344 Evolving Stories
Returning for his second episode, Tom Jackobs and Sarah Elkins discuss how storytelling has changed for both of them since their last conversation, how their tools and strategies have changed, as well as how important storytelling is as a medium for both of them.
344 Evolving Stories
Returning for his second episode, Tom Jackobs and Sarah Elkins discuss how storytelling has changed for both of them since their last conversation, how their tools and strategies have changed, as well as how important storytelling is as a medium for both of them.
Highlights
It is okay to look for coaches, especially when you yourself are a coach.
Find your own strategies and tools for writing and working.
You can be good at things and not be the best at them.
Quotes
“At least I started writing, because that is the hardest part.”
“I’m not a chef, but I’m a good cook.”
“We need the ones that are going to slow us down and make decisions better.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
You’ve listened to this whole conversation about how Tom started his book, how he wrote his book, why he wrote his book, why he started his podcast, and some of the challenges he experienced in that time. What is something you want to take on that you’ve been considering for a long time that you are now ready for that maybe you weren’t ready for a year ago or five years ago. What will be your first step? Are you the kind of person that needs a template to get started or are you a person that looks at a blank page and gets inspired?
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Tom
I am a Coach of Fitness Health, Entrepreneur, Public Speaker, Improving Sales, Customer Service.
Be sure to check out Tom’s book, Selling with H.E.A.R.T.: The Only Way to Sell Confidently, Connect Deeply, and Grow Your Business with Integrity!. And connect with him and follow on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram! As well as his podcast on Spotify and Apple podcast!
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 Storytelling For Professionals Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
315 The Risks Of Following Your Passion
In life we are bound to do any number of things on our path to a successful career, adding to our portfolio of stories and skills in our pursuit of happiness. These things do not take away from our skills but instead add to them and our expertise, it all depends on how you choose to apply these acquired tools in our life and career.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Elaine Belson discuss how walking the many paths of life have helped shape them into the successful entrepreneurs they are today, offering insight and positivity involving the paths to fulfillment and success. Elaine brings warmth and an intelligent insight to the conversation, referencing and telling many stories of her numerous skill sets that have helped shape her and her business into who they are today.
315 The Risks Of Following Your Passion
In life we are bound to do any number of things on our path to a successful career, adding to our portfolio of stories and skills in our pursuit of happiness. These things do not take away from our skills but instead add to them and our expertise, it all depends on how you choose to apply these acquired tools in our life and career.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Elaine Belson discuss how walking the many paths of life have helped shape them into the successful entrepreneurs they are today, offering insight and positivity involving the paths to fulfillment and success. Elaine brings warmth and an intelligent insight to the conversation, referencing and telling many stories of her numerous skill sets that have helped shape her and her business into who they are today.
Highlights
Your skills can be applied in a variety of ways, even in situations you wouldn’t expect them to be in.
What you take from your experiences contribute to your expertise, even if those experiences are not directly.
It’s okay to sit back and look at how far you’ve come, to witness your own performance on the stage of life.
Don’t call it a gift when you have worked hard to hone your talents and skills.
Try different things, be a jack of all trades. Broaden your horizons.
Quotes
“If you have certain skills it doesn’t matter what the circumstances are, right? You can thrive. It’s more about the tools in your tool box than it is about experience.”
“Our experiences are not just our resume.”
“It was this Aha moment for me, this “Oh this is what it feels like!” You know to just be happy with something. It doesn’t have to be huge, high, right? It’s that ability to get up everyday and want to go to work.”
“That’s what I think true passion is, is when you can get up everyday and look forward to what you’re doing.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
I would love to hear how this episode landed for you. What did you hear in it that made you realize something about yourself? Maybe that you’re a gypsy careerist and you haven’t given yourself enough credit for all of the ways that those iterations of your career have made you who you are today? I would love to hear about that.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Elaine
I have 30yrs combined clinical, military, political and teaching experience. I joined at the age of 42 and served as XO for Medical Command in Afghanistan. My "brand" is "Embrace your Humanity" - harnessing your innate abilities to make good decisions and self-validate. Positive and practical, this approach empowers people to solve their own problems through insight, problem-solving and coping skills. I'm a pragmatist and think in soundbites - so my content is original and easy to understand, remember and apply. I have a full-time practice, host a serial podcast and do guest appearances. I also write a newsletter about psychology in politics. However, my primary focus is public speaking.
Be sure to check out Elaine’s LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram! And be sure to check out her website Elaine Belson!
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 Storytelling For Professionals Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!
Want to join this year’s NLV Conference? Register here!
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!
244: How Does Storytelling Make You More Relatable and Inspiring?
In this episode Sarah Elkins and her guest, Greg McDonough, an accomplished entrepeneur and finance consultant, discuss the importance of telling one's story in a meaningful and relevant way so that it resonates with the audience in a way that can be both compelling and inspiring.
The Meaningfulness of Relevant Stories
In this episode Sarah Elkins and her guest, Greg McDonough, an accomplished entrepeneur and finance consultant, discuss the importance of telling one's story in a meaningful and relevant way so that it resonates with the audience in a way that can be both compelling and inspiring.
Highlights from the episode:
Your strengths are your stories.
Sharing somthing meaningful so that it is relevant.
People want to see that these stories are possible and achievable.
Quotes
It's not about your story, it's about how your audience receives it.
Be conscious of where you are in the moment and how the moment is going to reflect in your stories going forward.
Referenced in this podcast:
The Impactful Leadership podcast episode featuring Sarah Elkins
The Entrepreneurs' Organization website
From Greg's LinkedIn profile:
My passion is to help my clients balance the amount of sleep they have with the amount they EAT (earnings after-tax). We manage their risk-taking so they can sleep better at night while also managing their business to produce the after-tax cash flow they need. It is a tricky combination but through a team approach, we are able to achieve these goals together.
Connect with Greg on LinkedIn, subscribe to The Impactful Leadership podcast, and check out his website!
*Show notes contributed by Chinook Bromlie-Estey
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.
Episode 163: Life Will Blindside You, Sometimes Literally
Some of us make plans for the future, some simply let each day define and shape the next. I don't think any of us anticipate every potential scenario of change, transformation, or trauma. Even the most morbid or realistic of us cannot predict or prepare for the reality of tomorrow.
That's what Maria Johnson realized as she received the diagnosis of a rare disease that was quickly denying her the ability to see. She had been concerned about her eyesight, went for dozens of tests as she realized it was getting worse. It wasn't until 7 months after she went for her first doctor visit, and only one month prior to completely losing her vision and becoming legally blind, that she finally received her diagnosis. And there was nothing to be done. No cure. No treatment.
A Story of Becoming Blind at 50
Some of us make plans for the future, some simply let each day define and shape the next. I don't think any of us anticipate every potential scenario of change, transformation, or trauma. Even the most morbid or realistic of us cannot predict or prepare for the reality of tomorrow.
That's what Maria Johnson realized as she received the diagnosis of a rare disease that was quickly denying her the ability to see. She had been concerned about her eyesight, went for dozens of tests as she realized it was getting worse. It wasn't until 7 months after she went for her first doctor visit, and only one month prior to completely losing her vision and becoming legally blind, that she finally received her diagnosis. And there was nothing to be done. No cure. No treatment.
For a long time she held out hope that she would be the exception. That her vision would return if she just believed, worked hard enough, was lucky.
Her doctor finally had the most painful conversation with her. He told her it was time to grieve her loss of vision. It wasn't coming back. It was time to consider the reality of the situation, grieve, and move on.
Maria shared the story of trying to shop for a prom dress with her daughter, the painful and beautiful way she found her own ability, despite the limitations of her disability, to participate in a meaningful way, with the help of her son and a large format iPad.
When you listen to Maria speak about her experience, you'll hear the unresolved questions of why, and you'll also hear her resolve to make her life, and the lives of those around her, a different kind of normal, an extraordinary normal, if that's a thing.
I know, it doesn't make sense, and none of it does. Something so tragic in a person's life can go so many different ways. Maria could have fallen into despair, she could have lived as a "poor me" and no one would fault her for it.
Or she could have taken the path of least resistance and simply made her way through life with the skills she had, the people she had in her life, and been, well, mediocre.
She didn't do any of that. She started a blog to share her experiences, to guide others with loss of vision, and to bring some comfort to the support network of those people, to share what their friends and family needed when they lost their vision.
She grew, transformed, and found her way toward growing new dreams, new goals. You might just be surprised what someone like Maria can do.
To learn more about her, visit her website, and follow her on LinkedIn and Facebook.
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ABOUT SARAH:
Purchase the audiobook here.
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.
Episode 130: I Will Not Meet Hate at the Door, Lessons of Love and Forgiveness
What's really significant about Heather's words is that she backs them up with real action and and her behavior absolutely brings that message home. She chooses love, learning, and personal growth in response to the adversity she experienced as a child and young adult.
Stories of Love and Learning Through Adversity
Heather’s TEDx Colorado Springs - Transforming Adversity into Opportunity
Heather Younger is no stranger to adversity. Born to a white, Jewish mother and a black father, her mother's family was less than welcoming, and Heather grew up without any contact with the majority of that family.
What's really significant about Heather's words is that she backs them up with real action and and her behavior absolutely brings that message home. She chooses love, learning, and personal growth in response to the adversity she experienced as a child and young adult.
Now is the time for us to amplify messages like Heather's, to listen closely to her stories not to get angry or frustrated, but to learn how to hold space for learning and compassion for those who mistreat us.
Heather and I connected early in my LinkedIn activity, and we've had the opportunity to spend real time together - in person. She was one of the first to sign on to participate in the inaugural No Longer Virtual event in 2017, and hasn't missed and #NLV since.
I'm so grateful for her friendship, support, and incredibly inspiring way she speaks, lives, and loves.
Learn more about Heather by connecting with her on LinkedIn, visit her website, subscribe to her podcast, and be sure to watch her outstanding TEDx talk. You can also order her best selling book, 7 Intuitive Laws of Employee Loyalty on Amazon.
Episode 127: Charged by a Silverback Gorilla, Adam Lewis Walker Knows What an Alpha Looks Like
He had me laughing from the moment we hit record, and our conversation ranged from the end of his Olympic pole vaulting dreams, destroyed knee, and subsequent bout with depression, to his TEDx in 2016, and even included what I'm sure was the subconscious inspiration for the name of his first podcast, Awaken Your Alpha.
Hint: It involves a silverback gorilla in the wilds of Rwanda.
Stories of Resilience, Persistence, and Personal Growth
Adam Lewis Walker promised me he went by his full name because the name Adam Walker was far too common and wouldn't be searchable - not because he's a serial killer.
Am I the only one who remembers the article on Slate.com from 2011?
He had me laughing from the moment we hit record, and our conversation ranged from the end of his Olympic pole vaulting dreams, destroyed knee, and subsequent bout with depression, to his TEDx in 2016, and even included what I'm sure was the subconscious inspiration for the name of his first podcast, Awaken Your Alpha.
Hint: It involves a silverback gorilla in the wilds of Rwanda.
What really became clear to me was Adam's inspired motivation to help others uncover their talents, their dreams, and the actions they know it will take to reach them. On top of that, his insistence that reaching a goal isn't nearly the end, and that each subsequent goal leads us to greater self-reflection and personal growth.
After listening to this episode, you'll want to connect with Adam on LinkedIn, follow him on Twitter, and check out his website to learn more about his work with want-to-be TEDx speakers and podcasters.