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In the last episode I continued our exploration of the Cycle of Change using the analogy of a card game which was first introduced to me by iPEC Coaching.

If you have not listened to the first two episodes covering the Cycle of Change, I recommend you go back to the episodes. They are titled How to Process These Unexpected Changes and Contemplating Your New Normal, respectively.

These are quick episodes and will catch you up on The Cycle of Change as it looks during the COVID-19 pandemic, or really any time of crisis.

I mentioned in Contemplating Your New Normal that when you move into the Shuffle Phase you require more time to reflect and begin researching different options for the future.

You start doing some research and reaching out to others who know more about whatever it is you are exploring. In the Shuffle phase you don’t have a lot of information yet, so you are thinking and gathering, exploring ideas, imagining different possibilities that could play out in the future.

The Cycle of Change

 

Phase 2: Deal (Preparing/Developing)

The next phase in the Cycle of Change, using that card game analogy, is The “Deal” phase. The Deal phase is marked by an increase in activity – this will include active networking, testing out interests or experimenting, training and skill building.

The plan that was developed in the Shuffle phase is beginning put into action!

You will have more energy and a more positive attitude because now you can actually do something. You are following a path; you have a direction to go in.

You’re open to new experiences, new people, and preparing yourself for the intensity of the next phase.

When you are in the Deal phase you are more optimistic, seeing life as an opportunity, and you experience more confidence in this stage than in any other. You are the proverbial adventurous student of life eager to stretch, learn, and grow in new directions.

Think about it. When you’re playing a card game and the cards are being dealt, there’s so much opportunity. It’s anyone’s game at this point.

When you first enter this the Deal phase in life, you will shy away from making commitments. Remember, this is the phase of experimenting and because of this you’ll tend to want to keep your options open and take things “one step at a time.”

What’s important in The Deal phase is your ability to move to the point where you can make a choice to move forward with commitment and make something happen. You may not know how it’s all going to turn out but you are ready to execute your plan.

Here you’ll also be looking around for allies, mentors and guides who can help to see you through the next phase successfully.

You’re now developing a plan that will take you into the next phase, beyond networking and experimenting.

You will identify one or more goals for the next phase, and thus the work at the end of The Deal Phase is to have a strategy and a plan formed that lays out the steps that will take you to your goal.

Anticipation, excitement and energy will increase as you gain more clarity around all of these pieces.

There is also fear of failure or success, likely a combination of both, but you will be poised for action.

The Deal Phase During COVID-19

You may have experienced the full cycle of change during the COVID-19 pandemic in certain areas of your life. There is no definitive length of time that you need to spend in each phase, what’s important is that you are doing the work in each phase.

You may have found that with some things in your life you felt grieving and despair, a longing for what was. This may have passed relatively quickly as you contemplated and absorbed the changes.

You may have then found yourself reaching out to others to see what they were doing or going to Google or Youtube to find ideas for how to do things differently.

Before you knew it, you may have found yourself experimenting with your new ideas and noting what worked and what didn’t work.

And not long after you found yourself saying, “This is what I’m doing. I’m all in.”

For other things in your life, you may find yourself still in the Toss In, unable to accept that things won’t be the same, at least not anytime soon.

What will be helpful to you in the Deal phase is:

Having a vision of what success will look like in the next phase.

This will not only get you excited for what’s to come but may also help to identify any gaps in resources or training that you will need to set you up for success.

In the last phase you were identifying your core values and how you wanted to live your life. Here, it’s also important to know what brings you alive, what value you want to bring and at least a sense of what your purpose or mission is.

If you can connect your goals to these things it will fuel your fire.

However, don’t overthink it, experiment with what you want to bring forth in this phase.

For instance, in my case I can boil down my purpose to the statement, “my purpose is to wake people up to how awesome they already are so they can get on with their purpose.”

That is clearly tied to the goals I have for Women Taking the Lead and yes, it fuels my fire. It motivates me on the days when I can’t see progress or I just don’t feel like it.

Start with the change you’d like to see in the world and let it unfold from there.

If you are externally motivated, find an accountability partner or and accountability group.

This will help you keep up momentum. That’s not to say you cannot pivot based on what you are learning from your networking and experimenting.

Forward movement coming from informed decisions is what you are looking for here and the accountability will help ensure that this is what’s happening.

Also, having trusted advisors who have your highest good at heart and who can listen intently, cheer you on, and help you clarify your next steps is priceless.

If you have someone like this who is also great at setting priorities and making a plan, especially if this is not your forte, that’s a bonus!

If you are in this phase and you have not yet read my book Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to Doing I’m going to strongly encourage you do so. A lot of what you need to do to navigate The Deal phase successfully is in this book.

From creating a vision of success, to getting at your core values, your purpose and mission, Superpowers, and even creating goals and designing a plan are in this book. It’s a tool you do not want missing from your toolkit.

You can find the paperback and kindle version of Accomplished in Amazon, and as soon as I can get into the Portland Pod recording studio once again, I will have the book recorded, mastered and uploaded into Audible for your listening pleasure as well. Stay tuned for that!

If you have read Accomplished and you are finding yourself in The Deal Phase, read it again. This book is a process that will take you to new levels of knowing yourself and finding success with each reading.

Okay, that’s The Deal phase. We only have one more phase to cover, Playing the Game phase and I’ll be covering that in next week’s episode.

As always, I hope this was of value to you and here’s to your success!

Resources

Leadership Coaching. Are you looking for leadership coaching? Schedule a time to chat with Jodi to explore the potential of coaching and above all, what it can do for you.

Register for the How to Get Mentally Fit webinar. Learn the 3 core muscles to build mental fitness, as well as the Positive Intelligence operating system to sustain it.

Saboteur Assessment. Find out which Saboteurs are impacting your performance, wellness and relationships, and also how they do it.

Apply to be on an “On-Air Coaching” episode. Are you a female leader who has been promoted in the last year? Apply to be on the podcast.

Leadership Operating System Inventory. Wondering what leadership traits you have? Take this FREE, FAST self-assessment and find out more about yourself as a Leader.

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to Doing. A simple, step-by-step system that gives you the foundation as well as the structure to take your goals and make them happen.

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