Cafe Grit

Failure, discomfort, and vulnerability are all ways that we grow. So why do some people struggle with all three? In Episode 065 of the Cafe Grit podcast, I talk again with my good friend Mike Goggin about failure. We dive into several questions around what seems to be an increasing trend of younger folks being challenged with things like discomfort and change. Why is failure and learning from our mistakes important? How does inexperience with failure and discomfort impact us in our early careers? 👉🏽 How can we mitigate new career fear of failure and help young employees become more comfortable with being uncomfortable? How has remote working (and the pandemic years) impacted our young generation's ability to cope with the reality of failure and how we navigate it in the workplace? This was a great topic and thank you to Mike for another awesome episode! What are your thoughts on GenZ and dealing with failure, discomfort, and vulnerability? What about failure in general, is it a path to growth? For all you GenZ and late Millennials, do you feel like your generation is misrepresented as having difficulty dealing with negative situations, particularly failure?

In episode 064 of the Cafe Grit podcast, I ponder blankets, birdfeeders, and how I was able to watch the most frightening movies by myself in the dark when I was just ten years old.

🕵🏻‍♀️ The Pain Detective Karen Chappell is IN THE GRIT SEAT! I recently sat down with Karen for a chat for episode 063 of the Cafe Grit podcast. This guest appearance was personal for me because Karen has helped me so much with my physical and mental pain. I first started working with her about six months after a bad fall where I bruised my hip. I stepped on a wet spot while walking across a slanted parking lot one morning. (And by "wet spot" I mean slick-as-glass mini-ice skating rink. I went down like a ton of bricks.) I had it checked out and it did heal up fine, but one day I found myself unable to sleep in any position because of the deep hip pain. 🪄 Karen's help was nothing short of magic. She got to the root of the problem and looked at the situation from the whole-body perspective (which is such a refreshing change from the typical "treat the symptom" experience many of us have). Later, she and I did some mind work, which opened my eyes to a lot of things about myself I hadn't thought about before. In this episode, we talk about pain, stress, Karen's philosophy on owning our bodies, being a trailblazer, and much more. 👉 Please check it out...and IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING CHRONIC PAIN please get in touch with Karen Chappell! ⭐️ And let us know in the comments...what type of pain do you need help with? #cafegrit #bethannecampbell #painmanagement #whatinspiresme #inspiration Karen's Contact Info: Website (coming soon): KarenChappell.org Email: Karen@KarenChappell.org ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ 🙋🏻‍♀️ Hello, I am Beth Anne Campbell - author of "Where The H*** Is My Bacon?" and "From BLAH to BADA$$" - two books about leadership from a woman who survived corporate madness for 23 years. I also host the Cafe Grit podcast, where I cut through the bs and talk openly and honestly about life and careers. Let's follow or connect if you've got a hankering for purpose, a taste for fulfillment, and you're tired of living the rat race!

When people bring pain or suffering into your life, sometimes it is hard to let go. We want justice, revenge, retaliation...but we rarely get it. Sometimes that feeling stays with us far too long. In episode 062 of The Cafe Grit podcast, I talk about a time when I needed to let go of some negative energy after I was let go from my job. If you are struggling to release feelings of resentment, maybe this episode will help. ⭐️ Have you ever had trouble letting go of negative feelings toward someone for something they did to you? If you need a deeper dive, reach out, and let's set up a time to chat. The first call is always free. 🙋🏻‍♀️ Hello, I am Beth Anne Campbell - author of "Where The H*** Is My Bacon?" and "From BLAH to BADA$$" - two books about leadership from a woman who survived corporate madness for 23 years. I also host the Cafe Grit podcast, where I cut through the bs and talk openly and honestly about life and careers. Let's follow or connect if you've got a hankering for purpose, a taste for fulfillment, and you're tired of living the rat race!

I remember a time when I loved my job. It's been a long time. In episode 061 of the Cafe Grit Podcast, I sit down with my honorary cohost Mike Goggin to talk about early careers. When you were young, what did you wish you could be when you grew up? Are you anywhere close? What is your favorite early job? Check out the full Cafe Grit episodes on your favorite streaming platforms, and on the toob of you for the video version! 🙋🏻‍♀️ Hello, I'm Beth Anne Campbell, author of "Where The H*** Is My Bacon?" and "From BLAH to BADA$$" - two books about leadership from a woman who survived corporate madness for 23 years. I also host the Cafe Grit podcast, where I cut through the bs and talk openly and honestly about life and careers. Let's follow or connect if you've got a hankering for purpose, a taste for fulfillment, and you're tired of living the rat race!

Have you ever thought about your own chronic stress? I mean REALLY thought about it? In episode 060 of the Cafe Grit podcast, I sat down with my good friend Mike Goggin to talk about some of the ways we have experienced chronic stress - particularly work stress - in our lives. Since being released from the golden handcuffs of big corporations and consulting, I am just now realizing how bad it was. If anyone out there is experiencing chronic stress and doesn't know how to deal with it, send me a DM and maybe I can help. Meanwhile, tell me about chronic stress you have experienced, whether from the workplace or other. How did you deal with it? For more corporate BS breakdown, check out my books, available on Amazon now: Where The Hell Is My Bacon? (How a corporate department found their mojo through fried pork.) From BLAH to BADASS: The No-Bullsh1t Guide to Channeling Your Leadership GRIT! Or tune into the other Cafe Grit Podcast episodes...the place to go when you've got a hankering for purpose, a taste for fulfillment, and you're tired of living the rat race.

How is it that I have lived in my lovely city for three years yet I haven't made any close friends in my local area? In episode 059 of The Cafe Grit Podcast, I explore this dilemma of mine and reveal how I am working to overcome it. I have lots of friends outside of my current home base. So how did I meet THEM? ✅ Work! One advantage of getting back to the office (for those who want to) is meeting a lot of people. ✅ School! Friends from college, friends from high school - there are always a few who are your people. ✅ Through other friends! I have a few close friends that I met through others. ✅ Family! Goes without saying...siblings, cousins, bonus aunts, so many awesome friends. But alas, my current situation is not conducive to meeting people under the above circumstances. ↳ I have been a remote worker for over 7 years. ↳ I am no longer in school. ↳ My friends' friends are not local. ↳ My family members are spread across the country. Never fear! I am learning to think outside of the box on the friend front! How did you meet your closest friends? Check out Cafe Grit if you've got the hankering for purpose, a taste for fulfillment, and you're tired of living the rat race.

🤬 MONDAY, UGH! I hate Mondays! Wait...no I don't! I LOVE MONDAYS! 🤗 In the latest episode of the Cafe Grit podcast, I talk about my Monday blues and how the beginning of the work week has gone from zero to hero. Some of you out there are getting sick to your stomach just hearing the "M" word. 🤮 That was me too, not long ago ago. Sunday afternoon was when the physical symptoms of chronic stress would start. ↳ The stomach would tighten. ↳ I would get nauseated thinking about work. ↳ I had difficulty staying asleep throughout the night. ↳ I woke up with a sore jaw from clenching my teeth. Every night I journaled about the job I wanted and tried to visualize a time when I no longer feared Mondays. What would that even feel like? I could barely imagine. I had been fearing Mondays for over a decade of my 23 years working in corporate and consulting. Check out the podcast to hear how I went from Monday Blues to Monday Magic!

Do you feel a compulsion to have a creative outlet? In Episode 057 of the Cafe Grit Podcast, I sat down with my good friend Mike Goggin to talk about creativity. Since I was a child I have had a strong drive to create things that are beautiful or funny or have some emotional impact on myself or others. I followed that creative urge when I learned to sew on an old-fashioned treadle machine at age 8. I started writing poems, essays, and short stories around the same time. I macraméd, I crocheted, I painted, I made jewelry out of metal and clay; I scrapbooked and made holiday cards and cross-stitched. Now I write, podcast, and create fun things in more advanced apps like Canva. Mike has a similar story and he shares much of that in this episode. What drives our creativity? Is everyone moved by creative works? What keeps us from moving forward in our endeavors? Check out the full episode and let me know what you think!

Chronic stress is breaking me. Literally...it's breaking my teeth and my bone. Just had a long overdue dental consult and wow, what a few years can do to the molars. It's been a while since I had the old pearly (off) whites cleaned. ↳ Moving. ↳ Pandemic. ↳ Waitlists. So I wasn't anticipating the best of consults. I was sure I had at least one cavity and lord knows what else. I brush and floss religiously but I could feel the tartar building up. Grit, and not the good kind. But I had no cavities. The tartar was actually not that bad. The real shocker was the damage being caused by my teeth clenching. Yep, I've worn a night guard since 2007. But even with a nighttime guard, I was somehow finding a way for those molars to find each other. In Episode 056 of The Cafe Grit Podcast, I talk about my history with chronic stress, how toxic workplaces contributed to that, and the overall impact it has had on my teeth. The good news is, my stress levels have plummeted recently and I have a fantastic new dentist. Have you experienced chronic stress? How did it manifest in your body? Any teeth grinders or clenchers out there?

When I was a child, my mother would NOT do my dirty work for me. 👧🏻 In episode 055 of the Cafe Grit podcast, I explore my mom's GRIT and how she helped shape who I am today. As much as I wanted my mother to step in when I was uncomfortable, she would not. Instead, she supported the decisions I made but insisted that I take responsibility for them. Like calling my piano teacher and letting her know I wanted to quit my lessons. Mom was fine with my choice but she wasn't going to quit for me. I was horrified. But I did it. Working through that discomfort - over and over - was important. I didn't appreciate what my mom was doing until well into adulthood. I even harbored moderate resentment, seeing other parents around me coming to their kids' rescue time and time again. As I get older (and ostensibly, wiser), I see how my mom raised me and my siblings in a new light. I can clearly see how those things that irritated the p1ss out of me when I was young make perfect sense. And now I am forever grateful for her lessons. Have you come to appreciate a parent or loved one in a new light as you get older? What did you resent as a child that you fully understand as an adult (and for some of you, maybe as a parent yourself)?

"Have you LOST your ever-loving MIND?" Sometimes having GRIT means having patience, and nowhere is this more true for me than in raising my Labrador retriever Moxie. In Episode 054 of the Cafe Grit Podcast, I talk about some day-to-day grit and how my aptly named pup-dog keeps me on my toes. She tests me, oh she does. Like when we are on our daily walk and she puts things in her mouth at warp speed and refuses to let them go. Unripe apples. Acorns. Rotten bits. Clumps of...not sure what. When she finds THE PRECIOUS! she will not let go. I have had to literally pry dead things from her little Labrador mouth. One time she got a little too protective and growled at me when I tried to get her to "Drop it." What the actual....??? Oh no you did NOT! You do NOT snarl at Mommy! I nearly lost my shirt right there on Windemere Drive. "Have you LOST your ever-loving MIND?" I know she can't understand me. But I asked her anyway. I summoned all the grit I had to resist tying her to the signpost and leaving her there while I walked it off. (Of course, I would NEVER do that! She's my baby girl and I LOVE HER SO MUCH!) GRIT is patience and I found the patience. Check out this episode to hear more and also catch a little tale about motherhood GRIT. Who tests your GRIT the most in your life? Let me know in the comments!

Have you ever felt like something was going a bit wonky at work...and then you got laid off? I recently had my position eliminated from a consulting firm and in Episode 052 of the Cafe Grit Podcast, I talk about all the red flags I experienced in the preceding months. I also give some tips for anyone who feels their dismissal might be imminent. Losing your job is never easy, but it's a little less horrible if you know it is coming. You at least have time to prepare. Knowing ahead may not prevent the deed but it can help you be a step ahead of the powers that be.

Three weeks PTO for a Vice President position? Or, conversely, unlimited PTO for all (does it really work)? In Episode 053 of the Cafe Grit podcast, I talk about my experience with vacation time over the years and what I'm seeing in current job postings. How much paid time off do you get in your traditional (non-entrepreneurial job)? When I started my first professional job in 2000 I got 3 weeks paid time off. Sixteen years later, when I left for another opportunity, I was a couple of years away from having 6 weeks per year. Then I took that opportunity and my PTO dropped to 4 weeks per year. Seven years later it was still 4 weeks per year. Now, as I look for a new position, I am seeing more and more upper management or even executive positions offering 15 days. While I'm sure in some cases that is negotiable, it's clear at least in the United States that we do not (generally speaking) value personal time off work. Some companies (including the one I was recently laid off from) don't have a separate sick time bucket. They make you use your personal time off if you get sick. Yikes. Check out the full episode and then let me know your experience with paid/personal time off. Fair or not fair?

In Episode 051 I talk about getting the call where I was laid off and what happened afterward. We talk team notifications, severance packages, what was said on the call, and how it went for the next few days.

In episode 050 I talk about getting laid off for the first time in 23 years of my professional career and the horror of applying for unemployment benefits in the USA.

"I am willing to deal with the ramifications of being my full self." I heard this quote in a short random video from Gary Vaynerchuk. He was being asked why he swore so much. I have this quote on my vision board because it resonated with me so much (especially being one who drops the...erm...occasional F-bomb). The concept of being one's full self also struck me when I was listening to one of Mel Robbins' audiobooks "Kick A$$." The gist was if you bring your full self to the table - you are transparent, honest, you don't filter or hide who you are - and someone else doesn't accept you, then it's on them. Let's repeat that for those who didn't quite ingest this: It's on them. If you hold back, sugar-coat, hide parts of yourself, or otherwise don't express your needs, wants, feelings, etc...then you bear some of the responsibility for how people perceive you or the outcome of a situation. In episode 049 of The Cafe Grit Podcast, I explore the concept of bringing and being my full self after a recent situation where I had to get uncomfortable. Do you feel like you bring your full self to the table? Why or why not? What do you think that means, "be your full self?"

"How does your cluttered desk serve you?" I was asked this question recently by one of my coaches, Karen Chappell. (Look her up if you want to live a pain-free life...she is a-MAZ-ing!) I was talking with Karen about minimalism after re-watching a Netflix documentary called "Minimalism: Less is Now" based on the book "The Minimalists" by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus. The idea of living a more intentional life with less useless clutter (in my house, in my head, in my technology) appeals to me very much. I was telling Karen that I have a lot of clutter and it does weigh on me. So she asked me, "How does your cluttered desk serve you?" Because we don't do things over and over again without there being some payoff for us--even for things that maybe aren't healthy or in our best interests. I did have some thoughts on that. Check out the latest episode of Cafe Grit (048, info below) and find out how my cluttered desk serves me. PS: My desk is no longer cluttered and in the podcast I reveal how it got all cleaned up, with Karen's help! 🙋🏻‍♀️ Do you have a clutter problem? Does it feel like a burden? Have you ever explored minimalism? #cafegrit #minimalism #workingfromhome #whatinspiresme #bethannecampbell

Oh, did I have a good laugh when a friend messaged me recently and asked me how I "do it all." 🤣 🤣 🤣 👉🏾 I very much do NOT do it all. 👉🏽 I am not keeping it together. 👉🏼 I don't have it all. 👉🏻 Most days I can barely keep my sh*t together. People, it is OKAY to not do it all. It is okay to not hustle, to not work your ass off, to stroll through the journey rather than sprint all the time. I promise you, most of the people out there whom you perceive as "doing it all" have their own demons and challenges and days when they just want to stay in bed and snuggle with the dog. Don't you feel like that sometimes? I sure do.

Getting a person's name right (and correctly pronounced) is important. In episode 046 of the Café Grit podcast, I talk about some of the name faux pas I've experienced (or been responsible for) over the years. I also give some tips on how we can make sure that we are giving and receiving a preferred name.