Simon Honours

An Introduction to a Prosperity Mindset Chapter 1: Connecting with self through discovering our values Chapter 2: Connecting with others through listening and curiosity Chapter 3: Connecting with spirit through daily Practice 1 Chapter 1 As a coach one of the most important works that I can do with my clients, especially early on, is the discovery of their values, or in other words – what’s important to them in life. The values that we live by (or want to live by) shape the decisions we make, often contributing to how well we get along with others and can bring fulfillment and happiness into our lives. Not to mention the joy that it brings to those around us. POSITIVE MINDSET Its as simple as TLC T – Invite the other person to TELL you their viewpoint and For example, if you value accomplishment, having the opportunity to be productive and be rewarded for what you accomplish will bring you satisfaction. share their hopes, dreams, needs, wants, and challenges. Let them go first. L – LISTEN intently for the sole purpose of understanding what they are saying. Get curious as to why they see things the way they do. ... If you value freedom, you would most likely want to work free from restrictions or possibly become an entrepreneur. C – CLARIFY what you heard them say. 2 Often we can discover what we value by what upsets us. When you see people being treated unfairly, you might have the value of justice or fairness. Many of us share the same values but we express them in different ways. I have the value of freedom and peace. I work hard but I like things to flow. I run my own timetable and I don’t like working on other people’s deadlines! If you have the same value, it might be important for you to have a flexible schedule. The ability to make project decisions on your own or maybe you resist being micromanaged. When we honor our values, we feel a deep sense of which we truly are, what makes us tick and provides us with a platform for deep satisfaction and connection to self. If we do not honor these values, we will eventually feel disconnected from who we are, and become frustrated and discouraged. The worksheet below will help you to discover what values you might have and what steps you might want to take to honor them more. 3 Values Worksheet 1. What quality do you admire the most in your best friend? (This quality will point you to what you consider to be important) 2. What do you find brings you joy? (If you want to answer family”, please consider that family is NOT a value but rather a thing that helps you...do what? Nurture? Teach? Care for? These are values. Same with “health” or “vacation” – these are things that “hide” values. _________________________________________________ 3. Health could be about strength, well-being, and self-care. A vacation could hide the value of peace, adventure, connection, learning... you see how layered this is? “It always seems impossible until its done” Nelson Mandela 4 4. What makes you mad/angry/frustrated? (If you want to answer “when people are late”, you might have a value around respect or being valued, reliability or responsibility). (If you want to answer “when people make stupid decisions ;”), you might have the value of responsibility, intelligence, cooperation, or diligence. 5. What can you not be without, what makes life unsatisfying? • Boredom - you might have the value of adventure, excitement, learning, novelty). • Being loved or getting along with others”, you might have the value of harmony, connection or peace) 6. Look at the values you have discovered and ask yourself, on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest), how satisfied are you with honoring these values? 5 Values and Prosperity: WEALTH VS PROSPERITY Wealth refers to the state of being rich or having an abundance of material assets and money. The first step in manifesting and creating more prosperity is being very clear on what we want. Values and work helps us discover what is important to us emotionally and we can then align this with the kind of form this would take on. VS Prosperity refers to the state of having and abundance of material assets and money as well as other factors like health and happiness For example if you value freedom, the prosperity form this could take on is becoming an Entrepreneur, or asking your boss for more flexibility with regards to working hours and the possibility of working from home. 6 Prosperity Assignment: Take your values discovery and visualize what form these values could take on? Now imagine yourself there – really feel what the realization of your values would be like. Do this every day for about 10 minutes. 7 Chapter 2 Connecting with Others through Listening and Curiosity I think the ability to be a good listener and then ask questions with curiosity is one of the greatest gifts we can give someone else. In order to do this, we need to put our own opinions and judgments aside and with child-like curiosity, explore the feelings, motivations, and dreams of others. In coaching, such questions are called “powerful questions”, since they give the person who is speaking the opportunity to really think about the answers. Neuroscience research has shown that when we ask powerful questions, areas of creativity light up in the brain of the person who is being asked this question. We call this creating an open or “towards” state in the brain. When we give advice too quickly we create an “away state” in the brain. 8 “Thinking, even without being conscious of it, is the physical phenomenon of firing neural networks, at least as far as Cognitive Science can explain it. New synapses get created by connecting neurons, other die off because of the lack of activity. Thinking "differently" will active another set of neurons and thus will result in other firing. Thinking on a deep, open-ended question will most likely involve specific patterns related to attention, the ability to focus on a problem, decision making regarding the best strategy to tackle it, long-term memory to compare with previous experience on how this type of problem has been solved in the past and thus meta-cognition, etc.” www.quora.com. Practice this with your friends and family by using questions that start with o o o o o o who what when which where how But NOT why. Why implies judgment and makes the other person looks for a justification of their actions. For example: • • • • • • • • What inspired you do this? When would you start? How would you accomplish this? Where did you experience this before? How would you start? Who could help? Which project would you start with? Which one would you choose? 9 • What did you learn about yourself? • What was your favorite thing? Assignment - Prosperity and Listening with Curiosity: When you listen to others with this kind of curiosity and asking powerful questions you will not only learn a lot more, but people will also be drawn to you. Part of a prosperity mindset is appreciating the expertise of others and honoring them with your attention. If you want to manifest better relationships this is the first step. QUALITIES OF A GOOD LISTENER Pay attention to what the person is saying so that you can reply correctly Maintain good eye contact so that the person knows that you are interested Let the person you are speaking to finish their thoughts without interruption If you want to manifest a business partner, a romantic relationship or simply want to be better at networking, this is a powerful tool that just needs practice. Prosperity Assignment: o Think about what you want to manifest in form of relationships and the come up with new powerful questions that will support you when you are with people. o Make a list and then practice. 10 o Make sure these questions come from the heart and are not just “strategies”....people will know when you are genuine. Chapter 3 Connecting with Spirit through daily practice. Everything we do (or want to do) requires regular practice. To connect with spirit requires a quiet and calm brain (in other words no distractions or busy-work). And it requires a commitment to spending time with God/Spirit – if you receive benefits from communing with nature, it requires the same time and commitment. We devote time to what is emotionally relevant to us, what connects deeply with our values and who we want to be. You need to choose what works for you. The benefits of meditation are well researched and documented, as is prayer. Prayer is a conversation with God/Spirit and requires a contemplative heart. In his book “The Mystic Heart”, Wayne Teasdale describes Spirituality, “as a way of life that affects and includes every moment of existence. It is at once a contemplative attitude, a disposition to as life of depth, and the search for ultimate meaning, direction and belonging.” 11 Journaling, prayer – daily gratitude (see research below) – all supports that attitude and disposition. But it needs to have a structure. May you find one that works for you? Daily Gratitude Practice Health benefits article: https://qz.com/-/the-science-behind-the-health-benefits-of-a-dailygratitude-practice/?utm_source=qzfb&fbclid=IwAR3jt1UCNeJQPSeiW3dhx7TFp45KDEiQKTPiwYV6C6h7XNgpuzgiuHza00 Assignment: o Find a structure that supports your spiritual life. For example set aside 15 minutes each day to either pray, meditate or go on a meditative walk. o Journal or draw afterwards. Make sure that part of this structure is letting go of busy-work and thinking about your to-do-list. These things activate the task network in your brain and what you need for this creative contemplation is the default mode network. o This part of our brain helps us reflect, dream and think about the past and future. Prosperity and a Spiritual Practice: Spirituality and our unlimited manifesting potential are linked. We cannot manifest all that is good in life without trust, faith and calmness. The more you can trust that you have everything you need. 12 Trust that timing is also part of divinity and that your unlimited potential is your birthright, the more you will be able to manifest and create the prosperity that you want. Prosperity Assignment: o Create a quiet environment for about 15 minutes and then connect daily to Spirit/God/Earth/Angels (fill in your version). o Once you are connected to your heart and you feel a sense of calm and peace, ask your spirit/God/ (fill in your version) for what you need for that day and in that moment. o Ask with a grateful heart (see Gratitude Journal above) and ask as if it is given already. o Then notice how this feels and repeat daily. NOTES: 13