The Drumming Session at Utopia Retreat 2009

The highlights of Utopia International Retreat 2009 were many and varied but for everyone who attended the drumming class with my gorgeous clients Sandy and Curly Harris of Relationship Mechanics, this clip brings back many grand memories.

At one stage there were as many as 50 people drumming and this clip in particular shows why the very lovely Jan Winslade of Yoga By the Bay should never be given a tamborine - a true example of expressing your inner tamborine goddess. You will also see my tribal clad self and Goddesses Raeleen Byrne and Megan Twidle alongside my fabulous newly moved to Bryon Bay Reiki Channel Belinda playing doon doons (the ancestor drums). TOO MUCH FUN and we still had the Evening Singing to the Stars Concert with Dean Frenkel to go that day!

The Importance of Standing Out in Business

There are many things that make up a successful small business but by far one of the most important things we need to keep in mind when we have a small business is to stand out and be different.

Being different helps in three ways

1. When you stand out from the crowd it makes it easy for people to remember you.

2. Finding creative ways to stand out draws attention to your business and frequently brings PR and free plugs that you may not have normally achieved.

3. You attract people of like mind to your business, which makes the sales process easy for you because they have attracted to you naturally rather than you trying to draw them in.

I was reminded of the importance of standing out when it came time to choose the winner of this years Utopia prize draw of a months coaching with me. When you view the video you will see how a very simple addition to the entry form made the selection of a winner a no-brainer.

It also highlights the need to be vigilant and adding creative bursts of colour to everything we do.

Utopia is finished................. sadly

Well what a week in paradise!

Utopia was AWESOME last year but this year it was even AWESOMER (is that a word?) Everytime I think back to the very special moments shared over the weekend it brings me back into the fabulous heart space that was created over the weekend.

It was fabulous to meet up with last years presenters and to meet the new ones who were experiencing this special event for the first time. Words cannot adequately describe how wonderful it is to be with people of like mind for an extended period of time.

I have stayed on in Noosa for a little longer than anticipated because several of the presenters were involved with a fabulous event called Earth Magic and I decided I was so close and it would be rude not to attend - so I did and had an equally fabulous time experiencing the lovely Raeleen Burn speaking her truth and Jeremy Donovan wowing the crowd with his amazing knowledge and mind blowing didge playing oh and who knew he could play native american flute so adeptly. Raeleen and Jeremy released their CD at the event and celebrated all the joyous miracles that have occured for them this year as they step futher into their divine energy and soul purpose.

So as I soak up the blue skies and sunshine so foreign to this Victorian - you will be pleased to know I'm getting back to work and have interviewed my awesome hosts Sandy and Curly Harris of Relationship Mechanics about our experience of Utopia International Retreat

The Speakers Road to Utopia .....2 more sleeps to go

Some brave decisions have been made, the keynote is down to 45 minutes and the aliens have proved less than reliable in the beam me up stakes - so it looks like I'm going to Utopia International Retreat in Noosa after all.

For a short time yesterday I was led to believe by a client that storms were expected over the Gold Coast - that would be too much cosmic humour when all I want to see is some blue skies.

BUT it appears clouds are not showing up on the Sunshine Coast but the weather report is looking quite bizarre. They seem to consistently use double digits to report their temperatures and are prone to put 2 and 3's in front of their numbers.

Thursday - Fine - Max 30
Friday - Fine - Max 29
Saturday - Fine - Max 26

Coming from central Victoria that seems very odd but it does at least say its going to be fine in the land of the fading curtains. You've got to love Queensland - they even give me back the hour I lost to daylight savings earlier in the month. Sleep in and still make the yoga session = EXCELLENT!

I'm also looking forward to walks by the river pictured above. The river is straight across the pedestrian crossing from the resort and it really is a world apart.

My only concern now is that I haven't as yet experienced the "I'M JUST NOT GOING" hissy fit but I dare say that will come. There seems a routine to these speaking jitters so the appearance of the detailed packing list is bound to set that one off.

Now if only I can change:

Wednesday - Windy and few showers - Max 11

I might even manage to get the washing dry and have clean underwear before I head to the airport tomorrow - its the golden rule of travel - always have clean underwear when travelling the highway of life.

I speak Friday afternoon and present a workshop on Saturday afternoon and then I get to play for the rest of the weekend - guess that makes up for the "speaker belly" and irrational hissy fits.

I'm booked in for Lia Scallon's Crystal Skulls workshop and my big manifesting crystal is coming to get activated by her well travelled crystal skull. I have no idea what that entails but will be excited to find out. Lia also does the opening ceremony which I will be participating in as well so I'll be fascinated to hear her channel the sounds of Sirius. I have little knowledge of Lia's work and her crystal skulls but they seem to be turning up all over the world so I am very much looking forward to that. PLUS I get to go to everyone else's keynotes and watch them do the jittery speaker routine that will be well and truly over for me by the time the cocktail hour rocks in on Friday night. Shame I don't drink!

My place under the palm tree by the pool awaits.

The Speakers Road to Utopia .....3 more sleeps to go

The answer is aliens today. It seems the only sane way – three more sleeps to go and my keynote is still over time – I’ve taken some out and more crept in while I wasn’t looking!!! A few Klingons on the starboard bow right now would be the answer - aliens beaming me up will solve the need to go on.

But let’s hope the aliens beam me up after I get to Noosa because it’s grey and pouring with rain here and we welcome the rain but I’d really like to see some blue skies. A few hours by the pool at Australis after the Utopia International Retreat has finished will be welcome respite from the grey.



This lead up is really making me look back and understand how far I’ve come in this crazy journey I’ve been on for the past 10 years. A keynote really helps you reflect on the things that have become important to your message.

Speaking is one of the scariest and most irrational things you can do as a human because it takes you away from the tribe. Anytime we disconnect from the tribe or our community or the group of people that happens to be in front of us, we go into discomfort.

Discomfort is our greatest friend. As humans we rarely make a bold move if everything around us is fine, its just human nature to want to keep the status quo balanced. But speaking is one of the few things you do that tip that status quo on a voluntary basis. Speakers, musicians, workshops leaders, rally leaders, we all actually put our hands up to place ourselves outside the normal comfort zone. Most would rather die than speak in public so it’s why people are so inspired when you do and speaking is a totally learnable skill for most people.

I’m SO glad I learnt how BUT in the lead up to this un-natural way of being …….. of course I am forced to ask myself constantly throughout he day WHAT WAS I THINKING!

Now where are those aliens?

The Speakers Road to Utopia .....4 more sleeps to go

Well not many days now until I take off for Noosa to deliver the opening keynote speech at Utopia International Retreat.

Everything is looking good – I’ve put in all my paperwork – I’m booked in row 8A so don’t have to do the bun fight up the back of the plane and all is looking good.

There are four sleeps now until I speak and I have a funky new hair do and I’ve just come back from a wonderful massage and reflexology session so I’m totally ready to go on one level.

HOWEVER I’m sitting here wondering how I can get out of it – who I could substitute and despite having the most awesome experience last time I spoke I'm wondering why did I ever say I would do it again in the first place! Was I totally mad, what was I thinking! This is totally normal and par for the course and in fact has been going on now for a about week but still I can't come up with a good enough excuse not to go on. Got four more sleeps to go though......

But despite all the drama queen voices fighting for a position in the queue I’ve written my keynote and it’s 15 minutes longer than it needs to be and now there is anguish over which part has to go ….. and there’s four more sleeps to go!

What Would You Die For?

It was Monday lunch time so why would a bunch of hairy old hippies in bad trousers who insisted on ending every sentence with “man”, lead me to ponder the deep question “what would I die for”?

I went to see the movie “The Boat That Rocked” and after being immersed in lashings of humour, great rock and roll music and the inevitable over indulgence in every transgression on offer in the 60’s, I ended up in a deep and meaningful moment asking myself “what would I die for”.

As is often the case with comedy, through all the joviality I was moved to tears as the story progressively rocked toward some moments of truth.

Set in the mid 60’s the story is based on a bunch of rebellious DJ’s who had been banned by the authorities from playing rock and roll music from land based studios.

With everything SO accessible today, this situation seems ludicrous. But yes back in the 60’s the only place for British teenagers to hear rock and roll on their transistor radios or “trannies” (the 60’s equivalent of an i-pod not a Rocky Horror cast member) was to tune into the legendary pirate radio stations anchored in the freezing cold waters of the North Sea. At best floating rust buckets and worst case death traps bouncing about in appalling weather conditions, the colourful crew happily rocked on and raised their finger at the straight-laced government authorities who were constantly battling to take them off air.

As the movie progressed I realised I “knew” all the characters. I had worked with every single one of them when in the 70’s I played in a glitter band in the only licensed nightclub in the bottom half of New Zealand’s North Island. They had different names and faces of course but their personalities and souls were identical.

Not wishing to give away too much of the plot the government eventually legislate them out of existence and it’s a bit like the synopsis of the Titanic story – “the boat sinks”. But when it came time to be taken back to the safety and legitimacy of the shore, the DJ’s refused to budge. They kept working although they were now breaking the law and risked jail terms in doing so. When the boat started taking on water instead of heading for safety, they continued to broadcast – knee deep, then waist deep in water. They were prepared to go down with the ship, just like the musicians on the Titanic did.

I know it was fiction but because I “knew” these people so well, I understood that all those years ago I would have done exactly the same thing. Without a thought for my own personal safety, the passion I had for my work would have kept me playing. My band would have been the same, as would the motley bunch of bouncers, bar workers and floor staff that populated that seedy, sin infested night club in the 70’s. We had a common vision and a common goal, to create the best possible experience for our patrons. With a community that strong, anything becomes possible.

On the way home I became quite sad as I pondered my current position. I work in a field that is similar to rock and roll; our industry has many similarities. It is not conventional, we have alternate views to the mainstream, there is heavy opposition from places of power and therapists and musicians have the same morbid fascination with bodily function. But the most important comparison is that our product or output comes directly from the soul.

So why isn’t our industry more cohesive?

• Why are most therapists governed by fear - the fear of promoting their businesses’; fear of being seen as pushy or aggressive or showing off if they “toot their own horn”.
  
• Why is money such a taboo subject?
  
• Why is success thought so shameful by so many?
  
• Why are so many “waiting for a sign” or permission from some external source to help all the people who are injured, suffering, unwell or needing positive guidance – is the current state of the world not enough of a “sign” we are needed?
  
• Why do other therapists judge and label those who do become or even seek to become successful as “selling out to commercialism”?

Then I asked myself “am I selling out” and would I die for my work?

As the passion grew within me I realised I would still die for my job. I would face a death sentence if someone tried to stop me speaking my truth, which is that everyone in the personal development and natural therapy industry deserves massive success in whatever doses are right for them.

Would I break the law? When I thought about it – I already am. I have dedicated so much to have the freedom of my own business that some things have been left by the wayside, unattended. Not through conscious decision but from being so poor I couldn’t do anything but ignore my taxes and the mounting levels of debt and I had no choice but to trust the funds would eventually come to sort it out. I just kept going and still deal daily with the chaos I have banked up over the past seven years.

I know what it’s like to go to the edge and jump off and not fly. I know how it feels when you hit rock bottom with a crash. I work way more than I “should”. I’ve endured serial aloneness. I know the discomfort of overcoming my fears and my deepest demons. I know what it’s like to bomb in front of an audience and I’ve felt defeat more than once. But I realised I won’t stop until I’ve nailed this thing called a “dream” because like so many of you, it’s my soul purpose to help people positively.

I’m not telling you this to have you feel sorry for me, please celebrate with me because my work now gives me so much joy and fulfilment and the rewards I receive now far out weigh anything I have to “fix” now.

Why I tell you this is so you won’t give up if you are feeling like a looser if things aren’t working out like you thought they “should” or if others are making you feel less than adequate,

You have the divine right to build whatever is right for you, but it takes courage and strength and I wouldn’t have got this far without the support and love of my mentors and investment in my business knowledge.

I’m certainly not endorsing you doing anything stupid or risky but if you read the bio of your favourite author or seminar leader, they will have a story of hardship. They will have slept in cars, gone through relationship breakups; most have been bankrupt or close to death more than once. But they believed and they kept going because their desire to achieve became greater than their fear.

Like our DJ heroes, the people who achieve their dreams are the ones who over come their fear and just kept rolling the message out.

A successful business equates to freedom. At the end of the day I always give thanks for the blessing of freedom to live my life the way I choose. Would I die for the gift? YES!

Things for you to ponder?

1. How can we as an industry embrace the same rock and roll passion that kept the musicians on the Titanic playing as the boat sunk and create a common vision and a common goal?
   
2. Would you die for your current job?
   
3. If not, what would you need to do to create a job to die for?

Utopia Interview Series 2009 featuring Jeremy Donovan

I had the great honour to interview Jeremy Donovan, a remarkable man with a remarkable message. He has such a passion for healing and his Australian Aboriginal Culture.

His story is quite extraordinary, going from an incarcerated teenager with little future to someone who is a highly respected healer and international performer, travelling the world, spreading his message with great love and integrity.

In this phone interview Jeremy shares stories of his life, his family and some of the history of the Didgeridoo, why many indigenous women choose not to play it and the importance of the story telling and dance. It was recorded a few days before Christmas and it was a very special gift that keeps on giving.

I have edited this interview for the Utopia International Retreat Interview Series. The audio is well worth the investment of time because Jeremy shared so much with me and a few of my natural therapists who were also on the call asking questions.

Jeremy will again close the Utopia International Retreat 2009 but will be joined this time by his dear friend and shaman colleague Dr Steven Farmer - you can hear my interview with Dr Ste here

ENJOY!!

Jeremy Donovan Utopia 2009

MP3 File

This photo is of Jeremy performing the closing session at Utopia International Retreat 2008 and shows me receiving the beautiful healing I described in the interview.

You can find out more about Utopia International Retreat here

You can find out more about Jeremy Donovan here

You can watch Jeremy performing in the following YouTube Clips

Is your business suitable for the pen or the pot?

As I stood viewing the myriad of community notices on the gigantic notice board at the Hepburn General Store last week, one rough hand written notice jumped out.

Firstly it horrified me. Then it got me to thinking further about the deeper message for small business owners that was imbedded in this hastily written give away.

When I was a small child the chickens down the back in the hen house where my only pets. So I was always sad around Christmas time because they “went on holiday”.

This holiday always coincided with me being taken to my grandmothers for a special treat. Now here’s the thing - when I’d get home the chickens had packed their bags and “gone on holiday’ - leaving the hen house silent and empty with feathers all over the back lawn.

I always imagined they were having a nice time because they inevitably never came back and a few weeks later the cycle began again as 12 little fluffy yellow peepers were collected from a local farm.

You can imagine my horror when I joined the dots on the holiday lie and our Christmas dinner offerings!

The fate of my chicken friends all came flooding back as I read the sign at the Hepburn General Store:

TO GIVE AWAY = ROOSTERS
(for the pen or the pot)

As I walked the two blocks back to my house my mind began to think through the “pen or pot” analogy and why it was so relevant for business.

The reality of being in a small business draws many parallels to the harsh reality of life in the country.

In a small business if we don’t serve the needs of those around us we can quickly find ourselves in a pot of boiling water.

However, if we do serve well and can creatively communicate our message out to a group of people who want and need our services, then we will live a long prosperous life.

Roosters are like natural therapists. They walk a fine line because just like roosters a big new batch of therapists roll out of the teachings schools each year. Sadly only a small percentage will survive.

The big thing roosters and new therapists have in common is that they look similar, they talk the same and they do similar things. Until they develop a point of difference they are dispensable.

Most flocks only need one rooster because they start fighting for domination.

However, the one who gets chosen for the pen is NOT usually the one who fights the best but the one who has the best personality and can show it.

Foxy the Rooster dominated the hen house on the edge of my property for many years is a grand example.

Foxy was a stunning looking rooster with a flowing auburn bouffant mane. He kept the gals happy, crowed with great gusto and bore a striking resemble to Tina Turner in the way he would strut around the Hen Hilton.

But a dark cloud came over the pen one when day two voices started to crow…………

Foxy had bred a rival and this interloper was now brave enough to start showing his true colours and he was starting to unmercifully beat up on Foxy.

Foxy who was getting on in years now became frightened, and cowered in the corner whilst this newbie took over his “rutting and strutting” duties.

BUT because Foxy had served so well and was so full of personality it was the interloper who was removed unceremoniously from the pen, placed in a cardboard box and delivered to a local farm to take his chances in the pen or pot race.

Foxy recovered in minutes and was back in the role of "Prince of the Pen" and reigned supreme for many years to come.

Foxy was a winner on five levels because he:

1. Delivered on his promises and could be relied upon by all in his kingdom

2. Built relationships in and around his pen (we all loved Foxy)

3. Was not afraid to show his vulnerable side (he was a real wimp)

4. Stood out from the crowd with his beautiful auburn coat of many colours and consistently and clearly churned his message (crowed all hours except dawn)

5. Outsmarted the competition by simply being his wimpy self but his heart and authenticity saved him on many occasions.

Therapies can learn a lot from Foxy!

By being authentic and real, figuring out what makes you unique and then standing strong in your message and your ability to clearly communicate that message to others will help you stand out from the crowd and show how different you are from the competition.

Even if you are a wimp cowering in the corner, these whimpy virtues can be enough of a difference todetermine your entry to the pen or pot.

In business things can move quickly. Technology changes, trends change, new laws can impact or even just keeping up with your every day marketing AND seeing clients can become exhausting.

But if you have built strong relationships with your clients you will find they are loyal so long as you keep giving and improving your service to them.

One way of standing out from the crowd is learning to speak in public. In fact it’s imperative to your success. The gentle art of creating good stage presence in fact saved Foxy’s life on every level.

I am running a f*r*e*e Teleseminar

Wednesday 11 August 2009 at 8pm (Melbourne Time)

to promote my live event called Your Next BIG Leap which commences in 10 days.

There is only ONE seat left for the live event - jump in here if you want to jag it

BUT there is a heap of space on the free teleclass for everyone so jump in here and register now so you get the workbook and the audio recording.

Is Perfection Hurting Your Business?

We wait until its perfect and we wait ……..and we wait………

Perfection is like waiting for an uptown train on the downtown side of the platform. It will be a long waiting game because quite simply it’s not going to happen.

There are too many variables in the mix to create perfection, so why are so many therapists so hell bent on waiting for things to be perfect before they will make them public or available to the world?

Yesterday I viewed the 2009 Archibald prize entrants and the one I thought was perfect, wasn’t the one the judges chose. Am I wrong? No, I just have a different view on what is perfect, as did all the other people voting in the public choice section.

Driving your business to a state of perfection is an impossible destination because the next person after you to view or read or experience your work will have a totally different take on what you have created.

I believe what is important is to get your work out for people to see and experience, take their adulation and criticism and build it into your next product or upgrade or new concept.

I am much the better for having viewed the picture I loved yesterday. That artist would have deprived me of that state of joy had they not put brush to canvas or not entered it in a contest where I had the opportunity to see it.

I love the story of the virtuoso violin player who walks off stage after a brilliant performance and announced “tonight I played that piece perfectly…..tomorrow night I will play it even better”.

As we grow and learn in this process called having a small business we can be like the violinist, understanding that even things we worked on “until they were perfect” will often have space to be improved somewhere in the future.

I have been reminded of this as I have been working more with live groups of people. One event in particular went hideously wrong despite everything being put in place “perfectly”.

The feedback from the audience at this event was that they loved that we shared the “imperfection” with them. It meant they could understand that things can go wrong but the world doesn’t end when they do.

What’s more it gave them the permission they needed to have a go themselves because the worst results they could get were the same disasters we did!

In fact one of the attendees coined this phase which has been quoted frequently by me ever since:

"It doesn’t have to be perfect
to be perfect"
Leighann Reitano
The Soul of One

I shared this quote with a coaching colleague in Canada and she came up with this briefer version:

"Imperfect is Perfect"
Andrea J Lee
Multiple Streams of Coaching Income

If the moment doesn’t have to be perfect, then perhaps some more of us can be encouraged to have a go at more things?

I don’t know about you but when I look at these quotes it takes the heat off any situation. It makes starting a newsletter, building a blog, putting together your first workshop or even taking your first paid client easier.

Now before you all get too excited I’m not saying this gives you permission to cut corners or be “barely good enough” but we could all embrace the thought that things could be out in marketplace being put to the test and improved upon as you go.

The first newsletter I wrote is VERY different to the ones I write now. I spent hours on my first efforts and they were professionally edited (no spellos or typos – my heart felt thanks to Patricia McKenzie who hauled me through that process).

These days I’ve accepted that there will be things that probably wouldn’t pass in an English test but I know the content adds value to your business. I’m happy if my “imperfect” message gets one of you off your butt and into action, the imperfect grammar then pales in significance to you taking action!

Where are you currently waiting for the “perfect moment” to occur to release something or do something?

Could you perhaps accept that imperfection is in fact perfect and move forward anyway?

In a synchronistic twist to the collection of quotes on imperfection, I was reading a book by a wonderful Indigenous Elder called Min Mia who is one of the keepers of women’s lore/law. She tops the scale for nailing the perfection concept in two words.

“Perfectly Imperfect”
Min Mia
Under the Quandong Tree

I loved the concept of “perfectly imperfect”. Min Mia holds the teachings of 13 Australian animals and I did a Song Painting workshop to learn “how to” paint Min Mia’s animals. There were about six of us in the class and we learnt how to paint the basic shapes.

We had many different coloured cloths we could choose from for each flag and each person interpreted the shapes with different colours and different combinations of dots and lines and they all turned out different - they were all “perfectly imperfect”.

My flags hang in my kitchen and I’m no artist but I love them and think they are just perfect! So perfect in fact that my friend used them as the artwork on his CD – you can see my flags flying on his website here.

But are they technically correct......... NO............and did some of the other students in the class technically paint better flags than mine ...........YES.......but mine have bought joy and purpose to many without being perfect, just as everyone else's did on every level.

When you are in the flow even something appearing imperfect turns out to be just perfect.

Perfect comes from a place of EGO whereas imperfect comes with the gift to learn or improve.

So from now on my standard is “perfectly imperfect” - what is yours?

-oOo-

You can comment on this topic at my blog or let us know your favourite Archibald Prize entrant

This was my favourite Archibald Finalist






































Artist: Jan Williamson
Subject: Nancy Kunoth Petyarr

What was yours?
Click here to view

Small Business Growth in a Turbulent Economy

I had the great honour this week to be invited by Gihan Perera of First Step Communications Pty Ltd to share my expertise and be part of a panel discussion on how small business is coping in this turbulent economy.

It was really interesting for me to hear how "big" small businesses are having similar issues as the "micro" small businesses I work with and more importantly that we all need to use similar tools to not just survive but also thrive in a recession. In fact I believe micro businesses have the best chance of lasting out the storm because they are so readily able to change to meet market demand.

I came away from the call reminded how everyone really just wants to have a successful business and still have time for family, friends and most importantly a happy and stress free life.

Therapists more than ever are required to help people manage stress and achieve a healthy balance and harmony in these far from stress free times.

Panel Discussion with Gihan Perera

MP3 File

Click here to find out more about Gihan Perera

Click here to find out more about John Highman

Click here to find out more about Domonique Bertolucci

How to Avoid Ending Up Burnt Out & Broke When Organising Your Event

Events are a wonderful way to get your message out to a larger audience and also to start positioning yourself as an expert in your chosen field.

What I have worked out is that events are risky at best and you MUST know what you are doing or you will lose your blouse on an event and end up with tears before bedtime!

Many find the thought too daunting and never have a go because there is so much to learn and do and......well......it does involve the one thing most would rather die than do, which is public speaking. We are not saying there isn’t a lot to learn and do but if you are prepared to follow a process and do some early leg work, then the rewards on every level can be huge.

Like everything the answer is to start early and to start small and take on the challenges in bite sized chunks.

Samantha Richardson and my good self ran a teleclass last night that gave some quick and dirty tips and strategies to help you gain the confidence to get your own events started.

“The action happens at the front of the room”
Margaret Gill, Abundant Private Practices

When I first started out in my small business I knew I had to network but I was totally useless at it. As it turns out this became a wonderful strength because it made me realise that at a networking event you are very lucky to get ten people knowing what you do but everyone goes home knowing who the speaker is. That realisation changed my life and still today I rarely go to networking events in any other capacity than the speaker (yes, I’m still a rubbish networker!),

I went from someone who was petrified of speaking to someone who loves to speak in front of an audience.

The biggest thing I learnt was the importance of clarity. We discuss this on the audio below.

The audio will also give you the following three marketing tips you can use to start to put bums on seats at events

1. The importance of building a strong database

2. What are affiliates and how can they help get people to your events

3. How to leverage other people’s events to get exposure for your event and still have the event organiser love you

But please burn Sam's wise words into your brain because these tips are only meant to be a taster - there is a whole lot more you need to know.

“There is no one way to get lots of people to an event
but there are lots of ways to get one person to an event”
Samantha Richardson, Evolution Events

You can listen to the audio here:


MP3 File

If you feel you are ready to take the next big step you will love our live event YOUR NEXT BIG LEAP which is running in Adelaide, Melbourne and Brisbane – you can find out more here. http://yournextbigleap.eventbrite.com/

If you live in Adelaide don't forget we are speaking at two networking events at the end of May 09 more details here

Oh and BTW - little Harry was just fine, although he did spend the next few days looking like an extra from a Rocky movie - he has hopefully learnt about playing in games with your big brother - the injury factor grows! You will understand when you listen to the audio.

Serious About Success Makes Its Debut in the Northern Hemisphere

Have you ever had a secret dream of world domination (in the nicest possible way of course!).

Well I have had that dream ever since I learnt that you could have an international business that consisted of a phone, a laptop and an internet connection.

That dream came a step closer this week as I completed the very first Serious About Success teleclass with my new Associate Mentor, Elaine Copeland (left), who lives in Sussex England. We were joined by the lovely Wendy who is an early adopter and the very first northern hemisphere participant. We thought that was worth celebrating, so you can listen in on the call and hear us talking about the program.

One day I will get used to the fact that it is first thing in the morning there and I need to stop saying its the evening (just because it is for me!)

Listen here

MP3 File

You can find out more about the Serious About Success Program here: http://www.abundantprivatepractices.com/success.html

We have Serious About Success programs starting downunder and upover so we will have a place for you now no matter where you live in the world!

It is amazing when your dreams start coming true. If I have been able to do it - anyone can because my learning curve has been massive.

To make the dream happen you just need to get the right knowledge and support and put the learning into action and be prepared to stay in the game and not whimp out and one day you wake up like I did today and realise one aspect of the dream is happening - GO THE DREAM!!

Adelaide Promotional Events

I am co-presenting an event called YOUR NEXT BIG LEAP with Samantha Richardon of Evolution Events which is in June. We are going be doing two lead up teleclasses and two live presentations which you are all invited to attend so you can get to know us up close and personal. Details below:

Live Event #1

Enterprising Woman's Meeting

Samantha Richardson and Margaret Gill present

"How to Earn More, Work Less & Not Lose Your Blouse in the Process"

Date : Friday 29th May 2009

Time: 7.30pm

Venue: Cleggett Wines Lang¬horne Creek, SA 5255

Booking Cost: $20.00 to cover wine & nibbles.

Hosted by Anne McLennan of Cleggett Wines and Sharon Bremner of Bodysense by Shaz
Bookings Essential: (08) 8536-8366

Map to get to the Venue

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Live Event #2

High Tea Networking Event

Samantha Richardson and Margaret Gill present

"How to Make More Money & Get Authentic Heart Based Messages to a Larger Audience"

Date: Saturday 30th May 2009

Time: 3.00pm to 5.00pm

Venue: Quality Hotel Old Adelaide Inn
160 O’Connell St. North Adelaide

Booking Cost: $28
Sorry guys this one is ladies only

Hosted by Sue Gibbs of Financial Choice for Women
Bookings Essential: 1300 876 494

Map to get to the Venue

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Friends & colleagues welcome at both events

2 x Free Teleclasses


How to Avoid Ending Up Burnt Out & Broke When Organising Your Event

DATE & TIME: Tuesday, May 12th at 8.00pm Melbourne Time

FORMAT: Simulcast! (Attend via Phone or Webcast -- it's your choice)

The phone numbers to dial are at this link
http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=7024026

How to Earn More, Work Less and Not Lose Your Blouse in the Process

DATE & TIME: Tuesday, June 2nd at 8:00pm Melbourne Time

FORMAT: Simulcast! (Attend via Phone or Webcast -- it's your choice)

The phone numbers to dial are at this link
http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=7024152

The Global Peace Initiative of Women (GPIW)

I had the great honour to have Dr Mary Faeth Chenery (left) speaking about her work with The Global Peace Initiative of Women (GPIW) in my Guest GURU spot this month. Mary Faeth is the Australian coordinator for the work of the Global Peace Initiative of Women - you can read more about her here.


I heard Mary Faeth do a full talk on this subject and I was moved by the way people were making such a difference on the planet by being of service. It highlighted to me how each one of us can make a difference at a high level when we open our hearts, allow the love to flow AND take action!

Please listen and enjoy hearing the awesome and inspiring work of this wonderful organisation. Please listen to the audio with my compliments by clicking on the little heart:


MP3 File

Jaipur Conference – African & Hindu delegates (below)









Ven. Kang Soeun(above)


Cambodian nun, Swiss delegate, Ven. Dhammananda (right)


Muslim & Buddhist women, Taiwan (left)



Meditating at Compassion Retreat, Taiwan (right)


Buddhist nun from Cambodia Cambodia with Swiss translator (left)




You can find out more about The Global Peace Initiative of Women (GPIW) here http://www.gpiw.org/

If you have questions for Mary Faeth or you would like to find out how you can be part of the next conference please leave a comment below and I will ensure she gets it.

Please help to share this message

Are You Ready to Take Your Next Big Leap

Have you got a lot going on in your business and life?

Are you ready to jump up to the next level but have no idea how?

Have you got a secret desire to facilitate change in the world but are unsure how to get your message out?

Do you need to find the clarity and knowledge to bring your message together?

Many women have created a business that was meant to stay small and insignficant only to wake up one morning and realise their message has become bigger than Texas. Then the dilema becomes how to get that message out to the masses who are starting to want to hear it.

The Adelaide Luxury Business Bootcamp is designed to help you firstly get the confidence to run your own events and start getting your message out to more people.

We will help you to understand what an authentic message is and how to become comfortable enough to start getting your message out to larger groups of people.

PLUS we are also going to help you to fill your events by sharing the many different ways you can get people to your event.

We are calling it "Get Organised, Get Real and Get On With It"

Who is the Adelaide Luxury Business Bootcamp for?

Women in Business, Solo-prenuers, Coaches, Natural Therapists, up and coming presenters and workshop leaders - in fact anyone who leads from the heart and has a message inside them that is screaming to get out.

An event is any gathering bigger than two people, what we teach will help whatever stage you are at in your business, whether you want to have small intimate gatherings or big seminars and workshops.

Event dates

Friday 18 June 09 to Sunday 20 June 09

Venue

Mercure Grosvenor Hotel Adelaide
125 North Terrace
Adelaide SA 5000

www.mercuregrosvenorhotel.com.au

Costs
Full Price $1497
Early Bird is $397 (ends 12 Jun 09)
Super Early Bird is $249 (only 10 tickets at this price + only available until 17 April 09)

click here to register and pay

Click here for more information

Infinite Light Dimensions Website Launched

My dear friend Trisha Ellis has just launched her new website with her business partner Gloria Knight.

Trish and Gloria have been lovingly bringing in a new healing technique for some years now called the Healing Grace and are now ready to share it with a bigger audience.

Trish has been one of my guiding lights, mentors, teachers - she taught me the early phases of the EMF Balancing Technique and she is my Reiki Nana. A wise-est teacher and friend you could ever wish for.

So if you have an interest in the healing arts and would be interested in finding out more - just visit their new website here www.infinitelightdimensions.com

Utopia International Retreat is On Again for 2009

Utopia International Retreat 2009 it's happening again!!

You may have remembered me returning from speaking at the 2008 event and just being in such a wonderful space after meeting all the wonderful participants and presenters.

This year is promising to be even better with a longer list of presenters, all with a unique passion in their specific area of expertise.

There is a very beautiful new website you can visit here where you will see me a picture of me presenting last year on the home page. The website production this year is sponsored by Kyrona and Rebecca at Inspired Insight and they have done a wonderful job.

I'm going to be interveiwing most of the presenters in the lead up to the event so stay tuned and get your ticket early this year.

The photo is from the closing ceremony in 2008 and it shows me getting a healing from the fabulous Jeremy Donovan who will also be doing the closing ceremony in 2009 but with Dr Stephan Farmer. People who have seen them work together in the past say they are AMAZING!

You can see photos of last year and read some of the testimonials from last year here


Listen to the First Interview

You can listen to the lovely Susan Joy Coombes and Simone Matthews who are the co-creators of this years event talking about what we can expect in 2009.

Utopia is a not for profit event and if you can get the message out in any way, shape or form, we would be very grateful and after presenting last year I can promise you won't be disappointed if you decide to attend - UTOPIA IS AWESOME! Click here to register

Utopia - Susan Joy Coombes and Simone Matthews Interview

MP3 File

How to Make More Money Without Working Any Harder

One of the most frequently asked questions I get is: "how can I make more money in my practice but not work as hard?"

It’s the 90 million dollars question in this industry because most natural therapists and health and wellbeing practitioners have to be physically present or working on clients to generate income. It becomes exhausting and eventually makes the practice unsustainable and burns the therapist out - that is not abundant!

My Guest GURU this month opened up a wonderful revenue opportunity for therapists by offering a website that allows you to use pre-recorded music, images and voice over scripts to easily record your own CD's and audio to sell or give away (or a mixture of both) on your website or in interactions with clients and prospective clients.

This includes your own ability to do voice over’s and if you want to, you can record a full CD of music, meditations - in fact there are all sorts of wonderful ways you could use this product including creating your own videos.

You can listen to the call below and get an idea of how easy this can be or you can get more information on The Chill Sessions website here

Having your own CD's not only puts your practice into a new professional class but it also allows your customers to take a little bit of you home with them when they leave your practice - just like you can take a little bit of a musician home to listen to again and again after the gig.

What struck me about this particular product was firstly that it does seem very easy and most of the hard work is done for you and secondly there are two human beings on the end of the phone who will talk you through any techno challenges you have with the creation of your product.

You can listen to the audio from the Guest GURU call here - just click on the slider below:

The Chill Sessions

MP3 File

Get Naked, Get Help & Get a Winning Attitude!!

Leonie Marks, Holistic Coach, Mentor and Intuitive Astrologer will be the master of ceremonies at the Luxury Business Bootcamp myself and Samantha Richardson of Evolution Events will be holding on the Gold Coast later this month.

Leonie wrote a wonderful article for her people this month and I thought I would share it with you,

Firstly because she has done a great job of telling her own story of getting up on stage and speaking

Secondly because she gives some great tips on how to stop the sabbotage and get on with being fabulous!

Thirdly becuase you are probably sick of Sam and I banging on about the topic. It will be a nice change to hear a new perspective = ENJOY!


More than ever before, its time to move forward. . .

. . . and more than ever before you'll be aware of any struggle that brings up - along with those old feelings of being held back or blocked . . .

Whatever you label that “obstacle” – the truth is, its your own self-sabotage reaction trying to keep you safe, secure and firmly stuck - right where you are now.

The good news is
. . . those undesirable feelings of frustration, stuckness and even
fear – are a huge sign that you’re ready to go to the next level! The biggest decision is to take the first step, then it gets easier, you just keeping taking one step and before you know it, you’ve travelled a huge distance and achieved things you never thought possible!

Since I've come to recognise the feeling of being stuck as a big fat signpost in my life – its completely changed how I respond to life and what I attract as a result.

Here’s how I put that into practice last year:

I had this enormous urge to get my message out there and help a lot more people to step up in their lives – the urge set off the old feelings of frustration at not knowing how. On good advice from my business coach I accepted the challenge of increasing my speaking engagements. Of course that meant I had to really face up to the fear of "revealing" myself in public.

Now, those who know me well, know that I can talk underwater!

So what’s the big deal?

Well, I didn’t want to just talk at people, I wanted to share my message with clarity and confidence in a way that would inspire, inform and give value to my audience. All being well, when they needed services such as mine the added bonus would be - they’d remember me  Sounds great doesn’t it?

"Getting Naked"

But I still had to get naked in public! Yikes, it was feeling like those dreams we’ve all had, there you are up on stage or out in the streets in your birthday suit, amongst the wide-eyed fully clad public, all gawking right at you! Did I really need to put myself through that?

Get Help

To get things moving more quickly in the direction I wanted to go, it had to be done. So, Yes I needed to do it. There was no way I was getting through it alone, so with a good coach and a public speaking mentor to help me shape up, front up and speak up, I put myself out there.

The first few big audiences had me sweating and fretting - but talk by talk I've grown into a place of confidence and joy in my public speaking and now I’m calling back to the universe - "bring it on" - I love connecting to each new group and sharing my life and business with a wider circle.

Get a Winning Attitude

The "can do" attitude keeps inspiring self-confidence and more can-do attitude – which is very useful! And it brings exciting rewards.

I want to share one of mine with you, because it could be benefit you directly.

I've been invited to be MC at The Tough Love Luxury Business Boot Camp
on the Gold Coast in March, which is an exciting opportunity.

The boot camp is for anyone who wants to create successful events, seminars and workshops; and use speaking to enhance their career/business.

These 2 skills are a must in almost all career choices – to check out the great package Margaret Gill and Samantha Richardson have put together click here to download brochure

So, to summarise how we can make the most of our opportunities in 2009 here are the

6 Keys to Stepping Up and Moving Forward:

• Recognise the Signs

As in "Good News" above, those unwanted feelings of frustration, irritability, fear and stuckness - are always a sign that its time to let go, move on, step up - so don't deny them or run from them, turn around and step through them!

• Get Naked

Let’s not hide anymore - being open with self and others is the most amazing way to grow and really experience what you want in life.

Practice openness with self and others

• Stop the Struggle

Don't struggle alone - get help from someone who’s been there!
Battling along on your own is futile. Whether you know what you want and can't get there on your own; or you can't decide what you want and need

• Clarity and Direction

Get help - coaching, counselling, mentoring,
there is always someone out there who has the experience and knowledge you need – and is just dying to share it with you. Not getting help = self-sabotage!

• Winning Attitude

No need to play small. Stand up loud and proud, be who you are, go after what you want. We're here to grow and shine. As we do that we naturally attract what we really want to give and receive in life.

• Celebrate every step!

As above - I'm well over the old tall poppy syndrome! How about you? Our growth and achievements, no matter what they are, benefit us and everyone around us. The ripple effect reaches farther than we can imagine.

We deserve to celebrate and honor ourselves and each other every step of the way!

Its all in our awareness, attitude and action.

Introducing Leonie Marks

Leonie is a Coach, Mentor and Astrologer who helps women to gain the clarity, confidence and practical tools to move to new levels of success in their careers and businesses.

“I’ve always known my purpose was to help others to achieve their dreams. My journey began with years of intense study and training in Nursing, Psychology, Counseling and Natural Therapies. However, the real power of my work comes from having “been there and done that” in my own life. Having achieved my way into a complete burn out 10 years ago - I’ve had to dig deep for the wisdom in what I thought I knew so well. That’s when my real “education” began. Now I love helping others to master that process and move forward with confidence”.

Leonie is the founder of the “Come Unstuck” and “Business Stardom” programs. Her clients and students benefit from her genuine, down to earth approach and her continued practice of applying the spiritual principles of life mastery in her daily life.

Leonie lives and works in the beautiful Mount Lofty Ranges of South Australia.

www.LeonieMarks.com

Another Great Idea If Your Niche Market Is Women

Springwise have given us another great entrepreneurial business idea that takes a very basic theme and moves it up a notch with clever marketing. Go Home Gorgeous is a fun way to promote a well needed service for new Mums.

Having beauty therapies in a hospital environment isn’t a new idea but this company has wrapped it up so it appeals to all aspects of a woman’s mind body and soul after she has had a baby.

They are mostly focusing on the beauty aspect but I bet some savvy natural therapists could find a way to get their services included on the menu.

Check out the concept here

How to Make More Money Running Your Own Speaking Events & Workshops

Click the heart to hear me talking about the bootcamp

Event Details

How to Make More Money Running Your Own Speaking Events and Workshops Luxury Bootcamp

Dates

Friday 20 March 2009 - Sunday 22 March 2009 (Monday optional 1:1 sessions)

Friday

6.30PM - 7.30PM
NETWORKING COCKTAIL PARTY

7.30PM - 9PM
DINNER (register your interest)

Saturday

9AM - 12:30PM
SAMANTHA RICHARDSON PRESENTS “Event In A Box”
12 Easy Steps To Creating And Running A Successful Event

1:30 - 5PM
MARGARET GILL PRESENTS
“How To Harness The Power Of Workshops And Seminars To Get Known And Get More Clients”

Sunday

9am – 5pm Hands On & Feet On Workshops
Choice Of Samantha Richardson Or Margaret Gill
*Limited To 10 People In Each Workshop

Monday (Optional)

One On One Power Hour With The Presenters
Your Event Up Close And Personal Business Mentoring (Your Choice Of Topic)

HOW TO REGISTER

Click here to visit the Evolution Events Website to register


WHAT IS IT?

Are you nervous about organising your own events or speaking in public?

When you know how to do both (run and speak at your own events) you open up all sorts of wonderful opportunities to make more money and get better known as an expert in your industry.

This Luxury Business Boot Camp is just what it says a hard talking, solid advice, downloaded from our hearts to you, business building weekend.

Both presenters are passionate about helping people grow successful businesses and we see workshops and seminars as a really important aspect when you have knowledge to share with others. So our main aim is to see you leave with all the facts you need to get your workshops and seminars happening - it’s that simple!

What's more we will help you feel confident speaking in front of your groups, by sharing firstly what you need to do but more importantly pointing out what you don't need to do. The latter part is something that will rarely occur where people tell you honestly what you can't see.

We are prepared to share what we have learnt so you don't have to endure the tears both of us have encountered at the cliff face of live events!



HOW TO GET MORE INFORMATION

Click here to download a brochure for the event


FREE TELESEMINARS

Margaret Gill will be running two free teleseminars to let you hear for yourself what will be on offer at the live event. These teleseminars on their own will give you a LOT of free information about speaking and did I mention its free!! (NB: Different info will be taught at the live event)

You can get more details about the free teleseminars here:
*********************************************************************************
FREE TELESEMINAR #1:
How Learning to Speak Can Grow Your Business

How Learning to Speak Can Grow Your Business - Listen here:


MP3 File

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FREE TELESEMINAR #2:
Seven Steps to Speaking Success

The Seven Steps to Speaking Success - Listen Here:


MP3 File

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BONUS TELECLASS #3
Why Speaking Works

Why Speaking Works - Listen here


MP3 File

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Not sure what a teleseminar is - then click here


VENUE DETAILS

MARINA QUAYS INTERNATIONAL
John Lund Drive,
Hope Island, QLD 4212
P: (07) 5530 1999
E: stay@marinaquays.com.au
www.marinaquaysinternational.com.au


HOW TO REGISTER

Click here to visit the Evolution Events Website to register

Global Healing Discussion

Much distress has been felt in Australia in the past weeks as natural disasters have wrecked havoc on the land and all the human and animal inhabitants in the disaster zones. With both fire and flood causing damage at opposite ends of the country it has been difficult for many to reconcile what is happening at a higher level.

Simone Matthews of Universal Life Tools and I were talking earlier this week about the devastation and its effects on heart based therapists and we felt a need to do something that may help others gain some understanding and give them a tool to help them move forward.

There is of course no easy way nor is there a quick way to heal, but through the support of both our communities coming together at a heart level, we felt we may create unity that will radiate outwards to help others in a similar way.

We hope we were able to explain some of what is going on at a higher level but not to diminish any of the events or the effects from the events, we simply wished to give people a simple tool to help them come to balance.

Simone gifted a beautiful meditation which you can listen to as many times as feels right for you. We also had a wonderful discussion and attempted to answer questions from the many people who were unable to make the call live.

You can listen to the discussion here:

Global Healing Discussion

MP3 File

If you would just like to listen to the meditation, you can click the slider below and the meditation will start to play. We recommend you do the meditation each day until you feel the time is right to stop.

Global Healing Meditiation

MP3 File

Simone has also created a wonderful resources page on her website with links to many other people who are offering support to light workers, creating mediation circles and of course listing many of the practical ways you are able to help the situation.

Click here to visit the resources page

You can also listen to the audios in a slightly different format here

I also wrote a newsletter article called Finding the Positive When Things Clearly Are Anything But Positive - you can view that here

Finding the Positive When Things Clearly Are Anything But Positive

Does anyone feel like we have lived the 12 months of 2009 already and it’s only the second week of February?

This week has carried huge lessons for us all.

I have been in a position where, by choice, I have seen very little of the news and have chosen to tap into the positive stories and news that has been coming via my wonderful clients and colleagues. All the stories of human kindness, of love, of people figuring out ways they can help people both in the flooded areas of Queensland and the fire ravaged areas of Victoria.

I’m not sticking my head in the sand and ignoring what really happened, in fact at one stage I knew that fires were burning 30 minutes from my own house and I am very grateful that the Cute House was safe when I returned from the city. I truly feel for those who have lost so much and honour those who left the planet in such tragic circumstance.

I know I cannot change what happened in the past few days but I do know we can change the way things play out in the future. I believe at this time it is important to not send even more grief, fear and sadness into those areas through our thoughts. By not watching those images I have chosen to allow the people effected some privacy to grieve their loss, for the people moving in to clean up the aftermath some space to do their work and moreover to not send any more negative vibes into those areas.

I keep hearing people say “it’s so sad” or “I feel so helpless” and there is no doubt these statements are true but each time we say these things we are sending our sadness and helplessness straight into the area to sit on top of what is already naturally there in the aftermath of the tragedies.

I know it is heart wrenching to watch those images but we cannot change what has happened in the past few days, but humans entering the situation with love and kindness can and are changing the situation for the people who have lost so much.

Now more than ever we must focus on all the amazing things that are happening in and around those areas of need. There is so much human kindness, compassion and love being poured out by caring, loving people and focusing on this aspect will bring more of this activity.

The service people such as the firemen and women, medical people, all the humanitarian and government agencies, in fact anyone doing anything positive are awesome; let’s send them messages of strength and recognition for their work.

There is so much to celebrate as communities form to grieve together, people work shoulder to shoulder and the human spirit is allowed to do what it does best and that is to shine in the face of adversity.

There is so much love to be shared and at times like this it is truly time for the healers of the planet to step right into their power and use all their gifts and talents to do their small part by remaining positive, keeping the thoughts on all the good that is happening (and it is huge), neutralize the negative and take all the constructive actions that are right for you at this time. But please find a way to move through the sadness and grief and don’t continue to add pity and sorrow to the mix.

As with any situation of grief and loss there are so many ways we can positively help the people who have been affected right now, but in the weeks to come they are going to need our continued support through positive actions, thoughts and deeds.

When I was studying Business Management at University many years ago, my stats teacher taught us an interesting concept. Scientific study shows that humans can only take so much happiness before they plateau out and can no longer take in any more good news. Once they reach that plateau then whatever you tell them just bounces off. It is the human body’s natural way of stopping it overloading if there is too much good to be had.

So if you have good news to deliver and you have a lot of it, then you simply deliver enough to get people to plateau, give them time to come back down and then give them the next piece of good news. This way people will get the most value from the good news if you feed it to them one small piece at a time over a period of time.

Bad news is exactly the same and the human body has the same shut off valve that stops it overloading when there is just too much devastation and grief to be dealt with. So in a business situation if you have bad news to deliver, then you simply tell everyone all the bad news at once. They will react badly for a while but then they will just shut down and not be able to take in anything more. It basically numbs down the senses.

Anyone who has experienced the death of someone close will know the feeling of life going on around you but you seem to be watching that life go on like you are sitting watching a movie. Things just don’t affect you as much as they should. This is a blessing in many ways but eventually a healthy body and mind will determine you are ready to feel again and suddenly they will be dealing with all the pain all at once.

Many people in the tragedy zones, here in Australia and all over the world, are in some stage of this bad news protection right now but eventually the effect will wear off and they are going to come out of it and they are going to need our help.

Now more than ever healers and therapists and everyone who works from the heart are needed at full strength on the planet.

Using the happy news principle we are going to have to top them up every day so they can keep feeling the love and support that is truly there for them. We will need to keep doing it for months and in some instances even years to get people fully through the heartbreak that will inevitably impact at full force within the next few weeks.

Now that the media is so “on the spot” we have instant access to events that once we wouldn’t perhaps even know about. As healers we are going to need to find a way to deal with these tragedies, honour what has happened and move quickly to a place of healing.

I was speaking to Simone Matthews of Universal Life Tools on Tuesday and we were discussing how the events of the past week are impacting the healers who have a heart felt need to help and who are feeling these tragedies at a very deep level of their consciousness. We don’t have all the answers but we felt if we could bring healers and therapists together in a virtual room, perhaps develop some level of unity and move quickly to that place of healing of firstly ourselves, then move that love and healing fully into the tragedy zones on the planet.

Details of the call are here