Testimonials

On the Great Life Seminar:

Hi Tomi,

I hope that today has greeted you beautifully!  I know that my day has!!  I wanted to share with you a few of the things that have happened to me in just the past few days since returning home. LOTS has happened!!!

On Saturday afternoon I was talking with my husband about what I really wanted to do – teach workshops.  For the first time in years, it was like he GOT it!!  He didn’t ask about it being part time after my Job, but really understood that that’s what I wanted to BE my Job!  I also asked him to be a part of it.  He was excited about being a part of it – sending out bills, keeping the business aspect handled.  That’s his area of expertise.  It made him feel included.  He’s interested now in getting started.  He said he hadn’t seen me this excited and lit up on the inside in years!

Second thing that happened – my 12 year old daughter and 2 of her 12 year old girl friends were over.  The girls were asking about the class.  So we talked a bit about what the class was about and I told them about setting boundaries and knowing your values.  I hadn’t even gotten to the vision statement or the reference points when one of the girls said, ‘Wow!  I wish someone had gone through this with me before I went into 6th grade.  I think it would have made middle school easier if I’d known these things or at least thought about them.”  The girls asked if they could come back and talk about this more this coming weekend.

Sunday – BIG DAY for me personally.  We were running around during the day.  One of the places we had to go was the kids’ summer camp for Open House.  I had no idea that the activities would be open also.  During the exercises in class I realized that my family was really one of my most important things to me and I also realized that fun was really low on my list.  So while we were at camp my daughter asked me to go canoeing with her.  Usually, I would try to figure out a way to get out of it.  Not today!  went canoeing for an hour with my daughter and husband while my sons canoed with another friend.  That  was a big deal for me but not the biggest thing that happened – not by a long shot!!

Tomi, I’m scared of heights to the point that I don’t go up in the attic.  It’s a pull down attic with only about 6 steps up but I’ve gotten stuck in the attic before when I’ve turned around and tried to come down the steps.  So I don’t go up things any more.  That is, until Sunday.  The mantra was Have Fun and Have Faith (also another value).

My sons wanted to go to the zip line.  I stood in line holding their place for over an hour.  I realized that there was no reason they should have all the fun!  I decided to try it!  YUP!  The one who won’t even go up the attic stairs climbed a tree 50 feet up to the zip line platform!!!!!  I then proceeded to get attached to a zip line, took a deep breath and a leap of faith and went across a lake to the other side!!  YEA for me!!!!

I came in to work on Monday with several people, including my boss, making comments about how refreshed I looked.  I was able to tell them about the class, my boundaries, values, vision.  It felt good to share with some of them.  

The CIO of my division came by and I was telling him about Sunday’s adventure.  Instead of making a comment about how great it was for me, he turned it around and somehow made it about my co-worker.  I realized it didn’t really bother me (where it would have really irked me earlier) because HE’S NOT ON MY PLAYING FIELD! His opinion doesn’t count! It counts for the financial sector of my life and if I have a job, but that’s it – and my job doesn’t define me so – it REALLY doesn’t matter!!

I also had several women in the office stop by to see me on Monday.  We were speaking about different things going on their lives.  The exercise we used in class about ‘why haven’t you done it’ came in handy yesterday.  I have lots of people stop by and talk about what they want to do but no actually does anything.  So I decided to try that technique.  I also told them that they had to have authentic discussions with themselves before they could really go anywhere.  I had one lady tell me that she knows she is just making up excuses for not doing anything because she is very scared of being rejected if she tries to go out and meet new people after her divorce. Once she said it and we talked about it, she was much better and said she felt better about maybe putting herself out there.

My boss has also told me to tell her when the next workshop is to become certified so she can give me the time off!

This class is having Major ripples in my life!!!!

Kim