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Blog Archive
the Wise Women Network
where women share Wisdom,
Inspiration, Support, and Empowerment
Taming the Time Monsters
Posted by Kiva on Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Oh time, that elusive, twisty ticking that feels so intangible. Sometimes it flies. Sometimes it drags. Physicists attempt to explain its fluidity, that there is really only a present and that the past and future, because they only exist in our minds, are not real. Heady right?
What I know is that mastering your time means mastering your life.
I've learned I can slow it way down and I want to teach you to slow down, because we have a lot to accomplish in our days and get pulled inso many directions. The cruel trick is that we think we need to move faster, squeeze more in and multi-task the day away. But when we act in this way, we are at the end of a rope that is being tossed around uncontrollably. We are whipsawed.
We don't even know what just happened to us, only that weare exhausted and spent.
The real secret is slowing down, eliminating and doing one thing at a time until it is finished. And cultivating the ability to make fast decisions so that we are not spending so much time in our heads.
Since this month's Wise Workshop is all about mastering time, setting SMART goals and knowing your personal vision, I thought we'd spend the next few weeks discussing some of these key strategies. If you have any time mastering tips to share, please do so on the Facebook Page! It's getting fun there, so come join us if you haven't already!
Slowing Down
To Resolve to not to...
Posted by Kiva on Tuesday, January 10, 2012
I'm not quite sure how I feel about resolutions. I know we're supposed to assess our lives and decide what to take action on in the coming New Year, and I love the idea of visioning what we want to occur. But as one Wise Woman shared when I asked about the practice on Facebook, "resolutions born of realization and desire can work if you don't use them as a way to beat yourself up. In my experience, they work if you take baby steps. Some of mine have been effective. Some were just 'should's' that I didn't stick to."
I hate "should's" too. Besides, it gets boring having to resolve the same things every year... the same 10 pounds, the same debt paid off, the same promises to call our mothers more often.
What I love is the idea of the New Year. There is so much potential. So much opportunity. It's incredible, really, what can happen in the space of a year. Our children evolve before our eyes, and, hopefully so do we. Babies can be born, businesses can be born. We can take a small step that leads to a giant leap.
Inspired Woman
Posted by Kiva on Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Y
ou know her when you see her. She moves purposefully, her feet firmly on the ground. She is gracious, but doesn't make a lot of small talk. Her eyes light up when she speaks and she has a definite opinion. She is confident. She is vital. She is inspired.
Is she you?
It doesn't cost a thing to be inspired. We've seen stories of inspired women around the globe, some with significant financial resources, others with none.
The root meaning of the word inspire? "To breathe life into." Inspired women are full of life.
How do you get inspired? Many will tell you that you can read books or listen to motivational speakers. They will tell you a great story or send you a YouTube video. Maybe a quote?
Words on Worth
Posted by Kiva on Tuesday, December 13, 2011
A couple of weeks a
go, I shared with you my expanded vision for WISE: that together we are all WORTHY, INSPIRED, SUPPORTED and ENGAGED.
I want to get into the WORTH piece today, at least a little bit (because it's a BIG issue for us). I believe the need to feel worthy is the most difficult requirement in today's society for women. It is also the desire that is least often addressed or satisfied. It's almost gotten trite, this notion of self-worth. But cynicism around the idea does not change the need for it. And when I talk to women, it is so often the core of that sense that all of us have had... "this isn't enough, I'm not enough, I never have enough."
Let me start by saying: You are perfect. I'd like to say that one more time. You are perfect, just as you are. Are you able to accept that statement, or do you resist it? Does it bring tears to your eyes? That's not uncommon. I've met very few women who had full faith in their own worthiness. Our mistake is to believe that everything we've done "wrong" makes us unworthy. Our mistake is to believe that our mistakes define us. Our mistakes and our wrongs actually make us who we are - and are perfectly suited to what we can achieve with our lives. No mistakes = no lessons. No lessons = No growth. No growth = Stagnation. And we all know what happens to a stagnant pond. For humans, a stagnant life leads to self-loathing, boredom and destructive behaviors. We are not here to be stagnant. We are here to thrive.
Snotty Noses Defined
Posted by Kiva on Monday, November 28, 2011
Every time I write about mothering, in and of itself, not being enough of a purpose for women, I get flack. And I'm totally cool with it.
Here's the thing. I will never believe that the goal of a woman with an incredible education, amazing intellectual capacity, passion, intelligence and time, should be to hang it up and do the 50's mom thing. I think it's a recipe for Prozac. After all, our children are going to grow-up... quickly. And then who are we?
So last week I wrote that creating a life that was defined by only raising my children, "wiping snotty noses," was a cop out. Because what I know is that this is not an OR conversation. This is an AND conversation. We can be great mothers AND we can do work that we love. We can pick our children up from school every day AND make a difference in the world. We can wipe their snotty noses AND be on the phone with a client. Gracefully.
Not in some 80's super power, shoulder-pad-wearing-kind, of way... but in a new way, made possible by the discontent of women in the 50's and the amazing power women of the 80's, and by the technology, connection and collaboration of today. I think of what I am teaching my kids about what a woman can be - ambitious, nurturing, busy, calm, playful and engaged.
There are going to be times when the pendulum will swing. I love the idea that as women, we are constantly able to reinvent our lives. Ultimately, our lives must belong to us. We were not born to serve our children - but rather to serve ourselves, with some cute little visitors along the way, whose lives, by the way, belong to them.
