I’m having a F’REE Teleclass this afternoon, can you join me?

Could it really be POSSIBLE to have an uncluttered home that you can be proud of… where you can start inviting people over again without feeling EMBARRASSED about the state of your house?

The answer is “YES” …

And if you want to stop comparing yourself to your sister, and instead have a feeling of contentment when you come downstairs every morning — thinking “I’m so happy I live here”… then I’ve got something for you that you won’t want to miss.

This coming weekend, I’m relaunching my very popular “Whole Home Klutter Klass,” and I want you to get a taste first-hand to see how much YOU can get done with just a little support and encouragement. So this afternoon (Thursday, March 8th) I’m having a F’REE preview call, and you’re invited.

The preview call is titled: “The Secret to Cleaning up Your Clutter.”

If you know how to make a phone call, then you’ve already got what it takes to participate in a F’REE teleclass!

Do you feel sick inside when you visit your neighbour’s home, because she keeps her place neat and uncluttered, and it makes you wonder deep down what’s the matter with you?

Do you feel like your world is closing in, leaving you home alone with only your stuff for company … while the rest of the world is out having fun?

Then don’t miss this F’REE preview call for the Whole Home Klutter Klass.

The call will be this afternoon, Thursday, March 8th @ 3 pm Eastern / 12 noon Pacific and it’ll last for about an hour and a half.

You can register for the call here:

Hope to “see” you later,
All best,
Shelley

PS/ YES! An audio recording of this F’REE teleclass will be sent to you *if* you are registered for the call.

To sign up now for the next session of the Whole Home Klutter Klass, go here > http://oneroastvegetable.com/cleanupsupport.htm

When you think about what motivates you, I’m wondering if you’re a bit like Nathan.

I got this message from him late yesterday: “It’s a deadline that helps me get stuff done … Unfortunately, a self-imposed deadline does not always work as well as an externally-imposed one.”

You know how that feels, right? External deadlines work. Like when you’re in school. You’re a good student, you do your homework, write your assignments, study for exams. Because someone else has created the deadlines and the structure.

When you get older, you can be a great employee, ask for more responsibilities, turn in your work on time, meet deadlines and get good performance reviews. Because your boss expects it, is watching you, will now if you’ve been bad-or-good.

But it’s not only about deadlines.

It’s also about keeping promises.

And we’re all much better at keeping promises to OTHER people than we are at keeping promises to ourselves.

Here’s an example you’ll recognize. We agree to meet tomorrow morning to walk laps around the shopping centre. What happens? You’ll be there with your running shoes on, five minutes early.

But in example #2, I’m not there. You (alone) tell yourself that you’re going to get up tomorrow and go for a walk around the neighbourhood. What happens? Morning comes and you press the snooze button five times, drink three cups of coffee, and then you promise yourself that you’ll definitely go. Maybe tomorrow.

So now that we’re all grown up, we’re out of school, and we have complex and busy personal lives, who’s setting up our external deadlines for us? Who’s saying “get that basement cleaned up before Friday.” Nobody is saying it. It’s up to us. Alone.

Groan. The ‘alone’ part sounds so awful. And frankly it’s a recipe for slackness … Because if it’s all up to us, alone, then we’re MUCH more likely to press snooze, ignore our deadlines, and say “…yeah, I’ll do that someday.”

My goal is to get you saying, “Not Someday, Today.”

Because I’ve learned something pretty amazing. It’s in fact pretty straight-forward to set up your own external motivation. It’s called having support

So let’s talk more about support … Post a comment below and answer this question: When before in your life did you feel motivated, and like you were making good progress and getting lots done? What was your support then? What kind of external support was there for you (whether you realized it or not at the time!).

All best,
Shelley

PHOTO: J.Elliott

PS/ Make sure you’re on my Motivation mailing list, here.

My word for this year is ‘lean’.

I don’t usually choose a word for the year, like a theme word that I can resonate with. But I did it last year (sort of) and it worked magically. Last year my theme word was … well, not one word … but my theme last year was to slowly, steadily, and daily pay off all of our debt. I thought it might take 18 months to two years and in fact, beginning January 21st of last year, it took only until the end August. Which means I probably routinely overestimate how long things take by three-fold (or more), which is a good realization to have.

Photo credit: Scott Robinson

OK, now, back to this year’s theme. I’ve decided that my word for this year is ‘lean’. I was thinking of picking the word ‘thin’, but then I got worried that ‘thin’ might imply unwell or sick. I have that kind of baggage about the word ‘thin’. What’s my story?

I’ve always been afraid of being ‘thin’ for two reasons.

My mother was a nurse and saw illness everywhere. If you got a cold, it could turn into pneumonia in the blink of an eye. At least in her world. If you got sick and you didn’t have enough body weight, then you’d get ‘really sick’. At least in her world.

The second reason I have for being weird about the word ‘thin’ is that my step-mother, who’s been in my life since I was 10 years old, actually did get sick when I was a teenager, and she did get really thin. So emotionally I’ve always associated ‘thin’ with ‘cancer’. I can intellectually tell you that’s not true, but try telling my inner being that.

So this year, when I was looking for a strong and positive word that I could carry around with me all year, I decided that ‘lean’ was a better choice for me than ‘thin’. Lean implies wellness, athleticism, healthiness. If I’m lean then I take the stairs, I run, I put on my jeans out of the dryer and they feel good on me. If I’m lean, then I stand up straighter, I feel better about me.

I realize that ‘lean’ can also apply to lean finances, like “we’re having a lean year this year.” And while that might happen if I focus too much on the idea of ‘lean’, I choose to see even lean finances as kind of liberating. It can mean getting rid of magazine subscriptions that I don’t read, it can mean buying one bag of flour instead of five at a time. It can mean meal planning for the weak, buying the groceries, eating it all up, then starting again with a clean empty fridge. Lean can mean eating my way down through my freezer until it’s empty and spic-and-span clean, and waiting for abundance.

Yes, I did think of making my word for this year be ‘abundance’ but then I thought I might become abundantly overweight!  I figured I should pick the ONE area of my life that I believe will make the biggest difference to me this year. Last year, the biggest thing was to finally, after 28 years, be 100% completely and fully out of debt (no mortgage, no line of credit, no car loan, no nothing). This year the thing that I think will make the biggest difference is getting lean. Physically and emotionally and financially.

Let me state the obvious.

It doesn’t matter what other people are doing. I was sitting on the metro just now, coming home from an appointment. I looked around at the other women who are thinner than I am. And I looked at those who are heavier. I realized that nothing is gained by comparing myself to them. It’s not about comparing myself to anyone. It’s just about me.

Yes, it tempting to think something negative like “she may want to lose 10 pounds, but I have to lose 80 pounds.” This may be true, but it’s not helpful.

You might think that ‘lean’ can’t be your word for this year because you have 8o pounds you want to lose.

But ‘lean’ could be your word if you thought: “hundreds of people on the planet have weighed as much as I do now and have lost the weight. People have been where I am now, and have moved to a better place. I can go there too.”

You might think that ‘lean’ can’t be your word for this year because it’s easier for other people to lose weight than it is for you. You’re menopausal, on medication, you’re short, in a wheelchair, your husband is overweight, you live in the country/city, on the wrong continent, in the fattest city in America.

Or you could instead say:  “hundreds if not thousands of people who are on this medication have lost weight and I can be one of them. Thousands of athletes are in wheelchairs. Women all over the world are menopausal and are lean.”

You pick your own word.

It doesn’t matter what your word is, so long as you feel good when you say it. If you want ‘lean’, then pick ‘lean’. If you can pick ‘thin’ without the weird baggage that I have, then by all means do it!  If you want your word this year to be ‘abundance’, or ‘wealth’, or ‘adventure’, then pick that word. Carry around your word for 24 hours in your head, and sort through all of the positives of your word, and make sure it fits you. Make sure you can say it and believe it’s possible for you.

Photo credit: familymwr

Then do something radical.

Change all of your passwords, one by one, until you have your word for this year in your password. For example, if your word is ‘thin’ then your password could be “Iamthin” or “thisistheyeartobethin” or “thinthinthin99” or “ShelleyIsThin.”

[I actually did this when we lived in Montreal and wanted to be living in Paris.  I changed every single one of my passwords to be “FranceIsMyHome” ... OK, that wasn’t my real password, but you get the picture.]

I’ve started changing my password this year, too.  I’m slowly changing all of my passwords to contain the word ‘lean’. This forces me to type the word ‘lean’ a couple of dozen times a day, between my banking software, my blogging software, unlocking my desktop, and so on.

Then you can watch the magic begin.

You think it’s all hocus pocus until it starts to change how you think. And yes, it’s pretty subtle, but magical nonetheless.

Here’s my ‘lean’ example from today. It’s Tuesday, I’ve just delivered 11 kg of food and banana breads to the food bank, like I do most Tuesdays. I finish my delivery and I feel great right when I walk out of there. But I’m also feeling hungry. And there’s a little boutique McDonald’s on the corner of rue Commerce and avenue Motte-Picquet right next to the food bank. I’m hungry.  And then I say to myself the single word. Lean. Nothing else. Just the one word.

I keep walking. I go to the health food store to buy flour for the bakery next week, I buy raisins to hopefully make homemade yeast. I buy three oranges. I come home and I have a half of a whole-wheat bagel, toasted, with ham. And half an orange. We can have a big long discussion about the merits of ham, but I can assure you that the half slice of ham was infinitely better for me than the cheeseburger, fries, and sprite that I had my eyes on.

Lean.

OK, so that’s it.  Happy 2012 to you. May your year be lean, or abundant, or powerful, or fun, or adventurous. Or thin, or strong, or brave, or exciting.

Now tell me.

What’s your word for this year?

All best,
Shelley

PS/ If I can support you in any way, let me know. I have a few classes that might be of interest to you. I teach a very exciting motivation & self-discipline class that begins soon (www.NotSomedayToday.com) and my not-very-often weight loss class has just started (One Pound at a Time).

Yesterday, my gift was to give away one free pass to my 3-month class “One Pound at a Time: Weight Loss Together.” I am happy to announce that Darlene (comment #35) is the winner.  Winner chosen using random.org. If you won, please email me your desired username/password, and I’ll get you into the class today.

Thanks so much to everyone for posting comments on the blog – and thanks for your honesty in sharing your stories. For today’s gift, I’d like to extend a 30 day free trial of this class “One Pound at a Time” to everyone who shared a comment (and even if you were too shy to post). This free trial offer is only good for 24 hours, and will end Tuesday @ 12 noon Eastern.

30 day free trial > One Pound at a Time: Weight Loss Together

Let me be honest with you.

My class is not a diet.  Frankly, you’ve had enough of all of the desperate diets and counting points. I know I have. I’m not the slightest bit interested in counting anything. Except maybe counting on new slimmer jeans in my drawer that are one size smaller!

I know you’re thinking: “If this class isn’t a diet, then what kind of class is it?”

It’s a ‘change your ideas’ kind of class.  The best kind of change.  The kind of change that seems EASY to do, makes sense, and that you do in a group of like-minded, cool people, who are all doing the same thing at the same time.

Crystal says:

“I’ve been packing on pounds since my son and daughter were born (3 and 1 years ago) due in part to lots of work stress. I’m starting back to work next week and would like to start getting my act together!”

Kelly wrote:

“A few pounds have slowly crept up on me over the past few years as I completed graduate school and started working again. It’s now time to give the “mental” side a break and focus on the “physical” for awhile until the two are back in balance again!”

Pam says:

“I currently weigh about 40-50 lbs more than I should. I need to lose weight because I am uncomfortable, physically and emotionally.”

Stacey wrote:

“My mom passed over the Christmas holiday and I promised myself to make time for improving my health this year; not only for me, but also my four children.”

Are you at the elastic pants stage?

Are you tired of having to undo your pants after dinner, and hanging out on the weekend in sweatpants. Have you run out of ways to hide yourself in family photos?

You’re not alone.  And I’ve got some ideas that I think can help

30 day free trial > One Pound at a Time: Weight Loss Together

**
To get you started, here’s an idea for today:
One-Bite-Less
**

If you’re about to eat something you know isn’t really super healthy, like a muffin from the coffee shop, then you can apply what I call the “One-Bite-Less” strategy.

Here’s what you do. You take off a piece of the muffin, about one bite’s worth, and you throw it away. Then you eat the rest of the muffin.

OK, what happens there? You eat less than you normally would, but you exercise your willpower BEFORE you start eating.  It’s human nature to eat until the food is gone.  So what I’m suggesting is that we remove a piece FIRST, and then eat the rest.  One-Bite-Less.

You may think that’s not a very big change, but it will suddenly begin to change the way you think about what you eat.

And that’s what healthy eating is all about:  having new ideas in our head to replace the old ideas (that frankly haven’t been working for us that well).

Tonight I’m going to do One-Bite-Less with my dinner. We’re having turkey burgers and sweet potato fries, all homemade, mostly healthy. I’m going to cut off a bite of the hamburger, bun and all, while I’m still in the kitchen, and I’m going to put it on André’s plate (because he’s skinny and has a hollow leg).

Then I’m going to eat my reduced dinner. One bite less. Easy and painless.

Lots more to come in the class. Hope to see you on the inside. Please take advantage of the 30 day free trial before tomorrow @ noon : )

30 day free trial > One Pound at a Time: Weight Loss Together

All best,
Shelley

Is one of your New Year’s Resolutions to lose a few pounds? This is the time of year we all want to literally tighten our belts. We want to move away from elastic waist pants (!) and towards being more healthy.

But we also know that ‘diets’ don’t really work, and that according to research the only thing that really seems to work is ‘lifestyle change’.

Yes, but who’s teaching ‘life style change’?

Well, I’ve created a weight loss class called “One Pound at a Time” that does just that.

Now, I’m not a dieting specialist I’m not a nutritionist, or a doctor, or a nurse, or an expert, or a dietitian, or a rah-rah weight lifter, or a personal trainer, or a fitness guru.

I’m a regular person just like you.

But over the last five years, I’ve collected some pretty great healthy eating ideas.  And I know that in a class environment, we can both work at chipping away at those pounds, one pound at a time!

For today’s gift, I’m going to give away one free pass to this class “One Pound at a Time: Weight Loss Together” (value = $87 each). This is a 3-month class, where you receive emails and videos from me every day or two for 3 full months. There’s also a blog space for you to post comments and where we can support each other.

Wouldn’t you love to begin your new year with the right kind of support to help you be successful?

You have three chances to enter to win:

1. For one chance to win, post a comment below and tell me why you’d like to lose weight NOW. Why now?
   
2. For a second chance to win, click the “LIKE” button above (for Facebook) which will add a link to your Facebook page about this “One Pound at a Time” contest. Then come back HERE and post a second comment below saying “I’ve added this to my Facebook page” – or something like that!
3. For a third chance to win, sign up on the ‘more information’ list here, and then come back to the blog and let me know that you signed up

Maximum three entries per person. And tomorrow I’ll use the random number generator to select the lucky winner.

~ all best,
Shelley

Is one of your goals for the new year to have LESS STRESS in your life? Yeah, I thought so. Me too.

Have you tried meditating?  Yeah, me too. I can’t always get the hang of it, but I keep trying…

Well, we’re both in luck today. I teach a business class called “Your Business Breakthrough,” and my student Rena has written a 7-step guide on how to set up your meditation space. Do you need a separate studio or a corner of a room? Should it be hot or breezy, sparse or filled with bits … Rena’s free guide is called “7 Simple Steps to Setting Up a Meditation Space.” I really appreciate her focus on SIMPLE!

Here’s all you have to do to get your FREE copy of “7 Simple Steps to Setting Up a Meditation Space”:

1. Click here to download Rena’s “7 Simple Steps to Setting Up a Meditation Space”

2. Then come back here and please post a comment below and let us know what you think … tell us what you LOVE about her ideas. And please go ahead and share with Rena what else would you like to learn about meditating.

All best,
Shelley

Laptop. Mini. Netbook. Desktop. Workstation. Mac. Smartphone. PDA. E-reader.  It’s a computer, for crying out loud!  Why does it have to be so confusing?  Computer shopping can be worse than car shopping!

Well, I teach a business class called “Your Business Breakthrough,” and my student Georganne (who is a computer genius), has written a simple guide where she clearly explains the difference between all of the different kinds of computers out there. Like, what’s a PDA? Do you need one? What about an e-reader? How is that different from a smart phone? Georganne’s free guide is called “What’s WHAT with Computers?”

Don’t panic.  Her simple, easy to read handout is the first step that will walk you through the techie world, virtually pain-free.  She’s also got a great sense of humour!

Here’s all you have to do to get your FREE copy of “What’s WHAT with Computers?”:

1. Click here to download Georganne’s 3-page guide “What’s WHAT with Computers?”

2. Then come back here and please post a comment below and let us know what you think … tell us what you LOVE about her guide.  And please let us know what you’d like her to cover in the new book she’s writing about home computers. For example, what’s your biggest pet peeve about buying a new computer?

All best,
Shelley

Visit the Banana Bread Chart for 2012
http://www.OneRoastVegetable.com/bananabread.2012.htm

I have been baking banana breads and donating them to the women’s shelter for several years. Beginning in December 2008, clients just like YOU have helped me bake more and more banana breads.

Yesterday’s Gift:

For yesterday’s gift, I asked for your help in naming my new bread class. I’ve found a winner.

I’ve decided to call the new class:  Paris Bread Co.’s Apprentice Program (Level 1). Thanks to Diane (comment #28) for her genius (I never thought of the word program myself, so that’s why group brainstorming is sooo  helpful). Diane, send me an email with your mailing address so I can put your cookies in the mail.

Today’s Gift:

Today’s gift has no contest, nothing for you to do. Everyone gets a copy of this gift.

I teach a business class called “Your Business Breakthrough,” and my student Michelle has a website all about freezer cooking.  She’s working on creating a new class all about the BEST kinds of containers to use, what size, how to organize them, AND some very cool tips that I’ve never seen before.

For example, Michelle has figured out this amazing trick with CHOPSTICKS that will make your adventures in freezing much easier starting today.

Here’s all you have to do:

1. DOWNLOAD: Click here to download Michelle’s free chopsticks freezing tips.

2. COMMENT: Please post a comment below and let us know what you think … tell us what you love about her tips AND what else you’d like Michelle to teach you to do with freezing and containers and making your meals easier by using your freezer.

3. SIGN-UP: If you’d like to be added to Michelle’s mailing list, you can sign up here.

All best,
Shelley

Yes, today’s gift is a dozen homemade cookies … cappuccino shortbreads topped with bittersweet chocolate. They’re divine. I’m going to make a dozen and put them in the mail to someone … is it you? Will you win today’s prize?

Here’s what you have to do to win:

I’m launching a brand new cooking class in January and this class needs a NAME.  That’s where you get to help.  Want a dozen cookies? Then put on your thinking cap and help me brainstorm a great name.

What I know about the class so far:

In September, I started baking and selling bread from my tiny Parisian kitchen (Paris Bread Co.) … and so in my new cooking class, I want to teach YOU how to make the exact same breads that I sell in the bakery.

The class will include 5 lessons on different types of bread, starting with the basics, moving on to simple shaped loaves and buns.

This is a class for beginners. No big science formulas. No complicated math ratios. You won’t need a bread machine or a fancy mixer.

And for each lesson, you’ll receive a kit in the mail with the ingredients you’ll need (except for flour, and perishable stuff like milk or eggs).  This means that you’ll be making the lessons using the exact same ingredients that I’ll be using in the videos.  So you’ll have virtually guaranteed good results No measuring errors, no fussing with new or hard to find ingredients. I’ll send you everything you need.

Certificate Option: If you complete all of the lessons and send me pictures of your results, and if you learn to bake bread to the standards that I sell in my bakery, then YOU will receive a certificate and blog banner that indicates that you’ve completed the Level 1 Apprentice Baking Class at Paris Bread Co.

… But I want to call this class something more lovely than “Level 1 Apprentice Baking Class” … don’t I?

Hint #1:  I like alliteration, but I’m not married to it.  Other class names that I have, as examples: Your Business Breakthrough, Fresh From the Freezer, Back to Basics.

Hint #2:  Since this is a certificate class, it should have a nice official sounding name.

Hint #3: You and your kids can take the class at the same time, I’ll offer discounted kits if shipped to the same address so that 3 or 4 of your kids can do the lessons at the same time.

If you’d like to win a dozen cookies, then post your ideas below. No limit on your creativity. Give me as many ideas as you like.  I’ll pick the one that fits best.  Or I may stick with “Level 1 Apprentice Baking Class” or a variation on that theme.  Your ideas, thoughts, creative genius, and brainstorming appreciated   Cookies.  Who wants cookies?

all best, me