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The Monthly Newsletter of Balanced Life Design Produced by Annaliese Furnas, Success Coach and Speaker
In This Issue: Attitude is Everything, Part 2
Attitude is Everything, Part 2 Henry Ford once said, "whether you believe you can or believe you can't, either way you're right." I've personally worked with people that have had the talent, education, and ability to achieve their goals who've failed because deep down they didn't believe they could succeed. And I've worked with people with little training or experience who have achieved great success simply because they believed they would. Attitude has that much impact on your ability to succeed in your goals. Last month we began our conversation with Linda Mansouria the President of Make it Happen, LLC. A single mother who was downsized when the company she worked for went bankrupt, Linda turned that potentially devastating situation into an opportunity, and in the process found the career she really loved and started her own business. This month Linda shares some of her tips for growing a business, staying inspired, and keeping a positive attitude. Linda, you've grown your business from successful start-up to an expanding enterprise very quickly. What's your secret? L.M. There are several things that have helped me, but the most important include having a positive attitude, making connections, and maintaining interest and energy. Having a positive attitude is a challenge for some people. How do you cultivate and maintain your attitude? L.M. One of the most important things is to resist the temptation to dwell on the negative. In our society we are often subtly encouraged to spend hours complaining about a situation, trying to find someone or something to blame, asking "why me". I find that if you'll just face the problem, deal with it, and move on, you'll create positive things in your life and in your business. It's also important to eliminate negative influences. That means that when someone is consistently being negative, whether it's a family member, friend or business associate, I ask them to change their behavior around me. If necessary, I'll gently end a conversation to stop their negativity, or walk away. It's not avoiding problems like an ostrich who puts it's head in the sand, but rather taking action to solve the problems in life and business instead of just complaining about them. How is making connections an important piece of your success? L.M. Without the ability to make connections, I wouldn't have grown my business! When my company was new, I went to a networking meeting and saw a woman who was walking right up to people and telling them about her business. She wasn't doing it in an obnoxious way; she was connecting with them as people. I thought to myself, I can do that, and started making connections that very day. In fact, some friends started calling me the queen of networking. Now I reach out to people at networking functions, through teaching at SF State University, through writing articles, by serving on the board of the Northern CA Chapter of Meeting Professionals International, and with my website. The key is not to sell yourself or services, but simply to connect with other people by building trust. Business is built on relationships, and people will remember you if you are just yourself. What inspires you to keep going? L.M. Loving what I do is a great inspiration in itself. But beyond that, I enjoy seeing the results of what I do. Taking an ordinary empty room and by using creativity and talent I transform it into a new experience for my client. I also take great pleasure in continual learning. Whether it's a professional education course, a personal growth workshop or reading a book, I'm always in learning mode. It's a great way to maintain enthusiasm for life. And finally, I get great fulfillment and inspiration through mentoring new event planners and teaching young students about meeting planning at the university. I've found through that process that the more I give to others, the more I receive in return. I'd recommend that to anyone. You can reach Linda's company at 415-928-5257 or by visiting her web site at www.citysearch.com/sfo/makeithappen. 
Awaken Your Spirit "Doing" plays such a large role in most of our lives that being-ness is often left behind. There are many ways to awaken the human being in you and to bring your soul and spirit to the top of your consciousness. Here are some ideas to get you started. 1. Share yourself with someone in need. There are so many ways to be of service, so choose a way that allows you to give yourself fully and puts you directly in contact with who you're helping. Ideas to consider: Spend time caring for animals in shelters; Visit residents in a nursing home; Offer to baby-sit your busy neighbor's child(ren) so they can have some time alone. Do something that calls you to the place Frederick Buechner described when he wrote: "the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." 2. Take a weeklong media fast. Julia Cameron, in The Artist's Way, has an exercise in which you tune out all media -- TV, radio, newspapers, books, Web, etc. -- for one whole week. I found that this exercise helped me reconnect to my full self. I became aware of how much time I spent immersed in others' ideas rather than cultivating my own. I also found that during this week, my life was simpler, less stress producing and more flexible -- all qualities that help me be myself. 3. Enjoy nature at least once a week. Depending on your circumstances, you may not spend much time interacting with the natural world. To get the greatest spiritual benefit, being outdoors in a natural environment is a must. Walk barefoot in grass, make snow angels, lie on a hillside and gaze at the clouds, hike a wooded trail, or star watch from a desert mesa. Bring green plants or flowers in your home and nurture nature all around you. 4. Nurture one relationship each week. Take time to really be with another person, whether or not you actually come face to face. Write a letter to a loved one who would be delighted to receive some mail. Call a friend out of the blue to say, "I'm thinking of you," and find out how they are. Make or buy a token gift of thanks to give to a co-worker. Invite your mate to a candlelight dinner you've prepared. Say, "I'm sorry" to a relative with whom you've had an argument. By sharing your life and opening yourself to someone sharing theirs, you are both enriching and being enriched. 5. Create and use a Spirit Chest. Find a box or some sort of container and fill it with items of personal significance. Perhaps photos, a poem or quotes, a comic strip. Maybe choose a sacred stone, dried flower, or vial of your favorite scent of essential oil. Have fun selecting items, decorating the box, and finding a safe "home" for this chest. Then, when you're out of sorts, feeling sad, or have forgotten what you're doing with your life, open your Spirit Chest and reacquaint yourself with its contents. Let the energy, and joy you used in creating the chest, soothe, replenish, and remind you of the deep spirit within you. 6. Acknowledge the truth about yourself at least once a week. Often we spend so much time focused on what's not working and what's wrong that we forget or miss what is working and what's right in our lives. This can be particularly true of how we treat ourselves. Take time to recognize and acknowledge the characteristics that make you who you are. I learned to do this self-acknowledgement using a mirror and really looking into my eyes as I spoke the truth aloud. Besides refilling my spiritual fuel tank by reminding me of who I am, doing this exercise allows me to more easily connect or reconnect with the rest of the people in my life. Try it and pay attention to the changes it evokes. What do you notice about your body and sense of well being? What happens to your stress levels?. This article was originally written for Coach University by Shonnie Lavender and has been extensively edited. Shonnie can be reached at slavender@home.com.
Balance Tips Monthly tips for achieving Balance in your life. April's tip - Time versus Money More than any period in recent history, people today are willing to work inordinately long hours in exchange for more money and a chance at scoring big on stocks or bonuses. But that often leaves them with little time to actually spend the money they've worked so hard to earn, let alone enjoy life. Where does one draw the line? Remember that, while time management and money management have many things in common, money is a renewable resource and time is not. As you spend money, you are often (hopefully always) replacing that money with income. And by borrowing, inheriting, investing, etc., you can easily renew your personal money reserves. Time, on the other hand, is fixed and finite. Each day you get 24 hours to spend, and you can never stretch that into 25 hours or borrow from next week to meet a deadline today. And none of us knows how many days we actually have to spend. To discover if you need to make adjustments in how you're spending you time, draw up a list of all the activities in your average day, from business meetings to time spent with friends and family. Take the activities on that list and prioritize each of them in order of importance. For instance, is making a business meeting more important than attending your daughter's ballet recital? Is that recital more important than lending emotional support to a friend in need? These tap into your core values as a human being and are as individual as you are. Now look closely at where you're actually spending your time on a daily basis. Is it in line with the priority list you set? Or are you being pulled off track by the demands or values of other people and spending your time in ways that does not enhance your life? In the tug of war between money and time, only you can decide where to draw the line. For tips about taking another step towards balance, check out next month's tip - Being Yourself
Resources for Personal and Professional Growth These are resources that I have tried or that have been recommended to me by clients or friends. Perhaps some will work for you. 1. Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, by Susan Jeffers This is a wonderful book about the every-day fears, anxieties and secret little terrors that hold us back in life. Jeffers goes right to the heart and confronts the reality that no one likes to fail, to take risks or to change. And yet, we all do those things (and must do them) every day! Jeffers has a gentle, powerful approach that encourages you to admit your own truth, confront your own "demons", and over-come the things hold you back! She has become a popular speaker at conventions all over the country with her wit and honesty, and this book contains the best of her incredible wisdom. Highly recommended! 2. Work With Passion: How to do What You Love for a Living by Nancy Anderson Someone once told me, "When you do what you love, you'll never work another day in your life", and this book will show you how to never work again! A career counselor recommended it for people who are looking for new challenges or want to change careers, and I found it one of the best and most helpful books ever! I've bought and given away at least a dozen copies, and have recommended it to dozens of clients. It gets 5-stars from every reviewer at Amazon(Incredible!) and it really is that good. If you want a career that is less work and more fulfilling, and are willing to be thoughtful, to follow your heart and follow your dreams, buy this book! You (or a friend) will love it! 3. Tip's Newsletter - Written by Dr. Philip Humbert, this thought-provoking newsletter is a great read for your personal growth. To subscribe, go to www.philiphumbert.com and also see the other wonderful articles available free.
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Annaliese currently has 3 openings in her private coaching practice. Every serious athlete has a coach. Are your goals less important? If you want to step up to the next level of success, give Annaliese a call at 415-487-0507 and see if coaching can help you achieve your goals.
Annaliese is a Success Coach who specializes in helping clients reach the next level of success in both business and life. She'll support your uniqueness while guiding you to accomplish the goals you want, but think you can not possibly have in your life. Annaliese also conducts corporate training programs on topics such as Supervising the Telecommuter, Balancing Work and Life, Time Management, and Peak Performance. For a FREE 1/2 HOUR COACHING SESSION, call her at 415-487-0507 and set up an appointment today. Call or email her to inquire about her corporate training programs.
Portions of this material were originally developed by Coach University (www.coachu.com) and are used by permission. Copyright 1995-97 Coach University, all rights reserved. All other material copyright 2000, Annaliese Furnas. May be freely copied and/or retransmitted with this notice. To SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE, please contact us.
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