We interrupt this programming…

Fair Food Network, the awesome non-profit where I work part-time as a contractor, has been growing in leaps and bounds since I started there eight years ago.

When I reduced my work there to that of part-time contractor in 2016, it became necessary to change my title. In the process, I joked that I should join the C-Suite as CHO, chief harassment officer, since most of my work involves chasing staff members down to draft parts of the endless proposals and reports that are part of any non-profit’s existence.

I’ve heard a business coach talk about coming up with creative new meanings for established acronyms or creating acronyms as marketing tools: CEO becomes Chief Empowerment Officer, CFO becomes Chief Fun Officer, COO becomes Chief Opportunity Officer, etc., and it’s sort of a fun exercise.

This weekend as I “tabled” at a forum sponsored by Koncenter Coaching and SCORE in Detroit, I was asked in a taped interview, “How would you answer in two to five words: what is it that you do?”

Huh, I thought, talk about a great question!

Because a lot of my work involves helping clients create simple, sustainable strategies that can help them achieve their health goals, I think and read a lot about habits—my latest reading is Charles Duhigg’s The Power of Habit. (I highly recommend it!)

According to Duhigg, habits are a cycle of cue + routine + reward, and the fastest way to change a habit is to interrupt this pattern at the “routine” stage rather than come up with new cues and/or rewards.

We get very habituated to our routines: “get up, brush and wash, dress, eat breakfast, get to work/school,” can become so automatic that we don’t even think about the fact that we always brush our teeth before we wash our face, we tie our left shoe before our right, etc.

It takes a change in our circumstances—a pattern interrupt—to make us pause and think, “Wait, what do I do next?” Importantly, the interrupt doesn’t have to be large (going away from home on vacation or business). It can just as well be small: for example, I know I haven’t gotten nearly enough sleep when I have to talk myself through my morning routine—what do I do after I brush my teeth?

Flashing back to this train of thought, I realized, “That’s it!”

Two words? “Pattern Interrupt.”

I’m a CPI: Chief Pattern Interrupter.

And this is borne out by a testimonial I received recently from a client in my Reclaim Your SANITY program:

Liza’s insightful questions helped me take a step back from the blur that everyday life can become and to look at my life with a fresh set of eyes. She helped me assess whether my current patterns and choices are helping me reach my goals or not, and she helped me see that just some small changes here and there can help me to enjoy each and every day of the journey. I’m grateful for my time with Liza, my resulting change of attitude, and that I am now purposefully present in my own life.

This fall, I’m repackaging the program for group coaching and calling it Put Your Schedule on a Diet, so if you’re a working wife and mother ready to interrupt your pattern of being constantly overscheduled and overwhelmed and to become “purposefully present” in your own life, your time has come!

The “new year” has started, kids are back to school, and it’s time to do this!

The next round of 1:1 calls takes place the week of October 9–13 for the series that starts October 16. A quick overview is below—you can call 310-892-9485 or email me for more details.

Your benefits

• Minimal time and maximum transformation of your schedule and mindset, moving you from “I am so overwhelmed!” to “I’ve totally got this whole working wife and mother thing sorted!”
• A solid foundation from which you can begin to make the diet and lifestyle choices you thought you didn’t have time for
• Connection with like-minded women and creation of a support system you can stay connected with after the program is over
• Two FREE gifts: a copy of my Fl!p Your K!tchen cookbook and access to the accompanying online course, Meal Planning Made Simple. Together, these resources walk you through reducing overwhelm in your kitchen and establishing your home cooking practice.

Your commitment

• Complete a program agreement and abide by it.
• Participate in seven 1-hour calls over the course of 6 weeks (two 1:1, 5 group).
• Complete all the exercises (observations and written exercises should take no more than 1/2 hour per week in addition to the weekly calls).

Your investment in yourself (yup, this is self-care!) is just $250. Pre-formed groups of 4+ women qualify for a discount and get to choose their group call time—besties and colleagues make a nice accountability and support group when you go through the program together!

If you know anyone else who might need to put her schedule on a diet—overwhelmed working women aren’t exactly an endangered species, so I’m guessing you know at least one—please pass on this information!

Drop me a comment below and let me know: what pattern would you like to interrupt?

I feel like I should sign off now:

Liza Baker, CPI