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Take A Break | Forest Bathing Vs. Beach Bathing

As an Australian living in Canada, at this time of year, when I am seeing my family and friends post pictures of being at the beach, I am very envious. Going to the beach was one of my favourite pastimes that I had to swap for going into the forest.

Forest Bathing Vs. Beach Bathing

Having a 90-pound bernadoodle that requires a great deal of exercise, my go-to, favourite thing to do is to go for long walks in the forest or along the waterfront.

As I put on multiple layers to go outside in Vancouver, Canada, these breaks in my routine help refresh and rejuvenate me.

Now you may have heard of the term ‘Forest Bathing,’ and if not, excuse me while I briefly explain.

This term was initially coined in Japan and called Shinrin-Yoku, a.k.a forest bathing. In stressful positions, we can forget how many hours daily we spend behind our screen, lose track of time and work through even when our energy, focus and productivity are waning.

A short walk outside, around the block, or if you are fortunate enough to live near a forest, a walk in the woods can be a great way to help you reenergize and motivate yourself.

When walking in the forest, especially when I am with my daughter and bernedoodle, we practice being mindful, meditative walking, or simply being aware of what we SEE, HEAR, SMELL or TOUCH. Turn off your cell phone, walk slowly, often stop and look around and engage your senses.

If you are not already, schedule time in your day to get outside and take a break.

The return on investment for your focus and productivity will be threefold.

 

Do you feel like there isn’t enough time in the day to take a break. Are you overwhelmed by all your priorities? Get in touch today to see how we can help.

If you are interested in learning about how professional development or executive coaching can help support your leadership or your leadership team, please reach out to askme@jennyreilly.com to schedule a convenient time for a complimentary strategy session.

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Stop the continuous ‘grind’!

Are you in continuous ‘grind’ mode –working long hours, not eating nor sleeping well, not taking breaks to refresh and relax, and feeling as though you are under continuous pressure?  Working like this does not increase your productivity or results; it often has the opposite effect. If you are on a continuous ‘grind’ on  the treadmill going uphill, you will inevitably burn out. 

 

We are now more than ever always connected and easily accessible. Instilling some boundaries to our personal and home time is essential as otherwise, the overlap becomes seamless, and little time is spent on self-care, relationships, and personal growth.

Are you in continuous grind mode? - Jenny Reilly Consulting - Executive Coaching

 

REFUEL

When you are more rested, you simply get more done. You have more energy, are more efficient, and can think and act clearly through a problem to resolution. Refuel with healthy food and try to have three meals per day, at least five hours apart. Reduce your sugar intake and try to eat clean. Combined with a healthy diet, exercise can help restore your body. 

PLAN

Enabling periods in your schedule to plan and think daily is worth your investment of time. At the end of the day, reflect on what was accomplished, record it, and prioritize your top three focus areas for the day ahead.

QUALITY

Through COVID, we relied more on social media than we have in the past to stay in contact. Unfortunately, it is also a great time suck, so challenge yourself daily to reduce your time on social media continually.  It is now time to spend quality time reconnecting in-person to develop your professional and personal relationships. These in-person relationships will inspire, reinvigorate, and motivate us to think bigger, be better, and be happier. 

 

We have all been victims of our own continuous ‘grind’ mode. We hear these great ideas that we know will benefit us; however, putting them into action can be the hardest part to implement. So, let’s consider the consequences of taking this advice, that extra hour you take to recharge you could pay it back to your business, client, or personal endeavour threefold because you’re more invigorated, less stressed, and more focused on the outcome. It’s a Win-Win!

 

Stop the continuous grind and ensure you get more rest. Reflect on your daily accomplishments and target priorities for the day ahead. Decrease your social media time and reconnect in person. Eat well and be active; this will help restore your mind and body.

 

We can help you with your professional development or provide tailored executive coaching that can help support your leadership or your leadership team, please reach out to askme@jennyreilly.com to schedule a convenient time for a complimentary strategy session.

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Your Top 6 Tips to Avoid Zoom Fatigue

Zoom Benefits and Zoom Fatigue

I think I may be one of the few who enjoy connecting over zoom. I have become accustomed to the number of daily video connections. In fact, in my consultancy, my productivity has doubled as I no longer have to include travel time between strategy consults or coaching meetings and can use this time to work on other areas in the business. However, I do empathize with individuals who have reached zoom fatigue and are struggling with the number of zoom calls they are participating in weekly.

In a Forbes article, the following statistics were referenced, which can’t be ignored:

  • 45% of employees reported attending more meetings during the pandemic than when working in the office
  • 40% of employees have experienced mental exhaustion from video calls, and
  • 52 % of employees said background noise and/or poor audio quality disrupted their focus

 

The following Top 6 simple tips will allow you to get into a rhythm that will help you stay organized and engaged during your zoom connections.

  1. Set up a suitable space for zoom calls. Where possible, have an area that is not busy, cluttered or messy. I have moved my desk, so a white wall is behind me. If you feel it necessary, either blur your background on add a virtual background. *Warning: more often than not, virtual backgrounds do not look great. The picture may be interesting; however, you will become distorted or often show a large shadow around your head when you move your head or hands. Please do not put moving videos as your zoom background screen. I was on a call where the person had a video of their small child riding their bicycle in circles. Cute for the first two seconds; however, it did not leave a lasting professional impression.
  2. Mute yourself when you are not talking so others on the call do not have to hear loud background noise such as a lawnmower, a dog barking (yes, that usually is my 90-pound Bernadoodle), or family noise.
  3. Turn off your notifications, so they do not go off loudly during a connection.
  4. Don’t multitask when on a zoom call – be focused, and the meeting will be faster and more efficient (no typing or answering phone calls/texts) when on a video call.
  5. If there is no agenda, there is no reason for a meeting. If there is no objective behind a meeting nor an agenda, I question the necessity and if attending is the best use of your time. Make use of your time; it is valuable and cannot be regained after use.
  6. End meetings promptly and on time. If you cover all that is on the agenda, call the meeting to a close, don’t go until the meeting end time or add additional items to the agenda.

 

Remote meetings do not have to be problematic; we need to be prepared differently; however, the premise of what needs to be done is the same as in-person meetings.

If you have not bought a webcam, it is well worth the investment. I use a Logitech C922; it is clear and has excellent autofocus, stereo sound, and straightforward to use.

Happy Zooming!

 

We can help you with your professional development or provide tailored executive coaching that can help support your leadership or your leadership team, please reach out to askme@jennyreilly.com to schedule a convenient time for a complimentary zoom strategy session.

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Leadership and Coaching | How to Predict Your Success?

How to Predict Your Success?

 

Predict Your Success | What’s Your Direction?

There are people that you come across that you know are going to be successful – do you agree? This doesn’t mean they are better than you, but that they simply focus on the right things, manage their time well, and have a clearer vision of what they want in their life. It’s time to predict your success!

Are you ready to set your direction for success?

  • What is important to you in your professional and personal life?
  • What are you focusing on now, and why?
  • Are you focusing on your highest-value activities?
  • Do you need to re-evaluate where you are spending your time?
  • Are you willing to try strategies that others use to be more focused and results orientated?
  1. Focus 100% on high-value tasks that will bring you significant results.
  2. Block off uninterrupted time chunks daily to move your goals forward exponentially.

Do not waiver on project focus, and your results will be three-fold by year-end.

 

80/20 Rule of Thumb

80/20 Rule of Thumb

 

Focus On Success | 80/20 Rule of Thumb

What is holding you back from getting what needs to be done? Is it time to identify your key constraints?

20% of our activities typically produce 80% of our results

When looking at your day and formulating your priorities, you will be surprised how much you can get done when you focus on the top 20%.

It is easy to waste time or be ‘busy’ on unimportant items. To ensure you do not do this, you need to adopt a productivity-focused mindset and retain focus on what is important and brings the most value.

Focus on the top 20% of tasks that are on your list that reap 80% of your results.

Start your day working on the identified top 20% of your activities; you will make decisions faster and make more progress on high-value tasks.

 

Just Say No

Just Say No

 

Be Successful | Say No!

One of the best ways to manage your schedule and not feel so stressed or overwhelmed is to become comfortable saying the word ‘No’. If something is not of value to you, graciously bow out politely and don’t feel compelled to take it on. Focus instead on your professional and personal goals, rather than those of others.

For every ask, run it through the ABCDE process:

A Must do | B Should do | C Something nice to do, but not necessary | D Delegate it | E Eliminate it

 

If you are interested in learning about professional development or executive coaching can help support your leadership or your leadership team, please reach out to askme@jennyreilly.com to schedule a convenient time for a complimentary strategy session.

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Verbal Fluency and 3 Ways to Motivate You to Take Action

The Importance of Verbal Fluency

I have had the opportunity to work with educated and technically brilliant individuals and the most hardworking and verbally fluent entrepreneurs who have excelled in their field.

The individuals who stand out to me have verbal fluency, can communicate their point, develop and build relationships, and have increased levels of influence and persuasion skills through their communication ability. Being verbally fluent enables you to speak comfortably and confidently to anyone, and this is a skill that I cannot emphasize enough is essential to success.

Being verbally fluent does not mean that you have to have the most extensive vocabulary. Instead, you know how to communicate and what works best to be easily understood by the receiver.

When you are initially connecting with someone finding common ground is crucial. By that, I do not mean peppering someone with question after question, but being genuinely interested, listening more than you speak and sometimes even showing vulnerability, especially when you are discussing complex topics. It is not often that I connect with someone whereby I cannot find something we have in common. When you look for similarities rather than differences, you will find them everywhere, and they are often around family, travel, food, interests or concerns.

Once you find something in common, there is no such thing as breaking the ice – you have already done it. I often find myself saying ‘tell me more’ when meeting individuals and learning their stories. Asking an individual to ‘tell me more’ is not a technique but a genuine interest I have in learning more about an individual. Listening more than speaking, being fully present genuine and warm, comes naturally when you are enjoying making a connection.

 

“The individuals who stand out to me have verbal fluency, can communicate their point, develop and build relationships…” ~ Jenny Reilly

 

Analysis Paralysis | 3 Easy Steps to Motivate Your to Take Action 

When we are at the crux of making a significant decision or involved in a critical or complex project, we may go through a period whereby we experience analysis paralysis. When you feel dumbfounded by the number of options or information that needs to be processed, you may procrastinate on the action that should be taken.

Follow these three steps to help you get to the other side, and focus on what matters to enable you to be productive and attain greater results:

 

3 Easy Steps to Motivate you To Take Action (1)

 

If you need help developing your verbal fluency or getting motivated again. Get in touch with us today.  We can help you with your professional development or provide tailored executive coaching that can help support your leadership or your leadership team, please reach out to askme@jennyreilly.com to schedule a convenient time for a complimentary strategy session.

Get your leadership strategies and tactics in my monthly newsletter, sign up here to subscribe.

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