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December 2009 - Catalyst! newsletter from Sue Cowan Coaching
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Issue 5
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| A note from Sue
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Hello!,
With only 14 days remaining in 2009, time for an end of year review! This month's article gives you ten questions to ask yourself as part of the process.
I was thrilled to get this newsletter off the ground this year, but getting it done regularly and on schedule proved to be one of my major challenges. But some simple planning and scheduling, with the necessary dose of commitment, means that it will now appear in the first half of each month.
 Thank you, each and every one of you, for being part of it all! And I look forward to continuing to keep in touch throughout 2010 with articles of value and interest to you...
The article on visioning leads seamlessly into next month's topic - "New Year Resolutions". When to make them, when not to, how to keep them when you do.
On a personal note, I remain optimistic that I will be fit for the ski season (my ripped achilles tendon is healing at last, albeit slowly, and physiotherapy is coming to an end). Anticipation mounts, as we pick up our passes at the weekend and the snow is falling in Geneva....
I am glad I chose today as my "work at home" day. Not only can I admire the wonderful view from my desk, of the snow on the fir trees outside the window of my first floor home office... I don't have to join the hurried hustle and bustle in the city, or wait in the cold for a tram home!
Take care and stay healthy,
Sue
(If you are a new subscriber, you can read past editions of this newsletter via the archive on thehomepage of my website)
Comments ? Please email me at catalyst@suecowancoaching.com
phone me on (+41) 076 2055 076 (mobile)or
visit my website(www.suecowancoaching.com)
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Top 10 Year-End Review Questions
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As the year speeds to its end, it is natural to begin to mentally prepare for the next year.
But as a first step, I would like to encourage you to take time to assess both your personal and professional challenges and accomplishments this year.
Here are some questions to ask yourself.....
1. What have I accomplished this year?
Be specific- write it all down.And schedule some time to celebrate!
2. What have I learnt this year?
What skills did you pick up? What emotional lessons?
3. Who contributed to my successes?
What can you do to recognise these people- these members of your personal or
professional "team" ?
4. What got in my way?
What obstacles hindered you? This is where your work lies next year. To what extent
did you get in your own way- how did your own self get in the way?
5. What were my biggest disappointments?
Take some time to reflect on what the disappointment is about.
6. What mistakes did I make, and what did I ( and, can I still) learn from them?
Writing these down can be a good refresher for what not to do next year.
7. How were my activities- at work and/or personally- consistent with my values, with all those things that I hold as important in my life?
What will you do about the inconsistencies?
8.How would I rate my satisfaction overall this year?
Give yourself a 1-10 score, or perhaps a letter grade....
9. What do I need to let go of?
Doing so can help you move on with less effort into the new year.
10. What was missing for me this year?
How will you incorporate this/them into next year?
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Visioning - Creating Your Vision of the Future
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A large part of the "work" for the participants in my November workshop ("Thinking of a Career Change? Tips and Techniques for Clarity and Direction") was formulating a vision of their desired future and developing an "action plan". As always, I was honoured and humbled to be party to this process; it reminds me how powerful and impactful visioning can be ....
What is a "Vision"?
Aristotle once said: "The soul never thinks without a mental picture". The process of visioning is about this- creating a mental picture.
A vision begins in your heart and formulates in your mind. It becomes something imagined that you would like to make real in your life. Ideas turn into intentions and a desire to make something happen. A vision is the expression of your desires for a future that is better in some important way than what exists for you now."A vision is the art of seeing things invisible."Jonathan Swift
"You can't have a better tomorrow if you're thinking about yesterday all the time."Charles Kettering
"The ability to see beyond our present reality, to create, to invent what does not yet exist,
to become what we not yet are. ..It gives us the capacity to live out of our imagination
instead of our memory."Steven Covey
Why creat a Vision?
- Words Create Worlds - "Reality" is not an objective fact but a subjective experience. Through language we create meaning- we create reality. What we think and say can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
- Positive Images Lead to Positive Actions - We move towards images of the future. When we have positive, hopeful images of the future, we are inspired to take positive action in the present. When we are building our strengths we feel empowered to take bold steps towards our desired futures.
- Possibilities Are Released in the Imagination - Previously hidden possibilities emerge when there is personal engagement around personal inquiry. With the new perspectives come alternatives we never considered before.
What are some of the benefits of visioning? Creating a vision can:- break you out of boundary thinking
- identify direction and purpose
- promote interest and commitment
- help get laser-like focus
- encourage openness to unique and creative solutions
- build confidence
- result in more efficiency and productivity
The lack of a clear vision leads to settling for whatever happens.
Creating and staying true to a clear vision of the future makes things happen; it leads to satisfaction, and a sense of meaning and purpose in life.
Next month (good timing for those of you considering "new year resolutions" ?) I'll share the process of how to creat your vision, as well as some powerful questions that will help you discover, plan, and take action towards those dreams and goals you want to achieve.
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Quote of the Month
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"When one door closes, another one opens.
But we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door
that we do not see the one that has opened for us."
Alexander Graham Bell
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Video-The Piano Staircase
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This short clip is based on the premise that the easiest way to change people's behaviour for the better is by making it fun to do.
Click here to watch The Piano Staircase (under two minutes).
" The Fun Theory" is an initiative of Volkswagen. They host a competition for an award that recognises thoughts, ideas, and inventions that help prove their "Fun Theory".
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About Sue Cowan Coaching
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If you are curious to know more about what I do, or about coaching in general, then why not visit my coaching website
 Please contact me if you have any questions or comments.info@suecowancoaching.comTel. (+41) 022 757 0849 Mob. (+41) 076 2055 076 www.suecowancoaching.com |
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