bloglovinBloglovin iconCombined ShapeCreated with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. rssRSS iconsoundcloudSoundCloud iconFill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch. Fill 1Created with Sketch.

Tag: intention

Shortcuts

I’ve worked with monks, criminals, CEOs and students, and they all look for shortcuts. This is why hacks are popular and fitness gurus sell health in pill form and “5-minute exercises.” Numbered blog posts receive more web traffic than developed stories because we want information fast. We don’t have time to sift through inconsequential paragraphs; tell me what I need to know and tell it to me now.

This, to me, is human. We want the quickest, most direct path. We want to learn without putting in time. We want money to come without stress and long hours. We want recognition right after a product launches, and we want to know our destiny instead of watching it slowly unfurl.

While shortcuts help us save time and do work more efficiently, there’s much to be gained from slow, calculated movement.

Time management

I have no idea how we’re expected to do everything at once. Or why we feel we must. I only know that setting priorities and saying “no” is the only real chance at any success in this department.
The big decision is what to say “no” to and what earns a “yes.”
These kinds of decisions require some framework of what you want to do. I make lists. I also set aside time each day to center myself and think about nothing (writing, reading for fun, taking long walks). Maybe your thing is running or yoga. What the thing is isn’t as important as scheduled time away from computers, phones and demands on you and your capabilities.
Making time for YOU — your dreams, your passions, your creativity — is essential in order for you to figure out the rest. Time management doesn’t occur overnight and doesn’t happen naturally for most people. But with a little bit of effort, goals will unfold in front of you.
Go get it.

Search for meaning

The internet gives you many lives. You can write an article once, muster the courage to post it online, become disappointed when it falls flat and goes unshared, resolve to forget about it and write something else. Then one day, you wake up to an inbox of responses and questions as if this was a piece you posted yesterday.

This sometimes happens to me.

Lately, a few of my Medium posts have undergone rebirths, and I’ve found myself answering questions about the search for meaning and joy and life. “Should I go to a monastery?” “Do I need to volunteer in a different country to find myself?” “What advice can you give me to discover my passion?”

I don’t have any answers, really. I know that the answers we often want most are right in front of us. They don’t necessarily require a trip around the world, months spent in solitude, or someone else to show us the way. I wish I could tell you a perfect formula. I wish I had this formula myself three years ago when I first set out for Nepal.

But I think that’s my big secret. I stopped looking.

I was driving myself crazy with these exact same questions. I was browsing the self-help section for career changes, dog-eared my way through What Color Is Your Parachute, and still no answers. My journal was a messy scrawl of ink and tear, I mean, coffee stains when I got on that first plane to Kathmandu. I knew was I was hurting and raw and sick of feeling like crap. I wanted to feel good, both in the world and in my body and make a positive contribution somewhere. And this is how I found myself teaching English to a bunch of rowdy monks.

No, I had no idea I was going to start a Learning House. If you told me I’d spend the next three years of my life in Nepal, I would have laughed. But I did know that giving to others and empowering individuals through education brought me deep satisfaction. In this way, my focus shifted from myself and onto something positive. I stopped questioning and just did.

Meaning found me. I hope it finds you.

Unique opportunity: private coaching

In the past, I helped a few individuals polish their story, set doable goals and learn techniques to live a more colorful, energetic life. Then I went to Nepal and started a small learning center.

Space has –yes!– opened up in my schedule, and I’m able to take on one or two new coaching clients.

If you seem to have roadblocks you can’t get past or want to set some projects into motion, maybe I can help. I’ve worked with writers and entrepreneurs, seasoned business folk and career changers (you can read some recommendations here).

I use practical exercises to help you find what works best for YOU. This won’t work if you expect me to tell you what I think you should do. We’ll use Google chat and Viber to connect, and your emails will move to the top of my priority list so we can measure your progress and hold you accountable.

Because of the time and dedication I commit to the people I work with, I can only accept two new clients.

To apply, please click here.

If we’re a good match, I’ll send details about our work together and how we’ll get started.

More about me:

I’m a social worker who made the leap from government work into corporate branding before landing into the entrepreneurial world of startups and marketing. Relying on my experiences and the acumen of former clients and colleagues, I’m happy to share what I’ve learned:

  • business strategy and brand proposition
  • how to market and engage audiences
  • starting big projects and setting achievable goals

I love watching people succeed. Let’s accomplish some dreams together.

6 questions to help you find time for anything

I often hear friends complaining about time. No one seems to have enough of it, much less extra to spare on a passion project.

If you find yourself in this category and long for more hours in the day, consider:

  1. How much time do you spend on Facebook?
  2. What do you do during the first hour of your day?
  3. Is there an electronic device in your bedroom?
  4. Do you often perform several tasks at once?
  5. Has a day-planner or calendar become routine?
  6. Do you make lists?

Get honest with yourself and find time to start knocking down some of your goals, ASAP.

3 things I learned starting a social enterprise in Nepal

Yesterday I had the honor of addressing attendees of Skövde Business Week. I presented my experiences founding the Learning House, a center devoted to education, leadership and community in Western Nepal. To hear my full talk, click this link.
I believe “A rising tide lifts all boats.” I don’t think scientific research is needed to show that more educated and competent citizens lead to more talented business recruits who in turn create better, more effective businesses. Getting the tide to rise is the difficult part.
My work has taught me the following:

  1. Travel through life curious.
  2. Extend yourself to another.
  3. Ask questions.

When we become fixed on an end result, we tend to lose beautiful opportunities along the way. Had I not allowed myself to explore Nepal, to be open to promise and potential and brokenness, I would have missed some truly profound moments. Since arriving in 2013, I have seen many volunteers come and go; some are so focused on their defined role as Volunteer Teacher they fail to look beyond designated responsibilities and connect with the people they came to serve in the first place.
We dig trenches around ourselves. They’re deepened by societal roles and professional delegations. Our personal selves and true passions become hidden from colleagues, friends, even our families. The irony is that when we move beyond these lines and reach out to each other, we forge meaningful relationships and experience life more deeply. This is when we win.
Finally, ask questions. Your colleague, your neighbor, your grandmother, your client. Who are they? Where are they going? Can you help? It’s impossible to solve problems and brainstorm solutions without taking time to listen. The most successful companies (and people!) are the ones listening — and they’re shifting, giving, adapting and changing in ways that show they care.