Laura Barker Coaching

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HR pro turned ✨ Career Coach 🫶 📚CPCC, ACC 📚 I help you build a Life fully loved 📲 Try my FREE mini-course Becoming Your Best Self ⬇️
https://linktr.ee/laurabarkercoaching

Today’s the day! Join me at 𝙉𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙀𝙎𝙏 for a lunch & learn webinar on 𝙈𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙁𝙞𝙩𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨. ➡️Build positive habits for a powerf...
06/20/2023

Today’s the day! Join me at 𝙉𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙀𝙎𝙏 for a lunch & learn webinar on 𝙈𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙁𝙞𝙩𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨.

➡️Build positive habits for a powerful mind.
➡️Support your wellness, performance, and relationships through the tools you’ll learn from this live session

Sign up here: https://pages.laurabarkercoaching.com/pq

06/15/2023

I consider myself a positive person. Years ago, I did my StrengthsFinder and it reinforced what I already knew. Positivity was one of my Top 5 Strengths.

So why did I cycle into negativity, which for me manifests as anxiety, and then not know how to get out of it?

This was the conundrum.

What I did was band-aid my struggles instead of dealing with them, and that worked … until it didn’t.

It wasn’t until years later that I learned about saboteurs and their impact on our emotional state and negative thinking.

I learned that I’m not alone in this, it doesn’t mean I’m “broken,” and there are ways out of it. In fact, everyone can do this, move from a negative to a positive mindset. You just need to learn how, like I did.

You can create a more positive mindset by laying down neural pathways to form new habits through regular daily practice. It starts by identifying your saboteurs (negative thoughts) and strengthening your sage (positive thoughts).

When you’re positive, you give and receive freely, relationships improve, you problem solve with ease, and, truly, the world is brighter.

I’m running a Mental Fitness Webinar on Tuesday, June 20th at noon. Join me to find out how you can respond to life’s challenges with a positive rather than a negative mindset. I look forward to seeing you there!

Webinar Registration Link: https://pages.laurabarkercoaching.com/pq

When I was asked to give advice to future women in business leadership, I paused for a moment before responding. Did I w...
06/12/2023

When I was asked to give advice to future women in business leadership, I paused for a moment before responding.

Did I want to add to the cacophony of voices telling women to “lean in” and “do their best” and “work smarter, not harder?”

It’s not that any of this advice is bad. Much of it is really good, actually, when accompanied with actionable steps.

What I struggled with is that these voices feel like they come from a place of lack. When you hear, “Do this” there’s an implied, “Don’t do that.”

Instead, I recommended looking within yourself instead of externally. Find your purpose.

When you have a purpose associated with what you do, you will grow your leadership bigger and faster.

Your impact becomes greater as you align yourself internally and externally.

From that place of resonance, you lead with conviction and strength.

What would you advise future women in business leadership?



13 Tips for Future Women in Business Leadership: https://startupnation.com/grow-your-business/thought-leadership/13-tips-for-future-women-in-leadership-terkel-farmiloe/

06/08/2023

FOMO, the fear of missing out, is a limiting belief based in anxiety.

FOMO can show up in unexpected ways:

🙈Loss of temper
🙈Disengagement
🙈Spinning your wheels

Combat FOMO by giving yourself permission to rest.

It’s okay to say no to an event, colleague, or friend so you can recharge your own batteries.

Remind yourself that NO is a complete sentence.

How do you handle FOMO?

Ever heard of the “6-to-9?” I hadn’t, until I read an article this morning about the amount of hours Gen Zs are putting ...
06/05/2023

Ever heard of the “6-to-9?” I hadn’t, until I read an article this morning about the amount of hours Gen Zs are putting in to work. The 6-to-9 refers to time spent on your side hustle before going to your regular 9-to-5 job.

I get it. I think all of us, not just Gen Zs, have felt the need to prove ourselves especially in those early stages of the career.

And our culture admires and even glorifies hyper-productivity.

What I can share as a mid-career woman is the impact of that hyper-productivity, not just personally but as a former HR professional.

The cost of that hyper-productivity over time is a devaluing of your emotions – because they get in the way of getting stuff done – and a conditioning in which your self-acceptance is predicated on the next success.

My recommendation? Recognize that external achievement won’t make you happy. It’s like a Cookie Monster that’s never sated. As soon as you feed it one cookie, it needs another.

Look within. Identify your values. If your side hustle comes from your values, it is internally driven and will sustain you over the long term. I’m not anti-side hustle. I want it to come from the right place, from you internally not from external pressure.

What are your thoughts on hyper-productivity? Motivator or de-motivator?

Have you heard of Doughnut Economics?Kate Raworth argues that the 20th century economic model of endless growth cannot c...
05/15/2023

Have you heard of Doughnut Economics?

Kate Raworth argues that the 20th century economic model of endless growth cannot continue. It will eventually collapse.

While the current economic model has provided the stability to deal with many entrenched social problems such as gender inequality, better health and educational systems, and a healthy political voice, it’s not sustainable.

Raworth says we need a new economic model that integrates social and environmental considerations.

Her new economic model focuses on thriving instead of growth. In this model, the goal is to live within the doughnut, hence, “doughnut economics.”

When you live in the doughnut, you and everything around you thrive. The inner and outer circles become the boundaries that give the balance needed for humans, animals, and the earth to thrive.

Let’s find a way to combine personal thriving with a larger thriving of the earth, economic systems, and society.

I think doughnut economics is the way to go. And it’s not just me who thinks so. The city of Amsterdam created its business plan based on the model in April 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ziw-wK03TSw&t=5s

What are your thoughts on Doughnut Economics, a model based on thriving instead of (endless) growth?

Challenge appropriately.Each of us has strengths and weaknesses. In my former career as an HR professional, I saw way to...
05/10/2023

Challenge appropriately.

Each of us has strengths and weaknesses. In my former career as an HR professional, I saw way too much time spent “improving” weaknesses and not enough time on accentuating strengths.

To all the managers out there,

⇢ Challenge your team by focusing on their sᴛʀᴇɴɢᴛʜs.

If someone enjoys public speaking, let them present a project update at the next meeting. If another enjoys researching, challenge them to creatively explore concepts or ways to do things better. If a third loves to organize, let them do so.

Challenging appropriately elicits peak performance by focusing on strengths. Let others shine and, guess what? They will!

Stretch your team, not by asking them to improve a weakness, but by asking them to maximize their strengths.

Want more tips? Download my free guide on Coaching for Peak Performance.


Manager Guide for Peak Performance Coaching:

What if firms paid lawyers on a project/case basis OR as a team?After reading a re-posted Toronto Life article about a f...
05/08/2023

What if firms paid lawyers on a project/case basis OR as a team?

After reading a re-posted Toronto Life article about a female lawyer’s experiences at a prestigious Canadian law firm, I thought to myself there MUST be other ways to reward people monetarily for their work (link to article from my bio).

What I find is, companies (and I’m not just talking about law firms) tinker at the edges of current compensation models instead of going back to basics and asking,

➡️What do we want to accomplish when we reward our employees?

I realize standard practice for lawyers is billable hours. I think this model encourages more competition along with more time spent working AND playing because, yes, as you move up the ladder you’re expected to socialize with current and potential clients during your “off” hours.

So, what do we want to accomplish? And from there, let’s build a compensation model that suits the modern world.

Compensation models should reflect the values of the organization. If you say you value EDI, create a model that reflects it. If your organization values work-life balance primarily, build a total rewards system that supports it. You get what I mean.

What do you think about the billable hours model? Are there any lawyers or law firms out there experimenting with other compensation models?

Toronto is the friendliest city in the world, along with Sydney, according to an online language learning platform. Wond...
04/14/2023

Toronto is the friendliest city in the world, along with Sydney, according to an online language learning platform. Wonder how they calculated "friendliness?" Here are the categories they used:

✅ Friendly staff: % of reviews mentioning the word “friendly”
✅ Visitor return rate: % of repeat visitors
✅ Community respect: The city’s safety index score (for both natives and newcomers)
✅ Acceptance of diversity: The LGBTQ+ equality score
✅ Happiness: scored according to inhabitant responses
✅ Ease of communicating through a common language.

For more details, click my link in bio. Happy Friday!

Inspiration comes through words and actions. Modern leaders may inspire externally with a persuasive vision (“words”) bu...
04/12/2023

Inspiration comes through words and actions. Modern leaders may inspire externally with a persuasive vision (“words”) but it must be felt within to be sustained over time (“action”). Get my free Resource Guide (link in bio) to learn how.

“Don’t ask for feedback; ask for advice.” One of the regular challenges I faced in HR was around employees wanting feedb...
04/10/2023

“Don’t ask for feedback; ask for advice.”

One of the regular challenges I faced in HR was around employees wanting feedback and either not receiving it at all or inadequately.

I found managers avoided giving feedback unless it was positive OR couched in a “ #&$* sandwich."

People want feedback to do or be better. So, reframe “feedback” as “advice.”

This works from both the manager’s perspective – who is looking to shape and grow the employee – and the employee’s perspective – who is looking to grow.

🎤 Employee. Ask your manager for advice instead of feedback. Remember, most people LOVE giving advice.
🗣 Manager. Instead of critiquing, which is how feedback is often interpreted, share your advice on what you wish you had known that would have helped you change and grow sooner.

In the end, the best guidance is actionable. When there is no guidance, as often happens with the problematic term feedback, there’s no opportunity to take action and make changes.

Go ahead – ask for advice, not feedback.

Have you ever tried this tactic? Share in comments below.

Click link in my bio for more on this topic.

Jacinda Ardern’s final speech to the NZ Parliament this week exemplifies a style of leadership I admire, one that is hea...
04/07/2023

Jacinda Ardern’s final speech to the NZ Parliament this week exemplifies a style of leadership I admire, one that is heart-based. (Link to her full speech in my bio)

She says, "You can be anxious, sensitive, kind and wear your heart on your sleeve. You can be a mother, or not, an ex-Mormon, or not, a nerd, a crier, a hugger - you can be all of these things, and not only can you be here - you can lead."

It takes courage to lead with heart these days. You leave yourself open to attack. And yet, Ardern has demonstrated this path forward. She’s been attacked. To be fair, most leaders have. It seems to come with the job, unfortunately. But she hasn’t changed who she is.

We all need models to emulate, adjust, and make fit to our own ways of being.

What are your thoughts on heart-based leadership?

Address

Toronto, ON

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 4pm
Wednesday 1pm - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 4pm
Friday 8am - 3pm

Telephone

+16478814225

Website

https://linktr.ee/laurabarkercoaching

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