Releasing the Old to Invite the New – Practicing New Behaviors to Instill Inspiration Adventures in Awareness Issue #7 “The stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.” - Bruce Lee, Martial Artist/Actor These past four months of 2015 have contained energizing revelations in my experience of my work, resulting from a monumental decision I made at the end of 2014. That decision was to ‘hit the pause button’ on my 18-year tenure on faculty with a coach training organization, a tenure that has comprised my entire professional identity since becoming a coach in 1997. Needless to say, this decision scared me just to think about it; I considered it carefully and seriously. Thank goodness for my coach, my husband, my colleagues and my friends who supported my emotional roller coaster as I realized leaving was the best thing I could do for myself. That is an example of a large ‘releasing the old to invite the new’ and it illustrates the impact of this month’s ‘energy soup’. Every day I recognize thoughts, attitudes, patterns and even ‘rules’ I had unconsciously put in place around myself, especially as a member of that organization. The surprising thing I am noticing is that they are ALL of my making. Sure, I had some organizational policies and procedures to adhere to but I am just discovering how those pale in light of the ones I wrapped around myself. Things like “this organizational work is a top priority” - despite the fact that it was a relatively small percentage of my book of business. Another...
Stillness & Movement – Enhancers to Brain Neuroplasticity aka ‘Response-Agility’ Adventures in Awareness Issue #6 “True enjoyment comes from activity of the mind and exercise of the body; the two are ever united.” - Wilhelm von Humboldt, Russian Philosopher (Jun 22 1767-Apr 8 1835) “Half an hour’s meditation each day is essential, except when you are busy. Then a full hour is needed.” - St. Francis de Sales, Swiss Clergyman (Aug 21 1567-Dec 28 1622) Having just completed the first of four modules on Brain Neuroscience, Consciousness and Coaching with Ann Betz I have a deeper appreciation of and commitment to the power of meditation and bodily movement as effective tools that enhance brain neuroplasticity. Ann defines neuroplasticity as “the capacity of the brain to change throughout life.” I think of it as increasing my capacity for ‘response-agility’ in the face of any situation I might encounter. The continuing energies swirling around and through us [see ‘energy soup’ below] are ongoing invitations to more fully let go of former patterns of thinking and believing - to access broader perspectives than ever before - to open new avenues of heart connection and meaningful conversations. All of that requires brain neuroplasticity or ‘response-agility’ in spades! Since the first of this year, I’ve been including intermittent meditation/stillness periods of five to 15 minutes each throughout my day. I’ve noticed that my creative energy has been flowing more freely, bringing to light several ideas along with the impetus to create them. I’m also allowing myself to take a meditative break whenever I feel stuck, have low energy or I’m uninspired. In order to...
The Language of Emotions – Shifting What No Longer Works Adventures in Awareness Issue #5 “We live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It’s easy to say ‘It’s not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem.’ Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes.” – Fred Rogers, television host, songwriter, and author (20 Mar 1928-2003) Our ‘energy soup’ continues to swirl with energies that are asking - no, demanding - that we shift our thinking, our ways of being in relationship, and our levels of response (not reaction) to our world and all of its inhabitants. This month’s lunar eclipse/full moon creates a container for profound shifts in our thinking, consciousness and ultimately in our ability to be truly human, building on last month’s energies in true synchronicity. For example, within my clientele over the past several years I’m noticing how much more often their emotions are coming to the forefront in our conversations. This was also evident in my demo coaching session last week during Gail Moore’s ‘Inside the World of Master Coaching’ tele-seminar. During my 18 years as a coach, emotions have always been an integral part of my coaching conversations, which has provided a rich learning ground for me in building my capacity for holding the space in which my clients can explore them. The clients who are drawn to work with me seem to recognize that they are intuitively stepping into a sacred and safe space in which to examine not only their life and work, but also to...
Vulnerability & Openness – A Compassionate Connection to Personal Power Adventures in Awareness Issue #4 “If people work together in an open way with porous boundaries - that is, if they listen to each other and really talk to each other - then they are bound to trade ideas that are mutual to each other and be influenced by each other. That mutual influence and open system of working creates collaboration.” - Richard Thomas, actor (13 Jun 1951- ) As I continue to explore my 2015 personal theme of “Playfully Bold”, I’m noticing how boldness and playfulness can be demonstrated very effectively through vulnerability, compassion (for self and others) and openness. My reflective moments reveal not only those times when I choose to be compassionate, vulnerable, playful or bold without thought or hesitation, but also when I choose (often unconsciously) to play it safe for fear of judgment or ridicule. One of the places in my own life that I tend to play it safe is in wearing one of my wigs whenever I’m in the public eye, having lost my hair to chemotherapy four years ago. In my defense (wink, wink), I am a 4 on the Enneagram - the Romantic - which means, in part, that beauty and aesthetics are very important to my well-being. And a sign of my own growth is that after much resistance I’ve finally embraced the joy and ease of getting ready for my day in minimal time by simply plopping what my husband calls my ‘wig-hat’ onto my mostly bald head! As you’ll notice from the ‘energy soup’ information below, we’re...
EMOTIONS – Powerful Gateways to Reclaiming Personal Power Adventures in Awareness Issue #3 “Feelings like disappointment, embarrassment, irritation, resentment, anger, jealousy, and fear - instead of being bad news - are actually very clear moments that teach us where it is that we’re holding back. They teach us to perk up and lean in when we feel we’d rather collapse and back away. They’re like messengers that show us, with terrifying clarity, exactly where we’re stuck. This very moment is the perfect teacher and, lucky for us, it’s with us wherever we are.” - Pema Chödron, author As you’ll note from the ‘Energy Soup Report’ below, the inter-related themes for March are ‘Power’ and ‘Think Different’ - a space of time which invites us all to consciously and courageously examine our relationship with power, especially our own personal power. And as we do so, to notice how that relationship impacts the thoughts we think as well as the decisions and choices we make, especially in light of the turbulent and emotional stories in the news these last few weeks. In my work as a professional coach and mentor coach, I’ve noticed how when a coach acknowledges the presence of [or the lack of] emotions in a coaching conversation it can often open a doorway to deeper awareness for a client around how they’re using or not using their personal power regarding whatever they’re exploring. This awareness is usually not only about how the client is relating to a circumstance or person, but also to how they themselves are being impacted - often invisibly - by that circumstance or person....
Flights of Fancy – Thoughts as Skipping Stones Across Our Mind’s Awareness Adventures in Awareness Issue #2 “There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and be lost. The world will not have it… It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.” - Martha Graham, choreographer As the new year is unfolding, I’m increasingly aware of my thoughts, in so-called ‘flights of fancy,’ scudding around in my mind like a stone deliberately skipped on a lake’s smooth surface. Too often I believe we reject these wonderful ‘flights’ that are an inherent, inborn aspect of the Self because we believe that it serves no purpose or is at odds with our grown-up culture of ‘maturity’. Of course, ‘flights of fancy’ are nothing new for a human being to experience, yet what is new - at least for me - is my noticing of it which I find fascinating, amusing and inspiring. Something else that’s risen to the forefront of my awareness is that unless I take an extra moment to anchor what I just noticed (by writing it down or recording it digitally) it can evaporate like smoke on a brisk breeze. Now, I’m not judging that as being either right or wrong, or good or bad, but rather as ‘it is what it is’. Paradoxically, it also opens a space for a new ‘flight of...
