Kaye and I were having a coaching session a while back and I had a lovely realisation that I didn’t actually have to ‘do’ anything other than connect to myself.  Whilst this may sound a bit obvious to some and perhaps a bit weird to others,  I’m going to attempt to explain what I mean and how this has had a profound impact on me since.

In the context of the conversation I was having, I was talking about how I can best serve or support others.  In a nutshell, I was attempting to learn new ways to help others (and myself) realise their full potential.  For several months, I had been on a bit of a mission seeking a technique that worked, i.e. what could I ‘do’ to support others reach their potential?

Then bam, it hit me straight away – when I connect to myself, my true self, I’m being the best I can be and as a result I can fully connect to anything or anyone.  Simple and what a relief! When I connect to others it enables them to connect with themselves and see their potential for themselves.

Up to this point I’d definitely had experience of doing this, but it wasn’t my ‘default setting’.  Drawing on these experiences helped me realise that I had the capability to connect, so all I had to do now was replicate it.

What is it?

The definition of the verb ‘to connect’ is: “Bring together or into contact so that a real or notional link is established.”

For me this definition perfectly describes my experience of when my soul or my heart is brought together with an idea or concept or another person and then a definite link is made.  Once the link is established there’s absolutely no stopping it!  It’s like a train travelling fast down a track with a clear view of its destination and nothing is going to prevent it getting there.  This is where the magic happens….all is clear, I’m free and the opportunities are endless.

After having this realisation I immediately wanted to connect with everything and everyone around me!  I rushed into an implementation phase of ‘connect’.  I asked myself ‘What concepts have I learned but not actually connected with fully?’ ‘Who have I not yet connected with?’ etc.  I literally couldn’t wait to connect with everything and everyone on my list!

Then as with most things, I slowed down a bit and realised that I can choose to connect.  So whilst it’s not perhaps my ‘default setting’ I have the skill and desire to do so when it’s appropriate, or when it’s important that I connect.  I believe this is also linked to intuition, for example when I intuitively know something (or someone) is right, I connect to it and follow the path confidently.

I have felt a positive shift in how I respond to people around me; when I connect, I trust, when I trust I can let go of outcome. This in turn sets others free to reach their own potential.

Why?

Connecting also enables me to deepen my understanding around things.  For example, I was learning a new Shirlaws framework around ‘Capacity’ and when I realised I hadn’t fully connected to it, I took a step back and chose to proceed once I had connected to it.  This helped me realise that as well as the massive cultural benefits of connecting there are also significant commercial implications, i.e. I can only take a framework so far in our business if I ‘sort of’ get the concept, whereas if I fully connect to it, everything comes easily, naturally and just flows.  I can then see opportunities to leverage the framework into other areas of our business (and sometimes my personal life) and can share it whole heartedly with our team, energising them too as a result.  This gives the maximum benefit (or return) on our investment in learning the frameworks in the first place.

Currently connecting to…

We’re currently focussing on the ‘Functionality’ framework with Fergus, our Shirlaws coach.  This framework is close to my heart as I have seen in the past how it can transform a business and I’m very excited about connecting with it and getting even more from it this time around.  It’s already brought about a significant shift in our business and is supporting us to create space and opportunity for us all…..who wouldn’t want to connect with that?

P.S. This is a live example of me connecting with writing this blog – it only took about 10 minutes!