Does Chronic People Pleasing Wear You Out?

Are you a chronic people-pleaser? Can you not rest until everyone else around you is fed, conflict-free, healed, and happy?

If so, I have two important questions for you -- when is it your turn? and who takes care of you?

Many of my generational peers were taught that pleasing others should be the main goal of our lives. We were led to expect it to bring us extreme happiness, if not heavenly brownie points.

Even in the active feminist era, when it appeared that taking our power and achieving equality meant caring only about ourselves, many of us never let go of the guilt that came with doing so. Those early indoctrinations by our Leave It To Beaver mothers were well ingrained.

And now, here you are at mid-life -- worn out, ticked off, wanting more for yourself, and unsure where to start.

Here's are some coaching suggestions for you:

• Think of yourself as your own best friend, or as a two people at once: the wise older self and the novice younger self.
  

• Give this aspect of yourself a separate name so she becomes real and valued to you.
  

• Make all your decisions about how you spend your energy according to what your best self-friend or younger self needs.

• Prioritize your time and resources to give first to your best self-friend / younger self before your day gets consumed with others (yes, even including kids and spouses and your mother). Make appointments with her, and keep them no matter what.

• Strengthen your resistance to being The Answer for everyone else's needs. Remember that the more you do for others, the more it robs them of the skills of self-sufficiency.

• Practice saying No, and having a preference, even if it's for paper instead of plastic. Own your right to have things the way you'd like them to be, for a change.

If this is harder for you than it sounds, it may be time for counseling or coaching. I'd recommend trying out these self-coaching suggestions on your own for a month, and if you aren't pleasing yourself as much as others yet, put yourself more focused plan with an experienced guide. Good luck!

Are You Suffering From TMI Paralysis?

TMI -- Too Much Information. It's one thing to gather the facts you need to know the choices you have. It quite another to drown in tangential and irrelevant material.

But how can you know when enough is enough? Start with becoming aware of what process will work best for you.

If you tend to be more intuitive than logical, tune in to your inner sense of when you know all you need.

• Seek out the feeling or sensation or inner knowing that you've hit upon the right amount, or the best direction. Then stop the gathering.

If you prefer a goal-oriented approach, start with being clear about the end result you want -- what's your purpose for gathering information? What decision needs to be made with it? What factors do you need to learn about in order to make that decision or move in the direction of the desired result?

• Search for info to fit your criteria, then stop when start seeing the same advice more than once.

If a preponderance of evidence approach works best for you, start with a pro and con list. You might frame it this way: If I find 5 pieces of info in favor and 3 pieces against, the pros win.

• Set your criteria for what constitutes a pro and a con, do your search, and stop gathering when you reach your pre-set number.

If you have a different process, I'd love to hear about it. Oh, yeah, there's another method right there -- asking others what they know or do. Then have a way to determine if that method would work for you.

Autumn Equinox: What's Your Harvest?

If you think about it, Nature provides us with a kind of coaching rhythm.

• Get new things planted in the spring
• Nurture their growth in the summer
• Harvest their fruits in the fall
• Rest and re-assess through the winter

Some talk of the spring and fall equinoxes as days of balance because of the solar phenomenon of equal amounts of light and darkness on these days. I prefer to be in mind of what I'm sowing and what I'm reaping.

Take a moment right now to think back on what you were giving your energy around last March 20th. What hopes were you sending out into the world? What projects had you recently begun? What new habits were still starting to sprout?

The Autumnal Equinox (Sept 22 or 23 in the Northern Hemisphere, depending on your location -- the 22nd at 2:25 pm for me) is a day that has been marked since ancient times as a celebration of the harvest before the year turns towards winter's harsh deprivations. It's a day to ask yourself these questions:

• Did your actions manifest or contribute to manifesting what you hoped for?
• Have your projects produced sweet or bitter fruit?
• Is it time to end a habit, a relationship, a fruitless effort and move on?
  

On the day of harvest, what are you harvesting for your life? Is it enough to sustain you through the lean times? Will it bring you joy and light in the darkness to come? If not, what seeds of knowledge and wisdom can you take from your experience?

4 Excuses for Hiding in Your Comfort Zone

1. You're Too Tired / Don't Have the Energy

While this might only be a result of Party Hardy syndrome, it may also be a sign of grief or a mood disorder. Lack of interest in the world around you, in things that you used to find enjoyable, in spending time with friends, are actually symptoms of depression.

If you're experiencing an emotionally based fatigue more days than not for several months at a time, talk to a knowledgeable specialist about the best way for you to change this situation.

And if it's just a matter of not getting enough sleep, see my website for the flier on 50 Alternatives to Pharmaceutical Medications for Better Sleep.


2. You Can't Afford It / Don't Have the Money

You're not alone in this one, but not everything that's worth doing costs money. Many volunteer opportunities exist in every community that will introduce you to new people, new activities, new skills, and new experiences.

Hey you're already on the internet right now. How about checking out MeetUps in your area, or do a Google search for activities to join this week.


3. You Might Not Like Something New

True, but then again, you might surprise yourself. When I hear this excuse I hear a defense mechanism against a fear of being hurt, disappointed, or embarrassed -- again.

Take an honest inventory of your history of trying something new. What happened? Even in the times you did get hurt, disappointed or embarrassed, what did you learn about yourself? How did it shape your character?

Then think about what you need to do or have with you that will reduce your chances of being hurt, disappointed, or embarrassed this time.


4. You're Really Shy / Don't Have Anyone to Go With

I agree, this is often a harder reason to overcome the inertia of staying where you are. Shyness can be quite debilitating. But the question is, are you willing to give your life over to this one emotion?.

Whether we're talking about not having a social life, not attending a festival or education program, not volunteering in your community, or not envisioning living in a new town or part of the country, you don't have to let shyness or stag status control the chance to experience a fuller life.

I recommend making an action plan for taking tiny risks in safe ways to interact with strangers, lend a helping hand to a neighbor, attend a workshop or book reading, and just start getting yourself out of the mindset and habits of shyness.

2 Forms of Confidence Erosion

The other night President Obama talked about timidity passing for wisdom. That got me thinking.

How many times have you talked yourself into waiting, or taking a smaller step forward than you could? Was it a wise choice, or simply avoidance prompted by lack of real self-confidence?

Procrastination and an over-abundance of caution erode self-confidence. Confidence -- rather than being a prerequisite -- is the outcome of taking risks. If you make a habit of timidity, your confidence evaporates.

Real wisdom is nurtured by gaining new knowledge that only experimenting and seeing what happens can provide.

Another form of confidence erosion comes about when we keep doing the same thing over and over again, achieving poor or no results, but expecting something different.

While persistence is a very important quality for success, disappointment that comes from repeatedly failing in your efforts will be quite destructive to your sense of confidence.

Failure in itself is not terrible. It's simply a piece of feedback that another approach, new skills, different resources, or other help, etc, is needed.

Practical wisdom is gained by evaluating what worked, what didn't, and designing a new plan to maximize the one and minimize the other.

Knowing that timidity, procrastination, cautious avoidance, repetitive disappointment are the prescription for eroding self-confidence, what will you change today to gain real, practical wisdom instead?

Corrosion of Shame Leads to Self-Sabotage

Recently I heard someone argue for shaming a client into having the motivation to be accountable. This was justified as a coach's responsibility to be honest in ways that friends won't or can't be.

This advocate equates confrontation with using a tactic of shaming. Then disavowed responsibility for inflicting intentional emotional damage by claiming that shame is not an action but rather a perception that lies in the eye of the perceiver.

This, folks, is an argument that suggests a personality disorder.

It's a position that terribly misguided parents consciously or unconsciously hold that leads to manipulation and disempowerment of their children at best, and potentially severe, life long psychological impairment.

The consequences of being subjected to what psychologists call a shaming environment is directly tied to learned habits of self-sabotage. Our view of reality and interpersonal dynamics gets drastically skewed when subjected to being shamed.

Shame robs us of our emotional and spiritual bearings. We get mired in believing we are irredeemably flawed.

It steals our sense of being good enough. It drives us into dysfunctional and paralyzing perfectionism. Or worse, it creates the need to self-medicate away the pain with alcohol and other drugs, food, escapist or risky behaviors, and toxic relationships and religions.

Although this may be a tactic still used by drill sergeants in military boot camp, no self-respecting coach, therapist, or parent would intentionally shame someone into their idea of compliance.

Just like arsenic is not a culinary seasoning, shame is not a coaching tool.

If you have a coach, therapist, teacher, parent, or partner in your life who uses shaming tactics to get you to agree with them or change who you are, it's time to tell them you won't accept their attitudes and behaviors any longer.

If you are suffering from shame, there's likely a small child inside of you who needs your fierce protection. The way out of the corrosion of shame is to take back your power.

Why 9-9-09 is Auspicious for Endurance

If there is anything you need to do that will require a goodly amount of perseverance, today is the day to start.

If there are new habits you've been waiting to establish, today is the day to commit.

If there are promises you need to make to yourself or someone else, today is the day to manifest their enduring outcome.

Why?

Because in the ancient science of numerology the date 9-9-09 won't come around again for at least 100 years -- not until Sept 9th, 2109. And if you like further symbolic associations, because in Chinese the word nine sounds very similar to the word meaning long-lasting.

Nine is also the number of completions, finishing what you started, harvesting what you've sown. Thus actions taken on 9-9-09 are likely to be seen through to the end, no matter what.

I'm told, however, that in the Japanese language, the word for nine is similar to the word for suffering. Nine is not such a welcomed concept, possibly signifying loss of something that has existed for a long time. In which case, we might think of today as the time to:

• let go of old attitudes or actions that no longer serve you
• halt what you've been fighting against, or have been in denial about
• end reluctance to follow through, forgive, or make peace

What will you start with the intention to be long lasting?
What will you end with the realization that it's time is over?

A Role Model and 5 Keys for Reinventing Yourself

This morning I caught a segment on the Today Show about Claire Cook who -- in her mid 40s -- wrote her first novel in long hand, sitting in a minivan outside her daughter's 5 am swim practices. Now that's the ultimate in focus and dedication.

Her second novel was sold as an endearing movie you probably saw: Must Love Dogs with Diane Lane and John Cusack. Wow, and that's what happens when you move forward with belief in yourself.

Claire Cook is the epitome of midlife reinvention. She'll tell you herself: success like this doesn't just happen.

One thing stands up and shouts when you look at her website and blog. This is a woman who has unleashed her true self. And she's having the time of her life spreading her reinvention message. Her advice (slightly reinterpreted by me) for all of us midlife women is:

1. Don't pay attention to others' negativity about your dreams
2. Believe -- in yourself, and in being the dark horse winner
3. Live in insatiable desire for doing the work, not for the success it will bring
4. Root yourself in your own strengths -- let go of being driven to please everyone else
5. Find and follow your most vibrant passion -- be dogged in keeping after your One Best Talent

What are you yearning for? Are you secretly longing to reinvent your life before it's too late?

Then take stock of your strengths and talents, capture those lost hours spent waiting or in pursuit of meaningless trivia, prioritize yourself, and make it happen. Get a coach, if need be, to keep yourself on track.

You owe it to yourself.

How Do You Show Up?

It's often said in the coaching world that how you engage in anything is how you engage with everything.

The statement is talking about showing up alive in your life, being in alignment with your own values and integrity, and keeping your commitments to yourself as well as to others. I'm all for that.

Showing up is another way of saying: paying your dues, making the effort, doing what's necessary to get where you say you want to be. How do you show up for yourself, for your dreams, your goals?

Confidence is linked to showing up. Those of us who are shy may have difficulty showing up in social situations, and that robs us of the chance to build confidence in our social skills.

Showing up is about trying, failing, and coming back to try again. It's not about being perfect or compulsive, but simply making the best effort we can, over and over again, every chance we are willing to take.

Ask yourself what you really want and when you'd ideally like to have it. Then ask yourself how you show up to work for it.

If the effort you're putting in is equal to the goal, keep doing what you're doing while also looking for ways to do it better, smarter, easier, and faster.

If you aren't showing up for what you want, it's not likely you'll ever have it. It's up to you. How are you spending your daily efforts?

Do You Sabotage Yourself into Insomnia?

This morning I coached a coach on working with someone whose racing thoughts at bedtime kept her from falling asleep. This reminded me of the myriad of unconscious daily self-sabotages many of us engage in that have pretty immediate consequences.

Prolonged bouts of insomnia -- either having difficulty getting to sleep or trouble staying asleep -- can have devastating impact on everything, from physical health, to mental focus, to reaction time and judgment, to emotional stability, and irritability in relationships. We are wise to do everything we can to change the habits we have that contribute to this condition.

Here are a few ideas that have worked for me personally, and for my clients:

• Write a do to list for the next day, in bed, ending with writing out a statement such as: I can let today and tomorrow take care of themselves now, while I easily go to sleep.

• Reduce the amount of light in your home 2 hours prior to bedtime because bright lights stimulate the brain unnaturally. A single 25 watt lamp is enough.
  

• Reduce or eliminate conversation for 2 hours prior to bedtime, to start letting the brain relax.

• Eliminate coffee, tea, cola, chocolate, even products like Excedrin, and anything else with caffeine after 12 noon.
  

• Take vitamins in the morning, especially if they include Vitamin B because that's an energy booster.
  

• If you need extra help, try taking DHEA early in the day and melatonin right at bedtime to aid the brain in relaxing into sleep.

Breathing Meditation to Lull Yourself into Sleep

Mentally count to 4 very slowly while inhaling deeply.
Again count to 4 while exhaling slowly.
Keep doing that until the body relaxes. This gives the mind something focused to do.

Pair the counting with a mental image of something expanding when inhaling and then contracting when exhaling -- maybe a flower getting bigger then smaller. This gives the mind something else focused to do.

Finally, create and repeat an auto-suggestion (self-hypnosis) mantra, which is an image form of an affirmation statement. Something like: I feel my body relaxing. The gears in my brain are slowing for sleep. The circles of thoughts going round and round are stopping and holding still.

Paralyzing Procrastination -- What's It Teaching You?

We tend think of procrastination as a bad thing -- a lack of will power, determination, focus -- like it's some moral failing.

What if it were a signal to heed, or a lesson to be learned? What if we could take the negative spin off of this eddy in our energy flow and see if it has a productive purpose?

Physiologically, we all have what's called the alert or stress response. Typically it's known as the fight or flight response. But another component is present in all animals, including humans, when this alert system is triggered -- the freeze option.

Procrastination is a form of either flight from doing what needs to be done, or it's a type of mental, emotional, behavioral freeze designed to not attract attention,not put ourselves in danger, and not end up eaten by the predator that's stalking us. Either way, procrastination is a signal that some part of us perceives trouble -- real or imagined -- and is trying to act in its idea of our best interest.

Ask yourself how your procrastination is benefiting you. What's the trouble or danger you fear? Is it real? Is it bigger than the trouble you're creating by not taking direct action? What do you need to help you fight the fear?

Spiritually, procrastination might be viewed as a situation in which a guardian angel or some other helpful unseen being is holding us, preventing forward movement because we're headed in a direction that will take us out of alignment with our soul's needs or desires.

Consider for a moment how your paralyzing procrastination might be a safety net thrown around you by a watchful spirit whose job it is to keep you from wandering too far off your destined path. In what directions are you more free to move? What would this watchful spirit tell you, if you could hear or sense it speaking to you?

Holding Focus

As I write this morning, several construction workers are outside my building, tearing off my deck in order to replace it. It's noisy with power tools, and disruptive with other unidentifiable and unexpected sounds.

It occurs to me that there are always people, power, and disruption surrounding us when we are doing anything, and we have to develop effective tactics for holding focus. That is, for not letting the verbal, energetic, and emotional noise dilute our productivity.

Here's what I'd recommend:

1. focus by doing zen* tasks -- those that are so routine they can be done well with an empty mind
2. focus by using embodied skills -- those that are so second nature you can do them in your sleep
3. focus by normalizing -- getting used to sounds until they become just more background noise
4. focus by being singularly purposeful -- that is, be determined to accomplish your goal despite the obstacles
   
5. focus by relocating -- removing yourself to an alternative workspace that provide a more productive environment
6. focus by re-prioritizing -- shifting your timeline, renegotiating deadlines, and taking the day off

Hmmm, that's a pretty good prescription (if I do say so myself) for achieving your goals even without the assistance of noisy people, power tools and unexpected disruptions.

*No disrespect intended to those who practice Zen Buddhism

Have You Gifted Yourself Lately?

When was the last time you gave yourself a gift? Oh, I don't mean like buying a new pair of shoes or replacing the dishwasher -- those aren't gifts; they are necessities.

I mean, when did you most recently think of yourself as your own best friend, done something nice to lift your spirits, provide yourself some tangible or intangible encouragement, or indulge in a spontaneous, special little treat?

Can't remember?

Gifting yourself is important to mental health and success in life. It builds and sustains a foundation of knowing -- deep in your bones -- that you deserve, that you have done well, that you are good enough.

It's an act of self-acceptance and celebration. It's giving yourself a gold star and feeling good about your unsung efforts.

Now, it's true that some people seem to live in that mode all the time, and even go overboard in being so self-absorbed that all they think about is themselves. I'm not advocating falling into that myopic, ego-centered type of narcissistic personality disorder.

But too many of us engage in denial of self, and suffer with low self-esteem as a result. We schlep around a trunk-full of the faulty core belief that we aren't good enough, aren't deserving, aren't capable.

For those whose backs are breaking from that heavy burden, it's time to gift yourself. It's NOT selfish. It's mandatory to functioning at your most optimal, well balanced level.

Do You Let Fear Stop You?

Fear is either a motivator, or killer. It pushes us into action, or paralyzes productive brain and body function. Which is it for you?

Both reactions to fear are normal, even instinctual. And in a sense, fear is good. It's a communication of potential danger that we all need to pay attention to.

BUT -- fear should also be a motivating prompt for changing your focus. Fear calls you to look at the situation from a different angle, and quickly determine a useful response, so that you can keep moving forward toward your goals.

Frantic, scattered, unfocused reactivity to fear kills achievement just as well as depressed, numbed, withdrawal into inaction.

So how can you NOT let fear stop you?

1. Acknowledge that you are feeling scared.
2. Name the deepest fear that's being touched, in the given situation.
3. Refocus away from the feeling back to what you know without a doubt that you can trust.
4. Ask yourself what can I do differently now to still get what I most need in this situation.
5. See in your mind's eye the steps you need to take.
6. Remind yourself that you will learn new skills or self-knowledge from this experience.
7. Cultivate an attitude of faith, hope, and belief -- faith that everything will turn out ok, hope that something better than you can imagine will occur, and belief in your own abilities to persevere.

What Are You Waiting For?

I've begun to think that the old adage that patience is a virtue may be an outmoded relic of the past. It needs examining, if, as I suspect, the character trait of patience becomes the behavior of waiting too long to make change or manifest your dreams.

Much of so-called patience is just procrastination. And procrastination is a form of self-sabotage.

Patience can be sneaky. It sounds good to say we are waiting for right timing, or more resources, or for someone else to respond or take an action. A particularly deceptive form of sabotaging patience is in the idea that things are in motion and we are letting them play out.

Oh, I admit that all of those things may be true and valid in and of themselves. And what I see in many of my coaching clients is that this mindset can also be the mantra of excuses-making for staying too long in a comfort zone when there is an underlying commitment to be risk-avoidant.

If you believe yourself to be a patient person, if you take pride in that, it may well be an admirable virtue in your character. And nonetheless, I encourage you to ask yourself these powerful self-reflective questions, and see if you uncover a saboteur you didn't realize was lurking in you.

• Today, what am I waiting for? Is there really no forward movement I can take?
• Is what I'm waiting for contributing to a delay in making progress on other goals?
• What am I feeling while in this waiting state?
• What could I be doing on this or other projects that might move me forward differently, or faster?
• What risk am I avoiding by this waiting? Is that really a good idea, or is it hurting my success?
• If today's waiting is really productive, what else can I start or work on or finish in the meantime?
• What alternatives to waiting would be best for me right now, or best for my long term goals?
  

Courageous Attitude -- The Overlooked Resource

On her Facebook page, renowned poet Maya Angelou posted this quote: "If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain."

I love this variation of the Serenity Prayer, most commonly attributed to theologian Reinhold Niebuhr : God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.

Courage and attitude. Two important resources that often are overlooked when facing difficult times. Courage is simply the ability to do what needs to be done, despite potential negative outcomes. Most of us let our imaginings about potential negative outcomes make us blind to the potential positive results.

We let imagination rob us of courage. We could just as well allow imagination to focus on the positive, and be the fuel to move us forward. It's a choice, but we have to be conscious to choose the positive, because the unconscious will almost always choose the fearful negative.

If you claimed your own courage today, what would you do? How would you make a difference?

A common psychological defense when we are fearful is to become upset, angry, sarcastic, insulting, verbally abusive, or cynical. These negative emotional behaviors are called having a bad attitude, and they visit us when we are caught up in not liking something that we feel powerless about.

I don't know about you, but I don't need to answer the door when these visitors come calling.

Having a bad attitude is toxic to solution-finding, to generating alternative thinking, and to change, among other things. We can choose to react without attitude. We can even simply acknowledge that we don't like something or are afraid of something, without piling a lot of defensiveness on top of that.

What is in your world today that you don't like? Can you change it? Can you change your attitude about it? What positive outcome might happen if you did?

3 Approaches to Taking Advantage of a Setback

Sometimes I think we resist when we should surrender, and we go with the flow when we should take more control. It's like somehow our sense of right action with right timing is backwards.

This backwardness, I think, is part of what makes the unexpected setback so devastating to so many people.

As a coaching challenge, the question is: What if you could take a different approach to setbacks? What might be three ways to take advantage when an unexpected situation arises?

The Stop, Drop and Roll Approach

Yes, I know, that's the advice for when your clothing has caught on fire. But it applies here, I think. When a setback strikes, what if you:

• stop trying to do things the way we've always done them,
  
• drop back a step or two to get the bigger picture of what's newly possible, and then
  
• roll in the direction the energy is already moving?

The Lemonade Approach

You know, as in, when life hands you lemons, make lemonade. Setbacks are often unsweetened, acidic, and souring to the normalcy of accustomed daily routines. What if you:

• add some sugar -- which might be in the form of more time, less spending, more self-care, less pressure, etc
• stir until blended -- meaning, mix new resources and techniques into daily life until habituated
• drink until satisfied -- that is, let this new approach become a sweeter way of life

The Fly Around the Dragon Approach

Okay, yes, that's a Harry Potter Tri-Wizard champion reference. A setback can be like a great big, fire breathing obstacle between you and the golden egg of your goals. It's scary and fierce, and liable to bite you in two ('cause you is crunchy and good with ketchup. LOL). But what if you follow Harry's approach:

• accio Firebolt -- that is, access your best natural talent, and jump on with extreme gusto
  
• keep your eye on the prize -- meaning, despite distractions, don't lose sight of your goals
• stay on your broom -- which is your action plan, because moving forward is what works, being still is fatal
• course correct as needed -- small necessary changes can get you closer to success with less danger
  
• don't give in to fear -- operate on instinct and solid learning without second guessing yourself
  

The Secret to Being Creative

Being creative is not about being able to sing, dance, paint, or write. It's not even so much about innate talent, although that helps.

Being creative is a essentially a mental process, fueled by emotional passion, and sustained by sheer determination and persistence. But it's the mental process that's the key.

The mental process of creativity is all in your perspective. It's basically a way of seeing possibilities that most can't see -- from a different angle or new viewpoint. It's asking yourself what if.

• What if I come at this problem from the opposite direction?
• What could be uncovered if I take 3 steps back and see the bigger picture?
• What if this worked differently, or produced a different result -- what would be needed to do that?
  

Whether in business or in life, often being creative grows from asking what's not being done. Or from wondering how could I do that better, easier, with less effort and time, or more payoff. The seeds of creativity lie in questioning things as they are, and wondering how else they could be.

And then, once the questions point you in a direction to explore, being creative is in having the motivation or courage to pursue the adventure of finding out.

Your life coaching questions for today are: Look at one common household item today that you normally take for granted. What else can you do with it? Can you brainstorm 10 new uses for this item?

What Liberates Your Independent Spirit?

All progress is made by those who move forward from the pack, from the prevailing mindset. This is true when we're talking political revolution, and it's true when we are speaking of individual life dreams as well.

For some of us, the moving forward has to start with stepping beyond the beliefs, fears, and customs of our family, or even of our own inner dialogue. We can get so accustomed to evaluating ourselves through others' eyes, that their opinions and expectations of us become oppressive and limiting. And, we can oppress and limit ourselves by the way we give ourselves negative messages about our competence, confidence or chances to succeed

True liberation requires gaining independence from the tyranny of the small goals, small beliefs, and small dreams that are confined to what our insecurities allow. True independence also must be gained from the small, negative "support" offered by those who are overly controlled by their fear-based concerns for our safety and happiness.

Perhaps the most valuable self-coaching gift you can give yourself this weekend is to begin to use these powerful questions to guide you in your choices:

• Will this action, thought, emotion, relationship, or situation free me to succeed?
• If not, what is limiting my freedom of movement, and how can I liberate myself from that?
  

Ask 2 Essential Questions To Recover Inner Peace

It's been an unusual few weeks. Celebrities who shaped or contributed to generations of global pop culture have died. Revolution is trying to take hold not only in Iran, but also in how health care is paid for in the US, how green technologies are supported. Threats big and small make the world's news, and and on a smaller scale, ripple through lesser known communities and personal lives.

In times like this when a sense of uncertainty and the limitations of mortality are impacting governments and individuals around the globe, it's normal to feel unsettled in our own lives. It's as if the atmosphere we exist in and the ground we stand on is suddenly shifting. Reality is unreal, and unreliable.

The least helpful thing to do in such times is to dwell in questions such as: what's going on? what if that could happen to me? how can I be protected? when will everything be good again?

What we all seek, I think, is an unassailable sense of inner peace. We universally want to feel safe and secure, able to meet the challenges life throws at us, and know in advance that whatever happens, we'll be okay in the end. This is a basic human need.

So how do we get there? I think there are two essential questions that lead to creating or recovering inner peace are:

• What do I have that can never be taken from me without my consent (my skills, beliefs, attitudes, etc)?
• What are the positives I know I can count on, without any doubt? (my knowledge, my abilities, my supports)
  

These two questions invite taking an inventory of the factors that create and maintain resilience. When we have resilience, we have options. And when we have options, we can make opportunities for positive change.

Your coaching question for today is: What factors build and maintain my resilience, and how can I strengthen them?