In Brendon Burchard's The Motivation Manifesto, there’s a powerful declaration that resonates with anyone striving to live a life of intention: "We shall reclaim our agenda." This declaration isn’t just about taking control of our time; it's about protecting our energy, our goals, and our sense of self-worth. I found myself in a situation where I had to learn this lesson the hard way—a story that reflects both my struggles and triumphs of reclaiming my 'agenda'.

The Trap of People-Pleasing

When I first started out as an independent consultant exactly 10 years ago from this day, I was eager to prove myself. So, when someone I saw as a potential client asked for my help with a significant business/IT challenge their organization faced, I jumped at the opportunity. He needed ideas on how to approach this problem, and I was more than willing to assist. Over the course of a few weeks, I spent over 40 hours brainstorming, creating slides, and refining solutions...

Have you ever felt that you didn’t care (enough) for yourself? Or that you didn’t care (enough) for others? They are closer connected than you might think. 

I have the blessing that I always have people around me who care for me: my family, my friends, my colleagues and even my clients. That is something that I’m much more aware of now, but that awareness wasn’t always there. I took the care I received from others for granted. 

On the other hand, you may think that people you care for, always know that you care for them, but that is also not always the case. How you care and the level of care is not always felt and appreciated by the other on the receiving end. 

So many different people, so many different needs and different expectations of what care they want, and they give (back). Have you experienced that you did everything in your power to arrange something (care) for somebody, but they didn’t experience it in the way that you...