Mirrors and Bridges
The Organizing Company
5 Steps to promote new Growth
For new growth to happen, we need to cut or prune areas in our life that are no longer working.
Vocabulary.com says prune means to clip, crop, cut back, and weed out.
Removing dead, diseased or unproductive wood, strengthens the limbs and produces new growth.
This is in reference to a tree but can be applied to our life in areas where we need to prune.
When is the best time to prune?
- Prune during a dormant period.
Since we are in a dormant period locally and nationally, it is the perfect time.
- Prune when there is no growth.
Each time you make a cut, you stop growth in one direction and encourage it in another.
- Prune quickly anytime there is disease attacking the tree.
This is regarding our health in all areas of our life.
Pruning is crucial. What our life looked life prior to the beginning of the year, will not get us to the goals and dreams, God has placed in our hearts now.
The PRUNE process is an acronym and five step process to help us cut out the places that are not producing fruit or the results we desire to see come to pass.
- Purge – The P in Prune is for Purge
Remove excess and declutter (mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually). When we purge, we remove things that are not working and draining our time and energy. With each part of the process, continue to use them throughout the process. For example, we purge and take out what is not working from P to E in the process.
2. Reflect – The R in Prune is for Reflect.
The best tool that I have found for reflection is an online or journal notebook. During this part of the process, we need to answer some tough questions. What are we doing now that is working? What’s not working?
Cutting out some of the projects on our “to do list” that is no longer serving us, will help us to focus on our current commitments and promote growth.
3. Unbury – The U in Prune is for Unbury. Look for the root cause and fresh ideas.
Dig to find the root cause (what is causing us to be stuck) remove it (old plant that I planted) and seek out fresh ideas (collaboration with God and others). I have seen the root cause revealed within a few months, or years depending on the obstacle and how long it has been in my life.
4, Next Steps – The N in Prune is for Next Steps – Plan and Act.
Determine the next step we need to take to get closer to our goal of decluttering and organizing our life so that we can have new growth be able to successfully take on obstacles that come our way.
That is where Planning and Executing the plan comes into play.
We all organize and process information differently and what works for one person, may not necessarily work for another. Example: notebook vs online, visual abundance vs. visual simplicity.
5. Evaluate – The E in Prune is for Evaluate. Did it work? What changes need to be made? How much is it going to cost? All organizing systems take time to implement and need to be evaluated and maintained. The PRUNE process is circular and can be repeated in different areas of life and business.
We are all leaders. We all can influence others by our words and actions. As leaders, it is crucial that we take the time during this dormant season to go through the PRUNE process and examine our life and cut out what isn’t working, so that all is left is a healthy, organized life, ready to impact God’s kingdom and grow our business.
What tools have you tried that help you PRUNE and your goals? Comment Below.
Follow us to receive more success tools to organize your life and motivational content to help you reflect, plan and connect to the life of your dreams. (PRUNE Process worksheet download for the month of October) https://mirrorsandbridges.com/
Sign up for a complimentary organizational or life coaching discovery session to determine areas where you need to declutter mentally or physically to promote growth. https://mirrorsandbridges.com/lets-connect/
Photo by Nikola Jovanovic on Unsplash
5 Things to Consider Before Partnering With a Life Coach
Is hiring a Life Coach the best decision for you? Consider the purpose, benefits and investment of partnering with a coach.
The purpose of a life coach is to help you create a better life, one where you are actually able to accomplish your goals quicker and over time will develop life changing habits that will pay off in the future.
Many people have raved over the benefits, saying that their life coaches have been the catalyst for them to be able to finally achieve their goals.
If you are thinking of working with a life coach, consider the following points:
- You will have the opportunity to stretch beyond your comfort zone and learn new skills. If your life is the same as it was a few years ago, you’re either not learning new skills or not applying what you’ve learned and wishing will not get you the results you desire.
- Your life coach will get you from what you should be doing and what you want to be doing but can’t quite get yourself to do on your own.
- You get to design a better life and be who you have always wanted to be. Creating new habits takes time and can be overwhelming to try and figure everything out on our own.
- Coaches are great at getting you to choose what you want and can customize action plans that work for your individual learning style and strengths.
- You will develop a vision of a better life. Many of your challenges result from not taking the time to think before making decisions. You may take the first job offered to you or get into relationships that don’t add value. Your boundaries may not be defined or may be too weak.
- A coach will help you overcome these challenges and help you recognize when you are settling for less than the best.
- You will be held accountable. One reason this partnership works is because most of us hate letting other people down. It is easier to cancel an appointment and talk ourselves out of things if we are alone. It is another thing to cancel on someone who we were scheduled to meet.
- A coach will keep you focused on the tasks and will expect you to report your progress.
- You will identify other goals you didn’t even realize you had. Typically, a coach is hired for a specific area or reason. But through the coaching process, you’ll find other things that come up that need to be addressed. A coach will help you focus on other areas of your life and brainstorm ways to achieve your goals.
- A coach will help you unbury hidden dreams and remove obstacles from your past.
Do you recognize yourself in one or more of the points listed above?
Have you been trying to change your life but don’t know how?
If so, a life coach is likely to make a significant impact in your life.
On the other hand, if your life is exactly the way you want it, or you don’t have the time or money to invest into making big changes right now, a life coach might not be what you’re looking for.
Consider your desires and your ability to bring them about on your own.
If you feel you need someone to guide you and hold you accountable, partnering with a life coach might be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made.
Contact us today for a free discovery call and speak with a certified life coach.
We can’t wait to meet you and partner with you to help you achieve your goals and dreams.
Choosing Trust over Fear During Crisis Part 2
Photo by Martijn Baudoin on Unsplash
“Stay near me, so I can protect you”, my husband said to me in the grocery store.
As we were shopping, I became angry and fearful when other people did not adhere to the 6 feet distancing rule. I kept darting around carts and got separated from him during our trip.
Weeks ago, the woman who had reminded her husband to show compassion and grace to others during this national crisis, had completely broken her own rules. I chose fear over trust, anger over kindness and let my emotions get the best of me.
Ever been there? Embarrassed and shocked at how you reacted? It happens to the best of us.
In last month’s blog post, I covered two strategies in Choosing Trust Over Fear During Crisis – Part 1: focus on the goal and believe in the impossible.
This month, I will cover two more strategies.
For us to choose trust over fear, we must remove negative thoughts and walk by faith, not sight.
- Remove negative thoughts from our mind.
I felt so vulnerable and broken that day in the supermarket. I was confused and scared to move.
It’s natural to question why things are happening when the whole world seems like it is falling apart. It’s also natural to be fearful about something we have never faced before, especially when a hug, a touch and kiss could make us sick.
We will all be faced with negative thoughts, we are human. But when they come, they don’t have to be a welcome guest in our house (our mind). It’s the dwelling on thoughts, the ruminating repeatedly on the negative thoughts that keep us discouraged. Recognize it, but let’s not let our thoughts stay there.
We are all faced with many choices. We can ignore what is going or get sucked into fear. The key is to be prepared and have a plan. Our family plan after that day was to stick together and to ask people to move back in a respectful way. We also decided that we could order our groceries online and pick them up if needed to relieve some of the stress.
When we remove negative thoughts, it is easier to choose trust over fear and see beyond our present circumstances. The second strategy is the result of removing negative thoughts; walk by faith, not by sight.
This strategy is based on a biblical scripture from II Corinthians 5:7 – Amplified version. It says, “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (living our lives in a manner consistent with our confident belief in God’s promises).
When I was getting angry at people who were not social distancing, I was focusing my attention on the circumstances around me. I took my focus off the promises that God can protect me and heal me. Trust and faith cannot happen when I am judging other people and afraid of getting sick. I can only control my own emotions and not let what I see around me affect my believing. My husband prayed with me in the middle of the produce section. Then, I was able to extend compassion to others and myself. That is walking by faith, not by sight.
If we remove negative thinking from our lives, then positive thoughts like hope and trust can get in. Hope is seeing a better future way beyond what we see with our eyes. Trust is a result of removing negative thoughts and firmly believing in the reliability, ability or strength of someone or something.
How we react is a choice. What we believe is also a choice.
Let’s choose trust over fear during times of crisis and any other times negative thoughts comes our way.
Have there been times in your life when you got distracted by things going on around you?
What strategies have you tried that have worked for you in the past?
If you would like to continue to get more faith building strategies and tools to repurpose your life, follow my blog or connect to my Mirrors and Bridges training and coaching business page: https://www.facebook.com/mirrorsandbridges/