Refresh Your Home Office

With many of us working from home more than ever, it's a great time to make sure you love your home office.  

When you find your work space fun and refreshing, it draws you in and elevates your output.  Setting yourself up with a great set of tools dramatically increases efficiency, creativity, and fun. 

1.       Optimize Your Space.

1.1.    Design your space based on use.  Make sure that the items you use most often are accessible with a quick reach.   

1.2.    Clean up the clutter.  File items that you hardly use/access out of sight. 

1.3.    Add inspiration.  Add colors that you love as well as artwork that motivates you.

2.       Fill Up Your Supplies.  

2.1.    Keep the essentials in stock.  Make sure you have everything you need while in your element.  

2.2.    Get creative with items that elevate your personal game.  For example, if you’re a writer, have a great set of journals, decorative notecards, and lots of your favorite pens handy.

2.3.    Whistle while you work.  Nurture yourself with goodies that get you in a great mode such as a fancy tool, a cup of tea, packs of gum, your favorite playlist, a scented candle, etc.

3.       Build Your Best Routine.

3.1.    Start fresh.  Just like we all need a daily shower, a daily dose of inspiration helps get us moving and feeling great. 

3.2.    Timebox your priorities.  Set aside regular periods of time for advancing key activities based on your goals.

3.3.    Carve out renewal periods.  Find those activities that refill your cup and be sure to prioritize them in your schedule as often as you need to perform your best.

My 40's Wish List

When I turned 30, I spent that entire year in a deep analysis of my life.  I was excited about my age and determined to make the most of it.  I came up with a specific set of outcomes I wanted to achieve in that decade.  10 years later as I reflected back, I realized that I achieved every single one of them.  

Turning 40 didn't set me into such a deep state of analysis.  I was more at ease with it, yet not so excited.  Sitting here now turning 41 today, I feel that sense of excitement about the life I will create.  I'm having fun coming up with my next decade wish list.  

• Love - My husband and I get closer, our relationship even stronger, and we make each other feel adored daily.
• Parenthood - My children are empowered to reach for their dreams and feel supported in achieving them.  They are encouraged to soak up the goodness of life.
• Abundance - I continue to experience the absolute abundance I achieved in my 30's and expand even further.  This time, I feel freedom and empowered by it, rather than controlled and limited by it.  
• Wellbeing - I feel well, full of energy, and inspired daily.  If not, I get there first.
• Relationships - I build thoughtful, caring friendships with those around me.  I have dear, great friends who feel my thoughtfulness and support deeply.  
• Education - I finish my Bachelor's, or at least am well on my way to doing so.  I always continue learning and sharing what I learn.  
• Impact - I provide tools and services that empower others to make progress.  I share progress and inspiration with others.

One of the biggest lessons I've learned so far is that focusing on what I want (rather than constantly thinking about what I don't want) is not only a better experience, it's powerful.  Here's to my best decade yet!

Love, Dani

Love Wish List

A woman that I look up to a lot, not only because of her sweet and loving personality, but also because of her success in love, marriage, children, and her career, recommended I write a love wish list.  She said it was what she did just before she found her husband.  They have been married for over 30 years, have three amazing children, and are a great team together.  

I took her advice and had fun creating this exact Love Wish List on July 20th, 2011.  I started dating my husband 10 days later.  No joke.  It's a fun exercise.  Give it a shot!

My Love Wish List (Qualities of My Ideal Partner):

• Loyal
• Loving
• Great with AJ
• Laughs at life
• Affectionate
• Intelligent
• Funny
• Open Minded
• Confident
• Sexy
• Handsome
• Attractive to Me :)
• Caring 
• Inventive 
• Family-Oriented and Focused
• Motivated
• Dedicated
• Handy
• Friendly
• Provider and Guardian
• Sweet
• Masculine
• Strong
• Steady
• Spiritual
• Honest
• Responsible
• In Service to Others/Charity Work
• Successful
• Wants a Kid or 2
• Enjoys a Close Partnership with Me
• Gets Along Great with My Family
• Stays Connected with Me Throughout the Day
• Great Communicator
• Patient
• Happy
• Witty
• Pampers Me
• Romantic
• Treats Me Like a Lady
• Thoughtful
• Ready for Me
• Available
• Local
• Shares Everything with Me (Willingly, No Secrets)
• Hard-Worker
• Goal-Oriented
• Adventurous
• Spontaneous
• Takes Me Out - Eat, Fun, Trips...
• Buys Me Jewelry
• Mature
• Fun to Be Around
• Understanding
• Adores me
• Silly
• Cuddly
• Independent
• Honors My Boundaries
• Makes Things Happen
• Eager to Learn
• Committed to Our Relationship and Family

Rise and Shine!

There is something special about people who are passionate about self-development.  We see through a lens that magnifies opportunity, vision, and possibility.  We consistently drive forward and reach for our goals.  We believe we can do it.  We make it happen.  We thrive on living life to the fullest.

"You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement.  You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand."  - Woodrow Wilson

However, we all have our days.  Our motivation engine needs a shot of turbo boost from time to time.  Life requires a lot of hard work with non-step lessons that can be tough and tiring.  We must consistently rise above challenges and grow. 

"People often say that motivation doesn't last.  Well, neither does bathing –

that's why we recommend it daily."- Zig Ziglar

Practices to Remotivate Yourself

·        Jump Start Your Morning. 

o   Reset.  Rise with enthusiasm, readiness, and determination.

o   Get ready.  Do the things in your wake-up routine that help you feel grounded, prepared, and ready to go.

o   Check your attitude.  Brighten your outlook and open your mind to the day’s possibilities. 

·        Fill Your Cup. 

o   Consume inspiration.  Feed your mind with sources of information that are innovating such as books, podcasts, apps with reading material; whatever leaves you feeling inspired. 

o   Be grateful.  Focus on what you have to be thankful for.  Feeling thankful keeps us happy and encourages our highest presence. 

o   Focus on growth.  Dedicate your fresh morning energy to the key effort that will help you add the most value.

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." - John F. Kennedy

·        Kick Ass.

o   Get to work.  Drive forward on at least one important project.  The sense of achievement is a basic human necessity.  Knocking that out early improves the rest of the day.

o   Make swift decisions.  Once you set your mind, things will naturally move into motion. Make it well-informed decision quickly and move on.  

o   Check in.  Review progress on your key projects regularly.  Identify bottlenecks and analyze ways to move relieve them. Let go of things that require more effort than value created.

·        Renew.

o   Spruce up your space.   Delight your senses by making sure that the places that you work and play in are inviting, empowering, and nourishing.  When these places draw you in, you’ll find that your productivity flies high.  Create the ultimate work space where everything you need is within reach. 

o   Be balanced.  Don’t rush through your days; enjoy the flow. Maintain healthy boundaries between work and fun. 

o   Learn something new.  As you face new projects and challenges, take the time to expand your knowledge and grow.

Getting into the Mode for Optimal Performance

There is a state referred to as "flow" which describes that feeling when we are completely engaged in what we are doing.  While in this mode, we experience “energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity”._A1 Some call this “being in the zone”. 

Achieving this state can be tricky.  By understanding what conditions allow us to reach it, we can ensure that we are experiencing it regularly and maximize the amount of time we spend in it.  A flow state can be entered while performing any activity, although it’s most likely to occur when we are seeking to learn new things and challenge ourselves; when we feel the challenge will require us to stretch but is within our reach.

By getting “out of our heads” we can really have fun with this.  There is a part of the brain that self-edits which is called the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (also known as the inner critic or the monkey mind).  When this part of our brain is active, it can lead to over-thinking and self-doubt.  There are periods of time when this is very useful, but there are times when it doesn’t serve us.  Shutting down this part of our brain during periods of creativity can help us reach a new level by letting us really dig into ideas and separating the limiting thoughts to a second round. 

When we can create our own perfect blend of control and surrender, we can truly get beyond ourselves.  A well-controlled environment allows us to truly surrender.  When we find this balance, we can shut down conscious processing, stop worrying about how we will be perceived, and induce altered states of consciousness where ideas blend together.  Pattern recognitions are increased and we’re hurled into the present moment.  By getting into this un-edited creative state while also experiencing the state of flow, it allows us to probe an idea in real-time with fresh thinking.  We can discover new ideas and solutions in real-time.

The best way for me to get there is to have a certain level of pressure to accomplish something but also have a window of time in which I can advance on it.  A timebox creates the excitement to play with figuring it out and helps me tap into a higher level of thinking.  Knowing this, I’ve built writing sessions into my schedule to allow me to continually explore new challenges, process thoughts in the way I enjoy most (writing), and take ownership of the final output.  During the creative sessions, I experience a sense of “plugging in”.  I feel a deeper level of awareness, see things in a new light, and realize how I want to apply these new understandings.  It’s what fills my cup.

By using this method, I am able to turn thoughts around and come up with great clarity. The more time I spend with a thought and thinking of various scenarios around it, the higher the level of genius I can bring to it.  Multiple reviews with a mix of creative and editing sessions, result in my highest quality output.

References:

·        Wikipedia - Flow (psychology)  _A1

·        Jason Silva on the Art of Charm Podcast

·        Wikipedia - Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

I am an Activist

Tomorrow a senior reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle will attend our women's meeting.  He's writing about the unprecedented number of Orange County activists since Trump took office.  He'd like to understand what drew us to become active.

Immediately following the most recent election, I felt compelled to become active in the issues to help work toward solutions.  I found myself extremely frustrated and wanted to funnel that energy into something productive.  When I heard about the Women's March, I immediately knew I wanted to be a part of it.  A wonderful group of old friends felt the same way and we met up that day to walk together.

The march was the most unforgettable experience.  People of all types came together to stand for unity, diversity, and inclusion.  It opened my mind to how much people of all types suffer through discriminatory conditions every day.  I saw many people genuinely fearful of how the new administration would change their lives and lessen their freedom.  I decided that I can't just stand by and let it happen without helping to change it.

One of the friends that I marched with forwarded an email to me that was written by Joanna Weiss.  Joanna had recently formed a women's group called Women for American Values (WAVE) in Orange County to leverage this frustration into impactful action.  Her messages were extremely informative, concise, and focused on making real progress.  I went to the next WAVE meeting and have remained aware and active ever since.

I identify as an activist because I feel a sense of responsibility to stand up for civil rights and I take ownership in creating the change that is greatly needed.  

The progress we've made toward equal rights cannot move backwards.  I find it very difficult to understand how we aren't further ahead already.  I understand the level of privilege I've been given and want to leverage that to create a positive impact for others.  A lot of this is new to me because I've never been politically involved.  I have always voted but hardly did any research; I was very unaware of what was going on politically.  I've got a big learning curve but a lot of heart and motivation.

I've started with a commitment to be more informed.  I've filtered my sources, adjusted them to be less biased and of higher quality.  I plugged into multiple groups that discuss issues as well as share recommended actions to take.  I joined WAVE, which has become a PAC, to partner with local activists that are driven to make change.  I'm also part of a working action group within WAVE that focuses on Civil Rights to make an impact locally.  I'm loving the connections I'm making and what I'm learning.  I enjoy being a part of the team driving toward true equality for all.  <3

Be the Leader You Wish You Had

Leadership as a mindset that everyone can, and should, opt into.  It is a responsibility to lead by example and to care for all.  How leaders show up and interact with others greatly impacts the overall culture and daily experience of the entire group.

Leadership is a behavior that each of us must exhibit to create positive change for all.

What is Leadership:

• Having a positive attitude and taking rapid, consistent action
• Showing up with conscious intentions and positive energy
• Taking ownership of the team and their product
• Making sacrifices and puting others first
• Taking responsibility and caring greatly for those in your charge
• Helping people grow and achieve
• Appreciating the opportunity to positively shape the lives you touch

Leadership is inspiring.  When we get to see a leader we admire in action, we feel motivated and encouraged, and we thrive.  When there are several leaders around us that we enjoy, we surge with positivity, creative ideas, and refreshing energy.

Simon Sinek shared one of my favorite thoughts of all time.  At the Conscious Capitalism Conference in Chicago in 2015, he inspired us to "be the leader you wish you had".  What an amazing way to think... it takes the concept of  "be the change you want to see" to a whole new level.  Not only be that change, but lead that change and steward others to be able to make the change as well.

Keys to Leadership:  These thoughts on leadership can be applied to your work or your home.

• Set the Example
• Choose your attitude.  Lead with a clear sense of grounded optimism.  Be aware of when you need to reset your presence.
• Take care of yourself.  Show your team that having a healthy work/life balance is expected - with your own actions.  Maintain a balanced work load and ask others to do the same.
• Hold positive opposites gracefully.  Find the value in the opposites you undervalue. 
• Be aware.  Assess your own strengths and weaknesses to make improvements.  Surround yourself with others whose strengths complement your weaknesses.  Always learn how to be better.
• Build trust.  Create strong foundations for relationships built on trust.
• Take Care of People
• Focus on people.  Take care of the people that are responsible for the results.  
• Listen and connect.  Be the last one to speak.  Find out what's going on with your team members.  Let them know you care.  Change what needs fixed.
• Grow others.  Create the space for others to expand their skills and move beyond their challenges.  Create a structure for the team to thrive and grow personally and professionally.
• Be Inclusive
• Create a safe, inclusive environment.  Create communities of openness and safety which encourage us to build off one another.  Build teams that express genuine care for each other.  
• Align around purpose.  Identify a vision of a better future with your team and engage them to obtain it.
• Send people home each day safe, healthy, and fulfilled.  Measure your success by the way you touch the lives of people.  
• Practice servant leadership.  Lead from behind.  Provide your team with the tools they need to excel.  Teach, mentor, coach, and inspire by serving others.
• Stay Focused
• Be consistent rather than intense.  Take small steps every day and don't stop.  
• Have a clear vision and end goal.  Update your vision and goal(s) as often as needed.
• Celebrate achievements.  Let each person know they matter and what they do makes an impact.  
• Focus on driving progress.  Make rapid, consistent advancements toward key goals.  Don't invest too much energy into "just in case" items.

What else would you add or adjust? :)

References:

• Simon Sinek's speech - Conscious Capitalism Conference, Chicago 2015
• Barry Wehmiller's speech - Conscious Capitalism Conference, Chicago 2015
• Contagious Culture by Anese Cavanuagh
• Me :)

Goals: Desired Impact

Ponder this:  If you could have any impact on the world what would it be?


I  want to leave my children with a strong set of healthy values that are inclusive and caring.  I want to leave them with the tools to deal with life's challenges and the ability to navigate them in a way that builds strong relationships and creates meaningful moments.  I want to leave them with a foundation that enables them to learn many perspectives and empowers them to achieve their dreams.  I want to leave them with the impression that their mom was someone to be proud of and inspired by, someone that they cherish the essence of, and encourage their kids to be like.  I want to leave them with the feeling that they can make an impact and the understanding that we all need them to do so.


I want to contribute toward making essential changes for the well-being of people, to set up well-organized and optimized systems that encourage high performance, and create unforgettable memories and relationships along the way.

Commonplace book

I just found out about commonplace books (aka commonplaces) and I am so jazzed about this idea!   They were books that were somewhat popular back in the 1700's and go back as far as the 1500's. This tool became useful as a memory to record remarkable thoughts and lessons. They are notebooks created by a person to collect their observations in the form of recipes, quotes, letters, poetry, data tables, lessons, songs, formulas, etc. in an organized fashion for reference purposes.   It was used to not only capture original thoughts, but also those of others that you adapt as your own.

Each commonplace book is completely customized by the writer and it becomes a collection of their treasured wisdom, stamped with their personality, sharing their way of making sense of the world.  These became information management devices.  Carl Linnaeus, for instance, used commonplacing techniques to invent and arrange the nomenclature of his Systema Naturae (which is the basis for the system used by scientists today." [1]

There is a lot of cool associated history and I look forward to exploring this more.  There is a specific approach written by John Locke which shares specific techniques to organize the content.

This has inspired me to create an e-version of this on my blog.  How fun it would be to see and build all of the content that inspires, informs, and impacts personally in one location!

Reference:

• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonplace_book
• http://www.pem.org/library/blog/?p=687&mc_cid=b05f9d9286&mc_eid=64e6ee27d5 

Favorite Quotes

"Work is love made visible" - Kahlil Gibran

“He who has a why to live for can bear with almost any how” - Nietzsche

"What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls the butterfly." - Richard Bach

"If you are irritated by every rub, how will you be polished?" - Rumi

"To have a child... is to forever have your heart go walking around outside your body." - Elizabeth Stone

“The secret of success is found in your daily routine.” - John Maxwell