Teresia's Blog

• Are you resisting letting go of the holidays season and fully getting back into the life of a growing entrepreneur?
• Does anxiety and the New Year tend to go hand and hand for you?
• Is there a part of you that would rather keep your head under the covers for just another day?

If yes, you are not alone.

As I self-coach myself to transition from a 2 1/2 week vacation (a wonderful Christmas with family in Ottawa where we embraced -20 degrees weather and fresh snow for a week!) and get back into the entrepreneurial lifestyle, I noticed a twinge of anxiety and put myself in the shoes of all of the fellow budding entrepreneurs I have had the honour to mentor. I shared a personal story with the participants of the Passion into Profit program and the Erickson Business Center community and I received a lot of “LIKES” and many comments, as it resonated with a lot of people. I thought I would share it with you, my valued TLC community, in hopes that it also supports you in experiencing the beginning of the year with more ease, inner fulfillment and knowing that it all happens the way it is suppose to.

Feature Article: Trust the Divine Timing of Your Life

The first 3 years of my business, without fail every January my body would shut down and I would be confined to my bed for at least 7 days. When I look back I realize the pressure I would put on myself to achieve, to produce results, to leverage the opportunity that the beginning of a New Year could provide for a coach helping individuals set and achieve their goals. By the first week of January,  I would have created an online marketing campaign to sell my New Approach to Goal Setting Ebook and  I was in full blown action to fill a live workshop I delivered by the end of January on goal setting and have at least a dozen other  “going public”  commitments under my belt for the first quarter of the year. Yes I was motivated and very passionate about what I did but underlying that was also a huge dose of lack of self trust, a driving need to feel like I was significant and  that I would succeed as an entrepreneur. 

I share this with you to assure you that if you are feeling anxious going into the new year or resisting taking your commitment to building your business to the next level, you are not alone.

As budding entrepreneurs, it is natural to put pressure on yourself, to have BIG goals, to have even bigger gremlins and perhaps the biggest gremlin of them all, “will I really make it as an entrepreneur”? (The relentless self doubt gremlin).

Eighteen years later, I begin the New Year very differently.  Yes, there is still a twinge of anxiety but one that fuels me rather then landing me in bed for a week.

Here are the top three things I have learned:

1. A marathon approach to business is more successful and sustainable than running sprints.
2. Your success as an entrepreneur (who also lives a great life!) is directly related to your depth of self love! (Yes this one surprised me too
3.  Listening to and dancing with the divine timing rather than forcing your timing is a lot more fulfilling and effortless.

This January, resolve to make your relationship with yourself a priority, set realistic goals that energize you and trust the divine timing of your life.  

If this post resonated with you, take a deep breath, and repeat this affirmation “I trust the divine timing of my life and know that everything happens at the time and the way it’s supposed to”. Really breathe into it. Repeat it again, Ok one more time. Now don’t you feel better?

Remember, as a community of coaches on the journey of realizing our entrepreneurial dreams, we are in this together (oh yeah, that is another big learning I received “You can’t do this business building thing alone! Being vulnerable, asking for help and cultivating a world class support team is key in realizing your entrepreneurial dreams”).

Resource of The Month: A New Approach to Goal Setting Ebook

We have extended our special offer for you! For a discounted rate of $19.97 (regular price $29.00) you can literally transform how you live your life! (I have discounted the rate in hopes this will help you decide to give yourself this gift of working through this life changing process.) Special offer available until January 31st. Click here for more information.

This is a self-coaching e-book that helps you identify what’s most important to you, and teaches you how to design your life according to your values. It just might be the fastest, easiest way to boost your life to a whole new level, and it will certainly give you a fresh new perspective on your New Year’s Resolutions!

  PS. I would love to hear from you! How do you start your new year? Do you set realistic goals and stick with them or do you feel overwhelmed?   Share with us on Facebook.

Your personal business building mentor,

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Have you considered coming up with a “THEME” for the New Year? This theme is your overall intention; your overall vision or your dream for the upcoming year.

Themes add a quality of inspiration and fun to your year. It becomes the lighthouse for your priorities of the year. It may be a QUALITY (courage, action, balance, commitment), or it might be a PHRASE (attracting ideal clients, going with the flow, embracing the entrepreneurial mindset, embracing technology).

What do you really want to experience or create in 2013? Let your priorities uncover your theme. This is an opportunity for you to listen to the callings of your soul and really determine what needs your awareness, energy and attention to continue to create a life you love.

  PS. I would love to hear from you! I would love to hear what your theme is for 2013!  Share with us on Facebook.

Your personal business building mentor,

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Caterina Barregar a graduate of the Passion Into Profit Program and The Art and Science of Coaching is up and running with building her business and we’re proud to have her a part of the mentor team of the current PIP program. She has decided to use Video Marketing as a means to share her gifts and message with others. Check out one of her latest videos on the 3 tips to Live Your Ideal Life.

  PS: I would love to hear from you. Visit me on facebook and share your thoughts, comments, insights, tips on today’s topic.

Your personal business building mentor,

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This question is a very strategic business question. The more joyful you are as a coach in business, the easier building your business will be. Why? Because you are your business and when you live a life that brings you joy, you become irresistibly attractive. (Not the great hair cut kind of attractive but the “I want to be around her” kind of attractive).

Have you ever said or heard someone say, “I want what she has”? Most often individuals are referring to one’s love for life, boundless energy, an ability to be in the flow and dance with life. Oxford’s dictionary defines joy as, “a vivid emotion of pleasure arising from a sense of well-being.” I love this definition because it roots joy in a sense of well-being and we are in charge of ensuring we have a sense of well-being every day of our lives.

Often when working with wildly successful entrepreneurs, when asked what brings them joy, there was silence – dead silence and a glimpse of embarrassment on their face when they could not answer. Sometimes when building or running a successful business, we can get caught up in the day to day responsibilities and find ourselves on the treadmill of ongoing achievement, always chasing after the next “success” and finding ourselves disconnected to what brings us joy.  

I invite you to take 10 minutes and do some very important strategic planning: make a list of 10 things that bring you joy. Start with 10 things that you can do at anytime, with little investment of time or money.  Ask yourself what puts a smile on your face? What gives you energy? What contributes to a feeling of peace, contentment, or passion?

To live a joyful life we first must become conscious of what brings us joy.  

Writing this article, I was inspired to revisit my list. Use my list to get the creative juices going on what brings you joy.

1. Being there when Kenny first opens his eyes in the morning and capturing his morning smile and a morning snuggle.
2. Unplanned family days with Brian and Kenny.
3. Cooking together with good friends and family and enjoying a delicious dinner.
4. Saying goodnight to the day by sharing a sunset and a glass of wine with Brian.
5. Getting up at sunrise and writing in my journal.
6. Sitting on a patio with a view of the ocean and mountains with my gal pals and enjoying great conversation.
7. Cranking the music (yes usually country J) and dancing with my little guy.
8. A great workout.
9. My mastermind calls.
10. Cruising in the convertible.

Similar to a coaching session, your joy list is customized for you. Give yourself the gift of identifying your list of what brings you joy and decide to make it a part of your life and watch the magic unfold in your business!

One of my JOY DAYS! Convertible ride with good friend Gail Watson to Whistler for lunch

Share with me what is on your JOY LIST and if you have a picture send that in also – lets spread the joy, it is contagious!

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“When I dare to be powerful- to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid”

~ Audre Lourde

In reflection of the last two weeks since Kenny was born, I am in awe of the journey I have been on since my water broke on June 30^th.  The experience of giving birth and the first  weeks of being the main caretaker of a newborn has been both overwhelming and one of the most transforming times of my life.  As many of you know becoming a mom has been a long and not so easy journey, and it did not stop at birth.  I will not bore you with all the details but after 17 hrs of labour I had to have a C-section (I hate when that happens). We were so close but yet so far.  I have always had a fear of giving birth.  I remember in my “tween” years finding out how baby’s entered the world and remember thinking I will never do that!  Hmm perhaps that was part of the block of getting pregnant.

When we were in the depth of fertility treatments 3 years ago, one of my best friends died 8 months after giving birth to beautiful twin girls.  Her death was not directly related to her giving birth, but on some level I had the two associated.  With all that said, labour was not so bad.  What made the experience manageable and tolerable were these 3 keys factors.

1. Keeping my focus on the ultimate vision: holding my baby in my arms and being a family.

2. Being in the moment: Taking one step at a time, dealing with each obstacle one by one. “One of my main mantra’s was “I know I can handle one contraction at a time.”

3. Having an amazing support team: Having my mother, Brian, my midwife and the outstanding support of the nurses and doctors at  BC womens hospital made a world of difference.

As we experience any life passage, the above keys can provide a solid foundation to help us to the best of our ability, gracefully navigate our way through.

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“Stress is not caused by your busy life or challenging circumstances, it’s simply the result of an imbalance between silence and activity.” ~Jerry Thomas facilitator of silent retreats

We all need time to unplug from our daily activities and plug into the wealth of abundance that silence and retreats can bring to our life.

Is this the time for you to give yourself the gift of extreme self care?

Do you live in the Vancouver area?

On April 29th there is an opportunity for you to be part of an intimate Weekend Retreat designed specifically for women. Unplug from your busy schedule, reconnect, rejuvenate and re-energize yourself

This designated weekend is interspersed with silence by the sea, meditation or contemplation and journaling. Take time just for you while sharing meals with like-minded women. This intimate, personal gathering is available for 12 women only. It is facilitated by Claudette Bouchard, a friend, a mentor and a women who has held the space for me and many other women to step fully into living a life of more love and peace. Claudette’s presence in itself is a vessel to have us reconnect with our inner wisdom and spirituality.

To reserve your spot or further information contact Claudette directly at 604-913-3959 or clodet@telus.net

Claudette Bouchard is a speaker, author of her recent book, “Energy Is Real” , mentor to the young and a Life Energy Coach. She has 25 years experience as an energy consultant with clients throughout Asia, Europe and North America. Throughout these years she has facilitated numerous women’s groups focusing on “connection to self”

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Take a minute to sit back and search your mind for a woman you admire. It could be a friend or relative, a teacher or mentor, even a stranger or someone from the distant past.  Ask yourself: What makes her so admirable, so inspiring to me?  What are some of her qualities and natural behaviors that I find attractive?

Most of the people we admire hold themselves to high standards. Personal standards refer to the behavior and actions that you hold yourself to – how you choose to ‘show up’ in life. For example, we have standards around our finances (‘I always pay my bills on time’), the way we relate to each other (manners, physical space, etc.), and just about everything else.

The important thing to remember is that each person determines their own standards. You can adjust yours in a way that makes life really click.

Here’s a good rule of thumb to remember: the higher your standards, the better your life. They’re a shortcut to an easier, more focused, less-hassled life.

When a person keeps high standards, they feel very good about themselves and others. They naturally attract high-quality people and avoid people and situations that cause problems.

When a person’s standards are too low, their self esteem and sense of worth sinks. They are emotionally drained. People walk all over them. They waste their time and energy. They end up tolerating a lot in their life!

Here’s the bottom line: It’s time to look at the standards you’ve set for your life, and where to make adjustments. This one process can easily and dramatically improve your quality of life and the results you create.

Ready to get started?

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I don’t know about you but I have been inspired by the 2010 Olympics.  It doesn’t hurt that I live in the city that hosted them; Canada had a story book finish with Canada winning hockey gold and scoring Olympic record of 14 gold medals.

To top it all off I was at the closing ceremonies. It also brings back many great memories of my competitive years as a figure skater. But it goes deeper then that. The Olympics uncover some key factors that are important for success in any area of our life. 

On a social level the Olympics highlights the power of “we”.

Nelson Mandela once said “politics divides, sports unite”.  Sports encourage leadership, the development of social skills, learning how to manage a stressful situation; most importantly teaching that personal sacrifices in service of the group often brings greater rewards than simple self interest.  Whether you are involved in a sport personally, or an outside supporter, there is an experience of “we” that is available to all of us. As an entrepreneur, an individual committed to living their best life, there is an experience of we that is available to all of us.

I have heard from many who have watched the athletes step up to their long desired dream of competing in the Olympics, that it has brought tears to their eyes. We are reminded of what is possible in our own life. The Olympics remind us of the rewards of courage, self-discipline and belief in oneself.

I know any success that I have experienced in my life and my clients have experienced in theirs, that these qualities were present. They are worth exploring further.

Courage: I once heard courage is feeling the fear and doing it anyways – how true!
Courage is needed when you have a sense of what you hope to achieve but there is no guarantee – in other words there is a level of risk involved. Acting in spite of the risk often brings up less than uncomfortable feelings, feelings such as fear, self doubt, uncertainty, and discomfort. So what drives one to act in spite of the feelings? Simply put—values. When you have a strong belief about the right thing to do, or what is important to you, you’re often compelled to act. At the end of the day the question is: are you letting your fear guide you or your desire to act on what is most important to you?

Living a life where you are consistently stretching out of your comfort zone and accessing your inner courage, not only builds self esteem but is the path of living our best life.

Self-discipline:
Most people don’t associate discipline with happiness, but did you know the most joy you’ll ever know comes from areas where you are self-disciplined? People who have significant and successful careers can often point back to a time that required much effort and self-discipline. They often say it was worth every ounce of effort. Becoming self-disciplined is never easy in the beginning, but once you overcome a barrier and make a decision to become disciplined, it gets easier. I often tell my clients self discipline is doing the things you don’t necessarily want to do, but you know by doing them, they will help you get the results you want. I support my clients in designing their life around doing what they love and what they are good at – when we do this the amount of self discipline is minimal AND to really live a life we love there will always be areas where we need to embrace the act of self-discipline. Simple put self-discipline is about the ability to reject immediate satisfaction, in order to gain something better, but requires effort and time. Decide today where in your life you would benefit greatly if you were to become more self-disciplined. Where do you want more or better results? Start today by saying “no” to immediate satisfaction and start implementing that extra effort to create more of what you really want in your life.

Belief in oneself:
We have all heard it at one time in our lives “you have to believe in yourself.” Believing in oneself is one of the first steps to success. If you don’t have confidence in yourself, it will be difficult to succeed in anything. Every day all of us face challenges, some small, small big, it is how we respond to it them that makes the difference. Whatever your goal or dream, hold onto the vision, and take one step at a time. When you feel the fear and act anyway (courage), and make self-discipline a part of your life, this builds the muscle of belief in yourself.

My question to you: have you set your life up in a way that daily you are accessing your inner courage? Are you living a life that requires self-discipline and faith in oneself daily?

Success and a fulfilling life require the attitude and commitment of an athlete.

What area in your life is it time to go for gold?

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“Man is what he believes.” – Anton Chekhov

 Ask yourself what do you really want in your life? Are you achieving it? If not, there is a good chance that there is a limiting belief  in your subconscious that is holding you back.

Beliefs are feelings of certainty and there are two kinds of beliefs, limiting and empowering. Limiting beliefs are feelings that hold us back from creating the results we want in our life. Empowering beliefs are feelings that support us in moving forward to create the results we want in our life. Many times our beliefs are unconscious. When we become conscious of them, especially our limiting beliefs, that is when change begins to happen.

For example: I have a very successful client whose priority at this time is to share his life and success with a life partner.

Challenge: the women he decides he would like to be with, are unavailable in some way, either they are just ending a relationship, are in a committed relationship or are simply not emotionally available for various reasons.  After much soul searching, and allowing me to ask him the tough questions, he discovered there is an underlying belief that he is not desirable. With this belief he will continue to create experiences in his life to support his belief.  On an unconscious level, he gets to say, “See I am right I am not desirable”.  

Most times we are not always aware of the beliefs that drive us, having the courage to dig deep and become aware is a huge first step. With his new found awareness of his limiting belief he is able to make conscious choices that will create new references that will help him attract what he really wants in his life.

 Think of beliefs like a table. A belief is a feeling of certainty – like the top of a table. We have the legs (references) to support that belief. Once we have awareness of our limiting beliefs we can then come up with a new belief, an empowering belief – one that will support us in creating what we want.

Take my clients limiting belief
 ”I am not desirable”

The opposite of that belief could be
 “I have a lot to offer a partner and deserve the reciprocity of love”

 When we first come up with an empowering belief, we may own it intellectually but not truly on an emotional level. We must then act on the new belief and create references so that it becomes a part of who we are. The power of a belief is that we own it on an emotional level, that it becomes the table top – a feeling of certainty.

Again look at what you want in your life. If you don’t have it, start digging.   What is the limiting belief holding you back?  

Remember awareness is not only the first step, but a big one!

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The Shadows know what evil lurks in all people: when people pretend to be better then they really are, they are likely to suddenly explode with rage after a trivial slight or act out in other ways.

This was the title of an article (on the formerly “squeaky – clean” Tiger Woods) in the Vancouver Sun on January 23rd, 2010. It states “Psychologically speaking, the Shadow is the part of our personality that we repress for the sake of maintaining our ideal of our self. And it is often the people who try most diligently to appear guiltless who have the nastiest shadows.”

In 2006, I attended Debbie Ford’s workshop “The Dark Side of the Light Chasers” and it changed my life. It was the beginning of not only continuing to embrace my strengths but to become aware and accept the parts of me that I was not so proud of and for many years had denied.

For most of my life, as well as the lives of many of my clients, the goal of perfection; striving to consistently live in a state of happiness and balance, dominates and controls our lives, a pursuit that proves unrealistic.

Striving to become better then we are and maintaining this image of perfection, can only lead to moments of stress, resentment, frustration, anger and extreme overt behaviour that not only harms our well being and happiness but has a huge negative impact on those we love.

Becoming aware of your shadow side, embracing it and learning how to manage it, is the path to inner fulfilment and self acceptance.

Here are some steps you can take to start uncovering your shadow side:

• Notice where you are reacting in your life.
• Where do you judge and blame others?
• Where do you not take full responsibility of what is not working in your life?

These are all clues of your shadow side.

Face it – we all have a shadow side, what we do with it impacts the quality of our life!

Check out Debbie Ford’s book -

The Dark Side of the Light Chasers: Reclaiming Your Power, Creativity, Brilliance, and Dreams

 and also visit her website to learn more about the work she does at http://debbieford.com.

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