Are you missing the three-leafed clovers?

IMG_3679

I've had a really sick cat. (But he might be getting better.)  And I'm not beyond being a little superstitious, even when it's a bit silly.  So today, when we got home from the vet, he went out to rest in the grass and I decided to join him as I often do.  Grass time is always important. And while I was sitting there, amidst the clover, I thought I'd search for a four-leafed clover.  They're not as uncommon as you might think, and I thought finding one could be a sign. Something to comfort me.  To convince me that everything would be ok, and that Buster isn't on his ninth life just quite yet.  One like this one I found in about two minutes a month or so ago.

IMG_2914

So I ruffled through the leaves, gazed past all the three-leafed clovers, looking for my prize.  And then something happened.  I got caught up in how pretty the raindrops looked on the leaves.  I ruminated about the cycle of life, right there before me, in fresh clover flowers and ones that had already browned and gone to seed.  I noticed how many shades of green there are, just in clover leaves.

IMG_3686

And I realized I didn't need to find a four-leafed clover today.  I already had my prize.

How often in life do we skip over all the beautiful everyday moments - the three-leafed clovers- while we're waiting and searching, anticipating our prize - a big event, a vacation, something major to look forward to?  It's fascinating, isn't it?

How would life be different if we did a better job of noticing three-leafed clovers?  All the small miracles - all the beauty and magic that surrounds us.  How many millions of three-leafed clover moments are there - ready to be savored and appreciated?

What three-leafed clover moments have you noticed lately?  I would love to hear about them.  Share yours in the comments, if you like.

P. S. As I wrap up this post much later in the evening, I'm happy to report that the sweet cat has indeed revived, yet again.  And I am savoring every 3-leafed moment with him.

One year in the life of an entrepreneur - woo, work, and moving "any amount"

bent spoon

Wow.  Just about a year ago, I completed my coach training. The official date was February 29.   That morning, I bent a spoon that I thought was unbendable.  Not with my mind, with my hands, but it still felt like a feat.   (Spoon bending is kind of woo-woo and my science teacher side thinks it's ridiculous and a little hoax-y, but when I was able to bend a spoon that I had never been able to bend before on the final day of my coach training program, some woo woo part of me thought that was pretty cool. And then it almost immediately went back to being skeptical!) Since that spoon bending morning, I did a lot.  I coached and coached.  I hosted a book club about Martha Beck's new book, Finding Your Way in a  Wild New World, my first foray into conference call tele-courses.  I met Martha and over 300 other coaches at an incredible conference in Arizona.  I made stickers with my own Wild and Precious word collage and shared them with everyone. I got certified! I made a beautiful blank journal filled with inspiring quotes and my own photos. I hosted two amazing retreats.  I created a signature local experience called WIGS and WIGS.   I started a Facebook Page.  I started a Meetup group. I coached and coached!  I cleared out boxes and boxes of old papers and flotsam and jetsam from my 16 year science teaching career.  I created a five month course for women planning to hike the Appalachian Trail, and 20 amazing women joined it! I participated in two amazing months-long mastermind experiences with other talented coaches. I coached and coached.  I hosted eighteen wordless walks in the swamp.  I learned how to use programs that let me email pretty newsletters.  I emailed pretty newsletters!  I started using a real online appointment scheduling program.  I got a business banking account and a real business license! I cleared out boxes of old holiday cards and old clothes and other clutter that was lurking in the nooks and crannies of our home.  I read dozens of books about time management, de-cluttering, entrepreneurship, and all kinds of other coach-y stuff.  I created a course about managing money indulgently, and 31 fabulous women signed up!  And all throughout, the coaching and coaching - my clients are incredible and it's an honor to be by their sides while they transform their lives in big and small ways.

Sometimes I was good about telling people what I was doing, sometimes I kind of flew under the radar, sharing mostly with friends and family, wondering who else would be interested, or just being a little too scared to be "out there."  But the more I go ahead and sing what I do from the rooftops, the more wonderful opportunities, gifts and amazing experiences come my way!  So I'm learning to be braver.

This entrepreneurship stuff - it's wild.  Even when you surround yourself with people supporting and guiding you who've built incredible businesses, you still have to take your own steps, every day.  No one's going to do it for you, and no one's going to fire you if you don't do it.  You're suddenly only responsible to yourself, and that's a very interesting challenge!

So I learned to do something "any amount." When my yoga teacher is trying to help us correct our form in a pose, she asks us to make a small change with our bodies.  She says things like, "Bring your right hip up any amount." or "Spread your collar bones any amount." or "Lengthen your left torso any amount." Her message is that any incremental shift is valuable - we don't have to be perfect in our poses, but our awareness of where we're headed helps us move toward our goals, even when we can't quite perceive the body part moving at all.

That's how I've felt about this whole year.  I've been making shifts, trying things, moving this here and that there, any amount.  My posture might not be perfect, but I'm showing up.  And I've gained so much from my efforts, even when they're not quite "right".

Could I have done more this year?  Yes.  Could I have grown more quickly?  Yes.  Could I have been more focused, less inclined to nap, more consistent about blogging, sharing, communicating, planning, being strategic, less inclined to meet a friend, go for a walk, sit in the grass?  Yes. Could I have fixed the thousand things I can't stand about how this website is right now instead of taking the time to shop for and cook yummy local food, or curl up with a cat and a book, or climb into the tub, or go for a bike ride with my sweetheart?  Yes.

But there's the trick.  While building this business, I'm also doing my best to live my one wild and precious life.  To take a week off to go hiking on the Appalachian Trail.  Another couple of weeks off to explore the mountains of Colorado.  A week on the beach in Florida. All year I've taken enough time to sleep well, nearly every night. I listen to my body, and I haven't been sick a single day!

Sure, I've wasted my share of time.   I've watched way too many cat videos, read too many comments on articles I was only marginally interested in, watched too many Cake Bosses and 30 Rocks and Parks and Recreations on Netflix streaming.  I can avoid my work with the best of them, even after reading every Steven Pressfield book out there.

Nevertheless, overall it's felt like a year of miracles, especially when I've embraced the "woo" side and let the magic happen.  Wise owls appeared.  I spontaneously got to go see Madonna after putting her on my vision board. I created things, put them out in the world, and people signed up! Overall I've been challenged, inspired, and happy.

And here's what I've learned, boiled way down:

Four things to remember when you're working on something big: 1. Once you can envision it, it's really possible!  But you have to be able to picture it first. That's where vision boarding, writing and dreaming really help. 2. Start taking the steps.  Turtle steps.  Do anything.  Any amount.  And keep repeating. 3. Let yourself freak out, take a break, avoid, nap, temporarily run away.  It's ok.  Just come back to it when you're ready and start again. And try not to worry. 4. Embrace the woo.  Magic really is available to you. Look for it in the simplest things. Find it in nature, or in your imagination. Abandon your inner skeptic occasionally and let the unicorns prance around in your head a little.  Bend a spoon or two!

I'd love to hear what you do to keep the momentum going with a big undertaking, a new project, or exciting endeavor.  Share what's working for you in the comments!

Manifesting Madonna

Have you ever heard of a vision board?  It’s like a collage – a visual representation of what you’d like to have happen in the future.  It’s a fun way to articulate your goals or dreams, and strangely, once you put it out there in words and pictures, circumstances begin to align to allow your dreams to actually happen! Some people might call it magic, or harnessing the energy of the universe or angels – but it’s really quite practical.   It’s just like when you learn a new vocabulary word – one you never even knew existed, and then you see it everywhere.  You won’t notice something until you put your attention toward it.

I like to play with vision boards.  I like thinking about what I want and then finding the words and images to go with my vision.  So about six months ago, I made a vision board about my business.  And one of the images I put on it was Madonna.  She was in dark glasses and red lipstick.  She looked confident and composed.  She’s Madonna, after all!  I put her on the board because I wanted to channel Madonna’s fearless energy, her willingness to push boundaries, her total comfort in her own skin.  Madonna is a badass.  And I admire her for that.

A couple of days after I made the vision board I read somewhere that Madonna was coming to New Orleans in October.  And I thought, “Huh.  Maybe I can manifest some Madonna tickets too.  Wouldn’t that be cool if I end up at the Madonna concert in October?  Then I’ll really believe in this vision boarding stuff!”  And then I looked up the prices and thought, “No way.”  And I forgot about it for the summer.

October came.  And nothing.  Oh well.  Then the night before the concert, I was having cocktails with a dear friend and she mentioned a friend of hers was trying to get rid of Madonna tickets. My ears perked right up – Madonna tickets?  Say more!  Did my friend want to ask about them?  Did she want to go?  Yes and yes.  So she texted and asked if the tickets were still available.  We continued to sip cocktails and snack and chat while we waited about 45 minutes to hear back.

Yes – they were ours!  I thought, “Why not?”  I never, ever, ever buy big arena concert tickets – the last arena show I saw was the Grateful Dead in 1990 or so and before that maybe Peter Gabriel in 1987.  Seemed it was time to go ahead and go for it.  I told my friend my cool vision boarding story.  How I’d manifested Madonna.

She said, “That’s not manifesting.  You still have to pay for the tickets!”  And I said, “Hmm, that’s true.”  And then I checked my phone.  And about ten minutes after she had asked for the tickets from her friend, I’d received a PayPal payment for a class that had already begun the night before, from someone I’d never heard of – exactly enough to cover the tickets and a drink and food too!  This felt like free money because the class was already going, new person or not .  I thought, “Wow – the universe really is sending me a wink!”

It gets crazier.  Unusual circumstances led to my friend not being able to go to the concert.  So now – should I go alone?  Hmmm.  I went ahead and went.  And I ended up sitting next to an old friend who I hadn’t seen ages! What are the chances of our tickets being near each other? And because Madonna didn’t come on stage until about 10:30 p.m. when the tickets said 8 p.m., it was good that my original friend wasn’t able to come – she would not have been happy waiting around for 2.5 hours!  Somehow we heard through the grapevine that Madonna would be coming on very late, so we just settled in, relaxed, and people-watched.

Then, finally, Madonna.  She still has it.  She’s still pushing the envelope.  We sometimes forget when we’re recalling the lace and the perky songs about stars and holidays that she’s always done some pretty edgy stuff and stretched her audiences past their comfort zone.  This show was no exception.   There was so much to see, so much to process – it was quite a spectacle! She's definitely still a badass.

You can call this whole set of circumstances coincidence or luck or whatever.  I know that.  But I love this story, and I love my vision board, and I love that I manifested Madonna!  And I love that I can be open to great fun and amazing possibilities every day.

How about you?  What do you dream of?  Let me know what’s on your vision board, and if you have a great “manifesting” story, please share it in the comments! And enjoy the slide show of the concert and the fabulous outfits people wore to celebrate!

[slideshow]

Rainy day musings, plus nine reasons why Cake Boss is my new life coach

Connecting and announcing.  Announcing and connecting.  Seems like I've been doing a whole lot of that lately.  That's been because there's been a whole lot to connect about and a whole lot to announce!  There's Wild and White Blazing, WIGS and WIGS, a wordless walk tomorrow and I just returned from hosting a beautiful retreat.  There are loose ends to wrap up and new projects beginning. But somewhere in there I need to keep living my wild and precious life.  And I am, interspersed with a lot of emailing!  Today I sat on the porch with the cats in the rain.  Here's a little wordless rain once it was raining a bit harder and we'd come in.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch??v=HJC4I-2hBNI&feature=plcp]

At one point when the rain had let up and the sun was peeking through, I looked out the window at just the right moment and saw a hummingbird visiting the purple Mexican petunias.  And I felt that little catch in my heart - that little infusion of pure joy- knowing that being present and being alive is enough.

I have a new indulgence. Cake Boss. I try to limit it to one episode (22 minutes) per day, but sometimes I need one more dose.  We don't have cable so until we got Netflix streaming a few weeks ago, I could only watch shows like Cake Boss if I happened to be staying at a hotel.  I actually discovered Buddy Valastro and his wacky but lovable family all working together at Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken, NJ while I was hiking the AT.  When I'd stop in town to resupply, I would purchase large quantities of food to eat on my day off, climb into bed, pop open a pint of Ben and Jerry's and watch TV shows about cake.  Perfect.

The shows are all so similar - why do I love them so much? I think a lot of it has to do with the charisma of Buddy, the main character.

I love his outlook on life, and while I know I'm watching a heavily edited television show, not unadulterated real life, I think if we all lived a little more like Buddy Valastro, the Cake Boss, the world would be a better place.  Here's why.

1. He works hard. He doesn't expect that cakes are just going to appear.  Every episode there's tons of mixing, icing, sculpting - actual doing.  And he does it every day.  He doesn't create something one day and then take two days off. 2. He loves what he does.  You can see it in his eyes whether he's consulting with a new customer or presenting a cake to an adoring audience. 3. He has a positive outlook on life, but when he's upset, he expresses his feelings.  Almost every episode there's at least one point where Buddy gets frustrated about something and yells a little.  But then it passes and all goes back to normal.  He doesn't stuff his emotions down  - he lets them fly - and within reason, that's pretty healthy! 4. He doesn't think he has to do everything himself.  He's assembled a talented team around him to make his creative visions manifest themselves. 5. He's willing to try something new and go out on a limb creatively, while also hanging on to what's worked in the past.  It seems that almost every episode includes Buddy and his team trying to construct a cake in a way they've never done before. But there's also a heavy dose of tradition, from recipes that date back generations like those incredible cannoli!  Gosh, I love cannoli. 6. He's not afraid to look silly.  I love the episode where he and his buddies go out and play golf for the first time - it doesn't matter to him that he doesn't know what he's doing - he just laughs a lot and tries it. 7. He embraces fun.  While everyone at that bakery works hard all day, there are always a couple of pranks where someone gets a cake in the face or flour dumped on their head or contests where the loser has to dress up in a bunny suit or a grass skirt  and hand out cupcakes. 8. He values relationships. I love the scenes with Buddy and his giant Italian family - they work together and they celebrate together. There's plenty of food, laughter, hugs, and toasts.  Salud! 9. He dreams big.  People don't end up with their bakeries on successful TV shows just like that - someone has to picture the possibilities.  And I have a hunch that Buddy doesn't let negative thinking get in his way when he dreams.  He has a vision, then he makes it happen, and that's pretty cool.

What do you think? Are you a fan of Cake Boss?  Are there any of Buddy's personality traits you'd like to emulate more?

Enough - why's it so hard?

This question dogs me on a regular basis.  How can we be so rich, have so much - so much! - and still feel like there's not enough?  Is is because we see and read about others who have so much more? Certainly there are many others who have so much less. I look around our (comparatively modest) home and it's full of magical things - things most humans throughout history, no matter how rich, didn't have.  A way to send photos and words - and voices and video! - around the world.  A way to find the answer to almost any question I have.  Hot running water.  Art supplies. Warm and cozy clothes.  Fun clothes.  Plenty of clothes.  Food.  Chocolate.  Wine.  Multiple kinds of fresh fruits and veggies.  More than enough delicious food. My home even has a fellow human who is my dearest friend, confidante and sweetheart, plus two unbelievably cute and cuddly cats.  When it's cold outside, we can make the inside warm.  When it's hot outside we can make the place cool.  We have grass and trees and flowers and a little deck.  We have things to read.  And streaming music and movies - any entertainment we could want at the click of a button!  We have meaningful work, and all kinds of ways to connect and celebrate and socialize with others.

I've been reading The Gift of Imperfection by Brené Brown, and she mentions in one part that many of us wake up and our first thought is about not enough.  We didn't get enough sleep.  We don't have enough time.  Something else about our situation is not good enough.  We are not good enough.

That's a rough way to wake up - and believe me, I've done it plenty.

Recently though, as part of my newest 30 day challenge, I'm writing super-positively every morning.  And it's surprisingly easy to do - there's a lot to be positive about!  It's amazing how great I feel after doing this.  It's not about making stuff up.  There is so much to be positive about every day - every moment.  Today during my grass time I stared at the sky. (yep, I still do grass time - it's something I look forward to every day!) It was so beautiful.  White puffy clouds drifting along a blue, blue backdrop.

True, I am usually a "glass half full" kinda girl.  But why not?  I enjoy celebrating that I have enough.  Of everything.  In fact I have more than enough.  I have an abundance!  Of beauty, of love, of delicious food, of pretty soaps in the bathroom.  I have enough time.  I can arrange my life so I have enough sleep.

And most importantly, no matter what I "get done" or don't get done every day, I am enough.  That feels lovely and peaceful.

How do you remind yourself where you have enough, or an abundance, in your life?  How does it change your state of mind when you look for the places where you have enough or more than enough? How are you, just as you are, enough?