Mindfulness

I just earned my certificate as a mindfulness practitioner this week.  It is my third practitioner certificate. I have my practitioner diploma for life coaching, and a practitioner certificate in Neural Linguistic Programming (NLP) and now a practitioner certificate in mindfulness.

Gaining this certificate does not mean my studies are over. On the contrary, it is barely beginning. I have started a course in cognitive-behavioral theory.  I believe I owe this to my clients because the more I know, the better I can help the client find their paths to where they want to go.

It is not what I know. It is how much I desire to help the person or people sitting across from me. And just because I learn more does not mean that I am above all the errors of being human. I still acidentally lock my keys in the car, leave home without my cell phone, and occasionally get times for workshops mixed up. I am a work in progress, and I can live with that.

Covid-19 has hit us all hard, and the pain of social injustice has doubled down on the sad times.  We each need to find our way to what this means for each of us personally. To do this, we need time for personal reflection, and we need discussion with others.

Do not try to do this alone.  Talk with your family and friends.  Maybe a neighbor or someone you trust.  Together we are strong, and we can find the correct path to our future and the future of our nation. 

Will things change? Of course.  Yet things have been changing for hundreds of thousands of years.  It is the one thing the Earth is good at doing.  The change will continue because we learn new information and work to make life better.

You can talk on the phone, the cell phone, the computer, or across the back fence (remember, 6 feet.)  The idea is to communicate.  We are not rocks unto ourselves. Instead, we are part of social infrastructure; our healthy existence found predicated on the well being of all those around us.

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Author: Mike Balof

A retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Mike used to lay in bed at night and worry about what would happen if his plant closed or found himself without a job. One day his plant closed. Rather than panic and hysteria (OK, maybe a little) Mike found himself carried away on the adventure of his life. Mike started with the best job he ever had working at Home Depot. He spent 8 years working with job seekers at a local workforce center, helping them to find employment. He then started his own company developing courses, writing books and urging others to follow their own paths into the future. Mike holds a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Training and a Bachelor of Business Management, earned through the University of Phoenix and an AAS degree in Electronics Systems Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. Mike is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Society. View all posts by Mike Balof