A few months ago I imagined a place. A place:
- where I could bare my soul and be myself,
- where I would find the best food for my mind, my heart and my soul,
- where I could take a new perspective and craft a fresh vision for my life and my passion,
- where I could find never-ending sources of inspiration and motivation,
- where I would thrive at my own speed while expanding my boundaries,
- where I would make amazing new friends who had similar goals and dreams,
- where I could play and experiment to my heart’s content,
- where I would be equipped to create my best year ever.
I imagined that place. And then ten days ago, I created it.
(Despite countless doubts and fears. And with insanely little time left until the end of the year. I was scared, believe me!)
My dream materialized just like that! And now I can’t believe it!
Scared or not, I did it because I knew deep inside that you would come and join me. And that you were yearning for this place, too.
That’s why I want you to know you’re amazing!
- You’re amazing because you’ve decided to give yourself the gift of a year with yourself.
- You’re amazing because you want to grow, change and thrive from the inside out.
- You’re amazing because you’re courageous enough to go on an adventurous journey with me, the Instigators, and hundreds of like-minded passionate women.
- You’re amazing because you want to rewrite your story and own it.
We have a marvelous adventure in store for you. What you’ll find here (by using the prompts, taking the lessons and being a part of this warm community) will nourish your soul, your heart and your mind at the same time.
- You’ll be able to share your writings, your journey, your experiments, your experiences, your obstacles, your solutions, your joys, your lessons, your passions, and your work with hundreds of like-minded cohorts.
- You’ll benefit from the wisdom and expertise of almost 70 Instigators, each of whom is a stellar expert in her or his field.
- You’ll have remarkable teachers, guides and mentors every week.
- You’ll find in-depth and authentic lessons, exercises, interviews, and conversations.
- You’ll be able to craft your vision for a better life and a better business.
- You’ll be able to hone your life skills so that you can live up to your potential.
So, a huge welcome to you and congratulations for taking this challenge with us!
Theme for Week 1: The Threshold
From Reflection to Possibility
The theme of the 1st week and our 1st chapter is “The Threshold: From Reflection to Possibility.”
We’ll talk about the Threshold because that’s where we exactly are now. It’s a fragile place, yet it also keeps the seeds of breathtaking possibilities for each one of us.
On our first week, we have two really extraordinary people with us. They are both best-selling authors, speakers, coaches, and teachers. They have been generous to give us our first prompts, inaugurating our journey.
Drums please!
Patti Digh and Jennifer Louden!
I welcome Patti Digh and Jennifer Louden, and thank them once again in your presence.
Liminal Spaces
by Patti Digh
What spaces are you standing between? Now, and then? Here, and there? Whole, and broken?
Now imagine those spaces as trapeze bars: what would it take to throw your heart over the bars and let your body follow, as one veteran trapeze performer has advised?
I love liminal spaces, those gaps between. The space between the monkey bars. You have to let go, fully, of one monkey bar before you can grab the next one.
Else you are stuck between, a heavy weight pulling your hands down on the bars; you’ve lost momentum. So what monkey bar are you moving from, and what monkey bar are you moving to, in 2012?
What does the space in-between feel like, sound like, taste like? It is luscious, not empty. It’s the threshold, the space between, that holds all the juice. Not the here, or the there, but the not-here and not-there.
You are a trapeze artist – and the moment of release before catching the new bar is called transition. This transition zone is looked at as a “no-thing,” but I believe it is the only real thing and the bars are illusions we dream up to avoid where the real change occurs for us. We are not landing but flying.
That moment when there is nothing to hang on to is the moment when we are most present, most alive, most vulnerable, most human. Let go of the monkey bars. Cross the threshold. Be a connoisseur of fear.
Enjoy the space between. Fly.
Your 1st Prompt for This Week
PATTI DIGH is the author of six books, including the best-selling “Life is a Verb”. Currently, Patti is working on a new book called “The Geography of Loss” and looking forward to taking trapeze lessons from one of her heroes, author Sam Keen, in 2012. Patti is celebrating 7 years of her blog, 37days, and the launch of her new website with an online party on January 5th. Join her! FIND HER AT: 37 DAYS and @pattidighPatti Digh says:
“What spaces are you standing between? Now, and then? Here, and there? Whole, and broken?
Now imagine those spaces as trapeze bars: what would it take to throw your heart over the bars and let your body follow, as one veteran trapeze performer has advised?
What monkey bar are you moving from, and what monkey bar are you moving to, in 2012? What does the space in-between feel like, sound like, taste like?”
Why Not Begin Where You Are
by Jen Louden
Why not begin where you are?
Not where you think you should be, mainly because that lofty shiny place does not exist and you cannot, my darling, start from where you aren’t.
Possibility can only be born from the present. From what is owned.
From wholeness.
Sink your toes into here. Say aloud, “I am here.” Where is here?
Take a few moments to see, feel, taste, hear, and see this present moment. Drink it in.
Now notice the “you” that is here.
You contain multitudes—the parts of you that are polished and loving and accomplished… and the parts that aren’t so much. The crusty, dented, bumbling, shadowy parts of you.
The parts of you that you are oh so ready to be rid of. The parts of you that you are afraid of because they are so shining and powerful.
Say hello to all of you.
They, believe it or not, have gifts you need to create what you most desire in 2012.
Your 2nd Prompt for This Week
JENNIFER LOUDEN is the author of best-selling books including “The Woman’s Comfort Book”, “The Woman’s Retreat Book” and “Comfort Secrets for Busy Women” and the co-founder of Teach Now. She is a personal coach and social commentator, who has taken the essential concepts of comfort and self-care and made them irresistible to women. Jennifer is also a certified coach, a cultural visionary, and a leader who encourages women to find their personal truths and to explore their purposes in life. Her books have been translated into nine languages, and she has been featured in major publications. FIND HER AT: SAVOR & SERVE THE WORLD and @jenloudenJennifer Louden says:
“What gifts do the parts of me I don’t like have to offer me? What gifts could the parts of me that I’m afraid of have to offer me? How could these aspects of me help me create more of what I desire?
You might try interviewing a particular aspect of yourself—say the part that is never satisfied or the part that keeps wanting to rewrite history—and allow her to answer via your non-dominant hand. Use your regular hand to ask questions and then let whatever comes, come!”
I Asked 18 Outstanding Coaches 4 Strategic Questions
Like every journey, this one also requires some preparation, a smartly packed rucksack and an itinerary.
That is why I wanted our 1st chapter to reflect the wisdom and insight of 18 select coaches. I asked each of these these brilliant mentors four questions.
The answers they have given will illuminate the beginning of your path and help you step into the new year in a more conscious, courageous and confident way.
Remember to refer to this little guide every now and then throughout your journey this year. It will be handy whenever you experience stormy weather.
Here are the four questions I asked:
- What are the three essential things a woman on the threshold of this dazzling journey should put in her backpack?
- What is the one thing she can always (and easily) do to remain in touch with her inner self and fine-tune her route?
- What should she be mindful about when creating her itinerary before setting out?
- This journey will not always be a bed of roses. What would be your best advice for her if she ever loses courage or starts doubting herself?
You have to download Chapter 1 to read the answers of the 18 coaches. It’s a free download and no opt-in is required.
Please share it with your friends and networks so that as many women as possible can benefit from it.
And I recommend that you subscribe for updates because starting from next week, any free bonus resource will be sent only to premium members and email subscribers.
Also, make sure to visit the websites of the contributing coaches and subscribe to their blogs.
Each of these stellar women is a powerhouse of clarity, creativity and prowess. I thank each of them from the bottom of my heart for sharing their wisdom with us.
What Does Chapter 1 Include?
Chapter 1 consists of the following sections:
- Introduction
- Mini Lesson and Weekly Journal Prompt by Patti Digh
- Mini Lesson and Weekly Journal Prompt by Jennifer Louden
- 4 Questions Answered by 18 Coaches.
The coaches who answered my four questions about the Threshold:
DOWNLOAD CHAPTER ONE: “The Threshold”
8 Things You Should Do During Week 1
- Subscribe for weekly updates from A Year With Myself if you haven’t done that already. You wouldn’t want to miss the free weekly journal prompts and useful free downloads like this one. Along the way, I will also be be sharing outstanding surprise bonuses with subscribers.
- Download Chapter 1: “The Threshold”. This amazing resource will be your compass throughout the year. I made sure it was free for all subscribers and readers.
- Print and fill out any of the worksheets that resonate with you. (Refer to p. 33 of Chapter 1)
- Use one or both of this week’s journal prompts to write into your private journal or to craft a blog post, an article or an essay.
- Then come back to this post and share the link of your writing in the comments area. Throughout the year, I’ll announce and promote some of the best articles you write and will form my list by looking at the links you share in the comments. And at the end of the year, I’ll select the best blog posts and articles written by participants and turn them into a beautiful ebook that highlights the names and blogs of the most active participants. You should be in that, too!
- Go to this page and download one of the Participant Badges and add it to your blog’s sidebar. Make sure you link to http://ayearwithmyself.com/ so that I know you are a participant.
- Visit our Facebook page and like it. See who else is participating in this journey. Get to know your cohorts. Make friends. Start a conversation. Share your ideas, feelings and experiences. Be open. Be bold. Connect. Flourish together.
- Take a look at the page of Instigators and visit the websites and blogs of our amazing Instigators. Those are some of the most remarkable people online who have the power to change your life and business with their wisdom and expertise.
- Subscribe to be informed about the launch of the Full Adventure Kit and consider investing in your best year ever. The first Chapter is free for everyone. But when you become a Full Adventure Kit owner, you’ll have have lifetime free access to all upcoming 51 premium lessons, worksheets, exercises and interviews throughout 2012 as well as future upgrades.
What’s Awaiting You Next Week?
The juicy theme of the next chapter is: “Your Roots: Reconnecting with Your Core Through Power Questions.”
We will have our journal prompt, a mini lesson and one weekly actionable idea published on the blog on Monday for the whole community.
Next week’s prompt will be announced by a “Goddess”. Yes! You might know her. She’s incredible. Can you guess who she is? 
Owners of the Full Adventure Kit, which will be available starting from Sunday, Jan. 8, will also get the below extras to their inboxes:
- The Mission Brief for Chapter 2.
- The transcript of a Vision Interview with an established coach (who works with entrepreneurial women) on self-inquiry, self-discovery, why power questions work, how they work, and how to best use them. She’s an amazing one who can make you shine.
- A full downloadable complimentary copy of the 150 Power Questions Tool I have recently finished writing (value $ 9.95). You’ll have it for free.
- 2 Venture Maps that describe in detail 2 actionable ideas you can do in one week (and also anytime during the year) to rediscover, savor and rejuvenate your inner roots.
- 1 Explorer’s Workbook that includes 10 handcrafted writing exercises related to rediscovering your true self and reconnecting with your core.
- Reading List and Resources Guide.
Till next week!
But we will keep talking here, on Twitter and on Facebook, right?
I (and our Instigators) look forward to reading what you’ll write by using this week’s prompts!
xo,
C. A. Kobu
Image credit: Brilliant Etsy artist Sara Lierly.
{ 57 comments… read them below or add one }
So excited to be a part of this! Here’s what you inspired me to write this week: http://wholehogmarvels.wordpress.com/2012/01/03/on-the-threshold-best-year-ever/
I really loved what you wrote Tea. It’s so raw, so genuine, so touching!
I am so stoked to be doing this! Fabulous roster of instigators, too. I just need a badge smaller than 300×300 for my sidebar. I want everyone to be able to read it!!
And I’m so glad you’re in! Like I said on our FB page, take a look at the badges page tonight and I’ll have put the smaller ones. Let me know if you need anything else!
This is an crazy idea! Nevertheless, it is really interesting. Rather than just writing the post and leaving as it is, the reader could now take part in the journey! Love it. Definitely following through to see what I can discover of myself from it. Hope you have a great year ahead (:
Yes, I want the Women-of-the-Journey to take part in the adventure! That’s the whole idea. We’ll do it together and grow and change. We’ll nourish, nurture and empower each other. We’ll share our stories, our inspiration, our dreams. So exciting!
Alright, I’m done with my post. http://www.wingvantagepoint.com/2012/01/inspirational/aywm-the-threshold/ Will work on tweaking the AYWM badge into my sidebar much later on. This is going to be something online that I look forward to every week.
This is lovely. Sad and mournful, but it must capture how you’re feeling (and I’m sorry that you’re feeling that way). Thank you for sharing.
I’m working in a pet grooming shop whereby it could allow me to live my dream, becoming a pet groomer and going all around the world with my instruments. (sometimes I would reject this idea as just part of my wishful thinking) Yet, all I get to do now is paperwork. I guess I have to start small and it means doing all the stuffs that people don’t want to do. That is the irony of life.
I believe that someday, opportunities will come. Perhaps I should fight for it instead of waiting. Perhaps, but not now, I just lack the capacity to make my own decisions now, so I choose to wait. One day, I realise my dream. Till then, I’m grateful for the feeling I have now as it raises awareness(: Also grateful for this community which comes into my life at the right moment.
Sometimes I do feel old, tired and stuck even if I’m only 22. That is what working has done to me thus far and I hope to change it this year! A year of possiblities (:
Thank you for enjoying my post.
This is great! I just signed up. I was planning to explore this year with just examining a different quality every day (and I will do that too), but this looks a lot more robust. Fun stuff.
You can be sure you won’t regret it!
Welcome here. I’m really looking forward to what you’ll come up with using the prompts. Let me know please, OK?
Becky, I just looked at your posts for a quality each day and I absolutely ADORE that idea. So great!
Looking forward to participating! Here’s my contribution for week 1: http://nowwhat80.blogspot.com/2012/01/thresholds.html
Jessica, thank you! I’ll read it tonight! I’m so glad you’re participating
xo
Thrilled to have found this playground. Thanks so much!!! Here’s where this week’s prompt has led me so far
http://mkweinhagen.com/a-year-with-myself-the-threshold.html
Hi Mary!
Thanks for sharing the link of your article. And now you make me feel thrilled that another wonderful post is born through the prompt!
Hugs!
I feel so lucky, so blessed, and so amazed at the perfect timing and fit of this project. Not quite four months ago, I started a blog with the intention of recording and sharing a “life-rehab” I started, after realizing what had been keeping me stuck for so long is that I’d been in a long-term abusive relationship–with myself, (my resolve in 2011 had been to be a better friend to myself). My theme, my word for 2012 is “retreat,” my intention being to really sink in to myself, to accept and let go and love and be brave.
And then this project appears, like some kind of magic, a gift from the universe, just what I need, exactly when I need it. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Here’s my post in response to the first two prompts: http://thousandshadesofgray.wordpress.com/2012/01/04/wishcasting-wednesday-5/
Lovely, Jill! “I wish to stop smashing myself to bits” — that certainly resonated with me. I also love the name/theme of your blog…beautiful.
I know, right? That phrase actually came from a class I took (Ordinary Courage: Lessons in Love, Shame, and Worthiness), another person talked about how she wanted to stop smashing herself to bits, and I thought “that is exactly it, isn’t it?” It’s a little mantra I use know when I catch myself doing it, is somehow able to pull me back, help me to at least pause.
And, thank you
So nice to see you here, Jill! I’m working really hard on finishing the membership program details so I’ll be able to read your article late tonight!
It’s so inspiring to have you share your story. Keep hanging around. I really look forward to knowing you and all other participating and writing Women-of-the-Journey better!
WOW.
an amazing, inspiring thought inducing post.
I relate to so much…and look forward to continuing the journey.
Thanks for sharing!
I love this sentence Jill: “The more I can be with what is, the more myself and true I am, the more reality I can manifest.”
And I love your writing voice. It just permeates through you as you drink in the words.
Thank you so much, C.A. Oh how hard won that voice is, silent and denied for so so long. To have it heard and appreciated is such a gift.
http://jenniferwmccullough.typepad.com/my-blog/2012/01/a-year-with-myself-monkey-bars-week-one.html
Thank you Jennifer! You rock!
This is the first time I’ve actually had the courage to paste a website into that little box up there….=)
I am Excited to begin – well continue, now that I’ve begun =)
This is so what I needed, exactly when I needed it (is there an echo in here?)
I’m hopeful.
I love Patti Digh (she is how I found you!) and I’ve been wallowing through one of Jennifer Louden’s books…
divine timing.
Thank you!
Hi Dana!
I hope you received my reply to your question.
I’m glad you found the courage to paste the link of your website here.
One thing: A Year With Myself is a non-judgement area. We are here all for one and one for all as we walk on our journey. I’m glad you joined, and I’m glad you shared your heart. Thank you.
SO Appreciate your “positive” reinforcements =) Non-judgement is most welcome.
I’m excited to get to know my fellow traveler’s as we continue this journey…
I am *loving* reading the posts from t his first week. Go ladies! Here is my response to the first prompt for this week: http://reverbnohollowness.wordpress.com/2012/01/03/aywm-1-1/
Love your dark side Beth! It’s a part of you. And it has a message! I read the other post first but I loved this one too!
Soon I’ll become addicted to reading your posts
I finally got my post up. I had to hit publish quick before the voices in my head made me hit delete.
Thanks for this opportunity!! http://itsawahmlife.com/what-spaces-are-you-standing-between.html
Awesome, Jackie!
Yes! I love this bit in your intro:
You said, “if I was really going to play full out, and live out loud it would be necessary for me to share this journey with others. For real… not faking it on a site no one every sees lol.”
I’m so glad you made that decision. It summarizes the soul of this community. We are all cohorts here and we’ll spend this year growing together!
So glad you joined
Hey that little voice lives in MY head too…. =)
Yes, I read your post and thought we had a lot in common!! Are you on FB? We should connect!! I’m momtohanna over there.
I LOVE THIS! (and no, I’m not yelling, just breaking some rules with you)
Wow, what can we knock over next?
Seriously, this is an inspiring post. I’m delighted to be here with so many thinking women.
Here I am again with my response to the second prompt for this week.
http://reverbnohollowness.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/five-aywm-1-2/
You’re so creative Beth! I love love love your journaling format! I’m doing some crazy work (without much sleep) for the launch of the Full Adventure Kit, but after Monday I’ll be able to spend so much time on your blogs, Btw, I’m also devising a special page for introducing the articles and posts you write!
Thanks for being here. You add a lot of soul!
Busy woman! ;D Try to take a bit of the weekend for yourself.
So awesome! The energy is amazing..I am thrilled to be a participant!
Indeed! It’s really recharging me too! What a wonderful bunch we are becoming here, aren’t we?
Here is my link for prompts 1 and 2: http://facetsofjoy.com/theme-for-week-one-the-threshold/
Thank you!
It’s a beautiful piece, Joy! It touched me deeply. Especially the way you talked about commitment as “a commitment of your heart”. After Monday I will be able to spend more time on each your wonderful blogs.
Thank you for participating. I love your presence here!
xo,
C. A.
Prompt 2; part one…
PSSSST. I’m a writer =)
SO empowered by beginning this journey…so encouraged by the company =)
Inspiring beyond what I expected, and here is the result of that inspiration:
http://www.devacoaching.com/2012/01/09/space-in-between/
What a blessing to be a part of something so dynamic and promising! I love threshold times. Really looking forward to sharing my year with everyone here! Here’s my New Year post:
http://www.watersedgecreative.com/thelatest/2012/1/8/thresholds-channeling-the-inner-ten-year-old.html
You mean, I can make TWO trips to the car?
Laurie, your ten year old is showing……………and she’s beautiful.
I had forgotten we were to post here! Here is mine for Week 1: http://www.streetlightsimagination.com/2012/01/then-and-now.html
So much reading and so many beautifully different points of view!
I also forgot to post here – my post for week one -
http://threealphadogs.blogspot.com/
I am so looking forward to being a part of this larger group, yet I find myself possibly holding back in my responses to myself for fear of revealing too much in such a public forum.
Being a complete novice at the blogging thing, I have to ask, how much inner work (on-line) is too much? or is this what blogging really is? how do you pros balance the on-line/public nature of your posts against being authentic and true to yourself?
You might find these questions naive, but I’ve thought about this a lot this last week as I wrote through the first week’s prompts and I find myself reluctant to really dig in.
Any advice would be great.
Hi Brenda,
I am quite new to blogging too. This is just my two cents worth. I think at the end of the day, you have to be comfortable with what you are blogging about. This means you get to set the level of intimacy of your blog. If you are not comfortable, you probably end up giving up the blog. If you do not wish for anybody you know in your “real” life to learn about this information, just don’t tell anybody else. That is what I do with my first blog, only very few people know, so only very few people read it. This give me the power to write anything I wish to write.
Having said that, I’m a pretty shameless person even in real life (no, I’m not a slut), you could see every bits of emotions in me. It is just hard for me to hide. In a way, I think it helps me in my writing. It connects me with more people as it is raw. (note: some readers hate that kind of rawness)
I could go on all day (read the shameless part) but I shall not drone on. But this topic sounds like a good blog post, I might just start a post on it.
wing (:
Last week I was finishing up a 30 day blog challenge reflecting on 2011 and looking ahead to 2012. I didn’t finish finish my week 1 post until today. I was super inspired by Patti’s phrase: Connoisseur of Fear.
http://poledancingprofessor.com/2012/01/how-to-be-a-connoisseur-of-fear-and-why-you-want-to/
I look forward to spending this year with myself and with all the women on the journey. Learning from and inspiring each other.
I LOVE this and am so excited to participate. Here is my post in response to Patti’s journal prompts! http://www.embraceselflove.com/blog/2012/01/10/embracing-between/
Just getting started with sharing my posts.
This week was short enough that I’m just going to write it here, rather than write it up on my blog.
(Background: 4 years ago I was hit with an illness that tipped over into fibromyalgia.)
This year I am moving from a year of fighting for my health to the exclusion of everything else, to a year that already has lots of space and inspiration for welcoming in new desires.
It is a still place. It’s not *stagnant*, just still. It is a place of breathing deeply and easily. It is a place of gathering resources and planting desires. It is restful. It is peaceful and calm. It is supporting and nourishing and welcoming. And it is not scary at all.
I’m happy to have finally carved out some time to get started on these prompts!
http://www.harleyroxanne.com/spaces-between/
http://www.harleyroxanne.com/what-gifts/
http://uluvlisa.wordpress.com/2012/01/29/week-one-ayearwithmyself-com-holy-mother-fur/ HERE I AM!
I’m starting late, but here’s my response to week 1:
http://www.caramoulds.com/2012/01/a-leap-of-faith-takes-two-steps/
hey cara! this post just made me really “get” the meaning between hanging on to the bar as “safety” and realizing the illusion and the truth in letting yourself “go” flying! i am proud uv u! way to go! inspiring! thanku!
Hi,
Finally joined the adventure and wrote my first post.Love the whole thing!
http://writingforabetterlife.blogspot.fr/2012/04/aywm-1-threshold.html
Cheers from France
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