Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude!

Changes and Transitions

I am so grateful for being able to accept and embrace change and remain positive in the midst of the stress associated with change. Change is not easy, but like death and taxes it is inevitable!

Some changes are huge and others seem quite small. No matter what the size, any change has the potential to cause us to feel disconnected, stressed out, fearful, scared and even miserable.

The worst change I experienced in the last ten years was from the loss of my husband, Lee Oberbeck, to a heart attack in late 2001, soon after 9/11. While still reeling from the tragedy in New York, I woke up early one morning, while on vacation, to Lee's dieing breaths. It was traumatic to say the least but I kept a cool head, while I was scared out of my mind! I gave him CPR while I was on the phone with 911 and waiting for the ambulance to arrive so that the Paramedics could make him better. Lee was dead by the time the ambulance arrived at the hospital. Even writing this brings back the fear and grief associated with that horrible morning on Maui. My life changed in that instant and a transition was about to begin.

Fast forward to yesterday when I read a message from Chris Lang, yes, that Chris Lang...the Social Marketing whiz kid (my words). He was directing anyone reading his blog to change their email address. I want to thank Chris for being the one that finally said what I needed to hear to do what it takes to go through all the effort needed to have a new email address! He said; Get a real one with your name or business, not one of those silly ones that doesn't identify who you are or what you are about! I paraphrased Chris very badly there but I think you get the idea.

Well, I can't say strongly enough that losing a loved one and changing your email address are two totally different experiences. However, as I have been going from one email provider to another, sending out emails to everyone I have in my address book and reading responses from two different sets of emails along with all the other things I am doing right now...Well, I find it to be stressful and challenging! So, as I said at the beginning, I am grateful to be able to handle stress in a positive way. Yet, stress is stress and there is a feeling to it that is unmistakable and unpleasant. I am being reminded of that now.

If you are feeling challenged by anything in your life, whether it is as bad as the loss of a loved one or as simple as changing an email address...I want you to know that I feel sympathy and empathy for you.

With love and gratitude,

Dyann

Landmark Forum...Grateful Graduate!

Landmark Education




















The possibility that I am inventing for myself and my life is the possibility of being powerful and compassionate.

I am so grateful to my dear friend Cheryl. We met at a Peak Potentials Training, "Enlightened Warrior Training Camp", in Pemberton BC about five years ago. She has talked about Landmark ever since and I have finally gone. WOW! What a beautiful transformational experience. Now that I know what a "racket" is... Well, it is now impossible to do anything but own mine!

Today, I am grateful for having completed the Landmark Forum and I am looking forward to the ten part Seminar series and the advanced program. There were approximately 120 people in the course and I look forward to getting to know as many as possible as we continue together!
Want to know more? Check out: http://www.landmarkeducation.com/

With love and gratitude,
Dyann

Project Purpose and Social Traffic

I have not been this busy in seven years!

What happened to retirement?

Oh yes, I remember...I am re-inspired!















Project Purpose continues. One of the instructions is to mail a letter or card to someone each day, for 90 days, to let them know how much they mean to me. I had no idea how this would unfold as I send cards all the time to people. However, most of the cards I have sent were to commemorate a birthday, an anniversary or heaven forbid, the death of a friend or family member of someone I care about.

This is different. I have written seven beautiful, heartfelt cards so far to seven different people. Today was number three but I wrote four more this evening as I will be out of town for four days and was afraid I would get distracted and forget to write them. As I consider who will get the next one it just comes to me like a gift, the recipient appears in my mind and heart as the perfect person for the next one. And because they are so perfect the letter becomes easy to write without too much thought...I just let the pen go and start writing whatever comes to mind!

In some cases I have been worried that when it is read the recipient will be concerned I am going to die or something. These are the kinds of things I think of people saying when they are on their death beds. I am hopeful that each one will be taken in the spirit in which it was written...with lots of love and gratitude!

Now on to the subject that has consumed my attention for the past few months...
Social Traffic!

A bit about Social Traffic, which you can learn more about at: http://www.socialtraffic.biz/

I have been connecting to friends on Facebook since last Fall that seemed to have some things in common but I could not put my finger on it. Around the holidays I noticed a lot of elf hats in profile photos and Christmas themed photos but I didn't see the connections. Because I was traveling so much during that time, San Francisco in October, Palm Desert in November, Maui in December and Oahu in January...I had other things on my mind...but I noticed these holiday profile photos none-the-less and I was connecting with some really cool people!

In mid January, after I returned from our last trip, I was catching up with friends on Facebook when I finally found the connection to all the things I had noticed over the previous months... Simon U Ford from Australia! A cute looking guy in sunglasses and a funny hat!

So, who is Simon and what was all the fuss about? Well, I soon became obsessed with all things Social Traffic!!!! I was reading day and night...anything and everything having to do with Simon U Ford and Social Traffic! I actually had the opportunity to take a break from my obsession when I went on a business trip to San Diego in early February, I am talking just last month! The four day break served me well because I had a chance to regroup and reconsider... before jumping into the deep Social Traffic waters with both feet!

Well, rather than me try to describe Simon and Social Traffic and what the attraction is, just see for yourself at http://www.socialtraffic.biz/

What I will say here is that Simon is the genius and visionary that created Social Traffic Inc. Social Traffic is the entry door into my learning all about Social Marketing in exchange for some of my valuable time. Simon has created the most amazing in depth training course worth thousands of dollars that he is currently giving away to anyone committed enough to be in the game in a big enough way to warrant the benefits. I am fortunate enough to be in wave #1, the front line, so to speak! There are still some openings for wave #3 so if you have any interest whatsoever...go to http://www.socialtraffic.biz/category/our-story/join-us/ If you have any interest...GO NOW! In exchange for the course and mentoring I am promoting Earth Day while learning how to use the social media to do so. All doors lead to http://www.eventslisted.com/ Simon is a genius as I said.

This blog, a couple of videos on Youtube so far, a lot of Twittering including learning about hashtags and retweeting, Google Friends Connect, RSS feeds, and tons of sharing of Social Traffic articles written by other people just like me...are all some of the things I have learned in the past few weeks. There's more but I am still figuring out how to get them started...like Squidoo!

Well, that's my first entry about Social Traffic, STI. More to come, as I have a lot to say about some of the things I have learned in the process of marketing Earth Day 2009! Stay tuned!

With love and gratitude,
Dyann ~ dml.edbd

Project Purpose

Today is the first day of my blog called:

"The Gratitude Room" Welcome!

It is also the second day of my participation in Project Purpose. Project Purpose is a 90 day adventure created by Patti Roney who has just shy of 700 of us participating with her! What a great job in leadership for her to attract that many followers for a project that no one knows the details of yet! She has been unfolding them over the past couple of days.

Here are the three details I know of so far...

1. To quote Patti: "With “Hearts of Purpose”, we begin each and every day with gratitude. If possible, we should begin our day with amazing thoughts, a smile on our face, and anticipation for the day to begin."

Since yesterday my husband 'Wild' Bill, and I have started our mornings with each of us saying to the other what we are grateful for. We each try to come up with a minimum of five different things we are grateful for and in only two days I feel lighter and more positive...like Spring has sprung!

Since we always begin our morning with 'W'B bringing us each a REV3 Energy drink in beautiful champagne flutes (with a freshly frozen raspberry no less!) it was just a matter of adding the gratitude part to our morning ritual. Our routine begins about 6:00 am because I go to yoga three days a week for a 6:30 am session.

2. We are to send a letter or email of gratitude to someone each day for 90 days. Since I love to send cards I will make an effort to send a beautiful snail mail card to someone different each day. Yesterday I sent my first card...I knew immediately who to send it to and it was filled with love and gratitude for the individual who will receive it. I look forward to sending the other 89! 'Wild' Bill is also sending them so between us we will be sending a total of 180 cards and/or emails over the next three months. That is very exciting to think about!

3. We are to post all our comments on a blog that Patti has created for this project. While at the blog today I realized it was time to start a blog of my own. Here it is world!

Since I am new at this I am not at all sure what to expect. However, I would like to extend an invitation to anyone that happens this way that would like to participate...please feel free! Any comments on gratitude, or whatever else is on your mind, are welcome!

I have been keeping a gratitude journal by my bed for several years. Writing what I have been grateful for each night has been a powerful experience. The best way I can describe it is this; by writing down my thoughts of gratitude each day I was never more than 24 hours away from focusing on gratitude. And since what you focus on expands, I found myself in a constant state of gratitude for all these years. It is very hard to get depressed, negative or down when you are in a constant state of gratitude! The only difference is now I am doing it in the morning, out loud with my husband...I am loving this project!

If you would like to join me and leave comments I would love to hear from you...whoever "you" might be! I will be posting my thoughts on Project Purpose and other things related to gratitude, here in the Gratitude Room! Come on in and join me!

With love and gratitude,
Dyann ~ dml.edbd