How do you know if the things you do come from a place of purpose and significance, or from what other people have said you should do?

In this video, we share a simple way to tell the difference and to be more aware of the choices you make in life or business.

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We go through the paces of life each and every day, completing our to-do lists, meeting our deadlines and fulfilling our obligations to others.

In this video, we share a powerful technique to help you think about your life in a different way.

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Many of us make change after change and still feel stuck or crappy.

In order to make creative change really stick in your life or business, you need to look beyond the obvious.

This video shows you the ONE key questions to ask yourself before you embark on your next journey of change.

Share what you want to let go of in the comments below!

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It’s easy to stay in the same groove week in and week out. Every day that’s the same as the one before means one less day to make creative changes in your life or business.

If you want to live a different life, then you must start making different choices.

In this video, we proudly launch our North STAR vlog, share our weekly 4-step process to move you through the changes you seek, plus you’ll learn a quick & effective way to release your creative juices.

Have an inventive week!

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The world is abuzz with the passing of Elizabeth Taylor.

To many, she epitomizes beauty and the glamor of Hollywood’s Golden Age.  Collectively, we’re mourning more than her death.  We’re also mourning the passing of an age where celebrity was alluring, enigmatic and other-worldly.

As I reflect on what I know and love about Ms. Taylor, I started to wonder why the world has been touched by her in so many ways.

Through all her trials and tribulations, Elizabeth Taylor lived life on her terms, and with her heart on her sleeve.  She swept 7 men up in her passionate embrace of life, 7 people among millions more who were captivated by her sheer vitality and ‘aliveness’.

It’s been reported that she was not afraid of growing old, only of losing this vitality that she was so adored for.

It is her vulnerability, her unabashed passion for life and her dedication to her craft that made her ravishing beauty even more compelling.  And when life threw her a lemon (e.g. the death of her first love, Mike Todd, or the abusiveness of her first husband, hotelier Nicky Hilton), she somehow found the wherewithal to pick herself up, dust herself off and keep on keeping on.

Since her death, friends and family have shared glimpses into her kindness and generosity of spirit.  Her compassion for the AIDS community.  Opening her heart and hearth to dying friends who needed a refuge in their final days.

If we could but demonstrate some of her brilliant humanity, the world would sparkle as brightly as the diamonds she so cherished.

I’d love to hear your comments on how Ms Taylor’s life and art impacted you.  Or, if you find all this much ado about nothing, I’d love to hear that too!

Our cavemen ancestors (arguably) had an easier time making decisions.  Kill or be killed.  Make fire or freeze to death.  We, oh civilized society we, start making decisions the moment we wake up.  Cereal or oatmeal?  Milk or juice?  Watch TV or use the iPad at breakfast? We often complain about all the decisions we have to make, forgetting that this is a good problem to have.  It’s a by-product of wealth, of materialism, of abundance.

But it doesn’t make the underlying issue go away.  We are faced with a bazillion choices.  Every. Single. Day.  By the time we go to sleep, we’ll have made more than 200 food decisions and goodness how many non-food ones.  And according to this study, too many daily decisions make mush of your self-control.  No wonder we feel like life is running us and not the other way around.

So how now, brown cow?

As I’ve suggested in previous blog posts, it helps to know what’s IMPORTANT to you.  Thanks to (among other things) marketing and consumerism, many products and services are deemed so essential that our lives would be ruined or, worse, boring, if we don’t own them.  I’m not saying you shouldn’t go out and buy that latest gadget if it strikes your fancy, but buying it intentionally vs. mindlessly are two very different things.

How do you go about finding out what’s important to you?  Ah, let me count the ways.  You could:

1) Ask a trusted friend or family member.  Those who know you best and have seen you grow/change over time can sometimes shed light on what you value.

2) When have you felt fulfilled, validated and triumphant in life?  What were you doing?  Who were you with/without?  What was motivating you at the time?  Have these motivators surfaced more than once in your life?

3) Did a life-changing decision ever feel completely and utterly right to you?  What drove you to make that decision?  What were you seeking?  What were you avoiding (or hoping to avoid) by making that decision?

4) Does simplifying your life (having less stuff, making less money etc) inspire you or terrify you?  Why?  What drives the joy or fear of simplification?

5) When you think about what’s important to you, whose voice do you hear answering the question?  Society norms?  TV commercials?  Your mom/dad?  Your teacher?  Your partner?  Or you?

There is no right or wrong answer to these questions.  There is only what is, and how you might want to change it. 

We all have the power and responsibility to live the life we want.  All I suggest is that we do so more consciously, and with greater clarity.

What do you think?  How have you made sense of life’s overwhelming decisions?  Please comment below.

Have a wonderful weekend, all!

Maya Mathias
‘The Insightful Communicator’

from perusals.wordpress.com

I had a quiet Thanksgiving yesterday.  No parties, no gatherings, just my roasted cornish hen and me.  And it turned out to be one of the best Thanksgivings ever.

Having had a more spiritual than religious upbringing, I wasn’t raised to celebrate Thanksgiving.  I was instead raised to be grateful for every day and blessing that comes my way.

And so, alone with my thoughts yesterday, a surge of gratitude swept over me.  I have a family that loves me unconditionally, friends who lend a listening ear when it counts, and the independence and freedom to design the life of my choosing.  It took some effort, a dash of creativity and lots of personal growth to get here, but I wouldn’t trade how I feel right now for anything.

Would I have come to the same conclusion amidst the feasting and merrymaking of a Thanksgiving party?  Probably.  Chances are that I would have been grateful for and raised a toast to the people who were physically present, and felt some sadness for those who weren’t.  And then I probably would have gone right back to my turkey or alternate entree with nary a second thought.

Without the external ‘distractions’ of yummy food and enjoyable banter, I found myself delving into those thoughts and feelings a little more.  Much like a meditation, I came out of the experience calm, alive and refreshed.

My appetite may not have been satiated with barrels of food (though my attempt at a new cornish hen recipe last night was a delicious triumph), but my being was satiated with oodles of peace and gratitude.  And all is not lost on the merrymaking front either – a couple of house parties await this weekend, with chances to raise that toast to good friends.

As you navigate the holidays this year, I hope you get a chance to reflect on the spirit of the season.  For every blessing that comes your way, may your heart be filled with joy and a desire to send it back out to loved ones, friends and strangers in need.

Happy Holidays!

There’s never been a more exciting time to be living in San Francisco.  Last week, the SF Giants won baseball’s World Series for the very first time, and the city erupted in spontaneous jubilation.

With each celebratory speech, with each gushing tribute to the team that finally achieved the dream that had eluded the city for more than 50 years, one theme pulsed through – a group of dedicated managers, players and fans that stuck to their guns and finally made it happen.

In a game that can so easily be overshadowed or splintered by individual egos, the managers and coaches took a group of misfits, castaways and almost-forgotten talents, and molded them into a formidable force.  MVPs (most valuable players) were cheered on by their fellow players, and coaches were doused in congratulatory alcohol with equal measure.

Then there’s the fact that ball park staff were flown to the away games in Texas, so that they could be part of the triumphant finale.  And when San Francisco held a victory parade last week, every member of the Giants organization, former star players, managers and even longstanding radio commentators rode in the stream of vintage vehicles and cable cars that cruised down confetti-strewn streets.

The parade culminated in a ‘key to the city’ award ceremony at City Hall.  Once again, distinguished guests were singled out, from hall-of-fame players of old to the coaches and players that made up the 2010 winning team.  The immediate past president was exalted and often mentioned in the same breath as the current president.  Players introduced other players with sincere admiration, and everyone who took the mike made sure to state that it was a team effort, and something that they had wanted to do for the city of SF as much as for Giants organization itself.

You could argue that the euphoria of the moment will make anyone say anything.  And you could say that it is a team sport after all, so teamwork is a de facto component.

But the warmth and sincerity in their words and faces told a deeper story.  It was a story of strong leadership, of a common passion that was communicated to and coursed through every employee’s and player’s veins.  And when Texas’ final strike sealed the Giant’s World Series victory, the fans couldn’t wait to reflect that warmth and sincerity back onto the team.

Imagine your company or organization doing the same, and your fans (a.k.a. your customers) wanting to reflect your passion, purpose and sincerity back onto you in sheer gratitude.

Are you a Giant in your industry?

from http://myembodiment.files.wordpress.com

It’s 10.30pm and I’ve just returned home after almost 10 hours at my office desk.

If you can relate, you’ll appreciate that my brain is buzzing from its self-induced hive of activity.

And if you’re anything like me, this is probably the time you’re most vulnerable to
a) stumbling over a uneven sidewalk
b) stubbing your foot against a door
c) missing the fact that the crossing light has turned red; and reeling from the car that narrowly missed you as you absent-mindedly started to cross the street

Absent-mindedly. Ah, therein lies the crux of it.

For your mind is indeed a million miles away, either engaged in or spacing out from thoughts of the day. But much, much more than that, you are consequently totally unaware of your body and the space it’s taking up right this minute.

Have you ever wondered why professional dancers (physically) glide through life as sure-footedly as they prance about on the dance floor? Do you ever gaze at an African tribal dance troupe and become entranced by their powerful, almost hypnotic presence?

This is leading somewhere. Bear with me.

We’ve been trained, and conditioned, to live and thrive in a largely (left) brain-based economy. Industrialization and process-oriented management have favored the analytical thinkers among us. Much of the fabric of our modern society has been woven by left-brained worker bees, droning through well-defined, structured paths that lead from product/service creation to sales/marketing and fulfillment.

But there’s been a new life & business kid in town for some years now. Amidst the sea of procedural & mechanized teams, innovative companies like Apple, Pixar & Amazon are standing out and changing the way we interact with the world and each other.

And in a parallel and perhaps not uncoincidental stream, practitioners versed in the martial arts and bodywork (yoga, energetics etc) are enjoying a healthy resurgence.

What might innovation & creativity have to do with being in touch with your body?

A heckuva a lot, I say.

We are not simply creatures of the mind. We potentially have a somatic system that listens and responds to external cues. We also have a soul or spirit which, depending on your chosen faith, goes by many names but arguably performs the same function i.e. serving as a moral/ethical compass or ‘inner voice’ that oozes the wisdom and intuition of the ages.

When you’re not in your body, you miss out on the cues that it or your soul may be sending you.  Grounding yourself in your body (and there are many ways to do so, from dance to tai chi) helps you live and lead from a more integrated focal point.  Here are some ways it can help:

• It will get you in touch with the fact that, say, your left toe has been throbbing for 2 hours.  We sometimes get so lost in our heads that we don’t listen to our body to notice its minor aches and pains.  By the time the pain reaches fever pitch weeks or months later, you’re probably in serious doo doo.
• It makes you a better communicator.  When you plant yourself firmly and evenly, and speak from your diaphragm (which is, after all, in your body and not your head!), your message resonates and reverberates.
• With a greater awareness and understanding of your own body cues, you might start to pay closer attention to the non-verbal signals of others.  And instead of blindly pushing your own rationally-led agenda, you might open the window of possibility into listening, responding and building on the ideas generated by your inner voice or by your team members.  Hello, head?  Meet creativity and innovation.
• You start to make decisions from a deeper, more holistic place.  Rather than get solely in your head about something, you’ll be able to view it from many perspectives i.e. with your head, heart and spirit.  You’ll start to integrate your thoughts, feelings and values more frequently and effortlessly.

This isn’t touchy-feely woo woo stuff.  I’ve spent my entire life training both my mind and body, using conventional modalities (like, erm, graduate school) as well as somatic and self-awareness techniques (like yoga, tai chi, meditation and improv).  Through trial and error, and long spells where I leaned toward one extreme or the other, I now firmly believe that an integrated approach to life is our natural birthright.

So…are you in your body?  I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments.

Till next time, have an inventive week!

Once your organization distills what it’s about, it’s time to tell your corporate story (in a good, authentic way).  This presentation shows you how.