"If we continue to pursue hope, then we had best become a producer of it, rather than a consumer of it."

Peter Block

I had a revelation today.

My mind was churning and burning, as I like to say, having it's way with me -- spitting out all kinds of fearful thoughts.

And then it hit me . . .

I REFUSE to participate in my fear!

Think about that!

Fear is a habit.

It is not truth.

We get to decide what is true for us.

We decide what defines us.

Hope is a source of scarcity when it keeps us from doing what we CAN do.

When hope is a prison, an immobilizer, it is passive. It involves waiting for other people or events to fix something for us, to solve a problem so we don't have to.

People who find themselves longing or wishing for things to be different, but don't take responsibility to make things different, are caught in the Illusion of Hope.

Hope becomes an excuse to play small.

When hope is a source of abundance, it is active. It is made real by consistent action -- doing what you CAN do.

Hope is real when you refuse to participate in your fear.

Will you feed the fear monster, or starve it?

When hope is real, you are a catalyst in the world.

Every time you choose your fear over your greatness, you deprive the world of your greatness.

Remember what Mother Teresa said: "I never look at the masses as my responsibility; I look at the individual. I can only love one person at a time - just one, one one. So you begin. I began - I picked up one person. Maybe if I didn't pick up that one person, I wouldn't have picked up forty-two THOUSAND . . . Just begin - one, one, one."

What can you do today to be a producer of hope?

Posted by Kim George at 02:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Can problems naturally resolve themselves?

This is a radical thought.  Must we work everything out?  Solve it, wrap it up and put it into a neat little box?

What if today, right now, you could let go of worrying about that one thing that's been plaguing your mind?

What would be possible?  Could you wonder?

Wonder is that lightness of being, that playfulness that allows you to engage with possibility -- not because you need it, but because you're Inquisitive, your Curious.  Both of these qualities are conscious patterns of Abundance.

Some would argue there's no place in our world for wonder anymore.  Too much to do, to achieve. When we navigate with wonder, we capture the nuances and opportunities of life.  This is a tall order with our ever increasing "Bleed to Succeed", "He who dies with the most toys wins" culture.

Does this sound a bit "woo-woo"?  Maybe so, but there's inherent practicality in this message.  When we're so busy needing and pushing and striving, we lose the connection with who we are and the world around us and in us.

This happened to me recently.  I've been crazy busy with the marketing and promotion of my upcoming book Coaching Into Greatness.  So tired  . . . and always more to do, with no end in sight.

Then it struck me yesterday. 

In all this rushing around, in my turbo book marketer mode, I'd lost touch with my knowing. 

You see, I've always had a knowing about this book and the importance of Abundance Intelligence.  It's not about ego.  It's not arrogant.  It's knowing.

I know it's my life's work.

And I know it's big.

I lost touch with that this week in the busyness of doing.

The first step in the Living Into Greatness process is Awareness.  When you have Awareness, you can do anything.  Now that I'm aware of what I've become disconnected to, I can step back, let go, breathe, and wonder. 

And my knowing just got stronger.

What's your knowing? 

Posted by Kim George at 09:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

New to Abundance Intelligence® - Abundance Intelligence?  Here's a quick synopsis for you:

Abundance Intelligence is a form of intelligence that is made up of aptitudes, conscious patterns and beliefs that enable us to do what we CAN do consistently and authentically.

Your Abundance Intelligence® is measured by identifying your Abundance Quotient - the prevalence of Abundance Aptitudes in your life.  Your SQ - Scarcity Quotient - is measured by the prevalence of the Illusions in your life.  Illusions are sources of scarcity thinking.

For every Illusion there is an equal and opposing Abundance Aptitude:

Self-Worth:  you are complete, you have more than enouch exactly as you are; conscious patterns: capacity, greatfulness, catalyst

Empathy:  compassionate internal awareness -- the degree to which an individual consciously directs his or her awareness inward; conscious patterns: internal drivers, discernment, effectiveness

Self-Expression:  the ability to consistently give voice to who you are; conscious patterns: receiving, simplicity, flow

Actualization:  consistent and authentic action; conscious patterns: stepping back, curiosity, perseverance

Significance:  knowing who you are and living into that greatness every day, shifting from external expectation to internal realization; conscious patterns: engagement, decisiveness, inquisitiveness

Surrender:  the willingness to let go, allowing life to unfold through us so that we can remember who we are; conscious patterns: personal responsibility, intention, vulnerability

Inquiry: the ability to question your answers consistently; conscious patterns:  willingness, strategic thinking, adventuristic

Posted by Kim George at 10:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

New to the Illusions of Scarcity?  Here's your handy, dandy quick reference guide.

An Illusion is a layer of conditioning that provides evidence we are living in scarcity.  Each of the 7 Illusions is made up of conditioned patterns and beliefs.  All of the Illusions keep us from doing what we CAN do.

The Illusion of Not Enough: where the belief that you can't trust who you are results in feeling incomplete; conditioned patterns: more, scriptwriting, contingency

The Illusion of Comparisons:  consistently comparing ourselves to the external world to validate our belief of who we are; conditioned patterns: external drivers, personalization, busyness

The Illusion of Struggle:  the cycle of resistance, striving, and complexity that keeps people from doing what they can do; conditioned patterns: resistance, striving, complexity

The Illusion of Time:  focusing on what you don't have instead of what you do have; conditioned patterns:  rushing, attachment, distractibility

The Illusion of Hope:  waiting for other people or events to solve our uneasiness of who we are; conditioned patterns:  expectation, powerlessness, assumption

The Illusion of Control: when a person's happiness depends on re-arranging the world to fit their idea of how things should be; conditioned patterns:  care-taking, role-playing, self-defense

The Illusion of Certainty:  when the need to know an outcome keeps you from acting, making authentic decisions, and doing what you CAN do; conditioned patterns: complacency, tactical thinking, perfectionism

Posted by Kim George at 09:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The 4th step in moving from Goals to Abundant Declarations is Engagement.  Engagement, as I discuss in my book, Coaching Into Greatness, is hope manifested into action.  I want that to sink in.  Hope manifested into action.

When hope doesn't work, it becomes an illusion.  The Illusion of Hope is all about waiting for other people or events to change our circumstances so we don't have to.  We don't want to make the difficult decisions, do the work, or show up.  Showing up is scary business.  This is another powerful reason so many goals never get met and get recycled or dropped all together. We often pick goals that are all too familiar--too comfortable, too safe.  We even pick goals that are unrealistic, knowing full well, deep down inside, that we're not going to give 100% to reaching them, so it ensures that we keep doing what we've always been doing.

And we keep holding onto those "unattainable" goals.  They sound good.  They might even be impressive.  But they aren't real.

Abundant Declarations are real because they are intimately connected to who you are, where you're at, and the big picture of your life.  Engagement plays a huge role in this big picture of life.  When we're engaged, we have a visualization of where we're going, what the end result is, and the final destination.

But we don't let the destination cause us to miss out on the journey to getting there.

People who are engaged understand that the journey is more important than the destination, that the twists and turns on the road of life are actually the landmarks, the guideposts, the beautiful wildflowers and scenic views that matter most.

Engagement is about loving life and living it every day, not just at the end of the road.  The road is life.  If we pay attention, we might just love it as much as what we think is coming at the end.

Are you engaged or are you putting in time?

Posted by Kim George at 09:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

New Year's Resolutions.  Goals.

Tis the season to make 'em and break 'em.

As I was working on my intentions for 2006, it got me to thinking about the dark side of goal setting.  At this week's BNI meeting, I stood up and made a confession. I don't believe in Goals.

There's nothing wrong with goals, per se.  I just don't believe in taking goals at face value. Through my experience coaching 100's of business people, there is a Tipping Point when goals become a source of scarcity.  This week, I'm going to share some insights I've had on just how goals can be the feeder of Illusions.

How many of you have at least one goal you've not met for at least 2 years? (It's ok, you can raise your hand - this is a blog and no one can see you.)  Having an ongoing goal is not necessarily a bad thing - it's when we keep recycling the same old goals year after year, with no focused, intentional action to go along with it, that we run into problems.

When Goal Recycling happens, it can quickly become a sign that the Illusion of Hope is at play.  One of the sources of Scarcity thinking, the Illusion of Hope is what causes us to put our Greatness on hold by waiting for someone or something else to solve our uneasiness of who we are.

The Illusion of Hope is characterized by expectation, powerlessness, and assumption.  How do these conditioned patterns keep us from reaching our goals?  When we expect life (and people) to be a certain way, we make assumptions about what will happen.  If I assume that I will train 100 people this year because I believe I have such a great program, I may expect that I will make over 6 figures as my goal.  However, if underneath this goal, I have a deep rooted fear that I'm really not that great of a trainer, or my program has a lot of kinks in it, or I hate flying (and my training success requires a lot of travel) any one of these fears can be a sign of powerlessness.  And if that keeps me from doing what I can do - marketing my program, networking with prospects, etc. I'm stuck in the Illusion of Hope and recycling my goals.

What goals have you been recycling?

Posted by Kim George at 10:42 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)

If we continue to pursue hope, then we had best become a producer of it, rather than a consumer of it.

Peter Block

This quotation is taken from Peter Block's amazing book, The Answer To How Is Yes, featured in my Great Books list.  Love the book.  Love this man.  He is one of the most powerful minds of our time.

I'm currently writing the chapter on the Illusion of Hope for my upcoming book, Coaching Into Greatness:  4 Steps to Success in Business and Life.  You can bet that I use this quotation.  In fact, it opens the chapter.

What does it mean to be a "consumer of hope"?  I love that phrase.  To me, it gives us a taste of how hope can be a form of scarcity.  When we look at the Tipping Point of hope, we find that it can actually keep people from doing what they can do.  Hope can keep us waiting, rid us of our power, and keep us doing things that don't benefit us for much longer than we normally might.

What does it mean to be a "producer of hope"?  People who produce hope are creators, activators, change agents -- people doing what they can do.  That last phrase has become my mantra lately.  The Living Into Greatness work at it's core celebrates doing what we can do.  That's what it's all about.  You don't have to look far to see people in the world, in your own community, doing what they can do.  They are "producers of hope".

Are you a "consumer of hope" or are you a "producer of hope"?

Posted by Kim George at 05:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This week, I'm exploring the "Illusion of Hope", one of the chapters in my upcoming book, Living Into Greatness.  In the previous post, I talked about how hope can keep us from doing the very thing we can do to get what we want.

Entitlement plays a role here, as well. When we feel life owes us something, that we deserve that new car, that raise, or that best selling book, our desire becomes a need, changing the energy around it.

The twin brother of entitlement is attachment.

Think of something you've really, really wanted in life.  Now think of wanting that thing so bad that you begin to hold onto so tightly that you squeeze the life out of it and it's no longer fun.  Now you've made it into something you need.  "I need that new client because I've got to pay that tax bill I owe, or the mortgage on the house."  It's got a whole different feeling to it, doesn't it?  Attachment has a way of doing that to our wants and desires.

I recently had the opportunity to interview my friend Joe Vitale, author of The Attractor Factor, which just came out at the beginning of April and rocketed to the bestseller list. Here's what Joe had to say about the role attachment plays in attracting what we want:

"The reality is, if you say you want something and you're not happy unless you get it, you're sending out an energy that repels the very thing you want."

(To read the full interview, click here.)

There's a pattern developing here.  Expectation + Entitlement + Need = Disapointment + Status Quo + Disconnection

When we expect something, it's often related to an attitude that we deserve it (entitlement) and when we feel we're entitled to something it changes from a desire to a need. The playfulness is gone.  It's do or die.  Black or white.  Not a great way to have fun, or live into greatness.

So think about this:

How is your attachment to something holding your present hostage?

Posted by Kim George at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"If we continue to pursue hope, then we had best become a producer of it, rather than a consumer of it."

Peter Block

As a business coach, I've seen many people who live their life exclusively in the domain of hope.  "If I have a great product, people will buy it. If I'm a great coach, people will hire me.  If I treat people the way I want to be treated, they will refer me."

Nothing could be further from the truth. 

Hope is the dark side of positive thinking. 

Every day, it suffocates people's possibilities by perpetuating the expectation that someone else or something else is going to come along and rescue us from ourselves, from our problems, from our situations.  We expect things to change, we just don't want to do the changing.   

Hold on!  I know some of you are reading this thinking, "But, Kim, you've GOT to have hope!  What's life without hope?"

And I agree.  Life without hope is an empty void.  But hope is only part of the equation.  Hope in and of itself is really a way to put responsibility on something or someone outside ourselves.  When we only hope for things to get better, we hold the present hostage.  But hope MARRIED with inspired action is the magic combination.  The tipping point here is when hope keeps you from doing the thing you can do.

I've got a question for you:

What are you hoping for that is keeping you from doing the thing that you can do right here, right now, today?

Posted by Kim George at 11:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)