As we turn the corner that gets us closer to year-end, hard to believe I know, it’s time to take a good look at YOU!
Ask yourself, “Do I like what I see?” It is one of the most important, difficult and valuable questions we can ask ourselves. It is a difficult question because we must be objective for it to be a valuable and rewarding exercise and experience. We spend a lot of time, money and resources evaluating, educating, coaching, supporting and growing our customers, team members and partners, but how much energy and resources do we expend on ourselves?
I hope all of you like what you see, but many of you may not and instead see that change is needed. Regardless of what we see, it is important to reward ourselves but also know that we can always improve and get better.
But better at what? That’s up to you, and there is only one “you.” You hold the power within, and maybe with a little bit of help and insight from your coach, mentor, family, friends and teammates you can identify where you need to improve. What do you need to help you improve your knowledge, grow your skills and satisfy your curiosities to make you successful.
Do you need to increase knowledge and understanding in the areas of finance and cash flow, recruiting, training and rewarding your customers, using technology and social media, mastering a new piece of equipment, enhancing your speaking skills, presenting your ideas or understanding how AI fits into your key processes? How will this new knowledge enhance your business model so you truly are unique? Will these pursuits satisfy your greatest curiosities that help you excel at being you? If so, what are the best channels, people, books, programs, events, schools, tools, podcasts, social media and publications to learn and leverage these learning opportunities?
Ask yourself, “Do I like what I see?”
I’ve said and written this hundreds of times — there’s nothing comfortable about a comfort zone and in fact, it is downright dangerous. A comfort zone means that you’re not changing, not stretching, not growing and not moving forward. It means you’re moving backward and slowly decaying. No, that is not a sensational or dramatic statement, it’s a friendly warning and heads-up since decay means to deteriorate and erode. I can’t think of a faster path to professional and personal decay than staying in your comfort zone with no learning, no change, no growth or no forward movement. How arduous, taxing, painful, difficult and dehumanizing it would be to feel the ruts of sameness and mediocrity built below your very own foundation.
You have the power within “you” to not only prevent professional and personal decay but to create and build your own unique prescription, formula and path to flourish and grow. So, relax and sit or lay down and take an objective and curious look at “you” without any noise or interference from the outside and give yourself the time, space and resources you need for yourself.
What’s going to make you want to write, share and re-read your autobiography? What’s going to make you say the best vacation you ever took was your personal journey designing, building and walking down your personal pathway? That is the power of the one and only YOU!
About the Expert
Judith M. Guido is the chairwoman and founder of Guido & Associates, a business management consulting firm in the erosion control and green industry. Guido can be reached at 818.800.0135 or judy@guidoassoc.com.
