From Unknown To Expert Archives

The importance of showing your appreciation

After I taught a creativity course recently, one of the students invited me to her property on the South Coast of NSW to collect material for my art as a way of saying thank you because the course was transformational for her.

I can’t even tell you how much that meant to me as I only use foraged material, so finding places to collect is hard. (Coincidentally, every single one of the works I made from this collecting session sold in my recent exhibition.)

I have this thing about saying thank you and showing appreciation. In business and life, we want acknowledgement for the things we do. We have an innate desire to feel appreciated and valued by others. And I believe our workplaces function much better with a praise culture.

So how do we make sure we say thank you more, and acknowledge the people around us?

Saying thank you

When we pitch a story to a journalist, and the story gets a run, the journalist is just doing their job right? They got a great story because we came up with the idea and sent it to them. In my Agency, we have a policy of thanking the journalist. We acknowledge their effort and time, by emailing a simple thank you. You should to.

Give when no one is expecting it

I’ve spent every weekend for the past three weeks at a gallery where my solo exhibition was being held. In between visitors, I sat on the floor and wove sculptures, which gave me some thinking time in that space.

I thought, I have expertise that all of the other artists involved in the gallery could benefit from. So on the last day of my exhibition, I put enough copies of my book From Unknown To Expert for everyone on the shelf in the storeroom. So simple.

Don’t take people for granted

I’m sure we all have people in our lives we take for granted. Colleagues, best friends or even the person that makes our coffee in the morning. I know I do. So from time to time, take stock of those people and acknowledge them. Let them know what their action’s personally mean to you.

Run a gratitude exercise with your team/friends/family

With my team, we sit in a circle with one person in the centre and tell them why we are grateful for them, being specific about moments, lessons and impacts. We talk about how we have changed because of their impact on our lives.

The power of thank you has the power to change a workplace culture, start a beautiful friendship or make someone’s day. It can also change your life.

Tweetable: The power of saying ‘thank you’ @CatrionaPollard http://bit.ly/2A1wm53

Nail your next presentation with these golden rules

By Catriona Pollard Leave a Comment

Last week I did a presentation and completely stuffed it up. Yep…even though I’ve done hundreds of talks, presentations, seminars, even a TEDx in front of thousands of people, I stuffed this speech up.

The talk was for my opening of my solo exhibition and I’m not sure what happened. I do know that I was exhausted, not grounded, hadn’t practiced, and weirdly felt people would judge me (even though most of them were friends).

The result was a jumbled mix of words, thoughts and nervousness.

What I do know is I didn’t follow my golden rules. As you probably know, it took a lot of courage for me to step into the spotlight (if you don’t, watch my TEDx about this journey). Along the way I have developed key steps to public speaking.

Prepare and practice

The more prepared I am, the less nervous I am. Research your topic thoroughly and prepare your speech and then practice, practice, practice.

Know your audience

Before any speaking opportunity find out information about the audience. This will help you to tailor your speech to their needs and level of knowledge.

Find your lighthouses

My friend and speaking coach, Mariette Rups-Donnelly taught me this, and I use it every single time. Find the lighthouses in the room. They are the people that are engaged and listening to you. Speak to them and they will feed you energy. It works every time.

Relax and deliver

Try to overcome your nerves. This was the hardest thing for me to do, but it’s important to relax and be yourself. You can use relaxation techniques such as controlled breathing to calm your nerves and make sure you are prepared.

Become a regular public speaker

Trust me, the more you practice public speaking, the more successful you will be. Start by speaking at small events and then build up to bigger ones. Say yes as much as possible to every speaking opportunity.

And sometimes you stuff up. And that’s OK. We regularly sing the song “Let It Go” from the movie Frozen in our office. Don’t hold on to failure, let it go.

I think the most important thing is to grow from the obstacles on your path and find wisdom through their solutions. And always – always – treat yourself with love and care.

Tweetable: Golden rules for public speaking @CatrionaPollard bit.ly/2lCCQng

How to get motivated to do the things you don’t want to do

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I’m coming to the end of my office lease and I’m considering my options about staying or finding a new office. When I even think about starting to look for a new office I want to well…do something else. Anything else. Run a marathon. Skydive. Make a cup of tea. Look at the yoga class timetable online. Check my Instagram feed. Sing live on TV naked.

You know, anything else.

So my desire to move is clouded by my motivation to look for a new office. Like anyone I can be highly motivated to do the stuff I like, but golly gosh, when it comes to the stuff I dislike, my motivation evaporates.

So how do we motivate ourselves to do the stuff we don’t want to do?

I just don’t feel like doing it

You can’t wait until you feel like doing something. Sometimes we never feel like doing a task, but you just have to show up. When I was writing my book or when I had my solo exhibition, I created a routine and just showed up. Sometimes what I produced was crap, but other times it was gold.

Just start

When I’m teaching fibre art workshops and I hear a million excuses about why they can’t dedicate time to their art practice, I get them to write down every reason so they see it in black and white. Then I ask them to spend time questioning it. Is it an excuse or a legitimate reason? How would it make you feel if you had more art in your life? Usually it just boils down to one thing. Just start. Even if it’s for one minute a day. Just start.

Willpower sucks sometimes, so trick yourself

I’ve spent a career on deadline. In PR and running a business I walk into the office and know I have multiple deadlines that day. So when I’m faced with a task I don’t want to do I attempt to trick myself by placing a deadline on it. (Attempt is a key word, as sometimes it doesn’t work as well as I’d like). So plan it out – decide what you’re going to do, and when and where you’re going to do it so there is no umming and ahing.

Ebbs and flow

There are times when it’s OK that you’re not motivated to get to the gym or to get stuff done. I’m not saying create a bunch of excuses to opt out. But there are ebbs and flows in our lives and we should listen and be aware of them.

So I’m going to trick myself into a deadline for looking at offices – even though I have a real deadline! What are you going to do today?

Tweetable: How we can get motivated to do the things we don’t want to do @CatrionaPollard bit.ly/2ioyIFU

Why unhooking ourselves from convention allows us to flourish

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I was in Rome recently and it was 43 degrees with the asphalt melting underfoot, so I went to my favourite (airconditioned) gallery – The Borghese – to hang out with Bernini’s Apollo & Daphne marble sculpture.

Still not wanting to deal with the heat, I walked across the park to the La Galleria Nazionale – The Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art. I found myself in this extraordinary gallery virtually on my own. It seems that everyone wants only traditional art when in Rome.

When I was at La Galleria Nazionale, I realised that we have a certain way of seeing art, or more specifically art is presented to us in a conventional way. I have never questioned that.

Seeing in a different way

Take for example marble sculptures. They are on a plinth so you look up at them. They are facing you, so often you can’t see the back or the whole work. There is a rope around them so you can’t get too close.

At La Galleria Nazionale, they mix old with new and I walked into a room with a stunning Dante sculpture of Diana. It was facing the wall, and wasn’t on a plinth or with a rope around it. It was extraordinary. I had a completely different experience with it.

It kind of blew my mind actually.

Unhooking from convention

It made me think about convention or specifically what would happen if we if we started to see objects, problems, things in our lives in different ways.

What would change if we unhooked ourselves from convention? What we think is…right, wrong, good, bad, predetermined, front, back…or “it’s just the way we do things”.

Often we only see what we want to see: visions that match our fixed beliefs and perspectives. I believe that anything that is defined in a limited way is open to transformation. When we lift that limitation, we have the opportunity to flourish in ways we never even imagined.

Opening yourself to change

When we dream a different reality, all its many dimensions flourish in a way so far removed from convention. We open the space toward what can be and will be more vibrant worlds to come.

So what in your life or business would benefit from flipping from front to back, or questioning the conventional approach? What would happen if you saw your life in different ways?

It doesn’t mean anything has to change. But my gosh…what if it did and it brought new wonderful experiences you never even dreamed of.

Tweetable: What would change if we unhooked ourselves from convention? @CatrionaPollard bit.ly/2x37Bmg

Get bored over the holidays

By Catriona Pollard Leave a Comment

I was interviewed by AAP this week asking if we can survive without technology. I said no. I want the traffic lights to work on my way home, and computer to work so I can write.

But having said that, I do think this time of year it’s worth having a check in about how we are feeling about digital overload. (And overload in general.)

I feel like I’ve had two years in one. Now I’m at the end of the year, I’ve notice that I’m posting less and less, having fewer online chats, and not going on a few apps I was on all the time. I’m also not doing big Christmas events, just catching up with people individually.

I’m craving low key, which is lucky as I’m about to spend a few weeks at one of the quietest places in Australia (my parent’s place up the coast), and I’m starting to think about how I can recalibrate the best.

Digital chill pill

At the moment I check my email first thing and last thing in the day – as I do the Facebook, Twitter and Instagram twirl. Like most professionals, I spend up to 10 hours a day online.

I really think it’s worth asking the question…would I find it difficult to not take my phone with me down to the beach, to grab a coffee, to go for a walk, to go to bed?

Over the holidays, it might be good to challenge ourselves to a digital detox. See what life is like off the grid.

Do nothing. Be bored.

Can you remember the last time you were bored? An amazing thing happens when you are not constantly stimulated. Your mind quietens down.

I don’t do bored very well, but when I am, I come up with the best ideas and new concepts. (I was told by one of my staff not to come back from holidays with the idea to write a new book or launch another business…which happens each time I have a low-key holiday. I couldn’t promise it!)

Chillax

I’ve found this awesome app called Insight Timer. There are thousands of free meditations and my favourite is Yoga Nidra which is a progressive muscle relaxation. It’s so relaxing.

What I’m most excited about over the holidays is to sit under my tree at the very end of the beach and just gaze at the water and listen to the waves. The jury is out if I can resist taking my phone with me!

I hope you have a wonderful time over holidays – with or without digital. See you in the New Year.

Tweetable: Get bored over the holidays @CatrionaPollard http://bit.ly/2oZnMlA

Transform your business through creativity

By Catriona Pollard Leave a Comment

I’ve always been somewhat creative. Naturally, as an entrepreneur, I have a talent for out of the box thinking, and at different times in my life, I’ve dabbled in different creative pursuits, like photography, art, and design.

But if someone told me 15 years ago when I started my business the thing that would make the difference between failure and be building a sustainable, successful business was an art form that saw me playing with sticks and twigs and hosting a second solo exhibition this week; I seriously would have laughed. But that’s exactly what happened.

It was about six years ago where I was working flat out building my business. Like most entrepreneurs, running my business consumed me. I never really switched off, and I was starting to burn out from the intense pressure.

What’s more, my industry of public relations was (and still is) going through significant change. Dealing with the changing media landscape was like operating in quicksand, where I could be pulled under if I didn’t keep innovating.

Something had to change

I went through a process of reflection on what I wanted out of my business and my life, as the two were inextricably linked. I realised my ability to cope with change was being impaired; my creativity was being sapped. I needed to figure out a way to slow down and allow myself the space to problem solve and be innovative in responding to challenges.

I needed to find an outlet for my creativity that was tactile and not about perfection but more about exploration and play. I wanted to think in new ways and use creativity to gain new insights and perspectives.

Looking back now, I found an outlet that was opposite to my world as a business owner. I discovered the art of sculptural basketry – an art form that goes back to our primal roots and hasn’t changed for thousands of years. It was feminine, introverted, meditative and nature-based; compared to my entrepreneur life which was masculine, extroverted, technological and fast-paced.

A light was switched on

I began responding to change in new and unexpected ways. I wrote a book; I launched an online, productised side to my business. I started to work with my team in different ways so the business could leverage the collective strength of our ideas. The business became more stable, but more importantly, I felt more in control of where I wanted to take the business and what its purpose in my life was.

Through art, I was able to change how I saw things. It helped me to overcome business challenges and appreciate risk and potential in different ways.

Today my art is very much part of my identity

I conduct weaving workshops with my team, my office is overflowing with my sculptures, and I hold my own exhibitions – my latest ’11:11’ starts tomorrow.

And my business is better for it. There are still challenges, things don’t always go to plan, but how I respond to these situations is heightened with creativity and innovation. Rather than feel inundated and paralysed, I see the opportunities that are only limited by my imagination and creativity.

So is there anything in your business and life that would benefit from a creative approach?

Tweetable: Creativity can transform your life and business @CatrionaPollard bit.ly/2y1upHZ

Random acts of kindness

By Catriona Pollard Leave a Comment

I’ve been thinking about kindness lately. How it relates to our lives and how we can actively use it in business.

I was listening to Linda Burney speak the other day at the Women’s Agenda Leadership Awards. If you don’t know her, she is the first Aboriginal woman to be elected to the Australian House of Representatives and if you haven’t heard her maiden speech to Parliament you should watch it.

At the event one of the things Linda talked about was kindness. She said she wanted to bring kindness and grace to Parliament. Hang on…did I hear that right? Kindness in Parliament? A place where so much mistrust and back stabbing occurs, is that even possible?

She also spoke about love: “I want to bring the aspirations and the wishes and the love of the people of Barton to Parliament”. What politician talks about love?

She said she actively decided to focus on kindness in her life, even if it’s the smallest of things, such as helping a neighbour or smiling at a stranger.

Don’t you just love that! I certainly do. So if anyone is going to bring kindness to Parliament, I think it’s going to be Linda.

Sending love ahead

This week I was speaking to a hugely successful business woman, Lorraine Wood, who runs the only hospital of its kind in Australia – South Pacific Private – that treats addiction and mental health. One of the things she does every day is send her love ahead of her. How great is that!

When she goes into the office, she consciously sends her love to the hospital. (An amazing woman, she is 78 and recently fought to get a loan to expand the hospital.) So she thinks about love and kindness every day.

Random acts of kindness

For me, kindness is like the beauty of nature. You don’t notice unless you actively seek it out. We probably all consider ourselves kind. But do we perform acts of kindness every day? Maybe not.

While kindness is a part of my life already, I’m going to make it a priority to act on it every day both in my personal life and business. What about you? Even the smallest of things count.

Tweetable: What is the one kind thing you have done today? I want to hear about it @CatrionaPollard http://bit.ly/2e5Lx0V

My favourite podcast interviews

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I love doing podcasts. Not my own…but being interviewed on other people’s podcasts. I find them super easy to do. I don’t need to do too much prep, put on makeup, or even leave my office. That’s a win, win, win!

And do you know what is fantastic about podcasters? They need content, all the time. If their show is weekly, they have to find somebody to interview every single week. And you can be that person.

The trick is you need a hook. Just like pitching to the media you have to show them you are an expert, that you have an interesting story to tell and you have great content to share.

I’ve loved every interview, but here are some of my favourite podcast interviews so far:

Inspiring Greatness with Shelley Rodgers – I tell my entrepreneur story, share thoughts on business and how to aspire to live a great life.

Business Addicts with Loren Bartley and Fiona Redding – I loved that they researched me and watched my TEDx talk before the interview. It resulted in a deep discussion about moving from unknown to expert.

Introvert Entrepreneur with Beth Buelow – I love how niche this podcast is – it knows what it’s about! I talk about the challenges I face as an introvert, how I realised that I was the only one holding myself back and that I was completely capable of introducing others to my vision.

Unclassified Woman with Michelle McGrath – So this gets pretty personal, but it’s such an important topic I was willing to share honestly about my life without children and how you are responsible for finding joy and beauty in your own life.

There are so many more great podcast interviews which you can listen to here. Learn how to find and pitch to podcasters here

Tweetable: Why @catrionapollard loves being interviewed on podcasts http://bit.ly/2b5Qje8

Be in the moment and turn off autopilot

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My parents visited me the other day. Often we go for lunch or coffee, but it was a beautiful Sunday afternoon so we went for a stroll. As we walked my parents remarked on houses, and fences, and trees…a running commentary on our walk.

I have walked past these houses, fences and trees many times but no longer notice them. Through my parents’ eyes, I looked at them and saw them in a different way.

It made me think. How much in our lives do we no longer notice? I decided to test this idea.

Walking backwards
On the bush track I walk most days I decided to do my circuit in the opposite direction. Do you know what happened? I got lost twice. Seriously! I couldn’t believe it. I missed the start of one section and had to double back.

At one point I was standing looking at the entrances of two tracks and simply couldn’t figure out which one was my track. In fact, I never even knew there were two tracks in that section. Astounding!

I realised that often I’m lost in my thoughts while walking – which is not a bad thing as it’s my time to problem solve and come up with new ideas – but clearly I’m not taking notice of my surroundings either.

Turning off autopilot
How often are we on autopilot?

Have you ever driven to work and got to the car park and completely not remembered the drive?
Do you constantly check your emails on your phone, even though it states, “Last updated 2 minutes ago”?
Are you just so in your routine you rarely do anything spontaneous?

It’s really interesting to consider these questions. Even though I don’t consider that I’m living a life on autopilot, clearly at times I am. Now I’m trying to notice if I’m simply following a routine, and if possible, to snap out of autopilot and be in the moment instead.

What about you? Maybe it’s time to ditch your personal sat nav and think about achieving some new goals…such as stepping into the spotlight.

Tweetable: It’s time to stop running on autopilot and achieve new goals @CatrionaPollard bit.ly/1TaaU1i

Why copying isn’t cool

By Catriona Pollard Leave a Comment

I opened my Facebook feed the other day and saw an image of a sculpture. Instantly I was taken aback as it was identical to one of my own unique pieces. Someone had copied my exact design, and was selling them on her website. I know the person quite well, and was shocked that she had done this.

Of course this has happened before. I’ve seen LinkedIn summaries virtually word for word the same as mine. The same with articles and even strategies I’ve created for clients.

So is copying a form of flattery or should we call the person out? And how can you protect yourself from people copying you?

Is it a compliment?
You’ve heard it before: ‘You should consider it a compliment when someone copies you’. I get this sentiment, but I don’t necessarily agree with it. Sure you can get inspiration, but I think it’s pretty rude to blatantly copy someone else’s idea or work.

Be the real deal
We all have experiences, expertise and passion that we have developed over the years that makes us original. I don’t think anyone can copy the heart and soul of your personal or business brand. For me, I’m constantly innovating and re-strategising; growing and expanding my ideas; and trying new things. No one can copy that.

Focus your energy on you
When I saw that image, the first thing I wanted to do was put a “please explain” comment on the Facebook post. But I held back because I wanted to be calm in my response. If they are a copycat, it will be pretty hard to appeal to their good nature! So pick your battles.

Protect yourself
Do everything you can to protect your ideas and work. If you are having a conversation with anyone about an idea or sensitive business information have them sign a Non-disclosure Agreement. Get trademarks and add copyright symbols to all of your work.

Don’t do it yourself
If you are outsourcing any writing use Copyscape to check for online plagiarism before you publish (as you are responsible). Obtain permission to reproduce photographs and articles and clearly note the copyright owner.

There is so much content available to us now and with the social media “comparison” game this can lead to a compelling environment to take others work and ideas. Find muses and inspiration, but don’t copy.

Be original; be your amazing self.

Tweetable: Why copying other people’s work and ideas is bad news @CatrionaPollard bit.ly/1NjYEMd