Stress and Your Performance

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Parenting - A Journey into Your Soul - The early years

Posted on July 20, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

As I mentioned in my last blog when our son was born, I was totally in love. I found myself wanting to hold him and cuddle him all day long. I noticed I became a little possessive if friends or extended family wanted to hold him. I got to the point where I became very identified with him.   By this I mean, all of his achievements – rolling over, smiling, walking, talking and his behavior were a reflection of me and my abilities as a mother. 
 

I wanted to know everything there was to know about being a “good” mom and I wanted to do everything RIGHT.

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Parenting - A Journey into Your Soul

Posted on July 12, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

There is nothing like parenting to make you look at yourself and see how you want to be a better person. 

 At least that is what happened for me along my road of parenting my three children. Over the next while in my blogs I am going to share some of my journey into parenting – the joys, the sorrows, the triumphs and the defeats. I write this with the hope that you will find some solace in knowing you are not alone in your thoughts, fears and anxieties about parenting “the right way”. 

FYI in my humble opinion – there is no RIGHT WAY or wrong way of parenting there is only YOUR WAY.
 
To begin, the biggest gift that parenting has given me is humbleness. Nothing like getting angry and frustrated with my kids to make me realize that all of those parents I judged in the past for yelling at their kids at the mall had really jus

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When you fear telling the truth!!

Posted on June 16, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 How often do you reveal your true self to the world?

The inner dialogue that many people have is “if people really know who I am, what I am thinking and what I am feeling, they would not like me”. This is called “imposter syndrome”. We feel like imposters in our lives because the way we present ourselves to the world has to look a certain way but is not really who we are. We fear that if our true nature were revealed we would be ridiculed or ignored.

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Take the Moment-is Challenge

Posted on May 31, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

I posted this challenge a year ago and even to this day I am getting comments about how much people enjoyed this post.  So I thought I would put it out there again.  I find using this system of tuning into the present moment is ideal for helping me to decrease my stress as I realize all I can do is what I can do in this moment.  So here it is.  Enjoy and let me know what you notice with doing this. 

Many of us are WAY TOO BUSY to spend a lot of time on personal development but yet are desperate to find better ways to be more connected with ourselves, our children and our world.  So I have developed the Moment-Is Challenge and use it myself every day.


For the next 30 days we are asking you to set aside 5 minutes each day to be “in the moment“.

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Tune into your body

Posted on May 25, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Do you know what it feels like to tune into your body and your intuition?

Many people live in their heads.  They are caught up in the rat race of life that they rely on their head to get them to where they need to get to.  But...did you know that when you live only in your head you lose out on powerful messages that come from your inner wisdom or your gut sense. 

How do you know you are living in your head?  Ask yourself, what are your thoughts?  Are they here in this moment , what can I do now, what am I feeling now, what do I want to accomplish now?  Or are they dwelling on the past or worrying about the future?  Many of us are anywhere but here. 

Watch today's video blog to understand more about what means to Tune into your body

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Starting a Stress Revolution - Want to join me?

Posted on May 19, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 

How many times do you hear “I am so stressed” during a single day? 

Once, twice or several times a day. It is amazing how many people are stressed. This stress may be due to their finances, their job, their family, their car, their boss, their kids etc. The list is endless. We all can agree that people have reason to be stressed, but what can we do about it NOW.
 
Research and statistics show that stress can be blamed for about 80% of what ails us. But, what are we doing about it - many people are resigned to the fact that they are stressed. They don’t think there is anything they can do about it so they let it continue. 

Stress hormone that accumulates in our body as the result of stress impacts not only our health but also our ability to think clearly and how we react to life’s challenges.

 

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Take Charge of Your Family Stress - What Now?

Posted on May 5, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Yesterday, I held the first of many webinars on "Taking Charge of Stress".  I have come to the conclusion that people are unaware of how much stress they and their family is under.  This lack of awareness is creating havoc on our health, our relationships and our performance.

Many people are resigned to the fact that their life is stressful and there is really nothing that they can do about it.  After all, we need to pay the bills, feed our children and make a living.  This is all true, but what many people fail to realize is that it not "What we have to do" that creates our stress, but our reaction to "What we have to do".

Between the stressful event and your reaction to it, you have a choice as how you can react.  Many people do not know any other way to be so they often act from anger, frustration, withdrawal or complacency.

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Take Charge of Your Family Stress-Now

Posted on April 27, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 

I am hosting a Webinar Series entitled “Take Charge of Your Family Stress” during the month of May.

 This is an opportunity to  help families feel less stress and more peace in their relationships with each other. 
 
I am committed to getting the message out there that "stress is taking its toll on men, women, children and the family unit and this has got to stop". 
 
Similar to Jamie Oliver’s food revolution, I am starting the Stress Revolution. WE need to take charge of family stress, here, now and always.
 
I can educate, I can motivate but I cannot navigate your individual family circumstances.  It is up to you to take charge of what you can.  </

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Executive Women Having it All - What is the truth?

Posted on April 23, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

I would love your help. 
I am in the process of developing more “in the moment” tools for busy executive women to reduce their stress and feel better NOW. I also am working on a book to be written for the top executive woman who wants to “have it all” in her life. To that end, I would love your thoughts about the following!
 

How are you doing – really? Are you excited about where your life is going? Do you feel “at peace” with who you are and what you have accomplished so far?

 For the past 35 years, through my work as a nurse, workshop facilitator, life coach and stress management expert I have had the privilege of working with thousands of individuals (primarily women) in helping them find the answers to these questions honestly. It has been an amazing journey.

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6 “In The Moment” Questions to Decrease Your Stress - NOW

Posted on March 22, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

We have a tremendous amount of mind chatter that goes on beneath the surface. Often the conversations are negative abusive statements such as “you should”, “why did you do that” and  “what is wrong with you?”  These can lead to feelings of stress and overwhelm as you try and quiet the mind.   Wouldn’t it be nice to speak with gentleness and kindness to yourself? To be loving and respectful of all you say and do. 

The moment-is pie is a great place to steer your internal conversations onto the right track. This pie has 6 questions that help you get grounded and centered into this present moment experience - into the NOW.   People often feel stressed and dissatisfied with their life as they struggle with what is their current reality.  Learning to recognize your in the moment experience can be a great stress reducer as you learn to "be here, NOW"

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To Stress or Not to Stress - That is The Question

Posted on March 17, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Do I want to be stressed or not stressed – that is my question.

How can I have my business, be with my family and live the life I want within the context of my current day reality? There are so many demands from different aspects of my life that I often get pulled in a zillion different directions. I was under the misguided belief that if my children were grown and gone from the house that I would not have anything that would get off balance. Was I ever mistaken, I have a whole life that I want to keep healthy and strong. This means I need to pay attention to the many facets of my life. I have a great husband and I want to nurture that relationship. I have wonderful children whom I want to stay in contact with. I have great friends whom I want to stay connected with and I have my body, mind and emotions that I want to be respectful of. My choice is simple however, do I want to fully be in my life, loving what is and being present in all that I do? Or, do I want to try and do more, be more, accomplish more because I should.

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Real Life Trumps Beach Life - Every Time

Posted on February 19, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Have you ever played bridge?  When the players finish bidding they arrive at a suit that is called trump.  Trump suits win every time, no matter if you have the highest card in the deck.  What I noticed this last week is that Real Life held the trump card over my musings on the beach. 

It is amazing how I was so clear and focused about what I wanted to do when sitting on the beach with my broader perspective of  life.  When I got home to the real world, the greatest plans to connect and write about my experiences fell by the wayside. That is my truth. 
 
My life has been awesome and fulfilling but alas, I did not carry through on the writing of my experiences as I promised. I am giving myself permission to tell the truth about not doing what I said I was going to do and will find the silver lining in what I have been doing. 

Where have I been

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Day 5 - Back to the Real World

Posted on February 8, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Getting back to the real world after being on vacation can be a rude awakening.  As I travelled back from Maui with it's sun, sand and surf, I felt an incredible sense of gratitude for all that I have in my life.  Living in the moment was easy to do as I took in my last day of Paradise with my family.  I did not keep notes for my blog as I decided to let let days 3 and 4 go unrecorded.  As a brief summary, they were amazing.  We had a beautiful last day, travelled the island to take in some different sites on our way to the airport. 

 
Flying all night to get back home was a little exhausting and when I walked into the house and saw the stack of mail and emails I needed to deal with I felt a little overwhelmed.  However, I set up a plan and a strategy for how I wanted this week to go.  I feel ready to get back to the real world.

Living in the Moment is more challenging to do in the real

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What Do You Want Your Life to Look Like?

Posted on January 19, 2010 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 If you were to sit back today and take stock of your whole life, how are you doing? Take some time and look at the following categories. Write a list of the things you would like to complete in each of these areas. This list is not meant to stress you out but to bring into your conscious awareness the things in your life that you know need some attention. By being more aware of these areas, you can then set up a plan of what you can do to take care of them day by day.

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Noticing Stress In Your Life

Posted on October 29, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

My last few blogs have focused on Living the Life you Want and steps to help you get there. We talked about
  • “Who are you” 
  • What is important to you 
  • What is your truth and
  • How not living your truth creates stress.
 
A couple of years ago, I really got it about how not living my truth was causing me stress and negatively impacting my life. I began a very busy job that was both exciting and fulfilling. I was excited about all the opportunities that presented themselves for me in this position. As I became more immersed in the work, I had several ideas about how this position could grow and evolve. I used my creativity and determination to try and bring about all that I believed was possible. It was a challenging time.

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Not Living your Truth Creates Stress

Posted on October 27, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 

Stress for many people is caused by their living life out of integrity with what they hold near and dear to their heart – their truth. 
 
For example, if you value honesty but fear that speaking up and telling the truth in your workplace will result in losing your job, you may consciously or subconsciously make a decision that you will not say anything about the situation. Another example may be that you were educated and trained to deliver care or service in a particular way, yet the realities of the workplace make it impossible for you to do that.  You try and stuff the thoughts to the back of your mind and ignore the situation.  If you are like most people, trying to ignore the situation, not say anything and “letting it go”, creates an internal turmoil that often shows up in different ways.
 
Withholding your truth creates stress

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September Stress – Where did that summertime bliss go?

Posted on September 24, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 The other day I met with a client who was back to work after a great summer of little routine and lots of fun. He commented on how challenging it was to get back into the mindset of work and get things done.  He had many things on his list, but felt like he was walking in quick sand trying to accomplish them.

 
 If you are feeling this way – you are not alone.
 
After a summer of fun, relaxation and rejuvenation, many people find that 3 weeks into September they are wondering what they are doing and why they are doing what they are doing because they have lot all of that summertime bliss. Many people miss how great they felt and figure they will not feel that way again until their next holiday.

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5 Steps to Overcome Procrastination and Take Action

Posted on September 9, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

 Do you procrastinate and often find a myriad of excuses as to why you have not got things done? Do you feel overwhelmed with the many things you have on your “to do” list and wonder how you will ever get started doing them let alone get them all done.  Many people blame a lack of time as the reason why they do not get things completed on their list. Granted, time is precious and there are many demands on all of us. However, sometimes the size of the list can often be the biggest reason why people do not get things done. They just don’t know where to start. What I have outlined are 5 simple steps that can help you tackle some of your list?  So let’s begin.

 
Think about your list of things you need to get done in the next week.  Take one of the items on your list and let’s work with it.

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7 Steps to Help You SLOW DOWN

Posted on May 30, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

I remember several years ago I had a flurry of speeding tickets. I owned a children’s clothing store which was starting to falter, I had three kids doing various activities, we were building a house, and I never seemed to have enough time to do anything.  I always seemed to be rushing from hither to yon and within a three week period of time, I received two speeding tickets and a warning. I failed to mention that at this time, I was also doing a lot of soul searching on how I was living my life as I WAS NOT HAPPY.

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Giving Myself Permission to do NOTHING

Posted on May 24, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Life has been busy for me lately with the re:design and content development of my web site, writing and recording podcasts, writing blog posts as well as seeing clients and all of the administration that comes with owning my own business.  I just took training on Twitter and Linked-in and feel a bit overwhelmed with all I have to do.  I absolutely love it all and feel on track with everything but the volume of work at times seems a bit over the top.

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Feeling good – “in the moment”

Posted on May 21, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

There has been a lot written about the “Law of Attraction”, “The Secret”, “Power of Positive Thinking” and many others to help guide us on the road to living and thinking more positively.  These books and self improvement movements are attempting to teach us that we can manifest and achieve greatness in our lives depending on our perspective and our beliefs.  In order to have the life we want, we need to change how we think and feel in order to achieve what we want to attract in our lives.

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7 Unrecognized Signs of Early Stress

Posted on May 20, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

People think of stress as being burnt out, crying alot, feeling overwhelmed and unable to cope.   While these are definately signs of stress, they are often preceded by some earlier warning signs that people do not necessarily attribute to stress. These include:

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The Intentional Breath

Posted on May 19, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

The breath is the most underutilized tool available to us “in the moment”. Research shows that when we breathe deeply into the very base of our lungs that we can calm down our nervous system which is responsible for many of our stress symptoms.

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Real life stress

Posted on May 16, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

My education into the world of stress came to me a few years ago when I was working at a very demanding job. When I took on the job I was gung-ho and set up a variety of systems to insure I did the job well.  I was  organized, articulate and efficient at what needed to get done and  I felt  capable and confident in what I was doing.  As time went on, I  achieved great strides and many kudos from my colleagues.

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Cortisol – We need you but enough already

Posted on May 15, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Cortisol is a hormone that is secreted by our adrenal glands and is a necessary part of our waking and sleep cycles.  We need it to wake us up in the morning but if we have too much cortisol, it can be a problem.

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Stress and Adrenaline – what can you do?

Posted on May 13, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

Adrenaline is a hormone that is secreted by our sympathetic nervous system in response to an event real or imagined that has us scared.  People often refer to it as the fight, fright or freeze response.  It is the hormone that is responsible for people having an uncanny amount of strength in scary situations e.g. lifting a car off a person to save their life etc.

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BLOW OFF SOME STEAM!!!

Posted on May 11, 2009 12:00:00am, by Gerrianne Clare

One of the ways for helping to get you in the moment is to ask:

In this moment – how do I feel? Many of my clients feel angry, frustrated or overwhelmed by the demands put on them by themselves, their families or their workplace.  Yet they put on a mask by being nice all of the time, holding it in and not telling the truth about how they are feeling.  On the inside they are seething.

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