Allies come in many forms, and with various messages: some welcome, and some that we might be more resistant to hearing or acknowledging.

Allies come into our lives with a mission: they are there to aid in our transformation.

The first dragon we often face is ourselves: are we good enough? Smart enough? Well suited for the task in front of us? We work with so many clients – men and women – who face these questions every day.

Calls to Awaken can come in many forms, some obvious and life-altering, some more subtle, and some evolve over time: a gentle nudge or sense of intuition that tells us that something needs to change or shift. These calls can originate from our environment, from our interactions with others, or when we take time to reflect, and look within. Each is compelling.

New year. New start.

What’s your journey? What are you being called to do? If you expand your vision – take a step back and really look at how you’re spending your time and energy, is it aligned with where you want to be headed? If not, what steps can you take today to redirect to a path that’s more aligned with the true, authentic you?

If you need some ideas on how to trigger your creative thinking, try one or all of these suggestions:

Folks, we’re here: staring down the last few weeks of 2020. And while many of us are ready to put this year behind us – in so many ways, and for so many reasons, we’re going to ask each of you to pause before throwing the year out the window. Because – for all its faults, trauma, and drama, 2020 had some gifts.

We’ve been doing a lot of writing and thinking about the hero – or heroine’s - journey lately. You know the arc: in a nutshell, a hero goes on adventure, encounters a decisive crisis, meets a guide who helps on the path to a decisive victory, and the hero emerges forever transformed.

We often ask leaders to look inside to address what’s happening on the outside. Adjusting your mind and your outlook is the first step to adjusting behavior. Now more than ever, we’re asking clients to slow down. To step away. The idea of pausing to increase forward momentum is counter intuitive.

 "Never use a complex word when a simple one will do." Your purpose in any communication—a one-on-one meeting, a sales pitch, a presentation to hundreds—is to create a relationship with your audience. Don't overcomplicate it.

As I was filling my car with gas the other night, I took a moment to express gratitude for 24x7 availability for gas stations – because I remember the days when my parents had to go get gas only when the station was open, or risk running out of fuel.

I had a theory…

Would you believe Jennifer Lopez was quoted saying “even though I had sold 70 million albums, I was feeling like “I’m no good at this.” According to the Journal of Behavioral Science, up to 70% of Americans have experienced imposter syndrome.

“It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.” – Oscar Wilde

What if I told you that one simple practice could change your outlook, your in-the-moment presence, and could even have an impact on your bottom line? Would you do it? Absolutely. Here’s the action: be grateful. That’s it. Two words that can literally start to change your neurochemistry.

In this video you'll learn:

• The five dimensions necessary for optimal team performance

• The impact of team reputation on the organization

• Six personal dimensions that impact team performance

When things aren’t going your way, it’s easy to start blaming yourself and listening to the negative thoughts that pop into your head. Unfortunately, these thoughts often begin to feed on themselves, eventually taking over and distorting your perspective.

So many people I work with are incredibly talented, smart and accomplished executives. To look at their titles, their scope of responsibility or their backgrounds, it would be easy to think they have it all and that they’ve made it. And yet this isn’t always the case, at least in their own minds.

Our brains – with approximately 86 million brain cells with ~10,000 neural pathways (connections) each are simply AMAZING. AMAZING. And – what’s one thing or brains need to operate at peak performance?

If you’re trying to increase your credibility, strengthen your executive presence and make a bigger impact in a leadership role, an underrated trait to develop is sincerity. When you can cut through all the noise that often accompanies high level decision making, you’re not only more effective as a leader, you also save everyone time. Here are three ways you can be more sincere in the workplace.

Check out Kathleen’s article published on Forbes.