Blog - Page 112 of 144 - Lamisha Serf-Walls

Lessons Learned: Be Brave, Tiny Steps, & Fun Is Important

August 23, 2013 by Lamisha

Friday posts are generally my Gratitude posts and while I will maintain my gratitude practice outside of the blog, I wanted to begin a new series titled: Lessons Learned.

With each new step in my business and life changes overall, I feel like I am continually evolving and growing. And while some weeks feel more like growing pains, my hope is to reflect on the lessons I have learned each week so I am more aware of what I am learning in the moment. I hope you will join me in reflecting on your week as I am sure we all are learning new lessons about life, love, and the pursuit of our dreams.

This week has included a plethora of opportunities for me to engage my bravery skills to do some things that sort of scared me. My intuition was telling me I needed to send two emails in order to not only grow as a person, but also to get more comfortable with various aspects of the business world. I listened to my inner guidance and hit send and even before I received any correspondence back, I knew I had done the right thing regardless of the outcome. I also had to make a big decision regarding my business logo. I had so many options to choose from and after momentarily feeling like I was going to select the “wrong” one, I listened to my own advice (imagine that) and followed my gut. I can’t wait to share it with you when it is complete because it is gonna be gorgeous!!

Lesson: Follow your intuition and be brave in spite of your fear. You will be glad you did.

I have also been working on brainstorming some ideas for other services and products I want to create and offer to my clients. I found my inspiration well a bit dry, however I realized I hadn’t really taken the time to sit down and think about it. Until last night. In a matter of 20 minutes by simply reviewing old notes, ideas, and doing a little research I had a light bulb moment! Once the idea hit, I was off and writing and am even more inspired now about how I can implement this new idea. Again I can’t wait to get this project under way and share it with you!

Lesson: You don’t need to make quantum leaps to achieve your dreams. Tiny steps make a huge difference.

My last lesson is one I just learned today. As the summer has flown by, I found myself yearning for just a little getaway. Not a huge vacation or anything too extravagant, but something easy to end the summer. After thoughts like “I should really wait,” or “We really shouldn’t spend the money,” etc. I decided I wanted to find a way to have an affordable end of the summer trip and I am proud to say it is in the works.

Lesson: Business is important, but fun is too. The work will be there when you get back so when you find yourself questioning whether you should or shouldn’t remember fun is important.

Giving Dreams Room To Breathe & Grow

August 22, 2013 by Lamisha

I have seen my fair share of people working hard to have a happy life. There seems to be a universal campaign for accomplishing goals through back-breaking work, blood, sweat, and tears. Many of us have grown up with the idea that if we could just do more by working longer or harder than we would finally reach the platform of success. And while I certainly believe in the benefit of (inspired) action, I feel like something is missing in this formula for a successful life.

People that know me, know that I have always been a doer in life. I have always focused on doing the next thing and looking for the next step in my dreams and only recently have I been able to understand the importance of non-action, and allowing the space for our dreams to breathe and grow.

Not sure what I mean? Let me explain.

When we decide we are going to move forward with a new goal, career, or project typically there is some sort of planning phase. After the planning phase comes the execution. And since we are so accustomed to instant gratification in our everyday living, we seem to be chomping at the bit to make things happen by working long hours and in some cases spreading ourselves too thin. The fear of failing has caused us to overcompensate in the action arena to a point that we never allow ourselves (and our dreams) a chance to breathe.

I know I have struggled with this many times in my life where I want instant results for the work I am putting in, but the reality is things take time.

I have also learned that when I am able to take a step back and stop measuring my progress (or lack thereof in some cases), I find things almost magically happen. The right people flow into my life effortlessly and the next inspirational nugget appears before my very eyes and each time it happens I am reminded of the importance of allowing my dreams to breathe and grow.

I was reminded of that just a few weeks ago.

While I was having a conversation with a friend about some things I needed/wanted to take care of for my business, I mentioned needing to find someone to design my logo. I had actually thought about it several times, but wasn’t trying to make anything happen with it as I had other things that I was working on. About an hour after that conversation I saw a post on FB from a friend of mine that said “Designing a logo!”. I almost fell out of my chair. I couldn’t believe it! I immediately sent my friend a message and inquired about her services and found that not only was it affordable, but she does absolutely amazing work!

Was it just dumb luck? Or, did I allow enough space and time for things to unfold in the most organic and perfect way for me?

I truly believe that by giving my dreams/needs the space they need to grow and evolve, the resources I need will continue to unfold in the most beautiful of ways.

Not sure it will work for you? Try it out!

The next time you find yourself forcing something to happen or working long hours trying desperately to make something happen, take a break. Step back from it and leave it be for a while and open yourself to what you see and hear around you. Just be easy about it and allow your next inspirational nugget present itself to you. I promise you it will.

Have you had something like this happen for you recently? I would love to hear how your dreams are unfolding as you give them room to breathe and grow. Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Decisions, Decisions Which Will You Choose?

August 21, 2013 by Lamisha

Everyday we are making hundreds of decisions. Decisions about what time to wake up, what to wear, what to eat, where to go, how to get there etc. Some decisions are not huge life-altering choices and are seemingly easier to make. If I decide to wake up at 5 am as opposed to 5:30 am, I can make that choice rather easily. When I decide what to eat for lunch, I simply ask myself, “What do I feel like eating?”, and if it is readily available, I will eat that. Many times these daily decisions require little to no assistance from anyone but ourselves, giving us the freedom to follow our emotions, inspiration, and our own feelings to choose between choice A and choice B.

Then there are the other decisions.

You know, the ones that feel huge, life-altering, oh-my-goodness-I-hope-I-make-the-right-choice, kind of decisions. Those decisions are much less easy-going and can create a lot of anxiety, frustration, and worry. Decisions about what house to buy, what career to choose, or what partner is right for us. These are the decisions we talk to our friends, parents, spouses, and co-workers about in order to ensure we are making the right decision and yet, even with the advice from so many people, we still question some of our choices.

I guess you could say many of us believe that someone else knows more about us than we do. Maybe they are more experienced, more educated, more successful, etc., and in our eyes, they know what is best for us. The problem with always consulting someone else on major life decisions, we lose our sense of power and freedom. When we believe someone else knows what is best for us more than we do, we are giving away our power to someone else and in turn can lose our confidence to make choices in the future.

How many of us made a choice for our careers based on someone else’s advice. Maybe we thought that a certain field would be more profitable or we would be more successful in it, yet we always knew it wasn’t the best place for us.

The truth is some of us (me included) have been taught to believe that there is a right and a wrong decision in life, but there isn’t. There are simply choices that will lead you down one path or another (or many). There is no formula that you can use to determine which is right and which is wrong because it is different for every person.

Bummer huh?

So, how do you know what is the right career path, product, partner, business decision, etc. for you?

The best way is to listen to your intuition. You know that feeling in your gut that causes you to pick up the phone to call someone just as they were going to call you for something. That’s the one. It is also what I call leading with your inspiration.

When you follow the same principles for the big decisions as you do for the little ones, you learn to trust your intuition. Did you consult with all of your friends and family members before you selected your breakfast this morning? Probably not. You most likely followed your intuition or inspiration for what you wanted to eat.

The same goes for making any other decision in life. Sure, some of the bigger decisions may require some research etc., but if you can quiet your mind and get in touch with what you are feeling, you will be able to feel for the best decision for you.

In my coaching, I work with my clients to help them get more in tune with their inspiration. I encourage them to follow what feels good to them and to listen to their internal compass (their emotions) to decide what is right for them. As they follow their intuition and lead with their inspiration, amazing opportunities and big shifts happen in what we are working on.

Are you interested in learning how to trust your intuition and follow your inspiration to finally live the life of your dreams? What to know more about how I can help you? Visit my services page to see how I can help you make major moves toward your dreams. What are you waiting for? Send me an email at lamisha@lifeoncedreamt.com to schedule a FREE coaching call.

Inspiration Round-up

August 20, 2013 by Lamisha

I love finding new blogs, articles, interviews, videos, etc. to help fuel my inspiration and I really enjoy being able to share these with you. I hope you enjoy this week’s Inspiration Round-Up.

The first thing I want to highlight is a book I began reading last week as I was struggling with the fear I discussed in yesterday’s post. I really enjoy reading and the title of the book really struck me as something that could help inspire me to trust the process again and if nothing else would assist me in seeing the silver lining.

Contagious Optimism by David Mezzapelle is similar to the Chicken Soup series in that it shares a variety of uplifting stories and insights to help the reader find the positive side of all situations. I am only about a third of the way through it, but I can tell you it is great for anyone that needs a little pick me up.

Today I stumbled upon two unique companies that really solidify the idea that no matter what your imagination can conjure up, it is totally possible.

The first is a time capsule service called Seeds of Thought. This company will save handwritten or typed letters for a set amount of time and send them to you (or another recipient) at the end of that time period. The idea is to create a time capsule from a certain part of your life to review later. I thought the idea was so cool and I am even thinking of ways I could use this unique idea in my own life.

The other company is Adventure Nannies, a traveling nanny service that helps families on the go(meaning across borders, overseas, you name it they have a nanny for it) who need a bit of extra help. I love the fact that the founder (Brandy) used her experience in childcare and her vision to do something greater to the next level. Still think you can’t simply follow your heart and make something amazing out of it???

And last but not least I want to share a post from Melody Fletcher’s Deliberate Receiving blog. This post discusses taking back your moment and being present and aware of what you need right now, what you are doing now, and simply enjoying life, RIGHT NOW! For all you Law of Attraction lovers, her blog is really great and provides straight, no-nonsense advice on many topics relating to the Law of Attraction.

Do you have other articles, interviews, or books you found inspiring this week? Feel free to share them in the comments.

From Faith To Fear And Back Again

August 19, 2013 by Lamisha

I know I typically begin the week with either my Inspiration Round-up or Dreamer Highlight, but in light of keeping it real with you lovely readers, I decided to start the week this post instead. It is something I have been dealing with in the past few weeks and I am sure many of you have (or will) go through it as well.

I spent most of June and July imagining, envisioning, and creating my coaching framework as well as figuring out how I would present the information to potential clients. The process was very easy-going and high-flying as everything was so exciting. I didn’t feel a sense of urgency to get things completed by a certain date because I was simply following my inspiration to the very next step. I had this intuitive knowing that August 1st would be when I open practice up to take new clients. I had an idea that once I did, clients would come to me and would immediately want to get started. I even went so far as to set a goal for how many new clients I wanted to book by the end of the month.

We are halfway through the month and I am not anywhere near my goal.

Bummer.

Actually it hit me much harder than just a “bummer” moment. In fact, I have found myself deep in the throes of doubtful thinking, fear, and disbelief. My self-talk was running rampant as I condescendingly asked myself “How could you actually believe it would take off so easily?”

This was an admittedly ugly place to be for sure.

As I began moving through the muck of self-doubt, I realized I had allowed fear to take the place of the light, easy-going faith I had as I created my coaching model seemingly effortlessly. Through that process I kept reassuring myself (read my Ego) that I didn’t have to have it mapped out as to how, when, and who would want to work with me. I just knew that as long as I do what I love and stay true to myself the people who are meant to work with me will.

While I might have doubted how quickly I would book clients, I never once questioned that life coaching is what I am meant to do.

This weekend I did some thinking about my client goal for this month and couldn’t help but wonder if I had made a mistake by having a number I wanted to hit for the month. Instead of focusing on writing blog posts, working with my current awesome clients, and creating resources for my readers, I found myself keeping score of how many clients I had (or didn’t have). And while we are taught in the traditional/logical business world to set goals, map out a plan, and execute, I am beginning to see that might not be the best tactic for me. My philosophy does center around following my inspiration and the general goal setting is not all that inspirational for me.

So, I am happy to say I have moved through the muck and am moving back into trusting this process. I honestly believe and know that if you do what you love, the rest will fall into place, so that is exactly what I plan on doing.

In the past two weeks I have moved from a place of faith in the process to fear and back again and I must say it feels so much better.

Do I think I will always be high-flying and trust the process? Probably not, but I now know it is not where I have to stay. I can allow my Ego to have her say before I kindly tell her to relax and trust the process. And what is even better than that? I can use my personal experience to help my clients who may be struggling with the same thing.

Where do you have doubts in your life? I am interested to know how you deal with your own doubts, please feel free to share below!