🎒 Sept 2024: School Year, Self-Care, Soccer and So On...
Though I do not have kids of my own, in a sense I have thousands because I worked with youth from 1984-2012. I once told a group of beloved students graduating from high school that my heart was a home full of many rooms, with each one having their own bedroom. And that I would keep that room available with the light on for them for whenever they wanted to check back in.
So for the majority of my life, the month of September was more of a “New Year’s” marker than January. And this one feels no different. Though September and October tend to be warm months for us here in Southern California, I can still feel the shift in seeing activity swarming around my neighborhood.
I start this “new year” with some new tools and new plans. This summer I completed certifications in “Google AI Essentials” and “Use Generative AI as Your Thought Partner.” Admittedly, AI technology feels like it is changing hourly, but I do feel like I have a handle on how to use it beyond recipe searches and email drafts.
I completed the filming of an e-course with Madecraft in June on how to work with and lead Gen Z and I’m told it is due to be released in October 🤞🏽. And later this month I’ll be filming another video for them in a slightly more casual “TedTalk” type of format that will relate to finding fulfillment in your job. I will be able to eventually post that video here on my website, so stay tuned!
AND as you already know, I had help in reviving, resurrecting, renewing this website! Thanks for your supportive and encouraging feedback. Please feel free to forward it to others.
Here are my recommendations for this month – as always, these are resources that I have leveraged with clients just like you. Let me know if you are interested in learning more about how I used them, and whether they might be useful to you too!
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🧰 How to Practice Self-Care: 10 Worksheets and 12 Ideas. I appreciate PositivePsychology dot com as a coaching resource. I came across some tools here that you can use to reflect on the first three quarters of this year and how to prepare for this final quarter. Take an hour this week to look back on 2024 so far, and prepare for the next four months.
📧 Gen Z is changing how we email at work. Here’s why. I'm not going to lie, this article might make you grind your teeth just a tiny little bit if you are not Gen Z. But we have to be aware of the trends in the workplace and there is some useful information here. I can verify from experience and my upcoming e-course that will be coming out soon that this article is pretty spot on.
⚽ How to be a good leader according to USWNT coach Emma Hayes. In my comments above I mentioned the new tools and plans that I gathered this summer. I probably should have also mentioned that I watched the Olympics like it was my job for about 2 weeks! Probably the most compelling story for me had to do with the Women's National Team in soccer. I loved it!! it was so wonderful to see them recover from their disastrous World Cup last year and see new blood bring so much excitement and change. This is a brief article that has a couple of really good nuggets in it. And if this topic gets you excited, you might want to check out this interview with Tom Brady on leading teammates. Admittedly, I’m not into football, but this article is really good (there, I said it).
💔 Breaking Our Family Patterns. Okay, this one might fall under the category from above on self-care. This is a thoughtful discussion and might even require more than one listen. I gave it to a couple of clients who are really grappling with how they have fallen into the same patterns at work that they experienced in their family of origin. Hopefully that doesn't sound too “woo-woo” to you. I recommend this conversation highly.
🎭 The Hidden Battle: Unmasking Imposter Syndrome in High Achievers. I really wish I did not have to post this article, but this topic keeps coming up with clients. This particular article caught my attention in the second sentence: “This psychological phenomenon, known as Imposter Syndrome, affects an astounding number of professionals, including 71% of U.S. CEOs as revealed by a Korn Ferry survey.” I also liked it because it really got a little deeper and in the weeds on how to unpack and address it.
I’ll end with this…
This summer I have been dipping back into Daily Stoic readings collected by Ryan Holiday. I appreciate this quote from August 22nd:
"It is essential for you to remember that the attention you give to any action should be in due proportion to its worth, for then you won't tire and give up, if you aren't busying yourself with lesser things beyond what should be allowed." Marcus Aurelius
Thank you so much for reading and feel free to pass this along to co-workers and friends. And reach out to me if you have any questions or feedback at kelly.soifer@ksleadershipdevelop.me.
