Time For a Cool Change

Besides celebrating Christmas and the New Year, December and January are my clean up and organize months.

Although not the most exciting tasks to do, once my list is completed it always feels as if a huge weight has been lifted off of me.

So today, I am also encouraging you to follow my lead.


Stop long enough to identify one project you've been postponing and put it on your calendar. Then when the appointed time comes, do it! It can be as simple as cleaning out a desk drawer (okay, that's still on my list...January is not over...and I'm planning to do by Sunday).


The act of taking small insignificant steps will make you feel better...promise!

Shoot for the Moon

After reading my post about attempting to live happily in the moment, my friend Carolyn Howard-Johnson asked me to talk about regrets. Okay, so some Elvis Presley lyrics come to mind..."Regrets, I've had a few."

Interestingly, I can't think of specifics at this writing. But I can talk in generalities. I regret that for so many years I allowed fear to stop me or slow down my progress.

I used to be afraid of much—mostly the opinions of others. Oh and yes, speaking in public was another one, which included articulating my opinions or ideas. My body had an intense reaction to being in front of others (uncontrollable shaking, rapid heart beat, wobbly voice, scrambled brain) and so I avoided it.

Today, I encourage you to think about what stops you from shooting for your moon. In 2000, I took care of one of my fears and joined Toastmasters. Since then, many of my other fears—the debilitating ones...the ones that stopped me from being proactive—have melted away.

Start with one. I think you'll be surprised how far the first step takes you!

Allyn Evans
http://www.allynevans.com/
allyn at suddenlink.net

Try Living in the Moment!

New Year’s Resolutions, anyone?

This year I decided on the perfect resolution: to live happily in the moment no matter the circumstances.

The resolution was so perfect I had already begun speaking about it in presentations. Living in the moment can be hard to do—think holiday travelers stranded at airports and train stations. Most of us relive the past or pine for a better future. I didn’t even understand the concept until I was in my 40s, and I was going to make sure 2009 was going to be the year when I focused on the present.

That is, until my daughter Addy took the dog-sitting job, which required me to be the designated driver.

“Let’s sit in the hot tub tonight,” Addy said. The doggy momma owns a fancy hot tub, which she had offered to us.

“Good idea!” I said. It was blustery and cold. Soaking in the hot tub sounded like fun.

We arrived at 6:30 p.m., checked on the dog, put our belongings on the kitchen counter and then went outside to the tub. As I was about to step in, I realized I still had the thank-you-for-my-Christmas-present note I had meant to leave inside.

Addy jumped into the hot tub as I headed for the backdoor. I turned the knob. It didn’t turn. The door was locked. “It’s still 2008,” I yelped at the intractable door. I wasn’t ready to face my new resolution yet, but what choice did I have. Plus, I had an impressionable witness.

And there I stood clad only in my swimming suit in 28-degree weather with our shoes, coats and my car keys locked securely in the house.

Fortunately I also had my cell phone. I could have called someone to pick us up, but I had left my spare house key in my own house. My friends who did have a key to my house were out of town.

I tried calling my hot tub friend, but I knew her plane wasn’t arriving until 8:20 p.m., if it did arrive on time in this time of many travel delays. I called my husband who was on his way home from an out-of-town trip. He wouldn’t make it for three more frigid hours.

Don’t tell my friend, but I thought about breaking down her door, but that solution didn’t appeal to Addy or me. We couldn’t think of anyone else to call. Who wants to be at someone else’s house in their swimming suits for three hours, even when the temperature is more favorable?

There was only one thing we could do. We threw up our hands.

At this point Addy said. “Okay, Mom. Let’s just enjoy the moment.” We had been talking about this lesson for some time now, and in the cold, in the dark, part of me was thrilled to know Addy had been listening to our discussions.

“You’re right, Addy,” I said, trying to set a good example while the idea of not knowing how long the hot tub ordeal would last unnerved me.

It was 8:20 when doggy friend texted me the number of the next-door-neighbor, who did have a spare key and after a good laugh came to our rescue. We had plenty of hot tub time, a good story for the retelling, and lots of practice of living happily in the moment. I have to admit I need lots more practice, which makes this 2009 resolution just right for me.

allyn at suddenlink.net

http://www.allynevans.com/

Power of Choice

Have you ever heard of the "Daffodil Principle?" I love this story and use it often when talking to young girls about pursuing their goals.

The story of "The Daffodil Principle" originally appeared nearly ten years ago in Jaroldeen Edwards' book Celebration!

Here's how it goes...

The daughter kept pestering the mother, "Mom, come visit us. We'll go see the Daffodil Garden."

Eventually, the mother made time and visited her daughter's home one Tuesday morning.

The day turned out to be cold and rainy, but the mother made the trip anyway. Before arriving she had already decided she would tell her daughter they would go see the daffodils another day. The roads had been slippery and the fog had set in.

But her daughter wasn't so easily swayed. "No mom. We're going. You must see the daffodils."

The mother, daughter and grandchildren all piled in the car. "It's only a few blocks from here," the daughter said.

After a twenty minute drive they turned down a gravel road. They stopped beside a small church. Posted on the wall of the church read a sign, "Daffodil Garden". They parked and headed in the direction the sign indicated.

As they turned the corner, the mother looked up.

She saw thousands of daffodils. The colors varied: deep orange, creamy white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, and saffron and butter yellow. The daffodils covered five acres.

The mother asked her daughter who planted the flowers. Her daughter said, "One woman." She pointed out the house where the woman lived. They made their way to the house. On the front porch they found a sign that read:

"Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking".

The first statement answered the question of how many. It read "50,000 bulbs." The second statement explained how the daffodils were planted: "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and one brain." And the last statement answered the question of when the lady started. "1958."

The mother walked away from the Daffodil Garden forever changed. She couldn't stop thinking about the woman who had planted one bulb at a time.

The visit changed the mother's life. She understood the lesson. She realized that it only takes small steps to move forward towards your goals and desires. The mother learned: "When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. "

We too will find that we can write a book, build a business, make new friends, reach our financial goals. Yes, we can change our world one small step at a time.

There's a little more to the story...
In 1999 Gene Bauer's ranch house burned down. The daffodils survived.

www.allynevans.com
www.thealertparent.blogspot.com