In one season or another we’ve all faced imposter syndrome, endured self-judgment as a result of comparison, felt stuck, or lacked confidence. This conversation is what you wish you’d had in EVERY ONE of those moments!
Can you imagine how much more freedom, joy, and TRACTION you would’ve experienced if you’d had a life coach walking alongside of you in each of those moments? Someone to help you feel greater alignment with your vales, feel more confident in who you are, and have the clarity you need to make those decisions that you way overthought.
Well…
Hopefully, you’ll experience much more of that after you hear this conversation with my friend, Katy Akester. It’s not everyday you get the chance to have a Q&A session with an executive life coach whose work began in the world of improv (where she also happened to meet her husband), and was bridged by a season of executive leadership at a global non-profit.
As many of you podcast listeners know, I share “Truths & Takeaways” at the end of each episode to leave you with practical tips that’ll encourage and equip you in your every day. In case you haven’t had a chance to listen, I thought I’d share a few of these here.
The 9 Things…
1. There’s not always a clear path. Focus on being open handed to where you might be led.
Katy’s story started in studying art history, proceeded to studying improv where she met her husband, then led her to a journey of adoption and working in executive leadership at a global non-profit leadership in D.C. Wherever you find yourself, don’t be discouraged if you don’t know “the plan”. Focus on one step at a time. It’ll all unfold as you go.
2. If you hear the word “stuck” in your vocabulary, self-protection might be the root cause.
Many of us have spent so much of our lives “self-protecting”- you know the thing you do when you’re scared to fail, take risks, or make the wrong decision? When we wear the armor of self-protection, it’s weight holds us back and often blinds us from seeing clearly what’s in front of us. Take some time to explore if you’re trying to protect yourself from something and whether or not that still actually serves you in this season.
3. Confidence is an internal thing – don’t let the “external” world impact your internal world.
We can’t allow others to establish or affect our confidence. It’s an internal choice we get to make.
4. If you’re feeling tension in your life or need some help informing decision making, start with some values work.
Get aligned! Define what the top three most important values are to you and go from there.
“When you’re living from that place you know your “why” and you’re really connected with yourself, you’re energized by it and work becomes much more sustainable and you have that confidence because you’re living into things that are super important to you. Start off by doing that values work not only will it help inform decision making about jobs you take or moves you make, it’ll also help you understand why you’re feeling tension in life.” – Katy
5. The antidote to judgment is curiosity.
Many people are living life with the lens of judgment, constantly judging themselves and others as they fall prey to constant comparison. What would it look like to lean into greater curiosity instead?
6. Diversify your routine and maybe who you’re learning from.
Find some ways you can live in a state of both “yes/and”, choosing to embrace new opportunities and also staying true to who you are.
7. Experience your life rather than living in the past and future in your head.
8. A leader is someone (anyone, really!) leading their life. You can make a choice to invite others in to be your support.
Don’t try to do it all alone. It’s okay to ask for help or seek help from mentors, friends, therapists, coaches, friends, and counselors along the “leadership” journey you’re leading.
9. “Go out there, be present, have fun, trust that you’re gonna learn something from the process.” – Katy Akester
If you’ve enjoyed reading these, you’ll love listening to the conversation, too. You can find more on Katy’s work at katyakester.com.
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