Journey On is a blog dedicated to personal growth and personal development. As we continue to expand and evolve what is possible in our lives also expands. Everyday there are thousands of thoughts that come through our mind....some positive and some negative.....We have a choice as to which ones we think about. This blog is an ongoing expression of what's on my mind and the choices I make.
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
THE EVER EXPANDING CYCLE: I'm listening to Deva Premal again. Her music seems to quickly get me into the zone of deep thought. I'm thinking about all the wonderful people who allow me to touch them on such a deep level. It makes me so much more than I was before I got to know them and gives me so much more to give others.
It's an expanding cycle that at this moment seems huge and endless. I know that we all have so much more potential for joy and goodness than we are now experiencing and I embrace expansion and unfolding as I experience the mystery of life. There will be challenges along the way that remind us that we are human but we have to develop our ability to adapt to change in a changing world. Yet with all the change and complexities in the world we still need to have a vision that embraces the rainbow of life with all its flavors, colors and textures. What is your vision? What is your biggest vision that you are holding back on?
Journeyon
Mark
posted @ 5:37 PM
Friday, December 19, 2003
Energy Drainers: What's on your list? #1 for me was changing my message on my answering machine. I have had the same message for two years....just saying that makes me feel like a dinasaur....stuck..resistant to change...and I'm not. I have thought about changing my message on at least 100 occasions and a few days ago blogged about my resistance.
I have been feeling anxiety when thinking about this change and this is from a person who is used to making significant decisions. Did you notice I did say "was"? I just made the change and with playing it back 4 times the whole process took under four minutes. It seemed so easy and now I am thinking about making this change at least at the beginning of every month. I will change the message on my answering machine at least once a month!!!So I have said it.
Are you into making declarations? They are so simple and yet so powerful. With the new year coming up it is the perfect time to make them part of your life and benefit from their power....In my new years edition of Letters on Life, I will be writing about the power of the new year.
Until next time
Journeyon
Mark
posted @ 7:14 PM
Thursday, December 18, 2003
GREETINGS: MORE LESSONS FROM MY CHICKENS... I've been thinking about my chickens again....they're sure noisy in the morning. I told you how in the morning they would run to a corner of the property and lay their eggs and if we gathered the eggs from their nest they wouldn't go back there. Well things have changed.
In the evenings they would roost on our bicycles and we would have to literally carry them somewhat of a distance in the dark to their coop. ..needless to say this was somewhat of a hassle. So my wife, Annie, got a brilliant idea and moved the coop to where the bicycles were. Now what happens is that when it gets dark they usually get into the coop on their own and all we need to do is to secure the gate to the coop.
The bicycles are right next to my workspace so in the morning I hear them and let them out of their coop. Guess what? In the coop there are usually two eggs for me. I say thank you and gather them and the next day there are two more. I don't know what the significance of this is but I do know that it is totally different since we moved their coop. The other day I talked about what is on the other side of change and perhaps the lesson here is that sometimes we'll never know and things will stay the same unless we are willing to break old patterns by trying new things.
Journeyon
Mark
posted @ 10:01 AM
Tuesday, December 16, 2003
Behind the words: Let me tell you about my assumption about people who read blogs. You are probably one of those people like myself who have a lot of passwords. What I want to know is how you remember what all of them are. Do you write them down and how often do you change them.
How often do you change your message on your voice mail? Speaking of voice mail it's been a long time since I have changed me message but I think about my changing it quite often. What is my resistance to this simple change? Wow if I have resisted changing something this simple, I wonder what is going on on a larger scale. Just thinking about changing it now has got my mind whirling. I know I need to do it and I will. It will be interesting to see what happens. It's trying on something new, something different.
What if we changed one little thing each week, what would be possible? And then after 10 weeks how would our life be different? I don't know but I'm going to start with my message. Beneath the words what is the meaning you are trying to convey? What are you really trying to say? What is it that you really want someone to know about you?
Jouryneyon
Mark
posted @ 11:35 AM
Sunday, December 14, 2003
Those beautiful mountains: It's been raining and I just got back from a mountain bike ride..The streams were flowing and the ground was soft....the mountain was beautiful. I was away at a coaching conference and missed riding. You never forget how to ride a bike but you forget other things if you don't make them a habit and make them part of your lifestyle.
On the plane coming back I was looking down on the mountains and noticed how other worldly they seemed. I was reminded of a visionary painting and in that moment felt the majesty of the universe.
When we change our viewpoint or attitude the world looks and seems different to us. Imagine having the ability as your day progresses to change your perspective and look at life from this higher plane. My conversation on the plane reflected that perspective. I sat next to a young man who just published his first book of poetry and was excited about experiencing the mysteries of life. He will definitely journeyon.
Renaissance man
posted @ 5:18 PM
Monday, December 08, 2003
SECRETS: This blogging is still new to me and being in a hurry this morning prevented me from sitting down and writing...I just didn't feel settled. If it was just for myself I wouldn't have felt that way but I know I can't take back what I say. There is the joke that if you tell so and so, they can keep a secret if they don't post it on the internet first. I feel a little bit like that knowing that whatever I say will be read down the road by many folks.
There are no secrets here but I'm thinking in the bigger picture do secrets really serve us? How much do we tell the other person...our friends, our loved ones, our coworkers....where do we draw the line? How about a title for a book..."The Secret life of Secrets"... And when does a secret become a withhold, so that not sharing your thoughts alters the way you feel about the other person. That's where I draw the line...
I know getting it out by releasing the secret thought also releases my loving positive feelings about the other person. Right now I am thinking about some of my relationships and the opportunity for greater connection. I know that expanding my ability to share what's on my mind will give me more intimacy in all of my relationships.
Journeyon
Mark
posted @ 8:16 PM
Friday, December 05, 2003
When I write I like to listen to music.....right now I'm listening to Deva Premal...the music helps to center me and to access the creative juices that are there but not always available. Early this morning after meditating I looked outside at the trees that were sprinkled with light rain..I felt a degree of solitude and then I started to miss all the life around me. I was waiting for the squirrels to start playing in the trees and the chickens to run around. I even missed the bark of our dog. When my kids leave for school it's me and nature. More than ever I'm feeling a oneness with my environment. And that music helps bring out that feeling. I bet in everyone of us there is an anchor...it could be an object, a phrase or a dance that brings out our best. There are plenty of anchors out there that trigger our negativity so we need to be proactive in finding and nurturing our own anchors that put a smile on our face and empower us. What puts a smile on your face? How can you make that occur more often?
Journeyon
renaissance man
Mark
posted @ 11:31 AM
Thursday, December 04, 2003
All that there is.....Sometimes the most difficult things for us to do are the most rewarding. I really felt good about yesterday's blog and looked forward to writing today. And then I got carried away with the morning... sessions with clients, fear of not having anything to write about and then having a problem getting online.... feeling thirsty.....well here I am and it's starting to feeling good.
I like the renaissance man persona. In the morning in a conversation a thought occurred to me that I wanted to share. At this time of year we take stock of our year... What has happened and what hasn't. Most of us tend to focus on what we didn't do and what our shortcomings are. That's when we get into the shoulds and woulds and could have beens....We are looking to the past or future to validate the present. When we look at what we are grateful for it brings us to the present. Still the mind... and focus on this moment as all that there is.
Journeyon
Renaissance man
posted @ 11:37 AM
Wednesday, December 03, 2003
Creating your movie: I was just talking with a friend about the roles and identities we play in our lives. I have been thinking about what it would be like to create a movie about where we are at in our lives currently. What would be the role you would play. What is your identity? Right now I am playing coach-mentor, father, husband, and renaissance man. I have played lawyer, musician, athlete and poet at different times of my life. Right now I am embracing this role as a renaissance man....it all makes sense for me and it's fun. It enables me to live a balanced integrated life and incorporate all of my past experiences and beliefs into being in integrity with who I really am. It's a matter of throwing off the shackles which have confined me, which usually are the past judgments of others and of ourselves. So here's the challenge. If you threw off all of those past shackles and all of the shoulds and woulds, what would your movie be like? Who would be playing the main character and what role would you be playing? Until tomorrow.
Journeyon
Mark
posted @ 10:17 AM
How you can benefit from Coaching.
If you’re reading this letter it’s because you have an interest or curiosity about the phenomenon called coaching. Coaching is sweeping the nation, but why, what's it all about, and how does it work? A Coach is a well trained and experienced professional who helps you produce extraordinary results in your life. Coaches accelerate progress by providing focus and awareness. They help you see where you are now and what you are willing to do to get where you want to be in the future, recognizing that results are a matter of your intentions, choices and actions. The bottom line is a great Coach will help you get what you want, often more quickly than doing it alone.
Why Is Coaching important? So many of us are so busy living from our clocks and calendars, we often forget what matters to us or have little time to even think about it. Too often we are uncomfortable about saying what we want because we don’t believe that it is possible. Sometimes we have just given up. A masterful coach inspires you to believe in yourself so that you are willing to declare what it is that you really want.
A Coach "listens" intently, asks clarifying questions, challenges your assumptions, helps you dream big and makes sure you do the important things you say you will do in order to have the important things you say you want. It is a partnership based on intention, agreement, integrity and relationship. The bottom line is, we can't do it alone. Some of us think we can, but with a Coach you will be challenged, stretched and empowered and you will increase your chances of being successful and be celebrated for it.
In the process you discover your source of inner power, so that whatever you do in life you do with more confidence and ease.
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. Throw off the bow lines, sail away from the safe harbor, Catch the Trade Winds in your sails."
- Mark Twain
Believe in yourself. Live your dream
Explore and discover what is possible.
Mark Susnow, formerly a trial attorney for 30 years, is a coach, musician, speaker, and group facilitator. He’s inspired hundreds of people to believe in themselves and to achieve their goals and dreams. mark@inspirepossibility.com 415.453.5016
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