Category: opportunity

choices, creativity, opportunity, passion, patience

Beginning: Renewing the Familiar and Waking Up

Christa Avampato

“The moment one gives close attention to any thing, even a blade of grass it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself.” ~ Henry Miller

Every morning I walk 5 blocks to the subway, and some mornings I don’t remember a single step that I took to get there. I’m out ahead of my walk. I’m imagining the packed subway car that I don’t want to deal with or thinking about my morning meetings and deliverables. I’m checking Twitter and Facebook or planning out my evening activities. This is the downside of being hyper-organized and a creature of planning – I can miss the moment I’m in right now, and all of the learning that each one offers.

In the past month, I’ve been focused on waking up and being aware. I’m observing more consciously, and finding that Henry Miller was absolutely right. Right in my neighborhood, there are beautiful things happening. Small business owners trying to make a-go of their dream. Tiny sprout of life breaking through the cold ground as Spring makes its long slow climb out of obscurity in Riverside and Central Parks. Street musicians and artists decorating our sidewalks. And even all of those people packed in the subway car on weekday mornings – just watching them and taking note of their activities makes my commute a part of my day rather than just some means to an end.

It is possible to renew the familiar, and it doesn’t require any fancy equipment or class or certification. You can start right now, wherever you are. Observe the knots in the world flooring beneath your feet, the sunshine filtering through your window, or the simple mannerisms of the person sitting next to you. We always have the option to begin a practice conscious living.

This blog is also available as a podcast on Cinch and iTunes.

happiness, opportunity, patience

Beginning: Learning to Grow Happiness

Christa Avampato

“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.” ~ James Oppenheim via my friend Sue’s Facebook page

“If only” is a dangerous way to begin a thought. If only we had more money, time, lived here, had this relationship, job, house, project, contact, opportunity. And on and on it goes. There isn’t an end to what we want (and mistakenly think we need). And there will never be an end. There will always be something out there that seems like a good idea for us to have.

When I saw Sue’s quote on her Facebook wall, I was having one of those particularly “wanting” days. I had just reached the end of my rope with a particular situation at work. I had resolved that I was going to pull a Gershwin and call the whole thing off. This would have been a very bad idea because when I made my way back to my desk the situation reached such a tremendous conclusion, one that had never even occurred to me as in the realm of possibility, that I had to sit for a minute in stunned silence to fully process my good fortune. All this time, I had thought my efforts on the project were for naught. I had no idea how much of an impact my efforts made.

I was so focused on what wasn’t going well, on my internal frustration with the situation, that I hadn’t bothered to take stock and appreciate all of the progress I had made. It was slow, incremental progress, but it was progress. Sure and steady, hard-won and not fully baked just yet. But surely there were many moves in the right direction. All the while, I forgot to notice the bright green grass growing right under my feet. I was too busy living up in the clouds.

What a lesson in staying grounded and having a very good look at the buckets of opportunity that are all around us. I’m reminded again of a favorite quote that always helps me to count my blessings – so often what’s needed is a change of self, and not a change of scene. Or as my lovely friend, Sharni, so beautifully states on her blog – “the grass isn’t greener on the other side, it’s greener where you water it.” Happiness is something we can cultivate, right where we are, right now.

This blog is also available as a podcast on Cinch and iTunes.

career, celebration, choices, decision-making, opportunity

Step 323: Let Go and Swim

Christa Avampato

This past weekend I was flipping through my yoga teacher training manual from Sonic Yoga. Though we got through a good deal of it, there’s still so much to learn. With 6,000 years of yoga history prior to my first hearing of it, I feel like I’ll always be a beginner in my yoga practice. There will always be much more to learn when it come to the infinite knowledge of the subtle body.

In the back of my teacher’s manual there are a collection of poems and quotes that are especially significant to my teachers at Sonic. One of them is from the Hopi Nation and it addresses the idea of letting go in order to survive. I’ve been thinking a lot about this idea. It’s so tempting to believe that if we can just dig our nails into the shore and hold on for dear life, then we will be safe. In the poem, a Hopi Elder explains his philosophy on why it’s so much safer, and ultimately more beneficial to our personal development to let go.

When I was in Greece this past summer, I got over my fear of the open water. I let go of the shore and felt lighter for it. I didn’t learn to swim until I was 30 so the while I love the water, I certainly have never seen it as my friend. Now rather than seeing the water as an enemy and something to be feared, I see it as an amazing, immense teacher, just like my yoga practice.

Out on the open waters of Greece, I found that it wasn’t the open water itself that scared me; it was the actual act of letting go that was compounded with so much fear. What would happen to me if I couldn’t latch on to the shore? It was a lack of confidence on my part. And then as the sea crashed against the shore a bit harder, I found that yes, it was easier once I let go. I could roll with the open water instead of being thrashed by it.

Sometimes, we get too attached to dreams and plans and ideas. When life doesn’t seem to be supporting our direction, the instinct may kick up to fight, fight, fight until we get what we want. And sometimes that instinct is dead-on, and other times, it’s the universe’s way of telling us that there is another way we need to go.

So how do we know the difference? How do we know when to let go and when to hang on? This little test works for me: am I using so much energy to just hang on that I have no more energy to accomplish anything else? Is hanging on becoming the battle of my life, and if so, is that battle worth sacrificing every other dream I have? Again, as always, it comes down to priorities.

“To my fellow swimmers:
There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift,
that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore,
they are being torn apart and will suffer greatly.
Know that the river has its destination.
The elders say we must let go of the shore,
push off into the middle of the river,
keep our heads above water.
And I say see who is there with you and celebrate.
At this time in history,
we are to take nothing personally,
least of all ourselves,
for the moment that we do,
our spiritual growth and journey come to a halt.
The time of the lone wolf is over.
Gather yourselves.
Banish the word struggle from your attitude and vocabulary.
All that we do now must be done
in a sacred manner and in celebration.
WE ARE THE ONES WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR.”

choices, failure, future, opportunity

Step 301: Put an End to Waiting

Christa Avampato

“If there is any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do for any fellow being, let me do it now, and not deter or neglect it, as I shall not pass this way again.” ~ William Penn

“Mantras you shouldn’t say: I don’t know; I’m not ready; I can’t do it.” ~ Yogi Tea

I’ve made excuses for why I can’t do good now. I need more experience, education, money, time. Truthfully, we will never have all of the resources we think we need to get something done, and the other side to that truth is that we don’t need as much as we think we do. I spent a number of years thinking I didn’t have enough experience to offer to be a teacher. In my writing, I kept seeing my age as a limiting factor. “I need to wait until I really know more before I commit my beliefs to writing,” I would tell myself. The actual reason why I put off too many actions for far too long – I was scared I’d get it wrong.

And then I tried and did get it wrong, and the world didn’t end as I had feared. I got opportunities to try again, and again, and again. As long as I’ve been willing to put myself out there, the world has given me opportunities to keep trying. We lull ourselves into thinking we just aren’t ready, that we had better wait to realize our full potential until some magical time in the future when the stars will align right before our eyes.

By waiting, we deny ourselves the power to create and align our own stars. We need to stop focusing on what we need, and recognize all that we have. We need to understand that achievement is based not upon what we have but who we are, and right now, in this moment, we are enough and we are all we truly need to make good happen. Pick up those mantras of “I don’t know; I’m not ready; I can’t do it” and chuck them out the window in favor of the mantras “I’ll figure it out; now’s the time; let’s get going.”

change, opportunity

Step 246: Opportunity is Where You Are

Christa Avampato

“The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive. The great opportunity is where you are.” ~ John Burroughs

I’ve spent most of my life looking forward, seeking out new opportunities, professionally and personally. At times, I’ve even toyed with the idea of chucking an ordinary life and going back to my gypsy theatre ways. My former boss, Bob G., once said to me, “You know, if you stick around long enough, everything changes.” It explains why he stayed at the same company for 25 years. The amount of change and growth that happened during his tenure was staggering.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized how right Bob is. A city, a job, a relationship – they are all changing in small ways every day and it’s only when we look back along an extended period of time that we see the cumulative effect of continuous change. If we can tap into the direction of change and get ahead of it a bit, we can find opportunity wherever we are. that’s not to say we should never move – I am a big proponent of movement and growth. What I’m reconsidering if whether movement is the only way to experience change.

My friend, Sharni, writes a blog with the tag line “The grass isn’t greener on the other side, it’s greener where you water it.” Brilliant. Opportunity does lie out there in the great beyond and we should absolutely pursue it, but we can actually grow opportunity right under our own two feet, too.

goals, opportunity, success

Step 213: My July Accomplishments and August Goals

Christa Avampato

“When you start to develop your powers of empathy and imagination, the whole world opens up to you.” ~ Susan Sarandon

I definitely felt the world opening up to me in July. Many times, in ways I never expected. It was a month of great learning.

July Goals:
1.) Soak up the sun in Greece and enjoy every second of my teacher training time with Shiva Rea.

This didn’t go according to plan. The retreat was much less than enjoyable than I expected though I learned so much about myself and my yoga. Greece is a beautiful country and I am glad I got to see it, particularly for a day in Athens. The retreat fell below expectations, so much so that I can’t say with honesty that I will continue to study Shiva’s style. Instead, I am branching out and exploring other styles. For more reflections on my retreat, click here.

2.) Meet my little niece, Aubree, and hang with my sis and older niece, Lorelei.

We had a fantastic time together in Florida. I am so glad I got to spend so much time with my nieces. I miss them every day and realized that I need more geographic flexibility in my life to spend time with them. The photo in this post is me and my little cuties at my sister’s house.

3.) Begin actively looking for a weekly yoga class to teach in NYC at an established gym or studio.

I contacted the Downtown Community Center in the Financial District and scored a spot on their sub list. More to come when I have my first class there…

4.) Begin thinking about my next e-book. (I’m taking suggestions!)

I have done quite a bit of work on this front. I am working on a new blog that will lead to an online workbook type of publication to help people use their yoga practice to shape their personal financial plans. For a little sneak preview, check out my recent guest post on Elephant Journal.

5.) Continue prep work for my LIM College class that I will start teaching in the Fall: Viral, Guerilla, and Social Media Marketing.

I got the syllabus in good shape. Not finalized, but heading in a solid direction. I’ve met with the head of the marketing department several times to review a structure and format, and I selected the different weekly topics. I also accepted that I will make up a good deal of this course on the fly. The world of new media changes too quickly to lay it all out months ahead of time. Relevance of the moment makes improvisation as necessity.

6.) Do some marketing of my e-book, Hope in Progress: 27 Entrepreneurs Who Inspired Me During the Great Recession.

This is a goal that I just didn’t get to this month. Moving to August list.

August Goals:
1.) Kick off my viral, guerrilla, and social media marketing class at LIM College

2.) Make a decision on my apartment lease renewal. I’m thinking about a possible move to Brooklyn and doing some research before I notify my current landlord one way or the other.

3.) Make some headway on my out-of-school education project, Innovation Station. I recently made some valuable partner contacts to keep this idea moving as we head into the school year.

4.) Do some marketing of my e-book. (From July’s goals.)

That seems like a good list to round out the summer. I hoped the summer would have more relaxation time, though life doesn’t always toss us what we hope to have. My 2010 so far involved holding on and enjoying the ride as much as I can. I expect the next 5 months to take the same course.

change, choices, courage, discovery, encouragement, frustration, gifts, gratitude, loss, opportunity, yoga

Step 201: Obstacles as Path

Christa Avampato

“For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.” –Alfred D. Souza

I keep thinking about the idea of “the path of least resistance.” I don’t know what that path looks like. I work and work and work, and eventually a pathway opens, but never constitutes taking the easy road. This quote helped me put this idea in perspective. When I think about the things I’m most proud of in my life, they all resulted from overcoming obstacles. It wasn’t always a fun journey, but the results were worth it.

I’ve written about Ganesha, the Hindu god of obstacles, and how much I learned about him during my yoga teacher training. Some people have interpreted his role as a remover of obstacles. That view is mostly right. It needs the addition of “removed of obstacles on our life’s path.” Sometimes, as Alfred Souza so eloquently states, obstacles need to be placed in our way to help us realize our path.

There’s no shame in having obstacles; there’s no need for us to bemoan their presence. They can be our reasons to be grateful. They show us our strength, and if we can recognize their gifts and their reasons for being, we can often find our way around them.

luck, opportunity

Step 158: Luck and Preparation

Christa Avampato

“People always called it luck when you’ve acted more sensibly than they have.” ~ Anne Tyler, American author

Every time I bring up the subject of luck with Brian I get his stern look. He doesn’t believe in luck. He says that I’ve been preparing all my life for the good fortune that’s now coming to fruition, and that much of it has been here all along. I just haven’t ever slowed down enough to see it until now.

I experienced the Anne Tyler sentiment earlier today. I told someone about a recent opportunity that sort of fell out of the sky and into my lap. I’m trying to work out the logistics of whether or not I can take it, and those logistics are proving to be a little hairy, which I was explaining to this person. She responded, “I don’t understand how you get all these lucky breaks.”

I told her that I spend a lot of time getting clear on what I want to do. It doesn’t mean I always operate with absolute clarity, or that I’m not open and flexible to change, but I always try to keep moving in the direction that’s right for me. And I network all the time, mostly because I love interesting people and learning and I live in New York City where we’re all packed into this tiny little island like sardines. You can’t help but find opportunity here – there’s nowhere for it to hide!

I’ve also taken up the practice of shouting dreams at the top of my lungs. If I really want to do something, I start telling people about it, and sure enough, that network that I spend so much energy and time cultivating and helping helps me right back. I then explained this idea to this person and she replied, “Well, I want to do all these things you do, but I never have any luck with actually getting the chance to do them.”

Here’s the 3rd piece of the puzzle: no one is going to make opportunities expressly for you. You have to build the opportunity. And that has nothing to do with luck. That means rolling up your sleeves, figuring out what you need to know to make something happen, and then going for it with gusto. We can make excuses for the opportunities we have (or don’t have) all we want. In the end, the life we live is the life we imagine and build.

opportunity, social media, writing

Step 153: Yelp Review Leads to Freelance Writing Gig

Christa Avampato

What we write online matters more than we know. A few weeks ago, I went to Terroir Wine Bar’s new location in Tribeca with my friend, Sara. My friend, Amanda, and I went to their location in the East Village a while back and I loved it so when this new one opened right near my office I had to check it out. I enjoyed it so much that I wrote a Yelp review, clicked submit, and never gave it a second thought.

About a week later I heard from Neil Squillante, Founder of Technolawyer, a social media company that writes a series of newsletters and a blog covering product reviews, technology tips, and other helpful information for lawyers and law firms of all shapes and sizes. He enjoyed my review on Yelp and then clicked to my profile to see what I do for a living. Seeing that I am a freelance writer and a product developer for a large company, he asked if I knew anyone who might be interested in freelance B2B (business-to-business) writing. I replied, “Yes. Me.”

Several weeks, a few emails back and forth, and a face-to-face meeting later, he asked if I would be interested in doing some freelance writing work for Technolawyer. I never thought a review on Yelp would lead to a freelance writing gig so I certainly didn’t write the review of Terroir for that reason. It’s a great wine bar with an exceptionally wonderful staff, so I wrote the piece in the hopes that it would get them some business. That small piece turned out to be the epitome of a textbook win-win scenario. Or karma, depending on your point-of-view.

Neil looked through my blog, gave me some solid advice about writing, life, and entrepreneurship, and then asked if I’d write about a particular area of my own expertise: positive thinking. While not strictly a required competency for a lawyer, it certainly helps get the job done. Positive thinking particularly helps people, lawyers or not, in this economy. It certainly has helped me and now I hope my post helps others, too.

My article posted on Technolawyer’s blog yesterday. Have a look at http://blog.technolawyer.com/2010/06/remain-sane.html

I must remember to send Yelp a thank you note. It just goes to show that what we put out into the online ether can have far more significance than we ever imagined. Neil’s working on my next writing mission for Technolawyer. I’ll let you know how this unfolds.

clarity, decision-making, happiness, opportunity, simplicity

Step 10: A Place to Go

Christa Avampato

“I learn by going where I have to go.” ~ Theodore Roethke in the Poet’s Corner at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine

I keep a wipe board in my apartment that tracks my to-do’s for my projects. This confined space helps me to sort out where and how I’m spending my time and energy. It’s a helpful, simple tool that keeps me on track by giving me a very concrete visual of my priorities. It tells me where I have to go to create the kind of life I want.

In 2010, this chart has been heavily influenced by Innovation Station, my after-school project with Citizen Schools. With Citizen Schools, citizen teachers build the curriculum backwards, starting with the construction of the final project, called a “WOW”, and working the lessons backwards with the final project always in mind. Rather than using the forward-working paradigm of “what comes next?”, I have to start with “what needs to happen right before the WOW?” I decided to try this approach with my wipe board, too. On the far right side I wrote down the goal, and then only included the projects in my life right now that work toward that goal.

This exercise helped in a number of ways:

1.) I have some projects in my life that aren’t serving that goal, and they didn’t make it to the wipe board. These projects have value; they just aren’t the right projects for me given my goals and in comparison to the other projects I have. I also noticed some very clear holes – things I needed to be doing, places I needed to be going, that I didn’t realize before this process.

2.) I breathed a great big sigh of happiness to see how the projects all fit together and support one another. A cohesive plan breeds confidence and conviction.

3.) Having the plan laid out gave me a lot of energy. I spent a lot of time carefully thinking through options and allowing them to play themselves out in my mind while I made some key decisions. With this plan laid out, I freed up the energy that I was using in the decision-making process.

4.) The plan provides me with more down time to be with people. These projects lay out the main interests of my life, and by knowing those interests, I can strengthen relationships I already have and start new ones based on commonalities. I am always inspired by feats that people can accomplish through collaboration. Having a very clear sense of what we want to accomplish helps us to meet others who have those same goals – our kindred spirits.

5.) The wipe board gives me a place to go. There will always be new opportunities and new projects that will appear. It can be hard to say no. With a clear sense of what I want, I can go to the board and see where the new opportunity fits. If it doesn’t fit, then the decision process is made that much easier. It’s an effective sorting method.

Clarity of mind gives us a wonderful sense of freedom, a radiance that we can feel and that others can see. By working toward clarity, decisions become easier. The tough work of getting to clarity is well-worth the reward of simplicity.