Posted on September 3, 2026 by Rebecca Mander - Bounce Forward
I’ve just finished a call with my client who has a fear of public speaking. She worries she will be sick and everyone will think she’s disgusting and she will ruin her reputation and, and, and…
Feeling sick before a talk is one thing, but building a box set of stories around what might happen in the future is something else altogether. After our call, I am delighted that the client felt equipped with some new techniques to reduce her anxiety, so I thought I would share them with you! After all…they are award-winning!!
Summary
- Learn from the past, but don’t live there. Take the lesson, decide if there’s something you can do today, then let it go.
- Planning and worrying aren’t the same thing. Planning creates action; catastrophising creates stress about a future that hasn’t happened.
- Use simple mindfulness techniques to bring yourself back to the present when your thoughts start racing backwards or forwards.
- Ask, “What needs my attention right now?” Focusing on one thing at a time can reduce overwhelm and improve productivity.
- Build small anchors into your day. Pause between tasks, step away for lunch, notice your surroundings, and acknowledge what you’ve achieved.
- Focus your energy where you have power: what’s happening now, what you can control, and what you can do next.
How much of today have you actually spent in today? Perhaps your body is sitting at your desk on Thursday morning, but your mind is replaying the conversation you had on Tuesday. You’re wondering if you said the wrong thing, whether you should have handled it differently, or what somebody else thought of you. Or maybe your mind has skipped ahead to next week, next month or even next year.
What if I don’t hit the target?
What if the meeting goes badly?
What if I make the wrong decision?
What if things don’t work out the way I planned?
The Past Is a Teacher, Not a Place to Live
At the start of every year, the internet is flooded with recommendations to reflect on the past twelve months. I’m not going to deny that reflection can be a useful tool. We learn from our mistakes, recognise patterns, and understand ourselves better because of the experiences we’ve had. The problem comes when reflection turns into deliberation.
There’s a difference between asking, “What can I learn from that?” and replaying something while wishing you could change it. One helps you move forward. The other keeps you stuck!
You might find yourself going over an awkward conversation, regretting a career decision, thinking about something you should have said, or beating yourself up about an opportunity you didn’t take, but no amount of thinking can rewrite what has already happened.
What you can do is take the lesson and bring it into the present by asking yourself a simple question:
Is there something useful I can do about this today?
If the answer is yes, take the action.
If the answer is no, give yourself permission to put it down.
Your Brain Loves a Worst-Case Scenario
If you’re not travelling backwards, you’ll usually be racing forwards, and your brain can be amazingly creative when it comes to filling in the blanks!
One unanswered email becomes, “They’re not happy with me.”
One difficult month becomes, “The team is failing.”
You’ll try to prepare yourself by imagining every possible outcome, but has catastrophising ever made you feel better prepared? No, more often than not, it makes you anxious about something that hasn’t even happened. This means you’re experiencing the stress of an imaginary future in the present!
You might say, “But Rebecca, I’m planning.” That’s great. Planning is useful, but worrying isn’t the same thing as planning. A plan says, “Here’s what I’ll do if that happens.” Anxiety says, “But what if…?” and then asks the question another 47 times.
Come Back to What Is Actually Happening
Mindfulness can sound like something else you need to add to your already overflowing to-do list, but it doesn’t have to mean a 30-minute meditation, sitting cross-legged in complete silence, or emptying your mind of every thought. It means noticing where you are and what is happening right now.
It takes seconds…
When you notice your mind disappearing into the past or future, bring your attention back to something physical, like the feeling of your feet on the floor. Notice your breathing and keep it slow and steady. Look around and identify one thing you can see, one thing you can hear, and one thing you can smell. That might be your stapler (see it), the office printer (hear it), and your coffee (smell it).
These tiny moments interrupt the stream of thoughts and reconnect you with what is actually happening rather than what has happened or might happen.
Ask: What Needs My Attention Right Now?
When you’re overwhelmed, your brain tends to throw everything at you at once.
The deadline.
The difficult conversation.
Next month’s figures.
The mistake you made yesterday.
The meeting tomorrow.
The email you haven’t answered.
What’s for dinner?
That thing you suddenly remembered you were supposed to do three weeks ago.
No wonder you’re exhausted! Instead of trying to mentally solve your entire life, ask yourself: what needs your attention right now?
It might be finishing the document in front of you. Making one phone call. Preparing for your next meeting. Eating lunch. Going for a ten-minute walk. Having a conversation you’ve been avoiding. Do that thing, then ask the question again.
Create Small Anchors Throughout Your Day
You don’t need to wait until you’re stressed to practise being present. It can be helpful to build small anchors into your everyday routine, like stepping away from your screen to eat lunch, or taking a moment before launching into another task. When was the last time you acknowledged what you completed at the end of the day instead of thinking about everything you still have to do?
These moments might seem insignificant, but they teach your mind to stop constantly racing ahead.
The goal is to recognise when your thoughts about yesterday or tomorrow are stealing your energy from today. When that happens, bring yourself back:
What is happening right now?
What can I control right now?
What needs my attention right now?
Need Help Quietening the Noise?
If you’re spending too much time overthinking past decisions, worrying about what comes next, or feeling as though your mind is constantly ten steps ahead of you, our Bounce Mindset Career Accelerator can help you create some much-needed space. Want to get on our waitlist for an open programme? Click HERE.
A focused mindset/coaching session gives you the opportunity to untangle what’s going on, separate what you can control from what you can’t, and work out your next step.
Sometimes you don’t need to have the whole future figured out, but you’d benefit from clarity on what to do next.
Book a free consultation with Rebecca and start bringing your energy back to the place where it can make the biggest difference: right here, right now.
“I can’t explain how valuable this course has been…This week I have had several meetings with the senior leadership team, and I felt confident to be myself and possibly contributed and even led some of the meetings! Thank you so much!” – Wesleyan Employee
Posted on June 1, 2026 by Rebecca Mander - Bounce Forward, Coaching through setback
Are your thoughts supporting you or holding you back? The stories you tell yourself can be empowering or keep you stuck. The tricky thing is that when you repeat these thoughts often enough, they stop feeling like thoughts and start feeling like facts. In this article, we look at how to change the stories you tell yourself.
In short…
- The stories you repeat to yourself shape your confidence, decisions, and opportunities.
- Many limiting beliefs come from past experiences, fear, comparison, or old conditioning.
- What are 4 questions to help challenge negative self-talk and uncover whether your thoughts are actually true?
- Limiting stories often stop people from taking action, applying for opportunities, or being visible.
- Repetition makes thoughts feel familiar, but familiarity doesn’t make them true.
- Small mindset and language shifts can create powerful changes in confidence and identity.
- Replacing harsh self-talk with supportive, balanced thoughts helps build self-trust and momentum.
- Journaling and self-awareness exercises can help uncover and rewrite unhelpful narratives.
- You don’t need to eliminate fear completely, but you can stop automatically believing every negative thought.
- It’s not the belief that is the issue, but the strength of it!
When was the last time you heard yourself say, “I’m not confident enough,” or “Other people are naturally better at this.” Or “I’m not (Insert desired strength here) enough?
These are stories you’ve repeated so many times that your brain has accepted them as part of your identity. One of the most powerful mindset tools I’ve come across for challenging these thoughts is from author and speaker Byron Katie.
It’s simple, eye-opening, and surprisingly emotional when you really sit with it, because the stories we tell ourselves shape everything:
- How we show up
- The opportunities we take
- The risks we avoid
- The life we create
Your Mind Loves a Story
Our brains are constantly trying to make sense of the world. We create stories based on past experiences, fear, rejection, embarrassment, childhood conditioning, and even the odd offhand comment someone made twenty years ago!
The problem with this is that most of us never stop to question those stories. We carry them around like invisible rules, and over time, those stories can become our limitations.
- You stop applying for opportunities because you don’t think you’re qualified enough.
- You avoid visibility because you hate attention.
- You stay small because you don’t want to fail.
Meanwhile, somebody else with less experience but a healthier internal narrative is putting themselves forward because their story sounds different.
Byron Katie’s Four Questions
Byron Katie developed a simple but powerful method designed to help people challenge stressful thoughts and beliefs.
The four questions are:
- Is it true?
- Can you absolutely know it’s true?
- How do you react when you believe that thought?
- Who would you be without that thought?
At first glance, they seem straightforward, but when you dig deep, they can completely shift your perspective.
Let’s look at an example of how this works. I want you to imagine your internal story is: “I’m not good enough to put myself forward for promotion.”
Now, let’s run it through the four questions.
Is it true?
Your first instinct might be to agree, but I want you to pause.
What evidence do you actually have? Are you really not good enough, or are you inexperienced, nervous, learning, or comparing yourself to others?
Can you absolutely know it’s true?
This is where things get interesting. Can you prove, beyond all doubt, that you are incapable of getting a promotion? Probably not!
How do you react when you believe that thought?
This makes you think about the story’s impact. You might procrastinate, overthink everything, avoid visibility, constantly compare yourself, or never take action. The thought becomes self-fulfilling because your behaviour changes in response to it.
Who would you be without that thought?
This question can feel emotional because it opens possibilities. Without the belief that you aren’t good enough, maybe you would go for the promotion, speak with more confidence, or trust yourself more. Suddenly, the thought loses some of its power.
The Stories That Keep You Stuck
In coaching conversations, I hear the same types of stories over and over again.
“I’m too old to start over.”
“I missed my chance.”
“I’m not experienced enough.”
“I need to be perfect before I begin.”
“Other people are more qualified.”
“Nobody will take me seriously.”
These stories sound convincing because they’ve been repeated for years, but that repetition only makes them familiar – not true!
Familiar thoughts can quietly shape your entire future if you don’t challenge them. The beautiful thing about self-awareness is that once you recognise a limiting story, you can start rewriting it.
It’s Not About Thinking Happy Thoughts!
Wouldn’t it be great if we could tell ourselves to think happy thoughts, and all those limiting stories and impostor phenomenon moments melted away?
Although we can’t flip a switch in our mind, we CAN choose thoughts that are more supportive, balanced, and empowering.
Instead of saying, “I’m terrible at speaking up in meetings,” maybe the new story becomes, “I’m learning to communicate more confidently.”
“I always fail,” can shift to “Every experience teaches me something valuable.”
Instead of “I’m behind everyone else and missing out on promotions,” you remind yourself that “My journey doesn’t need to look like anyone else’s.”
Small shifts in your language create powerful changes in identity.
A Simple Exercise to Try Today
Take a thought that’s been bothering you recently and journal through these prompts:
- What story am I telling myself?
- Is it definitely true?
- What evidence contradicts this belief?
- How does this story affect my behaviour?
- What might change if I stopped believing it?
- What is a more supportive thought I could choose instead?
You might be surprised by how much clarity comes from slowing down and questioning the narrative.
The stories you tell yourself matter. They influence your confidence, your decisions, your relationships, your career, your creativity, and the opportunities you allow yourself to pursue.
Learning to question your thoughts doesn’t mean you’ll never experience fear or self-doubt again, but it does mean you stop automatically accepting every thought as truth.
Ready to Rewrite the Story?
If you’re tired of feeling stuck in the same cycles of overthinking, self-doubt, or limiting beliefs, my Bounce Mindset tools and coaching sessions are designed to help you challenge unhelpful narratives and build a more confident, resilient mindset.
If you’d like support developing your mindset and understanding how to rewrite your story to show up with more clarity in your career, sign up for our monthly newsletter packed with coaching advice and tips, or book a FREE consultation call with Rebecca to learn how we can support you.
For more tips on building your career, download our FREE resource, 3 Steps to Career Confidence.
“Wow, wow, wow! A course like nothing else I have ever been on before. Truly life changing!” Wesleyan employee
Posted on May 6, 2026 by Rebecca Mander - Bounce Forward
How often have you heard the phrase, ‘know your why’ when it comes to career or business? More importantly, when you sit with that question, what comes up for you? In this article, we talk about the importance of knowing your purpose.
Summary
- Purpose is rooted in your identity and values, guiding your choices and how you show up.
- Ask yourself: What do I stand for? What matters deeply to me? Who do I want to be?
- Purpose matters more than motivation. It helps you keep going when motivation fades.
- A clear why builds resilience, courage, and consistency.
- Purpose acts like an internal compass when life feels uncertain.
- You don’t find purpose overnight. It unfolds as you grow and notice what lights you up.
- Journal prompts can help uncover purpose: when do you feel most like yourself, what frustrates you, and what do others seek you out for?
What’s your why? For most people, the first answers are external and might include family, kids, or even the dog! I am brutally honest when I say “no one cares!” While those things matter, they’re not your core purpose. Yes, they’re part of your world and the driving force behind who you are, but to truly understand yourself, you need to dig a little deeper.
Your Purpose Isn’t What You Do, It’s Who You Are
Your purpose isn’t your job title! It’s not even your to-do list, or what other people expect from you. Knowing who you are lives in your identity and your values. It’s the thread that runs through everything you do, the decisions you make, and the way you show up. Basically, it’s all the things that matter to you when nobody’s watching.
Ask yourself a few simple questions:
- What do I stand for?
- What do I care about so deeply that I can’t ignore it?
- What kind of person do I want to be, regardless of circumstances?
When your purpose is rooted here, something shifts, and you stop chasing validation and start creating alignment.
“If you can tune into your purpose and really align with it… life flows much more easily.” Jack Canfield
Why Purpose Matters More Than Motivation
Motivation is fleeting. There will be days when you don’t feel like showing up, when doubt creeps in, your confidence wobbles, and everything feels harder than it should. In these moments, motivation isn’t enough, but knowing your purpose can help you move forward.
When you’re clear on your why, you make decisions faster (and with less overthinking), you stay committed, even when it feels uncomfortable, and you build something meaningful.
Your purpose fuels:
- Resilience – You bounce back quicker because you know what you’re working towards.
- Courage – You take action even when fear is present.
- Consistency – You keep going when others stop.
Think of your purpose as an internal compass that keeps you steady when everything else feels uncertain.
The Truth About Finding Your Purpose
Unfortunately, your purpose isn’t going to fall into your lap fully formed. It needs to be uncovered layer by layer. It evolves as you grow, learn, and develop, both professionally and personally.
Sometimes, it’s like mine, rooted in a life-changing event. You are passionate about helping others in the way you or someone you love needed it.
Maybe you heard a story or saw something as a child that impacted you. I had a client who loved sitting in the dentist’s office and would go there after school. Remembering this in the Bounce Mindset programme helped her fall back in love with her job in dental insurance.
Another client didn’t know her ‘why’ and told me she just ‘fell into banking’. I challenged this. Why not fall into law or medicine? Over the course of a session, we unpacked her family’s experience as first-generation immigrants while her father built his grocery business. She went on to realise that the impact of a good and a bad bank manager on her family, subconsciously, had triggered her decision to go into finance.
Maybe it shows up quietly in the way you’re drawn to specific things or opportunities, and the conversations that light you up. Sit for a moment and think about when you felt most like yourself. What were you doing?
Here are some prompts to help you go deeper. Grab a notebook and give yourself some time and space with these:
- When do I feel most like me? – Think about moments where you feel energised, confident, or completely at ease.
- What frustrates or upsets me, and why? – Your triggers often point to your values. What matters enough to spark emotion?
- What do people come to me for? – Advice, support, ideas? Look for any patterns here.
- If I removed fear, judgement, and expectations, what would I choose?
- What kind of impact do I want to have on others? – Not in a grand, overwhelming way, but in the everyday moments.
- What do I want my life to stand for?
Take your time with these. Think of your stories. There’s no rush and no right or wrong answers.
Bringing Your Purpose Into Everyday Life
It’s great to gain clarity in your life, but it’s what you do with it that creates lasting change. Once you start to uncover your purpose, ask yourself where you feel out of alignment and what small changes you can make this week to move closer to it.
Knowing your purpose also means honouring your values in your daily decisions.
Purpose doesn’t have to mean you need to have a dramatic life overhaul, but sometimes, it’s as simple as choosing differently.
If you’ve been feeling stuck, unsure, or a little disconnected from what you’re doing, this could be your sign to pause and reconnect with your purpose.
You don’t have to figure it all out on your own. At Guru You Coaching, we support you in getting clear on what truly matters, so you can move forward with confidence, clarity, and direction.
Are you ready to explore your purpose on a deeper level? Coaching sessions and guided resources are available to help you uncover your why and turn it into meaningful action. When you know your purpose, everything else starts to make a lot more sense.
What Are Your Next Steps?
If you’re ready to understand your purpose so you can follow the right leadership opportunities, then using the prompts in this article is the perfect place to begin.
If you’d like support developing your mindset and understanding your purpose to show up with more clarity in your career, sign up for our monthly newsletter packed with coaching advice and tips, or book a FREE consultation call with Rebecca to learn how we can support you.
For more tips on building your career, download our FREE resource, 3 Steps to Career Confidence.
“Wow, wow, wow! A course like nothing else I have ever been on before. Truly life changing!” Wesleyan employee
Posted on February 3, 2026 by Rebecca Mander - Guruyou™ 1-1 Coaching
February is often associated with ideas of love and connection with others, but there’s another kind of love that deserves your attention, and that’s the relationship you have with yourself. Understanding how to own your strengths changes everything.
TL;DR
- Downplaying your strengths quietly erodes confidence, clarity, and belief in what you bring to the table.
- Strength awareness is about knowing what you’re genuinely good at and using that knowledge to build confidence and resilience.
- Confidence doesn’t remove uncertainty, but helps you stay grounded in who you are, even when the wobbles show up.
- When you recognise your strengths, you make better decisions, recover faster from setbacks, and stop chasing things that don’t suit you.
- You can identify your strengths gently by noticing patterns, energy, and feedback, without cringing or self-dismissal.
- Loving yourself is a strategic choice that allows you to stop waiting for permission and start showing up with intention.
We’re not talking about the loud, self-promotional kind of relationship here or the forced affirmations and pretending you feel confident when you don’t. No, I’m talking about understanding what you’re genuinely good at, valuing it, and allowing it to support your personal and professional success.
Why We Struggle to Own Our Strengths
It’s a brutal reality, especially in the UK, that many of us were practically raised on deflection. Any compliments we receive are met with:
“Oh, it was nothing.”
“I just got lucky.”
“Anyone could’ve done it.”
Add a layer of that classic Brit self-deprecating humour, and suddenly downplaying yourself feels polite, relatable, even expected. What you don’t realise is the quiet cost of running this habit.
- You minimise your strengths
- Your confidence is squashed
- You lack clarity
- Your belief in what you bring to the table disappears
If this feels relatable, you need to stop ignoring the evidence and start building a plan to recognise your strengths.
Strength Awareness Builds Confidence and Resilience
When you understand what you’re good at, you make better decisions with more confidence and recover from setbacks faster. It helps you step into the room with authority and make your voice heard.
Strength awareness gives you something solid to stand on when those imposter doubts creep in, and we know they always do!
Confidence isn’t about preventing that uncertainty because this is part of being human, but it is about knowing who you are, even when the wobbles happen.
Emma has been in her role for three years, consistently delivers strong work, and is now considering applying for a promotion. On paper, she’s a strong candidate, but internally, the wobbles have arrived. Emma’s thoughts start creeping in:
‘What if I’m not ready yet?’
‘What if they think I’m overreaching?’
She still feels uncertain walking into the room, but she’s rehearsed what she wants to say more than once, and she also knows who she is.
- She has led two major projects successfully
- She’s the go-to person when problems need solving
- She regularly mentors newer team members
Her appraisals emphasise her reliability and calm leadership, so when she speaks to her manager, she feels grounded.
In this example, Emma might say to her boss, “Putting myself forward for this role has stretched me, but the work I’m already doing aligns with what’s required. I know my strengths are problem-solving, consistency, and supporting the team, and I’d love to talk about how I could step into this role and grow further.”
She hasn’t eliminated her uncertainty, apologised for wanting a promotion, or pretended she’s ready, but she has owned her strengths.
How to Identify Your Strengths (Without Cringing)
Have you ever attended a workshop where the host asks you to ‘list your strengths’? Does this make you recoil in horror? You’re not alone. Here’s a gentler approach you can try instead (without activating your cringe setting):
- Look for patterns, not praise – where do people consistently come to you for help? What do you do that feels natural but makes a real difference to others?
- Notice energy, not perfection – what activities leave you feeling satisfied or quietly proud, even if they’re challenging?
- Reframe compliments – instead of deflecting, simply say: “Thank you. I’m glad it helped.” No justification required
- Borrow perspective – sometimes others see our strengths more clearly than we do. Ask trusted people in your network what they notice you do well, and then resist the urge to argue!
Strength awareness is about finding the truth and learning to believe in yourself.
Loving Yourself Is a Strategic Choice
When you know your strengths, you stop outsourcing your confidence. There’s no more waiting for permission or staying small in the meeting rooms. This kind of self-belief helps you build resilience, allowing you to work intentionally and more effectively.
That’s exactly the work we go deeper into inside the Bounce Mindset Method.
Loving yourself is one of the most powerful success strategies you have.
Ready to Build on This Work?
If this blog has sparked reflection, curiosity, or even a quiet ‘Maybe I’ve been underselling myself’ moment, then this is your personal invitation to our Unseen to Unstoppable Challenge.
For more tips on building your career, download our FREE resource, 3 Steps to Career Confidence and get on the waitlist for our Bounce Mindset Programme 2026.
Sign up for our monthly newsletter packed with coaching advice and tips, or book a FREE consultation call with Rebecca to learn how we can support you.
“Wow, wow, wow! A course like nothing else I have ever been on before. Truly life changing!” Wesleyan employee
Posted on January 5, 2026 by Rebecca Mander - Bounce Forward
Setting a great goal is about choosing a target that stretches you and believing, on a deep level, that it’s possible. Here, we examine the science and spirituality behind goal setting.
TL; DR
- January is powerful, but goals only work when you connect to them emotionally and mentally.
- Elite athletes and high performers use visualisation to train the brain for success.
- The brain responds to vivid mental imagery as if it were real experience.
- Visualising success helps professionals show up more confidently and intentionally at work.
- A HUGG (Huge Unbelievably Great Goal) needs to be exciting, slightly scary, and meaningful.
- Daily visualisation, emotional commitment, and consistent action create real progress.
January has a certain energy to it. It’s like a clean page, a deep breath, and a sense that this could be the year things finally shift for you.
Something most people don’t talk about, however, is that it’s not the goal itself that makes the difference, but how you connect to it.
That’s why visualisation sits beautifully as the link between science and spirit. Now, don’t worry, I’m not going to go all woo on you! Visualisation is a powerful tool in life and business, but you don’t have to take my word for it…
Why Visualisation Works as a Tool for Leaders
Visualisation is a deliberate mental practice used by some of the highest performers in the world. Elite athletes like Simone Biles, Serena Williams, and LeBron James do this daily.
Olympic athletes, professional footballers, golfers, and marathon runners regularly visualise their performance before they even step onto the field or into the ring.
They mentally rehearse:
- The movement of their body
- Rhythm of their breath
- That feeling of success
Why? Because the brain doesn’t differentiate between real experience and vividly imagined experience. When you focus and visualise consistently, you’re training your nervous system to recognise success as something familiar.
The Science Bit of Visualisation
Your brain is always listening! It listens to the good AND the bad, which means the thoughts you have influence everything around you. When you focus on positive thoughts tied to visualisation, you can create incredible opportunities.
One of the most fascinating examples of visualisation research comes from work led by Dr Guang Yue, an exercise physiologist at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. The study explored the impact of visualisation on physical strength.
In this research, participants were split into two groups. One group used physical practice, and the second group used visualisation. The group that visualised muscle contractions, without physically training, experienced an increase in strength of around 13%. No weights. No movement. Just focused mental rehearsal that influenced physical changes in the body.
This means that your thoughts create neurological pathways, which in turn influence your behaviour, confidence, and performance. So, if your brain believes something is possible, your actions begin to align with that belief!
The Spirit Bit of Visualisation
You’ve got to see yourself there first!
One of the most famous examples of visualisation is Jim Carrey’s $10 million cheque.
Early in his career, he wrote himself a cheque for $10 million for ‘acting services rendered’ and dated it for the future. He carried it in his wallet and regularly visualised the life he wanted to create.
Years later, he earned exactly that amount for his role in Dumb and Dumber.
He aligned his belief, intention, and action, and visualised what he wanted.
Visualisation works best when balanced with:
- Emotion (how it feels to achieve the goal)
- Belief (allowing yourself to want it)
- Action (showing up consistently)
How would this work outside of Hollywood? Imagine you’re a senior associate working towards promotion to partner or head of department.
Emotion: You visualise the moment the promotion is confirmed, and the confidence you feel as you walk into the office. You feel respected, trusted, and secure in your professional standing.
Belief: You give yourself permission to want the promotion. You consciously challenge self-doubt and imposter thoughts, reminding yourself of your track record, client results, and leadership potential.
Action: With that belief in place, your behaviour shifts. You contribute with more confidence in meetings, mentor junior staff, and proactively seek feedback. You have intentional conversations with partners about your progression and take ownership of your professional development, knowing your actions reinforce the future you’ve already visualised.
How to Set a HUGG This January
First of all, what’s a HUGG? It stands for Huge Unbelievably Great Goals.
Try this simple framework to set your HUGG:
- Choose a goal that excites and scares you just a little (if it feels safe, it’s probably too small).
- Visualise the outcome daily. See it. Feel it. Imagine what your day would look like after the goal is achieved.
- Anchor it emotionally. Ask yourself: ‘Who am I becoming as I achieve this?’
- Take aligned action. Visualisation fuels courageous action.
- Repeat. Consistency is where the magic (and the science) lives.
Are You Ready to Go Deeper?
If you’re feeling motivated by the fresh-start energy of January and want support to set HUGGs that actually stick, then our Bounce Mindset Programme is the perfect fit.
This experience will help you:
- Set meaningful, motivating goals
- Shift limiting beliefs
- Use proven mindset tools to build confidence and momentum
Reserve your place for the Bounce Mindset Programme and start the year with clarity, intention, and belief in what’s possible: https://welcome.guruyoucoach.com/bounce-mindset-masterclass-interest-0925
For more tips on building your career, download our FREE resource, 3 Steps to Career Confidence and get on the waitlist for our Bounce Mindset Programme 2026.
Sign up for our monthly newsletter packed with coaching advice and tips, or book a FREE consultation call with Rebecca to learn how we can support you.
“Rebecca’s focus on goals, whilst supporting her clients holistically, allows personal development to accelerate without limits. The rewards from working with her are huge.” Beth Stacey
Posted on December 4, 2025 by Rebecca Mander - Bounce Forward
When it comes to career growth, your skills and ambition are vital, but they’re not the whole story. Who you surround yourself with plays a vital role in shaping your growth and success.
These relationships are your circle of influence, which includes your network of mentors, colleagues, peers, and supporters who can open doors, challenge your thinking, and champion your progress.
Who Is In Your Circle of Influence?
Your circle of influence includes anyone who impacts your personal or professional life either directly or indirectly. These are the people who shape your perspective, boost your confidence, and connect you with new opportunities.
They might include:
- Your former manager, who continues to mentor you.
- A colleague who introduces you to potential collaborations.
- Someone who keeps you accountable for your goals.
- A friend or family member who encourages your success.
Do you remember that one teacher who made a difference in your life?
One person who stands out like that for me was Mr Howes, my English teacher. I loved poetry back then, and he made it feel alive, funny, cool, and unexpectedly empowering. He was the first adult to give me genuine confidence. He spotted that I had a sense of humour (some might say far too much!), and instead of telling me to calm it down, he showed me how to use it.
Mr Howes praised when it mattered and was strict when needed, which was Radical Candour in action long before I knew the term, and that’s the thing about people: sometimes they see something in you before you see it in yourself.
When you intentionally build and nurture these relationships, you create a support system that helps you achieve your leadership goals, even when challenges arise. So, who are the amazing people in your circle that pitch you better than you pitch yourself?
Why Your Network Matters More Than Ever
The pace of work is relentless now, so visibility matters. Opportunities often come through conversations, not applications. A strong network helps you feel supported, make braver decisions, and stay on track.
Being around ambitious, positive people inspires you to raise your own standards and develop a performance mindset. Can you think of anyone in your network who matches this?
Exposure to diverse experiences and viewpoints enables you to think strategically and make more informed decisions.
As the saying goes, ‘your network is your net worth,’ but only if it’s built on authenticity, mutual respect, and shared growth. If you want to go deeper with this, make sure you’re on the waitlist for the Bounce Mindset Programme coming in 2026.
How to Cultivate a Strong Circle of Influence
Where do you start when it comes to developing that circle?
- Audit Your Current Network
Start by asking yourself, ‘Who influences me and how?’ Are your connections helping you grow, or holding you back? Identify individuals who share your core values and aspirations. Then, look for gaps! Do you need more mentors, more peers in your industry, or connections outside your usual comfort zone, or do you need to avoid those people who are strutting around the office like Beyoncé? - Be Intentional About Who You Spend Time With
Jim Rohn once said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Surround yourself with individuals who inspire confidence, encourage progress, and challenge you to think bigger. Seek out coaches, communities, and professional networks where you can meet people who share your ambitions. - Give Before You Get
Strong relationships are built on exchange. Offer your support, share your knowledge, and celebrate each other’s achievements. When you lead with generosity, people are more likely to remember and recommend you. - Stay Connected and Consistent
Relationships fade without attention. Schedule regular chats, comment on LinkedIn posts, send a congratulatory message, or grab a coffee to reconnect. These small gestures keep your network alive and authentic. - Invest in Mentoring or Coaching (in both ways)
Having a coach or mentor is invaluable, but so is mentoring others. Teaching, guiding, and supporting those who are earlier in their journey strengthens your leadership skills and expands your influence. Earlier this year, I was working with an amazing client, and we discussed the concept of comfort zones. To show her how stepping out of that comfort zone isn’t as scary as it seems, we did a LinkedIn live right there on the spot! She came out of that session feeling braver and ready to try new things – something she could pass on to others!
Expanding Your Influence with Purpose
The key to building a strong circle is to approach networking as a long-term, two-way relationship rather than a quick exchange. True influence isn’t built in a single conversation, but it grows through consistency, authenticity, and a genuine interest in the success of everyone around you. When you invest time and energy into understanding people’s goals, challenges, and values, you create connections based on trust rather than convenience.
Think of your circle as a living ecosystem that thrives on mutual growth. Offer your support and share your insights, and you’ll become known as someone who uplifts others, boosting your reputation and influence.
As you grow into your leadership role, your influence will evolve too. The more you nurture your circle, the greater impact you’ll have in advancing your own career, as well as in empowering others to reach their full potential. Don’t think of leadership as being at the top of the circle; think about being at the centre, where you can radiate encouragement, opportunity, and collaboration.
“Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much.” Helen Keller
Reflect and Act
Take a few minutes to reflect:
- Who in your current circle motivates you to grow?
- Does anyone drain your energy or limit your thinking?
- What new relationships could support your next career step?
Choose one action this week to take. It might be to reach out to a mentor, attend a networking event, or reconnect with someone you admire. Every relationship you nurture is a step toward greater confidence, opportunity, and success.
“Personal relationships are the fertile soil from which all advancement, all success, all achievement in real life grows.” Ben Stein.
For more tips on building your career, download our FREE resource, 3 Steps to Career Confidence and get on the waitlist for our Bounce Mindset Programme 2026.
Sign up for our monthly newsletter packed with coaching advice and tips, or book a FREE consultation call with Rebecca to learn how we can support you.
“Rebecca’s focus on goals, whilst supporting her clients holistically, allows personal development to accelerate without limits. The rewards from working with her are huge.” Beth Stacey
Posted on January 9, 2025 by Rebecca Mander - Bounce Forward
Setting strategic goals is one of the most effective tools you can use to create your blueprint for success.
Are you wishing and hoping or planning and scheming?
You gotta love Dusty! She must have had a Bounce Mindset when it came to goal setting; although I’m not saying that you need to “do your hair just for him” 😂 Her techniques for getting the goal may be a bit dated!!
As Antoine de Saint-Exupéry said, “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” Quite often, as we aim to bounce forward in our careers, we can forget this. Before we know it, the holidays we wanted, the home renovations, and the time with our family have been swallowed up by the everyday humdrum workload.
Goal setting is about mapping out a plan and turning dreams into reality. How many years have gone by when you wished you had achieved more for yourself? Career and life mapping helps you leave that cosy comfort zone.
When you have a well-thought-out plan, you’re more focused, resilient, and empowered to achieve even the most ambitious goals. This isn’t buying into all the new year, new you nonsense! Strategic goal setting sets you up to be a better version of who you already are.
How can you set and achieve your career goals using effective methods like visualisation, SMART, and your HUGG (Huge Unbelievably Great Goal)? These strategies can give you the structure and motivation to reach new heights.
Start with a Vision
It’s always helpful to begin with the end in mind when setting goals. Jim Carrey famously wrote himself a $10 million cheque before signing on to star in Dumb and Dumber. He knew what he wanted (the end goal) and created a strategy to make it happen. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Where do you want to be in the next three or five years?
- What is your ideal job title, work environment, and lifestyle?
This exercise will help you understand what truly matters to you and provide the foundation for setting specific goals. For those just starting, a vision board can be a fantastic way to visualise what you want to be, do, and have in your life. Close your eyes and imagine your goal in vivid detail, then picture the steps you will take to achieve this goal.
Creating Your Vision Board:
Vision boards are a collection of images and words that visually represent everything you want to have in your life and career. Each chosen image inspires and reinforces your commitment to your goals and future. Here’s how to create one:
- Gather Materials: Use magazines, printouts, quotes, and photos. Select images that resonate with the goals and lifestyle you want.
- Arrange with Purpose: Place images that represent short-term goals closer to the centre and long-term goals further out.
- Keep it Visible: Put your vision board somewhere you’ll see daily as a consistent reminder of what you’re working toward.
What is your HUGG (Huge Unbelievable Great Goal)?
Aiming high pushes you to dream big, step outside your comfort zone, and achieve the impossible. We are often told to take a big goal and break it into smaller goals, but this can mean we forget to set stretchy goals that make our eyes water!
What BIG goal would excite and scare you? Why? If you achieved this HUGG, what impact would it have on your life?
Connecting your goals to your values provides a commitment and helps you stay motivated as you navigate any challenges. Ambitious goals require you to think outside the box, learn to prioritise, and also develop resilience and self-confidence.
“I wanted to drop you a message to tell you that I have spent 2023 working towards achieving my Huge Unbelievably Great Goal, which was to buy a house for me and the children. The amazing news is I found a house and had an offer accepted last month and I’m expecting my mortgage offer tomorrow. I’m so proud of myself, and I have a lot to thank you and the bounce mindset programme for.” Bouncer – Professional Services.
Set SMART Goals
Now that you have a vision and know your HUGG, it’s time to turn this into actionable steps using the SMART goals framework. SMART goals provide simplicity and structure, helping you stay on track and celebrate achievements along the way.
“The thing about goals is that living without them is a lot more fun, in the short run. It seems to me, though, that the people who get things done, who lead, who grow and who make an impact… those people have goals.” Seth Godin
Let’s take a closer look at the SMART Goal Framework:
S = Specific: Fuzzy goals can leave you feeling lost. Be clear about what you want to achieve. For example, rather than ‘I want a promotion,’ reframe this as ‘I want to become a Senior Project Manager in my current company.’
M = Measurable: How will you measure your success? If you aim to gain more industry experience, you might measure it by completing three significant projects within the next six months.
A = Achievable: While it’s good to challenge yourself, be realistic about your capabilities and the resources available to you. If a goal feels overly ambitious, break it down into smaller milestones.
R = Relevant: Do your goals align with your overall vision? When they do, it helps to keep you motivated and ensures that each goal brings you closer to where you want to be.
T = Time-Bound: Set deadlines for each goal. These can be daily, weekly, or monthly milestones that add up to your long-term intentions.
For example, if your ultimate vision is to be a leader in your field, one SMART goal might be to Complete a leadership certification within the next six months.
My quick and easy Ebook guide can help you!
Break Down Long-Term Goals into Short-Term Actions
Long-term goals can often feel daunting, but in the Bounce Mindset Programme, we overcome this by starting with the end in mind and working backwards, as you can see here!
Breaking down your goal into bite-size chunks that support your larger purpose is a really effective way of setting goals. This approach builds momentum, keeps you focused, and builds your confidence as you tick off your tasks!
Try keeping a positive attitude log to journal your thoughts each day.
Reflect, Adjust, and Celebrate Wins
Career goals should evolve as you grow and create new opportunities. Schedule monthly or quarterly check-ins with yourself or your coach/mentor to assess your progress, identify any obstacles, and make adjustments as needed. Remember, goal setting isn’t about perfection; it’s about progress.
Celebrating your achievements is equally important, no matter how small they may seem. Every step forward, whether completing a course or receiving positive feedback from a mentor, deserves recognition. Celebrating your wins reinforces motivation and helps keep burnout at bay.
Accountability is key to achieving ambitious goals. Consider finding a mentor, coach, or accountability partner who can help keep you on track and offer guidance along the way. Regularly discussing your progress with someone can also provide a fresh perspective and much-needed encouragement.
Moving Forward
Strategic goal setting is your blueprint for success. Using The Bounce Mindset® Framework, you can turn your career ambitions into reality with a clear vision, understanding your HUGG, well-defined SMART goals, and a plan for each step. Embrace the process, celebrate each milestone, and remember that with the right strategy, there’s no limit to what you can achieve.
Take charge of your career today! Start by visualising your success, then map out the steps to make it happen.
Get in touch here if you’re looking for more assistance in working through life’s challenges and would appreciate a guide to encourage and support your goals and aspirations. We have a brilliant guide all ready and waiting for you!
If you’re ready to shape your professional role to help you win that personal goal then we got you!
“I found goal setting the most useful part of the course! I am just a few days away from achieving my goal. The small, seemingly insignificant steps compounded over time to reach the Huge, Unbelievably Great Goal. Ignore this at your peril!” Scott Wilson, Wesleyan
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