see buck. It is a pleasure to have you share your insights, lessons learned and areas to focus on to improve your work and honestly your personal life in 2024 Thank you for being a part of this project I'm enjoying this day and I can't wait to hear what you have to share.
Thanks so much for having me. It's always fun to do these kinds of little events. Yes.
And so the format if you haven't been tuning in yet, we've got 15 to 20 minutes of Kathy and I sharing lessons learned. I'll ask her some great questions and then we will have a chance for some q&a at the last 10 or 15 minutes of our time together. So as you hear great things cuz I know Kathy, you're going to share some great things and you want to have her dig deeper and make a note and ask a question at the end because her expertise is so valuable, and we want you to apply that and whatever way makes sense for you. But before we dive in, Kathy, would you mind sharing with listeners a few words maybe a phrase to describe who are you in the world of learning and development?
That's a really good question. Who
am I and what day is it? As a former corporate person and always dipping my toe back in I think how I would describe myself is an entrepreneur, an athlete and probably of course, first and foremost an author because that's the covenant checkbox, but really learning and development and training and development has been part of my career. Throughout most of my positions. I'm a real supporter of co creation and content. Both of my parents are educators. And so I think learning is just so important and it's really the Bridge to Success. Yeah.
Absolutely. And you know, why most of us are here is that we are either externally supporting learning as a tool for growth by being course creators and entrepreneurs in that sector. Or we're here because we support learning as a tool for growth internally, whether we're individual contributors or we're leaders overseeing learning programs. And the goal of these conversations is just to share lessons from a variety of perspectives such that we can all improve the quality of our work and the quality of our lives because let's be honest, those things go hand in hand.
They really do and you know, being a curious learner is a winning combination. Absolutely.
So let's dive in Kathy to your lessons and you are welcome to share them high level you're welcome to share them through a project that you may have been working on where perhaps most of those lessons have come out but tell us in whatever way is most exciting to you. What are some of your biggest lessons from 2023
So I came across three themes and the biggest lessons are stemming from two big projects that I worked on this year. One was an integrated online training program that I built around the content from my book that is now online and available and the second was a pitch coaching training program. That was video, as well as in person for the Aspen Institute's digital separate digital equity accelerator program. So I was teaching mentees how to create a pitch as well as deliberate and so both of those projects while very different, one specifically content for learning and one, both content for learning but one specifically online and self paced. And the other are interactive and hybrid. I really found from both of those were three key things. The first thing is really important, at least for me to create a connection between me and the work that I'm doing. And while that seems obvious, it's so busy, and we're so overly focused on goals and we're driven and the days are clicking off. And I think when we don't stop and take a pause to say, is this work really fulfilling? Am I really enjoying it? Is it lighting me up? Sometimes we just get lost in the spin them when can't feel why? Actually we don't really feel why this is important or we lose sight of why it's important and then it really kind of clouds day because we're kind of wrapped up in getting it done and sometimes we missed big cues like if you're frustrated, something else going on or if you're not aligned with the work that's telling you something and maybe you really want to spend your time elsewhere.
You're not the only one in today's day long Lessons Learned conversations to say, we must pause and start with why I think it can be super easy to get into the logistics of things and start planning the details and just like diving into something, but it's really hard to know if what we're doing is working. And if it's really hard to measure and make sure we're designing effectively if we don't have that clear why and you know, we said these conversations were both business and personal. Sometimes we get in the minutiae of our lives, and we have no idea why we're doing what we're doing for ourselves and pausing to ensure that we're aligned in that way can go a long way and being impactful both personally but also professionally. So I love that you're you're echoing that
today. Absolutely. And if you haven't, I would highly recommend you read Simon Sinek start with why he wrote that book a decade ago. I know it's kind of you know, dusty, it's not new, but it's so important. And some of the key lessons he shares is exactly what you said he lost his wife, which is kind of funny, you would think of all of all the people to lose it, it wouldn't be him. But as a result of that, you know, he did extensive research with his clients and also personal research to say what am I doing, what I need to be doing and I think a lot of times we just don't stop long enough to take that inventory.
I'll tell you this is a personal share everyone who's listening but I just started dating someone about a year ago and I knew that they were a keeper when I saw Simon Sinek start with why book on his bedside table. And there we have it. Wonderful. So okay, lesson number one. Make sure that what you're doing whether it's professionally inside of an organization in your own business or something you're doing just personally that you have a clear why behind it. And it sounds Kathy like you are also recommending that we build in systems to check in periodically to make sure that we're still aligned and we haven't somehow gone in a deep end in a direction that we don't know how we got
there. 100% I
would say the takeaway here is a personal inventory check. And that could be five minutes a day that could be once a week. That could be once a month but do it check in with yourself and say, Is this working? Do I feel good about it? And am I happy doing it? And if any of those questions are no, I'm not saying shut it down. But is that telling you use that information in that data to make some better informed decisions to say to yourself, you know what, just in a bad place today or, you know, maybe this is this is just, you know, a bump in the road. And I'm not saying that you should let your emotions dictate every move, but they really are your data system to tell you that something's either right wrong or needs to be looked at. Yeah,
absolutely. So we've got one of your biggest lessons learned, which is around get clear and stay aligned with that. Why is there another lesson that you'd like to share? Or should we pivot now into what you'll be focusing on to improve your work
in 2024?
I'll share one other and I would say this collaboration with collaboration is key. Obviously a class business in life, and anywhere in between. We all work with people, family, friends, in any project or tasks that we're doing. And so I think that the things that definitely circled back for me this year, which I also write in my book, is collaboration just isn't about people collaboration is also about the energy of what's happening. And so when you think about who you're working with, and the situations and circumstances that you're in, there's also a factor of the energy of the situation and what wants to happen or what's not happening. So, for example, you're in a canoe and you're paddling upstream. It's really, really hard versus going with the flow. And there's a ton of books out there, obviously on flow and quantum physics and all those things, but all I'm saying is paying attention to what's happening in the moment and being present. Because I think what happens is once again, we get caught up in the spin, we're running towards a goal. We're doing all kinds of things, and usually are signs or responses to people or situations that are telling you something that you really should be paying attention to. It's just another form of data. And so when you are paying attention to that and you're present in that moment, can be a key indicator to help you see things need things or move closer towards things. And so when things aren't working it's time to take pause and if things aren't working, it's time to take a pause and look at back to the why we've come full circle to say, am I where I need to be collaboration on multiple levels, not just with people but with yourself and the energy and the environment that
you're in. I appreciate that so much and yet again, I love I the reason I did these backup compensations today with a variety of people from different perspectives is because I was looking forward to discovering the themes of what all these different people might have to say similarly, and here's yet another one, which is listening. And you know, you're sharing about listening to yourself and indicators, maybe from a more personal perspective, that can help us know if we're moving in the right direction or not. But I also think there's a lot to be said for listening. Our audience listening with our participants in learning and development. And so you know, you've shared you've developed a program this year and you facilitated a program, from your experience. What are some ways that we can listen, not just to ourselves internally, but how do we listen with that same level of intention to people who are sitting in an audience or people who are tuning in like this right and and you know of video based or, you know, social media, what are some things you've learned about listening to others in that deeper level? kind of way. The term they
use now is active listening. I mean, there's always some new rapper on it. But
it's really about empathy,
and looking at the situation or who's speaking to or what's going on from the other person's perspective. So for example, you think about who's listening to this program? I take a moment, say if I was them, and I was on the other side of this, what would I want to hear? What would I be interested in learning what would be helpful for me and so listening from a different perspective, not just listening to answer questions? Or to learn but also to think and hear where other people are coming from and so, active listening is not about so much what I want to say. The more you question and the more you take in what is it that they want to say or that they
could learn from what you have to offer? So it's a two sided equation versus most times were listening to be able to speak or to follow up or respond. And so spending that moment once again, take the pause, listen, think about where the other person's coming from, and then react versus we're, or respond because we're very oftentimes reacting to a situation where we haven't really thought about, you know, giving that person time or space. Yeah, yep. I appreciate your lessons learned there being so clear on your why both personally and professionally and letting that be the guide and the filter through which making any big decisions is done. And then the listening piece. Sometimes Sometimes we don't know what direction to go in. And we don't have that why and we need to pause and listen, whether it's to ourselves or to our audience or to for people who we're working with in any capacity and that listening can be incredibly revealing. So now that we've know your lessons learned, I'm dying to know with those lessons, what will you be focusing on to improve your life both personally and professionally in the new year?
So I've kind of settled on these three themes while I didn't think they would be a repeat for next year. I find that continually come up in everything I do, which is my what I'm calling now my three seats, which is connection, communication and collaboration. And when you look at those three C's, those are really the bridge to success in anything you do. Because you have to be connected. You have to be an effective communicator, and you have to collaborate not only with yourself, but everyone around you and the environments that you're in, as I mentioned, and so what I'm trying to focus on for 2024 is really to take that personal inventory of projects have I assigned myself to in addition to taking on and looking at that personal inventory, am I in alignment? Does this make sense? Is this work going to be fulfilling and purposeful for me? And if so, why? What is pulling me towards that work? What are the goals or the feelings that I want to have associated with that? So focusing on scheduling, you know, it's easy to say I try to walk my talk, really scheduling that personal inventory, look at things on a more regular basis versus just signing up and saying, Yep, I can do that. And chasing whether it's people or money or whatever that is to make sure that I'm really in alignment with what I'm choosing to take on that I'm actually co creating with what's happening versus just being led in the direction from somebody else's agenda that may or may not fit what my goals are. Yeah,
you're saying a word. Thank you. All of that is pointed and timely and not surprising that this communication, collaboration and connection these things have showed up in other conversations today, and what I hear this piece about alignment, I want to say, You know what we're talking about what Kathy you're sharing is sort of from a personal perspective, maybe from an entrepreneurial perspective, but the alignment piece if you're working inside of a corporate and you're either a leader or an individual contributor inside of an organization alignment is the one thing that will either put you on a path towards success or will continually be a roadblock. And the alignment as you can imagine is amongst your team as learning and development or whatever team you're on. It's also with your team and your stakeholders. And then of course, it's with your team and your program and who you're serving. And then it's the environment. There has to be in alignment with all the environmental factors that play a role in our success with programs and professional development. And so I just love this can't have alignment without the three C's. And so, yeah, it's really powerful in alignment
with the content that you build, right? Because I've actually seen people build content that's not aligned with the program, excuse me, because it's meeting a goal for that, right. So it's alignment across all the pillars of what you're talking about, not just the people content is is I think, actually the first of the piece to make sure that what content you're providing and how you're building it is going to be in alignment with your audience. Yeah,
yeah. And we had another guest on earlier today, Chris Taylor, who another guest actually, Joe Oh lob was talking about less content and more action. And I think that the your piece here about using content to be in alignment with goals, I mean, the alignment is actually more important than really anything else. And so we start with, well, where do we need to be aligned? What do we need to be aligned on and not surprising? That goes back to your why, why are we doing this? What's driving us? What should we be driving and so the lesson learned earlier about what am I doing and why? And making sure that everybody has alignment on that is truly to me, and I've read it, and I've experienced it. Those two things together are essentially what we need to be successful in any endeavor.
I would agree. I mean, the
truth is misalignment kills us all. So it's like, and usually we don't see it until later because we're not paying attention. And it's not that it's
something that isn't obvious. We're
busy. We're operating on autopilot. We're running towards whatever the goal of the day is. And so as a result, we do get misaligned. But we also make the assumptions that works and then I find out two to three months later that we you know, skipped a step or missed a flag or something that we just overlooked and it comes back to bite so that's why I think checking in on that regular frequency is really important because it's really easy just to keep running towards something, whatever that is, personally or professionally, because that's what we're driven in. That's how we're rewarded.
Yeah, I would say my take away from listening to you share here is to build in a system and however that works for you. I love rewarding myself. So I like to work hard for my rewards. And so you know, maybe I put on my calendar that every quarter I'm going to do time to pause and reflect whether I feel frustrated or feel like I'm on top of the world that time to look and see what are my indicators telling me about alignment, what's working and what's not. And having met with all the other people talk to your peace about collaboration, anybody else that has a stake in your success, or you have a stake in theirs? getting them involved in that reflection systematically and regularly enough so that, like you said, you don't just keep going because we are hamsters in a wheel that we actually stop the wheel often enough to make sure we're moving in the right direction.
100% Well and corporate does this on a regular cadence, people do it, you know, in all facets of jobs and roles and so why not give your gift? Give yourself the gift of pause and do it for yourself too. I think we just get too busy and you know, busy can be it can be a disease in my book.
Oh yeah. I had a lunch date with a colleague and he said, I went to a workshop. And I bought this really great calendar that was designed to help me stay on track of whatever the goal of the program was. And he's like, I've had it sitting in my desk for six months, and I still haven't looked at it. And I you know, I mean it's not it's not his fault. We all are guilty of doing that. And so making whatever needs to happen for you to build in the regular check in personally and professionally is what I'm doing on track and doing that not alone. I think the collaborative piece anybody that has a stake in your success should be a part of that journey with you.
Well, I would add one more thing to that and I would make it fun. I am the first person to create a game, dress up, go outside and play, do something that's more childlike to make things more fun because when they're more fun, you get more engaged. And ask to your point about pulling out that calendar. When it's a task that feels Yeah, versus oh my god, this is gonna be great. Then you have a whole different experience with it. And so finding ways to keep things light, keep things fun, you know, make it like you said reward yourself. Make it a special day. Maybe you're gonna go out like I wouldn't get a donut and start figuring out how that looks. And really just play with it because I think we don't spend enough time laughing and playing everything is really serious all the time and not that it isn't but how you engage with it is really up to you. Well,
you just took my secret, which is the reason I'm doing this day long event on LinkedIn with people from a variety of perspectives is to help me because I want to hear everybody else's lessons learned and I like doing it publicly. And I like having organic conversations with people that have great questions that can help us all challenge our thinking and our assumptions, and we all improve as a result. So yep, and I of course I'm getting tons of energy from these conversations. And yeah, so do something that is enjoyable to help us stay on track with our alignment. So we've got just a few minutes left before we hit the bottom of the hour. Now would be the time if you've got a question. If you have a comment. If you'd like more information about anything that we've shared, please raise your hand I can bring you on stage and we can have a chat in a direction that you might be interested in going in. So I'll pause for a moment and let anyone raise their hand if they'd like to no pressure I can continue I could chat Kathy with you for like the rest of the day just like this and have so much fun. But if others would like to have that please raise your hand Yeah. Well, if you're thinking you have a question or you're unsure if you want to raise your hand or not. Oh we have one. Okay, here we go. Connie, you are going on stage
I had an unmute yourself Connie. You are with us live.
Okay, thank you. I just wanted to make a comment. I just joined this spontaneously and I'm so glad I did because I got so many nuggets out of it. biggest one being the pause in the why and also going with the flow and fluidity. So often I think especially as women in corporate we push we push. So we take that pause. We're more thoughtful and contemplative about what action to take next and more possibilities open up. So thank you, thank you.
Thank you for sharing that. And thank you for just randomly popping into this conversation. I love when those kinds of things happen. Like Kathy said, when you're in the flow, and things just show up and we just jump into them. You never know what can happen. So thank you again, Connie.
Actually Thank you.
Any other questions or comments that anyone might like to share with Kathy, before we wrap up? And that's okay, if you don't owe me you have one. I have one too. We're competing with Cathy's time. That's okay. Amy, I'm bringing you on stage.
I'll make it quick. I was just gonna add a fifth C which is commitment. And I think Kathy alluded to that but you know, you have the connection and the collaboration and communication but importantly, and I think you had one more in there but definitely commitment. Those two those goals that you said is critical to for any kind of change to happen.
Me I couldn't agree more. And I would start with commitment to yourself, because I think we're so driven and wired to help others and not that that's a bad thing. We need to start at home. Make sure our house is in order before we go outside. But
I agree. And you know why I like the systems piece. And this might seem counterintuitive because systems when you hear the word most people are like yuck. I don't want to do what system I don't want to have a process or a procedure. But that commitment is difficult when we get stuck in the minutiae of just everyday life and corporate life and families and personal goals that we're trying to accomplish. And so I think the commitment can show up by creating a system when you have downtime, like we're having this conversation on December 7 for a reason. Most of us have some holiday time off of work or children are home from school and we don't have as many things we have to do maybe maybe not. And yeah, making a system to check in and and reflect and doing something like this and event doing something with people that you love and care about happy hour gift exchanges, whatever that is. But yeah, the commitment can sometimes show up in the form of systematically making it easier on yourself to do the work that we know will make such a difference. So Kathy, I have one final question for you before we we wrap up our lovely conversation, and that is how will you know that you've made the improvements that you're looking to do in the new year? What are some of those things you're going to be looking at or monitoring to ensure that you're moving in that right direction aside from you know alignment is general but are there more specific you'd be looking at periodically to know that you're moving in the right direction? Absolutely. And
while this sounds obvious,
often I do I feel
literally how do I feel? You know we're told to leave our emotions at home which is true we don't want to be the drama queen at the office or you know, melting down in a meeting However, my Am I filled up and my renewed Am I energized or am I drained? Am I exhausted? am I unhappy? And not that everything we do from a work perspective can't be some of those things. But we go taking that personal inventory again to say I'm feeling good and I'm happy about what I'm doing. I'm usually in alignment if I'm frustrated and exhausted, I'm probably not. And that goes for the people in the situations that you're in to looking at who you're spending time with and how do you feel when you leave? Are you excited and renewed and full of energy? Are you exhausted and need to go home and take a nap? So it's really starting to look at managing your own personal energy at a different level about what's fulfilling you versus draining you and I'm so excited that I got HeartMath certified for this reason, which is really a changer for me because personal resilience that they teach and the tools that they offer, which you know are pretty basic. One of them is take a deep breath. When you think about, you know, really paying attention to how you feel not from a standpoint of effectiveness but physically monitoring your body around what that intuitive guidance system is telling you. And that's just not taught. And so I try to bring it up as much as I can when people ask you know, it's a new book. I think these are some of the basics that just talked about that are amazing tools. You can do in 30 seconds or less, and checking in with yourself. How do I feel in this moment?
That's so powerful. And I usually like to wrap up these conversations with you know, what's your call to action, but you've just shared it. Check in with how you're feeling as simple as that is, like you said, Cathy, data comes in a lot of forms. And you know, are we in alignment? How are we feeling? These are all data points. And I feel like a big nerd calling back into data but at the end of the day, I think sometimes we're resistant to data and math and metrics because we feel like it's not very human, but data comes in many forms and how you're feeling and checking in on that is a valuable data point to know if you're improving or you're detracting or you're in alignment with where it is you want to go. So thank you for that simple call to action. Brilliant.
Well, let's be clear data helps you learn the basic principle, you know, there you go. It's like the more you collect, the more data you have, the better your learning becomes and the better you're able to teach. So it's a full
I couldn't say it any better. Well, thank you Kathy, for your time. listeners. Thank you for your questions for your ears and your time also. This is number five of our seven are number six. In conversations today, Kathy, thank you for being a part of this great event. I'm learning so much and getting incredible amounts of energy. So thank you for your contribution to all of this.
Absolutely Atlanta anytime. It's always a pleasure to
chat. Absolutely to all right. You all have a wonderful rest of your day. Feel free to tune in for our last two conversations the top of the next two hours and we'll see you on LinkedIn otherwise