Balance Bite Number 1

1. Managing Expectations

It was a pleasure to work with you August 11th as we kicked off the Do it ON Purpose program. This email includes your first of 26 Balance Bites, an e-course that is part of the program.

-Marjorie Shore M.S.W.

Managing expectations, your own, your boss's and those of your family is an essential skill to balance your life.

Managing expectations will help you to create a safe space to blossom in your life.

1.	Manage your own expectations: We all have a habit of comparing our developing skills with someone else's already developed skills. This is not comparing a whole person to another whole person but rather the best of another with a developing skill of ours. This is a perfect recipe to feel "less than" and anxious all the time. Make sure you are being honest with yourself around a learning curve time table. This might come up around doing a task for the first time, working with a new partner, or learning a new recipe. Make sure you give yourself enough room to learn, grow and blossom with new challenges.
2.	Manage your boss's expectations: Get a good brief. Make sure you know exactly what is expected and by when. If it is a long project, establish review sessions where you can get feedback on the work you have done to date. Learning as you go along will make the last part of the project quicker and less tense than the beginning.
3.	Manage family expectations: This is where you need support from your partner and confidence in yourself. Make sure you are making realistic promises. Give yourself some learning space. Learn how to push back when the expectation is unrealistic. Start to negotiate in order to establish realistic deadlines and a trusting relationship. New work or stages of family life will always present challenges and new learning. This is the good news. The more experience you get under your belt the quicker your confidence will grow. In this case the emotional reaction of mild anxiety is normal. It is the signal that you are doing the new learning to grow into a confident professional, parent and partner.

2. The Online Coaching Clinic

Go to The Online Coaching Clinic and look for these helpful modules:

• Making Time Last Longer:
  Getting organized by. . . Handling Multiple Projects
  
• Managing Yourself:
  Coping better by. . . Letting Go of Unhelpful Beliefs

3. Quote of the Week

"There are two things to aim at in life: first, to get what you want; and after that, to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second."

- Logan Pearsall Smith (1865-1946)

Do you have a question you would like us to address in a future Balance Bite? Feel free to let us know.

Have a great week!
Margie
margie@coachingclinic.com

This Balance Bite is Copyright 2005 The Coaching Clinic, 16 Strathearn Road, Toronto, ON M6C 1R3. It is for the personal professional use of the recipient. Redistribution is not permitted without permission from The Coaching Clinic.