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.

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 😉

Find your purpose or follow your passion?

August 10, 2019 By DeanaFarrell Leave a Comment

Raise your hand if you get confused when it comes to the difference between finding your purpose and following your passion.

(I see you, and you, and you…)

When it comes to the pursuit of happiness so many of us have been given the advice to just...find your purpose or follow your passion. Apparently we are to believe if we do this, we will not only find happiness, but success too. (woo! hoo! I’m in!)

Hmmm, then why are so many of us still unhappy and not measuring up to our picture of success?

So many of us are unhappy, unsuccessful and still can’t find our purpose or follow our passion because we’ve defined them wrong.

You don’t find happiness, it’s a state of mind. (and a D.O.S.E.)

Success is a journey and a process that is different for everyone. Newsflash, there is no exact formula, but there is one main ingredient and it’s called work.

Here’s what I found when it comes to the differences between purpose and passion.

Purpose

the reason for meaningful work
the result benefits others
has a focused aim
gives significance

Passion

the result of meaningful work
is about YOU (not necessarily selfish, but about you and what energizes you)
can change (one day you’re into painting, the next gardening)
gives satisfaction

Are we getting clearer or is there still some confusion?

Maybe you have the question…“Can my passion be my purpose?” because that is such a popular “success strategy” isn’t it?

Well, here’s how I would sum it up for you and then you decide.

Your purpose is not about your worldly goals – career, wealth, or recognition, but about having an impact.

Your passion can be a vehicle, but it’s not a destination – it’s the color behind your dreams.

We can use our passions in order to energize and refuel us in order to do the things necessary to become the person we need to be in order to achieve our purpose.

Our passions are personal and colorful and keep us from getting bored and giving up. Our purpose sets us apart from each other, yet for the benefit of each other.

Untangling the difference between passion and purpose right there with ya,

No matter your pursuit, something is always going to be in the way distracting you!
FREE printable – the 3 Steps to Defeat Distraction (every time, no matter what’s pulling at you)

How do I find the time to pursue my dream?

July 17, 2019 By DeanaFarrell Leave a Comment

Not only pursuing our dream, but someday living it is, well, a dream we all have.

The problem for most of us is in the quest to pursue our dream is that we are short on TIME & ATTENTION.

Let’s start with the first problem: time.

Where do you spend most of your time?

The average person spends the most time at work. About 13 years of their lifetime AND will have had about 12 different jobs!

Now let’s talk about that other problem: attention.

Did you know that the average attention span is now just 8 seconds?! That’s less than that of a goldfish! (who is 9 seconds, by the way)

Here’s two things that we know about our dreams, one, they are BIG and two, they are scary.

Big – why else would it be a dream of ours instead of an achievement of ours?

Scary – mostly because we overthink the entire process of getting there and overwhelm ourselves to the point we can’t even get started!

Okay, enough of the depressing reality of what we already know. What can we do about it?

Glad you asked (she types sarcastically).

5 things you can do NOW to pursue your dream even if you are short on time and attention:

#1 Unsubscribe

Yep, sounds basic, but if I were to ask you how many unread emails were sitting in your inbox right now, would there be less than 10? I can hear you laughing…

If it’s not something you are going to ACT on in the next 24 hours…DELETE.

Odds are the emails sitting there are because you gave your e-mail for a reason. Maybe it was a free printable of how to clean out your inbox, an e-book How-To clean out your inbox, a weekly newsletter with a blog of how to clean out your in box, a discount code for the e-course, etc. (getting the picture?)

Those may have captured your attention at the time and you got what you needed when you signed up, but is it still relevant now?

If it’s something you repeatedly delete, leave unopened or tell yourself you’re going to go back to it later (and do not)…UNSUBSCRIBE.

Seriously, stop getting the offers you KNOW you are not ready or going to act on or are helping you pursue your dream. It served it’s purpose at the time…move on.

#2 Find a mentor

Cliche’ I know, but hear me out on this one. We all need people in our corner to inspire, encourage, support and teach us, but for most of us – all of those “ingredients” do not all come wrapped up in the same person for each of the “categories” of our lives.

Can you think of different people that you find inspiring, encouraging, supportive and that you love to learn from for different areas of you life? How about ones that point you to the pursuit of your BIG & SCARY dream?

I know for me, a lot of those people are ones that I have never even met in person. Yet, they inspire, encourage, support and teach me through their writing, their speaking, their videos, conferences and even emails.

Yep, I subscribe to the emails that I know I will open each and every time because it will either inspire, encourage, support what I’m trying to accomplish and/or teach me how to do it!

#3 Read, watch, listen.

This goes hand in hand with the above tip.

There are countless books, blogs and articles can you read about whatever topic you can think of! So imagine reading one that is specific to your particular need right now. When you see the words, you remember them better. (just sayin’)

What podcasts or audio courses can you be listening to instead of the radio or your playlist while you are commuting, cleaning or working out?

Are there YouTube videos you can watch instead of another Netflix binge?

How about a conference, seminar or workshop? Face to face interaction and hearing from the person who’s passionate about the topic is so helpful, not to mention, refreshing!

Do you see how all of these can propel you toward progress in pursing your dream?

#4 Create a “happy place”.

Not everyone can hop a jet to a luxurious locale that ends with feet propped up, a tasty beverage in hand and a breathtaking view to post on social.

However, you can create a space that you can retreat to in order to refresh, refuel or just relax. (even if it’s super short-lived)

A hot bath with the door locked and earbuds to drown out the knocking. (’cause your peeps will come knocking)

A small part of your closet with cushy pillows where you can pretend you’re E.T. hidden behind the clothes, but with a Tervis cup filled with something adultish with a lid and straw. (don’t want to get thirsty or spill wine on that dress that’s two sizes too small)

Listen, even if it’s a corner of the couch with a cozy blanket, lit candle and a tasty hot beverage.

Not gonna lie, sometimes a cold drink in my car in the garage with the radio on is a sweet spot for a few, til I’m discovered.

I’m just saying, do what you have to do in order to find the space and place that allows you to exhale. (even if it’s just for a few minutes)

#5 Have a good ‘ol Brain Dump

I’m not even going to elaborate on this one because I wrote a whole article about it here. (go check it out) Besides, I’m waaay past your 8 second attention span!

Congrats if you have read this far – you have exceeded the average person’s 8 second attention span!
So proud of you!! You really are a goal-getter!

Listen, pursuing any dream is not easy, especially these days when time and attention is so very short! But I hope with tips like these YOU will be making progress!

Making progress toward pursuing my dream with steps like this right there with ya,

Still not sure you’ll have the time? Here’s a 3 Step “filter” to be sure you DO!