I ve had so many enquiries from people itching to know when the Happy@work book is coming out. I've even got a television interview lined up! I ve hated keeping everyone waiting so long especially when so many people are out of work or stuck in jobs they hate. My prospective publishers have been swamped with prechristmas deadlines and have promised a decision by the end of the week.

The timing couldn't be better! The global economy is showing signs of improvement and confidence is slowly returning. I'm having a re read of the book and can honestly say I'm loving it! It's an upbeat, inspiring, practical read and is really helping me personally as i crystallize my future career and life direction.

I believe in the power of this book with such a passion I know it's going to be a reality. Bring it on!

Thanks to all my followers who have pre ordered and to all the people I have coached over the years who have shared their transformational stories. If you haven't pre ordered I'd love your support:) plus stayed tuned to www.cassandragaisford.com for new happy@work interviews... Coming soon... From economics professor to tango teacher!

Labels: achieving goals, Book Launch, Communication, Overcoming setbacks, The Book

I am delighted that Exhibitions Gallery in Wellington (formerly Fishers) will be having the book launch - 28 Nov. Please put it in your calendars - will be a great night with very interesting presentations from people who have followed their bliss - many of whom have achieved great wealth mid-life.

From IT sales to best selling portrait artist Mark Olsen will share his inspiring story and wonderful art. Do you love this portrait he named after me as much as I do? My friends think I should wear a hat just like Mark's "Cassandra" to the book launch!

Fabulous singer Charlie brings to life the music of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Duke Ellington, Tony Bennett and many more.

No one is as passionate about rocks as Carl Gifford...otherwise known as Carlucci! Hear all about his plans for Carlucci land - a world of happiness right here in Wellington!

and wait..there's more....

Ron Epskamp passionate art enthusiast and owner of Exhibitions Gallery

Hannah - my wonderfully gifted daughter with a voice like an angel

ohh...and I'll be there to!

Be sure to RSVP - space is limited!

Labels: Book Launch

As basketball legend, Michael Jordan once said, "“Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”

At the mo the obstacles, or boulders in my way, involve trying to work out how to raise the money to publish the book affordably and to the high standard I know is an important part of communicating the hope and help mid-lifers need. This means full colour......a very, very expensive option. Hence the mass production of primarily wordy, black and white text books. Personally these do my head in...not enough visual communication. Did you know that 70% of people are visual learners?

The cost to print in New Zealand is huge....55,000 approx for 2000 copies...

so thinking, thinking...how can I afford to do this? Should I strip out images like other books do and just have text...it's not what I want......but one needs to be solution focused before one "accepts defeat"

Spent most of last night trying to figure out how to get over this latest hurdle to publication. Instead of wasting time tossing and turning I got up, turned on the PC checked for emails to see if a contact in China I emailed re a quote to print had emailed me back. Not sure if it was my intuition or my insomnia talking to me but I was thrilled to find a reply.

I was even more thrilled when he told me he can print for $16,000 USD...this is more doable but still a stretch..but doable...

In a moment of added flow Denis Robinson, the author of the New Zealand's Favourite Artists series of books called me last night (which was quite a surprise and very, very generous of him) and shared some helpful tips and contacts I will follow up on. Re a USD edition Max Gimblett has emailed me a helpful contact..so flow is still there...just a few boulders to get around

But where there's a will there's a way. Besides who said it was supposed to be easy? Would be nice if it was but then more people would be threading the same path. Check out the Powerful Creativity Blog to see how important encouraging feedback is during the creative process

RSVP TO LAUNCH:
Don't forget to put a bright orange circle around the 28th of
November 5:30 - 7:30, at Exhibitions Gallery, Featherston Street,
Wellington. Secure you place of happiness by RSVPing to
cassandra@cassandragaisford.com.
It promises to be a great night!

Labels: achieving goals, Book Launch

I recently presented a seminar to the Institute of Company Secretaries, the members of which, are made up of accountants, lawyers and other professional people who manage staff. Of special interest were my insights into the issue of productivity, happiness and leadership.
Key points from an interview I gave to the The Dominion Post Feb 6, 2008

1. Management, or lack of it, may be driving down New Zealand’s productivity
2 .Surveys consistently show at least 43% of people are unhappy at work. The Worklife Solutions survey showed that 69% of people couldn’t find any point in what they do (lack of purpose, meaning – no clear direction)
3. Aging workforce – mature workers looking for more from work than just a paycheck – many employers still using old Taylorist Scientific Management pay packet theory of motivation “we pay them don’t we”
4.Senior people often not highly motivated to coaching and mentor staff “rated somewhere down the list like cleaning the dunny” Senior people often promoted into roles because of technical skills – softer people skills, communication skills and EQ lacking

Labels: Book Launch, Productivity

“All My life I have been mistaken in measuring the significance of any work by the struggles that went into it.”
Henri Matisse, Artist

Some of the most common questions I am asked by people who seeking coaching is,“How can I find out what I’m good at?” and “How can I be sure that I will enjoy it?” Whilst these questions may seem daunting, the past is often a good predictor of the future. Often we just need reminding of the times and circumstances in our lives when we felt inspired or energised by something, and of the times when our skills just seemed to flow. Such times can provide clues to our passions and unique strengths and talents.


How does it feel to be in "the flow"?

* A feeling of being completely involved, focused, concentrating - either due to innate curiosity in the task or subject or as the result of training in the art of being outside everyday reality
* A feeling of weightlessness - a feeling that nothing is too much trouble
* Great inner clarity - knowing what needs to be done and how well it is going
Knowing the activity is doable - that the skills are adequate, and neither anxious or bored
* A sense of serenity - no worries about self, feeling of growing beyond the boundaries of ego - afterwards feeling of transcending ego in ways not thought possible
* A sense of timeliness - so thoroughly focused on the present you don't notice time passing
* Intrinsic motivation - whatever produces "flow" becomes its own reward

Some questions to get you started:
* What comes easily to you?
* When do you lost all track of time?
* What are you doing when you feel most at peace (other than sleeping!)
* What are the times you feel most confident and engaged - neither bored or anxious?
* What tasks or activities are most innately rewarding to you?
* When do you feel most truly yourself? To deny passion and your creative calling is to deny Who You Are and Who you Truly Want To Be. As Pablo Picasso famously said:” “My mother said to me, "If you become a soldier, you'll be a general; if you become a monk, you'll end up as the Pope." Instead, I became a painter and wound up as Picasso."

Examples:
I feel most in flow when I am creating
I lose all track of time when I am painting. The most fulfiling part of this is creating something that is innately satisfying to me and that the recipient truly loves. I feel excited, energised and truly complete. Sometimes when I sit down to paint I find it really hard to get going. I discipline myself and say I will give it 30 minutes and that's all. Very often I find that 3-4 hours later I am blissfully painting and find it hard to tear myself away. Writing posts and articles that help people to follow their bliss produces the same state. I feel a huge sense of purpose and people comment positively about my flow inspired works.

A natural knack for understanding how others feel leads to Pulitzer prize

American writer, Michael Cunningham, won a Pulitzer prize for his novel (and later a hit movie), The Hours. When asked how a man managed to write a story that captured the feelings of three very different women, his friends reply: “He’s an unusually empathetic guy. He has this uncanny ability to know how other people experience the world. That’s such a handy skill – and a blessing for a writer.”


Passionate anger flows to successful global business
Anita Roddick was the successful multi-millionaire businesswoman who founded the Body Shop. She took her passion for natural cosmetics and mixed it with her passion for giving something back to the community. She became one of the world’s most successful businesswoman and an activist against animal testing in the process. Anita once said, “You have to believe in something with such a passion it becomes a reality.” She also said, "We communciate with passion and passion sells." Increasing awareness of the evils of animal testing and improving the lives of others were of primary importance to her. Money flowed from the good she created.

French painter Henri Matisse hungered above all to paint. He orginally trained as a lawyer but this was clearly not his path with heart. He convinced his father to allow him to try for one year to make it as a painter. His talent flowed and his heart soared...however not everyone shared his enthusiasm for what he created. He later correctly predicted that he was at least 50 years ahead of his time. His passionate need to produce and natural talent sustained him through years and years of brutal criticism. Going with the flow to Matisse meant creating innovative work and being true to himself. As Frank Sinitra sang, "For what is a man? What has he got? If not himself - Then he has naught."

Go with the flow to find career nirvana - and do it your way!

Take the Cassandragaisford.com career nirvana survey and find your bliss

Labels: Book Launch

Do What You Are

A new year is fast approaching and with it mixed feelings for many people. Some people are excited about what the new year may bring, whilst others feel trapped and frustrated in their work. As one lady said to me recently, “I’m so sick of the word passion. If I hear that one more time I’ll scream.” What was alarming that this lady was a career coach, and what was even more alarming was that she had lost her enthusiasm for her work, yet continued everyday to go to work, grit her teeth and bear it.

Every year researchers map levels of job satisfaction across the nation, and odds are next year will be no different from other years, where researchers confirmed that over 43% of people dislike their jobs and over 85% of people would leave if a better offer came along. Better offers, however, are not like no.7 buses. They don’t drive past every 10-15 minutes, sweep you off your feet and carry you to your destination. Job seekers must take a proactive, focused approach to job hunting, or risk ending up in a place they never wanted to be.

Personality tools and psychological assessment can really help in the quest to determine what you want to do and where you want to be when it comes to transitioning into a new career or rekindling the passion for the role you currently have. Based on the premise of “doing what you are,” good quality assessment tools can help people gain more objective insight into they key strengths and talents, values, and motivators. Knowing what is under the bonnet makes it much easier to fine tune your high performance engine, and therefore navigate yourself in the direction that best energises you.

In addition, the more you know about yourself the better your decisions will be and the more chance you will have of presenting yourself and your natural talent in the best light to employers.

Ashley sought career coaching to help him gain more satisfaction from his current role and to think laterally about future career options. He had been in the same organization for over 15 years, and during that time had received very little feedback and recognition for his efforts. He wanted to better understand his strengths and weaknesses, areas that he could develop, and ways to better apply his skills to gain more leverage in his current role. Because he had been with his current organization for so long he also wanted help to identify how his skills applied outside of his current organization and help to be able to communicate these to a prospective employer.

Ashley was apprehensive at first about using personality profiling because of his negative experience with psychological assessments used for recruiting purposes. His Worklife Coach explained that the tools differed in that they had a developmental focus and instruments such as The Myers Briggs Personality Indicator were based on the philosophy that people know themselves best. Ashley was surprised at how accurately the results matched his own sense of self. Seeing his results in writing helped him to better appreciate his strengths and to recognize his unique talents. It also helped him to identify the key areas that needed to be fulfilled to gain more job satisfaction, and to identify alternative career paths and areas for development. “I now have a better idea of who I an and what makes me tick. I realize that by changing a few things I could be achieving so much more.”


Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI.
There are many personality assessment tools around. One of the most popular is the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI.) This is a world renowned and powerful personality inventory used extensively to help people develop greater awareness of both their own personalities and those of others.

The MBTI was developed in the United Stares by a mother-and-daughter team, Katherine Briggs and Isabel Myers. The Indicator is based on the work of Swiss psychologist Carl Jung. It simplifies what can be a very complex area and provides a useful, easy to understand method and language for understanding people. By looking at eight personality preferences that everyone uses at different times you will learn more about how to get the best from yourself and also others.

These preferences influence behaviour and are divided into 4 areas:
• How people get and use their energy – through interaction with the world or inner reflection(extraversion or introversion)
• How people gather and take in information – a preference for factual, concrete information or ideas, theories and future visioning (sensing or intuition)
• Make decisions – through a logical “head” process or a personalized “heart” process (thinking or feeling)
•Organise their lives – in a planned, organized, scheduled way or in an flexible, open, spontaneous way (judging or perceiving)

While we all use each of these parts of our personality, just like we use both our right and left hands, according to MBTI theory, people prefer one of each pair over the other and will instinctively operate in this way unless they are consciously working with their non-preferred preferences. For example, if you prefer being planned and organized it is less likely that you will be comfortable going with the flow and “winging it” unless you are consciously making an effort to.


What makes you tick?
Most people struggle to work out what makes them tick and what energises them. The MBTI questionnaire guides you through a series of questions designed to help you uncover your preferences.

The questionnaire can be completed via the internet and takes about 20-30 minutes to complete. Once you have completed it the results will be complied into an extensive report.

This report is an invaluable personal and professional development tool, which provides insight into your personality preferences including:

• Characteristics of your personality type
• Strengths and weaknesses
• Natural gifts and talents
• Careers and work environments suited to your personality type
• Blind spots and areas for development.
• Communication preferences and relationship management skills
• How other people see you
• How you react under pressure and stress
•Conflict management

Only you know yourself best, and unlike other personality tools the MBTI is not considered an accurate assessment of your personality until you have had the opportunity to confirm and verify that the tool has accurately “captured” your personality. This feedback session can occur in several ways including face to face coaching sessions, email coaching and during career and/or life coaching discussions.

Personality tests and typing aren’t cast in stone but are a useful way of increasing your self awareness of self, others and of the way you naturally, and instinctively tend to think and work - and then building on that base to help you with your ongoing professional and personal development.


Take the test!
Personality profiling can bring added objectivity and clarity to the career planning process

Are you interested in learning more about your personality type? Check out the Worklife Solutions website:
or contact coaches@worklifesolutions.co.nz. Take a look at the sample report and see how detailed it is.

Labels: Book Launch

I remember feeling so low and so trapped in my job as a recruitment consultant many years ago that I despaired of ever finding anything that would make my soul sing.

I looked in the paper and found nothing. I looked on the internet and found nothing. Sure, there were lots of jobs but there was nothing at all that inspired me. Partly this because I’d stayed too long in a job that suffocated me. My spirit was squashed and my self-esteem had taken a battering. Luckily for me someone there cared enough about me to offer me career counselling. It was a god-send. Slowly the darkness lifted and I began to feel hopeful about the future.


At first the potential for freedom felt scary. I told my career counsellor, “I feel like a bird in a cage. The door is open but I have forgotten how to fly.”

My career counsellor cried! Quickly she helped me to learn how to rebuild my confidence and self esteem. A large part of this was helping me to tap into what I truly felt passionate about. We went through exercises to confirm my most important values, my deepest interests, my personality preferences and my goals. It was hard work. Part of me wanted to stay right where I was - the fear of change and self-doubt almost crippling the desire to be free. Could I really fly?

Luckily for me my coach believed in me more than I believed in myself at the time. She gently challenged me. One of these challenges was to go out identify organisations aligned with my values. At first I didn’t know where to start. Then I remembered hearing some positive feedback about an organisation that counselled people who were in stressful work situations.

It took courage to cold call them. But I set a goal and did it. Mainly because I knew my coach wouldn’t be happy if I didn’t! We all need a nag buddy from time to time - someone who gently and firmly cheers us along.
Partly I was afraid they would think I was annoying them, or begging for a job. But I decided to approach my meeting as a fact finding one.

I was so overjoyed when I met the people that worked there. They were so friendly and obviously believed with a passion in the work they did. I walked away feeling so excited to know that there really was an organisation out there that believed in and valued the same things I did.

Even though at the time they weren’t actively recruiting for anyone, they asked me to come back in and meet the CEO. One week later the CEO rang me and offered to create a position especially for me. First I had to come in and do a presentationa showing how I would add value to the organisation and how the new service would fit with the existing business lines. She made it clear that not all staff would embrace change.

I was nervous but excited. My passion shone through in the presentation. Even though I was very different from the other staff who had worked in the non-for profit sector all their lives, they loved my corporate background. I loved their non-for-profit valuing of people first. It was a perfect match which lasted for many years.

“Thank you for knocking on our door, “ the CEO said as we negotiated my employment package.

I learnt first hand what I tell my clients now - many of the best jobs are never advertised. Increasingly employers hire people they either know already or people that have the initiative to go in search of them. When passions collide, the attraction is instant and mutual.

Not only did my self-esteem and confidence get a boost, but I ended up with a far, better job than I had ever dreamed was possible. When I look back I know that the time I spent in coaching helped me clarify what I was looking for, what I needed, what I offered and what I deserved. This increased awareness made my job search and networking activities more targeted, more inspired, and infinitely more successful.

If you would like help finding a job you love get the edge and pre-order your copy of "Happy@work: job hunting for mid-lifers" now

Labels: Book Launch

I am in the final stages of writing the final copy for "happy@work: job hunting for mid-lifers" and aim to have this ready for print within the fortnight. I am delighted that Exhibitions Gallery in Wellington (formerly Fishers) will be having the book launch - 28 Nov. Please put it in your calendars - will be a great night with very interesting presentations from people who have followed their bliss and achieved great wealth mid-life..stay tuned!

My aim is to sell 100,000 copies of the book within 12 months - helping thousands of people and generating in excess of $400,000 in the process. I would like to use a portion of these proceeds to sponsor children overseas so that they can have access to life-transforming education. So far I am on track to achieve this target and more - with interest from the UK, US and Australia - the challenges and solutions are global and especially relevant as the financial crisis deepens and dramatically downsize as many of you who have written to me know first hand.

As you know my energy has been substantially channeled into this creative endeavor as well as my art - I think I mentioned I won the Wai Art Awards and this week have several galleries wanting to sell my work..I also had a successful group exhibition following my trip with Max Gimblett..did you see the right up in the Wellingtonian - you can read it here....http://www.cassandragaisford.com/media.html

In the medium to short-term finances will flow very well - more than compensating for short-term challenges. I am also home schooling my daughter who is sitting level 3 NCEA via correspondence due to a terrible situation at school mid-way through the year.

I wanted to share all this with you to show that following your bliss is not without challenges - so many people often comment to me, "you're so lucky." It's not luck - it's hard, tenacious activity ...inpsired and fueled by my passion to use my creative talents in the service of others. I hope sharing my journey continues to inspire you....some of you even insist I write a book about my journey....from personal experience I know reading about other peoples struggles and adventures always give me hope too....so maybe I will write that book! But first I'll discipline myself to finish this one!

Thanks for continuing to support me - I know you go the extra mile for me and I do appreciate it



Cassandra

Labels: Book Launch