Bianca Chatfield - Game On: Supercharge Your Career and Build the Life you Want

Have you thought about where you are heading and how you are going to get there? Are you dreaming big and then playing big? Or have you kept it safe, but know you are capable of more? Perhaps you have not given much thought at all to what you genuinely want out of life?

Its time to start living the life youve always wanted and being the person youve always wanted to be. And to get different results, you need to start thinking differently. Do what you are capable of and more. We know one thing for certain from our combined experiences: people are ALWAYS more capable than they realise or give themselves credit for. Its time to consider whether your personal and professional habits are like a team of cheerleaders on the sidelines, egging you on, or like a group of negative Nellys hindering your success.

We started our business together, The Ignition Project, to work with women to redefine their version of success and coach them to be the best they can be. Why? Because everywhere we go, no matter what the industry, women sell themselves short; dont believe in what they are truly capable of; or are unaware of how to develop a game plan to bring their dreams to life. We frequently hear about the gaps, the areas that still need work, and previous mistakes and failings. Even worse, some women hold onto imagined future failings that force them to jog on the spot, rather than get out there and build the career and life they really want.

Can you relate to that? Are you nodding and agreeing as you read this? Then sit back, relax and grab a cuppa, because we cant wait to work with you. Just imagine the impact if every woman you know (including YOU) translated her dreams into reality even those dreams that had only been whispered to her besties or not at all. It would be incredible.

The traditional notions of what a career is made up of and womens status in the workplace have been turned on their head in the last few decades. The game has changed and we are only at the tip of the iceberg in terms of seeing what is possible. What an exciting time to be alive!

SPORT AND WHY IT DOESNT MATTER IF ITS NOT YOUR THING

A huge part of our professional and personal lives has been spent in elite sport and the business of leadership. We have come to understand, through our successes and failures, that there are no shortcuts to achieving our dreams, no matter what society and the media tells us. Sport has taught us that we need to formulate a great strategy to make sure we are in the game and give everything we have once the game is on. Go hard or go home. It has taught us to live in a way that gets the best out of ourselves, the people around us and the communities we serve.

Sport is one of the passions we both share. But Game On is so much more than a book about sport. In all honesty (and you will learn that we like to be upfront), dont shut this book because sport isnt exactly your thing. It actually doesnt matter not one little bit. Sure, sport is the platform we use to share our learnings, failures and successes, but what we really care about is much bigger than sport itself. For both of us, it has always been about personal excellence and supporting, challenging and inspiring others to be the best they can be.

This book is the product of our passion and expertise. Our collective experience has taken many forms, including professional athlete, secondary teacher, leadership coach, executive, CEO, public speaker and facilitator. Weve created our own businesses and executed the vision. Now, we are business partners and spend our time dreaming up even bigger and bolder ways to impact the world. We are endlessly fascinated with how to foster high performance and are committed to being the best versions of ourselves we can be while soaking up as much information, theory and best practice as possible from around the world. We have been surrounded by the best of the best for a long time, working with many top performers, and we know what these people do better than anyone else. We know how they get their game on. And we hope to inspire you to be your best self and bring out the best in your team whatever kind of team that might be.

The pressure cooker of high-performance sporting environments brings out the best and worst in people, and being smart and savvy is essential to sustaining top levels of performance.Game On brings these strategies together to coach you to achieve personal excellence, whatever your passion, whether you need to get your game on, stay in the game or get ahead of the game. You are not taught these things growing up, so we are here to show you how to not only survive in the world of work and leadership, but to thrive. Mechanics are easy. Dynamics? Not so much.

CHANGE IS SLOW BUT WORTH IT

People love to talk about success as an isolated event, as something that just happens. Its not as sexy to think of success as merely a series of moments, but it is exactly that; its the sum of all our choices.

The fact that you have picked up this book suggests you are curious to learn more and do more. Perhaps you have already made a decision to start putting some time and effort into yourself? We think that is a great decision, but we have a word of caution: its tough and unrealistic to make huge or dramatic changes quickly. Like losing weight, real change cant be achieved after one day of eating well (we only wish that were the case). The reality is that long-lasting change and great success is about making small adjustments, learning along the way and putting yourself out there. We are going to throw a whole lot of stuff at you and, as you work through it with us, we want you to figure out what is best for you.

And while we aim to inspire you, we also have another equally important aim: we dont want to fill your head with any palaver. For us, there is a big difference between inspirational you can do it quotes and advice that is grounded. Youre a smart chick, so you are resourceful enough to read theory books if you want to. But we figure that what you really need, particularly in this busy, modern life, is a book that gets to the heart of it, a companion that you can call on when you need a bit of coaching, a touch of sparkle, or a practical idea for how to make change happen. We are your women and Game On is the new ace up your sleeve.

We care about YOU, YOUR journey and YOUR version of success. But, most importantly, we care about giving you tools, tricks and tips to help you nail the kind of career and life you want.

We have written Game On so you can use it the way you need or want to: read from start to finish, or pick a section you really want to focus on. Most importantly, treat Game On like a coach that sits on your bedside table. Come back to it when you need a fresh perspective, a reminder, a pep talk, or when you need to focus on a particular area.

Before you dive in, know this: we want you to explore who you are, what path you might take and how you are going to ignite your game. We wont pretend this stuff is easy. Its not, but its important. Or in other words, its totally worth your time and energy. Its an investment in you and your future self. But, like everything, you only get out what you put in. We need you to do the work. If you pick up this book and only read, you will have been on only part of the journey. Dont waste your time. You have to