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Last week marked the 41st anniversary of the landing of Apollo 11 on the moon, where the famous words uttered by Neil Armstrong beamed down “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Most of us will not be able to have our feet touch the lunar landscape in our lifetime, but can you imagine what kind of step would be the equivalent of that for your life here on Earth?

When you’re on a tightrope or crossing over a stream you must be very conscious and super-present at every moment, as one wrong move would surely cause you harm. Each step serves its unique purpose to get you further to your destination, no matter if there are 200, 20, or a very special 12.

As the wise saying goes, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Sometimes we need to take baby steps, sometimes we have to take one giant step, and many times we seem to take two steps forward and one step back.

But most of all, from time to time, it’s important for us to step outside our comfort zone. If we don’t take the initiative to stretch ourselves here and there, then we often miss opportunities to learn and grow (and/or the Universe eventually ends up pushing us one way or another anyway)!

So if you are in transition or at a place where you feel like your footing is a little unsure, give me a buzz. I will help you get your bearings, hold your hand, keep you steady, and guide you along, one step at a time, to get from one side of the riverbank to the other or one moonbeam to the next.

(Today’s PGG was originally posted on July 20, 2010)

*Check out my latest article published in The Daily Muse:  5 Ways to Kick Start Your Job Search* 

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Synergy – the bonus that is achieved when things work together harmoniously. ~ Mark Twain

I find it curious that the words desperate and disparate sound so similar; and although their meanings are distinct and technically have nothing to do with each other, I think there is a correlation.

A well know strategy used by one group to influence power over another is to ‘divide and conquer’; to keep people, things, countries, ideas, religions and feeling separate and often opposed to one another. This way they are unable to come together as a unified force and therefore have strength to accomplish their goals and objectives, which disempowers them. Regardless of whether the power desired or deserved outcome on either end is good or bad, it is a tactic that is extremely effective.

The most obvious place to observe this happening is in the military and political arenas, but there are more subtle ways that this truth can affect us in our everyday lives – within our families, at our jobs, in our neighborhoods, in the media and entertainment we consume, and often, within ourselves.

Lately I’ve noticed a lot of folks are feeling disjointed, fragmented and compartmentalized at best; discombobulated or defeated at worst. Everywhere we turn there seems to be a sledgehammer creating wedges and a myriad of distractions coming at us from all sides; it’s us against them, head against heart, black vs. white, profit versus people, logic battling intuition, young vs. old; material values vs. spiritual ones, mental vs. emotional health vs. physical health.

As the saying goes, we can’t serve two masters – we must be unified in that which we revere and honor, integrate our disparate parts and connect to who we are, so that we can connect to others for the greater good. Because when we don’t we feel lost and alone, which when not addressed, can lead to feeling desperate. And that is never a good place to be – because decisions made from fear and desperation are never the best choices.

So if you’re having a little trouble synthesizing your yin with your yang, make sure you take some quality time with yourself and/or give me a buzz; just like Stevie and Paul’s piano, I’ll help arrange all your internal and external parts in a way that you, too, can live with yourself, and others, in perfect harmony.

(Today’s PGG was originally posted on April 5, 2011)

One of the things I try to do when speaking to groups in career transition is put back the power in their hands and their hearts. I let you know you should not accept your fate as victims of a system or think you are subject to the whims of the economy, conventional wisdom, how things appear on the surface or any external voices; and that where there is a will there is a way.

I want you to find the connection, strength and truth of who you are, how you got to this moment, and then motivate you to make the changes necessary to grow and move forward in a positive direction in your career and life.  I ask you to take back control of your job search, trust in the process, and often end in a half-jokingly way with my fist up and the rally call ‘Power to the People’!

It’s not that I ignore the cold hard reality of the way the world works these days and how that might impact job prospects or a fulfilling existence, but I do want to wake folks up to the fact that you are not passive participants in life, and that you have much more power over and responsibility for your situation than you might realize or want to admit, which means that you can’t blame anyone, and you probably just have to work a little harder and/or smarter to get the results you want.

We’ve collectively come to a crossroads where this could not be more true – we’ve allowed a variety of entities to take over, bombard and bamboozle our hearts and minds and bodies- whether governments, corporations, the military, Hollywood, or some combination of them all – to take advantage of our numbing tendencies, heads in the sand, electronic distractions and/or sheer need to survive the daily grind…how much longer can we take it?

With all the recent talk on spying, why not do some internal surveillance to observe and feel what’s going on in your life right now – what kind of tyranny is dictating your thoughts, words and deeds, consciously or subconsciously?  Where can you take action, even if only symbolic, to show that you, not your oppressor, is in charge? What is your version of Tahrir, Taksim or Brasilia?  What would Edith Windsor, Wendy Davis or Tim DeChristopher do in your situation? What Supreme Court  judgments do you need to overturn or restore in your heart? How can you bend the rules in your favor without breaking them or engage in civil disobedience when they are no longer (or never were) valid or have become corrupted? Where do you need more courage in your life?  What can you liberate yourself from?

As I always say, personal transformation is the key to social transformation, so if we want a better world we need to start with our own. Use that intelligence gathering to find something, someone or some idea in your life that is holding you back – keeping in mind that this is often our own ego or limiting beliefs! Perhaps it is simply letting go of an image of how you think you are supposed to be or were told you are, or approaching a health issue, relationship or unemployment with forgiveness and a new point of view that puts you in the driver’s seat. Or maybe the most radical thing you can do is love yourself unconditionally.

Need a little help Shaking the Tree?  Give me a buzz and I’ll help you find the Strength, Courage and Wisdom to Use the Force and create the life you so deserve!

Tell me what’s wrong with having a little faith in what you’re feelin’ in your heart. – The Dixie Chicks (via Patty Griffin)

I try not to think as much as possible. This serves me well for many reasons. First of all, I am somewhat dyslexic, so the more I stay out of my head, the clearer things are for me. And forget about speaking; whenever I do my seminars what I say has to come from my heart and gut otherwise I would get super-confused and choke from stage fright and the fear of sounding stupid.

I have learned to operate this way more and more; it reduces stress by keeping me connected to myself and in the flow of life, in harmony with who I am and what I need or want at any given moment. It is the best source of motivation, decision-making and communications tool I possess because I have harnessed and developed it as such.

In the movie Jerry Maguire, Tom Cruise confronts Cuba Gooding, Jr. about why he hasn’t been offered a ten million dollar contract yet, citing that how he is off the field is how he needed to be on the field. “Right now you play with your head….in your personal life: heart….Play the game Rod, play it from your heart and you know what, I will show you the kwan. That’s the truth, can you handle it?” Jerry knew that if Rod did what he loved with love, then, and only then, would he be able to show him the money.

And that doesn’t just hold true in the movies. Steve Tisch, proud co-owner of the NY Giants declared that the key to their big victory this past weekend was that they “…played with heart, with passion, with love for each other and for the game of football.”

Does that negate, replace or even diminish all the hard work, training, strategy, talent and skill necessary to achieve such great heights? No, of course not. But it’s the thing that will make the difference between a good team and a great team, a good life and a great one.

Most of us are taught to live by our heads, logic and ego, not by our hearts and guts. But only when we listen to our hearts and put love into everything are we our most authentic selves, which means living our truth. And when we are living our truth, we can then more easily speak our truth, and stand in our truth. And that is the best way to guarantee peace and prosperity in our lives, no matter what the circumstances may be.

Million dollar contract, Lombardi Trophy or not, we are all players the Superbowl Game of Life – so are you playing with your head or your heart? Give me a buzz and I’ll make sure that unlike Tom Cruise’s confrontation with Jack Nicholson, you can indeed handle the truth and start living in alignment with who you are and what you want to make happen both on the field and off!

(Today’s PGG was originally posted February 7, 2012)