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| OPENING CEREMONIES Last Friday my husband Steve and I watched from our living room as the opening ceremonies unfolded at the 2004 Olympics. All the athletes, individuals and teams, smiling and wearing colorful garb and waving flags! They were celebrating the joyful completion of their life’s goal – to become an Olympic athlete! Early on they made a commitment to live their best life! They dedicated their lives to become the best of the best. It was no accident. They had the desire, created a plan, and implemented it every day of their lives. During the ceremony, I was reminded of what it takes for me to complete a project from beginning to end and I thought I would share my learning with you. Whether you need to complete a report for work, help your son get settled in the dorm, organize a room or office in your home, or create a plan to reduce your financial debt, here are 6 steps to help you succeed:
While the project on our plate may not be of Olympic caliber, we all have many projects of one kind or another. Why not learn to effectively manage the process? This month, choose a project that you have been putting off. Use the six steps above and get started. If you need a gentle nudge, I would love to support YOU in living YOUR best life. Let the games begin! Personal Success Coaching Put Me In, Coach! Over the past weeks and months, several articles have appeared in major newspapers, women’s magazines, and business journals singing the praises of coaching. Coaching is the latest wave in an ocean of self-improvement trends. While many of us understand coaching on the soccer and football fields, it’s difficult to grasp the concept of a '‘life coach'’. Will someone be there to blow the whistle and call out “foul!” when my children request just one more minute before bed, or “out of bounds!” when the boss telephones to inform me I must attend yet another business dinner? Will someone be there to slap me on the backside for the terrific meal I’ve just prepared for my family? Well, isn’t that what coaches do? Yes, and no. One of the most successful coaches of the past century, former Dallas Cowboy’s coach Tom Landry described a coach as “someone who tells you what you don’t want to hear, who has you see what you don’t want to see, so you can be who you have always known you could be.” In effect, a coach is the client’s partner and champion for success. Coaches are partners in creating success by accelerating their client’s learning, performance and progress toward a chosen goal. In life, as in sports, we all have goals, support systems, oppositions, and time constraints. Coaches help clients clarify their goals, design action plans and take the necessary steps to achieve success. The coach anticipates the roadblocks and maps out alternate game plans to achieve the goal. Clients experience a more balanced life and the freedom to make choices and move forward. Having a coach provides the framework for building your best life. By providing a non-judgmental atmosphere of support, coaches assist their clients in generating new possibilities. Most clients commit to a minimum 3-month period, working with their coach to assess balance in their life, choose one or more goals, and take action. Clients seek coaches for a wide range of services – from projecting a confident, focused self-image, enjoying more fulfilling relationships and increasing productivity and profit in business, to successfully maneuvering through divorce, bereavement, career changes or health-related issues. Most coaches offer an initial session free of charge to explore the client’s needs. Coaching sessions usually consist of weekly 30 – 45 minute telephone calls, not limited by the clients’ or the coaches’ location. In a world of tele-commuting, coaches may work with clients across the street or across the country. Finding a coach that suits your needs and personal style is only a telephone call away. We all want to win at the game of life! Success in life, as in sports, takes focus, commitment and action. With the help of a coach, we can achieve the satisfaction of success every day in every way! Just one more thing…If you or someone you know could benefit from my coaching services, please share my information with them! “A Friend is a gift you give yourself” While Valentine’s Day is recognized as a day to honor romantic love, this year I would like to celebrate Valentine’s Day by honoring the love we share with our closest friends. In our current high-speed, get it done society, most of us don’t have the “over-the-fence” friendships that our parents and grandparents experienced. I believe one of the greatest gifts we have been given as humans is our ability to create and maintain relationships. We have a huge capacity to love – it’s a well that never runs dry! On this Valentine’s Day, I would like to acknowledge those people whom I am privileged to call ‘friend’. Each one has taught me valuable lessons over the years, and to honor those dear friends, I would like to share some of what I have learned.
Friendships are relationships that need nurturing in order to continue. How important are your friendships? What could you do TODAY to strengthen the relationships that are important to you? In an address to the women of Wellesley College several years ago, Barbara Bush spoke these words, “At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, not winning one more verdict or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a friend, a child, or a parent.” No one knows what the future may bring. Celebrate this month by spending time with those you love. Happy Valentine’s Day, Personal Success Coaching Have you set personal or business goals and failed to achieve them? What got in your way? It’s not too late to go back and rekindle the fire that caused you to create this resolution in the first place. First, think of all the benefits accomplishing this goal will provide you. More money? More time? A healthier life? More fun? Come up with a list of ALL of the benefits accomplishing this goal will give you. Motivate yourself! Next, WRITE IT DOWN! When we put our thoughts into words, and write those words down, something MAGICAL happens! Our idea takes shape and it begins to breathe! We look at it, re-read it and visualize our thought as a reality. We may fine-tune our goal, gaining clarity with each revision, defining what we really want, and creating motivation within our self. Next, make a list of any possible roadblocks that may get in your way. Like planning a trip, its best to know ahead of time where detours may occur, so you can plan to face them, or prepare a way around them! The best goals reflect who you are—they are in line with your core values and beliefs. Spend some time reviewing your New Year’s Resolutions. How well do they reflect who you are?? Ask yourself “How can I make them more in line with what I value in my life?” Get organized—break down your vision into small doable steps. Add reasonable dates of completion for each step. DON’T QUIT! Failures are opportunities to learn and review with a different ‘set’ of eyes. Get help when you need it! Coaching may provide the extra fuel you need on your road to success! As a coach, my only agenda is your success. Enjoy the ride! The best lessons are those we learn on the journey. Personal Success Coaching IT'S VACATION TIME Here we are in the middle of summer. Have you been on vacation yet? With the current economy, many of us feel we just can’t “afford” to get away. Competition and economics are making us work harder than ever! It is so important to give your mind and body regular periods of rest—especially in light of the pace most of us keep. We have learned to put so much value on productivity that the idea of taking a break (a normal healthy thing to do), can sometimes feel lazy or self-indulgent. This week, I challenge you to give yourself the gift of rest and relaxation. To do this you might: We’re all so busy trying to “get” somewhere and the truth is this: the most important destination is the present moment. Your quickest route: rest. Permission to rest is the agenda for this week! In the long run, it’s probably one of the most productive things you can do! Personal Success Coaching PEACE AND JOY As I sat down to write this quarter’s letter I began to think about the holidays. It’s not unusual – already we can hear voices singing, “? dashing thru the snow ?” over the speakers at the grocery store, and it’s not even Thanksgiving! As we think about the holidays – the gift buying, decorations, family gatherings, etc., it doesn’t take long before a sense of overwhelm kicks in. So how can we move from a place of stress (panic? ?) to a place of peace? “Peace?” you say, “With all I have to do? You must be joking!” Well, isn’t Peace and Joy what the season is all about? Finding ways to stay at peace during the holiday season, and preventing unnecessary stress in our own lives and in the lives of all those we come in contact with will increase our portion of Peace and Joy today, and it might just continue into the New Year! Here are some examples of what I mean:
Have a wonderful holiday season, filled with Peace and Joy –
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