The Courage To Do Great Work | UYGW031

This podcast episode is a reflection on myself and MY OWN Great Work. The idea of “Great Work” is the work that matters most to you. For myself, I wrote a book (a lifelong dream of mine), received a PhD, have a podcast, did consulting in schools, and so much more work that was so important to me. It may seem obvious to do great work when you feel it is YOUR great work, when it comes from YOUR unique point of view, when it keeps YOU out of your comfort zone, and causes you to meet good people doing great things. You begin to leave a legacy behind you. Your unique idea of great work becomes an “of course”, OF COURSE you are going to do the work. However, one thing that can happen unintentionally is to gloss over the fact, when you talk about doing great work, that it is really hard and terrifying. In reality, doing great work is a joy, but it also a struggle. It’s a struggle against ourselves, our expectations, procrastination, perfectionism, burning ourselves out, and even being afraid to fail. The idea of “I can’t” is so prevalent in our brains when confronted with the possibility of achieving great work. Our ideas become filled with such high stakes, and we need to remember to lower the stakes, drain the drama, and focus on what matters most to us. I want to be honest with you about Great Work and how I engage in a struggle to do great work every day.

You are not alone. We are doing Great Work together.

Join us as we discuss:

03:28 In reality, doing great work is a struggle and a joy.

04:57 Struggle is reasonable because great work at its core is high stakes.

05:24 Reasons why doing your great work is hard.

08:19 Think about the proposition of great work.

09:10 The question of leaving your legacy behind you.

09:51 Nature of great work is terrifying, yet nobody says that they don't want to do great work.

12:11 There was a part of my great work that I had been ignoring.

14:26 Middle school is a vital age because it is the time when the body is triggering the body, the hormones, the brain, and puberty is happening.

15:26 My stories and realizations in my orientation keynote at the University of Toledo.

17:56 If you think you don't have any great work, or you don't know what your great work is, think through all the times that you were just consumed with jealousy or envy.

20:36 Middle-grade students are not getting the educational media that they deserve.

22:21 If you are in the thick of the terror of doing great work, know that you are not alone.

Resources Mentioned:

Click here to get your own copy of Amanda's book, Great Work.

About The Host:

Dr. Amanda Crowell is a cognitive psychologist, speaker, author and coach changing our perspective on the world of work. It IS possible to do Great Work-- launch a successful business, make a scientific discovery, raise a tight-knit family, or manage a global remote team-- without sacrificing your health, happiness and relationships.

Amanda is the Author of the book, Great Work: Do What Matter Most Without Sacrificing Everything Else, and the creator of the Great Work Journals. Amanda's TEDx talk has received more than a million views and has been featured on TED's Ideas blog and Ted Shorts. Her ideas have also been featured on NPR, Al Jazeera, The Wall Street Journal, Quartz, and Thrive Global.

Sponsored By The Great Work Journal

The Unleashing Your Great Work podcast is sponsored by the Great Work Journals! The Great Work Journals are here to answer the question "But HOW?" How can we figure out what our Great Work is? How can we get started, stay with it, and finish our Great Work so it can go out in the world and have an impact?

Click here to learn more, and try...

This podcast episode is a reflection on myself and MY OWN Great Work. The idea of “Great Work” is the work that matters most to you. For myself, I wrote a book (a lifelong dream of mine), received a PhD, have a podcast, did consulting in schools, and so much more work that was so important to me. It may seem obvious to do great work when you feel it is YOUR great work, when it comes from YOUR unique point of view, when it keeps YOU out of your comfort zone, and causes you to meet good people doing great things. You begin to leave a legacy behind you. Your unique idea of great work becomes an “of course”, OF COURSE you are going to do the work. However, one thing that can happen unintentionally is to gloss over the fact, when you talk about doing great work, that it is really hard and terrifying. In reality, doing great work is a joy, but it also a struggle. It’s a struggle against ourselves, our expectations, procrastination, perfectionism, burning ourselves out, and even being afraid to fail. The idea of “I can’t” is so prevalent in our brains when confronted with the possibility of achieving great work. Our ideas become filled with such high stakes, and we need to remember to lower the stakes, drain the drama, and focus on what matters most to us. I want to be honest with you about Great Work and how I engage in a struggle to do great work every day.

You are not alone. We are doing Great Work together.

Join us as we discuss:

03:28 In reality, doing great work is a struggle and a joy.

04:57 Struggle is reasonable because great work at its core is high stakes.

05:24 Reasons why doing your great work is hard.

08:19 Think about the proposition of great work.

09:10 The question of leaving your legacy behind you.

09:51 Nature of great work is terrifying, yet nobody says that they don't want to do great work.

12:11 There was a part of my great work that I had been ignoring.

14:26 Middle school is a vital age because it is the time when the body is triggering the body, the hormones, the brain, and puberty is happening.

15:26 My stories and realizations in my orientation keynote at the University of Toledo.

17:56 If you think you don't have any great work, or you don't know what your great work is, think through all the times that you were just consumed with jealousy or envy.

20:36 Middle-grade students are not getting the educational media that they deserve.

22:21 If you are in the thick of the terror of doing great work, know that you are not alone.

Resources Mentioned:

Click here to get your own copy of Amanda's book, Great Work.

About The Host:

Dr. Amanda Crowell is a cognitive psychologist, speaker, author and coach changing our perspective on the world of work. It IS possible to do Great Work-- launch a successful business, make a scientific discovery, raise a tight-knit family, or manage a global remote team-- without sacrificing your health, happiness and relationships.

Amanda is the Author of the book, Great Work: Do What Matter Most Without Sacrificing Everything Else, and the creator of the Great Work Journals. Amanda's TEDx talk has received more than a million views and has been featured on TED's Ideas blog and Ted Shorts. Her ideas have also been featured on NPR, Al Jazeera, The Wall Street Journal, Quartz, and Thrive Global.

Sponsored By The Great Work Journal

The Unleashing Your Great Work podcast is sponsored by the Great Work Journals! The Great Work Journals are here to answer the question "But HOW?" How can we figure out what our Great Work is? How can we get started, stay with it, and finish our Great Work so it can go out in the world and have an impact?

Click here to learn more, and try it out for yourself!

For more information about the Unleashing YOUR Great Work podcast or to learn more about Dr. Amanda Crowell, check out my website: amandacrowell.com

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