Category Archives: Professional Growth

Why It’s So Vital to Embrace Change!

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Being based in northern Europe, it takes a bit longer for spring to reach us. Although we do start to see the signs with lighter days and hearing the birds chirping, which is reassuring that the winter will come to an end. There’s always a sense of rebirth that comes with the spring. One of my favorite sayings is:

Life is change, Change is constant. Growth is optional.

Like the seasons changing each year, there is also a consistency in that change that is also comforting. Many people say they are resistant to change but in reality it is the unknown that makes them uncomfortable. When you can change your perspective to see that all change gives us an opportunity to grow, then you can step into the unknown with excitement rather than fear.

It’s great that neuroscience can start to explain this in a way that makes sense. When we are in fear, we have cortisol and adrenaline running through our bodies, which actually cuts off our ability to think clearly and make rational decisions. When we are looking forward to something, it puts our mental state into curiosity and expectation, which actually helps to activate oxytocin to be produced in our prefrontal cortex or executive brain. This is where we are able to see with a larger perspective and activate our creative thinking.

When you become aware of the neuroscience behind our interactions—it helps to be able to relate to everyone as a human being. It helps to eliminate the divisive thinking that separate so many people. After all, we are ALL spiritual beings having a human experience on this amazing planet.

I like to compare this to water. If you have a puddle of water–after a while the water grows stagnant and starts to smell. But when water is constantly flowing like a stream, it is fresh and rejuvenating. This IS life.

So embrace the changes and know that you can be in the driver’s seat of your own growth!

What’s Your Word for 2018?

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Do you think of a theme or a word for each year? It’s a great exercise someone recently mentioned to me. I’ve decided that this year’s theme for me is evolution. It’s one of my core words anyway and it feels appropriate for this year as well.

One of my favorite sayings is “Life is change. Change is constant. Growth is optional.” I’ve lived by this for many years now. I believe that life happens FOR us not TO us. When we can make this mental shift, we drop the victim mentality and start to think that the Universe has our back, even through the challenges and tough times, which if you are breathing, you WILL have! It’s a part of the human experience.

It is often through the toughest times that we can grow and evolve the most. It somehow forces us to dig deep inside and find what we need to make it through the challenges. At least that has been my experience.

So choosing growth, choosing to evolve, and leaning into trust that things are going to work out for you in the long run, makes it possible to be strong and resilient through whatever life may throw your way. We ALL have an inner core strength of courage and those difficult times helps you to grow.

Growth of course can happen in good times as well. It seems like when you are reaching for goals, dreams, and desires that are outside of your comfort zone, you learn to expand your comfort zone to make it bigger. And guess, what? It stays there!

Two years ago when I released my personal story, 1,352 Days, I ended up all over the media in Sweden. I was on radio and TV shows, even LIVE TV, doing interviews in Swedish (holy cow!! that was a HUGE stretch for me!). For most of the interviews, I was pretty calm inside and the reason is because I was (and still am) very purpose driven. I knew that I had a message to share and get out into the world and if I could use my personal story of immense challenges to inspire others, and to share that no matter what happens, choose love over fear, then I was willing to expand my comfort zone as far as I needed. That was a year of huge evolution to me.

I believe that our world is going through a HUGE evolution right now as well. It seems like so many people I know are having to deal with their emotional baggage, issues that they might not have dealt with or wanted to deal with. But now is the time for each of us to do the internal clearing and healing. Watching what has happened with the #MeToo movement all over the world is both bringing up issues and (hopefully) healing for those who have experienced any sort of harassment.

It is time for us to embrace the changes, to consciously create the world we want to live in, and to take our power back—both individually and collectively. Together we are stronger. We have the opportunity to step into our best selves and we are evolving.

So what is your word for 2018?

Why is Knowing Your Purpose So Important?

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The two most important days in your life are the day you were born…and the day you find out why. ~Mark Twain

It is essential to know why you do what you do. This is your purpose. And when the purpose is clear and communicated to everyone in a way that is understood, everyone is on the same boat, so to speak and can move forward in the right direction.

Like building a house and putting down a strong foundation, this is the first foundation block to creating an Amazing Company.

A company is a system, just as an individual, a family, and even the Universe. When you know how to optimize the system, you bring the best into your world. A big part of this is in knowing why you exist. In the business world, it is the reason why the company exists.

Here are a few examples of great purposes from our model companies that we feature in our book, Engage!:

– TOMS Shoes—it is a “One For One” movement; not a shoe.

– MindValley—it is about “Pushing Humanity Forward” and optimizing human potential through personal development products and education.

– HCL Technologies—putting “Employees First, Customers Second” has taken this global technology company to $4 billion in revenues in 3 years—and the primary focus has shifted to their people.

– Southwest—giving their customers the “Freedom to Fly” drives their business forward and give clarity to all business decisions.

– Achievers—they are “Changing The Way The World Works” through recognition.

The clear purpose is one of the key foundational elements that you can build your company on… and your life too. When a company is not in touch with its purpose, it will be lost.

Why do you do what you do? Let’s say you’re an executive of a company. You want to make a good living.

  • Why is that? Because you want to live a good life and take care of your family.
  • Why is that? Because you want to make them happy.
  • Why is that? Because it’ll make you feel good.
  • Why is that? Because you want to be happy too.

When anyone does this exercise on a personal level, eventually we end up with just a few core reasons: love, happiness, and peace.

It’s a simple exercise and it shows that even though we all come from different walks of life, we all have the same core desires within us…which doesn’t make us so different from each other after all.

A purpose statement is like a compass—guiding you on the path to reach your destination. A company may have a purpose well defined, but the important question to ask is this:

Is it a purpose that will inspire others to take action?

If not, it is probably not the bigger purpose. We can lift a company’s purpose to a much higher level just by asking “and why do we do that?” several times until you discover that higher purpose for being. Knowing the purpose then becomes the guiding light for smooth sailing. The same is true on a personal level.

After going through so many difficult years, I now know my purpose is “Bringing Joy To The World” by teaching all that I have learned along the way through my books, courses, programs, etc. Even Jim Carrey, one of the funniest people alive, has his own personal purpose defined very clearly—“Free People From Concern”.

A clearly defined purpose statement is the foundation to building a purpose driven life and a purpose driven company.

Three Feet of Friendliness

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threefeetSmile at everyone who comes within three feet of you, says Kevin Knebl, social-media and networking consultant and coauthor of The Social Media Sales Revolution: The New Rules for Finding Customers, Building Relationships, and Closing More Sales Through Online Networking (McGraw-Hill). He believes that the Knebl Three-Foot Rule, as he calls it, is the “right way to live” if you want long-term success in business and in life. The rest of the rule goes like this—“If they smile back, say hi. If they say hi back, start a conversation with them about them.”