Kathleen is a guest on the Hardcore MBA podcast this week talking about the work / life blend and putting you into the work you do. So in this minisode, she’s expanding on the idea of honesty and what that means for a creative entrepreneur when it comes to finding that balance and blend.
Kathleen Shannon 0:02
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Emily Thompson 0:29
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Kathleen Shannon 1:10
Hey bosses, Kathleen here this week, I'm talking with Matthew Turner over on the hardcore MBA podcast. This episode was really digging into the work life blend. And as I was sharing my thoughts on blending who you are into the work you do, versus you know that work life balance or even work life separation, I realized that the idea of a blend isn't really super tangible or specific. So after a bit of reflection, I have decided that blending who you are and aligning who you are personally and professionally, is really just about being honest. So I wanted to share a couple of examples of what honesty really looks like for me. So first, it looks like being transparent when I don't have the answers. Even if I'm faking it until I'm making it I never pretend to know something that I don't. So if I don't have the answers, I'm honest about it. So I can ask the right questions and learn and grow from there.
Kathleen Shannon 2:12
Second, being honest, looks like telling my business partner about something that might be going on in my personal life that is affecting me professionally. So if you've been following being boss for a while, you know that I've suffered from sleep deprivation and insomnia. And that has certainly affected my work, but even like going through rough mom moments. So one of the things I love doing is chatting with my business partner, whether it's Emily or my sister over a braid, and just saying like, okay, here's what's going on. And man, I'm kind of bummed out about it. But even just acknowledging those personal trials and tribulations can allow me to get it off my chest, and then really focus on work. And then finally, being really honest, looks like distilling my expertise into easy to understand concepts for my audience. So the way that I like to think about this is we're constantly getting in the weeds with our own work, and really being able to balance pulling out of that, and looking at your expertise from a broad view, like so when can you go in and do broad strokes on what you're talking about? And then when can you go in and fill in the details. And so for me, really balancing those broad strokes with those details, is what being honest looks like. But with all this work life blend, I also want you all to know that I believe in professionalism.
Kathleen Shannon 3:34
And I think that there are really important boundaries that you have to put in play. And you have to be especially aware of these gray areas whenever you don't always draw a line between work and life. In some ways, I think that people who work in corporate America with work clothes that are different from their life, clothes and work attitudes that are buttoned up and clearly defined, that are separate from their private Instagram accounts in some way have an easier, they've got these little boxes, that they can compartmentalize the different parts of their life in. And as creative entrepreneurs, we just don't have that. But I also feel that the blend is what helps us find meaning and purpose in our work and our lives. Alright, Anyway, enough of my meandering on this. Here's a quick clip from the show that I recorded with Matthew.
Matthew Turner 4:26
I was I was looking on your site, I was diving for your things. Now I was saying okay, you're all about brand insights. You're all about helping people build, as you said earlier, the personal brand. But what I really took notice of what really stood out for me was this focus and this alignment of work and life. Something that's been close to my heart recently this idea of bridging together your personal and your professional self. So you can have your personal self coming through for business stories so your businesses and taking over your personal life. It sounds like the And that balance means a great deal to me. Can you just tell us a little bit about how you help people align those what it personally means to you balancing those two big juggling balls?
Kathleen Shannon 5:11
Yeah, sure, um, you know, whenever it comes to being a creative entrepreneur and doing work that is fulfilling, and that you feel good about at the end of the day, it means to be driven by who you are. And I think that whenever you can really tap into what doesn't change about you, your values, your vision, what you're trying to create in the world, whenever you can really tap into what doesn't change, like, what are the themes that remain the same no matter what you have to offer or what you're selling. I think that's where your personal brand really starts to play into what you're making professionally. And I think that whenever you can do that, you just really get a sense of purpose and alignment. And listen, being a creative entrepreneur is not the easiest thing in the world. Like there are a lot of battles. There's a lot of failure, there's a lot of rejection, there's a lot of self doubt and questioning. But whenever you are firm and Okay, at least I know who I am, you can always just feel like you're on the right path, you know, and that your next step is taking you to where you need to go. And of course, you can hear more at hardcore nba.com or I'm sure that you can just type that into wherever you're listening to podcasts, and listen to it there. Alright, see you all next time.
Kathleen Shannon 6:40
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Emily Thompson 6:54
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