While I was living in Bali, I was deeply moved by what looked like a revolution happening in America: a movement to create economic equality. In fact, I was so inspired that I decided to return to America and participate. My “inner activist” was on fire with hope for a collective awakening that spread around the world.

As a career coach for people called to make a difference in the world, I see the Occupy Movement as creative inspiration for people looking to generate new and creative ways to transform the world. We must be willing to step outside the box of our comfort zone and allow for a radical new vision of what is possible.

If you are are interested in creating an amazing 2012 and live in the San Francisco Bay Area, you are invited to join a group of amazing people for a special, heartfelt workshop.

If you can’t make the in-person workshop, please join my Creating 2012 Teleclasses. It’s been attracting an amazing group of women! And it’s my free gift to you so that you can craft the best year of your life….please share with your friends. I’ve been using this transformational goal-setting process on myself and with my clients for the past 7 years with amazing results!

Wishing you inspiration,

Tarra

Occupy Work You Love

Here are some lessons I’m learning from the Occupy movement that are relevant to creating work you love:

It’s OK to feel fed up. While it may not be comfortable for many of us, anger is a common response to violation of all kinds. Like all emotions, anger holds the potential to be channeled creatively. I’ve worked with many clients who are hanging on to work that deep down they know is not in alignment with their deepest selves. And that can feel like a violation of their souls.
Often, they are angry at themselves and/or the organizations they work for. In order to survive, they believe that they must swallow that anger. Yet swallowing anger and engaging in work that we detest inevitably leads to the body’s rebellion. It’s no surprise that many of the people who are using this tactic and “trying to make it work” end up in the hospital or suffering from chronic injuries. Sometimes, no matter how uncomfortable it makes you feel, you have to draw a line and say enough is enough. Don’t repress the anger. Feel it, and build an exit strategy.

Authorize yourself to change business as usual. The Occupy movement understands the power of self-authorization. At Occupy Oakland, I witnessed people empower themselves to take the microphone and speak out on issues that matter to them, including the closing of 50 public schools in Oakland, how they were denied health care or lost their homes due to corporate greed. They didn’t wait for permission. They see a problem with business as usual, and they have decided to be a part of a solution. And that change is happening. They were victorious with several change initiatives: Bank of America rescinded its proposed $5 ATM fee, The Port in Oakland closed, and I heard one great story of a bank initiated eviction of a 86-year old and her daughter. After taking one look at her, the hirees refused. And the movement itself has spread like wildfire across the world. Likewise, if you want your career to transform, you must be willing to become the author of your own life and take action. No one is going to take action for you.

Don’t make demands. While you need to have an inspired action plan to create work you love, you don’t want to contaminate it with the energy of demands. Once you make demands, you are pigeonholed. While it is important to formulate a clear action plan, Occupy is in a brainstorming phase, a place where it is important to be inclusive, open-minded and explore all options. You can’t really demand work you love, you can only create it. As those within the Occupy movement are creating a vision of the economy they want to see, we each have the power to create our own economy. It starts with us.

Here are two great resources on this topic:
Occupy Love Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRtc-k6dhgs
“No Demand Big Enough” by Charles Eisenstein: http://www.realitysandwich.com/occupy_wall_street_no_demand_big_enough

Thrive with your tribe. Occupy gained momentum because representatives of the 99% banded together and supported each other with ideas, resources, time, energy, food, and dare-I-say-it, love. They expressed their discontent and took collective action. People who have community around them are more likely to succeed in any endeavor, especially creating work they love. As a career coach, I started to create group coaching options because I saw how much more quickly a supportive group can help us reach our goals (and have more fun doing it!). It’s important that you identify the support you need and allow yourself to receive it. What we can learn from Occupy is that gathering with people who can offer support is a surefire way to end isolation and begin to create change.

Get creative. At Occupy, I saw flash mobs dance to “I Will Survive,” posters made with creative gusto and creative protests like a Darth Vader who sat outside banks. We have a new model of activism, and it’s about creative participation. The people who change history have the ability to “think different.” Think: Gandhi’s Salt March, Steve Job’s technology revolution, and Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream. Creating work you love involves creativity and imagination. In fact, some of the most successful and happy people I know are taking the “road less travelled” and using the economic downturn to open new possibilities: innovative social entrepreneurs addressing social problems, individuals using technology to create new products, those returning to community college to pursue a passion. Even those who take a break from it all and spend time living in places such as Bali where they live like a King or Queen for under $2,000 a month.

Here’s the good news and the bad news. We have systems (ecological, political, employment) that are unsustainable and on the verge of collapse. Ayn Rand once famously said, “You can ignore reality, but you can’t ignore the consequences of ignoring reality.” The reality is that we are on the verge of a huge paradigm shift. Once we accept this, we hold enormous power to create what we want – in our work lives, our economy and our culture. Understanding this is essential for creating work you love. The world is waiting for your innovation. We can choose to use this historical moment to create new systems, new paradigms, new organizations, new entrepreneurial ventures and new ways of being that support the creation a more sustainable and just world. Find the opportunities in the world for the way you want to work. Create that.

Tarra Christoff, MA is a coach who helps women create meaningful work that makes a difference. She has facilitated inspiring workshops for change agents at The Omega Institute, Young Women Social Entrepreneurs, and The California Institute of Integral Studies. Tarra is also the founder of the Career Transformation teleclass program for women. Visit www.workthatmakesadifference.com

One of the biggest challenges women face is the reluctance to give themselves permission to go for what they want in life. From early childhood, women are conditioned to put others’ needs before their own. In adulthood this often translates into the inability to self authorize. (And if you are a man reading this, please forward to a woman you care about). 

 

Self authorizing means valuing yourself and your needs and desires enough to say: “I claim this for myself. I don’t need (fill-in-the-blank) to give me their permission, support, or encouragement.” It means deciding that YOU are the author of your life.

 

 

 

You can make that choice right now. And when you do, the results will be revolutionary. I promise you this one decision will lead you to showing up in a dramatically different way in your inner and outer worlds.

 

Here’s an example: Lisa has been talking for 10 years about starting a business that empowers women. She is hoping there will come a day when her partner is able to financially support her in leaving her job and starting this business. However, a decade later, it’s still not happening.

 

Lisa complains that her day job is “killing her soul.” She tosses and turns at night feeling anxious about going to work in the morning. She is plagued with thoughts like, “I’m not living the life I’m meant to. I’m not fulfilling my purpose.” Each day, she dreams about what it would be like to run a business in line with her values, but her worry, doubt, and fear prevent her from taking action.

 

What would happen if Lisa authorized herself to go for her vision? I’m not advocating that she quit her day job if that’s not financially viable. However, she certainly can start taking action, even while remaining in her current job. And I know that she will feel relief once she does.

 

What are some of the ways you might self-authorize?

●     Asking for what you need in a group setting

●     Asking your boss for the raise you deserve

●     Resting when you know you need to

●     Being proactive with dating instead of passively thinking it will just work out for you

●     Not waiting for an authority person to decide your value, but claiming it for yourself

 

What happens when you self-authorize?

●     You feel empowered, regardless of the outcome

●     You feel a newfound energy

●     Your friends and loved ones have a chance to support you 

●     New and unexpected opportunities arise because you are taking a stand for yourself

●     You feel a sense of authenticity that people appreciate (which in turn, creates openings for them to self-authorize, too)

 

What happens when you don’t self authorize?

●     Your energy feels stuck

●     Your creativity remains undeveloped

●     You have health challenges

●     You limit what is possible for your financial freedom

●     You no longer trust yourself and your instincts

 

What can help you self authorize?

 

 

Personally, I feel a sensation that tells me something isn’t right for me, or that sends a message about what I may need to say or do to stand in my power. I find that my body provides the clearest indicator that I need to self-authorize.

 

I used to think that discomfort meant it’s not right to take action. Now, I understand that I am simply stepping outside my comfort zone and it’s a sign that it would serve me to speak my truth. 

 

Each time I claim my truth and stop waiting for something outside of me to give me permission, I create more space in my life for what I truly want.

  

Recently, I followed my heart’s vision of living and coaching in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia. I gave myself permission to go for it, no matter what. It’s one of the best decisions I ever made! (The picture below is outside of a temple in Bali). 

 

If you know that your work is one place where you are not living your vision, I can assure you, from my work with hundreds of clients, that it is possible to change that.

 

Wishing you career independence!

 

Tarra