Warriors at Work Jennifer Balkcom

People who are prolonged performers at work all have one thing in common. And it will solve the problem for people who aren't performing too. This week we look at the ONE thing that makes people performers at work - who outlast others on a regular basis. And the good news is it's all up to you.

You know all that frustration you feel? Those uncomfortable zoom meetings with your team where everyone is just barely holding it in? Or your clients who take so much energy to deal with? The folks you work with who want things to be different NOW? Or that stress with your spouse? Here's the good news in what it all means. You may be surrounded with good people, who, like you, aren't willing to settle for the status quo. It takes courage to risk wanting more.

Nothing is working like we think it should right now. So many things are quirky, unexpected, or taking longer. As high performers it's easy to judge ourselves for not getting things done the way we expect to. But there is a way out, and it's a GREAT way to practice being effective with adversity and the unexpected in our work.

Today I speak with Ian Sanderson, a member of the Mohawk Nation, Turtle clan, from the Six Nations of the Grand River reservation in Ontario, Canada. Ian has spent 20 years studying perception. He is trained in wilderness survival, tracking, and has facilitated 800-900 group training and speaking engagements primarily focused on cultural awareness. He owns the Boulder Quest Center, a martial arts dojo where he teaches the art of To-Shin Do ninjitsu, and has a BA in indigenous studies from Trent University. Today we have a conversation about the many ways that mis-perception can so easily lead us down a harmful road, and how to clear up our perception.

Listen, if you're not engaged in your job while you're working from home, it's because you're not engaged in your job. It's that simple. No judgement. Working from home exacerbates whatever already exists - for better or worse. Don't blame others for it - this is who you are. This is a really unique opportunity to see in yourself what others usually see in you at work. Then decide what you think about it, and what you're going to do about it.

Think about something that happened recently that made you mad, that you knew you were right about. You were not only right, but then mistreated for being right, then misheard about your communication of the problem. About something that THEY have done before. You were right on top of right. They were 5 different kinds of wrong.

Due to a giant cosmic injustice, being right doesn’t make us feel better, it makes us feel worse. Why? Doesn’t being right feel good? Don’t we get points on the cosmic scoreboard of life?

It does only if our rightness is acknowledged, if the bearer of wrongness admits their complete responsibility and confirms our rightness and perfection. If they don’t admit to their inherent incompetence/ inferiority/ irresponsibility/ general submission to our clearly superior qualifications for world domination, then we begin building a case in our heads like the ones above, causing general physical discomfort like a knot in your gut or between your shoulder blades, or a headache.

So, you may ask, what is the solution to this not very fun situation? How can we achieve happiness? I'll tell you in this episode. It may surprise you, and I promise you'll feel better.