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(Said with Goonies accent or not) Hey you guys!

I was so excited to learn today that I'm the featured coach of the week on RoSoGo, the Coaching Social Network. They call the feature “Coach on the Couch”, but that sounds like I did something dirty to get there. There are no coaching couches, people! And if there are I don't know about ‘em.

So click here & read the interview, will ya? Super many thanks!

Ooh, and make sure to come back here bright & early tomorrow for my 200th post - my week 3 wrap-up of Wreck This Journal & a special surprise! Geez I'm old.

Related posts:

1. March 23-30 is Positivity Week!
2. Positivity Week: The End?
3. The Week From H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks

Everyone is a Star by 3LambsStudio, found on their Photostream

People! There's just 1 more week until I close the scholarship survey! Hurry up & enter, will ya? I don't want any crying on July 4th weekend. That weekend is for freedom, not regret.

That was deep.

Related posts:

1. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!
2. Motivation Monday
3. Tomorrow's the last day to win my booty!

I have a terrible secret: I did not take The Jamie Challenge this week. I know, I know! I chickened out. I was a wuss. I didn't do the page that most scared me, but I know that I have to build up to it. So, I'm announcing it here first (hold me accountable, people):

By this time next week, I will have taken my book out on a walk.

(Shiver).

But this week, I did the fun/easy stuff:

I thought that blank page should be, well, blank, so I made the white lettering black. It didn't exactly disappear, but it was cool nonetheless. I then ripped, ripped, ripped up my page, trying to rip on the dotted lines but being super easy breezy if I was off (which I was). Ain't it neat how the rips curled up like that? The next page told me to staple/glue ‘em onto it, but I'm so not listening yet. I like my curly-Qs.

The Scratching was the second most fun of the week. I originally started scratching with a quarter, which gave the paper a cool texture but was not the mess I was hoping for. Thankfully, I found the cheese knife & that was perfect! It was this great combination of scratching & ripping & it was totally theraputic.

But the most fun - the very most fun ever, even more fun than the coffee spilling & page burning - was when I documented my dinner. Holy crapballs was that a big fat gross disgusting mess. I made sweet potato fries one night last week, and I knew I was gonna end up with a Ziploc bag made up of olive oil, cinnamon, paprika, & salt (the recipe's here - I love shaking the potatos up in the bag & dancing when I do it. Don't judge). When the fries were cooking, I cut the bag down the middle & smeared the oily mess all over the pages. Then, when I was eating, I used the book as a napkin & wound up with BBQ sauce on one side & the oily mess on the other. But that wasn't good enough. Oh, no it wasn't. I had to fingerpaint them together so they could be friends.

Now, when I look at the picture, I'm a bit nauseous. Luke is convinced the book is gonna start to smell & grow mold. But, what can you do? It's all for the greater good of Messes.

Related posts:

1. Wreck This Journal: A Hole Lot of Messes
2. Wreck This Journal!
3. Wreck This Journal: Chew, Lose or Vlog

Life Coach by Ray Fenwick, found in his Photostream

OK, I'm being totally serious here, people. This is not a joke. I am offering a free coaching package, consisting of 12 weekly sessions, to one super awesome person. I know, right? Super awesomeness.

You have until Wednesday, July 1st to complete your application by clicking here. And, if you're not picked, you can still get a crazyridiculous 30% off my services until August 2nd with the secret password that you will only know if you got my newsletter yesterday. If this makes you all pissed at yourself, don't be - just subscribe here & I'll send you the last issue. I'm sweet like that.

You should know that I won't be selecting the winner at random - I'll be pouring over the submissions & choosing the most needy person myself. Feel free to play up the neediness.

The scholarship winner will be announced in this very place on Thursday, July 2nd. Be excited. Be very, very excited.

And just to reiterate: click here to enter. You can never be too safe…

Related posts:

1. Don't you want my scholarship? Yeah you do.
2. Newsletter #2 is out tomorrow morning!
3. The GraduLaunch Party is coming! The GraduLaunch Party is coming!

Sun Spray by ablaze

Well, I'm off to spend the long weekend with my Dad for his 60th birthday & my BFF for her youngest daughter's 1st! While there won't be any Wreck This Journal update this week (I did a scholarship AND a newsletter AND went away this past weekend - I just didn't have it in me), I'll be back on Monday with some Motivation, Tuesday with a Tough (Question), more great posts, & maybe even a super top secret announcement (maybe).

Hope you all have a wonderful 4th filled with fireworks, frankfurters, friends & family. Oh, and fun!

Related posts:

1. Grateful-Happy*
2. Happy Blogthday to Me…and You!
3. Six Things that Make Me Happy

my heart says follow through by kerryandhercamera

I know this is going to sound like a schmaltzy Oscar speech, but I hope you'll take this for the sincerity it is when I say: Thank you. Thank you for applying for my scholarship, or for passing along the information to someone you knew who needed it. Thank you for opening yourselves up & confiding in me the pieces of you that are both scared & hopeful. Thank you for your honesty, your kindness, your vulnerablity & your passion. I want to let you know that each of the applications touched me deeply, & that it was just a ridiculously tough decision for me to pick a winner. I think I sighed at least three dozen times yesterday.

And, while yes, there is a winner, I wanted to let everyone who applied know that I'm going to be reaching out to every one of you personally within a week's time. You've enabled me to see what you need, & how I can offer you a part of me without making it a financial burden on you. So, if you're really serious about bridging the gap between where you are & where you want to be, then keep your eyes on your Inbox & get ready to take this ride with me.

But now, without further adieu (I'm not even breaking for commercials like they do on stupid American Idol), the winner of the scholarship is: Sarah Ivie from Austin, Texas! Sarah, I'll be reaching out to you today so we can get this ball rolling. Yay hooray!!!!

Related posts:

1. The Scholarship Closes at Midnight…
2. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!
3. Don't you want my scholarship? Yeah you do.

…and I got some deciding to do! So, no Tough (Question) Tuesday today (everyone together: “Awwwwwww!”), BUT I will have a post up in about 2 hours reviewing The Renaissance Soul, which'll be new for you blog readers but not for you newsletter subscribers. So c'mon back then, & make sure you apply for the scholarship before midnight tonight or else you're totally screwed. I probaby won't offer another scholarship in, like, forever.  Click here to find the deets (including a way for you to get 30% off my services with a super secret password) & here to enter.

Break some legs!

Related posts:

1. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!
2. And the scholarship goes to….
3. Don't you want my scholarship? Yeah you do.

I'm so honored to have gotten the Kreativ Blogger award from Joanne Julius Hunold, my very first coach! Joanne is a fantastic coach who specializes in working with introverts. Despite that, she did wonders with me! Definitely head on over to her blog, & don't hesitate to reach out to her if you're a “shy guy” (or gal!) in need of coaching. Honestly, I can't recommend her more highly. Thanks again for the award, Joanne!

In order to accept this award, I hafta name 7 things about myself that people might find interesting. Well, I've done this to some extent before here, here, & here, but here are some new ones for ya:

1. I had to wear my glasses in public for an extended period of time this week for the first time in 21 years. That's right - I got contact lenses when I was 10 years old. Upon learning that I'd be banned from wearing my lenses for at least 10 days due to an eye allergy I got, I immediately called my Mom & demanded to know what a 10 year old had any business doing with contact lenses. Her answer? “You were a mature 10.” And, “Your Nana got me contact lenses when I was 10.” Nana will probably blame my Bubby for getting her contact lenses when she was 10 (in 1939), so I'm declaring to everyone that I'm breaking the chain!
2. My very first crush was Kirk Cameron, right around the time that I got contact lenses. Wasn't he dreamy?
   
3. The only school athletic team I ever played on was the tennis team in 8th grade. We ended up in 1st place that year, with a gym in the banner to prove it. I know my usual spot as the #10 doubles player really helped secure that win. (Please note sarcasm)
4. I met my BFF Lisa in sixth grade, since we were on the same softball team. What really brought us together, though, is that we'd spend the most time on the bench - despite the fact that our Dads were the coaches!
5. For the past 15 years, I've worked super part-time as a willcall person and/or usher at Universal movie premieres in NYC. I've seen everyone up close - Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, you name it - but the two people I got most excited over were Debbie Gibson & Adam Sandler. For real.
6. Luke & I were delivered by the same doctor, a year & a half apart. Of course, our Jewish mothers discovered that within 15 minutes of meeting each other for the first time.
7. I worked on 4 episodes of Saturday Night Live, but only made it on-camera once - in this Oprah's Favorite Things skit with Megan Mullaly hosting. And yes, she was very nice - she told me to make sure that my feet were out of her way so that she wouldn't fall on them! Can you spot me? (Here's a hint since the video's so grainy: I'm in the front row in a pink shirt):

Now, here are the 7 Blogs that I give the Kreativ Award to!:

1. A Beautiful Ripple Effect is written by Carolyn Rubenstein, a creative disguised as a PhD candidate in clinical psychology at Harvard, darling! Not only does she go to Haaaarvard, but she founded a not-for-profit when she was 14(!!!!) & has a book coming out next month (!!!!!). You can pre-order it here because I guarantee it to be awesome.
2. Pecannoot is all about abundance, & the art that goes with it. I feature it here all the friggin' time! If you're an artist & have something to submit on the theme of abundance, email Jess - her info is on the sidebar of the main page.
3. Strawberry Lemonade features tons of awesome clothes & pics by Alex, who I so want to dress like. Thankfully,her blog shows you the where & how of gettin' your style on, so she makes it easier to copy her vintage look. But don't do it in a Single White Female sort of way. Creepy.
4. Emma Alvarez Gibson's blog is a crazy-cool mix of awesome stuff, Dos & Don's, rockin' interviews with awesome people, & general self-reflection. Don't forget that she's giving my readers an amazing offer of a one-hour Brand Alchemy session, normally a $250 value, for $100 PLUS a free website bio. I know, right?! 
5. Makeunder My Life is a kick-ass blog to help you, uh, makeunder your life! Jess LC is a kick-ass jewelry designer who is determined to design a life with intention, and that means keeping things simple (aka I'll-mail-out-the-stuff-I-don't-want-to-anyone-that-asks-for-the-cost-of-shupping).
6. Starshyne Productions is the blog of  Jamie Ridler, an amazing coach who I feel like “coach” isn't enough of a word for! She's so encouraging & such a genuine soul, & as the leader of the Wreck This Journal book club she's just A1, like the steak sauce.
7. Kind Over Matter is just the sweetest blog ever. I know to head over there when I'm looking to smile or to get some inspiration (as you probably noticed, I grab their images to post here & in my newsletter constantly!). For example, they released a new freebie download of printable affirmations today (one set was done by Jamie Ridler, #6 above!) that are freakin' unbelievable. Go there now! Go.

This was super fun, wasn't it? Thanks again for the award, Joanne!

Related posts:

1. Motivation Monday: 2 1/2 Months
2. Grateful-Happy*
3. …And I say “No, no, no”

This Is How You Fly by thedreamygiraffe (whose kick-ass art is so going to cover my future daughter's room, if I have a daughter in the future. Stop crying, Mom)

Guys! Guys!  I need to tell you a story. It's a good one, so get ready….

A long, long time ago, all the way back in May, a fairy Princess (aka me!) was asked by the queen (aka life coach extraordinairre Laura Neff) to be a guest on one of her Rock Star Guest Coach calls. Now, way back then, these calls were only for the Queen's royal subjects (aka her past & current clients). The Princess was sad that she couldn't open this up to the whole kingdom, but was psyched anyways because the Queen is amazing & the Princess was thrilled beyond belief to have been offered the opportunity to spend an hour with the Queen & her royal subjects.

Then, just this week, the evil witch knocked on the princess' door with a poison apple the Queen wrote on her Facebook page that she's opening the remaining Rock Star calls to the entire kingdom. That's right - the whole kingdom, & even beyond! All the kingdom has to do is sign-up here to register, & even if the kingdom can't make it on Wednesday, Aug 26th at noon Eastern, a recording of the call will be sent to the kingdom so they can listen at their leisure.

“What will happen on this call?”, the kingdom asked.

The Queen responded, “Each call is FREE (did you see that?? FREE!), is one hour in length, and includes a portion of interview time as well as that day’s Rock Star Guest Coach leading us through an exercise or two so that we can all not only learn about who they are as a coach, but experience them as a coach as well. The calls are interactive, laid back, and fun!”

Every single person in the kingdom clicked here & registered for the call, and they all lived happily ever after. The End.

Did you get that you are the kingdom, & should register for this call?! If not, then forget the fairy tale story & just register now!

Related posts:

1. Don't you want my scholarship? Yeah you do.
2. Sunshine Sunday: Installment 3
3. I'm a Magnificent, Marvelous Women!

Be Happy Be You by luckybluebirdart, found via kind over matter

When I saw the Always/Never post on Emma Alvarez Gibson's blog, I knew I had to steal it for my own (& credit her, of course!). Partly because writing a “real” post (sentences & thru-lines & grammar, oh my!) has been hard for me lately (both time-wise & brain-wise), but mostly because it is so simple yet conveys so much. Thanks for the awesomeness (always!), Emma!

Here's my list:

ALWAYS:

• color (the brighter, the better - especially shoes)
• the beach
• the first iced coffee day
• Broadway musicals with my Mom
• stars
• hair down
• kitten heels
• boxing (in a wussy way)
• sleeping in
• cherries
• coconut ices from a street vendor
• Punky Brewster
• big purses
• Girls Night Out
• improv & sketch comedy
• being in super-duper-ridiculous love
• staying true to your dreams, no matter how often they change
• being the character actress/belting
• laughing, laughing, laughing (laughing, laughing)
• working towards a goal
• my wedding pictures
• Adam Sandler
• wine

NEVER:

• black (OK, not never, but really only in pants)
• experimental theater
• upside down roller coasters (gulp)
• marathon running
• Starbucks
• hair up
• little tiny clutches
• wearing glasses (if I can help it)
• not feeling like I have a say in my own darnfalootin' life
• having an unfulfilling career
• tanning
• being the ingenue/soprano
• fitting into The Mold
• athletic sneakers outside of the gym
• Dane Cook
• scotch
• settling

Your turn! Leave a comment with your Always/Never, or steal this blog post for your blog (but make sure you leave the link here for us to see)!

Related posts:

1. Celebrate Good Times (come on!)
2. Your Life Sentence: The Six-Word Memoir
3. One of “those” days…

Frampton Chicken Comes Alive…3A..by Snitterdog

The short version: At this time tomorrow, Laura Neff & I will be rockin' it live & for free, & you're invited. Sign up here even if you can't make the call, & you'll get the recording.

The long verstion, a la fairy tale, can be found here.

Related posts:

1. The Queen, The Princess, The Kingdom & The Rock Star
2. I'm the coach of the week on RoSoGo!
3. Newsletter #2 is out tomorrow morning!

That's Carolyn, my hero!

Holy crapballs, you guys. I'm featured in Psychology Today today(!), thanks to the amazing Carolyn Rubenstein, a blogger for the site & the author of the newly released book, Perseverance. To say that I'm thrilled & honored is a big, fat understatement. Thank you oh so very much for this opportunity, Carolyn!

For those of you that just arrived, you're probably wondering where all of my Tough (Question)s are. Click here to see the entire series laid out for you, & don't forget that the questions are pretty worthless unless you actually, uh, answer them. No matter how old some of the posts are, the comments still count & I'll respond to every single one of them. Pinky swear. I'd love to hear from you!

If you want a grander tour of my lil' home on the Blogosphere,you can click here for my bio & here for a more personal, extended bio; here for why I do what I do (& what I can do for you as a creative career coach!); here & here for more about my loves & likes & favorite foods (y'know, the important stuff!), & here for The 5 Reasons I Got Off My Ass & Discovered A New Passion. Because that's a rockin' post.

If you like what you see, please subscribe, comment (I respond to each one!), tweet me, read my newsletters (& sign up!), Facebook Fan me, do my laundry & contact me with any of your thoughts, feedback, ideas, or your best gazpacho recipe (the one I have now is just “eh”). I also give free 30 minute consultation calls if you think that working with me might be a really super-cool thing. I have a feeling that working with you might be super-cool, too.

Stopping the shameless self-promotion here, I wanted to make sure that all of my readers saw the amazing promotional video that Carolyn shot for the release of Perseverance. I watched it last night & it brought me to tears in just 3 short minutes. Get the tissues ready, & then click here to buy the book (make sure to keep those tissues in your purse!)!

Related posts:

1. I'm Getting Around. Not like that, though! Geez Louise Louise.
2. Happy Blogthday to Me…and You!
3. Yay, Bribery!

We interrupt the usual Motivation Monday artwork to bring you this special, important, super duper, freakin' awesome announcement from Cardstore.com:

We’re getting behind the ‘Hope is in the Cards’ Campaign by offering customers one free personalized card from September 1-7, 2009. Customers can choose a greeting card from our Hope Collection, add their own message and photos, then we print and mail it to anyone they choose, worldwide, all for free. (Use code: SENDHOPE by 9.07.09 midnight PST.)

I never heard of Cardstore.com until I got their email in my Inbox, & honestly, I was expecting really cheesy stuff. Imagine the happy surprise  when I clicked over to see the preview of the cards in their Hope collection!:

How cute are all of those? I had more to show you, but I didn't want to give them all away. Head on over to Cardstore.com's Facebook page to see the Hope Collection cards you can choose from in their entirety.

So…who are you gonna send your card to & why? I know who's getting mine, but as they read this here blog, I'm gonna keep it a secret for now…but I'll comment with my recipient once I know that he/she/they (I'm so mysterious!) has gotten the card. In the meantime, tell me about the hope you're spreading!

Related posts:

1. HOPE is in the Cards
2. Motivation Monday: I Can Do
3. Motivation Monday: When I Grow Up

Thank you, Emma Alvarez Gibson, for inspiring me to vlog, & to you, Laura Neff, for giving me the nudge! (And yes, click on those links for their genius vlog posts!)

I filmed 3 different takes, but couldn't get any of them under 8 minutes. I can't help it - I'm a talker. Here's the least rambly one. And yes, I start crying about halfway through. Whadda wuss.

And can I mention how I can't have a more ridiculous expression on my face pre-video play? Thank God I'm a character actress & I like to make people laugh at my idiotic faces!

Stress, Tears, Gratitude & How I'm Really, Truly Doing from WhenIGrowUpCoach on Vimeo.

Related posts:

1. Wreck This Journal: Chew, Lose or Vlog
2. Extra! Extra! The debut issue of my newsletter hits stands tonight!
3. Sunshine Sunday: Installment 1

Rockin Pig Bottle Cap Pendant by mdstudio

Hey kids (Sorry, I keep calling you “kids” this week, but I love that expression, especially for those who are not kids!)!

Remember the story I told you about The Queen, The Princess, The Kingdom & The Rock Star? And how The Queen promised The Kingdom that they would receive said recording of said Rock Star call, even if they couldn't make the call? Well, The Queen delivered!

Click here for the hourlong call, complete with an exercise to help you discover your skills (gasp!) & a special (FREE!) offer (double gasp!). If you don't listen, you'll be considered The Fool. Listen now!

Related posts:

1. The Queen, The Princess, The Kingdom & The Rock Star
2. The Rock Star Coach call is TOMORROW!
3. Sunshine Sunday: Installment 3

three wishes by MayaChappell The wishes say “inspire”, “create” & “let your dreams soar.” Aren't those nice wishes?

Here's the 3rd installment in guest blogger (& When I Grow Up's scholarship winner) Sarah Ivie's series. Her first post, Change is Like Laundry, focused on how, uh, change is like laundry. Her second post, Jumping with a Safety Net, focused on, uh…obviously our post titles are very self-evident. What is Sarah focusing on now that we're two months into our sessions together? You'll just hafta read below!

What would you do if you could do anything you wanted to? I wish I had a nickel for every time I've been asked this question.  I am, as Michelle has helped me figure out, a Renaissance Soul…I have a lot of different interests and skills. I've never been able to answer that darn question!  I could tell you 15 different things I could do, or 20 things I'd enjoy doing, but not one thing I ideally want to do. I've even figured out what I can do well and what pays the bills, even if I don't like all of it. So when I came to Michelle to figure this whole work thing out, I came with a fairly decent day job that unfortunately involves a lot of spreadsheets and reports, which I'm good at, but don't love. I also had (and have) a plan to start a small business with my husband, a developing blog, an on-my-own small business plan, about a million percolating ideas, and a desire to find out what I want to be when I grow up.

What I am figuring out (with a lot of help from a certain life coach) is a different way of asking that million-dollar question - and of answering it. What makes more sense to me is to ask, “If you could do any job you wanted, what would you want that job to be like? What would you want to get out of it?”  I can answer that!  I can tell you pretty much right away that I want a job where I have a flexible schedule so I can spend time with my (future) kids and family, have FUN, be creative, have positive interactions with other people, be recognized for what I do, contribute something good to the world, and make enough money. That's all I want. Oh, that, and chickens. (OK, I'd be willing to have chickens as a hobby if they don't work into the perfect job…)

For me, finding the perfect occupation is fitting together a puzzle with all of the above requirements as puzzle pieces. I'm working on this puzzle diligently, trying pieces here and there, trying to make it all fit. I'm starting to get a pretty good idea of what I think the finished picture will look like, and I'm starting to get pieces that go together really well! I think my many interests and skills fit together in a lot of different ways, and I'm starting to feel good about finding a combination that gives me what I want out of my job - my occupation.

But still, I have to pay the bills, so I have to work. Now that I'm married and responsible to another person (and yes, getting older) I'm not super-comfortable being that person who pet sits, works at the bookstore part time, and sells tupperware on the side to make ends meet. (Yes, these are all things I've done). I need enough stability in my income to know I can pay bills and buy a couple of magazines if I want, and I need the safety of knowing that's going to happen every month. Even in my younger, more care-free days I always had a bit of a safety net, knowing I have those necessary skills to have the day job if/when I need it. I've never been able to take money out of the equation when figuring out what I want to do.

My husband has provided some important missing pieces that are helping me make money less of a top priority when finding an occupation that will hopefully meet all my needs.  He plays the lottery.  His lottery hobby has helped me think about making money a little less of a priority, because as he plays he creates plans around winning different amounts. He plays the smaller lotteries so the plans aren't really that extravagant, they're just about making us more comfortable, and about making it possible for us to do what we really want. It's made me realize that some of my dreams are not that far out of reach. As icing on the cake, he gets excited about my ideas and they become our ideas and then our shared goals!

I'm so excited that things seem to be coming together in such a great way. Combining my husband's decent-steak-dinner dreams & pretty-good-beer wishes with Michelle's homework and pragmatism with my ideas and interests is helping me discover what I want and have the courage and support to go after my dreams!

Related posts:

1. What’s Holding You Back From Your Dreams?
2. Motivation Monday: 2 1/2 Months
3. Jumping With a Safety Net

Luke & I at during our first dance, Grow Old With You, performed by his brother. Photo by Kate Leigh.

Tomorrow, September 14th, is my very first wedding anniversary. After tonight, I'm unplugging until late in the day on Tuesday so I can have an amazing anniversary staycation with my hubby, Luke. So, Motivation  Monday & Tough (Question) Tuesday will be on hiatus. I'll be back on Wednesday or Thursday, depending on how much I have to catch up on.

Hope you all had a great weekend, & are enjoying your week with the one you love. I know I am, even though I haven't done it yet. Every minute I get to spend with Luke is a minute I love, so I know I'm having a wonderful time.

Related posts:

1. Happy 4th!
2. The Week From H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks
3. Tough (Question) Tuesday: What would you do if you had $11 million?

While I was on my Anniversary Staycation, I was featured on Blog Out Loud!

I'm super proud of this, as Blog Out Loud “is truly a resource for creative people to get information and inspiration to begin and maintain a blog to enhance their business, create a presence online and connect to community.” It exists to bring together creative bloggers (that's us!) & provides very many awesome ideas, tips, & freebies. Please swing on by to read my feature, but don't blame me when you start clicking around and all of a sudden it's tomorrow!*

* Yup, there's Blog Out Loud TV & Events too!

Related posts:

1. Blogging Your Way
2. I'm the coach of the week on RoSoGo!
3. Motivation Monday: 2 1/2 Months

…read my newsletter! I worked super hard on it & it's guaranteed to keep you entertained. And laughing. And thinking. Yup, all those things.

Have a great weekend!

Related posts:

1. Always/Never
2. Happy 4th!
3. Extra! Extra! The debut issue of my newsletter hits stands tonight!

Happy new year print by ponie (in Tel Aviv – how fitting!)

A belated “L'Shanah Tovah” (A Good & Sweet New Year) to all of my Jewish readers & friends! I'll be celebrating Yom Kippur this Sunday & Monday with my family on Long Island, so you'll hafta get your own Motivation (again!) this week. Between anniversaries & holidays, there's a lotta (great!) crap going on in my neck of the woods!

Everyone who is fasting along with me on Monday have a fast, uh, fast. And everyone that is around someone who is fasting but is not fasting, please eat alone in the bathroom so the faster doesn't have to watch.

Be back Tuesday!

Related posts:

1. Happy 4th!
2. My 30th Year, reflected upon on my 31st birthday
3. Six Things that Make Me Happy

You're the Cherry on Top on 3LambsStudio's Photostream

I really love you guys. Honestly, writing a post and reading your comments is something I wouldn't trade it for nothing. That's why, when I faced facts & realized that this blog will be tough to maintain over the next month – as I'm moving (hopefully to my new, permanent home & not a temporary one!) & demolishing & painting & unpacking – I got very sad. Sad that I'd have to “see” you less regularly. Sad that you'd come here to see what's new & be greeted with something old. Sad that I wouldn't get any new comments to read & sad because I'd wonder how you guys are doing!

But, as the life coach I am, I realized that I need to take a break this month (& partly into next) for my sanity. It would just be too much to maintain the pace I've been going at & not be stresed out from all of it at once. So, I thought of a less sad option:

Guest Posts!

Whether you've made a career transition or eye-opening artistic realizations, I'd love your contributions. I'll read each & every submission that comes into my Inbox. Write or draw from the heart – I'm not looking for a word limit or anything that has to fit a certain box. You're a reader here, so you know what you want to read. Share your story or your epiphany or your journey. I'd love to have you!

Email me at michelle(at)whenigrowupcoach(dot)com. I'll always accept submissions, but would love them prior to Nov 1st so I know my butt is covered during my upcoming move. Thank you, thank you, thank you (& keep your fingers crossed that our new home comes through)!

Related posts:

1. Top 5 Reasons Why My Marriage Works
2. Welcome Psychology Today Readers!
3. I'm Blogging Out Loud!

Yay hooray – another award! It's my second, and boy is it an awesome one. Kristin from Discover: Interior Design nominated me as an Honest Scrap! The award isn't defined, per se, but it makes me think I'm like Christian Bale in Newsies, earning an honest nickel and singing along the way. Thanks so much, Kristen! I'll look for my newsboy cap in the mail

In order to accept my award, I have to share 10 honest things about myself. Are we scared yet?

1 & 2. Both of my pinkies are bent. I was born that way, with my pinkies touching my palms, but I had surgery when I was in first grade to correct it. The cast went all the way around my hand, & because of that, I never learned how to hold a pen correctly. So, I have bent pinkies (which never got all-the-way straight, but are only noticed by dance/yoga teachers) & hold my pen/pencil weird. This totally counts as two things.

3. Along the lines of weird things I do, I learned how to whistle by blowing in. Now that I'm trying to be a better/louder whistler, I'm working on blowing out. Insert your own “That's what she said” joke here.

4. Oh, and along the lines of more weird things I do, I snap by taking my thumb and essentially putting it behind my knuckle of my second finger. I know you don't understand. I'm the only one who does it. But man, does it work!

5. The first concert I ever went to was Debbie Gibson at Radio City Music Hall in June 1988. I sat in the 4th row with my Mom (& my Debbie Gibson hat) & got to touch her hand. I still have the T shirt from the concert, & it's one of my most treasured possessions. So soft!

What 10 year old girl from Long Island wouldn't  want to be her? Photo via Ape Culture

6. My mother & I have an ongoing argument as to who asked who if I wanted a perm. I have a distinct memory of being in middle school and her saying, “Do you want to get a perm?” while she swears that I asked her for it. Well, someone's gotta take the blame! No wonder I didn't have a date to the 8th grade dance. And no, you can not, will not, won't not ever see a photo.

7. I have a terrible sense of direction. So terrible, in fact, that I “joke” that North is always when I go straight ahead, West is when I make a left turn (but when I straighten out I'm going North again), East is when I make a right turn (but when I straighten out I'm going North again), & South is when I go in reverse. This might be a big reason why I rarely drive.

8. Luke & I have a Nerd Corner in our apartment. On one wall is a framed Star Wars poster, & cattycorner to it is a bunch of signed, framed Playbills. I'm not sure if this set-up will move with us to our new home, but it represents us to a T.

9. I took piano lessons for about 6 years, but can not sit down a play a single thing. I never got that whole memorizing music thing.

10. I called the bridesmaids at my wedding “bridesbabes”, because they were not my maids! And they were totally babes. See?

Stunningly amazing photo by Kate Leigh.

I now hereby nominate the following blogs as Honest Scraps:

1. Nicole J Butler
2. Warrior Girl, You're a Warrior Mama Now
3. Coach Cassandra Rae
4. Hit & Runners
5. OwningPink
6. More in You
7. CreateGirl

As nominees, you must now:

1. Say thanks and give a link to the presenter of the award. (That's me!)
2. Share “10 Honest Things” about yourself.
3. Present this award to 7 others whose blogs you find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged you.
4. Tell those 7 people they’ve been awarded HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving.

Thanks again to Kristin for making me an Newsie Honest Scrap!

Related posts:

1. Anniversary Staycation!
2. My First Award!
3. …And I (find a new way to) say “no no no”

Trust by alannaJackson

I've become obsessed with the theme of trusting in myself. On the brink of major changes – ramping up my coaching business, buying a home, no longer being a newlywed – I feel acutely aware of going through my usual behavior of doing what I “should” (aka what-others-tell-me-to-do-in-order-to-”succeed”).

I'm starting to throw that all away.

Think about what you're looking to achieve, & whether or not you're listening to outside voices more than yourself. Now ask:

What can you trust about yourself/this situation?

Another scary one! Hold me. Or, join me in the comments section to answer the question. Either way.

Related posts:

1. Tough (Question) Tuesday: Is there anything in this situation I can find to be grateful for?
2. Tough (Question) Tuesday: What does your heart want?
3. Tough (Question) Tuesday: What’s the most obvious question you can ask yourself to get closer to the outcome?

Hi kids!

There are two things to pimp out this week! Do you love it? I do.

Firstly, I taped this awesome exercise segment with Coach Andi of Hit & Runners before our kickboxing session yesterday, & it's super adorable. Take a look to learn a great kickboxing combo you can do at home / make fun of my sprawls.

Secondly/lastly/nextly, my appearance on Daily Whip Radio is gonna air at noon Eastern tomorrow! I know that I originally announced it was gonna air on Nov 10th, but, uh, I was totally wrong. I taped this with Erika on Friday & we had a super blast talking about hippies, career changes, growing up, actors, doing what you love, loving what you do, strippers, the 7 Holy Whips, & swearing equaling caring. As you can tell, it was a very boring, serious conversation. If you feel like doing something boring during your lunch break tomorrow, then don't click here & listen at noon tomorrow. Instead, click here.

OK, you called my bluff. Don't click that last link. Listen to the show instead! Oh, and if you can't make it, you can come back anytime & listen to the recording. Or you can watch paint dry. But seriously – listen to the show. It's way funner.

Related posts:

1. Big Fat Huge Enormous Freakin' Awesomely Amazing Announcement!
2. UPDATED: On the (Internet) radio, woah oh oh oh oh, on the (Internet) radio, woah oh oh!
3. Real live marketing to go with my Big Fat Huge Enormous Freakin’ Awesomely Amazing Announcement!

Sing Out loud Every Day – print by pleasebestill

Yesterday I ended Part 1 of this post by asking:

So how do you embrace you? How do you allow yourself to be vulnerable, and not only hear the positive comments but embrace them, letting them guide you to creating your best work & having fun in the process (because, let’s face it, it’s never a good time with a vampire on your back)?

I got some great suggestions, like keeping track of your successes & compliments (from Joanne) & not letting perfection get the best of you (from Eduard). Here are some other ideas for ya:

• Start a Good Things folder on your computer, or in a notebook. Store every positive comment you get (every one!) somewhere that you can pull out & look at it when that vampire’s about to sink their teeth into you. Don’t be humble about it – it’s for your eyes only. (Joanne, I swear I wrote this prior to your comment. Great minds!)
• Keep a Gratitude journal. It’s tough to accentuate the negative when you’re focusing on the positive. Add something new to it every day, when you wake up or when you go to bed.
• If someone in particular has contributed to that Vampire – a teacher that criticized your work, a parent that told you that you’ll never make it as an artist – write that person a letter & tell them how you feel. How did their comment(s) affect you? Feel free to be brutal or jerky to them, because when you’re done you’re going to destroy the letter however you want. Write over it in black marker, rip it up into tiny pieces, burn it, bury it. And then walk away from it. Ah, sweet release.
• If comparing yourself to others is your Vampire, then write or draw or paint how you differ from them. What do you bring to the table that’s uniquely you? Why would someone buy your work & not theirs? Don’t be afraid to honor the work of these other people by commenting on why people would resonate with them as well. This is to really find your unique voice & see what you can amp up to ensure that you’re working as yourself.
• Fill in the blank: “I would do ___________ if I wasn’t scared”. It might be an item or two, but it might be a whole list. You might want to elaborate on why you’re scared of doing it, & answer that with why you want to do it (not why you “should”. I hate that word!). Once you see it in writing, I guarantee it’ll loosen those chains.
• Start a Positivity List! It can be My Proudest Accomplishments, or Things That Make Me Happy, or Reasons to Celebrate. Or any number of other things. Just start it.
• Drink in a compliment. If it’s contained in an email, read it two or three (or ten) times. If it’s coming from someone orally (that’s what she said), then force yourself to really listen & respond with just a “Thank You.”
• Send an email to the friends & family who know you & love you almost unconditionally, & ask them why they find you inspiring. My friend & client Sophie Hainsworth inspired me to do this, & the emails I received from everyone are words I’ll always cherish. Yes, you feel kind of like an ass asking, but the great thing is that you respond to everyone who answers as to why they’re inspiring. Spreading the love, people.

Are you good enough, smart enough, & goshdarnit, do people like you?  Then take it to heart & learn to trust it. Just knowing it is enough to turn that Vampire to dust.

Related posts:

1. Accentuate The…Negative? (Part 1)
2. Tough (Question) Tuesday: What’s my reward for this negative action?
3. Fear of inspiration?!

invincible spring by spreadthelove, found via decor8

I forget how Laura Neff & I originally connected, but I think it had to be on Twitter. The Life Leadership Coach, she & I immediately “clicked”. I can't put my finger on exactly what it was, but it immediately felt like we'd known each other forever, & I automatically considered her as a friend. I was thrilled to be asked to be interviewed by Laura on her Rock Star Coach call this summer (listen to the recording here – it's fun!), & I'm glad I can now return the favor by hosting her guest post on my blog. Read on to hear Laura's “from there to here” story, a touching, inspirational account of how she removed those corporate shackles – successfully! passionately! excitingly! – before figuring out the “what” of it all.

When I worked in Corporate America, I spent a lot of time crammed into a corner and confused.

See, I was lucky to have a cubicle with a window and even luckier to have one with a thick, round column that ran floor to ceiling in the corner of my little gray domain. When no one was looking, I would tuck myself back behind that column, into the small space between it and the window, where no one passing by in the hall could see me. And with hands and forehead pressed against the thick, thick, one-way glass, I’d peer down, watching the small cars zooming by on the city streets below, watching all the people moving through the world, on their way from somewhere to someplace else.

“How can they do that,” I’d wonder. “What jobs do they have that they get to drive around at 2:00 p.m. on a Tuesday? Where are they going?”

Oh, I desperately wanted to be going.

But I was stumped. For the longest time, I thought I needed to know what job title I wanted next in order to get going. And I had no idea. Whenever I thought of an interviewer asking, “So, Laura, where do you see yourself in five years,” my mind would go blank. I would sigh, and I’d turn back to my gray, ergonomically-correct, spinny chair in my gray, fabric-walled cubicle with its gray desktop and cold, gray, metal filing cabinets.

This actually went on for years.

Until the day it stopped.

My dad had been sick for a decade or so, and he finally succumbed to the diseases that were ravaging his mind and body and our hearts. I’d taken a two-week leave as my family and I spent our last moments with him, then planned and experienced his memorial service. We tended one another’s needs and tears, and each of us, in our own way, had felt the tectonic plates of our worlds shifting and quaking. Life could never be the same, nor should it be.

On the day I returned to work, my entire team was at an all-day, off-site meeting many states away. Rather than put myself through the stress of traveling when I was so emotionally drained, I’d resigned myself to participating virtually, and I found myself sitting alone in the most gawd-awful conference room you can imagine. It was very small. There were no windows. The walls were mustard yellow (faded, old, dirty mustard yellow), and the too-large conference table was chipped and scarred. A ramshackle assortment of old, stained and worn chairs were crammed around it, and some ancient, unused office furniture was piled up in one corner. In a word, I was in Hell.

The conference droned on and on as I sat slumped in my chair. Trying to stay awake, I’d pipe up on occasion so they’d know I was still there. When suddenly, something in me snapped.

I sat up like someone had just shoved a ramrod straight into my spine, smacked the “mute” button so my colleagues couldn’t hear me, and out of my mouth in a clear, strong voice came the words, “What the HELL am I DOING?!?!”

And in that moment, everything became clear. I didn’t matter that I didn’t know what job title I wanted next or what would be on the next name plate on the next desk I’d inhabit. So what? What became crystal clear in that moment was what I DID know.

I whipped open my snappy leather FranklinCovey day planner (well before the days of Blackberries and iPhones), ripped out a blank piece of paper, and what I DID know started pouring out of me.

Five years from then, I wanted to live a life that was flexible. I wanted to be in charge of my time, totally. I wanted to be able to go out into the world each day and drive from place to place. I wanted to have honed my skills as a facilitator, and I wanted to be doing work that involved writing, communicating, and working with others. I wanted to help people feel valued, motivated, free. I wanted to have gone back to school. I wanted to be outside more. I wanted to know I was making a difference with people who spent time with their feet on the ground and not with their heads in the proverbial Ivory Tower.

After that day, everything changed.

I asked to be taken off the fast track of title promotions and raises and, instead, to be in a role that had me working as an individual contributor. (Yes, you can do that!) I reduced my hours to 30/week (retaining my benefits) and went back to school. Ultimately, I quit the company I worked for and started consulting and contracting, doing the same work, getting paid twice as much by the hour, and working from home (often in my pajamas, and going to yoga at 2:00 on Tuesdays).  The story goes on and on, winding around a very curvy road until it eventually led me to the world of coaching. You can read more about it on my website. BUT, for today, here’s the point:

As you cast about for your next vocation, focus on what you DO know.

What are the skills and talents in you that just light you up?

Which of those would you like to continue honing and developing in the years to come?

What kind of days do you dream of having? How are they structured?

Who do you want to be working with?

What kind of work environment puts a huge smile on your face?

What’s the quality of life you want to experience? How will that feel?

You get the picture. Allowing ourselves to get stumped and stopped by one question keeps us stuck and keeps us from accessing the vast amount of information that IS within us and keeps us from answering all those questions that we DO have answers to. Try it. You’ll see. Even on those days when you turn back to your version of my gray cubicle, you actually know a lot more than you might think!

Related posts:

1. Motivation Monday: Raining & Rainbow
2. Tough (Question) Tuesday: How am I going to celebrate this achievement?
3. Freakin' (Great Links) Friday: Installment 22

I know, I know, I prepped you all to not see me for another week and a half, but when Jess Constable of Makeunder My Life (& a drool-inducing jewelry line) asked me on Tuesday night if I could send along the intentions I live by for today's version of Design Your Life, I couldn't not say “Duh!”

The post is up now, & I have to say that it was a fulfilling, soul-searching, grounding exercise in finding & explaining my commandments. The intentions I wrote about have been the lessons I've learned from my past & what I live by today. Please swing on by & read ‘em, & join in the conversation by commenting on our own intentions. Better yet, do this exercise on your own & put it somewhere you can see it every day, or share it on your own blog. If you need a kick-start, you can see all of the Design Your Life features by clicking here.

So kick-ass!

Related posts:

1. Tough (Question) Tuesday: Does this make my life better?
2. “How is this my life?”
3. The Story of My Life, or Why I Stopped Pounding (my head against the) Pavement

I know it's November, but I'm THRILLED to announce that Spring is in bloom!

Back in the spring of 2009, four women got together to collaborate on a kick-ass, uh, collaboration. Creative entrepreneurs all, we wanted to inspire others (& ourselves) with talks about our passions, our professions, & how the two mingle. We thought of ourselves like The View. But awesome.

Those four women were Perseverance author & Harvard PhD candidate (in clinical psychology!) Carolyn Rubenstein of A Beautiful Ripple Effect, jewelry designer & high school entrepreneur Jessica Constable of Makeunder Your Life, & illustrator & pattern artist Jessica Gonacha Swift of Pecannoot & Treasuring.

Oh. And me.

Now, in the heart of the fall, we're ready to announce Spring. Come on by & see the inspiration that's blooming this month. Grab a button while you're at it. We'll be posting an hourlong video on Gratitude, & would love to hear what you wanna hear us discuss. Comment on the site (or here!) with your thoughts, ideas & comments. We'd be grateful for them.

A jewelry designer. An artist. A published author. A life coach. What do you think will bloom?

Related posts:

1. Big Fat Huge Enormous Freakin' Awesomely Amazing Announcement!
2. Real live marketing to go with my Big Fat Huge Enormous Freakin’ Awesomely Amazing Announcement!
3. For MY Inspiration

…with a new vlog & a ridiculous starting face. Of course.

I'm Home, & I Thank You from WhenIGrowUpCoach on Vimeo.

Related posts:

1. Motivation Monday: Home
2. Stress, Tears, Gratitude & How I'm Really, Truly Doing
3. I'm a Fire Starter!

I know, I know – the two weeks I was neglecting you, dear readers, I had moonlighting elsewhere with two features & a big project up my sleeve!

I was able to post about my Makeunder My Life feature, but amidst all the hubbubb, I didn't pimp out my interview on Magchunk! Magchunk is a sweet blog with a super cute name written by another Blogging Your Way alum, Maggie. While she doesn't put a title on who she is or what she does, I can say for sure that she has an amazing visual eye & is crafty & thrifty to boot. So, if you're like someone I know very, very, very well* and are decorating an apartment from scratch that you just bought and want to take most of your clothes & throw them in the Hudson River, then Maggie can help. So drop by Magchunk, & don't forget to read my Getting to Know You feature while you're there!

* OK, it's me!

Related posts:

1. Welcome Psychology Today Readers!
2. Wanted: Guest Posts!
3. I'm the coach of the week on RoSoGo!

I am Thankful for You by blue bicicletta

With Spring's first vlog post (on Gratitude!) premiering this week (today or tomorrow, we think!) &  Thanksgiving being celebrated in the States tomorrow, how can I escape thinking of all the things I'm grateful for? That was a hypothetical question. I can't.

In that Spring vlog,  I only skimmed the surface by talking about my day job & my support network when asked what, as someone pursuing her passionate vocation, I was grateful for. There's so much more! So, so much! It seems like, with the launch of When I Grow Up, there's even more to be thankful for than usual. And yes, here is where I list them:

• My husband, who will be in this #1 spot each & every day. My biggest cheerleader, & the voice of reason – yet he still tells me to “go for it” & “we'll make it work” & “I believe in you.” Knowing he has my back is my safety blanket.
• My Mom & my stepfather, who housed us & fed us when we were “homeless”, & only told me that they called me Scary Spice behind my back during that time after we moved into our new apartment. That they're continuing to be such a help & offer their painting & renovation skills (& food!) means so much to us.
• My friends who are still here. I've purged the yes-suckers (you know, the ones that seem to want you to fail, & offer nothing but guilt & bitchery) & have tried to give as much of myself to those left over, but I know I still had to turn down many a Happy Hour invite to coach or attend a class. Knowing that there is a group of people who understand & support my goals – & some who send me words of encouragement fairly regularly! – is such a big thing to be grateful for. Like, huge. Like, I don't know how anyone accomplishs anything without that.
• The view of Manhattan from all of our windows. Like-new parquet floors. 5 (5!) closets! We're still working on it, & will be for quite a while, but we bought a home. We have a piece of the sky to call our own, & I still can't quite believe it. A Big Fat Goal, realized.
• All of my clients. All of my referrers. All of my blog & newsletter readers. All of my Facebook fans & Twitter followers. Anyone that has crossed my path over email, or comments, or phone lines – & those I've been lucky enough to meet in person. If When I Grow Up has given me one blessing, it's these connections. Even if it's an epic fail & I'm not able to support myself coaching (which will not happen!), I will always always always be thankful for everyone I've “met” because of my business.
• International Coach Academy, for offering a great program & for certifying me as a professional coach in June. If it wasn't for the flexibility of the classes & the way the program is structured, I might not be here now. It took two years, but oh the things I learned!
• My past success & failures. This feels so hippy dippy, but I am grateful for the things I endured & struggled with & that ultimately didn't “work out”. I can see now that they all lead me here, where I should be.
• The girls of Spring. Carolyn, Jess & Jess, I know that we'll have a Spring meet-up one of these days & that will just be the ultimate for me. You gals are my virtual soul sisters, & I've learned so much from you. What a worthwhile experiment that I know will add so much to so many (or at least for us!).
• Sara Carbaugh, my VA who kicks some major assisting ass. If you're a creative that needs to take something off your plate, Sara will deliver & do it with a great, big, infectious laugh. She has a passion for learning new things, so even if she's never done it before, she's game.
• Bekky Pollock, who designed my new website (premiering January 2010!) . I know you haven't seen it yet, but let's just say I asked her to put her name on every page so I wouldn't be overloaded with emails from people looking to hire her.
• Emma Alvarez Gibson, who's writing copy for said website. If there's anyone I trust to say what I want to say better than I can say it, it's Emma. She ain't lying – she's a whip-smart marketing maven.
• Thekla Richter, my life coach who makes me feel like I just shed ten pounds (mostly in my brain, which is a good thing) at the end of each of our sessions. Yes, life coaches need life coaches!
• Danielle LaPorte, for coming to NYC & rocking my world, as well as intrducing me to others in the area looking to start some fires. Even though I live in a city with 7,999,999 other people, it's been tough for me to find My Tribe right here in NYC. Now, I have one, & we're being pyros each & every month.
• Everyone that's featured me on their blog or radio show. I'd list ‘em all here, but I've spent some major time adding the links & images to my site, & there's major spackling I gotta attend to. Head on over to the sidebar & take a read/listen. Every request I get to be featured somewhere is a vote of confidence in my, uh, confidence, & it means the world to think that someone (multiple someones!) wanna hear what I have to say. Mind-blowing, exciting, & totally what this actress needs to keep going.
• You. I know you mentioned before, either specifically or generally, but it's worth saying personally. I am thankful, & grateful, & appreciative of you. Even if you come visit me here quietly, without communicating. Even if you're silent, just being here is enough to bring me close to tears.  Yes, I know I'm a sap, but it still counts.

I'm sitting in a fairly empty living room (considering what's usually around), in my big red/orange/purple/yellow armchair, looking at Manhattan at night, counting my blessings & shedding some tears.  Thank you all for making me cry. I don't remember when I've had so much to be thankful for.

Related posts:

1. Stress, Tears, Gratitude & How I'm Really, Truly Doing
2. Grateful-Happy*
3. Big Fat Announcement: Spring is in Bloom!

Grab a Spring button for your blog, & link to us at springinspiration.com!

It's up! It's arrived! It's in bloom! Spring has sprung in December!!!!!!

Can you feel my pride & excitement? That's because I'm, uh, so proud & excited (so proud & excited that other adjectives just won't fit!) to share with you all the very first installment of Spring. Our vlog this month centers around Gratitude: what it means to a life coach (that's me!), a jewelry designer, an artist & a PhD student/published author; how we show it both online & off; if it's the difference between a happy & unhappy person; & what we're grateful for. We even have a giveaway for you, & a teaser for January's installment.

Please watch it. Please enjoy it. Please comment on it. Please allow it to spark some more conversations, either within you or those who'll appreciate your hippy dippy commentary.

I'm so grateful for the existence of Spring, & your kind words & support. I can't even tell you how much this is a dream come true!

Related posts:

1. Big Fat Announcement: Spring is in Bloom!
2. Grateful-Happy*
3. Gratitude Abounding!

293, originally uploaded by lucy rose, found via kind over matter

People, it’s almost 2010. For real. I’m not kidding. I don’t know about you, but I got my Business Brain on overdrive. I’m planning for a launch of my brand new, super kick-ass website along with all sorts of high-tech, swanky features. That’s going to be mind blowing enough, but I also wanna get a whole slew of group sessions & teleseminars (both free & low-cost) on the agenda because I’m an overachiever like that.

This is where the discount comes in. Can you, dear reader, take a moment to fill out my survey & tell me what YOU want me to offer in 2010? In exchange, I’ll give ya 10% off of whatever you next sign up for in the future. Group session? 10% off. Teleseminar? 10% off. Private coaching? 10% off. And it never expires. But, you will still get 110% of my coaching. See – I’m going to add on 10% to my efforts in coaching you. You deserve it.

Related posts:

1. Blogging Your Way
2. Secure a Super Spot in my (Low-Cost) Group Coaching Session!
3. Tomorrow's the last day to win my booty!

monday by gemma correll, found via kind over matter

Related posts:

1. Motivation Monday: Be in the Moment
2. Motivation Monday: It's not who you are…
3. Motivation Monday is sleeping….

The Spring gals & I are all abuzz with our January vlog, centered around intentions. Won't you come on over & leave your thoughts, feedback & ideas around this theme? Whether you'd like to share your intentions (or resolutions – we'll be talking about those too!), or your thoughts around it/them, we'd love to hear it. We're taping this week, so come on by!

Related posts:

1. Big Fat Announcement: Spring is in Bloom!
2. Spring has Sprung!
3. Design Your Life!

JOY/HAPPINESS/PEACE by spreadthelove. Can you believe I couldn't find an image that said “Happy Christmakkah”? I should stop making up words. But I won't.

I know I'm late on the Chanukkah wishes (although Luke & I lit the menorah for almost all 8 nights this year!), so I figured I'd combine the Merry Christmas post with the Happy Chanukkah post & wish everyone a Happy Christmakkah! I'll be taking a blog break just until next week so I can do Christmasy things like soundproof my bedroom & living room & go to Ikea. OK, and eat ham & make cookies. It'll be more Christmasy than my Thanksgiving, which consisted of painting & hamburgers!

Whatever you're doing for the holidays, make it a happy one.

Related posts:

1. Six Things that Make Me Happy
2. Happy Blogthday to Me…and You!
3. Happy Belated Jew Year!

The grass is greener on my side by ParadaCreations

OK, I might have procrastinated on writing yesterday's post, but this one is even MORE procrastination – really putting pen to paper to establish my goals & intentions & dreams & ponies & rainbows. Part of me wants to recognize What Didn't Work, but I'm taking my own advice & only accent-you-ate-ing the positive! And because I'm super mean, I want to make others suffer with their celebration & good intentions, so I'm making this into a meme! That basically means that I'm going to tag 10 other bloggers (for 2010 – get it?) to do the same thing so we can all revel in our accomplishments & support each other this year with our intentions. I'm so bossy.

1. If you were only allowed to have 1 Intention for 2010, what would it be & why? I disclosed yesterday that my word will be “simplicity”, since  I basically make everything so goddamn complicated for no reason. Whether I'm setting up a budget or making a To Do List or managing my time, I tend to make things super convoluted. The kicker is that I usually spend a super duper amount of time on something, only to abandon it a few days or weeks or months later, as it's too time-consuming to keep up with! My life coach is smart & thinks there must be something of value for me to keep working this way, & I do agree. I know I'm A Planner & those details are key for me to get my thoughts down & clarify them. But now – now! – I'm paying attention to how detailed I need to get. For example, I have a million different ideas for my business that I'd love to do for 2010. Normally I'd try to plan out exactly when in 2010 I'm going to do everything, down to the exact day, & all the steps it would take for me to do it. Then, if I wasn't able to follow through, I'd feel like a loser & would would grumble & pout when I had to keep pushing each step back to a later & later date. So, this year, I created 4 Tiers & assigned each task to it's own tier. Tier 1 contains the most important tasks that I want to start or continue to work on (blogging, my newsletter, Twitter, group coaching, relaunching my website, etc) while Tier 2 is the next Stuff I Want to Start (teleseminars, in-person coaching, etc) & on until Tier 4. So I'm not even thinking of Tier 2 until I'm done with Tier 1! And if I don't get to Tier 3 or 4 this year, then I won't. It's OK. Simplicity. I'm liking it.

2. If you were only allowed to have 1 Goal for 2010, what would it be & how can you achieve it? My one goal for 2010 is to leave my day job & coach full-time. I'll definitely talk more about it after it happens, but I've had a plan in place since mid-2007 & the finish line is in view! That's really my 1 & Only Goal for 2010. Once it happens, my goal will be to actually support myself with coaching full-time!

3. If you had to do 1 New Thing in 2010, what would it be? Will you commit to it now? I so want to take musical improv at The Magnet Theater in 2010, but first I'll have to take the first two levels. But even first I'm going to take the free Into to Musical Improv class there the next time they offer it. I can so commit to that.

4. If you had to get rid of 1 Thing in 2010, what would it be & why? This is a tough one! Part of me wants to commit to not picking at my nails, but that seems so tough &, I hate to say it, fairly impossible. The other part of me wants to take it “easier” & commit to really cleaning out my closet once I'm working for myself. Anything I don't like but that's “good for the office” has to go! I have a feeling that's going to happen anyway, so I'll commit to The Scary One. If anyone has any tips (please note that I don't bite my nails – I pick at ‘em, so the stuff that tastes bad won't work!) please please share!

5. What have you achieved in 2009? List it all! So many exciting things!: got my life coaching certificate after 22 months of classes; bought an apartment with my hubby & used our own two hands to make it our sanctuary (building a soundproof wall, anyone?); starting Spring (yay! I love Spring!) & got a kick-ass welcoming from the blogosphere; grew my business & worked with almost two dozen clients this year; started & completed my first group coaching session, which was extended by a month by the group's request!; put together my new website, got a kick-ass designer, & wrote all the copy myself; started my newsletter & sent out 13 issues (wow!); widened my circle of friends, supporters, & creative souls by way of my blog, Facebook, Twitter & following a crapload of other blogs!; signed up for & completed the Blogging Your Way ecourse, led by Holly Becker of decor8 & allowing me to connect with even more fabulous creative souls (& fall in love with even more blogs!); celebrated my 1 year blogiversary & 1 year wedding anniversary(!); & instilled Me Time in my schedule & am actually following it!  I'm sure there's more, but that's what I can think of now! How amazing is it all? I'm a braggert & it's all super awesome.

Ooh, that feels so good! I think this actually really reinforced my 1 word by picking 1 Thing to Give Up, 1 Thing to Achieve, & 1 Thing to Eliminate – not to mention listing all of my wins! That list is pretty damn friggin' spectacular if I do say so myself, & really helps me celebrate all The Good Stuff that came through for me in 2009.

OK, now it's your turn! I love memes & can't wait to get these answers out of all of these lovely bloggers:

• Jess LC of Makeunder Your Life
• Jess of Pecanoot
• Carolyn of A Beautiful Ripple Effect
• Maggie of Magchunk
• Emma of Emma Alvarez Gibson
• Aimee of artsyville
• Carmen of Carmen Torbus
• Jamie of Jamie Ridler Studios
• Laura of More in You
• Laura of Lolalina

If you're not in the list above, don't let that stop you! Post your answers to the questions in the comment section, or write it on your own blog & post the link in the comment section! I'd love love love to hear your wins & your 1 Thing!

Bring it on, 2010! I'm ready for ya.

Related posts:

1. Should Old Craziness Be Forgot & Never Brought to Mind…
2. Tough (Question) Tuesday: How do you not fit in?
3. Surveys & Discounts & Feedback – Oh My!

“Eat, drink, sing, dance, laugh, love, live,” by Freya, found via design is mine

I have to admit, I've been avoiding writing this End of 2009 newsletter article for at least a week. Is it me, or has New Years become the time to make yourself feel hopeful & guilty at the same time? Focusing on what you didn't achieve that year & the things you want to fix for the next year (aka Why Your Suck) really makes you feel like a failure. Pair that with it being the end of a decade (a decade!) & your head might just spin right off your neck! Thankfully, the life coach in me told me to take the pressure off & forgo the craziness (& guilt! & feelings of failure!) solely for the celebration. That life coach is smart.

Are you putting the pressure on yourself to come up with the perfect New Year's self-reflection? Then close your eyes (not until you're done with this sentence though – it's tough to read with your eyes closed), take a deep breath, & think about the thing that made you happiest this year. Now open your eyes & write it down – how it made you feel, how it looked & smelled & even tasted – so you can remember it a hundred years from now, & then do something to celebrate it. Anything. And if that's all you do to ring in a new decade, then it's damn good enough.

If you want to do more, though (I'll admit it – I do), then here are my top life-coachy, creative suggestions:

• Set 1 word as your intention for 2010. My word for 2009 was “focus”, & it enabled me to learn how to uni-task, remain present with what I was doing, & even become slightly less ADD than usual. For 2010 my word will be “simplicity”, since I always tend to overcomplicate things for no discernable reason other than just being wired that way. It also feeds into my always-busy schedule & creeps into the time I spend with friends & family, yet doesn't seem to add much value to any of these things.
• Choose 1 goal for 2010. Yup, just 1. If you're having trouble figuring out which one, then write down all the goals that are rattling around in your head, & pick the one that you feel would make you the happiest. Then break down that goal within an inch of it's life by listing all of the steps that you'll need to take to get you to that goal, & don't forget to write down a celebration task every 2-3 steps to keep you going. Don't be tempted to do this with more than 1 goal until you reach this goal! Otherwise, that whole making-yourself-crazy thing is bound to take over. Trust me on this one (aka I've done it myself!). It might be tough to only allow yourself 1 goal, but fully focusing on that goal will not only give you better results in achieving it, but will also enable you to better enjoy the journey! Trust me on that one too (yup, I've done it myself!).
• Write a letter to yourself one year in the future, describing what happened to you in 2010. I totally stole this from Jess LC (we speak about it at length in the next Spring installment on intentions, up next week!) & honestly, it's the only thing I'm carving out time to do on New Year's Day.  When looking back on it a year after Jess LC first wrote it, she realized that more than 80% of the stuff she wrote down actually happened! Isn't this the bestest idea? It's totally The Secret in action, minus the woo-woo stuff that makes me feel like a sucker for thinking there's something valid in it.
• Write down everything you want to eliminate in your life in 2010. It could be a letter, a drawing, lyrics to a song or just a bulletpointed list, but get everything down. From “not putting myself first (or second or third or fourth)'” to “that positivity-sucking friend” or “watching Jersey Shore“. Then burn it. Or take a pen or knife or scissors & slash it up. Or spit on it & stomp it. Either way, get it out of your life in whatever violent way feels good for you. You might also want to do this to someone that hurt you this year. Not be violent to them personally, but to a letter you write to them. Please don't tell anyone I told you to beat them up. That would be bad.
• Conversely, make a list of all of your accomplishments this year! How fun is that? And yes, give yourself the space to brag & embellish on how awesome you are. If this is a tough one, think of what you've done that you received thanks for, or got a compliment on. Even if it's something as simple as “Got an awesome new haircut!” it totally counts!
• Commit to trying something new in 2010, & actually do it. Interested in a belly dancing class, or really want to join Creative Every Day? Take a look at the calendar & schedule it in, even if it won't happen until next November.

No matter what, make sure you view 2010 as a fresh start, a clean slate or a new beginning. The whole decade is open to you – revel in it!

What are you planning to do to celebrate 2009 & ring in 2010? Please share it in the comment section – I'd love to hear all about it!

Related posts:

1. Tough (Question) Tuesday: Will (your goal here) make you happy?
2. 1 Thing in 2010
3. Goals should be SMART, just like you!

My intro video is up on Spring today & will be front & center on the homepage until next week! Drop by & hear me talk about My Story along with why it's important to find The One Thing That Gets You Out of Bed. I'd love your eyeballs to view it, your ears to hear it & your fingers to comment on it! If your mouth is left out, then give it some leftover ham. That'll make it happy.

Our January installment will be up the week of the 4th, & will contain a juicy hour of talk on intentions, resolutions, & goals along with a great freakin' giveaway (seriously, I'm pissed that I can't enter). We taped this weeks ago & I'm still inspired by all the gems (& clarity!) that Jess LC, Jess & Carolyn threw out there. You won't wanna miss it, so mark your calendars & come on by!

OK, but come by now though to watch my intro video. Man, I'm needy!

Related posts:

1. Seeking Intentions for Spring!
2. Big Fat Announcement: Spring is in Bloom!
3. Spring has Sprung!

HEEEEY YEEEEEWWWWWWW GUUUUUUUYS! (Sorry, I had to have a Goonies moment – please excuse me. And please don't tell me if you actually clicked on the link. It would make me feel old)

The 2nd episode of Spring is up today! In this installment, we focus on intentions, goals & resolution – the differences between them, why some work (& others don't!), & how to bring more of the good stuff into your life. There are some really concrete, awesome exercises in here, if we do say so ourselves! And I say that I'm gonna put my money where my mouth is & post the letter I wrote to Future Michelle on New Year's Day up here tomorrow. If you don't know what the heck I'm talking about, watch the video & you, too, can steal Jess LC's incredible idea!

Related posts:

1. Seeking Intentions for Spring!
2. My Spring Intro Video Is Up! Yay Hooray!
3. Motivation Monday: New Resolutions

I can not believe I'm writing this a whole 4 days before schedule (which is actually 6 days before the original schedule, but was adjusted for my Great Big Excitement that I'll announce on Monday), but the brand new redesign of When I Grow Up is LIVE!! The new version of this site now has:

• a Press page for all my print & radio interviews
• an online scheduler to make your consultation calls & private sessions easy breezy
• a calendar of Events for my group sessions & appearances (now accepting early bird registration for 4 different group coaching sessions!!)
• even more provided Services, like 75-minute catch-up calls for my former clients
• an audio recording of a real live 15 minute session in the sidebar of every page to better explain What is Coaching?
• new questions on the FAQ page
• additional bios on About Me
• my clients looking like cartoons on the Testimonials page (which has less testimonials than the last, but that's only because we're busy converting clients to cartoons! Please note that this is not literal.)
• & Free Resources. Yup – you can now download PDFs of all the career change exercises I give my private clients, along with links to everything I bookmark on Delicious & my Google Reader. How awesome am I? (Answer: pretty damn awesome)

More than anything, I have to thank my amazingly fabulously awesome website designer, Bekky Pollock, for, well, her amazingly fabulous awesomeness in knowing exactly what I wanted without me knowing exactly what I wanted. She's so awesome, & I'm sure that you're gonna love this design so much, that I made her put a link to her site at the bottom of each page so I wouldn't get a trillion emails asking me who did my site. I also have to give super big love to my ridiculously awesome husband, who built the whole site from Bekky's design in just a short few weeks. There was a bunch of stuff that he learned just for me, & that wasn't even in our vows! Of course, I'm one step closer to being his Sugar Mama now, so at least there's something in it for him.

So please, if you're reading this in Google Reader or somesuch off-site contraption, click on over to whenigrowupcoach.com & spend some time in my home on the Interweb – no housewarming gift necessary (but booze always accepted). I'm oh so happy to have you.

Related posts:

1. Motivation Monday: Live From Your Heart
2. Real live marketing to go with my Big Fat Huge Enormous Freakin’ Awesomely Amazing Announcement!
3. It's settled. I'll live in Michelle World.

Me at my GraduLaunch Party in June, celebrating my new Spark.

Today is my 32nd birthday.

I joke that I'm an old lady, but honestly, I don't feel it. Yeah, I see the lone gray hair appear when it's too long between colorings (there's a bright one now in my bangs!), & there was a point in my life that I was always (proudly!) The Youngest (usually when I was doing shows), but honestly, really, deeply, truly:

I love being 32. I know it, even though it's just been the case for a few hours.

Nicole J. Butler – a working actress who I haven't met in person, but whose blog is very vulnerable, truthful, strong, & wise – posted about whether your world is getting smaller in a bad way, & described the flame that seems to flicker with each passing year until most people settle for Getting Along. The friends she writes about have allowed their flame to go out, along with the perspective that The World Is Their Oyster & Anything is Possible.

I've seen this happen. I've smelled it, tasted it, breathed it, too. But I have to say, I haven't lived it.

OK, let me stand a bit corrected: I didn't allow myself to live it. That place I was in back in 2006, where I wasn't going on auditions & had a good-paying, benefit-wielding, 401K-giving job, was there for me to grab on to & not let go. Only for the fact that it was unacceptable for me to allow my flame to go out did I not settle comfortably into Grown-Updom. That was not my lot in life. And while I did allow my Theater Spark to burn on Low (instead of the Hi that it was on for about 20 years), I had absolutely no idea that there was another Spark waiting. Even so, I went to look.

As we all know, my Spark was life coaching. Specifically, life coaching creative people who are at a crossroads between their passion & their grown-up careers. And while I can safely say that I found a new Spark (along with the Spark that my husband gives me, but that's private!), I think that I'm going to keep finding new Sparks within that Spark. From coaching, I rediscovered my love of writing, which I never really did after college (except for the sporadic journal entry) until I had an excuse to start this blog. From coaching, I also put to use my Spark of building relationships with others (as I put on my last job review, “If I'm not a relationship builder, I don't know what I am”), being on camera (I love filming my vlogs!), “performing” in front of a room (group coaching is a total natural high for me, & I can't wait to see how I fare out with teleseminars & workshops!) & being my own boss.

So, here I sit, thirty-two years old, feeling secure that all the days of my life have lead to here, to this Spark & to many Sparks to come. In keeping with the theme of the week, I'm proud that I rose above those challenges & didn't sink into the safe comfort of being Old, being Good Enough or letting it be OK To Just Get By. I'm here with my lessons learned & absorbed & behind me, growing every day & feeling like my uniquity is my best asset. And if you're proud & excited by who you are, look for your new Sparks when you think there are none left, &  allow the ones that are inside you to  flame in a way that aligns with your values, then age is nothing but a number.

I'm 32, and I'm full of Purpose, Gratitude, Happiness, & Sparks.

Related posts:

1. My 30th Year, reflected upon on my 31st birthday
2. Gratitude Abounding!
3. Motivation Monday: Believe In Your Happiness

Thank you all so very much for your support, encouragement, & virtual confetti that you threw my way this week when I announced that I was video interviewed for Newsweek! Unfortunately, we're all gonna hafta be in suspense for just a week longer, as the live date got pushed back to 1/20. I'm taking the stance that the video was so awesome, the staff knew that it would be another week before they got themselves off the floor. Right? Right? Right.

Thankfully, Spring is here to save the day! While I don't have a fancy video to show you, I do have 3 fantastic, free downloads from the Spring girls today! Head on over & grab yourself a Goal Game (I provided the text, while Jess Gonacha Swift provided the pretty!), a How to Write Your Annual Letter PDF written by Jess LC (she's the one that started it all!) & a super-cute, super-bright goal planning & organizing PDF from Carolyn Rubenstein! And if you haven't already, comment on our latest video for a chance to win a Goal Kit by Jessica Gonacha Swift. I spent real money for mine & it's worth double what she charges!

Related posts:

1. March 23-30 is Positivity Week!
2. Positivity Week: The End?
3. I'm the coach of the week on RoSoGo!

motivation note cards by watersounds

By now you guys have heard me yammer/exclaim/giddily scream about my new website (& if you haven't, well, come on over & visit – you're always welcome!). What I haven't done yet is pimp out my group coaching sessions, & the first one starts on Feb 9th, with early bird registration ending next week & overall registration closing shortly thereafter! That's super soon, people, & I wanted to make sure you kids saw what I have to offer because, frankly, my group coaching sessions are awesome. I love doing them like nobody's business (that's what she said). Thankfully the feeling's mutual – here's what my last group coaching participants (yes, there are just 4 to a group so everyone gets personal attention each week!) had to say:

• “When the recession hit, for the first time in my life I struggled to find a job…and I realized I was struggling because I didn't know what I wanted. Looking back, I had patiently dated a million jobs, expecting Prince Charming to fall into my lap. When the scheming little bastard refused to show, I decided to get out there and hunt it down. This new goal brought out my demons, but I pushed forward by telling myself that Group Coaching would still be worth it even if I only found a better “date,” and not my elusive Mr. Right. Every group coaching session was fun and energizing, even when all four of us showed up feeling like basketcases! No matter how rough the week, Thursday night had the magical power to lift us all up. Temporary feelings of loserhood shriveled, and with renewed confidence we hashed out concrete tasks to keep the momentum going for another seven days. Instead of just knowing my own story – the anxieties, roadblocks, and triumphs – I had the privilege of witnessing three more. Now that these group sessions are behind me, I am realizing how much I dip into those other stories, searching for and finding solutions, strategies, hope, and inspiration. Happily, Group Coaching resulted in much more than a “better date.” By the end of the sessions I had developed a new professional dream, a personal mission statement to guide it, and an action plan to make it a reality. Many thanks to my Fairy Godmother, Michelle!” – Faith, California
• “The group coaching environment was great! We fed off of each other's energy, and it helped in feeling like you were not alone in the general struggle of self exploration and needing change in your career. The best thing about group coaching was when Michelle saw my hangups as opportunities to grow and helped me understand and celebrate my strengths. By asking a question or framing the issue I was having in a certain way, she allowed me to break free from what was holding me back. So many times I said something that was important, specifically something that was said with clarity, and I remembered it was recorded and I could go back to it later. It helped having someone else see the strengths and potential that I didn't see in myself.” – Stephanie Gravalese-Wood, Massachusetts
• “The highlight of my group sessions was when Michelle would listen to what I said when I was really confused & then cut through the mental fog & say something insightful – and then come up with an action plan to fix it! She's a great listener and summarized our feelings succinctly & with clarity, and she has a super friendly personality that puts people at ease when they might be nervous about revealing their hopes/dreams to a group of people. My group session experience was SO POSITIVE & wonderful! I also got really concrete tips from other group members in my position, & we were able to comment on how we knew what the other people were saying, feeling, going through, etc. My group sessions really gave me the confidence to move forward.” – Charlotte Dauphin, Virginia
• “I decided to sign-up for group coaching with Michelle because I didn't know what to do with me. I wasn't feeling happy with my job, I wanted change, but I didn't know for what. Often, I was feeling stressed and oppressed by my behavior and I wanted to find my path. I was looking for help to organize all my ideas & thought in order to focus on something. Michelle really helped me feel more comfortable with myself. Everything seems more easier & simple with her. She's funny & friendly & didn't judge & almost every time she was targeting right. I now know myself more than before, so I can focus on what I'm good at, & make my work more interesting for me. I now have a good subject to start my blog (& express myself & get out there!) & I've decided to sign-up in a graphic design school, so I'm happier! I have gained not less than that.” – Julie D., Montreal

While I love my private sessions, whether they're by phone or email, there's something about being part of a group of creative people with a similar goal that supports & “gets” each other that gets the breakthroughs broken-through like nothing else. The fact that it's low-cost, too (just $39/session) allows me to coach a whole slew of people who might not be able to afford my private sessions, while still making sure that they get individual attention. That's really important to me.

But enough about me – here's what I'm offering you!:

• Operation: When I Grow Up! February 9th-April 27th at 8p EST.  Registration ends on Monday, Feb 1st & the early bird special expires on Jan 26th.
• Operation: Put Your Career Plan Into Action! February 25th-May 6th at 8:30p EST.  Registration ends on Wednesday, Feb 17st & the early bird special expires on February 3rd.
• Operation: Creative Life Design! March 24th-June 9th at 12p EST. Registration ends on Tuesday, Mar 16th & the early bird special expires on March 2nd.
• Operation: Creative Career Growth Spurt! April 12th-June 20th at 1p EST.  Registration ends on Sunday, April 4th & the early bird special expires on Mar 21st.

You can get even more info (what we'll cover in the sessions, the awesome extras that are included, yada yada yada) on my Events page, & you can register right from there via PayPal if you're ready to commit to putting the pedal to the medal. If you still need more info, then schedule yourself into my schedule for a 30-min consultation call.

We're gonna have a frickin' ball!

Related posts:

1. Secure a Super Spot in my (Low-Cost) Group Coaching Session!
2. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!
3. Motivation Monday: Fresh Start

Holy crapballs, is this exciting. Maybe even more so because after the video was pushed back for the second time, I resigned myself to seeing it in March. Or May. Or 2011. But not before the week was over!

Put Me In, Life Coach is a 5-minute video on Newsweek.com that profiles me as one of the 15,000 (!) life coaches out there. You'll hear how I found my way to coaching, how I got accredited, my definition of a life coach, & even see me coaching a client & hear her thoughts about being coached! I stand corrected: holy crapballs, this is super exciting.

Oh, and if you've found your way here because of this super awesome video, Welcome! Click around & stay for a while – there's a ton of neat stuff both on my blog & in my site. This is my home on the Interwebs, & you're always welcome!

Once more for good measure: holy crapballs.

Related posts:

1. My Spring Intro Video Is Up! Yay Hooray!
2. The GraduLaunch Party is coming! The GraduLaunch Party is coming!
3. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!

I have to admit I am so super behind in my Award posts. Back in December I got the Sweet Thing Award from Maggie, & all the way back in November I got the Sugar Doll Award from Melissa!

Since I got the Sugar Doll Award first, I'm posting my response now. It's 2 months late, but hopefully it still counts!

Here are 10 Things About Me that I haven't yet shared (since this is similar to my Honest Scrap Award & my Kreativ Blogger Award) :

1. The only time I've never had bangs was when I grew them out in 8th grade. This was also the time when I got a perm. A perm + no bangs = no date to the 8th grade dance. And no, you will not see a picture of me from that time. Unless I'm dead. Until then, here's a cute pic of me with bangs when I was super little.

2. That pic of super-little me totally has a story behind it. My Mom swears that, when I was that super-little, she would spent hours (plural) filling up that kiddie pool with warm water from the kitchen sink (instead of cold water from the hose), transported in buckets or bowls or somesuch silliness. When the pool was finally full, I would get in it & be happy as a clam…for 5 minutes. Then I lost interest & got out. Every time. It's amazing she still puts up with me.

3. I was super tall as a kid – so tall, in fact, that I was the tallest in my school in 5th grade & never got to play Annie because of it (at least that's what I tell myself). I was told growing up by my doctor that, if I kept growing the way I was, I'd be somewhere around 5′8″. In 10th grade, I stopped growing just short of 5′6″. I still refer to my height as 5′5″ & a half.

4. As much as I want to be all artsy & intellectual about it, I can't deny that my favorite movie is Say Anything. Doesn't every girl want a Lloyd Dobler to her Diane Court?

Yup, I used a non-boombox pic. It's so not about the boombox. Image via Molly J.

5. (This is harder than it looks!) I've picked at my nails/cuticles for as long as I can remember. Gross, right? I've been more & more self-conscious about it as I've grown older, & 2010 is so the year I'm stopping. Even though it seemed impossible – seriously, I had no idea how I was going to stop – I've managed to do a really awesome job of not picking since New Year's. I can't say I haven't done it at all, but I've been so much better & am really convinced that by this time next year, no gross picking. (Pats self on back).

6. I make really good coffee. For real. I don't know what it is, but I have the magic coffee touch.

7. I'm the worst at remembering names. I'll see someone I went to school with for 12 years & have no idea what their names are. I'll call my best friend from middle school & say, “I saw that guy today! With the brown hair! What's his name?” I'm hopeless.

8. Dark chocolate. Every time.

9. The only celebrity I've repeatedly been told that I look like  is Mayim Bialik from Blossom. Really, people? Really?

Does this look like me? Does it? Wait – don't answer that.  Image via nge press.

10. Luke & I built a soundproof wall over the wall in our living room the week between Christmas and New Years. As a Jewish girl from Long Island, this is handiest/toughest workman-like thing I've done. After about 24 hours total of hard physical labor (not all at once, thankfully), we have a like-new new wall & no longer hear the neighbors pushing the buttons on their video game controller.

At least I looked cute doing it! Work flats from Target.

That was fun, but way harder than it looks! So glad I get to pick who goes next. According to the rules, I bestow this award on 10 other bloggers who then get to post the same 10 Things (not the same 10 things – you know what I mean). Here they are!:

1. Sara of Right Click Office Services
2. Emily of Hello! Self
3. Jen of Follow My Bliss
4. Erin of Leo on the Loose
5. Lindsay of Likely Design
6. Andi of Hit & Runners
7. Cassandra of Cassandra Rae
8. Tiffany of Crafty Fanny
9. Carmen of Carmen Torbus
10. Paige of That's Life!

Have fun, ladies!

Related posts:

1. My First Award!
2. I'm an Honest Scrap!
3. On My 32nd Birthday: Purpose, Gratitude, Happiness, & Sparks

Give Me a Hand by Blue Bicicletta

Last month, I got a tweet from Danielle LaPorte alerting me to the Help Haiti Blog Challenge, & it's been stuck in my mind ever since. I've been running it over in my head, trying to figure out how I want to contribute. I'm supposed to add a badge & complete this sentence:

“I will donate ________ dollars to _________ on behalf of the next person who buys _________from me.”

But I don't wanna. I wanna involve more people than just The Next Person. I wanna give more of myself & the things I can contribute. I wanna donate 5% of my coaching income for February to Haiti. Will you help me make sure it's a lot? Click on over to my Services page to find out about my private sessions, & over to Events to explore the group sessions I got goin' on, & know that your hard-earned money will be hard at work for those in need.

Related posts:

1. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!
2. New Group Coaching Sessions Start Super Soon!
3. Secure a Super Spot in my (Low-Cost) Group Coaching Session!

There's so much awesomeness going on I just had to create a When I Grow Up Round-Up! Cute title, huh? It's not alliteration but it rhymes, so it's OK by me (yes, “up” & “up” totally rhyme- says me).

First up is the announcement of a Free Info Call for Operation: When I Grow Up! on Tue the 16th! I've never done one of these before, but thought it would be really useful for anyone thinking of joining my next group session. I'll let ya know our agenda for each of the 12 sessions, what awesome things you can expect, & answer all of your questions. Just sign up here & even if you can't make it, a recording will be sent to you via carrier pigeon (or email, but carrier pigeon sounds cooler) a few hours after the call. So join us for some laughs, some awesomeness & a sing-along (sing-along optional).

Second up is that I was quoted in the Careers section of Metro this week! For those not in a major northeast city, Metro is one of 2 free papers that are given out at every subway stop (at least I think they are – I've never been able to dodge ‘em!) in Boston, NY & Philly. I was thrilled to see my contributions in the article Let Your Office Creativity Fly Free. Thankfully I refrained myself from standing up in my sit during busy rush hour, pointing to the article, & yelling, “That's me! That's me!” Although who am I kidding – New Yorkers wouldn't bat an eye over craziness like that!

Third up is the new weekly video on Spring! We're posting a new meaty, juicy video every Tuesday in February instead of one humongous, time-consuming one, & so far the response has been awesome. This week, we talk about how to find your support system (both online & off), how to ask for support,  what to do with those supporters who don't reciprocate, & even a personal (& scary!) challenge from Jess LC. And we have a new giveaway! So carve a half-hour into your busy day for some support time & watch here!

Fourth up (Whew! How do I sleep?) is my interview on The Sweet Unfolding! I love that it's called Encouraging Words. Just about sums it up. Aw.

Related posts:

1. When I Grow Up: Behind the Blog
2. When I Grow Up: The Logo!
3. Motivation Monday: When I Grow Up

It's amazing how many places you can go without leaving your apartment. Of course, I'm talking about my multiple appearances on the Interwebs this week!

First off is the monthly Spring instillation, which is now a weekly one! That's right – instead of one long-ass video, or 1 long-ass video cut into smaller pieces, we taped 4 stand-alone segments & are posting a new one each week. How great is that? Click here for the first part of our discussion on support, & don't forget to comment for your chance to win our weekly giveaway (yup – weekly! How cool are we? Answer: very cool).

Note: this is not my self-portrait, but the button you click on to get to the self-portraits on The Mathematics of Glamour.

Second off is my self-portrait, thanks to Kira of  The Mathematics of Glamour. “But Michelle,” you perplexingly ask, “I thought you were an actress – not an artist!” And I answer, strong & confident, “Of course I'm no artist – but I can draw a mean stick figure!” Thankfully, Kira told me that she loves stick figures & never had one before, & was actually psyched to put it on her site! She made it a totally safe space for me, & I was actually really excited to create my self-portrait & show it off to the world. It's even my new profile pic on my personal Facebook account (although I was dying to take down the old profile pic of Mayim Bialik, since it was doppelganger week)! Stop by & take a look, & help me in thanking Kira for being awesome / not telling me that stick figures aren't art.

Third off, keep your eyes on The Sweet Unfolding this week, because a little bird (OK, it was Sarah of The Sweet Unfolding! Geez Louise Louise, the pressure!) told me that my interview will be up there on Friday the 5th.

Hope everyone is loving the view that they have from their computer! It's kinda like I'm at 10,000 feet….

Related posts:

1. My Spring Intro Video Is Up! Yay Hooray!
2. Big Fat Announcement: Spring is in Bloom!
3. Spring Episode 2: Intentions & Goals & Resolutions, Oh My!

I'm going to Vegas today – yay hooray! 5 days in the desert with my man, his sister, & her boyfriend (who dances for The Donny & Marie Show), not to mention some time with my man's BFF from high school, who we never see unless someone's recently dead or about to get married. But I didn't think it would be fun if I have all the fun, so when I saw the Everyday Creative Kit & Workbook on Nicole Docimo's blog I just had to DM her on Twitter & asked if she'd sponsor a giveaway. As you can guess, she said yes (Are you wearing a dress? I'm not, I confess!)! I'm so freakin' excited. The first sponsored giveaway on this blog! About damn time.

Here it is! Isn't it awesome?! (Please note that that's a hypothetical question)

I asked Nicole the simple question of what inspired her to create the kit, & she gave me these gems:

“Something that has become very important to me over the past few years, as I've gotten back into art after spending some time avoiding it (for reasons of fear, and delusions that you can't do art as a career), is the idea that everyone is creative. How many times I have heard people say, “I'm not creative,” or “I wish I was creative.” Honestly, this is RIDICULOUS, and it makes me angry that so many people have internalized this. I think it is one of the barriers to artists becoming artists and really flexing their “art-wings,” and on a larger level, I think it is one of the barriers to a lot of people really enjoying life.

I know these are big statements, but if you think about it, when we were all kids we lived in endless worlds of creativity. Anything was possible, until we were taught that it was not. I think creativity is the difference between putting yourself in a a box, and living a free and joyful life. It's the difference between “yes” and “no.” For quite a few years, I told myself “no.” I thought I couldn't do art for a living, I thought I wasn't good enough, I thought “I must do the jobs that are available because that is the way people do it.” Once I started to really let myself get creative in my brain and in my heart, everything changed. Once I made space to open up to the possibilities, I was able to shift and make creativity the focus of my life—not just art, but the idea of an entire creative life concept—that you don't have to live the way everyone says you “should.” You can create your own life, based on the things that you value. This is the ultimate idea of creativity to me.

My Everyday Creative Kit is an introduction to this. It is an opening to a bunch of small ideas that can add up to a lot more joy. The first incarnation of the kit idea for me was an Art Monthly Club program I started this past fall, where members would receive a little bit of creative inspiration each month in the form of a kit. After putting it out there for a couple of months, I realized that what I was trying to do could be done better by a series of kits that I offer consistently, instead of a monthly club. So I thought about it for a while, and decided that the first kit I would like to make would be a guide to being creative in small ways, everyday. I decided that a workbook would be the best cornerstone of the kit, and collected and thought of a handful of different exercises that would get people into the creative mode—from doing an inspiration collage, to dancing, to going on a field trip—mainly just taking the time to think about what creative things you would love to do. As with everything, I think it's about making space and time for what you want in your life—I hope this kit will help people make a little space in their lives for more creativity. As I've found with making art—creativity leads to more creativity. Once you open the door, you never know what will come in.”

Seriously. I love her.

OK, so you wanna win, don't ‘cha? You can enter by leaving a comment below that describes what you do for your creative time. Do you have a tip to get started on a creative project? A daily ritual that gets you into that play space? A favorite creative thing? A mantra that helps you clear your head & get to work? We wanna hear it!

Oh, and you get 1 extra vote for doing each of the following:

• following me on Twitter
• following me on Facebook
• following Nicole on Twitter
• following Nicole on Facebook
• tweeting about this giveaway (I'll make it easy – copy & paste this: “I just entered the Everyday Creative Kit Giveaway by @bluebicicletta on @WhenIGroUpCoach's blog. Your turn! http://ow.ly/16T1A”)

Each time you do one of those things, add a comment below saying what you did. So, everyone can have up to 6 entries! You'll be a shoo-in when I pick the winner randomly on Tuesday, February 23rd at 5p EST. The winner will be announced early Wednesday!

And even though I'll be watching Donny & Marie / seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time / maxin' & relaxin' I'll have a vlog up for you on Friday. The miracle of the scheduled posts!

Good luck, everyone!

Related posts:

1. Grown-Up Gig: Creative Entrepreneurial Endeavor Developer
2. Ten Ways to Know If You're a Creative Entrepreneur
3. Freakin' (Great Links) Friday: Installment 2

Just a quick reminder that the free info call for Operation: When I Grow Up!  is on for tomorrow, Feb 16th at noon EST. Make sure that Santa knows to come to your house by clicking here, expanding the first section & filling out the super short form. Even if you're busy prepping the cookies & milk, sign up anyway & your presents (aka the recording of the call) will be thrown down your chimney (aka sent via email) a few hours later. Wait, am I Santa in this scenario? Can Santa be Bat Mitzvahed? I gotta check on this….

Hope to hear you at noon tomorrow!

Related posts:

1. The Rock Star Coach call is TOMORROW!
2. I'm a Hit & Runner with a Daily Whip!
3. When I Grow Up Round-Up!

…drumroll please……

…now the violins….

….and then the cowbell….

…now drumrolls louder….

…then the triangle….

…back to the drumroll….and….the winner is…..

Tiffany from Crafty Fanny!

Now how fun was that?! OK, maybe it wasn't as fun for all the contestants who aren't Tiffany, but the good news is that the Everyday Creative Kit is just $15. Ya know how I'm all like, “Celebrate stuff!” & “Be Nice to Yourself!” & “Bribe Yourself to Do Stuff!”? Normally everyone thinks that a Celebration has to be a big party or a Broadway show or an enormous lobster dinner, but I say “hell to the no” – it can be as cheap & simple as a bubble bath or a stargazer lily or some time with a book. The Everyday Creative Kit strikes me as a perfect treat for yourself. Add it to your Me Time list!

Oh, and don't feel bad about not winning, everyone-who-isn't-Tiffany. I have to buy an Everyday Creative Kit too. I gotta do something about these rules…

P.S. If you have something you think my readers would like & wanna sponsor a giveaway, email me at michelle(at)whenigrowupcoach(dot)com. Excitement!

Related posts:

1. Great Giveaway!: Everyday Creative Kit & Workbook!
2. Ten Ways to Know If You're a Creative Entrepreneur
3. Grown-Up Gig: Creative Entrepreneurial Endeavor Developer

A poem by moi, inspired by The First Day of Spring, which is tomorrow (also titled Damn You, Wool Hat – Never Again!) & my Last Day of Corporate America, which is today (also titled Damn You, Cubicle – Never Again!):

Let's pack up a picnic & go on our way! Today is such a wonderful, beautiful day!

Isn't today just perfect to play? Whaddya think, whaddya say?

I might go to the beach, oh I just may. Today is a spectacular, fabulous day!

To life I say, “Yes! Now! OK!” What do you think? What do you say?

All the gray clouds have been chased away. Today is a sun-derful, fun-derful day!

All day long, outside I will stay. What a perfectly, prettily, beautiful day!

I just can't help it – isn't today the most wonderful day? I have to say that I was inspired by the Spring set of Affirmation Cards on Kind Over Matter! That's right – in honor of spring, us Spring ladies joined forces with Kind Over Matter to offer you 36 downloadable affirmations – 6 from each of us. You can download mine here (spoiler: one of the lines of my poem above made it in!),  but don't forget to visit Kind Over Matter to get your hands on Jess, Jess LC & Carolyn's affirmations along with the special Spring Affirmations Card Holder (also free & downloadable!).

So, you see now that the question of whether this is the most wonderful day is a hypothetical one, right?

P.S. Don't think I'm wussing out on sharing my Last Day of Corporate America feelings/thoughts/tears with ya. I'll so be back with a big fat post and/or a video this weekend or early next week. Promise. Today, I just wanna bask.

Related posts:

1. Change is good. Just ask America.
2. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!
3. My Spring Intro Video Is Up! Yay Hooray!

When I met a client recently in person who didn't recognize me from my (5 year old!) photo, I came to a grim reality: I need new headshots! While the old ones looked enough like me, & conveyed exactly the right attitude of Fun, Bright, Colorful & Creative that I want to convey to my clients (& the Interweb population at large), I knew it was time for an update. Thankfully, one of my close friends knew someone that was looking to build his portfolio, & offered to take my pics in exchange for the use of ‘em & the cost of studio time. I saw a few shots of his, figured I'd get at least one good one, & met him on Saturday (with Luke!) to shoot. Since it is The Future & I got to see some of the shots right away, I knew I had some good ones to pick from – but I never expected such trouble in picking a winner!

So, I whittled them down to lucky 13,  opened up the voting to the Facebook friends, Fan & Twitter followers & asked ‘em: Which one do ya like the best?

This one?

Or maybe this one?

Ooh – whaddabout this one?

Well, what was clear was that this one was a hit:

But this one – this was the landslide winner!

Look for it to come soon to a website/twitter page/everywhere in Interwebland that I am!

And if you live in NYC & need some shots of your own, hurry up & contact Joel Bischoff. He's gonna start charging big time real super soon!

And can I brag real quick about how freakin' handsome my husband is?

I'm so embarrassing him right now, but damn, he's fine & I'm showin' him off! Everyone come see his next show on Apr 9th at The Magnet Theater in NYC- I play Kelly Kapowski in a new episode of “Saved by the Bell” & Michelle Tanner in a new episode of “Full House”! OK, so I'm showing him off and pimping him out. But seriously, we're in super love. Just deal with it.

Related posts:

1. No News(week) is Good News(week)?
2. And the scholarship goes to….
3. Want 12 free coaching sessions? Then you want my scholarship!