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But isn’t this Truly Our Reality?

April 30, 2012 By 1 Comment

I love the way movies can make a point, paint a picture and get you thinking about an issue in a different way. I recently watched Dr. Seuss’ Lorax. While I wasn’t particularly taken with the movie, I was moved by the message. Then the message got me thinking about some other recent powerful movies I had seen – The Hunger Games and Avatar.

As I thought about these movies, I saw them in a new light. And instead of seeing them just as a powerful message, with great cinematography, in a far away world that doesn’t much resemble ours, I asked, “How is this similar to where we are today?”

Then comparison, after comparison came to me. I realized, we are currently living in all three of these films. The writers aren’t talking about the future, they are talking about the present – right now.

Here’s what I’ve found…

Avatar

  • We’ve lost our connection to nature and are destroying it as through it regenerates overnight. We think all of the earth’s resources are solely here for our use, with little concern with the impact our choices make on other life.
  • We’ve put profit and short-term goals of wanting “more,” over what is best for all concerned and future generations.
  • Everything in life is valuable, nothing is lost without a cost, yet we treat human life as though it is disposable. Dismissing the homeless, sending people off to war to kill one another, and practically disregarding the rapid depletion of certain animal species on the planet.
  • All of life is interconnected. We all need and depend on each other to keep earth in harmony, from the plants, the animals, the oceans, to humans.

Hunger Games

  • Like the people in the capitol, we alter our bodies to make a statement or because we want to look different, fit in, or maybe even stand out—whether through tattoos, piercings, or surgeries. We spend money on fashion, clothing, and accessories just because, with little thought as to who they were made and at what cost.
  • We watch violent movies, deaths, and war on live television. Our media emphasizes the grotesque images, calling it “news” and we watch it over again, replayed at 6am, 12pm, 5pm, and again at 11.
  • Children are taught that fighting is part of survival, working together is not an option, similar to our individualistic culture in America.

The Lorax

  • We cut down trees and use the earth’s natural resources at an alarming rate, without considering how we will replenish what we use.
  • For wanting things to look and appear “perfect,” we lose touch with what’s really important.
  • We allow people to lead us without asking questions, pushing back, and seeking alternative solutions. Essentially we are all followers to some degree.
  • How much of what we consume is “plastic” or not real, in what we eat and put into our bodies?
  • What we are doing and using in our culture is not sustainable over a long period of time, it’s estimated that Americans use FOUR times their natural resources.

While I’m not saying people are wrong, I am saying that we have a responsibility to the people of this world and our planet—with all that it encompasses. These movies may seem like dramatization of reality, but in truth, aren’t they really showcasing what’s already happening here now?

I believe so.

What other parallels do you draw from these films? Do you believe what they are talking about is happening now?

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Lessons and Gifts

March 14, 2012 By 19 Comments

It seems we go through times in our life and work where we are presented with challenges, opportunities, teachers, gifts and lessons about our path and direction.

These times give us a chance to see what’s working for us, what isn’t, learn the lesson and then break the patterns. This has been one of those times for me, so I wanted to pass along some of the lessons that have shown up for me this week.

1. Always stand up for yourself and what’s right for you. This week I finally said ‘enough is enough’ and took a stand for what was right for me. I stood up for myself, and also took a stand for my career and business. I’ve realized, being a compassionate human being, it’s sometimes a little too easy for others to step on you. This week, I was presented with mulitple ways and different people with whom I could practice this valuable lesson of taking a stand for what was right for me.

 2. Drive your life, don’t let anyone else take the wheel. This, by far, has been the biggest lesson. Waking up to the realization that being a people-pleaser doesn’t serve me, and putting everyone else’s needs and demands above and before my own will not only cause burnout and resentment, it directly takes me away from my goal and larger purpose of how I want to contribute to the world and bring value to others. Driving my life must become a priority, the same as driving your own life must also become a priority for you. We simply have to fight for what we want. It must come first. And, we must break any pattern or habit that directly takes us away from creating and fulfilling that desire in our own life.

 3. Your skills are not always your strengths. I’m skilled at many things. I’m super fast at tasks, I’m fairly above average when it comes to technology, but I’m admittedly not the best when it comes to accuracy and precision. My strength is in the sheer quantity of the work and volume I can produce, finding ways to strategize and see a bigger vision, and producing end results. I’ve realized that others have taken my skills and seen them as strengths I should use, yet these aren’t the strengths I’m passionate about utilizing. A skill doesn’t mean it’s a strength, and a strength doesn’t mean it’s a passion. This lesson was about remembering that just because you can do something, and just because you know how to do something, doesn’t mean you are actually good at doing it, nor is it what you are meant to be doing with your life.

My commitment to you is to stay focused on the ways I can serve the most people with the biggest impact possible. To let go of the small stuff, drive my own life, and focus on the activities that are both my strengths and my passions.

What lessons and gifts have you learned lately? What commitment can you make to ensure these lessons don’t continue to show up for you? How would utilizing these lessons allow you to serve more and make a greater impact?

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Recipe for Being a Good…

March 8, 2012 By 14 Comments

I had a vivid dream last night. One where I was a juror and had to decide who was guilty between two people. Both looked exactly alike. But, locked in a room with the othe jurors and access to the two under trial we could begin to see who wasn’t the good person there. I then began to make a judgment based on that person’s actions at the time, regardless of whether they committed the crime, it was their current behavior that made me assign guilt.

I bring this up, because last night before going to bed, I received an email that was a bit “snappy” from someone. I broke my rule about not checking email before bed, which I keep for that exact reason (reading something that bothers me). Then this morning I got to thinking about that email and this dream, and it made me start to consider what being a good person is all about.

So, here’s my recipe for being a good (and perhaps even remarkable) person, including being a good mother, daughter, sister, brother, father, son, co-worker, employee, business person, partner, spouse, and so on.

  • Speak with compassion, even when you are scared, hurt, angry or fearful.
  • Offer love to the seemingly unlovable.
  • Refrain from judgment, and accepts others for who they are.
  • Realizes when they’ve made a mistake, admits to it and can say they are sorry.
  • Is mindful of other people.
  • Doesn’t expect others to do what they want, simply because they want them to.
  • Is willing to give back.
  • Speaks words of encouragement.
  • Practices forgiveness.

I think inherently, we all have a desire to be a good person. When we act in ways that are incongruent with that desire, we feel discomfort from our actions. Sometimes causing a spiral effect, leading to more incongruent words and actions. Being a good person doesn’t take a lot of energy or effort, but it does take patience, mindfulness and awareness about our thoughts and actions.

Remember, every thought you think, action you take, words you speak, affect the people around you. The more we use the recipe above in all our interactions with others, the more we can pass along kindness, hope and love to others, who can then pass it back or on to someone else.

It’s who are (your being), not what you do that makes you a remarkable person. We all have the ability to be remarkable human beings.

What else would you include in this recipe for being a good person? I’d love to know.

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The Path to Purpose

February 16, 2012 By 21 Comments

We are all walking individual paths of purpose. Same paths are clear from the start, others are disjointed, fragmented, and even disshelveled at times.

The clear path is easy to define. People know what they want, they go after it, success follows. They never waiver. It’s much like my childhood friend, who even at the age of 12, knew she wanted to be a dental hygenist. Today, after being in that field for over 10 years, she still loves it. She is crazy about teeth. She always was, and likely always will be. There are many other like this too, you see it in the actors and actresses that dominate Hollywood, you see it in sports stars, you might even see this in yourself. My boyfriend is much the same way. He loves technology, he’s been in technology since he finished college, and he’ll never do anything different.

“I’ve often admired people like him. The ones who know what they want, what they are good at, then go after it and never look back. Their path is clear. It’s focused.”  

But as much as I’ve admired it, it’s not who I am. Even as a child, I had dreams of being a writer, a teacher, a lawyer, a banker, even a comedian. I wanted to be anything and everything. The world was my playground!

This ultimately leads us to the alternative path of purpose. The one that looks a little more muddied and disshelveled, especially to those clear path folks that make it look like finding a purpose and sticking with it is so darn easy.

What I’ve realized though is that the messy, muddied path is perfect, in its own way. It’s neither right nor wrong. It is simply what is.

I’ve often described my entrepreneurial career as something simliar to that of a tangled up ball of yarn. All of it has been divinely purposeful, but sometimes it looks a little tangled. Eventually, if you follow the path long enough, you come out on the other side, with all the tools, resources, and guidance you need to fully express your purpose. In the end, it’s beautiful.

The important thing is not to judge yourself for whatever path to purpose is right for you. And even more importantly, don’t judge others. We all are on this earth to express ourselves and to contribute our skills to the greater good, the path in which we take to do so doesn’t matter.

At the end of the day, it’s our contribution that matters most, not the way in which we arrived.

How has your path to purpose unfolded over your lifetime? Are you a clear, straight-forward person or has your path been more muddied?

Please share with the community!

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Finding Calm in the Chaos

February 9, 2012 By 9 Comments

Staying grounded and in the present when life is moving along at a normal pace may be easy (or easier), but it’s what we do in the chaos that can be our biggest champion for growth.

We all experience periods and times of chaos. Life is busy. Our appointments and calendars are filled. Obligations, commitments, and even opportunities seem to be knocking on our door.

It’s often an ebb and flow. Similar to the seasons, we find ourselves immersed in periods of growth. It’s during these periods of growth, when our seeds are germinating and our leaves are sprouting, that we have an opportunity to practice mindfulness. Simliar to the chaos of a new plant bursting from the ground, all it needs to do is to focus on its own path and evolution. [Read more...]

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