August 2, 2018

Moore Mission Moments - The Watershed Group

Flying Without a Net

by Patti Moore

What does pushing past our limits look like? At this moment in my life, it looks an awful lot like me, standing in the wings of the famous Improv Comedy Club in Los Angeles, waiting to go onstage. And no, I’m not joking – though believe me I will be, and with all my might, when the spotlight hits me.

What in the world am I doing here!?

Speaking in front of an audience is one thing. Doing standup is another thing entirely. Will I fly – or will I fall? Whichever it is, once it’s behind me, I know I’ll feel stronger for having done it, because that’s how it’s always worked in my life; every risk has brought some reward, even if it’s just a hard lesson and wisdom. And there are no rewards at all unless you are willing to go out on a limb – or in this case, a stage. The fact is, complacency is more perilous to an entrepreneur than risk taking. While it’s true that if we don’t take risks, we can’t fail, we also can’t succeed.

Working with voice coach Roger Love has put me back in touch with that risk-embracing best part of myself. That was the part that had steered me into hospice, back when it was still just a crazy idea that nearly no one had heard of. That was the driving force that supplied the courage I needed to step out of my hospice role and start my own business. That was the muscle set that gave me the strength to embrace the vision of myself as a coach – as someone who could help others to get in touch with that part of themselves that whispers, “What if I succeed?” instead of “What if I fail?”

But we can’t coach fearlessness when we’re not living it – and that’s what I’m doing at this comedy club, wiping my sweaty palms on my skirt and trying to catch my breath as I wait to go on. I’m flying without a net – and I’ve never felt more alive.

When was the last time you gave yourself permission to fall? When was the last time you broke through the walls of your comfort zone, and dared to do it differently? For some people that might look like getting on an airplane; for others, it might mean getting on a stepladder. The fact is, it doesn’t matter whether it’s something as small as doing a comedy routine for an audience, or something as big as starting a new business – it will enhance your view of yourself, empower your dreams, and free you to think bigger than you’d ever dared.

Do it – step out. Take a chance. As fabled aerialist Carl Wallenda famously said, “Life is on the wire. All the rest is just waiting.”

Yes, you might fall – but you might fly.

Patti Moore on stage at The Improv

WORTH READING/ WORTH WATCHING:

There’s a nationwide shortage of volunteers that leaves our organizations in competition with other kinds of nonprofits to recruit them. For those who haven’t had any personal contact with hospice, it can seem like a depressing choice for volunteering - so it’s up to those of us who know better to show them how great being a hospice volunteer can be. We need to tell them more than what’s in it for us if they join us – what they want to know is what’s in it for them. Here are some ideas on making that the key to your appeal to potential volunteers:

Stories like this one help lift the veil on what hospice volunteering really looks like: “All the employees will say they’ve gotten used to hearing The Questions, from family and friends, even from the loved ones of patients they care for. “We get asked that all the time,” said Tammy Wright, 43, a nurse’s assistant with hospice certification, now in her ninth year doing hospice work. “Why did you ever choose to work there? Why would anyone elect to spend their workdays so entwined with death and grief? And how can you possibly get up the next morning to do it all over again?”

It is hard to think of another profession with such constant exposure to dying. Yet, as intense and exhausting as hospice care is, you seldom hear any of the doctors, nurses, aides, social workers and bereavement counselors at the Hospice of the Western Reserve describe the job as grim, sad or dispiriting. Instead, they tend to portray the work as deeply fulfilling, gratifying and, perhaps most counterintuitively, life-affirming. And in working in the presence of imminent death, they all say they have witnessed sights that defy expectation or explanation.”

Here’s an angle you may not be covering in your pitch to volunteers; what, aside from the satisfaction of helping others, do they get from engagement with your organization? Studies show that the benefits to both mental and physical health are meaningful and measurable:

Recognition of the service your volunteers provide is a great way to keep people motivated and to bring in new volunteers, too. Your local newspaper and/or television stations love stories like this, and if you can pitch them and provide an interesting angle - the oldest, or youngest, or longest-serving volunteer, for instance - they’ll help you turn your volunteers into community stars.

And don’t forget to put your “aces in their places”; place people in jobs that complement their abilities, special skills or interests, and former professional careers.

CLIENT SUCCESS STORIES:

A prestigious (and well-deserved!) 2018 FSAE Leadership Award - Association of the Year - goes to our good friends at Florida Hospice & Palliative Care Association!

Need volunteers? The problem isn’t finding willing people as much as it is letting them know about the variety of opportunities that exist for them as hospice volunteers, and how easy it is to get started. Get the message out! Here, Big Bend Hospice’s Katie Mandell makes the pitch for volunteers (at about 5:05):

Hospice of the Chesapeake in Annapolisdoes a great job creating and promoting community programs like this that really keep it out in front of the people in its service area.“To help people better understand what grief is, Chesapeake Life Center will offer “Living with Loss,” a free workshop that will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 15, on the Hospice of the Chesapeake’s John & Cathy Belcher Campus, 90 Ritchie Highway, Pasadena. The informational session will help participants explore the grief process, review coping strategies and discover ways to find comfort and growth through this difficult time.”

HIGH PERFORMANCE COACHING CORNER tm:

There is a lovely word that I am becoming more familiar with...Congruence. Congruence is when we are in alignment with our values and our integrity and ideally living it every moment of every day. When we live in Congruence with our highest and best self, we feel happy and fulfilled and we are living our sense of purpose. I believe most people come from a place of integrity, are trusting and want to be trusted.

Consider this question: what would you tell a person you are mentoring would be 3 examples of how you consistently live your values and integrity?

Have you been in situations where you had to compromise your values to be included?

Live your best life, consistently. Live with Congruence consistently and sleep well at nigh!

This elite, intimate group coaching is powerful, challenging, open hearted and transformational. Check out the link below! Hope to see you in the Group this fall, 2018!

LIFE IS SHORT. LIVE IT. NOW!

TO JOIN THIS CUTTING EDGE GROUP,

CLICK HERE to learn more!