Bootcamp For Your Mind

The Ultimate Act of Sportsmanship

I’m not a big sports fan, but when I found out about what happened this past week at a collegiate women’s softball game between Western Oregon and Central Washington, I just had to share it with you. The story involves a major accomplishment, a freak injury and a wonderful display of what it means to be a teammate and a fellow competitor.  It just reminded me that we all have a tremendous capacity for sportsmanship and kindness inside us, and the more we exercise it, the better off we all are.

Read “Central Washington Offers the Ultimate Act of Sportsmanship”

Click here to visit Amy's site, Bootcamp for your Mind!

What a two year old can teach men about women

Guys tell me all the time that they have no clue about how to "figure women out."  I leave you then with this awesome post that proves learning about women from a 2-year-old is not nearly as crazy as it sounds.  After all, when you're two, you don't have an agenda or life experiences that bias you one way or the other.  It's as pure a message as you're going to find in this world! 

Read "Everything I know about women..." and see for yourself.

Click here to visit Amy's site, Bootcamp for your Mind!

Seven things you can do tonight to make this a great week!

Just because your week is crazy-busy doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stop and do the little things to improve your health and well-being.  Here are some simple ways to bring the day to a positive end, and guarantee you’ll wake up ready to conquer the world the next day!

1.      Go for a power-walk before you go to bed – Chances are, the busier your day, the less time you had to exercise.  But don’t give up just because the evening is coming to a close.  A 30 minute walk will make you feel like you’ve accomplished something great, provide proper cardio, and give you something to build on tomorrow.

2.      Do sit ups while watching TV – Who says catching the latest American Idol has to be a passive experience?  Move the coffee table out of the way and do some crunches while you take in your favorite show.

3.      Call or email an old friend to reconnect – One of the greatest things about email is that it makes it so easy to reach out and find old friends.  And nothing feels better than reconnecting with someone, and starting the next day with another great relationship in your life.  Tip: Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn make it easy to search for people!

4.      Make a to-do list of things you want to accomplish this week – To-do lists help you get a handle on everything’s that on your plate.  But who has time to do them in the middle of a busy day?  Craft your list right before bedtime and then ATTACK the action items first thing in the morning.

5.      Tell your spouse/significant other that you love them – It’s easy to forget to say “I love you” to the most important people in your life.  Don’t ever take your closest relationships for granted!  Taking two seconds to tell them how much you care at night leads to good feelings at the start of the next day.

6.      Balance your checkbook -  Nobody likes going to bed with the feeling that things are unsettled.  Handling simple personal finance matters such as balancing the checkbook gives you piece-of-mind…and one less thing to do tomorrow.

7.      Read a book – If TV is junk food, then reading is a healthy bowl of fruit loaded with vitamins.  Reading a book before bed enriches the mind and will wind you down better than the local evening news.  And the better rested you are, the more likely you’ll be to wake up to a productive day.

Click here to visit Amy's site, Bootcamp for your Mind!

How Shannon lost weight by blogging!

I always tell my clients that the best way to make sure you do what you say you’re going to do is to have someone to be accountable to.  I usually recommend that family, friends, co-workers or life coaches play the role of “butt-kicker”…but, what if you were accountable to the 100 million people in the world with access to the Internet?

That’s what Shannon Foster of Clinton, Iowa has done by creating a personal blog that chronicles her mission to lose weight and improve her health.

Using the website www.sparkpeople.com ,Shannon has created a place to keep track of her weight loss program, monitor her progress and share experiences with anyone who logs on. 

When you think about it, what could be a better way to stay accountable?  For example, if you don’t post regular updates to your blog, people are going to know something is up and wonder if you’re slacking off!  You’re going to have to stick to your regimen in order to please all your new “virtual coaches” who visit the site.

I love what Shannon is doing here – not only is she using the blog to give herself extra motivation, she’s inspiring others by broadcasting her personal journey throughout the web.

Visit Shannon at http://www.sparkpeople.com/mypage.asp?id=SFOSTER

Click here to visit Amy's site, Bootcamp for your Mind!

How stay-at-home parents can reach their life goals

If you're like most “Stay At Home” parents, you have goals in addition to raising amazing kids and keeping your homes running smoothly.  Maybe you have outside career aspirations like creating additional income, getting back into the workforce or working from home.  Maybe you just need a little more personal time or would like to lose weight or get more physically fit.  Or perhaps you'd like to create more quality time with your spouse or spend more time with your friends.

Whatever your goals and aspirations, it’s easy to get lost in your families goals and forget about your own or put yours aside. This can create a lot of problems for your relationships, career and health.

Here’s a plan of action designed to get you where you need to be.  Follow the steps below and soon you’ll find yourself reaching your goals, getting more done and feeling amazing!

1.       Determine what “YOU” REALLY want for yourself. -- Ask yourself what you really want.  Do you want to focus on losing weight, more intimacy with your spouse, starting a small business?  Figure it out and start to focus on that specific goal.

2.       See Your Life as an Entrepreneurial venture -- Just like any successful enterprise, you need to develop a business plan. set goals, create an office space for yourself, create a physical space solely for your outside work.  Mark your territory!

3.       Get Into “Solution Mode” -- Ask yourself some important questions: “How will I achieve my goals?  What actions steps do I need to take?”  What “gets in my way” and how will I solve that problem?  Who can help me if I don’t have the answers or need support?

4.       Make your schedule work for you -- Create a schedule to implement your action steps.  This needs to be a schedule that you LOVE.  Incorporate everything you have going on into the schedule and then find ways to work smarter and more efficiently to free up more time.

5.       Create a team to help you achieve your goals: --  A team can really help you get things done and provide accountability as you work towards your goals.  Include family, friend and those who support you in your team. For example, find an exercise buddy to make sure you workout.  Find other parents who can provide child care while you spend time with your spouse.  Exclude people who are “not” part of your team and may be negative influences.

Most importantly, stop talking about what you want to achieve, and START DOING IT!

Looking for something cool to do in L.A. this Sunday night?

If you love great music, and you're going to be around Hollywood this Sunday night (April 27th), come on  to Cafe Muse at 6547 Santa Monica Blvd for an awesome show!

Going on at 8pm is Jes Hudak - one of the most amazing singers you will ever hear.

The Cafe Muse setting is totally mellow - the show is free, all ages, and there will be delicious food. 

It's BYOB and if you get there at 7pm, you can see another cool performer, Trey Lockerbie.

I hope you'll come down and check it out!

For more information on Jes Hudak, and to hear her for yourself, check out her MySpace page.

Have a great weekend!

Date: Sunday, April 27, 2008

Time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Location: Cafe Muse

Street: 6547 Santa Monica Blvd.

City/Town: Hollywood, CA

Amy's TV Pic O' the Week: Why Ellen is the best thing on daytime TV

The local evening news, bad reality shows, violent network programming…turning on the TV can be a bit of a downer these days.   But there’s one TV personality who rises above it all – and consistently delivers positive, feel-great programming not just weekly, but DAILY!  Her name is Ellen DeGeneres.  Perhaps you’ve heard of her.  I believe there was something about her sexual preference in the news a while back.  Anyway, since that time, Ellen has built a terrific day time talk show that features positive stories about real people, non-ambush style interviews with celebs and just an overall good feeling that would make Oprah proud.  What I like most about her is that’s she is such a good example of positivity, has an acceptance of herself, and uses humor in productive ways.  People want to be like her because she embodies what I think people are going for in life…she is authentic!!! 

Here’s a clip from a recent show.  Watch it, then start TIVOing!

Visit Amy today at bootcampforyourmind.com!

Are you ready to work with a Life Coach?

A life coach can help you remove the obstacles that hold you back and really drive you towards the achievement of amazing things in your life.  Whether you want more money, better relationships, a more fulfilling career, or ANY positive change, a good life coach can help get you there.

But are you ready to start working with a life coach?  Take this simple evaluation and find out for yourself!  The results will give you a window into where I would start working with you if you were my client.

Please read each question and select the answer that most closely describes you or your level of commitment at this moment in time.   Write down your answer for each question, and tabulate the total score at the end.  Use the key at the end of the quiz to determine if you're ready to work with a coach.

(1=Least to 4=Most)

1-2-3-4 I have limiting beliefs and now is the time to take positive steps to move forward.

1-2-3-4 I am willing to listen and take advice from my coach.

1-2-3-4 I will commit to doing my assignments.

1-2-3-4 I am committed to truth and promise my coach a, "no games" relationship.

1-2-3-4 I am committed to living with passion and being the best I can be.

1-2-3-4 I am committing to showing up and being prepared for my coaching calls.

1-2-3-4 I am prepared to let the coach do their job and I will do mine.

1-2-3-4 I am prepared to stretch myself.

1-2-3-4 I am totally ready to reach for the next level in my life.

1-2-3-4 I am willing to experiment with ideas and concepts the coach provides.

1-2-3-4 I will tell the coach immediately if they overstep my personal boundaries and ask them to change their coaching approach.

1-2-3-4 I am ready to change NOW, today.

1-2-3-4 I know what I want and will use the coach to help me get there.

1-2-3-4 I totally understand that I am taking full responsibility for my own results.

1-2-3-4 I want the coach to always tell me the truth no matter what the circumstances.

___________Total Score:

SCORING:

60-53: You are a great candidate for coaching

52-47: You are ready. Your slight resistance is what is holding you back. This could be a good place to start the coaching.

46-39: You are on the fence. Before I would work with you we would need to examine "why" you are thinking about coaching.

39-0: Please come back when you are ready to make a commitment. You are not ready to take charge and make significant life changes.

Coaching is for those that are READY. This profile gives insight as to where you are today!

Click here to visit Amy's site, Bootcamp for your Mind!

Paul Potts: The story of a man who went straight to the top by one act of courage!

When I need a little inspiration, I look no further than the story of Paul Potts.  Working as a cell-phone salesman in England, he took sabbatacal to pursue his dream of becoming a singer.  Potts was blessed with a golden voice, but lacked the self-confidence to pursue his career.

What happened next is pure magic.  He went on the UK version of American Idol, Britain’s Got Talent and wowed the judges and the audience.  He would eventually win the title – and in the process become a superstar in the country.

His is truly a story of what can happen when you GO FOR IT and pursue your dreams, no matter what the odds are.

Grab a hankie and check out the video below from Britain’s Got Talent.  You’ll be inspired to get off your butt and make something happen!

Ask Amy: Can you help me get my business on track?

I started a small business because I loved the idea of working for myself.  Now, I'm in debt, not growing and am losing the passion that got me in there in the first place!

Sincerely,

Bummed in business

Do Not Throw In The Towel!  Instead of giving up, it’s time to regroup.  The time has come to stop stressing and start looking both by getting feedback and performing a self-evaluation to determine what is working, what is not working and figure out how to move forward.

It can be very frustrating when you start a new business because you don’t have all the answers, don’t know what to do or how to create a plan.  Mentorship is an excellent call for you right now: whether it comes in the form of a business consultant, a coach, or even a friend.  What is crucial is that you get advice from someone who has been through this experience before (or something like it) and has had great success.  Don’t look for answers from those who have never done it.  If you are going to hire outside help, make sure they have experience in your field, have and assisted their clients in being successful.  Otherwise, you will get advice from peeps that don’t know what they are talking about. 

The other thing that is important is your state of mind.  You cannot look at decisions you have made or things you have done to this point as “failures”.  There is great value in these “mistakes” because they are exactly what is going to educate you in the future. 

All successful people have made mistakes or failed.  I don’t know anyone successful who has not had their share of failures.  Entrepreneurs take risks, and part of risk taking is there that there is, well, risk! Sometimes things don’t always turn out the way you expect or want.  What you must do when that happens is to figure out what didn’t work and do something different.

Whether it’s starting a new company with the new learning in mind or restructuring the existing one…your mind has to be in the right place.  Dumping yourself into the “failure” hole won’t get you anything other than depressed.  Get out of the problem and into the solution.  Establish what choices you need to make now and what new ways of thinking do you need to adopt.

And remember, don’t be afraid to seek out help!  Nobody has all the answers, but there ARE people out there who have the answers you need to turn your business around and make it a success.

Got a question you'd like to ask Amy? Submit yours here!