Coach Kirstin

I'm generally quick to make decisions. Makes me really effective at my job. Case in point, buying a motorcycle and not knowing how to ride it or actually have ever seen the bike. I got an idea in my head last week after the reality of a few bad decisions came to play out. Actually, the famous roomie put the idea in my head. But I mulled it over for the better part of a week, eternity in my decision making realm. I made a list, as generally instructed by my dad, to consider my options. When I looked at the pro's it looks pretty good, solves the mess I've gotten myself into. Then I looked at the con's. It's going to be tough but there wasn't one thing on the list that logic didn't have an answer for or that wasn't trumped by the pro list. And today I made up my mind. Slightly aided by my good friend, probably the male version of myself, saying he'd do it with me. Jumping off a cliff is slightly less scary when someone goes with you. Not to worry...

So Saturdays are my days.  I just eat, train and sleep.  Its my day and work doesn't come in to the picture. On Saturdays I head out to Loudon to train at our other gym.  It gives me a chance to get a third MMA class in and work with Iman, as well as other people but nothing beats working with Iman.  I also get to hit the advanced Muay Thai class with Coach Ric.  When I first went out there, Coach Scott gave me a heads up.  Though nothing he could have said would have prepared me for what I walked into.  Its one of the toughest, grittiest 1.5 hours and I love it.  In a weird way that you can only love hard training and a tough coach. I adore each of my coaches for different reasons but he has a coaching style that works well with my personality.  So last Saturday was a hard sparring session.  And there was only 3 of in class, which meant we each got a round with Ric.  I got heads up about what was about to happen but words don't pre...

9 years ago this month I moved to DC for a job with Boeing. I loved it and DC from the moment I got here. A bad manager and a few life changes later and I left 5 years later. It was a hard choice but once I got there, nothing could have changed my mind. I spoke to several VPs, a few higher ups, my mentor but there was nothing they could say to change my mind. My career has progressed pretty well since then. And today I found myself scrambling to see what I could do to keep a really good employee. Making that phone call, asking what could be done but knowing there was nothing I could say. I'd been there. I'd heard his words come straight from my mouth and knew how solidified the position was. I had noticed a month or so back when I was the one that stepped in and got a situation resolved that the people under me were floundering in. But it's official now, I'm no longer the young one in the office. Somehow I became the responsible one. I'm now that one the college hir...

I manage a team of about 80 people that is a mix of subcontractors and my own company. A small team but it has the same problems I have faced every where else. You always have one who gets hired and just doesn't have the skill set. So this person has been counseled and corrected numerous times. But to accommodate a seating issue she had to swap seats with another employee and it placed her closer to her boss. Somehow all the counseling didn't set in but moving her to outside her bosses door did. I'll never understand people. How can a person be so unaware? Sometimes I think you have to literally smack someone upside the head for things to sit in. I love my job but sometimes the people test that.

So my boss is out of pocket for 7 business days but its really 11.  Im counting the weekends since we are 24x7 and I received my first 1 am phone call about work on Friday night.  And Im in charge.  Its really not that bad.  It is REALLY busy but thats how I like things.  Its actually when I work best.  But Im 2/4 days in and I'm exhausted with dealing with the people.  Im an introvert by nature.  I know it doesn't work for my job so at work I step out of my box.  There are times in the day where I can retreat and not have to deal with people.  Not this week.  Its a non stop revolving door in my office. I actually had about 30 minutes where no one came into my office this afternoon and I got up and walked out to make sure everything was ok.  It would be one thing if it was people with real problems and about 5% are.  But the other 95% are capable adults being incapable of handling their own problems.  And they want me...

It's our measuring stick for progress. It makes my stomach sink every time I hear it. It's 17 minutes of hell. But it's our measuring stick. And so we did it on Saturday. And it sucked. And my score was 4 points worse than last time. I expected, knew, my score was going to be worse. I had an injection in a tendon in my shoulder to accelerate the heeling, hence swelling and inflammation. I feel stronger but my score doesnt show that at all. The only place it showed was box jumps but if you had seen my box jumps before there was no where to go but up. Poor Don and all his patience as I flounder through them. Oddly I rocked out more each round than I did in the one before. Everything else sucked. But that's a turning point for this week and doing better. It's going to be a rough one. My boss is out, I'm in charge, scary thought I know. My goal for this week is at least 6 hours of sleep each night (7 is ideal but let's be realistic), to get up when the alarm goe...