Pursue What Matters

Your mother probably taught you to mind your p's and q's, but did she teach you to mind your C's? This week I'm talking about 4 C's surrounding effective communication. I've spent the last two weeks discussing communication because it is one of the most important things you and I need to master in order to strengthen our relationships and get things done at both work and home. There will always be challenges in relationships and so you'll always need to be willing and able to address concerns proactively and effectively. Last week's podcast addressed the basics of addressing concerns and this week I continue the discussion with 4 C's. There are two you want to avoid at all costs, and  two that you need to cultivate effectively.    Show notes available at: www.drmelissasmith.com/contempt  

  Relationships are often sticky. Whether it be with friends, relatives, or co-workers, these relationships thrive on good communication, and this "stickiness" you and I experience usually comes because of some lack of communication.  Today I want to help you better communicate your concerns at work. These conversations are difficult, but they are crucial to building an effective, high-achieving team. Whether you're a team lead, CEO, or just got hired this month, the skills I'll talk about in today's episode can help you improve your team relationships, be more effective at your job, and overcome the messiness that can come from dealing with other people. I hope you'll join me! Show notes and transcript available at: https://drmelissasmith.com/communicatingconcerns/  

Trust. It is vital to any team's ability to succeed. Whether that team is your family, recreational basketball team, or your co-workers, trust is important if your team is going to succeed. But you know this already. As anyone who's been part of a team where trust is missing can attest to, trust can make or break the effectiveness of a team. This week’s podcast is focused on helping you understand what trust is, what it isn’t, why it’s so important to establish and cultivate at work, and why you cannot be successful at work without it. Sounds simple enough, right? But trust can be challenging because it always involves vulnerability. Building trust is never straight forward, but it’s always worth it, and as you cultivate trust as a team, you build a strong foundation for sustainable success. Show notes:  https://drmelissasmith.com/trustatwork/

It's time to launch!  The past two weeks on the podcast I've focused on helping you to prepare for your moonshot goal through careful planning, and becoming aware of the things that hold you back. This week is all about going for the gold. At this point, I hope you've got a plan for how you're going to achieve your goal (if not, make sure to check out the last two weeks of the podcast), but whether you've planned extensively or only a little bit, it's likely you still feel unsure of yourself. That's okay. This week, the focus is on taking consistent action on your biggest goals. I don't know what your dream is exactly, but I trust that as you quiet yourself, you can know what your dream is. And I also know that as you banish excuses from your path, you will progress on your moonshot goals, one step at a time.   I've got an excellent resource to help you take consistent action on your path. Take a minute to download it below and then get moving.   Show notes available at: www.drmelissasmith.com/episode-91  

I hope you're ready to get real about what stalls your progress on your biggest dreams in Part 2 in my 3-Part Series on Moonshot Goals. Today's podcast is focused on what keeps you stuck on the couch. I'll invite you to get honest about your fears, justifications and excuses. Unfortunately, too many of us are our own worst enemies. Can you relate? You convince yourself that you're not good enough, not smart enough, don't have enough time, enough money, never enough.  Enough! Today we're going to call BS on your favorite excuses so you can take action on your moonshot goals. To help you do this, I've created an excellent free Resource that you can download by clicking the link below. If you are serious about your dreams, you must download this Resource as it will help move you from dreaming to action to accountability. 

President John F. Kennedy is widely regarded as one of the most well-known and liked presidents in American history. Perhaps the biggest reason for this was President Kennedy's daring goal to put a man on the moon. When President Kennedy made this announcement, very few people believed it could be done. Even the people at NASA, who knew what it would take to get a man to the moon, thought that it would be impossible. Yet Kennedy persisted with his "moonshot" goal. This goal that was seemingly so far out of reach. Thanks to this, and incredible efforts by so many scientists, astronauts, and engineers, the goal was realized, and Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the moon. So my question for you is this, what is your moonshot? What dreams do you have that seem so far out of reach that it seems silly to even consider them?  This week's episode is the first of a three part series on pursuing your goals. This week is all about moonshots, and taking chances on goals that seem impossible. I hope you'll join me this week as I discuss how to make the impossible more of a reality. You may not reach your "moon" but with hard work and good planning, you can become better and go farther than you ever would letting those dreams stay dreams.    Show notes and resources available at: www.drmelissasmith.com/episode-89

Mark Twain once said, "The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why." As individuals I believe we all have wondered about our purpose in life at some point. Having a vision for your own life is a central part of what makes people successful For teams and organizations the answer to this question of purpose is just as important. This week on the podcast my purpose is to help you see why having a vision for your life, your team, and your organization really matters and how this can make the difference between success and failure and living to purpose or just getting by. Vision is vital, it's impossible to effectively lead yourself or others without knowing what direction you're going. Very few of us would ever start a journey without at least an idea of where we wanted to end up. For some reason so many of us set out on our life or organizational journey without having a clear direction for our travels. While none of us can predict exactly where we'll end up, having a vision for where to go and how to get there is vital. This week I will help you develop a vision that will inspire you and your team members and lead you to success. Show notes and transcript available at: www.drmelissasmith.com/episode-88

Are you ready for a new year? A new year of possibilities? Does the thought fill you with excitement or leave you with a pit of dread? Facing a new year can be daunting. Add to that the expectation of New Year's Resolutions that almost always fail, and is it any wonder that many of us want to run the other way when we consider the year ahead, even as challenging as 2020 has been?!  Before you jump on the resolution bandwagon (please don't jump on the resolution bandwagon), let's take a moment to breathe. Ah, that's better. Folks, 2020 has been rough. But you might be equally wary about 2021. You might be scared to plan. Look what good that did you last year. But here's the thing, even though life will ultimately do what it wants with you, you can't give your power away by not playing the game. Yes, your plans may be shot to hell, but still what if they aren't? By having a plan, you'll be a step ahead of everyone cowering in the corner.  This week I'm reviewing a great book from the wise Michael Hyatt that will help you in your goal setting. Your Best Year Ever: A 5-Step Plan for Achieving Your Most Important Goals is a fantastic book that empowers you to prioritize what matters most and provides the structure to get you to the finish line with goal achievement. If you're feeling nervous about setting goals for the year ahead or need to strengthen your goal-setting game, you can't miss this episode! Show notes available at: www.drmelissasmith.com/episode-87

This year has been difficult, I'm sure you'll be as happy as me to see 2020 end. But before that happens, I hope you'll join me on this episode to reflect on some of the things you and I have learned this year. There are valuable things for us to remember that will aid us in moving forward. Show notes available at:  www.drmelissasmith.com/episode-86

You have work to do. I have work to do. I'm not talking about day jobs, I'm talking about the creative work you're here to do. The work that lights up you mind, excites you, and that you dream of. Sadly so many of us give in to fear, self-doubt, and other excuses instead of blessing the world with our contribution. Listen in today as I discuss why creativity is so vital and how to overcome the fear that we all face.  Show notes available at: www.drmelissasmith.com/episode-85