38 Special

By Julie Strzyz

October 21^st marked my 38^th birthday.  I’ve always been a huge fan of celebrating birthdays – especially my own – but this birthday hit me a bit differently.  You see, my father passed away at the age of 38 (when I was only 9 years old).  He was a bright, talented guy with many gifts. Unfortunately, he didn’t share those gifts due to fear: fear of failure, fear of imperfection, fear of what others would think, etc.  He let fear cripple him and it ended his life early, leaving behind a young wife and daughter.

As a child, 38 seemed forever and a day away.  But we all know what time does: it flies! So here 38 is…screaming and staring at me in the face. And I am scared. Scared that I will let fear win by not doing all the things I want to do and somehow have the same fate as my dad.

New Website and Blog for Envision Success Inc!

Exciting news!  EnvisionSuccessInc.com got a face-lift and we are thrilled to be including our newest blog posts at that location!

Say Yes to YOU Instead

By Julie Strzyz

Let’s face it, we are in an era of pure overwhelm. We are constantly inundated with messages via text, email, social media, etc. as well as requests for our time and attention. Whether it is receiving messages about a project to which you apparently need to respond ASAP or being asked to volunteer for yet another one of your child’s activities, it simply becomes too much. Yet we keep saying yes. To everything. Every time.

We say yes to things we never really wanted to do in the first place because we either feel obligated or do not want to disappoint others – or both.

Afraid of Having it All?

By Heather Legge
Is it possible that you've been holding yourself back because you're afraid of REAL success?  I've been a bit surprised by this being fairly common among my clients.  Previously, I would have guessed that more people were afraid of failure. But for driven, talented people --they know they can get things done.  Sure, they don't want to fail, or look the fool in front of others.  But, moreso they are afraid of WHO they will become when they achieve REAL success. 

Toughen Up Buttercup!

By Heather Legge  

While chatting with another woman owner, up came the topic of how most of us achiever-type women (and some men) have a kind of conditioning of "Never Show Weakness".  More than the "never let them see you sweat" concept, it seems to have been adopted not only in business, but 24x7 in every area of life and relationships too, so that the perception is we are simply not allowing ourselves to fail at anything, and to not talk about it either.  

It's not all sunshine and rainbows living this way!  It's too much pressure to keep up a facade of toughness, plus we know what happens over time: in addition to the occasional embarrassing meltdown, we have poor health, severed relationships, end-of-life regrets, and a whole lot of other crap to look forward to.  All of which we might be able to avoid by dialing it down a notch.  It took me about 35 years to figure this out.  

Shift Your Days: Less Shitty, More Great

You know those days where things just flow, stuff gets done, and you leap over buildings in a single bound?  (Pretty much the opposite of "that totally sucked" followed by "shit, we're out of wine.")  A lot of people are in a rut of frantic mornings and a flurry of effort and exhaustion while nothing important gets done.  You're not like that- you're ahead of the pack.  But what if you knew how to never have a shitty day again?  

Try these 4 simple shifts in your morning or evening routines to make more of your regular days great ones.  No, of course it's not all sunshine and rainbows, but you might say "Damn, I'm good!" more often.

Change the Way You Live! Start Now.

Nothing irks me more than whiny complainers who do nothing to improve their situation.

Want true happiness?  Want better health?  Want more wealth?
  
Stop falling into the trap of staying stuck.  Stop making excuses.  Strike the word "but" from your vocabulary.  If you really want to make changes, decide what you CAN do and get after it!  Here are some steps to improve your quality of life:

Where Does The Time Go?

If you're not sure where your time is going, tracking what you spend time on is the BEST way to get to any core issues.  Yeah, I know- it's a pain.  But, SOOOO worth it!  You will be amazed - likely you'll be both pleasantly surprised and completely disgusted after reviewing your results.  Importantly, you'll gain insight and motivation to make some changes to you can get more priority stuff done in less time.   Following are tips for tracking so you can make changes and reap the benefits of better time use!

Design Your Best Schedule

Chances are, you are one of the millions out there feeling over-scheduled, under-effective, and worn out.  What to do about it?  First, decide that although it's common, it's doesn't have to be YOUR "normal."  Make a commitment to yourself for the next week to make some improvements.  Can you make 3 simple changes within one week that will help you better support your success?  I hope so!  How are you going to leave a powerful, positive legacy if you are exhausted?

Why Aren't You More Successful?

You work hard, you worry, you're tired--but for all that, why aren't you more successful? 
Chances are, you're not really applying your time, money, or energy in the right directions, or with enough intensity.  Let's review 3 critical, yet simple things the most successful people do differently from the rest:

1- Know what you want
How can you possibly get from A to B if you don’t know what B is? Do you just get in your car and start driving aimlessly? NO, before you get to the end of your street, you know your desired destination. Strangely, most people don’t know what they want. Like most people, I used to spend more time determining where to go for dinner, or making out their Christmas list than determining what to accomplish over the next year. What do you want to be known for?

The Secret to Happiness!

I was having a conversation with a stranger at a networking event where we were partnered up randomly and given a topic.  Halfway into our time he asked me, “What’s the secret to happiness?” and was surprised when I had a confident answer.  A great discussion ensued (and a friendship)!  After 40+ years of serious evolution in terms of my personal happiness and studying this topic rigorously through my business the past 8 years, it’s not an exaggeration to say I have a very strong stance on happiness 'hows and whys.'  I am excited to share some of them with you here! 

80% of Perfect is Pretty Darned GREAT!

Calling all perfectionists and "get it right" folks out there!  If you're anything like me, you have come to realize that being a bit of a perfectionist is both a blessing (I am very conscientious and driven to succeed), and a curse (sometimes I am prone to 'paralysis by analysis').  Being completely honest with yourself, consider how this may be holding you back from your greatest triumphs...

What is it, exactly, that stops The Perfectionist from moving forward at times on some of the things that are important to them? Do a self check:  Do any of the following apply to you?

What The Heck Are They Doing?!?

A popular pet peeve for some of us is people not using their turn indicator while driving.  I admit, it annoys me a lot when people don't signal their intent at all, or if they turn on their blinker during the turn (what's the point?).  How many times do we hear ourselves saying in the car, "What the heck are they doing?!?" - or a similar version but chock-full of expletives?  We may say this regarding other people and businesses when we are not in the car too...

Build Your Legacy

Building a legacy sounds like hard work.  Until you realize you are already in the process of building your legacy whether it is intentional or not.  

"Remember, no more effort is required to aim high in life, to demand abundance and prosperity, than is required to accept misery and poverty," as Napoleon Hill shared in Think & Grow Rich!

12 Days of Apps: E-READER

Although many of us still like the experience of reading paper books, the convenience of having a ton of digital books at your fingertips is undeniable. 
Whether you have a Nook or Kindle (or a competing) device, or use one of their apps on your other devices, the convenience factor is phenomenal.

Of course, having your books with you all the time also makes it likely that you will read more, such as when in line at Starbucks or the bank, or waiting for an appointment, etc...

12 Days of Apps: CAMCARD

Are business cards still relevant? It depends who you ask, of course.  I believe they are still very much relevant for today's professional.  It's critical to consider the digital side of what business cards are traditionally used for and not rely only on paper cards to exchange contact information.  That said, I am still amazed at how many business cards I have on my desk at the end of a week or month.  For those of us that are meeting new people at least somewhat regularly, having a system for dealing with all those cards and contacts is critical. 

An important business skill is to create a simple system for translating business cards into data that can be mined when needed.  Having an app with you so you can scan a card and make notes right away is definitely a 5 star option with today's technology.

12 Days of Apps: TIME RECORDING

Where does your time go?  How can you possibly know unless you track it?  Have you done one of those exercises where you track everything for a week, and although useful, you feel like you need "Time Tracking" added to the list because it felt like it took way more time than it should have?  

What if there was an app for that?  What, oh, of course there is!  At least one...in fact there are several.  After taking a sales audit course and realizing I hadn't been doing a good job of tracking how much of my time was spent on critical activities, I searched for an app instead of relying on my usual spreadsheets or a paper journal.

12 Days of Apps: GOOGLE MAPS

You may be surprised that we would include Google Maps in a list of productivity apps for greater success in the new year, but that's partly because this app (and others like it) are under-utilized for making more in less time.  For example, say you have an appointment with someone and don't know where you're going.  

You could use your "spidey-sense" and hope for the best, but when you show up late and explain that you got lost, people are less understanding today given the technology at hand.  For the modern professional, there is simply no excuse any more for getting lost-- unless it's a particularly tricky address or in a GPS dead zone.

12 Days of Apps: MY FITNESS PAL

Nearly everyone has a goal, New Year's Resolution, or maybe just an intention to improve their health in some way, whether it's getting to the gym more often, reducing unhealthy foods, drinking more water, or some other action.  

Even for my business clients, often fitness comes up --because without it, we don't have enough energy to accomplish other goals,

The End of Your Story?

The End of a Story
by Julie Strzyz, ESI Personal Growth and Leadership Coach

I was impressed by a recent TEDx event called “The Energy of Eulogy”, given by a fellow coach, speaker, writer, and all-around magnetic individual.  She described the power behind a eulogy as well as the message it leaves about the deceased.  She challenged us as an audience to contemplate our own eulogies as the process defines how and who we will be.

I reflected on the eulogies of two recently deceased loved ones and the celebratory note of each of them.  Yes, I was grieving intensely and missing them dearly but the pure joy I felt at the realization of their impact on the world was deep and consuming.