How often to do you get an opportunity to step back and reflect on your journey? I accepted an invitation to do just that recently, when a Canadian university student requested an interview for a class she was taking on entrepreneurship. Her long list of questions took some time to complete. I felt like I was tracing the history of my business, recalling turning points and epiphanies.
In the spirit of sharing lessons learned, I’m posting some of my answers here for your consideration. You may not agree with my advice or conclusions, and that’s totally OK. What I love about entrepreneurship is that no one person’s lessons and experiences are the same as another person’s. At the conclusion of the post, I share a few more of the interviewer’s questions, should you want to take time to reflect on your own journey so far (which I highly recommend).
Last night, I had one of those dreams when I’m back in school and haven’t gone to a certain class most of the semester (usually history or math), and it’s finals time. This time, I wasn’t concerned about my tests… I was confronted with one of my blind spots: the power of negotiation. What the dream taught me, and why black-and-white thinking is for the birds.
Yesterday I announced on my Facebook Fan Page that I was rolling out a new focus on life and leadership coaching for introverts. Right out of the gate, a woman asked a question that gets at the heart of why I chose this specialty (actually, it chose me, but that’s another story!). She shared that she is an introvert then asked, “what are some tips for becoming more extroverted?” My response in a RetroPosting from 2009…
“What is your truth?”
This is a question that comes up frequently during coaching sessions with my clients. As we navigate through a situation or sticking point, the bottom-line question is often “what’s true?” We get so caught up in stories about how things “should” be or are “supposed” to work, that we lose touch with our core truth.
Confession time: I have some major attachment issues.
Attachment – to an outcome, an agenda, a certain way of doing something – has been a theme throughout my life. Over the past year, I’ve made friends with my attachment tendencies. I recognize when it’s happening, and I release and trust the process.
At least, I thought I was.
