Effective on Purpose with Geoff Welch

Geoff Welch

Geoff Welch is on a mission to help leaders defeat distraction and overcome overwhelm so they can deploy the majority of their time, energy, and focus on their most valuable work. His unique ability to help these busy professionals get out of their own way and distill complex challenges into accessible actions has made him a trusted resource for decision-makers across the country.

Effective on Purpose is an expansion to his weekly e-mail series, The Sunday Setup, adding depth and texture to his challenging and inspiring messages.

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Simple ways to carry gratitude with you

Simple ways to carry gratitude with you

Thanksgiving was a few days ago here in the US and I’m intentionally ringing this bell AFTER the holiday because I want to reinforce that the act of giving thanks should be a consistent practice, not an annual event.Considering the things you are thankful for changes your brain chemistry for the better and elevates your perspective above the immediate circumstances you are navigating. I have yet to meet anyone who told me their gratitude practice had made their experience worse. Quite the opposite.How can you integrate gratitude into your daily life? Here are a few simple ideas that should be accessible to most of you:Send one text of appreciation each dayKeep a journal beside your bed (or in the Notes app on your phone) and catalog one thing you are thankful for each dayTake a photo of something you are grateful for each dayMake it a point to say THANK YOU to someone you interact with regularly (like a spouse, partner, child, co-worker…)Look the delivery driver or drive-thru worker in the eyes and say THANK YOU with intention before you drive awayInvolve a friend and share a quick text about something you are thankful for each dayWrite something you are thankful for on a post it note each day and put them somewhere in your home or office where you will be reminded of them oftenGo old school and write one thank you card each dayPick one and make it a consistent practice. Give yourself permission to be thankful for “silly” things. I am convinced it will be a habit you won’t regret adopting.I am offering the unique opportunity to schedule single 1-1 strategy sessions with me in November and December. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get 1-1 support to set you up for success in the new year without committing to a long-term engagement. Learn more and schedule your session before they sell out!

Simple ways to carry gratitude with you

Simple ways to carry gratitude with you

Thanksgiving was a few days ago here in the US and I’m intentionally ringing this bell AFTER the holiday because I want to reinforce that the act of giving thanks should be a consistent practice, not an annual event.Considering the things you are thankful for changes your brain chemistry for the better and elevates your perspective above the immediate circumstances you are navigating. I have yet to meet anyone who told me their gratitude practice had made their experience worse. Quite the opposite.How can you integrate gratitude into your daily life? Here are a few simple ideas that should be accessible to most of you:Send one text of appreciation each dayKeep a journal beside your bed (or in the Notes app on your phone) and catalog one thing you are thankful for each dayTake a photo of something you are grateful for each dayMake it a point to say THANK YOU to someone you interact with regularly (like a spouse, partner, child, co-worker…)Look the delivery driver or drive-thru worker in the eyes and say THANK YOU with intention before you drive awayInvolve a friend and share a quick text about something you are thankful for each dayWrite something you are thankful for on a post it note each day and put them somewhere in your home or office where you will be reminded of them oftenGo old school and write one thank you card each dayPick one and make it a consistent practice. Give yourself permission to be thankful for “silly” things. I am convinced it will be a habit you won’t regret adopting.I am offering the unique opportunity to schedule single 1-1 strategy sessions with me in November and December. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get 1-1 support to set you up for success in the new year without committing to a long-term engagement. Learn more and schedule your session before they sell out!

No rest, No Impact

No rest, No Impact

The Thanksgiving holiday is this week in the US and I’m guessing many of you are gearing up for one or two extra days off.Enjoy! You could probably use the rest.Turn the computer off. Bake a pie. Stop checking your email on your phone. Watch some football. Forget about work for a minute. Read a book.The impact you hope to make demands that you rest and renew from time to time.No rest, no impact.I am offering the unique opportunity to schedule single 1-1 strategy sessions with me in November and December. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get 1-1 support to set you up for success in the new year without committing to a long-term engagement. Learn more and schedule your session before they sell out!

I’m looking for a model

I’m looking for a model

I want you to consider something you want. Maybe it is a promotion, an experience, or an object.Do you have something in mind?Okay, now I want you to think about the kind of person who already has that thing.What is different about the way they ACT and the way you ACT? Skip the part about how their circumstances are different and focus on their actions compared to your own.This exercise will likely reveal a useful change you need to make in your behaviors. It may also reveal that you aren’t willing to do the things necessary to get what you want. If that’s the case it will probably be helpful to focus your desires elsewhere. Who is a model for the kinds of behaviors that will help you get what you want? How could you act more like them this week?I am offering the unique opportunity to schedule single 1-1 strategy sessions with me in November and December. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get 1-1 support to set you up for success in the new year without committing to a long-term engagement. Learn more and schedule your session before they sell out!

Is it time to introduce tension?

Is it time to introduce tension?

I used to think it was the role of a leader to diffuse tension.When tempers flared or circumstances became overwhelming, it was the leader's job to turn down the dial on the tension so that everyone could operate with less stress and frustration.It sounds good on the surface, but sometimes we actually need a leader to turn the tension up.Exercise is the practice of creating tension in your body so that you can get stronger or faster. Going back to school for your MBA creates tension so you can learn and grow as a professional.In the same way, at times, you will need to create tension for the people you lead – or, at the very least, allow the tension that exists to persist – to help them grow or to enable your organization to reach its goals.I’m not suggesting that leaders should get people stirred up and walk away, but that there is a time for a leader to diffuse tempers and reduce overwhelm, and also a time for them to introduce valuable tension and help their people navigate it in the healthiest ways possible like a personal trainer.I am offering the unique opportunity to schedule single 1-1 strategy sessions with me in November and December. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get 1-1 support to set you up for success in the new year without committing to a long-term engagement. Learn more and schedule your session before they sell out!

How to get something for nothing

How to get something for nothing

I was recently at an event that featured a boxed lunch for each participant. Upon opening my lunch I discovered my box contained an objectively horrifying flavor of chips called “jalapeño.”(It might be important to understand that I really don’t like flavor of almost any variety)I told my neighbor that I had an extra bag of chips if they wanted them. They replied that jalapeño chips were their favorite and I could have their plain chips, which they didn’t like. And just like that we both gave up something of no value to us and received something of great value.The lesson? The thing you don’t enjoy is someone else’s favorite thing, so it’s worth considering how you could intentionally partner with people who have different tastes, skills, talents, and mindsets.These complementary relationships allow both of you to benefit without having to give up something you love.(Want to develop more complementary collaborations? Let’s jump on a quick call!)

You can’t do it

You can’t do it

I was recently talking with a prospective client – who is an incredibly successful professional – and they told me the saddest story about a meeting they once had with their boss.In this meeting, they shared with their leader an aspiration to advance to a specific role in their organization, a revelation that was met with a profoundly inspirational response: “oh, you won’t be able to do that.”This week you are going to have opportunities to reinforce POSSIBILITY for those around you. You are also going to have opportunities to reinforce FEAR and INSECURITY. Do everyone around you a huge favor and choose to reinforce possibility. Doing so might even help you recognize your own possibilities.PS: That prospective client was reaching out to me because they are literally on the cusp of taking on the role they dreamed of those years ago, and their aspirations have grown considerably along the way.(Want to learn more about how to help your team reimagine the impact of which they are capable? Let’s jump on a quick call!)

How did I not notice this mistake?

How did I not notice this mistake?

There is a black and white photo of me that has been famous in my family for better than 40 years. It features a 3-year old me holding a stick with some fishing line attached to the end (weighted down with a metal nut) over a mud puddle at a camp site somewhere in Alaska.It’s adorable, of course, but a few things probably immediately surface around how effective I might have been “fishing” that day. First, the tool I was using appeared to me to be adequate, but was completely unable to actually do the job.Second, the location was a “body of water” but didn’t contain the resource I was hoping to harvest.This week it might be worth considering how this relates to your work.Are the tools you are using actually helping you be effective? Or were they handed to you by someone else and you simply didn’t think to ask if they were, in fact, the best tools for the job.Are you operating in the best environment? Are there any (figurative) fish where you are fishing? If not, it might be time to leave the camp site and search for more robust bodies of water in which to do your work.(Want to learn more about how to ensure you are leveraging the right tools in the right places? Let’s jump on a quick call!)

Do you share this dangerous trait?

Do you share this dangerous trait?

If there is one valuable thing that I’ve learned from intersecting with trashy reality television, it is that delusional people are geniuses at insulating themselves from reality. You show me a person who is convinced of an off-the-wall idea – or someone that is swimming in drama while believing none of it is their fault – and I’ll show you a battalion of people around them who are all nodding their heads in agreement.Here’s what this means for you: be very wary when everyone you know agrees with you.Purposefully interact with people who will challenge your assumptions. Read a book about an idea you don’t like. Assume you are biased, like the other 7,846,000,000 on the planet, and could need help seeing all the angles when making an important decision. Watch a different news channel. Find someone with different preferences and learn more about them. Approach most situations like you have something to learn.(Want some help exploring how you make decisions? Let’s jump on a quick call!)

How to transcend a disadvantage

How to transcend a disadvantage

Imagine yourself at the starting line of a speed skating race. The buzzer sounds to announce the start of the race and you promptly fall on your face.It’s over. Give up. Go home. Right?This was the premise of a video I recently watched on LinkedIn, but as the race unfolded I was fascinated by how the skater in question leveraged an advantage hidden inside the apparent disadvantage and found a way to win the race.The skaters who remained vertical sped away from the starting line and found themselves knotted up in a jumble, spending precious energy and focus jockeying for position. The skater who fell, while far behind, had nothing but open ice ahead of them and was able to operate at full speed, ultimately passing the group of skaters who once enjoyed an obvious advantage.Choosing to persevere will help you survive the disadvantage. Looking for advantages within a perceived disadvantage will help you transcend it.Is it possible that the disadvantages you perceive to be impacting your life and work have an advantage or two hiding inside them? Is it possible that the way you think about these disadvantages is amplifying (or diffusing) their power?(Having a hard time identifying the advantages that may be hiding inside your present circumstance? Let’s jump on a quick call so I can help you take another look!)

Are you the problem?

Are you the problem?

As unpopular messages go, this might be the grand slam of unpopular messages.But, if you really want to go further, faster and take your effectiveness to a new level, it’s an important one. Just stick with me for a few more seconds.When there is a project or relationship that just isn’t working, the most effective among us are willing to ask themselves, “am I the problem?”It is the WILLINGNESS to ask this question, not the answer itself, that is the game changer because most people won’t even consider that they could be a part of the problem. The WILLINGNESS to consider that you could be contributing to the issues at hand is a sign that you are open to uncomfortable possibilities, that you are willing to explore the impact of your participation and not just place blame on others.You may not be the problem. You probably aren’t. But an unwillingness to explore that possibility will hold you back.(Want to learn more about how you can become more effective and go further, faster? Let’s jump on a quick call so I can show you how.)

BONUS - Delegation is the key to unlocking your impact (with Trúc Towns)

BONUS - Delegation is the key to unlocking your impact (with Trúc Towns)

In this BONUS episode, my incredible assistant, Trúc, and I riff on the importance of delegation, the value of working with an assistant, and how we got started together.This conversation is for YOU if:you are worried that your inability to delegate is reducing your capacity for impactORyou are curious about how an assistant could help you elevate your impact(If you want to explore how delegation is the gateway to greater impact? Let’s jump on a quick call!)

This is why people don’t listen to you

This is why people don’t listen to you

There is going to be a moment, certainly this week, likely tomorrow, in which you will want to convince someone of something. Perhaps you will want them to partner with you on a project or simply order take-out from your favorite restaurant.The (often failed) approach most people take is to express all the reasons their solution makes sense TO THEM. They will talk about what they feel or the research they’ve done, and every bit of it will make perfect, irrefutable sense TO THEM.The problem with this approach is they haven’t considered what their counterpart cares about.Want to be more persuasive? Become relentless about understanding the wants and needs of the people you work with and for. Doing so will afford you the ability to make your argument in a way the other person is most likely to relate AND waste less time trying to convince them of something to which they are never going to agree.The New York Yankees are clearly, undeniably, overwhelmingly the most successful franchise in the history of baseball. Facts. But don’t think for a second I’m going to roll into Fenway Park and persuade a single Red Sox fan to agree with me.Stephen Covey said it best in Habit 5 of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Seek first to understand, then to be understood.(Want to learn more about how to better understand your peers and make more compelling arguments? Let’s jump on a quick call!)

What if you changed one small thing?

What if you changed one small thing?

If you are looking for a great way to fail, just try to change everything all at once and see how it goes. Whether you are trying to change your eating habits, improve organizational culture, or become a stronger leader, making widespread, wholesale changes all at once isn’t always an effective path to take.Instead, where appropriate, you could try making small changes to the habits and routines that already exist as a way to make change more accessible and easier to institutionalize. Instead of throwing away all the sugary treats in your pantry, you could start by relocating some items and limiting your consumption first. Instead of reading the next great leadership book and trying to implement every page on Monday morning, you could start by identifying one small behavior you want to address first.Once that small change feels more comfortable, add another small change to the mix. There is certainly a time and place for “taking the plunge” to adopt significant change at once, but I hope you will consider that it isn’t the only option available to you.(If you recognize the need to embrace change differently, I’d love to chat with you about how I can help you get where you want to go with as little pain as possible.)

Keep up the great work!

Keep up the great work!

Here is a completely simple way to increase your influence and help others reach new heights: be like Moriah.Two or three times a year I get an email from Moriah in response to one of the messages I share and every one of them is like one of those power-up mushrooms that make Mario double in size. They are short, they reference something specific that made a difference for her, and they always encourage me to keep going.Here’s how you can do this:Pay attention to the work of your peers, those you lead, and even those who lead you.Send a quick note telling them something specific you admire. (That presentation last week was so informative and engaging, and I’m not the only one who noticed!)Offer some encouragement to continue. (I can’t wait to see what you do next! Keep up the great work!)In less than 5-minutes you will reinforce a valuable contribution by someone else and give them a major power up that will completely change their day. Spoiler alert: It will fundamentally change your day tooHow many of these could you send this week?(If you want to learn more about how to increase your influence and help others level-up, I’d love to chat with you about how I can help you have a game-changing impact on your organization and your career.)

It only takes 12 lunches to change your career

It only takes 12 lunches to change your career

Here’s a simple and effective way to change your career over the next 12 months: invite someone you appreciate professionally to lunch once a month.It’s easy, just send a text or an email that goes something like this:“Hey, PERSON, I really admire the way you go about your work and I’m hoping you will let me buy you lunch to chat about your career path.”Flesh it out, fluff it up, and make it your own, but that’s the gist. Don’t complicate it. If you think it needs to be more difficult you are absolutely overthinking it.If you approach these conversations with a genuine desire to listen and learn, you can turn the cost of 12 meals and about 12 hours of your time into a broader network and a collection of remarkable insights you might never have discovered on your own.BONUS POINTS if you reach out to people you don’t already know well. You will be surprised by how many people are flattered by a request like this and enjoy talking about their experiences for an hour. I dive deeper into this on the podcast.(If you see the value in how a prompt like this could help you level up your career with almost no effort, I’d love to chat with you about how I could help you grow even further.)

The fundamental problem with saying “yes”

The fundamental problem with saying “yes”

Here’s a perspective shift that might melt your brain: When you say “yes” to something, you say “no” to EVERYTHING else. But when you say “no” to something, you’ve only eliminated one possibility.(This is, of course, assuming you are bound to the same 24-hour day as the rest of us and have to allocate chunks of time you will never ever get back to specific pursuits. If you have transcended time and space, feel free to disregard.)The word “yes” is so often associated with opportunity, and the word “no” with a closed door, and as a result I fear we say “yes” to a great many things that are actually sabotaging our ability to do our most valuable work simply because it can be uncomfortable to say “no.” Have you ever found yourself overwhelmed with projects that aren’t the best use of your time, muttering “why did I say yes to this?!” Yeah, you get it.What would be different about your days and weeks if you got really clear about your most valuable work and started saying “no” to the things that didn’t have a strategic impact on your ability to accomplish it?(If you are feeling the effects of saying “yes” a few time too many, I’d love to chat with you about how I can help you waste less of your time, energy, and focus on things you shouldn’t be doing.)

You aren’t in charge of the weather

You aren’t in charge of the weather

If you’ve ever woken up, looked out the window at unappealing weather, and immediately felt like the day was off to a lackluster start, well, congratulations, you are a person.Most of us have been there, and yet, it’s worth considering how much power over our outlook and mindset that we give to things we cannot control, like the weather…or the Yankees.Listen, I love sunny days as much as the next guy, but I also realize that I can’t conjure a single one on my own. And because I can’t choose the weather, I have to figure out how to work around it because I have important work to do, just like you.In case you haven’t figured it out yet, this message isn’t about the weather. It’s about controlling the things you can control and making peace with the things you can’t. Especially on rainy days…and when the Yankees lose.(If you are a control enthusiast who is trying to figure out how to let go of the myriad circumstances outside your control, I’d love to chat with you about how I can help you waste less of your time, energy, and focus on things you cannot change.)

I want you to make me a promise

I want you to make me a promise

I want to make a deal with you. Right now.From now on, come hell or high water, you and I don’t do overwhelm alone.I understand there are a thousand reasons why it feels like you can’t ask for help, or why your circumstances are so special that no one else will understand, but none of it is real. It’s a trap.From now on I you and will ask for help. We will build trusting, authentic relationships that will be our support system when things get crazy.From now on you and I will remind ourselves that everyone thinks their problems are special, but the themes are the same for everyone. I promise you: I work with smart professionals everyday and I get to see that they are all basically wrestling with the same issues.When we refuse to do overwhelm alone we diffuse much of its power. We learn that we were never as alone as we believed.(If you love this idea, but just don’t know how to start, I’d love to chat with you about how I can help you change the story you believe about the challenges in front of you.)

Are you licking your stitches?

Are you licking your stitches?

When my dog, Bernie, tangled with a pickup truck in 2020, he found himself in surgery to have one of his legs amputated. In the aftermath of that surgery he had a significant array of stitches lining his hip and was forced to spend many days with a cone around his head to prevent him from licking the stitches. It turns out that dogs don’t have the cognitive abilities to know that licking their stitches can cause problems. They have an impulse and they follow it without being able to measure the consequences, so they end up with a cone to make sure they don’t hurt themselves.We have far greater brainpower than our pups, but I think we often find ourselves metaphorically “licking our stitches,” by reacting emotionally, blaming others instead of taking responsibility for our actions, and spending too much of our time on low leverage activities.When a dog has an impulse, it just reacts, but YOU have the ability to consider your responses to external stimuli and make reasoned choices about how best to proceed.

Adaptation IS the work

Adaptation IS the work

Only a tiny percentage of projects are going to work exactly as you expect.Here’s the weird part: most people know this, like in their bones they know it, and yet they are still surprised and frustrated when the unexpected shows up.That’s kind of like being flabbergasted that the sun came up AGAIN today or that small children will need to use the bathroom at the most inconvenient times.These are immovable truths of the universe.I think most professionals would be well-served by taking an improv class because improv teaches you to stop expecting an outcome and to simply adapt to whatever is happening now.Adaptation is the name of the game. Adaptation IS the work.