OUR BLOG

I have what I think is a really good idea.

You know how people make resolutions and set goals for the New Year?  That’s all well and good, but how often is one of those goals or resolutions … Do more things I enjoy and make sure to have plenty of fun?

Not very often.  Usually, this exercise is all about implementing some kind of self-improvement regimen or drawing up some kind of achievement-oriented action plan.  Fun seldom enters into the equation.

Let me tell you about the first most important step you need to take as you’re starting your business … and every year thereafter. In nearly 20 years as a business coach, it’s the step I see most of my business owners wanting to skip!

But first, I want to tell you a quick story that illustrates why you don’t want to omit this step! Bear with me …

There are certain things monks do as they begin the day.

You might imagine the first one wouldn’t exactly be the first thing on one’s agenda.

Get centered and reflect on death.

Whoa. Okay. Hmmm.

But when you reflect on death, you can’t help but reflect on the preciousness of life and how fortunate you are to be alive this day!

The next one might seem like nothing special, and it isn’t. But that’s what makes it noteworthy.

If you’ve been following me for a while, you know it’s essential for me as a life coach to get my time in the morning for reflection and visioning, so my day starts off right.

I spend thirty minutes …. to a delicious full hour or more … reading, writing appreciation lists, listening to inspiring podcasts, etc.

In one of my audio sessions, I came across this wonderfully enthusiastic, happy man, who asked himself a simple question … a question that clearly changed the entire trajectory of his life!

You may think, since I’m a life coach, I’ve probably worked out all my “stuff” from childhood … emotional traumas … perceived slights … disappointments … fears … disempowering beliefs.

Uh, no.

Would that it were so! Not that I haven’t done pretty darn well with most of it, but resolution of these pesky mental and psychological bugaboos is seldom achieved all at once and completely. I don’t care who you are. That stuff is there.

In life, we’re often faced with situations where we simply need to do what we need to do. As a life coach, I talk with people a lot about what they want out of life … their dreams and aspirations. But I also help folks cope with the curveballs life throws at them … many of which are things they don’t have that much control over.

It might be a case of parents having to care for an autistic child.

It might be family members or friends having to take care of someone who’s sick, injured or simply in a bad place.

It might be kids … who are often becoming seniors themselves … finding themselves in a situation where they need to care for an aging parent or relative.

The reason I’m focusing here on caregiving will become obvious as we make our way down the page.

I like the Dalai Lama. He seems like a really nice guy … friendly, relaxed, happy and healthy. In my mind’s eye, he’s smiling. He smiles a lot.

When you hear him speak, you can tell he knows a few things about the nature of living on earth.

The Lama is a Buddhist, of course, and Buddhists talk a lot about suffering. The broad and somewhat vague way they talk about it never really resonated to these American ears.

Can a service provider who’s less expensive do just as good a job … or a
better job … than one who’s pricier?

Of course.

But let me relate a story that serves as a cautionary tale to you as a
service provider.

As a life coach, I’m always looking for those messages and distinctions that make our lives easier and more fulfilling. That said, as a business coach, I absolutely detest when I see headlines that promise the world, promises like … Make 6-Figures In 6 Weeks With Our One-of-a-Kind Program! So why would I make such a huge promise in the headline of this newsletter? The one true answer. Really?

Here’s why. Because after months of experimenting, I’ve found it to be a sure-fire panacea for dealing with things you don’t like in your world, but either can’t change or you’re gonna have to do a lot of heavy lifting to change.

I ask a lot of provocative questions in my role as a life coach, but this one is pretty unusual, even for me.

They put pilots in a flight simulator and confront them with extremely challenging and often life-threatening challenges.

Are they doing it to torture the pilots … to make them sweat and suffer as they scramble to determine the appropriate corrective actions to take?

Of course not.

So, what’s the purpose?