25 Ways to Simplify Your Life

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by Chasity Kuttrus

Does it ever seem like your life gets more complicated by the day? With so
many messages, offers and obligations coming our way it’s easy to feel
overwhelmed. But you need to simplify in order to clear the clutter away to
reveal what’s truly important. Here are 25 ways to simplify your life at
work and at home.

1. Remember who is most important to you and make sure they know it,
everyday!

2. If you start reading a book and you don’t like it….put it down and
start something else. And don’t feel guilty!

3. End relationships that require a lot of work…but with very little return.

4. Reduce (or eliminate) the number of rewards programs you’re enrolled
in. Only keep the ones you know for sure you’ll get a return on.

5. Resign from outside commitments you don’t feel 100% passionate
about.

6. Clean out your closets.

7. Create a master password list.

8. Know when to ask for help.

9. Hire someone to help you clean your house. Or, if that’s not
possible, get yourself on a basic cleaning schedule.

10. Stop drinking pop.

11. Don’t collect catalogs. Do you ever really read them?

12. Find a really great calendar system for work and home….and use it.

13. Mind your own business. Don’t gossip. It’s unproductive, takes up
time and breeds more.

14. Exercise. It helps clear your mind, keeps you healthy and fit into
your clothes better (which helps avoid getting dressed dilemmas!)

15. Keep your hair appointments.

16. Start – and end – meetings and appointments on time. Getting backed
up messes up your whole day.

17. Don’t dwell on mistakes – move on.

18. Limit your Facebook time.

19. Gas up your car when you still have 1/4 a tank left…not when it’s on “Empty.”

20. Plan your meals for the week.

21. Delete emails and documents you don’t need…or can get from someone else if you do need them later.

22. Drink your coffee black.

23. Focus on one thing at a time.

24. Get serious about purging. Throw unimportant “stuff” away.

25. Breathe!

Five Success Factors For Working Moms

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Columbus, Ohio, my hometown, was recently named Forbes Magazine’s best places to live for working mothers. The criteria included critical things like higher salaries for women, shorter commute times, the number of women owned businesses, among other things. You can read the entire article here.

I feel very fortunate to live in a city that boasts a culture that embraces and supports work-life balance and I, for one, have benefited from Columbus’ attributes.

But, at the end of the day, what matters most is your attitude and the steps you take to make working and parenting work for you. No matter what city you live in, here are five keys to success as a working mom.

1. Figure out a system for meals. This is one of the biggest stress points for
all moms, working or not. Plan ahead, freeze things, order take out once a week – whatever you need to do to remove some of the pressure of feeding your family.

2. Get someone to help you clean the house. Even if it’s only once a
month, try getting some help. If you have someone already, you know what a blessing it is. If you don’t, you are going to be surprised how much stress it can remove.

3. Make time for you. Oh, boy. This one is hard. You’re probably the last one you take care of and you get the leftover energy and focus. First, work out regularly and make it a priority. Then, on top of that, find an hour or two of completely “you” time each week. Read a book, go for a massage, just relax, alone.

4. Don’t let being a mom interfere with being a good employee. When you’re at work, you need to work. Being a working mom doesn’t give you special privileges at work; you still need to get the job done on time and done well. However, if you make sure to deliver on your work commitments consistently and reliably, when you do find yourself needing to leave early or a little extra time on a project, you’ve built enough credibility that it won’t be an issue to your boss or your colleagues.

5. Find an after school solution for kid pick-up/homework. Again, this is a really important item and one that will create an enormous amount of stress if not
addressed. After school programs, shared baby sitters and more can help reduce anxiety over after school time.

Being a working mom isn’t easy. Here’s to all of you out there juggling career and family and here’s to cities like Columbus that are making things a little easier for us.

Being a Mom May Make Marissa Mayer More Effective

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By Chasity Kuttrus

Yahoo's new CEO, Marissa Mayer

Yahoo's new CEO, Marissa Mayer

There was interesting news in the corporate world this week. Yahoo! announced that it has hired Marissa Mayer, a former Google executive, as their new CEO. She’s tasked with leading the technology company into new territories. Well, that’s incredible news…..a new female CEO taking the reins!

But wait one minute… here’s the real news; she’s pregnant! What does all this say about Yahoo? Well, in Marissa’s own words: “They showed their evolved thinking.”

Yes, they did. And I’m guessing when push came to shove, someone recognized and pointed out what I believe to be true: many working mothers possess a certain extra motivation and drive that can make them extremely effective in high level executive roles.

Really?

Yes. Any working professional will tell you that if you surround yourself with the right people and the right tools, your job becomes much easier. The successful working moms that I know seem to have some sort of “work-life integration.” They have surrounded themselves with good people who support them at work. And they’ve done the same thing for their home life. They have support and help with their children, their homes, their grocery shopping, their housecleaning, and so on. They know when they get home they don’t want to spend time doing the laundry; they want quality time with their kids. True, not every working person has this luxury but I’m sure that Marissa does.

While Marissa has stated that she’ll be working through her maternity leave, no doubt she’ll have plenty of help on all fronts.

What good can come of this?

If she is successful and Yahoo! is successful, she will be the new “case study,” demonstrating how women can manage it all…with some good quality support. And, I believe that many women, when they are their busiest, with the most demanding schedules and the most important decisions to be made, thrive.

Why?

In a nutshell, because they have no time for nonsense. Sometimes leaders can wait too long for answers…and to make decisions. For Marissa and for all working moms, every second, every minute matters. I doubt she will allow a whole lot of politics, hot air or pettiness in her ranks, because she simply doesn’t have the time.

This built-in, mandatory hyper focus that many working moms employ may well be Marissa’s secret to success.

What’s your reaction to the news? Are you like Yahoo and “evolved” in your thinking? Are you Marissa’s greatest supporter? Or are you her greatest critic? Personally, I want nothing more than Marissa to be wildly successful. She has a lot of women cheering her on. Taking on the Chief Executive position is a bold, courageous step in anyone’s career. She’s doing it at a time in her life when she has some serious competing demands. While there are very few examples out there, I want my own daughter to know that she can be a CEO AND A MOM. One does not exclude the other.

8 Things a Dad Can Give His Daughter

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8 Things a Dad Can Give His Daughter
by Chasity Kuttrus

It’s Father’s Day and what a great opportunity to celebrate all the wonderful men in our world!

While my role is to elevate, develop and promote women in the workforce, let’s face it ladies – we won’t get ahead without the support of amazing men!

Ernst & Young recently put together a compelling article about how women who have a male “sponsor” significantly increase their likelihood of getting ahead in the work force.

With all the social media, technology and communication outlets that create self-image issues with our young girls, they need all the support we can give them.

My personal belief is that it starts at home. Young girls need a lot of positive support and reinforcement and it begins with Mom and Dad. I want nothing more than our Katie to have an incredibly confident, happy life and this is on my mind all the time!

Today and every day, I’d like to celebrate the guy who taught me some fundamental things that have stayed with me forever. Here’s to my incredible dad! And here’s to all the dads out there including Katie’s dad….my husband, Jack.

Fathers, teach your daughter these 8 things and she will love you forever!

1. She is a part of something bigger…she is Family!
Let her know you will always lover her and love her mother. Having a strong family unit creates the daily confidence she needs. Model the loving marriage you want her to have someday. Have fun!

2. She is Unique….and she is Amazing!
Tell her this regularly. Affirm it. Believe it. Let her know that her natural beauty is all the attractiveness she’ll ever need. Remind her that you love her exactly the way she is. Tell her over and over and over: it’s not okay to be like “someone else.”

3. She is Interesting!
Teach her to be intrigued by other places, people and things. When she is excited about something new, you must show interest and excitement. My dad loves the world and traveling and guess what? So do I! Live life fully!

4. She is Thoughtful…she is Respectful!
Yes, you need to help your daughter be confident and independent, but let her be respectful of others and of those who are not like her. She needs to learn to treat everyone with dignity – the military, teachers, neighbors, her parents! This gift of reinforcement has helped me a great deal in life. Experience everything.

5. She is Beautiful!
Show her examples of beautiful. Being attractive is being authentic. Young women that wear clothes that are revealing are crying out for attention. Teach your daughter that there are boundaries to what is acceptable and what is not.

6. She is Smart…she is Financially Independent!
Let your daughter figure out how to live on her own. What a wonderful sense of self confidence that will give her. This is liberating. My dad taught me early on how to live on a budget. He shared with me that debt is dangerous. He showed me the basics of how to manage my money and ways to save. I still give myself an allowance every week and when it’s gone….it’s gone!

7. She is Content!
Teach her to be content. Don’t let her fall victim to hyper-consumerism. It is a path she won’t like. Recognize “enough.” Give generously. This understanding comes from home. Be giving.

8. She is Your Love….Forever!
Guys come and go but your daddy will always love you. Above all else, show that your love is unconditional. You may not always like your little girls’ behavior, decisions and outcomes, but you will always love her! Make sure above all else, she knows this.

Thanks, Daddy. I know you love me forever!

Coaching for Confidence

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Managers, it’s tough to coach your employees on confidence. It seems to be one of those things you’ve either got or you don’t.

Here is a nice resource with examples on how to gain some credibility in this area. In many cases, your employees represent YOU! If they don’t appear confident and credible… neither do you.