Tag: dream big work hard

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Going the Distance

This post is different than what I usually share, but it’s very meaningful to me. Throughout the pandemic, I have struggled with (and mentioned it here!) how I will better myself, or change my world for the better, once normal life is allowed to resume. I decided that I would go the distance and truly become what I always wished I could be: a runner.

Anyone who tells you running is easy is either lying or bragging. I’ve never been good at bragging, lying or running, so before all this I’d have told you that running is impossible.

For me, it really felt that way. I always got shin splints when I tried to run, stopping before I ever really got started. My commute took time out of my day that I could be running. I really don’t like sweating. I didn’t feel strong enough, motivated enough or really worthy enough to start the ambitious task of becoming a runner. I also struggle with self esteem and body issues, which don’t help most endeavors in general. I had a lot of pressure working against me.

I’m not really sure if you’d call what I had last month a “breakthrough.” However, during the pandemic I reached a turning point where, after a conversation with someone I trust, I realized I could either do something about my situation or decide to be fine with it and accept myself as I am. That little realization that I was not ready to do the latter created a spark, which ignited my motivation.

I was ready to start going the distance.

I started strong: I read running blogs the day before I laced up, I practiced stretching and still do those stretches before and after a run, and I even started counting calories. I’ve begun a beginner strength routine so my muscles can keep up with the progress I’m gaining (slowly) on the pavement. I attempt yoga for balance and stretching on rest days. I bought new workout gear to stay motivated. I downloaded Couch to 5k and started a running plan to track my progress and push myself. It’s all going well, unless it isn’t.

Because still, it’s not easy.

I am often overwhelmed by the task before me when I step out the door to do my self-assigned run. Getting the gear on, braving whatever the weather is doing that day, feeling poorly about my odds of surviving… all of those things can reverse my motivation in a hurry. Sometimes, going the distance means cutting a run short because of leg pain. Sometimes, it means walking instead of running because of a stitch in my side. My feet can hurt for days after a run.

Going the distance often, for me, just means that cliche “putting one foot in front of the other” and focusing on my stride so I don’t get hurt and maintaining breath control when all I’d like to do is stop.

When? When does running become “easy?”

I hope that when I am able to see my friends and people I work with again, I might walk a little taller and maybe even be a few pounds lighter. I hope that they see I have changed and that I am able to keep this up for good. I pray that I can become more positive and use this momentum to believe in myself. I fear that I’ll let myself lose focus and revert back to spending more time on the couch than my course.

But I know I have made a change that can’t hurt me. One tiny change led to two, to three, to a potentially new lifestyle if I really commit!

It’s as one of my friends stated: “Any movement that is faster than a stroll can be running.” Even though I walk-run, gasping for air when the timer goes off and I can slow down, it’s running. I am a runner right now, and I will be one as long as I’m able to just keep going the distance.

I think this commitment can be equated to what our world is going through right now. Coronavirus changed us, and it’s not been an easy journey. We’re all figuring this out in our separate places, isolated, taking it one day at a time. When it is safe to return to stores and workplaces, our society will be forever changed. Many of us fear we will forget those lessons. Many others know that life will look different than it did before. But we will be more committed, if we try, to actions that make us better: respecting each other’s personal space, not shaking hands, staying home if we are sick instead of toughing it out at work, showing compassion for one another in innovative ways, video chatting more often, and so much more.

I shared this story not to brag (because as I said I’m not very good at that!) but to hold myself more accountable to my commitment to be better. Going the distance is teaching me about myself and connecting me to a goal I’d long thought could not be achieved. How will you go the distance in your own way?

As always, a parting three things: stay healthy, be well and remember that every step counts.

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Finding Your Formula

Public Domain

Public speaking is tough, but finding your formula can help you master your own style and elevate your performance. Want to help your audience follow along with you, keep yourself from tripping up, or own your prep? Read on for 3 ways to find your formula for a successful speech.

We’ve all been there: you prepared the best you could, but you walk up to the mic and draw a big old blank when the lights are all on you and it’s “go” time. You try to look at your notes, but suddenly you realize how difficult they are to read. You try a joke you didn’t plan, but it falls flat. Suddenly, you’re standing in a spotlight and all you want to do is start over.

It doesn’t have to be this way! It takes practice to master a speech, whether it’s 5 or 50 minutes long. Your process can win the day, if you find what formula works for you.

  • Bring notes you can use in a pinch

Notes aren’t usually for you to read for the whole speech! They are just there to guide you and keep you on time and in flow. You should find a style of notes that helps you find your place easily, remember key phrases and move on without distracting the audience from your message.

For some executives I work with, finding their formula means using a notecard-style page with large font and a few phrases. I print them an outline on card stock and cut it to size so it can fit directly into their jacket pockets. The typed print is easier to read than handwriting, and the small size allows them to keep the card in their palm until they need it. It’s not terribly obvious that they have notes, and the format of the outline keeps them on track.

For others, it’s full-word sentences set to bullet points. Those can be tricky, even for the most seasoned speakers, because it promotes reading rather than speaking from the heart. It can also be easy to lose your place. I find that adding bold face type to key phrases within those bullet points, as well as breaking up the sections With Easy to Read Headings works well here.

As a reporter, I joined other news professionals with the one-page of keywords approach. I took a thin reporter’s notebook and, after a press conference, broke my story into a few key sections (usually who-what-where-why-how up top with what we know, what we need to know, and what’s next to follow.) Then, instead of a sentence or two I would just put a few key words. (Ex: Suspect, w/m with blue jacket; Still at large; no risk to public.) It helped me give people need-to-know details up top and then flow in and out of the live shot cohesively. Plus, if I needed to jog my memory I could keep talking as I looked down and easily found what I needed to say next. It took years to refine this but it worked every time.

The point is, if you find your own formula to what notes you need on the stage, you can eliminate lots of distracting awkwardness, reliance on filler words like “um”, and long silences.

  • Help your audience follow along

One way you can increase audience participation and retention of your message is to keep them engaged. But you have to make it easy for them!

Some speakers, like pastors, have fill-in-the-blank style notes pages on the back of handouts like the church bulletin. That way, the congregation can fill in the missing words as the sermon goes along. That always helped me keep track of the main message I needed to hear that Sunday.

Another way is to improve your speech flow. Everyone has heard some variation of this one: tell them what you’re going to say, say it, and then close with a reminder of what you said. It’s tried-and-true, and often your best sound bites from from the closing because it’s like putting a bow on a present and ties the whole thing together.

I am a huge fan of the “sandwich” approach: start with a metaphor or scenario at the top of the remarks, work through it in the body, and at the close come back to it.

If I were explaining how difficult it is to get to Mars instead of to the International Space Station, I would say, “It’s like a remote camping trip.” Then, I’d explain in the body of the speech how when you’re driving to a friend’s house, you know you can get your mom or your friend to bring you what you need if you forgot something or come get you if you want to go home. But on a remote camping trip, you’ve gone so far and you’re so isolated that you can’t go back and get something you didn’t bring with you. You have to either make what you need, use what you have or do without. Finally, at the closing of the speech I would explain how taking astronauts to Mars is like that remote camping trip.

Those techniques help an audience see the full picture and even remember it, so they can tell their friends about it later.

You can even do it with a quote. “As Wernher von Braun said, ‘I have learned to use the word ‘impossible’ with the greatest caution.” I once used this quote in the beginning of a speech, referenced it a few times in the middle as I explained what impossible things NASA was working to make possible, and closed with it to note how the speaker, through her time at NASA, had also learned to use that word carefully.

I love finality. That’s your chance to drive it home. I think these formulas can deliver an impact that closes beautifully, alert the audience that the speaker is wrapping, and give that speech a sense of purpose.

  • Use your medium to your advantage

Are you speaking to a live audience? On a teleconference? On video chat? Know the medium and use it to help you find the right formula for success.

Sometimes I imagine that a telecon is the greatest gift to a speaker because you can use your notes way more and nobody will be the wiser! It allows you so much more ability to focus on what you’re saying, because you don’t have to worry about how you look. Your notes for a telecon may look way different than your notes for a live event. Let that work for you! Practice staying on message AND on time without the pressure of an audience staring at you!

A video conference can allow you some “cheats” too! Your notes can stay on your screen, so it looks like you’re looking toward the camera when actually you are staring at your message. There is no need to be seen looking down: you can engage like never before this way. Use this medium to find your formula for engagement. Use facial expressions, gestures, and other body language to allow yourself to practice being natural.

We are getting a lot of this practice right now during a time of coronavirus. Use these to get even better so that once we are able to attend events and live, on-stage speaking engagements you’ll be better than ever!

I hope you can find your formula for public speaking success even though speaking may be different right now. Remember: every time you speak you are only getting better!

Use this time to start finding your formula and wow your audience! A parting three things: be safe, be encouraged and go present a clear message today!

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Feeding your soul during a troubled time

Let’s be honest: we could all use some positivity, right? During dark times, it can be hard to feel happy or motivated. Here are 4 ways to inject some light into your life and feed your soul, even when the world seems dim.

  • Listen for positive news

I promise, its there! In every newscast, it’s been there this whole time: it’s just that the top stories can induce anxiety strong enough to cause you to overlook them. I’m seeing Gayle King and the CBS This Morning team feature great, heartwarming stories throughout their newscasts: not just before a break or before the end of a half-hour, but sprinkled throughout as you need your heart to feel lighter and feed your soul. The Eye Opener always has a good story included each morning!

And local news is in on it too! Some news stations like WHNT News 19 in Huntsville are even doing half-hour good-news broadcasts!

John Krasinski even made his own good news show! As of this post, it has 15 MILLION views! Clearly, we all need a dose of happiness (and we don’t have to go far to find it):

  • Create your perfect self-care routine

Self-care is, thankfully, all the rage these days. Feed your soul with encouraging acts like calming baths, a long walk outside, a mug of tea, a good book, a cuddle session with your dog or a cheat meal fit for a king. Forbes offers this great article to get you started.

For me, self-care has been the most rewarding part of self-quarantining at home. I now have all the time I ever wanted to do things like start running with Couch to 5K, take long baths with a glass of wine and a magazine, and sit outside on the back patio with a good book. This time is restorative: it’s what feeds my soul! I miss social interaction, but my self-care also includes virtual hangouts with friends which help me a lot.

For many of us, finding ways to be outdoors if we are able to distance is soul-feeding too. Going outside helps us feel less trapped, and more in-touch, with the world. This can be harder and harder to do if you live in a city or don’t have a yard. The National Institutes of Health suggests the outdoors can be restorative: “proximity to greenspace has been associated with lower levels of stress… and reduced symptomology for depression and anxiety.” We could all use more of that effect in our lives!

  • Make small goals

Someone recently asked me, “How are you making sure your life is better after this than before it?” I really had to think about that and honestly, at that time I didn’t have an answer. Since then, I have challenged myself to find a few ways to be better and part of that is making small goals, and working toward them every day.

I started counting calories and keeping track of what I eat because, for me, that’s a really small goal I can work toward right now. In the next 3-5 weeks, I think it can become a habit that will help me stay healthy after all this!

If you need time to start working on those goals while working from home, click here. This article from a few weeks back can help you manage your time and take some breaks along the course of your day.

  • Do something for someone else

Remember all the good news we just talked about? There are so many examples of human kindness around us right now, from parades past children’s homes for birthdays to community-wide rounds of applause for first responders and medical staff. Doing something nice for someone else just feels good! One way to feed your soul might just be to find a way to be there for someone who is struggling through the pandemic.

Websites, including that of this New York-based nonprofit, have tons of information about how you can help virtually or with important acts like blood donation. We are all in this together!

I hope this helps, and that you have a better understanding of what you can do to feed your soul through this difficult time!

I pray you find encouragement and motivation, strength and hope. Three thoughts to close: be well, be kind and be at peace!

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Working from home? How to manage your time

working from home

Working from home can be tough. Work is always accessible, the fridge is so close and you have only virtual connections with your coworkers.

As coronavirus (COVID-19) concerns heighten, many of us find ourselves working from home. Whether you are infected, self-quarantining or otherwise social distancing, you may find yourself in a position you’ve never experienced: sitting at your kitchen table and trying to do work you used to leave at the office.

But do not despair! Working from home allows you some efficiencies. Take advantage of them NOW to make the best of your situation!

  • Make the most of the time you earn back

Congratulations! You are no longer commuting! Whether that means you just got back fifteen minutes, half an hour or even an hour you’d typically spend sitting in traffic, make the most of that time. What have you been putting off around the house? What news can you catch up with, or friends can you call, now you have some time? What new skills can you learn that you never had time for before?

I’ve used the “free” time I suddenly have to watch more news, which I find particularly valuable since the world is grappling with COVID-19. I’m walking and writing more frequently in my newfound personal time! It feels healthy and keeps me informed.

  • Improve your will-power

Several people in my office have remarked about this… the fridge is now so, so close and those snacks we’ve stocked up on are within feet of us at all times. Diet or no diet, that’s a challenge for all of us! Food is within reach and there is no need to walk to a cafeteria or take a “break” to go eat it. The pantry is a dangerous place, my friends.

If your new work space is the kitchen, consider moving to a new place. It could be that you’re conditioned to eat while you’re in there. It proved beneficial for me to set up a table in a corner of the living room, away from the table where we eat dinner, so I could avoid the temptation to stress-eat.

  • Take time to unplug

Think of some things you can do to detach from work for a brain break or to remain active during your more sedentary lifestyle these days.

I’ve noticed that I keep checking my work computer, or my work email, well after I “clock out.” Part of my job is working with the crisis communications team for our center’s response to COVID-19, so in many ways I need to stay informed and abreast of any tasks I need to complete to help out. But other times when I am not being called upon to help, I see myself stretching my time “at work” while working from home. It’s all too easy to work without a break when work is all around us and not separated by a long drive where we have time to decompress.

And, perhaps we aren’t watching our health the way we should right now. Our home office chair is now home base, so we aren’t walking to meetings or around our work campus anymore. I have, at the suggestion of my supervisor, scheduled time to take a walk outside with the dogs or while listening to a podcast. Make time to move! It does wonders for your mental health and capacity to keep on going.

A friend who works from home for a living year-round also suggested 10-minute breaks every hour or so to get some housework done. Not only do you move around more, but you get some chores done on top of it! So smart. I think I see a floor that needs a good cleaning… I’ll add it to the list!

It can also be helpful to schedule some human contact. While we are being encouraged to implement social distancing into our everyday lives, I have “lunch dates” with a friend and coworker via video chat. Our friend group is also considering virtual wine nights to ease the loneliness of working from home.

  • Stay in communication

It’s easy to forget that your supervisor can no longer see you right now, unless of course you start a video chat with him or her. (Make sure you follow this guidance to make the most out of your video call!) That means, he or she is unaware of the work you are doing to support your team and what your needs may be during this time you spend working from home.

I ran into this for the year I worked as a bureau chief for a TV station in West Virginia: the big bosses don’t know what they can’t see. That means you must communicate with your boss so they know that not only are you doing work and completing tasks, but you don’t need them to keep you accountable. I was praised for checking in regularly and letting the newsroom know where I was on a story because they weren’t physically nearby to see my struggles or successes and help out.

A good boss will also keep standing appointments to check in with employees, even during a telework situation. Before publishing this post, I wrapped a tag-up with my supervisor, who used the opportunity to ask where I need support and how I’m doing during this telework phase. He kept our communication going because he knows he can’t just walk down the hall and visit my desk to see how things are going!

There you have it! How to keep the workflow going and take care of yourself while working from home! As always, a parting three things: be well, social distance and thank those who are on the front lines of COVID-19 like nurses and store clerks.

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