Tag: Personal Development

How Do Leaders Transform Intentions into Reality?

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Health, Leadership Development, Personal Development, Transformational Leadership, Wellness

Intention leads to behaviors which lead to habits which lead to personality development which leads to destiny. (Jack Kornfield) 

Are you dealing with difficulties in one or several areas of your life? Do you sometimes, or often, feel that you have no control or power over how circumstances or things unfold, and how the course of events occurs in your life?

If you responded with a yes to one of these questions, please continue reading this post. If your life is exactly how you want it to be, you may still want to read this, and reflect upon the message.

To help you realize your true goals, achieve them, and to transform your current life situation into a more rewarding and fulfilling journey, I will share with you a few rather simple techniques/ways of creating the life that you truly deserve, a life filled with creativity, courage, inspiration, joy and passion.

  • Acceptance and awareness

Acceptance and awareness are the first steps towards creating change in your life situation. Before being capable of creating change in the situation, you will have to become aware of it. Without awareness, there is not enough understanding, and therefore no action. Learn methods of increasing your personal awareness level. Then, accept how things are, no matter how difficult or unpleasant the situation is.

  • Breath

Breathing serves as the basic mechanism for us human beings to live, and despite of its importance and its effect upon all our internal and external activity, many people take their breathing for granted and have learned a false way of breathing, meaning that many people, due to a number of reasons, breathe superficially and in a false way. The best way to drastically and quickly improve your health, life, and well-being, is to become aware and conscious about your breathing. Learn how to breathe correctly, and how to influence all your actions and your life in general through breathing. This can be done in a number of ways, and athletes of all kinds especially know the importance of correct breathing before, during, and after an exercise.

  • Divine timing

There is a time for everything, and realizing this especially when things seem extremely challenging will help you keep calm and developing your patience. Many times, not getting what you want may be a great blessing in your life, because divinity has something else in store for you. However, you also have to be ready to take action and not wait your whole life for divine timing to jump in and make things happen for you. It will, of course, but do not sit around at home waiting, letting your life pass by. Instead, get out of your shell and get involved in activities and with people who enlighten your day.

  • Energy

Life is energy. You are energy. Your thoughts, and everything you vibrate and send out to your surrounding and into the Universe, are energy. Make sure to balance your energies, let your energies be positive, thoughtful and always inspiring, because what you radiate into your surroundings will definitely create your reality, and come back to you. Your energies are powerful, so make sure to use them wisely in order to serve both your personal purpose, and the purpose and well-being of others.

  • Focus

In a world filled with distractions, it is easy to get lost if you are not focused. Therefore, learn how to focus in all your activities. Be present in every situation, and focus upon the present moment.

  • Imagination

Everything you can imagine can become a reality. Use your imagination wisely, and do not fear to express your creativity.

  • Law of attraction

You attract what you are, not what you want. Therefore, if you want to attract what you want, you have to become what you want.

  • Meditation

Meditation is the best way to embark upon the journey of transforming your positive intentions into reality, not only because of all the health-factors that regular meditation brings with it, including the facts that regular, daily meditation helps you to improve your breathing, helps you increase your awareness and therefore also consciousness, not to forget about how meditation improves your mental and physical well-being. What could be a better way of improving your life in a drastic way, with quick results when practiced on a regular basis?

  • Nutrients

How you nurture your mind is important, but how you nurture your physical body is equally important. What, when and how you eat and drink do affect your well-being holistically. Together with meditation, focusing upon your eating and drinking habits will help you transform your body, thoughts, and mind, and therefore, your whole life.

  • Positive affirmations

Make it a daily habit to practice optimistic thinking and focusing upon positive affirmations, or mantras, in your life. Inspiration is no rocket-science, and keeping yourself inspired can be done through small habits in your daily life.

  • Repetition

Achieving your true desires, nature, and goals requires for you to repeat, and live your intentions on a regular basis = always. If you cannot change your whole life immediately, start doing so by implementing small changes into your daily habits and way of living. Repeat these at all times, until your new habits have become a way of life. It may seem difficult at first, because we often want to experience quick results, but in order to make huge life changes it is necessary for you to be prepared doing some long-term work, and focus upon making the changes you wish to see in your life, and in your daily habits, permanent ways of living rather than a one-week-cure every now and then.

What Are The Benefits of Meditation:

 

Thank you for reading, commenting, liking and sharing. Thank you also for creating the life you want, and for improving and transforming not only the way you live your life, but also creating and contributing to positive changes in your environment.

Leadership is the wise use of power. Power is the capacity to translate intention into reality and sustain it. (Warren Bennis). 

 

Dear Coach, Facilitator, and Mentor

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Coaching, Continuous Learning, higher education, Leadership Development, Personal Development, Wisdom
White-fronted Scops Owls. Freedigitalphotos.net
White-fronted Scops Owls. Freedigitalphotos.net

I am writing this letter to provide you with guidance and support on your exciting, upcoming, life-long learning and development journey as a coach, facilitator and mentor in your continuously evolving identity work with individuals and people who you will meet, exchange ideas and thoughts, interact and communicate with.

However important theoretical knowledge is I would like to pinpoint the fact that your role as a knowledge worker includes a number of factors that you might want to put an emphasis upon especially. After all, the greatest asset of someone involved in human/humanitarian work, is the ability, interest, and willingness to be involved with other social beings, who all have their personal beliefs, value systems, and minds. Becoming, and being a coach, facilitator and mentor is a calling, and although not comparable with the profession of a doctor or a psychiatrist, your work can greatly affect and influence those around you. Therefore, and because you have chosen to work with minds, there are certain aspects in your work that you should especially keep in mind.  These include:

  • Acceptance

Your role as a coach, facilitator and mentor (one of these, or all combined), is not to force change in other individuals. Rather, your role is to accept people and individuals as they are. Depending upon the coaching/facilitating situation, and/or the group of individuals/people you are working with, you will have to tailor your work accordingly. There are differences between coaching, facilitation and mentoring situations/sessions, but you will always have to accept people as they are and not force change in them. Rather, seek to be a role model through your own behavior and through setting an example, and let individuals find in themselves the power to become who they were meant to be.

  • Balance

You will have to be in balance with yourself in order to create balance in your learning/teaching environment. Focus upon being in balance, and notice how you can affect your environment through the expansion of your personal energies.

  • Communication

Your work is all about communication, and about developing these skills in other individuals, including not only public speaking, but also non-verbal communication and listening skills. As a coach and mentor, you will have to develop your personal communication skills in order to create and get to desired results.

  • Creativity

Life is not about finding yourself, it is about creating you. Creativity is the lifeblood of everything, so nurture, develop and make use of your creative potential and allow for others to express their creativity as well. There are many ways of communicating and expressing creativity – just let your imagination flow freely and do not be afraid of creating completely new paths through audio, visualization, or kinesthetic learning and development solutions.

  • Development

As a coach/facilitator/mentor, you will not only deal with continuous personal development and learning, but most importantly, develop individuals and people who you work with. You will also learn to understand that development occurs at all times, although you may not always see the results immediately. Sometimes, it will take years to create and to get to the results that you seek to see through your work, but learn how to use certain types of tools for receiving feedback and making sure that at least some development is noticeable within a specific time frame.

  • Empathy and emotional intelligence

Empathy is part of emotional intelligence, but emotional intelligence stretches far beyond simply being empathetic. Your life work with human beings and individuals is all about social interaction and communication that require being emotionally intelligent. Developing emotional intelligence in your personal life and in other individuals is an essential factor in achieving success through your work.

  • Identity

As a coach, facilitator, and mentor you will get in acquaintance not only with your personal identity, but also with the identities of those who you work with. Teaching is identity work.

  • Improvisation

Improvisation, drama and theatrics are developing, learning, and teaching methods that allow creativity and imagination to expand. Improvisation is also sought-after, especially in unexpected circumstances and situations. If you have no materials to work with, improvisation allows you to create learning situations using your/your student´s minds and physical bodies to create completely new learning situations.

  • Journal/Learning Diary

If not already, learn how to journal and write down your (learning) experiences, and teach the same to those you work with. A journal/learning diary may be expressed in many forms/ways. It may be very personal, or shared in public with others. It may be expressed in a number of ways, through creative writing, poems, audio, or video. Make it a regular habit, if not daily, then at least on a weekly or monthly basis.

  • Memoir

Write a memoir about your life, and about your experiences. You can combine your journal/learning diary with your memoir, and keep it only for yourself unless you are/will be ready to publish it officially at some stage in your life. Writing/keeping a journal is a great way of learning/developing, and who will most benefit from your personal learning and development, if not you yourself, as well as your students.

  • Negotiation skills

Negotiation skills are essential in all areas of life, and business. Also in coaching and developing yourself, and other individuals. Be prepared to learn more about, and develop negotiation skills because you will need these in every aspect of your life, not least in coaching/mentoring situations.

  • Objectivity and open-mindedness

Being objective is perhaps one of the most difficult skills a human being can ever possess, since all our actions are based upon our personal beliefs, and value systems. As a coach/facilitator/mentor, however, you will have to develop objectivity and be open-minded.

  • Perseverance and persuasion

Coaching, facilitating, mentoring, and life in general, are all about learning how to persevere and to persuade. However, as already once mentioned, do not force your ideas upon other people. Rather, be a role model and allow them to tap into their greatest potential through acceptance, encouragement, and allowance.

  • Spirituality

Working with your personal mind, tapping into, and working with other individual´s minds requires for you to be spiritually open-minded and constantly open to spiritual development. Do not fear about creating and developing spiritual connections with people whom you work with.

  • Tolerance

During your career, your will have to experience, and deal with a number of situations, requiring for you to be tolerant with how things, and people, behave and unfold. However much acceptance and tolerance you will have to develop in yourself, you also will have to learn how to draw boundaries and protect yourself from certain kinds of behavior. You will also have to learn how to develop a thick skin, unless you have developed this in yourself. Be tolerant, yes, but make sure to know how to act in challenging situations.

  • Uniqueness

You are a unique individual, working with other unique individuals/personalities. Always have respect for your uniqueness, but also respect the uniqueness of others.

  • Vision

As a coach, facilitator, mentor, or all of these, you will have to have vision in the work you do, and help other individuals tap into their vision in creating their futures.

  • Wisdom

It may take a lifetime to develop true wisdom, something that only experience can teach us. However, seek to develop wisdom in yourself and in your students because wisdom allows us to raise our vibrations and evolve into human beings with a higher spiritual consciousness.

 

How Do Inspiring Leaders Create Change?

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Inspirational Leadership, Leadership Development, Personal Development

The time is always right to do what is right. -Martin Luther King Jr. 

How many truly inspiring leaders do you know? People who have contributed to creating waves of change through vision, action and continuous selfless efforts in improving circumstances, people and societies.

What differentiates inspiring leaders different from other people? Are they truly so different from others? Perhaps yes, but most probably not. Anyone can be an inspiring leader – it is a question about willingness and readiness to accept joy, inspiration, and positive thoughts, leading to positive actions, creating a positive environment and seeing how your personal world starts changing, leading to positive changes in your environment as well.

Being positive in a negative situation is not naive. It is leadership. -Ralph Marston

Being, and becoming an inspiring leader is something that you have to work upon every day, until it becomes a habit and a way of life. Everyone, even the most inspiring leaders, has weak moments, which is of course humane. Inspiring leaders know how to cope with feelings of fear and discomfort through acceptance and an ability to transform these lower-frequency energies into higher energy vibrations that lead to positive results.

Inspiring leaders will do what it takes to: 

  1. Continuously develop themselves and their self-knowledge

Inspiring leaders know both their strengths and their weaknesses, and are willing not only to accept these but also capable of admitting that they do have weaknesses. Being conscious and knowing yourself are the basics for continuous personal development. Sometimes personal development is taking two steps forward and one step back, but as long as you keep going you will develop.

2. Empower themselves and people around them

Inspiring leaders know how to empower others, but most importantly – they know how to empower themselves. A leader has to be confident enough to feel and be personally empowered before knowing how to empower others.

The best leaders gain power by giving it away. 

3. Embrace failure

Failures are a part of success. The most successful of leaders may have failed a zillion times, but they always get up and continue their work. Failure is a great teacher, and inspiring leaders accept failures as important lessons on their path to greatness and success.

Failure is not the opposite of success. It is part of success. 

4. Stay in motion

No matter how slow a process sometimes may seem, or how long it may take to achieve a goal(s), inspirational leaders always stay active and in motion. Even inspiring leaders have moments of lost inspiration, but nevertheless they stay in motion working towards reaching their goals and working towards results, knowing that inspiration will follow them on their journey.

5. Co-operate and partner up with others

Inspiring leaders sometimes work alone, but they also know the importance of cooperation, partnering up with others and investing into teamwork. People are at the core of all action for inspiring leaders because they know that without other people, they would be alone in this world. People make a difference. People are important. 

6. Listen more than they speak

Inspiring leaders listen more than they speak. Listening to others demonstrates that you are interested in learning more about what a person has to say, and to offer. Listening to oneself is also important. 

When you talk, you only repeat what you already know. If you listen, you may learn something new. -The Dalai Lama

7. Develop their emotional intelligence

Inspiring leaders either are emotionally intelligent, or they want to be. Emotional intelligence is something we can all develop in ourselves, and emotional intelligence can be more important than IQ when it comes to succeeding in life.

Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all. -Aristotle

8. Let others lead and succeed

Inspiring leaders are all about developing and growing leadership around them, and they enjoy seeing other people succeed. They know how to work in a team and understand the importance of shared leadership.

9. See the potential in others

Inspiring leaders see the potential in other individuals and know how to get results together with, and with the help of others. Inspiring leaders know that everyone has his/her unique strengths that are essential in contributing and in creating results.

10. Understand that change is a continuous, universal process

Truly inspiring leaders are willing to live their passion, inspiration, and dreams, passing them on to people around them. Inspiring leaders will always find their way to other people’s hearts.

  1. Grow throughout life, realizing that inspiring leadership is a life-long journey rather than a short-term trend.

Inspiring leadership brings with it, and creates, long-lasting changes in people and in societies. Being an inspiring leader is about giving more than you expect back, being willing to help others, serving and valuing people around you. Inspiring leadership is authentic, being and expressing who you truly are, caring, daring, and deep. Inspiring leadership does not care about age, gender or other external qualities, but rather focuses upon internal factors that, when correctly channeled, have the capacity of creating and establishing long-term inspiration in the external world.

May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears. -Nelson Mandela

Author ́s note: I first wrote and published this post on my website and on LinkedIn on August 26th, 2015 (four years ago today). Today, I made some minor adjustments to the post. This post has been one of my most read and shared posts on LinkedIn (316 reshares on LinkedIn), at the time when LinkedIn still featured articles in different categories. This article/post was featured in the Leadership & Management category. Anne-Maria Yritys, August 26th 2019. 

 

Release YOUR Inner Power

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Empowering Women, Female Leadership, Personal Development

smiling-series-1-1506270-1279x1705

Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don’t. (Steve Maraboli)

Who is in charge of your life? Is it you, or is it someone else?

Take a piece of paper, a pencil, and spend some time drawing a sketch of your life in silence, without any external distractions. Or, go for a walk, do anything that allows you to reflect upon the way you lead your personal, and business life.

What are your circumstances? What is happening in your life? Who is part of your life? How do you spend your days? How do you spend your time? Who do you spend you time with? How do you treat yourself? How do you allow others to treat you, not only as a woman, or a businesswoman, but as an individual.

Are you living up to your true potential? Or do you let yourself become influenced by other people, their opinions, and e.g. news and media?

My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style. (Maya Angelou)

Just think about it. We are constantly being influenced by people, news, and media. In these days of the digital era, many of us are constantly online, networking on social media. Do you control your online presence, or are you being swept away by external disruptions?

Are you on the right track in life, or controlled by external circumstances?

So many questions! And who has the answers?

Only YOU have the correct answers for your life. No one else. Not your family, your friends, your coworkers, your boss, the government, the news and media. No, no, no, do not let everyone else dictate what is right for you, what choices you should be making regarding your present life, or your future.

You are the one who is in charge of your life destiny.

You are not here just to please others.

You are here to fulfill your life´s purpose, and to bring peace into the world. To travel the best possible road of your life, to develop yourself and your surrounding by being a wonderful example to other people.

Keep this in mind, every single day of your life. Do not let people and news/media surrounding you let you down. Instead, focus on positive energies, in yourself and in others.

Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the clouds and their feet on the ground. Let their spirit ignite a fire within you to leave this world better than when you found it. (W. Peterson)

Be a Leader: How To Be A Powerful Woman on YouTube:

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

Thank you for being in charge of, and taking charge of, your life. Allow yourself to release the power within you.

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

Thank you also for reading and commenting this article. Thank you also for liking and sharing, especially if this post provided you with valuable content and information.

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

 

Natural Healing for Leaders

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Leadership Development, natural healing, Personal Development
Wild flowers. Finland 2015. Photograph: Anne-Maria Yritys
Wild flowers. Finland 2015. Photo: Anne-Maria Yritys

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. (Lao Tzu) 

Great leadership equals great responsibility, and great responsibility requires maturity and patience. Important, long-term decisions are not to be made in hurry, but rather with thoughtfulness.

Nature is our best teacher in making better leadership decisions, because when you look deep into nature, you will understand everything better (Albert Einstein).

Don´t haste through life, GROW through life. 

Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience. (Ralph Waldo Emerson) 

Nature also cures, lowers blood pressure, acts as an antioxidant for your skin and body – a natural therapy, and a couple of hours spent in nature may be worth more than any other treatment.

Nature also calms your breath, helps you get rid of stress, anxieties, and a walk in nature is a great counterbalance for all kinds of athletes. Life cannot always be a race, a marathon, or a triathlon. Even high performers need a break, calm and peaceful activities that even out the hectic everyday life.

Get out in nature – go for a walk in the forest, for a hike, to a silent beach, up to the mountains or where ever you can truly relax and detach from all the noise in your life. Make it a regular activity/exercise, and notice how your life, and thoughts, start changing.

Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wilderness is a necessity; and that mountain parks and reservations are fountains of life. (John Muir) 

Nature. Cheaper than Therapy. 

Relax 8 Hours-Relaxing Nature Sounds-Study-Sleep-Meditation-Water Sounds-Bird Song:

Thank you for spending time daily out in nature.

 

Motivation + Actions + Goals = Accomplishment

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Leadership development coaching, motivation, Personal Development
www.pinzino.it - Un ape dedita al proprio lavoro - Fiore di girasole - Macro - Corpo macchina Canon 300D - Autore: Enrico Nunziati - Obiettivo Sigma 17/70
http://www.pinzino.it – Un ape dedita al proprio lavoro – Fiore di girasole – Macro – Corpo macchina Canon 300D – Autore: Enrico Nunziati – Obiettivo Sigma 17/70

I BEElieve in you (Tanya Radic)

…Please promise to believe in yourself too!

MOTIVATION, a simple word yet so profound, in all aspects of life. Why? The question may sound somewhat simple, but can motivation be regarded simple taking into consideration how much effort, time, and value is being invested into analyzing, researching, living, educating, coaching, teaching, and mastering motivation?

Perhaps only one thing exceeds the importance of motivation, and that is GOAL, but working towards, and reaching a goal, requires for us  to be motivated. Motivation is the foundation for all action, and motivation together with action will lead us towards reaching a goal.

MOTIVATION + ACTIONS + GOAL = ACCOMPLISHMENT

 

The perhaps best-known, and most cited researcher in the field of motivational theory is Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist and professor who believed in focusing on the positive qualities in people, and who studied self-actualization together with human potential. Maslow´s hierarchy of human needs as a valid framework remains widely used among a wide variety of practitioners within sociology, management/leadership development, psychology, coaching, education, and training.

 

Maslow´s hierarchy of needs aligned with aspiration management is based upon the thought that when the basic (physiological, safety and security) of a human being are fulfilled, the individual has the capability, and energy, to focus upon fulfilling his/her social needs including love/belonging, esteem, and at the top of the pyramid, self-actualization. Hence, once the basic needs together with the following social needs have been fulfilled, an individual can focus upon accomplishment. 

Assumed that an individual (YOU?) leads a life where his/her basic and social needs are fulfilled, he/she is ready to aim for self-actualization and accomplishment. This, in turn, requires the ability of setting a goal/several goals, and finding the motivation that enables actions in reaching the goal/s. Actions in plural because reaching a goal usually takes more than one action, of course depending upon the size of the goal. The higher/more complex the goal, the more actions will it demand.

MOTIVATION + ACTIONS = GOAL

Motivation, further on, can be divided into intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation starts from within an individual, while extrinsic motivation usually comes from outside the individual. The question is, whether all intrinsic motivation is based upon external factors? Nevertheless, there are many ways of getting motivated:

  1. Clarify your goal
  2. Reflect upon the purpose of your goal
  3. Divide your goal into smaller steps/partial goals (the higher/more demanding the goal, the more important it is to divide it into a number of smaller goals)
  4. Consciously raise your performance pressure
  5. Visualize reaching your goal on a regular basis
  6. Use motivation as a tool of self-suggestion (positive affirmations/mantras)
  7. Rationalize your schedule
  8. Define a daily/weekly/monthly/yearly schedule
  9. Commit to your goal(s) on a social level
  10. Set up a reward (and punishment) system for yourself
  11. Make enough time and space (enable conditions) for reaching your goal(s)
  12. Remove obstacles and conflicts that may stand in the way for your motivation
  13. Consciously change your attitude
  14. Use inspirational mental models/find role models/mentors

(List Source: Kauppila 2003. Opi ja opeta tehokkaasti. Psyykkinen valmennus oppimisen tukena = translation: Teach and Learn Efficiently. Psychological Coaching as a Support in Learning).

In following video, “The psychology of self-motivation”, Scott Geller speaks about self-motivation and how to free yourself from restrictions, enabling you to set your personal goals, and receive support from people around you. Enjoy watching and listening to a perspective about intrinsic (self-) motivation.

 

The bee is more honored than other animals, not because she labors, but because she labors for others (St. John Chrysostom)

If the bee disappears from the surface of the Earth, man would have no more than four years to live (Albert Einstein)

Thank you for reading, commenting, and learning. Most of all, thank you for valuing and respecting all life upon Earth, and making it your priority to become motivated, take actions, reach goals, and accomplish things that are of value, and that help other humans, nature, and all life (including animals) enabling us to continue thriving on Planet Earth.

 

How To Overcome Your (Personal) Leadership Obstacles

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Coaching for excellence, Leadership risks, Personal Development

clff-climb-1378016

As a leader, if you follow your heart, you will have the courage to take on any risk because your heart will lead you to the solution and avoid the risk. (Angeline Kobe Chan).

Leadership, as everything else in life, includes many risks. Life itself is a risk, because no matter how much we plan and strategize, life will always have its surprises in storage for us. In terms of risks, leadership can also be compared to entrepreneurship – you cannot lead if you are not capable of taking, and living with them, neither can you be an entrepreneur without being prepared to take risks.

What are the biggest risks of leadership, then? Observation, personal life/work/study experiences as well as learning about leadership through online and printed media have taught me a number of lessons, including seven themes that I consider being the major risks and obstacles on your path to becoming a great leader. The 7 major risks are:

1. Being mentally (or physically, but usually mentally) blocked due to a specific reason (or, due to a number of reasons). Most often, the main risk on your path to being a great leader is YOU yourself, personally.

How can you overcome this? Depending upon YOU, you will have to make efforts including the fact that you agree with the fact that YOU personally are the one who is standing in your own way. Once you have realized this, take needed actions towards removing and overcoming your blockages. There are a number of ways to do this.

2. Negative self-talk, or listening to skeptics. NEVER EVER look down or yourself, or on others. And, never let other people put you down.

Solution: Whatever you do, focus on positivity. Start by cleansing yourself from any negative energies, or negative self-talk. Instead, wake up each morning and remind yourself about how great you are, and be thankful for everything you have in life. Be thankful for your life, and embrace the day by living in the present instead of thinking about possible past failures, or having too much concern about the future. Your life is here and now, in the present, and in order to be(come) a successful leader, you have to focus on living 100 % in the present moment. This life was given to you for a reason, and make sure to enjoy it to the fullest.

3. Focusing too much on external factors and motivators.

According to psychological theory, and studies about motivation, motivation is at its best when it is “an internal thing”. Truly successful, driven people, are motivated by internal, rather than by external factors. You have to find your true purpose inside yourself, and then get out in the world and release all the positive energy that is in store inside of you (in your body and soul).

4. Comparing yourself with others/Fear of loss and/or giving

What to do? Never compare yourself, your achievements, your life purpose, or your life path in general to those of other people. Your life path is always personal, and you should not have to explain your choices or decisions to people around you. Those who matter do not mind, and those who do not mind, do not matter. Peel the onion, get to the root of you, your desires, and instead of comparing yourself to other individuals, start living your life, and working towards your personal goals, to the fullest. The more you give, the more you will receive.

5. Lack of vision and purpose.

Are you in a state of amnesia, or at a crossroad, not knowing in which direction to go or what path to choose in life? Do not blame yourself. This is a major theme for many people, so you are not alone with this obstacle (it may be relieving to realize this). GIVE YOURSELF TIME. Sometimes, and very often, even the best of leaders get lost on their track. Instead of having feelings of despair, focus on the essentials in life, such as breathing, eating, and resting/sleeping enough. Meditate. Take some time out. Realize that Rome was not built in a day. We all have a purpose in life, and vision will come as soon as you take care of yourself holistically.

6. Isolation and lack of support/help.

Many people, and leaders, are lonely. Loneliness is not equal to being alone. Many people, and leaders, prefer spending some/a lot of time alone without feeling lonely. Nevertheless, we human beings are always more or less social, and need other human beings around us. Get a role model/role models, seek out the best mentor/s you possibly can, surround yourself with people who can help you on your path, and who support your growth. True leaders are never afraid of helping/seeking help or support, and they let others grow along and beside them without interfering.

7.   Not enough self-knowledge/self-esteem

Leadership comes to those who are ready for it, regardless of age or other external criteria. You will know and feel your personal readiness, and so will the world around you. Leadership requires emotional maturity, a willingness to lead because of purpose and drive, and not because of other facts such as wanting to micro-manage or have power over other individuals.

At its best, leadership is wonderful, energizing, fulfilling, purposeful, exciting, uplifting, and contagious! And, as I have learned from my many mentors and role models, the purpose of leadership is to encourage, and grow more leaders. Leaders, who have a purpose and mission, and who are passionate enough to make an effort to fulfill their life purpose while engaging others along the way.

Attached an attached lecture about leadership and decision-making in the Face of Great Risk (Harvard Kennedy School):

You must do the thing you think you cannot do (Eleanor Roosevelt)

An individual who wants to lead the orchestra must turn his/her back on the crowd (Max Lucado)

The biggest risk is taking no risk (Mark Zuckerberg)

When you play it too safe, you are taking the biggest risk of your life. Time is the only wealth we are given. (Barbara Sher)

Leadership is action, not position (Donald H. McGannon)

Surrender to what is. Let go of what was. Have faith in what will be. (Sonia Ricotti)

Never allow waiting to become a habit. Live your dreams and take risks. Life is happening now. (unknown)

We make a living by what we get. But we make a life by what we give (Winston Churchill)

There can be no great accomplishment without any risk (Neil Armstrong)

Thank you for reading, commenting, sharing, learning, and for leading!

————————————————————————————————————-

 

Earth Reshaped by Indigos and Crystals

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in higher education, Personal Development, Spirituality
(Aquamarine on White Background. Artist: Boykung/Freedigitalphotos.net. ID: 100258224)
(Aquamarine on White Background. Artist: Boykung/Freedigitalphotos.net. ID: 100258224)

Live the life you were truly meant to live. You create the experience that you choose to have. There is no limit to what you can be, do, and have. You are an infinite creator of your reality. (Indigo Wisdom #391)

The future is now. We have entered the New Age long ago and there is no turning back. What a relief is that, knowing that we can fully focus on the existing present, creating the future we want with lessons from the past acting as our guidelines towards the future that humanity and planet Earth not only wants, but needs in order to continue thriving in our endless Universe. We are doing pretty well already, but imagine for an instance what our actions and lifestyles, on the average, may look like to more advanced civilizations in the Universe? Yes, we all citizens of Planet Earth are responsible for how well societies function, how humanity in general thrives, how we treat each other, how we treat nature, and how we treat animals. We can and should all take part of the blame, but instead of focusing upon living in guilt, blaming ourselves and other human beings, let´s concentrate our energy upon improving the way we live and interact with ourselves, and with other living creatures that our ecosystem depends upon.

The vibrations of our planet, across countries and continents, are already being raised by conscious and aware individuals, who are spiritually more in tune with both themselves and have a higher understanding and connection through their strongly developed intuition, allowing them to comprehend intangible matters and to some people, currently invisible dimensions and the spirit world that we, in fact, all live in.

Indigos and Crystals are living among us, helping us with the necessary changes that will lead us into a brighter future for mankind, and Planet Earth in general. They are here to teach us valuable lessons, and also to helping us develop the same qualities in ourselves. We are all spiritual beings with so much untapped potential, indigos and crystals who can, and will, shape our present into a future where everyone has enough of everything, a shared wealth and well-being.

If this topic is completely new to you, you may want to increase your understanding by reading e.g. The Complete Idiot´s Guide to Indigo Children, an enlightening approach to nurturing an Indigo child, written by Wendy H. Chapman, Director of the Metagifted Education Resource Organization (metagifted.org) and Carolyn Flynn.

Please also learn more about Indigo´s and Crystals by watching following videos:

CNN – Anderson Cooper – Indigo Children: 

and

5 Signs You’re An Indigo Child or Adult: 

 

Anyone that encourages intellectual, emotional, artistic or spiritual growth is worth keeping. Don´t let them go. (Color me Indigo on Pinterest).

Thank you for reading, sharing, commenting and learning. Peace and blessings.

————————————————————————————————————-

 

How Can You Expand & and Express Your Creativity?

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Creative Expression, Personal Development, Societal Development

You cannot use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. (Maya Angelou)

Creativity is one of the most sought after commodity not only in business today, but also in employees. Yet, a major part of organizations fail to draw out, or inspire their employees to their fullest potential within the context of creativity. The reasons behind this vary, starting from the fact that tantalizing creativity requires actions that stretch far beyond from simply fulfilling basic human needs through employment, such as generating a secure income in order to pay for essential living costs. Many creative individuals also do value independence, freedom of expression and creativity, a possibility to live out their passions higher than just receiving a steady paycheck month in, and month out. Unfortunately, many organizational roles today leave only little, if any, space for creative expression and development.

There are many forms of creativity, not limited to traditional creative professions such as acting, music, poetry, creative art, and teaching among many other creative professions. The technological advancement has made it easier for individuals, and organizations, to express their creativity in a number of ways. Various online media and social networks are a good example of how creativity can be, and has been, made possible, accessible, and more easily expressed to majority of individuals.

How can you tap into, live out, and express, your personal creativity? As it comes to creation, and creativity, there are no simple rules or guidelines to live by, but creativity does require:

– The capability of working alone. However social human beings are, the majority of truly creative stars in history and contemporary are well-known for their capability of tireless work, often in solitude. Perhaps the most well-known example of tireless self-belief and exhaustive work in solitude is Albert Einstein who spent years working upon his relativity theory before making it public. It may be worthwhile to learn more about Albert Einstein Method.

– The need of overcoming fears, restrictions, and being willing to go the extra mile in order to reach your full potential as an evolving individual. Human beings are constantly learning, and developing, at least as long as we allow ourselves to expand and grow spiritually (in addition to developing physically). It takes courage to believe in oneself, no matter what other people may think or whatever kind of feedback one receives for creative work. Be willing to listen to, and take feedback, but also keep in mind that you are the master of your creativity, and in creative expression there are no limits, or rights or wrongs, as long as your work is morally correct, and ethical.

– Do not limit yourself. Creativity may sometimes require extravagant action/behavior. Study and learn more about creative geniuses in history and in contemporary, individuals such as Pablo Picasso and Lady Gaga, who have taken risks and lived out their extravagant characteristics. Do not other people limit you either, as long as you keep within legal frameworks, and perhaps cultural acceptance?

– Detox your life, meditate, work upon activating your pineal gland, listen to, and follow your intuition.

Listen, and watch the following video where David Kelley speaks about how to build your creative confidence:

Spend time with people, and surround yourself with people who accept and tolerate your creativity. If possible, get rid of circumstances and people who restrict you expressing, and living, your creative potential.

To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. (Joseph Chichon Pearce)

Being creative is not a hobby – it is a way of life. 

Logic will take you from A to B. Imagination (creativity) will take you anywhere. 

The creative adult is the child who survived. 

Creativity is contagious. Pass it on. 

Creativity changes the world. Use your creativity for the benefit of humanity, and the Universe. 

Every person is creative. Discovering that becomes the challenge. Nurture your creativity today! 

Life is a great big canvas, throw all the paint you can on it (Danny Kaye)

Creative people are curious, flexible, persistent, and independent with a tremendous spirit of adventure and a love of play (Henri Matisse)

It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation (Herman Melville) 

Listen to and watch another excellent video about creativity: 

Elizabeth Gilbert: Your elusive creative genius: 

Thank you for reading, commenting, and learning. 

————————————————————————————————————-

 

 

The Power of Gratitude in Our Lives

by Anne-Maria Yritys, posted in Authentic Leadership, Consciousness, Personal Transformation
"Business Hand Writing, Thank You". Freedigitalphotos.net.
“Business Hand Writing, Thank You”. Freedigitalphotos.net.

With Thanksgiving approaching hundreds of millions of people celebrate, and show gratitude for the abundance in their lives. Thanksgiving Day is not a part of culture in Finland, neither in many other countries worldwide. All cultures, however, have their own national holidays and ways of being thankful and expressing gratitude. In addition to culturally related national holidays, local and international organizations have created a number of special days, such as the World Water Day and even the Earth Hour, with a purpose to influence and to increase awareness amongst population. Filling one´s personal agenda with all of these would most likely signify having some kind of special day every single day of the year. 

The efforts to drive change and the willingness of improving all kinds of conditions both on local, national, international, and global levels, speaks for the fact that we all wish to contribute to positive transformation taking place in our surroundings. There is always room for improvement, and justice, and our personal choices do affect and have an influence, whether we realize it or not. 

Although we, as individuals, can have a significant amount of influence, one person´s capacity alone is always limited. However, as individuals we have the possibility to choose to make every day of our lives kind of Thanksgiving Day. Or, if you will, a Day of Gratitude. 

Whatever life presents us at a certain moment, we have the possibility to choose our attitude. Train your mind to be thankful, and grateful, even for the most difficult of experiences, and be always open to learning from them. As Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, one of my greatest inspirers teaches: When you have to choose between being kind, and being right, always choose being kind. Furthermore, as Dr. Wyer teaches, you always have the possibility to choose how you react to external circumstances. In his metaphor, however much you press an orange, nothing else but orange juice will come out. Whatever the external circumstances may be, or what kind of situations we face in life, we can always choose our personal attitude. Choose to be calm, confident, and positive, and see how this changes not only you, but also your surroundings. We can only work on ourselves, and only through this personal development on a spiritual level, are we capable of transforming our external circumstances. 

Tips for personal transformation: 

– Accept an event or a situation for what it is, no matter how complicated it may seem. Acceptance will help you to master any kind of situation, and increase your understanding.

– Despite of circumstances, always choose to focus on positivity. By doing this, and by letting yourself be surrounded by positivity, you will eventually decrease and be capable of eliminating anything else in your life, and your surroundings. 

– Lead change from within. Your spirit is stronger than you think, and focusing on personal, spiritual growth is the key to being capable of helping and serving others as well. 

– Choose kindness instead of trying to prove you are right (and others wrong). We do not have to agree with everything, or everyone, but neither do we need to prove them/their points of view wrong. 

– Learn to listen, and to empathize with others/a certain situation. 

– Instead of accusing and blaming others for their imperfections, take a profound look in the mirror every day, and seek to improve what you see. We do not develop, evolve or learn by pointing out other people´s mistakes. 

– Learn to treat challenges and obstacles as growth experiences. Use them as stepping-stones for becoming a better person every single day. We always have space for personal improvement. 

– Focus on your personal performance. Expect a lot from yourself, expand your horizons, seek to understand the unknown, but also remember to be kind to yourself. 

– Improve something every day. It can be a tiny thing, but even this tiny thing can accumulate into something unexpectedly huge someday = > Snowball effect. 

– Plant seeds which have the capacity to grow into something beautiful with time. Focus on planting positive seeds. With time, you will be able to harvest plenty of healthy fruit. 

– Learn to let go, and to forgive. Forgiveness is essential. Also remember to forgive yourself. Referring to Dr. Wayne W. Dyer once again: We all have a wake in our lives, which has influenced us to becoming the individuals we are today. But the wake is also our past, and one key to personal transformation is to realize that despite of not being able to influence the wake of our lives, we have the possibility of focusing on the present. By doing this, we constantly create ourselves the future we like to see ourselves in.

“Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go, so goes the world, for the world is us. The revolution that will save the world is ultimately a personal one”. 

(Marianne Williamson)

Dr. Wayne W. Dyer: Attitude is everything, so pick a good one: 

http://bit.ly/AttitudeisEverythingDyer