Global executive coach and development expert Sheila Carmichael uses her HR background to help her clients become their best self. With a unique and thought-provoking coaching management style, she supports leaders, teams, and organizations to achieve their goals.‘I enjoy helping people to think differently.’
This episode covers several topics in leadership, management, and coaching, including – Transitioning from corporate work to entrepreneurship – How nurturing relationships help you find clients – Sheila’s personal coaching brand – Leadership development goals and more Connect with Sheila here: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheilacarmichael/ Transitions D2D: https://www.transitionsd2d.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/SRCarmichael John: Thank you for listening and don’t forget to share this episode and subscribe. Joining me today is Global Executive Coach and development expert Sheila Carmichael, she uses her background in HR to help her clients become their best selves. Thanks for being on the show today, Sheila. Sheila: Thank you for having me, John. John: Well, I always ask this question just to start off, like how did you become who you are today? And maybe share some of your back story, your history in terms of career aspirations growing up, and maybe the journey along the way. Sheila: Well, we have just a short time so I’ll give you the Twitter version how’s that. My career really began in corporate environments, so working for various corporations and it’s interesting because it started off in their accounting and financial area, so it was a skill but not necessarily a passion, and somehow I transitioned over into the HR Arena, and from there it just accelerated between training and developing leaders to organizational development, succession planning and I really found my niche around talent management and continued to fuel my corporate career success from that. I noticed that while I was doing that in between different transitions, you know sometimes you continue to work for companies for 30 years and sometimes you shift and you adjust to support your success in your career and I noticed during one of those transitions there was a pivotal moment for the internal coach to start asking herself the questions she would always ask leaders, you know what is it that you really want to do? What do you love? And what do you love doing? And it kept coming back to coaching and supporting other success whether it was internally or externally, so during one of those transitions from one corporation to not knowing where I was going to go. I decided to put an anchor into, how about being a coach? How about getting the training for that and getting grounded? And what was so interesting was a company dangled a really nice offer and package, it involved doing what I love and I love doing, supporting careers so I went and worked with the international company then of course during that transition had to revisit that question, now what are we going to do when we grow up? And decided to re-go back to that and just really get deeper into it and during some life experiences, caregiving for parents and supporting them in their final stages of life, another carrot came out so things happen when you do put out there what do you want? What do you love? What are you excited about? What are you engaged in? And so, I worked with another fortune 50 company and then decided maybe it’s just time for me to go ahead and stick with my passion from helping a much broader perspective as a coach and narrowing it in around the executive levels. So that’s kind of the in a nutshell, a little over than a Twitter 400-word count, character count but just always knowing that I enjoy watching the light bulbs go off in others the proverbial life of that development of others and helping them to excel in what they want to accomplish that’s always been at my core, so how did I know? I want to do this, I think your questions just were always there and making sure that whatever role, position, job it supported it kept energizing me around that. John: That’s amazing to hear because I actually started my career in sales which was always about serving others, listening, creating a solution that provides value that people want to buy and HR is very similar because you’re dealing with people’s livelihood and this is a career and you’re not just listening, asking and probing but you’re also trying to get the best of the people to match with the company that you’re hired to really fill the roles, then on top of that evolution of ensuring that they grow, they develop to different skill sets and different positions along the way. So I really understand HR, I understand how important it is and vital for a lot of these larger organizations, how has it transitioned for you because you were always doing corporate, then being now an entrepreneur to try to hit the same kind of people but on a smaller scale because you probably were doing it at such a large volume at so many deliverables, so many people and going through all the resumes and everything coming at you, to now sourcing out your own leads and doing it yourself, how was that transition for you? Sheila: It’s a great question, remember I said “I had started this once and did kind of a soft launch and then was enticed by other things to go back to that corporate environment.” And the things that I learned was a couple of things, you have a lot of resources and things internally but you also building relationships and connections while working in those corporate environments, so when I decided to “Okay, let’s officially hard launch this again.” I just leaned on those relationships and what’s interesting is that people started asking me. Well, we were just waiting for you to do this, so that we can bring you in those relationships that I had built, supporting those leaders and executives with aligning their talent, the organizational needs, and the business objectives with the right people doing the right roles. They took that as a value for them while I was in the same work environment and then, of course, their careers took them to other places too and so they remembered that and would reach out. So my lead funneling I guess as you would call is a little different than what some may think of those relationships that I built, showing up as true and authentic in those circumstances and situations and really challenging their thought process they were reminded of that, so they started then reaching back out to me knowing that I could now provide this for them as an external resource, so when you ask the question now, how do I go out there and seek those folks? They actually seek me which is awesome. John: Oh, it’s a great position to be at because you put in your time, then you put your reputation on a line by showing up and doing what you’re asked to do in a corporate environment, and then they remember right and that’s the whole point of just being who you are like you’re tasked at that level as an HR you know VP or whoever it may be, to do what you’re supposed to do and people remember the people and the relationships along the way and I love the fact that you know at the beginning it was a shock soft launch then you got recruited to then do it a full launch but then it’s the everlasting of growing but being independent now. How has that transition changed your trajectory? In terms of entrepreneurship, business ownership, and then, of course, you were so used to corporate to then having no stability to then kind of start your own kind of adventure and journey. Sheila: Yeah, it’s another fabulous question, John. You know when you think about it, I really didn’t understand fully the resources I had when I was inside the corporate structure, when you’re in the throes of that, you always think you don’t have enough, you don’t have enough budget, you don’t have enough this and that and all of that. Then when you come out of it there’s a discovery of “Wow! I had a ton of resources.” and so that is a transition whereas you could easily think about pre-pandemic times, go to a coffee bar or water cooler, or just knock on an office door and “Hey, can I run some ideas by you.” You have to do that differently when you’re running your own shop, you have to be more intentional and more strategic about that so that it’s not coming across kind of like a sales thing, you’re still trying to build and sustain the relationships. So that’s something that you really do when you think about doing differently the shift and the transition, the mindset of where to go to get the things you need to support what you’re trying to accomplish it’s more collaborative, I believe in a corporate environment because you’re all anchoring around the corporate vision, mission, principles, values, and everybody’s on board with that. And when you decide to do this entrepreneurial step, it can feel like a solopreneur step, so strategically laying out where are those resources and how do you continue to sustain those, to support what you need as well as supporting what others are trying to do too. John: And it’s the lifestyle choice too, so I look at like where you’re at in your journey in life there’s career aspirations, there’s corporate and then there’s gonna be jumping around to discover yourself, to then be a point where you’re at to then try something new that always was your passion right. How long has it been since you left that corporate world? And how excited are you today to have made that jump or not? Sheila: You know there are days in which I’m like yeah… and there are moments where I’m like… Did I really make the right decision? And I think that what keeps me grounded, I mean you have those days when you’re working inside a corporate work environment too right, you’re gonna have days that you love, and you’re gonna have days that are a little frustrating and can be somewhat. Annoying what keeps me grounded both whether it was internal and external, you made a point around, comment around, working in corporate and then working in your own world. I like to look at it a little different, John. I know who I am and I am someone who enjoys helping people to think differently about how they’re looking at things, whether it’s their leadership, their teams, the organizational structure, whatever it might be and so it’s that tethering to knowing what I bring in my value to what you’re trying to accomplish, so that really wasn’t that much of a difference whether I’m doing it in-house or whether I’m doing externally from a different angle. It’s still the same thing the things that have really changed about that is the access to it, you have it more readily when you’re inside the organization and you decide “Hey, you have a minute to chat or schedule things quite easily.” Because you’re all on the same system, but when you’re external to that, it just takes a little bit more effort but if you remember your purpose and your reasoning your why your passion. And for me, it wasn’t really that much of a strange shift as much as it was just being more intentional and deliberate strategic about how to still apply the same talents that I was doing internally, that I now do externally, I hope that helps with. John: Yeah, I wanted to ask like how has the passion changed and evolved from when you wanted to leave corporate to then living it currently? Because everyone thinks it’s always easier than you think and then when you’re actually doing it you’re it’s lonely, it’s challenging you’re spending more hours than ever and you start thinking and doubting yourself and you’re kind of wondering “Well, I had a stable employee job with benefits and attention.” Whatever it is I had a social circle, I had access and all this stuff that it’s the comfort level too, then do it yourself it’s a big risk for a lot of entrepreneurs business owners. So, how did you feel when that happened and how do you think differently today than when you left? Sheila: It’s a great question. The first time I did it, it was a lot of lessons learned with it I will be quite transparent and honest, I did not thoroughly think through a lot of different things to what you just talked about, the social aspect, the financial aspect, the resource aspect all those different things. The second time because of the learning on the first, the second time was like, “Okay, before I make this decision let’s put these checkers now in place. What do you need from a social perspective and how will you get that different than what you had when you were internal? What do you need to ensure financially?” Because to your point you get really comfortable when that paycheck is hitting your account every two weeks. However, the cadence of that is and so how are you prepared for those highs and lows of the financial flow into your bank account right, and then as far as your resources how do you go about that differently. So all companies jump out the gate the first time, those entrepreneurial the first time, very successful and hit the ground running there may be some, I’m sure there are they probably checked their markers and made sure holistically. The finances were in place for this to cover those highs and lows, the relationships are sustainable to support, encourage and fuel your passion for the resources and the access to those things. What are you doing when you strategically a business plan? It may be more about the financials but you really do have to consider those other aspects and components as an entrepreneur because you don’t realize that until you step on you say oh, wait a minute this month wasn’t so good financially so where’s the buffer to cover that. You know this month wasn’t as strong with the business development, so what’s the plan to recover from that, you really are using that same corporate mindset you’re just taking that and now working it for yourself more independently. John: Yeah and I love you explaining that in detail because as an entrepreneur business owner, you’re skilled at one aspect, one component of the realm of other pillars that are required. I was always a sales rep when I first started this agency and now I’m in charge of operations, HR accounting as well as everything from fulfillment the service leadership management training, you name it and there’s so much involved that’s overwhelming. Especially, if you don’t have that hit factor for all of it right so, therefore, you need to hire people that are skilled, that are in alignment with your values and everything else and that’s the skill set that’s not talked about as well especially if you want to grow and scale and to be a little bit bigger, but again it all depends on where you want to be and in your organization’s entrepreneurial journey, right? And where do you see yourself and where do you want to be in like 5, 10 years? Sheila: It’s another great question. It’s a question I ask myself daily because things may shift and change and it’s no different than a corporation saying “Okay, what’s our strategic plan for this year, for the next three years.” So, you’re adopting that same type of philosophy in your own business, as far as currently where I’m at in my stage personally. As well as, professionally it is like a re-ramp and it’s a restart, it’s an evolving of that and so as far as the scalability of that, I’m literally in a process of some strategic planning with some partners to help with. Okay, what are some things we can do around scaling and to your point? You don’t have those resources to, what’s not your wheelhouse, or as a co-worker of mine used to say “That’s my jam right. So, what’s not your jam and your wheelhouse.” Then that’s an indicator you probably need to outsource it, you need to know enough about it so that you can monitor it and make sure that your vision is being communicated clearly for others to meet that expectation, so that this way you can play to what’s in your wheelhouse in your jam, in the areas that really do support your passion. I love individuals like yourself who are natural sales folks because that’s not my jam, that’s not my wheelhouse so I know to leverage those individuals to help support me in those areas of business development because that’s not something that really gets me too excited, it’s almost heavy thinking about it, but it feels lighter when I know that I can identify the folks who will support the vision to help generate that business development side of the other business. So, where do I see myself in the second part of your question, today it’s Sheila kind of solo with a lot of different resources that I contract in for specialties tomorrow, in the future, I think that there will still be an opportunity for that, maybe at a broader perspective. I think the workplace itself as a whole is shifting and changing it, we may see even more there’s been research, reports, and books written about how the workforce is changing more heavily in contractual work than from a full-time employee experience, so I’m hoping that will continue to grow as my business grows, who knows maybe there’s a whole organization for that. Is that a desire? Not particularly, I think there are some stresses and strengths that can come along with that I want to still stay grounded and attached to some of that, at the ground level that was one of the things I really enjoyed when I was in corporate, that I could play strategically and still get some of the realities of what’s going on at a couple of levels lower. So, I don’t think I want to be the CEO of a Fortune 100 company it’s a lot of pressure, that’s not Sheila’s personal desire but I do want to help others, continue to help me and help them with their passions of growing whether it’s with my business or as a client, as a mouthful I’m sure. John: Oh, personal branding is important and it will get you to an extent where you want to grow in terms of size or you know growth in terms of revenue, you need to take some additional actions and I guess it’ll come with time because ultimately it’s your personal success, goals, and aspirations. So if you don’t mind like, I was getting curious, like did you have this coaching mentality? Was there other coaches that transpired you to become one yourself? Like why did you always want to be a coach? As opposed to starting a business or doing another adventure altogether. Sheila: Yeah, it’s one of those questions that makes you think about who you actually are and why are you going and stepping into this particular area? What’s drawing and pulling you into it? And so, when I think about the roles that I’ve played over my career, you’re right I could have chosen talent management consultant, I could have chosen organizational development consultant, I could have chosen training and development consulting, I could have chosen any one of those things that I had played in. But the reason for honing in on the coaching then / consultant or then / an author or whatever it might be, it’s because of what it did for me in the alignment to who I was in my core. So, even while consulting around succession planning and management, even while consulting around the process of the employee life cycle and talent management, or consulting around training, development, and facilitating programs. What was always at the core, was the area of partnering with folks to help with exploring options and possibilities and to help really maximize the talents that they bring which is the essence of coaching. So, even if I’m working with an executive or a CEO and trying to figure out, what’s really going on here and how do we resolve this? I’m always anchored back to that point you mentioned a lot of curiosity, to help with them formulating it versus me having to come up with it, so that was always the core and that’s what kept pulling me in and I said “Well, why would I do these other things if at the core what really was fueling my success, was my natural abilities as a coach.” that’s where I need to step into, that’s what I need to identify with. John: Gotcha! And then I was gonna ask you, is there a specific niche industry or segment in terms of the executives that you focus on? Because Fortune 500, Fortune 150 it’s a very broad scope of verticals industries and market places right. So, is there a segment that you specialize in, and how did you come about figuring that out? Sheila: Yeah, it’s another great question. My segment is not like a product or business that says “Hey, we know this is the consumer profile, this is the persona of our targeted audience that we’re going after because of the product.” My targeted audience isn’t based on the size of the organization, it isn’t based on if it’s a for-profit, non-profit, or mutual holding company. It is based on the actual tier of the individual so those areas doesn’t matter but if it’s at the tier you figure. If tier one is the CEO so the first and second-tier being the c-suite and then you come down to the next third and fourth-tier which are lines of business leaders right, executives over those areas when you think about the first line, leaders that’s not who I am targeting. However, it doesn’t mean if someone says “Hey, Sheila I need this help.” If it’s because they’re aspiring they’re a middle manager and they’re aspiring to those ranks so those are already established in executive ranks and wanting to really elevate their game, elevate their presence, elevate their influence or those who are saying “God, I really want to get up there, I want to be the next executive that people are looking to me, to have a broader stretch of influence.” Then that’s my particular niche, those are the individuals who I’m looking at, maybe you were newly appointed and you’re like I thought this was one thing and now I’m discovering it’s something else, something else is going on here. That’s the area that I’m looking at that first-tier down to the fourth-tier and organizations are structured a little differently, so it may be first for / fifth-tier of the organization, where you’re really trying to enhance, improve and accelerate your gain as a key influencer of your organization to drive results, those are the individuals I’m looking at that’s my niche. John: Thank you for that and I wanted to also ask you, how has it worked out for you? In terms of not just the pivot but then the freedom of choice, freedom of time, freedom of lifestyle. How has that transition been versus a corporate lifestyle? Because I used to work in corporate before I started this agency and now I’m trying to create a culture that embodies the essence of entrepreneurship plus corporate to the extent of my values. So, I would love to hear your kind of ideas upon that? Sheila: Yeah. It’s interesting John, your right. So when you’re in corporate you know what your PTO days are all these little things that you say “Oh, there are restrictions on my freedom and autonomy. What I can do and what I can’t do, and you’ve got your performance objectives laid out for a year, you’re supposed to hit these targets and everything.” I say all of that because it’s a structure to help you operate within that culture to your point and when you’re an entrepreneur or a solopreneur or running your own agency, so to speak you now get to define that and there are pros and cons to that, you may have some flexibility, you have all the flexibility in your decision-making authority now right, but now the checkers of are these the right decisions and are they lining up. You’re really having to think through that a little bit more, as far as bouncing them against so they’re may look greener on the entrepreneurial side of the field but there are challenges with it as well, just like the corporate area has its challenges. So, when you think about the organization in a corporate environment is being guided by that top senior leadership vision, missions, stakeholders, shareholders all those individuals that are investing in that vision. When you think about what’s your vision and what you hope for, who are your key stakeholders, members, and your own identified board members to help you stay true and accountable to what your vision, mission, and purpose is. So, you definitely need to define that, you definitely need to get some clear understanding of that, so that you are staying true to what you’re trying to accomplish in your business, no different than corporate, you’re just doing it differently. John: So, I just have a couple of questions remaining Sheila, regarding some of the pillars in life, as you mentioned you had to take some time off and care for your parents, you also made that pivot. How important is some of the other pillars in your life? Like family, community impact, legacy all this other stuff that people always talk about. But really as an entrepreneur, it’s different because until you live it and you breathe it and you’re in it, you cannot explain how it is and unless it’s like parenthood like if you have children you cannot explain to a single person, how apparent his is, when you don’t sleep at night you get kicked in the middle of the night and all these other things that you have to deal with. So, would you be able to share with us some of that? Sheila: You know, John. Those pillars you mentioned are spot on, many times we only think of the top ones right, the financials, the family but there’s other elements that we’re learning more and more that are even equally important your self-care, it’s one thing health and it’s physically fit, but the self-care not only physically but mentally, the compassion for self all these different things to ensure that they’re in line and balance so to speak, there’s not one area of any pillar that you’re defining your success. As you mention success earlier too I want to just weave back to that success is defined by how you define it and not letting others interpretation of their success be yours and staying true to that. So, for someone who has a family and their children are young, well their pillar for family is going to look quite different, than for someone like myself who doesn’t have children and what does that family mean to me and what’s driving me around legacy for someone with children, to someone who doesn’t, for me it’s around my niece. That’s my legacy that I’m looking at and it’s for the community and it’s not to say those things don’t apply for someone else, it’s just how their position and how you’re defining that particular pillar because that’s how your success is being defined, you’re defining that and then what’s also interesting John, is that as you continue I have this running statement that folks find humorous, as you get to different floors of life right, when you’re in your 20’s those pillars look different than when you’re in your 30’s you know the third floor, then on the fourth floor and the fifth floor and so on and each step on that floor, something happens internally with you and your values are probably the same, they just make it weighted and prioritized a little differently and so always revisiting that because the way you’re thinking today on the floor that you’re at and the step within that floor is probably going to be a little different and it’s dictating how you’re defining each of those pillars that are important for you. John: It’s totally understandable, I love how you defined that and broke it down because I look at when I was in my early teens to 20’s to 30’s, 40’s and I spent a lot of time with 50, 60, 70, 80 years old as well to get really good insight, wisdom and their perspective on life, not just in business success but in life success, health, legacy you know whatever wealth is all about, what about success and I’m always trying to understand that’s where the curiosity comes from and I am always trying to figure out, like what makes you, you? How do you differentiate yourself? And it’s all individualized and personalized, so I get it and no one should be trying to mimic exactly what you do because they don’t go through and don’t have an idea of what you’ve gone through, and that’s the whole purpose of life right, make it personalize it to your own interests and people are always chasing, following and aspiring to be that person on social media or Instagram or whatever and I’m like just live your own with intent, have clarity on what you want, aim for it right, grow and yes you’re gonna fail a lot of times, it’s what you do when you do fail and overcome it right and as entrepreneurs you experience it in your first time around to now have better awareness more strategy behind it with more intent and purpose to make it, not fail again because you know what it felt like and now you’re gonna make men’s on ensuring that it doesn’t fail the second time. Sheila: Yes, absolutely. I can’t help my coach hat is on, so it’s a question that comes to mind when you say “There are times where you’re looking and comparing because you see others doing these things you go, how I want to be able to do that, or I want to be the next CEO of an Apple or Microsoft or whatever it might be right.” Because they’re doing so good, chance doing so good, these people are doing so good or maybe it’s Sir Richard Branson. Whatever or whoever it is that you’re admiring, I won’t say idolizing or mimicking but there’s something about what they’re doing, that’s resonating internally for you. So, Coach Schill is asking you to think about if you didn’t have any of those things, those are just reference points, what would you define for you? What will you define as your key purpose and point of life? What does that mean for you? When you look at all those areas and aspects of your success and how do you show up demonstrating that because that’s what people will remember it, you can’t be anyone else and like to your point your journey, your experiences, your successes, the hiccups, the excitements, the joys the letdowns everything defines you, so distinctively, so uniquely that no one else has that to offer, so it would be better to put the aspiration, and goal, and purpose on that with a clear definition. Because that’s what’s going to feel your success, you will not be able to sustain mimicking somebody else, that’ll get you going in the beginning but it won’t last, it definitely won’t last, you’ll get frustrated by it but when you are living your true voice, your true purpose, your true motives, your intentions so when things are coming up against it and you’re thinking “No, that should I or shouldn’t I having all these self-doubts, If you anchor back to who you truly want to be for you.” Then all those decisions are really made much easier, they’re made more confidently and it doesn’t matter, it just really doesn’t matter because you’re staying true to yourself. John: And that’s a great point, Sheila. I love it you know be intentional, be mindful and have clarity on your purpose, your life, and be in control of it and if there’s growth along the way, if there’s hiccups, then make changes, pivot or create change and make it a habit, like there’s things that you can improve, there’s so many doubts and people are always, yeah I read a lot of biographies and I pick one or two bullets out of it to make some changes in my life, to see if it adapts to my vision and my goals right but it might not stick, so it’s okay because I’m always adapting, pivoting, and changing and trying how you know and that’s how life is, like life is so short, people think it’s 80-90 years but it’s gonna fly by, so you’re gonna make the most of it and if you don’t take action like going with a coach or going fulfilling your dream, lifelong dream like you’re gonna live with regret and it’s the same thing when maybe you are married or not. If you wanted to get married and you didn’t pull the product that’s a big doubt and regret you’re gonna have right, these are things that you’re gonna live with for the rest of your life, so might as well, live it with purpose and intent so I love that, Sheila. Sheila: Yes, you know you’re reminding me of life is just this huge experimental journey we’re going through when you think about it, and the more that we give ourselves permission to experiment and have fun and even along the way if we have a discovery of “Oh, note to self, probably shouldn’t do that again.” That’s where the growth comes in and the discomfort from that like why did that feel and really asking yourself those hard questions, why is that word or that phrase or that style of that particular leader that you’re admiring? Why is that resonating for you? Why is that resonating on your vibe? Why is it speaking specifically to you? And when you ask yourself those questions? Like, what about that, that’s pulling on me that helps you then with definitions, for defining a new experiment to test and then after that test you can go “Wow. That was really great, I need to keep that going or giving yourself permission go, that test didn’t work out so good, so I need to let it go and let it go. like why did I do that?” And dwell over it but it was a learning experiment, it helped you, it formed you, and it kept feeding into the things that are really truly resonating and vibing with what you’re trying to really do. John: And I know that I read this all the time it’s like living as present, as possible living intently and making sure that you live for the moment, don’t live in the past, don’t live in the future, live for the moment be present and a lot of people get distracted, they get overwhelmed, there’s too many emails, too many social posts, too many people calling, too many meetings you gotta go up, be intently, and prepared and the more you’re intentional and this is something I started doing, maybe three years ago I put the most important thing in my calendar right off the bat which is family, all my family obligations with my child, my wife, and meetings and family obligations, then come of the work stuff but monthly workshops with the team that is the second most important, my people within the team, then the clients. People forget the people that bought you where you are, are people you should really spend more time with and reward with your time and therefore if people do different things I get it, but for me it’s like my family comes first and then, of course, my friends are there too but it’s just me organizing your life to what’s important and make an alignment with if it’s work right now, you don’t have a huge family or you’re not there yet, then but work at the top of it right, of that calendar and that pillar but under acknowledge where you’re at in your lifespan to then figure out what’s important. Sheila: Absolutely, that’s something I would call your own personal assessment that you’re doing your own personal life assessment, because where you spend your time and attention your space and your energy. People will pick up on that probably quicker than you even realize that you’re doing it yourself and so when you’re intentional about doing that you know Stephen Covey senior, once upon a time seven habits of highly effective people right, it’s still here today and there’s a section in there way back when we used to do that programming in person, a three-day thing there was a section that was called putting first things first and it’s morphed into other titles today, but he said exactly what you just talked about, these big rocks that are important for you, place those first weekly and then the space that’s leftover those are the fillers, those are the things that if they don’t get to, it’s okay. But remember you’ve got the big rocks that are important for you, first make sure you stay committed to those, those are the things that are going to keep you energized and keep you focused and aligned to what you’re trying to accomplish. John: Yeah and I always remember this, which is people are always chasing for more wealth, more money, more status whatever salary but what I talk to a lot of people in their 70’s and 80’s and it’s all about wisdom, it’s all about the relationships and the experiences that people really connect with and if you spend more time living presently, not chasing and doing things that you think you should be doing and focusing on what really matters. Which is slowing down, spending real time with real people and having real conversations. Going and doing things that you’re never gonna experience and have a good experience like let a restaurant trips, whatever it may be, you have a choice and access right, do things and therefore, you’re not gonna live without regret right. And that’s what I love dealing with the elderly as well as the younger people, just so that I have a good perspective in life and it’s been fortunate for me and I’m very lucky to the sense that I have access to a lot of people, that don’t have access to people that I respect, have followed their footsteps and kind of admire and be able to host a podcast which a lot of people don’t even understand how to do it or don’t have the courage to start it. I have the ability to at least connect and have a great conversation with yourself Sheila, you know without living regret so it’s great. Sheila: Yes, I love that you know again depending on where you are in life, what floor, and what step, the things that are going on in your space. It will you then decide let me say that you have that conscious choice, capability to decide if that’s what you really want to do and so as you progress on higher floors you look back on the previous floors and you kind of go, you know I did that for a reason with no regret and sometimes I did that, I had my reason and I regret that I did that but when you get to the final stages of your life journey, what is it that you want? That’s legacy, what is it that you want? People to have known you for and how are you staying consistent for that, so I think when I hear you say, those who are at a more senior stage in life, they’ve looked back over the years and I saw this with my own parents and they had key principles that they were firm about and they instilled those into my brother and I. And they never wavered on it because that was what they wanted as their legacy right, so I would offer to anyone listening to this podcast we’re all going to be at different stages in our life journey, career, personally, professionally. What is it that you want? When it comes to that point or the final stages of your professional and personal journey that you want people to be able to speak up to know, to feel of when they say “Sheila Carmichael” when they say “You know, John Voung?” I don’t know if I’m saying any accurately but whatever it is that you want them, what is it that you want folks to know that you have left, what impression of you, and how that happens, I a mentor way back in my early stages of my career said to me when I was this road warrior for training and development, and I was like “I gotta get all these done.” and like non-stop, that was the big rock for me, how many classes can I get done to support what we were trying to do and get as many and exceed those expectations and those goals all of that and she said to me “I never saw anyone’s Tombstone that I wish I had stayed longer at work.” I’ve never seen this written on anyone’s Tombstone, so God forbid if something should happen to you and you’re on that flight and you’re running all over the world with this, is that what you want people to remember you by? That you were the road warrior that was such a pivotal moment for me. That was like “No, that’s not what I was able to remember myself by.” And so I just pay that forward to our mentors the people in our village, our family, our friends, our clients, our partnerships all of them are there strategically and intentionally to give you the things, that you need to help you to stay anchored to who you really are. What is it that you need to listen to, to keep you grounded to that? What are your actions that you need to put forward? To help support that, it’s a coach thing it’s what I do, I want people to really get grounded on what they want for themselves so that they’re not conforming or mimicking and you know code shifting and all these crazy things because is that the memory you want for folks. I don’t think it is, I mean if it is okay but I really believe that it’s not I think, it’s something bigger, I think it’s something more powerful. John: Well. Thanks a lot, Sheila. This has been really really fun, great conversation hopefully the listeners got a lot out of this. How can some of the listeners get in touch with you? I know it’s going to be in show notes but if you don’t mind sharing maybe your website email or any of you. Sheila: Yes, absolutely. My website is TransitionsD2D and that’s plural transitions, the letter D number 2 and D dot com, the reason for that is because I think we all have to go through some discoveries, before we can make some decisions around that so that’s what the D to D is, so it’s “transitionsd2d.com” and you can contact me via email “[email protected]” or even just hello at “sheilacarmichael.com”, they both will get you to me one way or another. I’m also on LinkedIn “sheilacarmichael” I show up just like I looked today, so it’ll be easy to find me. I would love to hear and have a chat with anyone that’s at that point where they’re going those questions to help me kind of think differently, the way I’m currently thinking and get re-grounded to who I’m truly trying to be, so I would welcome that. John: Amazing. Well, thanks a lot it’s going to be on the show notes and it was a pleasure and honor to have you on this episode. Thank you again, Sheila. Sheila: Oh, the pleasure was truly, John. All mine, thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak to many and to personally connect with you, so enjoyed it.‘Success is defined by how you define it.’
