What are you reading? What are you learning?
I have an old friend who regularly greets her friends with the question, "What are you reading?"
I love that question, because it assumes that the person is a learner and a reader. I think we should be both.
So the second question that goes with the first is "What are you learning?" That leads to a pre-question:
What are your goals?
What books and articles are you reading that lead you to your goals?
What courses, lectures, YouTube videos, webinars are you "attending" to reach your goals?
My goals One of my big goals is to be a better coach and consultant for my clients, so I am reading books and am in the middle of a NLP certificate course at the moment. I will also be taking a Quality Management certification in January. I do enjoy learning and these kinds (NLP and QM) are something I can immediately put into practice with myself and my business, my clients, and with my teaching at the university.
What I (re)learned this weekend Some of learning is really remembering, and I did a lot of that this weekend at my NLP course.
Here are four things that I found key for me, at the moment:
Meaning is found in the response to the communication- even if I do not elicit the response I wanted, the meaning lies with the recipient, not with my intentions. Thus, I should rework the message to fit the recipient's "language".
It's all about people and relationship, and of course that is my mantra, anyway. But I love it. We are all trying our best with "what we have".
Emotions are neutral and show where the individual is "at" at the present moment. The person is a whole being: mind, body, conscious and subconscious.
We can't have an effect on one part without affecting another. A person is a "system" and all the rules for systems apply. We are constantly learning and changing and change is possible for everyone.
We learn via modeling: watching and mimicking others to learn new ways of doing things and responding to our circumstances. Thus, we (I) should make sure I am being a positive model for others, my family and friends, my clients, my students...
What am I reading? Of course, I am re-reading the NLP Handbook by Joseph O'Conner as I write and think at the moment. However, to balance life, last week I read The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine by Alexander McCall Smith, one of the books in the Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency series. These books are full of fun and home-spun wisdom. They make me want to drink redbush (Rooibus) tea and take a holiday in Botswana. They make me smile and laugh. And smiling is good for the soul: that is also something I remembered this past weekend.
So, what are your goals? What are doing to reach those goals? What are you reading and what are you learning?
Have a great week!
Patricia Jehle
