• 09Jun

  Unexercise works!

  Business and Health, Inspiration for Life 3 Comments

  

  We’re bombarded with so much more in life these days. Business is no different. It’s a far cry from the simpler life my parents experienced more than 40 years ago. Fewer people. Less technology. No information superhighway. Today we marvel at the convenience of plug and play, cell phones and other touch-able devices that make our lives and businesses easier.

  For the past seven years, I’ve coached many clients through overwhelm to create stronger systems and processes to support their business. That’s the easy part! Each time, I found a highly beneficial starting place - unexercise.

  Unexercise is the act of doing absolutely nothing. I don’t recall where I first heard the term but when I did, it really stuck with me. It’s a fairly simple practice yet most entrepreneurs have a diffult time with unexercise. Why? I think it’s because you’re so accustomed to constant activity. Sounds of a ringing phone, ringing. Email notifications chiming. Tweets chirping. Flashing banners on your computer monitor. Write a blog post. Get on a call. Check your calendar. Get on another call. Whew, it’s no wonder!

  Schedule an hour on your calendar for unexercise. For that one hour, do absolutely nothing. No telephone, no tv, no talking, no tweeting, no writing, no reading. Just sit. Let your mind flow freely. Daydream. Let your ideas pour out of you. Unclog your worries.

  This will help to rid your brain of the garbage. Eliminate the muddled trivial details. Silence the noise keeping you from being your best self.

  If you fall asleep during this time, your body is telling you to rest.

  If your mind wanders to new ideas, let it. You’re moving to a highly productive space. How kewl is that?!

  My clients love it! Start your unexercise in 5 or 10 minute chunks and grow to the hour.  Engage in unexercise once a week and watch your business grow to greater heights. You may also find a way to quiet the activity in your life and gain a stronger sense of focus and purpose for business.

  Ready to benefit from unexercise? I’d love to know your comments.

  Tags: overwhelm, relaxation, unexercise

• 10May

  My Tribute to My Mother (circa 2003)

  Inspiration for Life, Just for fun! No Comments

  If you ever have the opportunity to meet my mother, you’ll know that food is her element. In 2004, she’ll be 73 years young and you can still find her catering meals for families and preparing hors d’oeuvres for special group gatherings.

  As tribute to my mother, I’d like to share a few special things I’ve learned from her to inspire you to live life more fully. As you might guess, I’ve chosen to relate these special thoughts to food and particularly to dishes I’ve prepared with a little help from my mother.

  Hush Puppies
  Every good Southern cook knows the importance of having a little fried fish every now and then. I like to have hush puppies with my fish but I haven’t always known how to make them. The first time I made hush puppies, I called my mother and asked her what I needed to do to transform a box of Jiffy cornbread mix into hush puppies. Jiffy cornbread is a little on the sweet side but she cautioned me not to add too much onion that the batter became bitter. As we walked through her culinary plan, that theme stayed with me: “Not too sweet but not too bitter.” I heard her message loud and clear. My fish was yummy but more importantly, the accompanying hushpuppies were delicious!

  Lima Beans
  Hmm. Lima beans are a great source of protein and nutrition. Believe or not, lima beans was one of the first things I learned to cook when I was in college. And yes, my mother was right there helping me each step of the way. The key thing about lima beans is to make sure they’re flavorful and tender. With my mothers help, I added just the right amount of seasonings to make them just that…flavorful and tender.

  Rice Pudding
  A few years ago while I was visiting Illinois, I enjoyed cooking for my niece and her family. One night I wanted to prepare a special dessert. Given the ingredients at my disposal, I decided to make a rice pudding. Not knowing exactly how to pull the ingredients together, I called on long distance support from my mother and asked her for her recipe. Once again, she walked me through each ingredient and technique step-by-step. The finished product was a rich, sweet and tasty dessert – pure comfort food that we all enjoyed!

  So what can you learn from these stories about hush puppies, lima beans and rice pudding?

  First of all, can you tell that like my mother, I have a love for food?

  There are a few other things I’ve learned about life that my mother taught me:

  1. In any relationship, learn to strike a balance. Work at being neither too sweet nor too bitter. If you’re too sweet, you’re likely to be taken advantage of in some way. On the other hand, if you’re too bitter, your life journey may be harder and more difficult. So strike a balance so that your relationships have a little crunch!

  2. Life is full of flavor so add the appropriate amount of seasonings to make it flavorful and tender. Kindness, self-control and love are a few seasonings to get you started. Try these and watch the flavor and tenderness in your life grow.

  3. Make sure in life you are RICH. I’ve borrowed an acronym from one of my coaching colleagues, Michelle Schubnel:

  R-Rewarded
  I-Inspired
  C-Confident
  H-Happy

  These are just a few things I’ve learned from my mother that I hope will benefit you too!

  I wrote this originally in 2003 and it’s still really kewl today! Leave me a comment and share your tribute to your mom.
  

  Tags: happy mother's day, tribute to my mother

• 26Mar

  Spring Inspires the Recession-Proof Mindset

  Business and Health, Inspiration for Business, Inspiration for Life 8 Comments

  Spring is here! I’m tickled about the warmer temps and eagerly awaiting the return of the beautiful flowers. They are welcome reminders of brighter times ahead, especially when I look at our country’s current economic crisis. I’ve heard from quite a few people about the many demands placed on body, mind, heart and spirit. To them, Spring seems hardly a reason for celebration in the face of all of the turbulence.
  

  Not true!!

  Spring has inspired me to adopt a Recession-Proof Mindset. As you continue reading, I challenge you to take just a few small steps to shift your mindset, too:
  
  Invest in all areas of your life: spiritual, physical, mental, emotional and financial.
  How do you do it? Plan activity in each area at minimum weekly. Work toward having a planned activity in each area on a daily basis. By investing in each area of your life, you’re building resilience to forge ahead no matter what you encounter. Do you know the difference between a speed bump and a speed hump? Your investments turn the humps into bumps, making each situation easier to face.

  Recognize what you can and cannot control.
  Consider the things you can control as directly related to you: your thoughts, your feelings, your actions, your reactions, your responses, your emotions, your behaviors, your choices…you get the idea? Focus on these areas and you’ll have a greater sense of empowerment. Approach each and every situation with a single question, “How do I choose to show up in this situation?”

  Acknowledge that everyone doesn’t deal with life the way you do.
  What does this mean for you? Stop trying to make people become who YOU want them to be. Appreciate and accept different perspectives and approaches to life…stop judging!

  These are simple yet effective ways to strengthen your quality of life with a Recession-Proof Mindset. Aaahh, Spring! Don’t you love it?!

  Share your comments. I’d love to hear how Spring is inspiring a recession-proof mindset for you.

  Tags: quality of life, recession-proof mindset, wendyybailey

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