The retirement question
Something about reading The New York Times story on Si Newhouse last Sunday sparked me to write about retirement in today’s Game Plan column — Thinking Twice About Retirement. I have, in my lifetime, drawn a paycheck from Newhouse (when I worked for The Trenton Times) and from Rupert Murdoch (FOXSports.com and FOXBusiness.com) and I don’t see either of these men slowing down any time soon.
I love the idea of working until I’m good and ready not to. There is joy and passion in that.
Pinch me
Three dynamic life coaching sessions today. Just an amazing feeling to come away knowing clients are making progress in tangible ways.
It’s heady, really.
Positive approach
Just started reading Authentic Happiness by Martin E. P. Seligman, Ph.D. He had me at this:
For every one hundred journal articles [in the field of psychology] on sadness, there is only one on happiness.
Al fresco
Just had an impromptu glass of wine with a friend who unexpectedly came through town. Outdoor table at the waterfront. Fabulous breeze. The Manhattan skyline at dusk. Good conversation.
Perfect end to a good weekend.
Flower power
I bought a vibrant red begonia and put it on the window sill in front of my desk.
Made my day of soulful creative writing all the prettier.
Give it a whirl
Sometimes I wonder how I manage to do things like put TLC’s “Rock the Reception,” Gloria Steinem, Charles Darwin, SPANX, and Dr. Michael DeBakey in one column, but that’s what came out when I started thinking about the merits of making a fool of yourself. Go figure.
Go Ahead, Make a Fool of Yourself
Go ahead, give it a whirl.
Poetry in motion
I love when friends and family send me things they know will ring my bell, so to speak. This one comes courtesy of dear Erin.
From an article about Kay Ryan the new Poet Laureate:
“In 1976 she finally realized that she could not escape the poet inside her. She had decided to ride a bicycle from California to Virginia in 80 days. Riding along the Hoosier Pass in the Colorado Rockies, she said, she felt an incredible opening up, “an absence of boundaries, an absence of edges, as if my brain could do anything.”
“Finally I can ask the question: Can I be a writer?” The answer came back as a question, she said. “Do you like it?”
“So it was quite simple for me. I went home and began to work.”
Public recognition came slowly. It took 20 years for her to receive acclaim for her work. “All of us want instant success,” she said. “I’m glad I was on a sort of slow drip.”
What would [Jesus, Oprah, The Universe] Do?
When I read earlier this week about a Christian movement against Oprah because she “dares” to call herself a Christian when she believes there is more than one way to God, I was disheartened. But when I watched a YouTube video about it, my emotions went to a completely different place. As one friend emailed me when he watched it, “There are no words.”
And so I had my say (yes, in words) in today’s Game Plan column on FOXBusiness.com called Your Spiritual Subscription is Subject to Change. The piece is about my life coaching clients, Oprah Winfrey, Eckhart Tolle, Marianne Williamson and the millions of people who have open spirituality, who enjoy exploring spirit, who like to live in a Universal Flow.
Life is good.
Local press for Mirna
The Hoboken Reporter, our local weekly here, published a terrific piece on Mirna Zapata this week. Timothy J. Carroll wrote the article and really captured her story. Check it out:
Summer Newsletter 2008
Greetings All –
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in 2008 (so far!) is to ask for what I want. Sounds simple, right? But you’d be surprised how many people don’t do that and then wonder why people aren’t reading their minds.
It’s in that spirit that I’m dedicating the bulk of this newsletter to my life coaching client, Mirna Zapata, and asking you to click on the link below to vote for her in the USA World Showcase that took place in Las Vegas over Memorial Day weekend. Mirna recently won a first-place trophy in the Solo Female, Potential Performer category in this talent competition. Now, all the trophy winners are eligible for the $100,000 grand prize and it’s awarded by online voting.
You may recall from previous newsletters that Mirna was living in a homeless shelter when I met her and has since begun her life anew. I have heard her sing — she’s good! On June 18, I told Mirna’s story in my Game Plan column on FOXBusiness.com in a piece called Homeless to Home Free and the response was terrific.
NOW FOR THE VOTING:
http://www.usatalentcompetition.com/vote/vote.htm
When you click on the link above you’ll see Mirna is listed under ‘Show 2′ and the first round of voting for her takes place from July 13-16. You can vote multiple times and you’ll see that it asks you to confirm your vote by clicking a second time. As is laid out on the page, each week the finalists narrow down until the voting concludes August 20. (IMPORTANT NOTE: The finalists need to recruit votes on an ongoing basis in order to win).
Please do a good thing, vote, and forward this to lots of people so they, too, can cast a vote for Mirna. If you would like a weekly reminder from me to vote each of the next five weeks, I’d be happy to send an email to give you a nudge. Just email me with that request and I’ll create a list.
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MORE SCOOP …
… For detailed information on how to best ask for what you want, check out the classic book The Aladdin Factor by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen.
… Writing Game Plan continues to be a blast. Read my take on the Sex and the City movie, the recent Rush Limbaugh piece in The New York Times Magazine, or checking in on lessons learned at the halfway point of 2008.
… There’s still plenty of time to make 2008 the year you start living. I’m currently taking new clients, so drop me a line and we’ll put a plan in place that’ll rock your world.
