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

Here are three ways to start debunking the myths and creating what you want, the feminine way.

Don’t “Just Do It”. If it were as easy as a Nike tagline, you would have done it by now. The reality is that our relationship with our work life is complex. We have a history that we are bringing to the work. For example, I have a client who came from a traumatic background, and she chooses workplaces are dysfunctional. Until she does some of the inner work to address this pattern, it’s quite likely that her next work environment will look similar. While there is a time and place for taking action, the best action comes from a place of inspiration and trust. The prevalent “Just Do It” sentiment often leads women to feel shame for not being further along than they are. Let it go and instead accept where you are. Acceptance–>Awareness–>Action is the formula that is more likely to bring the results you want. Don’t move into action for the sake of action. Let your actions be inspired!

Eat, Pray, Love. As women, we do best when our chalice is full. We have nothing to give to our work life if our cup is not full. When you have balance in your life – balance that comes from healthy eating, prayer (meditation/yoga/connecting to something greater than yourself), and most importantly, love – you connect to yourself. Loving yourself is perhaps the most important part of the formula for creating work you love. Your relationship with work is like building a healthy relationship with a partner. When you have a deep love of yourself, you are nourished and not needing work to fill a hole inside of you. Try filling yourself up with what you love, and then notice what and who you attract from that space.

Create a Web of Support. Women thrive when they have a supportive community. We do best when we link arms and see each other through difficult times. We like to give and receive support. In fact, we need that web of support to make shining our brightest lights possible. Right now, I encourage you to draw a circle with some lines radiating out from it. On each line, write the name of a woman who supports you. I invite you to connect with each of them and consider one thing she can do to support you in creating work you love. It might be a contact at an organization, a resume review, a brainstorming session. Or it could be emotional support – a reminder of your gifts, a fun night out with the girls, or being your bookend. (Bookending is a simple and powerful tool that’s great for taking difficult action. Just tell your friend what you plan to do. Then, once you’ve done it, let her know that too. It’s a easy way to get support — and accountability.)

Ready to create work you love – the feminine way?

Join a community of women who are inspired to make that happen in my 6-Week Transforming Your Career Teleclass. We start on August 9. Don’t miss the FREE preview teleclass, Creating Work You Love, on Tuesday, August 2, and the early bird special offer that ends at midnight on Wednesday, August 3.

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

by Tarra Christoff | Common Ground Magazine

“Our calling is where our deepest gladness and the world’s hunger meets.”
—Frederick Buechner, theologian

 Do you feel a calling to create meaningful work that feeds your soul and the planet? There is no greater legacy than sharing your unique contribution with the world. To create work that feeds the planet and ourselves, we must listen to the guidance that earth provides: What is the earth’s calling for you?

Answering this question means recognizing that we each have a part to play in stewarding a sustainable and socially just world. When you find that place where your joy aligns with something the world needs, you will feel an authentic gladness in your work.

Here are some practices to help you create work that feeds the planet:

• Start with a vision quest. Many indigenous cultures hold the vision quest as a sacred element of finding one’s gift so that it can be brought into the community. Typically, the process involves a separation, an initiation, and a return to the community with a gift. Our fast-paced secular society rarely supports taking the time needed to find stillness, reconnect to the earth’s wisdom, and bring this gift into the world. But people who take a sabbatical from joyless work to evaluate their vision, values, and purpose often do find work that aligns with their authentic contribution. While extended travel may not be an option, it is possible for seekers to spend more time in nature or to visit retreat centers to find their vision. Even sitting outside with a contemplative question such as, “What is the earth’s calling for me?” can harvest guidance about one’s path.

 

• Discover the sacred gift inside the wound. Our wounds have immense power to transform our lives—and the world. The great mythologist Joseph Campbell believed that the hero’s journey requires living in “the dark belly of the whale.” Transforming wounds into sacred gifts requires a commitment to show up fully for our challenges with an understanding that they are the gateway to an initiatory journey. For example, Christina Pandolfo was passionate about health and wellness. She worked as an occupational therapist and went through a six-year period of chronic headaches, sensitivity to touch, and extreme fatigue. When her grandmother gave her an article about a woman who struggled with gluten, Christina, a pasta lover of Italian ancestry, resonated with it completely. She eliminated gluten from her diet. Her health—and life—transformed. Christina created a blog to help others live a gluten-free lifestyle. By turning toward one’s sacred wound, it is possible to transform it into work that feeds the planet.

 

• Transform complaints to celebration. Many people ultimately discover great joy in doing something to address their biggest complaint about the world. The soul wants to alchemically transform lead into gold. For example, a corporate employee named Linda, upset that low-income kids in urban environments didn’t have access to nature—access that she treasured—decided to lead nature-immersion experiences for youth. How can you transform your complaint into a cause for celebration and work you love doing?

 

• Practice self-care with earth care. Many people consider self-care to consist of personal practices that help them live with greater balance. However, personal sustainability and planetary sustainability are interconnected. Both are necessary ingredients for work that feeds the planet. Ellen Donald, executive director of an environmental nonprofit that works with young people, says: “We’ve become unbalanced in our personal lives, which has translated into an unbalancing of our entire system. Personal sustainability and planetary sustainability are iterations of the same idea: balance. To find this balance personally, identify what’s missing or what is unfulfilled and then create time for it—make it a priority.” Ellen restores her balance and is able to give because of her focus on personal sustainability, including riding her bike to work and eating organic foods. What keeps you sustainable?

 

• Thrive with your tribe. This time on our planet is one of building “beloved community,” in the words of Martin Luther King Jr. Each person has a unique gift and talent to contribute to this “Great Turning,” which Buddhist scholar and Deep Ecologist Joanna Macy describes as the life-sustaining civilization that is emerging on our planet. Imagine it’s 100 years from now, and you are looking back on your contribution. What do you want it to be? How do you want your family, especially your children, to remember you? What about your communities? With that in mind, what’s the one thing—big or small—you feel called to do? How can you create your authentic expression of work that makes a difference?

Tarra Christoff, MA, is an international career and leadership coach helping people create work that makes a difference. WorkThatMakesADifference.com