Dr. Julie Gurner

might be especially good at doing. But for this episode, we are going to be looking not at the people successfully working their jobs, but the behavior and mindset of success itself. I love seeing people reach their own potential. I think forward progress makes everybody happy. This is Julie. I'm Julie Garner, doctor of psychology and executive performance coach. An executive performance coach probably not an occupation you've heard of, but basically her job is to help other people do

their job right. I would say I tend to work with individuals who have to function at their best in high stress environments. Specifically, she personally advises high level executives and big companies around the world. My average client right now has a net worth of twenty million plus, so they're doing all right. Still, what drives Julie's work is not how successful her clients are, It is the psychology

of success. She helps people function their best in high stress environments, and that really could be anyone, whether you're a line cook, paramedic, or you work in administration in a high paced office. The advice that Julie gives to her clients apply across the board. Right, we all have ways in which we could think better about how we direct our life. Julie has a background in clinical psychology, and she says that her job has long been helping people go from ill to well. Now, she says that

her job is to help people go from average to access. Right, So this is kind of a niche thing that you do. Was this your plan all along? That was never my plan? Well, Julie worked with multi multi million dollar companies. She comes from humble beginnings. I grew up on a farm and in western Pennsylvania. So I grew up in the same way most farm kids would grow up, you know, bailing hay when the season came um. Even when I was in a bit of an accident, I still had to

drive the tractor with a broken leg. I mean there were kind of no excuses for not getting out there and doing the work that it took. We had horses and cows and chickens and all that kind of stuff. But you know, growing up, I knew that I probably didn't want to do that kind of tough labor, you know, my entire life. And I looked around and my only reference really was that there were doctors in my community, and they seemed to be the people who were doing

pretty well financially, and they didn't have to bail. Hey, they didn't have to bail. Hey. Julie went to college thinking that she was going to be a physician. She took some psychology classes and decided that's what she was going to do instead. She loved learning how the brain worked. So I worked in hospitals, prisons. I worked very traditional

settings for a psychologist to operate in. She eventually branched out into academics, where she was approached by a startup company to advise them on a product they were developing that would reduce stress. Then those startup folks refer Julie to high profile individuals they knew who wanted to learn how to reduce their own stress, and from there I started to realize that there was definitely a need there. She got more clients, started advising entire companies on how

to apply psychology in order to reach success. Her notoriety began to grow. She began speaking at retreats and big conferences, thus becoming an executive performance coach. A lot of her client's problems might be worrying about things like major trade deals or the stock of their company, things that might not be the main sources of stress for the average person, but it almost always will come down to how are

they thinking about this issue? What is the error and how they're thinking about it that is leading to the emotions that they're having and then the actions they're not taking or taking. Julie says that the way we all function is very similar, whether you're a wealthy person or you're someone who's on the up and coming. Essentially, we're all confronted with neutral events things that happen, but how we think about that is going to change everything for us.

For example, like if you're sitting in traffic, uh, there's a thousand people sitting in traffic, and you'll look around and some people are red faced and beeping their horn and dodging in and out. As you look around, you see others who are totally relaxed, maybe on the phone calling a friend. It's not the event that causes you to behave a certain way, it's how you think about those events. And so you know that translates no matter who you are and no matter what situation you're in.

She uses this applied thinking while talking about small business owners who might be struggling or employees looking for a raise. They may be really stuf click. You know, they're not earning as much as they want, and so we might kind of look at the way in which they're thinking and say, you shouldn't be thinking what does it pay? You should be thinking what do I want to earn?

And then reverse engineer from that. Julie and I talked a lot about this mindset, these pillars of success anyone listening might keep in mind when going into their average work day. So one pillar reverse engineering, You know, what do you want for yourself and then really think about what's preventing you from getting there? What are goals? What are the things that you want to be sure you're accomplishing every day, and why aren't you getting those things done?

After you set those goals, start off each day with them in mind. Make sure that you set your mindset prior to going into your work day. You know, choose how your day is going to go, and don't let the day run you, which she says should always start with another pillar. Taking care of yourself, so full night's rest, make sure you're having breakfast, make sure that you do get some exercise in keeping your eye on the big prize when you go into work. Don't let it kind

of little things distract you, she says. She sees people do this a lot. They walk in and then they let the barrage of emails and complaints take control and they're just putting out fires all day instead of really moving their business ahead. And one of the biggest things she sees successful people do every day is network. Network network. People love to work with their friends, so you know, they'd much rather do business or hire someone that they

know and they like than somebody who's a complete unknown. Lastly, and most importantly, being relentless in pursuit of your own improvement. For me, you know, that means reading research for an hour every day to learn new things and making sure that I'm on my game. That's kind of how I see it. As a common thread throughout, whether it's me or clients, we all can be better, and it's our job to kind of push ourselves if that's where we

want to go. Most people wouldn't know this about you, but you are a big fan of going to fights. I am. I'm a big fan. When we get back from the we talked about one of Julie's favorite pastimes. One she frequents to watch the psychology of success play out in real time. A strong work ethic takes pride in a job well done, sweats over the details. This is the kind of person you need. Express employment professionals can help. Finding the best people requires more than sorting

through applications. You need to conduct a thorough surge. Express understands what it takes to hire the right person. It takes real people, real interviews, discovering the talents you need. We find good people matching their skills with the right jobs. At Express, we find people for jobs and companies of all sizes and industries, from the production floor to the front office. Sometimes finding the best new employee really is

about who you know. Express knows jobs. Get to know Express, go to Express pros dot com to find a location near you. Dr Gurtner believes there's a lot you can learn about a successful mindset by watching a fight. The ultimate goal isn't about hurting or hitting other people. It's about the same things we all search for when we look for success. We're looking for freedom, We're looking to provide for our families, We're looking for financial security. I mean,

these are common goals that we all have. Julie is not immediately who you'd picture in the front row at fight night. She's bet she's very put together, usually dressed business casual. But whether it's boxing, m m A, you name it, if it's a very primitive sport, I find that there's sometimes a lot of value in seeing, you know, people who are bringing their best without any instruments, it's only themselves, their psyche, their body, uh and bringing that

to the table. She gets the same thrill from watching a boxing match that a lot of us do, but at the same time, she's also seeing the whole thing through the eyes of a psychologist. I try to get seats as close as possible because I like to see directly kind of everything that's happening from their facial expressions

to what they look like when they're walking out. Some come with these massive entourages that I don't know if they're for a show or to help them feel better about themselves, or as kind of a demonstration of power like an army or anything else. She pays attention to music they play when they come out, if it's funny or if it's hardcore and supposed to be intimidating. And then you look at how they interact with the other person, you know, before they even start the fight. Some people

will touch gloves. Some people try to be intimidating in ways where they don't touch gloves. She watches what rituals they have going into the fight. Do they, you know, touch their head, do they have to kiss them att do they have certain things that make them feel secure, And then as they begin to fight, seeing how they respond. The fighters that do well are the fighters who realize their own weaknesses and they plan for those, Like do you have good endurance? Are you the fighter who has

a really great left hook? What are your strengths and what are honestly the areas you need to be sure you're aware of so that you're pulling those up? Do you tend to get tired when the rounds go on, and if you do, what's your game plan? I mean, there are some fighters who never researched their opponent. They just go out there and they're just swinging for the fences without a real plan. They're just kind of sluggers.

And those people never go very far. And then you get the individuals who come out there and they may not look like what you expect a fighter to look like, but they're thoughtful, they're planful, they prepare well, they study their opponent, and those people end up going further than you think. There was a local fighter in Philly that I followed for a long time. His name was hammer and Hank Lundie Hammering Hank Lundie. Hammer and Hank Lundie

eventually went on to have a successful career. He was on ESPN, but Julie went to see him when he was still doing local fights in Philadelphia and at one match ended up sitting next to his fiancee. At the time, she was hysterical. She pulled out a little bottle of vodka or something from her purse and we were chatting and I said, well, aren't you worried about Hank out there? Like, don't you get so nervous? And she said, no, one's going to touch Hank. Everybody will miss him who swings

to hit him. He plays this all over and over again at home. It's all he thinks about, is, you know, being good for his kids and being able to have a long career. And I thought, wow, you know, that's a such an interesting perspective because I would have been at the edge of my seat if my spouse would have been out there about to get into a fight. She was calm as could be, enjoying the fight. And you know, Hank really didn't get hit very much and

he won. I love that she didn't even see it was not even up to chance because he had broken down his practice so much, right, she felt, so it was not a gamble, no, And I think that's what you have to do with your career as well. You don't want to say I'm going to put this in the hands of luck, because when you do, whether you're fighting a fight or you're out there in the job market, you do have a shot that things will work out for you. But why not stack the odds in your favor.

Julie says there are generally two types of people she sees when looking at those who succeed in what they want and those who don't. There are individuals who say they make wishes. I wish I had a million dollars, I wish I was better off whatever it is. And then there are people who say, Okay, I really want this particular income and I'm going to reverse engineer how to get that. I'm going to go after it. I'm going to make a plan. And there's a big difference

between planning and wishing. Are you the person wishing playing lottery, hoping that it hits and you know, maybe you will be discovered, maybe some boss is going to notice that you're doing pretty well. Or are you the person that planfully puts their career together so that they do get noticed, so that they do get that promotion, so that they are getting skills that make them valuable. What kind of person are you when you start off your day, when

you look at your career. Almost everybody I talk with knows they could be more than what they are right now, and there's this sense within them of frustration that they can't be there, or they feel they can't be there. So to watch people begin to get close to that and begin to see what they're actually capable of doing. That kind of excitement. It's kind of like a kid

in a candy shop, and that makes me excited. So as long as you're open and receptive and willing to self examine, we can all get to the next level. You have no idea how much I needed to hear that. Thank you so much, Julie. You can learn more about Julie and her work at dr Gerner dot com. That's d R g U r n e r dot com for On the Job on Motus Gray. This season up on the Job is produced by Audiation and Red Sea Ventures. The episodes are written and produced by me Otus Gray.

Our executive producer is Sandy Smallens. The show is mixed by Matt Noble for Audiation Studios at the Loft in Bronxville, New York. Music by Blue Dot Sessions and Anno Domini Beats. Find us on I Heart Radio and Apple Podcasts. If you liked what you heard, please consider rating or reviewing the show on Apple Podcasts or Revere Listen. We'll see you next time. For more inspiring stories about making yourself a cent l as you discover your life's work audiation,