Back to school! Summer is coming to a close – can you believe it? I’ve always loved this time of year. I remember as a kid how excited I was to pick out my pens and notebooks and folders . . . everything color coordinated perfectly. (I still can’t bring my credit cards into an office supply store!) And there was a sense of new beginnings in the air. Even as a little girl I could feel it.

Well, that sense of new beginnings is in the air again! What an exciting time in the world of AQ! Next month I am launching a brand new r&d team as a creative environment for my next book, tentatively titled The Power of Choice.

Several of you were part of the first r&d team when I wrote Coaching Into Greatness. Back then, in the early days, we called it the LIG team (living into greatness). Imagine – AQ hadn’t even been thought of when we first began!

For those of you who are new to this concept, r&d teams are used in a variety of ways to create and beta test new programs and material. It is my most powerful creative tool, hands down.

Are you an early adopter?

Do you thrive on compelling conversations?

Do you want to be a part of the next wave as AQ is introduced to a bigger market?

Then the AQ r&d team is for you!

Here is the info on our first call:

Exploring the Power of Choice
September 17th, 7 pm Eastern

Bridgeline: 712-421-8139 access code 5769#

** Please RSVP by sending an email to info@coachingintogreatness.com with r&d call in the subject line.

Be among the first to join Kim as she begins the creative process for the next AQ book. In this call, Kim will explore the elements that make up powerful choices: authenticity and surrender. What does it really mean to be authentic in our world today? Why does authenticity matter? What is the connection between abundance and authenticity? Discover how the AQ guiding principle “what is meant for you can’t be lost “ is a cornerstone for allowing life to unfold through you and how you can begin to put this into practice for yourself.

Posted by Kim George at 04:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I’ve often said that when your heart breaks, the world opens up to you.

Last month, I wrote about the loss of my dog, and the lessons learned from that experience. Although the experience was painful, I chose to write about it, and share with all of you, my extended family. What happened was amazing; so many of you responded with love and words of encouragement. Even more amazing, many of you told me how sharing my experience helped you to deal with something in your own life. I never imagined that such a wonderful response could happen. You all lit up my world, reminding me how very connected we are.

I began to reflect on one of the conditioned patterns in the AQ system – Vulnerability. For most people, especially in the business community, Vulnerability equals weakness, and should be avoided at all costs. In our AQ vocabulary, we know that Vulnerability is defined as possessing the strength to allow yourself to be seen as who you are in the world. The emphasis here is on strength. It takes great courage to show yourself to the world authentically, especially when times may be painful, uncertain, or scary. I took a risk in sharing the loss I experienced. I never expected what I received in return. What a gift!

When we step outside of ourselves and accept the challenge to let people see us as we really are, the world opens up to us.

Our hearts get a little bigger.

Our love lasts longer.

Our experiences become richer . . . and we live into our greatness, one human moment at a time.

Being who we are, after all, is truly a beautiful thing.

Thank you all for reminding me of that.

Posted by Kim George at 07:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

“Never say with grief, ‘he is no more’, but rather say with thankfulness ‘he was’.”

Alexander Pushkin

There’s nothing like experiencing the joys of life. But as we know, life has a way of handing us unexpected challenges, and sometimes, heartbreaking sadness. Two weeks ago, I had to put my 13 year old basset hound, Earl, to sleep. A huge mass was discovered in his stomach and there was no cure.

Facing this reality was devastating. My pets are like my children. This dog had been through so much with me, I couldn’t imagine a life without him. There’s a simpleness and a purity about being loved by a dog. Perhaps it’s that unconditional love. They never judge us the way we judge ourselves. They accept us, and love us, for who we are. We are always more than enough in their eyes.

I got to spend 3 days with Earl before letting him go and those days were at the same time achingly difficult and oddly comforting. We did all the favorite things and ate all the favorite foods (ribs, popcorn, pizza, and double cheeseburgers). We took lots of pictures, and watched the Red Sox together. Earl, of course, was a Josh Beckett fan like his mother. We went to the park, and Earl got to ride in his red flyer wagon for the last time. Most of all, we sat side by side and I would gently stroke his fur, talking to him in a quiet voice about all I loved about him and the years we shared together.

As difficult as it was to face the inevitable, I’m so grateful I had the extra time with him. In his last few days, Earl gave me an amazing gift – the gift of being fully, completely present. When my mind would start to wander and think about him being gone, I’d turn my attention back to appreciating and loving him right now.

Gratitude has a way of easing even the hardest of times.

The choice to be present, to meet the moment, regardless of our circumstances or condition, is the most powerful choice of all. When we choose to meet the now, we let go of our mind’s struggles about what could be and what has been and we choose to be who we are.

Celebrating life is about loving what is right now.

After you read this, I hope you will take a few moments to recognize the things you love most in your life – whether they are people, animals, or experiences. Then take the time to celebrate the blessing of that love.

Be present to it.

Really feel it.

Honor it.

Then communicate it, because love is meant to be shared.

This month’s Community call will explore what it means to Meet the Moment, and how we can more consistently make this choice to live the greatness of who we are. I hope you’ll join me.

Posted by Kim George at 05:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

"I have seen an angel in the stone and had to remove the excess rock to make her free!"

Michelangelo

In our work with AQ, we talk about the importance of letting go of becoming someone to embrace the greatness of who we already are. A simple concept, yes; however, putting this concept into practice is not always easy.

Why is it so challenging to love ourselves?

It’s easier to love ourselves when we feel like things are going our way and we’re getting what we “want”. But even then, even in the “easy” times, how many of us struggle with really loving who we are? And how can we really love anything or anyone else fully until we begin to love ourselves?

I’ve been reflecting lately on this topic of what it takes to fall in love with yourself. If true abundance is exercising the freedom to be who we are, then being who we are is about loving who we are.

As life goes on, we get thicker and thicker layers of conditioning. We’re told what to believe and who to believe and how to believe and pretty soon we don’t even realize we’ve stopped believing the truth of who we are!

We’ve been trained by society to fall in love with all that is external.

Not thin enough? Buy this diet book.

Not smart enough? Take this class.

Not young enough? Apply the latest wrinkle cream. Oh, and don’t forget the Ab-Roller – the latest answer to those annoying love handles!

An abundant life is about allowing life to unfold through you, not because of you. It’s about peeling back the layers of who you’ve always thought you were, to reveal the inner knowing of who you’ve really always been.

AQ, then, is a process for falling in love all over again.

The result is a love that endures, that sustains, that reveals.

What will it take for you to fall in love with yourself? What are you waiting for?

Posted by Kim George at 05:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is my favorite time of year. The flowers are blooming, the trees are budding and the birds are singing. The world around us is literally bursting with life. There’s a sense of renewed energy. In the past month or so, I find myself in an amazing vortex of creative energy and joy. Like the natural world around me, I feel like I’m bursting with happiness. Anybody that’s been talking to me lately knows this.

I am happier than ever before.

I’m being more like myself than ever before.

What’s made the difference?

About a month ago, during a 1:1 coaching session, I found myself coining the phrase “meet the moment”. To meet the moment means to be fully present and open to what is coming to you, right here, right now. It also means being mindful of what is already on it’s way to you – “acting as if”.

When we are able to “meet the moment”, we allow the beauty of life to unfold through us, not because of us. We love what is and we look for the opportunity to learn and be and grow. This is especially true when the moment includes challenges, difficulties, unexpected happenings, and even pain.

“Meeting the moment” is about letting go of judgment and being fully alive in the honesty of who we are.

This is Courageous Abundance in action.

This is possibility.

This is living life out loud.

What does “meet the moment” mean to you?

Posted by Kim George at 06:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

“Abundance is an inside job.”

- Coaching Into Greatness: 4 Steps to Success in Business and Life”

So often, people view abundance as what we have.

Money. Wealth. Prosperity.

In AQ, we understand that true abundance is exercising the freedom to be who you are. Viewing life as relational begins with defining abundance as who we are being, not what we are doing or possessing.

The quality of our relationships begins with our relationship to ourselves. In other words, how we view others and the world around us depends on how we view ourselves.

Do we see ourselves as not enough or that we already having what we need, want and choose to be who we are?

Do we see life as something that happens to us or something that happens for us?

Do we view life as a series of transactions, a mad dash to the finish line (the one who dies with the most toys wins)? Or do we view life as a series of relationships to be discovered, developed, invested in?

Happiness, like abundance, is available to us right here right now. Just like we choose to practice AQ, we choose to be happy.

Each of you is already great. It is a matter of choosing your greatness over your fear that causes you to be abundant.

Success, and happiness, are a byproduct of being who you are.

Posted by Kim George at 04:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

AQ Community Call
AQ Guiding Principles Series
Wednesday, March 19th at 7:00 pm Eastern

Life is Relational, Not Transactional

Bridgeline: 712-421-8139 access code 5769#

Join us for another installment in the popular AQ Guiding Principles series. This month, we will premiere our newest principle: Life is Relational, Not Transactional.

People with a high AQ see the importance of relationships in all of life. They understand the connectedness of all living things and all events. They embrace synchronicity and allow life to unfold through them. Most importantly, they actively build relationships and invest in relationships in everything they do.

Life is not a marathon to be won, or another trip through the drive thru. Call in to discover the relationship between the art of connecting and abundance. Discover how, when you first connect with yourself, it then accelerates your connection to greatness and to the world around you.

Posted by Kim George at 04:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten we belong to each other.”

Mother Teresa

Love is in the air! Yes, it’s Valentines week! And yet, so much of what’s in the news isn’t focused on love, it’s focused on fear – a looming recession, the mortgage meltdown, the Iraq war.

I think the quotation from Mother Teresa says it best. We struggle most when we lose our connection to each other, to what really matters. The most important connection of all is the one we have to our inner knowing, our authenticity. But with the frenzied pace of life – the “have it all now mentality” so many fall under, it’s so much easier to do more and more, producing, laboring, racing on the endless treadmill.

Loving someone or something else begins with an ability to see beauty. To be able to see the beauty all around us, we must first begin to see it in ourselves. It’s an illusion to believe that we can truly love anything else while berating ourselves.

So, on this Valentine’s Day, when so many of us are focused on love, I encourage you to start with yourself.

Do one thing this week to reconnect with who you are, what you believe, and then what you love.

The world will thank you.

Most importantly, you'll thank yourself.

Posted by Kim George at 04:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As I write this, it’s mid January. How are your New Year’s resolutions faring?

Are you confident or complacent? Energized or anesthetized? How about trying something new this year?

Instead of creating New Year’s Resolutions, consider creating and adopting an Abundant Paradigm for 2008. An Abundant Paradigm is a mantra, phrase or expression that captures the essence of what you want to live into this year. Even more so, your Abundant Paradigm captures your greater truth – it’s your philosophy of how you view life.

In our work with AQ, we help people identify their Scarcity Paradigm – what their fears have conditioned them to believe for most of their lives. I have talked openly that my Scarcity Paradigm used to be “Good Things Don’t Come My Way”. This largely resulted from a series of early losses I experienced as a child. The impact of this paradigm was profound -- no matter how much I succeeded, I wasn’t happy, and I lived with a great deal of anxiety, because I never trusted that anything good I was experiencing would last. Certainly not a recipe for abundance!

My reality today is much different. My happiness does not depend on what other people do or don’t do. I pay attention to what comes to me and have let go of my love affair with struggle. Moments of anxiety and doubt still show up, but they are fleeting because now I know what to CHOOSE. I choose my greatness over my fear. I am living life, rather than forcing it--all because I have adopted a new Abundant Paradigm – “What Is Meant For Me Can’t Be Lost”.

What might be possible for you if you adopted an Abundant Paradigm?

Posted by Kim George at 06:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Eggnog. Holiday Jingles. Family Fun. Family stress. Giving. Receiving.

The holidays are upon us. It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of this time of year – the “doing” that the season brings. And yet, it’s a perfect time to look back on 2007 and celebrate.

Was your abundance showing? How did living into your greatness take shape?

Each year, I pick a theme. For 2007, it was “Lightness of Being”. I’ve always found it easy to work hard; what hasn’t been so easy in the past is having fun. All that changed this year. I can honestly say I’ve had the most fun ever. What made the difference?

I changed the way I view the world. More importantly, I changed how I view myself in the world. 2007 was the year I thoroughly embraced my abundant paradigm – “what is meant for me can’t be lost.” I’ve learned that I can allow life to unfold through me, not because of me. Feeling good and trusting my intuition has been the most accurate compass of all.

As you approach the New Year, what are you committed to choosing? As you give and receive, what are you open to unfolding in your life?

Perhaps the greatest gift of all you will unwrap this season will be the gift of your authenticity, your true self.

I wish you great joy this holiday season, and a lasting commitment to the true you. We’ll help you get there.

Thank you for being you!

Posted by Kim George at 06:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)