Unstuck & Unstoppable Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 1
All Rights Reserved Copyright 2014 Christine Springer Coaching. All rights are reserved. You may not distribute this report in any way. You may not sell it, or reprint any part of it without written consent from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 2
Dear Reader, Thank you so much for being here I am guessing that since you downloaded this book, you may feel like you are stuck in one area of your life. Or perhaps things aren t quite where you want them to be right now. You might be in a job you don t like, or you in a relationship that sucks the life out of you. Trust me.i ve been there But I know that you are REALLY motivated to get unstuck and start living the life you have always imagined. If you are anything like me, the place where you get the most stuck is in your head. In the past, I was overrun by unhelpful thoughts doubts and fears, mostly that my mind convinced me were true. Those thoughts stopped me from pursuing my dreams. Getting past those doubts and fears will give you the peace and freedom that will make your dreams seem totally do-able. I created this e-workbook to share with you the 7 simple steps I have used that have helped me to get unstuck. I hope you will find that as you get unstuck, too, you will become unstoppable With much love and support, Christine Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 3
Introduction Many of us have big dreams. If achieved, these dreams would change our lives in very positive and meaningful ways. But our dreams remain stuck in our imagination and never materialize to reality. You have the power to change that. In the words of Harvey MacKay: A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline. Often times, we have dreams that we desperately want to come true. But our doubts and fears creep in, quietly stealing our resolve to turn our dreams into goals. The intention of this workbook is to help you move from the stage of dreaming into reality. Implementing these seven simple steps will move you past your doubts and fears and allow you to experience the success you truly desire. Become unstuck and unstoppable Ready to get started? Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 4
Step 1: Get Clear To Commit It is easier to commit to a goal when we have a really clear picture in our minds of what we want to achieve. You don t have to know how you are going to get there (yet), but take some time as you go through these steps to try and make your goal as specific as possible. What do you really want to achieve? What would put a smile on your face and make your heart sing? (It s OK to think BIG) Now try to make your goal as specific as you can. If you wrote down something like I want to change careers, write down to what (if you know) and by when. How important is this goal to you on a scale of 0 to 10? Why is this goal important? Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 5
Exercise: See Into The Future Focusing on the emotions we feel when we are successful is a helpful way to stay on track when our motivation wanes. Take a moment to imagine what it would be like to achieve your goal. Write out what your success looks like below. Be sure to include how you feel, how your life is different, and why you are glad that you got unstuck Now that I have achieved my goal I feel. My life is different now because. I am glad I got unstuck because. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 6
Now that you are clear about what you want (and how cool it will be when you achieve it), take the next step to REALLY commit to your goal. Action Step: Email one person who would be very happy to see you achieve this goal and share with them your desire to do this now. This helps create accountability and support for yourself. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 7
Step 2: Create An On Ramp Creating an on-ramp to your goal is a critical aspect of success. An on-ramp is the thing (or things) you need to do to create the space in your life to work toward your goal. For example, if your goal is to start exercising in the mornings before work, you will likely need to start getting up earlier in the mornings to do that. In order to increase the likelihood that you will actually get up (and not hit snooze 5 times before you REALLY have to get up), your on-ramp would be going to bed an hour earlier the night before. And possibly changing your evening routine to make it easier for you to go to bed an hour earlier. Looking back on your goal from step 1, can you think of what thing or things might need to change in your life or your routine to make your goal happen? Use the space below to write down what your on ramp will be to achieve your goal: Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 8
Step 3: Break Your Own Rules This step is all about recognizing the thoughts and beliefs that you turn into rules for yourself as you pursue your goal. Sometimes, these rules can stand in the way of progress if they aren t really necessary to move forward. Picture your goal. Then list all the rules or conditions you think need to be in place for you to reach that goal. For example, if your goal is I want to get a new job, one of your rules might be that you have to look for a job every day to achieve that goal. List of Rules or Conditions: 1. 2. 3. 4. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 9
Take a look at your list. Is there a rule on that list that puts undue pressure on you? A rule like I must look for a job every single day or I will miss the best one sets the stage for failure because if you miss a day for any reason, you will most often feel like you have already failed yourself and quit. Letting go of harsh rules allows you to be less than perfect but still achieve your goals. Now, pick a rule from above that you are going to break and write it below: Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 10
Step 4: Fear Less Everyone has fears when they trying to do something big, especially if it is new and feels risky. Learning to embrace the idea that fears are feelings, not facts can help take you from a place of paralyzed inaction to bold action. Using a technique called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) can help you disassociate from your thoughts and loosen the stranglehold of fear in your mind. Here is a quick and dirty way to use this technique: Part A: Recognize you are having a fear and name it. (e.g.- I am going to bomb my interview and not get the job.) Write your fear below: Part B: Begin to put some distance between you and this fear. First, use the phrase I am having a fear that.... Next, use the phrase I notice I am having a thought that... BONUS EXERCISE: Create a positive mantra for yourself to replace this fear and write it below. (e.g.- I am going to easily connect with the person who interviews me and they will recognize I am the best person for the job. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 11
Step 5: Be Your Best Friend Often times we can get discouraged on the way to our big goal. It s hard work to achieve big things, and with hard work comes fatigue. And when we are fatigued, we can get down on ourselves. We say things to ourselves (both out loud and in our heads) that we would NEVER say to anyone else. For example, I can t believe I was so stupid to think I could ever get that job. Or, I am a fat cow for eating that donut. Your self-talk is important because what you think becomes what you say, and what you say becomes what you do. Negative thoughts can lead to self-sabotaging behaviors. Letting go of selfcriticism clears the way for success to come in You likely know what your default saying is when you are tired or frustrated. Write it below: Now, go back to the situation that triggered the response above. Close your eyes for a moment and imagine what you would say to your best friend if they were in the same situation: Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 12
Exercise: The next time you feel yourself getting tired and frustrated, pay attention to your inner monologue. If you catch yourself being self-critical, take three deep breaths. Then, think of what your best friend would say about your situation. And if you can t think of anything, call him or her :) What People Say.. I called on Christine because I needed a new perspective. I had everything going for me, a beautiful supportive wife, a healthy handsome baby boy, a daughter on the way, an active spiritual life, and a job i liked. Despite all of these blessings, I kept finding reasons NOT to be grateful. Despite my strong will, determination, and best intentions, I just couldn't get past myself I knew where I wanted to go, but didn't know how to get there and Christine became my GPS (Getting Past Stuck) partner. No matter how much resistance I put up, she kept "recalculating" by meeting where I was at the moment and guiding me to better choices. Christine is a great listener and I found her greatest gift from working together to be her natural ability to "hold up the mirror" and help me to see the same circumstances in a different light by guiding me to see the flaws in my thinking. She challenged me to question my assumptions and ultimately gave me the tools to find an attitude of gratitude, and to keep myself from falling back into the flawed thought patterns leading to my dissatisfaction. Basically, she coached and trained me to choose my emotions and feel confident that they were independent of circumstances. I am completely satisfied with the results from my coaching sessions with Christine. So much so, that even though I obtained my original objectives, my experience and results were so positive that I decided to continue sessions with Christine to work on other challenges to improve myself and satisfaction. Nothing is off limits with Christine and she made me feel so comfortable that I let my guard down, regardless of the topic, which allowed me to really focus on what's important...to get results ~ Mark T., Clinical Director Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 13
Step 6: Be Grateful Sometimes, you will reach your goals almost effortlessly. Other times, it may seem like everything that could go wrong, did. Developing a practice of gratitude irrespective of the outcome can be magical. Gratitude is a magnet that attracts positive energy into our lives. Although we tend to think of happiness as related to a particular outcome, gratitude allows us to feel happiness and a deep sense of respect for the things that did go well, even when we fall short of our goals. It can be hard to get started, but there are things to be grateful for all around us. An example of some little things you might be grateful for: 1. I woke up on my own before my alarm went off because I got plenty of sleep. 2. I got in and out of the grocery store quickly and easily. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 14
3. My child made me a picture at school today. Some bigger things you might be grateful for: 1. My family is healthy. 2. I have a job that pays me well. 3. I have a home that I love. SUGGESTED EXERCISE: Begin a gratitude journal. Write down at least 3 things every day you are grateful for, including at least one thing related to your goal. Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 15
Step 7: Rest Rest is a critical component of any goal setting plan, whether the path to achieve your goal involves mental exertion (like getting your MBA) or physical exercise (running a 10K). Unfortunately, we tend to ignore our need to rest until we are completely exhausted and can t do anything other than collapse onto the nearest sofa. When we are busy and focused on achieving a goal, we often make a rule that says I don t have time to rest. If this is a rule of yours, PLEASE START BREAKING IT NOW. (See Step 3.) The truth is, the benefits of hard work are realized during and just after our rest times. When you are trying to get physically stronger through strength training, your body will get weaker right after the session. By resting, you allow your body to go through a process called supercompensation where you not only recover back to your baseline level of strength, but you actually get stronger than before the weight training. The same benefits of rest are seen after bouts of mental stress. Rest allows you to have greater levels of mental strength -- like clarity, focus and problem solving -- than you had before you took a break. And, this is just a hunch, but the people you are close to in your life will likely be grateful you took a break, too :) Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 16
1. Get Clear To Commit. 2.Create An On Ramp. 3.Break Your Own Rules. 4.Fear Less. 5.Be Your Best Friend. 6.Be Grateful. 7.Rest. Summary If you have been inspired by the steps in this workbook, and want more support and accountability to make your dream a reality, let s talk Contact me at 512-394-4722 or christine@christinespringercoaching.com to schedule a FREE 45 minute strategy session. As part of the strategy session, I will give you 2-3 practical and immediately do-able suggestions. And, we can discuss if coaching would be a good fit for your needs. As author Karen Lamb says: A year from now, you ll wish you started today. So get going and have FUN Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 17
About The Author Christine Springer is a life coach in Austin, TX who helps busy women and men create a life they love. She specializes in working with people who feel drained by work or a relationship, or who have tried to please everyone in their life at the expense of their own happiness. She helps her clients reconnect with what they truly desire, and create a concrete action plan to achieve results that make them say, "I love my life Copyright 2014 - Christine Springer Coaching - All Rights Reserved Worldwide. 18