With all the Olympic fever in the air, I thought I would record a podcast episode on the gold medal standard, the intersection of ambition and achievement for women in the workplace.

Why? Because so many of my clients are ambitious, are high achievers and want to do really well. And I think there is so much we can learn from the high stakes world of Olympics, and athletes that strive for the gold medal with what we do in our own workplaces.

If we look at Olympians, their journeys are filled with ambition, rigorous training, setbacks, and ultimate triumphs, and whether or not you think of yourself as an Olympian or not, I think all of us when we see these Olympians, and we see these athletes performing at such high levels, we can appreciate the effort, the skill, the training that goes into really being masterful at their sport, so that they can perform on that one day.

And even though you may not be sporting, you may not have any relationship to being an Olympian. My guess is that you have a pursuit for excellence, like you have high standards.

And you know, as a professional working women, that’s something that you’re looking for, right, you have a gold medal standard in the work that you do. And so today, we’re going to explore the gold medal standard, where ambition meets achievement, and how we as women can draw inspiration from Olympic athletes to succeed in our careers.

Olympic athletes are driven by an unyielding ambition. I mean, they have to write like all that training. All that preparation for an event that happens once every four years. Olympians set their sights on the highest prize and worked tirelessly towards it. Similarly, ambitious women in the workplace also must embrace their driven the drive to succeed.

All of this begins with setting clear, ambitious goals.

So if you are a high achieving aligned achieving woman within the workplace, and maybe you’re aiming for a promotion, leading a ground breaking project or starting a new business, if you want to reach that gold metal standard, then defining your goals with clarity is the first step towards that aligned achievement.

So what do we do first?

The first thing we do is we set really clear goals and we identify what is it that is your gold medal, like, what is your ultimate career aspiration, and to define it with precision?

Then before you do the usual thing of like breaking it down into smaller manageable milestones, and like setting deadlines and all that good stuff, I actually want you to question it. And this is where the aligned achievement comes from. Because here’s the thing, when you are creating goals, and identifying a gold medal standard in your books, as you define it, and as in a way that’s meaningful to you, that is actually what’s going to drive you to keep on going and to persevere on those days, when quite frankly, you want to give up, you’re not sure you might want to pivot you might want to change.

So once you’ve identified what your gold medal standard is, I want you to stress test this and ask yourself, why does this matter to me? Is this something that matters to me? Or is this something that matters to others?

So often, I can’t tell you how many times so often my clients have been achieving goals, because actually, they’re unintentionally the goals that their parents set out for them, whether they realise it or not, subconsciously, that’s been the narrative of what they need to do to be successful to receive recognition to gain that sense of approval. And so I really want you to question that gold metal standard that you’re setting and ask yourself is this really in line with what I want?

Once you’ve done that stress test, then of course, you can break it down, do your thing of like breaking it down into smaller manageable milestones so that everything becomes more achievable set deadlines, you know, just like athletes have trading schedules and competition dates stablish those training deadlines for your milestone so that you can build momentum.

So once you’ve set those clear goals, then you know you’ve got your clarity, you really want to move into your strategy and your execution, how you’re going to train like an Olympian.

So Olympians undergo rigorous training programs often pushing through physical and mental barriers. And in the professional world, this translates to continuous learning and skill development. To stay competitive and move towards your goals then investing in your growth is crucial.

So for you if you are to train like an Olympian in your workplace or you know in your leadership as a person, then stay updated. keep abreast of the latest trends and developments in your field. To attend those workshops, those webinars, those conferences, seek mentorship, right? Olympians all have coaches and professional women can benefit from mentors or coaches who can provide guidance, support and valuable insights. And if you are looking for a coach, and you’re not sure, if you need one, then head here to a previous podcast I recorded all about how to know when you need to work with a coach and how to make the most out of that relationship.

The third thing you want to do if you’re going to train like an Olympian is really expand your skill set.

Enrol in those courses that enhance your existing skills and introduce you to new ones. This will make you more versatile and adaptable. And in this bracket, and then in this bucket, you can have skills that are related to the technical requirements of your role. So let’s say for example, you’re a graphic designer, maybe you dive deeper into Adobe or creator or other you know, software tools, I’m not a graphic designer, so I’m giving a really bad example.

Or perhaps you know, it’s more of the soft skill leadership skills like how to manage effectively, how to delegate effectively, etc. So these are the things that you want to do to train like an Olympian. And these are the things that are really important to make sure over the long term you are learning and growing as a person.

The one piece I’ll add here, when it comes to training like an Olympian is that it’s not just about continuous learning and skill development. It’s also about how you show up to your schedule, and how you look after yourself. Most of us assume that we’re here to work really long hours, right? I come from Hong Kong and so the culture here is very much one of those longer hours. I recently went on holiday to France, and was speaking to a local gentleman there who is showing us around the beautiful city of Lyon, and he was telling me about the minimum work hours that are required are required to be adhered to in France, obviously, for certain industries, not for all and I think it was something like 34 working hours a week.

And so there are measures and structures in place to reduce that and make sure people don’t overwork. But for most of my clients, and you know, from this culture that I come from here in Hong Kong, we can overwork and you know, if you think of an Olympian athlete, yes, they’re training, yes, they’re working, but they’re equally making sure that they’re taking the opportunity to rest proactively, they’re looking after themselves with their nutrition with their sleep with their stretching with their mobility. And the same is true for you. Obviously, you’re not an Olympian. But you know, in the workplace, if you’re to be mentally sharp, available, have the best energy and presence and focus, then you know, you need to be looked after.

And so, training, like an Olympian also means resting like an Olympian, and making sure that your days are structured in a way that you are being taken care of that there is time for downtime.

And personally for me, I love to zoom out and look at a year and look at when are those opportunities that I’m going to proactively, perhaps book a holiday or book blocks of time for rest. And one of those times when I’m, you know, in it, and I’m going to work, so have a think about that to the other element to what it means to you know, achieve that gold medal standard and you know, be an Olympian in the workplace is to look at how you overcome setbacks. Mindset is huge. Every Olympian faces setbacks, and I can’t imagine what those setbacks must feel like at those high stakes with the length of time that’s involved in training.

So setbacks could be injuries, it might be losses, it could be unexpected challenges. And what sets these athletes apart is their resilience and their determination to bounce back to keep on training to keep on going for that next Olympics, right? Similarly, professional women, you’re going to encounter obstacles, that is 100% going to happen. And the key is to view the setbacks as opportunities for growth and learning.

So there are three things you can do to build that resilience.

First, adopt a growth mindset.

Now, this might sound really easy to do, but changing and rewiring this view of challenges and seeing them as something to be embraced and to learn from can be a game changer. Each setback is a lesson that brings you closer to your goal. I recently was working with a client on this and they identified themselves as a perfectionist and how no matter what they did, they felt burnt out overworked, resentful, and bitter because they had such high standards. They found it hard to delegate to people.

And whilst they were reviewing, you know, perhaps a different option or wondering how long they should stay in their current role. We talked about how this dynamic was actually the linchpin, the critical piece we needed to look at because no matter what job they were doing, no matter what industry they were in, this would still be such a crunchy sticking point and would still will happen. So this growth mindset piece is absolutely foundational. And being in right relationship to setbacks and challenges is key.

The second thing you can do to build resilience is to really stay positive and maintain a positive attitude, even in the face of adversities.

Even in the face of adversity, optimism fuels perseverance. Now, look, I’m not totally telling you to be unrealistically positive, you’re allowed to have a down moment, you’re allowed to moan, you’re allowed to like, have a grown to your or grape to your colleague or your friend, and be negative for a moment. But let that be what it is, and then move on. life really is too short to focus on the negative, and things will go off plan, right, we know that. But if you can stay positive, stay resilient, stay nimble, then you’ll build that muscle of knowing that you can adapt, you can do hard things, and that you have great coping skills to be able to handle whatever challenges life throws your way.

The third thing when it comes to building resilience is you know, seeking support.

Surround yourself with a supportive network of colleagues, friends, mentors, coaches who can offer encouragement and advice. There’s a famous saying that a problem shared is a problem halved. And I’ll be honest, this is something I have been working on myself, I contend to be someone who doesn’t seek support, who doesn’t share my challenges, doesn’t want to be a burden to other people. And that’s been my edge that I’ve been working on. And what I found is that the journey is so much sweeter. When you do seek support. When you do share. There’s just less emotional baggage.

The best analogy I can give you is that, say you’re going about your day. When you’re holding on to negativity, overthinking resentment, or any of these challenges in the fixed mindset. It’s like having a really heavy backpack or weighted backpack on your shoulders, it slows you down. It takes your focus away, you’re focusing on the pain and your shoulders and neck, rather than feeling free and uninhibited. And for me personally, what I’ve come to realize is that when I seek support when I share when I don’t hold things in as much that backpack lessons, it lightens the load. And to be honest, the journey is so much sweeter when you’re in relationship with other people. Because after all, we’re all human.

Alright, what else can we do? What can we learn from Olympians and their ability to achieve and move forward with their ambitions when it comes to ourselves in the workplace?

One of the important things to do is celebrate those achievements.

And Olympic athletes celebrate their victories. You see it when they score a goal, hit the mark, cross that try line score that goal, you know, hit that time that personal best, no matter how small they celebrate, and recognizing and celebrating your achievement, boosts morale and motivation. It’s so important to acknowledge your progress and the milestones that you’ve reached. So for you and your journey, even though you might not an Olympian, I invite you to do three things.

Number one, reflect on your journey.

Regularly take stock of your accomplishments and the progress that you’ve made towards your goals. Again, I was working with another client the other day, and they found it so hard to recognize their achievements. And they realised in one of our sessions that they were waiting to celebrate until they finally got quote unquote, there.

But they realised that they kept on moving it was a moving task, and they could see the value in actually celebrating those little wins.

So that’s number two, once you’ve reflected on your journey, number two, celebrate those milestones.

Celebrate not only the big wins, but also the small victories. Each step forward is a testament to your hard work and your determination. And that really, really matters. So celebrate, the celebration can be small, it can be big, it doesn’t mean you have to buy something or spend a lot of money, perhaps you take some time out for yourself. Or perhaps you upgrade to a large cafe latte rather than the regular you know, whatever it might be for you celebrate. And what this does, you know from a neuroscience perspective, is it actually activates the reward system in your brain. So it gets the memo, it gets the message. Oh, when I do hard things, when I stick to something, I get rewarded. There’s pleasure in this. So there is science behind this. It’s not just nice to do.

The third thing you can do when it comes to acknowledging success is to share your success.

Share your achievements with your network. This not only inspires others, but also builds your professional brand and on LinkedIn. You can see people doing this right some people celebrate their wins, some people celebrate others. Don’t be afraid to share this.

Recently I had an example of this. I, after many years in coaching decided to finally qualify with the eye See if it goes full circle after 10 years to do my my qualification and I remember sitting my exam which is four hours long, sharing it with a close group that I am a part of here in Hong Kong. And one of my my peers from this group, she’s like you should really celebrate this and you should post this on LinkedIn you should celebrate and I’ll say you know what, I am going to share my success. And I am going to thank all the people who helped me right people who were brave and brave and kind enough to share their coaching sessions with me those who encouraged me those who like, you know, helped with, you know, those moments where I was feeling down or unsure, like shared and celebrated all of them, and it just is so much sweeter, it makes the journey so much sweeter.

Alright, the final piece I wanted to talk about when it comes to the Olympics and how it relates to you as a professional woman is to remember this.

You in the workplace, how you show up how you hold yourself, what decisions you make, don’t underestimate the inspiration that you are providing to that next generation.

So Olympic athletes often inspire the next generation to pursue their dreams with passion and dedication. At the time of recording, Hong Kong has won two gold medals and fencing. The Americans have won the USA gymnastics competition in the women’s. And I’m absolutely loving seeing all the posts about all the girls and women who are feeling inspired and feeling motivated to get into the sport because they see someone who looks like them doing it too.

So remember this for yourself as a successful professional woman, you have the power to do the same.

Mentorship and leadership are crucial and fostering a culture of ambition that goes beyond yourself.

And this is when you can find that deeper sense of meaning and purpose because what I find for my clients is that once they’ve achieved success for themselves, it’s not just about them, they want to share this they want to leave a legacy. So how you can take this further is to lead by example, be a mentor. offer guidance and support to younger women in your field.

Share your experiences and your lessons learned to promote inclusivity advocate for an inclusive workplace with the power and influence that you have within your organization. Do what you can to shift the culture where everyone has the opportunity to succeed.

And then finally, inspire confidence when you can, encourage other women to pursue their goals with confidence and with determination. You, whether you realise it or not are more more similar to an Olympian than you realize you’re ambitious, you’re desiring to make a difference.

And there’s so much we can learn from the Olympians and bring into our workplaces to create culture changes and support everyone to thrive. Achieving the gold medal standard in the workplace however you define it.

It’s a journey that requires ambition, hardwork, resilience and a commitment to continuous growth.

Let’s draw inspiration from Olympic athletes and as professional women use that same passion and dedication to reach your own version of a gold medal. Remember, your ambition is the driving force behind your achievements. Embrace it, nurture it and let it guide you to success. B

ecause you know what I’m gonna say you are here for a reason. beyond merely hustling, grinding and merely surviving, you matter.

Thank you so much for tuning in and I will see you next week.