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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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December 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
END OF YEAR THOUGHTS
It's the last day of 2007 and what a year it has
been!
As I've shared with you in previous newsletters I
tend to spend the last few days of each year
reviewing the year that has passed. During this
process I revisit my plans, hopes and dreams and
identify whether I've achieved - or at least have
moved closer to - the goals I had set myself. Some
years I can put more ticks next to my goals than
others. Most years I discover that some of the goals
I had have changed - often quite significantly -
throughout the year. Some I've simply discarded
along the way.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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November 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
THE VALUE OF CHANGE
During the past few months I have made some
significant changes in my life. This has been,
and continues to be, a process that the
therapist within me observes with great
interest. In my profession I, of course, deal
with the effects of change in other people's
lives almost daily. I witness the pain that
accompanies unwanted and unexpected change such
as the death of a loved one, separation and
divorce, the loss of a job, of health, of
people's youth and virility. In balance,
however, I also witness the excitement that
accompanies desired change. The joy of someone
who achieves a goal that required much personal
sacrifice, the satisfaction that accompanies the
outcome of hard work. The sense of victory for
those who've overcome massive hurdles in order
to get to where they wanted to go.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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October 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
THE VALUE OF BALANCING YOUR LIFE
If you are older than 18 I am sure that you have
discovered that life is a balancing act. The
trouble is that the older one gets the more
there is to be balanced...and I am not just
talking about cheque books.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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August 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
THE VALUE OF EMOTIONAL SAFETY
You might believe that you are in love when you
can't keep your eyes off the object of your desire,
when your heart beats twice as fast each time you
think of him or her, when you feel like a thousand
dollars in his or her presence and when you simply
can't wait for the first intimate encounter. But is
this really love?
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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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July 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
THE VALUE OF ASKING FOR WHAT YOU NEED AND WANT
Do you find it easy to ask for what you need and
want or do you stumble over your words as soon as
you open your mouth? Do you feel that it's okay to
let others know your desires or does it cause you
stress to do so? Do you expect people to listen and
respond with understanding when you verbalise your
needs and/or wants or do you feel really nervous
about how they might react?
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May/June 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
THE VALUE OF SELF-DISCIPLINE
At this time of year - the half-way mark - I usually
ask myself a tough question: "Where am I on the
ladder towards the goals I had set for myself at the
beginning of the year?" I must confess that the
answer is not always as satisfying as I would like
it to be, which then leads me to ask the next
question? "Why is it so easy to make decisions
and plans at the beginning of a new year and so darn
difficult to actually stick to those plans?"
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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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April 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
THE VALUE OF GREAT RELATIONSHIPS
The essence of a happy life is found in the quality
of our relationships!
I imagine that you
are familiar with the sentiment that at the end of
your life you won't be concerned with the amount of
money you've made, the number of toys you've
acquired or how well you've performed in the
business world but that the only thing that will
matter to you at that time will be the people you've
loved and who've loved you.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE |
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February/March 2007Empowering
people to reach their potential |
Following from last month's exploration of the
virtue (value) of excellence, I'd like to take a
look at the value of knowledge in this newsletter.
Living in an era in which the acquisition of
knowledge is as easy as hitting a key or two on our
computers, it is difficult to imagine that in the
not too distant past knowledge was reserved for a
chosen few and that those, unfortunately, more often
than not would use their privileged position to keep
the rest of humanity in the darkness of ignorance.
Clearly the chosen few were very aware of the truth
that KNOWLEDGE =
POWER.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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January 07Empowering
people to reach their potential
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HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF
2007
When I began the LIVING ON
PURPOSE series in January of
2006, I suggested that the
first step in creating a
great and satisfying life is
to identify our values and
determine to pursue a path
that honours those. The
other day I was privileged
to hear a fantastic message
on some biblical virtues
that reminded me of this
opening statement and
decided to kick off this New
Year with a series to
explore these.
The virtue or value I'd like
to take a closer look at
today is EXCELLENCE.
So, what exactly is
excellence?
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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December 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential
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REFLECTION - THE CHRISTMAS GIFT YOU GIVE YOURSELF
For some years now I've made a habit of taking time
out from the frantic pre-Christmas craze for some
reflective moments that I use to ask myself:
* How many of the hopes and dreams that I've had
for this year have actually come to pass?
* Which of the goals I had hoped to achieve am I
able to tick off my goals list?
* What did I do particularly well this year? What
can I be especially proud of?
* Which areas in my life need fine-tuning or would
benefit from greater balance?
* Which areas of my life require a radical change?
Some years my achievement list is long and
satisfying, while in others the scales are heavier
on the balancing and changing side. Each year,
however, I make a point of finalising my reflecting
process with the creation of a list of the things in
my life for which I am grateful. I find this
exercise to be such a grounding experience that I
would like to encourage you to consider doing the
same.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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November 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential
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ANGER - A NORMAL HUMAN EMOTION
As I am sitting down to write my monthly newsletter
this evening, I am filled with the black clouds of
anger and frustration. Why, you might ask, is this
so? Well, without going into the detail of what
tipped me into this distressing state, just let me
say that it had something to do with the people in
my life towards whom I generally feel great love.
Now, this is by no means the first time I've felt
angry and frustrated with one or more of my family
members, but it's the first time in a long time that
I've allowed these feelings to REALLY get under my
skin. You might wonder why I would choose such a
moment to write a newsletter and I'd like to provide
an answer to this. The reason is simple: Anger is
a normal human emotion which we are all capable of
feeling whether we are people who are committed to
LIVING ON PURPOSE, or not. The defining factor is
not the way we feel, but how we choose to deal with
the way we feel.
Life, as we all know only too well, does not solely
consist of mountain top experiences or of feeling
all warm and fuzzy towards people - even those we
love, but for each of us carries frustrations,
miscommunications, misinterpretations and loads of
unfulfilled hopes, dreams and expectations....and
tonight it just so happens that I am feeling the
full force of all of the above.
So, why do we react to some anger triggers more
readily on some days than on others?
The reason for this is that we are more easily
tipped into these distressing feelings when we are
overtired or especially fragile. This could be due
to feelings of unwellness; having just endured a
knock to our sense of self; experienced a
significant change; or are simply feeling a bit low
for whatever reason.
So, how do we best deal with it when this happens
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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September/October 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential
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BOUNDARIES - THE RECIPE FOR RELATIONSHIP SUCCESS
In order to reach our potential and achieve our
personal best in all areas of our lives - whether in
our businesses, communities or our homes - we need
to understand the concept of boundaries and be able
to make it work for us.
So, what exactly are boundaries?
Boundaries are invisible barriers that have the
purpose of protecting our identity and our reality
from unwanted intrusions.
Our identity is made up of our body, soul and
spirit. The sum-total of this incorporates our
physical appearance, thoughts, feelings, needs,
wants, rights and behaviours as well as our beliefs,
values, ideals, goals, hopes and dreams.
Our reality is made up of our personal
experiences and the meaning we make of them.
To understand the concept of boundaries, just
visualise a fence around your propoerty. In the same
way as a fence is designed to protect your home from
anyone wandering in uninvited, so your boundaries
are designed to protect you from people invading
your personal, emotional or spiritual space.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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August 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential
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SELF-MATTERS
As mentioned in our July newsletter in order to live
a life of purpose it is essential that we develop a
high level of self awareness as well as healthy self
esteem. Today I'd like to focus on the area of self
awareness.
You might ask: 'What makes self awareness such an
important deal?'
Before I offer my thoughts on this significant
topic, let me ask you to take a moment to
identify the following for yourself:
* What are the feelings I am experiencing right now?
Do I feel happy, sad, anxious, excited, fearful,
joyful, stressed.......?
* Why am I feeling this way?
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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July 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential
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THE POWER OF 'ONE'
In order to lead a satisfying life - a life of
purpose and significance - we need to discover and
develop our PERSONAL POWER. Now, understand
that when I refer to personal power I am not
speaking of the power that comes from physical
strength or from a feeling of superiority. Rather, I
am referring to the authentic personal power that
comes from within. This is the power that enables us
to make life choices, impacts the lives of others
and enables us to design our future. This power is
an awesome force that can be used in either positive
or negative ways. It is also an important and
invaluable ingredient that helps pave our path to
success. In order to use this power in positive and
life-enhancing ways it is essential, however, that
we have a high level of self-awareness and
healthy self-esteem - two areas at which we will
take a closer look in future newsletters.
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April 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential |
YOUR ATTITUDE DETERMINES YOUR ALTITUDE
In his book You Can Do It Paul Hanna states that
just like a pilot of a 747 we have all the controls at
our fingertips that allow us to take off and fly at any
altitude we choose. He asserts, however, that many of us
cruise along at the same altitude for years, often very
unhappy with our bumpy ride, but with the conviction
that we don’t have the power to change it.
I believe that Paul Hanna is right – it’s our attitude
that determines whether we will soar like a 747, cruise
along at the same altitude year in, year out or, worse
still, limp along the tarmac taking off every so often,
only to land again with such a nasty bump that sooner or
later we’ll be convinced that take-off isn’t even an
option.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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March 2006 Empowering
people to reach their potential
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DO WHAT MATTERS
MOST
In my
last newsletter I encouraged you to discover the
meaning of success. Today I’d like to challenge you
to do what matters most.
In this
highly demanding world of today in which the
constant messages we receive are to work harder, do
more, have more, be smarter, better, more
attractive, wealthier, etc….. it is no an easy task
to identify the things that matter most.
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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February 2006 Empowering
people to reach their potential
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THE MEANING OF SUCCESS
One of
the most important steps we can take in
order to live on
purpose and create the greatest life
possible is to clarify for ourselves the
meaning of success .
The question
‘What is success?’ will, no doubt, elicit
different answers from different people. For some
success may mean ownership - perhaps owning a business,
a fabulous car, a lovely home. For others it may
mean overcoming tough physical challenges,
perhaps climbing Mount Everest, sailing around the
world or trekking through Nepal .
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LIVING ON PURPOSE
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January 2006Empowering
people to reach their potential
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CREATING A GREAT LIFE IN 2006
The beginning of a new year always seems to present
a great opportunity to make changes in ones life, to
pursue long cherished hopes and dreams, break away
from bad habits, disempowering relationships or
unhealthy life-styles and to move towards greater
wholeness, wonderful relationships, healthier
life-styles and more satisfaction and joy.
The first step in creating this great life we
need to identify our values and determine to pursue
a path that honours those. A great, healthy and
satisfying life requires that we know who we are,
what we believe and what we stand for.
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