Back to the Future

In her 20’s all one of my dearest friends wanted in life was to drink beer and work in a record store. Forty years later, she’s a serious coffee aficionado who produces high-end sound equipment for the music industry. Her path was circuitous. It may have felt random and aimless at times from outside observers and even to her. Yet swap out beer for coffee and records for mixing boards and her vision has been...

Who Am I, Really?

  As we hit adolescence it’s critical to our development to individuate from our parents and find our own identity. This can be a painful process if what we want doesn’t mesh with what’s expected of us. We can take on hurts we’ve suffered or inflicted on others and traumas we’ve endured as parts of our identity. It’s also a rich and exciting time to experiment and develop our own identity. We use identity to...

Transitions – the discomfort zone

 Transition times are paradoxical. At a time when we feel unsettled and in a hurry to return to equilibrium, we are best served by slowing down. Transition takes time and doesn’t happen in the fast lane. Transformation – which every transition invites – cannot happen in our comfort zone.   Transition can be scary and paralyzing if we don’t have the tools to consciously engage uncertainty. The real work in times of...

Loving Good Enough, Part 2

I’ve been reflecting more about perfectionism and busyness since my last post. Perfectionism is how we protect against the unwanted, unexpected, and uncomfortable that we don’t want to deal with or are afraid of. I will be safe and all will be well if everything in my life is planned, rehearsed, and in its proper place. If I follow the advice of the status quo, I cannot be blamed for mistakes. If I don’t stand out...

Ask Dumb Questions

My current juicy question – What would it be like to make a ten fold increase in my contribution and fulfillment in the world? – recently took me to Phoenix, Arizona to participate in Lift Off, a retreat for entrepreneurs who want to take their creative business to the next level. Ideas are not my shortcoming.  I needed help getting them launched. Masterfully guided by Pam Slim and Charlie Gilkey, Lift Off promised...

Where the Magic Happens

This graphic has been making the rounds on Facebook.  When I locate the original source I will happily credit the creator. I love the message. We’re all familiar with comfort zones – safe, predictable, nothing that rocks the boat.  When we’re in the midst of chaos, they are the oasis we thirst for. They’re okay as a resting place from time to time.  Stay there too long and things feel stagnant, unimaginative and...

The Adventure of a Great Question

This is the time of year when  people are making resolutions for the New Year or have already broken them.  Most of the focus is on things we don’t like about our lives or ourselves and want to change – or think we should.  Research indicates a small percentage of people actually carry out what they resolve at the dawn of a new year.  I don’t say this to be a downer but to suggest that perhaps our attention...

My Year in Review

As a self-employed entrepreneur, I get to plan my own year end traditions.  This includes everything from a holiday party to performance review. The beauty of being self-employed is that I have a choice in what I want to pay attention to. This can also apply to retired people, those between engagements or those who don’t have to work. Here are the elements of my year-end review. Reflection       The typical...

What’s Your Question?

In the summer of 2007 I went on retreat in my garden. I was seriously in need of some reflective down time and didn’t have the opportunity then to get away. I pitched a tent, set up a chair and left everything else but a journal, water, and some snacks in the house. Three days and two nights later I returned rested, refreshed, and reinvigorated.  During that time, surrounded by the joys of nature, a question...