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To all new subscribers since our last issue, and thank you for everyone who forwarded our newsletter "Rethink Reframe Renew" to a friend or colleague.

We have chosen the title of our newsletter ‘Rethink – Reframe – Renew’ as this month’s theme because it is the essence of our message and underpins everything we do.

“You have powers you never dreamed of. You can do things you never thought you could do. There are no limitations in what you can do except the limitations in your own mind.”
~ Albert Einstein ~

In this Issue ...

Welcome

Announcements

Article 1

Article 2

BELL Alliance

Announcements

To celebrate International Coach Week and International Women’s Day we are offering our subscribers
one 30-minute complimentary coaching session
to gain clarity, focus and direction.

The first ten subscribers to book and confirm their complimentary session will be placed in a draw to win two hours telephone coaching, valued at AUD$350. The winner will be announced in the next newsletter due out on 24th March.

“The purpose of your life is to make life wonderful.”
~ Dr Marshall Rosenberg ~

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Article 1

A Critical Tool Set for the 21st Century
by Elisabeth Gortschacher ©2006 All Rights Reserved

Are you focused and on course of reaching your goals? Are you on the right track mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually, and financially? Whatever you answer, I invite you to embrace and apply a simple set of tools in your everyday life. It is one of the critical tool sets for a successful, meaningful and fulfilling life in the 21st century where uncertainty, and exponential and discontinuous change are the norm.

The Critical Tool Set is Rethink – Reframe – Renew. It is easy to remember, easy to use and the impact is profound. There are some prerequisites: You need to be open to look deeper inside yourself, take responsibility for your choices and decisions, be willing to learn from everything that happens in your life regardless of whether you perceive it as positive or negative.

Many years ago, I had a challenge with an employee. We spend a lot of time together exploring and resolving the issues she raised. At the end of each meeting it seemed like we had resolved them and yet a few hours later she called and we started all over again. After one of these unsuccessful meetings where my internal frustration was running high, I walked into my office and there was the message for me on my desk calendar. It said, “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity.” WOW, this was a light bulb message for me, and one that started the Rethink – Reframe – Renew process that I now apply to all areas of my life.

Initially it took me sometime to clarify the process that played the same tune over and over again, like a stuck record, delivering the same outcome every time - an outcome that was stressful and one I didn’t want. Once I understood that, I started to rethink my strategy and reframe the situation, i.e. look at the situation from different perspectives and the likely outcome each will have. In other words I used the Rethink – Reframe -- Renew Process in a conscious and deliberate way.

Rethink – Reframe – Renew: In using this process I become the observer of my thinking – feeling – behaviour – acting -- outcome cycle. Whenever the outcome is not what I want, I go back to identifying what I think. I go through the Rethink – Reframe – Renew process in light of the outcome I want.

Stephen Covey inspires us to always start with the outcome in mind. When we know the outcome we want we will approach it from an angle that will place us in the best position to achieve that outcome. Living busy lives or simply not having the awareness of this simple principle, we often end up with outcomes we don’t want.

The Rethink – Reframe – Renew process acts like the reset button on your computer. You can press it at any time, sometimes we need to press the reset button a couple of times before it corrects itself. This process is always there for you to tap into.

Key Points:

• What you think has a direct influence on your outcomes.
• If you want to change your outcomes, you need to change what you think.
• You always have the power to change what you think.

You may have heard of the self-fulfilling prophecy, perhaps best expressed in McGregor’s motivational theories X and Y. Theory X essentially says, “People are lazy and cannot be trusted to perform.” Theory Y on the other hand says, “People want to do a good job and need the tools that allow them to do that.” Irrespective of which theory you believe in, you will be able to provide evidence that what you believe is true because people will never disappoint you.

Stop- Reflect – Act

• Make a list of things that are important to you.
• Create space in your day for quiet time to reflect.
• Take one item on your list and take it through the Rethink – Reframe – Renew process.
• Remember that what you have in your life is a reflection of your thoughts and your choices.
• Make a conscious and deliberate decision to align your thinking with what you truly want and celebrate your successes.
• Make the Rethink – Reframe – Renew process more than a critical tool set. Make it your trusted friend and companion and enjoy life and all it offers.

“The history of free men is never written by chance, but by choice - their choice.” ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower ~

Article 2

Rethink, Reframe, Renew - a World of New Possibilities
by Linder Chong © 2006 All Rights Reserved

Why is it that with the advancement of technology, transportation and communication our lives seem to get more complicated instead of becoming easier? Our days are jam-packed with activities – getting the kids off to school, grocery shopping, housekeeping, emails, decisions, meetings and constantly running from one place to another. Before we know it, another day, month and year have gone by, leaving us wondering – where has the time gone? Even more importantly – what have I achieved this month, this year?

Where are you today?
When you look back to where you were last year compared to this year, I wonder how many people will say they accomplished their goals and how different and more rewarding their lives are now. The whirlwind we live which we fondly refer to as our life, gives us little opportunity to Rethink what we’re spending our energies on - whether what we are doing is helping or hindering us and for what purpose? Can we spare ourselves some of our precious time to even dare to rethink our lives? For some this will require a lot of courage to possibly move into uncharted waters to step into the light of day, for a cold hard look at ourselves. But before we can even make that move, we need to know why we would even entertain that idea in the first place.

Leading full, active lives is invigorating. It makes us feel ‘in demand’, useful and sooo busy. Yet it could also be a way to occupy ourselves so we don’t have to plan our future or deal with the less than satisfactory situation at work or home. It can be hard work to change tack and sail upstream instead of downstream.

Experiencing life through new lenses
Rethinking takes effort and courage, yet when we stop and really rethink what we do and how we’re doing it, it leads us to new possibilities. We can look at the situation in a different way and even Reframe it so it no longer affects us in the same way. You could get upset about how your manager treats you at work or, assuming you’ve done nothing wrong, you could take control of your feelings by better understanding the pressure he may be under, so you can react differently and get a different result. Or, instead of resenting the work you’re doing and doing it badly because it’s a waste of your time, think who would be better suited to the task and would love the opportunity to do it. That way you can concentrate on things that develop and enthuse you.

Living a new possibility
When we reframe we give the situation a different context and meaning. It empowers us to take back control. The burden we once felt is lifted and suddenly we feel energised again. Which leads us to Renew. This new energy revitalises us to see and think differently and to step out to something new. This could be a change of direction, a better understanding of ourselves and a reconnection to our higher purpose. It could also lead to renewing relationships or taking a new approach to an old problem. When we take time to slow down and Rethink it can help us get to the core issue. Reframe helps us to see new possibilities and Renew gives us the impetus to step into the light and fully embrace the contribution that we are.

BELL Alliance

BELL Alliance is a collective force of four independent coaching businesses who joined
in a common vision -- To expand global consciousness based on authenticity, contribution, positive transformation and peace.

To learn more about us we invite you to visit our individual websites.

Copyright 2005 - 2006 by BELL Alliance, All rights reserved.