Living & Working On Purpose

Strategies #3 & #4: Ignite Your Passion Through Purpose

Perhaps one of the most leveraged strategies for preventing or overcoming
burnout is to re-ignite your passion for work and life through purpose.
According to Jim Loehr & Tony Schwartz of Human Performance Institute, formerly,
LGE Performance Systems, “The
quantity of energy we have to spend at any given moment is a reflection of
our physical capacity.” However, they go on to point out that, “Our
motivation to spend what we have is largely a spiritual issue.
Fundamentally, spiritual energy is a unique force for action in all
dimensions of our lives. It is the most powerful source of our motivation,
perseverance and direction. Anything that ignites the human spirit serves to
drive full engagement and to maximize performance in whatever mission we are
on.”

They define this spiritual energy source as being “the connection to a
deeply held set of values and to a purpose beyond our self-interest.” In
other words a sense of purpose is key to avoiding and/or recovering from
burnout. As you can imagine, these strategies are most powerful in
combination. Scheduling periodic STOPs is key to carving out the time to
get back in touch with your purpose in life and at work. Delegating the
‘smaller stuff’ at work will make such STOPs easier to schedule. The good
news is that once you start this process, it becomes easier to slowly
increase the amount of time you take to restore yourself, but you’ve got to
start, even if it’s only with 15 to 20 minutes a the beginning of your day,
where you sit quietly and reflect upon your life.

Seek Assistance and Support

Depending on the degree of burnout you’re experiencing, it may be necessary
to seek assistance and support from others to turn your life and work
around. Don’t try to be ‘Macho Man’ or “Super Woman.” Reach out for support
either in the form of a trusted friend, personal coach, therapist, or some
combination. Burn out is not something to take lightly. It can be a
killer. Treat it with the respect it deserves by seeking assistance when
needed. Incorporating these strategies into your life will allow you to be
like the mythological phoenix that arises from its own ashes to be more
powerful and passionate about life.

Ok, that last few days we've explored the challenges of burnout. It's your turn now.
Actually, it's been your turn all along. Are you in the midst of burnout. Often time
people in burn out are in such a state of overwhelm, they haven't taken the time to
notice how burned out they are.

What have you found to be effective ways to deal with the many stresses at home and
at work? Share them here so others can benefit.

Burn Out Strategy #2: Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

Perhaps the title of the popular book by Richard Carlson, Ph.D. says it
best: Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff And It’s All Small Stuff. Keeping our
lives and work in perspective is a wonderful strategy for our mental and
emotional wellness. Once again, this strategy works synergistically with
scheduling in STOP time. These are times that you can step away from all
the daily activities and get a better perspective on what’s happening. You
may also find that a lot of stress is because you’re doing someone else’s
job.

Since many business owners aren’t naturally skilled at delegating they end
up trying to do everything, including a lot of the details like paper work,
scheduling, payroll, etc. Much of this work is detail-oriented and while
it’s work that needs to be done, it can often be done better by someone else
that both enjoys this type of work and is therefore better equipped to do
it. To put this strategy into action, make a list of the detail work that
you find unpleasant, and then either delegate it to one of your employees or
hire a new person to take it over. Business coach, Chris Barrow of the
Dental Business School, points out that many business owners would be far
more productive and less stressed if they hired a full or part time personal
assistant to handle much of these details.

Tomorrow's Topic: Ignite Your Passion Through Purpose (You knew this was
where we were heading, right?

Photo Originally uploaded by Penwarrior.

STOP: A Strategy for Overcoming Burn Out

Here are a few strategies that others have found to be effective in either overcoming or avoiding burnout.

S. T. O. P.

S. T. O. P. is an acronym for a powerful strategy that can be used in
stressful situations, and that can help you prevent or recover from burnout.

The steps are:

S – Step Back

T – Think

O – Organize your thoughts

P – Proceed

Taking such STOPS on a regular basis gives you the opportunity to recover
from the stresses that build up at work. Unfortunately, as Jim Loehr and
Tony Schwartz point out in their book, The Power of Full Engagement:
Managing Energy Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal
Renewal, (Free Press, 2003), most of us approach our work and lives like a
marathon runner rather than a sprinter, so it’s small wonder that so many of
us burnout before we reach the finish line.

Short STOPs of 10-15 minutes sprinkled every couple of hours throughout the
day are a good place to start. Then, add in longer periodic STOPs such as
regular organizational meetings to look at the larger picture of where
everyone is. Consider also the occasional company picnic or other ways for
the entire team to recharge and be rejuvenated. One of the most important
types of STOPs often missing in a busy professional’s schedule is vacation
time that is truly time away from work for rest and rejuvenation.

Tomorrow's Topic: Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

STOP Sign photographed by: Ernest von Rosen, www.amgmedia.com

The 4 Facets of Burn Out

According to data collected by the Gallup Organization in 2001, less than 30
percent of American workers are fully engaged at work, and 55 percent are
‘not engaged,’ while another 19 percent are ‘actively disengaged,’ meaning
not just that they are unhappy at work, but they are regularly sharing those
feelings with their colleagues. (These stats come from a great book on the
subject, The Power of Full Engagement.

These statistics suggest to me that at least 1 out of every 5 people at work
is in some advanced stage of burnout. Burn out is a physical, mental,
emotional and spiritual shut down and exhaustion usually as a result of
prolonged stress or frustration. It’s like trying to run a car with a dead
battery, with no water or oil in the engine, and no fuel in the tank. Let’s
look closer at the four inter-related facets of burnout.

In a state of burnout you are often physically exhausted and frequently
overwhelmed by work and life in general, which complicates matters because
it increases the chances of stress-related illnesses. Mentally, you may
experience confusion, a lack of clarity and often an overall negative
attitude. Emotionally, you may become depressed, frustrated, resigned,
fearful and angry, while spiritually you feel disconnected, empty, wondering
if this is all there is to life.

You can think of each of these four facets of burnout as a different colored
string, with the four strands wound together in a tangled gnarl. The
question is where do you start to unraffle the knot of professional
burnout. Tomorrow, we'll look at some strategies for either avoiding or
recovering from burnout.

Arising from the Ashes of Professional Burnout - Part 1

I'm occasionally asked the question, "As a Life On Purpose Coach, why have you
decided to work with 'burned out baby boomers? Well, it's because I personally
experienced the pain of burnout.

You see, even though I had wanted to be a veterinarian since I was 7-years old, after
12 years in practice, I found myself at the point I didn't know if I could
stand another day in the office. I was frustrated, tired and worn out by the
constant stresses of practice that included staffing headaches, client
turnover, and financial strains. On top of it all, the stresses at work were
having a profoundly negative influence on my personal life.

I felt disjointed and disconnected from those I most cared about. My life
was out of balance and nearly out of control. The pain of burnout became so
bad that I started abusing alcohol and drugs in an effort to numb myself so
I could make it through another day. I even contemplated suicide before I
finally woke up and realized the practice of veterinary medicine didn't have
to be so hard and unrewarding. In fact, life itself didn't need to be such a
struggle. It was at that point I finally sought help, and with that help I
turned, not only my practice around, but also my life.

Professional burn out is a growing concern in many business settings.
There’s no question that work offers many challenges that can leave the most
dedicated person as burned out as an overcooked French fry. National
statistics suggest that many people are being adversely affected by the
stresses of their jobs.

But what makes burn out such a challenging condition to turn around?
Tomorrow we'll explore the answer to this question we well as look at some of
the alarming statistics.

Business On Purpose Interview with Suzanne Falter-Barnes

What a call we had with Suzanne Falter-Barnes about how to go about getting your business known!

She and Brad discussed blogs and why they are so critical to your business.
And you don’t just post a few times to a blog and then forget it.
Suzanne gave us some great tips on how to keep a constant flow of articles to our blogs

Listen to the entire interview here:

What Happens When Two Realizations Collide In A Fertile Mind

Do you remember the old Reese's Peanut Butter Cup commercial that claimed that the popular candy bar was invented by accident when a person eating from a jar of peanut butter ran into someone eating a chocolate bar, and with that collision, candy bar history was made.

Well, I've had two realizations collide within my mind recently. One, the realization that I'm in a small (but hopefully growing) number of people who love their work in large part because my work gives me plenty of room to express myself fully and is consistent with my life purpose.

I shared last week some alarming statistics from the Gallop Organization of how many people are not engaged by their work, but in case you missed those stats, here they are again:

* Less than 30 percent of American workers are fully engaged at work,

* 55 percent are 'not engaged.'

* Even more alarming is that another 19 percent are 'actively disengaged,' meaning not just that they are unhappy at work, but they are regularly sharing those feelings with their colleagues. That's about 1 out of every 5 people at work.

The second realization was that I've been withholding myself in several different areas of my life. More details on this, possibly, in next week's article on "Showing Up Vs. Hiding Out." But one of the places I've been withholding myself is with the wealth of knowledge I've gained in the last 10+ years as the founder of Life On Purpose Institute. Oh, I've coached many of my clients on how to build a business on purpose through my 1-on-1 coaching relationships, but when I consider how many people are stifled by their current work situations, it's time for me to play a much bigger game.

And so, presto these two ideas bumped into each other a few weeks ago, and before I knew it, what had emerged was BUILDING YOUR BUSINESS ON PURPOSE WITH PASSION AND PLAY TELESERIES.

I've been so fortunate in these last 10 years to meet and work with a number of other people who have also built businesses that are an expression of their true self and their purpose. Businesses that are making a real difference in the world. So, I've brought 7 of these 'business building experts' together in this teleseries. People like Michele Lisenbury Christensen who was my coach in the first few years of building Life On Purpose Institute, and my current coach, Andrea Lee of Multiple Streams of Coaching Income and the co-author of the fantastic book, Money, Meaning and Beyond.

So, stay tuned for just a few more days. I'll be making an official announcement on how you can begin the life-enhancing project of building your own business on purpose. In the meantime, I encourage you to register for the kickoff FR'EE TeleSampler:

Building Your Business on Purpose - A Free Introductory TeleSampler to the TeleSeries on Feb 14, 2007 - Wed 11:59am EST. Register in less than a minute online at http://www.lifeonpurpose.com/telesamplers

WORK ON PURPOSE: Is TEAM Missing in Your Work?

I recently received a request from an editor of one of the magazines I regularly write for asking me to respond to the following question. I thought my response might prove helpful to others who are interested in building a Business On Purpose. Here's the question:

After 6 1/2 years at the same animal hospital, I have noticed a lot of changes in the work environment.

But the worst and the hardest to overcome is the negative tension that flows through here. It has happened recently with a lot of employee turn over and the fact the practice owner is not always the easiest to get along with. How can I help the entire team come together and stop criticizing each other personally and professionally?

Here is my response:

There's nothing wrong with your work environment but it does sound like something is missing, and the missing element is "Team." And there's an effective 3 point method for developing a team that is aligned and able to work together.

Step One - Clean the slate of past issues, problems and upsets. This can be the most challenging step but also the most important. Old issues that were never completed upon can fester for years and develop into a negative atmosphere where no one wants to come to work. Gossiping, backbiting, and chronic complaining are symptoms that past unresolved issues have taken over. Since many of these issues stay in the background of the staff's awareness, quietly undermining the team, it's important to bring them to the surface where they can be resolved. In some cases, this can take weeks or months of concerted effort, but it's vital to the team.

Step Two - Once the slate has been thoroughly cleaned, the next step is fairly easy and can be a lot of fun. Identify the common commitments, interests and values that have brought you all together, like your common love for animals, your desire to make a difference, your interest in providing for yourself and your family. These shared commitments become the foundation upon which to build the next step.

Step Three - Create a vision for what's possible in the future and begin to operate to bring that vision into reality. For this step to be truly effective, Step One needs to have been thorough. Otherwise, those past issues will raise their ugly head. Of course, if only a few matters crop up at this point, it's fairly easy to resolve them and move on. But if you find creating a vision for your practice is arduous, go back to Steps One and Two.

2007: A Year of Unprecedented Breakthroughs for This Business On Purpose

For the past several years one of my favorite practices for the New Year is to create a theme for the year. This year's theme is simply -- 2007 - the Year of Unprecedented Breakthroughs.

And already the year is living up to the theme, starting with a marvelous Sunday On Purpose engagement in Greenville SC, followed by a personal retreat in Miami, Florida with one of my clients where most of our 'coaching sessions' were conducted as we laid on the beach sunning ourselves or while strolling along the sand in 75-80 degree weather. Purposeful Play to the max -- fun and plenty productive.

STRATEGIES FOR CAUSING BREAKTHROUGHS
Upon returning to my offices in the Paradise Found of Flat Rock, I continued to ponder what it would take to continue to produce unprecedented results throughout the year. So, I'd like to share some of the purposeful principles and strategies:

1- Be a 'Clearing' for Breakthroughs -- In other words, stay awake and aware of this intention to identify and acknowledge breakthroughs as well as being vigilant about identifying past based thoughts, ideas, emotions and beliefs that could block the breakthroughs.

2. Ask for what I want at the level of breakthrough results while continuing to be responsible for what I get. Practicing this fundamental prosperity principle has always proven to be valuable, and so easy to forget.

3. Continue to clarify the Visionary Reality of this year of breakthroughs while not being limited by the vision itself.

4. Allow and give space for breakdowns, realizing that breakdowns are often the "portal' to breakthroughs.

5. Perhaps most importantly of all, be sure that the business continues to be a pure and full blown expression of my life purpose. Why?

Because, I've found that breakthroughs are a regular occurrence with a "Business On Purpose". I believe that having 'clarity of purpose' as the foundation of a business sets the stage for unpredictable results and almost magical synchronicities and serendipitous occurrences.

BUILDING BUSINESSES ON PURPOSE
After 10+ years as the founder and Chief Visionary Officer of a business on purpose, it's high time for Life On Purpose to to include in our vision of creating a world on purpose, the commitment to assisting others to build their businesses on purpose with passion and play.

So, to kick this new intention off in the most powerful way I know, I've invited seven of my friends and colleagues who have also built businesses on purpose to share their wisdom and insights that they've gleaned from personal experience. Here's why:

WORK is an integral part of people's lives, but so many are not happy at work. They find their creativity stifled. Way too many people work simply for the paycheck. In fact, statistics collected by the Gallup Organization in 2001 indicate that less than 30 percent of American workers are fully engaged at work, while 55 percent are ‘not engaged.’ Even more alarming is that another 19 percent are ‘actively disengaged,’ meaning not just that they are unhappy at work, but they are regularly sharing those feelings with their colleagues. That’s about 1 out of every 5 people at work

So, Life On Purpose Institute is sponsoring a special BUILDING YOUR BUSINESS ON PURPOSE WITH PASSION AND PLAY TELESERIES, starting in on Wednesday, February 28 at 12 noon Eastern. This teleseries proclaims a new possibility -- that when we bring our life purpose to work with us, our work becomes an integral way in which we express our purpose, thus allowing us to tap into a wellspring of passion resulting in work being much more like 'purposeful play.' Interestingly enough, this also allows us to be much more productive and our work to be more profitable to ourselves and to the world.

This teleseries is intended to give people the means and the courage to build a business on purpose -- a thriving profitable enterprise that is a reflection of their core values, of their vision for what's possible, and the essences of their True Self/Soul/Spirit.

Each speaker has been handpicked because they have successfully built such a business and in the process have learned vital 'purposeful pointers' -- key strategies, mindsets, insights, principles, etc. -- that have made this business-building process far easier and simpler. They have also learned 'off purpose pointers' -- self-limiting mindsets, erroneous or out-dated strategies, business principles -- that tend to interfere in creating such an enterprise.

More specifics, including a list of our great speakers will be coming soon. In the meantime, you can register for a FR.EE Building Your Business On Purpose with Passion & Play TeleSampler by going to:

http://www.lifeonpurpose.com/telesamplers

Identify Your Perfect Clients & Develop an Attraction Marketing System

Your Vision of Your Perfect Clients

Picture in your mind your 3 perfect clients. You may think of them as
your A+ clients.

Your Perfect Client Prototype – Qualities & Attributes

The Be – Do – Have Approach

BE: Your perfect clients attitudes, beliefs, & values

Example:

DO: How your perfect clients’ behave. What do they do and what do they
not do.

Example:

HAVE: What do your perfect clients have and what don’t they have that
makes them a perfect client.

Example:

What Makes Your Perfect Clients Tick?

“The key to creating far more satisfying and synchronistic
relationships is to say what usually goes unsaid in the context of
business, to share the motivations and missions that drive us and our
customers (clients) to get out of bed each morning and face another
day. When we know what motivates our perfect customers – what is most
important to them in their lives – we will be in a much better position
to assist them to achieve their goals.” Attracting Perfect Customers:
The Power of Strategic Synchronicity by Stacey Hall & Jan Brogniez

Interviewing questions for getting to what makes your perfect client
tick:

1. Why do you get out of bed in the morning?

2. Who is the most important person to you in the world?

3. What is most important to you in the world?

4. What do you want to achieve before you leave this world?

5. What do you really love about your life?

Attraction Principle: Like attracts like. Based on this, you can lay
the foundation for a great relationship by asking the same questions of
yourself, since your perfect customers are generally motivated by the
same, missions, issues, values and challenges as you are.

What Do Your Perfect Clients Expect You to Deliver?

What are the qualities and attributes that make your practice a perfect
place for your perfect clients?

How do you know what your customers expect of you? You get to say.

How can this be? You are fulfilling your own unique purpose and
mission through your business. You are the only one who can create your
business in the way you do.

To be most attractive to your perfect clients, it’s paramount that you
be completely fulfilled through your work.

Thought Experiment:

Recall a time when you were serving a perfect client? What was it
like?

Now, recall a time when you were serving a difficult client? What was
that like?

What was 1 key difference? Didn’t the perfect client appreciate the
way you do business and the difficult one would have preferred for you
to do business in some other way?

Key point: What do you want to provide and how?

I Choose for My Perfect Clients to Expect Me to….

Include: pricing, location, advertising methods, staff size, primary
services, secondary services,

Not what you think you should provide, or have to provide. Only what
you truly want to provide. What would be most satisfying and fulfilling
for you?

This is key to designing your practice on purpose and filling it with
your perfect clients.

Where Do You Have Room for Improvement?

Question: What do you have to improve to attract more perfect clients?

Answer: Only those items that your perfect client expects you to
deliver.

More Challenging Question: What are you currently working to improve
that your perfect clients don’t expect or want you to improve?

This is the most fun and enjoyable part of the process. It’s an
opportunity to acknowledge your strengths and to identify where you can
‘turn on the power’ in order to be even more attractive to a larger

This step helps keep you on track and on purpose with your overall game
plan by allowing you to check to see if new ideas are aligned with and
consistent with what you say your perfect customers expect from you.

Exercise:

1. Look at your list, “I Choose for My Perfect Clients to Expect Me
to…”

2. For each item ask yourself, “Are we providing this service or
meeting this expectation completely right now?”

3. If yes, congratulations. Go on to the next item on the list. If no,
then circle that one.

4. Repeat for all the items on the list. As you ask this question,
check in with your perfect clients – the 3 you pictured at the start of
this process. Ask them what they say. (Often, we’re our own worst
critic, especially if we have a ‘perfectionist streak’ in us.)

5. Top of new page, write “What Do I Have to Improve to Attract More
Perfect Customers?” Write the circled items here.

6. Write down the date when you will BEGIN working on that item.

What’s Next?

You’ve just made a great start in designing your practice on purpose to
be even more attractive to your perfect clients.

Possible actions for moving forward:

1. Keep adding to your 4 lists.
2. Review your plan daily, even if it’s for just 5 minutes.
3. Share it with your staff and invite them to nominate items to add to
the list. (But you get to say what you actually add. It’s your plan.)
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