So, in August, I boogied down to the Esalen Institute, a personal development retreat center on the rugged Big Sur coast for a workshop of Soul Motion with my gracious and graceful teachers, Zuza Engler and Scott Engler. I moved and grooved, sweated profusely, and got in touch with my heart in a big, juicy way. (By the way, I’m teaching a workshop there December 5-10! Check it out on their calendar )

And, as I always seem to do at Esalen, I connected with great people. One of them is Mary Pinozotto, who is a total original. One day, Mary asked our group to help her film a video. I was feeling emotionally tender that day, so I hid from the camera. But I was intrigued over dinner, as she edited the video to post the next day. I asked her what she was doing.

“Oh, I’m recording one dance video every day.”

What!?! That’s pretty amazing. Where does she get inspired? What keeps her going? I was intrigued. She told me about dancing at Wal-Mart. And with Hells’ Angels. And in nature. And in so many different ways. Short dance. Long dances. And then the artistry of editing all of these.

Well, of course I asked to interview her for this blog. Here’s a woman who’s following her heart and her art. As she says in the audio interview I had with her, she’s becoming the person she’s dreamed herself to be.

To me, when we move, we change. Mary is in the flow of change, and I hope you’ll listen to her wisdom if you are in a place of transition, and craving a more authentic, creative life.

Listen to my interview with Mary

I hope you’ll enjoy the interview, with some key highlights about:
- moving emotions out and through the body; the metaphors in movement (I know about that from the Get A Move On! cards)
- dealing with money, and cherishing what you have
- increasing your ability to learn notice new things
- dedication and staying with something with discipline; sinking your teeth in
- listening for the creative inspiration

I’ve also posted a few of Mary’s amazing dance videos. Do they make you want to get up and move your body? C’mon! It’s OK. Go ahead! Join the dance!

Video 1: About the Freebox Blog

Video 2: To Sheryl Crow’s I Shall Believe


Video 3: From a Hafiz poem

I hope this inspires you!  If you want to view Mary’s blog, The Freebox, visit http://thefreebox.wordpress.com/

Wishing you delicious rhythmic journeys,

Susan

Not because I use their deodorant. I don’t. It’s way too manly for me.

I’m angry at Mitchum because they are glorifying the Puritanical work ethic with a new contest that they have, The Hardest Working _______ in America. They ask people to submit videos of themselves working super hard. You might be the hardest working cattle rancher, baker, coach, florist, physical therapist. These don’t even have to be physical laborers. For example, they include a woman who’s a web entrepreneur.

I believe it’s possible to get creative and work smarter and enjoy your life and livelihood much, much more. And I’ll share some ideas about doing that so that you get to imagine them for yourself. But please, if you take anything away from what I’m sharing, it’s that you do not have to kill yourself at work.

So really: What is so right and so virtuous about working so hard? Granted, some of the people that Mitchum’s showing clearly love their work. And I applaud that. But not at the expense of overall well-being. Too many hours at work is just plain draining. In Mitchum’s contest, some of the participants clearly look like they are “slugging it out.” Many of the people they show in their promotional video must be working so hard that they have no time for exercise, because they are quite overweight. Sorry, but that’s no good for your body, mind, or spirit. Can all of these folks truly be happy? I doubt it.

Why must we glorify knocking ourselves out at work? Americans seem to have an obsession with working hard, demonstrating our strength, and just plain working our noses to the grindstone and running ourselves into the ground.

I know a thing or two about pushing myself to work hard. Back in the mid 1990s, I was a management consultant. My colleagues and I seemed to think that it was completely normal to work 80 hours a week. I was expected to bill a minimum of 50 hours each week. So when I worked 100 hour work weeks, which did on occasion, I’d be exhausted, but it was like I earned a badge of courage. Secretly, I was downright ecstatic when I only had to work 60 hours a week, but I also felt guilty, like I wasn’t contributing my share.

Rare was the day at work when my shoulders did not ache. I simply attributed that pain to sitting at the computer for six to ten hours a day.  Nausea and digestive pains were my frequent companions, and their impact seemed more forceful when I was staffed on a project out of town.  At the time, I simply rationalized the intestinal aches away by assuming they were caused by eating hotel and restaurant food, instead of my own home-cooked meals.


About three years into my time in management consulting, I was involved in a car accident. As I drove home from San Francisco International Airport, returning from a client engagement in Southern California, I was rear-ended by a drunk driver.  Although the accident was not serious, I started getting painful migraine headaches immediately afterwards.  My doctor wanted to run diagnostic tests, but I would not allow it.  I was determined to show how tough I could be.  I was not going to let mere headaches keep me from working on what I thought was an extremely important client project, one that seemed to assure me a promotion!  Then, two weeks after the car accident, I passed out in front of a group of clients.  The pain in my head was overwhelming, so I literally fainted while making a presentation. The project team took me to the hospital to check my health.

I ignored the migraine symptoms, continuing to push through them so that I secure a promotion, even if I was conflicted about moving ahead at the firm.  To my project team and to myself, I pretended. I acted as if I was fine.  Fortunately, when I received a doctor’s orders to take a month off from work to relax and recuperate, the managing partner of my office insisted that I follow his professional guidance.

Deep down, I felt torn. On the one hand, I wanted to demonstrate to my project team that I was as strong as everyone else, and that I could fit into the workaholic culture by continuing to work.  Yet on the other hand, I also wished I could simply find work that was more fun, or that I could even stop working for a period.

I ultimately took the medical leave, and I’m so thankful I did. I got back in touch with my body. I got clear that I wanted to work less and enjoy more. And since then, I’ve always found ways to do that, including ways that make plenty of money, thank goodness.

So, how do YOU do work that fits, and not knock yourself out in the process?

(1) Talk to people who are doing work that they love. Ask them what they love about their work. Ask them how they got into it. Listen to their journey. Almost no one goes from frustration to freedom overnight. It’s a process. Find out how people talk to themselves, how they overcame obstacles, how they motivated themselves. Take what works for you and leave the rest.

(2) Read Tim Ferris’ book, The Four Hour Work Week. This book is a game changer. It sounds absurd, especially if you’ve been working more than 40 hours a week. But stick with it. He has great ideas for how to make work as much fun and easy as possible. He has ideas both for making your current job easier, and for launching a product that you can sit back and watch make money. Ah, passive income!

(3) Read a recent article from Bloomberg/Businessweek about Working on the Waterfront. Yes, people really do work at the beach. If a serious business publication is giving you ideas on how to get a tan while you work, why not investigate? Or do you really want to sit in your cubicle day after day, turning pastier white by the second?

Seriously, though, I’m committed to helping people find ease, engagement, and enrichment from their work. What are YOU going to do to find those qualities in your work?

Working well,

Susan

It’s a pleasure to introduce you to one of the clients I worked with last year, Jody Florman, an incredibly talented artist and visionary. In our work together, Jody did her “work from within,” getting clear that within herself, she held a lot of resistance to the life that wanted to unfold for her. As with many people, she had a preconceived idea about how her life “should” be going. However, when she opened up and realized that the different way that her life was flowing was actually on purpose and good, more abundance came her way, in many forms.

I invite you to read my interview of Jody and then view Jody’s artwork and the faux finishing and trompe l’oiel she does in residences. I find her art has a magical, mystical, marvelous quality about it. A true reflection of her inner beauty! And, below, she shares great wisdom for anyone going through a career change and encountering unexpected situations.

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I am very fortunate to be living and working with my passion, every day. I am an artist who makes a living creating and doing hand painting, murals, trompe l’oeil, commission paintings and faux finishes inside beautiful, high end homes. I can also create and reinvigorate the sacred space of your home or business. I am simultaneously exploring fine art painting and photography as additions to my creative focus. I live my life under the premise that I create my own reality. I strive to bring the adventure of my journey into all aspects of my life.

What brings you most alive in your work?
Exploring new ideas and bringing them into reality. I have recently had an epiphany about where my photography is going and it has made me more conscious about my creative process. The more I explore, the more I see the journey as my work and the less I judge the perfection of the art/ photography I put out. I am excited so see where I go next and what the results will be!

What was happening before we started working together?
I had hit a wall with my work life. I had been adamant that by the time I turned 50, I would create an easier work environment for myself. What happened instead was that my world seemed to be dismantling: divorce, challenges with the economy, challenges with my new work environment in the new state I had moved to. I was unenthusiastic and conflicted. This caused everything to come to a screeching halt. I could not seem to get out of my own way. I also had some very fixed ideas on how I thought my life should be going, at my age, and my world was not cooperating. So that’s when I found Susan Bernstein and Work from Within.

What’s happened since?
Making changes did take awhile. I initially had a lot of resistance to going back into the decorative painting field. I was convinced there was something else for me and yet I could not seem to find my way. I put a lot of energy and time into my fine art and looked around for a job in a completely different field.  I found a part time job at a local winery. The point was to get myself into an affluent public eve and possibly generate new clients and give me a place to hang my art and place my art related products. What has come to light in the last year and a half has been all the ways I stop myself, all the ways I judge myself, all the misconceptions I operate my life under and how personally I take what life has to offer me. So, I have been consciously letting go of all of the above statements. I have relaxed into my life, created more fun and enjoyment in each moment, let go of the have-tos and supposed-tos. I have stopped feeling like I’m running out of time and that I am a failure because my life didn’t keep on the “successful” tract I was on. I have re-embraced decorative painting while redirecting my focus and how I physically work. I am letting go of my house and all the ideas I had what a 50 something abundant life style looks like. I am dismantling my box and creating a new flow. In spite of the economics around me, my life is turning around financially and I am expanding rapidly in my creative life. I still have a way to go and I can honestly say I am happy and patient while my life evolves.

What’s been most memorable or valuable from your experience working with Susan Bernstein of Work from Within?
I found myself looking at the resistance I had toward my chosen profession, all the expectations and disappointments. Working with Susan made me realize if I was going to continue in my then current track or look outside my box and do something completely different, I had to reinvent my attitude, and then make a decision. And, I had to overcome disappointment that this would not all happen in an instant. The great news is that my journey back to the more commercial aspects of my art is still unfolding and I am very pleased that I had my experience with Susan has put me on the road to expressing a bigger and more creative aspect of myself.

As an artist, what are the biggest aha’s you’ve had about how to share your talents and reap abundance?
I am still looking at my  avenues for revenue. As times have changed, the way of doing business is different and my focus has changed.  am looking at doing home shows, I am doing a product line for a non-profit. I am pursing shows in smaller venues and I am about to pursue designers on the East Coast.  In general, I’ve learned to try everything, see if it is working. If not, I get out and move on.

Do you ever dream of having your own radio talk show?

Well, I confess, that’s one of my dreams. I’d have a call-in show on a big radio station. I’d listen to people’s problems about wanting better work, about dealing with stress on the job, about figuring out how to make important work-related decisions, and about how to project more confidence to colleagues and clients. Gosh, that would be so much fun, to help people, one-by-one,  shape their success. At work, we often lack guidance for how to be ourselves and have an impact in the world. People might call me the “Suze Orman of Careers,” although I find her a bit grating. I’d have more of a dose of my smiling high energy, like the woman I resembled in the 1980s, gymnast Mary Lou Retton. Well, maybe a little less cute. A bit smarter. I do have an MBA and a PhD, after all.

Well, I’m moving in that direction, creating plans for a radio show down the line. Sure, I could create one right now, on a channel like Blog Talk Radio, on which I’ve been a guest. However, my aspirations are bigger. XM Radio or Sirius, or maybe CBS. And TV? That would be great, too.

For now, I want to give you the best of me, Dr. Susan, through my blog and website. It’s a great way to get myself ready for a radio show. Besides, I get asked tons of career-related questions every week, and I realize how often I want to share the advice I give one person with a whole bunch of people.

So, I’m excited to welcome you to use the Work from Within blog to ask YOUR questions. And I can answer them. My intention is to respond to at least one question weekly, and be as helpful as I can, sharing what it means to “work from within,” and helping you to achieve the calm, clarity, and confidence that’s possible when you listen to and trust your embodied intelligence.

Do you want to ask a question? Go ahead!  Here’s the link:  http://www.workfromwithin.com/resources/askdrsusanthanks/

C’mon, Ask Dr. Susan! I promise to be kind, supportive, and upbeat. I’d love to read your questions…and, of course, answer them.

This week, I’m trying something new.  Instead of telling you my intent with the card image, I’m focusing on what’s really important: Allowing YOU to express what it means to YOU to extend yourself.

So, when you’re stuck, or lost, or confused, and you need to find your direction, how does the guidance “extend yourself” help you?

What does “extend yourself” bring to mind for you?

How might you “extend yourself” right now?

I welcome your stories, observations, and thoughts about how this image and the wisdom to “extend yourself” touches you.  Thank you for extending yourself!  When you share, I promise to reply back on the blog.

Warmly,

Susan

Dr. Susan Bernstein
Life/Work Transition Expert
www.WorkFromWithin.com

PS – Each week, I’ve been introducing a new card from the deck of 52 Get A Move On! cards I created.   When you’re feeling lost, confused, or unsure, these cards that are designed to help you get “unstuck.” Each of the 52 cards (plus two instruction cards) features an image and a phrase, and these whimsical hand-drawn (with crayon and pen, by me, Dr. Susan Bernstein) images is meant to get you inspired and moving.

After months of effort — planning, writing, getting guidance from a media consulant, a branding expert, and a graphic designer, and so on, and so on — the new Work from Within website is finally here! I’m thrilled to show you around!

Overall, the new website has more of an emphasis on what I call “embodied intelligence.” You see, with our world changing so much, it can feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you. That’s unsettling. I help you to find your source of calm, clarity, and confidence that is within you. That way, you can get unstuck and get moving and accomplishing.

Sometimes, raw intellect isn’t enough to guide you in the ever-changing world. You need to be able to trust your gut or listen to your heart. But how? When you develop your embodied intelligence, it’s like finding your inner compass, so you know how to navigate the world. My expertise in as a PhD in Somatic (mind/body) Psychology, combined with nearly two decades of corporate experience at companies including Intel and Accenture, allows me to bring you perspective and the practices that will help you navigate changes more easily.

I hope that you’ll explore the new Work from Within website so you can find all the resources I’ve created to help you breathe easier about the future, step into greater clarity about your next moves, and embody self-confidence from head to toe.

So, let’s take a visit together!

Let’s start by looking at the Home Page. You’ll see a great Flash animation that helps you get an overview of what Work from Within is all about…Life is more chaotic and uncertain than ever. How do you find your way in the world? Get free. Get clear. Get moving. It all comes together when you Work from Within.  You can read a description, too, and can explore new products (like the Get A Move On! cards) and catch up on News about Work from Within, like the October 10 & 11 workshop, Create Work That Truly Fits for You.

You’ll be able to find out about what Work from Within means, and the Work from Within Philosophy, more about me, Dr. Susan Bernstein.

The new website also features great new workshops and speaking engagements I have created. I’d love to host one for your organization, so just get in touch!

I’m reaching out to help more and more people and organizations with services to navigate work and life changes.  That means I’m offering individual coaching, corporate coaching, coaching for entrepreneurs, and even training coaches on the Work from Within practices and perspectives!  Check out these new services, and let me know if I can help you, too!

I’ve been mentioned in the media more and more, like the San Jose Mercury News, and love sharing my expertise widely, so if you are writing a story for the media, contact me on topics including:

• The psychological and physiological impact of work and life transitions (like layoffs, starting a new jobs)
• Tools for breathing easier about the future
• Ways to find greater clarity in the midst of chaos and uncertainty
• Practices for embodying self-confidence

I know that not everyone has the chance to work with me personally, so I’ve created tools so that you can get the best of my expertise, and you can listen and learn with me at your convenience. So the new website has a store, and you’ll find there:

• The best “get unstuck” tool ever – the Get A Move On! cards
• Guidance on going for your dreams – the Follow a More Authentic Career Path CD
• Activities you can do to find your new career – the Create Work That Truly Fits for You CD
• Tools to keep you positive and motivated in your job search – the Job Seeker’s Confidence Kit CD
• A 7-step process and 24 activities to help boost your confidence in interviews – the Interviewing Authentically workbook

Of course, the new Work from Within website has this great blog (OK, I’m biased!) and that’s full of great information. Additionally, I’ve created a wealth of resources for you to read articles on how to work from within, listen to interviews with me on issues about transitions, get recommendations on resources for learning more about the mind-body connection and transitions, and sign up to receive the Work from Within eNewsletter via email.

It’s a full body of work, this new website.  I hope you’ll jump in, explore. Let me know what you think of the new Work from Within website! Please do leave a comment, below!

Just like your body, the Work from Within website is ever-evolving!

Cheers!

Susan

Susan Bernstein, MBA PhD

Life/Work Transition Expert

www.WorkFromWithin.com

“It’s not because things are difficult that we dare not venture. It’s because we dare
not venture that they are difficult.” – Seneca

This past winter, I found myself toiling and pushing myself.  Even feeling kind of depressed.  I’d rather be pulled to do work I love, to express myself, not depress myself.  Turns out that I was resisting the pull of my true love, the work that truly energizes me.  I was hiding it from myself, and making my life more difficult.

Thankfully, my dear friend, Karen Moss reminded me that I always light up when I speak in front of an audience.  She’s right.

So I am daring to venture more into public speaking over the coming year.  Hear me roar!  Actually, come hear me and learn how to Recraft Your Career from the Inside Out at the Bay Area Organizational Development Network’s 2009 conference May 2nd in Berkeley.

I’ll leave you with a question to explore:
If things are difficult for you, what might you venture into?  What adventure could you create for yourself?

Adventurously yours,

Susan

Dr. Susan Bernstein
Coach, Speaker & Author
(hmmm…Speaker, Author & Coach?)

www.WorkFromWithin.com
Work From Within, LLC

]]> http://www.workfromwithin.com/2009/03/dare-to-venture/feed/ 1 http://www.workfromwithin.com/2009/03/what-thread-are-you-following/ http://www.workfromwithin.com/2009/03/what-thread-are-you-following/#comments Sat, 28 Mar 2009 02:10:29 +0000 SusanB http://workfromwithin.com/wordpress/2009/03/what-thread-are-you-following.html I'm sorry.   I've been out of touch.  I've felt a little sad that I haven't been writing this blog in weeks.  This isn't the only communication channel that I've neglected. I've also missed sending tweets from my Twitter account. 

In the midst of this creative cyclone, I'm totally caught in the round and round motion of a whole new landscape of thoughts and ideas.  For now, I happen to be immersed in the murky waters of a not-yet-clear soup that I'll call "mind-body-spirit transformation soup."  I'm not sure of all the ingredient.  I think some are missing.  I have a bunch more possible limp bits of goo I could add, but I wish I had more formed, delicious morsels to serve up.  Somehow, I sense I'm cooking up a stew.  It's not ready for tasting, but it's getting close.  A nasty, nagging naysayer in my noggin,' who reminds me of a Siberian grandmother (complete with kerchief), but with a Bronx accent, chides me:

I look askew and reply "Hey, I'm in process!"  I get kind of defensive. I have to be forceful with this nagging naysayer.  Her logic is strong.  I do need money. (We all do, of course) I get nervous when her voice shows up in my mental missives.  She reminds me of everyone who's been asking:

"What are you up to?" and "Well, what's that new direction your business is taking you?" 

I translate all of that into greater pressure to produce — now!  The nagging naysayer is telling me now, as I write this, "You should be writing something else."  In my mind's eye, I am clothed in white temple garb.  I look back at her, bow, and reply:

"Thank you.  But the blog calls.  I want to write it.  I also want to work on the the workbook.  Just not now."

She shakes her head, some of her hair tumbles out of the kerchief as she rolls her eyes and remarks, "Whatever." 

I know she's sarcastic.  She doesn't sincerely want to accept "whatever" I want to do. She's not OK with my choice. But I choose to ignore her for now.  It's time to trust my instincts and desires.  I know it in my bones. 

My precious Soul Motion dance teacher, Zuza Engler, this past Tuesday night, shared some lines of poetry that feel fit for sharing.  These words help me to understand who I am, even in the midst of change.  They are about "the thread," that goes through my life.  You have your thread, too.  So does everyone.

I thought you'd enjoy these words, this poem.  Especially when you can't quite articulate to others where you're going or what you're doing, may these words give you comfort.

The Way It Is

There’s a thread you follow.
It goes among
things that change.  But it doesn’t change.
People
wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the
thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get
lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die; and you suffer and get
old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of
the thread.

~ William Stafford

I wonder how that poem touches you?

Weaving my world with yours,
Susan

Dr. Susan Bernstein
Coach, Speaker & Author
www.WorkFromWithin.com
Work From Within, LLC

How do you define yourself? 

Sometimes, titles make me loopy. (You know, like "marketing director" or "teacher") I rebel against giving mine.  And I want to change my title all the time.  Do you, too?

So, anyway, today  I was sending my graphic artist some directions for a new set of business cards.  My old ones say that I have an MBA and an MA. Now that I've finished a PhD, I am surely going to promote my expertise, thank you very much.  Ah, those three letters. They represent a ton of time, energy, knowledge, and money.  At least to me!

So, much as I loathe titles (I tend to feel boxed in, and feel limited), I started to write titles for myself.  Coach?  Am I a coach?  Well, in my new life, I'm going to be doing more public speaking.  So am I a speaker?  I love to write.  Am I an author?  A writer?

I wrote the C in coach, but then I wrote "CEO," instead of "coach."  I noticed an impulse to write "Consciously Embodying Optimism."

A new kind of CEO — CEO as adjective:  Consciously Embodying Optimism.

I think it's a rebellious act to be an optimist in the face of an economic downturn, social disparities on our planet, and global climate change.  Look, if I relied solely on my MBA training, I'd have a much more pessimistic outlook.  I'd go and hide under a rock, and wait for things to get better.

Fortunately, I studied something else in addition to business. Since 2001, I've been a student of somatic psychology, otherwise known as "mind-body psychology."  Earning my PhD in that discipline has showed me that our bodies and minds are phenomenally flexible and adaptable. 

 I know and trust, in my bones, that everything moves through cycles. 

Breath moves in and out.  Waves in the ocean move in and out.  Flowers open and close.  And stock markets go up and down.  Fortunes are made and lost and made again. 

So, I believe that we can weather storms.  We need to trust in ourselves.  And we need to be consciously embody optimism.

Consciously, as in "awake" and "aware."

And embody.  I can embody that optimism. 

Why can I truly embody optimism?  (And why can you, too?)

I can truly embody optimism because:

I can kick off my shoes and feel my feet on the ground to feel more grounded.  

I can breathe in and feel inspired.  Ah, inspiration.

And I can breathe out and let go of unsupportive ideas.  Ah, expiration.

I can lift my gaze and see a bigger perspective.

I can get up from my computer and take a walk and shift the scenery, so I open myself to new possibilities.

I can put a hand on my belly and check in with my gut instinct.

I can rest a hand over my heart and sense what it is trying to tell me.

I can choose to notice that when I think good thoughts that are supportive of a positive future, I feel good.  I feel expanded or warm and content or just at ease.

I can also choose to notice that when I think negative thoughts that reflect a negative future, I feel bad.  I feel contracted or cold or ill-at-ease.

So, I can feel optimism in my body.  And pessimism too. 

I choose optimism.  And I choose consciously.

So, I embody optimism. 

What does it mean to "embody," you wisely ask?

To be embodied means, in my definition, means to attend to the inner wisdom — which we feel in our movement, our breath, our posture, our gestures, our sensations — and then respond by moving in a direction that's in alignment with our true selves.

When we're truly embodied, we're awake and aware of the instincts and impulses that the body is constantly sending us.  When I help clients with making changes that positively impact their career performance, I teach them tools and techniques to help them enhance their embodiment.  If you want to know what I'm up to, check out the new evolution of Work from Within.

So, what about you?  Are you CEO?  Are you Consciously Embodying Optimism?

If you are — share with us HOW you're doing that?  What behaviors or choices or tools or thoughts do you use to stay optimistic?

And if you're NOT CEO?  Then what?

   Help us explore this topic together.  I'm excited to respond to you.  I can feel the excitement (and a little nervousness, to be honest) as I post this, and await your reply.

CEO,

Susan

Dr. Susan Bernstein
Coach, Speaker & Author
www.WorkFromWithin.com
Work From Within, LLC

I know I felt I had to make changes on my own.  Even by myself.  

I'll be honest.  For the last few months of 2008, I was feeling depressed.  As in "pressed down."  I felt "small."  In my heart, I knew I had bigger work to do in the world.  It's not that I don't love the career transition work that I do with people through Work from Within.  I get rave reviews from my clients, and I truly create meaningful bonds that last with them, long beyond our coaching relationship.

No, I just felt it in my gut, that I was playing too small a game.  That I needed to break out of the limiting container of being a "career coach."  In fact, when people would introduce me as a career coach, my skin would crawl.  
Like I wanted to peel that name off of me, like a snake shedding her skin. 

It was time for something new.

But what? 

I got out my toolkit of processes I use with clients, and tried using them on myself to get clear about my next steps.  I listed what drains me, and where I get my energy gains.  I would talk to myself in the shower and in the car and on my couch.  I probably looked like a lunatic.  And I was utterly frustrated that I couldn't figure my way out of an onsetting depression.

My chest was tight.  My head ached.  My shoulders felt burdened.  Those physical cues told me I needed help and support. 

I'm very lucky that I ran into a fellow career coach, Don Ross, at a Christmas party.  I was bemoaning my state of confusion when Don said to me, "You know, Susan, career coaches sometimes need their own career coach."

Wow, that was profound.  SImple, I know.  But it really hit me.

A few weeks later, I typed the words "get clarity" into my Google search box.  I knew I was fuzzy and foggy, so I guessed that having clarity would help.  My goodness, who was I to need clarity?  That's what I helped everyone else to find.

Fortunately, in early January, right after the New Year celebrations, my web surfing safari lead me to Cathy Hawk and Gary Hawk at Clarity International.  I called and spoke with Cathy, and we immediately "clicked."  She understood my situation and my desire to find "what's next," and to really let my new direction emerge.  I signed up for her January workshop in Denver, Creating the Rest of Your Life, and although I was terrified to spend the money, I also sensed I was in very good hands.  Cathy's been doing her work for 15+ years, and her voice told me that she genuinely cared about me and my process.

I had a grand four days with Cathy and Gary and six other amazing souls.  All of us are now, in Clarity's words, "lights on" about life.  Oh, sure, sometimes my lights go out.  But not for long.  My energy is high and keeps getting more and more focused and clearer.

Anyway, so what I discovered (or uncovered or recovered, really) is this:  I care deeply about educating people to use their fullest potential.  Now, that could sound pretty woo-woo or fluffy.  But it's not.  I've spent the past eight years doing research on the mind-body connection, and I know it's genuine.  There's science to back up the ways that mind and body interact.  I love to help people to tap into their "embodied intelligence"(tm).  That means, briefly, that I am committed to teaching, in a highly experiential way, about:

• the wisdom of the heart
• the utter genius of our gut impulses
• the inspiration our breath gives us
• the insights that help us find our direction from the ways we move
• the way our postures literally "in-form" us
• the way our gestures are signs of what we desire

Sadly, most of us unconsciously cut off this inner intelligence.  We learn to stop listening to our inner impulses.  We begin to celebrate the cerebral, and follow instruction over impulse.  That starts young.  Like in pre-school, sometimes, as children are told to "sit still."  No wonder we don't move in this country, and we have a giant (no pun intended) problem with obesity.  We sit and sit and sit.  In front of the TV.  At work.  At the movies.  At meals.  And we "freeze" into this posture of sitting.  Immobilized, really. 

Right now, in the midst of so much chaos and uncertainty — in the economy, social relationships, the environment — we need every possible way to make sense of our changing world.  And data alone will not get us to a deeper sense of the direction we each need to take.  Intellect alone cannot save us.  The way I know best to find my own path is not by hiring a psychic. 

My guidance for navigating an unclear future?  Follow your innate navigation system.  Your "embodied intelligence"(tm) will guide you.  That means integrating mind and body — so that you know what's in alignment with what's important to you.  It means listening within yourself, deeply, so you sense what supports you.  Using "embodied intelligence"(tm) means that you listen to, trust, and act on instinct and impulse.  Not impulsively and rashly, mind you.  Mindfully.  You mindfully sense what your body is saying to you.

You already know how to do this. Like when you listen to your heart.  Or you trust your gut. But we often have whole categories of circumstances when we do not allow ourselves to pay attention to what goes on below the neck.  Like in business.  Let me correct that — especially in business.  My experience in Corporate America devalued my instincts and impulses.  I've had managers who told me, flat out, "Stop reading all the people dynamics, and just stick to facts and figures." 

Business has tended to like things neat and tidy, almost pretending that everything is predictable. Well, the current conditions of our economy are certainly not predictable.  Who knows where the stock market will go?  Who knows when unemployment will slow down and more jobs will be created? 

We love certainty.  And it is nowhere to be found.  But what can be found is ease.  And alignment.  And inspiration.  And the ability to take a stand for what matters.

And you know what?  Those qualities…ease, alignment, inspiration, taking a stand..those are all examples of "embodied intelligence"(tm) telling us what we need.  Telling us what works. 

My passion, my purpose, my plan ... is to teach what I've studied for the past eight years.  What I've re-learned in my body, and what I love to share with others…the gift of our body's innate wisdom. 

So, my friends, this is a very long way of saying that career change is just one dimension where I can assist people in navigating chaos and uncertainty.  And I'm moving my career coaching to the back burner. It's not that I won't do it.  It's that it will become a smaller part of what I do.

To the front burner, I'm moving my passion — educating (in a fun, experiential way, "hands on" if you will) about using your "embodied intelligence"(tm) to achieve clarity and confidence, even when life is totally unpredicable.  I'll be doing public speaking and offering workshops, both public and corporate.  We all need the skills I'm sharing, so we can navigate change.

I'll be telling you more about this in the coming months.  I just wanted to express what's important to me.  I don't feel depressed anymore.  I feel energized and alive.  It helps to have support, especially from people who've helped me to listen to my own embodied intelligence. 

I look forward to connecting you to your embodied intelligence(tm).  To help you tap more fully into your true potential.

And so I must ask…what does what I've expressed bring out in you?  What does it make YOU open up to?  What arises in YOU when you read this?

From my heart,

Susan

Dr. Susan Bernstein
Coach, Speaker & Author
www.WorkFromWithin.com
Work From Within, LLC