by | · 8:43 am

Got a Backbone?

Sheryl Eldene, MA, MBA

Remember those cute minnows swirling around Gail’s feet yesterday? They have intact backbones and really aren’t succeeding. Neither are the jellyfish stranded on the sand in the outgoing tide. Many people understand that BACKBONE, will, drive, Hard Work and discipline are critical to success.

As we look at obstacles to business success, consider the obstacle of no WISHBONE – no time to set vision, create focus and intention. Yes, we talk about annually an quarterly stepping back to create vision and specific strategies, but have you considered bringiing that practice into the month, the week, the day, or even the next hour?  Setting vision for the day or the hour, is more like setting your intention for this day to be _______(productive, nurturing, energized, giving, fulfilling – fill in the blank) and holding that intention as you take on your action steps for that day.

What I see happening so often, is sitting down at my desk, with a carefully prepared list of action steps that may or may not match my strategy, then working very HARD with all my drive, will, discipline until my neck hurts, I’m cranky and I know, from my work on professional burn-out, that I’m on my way down that path, fighting the tide and finally ending up as food for the big players. [OK, that’s a little dramatice, but you get the point].

To bring joy, success, as well as long term contribution in my field, I engage both bones. Here’s my check list:

  • Is what I’m about to do consistent with my intention for the day?
  • Is what I’m about to do consistent with my strategy for the quarter?
  • Do I have the energy to do this with my full attention and my full heart?
  • Can I do this from a place of power and energy, or from a place of just surviving?

No to any one of these questions may suggest that I’m driving and striving, just like those little minnows and maybe I’ll still be fighting the ocean when the day is done.  As you look at what obstacles may be limiting your success, consider the marriage of both your will and your self-discipline (BACKBONE) with your visioning, your intentions, and your heart (WISHBONE). This is the essence of linking the Law of Attraction to the Law of Action – and that marriage real Olympic Gold.

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by | August 2, 2011 · 10:14 am

Corporate chameleon or modern-day maverick?

By Olga Sheean

We could learn a thing or two from birds—the feathered variety. They’re up at the crack of dawn every day, singing their little hearts out, and never worrying about where the next worm is coming from. They’re not moody and they don’t get depressed when it’s raining. (I’ve never seen a bird sulk—have you?) They add value to any natural environment, with zero negative impact. They stick together and they trust in nature’s rhythms. They’re true to themselves and they fly where their inner guidance takes them.

Humans, on the other hand, tend to be filled with self-doubt and insecurity—despite all our resources, skills and creativity. We have difficulty trusting ourselves or the natural order of things. We mask our fears, put on a brave front, and do whatever we can to impress others, in the hope that they’ll find us acceptable.

In life as in business, this insecurity cramps our style. It hinders our authenticity and the power that comes from being naturally, quirkily ourselves. In striving to make ourselves acceptable, we actually diminish our value. If we lack strong, healthy self-acceptance—as so many of us do, due to early negative programming or insensitive upbringing—we don’t believe we’re worthy of love, success or approval. As a result, we make compromises in the hope that others will like or accept us. We say yes when we really want to say no; we over-extend ourselves in our work because we want to prove our value; and we go along with what others want, to avoid conflict, disharmony or rejection.

Yet to be powerful in business and relationships, we need a strong sense of identity, healthy self-worth and the ability to embody our personal values in everyday life. Now, more than ever before, we’re being called upon to say what we mean, mean what we say, and practise social, moral and emotional integrity. When we do, we make a powerful impact. In the midst of all the hype and hard sell, authenticity is as refreshing as a cool shower on a blisteringly hot summer’s day.

The only thing that stops us from being more powerfully authentic is the fear of rejection. We’ll do almost anything to avoid that. But catering to this insecurity often brings us the very rejection we fear, whereas being brazenly authentic makes us attractively compelling. When we dare to be ourselves, to speak our minds and to express how we truly feel, we become magnets for good stuff.

Being authentic not only breaks long-standing cycles of conformity; it also gets people’s attention, as well as their respect and admiration. I’ve experienced this in my own work and life. When I say what I think/feel (despite anticipated negative reactions), I feel good about me—and that, in turn, generates some other positive outcome that matches the healthy self-worth I’ve demonstrated by being true to myself.

Finding true success and fulfillment is all about practising the very qualities that are so often missing in our early conditioning—respect, honesty and the ability to communicate with presence and transparency. These qualities are often missing in our business dealings too, as we’ve all been programmed to cater to the needs and expectations of others, rather than trusting in the value of our unique insights and contribution.

If you want to thrive in business or in love, dare to express what you really think; be proactive, rather than catering to existing circumstances or market forces; follow your instincts and find your voice, even if it means disagreeing with the boss; let go of the need to be accepted by others and focus instead on being true to you—the person you’ve got to live with for the rest of your life. Only when you give yourself the approval, acceptance and respect you’ve been seeking from others, can you really take off and fly.

Olga Sheean is an applied kinesiologist, therapist, relationship counsellor and empowerment coach who teaches a unique system of holistic self-mastery. Author of Fit for Love—find your self and your perfect mate, she offers in-person and online coaching/consultations worldwide. olga@olgasheean.com / www.olgasheean.wordpress.com / www.olgasheean.com

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by | July 28, 2011 · 7:33 pm

Level Five Spin Ninja

Sheryl Eldene, MA, MBA

One of my favorite comics is called “Non Sequitur”. It has an interesting little girl who makes some wild pronouncements about the world. Recently, she said,

“The Spin Ninja code states that luck favors the prepared
My goal is to become a level 5 Spin Ninja”.

That has gotten me thinking about the link of the Law of Atrraction and the Law of Action. Really, “Spin” is just a way of thinking about a thing – your life, an event, a job, whatever. We think of “Spin” in terms of attempting to convince someone else about something. President Regan was said to be able to turn anything even failures into a victory with his suave spin savvy. Unfortunately, it is also said that President Carter wasn’t able to use spin to turn a victory into a victory. Spin is another word for the Law of Attraction, whether you’re using spin to define your own world or attempting to lead others to define the world according to you.

How about you, are you able to find the victory in your own events, and to use spin (in your thinking) to support yourself to create positive outcomes from your daily events?

And what about the “luck-favors-the-prepared”?  How prepared are you to receive those things that you are trying to create?  If you’re looking to bring a spouse into your life, is there room in your garage and your bathroom for another person?  If you’re looking to grow your business, is your current calendar filled completely with no room for those new clients or customers, even if they came?  If not, consider some preparation might be in order, and that is using the Law of Action with your intention.

I’m aiming to be a Level Five Spin Ninja, how about you?

You may also want to read about Gucci Authentication. Continue reading for more information.

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by | July 26, 2011 · 10:27 am

Evolution of an Art Calendar

by Violette Clark

Hooray!!!  The sample copies of my “Bliss” calendar have arrived!  I never get tired of seeing my art on products.  It’s such a thrill i tell you!

calendar_bliss3

I’ll be ordering a bunch of calendars so you’ll be able to buy them directly from me!  Yippee!

I don’t know about you but I always wonder where artist’s get their ideas and inspiration from.  I’m assuming some of you are interested so I’ll tell you the story of how the Bliss calendar came to be.

A few years ago my nephew was paralysed in a tragic rugby accident. Naturally the entire family was distraught.  We tried to think of things to give my nephew Adam to buoy his spirits.  So i decided to create a series of inspirational cards which i printed off and laminated.  Every time i visited Adam I would tape an inspiration card on the wall behind his bed.  Adam liked the cards and so did his caregivers who would come to his room to check out his latest miniature missives of hope.

By the end of Adam’s stay at the Rehabilitation center his wall was full of colourful, glittery cards.

A while later I was on twitter and looked at the twitter feed – much to my surprise Brush Dance was looking for artists. I thought “Surely they won’t want my illustrations?”  but then again another thought was “What do you have to lose?  You have those lovely cards you created for Adam – they are different and inspirational in nature. Why not give it a try. You have nothing to lose!”  So I did and Brush Dance accepted my designs!

Now I’ve already illustrated a calendar for 2013 and was asked to submit designs for 2014 if you can believe it!  It all started with the desire to inspire my nephew to heal and feel hopeful.  As you can see you just never know where things might lead to.

That whimsical mixed media illustration you just created might morph into a line of greeting cards or a new rubberstamp design. Sometimes you don’t know where the Muse is leading you until later on.  Your job is to be a conduit for the creativity within you.  Show up and Create and leave a trail of glitter in your wake!

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by | July 21, 2011 · 4:00 am

Evaporated Dreams

Sheryl Eldene, MA, MBA

There are many theories about the sources and causes of stress and/or burnout. I propose that underneath all those ideas is a systemic disconnect between one’s strengths and ones dreams. Any combination other than being connected and acting from strengths as well as keeping a conscious focus on dreams can create the symptoms of stress and lead to burnout. The most disastrous is the state of being out of touch with one’s dreams and working from ones’ weaknesses.

When I talk about being out of touch with dreams, I’m looking at the place in your life, often appearing at mid-life when your dreams of having a beautiful home, perfect children, loving and attentive spouse or of six figure income and international fame and instead you find yourself cleaning dirty toilets, drudging through boring projects at work, and dragging yourself to the movies because you just can’t think of anything else to do.

When one is also out of touch with operating from one’s strengths, the stress doubles or triples exponentially. When you find yourself working with people in, say a sales or customer service job, and your greatest strength is introspection and left-brain mathematical concepts, you may be working from weakness. On the other hand, if you’re highly social and love being with and interacting with people, and, you are in a cubicle all day updating spreadsheets or programming computers, you haven’t connected your purpose to your inherent strengths.

When one is off purpose with both dreams and strengths, stress burnout is inevitable. If stress is keeping you from your Big Dreams, here are a few tips for treating those symptoms and getting back on track:

  1. Add something beautiful to your life on a daily basis, such as flowers or music.
  2. Do some enjoyable activities whenever possible.
  3. Walk, work, and eat at a relaxed pace.
  4.  Take a short break after meals to relax.
  5.  If possible, go outside at least once per day and notice the simple things such as the weather or scenery.
  6. During the day, whenever you remember, notice any tension in your body (jaw, neck, shoulders). Breathe deeply and gently stretch and relax any tense areas.
  7. If you notice your mind racing or worrying about the past or future, take a minute to breathe deeply. Gently focus on something in the moment such as the feel of your breathing, the visual scenery, the sound of birds.
  8. Take breaks during the workday to relax.
    Wear comfortable and loose clothing when possible. Take off your shoes when you can.
  9. Avoid holding in feelings day after day. Instead, find a safe place to feel, express, and embrace them.
  10. ABOVE ALL, BE GENTLE AND PATIENT WITH YOURSELF. SOME PEOPLE FIND THEMSELVES FALLING BACK INTO EXCESSIVELY STRESSFUL HABITS FROM TIME TO TIME. THAT IS PERFECTLY NORMAL. SIMPLY NOTICE THAT CHANGE IN A NON-JUDGMENTAL WAY AND REFOCUS ON THE STRESS REDUCTION PRACTICES THAT WILL PROMOTE A HEALTHY WAY OF LIFE.

May the third quarter of the year find you focused on those dreams, living from your strengths, and dancing.

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by | July 19, 2011 · 10:22 am

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Turning Family Research into a Novel

by Carla Rieger

If you spent years doing amazing family research, what do you finally do with it all? A compilation of facts about your family history may be interesting to you, a few close family members, and maybe other family historians, but what about the rest of the world? This article is about using your genealogical research as the starting point to create a compelling novel or short story. There is plenty of information available about how to turn your genealogical research into a nonfiction book as a legacy for your family but almost nothing about writing a fiction inspired by true events discovered in your research. What are the advantages and disadvantages of doing this kind of a project?

ADVANTAGES

1. Making your story more readable

People tend to be drawn into a story if there is a certain structure to the story, or what myth expert, Joseph Campbell, might call The Monomyth. This is a basic pattern of stories found all over world and from all times in history that seems to have a powerful psychological effect on readers. Real lives are generally complicated and full of tangents and mundane aspects of life that are either confusing or generally un-interesting to the typical reader. Because of this, many so-called true stories are often just inspired by true events; meaning several characters or events have been collapsed into one, or timelines have been shortened, new events and characters have been added in, names and dates changed, and so on. Another reason to employ the Monomyth pattern is because people often do family research because they want to understand themselves more fully. Using this pattern will force you to uncover the universal truths in their journeys which in turn will help you and your readers learn some of life’s greatest lessons.

2. Protecting people’s privacy and avoiding legal hassles

Some people don’t want their life stories made public to others especially if there is controversial information included. Even those who agreed to be identified in a story have been known to later try to sue the author once it is on the market and they read the final version.  Even if you change their name, some family members have objected because the surrounding facts still point directly to them. Also you may feel free to talk about a relative that has passed away but later discover their descendants are unhappy about it and want to sue. As long as you are maintaining the truth in the essence of the story, changing gender, relationships, professions, geography or time periods can be a great way to protect yourself and others.

3. Missing information

It may be that you can’t find all the details of what happened to family due to records either not existing or being lost. Rather than leave parts of the story blank you may choose to invent them, or draw conclusions based on existing facts.

DISADVANTAGES

1. You might lose some purists

Some people will only read a book if they think it’s a totally true story rather than semi-biographical. This is a valid concern and so you will need to decide who you are writing down these stories for. If keeping things totally factual is important to you and your readers, and won’t create legal problems, then it may be worth trying to do that.

2. Your ancestors’ stories are already in a readable story form

The actual story of your ancestors may be already a strong narrative and therefore embellishing it may actually ruin the story.  It is unusual but you can find compact stories full of intrigue, dramatic tension and foreshadowing without much help from you as a writer. This is usually the case if you take just one incident in a person’s life such as surviving a shipwreck or winning an important audition that led to huge career success.

Feel free to comment below on what you think may be the advantages or disadvantages of turning your family research into a story or novel.

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Carla Rieger is the author of the award winning book and now the screenplay The Change Artist. After her father died, she discovered a hidden box of mementos suggesting he had changed his identity a couple of times in his life. Her journey of uncovering the truth completely changed her life. She used a novel format instead of a memoir or biography because of the advantages listed above. For more information about Carla and the book go to: www.thechangeartistbook.com.

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by | July 12, 2011 · 10:35 am

The Butler Did It!

by Irene Butler

The Butler Did It!  That is… Rick and Irene Butler Did It!  Be ready for this old cliché to take on new meaning when you read my book!

What did we do? We circumnavigated this beautiful big blue ball for the same cost as being couch potatoes. “Trekking the Globe with Mostly Gentle Footsteps: Twelve Countries in Twelve Months” is about our encounters, from the enlightening to the bazaar and the lessons we learned along the way.

Embedded travel tips tell how you too can succeed in meeting a budget, while still adhering to our travel motto “we are not here to suffer”, and how to not let the 24/7 “togetherness” end in divorce. Plus a sharing of the most valuable lesson of all “expect the unexpected”.

Learn more about Trekking the Globe at www.globaltrekkers.ca and also check out the many other countries we have trekked through and the experiences that have “wowed” us – such as this year’s adventures in the oil-rich United Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, where excesses are astonishing; then the mysterious allure of Syria, the seaside rhythms of Jordan and Sinai coasts, the intensity of Israel, and our path through Technicolor Vietnam.

Safe Travels Always,
Irene Butler
Author/Travel Writer/Photographer

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