Tag Archive for: life

4 Ingredients for Success

As a child, I enjoyed baking scones, cakes and biscuits under the watchful eye of my mother.
It was fun, and a great way to spend Saturday afternoons together.
Licking the wooden spoon at the end of the baking was always the best part!
As I grew older, I recognised that in order to bake a delicious banana loaf, the best way to ensure great results was to follow a good recipe with exactness.
Over many years, my banana loaf has now become somewhat of a Daryl Watson classic in our family!
The result, a happy family, especially my wife, with her gluten free version – (that is a fine art in itself!)
Following a simple recipe, oftentimes leads to great success.
And so, it is in our home, family and business life.
For me, there are 4 simple ingredients to ensure happiness throughout our journey in life.
1. Do something you love – Just like baking banana loaf, I love coaching!
2. Find your purpose – Why are you here? Determine that & follow it!
3. Serve Others – That will help you find joy in your journey.
4. Act – Do not be acted upon – take ownership of your own journey.
Mix them all together and the result will be scrumptious.
Enjoy!
What is included in your simple recipe for success?

Ambition

When Joe Wilson finished college and joined his father in a small family-owned business, Mr. Wilson was overjoyed.
“It will be good to have some aggressive young management around the place,” he said.
“Your first duty as my new partner is to replace that sign out front with one of those father-and-son signs…. you know the kind.”
“Yes, I know just want we need,” Joe said.
Later he invited his father out to inspect the new sign.
Mr Wilson was speechless for a moment….then he said…
“Now that’s what I call real aggressive young management.”
The sign read: Joe C. Wilson & Father.

Self-reflection

Daily, I consciously make time for self-reflection.
It has been a life long practice.
Life is much more fruitful when I take some time to check in with myself!
Paradoxically, looking inwards, helps me to look outwards.
It brings perspective to your life.
Reflection requires courage.
As you look in the mirror of self-reflection, consider these questions:
Am I using my time wisely?
Am I living true to myself?
What surprised me today?
What am I doing about the things that matter most in my life? What do I need to change about myself?
What mistakes did I make today and what did I learn?
Have I made someone smile today?
It is so easy to get caught up in the daily vicissitudes of life.
Self-reflection is the key to help you understand what you stand for, what your values are, and in essence what matters most.
A time to consider your behaviour, your goals and whether you are on track.
The practice is all about learning, looking back on the day in order to contemplate your behaviour and its consequences.
It requires time to sit with yourself and take an honest moment to think about what emerged, what worked, what didnโ€™t, what can be done, and what canโ€™t.
Daily journaling is a great tool to enable you to capture your reflections.
I believe that the more self-reflective you are the easier it becomes to make choices in line with your values.
Self-reflection has been shown to significantly improve learning and performance.
The more aware you of your choices and their impact, then the better the decisions will be that you make now and in the future.
Take time to self-reflect – daily!

Jump in!

Did you dip your toes in the water a little?
OR
Did you jump in at the deep end?
Which metaphor describes your 2022?
What did you do particularly well?
๐‘พ๐’†๐’๐’„๐’๐’Ž๐’† ๐’•๐’ 2023
As each year passes by, we never stay the same.
๐–๐ž ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฐ, ๐ฐ๐ž ๐ฅ๐ž๐š๐ซ๐ง, ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐ž ๐œ๐ก๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž.
Truth beknown, I learned last year that you canโ€™t deliver your best work if youโ€™re not energised!
I chose to jump in at the deep end and rediscovered the of power napping!
Itโ€™s been great!
It has reawakened a host of benefits for me.
I was keen to change and be reenergised!
I witnessed, time and time again many others who changed in a much more significant way.
There were many that I encountered who were seeking to change who met with our missionaries.
Many decided to jump in and become members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
It changed their whole life.
They too have been re-energised!
It has been a real joy to become acquainted with them.
Like many hundreds of thousands before them, they chose to dip their toes in a little to start with, and then decided to jump in!
Happiness often springs from small and unexpected sources.
You will find it in abundance as you choose to follow Jesus Christ this year.
Thatโ€™s the message I would like to share with you as we start 2023โ€ฆ
All over the world in 2022, missionaries were life savers for thousands of others โ€“ just like you.
I look forward to becoming acquainted with you too.
Why not dip your toes in to start with?

Or better still, choose to jump in at the deep end! ๐Ÿ˜Š

Either way, itโ€™ll be the best decision you make this year.

Oops!

๏ผฏ๏ฝ๏ฝ๏ฝ“๏ผ
Yesterday, after a busy morning at Schiphol Airport to say farewell to a number of departing missionaries, followed by the arrival of the Kempenaers family to pick up their son Jorne, we decided to take a walk to clear our heads and catch our breathโ€ฆ
Heading towards the Vliet, we found that it was completely frozen over.
Although, there was also a clear indication that a boat or two had snaked through the ice.
It was a delightful, albeit chilly walk into town, to pick up one or two groceries.
It was nice to chat too with Matalyn Weaver, who is staying with us for a couple of days before returning home on Monday.
Eventually, we arrived back home.
And then it happenedโ€ฆ.!
I reached into my pocket to get the keys for the front door.
๐Ž๐Ž๐๐’!
Somehow, Iโ€™d managed to pick up the wrong keysโ€ฆ
I am not certain how many times over the last 18 months Iโ€™ve given missionaries a hard time about forgetting their housekeys.
It is a regular occurrence!
Weekly, if not daily for many!
And now it had happened to meโ€ฆ โ˜น
Of course, it just had to be the coldest day of winter too.
Well, departures week is always a rollercoaster of emotions for me โ€“ for sure. At least thatโ€™s my excuse!!
With no spare key, I had to make a rather embarrassing call to the Assistants to come to our rescue.
They smiled and laughed.
In fact โ€“ they smiled and laughed โ€“ a lot!
To be fair โ€“ we laughed tooโ€ฆ.!
Luckily, they live only 15 minutes away and it wasnโ€™t too long before they arrived and saved us from the chilly winter weather.
And the moral of todayโ€™s story โ€“ perhaps I should have heeded my own advice, to โ€œslow down!โ€
Laughter is a great medicine.
When did you last make a silly mistake?

Tangled

๏ผด๏ฝ๏ฝŽ๏ฝ‡๏ฝŒ๏ฝ…๏ฝ„๏ผŸ
Looking at Christmas fairy lights this week, reminded me of a tangled story!
Life happensโ€ฆ
It was our first coaching session together.
In fact, it was my client Annieโ€™s (changed her name to protect her identity) first ever coaching session.
We started off with our introductions and pleasantries and then got into the coaching session to address a number of personal and work concerns.
The session went very well.
I did a lot of listening, observing, paraphrasing, summarising and as usual asked a few questions.
Annie found some answers for herself as she dealt with a number of different issues.
I was starting to draw the session to a closeโ€ฆ
โ€ฆAnd then it happened!
She reached forward, gesturing her wrists together and said, โ€œCan you help please?โ€
Puzzled, I looked closely at her wrists.
Seemingly, midway through our session, Annie had somehow entangled her bracelets together and sheโ€™d been stuck for a good while!
I untangled her wrists.
We laughed and joked together.
It was so funny.
That one moment created a unique bond and memory for the two of us, that neither of us will ever forget.
My experience of coaching is that it can help untangle lifeโ€™s challenges โ€“ sometimes quite literally!
Are you ready to be untangled yet?

Lamplighters…

๏ผฌ๏ฝ๏ฝ๏ฝ๏ฝŒ๏ฝ‰๏ฝ‡๏ฝˆ๏ฝ”๏ฝ…๏ฝ’๏ฝ“

Jesus Christ is the light of the world.

If we choose to follow Him, He will light up everything.

โ€œThen spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.โ€โ€”John 8:12

Sir Harry Lauder a Scottish singer and entertainer from many years ago, told a story about the old lamplighters in Glasgow.

Generations ago, as darkness started to fall, all around Scotland (and around the world), lamplighters would start to make their rounds.

They’d put their ladder up against the light post, climb up and light the lamp, step back down, pick up the ladder and carry on to the next lamp. It was a one by one process.

Sir Harry said, “After a while, the lamplighter would be out of sight down the street. ๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ˆ ๐œ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐š๐ฅ๐ฐ๐š๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ฐ๐ก๐ข๐œ๐ก ๐ฐ๐š๐ฒ ๐ก๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ ๐ ๐จ๐ง๐ž ๐›๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ฅ๐š๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฌ ๐ก๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ž๐”

Jesus Christ is the greatest lamplighter of all.

He constantly lights the way.

Has your โ€œlampโ€ been lit by Him yet?

In Psalms 119:105 we read “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.”

Perhaps you too are a lamplighter?

Robert Louis Stevenson told it this way. (A Leerie is a lamplighter)

“My tea is nearly ready and the sun has left the sky;
Itโ€™s time to take the window to see Leerie going by;
For every night at teatime and before you take your seat,
With lantern and with ladder he comes posting up the street.

Now Tom would be a driver and Maria go to sea,
And my papaโ€™s a banker and as rich as he can be;
But I, when I am stronger and can choose what Iโ€™m to do,
Oh Leerie, Iโ€™ll go round at night and light the lamps with you!

For we are very lucky, with a lamp before the door,
And Leerie stops to light it as he lights so many more;
And O! before you hurry by with ladder and with light,
O Leerie, see a little child and nod to him tonight!”

Lamplighters from a bygone age, pushed back the darkness from generations ago.

With Jesus Christ, the greatest light of all, we too can push back the darkness by following Him today.

We will always be safe, and I know He shows us which way to go.

If you’d like to find out how Jesus Christ can light up your life and be a lamp unto your feet, just speak to one of our missionaries.

How can you be a lamplighter this Christmas and light someoneโ€™s world around you?

The Rear View

๏ผด๏ฝˆ๏ฝ… ๏ผฒ๏ฝ…๏ฝ๏ฝ’ ๏ผถ๏ฝ‰๏ฝ…๏ฝ—
Are you spending too much time looking in the rear-view mirror of life?
Periodically looking back on your life and past events with the understanding that some emotions may resurface from time to time, is okay.
It is certainly okay to wonder and ask, what if?
But how much time do you spend there?
Throughout my coaching career I have found that individuals often wonder what may have happened if they had done something differently or made a different choice.
For instance, what would have happened:
– ๐‘ฐ๐’‡ theyโ€™d married the other personโ€ฆ
– ๐‘ฐ๐’‡ theyโ€™d studied for a different degreeโ€ฆ
– ๐‘ฐ๐’‡ theyโ€™d taken the other jobโ€ฆ
– ๐‘ฐ๐’‡ theyโ€™d lived in another city or countryโ€ฆ
It is okay to acknowledge those speculations, but donโ€™t dwell or brood on them for too long.
Experience is a great teacher.
All of us live with some regrets.
They are a part of you, but they do not define you.
Instead focus on what you learned from them and how they have shaped you today.
Ultimately, itโ€™s a bit like those drivers who stare in the rear-view mirror for far too long and run the risk of missing what lies ahead.
There may have been some crashes behind us, but itโ€™s the bends ahead that matter now.
๐‘ป๐’‰๐’† ๐’‚๐’๐’”๐’˜๐’†๐’“๐’” ๐’‚๐’“๐’† ๐’Š๐’ ๐’‡๐’“๐’๐’๐’• ๐’๐’‡ ๐’š๐’๐’–.
Donโ€™t let your rear-view mirror be bigger than your front windshield.
Stop looking backward and start looking forward.
Remember you are the one in the driverโ€™s seat!
How are you living your life by looking forwards?

To the Rescue

๐Œ๐ž๐ž๐ญ ๐ƒ๐ž๐ฑ…
He is an energetic 2-year-old Jack Russell Terrier that belongs to my Dutch in laws โ€“ Simone & Guus.
Every now and again, I get to spend some time with Dex.
Yesterday was one of those days. ๐Ÿ™‚
Gleefully, we went on a little walk together.
After a few minutes on our walk, although I wanted to go in one direction, it was clear he wanted to go in another!
I relented, and off we went the way he wanted to go.
It turned out to be one of his favourite little fenced parks, dedicated to dogs, so that they can run freely.
Ball and thrower in hand, we commenced our afternoon of activity.
I was happy throwing, and he was very happy chasing.
Enthusiastically, this activity continued for around half an hour.
Then the fun really began!
Putting the ball and thrower away, it was time to depart for home.
He knew exactly what was happening, and certainly did not want to return home.
Off he raced, to hide in the woods!
For the next 45 minutes I tried every single trick in the book to entice him on to his lead.
Little treats, throwing the ball again, ignoring him, patiently trying to corner him near the fence, following him into the woods, then back to laying a trail of treats on the groundโ€ฆ.
The Result โ€“ Nothing! ๐™๐„๐‘๐Ž success!
My patience was wearing very thin!
โ€œTime to call Simoneโ€ I thoughtโ€ฆ
โ€œ๐‡๐ž๐ฅ๐ฉ!โ€ I declared.
She smiled and laughed.
10 minutes later, as Simone and Monic arrived in the park together, Dex ran to Simone!ย  Job done!
Moral of the story โ€“ sometimes you just have to admit defeat, call for help, have a little laugh and wait on others to come to the rescue!
Have you rescued anyone recently?

The Master Puzzler

“Iโ€™ve seen a lot of posts lately about the church, why people stay, why they shouldnโ€™t stay, church doctrine vs. church policy, the list goes on & on.
I heard a powerful analogy at church today that I want to share here for myself to look back on, and also for those who may need to hear it.

The Analogy…

The analogy, or parable if you will, was to think of the gospel, the church, Godโ€™s plan or even just LIFE, like a puzzle. When you start a puzzle, you start with what you know. You work on the outside pieces, pieces with clear edges, pieces you are confident belong.
As the puzzle continues, you may run into various pieces that donโ€™t seem to belong, that fit weird, or donโ€™t make sense. But you donโ€™t throw out the entire puzzle just because you canโ€™t figure out where that piece goes. You know thereโ€™s a bigger picture coming into place. You set aside that puzzle piece and keep working at the rest of the puzzle. Eventually, the picture will become more and more clear and it will be obvious where that seemingly unimportant, or incorrect piece goes. Youโ€™ll be glad you didnโ€™t give up or throw that piece out because youโ€™ll see the bigger picture.
There are many things I donโ€™t have the answers to, but I know that God is the master puzzler, if you will, and every piece of this life; the gospel; and his plan is there for a reason. (1 Nephi 11:17โค๏ธ) Even if we canโ€™t see where it fits now, donโ€™t let what you donโ€™t know or understand stop you from what you do. Keep doing the puzzle. Keep all the pieces in sight until you know where they go. I have a feeling itโ€™s going to be worth it. ๐Ÿค ”ย  ย  – From a social media post by Emma Hixson