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Some of the things we learn and habits we form throughout our lives can hold us back rather than helping us grow. In that case, it isn’t what you learn but what you unlearn that makes the difference. My guest today is an amazing person that went through lots of unlearning throughout his life. Michael Gagnon, Senior Enterprise Manager, Remote Support Sales at GoTo, joins us today to share his story and how we can improve our lives by unlearning some of the habits & practices that have been in our lives for a very long time.
Show Notes
Michael’s Story – Michael grew up in a family of military personnel. He shares his thoughts on how that background shaped his life and the lessons learned from it.
Process of Unlearning – Michael shares with us what it was like to unlearn some of the things he had been familiar with for a long time. Overworking – Many of us are so much used to overworking and we tend to think that working as hard as we can is the way to move forward. Michael talks about this mindset and the negative effects this mindset will have on our lives and relationships. Productivity – How unlearning helps us improve our productivity and spend more time with people that matter the most to us. Implementation – How to implement the measures that will bring you happiness in your life. Looking into the Future – We sometime make sacrifices from the present moment in pursuit of better things in the future. Michael talks about how this can lead to a situation where we’ll be sacrificing too much from the present moment and how to keep a good balance between the two.
Resources
Connect with Michael
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gagnonmichael
Bobbi's Takeaways
I hope that you found value in that conversation. I know that I did and as I mentioned, it is tough to come up with ONLY 3 insights for thriving, but here we go:
Sometimes it’s what we unlearn that serves us well for what’s next. Michael talked about being in survival mode and how that may have worked for him right out of high school, but it’s no longer needed – and not only is it not needed but it likely gets in the way of him being his best self now. Importantly, we don’t have to judge ourselves for this. Maybe it worked in the past but it doesn’t anymore.
I loved his question that he asks himself when he finds himself ruminating: Is this the healthiest thing I can be doing now? That is brilliant and I will be using that. As I briefly mentioned in the interview, I can link this to research by neuroscientists and happiness researchers and this is a great strategy to use.
I think that the framing of “It’s all part of the story,” is incredibly value. It allows us to accept the parts of ourselves and our pasts without judging or holding on to it or anything like that. And, I believe that that acceptance allows us to move forward with both confidence and peace.
