Do You Have Mentors or Sponsors?

Whether you’re a man or a woman, you’ve probably heard time and again how important it is to have at least one strong mentor to guide you and help you develop the skills to get to the next level in your career. Most large companies even offer formal or informal mentoring programs. So you might think that both genders benefit equally from having a mentor. However, a Harvard Business Review article, Why Men Get More Promotions than Women, highlights that men benefit more than women.

The article shares research from a 2010 study by Catalyst, a leading nonprofit organization that works with businesses to build inclusive workplaces and expand opportunities for women and business.

Here is one of the most notable findings from the research:

“Although women are mentored, they’re not being promoted. A Catalyst study of more than 4,000 high potentials shows that more women than men have mentors— yet women are less likely to advance in their careers. That’s because they’re not actively sponsored the way the men are. Sponsors go beyond giving feedback and advice; they advocate for their mentees and help them gain visibility in the company. They fight to get their protégés to the next level.”

The article goes on to say that men and women both mention receiving valuable career advice from their mentors, but men predominantly describe being sponsored. Women explain that their mentoring relationships help them better understand themselves and how they work, and what they might need to change as they move up the corporate ladder. Men, on the other hand, tell more stories about how their bosses and mentors have helped them strategically plan their career moves, assume responsibility and leadership in new roles, and openly support their authority.

The research certainly has implications for organizations as they design mentoring programs and explore how to best support the advancement of women. But there are also important implications for what you should personally do. Here are three suggestions to think about:

1. Recognize the distinction between mentorship and sponsorship.

Both mentors and sponsors offer tremendous value in helping you develop yourself and proactively manage your career. Mentors typically serve as role models, providing guidance and perspective to help you further develop your skills and navigate challenging political situations. Sponsors, on the other hand, give you exposure to opportunities and visibility to influential leaders, and advocate on your behalf.

2. Have mentors and sponsors in your network.

Recognize that the skills required to be an effective mentor may be different from what it takes to be an effective sponsor. Mentors can typically hold any position in the organization and can help you close gaps in your skills, while sponsors have clout and yield considerable influence on key decision-makers. Remember to have both mentors and sponsors in your network, using your career goals as important context for whom you engage.

3. Be mindful of whom you choose.

It may be more comfortable for you to choose individuals who look like you. In fact, the research shows that men tend to gravitate toward men and women to women. However, when it comes to sponsors, more important than gender is the person’s role and level in the organization. Remember that it’s critical to gain sponsorship from leaders who hold senior-level positions and have influence and power. As you think about mentors, think about the skills you are trying to build and who may be able to help you fill those gaps.

So, to get you started, take a look at your existing network in the context of what you’re trying to accomplish personally and professionally. This will serve as an important guide to identify whom to engage as mentors and sponsors to get the support you need.

Networking for Results

When we expanded our business into the Dallas/Fort Worth area, several people commented on how quickly we plugged into the local business community and asked what we did to make it happen. Here are three simple strategies that have worked for us and our clients.

1. Get clear.

Networking can be a full-time job if you let it. So before you dive in, clarify what you want to accomplish personally and professionally. Developing specific goals will help you focus on who and what matter most, make the best use of your time, and make networking less overwhelming.

Let's take the example of Susan, a leader who told me that she really needs to start networking but finds it draining and difficult. Given her busy schedule, she just doesn’t know how to make it happen. I asked her what she was trying to accomplish. Susan explained that she is ready to take on a bigger role at her company, but that she cannot travel extensively. She admitted that her ideal role may be difficult to get at her company, so she will need strong sponsors to make it happen.

In particular, there are two leaders who could strongly influence her career path. Susan needs to make sure that they know who she is and how she is adding value. As a backup plan, Susan needs to build her external network to identify opportunities outside her company. Because we clarified Susan’s goals first, she could quickly develop a list of people she needs to network with internally and externally.

2. Be consistent.

Most people focus on their networks when they need something. They typically view networking as optional vs. core to achieving their goals. If this sounds all too familiar, I would urge you to set aside time each week to strengthen your network. Remember that it doesn’t have to be time- consuming. Even 5-10 minutes per week can go a long way. For example, in less than five minutes, you can send a quick email about an event or article of interest, make an introduction to someone your contact would enjoy meeting, or ask for advice or input.

As you develop your strategies, think about what would be of service to the person with whom you are cultivating a relationship. Whatever your approach, communicate regularly so that you stay top of mind.

3. Show your stuff.

The best way for people to get to know you is by seeing you in action. Volunteer for something that showcases your strengths, fits with your passion, and helps you develop strong relationships with the right people. When you get involved, others will notice how you think and the value that you bring — as long as you follow through on your commitments. Otherwise, you risk damaging relationships instead of advancing them. Again, you don’t have to invest a lot of your time, but be clear about how much time you can give and carve out something manageable.

Because networking can feel overwhelming, start by developing one achievable goal. For example, you could carve out ten minutes this week to clarify what you want to achieve through networking. If you already know, invest those ten minutes instead to reach out to someone with whom you want a stronger relationship. Remember to look for opportunities within what is already on your calendar (e.g., meetings, calls, etc.), rather than adding more to-do’s to your list!

Do You Have Strong Peer Relationships?

The importance of peer relationships keeps emerging as a theme with my clients. Strong leaders recognize that their leadership must extend beyond managing up and down; they must also manage effectively across the organization. Although it may not be on your radar screen, peers play an important role in providing perspective on your performance, no matter how far removed they may be from your do day-to-day activities.

Even if you don’t need much of your peers’ involvement to achieve your business results, most companies expect you to care about and invest in their success. An investment in your peers demonstrates your willingness to go beyond what matters in your microcosm of the world, to think about how you can make a difference in other parts of the company.

Ask yourself the following questions to quickly assess your peer relationships:

1. How well do you know your peers?

Using a scale of 1-10 (with 10 the highest), rate the strength of your relationship with each peer. Do you know what challenges your peers face, pressures they feel, or what goals are most critical to them? Based on this information and the strength of your relationship, with whom should you invest more time?

2. What do your peers think of you?

Do your peers view you as someone who is willing to give them support? To quickly assess this, think about how much time you spend listening, problem- solving, or brainstorming with your peers and the degree to which you think beyond your scope of responsibility.

3. What value can you offer to your peers?

As you consider your strengths, background, and experience, how can you leverage them for your peers? What can you offer in the context of what matters to them? If you don’t know enough about their priorities, find out.

As you contemplate your responses to the questions above, identify one peer relationship that you would like to strengthen in the next six months. Come up with a small step you will take this week to get the ball rolling, and remember that small steps can lead to big results

© 2013 Neena Newberry | All rights reserved.

The Impact of the Company You Keep

I do a lot of speaking about building a network of powerful advocates, something

that women often underestimate. When you really take time to think about it, whom you surround yourself with makes a huge difference. Think about your network and how you might strengthen it. As you think about the three questions below consider the people you currently rely on regularly (e.g., your core network).

1. Do they look like you?

One of the most valuable things you can do is surround yourself with people who challenge your ideas and bring different perspectives. How many of the people in your core network have thinking styles, perspectives, and experiences similar to your own? If most are like you, you may be inadvertently limiting your ideas.

2. Do they extend your expertise?

Another important dimension that you may underestimate is expertise. To what extent do the people in your network, whether personal or professional contacts, expand your knowledge and understanding? Do they work in different industries? How much can you learn from them?

3. Do they span different levels?

Finally, knowing people at different levels of the hierarchy can benefit you immensely. Consider the value a network like this would hold if you were leading a change effort across the company and needed to get the pulse of the organization. It could also bring forward new ideas and perspectives from people who are closer to the day-to-day business activity. Don’t forget to consider leaders with power and influence, a group that women often focus less on. Remember that they can be valuable advocates and resources to get things done.

As you read through the questions above, what jumped out at you about your own network? Where do you see opportunities to strengthen it? Remember the breadth of your network impacts your diversity of thought, knowledge, access to resources, and ability to get things done quickly.

So, your challenge is to identify one person whom you would like to strengthen a relationship with in the next six months and the first step you will take to do so. Remember that small steps can lead to big results.

© 2012 Neena Newberry | All rights reserved.

Are You Being Strategic About Relationships?

I get asked all the time about how to build a strong network of advocates. Advocates are people with power and influence who can give you important exposure, shield you from negative consequences and criticism, and recommend you for new positions or visible assignments.

If you aren’t paying attention to building these relationships, here are three steps to help you be more strategic about your approach:

1. With whom do you want to cultivate relationships?

In the context of your professional goals, identify the top three people with whom you need to develop stronger relationships. They may be people you don’t know at all or individuals who have had some exposure to you. Often they can be people who already have a positive impression of you, but you haven’t asked them to take any action on your behalf in the past. Be specific about what you would want them to do on your behalf and make it easy for them to do so. Come prepared with the right information.

2. What would success look like for your next conversation with them?

What would you want to have as the outcome of that conversation? How do you want to “show up”? In other words, think about any aspects of your brand that you’d want to focus on or what you would want them to know about you. Think about not only your key strengths, but also experiences and results. For example, if you want to come across as competent, you can do that through the quality and caliber of the questions you ask in addition to the types of examples you share about the work you’ve done. Figure out what approach works best for you.

3. What can you offer them?

Offer them something of value. For example, you might be able to share articles or other resources relevant to their interests or specific challenges they’re facing. You may have contacts with similar interests who might be beneficial for them to know. You may be able to give them exposure by inviting them to speak or be on a panel in a professional association that you participate in. Or you may be able to invite them to an event that would be of interest to them.

One of the most important things to remember is to be consistent. Allocate time to cultivate these relationships each month. It doesn’t have to be time-consuming. The key is to stay top of mind so that when opportunities do arise they will think of you. So, what step will you take this week to put this into play? Remember that small steps can lead to big results.

© 2012 Neena Newberry | All rights reserved.

Put Your Network to Work

When people think of networking, they often think about how to expand the size of their network. But you can also harness the power of your existing network to achieve your goals.

Take the example of my client Susan. When I began coaching her, Susan was frustrated with her job and was ready to make a career change. However, she had been so focused on doing her day-to-day work that she had invested little to no time maintaining or building her network within or outside the company. Sound familiar? Read on to learn more about the process we used to help her make a change and put her network to work:

1. Brainstorm a list of five contacts who can help in the context of your specific goal.

After outlining Susan’s ideal next role in marketing, we brainstormed names of five individuals to whom she should reach out. I challenged her to think about personal and professional relationships. Just taking ten minutes to go through this exercise helped Susan think of people she had completely overlooked.

2. Determine the current and desired strength of your relationship with them.

Using a scale of 0-10, we rated the strength of Susan’s existing relationships with each of these five individuals. She rated the people she had very strong relationships with already a 10, while those she had never met were rated a 0. We used the same scale to determine what she wanted the strength of each relationship to become over the next six months to a year. These ratings helped her focus and prioritize her efforts.

3. Identify someone who can introduce you to the people you have not met.

For the individual Susan did not personally know on her list, she identified someone in her current network who knew him or could at least help identify the right next step to meet him.

4. Develop specific relationship-building strategies by person.

Next, Susan and I brainstormed at least one or two strategies to further build the relationships with each of the five individuals. Sometimes, this is where people get stuck — especially if they already feel pressed for time. But networking doesn’t have to be time-consuming. It can be as simple as sending someone an article that’s relevant to her, sharing information on an upcoming event she may want to attend, making a point to introduce yourself at a meeting, or asking her for a 15-minute meeting to get career advice or her input about something you’re working on.

Just remember that the goal is to network in a way that is authentic for you and leaves a positive impression. So, as you develop these strategies, think about what you want the other person to remember about you.

5. Set deadlines for each strategy.

Finally, to really put some accountability in place, I asked Susan to set deadlines for each of the networking strategies she identified. This helped her maintain focus and track progress.

Susan put her network to work and got her dream job (which was also a promotion for her) in three months! She moved into a very different type of role than she had held in the past. Even though this example is about career transition, the steps above can be applied to any goal. How do you want to put your network to work?

How Influential Is Your Network?

Influence is a key leadership skill, and we'll be talking about it throughout April. I want to kick off the discussion by looking at a blind spot some women have around influence: the power and influence of their network. As an executive coach who specializes in working with high-performing women leaders, I've noticed that women often don't think about whether their networks include the right influencers to help them achieve their business or professional goals.

This involves taking a step beyond creating a network of leaders who support you. It's also making sure that people with the power and influence to help you advance your goals are in this group.

Leadership Concept

Think about the business results you have committed to delivering or how you want to take your career to the next level. Who needs to be on board to make your goals happen? Be strategic about making sure that your network includes those people.

This approach can make some people uncomfortable, so I want to stress something. Being strategic about who's in your network does not mean you have to be disingenuous. Sometimes women get stuck here because they assume that they can't strategically build their network and still be authentic.

I help the leaders I work with learn how to add key influencers to their network in a way that’s true to who they are. I'll tell you what I tell my clients: Start by clarifying your intent around your network-building. In other words, how would it benefit the organization and your team, even if you will personally benefit? With that in mind, what words would you use to engage someone while keeping your values and leadership principles in mind? If you are someone who is always focused on doing the right thing for the business or adding value, below are three examples of what you might say to initiate a conversation.

“I want to learn more about the priorities and challenges in your part of the business so that my team knows how to best work with you and develops solutions to meet your needs. Can we schedule 15 minutes to talk?”

“I want to keep expanding my knowledge of the business, so I better understand where my skills and experience can add the most value. Can we meet for a few minutes?”

“I’m committed to growing and learning, so I can fully leverage my skills at the company. Can we meet for a few minutes so I can ask you what’s made the biggest difference in your career?”

This week, I challenge you to identify and engaging one influential person in a way that aligns with your values. Let me know how it turns out.

If you want to go deeper on the topic of Influence, check out our Leadership EDGE SeriesSM booklet on Building Influence or my book, Show Up. Step Up. Step Out.

Career Mentorship: Give It AND Receive It

I firmly believe that using our skills, experiences and knowledge to provide career mentorship is a privilege. So it might not surprise you that mentoring has always been one of my passions. I am excited that I get to play out my passion in several ways – in my role as an executive coach, in how I use career mentorship to help others grow and develop, and through my decisions which range from how I focus my volunteer work, choose interns for my team, and the tools and resources I create for others.

In the spirit of helping others grow, I also serve as faculty and a mentor for the Women's Initiative Fellows Program of the George W. Bush Institute. Though this pro bono work, I get to play a role in the program’s primary focus: empowering women to catalyze change around the world. Talk about exciting! I have to admit that this experience is just as rewarding for me as it is for the Fellows from Tunisia.

I just returned from a trip to Rome where the mentors met with the Fellows to reinforce what they have learned in the past 9 months, and to prepare them to teach and mentor others as they wrap up their program. I'm honored to be part of this group of mentors who are serious movers and shakers, like Diane Paddison (a former global executive of two Fortune 500 companies), Judy Verses (President, Global Enterprise & Education at Rosetta Stone), Jan Langbein (CEO of Genesis Women’s Shelter) and former ambassador Kristen Silverberg.

600BusinessMentor

The Other Side of Career Mentorship

As I continue my journey, I recognize that I still need career mentorship myself because I'm at a different professional stage than when I started my business almost seven years ago. To think and play bigger, I need to keep inviting people with fresh ideas, experiences, and perspectives to help me have the kind of impact I want to have.

If finding mentors seems to be harder for you now than it was when you started out in the corporate world, here are a few tips on finding career mentorship. They're useful no matter your situation, but they're especially helpful for people who are midcareer and/or working outside of a corporate structure.

• Get serious. Maybe you had more structured mentoring relationships earlier in your career but have let those fall away as you advanced. In my situation, I have had mentors on and off, but as I focus on a new stage of my business, I know I need more structured career mentorship again.

• Be clear about what you need. Think about what you need for your leadership development or business growth at this stage of your career. Then look for mentors who have already have those skills and accomplishments and who can share their know-how with you.

• Take a team approach. Chances are, one mentor won't have all the knowledge and insights you're looking for right now. That's why it's helpful to think in terms of having an advisory board rather than a single mentor. Maybe one of your mentors has a long track record of starting businesses, another has relationship skills you want to model and a third has the product expertise to advise you.

• Tap your network. Now that you know the kind of career mentorship you need, you can look for the right advisers. The best starting point is your own network. Does anyone currently in your network fit the career mentorship roles you need? If not, can they introduce you to people who do? Because you've taken the time to get specific about what you need ("I'm looking for mentors who can advise me on repositioning a company for growth and product marketing."), they'll have an easier time connecting you with the right people.

This week, take a look at the role mentoring currently plays in your career. How are you giving and receiving career mentorship? And how does that sync up with your career goals and the support you need to meet them? How do you share your most important skills and insights? For more advice on career mentorship and other essential career relationships, check out my Leadership EDGE SeriesSM booklet, "Building a Powerful Network" or the WOW! ProgramSM.

Don't Overlook Peer Relationships

As an executive coach, I work with a lot of high performers who are thinking about how to get to the next level in their careers. At the end of a recent call with an executive at AT&T, I asked him what factors he thought people overlooked or underestimated in their quest to move up.  

His answer? Peer relationships.

When people are trying to advance, the first place they look is above them, this executive explained. Whom should they be trying to impress? Whom do they need exposure to?

His advice is to stop looking up as much and start looking around. Your relationships with your peers might not come into play for you every day, so they might fall of your radar. But remember that they do affect your career progression.

This executive considers one measure of success to be whether your peers seek out your opinion and advice. It's easier to look good to the people above you, he points out. But your peers really know what's going on "in the trenches" and will certainly weigh in if you are being considered for a promotion, especially if they might become your direct reports.

He gives this advice for building peer relationships:

• Cultivating relationships with your peers starts with how you treat your own team. You can't get support from peers if you're not treating your own people well.

• Share credit broadly with your own team and others. When something bad happens, take the fall instead of trying to assign blame.

• Focus on doing positive things for your peers. By lifting them up and investing in building strong relationships with them, you will foster loyalty and support.

And I'd add these tips:

• Take the time to get to know your peers: their challenges, their pressures, their goals and what's important to them personally and professionally.

• Invest time to listen, problem-solve or brainstorm with your peers. Being able to offer an outside perspective can be invaluable to them.

• Look for what you can offer your peers. How can you put your strengths, values and experiences to use for them?

Consistently working on your peer relationships will pay off when you are being considered for a promotion. You can bet that your peers will get asked what they think of you then.

You'll find more ideas on strengthening your peer relationships in my ebooklet "Building aPowerful Network." It's part of The Leadership EDGE SeriesSM.

This week, identify one peer relationship you would like to strengthen and one small step you can take to cultivate it. Remember that small steps can lead to big results – and in this case might help you advance.

Check In on Your Relationships

In October, we've been working with the theme of relationships. In our first post of the month, I challenged you to identify your most important relationships at work and focus on improving the ones that were a little rocky. How did that go for you? Using the approach below, let’s take a look at your progress:

• First, list the priority relationship(s) you wanted to improve. For example, maybe you focused on your relationships with your boss and with one of your direct reports.

• Next, for each person, jot down what has improved.

"My boss is taking more time to understand my ideas instead of cutting me off or multi-tasking when I speak." "My direct report has gone from complaining to me all the time to now beginning to offer some productive suggestions."

Remember, relationships take time to cultivate. Even small changes can be positive indicators. Notice what has happened as well as what doesn’t anymore. For example, you may no longer be having difficult conversations with the person.

• Then, identify what worked. The third step is the most important one. Here, list what worked. Notice the actions you took that improved the relationship. With your boss, maybe the difference-maker was engaging in strategic self-promotion or strengthening your relationships with her trusted advisers so they could share positive feedback about you (the messenger does matter). With your direct report, maybe you saw changes start to happen when you made the effort to find out what was important to him, limit the time he was allowed to vent, and help him remove barriers in the way of his goals.

By taking the time to notice what helped you strengthen these relationships, you will more proactively put these strategies into play. In effect, these are your personal best practices and leveraging them is a powerful strategy that many often overlook.

I hope that you'll take away some new insights on your relationships from our work this month, and I challenge you to keep investing just a few minutes each week. It doesn’t have to be time consuming, but your focus on relationships should be consistent. You'll find ideas on how to do that in my new Leadership EDGE SeriesSM e-booklets "Building Influence" and "Building a Powerful Network." And remember that small steps can lead to big results!

Strengthen Your Leadership by Building Relationships

This month, we'll be talking about how to build strong relationships, an essential for any leader. As you advance in your career, your success becomes more tied to the quality of your relationships because leaders have to get things done with and through others.  

As we start this discussion, I want to challenge you to focus on cultivating your own relationships this month. Today, I'll help you identify your most important relationships and give you some ideas for improving the ones that are little rocky. At the end of the month, we'll check back in on what you accomplished. Ready to get started?

Your key relationships

Among key stakeholders in the company, who really impacts your ability to get results? Remember that their influence may be through formal power that comes with their position or informal power as an opinion leader in your organization. Make a list of these individuals, putting them into one of three categories: high, moderate, or low impact.

Next, consider their level of supportiveness toward you and your goals. Who is an advocate, who is neutral, and who could be a derailer? Confirm your assessments with people that you trust — especially individuals who can give you insight based on direct interaction. Once you have completed this exercise, identify who has a high impact on your results and is either neutral or a potential derailer. If you identify several people, choose 2-3 to focus on first.

It’s important to understand that some of these individuals may have formed their perceptions about you through others, not through direct experiences with you. For example, a few months ago, one of my clients learned that a key executive wanted her out of the company even though he had never worked with her. Through our coaching process, she turned his perception around by consistently demonstrating her value, building a strong leadership brand, and developing stronger authentic relationships with his trusted advisors. That same executive is now a strong supporter, although the level of direct interaction with my client is still minimal.

Strategies to improve rocky relationships

Now, armed with your list of priority relationships, how do you make the rocky ones better? These three strategies are a good start:

1. Have the right mindset. The No. 1 thing you can do to improve a relationship is to start from a place of acceptance. I realize that can be tough when you dislike certain things about her behavior or how she deals with you. If you expect her to show up as she always has, it will be less of a derailer in your conversation. Just contemplate what would happen if you approached her without expecting that anything will change, and with the assumption that she's doing the best she can.

1. Find common ground. Take the time to consider what's most important to the other person. Look for clues in how he invests his time, what he says and does. What overlaps with what is important to you? Even if you dislike each other personally, you can improve your interactions by emphasizing where you are aligned – whether it’s your passion for growing the business or interests you have outside of work.

1. Avoid triggers. Take a few minutes to consider the other person’s hot buttons. For example, if she gets defensive every time she hears "no" or other words that sound like resistance or disagreement, how can you rephrase your message? ("Yes, I understand, and let's also consider …")

This week, I want to challenge you to identify at least one high priority relationship and one step you will take to strengthen it. I'm looking forward to sharing more ideas and strategies with you this month, and to checking in with you at the end of October to see how your relationship-building work has gone.

You can find additional ways to strengthen relationships in my new Leadership EDGE booklets "Building Influence" and "Building a Powerful Network." Remember that small steps can lead to big results.

Who’s in Your Corner?

A recent Harvard Business Review article asked the question, “Are you sponsor-worthy?” The article shared the example of an employee who gave “110 percent” but didn’t focus her efforts on people who would invest in her. While her efforts were commended, senior leaders with power and influence were not members of her network of advocates. As a result, she found herself stuck in what she called “permanent lieutenant syndrome.” 

I see this happen often, as many of my clients fall into the trap of thinking their good work is enough.  It often takes people a while to realize that who they know is just as important as the quality of their work.  As they shy away from office politics, they overlook the fact that their relationships give them access to resources, information and influence they need to get things done.  

When was the last time you took a hard look at your own network and assessed it against the areas that drive high performance and high satisfaction? Research shows that the six key dimensions include expertise, personal support, power, purpose, development and balance?  And remember that the quality of your network matters far more than the number of people that you know. At the end of the day, a balanced, high quality network can make a huge difference in your ability to get results and advance, and increase your job satisfaction.  

If this is an area where you could use some help, check out the module in my WOW! Women on the Way to Peak Performance ProgramSM.  Entitled “Building a Network of Advocates”, the module offers tools to assess your network against critical dimensions so you understand where you have gaps and know where to focus. It also gives you specific strategies to start making changes today. You can download this module from my website and the complete program when it’s convenient for you.  

Taking time to assess who is in your corner can mean the difference between giving your all for nothing or making sure your efforts are recognized and applauded.

Give Yourself an Ear Worm!

Have you ever heard a song on the radio in the morning that stuck with you throughout the day? Some call that an ear worm - a catchy piece of music that continually repeats through a person's mind after it is no longer playing1. And according to research, 98% of us experience these pesky occurrences every once in a while. But what if your ear worm worked to your advantage?   My WOW! Women on the Way to Peak PerformanceProgramSM can give you just the messages you need to take your performance and career to the next level. If you’re not ready for the full program, the Lite version includes two high impact modules – “Getting the Right Work Done” and “Building a Network of Advocates” – to help you keep some powerful tools front and center.

“Getting the Right Work Done” focuses on:

* Determining the three most critical areas where you can make the biggest business impact

* Understanding where you are getting side-tracked

* Develop strategies to ensure you are getting the right work done

Listening to this audio module periodically during the year can serve as a checkup or help you refocus on the most important areas for success.

“Building a Network of Advocates” helps you assess and strengthen your current network of colleagues and contacts, to help you get results and advance your career with advocates in your corner.

* How do your attitudes and beliefs impact your ability to network?

* Who should you leverage in your network?

* Strategies to strengthen your network in a way that works for you

* Develop action steps to leverage your contacts to achieve your goals

Designed with busy professionals in mind, you can download and listen to these two 30-minute modules from my website here at your convenience. They come with transcripts and exercises to help you get the most out of the content. Whether you need a boost in the morning to make sure you are showing up the right way, or would like to have a coach available at the press of a button when tackling a difficult challenge, these audio programs will give you a positive ear worm!

1 Wikipedia definition – ear worm