Insights for the Savvy

Issue #28

December 3, 2004

Claudette Rowley
MetaVoice Coaching & Consulting

In This Issue...

• Note from Claudette

• Here's What You Need to Know

• ** Insight of the Month **: Problems and Paths

• Now It's Your Turn

• Quotes from Different Voices

Dear Friends,

I hope that this holiday season finds you well, and looking forward to the new year ahead! December is great time to take stock and ask yourself the following questions:

- What have I learned this year?
- How have I grown personally and professionally?
- How can I incorporate what I’ve learned into the choices I
make in 2005?
- What are my top five wishes for the coming year?

This month’s insight puts a different spin on how we view problems. I’ve found that some of the richest opportunities in my life have emerged out something I’ve considered to be a “problem.”

Wherever you are in this beautiful world, my best to you for a joyous holiday season!

Claudette

Here's What You Need To Know

• If you are at a crossroads or looking for a new direction, now is the time to schedule your *intuitive consultation*! Please visit http://www.metavoice.org/consultations for more information and e-mail claudette@metavoice.org to schedule a session.
• Is your organization or professional association looking for a speaker? I'm currently booking speaking engagements for 2005. For more information, go to http://www.metavoice.org/presentation.
• Order your copy of A Guide to Getting It: A Clear, Compelling Vision today! Click here for more information and to order http://www.metavoice.org/book

Insight of the Month

Problems and Paths

“What if it’s not a problem but a path?” A client recently posed this valuable question during a coaching session. What IF those situations, circumstances or people we view as problems are actually directing us down a certain path?

For many of us, problems are viewed as negative or just plain bad – something to be avoided, and at the very least, solved as
quickly as possible.

What happens if we change the lens through which we look at a problem? What new possibilities emerge? A problem opens into a path when we:
-remove judgment that the situation should be different than it is.
-notice how we’re resisting the problem itself.
-look for the opportunities in it.
-examine it more closely for messages, signs or insights.
-listen to our intuition.

What may seem like an obstacle becomes a gateway to understanding what we want, what we don’t, and the beliefs about ourselves and the world that get in our way.

One of my clients, Sylvia, had an opportunity to accept a job offer in Europe. After thoughtful consideration, she decided that this particular job wasn’t the right one for her or for her family. However, what started out feeling like a problem morphed into a path. Through the experience of deciding whether this was the right opportunity for her, Sylvia realized how important living and working in Europe is to her. Now that she knows this, she can incorporate this desire into her life vision, and actively seek out opportunities. She also has a better understanding of what will be the right situation for her and for her family the next time.

The next time you encounter a problem or obstacle, ask yourself the following questions:
- What do I need to allow or accept?
- In which parts of my life do I need to stand up for myself?
- “What’s really going on?” (Be sure to ask this if you have an unusually strong reaction to a problem or obstacle.)
- What do I want in this situation?
- What can I learn from this situation?
- What negative self-talk am I listening to? For example, you may hear yourself saying things such as, “This problem has no solution. This is hopeless.”
- What is this problem directing me to look at?

Life circumstances that appear to us as problems are simply opportunities for course corrections. They make us stop and notice, they make us more aware, and bring what’s been unconscious to the surface for a closer look. The next time you encounter what feels like an obstacle, acknowledge your feelings about it, and then ask yourself, “What if it’s not a problem but a path?”

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Now It's Your Turn

• Take a look at three of your current “problems.” What’s the kernel of opportunity or learning inside each one? How can you shift your thinking about each obstacle?
  

Different Voices

• “We rarely hear the inward music, but we’re all dancing to it nevertheless.” - Rumi
  

• “Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding.” - Kahlil Gibran

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