My friend and I were talking about children’s vaccinations and if they were safe or not. She told me that she had read a report on the subject that made her wonder if they weren’t that great. She told me it was the Blaylock wellness report and that I should take a look at it too if I was really that concerned. I guess that I just don’t want anything bad to happen to my new little bundle of joy. AFter all he is my life and I don’t know if I could ever forgive myself if I did something or gave him something that ended up hurting him.
I was always the kind of person who trusted everyone and that went double for doctors. I always figured that they knew what was best for me 100% of the time. Well that all changed after I read the Blaylock wellness report. It made me realise that the one person who I should have been listening to was me. After all who better to turn to when I feel down. I still go to the doctor of course but not as often and I don’t just automatically take his advice without question anymore. I feel much better and I have a new outlook on health and life.
We could all do with a little personal improvement, but where do you start? Here are some self-improvement tips that can help you get motivated to change your life.
Tip #1
Where do you stand with yourself? This can be hard to evaluate because often we try and think of what other people have told us about ourselves, but if you sit and just think about it for a little bit you can usually come to a good conclusion about how you really feel. Write it down and sort things out. A big indicator of disliking yourself is if you are constantly feeling guilty, self-conscious, or thinking that you should be able to do more. If this is the case write down the three biggest things that you feel stop you from liking yourself.
Tip #2
Now focus on the three things you wrote down. Start with the first and figure out a way to change that part of you into something you do like. In some cases it may be as simple as eliminating something from your life, but in most cases the things on your list that you dislike are things that will take a little time and work to establish in your life. Set a goal and work on only one at a time. If one of the things you don’t like about yourself is your weight, you may want to consider making a couple of goals and working on each individually. For example, start with eating a balanced diet, then when this is something you have mastered, move on to exercising regularly. Trying to work on all of your goals at once will only make it hard and more likely that you won’t succeed.
Tip #3
Find someone to use as an example. Is there someone you know who exemplifies a characteristic you want to make a part of your life? Watch what they do, talk to them. If you feel comfortable telling them that you have made a goal to try and gain this characteristic let them know and see if they have any suggestions that may help you. This is especially useful if you are trying gain a talent they have or if you are trying to loose weight. They may be able to refer you to someone who helped them.
Tip #4
Get some help from experts. Read a few books by self-improvement gurus Dale Carnegie, Deepak Chopra, Zig Ziegler and Anthony Robbins. They can really help motivate you when you are feeling doubtful or hesitant about starting a goal.
Tip #5
Take action and practice, practice, practice. If you want to continue your education start calling local colleges; if you want to get into shape don’t waste your time getting expensive equipment, sign up at a local YMCA, get a workout video and get started. Like playing the piano, learning to ride a bike or learning to read it may take a while before your goal becomes second nature, but don’t let this discourage you. Leave yourself reminders in your car, at work and at home that will continue to keep that goal in the front of your mind. Once you get started it is harder to stop, so stop planning and start implementing your goal.
Chris Simons is a prolific freelance writer. You are welcomed to visit http://self-improvement.cyberinformer.com, for more information on Self Improvement.
Constructs? World is formed of such vastness that it is said in the movie Excalibur by Merlin to Arthur of the Dragon “…..if you would be able to see it and grasp it whole it would burn you alive!” So there is a natural need to limit and define the world for what is only called for by a person or society. Aldous Huxley mentions what he calls a reducing valve is what is needed in the brain for its survival of this influx of information. Imagine hearing the grass grow, every molecule split, all atoms spinning, every ones thoughts at once, or for that matter all sound. Like a chef, we follow recipes to put certain amounts of ingredients unto our food. For taste is dependent on the person and society. Nobody just throws every thing into the mix and expects it to be delectable or even healthy for you. Discernment happens so that certain goals are reached. This is what the reducing valve does.
Another point is that we adjust to the reality of other minds and not the world. The world is only the raw materials to construct the matrixes that society follows and believes as reality. We in the western world stomp a child’s instinct to create imaginary friends, create other worlds, or fix themselves with magical powers they only see. In Hindu culture, adults take on the practice of making Tulpa’s; imaginary friends. With constant thinking of these personalities, in time they and other people will see these beings. After they are created they become very resistant to being removed from reality.
Then In the Movie Erik the Viking, when the longship is attacked by the serpent of the north sea, only the Christian monk does not see the serpent that the pagan Vikings do. He was of another world and its constructs. In Bali the initatory rites into adulthood consist of walking on fire that registers a thousand degrees. After some preparatory praying and fasting, most of the youths walk unscourged by the fire. A Baptist from the west tried to show his faith in his God was just as strong nearly burned his feet off. Why, these youths have been watching people walk on fire their whole lives. I always thought if a child was raised in a society in which every one flew, he would do so. Even if the rest of society hid the fact they were using jet packs. In the country of Senegal my friend was raised in a society that still had medicine men. One time one of his friends broke his arm, with a severe bent to it, playing soccer. He went unto the medicine man, who snapped a stick and laid the two pieces apart next to the broken arm and carefully merged the splinters back together again; the arm was healed. He had also had seen the God of the field who walked up to his crow tower three times assuming the size of a giant each time. His society was of a world of constructs that fostered these ideas since infancy, where we are like the Monk who can not see the serpent sinking the ship. People falling in a dream who see themselves hit the ground are thought to die in real life as well. In the movie Dreamscape, an assassin would kill people in their dreams. The constructs or reality were so strong that the people would die in real life.
“You must give up your life to find greater.”Jesus
But what does all this magical gobbly-gook have to do about bringing change into your life? Everything. In the world you want to bring change to; either it being leaving a spouse, a job, or quitting an addiction. You must change the constructs first. When one leaves prison he is advised not to see certain people or visit certain environments. Same with an addict, it would be harmful for him to enter a place of active users. People in the old world need you to justify their choice in society. No one wants to accept that their world has been a lie. They rather perpetuate their thinking forever if they could. Why because they are helpless to the fear and desire circle. Sometimes they are jealous. Parents scorn their children for their creative thinking that is not concrete. Either it be the magic and fun created by the imagination or doing those professions they did not have faith to try themselves. We force our children to verify our world and our views. But why are we so admiriant about it, because we know there is another way. Either we push our children to breaking point to bring us out of our reality, or hem them in so we do not have to change. First rule of control in Herbert’s Dune series is; scorn all those who are different for they may see change is possible. Also a heretic is said to be one who sees with their own eyes open. The Indonesians believe the shadow cast by their puppets to be of the real world and ours but the true play. Shakespeare had said all the world is a play. When one consoles a friend when their father has died, he merely apologizes for his father playing dead. Life is what you make of it.
That is why it is most important for your parents to justify and reassure your life goals. They either help you preserve your construct or break them down like a house of cards. They can be your strong stone and mortar to follow your dreams. Like Pavlov’s dogs we respond to rewards and punishments to acquire our views of society that the whole agrees on. A child has greater needed to become part of a group than remain indifferent in its own world. Sometimes the group takes its constructs as holy and something that can not ever change. This leads to it strains and faults that are limited from repair within the system. But luckily the mind wanders away from this necessity whenever it can. It is for us not to scorn ourselves when it does. Nor should we let it get to far away from the group we intend to rejoin or even change.
Right brained conservative thinking is that of group thinking. Alexie Sherman in one of his short stories about a basketball player looking for pick up games had this commentary about Republicans and democrats. He would either play one on one with democrats or four on one with republicans. The democrat being more autistic left brained thinking could act independently, but the republicans needed the group to give strength to their opine or talents. The democrats are of the western thinking of the importance of the individual in society and the republicans are of the thinking of the east that sees more importance in the whole. They find the individual as a threat. For their egos act on the third chakra of self acquisition and not the fourth, so they fear themselves. In the army young men are taken out of the world of the individual to become a member of a team and then thrown back into the world of the me, me, me without the appropriate retraining. Someone said the real fall of man was the split between the thinking of the individual and that of the group.
All right you might think this is getting you no where and you would of been better off watching that final episode of Friends once more that you had taped from before. But wait; you do want to know how to bring change to your life and see where you are making mistakes that limit this from happening. It is all in the constructs.
In Joseph Chilton Pearce’s Crack in the Cosmic Egg, he describes Jesus as one who has seen the world not as a distinct mechanical unit, distinct from the mind of man. But a matrix for continual resynthesis which is an agreed and practiced upon construct in a continuum of possible worlds. In Quantum physics they have observed the Proton turn into a negative Phi meson, disappear, reappear as a Neutron, turn into a positive Phi meson, and back into a proton. They also have observed in their math that an atom has as any dimensions as it has electrons times by four. Only when one of the possible actions of the atom has been observed, is it limited to only four dimensions. But Pierce also says Christ perceived that no solitary reality can be communicable by others unless by agreement by the participant’s of the world. Only under special circumstances and for special goals would Jesus break from the old constructs upon the agreed upon world. He was there to restructure a specific problem area in an ordinary reality. He was able to look outside the box. His nonordinary states become shared ones by the constant needs of others, not only on his ego and its selfish goals.
To attain these non-ordinary realities it only takes three or four people to agree upon them. As an artist you need to do a couple of freebies that result in a printed medium or a piece that is hanged in a respected place for others to be willing to pay you. But it first starts by not saying you will be an artist, but by breathing as one as you say I am. For when you become your own ego it is like you becoming your own god. For Yahweh means, I am. But to share this reality you must agree that every one else is a god as well. But to do this, the only way of receiving our new worlds is by doing. Just do it, But the action comes through rigorous reality adjusting changes to your life. It could start by wearing new clothes, taking a new way to work, changing your hours, visiting new places, or changing some small habits. These things should be performed arbitrary with no set ideas of which ones to change. That will stimulate your left brained thinking. This will help you balance the art of your life with that that can only be felt with the concrete reality which can be touched and qualified. For no system is the last word to anything. So nothing should be held so sacred that it can not be brought to change.
For Brahma created the all that is, was, and will be. It is for Vishnu to preserve what is helpful and Shiva to remove what is not. The universe is like a box of paints of all the colors of the visible and not visible spectrum before any painting is created. At this juncture, all paintings exist. Once the frame is put on, we are limited to that one only until the paint box is opened once more. Idolatry to Jesus is holding any product of reality as absolute. For him the process is the only truth. When a teen thinks he wants to be a guitar god, but realizes he prefers after all to tweak the knobs and levers on a sound board; should he be ashamed? No music was only the way to his truth.
But how do we get to bring change in our lives? It is in the gradual complete collapse of our certainty in every day life that will bring us into new realities as some ones new husband, a painter, a electrician, a plumber, or just as someone happy. This is the small death that William Blake calls for. It is the Ego Deaths, the Tower card, and Hagal’s Aett. The components of our regular reality can be denied for its restructuring. Jesus said we must give up our lives so we may gain a new. Was this not what Peter and Simon did when they left behind their nets and boats to follow him? But then again did they, for did they not become fishers of men. This is the leap of faith and the walk on the swords edge. But he got thoroughly pissed if you believed he was the truth and not the way. Buddha felt he could not teach illumination either, but only the way. For it is for your own little god to grow up and to take it’s place next to Christ at a large cosmos oriented round table with no center or head. Teachers want you always to surpass them. Pierce also says their is no being unless it is in the act of being.
No w he also mentions the fact it was the poor and the handicapped who heard him the most. For the scholar, the Pharisee,and the rich man held much desire. For they gained allot and feared loosing what they established as their reality. What did the poor have to loose, but being poor. It was easier for them to give up something that did not work, for nothing seemed to work as of yet anyway. Jesus said that the holy spirit is the leavening that creates the spirit to enter the Kingdom. That God was not the judging condition of which way is right, but only the provider of infinite paths. God only responds. Man judges.
Jesus did not break with logic, he just mentioned perfecting it in order to develop new constructs that bring new worlds of change. Change is a matter of choice and commitment. It is the person going back to the cave to tell the others about a world of light and what they fear is mere shadows of what is real.
In starting my career as a life coach, it was that of initiatory steps. It was no mere chance that my first client Kathryn was some one as well who was attempting to leave her career. For walking in the shoes of change, I would be able to pass them unto her to walk her path. This started by first making business cards. Then I proposed lectures to various churches so I could be accepted to speak in them. I then had brochures to be made for people to take home from the lecture. I hanged posters about the event. Adds were placed in local newspapers. Every one who read the posters, the adds in the paper or the people who had allowed me to lecture and place the adds; justified my being a Life Coach. I was in the process. It did not matter that no one showed for the first lecture and only four came to the second, for afterwards I made good money with my first client. I was being reassured and justified in what I am.
The hardest piece was leaving the job I was in. It was paying the rent and delivering the food that the other did not start doing as yet. Well it was because I did not ask the other to be the source yet. I was still in the other world. That world had strict limitations and they were growing. My shadow was acting up more. I was getting angina and severe anxiety. It was a good world for what I needed to learn, but I had to give it up for better. Now the time had come. The door was opening and the river was flowing out of it. I took a week off and did not care about the bills or the money I was loosing. Then I knew there was another world without that one. I did not starve or get kicked out into the street. I was OK. But I had to go back to make the transition smoother. But this only created more anxiety. I was to leave for good in the next month, or else the shadow would create more and more anxiety because it knew that the old world was only bringing unhappiness. No longer was it an environment for learning, but a world asking for change, it needed someone to not only go out of the world of that Job and my world of little concrete worth; but to go without so I may find how to bring change to the wasteland. In the Hero’s journey there is a calling, dissatisfaction with the old world, the entrance into the world of the mind, the challenge, the leap of faith ,giving up to something greater, the goal, and most important the return. Once I left the old world it was for me to interpret and justify other’s desires for change and show them the path to aspiration. The longer we lie to ourselves, the more we hurt some part of the world. For one not to bring change is to hinder the rest of the universe. So as I change, like an atom splitting, I change the world. A butterfly flapping its wings can create a tidal wave across the world. May we all be in front of this next wave.
But this only works in the spirit of all for one and one for all. To go to the seventh Chakra of the Holy Spirit and return to the fourth chakra where we find the self without opposition to others and the world. Only then will our universe grow. But what are other worlds, where is the goal? What are we leaving behind?
Christopher Jon Luke Dowgin is proprietor of Docspond Life Coach Services providing Individual Counseling, Group facilitation, and key note addresses that speak to the heart of the mission while delivering the bottom line finacial growth. Helping millions find their bliss and return meaning to success! Guaranteed 20% improvement in your quality of life after the first meeting!
Also is the propietor and designer at Norgeforge Illumination Studios that will SEO illuminated design giving Aesthetics to traffic driven sales. So get out of the cold and get Norgeforged!
We never really think about it but the subconscious part of our
minds actually controls 5/6ths of our entire brain power.
Willpower, whom we tend to accredit much of our success to, is
controlled by the other 1/6th of our brain.
Does that mean that this 1/6th of your brain is working harder
that the other 5/6th’s? Or does this mean that we have given far
to much credit to will power?
It’s easier for us to give credit to something we know we’ve had
a hand in. But the truth is, if your subconscious mind is not on
side and is out of harmony with your will, your chances of
succeeding are less than 2%.
Willpower operates on suggestions - Your subconscious operates
on visual mental pictures that it has stored through past
events, new information and reinterpretation.
Willpower is constantly feeding these powerful images and
depending on the context of these subconscious thoughts, our
willpower is either fortified or challenged. You subconscious is
constantly at work. You simply have to learn how to feed it. The
subconscious or subliminal mind is a powerful tool for
self-improvement. It can create new thoughts and feelings inside
you that can overcome past boundaries and limitations. Wow! How
wonderful is that?
The power of the subconscious mind has been written about for
centuries. It is only now, however, that science is catching up
to what most of the philosophers have known since time immortal:
That the power of the subconscious is awesome indeed.
Now, today we have technology developed that will help you to
connect with your subconscious mind and enable you to make
permanent changes for yourself in a simple easy and effective
way.
Subconscious programming is the most effective way to modify
your actions and habits. We all have areas where we either want
to improve or habits we want to rid ourselves of. Your
subconscious can have influence in every aspect of your life
from how much money you make to a fear of spiders.
Positive Thought will bring you success. Negative thought
prevents you from gaining success. You have the power within
your mind to control and influence the outcome. Harness this
amazing power and the world is your Oyster!
I’ve got a confession to make… there are many ways
leaders can be more creative, innovative and ingenious than
are presented in this article.
It does not matter if you desire to be a marketing,
entrepreneurial or organizational leader, you do have to use
your creativity to be successful.
Most leaders have trouble discovering new opportunities,
generating good ideas and promoting innovative solutions. In
the game of creativity, you need both quality and quantity
to win the prize.
I’ll show you how to use 3 simple ways to boost the number,
power and value of your ideas. All you need to do is learn
them, practice them and make them the most used tools in
your personal leadership-toolkit.
Create It This Way! Map It Out, Map It All!
Want a way out of that mental block or trap? Don’t look for
some guidebook, create yourself a map and follow it out of
your troubles instead.
How do you draw a map to find new ideas, opportunities or
create inventions? It’s easy, all you need is a place to
start! And like Dorothy learned in the Land of Oz, you
always begin at the beginning.
Do you have a problem you’re trying to solve? Do you have an
unmet need? Do you want to search for something? Do you
suspect something is missing or something is out of place or
something is more than what is needed?
Use those questions to define your map’s point of origin.
Place that starting point in the center of the paper and
then draw lines to any related problems or missing items.
Once you identify your problems, needs, missing pieces or
suspicions and connect them in some logical order [by
putting your worse problems at the bottom of the page and
easier ones on the top] - then you can do the following:
=> List possible ways to find solutions
=> Draw lines to groups or people who can help you solve
the problem
=> Use different shapes to show problems, solutions and key
people or tools
=> Color your problems and their related solutions with the
same colors [use red for the main problem and its solution,
but use green for another problem and its solution]
=> Include push pins, sticky notes, stars or artwork when
possible to add vitality, depth and substance to your map
Create It That Way! Ask and Answer It Quickly!
1) What is the situation, what is happening or going on
here?
2) What are the problems, difficulties or challenges?
3) How do those problems impact, affect or influence the
situation?
4) What good will the solutions to those problems need to
do, provide or fix?
Ask those 4 questions and always ask ‘why’ at least 5 times
for each answer and you will find tons of beneficial
solutions.
Create It Anyway! Bend It, Shape It, Anyway You Want It!
So you tried mapping, drawing, picturing and asking or
answering it and you still aren’t getting any great ideas,
are you?
Well here are some last chances for you - just re-arrange
it, combine it with its own or different parts,
mix-it-all-around, shuffle it, remove parts of it, throw it
at the walls, step into the middle of it, step away from it,
turn it upside down or inside out or round and round, talk
about it with others or even yourself, meditate on and pray
about it.
Whatever you do, do not let it just sit there without making
some effort to move it or yourself.
————————————————————
Even though these seem a bit lightweight, they are the most
powerful ways known to mankind for solving problems, finding
ideas and opportunities and for creating useful inventions.
When you use these techniques, you will be employing the
secrets of history’s greatest inventive minds like Edison,
Newton, Copernicus, Jesus Christ, Marie Curie, Franklin and
Einstein.
You can do this, it takes only a few moments a day to master
them and then you will find yourself lighting-up the world
with your bright and valuable ideas.
Necessity is and always will be the Mother of invention.
Make your Momma proud by using these methods whenever you
have the need to bring meaningful contributions to our
lives!
Copyright © 2004, Mustard Seed Investments Inc.,
All rights reserved.
————————————————————
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Bill Thomas publishes “Your Leadership UltraNet!” - a
Hands-On, Affordable, Performance Improvement Program,
featuring web-based ULTRA-Powerful Training courses,
coaching & mentoring support plus follow-ups GUARANTEED to
energize, empower, enhance your leadership results.
All-the-Tools-You-Need-to-Lead-&-Succeed!
http://www.leadership-toolkit.com/skills.html
————————————————————
Destiny. What a powerful word. And the great thing about it? Everyone has one! You have a destiny! Another great thing about destiny? We have a significant role in shaping our own destiny! In essence, you can choose your date with destiny - powerful!
Your destiny is the dream that lies within you of your desired and preferred future. And the things that we choose each day are what lead us to that destiny: Our actions, our words, our attitudes, and our relationships. They all add up to develop and shape that date on which we will reach our destiny.
Here are some thoughts to think about as you work on shaping your Date with Destiny:
The Mental Question: Do you believe that you can achieve a life of abundance? The frank truth is that many people simply do not believe that they can achieve what lies in their heart. Success is for someone else, a better person, or a smarter person. This is not true and is perhaps the greatest obstacle we face on the journey to our destiny. If we are to achieve the abundance in life we must first believe we can, or face our own continual self-sabotage of what a college professor of mine called “stinkin’-thinkin.’”
Here is the truth:
It doesn’t matter what your intelligence is.
It doesn’t matter what your current resources are.
It doesn’t matter what you currently earn.
It doesn’t matter what family you came from.
Nothing in your current circumstances matter in whether or not you can achieve your destiny! Nothing! Now, your current state may make it a longer or harder journey than someone else, but the possibility is always there no matter what your current circumstances are.
And that is the message we need to continually tell ourselves. “I can do it.” Not “I can’t do it.”
Clear vision. Do you have one of your destiny? Here are some questions to determine whether or not your vision is clear.
Can you describe it in intricate detail?
Can you “see” it?
Can you “feel” it?
Can you “hear” it?
Here are a couple of illustrations.
Perhaps you came from a dysfunctional family and your dream is to have great moments with your family. Let’s start with a Thanksgiving meal. Can you see each person there? What are they wearing? Are they smiling? What is the conversation? Can you hear the laughter? Can you experience the joy? Can you smell the turkey? Can you see people hugging each other and saying “This was wonderful,” as they leave?
Another scenario: Your company. Can you see the large building you are in? Can you see the workers? Can you feel the positive attitude they have as they carry out their work? Can you experience the excitement as you get the quarterly results? Can you see yourself handing out healthy bonuses that bring pleasant surprises to your employees?
This is where it begins. A clear vision of your destiny.
Consider your resources. Are you aware of the resources you will need in order to set your date with destiny? Do you know how you will go about getting them? What are your natural gifts and talents that you have? How can you best utilize them in achieving your destiny?
What are your current level of resources?
Money?
Time?
Emotional health?
Help from others such as friends, family, employees or volunteers?
What will be your needed future level of resources? And have you developed a plan to achieve this level?
The last thing I would encourage you to do is fix a date in the future that you believe you could believe you will be living your destiny by. A real date. What this enables you to do is then begin to work backwards in setting goals to move you along the way, proving you with future points to strive for and evaluation point to reflect upon.
Here are the points again:
Answer the mental question: Do I really believe?
Develop a clear vision.
Consider the resources needed.
Set a date with destiny.
Develop a plan to get there.
About The Author:
Chris Widener is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of
Made for Success, a company helping individuals and organizations turn
their potential into performance, succeed in every area of their lives and
achieve their dreams.
To see Chris “live” at the upcoming Jim Rohn Weekend Event as he speaks on
the subject of Secrets of Influence go to
http://Chris-Widener.InspiresYOU.com/ or call 800-929-0434.
Coaching has become a very popular way for people to get the ongoing support they need to accomplish their goals. However, choosing a coach can be tricky. There are so many METHODS, models, and approaches. Coaches come from every background possible — from counseling to consulting to corporate America. And each individual has a PERSONALITY, communication style, and temperament that is going to match well with some people and clash with others. So how do you choose someone who is right for you?
DIFFERENT APPROACHES
You first need to make sure that the person’s PHILOSOPHY is appropriate for what you want to accomplish. There are over 30 different “methods” that a coach can use to help you, and it’s important that you find someone whose approach resonates with you. Some coaches emphasize feelings, while others focus more on specific action steps. Many use traditional counseling methods to help you overcome obstacles, and others come from employ a more “corporate” training model. And all coaches will have particular strengths and preferences in their approach.
It’s important to recognize which type of coaching you RESPOND to best — and which will fill in the GAPS between your own personal strengths. If you are very sensitive, you may flourish under coaching that is supportive and nurturing. If you tend to become overwhelmed by your goals, you may need a coach who can take vague, nebulous ideas and turn them into concrete actions. And if you have a hard time crossing the finish line with your projects, you might do well to hire a coach who can keep you on track and make you accountable to your deadlines. Talk to your coach about his or her philosophy toward the coaching process to get a sense of where he or she is coming from.EXPERTISE
EXPERTISE
The next step is to look at a coach’s area of SPECIALIZATION. Remember that each different circumstance might call for a different approach. It isn’t always a good idea to use the same coach when working on different areas of your life. A good football coach isn’t necessarily going to be successful coaching a basketball team or a group of baseball players. And the same is true for personal coaching.
While many coaches sell themselves as “holistic” in their approach, most have one or two areas that they focus on more than others. You might find one coach who is great at helping entrepreneurs with the art of selling, another who specializes in creating healthy lifestyles, and a third who works almost exclusively with folks who suffer from Attention Deficit Disorder. Certainly, one size doesn’t fit all in this case. Be sure to select someone who has EXPERIENCE in your particular area of need — don’t be afraid to ask for references from clients who have worked with the coach on similar issues.
PERSONALITY
Coaching is often a lengthy and very intimate relationship — you will be sharing your innermost fears, dreams, and ambitions with another person and asking for a supportive and non-judgmental attitude (that’s more than many of us do with our friends and family!) You need to feel a RAPPORT with your coach, or you will never achieve the level of success that could be available to you. If you feel constantly on your guard or resistant or uncomfortable, think about using a different coach. You can tell a lot about your future relationship with a coach from your initial INTERVIEW — how does this person make you feel? Would you be comfortable sharing your secrets with this person? Do you have any reservations about working with this coach?
CREDENTIALS
While coaching is still a relatively unregulated field, there are some standard CERTIFICATIONS you might want your coach to have. Coach University (http://www.coachu.com) offers two designations — the Certified Graduate (CCG) and Certified Master Coach (CCMC). The International Coaches Federation (http://www.coachfederation.org) also offers an Associate Credentialed Coach (ACC) certification, a Professional Credentialed Coach (PCC) certification, and a Master Credentialed Coach (MCC) certification. You can visit these sites to review the requirements for each certification. While these kinds of credentials don’t guarantee a good fit with your coach, they do indicate that he/she has completed study of core coaching COMPETENCIES — it’s not just some “Joe Sixpack” off the street who decided to hang a shingle out.
In addition, find out what your coach’s prior BACKGROUND is. Someone who has an MBA and has worked as a sales director for a Fortune 500 company is probably completely competent to coach you on sales technique and business growth. However, he/she might not have any experience working with people on health and wellness issues. Ask your coach what led him/her into the FIELD — many times, coaches will have experienced their own challenges and epiphanies and wanted to share their techniques and successes with others. Make sure your coach knows what he/she is talking about before you sign on.
YOUR COACH’S ROLE
There are three main roles your coach can take in your relationship:
- MENTOR (one who supports your ideas, gives you a safe place to stretch your
wings, and nurtures your goals as you develop them)
- VISIONEER (one who helps you to see beyond your boundaries, suggests new
approaches, and helps you view the world from a different perspective)
- TASKMASTER (one who turn dreams into action steps, helps set and meet
deadlines, and keeps you on track as you move forward)
Every coach will display a bit of each personality — but, of course, some will lean further in one direction than in another. You need to have some idea of what you WANT from your coach before you start working together. Do you need someone to support and affirm and validate you — or someone to help you brainstorm new ideas and push beyond your current limits — or a coach who will make you accountable to and responsible for your goals? Maybe some of each? COMMUNICATE these needs with your coach upfront so you can insure that you will get what you want from your coaching relationship.
WHAT DO YOU WANT HELP WITH?
This can be an incredibly tricky question for someone who is thinking about hiring a coach. Many times, you don’t have a clue what you want — besides the vague notion that you want your life to improve somehow. That’s okay — let your coach know that you that you need help CLARIFYING and PRIORITIZING your goals. Or you may have a solid idea of the end result you desire — you want to make more money or feel healthier or create more balance between your business and personal life — but you don’t know how to begin or what steps to take.
Tell your coach that you need help creating an ACTION PLAN — breaking your large goal down into manageable steps and finding the resources you need to succeed. If you are feeling frustrated because you have tried over and over again to accomplish your goal — let’s say losing weight — but you never seem to get there, let your coach know that you need help finding the right path, staying MOTIVATED, and making it to the end. But whatever your reason for hiring a coach, don’t be surprised if you find yourself working on other areas of your life during your sessions. Coaching is a very integrated activity, and you will find that success in one area tends to spread to the others.
Your coaching relationship has the potential to be one of the most rewarding of your life - if you choose the right person to share it with. Be sure to INTERVIEW several coaches thoroughly before making a decision. And if you end up with the wrong coach, don’t suffer in silence. Many people think that they are UNCOACHABLE, when they are simply working with the wrong person. Don’t be afraid to walk out of a relationship that isn’t working (that’s just what a coach would tell you!)
Ramona Creel is a Professional Organizer and the founder of OnlineOrganizing.com — a web-based one-stop shop offering everything that you need to get organized at home or at work. At OnlineOrganizing.com, you may get a referral to an organizer near you, shop for the latest organizing products, get tons of free tips, and even learn how to become a professional organizer or build your existing organizing business. And if you would like to read more articles about organizing your life or building your business, get a free subscription to the “Get Organized” and “Organized For A Living” newsletters. Please visit http://www.OnlineOrganizing.com or contact Ramona directly at ramona@onlineorganizing.com for more information.
Whatever you are doing in your life at the present moment; it’s not enough.
What do you mean it’s not enough? I’ve done all I can. I’ve a good job. I work as hard as I can. I get my tasks done. I’m really proficient in what I do. I’ve got a good standard of living. What do you mean it’s not enough?
We want more from you. Why? Because we know you are capable of so much more. We know that you are holding back on something. We know you want to achieve so much more with your life. To be the person you want to be. We know you have the skills and abilities to reach your dreams… We know you just need that extra bit of encouragement. So, whatever you are doing now is not enough.
Doing what you’ve always done is never enough.
Doing what you think others want you to do is not enough.
Doing sufficient is not enough.
Following others is never enough.
Being a success in someone else’s eyes is not enough.
Going through the motion is not enough.
Waiting for others to act before you do is not enough.
Listening to others before you commit yourself is not enough.
This is the 21st century. This is the time of authenticity. This is the confluence of different points of view. This is the coming together of different cultures. This is the time of the underdog. This is the opportunity for the unknown to become known. This is the time for unsung heroes to stand up. This is the time when the patients start to take over the asylum. Therefore it is not enough to sit on your haunches and watch the world go by.
Now is the time to put your actions where your mouth is. It’s time to show what you are really capable of. Time to stop hiding behind …….
The world is waiting for you to fill your boots. The world is waiting for you to do what you were brought in here to do. The world is waiting for you to take responsibility for yourself.
The world is waiting for you to make a start on your dream. Just one small, tiny, step. The world just wants to see your commitment.
The world is waiting for your passion….. It’s not enough to be a quiet subdued follower. The world wants to see your enthusiasm.
As Bonny Tyler says in her song:
And it’s not enough to say that you love me
It’s not enough to say that you care
And it’s not enough when you say that you need me
If I wake up and still you’re not there
You gotta do something……
Good luck
Graham and Julie
www.desktop-meditation.com
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