Create moments of #connection.
I declared this as my intention for 2024 even though it is not a typical goal or OKR. While I have other goals for the year for my business, my family and myself, I wanted to have something I could evaluate each day, rather than an output that I could only measure at the end of the year like revenue or coaching hours.
When I reflected on what was holding back my coaching business, I realized the limiting factor in my business was how many people knew about me. So I want to expand that awareness, which is why most of my recent posts have been podcast appearances or LinkedIn live events. I am also applying for speaking opportunities at conferences. But the real goal is to find ways to create that connection with more people by putting more of myself out there.
Ironically, leaning in more on my business can make me pay less attention to my family. It’s easy to think I need to respond to that email immediately, or follow up on that request, and ignore my children while I type away on my phone or laptop. And there won’t be any visible consequences today, tomorrow, or even next month if I do so. But the loss of connection will certainly be felt over time. So I am paying attention to the precious opportunities to connect with my children or my wife each day.
My larger point is that we often focus on the outputs: get the job, get the promotion, get the sale, get into that school, etc. But we can’t control the outputs; all we control are the inputs, which are our own #behavior.
The poet David Whyte has a wonderful line that we are satisfied when we have done “Good work, done well for the right reasons, and with an end in mind” (thanks to Jerry Colonna for once sharing that on a Reboot podcast).
What are your right reasons? What is the end you want to keep in mind for your work each day? What behaviors can you evaluate each day to see if you are doing good work well towards your #intention?