small steps Archives - Lamisha Serf-Walls

So Many Ideas…Where To Begin?

January 27, 2014 by Lamisha

In the past few weeks I have had several conversations with potential clients about their dreams and the multitude of ideas they have flowing through their minds at any given moment. With so many ideas and so much creativity, they are finding themselves paralyzed and unsure of what to tackle first. It is sort of like seeing your to-do list with 15 different things on it and not really knowing where to begin, so you just don’t do anything.

Have you been there before?

I think it is something that happens to many of us when overwhelm sets in. Just taking that first step can be scary and is enough to cause you to ignore it and procrastinate even more.

So where do you start?

I find it much easier to start with the small stuff and use that to build momentum for the bigger things.

But what if it all feels like ‘big stuff’?

That is a valid question considering when we first set out to accomplish our dreams, they can often feel like huge mountains to get over, but if you can take a step back for a moment and look at the bigger picture, you might be able to make out a tiny first step. If you still are having trouble, hiring a coach or chatting with someone about your ideas can help put your thoughts to rest a bit more so you can take the first step.

The truth is, what you do in that first step matters less than the fact that you just begin. When I took the leap to begin my coaching practice, my early first steps entailed a ton of research. I looked at coaching programs, various coaches, credentials, coaching philosophies, and even contacted two coaches to talk to them about the work they do. Some of my other small steps included just writing down all of my ideas, coming up with a name for my website, and getting a bare bones website up and running. Some of those steps took mere moments to complete while others took upwards of a week or more, but every time I sat down to work on it, I felt like I was making progress and that led to more momentum.

Still need help deciding what those first steps might be? Check out the examples below.

You want to start a website, but are unsure of how to set it up or if there will be any interest. Small step: Set up a FB page first. It’s easy to do and you can build your community there before you launch your site.

You have some artwork, crafts, or handmade jewelry that you want to sell, but the idea of setting up an Etsy account makes you break into a cold sweat. Small step: Find a local craft fair to sell your stuff through or talk to your friends and family members about what you are making. You can also set up a FB page for your crafts and sell it that way.

You want to become a yoga instructor, write about yoga, and open your own yoga/meditation center, but you aren’t sure about how the yoga training works, how much it costs, and are overwhelmed with the idea of doing it all and question whether you can. Small Step: Ask one of your yoga instructors some questions about their training experience and how they did it. Pick their brain regarding some of your ideas and utilize the vast amount of experience and info they can provide to you.

The truth is no matter how many dreams/goals you have accomplished, there are always going to be more, so take it step-by-step and start small. And if you find yourself at a loss for where to begin and what to do to get started, feel free to set up an introductory coaching session with me. I am happy to chat with you about untangling the web of ideas you have in your head that might be keeping your paralyzed. In fact, I love helping clients break their big, bold dreams into bite size steps that result in a big win! Let me help you do the same.

If you are interested in what coaching can do for you please sign up for your introductory session here. Also, don’t forget that my very Inspired Giveaway will be ending TOMORROW so head over here to sign up for your chance to win a copy of Inspired & Unstoppable by Tama Kieves.

Visualize, Be Inspired, Take Small Steps, Repeat

October 14, 2013 by Lamisha

Last week I posted about being open to the many possibilities regarding how money can flow into our lives and there by opening opportunities to living the life you want to live. For many, money is the limiting factor before they even get started. It’s a roadblock they throw up as they begin thinking about what their dream life might look like. They tend to not get very far in their vision because the pesky idea that they must have the money first, causes them to stop dead in their tracks.

I have heard many times over the years that when you do what you love the money just follows. I always surmised that in order for me to do what I love, I had to have the money first. In my linear way of thinking that is all I could come up with and so I worked backwards. If I needed the money before I could do what I loved, then I would have to find a way for me to get the money and most often it meant doing something that I didn’t like doing to get it. I was stuck.

I realize now what all that talk about doing what you love and allowing the money to follow was about. It’s not about you doing something to make money as much as it is doing something because it brings you joy. Isn’t that worth more anyways? I know there are bills to pay and responsibilities to take care of, but who says right this very moment you have to quit your job and take a flying leap into the land of who knows what? That’s not what I am saying at all.

What I mean is that when you take a step (no matter how small it might be) to follow your heart, things just seem to line up and opportunities fall into place, many times from resources you didn’t even think about. Life is full of these situations and I am sure you have had something like this happen once or twice before.

I have had it happen a lot and each time I smile, laugh a little, and feel the amazing feeling of pieces falling into place. I remind myself even in times when things are lackluster and feeling stagnant, that these moments happen all the time, and as long as I am doing what I love and following my heart, the pieces will fall into place. For me those pieces are often money, resources, contacts, opportunities, and amazing gifts that I had never thought about.

Still not convinced it can happen for you?

I have a little exercise for you to try. Think about your ultimate dream. Maybe it is starting a business, writing a book, traveling the world, or writing and producing an amazing film that will change the world. Whatever it may be, think about it. Visualize it. Feel it and allow your imagination to run wild for a moment. Don’t think about the steps to get there. Don’t think about whether it is realistic or not, just envision it. See all the details and feel the excitement you will have once it is real. Smile and be inspired. Got the image?

Now, I want you to take one step toward that vision. Something that feels easy to do. If you are writing a book, think about the title or the main characters name. Write it down. If you are wanting to start a business, do an internet search for others like it. The key here is to do something that doesn’t seem like a big deal, but is a step in the right direction. Take note of what you find or what you write and when your inspiration fades, let it go.

For the next week take note of the things that happen around you. For instance, you might hear your main character’s name while you are out shopping and it leads you to think about a specific storyline for your book. Or you might hear a song that would be perfect for your film you want to create. Make note of all those seemingly simple, yet incredibly inspiring moments. Allow them to feed off of the other and follow your inspiration to the next thing.

Visualize. Be inspired. Take small steps. Read the signs. Be Inspired. Repeat.

Try it and see where your path leads you. I would love the opportunity to share your story with other readers so if you are up for the challenge, try it out and email me with your results.

This is going to be fun!

Living My Dream

October 1, 2013 by Lamisha

Wow what a difference a year makes! Today is officially the one year anniversary for my blog. It started as a past-time to keep me inspired and engaged while I waited for the pieces to fall into place for my ultimate dream career. When I began I didn’t think that a year in I would have launched my business and be on my way to helping others follow their hearts to do the same. It’s been a pretty amazing journey and looking back I can see how creating this blog was the single step that built the momentum for the rest of it to fall into place.

When I began, I had this preconceived notion of how my dream would take shape. In my mind the path was logical, realistic, but boy did it feel hard. I thought that was how it was supposed to be. You always hear people talking about working hard, never giving up, and making sacrifices to live the life of their dreams, so I thought sure enough I was on the right path. The only problem was that the more I wrote, the more my desire grew. I wanted to feel like I was making progress, right now. I couldn’t figure out how to reconcile my passion with the idea that I had to save a large sum of money, invest 6 months of my time to do something that I have always been doing. Wasn’t the realistic way the only way? In April, I realized the realistic way is only one way to make something happen.

It was then that I took a leap of faith. By simply declaring (to myself) that I was going to create my own coaching model utilizing my experience, Masters in Psychology, and the many tools I have learned along the way, I took the seemingly small step that helped me create what I have today. Did I know everything at that moment? Of course not. But I set the intention and the flood gates of ideas opened and the pieces fell into place. Before I knew it I had created my coaching model and began working with two guinea pig clients who have made some incredible progress!

Am I still learning? Yes and boy am I learning a lot! I am learning the ins and outs of business. I am learning how to better serve my clients and how to grow into this new dream that I held so close to my heart for over a decade.

So what held me back all these years? I was bound by reality. Like the caged bird who knows only how to live, breathe, and survive behind bars, I allowed myself to be contained in the logical world. I thought everyone worked a job they hated just to make ends meet and that only the lucky/rich/free people were able to do the things they wanted to simply because they loved it. For many years my actions were driven by the need to fulfill my responsibilities in life. Bills, work, and taking care of my family were all reasons I succumbed to the idea that I couldn’t live with my head in the clouds any longer.

I was wrong.

Today, one year into this blogging journey and only a few months into my business, I am excited for what the future holds. I am eager to help clients break free from their perceived limitations in time, money, space, etc. so they too can feel the freedom of living a life of passion while still taking care of all the other stuff too! You can have it all! The time, the joy, the family, the money, the career that sets your soul on fire…all of it! All it takes is one little step forward to get the momentum going. And I can tell you from where I stand in my own journey, it is an incredible feeling to be living my dream and while I am still growing, evolving, and learning, I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Don’t wait another minute to live the life you were meant to live, to use the gifts you have to give to the world, and to do what makes you happy. Life is too short to put your happiness off for another moment.

I would be honored to help you move along your journey to living the life you once dreamt. Interested in working with me and taking advantage of the incredible pay what you can deal from yesterday? Send me an email at lamisha@lifeoncedreamt.com or contact me here to get a free 30 minute coaching session to get started. I promise you won’t be sorry you did.

15-Minute Magic

August 8, 2013 by Lamisha

Within the last week or two I have implemented a practice that has completely changed my daily life. It is a “life hack” I heard about many years ago, but never tried, until a few weeks ago. I applied it to my life in order to create more balance between my full-time job, coaching, writing, and family duties and it has worked wonders. I soon realized this magical practice can even be applied to accomplishing your dreams, 15-minutes at a time.

If you are like me you probably have a laundry list of things to do (including laundry) and some days you aren’t sure how you can fit it all in, let alone make time for you to focus on the one big thing you really want to create in your life. You also know that without that time and space, that thing may never manifest.

So how do you do it without locking yourself in a room for hours on end to finally make some headway?

You break it into 15-minute chunks.

I know you are saying that you can’t possibly get anything worthwhile accomplished in 15-minutes, but believe it or not, you can accomplish a lot in 15-minutes if you are totally focused on the task at hand.

Here’s how it works:

Select something from your to-do list that you just haven’t found the time to do.
image from www.childhood101.com
Set a timer for exactly 15-minutes.
Get to work.
When the timer goes off, stop what you are doing and pat yourself on the back. You have just taken a tiny step toward accomplishing your goals.

Now, at this point if you are really on a roll and you have the time you can reset the timer and go for another 15-minutes and see where that gets you, or you may decide you want to do something else for 15-minutes. The awesome thing about this practice is you can use it for anything. (If you are a parent, this works wonders with children especially when they have chores to do.)

Do you have some follow-up emails you have been meaning to send? Some contacts you have been meaning to look up? Need to research business cards/webpage designers/workshop ideas/need to contact that life coach you have been meaning to hire? Set your timer and go!

You may find some tasks work better with a 30-minute set up and that is ok too. Feel free to mold this practice into something that works for you and your unique situation.

Using this practice allows you to take little steps toward accomplishing your dreams and the more you do it, the more inspired you become. Soon you may find yourself setting the timer for much longer simply because you enjoy working on your dreams. The key is to do a little bit everyday.

When you make your dreams a priority by doing a little each day, you will not only begin to feel better, but you will also see your dreams take shape before your very eyes. Don’t believe me? Try it and leave me a message in the comments below on how it worked for you.