Alignment

My writing, as you may have noticed, has been few and far between as of late. It is all good. I think I needed a break. I have been groovin' in terms of making some progress on my coaching and other "things" in my life and I think that is the space that I needed. It is Friday (can you believe it?) and I am looking forward to a sunny fabulous weekend (there are NO COMPLAINTS out here regarding the weather...thanks to El Nino). As you might have seen in my posts, I like to tell stories about my life and so here is one from the other day.

I woke up at 3am (yes 3am) and could not get back to sleep. So, I decided to write and write and write whatever was on my mind. I wrote about good things, frustrating things, bad things, and and everything in between and then for each thought I noticed how I felt and for the frustrating and bad I questioned my thoughts about them (through self coaching) and turned them around completely or at sometimes just to feel a little better. It was like I was massaging my mind and my heart a little. It felt good and rich and liberating all at the same time. So then my day continued and I noticed a lot of little amazing coincidences throughout the day, information and people showed up just at the right time when I needed it, or I'd notice that I'd say or write something and then read it somewhere right after I said it. I've had these kind of experiences before and I love to notice them, and celebrate them.

So,what was going on that day? What made that happen? In my armchair analysis it is the following:

1. I freed my mind of the chatter and pull of negative beliefs and moved it to better feeling thoughts


2. I gave myself the space to feel good


3. I felt good all day long


4. I did things that I valued; connection, progress toward goals, gratitude


5. I noticed

In a nutshell, I think I was aligned and from that space I was able to see where the dots were being connected in my life and I got more and more of it because of the above and because of my noticing. So...I am going to continue to test this model and see what transpires. I love the 'peaceful easy feeling' that I had that day and would love for that to be the norm!

What animal is it?

I recently listened to a coaching call where the facilitator asked the class what animal their old jobs/careers were and what animal their new career was (all of whom were coaches). I decided to do a quick looksie at my own thoughts on my career(s) and here is what I came to:

Conultant (pre kids) - a sheep who was let out of the field from time to time to graze (ie had different clients and didn't feel 100% penned in) but came back to the farm and was tended by someone else (ie not truly autonomous and not truly creative...fell under someone elses vision...perhaps that person was a wolf in sheeps clothes too!)

Mom - Lioness definitely fits. I feel really content with that role and kind of instinctual about it. Now that the cubs are no longer as needy, I feel more secure in letting them go out further on their own and I am willing to search "for food" further from the den as well.

Coach - Hummingbird. I mainly chose this because it is what I'm drawn to at the moment and it kind of fits. I feel as though I am buzzing along from topic to topic searching for food. I have found my favorite spots but enjoy the buzzing around. I feel also the steady calm about me...but if you look closely, I'm busy, busy, busy. I know that I can look further at what a hummingbird symbolizes to get at more of what this animal's qualities fit me...but my own wisdom is good too. Creativity seems to be a word that comes to my mind...this is what the coaching feels it is bringing out in me...I feel way less like a sheep and more creative...however, thoughts of being a sheep come to my head because it feels easier, safer, and spreads a lot of the responsibility to someone else (ie getting the business, taking care of the boring business stuff etc). So...could I be a hummingbird in sheeps clothing? OR now with time, life experience, and more knowledge, I will know how to recognize a wolf in sheeps clothing and gravitate toward more hummingbirds like me? That feels nice...that feels better and it feels possible.

This was such a fun and creative way to look at roles you play in life (even beyond just career) to see what you think you ARE and what you think you WANT TO BE...and then figure out how to make the transition. Also, the qualities of those animals are very telling about what you believe about yourself. Very cool, very fun...and probably way more meaningful and deeper than I can even know. So what animal would you be? Does that animal "fit you" or would you like to become something else? Give it a try...you might be surprised at what you find. My big surprise was my acknoweldgement that I felt that my leaders were wolves in sheep's clothing...that was interesting...it came to me in a flash. Again, I ask, how about you?