It’s been an odd few months...

Partly because I have been barking up a wrong tree with the way I thought I wanted to work with people and partly because I have been negotiating my re-entry into post lockdown life where everything is different. My internal landscape, external points of reference; everything has shifted. Probably as it always does over a couple of years. It’s just that usually it goes on whilst I am fully integrated into a social society of humans…

Talking to other people, it is clear we have experienced a level of collective trauma, thanks to the disruption of usual socialising with favourite humans. At one point I noted that even in highly stressful business meetings, humans make physical contact when they shake hands.

And then I finally got COVID, and it was not nice. I did well to dodge it for as long as I did, and I am truly grateful for anyone and everyone who made vaccinations possible because I was properly ill there for a while and I cannot imagine how bad it must be without some immunity.

Anyway, the upshot is… quite a gap in my communications. Plus. A development of my personal development, thinking & learning, and a breakthrough for the way I want to support people.

So, I am back, and I have a renewed sense of purpose

How did I get here?

In 2020 I decided I was going to work solely with people in the not-for-profit sector. But that hasn’t turned out how I expected because I put the focus on the wrong thing.

By focusing on 'not-for-profit', it opens into a place of fixed and scarcity mindsets, and I don’t do well in that mode. In attempting to make progress from that start point, even with what I have to offer from my experience accumulated over a quarter of a century of supporting people who run not-for-profit organisations, I have never come across so many people who already know absolutely everything already! As an illustration of how fixed it all was, even in situations where people were asking for help, they were extremely defensive when responses to their requests for help included actual help… It has been a disheartening time.

The upside of this odd episode has been a lot of learning!

I have gained insight and a sharper awareness about who I prefer to work with – people who are inquisitive and want to learn. The sorts of people who really understand that the people, places of species that they help will benefit when they take the time to work on themselves; learn new skills; or acquire additional knowledge.

These people can be found in non-profit AND for-profit situations – and anyway, it isn’t about that.

What matters is their motivation and how focused they are on their purpose for doing what they do.

In my efforts to learn and grow over the last couple of years I have remembered and realised several other things, including:

• Purpose-focused entrepreneurs are supportive, generous with their thoughts & insights, encouraging and keen to learn
• Making the time to do the deep work, and to implement what we learn from other people, is difficult
• I help people to understand what they need to do to make a thing a reality
• I am good at creating and holding space for people who need to get something done
• I love organising events!

In short, this whole episode has brought me clarity about the purpose for my work

So now I have a plan, events to arrange, resources to develop, and plenty of ideas to talk about to help you do the thing and get stuff done.

What are you doing next year on 23^rd May? I will be having a gathering for my inner circle of people who come together to get stuff done. The programme will be drawn from the community, each sharing their ideas and inspiration. There will be an opportunity to stay on for a three day retreat to do the thing and get stuff done. We will be in a venue in a beautiful place, with really good food. There will be opportunities to stretch into our creativity, with time to be outside in the beautiful place.

Between now and then, I have a vibrant community of supportive and encouraging purpose-focused people to build. They will be able to access monthly training, regular meet ups, and virtual co-working to do the thing and get stuff done, all with support and a sense of camaraderie. We’ve all got reasons for doing what we do, and the focus is very much on creating a greater ripple effect – because when we work on ourselves, the people, places and species benefit too.

The people you are likely to encounter if you choose to engage with me or the Contributing with Confidence community are all purpose focused. They are the sorts of people who are inquisitive & curious and enjoy gathering understanding about situations. They are lifelong learners. They love learning through play and experimentation. They’re probably quite creative. And visionary. These are the sorts of people who often understate their awesomeness and expertise, but they are up front with their kindness, generosity, and support. This is a gang of people happy to work towards being the change they want to see in the world. When they act, there are ripples of benefits.

My community will be a space where you are encouraged to play about with ideas, getting it wrong a bit, so that gradually what you really want will begin to emerge. In my space, it is all about the art of the possible and ‘no’ is a complete sentence.

Are you in?! 

Make sure you have joined my email community so that you don’t miss any invitations or announcements – people on my mailing list will always get first dibs on offers.