End of January 2009 and wasn't it special?

Flying high and that is really nice and it also applies to myself at the moment.
Remember to keep this weblog updated I missed adding info about the third week of the NLP course which I think is developing its own characterstic style. This week was about reframing and I went away thinking REFRAMING how we learn and how we apply ourselves. I spent some tinme reframing my CV as is seems out of date but really lacks the punch that delivers. As I have several ideas at the moment on CPD (continual professional develoment) with work and outside I spent an hour at home reframing my past 21 years at LU. Yes there have been some peak experiences here, plenty of anchor on and also some pathways that didn't get properly actioned. I reflect back on what was stopping me at each moment and from that perspective know what will probably help me in the future.

Going back to my coaching work this has added value when I can micro coach in the dept and also by email as I am doing with one person. I have to reframe how I deal with a different rule book and how best to use the resources I have available.

The last weekend was spent partly visiting those in need, bereaved, living alone, in residential care and hospital settings. using positive langauge one can see a remarkable change take place with just a right few chosen words and smiles of encouragement.

Why change? Why not? 27th Jan 2009

Now you weren't expecting that were you?

Look at OUTCOMES for this NLP action for Change 2, and I initially put down the following:

· eat healthier (from finishing the Get Fit for Life programme),
· develop new talents/skills/resourceful by testing out situations I am not comfortable with,
· become more timely with daily goals (not to waste time) and
· Order goals appropriately (That is not going to happen easily)

. Be respons-able!

Okay so I am trying to keep up this weblog to make sure I am not forgetting the important stuff that comes out of daily living.

I am more and more determined to ‘do the things I like that bring in unexpected rewards’ this to me means ‘growth’ from a perspective that I am a better person. So I pick ARK which is Acts of Random Kindness. This can help improve the ‘worth of oneself’ and show that one cares about things that affect us. The environment , pick up litter, switch off lights, or else people, show you care, smile a lot, help people even if it’s not your job, engage and enjoy. Thereafter make an impact, help a charity, less well off people, the elderly and sick. Stride for being better in the areas that matter to you (family, community, those that depend on you).

Here is the story of a typical experience.

I coach sometimes formally sometimes informally. There is a tendency to be on one's guard and vigilant for opportunities to learn and try out new actions. The last few days I have coached in a hospital, in church and also in the corridor at work. I have learned to walk in someones else's shoes while studying them and following their timely example. I have learnt that diplomancy is a good strategy to use in some situations. I am not too hot on setting the goals for the day but that damn frog is not going to haunt me forever.

Came acoss a couple of good web sites for personal development which are:-

http://www.stevepavlina.com/ Excellent 5 STAR for 'helping you make conscious decisions in your personal development and courageously follow through on them'. Steve says 'This means having the maturity to take 100% responsibility for your health, your career, your finances, your relationships, your emotions, your habits, and your spiritual beliefs' and also

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/barry_schwartz_on_the_paradox_of_choice.html The paradox of Choice and Happiness plus
also http://www.beyourownlifecoachnow.co.uk/ great stuff

NLP 2 Action for Change week 2

Now I know what you thinking who is the guy on the right? This was the Big Day out at leicester Abbey Park 3rd June 2006 A PEAK EXPERIENCE one to remember and tell the grand children!!

Lecture 2 - 21st January 2009

16 in class this week includes new guy R who is a public relations office with police. Seems a very posh person (perception).

Ideas for this week based around last week’s movie player experience and now how we can develop role models to follow. We had to be in couples for this exercise to pick three people we admire and wish to emulate in some aspect.

I soon thought of Patrick Stewart from Star Trek who has these qualities I like (a) diplomacy, (b) decisive action and (c) rhetoric skills in challenging situations. Ian suggests to adopt a winning attitude ‘make it so’ I say ‘let’s see what is out there’I also like the actor who plays Peter Petrilli (character) in Heroes who want to save the world and can manifest different abilities of those he has contact with. An ‘empathic person’ again I can engage with the person. Finally the present Dr Who David Tennant is someone I like to emulate as he travels through time and space, and has both hard and soft side to his character.

Talked with S who is married to an army officer so travelled around world, she picked Jordan as her role model. S is also a trained counsellor but has reservations about moving back to the UK, would prefer aboard where she has lived in many locations, so some shared experiences therefore we were in rapport, mirrored and paced one another.

Task

Think of three words that are important to you (values and beliefs?)
But down Bold, Trust and Noble for some reason also Love, friendship and integrity.

Think of Goals and straight away through of SMART or Egan model is good idea.

Think of happy experiences you can have remembering about Dr. Fredrickson’s broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, which suggests that positive emotions lead to novel, expansive, or exploratory behavior, and that, over time, these actions lead to meaningful, long-term resources such as knowledge and social relationships. Plenty to investigate here and have book marked one example http://research.unc.edu/endeavors/win2008/fredrickson.php
Brainstormed the week past to look at some insightful moments of self discovery, I feel that sometimes we filter out some really interesting stuff because we are so used to the world imposing a structure of belief on us, can’t we think for ourselves? Product placement is everywhere!!
Thought of last week’s church service and a talk about what is so special about the High-cross shopping Centre and its motto, ‘I have known Desire’? This led me onto the 100 most beautiful words in English http://www.alphadictionary.com/articles/100_most_beautiful_words.html and the use of the logical levels in NLP and life http://www.renewal.ca/nlp8.htm . Conclusions? Aspirations in life are all important, we need to achieve our peak experience and keep looking for OUR true purpose in life. Very good starting point was here http://www.stevepavlina.com/ and how to discover your life purpose in 20mins http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/01/how-to-discover-your-life-purpose-in-about-20-minutes/
Change habits; try something different (Sainsburys). Slogans abound do we buy into them at all? We probably all have a daily mantra or motto we use, and I don’t think a lot of times its really positive!
Look at OUTCOMES for this NLP action for Change, and I initially put down
· eat healthier (on Get Fit for Life programme),
· develop new talents by testing out situations I am not comfortable with,
· become more timely with daily goals (no waste of time) and
· Order goals appropriately.
5minute confidence workout sheet to go through; get rid of the social conditioning that faces us!!
Now after 2 days since the class I am more and more determined to ‘do the things I like that bring in unexpected rewards’ this to me means ‘growth’ from a perspective that I am a better person. So I pick ARK which is Acts of random Kindness. This can help improve the ‘worth of oneself’ and show that one cares about things that affect us. The environment , pick up litter, switch off lights, or else people, show you care, smile a lot, help people even if it’s not your job, engage and enjoy. Thereafter make an impact, help a charity, less well off people, the elderly and sick. Stride for being better in the areas that matter to you (family, community, those that depend on you).

Update to NLP 2 from last week's first class back

I seemed to have slipped up a bit. That idea that Monday 19th Jan 2009 was the worse day in history is properly correct if you think that cold weather, fading Christmas memories and all those newly broken New Year resolutions (mean it is usually miserable eh?), but the effects of the economic recession makes this year worse than ever. Also apparently 1/4 of people will call in sick, no I was driving through dark wet sprayed up roads towards Birmingham really enjoying myself!!!

Now a day later and a year older (not mentally, I am regressing) I can finally look back at the exercise we are suppose to do with the END OF DAY NEW BEHAVIOUR GENERATOR.

Okay need to look this one up as its appears that there are logical levels in NLP and also Neurological levels which seem to share some similarities.

The basics seem like at the bottom you have the environment and at the top the Spiritual. How we respond in situations depends on perhaps how we feel, think and behave with oters around us. For example at work it seems the environment is fixed and that people are behaving according to their assigned roles (lecturer, technician, administrator) but also have capabilities (competence), beliefs and values and an Identity that is shaped by the afrorementioned. Further up this so supposed Pyramid is Mission/Purpose and Spiritually (what are you here for? How can you be fulfilled?)that goes back down the line of those aspects already mentioned.

Right now for another example. I am in a role outside work which leads me into pastoral care and this is a mission and higher purpose than at work because I grow from the experiences I have with people I talk with. During the last few months I have been engaging at the higher logical levels in difficult and changing environments that tests my resources to the full extent. I have been visiting and supporting a friend in hospital that needed part of her leg amputated to save her life. Also an old neighbour I visited many times lost the husband through dementia and complications and again being in the presence of a person who is bereaved (unlike loss of a partly leg) is infact similar, a loss is a loss. Thirdly a cancer patient I saw up to Dec died and I wrote to the husband who I feel would need a written correspodance rather than a face to face interaction. I accept people for who they are and where they want to be with their grief is theirs alone, but you can come alongside and gently be there for them and listen to their story, narrative which is so impoortant to tell.

NLP Part 2 The Learning goes on 14th Jan 2009

Picture taken 1st January 2009 at Stone Mountain National Park in Georgia USA.

Three figures of the Confederate States of America are carved there: Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, and Jefferson Davis.


Well the return of three others from NLP 1 made me think I am not alone!!
Nice to see the class has 19 people in the first week.
Would I feel intimidated at all? As apart from 2 other males its female dominated again.

The pace sent by the tutor was warm and mellow, we had a relaxation task coupled with exploring issues from the day. What motivated us? What stops us? What sort of day did we have? How are those new year resolutions looking? Emphasis with handout with ACHIEVE EVEN MORE IN 2009) which is a good outcomes/action/goals sheet to fill out and review.

Paired up with R to talk about motivation at work that day and how I would score it? I said about a six as had good intentions to do all tasks but got distracted as you do (good rapport with right and correct body language). Went onto describe the highs and lows, including the Fire alert we had that meant I had to usher people out of the building but forgot glasses so glad someone else was at the main panel to sort the location of the suspect fire. Talked about how I have to motivate myself a 'facilitator' in many ways I thought. R talked about her work which had been in the power industry as a facilities manger sounded impressed but has been made redundant but doesn't like staying at home.

Other topics we covered were our ambitions for 2009, the old resolutions of 2 weeks ago are they still on track? I thought mine were and spoke about how each year I am building another layer of a brick wall, the next level is higher and slightly tougher but with the resources I have from the previous year I can do it. Plans for 2009 include the completion of this course alongside the final module of the Get Fit for Life certificate. This hopefully will be followed by the pastoral care in counselling course and any other professional development courses I can find locally or further a field. My motivation is therefore very strong at the moment because of past successes.

Other aspects we covered was the self concept, self identity, self image we have of ourselves. There are also something called logical levels of human experience See here for more detail http://www.renewal.ca/nlp8.htm but basically there are lower levels that are not as important as the higher levels, but sometimes we need to evualate the lower levels to know what we want to change. I tend to thnk of motivators for change like Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and rebranding onself. This is something strange as I grew a berad over Christmas and apart from some negative remarks I have felt the small change has resulted in some positives. I was called 'biblical' in church for it and 'enjoy it while its lasts' by a senior lecturer at work 'it will go white and then you wil have to decide whether you want to be seen as a crusty old man' or to colour it'. How small a change has such a different affect in different environments (this is at the different logical levels peopel are thinking).


Homework was using the end of the day behaviour movie calculator. More on this on the next blog when I have used it/reviewed it more.
Some links to look at on this area:

http://www.pathwaystochange.co.uk/new_behaviour_generator.html

http://www.hidden-wealth-keys.com/new-behavior-generator.html

Mid January report 14th January 2009

Picture shows car parking problems in down town Atlanta"!"

So far so good.

Halfway through the month and already have a mass of things to do.

1. Getting the Get Fit for Life Nutrition Assignment up and running, which I have started my food diary and activity schedul to take things forward with SMART Goals. Lets see I can't seem to lose weight therefore I will maintain weight with healthy eating (well in moderation). So far this week only had the occasional naughty foods like crisps, chocolates, chips (all Cs must be a reason)).

2. Back to studying tonight at College with NLP part 2, seems that the class will run again. Since leaving last month found that I am slightly more confident and have notice eye movements, mood states and general sensory acruity. Have achieved praying out loud for a friend from the local church with her in hospital and with a person present I have never met before. Used the meta model a few times to get clarification on a topic/subject. Chunked up and down a bit with my clients.

3. back to routine well that is not that bad. First full week of the year and already thinking of other things to do. On my hit list for February is the Empowerment Psychology Workshop in London. This seems a valuable component to my coaching work and look forward to attending the event. I even get a free £34.99 work (promo launch of EMPSY (http://www.empsy.com/coaching.htm) umm are you impressed?

4. Considering undertaking the pastoral care counselling course being offered locally in the East midlands, both residential and long distance learning.

New Year Report 9th January 2009

Well made it through the first week of the new year and a lot to reflect back on.

1. The Christmas break enabled me to relax a bit from the work and college activities and church and voluntary and etc work I was doing.

2. The trip to Georgia, Atlanta in USA ws great, to spend time with family and see my nephews that created quite an impression to me. With there frequent quoted word 'mine' and what's that?' and 'because, because..' saw lots of nice places too locally around including pictures above on myself at Ann Ruby Falls.

3. Came back to work and straight into a number of people passing away and trying to give what support I can. Also a client R with CWC and my palliative care work died and I wrote a very upfront letter to the husband and also offering help if he needed. That got me back thinking to pastoral role I am undertaking as on Monday 5th I went to LRI where a church lady is at the moment and spent an hour in her presence in active lisetning mode and said at the end 'I am going to pray openly for you now' which I thought was a big one for me to do. I am now really thinking I should come out of the shadows and take this role more formally perhaps.

4. Get fit for Life enters final work booklet on Nurtition, plnety to chew over there. Already completed the first part of the assignment, thinking more towards what can be my 'goal' in this module? Not to reduce weight (that never happened even in USA over 3 weeks with hardly any structured exercise) so it has to be eat better if possible.

5. NLP part 2 course starts next week, already keeping a mental note on progress with using the resources, attitudes, Meta model, Hero's journey etc. Think the rest from the NLP has been more conscious than unconscious, is this possible? Some pointers have been 'reflecting back at comments realistically and without negativity' also when people behave as they do 'unreasonably' I just think that is their problem and they have to deal with it. I have been quite upbeat with getting a good start each day and have so many projects going off I can not really think boring thoughts or being unfulfilled.