Mastermind Group Participants

Collaboration Produces Remarkable Results!

Recently we had the opportunity to participate in a mastermind event hosted by America’s Premier Experts with Nick Nanton and Jack Dicks. The event took place in LA and involved business leaders from around the country.

The men and women in the room were experts in various industries and had much to share! Over the course of the experience we all shared information about our businesses, challenges we were facing, and inspirations we were curious to test. The power of ‘like-minds’ encouraging each other, brainstorming on each others’ businesses, and challenging the routine way of thinking was amazing!

The experience reinforced to me that when we try to ‘go it alone’ we lose the power of collaboration! When we are so close to our businesses we run the risk of having ‘tunnel vision’ and losing sight of new opportunities. We all need to move beyond the fear of competition!

We came back from LA inspired and renewed! The power of the ‘mastermind experience’ encouraged us to look differently not only AT our business but also HOW we run our business!

I encourage you to try it out! Gather some trusted advisors together and ask them to help you brainstorm on whatever professional or personal challenge you are facing! Ask for thoughts on how to improve and grow your existing business!

The outcome will be amazing! You will come to see differently, think differently and feel differently! The challenge of the mastermind experience will allow you to grow beyond what you can image! Try it out!!

Survivors in Haiti

A Gift from the Human Spirit

 

This morning I woke from a sound sleep with one word blazing across my thoughts: ‘Resilience’.

Perhaps it is because I sat in tears last night watching the news coverage of the devastation in Haiti. Perhaps it is because I sat in wonder watching as amid the crumbled buildings and loss of countless lives, there were crowds of people walking in the streets together chanting hymns. Perhaps it is because around the desparation and gangs yielding machetes there continue to be survival stories. I sat in wonder watching the human spirit rebound.

According to the American Heritage Dictonairy, ‘resilience’ is described as: “1. The ability to recover quickly from illness, change, or misfortune, buoyancy.”

Within moments of the earthquake in Haiti, there was resilience to be found as strangers helped strangers. The resilience continues as the country and the world reaches out to help those in need.

In our travels to Kenya last summer we witnessed first hand this spirit of resilience with the students, adults and children. (www.letyourlifespeakfoundation.org) Then too I pondered this spirit as we worked with individuals that were striving for better lives despite the incredible odds against them.  There spirit would ultimately move them to success.

How does one recover amid such  hardship? How does one see beyond their immediate world to strive for their desire for a better life? How does one overcome incredible odds to live a life of success? RESILIENCE!

We have only to embrace this gift from the human spirit we have all been given.  We can choose to become so absorbed in our problems that we will continue to suffer, or we can embrace the spirit of resilience and realize that we have the ‘ability to recover quickly’ and reach our dreams.

When in doubt, look around you. When faced with fear of possible hardship ahead, look around you. When overwhelmed with sadness, look for moments of happiness. The gift of the spirit of resilience is all around us! It is inside us! It is to be shared with others!

Today I am grateful for the remarkability of resiliency. It allows us to recover and grow stronger! It allows us to share the spirt with others. Today I am grateful for the gift from the human spirit that will aid the people of Haiti and others in need around the world.

Your Life Purpose Awaits. Cross the Bridge!

When we contemplate where we are in our lives at the moment and envision where we hope to be in the future the distance between the two can seem overwhelming. It is not unlike standing at one end of a bridge and wondering if we will be able to make it to the other side, to where we need and want to be.

Recently on a trip to San Francisco, I had the opportunity to stand at one end of the famed Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge is a magnificent structure and the distance from one end to the other is significant.  It made me think about the similarities between the expansive structure of the Bridge and the hopes, dreams, purpose and direction of our lives. The choices we must make, the confidence we must have, and the clarity of the vision of where we need to go.

If you have travelled to San Francisco and have had the opportunity to view the bridge, you were able to witness the changes of how the bridge appeared throughout the day. At any given moment the bridge is either hardly visible at all as it is encased in dense fog, partially visible as the fog dissipates, or clearly visible with not a wisp of fog in sight.  At some moments there was a clear path from one side of the bay to the other and at other moments it looked as if there would be no way to travel from one side to the other.

Is that not like those moments in our lives when we are trying to see the path we are to take or to define our purpose in life?

When we’re trying to cross a bridge in our lives between where we are at the moment and where we are meant to be it is not unlike standing at one end of the Golden Gate Bridge and preparing to cross. There are times when we can’t see what is on the other side of the bridge…………..as we are unable see the end purpose of our lives. There are times when the bridge is partially visible……as there are times when we begin to see the direction we are to take in our lives however the entire path is not clear as there are obstacles blocking our view. There are times when the bridge is not shrouded in fog at all……..as there are times when our direction and path are clearly visible in our lives.

When standing at one end of the Bridge, whether it is shrouded in fog or clearly visible, we know it will get us to the other side of the bay.  We simply have to start the process of moving forward.

If we do not see the land on the other side of the bridge and do not start the process of moving forward, we will never reach the other side of the bay and enjoy all that awaits us there.  So many times in our lives we refrain from moving forward simply because we can’t see through what is in front of us.  The vast numbers of people who cross the Bridge daily commuting from one side of the bay to the other on some days cannot see the bridge as they approach….they simply have to follow the road. What is your road that you need to follow? Are you allowing obstacles to appear that prevent you from taking the step?

Whether the land on the other side of the bridge is a different job, a different relationship, a different approach to problems, a different perspective of ‘self’…..whatever it may be……..we will never receive what we strive for if we do not trust the process of taking one step….whether we can see the bridge or not.

I believe that choice, confidence and clarity are the keys that will allow us to cross the bridges in our lives as we move toward our true life’s purpose:

1. Choice
   We can choose to make changes as we go through our daily lives. We can take a longer road around a bay of issues or we can cross a bridge which will rise above the churning waters of uncertainty.  The choices become empowering as each positive choice gets us closer to our goal!
2. Confidence
   When you are uncertain, gain strength from those who have gone before you and those who are beside you.  Understand that others are on the bridge with you….you are not alone with your desire to get to the land on the other side.  As we struggle with what our life purpose is to be we can often feel alone………yet we are surrounded by others who want to move forward too. Look around you….connect with another traveler…….create an accountability partner in someone you can touch base with  from time to time who will encourage you and support your process.  Be confident in your ability!
3. Clarity
   Even when the path is foggy and difficult to see you must continue to take steps. Clear vision on your goals will support you in time of need. The bridge does get to the other side. The process of self-discovery, awareness and focus on your end goals will get you there. Don’t give up! Continue to take steps no matter how thick the fog may be as it will eventually dissipate and clear.

As I left the side of the Golden Gate Bridge that day I looked back to see the last of the fog melting away and the bridge standing in all its glory. Its magnificence reminded me of the magnificence of finding one’s life’s purpose…….of the glory of then being able to give back to others.

Don’t wait! Make the choice!! Believe in your individual confidence! Remain clear in your vision! The world awaits your gifts!!

Glenna

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Open Water Whale Rescue

Recently I received an email chain letter from a friend. Usually I glance at them quickly and move on to the myriad of other emails in my inbox…….but this one caught my attention.

It was the story of a whale and her rescuers…

The Remarkable Whale

A female humpback whale had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth.

A fisherman spotted her just east of the Faralon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her — a very dangerous proposition. One slap of the tail could kill a rescuer.

They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her. When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, nudged them, and pushed gently, thanking them.

Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives.

The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth says her eye was following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.

This email caught my attention not only due to the incredible feats of the divers and the actions of the whale…….it caught my attention as a true reflection of how at different points in our lives we may be the whale in need of rescue or may be the diver rescuing the whale. It also caught my attention as an example of the “Action of Remarkability!”

The whale was in a state of peril…..destined to die as she had become overcome by the strings, traps, ropes and netting that had invaded her world. She didn’t ask for these things to become a trap in her open water world…….other forces had invaded and polluted her home.

The divers had a choice to make. They could leave the whale to die rather than risk their very lives to rescue her, or they could take a leap of faith to save the animal. They could ACT!

What would you have done? Would you have turned the other way and leave the whale on her own to struggle? Would you have placed yourself in a precarious position to save the whale as the divers ultimately did? What ACTION would you have done?

Have you ever felt like the whale in need of rescue? Have you ever been the diver and pushed yourself to help another?

Part of the practice of remarkability is ACTION……..not once, not twice, but doing it over and over again. Taking your gift and giving it to others. Not keeping it to yourself, but finding ways to share it with others!! Giving your gift to others may free them from the ropes and straps that are holding them back……..if you don’t practice ACTION the world loses. If you don’t ACT on your gifts to the world and sharing your life’s purpose with others, others may never be free of what entangles them!

The divers had the knowledge and the expertise to dive and work in the ocean environment……they pushed themselves beyond what may have been comfortable to ACT to save the whale. Because of their ACTION the whale survived! If I had to guess, each of those divers would do the same action again and again……..sharing their gift of rescue with other entangled sea creatures……..practicing remarkability…….

What choice do you make today? Will you sit by and watch others in need? Will you ACT to share your gift that someone else in the world needs to receive? Will you be the whale? Will you be the diver?

I encourage you to ACT!! Today!!!

Glenna

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Remarkability is a Force of Nature!

What do glaciers and remarkability have in common? They cannot be stopped!! The power of remarkability moves on it’s own!

Have you ever been to Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska? Have you had the life-changing opportunity to witness the wonder, power, and magnitude of the glaciers? Have you listened to the popping and cracking of the ice as it moves closer and closer to water’s edge and ultimately breaks off  into the bay?

On a trip to Alaska I had the opportunity to witness these sites! The images, feelings and sounds are embedded in my memory.  It was magnificant! It was also humbling to witness such wonders!

Standing in silence listening to the moving sounds of the glacier it is incredible to realize that despite the enormity and frozen expanse of the ice it is very much alive! It moves, it changes, it appears to be on a mission of it’s own as it cannot be stopped. Our national park guide indicated that as much as 6-8 feet of the glacier falls into the bay every day…….and yet it continues…being moved by a force other than it’s own.

Viewing the glaciers caused me to ponder and associate the experience with the incredible power of ‘remarkability’! Remarkability is a force that once in action moves on it’s own……it gains momentum and becomes alive.  It can be viewed in wonder by some, it can cause fear in others……..it creates anticipation…..it is larger than any one of us.

Thinking of the glaciers also caused me to reflect on ideas Bart recently posted in his blog entry entitled “The Number One Reason for Not Achieving Remarkability“  where he wrote about the concepts of transition and transformation. Transition is when we are at a particular moment when we make the pure choice to change things….to change our lives for the better……to stop making excuses and instead make changes. That moment of clarity in our minds is our transition point. From there we begin the process of transformation as we strive to change and live according to our new-found truths.

At some point in time, there was a point of transition when the glaciers began their forward movement. Perhaps they were solid and unchanging for many years. Not unlike the routines we often find ourselves in within our lives.  Yet something caused their initial movement and now upon the path of transformation they are not to be stopped. Their tranformation has now taken on a path of its own.

Whatever one’s moment of transition may be……a moment, a realization, a self-discovery, an awareness of life purpose, a truth we can no longer create excuses for…..when that moment occurs we can no longer look back! We must not look back! We must believe in the transition truths and begin the transformation process! We begin the unstoppable glacier-like motion of moving forward! Transformational! Inspiring!  A movement that gains momentum seemingly on it’s own!

Sharing our lives, our minds, our hearts and our gifts with the world as aligned with our true life purpose…..we transform to the action of letting our lives speak! Once our lives speak we are unstoppable….the movement gains momentum and takes on a life of it’s own. It becomes alive!

Just as the glacier moves and breaks off into the bay every day …providing water resources…..creating a ripple effect of energy………our paths of remarkability moves and affects others every day!  It becomes larger than any one of us! It becomes larger than life.

When in doubt that our purpose in life is frozen, immobilized, unable to transform……we must remember the mighty glaciers. At first glance one would think they were stagnant, solid, unable to change……..yet by watching closely and listening intently we see they are very much alive! By watching closely and listening intently, we will realize that our purpose is alive! We simply need to listen for the movement………..we must listen intently…….for  once on the path to remarkability, as the movement of the glaciers, it cannot be stopped!

Acknowledge your strength and power to move forward! Feel the power of the glacier within you!!

~Glenna

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Low self-confidence creates a canyon between you and your life purpose

Moving Beyond the Sin of Unbelief to the Realization of Your Potential!

I had the opportunity to ponder Bart’s recent blog about the ‘Sin of Unbelief’ and it brings a few things to mind……

Bart defined the Sin of Unbelief as “…..anything that separates us, you, me, from our higher power. It creates a gap, a hole, a gorge, a Grand Canyon between us and where we want to be, do, share, give and become!……a lack of “faith” a lack of confidence, a lack of skills, a lack of education, a lack of talent…..a family of excuses…..”

Having recently visited the Grand Canyon, the imagery behind this concept is so vivid for me. During our travels, not only did we have the opportunity to view the incredible expanse of the Canyon, we also enjoyed the experience of rafting in the Colorado River from the Glen Canyon Dam into the Grand Canyon……in the exact location where an explorer by the name of Major John Powell and his team explored so many years ago as they were charting the river through the canyon.

As we traveled along the river with our modern rafting conveniences and well-schooled-in-the-history-of-the-canyon guide, we learned about the one-armed explorer and his band of teammates in their primitive wooden boats who set out in search of new discoveries.

Through treacherous rapids, unyielding temperatures, and unforeseen dangers around every bend of the river the men continued.  Months of battling the rapids in front of them at every moment and anticipating the unknown of ahead took its toll on some of the men as they grew weary and fatigued. Ultimately, part of the group disbanded……choosing to separate from the team and leave the river to attempt to make it from the Canyon on foot. Those men were never seen or heard from again. It was shortly after the group split, that the men who chose to stay on the river turned a corner to discover smooth waters for the remainder of their journey.

The imagery of the exploration on the river in the canyon all those years ago makes me think of the Sin of Unbelief. Some of the explorers experienced a gap, a hole, a lack of confidence……they lost their belief in themselves and in their team. The explorers lost the belief in their success and simply gave up. They created a family of excuses as to why they could not continue and ultimately paid for this Sin of Unbelief with their very lives.

How often do we find ourselves on a raft amidst the rapids of our lives? We find ourselves scared, tired, struggling….anticipating the unknown of what is around the next corner. We begin to conjure up excuses as to why we cannot succeed. We come to convince ourselves that we what we ‘lack’ cannot ever be overcome and we will never be successful.

We are no different now than the explorers were so long ago! They were scared. They were tired. They often doubted their abilities. Some gave up. Some continued. The group of men who ultimately succeeded in conquering the river to the great benefit of generations to follow were the ones who overcame this sin of unbelief and simply stuck to it! They didn’t give up! They kept their mind and hearts on the goal and persevered.

What river are you trying to raft? What obstacles are you creating as barriers to turning the final bend to smooth waters? What ‘unbelief’ do you need to overcome to succeed?

Just as we can convince ourselves that we will fail, we can convince ourselves that we will succeed! The power of the mind is so very great! Combine the power of your belief in yourself with the power of the passion of your convictions to follow what is in your heart and you will do great things!

You can overcome the Sin of Unbelief with the Power of Belief!! Believe in yourself! Believe in your purpose! Believe in your ultimate success and you will do more things than you’ve imagined!!!

Ride the river! Challenge the rapids! Smooth waters are up ahead!

Glenna

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