Look up right now and you’ll likely find some reinforcement of the message that what makes you valuable in your professional life is the number of hours you put in. Or the number of tasks you check off your list.

Many of us are taught early in our careers that these are the things that determine our value. Which can create a never-ending chase toward longer hours and more tasks in order to offer greater value.

This is a hamster wheel. Today, we’re talking about what really determines the value we offer, and the myriad benefits of shifting our definition.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

Today’s episode is all about a single sentence: I don’t know what I want.

This thought can create a truly paralyzing cycle of confusion and stuckness.

It’s vicious.

And it’s never, ever true.

I’ve worked with so many people who struggle with what they want: in their careers, relationships, etc. And every time this thought enters the picture, it does damage.

Let’s talk about what happens when we think this seemingly innocent and true little sentence. And what to do when it seems true, but is stopping us in our tracks.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

True facts: I didn’t really know how to process my emotions until I was in my 40s. Like many of my GenX cohorts, teaching and attending to emotional fluency hadn’t been part of my upbringing.

So when I experienced discomfort or emotional pain, I usually resisted it, pushing it away and finding a way to distract myself from it.

Today on the podcast, we’re talking about emotional resistance — the process of avoiding discomfort — and what it costs us. We’ll also talk about the huge gains that result from a deeper understanding of what we’re feeling.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

The habits of an organization either build culture or erode it.

This episode is the next installment of the culture eroder (and corresponding culture builder) series. And today’s culture eroder is: lack of appreciation.

Lack of appreciation—whether it’s an organization-wide mindset or a simple lack of thanking people for their work—leads to disengagement, feeling unseen, and many other things that drag your team down.

Appreciation is really about awareness, and on today's episode, we’ll talk about what makes it hard for people to have the awareness they need to appreciate others.

We’ll also discuss how to incorporate appreciation into your regular practice, and I’ll share the phrase I use to describe the act of looking for strengths in others.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

You feel called, drawn, compelled. To a project, a role, a career.

And this thing that you feel drawn to, you also feel incredible resistance to.

You avoid putting yourself in the chair and doing the work.

You fight your way through doubt and overwhelm as you do it.

You dread the delivery of the thing you created.

Welcome to resistance — the force that often shows up between us and what we’re here on the planet to do.

What is it? Why is it? Is it normal?

We’ll answer all these questions and more on today’s podcast.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

What’s the most emotionally heavy team you’ve ever worked on?

You probably had an immediate answer to that question.

Heaviness, or emotional weight, is problematic within an organization.

On today’s Joyful Leader, we’re making sure it doesn’t weigh your team down.

We’ll talk about what it is, where it comes from, why it’s such a problem, and how to prevent it.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

You consider yourself an open-door leader.

And yet, there are times when you want more feedback from your team.

Maybe you get crickets when you ask for feedback after a meeting presentation. Or maybe when you ask your team for feedback about you as a manager, they tell you everything’s great.

Today on the podcast, we’re talking about how to get great, specific, actionable feedback from your team. And, how to create a culture of giving good feedback, even to your boss. 😉🤓

Tune in to start getting better feedback immediately.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm

The habits of an organization either build culture or erode it.

This episode is the next installment of the culture eroder (and corresponding culture builder) series. And today’s culture eroder is: lack of ownership.

Lack of ownership as a habit within an organization leads to a lot of heaviness — a sense of drag, protracted processes, and lack of clarity.

It usually happens innocently, and for some predictable reasons.

Today on the podcast, we’ll talk about what can cause it, what it looks like, and what to do about it.

Thanks for listening.

Hungry for more of the things we talk about on this podcast? Visit mimigordon.com to find articles, classes, and other resources. Or to schedule a free 60-minute consultation to talk about working with me as your coach. You can also find me on Instagram @mimigordoncoaching.

Help other people find exactly what they’re looking for — take two minutes to rate and review Joyful Leader. Give the podcast 5 stars and a one-sentence (or more) review. I appreciate you in advance. And so will the people who find the show. (Find the show in Apple Podcasts from your phone, and scroll to the rate/review section below the episodes.)

Original music by Amir Sberlo | Never Bored Photograph by Vivian Johnson Design by Deena Rutter This podcast is hosted by ZenCast.fm