Forget working only for the weekend - you deserve to thrive from 9 to 5!
Here’s the deal: You should feel happy and fulfilled with what you’re doing, but you don’t.
- Adam Grant, author, speaker, and organizational psychologist
I’ve seen friends and colleagues over the years decide to quit or change a job like that was the only path forward, only to find a few months later in their new company or position or even as a solopreneur that the same feeling of dissatisfaction returns. That new job excitement wears off and they are left with the same gnawing hollowness. Sometimes they are actually worse off after the move and want to return.
This phenomenon is all too common. Even in the great resignation of 2021, experts have written about the pitfalls of these employees, “... focus on the immediate change and how it will make us feel but not what will happen a month later…”. On top of that, 40% of folks who leave become boomerang employees who later decide they want to come back.
Here’s the thing - this doesn’t have to be you.
You’ve tried doing all the right things, worked hard, maybe even to deny this empty feeling, but it isn’t working. All of what you're trying…well, it was missing a critical foundation to make it all come together. It's like you’re trying to place new furniture and hang pictures in a house that isn’t built yet. There isn’t anything wrong with the pictures or furniture - they just don’t have a solid foundation so they don’t serve a purpose yet.
This is what Thriving 9 to 5 solves. It creates the foundation for success that you’ve been missing and then takes everything to the next level.
As for my personal and professional history…
My life has been a series of ‘I didn’t expect that to happen’ moments (rather like all of us, I expect). When my wife was at the young age of 28, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. At the time we had one child who was 9 months old and a dog named Fletch. (If you are wondering…yes, the dog was named after the Chevy Chase character in the movie of the same name!)
This profoundly affected how we saw each day. Life was no longer something to put off until you can retire and enjoy it. Who knew if we would even make it to retirement? I see so many clients wanting to do the same and understand the need to embrace what they can now and not wait. At the same time, we all know we can’t live each day as if it is our last. There are kids, medical bills, a mortgage, student loans, and car payments to pay. How can we have both?
I’m sure many of you have had your set of challenges, health scares, and other life moments that were and still are scary, and even if it has been many years later, it is something that is with you each and every day
For my wife and I, we decided work would be just a part of life and I would no longer be working the hours and weekends I had in the past and if that meant giving up opportunities or advancement, so be it. We had three more kids and have had the good fortune to travel. (Lots of car rides in the minivan with me alone in the front and my wife entertaining and keeping the kids happy in the back. I clearly had the easier job! I still have Veggie Tales songs burned into my brain all these years later.)
Today, some of our kids are now out of the house. We have a new dog named Thurston. (For those who remember Gilligan’s Island, yup, he is named after Thurston Howell the 3rd.) Our more recent hobbies include biking together in the summer and snow-shoeing in the winter. (We live in Minnesota so it’s mostly snow-shoeing.)
Professionally, I’ve been in corporate America at a medical device Fortune 200 company and had the opportunity to work in clinical research, medical education, technical communication, regulatory affairs, and reliability in a variety of areas. Ever since my college graduate school days, I’ve loved research. Like many of you, I’m fascinated with why and how we, as human beings, think and react the way we do. This led me down the path of studying behavioral science research, communication (including body language and hypnosis training), and eventually becoming a certified coach.
I’ve been fortunate to blend these interests and my ‘day job’ and put my eclectic set of skills to work. I teach executive presence classes for our high potential leadership programs, present at numerous company events for our various professional networks, coach a number of directors participating in a differentiated development program, and sponsor similar level employees to take on greater vice president and general manager leadership roles.
My work has also been recognized outside of the company. I’ve written for Deloitte University Press, online magazines and blogs, and have been a guest on a variety of podcasts.
Now, after all these years of life, learning, and leadership, the perfect intersection of all of these experiences and skills is the opportunity I bring forward for you!
Fuel yourself to Thrive from 9 to 5 each and every day. Make this investment in you!
