My Hero, Celebrating his Life and Lessons Learned, by Glenda Myles

I must be at that age, my early 40’s, where we begin to watch our parents’ health fail. Recently several friends have lost a parent or a parent has been diagnosed with something terminal. It is heartbreaking.

In August 2012, my own father was diagnosed with lung cancer. It was a very scary time for us as he underwent surgery to remove part of his lung. We are fortunate as he survived and continues to thrive. But I am also realistic. Each day I get to spend with him is a gift.

In those weeks before, during and after the surgery, I thought about many things. I saw both my parents as human beings, maybe for the first time, not just my parents. And in that moment I saw their frailty, their fears, and their courage.  It became easier to understand that they were doing the best they could every day. It became easier to forgive them and let go of any baggage that I may have been carrying.

In the long hours at the hospital as I watched my father deal with the pain in the aftermath, I saw a side of my father I had not seen before. He was the strong, silent type if there ever was one. He endured. He had a long military career and grew up in that tough exterior environment. Here, in this moment, he was vulnerable. It was humbling.

During these months, as I came to terms with what was happening, I considered what my father meant to me and what I learned from him. What came to me was loyalty and hard-working.

You see, my father is a very loyal man. I remember questioning it when I was younger. He stayed in situations, I would have left. He didn’t have the best childhood. He left home at a young age and worked to send money home to help his family. And he has remained forgiving and loyal to his family since he was young, when most others would have walked away.

Like many men of his generation the military was a smart career choice – it provided a good wage, job security, and opportunity. He didn’t graduate high school but was a smart man (and years later he would go back to school to get his GED). He worked hard. He still works hard. After 35 years of service in the military he retired for one year before going back to work. He has since worked another 25 years. After his surgery and recovery, he wanted to get back to work. I was shocked but it is his community, it keeps him active and engaged. At 76, he continues to work and be active. I hope that it helps him have a better quality of life.

As I think of the lessons that I have learned from him and his life, I am filled with love and gratitude.

Glenda is a healer, coach, and teacher as a doula, educator, reiki practitioner, dance facilitator, kundalini yogi, and earth-medicine creator. She facilitates a new group called Awe-Inspiring Women, a community based on respect, support, education and, occasionally provoking a conversation, so that we can take responsibility for the world we've created and encourage a better world.

Getting Unstuck by Glenda Myles

Well it seems rather fitting that I use this month as my come back month given the topic. Over the past few months, I have started to write a post, but for some reason get stuck and don’t finish. I commit to finishing this one!

I haven’t blogged or written much over the past three months. I’ve started, but haven’t finished. I was stuck. There was something blocking my creative flow. Instead of worrying about it, I allowed it to be. I gave myself space and honored my own natural rhythm.

Many times, I can get unstuck by working through the blockage by moving my body, which helps get the internal energy flowing again - going for a walk or run, dancing, or doing some yoga. Sometimes I can do something else creative that sparks other ideas -sketching, photography, going to a gallery or museum – like having an artist’s date with myself.

But this felt different. I was tired – physically and mentally. I’ve been through so much change over the past 6 months, I needed time to heal and rest. Sometimes you need to honor your body’s natural rhythms.

As I gave myself space to just be, to rest, I found that slowly things started to flow. This past week, I had a burst of creative ideas, a major break-thru. All of a sudden, words poured out, ideas flowed, and I was unstuck. Not only unstuck, but new ideas and a renewed sense of energy resulted.

Glenda is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life by day. And she is a healer, teacher and activist working with Awe-Inspiring Women to make the world a better place by night.

Finding your place – the identity crisis by Glenda Myles

Our theme this month is Finding Your Place. When I first heard it, I thought about the journey many of us are on to find our true place, that place where we exist as the best expression of ourselves, the place where we can be.

Part of that journey for me has involved a bit of an identity crisis. If I am looking for that place where I can be the best expression of myself, don’t I need to know who the heck I am first?

**

i·den·ti·ty

1. The collective aspect of the set of characteristics by which a thing is definitively recognizable or known.
2. The set of behavioral or personal characteristics by which an individual is recognizable as a member of a group.
3. The distinct personality of an individual regarded as a persisting entity; individuality.
(source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/identity)

How are our dreams rooted in our identity? Or how are we held back from fulfilling our dreams because of the attachment we have to an identity? Is that identity a true reflection of you?

Do you identify as an artist? Does this impact the choices you make, the clothes you wear, whether you have a tattoo or not, how you wear your hair, or the friends you have?

**

I remember about eight years ago, someone sent around this game at the office. For each person, you had to put a few adjectives that best described them. It was meant to be fun and light-hearted. When I saw the words that people used to describe me, I was shocked and devastated.

Now, don’t get me wrong. They weren’t “bad” words, no one thought I was evil or anything (or at least they didn’t say that at the time), but they weren’t words that I wanted to have etched on my tombstone either. Ambitious, driven, hard-working, etc.

It was how I got work done, but I was more than my work, wasn’t I? This wasn’t me.

It wasn’t long after that I was in a car accident that changed my life. In fact, I often think of my life in terms of pre- and post-accident, like these times are separate entities somehow. With time off from work, a broken body, and a loss of who I thought I might be, I had to come to terms with my identity.

If this was how people saw me and I didn’t want it to be, what is a true reflection of who I am really? What could I do to present that to the world and have it reflected back?

Flash forward. Many people may still use some of those words to describe me, it hasn’t gone away. But I don’t think it would be the only words they would use. I have stripped myself of my attachment to many things and continue to do so. I now make decisions not based on external norms, but based on what I really want. I live in better alignment with how I feel inside and how that is expressed externally.

As I begin to better understand who I am and who I want to be, I am able to find the spaces, places, and people that support me, that nurture those things that I wish to emulate, that accept me for all of who I am. I am also able to let go of my need to be accepted in places that don’t.

**

Are you dreaming of a life that is vastly different than your current one and are frozen with fear because in order to change you need to release your attachment to your current identity? Sometimes we need to tear down walls in order to build something new.

Glenda is a healer, coach, and teacher as a doula, educator, reiki practitioner, dance facilitator, kundalini yogi, and earth-medicine creator. She facilitates a new group called Awe-Inspiring Women, a community based on respect, support, education and, occasionally provoking a conversation, so that we can take responsibility for the world we've created and encourage a better world.

Fresh Beginnings by Glenda Myles

A strong, disciplined mind, which anyone can cultivate though daily practice, can achieve miracles.       --Robin Sharma

January is the launch of a new year. A time of new beginnings. We begin the year with fresh ideas, hopes and dreams for the days and months that lay ahead.

It reminds me of the first day of school when you had fresh paper and binders filled with the dreams of possibility.

I start my year understanding my core desires, the words that guide me, my non-negotiable items for the year ahead and my guiding principles.


My core desires

1. Love. To love myself and others and to act accordingly. To send out love and compassion to all.
2. Learn. To continue to learn new things and apply all that I am learning in service of others.
3. Abundance. To find financial success with my new business beyond what I have experienced in the past.
4. Give Back. To enjoy the freedom of my entrepreneurship by giving back to others, to being of service, to practice humility.
5. Travel. To see new places and enjoy new experiences. To soak in new cultures.
6. Teach. I love leading workshops, consulting with clients, showing them how to do things, and helping people in general.

My words for the year – Strategy, Passion, Blissiplines

Once again this year I got My Word Goddess Guidance readings from Amy Palko. My goddess for 2013 is Athena, the warrior Goddess. And the word that I selected from her is strategy. Looking at the big picture, my dreams and desires for my life and strategically deciding on the next move so I can live my life fully.

In order to do that I must indulge in my passions and bring passion to all that I do. The right attitude can change the whole game. Part of this effort is not only the attitude but giving me the time and space to indulge in that which fills me up, brings me joy, and energizes me. 2013 will see me bring new programs, new ideas and new passions into being.

Discipline is the bridge between goals and victory. Blissipline is taking that same concept but applying it to the things that bring you bliss/joy. Do what you love consistently, do the work consistently and success will follow.


My Non-Negotiable

I have non-negotiable items that are to be done with consistency - daily or weekly. As Brian Johnson would say, when you do things persistently, patiently, diligently and playfully you are bound to be successful.

1. Sadhana: Every morning before all else do my yoga, meditation and chanting practice
2. Unplugging: At least 1/2 day off technology every week
3. Study: commit to regular study hours every week to ensure I get the most out of all the courses I am taking.
4. Self-care: do something every week to take care of myself
5. Network: Meet one potential or current client every week.

My 2013 guiding principles

1. To live in alignment with my thought, words and actions
2. To live an authentic expression of my Self
3. To practice compassion with self and others
4. To work with others to support my business goals

How do you start the year off?

What do you do to prepare yourself for the fresh start?


Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life. 

The Art of Surrendering by Glenda Myles

"Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.” -C.S. Lewis 

Surrendering to your dream, to your purpose, to your life....requires you to let go of the life you are holding onto so that you can grab hold of the new.  

"The word "surrender" is often interpreted as giving up, as weakness, as admitting defeat. Although this is one way to use the word, we will use it in a different way. Surrendering means letting go of your resistance to the total openness of who you are. It means giving up the tension of the little vortex you believe yourself to be and realizing the deep power of the ocean you truly are." -David Deida

It's been a long time coming.

Many may think it took too long.

"Oh, I thought you already did that" they would say. "No, I hadn't" would be my reply. Secretly feeling the pressure over the last 1-1.5 years, but not surrendering.

I had my reasons, as I am sure we all do.

I am a single mother who has survived and thrived because I focused on providing for my family. There are lots of people without work, how can I give up my good job for the unknown? What if I don't succeed? Am I just going through some mid-life crisis? Have I completely lost my mind?

Surrendering to your dream, to your purpose, to your life....requires you to let go of the life you are holding onto, that identity, so that you can grab hold of the new. And sometimes if you are unwilling to let go, the Universe helps you out. 

That's what happened to me. The universe pried it out of my hands. It was jarring for a moment. Then I realized my hands were free. And with my hands free I was able to reach out for that dream that had been in front of me for so long.

And then.

Relief. Now feeling relieved, the pressure off, I have fully surrendered to the Life I have been longing to live. A level of contentment, happiness, has settled in that I wasn't expecting.

Surrendering has opened my heart and my mind. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Connecting with our Inner Guides by Glenda Myles

Some rights reserved by Mara ~earth light~

Intuition means learning from within. It’s not something we are taught and in fact often we are guided to ignore our gut instinct and to trust our mental thoughts and reasoning. But the more we connect to our intuition the stronger it becomes. We all have an inner knowing, a sixth sense, our connection to the all-knowing that allows us to be all knowing even when we think we are anything but.

In July I celebrated my birthday. It marks my arbitrary mid-year mark. A time to reflect on the first half of the year, how I am doing on manifesting my dreams and goals, and allows me to make adjustments either to my own actions or to my goals.

As I reflected on my three core goals for 2012 – faith, harmony and connection – I consider some of the other things I had written down and wondered why I hadn’t moved forward and have even stalled completely on others, but I realized I have been very focused on my inner personal development.

One of my core goals this year was to cultivate my faith. This has come in many forms including working with a spiritual coach, being disciplined with my meditation and prayer practice, and listening and trusting my intuition. I have retreated over the past few months in an effort to get very quiet. It has been in those moments of quiet and stillness that I have become better attuned to my inner guides.

It takes practice not only to connect to that stillness, but to release the judgment and the rationale thinking that comes with the quiet. Moving past it. Having faith. Faith to trust that gut instinct, the sense that it is Truth, the guidance provided by these inner guides to live a life of purpose.

When you start to make choices based on your instinct you move towards a life with purpose which can be scary. Things change. The changes are not only inside us but are then reflected externally as well.

Part of the process that I am practicing/learning now is that an essential part of this process of following my instinct, having faith in the direction that my life is taking, is surrendering the outcome. I do not know where I will end up or what my life will look like a year or five years from now. All I know is that it will not be the same as it is today or was last year.

I am reminded of the wonderfully powerful poem by Marianne Williamson:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness
That most frightens us.

We ask ourselves
Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.

Your playing small
Does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking
So that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine,
As children do.
We were born to make manifest
The glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us;
It's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine,
We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we're liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.  

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

It’s Always a Good Time to Play by Glenda Myles

Image Credit

"You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation." Plato

When was the last time that you spent an hour playing. Truly playing with no outcome in mind?

If you are anything like most adults, it’s probably been awhile.

We are so task-focused, our busy lives filled up to the rim with to do’s, it leaves very little time for play. But play is essential to our health and well-being. It is through play that we learn how to work with others, how to tap into our imagination and creativity, how to solve problems, and how to connect to that inner part of ourselves that is our Truth.

How do you play

Do you remember playing as a young child? What were your favourite activities?

I loved playing hide and seek, creating and building things, swinging high, and most other things that take some imagination like reading a good book. I grew up during a time when we spent hours and hours outside, but always loved to read. Perhaps the influence of having a mother who managed a bookstore.

Create your playground

If you could create a playground for your adult self, what would it be like? What things would be included? What would you spend your time doing?

My playground is a big empty room. It has lots of windows to allow the natural light to pour in. It’s painted a soft green. I add some sheer flowing fabric on the wall hanging down from the centre of the ceiling to give it a cocooning feel much like the fort in the picture above, complete with chandelier. It is the place where I can dance and move, where I can daydream and create, and where I can bring in items that peek my curiosity.

Learning about yourself

With spring upon us (at least in the northern hemisphere) and the Aries fire energy urging us to get outside and to play, be sure to find time during this week and month to play. The creative time is essential to mental health. Block off a certain time each week and allow yourself to simply play, indulge in it. Allow it to fill you up.

Now consider, what does your choice of playtime activity say about you? What would someone learn about you in an hour of play?

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Take Courage on Your Hero’s Journey by Glenda Myles

"When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it." Henry Ford

I’m used to physical discomfort. After a car accident, my physical body was broken, bruised and traumatized. It has taken years to get it back into reasonable shape. I have given up on the idea that I will be the person that I was before the accident. It’s often like that in life changing events. There is your life before the event and your life after the event.

But that kind of discomfort is not the focus on my post today. Recently, my discomfort surrounds change and transformation. I am trying to change my life; to release my fears and thoughts of inadequacies that are holding me back, keeping me from living my best life. These are not external factors. It is all within my own mind. I am the only thing holding me back. Sometimes it takes external forces to force us to acknowledge it.

I have been feeling very uncomfortable these past few months, so much so that at times I wiggle in my seat. I can feel myself getting “antsy”. What’s going on that’s making me so uncomfortable? I’m scared. I worry. “What people will think. I’m going to fall flat on my face. Fail. People will think I am a fraud, that I’m not good enough.” I let that inner voice go through its spiel. Then I sit quietly. I connect with my own Truth. I take a deep breath. And I remember. I have nothing to fear. have been doing this work for a long time and I am very good at it. This I know. Everything is going to change, it always does. That’ s life. Change is inevitable. So, isn’t it better to control the direction of the change? To make it a change that brings into reality a life that you love to live?

We are all on our hero’s journey, whether we want to be or not. Some of us are just more aware than others. Two movies come to mind (both of which I recommend), Finding Joe and May I Be Frank. Finding Joe is about the Hero’s Journey and how all great stories regardless of culture or language are about this journey. It talks about the great work of Joseph Campbell and how we all can live our bliss. And May I Be Frank is a documentary of one man’s hero journey to transform his life not only on the physical plane but the emotional and spiritual planes as well. It centers on Frank Ferrante, a man that is transformed on many levels. It is a powerful story of hope and love.

Transformation and living our bliss takes courage. It takes diligent and persistent attention to our thoughts, words and actions. It is about constant vigilance to ensure that we don’t allow our egos or inner critics to get the better of us. Sometimes we must close our eyes, take a deep breath, and connect with our inner Truth. Then we must move forward regardless of the fear that we may be feeling.

Take courage.

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Blissfully Flourish by Glenda Myles

 

One way or another, we all have to find what best fosters the flowering of our humanity in this contemporary life, and dedicate ourselves to that. Joseph Campbell

When I think of the word flourish it reminds me of a big, beautiful plant.

Consider that a plant doesn’t lament about growing. It doesn’t look at the other plants in the room and judge itself or others. It doesn’t shrink and hide so as to not offend anyone by its own beauty.

That’s ridiculous.

It knows what it is supposed to do. No one has to tell it what to do. It’s encoded in its cellular structure.

Given the right environment. It will grow – strong and true. It will do what it is supposed to do without thought or consideration. It will flourish.

We are not so different from the plant. Of course, we can think and consider, but, more often than not, that’s where problems start.

Connecting to our bliss and allowing it to shine through and to flourish is our true purpose in life. And moreover, just like the plant we know what that purpose is. I believe this will every cell in my being.

We need to:

• Connect to our bliss
• Create the right environment for our bliss
• Do that “thing that brings you bliss” diligently, passionately, persistently and playfully every day

And we will flourish.

Imagine the world where all of us were like the big, beautiful plant: owning our space and beauty, shining for the enjoyment of all, and doing what we love.

That would be a beautiful world indeed.

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Motivation by Glenda Myles

“People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily.” Zig Ziglar

What motivates you to great heights?

Motivation is the psychological feature that arouses a person to action toward a desired goal or the reason for the action.

So, what’s your daily motivational ritual?

Do you have a visual reminder of your goal around your house and office? Have you made changes in your life to support this new goal? Have you talked to your friends and family about it so they can support you? Do you have the partners you need to be successful? You have to first have the elements of success. You then have to remind yourself of your goal daily or weekly to keep it top of mind. The goal has to be intrinsically linked to something important to you. And you have to keep positive about it as there will be times when fear, anger, and other negative emotions will try to take over.

Do your rituals change when you are riding the creative high to the dragging your behind low?

It’s easy to stay motivated when you are pumped up and things are going well – think first two weeks of January at the gym. It’s packed because everyone has made New Year’s resolutions and are still motivated by the resolution itself to keep going. But those that go to the gym regularly know, by mid to late January it starts to peter out and by February it’s back to normal. You do have a few new faces who have stuck it out though. They have managed the highs and lows and have remained committed.

What is it that keeps those few people motivated long enough to make a new habit with the behaviour?

It’s always a WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) state of mind. You won’t be truly successful if your motivation isn’t about what’s in it for you not someone else. Remind yourself of the why. Why are you doing this? What will it do for you personally or professionally? Why is that important to you?

Besides commitment to the goal, those that are successful are motivated intrinsically or extrinsically by other factors. Most would say that extrinsic factors are the easiest but not always long lasting. If I … go to the gym, lose weight, insert goal here – I can get a … new outfit, indulgence, trip, insert reward here.

This is a great idea for those times when you are just dragging and don’t want to do something, but you know you will feel better if you do it. It won’t necessarily help maintain long term motivation if you haven’t made other changes intrinsically, but it can help you out in certain situations.

Consider that it takes:

• 40 days to change a bad habit into a positive one;
• 90 days confirms the new habit in you;
• 120 days allows the new habit to become who you are;
• 1,000 days ensures you have mastered the habit

Ideas for visual reminders:

Big calendar with the X’s through the days to show how far you have come while keeping an eye on the ‘deadline’. This is good when there is a deadline. If you don’t have one you can create one. Take the 90 days as a deadline.

Make sure to put time in your schedule for the activity and protect it. Learn to say no. You don’t need to explain yourself, feel guilty, or anything else you feel compelled to do. If this is a major goal in your life, carve out the time and protect that time like nothing else. Make sure you find a time that works with your schedule. If you get really busy at work and end up working late a lot – go in the morning. Get up 30 minutes earlier than normal and do what you need to do – exercise, write, read, paint, etc.

I started to get up at 5:30 am to run a few mornings a week. It was fine in the fall and I was making a regular habit out of it, but then winter arrived and my motivation dropped. It has been hard since it is cold and dark out. I had to find new ways to keep myself motivated. I have a sign on my clock so when I roll over to turn the alarm off I see it. It reminds me to get my butt out of bed and go running.

Have your visual cards/index cards near where you get up in the morning so it is the first thing you see. On the cards have not only your goal but a visual representation of what it will be like when you reach that goal.

What other visual reminders could you create that will help you stay motivated?

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Race Day by Glenda Myles

Since I made the decision in September to get healthy I have been very focused on different ways of exercising including running. I remember running when I was in school. We had to do it, but I have never been a runner in my adult life. I have tried it a few times but it just didn’t take. But I knew I needed to get into shape and running is a great way to do that.

So, I started the couch to 5 km program which starts you off alternating between walking and running and slowing increasing the running and decreasing the walking. I was doing okay with it but with no goal in mind I was really not fully committed. Then in late September I got a challenge to sign up for a race. So, I did.

That kicked things into gear a bit. Starting the last week in September with 3 km running I committed to every second week adding a kilometer to the distance which would get me up to 5 km before the race. It was not easy. It was a process. And I wanted to quit MANY times along the way. No one would have known or cared, except me.

What did I learn through this experience?

The mental game: I don’t know how often I would be out running and I would think – “Oh I will run to that tree and then I can walk for a bit.” Followed by another thought: “Hang on – why do I have to walk? I am not that tired!” This back and forth would go on and on. My body is quite capable of running 5 km. My mind on the other hand likes it when my body is lazy and relaxed and will do just about anything to keep it that way. Running like many things in life is a mental game! You have to push past it.

Practice makes perfect: You need to actual get out and run in order to get prepared. You have to practice. The lesson practice makes perfect is fitting in many circumstances. Most of us, can’t just get up one day and decide to do something. You have to train, to learn, to practice. They say it takes 10,000 hours to become a master at anything.

It is easier to commit 100% than 90%: Sometimes, actually always, it is easier to make a decision I am going to exercise everyday for at least 30 minutes. Not 4 days a week or sometimes or this day or that. It’s too easy to say I’ll do it tomorrow or I’ll do something else instead if you give yourself some wiggle room.

Don‘t believe your own crap: Sometimes you have to do something just to prove to yourself that you are capable of doing it. To get over that hump. We beat ourselves up about so much that we actually start to believe our own mental crap. Occasionally we need to shake things up and do something that shows we are capable of so much more than we give ourselves credit for.

Today is a good day to start.

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Falling in Love by Glenda Myles

Image: Vega Ad

When I was around 7 or 8 years old, I begged my parents to let me take a ballet class. I can’t remember what prompted the need, but I recall asking, begging, pleading. They finally succumbed. I loved everything about it: the pink slippers, the tights, the teachers, the studio, the music, the smells, the other dancers, and of course the movement. And come on, what little girl doesn't love a tutu!

In my teens I was in a pre-professional program where I danced 5 days a week – ballet, tap, jazz, modern, and even some more “modern” styles (at the time it was break dancing). I learned to be courageous - taking leaps and trying new things with my body. Going on auditions with people that I thought were so much better than me and learning to have faith in myself and my ability to do it.

I danced well into my late teens and then when we moved across the country I stopped. The dance lessons at least.

In my twenties, I continued to dance. Then it was in nightclubs not dance studios. I would hit the dance floor when I entered and barely leave until the end of the night.

Then kids, work, life took over. I stopped dancing. I then watched my daughter and nieces dance.

On my fortieth birthday last year, I decided to give myself a special gift. I went to Kripalu for a week to attend JourneyDance™ teacher training. It was a magical week that reminded me of my love for dance. It connected me to my true Self. Since then I have tried to dance every week, whether at home or out. 

In September, I went a step further and signed up for an adult intermediate ballet class. It was my first ballet class in twenty years. And I love it. Of course, my body doesn’t quite move the way it used to. My brain remembers the moves but the body doesn’t quite get the message. But it doesn’t matter. Every week I get stronger and better. And most importantly, I love it for the same reasons I did when I was seven: the pink slippers, the tights, the studio, the piano, and the beautiful movements.  It fills me with joy.

The process has taught me so much about myself. Life is so often like a great ballet dance. The better the dancer is – the more graceful and beautiful – the stronger she is. It takes great strength, agility, courage, faith and commitment to be so graceful.

I have fallen in love all over again. This time, I am holding onto it.

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Easily Distracted by Shiny Objects or Projects... by Glenda Myles

How often have you met someone and asked: “How are you doing?” to get the response, “Things are crazy. Oh my goodness I am so busy.” We are all busy. This sense of busyness is often distracting. We think we are doing so much but yet when we consider what we are doing and what we are accomplishing there is often quite a gap.

It’s not hard to fill up our time in our day, week, or month. It’s actually very easy. Have you ever had one of those weeks? You sit back on the weekend and wonder where the week went, but then can’t really think of anything that you even accomplished? The difficult part is not filling up our day, but focusing our energy on our goals.

I suspect that we all have a part of a project that we find interesting and that which we find difficult. Some people find getting started hard but once they start they can push through. For myself, I find getting started easier but it’s the pushing through to the end that I find difficult. I like new ideas and new projects. I like taking the concept and creating a plan to make is a reality. As a result, I often get distracted from my goals when a new idea or project comes up. The new shiny project gets my attention more often than not.

Here are some strategies I have been using.

1.    Focus: Be clear on your goals and strategies to win

• I keep track of my monthly goals that align with my annual goals. Weekly, I review these goals in my planner asking what I I did last week that aligned with my goals and what I plan to do in the next week.

2.    Space: Clear the schedule

• It’s important to say no. This was a lesson, a hard lesson, that I learned this year. I had to give up some things that were important to me in order to give myself the space to work on my goals.

3.    Question: Will this move me forward?

• It often very difficult especially for people like me that are attracted to the shiny new project to say no. I have tried to find space before I say yes or no to something – to consider is this aligned with my goals? If not, will it help me get to where I want to be? Will it bring me joy? Will it fill me with something that is missing?

This year, I have been trying to constantly recalibrate myself to get back on track. The reminders: what are my goals and are my actions in alignment with those goals.

Glenda at Myles Ahead Studio is a professional marketing strategist working to bring more creativity into business and make more ideas come to life.

Growing Pains by Glenda Myles

Transition is to change or passage from one state or stage to another. There are times in our lives when this happens naturally. As we grow older, these transitions happen less frequently naturally and more likely influenced by external factors. Either way transitioning is a part of growing.

I’m transitioning; moving to a new stage in my life. It’s filled with hope, possibility, excitement, fear (rational and otherwise), and a strange sense of peace.

My daughter (I’m a single mom) is almost finished university and will soon be moving out. I am transitioning to an “empty nest” as they call it. One of the benefits of having a child when you are young is that I am still “young” as I enter this new phase of my life. I am forced to come to terms with the price for decisions that I have made along the way. By focusing on my career and raising my daughter, I am now alone. I want to find a life partner to share this next phase of my life.  It’s work in progress.

And that career that I have been working so hard on, well it’s time for a change with it as well. I have a very good marketing job with a great company doing work that I enjoy. But at some point in the not so distant future, I want to run my own business. I want to set my own schedule, my clients, and my work.  I have started my business, Myles Ahead Studio, and over the next year I will be transitioning to it full-time. It’s work in progress.

I read. A lot. I love books. I love to learn. In fact, it’s one of my core strengths. Over the past few years I have been working on my personal development. Figuring out my strengths and passions and what I really want in my life.  As I determine what I want, I am transitioning to living my new life. I have outlined my ideal day: what my day would look like, comprise of, if I could do anything with no limitations. I now try to align my day as closely as possible with my ideal day vision. It’s work in progress.

During these past weeks with Circe Circle, I have recognized some of the challenges that I face – most internal – to fully transition to this new life. I know there will be struggles along the way. Growing pains: the price we pay to grow and transition.

I am committed to this process and I look forward to sharing my work in progress with you.

Focus on your vision and keep going until you hit the finish line. Don’t be one of the people who believe in their vision at first but then give up. See it through, no matter how long it takes. Understand that obstacles are just part of the game. Whatever you imagine, you can achieve. Once you realize this truth, no one is going to be able to stop you. - Russell Simmons from 'Do You!'

Glenda M at Myles Ahead Studio

Meet the Dreamers: Glenda Myles

Glenda Myles of Myles Ahead Studio

I am a full-time business owner, empty-nest mother, teacher, creative problem-solver, and a get-things-done kind of girl!

I am a marketing consulting supporting entrepreneurs, especially those in health and wellness sector. I consult and lead workshops to help business owners grow their passions, their businesses.

I’m also a health and wellness practitioner myself offering Reiki, kundalini yoga, and meditation to my clients. Summer solstice 2013 I will also be launching a new program for women.

I love to learn! I am working on my Reiki master/teacher program now. I’m also working towards my certification to become a birth and postpartum doula and childbirth educator. I also dabble in herbs, oils, and tinctures.

Circe Circle was the beginning of a major transformation for me personally and professionally. Now I am living my ideal life.

Business Site/Blog: Myles Ahead Studio. Facebook. Personal Site/Blog: Glenda Myles. Twitter.