On a scale of 1-10 how’s your energy starting out for this School Year?

If it’s in the high range – good for you!  I am so pleased and happy for you.

If it’s in the low low range, I’d be willing to bet there’s something you’re great at that you may be inadvertently keeping hidden.

If you’re going to reignite your light, you’ve got to stand up straight,
put your shoulders back,
take a deep breath and OWN your God-given gifts and talents.

In my tenth year in education, I was sitting in my counseling office working with a high school student, his parents and the teacher involved, when I realized I had a three-step system that I was using with every single counseling situation that walked through my door.

The light went on as I realized I could teach others (teachers, administrators and parents) to do what I was doing. What I did was quick, effective and painless for everyone involved.

Problematic areas were getting resolved because, with just a few questions, I was getting to the heart of the problem rather than coming “at” the problem. Not one educator I knew was doing what I was doing.

It was shortly after this that I made the decision to move to Portland, OR, and take a leap of faith, trusting that the net would appear.

The net did not seem to appear!

I had five interviews lined up. When I got the call from each of the interviewing Principals, they each said, “You gave a great interview, and I honestly don’t know why we’re not going with you, but we’ve selected someone else!”

To my surprise, I felt relief washing over me. Something inside me did not want any of those positions. Was I crazy? I had no job and I’m a single mother in a new city.  It was then that I realized I was in deep, dark burnout.

Life had thrown me a series of curve balls …

In 1984, I lost my first child at birth. Three months after that I had a miscarriage. A year later, I had a high-risk pregnancy and premature birth. A year after our son was born, I divorced my husband. Another year after that, I moved to a new state, and when all of my job prospects and interviews fell through, I found myself as a single mother of a two-year-old. I was emotionally and physically burned out and literally living on pennies, alone in a huge new city where I knew hardly anyone.

My life hurt so bad, it felt like someone running their fingernails
down the chalkboard of my soul.

Since college, I had worked hard to do everything “the right way.”

And then, there I was. With the precious exception of my wonderful son, I had somehow managed to get everything in life that I did not want!  I’d taken a leap of faith, was now unemployed and living on food stamps.

What I discovered as I began the journey of reigniting the light within me was that …

LIFE WAS DEMANDING that I BE more, not expend more.

LIFE WAS DEMANDING that I take it upon myself to learn empowering skills to deal with every aspect of my life much more effectively, so I could simply be the success I was inherently designed to be.

It was shortly thereafter that I went out to lunch with an amazing educational consultant friend of mine who asked me point blank …

“What is it that you are great at, Mary?”

Without even thinking I said …

“I make magic with the kids nobody wants in their classrooms.”

She then asked, “What is the magic?” and the light in me suddenly turned back on!  In that moment I realized I was meant to create a program (actually 10 now) from my system for educators about how to ditch the flippin’ bell curve excuse to just give up on “certain” students, and instead learn how to reach and teach …

Every. Single. Student.

For the first time in my life, I felt my purpose coming up through me, filling up the hole in my soul.

I immediately grabbed some paper and a pen, and my system literally wrote itself. It’s the same system I’ve applied to my life, my marriage and my blended family for the past four decades. I still teach it today in education as well as business.

And that, folks, is when the net appeared!

What a journey … I literally went from burnout to breakthrough in 30 seconds or less with one question: 

“What is it that you are great at?”

The most amazing thing about tapping into purpose that makes a difference is that it has sustained me for 40 years!

I’d love to hear from you about this.

Today’s 30 Second TurnAround is …

What is it that you are great at that you’ve kept hidden?

Are you apprehensive – hesitant – or petrified about taking a leap of faith?

Are you anxious about getting to the heart of what you really want, for fear of disappointment?

Does that sound like you at all, when it comes to feeling the weight of every day dragging you down without feeling like you are on purpose?

Click here and let me know your thoughts…

Now is the time to Reignite Your Light this first month of the new school year.

Because of this, I’m giving you my 1-hour training from my Academic Success 101: Accelerate Learning in Every. Single. Student. Online Course FREE so that you and the people you live, love and work with can be re-energized quickly to kick off this year ready to rock and roll!

I love it when people are reignited by putting their focus on all the ways that DO make a positive difference day in and day out.

There are teachers and parents happy about how the school year is going.  I know as an educator I loved the first month of the new school year.  With that said, having worked with so many educators, parents and administrative leaders for the past forty years, this is not how many people feel right now.

Problems are looming, as they always are.  This week, I’m GIVING you my 1-hour training specifically to help you and anyone you know who may need it to Reignite Your Light.

 

There’s a power that can transform people’s lives that very few people
know about, much less use. It’s the power of self-education.
-Tony Robbins

 

DO THIS: Before you begin the exercise, ask everyone what their energy levels are on a scale of 1-10.  10 being the greatest.  Then, after you’ve taken them through the entire process, ask them to rate their energy again on a scale of 1-10.  I think you’ll be very pleased with the positive difference you’ve just made.

Now, let me just say this up front.  Depending on how deeply you want to go into this exercise, it can take 30 -60 minutes.  Today’s training took 38-minutes.

However, whenever I go into a very de-energized work environment for team building, more times that not, I’ll do a 3-hour deep dive with this exercise immediately following my opening Greatness exercise.

I know you will be amazed at how unifying it can be and even more importantly, how you will learn exactly what “certain” individuals are hung up on that together, you can both do something about.  I kid you not!

So today’s 30 Second TurnAround will happen when they figure out that they have a lot more control than they thought … and Voilà the energy in the room is lifted!

This one exercise alone, is how you keep it things moving forward.  Every time someone comes in to see you with a problem, pull this out and use it with them on the spot!  You’ll get it down to 30 seconds or less in no time.

Once you make this a practice, there’s your 30 Second TurnAround with every “problem” that walks through your door!

I am not playing with you here.  Trust me when I say the best solutions come when we don’t over complicate things!

Even if you don’t have a group to do it with, pull out a notebook and do it for yourself.  I know you’ll be glad you did!  I also think you are going to enjoy listening to what the participants came up with for themselves.  They really did a great job.

Grab a cup of coffee, pull out a notepad, sit up straight, put your shoulders back, take a big deep breath, act like you know who you are … and prepare to be amazed!

Let me know what happens to your energy. You can use my contact link at my website to let me know.

Reaching out …

PS … Grab a cup of jo and GO HERE for your FREE 1-hour training – 4 (13-20 minute) segments – so you can feel better, stronger and more energized within the hour!

PPS … Have you ever wondered what ALL can happen within a week of a 1-hour training?  Well, I’ve just added the Brag & Blabs from the first week’s training.  Make sure to sneak a peak over at Lesson 2 and listen to ALL of the success stories from just the first week of my Academic Success 101:  Accelerate Learning in Every. Single. Student. Online Course.