What Are Your Running Toward?

I was recently interviewed for a magazine article where I was asked questions about my work and life.

We discussed things including what my business stands for, who I am at the core, my fears, what I’m excited about ahead, and what I do when overwhelm strikes.

I know you already know some things about me. Like that, I see self-awareness as the greatest competitive advantage of our time.

But did you know that I’ve struggled with resistance to what I want most everyday of my life? In this interview, we discussed that and more.

Since my intention for this Monthly Journal has always been to share myself authentically so that we may evolve and advance together, I thought I’d share this interview with you today.

Maybe you’ll identify with a part of it or it’ll provoke you to ask yourself some new questions about your ‘why’ and what you’re running toward.

This time of year brings with it a sense of reflection and renewal. May it bring you to a deeper understanding, knowing, and loving of you!

What are the core values of your business?

RH: Generosity, commitment, integrity, kindness, and authenticity.

What does your business do?

RH: In an uber-fast-paced world, we help individuals overcome the resistance to unleash the best work of their career so that they can be the best leaders, spouses, parents, and friends they want to be.

Why do you believe people do business with you?

RH: People know I am 100% in their corner the moment they start to work with me. That I’m as passionate as they are about getting the best version of their work and life into the world. I have over 20 plus years of being a coach, but more importantly, I walk my talk.

What sets you apart from your competition?

RH: I have something that other coaches are missing — it’s not just a nice-to-have conversation — I get paid for results. I use the best of neuroscience, transformational psychology, and a bit of spiritual wisdom along with my half-century of life experience to create real change. It’s a change that’s sustainable long after the coaching is complete and is noticed and starts from the first time we meet.

What sets your approach apart from others?

RH: Your job performance cannot be separated from your personal history or your life outside of work. Skill and talent cannot be fully deployed and leveraged without having the x-factor — or what I refer to as The Inner Game Advantage. Too many individuals are still limiting their search for personal and professional advancement to increasing training, expertise, work effort, or accessing a new strategy. My approach is goal-oriented but it undeniably demands a level of self-examination that is rare in corporate life. You’re asked to peel away your defenses, explore the underlying motivations that drive you, and look at the impact your behavior is having on the key people in your life. The process leads you to a path of self-understanding and transformation.

Tell me a bit about you. The person behind your brand.

RH: I had early lessons in leadership. From a young age, I began to understand the intricacies of leadership through the example set by my father. As a Colonel in the U.S. Army, he embodied discipline, commitment, selflessness, and integrity – traits that would later become central to my philosophy of leadership. I have observed and tested many leadership styles. I have an insatiable appetite for observing what makes people tick and what empowers them to become greater versions of themselves.

On a personal note, I am relatable. I love to laugh. I see the world as a place in extreme need of unleashing the skills and talents individuals already possess. I see things others don’t see and can relay the information in a way others can use for real change. I’m passionate about wanting to help others experience the highest version of themselves, but I don’t need or want to be in the limelight. I enjoy being with my clients as they cross the finish line.

​What do people not know about your work?

RH: Probably that behind my work to create happy, high-performers is my bigger mission to build self-aware leaders who become models of the kind of interactions and attitudes we want to see in our families, teams, and companies. I want the individual I work with to positively affect 1,000 others.

What’s something people don’t know about you?

RH: As enthusiastic as I am about the possibility and creating new things, I have been battling resistance my whole life. Resistance is that feeling of not wanting to do something that you know is good for you or that you decided previously you should do. That I am more shy than I appear. That I’m always challenging myself to be more self-aware because I love the feeling of greater freedom on the other side. That I‘m a bit of a protector, such that when I see someone being unkind I’m going to get involved. It’s the one thing that will get me off the sidelines most quickly. I don’t know that it’s always a good thing. I also like to defy the odds. When someone tells me something is impossible, I consider that ‘game on.’

What person (real or TV character) would best represent you or the brand of your company and why?

RH: If I could have anyone represent my company it would likely be the Spanx founder, Sara Blakey. She’s spunky, courageous, direct, bold, and funny. She has a young family and success. She demonstrates that you can have both professional success and a robust personal life.

​What brand of shoes would best represent your brand and why?

RH: Oh wow. I don’t know the exact brand, but it’s one that is solid, sustainable, more expensive, not trendy, but built to last. Quiet luxury is my favorite. It feels comfortable looks great and has a classical flash in a new way.

​What famous person or celebrity are you most like? Go ahead, be truthful.

RH: I’d love to be a cross between Sara Blakey, Maya Angelou, and Diane Keaton. Sara for her boldness and results-oriented self. Maya for her sage-like wisdom, grace, strength, and presence. Diane for her classic, cool style and fun! Hah! I guess a happy, bold sage is what I’m aiming for!

What is the driving reason why you’re in business? Why does this business exist?

RH: Because as Maslow’s needs suggest, the highest of our needs is to self-actualize, to know our highest potential, and to test our edges. But Maslow estimates that less than 1% ever will do this. This means there is a world of individuals in positions of leadership who are operating at a fraction of their potential. Who will never become who they are here to be and even worse will never fulfill their purpose to serve others, have fun, and enjoy their life while they do. I’m here to build brigades of self-actualized leaders who improve the world.

What is your dream?

RH: That one day what we’re talking about here — understanding how powerful we are and how to unlock that to serve ourselves and others — is mainstream. Knowing the science of how we create and self-understanding is taught in grade school. It’s not philosophy and longer — it’s physics. We do a disservice waiting until we are halfway through our lives to unlearn all the things we learned that don’t serve us.

What are you most looking forward to?

RH: My upcoming new program that my team and I have been working on. It’s a hybrid group coaching and private coaching program designed so that more who want to get the inner game advantage can do so. I am really excited about it!

​Do you ever get overwhelmed or afraid?

RH: Heck ya! Everyday. Fear is innately within us. It’s not a matter of if we feel fear. It’s what we do with it when it shows up. My goal over the last several decades has been to continually reduce the amount of time I am led by fear and the lag time between when it strikes and my next action. I may experience it less, but I still experience it.

What do you do when you get overwhelmed or afraid?

RH: I ask myself, what I am afraid of. Once I have my honest answer I ask, is it true? In most cases, my fear isn’t true and is a story I made up. Simply seeing things accurately shifts me. I also will ask if I can deal with whatever the worst-case scenario is that I fear.

​What you’re reading right now:

RH: Do the Work by Steven Pressfield

Favorite book:

RH: The Choice by Edith Eger. It found me at the exact right time.

Favorite guilty pleasure…

RH: A glass of wine before dinner

Favorite part of the day…

RH: The silence of the early morning before anyone’s awake.

What you’d want to be if you weren’t a coach

RH: A country singer for certain!