Friday, December 18, 2009
Check out www.meetup.com
Looking for a people who have similar interests? Check out Meetup. Just type in your interest and your postal code and Viola! You will have a list of groups meeting in your area. You will find cultural groups, yoga groups, professional groups and lots more. I love Successful Positive Women – check it out at: www.meetup.com/Iamasuccessfulandpositivewoman/
Unleash Your Innate Wisdom
As I write this, I am overlooking Lake Muskoka in Gravenhurst, Ontario. I just spent the weekend with seven wonderful girlfriends, enjoying the spa, food, drink and most importantly, each others’ company. A few of us caught sight of three white-tailed deer while on a hike. They took a peek at us and then trotted on. Being here reminds me of the innate wisdom of nature; how the plants and animals all just know what to do. We too have innate wisdom. We all have a natural, instinctive intelligence that guides us in determining what to do or what not to do. Innate wisdom is always there for us, taking in our environment and gently presenting us with the answers we seek.
How do I recognize innate wisdom?
Innate wisdom has a quality of pureness to it. It is unencumbered and non judgemental. It is the thought or feeling that comes before we analyze it or layer our rationalization or criticism on it.
How do I cultivate my innate wisdom?
- Give it time. We are often in a rush to do everything. So it can be difficult to allow time for an idea to percolate or a conflict to simmer. Don’t be afraid to take the time to ruminate. Taking the opportunity to ‘sleep on it’ can be very helpful in allowing your wisdom to arise.
- Give it space. If your mind is cluttered with recurring conversations, thoughts or emotions, it is hard to access your wisdom. It is there, but can easily be crowded out by the other dialogue going on in your head. Try to give your mind the space it needs to let wisdom surface. Try sitting quietly and letting go of your thoughts. By clearing your mind, it is easier to contemplate your issue.
Learn to let your innate wisdom shine through.
How do I recognize innate wisdom?
Innate wisdom has a quality of pureness to it. It is unencumbered and non judgemental. It is the thought or feeling that comes before we analyze it or layer our rationalization or criticism on it.
How do I cultivate my innate wisdom?
- Give it time. We are often in a rush to do everything. So it can be difficult to allow time for an idea to percolate or a conflict to simmer. Don’t be afraid to take the time to ruminate. Taking the opportunity to ‘sleep on it’ can be very helpful in allowing your wisdom to arise.
- Give it space. If your mind is cluttered with recurring conversations, thoughts or emotions, it is hard to access your wisdom. It is there, but can easily be crowded out by the other dialogue going on in your head. Try to give your mind the space it needs to let wisdom surface. Try sitting quietly and letting go of your thoughts. By clearing your mind, it is easier to contemplate your issue.
Learn to let your innate wisdom shine through.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Inspire Your Career Book Launch in 2010
We are pleased to announce that the new book “Inspire Your Career – Strategies for Achieving Success and Finding Happiness at Work” will be published by Insomniac Press and launched in April of 2010. The book is full of tips and advice on a wide range of career related topics. A recurring theme in the book is self-awareness; the idea that knowing yourself is a key element of a successful career (and happy life!). We’ll keep you posted as things progress and if you have any great marketing ideas for the book, please let me know.
This Month’s Tip – Just Do ONE Thing
Have you ever felt completely overwhelmed with what you needed to accomplish? Perhaps your work and personal life are in a perfect storm of activity. You may also have a particular task that you know you should do, but you aren’t motivated to do it. A friend of mine has her own business. While she loves what she does, she dislikes looking for clients, making cold calls, or anything related to marketing herself. When there is a part of our job that we are not too keen on, it is pretty easy to feel overwhelmed by it, so we procrastinate or ignore it. Try just doing one thing. Make one phone call or send one email or finish one component of the task. By doing just one thing, you can break a pattern of avoidance, and the feeling of being overwhelmed.
Have you ever thought...
“I hate doing this.”- Find tools that help you accomplish the tasks you don’t enjoy doing. For example, if you don’t like to cold call, schedule 15 or 30 minutes each month and make the calls. By doing tasks regularly, and in smaller chunks, you won’t feel overwhelmed later.
“I don’t know where to start.” – Consider breaking down a project into pieces, so that you can start to see the feasibility of completing the work. You might break it down by what is easy or quick to do and what is harder or will take longer. Then just do one thing to kick start yourself into action.
“I don’t want to deal with this.” – When I am struggling with something I don’t want to deal with, it appears as a big, hairy ball. I don’t want to go near it. Consider what you are really avoiding. Are you avoiding a person? Are you avoiding an emotion? Seeing clearly what is at the heart of the issue will help you find the one thing you can do to start dealing with it.
Next time you feel stuck or overwhelmed, try doing just one thing.
Have you ever thought...
“I hate doing this.”- Find tools that help you accomplish the tasks you don’t enjoy doing. For example, if you don’t like to cold call, schedule 15 or 30 minutes each month and make the calls. By doing tasks regularly, and in smaller chunks, you won’t feel overwhelmed later.
“I don’t know where to start.” – Consider breaking down a project into pieces, so that you can start to see the feasibility of completing the work. You might break it down by what is easy or quick to do and what is harder or will take longer. Then just do one thing to kick start yourself into action.
“I don’t want to deal with this.” – When I am struggling with something I don’t want to deal with, it appears as a big, hairy ball. I don’t want to go near it. Consider what you are really avoiding. Are you avoiding a person? Are you avoiding an emotion? Seeing clearly what is at the heart of the issue will help you find the one thing you can do to start dealing with it.
Next time you feel stuck or overwhelmed, try doing just one thing.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Relationships Mean Everything
Recently I was speaking to a colleague who is a partner in a large law firm. She shared the story of working for over 20 years in a firm where she was expected to grow her client base, but was never taught how to do it. Eventually a co-worker took her under his wing. He taught her that acquiring new clients is like growing a garden; it takes time and you need to cultivate it. You plant a seed and it takes time to grow. Getting new clients is all about building relationships, meeting people and accessing
new networks. In your career, relationships mean everything. Your relationships are like the seeds in that garden. They may grow to become
your next customer, a future employer, the perfect employee, your mentor or a new business partner - you never know.
How do you build relationships and your network? Anyone can do it. The first step is to consider what your objective is so that you can find a clear path to meeting who you are looking for; for example:
- Are you trying to increase your client base? Ensure your friends,
family and colleagues know you are looking for clients. Cold call potential
clients and introduce yourself. Identify target companies or groups and
offer to speak to them on a topic of interest.
- Are you trying to find a job? Let your network know you are looking and what you are looking for. Ask people in your network for connections to their networks. Access networking sites that will connect you to potential employers.
- Are you curious about a sector or industry? Consider attending
conferences, accessing people through professional associations or attending pertinent educational sessions.
Don't be afraid to put yourself out there. People are generally very
accommodating. When you meet people, be authentic and honest about who you are and what you are trying to achieve. In order to be effective in building your network, you need to be effective for others. Take opportunities to 'give forward' by listening and being supportive to those who reach out to you. Good relationships are based on mutual trust and respect. Make a commitment now to build positive relationships throughout your career.
new networks. In your career, relationships mean everything. Your relationships are like the seeds in that garden. They may grow to become
your next customer, a future employer, the perfect employee, your mentor or a new business partner - you never know.
How do you build relationships and your network? Anyone can do it. The first step is to consider what your objective is so that you can find a clear path to meeting who you are looking for; for example:
- Are you trying to increase your client base? Ensure your friends,
family and colleagues know you are looking for clients. Cold call potential
clients and introduce yourself. Identify target companies or groups and
offer to speak to them on a topic of interest.
- Are you trying to find a job? Let your network know you are looking and what you are looking for. Ask people in your network for connections to their networks. Access networking sites that will connect you to potential employers.
- Are you curious about a sector or industry? Consider attending
conferences, accessing people through professional associations or attending pertinent educational sessions.
Don't be afraid to put yourself out there. People are generally very
accommodating. When you meet people, be authentic and honest about who you are and what you are trying to achieve. In order to be effective in building your network, you need to be effective for others. Take opportunities to 'give forward' by listening and being supportive to those who reach out to you. Good relationships are based on mutual trust and respect. Make a commitment now to build positive relationships throughout your career.
Friday, September 11, 2009
'Fresh Start' September
I love September. It has a feeling of renewal and freshness to it. It must be the many years we spent in school, gearing up for a September start. We can recreate this feeling of ‘fresh start’ in our workplace. We can do this in small ways, like making an effort to say Good Morning to our colleagues in the office, or bringing in treats for everyone for no reason, or cleaning up the kitchen for our coworkers. These small acts create positive energy.
Sometimes our work drags us down; maybe this is due to someone in our office who is driving us nuts, or perhaps the boss doesn’t appreciate us enough, or maybe we are feeling stressed because we do not have enough time or feel overwhelmed. We can carry the weight of these circumstances in our mind from moment to moment, day to day and week to week. It can build up and create a lot of resistance. Next time this happens to you, think about starting fresh. Wake up with a conscious commitment to a fresh start with the co-worker, your boss or the situation you are struggling with. Commit to looking at the person or situation with fresh eyes and openness. By shifting your attitude in this way, you can make a huge difference in the quality of your work life.
How do you create a 'Fresh Start' at work?
Sometimes our work drags us down; maybe this is due to someone in our office who is driving us nuts, or perhaps the boss doesn’t appreciate us enough, or maybe we are feeling stressed because we do not have enough time or feel overwhelmed. We can carry the weight of these circumstances in our mind from moment to moment, day to day and week to week. It can build up and create a lot of resistance. Next time this happens to you, think about starting fresh. Wake up with a conscious commitment to a fresh start with the co-worker, your boss or the situation you are struggling with. Commit to looking at the person or situation with fresh eyes and openness. By shifting your attitude in this way, you can make a huge difference in the quality of your work life.
How do you create a 'Fresh Start' at work?
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Welcome to the Inspire Your Career Blog!
Hello Inspire Your Career Followers!
This is our first official post on our new blog!
We are excited for the addition of this service to www.inspireyourcareer.com and we hope you will find it to be a useful tool for additional career inspiration resources.
Keep coming back and staying up to date - and being inspired!
Trish
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