Let Your Life Speak

I'm so moved by Parker Palmer's book, "Let Your Life Speak" - I want to share the message I found so compelling and compassionate.

We start at a very young age with the question, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Answers range from various occupations and titles with external attributes and characteristics we admire or want to have. Vocation, then, does seem to be more of an act of will, a determination to make your life go one way or another, rather than growing from within.

Palmer says vocation does not come from willfulness, but rather, from listening. The word vocation is actually rooted in Latin for "voice."  Vocation isn't something I pursue, but a calling that I hear. How many of us have actually stopped to truly listen to the message speaking from within? What am I not only wired to do, but compelled to do? When do I feel led from a deep sense of truth, that if stifled, suffocates the soul?

He says, "I must listen for the truths and values at the heart of my own identity, not the standards by which I must live - but the standards by which I cannot help but live if I am living my own life."

Your power, a leader's real power, comes from first listening to the call within you. Without it, there is no clarity, no truth,  no substance. If we believe each of us leads by words and actions, then listening to what's already there grants us authenticity and a voice which is heard and seen by others.

Switching Gears

Earlier this morning, I participated in my first "duathalon" class - Technically, a duathlon is a competition that is composed of running and biking where you switch back and forth - run-bike-run. This means you start with a run, then transition to the bike, then transition back to running again. And since your the time includes you switching from running to cycling and back again as part of your race time, this meant the instructor was working his stopwatch! Now I had little to no motivation in my time - my motivation was purely one of curiosity and and avoiding work-out ruts.

It was one of the longest hours I have ever lived... I couldn't get in a real rhythm, and just when I thought I could do several of the intervals, the rules changed - the pace, time, something changed on me. My legs felt weak and trembled when I went from the bike to the track, and my only focus was my breath.

Just after the class ended and I was still panting like a dog, I began to think of all of the change and switching back and forth we are asked to do these days. Leaders frequently tell me their organization is much faster-paced than others; it's much leaner with a larger volume of work. They believe their culture is unique in speed and rigor, and many times, it's leaving them out of breath and stressed.

So the real win seems not to be how fast you are in one area, but how smoothly you can switch gears. It's creating focus when things get fuzzy, and staying the course even when you want to give up. Figuring out what you truly value and being connected with your purpose can give you the resilience against stress. Without this clarity, leading becomes yet another lap to run, another thing to do.  

If switching gears is here to stay, then ask: How do you handle changing directions? How do you interpret the shift? Are you a victim, or do you blame others? Where do you get stuck, and most importantly, how do you get unstuck?

Time Out

When my 12-year old twins were younger, I used the classic "time out" as a consequence for behavior.  For the most part, it helped the situation by changing the environment and therefore, shifting the mood, even though it wasn't particularly welcomed by them. 


As I work with leaders who have multiple priorities and demands, I wonder about the value of a "time out" in evaluating what's most important. What's the value in a stopping point? To a high achieving leader, this isn't an easy thing - it's not welcomed as adults anymore than kids. Let's face it, stopping in a lean, fast-paced, performance oriented culture doesn't seem like a natural next step. 


But what if this step gave us the chance to truly move forward? To Expand. Notice. Listen. Discern. Prioritizing the time to stop may help us more fully see the possibilities in front of us.  Just two minutes of breathing with intention and becoming aware of the present moment can give us some desperately needed clarity and insight. 


In your daily life, where do you take the time to reflect, create, and discover what's really happening? Where can you shift to make this priority a reality?  

Sellouts

In rereading "Crucial Conversations" again, I'm reminded of the power of sellouts. They seem small, almost insignificant. But, they have a lot of power!

I love the William Shakespeare quote, "Nothing in this world is good or bad, but thinking makes it so." Isn't that true?!  That's just it - our stories explain (to us!) what's going on.  They are our interpretation of the facts. They help us explain what we see and hear -the why, how and what.  Why did that happen?  He must have thought I wasn't prepared.... or She is controlling and insensitive. Our stories generate strong feelings.

As the authors say, the truth is that any set of facts can be used to tell an infinite number of stories. So why do we tell clever stories? That's the link to the sellouts - stories keep us from acknowledging the sellouts.We don't typically tell stories UNTIL we have done something that we feel a need to justify. We sell out when we consciously go against our own sense of what's right. And once we've sold out, we have to own up to it (which we don't like to do, obviously!), or justify ourselves.

Risking EVERYTHING

I recommend this book.....
“Listen, are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?” —Mary Oliver
This luminous anthology brings together great poets from around the world whose work transcends culture and time. Their words reach past the outer divisions to the universal currents of love and revelation that move and inspire us all. These poems urge us to wake up and love. They also call on us to relinquish our grip on ideas and opinions that confine us and, instead, to risk moving forward into the life that is truly ours.In his selection, Roger Housden has placed strong emphasis on contemporary voices such as the American poet laureate Billy Collins and the Nobel Prize–winners Czeslaw Milosz and Seamus Heaney, but the collection also includes some timeless echoes of the past in the form of work by masters such as Goethe, Wordsworth, and Emily Dickinson.The tens of thousands of readers of Roger Housden’s “Ten Poems” series will welcome this beautiful harvest of poems that both open the mind and heal the heart.

The Intuitive Mind

“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.” Albert Einstein

Why do we give our power away?

Why do we give our power away?

If we give it away, we start looking for it from other places.

Part of living with clarity is holding yourself and seeing your power.

When we see who we are, we see our

God given talents & strengths.

Purpose.

Our authentic swing.

Essence.

There is an illumination, a force, when we hold this. 

"There's a Hole in my Sidewalk"

This is one of my favorite poems right now, “There’s a Hole in my Sidewalk“, by Portia Nelson

Chapter 1.
I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost…
I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.
Chapter 2.
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I cant believe I am in this same place.
But it isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.
Chapter 3.
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in… its a habit.
But, my eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault.
I get out immediately.
Chapter 4.
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
Chapter 5.
I walk down another street

FEAR: What is it telling you?

I was just reminded of the acronym for FEAR: False Evidence Appearing Real. So, what does this mean to you? How many times are we creating our own fear by our thoughts? We imagine things happening which have never occurred. And anxiety and worry causes us to become a prisoner of our own mind. What do I know to be true? What do I need to find out first?

It's not all about me

Just had a "Ladder of Inference" moment... I know everyone creates their own "picture of meaning" in their minds, but when it's YOUR picture, sometimes, you can't help but think everyone sees it your way! We all take in facts and data selectively, and add our own meaning and assumptions about those facts. And our conclusions form our beliefs, and then we ACT on those beliefs. And the beliefs, of course, affect what facts we take in next time. So, "I don't see what I don't see!" Right?

When someone left me a message today, they said the recommendation was "inappropriate" for the situation. My meaning of the word inappropriate is not proper or wrong. Eew. I didn't like how that made me feel. What did I do wrong?  What did I miss? What did I say that they didn't like? Am I not enough?

And when I talked with the person about the issue, I realized it had NOTHING to do with me. This person had misunderstood the request from his client, and the recommendation simply didn't fit and wasn't what was needed.  Now my ah-ha certainly isn't around the definition of words, or how they differ from person to person. It's the realization (continuous!) that we make assumptions, create our own meaning and ACT on our beliefs without fully checking in for understanding all of the time.

So, let me have a daily mantra, please, "It's not all about me."

I'm not too busy

Being in the time management business, I have come to strongly dislike the word "busy."  How many times do we say we haven't done something because we are too busy? It's a weak word. It implies a victim mentality.

And I just caught myself saying I hadn't done something because I was busy. Guess what? It's not a news flash: EVERYONE is busy these days. I want to replace "busy" with the truth. And that is.... I haven't made time for this.  Perhaps I will get to the real reason. What is getting my attention? Is this what I want? What is the real reason why this hasn't been done? How could I look at it differently?

I'm not too busy. I'm simply making choices.

On Fire for Seligman

I'm on my third book by Dr. Martin Seligman, and it's not even on the mandatory-read list! But his work speaks to me. It's significant and potentially life changing.

Dr. Seligman is considered the father of Positive Psychology, and yes, there is such a thing. He is the Fox Leadership Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and former director of the American Psychological Association.

I finished Authentic Happiness last week and found his approach both practical and inspiring. Here are a few points to pass along and ones I want to remember:
- Happiness and well being is used interchangeably and can include positive feelings - It may refer to activities in which nothing is felt at all. (absorption and engagement)
- He divides positive emotions into three kinds: past, present and future.
- Past emotions include satisfaction and contentment.
- Future emotions include optimism, hope, confidence and trust.
- Present emotions are again divided into two categories:  pleasures, which are of the body, and gratification, which are more complicated and more learned than sensory ones.
- Feelings are subjective and the final judge is "whoever lives inside a person's skin."
- Research has been show that the tests of these states can be rigorously measured. The measures are repeatable, stable across time and consistent across situations.
- These emotions, and how to have them in abundance, is the centerpiece of the first part of the book.

I also like his point on gratifications - rock climbing, dancing or playing bridge. The gratifications absorb and engage us fully; they block self-consciousness; they block felt emotion, except in retrospect ("Wow, that was fun!"); and they create flow, the state in which time stops and one feels completely at home. And he says gratifications come from developing ones own personal strengths. It's not about obtaining momentary subjective states, but rather, includes the idea that one's life has been authentic. His definition of authentic is deriving gratification and positive emotion from one's signature strengths.

I am fascinated with positive emotion - not in a superficial, let's not face reality kind of way - but in a way that knows that what we dwell upon, we become. Our minds are very powerful tools. Am I being intentional? Am I making choices for my well being? What is possible for me?

It's all about the client

One of the answers I've heard so many times in this class is, "It's all about the client." It's an answer for...

Is there a story here? 

What is essential to shift the observer in the "observer I am" model? 

How will you know when you have met your outcomes? 

How do you know which direction to go from this point? 

Am I being an effective coach?

Am I serving my client? 

It's not about me, it's about the client...

The Power to Serve

I've already acknowledged this feeling of going "down under" when I have class. It's a rich, rewarding, but many times, an overwhelming experience.   I can't believe I am at the mid-point right now, and I am processing as fast as I can all of the ways I've been touched. So, the posts will come in the next several days I am sure, but in the meantime, here's a quote I like today:

"This the true joy of life, the being used up
for a purpose recognized by yourself as a
mighty one; being a force of nature instead of
a feverish, selfish little clot of ailments
and grievances, complaining that the world
will not devote itself to making you happy."

George Bernard Shaw

After all is Said and Done

The except from Scott sums up a lot for me right now...

After all is said and done, the most powerful tool you have is your self, your way of being, your way of thinking and feeling, the way you work and behave with each of us and everyone else. Who you are shows up in countless ways and has everything to do with your success.  


I believe this.

Each of us owns a piece of the truth

I didn't like the name of the book, "Fierce Conversations" when I first read it - when I think of fierce, I think of aggressiveness, or a pitt bull. And I generally don't like aggressiveness or pitt bulls.  Of course, the author frames fierce as showing a heartfelt and powerful intensity. Now that I like.

One of the lines which keeps circulating in my brain is the idea that all confrontation is a SEARCH for truth. Who owns the truth?  Each of us owns a piece of it, and nobody owns all of it. In a confrontation, I am truly asking someone to describe reality from his or her point of view. That feels much safer to me. And when two people are engaged in that spirit, such conversation will indeed enrich relationships.

Do I want to change my relationships?  Yes. Then I will change my conversations.

Finding the way

"There are insights and emotions that can find you in no other way than through and within silence."

Silence

Well, my family thought it was funny, really funny, that last night's chapter was on silence. They thought it was funnier that I would attempt to use silence to communicate with them.  Laugh now, but I think things will come out of them more truthfully and completely if I shut up a bit more. A lot more.

Silence is a space which allows us to focus on the cause, not the effect. We can see the issue, not symptom. How many times do we chase, or react to them?  It's indeed true that half the battle is identifying and resolving the real issue. "The problem named is the problem solved." Susan Scott.

Making room for the Answers

I really don't like it, well, actually, I hate it, when I don't have the answer to something I want. A lot.  I feel like I have the ability to figure it out and come up with something that works for me if I think about it long and hard enough. But the real power comes from making room, or emptying myself. If I have the question and the answer, there's no room, right? But, if I allow the space, the silence, the not-knowing, all of a sudden, I allow the possibility of something ELSE showing up.

It's the story in Susan Scott's Fierce Conversations which hits me right now.... "I am reminded of the story of the man who visits a Zen master. The man asks, "What truths can you teach me?" The master replies, "Do you like tea?" The man nods his head, and the master pours him a cup of tea. The cup fills and the tea spills." Still the master pours. The man, of course, protests, and the master responds, "Return to me when you are empty." The lesson here is that we need to empty ourselves of our preconceived beliefs in order to be open to a broader, more complex reality. .....Before we can learn, we must unlearn. Enjoy the cup!"

Fierce Conversations

Love this quote from Susan Scott in her book, "Fierce Conversations" - What I've witnessed over and over is that when the conversation is real, the change occurs before the conversation has even ended. Being real is not the risk. The real risk is that: 


I will be known. 


I will be seen. 


I will be changed. 

Yes, that's fascinating!

I accidentally break a favorite glass with wet hands, review the list of 3 voice mails not returned before the day's end and replay the sharp remark made to my daughter from her empty bowl on the basement floor.... How fascinating to make so many mistakes within a mere two hours of my post yesterday.  And although these are really such micro experiences along the way, and none particularly consequential, it reminds me of the power available when you invite the framework of possibilities into your life.  It's true. One less glass to clean and store, 3 people I will be more refreshed and ready to talk to tomorrow and two people who figure out a better way to help each other out.

I love the quote by the great cellest Gaspar Cassado, "I'm so sorry for you; your lives have been so easy. You can't play great music unless your heart's been broken."  Now that's a possibility.

Trading survival for energy

Life does take on a different shape and meaning when a person is able to transcend the barriers of personal survival - whatever that means for that person - and become a unique conduit for its vital energy. What is holding you back?  What is keeping you separate and in control? What can you do to shape your passion into a new expression for the world?

What do I really (really!) want to see happen in my life? My family? My profession?

How Fascinating!

I love this idea from the Zanders, and although my girls think I'm crazy, they are going along with it...we are going to lift our arms in the air and with a smile, say, "How Fascinating!" when we make a mistake. Wow. That's GREAT!  WHY? I say, "Why not?"  Let's bring on the mistakes - do we want to people who are open, curious and above all, learners?  I say, "YES.... How fascinating!"

The Way Things Are

I'm learning to be present to the ways things are, which includes accepting my feelings about the way things are. So many times we run away, get out of the way or slip behind the scenes to avoid the way things are. I don't think you can do that. Being present to the way things are doesn't mean I'm accepting things as they are without negative feelings, or pretending I like it. I'm not going to some "higher plan of existence" that's for sure! It, whatever it is, catches up to you, and asks (sometimes demands!) you deal with it. 

I can feel anxious about the reading or work for the class, or feel overwhelmed with client work for the upcoming week. It makes me feel irritable or inadequate to meet the expectations I have placed on myself, my family and others. But just simply being present with these feelings shrinks their power a bit.  I'm learning to let things sit by my side, and be present to the way things are right now.  

I am done with great things....

"I am done with great things and big plans, great institutions and big successes.  I am for those tiny, invisible loving human forces that work from individual to individual, creeping through the crannies of the world like so many rootlets, or like the capillary oozing of water, yet which, if given time, will rend the hardest monuments of human pride."

William James

I am the Board, Not the Piece

You'd think it would be easy to create post after post during my week's class each month. There is a lot of coaching and leadership material for me to use.... But honestly, I can't think of a thing to write because I'm so busy "drinking from a fire hose!" Every cell in my body seems to be transforming at some level, and it just takes me some time to consciously figure out what it means to me.  I can also say there are feelings of being "consciously incompetent" as I go through the competency ladder with new sets of skills - the knowledge that I now know what I don't know! Uggh.

So, I'm going to quote Rosamund Stone Zander and Ben Zander from "The Art of Possibility" to share what I am thinking and feeling right now:  "When you identify yourself as a single chess piece-and by analogy, as an individual in a particular role-you can only react to, complain about, or resist the moves that interrupted your plans. But, if you name yourself as the board itself, you can turn all you attention to what you want to see happen, with none paid to what you need to win or fight or fix. ... You, as the board, make room for all the moves, for the capture of the knight and the sacrifice of the bishop, for your good driving and the accident, for your miserable childhood and the circumstances of your parents' lives, for your need and another's refusal. Why? Because that is what is there. It is the way things are."

That's pretty powerful for me....if I am the board, and not the piece, then it opens up a whole new framework for me to create. My life has power not from what happens, but from my choice of response. How many times do we fight and struggle because we think of ourselves as the piece, not the board? I limit my thinking, my options and my joy if I am anything but the board.

Coaching to Create Breakthroughs

This week's class is "Coaching to Create Breakthroughs: Defining and Practicing Elements of the Coaching Relationship."  We are receiving feedback and practicing on coaching skills and creating breakthrough actions.

Revealing yourself is required

“Do you not know that there comes a midnight hour when every one has to throw off his mask? Do you believe that life will always let itself be mocked? Do you think you can slip away a little before midnight in order to avoid this? Or are you not terrified by it? I have seen men in real life who so long deceived others that at last their true nature could not reveal itself;... In every man there is something which to a certain degree prevents him from becoming perfectly transparent to himself; and this may be the case in so high a degree, he may be so inexplicably woven into relationships of life which extend far beyond himself that he almost cannot reveal himself. But he who cannot reveal himself cannot love, and he who cannot love is the most unhappy man of all.” Soren Kierkegaard

Coaching is about...

Coaching is about breaking the old coherency and creating a new one. 

Source: Julio Olalla

Do I make clear requests?

It's been 3 weeks since I heard the material around requests and agreements, and for some reason, I keep circling back to it. Most communication breakdowns seem to result from a missing or unclear request.  I spoke to a CEO group on work/life balance yesterday, and again, much of the breakdown they said they experienced was, in essence, due to a missing or unclear request.  Many commented on the complaints they received from spouses who were weary from them being plugged to PDA's 24/7. (What a surprise!) But none has any type of request and agreement with their spouse. Why don't we do this with each other? Wouldn't it seem like common sense? Perhaps. I think it just seems too formal, or business-like to do this. Sort of weird - shouldn't the other person just be able to read your mind? Know what you want? Don't want? Evidently not. 


And that's just one example among many where we fail to make clear requests and get agreement. According to Chalmers Brothers, a request needs to have the following characteristics: 
- Specific and concrete regarding "what"
- Directed at a "who"
- State what will create satisfaction
- Have a time-frame and outcome
- Establish a shared context 


So when I feel like my expectations haven't been met by someone or something, I am starting to ask myself if I made a clear request or not. Did I gain agreement? What was my responsibility in the breakdown?  Was there truly clarity in both parties in what the request meant? 


I suppose since this material has been circling up there in my brain somewhere that my answer is "no," I am not making clear requests.  I'm going to see what might be different when I make them. 

New thinking required

Why is this classic quote taking on new meaning for me right now?


"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." 


Albert Einstein

Let go of the Outcome

Can't get this quote out of my head.... 

“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.”

Soren Kierkegaard 

One Big Puzzle

I see it as a puzzle. Some pieces are clearly the corners and edges, and yet others pieces can be recognized, but unsure as to where they go. And then there are those pieces which I don't recognize, and I have no idea where they go.

What makes the coaching process really interesting for me is not having a picture to see - you know, like the picture on the box of a puzzle? Doesn't everyone use that? I heard someone say they never look at the picture because it feels like cheating to them. Well, it doesn't to me. I like the picture. I get some idea of where I am going. But in coaching, you can't look at the box. For some reason, that's what I like about it. 

The Ladder of Inference is pretty powerful for understanding how someone creates their "picture of meaning." It goes something like this....  we take in some kind of data or information, and selectively, we pick what we see. We may think we pick all the facts, but we don't. Just watch other people!  Two people just don't see the same thing twice. Our instructor is a clinical psychologist, and he talked about the role of eye witnesses in the courtroom. Eye witnesses just don't have as much credibility now due to the realization that we take in facts and data selectively. And then we add our own meaning and assumptions to those facts, and make conclusions. And those conclusions form our beliefs and subsequent actions in the world. So naturally, our beliefs then affect what data we see next time. And it keeps reinforcing and repeating itself. 

I wonder what I see without awareness? What do I simply add my own meaning and assumptions, and don't even realize it? What can create a shift or change inside myself? We've talked a lot about authorship, power and choice in class. The ability to rewrite our own stories. And if that's the case, how can I use the ladder to rewrite something that needs a new chapter in my life?   

Living with the Question

What is my question today?

Honor the question.
Notice the question.
Sit beside the question.
Respect the question.
Allow the question.
Ask nothing of the question.
Live with the question.

Passage from "Holding the Center" by Richard Strozzi-Heckler

....By scanning our body and locating our center of gravity we begin to see how our attention can be willfully organized and directed to bring a greater vividness to our life. We are able to shift our moods, listen with greater depth to the concerns of others and increase our choices. ... attention training teaches us two foundations of self-organization: First, control follows awareness, and second, energy follows attention. When we're aware of something, for example, we've increased our choices in the way we interact with it. What we're unaware will act on us. 

(page 98, Holding the Center, Richard Strozzi-Heckler)

Difference in Learning v. Development

Hopefully, we all learn something every day. I learned how to Skpe yesterday. (...and I learned how weird I look on that webcam, yikes!) But it's a true sign of failure when we keep making the same mistake over and over, and in fact, I heard a speaker say recently that success and failure aren't opposites in her mind. If she "failed" at something, she thinks of that as something she nows knows doesn't work!  And I love that definition. Isn't that liberating! How many times do we hold ourselves back because we might fail? It might not work out?

But development is different than learning. Development is an intentional plan of improvement. It's focused, and has an outcome. So, coaching may involve learning, but really, effective coaching is development.

What did you say?

Thought it was funny today when we looked at interpretation and how many times we assume others can and should read our minds. If I say, "The dog needs to go outside" and believe someone will know what I mean by that statement, it could be a half-dozen or so ways to interpret the meaning. Does it mean I'm getting ready to let the dog out? ...It's raining, and although he needs to go out, he won't since it is raining. ...It's sunny, and he will like being outside? or, perhaps, a request for someone! Will you let the dog out?

How many times do we assume our words and tone are enough to convey the accurate meaning of our message? Of course, our values, beliefs, mood, experience, personality, motivations, needs, preferences - all act as filters and influence how we communicate.

After I thought about this, I began listening to others a bit differently after that part of the class, a bit more objectively. I started to think about how I choose to communicate, and exactly what I am trying to communicate. Is it a fact, assertion, perception, judgment, request, offer, agreement, wish, complaint?  When you have a breakdown in communication, it seems you can trace it back to an interpretation which either wasn't correct or failed to understand the real issue. I'm going to listen to conversations and just notice what I hear today.

Is it Right or Right?

Provoking thought and discussion around ethics today - thought we would review the ICF's Code of Ethics, and pretty much review what I assumed I already knew. However, the faculty member pointed out that ethical decisions are many times the choice between two right options.  If it's illegal, it's obvious to most, we hope. And if it's a matter of right v. wrong, it's character. But he shared the common dilemma is where there are two right decisions.  And from Rushworth Kidder, shared ways to look at the decisions - the lens of truth v. loyalty; self v. community; justice v. mercy. Someone in my small group works for Mars (she's been bringing in bags of chocolate - got to love that!) and she shared a recent example of a factory worker who saw someone fall. In an attempt to help them, they not only broke the safety policy, but the worker had their hand severed. And the safety policy clearly states the consequence of violating rules is termination. Talk about a tough decision. She said the toughest part was coaching and influencing the rest of the team - their overall response was "How could you do that?"  

Our group talked a lot about real ethical examples and I realized how close these right v. right ethical decisions are in our every day world. What are my beliefs about the process?  What information or values do I use? Why do I lean one way or the other? When do I make exceptions?  When I don't share common values with others, especially someone I am coaching, or perhaps a stakeholder, how do I approach it?  Is it right or right?  

My First Day

Whoa!  What a day. Blown away. Most of me doesn't really know what happened! I mean, I can tell you the agenda for the day, but my processing system is on overdrive.

And I'm in a room full of "A" players - having an advanced degree for this group is like having graduated from kindergarten.  I was a bit intimidated, especially this morning. But their stories, the life experience and what has brought us together, is bringing us together in a unique way. At least I'm going to trust that for now.

The information, models, skills - the take away for me today is, "Who am I when I am at my best?" There was clear emphasis on developing yourself as a leader and living as an integrated person if you want to be an effective coach with others. Job number one. Can't give what you don't have. Do you want to get on the development train?  Come on, but there's no getting off.

On my way....

I feel like a kid - I'm so excited. I'm ready to get on the bus and go to school, but in this case, a plane. I feel like a student at its fullest meaning.  I'm nervous, very (did I say very?!) excited, eager, curious and open.

What's going to happen?

The new stack of 19 books excites me - as does the articles, journal, notebook, pens. At another glance, it's overwhelming when I think of the reality of missed work days and family needs. I'm wondering exactly how it's all going to work? If I do the pre-reading and assignments required before class, are we going to talk about the concepts? Will we cover other topics? Will it be lecture based? Who's going to be in the class with me? Will they be more successful than me? Will I connect with them, or anyone? What's going to happen in this experience which makes it unique, or different than other experiences?