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“Creating Successful Leaders”

Category Archives: Goals

December 3, 2025 Thoughts on Retirement and Transitions

I have already retired once. In 2009, I officially left my position as a Business Director in 3M. But that wasn’t the end of my career. I knew I wasn’t yet done with teaching others, imparting leadership lessons, and providing guidance, so I set up UXL, an organization dedicated to helping people navigate transitions, improve leadership, and capitalize on opportunities. 

After over 16 years of running UXL, I have made the difficult decision to ease into retirement. I’m considering these next few months my “off ramp” and will be getting all my ducks in a row for stepping away from my career. It’s time to enjoy some travel, spend time with my kids and grandkids, and stay engaged in community activities and organizations. 

With this in mind, I put together a few thoughts about retirement (in general) and my plan going forward:

The word retirement carries many different emotions: fear, anxiety, excitement, enthusiasm, relief, and joy. Joy because you worked hard to be at this point and you are well-prepared, fear because of the wonderful relationships, support, friendships, and business associates that have been such an important part of your life, and the thought of not engaging with them on a regular basis is sad.

I wrestled with the whole idea and the right timing. But, like so many other life decisions, there is no perfect time. I just had to set a date and work toward it, keeping a positive attitude and looking for opportunities that exist in the next chapter of life. This whole transition is made more difficult by the fact that I love what I do and genuinely like the clients I work with. But every transition carries a whole series of emotions and thoughts.

In my situation, I have the luxury of being able to step away from UXL slowly. Over the next several months, I will wrap up contracts and stop taking on new clients and projects. As you may know, one of the cornerstones of my business is the Insights Discovery program. To ease out of this practice, I have helped Stephanie Elliston of The Steady Elevation (stephanie@thesteadyelevation.com) take over my work. She is a wonderfully skilled and savvy individual, and I know she will thrive as a Licensed Practitioner of Insights Discovery.

My other work on leadership development and career coaching will go to a variety of people that best fit the needs of particular individuals and organizations. I would be glad to give referrals if you need some help identifying the right person.

I will also be continuing my blog posts and newsletter for a few more months, since I believe I still have some wisdom to impart. So, stay tuned!

What will I be doing?

Spending time with family: With a son and his family living on the west coast and another son and his family living a few houses away from us, I am looking forward to having a relationship with my grandchildren that I have dreamed of. I spent a lot of time with my grandmothers and always envisioned the same for me. Now I get that chance.

Traveling: Not only will I be traveling to the west coast to visit my son and his family, I will also periodically visit the rest of my family, who lives on the east coast. So, I may not know what time zone I am in for a while! I am looking forward to reconnecting with my siblings and their families. Additionally, I plan to travel abroad from time to time, but that’s all TBD! 

Volunteering in my Community: There is so much to do to help make a community, and I plan on getting more involved with the Chamber, my church, and the causes that are important to me. When you work full-time there is not as much time or energy to give, but now I can. Watch out Stillwater!! I love bringing people together, as my neighbors can attest! Together, we have built a wonderful little section of town that cares for each other, celebrates, and knows how to have fun.

Have you thought about your retirement, or perhaps a “rewiring” or rejuvenation, if it is not yet time to fully retire? Who would you like to reconnect with, where are your strengths needed (many nonprofits need professional help), and what brings you joy?

Although I will no longer be officially coaching others, I always enjoy hearing about people’s plans and intentions. If you’d like to share yours, feel free to send me a note.

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE.

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November 5, 2025 Stop Waiting for Permission

Photo by Ugur Arpaci on Unsplash

Are you waiting for a “sign” to take that next big step or shift your life in a new direction? Have you been hoping your boss will give you a promotion? Or the go-ahead to pursue an exciting new project? Or maybe you’re waiting for circumstances to be “just right” before acting.

Unfortunately, you might be waiting a very long time for “that thing” to materialize. Instead, I encourage you to stop waiting for permission and just go for it. Take the leap.

Trained to Wait

Many of us have grown accustomed to waiting for permission. As school kids, we had to ask permission for everything—from going to the bathroom to using craft supplies during break. In the office, we might need to ask permission for a budget increase, implementing a new marketing strategy, or focusing on an out-of-the-box area. Many initiatives need multiple people to give their stamps of approval before they can go forward.

We have become used to waiting and hoping things will move forward.

But if we apply this mentality to ourselves, we might simply stall out or become stagnant. The promotion might never come, the dream project might pass us by, we might remain stuck on a path that isn’t quite right for us. Sometimes, we have to be the ones to power our own engines and light our own paths. We can’t count on someone else to do it for us.

Taking a Leap

Just “going for it” can sometimes be scary. As a career coach, I’ve talked with many people who wanted to pursue an entirely different career path, but they were frozen with fear. What if they failed? What if they didn’t end up liking the new path? Or had to take a temporary pay cut? With so many doubts, their inclination was often to wait “until the time was right.” But, guess what? The time was never “right.” They could always point to some obstacle or inconvenience that held them back.

Rather than change their circumstances, they mainly had to change their perspectives. They had to realize that no one was going to come to them and say, “You now have permission to switch career paths.” They had to be the ones taking the initiative and, eventually, taking the leap.

That didn’t mean they couldn’t prepare for the leap. Just the opposite, in fact. Once they decided they would, indeed, make the change they had been waiting to make, they could take steps to facilitate it. That might mean saving extra money, taking classes, or learning a new skill. They were actively working toward making the change, rather than waiting for permission to do so.

Going For It

What are you waiting on in your life? Are you hoping to introduce an exciting initiative to your company? Do you want to shift your responsibilities at work? Learn how to paint? Travel to a new country? Change careers? Hike the Camino trail in Spain? Get a raise or a title change?

No matter your ambitions, it’s important to realize that opportunities rarely land in one’s lap. Instead of waiting for someone to give you permission, ACT. Instead of hoping change will happen, FACILITATE that change. Believe that your future is in your hands, and go for it. The timing will never be perfect, so why not start now?

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE. 

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September 24, 2025 Building Can Be Better Than Creating

Photo by Imagine Buddy on Unsplash

As a leader, it can be easy to get swept up in the excitement of change. We might attend a conference or discover a new program and want to implement what we’ve learned in the workplace. But large changes might seem more daunting than exciting to your team. Where you might see innovation and opportunity, they might see more work and tension. Or they may wonder what was so wrong with the old system. Rather than overhauling the system, there is a better approach to change. 

Building on Strengths 

Even in a flawed system, there are usually elements that work. Maybe a software program isn’t as efficient as it could be, but it’s easy to use. Or maybe your team is great at brainstorming new ideas, even if they never get implemented. Or perhaps individuals have many skills and strengths, but they do not tend to collaborate well with others. It’s a good idea to look for strengths before considering a complete system overhaul. Even if everything doesn’t work perfectly, you’ll likely find some elements that do work just fine. 

Once you’ve identified the positive skills, habits, strengths, or attributes of your team, you can begin building on them. If the team is excellent at coming up with creative ideas, lean into that. Convey that you appreciate their talents and get them excited about stretching those skills even further while developing additional skills, such as time management or attention to detail. Set aside time for your team to really shine while also asking them to try something new. 

When people are in their element, they are more likely to be open to constructive feedback and additional asks. Additionally, your team will probably be more willing to make changes when they play an active role in deciding how to approach the change.

Thinking about the creative team from the above example, you may challenge your people to come up with five potential solutions to improve meeting deadlines. Or you could ask them to brainstorm ideas for more effectively collaborating with the data analytics department.

Another part of building on knowledge and abilities involves language. Instead of focusing on and talking about deficiencies, start talking about positive traits that can be made even better. In the improv comedy world, the phrase “yes and…” is commonly used. Essentially, when someone is presented with a new, improvised situation, they can keep the scene going by accepting what is happening and building on it. This can create a back and forth that moves the action forward in new and often unexpected ways.

“I see you have a parrot.”

“Yes, and his name is Bill.”

“Yes, and I noticed he has a special diet of spaghetti and meatballs.”

“Yes, and he sometimes hosts pasta nights for his friends.”

This is a silly example, but the main idea is this: accept your team’s positive attributes and talk about how to build on them. 

Yes, the team is great at customer service, AND they can use that skill to reach new markets.

Yes, the team is comprised of excellent individual performers, AND they can brainstorm ways to work better as a team.

The point is to leverage the skills and knowledge your team already has to make productive changes. Start noticing your people’s skills, tendencies, and attributes. Think about goals and areas of improvement. Then, work with them to co-create solutions to take the team to the next level. This is about building on what already exists, not starting from scratch.

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE. 
CHECK OUT MARGARET’S ONLINE LEADERSHIP COURSE. 

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