Do overs. We all want them from time to time. We find ourselves in regrettable situations and second guess the actions and thoughts that got us there in the first place, and then wish we could "turn myself around" and do it over again. Of course, there's no guaranty that our do-over would be any better than our original action/decision - but we always assume so. Maybe it's something so small as buying an item, then getting home and realizing that you really didn't need it, or something as major as the roll-out of an entire new healthcare system for the United States of America and then after launching it saying, "Oops, my bad!"

As with all who are reading this, I have many instances in my life when I wish I would have done things different, said things a different way, worked a little bit longer, placed my attention and focus on something else. My intentions are sometimes misread when I try to help others. The expression on my face is sometimes misread as being upset. The tone in my voice or my mannerisms are sometimes misread as disappointment, when in reality, it's just the passion that I have about something. Frank Luntz has a book called "Words that Work." In it, he emphasizes over and over that it's not what you say, it's what they hear. That's puts a completely different spin on how you communicate with someone, listening through their ears prior to verbalizing your statement. Man, I wish I had a lot of do-overs when it comes to how I said something!

I recently began my own consulting firm that focuses on recruitment optimization. There are several elements of the recruitment industry that I am very passionate about and love to do, and there are some elements of it that I'm not so crazy about. I decided that at this point in my career, I want to work alone and pour myself into those areas that I really enjoy. Things like recruitment strategies, processes, technologies, speaking at various events, and overall - just trying to solve recruitment problems for my clients. I love that stuff, and I'm pretty dang good at it too! I wish I had made that decision a little earlier because I enjoy this so much!

Of course, enjoying something and being passionate about it doesn't pay the bills, so there's the stress of developing all of my own new business. My track record is sound. I have a broad base of contacts. The webcasts that I lead for SHRM has given me people who could potentially become clients. So, much like the Hokey Pokey - not only is my right hand in, and my left hand in - I'm all in. I'm working hard each day to spread the word about DX2 Consulting, and the unique offerings that I have available. I'm not quite sure how wise it was to start a business in the 4th quarter of a year when that is typically the slowest quarter in this industry...but I did and here I am. I'm excited for the prospects of this business and looking forward to the coming days when I say to myself, "That's definitely not a do-over decision!"