My fascination with the Gratefulness.org site continues. Today I explored the Labyrinth and enjoyed the option to be guided through the meditation instead of at my own pace. What a wonderful place to visit and available where ever you have access to the Internet. However, I think the only way I will remember to visit the site at work will be to make it my homepage!

Funny thing is… I’ve been to this website before, but this time it had more of an impact. I liked it enough to bookmark it, but then forgot about it. I guess I’m seeing it with new eyes.

One of the goals I’ve had for my vacation has been to spend some time focused on the Career Clarity program I signed up for in honor of my 40th birthday (Yes, I’m still milking the “turning 40″ thing. I’ll let you know when I’m done.)

I have spent some time working on the program but I have also been reading The Renaissance Soul which at the moment has been getting more of my attention. It has been a real awakening for me to realize that it’s OK to have the never ending list of interests that I have. All these years I’ve been trying to find that one thing to devote the rest of my life to doing. I have been embarrassed by my tendency to constantly find some new direction to go in career wise. Most recently I have felt stalled – afraid to move forward and make another “mistake.” Realizing that there are other people like me and that being successful doesn’t mean changing but instead embracing my natural tendencies has been quite a shock. A good one of course. It’s amazing how easily we can view our strengths as our weaknesses.

I’m going to work on blending the two career coaching approaches and have already begun to make use of my new insights!

I decided to stop mentally spinning around over career and education goals. It hit me yesterday after a conversation with someone I admire that I need to invest in some guidance in identifying and pursuing the best path for me. As a birthday present to myself (with some birthday $$ from Mom and Dad), I signed up for Carol McClelland’s Career Clarity program. It didn’t take me long to figure out where to go because I’ve been receiving her email newsletters ever since I read her book The Seasons of Change. I would look at the program from time to time but always hesitated to spend the money on it. Yesterday, I realized the short-sidedness of this since making good choices about my career and education will impact my financial health, happiness and overall wellness. It’s a small investment really, especially if you do the basic online program. Adding the individual or group coaching can be a significant cost, but I can choose to add it anytime if I decide it is a good idea. I plan to start off on my own and see how it goes. Summer will be a great time to do this because I’m not taking any classes. It’s a self-paced program so there is no pressure.

I’m feeling really good about the decision. Being able to better visualize and articulate my career goals will help me in my current job as well as in any decisions I make about my future.

Self-care is part of the web of your life and is affected by any stress you are experiencing. Work is usually the primary source of stress for me. When the stress volume rises, I start to miss some of my self-care goals. It often starts with not sleeping well and starting the day tired. Next thing you know I haven’t had that good breakfast. I’m running out the door with an energy bar if I’m lucky. And then add skipping my morning yoga. I start my day frazzled and end up working through lunch. Uh, oh… there went my mid-day walk. I barely make it through the afternoon and work into the evening. I get home and collapse in front of the computer where I look for some modern day stress relief. Web surfing take me away!

Stress seems to start the spiral but it becomes a self-perpetuating downward trend. Once I am being sucked down into the vortex, it is hard to remind myself of how my good habits made me feel. How eating a good breakfast and doing yoga helped me feel so much more resilient. How the mid-day walk gave me a little boost of energy. Luckily I have my weekly Pilates session as a touchstone. When all else has fallen away, I still go to my weekly session. There I am reminded of how good my body can feel. Not necessarily during the session, which can be so hard. But afterwards, my body feels restored to a more healthy state of being. It loves to move – to stretch and to flex. It wants me to remember how good taking care of it feels.

Another week. Another chance to start again and start the spiral back upward.

It’s been a super busy period (with sore arms) and it has gone by so fast. I can’t believe how long it been since I last posted. I managed to keep up my goals until two days ago. The last two days went by with no walk or yoga or anything. I guess part of it is that my back has been feeling better thanks to the chiropractor. Pain is a great reminder to take better care of yourself.

So this is going to have to be a self-pep talk post. I’m not going to let it get me discouraged. I’m just going to focus on today. I’m going to visualize how much I want to go for a walk so I can’t forget to do it!