry. Very angry. I was in a neglectful and abusive marriage as a stay-at-home mother of four children under seven-years-old. On the outside it looked like we were living the country club life while in reality my life was unpalatable. Every day I felt as if a noose around my neck was choking my ability to breathe. Finally, I filed for divorce as a leap of faith and was completely unprepared for the avalanche to come.Â
Within six months of filing for divorce my husband placed his businesses into bankruptcy on loans I had cosigned. He canceled his childrenâs and my health insurance but not his own. Our home which was nearly paid off and in the most affluent suburb of town went up for Sheriffâs Sale whereby 100% of the proceeds went to offset his business debt. The bank repossessed my minivan, not his car. And I had to chase him through the courts for a child support and alimony award at its highest of $269 a week â which he appealed. The children and I were homel...
This Happened Sunday
Two nights ago I didnât recognize myself. I got home from a wonderful weekend at the beach to find that all the packages that had been delivered were left in the rain in my driveway instead of on the porch. Many of my Christmas card envelopes had gotten stuck together from the moisture and I had been shorted 25 of them.
As I sat there putting labels on envelopes and trying to pry apart envelopes without ruining them I heard myself say, âI hate doing this. I donât even know why I send Christmas cardsâ followed by a few words I canât even write down. Â
Now, this is not me. I think all year about the photos on my Christmas cards. Itâs my way of sharing a joyous hello. I love opening the cards from friends. Â
Finally, my husband had to tell me, âOK, thatâs enough nowâ to shake me awake from my funk.Â
Perfection. Holidays inspire perfection. And that inspires expectations. And that inspires unmet expectations. And that inspires let-down and stress. We get these preconceived notions in o...
Get Unstuck
You know that head trash that keeps you up at night - Iâll never find the right job - Iâm getting old - He doesnât like me - I am stressed from work - She doesnât love me - Iâm not smart enough? Self-inquiry questions start the journey to clear a path through mind clutter for clarity:Â
Who am I?
What do I want?
What is my purpose?
How can I serve?
What am I grateful for?
This self-inquiry brings awareness of what is true to you - the open soul, free of assumptions and expectations.Â
You are not your thoughts, experiences, sensations. You are the observer of them - free of them whether positive or negative.Â
Donât fake positive thinking. That is artificial. Youâve undoubtedly seen people trying too hard to be positive. âI can handle this. It will be fine,â when they really feel exhausted and defeated. Pretending only makes you more stressed. Admit and be curious about how you feel without attaching any future or judgement to it. âThis is what itâs like to feel anxious. I wonder ...