Direct Life Coaching

Huey Lewis anyone?

Come on..."Sports" was a huge hit - and may I add - the first ever music cassette that I ever purchased! That thing was loaded with hits.

We have been doing 80's themed improv shows for the past two weeks - so I digress.

But, there is a correlation.

A few years ago I read a book called "Quarter-life Crisis." When I have told people about the title of the book they kind of laugh. They think, "How is it possible to have a crisis in your 20's...those are the glory years...right?"

You tell me.

Well, that is what I was told growing up, and I assume you were told the same thing. The 20's are supposed to be the best time of your life...

Just as long as you...

* Get great grades in high school
* Build an impressive resume to get into the college of your choice
* Work hard in college and choose a major that will make you successful
* Graduate and go to graduate school - OR - get a job at Company "X" and get on the ladder to success
* Joy, Passion, Love...not now...they will come once you have the career taken care of!

Right? Sounds pretty normal. That is the main gist I heard growing up (not from my parents mind you) - so it only makes sense that if you follow that criteria - happiness is the result.

Yeah - you know better than that.

In "Quarter-life Crisis" it details how much of a problem this really is. Twenty year-olds are working this recipe just as instructed. They're getting into good schools, getting great jobs, and making a great salary...

Then...a few years into it - they are struck with the alarming realization...

"Is this it?"

They did it. Everything they were supposed to. And now they have it - but what do they have?

Now, you don't need to just be in your 20's, or mid-life, to feel this crisis. In fact, from my experience - this feeling of crisis crosses all age, culture, and gender.

The problem for the twenty year-olds is this - they think they are alone. Why wouldn't they? If they are supposed to be having the time of their life (Dirty Dancing reference) - and they are not - well something must be wrong with them. That's not good.

You are not alone!

Put your hand up if you can relate to the feeling of discontent. (Okay, put your hand down now...that's awkward)

Here's a hint...if someone has told you "this is the track to success" - jump off as quick as you can!

I am not saying that we shouldn't seek out mentors or learn from others - that is not what I am saying. Learning from those that went before us - or seeking out advice from others is fine - as long as the answers and actions you take away work for you!

That is the key - how do the ideas work for you?

You are unique - there has never been another you - and so your track to success needs to be YOUR OWN TRACK TO SUCCESS.

You are making the tracks - not jumping on someone else's.

If the above recipe for success works for you - GREAT!!! That is your track then - but it doesn't need to be anyone else's.

So, take out a pen and chart your own course!
Grab a knife and carve your own mold!
Sit down on your computer and re-type the rules - your rules!

Bottom line - if the track or course you are on is not bringing you consistent joy, peace, and fulfillment - it's time to look at that track more closely and ask yourself - "Is this really my path - or someone else's?"

Do it now!

And if you need help - call me!

Much love,

Travis
travislthomas@mac.com
561.676.4583

LIFE. COURAGE. ACTION!

Labels: direct life coaching, Huey Lewis, quarter-life crisis, travis thomas

The following blog is part of the "Road Less Traveled" series.

The first thing you notice about William is his energy. It's intense, but authentic. I kept feeling that I needed to say more to match his enthusiasm, but he didn't need to make me a believer, I was already sold.

I never watch the local news, and even less read the local paper. So, the odds of me actually thumbing through the neighborhood paper was slim - but I was bored - so I thought I would see what was going on in my backyard. I'm glad I did.

Now, before I get into this too much, you need to know that my wife and I are trying to get "greener" everyday. We bought more efficient light bulbs, we bring our own bags to the grocery store, and we are good about recycling. But, we are a long way off from winning any Green Peace awards. You can't really call me a tree hugger - but I will shake their hands ;)

Anyway, what I was struck at most about the article was William's simplicity. Here was a guy who wanted to make a difference, so he found a simple way to make it happen. For anyone who has kids as has seen the animated film "Robots," William put this principle into practice...

"See a need - fill a need!"

So, let's get to find out more of who and what I am talking about.

William Djubin has lived in 16 locations in Florida, and he definitely enjoys the water.

"I accepted a job in North Carolina for 8 months, but could not be away from the Ocean any longer. During the last 8 years I have only lived in coastal or waterfront property and vowed not to leave her (ocean) side again. I have personally witnessed mass fish kills, pollution dumping, and beach erosion. I feel that a part of me has been asked to protect her (ocean) and as well I feel indebted to her for all she has done for me."

After the hurricane destruction in recent years to the beaches and oceans, William discovered that not all of the environmental needs were being met. So, he needed to come up with an idea.

"I began brainstorming for an invention, inexpensive, tangible, interactive, one that could link everyone (foundations, consumers, public) to the same goal, relieving the pain environmental foundations have. I needed to create a live-strong bracelet for the environment, but one that would be much more visible, a license-plate! One day while driving I day-dreamed about bright green license plates on 50% of traffic, and what that would tell the Leaders of the World. When our communities/citizens display their concern for environmental health, all the tiny voices will be heard."

A green license plate. No text, no graphics, no clever slogan. Just green - just plastic. In fact, 100% recycled plastic. Nothing added - completely recycled. Simple, yet powerful. William's company is called "EarthRehab," and the green license plate program is its main focus.

It's simple, you go to his Website (go here now) - you purchase a green license plate for the front of your car - and then you choose from a list of environmental companies to decide where you want your contribution to go. $10...ten bucks...that's it. I was so impressed I bought two the day I read the story.

"EarthRehab sort of hired me, the Ocean sort of hired me, and the trust the Environmental Foundations instilled in the project hired me. The early on victories of the mission propelled me to keep pushing forward. When you get the rights to the name EarthRehab, when you have a manufacturer that suggests 100% recycled milk jugs for the product, when the most respected Foundations want to get involved with your vision, it doesn't seem fabricated. It helps you believe that this is your life purpose. You see, a green license plate will never be as important as people discovering the Foundations through our links page. Bridging the gap between those who need help, and those who wish to give is the most important thing."

I asked William what the spiritual/inspirational connection of his work was, and I loved his response.

"The Ocean is my Church, my place for understanding, my resource for sanctity and she empowers me to always grow and enlighten others threw knowledge and caring. I rely on nature and the environment for peace of mind and relaxation, I cannot envision not being able to spend a day at the beach."

William is just another example of what can be accomplished when we follow our heart. The green license plate project has really just started, but I am excited to see how far and how big this idea will rise.

So, for $10 - you can make a serious environmental statement - even if you're a "tree handshaker" like me. But, don't listen to me, take it from the guy with all the energy.

"I feel like a Santa Claus for the environment, I provide proceeds to the foundations and a 'vehicle of concern' expression for the consumer. At $10 a license plate we may be the least expensive plate with the most rewards for the consumer."

Thanks Santa - and to all of you - buy your plate or you'll get a lump of coal in your stocking. Wow, you could really take this Santa analogy a long way ;)

Much love!

Travis

Labels: direct life coaching, EarthRehab, environment, green license plates, road less traveled, travis thomas

Anyone who has a child, or has had to ride in the car with a child 3 years of age or older, knows that it takes less than 10 minutes into the trip before the child will ask,

"Are we there yet?"

I have never traveled with kids from another culture, but I am pretty sure no matter what language they speak - they know how to say, "Are we there yet?"

As a parent myself, this has been very frustrating.

"Why can't you just be patient?"

What is it about kids that need to know what is next? What are we going to do now? What are we doing in the morning?

And, can they not trust their mom and I have their best interests in mind - and that we will actually take care of their needs?

"Daaaaaaaad...are we there yet?"

And even more, what is the actual age when they quit asking?

Well, a little thought dawned on me the other day. I was running around or doing some errands...and here are some of the thoughts that were bouncing around in my head...

* When will I feel secure about my career?
* Where is my next client going to come from?
* How much money do I need to make to feel comfortable?

Then it hit me! Here I am, chastising my own kids and telling them to trust me, yet these are the same questions in my head.

"Are we there yet?"

That is essentially what my fears are asking me?

The idea here is that there is a future destination that makes our fears go away - and once we get there (or achieve a goal), the fear disappears.

Has this ever been the case for you? Does the fear go away?

I doubt it.

Chances are, by the time we get to the destination we are seeking - we have long since projected out our comfort zone to a more distant destination.

When it comes to deferred happiness, or letting our fears dictate our benchmarks - it is a sliding scale.

And guess what, we will never catch up to it.

Instead, maybe we should take our own advice to our kids - and trust that our future, finances, and happiness are actually being taken care of. If we can accept that as truth - than we can also accept that our personal sense of peace and happiness is attainable right now - right here.

Happiness is a choice - not a destination.

You better start practicing your happiness now - or else you won't know what it looks like when you finally reach that goal.

So, how do you practice happiness?

For me, it starts with gratitude. Acknowledging the good already in my life - and letting my actions express this gratitude. If I am truly living gratitude - it means I am showing up happy, compassionate, forgiving, energetic, peaceful, harmonious, etc. And if that is how I am showing up - ta da - it probably means that I am happy.

Mary Baker Eddy in Science and Health captures it a little better when she writes, "In order to apprehend more, we must put into practice what we already know."

Makes sense. If I want to be happy - I need to put happiness into practice and action.

Now, I can easily recognize that the times that I am not feeling this joy - it is because I am being controlled by my fears resulting in asking questions of, "Are we there yet?"

As I have said in my other blogs - this is all pretty simple stuff - just not always easy!

So, the next time you feel yourself asking the question, "Are we there yet?" - remind yourself that the "there" is already "here."

Now live it!

Much love,

Travis

Labels: christian science, inspiration, life coaching, mary baker eddy, self-help, travis thomas

As much as I enjoy hearing myself talk ;) - I will be the first to admit that I don't have all the answers. This blog each week isn't so much me telling you what to - because I am still figuring it out myself. Rather, it is a way for me to articulate beliefs I am working with and trying to put into practice - and maybe...just maybe...you will find an idea that resonates with you.

I have been blessed to know and come across many people who I truly believe are living a life on purpose. Some of them have drastically influenced decisions I have made in my life, while others continue to inspire me by their laser-like focus of committing to their passions and purpose. These are people I want to bring to your attention as well.

So, occasionally I am going to dedicate one of my blogs to introducing you all to one of these people. This is what I am calling the "The Road Less Traveled" series. (If you have a better name - let me know).

I am excited to kick-off this series with someone I haven't known a long time, but I definitely have a lot of respect for. She and I performed on stage together for a couple of years - and recently she and her husband decided to take the road less traveled.

Literally.

Specifically, they quit their jobs, put their house on the market, bought an RV, and are now traveling the US.

So, before we hear why, I'll let Kelly introduce herself in her own words...

Kelly: My name is Kelly Greene. I am 31 years old and have lived in Florida my whole life. My husband and I met at the University of Florida and have been married 8 years. I feel very lucky to have him in my life. My work experience is mostly in event planning and hotel group sales/catering. I have always been very responsible and for as long as I can remember, I have had a job. In my younger years I was selling t-shirts I made, door to door or baby-sat. I always had a plan for what I wanted to be. Just in case anyone asked, I was always prepared with an answer. As you can tell I am very "by the book", which is why this journey is very out of the box for me.

Travis: So Kelly, what made you and your husband quit your jobs and buy the family truckster?

Kelly: My husband and I were in a transition phase in our lives. I had quit my job with the PGA (due to burnout), we were trying to have kids, he was frustrated with his current employment. We asked each other one day, why are we killing ourselves working stressful jobs, trying to have 2.5 children and live this "perfect" life? We felt something was missing. We had also heard several stories around that time, of people getting sick or dying young. Life is just too short.

So we decided to put our house on the market, buy an RV and just go. Go see this beautiful country of ours. Go live life, have fun, experience new towns, meet new people, eat different food and if it doesn't work out, we will figure out a new plan. Instead of just talking and dreaming about doing this "someday" we decided to make it happen now.

When we told people what our plan was, we got very mixed responses. Some people said, "that's great, I wish I could do that", other said "must be nice, I didn't realize you won the lotto", and some just thought we were plain crazy. The thing is, you can really do or have anything you want. You need to just do it. We made up our minds to take this trip and everything started falling into place. Now, has it been totally perfect so far? Of course not. That is life. There are always bumps along the way. It is how you handle the bumps and stressful times that make your life journey what it is.

Travis: I love how you both decided that if it didn't work out, you would just figure out a new plan. And of course, agreeing that happiness didn't need to be a "someday" ambiguous time.

I have to imagine though that there were a lot of fears that might try to prevent you from taking this step.

Kelly: There are a ton of fears related to doing something like this, that is out of our comfort zone. Will we have enough money? Will we have mechanical problems? Will we sell the house?

Travis: So how did you get past them?

Kelly: Try and be as prepared as possible, but know problems will arise. You just deal with them as they come. You have to believe that things will work themselves out. Because they usually do.

Travis: Where do you draw your courage and inspiration from?

Kelly: Knowing that there is something bigger than ourselves in the universe and that life is precious and very short. Being thankful for health and asking for guidance.

Travis: You and your husband have been on the road now for just about a month. What has been the most inspiring or transforming experience thus far?

Kelly: That is a great question. I would say, that first day when we pulled out of driveway and out of town. It was such a sureal feeling, because we were rushing around so much before we left. There were so many things to do. It wasn't until we pulled down the road and we had a moment to really think, that it started to set in. We are really doing this, wow...

Now we take each day at a time and do as much or as little as we want. We go sightseeing, hiking, kayaking, or laundry and chores (yes you still have to do chores).

I can't wait to see what the next day will bring, but for now I am living in the moment.

Travis: Kelly, thanks so much for taking time out of your trip to answer these questions! And, for everyone else, if you want to keep track of Kelly's adventures - you can do so my checking out her blog: http://thegreenejourney.blogspot.com

Thanks for taking the road less traveled!

Travis

Labels: inspiration, kelly greene, life coaching, road less traveled, RV