Today we want to talk about something that we ALL do, and that is hard to stop especially if you’re not aware that you are doing it. And it’s causing problems in your communication and your leadership.

Can you guess what it is?

This has the potential to cause breakdowns in your relationships, misunderstandings in your communication, and can even lead to major leadership problems.

If you guessed assumptions, you guessed right.

In this conversation, Holly and I are sharing 2 truths about assumptions and the dangers that assumptions have for us as Christian leaders. But we're not just leaving you with the bad news. We're also sharing 3 specific practices you can develop that will lessen the impact that assumptions have on your communication and your leadership.

If you want to become a better leader, have better relationships, or improve your communication with others, this is a must listen.

Connect with Esther and the Christian Woman Leadership Podcast:

• Website

• Esther’s Instagram

Have you ever felt like you are juggling so many balls at once, and at any moment, they could all come tumbling down? Kayla Cornish found herself here, and she actually experienced the balls crashing down. She had been living the life of hustle and seeing success–but it came at a price. It wasn’t until she and her family began accepting the gift of Sabbath rest that things started to change.

As a leader, you may have wondered: is practicing the Sabbath something that modern day Christians need to do? And if so, how on earth can you practice it while still managing all the rest of your responsibilities–especially if you are involved in church ministry on Sundays?

In this conversation, Holly and I talk with Kayla Cornish of Legacy Roots Co. Kayla believes there are 2 important aspects of our purpose as believers, and when we neglect the gift of Sabbath rest, we are missing out on some beautiful things God wants for us, such as healing, peace, love and a deeper relationship with Him.

Listen in to discover more about what it means to practice Sabbath rest and why it’s so important, especially for Christian leaders.

• Kayla’s life & leadership journey

• Why Kayla became passionate about the importance of Sabbath

• Why mission, vision, and values (or roots) are important for families

• Why Sabbath rest is non-negotiable & what it looks like

• The benefits of shifting away from a hustle mindset 

• The church’s role in leading Christians to cultivate the practice of Sabbath

• Tips for getting started with the practice of Sabbath

• Why leaders need to model honoring the Sabbath and rest

• What to do when your leader or your spouse isn’t on board with the idea of rest 

• Leaders are Learners recommendations:

  • Practicing the Way by John Mark Comer

  • John Mark Comer Teachings Podcast

  • The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry

  • The Rest of God by Mark Buchanan

• Legacy Roots Co Website

• Sabbath Ideas

• Kayla’s Instagram

• Legacy Roots Co Instagram

• Ultimate Sabbath Guide

Connect with Esther and the Christian Woman Leadership Podcast:

• Website

• Esther’s Instagram

Is it possible to lead when you don’t have a leadership title or role? Is there a difference for someone who does have an official title vs. someone who is a team member? 

In this conversation, Holly and I talk through how leadership looks different for us now than it did when we started the podcast. And we discuss how we feel about leading without a role or title. 

Finally, we give some practical tips for things you can do when you are wanting to grow as a leader, whether you have a title or not!

And, for our fun question of the day, you’ll hear as Holly and I share about whether we got into trouble in high school (and if so, what for). 

Links mentioned:

Episode 2: What is Leadership?

Episode 6: The Importance of Leading with Confidence

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

When life changes, does our leadership change? How do we navigate seasons of loss or change as leaders? And what does it look like to endure the pain of healing even when we'd rather avoid it?

In this episode, Holly and I are chatting through some life updates and sharing some reflections about the past year of our lives. We discuss what our goals are looking like this year as well as how they are different from past years. We also dive into the idea of healing and how it's often painful to go through healing and growth. 

We hope you enjoy this conversation and gain some new insights and ideas on how to approach your goals for the year or walk through a season of healing from loss.

To get our FREE Reflection Guide, go here: https://go.estherlittlefield.com/reflect-optin

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Have you ever set goals and then a few weeks later completely abandoned them? Or perhaps you even forgot what goals you were supposed to be working on? You're not alone. And the reason so many goals are abandoned is because we forget to create a plan for how we're actually going to accomplish them.

In this final episode in our Purposeful Goal Setting Mini-Series, Holly's going to talk you through creating an action plan for your goals. She's giving you real-life examples and some helpfup tips and tricks to make sure your goals don't just become something collecting dust in the back of your closet.

Tools & resources for creating an action plan:

• Episode 31: The Key to accomplishing your goals 

• Books (affiliate links)

  • The Twevle Week Year

  • Atomic Habits

  • The Power of Habit

• Calendar - iCal, Google Calendar, paper planner, goal sheets

• PowerSheets [affiliate link]

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

If you’ve done the first 2 steps of reflection and dreaming, you’re ready to start setting some goals. But how? What if you're not sure where to start?

In this episode, I'll walk you through some key principles of goal setting and some helpful tips that have worked for me. We'll also look at the differences between project goals and habit goals so you can determine which type of goals make sense for you.

Finally, I'll share with you the PEACE Goal Framework that my friend Christa Hutchins originally shared with us on Episode 181. And we'll talk about what to do next!

Tools & resources for goal setting:

Episode 28: Three Approaches to Goal Setting

Episode 30: How Your Personality Affects Your Goal Setting

Episode 181: Peace Goals

PowerSheets (Affiliate Link)

Blank Pads of Paper (Affiliate Link)

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

After reflection, are you excited and ready to jump into setting your goals for the next year or season? Before you do, there's one more thing you need to do: take time for dreaming and casting a vision.

In this episode of our mini-series, Holly will walk you through what it looks like to dream and create a vision for your year. This is a chance to allow God to inspire you and lead you into something different or better than you could come up with on your own.

• Episode 26 of the Christian Woman Leadership Podcast - The Importance of Dreaming

• PowerSheets [affiliate link]

• Bucket List Tutorial from Polly Payne

Connect with Esther:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Is it really necessary to reflect before setting your goals for the year or the next season or phase of your life? Why does it matter, and does it impact whether your goals are effective?

John Dewey says: "We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience.” And while you can go straight to goal setting, I have found immense value in first reflecting on the past before creating goals for the future.

In this episode, I'll share with you why reflection is important, what you should reflect on, and how to do it. Plus I'll give you some of my favorite resources for reflecting.

Links mentioned:

• Episode 128: Processing 2020
• Episode 130: Processing Your Circumstances
• Episode 131: Processing Your Relationships
• Episode 24: What You Should Do Before the New Year Begins
• PowerSheets (affiliate link) - Get 10% off your order with code "ESTHERLITTLEFIELD"
• My favorite pens (Amazon affiliate link)
• Big Post-Its (Amazon affiliate link)
• FREE Processing & Reflection Guide

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Yes we are in January - but perhaps, like me, you’ve struggled a bit to get your 2024 goals on paper.

Maybe your 2023 dished out more than you could handle. Or perhaps life hasn’t slowed down enough for you to think through your goals. It could be that goal setting really isn’t your thing, and that’s okay.

This week on the podcast, Holly & I are coming to you with a mini series about goal setting. But what it’s really about is choosing to live with intention. And as leaders, being intentional is key. 

So we want to help you do that by walking you through our 4 step framework for Purposeful Goal Setting.

1. Reflection

2. Dreaming & Vision Casting

3. Goal Setting

4. Create an Action Plan

Get ready and make sure you’re subscribed, because we’ll be dropping a new episode over the next 4 days.

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

Have you ever heard a word or phrase that made an impact and stuck with you for days or weeks to come? Perhaps someone said something directly to you or maybe you heard it in a podcast, read it in Scripture, or it came up in a conversation with a friend.

Words have power, and over the past year, I've been collecting phrases and words that have helped me immensely. Today, I'm sharing some of those with you. 

Plus, I'm sharing 3 things you can do with your words, regardless of your leadership role or title.

Connect with me:

Website: https://estherlittlefield.com/

Instagram: @estherdlittlefield

What does it look like to disagree in a healthy way as Christians? Can we consume content from people who hold different views from us, or should we try to limit our exposure to varying beliefs?

What exactly is deconstruction, and is there such a thing as a healthy or good version of it?

In this replay of episode 194 of the podcast, our guest Joel Muddamalle, Director of Theology and research at Proverbs 31 Ministries, shares about the importance of humble theology and much more.

For the full show notes, visit https://estherlittlefield.com/episode194

Connect with Esther:

• Website
• Instagram