Bev's Tips for a Better Work Life

Tips for a more rewarding and resilient career

For almost 20 years, Bev has been coaching
professionals to thrive at work, navigate
transitions and grow as leaders.

professional growth

Have goals? Measuring progress gets you there faster!

Posted by Beverly Jones on

 Step 1: Set clear goals.

Step 2: Choose metrics.

 measureDo you have professional and other goals in mind for the year?  For the future? So what’s your plan?

 It can be motivating to have a broad, enticing vision, but it can also be daunting.  Sometimes people put off their biggest objectives and most exciting projects because they don’t even know where to begin.

 To get started and keep moving toward your goals, think about ways to establish specific benchmarks and measure your progress.  For example, if you propose to write a book, you might commit to writing a certain number of words each week or month.

Maybe you are one of those folks who have heard about the power of measurable goals more times than you can count. But you’re still not convinced.  Maybe metrics strike you as time-consuming or boring, or you think some values can’t be quantified?  Before you give up on the idea of making your goals measurable, consider these points: [Read more…] about Have goals? Measuring progress gets you there faster!

Stiletto Networks are energizing women professionals

Posted by Beverly Jones on

 

Hey, women professionals:

Want career synchronicity?

Network with other women!

“Synchronicity” is the term psychologist Karl Jung coined to describe those times when meaningful coincidences seem to bring you what you need. When synchronistic events pile up, Jung said, it’s as though you’re being supported by an unseen helper.

I can roughly graph the times in my career when synchronicity was in full flow.  From my early job as Ohio University’s director of women’s affairs, through my years as a Washington lawyer, lobbyist and executive, to my decade as coach and consultant, I’ve enjoyed periods of peak synchronicity. In these times opportunities abound, resources appear when I need them, and life feels abundant. 

I also can create another graph of my 40+ career years.  This one measures the intensity of my networking with other women.  If I compare the two lines – one for career synchronicity and the other for Old Girl networking – they seem to match.  My graphs illustrate that the most exciting, productive years aren’t necessarily the ones when I’ve worked the hardest or been the most disciplined.  What often seems to trigger the times of great flow is the energy I put into networking, particularly with other women.

Journalist Pamela Ryckman started noticing women of all ages harnessing the power of a new breed of professional networks.  Intrigued by the trend, she began writing about a wide mix of women’s dining clubs and other groups, particularly in New York and California.  She followed the trail to more cities and the result is her new book, Stiletto Network: Inside the Women’s Power Circles That Are Changing the Face of Business. [Read more…] about Stiletto Networks are energizing women professionals

Try these tips for managing your habits

Posted by Beverly Jones on

 

 How to change everything

by building new habits 

Deciding can be exhausting. Research suggests your brain has only so much stamina for making decisions in the course of a day.  And when your energy has been spent on big decisions at the office, it’s no wonder you can’t choose what to have for dinner, once you get home.

Our lives are so complicated it’s amazing we get along as well as we do.  Just getting up, getting ready, and commuting to work offers numerous decision points.  It’s enough to wear us out before we reach our desks.  

The reason we aren’t exhausted by just our normal routine is that we glide through much of it on automatic pilot.  Our conscious minds don’t have to actually make decisions about stuff like finding our way to work because our habits take over.  

Habits are routines we follow regularly, without having to think about it.  They allow our subconscious to take charge, giving our conscious self a rest. Our good habits help us to effortlessly make good choices.  They guide us as we manage our health, our calendars and our routine projects. But sometimes our habits put us in the wrong groove.  [Read more…] about Try these tips for managing your habits

Know which tasks are Tier #1

Posted by Beverly Jones on

Need to get more done?
Set priorities & stick to them.
 
At Fortune Magazine’s recent “Most Powerful Women” dinner, Marissa Mayer, new Yahoo CEO, made news when describing how she juggles the demands of her big job and her new-born baby.

Mayer was asked, “What’s the most important thing that you do to get it all done?” She answered that you have to “ruthlessly prioritize.” Citing legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, she said that her priorities are God, Family and Yahoo, in that order. [Read more…] about Know which tasks are Tier #1

Turn that conference into a networking opportunity

Posted by Beverly Jones on

Tips for a novice networker

A young friend I’ll call Tracy has asked me to elaborate on my September 6 ezine on the topic of networking.  

Apparently Tracy is about to head off to a national conference. While there, she hopes to build her own professional network, and at the same time find ways to create value for the university where she works. [Read more…] about Turn that conference into a networking opportunity