In this episode of The Real Retirement Show, hosts Yasmin and Kathleen welcome Polly Chandler, a leadership development and transition coach. They explore Polly's journey from academia to coaching, highlighting how she helps individuals navigate major life transitions by leveraging their strengths. Polly shares her innovative approaches, including the use of the StrengthsFinder tool and her concept of a 'Hope Journal,' to inspire people to discover their true calling and find joy and purpose. The conversation delves into topics such as addressing career transitions, finding hope, combating fears, and realizing one's potential using a strengths-based approach.
00:00 Overcoming Roadblocks and Finding Purpose
01:27 Welcome to The Real Retirement Show
02:10 Introducing Polly Chandler: A Journey of Reinvention
04:25 Polly's Transition from Academia to Coaching
09:02 The Hope Journal: Finding Hope and Purpose
14:08 Strengths-Based Approach to Life Transitions
22:31 Exploring Strengths and Individualization
23:04 Coaching Through Transitions
23:39 Energy and Alignment
24:20 Understanding and Utilizing Strengths
26:53 Navigating Roadblocks and Comparisons
31:43 The Role of Community and Mentorship
32:35 Optimism, Hope, and Action Plans
39:04 Finding Your Tribe and Passion
42:27 Final Thoughts and Anchors
About Polly Chandler
Polly Chandler is a Leadership Development and Transition Coach for Polly Chandler Coaching. This career path evolved from an intentional decision to focus on what energizes her most: coaching, mentoring and training facilitation. Her previous career was in higher education where she served as the Chair of the Department of Management and Director of the MBA in Sustainability at Antioch University New England.
Polly now coaches individuals and trains teams in many sectors. She is particularly interested in helping people to navigate personal and professional transitions. Her speciality areas are strengths based leadership development, post career reinvention, and serving people and the planet.
Website: http://pollychandlercoaching.com
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/pchandler1
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Episode Transcript
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Polly Chandler (00:00):
If you don't run into that roadblock, you're
(00:03):
probably aren't stretchingyourself quite enough.
Right?
So sometimes people, they latchonto an idea quick.
And one of the reasons in bigtransitions, particularly a
career ending kind of transitionwhere doors open or not, is that
(00:24):
they get so much advice, right?
You should do this, you shouldtry that, you should do this,
you should do that.
And before you know it, theirlens has gone from wide open to,
okay, so I guess I should bethis.
But it maybe wasn't what theywere called to do.
Maybe it wasn't what they werelonging to do.
So helping people to think backaround things that, like what
(00:47):
did, when you were in yourforties, what did you say?
When I retire, I wanna be sure Ido X.
What was the seed of that?
And for a lot of people, it'stravel.
Okay?
So, all right, so you're gonnatravel, but you're not gonna
travel 365 days a year for therest of your life, probably So.
Let's think about what else,right?
(01:09):
And I often find that if you canshift that to a purpose
conversation around what bringsyou joy, what brings you hope,
where have you felt stirred inyour very soul?
You can start changing people'slenses around what's possible.
Yasmin Nguyen (01:27):
Welcome back to The Real Retirement Show.
My name is Yasmin.
Here with my co-host Kathleen.
Whether you're retired orthinking about retirement, we
delve into the multifacetedworld of retirement beyond the
finances.
This isn't your typicalretirement discussion.
It's a vibrant journey into whatretirement truly means in
today's world.
(01:47):
We bring you real stories fromreal retirees and experts
discussing real challenges,surprises, joys, heartaches, and
the myriad of emotions that comewith retirement.
From addressing family dynamicsto mental and physical health,
to finding purpose, we tacklethe issues that truly matter to
retirees and those thinkingabout retirement.
(02:11):
Today we have the privilege ofwelcoming someone whose work,
wisdom and personal journey willinspire anyone navigating a
major life transition.
Whether you're stepping intoretirement, reinventing your
career, or simply searching forwhat's next, Polly Chandler is a
leadership development andtransition coach.
The founder of Polly Chandlercoaching her path to coaching
(02:35):
emerged from an intentional,heartfelt decision to focus on
what energized her mostcoaching, mentoring, and
training.
Prior to launching her ownpractice, Polly served as chair
of the Department of Managementand director of the MBA in
sustainability at AntiochUniversity, new England.
(02:56):
Bringing together leadership,purpose and service to the
planet in everything she did.
Today, Polly coaches,individuals and teams across
many sectors specializing instrengths-based leadership
development, post-carereinvention, and helping people
align their lives and work withwhat truly matters to them.
(03:17):
But Polly's story isn't justabout credentials, it's about
courageous living.
After stepping away from highereducation, she and her husband
embarked on a 10 month road tripin a camper traveling across the
country in search for somethingdeeper.
Signs of hope I.
That journey and the stories shecreated along the way in what
(03:39):
became Her Hope Journaltransformed her life and fueled
a new purpose.
One rooted in creativityservice, and helping others
navigate their own crossroadswith clarity and confidence.
Today, we'll explore Polly's.
Reinvention journey, howstrengths-based coaching can be
a powerful guide through life'stransition and the lessons she's
(04:02):
learned about her hope, purpose,and creating a life of deeper
meaning.
Polly, it's such an honor tohave you here.
Welcome.
Polly Chandler (04:10):
It is an honor to be with all of you too.
Thank you for asking me.
This is really fun.
Kathleen Mundy (04:15):
If I wasn't intimidated before, I certainly
am now.
Polly, I'm so proud to meet youand share this time with you,
thank you so much for being aguest.
Yasmin Nguyen (04:25):
Polly, you have such a powerful story of
personal reinvention fromleading an MBA program in higher
education to becoming aleadership and transition coach.
If you could take us back tothat moment when you realized
that it was time for a change,and what was stirring inside
you.
Polly Chandler (04:44):
It's a great question.
we were living in New Hampshireat the time, I think what was
stirring in me was a longing.
But I couldn't put my finger onit.
was something longing inside ofme.
I loved my students.
I loved the faculty.
I loved the work that we weredoing.
I had become what they calledthe field trip Queen and I did a
(05:08):
ton of service work with mystudents where I would identify
an organization that needed helpand then I would bring my
students out to work on it aspart of their master's projects.
So it was really invigorating.
I felt like I was making adifference, but I Felt like
something was missing.
and anybody who's been inacademia knows that teaching is
(05:28):
only usually about 40% of thetime you spend, there's an awful
lot of other that can fill upyour time.
and it was the other that wasleaving me just kind of, Hmm.
What else?
What's missing about this?
So, I actually began thisjourney with a log.
And I kept a log of what wasenergizing me and what was
(05:51):
draining me.
And I wrote in that log justabout every day, and I would get
this list, and I did it foralmost three months.
And I was just curious what'sgonna show up here?
What's the pattern?
boy did the pattern get clearerand clearer with each day.
What I loved most of all.
Was teaching and mentoringstudents and faculty,
(06:13):
particularly in times oftransition.
And what was draining me was alot of academia administration
stuff.
and so I just kept thinkingabout it and then I started
looking for careers where Icould do more coaching and
mentoring and facilitation withpeople in transition.
(06:33):
And I started doing informationinterviews with coaches.
and people internally andexternal coaches, people who had
their own businesses.
And eventually I was like, Ithink that's what I wanna do.
And so I took this giant leap ofleaving a full-time job with
benefits in a town that I lovedwith friends, and my husband and
(06:56):
I, took the big leap and, we, wecame to California.
Kathleen Mundy (07:03):
Wow, that reminds me of something that I
read about you and it was, thequestion you asked children when
they, what do they wanna be whenthey grow up?
And it sounds like you had awonderful opportunity to
experiment along the way.
We'd like to hear more aboutthat.
Polly Chandler (07:21):
Yeah, so I've been an educator all my life and
I've had the absolute joy ofworking with anything from
preschoolers to graduatestudents.
and I think it was all thosestudents all along the way that
I learned from around differentways of you can look at your
life.
And so I think I've evenreinvented maybe 10, 12 times.
(07:45):
I'm kind of like that.
Generation, they say now wheremost people in this current
generation are gonna reinvent 10to 15 times.
Well, I was an early bird.
I was really reinventingmultiple times along the way.
And each time I felt like I gota little closer to what it was I
was longing for.
and each time I took one littlestep closer to what included
(08:08):
more heart and connection withpeople rather than content.
An element of spirituality, anda desire to be in a career where
I could be energized andpeaceful and calm at the same
time.
So this duality I was lookingfor.
So that was really the journeyfrom.
(08:31):
Craziness of a preschool scienceclassroom middle school science,
to, teaching science teachers toteaching at the university at
Antioch.
teaching earth systems tobusiness people.
each step was a little bitcloser to what actually became
(08:52):
my graduate work, which was onservant leadership.
How can I serve other people?
Yasmin Nguyen (08:58):
Wow.
Polly, your journey justresonates so much with me.
the courage, the inspiration,and I may have shared with our
audience that I took a similarjourney to explore and learn
about joy, and I understand thatyour journey was, the intention
was to look for signs of hope.
And I was curious, what were youhoping, to find out on the road
(09:20):
about yourself, about the worldwhen you set off on this, this
adventure with your husband?
Polly Chandler (09:25):
so it was a time when there wasn't a lot of hope
in our country, and people weredisillusioned and disengaged,
and I just was wondering, well,brings people hope when they're
in that place?
how do we pivot?
How do we turn?
And so when we were heading offon this road trip, to tour the
(09:48):
national and state parks of thecountry, I started by asking
people in the campgrounds andthings, and people would look at
me with this blank stare.
Like, what?
I'm like, I was just curiouswhat brings you hope in the
world?
I got very few responses andmost of them were like, well, I
(10:09):
don't have a lot of hope rightnow.
And I was like, anything you'vebeen doing today in this
beautiful park that brought youhope?
Oh, maybe a little bit.
You know, it was, we had areally great day at the beach or
something, but people couldn'tarticulate it.
So then I had to shift myproject.
me, looking for hope, right?
I wasn't gonna hear it fromother people because they
(10:30):
weren't ready to talk about itat this point.
And so everywhere I went, youknow, once you put your eyes on
something, you start seeing itmore.
place I went, I started lookingfor quotes about hope.
I filled this book with quotesabout hope.
(10:51):
All right?
And I just have been continuingto fill it and to continue to
add to it.
And there's probably a book inhere, but I haven't felt
inspired to write a book yet.
as Emily Dickinson wrote, hopeis the things with feathers
that's nested in your soul.
Kathleen Mundy (11:11):
Well, that inspires me to delve a little
deeper in that.
if you, found that it was alittle difficult to describe or
have people describe hope toyou, how can you transition or
help people transition with hopeand creativity in stepping into
their next chapter?
Polly Chandler (11:29):
That's a great story.
I was coaching somebody justthis week and he is on the
precipice of deciding to retireand ale.
His company and he's afraid.
He's afraid of what's gonna benext, and he's almost frozen
with.
Anxiety about it.
(11:50):
and he's had some, the youngergeneration told him to stop
talking so much, stop telling
Yasmin Nguyen (11:57):
Yes.
Polly Chandler (11:57):
we don't wanna hear that stuff anymore.
And he's brilliant.
I mean, the man is brilliant.
and so yesterday when we weretalking, he was sharing some of
his story and I played it backto him and said, this is an
incredible story.
you see all the ways that youhave to open up in new ways for
(12:20):
the future?
And he was like, what?
And so I walked through each ofthe steps for him and said, this
was just an incredible pivotmoment in your life.
You've done transitions before,you can do it again.
And he was just like, and all ofa sudden, this very buttoned up
guy, the tears start coming downhis cheek.
(12:44):
And he's like, he said, oh, I'ma bit of a crier.
And I said, that's all right.
My husband calls me the crycoach.
I was like, don't worry aboutit.
We can take it.
I can hold it for you.
And he said, this is the firsttime I've felt hopeful in the
last three years.
And I was like, just by helpinghim to see where he had the
(13:07):
fortitude inside of him, knewhow to do transition.
He'd just forgotten that.
I pointed it out to him way backto when he first started his
business in the, when he was 20some years old, he was just
like, oh my God, I can do this.
And that was just a greatmoment.
(13:28):
So I think that's what this HopeJournal has taught me is
sometimes we lose hope becausewe've lost track of where our
greatest strength and wisdom is.
Kathleen Mundy (13:38):
Well, that story's gonna give hope to a lot
of people.
Polly Chandler (13:41):
I hope so.
Yasmin Nguyen (13:45):
Well, Polly, you mentioned strengths.
That's something that, weinitially connected on learning
more about the strengths finderand tools and really tapping
into what energizes us.
And I'm curious to learn alittle bit more about, the
strengths approach, but also foryou what, you have discovered
energizes you, in addition toteaching that, connects with
(14:05):
strengths to help, uh, younavigate your reinvention?
Polly Chandler (14:08):
Yeah, so I am gonna start with what is
StrengthsFinder?
Because some people might notknow what that tool is, and this
is a tool that comes from a hugebody of research around what are
all the talents in the world andwhat would shift in the world if
people had a tool to help themaccess and strategically
leverage their greateststrengths.
(14:30):
And so there's an assessmentcalled Strengths Finder that was
designed to answer that veryquestion, and there's ongoing
research about what shifts inpeople's lives, their homes,
their communities, their faithgroups, their workplaces, when
they take a strengths basedapproach.
just wired for a strengths-basedapproach.
(14:50):
Everything I've done has beenabout.
What are my strengths, Polly?
What do you wanna do more of?
Right?
And so I have learned to use thetool.
I was certified in it.
I got my coaching certificate,and then I was looking for some
tools that would really helpgive people hope quickly when
they were in times oftransition, because people can
(15:11):
be a little down.
And what I found was that byempowering them with
reconnecting with their greatesttalents.
And learning how to activatethem more strategically, they
were better able to navigate thetransitions that they were in.
Whether that was, my kids areleaving home to, I need a new
(15:32):
career to, I'm about to retire,but I don't even like the word
and I don't know what I wanna donext.
Any one of those places.
But by people being able to nameand claim and then strategically
aim their strengths, it openedup all kinds of doors for them.
Yasmin Nguyen (15:50):
I remember Kathleen, we, you and I, when we
got together sometime last year,we all printed up our strengths
finder.
You, me and Robert as well itwas such a powerful experience
for us to not only learn aboutourselves, but each other too.
Kathleen Mundy (16:03):
Mm-hmm.
you know, Yasmin, took my firststrength finder test, if I can
call it that, assessment,probably 15 years ago.
And I was in business at thetime, and, as I was reading the
report, I thought, oh my gosh.
This now makes so much sense tome and I know how I can put
(16:24):
together a team that supports meand my business where I need it,
it also gave me the confidencethat I was on a track that was
going to be fulfilling for mebecause that, that it showed as
one of my strengths.
So it was really empowering.
It just exactly what you said,it really empowers you to see
(16:45):
your future and I think kind of.
It a little senses of whereyou're going, and are you gonna
feel comfortable in thatposition.
Yasmin, as he said, we all tookit together again a year ago.
And, it does change a little bitbecause as you evolve, your
strengths I think do as well.
So, I'm.
(17:06):
supportive of the whole processbecause I think it's just one of
those tools that everyoneshould, utilize to find out the
talents they have, and how theycan move forward in whatever
their future holds.
Polly Chandler (17:18):
Yeah.
Yasmin Nguyen (17:19):
Poll.
I love that this has been a toolthat's been around for a long
time and the applications of ithas been in our careers, and I
love how you are also taking theperspective of how do I help
those navigating this transitioninto retirement where.
They might be re-exploring whattheir purpose is or what they
(17:40):
want to do and how to use thisto help them with that
transition.
And I'm curious, in what wayshave you really adapted this,
approach and tool to helpingnavigate that specific type of
transition?
Polly Chandler (17:54):
Sure.
I think it's a really good pointand, I think my story, I'll use
me as an example.
when I got my strengths results,I was like, this sure sounds
like me.
when I started thinking about itand how might I use it and
incorporate it into my business,I was like, oh gosh, I just
really don't like marketing andall the branding part of
(18:14):
building a business.
It's not my sweet spot.
I then looked at my number onestrength.
Which is relator, which ispeople that like one-on-one
conversations.
And I was like, oh, I don't haveto go do all that marketing
branding stuff.
I'm gonna go talk one-on-one topeople, right?
(18:36):
I'm gonna connect with peopleonce we connect, I can build
trust, I can build hope, I canbuild connection, that's where
my sweet spot is, right?
And that's how I've built mywhole business.
Is by smaller, more intimateconversations.
The other thing is my secondstrength is a strength that is
(18:56):
very much around connecting withpurpose, a sense of purpose, and
I was like, whoa.
there's a strength to anchor abusiness, right?
Helping other people to thinkabout what is their sense of
purpose.
Now, purpose is like passion.
It's a word that puts the brakeson people so fast.
They're like, oh, I don't knowwhat my purpose or passion is.
(19:19):
Right?
But if you wind it back andconnect it to other strengths.
It helps us to point aroundwell, what is that purpose?
What is that sense of purposethat's gonna give you the most
energy, the most joy, the mostresiliency in a fast changing
world?
I.
Yasmin Nguyen (19:35):
Is there a certain way that you help
clients think about theirstrengths or, as some people say
their strengths and theirweakness, what is the frame or
the context in which you helpthem really understand what's
possible given the insights froma tool like this or approach
like this?
Polly Chandler (19:55):
Yeah, so I think the way that I have found most
helpful is storytelling.
so I don't wanna just tellpeople what the strengths are.
What the way I have found mosthelpful is I give people a
little taste of this strength.
Let's say their number onestrength is, what's yours,
Yasmin?
What's your number one strength?
Do you remember
Yasmin Nguyen (20:15):
Um, let's see, uh, let me think.
I, I've got, I don't know if Ihave them in the right order.
Oh, futurist, futuristic,individualist,
individualization, strategic, Ihave to look it up, but those
are the ones.
Polly Chandler (20:30):
start with futuristic.
You and I share that one in ourtop 10, The way I would get
stories going is futuristic is astrength of people who generally
like to think strategicallyabout three, five years out.
What's gonna be different inthree to five years.
They're not people who like tohear all the backstory.
They don't ask, how did thathappen?
(20:50):
What worked, what didn't?
What got in the way?
They're more like, where are wegoing?
How are we gonna get there?
So Yasmin, can you tell me astory?
Of where you've used futuristiclately.
Kathleen Mundy (21:06):
Oh boy.
Yasmin Nguyen (21:08):
Kathleen's oh, how much time do we have here?
Kathleen Mundy (21:11):
have enough time.
You really don't.
I could
Yasmin Nguyen (21:14):
Well.
Kathleen Mundy (21:14):
exactly where he is used it because he uses it
every day.
And one of the things thatYasmin and I have in common is
that's my, one of my strengths.
So we're kind of.
know, we're in a canoe.
We're both paddling andsometimes he starts going in a
direct, I can't keep up, I can'tpaddle fast enough to keep up to
(21:35):
this guy.
yes, there's quite a bit of agedifference, but I'm gonna put
that aside even still.
When he sees something in thefuture, Yasmin, I hope it's okay
if I speak on your
Yasmin Nguyen (21:48):
Oh yeah,
Kathleen Mundy (21:48):
Okay.
When he has a vision, we're bothvisionaries as well.
When he has a vision, he willwork tirelessly in order to
succeed in perfecting amethodology to enable that
vision to its fruition.
(22:09):
So he'll go through brick walls,he'll stay up all night working.
He will do whatever it takes toget that vision applicable to
the people that need it.
Am I right?
Yasmin Nguyen (22:21):
Yeah, you're spot on.
I found my top five.
Okay.
Number one is strategic.
So I'm strategic about thefuturist.
Otherwise I'd be just bedreaming about it all the time.
Then futuristic is two, ideationis three.
So I'm constantly coming up withideas that will drive towards
that, and then it's the achieverin me that stays up all freaking
night, all day long.
(22:42):
And then individualization,which is then adapting it to the
unique.
appreciating the uniqueness ofall different aspects then, is
that, does that.
Polly Chandler (22:51):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
But what, particularly in yourquestion around like, how do I
use it?
See what's really easy to starttalking about ourselves when
we've got these anchors of ourstrengths.
These great stories are whatgive me insights on how to coach
people, right?
So particularly during times oftransition where they're like,
(23:13):
well, I have absolutely no ideawhat I wanna do next.
If they have futuristic, tell meabout a time when you did, When
you cast a vision, how did youget there?
What did you do?
How did you make it happen?
And all of a sudden we startactivating that strength again.
That was kind of in gridlock andsaying, I can't.
And I was like, oh, I rememberhow to do this.
(23:35):
Open up the strength, and thenthe energy flows right in.
Yasmin Nguyen (23:38):
Hmm.
Speaking of energy, you couldtell when once you land on that
and you're aligned with it,there's so much energy and
passion and clarity and thatdrives your purpose.
Versus sometimes when you're theopposite, when you're not
aligned or you're not clear,
Polly Chandler (23:53):
Yeah, and that's really what I like about the
assessment.
energy, like how much you liketo do something, and two, your
performance, how good are you atit.
one lens and it's that dual lensthat gives people the sense of
empowerment of, I wanna do this,I wanna have more great days, I
wanna have a sense of purpose.
I wanna finish the day going,let's do it again.
Kathleen Mundy (24:13):
I think that far too often we put ourselves in a
box because we're so unsureabout what our best.
Strength, Until we do a strengthfinder, we are not appreciating
what our strengths might be andhow others could benefit using
them to the benefit of what theyneed.
one of the things that Idiscovered was that it gave
(24:35):
release, it gave you a way toreally acknowledge.
you have to offer and remove allthat egotistical I'm wonderful
kind of effect, but really getto the core of it and saying,
okay, if this is one of mystrengths, if this is what I've
got to offer, if I can helpsomeone, as you have, utilize
(24:59):
that to rebuild it, theirreinvention plan.
I think that's an art in and ofitself.
then I think you deserve to havethe accolades that comes along
with being a good coach andhelping people with that
transition and the mentorship.
I love the fact that once youknow what your strengths are,
(25:20):
you have the ability to patyourself on the back and say,
yes, I, I am good at that.
I feel great in that space.
Polly Chandler (25:27):
Yeah, I think that's really true and I think,
a strengths-based approach ofcoaching.
Is it just, you know, when youhear it, it's like, oh.
Oh, you know, it kind of, itperks you up a little bit
because it is playing to yourgreatest talents.
And the new thing aboutstrengths is that they started
forming when you were ateenager.
(25:47):
somewhere back in the 12 to 15were the seeds of these.
And then over time andopportunity, exposure,
experience, they got to bebigger and bigger muscles until
they were your greatest talents.
And so here you are at thispoint saying exactly, probably.
The roots of all of what youjust said are rooted in the
(26:08):
talents that maybe go back tochildhood.
One of my favorite activities isto ask people when they read
their strength, where's thefirst time you saw that?
Where do you look back in yourmemory that was the first time
you were doing that thing?
Kathleen Mundy (26:23):
Wow.
That's a really good question.
I have to think about that.
so when you talk about your teenyears, how do you help someone
when they get to the point I.
when they are going through atransition that they might
think, well, it's too late to dosomething like this.
(26:43):
I don't know how to reinvent,and maybe I'm, maybe I don't
have what it takes, and I'mgetting to the point where other
people are saying, oh, don't doit.
that might not work out.
How do you help people who runinto that kind of roadblock?
Polly Chandler (26:59):
Well, I kinda have a different take on that,
which
Kathleen Mundy (27:02):
Perfect.
Polly Chandler (27:03):
If you don't run into that roadblock, you're
probably aren't stretchingyourself quite enough.
Right?
So sometimes people, they latchonto an idea quick.
And one of the reasons in bigtransitions, particularly a
career ending kind of transitionwhere doors open or not, is that
(27:27):
they get so much advice, right?
You should do this, you shouldtry that, you should do this,
you should do that.
And before you know it, theirlens has gone from wide open to,
okay, so I guess I should bethis.
But it maybe wasn't what theywere called to do.
Maybe it wasn't what they werelonging to do.
So helping people to think backaround things that, like what
(27:51):
did, when you were in yourforties, what did you say?
When I retire, I wanna be sure Ido X.
What was the seed of that?
And for a lot of people, it'stravel.
Okay?
So, all right, so you're gonnatravel, but you're not gonna
travel 365 days a year for therest of your life, probably So.
Let's think about what else,right?
(28:12):
And I often find that if you canshift that to a purpose
conversation around what bringsyou joy, what brings you hope,
where have you felt stirred inyour very soul?
You can start changing people'slenses around what's possible.
Kathleen Mundy (28:30):
Hmm.
I love that.
Yasmin Nguyen (28:33):
Yeah, Polly it sometimes when we're in a place
where we don't know, we'reunclear.
I have noticed that sometimes wetend to look outwards and use
the C word, which is compare.
And I'm curious what yourthoughts are the idea of
comparison as it relates tostrengths.
Like, so-and-so's so good atthis, but I'm not, how do you
(28:54):
look at that?
and be supportive in gettingthat clarity.
Polly Chandler (28:59):
Well, I think comparisons can be good.
I'm a huge fan of doinginformation interviews during a
time of transition, going outand talking to people who are
doing what you wanna do and
Yasmin Nguyen (29:11):
I.
Polly Chandler (29:11):
Really wanna do that.
Well, that's okay.
Go talk to them.
But be sure you ask them whatthey like about it, what they
dislike about it.
been their steepest learningcurve?
How much time do they work?
What's their life work balancelike?
Ask, find out what it's reallylike, right?
So that inquiry process isreally important.
(29:32):
The other thing is thatsometimes one of our greatest
strengths can get in the way,right?
60 to 70% of our weaknesses iswhen one of our greatest
strengths is turned up too loud.
It is taking up the room, right?
And so what I spend a lot oftime when people are doing
(29:55):
comparison or stuck is figuringout which strength is really in
what we call the basement.
It's in that weakness side ofthe strength it's getting in the
way.
It's preventing them from moveforward and figuring out which
strengths helped me pivot, whichone will help me get around that
and come out with fresh eyes, abroader lens again.
(30:17):
So I think navigating how toutilize your strengths to
navigate spaces that might feeluncomfortable learning which
ones are your energizers, whichare the ones that's gonna pull
you forward or point you in newdirections.
That kind of dialect I findfascinating.
And when you get talking topeople, it really happens when
(30:40):
people start recognizing what Icall their rescue strength.
This is the strength I go towhen I get stuck and I can find
my way forward again.
Kathleen Mundy (30:52):
I, sorry, but I'm going to jump in here
because.
Polly Chandler (30:55):
Because.
Kathleen Mundy (30:56):
I don't know how you do that alone, Polly.
I don't know how you would dothis alone.
know, we talked a little bitabout the fact that we've had
our, results and we know whatour strengths are, but when you
put it as articulately as youhave how you utilize one to
promote or balance the other.
(31:18):
I don't think you can do thatwithout some guidance and some
coaching.
I really don't.
As much as we've tried and I'vetried to look deeply into those,
the different attributes thateach strength might provide in
order for me to have a balancedoutlook or anyone, it's someone
like you that needs to helpmentor them through it.
(31:41):
So, bravo,
Polly Chandler (31:43):
Well, and I think we need each other, and I
work for a small firm calledThird Half Advisors, and we
really believe in the value of.
Creating communities to havethose dialogues through
workshops or online or retreats.
And so those dialogues arereally rich.
And so we don't do it alone.
We learn from each other.
(32:04):
And reinvention is a learningjourney.
And learner is one of the topstrengths in the world.
And so if we can tap into thatand learn from each other, I
think that's a great way to keepnavigating through whatever
comes our way.
Yasmin Nguyen (32:19):
You mentioned
Polly Chandler (32:20):
I'm a little overly optimistic at times,
Kathleen Mundy (32:24):
Not at all.
Yasmin Nguyen (32:25):
No.
Polly Chandler (32:26):
but I was looking at this journal and I
just wanna bring this.
Quote in at this juncture,because I think this is kind of
the, a stuck spot.
I see people in transitionstalking about optimism a little
bit, Well, you know, I'mrelatively optimistic and, David
Orr, who was a professor, in theMidwest, wrote optimism, leans
(32:49):
back, puts its feet up and wearsa confident look.
Knowing the deck is stacked.
And then he writes.
But hope a verb with its shirtsleeve pulled up.
I love that.
(33:09):
I
Kathleen Mundy (33:09):
love that.
Polly Chandler (33:11):
You know, and so this is an easy work, this to be
reinventing and to go throughbig transitions.
We could be optimistic, put ourfeet up.
And hope that it happens, or wecould activate that hope and
make it a verb.
Pull up our sleeves, activateour strengths, and work together
(33:31):
to find ways forward.
Kathleen Mundy (33:34):
Well, I, again, Paula, you're providing so much
information, so much depth, andit makes me question how people
can move into transition andavoid taking a real strong look
at themselves and where they'vebeen, as you said, look in the
past, which I think has greatvalue, but don't live in it and
(33:56):
don't study it to that extent,that it's gonna alter what
you're doing in the future, butjust to understand what it
taught you and move forward.
But I, I, I.
I don't know what to say.
I'm really, really, reallyimpressed with our conversation
today, and I know that he'sgonna edit this, so that's
really great.
I wanna know, I wanna knowPolly, how do you do an action
(34:19):
plan for this process thatyou're going through?
What's the first step that youdo take?
Polly Chandler (34:27):
so I think we have to get people to a place
where they're willing to change.
So Bill McKibbon wrote, hope isa willingness to change, right?
And I think that is a, it is areally good reminder.
And so what I love about thework I do, whether I'm sitting
next to someone or on Zoom, Ihave this like kind of inner.
(34:53):
Insight about this all.
Now, having done StrengthsFinderfor over almost 12 years now, I
get, I can start to see when thesparkle comes, right?
And all of a sudden there's alittle bit of, I used to tell my
students, don't move forwarduntil you feel the flutter
factor and I can, all of asudden you get it.
I can sense that they've enentered into this flutter
(35:16):
energy.
Something's looking different inthem when they show up the next
week.
And I was like, huh.
Okay.
I think we are ready to startmoving into action, we have to
do the exploration first.
And it's that exploring yourtalents, a little bit and
thinking about what's possible.
And I think, back to thatsabbatical where we took that
(35:37):
big camping trip, that roadtrip, it allowed me to wonder
and wander.
And that was really what Ineeded to do in order to go back
to life and say, what is it Iwanna do?
Most of all, what's calling you?
Most of all, and I took, Imentioned this story to Yasmin.
(35:59):
I was, we were standing on thisbluff overlooking the desert.
And, you know, there's thesenational park signage and things
and there was a sign and I waslike, oh, I wonder what that
sign says.
Always curious.
I walked over to it and I waslike, I looked at the sign and
it said, used to be a view ofthis valley, and it was lush and
(36:22):
it was, this is what this valleylooked like.
But now because of the smogcoming from LA, you can no
longer see the valley.
Floor.
I was just like, it blew meaway.
I was like, we've got a crisison our hand.
And so when we got back to NewHampshire, before we moved to
(36:46):
California, I was like, goingback to my original degree in
environmental education.
This planet needs help.
I got called to a sense ofpurpose and it was just like a
prick that hit me.
And so I enrolled in AntiochUniversity as a student, and I
was like, I'm gonna do this.
I'm gonna go back and make adifference.
this climate thing is movingfaster than I ever expected.
(37:10):
and so I took my first classesand it was pretty familiar.
I was like, oh, this is good.
This is fun to be back in thisspace.
And then I took a class.
In Team Dynamics, and I waslike, oh, I think I'm missing
the point here.
went down to the admissionsoffice that day, this was my
(37:32):
first week of classes, and Isaid, I think I'm in the wrong
degree.
And she was like, what do youmean?
I said, if I really wanna changethe conversation about the
future of this planet.
I don't need to be just talkingto people at parks and in
schools and things.
I need to be talking to peoplewho have positional ways to
(37:55):
influence what's gonna happen.
I need to get a leadershipdegree.
And so my whole kind of focusswitched to how do we support
people thinking in leadershiproles.
Right.
And that could be in a smallnonprofit, it could be in a
community government, it couldbe leaders in families, or it
could be corporate.
(38:16):
But I was like.
We get to get these peopletalking about the planet and
people and so how I evolvedinto, I'd say about 60% of my
client base is people who haveeither worked in the fields of
planet and people or arecurrently working in that field.
(38:37):
It could be, I have clients withthe national parks, I have
clients with the state parks.
Environmental nonprofitsenvironment, social justice,
nonprofits, and thencorporations that are interested
in finding balance of people andplanet.
that's become my sweet spot.
Yasmin Nguyen (38:56):
I could see how energizing it is for you to be
in alignment with your passionand, your strengths
Polly Chandler (39:02):
And it took me a while to get there.
So when I first started ascoaching, I'd take anybody, I
hate to say it, I was a friendof, a friend of mine, says I was
the bottom feeder of coaches,right?
I, so I would work withabsolutely anybody and over
time.
And the transitions that I'vebeen in over the last 10 to 12
(39:23):
years, myself, as I grow older,I'm realizing that I wanna spend
more time as a coach with peoplewho are advocating for people
and justice and the planet.
And
Yasmin Nguyen (39:35):
Mm.
Polly Chandler (39:36):
I kind of have landed as my sweet spot.
Kathleen Mundy (39:39):
You know, it made me think, Yasmin and I have
gone through that same process,not that, and I don't think
you're a bottom feeder at all.
That's not the case.
But I think that, wheneveryou're trying to find your tribe
and the people that speak thesame language, you have to meet
a lot of people.
And you really have to, look at.
Polly Chandler (39:58):
At
Kathleen Mundy (39:59):
What makes this a whole process, and I'm in
this, so I need to find whatworks for me and for us, and
we've definitely gone throughthat process, in the last two
years.
I think it's really important tobe honest with yourself and give
yourself permission to take thatjourney and find out who your
(40:19):
tribe is, what your tribe is allabout, and where they're going.
Because I think that's reallyimportant to know what their
future is, but in comparison towhat you want yours to be.
Polly Chandler (40:31):
Yeah.
And I think that's the courage.
So many people in transitionsright now are starting up their
own businesses,
Kathleen Mundy (40:38):
Mm-hmm.
Polly Chandler (40:38):
and they're starting up businesses because
they know they have a talent insomething that they've been
doing for a while and they wannashare it or do whatever.
think the real courageousmoment.
Is that when you recognize thatthe talent that you have has
transferability other peoplethan who you've always been
(40:58):
working with?
When cracks open that new venuefor
Kathleen Mundy (41:04):
Yeah.
Polly Chandler (41:05):
mean, one of the venues I discovered that I
didn't even know was there was awhole venue of people in the
spirituality field, And themthinking about their strengths,
and I was like, huh.
That's a little bit seed that'sbeen waiting to grow and bloom
inside of me.
And so I think if we are open tojust being okay, I need to start
(41:29):
my business and then I need tofind my people I will be able to
serve people better if I'm withmy people.
Yasmin Nguyen (41:40):
Wow.
Polly, I feel like we could talkfor another couple hours here.
you have such rich wisdomexperience and your presence is
so enriching and so for thosewho are Interested in learning
more about you, maybe connectingwith you as well too.
What's the best way to find youand to learn more about you and
your work?
Polly Chandler (41:59):
Sure.
So my website is Poly ChandlerCoaching.
On that website, there is a waysto contact me, and there's also
a 30 minute complimentarycoaching session.
I'm all about letting people tryit on, see if it's a fit.
It might not be a fit today, butit might be in the future, but I
like to give people anopportunity to say, huh, would
(42:19):
that be like?
I can't even imagine.
Yasmin Nguyen (42:22):
All the possibilities waiting.
Yeah.
Kathleen Mundy (42:24):
Well,
Yasmin Nguyen (42:25):
Um,
Kathleen Mundy (42:26):
I can imagine.
Yasmin Nguyen (42:27):
any final thoughts as we wrap up our
conversation today?
I.
Polly Chandler (42:31):
I think I'll finish by just saying that when
you're in a transition, be sureyou have good anchors around you
and things that ground you.
And that might be.
Good people, good friends, or itmight be as I mentioned in,
before we started, you know,images.
(42:54):
So I have images in my officethat anchor me.
The two of these watercolors areby my mother when she was living
in Nova Scotia.
And then on the left is this,map of the boundary waters canoe
area in northern Minnesota.
One of my heart places, right?
And then behind me is a littlecluster of things that are, you
know, icons from other people inmy life.
(43:15):
when I get stuck knowing thatI've got these anchors of these
great relationships in my lifethat are, feeding me, even
though they may not be here, itjust kind of me, do this, I can
do this, and I totally believeother people can too.
Yasmin Nguyen (43:37):
Thank you so much, Polly, for being one of my
anchors as well, to be able toshare this experience with you
and, enrich our audience withyour experience and your wisdom.
Kathleen Mundy (43:47):
It is been so inspirational.
as I said earlier, on the onset,I was impressed, incredibly so
and humbled, but, and now I feelinspiration is the word I should
use.
Polly Chandler (44:00):
Maybe a little hopeful.
Kathleen Mundy (44:01):
Oh, absolutely.
Polly Chandler (44:03):
I
Kathleen Mundy (44:03):
I.
Yasmin Nguyen (44:04):
Lots of help.
Polly Chandler (44:06):
thank you.
Yasmin Nguyen (44:08):
Thank you for taking the time to join us
today.
If you enjoyed this episode orfound it valuable, please
subscribe, follow and leave acomment or view on your favorite
platform.
If you have friends, clients, orloved ones who are retired or
thinking about retirement, weinvite you to share this show
with them.
Check out this show notes withlinks to resources mentioned in
(44:29):
thisepisode@realretirementshow.com.
Remember, retirement is a joyfuljourney we get to experience
together.
Join us next week for anotherreal retirement conversation.
If you don't run into that roadblock, you're
(00:03):
probably aren't stretchingyourself quite enough.
Right?
So sometimes people, they latchonto an idea quick.
And one of the reasons in bigtransitions, particularly a
career ending kind of transitionwhere doors open or not, is that
(00:24):
they get so much advice, right?
You should do this, you shouldtry that, you should do this,
you should do that.
And before you know it, theirlens has gone from wide open to,
okay, so I guess I should bethis.
But it maybe wasn't what theywere called to do.
Maybe it wasn't what they werelonging to do.
So helping people to think backaround things that, like what
(00:47):
did, when you were in yourforties, what did you say?
When I retire, I wanna be sure Ido X.
What was the seed of that?
And for a lot of people, it'stravel.
Okay?
So, all right, so you're gonnatravel, but you're not gonna
travel 365 days a year for therest of your life, probably So.
Let's think about what else,right?
(01:09):
And I often find that if you canshift that to a purpose
conversation around what bringsyou joy, what brings you hope,
where have you felt stirred inyour very soul?
You can start changing people'slenses around what's possible.
Yasmin Nguyen (01:27):
Welcome back to The Real Retirement Show.
My name is Yasmin.
Here with my co-host Kathleen.
Whether you're retired orthinking about retirement, we
delve into the multifacetedworld of retirement beyond the
finances.
This isn't your typicalretirement discussion.
It's a vibrant journey into whatretirement truly means in
today's world.
(01:47):
We bring you real stories fromreal retirees and experts
discussing real challenges,surprises, joys, heartaches, and
the myriad of emotions that comewith retirement.
From addressing family dynamicsto mental and physical health,
to finding purpose, we tacklethe issues that truly matter to
retirees and those thinkingabout retirement.
(02:11):
Today we have the privilege ofwelcoming someone whose work,
wisdom and personal journey willinspire anyone navigating a
major life transition.
Whether you're stepping intoretirement, reinventing your
career, or simply searching forwhat's next, Polly Chandler is a
leadership development andtransition coach.
The founder of Polly Chandlercoaching her path to coaching
(02:35):
emerged from an intentional,heartfelt decision to focus on
what energized her mostcoaching, mentoring, and
training.
Prior to launching her ownpractice, Polly served as chair
of the Department of Managementand director of the MBA in
sustainability at AntiochUniversity, new England.
(02:56):
Bringing together leadership,purpose and service to the
planet in everything she did.
Today, Polly coaches,individuals and teams across
many sectors specializing instrengths-based leadership
development, post-carereinvention, and helping people
align their lives and work withwhat truly matters to them.
(03:17):
But Polly's story isn't justabout credentials, it's about
courageous living.
After stepping away from highereducation, she and her husband
embarked on a 10 month road tripin a camper traveling across the
country in search for somethingdeeper.
Signs of hope I.
That journey and the stories shecreated along the way in what
(03:39):
became Her Hope Journaltransformed her life and fueled
a new purpose.
One rooted in creativityservice, and helping others
navigate their own crossroadswith clarity and confidence.
Today, we'll explore Polly's.
Reinvention journey, howstrengths-based coaching can be
a powerful guide through life'stransition and the lessons she's
(04:02):
learned about her hope, purpose,and creating a life of deeper
meaning.
Polly, it's such an honor tohave you here.
Welcome.
Polly Chandler (04:10):
It is an honor to be with all of you too.
Thank you for asking me.
This is really fun.
Kathleen Mundy (04:15):
If I wasn't intimidated before, I certainly
am now.
Polly, I'm so proud to meet youand share this time with you,
thank you so much for being aguest.
Yasmin Nguyen (04:25):
Polly, you have such a powerful story of
personal reinvention fromleading an MBA program in higher
education to becoming aleadership and transition coach.
If you could take us back tothat moment when you realized
that it was time for a change,and what was stirring inside
you.
Polly Chandler (04:44):
It's a great question.
we were living in New Hampshireat the time, I think what was
stirring in me was a longing.
But I couldn't put my finger onit.
was something longing inside ofme.
I loved my students.
I loved the faculty.
I loved the work that we weredoing.
I had become what they calledthe field trip Queen and I did a
(05:08):
ton of service work with mystudents where I would identify
an organization that needed helpand then I would bring my
students out to work on it aspart of their master's projects.
So it was really invigorating.
I felt like I was making adifference, but I Felt like
something was missing.
and anybody who's been inacademia knows that teaching is
(05:28):
only usually about 40% of thetime you spend, there's an awful
lot of other that can fill upyour time.
and it was the other that wasleaving me just kind of, Hmm.
What else?
What's missing about this?
So, I actually began thisjourney with a log.
And I kept a log of what wasenergizing me and what was
(05:51):
draining me.
And I wrote in that log justabout every day, and I would get
this list, and I did it foralmost three months.
And I was just curious what'sgonna show up here?
What's the pattern?
boy did the pattern get clearerand clearer with each day.
What I loved most of all.
Was teaching and mentoringstudents and faculty,
(06:13):
particularly in times oftransition.
And what was draining me was alot of academia administration
stuff.
and so I just kept thinkingabout it and then I started
looking for careers where Icould do more coaching and
mentoring and facilitation withpeople in transition.
(06:33):
And I started doing informationinterviews with coaches.
and people internally andexternal coaches, people who had
their own businesses.
And eventually I was like, Ithink that's what I wanna do.
And so I took this giant leap ofleaving a full-time job with
benefits in a town that I lovedwith friends, and my husband and
(06:56):
I, took the big leap and, we, wecame to California.
Kathleen Mundy (07:03):
Wow, that reminds me of something that I
read about you and it was, thequestion you asked children when
they, what do they wanna be whenthey grow up?
And it sounds like you had awonderful opportunity to
experiment along the way.
We'd like to hear more aboutthat.
Polly Chandler (07:21):
Yeah, so I've been an educator all my life and
I've had the absolute joy ofworking with anything from
preschoolers to graduatestudents.
and I think it was all thosestudents all along the way that
I learned from around differentways of you can look at your
life.
And so I think I've evenreinvented maybe 10, 12 times.
(07:45):
I'm kind of like that.
Generation, they say now wheremost people in this current
generation are gonna reinvent 10to 15 times.
Well, I was an early bird.
I was really reinventingmultiple times along the way.
And each time I felt like I gota little closer to what it was I
was longing for.
and each time I took one littlestep closer to what included
(08:08):
more heart and connection withpeople rather than content.
An element of spirituality, anda desire to be in a career where
I could be energized andpeaceful and calm at the same
time.
So this duality I was lookingfor.
So that was really the journeyfrom.
(08:31):
Craziness of a preschool scienceclassroom middle school science,
to, teaching science teachers toteaching at the university at
Antioch.
teaching earth systems tobusiness people.
each step was a little bitcloser to what actually became
(08:52):
my graduate work, which was onservant leadership.
How can I serve other people?
Yasmin Nguyen (08:58):
Wow.
Polly, your journey justresonates so much with me.
the courage, the inspiration,and I may have shared with our
audience that I took a similarjourney to explore and learn
about joy, and I understand thatyour journey was, the intention
was to look for signs of hope.
And I was curious, what were youhoping, to find out on the road
(09:20):
about yourself, about the worldwhen you set off on this, this
adventure with your husband?
Polly Chandler (09:25):
so it was a time when there wasn't a lot of hope
in our country, and people weredisillusioned and disengaged,
and I just was wondering, well,brings people hope when they're
in that place?
how do we pivot?
How do we turn?
And so when we were heading offon this road trip, to tour the
(09:48):
national and state parks of thecountry, I started by asking
people in the campgrounds andthings, and people would look at
me with this blank stare.
Like, what?
I'm like, I was just curiouswhat brings you hope in the
world?
I got very few responses andmost of them were like, well, I
(10:09):
don't have a lot of hope rightnow.
And I was like, anything you'vebeen doing today in this
beautiful park that brought youhope?
Oh, maybe a little bit.
You know, it was, we had areally great day at the beach or
something, but people couldn'tarticulate it.
So then I had to shift myproject.
me, looking for hope, right?
I wasn't gonna hear it fromother people because they
(10:30):
weren't ready to talk about itat this point.
And so everywhere I went, youknow, once you put your eyes on
something, you start seeing itmore.
place I went, I started lookingfor quotes about hope.
I filled this book with quotesabout hope.
(10:51):
All right?
And I just have been continuingto fill it and to continue to
add to it.
And there's probably a book inhere, but I haven't felt
inspired to write a book yet.
as Emily Dickinson wrote, hopeis the things with feathers
that's nested in your soul.
Kathleen Mundy (11:11):
Well, that inspires me to delve a little
deeper in that.
if you, found that it was alittle difficult to describe or
have people describe hope toyou, how can you transition or
help people transition with hopeand creativity in stepping into
their next chapter?
Polly Chandler (11:29):
That's a great story.
I was coaching somebody justthis week and he is on the
precipice of deciding to retireand ale.
His company and he's afraid.
He's afraid of what's gonna benext, and he's almost frozen
with.
Anxiety about it.
(11:50):
and he's had some, the youngergeneration told him to stop
talking so much, stop telling
Yasmin Nguyen (11:57):
Yes.
Polly Chandler (11:57):
we don't wanna hear that stuff anymore.
And he's brilliant.
I mean, the man is brilliant.
and so yesterday when we weretalking, he was sharing some of
his story and I played it backto him and said, this is an
incredible story.
you see all the ways that youhave to open up in new ways for
(12:20):
the future?
And he was like, what?
And so I walked through each ofthe steps for him and said, this
was just an incredible pivotmoment in your life.
You've done transitions before,you can do it again.
And he was just like, and all ofa sudden, this very buttoned up
guy, the tears start coming downhis cheek.
(12:44):
And he's like, he said, oh, I'ma bit of a crier.
And I said, that's all right.
My husband calls me the crycoach.
I was like, don't worry aboutit.
We can take it.
I can hold it for you.
And he said, this is the firsttime I've felt hopeful in the
last three years.
And I was like, just by helpinghim to see where he had the
(13:07):
fortitude inside of him, knewhow to do transition.
He'd just forgotten that.
I pointed it out to him way backto when he first started his
business in the, when he was 20some years old, he was just
like, oh my God, I can do this.
And that was just a greatmoment.
(13:28):
So I think that's what this HopeJournal has taught me is
sometimes we lose hope becausewe've lost track of where our
greatest strength and wisdom is.
Kathleen Mundy (13:38):
Well, that story's gonna give hope to a lot
of people.
Polly Chandler (13:41):
I hope so.
Yasmin Nguyen (13:45):
Well, Polly, you mentioned strengths.
That's something that, weinitially connected on learning
more about the strengths finderand tools and really tapping
into what energizes us.
And I'm curious to learn alittle bit more about, the
strengths approach, but also foryou what, you have discovered
energizes you, in addition toteaching that, connects with
(14:05):
strengths to help, uh, younavigate your reinvention?
Polly Chandler (14:08):
Yeah, so I am gonna start with what is
StrengthsFinder?
Because some people might notknow what that tool is, and this
is a tool that comes from a hugebody of research around what are
all the talents in the world andwhat would shift in the world if
people had a tool to help themaccess and strategically
leverage their greateststrengths.
(14:30):
And so there's an assessmentcalled Strengths Finder that was
designed to answer that veryquestion, and there's ongoing
research about what shifts inpeople's lives, their homes,
their communities, their faithgroups, their workplaces, when
they take a strengths basedapproach.
just wired for a strengths-basedapproach.
(14:50):
Everything I've done has beenabout.
What are my strengths, Polly?
What do you wanna do more of?
Right?
And so I have learned to use thetool.
I was certified in it.
I got my coaching certificate,and then I was looking for some
tools that would really helpgive people hope quickly when
they were in times oftransition, because people can
(15:11):
be a little down.
And what I found was that byempowering them with
reconnecting with their greatesttalents.
And learning how to activatethem more strategically, they
were better able to navigate thetransitions that they were in.
Whether that was, my kids areleaving home to, I need a new
(15:32):
career to, I'm about to retire,but I don't even like the word
and I don't know what I wanna donext.
Any one of those places.
But by people being able to nameand claim and then strategically
aim their strengths, it openedup all kinds of doors for them.
Yasmin Nguyen (15:50):
I remember Kathleen, we, you and I, when we
got together sometime last year,we all printed up our strengths
finder.
You, me and Robert as well itwas such a powerful experience
for us to not only learn aboutourselves, but each other too.
Kathleen Mundy (16:03):
Mm-hmm.
you know, Yasmin, took my firststrength finder test, if I can
call it that, assessment,probably 15 years ago.
And I was in business at thetime, and, as I was reading the
report, I thought, oh my gosh.
This now makes so much sense tome and I know how I can put
(16:24):
together a team that supports meand my business where I need it,
it also gave me the confidencethat I was on a track that was
going to be fulfilling for mebecause that, that it showed as
one of my strengths.
So it was really empowering.
It just exactly what you said,it really empowers you to see
(16:45):
your future and I think kind of.
It a little senses of whereyou're going, and are you gonna
feel comfortable in thatposition.
Yasmin, as he said, we all tookit together again a year ago.
And, it does change a little bitbecause as you evolve, your
strengths I think do as well.
So, I'm.
(17:06):
supportive of the whole processbecause I think it's just one of
those tools that everyoneshould, utilize to find out the
talents they have, and how theycan move forward in whatever
their future holds.
Polly Chandler (17:18):
Yeah.
Yasmin Nguyen (17:19):
Poll.
I love that this has been a toolthat's been around for a long
time and the applications of ithas been in our careers, and I
love how you are also taking theperspective of how do I help
those navigating this transitioninto retirement where.
They might be re-exploring whattheir purpose is or what they
(17:40):
want to do and how to use thisto help them with that
transition.
And I'm curious, in what wayshave you really adapted this,
approach and tool to helpingnavigate that specific type of
transition?
Polly Chandler (17:54):
Sure.
I think it's a really good pointand, I think my story, I'll use
me as an example.
when I got my strengths results,I was like, this sure sounds
like me.
when I started thinking about itand how might I use it and
incorporate it into my business,I was like, oh gosh, I just
really don't like marketing andall the branding part of
(18:14):
building a business.
It's not my sweet spot.
I then looked at my number onestrength.
Which is relator, which ispeople that like one-on-one
conversations.
And I was like, oh, I don't haveto go do all that marketing
branding stuff.
I'm gonna go talk one-on-one topeople, right?
(18:36):
I'm gonna connect with peopleonce we connect, I can build
trust, I can build hope, I canbuild connection, that's where
my sweet spot is, right?
And that's how I've built mywhole business.
Is by smaller, more intimateconversations.
The other thing is my secondstrength is a strength that is
(18:56):
very much around connecting withpurpose, a sense of purpose, and
I was like, whoa.
there's a strength to anchor abusiness, right?
Helping other people to thinkabout what is their sense of
purpose.
Now, purpose is like passion.
It's a word that puts the brakeson people so fast.
They're like, oh, I don't knowwhat my purpose or passion is.
(19:19):
Right?
But if you wind it back andconnect it to other strengths.
It helps us to point aroundwell, what is that purpose?
What is that sense of purposethat's gonna give you the most
energy, the most joy, the mostresiliency in a fast changing
world?
I.
Yasmin Nguyen (19:35):
Is there a certain way that you help
clients think about theirstrengths or, as some people say
their strengths and theirweakness, what is the frame or
the context in which you helpthem really understand what's
possible given the insights froma tool like this or approach
like this?
Polly Chandler (19:55):
Yeah, so I think the way that I have found most
helpful is storytelling.
so I don't wanna just tellpeople what the strengths are.
What the way I have found mosthelpful is I give people a
little taste of this strength.
Let's say their number onestrength is, what's yours,
Yasmin?
What's your number one strength?
Do you remember
Yasmin Nguyen (20:15):
Um, let's see, uh, let me think.
I, I've got, I don't know if Ihave them in the right order.
Oh, futurist, futuristic,individualist,
individualization, strategic, Ihave to look it up, but those
are the ones.
Polly Chandler (20:30):
start with futuristic.
You and I share that one in ourtop 10, The way I would get
stories going is futuristic is astrength of people who generally
like to think strategicallyabout three, five years out.
What's gonna be different inthree to five years.
They're not people who like tohear all the backstory.
They don't ask, how did thathappen?
(20:50):
What worked, what didn't?
What got in the way?
They're more like, where are wegoing?
How are we gonna get there?
So Yasmin, can you tell me astory?
Of where you've used futuristiclately.
Kathleen Mundy (21:06):
Oh boy.
Yasmin Nguyen (21:08):
Kathleen's oh, how much time do we have here?
Kathleen Mundy (21:11):
have enough time.
You really don't.
I could
Yasmin Nguyen (21:14):
Well.
Kathleen Mundy (21:14):
exactly where he is used it because he uses it
every day.
And one of the things thatYasmin and I have in common is
that's my, one of my strengths.
So we're kind of.
know, we're in a canoe.
We're both paddling andsometimes he starts going in a
direct, I can't keep up, I can'tpaddle fast enough to keep up to
(21:35):
this guy.
yes, there's quite a bit of agedifference, but I'm gonna put
that aside even still.
When he sees something in thefuture, Yasmin, I hope it's okay
if I speak on your
Yasmin Nguyen (21:48):
Oh yeah,
Kathleen Mundy (21:48):
Okay.
When he has a vision, we're bothvisionaries as well.
When he has a vision, he willwork tirelessly in order to
succeed in perfecting amethodology to enable that
vision to its fruition.
(22:09):
So he'll go through brick walls,he'll stay up all night working.
He will do whatever it takes toget that vision applicable to
the people that need it.
Am I right?
Yasmin Nguyen (22:21):
Yeah, you're spot on.
I found my top five.
Okay.
Number one is strategic.
So I'm strategic about thefuturist.
Otherwise I'd be just bedreaming about it all the time.
Then futuristic is two, ideationis three.
So I'm constantly coming up withideas that will drive towards
that, and then it's the achieverin me that stays up all freaking
night, all day long.
(22:42):
And then individualization,which is then adapting it to the
unique.
appreciating the uniqueness ofall different aspects then, is
that, does that.
Polly Chandler (22:51):
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
But what, particularly in yourquestion around like, how do I
use it?
See what's really easy to starttalking about ourselves when
we've got these anchors of ourstrengths.
These great stories are whatgive me insights on how to coach
people, right?
So particularly during times oftransition where they're like,
(23:13):
well, I have absolutely no ideawhat I wanna do next.
If they have futuristic, tell meabout a time when you did, When
you cast a vision, how did youget there?
What did you do?
How did you make it happen?
And all of a sudden we startactivating that strength again.
That was kind of in gridlock andsaying, I can't.
And I was like, oh, I rememberhow to do this.
(23:35):
Open up the strength, and thenthe energy flows right in.
Yasmin Nguyen (23:38):
Hmm.
Speaking of energy, you couldtell when once you land on that
and you're aligned with it,there's so much energy and
passion and clarity and thatdrives your purpose.
Versus sometimes when you're theopposite, when you're not
aligned or you're not clear,
Polly Chandler (23:53):
Yeah, and that's really what I like about the
assessment.
energy, like how much you liketo do something, and two, your
performance, how good are you atit.
one lens and it's that dual lensthat gives people the sense of
empowerment of, I wanna do this,I wanna have more great days, I
wanna have a sense of purpose.
I wanna finish the day going,let's do it again.
Kathleen Mundy (24:13):
I think that far too often we put ourselves in a
box because we're so unsureabout what our best.
Strength, Until we do a strengthfinder, we are not appreciating
what our strengths might be andhow others could benefit using
them to the benefit of what theyneed.
one of the things that Idiscovered was that it gave
(24:35):
release, it gave you a way toreally acknowledge.
you have to offer and remove allthat egotistical I'm wonderful
kind of effect, but really getto the core of it and saying,
okay, if this is one of mystrengths, if this is what I've
got to offer, if I can helpsomeone, as you have, utilize
(24:59):
that to rebuild it, theirreinvention plan.
I think that's an art in and ofitself.
then I think you deserve to havethe accolades that comes along
with being a good coach andhelping people with that
transition and the mentorship.
I love the fact that once youknow what your strengths are,
(25:20):
you have the ability to patyourself on the back and say,
yes, I, I am good at that.
I feel great in that space.
Polly Chandler (25:27):
Yeah, I think that's really true and I think,
a strengths-based approach ofcoaching.
Is it just, you know, when youhear it, it's like, oh.
Oh, you know, it kind of, itperks you up a little bit
because it is playing to yourgreatest talents.
And the new thing aboutstrengths is that they started
forming when you were ateenager.
(25:47):
somewhere back in the 12 to 15were the seeds of these.
And then over time andopportunity, exposure,
experience, they got to bebigger and bigger muscles until
they were your greatest talents.
And so here you are at thispoint saying exactly, probably.
The roots of all of what youjust said are rooted in the
(26:08):
talents that maybe go back tochildhood.
One of my favorite activities isto ask people when they read
their strength, where's thefirst time you saw that?
Where do you look back in yourmemory that was the first time
you were doing that thing?
Kathleen Mundy (26:23):
Wow.
That's a really good question.
I have to think about that.
so when you talk about your teenyears, how do you help someone
when they get to the point I.
when they are going through atransition that they might
think, well, it's too late to dosomething like this.
(26:43):
I don't know how to reinvent,and maybe I'm, maybe I don't
have what it takes, and I'mgetting to the point where other
people are saying, oh, don't doit.
that might not work out.
How do you help people who runinto that kind of roadblock?
Polly Chandler (26:59):
Well, I kinda have a different take on that,
which
Kathleen Mundy (27:02):
Perfect.
Polly Chandler (27:03):
If you don't run into that roadblock, you're
probably aren't stretchingyourself quite enough.
Right?
So sometimes people, they latchonto an idea quick.
And one of the reasons in bigtransitions, particularly a
career ending kind of transitionwhere doors open or not, is that
(27:27):
they get so much advice, right?
You should do this, you shouldtry that, you should do this,
you should do that.
And before you know it, theirlens has gone from wide open to,
okay, so I guess I should bethis.
But it maybe wasn't what theywere called to do.
Maybe it wasn't what they werelonging to do.
So helping people to think backaround things that, like what
(27:51):
did, when you were in yourforties, what did you say?
When I retire, I wanna be sure Ido X.
What was the seed of that?
And for a lot of people, it'stravel.
Okay?
So, all right, so you're gonnatravel, but you're not gonna
travel 365 days a year for therest of your life, probably So.
Let's think about what else,right?
(28:12):
And I often find that if you canshift that to a purpose
conversation around what bringsyou joy, what brings you hope,
where have you felt stirred inyour very soul?
You can start changing people'slenses around what's possible.
Kathleen Mundy (28:30):
Hmm.
I love that.
Yasmin Nguyen (28:33):
Yeah, Polly it sometimes when we're in a place
where we don't know, we'reunclear.
I have noticed that sometimes wetend to look outwards and use
the C word, which is compare.
And I'm curious what yourthoughts are the idea of
comparison as it relates tostrengths.
Like, so-and-so's so good atthis, but I'm not, how do you
(28:54):
look at that?
and be supportive in gettingthat clarity.
Polly Chandler (28:59):
Well, I think comparisons can be good.
I'm a huge fan of doinginformation interviews during a
time of transition, going outand talking to people who are
doing what you wanna do and
Yasmin Nguyen (29:11):
I.
Polly Chandler (29:11):
Really wanna do that.
Well, that's okay.
Go talk to them.
But be sure you ask them whatthey like about it, what they
dislike about it.
been their steepest learningcurve?
How much time do they work?
What's their life work balancelike?
Ask, find out what it's reallylike, right?
So that inquiry process isreally important.
(29:32):
The other thing is thatsometimes one of our greatest
strengths can get in the way,right?
60 to 70% of our weaknesses iswhen one of our greatest
strengths is turned up too loud.
It is taking up the room, right?
And so what I spend a lot oftime when people are doing
(29:55):
comparison or stuck is figuringout which strength is really in
what we call the basement.
It's in that weakness side ofthe strength it's getting in the
way.
It's preventing them from moveforward and figuring out which
strengths helped me pivot, whichone will help me get around that
and come out with fresh eyes, abroader lens again.
(30:17):
So I think navigating how toutilize your strengths to
navigate spaces that might feeluncomfortable learning which
ones are your energizers, whichare the ones that's gonna pull
you forward or point you in newdirections.
That kind of dialect I findfascinating.
And when you get talking topeople, it really happens when
(30:40):
people start recognizing what Icall their rescue strength.
This is the strength I go towhen I get stuck and I can find
my way forward again.
Kathleen Mundy (30:52):
I, sorry, but I'm going to jump in here
because.
Polly Chandler (30:55):
Because.
Kathleen Mundy (30:56):
I don't know how you do that alone, Polly.
I don't know how you would dothis alone.
know, we talked a little bitabout the fact that we've had
our, results and we know whatour strengths are, but when you
put it as articulately as youhave how you utilize one to
promote or balance the other.
(31:18):
I don't think you can do thatwithout some guidance and some
coaching.
I really don't.
As much as we've tried and I'vetried to look deeply into those,
the different attributes thateach strength might provide in
order for me to have a balancedoutlook or anyone, it's someone
like you that needs to helpmentor them through it.
(31:41):
So, bravo,
Polly Chandler (31:43):
Well, and I think we need each other, and I
work for a small firm calledThird Half Advisors, and we
really believe in the value of.
Creating communities to havethose dialogues through
workshops or online or retreats.
And so those dialogues arereally rich.
And so we don't do it alone.
We learn from each other.
(32:04):
And reinvention is a learningjourney.
And learner is one of the topstrengths in the world.
And so if we can tap into thatand learn from each other, I
think that's a great way to keepnavigating through whatever
comes our way.
Yasmin Nguyen (32:19):
You mentioned
Polly Chandler (32:20):
I'm a little overly optimistic at times,
Kathleen Mundy (32:24):
Not at all.
Yasmin Nguyen (32:25):
No.
Polly Chandler (32:26):
but I was looking at this journal and I
just wanna bring this.
Quote in at this juncture,because I think this is kind of
the, a stuck spot.
I see people in transitionstalking about optimism a little
bit, Well, you know, I'mrelatively optimistic and, David
Orr, who was a professor, in theMidwest, wrote optimism, leans
(32:49):
back, puts its feet up and wearsa confident look.
Knowing the deck is stacked.
And then he writes.
But hope a verb with its shirtsleeve pulled up.
I love that.
(33:09):
I
Kathleen Mundy (33:09):
love that.
Polly Chandler (33:11):
You know, and so this is an easy work, this to be
reinventing and to go throughbig transitions.
We could be optimistic, put ourfeet up.
And hope that it happens, or wecould activate that hope and
make it a verb.
Pull up our sleeves, activateour strengths, and work together
(33:31):
to find ways forward.
Kathleen Mundy (33:34):
Well, I, again, Paula, you're providing so much
information, so much depth, andit makes me question how people
can move into transition andavoid taking a real strong look
at themselves and where they'vebeen, as you said, look in the
past, which I think has greatvalue, but don't live in it and
(33:56):
don't study it to that extent,that it's gonna alter what
you're doing in the future, butjust to understand what it
taught you and move forward.
But I, I, I.
I don't know what to say.
I'm really, really, reallyimpressed with our conversation
today, and I know that he'sgonna edit this, so that's
really great.
I wanna know, I wanna knowPolly, how do you do an action
(34:19):
plan for this process thatyou're going through?
What's the first step that youdo take?
Polly Chandler (34:27):
so I think we have to get people to a place
where they're willing to change.
So Bill McKibbon wrote, hope isa willingness to change, right?
And I think that is a, it is areally good reminder.
And so what I love about thework I do, whether I'm sitting
next to someone or on Zoom, Ihave this like kind of inner.
(34:53):
Insight about this all.
Now, having done StrengthsFinderfor over almost 12 years now, I
get, I can start to see when thesparkle comes, right?
And all of a sudden there's alittle bit of, I used to tell my
students, don't move forwarduntil you feel the flutter
factor and I can, all of asudden you get it.
I can sense that they've enentered into this flutter
(35:16):
energy.
Something's looking different inthem when they show up the next
week.
And I was like, huh.
Okay.
I think we are ready to startmoving into action, we have to
do the exploration first.
And it's that exploring yourtalents, a little bit and
thinking about what's possible.
And I think, back to thatsabbatical where we took that
(35:37):
big camping trip, that roadtrip, it allowed me to wonder
and wander.
And that was really what Ineeded to do in order to go back
to life and say, what is it Iwanna do?
Most of all, what's calling you?
Most of all, and I took, Imentioned this story to Yasmin.
(35:59):
I was, we were standing on thisbluff overlooking the desert.
And, you know, there's thesenational park signage and things
and there was a sign and I waslike, oh, I wonder what that
sign says.
Always curious.
I walked over to it and I waslike, I looked at the sign and
it said, used to be a view ofthis valley, and it was lush and
(36:22):
it was, this is what this valleylooked like.
But now because of the smogcoming from LA, you can no
longer see the valley.
Floor.
I was just like, it blew meaway.
I was like, we've got a crisison our hand.
And so when we got back to NewHampshire, before we moved to
(36:46):
California, I was like, goingback to my original degree in
environmental education.
This planet needs help.
I got called to a sense ofpurpose and it was just like a
prick that hit me.
And so I enrolled in AntiochUniversity as a student, and I
was like, I'm gonna do this.
I'm gonna go back and make adifference.
this climate thing is movingfaster than I ever expected.
(37:10):
and so I took my first classesand it was pretty familiar.
I was like, oh, this is good.
This is fun to be back in thisspace.
And then I took a class.
In Team Dynamics, and I waslike, oh, I think I'm missing
the point here.
went down to the admissionsoffice that day, this was my
(37:32):
first week of classes, and Isaid, I think I'm in the wrong
degree.
And she was like, what do youmean?
I said, if I really wanna changethe conversation about the
future of this planet.
I don't need to be just talkingto people at parks and in
schools and things.
I need to be talking to peoplewho have positional ways to
(37:55):
influence what's gonna happen.
I need to get a leadershipdegree.
And so my whole kind of focusswitched to how do we support
people thinking in leadershiproles.
Right.
And that could be in a smallnonprofit, it could be in a
community government, it couldbe leaders in families, or it
could be corporate.
(38:16):
But I was like.
We get to get these peopletalking about the planet and
people and so how I evolvedinto, I'd say about 60% of my
client base is people who haveeither worked in the fields of
planet and people or arecurrently working in that field.
(38:37):
It could be, I have clients withthe national parks, I have
clients with the state parks.
Environmental nonprofitsenvironment, social justice,
nonprofits, and thencorporations that are interested
in finding balance of people andplanet.
that's become my sweet spot.
Yasmin Nguyen (38:56):
I could see how energizing it is for you to be
in alignment with your passionand, your strengths
Polly Chandler (39:02):
And it took me a while to get there.
So when I first started ascoaching, I'd take anybody, I
hate to say it, I was a friendof, a friend of mine, says I was
the bottom feeder of coaches,right?
I, so I would work withabsolutely anybody and over
time.
And the transitions that I'vebeen in over the last 10 to 12
(39:23):
years, myself, as I grow older,I'm realizing that I wanna spend
more time as a coach with peoplewho are advocating for people
and justice and the planet.
And
Yasmin Nguyen (39:35):
Mm.
Polly Chandler (39:36):
I kind of have landed as my sweet spot.
Kathleen Mundy (39:39):
You know, it made me think, Yasmin and I have
gone through that same process,not that, and I don't think
you're a bottom feeder at all.
That's not the case.
But I think that, wheneveryou're trying to find your tribe
and the people that speak thesame language, you have to meet
a lot of people.
And you really have to, look at.
Polly Chandler (39:58):
At
Kathleen Mundy (39:59):
What makes this a whole process, and I'm in
this, so I need to find whatworks for me and for us, and
we've definitely gone throughthat process, in the last two
years.
I think it's really important tobe honest with yourself and give
yourself permission to take thatjourney and find out who your
(40:19):
tribe is, what your tribe is allabout, and where they're going.
Because I think that's reallyimportant to know what their
future is, but in comparison towhat you want yours to be.
Polly Chandler (40:31):
Yeah.
And I think that's the courage.
So many people in transitionsright now are starting up their
own businesses,
Kathleen Mundy (40:38):
Mm-hmm.
Polly Chandler (40:38):
and they're starting up businesses because
they know they have a talent insomething that they've been
doing for a while and they wannashare it or do whatever.
think the real courageousmoment.
Is that when you recognize thatthe talent that you have has
transferability other peoplethan who you've always been
(40:58):
working with?
When cracks open that new venuefor
Kathleen Mundy (41:04):
Yeah.
Polly Chandler (41:05):
mean, one of the venues I discovered that I
didn't even know was there was awhole venue of people in the
spirituality field, And themthinking about their strengths,
and I was like, huh.
That's a little bit seed that'sbeen waiting to grow and bloom
inside of me.
And so I think if we are open tojust being okay, I need to start
(41:29):
my business and then I need tofind my people I will be able to
serve people better if I'm withmy people.
Yasmin Nguyen (41:40):
Wow.
Polly, I feel like we could talkfor another couple hours here.
you have such rich wisdomexperience and your presence is
so enriching and so for thosewho are Interested in learning
more about you, maybe connectingwith you as well too.
What's the best way to find youand to learn more about you and
your work?
Polly Chandler (41:59):
Sure.
So my website is Poly ChandlerCoaching.
On that website, there is a waysto contact me, and there's also
a 30 minute complimentarycoaching session.
I'm all about letting people tryit on, see if it's a fit.
It might not be a fit today, butit might be in the future, but I
like to give people anopportunity to say, huh, would
(42:19):
that be like?
I can't even imagine.
Yasmin Nguyen (42:22):
All the possibilities waiting.
Yeah.
Kathleen Mundy (42:24):
Well,
Yasmin Nguyen (42:25):
Um,
Kathleen Mundy (42:26):
I can imagine.
Yasmin Nguyen (42:27):
any final thoughts as we wrap up our
conversation today?
I.
Polly Chandler (42:31):
I think I'll finish by just saying that when
you're in a transition, be sureyou have good anchors around you
and things that ground you.
And that might be.
Good people, good friends, or itmight be as I mentioned in,
before we started, you know,images.
(42:54):
So I have images in my officethat anchor me.
The two of these watercolors areby my mother when she was living
in Nova Scotia.
And then on the left is this,map of the boundary waters canoe
area in northern Minnesota.
One of my heart places, right?
And then behind me is a littlecluster of things that are, you
know, icons from other people inmy life.
(43:15):
when I get stuck knowing thatI've got these anchors of these
great relationships in my lifethat are, feeding me, even
though they may not be here, itjust kind of me, do this, I can
do this, and I totally believeother people can too.
Yasmin Nguyen (43:37):
Thank you so much, Polly, for being one of my
anchors as well, to be able toshare this experience with you
and, enrich our audience withyour experience and your wisdom.
Kathleen Mundy (43:47):
It is been so inspirational.
as I said earlier, on the onset,I was impressed, incredibly so
and humbled, but, and now I feelinspiration is the word I should
use.
Polly Chandler (44:00):
Maybe a little hopeful.
Kathleen Mundy (44:01):
Oh, absolutely.
Polly Chandler (44:03):
I
Kathleen Mundy (44:03):
I.
Yasmin Nguyen (44:04):
Lots of help.
Polly Chandler (44:06):
thank you.
Yasmin Nguyen (44:08):
Thank you for taking the time to join us
today.
If you enjoyed this episode orfound it valuable, please
subscribe, follow and leave acomment or view on your favorite
platform.
If you have friends, clients, orloved ones who are retired or
thinking about retirement, weinvite you to share this show
with them.
Check out this show notes withlinks to resources mentioned in
(44:29):
thisepisode@realretirementshow.com.
Remember, retirement is a joyfuljourney we get to experience
together.
Join us next week for anotherreal retirement conversation.
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