Episode 43: Achieving Goals Using Healthy Management Styles and Without Sacrificing Your Wellbeing

Rita Perea, CEO of Rita Perea Leadership Consulting, Inc., works with Greater Des Moines (DSM) corporate clients to better help them grow and develop their business and life goals. She discusses her startup story with one of the Greater Des Moines Partnership’s Christina Moffatt. 

A Start in Education

Rita is entering her 20th year as a coach, consultant and female business owner. Prior to that she had worked in education, rising through the ranks to eventually become a superintendent. While she loved the job, she sustained a cardiac event during her superintendency. Following her medical emergency, Rita decided that she needed to find a healthier situation. This led her to start her business in an effort to help other management succeed without sacrificing their health for their job.

Modern Parenthood, Long Hours and Less Support

Rita went on to write the book, "From Frantic to Fabulous: How to Raise Your Energy, Tame Your Work and Transform Your World in the Digital Age." In it, she discusses how being stretched thin is the new norm. Stress levels continue to increase as managers acquire more work without being able to delegate. Work-life balance became the focus of Rita’s business. She aimed to show people how to “cage the squirrels.” The squirrels are the bright, shiny objects we think we want to chase. Her suggestion is to “cage” them in a journal or as a note in your phone and really think about whether it’s a good idea to move forward with that particular initiative. Another suggestion Rita makes is taking a tech detox. Device addiction is a real problem, and our brains were not designed to have constant information coming in. 

Advice for Senior Leaders

When hiring, Rita says managers should make sure that potential employees’ values match those of the company. Many companies say employees are their biggest asset. Managers should model this and value their employees. Research shows that when people take PTO and detox from tech, they come back to work refreshed and perform better.

The Face of the Business

There’s a gray line between personal and business branding. Rita discusses how she melds the personal and professional in how she brands her business. As an early adopter of social media, she decided early on to only put business things on her social accounts. While she works to be authentic, she wants to model executive presence. 

The Small Business + the Recession

During a time of crisis — like the recession — training and coaching can be seen as frivolous for small companies. Rita discusses how she was able to pivot from the business community during that time and transition to higher education. This pivot happened naturally for the former educator.

Community Involvement

With only so much time and energy to devote to a group or sponsorship, Rita says you need to look at the values of the organization to decide whether it might be a good match. She utilizes her intuition to decide whether she’s passionate about an organization’s mission.

Small Business and Startup Stories DSM was a podcast previously produced by the Greater Des Moines Partnership. For more information on small businesses and startup resources, sign up for our Small Business Resources Newsletter, read DSM Success Stories or check out our blog posts.