Missing the Gains in pursuit of the Goal

February 19, 2020 By DeanaFarrell 2 Comments

Are you missing the gains that are showing your progress while in pursuit of your goal?

No pain, no gain. We’ve all heard and know that sentiment as well as what it implies, but what if I told you that in your intense pursuit of your goal you may be missing the gains?

Without measurable results, how do we even know if we are on track toward closing the gap to our intended achievements?

Listen, I’m all about prioritized focus on what needs to be done as it relates to accomplishing the tasks it takes to see a goal met.

However, many of us can get so caught up and overly focused on the GO of our goals that we are missing the power of now.

Does that sound like you? Too wrapped up in what’s next that you miss the gift of now. I’ve been there (and revisit every now and again too)

Let’s take a moment and maybe even a breath to be present and assess where we are right now.

Are you distracted, depleted, discouraged or so completely driven and focused that you barely have time to notice your own reality, let alone that of anyone else?

I don’t claim to know where you are right now in your pain, gain or goal-getting journey or even the processing you are doing to sort it all out right now.

I may have just stirred up the tension of the gain in the pursuit of your goals and now you are feeling slightly annoyed with me.

Here’s what I do know, that while it’s good to pursue a goal, it’s imperative that we take the pauses to measure our gains for the purpose of encouragement, growth and dare I even say…motivation.

Working to appreciate the pains of my gains for the gains of my goals right there with ya,

Not sure how to get off the hamster wheel of to-do? Start here

Try these 3 E’s in order to increase your productivity

February 11, 2020 By DeanaFarrell Leave a Comment

It’s no secret that one of the biggest contributing factors to achievement is productivity.

We know this, so we are not going to spend time dissecting that “key to success”.

What we are going to do is look at 3 particular “areas” if you will, that I call the 3 E’s. These 3 areas believe it or not, may just have a whole lot to do with just how to increase your productivity.

No fluff, let’s get to it!

Area #1 is your ENVIRONMENT.

Think about, where it is that you are trying to be productive.

What does that area look like? How does it make you feel?

Listen, if I walk into my office and see a ton of clutter, I’m not exactly going to feel inspired.

Clutter is a total hindrance to our productivity. Oh, and not just the physical clutter either, you can read my thoughts on that here.

Let’s not neglect our people environment either. Yep, those that we surround ourselves with can make a difference in how much we actually get done too. (this includes social media) And here’s the kicker, they don’t necessarily even need to be present! What they say and how they treat you can stick around in your mind and affect your mindset long after you’ve left their presence.

So be conscious that your physical, mental and people environments can be significant contributing factors to your productivity.

Area #2 is your EXPERIENCE.

Once you’ve assessed your environment, now it’s time to get real and honest about your experience.

I’m going to throw another “known” out there at you…ready? Work smarter, not harder. Yet, for many of us we are no where near as productive as we could be simply because we lack the experience.

Hear me out on this one. We are sooo good on deciding to go after some big goals, but we fail to recognize our experience level in factoring in a realistic time-frame to achieve them.

What if we looked at our level of experience and marked out “stretch goals” on our way to the big goal instead of just working harder?

If I want to have a book to a publisher by the end of this year – BIG goal, I know, but I have to get real and honest about my experience and how that factors into my best possible productivity.

The less experienced me would try and bang that sucker out at spurts of inspiration. (Which I also know the old me well enough to know that “inspiration” would come by way of deadline – so I’d probably write the whole thing by October!) How good do you think that book would be?

BUT…knowing what I know now, tells me to factor in my experience and some serious stretch goals. My blog writing experience helps me map out realistic word counts, time of day that I write best as well as when to edit and review my work for best content.

Awareness of your experience when it comes to tackling a big goal will greatly increase progress and productivity.

Area #3 is your Execution.

Do we really need to elaborate on the importance of this factor? Probably not, but in case it’s not as obvious to everyone…

Productivity is not about how much you do as it is what you actually get done. I’ll wait while you read that again.

In other words…focus on how much you get done vs. how much you actually do. That, my friends is the secret to increasing your productivity

Got it? Good. Now use these 3 E’s to increase you actual productivity.

Working to recognize & improve my 3 E areas to increase productivity right there with ya,

Clutter-free spaces, cultivating your gifts and completing your work helps to not only make progress toward your goals, but keeps your inspired and productive. (oh, cute puppy faces help too!)

Need more help with improving your productivity?
Try this cheat sheet to goal setting.

Defined boundaries, less stress & more joy…

December 9, 2019 By DeanaFarrell Leave a Comment

How do you define boundaries, have less stress & more joy in your life?

Well, I can tell you right off the bat, it begins and ends with belief and commitment. For many of us, we make the answer to this question overly complicated, yet the solution can be fairly simple.

It’s the execution of that solution that trips most of us up. A lot.

Depending on how strong those two elements, belief and commitment, are in your life, is the degree of your defined boundaries and measure of stress and joy.

Take a look at that first element, belief.

Belief means that you accept something to be true or exists. It also means, you have confidence in that truth or existence.

Accept something as truth, and there’s suddenly more confidence in making decisions and even taking action.

Get distracted by an opinion or an obstacle, what happens? That belief begins to waver. The cycle of wavering is not a fun place to be and definitely not easy to get out of! (here are some tips about feeling stuck just in case you find yourself in a cycle of wavering)

Solidifying the basis of our beliefs becomes very important to achieving our biggest goals.

The stronger our belief, the stronger our commitment (that “other” element) to pursue that achievement. (whatever that may be)

I’ve written about commitment before, but didn’t tie in the belief factor, this is what I believe to be the separator of what’s achieved and what’s left wished for.

Solid commitments lead to…defined boundaries.

Defined boundaries lead to…less stress.

Less stress leads to…more joy.

Can you imagine a life with defined boundaries, less stress and more joy?

Being committed means that you are dedicated to a cause, an activity or quality.

We sure can be dedicated to paying bills for “stuff” we “need”, being “seen” in the “right areas/places” (oh, and our kids too) in person and online…and the list goes on.

Are we as committed to what’s growing us on the inside as much as we are busy “growing” what people see on the outside?

That’s where the rubber meets the road my friend, and where our beliefs reveal what and where we are truly committed to achieve!

Working on matching my beliefs to my commitments right there with ya,

This week – focus on defining your beliefs and how committed you are to them, then see where it leads!
Need some help? Maybe it’s time for Prioritized Focus Bootcamp.

Do you know who you really are beyond titles, labels and history?

September 7, 2019 By DeanaFarrell Leave a Comment

Who are you? What’s your “identity” beyond titles, labels and your history?

Seems an odd thing to question who you are, but I think it’s a powerful question. One that is often overlooked in the midst of our current culture pursuing personal growth.

We can answer:

what we do
what we are working, wishing and hoping for
who means the most to us and
where we’ve been and how we got to where we are

But, who are you? That’s a potentially loaded question.

Think about it for a moment. Can you answer that question without rattling off your rank, title or accomplishments?

I’m a wife, mother of three, volunteer, employee, Jesus lover, entrepreneur, reader, writer, daughter, sister, friend, p-uber driver (that’s hip for Mom Taxi…parent uber – get it?), encourager, divorced, ministry outcast, a talker, coffee lover, ball cap wearing, Chuck’s kicks, curly haired mess-terpiece making progress on my BIG goals! This list could go on for miles, as I’m sure the same is true for YOU too!

Some of those examples listed reflect my history and the labels put on me by others, some I totally own proudly, a few generic and others I’m still growing my faith in order to pursue more boldly.

I discovered years ago that when you get your identity right, everything else is figureoutable!

One of the first things I’m proud I get to do with my Prioritized Focus Bootcampers is to help them define their core values. We dig past the “normal” ones, to those that reflect WHO they really are created to BE! It’s not always easy or comfortable – getting gut-honest with yourself never really is, but so worth the process.

Once you are able to identify your identity beyond titles, labels and your history – you become a powerful decision maker.

You will find yourself very clear on the direction you want to go, even if you’re not sure of what it will take to get there, because you know WHO you need to be in order to get there.

Stop trying to fit in. If nothing else today, take some time to ponder this BIG question “Who are you?”.

Working on making progress toward what I need to do in order to live out who I was created to BE – right there with ya,

Here’s a bit about who I am – if you’re curious.

Dream Big, Plan Small

August 24, 2019 By DeanaFarrell Leave a Comment

We all have a big dream. Maybe even several depending on the season we find ourselves.

Some may have a clearer picture than others. Some may seem closer than others. And yet, some may have just thrown in the towel on their once was big dream.

How about you? Where’s your dream right now?

Is it on the forefront of your mind all. the. time. and you can’t stop thinking about it?

Maybe it’s just “somebody that you used to know” because you no longer believe it’s even possible or relevant to your life anymore. (well, that’s sad)

Well, I for one am a BIG DREAMER.

Some days I feel like my big dream is so close I could taste it and others you may as well call me Charlie Brown…

No matter where you find yourself on this Big Dream spectrum, there is one universal tip I can offer that will help you get closer and that is –

Plan Small.

Yep, that easy and that difficult at the same time.

Think about it, can you eat a whole cake in one bite, paint a ceiling in one stroke, wash, dry and fold your laundry all at once…get the picture?

Here are three things you can do right now to plan small when it comes to your big dream:

Begin with the end in mind
This means that you take time visualize what that Big Dream looks like as accomplished.
Write it down
What things need to happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd…keep making that list in order to map out your plan.
Choose one area of focus
If you suffer from S.O.S. this is not going to be easy, but just look at what you can get serious about for 30 days at a time.

No matter what your big dream is, know that without taking steps to make progress, it will just remain a dream!

Working on making progress on my Big Dream right there with ya,

Psst! This could be a huge help in getting you started on finally getting serious about your big dream.
I’m cheering for you and will continue to share resources, tips and helps as I myself discover and implement the ones that work for real life peeps like us! Keep going & growing friend 😉