The purpose of a business is to create a customer. – Peter Drucker
A timely exercise is this one.
Start asking yourself some questions about your brand. Note the answers -I recommend you will use them later.
What does your customer look like?
How do they feel?
What do they think about?
What is important to them?
How do they manage their money?
How do they connect socially?
What is their influence?
What do they do for a living?
Do they run their own business or are they employed?
When You Mean Business
Thursday, December 30, 2010
"The closer we get t
"The closer we get to what we want, the more our old stories find a way to convince us that we DON"T actually want it. The closer we get, the more uncomfortable we feel. For our old stories, personas and identities, change is like a death – so they will cling on and throw everything at you to stave off their inevitable demise. Therefore the more you hear yourself say: “This doesn’t feel right for me” – the more you know you are on the right track. Hold that tension. Trust your heart for bringing you to this point. A Caterpillar lets go of his old form to allow the butterfly to emerge.” Nichola Burton
Shoot for the Moon in 2011
Brian Littrell said ““Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.”
As we enter the first day of the second decade in the 21st century, why not plan to shoot for the moon in 2011?
So perhaps in preparation, create your 2011 Shooting for the Moon list!
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
"The brooding ghosts
"The brooding ghosts of Australian night have gone from the bush and town; My spirit revives in the morning breeze, though it died when the sun went down; The river is high and the stream is strong, and the grass is green and tall, And I fain would think that this world of ours is a good world after all." Henry Lawson - After All
Christmas Lights
I was sitting in the Carpark waiting for one of my children last night and a young family walked past pushing a shopping trolley filled to the brim with Christmas goodies. The mother, harried and stressed, was juggling three little kids probably between the ages of two and six while navigating the trolley and finding their sedan seemingly lost somewhere in the sea of Christmas car parking. The father, proud, calm and face beaming with joy, was sauntering behind them carefully carrying a new born baby. And while my heart was pitter pattering at the sight of the tiny cute little bundle, my head was marveling at the miracle walking past me!
Angel At The Top Of The Tree
It’s almost Christmas and finally my tree is up. Perched on top is the most beautiful angel, looking down over the ornaments collected through the years keeping an ever watchful eye on my 2010 Christmas.
I may have just pulled him out of storage but something tells me he has been perched on top of my tree all year, looking down at all the stories I have collected and keep an ever watchful eye over my life and all the things I wish to change about it.
I may have just pulled him out of storage but something tells me he has been perched on top of my tree all year, looking down at all the stories I have collected and keep an ever watchful eye over my life and all the things I wish to change about it.
True Blue Skip
In relative terms, our country is pre embryonic. As history has shown, any country can be invaded and populated by scores of other cultures and civilizations before the die is cast and a people are born. Then the cycle continues, the cast is broken, and another breed, another choice is offered.
We are lucky enough, all of us, to be witness to the planting of the seeds. Australia could be leading the way with ONE people, ONE race, and a GLOBAL culture. We are in the throes of a great opportunity to learn from each and every culture, an Australian way of life, while being guided and advised by the latest original Australians. Our Indigenous peoples, as scattered and fractured and depleted as they are magnificent, were themselves once refugees in this country, and now face the eternal choice made by generations of every culture and country watching the dissemination of their way of life with sadness and anger.
We are lucky enough, all of us, to be witness to the planting of the seeds. Australia could be leading the way with ONE people, ONE race, and a GLOBAL culture. We are in the throes of a great opportunity to learn from each and every culture, an Australian way of life, while being guided and advised by the latest original Australians. Our Indigenous peoples, as scattered and fractured and depleted as they are magnificent, were themselves once refugees in this country, and now face the eternal choice made by generations of every culture and country watching the dissemination of their way of life with sadness and anger.
Homeostasis
Homeostasis was published in Edition 22 of the Inner Self Magazine. www.innerself.com.au
Ever had a massage first the first time in a few months and it really hurt? Your body has settled into a position where it held itself in a safe pattern for survival so it could control the pain by walking a different way, or hold your shoulder in another angle in homeostasis. It is only when massaged that you actually become aware and actually feel the pain.
Ever had a massage first the first time in a few months and it really hurt? Your body has settled into a position where it held itself in a safe pattern for survival so it could control the pain by walking a different way, or hold your shoulder in another angle in homeostasis. It is only when massaged that you actually become aware and actually feel the pain.
The Artist Within
I have had an invitation to paint with Donna Hawkins for years. Having never painted a stroke in my life other than a few rooms in my house and a back fence that still doesnt forgive me 
I always appreciated and admired art. Yet – I was always too busy to make that date. And when I finally made a few dates, something always came up to prevent me from going – something more important to do or some event or situation stopping me.
An eclipse over the June full moon was predicted for the day I finally arrived at Donna’s studio. Emotional, exhausted and carrying a veritable library of work and life stories that were weighing heavily on me, I dragged myself out of my car and starting blubbering the minute Donna opened the door. I was so emotional that day perhaps sensing it was a good day to express myself!!
I always appreciated and admired art. Yet – I was always too busy to make that date. And when I finally made a few dates, something always came up to prevent me from going – something more important to do or some event or situation stopping me.An eclipse over the June full moon was predicted for the day I finally arrived at Donna’s studio. Emotional, exhausted and carrying a veritable library of work and life stories that were weighing heavily on me, I dragged myself out of my car and starting blubbering the minute Donna opened the door. I was so emotional that day perhaps sensing it was a good day to express myself!!
Parts Of Me Crash
Parts of me crash onto rocks and foam into a trickle of white water.
Expanses of me float calm blue and tranquil holding an ocean together creating a horizon painted deep turquoise.
I surge ebb and flow magnetically attracted to the shore forever curling forward racing myself to the edges of me.
Expanses of me float calm blue and tranquil holding an ocean together creating a horizon painted deep turquoise.
I surge ebb and flow magnetically attracted to the shore forever curling forward racing myself to the edges of me.
Fighting the System
This is my story.
I believe that there is an underlying order for everything. Some people may call this “God” or “Universe” or “Higher Self” or the number 42. I cannot give you a definitive identification of this order – for me it is a Grand Organised Design – the mother of all systems.
For me, logic would dictate that each dynamic is conserved throughout space and time. For me, I believe that every trait, archetype, personality, colour, texture, shape or style is always present – they add the colour to our experience. Each experience contains every possible ingredient according to how we view it. Instead of good or bad, they are simply experiences.
I believe that there is an underlying order for everything. Some people may call this “God” or “Universe” or “Higher Self” or the number 42. I cannot give you a definitive identification of this order – for me it is a Grand Organised Design – the mother of all systems.
For me, logic would dictate that each dynamic is conserved throughout space and time. For me, I believe that every trait, archetype, personality, colour, texture, shape or style is always present – they add the colour to our experience. Each experience contains every possible ingredient according to how we view it. Instead of good or bad, they are simply experiences.
Appreciating Your Business Story
Appreciating Your Business Story was published in Edition 20 of the Inner Self Magazine. www.innerself.com.au
Very successful, wealthy, high profile advertising guru and, up until this point, extremely fit and healthy, my client, let’s call him Jack, found himself in an emergency ward at 2am one morning last week suffering chest pains. What events took this energetic self made man to this potentially life threatening situation?
Very successful, wealthy, high profile advertising guru and, up until this point, extremely fit and healthy, my client, let’s call him Jack, found himself in an emergency ward at 2am one morning last week suffering chest pains. What events took this energetic self made man to this potentially life threatening situation?
Planning for No Customers
I was at a day spa last week. It was early in the morning and I was the only customer so far. The owner was working with me and became was very distracted by his staff who were chatting and giggling and playing in the absence of customers.
I asked him if he had a plan for no customers and he angrily replied: “Of course not. I expect customers all the time. Why would I plan for none?” I explained to him that holding an image in his head of 100% capacity custom is a great big infatuation and fantasy. All of us in business subscribe to the same fantasy at times so he is definitely not alone. I mean, without a whopping big fantasy for inspiration, none of us would be in business in the first place right?
I asked him if he had a plan for no customers and he angrily replied: “Of course not. I expect customers all the time. Why would I plan for none?” I explained to him that holding an image in his head of 100% capacity custom is a great big infatuation and fantasy. All of us in business subscribe to the same fantasy at times so he is definitely not alone. I mean, without a whopping big fantasy for inspiration, none of us would be in business in the first place right?
Standards
Many small companies believe that having a system or a standard is unnecessary. “I’m too small” they’ll say OR “I’ll never recoup my investment”.
What is your vision? Why did you open your own business? What’s in it for you? What’s in it for your customers?
A standard is your best practice and an integration system for all aspects of the business – below the ground – the foundational operations and above the ground – your strategies. How do you currently measure your capabilities in all aspects of customer service? What model do you use to measure the effectiveness of your facilitators at events? How do you measure performance and customer satisfaction? How do you establish a financial value on the performance of your facilitators and their impact on your brand?
What is your vision? Why did you open your own business? What’s in it for you? What’s in it for your customers?
A standard is your best practice and an integration system for all aspects of the business – below the ground – the foundational operations and above the ground – your strategies. How do you currently measure your capabilities in all aspects of customer service? What model do you use to measure the effectiveness of your facilitators at events? How do you measure performance and customer satisfaction? How do you establish a financial value on the performance of your facilitators and their impact on your brand?
What is the Cost?
Your business is a promise you make to your customers and your shareholders. The people, processes and technology in your business interweave to align with the delivery of your products and services and this promise.
Peter Drucker said that the purpose of business is to create a customer. For thousands of Training and Personal Development companies, a customer has a couple of faces – number one as a participant AND number two as a facilitator and trainer – once they partake of the in house certification programs available to them. The conversion of customers into stakeholders via the sale of training programs is an effective and common strategy in many business plans and a particular feature in the PD industry where the lure of potential income is strategically marketed.
Creative Process
On my morning walks across the bridge to South Bank I marvel at the changing cityscape of Brisbane. In every direction there are projects in various stages of commencement or completion – almost done, half finished, just started, in need of repair or freshly completed and basking in its new magnificence. I wonder at the years invested in architectural projects such as the highly criticized Kurilpa Bridge where its inception quite possibly began a decade ago. I can imagine the passion, energy, blood, sweat and tears expressed by the creator and shake my head in amazement at the commitment it would take to hold the tension of this project and manage it right through to its completion.
Standing beside the river looking up at the half completed bridge project, it reminds me of the fundamental principles involved in any creative process and how we humans – funny little creatures that we are – employ this process every day in every single thing that we do. Glancing up at this unfinished bridge through the soft pink haze of a Brisbane spring sunrise, I begin to consider the thousands of tiny steps that were taken to get it to this point.
Standing beside the river looking up at the half completed bridge project, it reminds me of the fundamental principles involved in any creative process and how we humans – funny little creatures that we are – employ this process every day in every single thing that we do. Glancing up at this unfinished bridge through the soft pink haze of a Brisbane spring sunrise, I begin to consider the thousands of tiny steps that were taken to get it to this point.
Risk Caries Inversely with Knowledge
August 14, 2009
“Risk varies inversely with knowledge”
Anyone providing training and education programs should take a look at this news story:
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/849051/woman-sang-before-fatal-fall-inquest
This story brings home the importance of Risk Management in not just the Personal Development industry but every business.
I cannot stress enough the importance of Risk Management in your own business. You may consider that your business is too small for this. Even if you are the only staff member and you have only one client, there is a risk involved.
How much do you value the investment you have made into your business?
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/849051/woman-sang-before-fatal-fall-inquest
This story brings home the importance of Risk Management in not just the Personal Development industry but every business.
I cannot stress enough the importance of Risk Management in your own business. You may consider that your business is too small for this. Even if you are the only staff member and you have only one client, there is a risk involved.
How much do you value the investment you have made into your business?
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Sitting on top of the Pendulum
As I child I recalled with sheer delight and wonder the many celebrations that were shared with our extended family at my grandparents house in Gympie or at my aunt and uncle’s farm in Cooran. Parents, siblings, grandparents, uncles, aunts cousins, first, second, third, neighbours, friends – everyone was invited and included.
Twenty years old and on a quest to create my own version of family, my parents finally divorced after a tumultuous marriage - just as my first child was born. From that moment, it was pistols at twenty paces. The days of everyone celebrating together were seemingly over. Torn between my love of family community and being the dutiful daughter, I began to manage TWO separate events for each celebration of life’s little milestones – Christmas, Easter, birthdays, christenings, and graduations. Even though I had my own family and my own life, it was like splitting my heart into two every single time.
Thanksgiving for Your Time, Space and Wealth
If your income is solely derived from your service per hour then it is limited to your time and space. This takes your time between 9am and 5pm.
If your income is party derived from a savings plan that puts away 10% no matter what, then you begin to be a little more timeless in your finances. It is no longer as dependant on you physically being there to create the income.
This takes a little bit of time to set up – not much just a little. It takes more of a commitment and a choice. But then it simply builds.
If your income is party derived from a financial cushion that puts away another 10% no matter what, then you begin to be a little more timeless in your finances. It is no longer as dependant on you physically being there to create the income.
I'm Possible
I asked - God – higher self – universe – pick one – they’re all the same - to take away my perceived faults and bad habits. The answer was No. “It is not for me to take away, but for you to give it up.”
I asked - God – higher self – universe – pick one – they’re all the same - to make my sick child whole. The answer was No. “His spirit is whole, his body is only temporary.”
No Compass
What does it mean when we feel our molecules reorganize in the presence of another?
Joy fills the heart like melting icicles streaming fresh water down a glacier that just happens to wake up and find itself in an outback desert in the middle of nowhere.
What deep soul recognition makes one face more familiar than another?
How can breath be taken away just by framing that one person in the mind?
When common sense says no yet every cell says yes- what is that?
What beauty is so profound within us that we see it in another face?
What light is so blinding that we feel overwhelmed by it in another heart?
Your Very Own Disneyland
Proverbs 6.2 "man without vision shall perish" Choose a vision that works for you. Choose to be the creative force in your own life. Make that wish list today – don’t put it off – choose to design your own life instead of allowing external forces to be responsible for it. This is all about you. Start with you. You have a road map inside of you. Take the time to read it. All that is required is a dream and the unstoppable determination to reach it.
The day Disney World opened hundreds of reporters were present. Walt Disney had died before the grand opening ceremonies. His brother was there in Walt's place. A jerk of a reporter walked up to Mr. Disney and said, "This must be a really bittersweet day, for you." Mr. Disney looked around at the beautiful buildings, rides and grounds. He saw the crowds of people enjoying themselves and marveling at the beautiful park. He told the reporter he did not understand the question. What could be bittersweet when everything was going so well? The reporter said, "Sure, everything is going well. The park is beautiful and everything is working fine. But, it's got to hurt you to know Walt never lived to see this."
The day Disney World opened hundreds of reporters were present. Walt Disney had died before the grand opening ceremonies. His brother was there in Walt's place. A jerk of a reporter walked up to Mr. Disney and said, "This must be a really bittersweet day, for you." Mr. Disney looked around at the beautiful buildings, rides and grounds. He saw the crowds of people enjoying themselves and marveling at the beautiful park. He told the reporter he did not understand the question. What could be bittersweet when everything was going so well? The reporter said, "Sure, everything is going well. The park is beautiful and everything is working fine. But, it's got to hurt you to know Walt never lived to see this."
It Could Be Summer
It could be summer.
If it weren't for my scarf, boots and jacket this sky, sun and ocean could be in the middle of January.
A biting July breeze tugs at my skirt as I walk along the crisp white shoreline reminding me of the season and keeping my feet firmly planted on the ground of winter. There is so much that my heart wishes to forget yet these inspiring Tuesdays seem to keep my head on track no matter what happens in the days between. I never bore of the thundering surf soundtrack week after week these fleeting visits afford me.
If it weren't for my scarf, boots and jacket this sky, sun and ocean could be in the middle of January.
A biting July breeze tugs at my skirt as I walk along the crisp white shoreline reminding me of the season and keeping my feet firmly planted on the ground of winter. There is so much that my heart wishes to forget yet these inspiring Tuesdays seem to keep my head on track no matter what happens in the days between. I never bore of the thundering surf soundtrack week after week these fleeting visits afford me.
Is the Glass half empty or half full?
Is the Glass half empty or half full?
The optimist says the glass is half full.
The pessimist says the glass is half empty.
The project manager/engineer says the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.
The realist says the glass contains half the required amount of liquid for it to overflow.
And the cynic... wonders who drank the other half.
The school teacher says it's not about whether the glass is half empty or half full, it's whether there is something in the glass at all. Anyway...
The optimist says the glass is half full.
The pessimist says the glass is half empty.
The project manager/engineer says the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.
The realist says the glass contains half the required amount of liquid for it to overflow.
And the cynic... wonders who drank the other half.
The school teacher says it's not about whether the glass is half empty or half full, it's whether there is something in the glass at all. Anyway...
Cracked Pots
A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on the end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots was perfectly made and never leaked. The other pot had a crack in it and by the time the water bearer reached his master’s house it had leaked much of it’s water and was only half full.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master’s house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master’s house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
Hello 2010
Hello 2010 was published in Edition 19 January 2010 in the Inner Self Magazine. www.innerself.com.au
Some perceive that this first decade of the 21st century quite the Hollywood blockbuster. Surviving the Y2K bug, we faced 911, Bali Bombings, Tsunami’s, Wars, Climate Change and a Global Financial Crisis that changed the face of our geopolitical landscape. Others perceive this first decade as a science fiction classic with technology advancing faster than our perception of time.
In the stories of the first decade of the 20th century, families sat around the radio together each night to listen to the news of the world, we met our friends at the local Nickelodeon for the Saturday matinee, listened to Scott Joplin on the hand cranked victrola, ordered from a Sears Roebuck catalogue, grew our own vegies, navigated by the stars, shopped at the local five and dime store and managed business with the newly invented typewriter.
Some perceive that this first decade of the 21st century quite the Hollywood blockbuster. Surviving the Y2K bug, we faced 911, Bali Bombings, Tsunami’s, Wars, Climate Change and a Global Financial Crisis that changed the face of our geopolitical landscape. Others perceive this first decade as a science fiction classic with technology advancing faster than our perception of time.
In the stories of the first decade of the 20th century, families sat around the radio together each night to listen to the news of the world, we met our friends at the local Nickelodeon for the Saturday matinee, listened to Scott Joplin on the hand cranked victrola, ordered from a Sears Roebuck catalogue, grew our own vegies, navigated by the stars, shopped at the local five and dime store and managed business with the newly invented typewriter.
Here Comes The Sun
As an Ology Addict, I have spent much of my life researching, philosophying, searching – “working” on myself. I just knew that somehow – MAGICALLY – “somewhere out there” an answer for how to “fix” me would be found. I smile when I think about how I ignored the treasures inside of me for the “truth out there” – and how I threw myself into every Personal Development Self Help program I came across. he he he.
I was introduced to the S.O.L.A.R. system late 2008. From February this year, I began the daily activations and from that point a whole new world opened up for me – a world that was there all along. I reconnected back to my body, heart and mind. (In fact, the connection was never severed) I had the opportunity to see the many stories I had collected under the light of my own Sun.
I was introduced to the S.O.L.A.R. system late 2008. From February this year, I began the daily activations and from that point a whole new world opened up for me – a world that was there all along. I reconnected back to my body, heart and mind. (In fact, the connection was never severed) I had the opportunity to see the many stories I had collected under the light of my own Sun.
The New Colossus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
—Emma Lazarus, 1883
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
—Emma Lazarus, 1883
As The Clock Strike Twelve
When we look back over the year that has been, it becomes clearer that even though at times we (me, you, us, humanity and the earth) may feel as if we are stuck, not moving forward and repeating the same patterns, that we have actually mastered the art of linking a collection of seemingly unrelated and odd little stories together to create a much larger and magnificent work of art!
When we look back over our lives, at the chapters in the book of our lives that have already been written, it becomes clearer that, as Freud, said, the future is a blank page.
When we look back over our lives, at the chapters in the book of our lives that have already been written, it becomes clearer that, as Freud, said, the future is a blank page.
Adventure
I want to wrap myself up in a coat lined with adventure and leap out of my comfort zone into a wild unknown. The atmosphere around me is electric with expectation of nothing in particular just obvious impending change. I feel ready to literally jump out of my skin with no structured place to land when my feet finally hit the ground.
Nothing feels the same. I’m bored. The spark of the life, family, friends, business, home, projects and opportunities that I love is beginning to fade. I love what I am doing now. It’s beautiful and I feel happy. However there is a distant thunder rumbling in the distance of me and I feel it inching closer.
The time to transform is definitely nigh.
Nothing feels the same. I’m bored. The spark of the life, family, friends, business, home, projects and opportunities that I love is beginning to fade. I love what I am doing now. It’s beautiful and I feel happy. However there is a distant thunder rumbling in the distance of me and I feel it inching closer.
The time to transform is definitely nigh.
I Got The Power
I am a Control Freak - Need To Be In Control 101 - thats my life study program. I'm good at it too - I can bullshit myself into thinking that I have control at every given moment. Danging on the end of a pendulum, I can also completely lose it and swing the other way and only see myself falling - falling out of control - no power - nothing to hold onto - I'm falllliiiinnnnggggg.......
So it's just another week for me isn't it. The struggle between the polarities of IN CONTROL and OUT OF CONTROL. The Geminian glasses seeing POWERFUL and POWERLESS.
So it's just another week for me isn't it. The struggle between the polarities of IN CONTROL and OUT OF CONTROL. The Geminian glasses seeing POWERFUL and POWERLESS.
Reclaiming Baggage
This is a dream I had last night.
My Soul Mate and I were married. We were so very young – not more than 19, our hearts were filled with joy and possibility and our bodies were as firm and beautiful as our dreams. We lived on a beach resort and played around the lagoon each day watching the other guests paddle and swim about in the cool clear water. Moments were filled in ecstasy as we intermingled our bodies not just in passionate exchange but in every physical experience from eating to building to gardening to creating and expressing. The beauty and power of our bodies grew as we bathed in the sunshine each day and when we lay under the moon each night together, our bodies glowed silver and gold. It was as if the sun and moon nourished us in every passing moment crafting our bodies so lithe it became effortless to climb up power poles and glide along the wires and lines that framed the sky. We had become observers and happily spent each day together flying, climbing, watching and laughing. There was such comfort and safety being so up high together day in and day out. Time didn’t exist and neither did gravity. We floated into the sun and in turn each sunbeam fed the molecules of our bodies and charged their power to enable us to physically do almost anything we chose.
My Soul Mate and I were married. We were so very young – not more than 19, our hearts were filled with joy and possibility and our bodies were as firm and beautiful as our dreams. We lived on a beach resort and played around the lagoon each day watching the other guests paddle and swim about in the cool clear water. Moments were filled in ecstasy as we intermingled our bodies not just in passionate exchange but in every physical experience from eating to building to gardening to creating and expressing. The beauty and power of our bodies grew as we bathed in the sunshine each day and when we lay under the moon each night together, our bodies glowed silver and gold. It was as if the sun and moon nourished us in every passing moment crafting our bodies so lithe it became effortless to climb up power poles and glide along the wires and lines that framed the sky. We had become observers and happily spent each day together flying, climbing, watching and laughing. There was such comfort and safety being so up high together day in and day out. Time didn’t exist and neither did gravity. We floated into the sun and in turn each sunbeam fed the molecules of our bodies and charged their power to enable us to physically do almost anything we chose.
The Shepherds Tree
I remember the last time I heard the wind whisper your name across the desert plain.
The wind she blew you on adventure away from your sheep and away from me.
So I wait for you. I wait until the sons of ISIS bring you back to me.
While I wait my heart lies buried deep in a tomb somewhere neath the Valley of the Kings.
And I sit under the Shepherds Tree, holding your staff, watching your flock.
It shelters me, bark healing smooth grey knotted and scarred, it holds me tight while I wait.
The wind she blew you on adventure away from your sheep and away from me.
So I wait for you. I wait until the sons of ISIS bring you back to me.
While I wait my heart lies buried deep in a tomb somewhere neath the Valley of the Kings.
And I sit under the Shepherds Tree, holding your staff, watching your flock.
It shelters me, bark healing smooth grey knotted and scarred, it holds me tight while I wait.
Business is a Promise
"Business is a promise you make to your customer. People, processes and technology interweave and connect to align your business with this promise. Ask yourself - what promise am I making to my customers with my seminars, consults and products? Then deliver and honour it."
Nichola Burton, CEO, The Pushworth Group
Nichola Burton, CEO, The Pushworth Group
Worth It
Often SME service providers don't yet see the value in their particular service and how they could convert this into a product of value.
Best place to start?
Look at yourself as a customer and do an inventory of the products that YOU buy.
Make a corresponding list of all the reasons why other people would not see the value in YOUR purchasing choices.
And?
Best place to start?
Look at yourself as a customer and do an inventory of the products that YOU buy.
Make a corresponding list of all the reasons why other people would not see the value in YOUR purchasing choices.
And?
Choose the Charge
Groucho Marx said: "Money frees you from doing things you dislike. Since I dislike doing nearly everything, money is handy."
So ask yourself this question: "Who’s in Charge Here?"
Who’s in charge of how and what you charge for your business products and services?
Like Groucho said, we all pay money to other people to do things that we don’t necessarily wish to do. We will always be someone else’s target market.
So what’s it worth for someone else to provide a service for us?
How much are WE willing to pay?
How much do the things that we get all charged up about, influence what we buy?
How much do OUR personal charges impact on our behaviour as a customer?
Who chooses the charge – the customer or the business?
So ask yourself this question: "Who’s in Charge Here?"
Who’s in charge of how and what you charge for your business products and services?
Like Groucho said, we all pay money to other people to do things that we don’t necessarily wish to do. We will always be someone else’s target market.
So what’s it worth for someone else to provide a service for us?
How much are WE willing to pay?
How much do the things that we get all charged up about, influence what we buy?
How much do OUR personal charges impact on our behaviour as a customer?
Who chooses the charge – the customer or the business?
Running Business
Every Personal Development Guru will tell you that the secret to success is to do what you love.
When running your own business, there are two activities happening:
1. You are doing what you love either in a service or in a product
2. You are running a business
Many businesses fail because even though they are doing what they love, they don’t necessarily love running a business.
What is it worth for you to discover where you are ALREADY successfully running a business in your life?
How much value would it add to your bottom line if you appreciated how running a business helped you to do what you love?
When running your own business, there are two activities happening:
1. You are doing what you love either in a service or in a product
2. You are running a business
Many businesses fail because even though they are doing what they love, they don’t necessarily love running a business.
What is it worth for you to discover where you are ALREADY successfully running a business in your life?
How much value would it add to your bottom line if you appreciated how running a business helped you to do what you love?
My inherent value perceptions
Late yesterday after a big day in the office I took a "clear my head" drive out past a cute country pub.
Now on a Sunday arvo, I would usually see, loitering out on the front long wooden verandah, packs of leather clad bikers sculling their beers and generally creating havoc to the loud blasting 80s rock jukebox that drifts out from the public bar.
To contrast, yesterday, Tuesday 2pm and those same bikers were there - same leathers - but their hair was neatly tied back, many of them wearing spectacles and they each carefully balanced laptops while delicately sipping on cappuccinos intently discussing business plans.
How much do my inherent value perceptions make this sight so funny?
And how often do do my inherent value perceptions ignore potential business opportunities?
Now on a Sunday arvo, I would usually see, loitering out on the front long wooden verandah, packs of leather clad bikers sculling their beers and generally creating havoc to the loud blasting 80s rock jukebox that drifts out from the public bar.
To contrast, yesterday, Tuesday 2pm and those same bikers were there - same leathers - but their hair was neatly tied back, many of them wearing spectacles and they each carefully balanced laptops while delicately sipping on cappuccinos intently discussing business plans.
How much do my inherent value perceptions make this sight so funny?
And how often do do my inherent value perceptions ignore potential business opportunities?
Business Potential
As the business owner, you will see all the challenges and all the things you wish to upgrade and improve.
But for someone else, your business is a potential reality TV show opportunity like Master Chef and Dancing with the Stars.
There are people who would kill to be working in your business right now.
To swim between the flags of the nightmare and the fantasy just appreciate what you have each day.
Every business is a potential treasure chest of gold.How very cool that you get to do this every day!!!
But for someone else, your business is a potential reality TV show opportunity like Master Chef and Dancing with the Stars.
There are people who would kill to be working in your business right now.
To swim between the flags of the nightmare and the fantasy just appreciate what you have each day.
Every business is a potential treasure chest of gold.How very cool that you get to do this every day!!!
Hi Story
Napoleon said “History is a myth that men agree to believe.”
History is quite the mercantile myth.
Each one of us can easily tailor-make our history with a skewed story designed to achieve a specific outcome.
Witness politicians debating in parliament. Observe corporate arguing in a board room.
Watch children negotiating in the school yard.
We are all natural historians. :-)
History is quite the mercantile myth.
Each one of us can easily tailor-make our history with a skewed story designed to achieve a specific outcome.
Witness politicians debating in parliament. Observe corporate arguing in a board room.
Watch children negotiating in the school yard.
We are all natural historians. :-)
Make the Time
Bottom line in every question you ask yourself in every area of your life - what is my time worth?
How do you measure it?
How do you value it?
What metrics do you use?
Your time is the cornerstone of every business deal, submission, contract and negotiation process.
How much does your time cost you?
Time to save and to spend.
Time to sow and to reap.
Time to risk and to relax.
Time to grow and time to enjoy.
There are two sides to the time coin.
Factor them both into your metrics.
Make the Time.
How do you measure it?
How do you value it?
What metrics do you use?
Your time is the cornerstone of every business deal, submission, contract and negotiation process.
How much does your time cost you?
Time to save and to spend.
Time to sow and to reap.
Time to risk and to relax.
Time to grow and time to enjoy.
There are two sides to the time coin.
Factor them both into your metrics.
Make the Time.
My Kryptonite
The source of my power and the deep well of my fears are the very same thing – my Kryptonite. What makes me great is also my greatest weakness. Appreciation of each side of this “experience” that has fired my imagination and is also burning my whole being like a white hot poker – that appreciation is the cup from which I drink and the armour that I now wear.
Nichola Burton
Nichola Burton
Smoke and Mirrors
Dante Alighieri said “From a little spark may burst a mighty flame”.
You never know where that seemingly innocent little spark – those out of the blue choices that you make - may lead you. The heat of a growing fire, that even rivers of tears fail to diminish, is unexpected and for a while our head questions our hearts for even contemplating the beauty of this fire.
Yet nothing can drown these flames.
Even as smouldering embers, this fire continues to flow in steaming molten lava. We try to control it as it terrifies us as much as it inspires us. The fire takes us out of our comfort zones and takes us out on a limb – naked and vulnerable.
In vain we try to disguise the red hot flames; however the smoke has been giving us away all along. :-)
You never know where that seemingly innocent little spark – those out of the blue choices that you make - may lead you. The heat of a growing fire, that even rivers of tears fail to diminish, is unexpected and for a while our head questions our hearts for even contemplating the beauty of this fire.
Yet nothing can drown these flames.
Even as smouldering embers, this fire continues to flow in steaming molten lava. We try to control it as it terrifies us as much as it inspires us. The fire takes us out of our comfort zones and takes us out on a limb – naked and vulnerable.
In vain we try to disguise the red hot flames; however the smoke has been giving us away all along. :-)
Science of Government
Unless it be for metaphysics and moral philosophy, perhaps the least progressive of all human sciences is the science of government. Just as we are today no nearer to a solution of the great questions with which Eliphaz the Temanite vexed the soul of the afflicted patriarch, so are we far from solving the political problems with which pericles wrestled, and which Plato and Aristotle attempted in vain to demonstrate. Among the modern autocracies of Europe we find no such administrative faculty as was displayed by Philip of Macedon; nor in the annals of the Athenian Republic do we find such crudities of legislation as those which deface our own, such abominations, for instance as the poll-tax, the tax on works of art and libraries, and other relics of a by-gone age."
Hubert Howe Bancroft 1893.....Wow 1893 - some things never change :-)
Hubert Howe Bancroft 1893.....Wow 1893 - some things never change :-)
Create Your Own Culture
"We have to create culture, don't watch TV, don't read magazines, don't even listen to NPR. Create your own roadshow. The nexus of space and time where you are now is the most immediate sector of your universe, and if you're worrying about Michael Jackson or Bill Clinton or somebody else, then you are disempowered, you're giving it all away to icons, icons which are maintained by an electronic media so that you want to dress like X or have lips like Y. This is shit-brained, this kind of thinking. That is all cultural diversion, and what is real is you and your friends and your associations, your highs, your orgasms, your hopes, your plans, your fears. And we are told 'no', we're unimportant, we're peripheral. 'Get a degree, get a job, get a this, get a that.' And then you're a player, you don't want to even play in that game. You want to reclaim your mind and get it out of the hands of the cultural engineers who want to turn you into a half-baked moron consuming all this trash that's being manufactured out of the bones of a dying world."
— Terence McKenna
— Terence McKenna
Cause and Effect
Voltaire said "Chance is a word void of sense; nothing can exist without a cause."
So find yours.
Why are you doing what you are doing or wanting to do?
If you cannot find the determination within you, you will attract it in another around you.
Join forces and go for it!
Once you find your Cause, then dive deep into your imagination and plot a course for the Effect that you plan to leave on the Earth and Humanity.
So find yours.
Why are you doing what you are doing or wanting to do?
If you cannot find the determination within you, you will attract it in another around you.
Join forces and go for it!
Once you find your Cause, then dive deep into your imagination and plot a course for the Effect that you plan to leave on the Earth and Humanity.
Weeds
I’m stoked that my vegie garden did not die while I was in NYC. Plants I thought for sure would have been gobbled by those determined little green grasshoppers have thrived while the tall weeds that have hungrily taken up every bit of available space free to grow without my hand pulling them out of the soil, have been shredded instead.
While I was weeding this morning, I thanked each weed that provided a diversion for the grasshoppers and I wondered about the weeds in my life and how I never thank them for taking one for the team.
Have you thanked the weeds in your life today? :-)
While I was weeding this morning, I thanked each weed that provided a diversion for the grasshoppers and I wondered about the weeds in my life and how I never thank them for taking one for the team.
Have you thanked the weeds in your life today? :-)
Key to Wealth through Time and Space
If your income is solely derived from your service per hour then it is limited to your time and space. This takes your time between 9am and 5pm.
If your income is party derived from a savings plan that puts away 10% no matter what, then you begin to be a little more timeless in your finances. It is no longer as dependant on you physically being there to create the income.
This takes a little bit of time to set up – not much just a little. It takes more of a commitment and a choice. But then it simply builds.
Dive In
The answer to your question sits happily in the middle of the intricate structure and system you carved out of your stories. It dangles its legs as it sings and plays in the playground of your childhood. It floats in the blue of your summer sky and lurks in the stinky slimy mud of the earth on a long hot humid Aussie rainy afternoon. Dive in and go digging for it. Its waiting for you. :-)
Global Demanding Beaytch day
Tomorrow – 1 December 2010 has been nominated as Global Demanding Beaytch day.
How many times have we girls complained about ourselves in passing “OMG I was a total demanding bitch to him today”. Well you know what? I reckon we LOVE that Demanding Beaytch and give her a break and appreciate how she brings balance into our lives and to the lives of those who regularly experience her. :-)
Observe how she brings people together!
Be in awe at how she takes action!
Marvel at how she knows how to ask for what she wants!
Appreciate her intrinsic value and self worth!
Boundless Capacity
"We will examine how the general consumer may enter into a corporate scheme through which individual debt and consumption may more widely be used as leverage to finance ingenuity and innovation; while also, managing the depletion of finite resources. Obviously, with a limited resource base, humanity is restricted in the scope of wealth redistribution. We cannot convert granite mountains into fields of gold. Nor, can we harvest nourishing crops from infertile lands; nor, gather endlessly from the provisions of our oceans and seas. Then, how can it be proposed to create a wider redistribution of wealth : assets and opportunity? Well, as with the seemingly endless boundaries of our universe; there is a generally boundless capacity for our Earth to adequately provide for our species with sustenance and security. "
H H Bancroft
H H Bancroft
Let It Be Remembered
We hear the beating of wings over Bethlehem and a light that is not of the sun or of the stars shines in the midnight sky. Let the beauty of the story take away all narrowness, all thought of formal creeds. Let it be remembered as a story that has happened again and again, to men of many different races, that has been expressed through many religions, that has been called by many different names. Time and space and language lay no limitations upon human brotherhood.
~New York Times, 25 December 1937, quoted in Quotations for Special Occasions by Maud van Buren, 1938, published by The H.W. Wilson Company, New York
~New York Times, 25 December 1937, quoted in Quotations for Special Occasions by Maud van Buren, 1938, published by The H.W. Wilson Company, New York
Terrestrial Intention
Silent sentinel I stand in a world that holds endless species of light.
I am Surya driving through the heavens.
You look up and imagine that you see a golden orb.
This sun is merely your own reflection.
It is your own heart.
It is your own light.
The light you seek is within you.
The light you seek is within me.
The sky of the old order fell when a bird was knocked from his perch and the deluge destroyed the people of the wood.
I am Surya driving through the heavens.
You look up and imagine that you see a golden orb.
This sun is merely your own reflection.
It is your own heart.
It is your own light.
The light you seek is within you.
The light you seek is within me.
The sky of the old order fell when a bird was knocked from his perch and the deluge destroyed the people of the wood.
Playing the Choices Game
I think I make choices and that I have control over how I live my life!
Really? Is this true or an assumption?
Examine my daily actions. Every decision I make in every day is based on a lie that I tell myself.
I buy a $1000 Louis Vuitton bag because I “feel” better when I carry it. I believe it gives me power of a kind and upgrades my presentation making me look more professional. It also makes me feel successful and wealth.
Really? Is this true or are these assumptions based on responses to various beliefs and stories based on someone ELSE's value system who I perceive as having more power than me?
Really? Is this true or an assumption?
Examine my daily actions. Every decision I make in every day is based on a lie that I tell myself.
I buy a $1000 Louis Vuitton bag because I “feel” better when I carry it. I believe it gives me power of a kind and upgrades my presentation making me look more professional. It also makes me feel successful and wealth.
Really? Is this true or are these assumptions based on responses to various beliefs and stories based on someone ELSE's value system who I perceive as having more power than me?
Crazy for You
In the next suburb west from my family home is an old tumbledown mental institution. We used to go on Sunday drives through it, checking out the broken windowed architecture of a dumping group of what society referred to as "refuse".
Driving these through grounds, sounds weird, however I could almost "feel" the anguish, torment, terror and hopelessness of the patients - patient in their captivity only due to being heavily drugged.
Contraversially and without academic qualification, I do not believe that is appropriate to label someone as Mentally Ill.
How many people do we all know whose thoughts and feelings and sensations live outside of the acceptable societal paradigm? How any of them have been labelled genius and innovative for pushing the boundaries and seeking to breath life into absurdity?
Driving these through grounds, sounds weird, however I could almost "feel" the anguish, torment, terror and hopelessness of the patients - patient in their captivity only due to being heavily drugged.
Contraversially and without academic qualification, I do not believe that is appropriate to label someone as Mentally Ill.
How many people do we all know whose thoughts and feelings and sensations live outside of the acceptable societal paradigm? How any of them have been labelled genius and innovative for pushing the boundaries and seeking to breath life into absurdity?
A Tale Of Two Cities
“1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. 4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children built. 6 And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do; and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.”
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