motivation

burning questions with jen louden, the comfort queen

New in town? Welcome. You can subscribe to my RSS feed, or my not-so-daily email - which is the best way to go, really. xoxo Danielle

"Comfort Queen." Who doesn't want to meet the woman who earned that title?

Jen Louden is the author of the Oprah-loved The Woman's Comfort Book, a coach who describes her typical client as "smart, curious, has a pretty good sense of humor, and doesn’t suffer fools lightly." (sound familiar?) And one of the innovators of the "virtual retreat."

Her next virtual retreat is right around the corner: Refresh, Reawaken, & Rediscover Who You are in Ways that Truly Work, February 12th-14th.

I especially love Jennifer via video. When she talks about getting the "renewal I need for my soul..." I want it. When she talks about going from "the grind to the organic flow..." I'm nodding. I believe the twinkle in her eye. I start fantasizing about radical self-care and spa time, spirit-centered creative retreats, and meandering to the beat of my heart and I...feel comforted already.

1. What do you know to be true, unquestionably beyond doubt, certain with every cell of your being, completely, passionately, righteously certain?

That I love the bejuses out of my daughter. That befriending myself is better than kicking myself. That I am never alone. That little in life is fixed. That planning isn't the same as creating. That depletion is another name for hiding your genius. That creating stuff makes me happy. That it's not about me. That Bob loves me. That nature restores my faith. That my body is the way in. That yoga heals. That books are a miracle. That women will bring about the change we are hungry for. That life is a hoot. Oh, and expect the Spanish Inquisition and be pleasantly surprised when all goes well.

2. What did you decide to stop doing in order to be the real Jen, instead of the gotta-have-it-all, do-it-all Wonder Woman version so many of us are burning out for?

Anything to do with details - I'm a big idea person and very bad with the details. Tracking things. Spelling. House cleaning. Cooking. Sending birthday cards. Committees - never never ever. I'm trying to learn how to hire someone who can help me hold my business. There is an energetic plus detail letting go that is next for me.

3. What happens when women find their voice?

What doesn't happen? When I wrote my first book in 1992, The Woman's Comfort Book, that was my feminist manifesto. True self-care liberates self-trust and trust in something larger than yourself and that creates a chain reaction from "I will keep my paycheck husband thank you very much" to "I don't have to work at a job I hate. I can go back to school / start my own business."

Claiming our own lives and our own desires can start to feel hackneyed as in old hat, already done, so basic. When in fact, claiming our voice, our selves, will always be the essential act of growing up. Ignore it or belittle it at your own peril. (more...)

 

cake walks + fire walks: beginner’s mind

I walked on hot coals once - barefoot. Across a bed of white hot embers about twenty feet long. When you walk off the fiery path you step into a puddle of water and you can hear your feet sizzle and see steam rise. And lo', thanks to mind over matter, I didn't even blister. Hot damn.

I raced home at midnight, under a full moon, with a note card tucked into my Levi's: "I, Veronica Danielle LaPorte walked on fire. I can do anything."

Would I do it again? Ummm....I....dunno. The evening of that fire walk workshop I asked some of the repeat walkers how it was for them. I was surprised to hear that a lot of them burned their feet on their second walk. "Say whu?! But you already slammed these coals once." The prevailing response: "Yeah, but I got cocky the second time around." Every walk requires a fresh meditation.

Ask any athlete or elite performer. Writers, salesmen, speakers, very big project managers, wide-awake lovers: Success can dull your senses. Each win is a new win, earned with intense focus and an open heart.

Do not take your expertise or natural talent for granted. Stay awake. Hunt. Kill your old material. Listen for new information. Tell a different story in a different way. Crush your gimmicks. Let the page be white. Kiss him like it's your first kiss.

Let your heart race and concentrate. Then and only then, begin.

 

life is subject to change: what happened when I raised my rates

I announced via Twitter and Facebook last week that my Fire Starter Session fee was moving to $500 (from $300.) And I also mentioned it in my post that went out late last night. And then...

Deluge. Chuck wagon outta control. Four-alarm fire. Standing room only.

I've been wrestling with how to handle the gorgeous demand. And my conclusion is this: I need to handle the demands of my heart and loved ones first, then career (which is an extension of my heart.) The profundity of that statement for me is colossal. It's taken me yearrrrs to be able to say it and mean it. Before I grew up (which is really just in the last few weeks, actually,) I would have tried to fit everyone in, even if it meant weekends, and getting a baby sitter, and apologizing to my man because, once again, "I'll be in my office tonight."

And in this case, I almost went there. I adore my Fire Starter clients and I'm so passionate about entrepreneurs rocking it with integrity, that I was leaning toward booking into spring 2015 at my old rate and "fitting it all in somehow." Why? Because I don't want you to think I'm a discompassionate bitch. Because money is fun. Because I used to think self neglect was cool. (It's not.)

The logic and love of raising my Fire Starter session fee:

a) It's worth it. (Any clients who want to chime in on this, uh, feel free to back me up here.)

"Danielle’s Fire Starter session is invaluable for you at any stage of your career --from early idea to well established rut. She is thorough, quick and intuitive. Her soft spoken style is deceptive. This woman won’t mince words to let you know what you need to hear. And you will be better for the listening. Her questions alone are priceless, but add the brainstorming, cheerleading, taped session and list of resources and you can’t go wrong."
- Ten People to Rock Your Career in 2010
CoachSpotlight.com, Pearl Mattenson

b) 2010 is all about creating content that can serve many thousands of people. I need focused time to do that. I love writing in long, long stretches, getting absorbed, and consumed, and used up by the gods of poetic sound bites and how-to's. I need space to make stuff that will be effectual and lasting ... and sell like white hot cakes!

c) I want to live more. Repeated late nights "catching up" on things leaves you with the feeling that you are always needing to...catch up.

d) I'm keeping it pointed to where I want it to go: creativity, freedom, passive income, wider broadcasting, multimedia. (I'll talk more about how my Hedgehog allows me to stay so focused on this next week.)

All that to say:
My $300 Fire Starter slots are (more than) full, and effective immediately, I'll be booking in at $500. Email me directly to book your session.

Further clarity:
I work exclusively with active and progressive entrepreneurs, or those on the verge of breaking out with their own enterprise. I am not a business or career transition coach (read: I suck at it.) I’m a High Priestess of Practicality and I'm about standing ideas up in the most elegant, kick-ass way possible. Strategy makes me hot.

When in-transition job folk or people who want continual coaching to lift a project off the ground come to me, I steer them to the following coaches. Each of them is amazing.

: Lianne Raymond is a clear-thinking, strong-hearted, Martha Beck-certified coach. Only works with women.

: Ronna Detrick has "renegade conversations." She is spiritually-based and powerful.

: Tanya Geisler is a strong and compassionate...and funny.

: Dyana Valentine is a brilliant force of nature who has kicked my creative butt into shape. She's gifted, I work with her regularly.

: Michelle Ward at When I Grow Up Coach is a high energy Gen Y'r focused on getting people to their best career.

: Hiro Boga is a masterful intuitive. Not a coach or business developer, but gifted at surfacing the issues that may be blocking success. I recently had a session with her and it was stunning.

If you're a coach and you want to say so here in the comments, feel free to do some self-promo. Today, I welcome it.

If it's apropos, take a page from my book. What do you value and what's the value you give? How can your career support your life? Are you pointed in the direction you want to go?

With much Love,
Danielle
xo

 

the secret to self promotion: radiance and the facts, jack

Dear Danielle,

"Can I ask a question? I love working for myself and don't want it any other way, but it seems that when you work for yourself you have to be a salesperson. I'm not a huge fan of sales people and hate feeling like I'm pushing something on someone. If you have any opinions on that I'd love to hear them!"
- Dani Griffin (via Facebook)

Dear Dani and the leagues of people who hate self promotion:

I never really understood people who are loathe to sell themselves or the stuff they make. But then again, my whole twenties (okay, and thirties) was solar-powered by the rays of my seduction. From boys to gigs to new age notions, I had a deal for you! "I got what you want and you don't even know you want it. And I make house calls."

Now? Meh. I've got what I've got, which is a lot. If that warms your cockles, let's talk. If not, my engine is running, and I trust that your tribe is waiting for you elsewhere. Meep meep.

Do I sell my self? Damn straight I do. Everyday, all day. I'm doing it right now. I'll do it on Twitter, CBC TV, Facebook, this week's speaking gig for the Travel & Media Association of Canada, and when the waiter asks me what I do for a living. But I'm no longer TRYING TO CONVINCE YOU TO BELIEVE AND BUY. Rather, (and this has been one of my most gnarly, redeeming spiritual journeys) I radiate and state the facts. That's it. And it's a helluva lot more efficient than sales.

So, why do you hate self-promotion?

1. Because...it makes you feel like you're pushing something on someone?
Passion is a force - and an essential one at that. If you're not passionate about your service or your product, you shouldn't be selling it in the first place. If you're not passionate you have to fake it, and that'll just make you feel like a sleazeball.

But let's assume you are fully and truly turned on, and you're offering the world something that you wholeheartedly believe in. Repeat: you're anchored with integrity to purpose and meaning. That being the case, and the premise for everything I'm about to say after this, let's proceed:

Don't burn energy trying to assume how people will perceive you. What some people will read as enthusiastic stamina, others will interpret as pushy intruder. It's your job to show up as you, passion and all, and let the right customers make up their mind about you.

2. Because...you're shy?
You have three choices here: a) Get over it. Nothing like motivation to put food on the table or achieve your life dreams to cure shyness. It happens all the time. b) Let someone else do the selling for you - a writer, a rep, an agent, a virtual assistant-type. c) Pray that your good intentions and the high quality or originality of your offering will attract customers and prosperity. This tact, on it's own, never ever works.

3. Because it's not a "strength" of yours?
see #2.

4. Because you're afraid that people will think less of you? That you'll be less of an artist, social steward or true professional if you're hawking your wares or blowing your own horn.

Then I have bad news for you: everything you do is promotion, so you may as well do it with aplomb. The good news? Everything you do is promotion You are always radiating. From the personalized note that you tuck into your product shipment, to what you say at a party when someone asks you what you do, to how you pitch the art gallery or the corporation to get the big account -- to the message you leave on a Facebook page.

HAPPY SELF PROMOTION =
RADIATE your passion + STATE THE FACTS of what that passion generates - the results it brings for you and your customers.

I'll go first: I'm really passionate about the practical applications of love and consciousness in life and entrepreneurship. I write and speak about it in every way possible. I ran a think tank without any formal education, I wrote a book that got the attention of Oprah producers, and now, in my current incarnation, I'm booked four to six weeks in advance with clients - many of them say they got enough love 'n strategy in one hour to blow their circuits. I'm writing my next two books now, and will launch them online this year.

That's the passion, backed by the facts. Sometimes, at the start of your journey, all you may have in your inventory to "sell" is passion. And sometimes, that's enough to open doors.

If you're loving what you do and believing that it's going to make a positive difference in people's lives - whether it's your wedding photography, your coaching methodology, or your zero point energy invention, then, you my friend, are ahead of the game. You're light years down the path from the sorry sods who are grinning and bearing it in soul-sucking j-o-b-s.

So please, don't devalue your currency. I'm so emphatic about this, I'm willing to get all Hallmark on you: a gift isn't a gift until you give it away. Put a bow on it.

With much Love,
Danielle
xo

P.S.

Tune in Tuesday for Part 2: A Meditation for Self Promotion

 

what are your words for the new year?

Every new year some words choose me, like a magic spell to be cast on the year ahead. This year's ensemble showed up as it's own little poem of truth: Pure Love Innovates.

pure
This may or may not mean something to you, but I have five planets in Virgo (tho' my Sun sign is Gemini, which explains why I do what I do: communicate to the nth.) All that Virgo makes for an obsession with purifying, detoxing, Zen-ifying, eradicating all forms of physical and mental clutter from the known universe, and running through the desert naked. Also explains my kin with fire - the greatest purifier of all. It's not as heavy as it sounds.

• free from anything of a different, inferior, or contaminating kind; free from extraneous matter: pure gold; pure water.
• unmodified by an admixture; simple.
• clear; free from blemishes: pure skin.
• (of literary style) straightforward; unaffected.
• abstract or theoretical (opposed to applied ): pure science.
• without any discordant quality; clear and true: pure tones in music.
• absolute; utter; sheer: to sing for pure joy.
• being that and nothing else.
• clean, spotless, or unsullied: pure hands.
• untainted with evil; innocent: pure in heart.
• ceremonially or ritually clean.
• free of or without guilt; guiltless.
• independent of sense or experience: pure knowledge.

love

"L-o-v-e" is so overdone, used, abused, misused. This year it occurred to me that Joni Mitchell and I might have one more thing in common than just our citizenship: "I've looked at love from both sides now / from give and take, and still somehow / it's love's illusions I recall / I really don't know love at all." I want to know it and give it. I want to be loving in every way possible.

Marriage is not a love affair,
it's an ordeal.
It is a religious exercise, a sacrament,
the grace of participating in another life.

If you go into marriage with a program,
you will find that it won't work.

Successful marriage
is leading innovative lives together,
being open, non-programmed.
It's a free fall: how you handle each new thing as it comes along.

As a drop of oil on the sea,
you must float,
using intellect and compassion
to ride the waves.

- Joseph Campbell

innovates
admit, bring forward, bring in, coin, conceive, commence, develop, discover, enter, establish, evolve, found, generate, give birth to, hatch, inaugurate, initiate, induct, initiate, install, invent, kick off, launch, make, open up, organize, pioneer, plan, preface, present, produce, set up, spark, start, unveil, usher in.

The year is New. So are you. See you on the other side.
xo
Danielle

 

stop doing list: part 2 whereby i dictate what to stop

My What's Your Stop Doing List? yielded some cheers. And multiple poetic replies. So poetic that it raised my brow. My right eyebrow arches when I'm being scrutinizing in that really helpful keener (potentially annoying) way. All of the psycho-emotional lovely answers that poured in here and on Twitter and Facebook had me surmise that when it comes to literal to-do's that should be converted into to-don'ts, we habitually resist. My poll was partly a bust.

So I'm flagging the STOP SIGN. Because I want you to free up oodles of time to groove with the Great Essentials of life - and so you can read all the new books I'm launching. Priorities.

15 ACTIVITIES TO STOP DOING THAT WILL FREE YOUR TIME AND YOUR MIND...AND THE REST WILL FOLLOW

1. Stop checking email obsessively. Have you heard? If you're checking email every five minutes, you're checking it 24,00 times a year. Unclutterer.com has some good e-ddiction perspectives.
2. Stop paying everyone else before you pay yourself. It will ease your stress and less stress = more time. (Disclaimer: I have, more than once, paid my staff when there wasn't enough cash flow to pay me as well. That's just leadership.)
3. Stop lugging. Double up on tools. I have two sets of: power cords, mice, earphones, and makeup kits.
4. Stop last minute, rushing, drag-your-ass trips to the grocery store, bank, and video store. HAVE IT DELIVERED. Get a food delivery service for your organics, set up direct bank deposits and auto payments, get DVDs by mail.
5. Stop doing the tasks that are not in your natural skill set, or suck time from doing what you do best that earns the moula. OUTSOURCE. The upspringing of Virtual Assistants is a phenomenon that enables you to get anything done for anywhere from $4 to $70/an hour, from India to Nebraska, from Twitter pages to legal docs. Invest in your freedom.
6. Stop going out of your way to get to a computer. This may sound contradictory on a time-save list but, I think i-Phones can save time and create space. The "I don't want people to think they can get a hold of me anytime" argument is weak. Master your domain and give yourself the POWER OF MOBILITY.
7. Stop shopping for and buying gifts that need to be wrapped. It's a rule that means you buy experiences and gift certificates for things like, concert and conference tickets, magazine subscriptions, MP3s.
8. Stop cleaning your house yourself. I seethe with resentment when I'm cleaning my stove because I could be doing something I love that makes me money. I did the math: in the three hours it takes to really clean the house, I could do a Fire Starter Session or write an article that would bring me $300 to $3000. Or nap.
9. Stop with the perfectionism. Give people a chance to rise to the occasion. My kid can dress himself (rubber boots and surf shorts look great!) Staff can figure out most things (mistakes are useful.)
10. Stop doing it alone. Team with experts. A great coach, designer, consultant, can create quantum leaps.
11. Stop subscribing. Rather than just hitting delete, go through the steps (too many steps too often) to keep your inbox squeaky clean.
12. Stop taking home "free" stuff - pens, kitsch-filled gift bags from networking events, ugly volunteer t-shirts. You will spend time moving it around or pawning it off at your neighbour's yard sale.
13. Stop forcing yourself to finish every book you pick up because you think the ghost of your English teacher is watching.
14. Stop dying your hair. At least consider it. For that matter, examine all of your beauty synthetics and waxes and plucks and extensions and wonder how hot and less-stressed you'd be without all that maintenance. Acrylic nails do not help you be more successful. And my theory is that the world is rife with bottle-blondes who'd look much better as brunettes.
15. As for time-sucking fears and neuroses, maybe you need the 5 minute shrink appointment: (click to view video)

 

lady gaga and your dreams come true

{if reading by email, click title to view video}

About four years after Stefani Germanotta was performing unplugged at NYU, she picked up a Grammy and started a sold out world concert tour, as Lady Gaga. A lot can happen in a short time.

What does Lady Gaga have to do with your life intention? She’s the poster chicka for swift success. Not overnight success (she started playing piano at age four, she opened up for New Kids on the Block, she got dropped by her first record label.) But swift success. Swift, like momentum and velocity. Swift, like one US presidential term, the time until your baby starts pre-school, the time it takes for you to go through two cell-phones.

For anyone who is dreaming, striving, believing, aiming, add this to your arsenal of faith n' sweat: you need to believe in speed.

When you believe that things can happen quickly for you, you’re adding another level of creative input into your life script.

This is a creative exercise (as in creating your reality,) suspend these notions: you’ve got to pay your dues, it’s all in the timing, one step at a time, don’t get ahead of yourself, good things come to those who wait.

Now, believe in speed. Imagine that within about four years you could have what you’re striving for, and much much more. Think about everything amazing that could be happening for you just one year from today ... then quadruple the amazingness. Think bigger. Imagine huge. Ponder colossal. Feel the zoom in your cells. Meditate on the feeling of arriving.

What happens when certain, big, success feels nearer to you? Your projected amazing future begins to rub off on you. You exhibit successful tendencies, you make more confident choices, you stick your chin out, and you keep your stamina up. You get in front of time. You start thinking like a star. Rising. Faster.

THE EVOLUTION OF GAGA

 

burning questions with the queen of uncluttering, erin doland

Erin Rooney Doland always impresses me. She's A+ organized, but not chilly 'n uptight about it. She's a ruthless time manager, but always has time to help. She hangs with Quakers and speaks to the high-powered women's groups. And she's smart, really smart.

She is: Editor-In-Chief of the uber popular Unclutterer.com, a Real Simple.com columnist, and a mama to a new baby and a new book: Unclutter Your Life in One Week: A 7-Day Plan to Organize Your Home, Your Office, and Your Life, with a foreword by David Allen and a glowing endorsement from my (other) favourite organizer, Peter Walsh.

Erin Doland's motto: simplicity is revolutionary. Clear the clutter so you can pursue what you love the most.

1. What do you know the most about? (more...)

 

the ridiculous pursuit of being well-rounded

Multi-disciplinary, general studies, political correctness, easy to get along with, in moderation, “nice”...these are all ways that we polish off our edges to be socially acceptable and useful - even though it's your edges that give you traction and make you interesting. Your “edge” - where the genuine You meets external reality, is where your strengths are, your genius, and it’s way more fun hanging out there than in the middle ground.

Being well-rounded is highly over-rated.

Employers who are trying to multiply the strengths of people are missing the point. Entrepreneurs trying to do it all are bound to go in circles. When you focus on building on your natural strengths, on doing what comes easiest to you, you get some serious momentum. It may be counter-intuitive, it’s certainly counter-culture because it’s been drilled into to us to work hard (all you Catholics and Ivy Leaguers say hey!) but truly, optimizing your second nature is the surest way to get a return on your investment.

Ever since I read Markus Buckingham’s The Truth About You, I’ve been stopping strangers on the street. “Hey, get this. You know what a strength is? A strength is what you do that makes you feels strengthened, vital! And...wait, it gets better, you know what a weakness is? A weakness is stuff you do that makes you feel weakened!”

Deceptively simple. Revolutionary.

Why does this make me wanna do back-flips? Because this changes everything, people. And it goes back to my root theory in life, that it’s all about feelings. It means that all that crap that you don’t really like to do, but that you’re really good at ... you get to dump it! No more faking it to make it.

So what about good old-fashioned hard work? I’m all for it - when you’re moving towards the real you. No more trying to be a PR genius when what you do best is paint landscapes or make the widgets (hire a PR genius.) No more trying to come up with blue sky five year plans when you’re a short-term focused details guy (get a coach or a visionary friend to help you see the possibilities.) For me, that means I will never care about cooking the Thanksgiving turkey, being good at parties, or rocking Excel. Never gonna happen.

THE STRONG / WEAK EXERCISE
Buckingham has a powerful exercise that I loved. For one week I wrote down what made me feel strong and what made me feel weakened/drained. This showed up on my "weak" list: unqualified meetings make me feel like a loogan.

I was scheduled to have tea with an acquaintance of an acquaintance. I trusted the referral and so I made the date in haste, with a quick “sure, how about the café by so and so’s.”

A few weeks later when I was walking to the meeting, I was feeling really resentful and pissy. WEAKENED. Because I hadn’t bothered to ask, I had no idea why the person actually wanted to meet. And I was feeling like I’d betrayed my time, my priorities. (And sure enough, the meeting could have happened in 15 minutes over the phone and I wouldn’t have had to find parking or rush to pick up my kid.) Conclusion: I feel strong when I ask, when I clarify, when I know The Point. I feel weak when don’t value my own time.

The masters focus on what they do best ... on their NATURAL CAPACITIES. They stay in their zone ... and the zone is what feels good, damn good.

So I what makes you feel strong?
Do more of it. And more still. Find ways to get even better at it, sharpen your saw as the old master of effectiveness, Stephen Covey puts it. Push your edge. Dare to be focused on your natural capacities. Say yes to what you love, what inspires you, what lights you up. It takes some kahunas, but it beats well-rounded mediocrity any day.

. . . . . . . .

FIND MARCUS BUCKINGHAM
His site
The Truth About You
Now, Discover Your Strengths
Twitter: @mwbuckingham

 

how to make the most of being toast: embracing burnout

"AND THEN SHE CLEARLY UNDERSTOOD.
IF HE WAS FIRE,
SHE MUST BE WOOD."

- Joan of Arc, by Leonard Cohen
(the most gorgeous version
of which is sung by Jennifer Warnes)

I admit it: I'm burned out. Fried. Toasted.

But this time, there's something satisfying and tasty about being...roasted by the life I've chosen. I'm reveling in it. Rather than the usual "How'd I let this happen?, or, I'm weak, or, I should take better care of myself..." admonishments (from myself and others,) I'm curling up to my tenderized being and I'm really very pleased with the state of me.

I'm devoted to tending the fire of knowledge, to blazing my own trail. Burn out is a natural part of shining. Naturally. I welcome it now.

Because I'm such a Typically Tough Cookie, admitting to burn out is not my first inclination. My response to the creeping psyche crispies has been to put on more mascara and tighten my bra straps. But the evidence has been surfacing:

YOU KNOW YOU'RE BURNED OUT WHEN:

1. Your friend asks where you want to go for breakfast and you say, "Anywhere they serve mashed potatoes and chocolate cake."
2. You start to feel a whole new sympathy for Britney Spears' last breakdown because, "Poor thing, the pressure to be skinny, manage your millions, raise your babies, and remember your dance routine must be outfreakingrageous. Someone needs to nominate her for the Nobel."
3. When asked what famous historical figure you'd like to have dinner with, you choose Joan of Arc, "because I want to know if she was a nut-bar or truly vocationally inspired."
4. You start listening to inordinate amounts of music from high school (for me that would be The Cure) and Gregorian chants.
5. You wear a hat, sunglasses, and a scarf to the grocery store. You wish you could wear your Uggs to business meetings.
6. You generally feel like you're walking through the world minus a layer of epidermis and it's really windy outside.
7. You totally relate to this "Overnight Success" video from Chris Brogan.
8. When you hear some tragic news about brutality and violence, you want to collapse into a ball of sobbing guilt because, clearly, you're not doing enough to save the human race from it's mortal coil.
9. Your monastic fantasies are unceasing. You dream of living on an island only accessible by boat (but where, magically, FedEx and Pizza Hut still deliver.)

Yep, you done be fried.

RE-FRAMING BURN OUT INTO A BEAUTIFUL POSSIBILITY:

1. You run long and hard, you get tired. That's a fact. Marathoners don't criticize themselves after a race for being exhausted. They rest.
2. Rest and excitement don't have to be mutually exclusive terms. You can have some down time and still bubble with the anticipation of getting back into the game.
3. My wonder goddess coach, Dyana Valentine puts it this way: "Your energetic vulnerability is helping you get clear on what you need." Damn, that's goood.
4. Take stock of all you've accomplished. You've come far, baby. And you've got the road rash and the muscle definition to prove it.
5. "Life balance" is an insidious myth. Picasso, Oprah, Steve Jobs, Einstein, Maria Callas - they weren't aiming for balance, they were aiming to rock their genius, and they've all had periods of burn out.
6. Cozy comfort hiding quiet time can make for some amazing new ideas.
7. On the seventh day, even God rested.
8. As the legend goes, when the Phoenix resurrects from the flames, she is even more beautiful than before.

I will start a fresh fire and jump back into it. I'm gathering kindling in between unpacking my suitcases and naps. I've got Bigger Than Ever Plans. And maybe six months or six years from now, I will be burned out, spent, deeply satiated and in need of cocoa and solace again. I'm looking forward to it.

. . . . . . .

Send my note cards 'round the world...when you care enough to say it in black & white.