So, you are considering brewing your own lager but you don't know where to begin. Help is on the way! The first place to start is online checking out and comparing beer making kits.
These kits come in several different price ranges and some include a lot of accessories, but a few of these accessories you'll be capable of finding in your house ( like a measuring cup and a wooden spoon ) so scrupulously check out all the information before you make a purchase. Lager making kits come complete with written and / or video instructions that may make it so simple for you to get started. Here is a list of the essential items you'll need :
A fermenting bucket with a lid A bottling bucket with a spigot An airlock Sanitizer Bottles All lager making kits will come with a fermenting bucket and lid. After you boil the ingredients that come with your kit, you may pour the liquid into this bucket.
Ensure that the lid seals tightly and has a hole to insert an airlock. A bottling bucket makes it easy to pour your beer once it has fermented as it'll come with a spigot. An airlock is made from clear acrylic or glass.
This device allows carbon dioxide to escape and keeps the outside air from entering the bottle. lager making kits will include a sanitizer and you must use this to utterly clean all of the apparatus that will come in communication with your lager.
This includes cleaning all dust, dirt and stains. Bottles are the glass bottles and lids that are included with your kit. The sanitizer that comes with your kit also should be used on these bottles. lager making kits will make it easy and fun to brew your beer at home. And to top it off, you'll have the ability to make the lager exactly how you like it. What could be better than that? .
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Playing “hide & seek” with ourselves!
I am not sure why we do it, our spirits must think it’s a lot of fun! Maybe we were just bored, so we created this playground called earth, got a body, then proceeded to subject ourselves to experience after experience that would shame us, hurt us, cause us to question ourselves and hide our true spiritual and human nature from ourselves. Then spend our adult lives trying to find ourselves!
In my book “Remembering Wholeness” I say that we convince ourselves of the biggest lie that causes obvious discomfort, that we are the opposite of who we truly are and then we believe it!
So if this is fun, I have been having a ball most of my life!
True to the game, like most of us I really slammed myself with the deeper belief “If I am me, I am going to get in to trouble!” Most of my childhood was dedicated to creating that limiting belief!
I read today on a blog site “I’ve learned a lot about life by making a mess of my own.” And the only reason any of us could make a mess of our lives, is by trying to live like someone we are not!
Enter the world of Energy Profiling and my new book “It’s Just My Nature!.” I know it’s harder to swallow when the author/creator brags about their own creation. But, being a Type 3, I can’t help but tell you honestly how amazing my life has turned around since I understood myself through the Energy Profiling lens and what I teach in my new book.
Knowing that my human nature is “naturally” designed to BE pretty much everything I attempted to stop it from being gave me a huge advantage of hiding myself from me. So, for the bulk of my life I have been winning the game of hiding!
For every person the time comes where the game of hiding suddenly turns in to the game of seeking and finding ourselves. We tend to think that is a “better” game to play, shaming the hiding part of the game as bad and wrong. I have taken to celebrating both aspects of the game. If my soul wanted to play hide and seek with myself, then the better job I did at hiding me ramped up the challenge of finding me!
I am a master of the human “hide and seek” game!
Typically when we start the seeking side of the game, we keep looking outside ourselves to find ourselves, when all along what we are seeking has never left us! All the answers are inside of us (I think I write about that in Remembering Wholeness!!! - catch the title? REMEMBERING…..)
My biggest ah-ha in the game lately is that most people are just seeking to know more about their divine nature. I now realize that this is a good game, but more than ever am realizing that no one is teaching how to find your true human nature! So, nobody is looking….until now!
It’s great to understand our divine nature, it certainly helped me clear my inner critic and own how omnipotent and powerful my soul is, which is who I am, and how I am the creator of my life.
What I didn’t realize is that I could die having missed the most important point of being in this playground - my true human nature! What I call my Type 3 nature. My natural gifts in my human expression to be clear, practical, decisive, swift, bold, and at times to come across pushy, intense, and direct!
I love knowing my true human nature. It has taken all the guess work out of being me. In the game of “hide and seek” I am no longer hiding, I am no longer seeking, I have found me. Now I am practicing every day of my life what it feels like to be me. I think it is the most fun I have had yet! But, my spirit reminds me from her perspective the entire game has been a blast!
Carol
PS - I have to thank Suzette for posting this on my Facebook wall, it is what inspired me writing this post:
“I’m experiencing the same thing today. I had a beautiful moment while getting ready for the day. The Type 1 lady on your Energy Profiling website, www.myenergyprofile.com says in her testimonial how she felt like she went to play hide-and-seek as a child and no one came to find her. I realized today that is how I felt, but I found me today in the mirror. I have been working on dressing my truth and it payed off in a big way today. All of the sudden, I looked in the mirror and saw the little girl me all grown up– and beautiful! It was a profound and clarifying moment! I haven’ ever looked in the mirror and seen that girl until today! It brought tears to my eyes and filled my soul with gratitude!”
PPS - Just a sidenote Suzette, your soul is ALWAYS filled with gratitude! What you experienced is your soul and human nature becoming one in that moment of “feeling” the truth of your “wholeness.” I am having an ah-ha moment as I write this, to truly REMEMBER our WHOLENESS is to know and live fully both our divine and our human nature in this beautiful playground we call earth! I am working on a revision of “Remembering Wholeness” to be released in 2010 as a 10 year anniversary edition, getting a lot of ah-ha’s to what I need to revise in this beautiful book.
In my book “Remembering Wholeness” I say that we convince ourselves of the biggest lie that causes obvious discomfort, that we are the opposite of who we truly are and then we believe it!
So if this is fun, I have been having a ball most of my life!
True to the game, like most of us I really slammed myself with the deeper belief “If I am me, I am going to get in to trouble!” Most of my childhood was dedicated to creating that limiting belief!
I read today on a blog site “I’ve learned a lot about life by making a mess of my own.” And the only reason any of us could make a mess of our lives, is by trying to live like someone we are not!
Enter the world of Energy Profiling and my new book “It’s Just My Nature!.” I know it’s harder to swallow when the author/creator brags about their own creation. But, being a Type 3, I can’t help but tell you honestly how amazing my life has turned around since I understood myself through the Energy Profiling lens and what I teach in my new book.
Knowing that my human nature is “naturally” designed to BE pretty much everything I attempted to stop it from being gave me a huge advantage of hiding myself from me. So, for the bulk of my life I have been winning the game of hiding!
For every person the time comes where the game of hiding suddenly turns in to the game of seeking and finding ourselves. We tend to think that is a “better” game to play, shaming the hiding part of the game as bad and wrong. I have taken to celebrating both aspects of the game. If my soul wanted to play hide and seek with myself, then the better job I did at hiding me ramped up the challenge of finding me!
I am a master of the human “hide and seek” game!
Typically when we start the seeking side of the game, we keep looking outside ourselves to find ourselves, when all along what we are seeking has never left us! All the answers are inside of us (I think I write about that in Remembering Wholeness!!! - catch the title? REMEMBERING…..)
My biggest ah-ha in the game lately is that most people are just seeking to know more about their divine nature. I now realize that this is a good game, but more than ever am realizing that no one is teaching how to find your true human nature! So, nobody is looking….until now!
It’s great to understand our divine nature, it certainly helped me clear my inner critic and own how omnipotent and powerful my soul is, which is who I am, and how I am the creator of my life.
What I didn’t realize is that I could die having missed the most important point of being in this playground - my true human nature! What I call my Type 3 nature. My natural gifts in my human expression to be clear, practical, decisive, swift, bold, and at times to come across pushy, intense, and direct!
I love knowing my true human nature. It has taken all the guess work out of being me. In the game of “hide and seek” I am no longer hiding, I am no longer seeking, I have found me. Now I am practicing every day of my life what it feels like to be me. I think it is the most fun I have had yet! But, my spirit reminds me from her perspective the entire game has been a blast!
Carol
PS - I have to thank Suzette for posting this on my Facebook wall, it is what inspired me writing this post:
“I’m experiencing the same thing today. I had a beautiful moment while getting ready for the day. The Type 1 lady on your Energy Profiling website, www.myenergyprofile.com says in her testimonial how she felt like she went to play hide-and-seek as a child and no one came to find her. I realized today that is how I felt, but I found me today in the mirror. I have been working on dressing my truth and it payed off in a big way today. All of the sudden, I looked in the mirror and saw the little girl me all grown up– and beautiful! It was a profound and clarifying moment! I haven’ ever looked in the mirror and seen that girl until today! It brought tears to my eyes and filled my soul with gratitude!”
PPS - Just a sidenote Suzette, your soul is ALWAYS filled with gratitude! What you experienced is your soul and human nature becoming one in that moment of “feeling” the truth of your “wholeness.” I am having an ah-ha moment as I write this, to truly REMEMBER our WHOLENESS is to know and live fully both our divine and our human nature in this beautiful playground we call earth! I am working on a revision of “Remembering Wholeness” to be released in 2010 as a 10 year anniversary edition, getting a lot of ah-ha’s to what I need to revise in this beautiful book.
Monday, November 9, 2009
The Importance of Knowing Your Birth Time for Natal Charts
Natal charts give a revealing and detailed look into one's personality by determining the position of the starts on the time you were born. There are potentially about 1,440 different horoscopes in a single day for one person (24 hours multiplied by 60 minutes), hence the importance of having the exact birth time. Additionally, the accuracy of knowing your exact birth time to get an accurate natal chart is important because of the following reasons: (1) the houses of the zodiac revolve by 1 degree every 4 minutes; (2) after each clock hour, the Earth rotates by 15 degrees; (3) an error in birth time of 2 minutes could result in several horoscope errors.With 24 hours in a day, 60 minutes in each, there are 1,440 different horoscopes in a single day for any person, in any single geographical location. And a natal chart is more detailed than a horoscope since its data comes from analyzing the positions of the stars at the exact moment of one's birth. Which is why knowing the exact birth time is important to get an accurate reading from a natal chart, and aside from making sure that you get the correct horoscope from the 1,440 possibilities, it is also because of these three important factors.Houses of the Zodiac Revolve By 1 Degree Every 4 MinutesAccording to elbertwade.com, every four minutes, "a new degree of a particular zodiac sign appears on the ascendant, (eastern horizon) and consequently an opposite-sign new degree appears on the decendant (western horizon)." This would show that it is possible that a difference in birth times by four minutes could lead to "sign changes on some or all the other eight horoscope house signs." This is depending on the location of the birth place, specifically pertaining to the latitude.After Each Clock Hour, the Earth Rotates By 15 DegreesThat means that in every hour, it constitutes half of a zodiac sign, and in two hours, a full zodiac sign. This means that estimating the birth date by saying generic time details such as "around noon" or "near dawn" would lead to inaccuracy since every two hours, the reading for the zodiac sign would change. And again, such inaccuracy would mean that the results from a natal chart that is not using the exact time would not be very reliable.An Error in Birth Time of 2 Minutes Could Result in Several Horoscope ErrorsWith an error of just 2 minutes, several possible horoscope errors could happen. A different ascendant (a rising sign). A different decan of the same sign could be seen. One or more planets could be in different houses, and some planets could be in different signs. There are even some cases where even Sun sign would change. (Sun signs are the popular zodiac signs used in horoscopes, such Taurus, Libra, Aries, and the like). Natal chart readings offer a revealing look into one's personality based on the positions of the starts on the day, time, and place one is born. There are so many possibilities that we should have our accurate birth time ready, or else we'd end up with results meant for someone else who was born a minute or two after us. And we don't want to read about someone else's natal chart now, do we?
What Can Entrepreneurs Learn From Confucius?
The teachings of Confucius have endured for centuries and remain influential in the thought and lives of many Asian people and other cultures around the world. Confucius was a philosopher who emphasised personal and government morality, justice, sincerity and virtuousness. I wonder what relevance the words of Confucius have to entrepreneurs in today's world of immediate gratification, liberal morals and values and access to endless streams of information? Here is some of what Confucius had to say.
1. "It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop". We live in a world of speed and instant access, yet it is common for entrepreneurs to have minimal business success, on average 17 times, before they reach the pinnacle of success. It really does not matter how long it takes, what matters is getting there in the end.
2. "Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do". These words have been repeated by leaders throughout time, recently with a little variation by Sir Winston Churchill who said "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." Hmmm, the power of great philosophy is that it never changes. Such good advice for any entrepreneur.
3. "What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others." Looking inside yourself to find the strength and conviction necessary to achieve anything that you want is the foundation of modern personal development programs. Today, this philosophy is couched in such terms as "lead from the front" or "be the change that you want to see" and "the only person that you can motivate is yourself".
4. "Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart." Today's philosophers and guru's talk about finding your passion, having a burning desire or 100% commitment, they could just as easily say "go for it, with all of your heart".
5. "They must often change who would be constant in happiness or wisdom." And the baby boomers have thought that they had the premium on change with frequent comments that they are change weary or have endured too much change in their lives. Linking change to happiness and wisdom is a concept not often heard; yet any entrepreneur is likely to be living this reality. Others might choose to live a life with less fulfillment rather than face the change required to do something different. The idea of seeking wisdom and happiness through change is exciting and one of Confucius' philosophies to be embraced.
6. "Things that are done, it is needless to speak about...things that are past, it is needless to blame." You attract what you focus on and if you focus on past hurts or injustices then you will get more of the same. Blame is a negative emotion and if you focus on blame you will attract negativity. Instead, use what you do not want to get focused on what you do want for your future and speak about that.
7. "Without an acquaintance with the rules of propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established." If you want to be successful, be in the acquaintance of successful people. If you want to be a millionaire associate with millionaires. You will learn much in the company of others and even more if you carefully select your role models.
Thousands of years ago or 2009? It seems that the philosophical teachings remain the same and entrepreneurs can continue to look to the Masters of every generation to learn and develop their own unique way of viewing the world and achieve success.
How do you embrace change and maintain 100% commitment to your business, even when the going is tough?
How are you using the present moment to prepare for your future?
1. "It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop". We live in a world of speed and instant access, yet it is common for entrepreneurs to have minimal business success, on average 17 times, before they reach the pinnacle of success. It really does not matter how long it takes, what matters is getting there in the end.
2. "Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do". These words have been repeated by leaders throughout time, recently with a little variation by Sir Winston Churchill who said "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." Hmmm, the power of great philosophy is that it never changes. Such good advice for any entrepreneur.
3. "What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others." Looking inside yourself to find the strength and conviction necessary to achieve anything that you want is the foundation of modern personal development programs. Today, this philosophy is couched in such terms as "lead from the front" or "be the change that you want to see" and "the only person that you can motivate is yourself".
4. "Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart." Today's philosophers and guru's talk about finding your passion, having a burning desire or 100% commitment, they could just as easily say "go for it, with all of your heart".
5. "They must often change who would be constant in happiness or wisdom." And the baby boomers have thought that they had the premium on change with frequent comments that they are change weary or have endured too much change in their lives. Linking change to happiness and wisdom is a concept not often heard; yet any entrepreneur is likely to be living this reality. Others might choose to live a life with less fulfillment rather than face the change required to do something different. The idea of seeking wisdom and happiness through change is exciting and one of Confucius' philosophies to be embraced.
6. "Things that are done, it is needless to speak about...things that are past, it is needless to blame." You attract what you focus on and if you focus on past hurts or injustices then you will get more of the same. Blame is a negative emotion and if you focus on blame you will attract negativity. Instead, use what you do not want to get focused on what you do want for your future and speak about that.
7. "Without an acquaintance with the rules of propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established." If you want to be successful, be in the acquaintance of successful people. If you want to be a millionaire associate with millionaires. You will learn much in the company of others and even more if you carefully select your role models.
Thousands of years ago or 2009? It seems that the philosophical teachings remain the same and entrepreneurs can continue to look to the Masters of every generation to learn and develop their own unique way of viewing the world and achieve success.
How do you embrace change and maintain 100% commitment to your business, even when the going is tough?
How are you using the present moment to prepare for your future?
Choice
What kind of a day are you having today? Because, it doesn't matter what day of the week it is - Monday or Friday - it's a beautiful day. If you're not having your perfect day today, then you're wasting the only opportunity you have right now to be effortlessly happy and successful - doesn't matter where you are, who you're with or separated from, what you've got to do - it's you that makes it a beautiful day. It's what's going on in your head - and only in your head - that makes the moment what you think it is.
If you're waiting for your beautiful day to happen - waiting for better times around the corner - then you're not fully living in the only time and place you have - here and now - today. You have a choice - and it's a very simple, moment to moment choice. Your first option is that you can choose to allow your subconscious mind to pay attention to the old self-doubts, the childhood "snapshots" with which we were all programmed during our formative years. You can decide to listen to what many of my clients call the "voices in my head" - the one's that whisper "No, you can't!" This first choice - of effectively letting your mind run you - is the default choice for all normal people - and, research shows, that there's a 96% probability that you're normal. As a normal person, you may not realise that you have this moment to moment choice, that it's something that is being decided by you subconsciously, moment to moment. But that's neither here nor there - you do have a choice and it is a choice that, by default, you make completely and utterly mindlessly. After all, otherwise, you'd be aware that you're making the choice!
However, as a potentially responsible abnormal adult, you have an alternative to the option that we've just explored. You can choose to pay attention to what is actually going on in the present moment, rather than paying attention to the past. First of all, the past is long gone. Research indicates that most of us live in our past - albeit subconsciously. Rarely do we learn from our past and move on to the only place and time we have - the here and now. By the "here and now" I actually mean, quite simply, this present moment - and this present moment, moment to moment. The present includes what you are actually doing - or, more to the point, supposed to be doing - just not. Normal people only 1% do what they're supposed to be doing, whilst 99% of their mental capability pays attention to thoughts like "I don't like this job!" "I'm bored!" "I wish I was somewhere else!" or, at our deepest level, those voices that I mentioned earlier.
Using your mind in this way is like trying to run the hundred metre dash having deliberately, just before the start, tied your shoe laces together. Not only are you never going to win, you're going to fall flat on your face before you even get going. Isn't that what normal people do every day? Isn't that why normal people get fed up, worn down? Isn't that why the normal life is "not so bad"?
But you and I have the chance to be abnormal - or to set new norms for those of us who want to rise head and shoulders out of the humdrum of everyday normal life. You and I can choose - and deliberately choose - our second option: Pay attention to NOW. If you don't, you'll continue being normal, you'll continuing working to succeed, or, indeed, working hard just to be not so bad. If you do take control of your mind, by directing your attention to the present moment, you suddenly change everything. Why? Because, moment to moment, each decision we make takes us down a particular path where we have further moment to moment decisions to make. In other words, our daily lives are full of thousands upon thousands of possibilities and opportunities - all lost on the normal person, who trundles from one mindless non-choice to the next.
Recent research indicates that your ability to be happy and successful - to hit that "peak performance zone" - is intimately correlated with whether or not you're paying attention to the here and now. When we hit a natural high as a result of an extraordinary life experience that "takes our breath away", parts of our brain, never otherwise activated, light up - because we engrossed in that moment. Research proves that the process also works the other way round - deliberately choose to engross yourself in the moment and you will hit that natural high. That is the secret to paying attention to Now - engross yourself in the moment. Use all of your senses to experience the moment - even if that moment is something that your silly, confused, normal mind thinks you don't like. Just engross yourself. In doing so, you become more effective - because you're more "all there" - more efficient, because you're really doing what you're doing - and you'll have presence - simply because you will be more present. And, as you know, presence is the hallmark of all highly, exceptionally or abnormally successful people.
If you're waiting for your beautiful day to happen - waiting for better times around the corner - then you're not fully living in the only time and place you have - here and now - today. You have a choice - and it's a very simple, moment to moment choice. Your first option is that you can choose to allow your subconscious mind to pay attention to the old self-doubts, the childhood "snapshots" with which we were all programmed during our formative years. You can decide to listen to what many of my clients call the "voices in my head" - the one's that whisper "No, you can't!" This first choice - of effectively letting your mind run you - is the default choice for all normal people - and, research shows, that there's a 96% probability that you're normal. As a normal person, you may not realise that you have this moment to moment choice, that it's something that is being decided by you subconsciously, moment to moment. But that's neither here nor there - you do have a choice and it is a choice that, by default, you make completely and utterly mindlessly. After all, otherwise, you'd be aware that you're making the choice!
However, as a potentially responsible abnormal adult, you have an alternative to the option that we've just explored. You can choose to pay attention to what is actually going on in the present moment, rather than paying attention to the past. First of all, the past is long gone. Research indicates that most of us live in our past - albeit subconsciously. Rarely do we learn from our past and move on to the only place and time we have - the here and now. By the "here and now" I actually mean, quite simply, this present moment - and this present moment, moment to moment. The present includes what you are actually doing - or, more to the point, supposed to be doing - just not. Normal people only 1% do what they're supposed to be doing, whilst 99% of their mental capability pays attention to thoughts like "I don't like this job!" "I'm bored!" "I wish I was somewhere else!" or, at our deepest level, those voices that I mentioned earlier.
Using your mind in this way is like trying to run the hundred metre dash having deliberately, just before the start, tied your shoe laces together. Not only are you never going to win, you're going to fall flat on your face before you even get going. Isn't that what normal people do every day? Isn't that why normal people get fed up, worn down? Isn't that why the normal life is "not so bad"?
But you and I have the chance to be abnormal - or to set new norms for those of us who want to rise head and shoulders out of the humdrum of everyday normal life. You and I can choose - and deliberately choose - our second option: Pay attention to NOW. If you don't, you'll continue being normal, you'll continuing working to succeed, or, indeed, working hard just to be not so bad. If you do take control of your mind, by directing your attention to the present moment, you suddenly change everything. Why? Because, moment to moment, each decision we make takes us down a particular path where we have further moment to moment decisions to make. In other words, our daily lives are full of thousands upon thousands of possibilities and opportunities - all lost on the normal person, who trundles from one mindless non-choice to the next.
Recent research indicates that your ability to be happy and successful - to hit that "peak performance zone" - is intimately correlated with whether or not you're paying attention to the here and now. When we hit a natural high as a result of an extraordinary life experience that "takes our breath away", parts of our brain, never otherwise activated, light up - because we engrossed in that moment. Research proves that the process also works the other way round - deliberately choose to engross yourself in the moment and you will hit that natural high. That is the secret to paying attention to Now - engross yourself in the moment. Use all of your senses to experience the moment - even if that moment is something that your silly, confused, normal mind thinks you don't like. Just engross yourself. In doing so, you become more effective - because you're more "all there" - more efficient, because you're really doing what you're doing - and you'll have presence - simply because you will be more present. And, as you know, presence is the hallmark of all highly, exceptionally or abnormally successful people.
Encore Careers: What's Your Expertise?
As you begin to evaluate your encore career, it is important to establish your core values as a tool for discovering your encore career. The next step is to determine what skills or expertise you have that align with what you define as your personal values.
In order to do this, you must look back over your experiences to find those things that you're not only good at, but you really enjoy doing. Face it. There are lots of things you're good at that you dread doing. But, what's the sense of creating an encore career that has you doing anything but what you most enjoy?
Uncovering those things that you most enjoy that you're good at is a great next step on your internal journey of discovery for your ideal encore career. Take some quiet reflection time, and ask yourself these seven must-ask questions:
1. What do/did I enjoy most about my current career? This is a terrific place to start. Write down every thing you like about your work, that puts a smile on your face. If the challenge (and enjoyment) are long gone from the work you do, think back to the beginning. What excited you about the work? What pulled you out of bed in the morning that you couldn't wait to do?
2. What do I most enjoy learning? Over the years, you've most likely invested a lot of time and energy in learning. Only include what you learned for the simple joy of it. Please leave out what you either "had to" learn for your work, or what you learned for the people you love, but didn't light you up.
3. What do other people always come to me for? This is a great one. I'll bet there are a number of things that the people in your life consistently ask you for. It might be for your ability to see the big picture, help solving a problem, or just to be heard. These are great clues as to what you're good at. Again, only write down the ones you really enjoy doing.
4. What do I discount as valuable because I do it so effortlessly? For years it never occurred to me that my energetic, enthusiastic cheerleading would be something that I could earn a living at, because it's just part of who I am, and I've been doing it since I was a little girl. But, my coaching, writing and presenting make good use of this gift, and that I get paid for it is a wonderful bonus.
5. What do I love so much that I would pay someone to let me do? Okay, so now you're sworn to secrecy. I love my work as a coach and workshop leader so much that I would gladly pay my clients to let me coach them, and my Boot Camp participants to let me inspire them. Of course, one needs to make a living, but it's a great way to feel about the work that you do. Your ideal encore career should feel like this.
6. What am I doing when I lose all track of time? They say time flies when you're having fun, and that's true for me when I'm designing a new keynote, workshop or Boot Camp. Hours pass and it feels like minutes; my creative juices are flowing and I'm having a blast. When does time fly for you?
7. What do I love to do just for the sake of doing it? I love presenting. Being up in front of people, sharing my passion, knowledge and expertise thrills me. It never gets dull, I never get bored, and it gives me the opportunity to meet interesting new people all the time. What do you love to do this much?
Once you have the answers to these questions, you'll have a valuable piece to add to your "What's My Ideal Encore Career" puzzle. Your answers should begin to reveal some of the essence of your ideal encore career picture.
Remember, in order to find your ideal encore career, it's imperative that you determine what it is you want first, then get down to the nuts and bolts of how to get it.
In order to do this, you must look back over your experiences to find those things that you're not only good at, but you really enjoy doing. Face it. There are lots of things you're good at that you dread doing. But, what's the sense of creating an encore career that has you doing anything but what you most enjoy?
Uncovering those things that you most enjoy that you're good at is a great next step on your internal journey of discovery for your ideal encore career. Take some quiet reflection time, and ask yourself these seven must-ask questions:
1. What do/did I enjoy most about my current career? This is a terrific place to start. Write down every thing you like about your work, that puts a smile on your face. If the challenge (and enjoyment) are long gone from the work you do, think back to the beginning. What excited you about the work? What pulled you out of bed in the morning that you couldn't wait to do?
2. What do I most enjoy learning? Over the years, you've most likely invested a lot of time and energy in learning. Only include what you learned for the simple joy of it. Please leave out what you either "had to" learn for your work, or what you learned for the people you love, but didn't light you up.
3. What do other people always come to me for? This is a great one. I'll bet there are a number of things that the people in your life consistently ask you for. It might be for your ability to see the big picture, help solving a problem, or just to be heard. These are great clues as to what you're good at. Again, only write down the ones you really enjoy doing.
4. What do I discount as valuable because I do it so effortlessly? For years it never occurred to me that my energetic, enthusiastic cheerleading would be something that I could earn a living at, because it's just part of who I am, and I've been doing it since I was a little girl. But, my coaching, writing and presenting make good use of this gift, and that I get paid for it is a wonderful bonus.
5. What do I love so much that I would pay someone to let me do? Okay, so now you're sworn to secrecy. I love my work as a coach and workshop leader so much that I would gladly pay my clients to let me coach them, and my Boot Camp participants to let me inspire them. Of course, one needs to make a living, but it's a great way to feel about the work that you do. Your ideal encore career should feel like this.
6. What am I doing when I lose all track of time? They say time flies when you're having fun, and that's true for me when I'm designing a new keynote, workshop or Boot Camp. Hours pass and it feels like minutes; my creative juices are flowing and I'm having a blast. When does time fly for you?
7. What do I love to do just for the sake of doing it? I love presenting. Being up in front of people, sharing my passion, knowledge and expertise thrills me. It never gets dull, I never get bored, and it gives me the opportunity to meet interesting new people all the time. What do you love to do this much?
Once you have the answers to these questions, you'll have a valuable piece to add to your "What's My Ideal Encore Career" puzzle. Your answers should begin to reveal some of the essence of your ideal encore career picture.
Remember, in order to find your ideal encore career, it's imperative that you determine what it is you want first, then get down to the nuts and bolts of how to get it.
Don't Get Offended
The other day my husband could tell I was feeling swamped so he offered to cook dinner. I was thrilled at his offer and told him I loved his idea. He then proceeded to tell me, "I'll make you something healthy." Thoughts about how considerate husband is flooded my mind; he obviously had noticed that I don't usually eat the meals I cook for him, since they typically contain the types of fats and carbohydrates I try to avoid. I was excited to see his idea of a healthy meal. Then came the funny part. He took my moment of silent contemplation as a sign that I was offended by his offer for a "healthy" meal. He began going back on his comment and said, "It's not like you need to eat healthy...I wasn't trying to say you don't cook healthy... you don't need to lose weight or be healthier or anything." I began to laugh, but then realized he was apologizing because he knows I sometimes get easily offended. Unfortunately, I'm not alone in this world. We could all use a little help when it comes to being less-easily offended.
The first key to not being easily offended involves a realization of the fact that we personally choose to be offended. People may perform actions or say things that could potentially hurt your feelings, however you—and only you—allow those words or actions hurt you. You choose to take offense. It is all about how you deal with your surroundings. Growing up, I know my siblings and I would always blame our little acts of anger on the fact that, "My brother/sister made me mad." We would then be corrected and reminded that we chose to be mad and our actions were no body's fault but our own. Of course, some people are better than others at provoking us to anger or offense, just as some friends are more likely to cause us laugh. It is all about how you internalize the actions and words that constantly occur around you. Are you going to let the small things affect your day and your attitude?
The second thing to remember is that if you choose to take offense, you are allowing an internal sore to develop within you while the person who you think caused the offense is probably walking around without even realizing they hurt you. Perhaps you should consider talking about your feelings to a close loved one and getting a second opinion about your feelings to see if they are justified. I know I have counseled with my husband many times and asked if I was wrong or right in feeling upset about a certain situation. More often than not, my husband can give me a very valid opinion from an outsider's point of view and he helps me realize that the other person probably did not mean what they said in the way that I interpreted it. Always assume the best—no one would ever intentionally try to harm or offend you. This is usually the case, but we seem to be pretty thin-skinned as a society and unfortunately we sweat the small stuff.
The last and most important thing to remember is that allowing feelings of offense to fester within usually lead to outward expressions of bitterness to those who are closest to us. Don't let negative feelings build up, because eventually they may erupt and you could say or do some nasty things to those you love most. If this happens, you better hope your dear friends are better at not taking offense than you are.
Choosing to stay on higher ground and not take offense is a hard and challenging task at times. It definitely requires patience and understanding. We should all strive to believe people are genuinely good-natured. Try to imagine that the questionable words or actions were actually said or done without malicious intent. By choosing to not take offense, you keep a healthy relationship with those closest to you and you can more easily socialize without stressing every little comment that could potentially be considered rude. You become a much more enjoyable person to be around.
The first key to not being easily offended involves a realization of the fact that we personally choose to be offended. People may perform actions or say things that could potentially hurt your feelings, however you—and only you—allow those words or actions hurt you. You choose to take offense. It is all about how you deal with your surroundings. Growing up, I know my siblings and I would always blame our little acts of anger on the fact that, "My brother/sister made me mad." We would then be corrected and reminded that we chose to be mad and our actions were no body's fault but our own. Of course, some people are better than others at provoking us to anger or offense, just as some friends are more likely to cause us laugh. It is all about how you internalize the actions and words that constantly occur around you. Are you going to let the small things affect your day and your attitude?
The second thing to remember is that if you choose to take offense, you are allowing an internal sore to develop within you while the person who you think caused the offense is probably walking around without even realizing they hurt you. Perhaps you should consider talking about your feelings to a close loved one and getting a second opinion about your feelings to see if they are justified. I know I have counseled with my husband many times and asked if I was wrong or right in feeling upset about a certain situation. More often than not, my husband can give me a very valid opinion from an outsider's point of view and he helps me realize that the other person probably did not mean what they said in the way that I interpreted it. Always assume the best—no one would ever intentionally try to harm or offend you. This is usually the case, but we seem to be pretty thin-skinned as a society and unfortunately we sweat the small stuff.
The last and most important thing to remember is that allowing feelings of offense to fester within usually lead to outward expressions of bitterness to those who are closest to us. Don't let negative feelings build up, because eventually they may erupt and you could say or do some nasty things to those you love most. If this happens, you better hope your dear friends are better at not taking offense than you are.
Choosing to stay on higher ground and not take offense is a hard and challenging task at times. It definitely requires patience and understanding. We should all strive to believe people are genuinely good-natured. Try to imagine that the questionable words or actions were actually said or done without malicious intent. By choosing to not take offense, you keep a healthy relationship with those closest to you and you can more easily socialize without stressing every little comment that could potentially be considered rude. You become a much more enjoyable person to be around.
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