We have all said it: “I need more time.”

There are a multitude of decisions you make every day. Some you give more thought than others. How do you know what the right ones are?

You know that feeling when you’re headed for a vacation or going away for a long weekend. You begin to imagine the feeling of leaving the daily routine behind, no schedules or stress, and doing the things that fill you up.

Are you taking a break to recharge regularly?

Over the years I have heard experts say balance is not achievable. I believe it is, although it may be different than what you think.

I think balance starts on the inside: more of a feeling and state of being.

Have you ever done or said something that you wish you could take back immediately?

I recently had a conversation with a leader who overreacted to an individual on her team, in front of her whole team. It was not pretty and she desperately wanted to take it back. Instead, she went into hiding and berated herself for her bad behaviour.

Craig had a fear of public speaking ~ including giving formal presentations to clients. This was holding him back from playing at a higher level both personally and professionally.

His thinking was robbing him of being brilliant.

Julie was recently given the opportunity to play a lead role on a big project. She admitted that even with the success she experienced in her career this project was a bit intimidating. It was bigger than anything she worked on before, she was the most junior person on the team, and the client was high profile.

In a conversation with my niece, who had just graduated with honours from university, was sharing all the job opportunities she had to choose from. Her level of enthusiasm washed away any fleeting thoughts of doubt.

Listening to her was a powerful reminder that we are in charge of our thoughts and what we focus on influences what we do in our lives.

“I need to increase my self-esteem” is a statement I hear often from my students. Their belief is that once their self-esteem is higher, they’ll be able to achieve more and become greater successes.