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”Life is not a problem to be solved but a mystery to be lived.” -Thomas Merton
Am I approaching life as a problem to be solved or a powerful mystery that I am living?
What might shift in my leadership if I changed my perspective?
Retreat to a Powerful Question
“What is the action I choose to take that will insure I fulfill my destiny?”
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Sunset or Sunrise -Keep going farther!
I’m celebrating my first day in my new Seattle office! Walking from the ferry this morning along the waterfront, I noticed the beautiful sunrise light, the light of a new beginning, dancing on the water. Last night at sunset, Kevin and I finally arrived at a long overdue BIG decision to say NO. Today at sunrise, I welcome a new chapter in my business with a long overdue YES!!! The No had to happen to make room for the Yes. We must let go of where we are stuck before we can grasp on to what is next. This is the only way we “go farther”. I notice the limiting ”default” setting of my mind is to yo-yo back and forth trying to avoid both the no and the yes, trying in vain to keep things exactly as they are..no matter how much suffering is present. Actually, I believe the tendency toward indecision, to cling to our comfort zone is stronger when we are suffering. Now that I’m enjoying my Yes…I realize once again the power of paving the way for a Yes with a No. Sunrise can’t happen without Sunset. Where do you choose to say No to embrace your most cherished Yes? I challenge you to do it right now!
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Advancing Successfully
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I recently saw Malcolm Galdwell, author of The Tipping Point, Blink and his latest, Outliers-The story of Success. Here’s what I gleaned from hearing him and reading his fascinating new book.
First a little context: The theme of Outliers is: What makes Successful people successful? (Hint: It’s not simply intelligence and ambition.)
Here’s what Malcolm said about his new book:
“My wish with Outliers is that it makes us understand how much of a group project success is. When outliers become outliers it is not just because of their own efforts. It’s because of the contributions of lots of different people and lots of different circumstances— and that means that we, as a society, have more control about who succeeds—and how many of us succeed—than we think. That’s an amazingly hopeful and uplifting idea.”
Here are three of the theme’s in Outliers that I found compelling:
1. Meaningful work must have 3 elements: autonomy, complexity and a connection between effort and reward. In the end it’s not the amount of money we make that makes us happy. Hard work is only a prison sentence if it doesn’t have meaning, which as a coach, I often refer to as fulfillment.
2. Extraordinary Achievement is less about talent than it is about opportunity. For achievement to happen, it is beneficial to diagnose what opportunities are naturally occurring that we can take advantage of. It’s not enough to have talent; it has to be matched to opportunity. These opportunities are often random in that they relate to timing….like the year or month we were born. They also are a product of our legacy..The culture from which we come from and how it shapes how we communicate, think or learn.
3. Mastery: 10,000 hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert—in anything. That boils down to practicing 4 hours a day for 10 years. To master anything it better be something that you love and something you are willing to commit to practicing 10,000 hours. To me this resonates with the idea of committing to focusing on strengths, niche and passion. Zeroing in on those things we can spend enough time on to master….or the things we have been practicing long enough to achieve mastery. Now that I’ve been a coach for 8 years, I resonate with this in that I notice the power of hours and hours of practice.
Ok, thanks for reading my book report. Let me know your ideas and impressions.
Retreat to Advance Spring 2009
Advancing with Strength & Presence
Jeaneen Schmidt Chicks on Sticks 2009
We complete February 2009 celebrating the physical strength and presence it took for me to compete in my first Nordic Ski race. We’re also celebrating the strength and presence exhibited by each of you who completed my annual beginning of the year Reflection and Intention process, An Opening to 2009! You each took a courageous inventory of your current results and asked: What are my thoughts and actions creating? What is actually happening? What gains and breakthroughs am I celebrating? What have I learned? What do I choose to let go of? What do I want that is different from this? I honor the 2009 client slogans below which are already building great waves of momentum! May these slogans inspire all of us to continually refine our responses to these powerful questions: What am I intending to create in 2009? What are the strengths and qualities of presence I will bring to each and every moment of this year?
2009 THE YEAR OF:
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Fire in the Belly Qualities: Love, Forgiveness & Understanding.
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Health, Wealth & Bliss
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Really, truly, deeply, Moving Forward Qualities: Creativity, Communication & Gratitude
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Sails full of Grace Qualities: Birth, Integrity & Clarity
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Being Present & Being me–Surrender to my life as it is now
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Breaking Through & Creating a Foundation
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POWER!
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BEING-Stepping into a Bigger ME Qualities: Strength, Adventure & Light
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Counting it all JOY Qualities: Trust, Perfect Timing, & Patience
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Family & Career Growth
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Stepping OUT!!!
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The Next Level Qualities: Joy, Love, Peace, Prosperity, Health & Service
Advancing into 2009
My morning commute from the house to the studio today
The first 2009 New Year’s slogan was born today. It was delivered by an exuberant friend from her mobile as she drove over a snowy mountain pass. She declared, with quite a bit of enthusiasm: “I’m going to be Fit and Fine in 2009″ What’s your name for 2009? What theme will inspire your entire year? If you are intent on designing an amazing New Year…see An Opening to 2009 for my annual beginning of the year private coaching offer. Ok..off to play in the snow. Let me know your New Year’s slogan here. We’ll build a list, bless each one twice and together we’ll unfold a most precious 2009. We are going to be so-o-o-o-o fine in 2009 :-)
Advancing into the STOP sign
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Alas, our aquisition of the Inn and Refuge in the mountains of Washington State is NOT happening. Today was our last day to cancel our purchase and sale agreement. That is what we chose to do. It was the right thing to do. I am breathing deeply. There is much written about the inspiring victories; the times when the dream comes together, the fortune is made or the summit is achieved.
There is far less to fall into at these moments when we humans move forward with firm faith and conviction with every ounce of strength we can muster…to fall short. The moment of loss, the moment of ending is fiercely potent. I know that every successful life has many, many times like these. They are mysterious when we view them up close. These Grace filled abrupt turns away from the direction we had expected to be moving are indeed confusing to the mind. Only after years have progressed may we look back to see their intricate perfection.
I know that my compassion and humble surrender has increased exponentially. I feel the quietness of looking ahead and seeing the empty space that has not yet taken shape into something new. My gratitude has swelled for all the expert friends who were willing to listen, to nod and question time and again as I continue to expand and refine what I am here to offer. There will be a day of joyous celebration and it is not this day. The time has not yet come for us to say grace and toast each other at the New Year’s dinner overlooking the snow covered mountains.
After Thanksgiving, we are taking a few days to go away to reflect, rejuvenate and assimilate all that has happened. Retreat to Advance. As I search for a place to do this, I realize how precious beautiful retreat sites are and how few of them fit my current purpose. I guess the dream lives on.
Advancing to Freedom
I just returned from gathering the first batch of bright orange fall leaves from the smallest maple tree back by the big cedars. Fall always feels like a new beginning to me. Maybe it’s the golden light and the fresh sea breeze? Maybe it’s the falling leaves that remind me to boldly let go of everything that no longer serves?
I spent August offering service at an international retreat center. The theme I chose for this month of retreat was strengthening my inner courage and clarity. I can’t say I am even close to unpacking what was transformed within me. What did I let go of? What did I grasp on to? How did I choose? All I know is there is a new person looking through my eyes. Or perhaps, for the first time I am keenly aware of who is really looking through my eyes.
All is vivid and clear and yes, I do feel great courage and confidence. I’m back on Bainbridge Island coaching and silently integrating. I find myself speaking what is true and offering to others with great gratitude, all I have received.
To be free you must learn what to let go of and what to grasp on to and when.
Retreat to Surrender & Practicing Losing
I’m practicing the art of surrender. Right before the United States Independence Day holiday, I realized that I had once again slipped into things being hard, endless trying, stress, overwhelm and a generally lousy place of disappointment. I’ve been grieving losses and unmet expectations. Face down in the mud of my life, I pleaded, if I surrender may I please have things be easier? A voice replied. “What do you give up when you say you surrender?” Well it’s a long list the surrender list.
I surrender my suffering, pain, fear, my trying to achieve a particular outcome and my expectations. I was reading that true surrender is not done from a place of HAVING to surrender. Surrender is something we choose because we WANT to surrender. I’ve been leading personal retreats this month and reading When Fear Falls Away-the story of a sudden awakening by Jan Fraizer It strikes me that how she became fearless is she did indeed surrender to the natural flow of the river of her inner Divine Power. And here’s the thing…rather abruptly joy and bliss took hold of her and never again let go.
Here is a poem that articulates this process so beautifully. The author is a radiant, beautiful, courageous inspiring female executive, who is, as I am…and all my clients are, up to great things in our world. Her vision is huge, her leadership is potent and yes, she has gotten good at losing. I’ll let her say it herself:
Practicing Losing-For Advanced Beginners
I practice losing now. Losing my expectations held on so tightly Losing my expectations of myself, my future, my perfectly stacked ice cream cone. All floating up like pieces of burnt paper from a fire, or the way snowflakes disappear when they hit a warm surface.
I practice losing now, losing an identity I thought I was supposed to have. Losing a mask I was supposed to wear. Losing a practicality that once served in some way and only now seems awkward and uncomfortable.
I’m practicing losing now and seeing, discovering what’s still there.
Retreat to Summer Solstice Celebration
I am watching the Orcas Island Solstice Celebration dancers wrapping up their sweaty post parade performance, clinging to the last precious moments of the amazing beat the drummers are laying down…and have been laying down for the past hour or so. What has me in tears? Not just moved tears…SOBBING tears? Is it my deep love for the earth and being present to her honoring, knowing full well in my deepest core what she is up against at the moment? Yes, AND…THIS dancing is a celebration of being HUMAN on our earth. A celebration of our spirit…our elemental physicality. It’s not all tidy and wrapped up. No one here is wearing their Valentino pumps or has cell phone coverage (although I’m a great lover of these items). This moment encapsulates our pure human sensuality. It’s beautifully awe inspiring how we humans can embody celebration on this the longest day of the year. We get to dance with wild abandon. We get to swim naked on warm moonlit nights. We get to warm ourselves by fires, walk by pristine rivers and climb mountains by rushing waterfalls. This in turn, strengthens and opens us to do the work that is before us. As I look at the giant hand crafted ”planet earth” that sits next to the stage, just beyond the stands brimming with farm fresh alive foods, amidst the wandering children dressed as fairies, I remember that indeed there is much before us. There is much that has been shattered that must be recreated somehow. Perhaps we celebrate, as we always have, to gain strength for the journey ahead?
