Women in the LEAD

ALLOWING WELL BEING TO FLOW STEADILY IN OUR LIVES

These days I have been reading a book called “Ask & It Is Given” by Ester and Jerry Hicks.  It has become very clear to me that when we rediscover our innate ability to allow well being to steadily flow in to our lives, that our lives are lived from an elevated level.  We are the ones who restrict our experiences from the steady flow of well being.  In the book, the Art of Allowing our natural well being is referred to frequently as “the art of no longer restricting the well being that you deserve; the well being that is natural; the well being that is your legacy…”

If it is true that we are the ones that allow for our own well being, what gets in our way?  What stops us or restricts us from living well every day of our lives.  If this well being is natural and it is said to be our legacy, let’s take a look at some of the hindrances that we create:

• Fear – of failure, of success,  of accomplishing, of not accomplishing
• Sabotaging our potential – not feeling worthy
• Underestimating or not being clear about our gifts
• Not staying fit and maximizing our life energy and life force
• Not setting boundaries or limits with ourselves and other people

The list goes on and on.  Add your own.  But take this moment to name the hindrance but next to it, name the potential solution.  If our well being is up to us, it is our responsibility to find a way to support it, to flow naturally on a daily basis.

Take a moment to identify your hindrances to your personal well being.  Create a solution for each hindrance.  Go for it!

Maureen Simon

www.maureensimon.com

http://womeninfluencingnow.wordpress.com

WOMEN: Real things haven't changed

Sometimes we make things very complicated when we think of the strengths and requirements of leadership in both our work and lives. The most important attributes that distinguish us in our unique roles are timeless and simple qualities that make a leader stand out from the rest.

Right now, it seems the whole would could benefit from some of these simple qualities in leadership.

As you know, I often turn to stories of women and men that came before any of us. Their wisdom and contributions transcend time and distance...and they left their wisdom in our care to apply to a new time.

Often I find that a distant perspective from a different time brings clarity to the complex and difficult times in which we live. Here is a favorite bit of wisdom that always reminds me what is most important...

"The REAL THINGS haven't changed.
It is still best to be honest and truthful,
to make the most of what we have;
to be happy with simple pleasures;
and have courage when things go wrong.

Laura Ingalls Wilder

Whose wisdom has influenced you?

Best...
Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

About Laura Elizabeth Ingalls was born February 7, 1867, in a little log house in the Big Woods of Wisconsin. Laura's childhood was spent traveling west by covered wagon, to Indian Territory in Kansas, to Grasshopper Country in Minnesota, and then to Dakota Territory, where she met and married Almanzo Wilder. Laura's daughter Rose grew up listening to her mother's stories of those pioneer days. She urged her mother to write them down so that other children could enjoy them, as well. So in the 1930s and 40s, Laura recorded her memories of those days of long ago in a children's series known as the "Little House"® books.
Learn more...

For What Have I Been Chosen?

As John O Donohue the famous Irish writer said, “…to be born is to be chosen. No one is here by accident”. I love that thought because it deepens my inquiry as to why I am actually here!  I also find the statement to be bold. Irish writers are not afraid to be bold or to think outside of the box!

I know that there are many arguments that can and have been made regarding John’s statement above, but I totally agree with his wise words. The above quote comes from John’s stellar work Anam Cara (soul friend in Irish). In Anam Cara John goes on to write,” This selectivity intimates a sheltering providence that dreamed you, created you and always minds you. You were not consulted on the major factors that shaped your destiny: when you were born; to whom you were born or. where you would be born. Imagine the difference it would have made to your life had you been born into the house next door.

John’s conversation above gets me thinking:

 For what have I been chosen?

If my life is not an accident, there must be deep meaning for my life. Am I living up to this sacred contract?  How can I take my commitment to live fully to the next level?

Consider asking yourself the above questions.  And, for a new perspective on life, ask yourself, “What would it have been like if I had been born next door?”

 Maureen Simon 

www.theessentialfeminine.com

www.maureensimon.com

WOMEN and MEN: Among my FATHER's treasures

This story came to my mind today as I've had the experience I describe this week. I wanted to share it.

There is a picture of my dad just across the room from where I sit at my desk in my office. He was in his 30s in the picture. It is a serious picture...not quite a smile rests on his face. But in his eyes there is a bright, hopeful glint of a visionary man. He was a man with deep beliefs...a man who demonstrated he was courageous in many ways.
He also was a vulnerable man, who riddled his life with mistakes he didn't intend... And like many of us, he had a hard time forgiving himself, long after others had forgiven him.

In the picuture, he seems to look into me sometimes.
When I dream...
When I am deeply touched...
When I am stretching to find a new level of courage.
When I am pulling myself up from some moment of dispair.
I look over my shoulder and he seems to be quietly whispering, "I know."

Among his treasures was a book of Peter Marshall's sermons, the famed Scottish minister with a vibrant message from another time. At one time he was the Chaplain of the U.S. Senate. I kept this book and today, I opened it to a sermon, The Risk of Reach. Interestingly, it speaks about one's purpose. Hmmmm! Timely for us all. These were a few gems that seemed to jump out at me.

"You were put here for a purpose, and that purpose is not related to superficial pleasures.

The time for drifting
or sleeping
or wishful thinking
or daydreaming is over.
The state of our world today make that a very dangerous pastime.

This generation and all of you who are sensitive to
what is going on around you, are called to a supreme adventure.
There is a great stirring in society.
The upheavals of life and the revolutions of multitudes across the world in desperate motion are indications that our world can never be the same again.

...So do not ever underestimate what you can do.
You have the courage to cast off your acrophobia and
to dream big and to aim high...

Give us the long view in our work and our world ... for [the good of others] ...for the peace of the world."

What contribution will you make in thought, word and deed?

I leave you once again pondering this myself, promising to step forward today.

Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center 
Home of Women in the Lead
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

AN AIM IN LIFE

“An aim in life is the only fortune worth finding; and it is not to be found in a foreign land, but in the heart itself.”

 Robert Louis Stevenson

 

I guess I’ve always been pretty clear about why I’m here.  My journey began years back at seventeen years of age when I chose to study human services and community organization.  My heart has always been with people.  My dream has always been to be a part of maximizing human potential in every possible way.  I have dedicated my life to this aim.  However, each day and each year of my life sure as to what the best way for me to achieve this aim would be.  But I always kept the question alive.

 

I am convinced that the answer does lie in our heart, not in a foreign land, and it’s our personal responsibility to embark upon that exploration.  As I’ve written many times, I believe each of us is here for a very specific purpose that no one else could fulfill.  Some days the clarity of that purpose feels very far away, but we owe it to ourselves to stay conscious and inquisitive.  You are a very special part of a whole.  Without you, things would be very different.

 

“What is your aim?”

 

“Can you look in your heart and trust that the answer is to be found there?”

 

Maureen Simon

WOMEN: Traveling LIGHT Leaves Room for Possibilities

It seems that in the past months, I have somehow managed to cram my days and nights with so much. Not intentionally, but with all the wonderful possibilities that life has to offer ---- and the many needs that come into focus --- and the adventures there for the taking, it is easy to get your priorities out of whack and your life on overload. Can you relate? As I ask the question, I can almost feel the swoosh of air falling over me in the silence as you all collectively say, "YES!"

Today, I opened a favorite book, Stretching Lessons by Sue Bender. She tells this story about a "lesson" a teacher had taught her on a first day in the first class in graduate school just by sharing her own experience:

"I travel through life with a light knapsack."

That image spoke to me then and has stayed with me all these years. To move through life with a light knapsack I have to order my priorities.

I can't choose them all.

...recently a friend handed me a piece of paper and a quote:

"Simplicity is making the journey of this life with just baggage enough."

She goes on to admit that traveling light has become easier with practice with a commitment to "feeling uncluttered and delighted to be traveling with a light knapsnack." 

I also loved being reminded with her final bit of wisdom. There is a purpose in traveling light! An important one...

It's not just that I like being spartan. When I take less, I am creating space for possibilities.

Leaving stuff out allows me the possibility of putting stuff in.

Got any room left in your day or life for a new possibility to fit in?

It might be time to travel lighter. Clean out. Unclutter. Create space. Travel light.
I'm in the process of doing this myself.

Warm regards,

Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead
author, Putting Our Differences to Work

The Power of Women

There are women in the world who still believe that being the power behind a man is the same as being powerful.  Or, they fear the idea of power because they see it as masculine power. They do not recognize that their power is part of the universal power and can be expressed in conjunction with masculine power to the benefit of the world.  Feminine power tends to be power with as opposed to power over.  It is this united power that the world needs.  A true balance of power in the world can only be reached when women reach this balance in the world. 

 

Many women are not even aware that they are at a loss, or have lost direction.  They need to awaken to their power; to be the women they were meant to be.  It’s a good time to take a good look at your own life to see where you  might be hiding behind someone else or dimming your power as to not shine too brightly. 

 

The opportunity for you to be fully who you are lies only in your own hands.

 

 

 

WOMEN: Leadership, Innovation, and Inspiration [online event]

By popular demand, futurist Joel Barker will be joining me on TUESDAY, JUNE 16 ONLINE at the Global Dialogue Center to take our discussion about INNOVATION and LEADERSHIP at these challenging times to the next level. Joel and I will be addressing key questions that emerged in the widely attended global conversation in March and inviting you into the conversation. We will also be reviewing "the basics" of INNOVATING in that special place Joel calls "the verge" and focusing in on the essential leadership skills that leaders, innovators, aspiring leaders, and teams need at every level.

Whether you own your business, are in transition looking for work, work for a corporation, a school, or not-for-profit, or whatever we will be working to put our differences to work in an interactive ONLINE DIALOGUE to help everyone walk away with a rewarding experience. 

• Share your thinking; ask questions; explore new ideas. 
• Learn what you can do to become a better leader of verge innovations.
• Learn about a rich place for INNOVATION that can be a source for transforming  your work, business, community, and our world.
• In preparation for our conversation, watch the video trailer to Joel's new 2009 film, INNOVATION AT THE VERGE.

TUESDAY, JUNE 16, 2009
1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. EDT - Eastern Daylight Time
(10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. PDT - Pacific Daylight Time) 
NOTE: A 30 minute Informal "Virtual Break" follows for informal conversation.
ONLINE at the Global Dialogue Center ONLINE Conference Center

Register HERE:  http://tinyurl.com/JUNE16Dialogue
No Fees; registration required so we can send login and audio information.

Learn more...
In anticipation, here is the link to the trailer to Joel Barker's new film, INNOVATION AT THE VERGE at http://www.innovationattheverge.com

My book was featured in Joel's film and he created great 3 minute VIDEO OVERVIEW of my book, Putting Our Differences to Work http://innovationattheverge.com/podtw.html

I hope you can be with us for this special event!

You can get a glimpse of what took place at our first event and what people thought about it here:
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/conf_center/innovating-in-hard-times.shtml

Best...
Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center 
Home of Women in the Lead
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

Influencing for Change and Contribution

Influence directly relates to who you are rather than what you do.  People need to believe in you, trust you and know they can count on you to deliver and be what you espouse to be.  There are very elemental qualities to being a woman of influence.  Trust is one.  Your ability to know what you value and believe and to live it through all your words and actions is another key and important element.  When people meet or speak with you and can clearly determine that you live and work from a place of integrity doors open and life becomes fuller and richer. 

A key element in influencing is being able to look at the needs of another and to act for the betterment of others or the whole.  Our world today is leading us to think and live beyond our needs and to include the needs of others.  In order to do this, we must become empathetic and interested in others.  With the world’s walls and borders opening through mass communication, we are for the first time in an excellent place to begin to understand and include others needs alongside our own.  We can do this through taking an interest in a topic that takes us outside our own world to another or by reaching out to a person in a country or place that we may judge yet want to know more about. 

 Our ability to influence, to contribute and to be a part of the many necessary changes that are needed in our world today is a conscious choice.  Notice where your influence, skills or contribution is needed and understand why.  Begin to take focused and meaningful actions that will allow you to make a difference in areas that are important to you. 

Maureen Simon

Maureen@maureensimon.com

www.Maureensimon.com

www.womeninfluencingnow.wordpress.com  

WOMEN: Creating a Better WORLD

There are so many wonderful examples that women are working to put their unique fingerprints on the world in positive ways.

Jasmin Tragas, creator of the popular wonderwebby BLOG in Australia, continues to surprise us with her creativity and ways she inspires us to get involved. She tells her story of being encouraged by women who are using the web to  make a difference and her gathering of "difference makers" in an ebook: WorldShapers: Extraordinary Women Making a Difference. The book showcases 16 women who generously shared their stories highlighting a wide range of meaningful projects --- from training women in Nepal, rescuing orphans in China, nonprofits in Africa and a range of other efforts to do good things to serve the world. Read more from Jasmin's blog post, "Women Wired to Change the World." Download a copy free from Lulu.com

For further inspiration from Jasmin Tragas, visit the A Women's Investment at our WOMEN's GALLERY at the Global Dialogue Center. We were honored to include her inspiring story and exhibit in our collection.

As I take in the contributions of women across the world, I here whispers of Mother Teresa in the distance encouraging all of us. She is saying...

"Don't wait for the leaders. Do it alone; person to person."

Do you have a story to tell? We would love to hear it.

Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center 
Home of Women in the Lead
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

Allowing the Positive To Prevail

“Flowers always make people feel better, happier and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine to the soul”.

                                                                                                Luther Burbank

 

 

In these most challenging times it is so important to bring our thoughts to see and experience the positive that exists in our world. War, human suffering abuses in equity abound. How can we bring our thoughts to include all of the positive that exists daily in the world?

 

If we can agree that our thoughts are the precursor to the way we live in the world, it would make sense to watch our thoughts. It is time to hope for better days and to play a significant role in the direction that this world is going. Let’s start by noticing the thoughts that we think each day and by taking one small action to benefit more than just our own needs!

 

Maureen Simon

WOMEN: REMEMBERING DREAMS COME TRUE

This has been a time for remembering and renewing what we know about possibilities. As I reach for new challenges in my life at this time of crisis and opportunity, I am again reminded to Nwakego's dream come true. I've been playing her music for inspiration again. Perhaps, her story will touch you too, so I am posting it again in remembrance:

NWAKEGO's DREAM COME TRUE
Life is always calling to us. Do you listen for it? Do you hear its whisper on the wind asking you to reach inside to be more, to bring out that special gift you have to offer the world? Sometimes, the call comes and we act right now ... more often I think it comes in incremental steps. We hear it. We respond. Then other things need to happen to make all the pieces come together into that DREAM of ours come true.

The story of Nwakego demonstrates this truth:

Nwakego is Igbo (pronounced e-bo). She speaks English and Igbo. Her motherland is Nigeria. She is a poet with a beautiful voice and a message of love and thanksgiving for the world. Her new CD, MMA-MMA in Thanksgiving and Love is a celebration of Igbo songs brought to life as a gift to her children and all Igbo children of the world --- and for you and me too! Nwakego explains it this way...

"After my baby, Chizaram, uttered her first Igbo words “Bia” and “hapu ya” I knew I had a sacred responsibility to raise her as a well rounded Igbo child, who will understand, speak, write and BE truly Igbo. I thought of all the Igbo children in America and Europe who are suffering identity crisis because of the loss of their mother tongue. By maintaining our Igbo mother tongue, we maintain our pride and ethnic identity as a people. Our language is our identity. It is whom we are. God made it so"

Nwakego's work on  MMA-MMA started in 2001. It was inspired by Fr. Eustace Edomobi came up with the idea of doing studio recordings of some of our traditional catholic hymns as a way of preserving them for future generations. So, the multi-talented group began recording with a mini home studio at the church basement of St. Antoninus Catholic Church of Newark, New Jersey. In 2002, Nwakego went to Nigeria and recorded in a professional studio. "When I returned to NJ, I listened to it over and over again. I decided to re-do the work sometime in future."

Baby Chizaram's inspiration resulted in a new album with nine songs --- eight are Igbo. Nwakego's intention is to clear and her call-to-action to parents of Igbo children is compelling. She says to them:

“Let us begin to speak Igbo, eat and drink Igbo, wear Igbo, SING Igbo and BE Igbo! It is our birthright and ebere emegbuorelam onye tufuru birthright ya!"

IGBO: Spawned, sustained and graduated on a stalk of HOPE
As I've listened to the beautiful sounds, voices and the call of the African drums, I am reminded of Nwakego's dream come true. Perhaps it is the example of the Igbo people that makes their sounds so precious. If you are like me at one time, you may not know that the Igbo people survived The Biafra-Nigeria Civil War that lasted 3 years back in the 1960's. A dear friend of mine, Igbo visionary, Dr. Oguchi Nkwocha from Biafra/south-eastern Nigeria, shared these insights with me to help me appreciate the strength being Igbo people; it also has made each of Nwakego's songs be an echo of strength and hope of the Igbo people: |

"While the world watched or stood by the Nigerian government made a decision that "starvation was a legitimate instrument of war" --- at least two million Biafran people starved. However, in the years that followed, they emerged from the hope to start again. The Igbo lifted themselves up from nothing. Many Biafrans alive today were spawned, sustained and graduated on that stalk of hope. Today, I look at the pictures of starving Biafran children from that era. Perhaps, it's me, but I can still see that lingering ray of hope hiding in their faces... ' ...give me hope. Any hope at all, and I can sing a song for you..." Learn more from Dr. Nkwocha

With Dr. Nkwocha's mentoring, I have learned to see the power of DREAMING and also to more fully appreciate Nwakego remarkable new gift to the Igbo children, mothers, families and the people of the world. For in each song --- in the sweetness of the voices and each beat of the African drum is Nkwakego's calling ---- her DREAM come true ---- her personal contribution with the potential for sweeping influences on the lives of others.

WON'T YOU SHARE IN THIS GREAT WORK?

Nwakego
MMA-MMA in Thanksgiving and Love
Visit Nwakego's website
BUY a copy; listen to MMA-MMA in Thanksgiving and Love
Let it move you...and its proceeds to benefit Igbo children all over the world.

To You, My Love
A Collection of Love Poems
by Nwakego Ihenacho Ezeanuna
Buy at Amazon.com

A beautiful collection of life and love, expressing the feelings we long for as humans.

I listened to MMA-MMA while I was writing this message to all of you. Imagine this coming as a gift to Igbo children all over the world, emerging from that distant stalk of hope. ...and for Nwakego, bless your contribution as a woman in the lead!

With love and gratitude for this work...and its inspiration at a new time.
Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center 
Home of Women in the Lead
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

The Power Within

 

“ I had been raised to assume all power was outside myself, but they (men) had been raised to place power almost nowhere but within themselves.  Often, they were suffering, too.  Just as the fantasy of no control was the enemy of my self-esteem, the fantasy of total control was the enemy of theirs.  For both of us, the goal should have been a point of balance in between: a back-and-forth between the self and others, uniqueness and unity, the planned and the accidental, our internal selves and the universe.  As wise women and men in every culture tell us:  the art of life is not controlling what happens to us, but using what happens to us.”

Gloria Steinem  “Revolution From Within”

When we think about our influence and our sense of self, the idea of power becomes a central theme.  Women have been a part of cultures that place power over her, as opposed to power with or next to her, for far too long.  We need to realize that only if we recognize and claim it will our personal power becomes truly enlivened in our lives.  This sense of strength manifests through our competence, our voice and our excitement towards living.  Use your past experiences to guide your strength going forward.  Never be victim to the challenging days that have passed but as Gloria says, use them to your benefit and advantage today. 

Maureen Simon

www.Maureensimon.com

www.womeninfluencingnow.wordpress.com

WOMEN: Reaching Inside to find the COURAGE...

These challenging times call for the power we all have to reach inside to find the courage to be a star in our own right. Quite by chance, I again came ran across a message and video from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from 1965 when he spoke at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, known for opening its doors to be a place of dialogue for all faiths and a house of prayer for all people. Dr. King's poignant message is powerful visually and in its timeless wisdom. It seemed to speak right to the heart of what we are all called to contribute as leaders, as citizens, as women. Below is a brief excerpt that spoke to me:

Message from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.:
"It is a struggle to establish a reign of justice and rule of love..."

"...It is a push of life forward...
If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill, be scrub in the valley, but be the best little scrub on the side of the field. Be a bush if you can't be a tree.
If you can't be a highway, just be a trail.
If you can't be the sun, be a STAR.
For it isn't by size that you win or you fail.
Be the best of whatever you are."

This is our calling as women. To be the best of whatever we are.

What gifts are you bringing to your part of the world?

How will you be the best of whatever you are?

Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

View Dr. Martin Luther King's Speech:
Below is the link to the description of that day at Grace Cathedral and with links to the video with his full speech:
http://www.gracecathedral.org/enrichment/crypt/cry_20021002.shtml   

Life Force is Vitality

"There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. If you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and be lost. The world will not have it.

It is not your business to determine how good it is; nor how valuable it is; nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate *you*.

Keep the channel open . . .

No artist is pleased . . .

There is no satisfaction whatever at any time.

There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction; a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others."

Martha Graham

In order to create influence and to take action, your life force needs to be fully enlivened and expressed.  Notice what motivates you and inspires you.  Never judge yourself by perfection or you will never experience joy.  In your unrest, realize the newly conceived possibilities.

 

Maureen Simon

Maureen@maureensimon.com

http://womeninfluencingnow.wordpress.com/

WOMEN: See Yourself Rumi Tells Us

I came across this writing from sometime back...it was a perfect message for me at this very moment...hope it will be for you too:

Sometimes a simple message comes when you need it most. I've studied the 13th Century mystic Persian poet and philosopher, Rumi for years. My brother gave me two volumes of his work translated in 1930. Those were the beginning of my love of his timeless thinking. 

On a stressful day, his words spoke to me. Just 15 words that held the power of the future here and now:

"You are a RUBY embedded in granite. How long will you pretend it isn't true?

I heard this as I am a unique precious gemstone surrounded by the safety of God. It was meant for me that day. I wasn't feeling precious or anything like a gemstone. I was too busy for almost anything. I felt alone and overwhelmed. The word RUBY caught me. I am a Cancer-girl; my birthstone RUBY. I've also loved the sound of the word.

I found this picture of the rough cut Ruby crystal. It is more like me than the sparkling cut version. It seemed to reflect the curves of a woman and the unfinished truth of a work-in-progress. All natural rubies have imperfections. Me too.

How about you?
How do you see yourself at this time?
...Have you been to busy too notice?

Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
author, Putting Our Differences to Work
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead

Imagination and Creativity

When the intellect overrides all in the workplace – what’s missing?

John O’Donohue writes in his translation of the Anam Cara:

            “When the will and the intellect are brought as deliberate forces into the workplace, this only makes the bland similarity even more entrenched.  When the imagination, the force of illumination in the soul, is allowed to stir, it opens up the workplace in a completely new way.  You should not be neutral or indifferent to your work or workplace.  It is very important to have a careful look at the kind of work you do.  You should try to establish whether the work you do and your workplace is actually expressive of your identity, dignity, and giftedness.  If not, difficult choices may need to be made.  If you sell your soul, you ultimately buy a life of misery.”

The world needs so much more imagination.  As we begin to trust our inner judgment and see the world with creativity and potential our worlds will open up.

Maureen Simon

www.maureensimon.com

http://womeninfluencingnow.com

WOMEN: Our Struggle for ACCEPTANCE

I would guess if we sat down together, we would discover that most of us have longed for acceptance and struggled to overcome the fear of what others think of us. I think this is a pretty common experience for most women ---- and perhaps men too.

One time, a mentoring partner gave me a book and tape called Simple Path by Mother Teresa. One of my favorite messages in the book has helped me out many times to calm the longing for acceptance or the moments when fear seems to take over. I share it with you...

Deliver me, from the desire of...
being loved
being extolled.
being honored.
being praised.
being preferred.
being approved.
being popular.

Deliver me from the fear of ...
being despised.
suffering rebukes.
being forgotten.
being wronged
being ridiculed.
being humiliated.
being suspected.

Interestingly, when you can let go of these longings and fears, I think your life and work truly is opened up to come from the heart. When our intentions are clouded by these self-interests, it makes it difficult to let our Light shine. As I leave you to ponder this notion, I'm rethinking its importance myself.

How are you working to let go of these common longings and fears?

Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the LEAD
Author, Putting Our Differences to Work

The Living Ancestors

“When we know about our ancestors, when we sense them as living and as supporting us, then we feel connected to the genetic life-stream, and we draw strength and nourishment from this.”

Philip Carr-Gomm “The Druid Tradition”

“Theoretically, we each have two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, and so on, back in time.  In practice, though, if each person alive continued that exponential progression for, say, thirty generations, we would come up with more people than were on earth at that time.  Genealogists tell us that if we each went back about seventeen generations, we would find many family relationships between ourselves and people of our acquaintance.  It follows, then, that we are all intimately related to each other, that our personal ancestors are shared with many thousands of people alive today.”

I love our Celtic way of thinking as it natural encourages the Laws of Interconnectedness.  The word interconnectedness has become almost a cliché these days as we look at the news and see how the markets are.  The same is true of the web of life.  I believe that our ancestors hold nuggets of wisdom that are important for us to understand at this time.  What do you know about your ancestry?  Does a family member have a particularly important message for you.  Begin to listen.  The web of life is precious and we are all interconnected.

Maureen Simon

WOMEN: Is it me you're looking for?

Once in a while we unexpectedly are reminded that our most reliable mentor is inside of us. This weekend, by chance, I ran across the quote from a little book of "pearls and gems" from Richard Bach. It's a keeper.

"If you want to meet someone who can fix any situation you don't like, who can bring you happiness in spite of what other people say or believe, look in the mirror, then say this magic word:

"Hello."

How will you use this precious gift?

Warm regards,
Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead
author, Putting Our Differences to Work

 

 

Being Fully Present

“When we take in more than we can absorb and integrate, the information drips off our minds like water off a duck.  Few of us stop to soak in the ideas and implications of what we experience and get really  ”wet.” Distracted and mentally moving fast, we don’t have or make the time to be fully present, to ponder things deeply, or take our studies to heart.”

Joel Levey & Michelle Levey “Living In Balance”

I think this is one of the greatest lessons of my life at the  moment.  I’m expanding and growing my business as I learn to work with time, pacing and presence.  The greatest challenges I experience occur when my mind is over busy and over stimulated.  Many see these times as an opportunity to re-group, re-position and re-invent.  If we could learn to be fully present in these times of transition, so many things would become clear.  We really don’t need to fill every minute.  We need clarity, time and a good pacing of our lives to absorb, integrate and create.

Maureen Simon

WOMEN: Loosen up! Treat work as FUN!

So many people are stressed out at the moment --- some for reasons that we can easily understand. However, the other day a read a passage from Emmet Fox written over fifty years ago and it reminded me that some of my most stressful times, most difficult struggles, and biggest mistakes came when I was tense. How about you?

Emmet Fox wrote:

Loosen up. To be tense is the surest way to fail in any undertaking great or small. 

To desire success is a splendid thing but to pursue success too tensely is to make certain of missing it. The carefree approach in any endeavor is a shortcut to success. In music, in sport, in study, in business life, many people fail, or advance very slowly, because they make hard work of it. Treat your work as FUN. Regard the difficulties as part of the game, laugh off the annoyances. This of course, is the real difference between work and play. Take it easy. Loosen up!

Carry this thought with you this week. When you look at the big pile of stuff or even just feel yourself tighten under pressure, take a minute...brush the tension off you sleeve. Repeat that great mantra... I CAN, I MUST, I WILL.

It can create miracles!

WORKING TO REINVENT YOURSELF?
MAY 19 - ONLINE DIALOGUE - You're Invited!
CONNECTING for Success in Hard Times
How can Business and Social Networking help you deliver a renewed PERSONAL BRAND, REINVENT how you present your work to others, and open up opportunities for COLLABORATION and INNOVATION? Join us to learn how. REGISTER at http://tinyurl.com/MAY19Dialogue  (NOTE: Allow a few seconds for the URL to open). No fees, but registration is required, so we can send the login information.

Warm regards,
Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead
author, Putting Our Differences to Work

What is really necessary?

Abigail Adams:  Necessity is the mother of invention. 

When we look at the world today, we see new systems being forms, new ideas being born and new possibilities being made available to us.  It is so important to take this opportunity to look at what is really necessary and what is really important in our lives.  If we can believe that great necessities call out great virtues, we can be responsible and evaluate what we really need and live our lives from a place of strength and trust.  If we look at necessity as the mother of invention, we can begin to call into our lives new ideas and creative possibilities.  What is really necessary for you now to live a life that you feel really good about?  Reinvention is a great gift.

                                                                            Maureen Simon

WOMEN: LEARNING from Others in Hard Times

Just when we need it most, have you noticed how people show up shake the status quo and shatter any DOUBTS you might have about the timeless truth that all things are possible? At this time of CRISIS, CHANGE, and GREAT OPPORTUNITY, these special individuals bring inspiration for all of us and hope for bringing the best of who we are to our lives and work.

THREE SURPRISES
Sometimes inspirng people arrive by surprise, breaking through all the norms in our thinking about what is possible. Three of my favorite SURPRISES come to mind...

I wrote about two of them in a recent post on my book blog, LESSONS from the TALENTED: Adam Lambert and Susan Boyle, pointing out some not-so-talked-about lessons we could learn from American Idol's Adam Lambert and Susan Boyle of Britain's Got Talent. Whether you are fans or not, they have taken the Internet by storm and shattered the status quo each in their own ways. Most of all, they serve as catalysts for learning about ourselves. My writing points out a few valuable lessons about being a leader and innovator. Interestingly, I discovered that others are seeing them as teachers too. Check out Scott Eblin's Executive Coach Blog features this post: Feedback Do's and Don'ts from American Idol at Government Executive.

Another favorite SURPRISE that forever changed my thinking came from my friend, Bill Tipton, a contributing author at the Global Dialogue Centerand Project Manager for Hewlett Packard. Bill writes a popular blog called Dialogue with Bill: Life and Work with a Disability. Bill became blind through illness just a few years back. Imagine going to the hospital with stomach pains after work one day and coming home months later blind and unable to walk. This is where Bill's story of life and work reinvention began. There is much to learn from his journey about what we need most today at this time of CRISIS, CHANGE, and GREAT OPPORTUNITY. What he's done since proves all things are possible! He was awarded Employee of the Year for Hewlett Packard and was recently  profiled in a national magazine. Bill tells us in an inspiring blog post that Adaptability and Attitude is Crucial for Success.

What I hope most is that you will take away how important it is to have a positive vision for your future and the your investment in hard work will pay off. This is a time for REINVENTING, RETHINKING, REACHING for more. YES, we can!

What SURPRISES are influencing you?

What have you learned from others that you can share with others?

Warm regards,
Debbe

Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center
Home of Women in the Lead
author, Putting Our Differences to Work

RELATED ONLINE DIALOGUE EVENT
MAY 19 - ONLINE DIALOGUE - You're Invited!
CONNECTING for Success in Hard Times
How can Business and Social Networking help you deliver a renewed PERSONAL BRAND, REINVENT how you present your work to others, and open up opportunities for COLLABORATION and INNOVATION? Join us to learn how. REGISTER at http://tinyurl.com/MAY19dialogue  (NOTE: Allow a few seconds for the URL to open). No fees, but registration is required, so we can send the login information.

Notice the New Possibilities in Your Day

The world offers us so many possibilities each day. Today begin to notice the new possibilities in your world. There are many!

“The Only Way to deal with the future is to function efficiently in the Now”

Gita Bellin

Every day you have many new possibilities available to you especially in times that are challenging or present us with transition or change.  These are life’s moments that can be used to move into areas of our lives that we would never enter had a new door not opened.  Look closely at what is available to you today.  Transition a challenge into an opportunity.  Look for the light, notice one new possibility in your day today.

Maureen Simon