Power of Practice
Angela Cusack • May 21, 2020

We are always practicing something. The question lies in whether what you are practicing will get you where you want to go and where your company’s shareholders expect you to go. 

Let’s face it, we are blind to the practices we practice daily. We get up, do what we do, go to work, pick up the kids, make dinner, check-in with our parents, work some more, go to bed, and on and on and on. 

Many make reference to this cycle as the hamster wheel and I am often asked by executives when I think they can get off. What surprises them is that they have the power to practice differently.

We simply go through our daily rituals without considering why, what, or even how our unconscious practices impact our mind, body and energy levels. We also fail to consider the impact our attitude has on our desired result.

Neuroscience teaches us that our minds love shortcuts; preferring routines that do not require any real time for consideration. As human beings, we have the capacity—if the desire, passion and will are present—to change the way our brains automatically respond by re-configuring and creating new and different connection points. 

I won’t lie, it isn’t easy. The bonus, however, is tremendous if you step in and step up in owning the power to choose your practices moment by moment. 

I invite you to become consciously aware when choosing your practices—even the small ones. For example, how you enter your office; notice the energy in your body, where your attention falls, what distractions are allowed to immediately sneak in… in this moment what might you begin to stop, start, or continue practicing that enhances the success for yourself, your team, and your organization?

The choice is yours. Will you continue practicing the practices you’ve always practiced and pray for a new result or will you recognize and own your power in developing new practices and routines that create better futures for everyone? As many of my clients have begun to realize, igniting their success begins with designing the right practices and then consciously practicing them over and over until they become the shortcuts our brain craves.

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Constructive or Destructive Conversations? Which are you having?

By Angela Cusack, EdS, MCC & Michelle Vander Stouw, MPH, ACC • November 11, 2022
Conversations are rarely neutral. Conversations live on the spectrum of being productive to unproductive, constructive to destructive. The primary purpose of conversation is to coordinate and effectively move action forward for the sake of reaching a goal—ideally a shared goal.
A group of women are standing in a circle and smiling

Part II, The Truth About Trust

By Angela Cusack, EdS, MCC & Michelle Vander Stouw, MPH, ACC • November 11, 2022
Trust Requires Us to Be Adults. Not victims of circumstance. Not rescuers trying to fix or save colleagues relationships, making everyone feel a bit better. Not persecutors who look to place blame and foster shame in others.
woman book

Part II: Imagine Your Potential. Step Forward into Your Future Now!

By Angela Cusack, EdS, MCC & Michelle Vander Stouw, MPH, ACC • November 11, 2022
I took up golf later in life. Yet, it was a game that I had always been attracted to--a sport that when I was in my 20’s I attempted to learn, but my wallet wasn’t fat enough to allow it to happen. But I never lost sight of seeing myself playing the game well, competing against other women who likely had been playing a good portion of the lives.
The word trust is written on wooden blocks on a wooden table.

The Truth About Trust

By Angela Cusack • November 11, 2022
Trust is messy. It takes work. It requires intention. It demands our commitment. And quite frankly it is easier to Distrust than to Trust.

Imagine Your Potential. Step Forward into Your Future Now!

By Angela Cusack • November 11, 2022
From early childhood--well before I could read--I would devour the pictures in our 1960’s Encyclopedia Britannica. As I developed my reading skills, my time with these fascinating books only expanded. I’d sit for hours reading text and sub-titles drifting off as I imagined myself on safari, flying strange aircraft, throwing elaborate dinner parties where every utensil was used--all 22 forks. Every day offered a different opportunity to explore and try on something new.
A group of people are giving each other a thumbs up

Cultural Humility

By Angela Cusack, EdS, MCC & Michelle Vander Stouw, MPH, ACC • November 11, 2022
The only practice you need to expand your cultural awareness
A woman is standing on the beach looking at the ocean.

When You Stumble

By Angela Cusack • May 21, 2020
There are days when you stumble…and then there are days when you stumble upon a trinket from your past.  Our experience of the two isn’t dissimilar:  It breaks our flow; the forward movement toward something else we desire. We feel flush with excitement, shame, or something in-between. Our breathing shifts, our minds uncontrollably leap forward and […]
Two men are shaking hands in front of a bookshelf.

TRUST, a Hallmark of Success

By Angela Cusack • May 21, 2020
The cornerstone of every productive, caring, and meaningful relationship is trust.  Trust only exists within the framework of a relationship. Without trust we live in a superficial world where we silently doubt, reconsider, wink in agreement, and speak covertly about what we don’t like—these very actions undermine what we claim to care about albeit unintentionally. In […] The post TRUST, A HALLMARK OF SUCCESS appeared first on IgnitingSuccess.
Make THIS Your Best Year Yet!!

Make THIS Your Best Year Yet!!

By Angela Cusack • May 21, 2020
Every leader that I have had the pleasure of working with over the last 30 years believes they will absolutely, without any hesitation, make the upcoming year better than the last.  They are not sure how, but they know they will. They have good intentions as the New Year begins, but their commitment quickly wanes as […] The post Make THIS Your Best Year Yet!! appeared first on IgnitingSuccess.