Eden Unplugged

04/30/2011

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I am soooo excited!! I just submitted my proposal for a workshop to be delivered at an event I'm attending in Arizona on May 8-12 called Eden Unplugged. If you don't know about it, Eden is described as: 

88 evolutionary entrepreneurs coming together at the most amazing hot springs, on lush land far from noise and clutter, to integrate into the life you really want, and the business that will support that life. Together, in community, we'll be creating the new paradigm of business. 

One of the coolest things that will be happening at Eden is everyone is invited to participate in The Tribal Marketplace Game. This is way cool...the game takes each entrepreneur's Great Work (the work they're here on the planet to do) and makes it the focus of the event so the creator can get invaluable feedback from the tribe to move their work forward in the world.

Check this out, as described on the EdenUnplugged.com web site: 

Old Paradigm: Put a few, pre-selected presenters in front of a captive audience & sell em! (Maybe hand out feedback forms… but never question the “context” of the event itself.)

New Paradigm: Create space to explore authentic, heart-centered offering & truth-telling in a tribal marketplace. Receive immediate, visceral feedback.

How does the Tribal Marketplace Game work?

Step 1. You show up fully in your truth & offer your gift – from your heart.

Step 2. The tribe responds, providing immediate feedback & connecting you with others who resonate…who you may never have connected with if you hadn’t shown up this way.

Step 3. We all transform.

Why is the Tribal Marketplace Game so (r)Evolutionary?

Well, aside from the fact that we’ve never seen anything like it – not even progressive gatherings like SXSW create this real-time marketplace “game” – this is the most raw, real feedback you will get on how you show up in the market-space.

No more hiding behind email campaigns, or flyers, or Facebook. This is edgy, real and immediate feedback for courageous, heart-centered evolutionary entrepreneurs.

How cool is that?!? Totally unique and valuable in a way I've never experienced before (and I've been to a LOT of business events in my day).  

The premise of the Tribal Marketplace is already working perfectly for me. I wanted to offer something that is a powerful step in the building of my dream business, yet I couldn't quite pinpoint how to name it, position it or structure it (really just resistance to putting something so important to me out there...what if no one wants it???). 

So in the mean time I submitted another workshop on something I knew I could do really well that could make a difference for others (helping people get crystal clear on their ideal tribe and track), though it wasn't the core of my passion or my reason for being on the planet.

And what happened? I shared it with the community on our private Facebook event page and NO ONE responded to my request for feedback on the topic Nothing! Not a single "Like" even. Nothin' nada zilch. 

The tribe has spoken.

So I withdrew that workshop submission because it was clear that it was not greatest value I could offer the community, and somehow they knew it (so did I).

So it forced me to stop playing in the realm of "safe" (i.e., I already know how to do that) and get into the realm of SCARED to offer something that is so juicy, so close to my heart, so coming from the fire of my Soul that it brings me to my own edge. 

But that's where we all need to be right now - stepping up and playing full out. No more hiding. No more compromise. No more doing something because we're good at it. That's not enough anymore. We're called to give our greatest passions and greatest gifts, and the marketplace won't let us shrink back from that. It's time to have some serious FUN.

So...I've submitted the workshop that makes my cells tingle with excitement because I know it's in far greater alignment with why I'm on the planet and what I love most. I'm not going to reveal what it is here quite yet. I'll let the Tribal Marketplace Game work its magic, and as my offering is shaped by the fires of the tribal marketplace kiln, I'll introduce it to the wider world with the broadest smile and the invitation to come and play.

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A Vaccine Against Fear

03/30/2010

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I received an email yesterday from Ariane de Bonvoisin, author, speaker and creator of http://First30Days.com, entitled A Vaccine Against Fear. It was a great follow-up to what I wrote yesterday so I decided to pass it on:

Recently, The Fiscal Times asked ten authors, including myself, Jack Welch and Marlo Thomas, how we would fix America. This was my response:

We're a country run on fear. Fear about the financial markets and the economy, fear that we're spending too much or consuming too little, fear about our national debt. Fear affects everything—jobs we stay in that we hate, how we aren't loving to our spouses, how selfish we are. We've become disconnected from real life.

We need a vaccine against fear. I'd give people tax breaks for doing a job they love. (I love that idea!!) I'd get people to question what their lives are about. I'd encourage them to take absolute responsibility for their choices and beliefs. I would help raise the general awareness of our society. Then our choices become more conscious.

Fear is one of the biggest obstacles to making changes in our lives. It is only through living alongside this fear in faith—in ourselves, in something bigger than ourselves, in our fellow human beings and in the values of love, compassion and forgiveness—that we can finally move forward and live the life of our dreams.

You can read the entire article here: http://bit.ly/9pHUAx
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How Do I Love Thee? (i.e., Facing Fear and Self-Doubt)

03/29/2010

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I haven't written an entry to my blog in two weeks. I've never gone that long without writing as I usually write at least 2-3 times per week. What happened??

Well, I've been growing. I started a new project for a new client and it's been amazing and educational and fun and terrifying all at the same time. As a recovering perfectionist, I've been faced with all the old, familiar thoughts and feelings that go along with doing something new that's really important to me: Can I do it? What if I don't know what to do? What if what I do isn't good enough? Blah, blah, blah.

The fear-based thoughts coming from the taskmaster in my head seem endless. Christine Comaford-Lynch, author of Rules for Renegades, calls her "The Bitch Upstairs." Hysterical! And if you've got one up in there too, good to know you're not alone!!

The pressure's felt magnified by the fact that my new client is wickedly smart, laser-focused and only wants to work with the best of the best. Uggh! What if he doesn't think I cut it?? Blah, blah, blah.

I am sharing this because everyone has these thoughts, and the feelings that go along with them. They suck the life energy out of you and leave not much left for other things you like and want to do (like sharing cool stuff on your blog!). But it's the judgment of the feelings, and not actually the feelings themselves that are the real issue. When we make ourselves wrong for feeling fear or make it mean something that it doesn't, we are practicing a form of cruelty towards ourselves.

Here's the good news: I recognized this old, boring, repetitive set of thoughts and feelings right away. And as challenging as it's been, I've managed to stay committed to my daily practice of meditation morning and evening, using breath to calm the mind and body, and going to hot yoga every other day. I also have been getting better at how I organize myself, starting with the hardest task first and not moving on to something else until the previous one is done.

There's also the plain old acceptance of that part of me that simply feels afraid that's been really helpful. We all feel fear at times, and that's why I'm talking about it. Too many people put up a front that they are in control all the time and that somehow showing your humanity is a weakness (including me for a long time). That may be part of the rules of the game in corporate or other contexts, but it is not what it's about when you're creating life on your own terms and seek to live a life of authenticity and deeply-experienced inner and outer freedom.

So if you're having a challenging day or experience, slow down, be gentle with yourself, feel what you're feeling, and realize it's all ok and part of being a human being having a full range of rich life experience. No one is judging you but yourself. In fact, if you find others judging you, it is truly only a mirror of how you judge yourself.

No one goes through this life without fear and self-doubt arising at times, and it's how we handle them that determines whether they paralyze us or allow us to find a deeper understanding of, and a greater degree of compassion and understanding for, ourselves. That, in turn, translates to a greater degree of compassion and understanding for the humanity of others which can only make the world we live in (even if just the immediate world we create within and around ourselves) a kinder, gentler place.
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Inspiring Interview! Speaker and poet Kirk Nugent

01/22/2010

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I love Kirks' message: Greatness was placed inside everyone, and if you find your passion, there is NOTHING you cannot do. When he was in furniture sales,  he couldn't see how he could make a living from what he loved - his poetry. Look at him now!!
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