The Beauty of Communication
"Pigeons communicate by sounds and movements. If a male pigeon wants to make friends with another bird, he goes up to it, coos, and bobs up and down as if bowing. If it happens to be a female pigeon, she will be receptive to this and let him continue cooing at her. If it's not a female pigeon, it will usually fly away."
Photo Credit: photo below taken by headshot photographer, Danny Damiano www.danieldamiano.com
REIKI HEALING
As a Certified Reiki Healer, one of the optional services that I incorporate into my Life Coaching practice is Reiki Healing. I offer Reiki Healing both as part of my Life Coaching and as a separate service for those desiring Reiki Only.
Reiki Healing is an ancient Japanese healing practice that is safe, relaxing and effective in healing physical, emotional, mental and spiritual illness/discomfort.
Reiki is a magnificent (in my opinion) form of healing based on energy that brings peace and comfort to body, mind and spirit. It is incredibly relaxing and personally has changed my life in amazing ways.
I have also come to understand that there is also a common element that connects Reiki Healing and communication. Reiki is all about healing energy...and at the root of all effective communication is positive energy. If there is an underlying positive energy in communication between people, everybody wins.
The information at the link below gives a brief synopsis of the history of Reiki and how it can help.
http://www.reikiassociation.org.uk/3.html
Rates:
Reiki is included optionally for my Life Coach clients if desired.
The standard rate for Reiki Only is $100. per hour.
If you've never tried Reiki Healing, I highly recommend it. It's a terrific path to relaxation and physical and emotional healing. Please contact me if you are interested or with any questions you may have.
“The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
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T calm
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N cohesion
I courage
N creativity
G compassion
L I S T E N I N G
To all who have visited my virtual world today, I share the words below with you. Stay brave and be as gentle as you can with all people, in all situations. None of it is easy but it helps to know we are all in it together.
“Declare amnesty for the part of you that you don't love very well.
Forgive that poor sucker.
Hold its hand and take it out to dinner
and a movie.
Tactfully offer it a chance to make amends for the dumb things it has done.
Then do a dramatic reading of this proclamation by the playwright
Theodore Rubin:
"I must learn to love the fool in me -- the one who feels too much, talks too much, takes too many chances, wins sometimes and loses often, lacks self-control, loves and hates, hurts and gets hurt, promises and breaks promises, laughs and cries.
It alone protects me against that utterly self-controlled, masterful tyrant whom I also harbor and who would rob me of human aliveness, humility, and dignity but for my fool."
Excerpt from "Subterranean Pronoia Therapy" by Rob Breszny
A Little Piece of My Head & Heart
As I Stand Before the Mirror: A Message to the Homeless
by Cinda Lawrence
I have four walls, a ceiling, a hairbrush, make-up, a toothbrush. I have a mirror. Each morning I stand before the mirror. Each morning, as I stand before the mirror, I think about you, you who have not what I have…you without a home. Many thoughts enter my head as I stand before the mirror.
How can I help you in the impossible situation in which you find yourself? I think about where, when, how I can give you my money, my time, my heart and whether it will make any difference at all. You are one of billions. I am one of billions. How did this happen to you? How did this happen to us? How many combination of actions or lack of actions by us and by you have led you to this place? Sleeping on a sidewalk, begging for change. Sleeping on the sidewalk, begging for change.
How did we get here? I mean we, not you. Your problem is my problem. My problem is your problem. We are you. We are you. We are you. We are you.
1 in 100 children in my city, our city, are homeless. This is not the way it is supposed to be. This is not the way it is supposed to be. How did this happen? How did this happen? How did this happen?
You are homeless and I am not, but in another sense, we both share one home: planet earth. You are living in my home and I am living in yours. Your concerns are mine. My concerns are yours. We are roommates on this massive rock we share. You may live in Brazil, Syria, New York, Detroit, Nigeria, Chicago, Taiwan, Venezuela, the Philippines or two blocks from me.
As I stand before the mirror, I think it matters not. You and I are joined. We are connected. We are roommates of the heart.
We share a common home. Our planet earth. Our planet earth. Our planet earth.
How did we get here? What is your physical condition today? Are you cold? Are you sleeping outdoors? Are you hungry? Do you have a family? Do you have kids? Do your kids go to school? Will your kids eat today? Are you a veteran?
As I stand before the mirror, I know we have let you down. It is a knife in my heart to know this, but I know it. I know it. I know it.
We have let you down. We have let you down. We have let you down.
What are your circumstances? Do you have a physical addiction? How depressed are you? Do you cry at night or have all your tears been spent? Do you have any hope at all? Are you safe? Are you alone? Do you have anyone to talk to?
Are you afraid? I know about fear. Fear and I are very well-acquainted. I know about fear….but I don’t know about your fear.
Are you scared? Are you scared? Are you scared? I am scared.
As I stand before the mirror, I wish. I wish I could communicate with you. I wish you knew that you are on my mind as I stand before the mirror. I wish you had a mattress. I wish you had a job. I wish you had breakfast. I wish you had a reason to smile. I wish and I wish and I wish. As I stand before the mirror, I wish.
I wish you could know how much you are on my mind as I stand before the mirror. Knowing my mind would not rise you out of your situation, but maybe it would give you hope. Maybe for a moment. Maybe. At least for a moment.
Hope won’t fill the hole in your belly or the hole in your heart. Still…I wish you could know. I wish you could know. I wish you could know.
As I stand before the mirror, I see you clearly as I think these thoughts, as I stand before the mirror. I see you…on the sidewalk, in the subway, on the stairwell, in the vestibule, under the boxes, on the bench, on the seat, in the rain, in the snow, in the heat, on the corner, under the awning. These are the thoughts I think. I wish you could know.
My thoughts are not feelings. It is my feelings that I most want to share with you. It is not my thoughts that will help you.
It is not my feelings either. It is our feelings. My feelings. Your feelings. Our feelings. My feelings. Your feelings. Our feelings.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel shame. I feel shame for my species that we do not, cannot, have not and will not….take better care of you, of each other. I feel shame for the betrayal of you, the veteran without a home, the child without a home, the mother without a home, the scared, the suffering, the frustrated, the angry, the hopeless without a home. I feel shame.
Your fate is mine and my fate is yours. We are connected. We are connected. We are connected. You are neglected, not respected, but we are connected.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel grief. I grieve for the losses you have suffered. I grieve for the mistakes you have made. I grieve for the mistakes we have made. I grieve for the mistakes I have made. In our neglect, our indifference, our frustration, our complacency. I grieve for you. I grieve for me. I grieve for all of us who share a home, but still hurt each other, still hurt ourselves, still kill each other, still kill ourselves, with violence and neglect.
I feel grief. I feel grief. I feel grief. I feel GRIEF.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel anger. I feel anger at our leaders, our citizens. Myself. I feel anger that the tragedy goes on and on and on and on and on and on. Invisibly, relentlessly, ignorantly, painfully.
I feel anger that it goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on....and on.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel gratitude. I feel gratitude for all who fight the uphill battle to change the system, to change society, to change your life. I feel gratitude, immense gratitude that I am not in your shoes. Yet.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel fear. I feel fear that your circumstances will get worse. I feel fear that you and all who walk your path, will multiply exponentially. I feel fear that one day those I love may live as you do. I feel fear that one day I will not have to imagine. I feel fear that one day I will know exactly how you feel. I feel fear that you will become very ill. I feel fear that you may die without ever knowing the joy and gratitude I feel when I climb into my bed at night.
I feel fear that you will die without having lived. I feel fear that you will die without having lived. I feel fear that you will die without having lived. I feel fear that you will not know joy.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel compassion. I feel my heart shatter into tiny bits that you are lying on that freezing sidewalk night after night after night…with no end in sight. I feel sorrow at your unimaginable suffering.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel sorrow. I feel sorrow. I feel sorrow. Yesterday, today and tomorrow. I feel sorrow.
As I stand before the mirror, I feel love. I feel love for you because you are a human being as I am. You came out of your mother’s womb with no guidebook or clue how to navigate this treacherous, beautiful world. In this way, you and I are alike. We are connected. I feel love because you have known betrayal, as we all have known betrayal.
Somebody somewhere let you down. Somewhere along the path you let yourself down. Every one of us knows the feeling of being let down. Every one of us knows the feeling of letting ourselves down.
Somebody somewhere let you down. Somebody somewhere let you down. Let you down. Let you down. Let you down. Down, down, down.
Your circumstances are different from mine but your heart is not. You know grief, fear, hope, love, despair and betrayal. I hope you have known love. If you have not, this grieves me the most. I wish you could read these words.
As I stand before the mirror, my feelings are more important than my thoughts because it is the feelings in my heart – in the heart of every man and every woman — that lead us to Action.
I act because I care. You act because you care. I care about you. You care about me. We act because we care. We care. We care.
Action is the way up, the way out, the way back, the way through. Your action. My action. Our action. Large actions and small actions. Large actions by people with small power. Small actions by people with large power.
As I stand before the mirror, I do not know what will work. I do not know if it will be a trillion small actions or hundreds of large actions which may bring you a home, bring you home, bring us all home. I do not know if it will happen in your lifetime or in mine. I know every action, great or small, is better than no action.
As I stand before the mirror, I know it must happen. It must happen. It must happen.
As I stand before the mirror, I imagine for you these are too many words. There are always too many words. Too many words. You are not “homelessness”. You are not “homelessness”. You are not a cause. You are not an issue. You are not a societal problem. You are not a law. You are not a statistic. You are not an idea or a suggestion or a law or a question or a task force or an obstacle or a goal or a failure or a success or a wish or a dream.
You are a man. You are a woman. You are a child. You are a human being without a roof, without four walls, without a bed or a sandwich, without a door to close behind you at the end of the day.
And so, as I stand before the mirror, I return to feelings. Mine and yours and ours. This we share. We share feelings. Feelings are powerful and destructive and devastating and healing and horrible and hopeful and annoying. We move blindly through this life trying to figure out what to do, how to survive amidst the powerful feelings that live within us.
What to do? What to do? What to do? Our feelings are our gifts, our tools, our blessings. My heart tells me the key lies in our feelings, our heart. Our individual hearts and our collective human heart.
It is my heart. It is your heart. It is the collective beating of all hearts that stand before the mirror we stand before.
The beating of all hearts. The beating of all hearts. The beating of all hearts. The beating, the beating, the beating.
It is love. So many words, but it all comes down to one: Love.
Love. The most over-used word we’ve got. It’s our word. We have failed this word. We have wasted this word. We have corrupted this word.
As I stand before the mirror, I know it’s not too late. It’s not too late. It’s not too late…..if we only act. Act with love.
Love through action….because love is a Verb. Love is a Home. A Home is Love.
It is not coincidence that I stand before the mirror. You stand before the mirror. We all stand before the mirror.
Every day we stand before the mirror.
As I stand before the mirror, I wonder. I wonder, I wonder, I wonder. I wonder…..what now?
Welcome to my Life Coach & Reiki Healing website! Whatever the reason you have come by my site, I hope I can be of help to you in finding the answer to whatever life circumstances you are currently facing.
I am a Certified Life, Career & Relationship Coach and Reiki Healer. I can help you create the life you dream of, feel better and GET WHAT YOU WANT. No matter what challenges are thrown at you in your life, the tools I give you will last you for the rest of your life....and help you to get what you want.
COST?
That's what you are wondering right? (been there too).
Before you read on about my services, I also want you to know that -- because I have a deep respect for my fellow human beings and the challenges we all face -- and because I know how important COST is to all of us -- I make a very strong effort to keep my rates affordable and work with you to align my rates with your particular budget and circumstances.
I don't believe in pushing a "sales pitch" to anyone. It's very important to me that all clients and prospective clients feel comfortable talking about their financial situation and needs. (I felt necessary to communicate this to you because money is, of course, quite often the first question that arises when one is looking for any kind of service (for me also).
So, here is what I offer:
LIFE COACHING
Like so many in this world, I have been on a life-long search to find my path in life.
The most frequent question I get when I tell people that I am a "Life Coach" is 'what is a life coach? what do you do?" Good question. Before I became one, I didn't really know the answer to this question myself. I figured life coaching was some kind of therapy.
So here is the answer:
Life Coaching is not therapy. It is all about "action" and "empowerment" (two of my most favorite words). I give you the skills and tools to empower you to take action to fix your problems and get what you want in your life. It is actually the word "empowerment" that drew me to life coaching.
Like so many in our world, for years I felt an emptiness inside me. I didn't know where I was going or how to get there. To be honest, I felt trapped and I didn't know how to get unstuck. Nothing was working. I didn't know where to begin.
Then I found life coaching. I hired a terrific life coach myself and I found my path. I discovered that there are tools that exist in this world that can empower us to cope with the tough challenges that life throws at us and FEEL BETTER each morning when we wake up and as we go through our day.
The #1 best thing about life coaching: IT WORKS. At the end of the day, what I wanted (and I think what everybody wants) is less talk and more RESULTS. That's what my life coach practice is all about: getting you results.
Deep, deep in my heart there is a feeling of compassion for my fellow humans that stays with me every day. I feel so much empathy for the people around me that I see struggling...because I've been there.
I have been through hell and back in my own life and I know the pain and anxiety one can feel trying to find answers and deal with the problems of being alive in a world full of conflict, confusion and hypocrisy.
The first question I ask my clients is "what do you want?" That is what it is all about after all - what do YOU want for your life and for yourself?
If who don't yet know what you want, I can tell you this: IT'S OKAY. Step by step, day by day, I will help you figure out what you want and how to get it. This is the #1 benefit of life coaching. Step by step by step, you and I embark on a path to getting you what you want and feeling better about yourself and your life.
I admit that life and experience made me a skeptic (big-time). So, for a long time, I didn't believe that I could really have what I want in life - but I was wrong. I have learned that it IS possible to have what you want and to have one hell of a good time getting there.
There are a multitude of "life coaches" out there today and you may be wondering why working with me might be the right choice for you. You can browse this website to learn more about my background and program, but in a nutshell, this is what I have discovered:
It's all about Communication
Effective communication is the key ingredient in growing and becoming a happier person...in solving any problem and getting what you want. Sadly (and incredibly), however, many of us have never received the tools necessary to enable us to communicate successfully with the people around us. Nor are we given the tools to effectively solve the problems of our lives with logic, calm and grace. (This also may be why much of the world is in such chaos.)
What is "Successful Communication"?
Successful communication occurs when all the participants in a conversation or situation feel that they have expressed themselves in the best way they can....and that they been "heard" and listened to. Simply put, they feel valued and acknowledged.
The parties do not have to agree...and may never agree...but when successful communication occurs, there is a deep feeling of respect, compassion, calm and clarity in the hearts of everyone involved.
Life Coaching Program:
The Life Coaching Program that I have created from my own experience and training has helped me to find an inner peace and a life path that I would have never thought possible. All of this has occurred because of the improved nature of my communication with others.
As a Life Coach I offer you an opportunity to work One-on-One in a confidential, calm, safe environment -- day by day, step by step --to create a life path that works FOR YOU. By focusing on communication, I will help you to geet what you want and create a life that may have seemed out of your reach up to this point.
I focus on Communication in my life coaching because every one of us, at one time or another in our lives, has felt lost. We have felt like the lines of communication have broken down in a relationship - be it with our significant other, boss, co-workers, friends, siblings or children.
Every one of us has experienced moments of frustration when we feel that we are not being understood...that we are not expressing who we are and what we want in a way that allows people to "get us".
The world can be a very tough place and there are very difficult people who may challenge us in our lives no matter what, but by incorporating easy, tangible tools into our own lives, we can begin to express ourselves in new and exciting ways that WORK.
Who Do I Coach?
I work with people from all walks of life - anyone who has the desire and the motivation to improve their relationships and their life. Bottom line: I help you figure out what you want and how to get it....to put you on the path toward living the life of your dreams.
Here are a few examples of the kinds of people I work with:
- A mom or dad struggling to improve the lines of communication with their son or daughter
- An employee who feels like they are not being valued at work
- A spouse or girlfriend/boyfriend who feels like their relationship is broken
- A child who wants a better relationship with their parent(s)
- A senior citizen who feels restless or lost about what to do next in his/her life
- A person looking for a job who wants to shine in job interviews to have the career of their dreams
- A working person struggling to navigate the politics at their workplace
- Anyone trying to figure out what they want and/or how to get there
Reiki Healing
In addition to my life coaching services, I am a certified Reiki Healer (more details about Reiki on the left side of this page). I offer optional Reiki Healing as an integrated part of my life coaching or as a separate service for those interested in Reiki Healing only.
If any of the above resonates with you and you would like to learn more about my life coaching and/or Reiki healing services, I'd love to talk to you. If you're ready to take the step toward a more peaceful, joyful life, it would be my honor to guide you through the process toward fixing your life and creating a beautiful, peaceful, joyful -- and workable --- life for yourself.
(The initial consultation is absolutely free.)
I can be reached at:
coachcinda@protonmail.com
(Whatever challenge you may be facing, I will work with you to find workable solutions -- and most important, get what you want.
With much respect and good wishes,
Coach Cinda
coachcinda@protonmail.com
Cinda's Commitment to You
You can trust that your coaching experience with Coach Cinda will be handled with professionalism, integrity, and the utmost confidentiality.
"Cinda's passion and compassion are off the charts! She genuinely wants to help people get to where they want to be in life. She has this way of making you feel heard and supported, which is so important when you're trying to overcome challenges in the process of change! Cinda is just so genuine and caring, and working with her feels like a true partnership. She listens and then really gets you to think in a different way -- all the while never judging you. You just feel her positive energy and belief in your success. She's definitely committed to the growth and development of her clients. I highly recommend working with Coach Cinda!"
-- Amy, Coaching Client, New York City
© 2013 Cinda Lawrence. All rights reserved.