Goals and Growth

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”

― Jalaluddin Mevlana Rumi

Goals

I’ve been setting goals each new year since I can remember. As January gets underway I take them on, tirelessly pouring myself into meeting them by year end. Note the use of the word tireless rather than joyful. If this sounds at all familiar you may want to read on. Turns out there is another way to do this.

While I was well aware of my pattern of driving myself I was not fully aware of how hard I really was on myself in order to meet my goals. Since the goals I set are always just out of my reach I assumed the only way to meet them was to work even harder.

Fortunately for me, and those I live with, I began to experience a great discomfort around this driven, harder working me. To be real honest, I didn’t really like her. She got things done alright, but the process was becoming less sustainable. The real problem was that with a lifetime of book writing ahead, my goal was to write more rather than less.

I knew something needed to change and it was most likely me. Interestingly enough, this realization came when I was midway through a Narrative Health Coach program. I enrolled in the program in early 2017 to discover a better way to help clients who were challenged by the lifestyle changes they needed to make in order to restore their health. I selected Narrative Health Coaching above the plethora of coaching programs now available because it focuses on the personal storyline of individuals and how to shift it.

Growth

While I enrolled to help my clients, the personal awareness I gained was divinely timed. So here I was learning about the power of personal narratives – the story we believe to be true about ourselves – and my own personal narrative began sending off alarm bells. After a point, the bells were so distracting I knew addressing them was my only choice. I decided to engage with the experiential learning style that has served me very well over my lifetime and hire a coach for myself.

I wanted specifically to develop a kinder, gentler approach to my writing goals. While I do very well with organizing time schedules and systems to meet my goals, I was in need of a set of eyes to cast a light into my blind spots. I found exactly that in an Integral Master Coach™, who happened to be a published author as well.

As this year closes, I am wrapping up four months of being coached. I could not be more pleased with the growth experienced and the tools I take away in order to support all future writing intentions. I began my 3rd book last month while I was still meeting with my coach. Confidently, I set off, but after two weeks I crashed, old habits colliding with the newly formed. I was so grateful to have the support I needed in order to take a few steps back, reflect, and try again with greater success.

The Narrative Health Coach training program I am enrolled continues into the first half of 2018. I enter the mentorship stage in January which permits me to soon offer coaching plans for new clients. I am thrilled to be able to provide a bridge for those who, like me in my writing, want deeply to make a change but need new skills and support to do just that. Stay tuned for more information as my plans develop.

Changes

Looking ahead, I embrace the newness and potential of 2018. I bring a new perspective to book writing and enter the final stretch of Narrative Health coursework that will lead to certification by the International Consortium for Health and Wellness Coaching. These two goals along with my teaching schedule led to my making a slight reduction in office hours for clients.

As of January 1st, my practice hours for clients, local and remote will be:

Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday 11-4:30

Now in closing, I suggest you take some quiet time in the days ahead to reflect on your own personal goals for 2018. Consider the story you tell yourself about those goals. Might there be a kinder, gentler approach? Might some growth and support in meeting your goals be in order? If so, consider what that might look like for you and take the steps to see that your needs are met.

Wishing you all a kinder, gentler 2018.