This Is What Easy Looks Like!

Time to read: 45 seconds

Hello rebels,

A client of mine is looking for work and has decided to use this opportunity to craft his career in his area of passion and life purpose. It feels risky and exciting and scary and wonderful all at once.

He was recently accepted into and attended an exclusive international training program in his area of passion. This training included luminaries in his field, people with gobs of experience, amazing possibility for connection, and the potential for tapping into the unpublished job market. He was simultaneously excited and terrified.

For the event, we set some tactical goals: 1. to get a photo with the biggest star at the conference; 2. come away with at least 5 new connections.

On our call this week, we reviewed his progress toward these goals. Photo with star - check! And the 5 connections... "well," he said, "the conference organizers sat us at tables according to our region so the 5 connections happened easily. I guess I didn't really do the assignment."

What?! Didn't do the assignment? He wanted 5 connections and got 5 connections. In fact, more than 5 connections fell into his lap easily. Something seemed wrong because he hadn't "worked" for the connections. He hadn't struggled.

And, this is how life and work happens when you are on the right track. This is how opportunities flow when you are following your purpose. Opportunities come easily. Connections happen naturally. The universe just seats you at a table with exactly the people you need to meet.

All that energy spent struggling and worrying about making the right connections at the conference? He got to use it to talk about the things he actually cares about and take the next steps toward what he wants.

What would it be like to let go of the struggle and achieve your goals this easily?

You can.

With rebel love,

Christina

P.S. Do you know someone who feels they have to struggle to achieve their goals? Share this newsletter with them. They can join the fun here.

Struggle vs. Ease... Which Do You Choose?

Time to read: 1 minute, 35 seconds

Let's all move into Hotel Ease!

Hi Rebels!

This week, I had a fun email exchange with one of your sister rebels who asked me about the time it takes to write these newsletters. She writes a blog and said it sometimes takes her 10-12 hours to produce a blog post and that "writing is hard work." That got me thinking about all the things you do every day that feel like "hard work."

I had to really think about that before I replied.

1. Because I wanted to say something useful.
2. Because over the years, I have developed a very different relationship with writing and work.

For years, I was mired in a story that work was hard and required struggle. Think: No pain, no gain.

To produce a dissertation, I became unreliable to my friends, unavailable to my partner, and worked many, many hours because I believed "hard work" was the only thing that would get me that darn PhD.

In my corporate job, I believed that long hours and "hard" work made me successful and got me recognized as a top performer. Toward the end of my time at my corporate job, I was working late at night, struggling to keep up with email, and working "hard" while sacrificing time with my family and frankly, my sanity.

The truth is... this "hard" work got me a PhD and did get me recognized as a top performer. And, there were huge costs associated with my choice to see work as "hard" and as a "struggle."

A couple of years ago, I decided to change my perspective toward work, and it has made all the difference. Here's what I said (among other things, like it takes me 20-30 minutes to write a newsletter) in the email exchange. I share this because I'd love for you to be able to shift from "hard" to "ease."

"I hold writing these newsletters (like I hold most things) as fun and easy. It’s part of my personal practices to let go of struggle so I practice ease (not struggle) with things like my newsletter. Holding it with ease liberates the process to take less time and actually be easeful. Sometimes, I don’t have a clue as to what to write, and then it takes a little longer."

Think about a place in your life where you believe "hard work" and struggle are the key to your success. Where can you breathe ease into the process. (Notice, I'm not saying "easy." Even ease has elements of challenge. The question is, what would it be like to drop the struggle and do the same work with ease?)

Give it a try then write and tell me all about it. I love hearing from you.

With rebel love,

Christina

P.S. If you love this newsletter, please share it with your friends and colleagues. The more, the merrier. Just forward it to them. They can join us here.