One of the things I’ve been noticing about myself is that I’m uncomfortable during the messy ‘in-between’ stages of things.  We recently moved into a new home and even though we are pretty much ‘moved in’ there are all of the lingering messy things… boxes unpacked, disorganized garage, pictures not yet hung… you know, the detail stuff.

Then, over the weekend, Tony and I started doing ‘home projects’.  I was getting stressed having so many different projects going on with “nothing” completed and a mess all around me.  I started to get cranky.  Yet – I noticed something. I became conscious of my uncomfortable feelings. And realized they were old familiar friends.

There is a saying that says, “How you do anything is how you do everything.” You see, I like to multi-task. I like the fast-paced world. I like to create new things, get new projects started, and get the ball rolling.  Yet, I tend to get a bit ‘all over the place’ if I start too many things at once and nothing is finished through to completion.

So, I started wondering…

Are we ever ‘done’ in life? In career? In job? In work? Or, are we just in one continual moment of change and that’s what’s constant and consistent.

Or, can we actually do fewer things and get them through to completion before starting the next thing? Is this possible? Does life work like this? And what would I tell my clients?

I think what I’m learning about myself as a career coach for others and as a person with her own career is:

• It’s okay to have a few things going on at once. Life is rarely ‘one thing at a time.’
• Do your best to prioritize so you feel more successful at the end of the day.
• Bite larger projects off in sizable chunks so you can have that sense of completion throughout the larger project or task.
• Celebrate both big and small accomplishments. Literally pat yourself on the back!
• And, yes, know that “it” is never really done.  Life is constant. Career is constant. Enjoy the ride.

I welcome your thoughts and comments on how you celebrate your successes and follow-through to completion.

And, please let me know how I can help you manage the chaos to create a step-by-step strategy to maximize your career success.

Many of you understand the importance of CLARITY and/or GOAL SETTING!  And many of you know that I use each month’s new moon to set intentions / goals / wishes / dreams with what I want to create in my successful career and life.

So today’s post is to remind you that this month’s new moon is tomorrow, Wednesday, April 14th at 4:30 am PT / 6:30 am CT / 7:30 am ET and is in ARIES.

Whether you believe in astrology, the new moon, or not… just use the day as a reminder to recharge, revisit, and clarify your goals and intentions for a wonderful life!

How does the new moon work in terms of goal setting?

• Write up to 10 intentions (any more than that and the energy gets kind of displaced).
• It is best to hand write them (vs type)
• Each month, the new moon is ruled by a different astrological sign which rules certain aspects of life. Writing intentions in these areas is very powerful but you can write your intentions in ANY area of your life. You don’t have to be born in the Aries sign in order to benefit from the new moon each month.
• Write your intentions in the positive… In other words, state what you want (don’t say what you don’t want or may just get that!).

• New Beginnings, including: blazing new trails, initiating, high energy, taking action, innovative approaches
  • Example: “I I easily find myself initiating action in regard to ______.”
• The Self, including: the physical body, survival issues, instincts, assertiveness
  • Example: “I easily find myself consistently asserting myself in healthy ways.”
• Innocence, including: honesty, authenticity, impulsiveness, straightforwardness
  • Example: “I easily find myself honestly revealing my thoughts and feelings.”
• Self-Discovery, including: exploration, taking risks, eagerness, competition
  • Example: “I easily view any ‘setbacks’ as an opportunity for creative self-discovery.”
• Independence, including: self-direction, self-reliance, autonomy, self-sufficiency
  • Example: “I easily make decisions that are in my won best interests.”
• Our “Warrior Nature”, including: courage, leadership, strength, vigilance, boldness
  • Example: “I am easily filled with courage and awareness in actively pursuing my own aims.”
• Self-Absorption, including: lack of awareness of others, selfishness, vanity, impulsive action that alienates others, anger, impatience
  • Example: “I easily stop taking impulsive actions that are against my core best interests.”
• In matters of restoring health, Aries rules: acne, eyes, head, face, scalp, and brain, headaches and dizziness
  • Example: “I easily experience total healing to occur in the area of my ______ (body area ruled by Aries).” OR “I easily attract, recognize, and begin working with the right healers for me that restore my ______ (body area ruled by Aries) to perfect health.”

• The author of the book on new moon astrology uses the “I want…” type of wish/intention.  I tend to drop the ‘want’ part of the wish/intention and write wishes/intentions that are in the present tense.  So rather than, “I want to attract get started on writing the novel I have been talking about,” I would write, “I easily have the ideas, thoughts, and time available to start my new novel.” Do what resonates with you.
• I think it’s a great idea to add the word ‘easy’ or ‘easily’ into any wish/intention. I mean, why not be clear and ask the universe to make it easy???
• And, if you’re asking for clearing or healing in any area, you may want to write something like “in a healthful manner” within the wish/intention so that what you are asking for occurs in a healthy, easy manner.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about accountability.  I know for myself and the people I choose to surround myself with, there are so many things we want to do that it’s sometimes difficult to know what to do first, why we’re doing it, what we already know how to do vs. what we need help/training/coaching on, and how to stay on track and get it done.

As a Professional Career Coach, I am a big believer in ongoing training, education, development, and coaching. I read books, take classes, network with amazing people, participate in interesting forums, and I personally work with a coach, Ann Strong of Thriving Coaches. She helps me to stay on track, move forward with digestible steps, yet also stretches me gently beyond my comfort zone and shines light on the areas I can’t see because I’m the one “in it”.

Somehow, when I tell her I will do something (I take on ‘homework’ in between our coaching sessions), it gets done!  I have really accelerated the results in my business in this way.  The funny thing is that I know I’m ultimately accountable and responsible to myself but putting a ‘stake in the ground’, saying it out loud to someone else whom I respect (and invest in!) and assigning a date to it… gets it done.

I started wondering what other areas of my life need more accountability. For example, I know that I would like to be exercising more and eating differently/better.  But I’m not really doing it.  I make some progress but then backslide, stall out, and then get overwhelmed.  I wonder why this area seems so ‘easy’ for some people and difficult for others.

So, if apply my methods of success in my career coaching business to this area of my life, I know it’s time to get accountable to someone… so I did it.  I mean, I know what to do: how to exercise, my exercise options, why building lean muscle mass is important, why eating healthier matters, and so on. But I wasn’t doing it until I held myself accountable to myself through someone else.  I invested in myself to break the big goal into digestible steps, to get clear on why it’s ultimately important to me, to know what success will look like, to examine what may be holding me back and to clear it, to have another perspective, and to ultimately get it done and taken care of thereby fulfilling another goal and dream.

The dictionary defines the word accountable as this:

-adjective: subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable.

It sounds so serious yet it pretty much sums it up.  So, my questions for you are this… How do YOU stay accountable in your life? In your career? In your job search? etc. What do you need to put in place to create more accountability to yourself so your goals and dreams become reality?

If I can help you to get accountable, stay on track, stretch and grow towards your career and/or job search goals, please let me know.  You can check out your options here:

• Career Path / Success Services
• Job Search Strategy Services

And please comment!

Here’s a little video for you on the importance of CLARITY with respect to career happiness, success, and/or successful job search strategy.  As a Professional Career Coach, I can’t stress enough how magical it can be when someone is clear within him/herself as to what they really want and what they are trying to achieve. Amazing!

Please let me know how I can help you to achieve more clarity thereby creating super success! Enjoy.

As always, I welcome your comments!