Being v. Doing

Part 4: Field Notes on the How to Create Your Dream Job Now Intensive

The 2015 Dream Job Intensive is now complete. This live-remote workshop is for those who seek to have a career they absolutely love. In this latest session we had students ranging in age from 24 to 45. They came from non-profits, business, and freelance careers.

The Dream Job Intensive is based upon a coaching program created in 2012 by Conscious Management Consulting for one-on-one clients. We expanded it to a 10 week program and now to a four week Intensive.

The Dream Job Intensive uses tools like Maestro Conference, LinkedIn, triadic support and real-life coaches to engage students in an intense 30 day process. Each session of the workshop is led by certified coaches, who engage with students in individual and group work.

During the workshop, each student creates results within the 13 assigned projects. The program has regular deadlines, group discussions, and one-on-one coaching calls. It is entirely based online, with students participating from their home or workplace.

The next course begins on Monday, January 18, 2016. There is still room if you feel called to do this work (not easy but doable). You can learn more here.

Note: This is NOT like the courses that you sign up for and never participate. This course involves real work. It is a serious undertaking. You will have other people who will be counting on you to cross the finish line together. It is all for one and one for all. If you are not ready for this level of commitment, please do not apply.

Field Notes on the How to Create Your Dream Job Now Intensive Part 3

One of the challenges in networking is everybody thinks it's making cold calls to strangers. Actually, it's the people who already have strong trust relationships with you, who know you're dedicated, smart, a team player, who can help you.
~ Reid Hoffman

Well, week three of the How to Create Your Dream Job Now Intensive is complete. In an effort to not sound like a broken record we will refrain from going overboard about how awesome this class is. But still, we do have to say it: They are an awesome group!

This week we shifted our focus to building their personal networks. We define the network as, "the people who want to help you, and you want to help them." We place the emphasis upon the fact that everything we do to strengthen our network is time well spent on a number of levels (now and in the future).

We are now focusing on LinkedIn. Our objective is not only to be "on" LinkedIn, but to be an active member of LinkedIn. Of course, we share the advanced techniques required to be an active LinkedIn member.

In the last group call, we talked about strong ties v. weak ties. The main idea is to build strong ties while continually creating new weak ties. We discussed Malcolm Gladwell who, in his book The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, said:

"People weren't getting their jobs through their friends. They were getting them through their acquaintances. Why is this? Granovetter argues that it is because when it comes to finding out about new jobs -- or, for that matter, new information, or new ideas -- "weak ties" are always more important than strong ties. Your friends, after all, occupy the same world that you do. They might work with you, or live near you, and go to the same churches, schools, or parties. How much, then, would they know that you wouldn't know? Your acquaintances, on the other hand, by definition occupy a very different world than you. They are much more likely to know something that you don't. To capture this apparent paradox, Granovetter coined a marvelous phrase: the strength of weak ties. Acquaintances, in short, represent a source of social power, and the more acquaintances you have the more powerful you are."

Everyone in the Dream Job Intensive becomes a new member of your network. Everyone in the workshop gets connected on LinkedIn (including the coaches). We place emphasis on the idea of letting your network help you get to where you want to go.

Interested in the Dream Job Intensive starting in January 2016? You can learn more here.

…And The Alpaca You Came In On

A good friend from college recently responded to a Craig’s List posting for a Caretaker of a ranch outside of town. According to what he saw in the advertisement, it would be the perfect position. He is a true outdoors-man having spent over 20 years in the rugged mountains of Colorado. Watching over a large ranch is a perfect job for him.

On Saturday, he arose before dawn to ride out to meet the owner and check out the ranch. It was nice enough with plenty of land and large views of the countryside. There was a herd of Alpaca on the ranch. That was part of the deal. Take care of the flock and the property. But here’s the rub. When they were discussing payment, the owner talked about rent. Not a salary for being a caretaker. Not rent in exchange for watching over the property. No, she was talking rent for the "privilege" of watching over her animals and land.

My friend was of course taken aback. His choice words to the owner began with the letter “F” and then “you” and ended with the classic refrain “…and the Alpaca you came in on.”

This situation illustrates the modern phenomenon of people wanting their cake and to eat it too. Rather than find a way to create win/win/win agreements, they attempt to create win/lose agreements. They push the boundaries of common sense and common decency. It is yet another example of unconscious people trying to do business.

This is why we love conscious businesses (Trader Joe’s, Southwest Airlines, and COSTCO in the U.S.). They play by a different set of rules. They bend over backwards to make the customer happy, the employees happy, and the investor happy, all at the same time. Not a bad way to roll.

Note: An alpaca (Vicugna pacos) is a domesticated species of South American camelid. It resembles a small llama in appearance.

Field Notes on the How to Create Your Dream Job Now Intensive Part 2

I believe that the biggest problem that humanity faces is an ego sensitivity to finding out whether one is right or wrong and identifying what one's strengths and weaknesses are.
~ Ray Dalio

Week two of our Dream Job Intensive is complete. As we noted last week we have an energetic and motivated group of students who have committed themselves to this 30-day immersion to discover more about themselves and more about conscious businesses (where they one day might like to build a career).

We should take it a step further and say this is an amazing group with over 85% completing assignments on time. And not only that, they are working together as a “we” instead of several “me’s.” That is pretty amazing.

One of the assignments was to take the StrengthsFinder 2.0online assessment and begin putting their top strength to use (immediately) . The research data is pretty clear that we can only thrive and be happy if we are using our strengths on a daily basis. Of course, to use them, you need to know what they are.

Here is a sample of some of the top strengths of the students in the intensive: Activator, Adaptability, Arranger, Communication, Context, Futuristic, Ideation, Input, Intellection, Learner, Maximizer, Positivity, Relator, Responsibility, Restorative, and Strategic. Wow! Imagine building a team with these folks.

Do you know your top strength? Do you use it every day? Interested in the Dream Job Intensive?  You can learn more here.

Here is an interesting video that will help you start focusing on strengths: Eva Katharina Herber at TEDxIEUniversityMadrid

Field Notes on the How to Create Your Dream Job Now Intensive

Week one of our Dream Job Intensive is complete. We have an energetic and motivated group of students who have committed themselves to this 30-day immersion to discover more about themselves and more about conscious businesses (where they one day might like to build a career).

Besides the individual attention that everyone gets from the one-on-one coaching, what makes this program unique is the support network from all the students enrolled in the course. Unlike most courses where there is little or no connection to others, in the Dream Job Intensive, it is all about “all for one and one for all.” We intentionally designed it so that everyone must cross the finish line or no one does.

Tough? Yes. Worth it? Absolutely.

Check out this great video someone shared with the group. It aligns perfectly with what we are up to in the course:

Time Management for Highly Creative People™ - Session 2 (Video)

 

Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hour days.
~ Zig Ziglar

In Session 2 we go from your Weekly Success Map to your daily plan. Each day is planned and recorded on a ruled 3x5 card. There is amazing magic in planning each day and then executing on the plan. Of course, things will come up and you will need to adjust. That is to be expected. But the discipline of planning is indispensable to success. It is the difference between moving out with a purpose and drifting through life.

Within the video, we mention a few resources that you may want to consider ordering. You can order directly from our Amazon links. See below…

Levenger 300 Non-Personalized 3x5 Cards - White Ruled (ADS6780 RL)

Levenger Shirt Pocket Briefcase Purple (AL5945 PU NM)

Time is On Your Side

Forever is composed of nows.
~ Emily Dickinson

It is never a question of not enough time. The question is always about not enough living. We are served up a huge dish of life every single day. Yet, most of us complain. We forget that this day is the show itself. The main act. The final cut. All the absurdities we read about in the newspapers may be due to a very simple but deadly miscalculation about the nature of existence.

Life is sweet precisely because we know each day is a once in a lifetime experience. Each sunrise is totally unique, never to be repeated in the same way again.

If your faith calls you to believe in the afterlife, then live this life to the fullest. If your faith does not allow for such a belief, then all the more reason to be alive and happy now.

Why There Are No Pharmacies in Whole Foods Market

Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.
~ Hippocrates

The great John Mackey and his company Whole Foods Market (WFM) essentially created the health food movement as we know it today. We take for granted that there are healthy (or at least healthier) choices when it comes to food. WFM is within driving distance of almost every major town or city within the United States. They are truly delivering on their Higher Purpose.

But there is one thing conspicuously absent in WFM that every other grocery store has. What is that? A pharmacy. There Are No Pharmacies in Whole Foods Market. Anywhere. Ever. It is almost as if they actually listened to Hippocrates' famous quote about letting food be your medicine and your medicine your food.

Could it be that Hippocrates was right after all? Could great healthy organic leafy green food really become your medicine? Could an ounce of prevention really be worth a pound of cure? Well, we leave that for you to discover. The fact that pharmaceuticals are not part of the success equation at WFM speaks volumes.

We’ve written about Whole Foods Before and how they are Antifragile (see the post here). Despite recent criticism of WFM in some corners, we continue to recognize them as leaders without which the other stores who now carry organic foods would no longer be able to do so. Rock on WFM!

Part 10 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

Beauty surrounds us, but usually we need to be walking in a garden to know it.
~ Rumi

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking.

As we wrap-up this mini-course on mindful walking, we finish in a magical garden in a park. This magical garden could be anywhere on the planet. You will need to discover yours for yourself. Let your intuition guide you to the spot (you will know it when you see it).

In this session we talk about the idea of doing some conscious breathing since most people tend to hold their breath. Let the air in and let it circulate. Then let it out. Breathe.

Going to the garden is a special way to slow down. Focus on walking slowly and consider using it as your final destination after each mindful walk. See everything. There is no need to rush. Look at things close-up. Actively notice new things continuously. Don't let the rain stop you. Some of the best walks ever had by anyone who has walked the planet have happened during "inclement" weather.

Our sincere wish is that you have been inspired by this course and will consider giving this walking practice a try. As always, we love to hear from you. Send a note if you have any questions. 

Check out the Guided Mindful Walk here.

Part 9 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

When I am traveling in a carriage, or walking after a good meal, or during the night when I cannot sleep; it is on such occasions that ideas flow best and most abundantly.
~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking.

In this session we talk about some of the "side effects" of mindful walking. In this case they are all good. Namely, any feelings of stress, anxiety or overwhelm begin to fall away. At the same time, new ideas (relevant to what you are working on) begin to flow in. 

We recommend carrying a notepad and pen so you can jot down these ideas and then continue on with the walk. If you don't write it down, there is a tendency to keep playing the ideas over and over again in your head. This is a huge distraction from the task at hand if you allow it to happen. Stay focused! As John Muir pointed out, "in every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."

Go to Part 10 here.

Part 8 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

Take a course in good water and air; and in the eternal youth of Nature you may renew your own. Go quietly, alone; no harm will befall you.
~ John Muir

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking.

In this session we discuss a few things that you can do to boost your mindfulness walk. As you are walking and noticing new things, you can begin integrating the sounds that you hear along the way, such as the breeze blowing through the leaves. You can become aware of the feeling of your feet as they touch the ground.

Keep in mind that no two days are ever the same (light, temperature, sounds, weather conditions, your state of being). Even if you take the same path every day for 100 years, each walk would be one-of-a-kind-unique if walked in mindfulness. 

Go to Part 9 here.

Part 7 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

And so, mindfulness, for me, is the very simple process of actively noticing new things. When you actively notice new things that puts you in the present, makes you sensitive to context. As you’re noticing new things, it’s engaging. And it turns out, after a lot of research, that we find that it’s literally, not just figuratively, enlivening. So, the Eastern notions, I did research, again, back in the ’80s, on transcendental meditation. And, that’s also — meditation is also useful, but it’s quite different, different ways of getting to the same place. Meditation, no matter what kind of meditation, is engaged to produce post-meditative mindfulness. 
~ Ellen J. Langer 

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking.

This session is all about noticing new things, intentionally, while on a mindfulness walk. It is about stacking the odds in your favor. The mindfulness walk, in the way that we use that term, will have a higher than average chance of turning on your mindfulness switch not only during the walk but for several hours afterwards. You become awake and aware. Your power to create is greatly enhanced. So-called accidents and mistakes almost disappear because you notice everything (within you and around you).  It doesn't get much better than that!

The takeaway message of this session is to notice everything you can on the walk: From the super small to the grand vista opening before you in a beautiful location. Switching between the two can be very useful in heightening the experience. 

Go to Part 8 here.

Part 6 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching. 
~ Francis of Assisi 

 This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking. 

In this session, we talk about your pre-walk activities. That is, those things related to getting into a mindset conducive to a mindful walk. Prepare to launch!

This step includes: 

• Setting the intention to be mindful during the walk 
• Check-in with your level of consciousness before and after the walk (write it down) 
• Dress appropriately 
• Solitude is the way to mindfulness 
• Go towards nature

Go to Part 7 here.

Part 5 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

I am alarmed when It happens that I have walked a mile into the woods bodily, without getting there in spirit.
~ Henry David Thoreau 

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking. 

In this session we discuss a few considerations about what you need in terms of equipment (not much) and proper clothing. We also discuss footwear for walking. On rough terrain, you will need walking shoes. We mentioned the idea of going barefoot when it is safe to do so. There is a lot of new research coming out about the importance of getting grounded. See the book Earthing: The Most Important Health Discovery Ever! - 2nd editionfor more information on this important topic. 

Go to Part 6 here.
 

Part 4 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking.

In this session, we discuss selecting a place that is conducive to mindful walking (especially in the early stages of the practice). We recommend criteria in outdoor spaces to look for and consider. It is likely that there is such a place not far from your home or office. Even in New York, Central Park is available, for those living in the Big Apple.

No matter where you are located in the world, there should be a place where you can go to take a mindful walk. You may notice how crowded the streets are with cars while how few people are out there are on the walking path.

Go to Part 5 here.

Part 3 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

This is a Mini-Course on Mindful Walking.

In this video, we talk about setting the intention to become mindful before you set out for a walk. We recommend that you do a check-in to see where you are at--in terms of your level of consciousness--before and after the walk. The check-in numbers can be tracked effectively in a spreadsheet so you can see your progress over time.

Go to Part 4 here.

Part 2 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

This is a Mini-Course on something we call Mindful Walking.  In this video, we discuss the Seven Levels of Consciousness. Here they are for future reference:

• Level 0 - Sleep
• Level 1 - Twilight Zone between sleep and waking
• Level 2 - Ordinary everyday consciousness (the lights are on but no one is home)
• Level 3 - Mindful awareness
• Level 4 - Mindful awareness with active noticing
• Level 5 - The Zone/Flow State
• Level 6 - The Peak Experience (Maslow)
• Level 7 - Enlightenment 

Go to Part 3 here.
 

Part 1 - The Quick Way to Increase Your Level of Consciousness™ (Video)

This is a Mini-Course on something we call Mindful Walking.

One of the questions that came up from the How to Find Your Dream Job Now course was about the Mindfulness Walk we discussed in the Session 10 video. Because it is so important and so many people have asked about how to do it, I shot a series of videos explaining the process.

This is Part 1. A new video will be posted every day for the next 10 days. If you have an interest in mindfulness this series may be of interest to you.

The video quality is rough and grainy not unlike war footage. This is appropriate since it is a battle to not only wake up but to stay awake. The main thing in this series is the motivation for you to get started (and keep going).

Go to Part 2 here.

Connecting the Head with the Heart

Tears come from the heart and not from the brain.
~ Leonardo da Vinci

Nassim Nicholas Taleb in his book Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder (Incerto) pointed out that the people who study happiness, as a group, tend to look like they are very miserable. We could extend this insight to almost any field. The “experts” understand something at a superficial intellectual level.  That’s as far as it goes. Their knowledge has not traveled into the heart. Their charts and graphs are unable to bridge the gap. They are unable to practice what they preach.

This may account for the fact that most of the breakthroughs in every field have come from regular people who enjoy experimenting on their own (for the sheer fun of it). It may be why only a relatively few companies have a conscious business model despite the fact that conscious businesses are more successful (by every measure) than their competitors.

If we want to move forward, we need to be able to not only talk about something, we need to be able to do it. This requires that we love what we are up to in the world (heart power).