Lamisha Serf-Walls

November Gift #2-Getting Clear For The New Year

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Earlier this month I decided the theme of November would be Gratitude and Giving.  On my personal Facebook page I am doing the 30 days of gratitude and focusing on the many things I have and experience that I am grateful for.  On my blog, I wanted to focus a bit more on the giving aspect of the month.

So if you weren’t here for the post, hop over here and find out how you can sign up for my newsletter and snag your first free gift.

Today, I want to share with you the opportunity for you to receive your second free gift.  This one is a big one too!

But, before I get there let me share with you where I came up with the idea and why I am gifting this to you.

First of all, I know there are many of you who have thought about working with me and you just haven’t pulled the trigger yet.  Maybe you don’t know if it’s the right thing for you right now or you are unclear about what I can help you with.  Maybe it’s a financial thing, a fear thing, or a just plain I’m not ready thing, but I want to offer you a deal you just can’t refuse…for FREE!!

Second, I have made quite a few changes to my site (with more to come in the near future) and as a thank you for hanging in there with me while I make some much-needed changes and adding a lots of new information, I wanted to offer you something as a token of my appreciation.

We all know 2014 is quickly approaching and I want to help you get started on the right foot.  So, for the rest of November 2013 I am offering a full-length 60-minute Getting Clear For The New Year session for anyone who is interested.  In this session we will discuss the top 3 goals/dreams you have for 2014, figure out the sticky stuff that is leaving you stuck (and how to get out of it), and create simple action steps (key word here is simple) you can do now that will open up a world of opportunities for you.  That’s right in 60-minutes we will define your dream, get you unstuck, and create simple steps to get you moving toward your dream.

Not only do you get to see how I work, you can actually make some serious progress toward your dreams absolutely free.  And if you take advantage of this amazing planning power session, you will also get 25% off the price of regular packages if you sign-up to work with me before the end of the year (sessions don’t have to be used this year to qualify).

To sign up all you have to do is contact me and let me know you are interested in your Getting Clear For The New Year session and brief description of what you want to work on.  I will email you back as soon as possible and get you on the schedule.  I can’t wait to get started!  Do you know someone who might be interested?  Feel free to send them a link to this post and share the love.  I want to help as many people as possible get clear on their dreams for 2014!!

Let me help you re-imagine your dreams for 2014 and help you find and follow your inspiration to get you moving in the right direction.  Let me thank you for following me on my journey, by helping you get jump started on yours.  Aren’t you ready to realize your dreams and enjoy every juicy tidbit that comes along the way?  Let’s get started together!

Inspiration From Monsters and Cavemen…Who Knew?!

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Generally my family and I implement “family movie night” at least once a week as a way to relax and regroup after a long week.  This week we had a bit of a movie marathon and watched Monster University and The Croods, both of which I highly recommend (especially if you have children).  For the most part, family movie night is a chance to get away from whatever may be on my mind from the week before, yet there are times when the movies hit a chord within me so strongly that it sends my mind into a flutter of inspiration.

This Saturday was one of those nights.

Inspiration #1

While watching Monster University I was inspired by the message that we can each use our unique gifts and perspectives to do similar work and it is our unique experiences that make that work not only different, but amazing.

What does that really mean?

Regardless of how many people we feel are doing exactly the same thing that we want to do (only in our mind much better), we each bring our own set of talents, gifts, and experiences to the table.  No one else is better or worse than us, they are just different and different is ok.  In fact, it’s better than ok, it’s great!  Different means we can extend our reach to a group of people others can’t reach simply because of who we are.

This comes up a lot with my clients.  So many people, (myself included) view what other people are doing in the same genre as ourselves as doing it bigger and better that we find ourselves comparing apples to oranges.  Sure you can have two writers who have a similar style, but the truth is each is unique and amazing in their own way.  The same goes for two business owners, coaches, stylists, or whatever your dream might entail. Don’t let the success of another put a damper on your amazing gift.

YOU have a gift that can reach people that the other person can’t, so stand in your power and celebrate the wonderful things you bring to the table!

So the next time you start questioning your dream because you feel like you couldn’t possibly live up to someone you believe is doing it better, remember the little lesson from Monster University.  Better yet, watch the movie and see if you experience the same inspiration I did.

Inspiration #2

I expected the next movie to be more entertaining than insightful, but I couldn’t help but notice some interesting themes.

The first theme is one I have heard and dealt with several times in my lifetime.  Fear of the unknown.  When we fear what we do not know and allow it to stop us from stepping outside of our comfort zone, we become caged birds (or in this case caged cavemen).  We become too fearful of taking risks that we don’t really live and experience the precious gift of life.

One quote that stood out to me came from the teenage daughter as she was talking about her dad’s philosophy on staying safe:

“That wasn’t living!  That was just…not dying!  There’s a difference!”

How many of us have lived in this way before?  Merely surviving a life that may be uncomfortable and not all that great, but too fearful of what could go wrong in the future to take that step to do something bigger.

Surviving isn’t thriving.  Living a life with your dreams tucked down in your soul never to see the light of day isn’t living life to it’s fullest and I assure you it is not what you were given this precious time to do.

You were meant to love life, explore, and experience it.  Feel it, devour the juicy tidbits of amazingness.  To identify your gifts and share them with the world.  You were meant to be happy!  So if you aren’t happy right now, is it because you are fearful of stepping outside your comfort zone?  Fearful that the next thing might be worse than now?

What if it isn’t?  What if it is bigger, better, and more amazing than you ever dreamed?  Would one single, scarey step be worth it?

Another theme that came up was the idea of “following the light to tomorrow”.  Essentially it means to just keep going.Light

When things get tough as they sometimes do, remembering your dreams and why you started to begin with can help you just keep going.  Continue moving forward toward the light of tomorrow with your dreams alive and you can do anything.  Just keep going.

So, if you aren’t living the life of your dreams and you are too worried about others doing something better than you, are you ready to take the step to move forward?  Ready to live your gifts and share them with the world? Ready to do more that just merely survive?

If so, contact me to find out more information on getting ready to make 2014 the best year yet!  I want to offer you a chance to get a head start on your dreams and to make some big things happen next year.  If you are ready, I have a special treat for you!!! Send me an email today to find out more information on your FREE session and if you choose to work with me after our free session and get started this month, I am offering packages at a discounted rate (to go along with my gratitude and giving theme).  You don’t want to miss this!!!

November Theme: Gratitude & Giving

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Happy Friday you Darling Dreamers!

It’s the end of another week and the start of a new month!  I can’t believe in 2 months we will be moving into yet another year of wonderful goodness.  Can you feel the energy speeding up with the holidays quickly approaching?  I sure can!

I have been thinking about 2014 a lot over the last few weeks.  While each year feels like an opportunity to start anew, 2014 seems even more like a clean slate.  Maybe it has to do with my current job coming to an end and the options for the future still to be determined.

Every year around this time, I get excited for the newness and a fresh opportunity to make huge strides in my life and to make it an even better year than the one before.  I tend to do a bit of reflection on the past year to identify the growth, evolution, and lessons learned as well as figure out what I still want to work on.  Then, I might sit down to write a letter to myself for the year ahead or create a vision board of what I want to achieve (depending on how I am feeling).

Do you do any type of reflection before you set your intentions for the coming year?  I asked around to some of my friends and many of them said they haven’t even begun to think of what they want in 2014.  Have you?

If you haven’t, I encourage you to take some time to do just that.  Ask yourself the following questions:

What did I accomplish in 2013?

What lessons did I learn?

What didn’t I accomplish that I wanted to?

What was holding me back?

That last question is a big one and it may not be something you can readily identify.  Many people would answer that with a simple word : Life.

When it comes to resolutions, intentions, goals, and big dreams there are a number of things that can hold a person back.  Maybe you are fearful of failure (who isn’t?).  Maybe you have a fear of the unknown.  Some people fear success.  Others say that lack of motivation, inspiration, and a plan to do what they love is the issue.  Maybe it’s time, resources, money, connections, confidence, that is keeping you where you are.  Or maybe you have no clue what it is.

Identifying what has held you back from achieving your deepest desires is a step in the right direction.  Knowledge is power, so knowing what it is is half the battle.  The other half is knowing what to do to get through it.

As we move swiftly into the November and the holiday season, I encourage you to take some time to reflect on 2013 so far.  Don’t just identify the marks you missed, but make sure to identify the things you did well.  The good, great, and amazing moments of 2013 should be celebrated!

With that said, I wanted to let you know that I have created a theme for November and that theme is Gratitude & Giving.  With the holiday season upon us and a new year just around the corner, I wanted to extend some amazing (and FREE) opportunities/gifts for you lovely readers.  While I am planning for 2014 to be an incredible-blow-my-mind-adventure, I also want to place my focus on the abundance and beauty that is in my life in this very moment.

So, for your first gift, you can download your copy of my article : 20 Ways To Keep Your Dream Alive!  All you have to do is sign up for my newsletter and I promise NOT to send you unnecessary, boring, emails just to send them.  This list is truly my VIP list, so you are going to want to take full advantage of the awesome gifts that are coming this month.

I hope you have a magnificent weekend and as always, thanks for reading!

Love

Purging: Stuff, Ideas, and Clutter

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While many people tend to do the whole “Spring Cleaning” thing, I tend to do it sporadically throughout the year.  I have no rhyme or reason to it and I don’t really schedule it either.  I simply get this incredible urge to clear out my physical space to create a better flow.  One of those times tends to come at the end of the year.

It’s that time again.letgo

I have been feeling this incredible urge to organize, purge, and open up the space around me, but it doesn’t just stop there.  I am also doing a lot of mental and spiritual work.  I am setting some internal intentions for how I want the rest of the year to go and making plans for 2014 as well.  While I haven’t done much physical purging as of late, I have a feeling I am going to be doing so much more in the coming weeks to make room for all the amazing things coming in the new year.

There are a few reasons I tend to get this way particularly around the new year.  One is the fact that I am somewhat of a minimalist.  I don’t need a ton of stuff and I can easily part with most items if I don’t like them anymore or don’t use them.  Clothes are the easiest for me.  I have a closet full of clothes now, but much of what I have I don’t wear since I work from home.  I guess knowing new things typically come in around the holidays, I want to make sure I am making room for them and keeping things I know I will be using.

When it comes to ideas, I have a tendency to reflect on the past year while planning (loosely) for the year ahead.  I can see a lot of growth in the past year and look forward to what is coming in the new year and letting go of some of  my old beliefs can be helpful in that regard.  This one isn’t always smooth sailing.  I tend to learn lessons throughout the year and learn them again and again as time wears on.  Some things are easier for me while others remain sticking points much longer than I would like and as I am growing my business I have lots of ideas that I want to get rid of.

When I talk about clutter, there is the very physical clutter that I just can’t stand (i.e. piles of papers, unnecessary items etc.) as well as the unnecessary time clutter.  This can come in the form of practices that are no longer working for me, habits, or commitments that no longer fit my bigger vision.  This is probably going to be the toughest thing for me pare down as I like to be busy.  I also have a tendency to pride myself on longevity in a task or position and letting go of something that no longer fits my bigger vision can be difficult.

My Purging Lists:

Stuff:

  • Clothes and shoes I no longer fit or like
  • Papers, magazines, books that I won’t be reusing or don’t need
  • All of my full-time work “stuff” once this job ends (shredding documents I no longer need now and recycling them)
  • Odds and ends taking up space in closets and storage bins that are not needed/necessary

Ideas:

  • Thoughts that I should be further than I am with my business
  • “Realistic” beliefs that I can only earn a certain amount of money from my business in the first year
  • Comparing where I am in my business progress to others who have been doing it longer

Time Clutter:

  • Excessive Facebook/email checking
  • Too much technology usage during weekend time
  • Jobs that do not interest me

I hope that by letting go of some of the overall clutter above, I will be allowing myself to be much more intentional about what I do with my time, energy, and thoughts.  Let’s face it, you have to be willing to let things go for new things to come in and what better way to get started than to let go of the old stuff that may be holding you back?  As my current position comes to an end, I know my time, schedule, and surroundings will clear out and that will invite new projects, ideas, and inspiration to flow in.

What are you willing to let go of?

Friday Fun…Getting to know me better.

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It’s Friday again and while I had some great ideas for more insightful and useful post today, I decided to do something a little different.

Last week I was nominated for a blog award for up and coming bloggers with under 200 followers (I am speeding toward 200, but who’s counting?).  I don’t always nominate other bloggers because I want to keep my posts useful for you lovely readers, but I thought it would be fun to answer some of the questions that came from that nomination.  If you have read my story, you already know a bit about how I got to where I am, but the following questions come from the lovely Janelle Lavier.  Go check out her blog and leave her some love!

10 Questions from Janelle:

1. What inspired you to write?

Well, I have always been a writer in some form or another.  I wrote poetry in high school and always had a journal in college, but I started this blog with the intention of it being a place I could begin to build my future life coaching business.  Little did I know 6 short months after starting this blog, I had an epiphany to finally fulfill my dream of being a life coach instead of making excuses.  So, here I am!

2. Your favorite color is?

Anyone that knows me well knows my favorite color is purple.  Did you know that is also a color of royalty and spirituality?  Fancy huh?

3. Your thoughts the first time you posted on your blog were?

Who wants to read what I have to say?  Turns out many more people than I thought!  Glad I didn’t quit.  🙂

4.  Fill in the blank. My high school prom was_____________?

Fun with friends, but not what you see in the movies.

5. True or False? Being an adult is better then being a kid?

False. I am constantly trying to get in touch with my childlike nature and wonder.  Life is so magical when you can do that!

6. Fill in the blank….Floor hockey to me is_________?

A foreign concept.

7. If you could have any super hero power it would be?

I would love to fly.

8. Why did you pick that power?

Because feeling the wind all around you and going where ever you want would be the ultimate idea of freedom.  Not only that, but it would definitely be good for the environment too. No pollution!

9. Have you ever broken a bone?

Nope. (knock on wood)

10. What are 2 words to describe yourself?

Passionate and Dramatic (shhh…don’t tell anyone)

A few fun facts I wanted to include about myself.

1. My name (Lamisha) is a family name.  My great-grandmother’s name was Lumisha and my mom changed the ‘u’ to an ‘a’.  Thanks Mom!!

2. I was once a tap dancing Santa in a holiday show.  I got to wear a full on beard, wig, hat, Santa suit etc., talk about an adventure!

3. I once traveled to Duluth, MN to work with a young singer on her stage presence.  It was a paid gig which was awesome for me at the time.  And it was something that scared the day-lights outta me when I decided to do it.

4.  In addition to my writing on my blog, I also write book reviews, children’s app reviews, and greeting cards-just call me Mrs. Deeds.

5.  I absolutely 100% believe that your dreams can and will come true no matter what they may be.  I have no doubt that life coaching is what I was meant to do and I want to help as many clients as possible to do the same.  Ready to get started on your plan for 2014 to make it the best it can possibly be?  Contact me to find out how you can do just that.

I have some exciting things in the works that will be available soon to help you get a jump-start on your plans for the new year.  If you want the inside scoop on what, when, and how much (hint: it’s a FREE offer), sign up for my newsletter.  I promise I will only send you really incredible offers and I will not clutter your inbox!  I am so excited to help you all get started early with your plans for the New Year.  2014 is going to be epic!!