Leadership
Culture
Customer Experience
StrategyA day in the life of Clifton Johnson
He/Him/His
Senior Consultant
4 years
Born and raised in North Carolina, I consider my hometown to be Hope Mills. I spent a few years in my childhood living in Germany and Kansas since my father was in the military. I now call DC home after living here for 11 years. Prior to joining The Clearing, I had a 12 year career in Higher Education working in Student Life managing the programs, operations, and facilities for Student Unions. During my earlier career I had an opportunity to complete graduate school and earn a Master of Public Affairs (MPA) and a Master of Science in Organization Development (MSOD). Both programs helped me realize my true passion was helping others through change management, coaching, project management, and strategy. This eventually led me to The Clearing. I’m a fitness enthusiast who attends Sweatbox classes 2-3 times a week and plays in a competitive volleyball league. Outside of work I love to travel with my husband.
My Typical Day:
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I’m currently working on and managing two projects -- one involves supporting a Federal agency as a project manager and change practitioner supporting multiple initiatives as part of their five year strategic plan. I’m also working with a commercial client providing program management, change management, and strategic communications support as they develop and implement a conservation program. Between client work, I assist our company with different efforts related to Employee Engagement. As of late I serve as a Process Lead for a TIGER Team charged with providing solutions for focus areas identified from our recent Employee Engagement Survey. As a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach I also provide introductory coaching sessions with new hires.
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I begin my day by getting grounded through a quick meditation or listening to my horoscope for the day. I take a look at my calendar to see what meetings I have scheduled and plan out my day. My practice has been to create a list of tasks that I want to accomplish, and then the fewest most important ones that need to be prioritized based on deliverable dates and client needs. During my planning time in the morning I frame my thinking by answering the question “What will make today a successful day?”
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My afternoon consists of a variety of meetings. During the afternoons when my schedule is more flexible, I allocate heads down time to focus on specific deliverables or take the time to complete research or plan out strategies or actions to help my clients.
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Prior to signing off for the day, I like to reflect on my accomplishments and determine if anything needs to be prioritized for the next day. I usually review my email one last time to determine if there is anything that needs immediate attention. Once I’m finished with work I will either cook dinner or head to the gym (depending on the time of my class). I usually wind down the night by catching up on some TV shows and reading before bed.
