Category Archives: influence

Fresh start, Goals, influence, Living Intentionally, make a difference, Questions?, roles and relationships

How Do You Measure a Year?

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I love pondering mornings.  I love to ponder. So I don’t demand anything of myself on these mornings;

  • I turn off the alarm,
  • lay in bed till I feel like getting up and if I don’t feel like it, then I just stay put,
  • put on my ‘comfy’ clothes,
  • make sure I eat a healthy breakfast (I want to be able to think clearly.),
  • choose my favorite ‘wordless’ music station on Pandora, otherwise I spend all my pondering time singing along.
  • grab a blanket tablet of paper and a good writing pen,
  • and I ponder.

It’s mornings like these that allow my body to catch up with my mind and heart and spirit.  They are usually running ahead and if I don’t intentionally give myself some time to reflect, I end up getting all tangled up a few days down the line.

This morning when I flipped on Pandora, before I could click on my ‘wordless’ stations, the song Seasons of Love, began to play.  The lyrics start like this:

Five hundred twenty-five thousand
Six hundred minutes
Five hundred twenty-five thousand
Moments so dear
Five hundred twenty-five thousand
Six hundred minutes
How do you measure – measure a year in a life?

I’ve been fascinated with this song for a lot of years, but I thought it was especially poignant since my ‘ponderings’ for the morning had been largely focused on what I want to be true of this new year.

Wow!  There are only 525,600 minutes in a year?   Considering that one day holds 1440 minutes, that means we have already spent nearly 20,000 minutes of this new year!  I’m not usually into numbers, but this morning it caught my attention.

How do we measure a year?  

The song lyrics have some suggestions: Continue reading How Do You Measure a Year? →

Fresh start, Hope, influence, LIFE, life lessons, Living Intentionally, make a difference

New WORD for a New Year

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My Word for the year is EnJoy!

I am quite excited about this word.  Over the last 10 years my words have been  Hope- Hope & More HOPE!  I had that word for several years. It’s a great word, but it was a desperate time for me.

One year the word was TRUST, another year it was BE STILL. (I know technically two words, right?) Last year my word was FINISH which was appropriate since my goal was to complete the Lovely Traces of Hope book.

These were all great words and they were significant to me at the time, but they all had a urgency to them, desperation is still the better word.  Even being still was a challenge word at the time.

But this year, the word that keeps coming to me Continue reading New WORD for a New Year →

#lovelytracesofhope, Carrie Wilkerson, Heroes, influence, Lovely Traces, make a difference, Tribewriter

Meet ONE of my Superheroes!

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20160918_144124Yesterday I shared a post about heroes and side kicks.

Well, one of the highlights for me at the Tribewriter conference was to meet one of my super heroes.  This is Carrie Wilkerson, recently called a SASSY entreprenuer. I have also heard it said that she is the little Texan with the big voice.  She was introduced as the ‘small town girl who was able to think beyond city limits” or the ‘big sister in business and life”.

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She is also Carrie Wilkerson, the Barefoot Executive.  I know the picture to the right is not very good, but I wanted you to see that she lives up to her name.  She came on stage with this beautiful pair of heels, but within 7 minutes of her presentation, she was barefoot.  She does this regularly.

Below is a little better picture but you couldn’t see her feet.

I met Carrie about 11 years ago when I first started direct selling with Mary Kay.  Carrie did that too for a while, but she was always doing more than makeup.
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One of the things I most admired about Carrie is that she has always been about doing what she does ‘Carrie style’.

She’s not afraid of the hard stuff- or I should say she is faithful about doing the hard thing afraid.

She is honest about what the challenges are, but will not let you get away with excuses.  She’s done it!  We can too!

STOP IT! She will say and did say from the stage on Sunday.  “Don’t say you want something different if you are not willing to change your perspective.” Quit making excuses.  Start looking at it from a different perspective.

“Don’t be paralyzed by the invisible audience.” THEY can paralyze your effort to pay your bills or invest in those around you.

STOP IT!

What you have to offer is of VALUE.  If you have something of value that will transform others and you don’t share it, you are a ‘transformation horder.”

STOP IT!

If it is of value, you have a responsibility to share it.  It is not your responsibility if they aren’t ready to accept your gift.  Do it like you need to do but do it!

SHARE IT!  PURSUE IT! YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION!

I’ve been listening and coaching with Carrie in different ways for 10 years.  She has been consistent in her message, faithful to her own calling and an example in the journey.  That makes her a side kick, as well as a super hero!

Yep, she may be 12 or 15 years years younger than me, but this little gal continues to be a ‘big sister’ to speak hope into my life.  I am grateful that she is mentor, coach and friend. She even wrote an endorsement for Lovely Traces of Hope. Check it out in my book.

Who is your hero?

How are they also a side kick for you in your super hero journey?

I got to give mine a hug this weekend.  How can you say thank you to yours?

DO IT! PURSUE IT!  YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION!

carrie-headshotWant more information about Carrie Wilkerson, you can find her on Facebook at Carrie Wilkerson, the Barefoot Executive, or go to carriewilkerson.com.

 

Lovely Traces of Hope
Lovely Traces of Hope

Want to know more about
Kathy’s new book,
Lovely Traces of Hope,
check it out at Amazon.com today.

 

 

 

 

#lovelytracesofhope, Heroes, influence, life lessons, Lovely Traces, make a difference, Tribewriter

Heroes…and sidekicks!

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This weekend, I attended the TRIBEWRITER conference in Franklin, TN which is a “marketing conference for people who don’t think of themselves as marketers. It’s a gathering for writers, artists, and creative entrepreneurs to grow their craft, share their work, and get the attention their work deserves.”

In my previous post, I shared some of the effects of last years conference; the primary one was the completion of the “LOVELY TRACES OF HOPE” book which I had been working on for several years before committing to finish it.

This year, I am still sifting through the ‘one thing’ i will do because of what I learned.  But…Jeff Goins, founder and host of the Tribewriter event kicked us off with a great reminder.

batman-with-his-sidekick-jeff-robin

Jeff introduced us to his superhero son, Aiden who is 4.  Aiden is Batman.  He wanted Jeff to be – not Superman, like Jeff was last year, not Spiderman or The Hulk.  You guessed it, Robin, Batman’s faithful sidekick.

Jeff reminded us that often, as business owners, authors and creatives of all kinds, we think our purpose is about being the super hero to our clients and readers.

In reality we are there to be a sidekick to the stories in our tribe. My story is only truly effective as I influence the reader engage with their own story.

I do that by:

  • Being Present- show up, yes, but more than that- engaged!
  • Being Helpful- Give first, often you will benefit, but help anyway.
  • Being Brave- learning to do that next hard thing afraid.

Think like a sidekick and make it about ‘them’.  The act of being allows activity to follow identity.

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As I sat and listened to Jeff’s comical, but motivating challenge, I read the words on the card at my table.  The picture below may be easier to read.

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Ok! This is exactly why we need to be present, helpful and brave.  If we dare to look into the depth of the world’s darkness, then people will be willing to listen to us as we dare to shine light into theirs.

I’ve never been very good at the super hero role.  How about you?  Are you a super hero?  Sometimes we become one in our story out of necessity. But often it is not because we are super great – it is because we were present for someone, or helpful to them at a time when they needed us to be brave.

But who are you a side kick too right now?  Is it your family or a close friend?  Maybe it is a client who is counting on you to help them do what they need to do.

Well, I am Kathy, and I’m your sidekick!

So…how can I help you? What’s going on in your story? Leave a comment below or email me at kathy@greenhopecoaching.com.

Lovely Traces of Hope
Lovely Traces of Hope

Wondering if Kathy knows what it means to struggle to find hope in a dark place? Get Kathy’s new book called Lovely Traces of Hope?

Go to Amazon.com to order. 

#lovelytracesofhope, Hope, influence, Leisha's Hope, Lovely Traces

The Beauty of Signing a Book!

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OK! It’s official! I’m an author!  I held my first book signing thanks to the gracious and persistent Tanya Augsburger of the Bluffton Public Library, Bluffton, OH.

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Months ago- before there was an actual book, Tanya engaged me to consider hosting an author event at the library.  I thought she was jumping the gun, but I appreciated her thinking ahead for me. It was a delight for me to work with Tanya to put together this book signing event. I am so grateful for her and the Library for hosting this opportunity.

I knew that book signings were often part of an author’s next steps.  I knew that it was valuable to connect with interested and potential new readers.

But I witnessed so much BEAUTY in this moment and in the people who attended. Continue reading The Beauty of Signing a Book! →

#lovelytracesofhope, dandelion, Hope, influence, Leisha's Hope, Lovely Traces, make a difference, Questions?

Influence Like a Dandelion

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Ten years ago next weekend, we gathered to remember a spunky little gal named Leisha.

We celebrated her life And mourned our loss of her.

We remembered the things she didTo make us laugh

To make us cry,

To make us crazy!

She touched our lives and she taught us,

She changed us in the living and the dying.

Would she have made such a difference in our lives if she had just lived?  I know I’m her momma, but I think so.

The day she died, I met her on our country road. I was teasing her because she was so eager to get her driver’s permit. I said,” you just want power. ”

I could see the wheels spinning in her head and her eyes were sparkling.

She spoke,  “I don’t need power. I want to influence. I want to say, I’m going come with me.”

“Honey you were made to influence,” I replied as I stroked her nose like I had so many days since she was born.

10 minutes later,  she was gone.

I want to influence. I want to say, I'm going come with me. Click To Tweet

my first bookSeveral have asked why, out of all the pictures I have of Leisha,  I chose a black and white one of her blowing a dandelion for the cover.

Well, dandelions have long been important at the Burrus house.

For one thing, Continue reading Influence Like a Dandelion →

#lovelytracesofhope, comparison, Heroes, influence, make a difference

So yesterday my book came!

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my first bookSo yesterday I celebrated when I received the first copy of my first

book (not sure if it is first or only yet).  I was filled with raw emotions: happy, sad, celebration and grief all mixed together.  But I was in awe that this had actually come to be.

That same day two other books came out:

Present over Perfect by Shauna Niequist, ‪#‎presentoverperfect‬
and Uninvited  by Lysa Terkuerst, #‎uninvited‬

Both books are already best sellers on Amazon.

picture by Shauna Niequist
picture by Shauna Niequist

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I chuckled to myself that all these books came out the same day. Continue reading So yesterday my book came! →

grief, healing, Hope, influence, Jerry Sittser, LIFE, life lessons, LOSS, Lovely Traces, make a difference

Thank you Professor Sittser

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This past week, I have been working intently to finish up details for publishing the Lovely Traces of Hope book.  I had one of those moments  as I sat late into the night reading/ editing/ proofing yet again through my own story.  

For the umpteenth time, I was reading through Chapter 14, Turning East, which I have sent to many of you already. (Click here if you haven’t read it yet.) In that chapter, I share excerpts of Jerry Sittser’s book called A Grace Disguised. Jerry literally led me through much of my grief through the sharing of his own story.

Several months ago as I was reworking that chapter for the book, I sent Jerry a letter to thank him for being bold enough to share his story because of the influence it has had in mine. 

Here was his reply…

Continue reading Thank you Professor Sittser →

#lovelytracesofhope, grief, healing, Hope, influence, LIFE, Lovely Traces, make a difference

A Book to Proof

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I was sittting at the Arby’s across from the mall in the area that is all window. People watching at its best.  The sky was clear with the exception of a few, very small, very white clouds slowly drifting by.  What a beautiful day!

Every thing about this moment was life-giving. Even the woman Continue reading A Book to Proof →