ProductiviTree: Cultivating Efficiency, Harvesting Joy

ProductiviTree #4 Fireproof Productivity, Thriving in the Heat of Chaos with Dr. Brenetia Adams-Robinson

• Santiago Tacoronte • Season 1 • Episode 4

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 In this conversation, Dr. Brenetia Adams-Robinson discusses the concept of fireproof productivity, emphasizing its connection to resilience and the importance of maintaining a calm and productive mindset in chaotic situations. She shares a personal story of overcoming a family crisis while managing work responsibilities, illustrating the principles of fireproof productivity in action. The discussion also delves into leadership dynamics, the distinction between leaders and managers, and the significance of mindset in fostering productivity. Dr. Adams-Robinson encourages self-discovery and seeking help as essential personal and professional growth steps. In this conversation, Dr. Brenetia Adams-Robinson discusses the importance of introspection in leadership, the challenges of the superwoman syndrome, and the necessity of authenticity. She emphasizes the power of saying no, debunks the myth of busyness as productivity, and provides insights on addressing overwhelming feelings.

Takeaways

  • Fireproof productivity combines resilience and a proactive mindset.
  • Resilience is more than bouncing back; it's about inner strength.
  • In chaos, prioritize what is most important.
  • Leadership requires a game plan for unexpected crises.
  • Not all team members respond to crises the same way.
  • Leaders must meet their team members where they are emotionally.
  • A growth mindset fosters productivity and problem-solving.
  • Fixed mindsets limit potential and create blame culture.
  • Self-discovery is crucial for personal growth and leadership.
  • Asking for help is a strength, not a weakness. You have to want more in order to get more.
  • Superwoman syndrome can lead to burnout.
  • Authenticity is key to personal fulfillment.
  • Saying no is a vital skill for self-care.
  • Busyness does not equate to productivity.
  • Understanding your identity helps in decision-making.
  • Self-care is critical for maintaining productivity.
  • Problems often stem from not knowing your limits.
  • You teach others how to treat you through your actions.
  • Addressing the root cause of overwhelm is essential.




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Welcome Dr. Bre to the ProductivyTree Podcast. Thank you so much. Good morning. money to you. So you are an expert in productivity, lots of content around, very useful content. How would you define fireproof productivity and how is it different from resilience? That's a very good question. I don't think they're different. They're incorporated. Fireproof productivity is literally a posture, if you will. It's the capacity to deal with whatever crisis, difficulty, or issue that's going on at the time through certain character traits that, quite frankly, you have to manifest and become familiar with. Resilience is number one. You have to be able to be resilient in order to get to that place of fireproof productivity. And a lot of people think resilience is just the capacity to bounce back. It's so much more than that. To be resilient, you have to first have an inner capacity to face issues, get through them, and be determined that whatever's facing you will not stop you. Then you have the strength to bounce back. So when you're in that place, it takes you to a place of peace, knowing that, and for me, that's God. God gives me the strength, the capacity, the fortitude, to realize that whatever is in front of me is temporary. It's an issue. It doesn't have to consume me. It doesn't have to take me out. I can get through it. It might be hard. It might be devastating. I've gone through some of these times. But if you do it with that capacity, that inner will, that inner resolve not to quit, to lean on God and make it through, that gets you to a place of realizing whatever this, T-H-I-S, is, whatever this is, I can't I can deal with it and I can get through it. The problem with that level of productivity for most people, they look at the problem and the problem becomes bigger than their inner strength and resolve. Then they freak out. What happens when you freak out? You're already defeated. That thing is already going to take you out. But if you understand this is just temporary, it's not permanent. Let me lean on God. pray my way through this let me understand that I am stronger than I ever imagined these are promises in God's Word I can get through this that place now you have a posture where you can be fireproof in productivity and whatever it is you need to accomplish Can you share a story where you or someone you know faced chaos and someone or you were overwhelmed and still managed to stay productive? This is something very common these days, Dr. Brier. People, as you will say, get overwhelmed with work, family, anything. Can you share your stories? Absolutely. The one that comes to mind most, most, uh, prevalently is he's a, he's an adult right now, but when my son was, um, 11 years old, he's my middle child. I got to know he's the middle child. He was hit by a car. Now this is a time when my ex-husband and I were, had just decided we were going to get divorced. So there was tension there. I was unemployed. So I was in the midst of trying to find a job. A couple of days before he was hit by this car, I was offered an opportunity for a temporary job that was going to lead to something permanent. Happy, everything's going well, can deal with the divorce. He was almost killed. In fact, they tell us that he died three times going to the hospital. So I'm faced with, I've got this opportunity for work, finances were critical, but my son is almost dying. I could not start that job. And this is where sometimes people get overwhelmed. They get these things in their mind. like, I gotta do this. gotta, no, you need to stop and make a decision on what's most important. So knowing that I would probably lose the job, I was bold. That's another thing that it takes to be fireproof productive. I called the temp agency. said, look, my son was just hit by a car. Explain the situation. I said, can you please in any way, can you call the company? It was a huge mega company so they could easily get another person. Can you ask them if there's any way I can start later? I just need to find out what's going on and I need to get my head around the fact that my son is in critical condition. They called the company and the company actually called me and Offered a temporary stay. They said we'll hold it for a few days. Just let us know They held it for two weeks During that time it was chaos. Just seeing my son through this After they, two weeks after I started, my son was in such bad condition that he had a TBI, traumatic brain injury. He had to be taken to another state so he'd go through rehab. had to learn to talk, walk, everything over again. So my ex-husband, I had to make another decision. Do I go or does he go? He'd been on his job longer and was permanent, so he took a leave of absence. So I'm learning this new job, very complex situation, while daily checking in with my ex-husband, praying for my son not to die. That was a time where I could have freaked out. But in those times, that time taught me everything that I practice now with my clients. Don't let the situation take you to that place of being overwhelmed. Once you get overwhelmed, you're going to go through a series of emotional traumas and dramas that's going to make it very difficult for you to subsist, exist, and move forward. I got up every morning. I prayed. Every time something came up, I prayed. I got in my place of peace when I started to feel overwhelmed and there were many times I did. Okay, what do I need to do in this moment? Don't look at the elephant. What one bite can I take at this moment? And we were able, we as a family were able to get through this. I proved that I was worth them holding that job for. And my son right now, he couldn't walk, couldn't talk. He is still has some issues, but he is strong. He is vibrant and he is alive. When you go through those moments when you are pulled every which way but loose as they say just real one step at a time Don't look at everything that's going on at that time one step And always ask yourself. What can I do in this moment? What decision can I make at this time? To hit to because sometimes those steps are like laying on your feet What can I do to take one step? So I don't feel defeated. And that's how I got through that season. And there have been many others, but that lesson taught me how to get through those many other times. One step at a time, one prayer at a time, stay in that place of peace. What can you do in this moment to get to the next step? That's beautiful, doctor. Let's speak a little bit about leadership, right? You definitely are very calm and wise leader. But how do you ensure that your teams, people that is reporting to you or working for you or with you, remains as calm and as productive as you are when things are you know, changing around everyone. And change is that one thing that's constant. Most people don't like it, but I don't care what happens. If you don't deal with anything else, you're going to deal with change, especially in any kind of leadership position. And this is where this leadership in your workplace, your community, your church, and even your home. The one thing I try to do before I do anything else, when a crisis comes, when something unexpected comes, I've learned to always have a game plan. And if you do the research, only 49 % of organizations, we're talking workplace and community-structured organizations, only 49 % of organizations actually have a crisis plan. That's why so many businesses went out of business during the pandemic. They didn't know how to pivot. They didn't know how to shift. The pandemic should have taught everyone who considers themselves a leader. Let me have a backup plan. Let me have a game plan. So I always have a game plan. And even if I don't codify it and explain it to my team, I've always got a plan. So when a crisis hit, like everything, before I do anything, I say, what am I supposed to do here? This is what it looks like. And I write down. Her back to say, write it plain upon the tables so that he who sees it can run with it. When you write things down, something happens in your subconscious. It's like you can see more clearly. So I write down, what's going on now? What can we do? What are our options? And I just go through them. Then I get with my team, but I meet my team where each of them are. Not everybody is in the same place. Not everybody even wants to deal calmly with the crisis. Some people enjoy, I call them DVDs, difficult by design folk. Some people enjoy being DVDs. So look at your team. Meet each of them where they are. Those who already have their sense of calm, their sense of peace, then you give them certain tasks that's needed to get through that thing. Those who are freaking out, you got to calm them down before you give them anything. who are just negative by nature, you got to deal with them. And sometimes dealing with them would be, OK, you need to calm down and you need to be quiet right now because they will help everybody else freak out. identify your team's capacity to deal with that crisis and deal with them where they are. What I find, I've been in HR for 33 years. What I find with a lot of leaders, unfortunately, a lot of people aren't leaders, they're just managers. But they try to deal with everybody the same way. That's the number one mistake any leader can make. You have to look at each of your team members and identify their strengths, their weaknesses, their competencies, and their capacities. Because therein lies your ability to help your team get through a crisis or another difficult unexpected situation. Deal with them where they are. Help each of them help you as a leader get that team through that thing with the still intact and again do not be afraid those negative those DVDs difficult by design folk you gotta tell them to be quiet tell them okay I understand you're freaking out but I need that negativity that's coming out of your mouth to stop I need you to get over here sit down and we're gonna figure out what's going on when I ask you to do something I need you to get it done And then with others, you can be a little calmer. This is what we're going to do. But with those who are right in that place of peace, I need you to move. I need you to get this done. Meet them where they are. Then you and your team can get through any crisis. You just said something interesting. Leaders versus managers. What is the difference between them and how do you identify who's a leader and who can enable productivity in teams and who is managing? explained it like this. Leaders govern people. Managers govern processes and products. There are people who are very good at they know the policy, they know the procedures, they know the tactical strategies to make the vision or the mission happen. But the reality is I don't care what organization you are in, where you are, you only can get productivity through people. If you don't know how to master the art, and it is an art and a science of progressing and processing through the people who work with you or for you, you are a manager, not a leader. You can be as smart as the day is long when it comes to how to get this done, how to make this happen, how to get that widget processed, how to get that document done so we can get it out to the public. If you don't know how to do it through the people who are charged to get it done, then you're going to be left with a mess. Because when managers govern people the wrong way, it leads to negative mindset, negative posturing, disconnection, disengagement, and a team that is not cohesive. If you want to have a high performing team, you've got to tap into that leader and you've got to learn how to process with people through people and engage the people on the mission to help you make that mission happen. I find that there are lot of managers in leadership positions but there are not a lot of leaders who know how to get things done through the people they work with, work through and supervise. Doctor, you help leaders break past subconscious limitation. How does our mindset either fuel or sabotage our productivity in chaotic situations? And can you give some tools to avoid, for people to avoid self-sabotaging? Wow, that's a real good question. In order to have a mindset, well first of all, everybody's got a mindset. Most people will say, I don't even deal with that stuff. But if you're breathing, you have a mindset. The question is, is it a growth mindset or a fixed mindset? The growth mindset is that mindset that pushes productivity forward. The growth mindset says, know something, things don't look good. Things don't look good at all. I've never dealt with this before. This has the potential to derail the whole plan process or whatever. But we can get through this. We're going to figure out a way to get through this. Our growth mindset sees the glass as half full. Our growth mindset said, yes, we got this very big issue in front of us, but let's figure out how we can get through it. Growth mindset and leadership says, let's talk about this. Let's come up with a game plan. fixed mindset says my goodness this is gonna hurt this is gonna kill us we can't do this we can't do this somebody's the black who did this who did was the black a fixed mindset is always gonna find somebody to blame It's going to always limit the possibilities and the potential. And it's always going to be more eye focused than we focused. I don't know how we're going to figure this out. Somebody did this. Somebody is blamed for this. A fixed mindset is always a mindset that's going to kill before you all even begin the journey. That's with personal goals, with professional goals, or with corporate or leadership goals. If a fixed mindset cannot see, The forest their fixed mindset only sees the density of the trees a Growth mindset even in the density of the trees. They see the beauty in each tree They see the possibility in every situation they see the capacities and the competencies of everyone on the team and a growth mindset knows how to tap into whatever that thing is that competency that Capacity that an individual has on the team how they can contribute to the solution. So you have to manifest a growth mindset. Now this is where it gets difficult. Most people don't know they have a fixed mindset. Most people are who they are. They've been that way their whole lives. And people have given them permission to be, as I said, difficult by design because they make excuses. You know the people, that's just the way they are. Somebody's being mean. just don't say much around them. You'll be OK. That's just the way they are. No, that's not just the way they are. That's the way they become. But something led to them becoming that way. So what was it? And this is where most individuals never take the journey of getting to a place to say, why am I the way I am? Why do I always react negatively to people's challenging me? Why do people doing well on my team make me jealous or envious? Why am I always so bitter-minded? Why do I see the negative in everything? No, most people don't take that journey. Research tells us the reason they don't take that journey is they don't want to deal with the real answer, which is I may need to change. That. Is a bone a contention place of fear people don't want to go there. That means they've got to face pain They may have to face difficulties They may have to come to grips with the fact that they need to do something different or maybe they are the problem That's causing the issue to come to fore So what can you do? First of all, you got to look in the mirror. That's the first tool What what is driving you? What is making you behave this way? What is making you act this way? and 99 % of the time I've been in HR for a while. I'm a minister of the gospel and I take all I take great Intensity in making sure I understand how the mind works When you get asked that question, you gotta deal with what's going on in your subconscious mind that's driving you making bad decisions, having a bad attitude, and reacting to people in such a negative way. Most people can't take that journey alone, and most people don't like to ask for help. We've got people dying in their pain. We've got people processing every day in a posture of defeat. I call them the walking wounded. What's causing you to be there? What's causing you to act this way, do these things? Until you can face and really ask that question openly and really look for answers, you're going to be in that place of defeat. And that's a bad place for a leader. The next thing is to understand you're not on this journey alone. Ask for help. I don't know at what time we got to this place as a people and this is human the human condition that we think asking for help is a weakness. It is not. Asking for help can be the strongest position you ever take to get yourself in a place of being the best you, the most authentic you that you can be. Once those two things are done, then you can expand and start to strengthen those inner skills. But until you get there, take off that mask, ask yourself these tough questions, ask for help if you need it. You will not be able to do those things like strengthen your resilience, do exercises to increase your communication skills, deal with your conflict resolution skills. You've got to deal with those interpersonal skills and strengthen them, but you all first got to deal with the inner you. Do you think that all humans, all of us have the ability to open the chest of the subconscious? Or do you think there is some people that cannot go there or that, well, you just said that some of them don't want to go there. I'm just wondering if we all have the ability. to go through this journey look in the mirror and say like why am I really being so defensive why I really attacked this person when she or he gave me feedback how do you open this pandora's box somehow is so, it is a Pandora. It definitely is a Pandora's box. think the first question, answer the first question is yes. I think we all have the competency and the capacity because the word tells us God makes it very clear we can do all things through Christ that strengthens us. The issue is where are you? Do you have, and again, I love it when science proves God's word to be true. Science has proven that people who have a foundation of faith are happier. They have a better capacity to resolve conflict. They are more at peace in difficult situations. And in essence, and of course, the science doesn't call it fireproof productivity. They are better positioned to deal with crisis that leads to fireproof productivity posturing. So the question is, where are you on your journey of faith? If you don't have that foundation of faith, then the difficult is going to scare you senseless. You're not going to believe that you can do all things. You're not going to believe that you have the capacity to overcome any situation. Every issue that you face, you're going to face that issue and you're going to feel you're facing it alone. But you're not. Those people with faith, they already know it might be hard, but I can do this. I've got to pray myself through it. I've got to see myself through it. I've got to be consistent through it. Get, remember the growth mindset. But that fixed mindset person, especially at no foundation of faith, do they have the capacity to do it? Yes. Will they ever tap into their ability to do it? Very likely not. because anybody who knows me, I'm a research hall. I love research because I'm careful on what I research and the source of the research, but I love research. Research says that 80 % 85 % of people in any work capacity hate their jobs. They don't like their jobs, but they remain because they feel this job is better than nothing. And then about 15 years ago, research study came out. A couple of researchers did a nationwide study. And the topic was, where are people at the end of their lives? They talked to individuals who were on their deathbed. They talked to family members of individuals who had recently, and by recently they were talking two years, passed away. And they were asking, what was this person's quality of life? The findings was a simple statement. They didn't put a number on it. It just said, most people die unhappy. That floored me. I read that study and the things that they were asking and some of the commentaries that people were saying, they did not have good, joy-filled lives. It was stress. It was drama. It was trauma. It was a negative end to a life that should have been a well lived life. So what that told me is we are living so far beneath what God told us we could. We're accepting things that we should not have to accept. We're embodying pain and negativity when we should not. But once you get to that place, it's hard to get out. So if you're in that place and you feel that things are hopeless Then get some help. Talk to someone who can help you figure out why you are where you are. But you have to want to do it. I tell the leaders in my HR capacity, I've been in management for a while, so I talk to leaders and I ask them this one question. When they say, the team is doing this and the team is doing that and we're having this kind of issue, I said, OK, so what are you doing? Because I'm hearing the team, the team, they, they. What are you doing? Well, I'm trying to lead them. How? Well, I'm doing blah, OK, again, that's what you're doing for them. What are you doing to make sure you are not the problem? And they hate it when I ask that question. Because what does that say? I now have to be introspective. I've now got to look at me. Am I part of the problem? Or indeed, am I the problem? So you have to want more in order to get more. So those people who are fixed minded, are negative, again, DBDs, Difficult By Design folk, you have to want more than you're living. You have to want more than you've accepted. But that means if you're in that place, you're going to have to get some help. for women in leadership there is often the pressure of doing it all. Unfortunately, family, kids, work, right? What's your take on this superwoman syndrome and having to go through a storm almost daily or every few hours? Superwoman's gonna kill you. I'm gonna tell you right see we don't have any what's I don't know what that thing is that Superman had that made him so Untouchable it doesn't exist y'all Being superwoman will kill you Dr. Miles Monroe made a made a very strong statement shortly before he was killed. He said the richest place on earth is the community cemetery. Because in that place are the dead dreams, hopes, and aspirations of some of the most powerful, innovative people who didn't know they were powerful and innovative. One thing about the superwoman syndrome is that she is birthed because we compare ourselves to other people. OK, this woman is doing this and this woman is doing that. And so I got to do it this way and I got to do it that way. But no, I got to do it like this. And she's doing it like that. And my mama did it like that. And Auntie did it like that. Stop. Just stop. How do you need to do it for your situation? Because while you're looking at everybody else trying to pattern your life after them, you don't know what's going on behind closed doors. You don't know what they're doing, how they're going. You don't know their support system. When you see them doing all this stuff, more than likely, if they're doing it successfully in a place of peace and joy, they've got a support system. Do you have one? So for that woman who thinks she's got to be all to all, I was her. her. Bernita, can you do yes? Ms Robinson, can you do yes? Dr. Bernita, can you do yes? Ms, Ms. Bernita, can you, I was yes. Evangelist, can you do yes? I did not know how to say no. And what I found when I stopped and really, I self-assess all the time. I think that that, that keeps me from freaking out, being overwhelmed. or getting out of my place of authenticity. What I realized when I stopped because I was so tired, I was so exhausted all the time. And then I got mad with God because I was exhausted all the time. And what I realized is I was trying to be everything to everybody. I was trying to be a little God. You cannot be everything to everybody. Please get that out of your mind, Superwoman, because that posture right there is going to lead you to an early grave. One, you've got to learn how to figure out who am I? Authentically, who am I? What is my identity? Not mama's concept of who I am, not Auntie, not the girl down the street, not my boss. Who am I? And when you figure that out and there's a process you have to go through, be authentic in who you are. And then stand in that authenticity. Be bold in being who you are. Say no if the answer is no. No is not a four-letter word. Yes, if you have been one of those yes people who said yes to everybody and to try to be superwoman to everybody When you start doing this you're gonna take some people off tell you that right now. You're gonna make some people real mad with you But so what? So what? Learn how to live this one life that you have and you only have one Learn how to live that life for you God's way not for people not imitating not emulating others but live authentically for you when you can do that then no it's just you know i'm sorry i can't do that you know i got something going on i might be able to help you later but i can't do it let me see if i can help you help you find an alternative source of assistance if you just want to be helpful but say no if it's no Do what you have been put here to do. Do what you feel is right for your path, your destiny, your future, yourself, your family. Not what everybody else think you should do. And sometimes you're to have to clip clip people who just don't get you. And that's okay too. Let's think deeper a little bit on this. I really love what you said about saying no. think one of the biggest reasons for people burning out is their incapacity of saying no or not now because of guilt. So in times of busyness and when everything feels urgent, how do you recommend to prioritize and more important? How can people not feel guilty for saying no to other people? Because, you know, the other people, it's nice people and you want to be kind and you want to be useful and helpful to others. So guiltiness kind of creep on another and a lot of people who ask your recommendation to prioritize and do a way that you will not feel guilty and as much as possible, you will not make feel others bad. Let's deal with the guilt part first. I have traveled that road more than once. because I felt this is my dialogue to myself when I was a people pleaser. I'm a Christian, so God says I'm supposed to be there for my brothers and my sisters. I've been blessed with some skill sets, so if I'm supposed to be there, then I need to use the skill set to help where I can. I'm a Christian, I'm a woman of God, so I don't need to tick people off. God says I'm not supposed to bring contention to a place, but we take things out of context. These are dialogues. These are things that I had processed in my spirit and my mind, but I'd taken one verse, made that a definitive, and I'd taken out of the context of what God wanted me to do. So I had to reframe some things. And it starts with understanding your identity and being authentic. Everything goes back to your authenticity. When you can get to that place, I'm who God made me to be. These are my gifts. These are my talents. These are the things that I have been put in this earth realm to do. When you understand that, you realize you can't do everything for everybody. Once you get in that place of understanding your identity, understanding your purpose in the Earth realm, you feel confident saying, you know, let me see if I can help you find somebody who can help you with that. If you really want to be helpful, help connect them to resources. You don't always have to be the resource. But I'm not going to be honest. Learning to say no is a process. It amazes me sometimes people say, just pray about it. just do this. Just say no. All of these things are processes. It's not going to happen overnight. But the more you do it, it's just like when you start to exercise. When you start to exercise, your limbs are sore, your heart aches. I mean, it's pounding after a few minutes on that treadmill of that bike. But as you build your capacity, as you build your strength, the legs muscles are not so sore anymore. The arms are not so sore anymore. Your heart is not beating after 10 minutes on that treadmill. Why? Because you're strengthening those muscles. your inner resolve, your determination, your subconscious mindset, all of those are non-physical muscles that you strengthen. The first time you say, I can't do that, your heart is going to palpitate and you're going to freak out. OK, they're not going like me. they're going to be mad at me. Yeah, they might. But I promise you if you start not let me make sure that say this because a lot of things dr. Bresa said said say no, no, that's not what i'm saying i'm saying Make a determination if what you're saying yes to is where you should say yes That might begin with prayer. In fact, I think you should That might begin with asking yourself. Can I really do this? I have something in my coaching practice. I call the pie pie You prioritize, you implement, and you execute. But in that pie, it's got a whole, the spreadsheet has a calculation that has 168 hours a week. That's all you got. You can't add another minute to your 168 hours, another second. Your pie, your purview of completing tasks is 168 hours a week, 24 hours a day. That's all you got. You have to sleep, so that's going to take six to eight hours. Hopefully you're not trying to subsist on four. You have to work. So that's 40 hours if you work full time. So what other things everything else you you have to be a husband or a wife That's going to take time. You have to be a mother that or father that takes time So once you take those things out, I called those zero zero change elements These are things that you can't change you have to do this now. You're looking at your discretionary hours every week So if you only got so many hours of discretionary time every week, how can you say yes to everything everybody asks you you can't Because you can't add another hour to your day. It is what it is. So you've got to factor, you gotta be wise. Factor out what you can say yes to and what you can't say yes to. And what you can't say yes to, there's only one alternative. No. The more you say no. The more you will be comfortable because now you're learning to walk in your authenticity You're learning who you are and you can stand in your identity that saying no is not a four-letter word You are more confident saying I wish I could help you but I can't help it if I had a resource I would definitely definitely give you resource but all I can say is you know, go on the internet, know talk to your pastor Give them some resources to start with but your answer just needs to be know that muscle will strengthen over time and you will become more confident. I'm raising my hand y'all. I was people pleaser. Yes to everything. Now I say no and I can say it with confidence. Let's dispel a myth or two. What is that thing that people do? when they are super busy, when they're under the fire that they think that makes them more productive but is a complete hoax. What is it? Busyness is that that thing right there the concept of busyness is the one thing people think if I if I I make sure I get this done if I make sure I get this done if I make sure get that done I can get this done and let me do this I get you're busy, but are you being productive? That concept of business is to me. I find the number one. I just got to be busy I got to get that if I can stay there if I do this I do that Let me tell you what happens when that that happens you teach the body how to respond to everything Just like you teach people how to treat you Don't get mad when they mistreat you because you gave them permission You teach the body the same thing you teach your body that when things happen it needs to freak out or stress out Or needs to be calm. What happens when you have that mindset? I just got to be I just got to do this whenever you're not doing something Then you get guilty within yourself because you're not busy When you're not doing something you can angle with yourself because you're not busy Because you feel you have taught yourself. I've got to be busy I've got to be doing something in order to be productive. But are you being productive just being busy? I guarantee you if you're busy so much and it's a place of There's the energizer bunny energizer bunny gotta go you you might be moving but you're probably not productive and I guarantee you're not moving in the right direction. I see this all the time as an HR professional, as a minister, and as a coach. So that concept of being busy I got to move I got to do I got to do if I do this and and then they have the audacity to think if I organize my business I can be more productive. So from 9 to 11, I'm to do this from 11 to 12 I'm going to do this well lunchtime I can I can squeeze in this and then from 1 to 4 I can do this Where is the time for you to? You've got all these things on your list to do. And you're going from one thing to the other thing to the other thing. Again, science has proven your brain needs a break every two hours. You never have that time when you've been going, going, going all day. You skip lunch because you had something to do and you thought you can get it done. Then by 2 o'clock, you're sitting at your desk or you're sitting at whatever. you're literally, you start to go. your eyes start to close. You start to be little bit distracted in your mind. That's because your mind, those brain cells, they need a break every two hours. That's been proven. After two hours, your comprehension begins to go down. Your alertness, that capacity to be alert begins to decrease and you don't retain as much information as you did two hours earlier. That's because you have pushing your brain to the max. Every couple of hours you need to take a 10, 15 minute break, walk outside, go get you a cup of water. If you like sodas and all that stuff, get you something to nibble on, just don't be unhealthy about it. And take a break. So as you put all this stuff in your 168 hours a week, you've got to build in time to take care of you. Self-care is absolutely critical if you want to be productive. You cannot subsist on four hours of sleep a night. You just can't. You might think you're OK for a while, but by midday, you're going to be so exhausted. And your body's going to tell you, I'm tired. I need a break. And sometimes your body would just go to sleep and say, you, I'm going to take care of myself. And you begin to nod, or you begin to nod off, or you begin to disconnect. You're in a meeting. You're talking to somebody, and you can't focus on what they're saying. That's because your brain and your body is saying, I'm done. So that concept of business itself is one of the number one things I see that keep people from being productive because you think going back to the superwoman of Superman syndrome, you can't do this. Focus. What is it that you need to do at this moment in time? Infuse, break so you can take care of you and be the best you for the next couple of hours for the next issue for the next problem. Let's give let's try to give an advice to all the many people that listen to this podcast and that are feeling overwhelmed either because they're busy at work or they've been laid off and they're feeling overwhelmed what is the first thing you recommend people to do to reset and go back to being there 100 % or the 90 % doesn't have to be always 100 right or the 90% and feel at ease and at peace with themselves where do they have to start? Okay, excellent question. First of all, don't start trying to fix the problem until you know what the problem is. Why are you feeling overwhelmed? Why are you feeling that you're going to drown in the midst of this crisis or this situation? What's driving you to feel that you don't have the capacity to process through in a place of peace with the potential of positive outcomes in a place of joy? So what I found a lot of people do, they again look at the problem. This problem is right here and you want to fight that problem. Let's deal with this problem. And they never ask, why is this problem here in the first place? Why did it manifest? Why is it in my life? Did I cause this? And a lot of times y'all the answer is going to be yes you did. Because a lot of times you not been able to say no. Not knowing your identity, not standing your authenticity, not realizing what you are meant here to do, not asking the question, what should I do first? What should I not do? You've taken on too much. You're trying to eat the whole, you know, that elephant in the room. You're trying to consume that whole elephant rather than one bite at a time. Sometimes the problem is you. So before you try to tackle this problem in front of you, figure out why. And most times this is going to be the case. Over and over again, you're facing the same situation. I'm overwhelmed. And you look back, I seem to have a pattern of being overwhelmed. I seem to have a pattern of always dealing with stuff that I don't want to deal with. I seem to have a pattern of certain people being in my life and usually those, are different kind of people, we can't go into that right now, but there are different kind of people, one of the kind of people that sometimes, especially being a people pleaser or a superwoman, superman, you can't bring into your users. And users take, take, take, but they give nothing. You have a pattern of having those kind of people in your life. Why? So before you tackle the problem, tackle why the problem exists. And again, it's a process. But then take that one step at a time. The problem is there now. It's not going go away. I tell people all the time, critical issues don't evaporate. They escalate. problems don't go away. If you don't deal with them, they will get worse. So you're going to have to deal with that problem. But what are the immediate steps you can take to deal with it? Once you deal with why it's there, can you now deal with making sure it doesn't come again? So that means you got to deal with you. What is it in you that causes this kind of situation to keep coming up? Deal with that. And why you deal with that? Because that's a process. Which immediate step can you take to start dealing with this problem? How do you prioritize? You need to do step, step, step. Write it down. right at playing upon the tables. So write down what this problem is and what is the immediate thing that you can do to start addressing the issue, the immediate issue. What's going to be the most problematic thing to deal with first? You deal with that. Now, what do we need to do next? You deal with that. And then the ultimate question is, how do I complete this problem so it does not come around again? And that's one step people never take either. They'll deal with the problem, but they haven't dealt with why it exists. So now they don't deal with making sure it doesn't come around again. Or if it does, they're prepared to deal with it. Doctor, where can our audience know more about you and get to know you better and your work? Thank so much for that. can, the two primary, well I got three websites. You can visit www.drbrespeaks.com. business site is epitomexcel.com. And if you want to talk to me, please don't feel free to call me at 470-572-5252. I would love the opportunity to talk at any time about how to stand in your authenticity, how to understand your identity, and how to position yourself to make sure you're doing what you're supposed to do in the Earth realm to achieve your dreams, your goals, and your aspirations. Dr. Bre, has been an enormous pleasure to have you with us today. You definitely have a wealth of wisdom, calmness, leadership and know-how. And I just want to say thank you again for being so inspiring for our entire audience. Well, thank you so much for having me. I am quite honored. And you have a wonderful rest of your day. Thank you, doctor.