We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gina Tomasetti. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gina below.
Hi Gina, so happy to have you on the platform and I think our readers are in for a treat because you’ve got such an interesting story and so much insight and wisdom. So, let’s start with a topic that is relevant to everyone, regardless of industry etc. What do you do for self-care and how has it impacted you?
I once read that the secret to aging well is to take care of yourself like a newborn baby. That really changed my perspective and the way I understood self care. Especially in the mornings, I take the time to really ‘care’ for myself. I used to jump into my day at full speed, feeling like I could get more done when I started early and quickly. I now value starting early and slowly.
In the past, “self care” would happen when there was leftover time for it, whenever I could squeeze in some yoga or a relaxing facial. Now, it’s an essential and natural part of my life, and it happens in many different ways. I don’t have a strict routine – each day can be different and I flow with what comes to me.
Keeping my word to myself, taking care of my mind and body – all of that inspires confidence and effectiveness in the rest of my life. I’m more sincere and present when I make decisions. I’m grounded and focused when I am collaborating with others. I’m able to truly listen – the most important part of what I do.
Self care allows a space to move through distractions and experience gratitude, and a path to center myself and my thoughts. It’s the precious time that I dedicate to my well-being, and the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual practices that I have. Some of my favorite ways to care for myself are mindfulness and light movement before any work, red light and cold therapy, practicing gratitude and prioritizing rest, spending time outdoors, and most importantly – spending quality time with people I love. I think that’s an underrated one, and can often have the most powerful, positive impact.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I’m an executive coach with my own practice – the G space, and co-founder of Kaleidoscope Teams, where we host corporate wellness and team-building experiences. My coaching style prioritizes well-being for the mind and soul, and is inspired by gratitude.
My background is in Ontological Coaching, which refers to a methodology that explores “way of being” of an individual, team, or organization to create distinctions and a new lens, reaching beyond their current worldview.
Effectiveness requires awareness and presence. When I work with executives, we dive into the mind, body, spirit connection. Deepening a connection with our intuition, noticing on our language, and evaluating our connections can reveal what is stuck or detrimental to us, and ultimately unlocks a life of choice and purpose. We aim to uncover unconscious, negative patterns so that clients can breakthrough and create opportunities to generate deep and sustainable changes.
I have always been curious and committed to wellness, health, and well-being in every sense. So much of the world around us moves fast, with distractions galore, and nonstop opportunities to go negative. Wellness is an interruption to all that, and brings us back to our center, where we can listen and heal. I believe coaching is one of the best ways to care for ourselves, and experience our connection to the universe and beyond. I am here to listen, to see beyond the surface, and to walk with you to the finish line.
So many exciting things are happening this year! We’re launching an online course for tech executives, working behind the scenes on an app, and expanding into fitness to create well-rounded, effective wellness and well-being programming for more clients.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
I think the top 3 qualities that have been most impactful to me are: active listening, authentic expression, and passion/curiosity.
My best advice to those early in their journey is to get curious about your ‘why.’ Drown out all the noise and surrounding opinions, expectations and assumptions you’ve taken on, and simply get present. Are you passionate about this? What is calling to you? What small or large shift can you make to get you closer to that passion? It’s essential that you listen and observe yourself with curiosity vs judgment so that different parts of self can speak up and guide you.
Being an active listener is about going beyond the words.. hearing another person through both verbal and non verbal communication, allowing pauses in the conversation instead of jumping to respond, and maintaining attentiveness and care to create mutual understanding. This is one of the best tools for managing conflicts and creating meaningful relationships.
Authentic self-expression helps to create trust with ourselves and others. Engaging from a place of authenticity creates ease, openness, and genuine connection. I believe that practicing authentic expression builds confidence and clarity. This also helps us to set boundaries, adapt to situations, and see and connect with others in a sincere, compassionate way. Authentic self-expression is an act of acceptance, and leads to freedom in our lives.
If you struggle with any of the above, I recommend letting go of the story you have about it and perhaps even about your own limitations. My quickest suggestion here is to create a conscious shift from judgment into curiosity. Interrupt your thoughts of “I struggle with that,” “I can’t,” or “I don’t know how” and gently, curiously ask: “How could I practice this in my next conversation?” Invite in possibilities: “I wonder how this opportunity will show up for me today.”
All that said, working with a coach whose vision aligns with yours is, of course, one of the greatest gifts I believe we can give ourselves.
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz. It is an inspiring book based on ancient Toltec wisdom, outlining a code of conduct to experience freedom in our lives.
1. Be impeccable with your word
2. Don’t take anything personally
3. Don’t make assumptions
4. Always do your best
One of the most valuable takeaways from the book was that taking things personally sets us up to suffer meaninglessly. When we are able to let go of taking things personally, we can go through the world open-hearted, open-minded, without fear or hesitation. This is one of the most transformative realizations I think we can have in our lives.
