Shera R. Sever: Awakening Leaders™

We now have the opportunity to live

the most meaningful lives

any generation of humankind has ever lived!

Have you read Lynne Twist’s Soul of Money? If not, get a copy of it now, and share it! Lynne Twist is a global activist and a master fundraiser, raising more than $150 million in individual contributions for charitable causes including the Hunger Project.

She is the author of The Soul of Money,  (an absolute must read!) and co-founder of the Pachamama Alliance .

Listen to her insights on the times. CLICK HERE TO SEE VIDEO

A friend sent me this powerful quote from Martin Luther King Jr the other day and I wanted to pass it along. It is a great reminder for all of us in this time.

“One of the great liabilities of history is that all too many people fail to remain awake through great periods of social change. Every society has its protectors of the status quo and its fraternities of the indifferent who are notorious for sleeping through revolutions. But today our very survival depends on our ability to stay awake, to adjust to new ideas, to remain vigilant and to face the challenge of change.”

As the true leader that he is, I believe that President Obama is asking each of us to LEAD by staying awake and taking responsibility for the welfare of all, not just YOU and not just ME.  Let’s help each other awaken and STAY AWAKE.

To read Obama’s entire speech, click here

This past week has been a wonderful reminder of how good it feels to GIVE, and even more so, to do it, anonymously.

One of the communities that I am part of hosts an annual gathering on Dec. 24 in Sonoma County, CA. In addition to healthy, organic food and chocolate, we participate in a sustainable gift exchange.  No purchases, no additional consumption,  but rather, an offering of a treasure that you no longer use/need. During the “dancing” exchange, we keep passing from hand to hand these wrapped anonymous gifts, until the music finally stops.  It always turns out that each one of us receives the absolute perfect gift!

Here in my neighborhood, I love setting boxes of used “treasures” and clothes out for passerbys to take home. There is a Chinese woman who visits my “boxes” regularly. She also helps herself to the recycling bin before the weekly city pick up, and receives a few cents for each glass container that she recovers from the bin.

Last week, I saw her walking by with her shopping cart. She stopped, pointing to her feet. “Shoes good”, she said with a big smile.  I was delighted to see my pair of black clogs fitting her feet perfectly.

I am a big believer in tithing, and set aside 10% of my annual income to donate to such organizations as Global Exchange, Spirit Rock, Bay Area NVC, IONS, Seva Foundation, and CEO Women among others. 

TITHING

Do you tithe?  For more information on tithing and prosperity, read Catherine Ponder’s works, starting with The Dynamic Laws of Prosperity.  Catherine did not market and sell “The Secret.” Rather, she shared her simple formula starting back in 1958 to groups of business leaders, helping them go from recession to abundance!

 SHARE YOUR ABUNDANCE

In this time of reviewing, reflecting, assessing, and goal setting, take stock of all you have to be grateful for. To whom can you give anonymously?  What can you let go of (behaviors, beliefs, or actual “things” ) to bring in the new?  Share your abundance.  This is the SECRET!

 “Even after all this time,

The Sun never says to the Earth,

You owe me.

Look what happens to a love like that. . .

It lights up the whole sky.”

Hafiz

“Sit by the fire and share the truth within your Heart.”

I am starting a personal campaign today- 10 days of presence and appreciation.

I’m choosing to not buy gifts this year.  Rather, I am giving my PRESENCE,  my APPRECIATION,  my TIME (including  gift certificates for coaching and other inspirational “gifts” that I create), and SERVICE-helping others complete or “seal” a project.  

What if we all  gave the people in our lives the best gift of all–our presence and appreciation–  by letting  others know what we appreciate about them and how they have impacted our life in a positive way?

The gift of PRESENCE– Is there something you’d like to share with another- perhaps there is something incomplete that needs to be released? Create some time to be present with this person and ask yourself in the words of Hafiz: 

“How Do I Listen to Others?

As if everyone were my Master

Speaking to me

His

Cherished last words.”

Remember what most people want, more than anything else, is to know that they are loved, valued, and appreciated–that’s the best gift we can give to them – for the holidays and at any time of the year. 

May all beings be at peace,

May all beings be the light,

May all beings be happy and free!

Have you read Lynne Twist’s Soul of Money?  If not, get a copy of it now, and share it!

Lynne is a global activist and a master fundraiser, raising more than $150 million in individual contributions for charitable causes including the Hunger Project.  She is one of the founding members of the Pachamama Alliance and now a facilitator of the Awakening the Dream Symposium. 

At last week’s Pachamama Alliance annual luncheon, Lynne reminded 1300 guests that:

“Money is like water. . it is a conduit.”

In these times when everyone seems to be in fear over money, she encourages us to move your money towards that which you LOVE. She reminds us that fear is not the opposite of love, it is the absence of love.  And that it is crisis that propels the most positive and far-reaching transformation.

For more inspiration, view Lynne Twist’s, presentation to Awakening the Dreamer Global Facilitators

How to develop a Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times

There’s the general economy, and then we each have our own personal economy. Yes, we all have are own economies, just like we all have our own belief systems, preferences, and opinions. There’s an inner economy and an outer economy

I have my own economy and my economy is great!- Say that a hundred times!

What we focus on expands- Intention is the most powerful element of manifestation.

So what are you focusing on? The fear and panic of old paradigms dying, financial crisis or on what YOU want to create?

Focus on what you want, not on what you don’t want. Utilize what is! Create opportunities and your own micro-economies.

I often say to my clients: If you’re not changing, you’re not growing. If you’re not learning, you’re not living.

After three years of putting several of Harv Eker’s principles into play, I am once attending the Millionaire Mind Intensive, this weekend, in San Francisco. I’m going for a MINDSET tune-up, along with the opportunity to observe absolute master facilitators guide hundreds of participants through the most leading edge accelerated learning techniques.

Harv Eker is offering a special edition: Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times. I first met Harv Eker in 2005 at his Millionaire Mind Intensive in Los Angeles. Since then, I have served as a Life Directions coach with his company, Peak Potentials Training

If you’re prepared for difficult economic times, and have the right tools, there is no reason to worry about your financial future. You can create your own micro-economy, and a thriving economy.

History has shown it is possible not only to survive but to prosper in these times.

During the great depression, huge fortunes were made by many. The Kennedy, Rothschild and Rockefeller families all dramatically increased their fortunes throughout the depression. But it wasn’t just the rich who got richer – many ordinary citizens found a way to not only survive but thrive during a poor economy

What was their secret?

It’s not skills, education or luck that sees the rich getting richer and leaves you in the same situation year after year. It’s mindset.

There’s an incredible opportunity available now to change your mindset in these turbulent times and create what you want.

Millionaire Mind Intensive Fall 2008
Special Edition- ONLY $97 if you click below (regular $1295)
Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times
The Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport
November 21 – 23, 2008

Click here to find other locations and dates for 2009

At the Millionaire Mind in Turbulent Times you’ll learn how to:

• Create your own personal economy that thrives at all times
• Focus on making a fortune while others are focused on fear
• Learn what to do and which strategies to use right now
• See how the worse it gets, the better you can do, now and in the future.

Here’s just a few of the incredible things you’ll learn at the Millionaire Mind Intensive:

• Wealth creation and maintenance strategies of the rich
• How to quadruple your speed to financial freedom
• Five key financial habits of the wealthy
• The underlying cause of almost all financial problems
• 12 ways to earn passive income so you can make money while you sleep
• The key to prospering during an economic recession

So, turn off the news and your TV. Come join me and others as we tap into our inherent abundance!

The thing to do is keep your mind when the world around you is losing theirs. Warren Buffet

Last night I felt it, and I am sure you did, too!

As Michael Moore writes in his post today, “we have experienced a stunning, whopping, landslide of HOPE in a time of deep despair.”

One my mentors, James Kouzes, laid out a seemingly simple, yet powerful leadership model and evaluation tool for personal and organizational leadership in his 2002 best-seller, The Leadership Challenge.

After eight (8) long, painful years, America (the USA), has finally elected a leader that:

• Models the Way
• Inspires a Shared Vision
• Challenges the Process
• Enables Others to Act
• Encourages the Heart

We have seen that anything is possible with focused intention, commitment, and ACTION. The world has been longing for a leader like Obama.

In Hebrew, “Obama” means Lightening. May he electrify and purify the past by co-creating and helping us all rebuild a better future. Let’s support this transition by awakening our own personal leadership practices.

We are all the messengers of change!

I am working on the development of a 16 -week on-line High Performance Human Resources Management course for one of my clients.

Initially, a two- day seminar which I developed in 2007 for the CARAT Executive Leadership Institute, this course emphasizes the synergistic systems inherent in  talent management, retention, learning, and overall organizational effectiveness and growth.

According to the “2008 Ethics and Compliance Risk Management Practices Report, one-quarter of organizations have a desire to engage employees in learning, but are challenged to put their corporate values and integrity into action.

One of the key (and often times) most challenging strategies in birthing a learning culture in an organization is to discard the old paradigm of organizational “silos”.

Learning is not a one-time event. A true learning culture is based on an organization’s mission and core values where learning (human capital development) is transparently woven into all roles, functions, divisions and regions of an organization.

Understanding that Human Capital (Workforce) Development is an organization’s greatest asset is critical. Like any transformation, evolving into a Values-Based Learning Culture does not happen overnight, but rather requires strategic, thorough assessment of leaders attitudes, management approach, and current learning curricula.

Read more in this months’ issue of Chief Learning Officer.

Last night, I had the opportunity to hear one of my earlier mentors, CJ Hayden ,speak as part of the monthly meeting at Spirit and Work Resource Center in Berkeley, CA. CJ, a principle at Wings Business Coaching, was a wonderful role model for me when I started Resumes That Work™ back in 1995.

Now the author of two books, CJ has found her true calling as a coach for social entrepreneurs- a calling that resonates with the core of my being as well.

In her presentation, she highlighted a very important distinction between a socially responsible business and a social entrepreneur. Social entrepreneurs are first and foremost Change Agents. Their reason for being is to lead SOCIAL CHANGE with an entrepreneurial approach. They are not merely socially conscious business owners with a desire to reduce their environmental footprint.

One of my long term clients, CEO Women in Oakland, CA is a perfect example of social entrepreneurship. Executive Director, Farhana Huq has received multiple awards and micro loans with the “Start Your Own Business” training for immigrant and refugee women.

So how do Social Entrepreneurs fund their ventures and earn a living?

• Micro-enterprise loans (Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank)
• Non-profit organizations with earned income- (Delancy Street in San Francisco)
• Teaching, writing, speaking engagements that fund their ventures
• Grants, fellowships, or awards
• Through another business that runs the social venture (examples: Paul Newman’s Own Foundation or Steven Van Yoder and the GIVE Foundation )
• Selling products and services from the social venture itself: (example: Lila Igram and Palestine Children’s Welfare Fund)
• Through a working spouse or parent (wow!- any extra spouses or parents out there to support my vision and venture?)

“Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is simply passing the time. Action with Vision is making a positive difference.” ~ Joel Barker

Conscious Capitalism is what we’re talking about, and I am committed to leading social entrpreneurs’ visions to action.

The most remarkable feature of this historical moment on Earth is not that we are on the way to destroying the world-we’ve actually been on the way for quite a while. It is that we are beginning to wake up, as from a millennia-long sleep,to a whole new relationship to our world, to ourselves and each other.

-Joanna Macy, author World as Self, World as Lover

The Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream Initiative held it’s second Global Gathering on the campus of Mills College in Oakland, CA on June 26-29.

Nearly 200 committed facilitators (including me) from four continents ,along with guest speakers Lynne Twist, Brian Swimme, and Joanne Macy , among others, gathered to re-affirm, apply, and expand our commitment to an environmentally sustainable, socially just, spiritually fulfilling presence on this planet as the guiding principle for these times.

The Global Gathering re-ignited in me what really is important – and what I am committed to- on a personal, professional, and collective level.

It’s easy to forget that real change begins with changing oneself.

At the conference, all of us felt and agreed that this is a most amazing time to be alive, that we don’t have all the answers, and that in fact, we may or may not be successful in creating the personal and collective changes that must take place now.

If we focus our actions on cooperation, not competition, on doing more with less, (and perhaps on DOING less and BEING more), heal our addictions to consumption, and re-claim the role of world citizen founded on interdependence and respect for the dignity of all life,we may be able to “turn the wheel” towards sustainable solutions.

Turning the Wheel. . .

• WHAT can I start doing today and the rest of the year to bring more cooperation and collaboration into the company culture, our teams, client relations, and communities?
• WHO am I mentoring? WHO are my mentors?
• WHO are my”emPower partners?” Is there a team, a social network, forum, panel, or consortium that can be formed with “competitors”?
• WHAT is my role and contribution to the “Great Turning”?
• What will future generations learn from and do with your contributions?