I was beating egg whites this morning for French pancakes.  I realized the other day that this is the first place I have rented in 19 months that has an electric  hand mixer, so I decided to make some recipes that I haven´t been able to make while traveling. 

As I watched the clear jelly like blobs form this beautiful white mound of fluff in the bowl I wondered who discovered this phenomena.  Who had the creative spark in them to experiment with what would happen if you separated a yolk from the white and then beat it for five minutes? 

Similarly, my partner Greg and I were discussing the creation of blue cheese as we were eating it in our scrambled eggs one morning.  I mean if you saw blue mold growing on your food, would you eat it, decide it was delicious and then go and replicate the same bacteria?  Hardly!  I´d throw it in the garbage. 

But as I was thinking that I would never have thought to beat egg whites into fluffy meringue or create a delicacy called Roquefort Cheese, I realized that I had my own inventory of accomplishments. 

Back in September 2004, I attended a pole dancing party and started the first home pole dancing company for everyday women that became a huge success.  I pole danced live in front of millions on Breakfast Television in

Toronto.  Who´d have thought, especially as that was the year I was ordained as a minister? I went to South Africa on my own and volunteered in a primary school in a rural village for 8 weeks.  That took a lot of faith, trust and courage! 

I was a missionary in Ecuador, South America for four years and was mobbed by 100 very angry people, robbed 7 times and survived a serious bout of Dengue Fever.  Yet I learned the language, impacted hundreds of people in my ministry and helped build a beautifully functional meeting place in a very rural village with very limited resources. 

I sold Ford dealerships in western Canada almost ¾ of a million dollars of products for people with disabilities until Ford (mostly because of me) shut down the program because it was costing them too much.

I´ve written two books in less than 6 weeks each and self-published very professional looking books that get rave reviews. 

I´ve now lived “on the road” for 19 months and had a blast living, working and traveling in some amazing places. I just rented an incredible home for the winter on Lake Atitlan in

Guatemala, a place I had never even heard of until 6 weeks ago.  As I laid by the pool this morning and thought about some of these interesting accomplishments, meringue and blue cheese didn´t seem like such a big deal.  Taking an inventory of our accomplishments once in a while is probably a very good idea because it´s easy to forget what we have done, where we have been and what we have created. 

Greg often talks about becoming the lead singer in a rock and roll band and the “hottest guy” in town when the previous year he was wearing braces, had a crew cut, dorky clothes and a face full of acne.  He was also told by his music teacher in grade six that he could not sing.  But he went on to lead a band to such success that he was offered a very promising music career which he ultimately turned down.  

He also didn´t have the grades to get into medical school because he had been so busy with the band.  His counselor laughed at his idea of becoming a doctor.  But Greg got into medical school and became the most successful podiatrist in the county, curing diseases that other doctors said were incurable. 

As we sat on the patio talking this past week, he had tears running down his face as he recalled a wrestling incident where despite being injured, he cried to go back into the ring and finish the fight.  The coach said no but because of his tenacity and determination, his team went on to beat the number one team in the competition.  As the new guy in the ring, he had inspired an entire team to victory.  He weighed a whopping 105 pounds when he did this. 

Greg talks about these things with passion and fervor because it reminds him that he has already accomplished what others said were impossible.  It fuels the fire for him to go on with his dreams despite the looming odds.   

What about you?  I suggest that you take your inventory of what you have accomplished to date.  Get out a piece of paper or sit down at the computer and start writing.   

You see it´s easy to think that everybody else but us has accomplishments and miracles.  I´m being mentored by some very powerful female entrepreneurs right now and I can sometimes catch myself thinking that I don´t have anything to offer that´s amazing like they do.   And then I realize that I am underestimating myself and allowing limiting beliefs to stop me from moving forward.  I bet you are too. 

It´s when I go back and read the testimonials of how my books have changed somebody´s life or a teleclass shifted a huge belief system or a healing call got rid of someone´s chronic pain.  It´s then I remember that I too have something to contribute.  I have own my meringue discovery and blue cheese miracle. 

I know you do too.   Take your inventory.  Play with this one as you remember the amazing, wonderful, fun things you have done in your lifetime.  Did you star in a musical as a child?  Were you ever the one to score the winning goal?  Did you overcome a physical challenge or a learning disability?  When did you persevere despite the odds?  Have you birthed or fathered a baby and brought new life into this world?  Has anyone ever sent you a thank you note or a testimonial of how you impacted their life?   Did you help change a policy at work or in your community that made life better for everyone?  Start thinking.  

There´s so many things you´ve already done.  It´s time to remember those accomplishments, those victories and those discoveries.   

You´re worth a lot more than you think you are.  Your contribution is far more valuable than you believe.  You´re staying smaller than the world deserves of you.  By taking an inventory of your life to date, I know you´ll walk taller, think bigger and dare to dream even grander dreams.  And that is a very good thing. 

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan

This summer has been designated as a knowledge building time for my business. I´m up to my eyeballs in courses and homework assignments from my coaches and it´s a bit overwhelming. I´ve always been one to resist some of the conventional ways of doing business and these exercises are pushing lots of my buttons.

More questions are being asked than I thought possible. However, I keep reminding myself that thinking and questioning ourselves is precisely what coaches push us to do.  And that´s probably a very good thing, although my head and heart aren´t necessarily agreeing with that logic today.  I particularly hate the questions that tie me down to doing or being “one thing”.

I have some clients and friends that are absolutely clear about what they want to do. My partner Greg is so definite it´s like he has a written assignment from the Universe with what he needs to do during his journey to Earth. Surely God must have stamped nutrionist, actress, scientist or teacher on these people´s foreheads because it´s like they´ve been branded for life.

Me…well, I waffle between about a dozen descriptions of what I do depending on the day and the mood. Sometimes I am a minister, sometimes a coach, frequently a healer, (especially here in Sedona) usually an author and once in a while a workshop facilitator. I am almost always an entrepreneur.  I can change what I call myself as frequently as I brush my teeth. It´s a good thing nobody is keeping track.

I admire those who just know. Sometimes it´s downright envy like it was today as I was trying to complete a homework assignment on my specific target market. It´s when I know I need to practice my own medicine and get away from it all for a bit. I went for a hike, did some journaling, played Scrabble and worked on my birthday present for my favorite puppy in Mexico, Precious. It´s her first birthday today and I prepared a video of the last six months for her. 

That all took my mind off of the questions at hand but it still means that tomorrow morning I have to be up and at the assignment. I laugh to think that I am paying for this mental persecution but I know that it´s good…at least I think it is.

I know from my conversations with other entrepreneurs that some just know what they´re here to do and others can drift like the wind. I call people like me serial entrepreneurs. My gypsy spirit for travelling and living around the world definitely carries over to my business.  My dear friend Monique says I follow Spirit.  That´s feels better than being considered unfocused or having ADD which most entrepreneurs claim to have.

Today one of my most frequently asked questions before I commit is: Do I really, really, really want to do this? I find myself saying “no” more than “yes”. That´s a good thing because the definition of what I want my life to look like is becoming very concise. 

What I am clear on is that I need to continue to ask for guidance and lots of it. I was called to Sedona. I know that. I know that the information that I need to get for the next chapter of life is here, amidst the red rocks, the vortexes and the blue sky.   Maya, my shaman friend stopped in this morning for a visit and reminded me to stay quiet and listen to the answers.

However, it isn´t the bird chirping in the tree right beside me, the occasional voices of people, traffic in the background but my own very curious mind, that makes quiet sometimes difficult to achieve. It´s much more comfortable when life is busy and there is lots to do. 

We can avoid the answers as much as we ask the questions. We want to know… but then again, do we really? Will those answers bring responsibility, change, new friends, leaving of the old and familiar and many other unknown factors that are precisely that - unknown? 

My wonderful friend Tama Kieves wrote words in her book, This Time I Dance that I have never forgotten although I last read it many years ago. She said, “the heart knows the way”. So I listen to my heart, my soul, my core, as Maya called it today and know that there is truth there and all the answers that I need. I don´t think I ask the questions so much as to know the answers but to distract myself from actually going inside and listening to the answers that are already there.

Many of my clients will squirm when I tell them that they do know, of course they do. And of course you do too. You do know at some level what you´re really supposed to be doing. When Monique and I facilitate a Sacred Gifts workshop, we watch people share their passion, their dream, their longing and then close up that portal as if it could never happen.

It´s simply not true. It can happen, but we need to be open to those passions, dreams, and longings. We need to nurture them and feed them rather than push them into the back of the closet and hope they die in the dark. Bring them out in the open, talk about them and believe in them. They will flourish with some love and attention.

I can already see that spending this summer in Sedona will be revealing in many ways. Maya has invited me to her place to do some ceremonies on her sacred land next week. Greg is coming for 5 days next month and we will do more ceremonies with her while he is here.   She came into my life last year on my birthday for a reason and I am excited that I get to tap into her ancient wisdom and deep connection with Source. It is a wonderful transition from the practical aspects of my life  to the spiritual.

Monique laughed at me as she watched me pack for Sedona a few weeks ago in her living room. She said, “you´ve left behind all of your worldly goods, you don´t even own a couch or a bed and you travel around the world with your 2 kitchen knifes, a vegetable peeler and a chopping board.” And as I unpack in every new home, I too laugh at what is important to me right now. I peel and cut a lot of vegetables every day and the right tools are critical to making life easy.

Maybe by the time I leave Sedona, I will be happy to part with them and trust more in the practical aspects of the journey, but in the meantime, I´m glad they´re here with me. I´ve been making lots of soups and salads over the last 10 days already!

You can read my daily blog at www.janjanzendaily.com and keep up with pictures and daily insights as the summer unfolds.   And go check out the video of Precious.  It´s posted there.  It will definitely make you smile.

Make this month a magical month as the wonders of summer unfold and please take time to bring your dreams and visions out in the open. The world really needs you to make them come true.

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan

Parasailing high above Puerta Vallarta on Thursday. Ziplining over 700 foot canyons yesterday.  As I prepare to leave Mexico in just a couple of days, it has certainly been an exciting end to an interesting seven months. 

On one hand, I still vividly remember the property manager picking me up at the airport in Puerto Vallarta and taking me to the grocery store. Conversely, I feel like I have lived several lifetimes over the same time.   In just the last two days I have had experiences that were incredible as I flew several hundred feet above the ground with just a few harnesses holding me.

As the changes have occurred in my life during this time in Bucerias and continue to occur, I know that I am ready to take my life to the next level. As I wrote in my book, Getting Off the Merry-Go-Round: How to Create the Life You Want Without the Fear, Doubt and Guilt, blue sky and sunshine are critically important to me as to where I live. I have certainly enjoyed an abundance of blue sky and sunshine over the last 18 months! And I still don´t miss the cold, rain and gray skies of Vancouver.  So that has definitely not changed in my priorities!

What I have noticed is that as I manifest and create what I think I want in my life, some things work and others don´t. So, as I move on to the next segment of the journey, it´s a great time to evaluate what I love, what I like, and what isn´t working. I think it´s something we all need to do regularly.  It´s easy to do when you move every few months as I chose to do these days.  But what about you?  Are you open to evaluating your life?

I often work with clients who are feeling stagnant or stuck. As one woman at a workshop recently said to me, “I need to get unstucked.” As English wasn´t her first language, I smiled when she told about getting un-stuck-ed. 

Part of the reason people feel stuck or stagnant is because they have a belief that you don´t create your life, you´re a victim of circumstances.  Of course someone with that belief would have a hard time getting unstucked. Some also may believe that you ride the waves, roll with the punches and have a “whatever” attitude. I used to say “whatever” a lot. Today I rarely use that term and although I am working on my flexibility, I am not interested in riding waves or rolling with the punches that I didn´t create. I leave the drama and chaos to others as much as possible.

Even when you are feeling happy with what you´ve created and are coasting, I have found that you rarely coast for long without starting to feel like you are missing something or needing to expand. It´s the very essence of who we are - divine human beings with an inborn need to create and manifest, grow and stretch.

So if you´re feeling stagnant or stuck, here´s a few suggestions that I am currently implementing in my life.

Write (or rewrite if you have done this exercise in the past) what the perfect life looks like to you. I know that I am working with this one as I balance my strong desire for travel, quiet and solitude with being in a relationship, growing a business and giving back to the world. Take some time with this one if you choose to do this exercise. 

I have discovered that what I really focused on I got. What I was kind of unsure of, wishy-washy about, I didn´t. That´s a great observation, so get clear.   Even if you are sure of only two or three things - that´s better than a whole page of what you want that´s vague, lacking any emotion. Don´t rush through this exercise as it is far more important than you think. 

To help me with this exercise, I actually write down: What´s working in my personal life? What´s working in my business? What´s working in my intimate relationship? What´s NOT working in my personal life? What´s NOT working in my business? What´s NOT working in my relationship? You can do this with health, finances, career, family, etc. I find that by asking these questions and making the list, it´s easier to come up with what I really want in life as I take it to the next level. 

Next talk about what you have written with friends who will support you. See how it feels as you mention various things. Notice what gets you excited and what feels like “I should do this” or “I should want that”. For example, you may not want to create a million dollar business. You may feel like you should because that´s important to someone you care about. Notice that. Get really up close and personal with this one. It can be a bit eery to be so intimate with oneself but seriously…you need to be. 

I personally find that when I try and do things because other people think I should or I have been programmed by Tribal Mentality to think I should want something, it´s hard to get excited and accomplish anything of substance. It feels like there is no juice or it comes in a short spurt at the beginning and then fades very quickly. So rather than start projects now and quit which has been my habit, I now think more than twice before starting something and get really clear if this is what I want to spend my most valuable asset, my time, doing.  The more you can let go of what other people think you should be doing, the more amazing of a life you will create.

I am very clear that I love my gypsy lifestyle and have given myself the nickname, The Sunshine Gypsy. As Greg, Jeanette and I wrap up life in Bucerias, Mexico, it is hard to say good-bye to the dear friends and my adorable puppy friend, Precious. However, I know that this is a choice to move on and I´m comfortably sad about it this weekend.   

Sedona is next after a brief visit and workshop in Vancouver. I´m excited about getting to spend 3 ½ months in one of the most spiritual places on the planet.  And if you want to see a few cool pictures from the parasailing and ziplining, check out the blog at www.janjanzendaily.com  

In the meantime, are you coasting or flying?  What do you want to be doing in your life?  Your choice. 

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan

Sometimes we don´t get what we want or ask for.  It´s why I love my saying:  “It may not be what I prefer, but I trust it´s perfect”.  I have just experienced once again the trueness of this statement.

Greg and his 97 year old mother were supposed to arrive with me on November 2nd, 2009.  They didn´t get here until March 9^th. I complained several times to Greg that he wasn´t with me as he had intended.  I whined a few times to my friends and neighbors here, especially when I was alone on a Saturday night in one of the most fun cities in Mexico.

However, reality is another story. I haven´t lived with anyone for seven years. I certainly haven´t lived with a 97 year old before. I´ve been on my own for much of the last nine years and absolutely loved it. Even when I was married, I used to say to my husband that if anything happened to him, I wouldn´t remarry again. I love having my own home, setting my own schedule,  and having the undivided focus to get a lot of work done. I even love sleeping in my own bed…alone…without anyone snoring (I don´t hear myself snoring at night thank goodness) or a restless partner.

So it´s been an interesting time since Greg and Jeanette landed in what I now realize I thought of as “my space”. I´ve learned how regimented and inflexible I can be. I´ve seen how picky I can be about inconsequential matters and I´ve had reinforced the Sacred Gifts I have and those I don´t. 

One of the gifts that I haven´t given a whole lot of thought to is the sacred gift of singleness. It can appear to be a paradox being in an intimate relationship and having this gift. Yet Oprah is probably one of the best examples of the sacred gift of singleness. When she was in South Africa opening up her girl´s school, she said, “I now understand why I have never been married or had children of my own.” 

This gift is always given in conjunction with other gifts that lend themselves to the freedom of singleness. For example, Oprah has a massive Sacred Gift of Giving. Her lack of marital and family responsibilities allows her to do amazing work around the world. She is still in an intimate relationship while having this gift. So having the gift of singleness doesn´t mean no intimacy. It simply means that the responsibilities of marriage and family  are undesirable.  Feeling energized being single is one of the characteristics of this gift.

I´ve never paid much attention to this gift as I have other gifts, such as the gift of writing and healing which I use daily and are called from me regularly.  However, living with Jeanette and Greg has brought this gift of singleness to the fore.  I know that many people actually feel guilty or think that something is wrong with them because they don´t want to live with someone, get married or have children.  Many cultures still frown on single woman and in the past, women with this gift would have been expected to join a monastery or a man would have become a priest.  

It´s why I love what I have learned about Sacred Gifts.  I could be beating myself up a thousand times a day as I watch myself react to various situations.  I could think I was a real “witch” because I don´t particularly enjoy living with an older person.  I never felt called to take care of my mother in her last years and am grateful that my two sisters are watching over my dad who is 86 years old. I could feel like I don´t love Greg enough because I don´t want to marry him or even live with him on a regular basis. Thank God I don´t feel any of that unworthiness.  

I know that I am more available to be used in a large way which may not be the case so easily when someone has huge family responsibilities.  It´s a blessing that I truly value and appreciate. I would love to be able to make major contributions to this world as Oprah does.  I am open to be used for projects that require traveling or the freedom to be away from home for long periods of time.  I ask God to use my gifts every single day in the greatest capacity for the healing of this planet. 

Today I am glad that Greg and Jeanette didn´t arrive until they did.  I wasn´t feeling 100% well until recently and my nerves were definitely frazzled after last year´s business venture. I needed the quiet, peace and tranquility I got to enjoy being here alone for several months.  Looking back - how perfect. 

Right now, I have had to put some larger projects on the back burner as my time is more divided.  Greg´s love language is “quality time” and I really notice that when I get buried in my work and don´t make enough time for him, our relationship suffers. So “Greg and Jan time” is a priority in my day, along with making  soup more often as Jeanette loves it and there´s just a lot more laundry and tidying up to do every week.  Thank God for having a maid come in every Tuesday to do all of the heavy cleaning, including changing the beds.

Looking back at how disappointed I was when I was alone at Christmas, Valentine´s Day and our anniversary of getting together two years ago, I now see that my statement that it may not be what I prefer but it is perfect rings true once again.  We have a fabulous six weeks left and I plan on getting every bit of fun from our time together.  

I am ignoring the candy wrappers Jeanette leaves everywhere, (she lives on my soup and sugar).  I can shut my eyes to the over-crowded fridge that frustrates me and I won´t cringe when clothes aren´t hung up immediately.  What´s the point? These are not important in the big scheme of things…even though I may believe at times they are. What a fabulous opportunity to work on my perfectionist personality and be further pruned and groomed by the Universe. Getting to work on myself in the sun, a Margarita in hand having fun with the man I love, is hardly punishment!

I´m back in Vancouver for the first two weeks of June as Monique and I are doing another special two day Sacred Gifts workshop and then I have rented a fabulous condo in Sedona until the end of September. And yes, I will be alone. 

Have an amazing month.

To Your Outrageous Success!

As I was coming back from Vancouver Island on Wednesday afternoon, I realized that I forgot to write my March newsletter.  In six years of publishing Jan´s Personal Insights newsletter, that was a first! I had intended to write after the Sacred Gifts workshop this weekend but I ended up sick on Monday and travelling on Tuesday.  And before I realized it,  it was the end of the month.

I arrived in Seattle last Wednesday night to a 50 degree Fahrenheit difference in temperature. Puerto Vallarta was a balmy 90 degrees when I left; Seattle was hovering at 42. My little body went into shock. It hasn´t been that cold for a very long time.

However, despite the cold which ensued, the Sacred Gifts workshop this past weekend was absolutely magnificent. We had a full house and the comments were beyond amazing. It was a real honor to be able to work with Monique more closely this time and actually spend four hours teaching the work I do. It was a great combination of teaching and healing, fun, music and ritual.

The last time I was on stage facilitating a workshop was in 2004 so it has been a five year hiatus. I knew that it was time to go back on stage but this time with a very different message. I used to teach networking, marketing and sales. This time I talked about past lives, DNA and cellular healing, limiting beliefs and God. Yes, times have changed.

It can be easy to get stuck in what you have always done. That can apply to the food you eat, the clothes you wear, the relationships you foster and the business you are developing. We are creatures of habit and we like our “comfort zone”. It´s actually programmed into us at a DNA and cellular level to stay in the comfort zone so we can stay safe and out of danger. And that is a very good thing in some cases, but not in most.  

I find that trying something that I have never done, wearing something I have never worn before or learning something completely new is a very powerful way to get out of the rut.  Wearing that outfit that won me the sexiest costume at the Mardi Gras party in February has me now growing my hair out.  Who would have thought? However, the response and the way I felt with long ash blonde hair was overwhelmingly positive and so I am making some changes.  

What about you? If you´re spending your days at home in baggy sweat pants and an old sweater, you´re not apt to evoke feelings of sensuality or even feeling good about your body.  That may be your modus operandi but look at the results and see if the feelings you have about yourself are the feelings you really want to have.

Perhaps you have always run your business in a certain way. Now, more than ever, it´s time to look for innovative ways to grow your business, meet new clients and expand your horizon.  If you´re stuck in that rut, then get on some teleclasses, download some ebooks about business or marketing and start to infuse some new energy into your business.  Get out of your comfort zone.

My partner Greg and his 97 year old mother, Jeanette, arrived in Puerto Vallarta almost a month ago.  While I have been gone, my wonderful neighbors have taken them sightseeing, out for meals and to explore new beaches.  Greg even took his mom to Tacos on the Street, a neat little street restaurant that serves great basic Mexican food at dirt cheap prices and is run by a 26 year old man named Jorge.  They then walked several blocks to a fabulously fun outdoor dancing bar with a live band that Greg and I had been to a few times.  When everyone at the bar found out that Jeanette was 97, the owner brought her over a glass of red wine on the house and Greg even got her up dancing!  While Greg danced with others in the group, people came over to sit and talk to Jeanette and find out her secret for longevity and sanity!

Jeanette has been the perfect example of stepping out of one´s comfort zone.  Imagine at 97 getting on a plane to spend three months with a woman she had never met, in a country not her own and in a language she doesn´t speak in temperatures that are double what she left behind in Seattle.

If you´re feeling a bit sheepish about hanging back in your comfort zone, think about Jeanette dancing in a bar in Mexico to a live band playing La Bamba drinking red wine and staying up way past her normal bedtime.  That may give you some inspiration.

What inspires me, other than having the amazing privilege of getting to know this woman well, are always the results of stepping out of my comfort zone.  How do I feel? What do I create as I move out of the comfort zone?  Are the results empowering spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically and financially?  Do I love my life even more as I grow the boundaries in which I am willing to live? Those may be good questions for you to ask yourself.

However, you wish to create your life, know that you are doing exactly that - creating your life.  The larger the comfort zone in which you are willing to live, the more magnificent your creation will be.

So make this month an expanding month for your comfort zone.

To Your Outrageous Success!

 

I actually felt a bit queasy the morning of the party. I just had to look at the costume I was wearing on Saturday night and my stomach did a little somersault.  Having spent 38 years as a Jehovah´s Witness and never having celebrated Halloween, putting on a costume was out of my comfort zone. However, wearing the costume I had chosen was completely out of my wildest comfort zone.  At the same time, I was so looking forward to actually wearing this outfit, I think some of the butterflies were sheer excitement! 

I was invited to a Mardi Gras party last Saturday night at a fabulous mansion in Puerto Vallarta and consequently an outstanding costume was in order. My good friend and neighbor Marisol, the most amazing social director I could have asked for, helped me out tremendously. Being the neophyte party-goer and Marisol the Olympic gold medalist in this arena, she took me under her wing and got me an outfit that won the sexiest costume at the party! Not only did I get way out of my comfort zone, my attitude was either “go big or stay home”. I went BIG!  It was quite the night.  (You´ll find out how to ”see” what I wore at the end of this newsletter.)   

One of the things that I love about living outside of North America is the active social life I enjoy. I actually have FUN. What a novel concept. It is much easier to work, work, and work some more when it´s rainy, gray and cold outside. Staying at the computer for a few hours longer is easy when everybody else is doing that also.  Just this month, I attended an amazing Valentine´s Day party at the beach, spent a Friday with a group of friends eating and playing at the beach, went out for dinner to watch Flamenco dancers, attended a fabulous fund raiser for the orphanage in Puerto Vallarta, and attended the Mardi Gras party of the year.  

I´ve been invited out frequently for dinner at someone´s home or over for a game of crib or dominoes. We have potlucks, go out for brunch or dinner or explore a new beach. Sometimes a great gabfest just happens around the pool. People have time to play and spend time with friends. It´s one of the biggest perks of living as an expatriate.  

Are you getting enough fun in your life? I bet you you´re not. One of the things I have practiced in my life for years now are play days. What´s a play day? A play day is a day of at least 24 hours where you have no computer, no phones and no talk about work. You just play! You know…have fun. When I lived in Vancouver and was married, my husband and I called them, “mental health weekends”. We would play tourist in our own city and check into a nice hotel, maybe go to the theatre or visit tourist spots that we had never seen. Sometimes we would stay home, buy a couple of bottles of wine, some food we didn´t normally eat, rent movies and have a fun stay-at-home weekend in bed. Phones unplugged of course.  

When I was on my own, I would plan a shopping day with a friend where I just browsed instead of that purposeful type of shopping I normally engaged in. Sometimes I would just curl up with a good novel and spend the day reading, going for a walk, and finish the day having a leisurely bubble bath by candlelight with a glass of wine in hand. mach zehnder modulator 

You need to have fun. Have you noticed that you get all grumpy and out-of-sorts when you don´t take any time off? It´s not healthy physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or financially. You will actually feel better in all areas of your life and I bet you would make more money IF you would take some time off. I know. That one may be hard to believe if you are an entrepreneur, but taking a break from your business may be the best gift you can give yourself and your business.  

If you are thinking that it is just too much WORK to plan to have FUN, then you are really in trouble! And if you can´t even think of something that is fun, please take this newsletter on fun very, very seriously! At a deep spiritual level, joy is the most critical component to our life. I would have thought it was love before I understood this better.  You and I both know that we can feel love for someone and still be angry, sad or even depressed. You can be in love and still experience worry, anxiety and fear.  You can´t do that with joy. Joy moves in, boots out those negative emotions and takes charge with an all-encompassing heart-felt feeling that is music to your soul.  Part of that critically important emotion of joy is fun.  

So you may be out of practice. You may need to work at having fun in the beginning.  I know that I did. Fun hadn´t been in my diet for a long, long time, if ever.  It felt weird to have fun. I felt guilty about not working and playing.  I found myself negotiating my fun time with thoughts such as:  ”I can play today but tomorrow I will have to work twice as hard”.  Perhaps you can relate? 

FUN is now one of my top values.  I realize how important it is to my overall health and well-being.  I get how critical it is to the success of my business. When I am laying on my deathbed, it will be the fun times I remember, the memories with friends and loved ones, the laughs, the good stories, the explorations and adventures I remember, not how many social networking sites I joined or how many teleclasses I taught.   So let´s get more fun into your life.   

1. Choose something that is fun for you. Don´t worry - nobody needs to know what it is except for you.
2. Pick a time and date to do that fun thing.  Make it sooner rather than later.
3. Repeat the process. мебели сливен

Pretty simple, yes? When my friend Brenda was here in Mexico visiting me for two weeks, we played Yahtzee and crib for hours! We howled as we rolled those dice on the patio table as if a million dollars depended on whether or not we got a full house or a large straight.  We high-fived each other when we got a Yahtzee and shrieked with disgust when we rolled rotten dice.  Anybody listening in would have thought we were on drugs.  On occasion we had a beer or a Margarita in hand, but this was pure unadulterated fun, laughter and joy.  We had a blast. Did it cost us a fortune?  Did we need a whole day? Absolutely not!  A deck of cards or a few dice and 30 minutes can be all you need for a fun break.  

Every day that passes without laughter or fun is a loss. A loss to you personally and a loss to the vibrational healing of this planet. With so much depression happening, suicides skyrocketing, worry, fear and anger being the most predominant emotions, we need to up the joy vibration dramatically.  There is so much negative to offset. Can you do your part? You´ll feel better if you do.  You´ll smile more.  You´ll have more energy.  Your soul will feel inspired again.  

You can start having some fun by visiting my brand new blog at www.janjanzendaily.com and seeing THE outfit that won the sexiest costume at the party on Saturday night.  Watch the 90 second video.  Have a good chuckle on me. Subscribe to the blog as I will be helping people create a life through short daily posts to this blog.  

Go have the most FUN month yet!  

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan

I am often asked how I work and live in Mexico the majority of the year. I meet tourists on the bus or in town and frequently help them out with some Spanish translation or directions. As I speak with them, they are usually in awe that I get to hang out in the sun while they have just a precious week or two on vacation.  

What I have learned since spending most of the last 13 months in Mexico is that I am not unusual. I have talked to lots of foreigners living here and I assure you they are no different than you. We are not special people living charmed lives. We have created this very deliberately. Even if you don´t want to live in Mexico or outside of your own home town, you can apply what I have learned in many circumstances in your own life. 

Clarity is critical. People who live here are clear that they wanted to live in the sun in Mexico. Many have planned this for decades. Some have dreamed of it since childhood. I know I won´t stay in Mexico forever, but I do know I am clear I want to live in the sun with blue skies greeting me every morning. Are you really clear on what you want? 

Get the facts. I hear people say all the time, “It must be expensive to live here like you do.” Do you really know what it would cost to live the life of your dreams? What you think it may cost is not necessarily the truth. As a matter of fact, you have very possibly over-estimated the cost which has become a great excuse for putting it off. I remember reading about a man who was going to work crazy hours for 10 years to become a millionaire so he could go live in Thailand for a month. That´s insane! You could live very well in Thailand for a year on less than $20,000! To live a fabulous life here, and run my business, costs me about $30,000 a year. That´s far cheaper than living in Vancouver yet I have a higher standard of living, way more fun, less stress a nd …it´s sunny every day! 

So if you want to have something or do something, find out what it really costs to have or do what you want. You may be surprised that the figure you have in your head is not the real price. Get the facts and start operating from reality rather than an erroneous perception, myth, or misconception. 

Stop worrying about all the how-to´s. Just start talking about what you really want to be, do or have and get clear on that…without all the details. Do not start worrying now about how you are going to process a credit card payment in a foreign country at the retreat you want to build! Trust me. It´s amazing what can be done when you want to do it and what miracles manifest when you set your sights on what you want. People can´t believe I have manifested two amazing accommodations in Mexico over the past year but it is because I didn´t worry about HOW everything was going to show up.    

My good friend Brenda that I write about in a couple of chapters in my book, Getting Off the Merry-Go-Round is staying with me for two weeks. The other day as we doing our regular beach walk, Brenda turned to me and said, “Jan, four years ago, I told Adrian that I wanted to stay at this place because it was so beautiful and upscale. I couldn´t imagine at the time ever being able to afford the rent here. Now I am staying here with you as your guest. How cool is that!” Brenda didn´t know the “how” but she has been creating her life of freedom and travel without knowing every little detail. It is remarkable what showed up for her. It will be amazing what shows up for you! Try it! 

Be comfortable with getting what you want. That may sound strange but it is very easy to feel guilty about living in a tropical place, working part-time and earning a full-time income or having a million dollar bank account, a best-selling book or an amazing career when nobody else you know is getting what they want. We are usually more comfortable having the story about why we didn´t get what we wanted than the success story of how we did. I always say that I live my amazing life without apology to others. I will encourage, coach, inspire and motivate others to get what they want in their lives but I don´t apologize for what I have created. So ask yourself if you are comfortable getting what you want as that may be a big clue why you don´t have the life you want. 

Surround yourself with supportive people.  When you are surrounded by friends or family, business associates or fellow employees who think small, are into struggle and victimhood or are jealous of any advancement you make toward your goal, it is a bigger task to create the life you want and to be comfortable doing it. Thankfully I am surrounded by people who support me and encourage me in my life. It is so much easier to do what I do with Greg being fully supportive when we are apart, my friends Brenda and Adrian who diligently ship out my books and CDs for me, Monique, my dear friend who looks after many little things that I can´t do living here and then puts me up when I am back in town and my sister who looks after my mail and allows me to use her home for my Canadian address. I am so apprecia tive of all of their support! They applaud my lifestyle, find it stimulating and aren´t jealous or resentful. Are the people in your life supportive or resentful? The friends you hang out with will make a huge difference in your life in what you are inspired to create. 

Don´t settle for less than what is possible. I´ve talked to enough people who aren´t doing what they really want to know that they have themselves convinced they are doing everything they can. They have their excuses so well rehearsed they actually believe them with all their heart. I´ve listened to them argue with me every time I throw out a suggestion of how it could possibly work differently for them. They are so convinced that it won´t work, they have become blinded as to how it can work. We all do this. Lots of time, it is an outsider who will point out something different that I could do in my business that would improve it and I just haven´t seen it. 

I recently heard about a family that moved to Bucerias several years ago with 3 teenagers! Who does something as crazy as that? This family did. Today, their 3 kids are amazing. They have become entrepreneurial, are involved in the community, are fluent in two languages and the family has thrived. I bet you that most families would give you all the reasons that simply wouldn´t work for them. And maybe it wouldn´t - but have you pushed the limits on what you are even willing to explore or are you stuck in a rut? It´s amazing what happens when you don´t settle for less than what is possible. 

Living the life of your dreams may include totally different things than what I have created. Just know that you can have what you want, do what you want and be what you want. It is a process but it is a fabulous journey. I´m still creating and recreating. This isn´t the end of the road but it is a really fun one! Photos of my life in Bucerias are up at www.janjanzen.com/gallery.htm They´re pretty gorgeous! Check them out for a dose of inspiration. 

Have an amazing month as you move along in the creation of your dream life.  

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan

It really has been quite a year for everybody. Weather has been wonky around the globe. Right now, many of my friends in Western Canada and the US are in the deepest freeze they’ve ever seen with snow up to their knees. The economic situation is in chaos and it has only just begun. The ramifications of what is happening in the US are being felt around the world as I am seeing here in Mexico with a huge drop in tourism. It feels like personally and professionally, people are being called to reassess their values and priorities. And we’ve been busy; even busier than we thought possible. I planned on having a sabbatical this year and it has been anything but!  

You may have found also that your goals and dreams for 2008 were not fully realized or that the year turned out quite differently than you expected. In these last few days of the year, look at what you learned in 2008 and bring those discoveries to the table as you get clear on what you want to accomplish in 2009. I certainly learned that my health (which had been a fairly low priority because of how fabulous I normally feel) became a major priority. Putting in long hours with Plexus Pink and the stress of dealing with network marketing laws, the FDA’s rules and regulations and a corporate management team, definitely took its toll. Having worked as a solopreneur for most of my life, I very quickly remembered this fall why I like making my own decisions and running my own businesses. 

In October, this thing called “my health”, which I had taken for granted over the last few years, started sending me the warning signs I talk about in my new book. You may know the warning signs that we often ignore, because we’re too busy, too committed, too responsible and too fully engaged to pay attention. It’s like we know that we need to make a change, say no, get off this crazy merry-go-round of being too busy, but how do you stop in the middle of the ride and say, “this is making me sick”?   

Maybe you’re caught on a merry-go-round that you want to get off of but obligation, fear, doubt and guilt are keeping you on it, hanging on for dear life. We’ve all been there and it can be hard to get off and just say “no I can’t” or “no I won’t”. Well I just said “no I can’t” when I resigned from Plexus Pink on December 1^st. 

Having been deathly ill in my 30’s, I recognized the early warning signs only too well. When they started showing up this fall, I knew I had to take action. It certainly wasn’t easy but the saying, “if you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything”, rings true for most people.   

It still was a tough decision but three weeks later, I know it was the right one. Empowering women financially is my main mission in life and I will return full-time to that mission once I have my health back. Sometimes the vehicle needs to change although the mission doesn’t.  That’s a good lesson to learn. Is it one that you need to implement more fully in your life? We can get stuck on the vehicle that we originally committed to even though it’s not working for us. We feel embarrassed to say, “I can’t or I don’t want to do this anymore”. We can even feel like a failure.  More blatantly, we’ll ignore a better opportunity to reach our goals because we have this self-imposed obligation that we need to stick with what we originally said.  

It’s one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned in life and probably one of the hardest. I cannot do what anyone else wants me to do or what anyone else thinks is right for me. I can only do what I know in my heart and soul to be the best course for me.Is that easy? Oh my goodness no! I assure you, there were lengthy conversations with my closest friends and business mentor, long conversations with God, many tears, lots of floor pacing, pages upon pages of writing in my journal and sleepless nights. Making these kinds of decisions is what is often referred to as “the dark night of the soul”. I simply call it hell. There is nothing pleasant about it, except the absolute knowingness that I will pass through, I will make the best of the decision once it’s made, and fairly soon everyone forgets about me as I move onto the next stage in my life. 

If I for one minute thought that the company wouldn’t survive without me, that the distributors would quit in droves because I was no longer president or that my career was over, that was a great soap opera I was creating in my mind, not in reality. We are not indispensable - not one of us. Nor do we want to be. Make yourself dispensable and that shift in your life will give you more freedom and less fear, doubt and guilt than you ever thought possible. Create freedom in your life rather than trapping yourself in a cage that oftentimes isn’t working. 

I’ve watched entrepreneurs committed to their failing business, the business that isn’t paying the rent nor creating the lifestyle they desire. Yet some stubbornness, pride or obligation will hold them to it like a barnacle stuck to a ship. Why? If it’s not working, get out. If you’re stuck, change your strategy. If it’s not creating what you want, find something that will. Part of this mentality is victimhood, through and through. It’s great drama to be able to tell everybody how you are so worn out from the stress, so broke from the hardship of making it work and so loyal to the cause. But honestly, that doesn’t feel very good. 

What does feel good is doing what you love and having the financial freedom to make choices.  I bet you there are some choices you haven’t been able to make in 2008 because of health restrictions, time limitations or the lack of financial resources.  Let’s make 2009 the year that changes for you! 

People who read my monthly newsletter are very special people. You’re not ordinary by any means. You’re interested in growing yourself personally and professionally. You are passionate about making a difference in the world. You want to get outside the box of the “herd mentality”. As we go into what I see as a very long journey of financial chaos in the world, it is going to be even more important that you stay grounded spiritually , connected to your highest purpose and keep out of the fear that the world will try to hook you into.  More than even, we simply can’t afford to be in this victimhood, “I can’t take control” or “woe is me” place. My question for myself and for every one of you is:  Will you have the courage to do whatever it takes to move yourself off the merry-go-rounds that are holding you in ruts you don’t want to be in?   

Begin by choosing mentors that are financially savvy during rough times.  That will not be most financial planners as they are usually part of the herd mentality.  People like Robert Kiyosaki predicted this financial meltdown years ago in his book Prophecy.  If you haven’t checked out Robert’s work lately, that may be a great place to start.  Learn all you can about how to make the best of your resources and get really clear on your values and priorities. I will be sharing many of my mentors and resources during 2009 to help you along your journey.  

Thank you for being you. Thank you for doing all that you are doing to make the world a better place. Thank you for being open to change. May this holiday season be a time of rest and rejuvenation for all of us as we go together into 2009. 

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan 

Kim Baird was just 29 years old when she was elected the head of the Tsawwassen First Nation Indian Band. She became one of the youngest and one of the few female Indian chiefs in Canada. I recently read about Kim and was incredibly inspired by her story.  I wanted to share today what I learned from a young woman who has very much affected the community where I grew up.

It isn’t always easy to make a difference in the world. Everybody wants to make their contribution but sometimes it seems like you’re swimming upstream, riding up the down escalator and it’s tiring. Incredibly tiring.

When Kim moved with her mother and two siblings to the Indian Reserve only her mother knew as a way of life, it was a far cry from what she was used to. Poverty was rampant. There was a hopelessness and apathy that prevailed amidst the drug abuse, drinking and unemployment. Determined to make a difference, Kim went on to transform her reserve, sign a landmark treaty with the government and give her community hope. 

When all odds were against her, she sat down with a group, composed mainly of women, and said, “let’s figure out what works.” But even when they did find answers that worked, Kim wasn’t always celebrated. There were storms of outcries and anger from critics both on and off the reserve. Kim didn’t back down, but went door to door herself and allayed the fears of her community. On October 15, 2007, Kim Baird became only the second person in 110 years that has been invited to speak at the Legislative Assembly in British Columbia.

As I read this story of a tenacious young woman, I had to stop and ask myself if I would do the same thing. Would I look at a hopeless situation, a dying community, an uncooperative government, a male-dominated process and put myself out enough to change it? Would you?

Every time I read of people who overcame horrific challenges, I have to ask myself: Am I that strong; that determined, committed, tenacious? Am I that tireless? The answer is always NO. And I have to ask myself why not? I have asked myself that question a lot this month.

Back in the warm sunshine and robin blue skies every day, the easy going lifestyle of the Mexicans is highly contagious. Nothing is perfect and that’s life. Have a beer, play Frisbee on the beach, enjoy a meal with the family, go to church on Sunday and laugh with your neighbor. What more could anyone want? It always reminds me of the entrepreneur who told the easy-going Mexican fisherman that he could build a fleet of boats, hire many people, catch a lot of fish and make a ton of money. When the Mexican asked him why he should do all of that work, the entrepreneur said: “So you can take it easy, enjoy your family, spend time on your boat and take a siesta in the afternoon”. The Mexican replied that he enjoyed that life right now. It definitely makes you think about what you want as opposed to what everyone else thinks you should have. 

I like my Mexican lifestyle. I love having the maid come in and clean and change my sheets every week. I love the weekly in-house 90 minute massages. I love the amazing fresh fruits, vegetables and fish. I am in love with waking up to sunshine every day. I am very clear on the lifestyle I want.

And that is always the million dollar question. What do you want? Two of my good friends, Adrian and Brenda are visiting Bucerias, my new hometown for the month. Brenda and Adrian are very clear on what they want and they manifest it consistently. Brenda works a few hours each morning while Adrian looks after the running of the home and then they are off to play each day, boogie boarding, exploring a new beach, fishing, enjoying a great meal or sitting and having a drink watching the sunset. They got very clear on what they want and today live a life that many people envy.

So what I have decided is that some people are here to rock the world despite huge struggles. I can think of a dozen unstoppable, grin-in-the-face-of-death kind of entrepreneurs that makes my heart beat with excitement for them.  I feel their fight with a ton of empathy, I can celebrate their win…and I absolutely know at the very same time that I don’t want any part of their struggle.

I get clearer every day that I can rock the world and have what I want - peace, quiet, Jan time, God time, friends time, Greg time, along with love, joy, and magnificent abundance and prosperity. I do not have to give up one for the other. I can have it all.

Some people may need to go through excruciating times to reach their goals. Others seem to glide there more effortlessly. I’m not saying it doesn’t take work to reach our goals, because it does. But perhaps the greatest work is getting really clear on what you want. Maybe the largest task at hand is knowing with every cell in your body exactly what you desire. I believe the greatest test of faith is believing that you can have it and never wavering, never doubting, never letting go of the dream, even when it doesn’t show up when you planned.

My job, your job, our job is to get clear on what we want. Then our assignment is to know it with every fibre of our being. This is about overcoming the naysayers, shutting out the doubters and hearing your conviction in every word you speak. That’s the hard part. The rest I believe can be much easier than we think.

I applaud Kim Baird for her contribution to a better and fairer world. She inspired me to know even more clearly what I don’t want. Because of Kim, I am even more convinced that women working together can do amazing things. I have another notch in my belt of faith that I can have everything I want.  I am absolutely positive that you can too.  Just get clear on what that amazing life looks like and then don’t let it go.

To Your Outrageous Success!

Jan 

“You’re out of your mind!” There was a time when I would have thought that comment was an insult - today I think of it as a compliment. I need to be “OUT” of my mind if I am going to accomplish what I want to do. 

The moment we let our Conscious Mind rule our lives, we are in for problems. It’s why you need to be “out of your mind” to create the life you really want. Let me explain.

Your Conscious Mind is like a nagging mother. Have you listened to it? It goes on and on and on like a stuck CD with the same discouraging thoughts. ”Who do you think you are? Watch out! You can’t do that!  You’re not good enough. You’re bad. Something awful is going to happen. Be careful!” These are just a few of the more popular tracks the Conscious Mind likes to repeat constantly. How successful can you be with those disempowering messages playing repeatedly in your head?

So you need to be out of your mind. You need to go BEYOND the fear that is the dominant emotion of your Conscious Mind. Your Conscious Mind has heard the words, ‘NO” and “Don’t Do That” ever since you were born. The times you were told something negative has so outweighed the positive that your Conscious Mind automatically goes to the negative as the default. And why wouldn’t it? That’s been the programming. So to create positive changes in your life, you really need to be out of your mind. 

Is it really possible to stop the nagging, the “mind frick” or the monkey mind? Is it possible to move past the fear? Absolutely! With what is going on in the world right now, you are probably very aware of the intensity of this emotion. Fear of what the future holds, fear of how you will manage, fear that it will get worse, fear you will lose everything, and fear that the problems will last much longer than you want are just some of the prevalent fears today.   You could make yourself sick with fear and many people are.

The primary objective of your Conscious Mind is to keep you safe…period. It is not to make you rich, abundant, prosperous or even happy. It is to keep you safe. Anything that resonates as “not safe”, your Conscious Mind will automatically dismiss as impossible and sabotage you every time.

The problem is that it is operating from programming that came from your parents and all of their issues, programming from your cultural upbringing and from what I call the Tribe. The Tribe is the general mainstream of people who are like cows going to slaughter. They just follow the leader to their death. They don’t step out of the box, think for themselves or break the pattern. If the whole world is headed downstream, most people go along for the ride. They wouldn’t dare dream of going upstream. But it is going against the current that is your only hope of salvation. It is moving out of the mainstream thinking that is imperative if you are going to create an amazing life for yourself. Otherwise, you will be like cattle headed to the slaughterhouse with all the rest.

So if you are panicking right now, worrying yourself sick, fretting about this and that, or in any way out of a place of peace, love, joy and abundance, stop and become an observer of what is going on in your head. Listen to the noise and start to dissect what is behind the ruckus. I bet that beneath the din of the constant nattering there are some fundamental beliefs that are absolutely false - although your Conscious Mind believes them 100%. But as Lenin stated, “a lie told often enough becomes the truth.” That is the case with your Conscious Mind.

So ask yourself these questions and write down the answers which is a critical part of this exercise. 

1. What am I most worried about? 
2. What is the worst thing that could happen to me? 
3. What is my biggest fear?
4. What would happen to me if my biggest fear came true?

Let’s say for example you are most worried about money and finances. You write down that the worst thing that could happen to you is you could lose your job. The biggest fear is that you won’t find another one. And if that happened, you would have to start your own business, reduce your expenses, look for work in another locale or in a different field of work. Are any of these reasons serious enough for you to be feeling sick, not sleeping at night or completely stressed out? 

Problems present themselves and then amazingly enough solutions seem to manifest as well. Problem, solution, problem, solution, problem, solution. That pretty much is the pattern of life from what I can see.

It’s when we buy into our Conscious Mind’s fear spurred along by the Tribe’s addiction to fear, that we can start to believe that THIS TIME around the problems are bigger than ever. Well if they are, then the solutions THIS TIME around will be bigger than ever.   How exciting is that! Seriously, I am discovering in my life right now that big problems require big solutions and they manifest just like little solutions occur for little problems. 

I am fascinated to see how all of this upheaval in the world is going to shake out. The United States may have a first for their President next month. A generation that has grown up spoilt and living off of credit way beyond their means may soon learn the value of a simple life. People may realize some core values in life that have been long buried. They may discover that a deep spiritual faith goes a long ways to holding them firm in tough times. We are in for some big shifts like we have never seen in our lifetime. 

You have an amazing opportunity to be pillars in a potentially very different world. This is a wonderful opportunity to be the leader you are here to be. This is your time to really shine your light for others to see.  Here’s what you can do starting today.

Encourage others. Share your business opportunity with the financially concerned. Laugh daily. Give lots of hugs. Send positive thoughts out to the world. Focus on love, joy, peace and abundance. Stop watching CNN (Constantly Negative News). 

Get out of your mind and into your heart. Move out of a place of fear and into a place of love, hope and faith. When you do that, you will be delighted how amazing your life can be.

To Your Outrageous Success!Jan