I once had a client tell me that she wasn’t very good at “changing her course”, meaning that once she had a plan; she stuck to it even if it was no longer the right thing to do. I thought this was really interesting. How many of us get really set on something whether it be a career path, a relationship or deciding to move somewhere and follow through on it even if our hearts are no longer in it? I’m not a sailor but I imagine that once you set sail on a trip, the course changes depending on extraneous factors. But why don’t we do this in our own lives?
I challenge everyone to think about what is happening in your own life that you’ve been following through on “just because”? And if you were to change course, what would that change be?
Email me with your thoughts; I love to hear them!
“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.”
-Lao Tzu
There is so much change happening in the world right now. It feels like a major earthquake has happened and now we are all looking around and figuring out how to rebuild. Even in terms of job loss, I can’t tell you how many people I have talked to recently that have lost their jobs or are in fear of losing their jobs. I equate it to an earthquake because when even the ground beneath you is shaking, you don’t know what you can count on. Everything feels so uncertain.
But I can’t help to believe that everything happens for a reason. That there are certain decisions that we don’t make ourselves and the universe makes them for us. For example, being unhappy in a job but staying in it anyway. Wanting to get out of a relationship but staying in it because it’s comfortable and easy. There are so many decisions that we avoid making due to fear of the unknown. And then one day, the universe forces us to make a change. And that’s what it feels like is happening now. Our ground is shaking and foundations are falling. But when you take a step back and look at it from a different perspective, look at the possibilities for rebuilding. We now have a chance to recreate our realities to be anything we want them to be. It is a fresh start.
What is possible for you right now? What changes can you make? What will you do to make the most of it?
If you are going through a job change or are thinking about it, I have created a self-guided Career Change Workbook that you can download as a pdf. In this workbook you will find different exercises that help you to get clear on what type of work would be most fulfilling for you. People underestimate how much it affects your life when you are unhappy in your job, please take this opportunity to take the time to be really strategic in what work would make you happy.
The workbook includes exercises such as:
1.Career Assessment Questions
2.Ideal Job Exercise
3.Strengths Finder
4.SMART Goal Creation
5.Resume Writing Tips
6.Recommended Reading List
To download the Career Change Workbook for $15.95, click on the below link:
A question that I am often asked is “How can I make a career change during such turbulent economic times?” While it is true that the state of the economy is extremely fragile, I also believe that the way out of this is to do work that we are passionate about. When we love what we do, we are more productive and have a true vested interest in the outcome of our work.
There are many out there who would say that to have job satisfaction right now is a luxury. They say that we should all be happy just to have a job. But what if going to work is draining you of your energy and only contributing to your stress and unhappiness? I believe there must be a better way to live. Who knows how long we will be in this economic slump? If you can find another job that you are happy in, isn’t that worth it?
In response to this, I have created a self-guided Career Change Workbook that you can download as a pdf. In this workbook you will find different exercises that help you to get clear on what type of work would be most fulfilling for you. It includes exercises such as:
1.Career Assessment Questions
2.Ideal Job Exercise
3.Strengths Finder
4.SMART Goal Creation
5.Resume Writing Tips
6.Recommended Reading List
For $15.95, you will be on your way to transitioning into a more fulfilling and successful career!
To download the Career Change Workbook, click on the below link:
As an alternative to the traditional New Year’s “resolutions,” I thought I’d pass on 5 questions to answer. Take some time to sit down and write down your answers to the below questions. Feel free to send them on to me as I love hearing what you are all up to!
1. If you could create a title for what your year will be like starting with “Year of…”, what would it be? (ex: “Year of Growing and Nourishing My Family”)
2. Rate your current level of satisfaction with each of the areas below on a scale of 1-10. Create one goal for each area.
Health
Career
Money/Finance
Significant Other/Romance
Friends
Family
Physical Environment
Fun & Recreation
Personal/Spiritual Growth
Self Image
Knowledge
3. What will you have accomplished or changed that would make you most proud at the end of 2009?
4. What two steps could you immediately take that would make the biggest difference in your life?
5. What one thing would you do if you knew you could not fail?
As we approach the end to another year, I thought it would be beneficial to send out some questions to reflect on the year we’ve had. Try to go somewhere quiet and write out the answers to the below questions:
1.What are you most proud of in the last year?
2.If there were a newspaper headline describing this past year for you, what would it say?
3.What unfinished business do you want to resolve before the year end and when will you do it? (i.e. lingering relationships, apologies, goals yet to achieve)
4.When were you most excited about life in this past year? What were you doing? Who were you with?
5.Looking back, what would you have done differently in 2008?
6.Who most inspired you and why?
7.What new dream for yourself did you achieve?
8.Where did you let fear hold you back from a goal you had?
9.What was boring to you this year that you hope to change for next year?
10.On a scale of 1-10, how satisfied are you with each area of your life in the past year?
Health ___
Career___
Money/Finances___
Significant Other/Romance___
Friends___
Family___
Physical Environment___
Fun & Recreation___
Personal/Spiritual Growth___
Self Image___
Knowledge___
Next year will be a very exciting one for me as we are expecting a little boy in February! I am sure that the experience will stretch me in ways that I didn’t know were possible. I am looking forward to sharing my experiences and continuing to stretch all of you to achieve things that you didn’t know were possible.
Wishing you all a warm and wonderful holiday season and a happy New Year!
“…to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth – that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:
Yes We Can.”
-Barack Obama, President Elect, November 4th, 2008
Wow. As I sit here and type this I am still in awe of what happened this week. I have heard all of the pundits say that this election was won not out to fear but out of hope, what could be more inspiring than that? In a time when things are so uncertain and up in the air, we elected a man who clearly was put on this earth to lead us to another place. Who admits that he does not have all of the answers but promises to work his hardest to find them. And we have faith that he will. Who does not have the experience that other candidates may have had but who sees the world in a different light. It is that light that gives us hope. This is a man who does not cower in the face of challenges but is instead called forth by them. When the world has always told him, “No, you can’t.”, he has responded with “Yes, I can.” And now he has passed on that creed to us. For those of us who were doubtful about what is possible, he has given us that hope. Anything is possible.
So, how does this hope affect your life? What have you been telling yourself or others told you that you cannot do? How will you inspire hope in others by saying, “Yes, I can.”?
A great place to start is to come to my class this coming Monday and kick start that business idea you’ve had in the back of your mind:
Dream Job…On the Side
Come meet fellow budding entrepreneurs and share a glass of wine while learning how to work on your business idea. This class is great for anyone who wants to start a business but is not ready to quit their day job.
In this class you will:
• Discuss your ideas with others
• Brainstorm ways to kick start the business
• Network for new resources
• Establish concrete goals to achieve success
• Receive free half hour follow up coaching session
“You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.”
-Henry Ford
*Space is very limited
When: Monday November 10th – 7-9pm
Where: BIN 38 – 3232 Scott Street San Francisco, CA
Do you ever get the feeling that there is so much you’d like to do and accomplish and you have so many fabulous ideas and then you lose steam? I have never run a marathon but I am starting to feel like running your own business is that way. There are times where the rush of adrenaline is undeniable and I feel unstoppable. There are other times (particularly on rainy days like today) where I think maybe it would be wiser if I let things just “flow” and didn’t really try so hard. But as I step back and write this, I realize that having your own business is truly a marathon. You celebrate small successes along the way while keeping your eye on the finish line, even if you can’t see it. And a lot of it is faith, faith that you are going to make it to that finish line. And knowing that once you do, you’ll want to train for another marathon. Despite the blisters and sore knees, it’s all worth it. Because this is my race.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the Pareto Principle, also known as the “80-20 rule”. It states that for many events 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. This principle was named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto who studied and found that 20% of the population controlled 80% of Italy’s wealth and income. Later studies have been done to show this principle rings true in many areas. For example:
20% of your wardrobe is worn 80% of the time.
20% of clients account for 80% of an organization’s income.
20% of streets account for 80% of traffic.
20% of your friends account for 80% of your satisfaction.
How do we apply this to our life? It all comes back to thinking efficiently and getting better results. Doing less, gaining more. How great is that?! I heard one speaker who figured out that in an eight hour work day, 96 minutes works out to be 20% of our day. So if we focused basically an hour and half of our entire day on accomplishing something really important, 80% of the results we are looking for will follow. Everything on top of that is gravy.
My question for you is, what are you doing 80% of the time that is only accounting for 20% of your results? And how could you flip that equation in your life or work?
On that note, I have been hearing from so many of you that in this economy it feels unwise to take risks. So many of you have these brilliant business ideas and have such marketable talents but due to the financial state of the world, you are keeping your head low. I actually think boldness has never been more important than right now. I am not encouraging people to quit their day jobs but I do want keep your ideas and passions alive. Which is why I created the below class, “Dream Job…On the Side”. What if you dedicated 20% of your time to your business idea, would you get 80% of your satisfaction out of it? And if so, isn’t that worth it? We all need something to look forward to right now, something that fuels our fire. What fuels yours and what are you doing about it?
Mastermind Series
Dream Job… On the Side
Come meet fellow budding entrepreneurs and share a glass of wine while learning how to work on your business idea.
In this class you will:
1.Learn how to create a basic business plan
2.Find out how to ease your worries
3.Discover what it takes to implement your big idea
4.Establish concrete goals to achieve success
5.Receive a free half hour follow up consultation
*Space is very limited
When: Monday November 10th – 7-9pm
Where: BIN 38 – 3232 Scott Street San Francisco, CA
I have recently come across Guy Kawasaki who is a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley and has a blog called http://www.alltop.com. In reading his blog and finding out more about him, I came across this lecture that he did on innovation and I was absolutely riveted. I sat at my desk and took copious notes. He is not only incredibly intelligent and resourceful but is also a wonderful speaker who is very engaging. I would love to host an event with him as the speaker!
If you are interested in starting up your own company or in the process of it, I highly recommend that you check out this video. He also has written a book called Art of the Start which I am also planning on buying and reading.
I recommend that you also come check out my class called “Dream Job…On the Side” on Monday November 10th at BIN 38 where I will be incorporating a lot of this information. To purchase tickets and find out more information, click here: http://www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=169773
If this morning is any indication of how productive my week is going to be, I’m in trouble. As soon as the weather turns cold and grey, I find it harder to get out of bed. I am less inspired to take my dog to the beach and lag on taking her. Once I returned home, I found myself calling to check with family members before getting to work. And then it was shower time and then reading my favorite blogs. Well, you get the point, a whole lot of nothing has been accomplished so far on this Monday morning.
I find that one of the only ways that I can truly accomplish what I want and move forward is to set clear daily and weekly goals for myself. And to differentiate between what is urgent to get done vs. what is important to get done. And so I am off to set my daily and weekly goals. I hope you will to!
If this morning is any indication of how productive my week is going to be, I’m in trouble. As soon as the weather turns cold and grey, I find it harder to get out of bed. I am less inspired to take my dog to the beach and lag on taking her. Once I returned home, I found myself calling to check with family members before getting to work. And then it was shower time and then reading my favorite blogs. Well, you get the point, a whole lot of nothing has been accomplished so far on this Monday morning.
