Newsletter:Right Now! Coach

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LifeRhyme Notes
October 2006
By Rochelle Melander, Coach
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IN THIS ISSUE...
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1. Overwhelmed!
2. Get Rochelle's NEW BOOK!

Overwhelmed!
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... And everyone's tied to their thing To their past or their drink or the date that they bring I just get tired all of sudden taking it in. And I want to lay my head down on you Because youre the only solid thing in this room —Emily Sailers, Lay My Head Down, on the Indigo Girls CD, Despite Our Differences

We've been talking about how to get the big things done. How do we tackle our "genius projects," the work we were put on this earth to complete?

Last month I wrote about digging in and getting to work. I took my own advice and hauled out the pile of paper scraps I'd been scrawling on for the last year. I organized my notes in my project notebook, began to compile an outline, and then got overwhelmed.

I could not figure out how to structure the book. But that wasn't the only problem. It had been a tough weekend, and other questions demanded attention, too: "How do I get my daughter well, help my son with his flute practice, do the dishes, make cookies, pay for violin lessons, edit that book, care for my friend, do laundry, and get this book written?" AHHHHH! I couldn't figure out one thing let alone twenty.

Like Emily sings, I wanted to "lay my head down." I was overwhelmed and tired.

No big deal, I thought, I'll do what I tell my clients to do: take a break. I headed out into the sunshine. I'd walked more than a mile when the thunder started. Thinking I could make it back before the sky burst open, I hurried toward home. I was soaked when I took refuge in a bookstore. Suddenly everything felt like a very big deal. Had this been a movie or a chick lit book, an old friend would have appeared AT THAT MOMENT, giving me a place to "lay my head down."

Didn't happen. Not that I didn't look around for said rescuer. I even checked that my cell phone was on in case God was sending virtual help. No such luck. Instead, I wandered around the bookstore shivering.

Then I saw this book on the shelf: "{Risking Everything} 110 Poems of Love and Revelation, edited by Roger Housden. I grabbed it and began to read. On the last page was this poem by Rumi,

"It's late and starting to rain, it's time to go home. We've wandered long enough in empty buildings. ....
Let's leave the grazing to cows and go..."

Good advice. In the midst of doing big things, we get tired and overwhelmed. We want to be rescued. The solution?

Drop everything and create.

Yup. As Rumi said, STOP GRAZING. Go home. You have wandered from thing to thing for too long. Get centered and get to work.

Eric Maisel puts this nicely in his book, Coaching the Artist Within: "I would love for you to learn how to drop everything and go create. The phrase "drop everything&#quot; means dropping your resistance, dropping your doubts, dropping those aspects of your personality that hold you down, dropping your nagging to-do list, dropping all the reasons that you and your efforts don't matter, dropping everything just as you would drop your parcels if your child got hurt or you would drop your clothes for spontaneous sex." (p. 98)

Next time you get overwhelmed, drop everything but the one thing, your genius project, and get to work. Here's how:

1. Do a brain dump. Sometimes the only way to let go of your worries and the overwhelming list of ideas and tasks is to dump it in a mind map, to-do list, or journal entry. Take five minutes before you begin working on your genius project and do your brain dump.

2. Center yourself. There are many ways to do this. Lift weights, breathe, read poetry, pray -- anything that will calm you down and train you to focus on doing one thing at a time.

Now get to work!

I mean it!

--Coach Rochelle

GET Rochelle's New Book !!!!
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A Generous Presence:
Spiritual Leadership and The Art of Coaching
by Rochelle Melander (The Alban Institute 2006)
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This book provides insights that will encourage and guide you through the process of connecting with others in meaningful ways. Filled with practical tools and engaging personal reflections, A Generous Presence will help you use the power of coaching to change your life and improve your relationships.

Get the book here:
http://www.alban.org/BookDetails.asp?ID=1911

Read an excerpt here:
http://www.alban.org/weekly/web/109_060821.html

Read a review by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat here:
http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/books.php?id=15999

Inspired?
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Are you inspired by what you read here?
Then pass it on!

Interested in connecting around the
important issues of life?
Give me a call at 414-963-1222 or
send me an e-mail
(rochelle@liferhymecoaching.com)
to set up a free coaching consultation!

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LIFERHYME NOTES 2006 is a free monthly e-mail newsletter designed to consider how we can integrate spirituality and creativity into our daily lives. It is written and produced by Rochelle Melander, personal and professional coach. If you have any questions or comments, please send them to:
rochelle@liferhymecoaching.com.
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