Are You Connected to Your Needs?

This morning as I drove my seven-year old son to school, I mused out loud “Should I go to Yoga or Nia this morning?” I love both, but was juggling a really full day with a lot of deadlines, so I was pondering which might support a more flowing schedule.

While we waited in line at school to reach the drop off point, out of the blue, my son asked me, “Well mom, how do you feel after you go to Yoga?” “Hmmm, wise and calm,” I replied. “And how do you feel after you go to Nia?” he asked. “Alive and happy,” I said, enjoying this conversation and how engaged my child was in helping me. “So,” he continued, “what kind of day do you want to have—wise and calm or happy and alive?” “Oh, wise and calm!” I said after reflecting on what I most needed today. “Yes, it’s definitely a wise and calm day.”

I’m working with a wonderful speaker/teacher/advocate for mothers on a new publishing project on the topic of Courageous Parenting. The project visionary, Amy Tiemann, is author of Mojo Mom: Nurturing Your Self While Raising a Family. She believes, as I do, that one of the most powerful gifts we can give our children is the understanding of how essential it is to be connected to and nurture our needs, so that we can full present in our relationships.

I think my son got the memo.

Looking forward to sharing more about Amy’s Courageous Parenting anthology/project, stories from my fellow contributors and how it aligns with our Live Inside Out initiative.

P.S. Speaking of aligning with your needs, if you’re in career transition and hanging out in the gap between where you’ve been and where you want to go next, check out today’s story in the Austin American Statesman on tips for making a career change over your lunch hour. And, join us Oct. 22nd in Austin at Finding Your Career Mojo for support, encouragement and ongoing resources for finding work that is a fit for you inside and out.

AN INVITATION: Interested in how you can learn to connect to your needs and tap into the power of self-care? Consider starting/joining one of our women's self-renewal circlesor joining us Oct.29 for our FREE Live Inside Out class via telephone. Sign up here. View all upcoming events here.

Also, visit Live Inside Out and sign up to receive weekly tips on how to live more intentionally by becoming a fan on our Live Inside Out Facebook page.

The Journey, a blog about coach/author/entrepreneur Renee Trudeau’s personal journey to life balance and living life from the inside out, comes out weekly.

Photo: Renee Peterson Trudeau. My son looks out into the Puget Sound hoping to see a whale as we travel on the ferry from Port Angeles to Seattle, WA.

What Anchors Me

In my last Renewal newsletter, I talked about those things in my life that “anchor me” and help keep me present. One of the biggest anchors in my life and something I look forward to every month (yet forgot to mention!) is MY Personal Renewal Group. As I spend more and more time supporting other women in getting trained to lead Personal Renewal Groups, I keep thinking at some point I need to stop facilitating groups and pass the baton. But, I can’t. My group feeds me emotionally and spiritually, helps remind me to make my self-care a priority, connects me to our “oneness” and bonds me with a special group of women I care deeply about.

Earlier this month, my colleague, Amy Tieman, author of “Mojo Mom” interviewed me on why I started these groups and why intentional women’s circles are so powerful. I hope you get the chance to check out Amy’s work and listen to our recent conversation “Mojo Mom and Self-Renewal” :http://www.mojomom.com/podcast/index.htm.