Move Your Desk

Rebecca Clark

This podcast is for anyone that knows they haven’t yet found and offered up their best work, but are compelled to seek it out and do it. Rebecca Clark shares stories and practical approaches to life and leveling up at work. And, nudges that encourage you to act on the inner inklings to create and offer up your best self. Periodically, she interviews amazing individuals that are already in the pursuit of self-improvement. Are you ready to move your desk? Connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccaclark/

  1. Oct 28

    Episode 184 - Game Knows Game

    Have you heard of The Ugly Duckling story, published by Hans Christian Andersen in 1843? It's about a duckling that looked different than the others, and was rejected by everyone in his close proximity - his mother, his siblings, and the people in the surrounding farm areas that tried to take him into their lives. But, spring came and so did second chances. He went out into the world ready to risk everything to find a way... to not be alone. In the process, the duckling finds out he has grown into a fully grown...swan. And, the other swans had no problem welcoming this bird into their flock. The recognized him as one of them in every way. Notice, the swan was always a swan. It's just the everyone around him didn't realize that's what he was, and expected him to be something else. So, he didn't measure up to the expectations of the crowd. In this case, a bunch of ducks. Ducks and swans aren't the only living beings that deal with these misconceptions of value.  Most of us experience it at one time or another in school, work, our neighborhoods, or in finding our true self. In the process, we can lose a sense of personal worth and value. We can wonder if we are on the right track as we question what we offer the world, how we offer it, and if there is really a person, a group, or a company that will recognize what we offer as valuable. If you haven't found your people just yet, keep learning and building your knowledge base. If you have, remember the experiences you had when your value wasn't recognized. It can be a journey to figure it out. Embrace all parts of it because you take all of the experiences to whatever you offer next. And, remember... You will always be an ugly duckling in some ponds. Go find your swans.

    Episode 184 - Game Knows Game
  2. Oct 28

    205 - Nope, I Don't Do That...

    It's a sly statement, but I'm finding that it is part of every single day. The moment someone says you should try something and you say, "Nah, not for me" or "Nope, I don't do that..." It's fine, if you've tried it before and determined that you don't like it, it's not the best use of your time, or not part of the highest value you can offer. But, what if your response is just because you've decided it's not for you without giving it a concerted effort to really find out. A few months ago I caught myself giving this response to some things that I've said consistently over the years. Here's a few of mine to prime your brain: Nope, I don't do: saunasmarathonsspassinging solosmodelinggo to Walmart These are just a few that I happened to talk about in this episode. Seem kind of no big deal on the surface, but when I started to question my assumptions I found some hidden emotions and thoughts that were hard to tell myself. Most of these were "nope" and "nah" moments because I was proud, jealous, fearful of failure, or self-righteous. Yuck. Take a look at your assumptions. Take a look at things you reject quickly. Ask yourself why. Go try them and see what's up with it. Hidden in these things we want to avoid may be the doorway to discovering some of the best attributes, skills, experiences, relationships, and contributions that we can make. Give yourself a chance the next time you find yourself saying, "Nope, I Don't do that" and see what happens.

    205 - Nope, I Don't Do That...
  3. Oct 15

    207 - Being "Kind of"

    Are you in the top 1-2% of what you do? Or, are you the extreme opposite? Most of us are in between. Great at some things, good at others, and some not so great in the mix. I've been thinking about those moments where I think that I'm in the "kind of" category. It usually involves me comparing myself to a friend, family member, or someone online. I'll have the same look, skill, or experience as they do. But, they are amazing at it and I'm "kind of" good at it. They are really tall, and I'm "kind of" tall. Some are in really great shape and I'm "kind of" in good shape. Is there a problem with being "kind of?" The answer may be "It Depends." Sometimes you can't do much about something. You were born a certain height. You have certain features. You have certain natural strengths. Other times being "kind of" comes from a place of not giving your best effort to something. This could be something to take a look at because hidden in that effort may be capabilities and talents you never knew you had. And, that those you serve may need. Take a look at where you are "kind of" and question yourself. In my process of doing this, I have found areas that I can step up my efforts while also seeing that my strength of exploring and experimenting makes me "kind of" good in a wide range of skills. I get to bring that to my strategic thinking and resourcefulness that I offer my clients and my own product development efforts. I'm counting that as a personal skill. No one has the combination of "kind of" experiences and skills that you have in you. And, that's kind of great. #moveyourdesk #podcast #strengthsfinder #kindof #questionassumptions

    207 - Being "Kind of"
  4. Oct 15

    214 - Carving and Chiseling Life

    Michelangelo was once asked how he went about the sculpting process. His answer?  “I saw the angel in the marble, and carved until I set him free.” This is something we can do for ourselves too - spend time carving and chiseling away to find the real person inside. In recent years, I’ve noticed that keeping my physical belongings in check is not a problem. It’s the digital hoarding that weighs upon my mind. The emails, the photos and videos, the files, the journal entries, the blogs and websites. It produces the same effect on my mind as a physical hoarder may experience, except I really can’t tell how big my issue is because it doesn’t overwhelm my home. It just sits neatly in a table showing up as a laptop, phone, and a couple of hard drives. Though I know that my digital items will expand daily as I go through this process, I’m tackling it. A digital de-junk. It’s a process like Swedish death cleaning, the practice of going through all your belongings long before you die (hopefully) so that your friends and family aren’t left with all of it to figure out. This effort is a lot more than de-junking. It’s showing me what I’ve valued, how I’ve behaved, what I’m afraid of, and the achievements, mistakes, regrets, and hidden dreams. Everything that had been tucked away to address later in life. It involves chipping away to find the real person hidden deep within. It is hard. It hurts. It is mentally draining. It’s both becoming and unbecoming. But it’s worth it.

    214 - Carving and Chiseling Life
  5. Apr 25

    211 - The Loneliness of Diversity

    The bus stop is now an essential part of my day. It's the one moment, twice daily, where I feel a sense of community. Or, since it is the beginning of a new year, a newly forming community because it's a mixture of old friends and a lot of new additions to the mix. The diversity is a complex mixture of people from Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Maybe Antarctica and Australia will come along soon! There are also a few languages in the mix. And people from four years old to their mid-70s. Add to this the types of work, interests, religion, and physical appearance of everyone and there is quite an interesting group! Still, this week I looked around and saw a person or two that looked a bit separated from the crowd, and lonely. Though I'm the person (self-designated) to communicate and help everyone connect as best I can, I will still make my rounds to meet everyone. It just took one interaction for it all to change. A couple didn't know English, and another was just new to the neighborhood. The one interaction helped them slowly progress out of their shell and interact with others or... at least sit a little closer to the crowd. It brought up a thought in my mind about the loneliness in diversity. Sometimes there is just so much diversity that it can be overwhelming, especially if you feel like you aren't able to fully express your personality or feel safe yet. In those moments, you really want sameness or familiarity to get your courage and confidence up. This episode is just a nudge to embrace both diversity and sameness. Recognize what you need and where you might want to challenge yourself. If you have a problem with being around a diverse set of people, take a step toward one of them to learn more. If you embrace diverse people and opportunities at the expense of interacting with those that ground you... maybe take some time to interact with the familiar. Also important is being aware of when you are the person that can help bring everyone together. In my neighborhood it was interesting to see that was made possible, partially because people with different languages were willing to interact, make mistakes, and allow onlookers to find joy from the imperfectly perfect communications. #moveyourdesk #diversity #loneliness #communications #connections

    211 - The Loneliness of Diversity
5
out of 5
24 Ratings

About

This podcast is for anyone that knows they haven’t yet found and offered up their best work, but are compelled to seek it out and do it. Rebecca Clark shares stories and practical approaches to life and leveling up at work. And, nudges that encourage you to act on the inner inklings to create and offer up your best self. Periodically, she interviews amazing individuals that are already in the pursuit of self-improvement. Are you ready to move your desk? Connect on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccaclark/