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Posts tagged ‘Learning’

Sep 3

Class in Session

“I’M TALKING TO THAT PART OF YOU Today, I’m talking to that part of you who yearns for more. The part of you who knows exactly what you want beyond all else. To that part of you who effortlessly believes that anything is possible, and that it’s possible in an instant. I’m talking to that part of you who longs to break right on through that self-imposed ceiling your mind has created out of fear, lack, should, and could. To smash and shatter it into a billion little pieces. I’m talking to that part of you who longs, who dreams, who dances, who wishes. To the part of you that cheers, that laughs, that leaps, that bounds. To that part of you who truly wants the best for others because it deeply knows that there is more than enough to go round. I’m talking to that part of you who knows what you want and the exact next step to take to get it. To that part of you who knows you’re not broken and isn’t the slightest bit interested in perpetuating the story that says it’s so. To that part of you who knows the way and longs to guide the rest of you back home. Today, that’s the part of you I’m talking to. And I’m asking it to step forward and lead the way.”― Rebecca Campbell, Light is the New Black

Back to school.
Not just for kids.
Keep learning, growing, expanding.
Unlearning and exploring.
Be curious.
Inquiry and enthusiasm.
Reflection and wisdom.
Class is in session.
Course of a lifetime.

“Start before you feel ready. You don’t need to know where it’s all going. You’ll work it out along the way.”― Rebecca Campbell, Light is the New Black

Nov 21

Still More to Learn and Apply

“The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.”― Albert Einstein

“I’ve learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I’ve learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you’ll miss them when they’re gone from your life. I’ve learned that making a “living” is not the same thing as making a “life.” I’ve learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back. I’ve learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I’ve learned that even when I have pains, I don’t have to be one. I’ve learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. I’ve learned that I still have a lot to learn. I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”― Maya Angelou

May we never be done learning. Ever.
Learning new things, not the same lesson over and over.
Unlearning old things.
Seeing the same in a different way.
Changing, unfolding, opening.
Curious, attentive, enthusiastic.
Make a life.
It’s all happening right now in the midst of this day.
Not in the past.
Not “someday when” circumstances change.
Change is our work.
The outcome is growth.
Learn and love well today.
The dance of transformation.

“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”― Alan Wilson Watts

Sep 13

Open to Wonder

“From wonder into wonder existence opens.” – Lao Tzu

“Personal growth is not a matter of learning new information but of unlearning old limits.” – Alan Cohen

May you breathe in fresh air of trying new things.
From clumsy to cadence.
Practice to pretty good.
Repetition and unfolding.
Seed. Bud. Bloom.
Putting down to create capacity to pick up.
Curiosity, wonder, inquiry.
Exploration, off-trail, awe.
Detour into open space today
Blank canvas. Box full of crayons.
Color outside the lines.

“An empty canvas is a living wonder… far lovelier than certain pictures.” – Wassily Kandinsky

May 11

Daily Classroom

“Learning never exhausts the mind.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“There is no end to education. It is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti

The school year is coming quickly to a close.
Weeks until summer break.
Commencement speeches for graduation.
Advice, celebration, reflection, anticipation.
Prepping and planning meticulously for the future.

As we get older, we realize that class is in session our entire life.
The journey we thought was linear is circular, seasonal, spiraling.
A mystery requiring trust and faith, a sense of humor, a bucket of grace.
If we think we are done, we are done.
Done growing, learning, becoming.

There are still lessons to be learned, unlearned, applied, forgotten.
Choose a growth and beginner’s mindset.
Ready and willing to inquire, listen, change, grow.

What will you discover today?
How will you contribute?
What will you take?
Will you be present or race by another day?
Class is in session.

“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional” – John Maxwell

Jun 27

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Beginner’s Mindset

“I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.” – Pablo Picasso

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few.” – Shunryu Suzuki

Liam Bootcamp Day 2 – fun in the sun, swimming at two different beaches and a tennis lesson after a nap. Before dinner, we hit balls against the practice wall at the tennis courts up the block. After missing a few times, he wanted to go to the playground.

Rather than move on right away, I asked him to take a few more swings. This time, I held the racket with him to guide it. We took a few practice swings before getting the ball involved and I then told him to keep his eye on the ball. After a few tries, he got four hits in a row. His initial disappointment quickly turned into excitement and enthusiasm.

Sometimes we just need to take a few steps back to the beginning, to the basics and start with the fundamentals. I didn’t want him to end his first try at tennis on a low note so he didn’t want to try again. Rather, I coached and encouraged him, ending the short session on a high note.

As I gave him advice, I decide to learn the lesson too. Try new things, keep your eye on the ball, anticipate where the ball will go and enter each endeavor with a beginner’s mindset willing to learn, unlearn and have fun in the process. A beginner’s mindset is for all ages, especially non-beginners.