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Words v. Pictures

By |2021-07-13T15:06:22-05:00July 13th, 2021|Blog, Persevering, Women and the Workplace, Women Leaving a Legacy|

I am a words person – I think in words, express myself in words, process emotion in words. I learn well through words. I don’t think in pictures.

I don’t like to have to draw or use pictures to explain things. I don’t want to have to look at a graph and try and decipher what it represents.  I want to read the data,  then I understand immediately—It’s just how my brain works.  I suspect there are a lot more people like me, and we just aren’t accommodated that much in today’s world of images.

A long time ago, I had a conversation with a man about how frustrating it was we had to “create pictures” for our client presentations.  He said to me, “you know why we have to do this, right?”  I replied, “Well, I can give you the politically incorrect answer as to why”.  He responded, “That will probably be the right answer…”  My theory? “Because men think in pictures, and we are always presenting mostly to men.”  He laughed a little and admitted, “you are exactly right”.

DRIVES.  ME.  NUTS.

I believe words are one of the most powerful things in the universe, right up there with water and math.  Words create worlds – we have to utilize words or math first in order to create something in this world.

I use words to express myself.  Often not very well. Often making others uncomfortable – some of that is me.  I’m told I express too much emotion – some of that is the receiver.  Misunderstandings happen frequently, much to my frustration.

But I like words, because I am usually in my head (words) vs. my heart (emotion) – I’ve been working on that a long time.

So, why all these words about words?

How many times have you heard “A picture is worth a thousand words”? That quote has always irritated me, but I understand it.  A “picture” (or some form of visual art) is often a very efficient way to express the underlying emotion.  Touching emotion is admittedly equally as important as conveying a concept.

“Fearless Girl”, a bronze sculpture displayed in the plaza across from the New York Stock Exchange, explains perfectly what I was trying to say in 2013 when I launched GirlAuthentic.  This art is a perfect visual representation summarizing both words and emotion.  I also love my GirlAuthentic logo—it too expresses something visually—immediately.

Many people respond to my use of the word girl – some in a negative way, some out of curiosity.  For those who ask, I share that I use the words GirlAuthentic as a way to connect to the sense of power, freedom, fearlessness and capability that women feel as young girls, but often lose touch with as they engage with social structures in the world. These characteristics are covered up, succumbing to a different vibration not our own; the authentic selves we knew when we were young girls retreat.

I want GirlAuthentic to help women remember who they are.

I have gone back and fixed words on the GirlAuthentic website. I let myself be talked out of using some of the words I wanted to: vibration, feminine, structures.  I snuck them in over time – but now I have put it out there.

Structures must change.

There is an imbalance between the masculine and feminine.

There are vibrations to both, and we are missing one of them; thus, an imbalance, a lack.

Women can lead the way.

The GirlAuthentic “Movement” should have been described using the words I wanted, but I wasn’t sure how it would work—still not sure—so instead of covering up the un-sureness with a bunch of words that don’t resonate, I’m going to say it plainly. I’ve said it hundreds of times in conversations, I just never put it on the site:

Movement = 3 Steps

  1. Talking to people about women building businesses
    1. Encouraging women to do it
    2. Explaining why it is important for women to build businesses
  2. Teaching women how to build businesses – not sure how this will look
  3. Finding ways to FUND women building business – don’t get me started

It is time for women to reclaim the strength and power we know is there in that fearless, authentic girl.  We are going to need it to help build the new structures that will bring the equality and equity we are seeking for all humanity.

Ready?

By |2021-04-01T13:04:50-05:00April 1st, 2021|Blog, Bringing Forth the Feminine, News|

It’s been a while…a long while—a little over 3 years since my last post.

Why?
So many reasons. Aside from a few important posts, I stopped posting regularly when I took a W2 job in June of 2016. I have worked for two different companies since then, and writing while I was employed would have created conflicts I did not have bandwidth to manage.

Where have I been?
I went back to my supply chain career in 2016 when I walked away from the company I formed in 2013 (Morf3D). I trusted my business partner too much, resulting in losing any leverage that would be needed to right the ship and remain in control of my business, my idea, my concept. So, I left, realizing it would be inauthentic to continue building a business with a partner I found had lied to me. The partner—who I chose poorly—when asked why he was making the choices he was, responded, “It’s just standard business practice”. Lesson learned: when there is poor structural integrity, things don’t work, and they won’t last.

Why have I been W2 employed when I’m an entrepreneur?
I needed to get my feet under me again and pay off more than a quarter million dollars of debt I took on starting my first business. I have succeeded in doing that, while spending the last 4 years planning for the next business I am going to build. The original plan was to shift focus in April 2020. But, like so many things in 2020, plans got rearranged.

Why am I starting another business?
This is what I can do to affect change in the world – to be the change. The best way I can help is to build a business that operates in all the ways I have been writing about since 2013.

When I started GirlAuthentic, my goal was to empower women to lead in building new structures by building businesses that operate and feel different—that bring forth the feminine vibration, and balance for everyone. Never in my wildest dreams could I ever predict what we have experienced in the last few years – #MeToo; #BlackLivesMatter; and sustained raw exposure of so many established structures glaringly absent of integrity, balance, equality, equity – across business, education, healthcare, entertainment, politics, and more.

I also said I wanted to demonstrate building one of those new businesses. I attempted once – and I’m ready to start again (more soon!). This time I’ll be applying some valuable lessons I learned, and I am even more motivated after spending the last 4 years with almost daily reminders of why this is needed. New structures must be built—the need is clearer today than it was over 7 years ago, as I tried to explain what I was feeling and thinking in my first post. I believe women can—must—take the lead in building new structures, and one of the fastest ways to do so is by building new businesses. One of my favorite quotes says it most clearly, “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete” – R. Buckminster Fuller
I’m ready. Time to begin again.

Catch & Release—Ready to Launch!

By |2017-07-10T09:42:33-05:00July 6th, 2017|Blog|

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Want to understand the heart of Girl Authentic and how together we can bring about a new work equilibrium? Read on.

I have always wanted Girl Authentic to serve three purposes:

  1. Talk to women about building their own businesses and building a different model for all of us to work in
  2. Help women shape their business ideas and approach
  3. Invest in women-led business development

Today I get to share how, for the first time, Girl Authentic has provided support in all three ways.

I am thrilled to announce the launch of Catch & Release, created by Jennifer Cook. Jennifer took an idea she’s had for a long time, believed in it, and believed in herself enough to make it a reality.

Are you wondering what her idea was? Jennifer is an outdoor enthusiast. Her activities mostly revolve around fishing, boating, and camping, as well as other outdoor activities she and her kids do. From this love, she decided to create a way for outdoor enthusiasts to exchange their equipment and accessories directly – thus, Catch & Release.

I am so proud of Jennifer. She never gave up—she just kept quietly working on her idea, continued working her “day job,” found support where she needed it, and made it happen.

I know this is just the beginning of a very exciting venture for Jennifer and the community that will begin to take shape as they buy and sell their equipment and accessories through her business. Look for Catch & Release to become THE place to find the best equipment available.

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I also have a purely selfish reason to be excited, too, since Catch & Release represents the first time Girl Authentic has provided the comprehensive support I noted above. It’s what I have always hoped Girl Authentic would become in the long term—much sooner than I ever thought I would have the opportunity.

Jennifer told me how supportive and helpful she found the GA blogs—and then she shared her idea. I knew right way she was going to make this a success. Her passion made it feel right. She used words like love and committed and community and confident. I am proud to be a part of Jennifer’s story and will be supporting her in her continued success.

So…here she is—almost a year after she first started working on Catch & Release to launch a new way for outdoor enthusiasts to create a marketplace exclusively for their needs. Please join us. If you have a need to sell something or want to try something new using top equipment without plunking down top dollar, 1) download the app, 2) put your wares up for sale or search for what you want, and 3) tell your friends. The app will let you buy and sell directly with easy payment options so you don’t have to figure out how to get paid or pay someone else.

Jennifer envisioned her dream and then put in the hard work to make it reality. Catch & Release is the real deal, and Girl Authentic is happy to support another business building work equilibrium!

 

I’m Sorry

By |2016-11-21T09:04:38-06:00November 14th, 2016|Blog|

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I felt compelled to write a letter of apology to my children upon waking up on Wednesday, November 9, 2016: 

Dear Ian and Elle,

I am sorry.

I am sorry for what your parents’ and your grandparents’ generation has done. Electing Donald Trump to the presidency is the culmination of several decades of neglect and selfishness, and hopefully it will be our wake-up call.

We have neglected our fellow citizens, our planet, and our personal transformations. I want you to understand that Donald Trump is simply an outward reflection of our internal world – our anger, our sadness, our fear, and our disconnection from each other – our disconnection from love.

 

We have not cleaned up our messes and have created some tremendous new ones. We have broken our education systems by not investing in them. We have broken our capitalist systems by doing whatever we could – taking out of them whatever we could, as quickly as we could with our quarterly and annual greed – without investing in them. We have broken our environmental systems by pumping chemicals into our ground, our water, and our air, and then claiming we don’t know why there are a 1,000 earthquakes in Oklahoma or why the icecaps are melting.

We have neglected our personal transformation by not being willing to face our fears, sadness, and anger. We have invented more and more ways to numb ourselves and self-medicate – alcohol, drugs, sex, exercise, television, money, work – and we have glorified all of that behavior.

We do not love ourselves; therefore, we are not capable of loving each other or our planet…yet. We have work to do – to own our own shit and to clean up our messes – inside and outside. Fortunately, I believe love is reflected in two ways – words and action. Love is a word and an action.

 

Here is what I commit to you, my children: I will pick something that I can commit to in order to improve this world through my words and my actions. I am just not sure what it is going to be yet – I am asking for clarity as I write this. There are so many things I know I could personally commit to improving:

  1. Equal pay for equal work for everyone
  2. Education equality – providing the same education for our children no matter what neighborhoods they live in; providing affordable college education
  3. Healthcare coverage for everyone
  4. Environmental care for our planet

My outlook brightens as I think about you and the rest of the millennial generation, the generation we love to deride because we feel inferior. We know how truly amazing you are. Do not let us try to bring you down. You are the most intelligent, educated, self-aware, socially conscious, globally aware, connected, and kindest generation ever to live. We are lucky that you are so wonderfully capable of cleaning up the outside messes we have made.

You made it clear you wanted something different from this election – just not this version of “different” we gave you. You wanted a government that represents inclusiveness, equality, global consciousness, love. What we gave you was the last gasp of the old white male patriarchy, the last attempt of those who benefit from this system to regain hold of something they know is slipping away. This is that system’s dying breath, as those who have benefited try to resurrect it from its ashes. I have learned that we human beings have a tendency to cling to – and even fight for – the familiar, rather than take a chance on the unfamiliar and potentially fabulous.

I’m sorry that you had to see that there are times hate triumphs (which is really fear disguised). However, if good men and women choose to DO good, and use good words, I believe we can create a world that is fabulous. I do believe words create worlds. The words we use in our heads create our inner world. That is why I also commit to continuing my own work – owning my shit and cleaning up my own messes. I commit to being quiet, listening, taking care of myself, becoming more aware, becoming more connected, and to love. I commit to having good words inside so I can reflect them on the outside.

Then I commit to being LOUD to help create a better world. I commit to standing in love – not fear – in my efforts to make this world a better place for you and become a better human being. I ask you to help me and hold me accountable.

We have work to do.

I love you.

Love,

Mom

 

Rerouting: Is It Possible to Reach Two Destinations Simultaneously?

By |2016-07-19T09:20:30-05:00July 18th, 2016|Blog|

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In our GPS world, getting from one place to another is easy: you input your destination, and you’re on your way. But what if you want to arrive at two places at once? Is it possible? Can we both work within a culture and change it at the same time?

I am newly faced with this struggle, as my work life has recently taken a turn into the corporate world. I find myself wondering if I will continue to be able to strive for feminine equilibrium in the workplace while at the same time working within it.

This shift in my work life has occurred amidst many other life transformations. Since I last wrote, I traveled to Japan for two weeks and completed Module 3 of SourcePoint Therapy (an energy healing modality that focuses on healing and health). I packed up my house and am living between two temporary locations in Colorado and Chicago. I closed on a new home in Chicago, but since it needs work done, I haven’t yet moved in. My daughter graduated from high school and turned 18 two weeks later. And as I’ve alluded to…I started a new job.

After years of charting my own territory, I recently accepted a job as a Director at PwC in their Supply Chain Management consulting practice based in Chicago. With my move to Chicago already in the works, a professional colleague and friend connected me to PwC in early April, and lo and behold…by the middle of the month, it was a done deal.

 

I’m as surprised as anyone about this rerouting back to the big corporate world. However, as I have learned, you must be very specific with what you ask for because the universe will provide exactly that. To illustrate, earlier this spring I asked for:

  • A supportive way to transition to Chicago
  • Nice people to work with
  • A way to build a foundation and network in Chicago
  • Some stability in my income situation so I could meet upcoming financial obligations
  • A way to help replenish the coffers
  • A way to meet the right people to help me build my next company

Notice that “work in a corporate environment” is not on this list, yet for some reason, PwC feels like the job I am meant to do right now. Everything I have done so far positions me perfectly for this.

I have had numerous friends comment on how it is beshert (meant to be) and karma (helping others over the years coming back around), and I believe that, too—but it still feels like a rerouting because I have to figure out how to continue the GirlAuthentic conversation in a different environment.

Maybe that is why I’m back in a large corporate environment. Maybe it is a case of “what you resist persists.” I have resisted the idea that large corporate structures can actually operate in a way that fully supports women (and men) and removes the old patriarchal structures that so many resist changing because of the power shifts it will cause. Can they really let them go? I have my doubts.

But I have hope, too. Before joining PwC, I did my research. They have consistently been voted one of the best places to work, their track record and percentages of women in leadership are well above many of their peers and other industries, they actively support the UN HeforShe program, and they have meaningful programs within PwC that reflect this. They focus actively and directly on diversity, and their results are visible and considerable. They are doing good work, and I am excited to be a new team member.

While this latest step fulfills much of what I was looking for, I still have many questions. What does it look like to continue working for equality for women from this new platform? How will my next business idea take shape, and when and who will partner with me?  Will I be able to do both? Can I work within a global corporate platform and strive to transform things on a larger scale? What will that look like? And at the same time, will I be able to build a company led by women that demonstrates all these ideas?

Though I don’t yet know the answers, and this move may be unexpected, it feels right. I’m excited that this rerouting has me looking toward new horizons and given me different opportunities to make a difference. And while I’m not certain I will be able to arrive at both “destinations,” I am eager to continue the journey.

Withholding is Controlling

By |2016-07-18T09:05:09-05:00April 8th, 2016|Blog|

 

It’s true when parents withhold from their children, when spouses withhold from their partners – and when organizations withhold from women.

Withholding is a form of controlling.  When parents withhold their love or approval from a child, or deny access to funds or fun things, it’s usually as a way of controlling or influencing the child’s behavior. The same could be said of the spouse who withholds affection or support – or of withholding in any personal relationship. It’s about control – and it’s one of the nastiest ways to control in my opinion, since it’s so difficult to resist. You can fight or address direct attempts to control or influence. But how do you fight the absence of something?

I learned all this years ago through some personal growth work, and I’ve always thought about it in that personal context. It wasn’t until this month that I realized patriarchal structures do the same thing. When a business organization or some other social structure withholds from women, minorities or other disadvantaged individuals, it’s really about control. And it’s very effective.

So far this month we’ve seen two great examples of this. We’ve seen it in sports, and we’ve seen it in medicine.

 

First, there was this article in the New York Times about a lawsuit being brought by some of the women on the US Women’s National Soccer Team. They’re suing for better wages, noting they get paid a fraction of what male players earn – despite three World Cup championships and four Olympic championships.

The men who run these organizations have completely missed the boat. They choose not to promote the women; they choose not to sell products to the people who would be more interested in watching the women. Worse than that, they withhold the best facilities from the women to play on, withhold the best TV timeslots for the women to be seen, and withhold the marketing and sponsorship dollars that would make these women stars.

My comment to that effect was flagged by the Times for its Top 20 comments. In that same comments section, many people (mostly men) claim the wage disparity is due to greater interest in men’s games. Really? Or is that simply what we have all been “fed” through the marketing, sponsorship, selling, and access provided to the men?

There are also hundreds of commenters (both women AND men) who state that they prefer to watch the women’s soccer team – but can’t find them on TV. The women get relegated to play at rented high-school stadiums, not the taxpayer-funded event stadiums that the men play at. There’s no marketing or information about the women’s games, and no decent products to buy that promote their teams. Does this qualify as withholding? I think so.

 

The second example of withholding this month comes in the story of a woman scientist who invented a product targeted specifically at women’s health.

In the Times article I linked above, one paragraph describes the responses the inventor, Ridhi Tariyal, and her business partner got from potential investors at mostly-male venture capital firms:

“Someone told us that the product would only help women, and women are only half the population — so what was the point?” Ms. Tariyal said. Other potential funders wanted to reimagine their technology as a product for men: Was there some way to re-engineer it so that it would measure testosterone? And one guy suggested they develop a machine that a man could use to covertly test the health of his sexual partners, because “women are liars” who spread venereal diseases.

If this was really about money, the men who run most of these structures (investment funds and sports companies alike) would be ALL OVER opportunities like these. Imagine how much MORE money they could make if they paid attention to the other HALF of the population!

Instead, they dismiss 50% of their potential customer base. It must not really be about the money or they would have gotten it a long time ago. So what is it about?

 

It’s about control. Patriarchal structures were built by men, for men. If those structures withhold – denying access, financial backing, sponsorship, marketing, research and product development, or whatever else women and minorities need to succeed – then they can continue to control. Or at least they can try.

This is what is going on. And – like a parent trying to control a child by withholding approval, or a spouse trying to control a partner by withholding affection – it feels icky to me. When something feels icky, you call it out for what it is. And if possible, you move away from it.

This is why women need to move away from efforts to conform (or “lean in”), to try and make the current structures work. You are working against the absence of something. You are dealing with structures designed to withhold and control rather than support and expand. It might work for a while, but you will never remove the withholding. The only way to do that is to walk away and build your own structure.

Women, we could do a much better job of supporting each other as we do that. Women can change the game by stepping up to build the companies. We can fund the science. We can demand we see the women’s national team play at the men’s stadiums. That will give women control over what we (and anyone else who is interested) are able to access.

Effort Never Dies

By |2016-03-11T14:14:08-06:00March 11th, 2016|Blog|

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You can jump even higher than you think. But you may have to take a few steps back first.

Last year I made the hard decision to walk away from a business I loved and had helped create. On the day I chose to leave, someone posted this picture and quote on LinkedIn:

 

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It is a quote from A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the well-known scientist, writer and educator who served as President of India from 2002-2007. I liked it so much that I copied it into an email and immediately sent it to myself. I needed a reminder to look at my “end” not as an epic fail, but as a F.A.I.L. – a “First Attempt in Learning.” I needed a reminder that E.N.D. means “Effort Never Dies” and N.O. means “Next Opportunity.”

So for the last few months, I’ve begun getting ready for my “next opportunity.” Here’s how I’ve been doing it: I stopped and regrouped. Then I took a step back and started again.

 

Stop and regroup

After a F.A.I.L., it’s important to refocus and re-center before you keep moving forward. For me, that has meant getting my feet under me financially again. But it’s also meant regaining my focus: Committing to not giving up, remembering why I believe certain kinds of businesses are so important for the future, and keeping the door firmly open to the next opportunity to build an exciting, purpose-filled business that will help usher in that future.

I moved away from something that didn’t feel right; now I will focus on moving toward what does feel right. Trusting my gut. That is hard for me – I’m more of a thinking person. But I’m learning.

As I regroup, I’ve got a sense that – even though I may have missed the last hurdle – this is a process of taking a step back to jump an even higher hurdle in front of me to even greater success in the future.

 

Step back and start again

You don’t just regroup after a F.A.I.L; you also take a step back. For me, that has meant deciphering what it is I learned through my first attempt at building a business. I’ve been looking at the things I did really well, and I’ve been looking at mistakes I made.

Here’s what I’ve learned I’m really good at:

  • Formulating a valuable business idea
  • “Crafting” that idea through market analysis
  • Developing the entire business plan
  • Communicating the idea to others
  • Forming the company
  • Identifying opportunities
  • Negotiating business partner agreements

These are strengths I’ve found in myself that I’ll bring again to my Next Opportunity.

 

Here are mistakes I think I made:

  • I didn’t insist that all business operating agreements be signed before moving forward.
  • I didn’t have agreement with my partners on what collaboration means and what it would look like for us. Collaboration should mean there is a “felt experience of mutual caring about achieving each other’s goals” (Stephen Willis, PhD).
  • I wasn’t clear about each of my business partners’ goals. Were our objectives really the same at the outset, or not?
  • I wasn’t clear about whether founding partners were willing to put the company and team ahead of themselves.

My biggest mistake was to focus on the “doing,” without making sure the “being” was all in place first. I ASSUMED it was in place based on all the talking and building that had been done – honesty, integrity, shared goals, true collaboration, same vision, same values. I didn’t make sure.

What would I do differently next time? I’m still working that out. It is going to be a matter of being willing to have those deep conversations to confirm understanding, agreement, and alignment (or not). It would be nice to not make the same mistakes on the Next Opportunity. It would be nice, having taken these few steps back, to be able to jump even higher.

Forget “just standard business.” Let’s do JUST business.

By |2016-03-11T14:14:14-06:00December 13th, 2015|Blog|

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When someone tells you the reason they are doing something is “just standard business practice,” that’s a code. They mean “that’s just the way it is.”

And that’s really code for “we’re exploiting others for our own financial gain.” Too much in business (and elsewhere!) today individuals look to maximize their own take, control, or standing in the near term – at the expense of others, and of sustainability, in the long term. 

But does “standard business practice” have to remain standard? Most of us buy into “that’s just the way it is,” either because we benefit from keeping things the way they are or because we feel that we don’t have the power to change it.

I don’t buy into it.

That’s why I’m so inspired by Paul Tudor Jones’ work with JUST Capital. The Tudor Investments hedge-fund manager announced the new non-profit in April; since then JUST Capital has been hard at work on the JUST Business Index, a ranking of companies based not just on revenues but on just practices – as gauged from multiple perspectives.

According to its website, members of the organization believe first that profit need not come at the expense of people or the planet; and second that business conducted in a more balanced equitable and just manner should be rewarded by the markets. Their index is a first shot at making that more likely.

I believe this will be the beginning of actually incenting businesses and people to behave differently – in a more collaborative, equitable, and generous way with each other, our communities, and the planet. We have to figure out how to build businesses based on equilibrium, sufficiency, and putting the team and others ahead of yourself. This is a case of many standing in a place of “it doesn’t have to be this way.”

However, most are not there yet. Too many are still working from the current status quo – putting yourself first; always looking for more rather than enough. If you want to work differently, it’s important to find others who are willing to stand with you in this new space. This means a change in hiring practices like that of MuleSoft CEO Greg Schott, who says, “We’re looking for someone who is a good human. That is defined by high integrity, being a great team player, and they want to win as a company first, team second, individually third.” 

This is why building a business that stands in the possibility of contributing to an abundant, healthy, equitable, sustainable, balanced world is so important to me personally. We’re not just creating businesses. We’re creating a new world. A world where “that’s just the way it is” will be replaced by a simpler, more sustainable expression: “That’s just.”

A podcast with Leaders of Transformation

By |2016-03-11T09:50:49-06:00November 20th, 2015|Blog|

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I met Nicole Jansen from Leaders of Transformation at a Small Satellite Conference. Nicole interviews successful Leaders of Transformation to help you gain the inspiration, education, resources, and leadership skills to transform your life and the world around you. I was thrilled with the opportunity to meet with her and talk about bringing forth the feminine in the workplace. It’s podcast #28 on her site. 

[button colour=”accent” type=”squarearrow” size=”large” link=”http://leadersoftransformation.com/podcast-2/” target=”_blank”]Head over to Nicole’s site to listen![/button]

Times of Transition

By |2016-11-21T11:37:26-06:00November 13th, 2015|Blog|

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How do you know if you’re achieving the balance you need in your life?

It’s actually not rocket science – there are some pretty great tools for assessing yourself.

Since I chose to walk away from Morf3D a few months ago I find myself in a time of transition.  Being here reminded me of a huge shift that happened for me a few years ago, when I first experienced the Circle of Life assessment process. It led to some important changes for the better.

I was first asked to plot myself on the “Circle of Life” in 2010. Here’s what I came up with:

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Not very balanced! My life was consumed by work, with very little play or exercise. I was fortunate enough to be relatively healthy physically, but I was exhausted, mentally disconnected, and likely on my way to becoming ill with some form of disease.

Looking at this circle, I could actually see the imbalance. Suddenly it was easy to start formulating specific actions I wanted to take to change the (literal) shape of my life. There were several things I did:

  • I focused on myself first – through the body work I had started with my Rolfing therapist, and through a return to daily walks with the dog whenever I was home.
  • Next, I added a daily meditation practice and started doing yoga more consistently.
  • Over the coming months, I reintroduced a couple of things that I loved but had not been doing: sculling and skiing. These gave me both fun and exercise. It was challenging at first, but got easier over time.
  • I added other things that were fun for me: I started traveling more for my own pleasure, reading more, and doing absolutely nothing without feeling guilty about it.
  • I stated I wanted to work less for more money – and that started to happen almost immediately.

I assessed myself again in 2013, and looked like this:

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Much more well-rounded – literally! Life had become much easier, and yet I was actually doing more (and working less). I noticed my relationship to time had shifted. Somehow I had more time; my life wasn’t so stressful. And, I was actually making more money! Hmmm, funny how that worked.

At this point I also started working on what I wanted to be doing to contribute in the very long term. That work led to the creation of GirlAuthentic and of Morf3D – both in 2013.

Now, here I am at the end of 2015:

circleoflife2015

This assessment reflects a continued expansion of the circle, which I am very pleased with. I managed to keep the circle expanding even while adding GirlAuthentic and Morf3D. However, I did notice I worked a lot harder this year, and earned a lot less money. Hmmm, going to have to take a look at that.

I think I fell into the trap of believing that to start a company, one must sacrifice everything (time, money and values). Most would say, “that is just the way it is.” But I’m not sure it has to be. I am convinced there is another way – I just didn’t find it the first time.

Which brings me to my current “time of transition.” Times like this always provide an opportunity for new self-assessment, and new changes for the better. I’m not sure how long this period will be – but it’s an opportunity I don’t want to miss.

I have some more processing to do first, to understand the lessons I’ve learned. I’ve got pieces, but I have to keep working to get clarity. That will lead to more formulating of what the next attempt will look like to continue the work of GirlAuthentic and of building a company based on my vision of contributing to an abundant, healthy, equitable, sustainable, balanced world by building a business rooted in being healthy, equitable, and balanced. Building a business based on being that way myself.

The work continues – and that’s just me! If you’d like to try the Circle of Life for yourself, you can get started by printing the pdf below. Better yet, look for a certified coach to guide you through the process! My nutritionist, Kelly Hoogenakker, first introduced me to the program – I’m sure someone like her could help you too.

If you’ve tried the Circle of Life, leave a comment below! I’d love to learn from your experiences in pursuing greater balance.

Download the Self-Assessment Worksheet

 

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