Tag Archives: challenges

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Breaking the Cycle of Division – Unity Begins with You!

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When my husband said we were asked to move to a giant sandbox on the other side of the world my stomach churned so hard I had to sit down.

How was this possible?  We said we would go ANYWHERE in the world except – THERE!  Scenes from movies and the news melded with my own fears and questions were fired off so rapidly my husband could not reply.

A “yes” wasn’t possible if I could not change my thinking:

  • From the losses to the possible gains.
  • From the challenges to the possible opportunities.
  • From fear to faith.
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Why Persist?

8 Reasons to Keep Working for The Change You Desire

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Over the past few months I’ve had several opportunities to visit with groups of people whose lives are being impacted by policies they don’t like or agree with.

Most of them have communicated their concerns with the first level key stakeholder – hoping for a fast change. Now it’s clear that although that person cares, change can’t happen from that level.

So individually some of them have:

  • Sent one email to the decision maker.
  • Sent more than one email to the decision maker.
  • Sent one email and attended one meeting.

Collectively their over-riding belief is that the key-stakeholder can’t be trusted and change just isn’t going to happen.

So most have stopped communicating while others never bothered to communicate directly with the one person that can make change happen.

At the same time, they are still so troubled by the situation that each time the topic comes up, almost all of them continue to express lots of frustration and absorb the not so positive energy of those around them.

So why persist?

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4 Tips for Building Confidence in a Transition

Between The Top of Your Game and Reinvention

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Have you ever been at the top of your game and:

  • Graduated into adulthood to start your career?
  • Transitioned from the military to the civilian world?
  • Experienced a life-altering event that forced you to start over?
  • Decided to leave what you’ve always done to pursue an uncommon path?

In the space between what you left and what you were pursuing… Did you struggle?

Did you feel your confidence tanking as you: Worked to learn and define your new role and become successful at it, while navigating a culture and politics that were foreign to you?

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Maximize Your Purpose with an Altered Path

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The Dream GiverYears ago I read a book called The Dream Giver.

It’s a beautiful little book that emphasizes that each one of us is born for a purpose. As children we often see this as our big dream.  Often between childhood and adulthood we forget the dream or walk away from it because it seems impossible.  And then one day we are reminded of the dream again and we make the choice to pursue the dream or to let it die forever.  Then the book helps you anticipate and prepare for the challenges you will encounter as you journey from where you are to where that dream is.

I purchased the book in 2003 shortly after it was published, simply because I liked the author.  As soon as I opened it I was hooked, because I had a dream as a child. It was a dream that I forgot all about as life happened. And then in 1999, I it came back full force. In 2001, I took my first very clear step toward the dream.

Since 2003, I’ve referred to that book several times a year. It’s highlighted, filled with notes, scribbles and pages that are bent back.  In October 2010 I referred to it constantly as I launched a new consulting business in a city I had never lived in and knew no one but my husband.

In November 2012 just as my new business was gaining momentum, my husband was asked to accept a position a half a world away, and this quote from the book filled my mind…

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Leadership and Peace Making

International Day of Peace Sept 21, 2015

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The International Day of Peace is Monday September 21.  And I’m so ready to talk about what we can do to heal our organizations, communities, nations and world – instead of continuing to feed the fires that divide us.

This is the first post in a series.

 Yes – Conflict is messy, painful and destructive!

  • When it appears in our personal lives, it is tempting to flee from it or to add to it.
  • When it appears on our televisions it’s easy to begin to believe that there is nothing we can do.

[Tweet ” The Truth Is:  Change never begins “out there”.  It ALWAYS begins within us.  “]

If current events across our world that emphasize fear, hate, violence, chaos, and division cause you to ache for others, worry or feel helpless…