Lemke Leadership

HAPPY New Year!

Karen Lemke — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 17:20:45 +0000

Would you like to be happier in 2024? Here’s a simple tool that really works: Look for things (every day) that turned out BETTER than you expected! Big things, little things, simple things, easy things… the “clean living” parking spot (as my Dad calls it); the kind person who holds a door for you; the person who waves you into the traffic line with a smile; the opportunity to do something meaningful for someone else; a child’s giggle that makes you giggle, too; an unexpected text from an old friend, etc. You will be amazed at how many reasons you have to be GRATEFUL and EXCITED each day. Go ahead, give it a try. And get ready for a HAPPY New Year!

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Unfortunate Blessings in 2023

Karen Lemke — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 17:18:33 +0000

Looking back on 2023, were there things that didn’t go as you had planned/hoped? For sure! And could it be that the results of those “unfortunate events” were actually “blessings” for you? If you faced adversity of any kind this year, I bet you are now stronger, wiser, on a better path with different perspectives, learning to love better, granting grace and compassion in a deeper way… for others and for yourself. I wish you gratitude for the outcomes of those “unfortunate blessings,” and a peaceful, brilliant hope for the New Year. May your 2024 be merry and bright!

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Game On!

Karen Lemke — Sun, 08 Oct 2023 01:28:58 +0000

Game On, folks! Last Wednesday, October 4, we celebrated the Fifth Annual Women’s Leadership Conference hosted by Vicki Updike of New Sage Strategies. I was honored to be a speaker at the event, which hosted over 700 people in person at the Resch Center in Green Bay, and over 300 participants online. As I spoke that day, in the shadow of our own goal post at Lambeau Field, I was reminded of the challenges and the successes we have experienced at “the game.” And so I ask you to ponder:
1. What is YOUR game? What is the mission or the “call” you were born to follow? Celebrate all the progress you have already made! (Your record is better than you realize!)
2. Who is on your team? Who are all those wonderful people who have come to your aid (or come to watch the game with your favorite potato chips or beverage)? Who is cheering you on? Who shows up in your tough times and your terrific times? Who picks you up and carries you to the locker room? Who picks you up and carries you to the endzone for the Lambeau Leap? Celebrate them!
3. Who is your coach? Who believes in you even when you doubt yourself? Who sees your magnificence and encourages you to see it, too? Who teaches you the moves and the lessons that help you succeed in your game, and in your life? Celebrate your coaches and mentors! (You have many of them!)
4. What position do YOU play? What position would you still like to play? How do you contribute to the success of your team? Celebrate YOU! Celebrate the spirit you bring to your game. And ENJOY it! The world is full of cheering fans who are waiting for you to emerge from the locker room.
Are you ready! Let’s go! Game ON!

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Named the Top Episode of 2023… On Plow Horses, Songbirds, Seesaws and Sandcastles: The Type A+ Podcast

Karen Lemke — Sat, 09 Sep 2023 21:18:32 +0000

Do you ever feel like a plow horse, trudging through each day and wondering, “Is THIS all there is?” Do you ever find yourself on the seesaw of comparison and self-doubt? I was recently invited by Beth Lawrence, CMP to chat about overcoming these issues on “The Type A+ Podcast.” I invite you to listen in, and re-discover the importance of JOY in life. Thank you, Beth, for this incredible, joyful experience with you!

On Getting Off the Seesaw of Perfectionism to Find Joy with Karen Lemke – The Type A+ Podcast | Podcast on Spotify

The Type A+ Podcast: On Getting Off the Seesaw of Perfectionism to Find Joy with Karen Lemke on Apple Podcasts

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Response and Responsibility

Karen Lemke — Sun, 06 Aug 2023 17:22:56 +0000

I used to think being responsible meant taking ownership. Like, if I was a responsible parent or leader or spouse, then I would take ownership of an issue and make sure things got done according to my agenda and my belief in what was best. Recently I realized that I have been confusing loving another soul with being “responsible” for him, and behaving as though I had “ownership” of his experience. Here’s the story…

I am deeply in love with my husband, who has been suffering from a few physical ailments for a period of time, now. He is more “westernized” in his preferences for medicine and healing than I am. (He says I believe in all that woo woo stuff. Only he uses a different word for “stuff.”) Anyway, as I have been watching him struggle in pain every day, I have confused the way I love him with feeling a sense of responsibility for him. So I have been pressuring him: Why don’t you try this? How about if we call this person and ask for that? Why do you insist on doing it only the western way? What have you got to lose by trying something different, even if it feels a little bit like woo woo? Why don’t you read this article? How about if we attend this webinar? Did you see that commercial on TV? What do you think about that drug? Did you hear about that alternative approach? Maybe we should eat more of this and less of that? What should we do first? And right after that?

My deeply rooted desire to help probably feels like relentless nagging to him. I have gotten frustrated with his lack of interest in the options that I believed could help him. I have wanted to take responsibility (actually, ownership) for his experience and his healing. And frankly, he is too stubborn to give up his ownership of his experience, his health, his body. Good for him!

I am just now realizing (or maybe re-learning) that responsibility means “I have the ability to choose my response” to his experience. That makes responsibility completely different from ownership. I cannot take ownership of his experience, his decisions, his pain, his life. All I can do is very lovingly, very tenderly, very intentionally enter into a shared experience with him where I carefully choose my responses. That means my responses aren’t about what I WANT. (And frankly, what I have wanted is more like ownership.) Instead, what I HAVE is completely different. It is not ownership. It is simply (and ONLY) my choice, moment by moment, day by day, to decide how I will respond to him and his experience.

I cannot want a healing method for him more than he wants it for himself. I cannot want a life experience for him more than he wants it for himself. And really, I am in no position to decide what is right for him. That would be ownership. And that is not the nature of the loving relationship we have chosen for ourselves and each other. Instead, if I live into the vows I made the day I married him, I will honor him and trust him and value him. I will step aside from my own desires, no matter how deeply rooted in love they may be. And I will show up for him the way he needs me to show up for him. That means I relinquish ownership of his experience. And I choose instead to RESPOND in love, only. I get out of the way. I allow him to lead his own experience. I stop suggesting which path to take, how to take it, when to take it, why he should take it. And I let him lead his way on his journey. I trust his belief, knowledge and intuition about his experience. I close my mouth and open my heart. I take his hand, and acknowledge that he has ownership of this. And then I choose my response to that truth. In this case, it means I love him enough to let go of everything else.

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Granting Yourself Grace, Even if You Know Better

Karen Lemke — Sat, 29 Jul 2023 15:40:07 +0000

“Be the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” (Maya Angelou)

This is one of my all-time favorite quotes. It has helped me to forgive myself for being imperfect in the past, and it has inspired me to live into my future-based “best.” It has also helped me to turn away from perfectionism and toward self-mastery. Perfectionism is unattainable. Self-mastery, well, it’s a journey. And in my definition of self-mastery, there is room to mess up, learn, and try again.

Recently, I cried my heart out to my coach, begging her to help me understand why I felt so down on myself (AGAIN)! She listened patiently and then said, “You’re beating yourself up because you know better, and you don’t think you are doing better.” BINGO! As I have pondered that brilliant, loving guidance from my coach, I have decided to add one more personal sentence to the end of Maya Angelou’s insightful quote:

“And grant yourself grace for the times when you know better and still find it difficult to do better.”

As a recovering perfectionist, I’m learning that we might KNOW what to do, but don’t always DO it, perfectly. It’s okay. Grace makes it possible to keep trying. And that is TRUE self-mastery.

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4 Powerful Steps to Expand Your Influence and Impact

Karen Lemke — Wed, 28 Jun 2023 20:22:37 +0000

Do you dream of being more influential at work? Do you wish you had the courage to say “hard” things? Would you love to make a real difference in the lives of others, and leave a lasting legacy? Well… You can! And it’s easier to do all of those things than you may think. The secret irony is this: Your thoughts and actions may be getting in the way of precisely what you hope to achieve. In fact, the way to a powerful impact outside of you begins with a focused alignment within you! If you dream of feeling successful, motivated and inspired, but instead feel drained, disappointed and discouraged, you have the power to change that. By flipping some common mindsets and practicing a few new tools, you can start creating everything you wish to have, be, do and feel… right now!

I invite you to join me at the Women’s Leadership Conference at the Resch Center in Green Bay, WI on October 4. We’ll talk about practical steps that make it EASY for you to expand your impact – and to have more FUN along the way. Life doesn’t have to be a struggle. You can experience joy, ease and growth every day, if you believe it and know how to access it. And once you have attained that for yourself, you are positioned to make a more significant difference in the world than you may have ever imagined. No matter what level of success and happiness you currently enjoy, there is opportunity for you to dream bigger and live better by following four simple, memorable ACTS:

Align Attitude – discover how “making it a GOAL to feel GOOD” jumpstarts the process and empowers any individual (or group). The first key to attracting everything you desire lies in how you show up, and the attitude you share.
Choose Conclusion – learn to begin any adventure (or even just a conversation) with a clear goal of how you want it to conclude. Pinpoint your desired destination, and then choose your best route for getting there.
Think/Feel – practice powerful ways to use your thoughts and feelings to your benefit. Learn how they work to fulfill your most profound goals, objectives, desires and dreams… and how to change any thoughts or feelings that are currently holding you back. You’ll see why daydreaming makes all the difference for your future.
Say/Do – Words matter! What you say to yourself and to others directly affects your experience and your success. Learn very specific things to say (and not say). These scripted phrases will empower you to tackle tough conversations with ease and confidence. Then focus your talents, passions and actions to serve a high purpose. You’ll make a big impact, and have FUN doing it!

Join me on October 4 for an encouraging session that will leave you equipped and excited to “own” your own magnificence, and inspired to leave your mark on the world. You can register here: https://womensleadershipwi.com/

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This is YOUR Day!

Karen Lemke — Sun, 30 Apr 2023 20:05:36 +0000

The next time someone says you are “too” something… say “thank you.” That person just called out one of your Super Powers. Those strengths will empower you to live your mission, to achieve your vision, and to answer your calling. They will fuel your heart’s desires and enable you to change the world for the better! How do I know?

Imagine if…
Mother Teresa had been “too kind and compassionate.”
Teddy Roosevelt had been “too confident and courageous.”
Gandhi had been “too peaceful and persistent.”
Martin Luther King had been “too passionate and visionary.”
Buddha had been “too calm and centered.”
Jesus had been “too loving and forgiving.”
YOU had been “too much of something” to lean into your strengths and follow your dreams.

Let this be YOUR day…
A day to “own” your Super Powers.
A day to share your strengths.
A day to Show How You SHINE!

© Copyright 2023 Lemke Leadership, Inc., Karen K. Lemke

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What Kind of “Busy” are You?

Karen Lemke — Sun, 15 Jan 2023 17:51:20 +0000

I stopped telling people I’m “crazy busy” this year. I’m not! I’m “wonderfully busy” and “gratefully busy” and “blessed to be busy.” It’s incredibly special to do the work I do… the work that makes my heart sing. I wish the same for each of you. And I encourage you to celebrate any opportunity you have to Show How You Shine!

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The Baby and the Bath Water

Karen Lemke — Sun, 12 Jun 2022 20:10:33 +0000

Hey Baby… Don’t throw yourself out with the bath water! Have you ever received mixed feedback about something you did? Our tendency is to focus only on the negative.

Today, I challenge you to also REMEMBER and CELEBRATE the POSITIVE IMPACT you had. Then pursue your passion fiercely and fearlessly.

You got this!

Karen K. Lemke * Coach * Speaker * Author * Consultant

Lemke Leadership, Inc.

1110 E. Apple Creek Road

Appleton, WI 54913

Karen@LemkeLeadership.com

920-427-2849

www.LemkeLeadership.com

Enrich * Encourage * Inspire

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