growth mindset Archives

Nobody is a Nobody

November 2, 2021

𝐍𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐧𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲!

Through my life, career and church service, oftentimes I’ve heard phrases like “what does it really matter, I’m nobody,” or “I’m just one of the thousands, I’m nobody really”.

Perhaps in the past you may have felt you were a nobody, or maybe you are feeling right now that you are a nobody?

“We do ourselves a great injustice when we allow ourselves, through tragedy, misfortune, challenge, discouragement, or whatever the earthly situation, to so identify ourselves. No matter how or where we find ourselves, we cannot with any justification label ourselves “nobody.”” – said Marvin J. Ashton.

Frequently life, work and family challenges can get us down and cause us to question who we really are. We doubt ourselves, we doubt our self worth and confidence may fail us. I have been in too many coaching conversations where that has been the case.

Please, please be assured – you are a somebody!!!

You are endowed with great gifts, unique capabilities, special talents all waiting to be discovered, developed and finely tuned.

Each of us are needed.

You are unique.

You are where you are supposed to be.

No one, absolutely no one can take your place.

Everybody is somebody to me.

My simple invitation today is to invite you to be somebody, nobody thought you could be.

Doubt your Doubts

August 3, 2021

“No, I just can’t do it!” said the coachee.

As a professional coach I have heard that comment on so, so many occasions. It is frequently followed by limiting or debilitating stories of some kind of another.

Centuries ago addressing this issue William Shakespeare in “Measure for Measure” wrote; “Our doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt.”

Much has been written in more recent recent years about our mindset.

Listening to Max Whitlock the British Gymnast after winning his 3rd Olympic Gold medal yesterday, he talked about the importance of a growth mindset, by focusing on the process and ignoring the distractions that come, then enjoying the challenge as much as the conclusion.

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬

Another way to look at is to doubt your doubts, before you doubt yourself, by addressing your inner critic directly.

– In short – question your doubt!

– Face the fear, look at it and break it down into smaller actionable steps.

– Remember most folks have impostor-y feelings, fairly often, its quite normal!

– Focus on what you can do and not on what you can’t do.

Remember the view that you adopt for yourself will profoundly affect the way you lead your life.

What can you do today to dismiss those doubts?

Baby Steps

July 15, 2021

𝑨 𝒋𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒑 – Chinese Proverb.

Arriving in a different country, understanding a new culture and an unfamiliar language can be overwhelming at times – it certainly isn’t an instant process!

It has been over 26 years since Monic and I have lived in the Netherlands and we are already noticing how so many things have changed.

That said, one big thing that I have already learned is the value and importance of taking 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒔𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒂𝒃𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒑 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆.

The first few steps

Tentatively, we have taken our first few steps of exploration in and around our local area. It is so beautiful, with lovely scenic walks and the people are so friendly.

Meeting with each of our missionaries one by one, has been an absolute joy.

For the first time yesterday, I was able to travel from one destination to another in the car with only a little help from the GPS. Driving can be especially challenging, especially due to the high volume of traffic and the proliferation of cyclists, everywhere!

Sitting in meetings where the language is completely Dutch no longer feels quite so painful or complete gobbledygook.

Slow, but sure, steady progress.

I have found that many of the happiest and most successful people I have encountered in life have achieved their level of life and work success by taking small baby steps, and then making one positive choice after another.

Positive new habits and routines are created incrementally, one baby step at a time. Indeed, it is through the process of change, that we discover who we really are. Patiently and carefully I am learning to lengthen my stride, one little baby step at a time!

What is a small, first step you can take and implement now in the changes you are facing in life?

New beginnings

March 27, 2021

I know I can’t turn back time, but this I do know…… it’s never too early and it’s never too late for a new beginning.

“Four young men sit by the bedside of their dying father. The old man, with his last breath, tells them there is a huge treasure buried in the family fields. The sons crowd around him crying, “Where, where?” but it is too late. The day after the funeral and for many days to come, the young men go out with their picks and shovels and turn the soil, digging deeply into the ground from one end of each field to the other. They find nothing and bitterly disappointed, abandon the search……

…𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗿𝗺 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿.”
– As told by Benjamin Zander in “The Art of Possibility”

Perhaps now is a good time to refine your plans for future harvests.

Is it time to start and dig a little deeper perhaps?
What new beginnings lie ahead for you?

Tag Archive for: growth mindset