Anyone for a Spot of Rowing?

I am a huge fan of 'feats of human endeavour', no matter how big or small, and last Friday I had the pleasure of going to a talk with Jan Meek - who has most certainly accomplished one. The first thing I noted was that her name is most deceptive and I can assure you that she is most certainly not 'meek' in any way, shape or form. Quite the opposite in fact! Perhaps you've heard her story before, and perhaps you haven't, whichever the case it's most certainly one worth reading or reviewing.

Ten years ago she embarked on the adventure of a lifetime by entering the Atlantic Challenge race in 1997, and successfully rowed across the Atlantic Ocean with her son Dan in their boat Carpe Diem (Seize The Day). Read her story here: http://www.oceanrowing.com/Jan%20Meek/101.htm

As Jan told her story I was struck not only by her bravery and courage, but also by the amazing relationship she has with her son Dan. Whilst many of the experiences that she recounts are of the spectacular encounters with whales, dolphins and flying fish, of stunning vistas and moonlit nights, and also of the many challenges they faced and had to overcome during their 101 day voyage. What is also evident and equally inspiring is the way in which they have a deep respect and love for each other and how they supported each other during this superhuman feat. Their relationship is clearly a special one where they both champion and support each other to embrace who they are, so it is no surprise that her son Dan is quite the world adventurer having completed numerous expeditions on several continents (read more about Daniel Byles here).

So what do you do next once you've rowed across the Atlantic? Well for mother and son team Jan and Dan it would seem that you walk to the North Pole of course. I mean, what else would you do? They're in full swing of their training at the moment and leave for Canada in April to begin their challenge. More here: http://polarrace.com/2007/teams/

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to meet Jan and hearing about her experience first hand, and I'm hoping that she is going to write a post for my blog to share some more of her inspiring story with us and tell us a bit more about the upcoming polar race. So watch this space...

Dancing on Ice - Untamed!

Well as you may or may not already know, I'm kind of sports mad - doing them as opposed to watching, with skiing, tennis, climbing and ice skating ranking amongst my favourites. So I've been avidly watching the new series of Dancing on Ice on ITV1 - if you haven't seen it yet then check it out on Saturday night - more details here http://dancingonice.itv.com. I have to say, the standard is pretty high this year.

Sticking to the subject of Ice Skating, I have just been catching up on my emails this morning and I had one from a colleague talking about people being truly 'who they are' and fully self-expressed; and she included a link to this video of an exhibition performance from Russian Olympic Figure Skating champion Evgeni Plushenko. It's quite funny and should provide some light entertainment on this rather grey Monday morning - and in my book it definitely qualifies under the heading of untamed... enjoy!

Livin' la Vida Fearless...

I had a rare treat yesterday and a wonderful surprise... I had a completion session with one of my coaching clients, which is something I do with every client when we come to the end of our work together. It's always an amazing experience as we review the progress they have made and celebrate their successes, as well as looking forward at what's next and creating an action plan to stay on track. So what made this a rare treat I hear you ask? Well, usually we do this session as the coaching comes to completion - hence the name completion session, however in this instance we actually finished the coaching in October last year and just hadn't gotten round to scheduling the completion session yet.

This was a first for me. I've ever done a completion session several months after I finished coaching a client and the real treat was the fact that I got to see just how much progress she had continued to make since we finished. I was thrilled to see just how much more confident and alive she had become and yet the best was yet to come... as we review and celebrate her progress, she tells me that she's been travelling around the world for a couple of months since I last saw her, and that she is renting out her flat and moving to Fiji! Well I have to tell you I'm absolutely thrilled for her - and more than a bit jealous too! :-)

In her own words "I'm more grounded and confident, and am taking everything much more in my stride. I've learned to listen to my heart and am proud of my integrity and finding the courage to 'walk my talk', even when those around me have had their doubts. I've decided that life is too short to wonder 'what if' and am going to move to Fiji and give it a try, otherwise I'll never know. Thank you for helping me to discover the real me and the find clarity and confidence to follow my heart." (Julia, London) more...

If you we're going to make a radical change in your life, what would it be?

Am I mad?

You know, as I've been working on setting up this blog, now and then I look at my last post about completing Move Beyond's new online bookstore in the early hours of the morning, and the thought pops into my head "I must be mad! What am I thinking doing work after midnight on a Friday?" And then I have to laugh and remember that it's part of what makes me successful.

It reminds me of a time when I was in the US almost a year ago for training course. I was staying with a colleague of mine who was also on the course and much to surprise when I woke up bright and early the first morning, he was already up and working downstairs in his office. When I asked him what he was doing up so early, he told me that he is up early most days and either does some work or goes to the gym, and that the last week or two he has been working on updating the copy for his website in the mornings. As he told me about this I felt my heart lift, "Oh my god, I'm not a freak after all!" I thought, "I'm not the only one does this. I've worked on my web copy at 5.30am too!". It's a moment I'll remember for a long time.

I've often wondered if I was weird because I tend to think and act differently to most people and I've learned over that last few years that it is part of who I am and what make me successful. That very fact that I think and act differently - so when I do something a little out of the ordinary like updating my website at 12.30am I have to remember to remind myself, otherwise that little voice that thinks "I must be mad" gets a little too loud...

Now am I suggesting that in order to be successful that you have to get up at the crack of dawn and work until the early hours? Most certainly not! However, I am curious to know what little quirks you have that make you who you are, and are part of your personal success formula? For me, there are also a couple of other important learnings in this little story too. One is about the power of working when you are inspired, and when you energy levels are at their highest, and giving yourself a break when they are flagging. The other is about being willing to do what it takes to get what you want...

What thoughts does this blognote conjure up in you? What is it that you do that is different and may be something you label as odd, or bad? Have you considered that it might be one of the very things that could contribute to your success? I'd love to know, please share your thoughts by clicking on 'comments' below.

If you are already a signed up to our e-zine then you will have received a copy of our free report "The Secrets of Highly Successful People". Take a look through it again with this blognote in mind and make a note of what you already do that contributes to your success, and what is the one thing you could start to do differently that would help you to take yourself to the next level? If you don't have a copy of the report, just click on the 'Newsletter' link in the sidebar to sign up and get your free copy.

PS: (If you have already signed up and can't find your copy, then contact me and I'll email it to you)

Bookworms Rule!

Well, as one does at 12.35am on a Friday night (well actually it's technically Saturday morning) I've just put the finishing touches to the new Move Beyond Book Store - powered by Amazon. So be one of the first to check it out and let me know what you think...

It's packed full of recommendations to help you make 2007 a year to remember!

Welcome to the Blog!

It's Wednesday, 10th January 2007 and low and behold, here it is - the new blog from Kyle Newman, founder and director of Move Beyond. As a complete blogging virgin this all new to me, so I guess I'll figure it out as I go along. So watch this space, more soon...