Some Inspiration for your MONDAY!
Some Inspiration for your MONDAY!
Happy Monday to you. Women in Transition Online is undergoing a facelift! During this transformation, no pun intended, I found myself in need of a little INSPIRATON.
This video and subsequent campaign is not new. If you are not already familiar, it started years ago with a video about a gentleman named Juan Mann from Australia and his simple desire to be hugged and to make others smile. It was a huge success with national coverage and even today racks up hits and comments on you tube. It was his desire to spread the campaign and message and a number of “Free Hugs” campaigns were mounted and filmed. The one below is from Hollywood, California and is one of my favorites. I love the song used and no matter what is happening in my life, when I watch this or any of the free hugs campaign videos I can’t help but smile and feel inspired. I hope it does the same for you. Enjoy.
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I hope you are having a fabulous day!
Warmly,
Deborah Hayes
Welcome to “You’re Beautiful”, Edition #2
Inspiring stories of fellow beautiful women of a certain age
It is my great pleasure to introduce you to Mrs. Christine Sherriff.
Her Pearl of Wisdom:
Now, at almost 61 years of age, I have found there are many chapters in one’s life and each chapter opens another. Dreams are achievable…never impossible if one puts their mind to it.
The Many Chapters of My Life:
As a child, I was extremely introverted and shy, which possibly added to my introspective nature. I grew up with two sisters; one was a twin. My family life was about as Ozzie and Harriet as a family could get. I married my sweetheart within two weeks after turning 20 years old and then motherhood came within a year which completely changed my focus and priorities on life. I also found myself not only being a homemaker and mother; I also worked in the medical field for nearly 20 years. As time progressed, I changed my vocation just before I turned 40 years old and became a Housing Rehabilitation Specialist assisting low income homeowners renovate their homes under a city funding through a HUD Grant program. I stayed in government work for almost 10 years.
During my last couple of years heading the Housing Rehabilitation program I became immersed in the Mind, Body and Soul aspect of Life and Health. I followed my dream and went to school to become a Massage Therapist. Now at the age of 50 I was developing an interest in “Healing Touch” using Energy Work as my primary therapy. I found I had a gift with intuitive healings, along with working with Tarot cards. I realized there is more to intuition then I ever imagined! I also became interested in writing poetry; which has helped me to recognize my inner feelings and have given me more of an insight and an appreciation for my many blessings.
During the time I was enjoying a new vocation I was diagnosed with what was thought to be Essential Tremor and I founded the first Essential Tremor Support Group in Arizona from 1999 to 2003. Several years later I discovered I had been misdiagnosed. What was thought to be Essential Tremor was actually Parkinson’s disease. My physical challenges have taught me patience and understanding of not only my own “opportunities”, I have been also given the privilege of meeting many who have met greater hurdles than I.
I believe spending less time thinking about me and more time thinking about others creates more personal growth and feeds my emotional and spiritual being. I have come a long way from the introverted and shy person I was as a child; I have grown and continue to grow. I still haven’t completely decided what I want to be when I grow up…all I know is that I have been blessed!
Life lessons from a tennis match?
I find it inspiring to see athletes who have found the strength and devotion to excel and succeed at what they love to do. As I watched the best of the best I began to ponder what set these athletes apart from what must be thousands of tennis players aspiring to become the best.
Surely there were moments, months and periods of time when they were discouraged and tempted to “give up.” During these matches there were a number of interviews with some of the coaches of these fine athletes and I noticed something that each kept mentioning. Aside from work ethic, conditioning and skills there was often the mention of belief and attitude.
After hearing that mentioned throughout the day I tried watching some of the close matches with that perspective in mind. I began to notice subtle differences between two players who were very closely matched in skills. There came a point in those long games where the one who allowed the possibility of losing to enter their mind lost the match. As I watched from this perspective I could see the moment in body language, facial expression and attitude. At times when the opponent would have spurts of revived success it was obvious the victor, regardless of the score at the moment, was convinced he or she would win. Regardless of what was happening in the match the winner looked and waited for the next opportunity to better apply their skills. The one who seemed to refuse to consider loss and never gave up ultimately became victorious. The winner possessed a one pointed focus and beief that never wavered.
The second thing I noticed; these athletes refused to focus on or discuss any recent or present injuries or problems. In every pre- game interview attempts to get the athlete to comment on or discuss the issue was flatly denied!
After watching several of these matches with this point of focus I began to make the important connection of belief, attitude and focusing only on the positive in all aspects of our lives.
As for the loser, the commentators often spoke of players reviewing these matches to discover parts of their game that need improvement and working on them for the future.
“When we seek to discover the best in others, we somehow bring out the best in ourselves.”
William Arthur Ward
As you move through your day focus on looking for and adopting the positive things you want in your life. The more positively you think the more positive your life will become. The choice is ours!
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NEW DOWNLOAD!!! Relax and visualize your dreams. Register for a site account and download your FREE mp3 Guided Visualization Meditation.
TO YOUR DREAMS
What’s your level of “happiness”?
Do you know what you really want in life? Have you taken the time to really slow down long enough to take stock of just where you are and where you want to go? What do you think of your life as it is?
As the years tick by and the roller coaster we call life continues on its nonstop ride it is easy to forget to take stock of what’s on the inside. It only makes sense. We do it for our financial well being. We do it for our health with regular visits to the doctor for checkups. Why is it that we don’t make a concentrated effort to look at our life, goals and level of happiness with equal diligence?
Here are ten big questions that might help you to illuminate what you are feeling about your life. Take some quiet time alone when you are comfortable and relaxed and answer these questions. Write as much as you want; write freely and without self consciousness. Use as much space as you would like and take as much time as you need. (You don’t have to finish this in one setting.)These questions are designed to expand you! No one needs to see this but you so be as honest with yourself as possible.
Ten Big Questions
1. What is working best in your life right now?
2. What is the most challenging aspect of your life right now?
3. What do you like about yourself?
4. What one aspect of yourself would you most like to change?
5. Are you willing to change it now?
6. What motivates you?
7. How do you deal with “failure” or making mistakes?
8. What typically holds you back from going after what you want?
9. What one big thing do you want more of in your life?
10. What are you willing to do to get it?
Before you can change something in your life you have to know what it is you want to change. You have to get absolutely clear with yourself. Find what it is that you want; not what society says you should want to make you happy. Taking the time to discover what you really want and why you haven’t achieved it are the first big steps towards getting it. Once you clearly define this you can devise a plan. You can get passionate about it. You can focus on it, expand your ideas, and find the tools and people who can help you. You can develop a pattern of certainty and believe it is inevitable…. and achieve it.
“There is nothing with which every man is so afraid as getting to know how enormously much he is capable of doing and becoming.”
Soren Kierkegaard (b. 1813, d. 1855)
Answer these questions! You might be surprised at what you discover!
v NEW DOWNLOAD!!! Relax and visualize your dreams. Register for a site account and download your FREE mp3 Guided Visualization Meditation.
TO YOUR DREAMS
Deborah Hayes, CTA Life Coach
Empowering women to live a life of consequence, a life without regrets that is your own unique version of the life you love. About Deborah
480-656-2026
deborah@womenintransitiononline.com