One Birthday Answer

I woke VERY early on the 29th of September (my birthday!) for a walk with a friend … 4 miles, more than my usual. She asked about my work … was not clear about exactly what it involved. As I described the work I do supporting people to generate a new awareness, to explore possibilities, to be curious and inquiring, answers were revealed to me.

The answers revealed involved satisfaction, fulfillment, purpose. My work is aligned with my purpose … apparently I needed a reminder of that. As I shuffled through the images for a reflection after my walk, this flower spoke to me of beauty and growth … the beauty & blossoming of each person I encounter!

All of a sudden the concern about the “unknowing” in business gained clarity. In the way that I serve, it is not about me rather about my client. “Unknowing” is the best place a coach can be. I LOVE my work and my ability to support people to grow and develop … especially young people! More birthday revelations ahead …

Rainbow Behind Clouds

Birthday Transition continued....

A few days before September 29th, my birthday, my son suggested dinner with the boys, wives, grandkids the day after. Ok, answers began to emerge … they did remember it was my special day!

Looking forward to celebrating with them diminished some of the “stuckness” (read my early post titled "Birthday Transition" and my self pity). The rainbow was emerging from behind the clouds … the answer to “do they remember” was YES, of course they do. What makes me think they would not?

They have never forgotten in 62 years! Boy how we sabotage ourselves sometimes.

Birthday answers coming …

Birthday Transition

My birthday is in September, just a short bit ago. As part of my reflection about the shift into MY new year (I view each birthday as my own personal step into what is next!), I pulled the image of the car. It spoke to me about uncertainty, unknowing and yes maybe even “stuckness”! You see, there were no celebratory plans until a week before the day!

The uncertainty lay in what I want to unfold in this coming year … it was not clear. And yet, having been single for 14 years since the sudden death of my husband, I really want a life partner. It’s just not happening! There was some clarity the evening of the 29th which was totally unexpected.

The unknowing lay in not having answers … personal, business, family … at the moment of reflection each domain had unanswered questions. I’ve become much more comfortable being in the questions and yet coupled with the uncertainly & “stuckness”, I was craving answers.

The “stuckness” was a bit of feeling sorry for myself… a week to go until my special day and no one had offered any invitation to celebrate. To be continued …

Powerful Tulips

This is a great JICT image to use with a team to start a conversation about how well the team is functioning. You might ask each person to choose the flower that represents how he feels on the team.
Is she part of the bunch on the left or perhaps one of the isolated flowers on the right?
What does the team need to bring the bunch together?
What is the significance of the white and purpose flowers?

This image is filled with possibilities. Try this when you have a real bouquet of flowers – it is a really powerful exercise.

Loose Ends

This spool of string would tie up a lot of loose ends! Funny how just tying up one or two might make a big difference in your life. For me, getting rid of a lot of the clutter in my closet, those extra clothes and shoes I never wear, would sure make my life easier. And I’d feel really good tying up the bags full of clothes that I then donate to the women’s shelter.

Who do you know who would benefit from spending a little time thinking about what they could tie up?

I’d better hurry because it’s getting really cold outside and I need to make room for my winter clothes!

Strong as a Bison

I write this as I am watching the Monday night football game. An Indianapolis Colt’s leg was injured quite seriously and all play stopped on the field. As both teams worked on this young man, the other players stood silently watching and waiting - almost feeling the pain - and trying on the idea of a destroyed career. Why do I watch this game... (I ask myself)... because I hate watching these mere mortals break.

So why choose a buffalo from the JICT deck of cards? Not because I love the Buffalo Bills (I am actually a Redskin fan), but because I sure wish these guys were as solid and strong as this massive animal. On the other hand he sure would look funny in a Susan B. Komen pink headband due to October's celebration of Breast Cancer Awareness.

Being Present

How do you stay present when everything starts looking the same?

On a recent trip rafting down Cataract Canyon in Utah, the cliffs, much like these Grand Canyon cliffs, started to look all the same. I knew that every moment of this trip was very special and I wanted to appreciate the beauty, immensity, and history of these gorgeous rock walls.

Ellen J. Langer, Harvard Professor and author of multiple books on Mindfulness, suggests that we can increase our ability to pay attention and be present by finding the novelty in it. As I flowed past these walls, I started to search for differences in color, texture, and pattern. I looked for wildlife, plants growing from the rocks, and listened for birds - anything that would offer something new to see or hear.

Being present in those six days of the trip was important to me because I knew it would be a long time before I saw such beauty again. Fortunately, this JICT image quickly brings me back there.

AmeriCorps Volunteers

Transformational Testimonial...

We were amazed at how powerful the images worked in my AmeriCorps Volunteer small group training. At the start of the 3 days, we asked our group of 15 participants to choose an image that captured how they felt about working with young girls. While this took almost a full hour, it set the stage for the rest of the training.

One young woman chose this troubled mask to describe the pain that many of the young girls in her program experience by being excluded and teased by her peers. This also evoked memories of her own childhood where she struggled to fit in. As she was sharing, she realized that her personal experience growing up was the inspiration for her work as a young adult. Her face lit up with delight as she connected the dots. And all of this came from an image. The intimate sharing brought our group closer and set the stage for a very powerful training!

WOW! La Trenza Leadership Training Team

Just Right

User's Intuition...

I spread out 8 random JICT images in front of my client to help her articulate how her mood had changed by the end of our coaching session. I asked her to pick the image that ‘spoke to her’ - using a phrase that was ambiguous and very open so she had freedom to go wherever she wanted.

In all the times I had used images with clients, I had never observed someone find the ‘just right’ card by a process elimination. One by one she brushed the images off to the side until two were left. All the rejected images were in tones of blue, while these two remaining were filled with color. It was quite a surprise to her to see that she had kept colorful ones since she always choose to wear the more muted colors in the rejected pile.

The next question was revealed: Where had the color gone in her life? This opened up a whole new territory of learning for both of us!

Cortexercise

Creativity in Action...

Lisa Wolters, MSW, has created the term cortex-ercise to describe how she uses the JICT images with drug addicts to strengthen their atrophied pre-frontal cortex.
In Lisa’s words…..

I use the JICT images during intensive outpatient group therapy for people who have been diagnosed with substance use disorders. I have them select a card face down from a pile without them seeing the picture beforehand. I give them a moment to study the card, giving notice to any characteristics, patterns, relationships that speak to them within the image. I then present a question that asks them to relate what they perceive on the image to their life - past, present, current, or any combination. I give another few minutes for silent reflection and then have each person share their image with the rest of the group and discuss how the image relates to them.

Asking substance use disorder clients to use these images to create a metaphor for their own experience accomplishes several things:

1. The act of higher-order abstract thinking requires utilization of the prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain that for many clients with chemical dependence has become atrophied due to the rewiring of their limbic system to maintain their dependency. To utilize this part of the brain is to strengthen, and to strengthen is to learn new skills that will interrupt the addiction and relapse cycle.
2. Clients are able to use visualization cues to help process their experience. This allows them to have a tool in addition to verbal and written language that may facilitate the process of recovery.
3. Clients are able to use this activity to stimulate dialogue and the building of interpersonal relationships in a therapeutic environment. The mutual sharing of images and experiences promotes the learning of empathy as clients challenge themselves to see other's perceptions in their own images and vice versa.

Our Journey to Tucson

Our Journey ...

As I write this article, I am about to head out to Tucson to meet my JICT business partners for a retreat to imagine how we might share these 72 JICT images with a wider audience.

Although we talk almost weekly about our JICT business, we have not been together in person for over 3 years. Our retreat will be a reunion for us as friends and an opportunity for us to have the luxury of time and shared physical space to explore how to grow our small business.

This image and its corresponding question offer a perfect beginning for our retreat: “The complexity of something so simple appears with the willingness to just look…What would benefit from more reflection?”

Where would this question best serve you in your journey?

Two Dogs

Image This...

This is a great fall or closer to winter picture taken in Central Park, NYC. It shows two very different dogs. One is large, solid and immovable. The other is tiny and alive.

Which one are you drawn to?

Which one seems more powerful?

And Why?

Possible Knot

Are you evenly wound or do you find yourself in a knot in some aspect of your life?

To me, this role of string is perfectly organized to be of service. However, there is a possible knot at the top of the role.

Can we be too organized to be of service to others?

Where in your efforts to be organized might there be a knot that could stop your ability to serve?