Category Archive
The following is a list of all entries from the Uncategorized category.
Start at the Beginning….
I have been training for a 1/2 Marathon since early spring. I remember the first couple of runs were filled with self-recriminations about being out of shape and struggling through even a full mile of running.
Reunions and Perspective
I spent the weekend in the Outer Banks with ten of my Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority sisters from Va Tech, after an absence of over twenty years. It was a really great experience to reconnect and catch up on all the happenings after a long period of going our separate ways. What made it so great was while there have been many changes: husbands, children and jobs to celebrate and layoffs, illnesses and relocations to commisserate about; there was also a shared history and fond memories to revisit. Sometimes it takes a little looking back to see how far you’ve come and where are you are ready to go next.
A Fresh Beginning
Fittingly enough, it snowed in Raleigh, NC today. A rare event for this southern city. Blanketed by six inches of snow, the landscape looks fresh and new. Similiarly, another rare event, the inauguration in Washington, DC today created a fresh and new chapter in our nation’s history. Selfishly, the snowday provided me an opportunity to watch the entire event on the television from start to finish. Without the snow, I would have been working for most of the day and would have experienced this historic event through reruns and secondhand commentary.
Watching it in the moment gave me the gift of perspective. To see the vast expanse of humanity spread across the mall, moved to travel to our Capital to witness this new beginning allowed me to experience the significance and hopefulness that is Barack Obama and all the symbolism his election represents. When we see Obama, we don’t just see the man in front of us, but all the men and women who came before him, who fought to be recognized and accepted, who made his rise to President possible. We also see the potential, the possibility and the hope for our own futures. Where can we go from here?
Working From Intention
I just returned from my final Gyrotonic certification weekend in Miami. It has been a long and at times arduous process, a year as a client followed by a year as an authorized teacher, with many long days and weeks of training and teaching to get to this milestone. I entered into the weekend with some apprehension that I might not have prepared enough or even be worthy of final certification approval. There were 21 other trainers that were equally as nervous, everyone had heard tales of strict master trainers and rigid protocols for teaching. We started our first morning sharing our tales of nerves: lack of sleep and loss of appetite from stress.
What became very clear upon meeting our master trainer - Juergan, was that he wanted to take us back to the beginning. To restore and re-acknowledge the intention behind the work and to find that intention within ourselves. He did this with re-inforcement of the basics and lots of inquiry, asking us to look inside to find the answers. By working from intention, everything became clearer, more focused, more defined and yes, we became more confident. It became clear that there would always be more to learn, always be more details to hone, but that if we held to the intention of the work, we would be doing good work.
It was a reminder to me to work from intention in all that I do. Where else would going back to the source, finding the beginning of the thread, renewing my understanding of the basics prove valuable? Even wading through my 160 unread emails feels a little more purposeful, to know that as I am clearing my inbox and prioritizing my week, I am also working from the intention to do good work, to be of service to others and to take the time to learn something new every day. The trivial begins to feel more meaningful.
What would it take to live from intention every day? What would be different?
Smile with Mind
I am re-reading Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert for at least my fourth time. Each time I read it, it is as if a new page was inserted into the book, with a tale that I missed the previous time. This time, tale 77 struck me as newly born. Liz is visiting with Ketut, her Bali medicine man, and he suggests a new technique for meditation. “To meditate, only you must smile. Smile with face, smile with mind, and good energy will come to you and clean away dirty energy. Even smile in your liver.”
I awoke to this tale because it so much more simply describes what I have been sharing with my ThinkWorkPlay clients. How to shift to a positive emotion and choose to feel differently. Only this is so easy. “Smile with mind” Try it. You will immediately feel your lips shift upward, your shoulders relax, your breath deepen. Ahh, so much better. Do you feel the stress and tension slip away?
Fast Forward
One of the exercises that we use during our Creative Golf Teambuilding Day is called “Fast Forward”. The instructions are for the participants to imagine themselves at their retirement party, and in giving their speech, note their top accomplishments and how they acheived them. The inquiry that follows is that knowing what you want to accomplish, what must you do differently now to achieve your desired results.
We put this program together several years ago, and yet I was blown away by the power of that inquiry yesterday. We took a group out for a very brisk day on the course at The Heritage. The Management Team for an International Manufacturer attended and jumped whole-heartedly into the experience. When I asked each team to go through this exercise, their responses were remarkably similar. They were grateful for their families, spouses and children, grateful for having a long and successful career and grateful for their friendships and relationships with their peers. It speaks to what really matters.
What do you need to do NOW in order to have that perspective in the future? What can you let go of, recognizing that you aren’t really going to care if that was achieved later? Can you get even more specific about your accomplishments in the future? Can you identify opportunities that lie ahead for you now?
Finding Flow
I was contemplating my workload and the tasks that need to get done and I began to visualize a surfer, waiting for the right wave. The surfer isn’t beating himself up for not surfing faster or more efficiently, he is patiently watching and waiting for the right wave, having put himself into an ideal position by training and planning ahead of time. When the wave shows up, he is ready, and at that point the fun begins.
I reviewed my workload with a surfer’s mindset. The seeds have been sown and the preparation has been done. What can I do to find the flow that maximizes my results and creates the most fun? How can I wait patiently, but not passively?
When an obstacle becomes a barrier
I was reflecting tonight on why my to do list rarely seems to get shorter. Self coaching is a hobby I tend to do as I am falling asleep at night. Probably not the best time to do it, but sometimes insights pop up. A thought occurred to me that often I allow obstacles to become barriers. The difference became clear immediately. An obstacle is something you have to move around or over. Or just move. A barrier prevents you from moving forward. Recently, I’ve been allowing myself to bump into more barriers than moving over obstacles.
The image of a four wheel truck comes to mind. How can I stop being a Miata and instead become a Humvee, rolling right on up and over my obstacles? How will I prevent obstacles from taking on the proportions of a barrier?
Part is perspective, begin to ask which it is, a barrier or an obstacle? What is the difference. It is beginning to feel like mindset and attitude versus any reality of the situation itself.
To make it concrete: One obstacle I’ve been facing lately is finding time to walk my dog, Caro. She loves walks and I need the exercise. It has become a barrier of sorts lately, I am feeling that there are so many other things I need to focus on, that a short walk around the block has sufficed. The barrier is my mindset. WIth some exercise, I sleep better, I make better food choices, I think more clearly and Caro stays healthy and fit. The time I am walking Caro can be used wisely by practicing the Power of Now, enjoying the neighborhood and allowing my mind to be clear for creative thoughts.
A simple shift in perspective makes a chore into a spiritual journey. And a barrier becomes a small ,completely surmountable obstacle.
What is your greatest barrier and how can it become simply an inconvenient obstacle?
My Creative Edge
I am developing a new workshop for ThinkWorkPlay – Your Creative Edge. The concept is that when you are at your most creative, you are tapped into your heart intelligence and your intuitive power. This is the zone where great things happen and you reach your potential.
When I am my most creative, I am feeling relaxed, energized, enthusiastic, powerful, engaged and positive. My body is centered, healthy, relaxed, and tuned in. I know that I am in my creative zone because time goes by in a blink, I am happy for no external reason and I feel at peace.
When I am feeling blocked or stuck, I am tense, anxious, feeling pressured to perform. I might be feeling overwhelmed, over my head, not working to my strengths and uncertain.My body feels constrained, tight and achy. I am procrastinate about doing specific tasks and I am forgetful about what needs to happen next.
To move into the creative place, it helps if I take a walk, removing myself from the immediate environment. Some deep breaths, perhaps looking at a picture of my dog Caro or using my HeartMath tools, such as HeartLock In, all help me to go back to a more centered and energized space.
Sometimes I need to put myself in a creative physical place, such as an environment where other people are creating. I have found Helios Coffee Shop is good for nurturing my inner muse. Sometimes a virtual community, such as Giam helps me to juice up again.
What I have learned from using the HeartMath tools is that I don’t have to accept being stuck as inevitable. I can shift to a creative edge by choice and on demand. That has made all the difference in accomplishing the goals that I desire.
How do you shift into your Creative Zone? What is your Creative Edge?
