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

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

Retreat from Home in February and March

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

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

Taking time to refuel

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

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

Coaching On CNN

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

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!

Podcast: Work-Life Balance for the Summer Months

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

Vacation Deprivation - 2007

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