Ahhh–the gift of inspiration!  I unwrapped a present Christmas morning–a plaque emblazoned with messages for the heart and soul. As I read each one out loud, I knew their truth right down to my bones–the attitudes and actions for creating a daring life adventure filled with harmony, happiness and well-being. The perfect gift, since I speak to businesses and other organizations about the importance of energizing work, life and wellness. They’re magical if fully embraced in creating transformations, of closing gaps between what is and what you want to be.  If you’re assembling a list of New Years’ resolutions, these will have you soaring!

1. Direct Your Own Destiny
2. Believe in Yourself
3. Find Reasons to Smile
4. Embrace the Journey
5. Have Faith
6. Conquer New Heights
7. Follow Your Heart
8. Explore New Horizons
9. Dare to Dream
10. Let Laughter Happen
11. Share the Joy
12. Write Yourself a Happy Ending

I love this list and upon reviewing it more closely, recognized how in tune it is with our Guts, Grace & Gusto Guidelines featured in Dancing through Life with Guts, Grace & Gusto which I wrap my presentation talking points around.  These are vital to navigating the twists, turns and transitions encountered on our journeys. We’re all dancing along a tangled path of competing priorities, multiple challenges, squeezed by limitations of time and energy, meeting unexpected detours, collecting lessons for the heart along the way.  We need reminders to get us back on track, because our best intentions can get derailed at times. Read the rest of this entry »

As events were unfolding 10 years ago, I was at my computer, stunned, just miles from the Pentagon.  I wrote the following in my attempt to process the events of which had never been experienced, and sharing now as my way of reflecting back.

It’s Tuesday, September 11, 2001. I look out the window and see a gorgeous day. I turn on the TV and our world is in chaos. Fifteen miles down the road, thousands have lost their lives, families have lost fathers, sons, daughters and mothers, husbands and wives. Many children now in school will learn too soon they have lost a mommy or daddy. We too, may have lost friends in this unexplained tragedy and wait for any news.

How can we sort out the chaos and what comes from such terror and tragedy? This is a life-as-you-know-it-shattering event. What we believed to be safe no longer is. This event will shape millions of lives in immeasurable ways. We won’t ever think the same, perspectives on life are jolted into a new reality along with our priorities. Things that seemed so important and pressing just a few hours ago, really don’t matter now.

America is reeling from the unfathomable. The tallest buildings in the world just collapsed into rubble. Multiple jetliners hijacked off airport runways and became vehicles of destruction and devastation. Our nation’s defense center is in flames.

We haven’t heard the stories yet of the lives lost or those that almost perished but were miraculously spared. Those stories will come in time and break open our hearts.Thousands walked out of their homes this morning, believing it to be just another day. Some stopped for their morning mocha. Some kissed their lovers goodbye. Some didn’t. Some dropped their kids at daycare. Some fought traffic snarls and rushed to their desks to tackle their priorities. An hour or so later, all work stood still as the world watched and wondered why.

What will we do about this? How will we change? What is this all about? Why was this necessary for the world to witness? Some of the answers will come. Some will likely forever be questions. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever been so determined to achieve a life-changing goal that you set your intention and boldly declared you were going for it? As a wellness coach, I work with many who do just that. Some are tired of feeling constantly fatigued, exhausted, overweight, and other conditions that are robbing them of vibrant living. They’re  seeking solutions to look and feel better, to have more energy, shed pounds and inches, often lots of them, and to make healthier choices.  It requires setting intentions to succeed and the challenge of changing habits that support their health.  It’s rewarding to see people who set those intentions and take them to heart, reach their goals and triumph in their victories.

There are many factors working against wellness today and why two-thirds of Americans are overweight, and one-third considered obese. Our world has changed and our bodies barraged by toxins, stress and nutritional deficiencies, which contribute to weight gain, energy drain and many degenerative conditions. Toxins and impurities are surrounded by fat cells which accumulate around the organs, midriff and throughout the body in the form of toxic fat. Whole body nutritional cleansing has proven to be an effective solution for so many seeking weight loss and enhancing their overall health. Read the rest of this entry »

“Will life ever be the same for you?” the reporter asked a Joplin resident on this morning’s newscast following the flattening of a city from a Midwestern monster tornado. What a preposterous question! How could life ever be the same when an entire community is physically decimated with few remnants, if any, of familiarity?  Residents will begin again, rebuilding a new life that could never fully resemble the old. Experiencing such utter destruction shakes up everything, usually  including our priorities, and that changes how a new life is reassembled.

As a metaphor, a storm that twists and tears your life apart as you once knew it, can never be reassembled in the same way.  There’s a natural desire to hang on to the pieces. Just as they’re doing now in Joplin, people sifting through the rubble, to find remnants from the past, of something tangible, representing life before the storm.

When life twists us in new directions–whether through natural disasters or changes in health, relationships, finances, employment and other events, we’re given an opportunity to examine how to re-engineer from the perspective of “what is.”  This means bracing for the arduous task of starting over along with an attitude of acceptance that our life for awhile and perhaps a very long time, will be chaotic, far from the comfort zone of the past.  There’s much to overcome including our own resistance–that’s required for firing up a spirit of resilience to meet all the challenges, but ultimately, that is what’s needed.

Tess Gallagher reminds us, “The past is not only that which happened but also that which could have happened but did not.” So we have to embrace the new reality and not rail against what we have to do to put life back together, if it hadn’t happened. It did. Looking back and wishing your present wasn’t what it is, does nothing to support needed next steps. Moving forward is where you need to focus your energy along with remembering to have patience through the process, often reminding yourself regularly to be patient especially when it’s hard, because it is. Building a new life takes time, an endurance run for the heart.

Taking time to reflect how you want to experience your present as well as how you want your future to look like, is a valuable stress-reducer. That way you’re consciously creating your attitude which is within your control–of setting your intentions, a powerful and productive use of your energy. It’s scary being in uncharted territory, not knowing what’s next, and lots of “what if’s” that rise up  adding to your angst.  Yet,  when you take command by committing to how you will maneuver through all the changes, things fall into place rather than apart.

When my life was in full-blown chaos from the unexpected journey taken in 2004, I remember wailing, “I don’t like my life much right now!” My world had shaken apart, and found myself spinning in so many directions–stressed, confused, with fear thoughts swirling through my head. Read the rest of this entry »

In rummaging through my files tonight I came upon a “heartwork” assignment given to my daughter, Stacy, when she was 17.  Admittedly, I was a most intentional parent with a desire for her to make choices for creating a happy, purposeful life. Now eight years later, and with her wedding less than three weeks away, she definitely took it all to heart, and her life has become a reflection of living in alignment with her values and very conscious choices.

Stacy probably didn’t need any nudging, and undoubtedly with me being an author, speaker and coach on living with guts, grace & gusto, those messages swirled around our home all the time. Self-reflection and intentional living was definitely in her gene pool.  However, I was likely the one who needed the assurance that she would be launched from the nest, properly outfitted to soar with all the tools and tactics to carve out a destiny in tune with her heart. Read the rest of this entry »

How fast do you bounce back when life throws you a curve? Whether a chronic situation that wears your down or one that knocks you for a loop perhaps after being embroiled in an emotional battle? Enduring humiliation? Suffering disappointment? Failing to perform at your expected level of competence?

Emotional resiliency is the ability to recover from painful feelings, in order to experience a renewed state of emotional equilibrium. The emotional recovery process is critical to feeling good about yourself and your well-being—your quality of life relies upon it. Emotional resiliency involves accepting your feelings, acknowledging their presence, embracing the valuable messages they bring to your awareness and integrating them into your experience of living.

We humans often postpone attracting better things into our lives by staying stuck in the heartache, excuses, blame, animosity and feelings of inadequacy. By refusing to define and direct actions for catapulting us out of “The Pits,” we may choose instead to stew, fume, accuse, resent, grieve, despair or spin our wheels until later, when the time is right or we feel up to it. Procrastination delays movement for altering our future. Time goes by and with it, the opportunity for healing and triumphing over debilitating emotions that we’ve chosen to replace our happiness.

Like the branches of a tree that bend in flow to outer forces, being resilient requires adapting to the stressors woven into every life. It’s meeting the unexpected with the conviction to stay focused and find new solutions to the challenges at hand or those looming on the horizon. It’s picking up the scattered shards of expectations and piecing together new dreams. Resiliency is committing to learn from misfortune, extracting its lesson and applying its teaching. Read the rest of this entry »