OLD PATH, NEW PATH: Which One Will You Choose? by Charli Lamont Williams, Personal Success Coach IMPORTANT NOTE: This month I am going to give you an incredibly effective tool for 'lightening up' in your life. Over the past few years, I have seen my clients use this tool to change their attitudes dramatically within a very short period of time - usually about two weeks. Please take this tool and use it for yourself. I would enjoy hearing about your results, via email, voice mail or fax (those numbers can be found in my bio). THE TOOL: OLD PATH, NEW PATH. On a blank sheet of paper, draw a large capital letter 'Y.' Label the left-hand branch of the Y 'Old Path,' and the right-hand branch 'New Path.' The Old Path represents a non-supportive way of thinking, a habit you would like to change. For example, any thoughts which have to do with fear, doubt or worry belong under the heading of Old Path: I can't do it, I am alone, I am stupid, I am so scared, I don't have enough, et cetera. New Path thoughts are supportive; that is, they create a sense of joy and enthusiasm in your thinking and attitude: I can do this, I have resources, people like me, God supports me in giving my gift to others, et cetera. (REMINDER: ìGiving your giftî refers to doing what you love most in your business. I believe all of you reading this article have a God-given gift to give to other people. The joyful paradox in this belief is that giving your gift brings you pleasure! So, for example, if you just love creating financial security for young families through life insurance, then selling life insurance is your gift.) The Old Path is fear-focused; the New Path is faith-focused: Faith in yourself to do good for others, faith in a higher-power which supports that doingness, faith that there are people who want what you have to offer. THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Because the Old Path represents habitual thinking, you will find yourself going there automatically. Also, it is comfortable. It is where you have been living, in your thinking. It is home. Though the New Path definitely looks more positive, the Old Path is your ìdefault pathway.î It is, until you change your habits of thought, then the New Path becomes your default pathway. CREATING CHANGE: When you find yourself on the Old Path, the way you get to the New Path is by using the Stepping Stones of Gratitude. Here's how that works: On your drawing, add some circles ñ stepping stones - between the left and right hand of the Y. You can label each ìstoneî with a thought of gratitude: I am grateful for my eyesight as I read this page, I am grateful for my good health; I am grateful for my spouse, and so on. Gratitude creates a wonderful foundation for whatever you are going to do next. Please try it for yourself. All of the tools I use are experiential. That is, you won't gain much by just reading about them; you must use them. Then you will experience change. WHAT TO EXPECT: One of the things I have noticed with almost everyone who has used Old Path/New Path, including myself, is an unwillingness to be grateful when they find themselves on the Old Path! If that happens for you, remember you are in good company. It will feel like it takes effort to be grateful, to get back to the New Path. You are right ñ it does. Also, the New Path is different, unfamiliar. When I was actually living on the New Path, the first thing I noticed was a sense of neutrality. Not enthusiasm ñ which is what I would have expected. Just calm, quiet. Enthusiasm came later. My client Sara said of her experience, 'The Critic has been silenced. My mind in quiet.' Stephen reported, 'I have a freedom I have never experienced before. It is a freedom of thought. It is as though I have more room in my thinking.' 'THAT'S ENOUGH!' Almost everyone, and again I include my own experience, got to a point on the New Path where they said, 'Enough. I have been happy long enough. Now it's time to worry about something.' What a wonderful awareness. This is the point where we begin to laugh at ourselves. NOW comes the experience of choice. You will actually experience being at choice in your thinking. What a gift to give yourself! HOW TO USE THIS TOOL FOR MAXIMUM EFFECTIVENESS: Keep it in front of you so you can use it throughout the day. You could even draw a ìYî on a post-it note as a reminder. When you find yourself on the Old Path, use the Stepping Stones of Gratitude to get back to the New Path. Notice your willingness to allow yourself to be happy, to enjoy, to live in joy. Don, a financial planner, was using this tool. When I spoke with him after a break in our coaching schedule, he told me: ìI have not used the Old Path/New Path tool in two weeks. I see it everyday on my desk, and I think about it. But I have been having so much fun seeing clients and creating plans for them, I haven't needed to use it!' Anne made a major discovery after she had been using this tool for a few days: She had marked her pathways ìFearî and ìLove.î She is seeking investors for a wonderful foundation which will add great value to her community. Anne has been amazingly unsuccessful in her quest for the capital she needs. I asked her what she loves about this project, why she continues. She told me several things she loves about it. Then she said, ìWhat I don't love is looking for the money.î Bingo! With that information she can shift her focus to enthusiasm rather than fear. HAPPINESS: The results you can expect from living on the New Path include a greater enjoyment of life. Live in Joy. Say 'Yes!' more often. Surround yourself with the people and things which bring you joy and happiness. If rock and roll music makes you smile, listen to it often. If flowers on your desk seem like a luxury, indulge. This tool helps heal the abuses we have allowed ourselves to suffer. Please use it. Visit my website to start creating your own success!! Charli Williams, founder of Lamont Williams in Orange County California, has been a Personal Success Coach for more than a decade. She is an author, lecturer, columnist and radio talk show personality. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Orange County Association of Health Underwriters. She develops custom tailored programs for entrepreneurs, designed to move each person along their path to success. Lamont Williams operates under the philosophy that just as Olympic athletes have private coaches to help them fine-tune their abilities, so too should business people have a coach to help them reach their goals more easily. Lamont Williams clients are varied. Current participates include engineers, financial and estate planners, physicians, top insurance producers, educators, loan consultants, real estate agents and sales representatives. The Coaching Program enables individuals to develop clear, detailed plans resulting in success on a consistent basis, and more time in their lives for relationships, fun and relaxation. Charli helps her clients formulate and achieve their Ideal Lifestyle. This Ideal Lifestyle is not only limited to business; it carries over into personal life as well. Charli, through her unique visualization techniques, has achieved her own Ideal Lifestyle. The tools and techniques used produce success more easily, eliminating the old fashion concept of the need for "hard work." The Coaching Programs are very "person specific." That is, they are tailored to fulfill the needs of each individual, rather than the individual needing to fit the program. The programs enable people to develop clear, detailed plans resulting in more income on a consistent basis. Living a balanced, successful life is the ultimate goal. The Coaching Programs from Lamont Williams include: Private Coaching, on an individual basis; Coaching for Team Synergy, for groups; and other custom designed training's. Her workbook, Creating Your Own Success,is a step-by-step guide to achievement. For more information, please call our offices at 800-500-1551 E-mail Lamontwm@pacbell.net or Fax (714) 389-3038.