Kylie Mort is an International Amazon 1 Best-Selling Author, Educational Mentor and Performance Coach. Her mission is fuelled by the challenges of childhood trauma and abuse and supported by extensive qualifications across industries including education and health science. Passionate about literature, she writes both academically and creatively exploring the academic mind, self-awareness & the mind-body connection. Acknowledged internationally for leadership, business and education, Kylie has also recently been recognized as a prominent Mental Health Advocate on LinkedIn based on her professional experience and the quality of her content. Kylie’s performance coaching involves bespoke mentoring packages supporting academic, physical, and personal success. Four times the published author, her children’s book, “Little People Big Emotions” epitomises her mission to save children from suffering through empowering individuals with knowledge and solutions. As does her latest goal within app development, determined to provide a pocket-sized at-need performance coach, encouraging optimal performance with an ever-expanding range of offerings. Kylie Mort Coaching Connection. Your logo sounds like you are a dating consultant, why would you choose that? [laughs] I thought exactly the same thing! Being a wordsmith I was initially looking for the catchy slogan. Something with alliteration. I mused over a few different incarnations and originally tossed this aside for that very reason. I don’t coach couples as a theme. Yet, as I drilled down further on my goal and the core of my focus, it is about love. It was about individuals connecting with that which inspires them and fuels their motivation to succeed. For the primary school children I work with, it identifies connection with their ability to learn. The ability to understand how their mind works and how to decode the information being given. For the secondary school children it is recognising their innate talent and using these unique skills to succeed in any challenge that is put before them, regardless of the topic. Young people need to be taught how to learn and how to value their skills before they can engage in a topic, and this is the connection I nurture. When adults seek my assistance, they have forgotten their own intrinsic power to grow and develop. They are disconnected from their purpose and feeling like they don’t have the resources to reach their personal goals, whether that be in education, business, or life. We all have goals, and my focus is connecting people with their personal goals through empowering individuals with intrinsic education. You just mentioned you coach in education, business, and life. Does that mean you don’t specialise in any of them? I’m qualified and registered across all of them actually! My career began as a secondary school teacher with a double degree in Literature and English. I taught across five different schools from Years 7 through 12. I taught a range of subjects across Finance, Legal and English studies but eventually specialised in teaching Year 12 English and Business Management. Since resigning from state education I have run businesses in a variety of industries including education, consulting and heavy automotive. This gave me a broad range of experience in Executive and HR roles. I also work with the Ronald McDonald Learning Program through Ronald McDonald House Charities to support children in school settings, and post-pandemic, now online. And what is the qualification for life coaching? As a school teacher and a HR manager I saw EQ (or Emotional Intelligence) as a core component. Being a dedicated teacher I was focused on how individuals learnt and recognised that there is no correct way to teach, but rather, that each learner was unique and needed their specific needs catered for. Anyone can learn, they just need the right teacher. The more I explored this idea the more I became fascinated with personal development, and I began my journey of life coaching qualifications. This included Erikson Hypnosis and Neurolinguistic Programming. Then through my personal interest in the mind-body connection I trained in traditional yoga, child yoga, and a mindfulness program. After exploring every other pseudo-science I finally went back to university to study Psychological Science. I consider myself a Holistic Performance Coach because I have experience and qualifications in such a broad range of fields. And your core mission is to save children, how will a book save them? Children retreat into safe places when they are scared, damaged and isolated. I know this as I was one of them. Through childhood trauma and abuse I suffered emotional, psychological, and physical damage. I retreated into books because, for those moments I was lost in a story, I was somewhere else, I was someone else and I didn’t have to deal with my own problems. I have harnessed that experience, combined with my ability to craft narratives and coach personal resilience, to write a children’s book, “Little People Big Emotions”. It is a place that a child can go for a variety of reasons but when there, my teaching and coaching strategies target the needs of young people and provide guidance and solutions to common problems. It is a narrative that elucidates a child’s fears, frustrations and natural inclinations then systematically provides the answers for both the children and their teachers and carers. It is designed with persuasive literary devices that will encourage connection. Connection between children and their safe adults, and critically, connection between the child and their own emotions. The book is an educational resource disguised as a feel-good narrative with beautiful professional illustrations from the talented, Tiina Morton. How can it be used as an educational resource? Being both the author and a Literature teacher I was always planning to write the Study Guide. I have compiled a 7-page document that I offer as a free resource to support the advantages of the book. It covers explanations of the text itself, the themes and the symbols and literary devices used. It also covers the historical context (as I wrote during the COVID-19 pandemic) and follow up activities to support further development, including discussion questions and drawing activities for younger children. You are certainly focused on teaching in all that you do. So, what are your thoughts on George Bernard Shaw’s quote that “Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach.” [laughs] This is certainly a tricky area…and an interesting irony that Shaw earned a Nobel Peace Prize when this is one of the most contentious cliches of our time! I feel that we are all teachers, we all help others to grow and develop, we all have a unique skill set that we can share. Those of us who choose to focus on this skill and make a career of it are drawn to it for many reasons. Mine was to protect children. I suffered terribly through childhood and adolescence and during a dangerous suicidal period it was a teacher who reminded me of the innate strength I had, simply from the fact that I had survived so much already. Her words saved me from myself, and I now want to provide that same light at the end of the tunnel for other children who feel isolated and without hope. I truly believe everybody has something they are innately brilliant at. Mine just happens to be teaching English comprehension. My sister is a teacher who is also an Olympic level athlete. We are all brilliant teachers when we are teaching about that one thing that makes us brilliant. That could sound a little conceited, referring to yourself as brilliant? I guess so. Yet, ultimately, we all need to know our worth and our value, and it may have taken me 40 years, but I now know mine. I was successful as a teacher earning a government wage, I was successful as a tutor earning a comparative wage and now, I am successful as a Holistic Performance Coach earning the wage I choose. People see my value because I know my value, and this leads back to my passion and my niche. My guaranteed commitment to every individual who reads my publications and works within my programs is that I will guide them to the inner strength, knowledge, and empowerment to live their best lives. So there is more than one publication? Yes, there are 4 so far. I always knew I wanted to publish but I wasn’t sure of the best way to go about it, so I tried a number of publishers and styles to explore the industry. In August 2020, Empowered Women Empowering the World was published and this endeavours to encourage reader resilience in overcoming adversity. In December 2020, Back Yourself was created supplying advice on running a successful business. In March 2021, Amazing Women of Influence: Heart-Centred Female Warriors on a Mission to Change the World! became available and it is a business lesson in brief, a really great resource for business start-ups who seek a variety of opinions. Then comes my passion project, “Little People Big Emotions” with the incredible support of Serenity Press and Karen McDermott. Kylie, you are a teacher, turned tutor, turned business developer, turned author, turned holistic performance coach. What’s next? The two main projects I am working on at present are not only my passion projects but also endeavours that don’t have any finite conclusion. I feel this is the space I will be dwelling in for the foreseeable future as it is both what I am most passionate about and where I see I can provide continuous impactful change. “Little People Big Emotions” is a children’s book that can be purchased in stores and online, but it also the focus of my ongoing campaign to reach out to children. The Study Guide is available as a free download on my website, and I am available to assist without charge to school, library and parent group meetings, readings, and facilitations. Likewise, the free educational app, “How-to-Write with Kylie Mort” will be continually updated and expanded to explore the holistic nature of my performance coaching. It begins with an English focus as did my career, but the goal is to continuously build on the offerings available encompassing all of my qualifications. It is comprised of writing templates, guidance and strategies, and additional in-app features levelling all the way up to direct one-on-one performance coaching. And they both provide FREE giveaways, is this just part of your brand? [laughs] My husband is forever rolling his eyes at the way I constantly give away time, resources, and energy, but to me it is a critical element of my alignment and congruence. Money was always an issue when I was growing up, we lived in a household focused on lack and the need to fight. I learnt important life lessons there and I am grateful for my learnings. However, now I believe that the focus should be on abundance and positivity and the need to connect. I know my difficult path has been so essential to developing my ability to be a holistic educator, drawing on my experience as a resource. Yet, I want to freely give my knowledge, experience, and support so no child ever has to experience this hardship for themselves. How do people find you? My website www.kyliemort.com.au has links to my publications and programs. There are free resources, discount codes and a variety of packages and deals also, including a Complimentary Call to Connect link. I’m active on Facebook www.facebook.com/kyliemort.mentor, Instagram www.instagram.com/kyliemort.mentor and LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/kyliemort/ every other day and, as with my magazine articles, my posts follow an organic schedule exploring whatever daily musings may abound, hoping to offer positive and general advice for mindset and personal development (as well as beautiful images from my farm!) Read more from Kylie!

Written by: Renate Prandl, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. What you believe is real is real. You might have heard this before. Fact is, we can use this to our disadvantage or to our advantage. The brain does not distinguish between what is real and what is perceived. If we strongly believe in something which is not even faintly true nor has it really happened, and if we continuously and repeatedly tell this story, it is exactly what the brain hears. Yes, the brain is listening ALL the time. Let me tell you a story first and then, with your permission, I would love to introduce a few questions I ask my high-performance coaching clients, too. Why? Because this is effective, and anyone can do it. Earlier this week a lady who is not a student of mine – let’s call her Mary - reached out to me. She was extremely upset, because she had gone out of her way to serve Mr.C and provide immense value (for free). This person, Mr.C had not acknowledged nor responded within a day. We don't know the reason, maybe he was busy or he just forgot. Mary saw the person being active on social media, but not responding to her, and this is when the whole thing -what you believe is real is real – started. Mary started to think, to assume, that Mr.C should at least say thank you. He spends a lot of time acknowledging other people, celebrities, famous people, mentors (all her words), but not me. Then that down-spiraling mindset continued: this is because I am not famous, I am nobody, I am not good enough, you get the gist, right. Maybe this sounds familiar and you have been there before. I for sure have BEFORE I knew some of the techniques I will share with you today. Back to Mary. This lamenting and putting herself down, my friends, is what her brain heard. Supportive self-talk or draining and counterproductive? You know the answer. The whole saga went on for quite a while and it reminded me of a story by one of my favorite psychologists, Paul WATZLAWICK. In his book THE SITUATION IS HOPELESS, BUT NOT SERIOUS: The Pursuit of Unhappiness . One of my favorite stories is the one with the hammer. It’s hilarious and definitely helpful IF you want to make your everyday life miserable. We assume something, we think of it in detail, we focus and put our energy into a scenario. The brain hears this over and over and over again, the words, the emotion, feelings, and thinks it's real. What you think is real is real. Mary then started to vent her anger and frustration at Mr.C resulting in complete surprise at his end. He did not see it coming like the neighbor in the story with the hammer. Why am I telling you this story? Your brain listens ALL the time and the more we go into detail – see, hear, feel - the more the brain thinks it's real. if you want to use the power of the brain, the power of the central nervous system to your advantage, you might want to start focusing on the good aspects. Mary could have chosen to appreciate and acknowledge the fact that she had stepped out of her comfort zone, practiced, and refined a task she will need moving forward in her new career anyway. What is one thing can learn here, one takeaway? When you have a vison, a dream, goals, go there in detail. The more detailed it is -what exactly should the outcome look /feel like -how do you feel being there -who else is there…just to give you a few ideas, the more the brain thinks it's happening and real. As the boss, the brain does everything in its power to make it happen – happiness or “unhappiness” included. Let me share with you HOW to deal with a situation of spiraling down into the rabbit hole, using disempowering language, how to deal with declining self-esteem. Grab pen and paper, maybe you already have a special notepad for self-development work where you write down things which come to mind, accomplishments, achievements, your dreams, where you write down your wins, big or small. Having a gratitude journal is one of the “secret weapons” of highly successful achievers ☺ Are you ready to shift your mindset so that the brain has more options? Just be honest with your answers, no need to be modest or self-censoring. Are we clear? Say CLEAR if you are. What you believe is real is real. A) Name 3 people who think you are SMART. Why do they think you are smart? (3 reasons or more) B) Name 3 people who think you are handsome/GOOD-LOOKING. Why do they think so (3 or more)? C) Name 3 people who think you are FUN to be with? Why do they think you are fun (3 reasons)? D) Name 3 people who think you are a GOOD person. Why do they think you are a good person (3+)? E) Name 3 people who RESPECT you. Why do they respect you (3 reasons or more)? How do you feel? Have some of the answers brought a smile to your face? Good. It definitely got the attention of your subconscious mind, too. Now let’s proceed to one of my favorite “exercises” when working with my clients and students, shall we? F) Write your own EULOGY. When they hear this for the first time some people are kind of shocked. A eulogy is not an obituary. It's a speech given at the funeral, the graveside, or at some public forum where the deceased is acknowledged, praised, and his/her life is celebrated. The purpose of the eulogy is to let everyone in attendance know the lifetime accomplishments and successes of the deceased person. The focus is on things and character traits of which the departed was most proud of. To make this easier find your three “power words” first. Three words describing your very best self, 3 words you would be REALLY proud of if people described you using them. Now write your own eulogy, listing the 10 things you would want someone to say when he or she describes your lifetime. [WRITE NOW] Once you have completed your list, carry it with you every day. Review it frequently. Read the items on your list out loud with conviction and satisfaction. Smile. Feel good about the things you have accomplished. Well done. Read it with pride and a sense of accomplishment. Give yourself a high-five. You matter. Put all or some of the 10 things into your phone is a reminder popping up as an alarm during the day. This, my high performers, is an easy, holistic, sustainable way of priming your brain to attract the things you want - the fun things, more energy and joy, more money, maybe better health, elevated self-esteem, improved relationships with others and YOURSELF. What you believe is real is real. For more info, follow me on Facebook , LinkedIn , Instagram and visit my website . Read more from Renate! Renate Prandl, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Renate Prandl is Asia's Premier Sustainable Life Mastery Strategist, Certified Feldenkrais® Expert, sports coach, mentor, and Certified High Performance(™) coach. With over 40 years of combined experience as a Professor in a business school and entrepreneur, Renate uses a variety of proven techniques and applications to help you reach your highest potential, get to the Next Level, and potentially live your Life by Design - in a holistic, doable and sustainable way. Her "Power of 3" systems help you turn obstacles into stepping stones and build Physical, Emotional, Financial Resilience. Renate is the CEO of Body & Brain, Founder of Body And Brain Mastery, International Bestselling Author of 3 books, and has lived on 3 continents. Her mission: Anything is possible.

Written by: Santarvis Brown, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. If you are a leader or have professional goals of becoming a leader there is no doubt you have at your fingertips thousands of articles of online guidance. Then, of course, you have hundreds of books at your disposal. However, what I’d like you to do is take a step back from all of that and ask yourself, “what kind of leader do I want to have?” Consider these questions: Do you want your leader to intimidate and micromanage you? Or do you want your leader to empower you? I’m willing to bet you want to be empowered. Empowerment creates trust and improved morale in a company. While many will have you believe being a good leader is a challenge, the reality is that you just need to look inside yourself. Building Trust by Eliminating Micromanagement Leading, not lording over means building trust in your employees. And trust starts with backing off. The opposite of this is micromanagement. I bet you’ve heard that word before. Perhaps, you’ve even used it when talking about your leaders. Micromanagement abandons trust and builds a work environment of low performance, aggressiveness, and high-turnover. Employees become ineffective when a leader consistently scrutinizes their performance. Micromanaged employees lose creativity, or don’t feel they can provide feedback or ideas. Micromanagement builds a team of workers who grow to expect their job will be fully laid out for them. This leads to low morale and mistakes from employees, and more work for the leader. Here are actions common to micromanagers: Resist delegating work Become involved in work assigned to others Too involved in the details to see the big picture. Discourage others to make decisions without running the decision through you first Focus on the unimportant or least important information Ignore colleague experience and knowledge Not loyal to colleagues Misaligned priorities Team lacks motivation Leading with Trust A strong leader is a person who builds teams that flourish under empowerment rather than control. Employees are hired due to their ability to do a job. That should be praised rather than disregarded. That is why an effective leader does not try to control the employee, but rather looks at leadership as being a resource for employees. When you become a resource, you are providing tools that allow empowered employees to succeed. When employees succeed, leaders succeed. Here are some examples of how you can become a positive resource for empowered employees: Provide consistent and honest communication Strong communication creates a bond of trust and knowledge between leaders and their employees. Communication includes one-on-one conversation and instruction (when needed), expectations, goals, a list of available resources, and most importantly a willingness to take feedback and suggestions from the employee. Clear objectives By providing clear objectives a leader sets expectations for each employee. This leaves out the ambiguous nature found in many micromanaged offices. Every employee understands their role. And every employee is provided the tools to satisfactorily achieve their goals. Opens the door for feedback Both providing and being open to feedback is one of the most important things employees recognize in a comfortable work environment. Being open to suggestions and feedback creates an open atmosphere. For many employees being heard is a powerful recognition tool. Leading, not lording over is about empowering employees to do what they were hired to do. You can tap into a powerful workforce simply by strong communication, providing clear direction and resources, and encouraging feedback. Visit Santarvis on his website, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for more information. Read more from Santarvis! Santarvis Brown, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Dr. Santarvis Brown has spent 15+ years serving as a leader, innovator, and changemaker in education, showcasing in-depth insight as an administrator, educator, and program director. A noted speaker, researcher, and full professor, he has lent his speaking talent to many community and educational forums, serving as a keynote speaker. He has also penned several publications tackling issues in civic service, faith, leadership, and education.

Tugce Ozdeger is a Senior Software Engineer and a Career Acceleration Mentor for Women in Tech. After a long corporate career, Tugce created strategies to level up her tech career on her own terms. She has since dedicated her life to helping women to unleash their full potential by defining a lucrative career that allows them to experience the life of their dreams in tech. She is the founder of Heart-Centric Tech Mentoring, an online tech career mentoring academy with students from many different countries. Tugce was featured on various digital publications and podcasts. She was a speaker at SweTugg, which is one of the prestigious tech conferences in Stockholm. Tugce was also the project leader for one of the most appreciated IT-Conferences for Women in Tech in Sweden, which was arranged completely digital. Her mission: More women in tech. Who is Tugce? I am a Senior Software Engineer with a heart and Leading Career Advancement Mentor for Women in Technology. I’m originally from Istanbul, Turkey, and I have been living the past 11 years of my life in Sweden, and I’m currently living in Stockholm for 7,5 years now. I’m very passionate about technology and software development as well as personal development. I always have a genuine interest in personal development and human potential since an early age. I was fortunate enough to receive coaching from world-class coaches, which transformed my life completely since then. I truly loved what I’ve been doing with building IT systems to ease and make a difference in people’s daily lives which I still do as a consultant just because it’s absolutely my passion. However, I knew inside of me that I’m here for a bigger mission and my coaches helped me to untap my potential. I started my mentoring business, where I combined my expertise in software development with empowering more women by helping them to unleash their full potential to achieve their dreams in tech. What is it that you do for your clients? I guide them to get to know themselves more closely; their values, what matters to them, what makes them excited. I support them to reach their inner power, and their true potential by integrating what they are passionate to do with technology. We, humans, thrive when we bring our passion and our burning desire to our daily work, and that’s what I support them with to show them that everything is possible no matter what background or story they have as long as they are passionate about making and impact in technology. We work together on things like goal setting, career planning, mission execution, mindset, self-confidence, creating a vision in tech, and how to make a tech career by design. They ultimately create a powerful career that they love and achieve the success they deserve by believing in their mission fully, deeply, and completely. Who should work with you? Women who are passionate about technology. I’m one of them and have been either where they are now or where they would like to be. I feel them and know how they think and what struggles they have because guess what? I had exactly the same challenges and that’s why I feel confident that I can support them to go through their challenges and help them to achieve a tangible result in their career while enjoying the ride :) What is your big goal? Where do you see yourself in 10 years from now? That’s a very good question :) Technology is my passion. I definitely see myself as a female leader instilling innovative and creative ideas in this field going forward. I really would like to contribute to gender diversity in tech as a role model by empowering and encouraging other women to take the leap in their tech careers. I really feel that I’m going in the right direction towards my big goal is to positively impact the technology industry across the globe over the next 10 years through my mentoring, my innovative IT-solution ideas, and public speaking. What would be your 3 top tips for passionate women who want to make a difference in tech? My first piece of advice would be to get clear about what it is that you want to achieve in your tech career. What does it really matter to you when it comes to your tech career? The more clarity you gain about what makes you excited in building your tech career, the easier it will be to navigate towards your career goal. My second advice is to be proactive, be visible, surround yourself with like-minded people. Your network is your net worth. Be open-minded to new ideas, insights and get inspired by others who have achieved massive success in their tech career. Participate in tech conferences, listen to tech podcasts and follow technology blogs to always stay up to date with the latest technology. Last but not least, work with a mentor who can stay beside you and guide you through your tech career journey. Don’t feel like you need to figure out everything by yourself. Dare to ask for help and give yourself permission to get all the support you need to fast-track your tech career while enjoying the ride. For more info, follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn and visit my website ! Read more from Tugce !

Written by: Andrée Funnell, Senior Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. A guaranteed way of achieving success is to stop self-sabotaging your life! Do any of the following reasons cause you a problem or disrupt your life and your potential for the future? You continue to work in a full-time job that you hate. However, what you want is the freedom and flexibility of either changing your career or running your own business from home. What is stopping you? The likelihood is fear and self-doubt. Self-doubt is an issue as you often lack confidence, have limiting beliefs, and self-sabotage your life. You, therefore, don’t believe you are capable or worthy of achieving success. Finding solutions for the challenges you face in your business or personal life is a problem. This is due to the fact that you are too close to the problems, so you are unable to see the obvious answers right in front of you. How often do you experience feelings of shame and doubt, because you can’t seem to force yourself to do the things you know you need to do to effect change. For instance, speaking, networking, asking for what you are worth in terms of money, or picking up the phone. You agonise over “what could be” instead of taking action, because even though the vision for where you want to go is crystal clear, you are unsure of the steps to take to execute that vision (or, worse, you don’t know how to monetize it). You don’t set SMART objectives to meet your vision and aims, so have no idea of WHAT you need to do and HOW you should go about it. Sound familiar? Thought so! These are the biggest problems most people face in their career and/or life, leaving them stuck, miserable, unfulfilled, and unsure (and not to mention broke)! And if you’re still reading, you know that’s not acceptable anymore! One of the key issues that people face is that they self-sabotage their future success. However, they may not even realise what they are doing or, are aware they are doing it in order that they don’t have to face up to failure. Many of us fear failure, some fear success. In my Career Confidence Bootcamp for Career Women that I am running 15th-19th November at 6 pm GMT each day, I will be covering a number of topics. Day 2 is about Clarity – where we look at your purpose, passions and what is stopping you from moving forward (self-sabotaging behaviour). Here is the link to sign up. Below I talk about Self-sabotaging behaviour in more depth and provide 4 key steps to overcome this destructive strategy. Self-Sabotaging Behaviour Self-sabotaging behaviours prevent you from conditioning yourself for success. Hence, changing those long, established behaviour patterns like self-sabotage is as difficult as recognising and understanding them. These are known as ‘Limiting Beliefs’, ‘Imposter Syndrome’ or ‘Inner Critic’ How, then, can you eliminate sabotaging beliefs and emotions? Firstly, understand and accept yourself before attempting to understand and accept others. You have to take a journey within for personal evaluation. Furthermore, this means looking inside yourself and listening to your inner dialogue or self-talk. Remain open-minded to what you see and hear when understanding your beliefs. This is essential when making constructive changes in your behaviours. Deciding how far and deep you want to go before introspection is your decision. However, you can take your life to a new level. Discover empowering insights to eliminate damaging self-talk and undermining behaviours. Letting Go of Self-Sabotaging Behaviour(s) It takes courage to let go of self-sabotaging behaviours that prevent you from moving forward. To facilitate change in your life is a big decision to make, particularly if you are in your comfort zone. Furthermore, it takes personal commitment to develop more effective actions. Before you go around believing you can change the beliefs and behaviour of others, you have to first change yourself. This means overcoming resistances and sabotaging behaviours that have prevented you from experiencing an optimistic attitude. Developing an optimistic attitude, and changing unrewarding behaviours and beliefs, will awaken you to eliminate self-sabotaging behaviours. What specific actions can you now take to become aware of and overcome your sabotaging beliefs and self-defeating emotions? 4 Key steps to overcoming self-sabotaging behaviours 1. Recognise that you are at the crossroads where your decisions and choices are yours and yours alone. 2. Change “I can’t” or “I won’t” to “I Can, I Will” on a consistent basis. Pay attention to the emotional changes going on within you. Be prepared to physically describe your changes and write them down. Repeat the process of writing down your changing feelings and behaviours and compare your notes every day. In addition, measure your progress by the visible reoccurrences of positive self-talk and healthy behaviours. Continual negative self talk will create resentments and disempowering beliefs. Self-resentment is the seed that grows into self-sabotaging behaviours. 3. Plant the seeds that produce positive, empowering beliefs and actions. Ask yourself, “Are my actions linked to pleasure-producing situations or to pain-producing situations?” Take the road that gives you pleasure, not grief. 4. Realise that you’re the one making the conscious decision to change your damaging self-talk and undermining beliefs and behaviours. No one else can do it for you. The personal growth experienced from facing a fearful or painful event, or adversity, is important for self-improvement. However, don’t make a steady diet of it. You can grow and change by cultivating positive emotions such as joy, excitement, and happiness. Self-sabotaging behaviour (limiting beliefs) is one of the topics that I discuss in my Confidence Bootcamp for Career Women 15-19th November 2021 at 6pm. 6 Reasons Why Coaching Can Help You In both my personal life and business life as a professional coach, I speak with a lot of people including business owners who have a vision for the career or life they want. However, despite their commitment to that vision, 9 times out of 10 every single one of them has at least one IF NOT ALL of these problems. Do any of the following reasons cause you a problem or disrupt your life and your potential for the future? 1. You continue to work in a full-time job that you hate. However, what you want is the freedom and flexibility of either changing your career or running your own business from home. What is stopping you? The likelihood is fear and self-doubt 2. You agonise over “what could be” instead of taking action, because even though the vision for where you want to go is crystal clear, you are unsure of the steps to take to execute that vision (or, worse, you don’t know how to monetise it). 3. Finding solutions for the challenges you face in your business or personal life is a problem. This is due to the fact that you are too close to the problems so you are unable to see the obvious answers right in front of you. 4. How often do you experience feelings of shame and doubt, because you can’t seem to force yourself to do the things you know you need to do to effect change. For instance, speaking, networking, asking for what you are worth in terms of money, or picking up the phone. 5. Self-doubt is an issue as you often lack confidence (limiting beliefs) and therefore don’t believe you are capable or worthy of achieving success. 6. You don’t set SMART objectives to meet your vision and aims so have no idea of WHAT you need to do and HOW you should go about it. Sound familiar? Thought so! These are the biggest problems most people face, leaving them stuck, miserable, unfulfilled, and unsure (and not to mention broke)! And if you’re still reading, you know that’s not acceptable anymore! Call me today at 07702 818665 or 0845 6182879 for a 15-minute Clarity Call to find out how I can help you achieve the success and growth you want in your life. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and connect with me on LinkedIn. You can also visit my website for more info! Read more from Andrée! Andrée Funnell, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Andrée is a multi-award-winning Coach, Learning & Development consultant, best-selling author, and speaker, who is the founder and driving force behind the success of Aspiring Future Competence (AFC). Since its inception in 2002, AFC has helped clients across a wide range of business sectors to get visible, get heard, and get ahead by applying inspirational ways to bring about positive change and empowerment. She has over 20 years HR & training experience working in corporate organisations and a further 18 years delivering development solutions that make a difference to people’s careers and lives. She is a qualified coach, professional trainer, and NLP Practitioner. She discovered that Authenticity is the key to happiness, fulfillment, and success and is keen to get the message out there to others. ‘Behind the Mask’ is Andrée’s literary debut about ‘Authenticity’. It’s an essential interactive step-by-step guide to turning your life around and achieving the kind of life you deserve by living authentically.

Written by: Susan Hum, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. The first step we should take when going out into the daunting world of dating is knowing what qualities we want out of a life partner. What are his/her characteristics? In love, many of us have a picture of that ideal life of togetherness, however, many of us don’t take into consideration that he/she is an individual with their own distinct identity. We also tend to have some, or rather, a lot of expectations from our partners. Behavior, upkeep, dressing style, speaking style, spending habits, hobbies, looks, and many such personal character traits that may get dictated by another. Here are three important ways to integrate two unique individuals into sharing one beautiful life: Be a role model, not a dictator There is nothing attractive about being a dictator in a relationship. This is where self-awareness becomes super important. Lead by example and avoid any double standards. For example, if you need to always be right or constantly need validation from your partner, then you also need to allow your partner to be right while validating him/her. Avoid criticizing the other person or judging them for not being like you, thinking about how imperfect you are as well, with love and compassion. If you expect the other person to change, you need to also accept that there are things you might need to change as well. Voice and eyes wide open It takes a lot of courage to see things clearly and honestly, even when it takes looking at the less attractive parts of our partner. The most conscious and deepest relationships are built on trust and respect and that means feeling safe to express freely to one another without backlash. I was once in a relationship where my partner never allowed me to talk about my past. Each time I did, I saw the glaze in his eyes, then silence. A sign of disinterest. I soon found myself mainly talking about the things he wanted to talk about, to appease his lower tolerance of what he can handle. As soon as I finally found the courage to communicate and stand firm on what was important to me, he started to listen. We learned to work through his judgment of my past as I got more clarity on how to speak my truth. A shared life goal/dream Every individual is on this earth to serve a purpose in their unique way. When two people decide to move forward with and/or elevate their relationship, one of the most important topics to put on the table is what your individual goals/dreams look like. Are you both in sync with what you see in your future? If your partner is happy with their basic job and likes to just sit down and watch TV in their spare time and you are highly ambitious with big goals, it is very unlikely that your relationship will sustain itself. Your futures look very different and it’s a matter of determining whether you can come to the middle point, otherwise, it might just be a dealbreaker. On the other hand, if both people in a relationship are ambitious and share the same life goals and lifestyles, then it is easier to take the next steps to integrate each individual’s strengths (being different), hopefully countering each other’s weaknesses. If you are in a relationship or about to move forward with one, these are important factors to work on in order to set the right relationship foundation from the get-go. It takes courage to speak our truth, even when it feels wrong. But many of us do this, whether consciously or unconsciously. It can become destructive when people-pleasing overpowers self-respect. When you fall in love, you are falling in love with their many plusses and many minuses. True love is full awareness of all of them and still proceeding with building a relationship. Commonly, people start trying to change their partner after developing the relationship. Is that not breaking the unspoken promises? By demanding changes, we can make our partners feel inferior, or even possibly irritate them. Judgment is one of the leading contributors to relationship breakdowns and even if we don’t outrightly voice our judgments, it comes out in our behavior. “This watch does not suit you. Why do you talk like that? You look awful in that outfit. Why are you spending so much time talking on the telephone? When will you improve your tidiness? Please improve your style. Look at others, how well they take care of themselves.” A person can have his/her idea about their partner and try to mold them accordingly. They being self-serving robs the other person of their freedom to express uniquely. Is that love? How does this judgment affect the confidence of the other person? Will this not affect the relationship? When we force another person to change, without their consent, we are showing them that our love is conditional. We bring down the quality of love when our demands are solely on our terms. There is nothing wrong with “improving” ourselves and wishing for our partner to grow as well, however, self-development is a personal decision that can be encouraged but not imposed upon by someone else’s standards. All of us have the freedom to be what we are and express what our heart desires. It is never easy when two people come together with set attitudes and views that are brought into the relationship from past experiences. The work is meeting each other somewhere in the middle and it takes an enormous amount of giving and receiving. Learning to share is the key to retaining our unique identities within a conscious and trusting relationship. Follow Susan on Facebo ok , Instagram , LinkedIn , or visit her website for more info! Read more from Susan! Susan Hum, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Susan Hum, aka the LoveHacker, is a thought leader and self-mastery expert who mentors coaches, consultant and entrepreneurs to take their business to next levels while continuing to elevate their own personal growth to become more powerful self-leaders. Susan specializes in the area of influence mastery and persuasive communication with a specific focus on emotional intelligence. Her own personal journey in forming a unique voice and unraveling her personal truth led Susan to achieve success in all pillars of life – family, career, financial freedom, and most importantly, love and incredible relationships. Susan´s success in helping high achievers attract more love and passion into their lives has led her to work with some very prominent leaders in business, sports, music, and Hollywood. In 2020, she created the Steel Rose Movement, a conscious leadership platform for women with a mission to elevate love consciousness in the world by narrowing all divides in society, whether between women, genders, races, cultures, identity preferences, or personal beliefs. Susan deeply believes that self-mastery enables us to Influence with Integrity to Impact by Loving who we are, what we do and how we do it!

Anthony Iannarino is a writer, author, speaker, and a sales and leadership trainer. His primary work is in human effectiveness and transformation. Anthony publishes a blog post daily at www.thesalesblog.com , a practice he has kept for twelve years. He is the author of three bestselling books that are documenting a modern sales approach. His first book is The Only Sales Guide You’ll Ever Need, a book that provides salespeople with a blueprint for success. His second book, The Lost Art of Closing: Winning the Ten Commitments that Drive Sales is a guide to effective client communications that allows salespeople to close deals faster. His third book, Eat Their Lunch: Winning Customers Away from Your Competition is the first book on displacing your competitors and winning new business. All three books are bestsellers and have been translated into 20 languages. As a world-leading B2B sales expert, you’re one of the best right now. Why did you choose this niche and how did you become so good at it? When I was very young, I worked in my family business. My role was in operations, but I was told that when I had nothing to do, I was to call companies and see if I could help them. I didn't believe I was selling. I thought I was helping people. A few years later, I was in Los Angeles playing music at night. My manager in my day job recognized I was winning more clients than all three of his salespeople and forced me into outside sales. After a brain surgery, I was not allowed to drive. I moved back to Ohio and took over sales for my family business. The niche chose me. I studied sales, management, and leadership to improve my ability to grow that business. The fact that I worked in a commoditized business helped a lot. You have to get really good at differentiating yourself and create value for clients when everyone has what is essentially the same offer. One of the things you talk a lot about is ”Separation & Competition”. Why is this so important and what are your best tips on how to separate yourself from your competitors? When we talk about sales, we don't tend to think about the fact that it is a competition to create greater value for the client. We think it's about our company and our products or services or solutions. You are trying to create a preference to buy from you and your company. The way you separate yourself from your competition is by helping your prospective client make the best decision for their business. This means helping them understand why they should change, what factors they should consider, how to weigh certain factors, and how best to improve their results. When you create greater value than your competition, you separate yourself from the pack and create a preference to buy from you. It's important because it's how you win. What are some common mistakes people do nowadays when they are trying to pitch something? They focus on the drill instead of the hole. This idea was put forth by Theodore Levitt, a marketing professor at Harvard Business School. He said that people don't want to buy a drill, they want a quarter-inch hole. If they could have the hole without the drill, they wouldn't buy it. A huge mistake is focusing on your product or service instead of the result it produces for the client. In a modern sales approach, we focus on the outcomes, not the solution. Salespeople also don't understand that the sales conversation is the only vehicle they have to create value for their clients. They underestimate how important it is to make that conversation meaningful for their clients. You’re also a good writer and you’ve been writing every day for 12 years. Why and where do you get your inspiration from? I am a writer. I can't not write. I was inspired by Seth Godin, a friend, and a mentor, who has written every day far longer than I have. I was also inspired by Tom Peters, the management expert, who also maintained a blog for a long time, and before a lot of people started writing a blog. Most of what I write comes from my observations about what works, what doesn't, and why each of these things is true. I keep a long list of ideas that I want to write, but mainly I write to better understand a topic well enough that I can teach it in a way that allows salespeople or leaders to improve their results. What's the biggest deal you've done so far and how did you make that happen? The first big deal I won in Los Angeles was a 5-year deal worth $10,000,000 annually. That was my first and biggest contract. I have had clients that spent more than that with me over many years, but none with that size of a contract. I aggressively pursued this client because I knew they spent a lot of money in my category. I had to push to get a meeting with the decision-maker. After my first meeting, I needed my manager to join me on the call. I wasn't ready to manage this size of a deal. I learned that big deals often require a team, especially when the change a client is pursuing requires a team on their side. This deal shaped how I thought about winning big deals. You’ve been in the game for quite a while now. What are your 3-5 best tips on how to become really good at B2B sales? The first tip I would offer is to prioritize creating new opportunities. The reason that some salespeople produce better results than their peers is that are more effective at creating new opportunities. The second tip is to shamelessly steal the strategies, tactics, and language choices from really good salespeople. Keep a notebook of talk tracks that you hear from other reps. The best reps are often mimicking the language they heard. Focus all your effort on creating value for your clients in your sales calls. Teach them something and help enable them to make a good decision for their business. Remember that you are helping them improve their business. We know your clients have said some great things about you. What are the results they have been getting from working with you? The best testimonial we have received didn't come from the sales force or the sales leadership of this particular company. Instead, it came from their operations team. They sent us a note to ask us to change the name of our program from Sales Accelerator to Sales Decelerator. Their sales force sold all of their capacity for the entire year, burying them in work. We couldn't have been happier. So, what’s the next big goal or project for Anthony Iannarino and how can someone get in contact with you? The next big project will be my fourth book. It's unlike anything that anyone has seen. I debuted this content at my OutBound Conference. It was a show-stopper. For more information, connect with Anthony on LinkedIn or reach to on his website !

Marlena O’Donnell is a mindset coach, motivational speaker, trainer, and mentor. She lives in the UK, runs a successful coaching business, and has been married to her soul mate for over two decades. This may seem like ordinary life, but it’s not. Marlena’s life has revolved around defying expectations. She was born in Poland when the country was under the communist regime and she has a life-long disability affecting her mobility. There were no provisions for people with disabilities in Poland when Marlena was growing up. Lack of access to education meant homeschooling. None of the universities was accessible, but this did not deter Marlena from applying and studying at a university regardless of physical barriers. The same determination to live her life freely helped her succeed in leaving Poland and studying at a university in the UK, even though Poland was still behind the Iron Curtain. Against all odds, Marlena finished not just one, but two degrees and had a successful career as a manager of support services for vulnerable people. Her passion for helping others live their lives to the full eventually led her to become a coach. Just like her life is not ordinary, she is not an ordinary coach. She lives her life achieving the impossible and inspires her clients to achieve the impossible too. Marlena O’Donnell, Life Coach You have overcome many barriers in your life. What is the secret to your success? My dad died when I was seven years old and my mum brought me up and an older sister on her own. Life under the communist regime was tough - there were shortages of food, privileges were reserved only for party members and their families and you had to bribe the officials to get what you needed. But my mum never gave up - she fought for the best opportunities for her daughters. Her motto, which I have also adopted is, “there is always a way - you will find it if you look hard enough”. She helped me realise that in order to succeed in life you need to stay focused on what you truly want. Everything else will fall into place. I’ve always dreamt big. As a little girl who could not walk and leave home on her own, I imagined going to university, travelling the world, getting married, and having a fabulous life. We often dream of things we want, but we categorise them as “fantasies”, too implausible to materialise. But I didn’t. I focused on turning my dreams into reality, not on why they could never possibly come true. Everything I dreamt of came true. When you shift your focus from why you cannot have something to the end result, you will find a way to live out your dreams. How did you become a mindset coach? I had a successful career as a senior manager in a local government for 17 years. I was managing a multi-million budget, teams, and services. And suddenly it all ended. I met my nemesis - a manager who was a bully. I lost my job. I thought that my world ended. The career I worked for so hard was over. I felt broken. I lost my confidence and lost sight of my mum’s motto, “there is always a way”. When I was a manager, I coached and mentored members of my team. I knew the power of speaking to someone who does not judge you and helps you see what is not obvious to you. When my world turned upside down, I turned to coach. Soon I realized that I can use my personal experience to help others who lose sight of what they are capable of and I trained as a life coach. We all have abilities, strength, and resilience far exceeding our awareness. I love helping others open their eyes to their inner power. I lead by example. After losing my job, I took my former employer to the Employment Tribunal. I was self-representing which required an enormous amount of time, energy and determination. It was one of the most challenging things I had ever done, both physically and mentally. I spent months gathering all the information and preparing for the hearings. The inner voice of doubt (we all have it!), kept telling me that this was too much, that I cannot possibly do this on my own, that I don’t have the legal training required to represent myself, that I will fail. I ignored that inner voice (after all, what does it know about what is going to happen in the future and what I am capable of?) and carried on. I won on every single point. I focused on the facts and whilst acknowledging the emotions I was experiencing such as fear and apprehension, I focused on what I needed to do to achieve the end result I wanted - win my case. What do you offer your clients? Our beliefs create our understanding of what is and what is not possible for us to achieve. Just as we are capable of creating our own limitations, we are equally capable of removing them. We are not prisoners waiting to be let out – we are already free, we just don’t know. I take my clients on a journey to uncover layers of beliefs that are not serving them well such as not being good enough, not being worthy and not being capable of getting what they want. Such beliefs cause a lot of pain, unhappiness, and even self-loathing. I help my clients free themselves from these restrictions and achieve results that their heart truly desires. One of my fellow coaches once told me that when others see a canyon and don’t know how to get across, I see an invisible bridge that helps me get to the other side. I show my clients how to find invisible bridges leading to seemingly impossible destinations. As well as being a coach and mentor, you are also a motivational speaker. What do you tell your audience? We believe that we are limited by our circumstances, by other people’s judgment, and our own judgment of who we are and what we are capable of. In fact, we are always free to pursue our dreams. My passion is to empower both my individual clients and large audiences to break down barriers to success and achieve much more than they’d ever believed possible. Can you share your 10 best tips on how to succeed in life? Take responsibility for your own life – you alone can change it. Dream big and bigger. Focus on the end result, not on the obstacles in the way. Don’t give up. Draw on your inner power - you have limitless reserves! Take no notice of the inner voice of doubt. Take action every day. Stay in the present moment. Focus on positive emotions - negativity is draining! Be good to yourself and others. So, what’s the next big goal or project for Marlena O’Donnell and how can someone get in contact with you? I am writing a book about how to break free from beliefs that are holding us back and get the outcomes we want, no matter how impossible they may appear. I am also creating online programs to empower others to fly high. You will never achieve much in life if your goals are limited by what you think you are capable of and your circumstances. I’d love to hear from any of the readers. For more information, follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and visit my website! Read more from Marlena!

Written by: Mikal Nielsen, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. The new trend of working from home was well on its way before COVID. However, COVID has massively sped it up. It is now a reality for many people, even after coming out of lockdowns. We humans are naturally good at adapting to our environments slowly and over time. That’s the very nature of nature. What we are not so good at, is adapting quickly without creating all kinds of negative side effects. Going from working in a physical team environment to working in a secluded home environment requires a whole new skill set. And without the new skill set, most people who are now fully or partially working from home, are experiencing the pitfalls and new challenges it brings. Of course, there are also the great benefits as well, and some people are absolutely loving it and managing really well. In my experience, this is a minority of people. This article is for those who are finding it somewhat challenging or outright frustrating or even depressing. You are not alone and it is absolutely normal - and expected - while you learn to adapt to this new trend. So whether you are in forced lockdown or you are now fully or partially working from home, here are 10 things you can play with to manage better. I suggest you give them all a go, and then pick the ones that work best for you and stick with those. 1. Create and maintain a routine. You have this at work so it makes sense to have it at home as well - even when no one is watching. This can be done by having set start/stop and break times. It can be done by creating blocks of time on a daily/weekly basis for specific tasks, i.e. only checking emails at fixed times. 2. Create accountability. We humans like to feel free and not having to be accountable. However, reality is that most of us are more productive when we are held accountable - I certainly am. Set these up consciously, whether with your boss, colleagues, customers, associates, partners, mentors, etc. 3. Have a positive morning ritual. Spend the first 10-15 minutes of every day doing something that makes you feel good and positive about yourself and your day ahead. Even if it turns to custard later in the day, at least you started on a positive note and the net result will be positive. This can be physical exercise, meditation, affirmations, yoga, etc. As with everything else here, find what works for you and don’t be afraid to experiment, to try different things. As I’m changing and growing as a human being, I keep adjusting my morning ritual to get the best results. 4. Pause frequently. Yes, frequent short pauses makes you more productive. Pause and take 3 deep, slow breaths. It releases physical and mental tension and re-focuses your mind. The hardest part to this one is to remember doing it, so find ways of reminding yourself. Sticky notes, pop-ups, reminders and so on. I have my clients use straws, they are both great reminders and amazing practical tools for good deep and slow breathing while strengthening and expanding your breath at the same time. 5. Have proper breaks. Eating lunch while checking emails or doing other work is counterproductive. You may think you are saving time, but in the bigger picture, you are not. A break is called a break for a reason. At work you may be socialising during your lunch break, go sit on a park bench and watch life go by, or go to a cafe. You get away from your desk and your work, and yes, you have a break. Find ways of doing this at home and then, stick to it! 6. Communicate. We, humans, have a strong need to belong, to connect. Don't bury yourself behind a screen of work all day. Talk to colleagues, customers, the boss, board of directors, advisors, coaches, the dog, the plants, or the universe at large. 7. Pat yourself on the back. If there is no one there to acknowledge the good work you are doing, do it yourself. Reach your hand up and over and pat yourself on the back. Even better, get up, go to the mirror and say "thank you" or “good job” to the person in the mirror. This may feel strange or awkward, to begin with, but it doesn’t need to take long to get used to it. It is extremely powerful, so worth the effort. 8. Fresh air. Going to work at least gets you outside, even if only for a brief moment. Working from home takes that away. Open the door and go outside a few times during the day, even if it is only for a minute or two. It breaks the monotony and recalibrates your mind. Whatever you do next, you will be more clear and focused, make less mistakes and therefore be more productive and efficient. 9. Learn something. We all have an inherent need to learn and grow, and it always feels good when we do. Make an effort every day to learn something new or get better at something. 10. Give something. We also have an inherent need to contribute and that too feels good. Reach out to a colleague, staff, customer, friend, or family and acknowledge something they have done or a way they have been that you appreciate. Offer a compliment or ask someone how you can support/help them. 11. Share this list/article with others. I know, I can't count, nor do I like following rules. Be a rebel - in a nice way! And of course, add your own tricks to this list before passing it on to others. If you have any questions or feedback on this, use any of the contact options below to reach me, or use my unique BRAINZ reader offer of a complimentary 30-minute discovery call to dive deeper into any of this. Just click here to find a time and book it in. Warm Regards, Mikal Follow me on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, or visit my website for more info! Read more from Mikal! Mikal Nielsen, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Mikal's mission is to help high achievers awaken their natural wisdom to create profound fulfillment, deep peace of mind, and a perfect balance between everything truly important to them. With a corporate background and starting and running 3 businesses, Mikal has spent the last 14 years coaching business founders, owners, and leaders to get more life out of life and more business out of business. He is a mind mechanic with 35 years of experience in mindfulness, personal and spiritual growth, and 30 years of experience coaching others in these fields. Mikal is an international speaker, certified firewalking coach, author of 5 books, and creator of Modern Meditation for busy people. In addition to coaching entrepreneurs and business leaders, Mikal and his wife Kathy offer relationship coaching. With 30 years of living together and growing up with 3 children, they have learned and experienced a lot and have co-authored a book about their journey together. Seeing how many relationships are struggling or have gone stagnant, they have decided to offer couples coaching.

Written by: Beckie Kullberg, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. Asking for support isn’t easy. I get it and used to believe that was true. There is a link between binge eating and not asking for support. Hear me out here… Scenario: You’re running late at work and committed to cooking dinner for your family and still need to stop by the market to get food. You roll into the grocery store, grab all the items you need, pull into the driveway, and drag your bags into the house. You see the kitchen is a mess and decide to clean it before you start cooking. Then 2 hours later you and the family have eaten, the kitchen is clean, and you are stewing about how you had to cook dinner and all the effort that went into it and feel no one really appreciated it. How do you soothe yourself? Food, glorious food. Insert binge. How do I know this scenario, or a similar version, so well? It’s played out in my life more than once. Why do we believe it is so hard to ask for support? This scenario could have been avoided with 1 question (okay, maybe more than 1), “can you please help me?” Which is harder to say, Worcestershire, OR I need help? Let’s explore how asking for support or help helps you and others. Think about a time when a friend asked you for help. Did you immediately say yes? Of course, you did because you are a kind and generous person. When you helped said friend, how did you feel afterward? Pretty awesome, right? Yup, that is the gift that your friend gave you by asking for support. Now, let’s turn that around. When you do not ask those around for help or support you are robbing them of the gift of feeling helpful towards you. That might sting a bit and it’s meant to. Think about it, had you asked someone to go to the store for you or even cook dinner that person would feel as if they gave you a gift and that would make them feel good, and then at the end of the night you wouldn’t have felt resentful and may not have had a binge. BAM, there’s the link! Oftentimes people don’t ask for support because they don’t want to burden others or believe that they won’t do it as well as they do and may as well just do it themselves. That last one is the most common among women. We believe that if we do it all ourselves then that makes us some kind of Superwoman and then we can value ourselves as a great mom, wife, friend, worker, etc. This simply is not true. We don’t need to work ourselves to complete exhaustion to show how amazing we are. We teach our kids how to be by our actions, not our words and if we bend over backward to prove how amazing we are without setting boundaries and asking for support along the way then our daughters will believe they need to do the same and our sons will search for women who believe they need to do all things to be a good mom and wife. Ugh, it’s exhausting! How can you ask for support or help successfully? That means setting up the other person to win and when they win you win. Be clear in your instruction-like talking to a 5-year old clear. For example, you’re asking your teenager to do the dishes. You know that means empty dishwasher, fill dishwasher, clear counters, put away food, and sweep the floor. They hear “do dishes” and not all of the other things so when they are done you’re angry and they don’t understand why. Be clear and request ALL of the things you want them to do. You may be thinking how exhausting it is to give them all of the instructions and that you could be done with it yourself before you even start telling them what you want done and I completely agree with you. However, the next time you ask, they will have all of the instructions and you won’t have to repeat it – you may need to a few more times-although in the end, when your kitchen is clean and you didn’t do it, you will love it and they will feel accomplished. That is the definition of a win-win and at the end of the night instead of binging, you can be comforted by the gift that you gave your teen and yourself. This process I call front-loading. When you front-load instruction-full instruction-then the reward is in the back-loading. If you have found evidence that asking for support is frustrating or you always get let down, then you will continue to find evidence to prove that theory. I invite you to start looking for evidence that proves asking for help supports you AND those around you. You will always find what you seek. Bottom line here, to avoid a binge, ask for support. You got this! For more info, follow me on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and visit my website! Read more from Beckie! Beckie Kullberg, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine For the past thirty years, Beckie Kullberg has guided women of all ages and walks of life to fully understand and embrace self-love. She is a gentle leader who bonds with her clients and provides a safe haven for them to build body confidence and achieve a positive mindset. Her own story of binge-eating and recovery prompted her to create programs and tools to help others succeed in establishing strong self-esteem. Beckie coined the phrase “image nemesis” as she designed the courses “30 Days to Breakup with Binge Eating” and “Body Confidence and Weight Release.” After hiding her secret for years (even her husband didn’t know), Beckie took multiple self-development courses and made the shift to stop the shame and restore optimal health of mind and body. She feels grateful to live in scenic Sonoma County with her husband of eighteen years and her teenage son, where she loves to hike the local trails and connect with nature.

Written by: Meghan Patiño, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. Most of us get the message that expertise lives outside of ourselves. We look towards experts, or someone with more experience to have the answers. Often expertise looks pale and male. For Black, Indigenous People of Color, this outward gaze can cause harm by furthering the internalization of oppressive narratives. For people who hold white privilege, this search of the expert outside of ourselves often leads to colluding with an oppressive paradigm that harm others (and ourselves) for the promise of rising to the top. For more trust, joy, and integrity as we lead, we must keep unlearning the ways we overlook the value we bring from our own life experiences and insight. I continue to find new ways to uproot the ways I undermine myself and my insight. A moment hiking the Kalalau trail was a great teacher for me. I was five months pregnant with our third baby and my partner and I were taking a trip to Kauai, HI. The trail followed the coastline, enveloping us in tropical forests, expansive views, and lots of mud. We approached a precarious decline in the trail and had two options. My gut told me to take the steeper route that offered some holds where roots stuck out, but I overlooked this moment of insight and I asked my husband which way we should go. He suggested the lower route. It was shorter but it also looked like a sleek slip-and-slide. I took his advice and abruptly landed on my butt as I slid down covered in mud. From watching my go at it, he decided the other route was probably a better option and make it through upright. While I was laughing, I realized my knee-jerk reaction was to ask his opinion over my gut response. his trail illuminated how quickly I undervalued my own insight to navigate my best next step. I coach people to lead their lives outside of the automatic pattern to look outside of oneself for the “how-to” guide. Instead, I partner with leaders to look within to navigate from a place of self-trust along with savviness to navigate environmental realities. Most of my clients find me when they need to dig deep to trust themselves as they (1) take on new levels of leadership within their organizations, (2) experience a level of success in their professional life and desire to make a more meaningful contribution or (3) are launching a business and experience self-doubt and fear and desire more consistent joy and innovation. When we build the muscles needed for self-trust, we access our inner sage. Research from Positive Intelligence, a research foundation with the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience and performance science, demonstrates that when we access our inner-sage, we increase our ability to innovate, navigate challenging waters, have empathy for ourselves and others, explore creative options and make decisive actions. We also eliminate unnecessary stress and anxiety. So, let’s welcome the inner sage and experience more joy and success as you lead. 3 Tips To Welcome Your Inner Sage as You Lead 1. Claim Your Essence - Your essence is your natural way of being and when we trust this part of ourselves, we access the powers of our inner sage. Yet, we often aren’t the best at seeing this part of ourselves. Naming your essence is one way to trust the unique brilliance you bring into the world. We can use other people to reflect back to us our essence. To do this, ask a few people trusted people what value you bring to their lives. Receive what they have to say and write it down. They are reflecting back to you your essence. Your essence is like the bright sun. The sun would have no idea how bright and powerful it is unless other objects reflected back its light. 2. Quiet the Inner Critic - We all have an inner-critic that causes us to doubt, stress out and play small. The problem is not that we have an inner-critic (there will always be this voice though we can turn down its volume) it is that we mistake it for being factual and we give it the steering wheel to our lives. A powerful action to take on it to simply name and notice when the inner-critic is taking over. We cannot change what we do not see, so see it and name it when it’s sabotaging you. For more in-depth work to interrupt the inner critic, you can also download my free 21-Day Guide to Interrupting the Inner Critic here. 3. Create Your Signature to Success - Reflect on what your personal definition of success is. When you are 80, what will have really mattered in your life? Without becoming crystal clear here about what you care most about, seeking success can lead to chasing someone else's values. Name what values are most important to you and post it up as a guide to remember what you're committed to creating in your life. It’s a risk to lead anchored within yourself and it may mean some things need to crumble, but know there’s also a phoenix waiting to rise. For more support to conspire for your joy and success through self-trust, schedule an exploratory call here: https://meghanpatinocoaching.as.me/schedule.php Want to learn more from Meghan? Follow her on Facebook and Linkedin. You can also visit her website to get in touch. Read more from Meghan! Meghan Patiño, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Meghan Patiño is a leader in coaching women to trust themselves as they create a positive impact in the world of organizational leadership, business, and community change. Her clients are entrepreneurs, leaders in tech companies, non-profit executives, public servant managers & parents transitioning to work. All her work is dedicated to the journey of belonging to yourself and to boldly revealing the essence of who you are as you lead your life. Inclusion, self-compassion, anti-racism, and integrity are values she leads by. She utilized her Master in Social Work from St. Louis University to design and implement leadership programs for over 10 years before graduating from Accomplishment Coaching, where she was trained in over 200 tools and distinctions to use with individuals and groups to create deep, sustainable shifts. She lives in Seattle with her partner and three kids and is always up for embracing the chaos, beauty, and adventure of life.

Written by: Irene Baggetto, Executive Contributor Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise. Isn't it strange how we can all struggle with time from time to time? Sounds weird? But true. Often, we think we have all the time there is in the world, plenty of time. And then unexpected events take place and direct our focus away, and 'boom,' and we are distracted and lose direction. When we finally return from our distractions, we often discover that time has almost run out. Now, this can apply to any given situation, or it may apply to our daily lives and could also include our very livelihood. So, I had to meet the deadline, but this time I almost feared that I would not meet the deadline. Logical scenario as it happened, my mind went blank. Do you know this kind of feeling? This feeling of not being in control was something I had vowed not to allow to happen again. This feeling of not being in control is the way how I used to be! I thought this was not me anymore; hello. This last-minute call to action created a lot of unnecessary stress. Everything that needed to be completed was handed in at the last minute. 'Haste is Waste' so I discovered. When we rush, when we are in a hurry, we are not aligned with our very being, making mistakes. As per my clinical observations over the past two decades, most injuries occur when people are in haste. Accidents and injuries seem to happen a lot more under pressure we put ourselves under as we are impatient with the world and even ourselves. There is more focus on something other than the NOW. To return to the NOW and master one life and some inevitable challenges that come with it. I find it essential to take a big deep breath, put a 😃 smile on my face and listen to my inner voice saying, "you've got that." And that's where the magic begins. Magic happens once we take the reins of our lives into our own hands when we take responsibility for our thoughts and actions instead of blaming everyone and anything else. Yes, at times, we can feel lost, we think that we don't know what to do, we cannot see the way out of a situation in that we feel stuck. In these moments, we usually wish that we were somewhere else, or even better, would be someone else, but as we all know, this is not possible. We have to face the music and dance. And let's face it. We all came here into this plane of existence to learn our lesson. Walk our path of destiny, learn our life lesson on the ever-evolving spiritual journey. Like schools teach the children the current curriculum, so does the school of life teach us the lessons our soul needs to experience to evolve. Life lessons can be tricky and are usually broadly regarded by the community as 'hard knocks.' Many of us went to the University of Hard Knocks. Just look at Facebook profiles; it would be the most frequented University worldwide. We collect these experiences along the way, mainly when we do not live according to our Soul urges and values. Usually, these lessons are pretty adaptable to personal preference beyond the conscious mind, I may add. We decide from an early age how we would like life to be like for us. We select our role models - but caution role models need to be replaced and adjusted along the evolutionary way of our personal growth and development. Yet so often, I hear the words, "my life turned nothing out as I had imagined." I must admit I used to say these words too. However, this was before I knew and understood that we were in control of our lives. And as long as we are not aware of this, we live our lives in fear and anticipation of the worst scenario magnified. Many of you have heard the phrase "I am a spiritual being in the human body ' instead of a human body with a spirit. We are all individuals; we have been gifted with unique, particular traits from the Universe to help us navigate our lives to our best ability. And to live according to our blueprint. What is my blueprint? You might ask. Your blueprint is your numbers accumulated out of your birthdate and the numeric vibrations of your name. I hear you saying. I did not come with instructions, nor does anyone else. These words reflect a standard reply. NO, we do not come with instructions, but we come with POTENTIAL with our unique strengths and flaws, and when we learn what these gifts are, we will be able to adjust our lives accordingly and live a fulfilled life. It is up to us, to each individual of us, to utilize the potential or not. We are, after all, the masters of our destiny. With aligned and integrated energies embodied within the consciousness our chances of living a healthy, balanced life in all areas of life are abundant. In this sense, I wish you fulfilled life. Namaste! Irene is available for physical energy consultations and readings at her clinic and online. Follow her on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and visit her website for more info! Read more from Irene! Irene Baggetto, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Irene is a lifetime learner, qualified, and registered Natural Therapist and Wellness Consultant with many tools at her disposal which she uses with empathy and love for the highest good and benefit for her clients. Her multiple accreditations, certificates, and reviews provide the evidence. In addition, her 20 years of clinical experience are all wonderful resources to draw upon and making her an outstanding therapist and consultant for Body-Mind & Soul Wellbeing. Driven by the passion and dedication to helping her fellow human beings who wish to live their life with balance and harmony in all areas of life. Irene is the founder as well as a therapist at Beenleigh Bowen Clinic, CEO of THE WELLNESS CATALYST Senior fellow, and A/National Secretary of the Executive managing team of the professional association Society for Natural Therapists Inc. (S.N.T.R.). Coming from a humble background she is very proud of her achievements so far, but is convinced that the best is still yet to come… Her services are available off and online.