Laura Wolfe Coaching LLC

Supporting the Evolution of Careers, Leaders,

& Climate Consciousness

Coincidentally…

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128px-The_FabsDid you catch The Night that Changed America: A Grammy Salute to The Beatles commemorating the 50 year anniversary of the Beatles first appearance on the Ed Sullivan show? It contained much great music including performances by Alicia Keys, John Mayer, Keith Urban, and many, many more. While My Guitar Gently Weeps performed by Joe Walsh, Gary Clark, Jr., and Dave Grohl was amazing and intense.

The conversation between Ringo, Paul, and David Letterman was very interesting. Paul said so casually that “all sorts of lucky things, amazing little coincidences came together, with amazing skills added to those coincidences; it was a lot of stuff that came together to make the Beatles.”

Could it have been more than amazing little coincidences that brought the Beatles together and ultimately changed the world?

I recently read Chapter 3 in The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron. In that chapter Cameron talks about answered prayers and how they can be so scary that often people dismiss them as coincidence.

Cameron believes there is a greater power and she writes:

“If we do, in fact, have to deal with a force beyond ourselves that involves itself in our lives, then we may have to move into action on those previously impossible dreams.”

and also:

“Is it any wonder we discount answered prayers? We call it coincidence. We call it luck. We call it anything but what it is – the hand of God, or good, activated by our own hand when we act in behalf of our truest dreams, when we commit to our soul.”

Is there something you’ve been wanting to do? Something in your soul that could possibly change the world – even just a tiny bit? Put it out there and be open to what might happen next.

Is it a coincidence that you’re reading this post? Maybe, but maybe not…

 

Have you ever experienced the kind of coincidence that helped you realize a dream?

Culture and the Handshake

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handshakeAnother day, another listicle, right?

Danny Rubin shared one recently listing 24 Things Millennials Need to Know About the Real World.

Item #2 caught my eye: A flimsy handshake and poor eye contact make you look weak and unsure of yourself.

Here’s a lifehack for that one: Knowing when a firm handshake and eye contact are appropriate shows you are culturally fluent and understand the global nature of our world.

The norm in the US is the firm handshake and eye contact but US companies and their customers are becoming increasingly diverse so thinking before you shake and stare is a good idea. The appropriate greeting can vary depending on culture.

Here are just a few to consider:

  • In Africa a limp handshake is correct; direct eye contact with someone in authority is usually considered aggressive and rude.
  • In Japan, a soft handshake is appropriate.
  • Junior level people in South Asian and East Asian cultures typically avert their eyes after extending a hand for a handshake.
  • A lighter handshake is preferred in the United Kingdom.

Because of the diversity in our world, it may be best to not judge someone based on a handshake. Further, we can’t always know the greeting style people prefer but it is worth consideration. Experts on cultural competence often mention the platinum rule “Do unto others as they would like to have done unto them.”

Becoming a student of cultural norms and preferences is a good idea for pretty much everyone in the 21st century. Classic work in the area of culture and behavior and a good starting point for learning more is Geert Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory. For more on culture and the handshake, google that phrase.

Finally, as a small-boned woman who wears rings and may have a bit of arthritis, I don’t particularly like to shake hands. Probably because too often handshakes are crushing and painful. I’m also a bit of a germaphobe and prefer to not shake hands at an event where food is involved – like cocktail buffets or lunch/dinner meetings.

I realize that not shaking violates all sorts of business etiquette rules and social expectations so I regularly do it, but I just wanted to share my innermost thoughts on this one.

What do you think about handshakes and other greetings in a professional setting?

Louisiana Leadership Wisdom

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la flagHere’s a recap of some thoughts shared by panelists at the recent Louisiana Women in The Global Economy Discussion Forum sponsored by AT&T and the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry.

Three lessons of success from Sandra Woodley, University of Louisiana System President:
1. Determination – summed up by Sonia Perez, AT&T Louisiana President, who said (something like), “I haven’t always been the smartest person in the room, but I’ve always been willing to work the hardest.”
2. Confidence – you may not know everything about the job when you are selected for it, but you must be confident that you can master what you need to learn and that you will be successful.
3. Self-honesty – Woodley said you must be brutally honest about your weaknesses and willing to address them. This takes confidence. (see #2)

About mentoring and developing young women into leaders, Ann Duplessis, Sr. VP at Liberty Bank and former Louisiana State Senator, urged women to bring their daughters to work to shadow them. She said over the years she has observed men do this often with their sons, no apologies. However, women don’t do it as much for fear they’ll be perceived as babysitting. There is great value to kids in seeing that they don’t necessarily have to reinvent in the (career) wheel as their mom or dad has cut a path for them.

Maya Bennett, educator and former Teach for America Corps member, discussed STEM (science, technology, engineering, & math) education. Girls lose interest in STEM in middle school. One way parents can kindle and keep interest in STEM is to answer kid’s questions from a science standpoint when possible. A quick google search can usually answer most anything. For example, ‘why is the sky blue?’. And in case you haven’t heard this one, add Art to STEM and you get STEAM.

Bennett also shared that in Louisiana, for every one unemployed person, three STEM related jobs exist. It’s really not a job shortage but a lack of skilled workers. Sonia Perez stressed how critical this is becoming and that women comprise only about 25% of the STEM workforce. Some good news though  – Georgia Tech, in collaboration with AT&T, is now offering an online masters of computer science degree for about $6600.

Your thoughts?

Finding Your Center

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220px-Russian-Matroshka2In the animated feature film Rise of the Guardians, Santa Claus talks to Jack Frost about his center or what he was born to do. He does this using a Russian nesting doll version of himself. As he takes apart the doll, Santa describes various characteristics that others probably see in him: jolly, mysterious, fearless, and caring, until he finally gets to smallest doll. It has big eyes, open in wonder. Santa explains that this is his center and that keeping wonder in the lives of children is his life’s work.

This scene is a good way to think about the concepts in Pamela Slim’s fantastic new book, Body of Work. She is a genius at helping people find their center and then supporting them as they create whatever is needed to do the work they were meant to do. In her book, a Body of Work is the evolution of that 20th century concept known as the Career.

This broader view recognizes the role our roots play in our work and also recognizes that both ups and downs are of value in the bigger story. Even time not working in a formal, paying job contributes to our body of work. This framework helps us make sense and find the meaning of what we are doing, even in a world of constant change and occasional employment uncertainty.

Because people are much more complex than a nesting doll, the process Slim describes is involved, requiring a certain amount of introspection. It includes a look at values, strengths, skills, experiences and more as the ingredients that combine to create a body of work. She also shares her wisdom on how to execute your life’s work including chapters on fear, collaboration, and defining success. This book is a detailed and beautiful guide for examining and understanding your body of work, full of stories, insights, exercises, and how to’s.

Helping people figure out their center and their next steps is some of the most exciting work I do as well and I am very proud to be certified in Pamela Slim and Michele Woodward’s Career Invention process.

If you were to take apart a nesting doll of yourself, do you know what you would find at the center?

Would love to hear about your body of work.