I am Tara Rodden Robinson. I write. I coach. I speak. I teach.
My goal is to give you the knowledge, tools, skills, and behaviors you need to contribute your unique gifts to your world. With less stress. And more fun.
Authenticity is the name of my game, honey. The real you is the most important person you can be. So I spend time helping you connect with what matters most to you. And then I make sure you can keep your head above water with all the stuff you gotta do so you can really enjoy your life and your work and your job instead of feeling overwhelmed and snowed under all the time. Because face it, being overwhelmed and overloaded sucks.
I am convinced that contribution is the key to a life well lived. What I mean by that is that when you contribute–that is, give of yourself, unselfishly and from the heart–you tap into a divine and sacred energy source.
You can call that source your higher power. You can call him God. You can even call it the Flying Spaghetti Monster.* Whatever you call it, I can help you connect with it, and use your spiritual self right along with your analytical left-brained self and your fabulous artsy-fartsy right-brained self to be a productive citizen of the world you live in.
[*OK, so I’m being a little facetious here, my point being that if you’re interested in adding the spiritual dimension to the work we do together, I’ll meet you wherever you might be in your journey. I am a Christ follower but that doesn’t mean that you have to be.]
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Here’s how I work my magic.
I write. I post to my blog on whatever happens to be on my mind at the moment. So I may be writing about anything from productivity to brain science to spirituality to personal exploration. I’m at work on a book about the Seven Dimensions of Productivity. The sky’s the limit, baby.
I coach. My sweet spot is working with individuals, one on one, in conversation over a period of a few weeks. My ideal clients are people who want to defeat the forces of ineffectiveness so they can be wildly fulfilled in their work. Work being all the stuff that you do from bringing home the bacon to frying it up in the pan. I do not believe in work life balance. Cuz it’s all life and it’s all balance. I work with teams and groups, too, to help them find joy in getting things done.
I speak. To groups large and small. I love to teach and train. I give a pretty mean keynote, too. I really dig talking to people about the spirituality of work, about the art and science of productivity, and how to do more with less effort. I love conversation and participation and fun and laughing a lot.
I teach. For who knows how long, I’ve believe that if I learn something, I should pass it on so somebody else can benefit from it. So I teach all the time in all sorts of ways. I record tons of content like podcasts and webinars and stuff like that. I founded this groovy club call the League of the Extraordinarily Productive where I teach people how to be extraordinarily productive. And I offer lots of live workshops and trainings with my friends at Cascade Employers Association.
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You may want to know a little about my background.
As soon as I open my mouth and start talking, you’ll know I grew up in Louisiana. I got my nursing degree at the University of Southern Mississippi. I can tell really dramatic stories about trauma and open heart surgery and how fragile life can be.
When I was 28 years old, I ran off to Costa Rica to live and work in the rainforest. Eventually, I found my way to the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, where I outlasted the bastards and got my Ph.D. in Biology. I did some post-doctoral work in genetics, mostly at Auburn University (War Eagle!) and in a fit of extreme insanity, snagged a contract to author Genetics for Dummies (now in its 2nd edition).
I became self-employed as a professional coach in 2006. Coaching helps me combine all the aspects of my whimsical background into something that makes sense. Helping is second nature for me–and when I’m coaching, I’m using all my knowledge and experience and expertise to help my clients. I love exploring neuroscience and positive psychology and figuring out how to apply scientific findings to everyday life. And I’m really independent so being my own boss is the bomb.
Even though I’m not a working biologist anymore, I love being outdoors in nature, hiking with my two dogs and my husband of over 18 years. I live and work in Corvallis, Oregon.
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Contacting me.
:: Email is just fine: tara@tararobinson.com I read everything and reply to most but if you want specific advice or coaching, you gotta hire me for that. And I’m happy to consider book and product reviews (especially if any of these involve a Dodge Challenger or a Chevy Camaro). Please know that I’m all about honesty so if I test drive your stuff, I’ll write a no-holds-barred review. Yes, I run and write guest posts. There’s a policy on that.
:: Google+ (send me a message so I know what circle you’d enjoy being in).
:: You can friend me on Facebook. Or you can become a fan of my Productivity Maven page. Or you can add me to your network on Linked In.
:: Twitter. Follow me! If you retweet me, I’m way more likely to follow you back. Just sayin’.
:: Phone. You will most likely get my voicemail. I’m very good about returning calls. 503-567-TARA (8272).
:: Mail. I love cards and birthday presents (November 25: donations to my favorite cause preferred): PO Box 1694, Corvallis, OR, 97339, USA. If you need a non-PO address, please email me.
:: Want to hire me? Yay! Start here.
Connect With Me