Never Say Never

You know I am always trying new things…well this time it is running!  I used to say that “running was not for me” or “I can’t run it will hurt my knees (my knees hurt when I walk a lot)”  Well, much to my suprise – running makes my legs feel fanstastic!

How did I get started on this new path?  I started working with a personal trainer at my gym for a few months and early on in our workouts she asked me, as part of one workout, to get on the treadmill and run for 3 minutes.  I said “I don’t run”.  In her typical fashion, she just looked at me and that said it all.  So I got on the treadmill and said I would try it.  I did and found I could!

It snowballed from there, doing a few minutes more each time, alternating with walking for a minute or two.  The other day while at the beach I ran (at a slow pace) for 50 minutes – only walking for a couple of minutes at several intervals.  Then a few days later I ran for 25 minutes straight! These were big accomplishments for me.

Now I actually look forward to running each morning!  This is incredible to me and very exciting.   So…never say never!

Creative inspiration

Last week I attended one of Cheryl McArdle’s creativity classes.  This one was about color.

Now many of you know I’ve been painting on and off for many years, but color, specifically the mixing of it, has always felt more confusing than it actually is.  That is what I learned in Cheryl’s class. 

This class also inspired me to paint.  You see, though it is something I love, I often go for weeks without painting – if I’m busy with other more pressing things, if I’m not sure what to paint, if I don’t have a reason to paint…

By simplifying a process that I thought more complicated than it was, I now am more confident and excited about the possibilites that await me with this new information!

What processes do you beleive are confusing or complicated?  They may be just as simple when you learn the right technique, or just hear the technique shared in a way that finally has the light bulb go off in your head!

My First Mastermind Experience

This months article is called Mentors and Masterminds so I wanted to share my own first mastermind experience.

I met Ann Etheridge at a seminar I delivered back in January 2006.  We felt an immediate connection and had coffee soon afterward.  In conversation, we found that we were both seeking support to grow our businesses.  She mentioned another friend, Meri Raffetto, who was also interested in this and suggested we all meet to see if there was synergy between us.  There was!  We all decided to hold weekly meetings at each others homes.  We came to each meeting prepared with our agenda of what we wanted to talk about, get feedback on, brainstorm around and more.   For us that included new business ideas, marketing ideas, support as we navigated the rollercoaster of being business owners.

We also committed to connecting between meetings by e-mail and phone if we had something pressing to discuss or review.  That experience lasted nearly a year and was an integral part of my early success as a new business owner.  It gave me the camaraderie and collegiality I was missing since I left my position at the university and went out on my own.  Today I continue to have mastermind partnerships with different people and in different ways based on my needs as by business evolves.