Category: personal growth

Delightful new opportunities

~ meximinnesotana ~ Leave a comment

Hello Friends,

This week I’m in the midst of introductory conversations with staff that work with my new organizational client and I’ve interacted with a few of them by email as well. These are lovely young(er) people who are very mission-driven and are committed to sustainability for our planet.

I am deeply grateful for this opportunity. It comes at a time when I was questioning whether it might be time to give up my pursuit of this “portfolio career” of being coach, team facilitator and writer. But something keeps pulling me in. I think it’s the notion that I am committed to wellbeing and workplace transformation. Yet I don’t believe most workplaces are changing fast enough to adapt to a changing world, which it has been why I haven’t pursued traditional full-time employment.

Many of the up-and-coming generations want not only work that makes them feel purposeful and committed, they want to learn more about themselves and grow personally. They want to challenge themselves in new ways, and not just get stuck with the “admin” work that their leaders shovel down on them. Maybe for some people that sounds self-indulgent, but for me, it’s an indicator of future leadership qualities. And our world deeply needs those who can think creatively rather than simply conform. It inspires me to be get even better at

Photo taken near Lake Superior – Baragas Cross wayside rest (copyright mexi-minnesotana 2021)

Don’t get me wrong. I did a lot of “admin” work early in my career. Actually, I probably spent the first 8-10 years of my post-college career doing this kind of work, to greater and lesser degrees depending on the job, because I kept starting over at each new workplace. It wasn’t until my 30’s when I really begun understanding myself better that I sought the kinds of opportunities where I thrived. Looking back to my college days, I now see how I was preparing myself all along through volunteer and extra-curricular activities that were related to group dynamics and mentoring people.

There are times in our lives when the financial tides recede, and there are times when the tides roll in. Sometimes as humans we forget that life doesn’t yield linear results. There are cycles, patterns, and spirals. There are times for earning, and there are times for investing in our growth by allowing the field to lie fallow, to regenerate and rest. The seeds we have planted are starting to put down roots, and to draw upon the earth for nourishment. Soon the plants will emerge and take in the sunlight. But they are born in sacred darkness.

The next time I feel like I’m trying to “force” a bloom, I will read this to remember how this dance works.

Be well.

Cristy

Shipped draft to my editor

~ meximinnesotana ~ 5 Comments

Whew!

Even though my manuscript draft likely needs substantial developmental edits, it felt great to ship it out today.

About two weeks ago I got a strong impulse to find an editor. A couple of friends had volunteered to read the draft, but I realized after I had a few friends read the introduction the first time, that I really needed to have someone with experience to help me edit. I got great feedback, but it was not detailed enough to make decisions on the overall book.

About 15 years ago I finished the draft of my master’s thesis. It was only 40 pages, and it nearly killed me to write! I sometimes tell the story that it cost me my first marriage, my home and my job. But that’s probably an exaggeration. Just my marriage and my home then… 😉

This time around the book will likely be 110-130 pages. All in all, it’s a short book. But still, the number of decisions it takes to complete a project like this felt overwhelming to me. So I decided I would hire someone to professionally edit given that I am self publishing this time. Even if it costs me something, I want to spare my reader too much wandering from the main point.

  • I write kinda compulsively, so you can understand how an editor might need to figure out all the crap I need to cut!

So I posted a little ad on LinkedIn on September 10th for a freelance editor and in 2 hours I had 8 applications! Only two of the prospects actually read the posting carefully enough to see that I asked them to email me if they were interested. She reached out to ask about the budget and I told her I have no idea what I’m doing. But her quote (per word per round of editing) sounded very reasonable!

We decided on a small test project (an article for LinkedIn on the Shapes We Ask of Our Bodies) and I sent her $50 via Venmo for some accountability on that project. She gave me a wonderful edit and quick turnaround on that one. I was so happy, I Venmo’d about half of what I expected the next edit to cost me just to give myself the accountability to get it done by a week later.

So now my self-imposed deadline has been met. I expect I will also work with her on a second edit for line and copy editing and possibly a third for the proofread as well.

My relief is palpable. Nobody has read the entire thing, but I am confident that with her compassionate surgery on this project, it will turn out so much better.

Question to you: If you write books, do you work with an editor? Why or why not? And how did you find them?

Cheers,

Cristy

P.S. If you want to work with someone for an article or book edit, check out Kay Grey’s website. It may have been her amazing shot of her bookshelves that sold me… anyone that reads that much and has already improved my work is a great find. I just hope she doesn’t find the book-length project to be too scattered. I want to be worthy of the editor’s time!

Self-confidence as embodied experience

~ meximinnesotana ~ 1 Comment

Hello lovely friends,

Hope those of you in the United States enjoyed a beautiful and safe weekend and that everyone else is well also.

I spent time connecting with friends and enjoying mask-free, vaccinated “new freedom” and got to listen to live music, gather with those I enjoy and also have adequate time for solitude.

It’s those longer weekends that make us all feel refreshed, no?

Somatics of Self-Confidence is being offered free on Thursday, July 15, 2021.

But I digress. I have been excited to plan on a new free offering on the somatics of self-confidence upcoming on July 15, 2021. It’s unclear if I will use LinkedIn Live or Zoom for that event (I may try some experiments before that to test). However, I intend to make this a real-time practice session for those looking to build confidence on a non-left-brained way.

We will embody confidence by doing some small movements (somatics) in order to release chronic tension from our bodies. We will breathe deeply into our bellies (diaphragmatic breath) in order to generate the feelings of confidence we desire. And we can use this confidence for a number of things: ask for a raise, ask for a work-from-home day once or twice a week, apply for a new job, or even to give a presentation.

Can you benefit from a little more confidence?

Join us at 11:30am CST on Thursday July 15, 2021 by getting on my workshop list (free, no charge) and allow me to share a few techniques I have found helpful especially in the last few years.

Look forward to seeing you there!

P.S. I’m linking to a YouTube video that’s part of my series on the somatics of self-confidence in case you want a byte-sized version of what I will offer at the free webinar.

Juneteenth

~ meximinnesotana ~ Leave a comment

A lot of us are learning more about our history in response to recent events, protests and having a little more time on our hands. I confess that before this year, I knew very little about Juneteenth. I am an introvert and I do not gravitate toward large events.

This year, because it has become abundantly clear that people who identify as Black or African American have never been truly free in this country. We swim in history that is informed by a philosophy of white body supremacy.

Juneteenth
Link to the Juneteenth celebration website

I found a virtual Juneteenth event in Saint Paul that was co-sponsored by the Saint Paul Library. On the home page (linked above) are some beautiful read-aloud videos from staff there, children’s stories that have wonderful lessons for adults. Check them out.  They can be resources to help teach children about inclusion versus racism.

I will be tuning in this Friday. It is time to learn and grow, time to come together as human beings “alone together” on this tiny planet.

Happy weekend, friends.

cristy@meximinnesotana.com

Unwinding white body supremacy

~ meximinnesotana ~ 2 Comments

Friends,

I write with a sad heart and an all too familiar feeling of distress at the news of another unarmed black man being murdered. His name is George Floyd. I support the Black Lives Matter movement. I believe we all need to become aware of our privilege and how white body supremacy has functioned since the early days of this country’s history. It will help us understand what keeps happening.

Resmaa Menakem

Last summer I read a book called “My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies.” It helped me to see and understand the deeper historical forces at play within white bodies, black bodies and police bodies.

As a yoga practitioner I appreciate the exercises that Menakem offers for the body, to be done alone and in trusted communities. He writes sections in the book for black bodies, white bodies and police bodies. A couple days ago I realized he also has a free e-course on Racialized Trauma, offered by the Cultural Somatics Training & Institute. While it is a 5-day course, each of the videos are only 10-15 minutes, and it introduces the major themes covered in the book.

I highly recommend the course or book, as I think Menakem helps us to understand how we swim in a larger system of injustice. While we are not personally responsible for creating the system (and there are historical factors that are larger than us) we are responsible for dismantling and slowly unwinding it.

While I don’t claim to know anything more than what I have observed and absorbed over the years, racism can be subtle poison. Current times are revealing how black and brown bodies and women’s bodies are subject to even greater risks for the COVID-19 infection.

I have no answers. I am a white person. Other voices need to be heard and highlighted. All I know is that I’m going to keep doing my personal work in bodyful and somatic ways with self-compassion and love for all those that are hurting. Hopefully I can connect with communities that also want to engage in these efforts.

Stay safe. Be kind. Wash your hands. Wear your mask.

cristy@meximinnesotana.com

Unexpected blessings

~ meximinnesotana ~ 8 Comments

I received some news at work yesterday which was surprising at first. It took me a few minutes to process it, and I am still deciding how to approach this news.

My emotions went from disbelief to amazement to sadness. Then I felt quiet recognition that this was not actually unexpected. My intuition had been nudging me here but I had been reluctant to fully see and acknowledge what I was seeing.

So my current emotion is relief. There is some uncertainty in the process of moving forward after big news. And there can be a delightful freedom in it, a chance for something new to burst forth.

Unexpected blessings

I thank my yoga training for allowing me to sit in the “heat” of any situation in my life and recognize it is here to teach me something. My resilience and resourcefulness come from within, and I am so grateful that I know this.

Over the weekend I received news about a yoga teaching opportunity which was energizing and exciting. After my “desk chair yoga” class in February I have been wondering what is next along that front, and some new options are emerging. I felt like I had been pushing, pushing, pushing on some projects that had felt stuck. And now I feel a sense of ease at understanding that planting seeds was more important, that growth and harvesting are a later part of this particular project.

Grateful for all the the wisdom I continue to receive.

***

cristy@meximinnesotana.com