In this episode, I’m catching up with my former client, Jaime Ellis, a recovering corporate America executive turned career coach. 

In this conversation, Jaime shares her journey from a place of overwhelm where she was drowning in projects and desperately looking for a way through that period of intense deliverables without burning herself out. 

Press play to hear how after her body “pulled the emergency brake” on her, she had no choice but to slow down, reset, and find a way to do things differently in her business. 

 Listen in as we discuss:

• What prompted Jaime to make the move from corporate executive to entrepreneurship
• Unhealthy habits that Jaime had to break when transitioning from the corporate world into her own business
• How Jaime originally joined Half-Finished to Done, LIVE to find a hack for getting everything done—only to discover that it wasn’t actually possible
• Specific examples where Jaime created equal and better results with less time, effort, and energy
• How the Bare Minimum Challenge taught Jaime how to be more honest, upfront, transparent and vulnerable with her commitments 
• How to accept constructive feedback on your projects and not make it mean anything about you
• Operating from a cruising vs. white-knuckling mentality
• Valuable advice for anyone who has joined the Half-Finished to Done, LIVE program but hasn’t yet started

Jaime is a former B2B Tech Marketing Executive turned entrepreneur and coach, specializing in career transitions. She’s passionate about finding solutions and speaking about burnout, stress debt, and Achievement Dysmorphia. 

GUEST CONTACT — 

Jaime Ellis, Executive Coach for Career Transitions

Website

LinkedIn

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Half-Finished to Done, LIVE 45-minute consult

The Bare Minimum Challenge

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily and Amelia Nagoski

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast.

If you’ve ever considered yourself an overthinker, this episode is for you. 

Our guest on the show today is my former client, Kim Witten. In this episode, she talks about how participating in Half-Finished to Done, LIVE after completing the 5-day Bare Minimum Challenge helped her reduce dread, anxiety, and tinkering in her business. 

She now gets more done in a way that she likes, with less effort and more confidence. 

Listen in as we discuss:

• Why Kim decided to join Half-Finished to Done, LIVE
• The philosophies that Kim has taken from our work together into her business
• The value of self-agreement in your business
• What to do when you think that your values are at odds
• How Kim has learned to deal with anxiety and dread in her business
• The Accomplishment Triad, and Kim’s take on this concept
• How Kim has used the Bare Minimum Challenge, and the results she’s created because of it
• Kim’s transition from an overthinker to a deep thinker 

Kim is a transformational coach and research consultant, who helps overwhelmed creatives turn their overthinking into expert thinking. Driven by her desire to understand the human experience, she uses insights to help people and organizations adapt to change with intention, confidence, and purpose.

She loves to connect with people and learn about their projects, their pain points, their impossible goals, and whatever else they’re thinking about.

GUEST CONTACT — 

Kim Witten, Transformational Coach 

Website

LinkedIn

Hold That Thought newsletter

RESOURCES MENTIONED

Lunchclub

Half-Finished to Done, LIVE

The Bare Minimum Challenge

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle with Emily Nagoski & Amelia Nagoski

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast.

Conventional wisdom says that we need to shore up our weaknesses. But what if it’s actually better (and more enjoyable) to build a business that capitalizes on your strengths?

When you make a conscious effort to understand and leverage your strengths, you’ll be more energized, engaged, and successful when it comes to your projects. 

Today’s conversation is with Becca Syme, a Success Coach. Listen in as we discuss how you can increase your performance by doing more of what comes naturally to you. 

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The philosophy behind the Gallup StrengthFinder test 
• Mine and Becca’s top five strengths 
• How to figure out your work style, based on your strengths
• Creating strengths-based systems that work for you in your business
• How to discern what productivity advice to take and what to reject
• The benefit of finally acknowledging the habits you don’t actually want to change 
• How to be a better consumer of coaching programs by knowing yourself better

Becca Syme is a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach and holds a Master’s degree in Transformational Leadership. She is the host of the Quitcast for Writers and the teacher of the popular Write Better-Faster class. Becca has coached 5700+ authors using success alignment and predictive reasoning to help authors write and market better-faster. She lives in the mountains of Montana where it is always winter and never Christmas.

GUEST CONTACT — 

Becca Syme, Success Coach

YouTube: The QuitCast

Website: Better-Fast Academy

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE —

StrengthsFinder Test

Half-Finished to Done, LIVE

The Guide for How to Get Into a Deep Work State ($27)

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

In order to be a calm, self-assured, repeat project finisher, you need to focus on mastering just 3 skill sets.

You’ve heard these 3 skill sets talked about here and there on the podcast, but this is the first time I’m addressing all 3 together, and explaining what they have in common. 

The 3 skill sets that every project finisher needs:

• Deep work: The ability to focus on one high-impact result for 60-75 minutes 
• Monday Hour One: The ability to plan out your entire week in just one hour per week 
• Project planning: The ability to manage a project across an 8-week sprint 

Here’s the good news:

1. 1. They’re all fundamentally the same skill set; once you master one, you can more easily master the next one
   2. You’re probably already doing these 3 skills more than you think you are
   3. You don’t need to be a total expert in these 3 skills in order to finish projects; you just need to do them slightly more than you’re currently doing them

These questions will help you track your progress as you develop and improve these skill sets: 

• Deep work: On a scale of 1-10, how would you self-assess yourself on the ability to focus on demand on your most important work, for 60-75 minutes at a time?
• Monday Hour One: On a scale of 1-10, how would you self-rate your ability to plan out your week in a way that works for you? 
• Project planning: On a scale of 1-10, how would you self-assess your ability to make a project plan for your most important project and execute on that plan all the way to completion, overcoming obstacles along the way?

I invite you to answer these questions and then send your answers to me on Instagram @piquecoaching. I’ll help you figure out where to focus first. 

RESOURCES MENTIONED —

Half-Finished to Done, LIVE 45-minute consult

Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work, Author: Dan Heath & Chip Heath

Monday Hour One: A New + Improved Time Blocking System

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

Our guest today is not only a former client of my Half-Finished to Done, LIVE program, she’s also my big sister, Sara Rose Whaley.

In this conversation, we’ll discuss how an afternoon spent organizing her bedroom led to a massive aha moment about how she manages overwhelm, in both her home life and in her business. 

Once she realized there was a way to work through her overwhelm, sense of urgency, and anxiety, Sara begged me to let her join Half-Finished to Done, LIVE—and I finally let her 🙂 

Listen in as we discuss:

• How overwhelm manifests in your body
  
• Sara’s initial hesitations around joining Half-Finished to Done, LIVE 
• How she far exceeded the financial goal she set for herself at the beginning of our 8 weeks together
• Sara’s newfound understanding that she doesn’t need a lot of time in her business in order to create value 
• How she learned to create clarity on demand using the 3-step Anti–Procrastination Cycle
• The ripple effects that Sara has seen in her home life, with her kids, and in her marriage since going through the program
• Sara’s advice to anyone interested in joining Half-Finished to Done LIVE 

As a parent coach and board-certified behavior analyst with 15 years of experience, Sara Rose Whaley helps families increase their joy during the toddler stage. She addresses all the components that affect this including: marriage dynamics, mom guilt and burnout, and toddler behavior strategies. She is currently fully living the toddler stage with her 2 kids: ages 4 and 2.5. 

GUEST CONTACT — 

Sara Rose Whaley, Parent Coach and Behavior Analyst

Joyful Toddler Parenting website

Instagram: @JoyfulToddlerParenting

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

If you’ve ever put off looking at or dealing with your business numbers because of overwhelm, insecurity, or confusion—this episode is for you.   

In this episode, I’m joined by Keila Hill-Trawick, who runs Little Fish Accounting, a CPA firm for small businesses. Keila helps small businesses thrive through her transparent, easy-to-understand approach to accounting.

In this episode, Keila and I chat about financial procrastination, which happens even with successful business owners. 

Listen in as we discuss:

• How anxiety can show up as being hyper-productive in your business
• Why rest can feel so intolerable if you’re a high-achiever
• How the pressure to convey an even-keeled persona creates emotional perfectionism
• How to simplify your life to free up more time and energy to focus on your wellbeing
• How procrastination around finances shows up in your business
• How to self-evaluate your finances by looking at the data, separating it from your own opinion, and then making a calm strategic plan for moving forward
• What the most confident and strategic clients of Little Fish Accounting are doing differently
• Top beliefs about money and finances that every business owner should have

Little Fish provides compliance and advisory services to professional service providers with tiny teams—including me! They advise freelancers, solopreneurs and small businesses in reaching their financial goals to build and grow the businesses of their dreams.

GUEST CONTACT — 

Keila Hill-Trawick, Owner of Little Fish Accounting

Podcast: Fish Food

Little Fish Accounting Instagram: @littlefishcccounting

Little Fish Accounting Newsletter

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE —

EP. 20 The Oprah Million Dollar Challenge

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

Do you ever feel like you can’t get yourself to act, even though you say you want to?

If you want to finish extraordinary projects in your business, you need to know how to take action on demand.

This skill set is at the root of every single thing that you want to create and do in your life and business. 

In this episode, I’m explaining how to use the Model—a tool created by The Life Coach School— as a way to understand how you operate and why. 

Once you have this clarity, you can start to sustainably take action on your most important projects, whenever you want to. 

This is part of the work we do in my 8-week program, Half-Finished to Done, LIVE. If you want to master the skill of taking action on demand, click here to learn more and join.

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

One of the biggest perks of running your own business is the ability to take tons of time off—for vacations and trips, for a mini-sabbatical, to handle a personal issue, or for a parental leave.

And yet—so few business owners take full advantage of this benefit, because we’re never taught how to effectively take long chunks of time away from our businesses without them suffering.

In this episode, I’m joined by business coach Kat Arapis to talk about how to set up your business to take time off, while still getting your work done in a way that you love and hitting your goals. 

Kat has first-hand experience with this, from planning her own recent maternity leave, so I knew she’d be the perfect person to chat with on the podcast.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Why your goals don’t have to suffer because you take a sabbatical from your business 
• How to cut out the external noise, so that you can plan a break that works for you
• Powerful questions to ask yourself when planning your business breaks    
• How to actually put your plan into action, then step away from your business
• Selecting the best projects to prioritize while on your break
• How to use automations during your business break

Kat Arapis is a Master Business Coach, who teaches entrepreneurs to simplify + master creating never-ending clients so they can scale $100k at a time in less than 20 hours/per week. Without the hustle, pressure, or busy work.

GUEST CONTACT — 

Kat Arapis, Master Business Coach

Instagram

Facebook Page: Entrepreneurs Salon

Website

Podcast: Simplify to Scale

$0 Never-Ending Clients Course

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE —

EP. 08 The Anti-Procrastination Challenge 

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

If you’re a successful business owner who feels like you’re getting things done but you know things in your business could be a bit more organized, controlled and less complicated, then this episode is for you.

Our guest today is another two-time client of my Half-Finished to Done, LIVE program, Jenny Blake.

In this episode, Jenny shares how participating in the Monday One Hour 5-Day Challenge and being part of Half-Finished to Done, LIVE has streamlined her day-to-day experience in her business. Through our work together, she has shifted from feeling messy and disorganized to a more present, grounded business owner.

Listen in as we discuss: 

• How the Monday Hour One 5-Day Challenge changed Jenny from feeling messy to feeling more reliable and organized in her day-to-day life.
• How Jenny was using external things to try and solve her internal emotions
• The power of learning about the “Do, dump, delegate, delay” principle
• Implementing the concept of “just being” to create more open, unscheduled free time for yourself

Jenny is the CEO of Jenny the Nutritionist, is a Licensed Nutritionist who helps professional ladies who lift weights change their body composition by being well-fed and properly fueled. She’s helped hundreds of ladies build their shape, understand the Nutrition Strategy, and create a Nutrition Routine to serve them long-term in her program, Create Your Shape.

GUEST CONTACT — 

Jenny Blake, Nutrition Coach

Instagram: @jennythenutritionist

Podcast: Create Your Shape with Jenny the Nutritionist

Website  

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast. 

If you’ve tried something in the past to solve your business challenges and you feel like it didn’t work, this episode is for you.

Clients who join my program, Half-Finished to Done, LIVE, are often hesitant to enroll because they’ve tried other programs, podcasts, books, and productivity methods to solve their challenges with time management, procrastination, and focus, to no avail. 

I call this productivity baggage. It’s very normal but it’s solvable. 

It can be super frustrating to feel like you went all in on something in the past, and it didn’t work. These experiences can hold you back from wanting to say yes to another potential solution in the future.

First, stop beating yourself up about having failed at something in the past. Instead, give yourself a moment to appreciate your past efforts, even though they didn’t pan out the way you wanted them to.

Then, experiment with these two ideas:

1. Everything that you try is not meant to stick long term
2. When you try something and you don’t want to use it, that doesn’t mean that it didn’t work. It means that by process of elimination, you figured out that wasn’t your thing—and that’s a good thing!

Lastly, let’s talk about what to do next. Listen in as I share the #1 thing that you can do in order to have more peace around your past decisions.

When you find the next thing that you want to say yes to, you’ll be able to do it from a much healthier, more relaxed place, knowing that you’re making the right decision.

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

Half-Finished to Done, LIVE 45-minute consult

Podcast episode: More self-awareness, focus, + creativity with morning pages

You can listen to this episode using the audio player above, or find it on your preferred podcasting app by searching for the Half-Finished to Done Podcast.