“To each, there comes in their lifetime, a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents.”
Winston Churchill
As kids we all had dreams of what we wanted to be when we grew up: sports stars and astronauts; ballerinas and actors; musicians and explorers.
As you passed into young adulthood, you probably finished school or university and got a job. It was an exciting time; your first real job. Maybe you moved into your own place or bought a car. The money was good for a twenty-something. The job provided some spending money, responsibility and a chance to jump into the “real world.”
For many of us, our dreams and aspirations began to evaporate as childhood flights of fancy no longer equated to sound career advice. We began to realise that what we were doing was a livelihood but certainly not our “dream” occupation.
Then something funny happened…
You might have started to look at the world in a different way, and began to wonder, “What does my future hold?” “Am I going to be doing this for the rest of my career?” “I think I want more out of my life.”
Perhaps, like me, you have always known that deep down you wanted your career to be something that gave your life meaning and fulfillment; something that excited you; something that provided a feeling of accomplishment, pride and a sense that you are making a positive impact and a difference in the world.
I wanted a career that provided freedom and flexibility where the only limits were those that I set for myself.
At the time I didn’t know about coaching, so in spite of all the time I spent thinking about what I was good at, what I enjoyed, setting goals and putting together action plans, very little change actually materialised. I could see the vague dream of the future I wanted in my mind’s eye but then 6 months would pass; then 12; then 2 years and nothing would change.
I simply couldn’t understand what was getting in my way.
In my latter years, after I had reached the pinnacle of my legal career, which for me involved living and working in the US and my firm paying the rent for my beachside apartment (and in spite of it all, still being miserable) I started absorbing personal development materials in search of an answer.
You may have noticed that there has been a fair bit of attention paid to the book The Secret which describes the concept of The Law of Attraction. It’s based on the notion that what you think about comes to you.
But how many people do you know who have successfully put that into action in their lives?
Not many, right?
The reason being that if it was really that easy then all of us would be doing it and everybody would have what they want. But something obviously gets in the way – something stops us from achieving our goals and our visions.
At iPEC these are called the 4 Energy Blocks and these are what I intend to focus on in our posts over the coming weeks. They are:
- Limiting Beliefs;
- Assumptions;
- Interpretations; and
- The Inner Critic
Energy blocks are like invisible brick walls; our aspirations and dreams live on the other side. In one way or another, we ALL experience the energy blocks in our lives. It’s only by shining the light of awareness on them that we can begin to notice them, break through them and take action to realise those dreams on the other side.
Who knows, you might realise this is exactly that “figurative tap on the shoulder” to which Winston Churchill was referring, that “special moment” when you finally act towards living your purpose. That “very special thing” could just be what you always knew you wanted to do.
So, stay tuned over the next few weeks to find out how you can create your life the way you dreamed it. If you’ve been waiting for that perfect moment, and the right time to make a change, that time is now.
