High achievers often rush into execution mode before clearly defining desired outcomes, leading to misaligned results and wasted resources. Slowing down to clarify what success actually looks like becomes a force multiplier for your time and effort.

In today’s episode you will learn about:

• Our natural instinct as high achievers is to jump straight into building mode when improving processes or programs

• Planning feels slow while execution gives us the satisfaction of immediate progress

• A critical question before any initiative: "What result do I actually want this to create?"

• Case study of an executive revamping a leadership program by first defining desired outcomes

• Defining impact before building prevents misaligned decisions and team confusion

• Clarity upfront becomes a "force multiplier" for your time and resources

• Apply this principle when rebuilding processes, restructuring teams, or launching new services

• When leading others, ask "what outcomes do we want to achieve together?"

If today's insight resonated and you're ready for more clarity, structure and progress in your business, let's connect. I partner with high performing leaders and business owners who are navigating growth and want a strategic thought partner to help them follow through on what matters most. You'll find details about one-on-one coaching in the show notes.

Interested in 1:1 Coaching?

Kristin partners with high-performing financial advisors, leaders, and business owners who are ready to lead with more clarity, focus, and intention.

Clients often come to her with a strong vision—but they aren’t sure how to close the gap between where they are now and where they want to go. Many are navigating a season of growth, stepping into expanded leadership, or realizing they’ve outgrown their current systems and ways of working.

They know they’re capable of more and want a strategic thought partner to help them get there—someone who will ask the tough questions, create space to think deeply, and offer a proven process for turning ambition into meaningful progress.

If this sounds like the kind of partnership you’ve been craving, email meet@kristinburke.com to learn more and connect.

Connect with Kristin

LinkedIn

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Website

Goal Setting Success Course

Breakout Plan

Every driven professional eventually reaches a crossroads where working harder no longer produces the desired growth. Mark Kull found himself at this junction after achieving Northwestern Mutual's prestigious Forum recognition in consecutive years, only to realize he was trapped in an unsustainable cycle of effort.

What followed was a transformative journey from frantic producer to strategic business builder. Mark shares the counterintuitive wisdom that reshaped his approach: "You often have to slow down to speed up." This perspective shift led him to create what he considers more valuable than any to-do list – a comprehensive "don't-do list" that freed him to focus on his highest-impact activities.

The conversation explores Mark's deeply personal definition of success: being "front door famous" – showing up as the same authentic person whether with family, clients, or strangers. This consistency of character guides his leadership and life choices more powerfully than traditional financial metrics ever could.

Mark reveals the practical strategies that supported his transition, from calculating the true hourly value of his client-facing time to intentionally hiring team members with complementary strengths rather than similar personalities. He candidly discusses the challenges of letting go, acknowledging that "in our desperation to want to be everything to everybody, we don't really become much of anything to anybody."

Perhaps most surprisingly, Mark credits consistent sleep and wake times as his most important habit – a discipline that builds self-trust and reinforces his capacity for follow-through in every area of life. His approach demonstrates how elite achievement often comes not from doing more, but from doing the right things with remarkable consistency.

Ready to rethink your approach to growth? Connect with Mark at mark.kull@nm.com or visit https://cpp.nm.com/ to learn how strategic delegation and intentional habits might transform your personal and professional trajectory.

In this podcast you will learn:

• Redefining success as being "front door famous" – maintaining consistency of character across all environments

• Creating a strategic "don't-do list" rather than just focusing on to-do lists

• Calculating the hourly value of client-facing time to determine what tasks to delegate

• Hiring people with complementary skill sets rather than similar personalities

• Making the shift from "producing forum" to "being a forum producer" through systems and processes

• Building in non-negotiable growth opportunities like mastermind groups and industry conferences

• Using flexible growth methods like reading that can be done at various times without rigid scheduling

• Celebrating wins intentionally rather than constantly moving goalposts

• Maintaining consistent habits like regular sleep and wake times to build self-discipline

• Finding team members who genuinely enjoy the tasks on your don't-do list

Highlights:

0:00

Self-Actualization and Introduction

7:12

Defining Elite Success Personally

11:40

The Journey from Forum Producer

20:24

Building a Strategic Business

30:24

Creating Space for Growth

39:06

The Power of Consistency

42:50

Celebration and Final Thoughts

Interested in 1:1 Coaching?

Kristin partners with high-performing financial advisors, leaders, and business owners who are ready to lead with more clarity, focus, and intention.

Clients often come to her with a strong vision—but they aren’t sure how to close the gap between where they are now and where they want to go. Many are navigating a season of growth, stepping into expanded leadership, or realizing they’ve outgrown their current systems and ways of...

The tension between achieving immediate goals and building for the future offers valuable insights on managing competing priorities with limited capacity. Mini-episodes of Elite Insights deliver actionable ideas to help leaders stay focused and make meaningful progress.

In this episode you will learn how:

• Quarterly reviews provide essential space to reflect on goals, priorities, and how time and energy are being allocated

• High achievers often default to working harder when faced with challenges, rather than being strategic about capacity

• Competing priorities like revenue goals and strategic expansion can create tension when approached with the same intensity

• Intensity doesn't create instant results - dividing focus across too many priorities leads to overwhelm and feeling defeated

• Some leaders over-rotate on new strategies while unintentionally stopping activities that generate immediate results

• Consistency in both immediate priorities and future investments compounds over time

• Four key questions to clarify priorities: What drives revenue now? What sets up future positioning? What can you sustainably commit to? Where are you spreading too thin?

If you're feeling the pull between short-term goals and long-term growth and want a clear strategy to move forward with focus, let's talk. I partner with high-performing leaders and business owners who are ready to align their priorities, protect their time and follow through on what matters most. You'll find details about one-on-one coaching in the show notes.

Interested in 1:1 Coaching?

Kristin partners with high-performing financial advisors, leaders, and business owners who are ready to lead with more clarity, focus, and intention.

Clients often come to her with a strong vision—but they aren’t sure how to close the gap between where they are now and where they want to go. Many are navigating a season of growth, stepping into expanded leadership, or realizing they’ve outgrown their current systems and ways of working.

They know they’re capable of more and want a strategic thought partner to help them get there—someone who will ask the tough questions, create space to think deeply, and offer a proven process for turning ambition into meaningful progress.

If this sounds like the kind of partnership you’ve been craving, email meet@kristinburke.com to learn more and connect.

Connect with Kristin

LinkedIn

Instagram

Website

Goal Setting Success Course

Breakout Plan