Year Compass Tool

One of my favorite tools: Check This Out!

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One of my favorite tools: Check This Out!

Happy 2023!

Today I want to share with you one of my favorite end of year / beginning a new year tools.

Have you heard of the Year Compass?

It’s been around since 2012…in fact more than a million people around the world have used it since then.

And get this…it’s totally FR*EE.

It’s a digital booklet that helps you reflect on the past year AND plan the next one…intentionally.

It’s got some really great questions and exercises that help to uncover your patterns so you can design the ideal year for yourself.

As you set aside some time to do this, you’ll:

learn from past mis-steps,

celebrate your victories big & small,

and set some great goals for a fulfilling year to come!

All you need is a few quiet hours and this great little booklet….you’re welcome!

Get it here: https://yearcompass.com/#download


I’d love to hear from you – have you used this Year Compass before? If this is your first time going through it -what did you love most about it? What was the most helpful for you?

Here’s to a great New Year –
Shine On,
Carolyn

PS: Today is Day 3 (of 26) for me, on the Green Smoothie Girl Detox. The main group begins on Tues Jan 10th, so you can still jump in if you’re feeling like doing something “heroic” – haha! Seriously, it really does give you such a feeling of accomplishment. This is my 8th time, so I know what to expect, but I’m feeling accomplished just after a few days -simply by stepping up to do something that takes some commitment.

(The early bird pricing is over, but you can still join, and you can start your Day 1 anytime that fits your schedule). You can go here to learn more:
https://bd272.isrefer.com/go/detoxsecrets/Carolyn33/

SimplyAlign Certification Track Training
Merry Christmas

Are You Finishing 2022 Rested or Finishing Strong?

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Are You Finishing 2022 Rested or Finishing Strong?

We often hear about “finishing the year strong” – I don’t know about you, but this year I just want to finish the year feeling rested, clear and peaceful.

My goal is to step into the New Year RESTED.

Because rested IS strong, right?

Merry Christmas

The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is my favorite week of the year (Yep, I like it even more than my birth-week!). Maybe it’s your fave too? Because usually nothing is scheduled that week. It’s like getting a bonus week where I can rest, play, review my past year and plan for the next one.

One thing I do during that “bonus” week is – Go through the months in my past calendar.
I review each week and each activity.

I ask myself these three questions:

  • Did this activity energize me?
  • Did this activity drain me?
  • Did this activity help me align with my values & goals?

It’s super helpful to see where I spent time, and how that helped or hindered me, which is useful in planning for the upcoming year.

If you’ve never done this, I highly recommend it. Keep in mind, you need to set aside a few hours for it. And when you do this and then schedule for 2023, -to the extent you can- schedule in more of what energizes you and less of what drains you.

TIP: These three questions also make an excellent evening journal prompt. It helps you realize real quick where you’re spending time that isn’t making you feel good or moving you forward so you can adjust accordingly.

During December’s last week, in addition to reviewing, visioning, and planning I also just love the downtime. This poem by Edgar Guest makes me smile, I included it because I thought you might like it too.

(You may have heard of Edgar A Guest (1881-1959), he became known as ‘the people’s poet’ because his poems often had an inspirational and optimistic view of everyday life).


The happiest nights I ever know
Are those when I have no place to go,

And the missus says when the day is through:
“Tonight we haven’t a thing to do.”

Oh, the joy of it, and the peace untold
Or sitting ‘round in my slippers old,

With my pipe and book in my easy chair,
Knowing I needn’t go anywhere.

Needn’t hurry my evening meal
Nor force the smiles that I do not feel,

But can grab a book from a nearby shelf,
And drop all sham and be myself.

Oh, the charm of it and the comfort rare;
Nothing on earth with it can compare;

And I’m sorry for him who doesn’t know
The joy of having no place to go.

Edgar A. Guest


As you enjoy Christmas this weekend do your best to prioritize some rest for yourself. And block out time on your next week’s schedule for reviewing, dreaming, planning, and just “sitting ‘round in your slippers old”.


Much Love,
Carolyn

SimplyAlign Certification Track Training
Elephants

Can You Empower Like An Elephant?

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Can You Empower Like An Elephant?

Wow, what a fun few days I had teaching a Refresher Course and the Align Your Shine event last week!

SimplyAlign Refresher 2022

One of the things I talked about during the Align Your Shine event was: empowered people empower people.

SimplyAlign Refresher Align - Nov. 2022

I shared the example of female elephants. Nature photographers, scientists, and naturalists have noticed an amazing social dynamic called an ‘elephant circle’. These female elephants are fierce protectors of each other.

Did you know that when a mama elephant gives birth the others gather around to celebrate by making trumpeting sounds, and also protect her and the baby by circling around them?

Elephants
© David Yarrow Photography

We all know that when we give birth to new ideas, new situations in our lives, new creations, etc. it’s so much easier to do when we feel surrounded and protected by other women, and people in our lives that we know truly have our backs. To have someone help celebrate or protect our dreams is such an empowering experience.

So…how can we do the same for other women?

In what ways are you being a fierce protector for your friends, family, and even acquaintances?

Who do you know that is ‘birthing’ something new and could use a few words of celebration, or support?

Who can you gather ‘round this week to help feel special and supported?

Thanksgiving is coming up, so think about those in your own family that you may encounter this week. Who can you encourage with your words, your actions, or maybe just a sincere hug?

Photographer David Yarrow has captivated the world with this beautifully powerful photo of an elephant circle.

Shine On,
Carolyn

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subconscious

Let’s talk about your subconscious…

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Let’s talk about your subconscious…

You may not always be aware of it, but your subconscious mind is always working in the background. It’s sometimes called the unconscious mind, and it holds all of the stored information of everything you have ever experienced.

The subconscious mind keeps your body temperature at 98.6 degrees, regulates your breathing, and keeps your heart beat steady. It also keeps you thinking and acting in a manner consistent with what you have done and said in the past.

Because of that it influences how you react to things, negatively or positively. It’s the hidden but powerful part that affects things like why you may be fearful, resistant, disappointed in certain situations. And on a good note, why you are motivated, confident, successful, cheerful, hopeful in other situations.

Studies in the field of psychology on how the brain works indicate that the experiences we have shape the way we think and act, especially experiences in our early childhood. Although you don’t remember most of your life data, the unconscious data in your head influences 90 to 95% of your behavior.

A monk was walking down a quiet road when suddenly he heard the sound of a galloping horse.

He turned and saw a man riding a horse in the distance moving swiftly towards him.

When the man on the horse got closer, he slowed down just a bit and the monk asked,

“Where are you going?” To which the man replied, “I don’t know, ask the horse,” and rides away.

The horse in this story represents your subconscious mind running on past conditioning. And sometimes it seems we don’t know where that past programming will take us. If past experiences, conversations, perceptions are in your subconscious mind, running like like this horse, how do we change it when necessary?

Is there a way to update your “horse” with new, positive instructions?

Luckily yes! Because your subconscious doesn’t think or reason independently, it simply obeys the commands it receives from your conscious mind, your conscious thoughts and actions can reprogram it.

You can consciously choose to feed your subconscious with positive, empowering thoughts and here are some ways to do that:

1. Catch your inner critic in the act of saying something negative and ‘flip’ it to the opposite (but something believable)

2. If you want it fast and thorough, SimplyAlign can clean up and re-program thoughts lightening fast

3. Use AFFIRMATIONS to state what you want, who you want to be, and how you want to feel.

And…because I want to help with your affirmations I’m gifting you my ebook: 239 Affirmations to Lighten Your Life !

It’s a collection of my most used and loved affirmations that pack a punch (in a good way!). I hope you love it.

Go here: https://simplyalign.com/239-affirmations to download your copy.

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daughter

What my daughter taught me

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What my daughter taught me

Several years ago my daughter who was in her early 30’s at the time said to me,

“I’ve realized something that has made my life so much easier.”

She went on to say,

“It seems everyone’s life sucks about 30% of the time, and the other 70% is good. So when going through the 30% you just need to know that’s totally normal and you’ll get through it. And then make an effort to really enjoy and be grateful for the 70% smooth, happy times.”

daughter

Wow, I think that’s a great insight…and helpful.

In the years since then, I’ve heard other people teach that life sucks 50% of the time and is great 50% of the time.

As and optimist and a possibilitarian, that not-good-50% just seems WAY to high of a percentage for me.

In fact, for me, that seems a little depressing to think that HALF the time I spend here on planet earth will be unpleasant.

I much prefer my daughter’s pattern of 30/70. Because although life is great “above the line” (see my blog post about that here), it’s that 30% below the line that helps us really APPRECIATE the satisfying 70%.

I would take that one step further and say –

Even within your 30% difficult times, I bet you could find So Very Many other things in your life to be grateful for, which helps to make those ‘sucky times’ bearable.

And even in the 70% good times, there are always little bumps in those roads too.

I’m sharing this insight with you today because…

If you are going through a challenging chapter of your life, just remember, it’s temporary.

Keeping an ongoing gratitude journal (in your brain or on paper) will help you see solutions, appreciate the soul stretching, and give you a more hopeful perspective.

And, if you are living-in-the-70%-flow right now (or at least no major problems at the moment) be grateful for that. Again – it’s gratitude that will increase your awareness and appreciation during good times, and in that space you can inspire and lift others.

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Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results

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Let’s talk about habits…Atomic Habits.

Atomic Habits by James Clear is a phenomenal book that came out in 2018.

Have you read it?

I’m sorry to say, I put off reading it.

Even though I kept seeing and hearing comments about how great it is, I still put it off.

Even though I purchased it, and it was on my audible app, I still put it off.

WHY?
I thought it would be like so many other similar books I’ve read:
The Slight Edge
The Compound Effect
The Power of Habit
High Performance Habits

Also great books, so I didn’t feel any hurry to read one more book in that genre for awhile.

But then…last month I did it. I began listening to Atomic Habits and couldn’t stop. In fact, I ordered the physical book, because I knew I wanted to highlight and underline so much of what I was hearing!

You may know, along with my SimplyAlign energy work, I’ve also been a Certified High Performance Coach for the past three years. I love helping my coaching clients set up habits that are doable and will help them become who they wish to become. To get clarity, I’ll often have them write a list of: “I’m the type of person who __________.”

Going along with that, author James Clear says, “The most effective way to change your habits is to focus not on what you want to achieve, but on who you wish to become.” He says identity, or the type of person we think we are, is what sustains a habit, good or bad. It’s who we think we are -the best version of ourselves that we’re stepping into.

He teaches that the four laws of behavior change are a simple set of rules we can use to build better habits and include: 1) make it obvious, 2) make it attractive, 3) make it easy, 4) make it satisfying.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:
“You do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems.”
“Your identity emerges out of your habits.”
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.”
“You don’t have to be the victim of your environment. You can also be the architect of it.”
“With outcome-based habits, the focus is on what you want to achieve. With identity-based habits, the focus is on who you wish to become.”
“Incentives can start a habit, identity sustains a habit.”

Needless to say, I highly recommend Atomic Habits. If you haven’t read it yet, I hope you do, I think you’ll love it. And if you’ve already read it, I hope it helped you create some new habits as it did for me.

Much Love,
Carolyn


PS: In a few weeks my new Coaching Website will launch. If private or group coaching with me is something you may be interested in, then stay tuned, more information is coming soon!

Laughter

Summer Goals: More Laughter!

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Happy June! It’s summer here in the big city, and the humidity has begun!
Dean the dream and I had company most of the month of May and it’s been such a treat. Touring the monuments and museums here in DC never gets old for me, I love it!

I hope you have some fun summer plans, and I’m here to add one more thing to your summer agenda.

But don’t worry, it’s fun and free! I’m talking about making a conscious effort to laugh more.

We all love to laugh, right?

But every so often, I realize I haven’t had a big, fat, tear-streaming belly laugh for FAR TOO LONG.

Have you ever done that? Realized it’s been awhile since your last hearty belly laugh?

Laughter is a natural part of life. Infants begin smiling during the first weeks of life and laugh out loud within months of being born.
Sometimes we as adults get so busy with the ‘important’ things on our to do list, we neglect the LEVITY that is so much needed in our lives.
Laughter is vital because it triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals.

One minute of laughing burns the same number of calories as 6-10 minutes on a treadmill.

And did you know, a good, hearty laugh relieves physical tension, and leaves your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes after?

Yep, it’s true. So I say…hey, it’s summer -what a great time to add more laughter to our lives!

Laughter

So how do we go about doing that?

Here are some ways to start:

  • Bring humor into conversations. I love to ask people, “What’s the funniest thing that happened to you today? This week? In your life?” I’ve heard some really hilarious stories just by asking this. Try it, ask someone that question today.
  • Spend time with fun, playful people. These are people who laugh easily–both at themselves and at life’s absurdities–and who routinely find the humor in everyday events. Their playful point of view and laughter are contagious.
  • Smile. Smiling is the beginning of laughter and like laughter, it’s contagious. A fun way to remember to smile more is to set up for yourself ‘smiling cues’ during your day. For example,
    • smile as you step out of the shower
    • smile every time you walk past a mirror
    • smile every time you pour yourself a glass of water (hopefully that’s a lot)
  • Count your blessings. Literally make a list. The simple act of considering the good things in your life will distance you from negative thoughts that are a barrier to humor and laughter. When in a state of sadness, we have further to travel to get to humor and laughter.
  • Watch your favorite funny movie or search YouTube for Funny videos or Dry Bar comedy. And don’t forget funny cat videos, they’re great for a quick pick-me-up! (oh gosh, does that mean I’m an old cat lady now?)

Anyone can join the laughter movement. All it takes is a willingness to see the humor in things. And of course I’m talking about good, wholesome humor, not sarcasm that is funny to only some and hurtful to others. There’s more than enough negativity in our world. But laughter is contagious and something we want to catch and spread!

So this summer, keep it front of mind to look for opportunities to find humor instead of annoyance in daily situations because humor lightens your burdens, inspires hope, connects you to others, and even keeps you grounded, focused, and alert.

Shine on my friend,
Carolyn

Green Drink Smoothie

Drink Up for St. Paddy’s Day! [Green Drink that is]

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Top O’the Mornin’ To Ya!

So last week I was sucking down a Green Smoothie (as usual) while on my mastermind Zoom call.

When one of the gals on the call sends me a private chat message that asks:

What’s in your Green Drink?

Since I was trying to be attentive to the class, I just quickly replied: Spinach & Banana

Truth is…some days it’s much more than that, and some days that all I want or need in in it.

But since I often get asked that question…and, since it’s St. Patrick’s Day (oh, I love my Irish ancestors!)

I think a Green Smoothie is the perfect way to Celebrate this holiday…

or any holiday…

or any day at all.

For many years I’ve been drinking a green smoothie every day. Have there been times I got lazy and fell off the wagon for a month or so? Yes, – and those times I just never feel as good, vibrant, or mentally clear. I can definitely feel a difference in my overall well-being from this one powerful daily habit!

Green Smoothies get more greens in your body than you’d normally eat if you were chewing all that food. So all that goodness takes up a lot of room in your gut and provides fiber, nutrients, vitamins, and yes, protein.

Adding in all the right ingredients, green smoothies can help with weight loss, increased energy, mental clarity, better digestion, improved immunity, improved skin, less cravings, and have been found to reduce many common health complaints.

A few years ago, one of my friends thought it was a great idea to start having a daily green smoothie, so she jumped right in. And after a week, she called me saying, “I don’t know how you do this. I’m literally standing over the sink gagging every morning to get these smoothies down.”

After asking her a few questions I knew exactly what the problem was. Too bitter, too thick, too chunky – too much pressure to swig it down and not waste it! Ugh, that’s miserable…drinking a daily smoothie should be joyful!

So here are my 8 helpful tips I shared with her, and maybe something here is helpful for you too:

1. It shouldn’t be chunky! Ugh. Keep blending, a bit longer!

If you have a great blender – Blendtec, VitaMix (I have years of experience with both) you still need to whip it and whip it good (oh man, I just had a flashback of a dance team performance from my college days).

My point is, even with the expensive blenders, you still need to let it blend long enough to get the chunks out.

And you don’t have to have one of those expensive blenders. We just recently got a little Ninja ($69.) and we love it! Oh my gosh, it blends really well and is fast and easy! It’s what I use every day now.

2. Unless you love the taste of bitter greens, don’t use too much of swiss chard, arugula, chicory, kale etc. Yes, those are all super healthy for you, so FOR SURE use some. But I’ve found I won’t make and drink smoothies consistently if I don’t love the taste.

I use a lot of spinach (it’s mildest), then add in a little of other greens – depending on what I have: beet greens, chard, any left over greens – throw them in…just not so much that the bitterness overpowers the taste.

3. Keep your greens in the freezer. That way you’re not wasting money on greens that have gone bad and you end up throwing out. And it’s so easy to grab handfuls of the frozen greens to put in your blender. And no, you can’t use those in a salad, but the frozen greens are handy-dandy to add to soups, pasta dishes, etc.

4. Smoothies are great with plain WATER. Yep, that’s all I ever use for my liquid. I know many people use nut milk or juice but for me that’s not necessary, I don’t want to add extra, unneeded calories by adding those. And…be sure to add enough water so it’s not super thick -ugh that was my friend’s problem, and yes that’s hard to drink down. I like my smoothies on the thinner side, do what you prefer but don’t be afraid to water it down a bit.
AND…speaking of liquid, I usually squeeze 1/2 lemon in mine as well.

5. A little squirt of liquid Stevia can make a big difference, that’s what I use, but if you don’t want to use Stevia, go to tip #6….

6. A great natural sweetener is dates. Ahh, my love for dates knows no bounds! If you like a little sweetness in your green smoothies throw in a date or two (make sure the pit is out!). Deglet dates are firmer than Medjool dates, so if you use deglet just be prepared for some little chewy nuggets at the bottom of your glass – it’s a delightful treat when you get to the end of your smoothie.

Pro tip: I keep some medjool dates in my fridge…if I ever just need “a little something sweet”, one of those is the perfect snack. It’s like eating a little piece of caramel *wink*

7. Frozen fruit adds flavor, variety, nutrition, AND a bonus I’ve found is, those frozen berries, etc. spinning around in the blender, really help to smooth out any remaining chunks of green, so I usually throw a little in. Personally, I’m not one who needs/likes lots of other frozen fruits in my smoothie because I’d rather eat fruits in their whole form during the day, instead of all blended up in my smoothie where I can’t really taste their deliciousness anyway. But yes, I usually do add 1/2-1 cup of frozen fruit. (Except pineapple – it can have a “stringy-ness” that’s weird for me.)

A few ice cubes kicking around in your blender will do the same – help break up the green pieces.

8. It’s ok to make earlier and keep in fridge until you’re ready to drink it. I’ve heard people say you must blend and drink your smoothie as FRESH as possible. Umm…ok, but that makes it tough for anyone who has…you know…a life.

Dean the Dream makes a big blender full every evening, and puts in his glass jars in the fridge to take to work with him the following day. If I know my morning will be busy I also make mine the night before. I personally don’t think they taste as great longer than 36 hours after blending, but if I know I’ll be drinking it within a day, I don’t mind making it ahead.

(And we are both a little picky about exactly how we like our own smoothies…so we each like to make our own separately. And that’s how we’ve stayed married 40+ years, hahaha!)

9. BONUS tip: Anytime you have fruits/veggies that are still good, but not for long, put them in the freezer now and use them in an upcoming smoothie. This is a great way to use up those grapes, bananas, celery, spring mix…anything! Anything that, if not eaten, you’d end up throwing out in another day or two, unless…you save it by putting in a baggie in the freezer. Those items will add variety to your smoothies and make you feel warm and fuzzy because you didn’t waste it that food, you still got good use out of it. You’re welcome!

These are some things that I’ve discovered over the years work for me, but a lot is personal preference -you do you!

I’d love to hear what smoothies tips you’ve discovered and love. Really…let me know! Also, I’ve had a few requests to shoot a video showing how I quickly make my smoothies, so if you want me to do that, reply to this email and let me know.

And really, make sure you eat (or drink) something HEALTHY and GREEN today!

As the Irish saying goes….May the wind always be at your back,

Much Love,

She believed she could so she did

She believed she could so she did

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The statement on my t-shirt, “She believed she could so she did” is one of my favorites.

In 2001 at home with a newborn, I had the idea that if I could put my Tai Chi classes on video, I could still help people, while staying home with my kids, and also bring in a little income for my family.

I wanted to do something that could help others, give me the time at home to be mama, and do something that I really loved.

So…I did it! I created and filmed Tai Chi Flow – my video/dvd series.

I was often asked, “How did you know how to do that?”

The answer is…I didn’t know. But I believed I could, so I did.

A few years later, I began teaching my energy healing method, SimplyAlign (back then it was called Calyco Healing). I’d learned and created my own style of doing effective energy work five years prior to filming the videos, and my clientele was quickly growing.

And after many requests by clients to train them how to do it, I created a teachable program.

At that time most people didn’t know what energy healing was. There were very few people teaching about it at that time. I wasn’t sure how to do this as a mostly online business because I hadn’t seen it modeled. I had no examples to follow.

But again…I believed I could so I did.

Now, this makes a lovely story 20 years later. BUT…

like every road in life there were bumps and stresses, and a lot of clearing energy for myself to get past the inevitable insecurities that come up while building your own business -phew!

My point is…

You don’t have to be a genius

You don’t have to have all the answers

You can’t know all the outcomes of your efforts ahead of time

You don’t have to know for sure your idea will work

You just need to believe in yourself,
believe in your idea,
and take inspired action.

If you do that, I believe YOU can and I believe YOU will.

So…

What’s your next idea?
(taking a course, running a marathon, starting a biz, baking a soufflé,?)

What’s your next best small step?
(write it down, make it real – yep go ahead, right now, let’s do this!)

And remember, “Whatever Your Mind Can Conceive and Believe, It Can Achieve.” ~Napoleon Hill

 

 

SimplyAlign Refresher

Upcoming: The SimplyAlign Refresher – November 4-5th!

To see more details and register, click here.

Let the Future Change Your Past

Let your future change your past

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A few nights ago my family went to out outdoor musical – The Count of Monte Cristo.

I loved it, the outdoor amphitheater, the voices, the costumes, the music -all. so. good.

There was one line in a song that jumped out to me and is still with me:

I will let the future change the past

For anyone with any regrets about the past (big or small), this is a very inspiring thought.

We always have the power to let go of our past, and move forward with hope.

Letting go isn’t giving up.

Letting go means knowing that there is something greater ahead of you than what lies behind you.

And the more we ruminate in the stories of our past, the more of the present moment we lose.

Find the gift of the lessons in your past and move on, keep the wisdom, but not the emotional pain.

Use the wisdom from your past experiences as fuel for your desired future.

Leave who you were ~ Love who you are ~ Look forward to who you are becoming

If you need help letting go, SimplyAlign is a fantastic tool for releasing emotions that keep us stuck in the past, and for increasing confidence as you move forward into new goals for your future.

If weekly energy tune-ups feel like something you need in your life right now, doors open for my popular Move Up Mondays program very soon! Watch for next week’s emails. I also have openings for single phone sessions on my schedule here.