24/04/2019 by Lisa McDonald

Were You Asked This Question As A Teenager?

Many women have had the experience at high school, where their female classmates or girlfriends talked about their dreams for the future. Often it includes talking about weddings and the families they would have one day.

Next, one of the girls asks the question, “How Many Kids Are You Going To Have?” Then, each girls gets asked what her answer is.

Did you have that experience this question when you were a teenager? If so, did you:⁣

Jump in with an answer of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 …. ?
Hang back hoping they wouldn’t ask you, with a sense that you didn’t want a child at all? OR⁣
Have some other reaction?⁣ ⁣

As a teenager, we are usually quite removed from the realities of having babies. I said 6 when I was younger! But I certainly CAN’T imagine that now.⁣ ⁣

Over The Years Things May Change

A typical women’s fertility window starts from her early teenage years, and continues until her late 40s, (though some can be shorter and others longer). As the years go by, there will be many factors that a young girl would never have considered. So a lot can happen to change a woman’s stance on baby or no baby, and the eventual outcome (some of which she may be unable to control).

However, some never change their mind, whether that’s a definitive yes or no answer.

Deciding whether to have a baby or not can be a significant issue for many women. That’s why it’s important to take the time to get really clear on what is right for you. Rather than making decisions based on what you think you should do out of some sense of obligation to self or others. It’s your life and your choice.⁣⁣

Are you a woman in your 30s, 40s or 50s and who is uncertain or confused about whether or not to have a baby? If so, click here to download my free resource, “8 Essential Questions To Answer Before Deciding Baby or No Baby.” Or, click here to book a chat with me about how I can assist you in moving forward.

With warm regards

Lisa

02/04/2019 by Lisa McDonald

When Strength Becomes Weakness

“Sometimes you don’t realize your own strength until you come face to face
with your greatest weakness.” – Susan Gale

I love this quote about strength and weakness, and this image of a woman hanging on as she scales a rock race..

We all have some place we want to get to, a pinnacle we are trying to climb. That may be a good, a dream or some important aspiration you have. It can be hard work, and the struggle can sometimes make us want to quit. ⁣

The Struggle Can Make Us Want To Quit

⁣At this moment we have a choice – we can keep doing the same thing, we can give up, or we can do something different.

This moment of weakness, or vulnerability can push you to a place where you have to dig deep in order to find the inner resources to move forward. ⁣Thus your weaknesses move you towards your strengths.⁣

Choices

It took a long time to conceive my son. Along the way there was plenty of struggles to navigate. There were many moments where I felt vulnerable and weak. There were also numerous times where I had to consider my options. Would i keep doing the same thing, do something different or quit and move on?

Each time I had to make a decision, I had to summons my inner resources to figure out what was right for me and how to move forward. One of my biggest lessons was in learning to let go.

What pinnacle are you trying to climb? Where is the perceived weakness? What strength is your struggle pushing you towards?

With warm regards

Lisa

PS if you’d like some help to address your struggle or climb your pinnacle, click here to book a chat with me.

19/03/2019 by Lisa McDonald Leave a Comment

Spicing Up Your Habits

It’s been a little while since I posted. That’s because in the past month I’ve been spending some really focused time working on my upcoming book. It’s taking longer than I anticipated, and is certainly providing lots of opportunities to learn along the way. (Click here to learn more about my book).

Today I’m back in the office after an enjoyable couple of weeks away in Western Australia with my husband and son. It was wonderful to be able to spend time visiting family and friends, relaxing with diverse travel and leisure activities. It provided a great break away from my book writing , and other regular habits and activities.

Variety is the Spice of life

Visiting different places and doing different activities, can be a great way to reinvigorate the mind, body and spirit. It shifts your focus away from habits and towards the unfamiliar. In doing so it creates space for freshening up your perspective.

While we were in Perth, we visited the impressive Sculpture by the Sea event https://sculpturebythesea.com/cottesloe/ at scenic Cottesloe Beach. Every year sculptors/exhibitors spend months planning and creating their artistic piece, which is then displayed for all the public to see. (It’s a free event.)

Weird or wonderful?

Whether an art piece is weird or wonderful, good or bad or not, is in the eye of the beholder. Each piece offers the observer the opportunity to interpret the art themselves.

How we judge the art is based on our own internal measuring sticks, the library of references in our mind. This library is created through our own memories, experiences and emotions, and what we have learned from others. The mind uses it to filter the information we see, hear and feel. It shapes the way we think, feel and act, and therefore our results.

Tweaking your habits to create new results

When you’re dissatisfied with your results, it’s a sign that you need to tweak your library of references and change what’s limiting you. A holiday is a great way to start the process of tweaking your references. But you will likely need to do other work to identify these references in order to retrain your mind and body by implementing different habits. With persistence and consistency, your results should begin to change. If not, further work may be required to achieve success.

Do you have an important decision to make or goal to achieve? If you’d like some help to shift your perspective and habits so you can achieve different results, I’d love to help you. You can find out more by clicking here: to book a chat with me.

21/01/2019 by Lisa McDonald

Running Away From A Problem Only Increases The Distance From The Solution

“Running away from a problem only increases the distance from the solution.”
– Anonymous

Just as the above quote says, running away from a problem is just a strategy for avoiding the problem. And the problem with avoidance is, it doesn’t resolve the situation. If it’s a big enough issue, it will present itself at some other time, or continue to pop up again and again. It may be in the same shape or form, or it might be different.

Three common examples of things that people run away from are making decisions, confronting what they think and feel, and taking action to implement their decision. All very normal But all stand in the way of making progress.

Problems can eat away at you

Unresolved problems have thoughts and feelings attached to them. They sit in your mind ad body, shaping your actions an outcome, whether they are conscious and unconscious. They can eat away at you, undermining your confidence and resilience. If the issues are big enough, then can seriously affect your health, relationships, finances and every other area of your life.

Getting closer to the solution

Rather than avoid the problem, the solution is of course to deal with it. This requires a willingness to confront the problem. To be honest with yourself, to confront the issues and to take actions to move you forward. It doesn’t mean that it will be comfortable or easy. However it is necessary to get closer to the solution. Otherwise it will hold you back and you won’t be able to breakthrough.

Have you been running away from a problem? Is there a decision or action that you’ve been avoiding which is causing you pain, discomfort or holding you back? It could be around your career/business, having a child or not, or any other area of your life. If this sounds like you then you must set a very clear intention that you actually want to resolve the problem. You must commit to taking action and start implementing. You also need to be flexible enough to keep adjusting. Things may happen differently than you expect, and it’s likely you’ll have to try new things.

Just keep stepping forward. Keep going until you’ve succeeded in your desired outcomes.

Warm regards

Lisa

PS If you’re tired of running away from the problem or have an important goal you want to achieve, click here to book a chat with me.. We’ll talk about your situation and see if we’re a match.

08/01/2019 by Lisa McDonald

Creating A Successful New Year

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Welcome to a fresh new year, another 365 days of opportunity to achieve the life of your dreams! I am excited to be back and hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year holiday period.

How was last year for you? What were the struggles and triumphs? Did you achieve your key goals?

If it was a difficult year in some shape or form, or you didn’t achieve one or more of your key goals, then I hope that this year is better for you. Either way, it’s time to be grateful. Grateful for all the things you DO have in your life, and all those things that you are grateful that are NOT in your life. It’s time to review, reflect and learn from the past your. Then to transition into the new year.

A Fresh Year

It’s a fresh NEW year, with a fresh book of experiences for you to fill over the next 12 months. This transition into the new year has created a culture over the years of setting resolutions. If made with careful consideration, resolutions can help reinforce permanent changes. However, most New Years resolutions are made in a heightened or inebriated state, which often lacks a degree of commitment. And, as a result they often never gets started or fall away within a short space of time.

So NOW is the time to set the stage for THIS year. To connect and energise yourself for the year.

A Fresh Vision

Take some time to create a fresh vision for the year. Clarify your intentions, then formulate them into specific goals.

Goals are more outcome focused than resolutions, giving you attainable milestones and time frames. When they are set in a more conscious and committed way, your goals can keep you motivated. Especially if they’re aligned with your highest values and aspirations. Years ago I created my SMARTIES Formula for goal setting. It provides a checklist of 8 essential aspects of goals setting, which you must include to set really successful goals. Click here now to get my SMARTIES Formula for goal setting,

Which areas of life do you most want to create results in this year: health, relationship, family, finances, business/career, leisure, community or other?

2019 Strategic Goal Setting Workshop

January is a great time to reflect on the outcomes you want for 2019, to write your goals and to start taking action. That’s why over several years I’ve run a Strategic Goal Setting Workshop: Life Review & Planning Workshop. Originally it was a full day where you had to travel to participate. Last year was my first live online workshop to assist you in reviewing, goal setting and taking action on your goals in 2019. And I’m excited to say that I’m running my live online workshop again this year.Having the live online format means I can:

Offer it to you at a fraction of the price of my previous offline workshop held in Melbourne,
And … still have the personal connection that made those workshops so special. Click here to find out more ...

Achieving Different Results This Year

To support you in achieving your goals this year, I’ll be continuing to share tips, tools, and insights into how you can make this a more successful year.

If you’re serious about creating different or better results this year, then it’s up to you to take action! What next step will you take to succeed this year?

Wishing you every with creating more of the life and success you desire this year.

Warm regards
Lisa McDonald

PS If you haven’t had a look yet at my program Click here and find out more

Over The Years Things May Change

“Sometimes you don’t realize your own strength until you come face to face with your greatest weakness.” – Susan Gale

The Struggle Can Make Us Want To Quit

Choices

Variety is the Spice of life

Weird or wonderful?

Tweaking your habits to create new results

“Running away from a problem only increases the distance from the solution.” – Anonymous

Problems can eat away at you

Getting closer to the solution

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

A Fresh Year

A Fresh Vision

2019 Strategic Goal Setting Workshop

Achieving Different Results This Year

“Sometimes you don’t realize your own strength until you come face to face
with your greatest weakness.” – Susan Gale

“Running away from a problem only increases the distance from the solution.”
– Anonymous