Energy Coaching

This post is personal and close to my heart.  It’s about my wonderful trip to Israel, my spiritual homeland.  My time here has been spent between learning and sightseeing.  The first part of the trip was made up of twenty wonderful days with my husband driving all over the Central and Northern parts of the Land.  We discovered amazing places, inspiring people and amazing food, of course!  The magical sounds, sights and smells of Israel made us dream of ancient times where people worshiped at the Temple, walked the same streets we were walking on and fought for what they believed in.  Israel amazed us at every corner…

This week has been all about learning.  My teachers showered me with amazing lessons and meditations that made my head spin and my heart sing with joy.  Learning for its own sake elevates the spirit and heightens our awareness.  I have a feeling that this trip will bring me many fruits and I hope to share them with you soon enough.  It suffices to say that my notes filled up a notebook and that I am buying a new suitcase tomorrow to carry all the new books I bought!

I also had the opportunity to do my favorite thing while traveling:  Talk to locals and listen to their stories.  The feeling of connecting to others always makes me smile.  Isn’t that what life is all about anyway?  I met an amazing silversmith designer named Sari Srulovitch (www.sarisrulovitch.com) and spent almost two hours listening to her telling me about her gorgeous pieces and her inspirations for making them.  She showed me her studio and her tools and I was amazed at her humble demeanor considering that Sari won many international prizes and has some of her pieces in permanent exhibition at The Israel Museum and the New York Jewish Museum, not to mention private collections all around the world.  I met a lovely cab driver named Yakov who told me about his travels around the world and his love for South America where he met a lovely lady named Ana in the summer of 1970 – the year I was born!  I also met chef Moshe Basson who was just in Brazil being part of the Israeli Food Festival in Sao Paulo.  He proudly showed me all the magazines and articles he was featured in while in Sao Paulo.  What is so special about Moshe is that he specializes in cooking “Biblical Food” – see his website at www.the-eucalyptus.com.  He reproduced many foods that are featured on the Tanach (The Jewish Bible), and in other sources of the Jewish tradition.  His cooking is exquisite and sophisticated precisely because of its simplicity.  I was delighted to experience a tasting menu with my friend Shani and her sister Avgal.  To top it off, the famous Israeli singer Gad Elbaz, was having dinner with friends and surprised all of us with a beautiful rendition of “Ana Bechoach”, an ancient Jewish prayer.  What an amazing night!

The informality, openness and generosity of Israelis touches my heart.  It makes me fall in love with the country all over again every time I go there.  I feel safe, at home and hopeful in spite of all that goes on around this tiny nation.  And I am so glad I got to share twenty wonderful days with my husband in this magical Land.  Israel is for lovers!

Shalom and blessings from the Land,

Ana

Most spiritual journeys start with an identity crisis.  It’s when we are going through transitions that we begin to question our role in the world, our goals, our mission and inevitably, who we are.  We are here to do more than go to work, have children, meet friends, fight with our family and then back to the same old routine.  We are here for a much bigger reason.

During the moments of crisis, we allow ourselves to let go of our identity; the things we identify with the most.  We find ourselves in the middle of questioning if we are on the right path:  ”Am I doing the right thing?”, ” Am I in the right profession?”,  ”Is my current partner the right person for me?”, and so on.  Asking questions like these, allow us to really begin the process of discovering our true identity.  If we are filled with our ego we are not able to see that we really are souls playing a part in this lifetime.

I used to be a world class swimmer.  To let go of my identity as a swimmer, was one of the hardest things I went through in my life.  Why?  Because I identified so strongly with that role that I could not see another role for myself.  And yet, I was only playing the role of the swimmer in this lifetime so that I could identify with my higher purpose.  This role was a step necessary for me to get on a path that allows for me to be a conduit for a higher energy to come into the world.  Through the use of my talents I can channel this energy and help to make the world a better place.  And that’s why we are all here.

We use our talents to be a conduit for the immense energy of G-d to make Its way into the world.  When we tap into that magnificent force we begin to feel useful, blessed, connected, and in a path that leads us to growth.  This is why we must strip ourselves of our persona, the role we play in this world, and welcome the energy of the divine into our lives.  We are here for a higher purpose and we need to allow ourselves to connect with that to develop our potential effectively.  We are only able to see it if we put our ego aside and allow ourselves to be used by the higher energy of G-d.

Dig deep in to yourself and find out what roles are you playing in this life.  Then try to become the observer and realize that you are much more than that.  You are a divine being who is playing a certain part for a reason.  Pay attention to the situations where you feel most connected with a Higher Power and a higher purpose.  That’s when your true self – your soul-  is at work and not simply the role you play.

Happy 2011!

With energy,

Ana

Want a quick way to build a reserve of time?  Under-promise and over-deliver!  To under-promise is to give yourself twice the amount of time you think you will need to get something done.  To over-deliver means to complete the project ahead of the promise date and turn it in early.

Let’s see how that would work in your professional life:  Your boss comes to you and asks, “I want you to work on this project, when can you get it to me?”  Your natural inclination is to over -promise right?  So it is Thursday afternoon, and you think to yourself, “I can work on it all day tomorrow and over the weekend and deliver it by Monday.”  You tell your boss that if you work hard on it, she will have it on her desk by Monday morning.  Now you put aside your other work, come to the office over the weekend and still cannot get it done because you are missing some information from another department.  Monday comes around and you tell your boss that there is some information missing and you cannot deliver the project until Monday evening.  She is not amused and you feel like a failure.  All because you over-promised.

Now try this:  You think, “I can get it done by Monday” and you tell your boss, “I will have it ready by Wednesday afternoon.”  You created an instant reserve of time!  You can enjoy the weekend, exercise , have a great time with your family and fill yourself up with energy.  Now you have your creative juices flowing and you get the report ready with no stress by Tuesday afternoon.  You turned it in early and your boss is impressed and thinks you are great because you turned the report ahead of schedule.  Congratulations – you just over-delivered!  This simple tip can dramatically decrease your stress level and it also puts you in a great position for a raise or a bonus.

What if your boss requires you to get it done by Monday?  While we often get specific deadlines most of them can be negotiated.  Request the extra two or three days.  If you have been consistently under-promising, you will have a reserve of time in all your other projects and you will actually have the time to crunch it out by Monday if you have to.

Under-promise works wonders in your personal life as well.  If you are cooking dinner, instead of bragging ahead of time that you are making a gourmet meal, tell your family you are making something simple and surprise them with a fabulous meal.  When asked by a friend if you can meet her at a certain time, make sure you have at least an extra half hour to spare in case you encounter bad traffic or an unexpected detour on your way.  It’s a fantastic feeling when you keep people’s expectations low and surprise them.  Everybody wins and you don’t have to spend your life apologizing.

Begin under-promising today and watch your time multiply!

With energy,

Ana

I was out for dinner last night with my husband and two of our long time dear friends here in Hong Kong.  We have known one another for 13 years and Eddie and I have seen their children grow and develop to such interesting and accomplished adults.  Now it is time for the eldest one to go to college and our friend was describing the process to us.

We were talking about the generation born in the 80′s and 90′s and how they have little concern about money.  They were brought up with debit cards and our friends were saying that their children don’t really know how much things cost anymore. He says all they know is “bip money” – they go to the convinient store to buy a Coke and it costs “bip dollars”, not three Hong Kong dollars. They were wondering if their kids would be ready to establish their own businesses and face the world.  Now, bear in mind that these two guys raised their children to be frugal.  They are self-made individuals who have a very successful business and who always lived below their means.  They are not extravagant by any stretch of the word and they made sure that their children knew that they needed to be grateful for what they have.

They pointed out that the perception their children have regarding money is that they will always have it.  Their children just “know” that money is not a problem.  They didn’t grow up hearing their parents argue about money and complaining that they don’t have enough.  Like I said before, their children were not raised in a household of waste and consumerism and yet they were not denied their basic needs and gifts twice a year.  They were raised to be grateful and they were raised with boundaries.

As I listened to them telling me this I began to feel hopeful about the future! Imagine that the children of today have the ability to simply “get” that money is not a problem.  They know that they will always be provided for and that they don’t need to believe that acquiring money is their sole purpose in life.  They have the freedom to choose a profession they love and money is no longer the only measure of how successful you are!  And before you call me the eternal delusional optimist, I will tell you that I realize kids do care about their stuff.  I know they want to have things and that they face a world filled with options that confuses them quite a bit.  But I also see the possibility of having a future generation of adults who believe and live in the mentality of abundance.  Their main concern is to be doing things they love and not accumulating things they think they love.  I can see clearly a time when material things will take a back seat to realizing a dream, helping others, curing diseases, developing spirituality and sharing their bounty.

We are going through a time of profound change.  Those of us who tried to change our mindset from scarcity to abundance know so well how difficult this shift can be.  Can you imagine a generation where this pattern of thinking is already ingrained in their DNA?  Can you see how the detachment to material things starts there? Do you understand the possibilities attached with a generation that truly wants to do good with no concerns of how the money will come because they know in their hearts that they will be provided for as long as they do what they love?  I was thrilled when I realized that and I began to share with my friends what I think is in store for their children!

As our friend faces the prospect of his first child flying off to college, he feels a bit nervous about how she will manage all by herself.  I reminded him of the wonderful job he did raising her:  The boundaries that were so hard to put in place, the time he took to explain why it is important to be grateful for what they had, the moments when their example spoke lauder than words and so forth.  It’s natural to have doubts and it is good to listen from people other than their close family that they did the best they could while raising their children. I admire my friends for all their wisdom and for their doubts.  I am also grateful that through their children I could see a glimpse of the future and be hopeful about it.

May we all learn to think in abundance and to pass it on to the next generation!

With energy,

Ana

This post is dedicated to Stephanie.  May she grow in wisdom and kindness and have a great time in her upcoming college adventure!

In the beginning of this week, right after the most sacred day of the Jewish calendar – Yom Kippur, my husband and I took a trip to China to see the famous terracotta warriors.  I was on cloud nine since I had just cleansed my soul with the 25 hours fast of food and water we observe during Yom Kippur that is meant to remove us from our earthly self and connect us with the Divine.  I felt like I was ready to face the world again renewed and filled with new insights.

When I got to China and began experienced the unfamiliar enviroment and the clash of the cultural differences, I reminded myself in a very ‘coach-like’ way, that their way of doing things works for them just as mine works for me.  Children were peeing on the streets, cars were honking non-stop, people were trying to get just another dollar out of us,  and that was all part of the experience.  We were there to see the warriors and to have a good time.

Here is when the Yom Kippur liturgy came to mind.  We were called to repent, change our ways and get back to the right path.  It’s one thing when we are inside the comfort of our synagogue, surrounded by people who are committed to the same experience.  We are all Jews and used to more or less the same culture.  While walking on the streets of Xian and being surrounded by Chinese people who do things differently, think differently and behave in ways that challenge my notion of cleanness, politeness and what’s the right thing to do, now that’s another thing!  How can I change my ways here?  How do I not judge and feel like we have all the answers as my lovely husband argues in Mandarin with the taxi driver about where he is taking us?  It turns out he was taking us to the right place and we were the confused ones!  Mind you, this is not my first time in China.  I’ve been there many times and knew very well what I was going to find.

The rubber hits the road when we go out of our comfort zones and are called to walk our talk.  For me, going to the heart of China one day after Yom Kippur was the best experience I could have had.  It dawned on me that I had just asked G-d to have mercy while judging my actions during the past year, and here I am in China having no trouble judging their ways without an ounce of compassion.  Ooops, that hurts…

The great thing about it all is that awareness, which is the first step to growth, played its part beautifully.  The proximity of Yom Kippur rang a bell louder than I could bear and my actions where immediately steered toward finding the commonalities between me and all my fellow Chinese.  As I showed compassion, understanding and gratitude toward people, I got the same and more right back; a friendly smile, a free mocha from Starbucks, bread and apples from the hotel to take on our trip to the see the warriors, an immense amount of courtesy and refreshing cold water from our guide/driver.

All our faults are only opportunities to achieve more, all our not so wonderful traits are challenges offering us opportunitites to grow and choose to do better.  It is all for the good.  Keep feeding your awareness with the clarity that comes from knowing yourself!  It will never fail to show up when you need it.

With energy,

Ana