Volume 1, Issue 3 - March 2004 http://www.lightthewaycoaching.com joannie@lightthewaycoaching.com
In This Issue Feature Article: Focused Action -                   Start with Ten Daily Habits From the Editor: Joannie Jorczak Complimentary Coaching Session: Learn More Upcoming Workshop: Lora Banks Coming Next Month: Get into action!	Sign up to receive this newsletter via email! Privacy Guarantee: Your information will never be given, rented or sold to a third party. Your privacy will be respected with utmost regard.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle Feature Article: Focused Action - Start with Ten Daily Habits I like thie above quote because what it says is, we don’t have to jump over the mountain but climb it one step at a time. And, if we can routinely put one foot in front of the other while focusing on our destination, we are almost certain to arrive there. We make a habit of staying conscious of our goals on a daily basis. In co-active coaching, we often start with a very simple tool of identifying and tracking progress on ten daily habits. These habits create a foundation upon which major change can take place. It helps to take a look at the many different areas of your life in order to determine where you really want to make changes. Look at the areas of the Wheel of Life below. Taking the center of the wheel as 0 and the outer edge as 10, rank your level of satisfaction with each area of your life by drawing a line to create a new outer edge (see example below). Look at the snapshot of how bumpy or smooth the ride currently is on your wheel. Click here for a worksheet you can print. Where would you most like to make progress? What action, if taken on a regular basis would make a difference for you in one of the areas of the balance wheel? How do your action steps align with your values and what is truly important in your life? Make a list of ten daily, measurable habits that you could apply in this aspect of your life and then check your progress at the end of each day. For example, health and fitness is always an area of focus for me. So, some of my daily habits include: Drink at least 8 glasses of water. Take Juice Plus in the morning and afternoon. One of my clients is focusing on balancing work with family relationships. His habits include: Acknowledging his wife. Telling his children he loves them. An excel spreadsheet works great for tracking this exercise and/or a simple list that you can check off every day works just fine as well. When you begin creating and implementing ten daily habits be sure to choose habits based on your values. People often come to coaching for accountability to get more done and come to realize that what is keeping them stuck are goals not that are not in alignment with core values. Quite often what they really need is to take the time to stop doing so much and to simply prioritize what is most important. It often means saying no to some of the things or people that are draining your time and energy. Yes, coaching is about having accountability and encouragement for goals and just as importantly coaching offers a place to explore more deeply and learn what it is that keeps you from getting some of those things done and repeating old patterns. Keep that in mind as you create and implement your ten daily habit list and take the first directed steps toward climbing that mountain! Wheel of life Adapted from Co-Active Space 2001 Back to Top From the Editor I’ve found that doing the balance Wheel exercise truly gives me a snap shot of where I currently am and helps me get focused on where I want to go. The wheel reminds me of some of the parts of my life that I tend to procrastinate on; like finances. Oh- I’ll balance my checkbook tomorrow, create and follow a budget next week, do my taxes later since it’s only March, etc. Can you relate to that? It also reinforces the places where I’m feeling satisfied which is helpful too. When I can see that my romance/relationships area is still a 10, I get filled with gratitude and am even more motivated to keep it high. Back to Top Complimentary Coaching Session Learn More You’ve done the balance wheel and you notice there is a gap between where you are now and where you want to be. In fact, you’ve identified a few places you’d like to explore. Why not contact Joannie for a free 30-minute coaching session. Experience what it's like to work with a professional coach and decide if you want to start a coaching relationship. The exploratory session is completely free and without any obligation. In fact, I recommend that you sample with a few professional coaches before beginning a coaching relationship. Call or email. I would love to hear from you. Back to Top Coming Next Month Hmm, the end of the first quarter is just about here as we transition from winter into spring. What a great time to pump some energy into your personal and/or professional development goals. What’s stopping you? What’s holding you back? In April, we’ll take a look at the obstacles that get in the way of success and show you ways of moving around them, over them and through them. Take on that self-limiting voice we call…….”the gremlin!” Back to Top Check out this Upcoming Workshop from my Co-Editor Lora Banks Life by Design: Creating Results from the Inside Out A Workshop for Women Grand Wailea, Maui April 30- May 2, 2004 Enjoy a magical weekend on Maui, looking within to create results in your work, relationships, and life. This experiential workshop is for women who want more joy, balance, and achievement in all aspects of their lives. In Life by Design, my Intentions co-editor, Lora Banks of The Lora Banks Coaching Group and Josie Stein of Inner Journeys will show you how to access your highest vision AND give it wings in your daily life. Click here for more information or to register. You are receiving this issue of Intentions because you signed up for it, we are friends or business associates, you have expressed an interest in our work or you have attended a recent workshop. If you wish to be removed from the mailing list, please click here to respond. You will be unsubscribed immediately.

No ordinary goals

Goals without teeth really fall into the dreams and wishes category .   There is nothing wrong with dreams and wishes but when we truly desire to achieve, we need to take it a couple of steps further.   The simple act of committing our goals to paper for this year or the next five years, will improve the likelihood for success.   And, make your goals S.M.A.R.T.  

"S" - Specific.   Make your goals as specific as possible. Do you want a more stimulating job?   What will you be doing?   Who will you be working with?   What is the culture of the organization?

"M" - Measurable. A goal must be measurable so that you can actually accomplish it. You want to make more money this year, how much?   Will you measure your financial goals by your income or your net worth or both?  

"A" - Accountability.   Hold yourself accountable for your progress.     Use positive incentives to reward your progress - lose 10 lbs. - take yourself to a spa.   Coaching is great for rigorous accountability by the way.  

"R" - Relevant.   The absolute key to attaining your goals is to make them relevant to what is truly important to you, to have them align with your "compelling vision" for your life.   More about this below.  

"T" - Timeframe.   When will you achieve this goal?   Without a date, we are back to wishes and dreams.  

Relevant and compelling is key.   Our goals must be aligned and fueled by a compelling vision, a mission statement that taps into our passions, lights up our spirit, and calls us forth into courageous action, where we overcome obstacles as necessary.   Our compelling vision is the why and for the sake of what behind our dreams, our wishes, and our goals.   When you achieve this goal, what do you get?  

What is your compelling vision for your life?   What dream is so big, so juicy and exciting that you even hesitate to give a voice to it?   What longs to be created by you?   Go there!   Write it down, play with it, bring the details to life and start to craft a compelling vision for your life. How big can you be ...?

To get started, check out the future self and life purpose exercises below.


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Exercise

Meet Yourself -   Twenty Years from Today   There are no right answers in this exercise, only your answers. Be honest, spontaneous, and don't think too much about it. Find a quiet place and time to be alone with your thoughts.   Read through the following questions and write down whatever comes to mind. Feel free to close your eyes and visualize the answers to each questions before writing.   I magine yourself twenty years in the future.   See yourself in the place where you will be living in the year 2024.  

1. Where do you live? What does the dwelling look like, feel like?   What is the environment like there? Trees? Flowers? Concrete?
2. What does your future self look like? What style and color of clothes is he/she wearing? Other physical traits? What is the essence of this person?
3. What are the most important things you have accomplished in the last twenty years?   Ask your future self what he/she remembers most. Ask what you need to be most in tune with to get you from where you are now to where your future self is twenty years from now.
4. Who are the most important people in your future self's life? How are these people different from your current friends and family?
5. Create an image or an outfit that embodies the essence of your future self. Use this as a tool to connect with the feelings or being of your future self.

 The previous exercises were based on material from Co-Active Space 2001.

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From the Editor

Go with the "Flow"

I did the future-self visualization in the fall of 2002 when I was doing my training through the Coaches Training Institute. During the visualization I was asked what my future self was called, her essence. Immediately the word "Flow" came to mind. While debriefing the exercise with a coach, I had an opportunity to expand on what this meant to me. I got that my future self has the ability to go with the flow given any circumstance. She is a feminine warrior-athlete like Flo-Jo no matter her age or background. Then there is being "in the flow", a trusting and knowing that I'm divinely made and living my purpose.

I access my future self sometimes when I am stuck, even in seemingly simple things, like cleaning the clutter from my home. I simply ask "Would Flow hang on to this, give it away to someone who will use it, or just throw it away?" The decisions come fast and easy and I accomplish so much!! It is also helpful to access Flow in difficult times, like when I start worrying about my pregnancy and it allows me to let go of the worry. I recognize that my future self is really an energy that I always have access to, not a predictor of who I will become. So I use this tool to take me beyond my immediate circumstance, get into motion and be more at peace.