Get Real. How Well Do You Know Yourself?
Recently I got a call from an old career coaching client. Her company had presented her with a yet-to-be flushed out dream opportunity, but she was so hyper-focused on finalizing details of the job description, she was missing the bigger picture: a diamond ring had just landed in her lap! After I helped her see the 30,000 foot view, walk in her boss’s shoes for a moment and realize what this leap could mean to her career trajectory long-term, she moved from frustrated to exhilarated. Her life-long tendency to obsess over the details almost cost her an incredible, life-changing opportunity!
Having worked in the field of coaching, leadership development and human potential since 1996, I’ve noticed that people with a high degree of self-awareness tend to roll with the punches, know how to leverage their strengths, are more comfortable taking risks and often find it easier to cultivate self-compassion for their shortcomings.
COVID had a huge impact on my ability to travel and speak (this is how I put bread on the table). This challenge invited me to revisit old mental train stops I hadn’t been to in years! Watching myself on my worst days, was like viewing a fish out of water. I’m an ENTJ if you know Myers Briggs speak. As a strategist and visionary, I value efficiency and am keen on using my energy and talents in the most effective way possible. The pandemic asked me to let go of goals, practice “good is good enough,” tap my creativity like never before, and surrender and let go. This opportunity turned into an enormous blessing.
And, knowing how I’m wired really helped me weather this period with greater ease.
What makes you tick? Our sister company Career Strategists uses a few different career/personality assessments with clients (we really like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the DISC Assessment, but there are many more). Check with your human resources department or university alumni career services office for help or find a great career coach (check with your friends for recommendations). Regarding individual therapy (read 5 tips for finding a therapist), I really like Somatic Experiencing, Imago, and system assessments like the Enneagram and 5 Love Languages, can be helpful tools. Working with a leadership or business coach can also be illuminating.
I challenge you to do some belly button gazing this week; learning more about your make-up takes inquisitiveness and courage. Here are a few questions to get you started:
- What do you need to be successful at work? In your relationships?
- What is your best time of day (and your worst)? When are you most productive?
- What self-limiting habits keep you from living fully and owning your power?
- Describe the “lens” through which you see life. Are you an optimist or a pessimist by nature?
- What are three words your close friends would use to describe you?
One of my favorite quotes from author Wayne Dyer is, “Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.” Perspective is everything!
FOUR WAYS TO MAKE YOUR WELL-BEING A PRIORITY: I’D LOVE TO HELP!
- **SOLD OUT: JOIN THE WAITING LIST.** September 15-17th ~ Sing, Dance, Pray: Romancing the Beloved at the Retreat Center at Lake Logan (45 min. from Asheville, NC airport). Located on sacred land in the oldest mountain range in the world. Limited to 25 women. Email info at reneetrudeau dot com to be on our waiting list. Learn more.
- October 13-15th ~ Awakening Your Wild Soul: A Women’s Self-Renewal Retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health (Berkshire Mountains, MA). Packages start at just $635. This is our most popular retreat of the year (gorgeous leaf color; Kripalu pictured above!). Learn more/register. Can’t make it? Join me Jan. 19-21 for Sing, Dance, Pray: Romancing the Beloved women’s self-renewal retreat.
- Wild Souls Nature Adventures (based in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western NC): authentic movement classes, community song circles, full moon hikes, meditation workshops, women’s circles & more. New offerings are listed each week; have me design a custom experience for your team/friends. Join us Sunday, August 13th for Wild Souls Authentic Movement near Asheville, NC. Learn more.
- Download your self-guided retreat today ~ Ready to prioritize your self-care, relax your body and enjoy empowering mentoring from Renee 24/7 from the comfort of your home, car or office? Our highly popular self-paced online retreats are only $59. Download & enjoy today. Learn more.
Subscribe here to Live Inside Out, a weekly blog written by mindfulness coach/author/speaker and self-care evangelist Renée Peterson Trudeau. Passionate about helping men and women find balance through the art/science of self-care, Renee has been facilitating high-impact, interactive workshops for Fortune 500 companies, national nonprofits/conferences and organizations/teams worldwide for 25 years. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Fast Company, Good Housekeeping, US News & World Report, AARP, Spirituality & Health and more. She and her team have certified more than 450 facilitators in 10 countries around the globe to lead self-renewal groups/retreats based on her pioneering self-care curriculum. She’s the author of two books on life balance including the award-winning The Mother’s Guide to Self-Renewal: How to Reclaim, Rejuvenate and Re-Balance Your Life. She and her husband live in Western North Carolina and Austin, Texas; her latest venture is Wild Souls Nature Adventures. More on Renee here.
