Showing posts with label running. Show all posts
Showing posts with label running. Show all posts

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Put A Little ________ In It!!

What's missing.... the presents of which would make a significant difference?!!???

Do you ever get to the end of your day or week and all you feel like you did was check off all these things on your list? 

I am a check list junkie...its really the only way I can stay organized and move with velocity...but as I expand my life and the things I am up...the check lists expanded as well....and while I was feeling accomplished I said...what's missing...that which the presents of would really make a real difference??!! And I got it....FUN!!

So it got me thinking...have our workouts, jobs, relationships, sex, parenting, and life in general... started to lack fun? Do we actually resist doing something, do it poorly or maybe don't do it at all...because the fun meter is buried at ZERO??!! 




I have a now 6 year old :) and she can literally have fun EVERYWHERE.  Do you have a little person in your life or know of someone who has a little person?  Think about them for a moment....I take my daughter to the grocery store...she has a blast..."mom, let me be the checker!" she makes the ding sound every time she puts something in the cart.  We go to the library and she gets such a giggle out of checking her own books out.  She sings songs & performs dance routines in the shower, skips to get the mail, asks to vacuum the kitchen floor, and brushes her teeth to Justin Bieber.  Do you get it...every day mundane tasks taken on with child like fun & play??!!

So I set up an experiment...add FUN to everything... and got the most UNEXPECTED WORKOUT...had a fun-rampage of a lifetime and got a whole new view!!

Friday was girls day...Dad was off to play golf and we were left to our own demise!!  Savannah has only had her training wheels off for a maybe 2 months and has only ever rode in our court.  Friday morning comes...the check list starts...the mind is racing...I want to go for a run...but I can't cause I didn't get up while everyone was still sleeping...its a beautiful day...in my mind...the opportunity for a run/workout is over....UGG. 

I was committed to fun (can you hear it kind of starts out forced, stomping my foot..LOL)...so I say to my daughter...what do you want to do...its your day!?  She says...I want to ride my bike...so I'm like...well we could go to Grants Trail.  You ride, I will run with Xander (the dog) and we will have some FUN!! She was totally pumped!! Now she had never been and I was really mentally prepared for us to be out there maybe 20 - 30 mins...I figured it would be maybe a mile, mile and a half at best...she would be bored or tired....boy was I wrong!!! 

Here we are 3 miles in and she is CONVINCED we are doing the whole 18!!




I know she had fun...but I had the time of my life!! We talked and sang the whole way...pointed out animals & flowers we saw along the way.  I was so present to putting fun back in my run, it gave me a whole new perspective to working out!!   By the way...I had to shut her down at mile 5!! LOL

So what's next?  We jump roped, hula hooped, bounced on the trampoline, played soccer in the back yard...you name it...our bodies were moving!!  I felt like I was on an Olympic track and field special event.  We bonded, giggled, burned calories and now have memories of a lifetime!!

So needless to say the experiment was a success and the results were...workouts don't have to be what you think they have to be.  Put a little FUN in it and see what you can create!! 

What other areas could benefit from the fun meter rising??!! TAKE IT ON!! I promise you...just being AWARE of your FUN meter in one area will shine lights on other areas...this is an extraordinary opportunity to PLAY! Life is short...its your GAME!!

PLAY like your 6 again...TAG YOUR IT!!

Want a nutritional supplement to support the game you are out to play? Get it NOW

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE ME on Facebook or TWEET ME on Twitter so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!!

If this moved you to action today...SHARE BELOW...your story may inspire someone else and change their life!!

Join the movement...Donate today to Living Water International, because THIS community right here...that you are a part of... is out to make a measurable difference in 2012!!

B the Light!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

If You Can Do 3...You Can Do 13...

Today I devote this personal message to YOU...I am going to share passionately about the power of tiny daily incremental changes over time lead to extraordinary results...how do I know this for sure...keep reading and check it out for yourself...

If You Can Do 3...You Can Do 13...This is what my friend told me mid May 2010 when she asked me if I wanted to train for the Lewis & Clark half marathon October 3rd....are you nuts??!!  She had ran one half marathon in her life but was naturally athletic and worked out regularly... simply gorgeous.   She had recently had a baby and was ready to shed the weight...with a goal in mind, surely it would be easier.

She says...Shannon...if you can do 3...you can do 13.  I said, "um ...I can't run a city block!!"  I was grossly overweight, hadn't been to a gym since I was 18, depressed and losing my mind...but I saw this as an opportunity...I had a glimmer of hope...

Training officially started July 12th...and STARTED at 3 miles....my butt had basically 6 weeks to be able to even get to the point that I was "qualified to train."  This was the future I was living into....Would I? Could I? Sam I am?



The Power of Tiny Daily Incremental Changes

Where & how did I start?  Out my door one early morning.  See I had all the "good excuses" right??!!..couldn't be away from my family...they needed me....they wouldn't support this running thing...work full time job...blah blah blah...excuses right??! Us as humans we make shit up!! So anyway ...the plan was I would run before work.  At the time I was getting to work by 7:30am with about a 40 minute commute...so IF I was going to do this running thing...it was gonna have to be early...

I don't know if you can see it or can relate...but at first... I felt like I didn't deserve or need this time.  I was never a morning person...always a night owl....I was in a backwards way already setting myself up to fail

Yet I started small...I said if can get to 3 miles I guess I was in....at first I could only run a few second before I thought my heart was going to explode and I was gasping for air....it was pure physical.  First the lungs then the legs...

Then it got mental....self sabotage....your too fat, too old, too out of shape, never done this before, how dare you be away from your family, when do you have time for this, your the underdog, your dragging them down....oh....that ugly place we go...ever been there???!!!  Maybe you are there now...just hang on for the ride...you can't have breakthroughs in life without breakdowns!! Oh the beauty on the other side!!


And then about a month into small daily attempts to run 1 minute, to 5 minutes, to 10 minutes to 20 minutes...there came a shift...like woweza....I'm actually doing this!!  The chains that once held me back in every area of my life began to break....

In less than 5 weeks I was running a steady 3 miles at a moderate pace with little to no major discomfort....and I have never looked back.  

What did it take?  Courage, determination, persistence, hope and a couple of buds along my side holding me accountable to show up and run.  It wasn't always pretty, trust me...but we did it...we honored a commitment, followed a schedule and took a stand for our life, our bodies and minds....

I found me out there on the streets...pounding the pavement at 4:30am with my dog...shedding the layers of pain that I carried around my belly.  Then us girls would meet on the weekends for our "long run"...me hunkered down with my head phones blasting and them chit chatting away...see it didn't matter how we did it...as long as we did it...it was the process of tranformation. 



Couldn't run a city block to running 13.1 in less than 6 months.  I have now run 4 half marathons, lost 50 pounds and have radically taken on every area of my life.  I don't share this with you to impress you but to impress upon you...the power of small daily incremental changes lead to extraordinary results!!   Don't get me wrong...I am and will forever be a work in progress...but if I can do it SO CAN YOU!  The mental, physically and emotional confrontations you come up against while taking on your health in this way is truly profound.  It shines a light on everything you do.  You will have more energy, work better, you feel better and people start to notice.  You become contagious!  You become the light!

Its 65 degrees on February 22 in St. Louis...grab your running shoes and START TODAY!

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE ME on Facebook or TWEET ME on Twitter so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!!

If this moved you to action today...SHARE BELOW...your story may inspire someone else and change their life!!

Join the movement...Donate today to Living Water International, because THIS community right here...that you are a part of... is out to make a measurable difference in 2012!!

B the Light!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

What Can You Possibly See?

Are you ready for the BIG KAHUNA? Fasten your seat belts for this wicked ride!!  This idea is RADICALLY transformational, can be applied to EVERY area of your life, and is the key to an EXTRAORDINARY-U!!  Thank you Landmark Education!!

Is it possible our whole life is DRIVEN by the VIEW behind OUR CURRENT SET OF GOGGLES?


What do I mean by that?  What is possible or not possible for you comes from the CONTEXT from which you are living.

What's context? The dictionary defines context as the set of circumstances or facts that surround a particular event, situation, etc.

Let me be clear here...you ALREADY have a context for each and every area of your life...whether you know it or not...your body, health, relationships, your job, money, family, friends, anything...everything...

Where do these contexts come from...SHIT HAPPENS... and we as humans make something up about what happened....from that... a context is formed in our mind...we put on a pair of goggles that ALTERS the view of reality...and then we go out and try to live life!!

What shows up?

CONTEXT DECIDES.  There are things you cannot see or hear inside of your context.  And its these things that you cannot see or hear that LIMIT YOU from living an extraordinary life...having it all or maybe anything at all...living and playing full out... 

Want to know the key to access to a new set of goggles??!!
  1. Distinguish the context you are already in....identify it...I will give you some examples in a moment.  But when you distinguish the context you are living... in a particular area of your life...it disappears it!! 
  2. Practice CREATING a context that GIVES you LIFE
Simple and profound.  But when you get this big idea...when you know it...you will never be the same because you now have ACCESS to transform each and every area of your life that is important to you.  Yes it takes some practice as the old context will try to creep in from time to time...that's why you are plugged in here...a community committed to greatness...we can remind you...to try on a new pair of goggles...and see what you might see...



Let's play with this a bit so you get what I am talking about here...so take a peek into your life...take a look at what is the context from which you are living?

When I did this I saw for myself...I'm not good enough and I have to work hard.  So if I am walking around with the goggles of I'm not good enough and I have to work hard....what shows up?

Let me REALLY wrap your brain around the ideas of possible and not possible here...I want this to be so clear when you take it back to your life....

So when you think of possible or not possible think of yellow and blue...What's possible? Light, dark, green...you tracking with me? yeah...

What's NOT possible? Red right...inside the context of yellow and blue...you will never get (see or hear) red....clear??!!


Ok back to life...So if I am walking around with the goggles of I'm not good enough and I have to work hard...

What's possible (yellow and blue)?  Failure, exhaustion, no satisfaction, undeserving, losing, divorce, obesity, never realizing my greatest potential, never making a difference

What's NOT possible (red)?  Success, accomplishment, love, being loved, wining, ease, joy, making a difference, being valued, self worth, fun, abundance

Can you begin to see it?  So I got my goggles on of I'm not good enough and I have to work hard...and I am beating my self up trying to win the game of life that is NOT even possible from the context that I am living.  Someone says...I love you...I don't hear it.  Someone says awesome job on that project...I don't hear it, feel it, receive it.  Someone says you look amazing...I don't believe it.  Are you beginning to get the big idea here? 

What else happens...I play small. Why? I'm not good enough and I am sick and tired of working HARD.  But is that reality? NO that's the story I made up because of junk in my truck (my past).

What can you begin to see in your own life?  What is the context in which you have been living?  This may feel like a splash in the face for some...its ok...really...its just the human machine!!

And these contexts are a familiar strings that runs through our lives right...like I didn't make this up last week...you get that? I can look down memory lane and see I'm not good enough and I have to work hard all over the place....its ugly...and we get stopped based on a historical conversation.

So what do we do about it?  1.  Distinguish it....go oh...there it is...and the goggles fall off.  And what are you left with?  A BLANK CANVAS FROM WHICH TO DESIGN YOUR LIFE!! 2.  Create new!! Its your life you get to SAY...your actions will be a direct result from the CONTEXT FROM WHICH YOU CREATE....watch...

Let's create a new context....This body is the vehicle for the rest of my life that's going to go out into the world and accomplish what there is to accomplish.  PUT THE GOGGLES ON...


What's possible (yellow and blue)? health, vitality, joy, youth into my 90s, success, action, kicking the pants out of cancer, running your first race, love, sex, intimacy, self satisfaction

What's NOT possible (red)?

So what is beginning to open up for you here? What do you see possible? What context have you been living from?  What context do you want to take on?

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE MEon Facebook or TWEET ME on Twitter so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!!

If this moved you to action today...SHARE BELOW...your story may inspire someone else and change their life!!

Join the movement...Donate today to Living Water International, because THIS community right here...that you are a part of... is out to make a measurable difference in 2012!!

B the Light!

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose....

Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose... is what a leader in the Landmark Education seminar said to me...this idea...radical and profound...play with me here a bit...I invite you to open your eyes and your heart....




Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose...she says
I say Chocolate...she says why? Because I like Chocolate.

Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose...she says again
I say Chocolate...she says why? Because I like Chocolate (did you not hear me the first time...lol). She says those are reasons.

Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose...but this time she is only holding Chocolate...I say Chocolate...she says why? Because its the only one...(where is this going) She says reasons....again.  Are you trackin' with me here?

Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose...she says again
hmmmmm.....I say.... Chocolate...she says why? Because I want Chocolate...she says...OK now we are getting somewhere...

Chocolate or Vanilla? Choose...
I say Chocolate...she says why? Because I CHOOSE Chocolate...BAM!!  There it is!!

Here is the  BIG IDEA.  We as humans...are taught to make well informed decisions yes?...think about it...you go for your first job interview and at that time you actually had a couple to pick from...so you get out your pen and piece of paper and write down all the pros on one side of the paper and all the cons down the other side of the paper on of each job offer and you MAKE A DECISION based on all your REASONS why you should take that job, right? ...big difference from choice...but we will get back to that in a moment.




So you start your job...the one you decided on because you like the people, they seemed friendly, the work schedule seemed flexible and the pay seemed competitive.  Three months into this gig...you realize these people are not who they seemed, you're working 60 hours a week and at this point it doesn't matter how much you make...you are less than enthusiastic about your DECISION!!  How many of you can relate?


Here is the big idea...CHOOSE YOUR JOB.  Like take it...own it.


New example...2-2 1/2 years ago we just got the Nintendo Wii...and our Wii came with this balance board.  So we get all excited and set up our Miis...I am sure you know what I am talking about here... you pick out a shirt, hair, gender...tell it your height and then go step on this balance board to weigh in...and based on your specifications the game creates this image of you in seconds and declares your current state of health...I will never forget that day...I step on this thing and before my eyes was this 4 inches tall by 4 inches WIDE mini (or should I say not so mini) me right before my eyes...and this thing deems me OBESE!!  I gasped...






I was like wow...I didn't really realize that...like I never considered myself with that label...but right there before my eyes in full blown HD TV...OBESE

In that moment I CHOSE OBESE.  I am sure you are like you what?!! Think about it...I did not sit down with a piece of paper and jot down the pros and cons of obesity...and said yeah...I'll take that...HELL NO!!!  But the sum of my CHOICES got me there.

So here is the beauty in this chocolate or vanilla choose thing...in THAT moment that obese was blasting across my tv...I CHOSE OBESE...(chocolate, right??).what begins to open up...in that EXACT moment I can CHOOSE HEALTH (vanilla, cool huh??)..WHY? because I can!!! But if you don't OWN it...like take responsibility for it...CLAIM IT you will NEVER do anything about it...you will never do anything that is not consistent with your thinking.

This is YOUR LIFE folks...you get to CHOOSE how its going to go...Get it? Choose it...





So let's take it up a notch...this leader asking me to choose chocolate or vanilla shares with us...SHE CHOOSES CANCER.  I was like what??!! Why would you do that?  


Here is the big idea...they just found out her husband has leukemia...this is marathon runner, athlete, powerhouse, got it....and she is choosing cancer??!!  


Help me out here...so they didn't have a choice in this matter right? Like it...cancer...got handed to them....this is so profound...when they CHOOSE cancer...the power resides in their hands....they get to say how its going to go...they NOW TAKE CANCER ON!  Like kick the stinking pants off cancer and get back to normal now, yes??!!


What's the alternative...well they flap around in the wind of uncertainty...they get sucked into the world of I don't know how its going to go...they get depressed, helpless, and hopeless, yes?...and they pull everyone around them into that world...can you see that?  Choose it!!


Final example...This concept is so simple yet so profound...so we had my daughter's friend over this weekend...but right before I got to her house to pick her up...another friend of hers told her dad she wanted to play.  Well my daughter's friend's dad didn't know we had already made plans to come get her that morning.  So if you can imagine...dad walks in the door saying hey your friend down the street wants to play with you but low and behold we pull in the driveway about the same time, give the horn a honk and her parents send  her out. 



So my daughter's little friend gets in the car and I can tell she's like crabby...this is a little person...5 years old...they really don't know what crabby is yet but I could tell she was confronted.  So she informs us I have to get home early so I can go to so and so's house...and I said really? Do you just want to stay here and play with her...and she says no...I want to go with you guys. 


Well once we get home the mood really doesn't change...and trust me this behavior really wasn't normal....so I say to this little person....honey do you want to be HERE (chocolate) or go home and play with your other friend (vanilla)..it is totally cool with us what you want to do, right? We love you and want you here but if your mind is somewhere else...we can take you there...right??!!  She is like no...I choose here (chocolate)...I say cool..then that means you play joyfully, with love and friendship from now on...like choose HERE and really your actions all stem from that choice....AND SHE DID!! 


Now the rest of the day these girls had a blast!! But this little person was torn...where she was and where she thought she might like to be...but when she CHOSE...a whole new realm of joy and fun and playfulness rose to the surface!! It was amazingly powerful awesome great afternoon for these best little friends!!!


How many times have you been torn between where you were and where you wanted to be or thought you wanted to be?  How was your behavior? What was the impact you left others with?  Would you like the outcome to be different next time? Now you can...CHOOSE!!


So others in class began to share...
I choose my credit score
I choose my boss
I choose being single
I choose my marriage
I choose a child with Asperger's


Truly profound!


What area of your life is important to you?  Take a look...CHOSE IT & change your predictable future to one of extraordinary results!!!!

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE MEon Facebook or TWEET ME on Twitter so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!! 

If this moved you to action today...SHARE BELOW...your story may inspire someone else and change their life!!

Join the movement...Donate today to Living Water International, because THIS community right here...that you are a part of... is out to make a measurable difference in 2012!!

B the Light!

Saturday, January 14, 2012

What are you going to leave behind when you are GONE?

First of all I have to acknowledge you and humbly thank you for reading, sharing, liking and tweeting about this blog.  WE are creating a COMMUNITY, committed to GREATNESS... right here and right now!  And who you have been being...truly is extraordinary!!

You say really??!!  YES!!  We are just a little over a month in the making with only 9 posts and you have helped over 600 visitors and 3 countries being impacted by what we are creating here. Lives are touched, moved and inspired because you took action, and shared, the quality of lives ARE being impacted!!  Thank you for Being the Light

It truly is the greatness in you that has you B the EXTRAORDINARY-U!!

So what I am present to is the amazing Grace of the universe.  Why?  There was a calling on my heart to create this blog and share inspiring messages for a long time.  6 weeks ago I enrolled myself in a seminar with Landmark Education and out of that this blog was born!! So this weeks' focus in the seminar was to distinguish Making a Difference...can you say WOW??!!

So what defines Making a Difference anyway?

Landmark defines Making a Difference as this:

1.  Start with a Commitment.
What are you committed to? What STAND are you WILLING to take IN SUCH A WAY that has others take a stand in their own life??!!  Powerful yes?
We talked a bit about commitments in the last post around the area of work.  I truly believe we have different commitments in different areas of our lives.  Our commitments are the foundation of our thinking.  You will never do anything that is not in alignment with your thinking. 


Change your thinking... alters your behavior... which transforms your future!! 

So I have created a global view.... I am committed to being the light in every area of my life.  I really stand for YOUR PAST DOES NOT DEFINE YOU OR YOUR FUTURE!  Like today... in this moment... you can create new... It is your daily choices that can create a NEW future for you to live into.  Who doesn't want that??!! 

2.  Create Possibility.

What does this mean?  Creating possibility is when you share with others what you are committed to and really...people around you CANNOT be resigned!!  Like they get off sitting on their hands, raise their hands and say YES!!


So the possibility I created for this community is you are touched, moved, and inspired in an area of your life that matters to you.

So what shows up? My coworker is like...hey...I have never ran or worked out before but I have seen your transformation over the last 2 years...and if you can do it...I wanna do it...will you help me??!! How honored was I in that moment??!! 

So I said what are you committed to?  She says getting to the gym 3 times a week and I want to do it before work.  I said ok...what would your life begin to look like if you did that? How would you begin to feel? Who would you get to be that you NEVER get to be?  She shared with me she would have more energy, and feel accomplished.  She would be excited to do something for herself to start her day off then the rest of her day can be devoted to family and work.  And who does she never get to be...SEXY!! I don't think this 31 year old ever thought of herself as sexy...NOW SHE CAN!!  We ordered her a bikini for summer and she is already planning a vacation where she can show it off!!!  What is the obvious action she takes after creating this possibility of being sexy??!! She gets up and gets to the gym 3 times a week AND she really reports to me what is so...so she gets to be held accountable!  EXTRAORDINARY!! 

3. Take Action

So you have identified what you are committed to, you created possibility by sharing with others and now you got to TAKE ACTION around your commitments.
What does my coworker do?  She gets her butt out of bed and gets to the gym!! 

What did I do? Using my global commitment of Being the Light as the example...I created this blog and just my everyday WAY OF BEING is one of hope, motivation, inspiration & direction for anyone and everyone I meet. 

Yeah!!  For example, I'm out running today with my dog and the postman, which I have had a few short conversations with before, stops me...we chat. I ask him about his running...I am in action... about what he said he was committed to  that I learned about in earlier conversations...and that was his health and running. He was creating the possibility of VITALITY.  So I get to hold a space open for him and pull him forward into his future of health and vitality just by asking him...hey how is your running going??!! Are you trackin' with me??!!  Like we get to see people with a new set of goggles on!!  Cool, huh?

4. Impacting the Quality of Life

Impacting the quality of other peoples lives is the forth and essential ingredient to truly Making a Difference.  Are you leaving people better than you found them? Are you leaving this world better than you found it?



So when we were going through these elements that really define Making a Difference....I was like yes check, yes check, yes check...but when we got to this one I was like...pause yeah I think so....  I truly believe I am impacting the quality of people's lives here...but we need measurable results.  I want to RAISE THE BAR!

So I challenge you...what are you going to leave behind when you are gone?  What is your footprint on this great nation?  What difference are you making in the world and in the lives of others? How many will be at your funeral to celebrate your life because you impacted theirs?

If you are already up to great things...extraordinary...SHARE WITH US BELOW! 

If you are not...Join US!!  I am launching a project THIS weekend where WE as COMMUNITY... COMMITTED to GREATNESS can create POSSIBILITY, take ACTION, and IMPACT THE QUALITY OF YOUR LIFE AND THE LIVES OF OTHERS with measurable results!! 

Let's be ROCK STARS in Making a Difference!!  Share this with everyone you know as they will want to join us too!!  We cannot do it alone...its gonna take something....and I know THIS is the community to MAKE IT HAPPEN!! 

Get back here next week and help the B the Light Community shine like never before!!  Be remembered, make a mark, and really...take that leap from where you are today to where you want to be at the end of 2012!

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE ME on Facebook or TWEET ME on Twitter so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!!

If this moved you to action today...SHARE BELOW...your story may inspire someone else and change their life!!

B the Light!!


Monday, January 9, 2012

Can you REALLY have it ALL?

Can you REALLY have it ALL? Can you have work life balance?  Can you take on a 5k, spend more quality time with your family and get promoted?  This is a great question posed by one of my readers and I think it is one that plagues so many of us.  I will respectfully propose to you... ABSOLUTELY!! 

What is "work life balance" anyway? 

Work Life Balance is really a balance between PERFORMANCE and PLEASURE


I go to work on this DAILY. It really is daily choices over time and practice to get it right....but once you do...you have this AHA moment (thank you Oprah)...it feels SO good and you are like...I did it!  I rocked this day! I have it ALL and I figure out the DANCE between performance and pleasure. WOOT WOOT!!

SMALL DAILY CHANGES OVER TIME...
 LEAD TO EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS!! 

4 simple and essential steps to get EXTRAORDINARY-U to work life balance:

1.  TAKE ON YOUR HEALTH.

How do I know this?  I have experienced this in my own life!  2 years ago, I couldn't run a city block, rapidly approaching 200 pounds, my job in jeopardy, my marriage on the rocks, my mothering...well what example was I REALLY setting? 

Now I am running marathons, lost almost 50 pounds, getting raises, reconciling relationships,..I am doing things I have never done before, really don't know how to do technically but I am pushing myself bigger than I ever knew possible.

HOW??!! Because I took on my health!! Robin Sharma will say, "You can't do good unless you feel good."   Your PERFORMANCE at work is ENHANCED.  You are more EFFICIENT and JOYFUL.  And then at the end of the day you still have the ENERGY to play with your kids or go visit your parents, cook a healthy meal, or take on a new adventure.  My husband lost 25 pounds just because I was cooking differently and we were making different choices. 

So TAKE ON YOUR HEALTH!  Be Sexy! 

2.  JOIN THE 5 O'CLOCK CLUB

What is this?  So many of us are like...well I wanna take on my health and I wanna lose 15 pounds but I just don't have the time!! (as we stop our foot) 

You want work life balance? SET YOUR ALARM FOR 5AM!! It may be the most powerful thing you do all year.  What is the big idea here? You get up just 1 hour before the rest of the household and take that hour for YOU. 

Do you realize if you get up just 1 hour earlier each day at the end of the week you would have 7 extra hours...that's almost a full work day!  At the end of the month you would have almost 30 extra hours!! At the end of the year you would actually have gained 365 hours or 15.2 DAYS...that's over 2 weeks!!  In 10 years...3,610 hours or 150 days!! DO YOU GET THAT??!! You have the knowledge and power to gain almost a HALF A YEAR to your life!! WOW that's a BIG IDEA!! What are you going to do with it??!!

Take this hour as your POWER HOUR!! Go to the gym, yoga, meditate, journal, blog, or just sit and BE, envision your dreams, plan your day, and drink your coffee. When you take this hour for you...you begin to know yourself...and when you begin to know yourself...you can begin to make better choices....with better choices you will get better results.

How do I know this? My alarm goes off at 4:30 am, I lace up my shoes and bust a run in.  I come back and meditate (something new I am taking on), hit the showers and rock out my day!  I FOUND me...in this hour....like IT TAKES SOMETHING to have this commitment...you take this on...it will open up new possibilities in your life you NEVER thought possible!!


3.  IDENTIFY YOUR COMMITMENTS & COMMUNICATE THEM

So we all have things we are committed to in different areas of our lives...like this blog...I am committed to being the light, inspiring and motivating with posts a minimum of 2 times a week...right?  So I just told you that and you can hold me to that :)

Let's take that to the work life balance dance floor....  What are you really committed to in that area of your life?

Well, what I did was literally took out a piece of paper and around the area of work life balance (with really work in mind) I answered the question.  Here was the list I came up with:

I am committed to:
  • My word...like if I say I going to do something...I do it
  • Quality work
  • Our shareholders
  • Deadlines
  • Being a team player...like you need me...I am there
  • Respect and honoring my leaders
  • Having a LIFE that works
I took my list and had a meeting with my manager...(btw...your list is no good if you don't let others in on what you are up to and what you are creating) and I said...look I am committed to these things, like this is who I AM.  Now my manager KNOWS what I am committed to and really can hold me accountable for these commitments. POWERFUL, yes??!! 

This is where the balance comes in...so INSIDE my commitments... I am committed to having A LIFE THAT WORKS....and a life that works for me means being there at special moments of my daughter's life (this is just one example so you get the point). So I ask for an adjustment to my schedule to be able to attend my daughter's holiday parties at school. She has 3 a year, they are 1 hour long, 1:30pm - 2:30pm and it is IMPORTANT to me that I attend these. I want to know my daughter's world, ya know??!!

So when these holiday parties came up...my managers and I created a plan around my schedule that works! Each time maybe alittle different depending on the timing of the year and the flow of work. But we got it...a beautiful dance to the melody of work life balance....my work gets a POWERFUL, COMMITTED, DEDICATED ME and I get this amazing moment in my daughter's life where I can meet her friends and really see who she is in her world...all in the same day!

So what are you committed to? Communicate that and begin to unlock that area of your life that is important to you!

4.  SCHEDULE EVERYTHING

Schedule everything!!! What gets scheduled gets done...that's a big idea! 

You have a meeting at work...you get an invite...you accept the invite...and you show up at the meeting right? Easy. Same thing...you make a doctor or hair appointment...you put it on your calender...you arrive on site on the day of your appointment at the appropriate time. No brainer...yes?

Back on the work life balance dance floor....So now you take on this new adventure of your health...schedule it! 5k training runs...schedule it!! Church...schedule it! Sexy adventures...schedule it! The power hour...schedule it!! Sleep...sometimes I have to schedule it!!!  What gets scheduled gets done!!

I am sure you are like really??!! YES REALLY!! Your calendar is the perfect picture (its proof) of what you are committed too...whoa!  What do I mean here?  Ok...I live and breathe by Google Calender...if you are not familiar with it...it is an amazingly powerful tool...I have a calender set up for my daughter (blue), husband (red), family (orange) work(purple), me (green), personal development (dark green), my business (bright green), birthdays, etc etc....and each one is assigned  a different color.  I can view my calenders layered on each other or alone.  You can access via the web or my phone, set alarms, pop ups etc.  At one glance, in vivid color...I can see my day...

SMALL DAILY CHANGES OVER TIME...
LEAD TO EXTRAORDINARY RESULTS!!

So if you are striving for work life balance...your calender should look like a rainbow...filled with a BALANCE between PERFORMANCE & PLEASURE!!

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE ME on Facebook or TWEET ME on Twitter so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!! 

If this moved you to action today...SHARE BELOW...your story may inspire someone else and change thier life!!

B the Light!!

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Have you been asleep at the cookie jar?

Happy New Year!!  Welcome to 2012!! 

I have a confession...I have been asleep at the cookie jar for 10 days!!

What does that mean?  Well I am committed to my health & leadership, motivation & inspiration, right??!! But my ACTIONS have not been in alignment with my WORD & my COMMITMENT.  I have been out of integrity...WOW!  That's ugly place to be.

Raise your hand if this has ever happened to you...ok...

And what has the impact of THAT been on your life? ...well... I feel like a frumpy dumpy, eating everything in site, if I did go for a run...its has been a pitiful performance from my poor food choices, tired, lazy, blah... I haven't been blogging & my light has not been shining.  Whew...glad I got that all out...so what's next?!!??

TAKE ACTION....restore integrity!!  BAM...there it is! 

Today is a new day...a new beginning...join me in a grand adventure for the next year.  I promise you when you get to the end of 2012 it will dramatically look different than your 2011!! Do you get that...if you keep doing what you been doing...you are going to get what you been getting??!! But you have a choice to draw a line in the sand and choose a new path...right here, right now!  What do you want to create?


Robin Sharma says, "Before you can ever change your life, you must change yourself.  Success on the outside begins within.  You cannot do good unless you feel good."

Identify your weakness and TAKE IT ON in 2012. What are YOU COMMITTED to?

Join my sexy readers club and LIKE ME on Facebook so you are continually plugged into a community committed to GREATNESS!!

Post what you are you are going to take on in 2012 below. Be courageous!! Let this community ENCOURAGE you & hold you ACCOUNTABLE...this is an essential key to your success!!  Then post this on your bathroom mirror, refrigerator or somewhere where you will be reminded daily or even hourly...your commitment.  This will remind you to HONOR your word and ACHIEVE YOUR GOAL!!

If you like what you read and it makes a difference for you...let me know!   Its still a baby blog but we are now in 3 countries...this community is making an impact in the WORLD!!

B the Light!

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Why Extraordinary-U?

The reality is this...I am no different than you...and...if I can do it...YOU TOTALLY CAN!!  I applaud you for being HERE in this moment.  The mere fact you are still reading this, tells me something about you.  You have an eager want for something totally radical in your life!!  YOU HAVE COURAGE!! 


This is me 2009... I was on the fast path of debt, divorce & self destruction. The bills were piling up, I was living my marriage with one foot out the door and maxing out at 183 pounds. 

In 2 years I have lost almost 50 pounds, became a marathon runner, transformed my relationship with my AMAZING man and set a path to financial freedom and now leading others to do the same.

I am committed to encouraging & inspiring you to take action in an area of your life that is important to YOU.   

We were all born with these amazing gifts of talent. But along the way, life took its tole on us...and we forgot who we are. We buried our talent.  And how does that show up for you? 

Think about it...how does that show up for you in your life? Maybe its an extra 50 pounds, careless spending, working a job you hate, sick & tired all the time, no sex, kids running a muck, no love, no respect, no hope and no joy. 

And can you get that if you keep doing what you been doing... you are going to get what you been getting and that would be FINE?  Like ...you are fine right where you are..."oh that's just the way it is" kind of thinking....but if you are still reading...you desire the Extraordinary-U!! 

Join the Sexy Readers club.  Get powerful, practical, tools to transform your life to unleash the ROCKSTAR in you!!