pic from our recent photo shoot – I love it!

An interesting thing happened the other day.

I’d been wanting to get some new black sandals for work for awhile but since I really don’t like shoe shopping (bags are more my thing), I’d procrastinated.

Well, within two days, all three pairs of sandals broke.

And I was forced to go get a new pair.

But then while in the shop, because I was desperate, I just took the best pair to suit my style.

I wasn’t in love with the shoes but I needed them.

On Sunday night when I thought about what I’d wear the following day, and thought about wearing the new shoes, I felt myself deflate inside.

And then I realised something.

These shoes don’t make me feel happy and I probably won’t wear them much.

Can you guess what happened next?

I took them back yesterday and now own another pair of shoes that do put a spring in my step.

What was the point of telling you all that?

Live intentionally.

Don’t settle.

If something’s not making you happy, do something about it.

And only wear things that you love otherwise you’ll be wasting your money

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Is it time to get your home organised for the holidays?

Do you need to take action so that your house welcomes you again?

Stop making excuses. The first step to fixing anything is admitting there’s a problem.

There’s nothing to be ashamed of.

You can work through the online e-course at your own pace and go as slow or as fast as you want.

Have a look here and remember to grab your free sample on that page

And for any orders of anything for November and December, you’ll get my free Christmas Planner.

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Are you settling for anything in your life?

And on a less serious note, do you like shoe shopping?

Let’s do a quick review seeing as one-third of the year is gone.

Pull out your 2011 goals list.

• Are you on track and have you made about 1/3 of the progress?
• Which goals do you need to let go of?
• Which do you need to up the ante?
• Where do you need help?

If you didn’t do goals at the beginning of the year, no worries. You can start right now.

Also, God is into goals. But best of all, He’s into new beginnings.

Doesn’t the Bible say “His mercies are new every morning?”

I love that.

No matter how much I’ve messed up, not done something, etc, every day is a CLEAN slate.

So, if you haven’t done so yet this year, pull out a fresh piece of paper.

1. What do you want to achieve this year?
2. Why do you want to achieve it? If you’re mainly looking to achieve something for other people, it’s going to be an uphill climb. Search deep for YOUR own motivation.
3. Do you have the skills and know-how to do this? If not, find out. Buy books, take courses, go on workshops, hire a coach/ professional organiser, etc.
4. Do you need support and accountability? I’ve shared before how I need a personal trainer to work out as I’m supposed to, and apparently I also need Weigh-Less to get me eating properly So I’m happily paying so that I keep at it and reach my goals.

If you need help, contact me for a kick-start goals session and let’s get you moving, or moving again

How are you doing on your goals?

(As always, I’m doing very well in some areas, okay in others and haven’t started some others. It’s all still looking good overall though)

Spring in Johannesburg is absolutely beautiful.

The jacarandas bloom, the rains clear the smog and all is well with the world.

There’s a park I drive by on my way home from work.

At one point I turn left and then right into my street.

As I take that left turn I check the traffic coming from the other side and, when I turn my head, I gaze straight down a row of jacaranda trees in the park.

Picture it – a  row of beautiful purple trees.

There’s something about the orderliness of nature that appeals to me. That, and the purple.

I kept telling myself, “I should pull over and take some pics”.

But I didn’t.

Always in a hurry to get home to see the babies.

But one day I wasn’t in too much of a hurry.

I’d finally determined in my heart that “today was the day”, turned the corner, looked and the jacarandas were gone.

Normal, green trees where the purple flowers had been just a few weeks earlier.

I was dismayed!

I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed before that the jacarandas only have the purple flowers for a short time.

Next year I’ll be ready and I will stop and take TONS of pics.

Good thing though I took these ones in other locations.

And when we had our photoshoot, the jacarandas were in full bloom. Just look at the purple carpet – heaven!

Anyway, this is my challenge to you

Don’t wait and wait and wait to do something important to you – it may be too late.

This was a relatively small thing in the grand scheme of things but oh so often, we procrastinate and wait with the Big Things in life.

Don’t wait – life is too short.

• If you’ve always wanted to go to Italy, set a goal and start working towards it.
• If you’ve always wanted to write a book, set a goal and do it.
• If you want to get organised, set a goal and do it.

And if you don’t know how to make your Big Things happen, I’ll be happy to coach you.

Happy 2011, everybody.

My prayer is that you will do Big, Juicy things in 2011 and start crossing things off your Life List.

You do have a Life List, don’t you?

P.S. The two good pics of my family are by Jeanette Verster

Something amazing happened in November last year.

A reader contacted me with some questions on how to become a professional organiser.

We exchanged some emails and when I realized she was based in Port Elizabeth, I suggested a laser coaching session since we were going to be there in just a few weeks.

Well, Rae and I met for our session in PE and it was fabulous. I always have lots of ideas so these sessions are really creative and inspiring. Rae is such a compassionate, caring person and is a great listener!

And here’s what Rae sent me in an email afterwards:

I was stuck in a lifestyle rut with my world “just ticking over”. I needed a new challenge but hadn’t been doing anything to make it happen.

Then I contacted you, Marcia, and everything changed. What a vibrant and enthusiastic person you are. You encouraged me to become a professional organiser and even gave me a contact.

I now believe that 2008 will be my year and that it is never too late “to make things happen”.

To a very special person, thank you so much, you have given me back my confidence.

Rae Bradbury

Professional Organiser

If you’re thinking about becoming a professional organiser, this is your year too.

I “fell into” this quite by accident (helping out a friend) but I found that this supported my coaching business very nicely, especially since I’d always coached on time management, goal-setting and other such topics.

You can either book some coaching with me (I have a 27-page workbook which I throw in free – oh, probably a R150 value) or buy Tracey’s 3-DVD set. Remember I only endorse products which I’ve personally used; this is GREAT product and if memory serves me correctly, I gave Tracey a testimonial for it too

If you’re not sure, then book an intro session with me and we can take it from there.

Here is another testimonial…from another PO I helped for 3 months late last year

WOW I loved being held accountable and as a result got so much more done. Taking my goals and breaking them down into bite sized pieces was super, having your creativity to bounce ideas off of, was phenomenal.

I enjoyed our relaxed phone chats, and in no way did you make me feel as though I’d failed. In fact your encouragement that poured through was soul refreshing and spurred me on to greater things. Thanx Marcia for your input into my life, I felt as though we connected well and I appreciated your sensitivity and encouragement in my life.

Thanx

Debbie Herholdt
Sunshine Organizer (her website was one of the goals she accomplished while working with me)

P.S. if you’re in Port Elizabeth and you need organising help, tell me and I’ll hook you up with Rae

Quit waiting for your home to get decluttered on its own. Get a handle on the clutter in your house by working together, breaking it down and following a simple guide.

Join Certified Family Manager Coach, Beth Dargis of My Simpler Life as she coaches you to enjoy a more serene home.

LIMITED SPACES – Starts Oct 1, 2007

http://www.encouragingcoach.com/programs-decluttergroup.htm

1. outlining my talk

I am doing a talk on 8 August and while I’ve spoken on the topic “Empowering women” many times before, I need to condense some things, do a proper outline and decide exactly what I want to cover this time. I also customise to the specific group so that needs to be also taken into account.

2. writing one chapter of my new e-book

I have done only 1 out of 5 chapters and I need to get cracking. As with everything else, it is the starting. Once I sit still and write the first 15 – 20 mins, I’m hooked and I can write for hours.

When I get a bit stuck, I tell myself, “what would I do if I were coaching myself?“

So today, I am going to (1) reward myself with reading blogs for 10 minutes AFTER I have written at least 30 minutes, and I will keep doing that until the chapter is done. Then (2) I am blogging it for accountability.

Those two things usually work for me!

Go visit 5 minutes for mom for more great tackles. And while you’re surfing, say hi to a blogger today!