Photo Credit: @perspectives_by_paige
Welcome to the Cultivate Growth Newsletter where I hope to stimulate thought, offer experiments and add value to your journey!
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Let’s Talk Spring Cleaning
…Interestingly, from a psychological perspective, spring cleaning contributes to our well-being by providing cognitive clarity, stress reduction and enhanced mood.
Empty Your Cup
…Too often, we let the tea pour onto the floor because we come with a cup full of our own knowledge, experience, or expertise. We forget to make room for curiosity, observations and new learning…
How Did You Grow?
As 2023 turns into 2024, I invite you to pause and conduct a personal growth check…
(Never) Too Old To Play?
…In a world dominated by responsibilities and stress, incorporating play into our adult lives can be a game-changer…
How’s That Voice In Your Head?
…Self-talk is our inner voice and it can vary in its degree of amplification and frequency. Our self-talk can have a big influence on how we see ourselves, the world around us and which actions we take or don't take…
Are You Feedback Friendly?
From the pain in our knee to the compliment a friend gives to our job evaluation -- we are constantly receiving feedback… Receiving feedback well involves being able to manage emotional triggers, see ourselves in new ways and choose whether & how we use the info…
Help! No One Is Listening
Communication is a two-way street. While we can't control other's behaviors, we can control our own and we can have influence…
Lighten Your Load
With longer days and warmer weather, we naturally shed layers…. What "layer" you could shed?
Growing Patience
In pursuit of this virtue, I've realized:
Patience takes practice. You can't simply will it to happen.
It's a choice…
Chasing Work-Life Balance?
The quest for work-life balance is akin to Roadrunner, seesaws and playing tug of war. Always out of reach, never 50/50 and if one side wins it's at the expense of the other…
The Nuances of Friendship
Friendship is the gift of presence, heart and clarity. To have a good friend and to be a good friend are two experiences that help define a well lived life…
Are You Tapping In?
Tapping into our strengths gives us a sense of competence and agency. It moves the needle, creates traction & fuels momentum…
Thinking Back … Looking Forward
As we come to the end of 2022, I invite you to take time to reflect on your year as you prepare to move forward into 2023.
Thinking back can provide valuable information to help us adapt to change and create new paths…
In Between Periods
…We need to create our own in-between periods. In other words, we need to Get Off the Ice. It might be as quick as 3-7 seconds, the equivalent of a breath or two. Or 15 minutes like in a hockey game. The idea here is to pause, not come to a grinding halt. It’s a space that allows us to interrupt our automatic reactions to life's events and the stories we construct from those reactions…
Stuck?
Ha -- Maybe not the best advice...
…stuck .... in a rut (I've always thought or done it this way) ...in the past (if only, I should have, it was better then...) ...in the middle (I need to save money & I only live once)…
Feeling the Crunch?
We all experience crunch times -- work deadlines, papers due, navigating traffic to be somewhere... there is often that moment when time is compressing and there's more to be done. Life pushes and pulls at us from all angles.
Result? We experience Stress…
Put the Good in Goodbye
…No goodbye is the same. Yet in all goodbyes, there is the thread of separation. We also leave with something - a memory, a lesson, a feeling.
In its essence, a Good Goodbye has qualities of both acceptance & of letting go…
Overcoming Resistance
…Ever feel like Sisyphus? Making progress, creating change, & launching new ideas also experience these opposing forces. In their 2021 book, The Human Element, Loran Nordgren & David Schonthal offer practical insights to help overcome the resistance that new ideas and efforts for change are bound to encounter…
Fear…Not Your Favorite Friend
First off, clearly not all fear is bad. Knowing when there is a real tiger on the path ahead is a key factor for survival…
With My Magic Wand, I Give You…
If I could bestow two traits -- I would give everyone Consistency & Flexibility. The key here is the combination…
How’s Your Bucket?
We are in the last week of March, the end of the first quarter. It's a great time to check in and take an energy inventory. Why? …
Start 2022 With Wisdom
Whether it's January, Monday, a new month, a big birthday... we all have times when we want a fresh start. If your time is Now, tune into the wise words of some well known masters of change…
Quiet …Please
The idea of a few moments of peace & quiet are universally enticing.
So why do we avoid them? …
Gratitude in the Moment…
Why Practice Gratitude?
It helps our brain scan for the positive
It increases our sense of wellbeing …
Curbing Our “Control Enthusiasm”
CONTROL IS AN ILLUSION... Why do we resist that statement? I know I do…
The Power of AND …
The 3-letter word AND packs a lot of power. It has the ability to positively influence the tone, meaning and intention of our communication…
Perspective …It’s All About Where You’re Coming From
Ever have this "ah ha" moment? You're laboring over putting something together or solving an issue, and someone else takes a look and suggests another approach, which you try and voila - it works! And you wonder, "Why didn't I think of that?" They gave you a different perspective…
Want More Flowers? … Weed Your Garden
…"I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. "
-Alexander
Where does negativity come from? …
For a Fish - It’s All About the Hooks
… How do fish know they've bitten a hook?
Because it hurts. Maybe, but they could bite something else that hurts that isn't a hook. Fish know they are hooked because they get pulled in a different direction from the one they were swimming in… We are kinda like fish…
Fix Your Weakness or Grow Your Strength?
… when we identify our strengths and make an investment in growing and using them, GREAT things happen. We are more engaged, more productive and we can see our impact. In short, we have greater joy & fulfillment in work and life…
Rest …It’s Not Just About Sleep
Ever have those days? Maybe you got enough sleep, but you still feel exhausted, irritable, drained or overloaded? While sleep is crucial, it doesn't fully restore us in all the areas where we need rest…
Time … Feast or Famine?
… Many of us have a love - hate relationship with the concept of time. We strive to save it and we kill it. We have all the time in the world and we never have enough. We're either behind it trying to catch up, ahead of it trying to slow down or if we're lucky, in that blissful, hard to achieve 'on time' space. We put a lot of pressure on those 1440 minutes each day…
Compassion…Not Just a One-Way Street
Compassion is about intention and action.
Compassion is a practice and like all practices, it can be learned…
Motivation...How do we Capture this Essential but Sometimes Elusive Energy?…
What is Motivation?
"...the process that initiates, guides and maintains goal-oriented behaviors"
It's the driving force of why we do things.
You know that state of mind. You get inspired. You decide to pursue something. You come at it with intensity and you persist until you reach your goal. You are in what's called a Flow state…
When Expectations Get In The Way…
Expectations are beliefs we have about what might happen in the future. They also describe what we think is supposed to happen. Inherently, we often assume expectations should just naturally be met with little or no effort on our part. And I'll give you a hint- they usually contain the word should…
Hard? Easy? Try Letting It Be
Life is constantly changing and in flux. Nature, our bodies, our perspectives. The good news is that means everything is essentially temporary and "this too shall pass".
If our now isn't so fun, this idea of temporary can be difficult…
Believe It? Or Not…
What Are They?
A belief is an acceptance or assumption that something is true. They are not DNA. Beliefs are based on how we have interpreted our experiences, positive and negative, over time…
Write Your Permission Slip
What would that look like for you?
Permission to say Yes?
To say No?
To choose? …
What Are You Focusing On?
One thing... a few things ... too many to count ... or none at all?
What Is Focus Anyway?…
It's a Marathon, Not a Sprint
As we near the end of April, it is clear we are in a marathon with Covid-19, not a sprint…
Is Your O2 Mask On?
With Covid-19, the world has rapidly become more uncertain, more frenzied and more restricted. Fear and worry are pervasive and contagious. Having a reasonable amount of anxiety is protective. Excessive anxiety is painful and costly and not enough anxiety puts us at risk…
The Art of Listening
The Power of Pause
These days, it’s hard to be heard above all the noise in our lives-- from background racket to loud disruptions to simply information overload…
New Year's Resolution Fading?
Here’s an Alternative Approach…
According to U.S. News & World Report, 80% of New Year's resolutions fail by the second week in February. If you're still going --- congratulations you are definitely a special snowflake! …
How Do Metaphors Shape Your Life?
Metaphors help us define and describe our experiences. We use metaphors in all areas of our life, yet we often don’t tune into the positive or negative impact they can have…
Tough Decision? Try an Experiment
Ever found yourself up there on the fence? When we find ourselves stuck, it’s often because we’re not able to make a decision. Sitting on the fence can seem like the safest bet…
Thanks & Giving
It's pretty simple...
When we give and receive gratitude and kindness, we feel better. When you are genuinely engaged in either, it's impossible to be simultaneously in a state of anger, judgment or blame with yourself or others…
Daily Delights!
December is often a hectic month. End of year reports, the beginning of flu season, holidays, longer lines, more traffic, never-ending to do lists... on top of everyday life. Extra time for a leisurely walk? Doubtful, since a complete conversation, or even a full night's sleep can seem out of reach.
What is a simple, free, instant antidote to this chaos and overwhelm?
The Experience of Delight…