Tag: Personal Development
Harnessing the Power of Feedback in Coaching
Feedback acts as both mirror and catalyst for profound personal and professional development, and through its skillful use in the coaching space, so much transformation can occur if used in the right way, at the right time. Understanding how to effectively use feedback in coaching has become essential for coaches seeking to create lasting impact…
The Being & Doing Dilemma
Originally Published on Feb 2, 2025 Explore the Being+Doing dilemma and discover how to balance your inner self with external expectations. Embrace a journey of self-awareness and authenticity. “We are human beings, not human doings.” “I need to stop doing and be more.” When have you said something like this? Heard someone else? I have.…
We’ve Been In Training
The Case For Discomfort
Any form of development work is an invitation to be with discomfort. Whether it is seeing a new distinction, taking up a new practice, or feeling that emotion and sensation you have been avoiding, some part of us—usually neglected or forgotten—is stretched. Development occurs through a series of stress and rest. Staying comfortable with what…
Who – How – What
Hitting Ceilings of Change “I am the bottleneck. Everyone comes to me with their key decisions. In order for us to mature as an organization, I know this needs to change. I am trying different techniques and they have helped and I recognize the need for something more. I really need a significant shift to…
The Sacred Space Between
The Point of a Question
The quest for the answer beckons the answer into becoming. What if the answer has always been the arising? This question arose within and guides my pondering today. Profound or contrived? Let’s give it some space and air to breathe before we judge it. Increasingly, I’ve been experiencing my capacity to be with the questions…
Turning Twenty Percent Into One Hundred Percent
The Necessity of Darkness
I used to read Ramona the Pest to my daughter. We likely read it 7 or 8 times when she was in kindergarten. As soon as we would finish, she would want to begin again. And so we did. I loved revisiting these stories from my youth. And seeing the words, hearing the language as an…
The Rapture of Being Alive
It seems hard to believe, but one of the best selling Zen books for all time, Zen Mind, Beginners Mind, was published over 50 years ago. There is a chapter on Excitement, where Suzuki Roshi admonishes that Zen is not some kind of excitement but concentration on our everyday routines: “If we become interested in some…
Layers of Listening
Many of us spend the majority of our days in conversations of one kind or another. This is particularly true for coaches, therapists, and other practitioners who spend their time supporting others’ development. Bringing greater mindfulness to how we approach conversations with anyone—our clients, colleagues, partners, children, friends, and others—holds the potential to make these…
Making Room for Integration
This article first appeared on the Mindful Leader blog in September 2021. “Along with all the growth and healing, remember to give yourself time for integration, which is a fancy word for ‘allowing sh*t to settle.’ It looks like doing nothing. This nothing is necessary.” – Emily McDowell Has it ever happened to you? You’ve been…
What Lies Within Us
“You understand so little of what is around you because you do not use what is within you.” – Hildegard von Bingen, c. 1151 AD I write because I am curious about the destiny and righteousness of women who have been successful and celebrated widely, but also because I am curious about those who have…
Self-unification in a divided world
“In order to truly change, we have to let go of who we think we are. Early in life we had to form the ego, or the ‘little self,’ in order to protect our true self. Later in life, the way we originally protected ourselves begins to endanger the presence of our Self. What protected…
Focusing and Integral Coaching Webinar
Focusing Resources founder Ann Weiser Cornell and New Ventures West Managing Partner Cynthia Luna recently hosted an exploration of what it means to know you have everything you need to live from wholeness. Learn how Focusing and Integral Coaching compliment one another, and learn about opportunities to experience both methodologies more deeply.
Finding clarity in times of transition
Reflecting back over the last 2-3 years, with so much unpredictability, change, obstacles, and discouragement, what has kept you moving forward? For many, the pandemic and other recent upheavals have put us in more immediate contact with what is essential. Of course, there have been countless immediate concerns to address. But in our work, we’ve…
“It” vs. “You”: A Field Experiment
How many times have you heard this: “kids, don’t try this at home”? But here’s one you might want to try. Zero cost and an ROI that might surprise you. I got the idea from my son. On occasions, after I had done something for him, he would say, “I appreciate you.” I would not…
Replenishment, Starting Close In
This article was originally published on the Mindful Leader blog in August 2022 “I have nothing left.” It’s a sentiment that’s been in our shared consciousness for a long time, and recently I’ve started to hear folks actually name it. Maybe you have too. World events have taken their toll, and many of us find…
Courage v. Bravery
Bravery and courage are cousins often confused as twins. While they share DNA of context containing an element of fear, upon examination they are quite different. Bravery is observed and measured from the outside. We see someone perform admirably in the face of danger—whether physical, social or relational—and we comment upon their bravery. They managed…
What’s the Difference Between Self-Improvement and Self-Development?
This article was originally published on the Mindful Leader blog in May 2022. It has several questions for reflection in italics. In these places, you’re invited to pause, feel into your response, and perhaps explore a bit with some notes or journaling. “To be purposeful is not to be goal oriented, but to seek to…