Change is hard....yikes!

Change has always been my least favorite thing.....l curl up like a turtle in their shell when I think about it. It's an old, well worn habit that I'm slowly unraveling. I think for me change often equates to fear- of the unknown, of failure,  of all the things that could go wrong (vs. right). 

I've a new relationship with change. I've invited that fear in and we've been getting to know one another quite well. I have seen fear of change is burdened with carrying old views of myself, untrusting, unbelieving in my ability, my worthiness and my strength. I've taken each package and examined it, tested for in real proof (examples of any of this being true)...and I've found this brilliant truth- it's not true! All the data points in the direction that I thrive in change....I'm curious, land on my feet, have found my way to the mot amazing things, moments and people via change. 

So now that I know what's wrapped up in this initial hesitation to change, I've found there's another way to step into transitions and change- it can be wide-eyed with excitement, openness and ease. 

I know that might sound crazy but there's so much freedom in knowing and it's an achievable pursuit to learn to embrace change. If the sitting with fear sounds way too hard (I get it) then maybe it’s just taking time to live in the change you might be wishing, hoping or dreaming of that seems too big, scary (fill in your fear or hesitation).

So today I share an invitation with you to spend a tiny bit of time with your fear of what’s next, your future self or hesitation to transitions or change. I've setup a 3-day supported journey for just this in being able to see your future self. 

• 3 days, 3 emails and so much support and goodness for you to find your freedom and maybe even joy in the change you're seeking.

• I share with you meditation, music, prompts and reflections to hold space for you and your future (and that pesky friend fear) to meet.

• Journey begins this Monday (signup before Monday AM)!

Wishing you courage, kindness and grace for self and trust that you can flip the script on change and make it work to build your future your way. 

I'm with you. It's tough but we can do it together.  

Onwards!

xx

D

PS- Want more invites to your future you and some inspiration along the way? Sign-up for my Friday notes!

Wow, whoa, okay 2021- Experiments + Salad Plates

Wow, whoa, okay......

I felt like my confused, happy, tired, excited, anxious face was important to share as I've spent a lot of time this month normalizing all of that. Talking about worries that I went through my reserves so much faster than anticipated; that my capacity is honestly not a dinner plate but a salad plate at the moment (of course I picked food imagery- I am Italian) and that my first day back at it from vacation I seriously considered hiding under my desk! 

Anyone else? 

So now that we've made all of that normal now what? We pay attention, we lean in and we embrace. That is my current experiment.

Paying attention....to when I'm just silly, crazy tired; the tiny moments of joy (microwaved the popcorn and didn't burn it; birds singing outside while I'm in a meeting; scoring my 500th student- yes big and tiny, small- all joy is welcome!); and noting just where the heck my attention is and getting clear on what's up inside and outside. 

Leaning in....to the moment and the data. Hungry, tired, bringing me joy, needing a mini pause....

Embracing...noted, leaning into and now letting it be. Sometimes it means I do something like take the pause, go for the walk or sometimes it's not doing like wrapping my arms around my knees and saying "yeah this is uncomfortable" insert feeling, fear etc. 

Each of these separately is a beautiful practice. Put them all together and it's a powerful practice. So I'm inviting you to join me in paying attention, leaning in and embracing. 

As always I'm here to support and hold space as we are all doing this together whether we know it or not- it's shared. I included below some ways next month I might be able to do just that and hold space, support and invite you into community to go at this wow, whoa, okay together! 

Lots of love!

xx
D

Let’s do this together….

In community-

The Inner Resilience Workshop

Join me this February for
4 Thursdays to understand, define and practice inner resilience.

Let's not do 2021 burnt out and running the hamster wheel! 

Save your Spot! 

I'd love to be your coach!

Ready to take the wheel and head toward your next goal or tackle a road block?  

I'm taking on a few new brilliant beings this and next month for coaching.

Not sure and want to kick the tires? I hear you - let's schedule a free what's-this-coaching-thing call. 

Let's Calendar it! (I really can't wait to be shot gun on your journey!)

Settling Into the Unsettling - Why I’m Embracing Taking Myself to Summer Camp

First off, yes, I’m serious about summer camp and all of the things it involves- days of snacks, outdoors, creating and crafting, singing and more! I’m also saying out loud for the sake of every weary, sad, freaked out, angry, anxious, exhausted human - the wave of uncertainty and all the things is so real and unsettling but we can find a way to settle into the unsettling. I’m sharing how I’m starting to do just that.

We have all endured a lot of things in a short period of time.  Some of us have been rolled up in balls, perched on pillows on the floor; while others sat in the closet listening to nature sounds on repeat (owning that might have just been me). We have crafted our makeshift at-home desks of Amazon boxes and stacked books and pillow configurations; made dinners out of what we could creatively combine from the cupboard; prayed for toilet paper and vaccines; and some found ourselves called to be in streets with signs and doing some real soul work of examining self. In each of our own ways we’ve been riding a very wild, unpredictable roller coaster.

As we settle into this unsettling I have gotten much clearer on what my grounding points are. I have come to find my routine is an important one, and it’s not what you’d expect. In reality these days my routine is a loose set of activities with some clear, priorities and daily goals that I set each night before I go to sleep.

What I am learning is to help ourselves settle into the unsettling we need to give ourselves some room to rock and sway and be in motion but also find enough structure for comfort and joy to thrive. What this has looked like for me is the following list of daily options I mix up as needed and fondly call- summer camp:

1- Snack breaks

2- Reading time

3- Nature time

4- Movement/Play/Fun time 

5- Focused time 

6- Creative time 

7- Connection time 

I credit this “taking myself to summer camp” with making my days and weeks feel okay and even slightly more joyful. I wake up early and get my nature time in with an AM walk- no plan where so I call it a wander and just let myself go wherever I feel called to- left, right, to the hydrangeas bush, the blue house, the park….Then a good stretch on the floor maybe a little yoga. I meditate. I read a little. Then wash, dress and onto focused time- aka work.

AM snack time- something healthy and yummy- banana and almond butter- then it’s back to focused time. Lunch time and maybe a little reading time or just back to focused time. A little creative time in between meetings maybe it’s a doodle or capturing a quick brainstorm. Connection time check-in with a friend maybe a quick text. You’re getting the idea here. 

I’m learning this settling into the unsettling requires fluidity, I have to be okay to flow and have the places for myself to go- the reading time, the nature time etc. I know my options and they all provide a place to land for a little while. They all fill me up in different ways and that’s what has helped me lean into this ongoing wave of uncertainty. 

You might say this sounds like a messy tornado of a day- I’d say what keeps me from spinning is the goal setting and calendaring. Every night nestled amongst too many pillows and all of the blankets I ask- what’s important for tomorrow and I pick 2-4 and I put these things, people, words on my calendar in big blocks of time:

• 8am-11am grant research, find hiking boots, call Brit

• 3pm-5pm groceries, blog post, paperwork

And so on and so on. And the beautiful thing is, I do cross almost all the things off the list. Again I give myself space and time- it’s loose but still has a focus. 

So maybe as we are all settling into the unsettling we need to give ourselves a little more room in our routine. We need a little playfulness and kindness for ourselves to help us meet each day with a sense of can-do with a smile, some snack breaks and some love for all of ourselves - mind, body, soul. 

Maybe we need to take ourselves to summer camp! Perspective shifts- they are so powerful. 

If you want a fun and free template to build your week at “summer camp” and get more ideas on “camp activities” be sure you sign up for my monthly newsletter and snag the download link after signing up!

I hope you begin to find your own tiny moments of joy, your own grounding points in your routine and maybe you take yourself to summer camp this week!

xx

D

Joy, Connection & Comfort in Covid - A Survive & Thrive Schedule

It’s a time of shifting, disruption and uncertainty but it’s also a time of unprecedented sharing out of resources, kindness and compassion.

Though it’s inspiring it’s also a little overwhelming with information and lots of content coming at you from apps, emails and texts. Don’t get me wrong, I feel supported and grateful for these beautiful gifts of self and expertise but it’s whoa, wowsers, a whole lot!

So I thought I’d sift through all the goodness and share a schedule of some of the things that are brining me joy, comfort and connection. It’s a mix of sweating, meditating and music!

Some of you are like what schedule?! Exactly and I feel you, so I am sharing my schedule for this week- take it, run with it, tweak it and share back out what you added or moved around!

Anything with a * is a reoccurring offering and a + means free.

Sunday-

AM Class with @wearemissionyoga and @kellyjeanlovesme (follow them on IG and FB)

All-Day - In the Footsteps of Thich Nhat Hanh event - talks, meditations - sign up here +

9:00 pm ET - Tim McGraw Live Stream on Fox + (check out BandsInTown for all the live streaming music events being added daily)

Monday-

AM Walk & Wander

5:45 pm ET - Meditative Flow Live Stream with Kate M - Yoga District (MindBody app signup)*

Tuesday-

9:30 am ET donation-based yoga with Marni Sclaroff *

11:15 am ET Mindful Meditation with yours truly @goodhustlenow IG live *

Virtual Happy Hour with friends

Wednesday-

7:00 am ET Orange Theory Free Workout (stream anytime also free) *

Lunch- Tara Brach’s Course on Udemy on Anxiety & Fear (free for the next few days)+

Thursday-

AM Walk & Wander

1:00 pm ET Live Dance Party with Ryan Heffington @ryanheffington IG Live (donations encouraged)

Friday-

11:15 am ET 20 minute Mindful Walk with me! @goodhustlenow IG Live *

Lunch- Read Free E-Book from @natlanticbooks IG *

3:00 pm ET Meditation with Jack Kornfield sign-up @tricyclemag on IG

Saturday-

AM Yoga with Kelly Love IG @love_yogalates (check for latest offerings and free YouTube posts) *

3:00 pm ET Live Dance Party with Ryan Heffington IG @ryan.heffington (donations encouraged) *

Of course there are tons upon tons more and I’ll keep sharing out. I hope one of these might bring you some joy, comfort or connection. May you be well!

xo

D

Mindfulness Meditation Tuesday - Stillness in Movement - 3 & 20 Breaths

Our theme for today’s Mindfulness Meditation Tuesday was finding stillness in the movement- a great metaphor for life, work, the world around us and our desire to be present and find inner calm.

Sounds like an oxymoron right? How can things move and things be calm and still? This is the core of mindfulness practice. To have the world and even you at times swirl and to find your calm center. Today’s practice that I taught involved movement- via breath. Being aware of the sensation of breathing can help you to find stillness. Breath is the bridge to your calm and the nice part is it’s constant and always there all you have to do is - yep you guessed it- pay attention to it! That’s easier said than done…fact!

I shared an excerpt from one of Pablo Neruda’s pieces that captured this sentiment.

“Now we will count to twelve
and we will all keep still
for once on the face of the earth,
let's not speak in any language;
let's stop for a second,
and not move our arms so much.

It would be an exotic moment
without rush, without engines;
we would all be together
in a sudden strangeness…”

-Pablo Neruda –excerpt from Keeping Quiet

 How do you start to notice and use your breath? Here are two mediation and mindful strategies:

Mini Practice – 3 breaths

-3 breath meditation repeating on breath #1- I am here; breath #2- I am present; breath #3- All is well or you can substitute a note of sharing kindness or compassion with yourself or others.

20 Breath Meditation

-We also practiced 20 breaths which is a simple way to get grounded and present by counting each inhale and exhale as 1 full breath and making your way counting up to 20.

It’s okay if you lose count just start where you think you are or start over. See if you can make your inhales the same length as your exhales. I find myself trying to take the longest breaths possible to extend my time on the mat, in stillness.

Here’s to finding your calm in the hustle and bustle. It’s always there and the breath is the bridge to it.

How You Doin'?! - The Art of Tracking Work

We are all too familiar with the dreaded reporting period or the ask for a status report. Depending on what type of information, data or project you are tracking can make it difficult to synthesize the movement and progress of the work and share a quick snapshot of where things are at.

Enter red light, green light, yellow light...everyone understands these three colors and add the traffic light symbolism and you’ve 99% of the population speaking your language at first glance. So how does it work?

Start with a simple chart that captures the basics:

• The Project Name or Report Tracking etc.
• Project/Indicator/Deliverable
• Related Action Step
• Deadline
• Status
• Notes

You can track one project with multiple deadlines or pieces of work and break out by deliverables or you can track multiple projects for a team or department on one chart. This tool is flexible.

Here's an example:

In all seriousness this can be used to track a funding strategy, reporting deadlines and progress on grant deliverables, product development and production schedules, campaign progress or team work plan status. The options are endless. The key to this tool is the simplicity of the color system to identify where the work is getting stuck and what’s moving. It is also a great high level visual to better understand where a team member or project needs some extra brainpower or help and to best identify team strategy.

Want to take a deeper dive? Check out my latest class Track it! The Art of Getting Stuff Done. Give me 15 minutes and I’ll get you to GSD (Getting Stuff Done) - Level! Check it out!

Till next time...Keep up the Good Hustle y’all!

D

The Art of the To Do List - Yes it is an art!

So much to do and so little time! To do lists can end up being a black hole of tasks or even worse a source of stress once you realize you are on page 2 of your legal pad!

Some tricks to get your list streamlined, visually appealing, providing instant gratification and organized!

1. Size Matters - You can start with the legal pad but I’m going to recommend you downsize to a post-it (phone posit) or index card. Use your legal pad to hash it all out but then get your list down for the week or better yet the next 3 days.

2. Prioritize - I use a 1, 2, 3, system that’s a take on the Covey Time Management Grid. 1- HIGH priority must get done today/ASAP; 2- Medium priority - nice if I can get it done today but okay if it’s in the next day or so; 3- Low priority - it can get done this week but not a must for today. This works only if you’re consistent with the priorities and make sure you set deadlines for your 2’s and 3’s not just your 1’s to ensure you complete them and they don’t linger on your list.

3. Status Check - Sometimes things get stuck on your list so I use a P with a circle to note movement but it’s “pending”. If it’s not completed by day’s end I move it to the next day’s list.

4. Rewrite - Check it off  or have a schedule shift... rewrite and re-prioritize for the next day  

Want to learn more about making a list work for you? Check out my mini-course on Skillshare. You’re guaranteed to get more done and get things moving! The Art of Getting Stuff Done - The List!