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Are you experiencing SPACIOUSNESS in your life and/or in your business? Creating space allows for energy to flow and move more freely in our lives. This is true for our PHYSICAL space - the space that we create in our homes and offices. If we are surrounded by "stuff" and clutter and hemmed in by all of our things, our space becomes confining. We may even shrink ourselves to meet the confines of the space. How might you create more spaciousness in your home or in your work space? What might you be willing to let go of so that energy may freely move thru your physical space? It is true of our EMOTIONAL space as well. If we hold on to past grudges, negative experiences and challenging beliefs, we allow them to calcify in our emotional space. What might you need to let go of? Who might you need to forgive? It is also true of our MENTAL space. When we keep our minds closed, insist on being right and remain attached to one way of thinking we don’t allow room for new ideas and new possibilities. What are you focusing on? Where are you putting your attention? How might you open your mental space to enable bigger possibility thinking?  Here's to creating SPACIOUSNESS in our lives as we look forward to this new week!
What ONE STEP are you willing to take to create more space in your life?
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Once we take the first step to living life outside of the box that society, labels, fear and limiting beliefs put us in, a world of possibility presents itself. We begin to experience a sense of limitlessness to what we can do, dream, be and become. Life outside of the box allows us to grow into the best version of ourselves - to create, explore, love, dream, enjoy and find purpose in our lives.  I’ve been witnessing a growing number of conversations that revolve around a lack of joy, purpose and fulfillment in the midst of life. As one who advocates for tapping into joy daily, I thought I’d share a few ideas, tips and easy ways to bring more joy into your daily life.  This list is by no means exhaustive - but meant as a starting point for a conversation about JOY. So often I see folks getting stuck in the "how" thought process - as in: "How am I going to do this, make this happen or achieve this?" The "how" can seem really overwhelming and can keep us from taking action. I invite you to instead ask yourself: "If I were to set aside the 'how', what would I like to DO in my life or in my business?" And more importantly: "Who do I want to BE?"  A three year old recently introduced me to a troll named Fuzzbert. He’s basically a hairball with legs. You cannot see a face anywhere on this troll. I’ve been laughing lately that I’m like Fuzzbert when I step outside into the wind and my hair blows all around my face and into my mouth. Much like Fuzzbert - I can’t see or be heard clearly.  I often get asked this question: What is behavioral money coaching? And it’s typically followed by: How can money coaching help me? So let’s dive into the answer to the first question: Behavioral money coaching helps a client to unpack the stories and beliefs they have woven all around money and transform their relationship with money. I’ve definitely learned some interesting lessons from my garden this year. In fact, I almost gave up on it, threw in the towel and accepted that I wouldn’t have homegrown veggies this year. But I didn’t and I’m glad. So as I sit here surrounded by my growing veggies, I thought I’d share some thoughts with you.  What keeps us stuck in business and in life?
When we peel back the layers of what may be keeping us stuck, there is typically a FEAR there lurking in the shadows and underlying our behavior and belief patterns. In my coaching work I typically see three categories of fear:
Do you recognize any of these fears? A powerful question I’ve found myself asking clients recently:
What if you gave yourself permission to be playful? There has typically been a long pause and then an outpouring of everything that might be possible for the client. The interesting angle of this question is two-fold. I recently lead a laughter yoga workshop at the local library for their community wellness series. It was a multi-generational group of people and we had a lot of fun laughing and connecting with one another. Because let's face it - laughter is powerful!
There was one older gentleman that seemed to be getting a kick out of the whole process and enjoying the laughter and the energy of the group. He approached me at the end while we were stacking chairs to say how much he appreciated the workshop. “Make your best life a priority!”
This is the rallying cry for my coaching business and I sometimes get the question: What does “your best life” mean? My answer: It means different things for different people as we all have our own individual hopes, dreams, preferences and desires. It means something different for me than it does for you, I’m sure. Financial debt filters over into every area of our lives. It affects our health, our mood, our motivational drive - and can permeate every moment of the day. So how does money coaching for those in debt work?  It’s the beginning of a new year and with it comes a clean slate and the opportunity to create and live your best life in 2018. It’s the traditional “goal-setting” time of the year. Unfortunately - according to the US News - statistics show that 80% fall off of the proverbial goal bandwagon by the second week of February. So how do you avoid becoming a statistic? Last year I read a very helpful article by Martha Beck on this very issue where she recommends assembling a “Fellowship of the Resolution.” She offers great insight into why folks abandon their New Year’s resolutions and she shares a wonderful solution in terms of developing a support network. Check it out here! Now that you understand the reality behind the statistics, let’s work on setting your big, audacious goals - and set systems in place to keep you on the accomplishment track!  As the autumn leaves change to brilliant shades of orange, yellow, rust and red before falling to the ground in preparation for the cold winter air so does the soul journey inward shedding layers of doubt, insecurity, shame, guilt and fear as it dives deeper. And in the same way the buds of spring bring new life and color, so does the soul emerge with the brightness of joy, playfulness, creativity, wonder and awe. Once the old beliefs and patterns are shed, the new can begin. Taking small, consistent action creates big, lasting change. Staying in the flow and staying in constant movement and motion enables us to accomplish big goals in our lives and in our businesses. Take a look at the power of water. The constant motion and consistent movement of water has incredible power to carve and create ever shifting landscapes. The other day I was sitting at my desk deep in concentration on a project when a rustling sound entered into my awareness - a consistent rustling coming from inside the house.
Full disclosure: I do live in the desert and have had mice in my space over the years and even the occasional woodrat has breached the premises. I am NOT a fan and usually need to get outside help and support when these creatures appear. So - needless to say my concentration was shot and my eyes were pulled directly to the corner that was the source of the rustling. It was persistent. And loud. My mind went towards thinking it must be larger than a mouse. I moved from my desk chair into my bedroom to hide and escape. I did NOT want to deal with this or face it. Recently I met with three different girlfriends over the course of the week - a Sunday brunch with a coaching friend, a Tuesday dinner with a Maui girlfriend and Thursday dinner and cocktails with another lovely female friend.
During these intimate conversations, all three women shared their vulnerability with an honest, open heart. There were tears and there was laughter. Because, let’s face it, the challenges we women face on a daily, weekly, monthly basis are real.  There is a power within each and every one of us. It is a power that can spark forward momentum and massive change in our lives It can open us up to new opportunities and new possibilities. But it can also keep us stuck or worse, send us spiraling downwards. It is the power of choice. And we are always at choice. Happiness appears to be elusive in today’s society as everyone seems to be in pursuit of the happy life. Think about it - we’ve all heard a good friend say something along the lines of “I’ll be so happy when … " or “If only I had … , then I’d be happy.” Heck - we're likely guilty of saying something similar ourselves! According to the 2017 World Happiness Report the United States scored 6.8 out of 10 on the happiness scale. That’s not a lot of happy. So what are some ways to bring more happiness into your daily life and routine?  I am currently participating in a marathon. It requires no running. It is the "You Matter Marathon" which truly aligns with my mission and heart-centered approach to business and to life. Will you join me?  |
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