Reinvention

Are You Feeling Restless and Not Clear About What You Need to Do?

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“If you’re feeling restless and have decreased job satisfaction, consider you don’t know what you really want to do.” Jeannette Seibly

There are many reasons you could be feeling restless in your career or job, and unsure what to do about it (pick one or two that resonate with you):

  • Poor job fit (you have the skills, but not the interest)
  • Plateau in career (hit a ceiling and need a new direction)
  • Doing the minimum work (lack of initiative)
  • Unable or unwilling to move forward (self-doubt)
  • Need more variety (boredom – your daily tasks or responsibilities haven’t evolved)
  • Time to expand (not clear how or what to do)
  • You’ve outgrown your current role or professional identity (your skills and capacity have expanded, but your job hasn’t)

Many times, when restlessness appears, there is a sense your current role isn’t matching your capacity or values. Or, another way of saying it, you may not be in the right job anymore. Yes, you have the skills, but the work doesn’t awaken your inner leader, or as others call it, your inner dharma or purpose.

Sometimes restlessness shows up when your professional identity has grown, but your current role hasn’t evolved to match it.

You may be bored because your boss fails to give you new projects, or because you fail to take initiative to ask for more or get involved in other opportunities.

You may have outgrown an old definition of yourself and your external world hasn’t caught up.

You blame your boss, company, or other external factors.

But … let’s look internally.

Here’s a quick self-check (a suggestion from AI):

“If I took a week away from work, would the restlessness disappear or still be there?”

  • If it disappears → it’s job fit or role design.
  • If it stays → it’s career direction or professional identity.
  • If it intensifies → you’re ready for a bigger role or new chapter.

What Can You Do?

Hire an Executive Coach. This is a smart step to ensure you’re clear about what you’ve done, what you want to do, and whether your current role is a true fit. Too many people stay in jobs that don’t fit them or try to mimic others’ careers and successes. This rarely works out well. Take the time. Get the coaching. Take the actions that actually move you forward.

An executive woman who had built her identity around being “a finance person” moved through several financial roles and clung tightly to that professional narrative. When a coach encouraged her to consider operations, which would have expanded her depth and breadth of career opportunities, she rejected the idea outright because it didn’t align with the vision she tightly held for herself. A couple of years later, she found herself once again searching for another finance position, illustrating how staying narrowly defined can limit growth rather than protect it.

This reflects how strongly people can resist paths that challenge their self‑concept, even when those paths might expand their long‑term opportunities and career fulfillment.

Complete a Qualified Job Fit Assessment. Again, job fit is key. Yes, I keep repeating this because so many people settle for a paycheck while doing work that either stresses them or bores them. Make sure you use a qualified job fit tool that focuses on interests, thinking style, and core behavioral traits. Most employers use assessments incorrectly, so it’s wise to work with an executive coach who uses the right tools.

Envision Your Career Future. Explore what exists beyond other people’s expectations, especially because many of us don’t actually know what we want. It’s easy to fall into imitation, apathy, or well‑meant advice that doesn’t match what we’re truly seeking. Unfortunately, it’s easier to stay in jobs that don’t fit simply because we like the people even while the work drains us.

Clarity becomes essential. If you’re not ready to branch into a more fulfilling role, you can still honor your interests by weaving them into your personal life. Whether that means taking a painting class, repairing bikes, or finding any outlet that reconnects you with what energizes you. This kind of personal expansion can then naturally morph into other areas of your life, including your job and career, opening doors you couldn’t see before.

Honor Yourself. It’s easy to give up and tell yourself that being stuck is for “the best.” Instead, take one small action step forward. Then, another. Keep steps small. For example, block one hour each week to explore roles, projects, or responsibilities that energize you now, not the ones you accepted years ago. Along the way, you will create clarity about what to pursue. Remember, talking about making changes over and over will NOT create a positive difference. Your actions create your motivation for what’s next.

Remember, restlessness is often the first sign that your career is ready for its next chapter.

© Jeannette Seibly 2026 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a Leadership Results Coach, Talent Advisor, and Business Author with 33 years of experience activating greatness in leaders and companies. She delivers practical coaching and solutions that elevate performance today, build legacies that stand the test of time, and support people empowering themselves to lead with clarity and impact.

Remember, restlessness is often the first sign that your career is ready for its next chapter. It doesn’t disappear by waiting. Contact me for a confidential conversation today to explore what’s next.

 

Use Self-Doubt to Build Self Confidence

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“Self-doubt can be an indicator you are moving into something new. This is not the time to doubt yourself.” Jeannette Seibly

Self-doubt shows up in everyone’s career. Often it sounds like a “little voice in your head” insisting you’re not ready, not capable, or not enough. But that voice isn’t a stop sign. It’s a signal you’re stepping into growth. When you learn to use self-doubt instead of fighting it, you turn hesitation into confidence and momentum.

Have you ever heard the “little voice in your head” say:

  • “NO!”
  • “You’ll fail.”
  • “You can’t.”
  • “You’re not smart enough.”
  • “You’re too old.”
  • “You don’t have what it takes to succeed.”

You’re not alone. Everyone experiences self-doubt. It shows up when fear or uncertainty creeps in. It’s normal for anyone moving forward in their career or life. But don’t let it derail your goals, career choices, legacy, or leadership. Use it to build confidence by stepping into those moments of discomfort, uncertainty, and mental chatter.

Confidence is an inside job. It’s trusting yourself and recognizing that self-doubt often signals progress.

7 Ways to Use Self-Doubt to Build Confidence

  1. Self-Talk with Your Brags. Internal chatter can derail you, especially when trying something new. Complete the Brag! exercises in Get Your Brag On! Focus on what you’ve already achieved because you’ve achieved a lot and doing so turns self-doubt into confidence.
  2. Replace Fear. Repeat “I am enough!” at least 50 times in the mirror. (I know this sounds like too much but it works.) Many people experience Imposter Syndrome, especially women, because they don’t feel like they are enough or have enough … regardless of credentials or awards. When self-doubt appears, talk it out with your executive coach. Identify the real source of the fear (e.g., seeking approval, working with a difficult team member, making the right hiring decisions).
  3. Learn Something New. Everyone started their career not knowing something. Return to the basics and learn from the ground up. It builds confidence and influence because you understand how things work and where to adjust. When you set aside your ego, you learn faster and are more effective in achieving results.
  4. Perfection Isn’t Perfect. Perfectionism creates stress, conflict, and missed milestones. Even when we do a good job, there will be mistakes made along the way. Relax, trust the process, and ask for help when needed. More importantly, learn from your mistakes.
  5. Make the Best Decision You Can. Identify three must‑haves for your project, new vehicle, or next job. Then get three quotes or proposals. When selecting a book editor, I reviewed three viable candidates and chose the one that met my criteria. The cheapest or most expensive isn’t always the best.
  6. Accept All Feedback Graciously. When receiving negative feedback, don’t let self-doubt take over. Get specifics. Be open to hearing what’s being said. It’s how you improve. Ask, “What is your most specific concern, and why is it important to you?” Listen, learn, and incorporate what’s appropriate. If you refuse to learn from feedback, self-doubt wins.
  7. Trust and Believe in Yourself. Everyone fails at times. If you’re unwilling to work past your self-doubt and take focused action, you rarely achieve intended results. Work with your executive coach to explore options. For example, if you dislike selling, becoming a financial planner won’t be a successful career choice today.

Use your self-doubt as a guide, not a barrier. Lean into the discomfort, apply these seven practices, and take the next step forward … no matter how small. Confidence grows through action, reflection, and consistency. Start today.

©Jeannette Seibly 2021–2026 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a Leadership Results Coach, Talent Advisor, and Business Author with 33 years of experience activating greatness in leaders and companies. She delivers practical coaching and solutions that elevate performance today, build legacies that stand the test of time, and support people empowering themselves to lead with clarity and impact.

For success in 2026, leaders must use their self-doubt to learn about themselves and how to be unstoppable. Contact me to learn how.

 

Conversations That Create Solutions

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“Many issues can be worked out through effective communication.” Jeannette Seibly

As we move through different seasons of life and leadership, we often notice issues in how systems work, how departments communicate, or how some employees do just enough to get by. We can join the complaining. Or we can choose conversations that create clarity, collaboration, and solutions.

Practical approaches to turning problems into progress:

  1. Have preliminary conversations. Ask trusted people, mentors, or your coach, what they believe the problem is. What others inside the company share is rarely the whole story, so stay curious rather than believing the first explanation as the truth. Also, don’t keep having these types of conversations without forward moving progress.
  2. Ask what they would do to resolve it. When someone says, “It is what it is,” invite them to think outside the box: “Give me three possible solutions.” Then pause. Silence allows people to think. Write the ideas down even if you don’t agree with them. As you build a solution, keep them handy.
  3. Pull together only those involved to build a solution. Avoid calling in an entire team or department when the issue involves one or two people. Meet with the true influencers, title or not, and gather their insights. If it is a department- or team-wide issue, bring everyone together.
  4. Send out an agenda so everyone knows the purpose and discussion points. At the start, ask if anything else needs to be added. Also, ensure effective meeting protocols are followed (e.g., turn off electronic devices, listen, etc.).
  5. Conduct a psychologically safe meeting where every voice is heard and respected. Beware of your own biases or that of other leaders in the room that can shut down sharing and idea-generation.
  6. Identify a solution. If more information is needed, document who will do what by when. Never skip this step. Write it down and include in minutes of the meeting. Send out minutes within 24 to 48 hours.
  7. Follow up and follow through. Accountability and responsibility often solve the very issues that created the problem. Remember, you’re listening for resolution, inclusion of others, and current and future impact.
  8. Send a positive group update and keep your own leader informed.
  9. Start with a “debrief.” To bring teams together, have each person list a one thing that worked and one thing that did not work. Remember, this is sharing, a psychological safe space. Acknowledge everyone. Then share the issue that brought everyone together. You may find the issue resolved through this exercise.
  10. Use a job‑fit assessment with a qualified facilitator. This is a great way to bring team members together that are sniping or disparaging others. Then pair people to discuss differences. The relief and insights gained from the objective data can be remarkable.

©Jeannette Seibly 2026 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a Leadership Results Coach, Talent Advisor, and Business Author with 33 years of experience activating greatness in leaders and companies. She delivers practical coaching and solutions that elevate performance today, build legacies that stand the test of time, and support people empowering themselves to lead with clarity and impact.

For success in 2026, leaders must stop ignoring issues and create viable solutions. Having effective conversations is crucial. Contact me for a confidential conversation.

Your Inner Leadership Skills Determine the Quality of Your Results

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“Inner leadership is the compass you rely on during your most meaningful years.” Jeannette Seibly

Are you rethinking what legacy truly means? It’s no longer just about career accomplishments or financial milestones. It’s about how you show up, the impact you make in your relationships and community, and the meaning you create in this next chapter of life. Yet too often, the focus remains on external roles, what you’ve done, who you’ve led, or the responsibilities you’ve carried.

What’s missing? To create a meaningful and fulfilling legacy, you must strengthen the inner leadership skills that guide how you think, respond, and influence others. These inner skills, often referred to as soft skills, include:

  • Self-awareness
  • Responsibility and accountability
  • Trust and integrity
  • Resilience and resourcefulness
  • Mindfulness and presence

Without developing these, your future legacy including your experiences, relationships, and contributions may feel incomplete or less satisfying than you hoped.

Here are the recommendations to develop before it’s too late.

Note: Life transitions, health changes, family dynamics, and unexpected opportunities can appear quickly. If you have not strengthened your inner leadership skills, you will often feel unprepared, overwhelmed, or unsure of your next steps. By the time these moments arrive, it’s too late to build the foundation you need in those moments.

Self-awareness. As you navigate building your legacy for the next chapter of your life, this is the most essential inner skill. Understanding your strengths, blind spots, triggers, and motivations helps you make choices that align with your values and desired legacy. Self-aware people build stronger relationships and experience greater peace and fulfillment. 

Responsibility and accountability. At age 55+, owning your choices and outcomes becomes even more important. It allows you to resolve unfinished business, strengthen relationships, and move forward with clarity and confidence.

Trust and integrity. Trusting yourself and honoring your word shapes how others remember you. Integrity is a cornerstone of your legacy: how you treat people, how you follow through, and how consistently you live your values.

Resilience and resourcefulness. Life after 55 brings transitions, some expected, some not. Resilience helps you navigate change with composure, while resourcefulness helps you adapt, find solutions, and work with the people and use the tools around you effectively. Talking things through with an executive coach can help you gain clarity and determine your next best step. 

Mindfulness and presence. Being fully present improves your relationships, your decision-making, and your sense of well-being. It helps you stay grounded, listen deeply, and remember what you’ve promised yourself and others.

Developing these skills requires reflection, coaching, and practices like journaling, meditation, or structured conversations that help you gain clarity, confidence, and commitment.

For 2026, make a promise to yourself, and honor that promise: Strengthen your inner leadership skills and create the legacy you truly want.

© Jeannette Seibly 2026 All Rights Reserved 

Jeannette Seibly is a Leadership Results Coach, Talent Advisor, and Business Author with 33 years of experience guiding leaders and people 55+ to create meaningful, purpose-driven next chapters. She delivers practical coaching and innovative solutions for personal leadership, life transitions, and legacy development. Successful people have coaches. Connect with Jeannette to elevate your next chapter in 2026. 

What is your 55+ chapter calling you to do? If you want a more meaningful legacy and a more fulfilling season of life, it starts with strengthening your inner leadership skills. Don’t wait. Contact me to begin shaping the future you want now.

Are You Ready to Deliver Real Results that Contribute to Your Legacy?

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“If you want to deliver lasting results, focus on consistent and productive practices to get unstuck and move forward.” Jeannette Seibly

2026 is right around the corner. As you review your 2025 results, ask yourself: are you energized by progress, weighed down by fear, or clinging to excuses and hope?

Now is the moment to examine whether your practices are consistent, productive, and truly driving impact. Because by this time next year, you don’t just want to meet commitments, you want to exceed them and leave a legacy that endures.

Remember: supporting your vision is just as vital as achieving it.

7 Tips to Build a Legacy That Endures

  1. Invest in the Right People. Your legacy is built through others. Choose team members who align with your values and mission.
  1. Coach with Purpose. Go beyond performance fixes by asking open-ended questions that spark thinking. Help people grow into leaders who carry forward your vision. And don’t forget to hire your own coach, someone who keeps you out of the weeds and in action. 
  1. Use Technology Wisely. Technology is a powerful support tool, but it cannot create legacy on its own. Tools like AI can amplify your efforts, streamline processes, and provide valuable insights. Yet a lasting legacy is always built on engaging with people and building a positive culture first. When you prioritize relationships, values, and leadership practices, technology shifts from being a crutch to becoming a true multiplier of your impact.
  1. Engage Your Community Regularly. Your legacy thrives when you stay connected. Quarterly conversations with stakeholders ensure relevance and build trust. Sometimes it may feel like you’re repeating yourself, and that’s okay. People have selective hearing and may not catch your message the first few times.
  1. Create Daily Rituals. A personal morning structure matters (whether journaling, listening to a favorite influencer, or sitting in stillness). At work, quick huddles or intentional check-ins build consistency, accountability, and shared ownership of your vision.
  1. Teach the Stories and Details. Legacy lives in the stories we tell. Train your team to understand the why behind the work you do, not just the what.
  1. Celebrate Progress. Recognition sustains momentum. Acknowledge contributions, share wins, and reinforce the values you want carried forward. (Yes—get your brag on!)

© Jeannette Seibly, 2019–2025 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is an award-winning Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Business Author. For over 33 years, she has guided executives and leaders to achieve remarkable success. Her specialty is helping organizations design legacies of excellence, accountability, and impact.

Want objective practices to strengthen your legacy? Contact me today to make a lasting difference.

How Do You Listen Effectively?

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“If you’re listening to respond, cut people off, or have a ready answer, you’re not listening!” Jeannette Seibly

In creating our legacy and shaping our future, we must learn how to listen effectively. How you listen honors your legacy and the legacy of others. This is critical as you move forward in creating and fulfilling projects, supporting communities that are important to you, and supporting neighbors and family who enjoy being with you.

However, too often we listen through our own filters:

  • Biases, judgments, or assumptions about whether someone’s story “fits” what we already believe.
  • Listening to reply, not to understand.
  • Thinking of the next thing we want to say.
  • Making a quick decision that the person isn’t worth listening to.

The above are examples of not truly listening. In fact, if you have a response ready before the person finishes speaking, you’re not really listening!

Why Listening Matters for Your Legacy

Listening is more than a skill. It’s a way of honoring stories, discerning values, and building meaningful connections. For adults 55+, listening deeply allows us to:

  • Capture wisdom that might otherwise be lost.
  • Strengthen relationships by truly hearing what matters.
  • Shape our legacy by aligning words, actions, and values.
  • Create communities where every voice is valued, and every story has impact.

Other Considerations for Listening in Everyday Life 

  • Attention to detail: Do you notice the pauses, memories, and details that reveal care and intention?
  • Reactionary or calm: Do they respond with patience, or with quick judgment? A calm tone reveals resilience. A reactionary tone indicates they are still dealing with their anger and the unfairness of the situation.
  • Community spirit: Are they positively contributing to family, friendships, or community events?
  • Openness to growth: Even later in life, are they willing to learn, adapt, or grow?

Listening Beyond Words 

  • Consistency between words and actions: Do their stories match how they live? Listen for three examples or themes that reveal true values.
  • Ownership of mistakes and failures: Can they admit missteps and explain what they learned? That’s wisdom worth passing on.
  • Curiosity and initiative: Do they ask questions about others, the world, or legacy? Genuine curiosity signals engagement.
  • Values alignment: Notice whether their personal values resonate with the community you want to build. Do themes like autonomy, service, or sustainability keep surfacing?
  • Communication clarity: Can they share complex life lessons in ways others can understand and carry forward?

 Practical Listening Habits to Build Your Legacy

  • Pause before responding. Silence often reveals more than a rushed answer.
  • Listen for patterns, not isolated statements. One polished story doesn’t equal consistency in how one lives life.
  • Note emotional tone. Calm confidence differs from rehearsed charm.
  • Separate impression from evidence. Write down what you heard versus what you felt. Then, compare. If it’s not consistent, ask yourself: Are they truly sharing, or just talking to talk? Or, do I need to “level up” my listening?

Remember, what you do to honor your legacy and the legacy of others begins and ends with the way you listen.

©Jeannette Seibly 2025 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a legacy-driven Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Amazon Best-Selling Business Author. For over 33 years, she has empowered thousands of executives and business leaders to achieve sustainable success through strategic hiring, values-based coaching, and intentional leadership development. Her work blends clarity, accountability, and soulful impact—activating performance and purpose at every level.

Do you want to improve your listening? Do you journal? Contact me, and I’ll send you a complimentary copy of Journaling Prompts: Practicing Deep Listening.

Want to Improve Your Results? Improve Your Facilitation Skills

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“Do you want people to listen, focus, and create great results? It starts with your facilitation skills.” Jeannette Seibly

Leaders who learn to effectively facilitate meetings and groups avoid dominating conversations and improve results. (Note: Oxford Languages define facilitate as: Lead or run (a meeting, discussion, etc.), ensuring that objectives are met and all participants’ opinions are heard.)

When facilitating, many bosses believe they must have all the answers. But they’re neither skilled nor comfortable listening to or generating others’ opinions. Their lack of facilitation skills, speaking skills, and ability to manage a room, virtually or onsite, gets in the way of results.

Become Aware of What No One Will Tell You

Why people won’t tell you the truth:

  • You lack awareness, emotional intelligence, and emotional integrity (See Quick Comparison* below)
  • You don’t feel comfortable telling you what you need to hear
  • Your blind spot is something they can’t quite identify—but they find it annoying
  • You become a “I’m right, you’re wrong” type of person when someone disagrees with you

*Quick Comparison: Emotional Intelligence vs. Emotional Integrity

  • Emotional Intelligence is your ability to recognize and manage emotions—yours and others’.
  • Emotional Integrity is your ability to express emotions honestly and act in alignment with your values.

Signs You Need to Pay Attention To:

  • You over-explain to the point no one is listening
  • You talk when you should be listening
  • You’re always focused on your opinion or point of view (What? You asked for my idea)
  • You’re late, lack preparation, and are disorganized
  • You’re ready to respond as soon as the other person stops talking (or even before), which means you were not listening!

How to Overcome These Limitations:

  • Get Real. Work with an experienced executive coach and use a job fit assessment that provides a leadership overview and recommendations. Objective data plus expert advice can fast-track your results.
  • Be Coachable. Listening and learning are essential when working with others. Many of you reading this may believe you’re a great speaker and facilitator, but consider your audience may disagree.
  • Watch Your Tone. Poorly managed emotions can diminish your results and possibly cost you your job. Develop emotional mastery to avoid triggers.
  • Learn to Listen. Listening to learn (not to comment) helps you master long-winded unfocused conversations and reframe input into something positive. You asked for their input, now honor it and thank them.
  • Include Everyone. Go round-robin (ask for each person’s thoughts, ideas, or opinion). Listen. Use time limits if needed.
  • Come Prepared. Arrive early. Send out agendas 24–48 hours ahead and follow them. Mute phones. Send minutes within 24–48 hours, including tasks to be completed.
  • State Your Point in 10 Words or Less. If you’re long-winded, you’re likely editing mid-sentence or unclear about your point. Get clear. Get focused. Be prepared by writing it down first.

© Jeannette Seibly 2025 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a legacy-driven Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Amazon Best-Selling Business Author. For over 33 years, she has empowered thousands of executives and business leaders to achieve sustainable success through strategic hiring, values-based coaching, and intentional leadership development. Her work blends clarity, accountability, and soulful impact—activating performance and purpose at every level.

Would you like a complimentary, Facilitation Self-Check & Meeting Prep Guide? Contact me.

Negotiation Skills Are Required for Success

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“Do you want to expand your results? First, ensure win-win-win outcomes through good negotiation skills.” Jeannette Seibly

Being able to negotiate is not optional. It’s a required skill that most professionals never learn to use effectively.

Too often, people settle, assume, or avoid the conversation altogether, costing them opportunities, money, and relationships. True negotiation is not about winning at someone else’s expense. It’s about creating win-win-win outcomes where everyone benefits and the agreement builds trust, clarity, and long-term success. (Resource: Get Your Brag On! Chapter 14)

“If you want to win, you need to support them winning too.”  Jeannette Seibly

Basic Preparation for Effective Negotiation

Rule #1 – Prep Work

  • Define clear goals and write them down.
  • Identify three “Must-Have” outcomes—rank, circle, and keep them visible.
  • Review your “brag” work and be aware of your metrics (e.g., results, wins, successes, accomplishments, and achievements).

Rule #2 – Research

Rule #3 – Be Ready to Walk Away

  • Know your bottom line and ensure ROI beyond just money.
  • Avoid clouding your judgment with emotional attachment to what they are offering. (Hint: It may sound good or amazing, but is it what you really really really want?)

Now, You’re Ready!

The Meeting

  • Be present and mindful.
  • Use agendas, take notes, and write down agreements immediately.
  • Let them talk first; listen actively.
  • Ask open-ended questions to uncover solutions and to clarify uncertainties.
  • Allow silence, don’t hedge, and address issues directly.
  • Seek common ground, restate agreements clearly. Write them down. (Remember, memories are faulty.)
  • Stay flexible, avoid adversarial tactics.
  • Review agreements at the end and don’t gloss over details.

Finalize Agreement

  • Document terms, responsibilities, and timelines. Send info asking them to include anything missing or needing clarification.
  • Include an escape clause in the event things don’t work out as agreed on.
  • Keep all notes organized for clarity and legal accuracy.

You can successfully negotiate everything you need and want. But it requires a win-win-win mindset!

©Jeannette Seibly 2025 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a legacy-driven Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Amazon Best-Selling Business Author. For over 33 years, she has empowered thousands of executives and business leaders to achieve sustainable success through strategic hiring, values-based coaching, and intentional leadership development. Her work blends clarity, accountability, and soulful impact—activating performance and purpose at every level.

Are you struggling to negotiate your goals, or unclear how to begin? Let’s talk.

Do You Have Problems Working with Authority?

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“If you want to succeed, you must learn to listen to and work well with your boss.” Jeannette Seibly

Do you:

  • Deny having authority issues and place blame for mistakes on your boss?
  • Look for approval from your boss and seldom get it?
  • Ignore advice and instead argue for your point-of-view?
  • Do it your way when your boss or board says, “No”?
  • Have a team that bickers a lot?

Can you imagine NFL team players thumbing their nose at the coach when told to adopt a new game strategy? I cannot either.

Yet, many times, business leaders fail to work well with authority! They believe they know how things should work and fail to listen to sage advice on how it normally works. This closed mindset costs them valuable time, money, and energy that could have been better used for business success.

7 Tips to Improve Effective Working Relationships

  1. Recognize You Have a Problem. Awareness is the first step toward meaningful change. When you cringe because someone sounds like your mom, dad, or teacher, you have a trigger. Heal the relationship with your parent(s) and you will go further faster as a leader.
  2. Learn to Positively Handle Feedback and Criticism. Many times, when you get triggered, it has nothing to do with the feedback. It’s an automatic reaction from your ego saying, “Don’t talk to me that way.” Breathe. Put your feelings into words. Learn to ask questions for clarification. If you truly listen, you will find your boss’s insights (or someone else’s) were “right on.”
  3. Encourage Brainstorming and Listening to New Ideas. When you or your team know-it-all and rely only on past efforts, you will fail to get to the core issue or true solution. Be open to listening to others … it saves time and money while creating viable solutions.
  4. Resolve Conflict Before It Derails Results. Leaders who avoid authority often create unnecessary conflict. Their poor communication styles and inconsistent work ethics make it hard for team members to succeed. Unresolved tension drains energy and stalls progress. Proactive leaders seek coaching and support to address issues early—before they escalate and negatively impact performance.
  5. Learn to Delegate. If you want to achieve true leadership, you must stop doing it yourself and learn to trust your team! To expand your business, sales results, and influence with your team, create a team that is resilient, reliable, and resourceful. That starts with your willingness to listen and work well with your boss, board, team, and customers.
  6. Get Over, “Do It My Way.” Life is not about doing everything “your way.” Yet, there are many stories on social media about DIYers. It takes maturity and experience to work well with your boss, team, customers, business, and bottom line. You will make mistakes. But your ability to learn from those mistakes and seek counsel will improve your results.
  7. Take a Good Long Look in the Mirror. If you are a leader that acts as a lone ranger, be aware your team members will mimic you! While you may believe this is OK, at some point, it will create irrevocable issues at the wrong time! Learn to be coachable and understand there are other workable ways to get the best results.

Everyone has an authority figure: boss, board, team, and/or customers. They that provide invaluable feedback and criticism when you listen. Failure to listen and learn will sideline your career.

© Jeannette Seibly, 2021–2025 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a legacy-driven Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Amazon Best-Selling Business Author. For over 33 years, she has empowered thousands of executives and business leaders to achieve sustainable success through strategic hiring, values-based coaching, and intentional leadership development. Her work blends clarity, accountability, and soulful impact—activating performance and purpose at every level.

Take the time to develop effective working relationships, be coachable, and take feedback, while learning from your mistakes. This is can be impossible to do on your own. If this true for you, contact me for a confidential conversation.

Want to Be Motivated? Take Action!

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“The hardest part of a project or venture is getting started. It starts with the first small step.” Jeannette Seibly

The hardest part of any new venture or project often comes after the initial excitement fades. You’re staring at the plan you created, and overwhelm begins to creep in.

You notice missing pieces.

Your inner psyche chirps, “You cannot do this.”

Your doubt screams, “What were you thinking?”

Or worse, “What will others say?”

Even if you’re not fully aware of your doubts and fears, they will sabotage your progress unless addressed in a positive, proactive way.

Here’s the truth: action creates motivation—not the other way around, despite what many of us were taught to believe. We often use a lack of motivation as an excuse to play small or avoid taking any action at all. But attempting big steps too soon will sabotage your efforts.

What’s the solution?

Take action by identifying the smallest possible step—then, do it.

Take One Small Step

  • Want to lose weight? Put on your walking shoes. Nothing else. Then, the next day, put them on again. Soon, you’ll be out walking! (Yes, this really works.)
  • Want to save money? Set aside 1% each time you receive any money. Before long, you’ll be amazed at how much you’ve accumulated.
  • Want that promotion? Take the smallest action possible—like buying your Get Your Brag On! book. This helps you avoid overwhelm and prevents you from missing critical details that could sabotage your efforts.

Make Sure Your Environment Is Supportive

This includes both physical and emotional spaces.

  • If your home office is in the basement and you dread going down there, move it somewhere you enjoy.
  • If your team members constantly naysay everything, it may be time for new ones. But beware: if they’re pushing back on your habit of constantly changing things, listen. That habit may be your saboteur—not them.

Celebrate Progress

Remember: Your new project or venture isn’t overwhelming. You simply need to take small actions, make thoughtful adjustments, and stop sabotaging yourself. Enjoy the process of creating results one step at a time. Your actions will feed your motivation to continue to move forward.

© Jeannette Seibly 2025 All Rights Reserved

Jeannette Seibly is a legacy-driven Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Amazon Best-Selling Business Author. For over 33 years, she has empowered thousands of executives and business leaders to achieve sustainable success through strategic hiring, values-based coaching, and intentional leadership development. Her work blends clarity, accountability, and soulful impact—activating performance and purpose at every level.

Ready to take action—but unclear about what you really, really, really want to achieve? Let’s talk.