Thought I'd give you a peak around the corner to what's coming in 2006:

• The release in April of my first book, Coaching Into Greatness: 4 Steps to Success in Business and Life
• The launch of CoachingIntoGreatness.com, featuring lots of tasty tidbits from the new book including complimentary ecourses, class recordings and ebooks
• The transformation of this blog from Living Into Greatness to Doing What You CAN Do - the theme that emerged in 2005
• The launch in April of The Abundance Intelligence® Institute - the first company of its kind to deliver coaching, consulting and training around the area of Abundance Intelligence
• A book tour and all out speaking and training schedule
• The launch of the Certified Abundance Intelligence® Coach designation
• A revamped html newsletter, Abundance Intelligence® Matters
• Writing the next book in the Abundance Intelligence® Series:  The Coaching Into Greatness Field Guide, coming out in 2007

Posted by Kim George at 12:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Each year I look back and evaluate my progress related to the theme, business goals and personal standards I have set.  It's an opportunity to celebrate discoveries, events, transformations, surrenders, and everything else in between.  I wanted to share my observations with all of you because you are fellow travelers on this journey.

My 2005 theme was Exploring My Vulnerability. In 2004, my theme was Step Up and Stand Out, and I had done that by conquering my fear of asking for what I want -- I interviewed such greats as Seth Godin, Dan Pink, Michael Gerber, Dr. Ivan Misner, and about 50 others.  Why explore vulnerability?  In our society, we view vulnerability as a weakness.  Yet, the most vulnerable people I have read about and witnessed are people with profound intuition, courage, and strength -- strength to go to the unfamiliar, dark places.  To be vulnerable is to be open to our truest selves, to allow ourselves to let down the standard defenses and barriers.  Yes, we open up to pain in many situations, but in doing so, we allow ourselves to feel, to experience life.

Being vulnerable is letting go of dwelling on the surface of life.

As I look back on this year, I realize just how much 2005 has been a triumph of my vulnerability.  Here's how:

• I've written Coaching Into Greatness, a book that lays bare many painful, transformative experiences in my life (when I first envisioned the book, I never imagined it would feature my life story)
• I didn't know exactly how the book would happen, I embraced my intuition and got out of the way -- I let go of controlling every detail and began to trust
• I left my position at CoachVille, where I had been a part of the team for nearly 3 years, to focus on bringing my own work to the world
• I began to specifically focus on receiving the support, advice, and resources of people I trust to do what I could do (you know who you are!)
• I created this blog, which was the first time I began to share my personal journey and views in such a public way

It's been an amazing, transformative year.  I look back with a huge sense of accomplishment, celebration, and love.  Most of all, I look back with no regrets. What life brings us is often messy, uneasy, and uncertain.  2005 has certainly been that, too.  But embracing my vulnerability has also meant the willingness to look for the life lessons in things that happen, and to hold on to the thread of continuity and purpose that runs through my life.

Thanks for walking with me.  2006 is just around the bend. Can you see it?

Posted by Kim George at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In my prior post, I shared that I pick a theme each year that ties together all of my focused intentions and actions.  For the coming year, my theme is:

To Be Who I AM in the World

What does this mean?  To be who I AM in the world means to make a conscious commitment to the following:

1. To create an inspiration environment for me and everyone around me

2. To consistently build and act on attitudes and behaviors that cause me to live into my greatness

3. To consistently create actions, attitudes and behaviors that cause me to live abundantly

4. To consistently create actions, attitudes and behaviors that promote loving-kindness for myself and all living things

5. To consistently live and embody love through acts of service to all living things

6. To do what I CAN do on a consistent basis.

What is your theme for 2006?

Posted by Kim George at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Michael Friedman is not your ordinary 16 year old.  Just this year, Mikey created his own non-profit, Mikey's Way Foundation, to purchase games and toys for critically-ill children in hospitals.  What makes this even more special is that Michael gave up his own wish granted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation to help others.  You see, last year, Michael was diagnosed with a rare form of pediatric cancer.

In my upcoming book, Coaching Into Greatness, I explore the 7 Abundance Aptitudes  that comprise Abundance Intelligence® (Abundance Intelligence). Michael embodies the Abundance Aptitude of Significance.  Significance is defined as knowing who you are and living into that greatness everyday.  Individuals who demonstrate Significance have made a shift from external expectation (expecting someone or something else to solve things for them) to internal realization (recognizing their significance and impact on the world around them).

Michael seized an opportunity to be abundant.  By acting unselfishly, he chose to do greater good for other critically-ill children.  He could have gone to DisneyLand.  He could have chosen to meet his favorite rock band.  Instead, he made the conscious choice of Engagement - a conscious pattern of people who possess the Abundance Aptitude of Significance.  He looked outside of himself, saw what he could do, and then did what he could do.  What an inspiring example for all of us!

What are you not doing that you CAN do today?

If you are interested in supporting Mikey's Way, send your donations to Mikey's Way Foundation,  35 Wintergreen Drive, Easton, CT 06612.

Posted by Kim George at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In this season of celebration,

My wish for you is that you take time

to live with reverence

And cherish the everyday miracles

that make up your life:

The food the land provides to nourish you

The home you have been given to protect you

The tree outside your window

The song of the birds at sunset

The gentle breathing of your sleeping child

The safety of your lover’s embrace

The old friends who have never left your side

The undiscovered friends you are about to meet

And, most of all,

That you are alive.

That you are here, now.

That, hopefully, you are wiser and more loving

than you were at this time last year

And that tomorrow, you have another day

to laugh, to learn, to love,

To be embraced by the sacred mystery

of your journey here on Earth

May your new year be blessed

With the joy of awakening

And the gift of peace

- Barbara De Angelis

Happy Holidays! 

Posted by Kim George at 09:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"We lie loudest when we lie to ourselves."

Eric Hoffer

Ultimately, when we are not telling the truth, who do we hurt the most?  This quotation makes me think of a child, agreeing with their parents, all the time crossing his fingers behind his back.

The little white lie.  It's harmless, right? People don't really get hurt by fibs. It's for their own protection.  To keep them safe.

But how harmless are these little white lies?  As a coach, I know how the little things can pile up, taking up space and cramming life full of doubt and distraction.  The ultimate distraction is what we tell ourselves to be true, even as we know deep down inside that it is not the truth.

As we approach the new year, what are you telling yourself about your greatness, your dreams and goals, that is not the truth?  What excuses are you making for not living who you are? What goals have you been hanging onto that don't serve you?

Posted by Kim George at 10:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Now that the book has been written and the manuscript submitted, the endorsements are starting to fly in!

Read what Michael Port, "the guy to call when you're tired of thinking small", says about Coaching Into Greatness:

“I love this book! Not only does Coaching Into Greatness offer a new paradigm for the future of the Coaching industry, it will teach any professional who’s responsible for the success of a team how to lead it to greatness. Prepare yourself for some rather startling and marvelous results.”

Check out Book Yourself Solid, The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable System for Getting More Clients Than You Can Handle, Michael's first book, coming out in April.  It's a must read.

Posted by Kim George at 10:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I don't watch a lot of television, mostly a lot of HBO, but one show I Tivo on a regular basis is The Apprentice.  I love watching how the job candidate's approach and solve a variety of business scenarios.  What's even more interesting is to see who rises above and who shows their true colors.  The show is a great case study of abundance and scarcity in action.

Did you see this season's finale where the final two candidates, Randal and Rebecca are in a dead heat to be hired as Trump's next apprentice?  Randal came out on top, but in my opinion, both Randal and Rebecca should've been hired.  It was so close, Trump asks Randal about hiring her, as well.

Throughout the season, Randal has shown character, integrity, compassion, and what appears to be a relatively high Abundance Intelligence® .  But when presented with the opportunity to act abundantly, he just couldn't do it. 

C'mon, Kim, you actually expected Randal to tell Trump to hire Rebecca?

Yeah, I did.  And, damn, was I disappointed.

You see, here's the thing.  Raising other people up and helping them to shine and be successful never takes anything away from you.  It never diminishes who you are.  Thinking that it does is a scarcity mentality.

Randal had already won.  Randal was already great.  By not agreeing to hire Rebecca, he made himself look small and threatened.

Lesson learned:  By helping others to live into their greatness, we are great.

Posted by Kim George at 10:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I just got my latest issue of Ode magazine. I love this magazine, which focuses on people doing what they CAN do, and is jam packed with examples of Abundance in Action.

One of the big stories in the December issue is 10 emerging trends that could reshape our lives.  3 trends in particular caught my eye:

#1: Just do it . . . yourself

This trend speaks directly to the Illusion of Hope.  It says we don't need to wait for others to do for us what we CAN do today. The tools we need are easily available through the Internet and lots of other resources.  The time for doing what you are capable of doing is now.

#6: Who are you really?  A revolution of authenticity

This trend embraces my definition of abundance - exercising the freedom to be who you are, and hints at the prevalence of conditioning in our society.  "Our challenge is to participate in society as our true selves rather than as timid, voiceless servants of other people's ideas."  Couldn't have said it better myself!

And last but certainly not least:

#9: Abundance! Our hardest lesson may be accepting the bounty of the universe

How exciting to see Abundance cited as one of the 10 trends shaping our future!  "We live in an endless universe, yet tend to see our futures within the context of present limitiations."

What an opportunity we have to spread the word about Abundance Intelligence! 

Won't you join me?

Posted by Kim George at 05:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The Abundance Intelligence® System:  Exploring the Tipping Point of the Illusion of Struggle

Thursday, December 8th, 7pm eastern

Do you find more and more that you're working harder, forcing things to happen?  Do things seem complicated - nothing's easy?  Welcome to the Illusion of Struggle.  Join Kim as she explores the conditioned patterns of this form of scarcity -- resisting, complexity, and overachieving.  In this class, we'll find the clues to the situations that tell us when we (or our clients) are stuck in struggle. We'll also learn the coaching questions and approaches that you can use to help your clients move from struggle to the abundance aptitude of self-expression.

To register for this class, please send an email here.

Posted by Kim George at 05:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)