A GOLDEN EGG #8

  
       
 
The 'S' Word
  
       
 

I was privileged recently to hear John Whitmore speak. John Whitmore is an eminent man in the field of professional coaching. He is a fore father of the profession.

Anyway John was talking about the ‘S’ word. SPIRITUALITY. For him it is a relief and a blessing that business people now want to come out of the closet and talk about spirituality. A blessing because what good is all of the corporate strategies and plans if the overall meaning of existence of individuals is not considered. So if the leaders of our biggest businesses want to talk about their spirituality, what about you?

Last week a client of mine spoke of how excited he gets around September. For him it is the start of the New Year. A bit like being at school, a new term and a new year.
For him it is time to make resolutions and goals.

I reflected on this later. September is a time of new energies being released in to the world because the spiritual year begins in September.

Whether you are religious or not, you may choose to believe in something greater or bigger than you. Whatever it is this is your spiritual belief. E.g; I believe this is not my first existence on planet earth. I believe that in each incarnation I have lessons to learn. I may not always get A’s or 100% in my lessons, but I am learning. I believe in guardian angels and I believe I have spirit guides helping me and monitoring me. Even in my darkest hours I know I am not alone. And I believe there is a greater deity in command of all this. I therefore take comfort when life is hard and painful in knowing that it is something I can deal with and it is part of my learning.

‘‘’Four things come not back: the spoken word, the sped arrow,
time past and the neglected opportunity’’
Omar Ibnal-Halif

So as we go in to the new spiritual year, I am wondering whether you are ready to explore your spirituality. You may have all the outward signs of success, but have a deep hunger and longing inside. You may have achieved great success in your business life, but at the cost of personal relationships. Maybe you are so busy, but sometimes wonder if what you are doing will make any difference. Would you like to think there is real meaning to your life? It may not be easy to consider these things. Opening yourself up to live intimately with the world is not an automatic process. Be present in your moments of joy and find courage to live when there is no joy. Your strength will be found in your longing to live a fuller life and in your willingness to settle for nothing less.

Here are some questions for you to ask yourself

1.

What do I want to accomplish in my life?
One way of thinking about this is to imagine you are at your own funeral. A good friend gets up to read the eulogy. What would you wish they are saying about you? How would you like to be remembered? Write all this down. What can you do to begin to create this new you?

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak,
But their echoes are truly endless."
Mother Theresa

2.

Do I go through life blinkered and only seeing my point of view?
Or am I flexible, willing to listen to others and hear their ideas and thoughts? What can I do to be more open and generous and compassionate to others?

Here is a great story that illustrates the above!

A battle ship was on exercise at sea in bad weather. The captain was on the bridge. It was foggy. Just after dark the look out spotted a light on the starboard side. The captain asked if it was steady or moving. The look out replied the light was steady meaning they were on direct collision course with that ship! The captain ordered the lookout signal to the other ship

'Change course 20 degrees. We are on collision course.'
The signal came back 'Advisable for you to change course.'
The captain signalled 'I am a captain. Change course 20 degrees.'
'I am a seaman second class. You had better change course 20 degrees' came the reply.
The captain was furious. He sent back ' I am a battleship. Change course!'
Back came the signal 'I am a lighthouse' The captain changed course.

You see how your limited perception of your reality can limit and endanger you? What will you do to open your mind to the world of others?

3.

How am I making a contribution to the world?
If you are not making a contribution, then you probably feel empty at times and wonder what life is all about. What can you do to rectify this? How would you feel you were making a difference and contributing? Some people volunteer for charities. May be there is someone local to you, perhaps and elderly person. How could you help them? I am not talking about changing the world in one go, but just about small meaningful acts of kindness.

A dear friend of mine recently told me this:

I was complaining about the state of the government. A friend told me that I could not change things because I was just one man. I took my carpenters pencil, and walked up to the wall and wrote in large letters:


ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS ONLY ONE MAN
JOHN KENNEDY WAS ONLY ONE MAN
WINSTON CHURCHILL WAS ONLY ONE MAN
I AM ONLY ONE MAN

Then I scratched out the word "only" in each of the four sentences, looked him straight in the eye, and said "yes. You speak truthfully that I am only one man. But you have the wrong inflection and meaning behind the sentence, and you should not include the word only. We can all make a difference, in some way.

My friend is a very wise man.

4.

What is most important to me in my life?
When I work with clients I ask them to look down a list of values and pick their top 5. (Values are the moral principles that you live you life by). Then I ask them to throw away the 2 least important values. This is tough to do. Try it! Then from those 3 we establish the order of priority for those 3 values. And if you could only have one of those which would it be? Below is a list of values. You may wish to add more. Pick your top 5 and then throw 2 away. What is the priority of those that are left? Which is your number one value? How are you meeting that value in your life? How are you contravening it? For you to feel peace and be totally congruent in your life, you must live and breathe your values. How can you do this?

Values

- Honesty - Trust - Integrity
- Love - Wisdom - Truth
- Knowledge - Challenge - Excellence
- Dignity - Self Respect - Family
- Health - Peace - Effort
- Freedom - Independence - Creativity
- Autonomy - Wealth - Achievement
- Growth - Spirituality - Laughter
- Power - Competence - Fitness
- Religion - Popularity - Security
- Status - Winning - Teamwork
- Respect - Stability - Confidence
- Self Worth - Quality  

"How you spend your time defines who you are."
Oprah Winfrey (1954 - )
American TV host and producer,
publisher, philanthropist

Create an affirmation for yourself right now. E.g.; Every day in every way I am becoming better, and better and better. Think about your personal needs, service to others and your relationships. Send this out in to the world. Picture what you will look like, sound like and feel like when you are living your better life. Send this out in to the world too.

So now you have a list of answers and some ideas of what you can do live a more spiritual life. Now may be a good time to re evaluate where you are in your life by clicking here
http:// www.goldeneggtraining.com/lifecycle.html

In order for you to make the most of the renewed energies around you,
I am re introducing my Life Coaching special offer
4 x 30 minute telephone sessions for £80.00.
If you wish to take up this offer please click here
info@goldeneggtraining.com and contact me.


"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)
Indian activist

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Shona McFarlane
Master Practitioner of NLP, Executive Coach & Life Coach
www.goldeneggtraining.com