There are those days when you are trying to just maintain the status quo, concerned that something else might happen. That something might be someone disappointing you, or an unexpected expense that wasn’t in your budget.

It’s not uncommon to worry what that might be. I just had an unexpected car expense that was much greater than I had anticipated. And it goes on. Quite often they are just little things. But over time your coping skills lessen.

That’s the way life is. You can’t control all of the circumstances in your life. Life has a way of its own and is uncertain. Trying to control for every eventuality takes a great deal of energy and is impossible. Because life is uncertain that’s what also makes it challenging and more interesting.

All that we can do is work on ourselves and to make ourselves stronger, wiser and more flexible. Each twist and turn helps us prepare for what might happen down the road.

Rather than continuing to develop career skills, focus on developing life skills, so that no matter what comes your way, you can move forward.

Think of yourself as whole, creative and resourceful. Whatever comes up because you are resourceful, you can learn from it and get closer to that person you want to be. As you begin your day, thing about what the highlight of your day might be.

JOURNEY ON

MARKMark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and thought leader who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes and Discover the Leader Within.

There is a point in our life when we feel we need to make a change, even though we might not have clarity as to an alternative. That was my situation, when I realized that I was done being a trial lawyer. My challenge was that I didn’t have clarity as to what an alternative could be. So I want to a career counselor hoping to get that clarity. Still after a number of sessions, no clarity.

I then questioned whether I should make that career change, since there didn’t seem to be a viable alternative. At the time, my options were to continue as an attorney, or to stop and to do nothing. With a family, I had certain responsibilities that I was conscientious about.

I took a leap of faith, one of the biggest of my life, and gave up my law career, trusting that the next path would be revealed to me. On a deeper level I did have the confidence that since I’ve been successful before, I could be successful in my new life even though I wasn’t sure what that would be. That was twelve years ago. Here I am now, totally involved in a new way of being and a new way of life. So what enabled me to get to where I am now.

You’ve heard it before—one step at a time. When you’re climbing a mountain, you take the step that’s in front of you. When you do that, moving forward is more manageable. So with any of our challenges, that’s all we can do. And we take the next step, we’re able to see a path in the form of possibilities that we weren’t able to see when we first began the journey.

I went on to begin my career as a life coach. Then my newsletter, Letters on Life, and then my book, Dancing on the River: Navigating Life’s Changes. The next step was speaking to groups on the Eight Principles of Navigating Change.

This continued evolution consisted of taking small steps, one step at a time. It seemed there was always something that I could do to move forward and to enliven me. Blogging was one of them; meeting new people another.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and thought leader who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes and Discover the Leader Within.

The best day of the week is today. Let’s start with that in mind. How you start your day sets the tone for the day. As part of my morning program, after meditating, I wonder about what the highlight of my day might be.

It gives me a positive frame. There is good to experience in some way or some form, but we might not recognize it because we allow our concerns and moods to overshadow what we’re feeling and thinking. Those wild emotional swings color what’s possible in the moment.

We forget about what really matters to us in the moment. We become obsessed with our concerns. There will always be something that concerns us. So let’s for today focus on the good, what the highlight of our day might be. Imagine if we focus on this on a daily basis. It’s powerful. I’ve been doing this for over eleven years. Instead of thinking about what might happen down the road, we’re more present. We notice little things that we might tend to overlook.

From this perspective, we’re more curious, and our ability to experience joy keeps expanding. From time to time, people ask me if I’m ignoring reality. My response is that I’m not ignoring it, I’m choosing how I’m experiencing it.

Once you become more conscious of the moment, you attract to you, unexpected forces in the universe that align with you in furtherance of your true purpose and the life you want to live. Stay focused.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and thought leader who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes. Give yourself the gift of coaching and make an investment in your future.

Perhaps you have been thinking about your next project or your next strategic move. Perhaps it’s a career change or making a presentation. It might be a decision you have been postponing. You are waiting for a sign, yet you are not sure what that sign will look like. So you sit on the sidelines wondering about where you are going and what you are doing. That’s OK for a while, but honestly ask yourself how fulfilling that indecision is.

When Dancing on the River was first published, in one of the radio interviews,the host could not pronounce the last part of my name correctly. Finally I said, “Now, as now is the time, not later.”

The only perfect time is now. Assess what you have and what you have to work with. That includes all of your accomplishments in your life up to now. From there take the next step. You are in a perfect place to move forward in your life.

Rather than complaining or wishing things were different, think about one thing you can do now. Perhaps it’s not the total answer to what you are searching for, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.

Perhaps you have heard the expression, “A journey of 1000 miles begins with the first step.”

So take it. I am sure you can think of many reasons or excuses not to begin. There will always be something that will cause you to lose focus or to distract you. Keep your focus on the big picture.

Before I created inspirepossiblity.com, I didn’t even have a website or a newsletter. But I began with the intention to inspire others to believe in themselves. So it began. Just with an intention.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and thought leader who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes. Give yourself the gift of coaching and make an investment in your future.

In the back of my mind I thought about writing a book. I had been writing Letters on Life, a monthly ezine, for quite some time. Writing a book was the next progression. But life got in the way and the thought stayed on the back burner, until I ran into an old friend. She had been reading Letters on Life and suggested that I write a book. With her help I spent a year developing a memoir. When reached the point of final editing, she suggested that rather than publish the memoir, that I should publish something based on my newsletters since I already had a following.

Although I knew she was right, I initially resisted the idea. After a year of hard work, I wanted to see the end result. So I did nothing for a while. The unpublished manuscript stayed on my computer, until one day I decided I would write that book. The result was Dancing on the River: Navigating Life’s Changes.

I originally thought that the book would be completed in a brief period of time—— I would get a publisher and then I would be on my way. Well life doesn’t work that way. The entire process with getting the book published took three years.

On many occasions I felt like abandoning the project, but I hung in there.I had to dig deep and bear my soul to finish the journey, or should I say the first phase of the journey.

The next phase is sharing your book and message with others. For some that is daunting, but for me I enjoy it. It’s not a short journey, but a marathon full of many ups and downs; many starts and finishes. But a rewarding journey.

Nearing the day when the manuscript was ready for the editor was an exciting day. But it was just the first phase of many. Along the way there were more peaks and valleys. The struggle, the uncertainty, the feeling of giving up have all contributed to the feeling of joy that I got when I completed the project. Since then it’s been a celebration.

But it’s all taking one step at a time. But keep taking that step.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an Executive-life coach, Speaker and Author. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. He is the author of Dancing on the River:Navigating Life’s Changes; Discover the Leader Within: 10 Ways to Become the Leader you Have Always Wanted to Be. You can reach him at mark@inspirepossibility.com

Years ago I studied the Bansuri, a bamboo flute with GS Sachdev, a world-renowned master. i wanted to have the experience of studying with a master. He had a gift and musical talent that only a few others came close to possessing. Yet my takeaway from studying with him was that talent only takes you so far. Don’t get me wrong. Possessing talent is a great start. But practice, commitment and discipline are necessary if you want to excel. And to achieve mastery, dedication is essential. With dedication comes passion.

Perhaps achieving mastery doesn’t call you. But perhaps you want to take what you are doing to the next level. You want to improve your experience of life. You’ve heard the expression that practice makes perfect. While that might not be necessarily true, it definitely makes you better and more comfortable with what you are trying to learn.

Without it you can’t get better at something. Before giving a talk I prepare beforehand sometimes watching myself on video. When I was a trial lawyer I would spend hours preparing, even if just in my mind, before going to court.

Intending to do well at something, while a good thought, doesn’t get the job done. There are no short cuts.

If you are giving a presentation, practicing beforehand gives you not only more familiarity with your topic, but a confidence, that more often than not, translates into success.

Sorry there are no shortcuts. Focusing, practicing, going over the same thing again and again while tedious at times leads to greater freedom. Discipline leads to freedom.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and thought leader who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes. Give yourself the gift of coaching and make an investment in your future.

Let’s face it. There are some things that we are not good at. No matter how hard we try, we never excel. We barely get by.

And of course, the corollary is true. There are some things that we have always been good at. What we did with these natural inclinations and talents was up to us. It is quite often said that talent only takes you so far. The real mastery comes with how we develop these skill-sets and what we learn from them. Do we bring them to the next level or do they just languish? I have always found that it’s a lot more fun when you are good at something.

To get where we are in our life at this time, we had to do a lot of things well. We made many good decisions and have developed many talents and skills that have served us. More important is what we have learned from them.

In many ways these natural inclinations were gifts. When you think about intelligence, athletic ability or musical talent you realize that you were born with these qualities. When you focus on these gifts, you develop a sense of what your capabilities are and how you can use them as a springboard to what’s next in your life.

Each experience and person you have met has contributed to who you are today. In the process you have developed the most important tool and skill of all. You have developed the gift of learning which in itself is a great skill. However many others have never developed this skill. For them it is a means to an end. Give yourself the gift of learning. It’s exciting, challenging and fulfilling.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and thought leader who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes. Give yourself the gift of coaching and make an investment in your future.

You’re waiting. You’ve asked all of the questions that you have been storing up and still you are not sure about it. There are still the doubts. But deep inside you know that you have to take that step forward.

You’re not sure where the road will take you, but you know that it’s time to embark upon a different type of journey. Where you are now has already been explored——you’re curious about what’s next because you’re an adventurer. You know that something great is waiting for you. You are determined to find out what that is.

You take that next step knowing you will have your share of adversity——that goes with the territory. What is more important is how you handle the adversity. When a difficult challenge is thrown at you, you are able to maintain your center and see possibilities that at one time you didn’t know existed. You couldn’t see them because you were looking for reasons not to move forward.

You were waiting for the perfect time. What you now know is that the only perfect time is now.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and speaker who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes. Give yourself the gift of coaching and make an investment in your future.

Do you compare yourself to others? Perhaps it’s just in a subtle way. We might compare how we look to some image that we notice in a magazine or on a television commercial or program. We compare ourselves to an image not base on reality, but on modern technology. Or perhaps we compare our relationship situation to someone else’s. There is no way for us to really know what is going on. The same goes with our career. It’s difficult to evaluate unless we have the total picture. There is no value in comparing our current situation to the way it use to be. It’s a new day.

It’s easy to lose focus and become discouraged. The sound bites and snippets that we hear and see on TV are geared to get us to think and act in a particular way.

What gets lost is that we are individuals with special qualities and characteristics. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are many people who would love to trade places with you.

You have worked hard to get to this place in your life. You are ready to reap the harvest. You are on the right path because it’s your path and no one else’s. You are the creator of your life. It’s time to claim and honor your uniqueness. You are on the verge of a breakthrough in your life.

I love what Joseph Campbell says in Dark Forest:

“You enter the forest
At the darkest point;
Where there is no path.

Where there is a way or path,
It is someone else’s path.

If you follow someone else’s way,
You are not going to realize your potential.

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive & life coach and speaker who inspires others to believe in themselves. He is passionate about life being an exciting journey of discovery. His enthusiastic and inspiring keynotes on change, leadership and connection thoroughly convey this message to his audiences. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes.

Sure you can come up with a lot of reasons not to do it. They’re no guarantees except this: If you don’t try it won’t happen.

Your concerns can serve you by making you better prepared but they won’t serve you if they stop you. Even after you make the decision to go for it you might have lingering doubts for quite some time. That goes with the territory as you explore the unknown. It’s also possible that the unknown can be your friend. What would your life be like if you welcomed the unknown future.

But what happens is that we stop and give up on what we really want and believe. But what happens is that you are cheating two people. Yourself for not living up to your highest ideals. And the other person because they don’t get the gifts of your uniqueness. Go ahead and let the world know who you are. Speak your truth———remember it’s your vision not someone else’s.

The challenges along the way make the end result more fulfilling. So whatever it is that you are on the verge of beginning, be bold and take that next step. Now is the only time to begin. With exploring the unknown comes the exhilaration that lets you know that you are totally alive.
Imagine this!!!

What if your life turns out better than you expected. What then?

JOURNEY ON

MARK

Mark Susnow, is an executive-life coach and speaker who inspires others to believe in themselves. A former trial attorney for 30 years, he integrates what it takes to be successful in the world with the inner wisdom unfolded to him through years of yoga and meditation. He is the author of Dancing on the River…Navigating Life’s Changes.