A week late for the “Third Thursday,” but it’s still a Thursday, and I hope it is a good one!
Disrupting the process…this is my last musing about process….probably…and hopefully, it is the best of the process ponderings yet:-). We just took a break from normal, everyday life to host family and then to take a long-planned and long-anticipated trip to the Olympic Peninsula. I don’t know about you, but I love to travel, and I love to host. The reason behind both is the same – I enjoy the disruption in the day-to-day processes that generally govern my life and the ability to remain present. With my nieces (4 years old and 2 years old) in town, we switched things up and took a cooking class at FrogLegs where we learned to make donuts and decorated them to look like fruits. The 4-year-old loves to bake, and so do I, so during their stay, we also made marbled sugar cookies in the shapes of butterflies, ice cream cones, and hearts; we created bug-shaped mini-cakes and rolled homemade tortillas. We spent more time outside, we laughed, we played, and we had late-night conversations with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law. Just having family visit after the last couple of years was a much-celebrated change of pace. This week with family, I changed my focus, my pace, and my activities – no work, little email, and much more baking and play.
I then headed out of town with my husband and three kids to the Olympic Peninsula. When we first moved to the Seattle-area in 2008, we drove over to La Push and camped on the beach; it was divine! We drove by Lake Crescent and told ourselves we had to come back to explore this beautiful place! Finally, finally, we made it happen! We stayed on Lake Sutherland adjacent to Lake Crescent and spent time at both. We went paddle boarding every day, sometimes more than once. We visited Hurricane Ridge, played games, had cocoa, made s’mores, and spent time in the hot tub. I watched as my kids built rock creations in the clear waters of Lake Crescent and as the ripples from the stones they’d thrown expanded. We went to Sol Duc hot springs and for hikes on which we saw Marymere Falls. The first hike to the falls was so good that my oldest son asked us if we could go again. He commented as we stood by the waterfalls, “Watching the water is satisfying,” and he asked to stay a little longer. We had homemade soft serve at Granny’s Café, where there is a farm in the back for children to wander and visit the goats, chickens, emu, and rabbits. We had great conversations and spent time reveling in the beauty of nature. We changed our environment, became more present, and took time to stand in awe and time to listen.
I am constantly grateful for the opportunity to change pace, shift environments, disregard typical patterns, processes, and tasks, and become quiet. I am even more grateful for the part my children play in showing me how to let go of the day-to-day, become present and aware, live in the moment, and stand in awe, surrender, and peace. Of course, if I’m honest, they challenge my patience, too, and here lies another lesson in disruption :-). These opportunities to disrupt my processes and habits are a perfect chance to question, reconsider and change processes that may not be serving their purpose or supporting me to be my best.
What helps you to disrupt your processes? What did you observe the last time you traveled? What did you learn the last time you spent time in nature? Where and how do you find moments of awe? What shifts do you make to help you recenter and reevaluate the processes and activities that have become automatic and thoughtless? What supports you to be your best self? What patterns and processes are in need of revamping? What new processes and patterns might better support your growth and becoming your best self?
Quote I’m pondering:
“I would rather have questions that can’t be answered than answers that can’t be questioned.”
— Richard Feynman
(Theoretical physicist and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1965)
What I’m listening to:
While I’m a week late getting this out, I can’t help but think the delay was important. On one of my morning runs this past week,, I listened to this podcast, and the content connected deeply and fit perfectly with my ponderings this month. I hope you enjoy it!
with Jonathan Fields
January 31, 2021
What would it take to make you rethink a deeply held point of view or belief? That’s one of Adam Grant’s recent fascinations. Adam is an organizational psychologist and TED speaker who helps people find meaning and motivation at work. He has been Wharton’s top-rated professor for 7 straight years. As an organizational psychologist, he is a leading expert on how we can find motivation and meaning and live more generous and creative lives. He has been recognized as one of the world’s 10 most influential management thinkers and Fortune’s 40 under 40.
Adam is also one of TED’s most popular speakers, his books have sold millions of copies, his talks have been viewed more than 25 million times, and his podcast WorkLife with Adam Grant has topped the charts. His pioneering research has inspired people to rethink fundamental assumptions about motivation, generosity, and creativity. And he is a former Junior Olympic springboard diver. Adam’s new book, Think Again, is a fascinating deep dive into how to come to form a point of view, why it’s so important to hold even our staunchest beliefs more lightly than we think, and what happens when we stay doggedly attached to opinions and beliefs even as the world starts to reveal how wrong they were.
Some of my Favorite Tidbits:
– quote from Milton Glazer “Certainty is a closing of the mind.”
– Who do you go to for creative ideas? Who are your “go-to” people?
– Every person you meet can teach you something
– The importance of thinking like a scientist
– Confidence, cognitive flexibility, and competence, and their connection
– Making a habit of rethinking and becoming attached to detachment
– “To live a good life is to lead a life of integrity. Integrity is having a set of values that are worthy, that serve people beyond you, and living by those values. Used to think integrity was practicing what you preach – preaching is overrated but if you’re going to preach, only preach what you already practice.”
~ Adam Grant
What I’m reading:
I was introduced to Phyllis a few months ago, and she generously shared her journey to publication. I am so grateful to have had a conversation with her, and for the knowledge, wisdom, and clarity she imparted as I think about the books being written in my mind.
By Phyllis Sarkaria
As the essential guide for leaders who want to inspire, influence, and engage their teams for greater results, Courageous Clarity recognizes that the ability to build and nurture relationships is key to leadership success in today’s business environments. Organizations value results and leaders tend to be rewarded for delivering those results. Over time, this can leave the human side of leadership underdeveloped and begin to undermine the very results that have contributed to your leadership success.
Whether you are a seasoned executive or have recently moved into a higher-level position, leading others, building strong relationships, and nurturing talent isn’t always easy. To successfully navigate the challenges and changes you encounter requires being well-equipped for the journey. It takes courage to step beyond “the way I’ve always done things” and create a clear path forward. Let the G-P-S of Courageous Clarity be your guide.
- Get ready for the journey, similar to the Global Positioning System on your phone, helps you determine where you are now.
- Pay attention along the way provides tools to understand the behaviors that impact trust, increase your influence, and improve communication for better results.
- Slow down to assess and adjust addresses the inevitable obstacles that occur in every leadership journey.
Using a combination of stories drawn from experience and relevant tips, tools, and exercises, Courageous Clarity opens the door to greater adventures as a leader.
You can sign up to receive my Three Thoughts for Thursday post as an email on the third Thursday of every month by clicking here.
Please check out my latest blog post, The Problem of Intentions, Also check out my post, Be Careful, Recipes and Inspiration Yield Different Results! and my June edition of Three Thoughts for Thursday, as well. In light of my continued theme on process, you may also be interested in my series, Lessons of the Run – Endurance, Resilience, Rest, and Grit. And if you could stand to hear more about processes and patterns, stay tuned for an upcoming expanded post on Examining the Process – Behind the Drive.
If you are interested or know someone who may be interested, I also offer leadership and emotional intelligence coaching and workshops. You can find more information on my website, or you can use this link to set up a free 30-minute introduction to coaching session.
Beginning last year, in April 2021, I have had the privilege of Co-Hosting with Kathy Hadizadeh, the Emotional Intelligence Special Interest Group for ICFLA. Please join us for August’s session on Tuesday, the 23rd of the month, Integrating Empathy in Coaching, as we workshop, define, and practice the art of empathy.
For more information on the next “EQ and WooWoo” workshop (Thursday, September 22nd) with my colleague and Spiritual Coach, Katie Kay, please email me or RSVP. This workshop series is designed to help you manifest action towards the year you want to live, the person you want to be, and the goals you want to achieve. We will be hosting quarterly sessions that intertwine the use of Tarot (and other Woowoo tools) and Emotional Intelligence to help you and your clients step outside the box in order to take your coaching and personal work deeper. September will focus on Relationship Management, harvesting what you’ve planted, and continuing to care for the relationships you are building and maintaining.
If you are interested in joining and co-creating these learning communities, please use the links above to find out more about ICFLA’s Emotional Intelligence Special Interest Group and the EQ & WooWoo Workshops. I hope you will come along for the journey!
I’m always looking for new inspiration, new books to read, and new podcasts to listen to, so please send your suggestions my way or comment on this post to offer some new recommendations!
As always, thank you for your continued support and readership! Stay strong, stay brave, stay true to you!
Wishing you a season of positive disruption, presence, and fun!
Desiree Briel Rodi Consulting & Coaching 
[…] Also check out my post, Be Careful, Recipes and Inspiration Yield Different Results! and my July edition of Three Thoughts for Thursday, as well. In light of my continued theme on process, you may also […]
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