Create space!

We're in the process of moving house, which means lots of packing and lots of throwing out!

Having done the garage sale and given everything which remained at the end to the local op-shop, it was time to pack.  At which point we discovered that there are still plenty of cupboards full of things we haven't seen in years which need to be discarded.

Despite the emotional pang of parting with these things (even though we hadn't even realised they were there!) we're endeavouring to be strong, and discard as much as we possibly can.

The rewards?  A great feeling of cleansing, an opening up of space and emptiness full of possibilities, a feeling of freedom to from the heaviness of possessions no longer needed or wanted.

Where else in life can we do this?  How about unresourceful memories which keep us locked in the past; patterns of behaviour that prevent us from moving forwards; relationships which no longer serve us?  By searching through the cupboards of our mind we can identify these areas, and by choosing to be strong we can cleanse the cobwebs, and create space for opportunities and possibilities that we hadn't previously considered.

Enjoy the freedom!  For help with doing this, in your business and your life, please see our website:  Active Life Matters.

When you know what to do but you don't do it.......

Someone recently said to me "I know what I have to do, but there's always something more fun and exciting to do, so I don't do what I have to"..... does this ever happen to you?

Whilst it's good occasionally to allow ourselves to do the fun and exciting stuff, we know that there are times when we have to be more disciplined and focus on the stuff that will get us ahead, to get the results that we want.   For example, when you know you have to study but there's a great party happening....... - do you go to the party, or knuckle under, stay home and study?

What if there was a way that we could make the 'disciplined and focused' things more 'fun and exciting'?  Wouldn't that change the way we look at it, and change our motivation to move forward and achieve our goals?

It's all a question of perception.  There's usually a perception that a party will be full of people having great fun, and staying home to study or work will be tedious.  But knowing that 'perception is projection', how about we project 'fun and excitement' onto the study and work.  Focus initially on the fun of exploring new concepts or methods or the excitement of trying a new idea.  Change location or music; involve other people if feasible; do a yoga stretch every 10 minutes - anything to make the way you do things different and more enjoyable.  And finally, focus on the rewards you'll get once you've achieved your goal.

So next time you know you have to do something, use your 'fun and excitement' focus to achieve the discipline you need - and then it won't feel like discipline at all!

For more ideas on this, please see our Active Life Matters website.

Awesome efficiency!

How can you create awesome efficiency?

By focusing on doing the RIGHT things at the RIGHT time.  Follow the 80-20 rule, which states that 80% of your effort is likely to produce only 20% of your results.  If you identify the 20% of your effort that is producing 80% of your results - and do more of these activities -  your success will automatically increase.

Awesome efficiency is recognising what activities are giving you the best return on your investment of time, and being strong enough to cut out those which are not contributing enough.


For more information on other ways to become even more successful, please visit our website.

Unlock the potential of your mind!

Our brains are amazing things - it has been scientifically proven that even after significant damage, such as a stroke or injury, with the right exercise and assistance the brain can develop new neurons to take over functions that were previously carried out by the damaged part of the brain.

This is known as neural plasticity and is brilliantly explained in Norman Doidge's book 'The Brain That Changes Itself'.

If our brains can do such incredible things following trauma, just imagine what it can do for us whilst we are still whole and in good health.  It has been shown that with sufficient intensity of emotion (for example, completely associating with a goal - feeling the excitement and pride of achieving it long before it has been achieved; experiencing the joy of the rewards that come from such an achievement - such as test driving the car of your dreams, long before you can afford it) and sufficient repetition of these emotions through visualisation and reminders such as written goals posted on your wall, new neural pathways will develop that connect the idea of the goal with the achievement of it.  The more you feed your brain with the emotions and experience of success, the more certain you are to achieve that success.

NeuroLinguisticProgramming (NLP) uses various techniques that support you to create the effects described above, and hence to create the successful outcomes that you deserve.

For more information about this, please visit our website.

Internal conflicts impact on success

Do you ever feel that you have several mini-you's inside your head, each battling for supremacy?  Don't worry - this is completely normal!

However if you allow them to continue the internal conflict, it can negatively impact on your success.  The key is to get to know them well, and understand their motivations.  For example, if the leisure-lover is the one that wants to relax, take time out, do things that are enjoyable but not moving you forwards towards your goals, acknowledge them and make a deal!  Promise them that you'll give them a treat once a particular task has been achieved.

If the perfectionist is the one that wants to ensure every single contingency is in place, every 'what if' has been taken care of, and uses these imperatives as excuses to hold back from taking the actions that you need to achieve your goals, acknowledge them and make a deal!  Agree that if they accept the need to take action before all the ducks are lined up, you'll allow them to contribute towards improving the overall vision of what's to be achieved.

Make a decision as to which of your 'mini-you's can best help you to achieve the goals you've set.  Give them full rein to move forwards, whilst giving the others credit for their input.  At any one time, it may be a different person who's required - the joy of acknowledging and accepting these mini-personalities is that you can then get the best from them, and increase your success as a result!

For more information on this and other ways to be even more successful, please see our website.

The power of laughter

When did you last have a great laugh?  It's such a good feeling, isn't it!  Have you noticed how some people are able to light up a room the moment they arrive, simply because they have such a refreshing, light-hearted view on life?

Research shows that laughter is great for our physical and mental health - physical health because it lowers the amount of stress hormones in the blood, and mental health because it's much more difficult to give in to feelings of sadness, stress and depression if you're able to see the funny side of life.


It's also great for team relationships at work.  The more productive teams will be those that share the ability to laugh together, even if they're laughing at each other's foibles or differences of opinion.  The potential for conflict is greatly reduced when good natured, well intentioned humour is prevalent and actively encouraged.

For more information on this and other ways to improve your success, please visit our website.

When times are tough in business, the ability to take yourself lightly and ensure that the workplace is a welcoming, fun place to be will encourage clients to keep coming, and staff to keep providing great customer service.

So harness the power of laughter in all areas of your life - everyone around you will thank you for it!

Self-motivation - easily and effortlessly!

What if it wasn't about 'getting motivated' but trusting that you already are?

What if you didn't have to 'push through' the laziness or uncertainty, but could always notice the motivation that is already within you?

It's not a lack of motivation.  Every emotional state exists within us at all times.  It's simply a matter of noticing what is already there.  Think about a time when you wanted more courage to do something.  You found the courage - you did the thing - and felt great.  Where did the courage come from?  It didn't get shipped in, or arrive by post - it was already there, within you - you just had to notice it.

Same thing with motivation.  You have all you need within you right now - it's simply about noticing these qualities, rather than buying into the illusion that they have to show up.

To notice your motivation:

1. Focus on and acknowledge yourself for the times that you are motivated
2. Work out how you noticed it - and replicate the steps exactly
3. Acknowledge the reality that the motivation is there, and it's only waiting for you to notice it
4. Don't confuse fear with lack of motivation!  Get real about what you're afraid of, and deal with that rather than rationalising it as 'not motivated'.
5. Anchor motivation every time you notice it, and keep strengthening that feeling!

For more information on how we can help you become even more motivated and successful, please visit our website.

New ways to manage your time

I can hear you thinking - as if I need even more ways to manage my time - I have enough to do already!

Yet of course the question is - how productive are you being?  Are you accomplishing all the things that you need to (not want to)?  The following may help:

1. Work out exactly how many areas of your business you're actually working on - not want to be working on - but actually working on.
2. Work out how you spend your time - how much time goes on the areas of your business you actually like, compared with the other areas that are important but perhaps not quite as enjoyable.
3. If you notice an imbalance, diarise the areas that you know you need to be working on.
4. Break down the things that need to be done so that they are 'bite-sized' and therefore more manageable.
5. Every week commit to doing at least one thing in each area of your business - even those bits you don't love.
6. Redo your schedule every Sunday night or Monday morning so you know exactly what needs to be achieved for the week.
7. Know how you'll measure your success when you achieve your goals - and how you'll celebrate!

For more information on how we can help you to become even more successful, please visit our website!

Find your purpose!

It's well known that highly successful people tend to have a clear purpose - they knew exactly what they wanted and they aimed directly for it.

If you're not sure what your purpose is, try answering the following questions:

1. What brings vitality to your life?
2. Write down what you loved most when you were a child.
3. Include why you loved these activities.
4. What do you want to be known for?
5. What is your proudest achievement?
6. What does your life stand for?
7. If other people's expectations hadn't shaped you, what would you be doing?

How much are you incorporating these into your life?  If you find they're not present, perhaps you need to refocus and start directing your energies onto the things that are really important to you.

For more information on how you can be even more successful, please see our website.

Ultimate Success Ingredients

Aiming for Ultimate Success?  These are the ingredients you need to know:

1. Know the outcomes you want to achieve
2. Take action - even just one step - every single day
3. Notice the results your actions are getting - are they moving you in the direction you want to go?
4. If what you're doing isn't working, change what you're doing - be as flexible as possible in achieving your goals.

Go forth and succeed - with Ultimate Focus and Ultimate Success!

For more information on how you can become even more successful, please see our website.

Health, Vitality & Happiness!

Imagine yourself at the age of 90!

How do you look?  How do you feel?  How physically mobile are you?  How mentally agile are you?

It's one of life's ironies that we don't like to think about getting old, and yet most of us want to be around for a long time before we pop our clogs!  So if we assume that, all being well, we're aiming for a good innings then wouldn't you agree that it's worth putting a bit of effort in now to give ourselves the best chance possible of retaining our marbles and our mobility?

The key is to give ourselves a big enough reason WHY.  Decide the physical and mental state you want to be in when you're 90, and head towards it with gusto!  This means programming exercise into your life, and intellectual stimulation too - not watching TV, but getting involved in what's going on around you, getting the most out of life!

Find exercise activities that you love to do - walking, swimming, dancing, yoga, tai chi, tennis, fitness classes, cycling........ and program it into your day so that it becomes as essential an activity as cleaning your teeth!

You will be the inspiration for so many others - your clear focus on Health, Vitality and Happiness will be an incredible example - go for it, and have fun!

For more information on this, please see our website.

Time for calm......

In our frenetic world, how often do you deliberately make space for calm?

Imagine - a few moments set aside, EVERY day, a deliberate gift to yourself to allow some stillness and quiet into your life.  Allow the continuous stream of thoughts, worries, concerns, ideas, challenges, tasks, projects, world and personal affairs, to subside for a few moments.

Breathe in the space.  Dive into the stillness.  Think nothing.  Just breathe.

You'll be amazed when you realise how refreshed, revitalised and re-energised you become, even after a few minutes. 

Give yourself, your business and your family this gift of the present moment - there's no better time than now.

And when you're refreshed, if you'd like more information on how to improve your results, please see our website.

Lift your pitch!

We've all heard so much about the 'elevator pitch' - the story you tell in the space of time it takes to travel between 2-3 floors in a lift, in response to the question 'so what do you do?'.

To make life interesting, consider the idea of changing your pitch on a regular basis, and 'lifting' it!  What do I mean by 'lifting' it?  Have some fun with it - you'll be more memorable, and stand a far better chance of connecting with the others in the lift with you if you can make them laugh!  The key ingredients of an 'elevator' pitch are to state:

• who your target market/audience is
• what problem they have that you solve
• how you do this

For example:  'I work with mature women who struggle to balance the demands of career and motherhood by helping them find creative ways to operate more efficiently'.

It follows the requirements, but doesn't exactly inspire, does it?

How about: 'I add zest, vitality and passion to the lives of professional women by helping them explore their true identities!'  It has more energy, more excitement and more intrigue - all helping you be more memorable and encouraging your listener to want to know more!

If you fancy adding a bit of zest, vitality and passion to lift your pitch, see the zing on our website!

3 drivers of business

Three key drivers of business are:

1. Get clients
2. Keep clients
3. Get paid by your clients

What are you doing to get clients?  Where are you focusing?  Who are you building relationships with?  What systems do you have in place for capturing new enquiries?  How do you record new enquiries, and how do you follow them up?  What are your targets - how many new clients are your aiming for, and for what size of order?  Having clearly defined targets will help you to stay focused. 

How do you keep your clients?  What do you offer them to increase customer loyalty?  How do you add value for your clients?  How do you reward them?  What are your targets for retention and referral?  How well have you communicated these to your team?

What systems do you have in place for ensuring that you're paid for work you've done?  Are your records up to date?  What systems do you have for following up on late payments?  Is this system automatically updated?  What are your targets for debtor management?

When was the last time you stood back and reviewed your business - worked on it instead of in it? 

For more information and for assistance with making your business less 'busy' and more healthy, please contact us via our website.

Blast beyond your boundaries!

Our boundary conditions are the conscious limits of our thinking - the edge of our known world.  Another way to look at it is the edge of our comfort zone, or the edge of what's familiar to us.

This is why it's difficult for any of us to get beyond these boundaries by ourselves - if we could, we would already have done so, right?  It is only by going beyond what we know that we discover what we don't know!  Think about it.  Every result we've achieved so far is based on what we know.  We know how to make $50,000 a year.  If we knew how to make $150,000 we'd do it, wouldn't we!

We don't because it's outside what we know - it's outside our boundary conditions.

To create transformation in any area of our life involved us finding ways to go beyond what we know, to what is unknown. 

Ways to do this are:

1. Being self-aware of when we're using old thinking to deal with new situations
2. Asking different questions that focus on less on the problem and more on what we need to learn to be able to manage it
3. Remembering that courage only comes through action!
4. Recognising that fear is normal, and will always be there - but so is courage, and when we act we will feel courage.

If you'd like help in expanding your boundaries even further, and exploring the possibilities that you know are out there and you haven't yet accessed, please contact us through our website - we'll be delighted to give you a complimentary consultation!

What language do you use?

Each time you hear yourself using 'disempowering' language like 'I can't....' get excited!  You have uncovered a hidden roadblock to your success - which means you can now change it and therefore improve your results!

To be aware of how you communicate, take note of the words you use over the next few days in the following situations:

Language I use when:

• I'm stressed
• I feel certain
• I'm feeling disconnected from someone
• I'm judging someone
• I'm feeling frustrated
• I'm feeling empowered

Make a decision to only use language that focuses on the positive - that says:
1. What you want, rather than what you don't want;
2. Who you are, rather than who you're not
3. What you can do, rather than what you can't.

This will motivate you to move forwards rather than remain stuck in the hole you were heading down.  Very quickly you will notice that you become more focused, more decisive and more effective.

Sounds simple? - it is!  And surprisingly powerful.  Make it a habit - you'll like it.


If you'd like to discover more ways to rediscover your energy and effectiveness, your vision and vitality, your certainty and success - please see our website.

Does your environment work for you?

If you ever have trouble getting started in your day, or working through the daily 'to do' list, consider whether your environment is helping or hindering.

It's a very individual thing - what works for you may not work for someone else - the key is whether or not it works for you! 

Physical environment can play a bit part in working effectively.  Personally, I need a window and ideally lots of desk space - because I have a bad habit of covering the desk space very quickly with various piles, one for each job that I'm working on. 

I also need green vegetation - either in the office or visible from the window - and the availability of fresh air if at all possible!

However physical environment isn't everything.  Is your team environment effective, are the relationships at work productive and enjoyable, is the communication environment conducive to healthy debate and challenge whilst maintaining a positive outlook and acknowledging each person's contribution?

What part do you play in all of this?  How much is within your control?  What changes can you make to improve the environment in which you work - for your own benefit and for the benefit of others?

If you work on the basis of CANI - Continuous and Never-Ending Improvement - there will be something you can do to make your environment a healthier, happier and more fulfilling place to work and live.

For more on this and other ideas on how you can transform aspects of your life, please visit our website.

Embrace your obstacles!

How important are your goals to you?  Do you crumble at the first obstacle, or the second?  Is this because you see the obstacles as insurmountable, or evidence that you're not intended to achieve the results you wanted?

What if you looked at the obstacles as evidence that the goal is really worth having, and focus on how much more amazing you will feel when you've blasted them out of your way!  Chances are, you'll find that the obstacle wasn't even worthy of blasting - more of a sparkler required than a stick of dynamite - in which case, congratulate yourself and move even closer towards your goal!

And if you do discover that the obstacle is a mighty one, embrace it as something to really motivate you to achieve, because the goal will be so much more worth having, and your sense of achievement will be even greater.

The more successful we are, the bigger the obstacles (usually) - so if we see these as evidence of our success, both past and future, we can embrace them and overcome them!

For more information on this and ways to transform your life, check out our website!

Motion is Emotion!

If you're looking for more happiness and satisfaction in your life, try going for a walk, a run or a bike ride!  You'll be amazed at what a difference some fresh air and exercise can make.  Get into the open air, get your blood circulating a bit faster than it usually does, and the endorphins - those natural highs - will soon be helping you to feel happier and calmer.

If you do exercise on a regular basis you'll know how right this is.  If you haven't exercised for a while, it doesn't mean you can't - it just means you're out of practice - and the only way to change that is to give it a go! - gently at first, and soon you'll want to do more....

In no time at all, you'll discover that motion produces great Emotions!

For more on this and ways to transform your life please see our website!

Money - are you in control?

Money doesn't buy us happiness - most people agree with this, yet also feel that life would be quite a bit easier with more of it!  Why is this? - because money buys us choice, of course.

Not everyone says they want more choice, yet most people will say they want more money.  So what will they do with more money?  - they'll have to make decisions on how to spend it, and so they will be making choices, even if they haven't seen it in this light.

To get more money, the first thing you need to do is to take control!  Know exactly how much you have coming in, and where it is going - what you're spending it on.  It isn't enough to hope it will all work out OK - you might be short this month, but it'll be better next month.....make a decision now to take charge of your life - and your finances!

How to do this?
- keep to your monthly budget
- monitor your spending closely
- spend within your means
- start a savings plan - and have something specific that it's destined for
- keep asking other people questions about how they got ahead

There are many people out there in the same position as you - you'll be the one to get ahead if you take control of your life right now! What's holding you back?.....

For more information and more about how we can help, please visit our website.www.activelifematters.com

How much do you value your time?

Have you ever noticed how often we talk about time in the same way as money?

- I've run out of time
- I'm short of time
- I wish I had more time
- Time is precious
- Can you spare a minute?
- Where did all that time go?
- I can't find the time

How different would things be if we talked about time like this:
- I have plenty of time
- My focus is this right now
- I choose to do this with my time
- I love the way I choose to spend my time

Because our language gives away the way in which we approach life, you can choose to live life as if you have plenty of time to do the things you want to - or you can choose to live a life of scarcity.  In the end, it makes no difference to the amount of time you have - we all have exactly the same number of hours in the day, and yet some people seem to pack heaps in whilst others never get anything achieved.  What's the difference? - simply the way in which they choose to think of time, and choose to focus on the things that are really important to them.

So next time you're feeling a little time-poor, look at where you are focusing your energies.  You'll find it's probably on the things you find easier, or more enjoyable and that you're putting off the things you anticipate will be difficult or painful - and yet, if you do those things you'll feel a much greater sense of progress and satisfaction.

By valuing your time sufficiently to decide what will give you the greatest results for your effort, you'll soon find that the onerous 'to do' list starts to shorten - either because you've achieved those things you were avoiding, or because you've realised that some things just aren't worth your time.   Hence, greater time for your buck - to mix the time and money metaphor!

Something to think about!  For more information on this and other ways to transform your life please see our website.www.activelifematters.com

The power of focus!

We've all heard 'what you focus on is what you get' but how many of us really appreciate the power of this?  It's all to do with the way we phrase the questions we ask ourselves.

For example, instead of asking 'why does this always happen to me?', try asking 'what can I learn from this to make sure it works out much better next time?'.  This way, the focus will be on moving forwards, learning, growing rather than staying stuck in the past.

Or - 'What if I fail?' - try replacing this with 'What if I succeed - how brilliant will that be!'.  In this example, you've moved the focus away from failure and now you're considering all the possibilities that will come from succeeding - making it so much more likely that you'll succeed!

Or - 'Why can't I stop eating?' - try replacing this with 'How can I appreciate even more the level of health I have right now, and improve it by feeding myself even healther food!'.  In this instance, you're moving the focus away from deprivation, and concentrating on appreciation, valuing, and respecting your body so that you're far more likely to make healthy choices from now on.

So next time you find yourself indulging in a bit of self-flagellation, verbal thrashing or internal moaning, change the question and the focus - make a decision today that you're going to make the power of focus BE your focus - use it to take you where you want to be, and enjoy the journey!

For more on this and other ways to transform your life please see our website.

Powerful questions to transform our lives

What have you learned today?  This is one of the most valuable questions to ask yourself at the end of every day, and to ask your children so that they learn to see life as a constant opportunity to gain wisdom from every experience.  If you can't think of anything specific, find an encyclopaedia, explore Wikipedia or look through the dictionary so that you create a new learning that you can share with others.

What's great about this?  Another superb question to ask in any situation, whether challenging or otherwise.  By searching for the value in situations, you'll always find ways to maximise the benefit for yourself and others around you.  By asking this question aloud, you'll also teach others to look for the value - so you'll be spreading the learning and the growth - and what they find that's great about something may be completely different to what you see, so you'll learn from each other.  Again, another valuable question to ask your children, to help them focus on life's positives - a lifelong skill that is priceless.

How can I use this?  Again, focusing on the value that is inherent in any situation - particularly challenging ones.  This question helps you to seek out the positive meaning and turn it into a benefit.  Once again, encourage your children to ask themselves this and you'll find that they become far more self sufficient and resourceful human beings.  Try it with your team members too - and learn from their responses!

For more information and ideas on how Active Life Matters (active coaching for outstanding results) can help you, your family and your organisation please visit our website.

Change your physiology - change your results!

A challenge for you to remember - next time you're feeling down, check your body language and you'll almost certainly find that your posture reflects your mood.  Your head is probably slumped forward a bit, your shoulders will be drooped, you won't be breathing as deeply or freely as you could and you mood will be reflected in your face.

Similarly, if you're feeling fantastic you're likely to be standing or sitting up, shoulders back, head held high, eyes are smiling even if your cheeks aren't (and they probably are).......you'll be breathing freely and easily, and feeling great!

So - you know how to do each mood - so the next time you're feeling down, make a conscious decision to adopt the physiology of the fantastic - straighten up, breathe more deeply, find someone to smile at (and see them smile back), hold your head higher - and immediately you will find that you start feeling better.  As soon as this happens you're in a much better position to review your situation with better perspective, and find solutions to your current challenges!

It may sound simple, perhaps even trite - but just give it a go - you may be surprised at how powerful this technique is, and how much more powerful and effective you will become as a result.

For more information on this or for help with improving your results, please visit our website

Active Life Matters provides individual and business performance coaching by phone and online, so our clients can be anywhere in the world that has access to a phone or computer - and so can we!  Extremely time efficient, you will make powerful changes to your results very quickly - the moment you choose to do so!

Are you giving yourself enough acknowledgement?

Do you sometimes doubt yourself, or secretly diminish your self-worth through negative self-talk?

For years, I used to wonder when they were going to find me out.  My career was going well, promotions happening on a regular basis and yet I never really had faith in myself.  I simply thought I was hiding my inadequacies so well that they hadn't yet realised that I wasn't as good as they thought I was!

Negative self-talk like this doesn't help anyone, and I've finally realised a few steps to leading a happier life:

1. Trust myself
2. Trust those around me to see and acknowledge my qualities
3. Accept that there is always room for improvement
4. Continue to strive for improvement
5. Accept that I can't do it all by myself
6. Be willing to ask for help
7. Make the opportunity to acknowledge others as often as possible
8. Offer to help others whenever I can
9. Enjoy the process

Simple, effective and creates a whole new way of looking at life - far more relaxed and enjoyable - try it for yourself!

Personal performance coaching can assist anyone wishing to improve themselves and their mindset towards life. 
For more information and help with this please see our website!

Personal Power - now is the time

Do you ever feel that life is happening to you, rather than you making life happen?  If so, now's the time to change this, and regain your personal power.

How to regain your personal power?  Simply decide that's what you want to do, and take action right now!  One step is all you need to give you a sense of progress - and that small step is the decision to make changes.  To make changes in your life, you need to make changes in your life.

If youi're not sure how to make this decision, simply look at what it is costing you to stay the same.  What are you missing out on?  How much frustration and dissatisfaction are you experiencing at the moment?  How much extra energy is it taking you to struggle on, with no sense of progress?

At the same time, get really clear on what changes you're going to make.  How is life going to be different for you?  Which aspects of your life are most urgently demanding attention?

Once you've decided where to focus initially, decide what type of action will make a difference.  The first step doesn't have to be huge, in fact it's much better if it's a small step so that it's easy, effortless and yet gives you a sense of progress.

For example, suppose you've been working long hours, money is tight, you come home exhausted every day and don't enjoy being with your family because you're so tired.  No way to live, and yet you can't seem to find a way out?  Firstly, look at what it's costing you and your family.  Is your long-term health suffering?  Are your family suffering and missing out from not having the best of you?

Make the decision now that you're going to make changes.  How would you like it to be?  Talk to your family - an open discussion about it will help to strengthen the communication and they may have ideas you haven't thought of!  Create a picture and imagine how it would be in an ideal world - and then work out just one small step you could take to move closer towards this reality.  Put this step in place and notice the improvements that happen immediately.  Then work on the next step, and so on.

Nobody climbs a mountain with a giant leap - but lots of small steps one after the other will get you to the top more easily than you could have imagined.  Use your personal power now, and see how effortlessly you progress forwards towards your destination.

If you'd like more information or assistance with this, please see our website.

Where will you be in 5 years?

If you're having trouble getting focused, imagine where you'll be in 5 years time if nothing significant changes in your life.

Is this where you want to be heading? - if you're on track for great success, fantastic and congratulations!  However many of us know that we need to make changes - and we need to make them now in order to ensure that we're heading in the direction we want to be going.

So what does this mean?  It means that you can achieve almost anything you want to, if you get really clear on what you want, and what you need to do to get there.  However clarity by itself is not enough, of course - you need to take consistent, conscious action every day to keep yourself moving forwards towards your goals.

Each night, review what you achieved today that moved you closer, and - very importantly - acknowledge your efforts and congratulate yourself for it.  Constant reinforcement of your progress will maintain motivation and enthusiasm.  If things didn't go so well, don't beat yourself up about it - simply decide to do things differently tomorrow.  Stay focused on moving forwards in a positive way.

Once you've acknowledged your successes for the day, plan your actions for tomorrow - what else can you do towards your master plan?

Once you've worked that out, you can sleep peacefully - perhaps with a -pre-sleep meditation to totally relax you and set you up for another great day.

Every now and then, review your 5 year goal to make sure it's still relevant, desirable and appropriate for your life.

For assistance with this, please see our website.

Time to relax!

How often do you consciously make time for relaxation in your busy world?  We can change from relaxed to tense in a split second, yet without practice, it's not so easy to reverse the process.

And yet, our best decisions are made in a relaxed state when we can consider the big picture, look at all the implications, and feel that we're in control.  So doesn't it make sense to learn techniques that allow you to relax at a moment's notice?

Meditation can help you to develop these techniques, and with just 15 minutes practice each day you'll learn how to tap into far more of your brain power, so that you can run the show with ease.

Simply put, the technique requires you to:
1. Close your eyes (best not to do this when you're driving!)
2. Breathe longer, slower, deeper
3. Relax your body from head to toe
4. Repeat a mantra (simply a phrase or word that works for you, eg: 'I'm calm and confident', or 'Life is good' - whatever works for you)
5. Imagine a peaceful scene - see the colours, hear the sounds, feel the sensations and emotions
6. When you're at your most relaxed in this scene, create an 'anchor' by pressing a trigger point, eg: your finger and thumb - so that when you need this sensation in a hurry, you can re-create it instantly just by pressing your trigger point, without going through points 1-5.

Do this repeatedly, and you'll soon find that you're more relaxed anyway - and you'll be able to conjure up this state at will.  Do this, and watch your results dramatically improve.

For more information on this, or to improve your results with personal performance coaching, please see our website.

Is your self-talk working for you?

All of us have this little voice inside that comments on what we do, how we do it, and even what we're thinking.  Let's call it our 'observer'.

Our observer is completely free of emotion, it simply observes - and frequently comments on what we're up to!

The question is, is your observer commenting in an encouraging and supportive way?  Even if things go wrong, does it say things like 'so, let's learn from that experience' and 'ok so that one didn't work but let's try something different and hopefully better next time' or 'good on you for trying - far better than not trying!'......

Or, as often seems to be the case, is your observer holding you back, saying things like 'you're so stupid, of course that wasn't going to work!'...........

The funny thing is, although it sometimes seems as if we can't control our observer of course we can.  We can make the decision today to only listen to comments that are encouraging and supportive; to instruct our observer only to give us helpful and positive feedback.  It won't respond overnight, but in time you'll find that the self-talk becomes more and more supportive.

If you don't believe me, give it a go! - and remember to be firm with your observer - only positive self-talk from now on!

For more on this, and for help with improving your results please check out our website.

Are your stories working for you?

The only thing preventing us from

• being who we want to be;
• doing what we want to do;
• and having what we want to have

is the stories we tell ourselves about why we can't.

For example, if you didn't go to university and you use that as a reason for not going for a particular job or promotion, that's your story.  You could choose a different story, such as the additional life experience you've gained in the years you might have been at university, which will give you an edge over your competition.

The question is, is your story working for you or against you?

What stories have you been telling yourself (and others) about why you can't be, do or have whatever you want?

Isn't it time to change the story to one which supports you to move positively towards the goals you want to achieve?

Why would you let go of these stories right now?  Give yourself as many compelling reasons as you can for why you would get rid of these stories, and re-create yourself in a new light.

What determines the quality of our lives is not what happens to us.  What determines the quality of our lives is the meaning we give to events that happen, and the choices we make as a result of that meaning.

Six keys to developing ideas in your business

Would you like more creativity and innovation in your business?  These six keys will help you to create this easily and effortlessly - and generate a level of excitement and contribution in your team that will boost your results!

1. Develop an acceptance of change
Individuals and teams must buy-in to the change process. They must perceive the benefits to be worthwhile pursuing - so be sure to highlight the benefits, and ask them too - they may see benefits you hadn't yet considered.

2. Welcome new ideas
The message that ideas and suggestions are welcome must be instilled from the top down and from the bottom up.  Managers must be willing to listen to new ideas and to encourage them.

3. Encourage interaction
Establish methods of creating interaction such as forming 'tiger' teams specifically brought together to brainstorm, to solve a problem or to champion a specific area of the business.

4. Tolerate failure
Move the culture away from 'getting it right' and encourage experimentation.

5. Provide clear objectives and the freedom to achieve them
Allow people room to exercise their imaginations and their responsibilities.

6. Give recognition & acknowledgement
Acknowledge creativity and innovation - ensure recognition of individuals and teams who contribute to new progress.

To learn more about this, please see our website or contact us.

Seven principles of implementing change

Is change happening too fast in your world? Depending on your perspective, change can be scary or exciting - and whichever way you look at it, it is much easier to manage when you follow the simple process outlined below.


1. Generate new - don't repair old
Too much time can be spent repairing systems that don't work well or are outdated.  If something is no longer effective, generate new - ideas, thinking, systems - to meet the current situation.  This is limited only by your imagination (see previous blog post!).

2. It's feedback, not failure
The notion of failure is obselete.  Change means taking risks - and possibly not getting the results we thought we wanted.  Is this failure?  Or is it learning how to do things right the next time?  Think of it as feedback that will help you to move towards better results.

3. Influence and control are gained through flexibility
To influence, behavioural flexibility is the key.  Staying with a method because 'it's always been done that way' will ultimately create poor results, as other aspects change over time.
Consider what you can change about your thinking or behaviour that will result in a different and improved outcome.

4. Resistance in communication is ineffective communication by the leader
When someone is resistant to our ideas, it's tempting to think they either are not listening or they are reluctant to change.  What if instead, we choose to believe that we haven't communicated in an effective way.  How about asking 'what would you like to see happen' - this helps to build common ground, and to engage people in contributing ideas that perhaps you hadn't thought of.

5. People have all the resources they need within them to create change.
If you believe this of yourself and your team, then everything is available to you!  The inner resources that drive successful people are primarily desire, self belief, confidence and courage to take risks.  Develop these resources within yourself, and you can then encourage your team to do the same.

6. There is only perception of reality
Reality can only ever exist in the mind of the person observing.  Your reality cannot and will never be mine.  So therefore we only have perception to work with.
Learn to appreciate this, and you will open up the boundaries of possibility by appreciating that your reality can be extended by learning about other people's ways of looking at the world - and so can theirs.  Accept that your perception of reality is just that - perception - and the world will open up for you.

7. We are in charge of our mind, and therefore our results.
Imagine for a moment that you took 100% responsibility for your emotions.  No more saying 'he made me feel angry' or 'she stresses me out so much'.  How about instead saying 'I get angry when he does that' - and taking responsibility for your own emotion.  Are you going to choose to be angry, or to laugh it off?  What if every emotion you have is a choice?
Take 100% responsibility for your emotions, actions, choices and behaviours.  Anything less than that is giving away your opportunity to influence the results you want.

To learn more about this, please see our Active Life Matters website or contact us.

Imagination - an underrated quality!

How often do you allow your imagination to run free?

More importantly, how much of what your imagination produces do you then incorporate into your world?  Nothing great was ever achieved without it first being imagined.

Luckily Walt Disney had an incredible imagination from which we have the wonders of Disneyworld, and all the Disney films and characters that children of all ages love.

Einstein also allowed his imagination to run free, and then transformed it into practical application, with the result that we understand relativity.  Einstein said:

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

 

Nothing can exist without it first being imagined.  People used to imagine that we could fly - and so planes were created.   Then they imagined that we could go to the moon - and in a relatively short period of time, the first man arrived on the moon.   

 

What are you imagining that will transform your world?  And having imagined it, what are you changing to make it become reality?  

 

Even if you don't know all the steps in the process to make something a reality yet, all you have to do is start - talk to people about what you're trying to achieve - and be open for opportunities that will help your imaginings become reality!  And imagine what might happen as a result - to transform your results!

See our website for more information on how we can help you to transform your results!

Looking for the catch

• Are you always looking for the catch?
• Do you look at other people whose results you'd like to have, but there's always a reason why you can't do what they do?
• Or do you see other people whose results you'd like to have and decide to figure how they did it, and get the same results for yourself?

Some people are masters at finding the reasons why 'that doesn't apply to me'.  It's so easy to look for the catch - for example: my parents weren't as wealthy as theirs; I wasn't as good at school as they were; they're so much fitter than I am, they have the energy to do that stuff........I'm not like that.......

If you want to get better results, find someone who's achieving the results you want and model them.  This doesn't mean becoming a clone - it means identifying the qualities in them that you know will enable you to be more effective.  For example - determination and drive.  Often when people become famous it looks as if they just arrived with no effort.  What we don't see is the years of hard work they've already put in to get where they are - determination and drive.

Are these qualities you could incorporate in your life?  The key is to working out what your strengths are that will enable you to get the results you want, and identify qualities that you can develop. 

When modeling someone with the aim of replicating their results, it isn't an 'all or nothing' approach.  Take the aspects that suit you best, that are sustainable within your lifestyle, and that will help you to add more value to your life, to grow and move forward.

Look for the catch - and then turn it to your advantage!

For more information on how you can change your thinking to change your results, see our website.

Turning procrastination into motivation

• Are you a procrastinator?  
• Do you drive yourself crazy, knowing you have tasks to do and yet not getting down to them, perhaps until you're under real pressure?
• Are you one of those people who only seems to work well with the deadline breathing down your neck - you get the job done, but always just in time and with a heap of stress involved?

To transform procrastination into motivation, focus on more than the task in hand.  In terms of the task, you almost certainly know what needs to be done - and yet for some reason you're not getting down to it in a timely manner.  So it's not just the task itself - it's your mindset!

You need to ramp up the motivation to get the job done.  Easy to say - but how - if procrastination is your middle name? 

1. Create a vivid picture in your mind of you completing the job with plenty of time to spare.  See the people around you, delighted that it's completed so early.  See the smiles on your clients' faces.  See the satisfaction in your own face, relaxed and confident.  Create this picture clearly and brightly in your mind - make it real.

2. Add sounds to this vivid picture.  Hear the congratulations from those around you.  Listen to the words of appreciation from your clients.  Hear yourself laughing with your partner or family when you get home, relaxed and knowing that the job is complete.  Listen to what you're saying to yourself - wow, that wasn't so hard after all and it's a great feeling to have it done - on to the next project with time in hand!  Turn up the volume!


3. Focus on what you'll feel when you've completed the job with time to spare - relaxed, confident, satisfied.  Really experience these feelings so that they make the picture complete.

By creating this mental picture and stepping fully into it so that you're experiencing the vibrancy of bright colours, great sounds and sensations, you're building new neural pathways that will make motivation to achieve your goal absolutely assured.  You can use this technique with any task, large or small - enjoying the completed goal in advance will give you the motivation and inspiration you need to get it done ahead of time.

Try it and see for yourself - right now - make the decision right now to adopt this technique whenever you have a task that would previously have stressed you - the new 'you' will move swiftly, calmly and confidently into action - right now!

Active Life Matters provides active coaching for outstanding success in business, life, health & fitness.  See our website for more information.

Stress = lack of perspective!

How are your stress levels?
Have you lost perspective, buried in the fog of worries, unable to see the stars for the clouds?

What if you stood up tall, took a deep breath and looked down at the big picture?

So often we get lost in the day to day details of life, busy being busy and we forget certain fundamentals - who we are, and why we're here.
Who do we want to be, and are we being that person?
Why are we working at all? - if the answer is to get money, why? - to pay the bills, yes, and to feed the family, yes - for what ultimate purpose?

What if the meaning of life is to make life meaningful....what will make your life more meaningful?  What is the legacy that you'd like to leave? 

Once we have clarity on these questions, you'll be surprised at how much falls into place and the way forward becomes clearer.  If you're unhappy at work, start looking for alternative employment, now, before it becomes critical!  If your business isn't doing well, ask for help - many people will be happy to give their opinion, and whilst they won't all gell with you if you listen openly, there may be gems of wisdom that you can use and adapt.

If the questions themselves create more stress, perhaps it's because you haven't found the answers yet.  The first step to finding answers is to ask the right questions.  That's where coaching can help you. 

Coaching is a conversation like no other.  It will identify new possibilities, overcome old paradigms, rediscover strengths that you didn’t realise you had, and find renewed motivation and pathways to success.

Every successful sportsperson uses a coach to magnify their potential - if you're serious about finding ways to overcome stress and gain new perspectives, consider investing in yourself by finding a good coach.  For more information, visit our website!

2010-2015......Five years of potential!

2010 - 2015.......Five years of potential:

• Five years ago, where were you?  
• Did you anticipate that you would be doing what you're doing now?  
• How do you want your life to be in five years time, and what is your plan to get you there?

 If nothing changes, nothing changes!

• What can you differently to ensure that in five years, you have achieved exactly what you want to and you are exactly where you want to be?
• Most importantly of all, as you put yourself into that future place, how does it feel?
• Create your vision - make it so real that you can feel all the emotions that success has given you - the more intensely you experience your future success now, the more certainty you will create, easily and effortlessly.

Success is achieved by creating a vision that inspires, and creating a team around you to help you achieve your vision.  Your team can be anyone who is involved in your success - family, colleagues, bank manager, lawyer..... so articulate your vision clearly and let them become a part of it.  This will ensure that everyone has a clear picture of the destination, and will help you to find the best road to get there.

2010 - your five years start now.  
Where will you be in 2015?

For information on how we can help, please contact us via our website.

'Dis' is the problem - engagement is the solution!

Disenchantment, disengagement and disgruntlement are often a feature of the workforce in many large corporations - and some small ones!

Traditionally people in these jobs had security, reasonable salaries and conditions.  Many stayed in their jobs for exactly these reasons - even if their work no longer stimulated or challenged them, the comfort of the regular income and stability outweighed the pain of boredom and frustration.  The result - people who feel disempowered.  And the current climate means that these jobs are no longer secure, so there is fear of change added to the dissatisfaction.

Is it all doom and gloom?  In some places, yes! - however if you're managing people like this, you can easily improve the situation by making a few simple changes.

1. Engage the team

Include them in discussions about the strategic direction of the organisation.  What is the big picture, what are the long term goals?  How valuable is their contribution towards achieving these - let them know.  Often disenchantment grows from a sense of being unappreciated and unnoticed.  Recognition of people's existence and their value to the organisation may sound obvious, but is often missed in the day to day routine.  What are their ideas for improving systems, customer service, increasing sales, reducing wastage?  The people at the 'coalface' usually have clear ideas about these areas, and would love to be asked - and if their ideas are implemented, give them the credit.

2. Be open about organisational changes

Insecurity usually grows from uncertainty, not knowing, hearing rumours.  The more open you can be about keeping people in the loop, the better they will adjust to changes - and the more they can contribute.  Of course sometimes changes need to be kept confidential until new deals are secured or contracts signed - however as soon as it is feasible and practical, communicate openly with the team.  If individual circumstances are going to change significantly (for example, redundancy) the more support and input you can give to the person, the better their experience of redundancy will be and therefore the better their longer-term memory of your organisation will be.
3. Ask them what would make their jobs more interesting/stimulating/challenging. 
You might be surprised at how many are keen to try something new, step up to new responsibilities, have an opportunity to gain new experience - which will make them more valuable to the organisation.  If their suggestions are not feasible be sure to give them the reasons why.  Consistently open and effective communication will go a long way to giving people more engagement in the organisation.

4. Consider team development work

Investment in team coaching and development can create significant shifts - such as helping the team and individuals to explore their personal values and compare them with organisational values.  Alignment between values will make a team far stronger; a mismatch, when discovered, will help to explain why some team members may feel the way they do - and help to give them clarity on whether or not they should stay, or search for a new position that more closely aligns with their own values.

Email us to arrange your free two-hour business needs analysis consultation valued at Aus$247.  Limited to the first three people to respond.

Change is the only constant!

Opportunities arise, technologies evolve and demands change.  

To take advantage of these effectively, we need to be able to embrace change and welcome it.  Yet so often, people feel threatened and become nervous about organisational changes.

Whilst there is a sense of security in things remaining the same, it may be false.  As we all know, to continue doing the same things we've always done and expect a different result is optimistic at best, suicide at worst.  

So how do we create a sense of security to keep our team confident about their future, and at the same time encourage them to welcome changes?

Create a culture where new ideas are encouraged, input from the team is welcome and adaptability is acknowledged and appreciated.  If change is seen as exciting, as creating new opportunities and giving people a chance to learn new skills it will be embraced by the people who can best help us to take advantage of it.

If this culture is the norm, change will be less daunting.  This means looking at our communication processes - how are new directions communicated, and when?   Is it once decisions are made, or before they are finalised in order to give people a chance to contribute?

Review the organisational values.  Just as individuals have values, a company's values evolve over time.  It's essential that what is promoted in a mission statement as a value, such as integrity or dynamism, is practised and recognised in actions that occur.  For example, a mission statement that includes "we value our employees" will be devalued if we do not encourage and recognise input, responsibility and innovation from our team.  Poor morale, absenteeism or inadequate skill levels may result.

If you work alone and you don't have a team, how do you respond to change?  With enthusiasm, excitement and anticipation?  Or with dread, fear and uncertainty?  

The approach you take will impact on your health, and on your enjoyment of life - and may be the difference between having the right mindset to take advantage of opportunities, in order to grow your business further!

For more information, please visit our website.

Conquering overwhelm - 7 key steps

Some people are extremely good at doing overwhelm - it's a strategy that they employ regularly, and live in a world of being crushed by the weight of their overwhelm.

If this is you - or someone you know - then identify the trigger that sets it off - every strategy has a trigger.  It may be something you tell yourself, something you see, or something you hear.

As soon as you are aware of the trigger, you can decide to change your strategy to that of the conqueror, following the key steps below - so that instead of being crushed, you will conquer!

1. Take a deep breath.  Stop and breathe again.  Take a third deep breath....Sounds simplistic - but next time you're being crushed by the overwhelm, try it - you'll discover that it's a good thing to breathe!
2. Stand back (or go for a walk) and look at the big picture.  What is your key end goal - what action will give you the greatest momentum towards your ultimate goal?
3. What can you delegate, outsource or ditch? (or put off to another day.......as long as this is a measured decision rather than procrastination!).  Who is on your team that can help?
   
4. Break the actions required into smaller chunks so that they become more manageable.
5. Make a plan for how you will action each chunk.
6. Most importantly, plan how you will reward yourself once you've achieved what you need to do.
7. Laugh (if you can't find anything funny, imagine yourself dressed as the conqueror - that should do it!)  Take action - begin.  Laughter will lighten the load, and focused action will give you the pleasure of momentum towards your goal.

Remember: Change your thinking - change your results!

What are you focusing on?

When I think of focus, I think of cameras, binoculars and telescopes - each one focusing on something a bit further away from the last one, but still focusing on the specific point that I want to see.  When we do this, we are deliberately shutting out all the information around, in order to get greater clarity on our target.

If you go for a walk on a dark night, you shine the torch ahead of you to light your way and ensure you can keep a steady footing.  However focusing only on the path ahead of you means that you're less likely to look up and see the stars, or the silhouette of the tree against the moonlight.  So focus inevitably involves exclusion of other information.

When we say 'I don't want to fail', failure becomes our focus - we are excluding the possibility of success because we're not focusing on success, so we don't even see the alternatives.

If we say 'I don't want to be unhappy any more' - what are we focusing on? - being unhappy.

When we decide it's time to lose weight because we don't want to be overweight anymore - where's the focus? - on being overweight.  So no matter how much our intentions are good, our results are less likely to be successful because the focus is wrong.  In the same way that you focus the camera incorrectly and get a fuzzy photo as a result, if you set the focus of your goals incorrectly your results will be fuzzy!

As you can tell, this is easily fixed!  Simply refocus - change the way you express your goals so that your intention is positive and very clear, such as:

• 'I am a successful person' (and be clear about what a successful person is your view),
• 'I want to be happy so I will find out what really makes me happy and focus on achieving more of that in my life', or 
• 'I live a healthy lifestyle because I am becoming a healthy weight for my body'.
  

By focusing on what you want you will find and create evidence to support your focus.  So what are you focusing on, and is it in the direction that you want to be going?

For more information visit www.activelifematters.com.

Active Life Matters provides active coaching for outstanding results in business, life, health and fitness.

Top ten key skills for managerial success!

Research suggests the 10 most frequently noted skills for successful managers are the ability to:

1. Develop self-awareness
2. Communicate verbally
3. Set goals and articulate a vision
4. Manage individual decisions
5. Motivate and influence others
6. Build teams
7. Define and solve problems
8. Delegate
9. Manage time and stress
10. Manage conflict

 How do you stack up?  If you were to evaluate yourself on a scale of 1 - 10, with 10 being consistently excellent and 1 being greatly in need of improvement, which areas need work?

What are you going to focus on in the next 90 days?

Write it down, set a clear intention - and work out a plan to make it happen!

Evaluate your progress regularly to ensure you're on track.

Who do you have on your team that will support you? - enlist their help. 

Above all, have fun with it - the more enjoyable we make things, the more we do them!

For more information visit our website:  www.activelifematters.com 

Active Life Matters provides active coaching for outstanding success in business, life, health and fitness.

What's holding you back?

Have you ever looked at someone you admire and think "I'd love to do that, but I couldn't - I'm not good / brave / strong / good-looking / clever / confident (choose your own adjective) enough"?

Why is it that so many of us sabotage our dreams without even taking one step towards achieving them? 

Often, it's down to a limiting belief that we aren't enough in some way (see above).  Are these beliefs real, or are they an excuse for not taking action?  Either way, they hold us back from achieving the results we want, from allowing us to be the best that we can be (and if the thought ran through your head "I'm already the best I can be" - is that another limitation you've imposed on yourself?).

Most of our beliefs are generalisations about the past, either through misinterpretation of events.  They are usually formed unconsciously, and once we have them we forget that they are a generalisation.  We filter in evidence to support our beliefs, and filter out evidence that does not support them - even if this is to our disadvantage.  For example, if we've formed the belief somewhere along the way that we're not brave enough, we tend to focus on all the incidents where we consider we acted weakly, and ignore all the times when we've had to stand up for people, to go to new places alone, to start new jobs, to venture into new relationships - all of which require bravery in one form or another.

So is it possible to change our beliefs?  Absolutely - you simply decide to choose a new, more empowering belief and start focusing on evidence that supports this new belief.  Become an evidence-hunter, and seek out every instance that will verify your new belief.  You are in charge of your mind, and therefore your results!  

What sort of evidence are you looking for?  Things people say to you that support your new belief; things you say to yourself; results you've achieved in the past that support this belief; goals you have for the future; behaviour that you carry out today as a result of your new, empowering belief!

So now that you've done this, what's holding you back?  Exchange the limiting beliefs for ones that empower and support you, and move forward to achieve the results that you're looking for.

For more information, please visit our website:  www.activelifematters.com 

Have fun becoming an evidence-hunter!
Active Life Matters provides active coaching for outstanding results in business, life, health and fitness.

Health and Fitness - the same thing or not?

If you train a lot, you can run, swim, cycle - do triathlons, run marathons, swim distances - you must be fit and healthy, right? - Not necessarily.........

If you eat right, indulge in moderation only, control your intake of food and alcohol - you must be fit and healthy, right? - Not necessarily.........

The above two examples will already have given the game away.  You can be fit, in terms of cardiovascular fitness, endurance etc. and still unhealthy.  If you're not feeding your body well, with the nutrients it needs to maintain the lifestyle you're choosing, then you run the risk of being fit but not healthy.  How often have you seen marathon runners get sick often, and break down through lack of sufficient nutrients to sustain their fitness regime?

How many people do you know that eat and drink frugally, and limit their intake of excessive sugars, fats, carbohydrates - they may be slim, yet if you ask them to run for a bus they would probably be in a bad way by the time they got to the bus stop!

So what's the solution?  A focus on both, of course!  We need to train our bodies, train our minds and train our metabolism!  That's why elite sportspeople have a coach! Get your mindset right, get expert information about what and how to organise your training, and your results will follow.

If you're determined to improve your health AND fitness this year, check out the ActiveLifeMatters website to help you find the assistance you need to achieve your goals:

www.activelifematters.com

Have fun achieving your results!   
Active Life Matters provides active coaching for outstanding results in business, life, health and fitness.

Change your thinking - change your results!

How are you going with your New Year's Resolutions?  Do you even bother these days, since they are usually forgotten about by mid-January?

Why is it that so many people start the New Year with great intentions, and very quickly give up on themselves?  My theory is that it is often one of two things - either they never really wanted the results in the first place, or they didn't believe that they could achieve it and therefore self-sabotaged their prospects.  Does this sound like you?

So if you didn't want the result in the first place, why would you set a New Year's resolution in the first place?  Well, it could be family or peer pressure - for example, they're concerned about your health so they suggest you have a goal to lose weight or get fit - and whilst you know they're right you enjoy eating and drinking, and so it doesn't take long for you to be back in the old habits.

The other possibility is that you would love to achieve the goal but deep down inside there is something that stops you each time.  It could be fear that you're not going to be able to stick to a new regime, so it's easier not to try.  It could be fear that you're not really good enough, a belief that you don't have the willpower, a fear that if you change people may not feel the same way towards you......there are all sorts of possible reasons.  It could simply be that you love your existing habits (such as eating and drinking) far more than the thought of what your new life will be like (such as becoming slimmer and improving your health)!

Whatever the reason, until you make a decision about what you really want (for example a slimmer and healthier body) - instead of what you don't want (for example not wanting to eat and drink too much) your focus will be unclear, and your thinking will not support you in terms of achieving your results.

In my coaching practice, it is easy to catch clients focusing on what they don't want.  My role is to help them discover the language that they're using so that they can start becoming much more aware of what they do want, and start expressing their thoughts and intentions in a more focused way.  Our brains are incredibly powerful - all we have to do is learn how to use them effectively to achieve the results we want - easily and effortlessly!   www.activelifematters.com 

Active Life Matters provides active coaching for outstanding results in business, life, health and fitness.

Develop the mindset of a champion!

Welcome to Active Life Matters blog!  This blog has been created to help you become more successful, more certain, more confident in aiming for and achieving your results!

How would you like to maximise your results and achieve your dreams - in business, life and health?  You need the mindset of a champion!

So how do you get the champion mindset? Well, whether we're talking sport or life in general, the following are equally relevant:

Make decisions! - the more proactive you are about your life, the more alive you will feel.  Successful, proactive people make more decisions every day - about your training program, how you're feeling, which route to take, how many hills/repetitions/hours.........and they are also willing to:

Make mistakes - be willing to mess up!  People who aim to get everything right invariably end up doing very little, because they perceive too much risk in action.  Give up perfection - aim for steady progress and improvement, and view all mistakes as feedback to inform your next move.  At the same time:

Have more fun and play! - see your life and choices as play, and you will experience it differently.  Take yourself less seriously, and focus on what might be, rather than what 'should' and 'needs' to be.  Enjoy the journey!  At the same time.........

Raise your standards - the key to great performance is to expect and demand more of yourself.  The better you get at this, the better your quality of life will be.  Life is not about 'getting by' or 'good enough'.  It is about you giving your best, risking failure, playing at 100% and then doing it again the next day!  And in a similar vein:

Challenge yourself every day!  Don't settle for less, or 'close enough'  - this will slowly erode your results, and then your confidence.  However you also need to be realistic about your targets, so:

Focus on your strengths - Champions believe in themselves because they focus on what they are good at and what they like about themselves.  People who have low self-confidence focus on their weaknesses and where they aren't strong, and then wonder why they feel down!  So identify your strengths clearly, and use them to maximise your success.  Also:

Focus on what you can do - Champions naturally focus on what they can control and influence, and leave the rest alone.  This doesn't mean that you don't set targets and aim for more - it means you're taking charge and appreciating your strengths and abilities, and being clear about where you're going and what you're going to achieve.  Above all:

Be a leader - be the person you admire most!  Inspire and lead others through the example you set every day.  And whilst you are doing all of the above:

SMILE!  Share as many smiles as you can with as many people as you can.  As well as exercise, smiling activates chemicals in your body which will help you to feel better!

If you'd like to know more about Active Life Matters, please visit our website:
www.activelifematters.com 

Acknowledgement to Sharon Pearson, CEO of The Coaching Institute for some content in this article.