Create a Happy 'Tude

Tips and Resources for Keeping a Healthy, Happy, Prosperous Attitude


Spiritual Coaching Center
January/February 2005, Issue No. 3

Table of Contents
  • Check in
  • What Do You Really Want?
  • What Do You Value Most
  • Time Out Tip
  • Partner Resources
  • This & That
  • About Us


  • As a Man Thinketh
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    ebook by James Allen
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    E-mail Becky Waters

    Coach Certification from Coach Training Alliance


    .
      Desire

    We all have different desires and needs, but if we don't discover what we want from ourselves and what we stand for, we will live passively and unfulfilled.
       
       
    - Bill Watterson (American author of the comic strip Calvin & Hobbes, b. 1958)


    Check In

    Greetings! Hope this issue finds you well and happy and moving right along with your New Year's Resolutions.....

    Actually, if you are making progress on them, you deserve a standing ovation. You're in the top 10% of resolution makers. The other 90% will have abandoned them by January 31.

    There are many reasons for this. Here are a few of the top ones....

    • generalizing a goal instead of making it specific to you - i.e. I want to lose weight vs. I want to loose 20 lbs by May 1;
    • choosing something based on a "should" instead of an inner passion - i.e. saying you'll start exercising because you know it would be good for you, but having no real passion or desire to do it, even the thought of going to the gym seems like a chore;
    • having a "pipe dream" instead of a concrete goal that can be broken down into do-able steps - i.e. resolving to make more money, but having no strategy for making it happen, whether it's looking for a new job or attracting more customers.
    .... and my personal favorite....
    • vowing to get organized and work more efficiently - but not bothering to back up your data or pay attention to "warning signs" from your computer, then lose everything in the inevitable computer crash....
    I'm still recovering from the shock and trying to pick up the pieces - which is why this issue is late. I apologize for this.

    Enjoy the rest of the issue!

    - Becky

    P.S. Well.... since January turned into February Monday night somewhere in the middle of writing the first article, I guess that makes this the February issue now. :o


    What Do You Really Want?

    Through December and the first part of January, the internet was brimming with on-line newsletters giving advice and helpful hints for New Years Resolutions and setting goals for 2005. My inbox was full of them. Each had their own personal way of expressing it, but the basic steps boiled down to these:
    • decide what you want
    • design a plan
    • go for it
    Now, this is all fine and good - if you know what you want. My challenge has always been in getting past the first step: deciding what I want.

    What do I want? What do you want?

    Can you answer that question honestly, without being influenced by "shoulds" handed to you by society or by your up bringing? Can you answer it truthfully, from your heart, without being tied to other peoples agendas?

    Taking another step back, looking at the "big picture" of things, is it possible to know what you truly desire without knowing what your purpose is here on earth? Without taking time to uncover your mission? I believe we all have a mission, a purpose we came here to live out. A big clue to what that is can be found in those activities you're involved in where you're so engrossed in what you're doing that you lose track of time. Where your passion lives, so does your purpose.

    My recent computer crash gave me an opportunity to re-evaluate my purpose. Being without a computer for four days, I decided to read a marketing book I'd been meaning to get to,
    Attracting Perfect Customers - the Power of Strategic Synchronicity, by Stacey Hall and Jan Brogniez. Their first steps to getting "synchronized" was to list your values and define your mission in life.

    Seven months ago, graduating from coaching school and setting up my practice, I'd come up with a mission, or purpose statement that seemed right:
    The purpose of my life is to live with passion and open-hearted awareness, and to inspire others to do the same by digging deep into their soul and discovering the Truth.
    Although this still feels right, it seems a little vague and airy fairy now. The re-evaluation process brought me to a more specific focus:
    My mission is to help others grow into their potential so they can live their purpose.
    This statement combines both teaching and coaching, giving a unified purpose to what I do. Also, it's exactly what I've been going through myself, both personally and business-wise.
    "When you discover your mission, you will feel its demand. It will fill you with enthusiasm and a burning desire to get to work on it."  - W. Clement Stone

    How does one discover their purpose? How do you go about defining your mission?


    Here is the process* I used....

    Answer these questions with the first thing that comes to your mind. Don't worry about grammar or writing complete sentences. And no censoring. Brainstorm words or concepts if you want to.
    • When people toast you at your 100th birthday party, what do you want them to say about you and how you made a difference in their lives. (This works best if you do it in 3rd person.)
    • How do you want to "show up" every day?
    • What legacy do you want to leave, either globally or personally, or both?
    • Who/How do you have to be in order to live your purpose?
    • What do you value most in your life?
    • Complete this sentence: "The purpose of my life is to...." (Or you can use, "My mission is to....")
    Take your time and have fun. Play with the wording, adjusting and tweaking until it feels right. Then read it out loud. You'll know it's right when you get that sense of "Yes! This is me. This is what I'm about. This is what I want."

    Put your purpose statement where you'll see it every day. Then, the next time you make a decision about what you want, compare it to your statement. Does it support you? Does it move you more toward your life's mission or away from it?

    With this fundamental guidance tool in hand, you'll be better prepared to give an honest, heart-felt answer to the question, "What do you really want?"

    *Adapted from a process shared with us by Laurie Cameron, Instructor, Coach Training Alliance.



    What Do You Value Most?

    Identifying your core values - those qualities, characteristics and principles that lie close to your heart, that define your integrity, and that give you a foundation to stand on - is is another way to build your mission statement.

    You know a value is "core" when it is so fundamental to your nature that you don't have to think about being that way. It comes naturally.

    Take some time to think about what's important to you. Some ideas to get you started might be, integrity, joyfulness, confidence, service, spirituality, dedication, honesty. Choose some of these or add your own. Make a list of about 10.

    Next, choose three or four that are the most important to you and arrange them into a mission statement. For instance, if you chose joyfulness, honesty, dedication and service, your sentence might read, "My personal mission is to ensure that I bring honesty, dedication, and service joyfully into everything I do for others."

    You may find that one value is more important to you than any of the others. For example, if justice seems to be the number one value that matters, then your statement might be, "My personal mission is to ensure that everyone is treated with justice."

    You now have a basis on which to determine if you are living in alignment with your core values. Values in themselves are not emotions. But the emotions that you experience in any given situation will be an indication of whether you are honoring your core values or not.

    Adapted and excerpted from Attracting Perfect Customers - the Power of Strategic Synchronicity, by Stacey Hall and Jan Brogniez, pp. 21-24.



    Time Out Tip

    You know... you don't have to wait until the dawning of a new year to re-evaluate where you are in life, to look at where you've been and make choices about where you want to be. You don't even have to wait for a computer crash or some other dreadful thing to happen before you start over!

    Every month, every week, every day is a new beginning - a time to start fresh, a time to decide what it is you want.

    Even within each day there are segments of time. When you get out of bed, till the time you get in your car to go to work - that's a segment. Driving to work is a different segment. Your work day is divided into segments, and on throughout your day.

    I invite you to use these segments - these "fresh starts" within your day to practice deciding what you want. Take a small "time out" at the beginning of each segment and set your intention for what you want to happen and how you want to feel.

    Then say a "thank you" in advance to God, the Universe, or whatever name you use to refer to that Higher Power that permeates our world, and watch for the results.

    Step into each new segment knowing that the right thing for you will happen. Know that you are divinely guided. Expect a miracle!

    Then, if you're willing, I'd love to hear your results! Send an email and tell me how this Time Out Tip worked for you.

    Blessings!



    Partner Resources

    "Let a man radically alter his thoughts, and he will be astonished
    at the rapid transformation it will effect in the material conditions
    of his life. Men imagine that thought can be kept secret,
    but it cannot. It rapidly crystallizes into habit,
    and habit solidifies into circumstance."

       - William James, As A Man Thinketh
      


    James Allen (1864-1912), an English author whose "little volume," as he called it, has been translated into five major languages, inspiring millions of  readers around the world. As A Man Thinketh is partially responsible for launching an entire self-improvement industry, and has influenced many contemporary writers including Norman Vincent Peale, Earl Nightingale, Denis Waitley and countless others.


    You may download your free copy by clicking on the banner link above. Enjoy!

    What's your spirituality?

    Find out with  Try Belief-o-Matic!

    This fun on-line test was introduced to me by Paul Willis, a fellow blogger friend from the United Kingdom. It will take you about 5 minutes. Just answer the 20 questions around your concept of God, the afterlife, human nature, and other sorts of things, and Belief-O-MaticTM will tell you what religion you practice.... or you should think about practicing! I was very surprised at the results.... (check out Journey to Perfection, to discover my results.)

    Paul's weblog, 'Off The Beaten Track' has some very thought provoking,  informative posts around the subject of Christianity and spirituality. I encourage you stop by and have a read.


     
    This and That


    This is a place to just share some other stuff with you - personally and business-wise.. Don't know if I'll include it every month or not. But this month I wanted to share with you my good news..... I am now officially certified as a life coach! I completed the requirements in December and got the news last week. Yahoo!! This is the completion of a year-long project and it feels great!

     
    I also wanted to let you know that I am extending my Tsunami Aid offer through February. You get three coaching sessions at the reduced cost of $99. This money will be donated to the South Asia Emergency Fund sponsored by UMCOR (United Methodist Core on Relief.) 100% of the money donated to this organization is used for relief efforts, as their administrative costs are funded through other sources.

    If you, or someone you know is interested, please call me at 256-348-5236 or
    send an email.

    Feedback? I would love to hear your comments. Do you like the newsletter? Are there any specific topics you'd like to see discussed? Do you have any questions? Feel free to send an email and let me know what you think!
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    About Us

    Create a Happy 'Tude's new publishing date will be the first of each month. It's purpose is to inspire and motivate it's readers to keep a happy, healthy, prosperous attitude by providing articles, exercises, tips and resources.

    Spiritual Coaching Center provides coaching and support to clients who are serious about living with passion and creating more fulfillment in their lives. If you are ready to stretch beyond your current limits and create a more authentic, happier life for yourself, send us an email

    New to coaching? Then try a FREE 30-minute Sample Session and see if it's a good fit for you. There's no obligation and you receive the full benefits of a coaching session. Request a Sample Session.

    For information about our programs or for more inspirational resources, please visit our website.

    My personal mission is to tell the truth, to live with integrity, to be my real, authentic self, and to inspire others to do the same. If I can help bring a smile to someone's face, offer a different perspective, or inspire just one person to get a move on, then I will have taken one more step toward fulfilling my purpose in life.
    - Becky Waters, Life Coach


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