Here’s the latest edition of Pause in video form. Enjoy!
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Pause Video – Saying Yes
January 7, 2010
Another Take On Yes
January 6, 2010
Some times great minds think alike! No sooner had I posted my recent e-zine on ‘Saying Yes’ than I received a link to Kim Duke’s blog posting on exactly the same topic. Kim is an Edmonton based sales and marketing expert known as the Sales Diva – who incidentally grew up in the next town down the highway from my own hometown just east of Saskatoon.
Thought you might enjoy checking out another take on saying yes to life. Here’s the link: Saying Yes By Kim Duke
PAUSE – 10.01 – Saying Yes
January 6, 2010
REFLECTION: One of my vacation projects involved sifting through the digital photos from our 2009 adventures. I usually pull a few pics and create a ‘Year In Photos’ holiday message for friends and family. This year, I went one step further and created a digital photo album that is about to be printed as a hard cover book. Although digital images and slide shows are fine, there’s something appealing about leafing through an album you can hold in your hands. Bless Apple’s iPhoto software for making this so easy and inexpensive.
What I discovered as I flipped my way through the photo highlights of the year is that they all shared one thing in common: a ‘Yes’ response to the possibilities. (more…)
Ethan Does Christmas 2009 – Video
December 30, 2009
Ethan Does Christmas 2009 – featuring a chat with Santa, a whole lot of unstuffing and unwrapping, boy toys (Spiderman, cars & remote controls), food, of course, and (Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus)…a good loud set of drums!
Video – Your Year In Review (Pause 9.44)
December 21, 2009
Here’s the latest Pause e-zine in video format. Enjoy!
PAUSE – 9.44 – Your Year In Review
December 17, 2009
REFLECTION:
December can be an exciting time of the year, if you are able to see past the overwhelming pressure of holiday preparations, and find that celebratory, appreciative place of mind.
There’s something satisfying about turning that final page on the wall hung calendar. Another 12 months behind us. Another year lived, complete with unexpected twists and turns.
It’s the time of year when journalists feel compelled to look back at the year in review, creating top 10 lists of everything you can imagine – people, events, disasters, and delights. Christmas greetings and letters often take the same form – a year in the life of Family Smith.
There’s an opportunity here for each one of us to cast a glance over 2009 and the kind of year it has been for us.
ACTION:
I invite you to carve out a quiet moment sometime in the next couple of weeks. Pour your favorite beverage. Grab a pen and paper.
Scratch this title at the top of the page: “My 2009 – A Positive Review”. Think back over the experiences of the year. Generate a list that includes: good things, delights, challenges met, experiences enjoyed, and memories treasured from the last 12 months.
If you like, do the same for the families, teams, and organizations of which you are a part. (By the way, one of the items on my list is all the encouraging messages I’ve received from you – my Pause readers. I’m grateful for your generosity in sharing your reactions, ideas and experiences.)
As you jot things down on your list, you may be tempted to create another list that features: unfulfilled intentions, discarded goals, missed opportunities, sorry disappointments, and lingering regrets. Resist the temptation. Leave the negatives for another time.
Simply enjoy the positives of 2009, and invite those you spend time with over the holidays to do the same. Life is way too short to ignore the ups and be preoccupied by the downs.
PS – If you are in a sharing mood, I’d love to hear a sampling of positives from your Year In Review. I’ll gladly compile a list to share with other Pause readers. It would be a great boost to jumpstart the new year.
_________________________
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
“Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.” – Hal Borland
_________________________
RESOURCE OF THE WEEK:
Next year, 2010, will begin the tenth year of Pause messages. I plan to continue the messages in writing, but I’ve also been experimenting with other forms of delivery – namely video.
If you’re interested in taking a peak at my first foray into the world of You Tube, you’ll find last week’s message, Shifting Into Neutral, at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_hG0B341Tw
Take a look. Let me know what you like or don’t like about the approach and production values, how you could see yourself using the videos, and whether you would like more video versions in the new year.
_________________________
READERS WRITE:
The final words of the year belong to reader, JK, who writes in response to the Pause message, Defining Moments:
Nietzsche wrote: “What does not destroy me makes me stronger.” How true of all of life’s woes, or as you put it so succinctly – defining moments.
If you can put yourself back on the horse after being thrown, pull yourself up after a series of calamities such as the death of a loved one, or loss of a job, you find that somehow you emerge stronger. And, as a bonus, you can handle the next setback with more equanimity. You are revitalized with a new sense of self. You also learn that scars can be something to be proud of because they show that you took a chance and you came through.
Not only loss and failure define us. Think of all the moments when you were at one with yourself and the world. These moments also shape and mold us. As we enter this festive season, take a moment to reflect on all the events that have changed us, defined who we are and where we are going.
REFLECTION: December can be an exciting time of the year, if you are able to see past the overwhelming pressure of holiday preparations, and find that celebratory, appreciative place of mind.
There’s something satisfying about turning that final page on the wall hung calendar. Another 12 months behind us. Another year lived, complete with unexpected twists and turns.
It’s the time of year when journalists feel compelled to look back at the year in review, creating top 10 lists of everything you can imagine – people, events, disasters, and delights. Christmas greetings and letters often take the same form – a year in the life of Family Smith.
There’s an opportunity here for each one of us to cast a glance over 2009 and the kind of year it has been for us. (more…)
PAUSE – 9.43 – Shifting Into Neutral
December 9, 2009
Greetings from Calgary where the snow is deep and the toes are cold. I’m enjoying rubbing shoulders with a couple of hundred of my colleagues at the annual convention of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. Hope your week is going well, too.
REFLECTION:
Recently, I’ve been dipping into Marshall Goldsmith’s book, ‘What Got You Here Won’t Get You There’. Goldsmith is an executive coach who has helped many high performing individuals ditch some of the bad habits that are holding them back from even more stellar success.
Greetings from Calgary where the snow is deep and the toes are cold. I’m enjoying rubbing shoulders with a couple of hundred of my colleagues at the annual convention of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. Hope your week is going well, too.
REFLECTION: Recently, I’ve been dipping into Marshall Goldsmith’s book, ‘What Got You Here Won’t Get You There’. Goldsmith is an executive coach who has helped many high performing individuals ditch some of the bad habits that are holding them back from even more stellar success.
Goldsmith points out that many of our development efforts are focused on teaching people what to do – and that not nearly enough time is spent showing people what they need to stop doing. He describes the latter approach as shifting from ‘negative’ into ‘neutral’. (more…)
PAUSE – 9.42 – Defining Moments
December 2, 2009
REFLECTION:
This is a bit of a diversion from the usual Pause fare, but football is on my mind this week. If you are from Saskatchewan or follow the CFL (Canadian Football League), you’ll know that our beloved Roughriders competed in the Grey Cup final on Sunday.
The Riders played well against a formidable opponent – at least until the final moments of the game. With seconds to go and the lead in hand, a Saskatchewan error (one too many players on the field) gave the Alouettes a second chance after a botched field goal. This time the Montreal kick was successful and the Alouettes clinched the title by just one point.
With the flick of a flag and the tip of a toe, Roughrider players, coaches and fans took a nose dive from elation to deflation. I’m sure the players are struggling mightily to come to terms with the error and its impact. Yes, it’s only a game – but these guys put their hearts and souls into it.
Now, I’m neither a professional sports woman nor even an amateur, for that matter. However, the Rider schmozola reminds me of a memorable football moment of my own. At the tender age of 13, in a pick up game with friends, I went long for a pass. Losing my footing, I face-planted in the gravel, planing the skin from my chin before coming to a grinding halt in the middle of the yard. Painful and embarrassing are how I would describe the experience – even though there were no fans on the sidelines to witness my fall.
What made the situation more challenging, was that my accident occurred only a few days before the Frosh Dance – my first big high school social debut. To go, or not to go? That was the question. I ended up attending the dance, sporting a giant scab the size of a 50 cent piece smack dab in the middle of my chin.
ACTION:
In retrospect, it was a defining moment. I have observed, over the years, that it’s not our errors and mishaps that define us; it’s how we handle the aftermath and the fallout that make the difference.
A self-conscious teenager could have caved to vanity and ego, but in deciding to attend the dance, somehow found the strength to declare that appearances only matter when you let them.
I hope the Rider players and coaches find a way to tap into their courage in the aftermath of one of the most challenging experiences of their professional careers.
And when you find yourself skidding on the rough patches in your life and work, I hope that you, too, find a way (in the words of that old 1930’s classic) to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again.
_________________________
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
“You’re stronger than you think.” – Patricia Morgan
_________________________
RESOURCE OF THE WEEK:
For inspiration and strategies for increasing resilience, check out Patricia Morgan’s latest book, “From Woe To Wow: How Resilient Women Succeed At Work.” You can preview the highlights of Patricia’s message at: http://www.slideshare.net/PatriciaMorgan/woe-to-wow
_________________________
READERS WRITE:
In response to last week’s message, Shifting Perspective, Pause reader BT writes: “I’ve been a Pause subscriber for some time now and try to take a life hint from each article. This one on perspective was particularly interesting because I live my life that way as much as my busy schedule allows. I use different routes to travel to the same destination, and try to observe something different each time, participating in a totally foreign activity or reading on a subject that is likewise. I try to keep the mind alive and awake to every sense and opportunity and your articles lead me that way. Thank you for the ideas.”
REFLECTION: This is a bit of a diversion from the usual Pause fare, but football is on my mind this week. If you are from Saskatchewan or follow the CFL (Canadian Football League), you’ll know that our beloved Roughriders competed in the Grey Cup final on Sunday.
The Riders played well against a formidable opponent – at least until the final moments of the game. With seconds to go and the lead in hand, a Saskatchewan error (one too many players on the field) gave the Alouettes a second chance after a botched field goal. This time the Montreal kick was successful and the Alouettes clinched the title by just one point.
With the flick of a flag and the tip of a toe, Roughrider players, coaches and fans took a nose dive from elation to deflation. I’m sure the players are struggling mightily to come to terms with the error and its impact. Yes, it’s only a game – but these guys put their hearts and souls into it. (more…)
Flying High
November 24, 2009
High adventure 
in the Sonoran
Desert. Flying out of Marana
airfield northwest of Tucson.
Before – in anticipation.
After – in gratitude.
Thanks to pilot, Bill, for a
delightful, memorable ride.
Remembering Vimy Ridge
November 9, 2009
Standing at attention with twenty young Canadians on a French hillside one misty day in June, 1985.
It’s a moment I’ll never forget!
As one of two chaperones for an International Travel Award, I had been travelling for two weeks in the company of twenty of the brightest young Canadians you’d ever want to meet.
These 4-H members were the pick of the crop – two from each province in Canada.
En route from Paris to Calais to catch the ferry across the English Channel, the group persuaded the bus driver to detour past Vimy Ridge. Stepping from the bus, we were met by low clouds and drizzling skies. (more…)
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Patricia Katz
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