Despite the widespread acknowledgment of mentorship's benefits, many individuals face a daunting challenge: finding a suitable mentor. Mentorship is a tricky road because while some programs will "match" you with a mentor, the mentee and mentor must connect on a deeper level to get the whole experience. 

Mentorship requires dedication on both sides but is not always a reciprocal relationship. One person gives more and is needed more, and not always at opportune times for the giver. Now, the mentor does get a reward; they experience a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction through the dopamine boosts derived from feeling needed, offering valuable advice, and the positive emotions associated with contributing to others' growth and well-being.

As you pursue a mentor, remember what you ask of this person. They need to be able to make the time for you, be honest and willing to provide difficult feedback and push you out of your comfort zone into the space where growth happens....

It is starting to happen, the question, "Do you have a New Year's Resolution?" Whether it is just small talk or curiosity, it is a question you can expect to get at least once this time of year. But before you blow off the idea of a New Year's Resolution, let's discuss why and how you should do it.

Maybe you have heard these statistics before, but only 3% of people set goals, yet setting goals makes you 42% more likely to achieve goals. So, if you want something different for yourself in the new year, just knowing the math proves setting goals is a good idea.

So, why do you hesitate to do it? Could it be the fear of failure? Having to admit that you have already failed by mid-January, breaking your New Year's Resolution is demoralizing.

Failure, or admitting to ourselves that something might be impossible, can be scary. Even worse, when we attach the goal to our identity, if we fail, then we, too, become a failure. It's essential to remember that the outcomes do not define...

Stepping into her new role, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of unease.

Working alongside Ph.D.s was uncharted territory for her. Before a single word was exchanged, she filled her mind with doubts. What if they asked her questions she couldn't answer? What if they ignored her completely? The idea of being approached by a team of Ph.D.s, eager to hear her thoughts, was a scenario she never could have fathomed in a different industry.

You see, she worked for the same company for over 25 years.

She held several jobs and moved up, down, and sideways as the company expanded and contracted.

She loved the job until she didn't, yet she still stayed too long.

One day, the fear of staying finally overcame the fear of going.

Once she did the work, she had opportunities she could not have imagined previously.

It was beyond her wildest dreams a year ago; now, it is her life.

What dreams have you not yet dreamed?

Ready to explore what a promotion or job move would mean to your future? Let's...

Everyone is feeling the pressure of inflation, including your company, making it even more critical that you are the leader that gets ahead of the conversation. Depending on when your fiscal year ends, your company may be getting close to budgeting season. This means you need to be planning ahead. If you plan to ask for a raise, a promotion or have an idea for a new role that is literally "built for you" or someone on your team, you need to start developing your strategy to present the case for yourself and the high performers on your team.

The bottom line is there will be a pool of money - some companies divide it equally among every team member. Others divvy it out according to performance. Many hold a portion of the "raise pool" aside to care for those below the range or at risk. 

Keeping the leadership team up to date with employee performance, risks, and expectations ensures you and your team are part of the conversation once the budget is in place and they start meeting...

Do you feel like you are spinning wheels, rolling the dice, and moving backward as much as forward at work? When did work become more complicated than a board game, and what can you do about it? First, identify the issues. For example, which of these board games sounds most like what is happening at work?

TROUBLE: a race around the board.

The goal: move multiple game pieces across the finish line.

Do you feel like you are trying to move so many projects, people, and ideas across the finish line, spreading your attention so thin that you fear you are mediocre at a lot and great at nothing?

You can't move until you roll the die. 

Every move is a role of the dice, a risk you must take to move forward. And no matter how big you want to go, there is still a bubble over you - holding you back from and influencing the outcome.

The only way to win is to knock others back.

No collaboration here; land in the same space, and you send your opponent back to the beginning. There...

Do you know what this is? Don't answer - it will date you!

For those unfamiliar, the Rolodex was once a coveted tool for any good executive. Early in my carer, it was fun to watch a leader who had been asked a question reach for the Rolodex on their desk, give it a spin, and whip a card out with a name and number like they were the only person in the world with the critical information to contact this person! 

Gone are the days of the Rolodex, but the ability quickly locate a name and phone number is still critical to a successful career. I once heard an executive say, you are only as strong as your network, a philosophy I have wholeheartedly subscribed to my entire career! You cannot do it alone. 

While technology has replaced the Rolodex, it is still critical to understand the five groups of leaders who will impact your career (and vice versa) and why you need to have the ability to locate their information and connect in a meaningful way to support their journey....

You've decided you need a coach. Congratulations! This is a major step in taking control of your career and charting a new course for success. But now comes the hard part: how do you choose the right coach? With so many options out there, it can be tough to know where to start.

Here's a helpful guide to finding the coach who's right for you. Look for someone who is competent (credentials and experience), compatible (chemistry), and committed (to your success and to helping you make lasting changes). These are the three C's of choosing a coach.

1. Credentials and Experience
The first thing you'll want to look for in a coach is credentials and experience. What kind of training and experience does this person have? Do they have any relevant certifications? What is their coaching philosophy?

2. Chemistry
It's also important to find a coach with whom you have good chemistry. This is someone you'll be working with closely, so it's important that you feel comfortable with them and that you...

Have you ever heard that your NETWORK is your NET WORTH?

So why do we resist networking? It moves so many out of our comfort zone in different ways, and that's okay. But what if you are overthinking it?

What is keeping you from networking, and what story do you need to tell yourself to get started?

Networking is about BEGINNING, BELIEVING, BUILDING, and LEVERAGING.

BEGINNING
We must network. That is all they tell you in the BEGINNING. Employers spend time setting expectations and training employees, but very few explain why networking is essential, and even fewer model networking or provide successful strategies. Without mentorship, it can feel like an awkward dance of reaching out and struggling to find your way through a conversation without a clearly defined outcome.

BELIEVING
When prioritizing so many things in your career, it is hard to see the long-term benefit of taking time for something that does not have an immediate ROI. However, for success, you need to believe...

Something missing in your career? Feeling stagnant? Need a reboot?

Find your opposite.

So often, we look at our peers and colleagues as our competition, but what if they are there to compliment our style, teach us and learn from us throughout our career journey? Think about it; we become stuck, and instead of looking for new answers, we start to fear uncertainty, which spirals into insecurity. It stalls us out and moves into negative emotions, self-talk, and resistance.

We naturally like to work with people who think and act like us. They are easier to collaborate with, not to mention easier to manage. At work, we know we should collaborate. Still, in reality, we often need to move to consensus quickly to meet the business's demands, robbing us of the mind-expanding exercises we need to facilitate growth.

But what if we found a partner that didn't think like us? When we engage with them, we will begin to expect the unexpected, reducing the emotional reaction (the amygdala...

Who has more demands? You or your employer? If your employer struggles to meet your needs, this is for you.

When it comes to your career, do you struggle to balance your responsibility to yourself and the organization? I talk a lot about this with my clients. The word they often use is GUILT. Many times we have to go back to the beginning of this relationship to remember how it started. 

You and your employer made a mutual agreement. You accepted your employer's offer, and they committed to pay you to perform a job. It was business. 

The longer you are there, the more invested you become in the relationships, the work, and the results. Then, as time passes, you expect more from each other. Your employer watches you build new skills and wants you to take on more responsibility. You feel accomplished and successful. You may expect a raise and promotion in return, but the recognition feels good. 

But then, one partner in this...