Your Balanced Life!

Covey on Work Life Balance

2008-10-27T07:07:00.002-04:00

I've taken quite a long hiatus from the blog over the past few months while I have been pleasantly engaged doing some fantastic work with teams, professionals and organizations around leadership and balance issues.

Work Life Quality and balance issues continue to be a hot topic against the context of doing more with less, and economic volatility across the globe.

I came across an interesting blog post by Stephen R. Covey this morning which I wanted to connect you to. How to strike a work and life balance is an interesting read -- particularly if you reflect on his following comment:

"....driven by an addiction to the urgent and continually respond to the the four P’s—those things that are Pressing, Proximate, Pleasant and Popular—leaving very little time to do those things that are truly important." - Stephen R. Covey

How are you creating time today to address those things that are truly important for you?

Have a wonderful day!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CPCC
Potentials Realized
Leverage Your Time in 2009 Virtual Retreat - starts December
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Work Life Balance: Pay Close Attention

2008-04-28T20:25:00.002-04:00

“No matter how you view balance, it is something that calls for continuous attention. Because of the ever-changing demands of life, it is unlikely that you can put your life into balance for once and all. As new circumstances arise, you will be called to make new choices about what is important to you and to adjust how to invest your time . . . Stay flexible, find new solutions, and give yourself enough time to pay attention to the balance in your life.”
- from Running on Plenty at Work, by Kruth and Schmidt

What attention have you paid lately to the balance in your life?

Join me next month for the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat program on Wednesday May 14 and 21 from 7-10pm EST/4-7 pm PT. This program is held by phone and is a mix of short group calls and indivdual coaching exercises which are scheduled throughout the two evenings. I've been celebrating my 4th business anniversary this month, and registration for this program is 40% off until this Wednesday April 30th at 11:59 pm(ET). Regular price is $125 US -- until Wednesday evening registration is only $71 US. I hope that you will consider joining me. Click here for more information or to register.

Have a balanced week,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP

Potentials Realized

Group Coaching Essentials

What's going to give you leverage?

2008-03-06T12:33:00.002-05:00

Has spring arrived in your backyard yet? Here in Toronto we are bracing for more snow. We've already had the second snowiest year on record and many of us are itching to have the return of green grass and flowers. It seems like it is a never-ending winter for many clients I work with as well all across North America.

As many of us are still in hibernation mode, I wanted to ask you today, "What's going to give you leverage?". In the somewhat sleepy state of winter, energy levels can sometimes be a bit sluggish. March Break and Easter are also around the corner, adding to a sense of I don't have enough time right now.

So...what's going to give you leverage this week in your focus? Imagine shining a spotlight onto all your priorities. Which ones will give you the best leverage this week?

Have a balanced week,

Jennifer

Living a Life of Passion (March 3 - 7): You are invited!

2008-02-24T16:54:00.002-05:00

Especially For Women...
Living a Life of Passion

Starting Date:Monday, March 3, 2008
Content:Five Dynamic Teleseminar Training Sessions In One Short Weeks

Registration:See here for registration details.

If you are a woman feeling like you're on the treadmill, doing all the things you are supposed to do but aren't truly enjoying every minute, you've got to read this because……

I'm privileged to participate in a great new tele-seminar series, starting March 3rd, being produced by Iris Benrubi especially for you: "Living a Life of Passion".

I'll be speaking on Thursday March 6th from 1 - 2pm (EST) on Leverage Your Time, Save Your Sanity: Work-Life Balance Tips for Busy Professionals.

Iris has rounded up 5 professional speakers all committed to sharing their tried and true techniques for creating more passion, being guilt-free and connecting with your inner wisdom.

As one of the speakers in the event, Iris has allowed me to offer you a VIP discount. The teleseminar series is $199 but with my coupon, you get 100% off the registration fee, plus you'll get over $194 of bonuses with your registration. You will get access to the calls and the ability to listen to the event after the call through streaming audio. (Just put "VIP306" in the Discount Code field of the registration form and click the button to "enter the discount code"). That’s $397 value for free!

I am thrilled that I am able to provide this teleseminar series to my group, but I strongly recommend that you invest in yourself and get the dowloadable audio copy of each of the speakers so that you listen to the nugget of wisdom over and over. The downloadable audios are normally $199 but for my group, I’ve negotiated $130 off. That’s just $69. Just use ‘0316’ in the discount code to get $130 off the $199 price.

Listen to the interview with Marlena Field as she discusses the "Conscious Choices for Change" that she'll be sharing at the event. Click Here

Listen to Victoria Cook’s interview ‘How to get rid of Guilt & Make Room For Passion in a S.E.C.!’ event. Listen Here

We expect this event to be at capacity, so please take a minute now to get more details and register here:

http://SimplySuccess.ca/passion/jennifer

See you there!

Warm regards,
Jennifer

Happy Valentine's Day

2008-02-14T11:15:00.005-05:00

I hope that you are enjoying your Valentine's Day and that it will be full of surprises, love and appreciation. Even if you are not in a meaningful relationship, today is a wonderful day to share your appreciation for others.

Aligned with this month's theme of relationships, I wanted to share with you some interesting articles and studies which have been released in honour of Valentine's day. I hope that you will check them out.

Date Nights:

In my last blog post, 8 Ways to Strengthen Your Relationship, I suggested the concept of "date nights" to keep your relationship strong. If you are looking for some ideas on what you might do during a "date night", I hope that you will check out this great list over at LovingYou.com.

The New York Times also published an article this week entitled " Reinventing Date Night for Long Married Couples". A great read.

Love at First Sight:

A recently released study in Canada found that the majority of respondents believed in love at first sight? Do you?

You can read an article from the Toronto Star about it here.

Other pieces of interest

The 2008 Harlequin Romance Report has also been released. Read the highlights here.

As always Oprah.com also has some interesting pieces on relationships.

Have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized

Email: jennifer{at} potentialsrealized.com

Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Still looking for the perfect Valentine for that hard to shop for person? Give the gift of a couple's retreat or a couple's coaching session. Spend a weekend away in April to the beautiful wilderness setting of Muskoka with your partner and join me for the Relationships on Fire! Retreat (April 26-27, 2008) or give the gift of the Partnership Revitalization Virtual Retreat (a phone based retreat program for you and your spouse -- choose from either sessions - April 10 and 24th from 7-10pm EST/NY both evenings or 10am-4pm Sunday May 4th). Both programs will give you an opporunity to reconnect and refocus on your relationship. To purchase your package and receive your gift certificate, register online or give me a call toll free at 1-866-217-1960. I look forward to having you join me! Relationship coaching specials on until February 28th.

8 Ways to Focus in on your relationship

2008-02-07T16:18:00.000-05:00

8 Ways to Focus in on your Relationship

In today’s busy world, our relationship with our spouse or partner often ends up as the last thing that gets attention. With Valentine’s day just around the corner, here are 8 things you can do to put a spotlight, or some focus, back on your relationship:

1. Set aside time to have a “date night” or an evening out for just the two of you. Make this a regular
2. Revisit your memories of your first meeting or date together
3. Ask yourself “What makes your relationship unique?”
4. Spend time with your partner/spouse creating a Vision Board for your relationship
5. Ask yourself as a couple “ What’s the most amazing thing that we could create in our relationship?”
6. Ask yourself “ What do you value in your relationship?”
7. Celebrate and acknowledge what you have created in your relationship, what you have learned and what challenges you have overcome
8. Unplug the blackberry, the internet, the phone(s) and TV for one evening and have a couple’s evening home.

Which one will you choose today?

Have a wonderful week,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized

Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Email: jennifer{AT}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Jennifer Britton is a Certified Coach who works with relationships (teams, intimate relationships and business partnerships) supporting them to move from ordinary to extraordinary. She offers a number of coaching programs and retreats for partnerships who want to shine the spotlight back on their relationship. She has supported teams in over 15 countries around the world. You can visit her online at GroupCoachingEssentials.com and at Potentials Realized.

We would be happy to have you reprint this on your blog or in your newsletter, keeping the copyright intact along with our contact information and bio.

Dream Boards - Dream Big

2008-01-28T18:52:00.000-05:00

It’s two weeks until Hellen Buttigieg and I run the next Get Organized Virtual Intensive (February 11 and 25, 2008, 7-10pm EST both evenings). Is one of your dreams this year to get organized and to work with a world class organizer? Here’s your chance. Hellen and I are pairing up again to work with an small group of individuals(less than 10) who are committed to getting organized and spending time discovering what is important to you. It’s going to be a very interactive two evenings of organizing and coaching. We are holding the program by phone, so that you can tackle your closets, your drawers…no excuses! For more information about the program please click here.

We still have space for a few more individuals to join us for these two evenings of fun, organizing, coaching and tips so if you’ve been sitting on the fence about joining us, I hope that you will email me at info@potentialsrealized.com to reserve your spot.

Hellen was featured again today on the hot CBC talk show Steven and Chris. She did an excellent segment on Dreaming Big and Creating Dream boards. You can see the 10 minute video clip for yourself here: http://www.cbc.ca/stevenandchris/2008/01/creating_a_dream_board.html

Dream Boards, or Vision Boards, are a very powerful tool which have become more popular with the Secret. It’s a great exercise which can help you capture in one place all the things you dream about. By reviewing it regularly (daily) consciously and subconsciously many things can be manifested.

I am often reminded of this by a coaching client of mine who really wanted to get a particular car when we first started working together. She thought that it was just not going to be possible given her current situation. During our coaching work she developed a structure to keep the idea of the car close to her. Six months later, after stepping into a new promotion, her old car died. She decided to go out and look at new cars. Wouldn’t you know that the car she really wanted was available, even at a lower price than she would have paid to keep the old one on the road. She said that the car is a reminder to her that big dreams can come true. She continues to enjoy the car every moment she can!

To create your own dream board, watch Hellen’s segment above, or click on over to these great articles and links about Dream Boards"

Annette Colby’s Dream Board article
Top 7 Instructions for Creating Your First Personal or Business Dream Board: http://top7business.com/?id=64

February’s Balance call will focus on Breathing Life into your Vision of 2008. The call will be held on Monday February 4th at 7:30 pm (EST). My monthly balance calls are complimentary (your only cost is to dial into the bridgeline) and run for one hour. It is a mix of information and coaching. If you would like to join the February 5th call please email me at info@potentialsrealized.com with Feb 5th in the subject line. I’ll send you the bridgeline information prior to our call next Monday night.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Group Coaching Essentials.com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Retreat from Home in February and March

2008-01-21T09:07:00.000-05:00

A couple of years ago when my son was still an infant I started offering virtual retreats as I could not run my in-person retreats as frequently.

What is a virtual retreat, you ask? A virtual retreat is a retreat held by phone, where we connect as a group hourly to focus on different topics. We spend about 15 minutes of each hour on the phone discussing a different topic, and then disconnect for the rest of the hour to undertake some individual exercises at home (or office, or even hotel room).

I run a number of virtual retreats for different audiences including one on work-life balance (Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat), one on organizing issues (Get Organized Virtual Intensive), and one for business owners (BizSuccess Virtual Business Planning Retreat). I will also be offering a special couples virtual retreat later this spring.

Who is a virtual retreat suited for?

Virtual retreats can be for anyone. I've been running them for almost 2 years now and participants who really seem to enjoy them are:
* Busy moms (who can't afford to take a whole day off or travel to a retreat site)
* Working professionals (again trying to fit in a full day retreat offsite often gets pushed to the bottom of the priority list)
* Business owners who want to create space to plan and focus on their business (and who don't want to have to pack up their office to do so!)
* Anyone who wants to benefit from the accountability and learning created by attending a retreat with a small group (retreat size is usually limited to 8)

So what are the upcoming dates for retreats?

Monday February 11 and 25 - Get Organized Virtual Intensive (7-10pm EST) both evenings

Tuesday February 12 and 26 - Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat (7-10pm EST) both evenings

Monday March 10 and Wed March 12 - Group Program Virtual Retreat (7-10pm EST) both evenings

Wednesday March 5 and 19 - Spring Biz Success Business Planning Retreat (7-10pm EST) both evenings

For more information, please click on the links. Registration forms are avaialble at the each web page. You can also call me toll free at 1-866-217-1960 to reserve your spot, or email me to see what room remains. Space is limited to ensure a really interactive, intimate environment. Most retreats have 4-8 participants. Retreat packages usually include a manual (which will serve as a handy reference in the future) as well as a group follow-up call a few weeks after the retreat date(s).

Are you ready to retreat? I'd love to have you join me!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Time Management Tips for the New Year

2008-01-16T11:53:00.001-05:00

The issue of work-life balance and time management continues to be a major priority for a lot of professionals these days, if the number of inquiries I've had about them so far this year is any indication.

My co-host for the Get Organized Virtual Intensive program, Hellen Buttigieg, was interviewed earlier this week on the hot new CBC daytime talk show, Steven and Chris. She provided some excellent tips on time management which you can read here.

Time management is one of the main topics we focus on during the Get Organized Virtual Intensive program. If Getting Organized is one of your priorities this year, Hellen and I hope that you will join us for the next Get Organized Virtual Intensive program on Monday February 11th and 25th. This program is held by phone. You'll leave the program with a whole new toolkit of tools and ideas for getting organized. In addition, during each hour of the program we actually get you to take on a hands-on exercise at your home (or office) so you really do get organized.

Space is limited to 12 and is filling quickly. Registration forms are available here, or you can call me toll free 1-866-217-1960 to reserve your space.

Here are a number of other time management posts and tips from last year:
My Powerful Time Management Tips podcast from last August (15 minutes)
Work Life Balance Tip : Where do you spend your time? (Time Audit Exercise)

Enjoy and have a balanced week!

Warmly,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Women on Fire Group Coaching starts Tues January 15

2008-01-08T09:37:00.000-05:00

I'm pleased to announce the launch of the Women on Fire(TM) group coaching program which will start next Tuesday January 15th and will run until March 4, 2008. We will be meeting by phone weekly on Tuesdays from 8-9pm (EST).

If you don’t feed the fire, it will go out. Where do you need to fan the flames?

Imagine if you could sit around a roaring bonfire every week for 7 weeks with a community of women who are looking to create more spark in their lives, sharing stories, gaining insights and tools, and supporting each other to step up to a more passionate and intrinsically fulfilling life.

Join us to:

Ignite – Rekindle your passion and energy in important areas of your life.
Explore – Crystallize your values, needs, hopes, dreams and vision of what a Life on Fire looks life for you. Clarify what you’re tolerating that gets in the way.
Re-Discover – Reconnect to what makes you unique and powerful as a woman and what’s needed to live a more passionate and fulfilling life
Focus – Take a stand for what’s important by developing an action plan for the future.

I will be facilitating this program with Sharon Miller of CoachingWorks. Sharon and I also deliver the Relationships on Fire Retreat program for couples.

If you would like more information about Women on Fire, please click here. Space is limited to 8 participants. Cost $300 US or Canadian.

To register, please contact me toll free at 1-866-217-1960 or by email at jennifer@potentialsrealized.com

I look forward to having you join us fireside next week,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized

Group Coaching Essentials

Keeping your resolutions alive

2008-01-04T11:14:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year! I hope that 2008 has started off wonderfully for all readers!

The new year is often a time when intentions and resolutions are set. Prehaps you may have set a resolution about getting more fit, spending more time with your family, finding better work-life balance or even writing a book.

Unfortunately, every year a vast number of resoutions fall by the wayside, only to be put on next year's list.

How are your resolutions coming? Ask yourself the following:

1. On a scale of 1-10 how am I doing with the resolutions I set?

2. What action can I take today to move forward towards my goal?

3. If I've fallen off track, what small action step can I take to get me back on track?

4. How important are all of the resolutions I set? Which ones are most important for me?

Often we set a huge list of resolutions which realisticaly we can't meet. Be gentle with yourself and consider what it would be like to pare your list of 10 or 20 down to the most important 1, 2, or 3. How does that feel?

5. How will I know when I am making progress towards my resolutions? What milestones have I set for myself?

If you haven't set regular milestones where you can chart your progress, do this is now. For many resolutions - like eating better, quitting smoking - success will depend on changing our habits, which many researchers say takes at least 21 days. How can you chart your progress for each of these first 21 days which often are the most challenging before a new habit is formed?

6. What support do I need in the short term to keep my resolutions alive? What support do I need in the long term?

7. How will I reward myself (regularly) for making progress towards my resolutions?

Remember, reward does not always mean spending money. What can you do to reward yourself -- take a longer bath, read a book that's been sitting there for a while, going for a walk.

For additional insights, tips and tools as you move forward with your resolutions, check out my blog postings from last year on the 30 Day Challenge I did last April. The 30 Day Challenge was a structure to focus on one important goal achievement. I hope that you find some of last year's posts useful as you look to keeping your New Year's Resolutions alive!

Cheers to the start of a new year and Make 2008 Great!

Warm wishes,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton

Potentials Realized

Group Coaching Essentials

The year that was and the year ahead (Audio)

2007-12-18T12:42:00.000-05:00

I hope that you have read my post on Balance Tips for the Holidays 2007. In it, I include several questions to help you reflect on 2007 and start undertaking some visioning work for the year ahead.

If you haven't done so, I'd encourage you to build in at least half an hour to take stock of what 2007 has had to offer and what you want 2008 to look like. Grab a pen, some paper or your computer!

Here's a 15 minute audio post to support you in your reflection and visioning:

(If you subscribe I hope that you will visit this post online so you can download the recording)

Pull up a chair, put on a fire, or head to the beach to undertake this exercise on reflection and visioning for the new year.

Enjoy!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Group Coaching Essentials
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized.com

Balance Tips for the Holidays - 2007

2007-12-18T12:15:00.000-05:00

Last year my post on balance tips for the Holidays was extremely popular and I have had a number of requests to provide some Balance Tips for the Holiday Season 2007.

If you haven't read last year's Balance Tips for the Holidays, you can read it here. And here is my 2007 Balance Tips for the Holidays:

Balance Tips for the Holidays 2007
Jennifer Britton, Potentials Realized - Copyright 2007. All Rights Reserved.

The holidays can be a whur of activity and a time for stress rather than a relaxed time connecting with those things that matter most to you. What kind of holiday season do you want to create for yourself this year?

Here are a few tips to consider when looking at creating better balance during the holiday season.

1. Spend time reflecting on what 2007 was all about.
Build time into your schedule to tuck yourself away to take stock on the year that was. To support you in your reflection process you may want to consider the following questions:

What am I grateful for? In my relationships? In my career or business? In my family life?
What lessons have the events of 2007 taught me?
What do I need to celebrate achieving this year?
What have been the major areas of “stretch” for me this year?
I am most proud of accomplishing….this year

2. Spend time creating a vision for what you want to create in 2008.
What do you want to create in 2008. Here are some vision questions to get you started:

What do I want to create in 2008? (In my work, family, relationships?)
What are my three main goals for the year – personally, in relationships, in my career or business?
What support team do I need around me to help me achieve my goals?
What is the most breathtaking action I could take in 2008? What would it give me?
The theme for my year in 2008 is…..

3. Connect with what is important to you - your priorities
It can be very easy to lose sight of of you priorities during the holidays and get wrapped up in the holiday spirit. Is your priority to spend more (quality) time with your family? Live a healthy lifestyle? Practice financial prudence? How are your priorities being met this holiday season.

Take a moment and write down what your priorities are right now, and what you want your priorities to be for the coming year. Is there a gap? What do you need to let go of to close that gap?

4. Revisit your values: Values can act as an internal compass for us, enabling us to make better decisions while keeping aligned with what is most important to us.

5. Build in time for your "self" - Our needs can quickly get lost during the holiday, especially if you wear many different hats - business owner, executive, parent, spouse, partner, sibling, child.

What do you need in order to fuel yourself during the holidays? Remember: "What doesn't get scheduled, doesn't get done!"

What can you do today to have time for yourself?

and finally

6. Celebrate - The holidays are a wonderful time to celebrate all that has happened during the past year. It's a time for community and reconnecting with childhood wonder. Find time this holiday season to celebrate in a way that is meaningful and fulfilling to you.

Some questions to consider are:
What have I accomplished this year?
What major milestones have I reached?

Cheers to a "balanced" holiday season!

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Group Coaching Essentials
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Jennifer is a Professional Certified Coach who works with professionals, teams and organizations on balance, career, teamwork and business success issues. She has worked with clients in over 30 countries to help them take their work and relationships from good to great. She offers indvidual and group coaching programs, workshops and retreats (virtual and in-person). To find out more about the work Jennifer undertakes and programs she offers, please visit her at www.groupcoachingessentials.com.

If you would like to reprint this article please feel free to do so including our contact details and bio. We would love to hear where you have used it, so please feel free to send us a link or copy by email to info@potentialsrealized.com.

3 Keys To Getting Your Relationship Right Side Up

2007-12-09T18:37:00.000-05:00

I'm pleased to be able to share with you the link to the audio recording for the relationship coaching call I held last week with my colleague, Jennifer Morgan, CPCC.

On Saturday January 12, 2008, Jennifer and I, along with Sharon Miller, PCC, will be hosting Make It Great for 2008 - A Couples Retreat here in Toronto at the beautiful Verity Club. You can view more information about the retreat here.

Sharon and I are also pleased that we will be hosting another Relationships on Fire! Couples Retreat in breathtaking Muskoka on Saturday and Sunday April 26-27/08. To reserve your spot at the Early Bird Rate until February 15th/08, click here. It's a great holiday or Valentine's day present for your spouse!

In lead up to the retreats, we hosted a one hour call -- Are You Standing on Your Head in Relationships? 3 Keys to Getting Your Relationship Right Side Up. If you couldn't join us last week, we hope that you will enjoy listening to us here:

This call gave participants to look more closely at one important relationship in their life (business or personal) to see what made that relationship unique. The call also created the opportunity for listeners to look at what's their vision for the relationship,and to take some concrete action steps towards taking the relationship from good (or not so good) to great.

As always, I'd welcome your feedback...feel free to comment below.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realizedand Group Coaching Essentials.com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer {AT} potentialsrealized.com

Work Life Balance Tip - Investing in Relationships

2007-11-11T21:51:00.000-05:00

Relationships infuse every aspect of our lives -- our work, our families, our relationship with money. How much focus have you given your relationships lately?

The focus on effective relationship building is becoming a priority in many companies these days as it has an impact on everything from customer service, to team productivity to employee satisfaction.

Here's an exercise to undertake with an important relationship in your life. It may be an exercise you want to journal on. Ask yourself:
1. Why is this relationship so important for me?
2. What do I love about this relationship?
3. What does the relationship call me to be? To do?
4. What is possible for this relationship?
5. What does it mean to be conscious and intentional in this relationship?

Over the past year, an increasing part of my work as a coach has shifted to supporting couples and business partnerships in creating consicous and intentional relationships. Having focused on supporting the strengthening of team relationships for many years now (19 to be exact!) it's quite exciting to have the opportunity to work with even more intimate relationships.

If you are commited to investing more in your relationships, I hope that you will mark your calendars for a one hour free call I will be holding with my colleagues on December 4th from 8-9pm (EST) on creating more intentional and conscious relationships. To reserve your spot email relationships{at} potentialsrealized{dot}com.

If you are in the Toronto area and are looking for a fun and rich day to start 2008 with your spouse, business partner or sibling, I hope that you will consider joining us for the Make It Great for 2008 Retreat (Saturday January 12/08 from 9-5 pm). The program will be held in downtown Toronto.

What's possible for you in your relationships in 2008?

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Make It Great for 2008 Retreat

Work Life Balance Tips for Entrepreneurs

2007-10-22T16:33:00.000-04:00

Wendy Piersall over at Entrepreneur.com had a great post last month entitled 20 Work-Life Balance Tips for the Overworked Entrepreneur. It's great to see Wendy's role over at Entpreneur.com -- I knew her back from the EMoms at home BlogJolt Days.

Wendy's got some fantastic tips which are not just for entrepreneurs, including some of my favorite work-life balance tips which you've heard me talk about before, including:

- Say No!

- Schedule in downtime

- Ask for help

I think as women, whether we run a business, work as a full time professional, or raise a family, we can all benefit from Wendy's work-life balance tips.

My monthly balance call next month will dovetail with the relationship series of calls I am doing with fellow retreat leaders and relationship coaches, Sharon Miller and Jennifer Morgan. I hope that you will consider joining us on November 1st from 8-9pm (EST) by phone for Standing Your Relationships on their Head. It's going to be a juicy, interactive group coaching hour where you can explore one of your most important relationships, define what's unique about it and walk away with some action steps to take it from great to extraordinary. To reserve your spot for this one hour call email us at relationships@potentialsrealized.com. We'll be running this call again on December 4th from 8-9pm (EST) if you can't make it next Thursday.

Have a balanced week!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPCC
Potentials Realized
Group Coaching Essentials
Email: jennifer@potentialsrealized.com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Blog Action Day for the Environment

2007-10-15T09:18:00.000-04:00

I wanted to share a post from my sister blog -- The Biz Toolkit -- for those of you who might also like to join in, or are concerned about the environment:

Today, October 15th, I've joined over 15,680 other bloggers for Blog Action Day, a day when bloggers have united to blog on issues related to the environment, in order to raise the awareness of environmental issues.

To regular readers of my blog, you will know that my professional roots are in the environmental sector. Back in 1995 I completed a two years Masters of Environmental Studies degree at a time when the environment was not so fashionable. In fact, I very vividly remember teaching a first year undergraduate environmental studies course which included a one month module on climate change. In those days we were considered "radicals" espousing an incorrect science.

Flash forward to 2007 when climate change has now reached the media mainstream. Just last week the Nobel Peace Prize was given to Al Gore (for his work around climate change including An Inconvenient Truth) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Given my former experience of supporting several across the Caribbean on their climate change policies and legislation, it is very encouraging to see this issue come centerstage for many.

Another encouraging result that the "green" voice is entering the mainstream, are the results of the Green Party of Ontario in last week's Ontario elections. The Green Party had its best results yet receiving 8% of the popular vote. For the first time, the GPO (Green Party of Ontario) put forth candidates in all 100+ ridings. They still hold no seats in the Provincial legislature, but as the popular vote shows they are gaining ground. I hope that their voice will be included in the next election debates and media coverage in four years time!

What are the environmental issues resonating with you these days? Is it conservation at the office? Carpooling? Telecommuting? Recycling more? What action can you take today to lessen your ecological footprint?

Have a wonderful start to the week,
Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer@potentialsrealized.com

Standing Your Relationships On Their Head

2007-10-15T08:24:00.000-04:00

Some of you may know that a large part of my work as a coach involves team and group coaching, as well as relationship systems coaching for couples and business partnerships who want to take their relationship from great to extraordinary.

I am pleased to announce that I will be holding a one hour call "Do You Have to Stand on Your Head in Relationships? Three Keys to Getting 'Right' Side Up.". There is no cost to attend other than your long distance charges.

During the one hour call you will:
* Identify what drives you nuts in relationships
* Create a vision of what a truly fulfilling relationship looks and feels like
* Powerfully commit to taking action in the area of relationships

Our next call will be held on Tuesday October 23rd from 8-9pm (EST).

To reserve your space, send a blank email with October 23rd in the subject line to relationships@potentialsrealized.com. You'll receive an email with the bridgeline information and more details about the call. I hope that you will be able to join us! Feel free to also bring a friend or your spouse!

I will be joined on these calls by colleagues, and fellow retreat leaders, Sharon Miller, PCC and Jennifer Morgan, CPCC.

Future calls will be held on Thursday November 1st(8-9pm EST) or Tuesday December 4th (8-9pm EST). You can also reserve your space at relationships@potentialsrealized.com by sending a blank email with the call date in your email.

If you and your partner are looking to take your relationship from great to extraordinary, I hope that you will consider joining us for one of our 2008 couples retreats. Save the dates:
Saturday January 12/08 - Make it Great for 2008 Couples Retreat (Toronto)
Saturday and Sunday April 26 and 27/08 - Relationships on Fire (Muskoka) (NOTE: Early Bird rates available to Jan 31/08)

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Coaching for Business Partnerships
Email: jennifer@potentialsrealized.com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Work Life Balance Tip - Fall Cleaning

2007-10-08T11:47:00.000-04:00

I've just wrapped up the Get Organized Virtual Retreat a few days ago with professional organizer Hellen Buttigieg. We had a wonderful group of individuals who were dedicated to creating more order and organization in their lives this fall. This experience, coupled, with the lead up to the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat starting next Monday October 15th (7-10 pm EST), has led me to thinking a lot about Fall Cleaning, and how we can usher in some wonderful new things, when we let go of the old.

Here are a few things to think about as you take on your own fall cleaning:

In general,
1. What do you need to let go of or clear out before the end of the year?
2. What do you want to create more of in your life?
3. What projects have been hanging on, and on and on. Commit to a set completion date, or take it right off your list.

At home:
1. What's one area of your home environment that needs attention?
2. What action steps can you take to transform this area?
3. Block off time (even 15 minutes on a regular basis) to focus on cleaning or clearing this area.

In finances:
1. What needs cleaning up or clearing out, with respect to your finances?
2. What is one action step you will take to clean this up?
3. By when will you complete it? To whom will you be accountable to?

In work:
Review your business goals for the year:
1. What do you need to celebrate?
2. What goals still need attention?
3. What will be your focus this month? In November? In December?

Taking time to take stock of your goals and where you are, can pay off multifold. As we are moving into these last few months of the year, what do you need to clear out before starting afresh in 2008?

As is now tradition, I will be holding the Clean Sweep for the New Year Retreat program (by phone) in early December. This one day program is designed for you to take stock on 2007, and start planning and repositioning for 2008. I will be holding an information call on the program in the next while, so keep posted.

If you want to get a head start right now, space still remains for the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat which starts next Monday (Monday October 15 and 22nd, 7-10pm EST each night, plus a group follow up call). Click here for more info or to register.

I'd love to hear how your fall cleaning is going -- please feel free to comment below.

With best wishes,
Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Your Balanced Life! Group Coaching Program

Are you out of the paper yet?

2007-09-20T19:44:00.001-04:00

Thank you to all who participated on the "Help! I'm Drowning In a Sea of Paper" call last night co-hosted with Hellen Buttigieg. We had over 150 callers join us and it certainly was an information rich call with tips from Hellen on how to get your paper under control.

If you are looking for tools, information and a structure to get your home in order this fall, I hope that you will consider joining Hellen and I for the Get Organized Virtual Retreat which will be held next Thursday September 27th (7-10pm EST) and the following Thursday October 4th (7-10pm EST). This six hour retreat held by phone will give you the space and tools to get your home environment in order. Space is limited to 12 and a few spaces still remain. The cost for the program is $250 US - a fraction of what it would cost to work with Hellen and I individually for this amount of time.

The program includes:
* Six hour virtual retreat held by phone
* A weekly virtual retreat manual to guide you through the process of our calls
* A group follow up call in mid-October (optional)
* Dozens of invaluable tips to get yourself and your environment organized
* Exercises to get you moving forward in a focused way
* Support from hellen and I throughout the two retreat evenings

Here's what past participants have said about the program:
"The process is nice: information, discussion, application, and reflection. It provides a nice flow for learning. I also appreciate the outlines sent beforehand and the notes sent afterward. I am moving through organizing my house one area at a time. As we redo each room, I am using the methods I learned to make decisions, which will help me simplify my life and create a relaxing, elegant, and creative space to live (some of my values!)."
- Amy L. Versnik Nowak, PhD

"(I’ve learned) how to go about purging; staying in one place and not allowing myself to be distracted – the “circle” was the best advice! How good it felt to get “20 minutes” done! (I felt) sense of accomplishment…internalizing it and learning to welcome the challenge vs. being defeated by the amount left to do. Applying it to my individual situation (worked well for my learning and growth); I’m glad you all were willing to listen and remembered and then helped each of us work on our own issues, not just generalized ones. THANK YOU!"
- Carol Campbell

If you, or someone you know, think you could benefit from this program, please take a look at the Get Organized! Virtual Retreat page. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me by email at info@potentialsrealized.com or toll free at 1-866-217-1960.

We hope that you can join us next Thursday.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Taking time to refuel

2007-09-17T12:23:00.001-04:00

I've been a little silent on this blog for the past few weeks, mostly as I had a wonderful week of business travel last week out to Calgary, Vancouver and Victoria. Being on the road for a week was a welcome change, and it reminded me of how wonderful travel is to get a change of perspective on issues.

After a very busy week, I'm taking some time to refuel today here in Muskoka. What was to have been a two day weekend trip became a three day one, as a reward for my hard work last week. Part of what I love about my work as a coach is that I can work from anywhere. Last week I was able to still meet with many of my clients from the varying locations by phone, and today from my riverside spot in Muskoka. It's a great way to reward myself.

When was the last time you refueled after a busy week or two?

I'll be announcing the fall lineup for our monthly calls later this week including this month's call - Monday September 24th at 9pm (EST). Don't forget the Help! I'm drowning in a sea of paper call this week, Wednesday, from 8-9pm(EST). Myself and co-host Hellen Buttigieg would love to have you join us. Email teleclass@potentialsrealized.com to get the call information.

Have a great week!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized.com

Getting In Gear for Back to Work

2007-09-04T09:24:00.000-04:00

As I wrote this morning at my Biz Toolkit Blog, many of us are back to "work" this week, just as our kids are back to school. I posted today on 6 Tips for Back to Work Success, which I hope you will click on over to the Biz Toolkit to read.

As a summary, here are my six tips for back to work success:
1. Set some goals or refresh your acquaintance with your goals
2. Take time to plan
3. Keep organized
4. Bring the summertime feel into work more often
5. Keep enjoying those summer activities
6. Unwire, just a bit

I came across a great post by Brad Issac at Achieve IT! last night which I wanted to share with you - 10 Ways to Have a Happy Workday. This is sometimes easier for us to do during the summer months, and Brad's wisdom holds true as we move into September.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
90 Day Your Balanced Life Program
Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat (October 3 and 10 7-10pm EST)
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Podcast: Powerful Time Management Tips

2007-08-29T19:06:00.000-04:00

Thanks to all of you who joined me for this month's Balance call held Monday evening on Powerful Time Management Tips. As we are moving into the fall -- often a time for new beginnings -- it seemed like it was a very pertinent call.

If you missed our hour together, you can listen to the first 15 minutes of the call here:

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I hope that you enjoy it! For those of you that are subscribers to the blog, I know that often the link does not show up in your email, so please feel free to hop on over to the blog to be able to listen.

I'll be continuing to host monthly balance calls this fall -- schedule, times and topics to be posted soon.

I hope that you enjoy listening to the powerful time mangement tips call -- I'd love to hear your thoughts on it, so please feel free to comment using the link below.

You may also want to check out my previous blog posts related to this topic of time management:

Work Life Balance Tip - Where do you spend your time?
Where do you spend your time, Part 2
Work Life Balance Tip - Apply the 80/20 Rule

Have a balanced week and enjoy this last long weekend of summer!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Join me and Hellen Buttigieg for the Get Organized Virtual Retreat! (Sept 27 and Oct 4/07)

2007-08-22T12:06:00.000-04:00

Are you looking to get more organized this fall? Join me and Hellen Buttigieg, Organizing Professional and TV Host for the Get Organized Virtual Retreat on September 27 and October 4th from 7-10 pm (EST) both evenings. Retreat from your home or office and benefit from information, exercises and real-time support from Hellen and myself as you Get Organized!

During this six hour retreat you will:
* Learn Hellen's Top 10 Simple Rules for Organization;
* Explore how your personal values can act as an inner compass in making organization decisions;
* Acquire invaluable time management tips;
* Be challenged to practice extreme self-care;
* Undertake the major project of organizing your closet;
* Learn secrets for maintaining the order;
* Develop an action plan and support network to keep your new ideas alive!

This is the second time we will be running the virtual retreat and space is expected to fill fast (we are limiting space to approx. 15 participants).

Here's what former Get Organized Virtual Retreat participants said about their experience with the virtual retreat:
"(I’ve learned) how to go about purging; staying in one place and not allowing myself to be distracted – the “circle” was the best advice! How good it felt to get “20 minutes” done! (I felt) sense of accomplishment…internalizing it and learning to welcome the challenge vs. being defeated by the amount left to do. Applying it to my individual situation (worked well for my learning and growth); I’m glad you all were willing to listen and remembered and then helped each of us work on our own issues, not just generalized ones. THANK YOU!"
- Carol Campbell

"(As a result of this program) I am using the tips given, as well as focusing on my values. (I’m also) using the time-saving techniques Hellen gave for saying ‘no’. I continue to get rid of clutter…slowly but surely. Thank you, so much, for all you’ve done for me and the other people whose lives you’ve enhanced."
- Kathy Matson

The results for our May participants were outstanding and we have no doubt that the same will hold true this fall.

The cost to attend the retreat is $250 US (a fraction of the cost of what the same level of individual support would be from Hellen and I). You can register your spot and pay by PayPal at the Get Organized Virtual Retreat Page (see button at bottom of page), or by downloading a Registration form here.

We will also be holding a one hour free call (long distance charges apply) on September 19th from 8-9pm (EST) entitled "Help! I'm Drowning in a Sea of Paper". The call will focus on paper management tips. So if you are looking to get your office organized please join us for the call. You can reserve your spot by emailing me at teleclass{at}potentialsrealized.com.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
The next 90 Day Your Balanced Life! program starts on September 11th from 8-9 pm (EST)
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Coaching On CNN

2007-08-15T17:46:00.000-04:00

CNN recently published an interesting article called "Getting Unstuck: Does your Life Need a Coach?". You can read the article here. There's also a great quiz there called Are You Off Balance? While your there, check out their section on Having it All - Work Life Balance. Some great tips and ideas.

For those of you who have been following this blog for a while, or maybe have just come across it, you will know that a large majority of the coaching work I do with clients is to help them get clear on what they want to create or enhance in their work, their career or their life, and get moving into action.

This CNN article follows another great segment put out a couple weeks ago by CBS Sunday Morning -- Life Coaches are for Everyone. They interviewed a range of coaches who each focus on different areas: leadership, career, organization and personal appearance and of course executive coaching. You can view a video with interviews at the article link -- it's quite well done.

I am looking forward to seeing some coverage on the areas I coach around - relationships, team coaching and career issues.

If you are curious about how coaching might be able to support your aspirations, drop me a line to set up a free consultation about how coaching might benefit you.

I look forward to hearing from you,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Work Life Balance Tip : Take Action

2007-08-09T08:08:00.000-04:00

How much time do you spend putting off activities rather than just doing it? This week’s work-life balance tip is all about taking action. I spent a few days last week holed away (well, not really – I was working lake side free of distractions from family members) just “doing it” and taking action. All those big and little things that I had been putting off because I didn’t have enough time.

And what happened? I got through about 60% of my list. I didn’t get the 100% done but I sure feel lighter.

What do you need to do to just take some action? To clear those things off your to do list? Is it to hire some help to look after your home? To take a few days of personal time?

Here’s a challenge – carve out at least one day this month to just tackle all those things on your list. At the end of the day, take a look at what’s left and ask yourself:
1. Do I really need to do this, or can I put it in my not to do list?
2. What additional resources and support do I need to complete the tasks that were left over?
3. Are any of these tasks larger than I thought? If so, how can I break it down into smaller pieces?

At the end of the day, make sure you celebrate your achievements. I did just that last week, watching the sun set over the lake with a wonderful glass of wine in my hand!

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Save the Date! Join me on Monday August 27th from 8-9pm for this month's balance call. We'll be talking about Powerful Time Management Tools. No cost to attend other than your long distance charges. Bridgeline information can be obtained by sending me an email with "Time Management Tools" in the subject line. I look forward to having you join me!

Balance Tip: Take Time to Dream

2007-08-02T16:09:00.000-04:00

This week’s balance tip is all about taking the time to dream. When was the last time to were able to dream about what you want to create in your life or work?

For the last day, I have had the luxury of working alone from my cabin solo. It’s been quite some time since I’ve had the luxury of two days alone and it really has stirred up my creative juices.

What’s possible for you? What do you dream for?

A great exercise, is to create a vision board. You can now do this online at Lifemastering.com. They have a free trial which you can check out.

If you haven’t listened to this month’s podcast – Creating a Powerful Vision – I would invite you to listen to this twelve minute post. Your vision is all about your dreams.

What do you want to create?

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Group Coaching Essentials
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized.com

Join me for a virtual retreat on Saturday August 11th

2007-07-30T11:39:00.000-04:00

You are invited to the next Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat which will be held on Saturday August 11th from 10 - 4pm (EST). No need to travel -- connect with me and other retreat participants from your home, cottage, or anywhere else you can access the telephone.

The Your Balanced Life! Retreat is designed for busy professionals and individuals who want to:
* Refuel, recharge and refocus on what's important in their life
* Create a powerful vision
* Develop an action plan for a more balanced life

During each hour of the retreat, we will spend 15-20 minutes on the phone as a group, discussing tips and tools for living a more balanced life. We will then disconnect and retreat individually from our own locations undertaking individual exercises. You will receive a retreat manual to work through, throughout the day.

The retreat is limited to 8 participants to ensure an intimate, interactive experience. The cost is $97 US, which includes:
* The retreat
* The retreat manul
* A follow up group call(scheduled at a time convenient for the group)
* A follow up 30 minute coaching session (valued at $97 US itself!)

To find out more about the program, and to reserve your spot today, please email me at jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com or visit the website here. You can register and pay online also here.

I hope that you will join us. Please email me if you have any questions.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPCC
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Work Life Balance Podcast: Creating a Powerful Vision

2007-07-28T00:09:00.000-04:00

Here's this month's podcast on Creating a Powerful Vision for Balance in Your Life. It is also very applicable to creating a larger vision - whether it is a business vision or personal vision.

You can listen to the 12 minutes from this one hour call held earlier this week here:

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As always, I hope that you enjoy it! I would welcome your comments, and how you find the process of developing your own vision.

I also mention during this call the upcoming Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat which will be held on Saturday August 14th from 10 - 4 pm (EST) by phone. If you are looking to dedicate some time this summer to your personal growth and insights, i hope that you will consider joining me. You can learn more about the program at http://www.groupcoachingessentials.com/pages/balancevirtualretreat.

Have a balanced weekend,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT, CPCC
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Where do you spend your time? Part 2

2007-07-23T16:02:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago I wrote a post entitled, "Where do you spend your time?", encouraging you to undertake an audit of where you are spending your time. If you haven't completed this exercise, I'd invite you to head over to my original, part 1 post for instructions.

If you have completed the exercise, and now know where your time is being distributed, I'd like you to answer the following questions:

1. What did you notice about your time distribution? Is this typical? Are there any seasonal variations?
2. What are your current priorities (list your top 5)?
3. How much time do you dedicate to your current priorities? Is the time spent on them enough?
4. What surprised you about your time audit?
5. What changes do you want to make?
6. We are often very good at saying "yes" to things. What things do you need to start saying "NO" to?
7. By saying "NO", how much time will this free up? Where can you spend this time?

I would welcome hearing your feedback - please comment below. If time management is a topic of interest to you, I hope that you will join me for next month's free balance call (Monday August 27th from 8-9 pm). I will be focusing on Powerful Time Management Tools during our August call.

And don't forget to join me tonight (July 23rd at 8 pm EST) for this month's Balance call - Creating a Powerful Vision of Balance. The bridgeline again is (218) 486-1300, access 957103. I look forward to speaking with you soon!

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at} potentialsrealized.com
The next 90 Day Your Balanced Life Group Coaching Program starts in September -- space is limited to 8 and is starting to fill! I hope that you will join me.

Free Monthly Balance Call - Monday July 23rd from 8-9 pm(EST)

2007-07-19T12:10:00.000-04:00

A quick reminder that this month's monthly Balance call will be held on Monday July 23rd from 8-9pm (EST). My monthly calls are open to anyone who would like to attend and are free of charge (other than your long-distance charges). This month's topic is "Creating a Powerful Vision for Balance". I hope that you will join me!

To attend this month's balance call, please dial into (218) 486-1300, access code 957103 at 8pm (EST) on Monday evening at 8pm (EST).

August's Monthly Balance call will be held on Monday August 27th from 8-9pm (EST) - Powerful Time Management Tools.

I am putting together the finishing touches for my speaking engagement this evening - "Life on Fire!" (Thursday July 19th) in Huntsville at Robinson's Independent. We'll be starting at 7pm and the session will run to 9pm. There is no need to register in advance -- just drop in and attend. I look forward to having you join me this evening in person or early next week by phone!

Cheers for a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Life on Fire! Thursday Night from 7-9 pm in Huntsville

2007-07-17T10:03:00.000-04:00

If you are in the Muskoka area this week, I hope that you will consider dropping by Robinson's Independent in Huntsville on Thursday night from 7-9pm. I will be leading a two hour group coaching session entitled "Life on Fire!". What would your life and relationships look like if your life were on fire?

There is no charge for this event and pre-registration is not necessary. I hope that you can join me. For information about the programs I will be running in the Muskoka area over the coming year, please visit Retreat2Muskoka at http://www.retreat2muskoka.com.

I'll also be talking about some of the exciting programs that are upcoming including the Relationships on Fire!(TM) One day retreat for commited couples (August 25th from 9 -4:30 pm in Huntsville), as well as the Women on Fire! Group Coaching program which will launch on October 10th (Wednesdays from 7-8 pm EST by phone). We will also be holding a one day Women on Fire! Virtual Retreat on October 27th from 10 - 4pm (EST). I am very excited to be co-leading these programs with Certified Coach Sharon Miller of CoachingWorks!

More detailed information about the Women on Fire! program will be available soon.

With best wishes,
Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, PCC, CPCC, CHRP
Potentials Realized
Group Coaching Essentials
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Work Life Balance Tip: Where Do You Spend Your Time?

2007-07-11T17:17:00.000-04:00

I've been doing some coaching work this week with a great group of female business owners and this morning we were talking about time management. Time is a non-renewable resource yet one that we are so often willing to flex on.

Where do you spend your time? The assignment I've given my entrepreneurial divas recently is to track where they are spending their time for a week. It's been a pretty insightful exercise as I saw with another group last week.

What would you discover if you tracked your time? Here's the challenge:
Starting today, take note of where you are spending your time (by minutes) for the next week. Consider tracking along the following categories:
* Recreation
* Travel
* Commute
* Employment/Business
* Family
* Significant Other
* Housework/Yard Work
* Hobbies
* Me Time
* Leisure (Music/TV other)
* Sleep
* Other (feel free to include your own categories)

In total you have 168 hours available. Where is your time going?

I'll follow up with you in about a week here on the blog to ask you some other questions once you've finished your time charting.

Are you ready to take up the time audit challenge? I hope so!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CHRP, CPCC
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: info{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Don't forget that the next 90 Day Your Balanced Life program starts this coming Tuesday (July 17th from 7-8pm EST). For more information and to register click here. I hope that you will join me!

Work Life Balance Tip: Apply the 80/20 Rule

2007-07-05T08:18:00.000-04:00

Have you heard of the Pareto Principle? This argues that typically 80% of unfocussed effort generates only 20% of results. The remaining 80% of results are achieved with only 20% of the effort.

Where are you spending your time? What 20% of your efforts are generating 80% of your results. Take a moment and write these down.

We can also apply the Pareto Principle to planning and time management. Did you know that 20 minutes of planning can save 120 minutes of work (unfocused effort)? Are you taking time at the end of the day, or start of the day to map out what needs to get accomplished and get done? Try it out for a week....carve out 10 - 20 minutes for daily planning each and every day. You may prefer to schedule this at the end of the day, or the start of the day.

I'd love to hear how it goes and what impact it makes in your work.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, PCC, CPCC, CHRP
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: info[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Podcast: Work-Life Balance for the Summer Months

2007-06-26T20:38:00.000-04:00

A big thank you to all listeners and readers who joined me last night on this month's Work-Life Balance complimentary call. If you missed our monthly Monday evening call, you can listen to the podcast here:

Please mark down the dates for our upcoming free monthly Work-Life Balance calls. They will be held:
Monday July 23rd (8-9pm ET): Creating a Powerful Personal Vision
Monday August 27th (8-9pm ET): Powerful Time Management Tools for Balance

Bridgeline information can be obtained by emailing me at info{at}potentialsrealized[dot]com with Balance Call in the header. I will also post the bridgeline information a few days before the call on this blog.

I look forward to having you join me on future calls. Enjoy this month's podcast! Feel free to comment with your thoughts on the call below.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Balance for the Summer Months - Free Monthly Call Monday June 25

2007-06-21T08:49:00.000-04:00

Just a quick reminder that I will be holding a free call on Monday evening (June 25th) from 8:30 to 9:30 pm (EST) on Balance for the Summer Months. I will share with you five strategies to leverage your summer for better balance and harmony. There will be time during the call to answer your questions about work-life balance.

I hope that you can join me. Your only cost will be your long-distance charges to access the telephone bridgeline.

The bridgeline for the call is (218) 486-1300, access code 957103. The call will start promptly at 8:30 pm and space is limited, so please dial in on time.

I look forward to connecting with you Monday evening!

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
90 Day Your Balanced Life Program starts July 17th
Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat - Saturday July 14th (10 -4 pm EST)

Vacation Deprivation - 2007

2007-06-19T17:39:00.000-04:00

Many of you may recall that last year at this time I reported on the survey results of the Expedia Vacation Deprivation study. In fact, I was also interviewed here in Toronto regarding the results for Canada by Metro News (Toronto) and the impact on Canadian workers.

The 2007 Expedia Vacation Deprivation Survey, released a short while ago looked at the US, Germany, Great Britain and Spain. Canada was unfortunately not included in this year’s survey.

Once again, there were some very interesting findings, including the continued trend of workers in the US not taking their requisite holiday. Overall, some of the major findings included:

* 35% of US adults do not takethe vacation days they are entitled to. This continues the downward trend of not taking vacation, which was found as 33% in 2006, and 31% in 2005
Why? Reasons cited included:
The need to schedule vacation time in advance(13%)
Getting money back for unused vacation days (12%)
Work if life and it’s too hard to get away (10%)

* The average American worker gives back 3 vacation days a year, translating to 438.9 milliion vacation days annually across the US, worth $60.46 Billion dollars (Note in 2006 US workers on average gave back 4 vacation days, and in 2005 gave back 3 vacation days)

* 23% of employed adults checked voice mail or email while on vacation (up from 16% in 2005)

* 40% of American workers surveyed said that they would take a “power week” (at least one full week of vacation and using the remaining time here and there) with only 14% indicating that they would take a full 2 week vacation

Internationally:
* German employees fared the best with 79% of employed adults taking all their vacation entitlements
* French employees received the most vacation days in all survey countries (36 days) and also took the most vacation (on average 34 days)
* Great Britain: Employees received the least amount of vacation days in Europe (24 days on average), however this amount is significantly higher than US workers entitlements (14 days on average)

You can download a copy of the survey results for the 2007 Expedia Vacation Deprivation study here.

So what are the implications for this? As I stated in my interview with Metro News last year,

"Not only is vacation time good for the employee, but it is good for the company. A lot of it comes down to the difference between working and working productively. Are they(the employees) working at optimal productivity? Work-life balance impacts company productivity and profitability. It makes (good) business sense.".

What are your thoughts? Are you vacation deprived? What is the impact of this? On your work? Your productivity? Your balance? What's pushing you, or stopping you, with vacations?

As always, I would welcome your thoughts – please feel free to comment below.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Balance and Finances

2007-06-14T15:18:00.000-04:00

This week's balance tip is all about balance and finances, an area that we often do not spend too much time talking about. However, it is an area that can have a huge impact on how we are viewing "balance" in our life. I am always amazed at how financial imbalance can trickle over to imbalance in other areas of our life.

When was the last time you sat down to really look at your financial situation? Do you know this month exactly what's coming in and what's going out? (This can be especially tricky for business owners). When bills have to be paid and for how much?

If you had to rank your satisfaction regarding this area of your life on a scale of 0-10 (with 10 being perfectly satisfied and 0 being "eeek!!!") where would you put yourself?

What are your strengths in the area of finances? What other areas need to be addressed?

What is one step you can take this month to put your financial house more in order?

There was a great article posted earlier this week by Christina Laun: 17 Important Financial Tips for Women, over at Ask the Advisor. Click on over and check it out!

Have a balanced week,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton

Potentials Realized

The 90 Day Your Balanced Life program starts by phone on July 17th (Tuesdays 7-8pm ET). Reserve your spot today!

Next free monthly balance call:

Monday June 26th (8:30-9:30 pm ET): Creating Balance for the Summer Months (Note the new time!)

To attend and get the bridgeline information, email me at info[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com with June 26th Balance in the subject line. Looking forward to having you on the call! Your only cost is the long-distance charges to connect with the bridgeline.

Work Life Balance Tip: Check it Off

2007-06-03T22:01:00.000-04:00

Work Life Balance Tip : Check it Off!

I've blogged before regarding how taking a bit of time at the end or start of the day to do some planning work (5-10 minutes) can pay off exponentially. It can provide us with focus and frees up space in our brain to focus on other important issues, not just our daily list or shopping needs.

There are a wonderful number of time management tools and systems out there. Personally I still subscribe to Stephen Covey's Time Management Model, with his four quadrant system of Urgent/Not Urgent, Important/Not Important. To find out more about this model, take a look at "First Things First" which you can order online through Amazon at the link on the right.

By prioritizing the importance and urgency of the tasks in the day, I can quickly prioritize what really needs to get done, both big and small. Over the years I have found a system that works well for me, which is also linked to the energy and focus I have throughout the day. I am a morning person, so I try to get the urgent and important things done then when I have the energy and focus.

Make sure after you have completed an item that you check it off, and move on! For tasks that are larger, you may want to consider breaking them down into bite size pieces and schedule these individually. Often getting started is the hardest step, and taking a number of small steps forward can be more managable.

If you are interested in time management issues I hope that you will join me for my August monthly call on Time Management. The call will be held on Monday August 27th from 8-9 pm. To get added to the mailing list with the bridgeline information, please feel free to email me.

Have a balanced week,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton

Potentials Realized

The next 90 Day Your Balanced Life Group Coaching Program starts July 17th

Toll Free 1-866-217-1960

Email: jennifer{at}potentialsrealized{dot}com

Work Life Balance Tip: Plant a Seed

2007-05-28T09:44:00.000-04:00

Gardening has been very much on my mind over the weekend, as I spent a number of wonderful hours putting in seeds and new plants for the summer months. It was wonderful to be working outside in the sun for a few hours.

Today's work life balance tip is about planting seeds. Just as with gardening, creating what we want in our lives and works often requires a lot of pre-work. The soil needs to be prepared, and seeds need to be planted. They may take a few weeks to sprout and even longer to bear fruit. The same thing can be said regarding our personal and business goals.

What seeds do you want to plant for future harvest? What do you need to prepare in your inner garden? What weeds are still around? Are all the necessary ingredients there for successful growth? What steps can you take this week to prepare your garden and plant your seeds?

I hope that you find this metaphor useful. I'd welcome hearing what seeds you want to plant in your garden for summer harvest.

Don't forget -- Tuesday evening (May 29th) I'll be doing a one hour free call on Assessing the State of Balance in Your Life. The call will run from 8-9 pm ET. The bridgeline for the call is (218) 486-1300, access code 957103. Participants are responsible for their own long-distance charges. Looking forward to speaking with you tomorrow evening! Next month's free call will be held on June 25th from 8-9pm (ET).

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

The next 90 Day Your Balanced Life program starts July 17th and runs to mid-October. Reserve your space today!

Tuesday May 29th Call - Assessing Balance in Your Life

2007-05-25T17:26:00.000-04:00

The 90 Day Your Balanced Life! program kicked off earlier this week with great energy and fanfare. If you couldn't join us for this session, the next 90 Day Your Balanced Life program will start on July 21st and will run until mid-October. This program includes bi-weekly group calls focusing on balance issues and group coaching, in addition to 3 monthly individual coaching calls with me. The July session will be meeting on Tuesdays from 8-9 pm (EST). The program costs $297 US, or $119 US per month. Prices will be going up after this program, so I hope that you will consider grabbing one of the 10 spaces available for this program. To register, click here (you will see the PayPal link at the bottom) or call me toll free at 1-866-217-1960.

On Tuesday May 29th I will be offering a one hour call on Assessing the Level of Balance in Your Life from 8-9 pm (ET). To register for this call, please email me at info@potentialsrealized.com with May 29th in the subject line. You will receive the brigeline information for this call. This is part of a monthly series of free calls I will be offering over the summer, with different monthly calls being held on the following dates:

Monday June 26th (8-9pm ET): Creating Balance for the Summer Months
Monday July 23rd (8-9pm ET): Creating a Powerful Vision of Balance
Monday August 27th (8-9pm ET): Powerful Time Management Tools for Balance

Please mark these dates off on your calendar. To reserve your spot for any, or all of them, please email me with the date of the call or topic in the subject line.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Podcast : Work Life Balance for Working Moms

2007-05-16T21:23:00.000-04:00

I had a wonderful call this evening on Work Life Balance for Working Moms. For those of you who could not make it, a podcast of the first 15 minutes of the call is now available here:

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I hope that you will enjoy it!

In Work-Life Balance Tips for Moms, I speak about the latest Mothers Day Poll 2007 from Workopolis and CareerBuildit.com (as blogged about earlier this week). I also speak about five tips for work-life balance for working moms.

I hope that you enjoy the podcast, and will consider joining me for the next 90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program which starts on Tuesday May 22nd (Tuesdays 8-9pm EST) and runs until late July. The next 90 Day Your Balanced Life Program will start on Tuesday July 21st and run until the end of September meeting on Tuesdays from 7-8pm EST. The cost of the 3 month program is $297 US and includes 7 hours of group calls and a monthly 40 minute group coaching call.

I would welcome your comments on the podcast -- please feel free to leave your thoughts!

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

How far can you bend?

2007-05-15T14:43:00.000-04:00

How far can you bend?

Have you ever felt like this photo? I think that it's an amazing representation of just how much we can bend and still remain upright, even when we think we can't.

A lot of the impact of balance, or lack of balance, is the perspective we are in. What's your perspective today about your to-do list, what you have on your plate, and the time you have available?

Is it out of control, or prehaps something else?

I personally have been having several busy weeks, and it does not look like it is going to get any slower, so I am stepping into this perspective of graceful, balanced bending.

What's your take on perspectives as it comes to balance? What do you see in the photo?

If you are a mom, and would like some tips on work-life balance, don't forget to join me Wednesday evening (tomorrow May 16th) at 7pm (EST) for a free one-hour call on work-life balanced tips for mom. Email me with "work life balance May 16" in the header. Looking forward to having you on the call!

With best wishes,

Jennifer

Potentials Realized

90 Day Your Balanced Life teleseminar program starts next week - May 22nd. Space Still remains!

Work Life Balance for Moms

2007-05-11T12:23:00.000-04:00

Work Life Balance for Moms

Mother's Day is just around the corner, and it is a fitting time to celebrate all of us who are mom's. If you are a mom, I hope that you will have a wonderful weekend!

I wanted to shine the spotlight on some excellent articles and research findings that have just come out regarding work-life balance for moms.

Workopolis has just released it's annual Mother's Day poll which had some interesting findings. Overall they state, "Too often, mothers are forced to choose between putting in the long hours to meet deadlines and watching their daughter's debut in the schoool play".

* 27% of working mothers surveyed feel that their number one challenge is time away from their family.
* One in ten respondents mentioned being taken seriously as a working mother is a challenge
*25% of reponsdents report that their employers don't offer any options to ease the transition beack to work for female employees after maternity leave.

A number of employers in Canada are offering several solutions for working moms:
* 48% of respondents mention that their employers provide flexible working hours
* Job Sharing (14%)
* Provision of portable technologies (Blackberry, laptops) - 13%
* Working from home - 9%
* On site daycare - 6%

Workopolis indicates that the following factors would make working life more managable from the perspective of working moms:
* Flexible working hours
* On-site daycare
* Ability to work from home on occasion

Tips to Make it Work include:
* Build a support structure (See my post on support structures for goals a few weeks ago)
* Leverage technology to work for you
* Work for a family-friendly workplace
* Don't be afraid to say "no" (See my post on boundaries in January)

Click here for more information about the Workopolis survey:
NewsWire

CareerBuilder.com in the US has released another survey and found the following results:
* 44% of the mothers surveyed would take a pay cut to spend more time with their children
*23% surveyed indiatd tht they had missed three or more significant events in their children's lives in the last year
* Half would quit their jobs if their spouse made enought money "for the family to live comfortably"
* Work follows moms home : 31% of American mothers reported that they take work home at least once a week, and 17% take work home at least three times per week.

For articles on the CareerBuilder.com study, visit the Wall Street Journal Online

For moms out there, I will be doing a one hour free call on Work-Life Balance Tips for Moms on Wednesday May 16th at 7pm (EST). If you'd like to join me please email me at info@potentialsrealized.com with Work Life Balance May 16th in the header . During this call I will be sharing some tips and tools for work life balance for moms. I hope that you can join me. Note: the bridgeline is located in the US - participants are responsible for their own long distance charges.

Have a balanced weekend,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
90 Day Your Balanced Life! program starts May 22nd -- click here for more information
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Recovering After Loss: Hawaiian Grief Wellness Cruise

2007-05-08T20:24:00.000-04:00

A wonderful talented colleage of mine, Sheila Christianson, a Grief Wellness Coach and Certified Grief Recovery Specialist, has an exciting program planned for September 2007. She is hosting a Hawaiian Grief Wellness Cruise is primarily for people who are ready to explore the self-discovery and transformation that follows loss. Typically, they are ready to move forward and looking for a supportive way to do this! If you, or someone you know, has experienced a loss and is looking for support, I hope that you will consider her program.

Here's some information about her program:

"Are you grieving the loss of someone you love? Are you looking for a
nurturing vacation to get away from it all, to gain perspective in your life
and to find a way to come to terms with what has happened? Do you find
yourself searching for additional help and you aren’t finding the
support you need? If so, consider our Hawaiian Grief Wellness
Cruise!We invite you to join us for a unique opportunity to explore
your grief process and enjoy the tropical warmth nd tranquil beauty of
the Hawaiian Islands aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s “The Pride of
Aloha”. We will visit four amazing islands – Oahu, Kauai, Maui, and
“The Big Island” of Hawaii – on a 7 day cruise from September 2 - 9 2007."

Onboard the cruise, Sheila will be co-hosting a series of 1 1/2 hour workshops for participants with Susan Balkman, a Liscenced Therapist. You can download a flyer regarding the cruise, here.

Sheila has navigated her own loss and transformation after losing her husband to ALS at a very young age. She has a wonderful story, The Secret Beach, on her website which I hope that you will read, and will be publishing a book about their experience in the near future.

You can contact Sheila at www.sheilachristianson.com.

With best wishes,

Jennifer

Work Life Balance Tip - Focus

2007-05-04T15:37:00.000-04:00

This week's work life balance tip is on focus. By focus, I mean focus on the task at hand. I was reminded about this important tip last night as Hellen Buttigieg and I facilitated the first evening of our Get Organized! Virtual Retreat.

We live in a world today of multi-tasking, being bombarded by email, the phone, and many other distractions. How often do you truly focus on just what's at hand?

I'd like you to try a little exercise in the coming days. Take a task that you really want to accomplish (something that can be done in say a couple of hours or less), and for that time, just focus on the task at hand. Turn off the phone, unplug the Blackberry, and just focus on the task at hand. I'd be interested in hearing how you find the experience. Did it go quicker? Was it easier than you had expected?

For those of you who are business owners, you may want to visit this other post I wrote earlier this year at my BizToolkit blog - The Power of Focus.

Take time this weekend and next week to focus at the task at hand. What's it like?

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Recharge Your Batteries with me this Saturday!

2007-05-02T11:45:00.000-04:00

Spring is really starting to spring in my neck of the woods, and spring fever has taken hold of my son who wants to always be outdoors. When was the last time you have recharged your batteries? Ask yourself, where is your energy level right now?

In speaking with a number of associates and clients over the last few days, I realize that many of us, myself included, have been running on full-tilt since the start of the new year. Energy stocks are lower than usual. What will you be doing this weekend to recharge?

If you are looking for a structure to recharge this weekend I hope that you will consider joining me on Saturday May 5th for the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat. From 10 - 4 pm (EST) that day, we will be spending the day retreating virtually from our own homes, reconnecting with those things most important in our lives. We "meet" hourly by phone, connecting for about 20 minutes to undertake a group exercise, and then spend the remaining part of the hour retreating individually at our own locations offline, doing some individual inner work.

The program also includes a 30 minute coaching session with me which can be scheduled anytime in the month after the retreat. Participants will also receive a virtual retreat manual by email, which they will use throughout the day of the program. The cost for this program is $97 US (plus any long distance charges retreatants have to connect with the telephone bridgeline in the US). For frequently asked questions about virtual retreats and how they work, please click here.

I hold the Your Balanced Life! virtual retreats every quarter and participants have joined me from around the world. To downoad the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat registration form, please click here. You can also register by PayPal at the web page. I'd love to have you join me on May 5th, to renew, recharge and refocus.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, MES, CPT, CPCC
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Day 30 of the 30 Day Challenge - You Did It!

2007-04-30T11:38:00.000-04:00

Congratulations -- today is Day 30 of the 30 Day Challenge! You did it!

This is an opportunity to take a look back at this month and see how much you have accomplished. Ask yourself:

1. What results did you accomplish?
2. What are you most proud of doing in this last month?
3. What did you learn through this process?
4. What new habits have you developed?
5. How can you take these lessons forward in your life?
6. What steps will you take to keep this momentum alive?

I want to acknowledge each one of you for the focus you showed this month, whether were able to take action every day or not. As I always say, life happens, and our plans need to shift with them. Do take a look at the learning you achieved and how you can take this learning forward with you.

Personally, I was able to get more writing done than I have without this process, although I would have liked to have seen more concrete results. What I am taking forward is a solid foundation for writing projects which I will continue to focus on through the spring and the fall. my biggest learning from this month has been that the cumulative effect of small actions on a daily or regular basis can really add up. I will be taking forward a number of my new habits, which include scheduling in time for writing at least three times a week.

I hope that you enjoyed this process and I would love to hear what the 30 Day Challenge meant for you! As always, please feel free to comment below.

If you are looking for more structure to move towards your goals, the next 90 day Your Balanced Life! program will be starting in a few weeks. This is a three month program, which includes 2 group coaching calls a month (maximum 12 participants) plus a forty minute individual coaching session with me each month (3 sessions). We will be starting on May 22nd with the program ending on August 21st. The cost for the program is $297 US (about the same price that you would pay for the three coaching sessions alone). For more information, and to register please visit the 90 Day Your Balanced Life! web page.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

April's 30 Day Challenge - Day 27: Planning to Celebrate

2007-04-26T12:53:00.000-04:00

Photo courtesy of Bigfoto.com

Today is Day 27 of the 30 Day Challenge. How is it going for you? With four more days left in the 30 day challenge, what more do you want to achieve?

Today's post is all about getting ready to celebrate. Focusing on goal achievement consistently for 3o days can take a lot of effort. What have you learned through this process?

How will you celebrate your achievements at the end of the 30 Days? What do you want to acknowledge yourself for?

Make a list today of 10 things you could do to celebrate your hard work this month. Take a look at the list and pick the juiciest one and schedule it in.

Part of my learning through the 30 day challenge has has been to remember that small, regular movement towards a goal can make a huge difference, even if many other events pop up along the way. I've also realized that rest and pacing along the way is also really important. There have been days when I have not focused on my writing as planned. I've been gentle with myself and recognize that usually the next day when I put my attention on it again, my productivity is actually enhanced. So thre is something to be said about rest.

I would be interested in hearing about how you will celebrate? I am starting my own celebration this weekend up north at my cottage, my creative source. I'm looking forward to it!

Have a great weekend,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton

Potentials Realized

Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

PS - Less than a week until we kick off the Get Organized! Virtual Retreat. I will be co-hosting this really exciting phone based program on Thursday May 3rd and May 10th from 7-10 pm (EST) with TV Host and Professional Organizer Hellen Buttigieg. We will be taking a hands on approach to spring cleaning, organizing, time management and other issues. A few spots still remain and we'd love to have you join us! For more information, click here. You can register online or call me toll free 1-866-217-1960.

Measuring Your Progress Towards Goals

2007-04-23T08:47:00.000-04:00

It's day 23 of the 30 Day Challenge and I'm curious as to if you've taken a look at how much further ahead you are with the goal you've focused on this month.

Take a few minutes right now and look at how far you've come -
Where are you right now with the goal you've been focusing on?
Where were you at the start of the month?
If you had to put a number figure on it, how far along are you with achieving this goal?
What do you want to acknowledge yourself for?

The thing that I love with this process is at this stage you really can see how you really are in a different place than 3 short weeks ago. If you aren't seeing the progress you want, what is one thing you can do today to move you forward?

As we move into this last full week of the 30 day challenge, I hope that you will continue to keep your eyes on the horizon and your momentum moving you forward.

Looking forward to speaking with you tomorrow!

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Support Structures for Goals

2007-04-19T10:20:00.000-04:00

Welcome to Day 19 of the 30 Day Challenge. We've passed the mid-way mark -- how are things coming with your goals?

Today's post is about support structures. When we work to make changes in our lives, they often do not stick because we don't build support structures around our changes. What support could you put in place to make your new action stick?

Support structures can take a number of forms - from building in some time for daily planning, to getting additional help with household chores, to waking up a little earlier or going to bed a little earlier.

One of the support structures I have put in place to support my writing goal is to not check email so frequently. With emails coming in on a very frequent basis with my work, I have now set aside some time first thing in the morning to go through the emails that are urgent, and I am training myself to check them strategically throughout the day. This is giving me more time to be focused on what's really important in the day.

What's one thing you can do today to put your support structure into place?

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized

Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

What's Important - the 30 Day Challenge

2007-04-16T14:16:00.000-04:00

It's day 16 of the 30 Day Challenge. How is it going for you? What are your major successes? What challenges are showing up? What are you learning from the process?

One of the biggest learnings I am having during the 30 Day Challenge with my writing goal is about realizing what is really important for me. Earlier this month I had set some pretty big goals for myself -- some which are well onstream, some exciting new ones that have emerged over the past couple of weeks, and some which have been postphoned to the future. The litmus test I have been using to decide what's on the agenda has been to ask what's most important? What will provide the most leverage? Asking these two questions to keep me focused on my goals have been invaluable.

What's most important for you? What activities will give you the most focused leverage as you move towards your goal?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

With best wishes,
Jennifer
Potentials Realized

PS - I had a great call on Thursday evening with Hellen Buttigieg, TV Host on "Help! I'm drowning in a Sea of Paper". We had over 250 registrants for the call. Early next month on May 3 and 10th we will be leading the Get Organized! Virtual Retreat ( 7-10 pm ET both evenings). See my earlier blog post about the topic. Spaces are filling very quickly, and I hope that you will be interested in joining us. If you are committed to making some personal organizational changes and want practical tips, tools and a supportive group environment to do it in, please read on for more information. This virtual retreat is held by phone so you can tackle your organization issues at your home and office during the retreat process. If you have any questions, please call me toll free at 1-866-217-1960.

Building Momentum Towards Your Goals

2007-04-10T15:55:00.000-04:00

Building Momentum Towards Your Goals – Create The Tipping Point

Copyright 2007 - Jennifer Britton

Momentum = To Move Forward

Momentum is a powerful tool in the achievement of goals. Have you ever noticed how things literally start to snowball and take on a life of their own, once a certain point is reached?

Many times momentum is gained through those very small steps you are taking if you are engaging in the 30 day challenge. Momentum is most often about the cumulative impact of smaller actions not just one giant step.

What are you noticing about momentum you have gained in the last 10 days of the 30 day Challenge? What’s getting easier? What’s becoming effortless? What can you leverage to get more momentum?

I'd love to hear about what momentum looks like for you -- please feel free to comment below.

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT

Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Passion + Action = Goal Success

2007-04-09T10:17:00.000-04:00

Passion + Action = Goal Success

Today’s post is about adding passion or desire to the actions that you are undertaking this month for the 30 Day Challenge.

Sit back for a moment, and ask yourself – how inspired am I by the action steps I am taking on a daily basis? Rate yourself on a scale of 0 – 10, with 0 being absolutely not inspired and 10 being I’m totally inspired.

Take a look at your rating. What would make your actions more inspired? How can you kick it up a notch?

This month I’ve picked the action steps of writing on daily basis. One of my goals this year is to get my work and ideas more widely out into the world. Part of my vision is publishing a book later this year. By connecting with my passion for the subjects I am writing about, and keeping my end goal in mind, my daily blocks of writing are becoming much easier. As they say, it takes 21 days of continuous effort to make a habit. I hope that I am laying the groundwork for this foundation.

How do your actions connect to a larger goal in your life? Why is this goal important to you? What passions can you leverage to make the progress towards this goal, fun and meaningful to you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on how your 30 Day Challenge is coming. Please feel free to comment below.

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Your Balanced Life! 90 Day Program starts May 22nd
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

April's 30 Day Challenge - Day 6

2007-04-06T16:28:00.001-04:00

How is the 30 Day Challenge coming for you? We are now into day six, and what have you noticed by taking small action steps on a daily basis towards one of your most important goals?

My first week of the 30 Day challenge has been great for my writing (the goal I set for myself this month). I've been able to build up some momentum and have been blogging on a daily basis on my assorted blogs. I've also dug up some older files with partially completed articles, and am planning on breathing some new life back into these. With this being the Easter weekend, we are enjoying some quiet family time, getting a lot of things done around the house and office.

Obstacles are an inevitable part of moving towards goals and will show up at some time or other. I read a great blog post at Darlene Hull's the Mom-Defrazzler blog, called "Watch Out - Identify the Obstacles". If obstacles are showing up in your path now, or sometime down the road, do check it out. Last July she dedicated a month to goal setting topics. Her dad contributed to a number of the articles posted there and so wonderfully started his article with,

Every obstacle is a stepping stone to your success. Unknown

I look forward to hearing how your 30 day challenge is coming, and if any obstacles are showing up. If so, how can you turn these obstacles into a stepping stone or a spring board?

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton

Potentials Realized

Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Get Organized! Virtual Retreat - May 3 and 10/07

2007-04-02T16:50:00.000-04:00

Get Organized! Virtual Retreat
Thursday May 3 and 10/07 - 7 - 10 pm (ET)

Is spring your time to get organized? Do you want to learn from one of the best? One of the most exciting programs I will be offering this spring is in conjunction with Hellen Buttigieg, TV Host and President of WeOrganizeU -- the Get Organized Virtual Retreat.

The virtual retreat will provide you with organizing information, in addition to the space for some spring cleaning, organization and focus on the things that are most important for you!

Throughout the two evenings we will be taking a very practical and hands-on approach to organization, time management and identifying the roadblocks to those issues which are most important to you.

The virtual retreat format will enable you to connect from your home or office, and actually tackle those organization issues hands-on during the course of the retreat. We will be undertaking several practical organization issues, including re-organizing your closet, during the two evening sessions.

The virtual retreat is held by phone. Participants will connect by phone for approximately 30 minutes each hour, followed by an organization exercise which you will do at home.

What's included:
* 6 Hour Virtual Retreat (over two evenings)
* A group follow up call on May 24th at 8pm (ET)
* A virtual retreat manual
Participants are responsible for their own long distance charges.

Throughout the two evenings you will:
* Learn the Top 10 Simple Rules for Organization;
* Explore how your personal values can act as an inner compass in making organization decisions;
* Acquire invaluable time management tips;
* Be challenged to practice extreme self-care;
* Undertake the major project of organizing your closet;
* Learn secrets for maintaining the order;
* Develop an action plan and support network to keep your new ideas alive!

The introductory pricing for the program is $250 US. It is recommended that you register early, as spaces will be filling fast.

If you are looking to improve your home environment this spring, I hope that you will join us! For more information, please visit here, or feel free to give me a call toll free at 1-866-217-1960.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

April's 30 Day Challenge

2007-04-01T15:21:00.000-04:00

It's hard to believe that we are already into April! The new shoots of flowers are certainly appreciating the rain we've had today.

This month I'm issuing a 30 Day Challenge to myself, which I hope you will join me for. If you focused on undertaking small steps towards a large goal for 30 days consistently, what would happen? The 30 day challenge is all about undertaking that consistent effort for 30 Days. I did something similar in my business last summer and saw outstanding results.

This April my focus for the next 30 days is going to be on taking daily small steps towards making significant inroads with my writing -- either through my blogs, or through publishing some articles online. I hope that you will check in with me during the month at this blog as well as two others I post on (The "Biz" Toolkit -- management and business tips and Group Coaching Ins and Outs -- tips and tools for group facilitators).

What's the 30 day focus you want to hold? I'd love to hear what you are going to take action on -- feel free to comment below and also let us know what difference this will make in your life or work.

Speak to you tomorrow!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized

90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program starts May 22nd -- registrations now being accepted

Tapping Into Your Creativity

2007-03-26T08:24:00.000-04:00

I'm really enjoying the warmer days of spring - aren't you? I'm sure that readers, like myself, who live in northern climates, are just as excited to see the first plants start to peek out of the earth, after many many months of snow.

Spring is always a really creative time for me -- it really is a time of renewal and new beginnings. I have a number of exciting announcements which I will be putting forth in the next couple of weeks related to new programs and offerings from my business, Potentials Realized. Please stay tuned!

Spring unleashes the creative side for many of us. I came across a great blog post from Tasra Dawson over at Lessons from the Scrapbook Page called "Time to Fill Your Creative Tank". If you are looking to unearth your creativity from the winter snow, pop on over!

I also wanted to include a few of my own questions to get your creative juices flowing. Ask yourself:

* What is one thing you have always wanted to create and put out into the world?
* What would tapping into your creativity mean to you? Look like for you?
* What would it take to unearth your creative side?

Also answer the following questions:
* Creativity for me lives in ..... (fill in the blank)
* Tapping into my creativity is like ....(fill in the blank)
* One thing I can do this week to connect with my creative side is.....

I would love to hear your thoughts on these questions -- what are you going to create this spring? Please feel free to comment below.

Cheers to a creative week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

If anyone is looking to develop their own group programs this spring - whether it is a workshop, retreat, group coaching program, or even a scrapbooking session - I would invite you to join me on Friday April 20th for a one day Creativity Virtual Retreat (10am - 4 pm EST). We will spend the day focused on retreating and breathing creative life into our program ideas from our own homes or offices. Run by phone, the program is limited to 12 participants. We will be meeting every hour at the top of the hour by phone before returning to our own personal retreat space. The retreat package also includes a 30 minute coaching session. More information can be found at my Group Coaching Essentials website. From past experience, this day provides structured space and focus to breathe life into your program ideas. As a result of the day, most former participants have completed or made significant headway into their program development and are ready to take it out into the world. What do you want to launch this spring? I hope that you will consider joining me! Registration forms can be found at the GCE website or give me a call toll free 1-866-217-1960. An early bird pricing of $79 US is in effect to April 10th.

Work Life Balance Tip - Do something spontaneous

2007-03-18T20:25:00.000-04:00

Work Life Balance Tip - Do something spontaneous
Copyright 2007 - Jennifer Britton

Prehaps it's the longer evenings we are having, signalling the end of winter, but lately I've been reflecting a lot on some of the routines I created for myself during the winter months. What ruts have you been in lately? What routines are you holding onto, no matter what, whether they are serving you or not?

This week's work life balance tip is on doing something spontaneous. I'm not advocating something necessarily extreme, but something small and spontaneous you can do to make a change to your routine.

One of my newer routines for spring is to make it to the Y on Saturday morning for a quick morning workout in the pool. I'm usually an early riser, conditionned from waking with the sun every morning for more than 10 years when I lived in the Caribbean. I love the feel of getting a head start on the day, and getting some exercise in at the start of my weekend gives me an extra burst, as well as permission to take it easier and unwind for the rest of the weekend.

I found an interesting chemistry definition for the word "spontaneous" the other day that I wanted to share with you in closing:

"Spontaneous processes do not require work to be done in order to occur. A reaction is said to be spontaneous if it is possible." ibchem.com/root_htm/defn/gloss.htm

What can you do today that is spontaneous? What's possible for you?

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP
Potentials Realized
Your Balanced Life! 90 Day Group Coaching Program

What does career have to do with balance?

2007-03-11T20:59:00.000-04:00

The Simmons School of Management in collaboration with HP has released a recent study involving 400 professional women (middle and senior-level professional women with over 20 years work experience). The study looked at to what extent women were leaving the workforce, why they make careeer decisions and how they manage work-life balance.

The study found more than 90% of the women surveyed had used some sort of flexible benefits work arrangements during their careers. These flexible benefits could involve telecommuting, flexible hours and limitations on travel or evening work.

Professor Mary Shapiro speaks about the study's results at NECN on this 12 minute video clip -- it's very interesting and is certainly in line with many of the current business topics I speak on regularly and advise corporations on as an HR Consultant. You can visit some of my additional comments on flexible workforce arrangements and current business trends at my sister blog: The Biz Toolkit.

The study points to the very interesting changes that are taking place in the workforce which are being driven by changing demographics, demographics and generational priorities. Looking at the Canadian context flex hours and a wider use of parental leave are much more commonplace than a few years ago, even though they are still not widely adopted.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this issue - does your company support flex arrangements? If you are a professional woman, how does career impact your balance?

Looking forward to hearing from you,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CHRP, CPCC, CPT
Potentials Realized
The 90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program starts on March 20th (Tuesdays 7-8 pm EST). I hope that you can join me -- space still remains!
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Do Something Worthy

2007-03-06T21:32:00.000-05:00

A wonderfully talented colleague of mine, Sharon Snow, and her business partner, Lisa, have put together an amazing 100 day coaching program called Do Something Worthy! It starts on March 15th and is an excitingly rich program combining group coaching, individual coaching and guest speakers, including Ward Powers, the Creator of ONE, the Movie (www.onetheproject.com), and Ryan Hreljac of Ryan’s Well Foundation (www.ryanswell.ca).

For those who are ready to jump into World-Changing Work, this is a very exciting program and I hope that you will consider checking it out. Sharon and Lisa are holding the intention to facilitate the launching of 100 initiatives focused on making the world a happier, healthier, more abundant place for all.

They held a call about their work last week, and if you missed it, you can still access the recording.

As a former United Nations staff member myself, having been heavily involved in world-changing work around the world for more than a decade, this is a gem of a program.

Ask yourself, what is one thing I could do today to make the world a happier, healthier and more abundant place? Remember, large impact starts with one small step.

Jennifer
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Work-Life Balance Tip - The Power of Teams

2007-03-03T23:01:00.000-05:00

Work Life Balance Tip -

The Power of Teams

Collaboration and teamwork has been a theme for me this year. As a solopreneur I value the impact of strategic alliance and joint ventures, recognizing that these can expand my reach much greater than ever I could do alone.

This week's work life balance tips is on the power of teams. What does your "team" look like? Prehaps it is family members, co-workers, friends, children. How can your team support you in moving more fully into balance?

A significant amount of my coaching work is moving into team and relationship coaching, whether it is coaching an intact team, a business partnership or a romantic relationship. Ask yourself, "What is my team? How does my team support me?".

How can you leverage your team over the next month to enable you to achieve the goals you have set forth for yourself?

When collaborating/working with others, what is possible?

Teams bring into reality the premise of the sum being greater than its' parts. How has your team enabled you to create things greater than yourself?

I'd love to hear your comments. Please feel free to post a comment below.

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized

Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

I'm more than half-way through my goal of coaching over 50 partnerships and relationships during the first quarter of 2007. If you would like to take part in a free, no-obligation coaching session for you and your partner (whether they are a business or life partner), email me to set up a free 45 minute coaching session. Some partnerhsips that have taken me up on this offer have described the experience as "extraordinary", "you created the space for us to focus on possibilities", "outstanding". Partners who have taken advantage of this offer have included: corporate teams, new business partnerships, couples expecting a new baby, couples soon facing the early nest scenario, and new strategic alliances. As a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach I am continuing to deepen my coaching skills in the area of Organization and Relationship Systems coaching work, created by the Centre for Right Relatiosnship. I'd love to hear from you!

Join me for a free call on Thursday March 8th at 7:30 pm

2007-02-26T09:28:00.000-05:00

The 90 Day Your Balanced Life! program will be starting in 2 weeks! I hope that you can join me!

In lead up to the program I will be offering a free call next week, Thursday March 8th from 7:30 - 8:30pm (ET). During this call I will be covering four Work-Life Balance Tips, as well as doing some group coaching on the spot. If you'd like to be on this free call, please reserve your spot by sending an email to jennifer@potentialsrealized.com with YBL March in the subject line. It's guaranteed to be a rich, fun and interactive hour together. No strings attached!

I've been receiving a lot of calls and emails recently from professionals across North America who want more information on the 90 Day Your Balanced Life! program. Here are some of the details:

Where: By phone. No need to travel! All you have to do is dial into the telephone bridgeline at our program times. You will receive this number when you register.

When: Tuesdays 7-8 pm (ET). Group Calls: March 20, April 3, 17, May 1, 15, June 5 and a celebration call on June 20th. If you can't make a call they will be recorded. You will also receive three individual coaching sessions with me, which can be booked at a mutually convenient time.

What's included:
* 2 hours of individual coaching over the 3 months (taken as 3 sessions -- a $350 value alone!)
* 7 hours of group coaching calls
* Weekly exercises and notes sent out by email
* Bi-weekly balance tips delivered to your inbox

What are the benefits?
* Dedicated time to focus on balance in your life
* Regular calls to create momentum and accountability
* Connection with other professionals who also are looking to create better balance in their lives

Cost: $119 US/month or $297 for the program. You can pay by Visa, personal cheque or by PayPal (link to be sent to you by email). Space is limited to 8 participants

How do I register? Download a registration form here or contact me by email or at 1-866-217-1960.

I hope that you will join me next week to learn more about the program, but more importantly to take away some useful tips and exercises that you can use in your own life! To join me on the March 8th call please email me!

Speak with you later this week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized

Need a memory boost?

2007-02-22T20:52:00.000-05:00

Its been a very busy winter for me and at times my body is starting to show some of its' tiredness, particularly my memory. I have always prided myself on having a great memory for names and facts -- unfortunately too little rest and too much multitasking over the past two months has put some cobwebs over my brain.

I came across a great blog post from Tracy over at Mom's Niche Blog entitled "Ways to Improve Your Memory". I love her article with suggestions including getting more exercise as well as her tips on leveraging your memory. These simple memory stretching tips are great and will be of fantastic use to anyone who is studying or who needs to remember even small detail.

Enjoy and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Jennifer

Work-Life Balance Tip - Things to Be Happy About

2007-02-18T15:23:00.000-05:00

Work-Life Balance Tip - Things to Be Happy About

As a young adult at university, I spent my summers working as a camp counsellor in Algonquin Park, relishing in the beauty of living and working in nature. We didn't have TV or computers those days in our cabins, so when night fell, and our campers went off to sleep, we usually had very creative projects on the go.

For a couple of summers the book, "Things to Be Happy About", was front and centre, and most of us created our own happy books. I actually dug out my own Things to Be Happy About book the other day, and reading through what made me happy as a 20 year old still brought a smile, and a quickening heart. The original book "14,000 Things to Be Happy About" was written by Barbara Ann Kipfer (thanks Barbara for your book -- I know that it has inspired many of us". She now has a website: www.thingstobehappyabout.com and has a daily happy throught.

Many months ago I blogged on the topic of gratitude. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the winter blahs are still around. The last few weeks have brought incredible storms to the eastern seaboard, and sunshine has been at a premium. I figure this is an opportune time to build again on the topic of gratitude this time through Things to Be Happy About.

Here's a short list of 20 things that bring a smile to my face, and a glow to my heart:

1. Slow Sunsets
2. Slipping into my Crocs
3. Early morning solitude -- the house asleep and quiet time for me and my work
4. Fireside conversations
5. Meetings with old friends and being able to start off where you left off, even if several months have passed
6. Afternoon Naps
7. Reading a good book in bed
8. Dinner by candlelight
9. Sharing a smile with a complete stranger
10. Carpe Diem
11. The silence after a snow fall
12. White sand meeting the crystal blue waters of the ocean
13. Waking up on a cold morning, snug under your duvet
14. Taking a once in a lifetime chance
15. Watching toddlers explore new places
16. A child's first words
17. Laughing out loud in card stores
18. The sound of a forest or waves lapping on the shore
19. Believing In Yourself
20. Watching the Stars

What makes you happy? I hope that you will join me in either starting or continuing your own Things to Be Happy About journal. An alternative exercise is to start the day thinking about something that really makes you smile, and getting out of bed with that foot first on the floor.

I'd love to hear which of these ideas above resonate with you -- please feel free to comment below.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

The 90 Day Your Balanced Life Program starts Tuesday March 20th at 7 pm (EST). Will you join me and seven others as we design and create more balanced living for ourselves? We'll be meeting every other week from March through to early June as a group, and once a month one-on-one. Space still remains. I'd love to have you join us!

Work Life Balance Tip - Awaken Your Senses

2007-02-13T07:00:00.000-05:00

Work Life Balance Tip – Spend an Hour in A Bookstore or Music Store

An hour spent in a bookstore or music store can awaken the senses. Are you a visual learner (someone who learns by seeing) or an auditory learner (someone who learns by hearing)?

Here’s a challenge for you this week, designed to awaken your senses: spend an hour in a bookstore, a music store or prehaps a museum. Spend time browsing, and soaking in what is contained there. Leaf through your favorite artist or author, and spend some time checking out areas you normally would not. Notice what you are drawn to.

At the end of the hour, ask yourself:

What did I notice about myself as I browsed?

What was I attracted to?

What did I discover?

If you are not near a bookstore, in conjunction with Amazon, I’ve set up an online bookstore dedicated to resources for work-life balance, organization, creativity and other topics we cover in this blog. You can find this at http://astore.amazon.com/yourbalancedlife-20 I hope that you may find some books that pique your interest.

Enjoy it!

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized

Join me this weekend for a six hour Virtual Retreat - Saturday February 17th from 10-4 pm (EST). The Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat is designed to provide you with the opportunity to refocus, relax and recharge, while looking at and commiting to more balance in your life. You can retreat from your home or office, as we will be retreating virtually, using a telephone conference line to connect. In addition to the virtual retreat day, you will also receive an individual coaching session with me, and a group follow up call one month after the retreat. Space is limited -- only 6 spaces remain! The cost for the virtual retreat package is $97 US. To register email me at jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com or call me toll free at 1-866-217-1960. You can also pay by PayPal and view more information about the retreat here at my Group Coaching Essentials website.

What's stealing your time?

2007-02-01T20:40:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you, but it's hard to believe that it's already Thursday evening. This week has proven to be a marathon for me -- juggling meetings, lecturing, coaching and following up on some exciting new business possibilities. I truly do feel that time has snuck away from me this week. I also realize that I have stretched some of my boundaries a little more than I should have. How is your work on boundaries coming? Where has time gotten away from you this week?

Shannon Cherry, over at Mommy Inc. has a great post today on her blog: Hints to Defeat the Time Stealers. You can check out the link above -- she's got some great stuff, with one of her time stealing defeat tips being setting boundaries. I hope that you enjoy it!

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com
90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program

Work-Life Balance Tip #11: Set Boundaries

2007-01-29T10:14:00.000-05:00

Work Life Balance Tip #11 -- Set Boundaries
Copyright 2007 - Jennifer Britton. All Rights Reserved.

Today's tip on balance is about setting boundaries. What is the connection between boundaries and balance? Sit back and think about all the things you have to do today. Looking at this list, are there certain tasks you could have said "no" to? What would it be like to delegate or postphone some of these tasks? What are you aware of now?

Setting boundaries is not just about saying no to things. It is about getting clear on your values and what is important to you (in both the short and long-term) and making consicious decisions from this place of values. What do you want to say yes to? What are your priorities? What will not serve you in the short or long term? How could clearer boundaries support you? What would clearer boundaries change?

In a couple of weeks I will be holding the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat (Sat. Feb 17: 10 - 4 pm EST). We will be spending some time during the retreat reflecting on our values, our current boundaries and we will consciously looking at what new boundaries would serve us and those people and things that are important in our lives. If this is an interest area for you I hope that you will consider joining me for the day in February.

Here's a short exercise to try today...take a piece of paper and draw a large circle in the middle. Inside the circle write or draw the things that are important in your life - the things you want to say yes to and the things you want more of. Outside of the circle, write or draw the things you want to leave out - the things you want to say no. Once you have finished your circle and it's environment, ask yourself, "What practical steps can I take today to have more of the yeses, and less of the nos?". Pick one or two to focus on every day this week.

I'd be interested in hearing about your experience with this exercise - please feel free to comment below.

Have a balanced start to the week!

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
90 Day Your Balanced Life Program: Next program starts March 20th. Reserve your space today!
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Balanced Living for Moms

2007-01-24T13:53:00.000-05:00

Being a mom and living a balanced life can be challenging. I say this myself as a mother of a wonderful 20 month old who has boundless energy! My schedule and work definitely needs to be modified by his needs and energy flow, and what balance looks like for me today, looks very different than a few years ago. Nonetheless, being a mom is a labour of love and a real gift.

I've come across a great site for moms who are looking for educational activities for their little ones, ages 0-5, called Little Fun; Little Learning. It's got a wealth of activities and ideas for all age groups. Check it out at http://littlefunlittlelearning.blogspot.com. I'm sure that you will find some fun activities to undertake with your little ones!

As a mom, what is your greatest challenge with balance? Please feel free to comment using the link below.

Enjoy,

Jennifer

Potentials Realized

Looking to Declutter?

2007-01-19T15:30:00.000-05:00

I attended at fantastic call yesterday with Professional Organizer, Hellen Buttigieg , a professional organizer, life coach and also host of the HGTV show, neat. Hellen is the President of Weorganizeu. She is a phenomenal resource and hosts a fantastic show -- my mother absolutely adores Hellen and couldn't believe that I had spoken to her yesterday.

What's the state of your home and office after the holiday season? Are all those gifts put away? What about your desk?

I know that decluttering is a theme for myself this year (particularly as it relates to office clutter), and a number of my clients are looking to simplify and declutter there own surroundings.

Helen put out a challenge to all of us on the call yesterday to get rid of five things a day for the next month. Imagine what space would be created in all that clearing. I've decided to tackle my office area first, and then we will get to our home here in Toronto...will you join me on this month of decluttering?

Hellen also recommended a couple of good books on the topic of organizing:

Organization from the Inside Out - Julie Morgenstein
Organization for the Creative Person - Dorothy Lehmkuhl

These books are listed at the online bookstore I have set up for Your Balanced Life!, which is in conjunction with Amazon. To visit the online bookstore (AStore) visit: http://astore.amazon.com/yourbalancedlife-20 . I hope that you will find some books of interest. If you can recommend other books that you like, related to work-life balance, planning or organizing, and would like to share these titles with others, please feel free to commment below.

Have a balanced weekend!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
http://www.potentialsrealized.com and http://www.groupcoachingessentials.com
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat - Saturday Feb 17/06

2007-01-15T17:33:00.000-05:00

Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat
Copyright 2007 - Jennifer Britton. All Rights Reserved

Back by popular demand, I will be running the next Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat (TM) on Saturday February 17th from 10 am - 4 pm (EST). Intially launched in July of 2006, this program is offered every season. Will you join me for this Winter's Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat?

This six-hour Virtual Retreat is designed for busy professionals and individuals who are committed to creating a more balanced life. No travel needed, you can retreat from the comfort of your own home, cottage or office.

The Your Balanced Life Virtual Retrat enables participants to:
* Explore your current state of balance
* Discover your core values - your internal compass
* Develop your personal vision of a more balanced life
* Clarify your priorities
* Create an action plan to put your new commitments into action

Each participant receives:
* The Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat Manual
* 6 hour s of structured activities, undertaken as a group and individually
* One half hour individual coaching session after the retreat
* A group follow up call one month after the retreat

The cost for the Virtual Retreat is $97 US or $75 if you register prior to February 10/07. The retreat is limited to 12 participants. Reserve your spot today by calling toll free 1-866-217-1960 or by emailing info@potentialsrealized.com

For more information, please visit the Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat page, clicking here. To reserve your spot and pay by PayPal, click here.

I look forward to having you join me!

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized

Work Life Balance Tip #10 - Reward yourself for small Successes

2007-01-12T12:05:00.000-05:00

Work-Life Balance Tip #10
Reward Yourself for Small Successes
Jennifer Britton, Copyright 2007

It is usually around this time of year that the allure of our New Years Resolutions starts to wear off. Perhaps you threw yourself whole heartedly during the first week of the month into all of your resolutions, and yet you are still not seeing any major changes.

WLB Tip #10 is about rewarding ourself for our small successes. Prehaps you did get to the gym twice this week, even though you'd said you would go 4 times. Is that twice a week activity more than you have undertaken before?

This tip is all about being Gentle with yourself. Ask yourself:

What small successes or accomplishments to you need to acknowledge or celebrate?
What can you today reward yourself for your small successes?
What do you need to be gentle with yourself about? What does that look like?

Take the pressure off of yourself and have fun along the way. Be Gentle.

An exciting opportunity for 50 relationships (business/personal)

2007-01-08T14:25:00.000-05:00

As we head into a new year, many individuals give thought as to what their most important relationships are in their lives. As humans, we are social creatures, and relationships provide so much for our well-being.

Increasingly, my own coaching work is expanding from individual client work and working with groups and teams, to incorporate relationship coaching for business and personal partners. One of the reasons I am moving into the domain of relationships coaching is that our lives are impacted by our relationships and our partnerships. For example, sometimes a challenge related to life-work balance may be due to our relationship with our spouse, a child, our boss, money or a value we hold. We can make change, but unless the system within which we operate changes, the impact will be minimal or short-lived.

As I continue to deepen my work in the area of relationship coaching, my goal is to work with 50 partners (business partners, spouses, siblings, team members) over the next six weeks. I will be offering a Design Your Partnership Alliance session by phone to interested partners. There is no charge for this session and the process will take approximately 45 minutes. All members of the system need to be able to participate on this call (both parties or all team members).

What you will take away from Designing Your Partnership Alliance is a clearer picture of your relationship (your expectations and agreements), what you want it to feel like and what you want more of. In addition, you will set some concrete action steps for yourself.

Are you ready to invest in your most important relationships this year? I hope so. If you are interested in being one of the 50 relationships I work with in the coming weeks, please email me at jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com or call me toll free at 1-866-217-1960. Suggest two or three times when you are available to hold the session, as well as what time zone you are located in. Please feel free to pass this on to others who you know might be interested. All sessions are confidential.

I look forward to hearing from you!

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized

Jennifer Britton is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach, and Certified Human Resource Professional. As the founder of Potentials Realized, she has been working with individual and organizational clients from across North America, Europe, the Caribbean and Australasia since 2004 to realize their potentials. Jennifer is a former global manager and has led team and group programs since 1988 in 14 countries around the world. She is known for her trail-blazing, inspiring approach when working with teams, partnerships and individuals. Jennifer is in the process of completing advanced coach training through The Coaches Training Institute in the area of Organization and Relationship Systems Coaching.

Work-Life Balance Tip #9 - Celebrate

2007-01-02T21:28:00.000-05:00

Work Life Balance Tip #9 - Celebrate

Happy New Year! I hope that 2007 has started off magnificently for you and that you made time over the holidays to celebrate and appreciate all the great things in your life.

If you haven't done so, create some time this week to celebrate and honor the major milestones of 2006. What are you pleased with accomplishing? What do you need to celebrate? What are you bringing forward into the New Year?

Celebration looks different for all of us -- it may be creating time to do those things that you love, or treating yourself to a new purchase, or spending time with loved ones. What type of celebration means most to you.

The start of the new year is often a time of resolutions, some which fall by the wayside. If you have made a list of things you are changing in your life, how will you mark your milestones along the way? What will you do to keep the momentum up?

A wonderful practice is to ask yourself on a daily basis "Today I want to celebrate....". Get in the habit of practicing gratitude for the things in your life that are working well, the small successes and the steps forward you are making to achieving your goals.

Jennifer ~ Potentials Realized

Join me for a one day New Years Virtual Retreat on Sunday January 14th. This retreat is held by phone so you can retreat from your home or other creative space. We will be creating the space to celebrate our successes of 2006, while designing a powerful vision for 2007 and the action steps and structure needed to get there. Space is limited to 10 retreat participants. Contact me toll free at 1-866-217-1960 to register.

Balance Tips for the Holidays

2006-12-19T07:31:00.000-05:00

Balance Tips for the Holiday Season
Jennifer Britton, Potentials Realized - Copyright 2006

The holidays can be a blur with shopping, parties, visits. This often makes the holiday season one of the most stressful times of year. What kind of holiday season do you want to create for yourself this year?

The following are a few tips to consider when looking at creating better balance during the holiday season.

1. Connect with the things and values that are most important for you – The holiday season will have different meaning for each one of us. Spend time connecting with your values. What is most important for you at this time of year – is it to reconnect with family and friends. Is is time to treat yourself? Is it time to reflect on the year, or celebrate your succeses. Make time to honor those things most important to you.

2. Make a List – The holidays are often crammed full of people to see, things to do, things to shop for. Make a list of everything you want to do this holiday season. Having a written plan of what you want to accomplish can make things flow more smoothly. What tasks can you combine? What can you do now? They say that 12 minutes of planning can save 120 minutes of your time. Try it out!

3. Prioritize – Based on your theme for the holidays and your list, priortize what is most important. What do you definitely need to have or do? What can you let go of? What can wait until the New Year?

4. Spend Quality Time Doing What You Are Doing – Whatever you choose to do, spend quality time. Quality is not quantity. Often we are so focused on what we have to do next, or what we have forgotten to do, we don’t fully imerse ourselves in the present. Enjoy whatever time you are creating – infuse it with quality.

5. Create space for you and your needs – How much time have you set aside for yourself and your needs during the holiday? For many, this is a quieter time at work. Are you taking advantage of the time to tackle those projects which have hung over your head which needed a quieter time? Have you built in some time to do those things you enjoy most? Have you really given yourself some “holiday” time during this holiday season?

6. Celebrate! This is often the only time of year that we can connect with certain important individuals in our lives. Celebrate with them, and celebrate your own successes from the year!

This is by no means an exhaustive list -- let me know which ones you find useful, or others you would like to add by commenting below!

Cheers to a "balanced" holiday season!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Encore Presentation - Holiday Virtual Retreat - Sat. December 16/06

2006-12-11T09:14:00.000-05:00

By popular demand, I will be running the Holiday Virtual Retreat again this weekend on Saturday December 16th from 10 - 3 pm (EST). For details about the program, click the link above.

If you can't join me this month, consider joining me in January for the New Year Virtual Retreat, which will be held on Sunday January 14th from 10 - 3 pm (EST). For more information about the New Year virtual retreat, please click here.

Both programs are designed to provide you with the opportunity to retreat from your own creative space -- no travel involved. If you are looking for personal renewal and planning time, I hope that you will consider joining me. Both retreats are limited to 10 participants. Each retreat costs $75 US for blog readers. Included in the registration is a virtual retreat manual, and a 30 minute individual coaching session.

Frequently asked questions about virtual retreats can be downloaded at the link above. To register, please email me or call toll free 1-866-217-1960.

Cheers to a balanced week during the holiday season,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer@potentialsrealized.com

Choosing Prosperity

2006-12-04T10:21:00.000-05:00

Last month at a Conference I was reminded of a terrific website about prosperity and abundance. If you are interested in bringing more abundance and prosperity into your life, you may want to check out Choosing Prosperity, a wonderful website by Coach Elyse Hope Killoran.

In May of this year she facilitated a very interesting 31 day experiment where 8,595 individuals were involved in a month long process designed to support shifts in prosperity conciousness. They "played their way to prosperity" undertaking her free online game. You can see the results for yourself here. I think that it's quite amazing.

You can play the game here yourself for free:

I would love to hear your comments!

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: jennifer[at]potentialsrealized[dot]com

Work Life Balance Tip #8 - What does Balance Look Like?

2006-11-28T16:27:00.000-05:00

Work Life Balance Tip #8 - What Does Balance Look Like?

What "balance" looks like is different for every individual. I often use a tool called the Wheel of Life with clients to provide them with a snapshot of their level of satisfaction in different areas of their life (finances, health, family, career etc). Many times the wheel make look a little skewed. Prehaps at that moment, a younger professional is spending more time on career, and a new mom on family issues. Just because each area of your life is not receiving the same amount of attention it does not mean that your life is out of balance.

What does balance look like for you in the different areas of your life? What are your current priorities? What areas are you satisfied with? Which areas might be a little out of balance -- you are not spending enough time with, or perhaps may be spending too much time on?

Take some time asking yourself, what does balance look like to me in my life? Draw it, write about it, picture it.

Have a balanced week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, MES, CPT, CPCC, CHRP
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer@potentialsrealized.com
Toll Free Voice Mail: 1-866-217-1960
Web: www.potentialsrealized.com

We'll be playing with this concept at the upcoming Holiday Virtual Retreat, scheduled for Saturday December 9th from 10 - 3 pm (EST). The Retreat is held by phone, so join me and nine other participants as we spend half a day recharging, visioning, and creating! For more information click here. The Early Bird registration rate of $75 is in effect to November 30th. Email or call to reserve your seat.

Holiday Virtual Retreat - Sat December 9th

2006-11-20T11:56:00.000-05:00

Haven Amidst the Holidays (Virtual Retreat)
Saturday December 9 2006
10 am - 3 pm (EST) - By Phone

Looking for some quiet time during the busy holiday season to reflect on 2006, and start planning for 2007?

Join me on Saturday December 9th from 10 am – 3pm (EST) for a five hour virtual retreat.
Connect with other busy professionals from across North America as we:

*Reflect on the successes and challenges of 2006
* Explore our current level of satisfaction and balance with different areas of our work and life
* Connect with our most important values
* Develop our personal vision (for work, life, family etc)
* Create an Action Plan for 2007

The group will meet every hour by phone for the first twenty minutes of the hour, and we will spend the remaining part of the hour individually working through creative exercises, designed to provide clarity and haven amongst this busy holiday time.

As part of registration, participants receive:
* A retreat manual which contains the exercises for the retreat, as well as creative design space, along with follow up resources (sent to you by email)
* A follow up group call, scheduled for Thursday January 4 2007 from 7:30 – 8:30 pm (EST)
* A one-on-one thirty minute coaching session with Certified Coach Jennifer Britton

Participants will take away:
* The opportunity to refresh and recharge during the holiday season
* Clarity and focus on their level of balance in different areas of their life
* An understanding of and reconnection with their personal values
* Their personal vision story
* A personal action plan for 2007

Your investment: $75 if booked before November 29th, plus the cost of your long-distance phone call to connect with the teleconference bridgeline. The bridgeline is based in the US. Registrations received after November 29th: $97.

To register, please contact Jennifer Britton by phone at 1-866-217-1960 or by email at jennifer@potentialsrealized.com.

Registrations can be made by phone or fax. To download a registration form, please click here. Payment is accepted by Visa and personal cheque.

I hope that you will join me! I will be holding a free information call on Thursday November 30th at 7pm (EST) about all our 2007 Your Balanced Life! programs, as well as the Haven Amidst the Holidays program. Join me for a fun and insightful call, during which time we will be doing some coaching. To reserve your spot, email us at info@potentialsrealized.com with YBL 07 preview in the subject line. We will send you the bridgeline for the call.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton

Potentials Realized

Work-Life Balance Tip #7 - Appreciation

2006-11-15T13:28:00.000-05:00

Work-Life Balance Tip #7 - Appreciation
Copyright 2006 - Jennifer Britton / Potentials Realized

When was the last time you slowed down to savour the moment? To really appreciate the here and now?

When was the last time you told someone that you appreciate them? One of the most important values employees hold is wanting to feel "appreciated" and recognized for a job well done. Are you surprized that this is ahead of higher wages?

For many of you who are based in the US, Thanksgiving is just about a week away. Thanksgiving is often seen as a time to give thanks and appreciation to those around you.

Who do you want to thank? How can you build some time for appreciation into your holiday season?

Here's an exercise to try: Spend some time writing down 10 things from this year that you want to acknowledge your appreciation for - maybe it is related to a new promotion at work, someone who helps out with the kids, or a friend who is always there. As we move into the holiday season ,every week focus on one or two appreciation items. Make sure you share your thoughts with those individuals, or take time to appreciate what has shown up in your life (a new home, a new car).

What can you do to show your appreciation for today?

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
www.potentialsrealized.com

Work-Life Balance Tip # 6- Feed Your Soul

2006-11-13T16:25:00.000-05:00

Work-Life Balance Tip #6 - Feed Your Soul
Photo compliments of GeekPhilosopher.com

I am back after ten days spent at two fantastic conferences -- one which I attended as a delegate, and one which I presented at. The energy and focus I have returned with reminds me of how important it is to "feed your soul" with those things that matter in your life. As a life long learner, conferences give me that buzz, as does travel. As a former manager who spent sometimes upwards of 150 nights on the road (and sky) a year, spending a few nights in a hotel room again reminded me of the better part of travel.

When was the last time you fed your soul, doing something different and meaningful to you?

What does feed your soul? Is it reading a good book? Hiking in nature? Travelling? Learning? Spending quality time with your family. Think about what really recharges you. Set aside some time this week to feed your soul on a regular basis, even if it is only for 15 minutes at a time.

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Web: www.potentialsrealized.com
Email: jennifer [at] potentialsrealized[dot]com

Join me for on December 9th for a five hour virtual retreat -- Haven Admist the Holidays. During this retreat we will be looking at reconnecting with those things that matter most in our lives, and creating a plan for 2007, aligned with our visions and purpose. This virtual retreat will be meeting by phone, so no need to add one more trip onto your list during the busy holiday season. Stay tuned for more information! Early bird discount pricing of $75 USD exists for retreat participants who register before November 30th. Special pricing also exists when you register with a friend or colleague. The retreat is limited to 10 participants.

Work Life Balance Tip #5 - Envision What's Possible

2006-10-25T11:27:00.000-04:00

Work Life Balance Tip # 5 - Envision What's Possible
Copyright 2006 - Jennifer Britton Potentials Realized
Photo compliments of GeekPhilosopher.com

We will never know what lies around the corner, but without a map how will we know where we are going?

Creating a vision for what we want in our life or work is a very powerful process. Visions allow us to form the terrain we want to live, work and play in, as well as providing us with markers to gauge how we are going on our journey.

Ask yourself, "If I had unlimited resources and knew that I would succeed, I would ....."?

What would you do? Quit your job and open a new business, take the trip you've always wanted, work from your favorite location 6 months of the year, move to the Caribbean?

These things are all possible - in fact, I've done or do these all...and by having a clear vision on what I see as possible for my life, it has happened.

Here's a short exercise: Set aside 15 minutes today, a time when you can be quiet and uninterrupted. If you have a journal you may want to use this, if you don't get out some new paper.

Ask yourself, what do I want my life to look like 20 years from now? 10 years from now? 5 years? 1 year? Six months from now? What would I be doing if I knew that I could succeed.

Write or draw whatever comes to mind. You may find that it's easier to write/draw about what you envision your life to be like 20 years from now, while others may prefer the shorter timeframe.

Throughout the Your Balanced Life! programs, I spend a lot of time supporting individuals to create a clear vision on what's possible in their life. Maybe it is a promotion, a new home, a new car. Time and time again, I am excited and amazed at how these big and bold visions do come true.

Are you ready to create yours?

Jennifer

I would love to hear your comments on the process, and would love to have you join me this weekend on the Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat. We're starting at 10am on Satruday morning (October 28th) and we will be spending a lot of time creating our vision, through play and discovery. For more information or to register, please give me a call toll free at 1-866-217-1960.

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized

Balance in the age of Technology

2006-10-19T15:00:00.000-04:00

A posts ago I wrote about balance in this age of email, cell phones and other technological advances -- Balance Tip #1 - UNWIRE.

Holly Schwindeman, of Holly's Blog, has a great post on tips for acquring balance in this age of technnology. We can't always unwire --- many times it is about creating new ways of managing our technology. Holly shares three strategies - prioritizing, preparing and living. I hope that you'll visit her post: Simple Balance and Technology Resources II, and start utilizing these tips. They're great!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
www.potentialsrealized.com

Space still remains for the October 28th Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat. Scroll down and hear me speak about this powerful upcoming retreat. We are meeting by phone from 10 - 4 pm (EST) and blog readers can take advantage of the early bird pricing right up to October 26th ($75 US). Click here for more information about this program.

Work-Life Balance Tip #4 - Declutter

2006-10-16T16:25:00.000-04:00

Work Life Balance Tip #4 - Declutter
Copyright 2006 - Jennifer Britton

Take a look around you. What do you see? Are you surrounded by clutter or does your environment look exactly how you would like it to be?

There is a lot of writing out there about how the state of your surroundings reflect your mind, and how your environment contributes to energy flow or energy blockage (Feng Shui).

If during your survey of your environment (particularly of your home or office) you are not satisfied with your surroundings, what changes would you like to see made? What is the one area that really gets under your skin?

While many want to attack the clutter as a one time deal, this often leads to procrastination. The task just seems too large. Taking a look at the one priority area you have identified, schedule 15 minute "blitz" sessions for three or four times this week. Arm yourself with your recycling bin, and a couple of extra boxes. During your fifteen minute intervals touch everything only once and decide if the item is something to keep, throw away or recycle (sell).

If it's papers that you are looking at, break the categories down to take action on (and only keep those you really will take action on!), file or throw away/recycle. The key here is to force yourself to make a decision, rather than shuffling the papers around. Do your filing and putting away, along with making a list of action items (and a time commitment slotted). Remember, touch each piece only once!

I have a number of clients who have used this approach, and while it may not be the fastest, it helps get over the procrastination hurdle. So are you ready to start your first 15 minutes? I'd love to hear how it goes, and what comes in with the new space you have created. Email me...I'd love to hear from you!

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Web: www.potentialsrealized.com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960
Email: info@potentialsrealized.com

Work Life Balance Tip #3- Identify What's Important

2006-10-05T08:30:00.000-04:00

Photo Compliments of GeekPhilosopher.com.
Work Life Balance Tip #3 - Identify What's Important
Jennifer Britton - Potentials Realized

My third balance tip is to identify what's important in your life. Is it family? Is it learning? Is it success? Spend five minutes writing down what are the most important five things in your life. Are you able to provide as much attention to these things as you would like? What will you do differently in the next week to honor these things which are important for you?

As family is one of my priorities and as my parents are such as support for my own family, I loved this blog posting on Grandfathers from Earl over at Red's Review.

Creativity and Success in business is another area that is important to me. I can see this reflected in Lynn's site -- Adornments by Lynn - where she showcases her fanastic jewelery creations. I love her creations!

So what are your priorities? Have you made enough time for them this week?

Until later, have a balanced week,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized

Join Me on Sat. October 28th for a Virtual Retreat (10-4pm EST)

2006-10-04T19:00:00.000-04:00

Work-Life Balance Tip #2 - Recharge Your Batteries

2006-10-03T21:23:00.000-04:00

Work Life Balance Tip #2 - Recharge Your Batteries
Photo Courtesy of Geek Philosopher.com

Tip Copyright - Jennifer Britton/Potentials Realized

How often do you recharge your batteries? If you had to rate your battery power at the moment, where would you put it?

Just as our car needs a regular tune up and battery charge, it's just as important for us to take time to recharge our batteries.

Burnout rates are continuing at a steady pace across the world for many executives and professionals in the work force. Many notable authors, including Stephen Covey advocate taking time to recharge and rejuvinate our body, mind and spirit. Covey calls this Sharpening the Saw. Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz also credit downtime or recovery as part of full engagement and peak performance.

What recharges your batteries? What rejuvinates your body, mind and spirit? When did you last take time to replenish yourself?

My challenge for today to readers is to take time thinking about what are the things that will recharge your batteries. More importantly, I hope that you will create some time to recharge this week. Recharging can be as simple as reading a good book, getting to the gym for that class you have not made in a while, or enjoying nature during a walk.

I'd love to hear how you recharged this week, and what a difference it's made to your outlook.

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Web: www.potentialsrealized.com

Work-Life Balance Tip #1 - Unwire

2006-09-27T16:33:00.000-04:00

I've had a lot of requests from subscribers and clients to regularly post tips for better work-life balance, so a new feature of this blog will be to share one or two balance tips with you every week. I hope that you will enjoy them!

Work-life Balance Tip #1 - UNWIRE
by Jennifer Britton - Potentials Realized
Copyright 2006

Today's world is not getting any slower -- email, cell phones, Blackberries -- many professionals and individuals are "on" 24-7, 365 days a year juggling work and life. Even if you've left the office, do you log on at home just to see what's come in? That 15 minute check may often become several hours.

When was the last time you totally unwired? Disconnected from the phone, the email, the Blackberry?

A few days ago our phone lines, along with the power, were ripped out by yet another powerful storm. It was amazing how a regular Sunday turned into a fantastic quiet family day. No calls, no interruptions, no TV, no email. It really became a full quality day for us where we spent the day indoors and outdoors - playing games and reading.

After being on call 24-7, virtually 365 days a year, for almost a decade while I worked with humanitarian organizations and the UN, I have chosen not to add a cell to my already busy life since returning back to north America two and a half years ago. People always seem to find a way to reach me if it really is an emergency. If not, business can wait...after all, I support others in creating better work-life balance and shouldn't I walk the talk too?

Here's my challenge for the day -- unwire for a day this weekend -- turn off the cell, shut off the computer, put away the Blackberry. Spend some time doing what you love and never seem to have the time for. If you can't do the whole day, unwire for a few hours.

I'd love to hear your comments on how "unwiring" goes! What did you discover through the process?

Jennifer

Are you looking for content for your newsletter, website or ezine? You can reproduce this tip at no cost. Please attach our company information and contact details. We would also appreciate a link and a brief email from you as to where this has appeared. Enjoy!

Relishing the Changing Seasons

2006-09-19T10:54:00.000-04:00

We are now two days away from the official start of fall and the leaves here in Toronto are just starting to turn. In late August the leaves started turning at my northern refuge and office in Muskoka, and are now almost reaching their peak.

As these visible signs of the changing seasons evolve, I've taken some time to reflect on the cyclical nature of life and business, as well as being able to notice at how different a place I am at than I was this time last year. After having spent over a decade living and working in the Caribbean where seasonal change was not as pronounced (but was there) I relish the evolving nature of the seasons here in North America.

Today, as you are moving around, take a look -- what is shifting in the external envirionment where you live? If you are moving into fall, or spring, what's changing? What's changing in your life? Thinking back to last year at this time, what's different?

I hope that you too will relish the changes that are happening before our eyes. What's your intention for fall?

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
http: www.potentialsrealized.com

Looking for some stress relief tips?

2006-09-06T11:55:00.000-04:00

If you are looking for some great stress relief tips I'd recommend you check out Aurelia William's blog. A fellow coach, Aurelia provides some great information on her blog and websites about stress management. Aurelia also offers some free e-books for Moms.

Check it out if this first week back to school has been a little less balanced than others!

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized

The next 90 Day Your Balanced Life! Program from Potentials Realized starts on Tuesday September 19th from 7 - 8 pm (EST) by phone. We will meet twice a month as a group, and the program also incluces individual coaching sessions each month. Are you ready to move your life more into balance? Spaces still remain. Program information can be found here as well as downloadable registration forms. I hope that you will join me!

Balance Virtual Retreat This Saturday August 26

2006-08-21T11:19:00.000-04:00

Space still remains for Satruday's Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat which will be held by phone from 10 am - 4 pm (EST) on Saturday August 26th. Retreat from your home, office, cottage or anywhere you have phone access from.

The day is dedicated to exploring the balance in our life, our values and our vision. Throughout the day we will be defining, envisioning and creating a plan for a more balanaced life. We will be meeting every hour at the top of the hour for approximately 15 minutes, with the rest of the hour spent individually retreating in our own location, completing individual exercises.

Each retreat participant will receive:

A retreat manual (sent electronically), full of resources, exercises and other tips for balance. We will be using this as our guide for the day.
A 30 minute individual coaching session with me (by phone) after the retreat

Retreat participants are responsible for their own long distance charges. If you haven't participated in a teleclass or conference call before don't let this hold you back - I will answer any questions you have when you register.

Space is limited to 12 participants - Don't miss out on this opportunity to move towards creating more balance in your life. Further details about the program can be found at www.groupcoachingessentials.com/pages/balancevirtualretreat. The cost for the day is $97 USD, and payments are accepted by Visa and personal cheque.

I hope to have you join me this Saturday for an inspirational, supportive and energizing day! You can reserve your spot by calling me toll free at 1-866-217-1960 or emailing me at jennifer@potentialsrealized.com.

I look forward to hearing from you,

Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT

Potentials Realized ~ www.potentiaslrealized.com and www.groupcoachingessentials.com

Omeyocan:Guided Meditation CD from Coach Annie Gelfand

2006-08-14T07:25:00.000-04:00

I often receive questions from readers regarding resources to support them in moving towards a more balanced life. I will be featuring a number of them in coming blog posts.

Today, I wanted to share with you one amazing resource from an incredibly talented coach, Annie Gelfand. Omeyocan (which means Highest Heaven in Mayan) is a 52 minute long CD which includes guided breathing, meditations and imagery. It is divided into cuts which allows you to skip to the tracks you enjoy most.

More information on Omeyocan is available on Annie's website: www.anniegelfand.com. You can also listen to a sample audio clip as well at her site. The CD costs $25, plus shipping, and also makes an exellent gift for friends and family. Order forms are available at www.anniegelfand.com.

I highly recommend this CD, as well as Annie's work. She is an incredibly talented coach, and I hope that you will take a listen to her audio sampler, and consider treating yourself!

Have a wonderful start to the week,
Jennifer

Potentials Realized
Web: www.potentialsrealized.com

August 26th Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat Information and Registration: www.groupcoachingessentials.com/pages/balancevirtualretreat

Lights Out

2006-08-03T08:15:00.000-04:00

Last night a powerful storm ripped through our area, cutting off electricity in our area for about six hours. After the violence of the storm had passed, it was actually a really cozy feeling to finish up the evening by candlelight, with no distractions - no TV, no radio, no computer. Just silence and darkness. It felt very calming to not be surrounded by the usual noise and distratctions of everyday life for a few hours, very similar to how I feel when I am on retreat - particularly those that I run in nature. What was very interesting for me was how clear and creative my thoughts were in the silence.

For many years when I was working internationally I lived in a country where we were accustomed to 18 hours of blackout (loss of power). Life was naturally slower with things getting done "just now", when lights and power permitted.

When was the last time you wrapped yourself up in the silence of "lights out"?

Be Gentle with Yourself

2006-07-28T15:21:00.000-04:00

Most of June and into the middle of July were a marathon for me - full days of teaching, coaching and also running a number of public and corporate programs. On top of it, my trusty old car, which I had had since grad school (many moons ago) gave signs that it was time to retire her. So on July 15th I became the proud owener of a 2006 Chevy Equinox. It is a fantastic vehicle for all the driving I do between Toronto and Muskoka, and my 14 month old son, loves the space! While I would have normally kept pushing the purchase of the new vehicle off, I had pushed it as far as it could go, and in fact my worries about the old car's condition was causing me more stress than taking the time to purchase a new one.

An hour after the picking up the new vehicle we headed north, for what I've been calling a "working vacation". I had had visions for months that this would be my opportunity to catch up on all the business planning work I never seem to find time for. Well, two weeks into my three week "working vacation" many of my business planning and creative ideas are still in my head, as my holiday has turned into some excellent time playing and exploring with my son, responding to many new registrations for upcoming programs, as well as full of unexpected amazing business opportunities and coverage which I never could have forseen even a couple of weeks ago. Ealier this week I was being hard on myself, thinking that I hadn't accomplished many of the items on my "dream holiday list", but then I realized just how important it was to be spending my time on my what was evolving.

So...the message here - not to put off planning, but to be gentle with yourself, and allow yourself to coast in the flow of life rather than fighting against the current. It's working for me, and when I am able to cocoon myself away for a few short hours to put fingers to keyboard, it's amazing what's coming out!

Have a fantastic weekend,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized

Your Balanced Life! Virtual Retreat and Podcast

2006-07-21T13:40:00.001-04:00

Earlier this week I was interviewed by Elana Centor, BlogHer's Business and Career Contributor, on the work I do around work-life balance and virtual retreats. She has just published her wonderful article "Getting Balanced - Virtually" on my work, along with the podcast of our interview on virtual retreats at http://blogher.org/node/7879. I hope that you will listen to it.

Interest for my Your Balanced Life! retreats in August is growing quickly. More information about the Saturday August 26th Virtual Retreat which will be held by phone from 10 am - 4pm (EST) can be found here at this new webpage. It doesn't matter where you are, you can participate from your home, cottage, vacation, as long as you have long-distance phone access. The retreat is limited to 12 participants so register early.

Inquiries have also started pouring in regarding my one-day in person Your Balanced Life! retreat being held on Saturday August 19th. It will be held here in Muskoka (about 2 hours north of Toronto) Canada. A separate webpage will be available soon. Registration for the in-person retreat will close on August 8th. For more information, prior to the website being up and running, please call me toll free at 1-866-217-1960 or email me at jennifer@potentialsrealized.com.

I look forward to connecting with many of you by phone and in person over the coming weeks. For those interested, I will be holding a free information call on both Your Balanced Life! retreats, as well as the 90 Day Your Balanced Life Program which starts on July 31st on Mondays from 12 - 1 pm (EST). The first information call will be held on Tuesday July 26th from 7-8 pm (EST) and the second on Wednesday July 26th from 12 - 1 pm (EST). To register and receive bridgeline information, please email me at jennifer@potentialsrealized.com noting the call time in the subject line. In addition to receiving information about the upcoming programs, this is an opportunity for you to receive some coaching on work-life balance. I hope that you will join me.

With best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, CPCC, CHRP, CPT
Potentials Realized
Web: http://www.potentialsrealized.com and http://www.groupcoachingessentials.com
Toll Free: 1-866-217-1960

Summer Time Renewal

2006-07-05T08:23:00.000-04:00

Ah...the lazy days of summer. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, this time of year can be a little slower, and more focused on our needs or our families needs. How are you using this quieter time of year to renew and recharge?

During the summer months I am typically based out of of my Northern office - a few hours north of Toronto, and there is nothing like waking up in the morning and walking outside to see the mist rising off the river. I make it a daily ritual up north to spend 5 minutes by the river in the morning, reflecting on the day ahead. What is interesting for me is how this 5 minutes of deep thought really brings clearer focus for the day ahead.

Ask yourself: Where's my energy stock right now? What are you doing this summer to renew and recharge? How are you focusing on those things that are most important to you? What's your summer time ritual?

I will be holding a one-day Virtual Retreat for Your Balanced Life on Saturday August 26th, for those of you are not able to travel to join me in person for my summer Your Balanced Life Retreats. You can participate in the Virtual Retreat from your home -- all you need is a phone. We will be connecting every hour from 10 am - 4 pm (EST) for a short time at the top of the each hour, and the rest of that hour will be dedicated to you "retreating" at your own location, with activities and exercises for you to do at home.

The Your Balanced Life Virtual Retreat will be held on Saturday August 26th (one week after my in-person August 19th Retreat in Muskoka). The cost for the day is $97 USD (and your own long distance charges to connect by phone at the start of every hour). I would be pleased to send you a Virtual Retreat Information kit which includes more information. To register or receive more information, please email me at jennifer@potentialsrealized.com or call toll free: 1-866-217-1960. The Virtual Retreat is limited to 12 participants.

I hope tht you will join me this summer to retreat, either in person (August 19th) or Virtually (August 26th). I look forward to hearing from you!

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
http://www.potentialsrealized.com

In the News: Workers in Need of a Vacation

2006-06-21T09:28:00.000-04:00

Last week I was interviewed by Kavita Gosyne of Metro News regarding vacation deprivation in Canadian working professionals. Her article "Workers in Need of a Vacation" appeared on June 14th. You can read a copy of the article at http://www.metronews.ca/column_the_graduate.asp?id=16788.

What's the state of vacation time in your life and work right now? Will you be taking a break this summer, or are you pushing through, finding it difficult to fit it in?

You are not alone if you can't manage to take all of your vacation. Last year, Canadian businesses saved $5 Billion on holiday time that was not taken by their workers (an average of 2 vacation day per Canadian worker). The full results of the Expedia Vacation Deprivation study that this is based on can be found at www.vacationdeprivation.com. Take a look - it's very interesting. Surveys were held with employed workers in the US, Canada, Germany, France and Australia.

As a coach working with clients on work-life balance I always like to ask, " What's the cost of not taking all of your vacation this year?". What's YOUR cost?

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, MES, CPT, CPCC
Potentials Realized

What's the Fire in Your Belly?

2006-06-12T07:18:00.000-04:00

This weekend I had the opportunity to reconnect with my passion and vision for my life and work, at an extraordinary program run by Robin Sharma, the author of the Monk Who Stole His Ferrari. Every year he runs an exceptional 2.5 day public program entitled the Awakening Best Self Weekend here in Toronto. For more information on the work that Robin does, please visit his website: www.robinsharma.com. He also has a wonderful blog and podcasts regularly.

Throughout the weekend, as we moved through different exercises, I reconnected with my passion, what I also call the "fire in our belly". Passion is that driving force which keeps us moving forward with joy, energy, and zest. I feel that this was an added benefit for me in attending Robin's ABS weekend. He doesn't focus on passion explicity, but as we look at our vision for our business and work, passion for me comes hand in hand. Ask yourself....

What is your fire in your belly?

If you had unlimited resources, and knew that you would succeed, what would you do?

How do you fuel your fire? How do you keep your passion renewed?

If you are a leader or a parent, how do you support those around you in knowing and feeding their own passion?

I hope that these questions will provide you with some new places to look this week. Spend time to reconnect with your passion - where does that take you?

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Web: www.potentialsrealized.com

Where does your time go?

2006-05-29T16:36:00.000-04:00

Last week, I challenged a group of college students I was teaching to monitor their time for a week so see where they were spending it. Do you know where your time goes?

So often I hear from clients that they don't have enough time. Time is a non-renewable resource - no matter what way you look at it, we only have 24 hours in a day, 7 days in a week. How do you want to spend your time?

I would also challenge you, my readers, to take note of where your time is going. You can try this exercise on your own, at your own pace. For a week track where all your time is going - how much you sleep, how much time you work, commute, spend with family and friends, and of course...those things that I call "time-suckers". More on this in a second.

To track your time you can use your calendar on your computer, your Day Planner, or even a hand-drawn grid of 24 hours x 7 days.

As you move through your week of time-tracking, what patterns are you noticing? Where is your time really going? Is it aligned with those things that are most important to you? Or, like I do somethmes, do you get trapped by the "time-suckers". Time-suckers are thos things that have zero value and minimal impact on your life. Some things that fall in this category include TV, web-surfing, phone calls/chatting.

So, where are your time-suckers? Try this exercise out for a week, and at the end of it, take a good look at where your time is going. Is your time going where you want it to go or do you want to make some changes? It's your choice. How do you want to use this non-renewable resource?

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
Email: jennifer@potentialsrealized.com
Website: www.potentialsrealized.com

What are you grateful for?

2006-04-17T10:15:00.001-04:00

It's been a couple of weeks since I last blogged as I spent a week earlier this month in the very interesting nation of Haiti, in the Caribbean. I was there to run a Supervisory Skills training program for some of the United Nations personnel. It was an incredible, rejuvinating experience and Haiti is a fascinating country in the midst of many positive changes. As someone who lived and worked in the Caribbean for a decade, in many ways it was like "coming home" even though I had never visited Haiti before.

One question that kept popping into my mind during my work in Haiti was "What am I grateful for?". This question was precipitated in part due to the feeling when I travel of greater space and opportuity for expansive thinking. I often seem to be more in touch with my basic instincts when I leave everyday trappings behind.

Some of the thoughts that came to mind when I thought of what I am grateful for included: running my own business and being able to take on work that challenges me, makes a positive impact in the world, and is aligned with my values and purpose. I also was very aware of my gratitude for being a mother, and knowing that my son was well taken care of while I was away by his father and grandparents. One of the biggest things I was grateful for is my ability to play "big" and really make an impact on issues at the global level. I do hope that work will take me back to Haiti again soon.

So my challenge to you today is to ask you to stop and take a moment to take stock of what you are grateful for? What are the most important things for you right now?

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized
http://www.potentialsrealized.com