Before starting this post, I want to share that I am so inspired by all of the feedback around my newsletter and blog post from March. The personal text messages and inboxes were so appreciated! Also, a big welcome to our new subscribers, I am so pleased to have you join us. Feel free to post or inbox me with your comments and feedback. Thank you for forwarding my blog posts to your family and friends and please continue to spread this message to others each month.
In a few short months, it will be a year since I took a leap of faith to step out on my own to create a business that coaches women to not just live and think outside of the box, but to “demolish the box”. I help women get clear on their vision and align their actions to achieve meaningful and sustainable goals in their personal lives and career.
Looking back over this time, I have created a growing blog, co-hosted a networking event for female entrepreneurs, developed a coaching business and now invitations are coming in for speaking engagements. This is impressive for a person who once felt like my dreams were just that, dreams, until I decided to put them into action.
In life, especially when it comes to change, we sometimes tell ourselves all the reasons why something can’t work. We become comfortable with the idea of “this is just the way it is” or “I really don’t want to start over again” so staying in this mindset keeps you exactly where you are. It may not be where you want to be, but the limits you place on your thinking leads to a limited way of living.
These thoughts come from a place of fear and we all have them from time to time. The challenge is not to supply those fears with the needed fuel to immobilize or paralyze you from ever taking a chance to move forward.
I can remember being in a place in my life where I was extremely unhappy, for various reasons some were from being overworked, overly stressed, and not spending quality time with my family. I remember venting to friends and family all the time about how I wanted to leave my job, how I was super stressed, and how I felt like I wasn’t contributing anything meaningful at work, just “busy” without being productive.
I sang this same tune over and over again for several months, surely driving my friends and family crazy. But, I realized that with every complaint things around me remained the same and even began to deteriorate. At the time, my coach said to me “Raphaela, you have shared this story a few times, and it is very clear why you’re unhappy but “What are you willing to do to change it?”Ahhhhh, the million dollar question, “What am I willing to do to change my situation?”
It was up to me to make a decision of how I was going to move forward. I needed to spend more time filling that tank of faith and decreasing the amount of energy I was using on fear.
This question also forced me to stop putting energy into retelling that sad, story over and over again, and create a new storyline of where I was aiming to be. I began not only stating what I desired, but made a sustainable plan for how I was going to achieve it. Making my values a priority again helped me regain balance and served as a constant reminder of what was important in my life when I got off course. I honestly could have kept complaining about how horrible my life was at that time, but I was more interested in pouring into how I could make this change a reality. My faith was increasing.
After 10+ years in nonprofit leadership, I am settling into my new career of coaching and consulting. I always had the talent,skills, experience, and training but finally have the increased FAITH to do what I was called to do and my have I gotten far.
5 minute Coaching Corner
- Identify one fear you currently have that you would actively like to pursue change with.
- Write down what is most fearful about this situation or problem?
- Write at least 3-5 actions or counter thoughts you will implement to begin decreasing and eventually eliminating this fear on a daily basis. Don’t be afraid to dig deep in this activity.
If you are interested in achieving targeted results in your life and business contact me for a 50 minute Complimentary Coaching Session at info@raphaelabrowne.com also, feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
P.S. Did this post resonate with you? Do you have a question or topic that you’d like to see me address in the future? Email me at info@raphaelabrowne.com to share your feedback.
Until next time…..Greatness Awaits!
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My ultimate goal is to empower professional women to lead a life using their God-given gifts, develop their unique leadership skills and equipping them with the tools to do so.