In my community, we do goals. We love goals. Setting them, achieving them.

And, we do goals in some very specific ways. Today I’m sharing my rules for goals, starting with the biggest and most important: goals are about skill-building, and never, ever about worth-building.

Let’s talk more — about what this means, about the other goal rules that will help you have an amazing relationship to your own growth, and about how to apply the same rules to support, supervise and catapult the growth of your team.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

Our emotions are like fuel in our tanks.

They take us where we need to go, and like actual fuel, have different properties.

Some burn clean for miles and miles. Others burn hot and fast and powerful over a short distance.

Today on Joyful Leader, we’re talking about emotions as fuel — why willpower is only useful to a point, and how to fill your tank with the fuel that will take you the distance.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

Last week we discussed purpose — and how it is always internal, never external. In our lives, we choose containers in which to express our purpose, including our jobs.

This week, we’re exploring a specific aspect of this — feeling like you’ve lost your connection to purpose at work.

If you’ve been there, you know. Feeling like the thing you're doing no longer lights you up like it used to.

Tune in to talk about why this happens. And of course, what to do about it.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

I hear from a lot of people that they are looking for — or haven’t yet found — their purpose. In today’s episode, we’re going to clarify where purpose lives. And where it doesn’t.

So many of us think of purpose as a thing — something outside of ourselves that will light us up when we finally encounter it.

But this definition has us looking in the wrong place, and can make us feel like we’re on a never-ending, futile search for an elusive and magical grail. Boo to that.

Let’s look for purpose where it lives.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

An essential part of leadership is knowing where to direct your attention.

Given the number of things we have on our plates at any one time and our finite attention, how do we choose?

Today, we’re talking about a simple tool for directing your attention and honing your instincts about what to give your attention to.

This tool is also exceptional for developing your team members' leadership instincts and the collective awareness of your entire team.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

On a regular basis, my clients bring up observations about the way their companies operate, often in the context of their leadership teams. They notice default communication styles, teaching styles, decision-making processes . . . and many other behaviors and attitudes that set tone and culture at their organizations.

And, sometimes, they feel like their observations are just about them. They’ll say, “It’s not a big deal, it’s just my preference, so it’s fine.”

And I always lovingly interrupt them with an emphatic, “Nope.”

Today, on the podcast, I will share why. Why is this a problem, and what is the solution? Tune in to find out.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

Confidence and arrogance are VERY different things. They are both emotions, but come from different mindsets, and look very different.

AND YET. :) We sometimes confuse them. We think that our confidence will come across as arrogance. We also often think of arrogance as all bad, and judge it harshly in ourselves and others.

Today on Joyful Leader, we’re breaking down each of these emotions. We’ll talk about their differences, why a nuanced understanding of them is important, and how to tell them apart for yourself.

Thanks for listening.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Mindset by Carol Dweck, Ph.D.
• I Don’t Want to Talk About It by Terrence Real

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

We use so many tools throughout our lives and work — project management, life management, mind management. Tools, systems, frameworks, and rubrics are everywhere. These things are designed to help us, to make our lives easier and more efficient. But every tool can be turned into a weapon.

Today we’re talking about using your tools for you, instead of turning them into weapons against you. We’ll talk about what this means, how you know you might be doing it, and what to do instead.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm