Unlock the Shortcut

Many of us believe that we perform at our best when the conditions and circumstances are "just right". We’re in our comfort zone, we’re on our second or third (or fourth) cup of coffee, and the wi-fi is flowing like fine wine. (Or something like that.) But that's not true. It’s an illusion. We think that is what we need to be our best – and we make excuses about those factors not being present all...

Alright, let’s be real. We’ve all been to one of those so-called ‘networking events’ where you slap on a name tag, shake a bunch of hands, and collect a small stack of business cards that you will—100%—never look at again. And if you’re thinking, ‘Nah, I totally follow up,’ let me ask you this: Do you remember the last three people you met at one of those things? Exactly. Today, we’re going to fix...

Ever been on a team where it feels like your team is disengaged, dysfunctional, uncooperative, or uninspired? Yeah, it sucks. It feels like no matter how hard you try, how much effort you put in, how much quality you strive for in your output, it’s just not enough. It feels like you just can’t win.  I’ve been there too, and the pain is real. But let’s not sulk in this sad swamp of sullenness. Inst...

November rolls around, and suddenly, gratitude is trending harder than pumpkin spice lattes. Here in the U.S., Thanksgiving sets the stage for feasting, gathering, and (hopefully) counting our blessings. For a few fleeting moments, we pause to reflect on the people and things we cherish most. But let’s face it: once the turkey’s gone and the holiday decor makes its way back into storage, (because...

Stop expecting so much from your employees, your family, and yourself. It’s a waste of time and a perpetual fountain of disappointment.  Sounds ridiculous, right? But, hear me out.  I’m not suggesting you lower the bar of what you’d like to see happen in those around you. And I’m certainly not asking you to stop pushing yourself to higher and higher levels. What I am suggesting is that you conside...

You’ve probably struggled at some point with the age-old enigma of time management. You’ve wrestled with the hours, but the hours always win.  You know why? You’re fighting the wrong fight. Time management is not finding a way to manage time. It is finding a way to manage discomfort – the discomfort of maintaining focus. Not tasks, not time, but focus! Yeah, that’s right. I said it. You are not go...

Hello, I'm Jimmy Glenos, the Life & Leadership Locksmith and welcome to Unlock the Shortcut. Today we take a departure from my typical format because I want to share a great conversation I had with a new friend of mine, Max Palomeque. Max is an Air Force Veteran, FBI Veteran, author, public speaker, certified leadership coach. His new book, the Infourge Compendium of Models and Theories for Co...

When we think of self-care, most of us imagine spa days, yoga, meditation, or maybe a well-deserved vacation—anything to break away from the grind. But here’s the question you didn’t know you needed to ask: Could time-blocking actually be the most powerful form of self-care? Even though we’ve all done it at some point, we don’t really enjoy time-blocking. And that’s probably because we don’t yet u...

Are you looking forward to going to work today? Or do you feel a sense of dread or stress just wishing you could do anything else but go to work? It happens. Some days you’re ready to embrace the day, and other days you’re ready to race for the nearest exit.  But what if you could find a way to embrace the day every day? Bring a little more fun into your life. What would that feel like? What could...

[Inhale ------ Exhale] Go ahead. You do it too. Take a nice deep breath. Come on…you know you want to. [Inhale ------ Exhale] That’s it. Feels good, right? Of course it does. You’re doing what comes naturally and easily with virtually no effort at all. Your body does this for you all day and all night automatically. Your brain keeps you alive and primed for peak performance via your breath.  Don’t...

If we want to increase our happiness through money we should find ways to make more of it so we can buy more of the things that will make us happier, right? While reasonable enough, that doesn’t seem to work very well. There are plenty of miserable millionaires and billionaires. “Mo’ money, mo’ problems.” The critical link between money and happiness is learning to focus on the ways we spend our m...

Today we dig a little deeper into our habits and the importance of leaning into our tendencies to ensure we commit to the habits we want to achieve, start them effectively, and maintain them efficiently. If you didn’t read the previous post, Building Better Habits , I highly recommend you do so in order to get a good understanding of habit formation and how to maximize your results.  Gretchen Rubi...

Well, it’s February and we are long past Blue Monday. That is the third Monday of January. And it’s the day that most New Year’s Resolutions die of abuse, neglect, or abandonment. And what I mean by that is typically by that third Monday, most folks have either had so many “cheat days”, missed so many days at the gym, eaten pizza instead of greens, not written their blog post, or have completely f...

Ah, the end of the year—the perfect time to reflect on the rollercoaster of emotions that was the past twelve months – the accomplishments and the hardships, the celebrations and the setbacks. It’s all in there. And you’re a hard-working, ambitious professional, so you’ve probably got a lot to look back on. And you should. In order to continue to make meaningful progress, you need to know where yo...

You’re excited you don’t have to go to work today, because it is Thanksgiving Day. (If you’re lucky enough to work for an organization that is closed today, you get a chance to relax and enjoy time with family or maybe just bathe in some well-deserved “me-time”.)   Whatever your scenario, remember to take a moment to pause and give thanks for all the beauty and bounty in your life. Wishing you a w...

In our last coaching session, we began our journey into the other AI – Appreciative Inquiry. If you recall, Appreciative Inquiry is the method of solving problems with a strengths-based approach, which employs a 4D Cycle – Discover, Dream, Design, and Destiny.  And if you also recall, I took the liberty of changing the last phase from Destiny to Dare, because it is a more active approach to solvin...

We’ve all heard of AI (Artificial Intelligence). But there is a different kind of AI that can have profound effects individually and professionally in our lives and in our workplaces.  I’m talking about Appreciative Inquiry.  “What is this”, you might be asking. Well, let me explain a bit of the background and then we’ll explore how to use AI as a shortcut into a more appreciative work and life ex...

Have you ever wondered what a life coach, an executive coach, or a leadership coach does?  Do they consult, mentor, train, guide, counsel, cheer? What is it that coaches actually do? Well, different coaches do different things and some of those I’ve just listed. You may have also heard that coaches don’t have any of the answers, but they do have all the right questions. Yeah, it’s kinda hard to im...

In the last episode, we talked about the history of automation, computing, and artificial intelligence. We’ve come a long way from Hephaestus and Pygmalion. And we’ve seen computers get the upper hand when it comes to games like chess and Jeopardy. But what comes next, and how do we cope with change in the age of disruption? The great news is you can be a part of this disruption. In fact, you shou...

The robots are coming! The robots are coming! People have been saying this for decades. And while the robots have slowly been taking over our workplace, our kitchens, and even our parenting duties to some degree, nothing will be more transformative over the next five to ten years as AI and ChatGPT. You’ve probably heard or read a fair amount about AI and ChatGPT over the past couple of years and c...

You can only steer a moving vehicle.  Wait, what? Yeah, that’s right. You can only steer a vehicle that is actually moving.  That’s just science.  Basically, according to Newton’s Laws of Motion, an object at rest remains at rest, and an object in motion remains in motion at constant speed and in a straight line unless acted on by an unbalanced force. Guess what you are in that equation. Yeah, you...

Have you ever felt like you weren’t qualified to do your job? Like you're not really sure you’re cut out to do the work and someone else who’s smarter could be doing a lot better right now? Or if you’re honest with yourself, you’re pretty sure you just got lucky in the interview? And you know, you just know that someday soon, your boss will realize they’ve made a big mistake because you are way in...

Put on your lucky shirt, cuz we’re going to Vagus! No, not Las Vegas. Today, we’re visiting the vagus nerve. “The what?” you’re probably saying. The vagus nerve. It might just be the most important part of your body that you’ve never heard of. Well, I’m sure some of you have, but most of you are maybe wondering, “What the heck it that and why have I never heard of it?” Well, don’t worry, because a...

Pack up all your troubles because today is moving day! It’s time to move from your current state of being to the one you’ve been hoping for, and maybe even dreaming about. Maybe you’re wallowing around in the wasted space of lethargy. Maybe you’re enduring the massive burden of overwhelm trying to balance the demands at work and at home. Or maybe you’re stuck in the gripping fear of moving into th...

Some things just come naturally. And they can be done with a single action. Throwing a ball, kicking a ball, cooking an egg, reading a book, delivering a speech, delegating a task, or giving feedback. Ok, maybe all of those don’t come naturally. But they can all be done with a single action.  Other skills take time to develop and hone, like throwing a strike, scoring a goal, making an omelet, writ...