Inspirations | Blog by Heather Vickery | Success + Leadership Coaching

Progress is Almost Never Linear

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just dream something up, decide how to get it and then have all of the puzzle pieces fall perfectly into place? It’s a lovely little image, isn’t it? But reality is, our lives and businesses take many different twists and turns and, sometimes, we never get to that end dream because the path changes along the way. Or maybe you didn’t start with an “end dream.” Perhaps you are only now discovering a destination you want to reach. Here’s why. Progress is almost never linear. Let that sink in for a minute. If we were to keep track of our lives on a line graph, you would see many dips in the graph. If

Joy Shared is Happiness Returned

If you have been hanging around for awhile, you have heard me talk about celebration a lot. I believe that celebration is a magic key that unlocks connection and happiness. Joy shared is happiness returned. When you have been blessed, the act of sharing that blessing with others makes it infectious. If you have busted your ass to create something awesome, sharing it with others has the potential to inspire them and encourage them. Have you ever noticed how hard it is to be mad at someone who walks around happy all the time? You might get annoyed, right? You might think, “How can this person always be so happy?” But you still cannot help but have a slightly elevated mood when you are

Un-had Conversations

I try really hard to pay attention to what the universe is telling me. I find that when I do so, I am always led in the right direction and come out in a good spot. In the last 18 hours, the idea of “un-had conversations” has appeared in my life, first in a conversation I had with a friend and just now while reviewing Aaron Anastasi’s book, “Your Prosperous Life.” So what is an un-had conversation? It is simply a conversation that you have not had that you wish you had. Typically these conversations are hard to have and take a lot of trust and courage, but not always. Un-had conversations can be anything from telling a friend that you’re sad because

6 Questions to Bring Clarity in the New Year

Welcoming to the first blog post of 2018! Happy New Year, my friends! I don’t know about you but 2017 was a real zinger for me. While there were many wonderful things, it was a tough year and it brought forth a lot of resistance (literally and figuratively) and pain. But it also brought a passion like I have never seen before, a passion to create change and growth, to speak truth and fight for we want. It has been an honor to push through 2017 with you all by my side and welcome the new year with renewed hope and courage. Together, we are going to shake things up! I have identified 6 questions to help me gain clarity on the past year

It's OK to take a Break

It has been a little quiet over here on the Vickery and Co blog the last few weeks. My instinct was to say “Sorry!” for that, but truthfully, I am not sorry. I have been knee-deep into the final development stages for my Chaos to Clarity Course (and it is amazing, I must admit!). In addition to that, I am still a mom of four and have clients to service. So why am I bothering to share all of this with you in a blog post? Because it is a busy time of year for everyone. I am willing to bet each of you reading this feels a little overwhelmed, under-appreciated and just plain exhausted at least some of the time. The holidays

5 Ways I Scared the Shit Out of Myself

A few months ago I read Amy Poehler’s “Yes, Please!” I expected it to be a light, funny read but was surprised by how much it moved and motivated me personally and professionally. I am telling you, I took a lot of notes while reading this book. One section that truly spoke to me was about doing things that are really, truly scary. After reading the book, I was inspired to make a list of things I have done that scared the shit out of me and why I am glad I did them. The list was fairly long with over 25 items ranging from the first time I went out to dinner alone, to cutting my really long hair into a short

5 reasons to be in conversation with strangers

One of the things I’ve committed to through the end of the year is being in conversation with someone new at least once a week. I made this commitment on a coaching call with my own coach (remember, you cannot sell something you are not willing to buy!) and I chose this commitment because it would make me a little uncomfortable. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love to talk to people. I am the person that talks to strangers standing in the checkout line at the grocery store, but that doesn’t mean it is easy for me to be in the right conversations with new people. Being in conversations with strangers on a regular basis requires you to build those muscles. It is

Achieving Work-Life Balance: Celebrating Success

You know how you feel when you have just nailed a client meeting or finished creating that course you are about to sell? That feeling of excitement and pride? That is a powerful feeling, one that helps you stay charged and ready to move on to the next big thing. That is a feeling that should always be celebrated. I firmly believe that celebrating successes, no matter how small, is the key to motivation and even bigger successes. Aaron Anastasi, the author of The Voice of Your Dreams, once told me, “celebration is a lost discipline” and I think he is right. There is something magical about the art of celebration. To truly celebrate all of your wins, personally and professionally, and not

Achieving Work-Life Balance: Accountability

About a month ago I began an accountability partnership with a woman named Kimi from Brave & Co Design. This is not your typical accountability relationship. Kimi and I chat each Friday morning and share our wins for the week. We have agreed not to “discredit the wins” before sharing them. Rather we simply state them and cheer each other on. What this relationship has given me is a reason to stop and appreciate my wins as they happen. I now keep a running list on my phone to update and access as needed. This gives me pause several times a week to recognize that amazing things are happening all around me. If you are going to make all of the effort to design

Achieving Work-Life Balance: Delegation

My own coach once told me that the best use of his time was to be coaching or making efforts to get into conversation with people he could potentially coach. For him, that meant delegating and outsourcing other aspects of his business which pulled him away from being in conversation with and serving others. He also admitted he simply was not very good at some of the more traditional business roles like marketing and administrative work. Truth be told, I am in the same boat. While I am competent at marketing, social media, bookkeeping and administrative work, it is not my strong suit and, as such, takes me much longer than it would someone with more skills in those areas. The reality is