Work From Within - Newsletter

April, 2005 Newsletter

What’s shifting in your life?

For me, it’s been cultivating some juicy, creative new business partnerships. You’ll be hearing about those in the coming months.

Your changes may be around career. Perhaps your job excites you as much as standing in a long line at the grocery store wondering, “When will this be over?” Time for a change of livelihood. Maybe you have moved into a new home and are and beginning to know your way around the neighborhood. You might be learning a new sport or a new language. Maybe your change is something entirely different. We’re all navigating change – constantly!

In this issue, I’ll share key discoveries I’ve made with my clients about keeping your energy up in the pure chaos of transition.

In this issue:

(1) Feature Article: Caring For Yourself In Transition

(2) Being, Incorporated™: What's Your Pattern in Transition?

(3) April Free Teleconference: Support for Your Transition

(4) May 8 Workshop: Informing Your Next Career or Life Move

(5) Resources

(6) In Closing

(1) Feature Article: Caring For Yourself In Transition

When you are making changes -- large or small -- how do you care for yourself? What support do you give yourself? I believe that as we change companies, change careers, change our family structure, or change locations, what we really wish for is someone to support us. A loving mother or father. A friend with a kind word and a hug.

All of those things are valuable. Sometimes, however, we don’t have someone else present to help us take stock of ourselves and keep us moving ahead. Let’s take a look at some ways you can that for yourself, and with others.

Know Yourself and Your Strengths: When you are in the midst of change, it’s vital to maintain your confidence. I recently determined my own personal net worth, not just financially, but by making an inventory of the experiences and qualities that make me who I am. I felt so much energy rush through my body, and the tingling in my arms and bounce in my telegraphed to me, “Yes, you have a lot to offer!”

This practice comes from a book I adore, Money Magic, by Deborah Price. I have been encouraging clients (and you, too!) to create this self-worth statement. Look at it from time to time and remind yourself of all the energy you bring to the new situations you are facing. Some good questions to ask yourself: What do I do well? What do I enjoy doing? What am I proud of?

Keep the list nearby so that you can refer to it frequently, and so you can add to it as new thoughts arise. I encourage you to hand write this list, rather than typing it, since physically writing is a form of movement, which taps into the reticular activating system in the brain, and creates a new neural pathway of learning.

Physically Embody Your Strengths: Each morning, take a look at your list and see how it makes you feel. Pick one of the items on your list and let yourself really experience that from the inside out, in your body. Let’s say you wrote “I’m a great conversationalist.” Imagine yourself having a juicy conversation with a friend. See your friend’s eyes light up, notice her smile, hear her laughter. Put yourself right into the scene, and become aware of what happens to your body. What sensations are most prominent? What parts of your body feel loose, tight, hot, cold, light, heavy, buzzy, jittery, and so on?

As you notice, see if you can turn up the volume on your sensations. Now, feel those sensations and tell yourself something good or positive about the change you are making, like “I’m going to get a great new job.” Practice doing this and associating the words with the sensations. You will be ‘casting’ a new way of being into your body. I’d love to hear how this practice helps you to create what you want in your life!

Financial Support: On a practical level, money is necessity of life. Do you notice that in the midst of transition, you worry or panic about money? Are you fearful of becoming a bag lady or street person? While this is highly unlikely, changes make us recall our earliest memories of being helpless, and you may find that your survival needs are easily triggered when you experience transitions such as changing jobs, entering or exiting relationships, or facing uncertainty.

Rather than fretting over money, I encourage you to look at your financial runway. That’s the period of time it would take you to spend all of your savings. You may need to make a budget as a first step. Divide your total savings by your total monthly expenditures. This is your financial runway.

Knowing your financial runway is empowering. It can tell you how much time you have to find a job, a new home, or accomplish whatever else is part of your transition. It can also tell you when you need to start working again. You might discover that you could take a simple job for a short period of time,

What is your runway for transition? What financial alternatives do you have? Part-time jobs? Project work? Investing in yourself?

Reach Out to Others: Sometimes, we are lucky enough to have others who can help us through a period of transition. Who do you turn to when life feels upside-down?

We all need people who support us and our dreams. People who understand us. If you’re changing professions, I encourage you to find people in your new field and connect with them – share your ideas and energy. People in your ‘old’ world may have trouble understanding your new world.

When our lives are in flux, friends hear a plea for solutions – even when we don’t feel we have a problem. Often, we simply need a sounding board, someone to empathetically listen and help us sort out the tangle of threads in our minds -- until they unravel into a beautiful tapestry. So be upfront with friends. Tell them how you’d like to be supported.

What else helps you to feel supported in transition? Please share your ideas, and, if you’d like, I’ll include them in next month’s newsletter!

(2) Being, Incorporated™: What’s Your Pattern in Transition?

Do transitions upset you? Energize you? Leave you feeling mixed up?

If your habitual response to change is not working, it’s time to look at your patterns.

Here are some ways to experiment with transitions:

Standing & Sitting: Stand up, sit down, stand up…and do this over and over again, for at least a minute.

Walking: Walk slow, walk fast, then walk slow again. Keep changing speeds. For at least two minutes, experiment with altering your pace, from snail-speed, to gliding, to galloping. Change in unexpected ways.

Talking: Talk. Say anything. Then go silent. Talk again, using different levels of pitch and volume. Play with being exuberantly loud and delicately quiet. Keep this up variety, constantly changing for a minute or more.

Reflect back on your experience. What happened to you in between each transition? What did you tell yourself when you had to make a change? Something positive? Negative? Were you harsh with yourself, or generous? Did you find it easy or difficult to make the transitions? Were some easier than others. Notice your reactions to this activity, and see how that translates into the rest of your life.

Feel free to drop me a line with your discoveries!

(3) April Free Teleconference: Support for Your Transition

Are you in the midst of a transition and wanting support? How can you care for yourself in this often confusing time?

In this month’s no-cost teleconference, we’ll look at:

I’m in transition – why do I feel so… burned out, frustrated, upset, angry, lost and confused?
What do I do with all of these strange emotions?
How can I keep going when I feel my energy is sapped?
What steps can I take to care for myself in this weird time?

We’ll look at practical, pragmatic steps to take in transition. I’ll also take questions from participants who want personal guidance about their own transition.

Date: Friday, April 22

Time: 12 - 1 PST (3-4 EST)

Cost: No fee, you pay only applicable long-distance charges.

Please join us – the only cost to you is any long-distance charge. To register, go to www.WorkFromWithin.com/teleclasses.html

(4) May 8 Workshop: Informing Your Next Career or Life Move

In the midst of career or life transition, how do you inform your next move?

Bring a problem, 'stuck place', or frustration in your professional or personal life -- one you hope to change. Using a series of playful and experiential activities, we will explore the intuitive voice within each of us. By attuning to your body -- through movement, breath, gesture, metaphor, imagery, and sound -- you can gain clarity about what calls to you and discover your own wisdom about how to respond. You will leave the workshop with a set of tools and practices you can use anytime you want to tune into your intuition.

Date:

Time:

Location: Upaya Center, Oakland, 478 Santa Clara Avenue, Suite 200, Oakland, CA 94610

Cost: $69, includes materials and light snacks. Pay in full before April 25 and receive a 1-hour coaching session after the workshop.

The workshop fills fast and is limited to 12 participants. For more details and to register

(5) Resources

Money Magic: Unleashing Your True Potential for Prosperity and Fulfillment

How to Be a Help instead of a Nuisance

Find your Signature Strengths. Dr. Martin Seligman writes about optimism and positive psychology

(6) In Closing

My own life has become so much sweeter and easier as a result of learning to listen to the language of my body, mind, and spirit. I want to share a quote from a fellow inner journeywoman:

"I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence, but it comes from within. It is there all the time." -Anna Freud

As you move through life, whether playing or working, I encourage you to work from within. Listen within. Trust the wisdom within yourself. Learn to trust yourself -- this ability will guide you through any change.

Wishing you well in all your transitions,

Susan

Susan Bernstein, MBA MA

Transformation Partner

Work from Within

Career & life transformation from the inside out

www.WorkFromWithin.com

(415) 381-6381