Hurray! As president and founding partner I want to include you in the celebration of MetaSystem Consulting Group; along with Equine Alchemy, as a recently certified women's owned business by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council!!!

We are excited about this development because WBENC is the nation's leading advocate of women-owned businesses as suppliers to America's corporations. WBENC serves corporations to support their supplier diversity programs through connecting them with women-owned businesses who successfully complete a rigorous certification process.

And now MetaSystem Consulting Group, which was formed in 1993 and delivers leadership, executive and team coaching using innovative, cutting edge methodologies to serve our clients, are among those elite few!

We thought you, as one of those who are interested or are a major corporation actively engaged in diversity awareness would appreciate knowing that now MetaSystem can participate in your Supplier Diversity program as a certified women business owner!!

We are looking forward to sharing our new relationships and adventures with you all. If you are a business owner, is getting WBENC certified something you need to do? Should you get certified as well?

If you are a business looking to participate in diversity, is WBENC for you? Check it out! I have already been to several events and am impressed with the quality of the other Women Business Owners; WBO's, as well as those corporations who give so much.

Remember, we are all in this for the long haul and doing it together is definitely my preference!!

If you have questions and/or interest and would like to hear more, just send me an email, or give me a call at 845-687-4324. I would enjoy connected with like minded businesses who are concerned for our future!

Leadership Courses are a hot item. I Googled them yesterday and found 21,500,000 in .27 seconds. Then 91,000 searches per day! That means there are a lot of people seeking Leadership Development!!

If we knew what we needed to create the life and business we always wanted we'd be set, right? We could just get on with the business of abundance and value for ourselves, our families and our clients, right? Well, not exactly. What I have found is that just knowing what you need doesn't necessarily get you into action. You need time to explore what knowing what you need means to you, discover ways you can develop these aspects and integrate them into your life and business.

That takes time and effort. Not something a lot of my clients have. In the past, (I have been doing this a long time!), clients would take and entire week to immerse themselves in developing their leadership. The problem was, more often than not, it didn't work. Upon returning to the office, the theory, concepts, assessments, just didn't stick. There was no 'emotional' learning. These courses were from a primarily cognitive learning perspective. There lacked a mind/body connection if you will. Therefore, the transfer of learning was lacking.

Nowadays, these courses are 2 and 3 days! Can you imagine? If this kind of leadership development and leadership courses didn't work in a week, how can it work in 2-3 days! The good news is, there is some really good material out there; the not so good news is that it still takes time to develop leadership. Why, because to really 'embody' leadership requires learning with both the mind and the body.

MetaSystem Consulting Group's Multi-Level Systemic Coa'ching Model is built upon this evolutionary process of leadership development. Through time proven leadership basics combined with experiential and kinesthetic learning, one begins the process of 'embodying' leadership--Learning it through the mind and body. The results? Those intangible qualities of leadership that are difficult to describe much less learn in a traditional or virtual classroom!

The essential steps of assessment and guided introspection, exploration and strategy enable you to develop leadership that will transfer easily into your life and business because it is part of you--not something you learn on the outside and apply.

However be careful what you ask for. Interestingly, through my Personal Leadership Assessment, which is something I have developed and used in my coaching for over 15 years, clients are often surprised by their results. For many of them, it seems that how they see themselves is not always how others see them. This assessment combines my work with Equine Assisted Team Leadership Coaching giving you insight into your 'shadow' side; the often unacknowledged and integrated part of yourself that is subconsciously at work and impacting your life.

Through discovering and exploring this aspect of yourself, you can begin to understand why you attract some things into your life and, unbeknownst to you, keep others away. Taking this deep look at the self is where powerful and effective leadership development and well designed leadership courses begin.

How to get started? Below are some specific steps you can take right now to move your leadership, life and business to its next evolution!

First--Personal Leadership Assessment--You can take this assessment FR*EE at . With this you get a 15 minute FR*EE consultation on your results!

Then--Multi-Level Systemic Coaching Model--Use this model as your own personal guide to developing your leadership to create the life and business you have always wanted!

Assess--This is the your 'Situation Scan', inside and out. Observe with your eyes and intuition; subjective experience and witnessable data.
What is happening?
What is not happening?
What is missing?

Align/Engage--After your own personal assessment, inside and out, it is now time to look at your resources. It is time to invite it/them into the process with:
Clear objectives
Agreements
Expectations

Explore--Now that you have done your assessment engaged your resources, how can you discover what is possible?

This can include:
Separating root causes (their frames of reference) from the symptoms (problematic behaviors)
What are the apparent flow/blocks in energy?
What is your core essence?
What is underneath that is waiting to happen?

Strategize--Strategies for action happen after deep and powerful exploration.

Powerful exploration can involve:
New Possibilities for the client
Different thinking--"Einstein's "The same level of thinking that got you into the problem won't be sufficient to get you out of it."
Reframing--how else can the situation look?
Learning--What do you need to learn to create greater clarity or power?
Revisiting progress/challenges and identifying new points of entry for the future.

I wish you all the luck in your 'leadership journey'. One thing I know from personal experience; it is not always easy so doing it alone is not recommended! Seek out friends, mentors, coaches or me as your guides through the alchemy of Leadership!

With ease and grace,

Lisa

PS Find more information at EquineAlchemy.com

PPS Remember, you get a FR*EE consultation on your Personal Leadership AssessmentResults!!

Are we all walking around with dual personalities? Many of my clients feel the need to separate work and personal life. There is even a leadership development survey that measures behaviors as they are adapted for work. This could be the reason why most of the Leadership Coaching I do with clients end up being Life Coaching and Life Coaching clients must delve into their personal leadership!

I am a firm believer in the concept that one cannot separate business and personal leadership. As they say, how you do anything is how you do everything--whether you are conscious of it or not. Keeping them separate, therefore, doesn’t give you the whole picture. In fact, it validates the 'dual personality' and its behaviors; behaviors that when examined more closely are critical to leadership development; personally and professionally.

Therefore, the foundation of the leadership and life coaching to executives, managers, and
'folks' that I have been providing for the past 15 years is combining life and work through developing Personal Leadership.

People are often wary of revealing their 'true' self; to me not to mention their bosses, families and/or colleagues. So, this is where we begin, an exploration of self and who that really is.

It is only from this place of transparency can we begin to work on leadership. Traditional leadership development is based upon qualities such as charisma, integrity, values, loyalty, vision, approachability, emotional agility and mental awareness--all of which imply one’s movement from simply functioning in the world to becoming connected to all aspects of life and self. If these are indeed the critical aspects of leadership, they can only be developed when you develop yourself personally.

One of the tools I developed to support this is a leadership assessment based upon my 15 years of leadership coaching/consulting and my in-depth work with the horses and emotional intelligence. I have found this to be a valuable tool in the journey of discovering your strengths and challenges to create successful organizations, teams, families and lives!

For example, my Personal Leadership Style is a combination of the Information based Creative Leader. One of the biggest challenges for someone with the Information Based Leadership Profile is in the area of relationship. Their drive and willingness to take risks allows them to go and do things that more risk adverse colleagues and friends will avoid. This pioneering spirit can keep them at a distance from others. As a result, the opportunity and ability for intimacy, with themselves and others, is almost always compromised. Learning how to be in relationship and collaboration is a powerful, and necessary, step for the development of this leader, both personally and professionally. This is very accurate for me. I find I am often too far ahead to be in collaboration, something I very much want in my life and work. At the same time, challenges for the 'Creative' profile, have to do with structure. Because creators don't like to control or be controlled, there is not a strong container/structure for their efforts, actions and ideas. This can result in a great expenditure of energy compared to the results they expect. The frustration that comes from this keeps me continually going from project to project, and not always finishing them--one of my biggest challenges.

It takes courage to welcome self inquiry. You know what they say, 'be careful what you ask for'? Through your courage to act on your curiosity and passion through self inquiry is a testament to your Personal Leadership! And now more than ever, you and I need to develop and use our Personal Leadership to create the life and businesses we have always wanted!

So don't be fooled into thinking Leadership and business is separate from your personal life or that Personal Success doesn’t have anything to do with Leadership! We need both to get out of our own way and leverage our strengths!!

With ease and grace,

P.S.
If you haven't already taken MetaSystem Consulting Group and Equine Alchemy's F*REE Personal Leadership Assessment, join us!

P.P.S
And don't forget to share your style here at www.shareyourleadershipstyle.com!

In Malcolm Gladwell's book, Outliers, he tells us the secret to mastery is the 10,000 hour rule. To achieve 'expert' status, you must do whatever you do for 10,000 hours. Now let's think about this....

How many hours have you put into your Equine Facilitated Learning practice? That means actually doing the work, either you and your horse, you and a client(s), paid or unpaid. Fifty? One hundred? One thousand?

To give you some perspective, as an ICF certified coach, to apply for my MCC (Master Certified Coach) I needed to have at least 2,500 hours of coaching. I have been coaching for 15 years. 10,000 hours is a lot of hours!!

Why does 10,000 hours make an expert? Because by being engaged in any one field that amount of time gives you answers to critical questions like:

• What is happening in this field right now?
  


• Where do we go to find out?
  


• Who are the leading experts?
  


• How do we create an abundant practice with sustainable value to our clients?


• What are cutting edge practices?


• Who can we partner with to grow, learn, and create possibility?

An expert must have the answers to these questions to give greater value to their clients. So how do we go about becoming an expert in our field of EFL?


I have found that constantly engaging in the work is essential. The upcoming EFL MasterMind with Kathleen Barry Ingram is one of the ways that I invite all of you to do this. If you are on a true path to becoming an expert in EFL, you need to be part of a community that will support you towards your 10,000 hours. Do you have that now?

We have 6 slots left for this first ever live, in person, experiential EFL MasterMind in Florida March 12-14. And this is only the beginning! We plan on making this a bi-annual event for those of you who are serious about getting your hours!

You can also join a virtual MasterMind on tce, The Coach Exchange, an extension of the experiential work. So if you can't be there in person, you can still be part of a community where you can talk and share your EFL experiences. (It doesn't take the place of the experiential work--there is no short cutting those 10,000 hours!!--but it's a great start!)

Now take a moment...are you on a true path to becoming an expert in living your passion through Equine Assisted Learning? How many hours are you engaging in your passion? What do you need to do to move forward?

Kathleen and I invite you to step up to 'the next highest version of you and your business' as Schelli Whitehouse (who will be there, too!) would say and join us in March and/or on tce. No time like the present! REALLY...

With ease and grace,
Lisa

What makes an 'expert'? What is an expert? These are questions that you might want to consider on your way to creating the business and life you have always wanted.

Times are tough right now. Money is in short supply for many of us. But if you look around, abundance is still flowing. There are many opportunities for you to continue moving forward to fulfilling your dream of creating abundance through living your passion.

One of them is the gift of Kathleen Barry Ingram, the co-founder of the Epona Apprenticeship Program! During my apprenticeship at Epona I was able to access a part of myself that I didn't know was there. We all know the horses are masters at helping up to do this. Kathleen, who coined the term 'sacred space of possibility' did just that in partnership with the horses so they could do their magic! She is a master at creating a space where we can live in possibility--the first step to creating our future and the lives we want.

Next month, Kathleen will be joining me at Top o' the Morning Farm in Wellington, FL for a never before event! An Equine Facilitated MasterMInd Group! She has been taking her wisdom and experience all over the world. She has seen and experienced what is happening in this field. And now she is bringing it us! I am thrilled to have the opportunity to learn from her again. We created this time in a particular format for sharing and growth and are officially launching an EFL MasterMind!

What is a MasterMind?

• A group of like-hearted professionals that are on a success track with their business--If you want to be successful, you need to be around people who are! Or people who are on the way to being successful!
  
• A community of people who are committed to living in abundance--There are people who have a context for life that says abundance is for other people, it will never happen for them. A MasterMind group is not the place for them!! A group of people whose collective life context is YES! is what this group is all about!
  
• A tribe of challenging colleagues who will question your ideas, support your genius and push your limits--So many of us are working on our own with the horses. How often do you feel isolated and feel like you need some fresh ideas and input on your work? How often do your assumptions about your work keep you stuck?
  
• A sacred space for sharing ideas and creating new ones!--This EFL MasterMind is for those of you who are ready to partner, collaborate, TEST your ideas and learn new ones. As we have each taken our respective training and made it our own, we have grown the field of Equine Facilitated Learning. This group is a way for you to grow your work and business even more.
  

  What's the difference between this EFL MasterMind and others, the very few that exist? This one is live, experiential and full of horses! The others are virtual--a great venue, but limited in terms of building relationships and learning. This is really a ground breaking event! And it is necessary!

  The field of Equine Assisted Learning is growing in leaps and bounds. The time for the Way of the Horse is NOW! The time for differing factions to ban together for the greater good of the industry and the planet is also NOW! Are you ready to join the movement?

  We need your voice and your energy for this next EFL quantum leap! This is more than just another workshop, this is the future of this work. Please take a look and consider what part you can play!

  To register, click EFL MasterMind with Kathleen Barry Ingram! Join us and take your next step to becoming an expert in your work with the horses.

  With ease and grace,
  Lisa

  Tags:
  • Abundance,
  • EFL MasterMind,
  • Kathleen Barry Ingram,

Are you still wondering if your clients are the right ones for you? Welcome to the final blogs before the course, The Six Secret Strategies to building and maintaining a successful business. Each of the next six blogs until February 15, the launch date for the APC, will take another quick look at each strategy to remind you of it's importance in creating your success. You can still jump in on the preview calls! The next one is February 3rd.

Strategy #1—Know Thyself

• Unconscious incompetence – what you don’t know, or your blind side.
  
• Conscious Incompetence (you know what you don’t know)
  
• Conscious competence (what you know you know)
  
• Unconscious competence (what you don’t know you know), Reflective Competence (Unique Brilliance).
  
  
  What do you know and not know right now? What is the most critical aspect of this strategy for you? For your clients? Are they getting what they need? Can you provide it?

  Taking a moment to reflect upon each of these aspects of knowing and writing them down will give you powerful insight into your self and how you are showing up in your business. It is a great start to creating a foundation of, “Right Mindset and Context”; the second Secret Strategy.

  With ease and grace,
  Lisa and Schelli

  Links you need to know!
  

  
  
  • Schelli's website
    Attract the Perfect Client Preview Call Sign Up
    
  • Attract the Perfect Client through the Way of the Horse application
    

Last week was a re-entry for me into the corporate world. While I have continued coaching and consulting with some businesses over the past year, my main focus was the Equine Assisted Coach Training Program and the Attract the Perfect Clients through the Way of the Horse program, both of which begin in February.

As of December 2009, I knew this was going to be a different year. My corporate clients began calling in numbers; a good sign for the economy! However, now that I was completely established in my work with coaching and horses, where and how did the corporate world fit it?

To my complete amazement and delight, it fits in just perfectly!! For example...

I hosted members of a global coaching and consulting firm for a few hours in Florida before leaving for NYC to facilitate an off-site for a major pharmaceutical company. I knew I had only a few hours to share the power and potential of Equine Alchemy with these people.

One of the most common questions I hear is how to hold a successful demo. Well, the following is what I did. It was steeped in true coaching; I had no agenda. I created the space for what wanted to happen to show up. I have learned through working with the horses that if I connect to my energy, I will connect to my client's and I will then know what I need to do and say. Here is how it unfolded.

• I began by asking them to come prepared with something they might like some coaching on. This was easy for them because they were on their way to a team development of their own, so any issues were fresh in their mind. Asking them to come with something in mind sets the context for 'consensual' learning--both of us learning together vs. I am the teacher and they are the students so I need to provide everything. It requires them to be actively involved in the session before they arrive.
  
• After welcoming them, I took out my trusty Tibetan Singing Bowl and did some sound, space and energy clearing. 'Coincidentally', the places on their bodies that were cleared were the places with stuck energy, according to them. This work is so important for creating a clear container for the work. It also is a small step for them to experience the energy work without the horses first. This will better prepare them for their equine experiences.
  
• Then we chose a card from Linda Kohanov's Wisdom of the Horse book and card deck. Again, the cards spoke directly to their issues. These beautiful and powerful cards were a way to meet them where they were by shifting their 'corporate' context gradually. The cards also provided a way of exploring their issues through another lens in preparation for the work with the horses. (This is also for the health and well being of my horses. I do not want to expose them to such abrupt energy if I don't have to!)
  
• All of this preparation created the space for very powerful team and individual coaching. It wasn't until then that I knew how I would bring in the horses, I had some ideas but I didn't really know. Here is the difference between facilitation and coaching. Facilitation has an already set agenda that the facilitator brings and manages. Coaching is based entirely upon the client's agenda which then provides the window into what needs to happen with the horses.
  
• Since how they related to each other in the team as well as their clients was a big issue, the energy and boundary work that is the heart of Epona was the first work we did. This work is powerful in creating awareness of our own electromagnetic fields and those of others and how they inter-relate. They were amazed and delighted at what they felt and learned.
  
• Because their role with their clients was a leadership role and the fact that most of their clients contacted them for leadership coaching and consulting, naturally a leadership exercise with the horses was in order. Whatever their idea of leadership when they began the work, it was clearly changed as a result of the experiential and kinesthetic learning from this exercise. They began to see a different 'leadership light'!
  

  Now I come to the part where words fail me. What happened for these people as a result of 2.5 hours with a horse and their authentic selves was nothing less than transformational. For those of you who already work with horses, I know you know...For them it was unprecedented.

  The hope is that this morning together was not only valuable for the participants, it is a way to further evolve Equine Alchemy in general. As I mentioned, the participants are a global firm that work with leaders in very high places. When we spoke about the potential of Equine Alchemy at the end of the morning, I felt like I was 'preaching to the choir'! In fact, the horses went with them to their corporate team development by way of Linda's book and cards. They asked to borrow mine and pulled a card each morning of the 3 day meeting! I am thrilled to say that this was a powerful step in the journey of Equine Guided Education.

  As for the pharmaceutical company...that's for the next blog.

  With ease and grace,
  Lisa

  Tags:
  • coaching with horses,
  • corporate coaching,
  • energy work,
  • leadership,
  • leading exercise,

It is time to walk my talk.

As I step into the launch of Equine Alchemy's 2010 programs, I want to share with you what is most present for me.

I have been on a serious path of transformation for almost 5 years. I have made it though, alive; in fact more alive than I ever thought possible. (This was definitely questionable at several points!)

When I began this path, I wanted to incorporate the new awareness into my corporate work; the real world...but how? I took a tiny step by changing my email signature from the innocuous, 'Regards' to 'Powerfully yours' because at the time I was discovering my authentic power through working with the horses at Epona. The response I received from my favorite client, "Are you drunk?"

Needless to say, I immediately went back to 'regards'; only now instead of innocuous, it felt like 'selling my soul'.

When I finally got up the courage to sign my emails , 'With ease and grace', I had some help from Schelli Whitehouse--thank you, Schelli. I couldn't seem to do this on my own.

Now, my favorite corporate client's response to this is signing his name, "Rarely easy and never graceful"! So I feel like I am making progress!

However, in the midst of launching the Equine Assisted Coach Training Program 2010 in both the US on February 1st and Europe in May and the Attract the Perfect Clients through the Way of the Horse February 15th, it has felt everything but easy and full of grace.

Why, I ask myself, am I not feeling and living what I am teaching and preaching?

This question inspired me to do some seeking and contemplation. So I began re-reading Spiritual Alchemy by Dr. Christine Page (one of the books on my reading list for my EAC program) and Deepok Chopra's new book Reinventing the Body and Resurrecting the Soul; I highly recommend them both. This reading, along with the fact that I am where I am in my own path of transformation, enables me a new glimpse into my existence. Get ready! It is a big one....(at least for me--one that have to have over and over again).

I am already here. Each moment, this is it. I don't have to wait to get there.

This feels much more easy and graceful! As I work towards inviting the right people into my programs with the horses, I must walk my talk. I must realize that it is not about my reality looking like I think it should look. It is about having a vision that is bigger than me, working towards that vision with detachment, gratitude and grace.

So, as I step up to the plate, I invite you to do the same. Where are you compromising yourself and your future? Where is fear keeping you from getting into action? Where is the right action for you? What must you give up and embrace more of to live the life you have always wanted to live?

I can say without question, working with the horses is absolutely the place to ask these questions and receive powerful answers.

Are you ready to walk your talk? Join me, and we can walk together.

With ease and grace,
Lisa and Tibor

When I did my Branding with Archetypes assessment with Schelli Whitehouse, http://TheNextHighestVersionOfYou.com , I found out that my primary archetype is Alchemist! What a validation since I already had named my business Equine Alchemy.

Including Branding with Archetypes with Schelli was a powerful step in my journey to Attract the Perfect Clients. I always have a business strategy; after all I have been a business consultant and coach for 15 years! However, I didn't always include the 'energetic' aspects in the strategic planning and visioning of my business. I am experiencing a deep learning about how completely necessary it is to include this aspect in aligning with my perfect clients and growing the business I always wanted.

Through this process I also discovered that my unique brilliance is 'Connecting the Cosmic Dots'. So, that is the theme of this blog. I want to connect the dots of:

• our previous Attract the Perfect Clients through the Way of the Horse calls,
  
• the upcoming calls, including the next one on Wednesday, January 13th, Register for the call here: http://www.equinealchemy.com/attractyourperfectclient_previewsignup.html
  
• our program Attract the Perfect Clients through the Way of the Horse which begins in February. http://equinealchemy.com/apcinvite.html#2
  

These calls are to help you align with your perfect clients and grow the business of your dreams! They are also a preview into the upcoming program where we will go into depth around each one of the topics. In fact, Schelli and I designed these calls based upon the program curriculum. Let's take a closer look.

Call #1 Speak with clarity and confidence about the transformation you provide for others. Simple must-haves for your business to create and sustain six-figures and beyond! This call was about creating clarity around what you are doing and six concrete steps to make that a reality. If you aren't clear about what you are doing, it will be impossible to speak about it and invite people to join you. The secrets were both concrete actions as well as 'ways of being' to manifest abundance. All of this is in service of attracting your perfect client. The universe is more than willing to cooperate in your abundance. But first, you need to be clear!

Call #2 How to re-purpose your existing service and products to provide more value to your clients and put more money in your pocket! Ok, so now you have some insight into clarity of what you are doing, how to speak about it and how to create a way to manifest that, right? Next, we took a look at how your current business could expand without reinventing the wheel. We spoke about how a different perspective can create different products and services. We also spoke about how a signature system, or a way of identifying, organizing and marketing these new products and services can be an invaluable tool in 're-purposing' your existing business. We also heard from someone who wants different clients and how focusing on your unique brilliance and what you want will more than likely manifest that different client. Both the system and perspective are critical aspects to Attracting YOUR Perfect Clients.

Are you getting it? There are two main parts here:

• How you see yourself and your services
  
• How you offer that to the world
  

That is what Attracting the Perfect Clients is all about.

Call #3, How Branding with Archetypes™ will distinguish you above all others in your area of expertise. Your unique brilliance gives voice to your brand that only your perfect client can hear! is a continuation of how you see yourself and services and includes how you can offer that to the world! In preparation for this call, you get a free assessment! Go to http://www.thenexthighestversionofyou.com/bwa-apc/ now so you will gain this powerful insight!

Each of these preview calls gives you the opportunity to strengthen yourself and your services as a way to expand your business through attracting the perfect clients for YOU. Our program, Attracting the Perfect Client through the Way of the Horse which begins in February, goes deeper into that journey of transformation with the horses so that you can discover and embody your authentic self and power and translate that into your product and services! A powerful combination to Attract YOUR Perfect Clients!

The F.R.E.E. Ride contest is a cosmic dot for your business as well. Filling out the application for this program requires deep reflection into yourself and your business; a critical first step to building the business you have always wanted!

Hopefully this has connected some dots for you! These calls are a mini-course in self discovery and business building; however it is just a sample of what is possible. We look forward to hearing you on our next call.

With ease and grace,

Lisa

We all have times when we know something is about to happen, or that things need to change or that we need to get into action around something; or even to stop doing something. But how often do we listen to that 'knowing'?

How often do we let our bodies and our hearts be our navigator in life?

I can easily say that the answer for me is 'not very often'. Yes, sometimes I am inspired, but for the most part, I get back into my head and the 'shitty committee' as my sister calls it, takes charge.

The new year is a time when many of us may pay closer attention to this 'knowing'. It is time for a fresh start. This year was no different for me, yet my 'knowing' was louder than it normally is.

In December I was shopping, having a great time with my family and then suddenly, my heart went up to 150 beats per minute; normal resting heart rate is around 60. I tried to ignore itinsist I was fine, but it was difficult since I was almost passing out. Paul, my dear husband, took me to the emergency room where they quickly took me in and began trying to shock my heart back to normal. They tried 3 times at 3 different levels, but it 'had a will of its own' and it resisted the treatment. So, they checked me in the cardio unit and gave me meds to get my heart back to working order. Finally, on Christmas Eve, I went back to the festivities and my family, but something was different. What happened hadn't sunk in yet. It was all very surreal.

Since then while my body has been recuperating, my spirit has been expanding. I know that this incident happened as a wake up call--how long was I going to continue giving lip service to what my heart knows is true for me? When am I going to connect my mind and heart and live my life from there? My coach and mentor told me it wasn't the heart that was shocked, it was more like my mind! That the 'shitty committee' was blown to bits!

I have been slow to 'get back into the swing of things' and I have been troubled about that. But, during the spirit expansion as I call it, I realized why. I don't want things to go back to normal. I don't want to get back 'up to speed'. I want to be present to what wants to happen now. Whatever that is. It doesn't mean that I don't want to make plans--(boy do I have plenty of those!! Just check out my Winter and Spring schedule at http://www.equinealchemy.com) But, I want to breathe and live in abundance trusting that I have everything I need and that those of you who want to join me on my journey will.

So, before you 'get back into the swing of things' or back 'up to speed', stop a moment and listen to your heart. What wants to happen for you? How can your honor yourself and therefore give more to those who love you? How can you live your life through a strong and unbreakable connection between your mind and your heart?

Good questions. Before you get into action for 2010, I highly recommend contemplating them as preparation for right action. Finding your own answers is spiritual alchemy.

With ease and grace,
Lisa