Make a Difference in 2004

 

"Good resolutions are simply checks that men draw on a bank where they have no account."

Oscar Wilde

Another New Year and another chance to Make a Difference

Here we are in a new year – in the blank sheet that is January. Many of us still feeling pretty smug about keeping to our resolutions and many of us have already slipped off the wagon! By the end of the month half of all resolutions will have been broken and most will be ancient history in a couple of month’s time. C'est la vie – there’s always next year!

My youngest daughter, Anna is 6 ¼ and has made a New Year Revolution (despite Charlotte aged 8 ¾ telling her twenty times that it is a Resolution). She has decided to keep her room tidy, so she is right about it being a revolution :o) By the way, she tells me her room is not untidy today – it is just that Barbie is busy playing all over it!

I have no real interest in resolutions but revolutions I like the idea of. A revolution leaves everything different and is a springboard for the future – IF it is done in a conscious, considered way. A truly conscious revolution creates a whole context of empowerment. Revolution that is the result of pent up frustration tends to be bloody and chaotic. Most resolutions equate to the latter – going on a diet because I cannot bare to be fat any more – giving up alcohol for a month because of the excesses of December and the fatigue that brings – giving up smoking because of the cough and the fear of cancer ... and so on. All very fear-based actions.

The true meaning of the word “karma” is “action” and every action has a consequence. Drinking a cup of coffee is “karma” – everyone knows that caffeine stains the teeth! When we act to change out of fear the consequence can be very negative. It is also down to self discipline to make it work.

In “How to Practise – the way to a meaningful life” His Holiness the Dalai Lama tells us that the level of consequence of karma is down to the level of consciousness with which it is performed. He gives the example of giving money to a beggar. If you drop money out of a hole in your pocket and a starving person picks it up and buys food, then you will benefit to some degree from that karma. If however, you consciously decide to donate that money AND do so as a conscious action, then the karmic consequences will be much greater.

You don’t need to have any belief in karma for this to work. The more conscious you are about WHY you want to do something, the greater the passion you will have and the less self discipline you will need! These spiritual laws always work at the practical level - it is just a matter of language.

"When I think about my life and goals, I look around and see a small percentage of people out there who I kind of envy, because they're taken up and swept away with what they're doing. Their work takes on its own life. It has a kind of encompassing power that envelops them. People like that wake up with passion, have vision, and are in the grip of something beyond their control. "

Andre Agassi

This year, try starting a revolution - consciously and with a positive intent. Start with the outcome of the revolution in mind - remember that a positive revolution creates empowerment and sets you up for future actions, rather than just being an event.

How will your business be performing at the end of the year?
Not just financially – who will be benefiting and how?
How will the world be a better place for your work?
In what ways will your clients be reaping the benefits of having hired you?
What are the ripples – who else apart from your clients will have benefited? Suppliers? Your clients’ families? Their suppliers?

How much of a difference can you make?

Build a long list of the amazing ways small and large, direct and indirect that your business will have made a difference in the world this year.

Who will you be at the end of the year?
What internal changes will you have made?
How will you have become happier? More prosperous? More fulfilled?
Who else will be benefiting from your increased happiness and fulfilment?

How much of a difference can you make?

Build another list or add to the first one the small and large ways that you and the world will benefit from you making a difference in your own life.

You can do this exercise with your health, weight, finances and anything else that needs to change. If you would like some support with any of this, then try doing it with a coach. Our contact details are all below if you would like to arrange to discuss a coaching relationship or a short, sharp kick start!

Lisa Wynn PCC MICF

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