We have some exciting updates to share with you! The Institute has added several very outstanding professionals to our team. 
 
Lauren Stidham is our Admissions & Administrative magic worker. She also runs a very successful coaching business called Blueprint to Bloom. With her intuitive coaching skills and background in education, it was a perfect fit to invite her to join our team as an instructor. We are very thrilled to have her! You can find her here: www.blueprinttobloom.com
 
Tamica Sears and Suzanne McFarlin have been hand-picked as lead trainers and supervisors for our newest graduate level program, the Leadership Coaching Specialization! We launched the pilot last year and are very excited to hold the next round in 2022. Both Tamica and Suzanne are a wealth of insights and wisdom in executive level best practices. You can find out more about each of them here: Leadership Coaching Specialization (LCS)
 
Michael Tucker has joined the team as well! Michael is a knowledgeable and insightful Executive and Team Coach. He is a former Captain in the United States Air Force, has a Master’s degree in Human Relations from the University of Oklahoma, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Executive & Professional Coaching from UT-Dallas. We are excited that he will be instructing throughout the CPIC program! You can find out more about him here: www.tuckercoaching.net/about
 
Carrie Doubts has been brought onboard as a second ICF trained PCC level assessor and Mentor Coach. Carrie is a warm-hearted mentor with a full-time coaching practice. We are very fortunate to have her join us! lifesnextchaptercoaching.com
 
Karen Yeung has joined us to help with our outreach and social media resources. Karen is a delightful and highly skilled virtual assistant, and we are thrilled to have her! www.kaysocials.co
 
You will see more about each of our outstanding new team members in the coming months! We will be featuring each them as we go. 
 
Happy Holiday Season!

The Power in Releasing Control 
by: Laurel Elders

Have you ever heard someone tell you, "Stop trying to control everything."  Or, "That person is a complete control freak."

Have you ever thought you were being controlled or manipulated by another?

Have you ever felt out of control?

Today, we are going to unpack the cost of control. The attempt to control is life draining. This article will help you connect with better strategies so that you can choose a life-enhancing strategy instead.

First, what is control?

Control is a noun and, according to Oxford Dictionary, is: "The power to influence or direct people behavior or the course of events."

Control is not a human virtue which we will introduce later. Control is a strategy the egoic-self devises to stay safe. Control at its worst turns into manipulation which is the ego's desperate attempt to remain safe.

First, it is best to understand that actual control is 1) impossible and 2) illusion based. While someone might be successful at manipulating others, there is always a cost involved.
These include:

• Trust
• Love
• Connection
• Respect

• Fulfillment

In essence, all of the beautiful virtues of life that leave us feeling safe and connected are pinched off by the machinations of the egoic-self.

The good news? There is a better way. To dispel the costs of control, we must first understand the human psyche and how the ego attempts to run the show.

There is you. Then there is fear-based you. Fear-based you splinters off in an attempt to remain emotionally safe. This is how the egoic-self forms. The ego is based on fear and the false premise that "I am separate."

In truth, while we may be physically separate from others and feel separation, we are not separate at all. We are connected. Spiritual teachers have been teaching this fact for centuries. Quantum physicists have backed this up by discovering that everything is energy and energy is interconnected.
This is the reason we say, "love hurts." When in reality, it is not love that hurts, but the absence of love that hurts. If we were not connected, the absence of love would bear no cost.

What is the alternative to control? What is on the other side?

Connection. Connection is the bridge from the vice of control to the virtue of connection.
How do we navigate from control to connection? After all, if it were evident, we would all be choosing something with benefits and dropping the behaviors with costs, right?
​
Let's break down the anatomy of what happens.

• First, a situation or phenomenon occurs. 
• Second, the brain determines if the phenomenon is safe or unsafe
  •     If safe, then all is well, and no need for alarm.
  •     If unsafe, then there is an alert that goes out.

When an alert goes out, two things happen. 

• We are alerted there is something we don't want
• The ego, attempting to keep us safe, launches into an evaluation of the situation. 

 
This becomes a story that includes a full-blown analysis of who, what, when, where, why, how, good, bad, right, wrong. The mind begins to spin and delivers a mess of false messengers. So naturally, we can see why the ego devised control as a strategy to remedy the chaos it produces.
 
The problem with egoic evaluations and the stories generated? They are riddled with illusions—false evidence appearing real. The body reacts emotionally to the ego's storyline, and then our evaluations feel very real. Thus, confirming that its assessment is indeed justified. 
 
And... this process solves nothing and keeps us in reactivity.
 
Masterful people do not live through stories. They lead life through vision. They lead life connected to themselves, the possibilities embedded within, and are therefore connected to others. 
 Let's break down the anatomy of what happens.

• A phenomenon occurs.
• The brain determines if it is safe/unsafe.
• If unsafe, the alert goes out.
• The masterful person stops here and notices, without judgment, "I feel off about this." They then ask, "what part do I want to play in this?" They begin with the end in mind, a vision. This stops the egoic mind from derailing into story land. 

When properly understood, fear is a great asset to have. It alerts us to what we don't want. The Sufi tradition invites us not to stop there. What we don't want is only half a message. What we do want is the other half of the message.  What we do want will never be found in fear. We have to move beyond the egoic extrapolations and into our hearts where our wholeness resides.
 
When we stay stuck in fear, it turns from asset to liability. It is just the messenger, never the truth. The truth of what happened does not define the truth of what is possible - unless we remain in fear. 
 
The masterful person responds by sifting through all of the virtues embedded as possibilities within them and answers the question. "In this situation, I'm choosing to be the possibility of …." and they fill in the blanks. They lead by vision. They lead by virtue not by vice. Virtues are within us all waiting to be tapped into. Therein lies your true potential. 
 
To recap: 
 
Fear fragments the mind leaving us in a state of disintegration. Fear fragments us off from possibility and takes us to the land of probability due to reactiveness that has costs attached. 
 
What is the good news? Illusions only last as long as we allow them to. Once they are brought to the surface of our awareness, they disappear. We can't fix what we don't see. As we see, so will we be. To this end, I invite you to step out of the story and into the power of your vision. This is living integrated through wholeness. 
 The next time a fear occurs, ask yourself:

• What does the fear tell me I do not want?
• Connect to what you do want in this situation.
• Ask: What do I want to be the possibility of here? 
• Move from fear to connecting to a new possibility.

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This Thanksgiving, we want to share our gratitude and appreciation with you. Without you, we would not be where we are today, and we're so grateful for all of your support and referrals throughout the year. Thank you for being someone who is part of the positive impact this world needs.
We hope you have a joyous holiday!

I hope you had an amazing weekend! 
 
This week, we are continuing our focus on gratitude and abundance. Earlier this month, we explored the neurology of gratitude. Today, we are sharing some easy and fruitful ways to take action with gratitude by expressing it. 
 
I remember being in my 20s and feeling too shy to share with a teacher of mine how much she had positively impacted my life. Years later, this teacher passed away, and I live with the regret of not saying anything to her and expressing how I felt.
 
I invite you to take action on your gratitude! Gratitude is like love. When it is shared, its value does not divide... it doubles. Allow gratitude to open the door to more opportunities and relationships in your life.

10 Ways to Express Gratitude
by: PsychCentral

"Philosophers and poets have long praised gratitude as one of the most desirable attitudes. Surely, each of us has much to be thankful for.
 
Why not express our gratitude?
 
It costs us nothing, yet yields countless benefits.
Looking for ways to show and acknowledge gratitude?
 
Here are 10 to try that are simple, quick and easy.

1. Say a kind word
The quickest, simplest and easiest way to demonstrate gratitude is to say thanks to another. If you don’t have a specific item to express thanks for, saying a few kind words is just as effective.
 
Kind words earnestly spoken are like healing balm to a troubled soul. They work equally well for those who are stressed, feel unappreciated, are lonely, ill, tired or just a bit anxious or depressed.
 
Besides, don’t you feel a little better when someone has a kind thing to say to you?"

Click to read more! 

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When the going gets tough, we have a choice. Stay in the tough or pivot. Gratitude, which is the essence of positive focus, is a light yet powerful way to pivot.
 
If you are upset with someone at work, can you find five things you like about them? If your teenager is driving you batty, can you reflect on what you do love about who they are? Shifting our perspective, shifts the experience. 

Today's resource is a light and friendly reminder to increase our gratitude and expand into more positive and enriching experiences.

I am grateful that you are reading this. To me, it shows you are a person who cares. Thank you for being here!

How to Practice Gratitude
by: Mindful Magazine

"Practicing gratitude can be a game-changer: it has far reaching effects, from improving our mental health to boosting our relationships with others. Living your life with gratitude helps you notice the little wins—like the bus showing up right on time, a stranger holding the door for you, or the sun shining through your window when you wake up in the morning. Each of these small moments strings together to create a web of well-being that, over time, strengthens your ability to notice the good.

Building your capacity for gratitude isn’t difficult. It just takes practice. The more you can bring your attention to that which you feel grateful for, the more you’ll notice to feel grateful for!

1. Start by observing. Notice the thank yous you say. Just how much of a habitual response is it? Is it a hasty aside, an afterthought? How are you feeling when you express thanks in small transactions? Stressed, uptight, a little absent-minded? Do a quick scan of your body—are you already physically moving on to your next interaction?
2. Pick one interaction a day. When your instinct to say “thanks” arises, stop for a moment and take note. Can you name what you feel grateful for, even beyond the gesture that’s been extended? Then say thank you."

Click here to read more!

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​

Happy November! This month, we are focusing on gratitude and abundance. When life feels hard, it can be easy to forget that blessings and virtues are equally present. 
 
We are kicking off this month's focus by taking a look at some research on how the brain and gratitude are connected.
 
How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain
By: Joshua Brown & Joel Wong

"With the rise of managed health care, which emphasizes cost-efficiency and brevity, mental health professionals have had to confront this burning question: How can they help clients derive the greatest possible benefit from treatment in the shortest amount of time?

Recent evidence suggests that a promising approach is to complement psychological counseling with additional activities that are not too taxing for clients but yield high results. In our own research, we have zeroed in on one such activity: the practice of gratitude. Indeed, many studies over the past decade have found that people who consciously count their blessings tend to be happier and less depressed. 

The problem is that most research studies on gratitude have been conducted with well-functioning people. Is gratitude beneficial for people who struggle with mental health concerns? And, if so, how?

We set out to address these questions in a recent research study involving nearly 300 adults, mostly college students who were seeking mental health counseling at a university. We recruited these participants just before they began their first session of counseling, and, on average, they reported clinically low levels of mental health at the time. The majority of people seeking counseling services at this university in general struggled with issues related to depression and anxiety.

We randomly assigned our study participants into three groups. Although all three groups received counseling services, the first group was also instructed to write one letter of gratitude to another person each week for three weeks, whereas the second group was asked to write about their deepest thoughts and feelings about negative experiences. The third group did not do any writing activity.

What did we find?"

​Click Here to Read More! 

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I grew up struggling with anxiety and depression. I looked at the world around me... the human catastrophes: public shootings, wars, sex trafficking, drugs, racism, sexism, unnecessary environmental damage, and more. These all weighed so heavy on my heart. It got to the point where I couldn’t watch the news without feeling the weight of the world encase me like a brick. I felt hopeless and as if humanity was done for.

Other people I talked to felt similarly. We all played a tiny little part, like recycling or taking bags to the grocery store. Beyond that, the problems felt too big for any of us to fix. After all, working full time and having kids or having to work a second job to make ends meet, leaves you with little extra reserves to take on a cause.

I would go through seasons of fighting off the helplessness which led to bouts of depression. In my adulthood, I had felt the call to help people lead life through their excellence. As a coach, I felt rewarded and fulfilled. I was at least a part of the positive aspects of life, and this felt elevating.

Yet, there was a part of me that wanted to help leave a larger-scale positive impact. But when I looked at my options, I would go back to feeling helpless. 

I would tell myself, “Too big of a fix is needed. There is little I can do.” My story of helplessness grew. “Even if I became a huge activist, it is an uphill battle, and most people fight change. It is too hard.”
​
At this point in my life, I had experienced glimpses of an inner guide. There were moments in my life I felt an inner prompting to do something or look at something differently. Those inner promptings led to really powerful, life-enhancing pivots for me. Yet, when it came to the topic of humanity, the brick casing of my gloom and sorrow seemed impenetrable.

One day I was doing my morning ritual of gi gong, prayer, and meditation. What came to me that day lifted my soul. I heard an inner-knowing. What did it say to me? “You do not need to fight against anything. Teach them what is in their hearts. That is the root of all healing.”

This sense of peace fell over me. The brick faded immediately. I had an opening. One that I could do. I could be a part of a larger positive impact. I realized I didn’t have to fight to get there! I experienced firsthand how possibilities exist within us when we quiet the ego fears long enough to listen. Within us, the bigger picture of our lives is waiting to unfold.

As a coach, I learned that we all have an inner compass within us. We might access it differently, but it is within each human being. Mine comes through prompts and intuitive messages. How does your compass show up?

A Course in Miracles teaches us that the fears and defenses of the ego are loud, obnoxious, and will drown out our inner wisdom. When we get at peace and put the ego aside, our internal compass illuminates our essence, wisdom, and heart. All of these virtues are quietly waiting for us to whisper hello.

“You have taught [yourself] what you are. You have yet to allow what you are to teach you.” - A Course in Miracles

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Welcome to part two of moving from fearing to flourishing!

One way we can become blocked from our potentials is by unconscious fears that stem from beliefs we've accumulated throughout our lifetime. How do we bring what is hidden beneath to the surface to dispel the limitation?
 
Today's perspective offers an approach you can use with yourself or selectively with clients. This is just one example of how we can pull the weeds of the past and plant new seeds for our future.

How to Fully Bloom and Swiftly Identify What is Holding You Back
By: Laurel Elders

When I was between 4-6 years old, I had a phobia.  Although I do not remember my exact age, I do remember being really freaked out by any kind of deep water. 
 
I grew up nestled in a small valley outside of Durango, Colorado.  It felt like a safe bosom in the country.  In my backyard, there was a stream trickling down from the mountain that was filled with snails and water bugs.  I loved the stream because it was meek, simple, and gentle.
 
My fear of deep water eventually led to swimming lessons which were an attempt to lessen my fright.   After all, we had the Animas River in town, and my family loved to camp at the beautiful nearby lakes; Lemon Dam, Vallecito, and Haviland.
 
I remember the day of my first swimming lesson very clearly.

Click Here to Read More!
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Happy October! Fall is finally here!
 
This month, we are focusing on moving out of states of fear and into states of flourishing. We will share perspectives on shifting from states of mind into enhanced states of being.
 
Fear is something I've dealt with throughout my life. Sometimes it shows up as anxiety. Other times, it shows up as self-doubt. However it shows up for you, I invite you to consider how fear is just half of a message. It reflects to us what we don't want. Our heart, or higher-self, has the full message that reflects what we do want. 
 
As Halloween approaches, I wish you happy fear-busting this month!

Fear and Motivation

There are two types of fears we face: physical and emotional.  Physical fears are connected to the safety of our physical body and health.  Emotional fears are also connected to our safety, but our emotional safety.

Emotional fears are the ones that limit our potential.  We help our clients examine and become aware of these fears, so they can remove inner-obstacles to their success.

Click Here to Continue Reading

As we wrap up our series on Living Through Your Highest Self, we want to offer you a structured process to help you and your clients live more aligned and empowered. Having a deeper understanding of your needs, best self care practices, and core values, can allow you to tap into your highest self.
 
However, getting to this point of understanding usually involves a self-discovery process. If the one doesn't know where to start in this process, it can be helpful to follow a structured framework. An organized and thought-provoking approach can help it feel less daunting and complex.
 
The READi Model is comprised of five phases – Reflect, Explore, Accept, Define and inspect. It is a wonderful framework to use with clients who are ready to set goals that are in alignment with their highest self. Each phase paired with powerful coaching questions can help clients process information and generate insights about how they want to show up in this world.

What's at the Core?
By: Saimantee Bhattacharya
​
"Every individual experiences a phase in life when there is a lot of unrest in the mind as a result of an ongoing internal inquiry questioning our choices in life, meaning of success and happiness, life goals and purpose. This “noise” is perfectly normal and it only indicates that it’s time to get to the core to find some real answers! 

They say to love someone else, you first need to love yourself. So, it makes sense to get to know the person you spend the most time with – yourself! We think we know ourselves well, but then there are situations when our own behavior surprises us and we fail to comprehend why we did what we did. Sometimes everything seems to be going as planned, but there is a constant feeling of “something missing,” making a question pop into our head: am I chasing the right set of goals?

There are numerous such examples when a person feels something is lacking, but can’t quite pin-point what’s not right or what’s missing. This can happen when people are pursuing societal goals (goals aligned to social expectations), or when they are following a life path that has worked very well for someone else they know. Hence, they get confused when they do not feel happy achieving such goals. 
Any of the above scenarios can be a trigger to embark upon the journey of self-discovery. It can be a challenging and complex process to start with and that’s where a coach can help."

Click Here to Continue Reading

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Today, as we continue our series on Living Through Your Highest Self, we will focus on how a morning routine can help you rise above daily stress, so that you can live more aligned and empowered.
 
We all know how hard it is to operate out of your Highest Self when you are anxious, overwhelmed, or exhausted! When navigating times of stress, it is important to establish a morning routine that fills you up.
 
A morning routine is especially helpful on the days we wake up feeling not so great. Maybe we had a bad dream or tossed and turned all night. It makes a big difference when you start the day off in the right mindset. A positive morning routine ensures that you set your day up for success.

We all have our own unique success formula. So when you create your morning empowerment ritual, be sure to consider what will work best for you. Today's resource will give you some tips and suggestions for how to create an intentional morning routine. Enjoy!
 
 PS- Remember to join us live on Facebook every Friday at 11:30 AM (AZ Time) for Fresh Perspectives Friday! We will be offering tips and tools to inspire you and end your week on a positive note!

​How to Create an Intentional Morning Routine
By: Balance Through Simplicity

 "Henry Ward Beecher once said that the first hour of the morning is the rudder for your day. I know in my own life that when I’ve had a good start to the morning, the positive vibes continue into the rest of the day. Putting it another way, when I’m running late, stressed out and getting shouty with the kids, I’m pretty grumpy when I arrive into work and not my usual, productive and motivated self. Not the way I’d like to enjoy my intentional day, either at home or at work!

How do you feel about your own mornings? Do they support you to have a positive, upbeat kind of day or are they all a bit of a blur if you’re rushing to get yourself, your kids and even possibly the dog, ready for the day ahead?

If your morning routine needs a little overhaul, here are some tips for creating an intentional morning routine."
​
Click Here to Continue Reading

This month, we will work through a 3-part series called Living Through Your Highest Self.  Our Highest Self is the part that holds our inner wisdom and serves as our life compass.
 
Together, we will explore how to recognize your highest self and face your false self, so you and your clients can live in your full potential and truth.
 
Also, join us live on Facebook every Friday at 11:30 AM (AZ Time) for Fresh Perspectives Friday! We will be offering tips and tools to inspire you and end your week on a positive note!

Higher Self- 6 Ways to Help You Hear It
By: Cindy Wigglesworth
Author, SQ21: The 21 Skills of Spiritual Intelligence
 
"There is no right or wrong way to experience your Higher Self, but it is important to pay attention until you are sure you can discern it. Then you can learn to listen to it. This level of attainment also shifts our relationship to the ego.

 If the essence of Spiritual Intelligence (SQ) is, as I believe, shifting from ego to Higher Self, then it's pretty important to find that nobler inner voice. There are many synonyms for Higher Self: Inner Wisdom, Spirit Self, Soul, Essence, Eternal Self, Authentic Self, Atman, Buddha nature, the Divine within, the Tao within, and so on. But what does it sound like? How can I know it?

Sometimes the voice of the Higher Self may feel unfamiliar to us -- so much so that it is hard to relate to it as "self." But I would argue it is actually our truest nature. You can find it by noticing its qualities.

Your Higher Self is probably speaking if you notice any of these six characteristics:
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 Click Here to Continue Reading

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Today's topic is self-sabotage. It is not a topic I've come across often, but it is one I have had to overcome in my own life and help my clients face regularly.
 
Before I got into coaching, I was a personal trainer. I learned quickly that most of my clients already knew exactly what to eat/not eat, how much to exercise, and what habits to avoid. Did they choose those things? Not until their relationship and emotional attachment to what was sabotaging them shifted. I could give them plans until I was blue in the face, but could I create change? 
 
Coaching invites change. Coaching also anchors in the change by engaging the neuroplasticity we have in the brain.
 
I know that self-sabotage is a big topic for folks. We intentionally added training to our program to address this. Our Director of Training teaches a powerful coaching technique for unlocking self-fulfilling prophecies in her two parts series the Anatomy of Peace. 
 
Other coaching approaches we teach to eliminate self-sabotage are Enneagram Transformations, the Map to Mastery, and the Outcome Model. As you can see, there are many paths to client empowerment.

Today's resource is a simple list of typical self-sabotage manifestations. You can use it to see if any of these challenge you, or you can use the list with clients to see if they experience any of these blocks. 

Overcoming Self-Sabotage
By: Haley Osborne

"It may be hard to believe, but many respectable and self-confident people have experienced times when the conscious and subconscious levels of their mind ran counter to each other. This contradiction is called self-sabotage, which hinders a person from reaching their goals and making a successful career.  

Many do not view internal resistance on the subconscious level as a difficulty, indicating that they may be unaware of this challenge. The conscious mind signals to you that there’s a problem to overcome, but you ignore it because you believe in yourself. If you are not sure whether it’s happening in your life, analyze the following manifestations, and explore solutions to the widespread self-sabotage among X, Z and Y generations."

Click Here to Read the Self-Sabotage Manifestations

This month, we are exploring Personal Power to its fullest! Last week, we examined unconscious power leaks and how to bring them into our conscious awareness. 
 
This week, we are looking at what to do with power leaks and how to create power patches. Now that you’ve identified a leak, it is time to patch it up!

Part 3: Power Patches
Personal power is best thought of like a boat. If we want to get far in life, it is imperative to keep our power intact. A leak is like water on-boarding, and we have to attend to it. The bigger the leak, the quicker the boat sinks. 

A power patch is what it takes to stop the leak, ideally patching it up for good!
The first step is to identify immediate leaks. These are felt in our behaviors resulting from not having boundaries. Not having boundaries puts us out of alignment with our power because we fragment away from our values. 

The next step is to come up with a solution. Sometimes the solution is obvious. For example: If I’m staying up too late each night, and I’m always exhausted at work.... I can create a plan to get to bed earlier. 
Other solutions might be bigger than us. If I have an underlying mindset pitfall around forgiveness, then I might avoid forgiving and remain in my power leak.

In essence, locate the solution. If you find that you can’t swiftly shift into the solution, then it is an excellent time to take your new self-awareness into coaching to elevate your mindset or into counseling if the power leak stems from trauma. 

Patching up power leaks is an inside job. It is highly rewarding and helps ensure the direction we take our life is the direction we end up at. 

Living fully aligned in our power also feels great! Living with our personal power intact gives us the experience of a rock solid confidence. It also helps us understand how/when to be vulnerable and when to set boundaries. Challenges become much, much easier to face. 

We all know that in life it is not a matter of “if” challenges will arise. It is a matter of “when” they will arise, and are we prepared for them?

There are so many wonderful side effects of living with our personal power intact! Happy power patching!

In August, we are focusing on Personal Power. Last week, we defined Personal Power and explored the variety of ways that power leaks can get in the way of our success. These are the more conscious ways. But what about the unconscious ways? 
 
This week, we are looking at the unconscious ways we give our power away. You will learn how to locate them so you can patch them up. These are good to be aware of if we wish to elevate our potential and understand how to elevate others!

PART 2: Mindset Power Leaks
There are conscious and unconscious power leaks. The conscious ones we can "catch ourselves in the act” like my mentor Sandy Hogan used to put it. The unconscious ones are our default patterned ways of being. These are harder to catch because we aren’t yet aware they exist.
 
The good news is that we have the capacity to bring the unconscious to the conscious! 
Below is a list of unconscious patterned ways of thinking that end up as power leaks.  

• Justification
• Assumption
• Catastrophizing
• Generalizing
• Minimizing
• Self-Depreciating
• Projecting
• Exaggerating
• Pessimism
• Rigidity / Absolutes
• Black & White Reasoning 

Notice in your thinking if any of these are showing up and when. We can catch our blind spots as we look at when these patterns most come to life. For example, under stress I default to assumptions. Now I’m aware of this pattern. Bringing the unconscious way of being into the conscious, I know to look for assumptive thinking under stress and rein it in. This saves me mounds of additional stress caused by limiting thinking.

As a matter of fact, all of these pitfalls are limited in their thinking and therefore become the limitations that bind us. 

It is a substantial list, so I recommend spending one day at a time observing and watching out for one of these patterns. Notice. Catch yourself in the act. 

Since we’ve spent the last two weeks noticing and locating power leaks, next week we will explore what to do with them and how to patch them up.

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This month, we are going to focus on Personal Power! We will work through a 3-part series called Taking Your Power Back. 
 
Together, we will cover how to locate power leaks, both conscious and unconscious, and then how to create power patches so that you can better support your own success and/or help elevate your client’s success.


PART ONE: What is Personal Power?

When we have a power leak, we can definitely feel it. We may end up burning the candle at both ends and exhausted.  Or we may feel emotionally drained after facing a problem. 
Power leaks impact our relationships to ourselves and our relationships to others. They can also impact our discipline, follow through, and overall commitments.
 
Defining the consequence of power leaks is much easier than defining what it is. Today, we are going to unpack 'what' is personal power in Part 1 of our Personal Power series.
 
This is an important topic because when our power is intact, we live aligned with our values. We do this by establishing good internal boundaries that help inform our external boundaries. 
 
Here is the definition we use in coaching: 

- Personal power: The ability to form healthy internal boundaries that allow us to live fully aligned with our values and truth within the external world.
- Power leaks: Ways we drain our energy by lacking healthy internal boundaries which impacts our external boundaries. 
 
We can’t fix what we don’t see, so it is imperative to become self-aware of our personal power. When we become self-aware, we can then patch the leaks up. When our power is intact, we have more time and energy to nourish what we love and value in our life. 
 
How do you give your power away? 
 
Below is a short list of common power leak symptoms to look for:

• Loose or unhealthy boundaries with self
• Loose or unhealthy boundaries with others
• Taking responsibility for another’s feelings
• Inauthenticity or camouflaging feelings and needs 
• External motivations driving actions
• Not grieving as needed
• Guilt, shame, and envy
• Telling ourselves victim stories of “I can’t”
• Seeking self-worth externally
• Rigidity / Unwillingness
• Over-giving / Overdoing / Over-committing
• Underdoing / Under-committing
• Fighting against 'what is'

Which of these do you catch yourself in the act of doing? What else might you add to this list? These are all conscious ways we can give our power away. Next week, in Part 2, we are going to explore the unconscious ways we give our power away. Those are harder to catch. However, we have a formula to help you laser in... so stay tuned!

What does it mean to you when I say, “Follow your heart!”? 
 
The concept of the heart has been passed down for ages in a variety of disparate cultures. Think about the everyday language we use to capture its meaning. To name a few:

“Home is where the heart is.”
“Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”
“My heart is broken.”
“Let’s get to the heart of the matter.”
“My heart hurts over this.”
“Follow your heart!”
“I am grateful you took this to heart.”

In coaching, the heart encapsulates the essence of our life’s desires and is a doorway to our highest-self. As we help our clients sense into their heart, new wisdom begins to start. 
 
The Sufi traditions regard the heart as the soul carrying a blueprint of all human virtue. 
 
Scientists have been studying the power of the heart and found that the heart is the primary intuition center, somehow inexplicably able to respond faster than the other parts of the body to stimuli even before the stimuli was chosen. 
 
In masterful coaching, we don’t always have to understand why something is able to be gained from its intelligence. We don’t have to know why or how the heart’s intuition shows up to harness the power of its intuition. 
 
Today’s resource is all about the heart. If you understand the role of the human heart, you will play an empowering part in your client’s lives!

​The Power of the Heart is a thought-provoking documentary that bridges science and quantum physics with real life experiences. It features great thinkers like Maya Angelo, Immaculée Ilibagiza, Paulo Coelho, Deepak Chopra, Mark Nepo, Eckhart Tolle, Gary Zukav and more. 
 
This is one movie to get you thinking in new, more expanded ways about the intelligence embedded within the human heart. You can rent it and stream online.
 
Click Here to Enjoy!

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What inspired the upgraded name? 
Over a year ago, Laurel was reading Simon Sinek’s “Start with WHY”. This book unlocked a lot of new possibilities in her thinking. One of which inspired her deeply.

Do you know the brand Apple? The company that makes iPhones, iPads, iPods, watches, and computers? Apple used to be called Apple Computers, until Steve Jobs realized their WHY. 
The company's mission was so much larger than just computers. 

Apple Computers thus transitioned to Apple. This transition enabled them to expand into their bigger mission.

As many of you know, we are on a bigger mission as well!

Our trademark Integrative Intelligence® is at the heart of our mission to elevate human potential and leave a positive footprint through integratively intelligent practices. 

To this aim, and in support of our full mission, we are formally transitioning to the Institute for Integrative Intelligence®.  

We are still proud to continue to offer our ICF Accredited programs like the CPIC and Certification in Executive & Leadership Coaching. We are still proud to deliver post graduate support and business development coaching.

Will the Institute have a new mission?
Same mission, but our vision is expanding to serve all those who are invested in living through their highest potential. 
 
Will the programs have different accreditation?
All program accreditations remain 100% the same. 
 
What is the timeline for the name change?
The new company name has been officially established. You will see the updated name reflected on future materials, social media channels, and our website over the next two months.
 
I’m a current or incoming student, is my program changing?
All ICF accreditations, standards, and class teachings will remain the same and consistent with what you signed up to receive. The current updates and upgrades the Institute is making will only expand to new classes open to the general public and community leaders. 
 
I’m an alumnus, how does this affect me?
The name update does not impact your credential or training. We will reissue CPIC certification emblems to all CPIC graduates that reflect the new company name. You may use the new ones or keep the old ones. Both versions are equally valid. Additionally, all alumni of the Institute will receive a free e-copy of the new Integrative Intelligence coaching manual coming out in Fall.
 

In masterful coaching, we help our clients make powerful distinctions so that they can hone their own mastery. Distinctions help us ground into and face what is real and avoid the pitfalls of unconscious assumptions.

Coaching Case Study:
I had a client who was locked into an assumptive pattern. He was assuming that his family had negative motivations against him. Through coaching, he was able to see the trees from the forest. He landed on the distinction that "hurting people, hurt people."
 
He was able to clarify that his family's lack of emotional intelligence wasn't the truth of who they are, it is just where they were at (current state) and where they came from (family history of being emotionally disconnected).
 
This distinction helped him drop the excess stories he harbored that kept him in reactivity. He was then able to open his heart to his family and drop unconscious expectations of them that kept him feeling disappointed and hurt.
 
Today's resource helps us create another powerful distinction between confidence and arrogance.

Confident or Arrogant? How to Tell the Difference and Why it Matters

Have you ever felt like you just don't have time for mindfulness? I have! I resisted the idea I had about sitting in meditation for 30-45 min a day when I could be using that time to write or go for a jog. I later learned mindfulness was not just meditation. It is so much more!

Integrative Intelligence® teaches us that there is wisdom in integrating health into our lives, our thinking, and our habitual ways of showing up.

Mindfulness is a key ticket. It is the inception point to self-awareness, intuition, and a calmer nervous system. Like coaching, mindfulness can become a way of being.

For example, I used to loathe doing chores. They felt like one more thing on my to-do list. As a mother of 3, I honestly dreaded them. 
 
After attending a meditation retreat with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, I was open to mindfulness being much more than a timed meditation. This training opened my eyes to embodied ways of being.

I started relating mindfulness techniques to laundry, sweeping, and dishes. I used them as a "break" to my work day. I began enjoying "cleaning" and began to equate it to "clearing". I mindfully cleared my space and felt more peace.

Applying mindfulness to chores also allowed me to get up and move my physical energy. If I were coaching, or teaching, or writing, it was all done at a desk. The embodied practice of appreciating movement was a reset for my mind and body.

This is my success journey with integrating mindfulness into my life. As true to coaching, everyone has their own success formula, and I hope today's resource helps you hone your relationship to mindfulness even further.

CLICK HERE>> How Mindfulness Can Improve Your Wellbeing in Challenging Times By: Kate Greenslade

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Today's resource is for those seeking to move into team coaching. Coaching teams, like learning the ins and outs of coaching leaders, can be highly impactful and rewarding work. It can also be more challenging work because the dynamics are different than one-to-one personal coaching.
 
My son's football coach said, "There is no problem education cannot solve." I fully agree. Getting the proper education and guidance so you don't learn the hard way is key to success!
 
"Founder of OD Mantra Latha Emmatty Gupta, ACC, shares excellent insight on team coaching and its benefits. “Team Coaching enables teams to perform and build capability by learning to work together and manage their interdependencies well while staying focused on the expectations of their leaders, groups, businesses, clients and stakeholders at large."

 Click Here to Read More!

I also personally wanted to announce that our post-graduate Leadership Coaching Specialization is starting back up next week, and we have partnered with a third party funder to provide funding options. True to the IICT nature, we are offering an internship component to this training like no other program out there!
 
If you are called to coach leaders,  we'll help you get your application in! This certification track is only offered once a year. We invite you to up-level your coaching impact with us!

I don't know about you, but I initially resisted learning social media. Then, I realized it was like everything else, learning even the basics was well worth it. I know one consistent frustration I hear about regularly from coaches who are new to running a business, is the need to learn how to market themselves as a coach.
 
Being successful as a coach means learning both coaching skills and marketing approaches.
Coaching Skills + Effective Marketing = Successful Coaching Practice

To this aim, we are so excited to now offer three education-based supports called "Ready? Set. Launch!"

Marketing as a coach is different than other professions, so it is key to go beyond learning marketing basics to learning the very specific approaches that are working wonders for coaches globally.

For those just needing the basics, today's resource is a helpful overview of social media do's and don'ts for coaches.

Regardless of where you are at in growing a successful client base, there are solid options to support your success. 
 
The Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media for Coaches  - By: Ajit Nawalkha
 
"Twenty years ago, having your own website was enough to “be online.”  
But the rules have changed. Today, if you aren’t on social media, you’re not visible enough.
 
And understanding social media is no easy feat. There are so many platforms, and each one works differently, so how do you learn these platforms and grow your coaching business without getting completely overwhelmed? 
 
Here are some key learnings I’ve discovered on my own social media journey, so you can start yours with more clarity and get results faster."
 
 Click Here to Read More!
 
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