Go for the goal!

 

September 12, 2022 Regenerate Your World  Build the future you want to live in. I know these times aren't the easiest for all of us, but I am an optimist - I see the glass as half-full, instead of half-empty. To brighten up your days, I publish the Regenerate Your World newsletter coming to your inbox on a bi-weekly basis. Let's Get Empowered! How to set goals. Goals for Success. What success means to you can only be defined by you. Greetings readers! Goals…I have hosted countless discussions about goals and goal-setting strategies. Discussions about SMART Goals, SMARTIE Goals, Vision Boards, bullet journals, support buddies, and the list goes on…as I work on my own goals and from discussions with others, I have learned a few lessons.  First, think about how you set goals. For me, short-term goals are more motivating than long-term goals, keeping my goals intact but being flexible in my methods also has helped, reminding myself the journey IS just as important as the destination and sharing my goals with others keeps me accountable.  In addition to the tips I just shared I am going to share my top goal with you! My top goal is to build a community of support through EMPOWER Possible. What are some of your goals? Is there something that you have been thinking about but keep pushing away?  Is there something that you have been waiting to do when “the time is right”? To be honest, the “time” is never right. There are times that can be better than others but most often there is not a "perfect" time. We have to create time to work on our goals. Now that you know a little more about goals, here are a few specific tips that can help when you are setting your goals. 1) Know your Values. Develop and align goals with your values. For example, I have a love of learning, so I commit to reading about a topic I enjoy every day. 2) Know how to write a goal statement. I like to use the SMARTIE Method click here for a worksheet.   Specific Measurable Ambitious Realistic Timebound  Inclusive Equitable 3) Know what motivates you. I tend to be motivated by learning something new or having a new experience. If my goal will help me achieve this there is a good chance I am going to reach my goal. 4) Know your fire plan. When I worked as a tobacco cessation specialist, I always created a fire plan with my clients. A fire plan lists all of the obstacles that could stand in your way to reaching your goal and how you are going to overcome them. 5) Know when to take action. There is a season in life for everything, one of my favorite Michelle Obama quotes is, "You can have it all but you can't have it all at once.". Taking action at a time that works well will help you succeed. (the quote has also been attributed to Oprah Winfrey and Ruth Badar Ginsberg) 6) Know who you can call on for support. Think about the people in your life you can share your goal with and ask them to check in with you on your goal. Feel free to share your goals with me! Email me at info@empowerpossible.com. 7) Know how your goal relates to the bigger picture. One of my strengths is I am a disciplined person, the shadow side of this strength means I can be rigid. I have to check in quite often with myself to see if this goal is still relevant to the bigger picture of where I want to go in life or if I am just doing it because it is on the checklist. 8) Know how to celebrate success. Often times for me the journey towards my goal is as enjoyable as accomplishing my goal. Remembering to celebrate along the way will encourage you to have a little fun and incorporate joy into the process. Both fun and joy shouldn't be left out of this process!  9) Know when to say "no" As I mentioned earlier, I have a love of learning, it is easy for me to take on projects, go to an event, and get distracted by things that I might enjoy but aren't really that important to me. Remembering my goals helps me focus on things I enjoy and are important to me. 10) Know when to treat yourself with self-compassion. Take a moment to think about how you treat yourself when you make a mistake or fail to reach a goal. Do you treat yourself with compassion or ridicule? Mistakes happen, get up, try again, and move forward without being hard on yourself. Try out these tips the next time you have a goal in mind. Another resource you might find helpful is a goal-setting worksheet. Writing out your goals will help you along the way.  **Scroll to the end of the newsletter for upcoming EMPOWER Possible events. I have added a few since the last newsletter.  Cheers to the journey!  Goals come in all forms, the poem below provides a few examples. Aim, Goal, Creed Poet: Unknown To walk Life's road with shoulders square, To keep a vision true and fair, And spread contentment everywhere - Is my aim. To constantly improve my mind. To strive through effort hard to find Success, yet keep my spirit kind - Is my goal. Upcoming Events What: Purpose in a Time of Crisis Where: McCabe Renewal Center, Duluth MN. When: October 1st 9am to 3pm Why: Take a day to restore, reconnect, and regenerate. Click HERE to learn more Click here to register What: Duluth Community Education Course: THRIVE: Overcome Burnout Where: Ordean East Middle School, Duluth, MN When: September, 27th & October, 4th 6pm -7:30pm Why: Burnout is not inevitable. Learn to recognize signs and symptoms of burnout Identify the root causes of burnout Create at least one personal action to prevent burnout in your own life.  Examine how values influence choices and behaviors in order to prevent burnout. Click here to register What: Monticello Community Education Course. THRIVE: Overcome Burnout Where: Monticello High School, West Lecture Room, Monticello, MN When: October 20th 5:30 pm - 8 pm Why: This one is for my hometown. I grew up in Monticello, MN, and still have family there. I want to give back to the community and share the lessons I have learned about burnout and the ability to thrive since leaving my hometown. Participants will learn the signs of burnout and how to overcome and prevent burnout. Click here to register In other news, EMPOWER Possible is on Pinterest! For motivational quotes and inspiration go to : https://pin.it/2l5gRLc and follow EMPOWER Possible. Thank you for your readership! Remember together we can regenerate our world.

Purpose in a time of crisis: Join us for a retreat!

 

August 29, 2022 Regenerate Your World  Build the future you want to live in. I know these times aren't the easiest for all of us, but I am an optimist - I see the glass as half-full, instead of half-empty. To brighten up your days, I publish the Regenerate Your World newsletter coming to your inbox on a bi-weekly basis. Let's Get Empowered! How are you really feeling? Greetings readers! Let's check in, how are you? What is your automatic response? Is it"good","fine", "busy". Now I am going to ask again, how are you really? Sometimes my answer to this question is, good at other times it is tired, angry, exhausted, and frustrated.  The past 2 ½ years have been a heavy burden to bear. Female-identifying people have long carried the responsibilities of caring for others and unrealistic expectations that can come with these responsibilities. These responsibilities are more challenging during the pandemic leaving little time for anything else. Now for some positive news: in the past few newsletters, I have mentioned I am working on a project. This project started on a day when I was feeling angry and frustrated. I was angry and frustrated by the circumstances that I as a woman and my friends as women face. Circumstances are often times out of our control. I was talking about my feelings with a friend and stated that I felt so helpless. I wanted to do something- then we decided we should host a retreat. This retreat would be our way of giving women the opportunity to set an intention and pay attention to their sense of purpose.  A space to feel how you are really feeling without judgment. The retreat, Purpose in a Time of Crisis will be in-person in Duluth, MN. I will be hosting the retreat with my good friend, Rachel Gilbertson, a Certified Health Coach and Mindfulness Facilitator. This retreat is designed to help create space to clarify a sense of purpose by aligning intention, attention, attitude, action, and impact. The day will focus on rest, reflection, and regeneration as powerful forms of resistance and transformation at a location that nurtures your whole self. Now for the details: What:  Purpose in a Time of Crisis Retreat When: October 1st Where: McCabe Renewal Center 2125 Abbotsford Ave, Duluth, MN 55803 Time: 9 am to 3 pm How to register: Go to Checkout Want more information? Go to https://www.empowerpossible.com/p/purpose-in-a-time-of-crisis-retreat  This poem is one that came to mind that day I felt so frustrated. It provided the motivation I needed to process my anger and move forward. I hope it inspires you as well. ‘Still I Rise’ – Maya Angelou You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I’ll rise. Does my sassiness upset you?  Why are you beset with gloom?  ’Cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells  Pumping in my living room. Just like moons and like suns, With the certainty of tides, Just like hopes springing high, Still I’ll rise. Did you want to see me broken?   Bowed head and lowered eyes? Shoulders falling down like teardrops,  Weakened by my soulful cries? Does my haughtiness offend you?  Don’t you take it awful hard ’Cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines Diggin’ in my own backyard. You may shoot me with your words, You may cut me with your eyes, You may kill me with your hatefulness, But still, like air,  I’ll rise. Does my sexiness upset you? Does it come as a surprise That I dance like I’ve got diamonds At the meeting of my thighs? Out of the huts of history’s shame I rise Up from a past that’s rooted in pain I rise I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear I rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise. Thank you for your readership! Together we can regenerate our world., Julie Upcoming Events What: Purpose in a Time of Crisis Where: McCabe Renewal Center, Duluth MN. When: October 1st 9am to 3pm Why: Take a day to restore, reconnect, and regenerate. Click here to register In other news, EMPOWER Possible is on Pinterest! For quotes and inspiration go to : https://pin.it/2l5gRLc and follow EMPOWER Possible.

The Possible Futures of You

 

August 15, 2022 Regenerate Your World  Build the future you want to live in. I know these times aren't the easiest for all of us, but I am an optimist - I see the glass as half-full, instead of half-empty. To brighten up your days, I publish the Regenerate Your World newsletter coming to your inbox on a bi-weekly basis. Let's Get Empowered! The Possible Futures of You For several years I have been an adjunct instructor, teaching Global and Cultural Health. Something I loved about the course is witnessing the development of the students over the course of the year. I was fortunate enough to teach the same cohort of first-year students for two semesters in a row. The transformation from high school senior to a second-year college student is something I felt fortunate to be a part of.  One assignment that highlights this transformation is writing a personal mission statement, students think about their vocation and values in the first semester and then draft a mission statement second semester. At first, some of the students are unsure and sometimes uncomfortable expressing their values and thinking about a vocation or calling. As the year progresses they are more comfortable with the process.  I am a believer in doing the work I ask others to do so I complete the assignment with them and use it as a talking point in my lectures. It has been interesting for me to see how my own personal mission statement has changed over the years. Have you ever thought about your personal mission statement?  If so, what is your mission statement?  If not, take a minute to think about what it could be. Next, think about how your mission relates to your day-to-day activities?  Are your day-to-day activities helping build up your personal mission? Maybe you are starting to see why some of my students are challenged by this assignment-this is tough stuff but worth the work.  In order to empower our lives and thrive, we need to seek to understand our personal mission and values which will impact our current state and future.  What does your future look like?  Will it be one where you seek to foster your mission? For me, I am working on growing EMPOWER Possible, LLC, and am incorporating opportunities into EMPOWER Possible, LLC where you can live out your mission! If you like the idea check out the website, empowerpossible.com, and share it with a friend. If you find it interesting chances are someone else will too! Together we can regenerate our world!   Read more about EMPOWER Possible Click Here Newsflash! Planning for an EMPOWER Possible retreat is in the works! We now have a date and location: October 1st, 2022 at the McCabe Renewal Center in Duluth, MN. We will focus on purpose in a time of crisis. More information is coming soon. Keep reading the newsletters to stay up to date on upcoming events. Thank you for your readership!

Don't Keep it to Yourself

 

August 1, 2022 Regenerate Your World  Build the future you want to live in. I know these times aren't the easiest for all of us, but I am an optimist - I see the glass as half-full, instead of half-empty. To brighten up your days, I publish the Regenerate Your World newsletter coming to your inbox on a bi-weekly basis. Let's Get Empowered!

Newsflash! Planning for an EMPOWER Possible retreat is in the works! The retreat will occur this Fall. We will focus on purpose in a time of crisis. More information is coming soon. Keep reading the newsletters to stay up to date on upcoming events. Thank you for your readership! Don't Keep it to Yourself What do you want to be when you grow up? I appreciate Goldie Hawn’s answer to this question, "People used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up and I’d say ‘Happy!’ That was all I wanted to be." - Goldie Hawn to Vanity Fair, 1992. What I appreciate about Goldie Hawn’s answer is it highlights a basic desire we all have. We all on some level want to be happy. How we define happiness may differ. How do you define happiness?  I define my happiness as my ability to reach my full potential. Reaching our full potential is foundational to my current project EMPOWER Possible, LLC. EMPOWER Possible gives you the option to engage through courses, coaching, or consulting services in order to overcome obstacles and reach your full potential through the EMPOWER skillset. In the EMPOWER course, you develop your EMPOWER skillset which you will learn about engagement, meaning, people, organizations, well-being, empathy, and regenerative practices. EMPOWER courses include:  lectures   downloadable PDFs   worksheets action plans After taking a course students will be able to:·   Effectively put into practice the skills you need to reach your full potential. This is a self-paced course. This means you have the ability to focus on the areas that mean the most to you at your own speed. To learn more go to EMPOWER Possible Courses What do you want to be? When you read the phrase, "I am here to....", what comes to mind?"  How will you define happiness? Does it take into consideration what you are here to do? Together we can regenerate our world. Julie

The Meaning of the Lotus

 

July 18, 2022 Regenerate Your World  Build the future you want to live in. I know these times aren't the easiest for all of us, but I am an optimist - I see the glass as half-full, instead of half-empty. To brighten up your days, I publish the Regenerate Your World newsletter coming to your inbox on a bi-weekly basis. Let's Get Empowered! The Meaning of the Lotus The fourth of July has come and gone. This month in the United States, we recognize our Independence day. It marks the day the Colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence. This was the beginning of a new era. During this time I reflect on the new beginnings in my own life. EMPOWER Possible is part of the new beginning for me and the logo represents a new beginning. The EMPOWER Possible logo includes an image of a lotus. You may wonder why a lotus? I remember the first time a saw a lotus. I was taken by the beauty and still am in awe of the lotus. I wanted to include a symbol that represents growth, creation, and strength.  The lotus represents all of these things and more. Throughout the Eastern religions, the lotus flower has many meanings.  According to Dheepa Sundaram, Ph.D., assistant professor of religious studies at the University of Denver, lotus flowers in Hinduism represent the womb of the universe from which all things are born, as well as overcoming adversity. When studying the lotus I learned they need mud in order to grow, so that leads to the idea that out of darkness, destruction, and unrest, we can push through and bloom into something beautiful. Below is a poem that captures the meaning of the lotus. Pond Of Lotus by Kumarmani Mahakul Naturally still water has formed a meaning, Beauty of mud is transformed into light, Early dawn on arrival has invited flowers, Lotus flowers smile in lap of green leaves. Holding up still waves from side to side, Each flower is doing meditation in pond, While sun will rise soon, rays will touch, They are waiting for enlightenment again. They are waiting for golden appearance, God’s grace will fall on them suddenly, Arrival of new day is signified with love, Beauty is veiled with joy of brilliant scenery. Each lotus has come up from dirt and mud, But through perseverance and practice, Lotus has become pure, soft and shiny, Every human soul in this Earth is like lotus. Overcoming obstacles in this earthly pond, Like lotus, soul does meditation to get God. Face of body becomes golden in green hope, Soul empowers by great wisdom of lotus. In what area of your life are you stuck in the mud and waiting to bloom? In what areas of your life are you ready for a new beginning? Together we can regenerate our world. Julie Read more about EMPOWER Possible

Purpose in a time of crisis

 

July 5, 2022 Regenerate Your World  Build the future you want to live in. I know these times aren't the easiest for all of us, but I am an optimist - I see the glass as half-full, instead of half-empty. To brighten up your days, I publish the Regenerate Your World newsletter coming to your inbox on a bi-weekly basis. Let's Get Empowered! Purpose in a time of Crisis Over the past two years, entrepreneurs have experienced tremendous hurdles. Constantly struggling with these hurdles can lead to burnout. One widely discussed strategy to overcome burnout is having a sense of purpose. However, just having a purpose isn't enough, as an individual, small business, or large organization, being purposeful is what matters. That is why I developed the presentation, Purpose in a time of crisis. This presentation engages audience members in the revelation of how to be intentional in living out their purpose in their daily life in order to address, stress, burnout, and build resilience. I am honored to be delivering the presentation at West Slope Startup Week  https://westslopestartupweek.com/ There is still time to register. I will give you a sneak peek of the presentation! The definition of purpose during the presentation is related to our personal mission- You can say My life has a mission - it implies that our lives have direction, we set big goals and then use smaller goals and actions to move in the direction that fulfills our mission During times of crisis, individual purpose can be a guidepost that helps people face up to uncertainties and navigate them better, and thus mitigate the damaging effects of long-term stress. People who have a strong sense of purpose tend to be more resilient and exhibit better recovery from negative events. Research conducted during the pandemic finds that when comparing people who say they are “living their purpose” at work with those who say they aren’t, the former report levels of well-being that are five times higher than the latter. Those in the former group are four times more likely to report higher engagement levels.  Purposeful people also live longer and healthier lives. One longitudinal study found that a single standard deviation increase in purpose decreased the risk of dying over the next decade by 15 percent—a finding that held regardless of the age at which people identified their purpose.  All this to say purpose matters! Purpose is a thing you build, not a thing you find. Put differently in achieving professional purpose, most of us have to focus as much on making our work meaningful as in taking meaning from it. Almost any work can possess remarkable purpose.  How do you contribute to this world?  What is the one thing you have to do? What is your why? When you get clear about the why - why are you doing what you are doing, then what are you doing - your goals and actions you start to build your purpose. This may change over time so be flexible in the approach. Together we can regenerate our world. Julie Read more about EMPOWER Possible