08.12.2021

What’s Your Story? | Family | Win of the Year

Hello there! Welcome to my weekly LEAPS. 

You’re receiving this email because you subscribed to my weekly Wednesday feature or our mailing list. Every Wednesday, I share 5 things using our LEAPS approach: 

Learn: something new or an idea
Energy: something that’s creating an energy and positive impact
Action: something to do
Processing: a question to consider
Shout out: something or someone that I want to celebrate or acknowledge

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LEARN
Something Worth Sharing

What’s Your Story?

Anyone that knows me will know that I have hated the question: “…and what do you do?” for a long time. It was especially something that became an issue shortly after closing our family’s manufacturing business and when asked, I didn’t have an answer. Since then, I have studied and researched the area of ‘doing’ and how we have a society built on it - obsessed with what we do, don’t do, will do, how we’ve done, should have done etc.

More recently I have discovered that many people dread the question - for a number of reasons. In some extreme cases it can even cause anxiety in social settings. When you add this dread to the fact that the answer given is often quite hollow, it makes you wonder why we all insist on still asking it.

Does the question help anyone? The answer can often be misleading if what you really want to know is about the person you’re talking to. If you do want to begin to better relate to someone, surely focusing on their ‘current’ way of spending some of their time is extremely limiting? It certainly doesn’t explain how they came to be doing that or why - or for you to find out what they’re really all about.

While at a party recently, a lovely chap was stood next to me and as we exchanged the usual pleasantries, he said: “…and what’s your story?”. Genius! This question, unlike ‘what do you do?’, allowed me to be far more interesting - we all much prefer to share - and hear - stories!

The next time you’re tempted to ask someone what they do, stop and think if you could ask a better question such as ‘what’s your story?’.

ENERGY
Focusing on an emotion or positive energy; a stand-out word / s

Family

We use the word FAMILY a great deal within GLAS - especially as a term for our ‘team’ and licence holders. We have always felt that being family-like, and the very best attributes of family, was important.

However as I often do, I looked up the meaning and found that the etymology of FAMILY is from Latin familia meaning: "family servants, domestics collectively, the servants in a household". It was only later that the term shifted to refer to "members of a household, the estate, property; the household”. This is the meaning we use - members of our household, but the household we refer to is our business.

ACTION
Something small that you can do that might make a big difference

Wins of the Year

At this time of year we can all be tempted to plan ahead and get our new diary ready for the year ahead. It’s just as important to reflect and acknowledge our achievements.

Think back over the past (almost) 12 months. Write down your top 5 ‘wins’. What we mean by a win can be anything that you have achieved or overcome - no matter how big or small. Put the list somewhere you’ll be able to see it for a while. If possible, share these with someone else and ask them what their 5 wins have been. Celebrate them!

PROCESSING
A question to think about and consider (you can discuss this with someone or write your thoughts down)

“What’s it like being you?”

This is a great question - and one that only you can answer. Have you ever tried to explain to someone else exactly what it’s like to be you right now? We’ll be chatting about this in our next Clubhouse session this coming Friday.

Join Wendy and I at 11am (UK time) in our Deliberately Inquisitive Clubhouse session as below. Clubhouse at 11am (UK) on 10th December

SHOUT OUT
Who / what I think deserves recognition, my gratitude or to be celebrated.

Scaffolding

While I’m typing this, I’m a little distracted by scaffolding being dismantled - loudly. We’re having some building work done at home and the scaffolding has been a vital part of this recent phase of construction. It struck me that it has served an important purpose, allowing growth of the project, but it’s unsightly and will be a relief when it’s gone. As it’s being taken down I was thinking about the people in life who provide us with scaffolding - with vital support at key points. It’s only ever a temporary phase but with such an important role in helping us grow and take shape. Parents spring to mind, but so do great friends, coaches (sport and business), medical staff etc.

As it’s almost gone, we can see the progress for the building project.

Here’s to all those that play the part of scaffolding in our lives!

BONUS GIFT FOR YOU
This week’s little extra for you - from me

This a super special piece and recommended book for you - Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown.

This new release is a very different book from Dr Brown, as she takes us on a journey through 87 of the emotions and experiences that define what it means to be human. Each of the 13 chapters is a theme that we, as the reader, travel through. It’s very much about understanding and exploring emotions and language. With it being a different type of book (a little more like a reference book), the visual is also a little different!

This piece also features in our new Living Deliberately Calendar and Logbook sets - see below.

Click the button below to access a free download for the visual synopsis.

*** NEW ***

Order Your Deliberate Year Calendar & Logbook Set

The Calendar and Logbook feature 12 books - and the visual synopses that have been created for each - include:

1. Courage is Calling - Ryan Holiday

2. The Genius Zone - Gay Hendricks

3. Never Split The Difference - Chris Voss & Tahl Raz

4. What Happened To You? - Oprah Winfrey & Dr Bruce Perry

5. Atlas Of The Heart - Brene Brown

6. The Gap and The Gain - Dan Sullivan & Dr Ben Hardy

7. The Comfort Book - Matt Haig

8. Limitless - Jim Kwik

9. Stronger Through Adversity - Joseph Michelli

10. The Everyday Hero - Robin Sharma

11. X: The Experience When Business Meets Design - Brian Solis

12. Greenlights - Matthew McConaughey

LEAPS is a process used by our team and clients all the time - and even my own family on a daily basis. 

I’ll be sharing a set of LEAPS each week with you and encourage you to do your own version:

• L: what have you learned?

• E: what’s your energy / feeling word

• A: what’s one thing you need to do?

• P: what are you thinking / processing?

• S: who or what can you shout out?