Coach Colette Says Relax on August 15

Did you know that August 15 is National Relaxation Day? What will YOU do to calm and quiet your mind? 

To ease your anxiety and release your tension, why not join me for a (free) Guided Meditation session?! I'll be guiding you based on meditation principles I learned from my training in Coping with Work & Family Stress. 

With all of the emails, IM's, FB posts, texts, tweets, voice-mails -- don't you deserve some ME-time to relax, unwind, and re-group? 

You probably don't need much convincing of the benefits of relaxing and reducing your stress. Just in case, though, here are three health-related reasons:

1. Your stress is aging you faster -- by damaging critical DNA in your cells
2. Your stress increases your risk of a heart attack -- by nearly 70% for women
3. Meditation can ease your stress -- by changing your brain to delay aging and improve health

This Guided Meditation session is my gift to you. Will you accept and sign up today? 

Know that I'm rooting for you and support your intention to relax so that you can achieve your biggest dreams and create the fulfilled, joyful, and purposeful life you want to live! 

I look forward to "seeing" you next Wednesday, August 15 ... meet me in the gap.

NEW Podcast: Meditation-Your Secret to Success in the New Normal

Can meditation change your brain? That's a question that neuroscientists have been seeking to answer for decades - and there appears to be some evidence that it can, in a positive way. In today's New Normal, the pressure to perform can be overwhelming. The good news is that you CAN find tools to relax and release your tension and anxiety. Meditation is one of those stress-releasing tools. And one, I'd suggest, that could become your [peaceful] "secret weapon" to overcome personal or professional hurdles and challenges you may be facing.

This summer, I completed a 21-day meditation "challenge" led by the Chopra Center for Wellbeing. I've been meditating nearly every day since then (even while I was out of the country). I've found that it helps me because I'm more easily able to access a mantra or positive phrase to flip my script when things get stressful.

With my newly-regained interest in meditation, I thought it would be great to create a podcast that would help others learn more about the benefits of regular meditation. And, so my latest podcast is my conversation with Stacey Shipman, creator of the audio CD Let it Flow: Short Guided Meditations and author of Experience Less Stress, More Success: Networking for Business. It was great to chat with Stacey again because she really makes it easy for people to learn how to relieve their stress and boost their personal confidence.

In the podcast, Stacey and I talk about the different types of meditation, and how easy it can be to begin meditating using the type you most enjoy. We share tips to remove distractions (internal thoughts and external things) that can get in your way, and discuss how you can build meditation into your daily schedule to help you focus on your true priorities.

So, you know I'm a curious coach! After you've listened to the podcast, let me know what you think; and share your successes (or challenges) with meditation. Where is the best place, and when is best time for you to meditate? Feel free to share your comments here, or tweet me on Twitter. Until we next connect, Namaste!

It's Day 12 & I Feel Empowered

Today is Day 12, and I'm proud to have made it this far. To where? For what? It's Day 12 of the Chopra Center 21-Day Meditation Challenge. This has been a series of guided meditations (audio & video) led by davidji to help promote a daily meditation practice.

While I've recognized the benefits of meditation, I hadn't yet committed to a daily practice. As you know, I've committed to my daily affirmations and review of my vision board. My approach was more of a "just-in-time" meditation practice -- using it when I specifically wanted (or needed) to relax and regroup. Two things from the meditation experience have struck me personally, so far:

1. davidji's concept of "RPM" -- "rise, p**, meditate" which means you basically meditate FIRST before any other brain-related activity. I'll admit that I didn't start the challenge that way; but have been pretty diligent about doing so for the past 5 days or so. This morning I felt like I had to remind myself to start the meditation first -- only then did I realize that I'm still formulating it as a habit [also possibly because I hadn't followed the RPM concept last Monday??].
2. Today's focus for the meditation was Ego & Limiting Beliefs: neither of these concepts are new to me. What did strike me was the suggestion to "be kind to your ego." Perhaps it's because one of my 3 Words for 2010 is also kind. I think it was a good reminder to allow and accept all aspects of the self -- to witness/observe without judgment -- so that true transformation can be possible.

The additional guidance and breathing mantras around limiting beliefs also were very powerful for me today. The suggestion to "breathe in possibilities, and breathe out limitations," for example, really resonated and made me feel empowered. [yes, even the coach needs reinforcement and reminders!] I did feel lighter at the end of the meditation as if loads had been lifted from my shoulders.

That's all for now ... I may revisit this later as the meditation experience continues. Feel free to share your meditation experiences with me here or you can always tweet me on Twitter. Namaste!

Do You Power Nap?

Happy Monday! I was channel surfing yesterday (while resting & fighting a cold) and came across HealthCorner TV. They had an interesting segment on Power Napping. According to sleep experts, a 20-minute nap during the day can help boost your memory and productivity.

The discussion centered on the challenges of incorporating naps into the day in a typical corporate, business setting. What would your boss say if s/he found you power-napping under your desk on a yoga mat with a pillow?

I tried to think back to my previous jobs to ponder answers to the question ... very amusing! I had a dedicated office during one of my former positions (as a Director), which would have made the power-nap somewhat more feasible. In my legal/consulting roles, I'm sure the discussion would have somehow come back to billable hours!

Then, I began to consider my current entrepreneurial role, in which I have more flexibility in my schedule. And, yet, I typically only nap during the day if I'm feeling ill. For those of you who work in home-based offices, do you take advantage of your setting to power-nap?

I have been trying to incorporate meditation into my day more regularly, using the audio exercises from our Stress Management CD as well as the Brain Fitness program. Yet, I'm more likely to do so towards the end of the day, as opposed to using it as a refresher during the day. Perhaps I'll consider doing it during my "lunch break" as suggested in the segment. What do you think?

Can You Really Unplug?

With today's much-anticipated release of the iPhone, I’m left to wonder: do we really need another communication device that helps us talk while we surf the Internet, listen to music, email our boss, and download the latest crazy video from YouTube? You all know I’m the queen of multi-tasking; but have we gone a bit over the top?

It’s so easy to get information and stay connected these days. As an entrepreneur, I recognize how important it is to stay in touch – with clients, colleagues, as well as friends and family. As a stress management coach, however, I often wonder how our wireless tools truly impact our ability to manage and reduce our stress. Do we really need to be reachable anytime, anywhere?

How often do you spend during the day without any communication devices? Could you make it through one day device-free? I’m talking about no phone, no mP3 player, no laptop, no TV, no PDA, no computer. Maybe it’s not a practical suggestion; but I invite you to take me up on my challenge for as long as you could stand it.

What would you do with all that silence? How about quieting your mind? It’s a quick stress-reducing exercise. Want to learn how? When you can, find a quiet space and then:

1. Close your eyes and slowly relax your limbs to let go of the tension in your muscles.
2. Slowly breathe in and out to the count of four.
3. As you breathe slowly and relax your limbs, focus on a word such as calm, sky, ocean or peace.
4. Concentrate your mental energy on your word as you continue deep breathing. If other thoughts come to mind, let them pass through. Refocus on your word and continue to breathe and relax.

When you’re ready, slowly open your eyes. You should feel refreshed and relaxed!