Chart Your Course with Wise Decisions

As you decide to take ownership of your life, the most critical skill you can develop is learning how to make wise decisions.  Time challenged and overwhelmed with information, you often second guess your ability to make the right choices. Knowing wrong choices can affect your future freedom, independence and security, this frustration and uncertainty leads to inaction.

Sound familiar? It doesn’t have to be this way.

Once you develop your personal decision making process, you will instinctively know the path of action you need to take when you find yourself in unfamiliar territory. This newly discovered clarity and confidence will help you make wise decisions you can trust.

Action strategies, removing internal roadblocks, and setting success milestones will help you chart a course of successful solutions not only for your current transition, but will also help you navigate future.

How do you do this?

How to Make Wise Decisions for Life’s Next Chapter

• Decide what is most important to you. What will make you feel secure, fulfilled, at peace with yourself?
• Honestly look at the current direction of your life. Is your current path leading you towards your goal or away from it? What can you immediately do to change course?
• What are you willing to pay for reaching your goal? Make no mistake. You will pay with either your time, effort, or money. Perhaps all three. If you aren’t willing to commit your energy to action, you don’t have a goal. You have an empty dream.
• Once you decide what you are willing to pay for your goal in time, energy or money, decisions become easy. Every choice that presents itself will have an instant answer. You will immediately know if that choice will lead you in the right direction to help you on your journey.
• Before you begin your journey, decide in advance how you will recognize success. How will you feel? Where will you be living? What type of work will you be doing? Where will you find fulfillment? How will your bank account, your scales, your self-worth reflect your efforts?
• Create a Vision Map with photos, quotes, magazine clippings that visually reinforces your goal.

Bottom line? Follow your truth.

You already know what to do. Chart a path that will help you radiate the peace of mind that accompanies spiritual fulfillment and financial strength.

Our forthcoming book, The Circle of Wisdom, a Woman’s Guide to Clarity and Confidence, will soon be ready. Please let us know what burning question you may have about taking ownership of your life and learning how to make personal wise decisions.

Align Your Values to Your Lifestyle

Have you ever been somewhere you felt you didn’t fit in? Trying to be someone you aren’t? It can be exhausting.

When you live your values, you are in alignment. It’s that comfortable feeling of changing out of your confining dress clothes into your favorite sweater and jeans. You just feel good.

You know who you are. You know what’s important to you and why. You quit trying to fit into someone else’s standards. You stop trying to impress.

Be still. Rid yourself of distractions and find your true north.

Values-based decisions will eliminate inner conflict and vastly increase the quality of your life.

Health will improve as you experience less stress spiritually, financially, and physically.

Imagine someone you don’t know has followed you around for a week. Would she be able to explain to someone else the values you hold dear? If someone looked at your calendar, could they see what’s important to you? What about your bank account?

If financial serenity is a goal, it’s time to take control by creating and following your personal GPS, an internal guidance system. If you have dreams of a life you want, start taking action.

How can I help?

Pillars of Wisdom

Think trusting the truth is easy?

Jump on those bathroom scales. That simple “in your face” exercise shines an immediate spotlight on the truth you can’t ignore. Any remnant of denial is eliminated. Suddenly and painfully you realize compound interest applies to chocolate too.

Take a Hard Look at Your Debts. Add up everything you owe including credit card debt, car loans, college expenses, and mortgage. Now add up all your assets including cash (checking-savings-cds), realistic equity in your home, cash value life insurance policies, and all retirement accounts. Subtract your debts from your assets. This is your net worth and immediately shows you where you stand financially.  If you’ve been living with the illusion of wealth, reality will quickly set in.

“God grant me to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” Niebuhr, The Prayer of Serenity

Wait a minute, you’re not wise yet. The pillars of wisdom are based on a foundation of strength, understanding, and focused action.

Information and facing the truth is the first step.

Now use that information to become knowledgeable about your options, concepts, and rules that are available.

Wisdom is figuring out how that knowledge fits your unique circumstances.

Trust the truth.

Make wise life choices for you and your loved ones based on your personal priorities.

Have questions? Feel free to comment below.

Related Post:  See the Trust the Truth – Shift Happens Video that we posted in 2007.

Leadership Compass

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”
John Quincy Adams

Are you a leader?

Our country, our businesses, our families are anxiously looking for leaders and guidance they can believe in. They are looking for you.

Whether you choose to be a leader or not, you are. Silent leadership is accomplished thru observation. Acquaintances, friends, loved ones, co-workers … they watch you without either of you being consciously aware. Your actions speak louder than your words .

Your leadership may be recognized immediately or it may take years. But someone, someday, will be going through a life changing experience and look back through their life history to intuitively find someone who’s life experiences and way of going impacted their life and memories. You have most likely done the same.

Whether it was how your role model ran an ethical business, dealt with an illness, a job change, a move, loss of a spouse or job, you remember. You will either decide to follow their path or choose to forge a new trail. But you will remember.  You, my friend, are that silent leader.

I was recently re-reading Leadership Secrets by Eric Yaverbaum and the following leadership values jumped off the page. Not because they are anything new, but because I noticed the 60 CEOs cited in this book were not from the corporations who have led our downward spiral. No CEO from AIG, Bank of America, Lehman, or CitiGroup. I think that speaks volumes about the state of our country today.

• “Lead by example.” Bruce Coleman
• “Convey a compelling vision.” Daniel Rose
• “Values are the foundation of all great leaders.” Gary Costley
• “Make good simple, honest and ethical decisions.” William Goodwin, Jr.
• “Simplify your business plan until it fits on one sheet of paper.” Lloyd “Buzz” Waterhouse

What do you consider to be leadership qualities you’d like to see in others? Which do you see in yourself?

Security - What does it mean to you?

Most women I speak with immediately mention the ability to maintain both their freedom and financial independence. They don’t want to rely on someone else to take care of them.

Security doesn’t mean a life without change or challenge.  Security is about developing the skills, self-confidence and self-assurance to make wise decisions. To know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you  will not be taken advantage of and can become self-sufficient regardless of circumstances.

The only real security in life is believing in yourself and your abilities. You are a nurturer. You have taken care of children, parents, husbands, employees, co-workers and pets. It’s time to carve out some time to take care of you. Do you know who you are? What you want?

Be still. Listen to your inner voice. Discover who you are and what you want. Make a plan and take action. Life is too short to wait.

Please let me know how I can help.

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Trust the Truth

It’s the only thing that matters.

Trust: Assured reliance on the character, strength or truth of someone or something; Basis of reliance, faith, or hope; To place confidence in; Entrusted to another.

Trust. Shattered and, in a blinding moment, truth revealed.

For those of us who have lived long enough, we have been disillusioned, betrayed, and at some point, broken. And then we healed. Removing our masks of perfection, we grew wings.

Universal principles of wisdom are your pillars of strength in times of crisis.

Truth will Never Fail You

Truth pillars are your foundation in a life of uncertainty. Fundamentals do not waiver. Returning to reality, no longer distracted by the frivolous, you will immediately understand what is important.

Faith – Family – Friends

Gain wisdom in the valley of doubt. This is your gift to share with the world. It’s time to lead.

(Thanks to cousin, Lori, for giving me a heads up about the video.)

There was nothing I could change.  I did my best. I set a new record for myself…  You are never too old to dream.

That was the response Olympic Champion Dara Torres gave to the reporter when asked what she would tell her now 2 year old daughter about her experience winning the 2008 Olympic Silver Medal. Like the competitor to Michael Phelps, Ms. Torres missed Olympic Gold by one one-hundredths of a second.  The life wisdom she shares applies to us all.

• Live in the moment.
• Don’t put an age limit on your dreams.
• When you are more mature, you see things from a different perspective.
• Believe in yourself.

Watch the MSNBC interview.

Talented, dedicated, and strong, Dara Torres also knows the value of a support team. She relies on three coaches, two stretchers, two masseuses, a chiropractor and a nanny to excel.  She gives credit to those coaches who helped her switch gears from questioning what she might have done differently after losing the sought-after gold medal just moments before, to focusing solely on the next event. The relay.

Although this was her 11th medal in her fifth Olympic competition, this event was also an experience of firsts.

• First swimmer from United States to compete in 5 Olympics
• Unprecedented for a woman, Torres came back for a spot in her 5th Olympics games after sitting out the 1996 and 2004 Olympics.
• First woman in history to swim in the Olympics past the age of 40
• Her Olympic career spans 24 years

Ms. Torres story is unique among swimmers and Olympians, but not unique among leaders. Life is about a mindset. And a successful life is determined by how we think.

Is she perfect? No. Divorced twice. Not married to the father of her daughter, Tessa. But who are we to judge? Is your life perfect? Have you held only good cards in your life? I know I haven’t.

Respected by his peers, author Robert Louis Stevenson wrote such books as Treasure Island and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Deprived of health most of his life, he still managed to live an amazingly full life right up until the moment of his death at the young age of 44. His philosophy?

Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well. Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894)

Are you playing your cards well? Do you allow yourself to dream, regardless of circumstances? Short, sweet, and to the point, I hope this wisdom sustains and inspires you to fill your life with as much living as is possible. Whatever your age. Whatever your circumstances.

Don’t limit yourself. Dream.

Resources: Check out Dara Torres Bio (Opens in New Window)

His spirit and legacy will live on through his family and the life philosophy shared in his book, The Last Lecture.  So many were touched by his story, we included the Randy Pausch videos earlier this year. He was authentic, charasmatic, and left this world a better place.

Life is such a precious gift. Do you have a dream left unfulfilled? A goal you think is out of your reach? None of us has the promise of tomorrow. Seize today.

If you’re like most time-challenged women I know (including myself), retirement from adulthood can sound rather appealing.

Perhaps it is time to step back and really take a hard look at the life you are creating. But before we wax too philosophical,

How about a good laugh? I’m sure you can relate.

To whom it may concern:
I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult.

• I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of a 5 year old.
• I want to go to McDonald’s and think that it’s a four star restaurant.
• I want to think the world is fair.
• I want to believe that anything is possible.
• I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make ripples in a pond with rocks.
• I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them.
• I want to lie under a big oak tree and watch the ants march up its trunk.
• I want to run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer’s day.
• I want to think that everyone is honest and good.
• I want to think a quarter is worth more than a dollar bill cause it’s prettier and weighs more.
• I want to go fishing and care more about catching the minnows along the shore than the big bass in the lake.
• I want to return to a time when life was simple. When all you knew were colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes. When I didn’t know what I know now. When all I knew was to be happy because I was blissfully unaware of all the things that should make me worried.
• I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.
• I don’t want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness, and the loss of loved ones.
• I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, dreams, the imagination, Santa, the Tooth Fairy, a kiss that makes a boo-boo go away, making angels in the snow and that my dad and Superman are the strongest people in the world.
• So, here’s my checkbook and my car-keys, my credit cards and the bills too, my 401K statements, my stocks & bonds, my collections, my insurance premiums, my job, my house and the payments too, my e-mail address, pager, cell phone, computer, and watch. I am officially resigning from adulthood.

And if you want to discuss this with me further, you’ll have to catch me first, cause,

“Tag!”…
“You’re it!”

(This post was provided by a good friend of mine and it was too cute not to share. Thanks Alta!)

You often exchange your life energy for a life of often unconscious choices. Are your decisions strengthening or depleting your energy? Your financial security? Your health?

Each and every day you exercise the power of choice. The choices you make today are creating tomorrow’s future. Life is all about making decisions that bring you joy, fulfillment and peace of mind. Don’t let the fear of “what ifs” rob you of energy.

The weekend is here. Embrace the joy of childhood freedom, laughter, and fun. Monday will come again soon enough.

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Our next Wisdom of Wealth WOW Workshop will be held May 16, 2008. Join us as four experts share their wisdom on how to preserve your wealth in retirement.  If you want to know about future events, online workshops, and teleconferences, be sure to sign up to receive our free newsletter. You’ll find the sign up form at the top right column.

Life is too short not to dream.

Last time I shared a video which made you laugh.

Although the videos below will also bring laughter into your life, their purpose goes far beyond entertainment. These powerful and touching lessons will make you pause and ponder, remind and nudge you of childhood dreams.

Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch has touched the world with his shared life lessons. Dying from pancreatic cancer, he gave his uplifting “Last Lecture” about achieving childhood dreams on September 28, 2007 before a packed auditorium. Warning. The video is long. It is touching. It will give you the power to change your thinking. His book, The Last Lecture, went on sale April 8.

If you would like a much shorter condensed version of Randy Pausch’s lessons (less than 10 minutes) watch the program as aired on the Oprah show in March, 2008.

Let’s all put more living into life. Your future begins today.

Next week we will start a monthly series on Money. How to Avoid the Five Most Common Money Mistakes Women Make. Go to the top right hand corner and sign up for the Swan Journal so you don’t miss a single issue.