Category: Fulfilled at Work

Digging In and Digging Out

LynetteLewis
Apr 17 |11:40
The kind of growth I'm after in life and gardens!
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I love gardening for many reasons, and often find parallels between steps in the yard and steps in my own life and career.

For the last three years there has been one spot along our path where the monkey grass keeps dying.  There are many others thriving within inches of this spot but for some reason, whatever is planted here keeps dying.

So this spring it’s time for a new strategy.  Rather than putting money in the ground only to have it die, I decided to dig deeper and get to the root of what’s going on underground.  I’m eager to see if this will yield to lasting growth in this spot.

Isn’t life so similar?  We often find certain areas in our souls and behavior that keep producing negative results.  Maybe we overreact, are mean or impolite, jump to wrong conclusions, or go through the same heartaches over and over again.  When this happens, I’ve learned that often it’s not what’s visible that needs help, but the ground underneath.  Deeper issues of my own soul tend to rear their ugly heads and I need to go deeper to get to the root cause.

There’s no reason to be embarrassed or ashamed of taking the time to get our ground in order.  It’s beautiful growth we’re after, in the garden and in life!

 

Why we shouldn’t believe “SOLD” or “NO LONGER AVAILABLE”

LynetteLewis
Oct 11 |16:19
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Ever find something you REALLY want but it’s already marked “Sold” or “No longer available”?

I’ve confronted such road blocks many times…

  • “No Lynette, you didn’t get the job” (when I was clearly the most qualified and believed it was a God-idea.)
  • “All the good men are married or have issues,” (circumstances told me this for years while single)
  • “Sorry, we don’t carry that style anymore, there are none left in the entire company,” (see photo/story below)
  • “You can’t do that here Lynette, we need you on other priorities,” (while professionally trying to expand my role)
  • “SOLD” (on a perfect item for my master bath redo, see below)

Over and over we run up against signs and signals that indicate a dead-end.  The first gut-reaction is to obey and stop.  But like a dead-end sign on a road while driving, we can’t end up stranded in the car. Instead, we have to back up, make a turn, and somehow find a way through.

This morning a beautiful custom iPad cover arrived in the mail from Tusk leather goods in NYC.  It represents a recent example of perseverance.  I discovered this beautiful cover after hours of online hunting and stopping by various stores.  I was in search of a colorful-yet-classy portfolio that would fit my personal brand and work for speaking venues.  Bloomingdales had only one left and it was perfect, except for a big black stain inside and a grease blotch on the front.  No more in any other Bloomingdales stores, so I called Tusk directly and ended up talking to the owner.  “Your covers are the nicest I’ve seen anywhere, I’d LOVE to have this color/style and can you please find just one more somewhere in your company?” “Sorry,” the very nice owner, Hiten Manseta, told me. “We made this style exclusively for Bloomingdales and have no more in stock anywhere, we don’t even have this leather on hand anymore.”  “Oh Hiten,” I professionally prodded, “can you PLEASE see what you can possibly do?”  He didn’t sound hopeful, but sure enough, a few days later I got an email… “Lynette, I found the purple leather and we will make this special cover for you in our factory overseas.”  Yippee, so glad I persevered!

A few months ago, while shopping in Tulsa, I saw the most stunning, unusually large antique venetian mirror, marked for a ridiculously low price.  Sadly, there was a big SOLD sign on front.  No surprise, at this price who wouldn’t snatch it up?!  I was bummed as it would have been PERFECT for my upcoming master bath redo.  I kept walking by it, so jealous of whomever had better timing than I did.  “Are you sure this is sold?” I asked the guy at the counter.  “Oh yes, I’m certain the person has already paid for it and will pick it up soon,” he told me.  But something inside wouldn’t let go, envisioning it on my wall where it rightfully belonged!   “You’re SURE they paid for it?” I asked again, feeling by now like a stalker.  “Let me check,” he said, walking to the back room.  Not a minute later he emerged, “Good news, turns out it won’t work for the buyer’s house after all, it’s yours if you want it.”  “YES I DO,” I virtually shouted.  My Mom, who was with me for this adventure, said it best as we walked joyfully to our car, “There’s a message in this one Lynette.”  So very true.

Now granted, an iPad cover and mirror are temporal items I could certainly live without.  But what about those things that are crucial, if not essential, to our future and dreams?  Over 25 years of professional and personal pursuits, time and again all signs have pointed to NO when YES was the true destination, just around the corner via uncharted paths.

What dead-end signs have you confronted lately?  Are you really supposed to stop?  Is there another win-win way around the road-block?  Maybe one more phone call, an offer to serve in order to receive?  Granted, we do at times need stop signs to get us we’re supposed to be, but more often than not we’re better served to persevere, not take no for an answer, and find creative ways around and through to our dreams.

I’m closing this post with a link to one of the best stories I’ve read on Steve Jobs and his perseverance.  I’m a big Apple/Mac fan and am grateful for the lessons we can learn from this man’s life.

So whether it’s in small things or big things, stretch your “YES-I-CAN” muscle and decide not to quit, just like Steve.  The Perseverance of Steve Jobs

 

 

 

How a Missoni Baby Blanket Became a Dress

LynetteLewis
Sep 30 |08:08
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I’m a big fan of out-of-the-box thinking, something I came to during years when promised promotions, raises, and other dreams simply weren’t coming through.

During those disappointments and frustrations, the ability to see beyond the obvious to something not yet realized, was being cultivated in my life.

  • Denied promotions brought the urgency to pursue outside interests yielding relationships still treasured today
  • “Forced-on-me duties started out as “most hated” and turned into “most loved” (like writing the alumni magazine which built skills I’d need later as an author.)
  • Frustrating years of singleness included the freedom to DO more, FOR more, WITH more — far more than one single gal could have ever imagined she’d love so much

So many necessary talents, perspectives, nuggets of wisdom and credibility, come via unexpected means.  By persevering through every surprise turn we earn the “mental muscle reflex” that consistently EXPECTS something wonderful when disappointments happen.

Which leads me to the Missoni baby blanket……two weeks ago when Missoni for Target hit stores, I was traveling and unable to get into a store myself (though my wonderful assistant Whitney snagged a few requested items.)  I’m a long-time Missoni-fan, so a few days later, stores completely picked over, I spotted the beautiful blanket and knew instinctively I could use it for an original creation.  Maybe a pillow?  What about a shawl?  A dress became the final choice and I couldn’t be happier having this one-of-a-kind creation all my own.

The lesson?  Often our most creative moments come out of forced necessity.

What is frustrating you lately?  Keep flexing your “dreaming beyond the obvious” muscle and pray for creative insights to turn bummers into breakthroughs.  I promise you, hidden gifts (fashion or otherwise) await!

 

Your Dream is the Answer

LynetteLewis
Sep 27 |13:10
dreamimageonbeach
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Putting our dreams in motion typically involves tension.  Writing my first book included lots of it — fears of failing, questions about how to begin and go from random internal concepts to something someone would actually buy and read.

After plowing through getting a literary agent, doing a book proposal, then pitching the concept to publishers, I was shocked when after only 3 weeks a publisher said YES!

Debbie Wickwire, the acquisitions editor at Thomas Nelson Publishers, told me after the contract was signed that for over two years they had been looking for a corporate woman with a Christian voice who could write a book for working women in the general market (vs. Christian market.)  “You were exactly what we had been praying for Lynette, and when we saw your proposal we knew it was a fit!”

This experience taught me a truth that is a crucial motivator when pursuing a dream:

Your dream is the answer to someone’s prayer.

We so often forget this, make light of our dreams, feel unqualified and unworthy of going for all we dream.

I had no idea that my dream of writing a book to encourage women fit perfectly with what the editors at Thomas Nelson had been hoping to find.  In fact, most days I believed the opposite.

Your dream is no different.  Someone out there NEEDS your dream, the dream you have in mind and the dream that will emerge as you go after it.

Maybe you feel unqualified, don’t know how to get started, keep hoping for some magic moment when all the right elements come together and poof, your dream just happens.  I know from experience it simply won’t happen that way, and every day you wait to get started is one more day denying someone else the answers they need.

Imagine if every person alive, including you, starts going for their dreams, all of them, one by one in all facets of their lives so that in turn, others can be the recipients of the outcomes of those dreams.

My simple advice is this….start articulating what you desire and hope can become a reality.  Lay aside your fears, quit waiting to feel qualified.  Do my 1-1-1 Strategy of taking one step once a week toward one dream.  Dreams in motion attract provision and if you will commit to at least getting started you will be amazed at doors that open and people you’ll meet.

Who needs your dream to become their dream fulfilled?

I’d love to hear about it and what you’re doing to make it happen.  Send me a Twitter message at Lynette_Lewis or via Facebook.

As always, I’m cheering you on….

 

 

Wall Street Lunch ‘n Learn — Leadership Lessons from a Life at Work

LynetteLewis
Sep 8 |16:37

Enjoy this up close look into one of Lynette’s corporate speaking events where she addresses  a group of 50 women on topics from her book, including how to keep moving when you don’t know how, dreaming outside the job description, celebrating every season of your career, and how to let your voice be heard.  The Q&A section at the end gives insights into balancing life and work, dealing with naysayers, and how to become more strategic about where you want to go next at work and in life.

Leadership Lessons from a Life at Work