Vol 4 Iss 7

Ah, the loveliness of a summer’s evening. Recently, we were at an outdoor wedding shower for a dear, long-time friend. It was truly a happy occasion.

It was especially rewarding to bump into a mutual acquaintance. A few years back, this mutual friend and I had a sample session. One 30-minute session 6 years ago. The article below tells how she gained forward momentum from that one call. It’s all about planting seeds.

There’s also benefit in planning ahead. We left the wedding shower on the verge of a rain shower, after all it is summer – and we were on the Harley! Ooops. Should have planned for rain and taken a different vehicle. Luckily, we outran the storm and didn’t feel one drop. And the Harley stayed clean (this is an important point for my Jim).

Speaking of planning ahead, September 8, 15 and 22 are the days I’ll be teaching my newest class “If Not Now…When?” for the Longmont Free University. Details are in the upcoming events below. It’s taken me almost a year to put it together and it brings together my many years of working with people dedicated to re-birth – to changing their lives. I’m including extra resources and following it up with a month of group coaching by phone. One of the side benefits of participating in the class is the community that is created in a setting like this. You’ll walk away with a plan, and support through the process. How great is that?

Just to entice you (or someone you know) to attend my workshop, I want to let you in on a secret. This class is actually a weekend retreat, but I’m breaking it up to accommodate LFU and to try out the new material. Since it’s a trial run, we’ve kept the price very reasonable. Sign up and invite your friends.

Here’s to the lazy hazy crazy days of summer! May your garden grow.

PS Please remember, I have a new email address. If you wish to contact me, you can reply to this newsletter, or visit my website at http://www.forwardmomentum.com and click at the bottom of any page.

“Genuine beginnings begin within us, even when they are brought to our attention by external opportunities.”

When I coached MJ 6 years ago, she was the office manager for a small law firm. She is a very competent woman with a great sense of humor, but at the time was feeling a vague restlessness and discontent. In the ½ hour session we talked about ways she could start some kind of horticulture business since gardening is her first love, but we left the call unclear of the details.

Fast forward to now. She is glowing. She’s still at the law firm, but only 30 hours a week. This frees her up to work on her garden consulting and installation business. Her plan is to gently phase into the gardening and eventually retire from the J-O-B.

I asked her what lit her fire and she described a landscaper’s weekend workshop that she attended with a girl friend about a year ago. She networked with people who were doing what she wanted to do, got good information from those in the know in that industry, and then came home with a plan. Which she followed.

So what are the elements of success here? First off, the dream was always knocking at the back of her mind. When we talked for that short session, it was clear that her next phase would include horticulture in some way. But there was no form to the dream. That’s often how it starts out: just a little nagging voice floating around in the ether. You don’t really listen to it, but it pops into your consciousness every so often just to remind you it’s there.

I would like to say it was the brilliant coaching that inspired her to relentlessly follow her passion, but that would be putting the emphasis in the wrong place. You see, 90% of coaching happens when you’re not talking to the coach. The core of coaching is to deepen the learning and forward the action. The actual movement comes from the client.

Our call reminded her how critically important working with the soil is to her, in other words deepened the learning. But the forwarding of the action needed to take place in the right time. Another part of coaching is recognizing that everyone is in process. The right time to forward her action didn’t occur until she attended that workshop with her friend. All I did back in the original call was remind her how deeply the seed had been planted in her spirit. She did the growing.

I bring you this story to illustrate the classic process of creating change in your life. It starts as a glimmer and just sort of hangs out in the back of your mind until it's time to shine. When you catch fire, as she did, it’s as if the world suddenly lines up behind you to create exactly what you were put here to create. No more slogging though the day; you are pulled forward into your dream.

As with MJ, coaching can help remind you of your passion, and it can help you move forward faster. If you are restless and discontent with your life and there’s a nagging voice saying “it’s TIME,” I can help you with that.

If Not Now…When?

Ever dreamed someday you would:

Change careers

Travel

Write a book

Make a difference

Own your own business

Create your masterpiece

…(Fill in the blank!)

In this workshop, presented in 3 sessions followed by 28 days of on-going group support, you will:

Capture your true vision

Create an Action Plan that WORKS

Create forward momentum

Track your progress

Engage your Board of Directors for support

You will meet in a group for three Saturday morning 3-hour sessions spaced one week apart in this uniquely structured workshop. You will have fun, interesting homework to complete between sessions.

When: September 8, 15, 22. 2007 8:30 to 11:30 am

Where: New Frontier Bank, 2315 Main St., Longmont, CO 303-772-2112

Presented through the Longmont Free University

To register, please contact LFU at 303-702-1500

Bring your heart and open mind and be prepared to BEGIN!

You are free to use material from Moving Forward! in whole or in part, as long as you include complete attribution, including a live web site link. Please also notify me where the material will appear. The attribution should read:

"By Debra DeVilbiss, CPCC, of Forward Momentum, LLC. Please visit Debra's website at http://www.ForwardMomentum.com for additional articles and resources on creating your right livelihood."

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If Not Now…When?