Lamisha Serf-Walls

Missing Link-Imagination

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I recently took a poll of my Facebook friends to find out what it was exactly that they felt they needed to tackle their ‘ultimate dream’.  I wanted to find out what my potential clients are struggling with so I can create more resources, programs, and content to assist them.  The responses were interesting to say the least because what they were lacking falls into one of three categories: resources (time, money, space), belief in self (courage, confidence), or knowing where to start.  I knew as soon as I read their comments that I was on to something because these were many of the things I struggled with in the last 2 years as I contemplated how I was going to begin my life coaching business.

While all of the responses fell into one of the three categories, most people said the lack of time, money, or space to create their ‘ultimate dream’, was the thing they were missing.  This isn’t all that surprising when you figure how many people are juggling a multitude of responsibilities and are simply trying to keep up with their busy schedules.  From what I gathered, a lot of the people who responded in this way had some idea of how to couragemake their dream a reality, but they only saw one way to make it happen.

Many of the responders also said that they were lacking the courage and confidence to make it happen in addition to the resources.  So before even setting out to achieve their ultimate dream, they were felt like they just couldn’t do it.  It seemed just too big to tackle right now.  Interesting…

The last response came from people not really knowing how to begin.  These are people who know what they want to do, but just haven’t put anything into action to find a way to make it happen.  These may be people who feel like their dream is so far out of reality, they can’t even fathom how to make it happen.  In fact, they may not even allow themselves to think about it too much because it is that far out.

So what do all these people have in common?  They are all using their logic to get them from point A to point B.  They are using their memories, knowledge, current reality, and logical thinking in order to figure out how to make their dreams come true and if they come up against a roadblock, many people tend to give up.  I think I have a better way of doing this.  imagination-11

Instead of looking at the reality of your situation (the responsibilities, bills to pay, kids to care for, schedules to keep up with, the fact that you have never had enough money to travel, or you are too afraid to fail etc.) and using that to find the most realistic way of doing things, I encourage you to use your imagination. Out of the box thinking allows you to be open to other possibilities of how your dream may come to fruition.  Instead of seeing a straight and narrow path to your goal or dream, you see a beautiful web of possibilities with fun stuff all along the way!  It’s there that you begin to feel the magic.

When you tap into your imagination and follow what feels good and right for you, the journey is enjoyable too.  You aren’t constantly taking score of where you are in relationship to where you want to be, but instead are enjoying the little nuggets along the way.  One piece leads to the next and to the next and before you know it you have unlocked your potential to create the ultimate dream regardless of what that entails.

There are an infinite number of possibilities to creating the life of your dreams and by hanging onto the one most likely way (in your mind), you are blocking out all the rest.  The only true limitation in achieving the life of your dreams, is the illusion you can’t do it, don’t have the means, or that it’s just too good for you, because the truth is you can have all you need.

Are you ready?

Feeling The Pull, But Need A Push

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I recently read a book called The Gift of Adversity and in it was a story about how the author (Norman Rosenthal, M.D.) was in a work environment that was just “ok”.  He had a feeling he wanted to do something more, to make a change, and expand upon what he had learned at this given place of employment.  Instead of following this feeling, he stayed and after some time he realized with new management and new structuring, he was essentially being pushed out.  He then remembered the words of a colleague who had been trying to recruit him for another position.

“In order to leave, you need both a push and a pull.  Right now, you have no push.”led by dreams

How many of us can say that about taking that step into the life of our dreams?  Sometimes our dreams pull at us quietly like a young child tugging at our hand to gently guide us into another room to play.  As the pull gets stronger it can feel like a magnetic force pulling us into the future, yet our feet remain planted on the ground.

Why is that?

I think it is because we have settled into our reality for what it is.  We have become friends with our lives as they are and think to ourselves “It’s not so bad.”  But a “not so bad” life also doesn’t mean it’s passionate, exciting, and fulfilling.

I have heard people say they feel guilty about wanting what they want.  Selfish for wanting something more than what they have.  Mothers wanting a moment of peace, feeling guilty when they get it or feeling bad when they decide to do something that will fulfill their deepest desires like writing a book or starting a business.

Dreams are not selfish.  They are natural, beautiful, and amazing.  They are the reasons we have all the wonderful technological advances we have.  A dream is just a thought fueled by passion and desire.  Dreaming is what kids do without being taught to do so.  They have wide open imaginations that exist in surround sound and technicolor.  Ask a child what they want to be when they grow up and you will get a multitude of magical answers.  It’s refreshing when you think about it because they think without limits.  They want to flying superheroes by night and comic book authors by day.  They want to save the world and everyone in it, never once thinking if it is possible.  We could learn a lot from them.

So if you have your pull (and I assure you, you do), where is your push?  For me it is knowing my full-time employment will be ending in a few months.  The picture in my head looked a little different when I first thought about how my dreams would manifest.  But who am I to question the push?  It is here and by golly it is exciting!  Am I a little uneasy in the not-knowing?  I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t.  Of course I am!  But I am also excited to see what will come of it and have faith that it is all going to work out.

If you feel the pull, but need a little push to get you going, send me a message and we can get you started with a free coaching session.  Let’s explore the amazing possibilities of what your ultimate dream could become.  Are you ready?

 

How The Coach Coaches Herself

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inspirationOne of the things I love about my entrepreneurial journey is my ability to share my lessons, inspirations, and insights on my blog.  Even when I have moments of doubt or when I am feeling frustrated about how things are unfolding, I am glad that I am able to share my experience with you.  It not only helps you to know that we all go through rough times, but also helps me become a better coach in the process.

Lately I have felt a bit like a firefighter, constantly responding to what is going on around me and taking care of things without really being intentional about life in general.  That lack of intentionality goes against a lot of what I believe in, yet in the past few weeks it seems I have had to put out a lot of urgent fires in order to make it through each day.  Whether it is with my day job, home life, or family, I have been far more reaction oriented rather than intention oriented.  I am finding this is not only feeding my anxiety about the future, but also leaves me wondering how to best find balance.

I have written a lot about accepting ‘what is’ in the current situation and not fighting it and I still believe that is important, but I can’t help but wonder how we can balance it all?  How can we remain open and present in this very moment, while still setting our intentions for the future?  How can we loosely plan for our future while still being open to what happens to come our way?

I guess all the questions come at a time when my future is a bit foggy and I fight between two extremes of surrendering to ‘what is’ and falling on faith or jumping into action mode to make things happen.  I know that having faith in what is happening and leading with my inspirational foot is really best.  And as a coach, I know I am simply allowing normal doubt to creep into my otherwise positive thoughts and they will pass as long as I don’t hang on to them for too long.

So, if I had a client in my exact shoes what would I tell her?

Well, I would encourage her to take a step back and breathe without making any decisions one way or another.  This helps us gain some perspective on the “issue” and can often result in nudges from our intuition that leads us to the next step.  Sometimes when we are so close to a situation, we allow our limited view to send us into a tailspin of unnecessary worry.  Sometimes we just need to press the reset button and allow ourselves a chance to regroup.

Message received coach!

Instead of trying to fit my future into a container of reality, I am going to be like the bird in my logo.  Free-flying and open to the endless possibilities that are out there.  I know that by taking a step back and regrouping a little bit things will become clear again.  The momentum will pick up again, and things will fall into place.  Until that happens, I am going to do what I tell my clients.

“Do things that feel good and feed your soul.  Allow yourself some time to just have fun and once you take the stress off a little bit, the inspirational nuggets will return and things will get moving again.  Just be easy, this is all part of the journey.”

Thanks Coach!  🙂

Intention and Small Actions=Progress

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I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about how quickly things have happened in terms of my dream of becoming a life coach.  Just last night as I worked on getting my new Facebook page up and running, I remembered a time not too long ago when this was just a dream.  My coaching business was a thought, a hope, a desire that felt like it was off in the distance somewhere.  It wasn’t until I took the leap of faith, that it all became real.

In an instant.  universe

I have seen this phenomenon happen over and over again.  It seems that when we make a choice to do something and put even the smallest action into it, things seem to unfold almost magically.  The intention and thought have a way of creating a bit of momentum and even the smallest step adds just enough energy to allow everything to align and progress is made.  Add a little more action and the pieces continually fall into place.

Is this a formula for guaranteed success?  Not necessarily.  There are some things that require more intention, a bit more action, and what seems like a lot of momentum…while you are in it.  I can tell you there have been many times when I feel like I am standing still in terms of progress and then when I look back on it, I realize I have come much further than I realized.  Sometimes you just have to be easy about your dreams.

What I find interesting is how often we hear people talking about setting a goal, creating an action plan, working the action plan, working hard, etc. in order to reach your goals.  I think this method works for some people, but I find myself taking score of what I have yet to accomplish.  I am constantly looking at if I have arrived in order to move on and if I haven’t, I tend to get discouraged.

I find that setting an intention to do, be, or have something sets the energetic wheels in motion and when you follow your inspiration to the next step because it just feels right, there lies another opportunity for progress.  Continue to follow that feeling and you will find yourself much further than you ever thought you could be.

Sometimes you don’t need a step-by-step map of how to get to your dream.  With a vision, an open mind, and a little action, you can trust that your intuition and inspiration will lead you to the very next step.  And if you aren’t sure where to start, just take a tiny step and watch as your path is illuminated little-by-little.

What can you do today to get you to the very next step?  Share in the comments below, I would love to hear your intentions!