Tips & Insights for Top Performance

• 03Sep

  Just Do!

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Goal Setting, Performance & Productivity, Time Management No Comments

  There is no need to try. Just do.

  Feel what you feel without judgment or regret.  Those feelings connect you with the power of your authentic purpose.

  Use your head wisely to follow your heart faithfully.  There’s much that you can think, and yet even more that you can know.

  Let the experience of each moment come, and then let it go.  Rest assured that the goodness will stay with you always, because you love it so.

  Be now in spirit where you would most like to be. Imagine waves of pure joy as they carry you along.

  Somewhere within you, all is well, no matter when, no matter what. Feel the peace of knowing the beauty of who you truly are.

  Ralph Marston

   ………………………………………………………………….

  “There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.” 

  E.W. Wilcox

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: E. W. Wilcox, Just do, Ralph Marston

• 20Aug

  Book Review: Exploring Productivity – Ideas From Industry Professionals on Getting More Work Done in the Workplace

  Book Reviews, Business Coaching, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Work Environment No Comments

  The challenge of staying organized through busy workdays and life is a trial for even the best. There are TONS of books on organization strategies out there with many tips and tricks on how to master chaos and achieve a sense of order in your environment. The challenge is many are filled with concepts to adapt and are more philosophical with prescribed action versus a handbook with steps of HOW to get organized. I found this book, Exploring Productivity… , and like it for its “idiots guide” type approach, making it easy to pick and address an issue versus reading a whole book and feeling overwhelmed with evaluating how you might transform your whole system of operation (which if it gets overwhelming, you will not take any steps to change.) This is a great book to have on the self, easy to read and excellent to reference so that you can address and overcome whatever organizational challenge you may be having THIS week

  To order this book, click here.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer,  Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: organizational challenge, organized, productivity

• 13Aug

  Book Review: Clear Your Clutter With Feng Shui

  Book Reviews, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Personal Growth No Comments

  Your environment can either support your endeavors or drain your energy. One part of your environment is all of the “stuff” that is around you and this is the book, Clear Your Clutter With Feng Shui,  that will help you get a handle on that “stuff!” If you are a hoarder, this book will help you determine both why you like to have clutter around and how to deal with it. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to streamline their environment and free up energy for the more important aspects of life.

  To order this book, click here.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer,  Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: drain your energy, streamline, support your endeavors

• 06Aug

  Run to Win!

  Business Coaching, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Goal Setting, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth No Comments

  I love the visual image of a race.

  Runners ready at the start. BOOM! The gun goes off and they are off. They run neck to neck, eyes on the goal, the prize, the finish line! They are paced, deliberate, intense and driven. They focus on their body, their form, their game. They run with all their might, giving their best. They sprint over the finish line, winning a victory!

  In our businesses we often lack such intensity. We get up, start the day, decide to set a “target goal”, and plod along working to make it happen. Stop for a minute. Check your energy and evaluate how you are moving toward your goal. Are you running as if this were the Olympics or in gym class?

  To find a new wellspring of energy, conviction and drive, mentally see your “goal” as that Olympic finish line. You are preparing for the race
  

  1) How do you need to dress and prepare yourself physically for this race? In your business, if you are really running to win the prize, how do you need to show up each day? (well rested, dressed appropriately, armed with your accessories [i.e. name tag, business cards, samples, etc], mentally sharp with a supporting diet, etc.)
  

  2)What do you need to be thinking about and keeping as a mantra in your mind? In your work, what is important for you to review in your mind and keep at the forefront of your attention? Tip: Athletes do not usually chant “cross the line” “win”…. They are usually focused on their form, their breathing, things that they will do that will help them cross the line, not just the line. So what habits, routines and structures do you need to repeat to keep you in perfect form as you glide toward victory?

  3)How do you need to train? What are the exercises you will do that contribute to your success in the race?  In your business, what are the actions that are important elements of a WINNER’S make-up? (discipline, focus, organized, positive, prepared, etc.)
  

  4) How will you run the race?

  • Set milestones / targets. Is your eye is on the finish line, but it is on the milestone first (i.e. lap 1)
  • Know your “WHY”. What are you running for?  You have to be compelled and passionate about your reason to participate. 
  • Pace yourself. Write one to two things to do each week to move toward your goal.
  • Stay focused. Post your goal. Read it daily.
  • Think you can.  Be positive. Don’t cancel out all you are doing with negative or self-defeating self talk. Look for opportunities.

  Enjoy the race and run to win!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer,  Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: target goal, wellspring of energy

• 02Jul

  Book Review: Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway

  Book Reviews, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth No Comments

  This book, Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, has been around for a while and is still a good read. Jeffers says it well and in an “everyday” way. It is excellent to read for basic psychology of things that hold us back and how you can move forward in spite of it all. Jeffers helps to understand and label the fear and see it differently so we can move past it.

  As a past counselor, I know that phobias and anything that we start to avoid because of a fear or for whatever reason, are the things that start to create psychological baggage as we spend our energy avoiding things rather than working through them. Anything that you find yourself intentionally not doing that is “normal” for most of the world, stop and look at the fear and how it can be getting in your way (not talking about addictions and non-beneficial activities).

  This excellent read will serve you in both your personal and professional life.  We all have fears; they just show up at different levels and in different ways. Empower yourself to find your fears and move beyond them so you can perform at your peak potential!

  For you own copy of this book, click here.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer from Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: Do It Anyway, Feel the Fear

• 18Jun

  The Top 10 Ways to Stay in the Business Flow While on Vacation

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Executives & Leaders, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Time Management, Work/Life Synergy & Balance No Comments

  1. Set Boundaries  Decide when and where you will check voicemail and e-mail. Limit your time and frequency of checking to one time a day. You are on vacation!

  2. Business Cards  Take 100 business cards and pass out along the way. You never know who will be so thankful that your paths crossed. A great habit is to pass out 5 cards a day, and while you are on vacation let your journey take your card distribution into new territories!

  3. Cd’s and Tapes  There are so many motivational and educational tapes you can listen to as you drive, fly and relax. This is a great time to soak in new information or review old information. You are on vacation, so don’t act on it; just savor it!

  4. Books  Take one book and really get it read! Rather than packing five that you “hope to get to,” be serious about one and enjoy reading it.

  5. Ideas  Before you go, pick something you would like to discover or get new ideas about. Take the questions with you as conversation starters and gather information from those around you. Pick their brains. They have great ideas and you might be able to glean new resources and information that will be greatly applicable when you return.

  6. Perspective  Look at your business from a new perspective. Look at your business from the framework of relaxing on the beach, enjoying the breathtaking mountains, etc. What is possible here? What can you take from this view and apply to or bring into your business?

  7. Explore  Look at phone books, ads, posters and businesses around you. Check out the needs and saturation of your market. Is your vacation spot your next target area?

  8. Focus  Evaluate your goals and progress. Where have you been and what do you want? Revise your goals and set new ones. While you are away from the office it is a great time to do some longer “thinking” activities that you do not have time for when you are in the chaos and rush of normal schedules and business life!

  9. Journal  Spend some time just writing down and capturing your ideas. What are you learning and noticing? What do you want to do differently when you get back? Brainstorm something new. Write a top ten to keep your mind sharp. Writing is powerful. Even if you never look at the entry again, there is an amazing connection in the act of writing thoughts down and remembering them later!

  10. Keep Motivation Pieces  Look for an item (postcard, picture, souvenir, etc.) that is motivational to take back with you into your working day. Bring your trip and the inspiration from it back with you!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: business flow, information, motivational, perspective, vacation

• 11Jun

  Strategies for a Productive Summer (part 2)

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Goal Setting, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Time Management No Comments
  • Schedule “catch up” time. If you are able, allow a “phase in” plan that provides you with personal time in the office to go through email, mail, and other things that have accumulated while you were gone. Often, people come back to a full schedule with no time to “re-settle” which is why they work on vacation. Resist the urge to work while away. Instead, plan for the inevitable chaos that will be there when you return: block off part of a day when you first return to catch up.
  • Create a project plan. This season, if you will not be traveling and are left at the office while others are away, you may find yourself in the “summer lulls”. Before this slower season even hits, have a plan for what you want to accomplish during the down time. This is your “off season.” Use this time to do the projects that are important, but not urgent: this is the time for the projects that you just never seem to get to, such as updating your website, reading, taking personal development classes, etc. Know in advance how you will use this time so that you are prepared to dive into these projects once the slower season rolls in.
  • Take “time off” at home. Take a week off at home. Put aside all of those long term projects, household chores, and yard work. Spend a full week clearing up all of the tolerations that keep you frustrated and discouraged, such as fixing the printer that always prints crookedly, organizing your pots and pans, buying a calendar to organize your family, or moving the chair that you stub your toe on each morning. Plan one week where your focus is on streamlining, simplifying, and organizing your home and personal life so that during the rest of the year, you can charge forward!

  Remember to allow yourself a true rest, clear up the clutter before you go and have a plan for how you will handle coming back, productively use the slower season in the office, and tidy up loose ends at home. When you are active and intentional during this slower season, employing the strategies that we’ve discussed here today, you too will have a winning, successful year!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: maximize, productive, successful, summer, winning

• 04Jun

  Strategies for a Productive Summer (part 1)

  Effective Habits, Energy Management, Goal Setting, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth, Time Management No Comments

  In our busy and fast-paced world, summer (June – August) is commonly the time when kids are off from school, people travel, weddings and graduations occur, and family reunions take place. It’s a time when the frantic pace of work slows down a bit, simply because the people who are typically driving are taking a break. This puts you in the driver’s seat! This gives you a chance to take advantage of the downtime and better position yourself so that you can play full out when the pace picks back up in the fall.

  To assist you, I want to give you strategies on how to maximize this “season” when you or others (clients, co-workers, vendors, etc.) are away, so that you are prepared to charge for the rest of the year!

  • Rest. The concept of periodicity means that you allow your body a time to rest, re-engage, and recharge (or train) so that you achieve maximum energy and the results that you want during the periods that require you to push harder. If you continue at 150 mph 24 hours per day/7 days per week, you will burn out. More importantly, you will not get the results you want. So, plan time each summer for a period of rest. (For you workaholics out there, rest means no voicemail, no email, no clients, no “work mode”, no initiatives that are not wholly enjoyable. Turn off work 100% while on vacation! If you do, your ability to run full out when you return will be twice as great.)
  • Clean up. The days before you leave on vacation are a great time to make a game plan for yourself when you return. Your departure date is a deadline that’s not likely to move. Start by challenging yourself to sort the emails, do all of the follow-ups, and close the open loops before you leave. As you do this, make a list for when you return of what you will do next. If you want to be most productive, schedule what you will do when, so you can resume your working habits quickly when you return.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: maximize, productive, successful, summer, winning

• 28May

  Book Recommendation: Time Management for the Creative Person

  Book Reviews, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Time Management No Comments

  Your environment can either support your endeavors or drain your energy. One part of your environment is all of the “stuff” that is around you and this is the book that will help you get a handle on that “stuff!” If you are a hoarder, this book, Time Management for the Creative Person, will help you determine both why you like to have clutter around and how to deal with it. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to streamline their environment and free up energy for the more important aspects of life.

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: creative person, Time Management

• 14May

  Book Recommendation: Now, Discover Your Strengths

  Book Reviews, Effective Habits, Energy Management, Performance & Productivity, Personal Growth No Comments

  In their new book, Now, Discover Your Strengths, authors Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton suggest that we tend to focus on what needs to be “fixed” with ourselves. Then, they demonstrate how fluid and successful life is when we set aside our shortcomings and truly leverage our own strengths. The book illustrates how knowing your personal strengths, and recognizing the strengths of those around you, can help you build a dynamic and successful organization, network, or team.

  An even bigger BONUS is that you get a personal code for an online survey that identifies YOUR “top five inborn talents”! This benefit is worth every penny you spend on the book! Identifying your top five strengths will change the way you look at life. This assessment is unique from the many other assessments out there (i.e. Myers-Briggs, DISC, etc.). With the “strengths” information in hand, you will be able to apply the theories presented in the book on a day-to-day basis.

  I HIGHLY recommend this book: it is a refreshing concept that moves you forward by focusing on the positive and teaching you how to maximize your full potential!

  Christy Geiger, Executive Business Coach & Trainer, Minneapolis, MN

  Tags: maximize your full potential, personal strengths, Strengths, successful life, talents

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