Category Archives: Changing Your Life
August 26, 2015 The Road Trip (Stretching Outside Your Box)
The moral of the story: It’s healthy and beneficial to stretch outside your comfort zone, whether that means talking to a stranger on the sidewalk, applying for your dream job, or writing a book. Look for opportunities to learn, grow, and reach for those stars. You’ll be happy you did.
Tags: advice from a life coach, change your routine, Margaret Smith, Minneapolis career coach, mix it up, outside your comfort zone, take a risk, the road trip and stretching outside your box, UXL
August 12, 2015 Having Clarity
In my mind, having clarity comes in two parts. You have to give clarity and ask for clarity. If you are in charge of a project or leading a team, don’t assume that everyone already knows your expectations. Make those expectations clear and leave room for others to ask questions. Put yourself in others’ shoes and anticipate questions that might come your way.
On the flip side, if you’re on the receiving end of a project or initiative, don’t be afraid to ask clarifying questions. It is much better to make sure your idea of the project’s end state aligns with the actual anticipated end state then to muddle your way through it and hope you’re doing what’s expected of you. One good way to make sure you completely understand your assignment is to repeat back what you think you heard. Something like: “Okay, Bill. It sounds like you’re saying we need to come up with a better social media marketing strategy for product X, and we have two weeks to get you a proposal. Is that correct?”
Having Clarity is one of the chapters in my book, The Ten Minute Leadership Challenge, and I go into much more detail in those pages about how to give and ask for clarity.
I’ve also made a short video about Having Clarity based off the principles outlined in my book. Enjoy!
Tags: ask for clarity, clarity at work, give and ask for clarity, having clarity, Margaret Smith UXL video, the ten-minute leadership challenge
July 8, 2015 The Surprising Way Improv Comedy Can Help Your Workplace
When I first attended a class put on by the Brave New Workshop improv troupe, I was skeptical. How could improvised theater help me, a businessperson? Wasn’t it just for the ultra-creative types and class clowns? It turns out, my skepticism was hugely misplaced.
As I went through several different activities, I began to understand the value of such training for myself and everyone I was with—no matter the personality type. The skills we were learning through improv comedy helped us adapt to new situations, be creative, collaborate with others, and have the confidence to express ourselves, even if we weren’t entirely certain of the next move. These are all essential attributes of a good leader or confident team member.
One exercise especially stuck out in my mind:
We were asked to split up into groups of two. One person pretended to have a box filled with something useless or negative (worms, old gym socks, garbage, etc.) and they were supposed to give that box to the other person and say what they had. For example: “Here, Margaret. I have a box full of old banana peels for you.”
The recipient would have to take the box of useless items and respond in some kind of positive manner, such as: “Thank you, Susan. I will take these banana peels and use them as compost in my garden.”
This exercise works on a few useful skills:
- Turning a negative into a positive
- Quickly adapting to an uncomfortable situation
- Connecting in a positive manner with another person
After the workshop was finished, I felt energized, confident, and ready to take on anything that was thrown my way. I highly recommend using improv workshops as a way to boost your business (and life!) skills and help your team connect on a deeper level.
Contact me if you’d like to hear more about my improv experience!
Tags: brave new workshop for business, improv and business skills, improv and improved interactions, improv and teamwork, improv workshop
