Today’s guest is Kim Christiansen, host of the Peaceful Productivity podcast and a productivity coach. Kim will be talking about her background as a chartered professional accountant, burnout, and the pressure to be perfect.

Before becoming a CPA, Kim was an English teacher abroad and a 911 emergency services dispatcher. She has always loved organization and improving processes, and found that processes and efficiency carried over to accountancy.

After becoming a team leader in 2010, Kim also found more responsibility and more stress, leading to a burnout in 2017 that sparked her to find a coach for stress management. With her new skillset, Kim decreased her stress and was surprised to find her productivity increased. She was able to lose weight, exercise more, and stop drinking to relax. Kim also obtained 2 promotions and start a side business.

Productivity comes with both negative and positive connotations. Kim wants to incorporate enjoyment and fulfillment into the process of productivity, not just the results. There tends to be a freeze or frantic approach to overwhelm, and the frantic approach with reactive decisions doesn’t lead to good outcomes.

Mindset and self-talk are key to stress management. When we approach work as ‘I HAVE to go to work’ or ‘I HAVE to make money’ it immediately puts a lens on work that it isn’t something to be enjoyed. It makes us feel like we don’t have a choice. Remind yourself that you do have a choice. Try telling yourself that you get to do whatever you do next.

Kim ends the episode with 3 suggestions to begin cultivating more “peaceful productivity”.

Find out more about Kim and visit her Peaceful Productivity Podcast at :

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-christiansen-cpa-ca-66107256/?originalSubdomain=ca