Dreaming

The other evening I had the opportunity to attend a Klemmer & Associates Champions Workshop, this one facilitated by Scott Pullan. Scott did the workshop as well as I have ever seen it done, including one that I attended facilitated by Brian Klemmer.

One of the subjects Scott covered so aptly was the subect of dreaming. As I sat there listening to the discussion I realized that I don't have any well-defined dreams; what is up with that? I allowed myself to roam free for a few minutes and a dream popped into my consciousness, one that is so far "out there" that it only qualifies to be, well, a dream!

I have been mulling it over between then and now and the more I associate with it, the better I like it. The only "problem" I can see with it is that it lies well outside the bounds of probability (though not outside the bounds of possibility); it occurs to me that dreams don't have to be fettered by probability.

Another thing that occurs to me is that unless I create some change in myself, I won't get to have this dream. The dream is great but for it to come to pass, some action from me is required. What I have been doing up to now is not enough, based on results.

Knowing that creating a change in me can lead to this new dream is exciting and inspiring! Having a great big reward out there gives me great incentive to go forward!

I have been around the K&A track a number of times but this is the first time I have really gotten involved in this activity called dreaming. I highly recommend it.

Excellence

First off, excellence is not perfection; perfection is God’s business. Let’s be clear about that right up front.

Rather, excellence is simply me being the best I can be, moment by moment, knowing full well that the best I can be in any one moment may be better, or worse, than I can be in any other. And being okay with that, too.

You Create What You Believe

“You don’t create what you want, you create what you believe.”

~Brian Miller

If this is true, and I suspect it is because Brian Miller is one of the smartest guys I know about this sort of thing, then this is an excellent reason for having a coach or a mastermind.

Consider: if there’s something you say you want but you don’t have it, we can pretty well conclude that you don’t believe you should have it. That implies either a) you don’t really want it or b) you want something else more, such as not being afraid, staying comfortable or not straying outside the boundaries your programs have set for you.

Your coach and/or the members of your mastermind, because their backgrounds are different from yours, do not share your particular fears, devotion to comfort or set of programs. To be sure, they probably have their own set of limiters, but since those are different from yours, your coach and/or mastermind members can assist you in overcoming your obstacles. Literally, what appears to be a huge obstacle to you may not be anywhere so daunting to them and they can assist you in moving over, under, around or through it.

Your coach is skilled in helping you create solutions. He or she will help you find the answers you almost certainly already possess, if only you are willing to do the digging to ferret them out.

So the solution is right there in front of you. Of course, this assumes you believe in yourself enough to get off your butt and get involved with people who can help you make your dreams come true.

Context

Would you rather be "confident and excited" or "not disappointed?" The way you answer that question may have a lot to do with the context you are creating for your life. You do get to choose, you know.

East from West

In speaking of the breadth of the grace of God, Psalm 103 refers to ". . . as far as the east is from the west, . . ." Notice that if someone goes north long enough, sooner or later he starts going south. This, however, is not the case with going east or west; one can go east forever and never wind up going west.

How did the psalmist know this? By tradition, the Psalms were written by King David, who lived some time during the 10th century BC. At that time there was no knowledge of the shape of the world, so how could the psalmist have known that east and west never meet?

This is not the only place in the Scripture where the distance between east and west is mentioned. The distance between north and south is not mentioned. Interesting that the ancient Israelites possessed this kind of knowledge.

Of Problems, Solutions and Gifts

“There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts.” ~from Illusions, by Richard Bach.

I might mildly disagree with Mr. Bach and say that I seek problems because I want their gifts rather than need their gifts, but I think that may reflect my bias toward responsible (want implies the availability of choices) rather than victim (need implies the absence of choices). That being said, this is a fairly profound statement.

I cannot speak for you, dear reader, but I know that when I am confronted with a problem I have a tendency to act a little huffy, a little put-upon (as in, "Oh, why me?") and then I go and solve the problem, perhaps completely missing the gift hidden within.

At the very least the act of solving a problem makes me feel better about me. It can surely be said, "You can't solve a problem until you have a problem." I am good at creating solutions to problems and the successful application of my creativity is always good for my self-esteem. That itself may be the gift, or a gift.

As a life coach I say that I help people create solutions that improve their lives. It now occurs to me, results-oriented creature that I am, that gifts may be found in the process of creating solutions and not just in the solutions themselves.

Think about that one for a while. I will be.

Who Uses A Coach?

Who in our culture uses a coach? Well, let's see. Everyone from Little League baseball players to professional athletes of all types and stripes. Actors and public speakers. People who have important goals to achieve in their lives.

In short, anyone who wants to improve some facet in his or her life uses a coach!

Why is having a coach valuable? It has to do with a principle called synergy, where one plus one adds up to more than two. To be sure, the coach may teach the person some "how to's" but of at least equal importance, the coach will inspire the person to greater heights and will hold the person accountable to overcome greater challenges than he or she could do alone.

We all like to look up to very successful people. What do they largely have in common? They tap into the power of synergy by using the skills of a coach as a multiplier for their own skills to achieve goals that are important to them.

Do you have important goals to achieve in your life? If so,what are you going to do about them?