298 You Have To Take Care of Yourself In Order To Be Your Best
Everything we do, whether it be work, caring for our families, or even going for a morning walk, all starts with ourselves and in today’s work culture of burning the candle at both ends, it can be easy to forget that we need to take breaks and prioritize our well being in order to do our best in everything we do. Hopefully by doing so we can model a behavior that others can follow and make a change for the better.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Mandy Hoskinson discuss the importance of self care in today’s day and how others will follow by example, especially when it comes to creating a healthy and thriving environment.
298 You Have To Take Care of Yourself In Order To Be Your Best
Everything we do, whether it be work, caring for our families, or even going for a morning walk, all starts with ourselves and in today’s work culture of burning the candle at both ends, it can be easy to forget that we need to take breaks and prioritize our well being in order to do our best in everything we do. Hopefully by doing so we can model a behavior that others can follow and make a change for the better.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Mandy Hoskinson discuss the importance of self care in today’s day and how others will follow by example, especially when it comes to creating a healthy and thriving environment.
Highlights
You have to learn about others and actively listen to them to learn about them and shift your perspective into belonging.
Surrounding yourself with the things you want to incorporate into your life.
Choosing your battles and taking the breaks that will help you do what you do better.
Everything you do starts with you, so take care of yourself. Take a break.
Quotes
“Competition makes life expensive, it makes social interactions kind of strange, and I was reflecting on how I could incorporate slowness in my life and I think that comes from being in places where people are more sane and more kind because they have chosen a life where they’re not overwhelmed all the time.”
“You can still choose that busy life anywhere and you can still choose a peaceful life anywhere, but if your environment encourages it and your community encourages it that can really help.”
“You find your people anywhere if you look for them and stay open.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
When you think about the work you do whether you work as an internal innovator, or as an entrepreneur, maybe you have a side hustle, what will you do with the information you just heard? Will you learn to take those breaks, will you choose to be that person that models the behavior that you want to see in the people around you, will you bring your best self by choosing to be that model and live the way that you know is going to benefit you and everyone around you.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Mandy
Mandy Hoskinson is a marketing agency founder, community leader, and creative person. Her award-winning agency, Zolay (@zolaystudio) works with clients spanning B2B, B2C, SAAS, government and creative industries. This social impact-focused agency also gives away 20% of its work away pro-bono (WIP). Mandy is also the President of the Social Media Club of Los Angeles. You can find her most places as @mediamandy.
Be sure to check out Mandy’s LinkedIn and Instagram, as well as her website Mandy Hoskinson, Zolay Studio and Zolay Studio Instagram!
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
296 Storytelling Can Improve Your Career - It's Not Just Interviews
This is the 4th episode in a series on storytelling for professionals.
In episode 292, Sarah shared stories about her love language – which is cooking for people. She explained that when we share stories of the activities that bring us great joy in service to others, we offer a glimpse of our character and values to our audience, whether that’s at work, in an interview, with family and friends, or when we’re sharing content in any form of media or on any platform. Her stories of nurturing and nourishing people in her home demonstrated part of what makes her a good addition to any team – her positive energy and ability & ambition to create an environment where people feel safe and encouraged to bring their best.
Episode 294 was a story about a team she worked with at a job years ago. It was a work story that demonstrated her openness to learning, how she manages frustration and different ways of approaching projects and relationships, and her meeting facilitation skills.
And last week’s episode 295 was a personal story about planning a family reunion for 40 guests. It demonstrated her meeting & event planning skills, team building/leadership, and made it very clear what matters to her.
In this episode you'll hear about stories Sarah shared in job interviews, why she shared those particular stories, and the end result (spoiler alert: she didn't get the job).
The idea and goals for this series is for professionals to truly understand the value of sharing personal experiences and work stories in different environments, and to uncover your stories to begin collecting them so you're ready when an opportunity presents itself.
By preparing stories to answer the most common, (kind of stupid), questions, you have the opportunity to share so much about yourself, way beyond what’s on your resume and cover letter.
In any professional setting, whether around the proverbial water cooler, at a networking event, when presenting to your team or organization, side conversations during meetings, knowing how to share meaningful stories is a practical skill.
Collect your stories, practice them, and categorize them so you are likely to share the right one at the right time, with the right audience, demonstrating your skills, values, character, and vision.
Thanks for listening to Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will.
Curious about how Sarah's workshops and keynotes will help you and your audience or team be better ambassadors for your organization and their careers?
Visit her website, elkinsconsulting.com, to schedule a discovery call.
This is the 4th episode in a series on storytelling for professionals.
In episode 292, Sarah shared stories about her love language – which is cooking for people. She explained that when we share stories of the activities that bring us great joy in service to others, we offer a glimpse of our character and values to our audience, whether that’s at work, in an interview, with family and friends, or when we’re sharing content in any form of media or on any platform. Her stories of nurturing and nourishing people in her home demonstrated part of what makes her a good addition to any team – her positive energy and ability & ambition to create an environment where people feel safe and encouraged to bring their best.
Episode 294 was a story about a team she worked with at a job years ago. It was a work story that demonstrated her openness to learning, how she manages frustration and different ways of approaching projects and relationships, and her meeting facilitation skills.
And last week’s episode 295 was a personal story about planning a family reunion for 40 guests. It demonstrated her meeting & event planning skills, team building/leadership, and made it very clear what matters to her.
In this episode you'll hear about stories Sarah shared in job interviews, why she shared those particular stories, and the end result (spoiler alert: she didn't get the job).
The idea and goals for this series is for professionals to truly understand the value of sharing personal experiences and work stories in different environments, and to uncover your stories to begin collecting them so you're ready when an opportunity presents itself.
By preparing stories to answer the most common, (kind of stupid), questions, you have the opportunity to share so much about yourself, way beyond what’s on your resume and cover letter.
In any professional setting, whether around the proverbial water cooler, at a networking event, when presenting to your team or organization, side conversations during meetings, knowing how to share meaningful stories is a practical skill.
Collect your stories, practice them, and categorize them so you are likely to share the right one at the right time, with the right audience, demonstrating your skills, values, character, and vision.
Thanks for listening to Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will.
Curious about how Sarah's workshops and keynotes will help you and your audience or team be better ambassadors for your organization and their careers?
Visit her website, elkinsconsulting.com, to schedule a discovery call.
Quote
"By preparing stories to answer the most common, and kind of stupid questions, you have the opportunity to share so much about yourself way beyond what's on your resume or cover letter."
294 Communication For Potentially Conflicting Approaches
Frustration and irritation is common in every relationship, more often than not it stems from not understanding others or hearing out what others have to say. It is up to us and those we work with to find a peaceful and healthy resolution.
In this episode Sarah Elkins ruminates on the early points in her career and how she saw her talents even before knowing about Strengths Finder, but most importantly how she was able to help her company and colleagues.
Ask Yourself: Am I Contributing or Antagonizing?
Frustration and irritation is common in every relationship, more often than not it stems from not understanding others or hearing out what others have to say. It is up to us and those we work with to find a peaceful and healthy resolution.
In this episode Sarah Elkins think about early points in her career and how she saw her talents even before knowing about StrengthsFinder, but most importantly how she was able to help her company and colleagues.
Highlights
The bad parts of a story are just as important as the good.
Progress takes time.
Holding yourself and others accountable.
Quotes
“I’m sure we can find a way to work better together.”
“I just want people to feel like their voices are heard, that’s it. I want to set the foundation here for this group of faculty to know we aren’t railroading them into agreeing to something that doesn’t make sense.”
“I was still very frustrated but far less than before because I knew his goals. Understanding his leadership goals allowed me to back off and know that he was leading differently from me, but he was leading.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
Think back on the story I just shared, did my story remind you of something that happened recently at work or maybe earlier in your career? What was your experience that was similar, can you identify the characters in the story and what lessons you learned? Categorize the story so you can identify what that story demonstrates about who you are and how you work.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
293 Self Reflection: Assessments
Fear of the self is something that has existed for hundreds of years, it’s been something remarked upon by Plato and Socrates, and it is a very common human experience. However if we approach our talents and sense of self with curiosity we can foster a healthy, loving relationship with yourself, your career, and your future.
In this episode Sarah Elkins reflects on the assessments she was hired for and found that some of the audience didn’t “buy into” her assessments, only for said audience members to discover things about themselves.
293 Self Reflection: Assessments
Fear of the self is something that has existed for hundreds of years, it’s been something remarked upon by Plato and Socrates, and it is a very common human experience. However if we approach our talents and sense of self with curiosity we can foster a healthy, loving relationship with yourself, your career, and your future.
In this episode Sarah Elkins reflects on the assessments she was hired for and found that some of the audience didn’t “buy into” her assessments, only for said audience members to discover things about themselves.
Highlights
How you subconsciously act often reflects your talents.
Have faith in the professionals you hire.
Don’t allow the fear of how others may react or treat you based on your talents effect your desire to learn more about them.
Quotes
“One thing I’ve noticed in my work with clients is that some people want to distance themselves from their results, and for one reason or another they don’t want to experience themselves through the concepts of whatever assessment they took.”
“I get it. Most of us have been given negative feedback about our talents, we’ve been criticized for our approach to problem solving.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
When was a time you were skeptical about something and decided to be open to the possibility anyway? Have you recently changed your mind about something you believed strongly? What story can you tell to demonstrate your willingness to change your mind, to demonstrate your ability to take in new information that might alter how you see yourself, or how to approach a problem.
Add your story to your collection of stories, because whether you’re interviewing for a job, interviewing for a podcast, or maybe even on a date, having the right story to share can demonstrate exactly the qualities you want people to know about you.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
292 Food Stories
Love languages come in many different forms; gift giving, words of affirmation, and for today’s episode specifically, the act of cooking and giving a good meal to those you hold close. It is vital to the health and continuation of relationships that we discover these languages and think about how these actions impact how others view us.
In this episode Sarah Elkins ruminates on the concept of love languages and how important they are to understand and how they influence how we are perceived by others and ourselves.
292 Food Stories
Love languages come in many different forms; gift giving, words of affirmation, and for today’s episode specifically, the act of cooking and giving a good meal to those you hold close. It is vital to the health and continuation of relationships that we discover these languages and think about how these actions impact how others view us.
In this episode Sarah Elkins ruminates on the concept of love languages and how important they are to understand and how they influence how we are perceived by others and ourselves.
Highlights
Discovering your love language is vital to understanding how you are seen by others.
Living in the moment and enjoying that moment is more rewarding than any photograph.
Find your why and realize how it impacts yourself and those around you.
Quotes
“I think a lot about legacy, about how I want to know myself and how I want people to experience me. And in my work as a speaker and coach I’ve asked a lot of people those questions: “How do you want to see yourself? What do you want to see in yourself? Kindness? Intelligence? Competence? What do you need to know or experience to be confident that you are those things?”
“I asked her the question: How do you want to see yourself? What words do you want to use to describe yourself?
Her answer didn’t surprise me, but it surprised her a little. She said: I want to see myself as resilient, competent, and thoughtful.
My next question made her stop to think: How will you know you are those things?
After a few moments she answered: “When the people I care about describe me that way.”
“And what do you need to DO, to BE, to SAY to ensure they describe you that way?”.”
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
291 The Stories We Keep
As much as we all may wish for life to be sunshine and daisies we can often end up focusing on the storms and trials that accompany them. It can be easy to lose yourself to grief and bitterness when viewing your life through those storm clouds, however it is important to remember that it is only a passing thing that shadow and even darkness must pass, and how you tell your story after those times can reframe how you see your life and give hope to others who may be going through something similar.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and the esteemed Rob Kugler discuss the importance of stories involving grief and sorrow, while also acknowledging the great acts of kindness and courage it takes to survive through these times in life.
291 The Stories We Keep
As much as we all may wish for life to be sunshine and daisies we can often end up focusing on the storms and trials that accompany them. It can be easy to lose yourself to grief and bitterness when viewing your life through those storm clouds, however it is important to remember that it is only a passing thing that shadow and even darkness must pass, and how you tell your story after those times can reframe how you see your life and give hope to others who may be going through something similar.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and the esteemed Rob Kugler discuss the importance of stories involving grief and sorrow, while also acknowledging the great acts of kindness and courage it takes to survive through these times in life.
Highlights
Spite can be a great motivator in certain circumstances.
Stay mindful of how you tell your story so that you tell it in a way that can be appreciated and reflect your values.
Doing your best in situations where things feel out of control.
It’s important to know that what you’re going through is not uncommon and to tell those stories brings comfort and acknowledgement to others. No story is too mundane to tell.
Quotes
“People keep on asking, “Hey are you going to write another book?” And I tell people, “Yes, I’d love to but I haven’t done the things I want to do to write about yet.”.”
“There’s not alot to complain about if you don’t look at the one thing you can’t have.”
“When is that moment, or when is that conversation that starts your story? There’s times when, even to get to the other side as we mentioned earlier, just moving forward with confidence of knowing the value of the story that already exists. So if we’re like to say “Hey I want to look at making a second edition.” But also following through on the ideas of the calendars and prints from the photos that I took along the journey.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
The first thing I’m going to ask you to do is when you read a book that you really like, leave a review. You can do it on Amazon, on Good Reads, maybe share it because those of us who have written books know that writing a review really is meaningful, so if you really liked a book leave a review even if you kind of liked a book write a review and leave three or four stars. But write a review because that means people are reading the book and that matters to us.
The second thing I’m going to ask you to do is to consider what struggles you’ve experienced in your life, what grief you’ve experienced in your life, and how you can frame that story so that somebody else can feel what you’re feeling and see what it’s like to come out the other side.
That’s what I’m asking you to do because your stories don’t define you, but how you tell them will.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Rob from his LinkedIn
Through experiences from teaching Pre-K to leading Marines, from acting in Los Angeles to field marketing, from leading volunteers in Disaster Relief Operations to finishing a degree in Fire Protection Technology, from traveling the country taking photographs with my three-legged labrador to publishing a book with a major publisher, well rounded life experience is my biggest asset.
I am currently bringing those experiences into classwork at Washington State University where I am obtaining a degree in Strategic Communications.
My goal at WSU is to learn new ways that my writing and photography can not only tell stories of my experiences, but the stories of brands, companies, organizations and people I believe in.
Be sure to check out Rob’s LinkedIn, his photography Instagram, and Facebook! As well as Marcus Brotherton and Rob’s website Life Illustrated!
Pick up a copy of his book A Dog Named Beautiful! And be sure to check out No Vet Alone where you can help veterans in need.
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
290 Ideation
Working on ourselves is a never ending yet very worthwhile endeavor that shapes who we become as people, and where we want to go in life. Sometimes that work is hard and can seem intimidating or at the very least tedious, especially if our strengths have been criticized or used against us in the past. However, like anything worth doing, growing as an individual takes hard work and support, especially from yourself.
In this episode Sarah Elkins poses this thought to the listeners of Your Stories Don’t Define You How You Tell Them Will, and implores us to look inward and begin to see our strengths as things that can benefit us instead of hinder us.
290 Ideation
Working on ourselves is a never ending yet very worthwhile endeavor that shapes who we become as people, and where we want to go in life. Sometimes that work is hard and can seem intimidating or at the very least tedious, especially if our strengths have been criticized or used against us in the past. However, like anything worth doing, growing as an individual takes hard work and support, especially from yourself.
In this episode Sarah Elkins poses this thought to the listeners of Your Stories Don’t Define You How You Tell Them Will, and implores us to look inward and begin to see our strengths as things that can benefit us instead of hinder us.
Highlights
Love your talents because they make you who you are even if you sometimes struggle with them.
Practicing what you have learned and want to learn will improve your skills both new and old.
Allowing yourself to flow in whatever way you need to go.
Quotes
“One thing I became aware of in the first year of my coaching practice, is that I have to be very careful not to project my own feelings onto my clients.”
“The space between stimulant and response and the choice we have in that space. Will we give that stimulant a positive, negative, or neutral value?”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
Have you reacted defensively to frustration after seeing the results of an assessment, maybe like the Clifton Strengths, Meyers-Briggs, Enneagram, or Disc? What are the memories that are surfacing after seeing those qualities that were criticized in the past, and what stories can you begin to collect as evidence of those results as beneficial in your life as strengths.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!