Hi all,
I just completed a session with my coach, and by the way, if you are shopping for a coach, it’s important to ask potential coaches if they are recipients of coaching. This is because you want to know if your coach is also growing, learning and moving forward in their own lives. Being in a coaching relationship is a commitment to their personal growth, and when they are at their best, you receive the best services. I cannot say enough about how coaching has/is helping me stay true to my goals. It is the best thing I have ever done for myself. Maybe I’ll write about it in another post…
I want to share the steps I go through when I face adversity. I hope they will be an encouragement to you. (Note: I have way too much content for a blog post, so check my website for an upcoming Ecourse on this topic, and for future workshops/telecourses. This post is a condensed version. If you want more now, please contact me for coaching. or send an email to find out more.)
We all go through hard times. It’s the human condition. There is no escape. So, stop feeling like a failure for having struggles in the first place. What is more critical is how we manage ourselves during these times. I look at them as opportunities to learn, grow and redefine some aspect of me, and what I want in my life. Maybe I’m not living the way I want to, maybe I’m not honoring myself in the areas of exercise, balance, self-talk, time alone and it’s at the boiling point. Maybe I am tired of being in a job that doesn’t fit who I am, and it has reached crisis level. Struggles represent anything that is no longer working for us.
Think about it, it’s these hard times that move us out of discomfort into a more meaningful existence, and isn’t that what we all want? We want our lives to matter, to contribute, to help others and to live life passionately following our purpose, right?
Life is so much easier when we are not in boiling water, isn’t it? We may continue on in our meager existence, maybe cooking small, or taking ourselves out of the kitchen altogether, afraid to even try creating our own feast. So how do we take full advantage of “being in the boiling water” and nourish ourselves in the process?
When I am in major boiling water, I am in and out of the carrot and egg pots several times until I finally land in the coffee pot. The entire pot jumping time depends on the type and depth of my struggle. My steps include the following:
1) Recognize – and appreciate that I am in boiling water
2) Retreat – and go within with lots of soul searching questions
3) Resolve – to stay with it to the end, avoiding the tendency to escape from it, and
4) Recreate – new ways of being, thinking, feeling and/or acting as a result of my learning.
It is so important to nurture, love and support yourself in this most important process and opportunity. Maybe this includes taking walks, warm baths, writing, painting, meditating or all of these self care activities. If you are deeply frustrated, angry or depressed, resist any urges to strike out at others, and/or yourself. Instead, support yourself through it as you would care for those you love.
Love, and Abundant Blessings to You,
Patricia
Your comments & feedback are always welcome and encouraged. For an appointment call 206-459-2898 or e-mail me at: patricia@integritylifecoach.com Home page http://www.integritylifecoach.com Copyright© 2007 Patricia Eslava Vessey…All Rights Reserved
