Lessons Not Learned From An Expert
by Steve Kiges, C.E.C.
In my first career, I was a professional musician. My formal training was at Juilliard: one of the finest music & arts schools in the world. It is the kind of place where I got to hang out with future superstars like Robin Williams, Wynton Marsalis, Yo Yo Ma and Kelsey Grammer when they were just struggling students trying to figure out life just like me.
In my second semester, I was assigned a particular teacher which I will refer to as Mr. Negative. I am sure you know the kind that never has anything good to say and has this permanent scowl plastered on his face. Everything he said seemed off or didn’t make sense, and no matter what I would try, I just could not please him. In my head I was thinking, here I am at “The Great Juilliard School”, the students are the best of the best and the teachers are the best of the best, what is wrong with me? Why can’t I get what this teacher is trying to teach me? He must be great since he’s teaching at Juilliard.
I was sitting in the lounge feeling pretty bummed out and one of the PhD candidates came and sat next to me. He asked how things were going and I explained my struggles. He got this big grin on his face and said, “ Oh….. you’ve got Mr. Negative this semester…….. we all had to learn how to survive his class; it’s one of the rights of passage …… everyone has to do their time in his class….. ”. He then said, “Mr Negative is actually one of the best teachers in the entire school; you just do the opposite of what he says and you will be right on the money”.
Wow, what a relief and what a great lesson! It was a lesson about trusting myself, my own beliefs and what is best for me. We are all showered by the media, friends, and family with suggestions and opinions masquerading as facts. “Do this…. No, you need to do this…. No, do this”. Some roads are good to try and some we need to just say, “No thanks”.
I had a serious obesity problem for many years. My success in losing 170 lbs and staying in my healthy weight range for over 7 years now has not been about doing what all the experts say or being a diet disciple. It has been mixing and matching things that work for me. It has been paying attention to what I need at the time and, at times, ignoring good advice. If I try one path, it does not mean I am married to it for life(big lesson here). Maybe I do it only a few weeks and if that does not fit anymore, then onto something else.
Being open to new ideas, does not mean you have to accept them or take any action. For the next few days or weeks, pay attention to advice-givers and information you read or see on TV. Just because the experts say ……. does not mean it’s right for you or that you have to do it.
Trust yourself.
END
__________________________________________________________________________________________
About the Author: Steve Kiges is a Certified Master Empowerment Coach. He holds certifications in several modalities including; Masters Level Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), Time Line Therapy and Core Transformation. Steve also brings a wealth of knowledge from several successful careers including; Symphony Musician, University Teacher, Software Company President and Entrepreneur. Steve now specializes in working with individuals struggling with food addictions, an issue that he struggle with for many years. Please visit his website to contact him and for more information: http://www.theunreasonablelife.com
Your Own Personal Development Plan (PDP)
by Randin Brons, Ph.D., C.M.H., M.S.L.C.
You may have heard about personal Development Plans and may be wondering just what these are? More and more people are beginning their journey into creating their PDP and maybe it is time you did the same?
A personal development plan is a structured and supported process undertaken by an individual to consider and improve upon his personal, educational and professional development. The individual is in control of his own development with the opportunity to monitor and steer his growth. It is simply a tool to encourage and support lifelong learning.
The process involves identifying the areas that need development, planning, executing and reviewing.
We all tend to have a mental block when it comes to addressing our own problems. Many people are afraid about taking time and thinking about their problems and solutions to those problems. A PDP would help them to solve their problems in an easy manner.
You could start developing your PDP anytime. Based on your present situation and role, you could draw a PDP that could help to prioritize the most important areas of your life that need immediate attention and concentration.
Identify areas that need progress – This is the first step towards constructing your PDP. You need to be in tune with your current situation in life – know who you are, what you want to achieve, what you have and what you lack. You also have to be clear about what is working for you now and what is not. You need to check on what you are ignoring, too.
Many people may delay in this first step if they have problem identifying the areas of their life that needs development. If you are one of them just think about those areas that are important to you – for example, you could consider the following areas: Physical and mental wellbeing, education, spiritual pursuit, finances, recreation, relationships – personal and professional, etc. You do not need to write down everything in detail but just make a list of these areas.
This list would help you to prioritize your areas. After you identify your areas that need improvement, write down what improvements you prefer to make in each of these areas as it relates to your personal growth.
Set a timeline on each goal – Begin with your short-term goals and then proceed to long-term goals
Write down your action plan – how do you plan to go about this process?
Review your plan – is this plan workable? Would you like to make a few changes or draw a new PDP?
Implement your plan – stick to your plan and follow your schedule
Review your progress – are you following the timeline? Are you progressing accordingly?
When you develop your own PDP, follow through with action and achieve your goals you would feel like you are on top of the world. You gain more confidence that your life is in your control. You get a great satisfaction. Take one step at a time and enjoy the process.
That is the key to success.
END.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
About the Author: Dr. Brons is the Chief Learning Officer of Express Coaching™ and a working coach. Randin’s work goes far beyond the search for your life purpose – the difference is in learning to live by your own design. Visit his website at www.ajourneytojoy.com.
Motivation Strategies
by Randin Brons, Ph.D., C.M.H., M.S.L.C.
Success and achievement requires work, patience and motivation. Motivation can be viewed by some as a temporary solution to a permanent problem. What that means is, there is always something to do when it comes to success.
We need to succeed at better grades. We need to succeed at becoming more profitable in business. We need to succeed in our family life – being a better parent or spouse. We need to succeed financially – be it personally or business. We need to succeed physically. Maybe we need to drop a few pounds or add some muscle mass.
The bottom line is, we all need motivation on some level whether it’s for a short time or for an ongoing long time frame. Below are twelve ways that you can become more motivated for your success trail.
Some may be for you. Some may not. But with these you are sure to find at least one that works with your personality.
Reading –
Reading can be inspirational as well as motivational. It’s a form of learning, research, escape, entertainment and even training. Reading up on your desired goals can be motivational. For example, if you are wanting to get in shape, you may subscribe to a well known fitness magazine. The articles and pictures alone could be motivation to keep you on the treadmill or bench press.
Listening –
Listening is a lot like reading. But instead of being tied to a book, you can listen to motivational recordings just about anywhere. The most common place is the car. If you are working in an office setting away from your home, you may have a lengthy route to work. That’s a perfect time for motivational listening. If you have the luxury of listening while at home or in the office, a great way to further your motivation is to actually take notes of important points that you hear from your recordings.
Affirmation -
Affirmations are good for those of us who need repetition. Have you heard the saying, “Tell someone something long enough and they will eventually believe it.” Well an affirmation is that kind of motivational resource. Someone usually finds a saying that really charges them – something they really believe in – and they will write it down and read it daily, sometimes several times daily. This eventually will get in that person’s head and they will own it as a fact or part of who they are. The great thing about affirmations are, they can really take good information, motivational and inspiring information, and flood out the negativity that’s in your head. Out with the old (bad) and in with the new (good).
Visualization -
Here’s a powerful way to stay motivated. If you can see your outcome, a lot of times it will motivate you to see it through to the end. The only downside is it takes a little practice. But it is well worth the effort. Your results will show you how worth it.
Negativity -
Negativity is a harsh motivator. What I mean is, negativity is bad. But if you’re the kind of person that likes to take the negativity from people and feed it back to them by your positive results, then you have a great motivational technique by tuning into the comments of others who ‘don’t think it’s possible’. With this technique, you have to be careful that the negativity doesn’t rub off on your and you start to believe it.
Remembering why you’re doing what you’re doing is a great way to stay motivated. If you’re building wealth to give your family things they never dreamed possible. Just remembering that fact can motivate your drive harder than when you first thought about it. As time goes on, you will be more driven the more you remember your reasons.
Huge amounts of motivation are already in you. You just have to know how to tap into it. And if these half dozen motivational strategies are a start. If you don’t see one you connect, there are more coming!
END
____________________________________________________________________________________________
About the Author: Dr. Brons is the Chief Learning Officer of Express Coaching™ and a working coach. Randin’s work goes far beyond the search for your life purpose – the difference is in learning to live by your own design. Visit his website at www.ajourneytojoy.com.
Self Motivation
There are three categories of people. The non-achievers, the achievers and there are the self-motivated people. Sometimes even the achievers may fail to do something but a self motivated individual draws inspiration from failures to make success stories. A self motivated person will always have his confidence levels shooting through the roof and the world is his oyster.
Here are a few guidelines to keep your motivation high … Read more
-
-
EVALUATING COACHING:
50 pages packed with information you should know before you make any coaching career decisions!