SigmaU Blog

Perhaps you're embarking on a new year with grand ambitions. Some goals may even seem risky and require courage to take on.

Calculated risk is what high achievers do to leapfrog past average performers. They demonstrate courage more often than their peers and as a result, they see consistent and significant success.

We’re naturally inclined to minimize risk or avoid it all together. But what if we thought about risk in a new way? 

R- RISE UP

New levels if success will require us to abandon old habits and patterns that aren't in line with the person required to meet our bold goal. Look at calculated risk towards a big goal as a way to rise up. What are some of the habits you currently have that no longer serve the person you’re striving to become? What habits do you currently do that support that future best self and how can you amplify them to reach your goal? Where do you find inspiration to rise? Is it a friend, coach, author, or podcast host? What would it look...

Many of us see others and put them on pedestals. We assume that they know more than us and have an advantage when it comes to realizing their goals and dreams.

The reality is that you and I are equally as equipped or we can develop the skills required to make the same things happen.

Clarity is Key.

You need to know what you want in finite detail so that you can start acting the part of the person it would take to achieve that goal. Clarity will also keep you on course. You’ll have awareness around who and what will hinder or help you inch closer to your goals.

Faith is Imperative.

Having faith that it’s possible is incredibly important. If you don’t believe it for yourself, no one else will believe it either. Have faith that you will accomplish your goal. One important note, as the good book says “faith without works is dead.” We have to take diligent action in pursuit of our goals. We cannot pray for a miracle; we have to be an active participant!...

Robin Sharma wrote a book called “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari” and in that book he talked about the importance of clarity. He used the example of an archery target and how we cannot hit a target we do not see. He expressed the importance of crystal-clear goals so we know we’re on track and to motivate us.

I was reminded of this concept this morning when I jumped on the treadmill. When I start my workouts, the first thing I do is look at my strain goal for the day. Then I get fired up and determine to not only hit that target but surpass it.

This morning, my performance band didn’t indicate my target strain. It was calculating the minutes, the calories, and my current strain but it didn’t register my goal. I’ll be honest, it threw me off. I need to have a crystal-clear goal in mind to get me pumped up. Chances are you do too. 

The challenge is that most of us have vague goals. I know that prior to working with a coach, I had goals like...

The eternal optimist in me tends to avoid the negative and at times I must admit that I’d rather bury my head in the sand than face reality.

During COVID I started doing a lot of journaling. It brought clarity and increased focus and purpose for me. I’ve spoken about that in a recent blog (https://www.growwithsigmau.com/blog/Journaling).  One of the questions in my High-Performance Journal triggered me when I first saw it. 

The question is “A situation that might stress me out or trip me up today could be…” and the next question “And the way my best self would deal with that is…”.

I’ll admit, I didn’t want to answer the question at first. The question itself literally tripped me up! I resisted it because my rationale was to look for the good. If we look for the bad, we tend to find it.  While that may be true, when I started answering this question it placed me in a much better position to deal with...

Life can pass us by so quickly! The days pass, the weeks and then ultimately the months. Unfortunately, most go through life at such a speed that things become a blur. 

I did this for years and then found I had a sense of discomfort. I was unfulfilled. While I had met several of my professional and personal goals, I felt something was missing.

Then I read "Do the Work" with Dr. Nicole LePera, who teaches journaling as part of the healing process.

Here's what simple, daily journaling did for me...

Slow Down

Taking the time to write out the answers to these questions posed by Dr. Nicole, I found myself slowing down to be present and really think through how I wanted my day to unfold.

Here are the questions I journal...

Today I am...

Today I am optimistic, confident, and kind.

I am grateful for...

I list all the amazing things about life.

Today I am practicing...

Today I am practicing fierce...

Life can be humming along and then WHAM! You’re thrown a curveball. This can be a health crisis, losing a job, losing a loved one, a divorce, a natural disaster.  Curveballs are unexpected and knock us off our feet. For how long, is up to us.  There are a few ways in which you can manage curveballs, so you can still swing the bat when they come hurling your way.

1. Recalibrate

The first thing we forget to do when we’re in crisis is breathe.  There’s a reason why the EMS driver will tell you to count to ten and breathe. Our brains need oxygen to function and think clearly.  If the world is spinning around you, remember that you can control your breath. During the darkest days of the pandemic, when I felt like things were spiraling out of control, I came back to my breathing.  There are amazing exercises which you can look up online or simply stop, plant both feet firmly on the floor and take five deep belly breaths to recalibrate.

2. Assess...

Clarity is incredibly powerful. Why?

When we have complete clarity about what it is we want in life, what we stand for and what our big North Star is, it gives us a sense of peace. It provides assurance that our efforts are counting towards something. Often, when we don't have clarity, we can bumble through each day, get a multitude of tasks completed, are very busy and may even feel some sense of productivity and accomplishment.  However, we can be left wondering if we’re making a significant difference at all.

When we have complete clarity, we know where we're headed, and what we want to achieve.  We have vision.  More importantly, that big North Star gets us excited and fired up and helps us build momentum. We’re more optimistic because we're working towards something that really matters to us.

Clarity also provides us with total focus so that we can determine what our distractions are. Meaning, what are the activities, people,...

I’ve been thinking a lot about legacy lately and a new dream is forming on my heart.  I want to impact tween girls so that their lives are forever changed through personal development.

As an eleven year old girl, I was 5’2” and 210lbs. Not exactly the epitome of health or confidence! I always had great friends in school, but I was also always very self-conscious and would longingly look at my friend’s tiny waistlines and wonder what it was like to be skinny. I would long to be the one running the track and “own the room” like some of the popular girls in my class.

Looking back, I’m so glad that I went through that awkward period in my life because I believe it has shaped me to be the person I am today. I can have compassion when people struggle with their weight. I know what it’s like to feel stuck, not knowing where to start.

I’m sharing this because I believe that most tween girls are experiencing the same pain and...

I had never even heard the term false obligations until I started studying high performance habits and Brendon Burchard’s work.  In fact, the thought never dawned on me that I had been wrapped up in false obligations and the stress that accompanied it!

Let me back up, what is a false obligation? Well, it’s an “obligation” that we’ve created in our minds that requires our immediate time and attention. It’s something we feel guilty about not doing or we sense a loss of freedom of choice in the matter.

Some examples of false obligations include…

• Picking up the phone when it’s ringing
• Saying “Yes” to that coffee or dinner when you really need time alone to recharge
• Responding to a text immediately without sleeping on a response
• Behaving a certain way because of family expectations
• Rushing to visit three households on Christmas day so no one feels left out
• To share private information with people because they are good...

Most conflict arises from mismatched expectations which is why clarity is so critical.  Think about the last conflict you had with a partner or colleague. Chances are, there were misaligned expectations in the relationship. It could be mismatched expectations of communication style, deadlines, how you wanted the other person to engage with you.

In fact, I believe that our inner conflict happens when we have mismatched expectations of ourselves! I’ve spoken about the peace and joy that high performers have when their actions are aligned with their core values. When they are in congruence and showing up as their best selves, or who they say they are, they can be at peace. Inner conflict happens when we’re out of alignment. This inner battle can take place when we have mismatched expectations on where we are in life.

If I always bought in to the notion that I should be married by 25, own a house by 30 and have 2 children by 35 and my life doesn’t represent that...