Author: Janae Bower

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A Swan Song

Joyful woman on brown coat

SwanThe definition of a Swan Song is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that swans sing a beautiful song in the moment just before death, having been silent (or alternatively, not so musical) during most of their lifetime.
This metaphor came to me as I was thinking about how I was going to write my last entry for this blog and wanting to link it to an older movie I recently watched called Brain’s Song. Brian’s Song is a 1971 ABC Movie of the Week (remake of the TV movie filmed in 2001) that recounts the details of the life of Brian Piccolo a football player stricken with terminal cancer after turning pro, told through his friendship with Chicago Bears running back teammate and Pro Football Hall of Famer Gale Sayers, who helps him through the difficult struggle.
Despite his early death, Brian Piccolo’s legacy sings on. I looked up his legacy in Wikipedia and was in awe of how his mark in history is still impactful decades after his death. Courage awards, cancer funds and stadiums are being named after him to honor those after him who embrace his spirit for life.

Make our mark

We never how much time we’ll have on Earth to make our mark, so all we can do is appreciate the time we have and make the most of it. One comment that struck me about Brian from the movie is that when he found out he had cancer it didn’t cause him to change how he was living because he already was living life to the fullest. Right away I thought of that quote that goes something like it’s not about how much life you live it’s about how much you live during your life.

Really living life

Are you really living life; a life filled with your greatest desires and God’s greatest desires of your life? We will all at some point during our lives have an opportunity to have a Swan Song; the beautiful legacy that we will share with the world that honors our life. Unfortunately some of us will, what another famous quote says, will go to our graves with the music still inside of us.

Bring harmony to your soul

As you’ve noticed, I haven’t written anything on here for months. I was taking a sabbatical to work on a book. It’s a book that I hope someday will be part of my Swan Song. During this time away I’ve realized that my spirit is singing a different tune for my work, a new melody for me to follow.
As I retire from this blog, I would just like to thank Cater McNamara for this wonderful opportunity to be part of this blog and for Linda Ferguson, my co-partner who has been the “glue” for it all. I would like to thank all of you for taking the time to read my thoughts over the years and I hope that at least one thing I’ve written will bring harmony to your soul!

As your inspired life mentor, Janae Bower is passionate about helping YOU live a more balanced, purposeful and inspired life! Her writings, speaking and coaching are the spark of inspiration you need to energize you on your journey of personal transformation.
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Who will you lift up today?

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00182839Was listening to the radio and heard an uplifting speaker share four things you can do to lift up others. I encourage you to do this with everyone in your life. To get started, I would take advantage of Mothers Day coming up to see how you can uplift the mothers in your life.

1. We need to bestow a blessing over others.

Verbally or silently send blessings to those in your life that need encouragement.

2. We need to express our appreciation for others.

An easy phrase that you can use when doing this is: I feel ______ when you_______ because __________. For example, I feel so grateful when you take the time to read our blog because it allows Linda and me to share our passion with you.

3. We need to express our confidence in others.

There are times in our lives when other people believe in ourselves more than we do. This might be that time for you. I believe in you and I believe that you are meant to help boost other people’s confidence in their own lives. Take a chance to speak life into someone’s life and just watch them come alive.

4. We need to let others know the impact we have on each other’s lives.

I can’t stress this enough that we need to let others know how they matter to us. People long to know that their lives matter, that they make a difference. I’ve been passionate about this for years and have been touting this through the products that I’ve created. One that I want to share with you is perfect as I originally created it for my mother so that she would always know how much she matters not only in my life but in so many lives she’s touched.

Check it out as this could be a great way for you to tribute your mother or someone else whose life matters significantly to you.
http://goo.gl/SwI29

 

As your inspired life mentor, Janae Bower is passionate about helping YOU live a more balanced, purposeful and inspired life! Her writings, speaking and coaching are the spark of inspiration you need to energize you on your journey of personal transformation.

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Creating Connections That Matter

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We all know that the relationships in our lives are so important. In fact, motivational speaker Brian Tracy said that 80% of our success in life really depends on our relationships. Yet how many of our relationships are really connections with people that go deep, that matter? With all the social media outlets, we are able to connect with more people than ever before. However, most of the time these connections are brief updates on what is going on in our lives or things that we like.
GoWhat I’m talking about here are the connections that we want to foster, the network of people that is important in our life and work. One word sums up what we can do to create new and long-lasting connections that matter – GIVING.
G – Get to know each other. When you meet someone take interest first in what is important to them (i.e. their family, passions, hobbies, organizations). This is a great guide for you to know what brings them joy. You’ll also want to share the same type of things about yourself so they can get to know you.
I – Impression. You’ll always make an impression. The question is whether it’s going to be a good one or not. When we connect with someone new it’s important to be intentional about the kind of impression we want to impress upon others. Knowing yourself and being yourself is the best impression you can leave. Think of three words that best describe you. Live these words each time you connect and you won’t have to worry about the kind of impression you make.
V – Value. This is core to any relationship, especially when you are meeting important new people in your life. What is the value that you can add for them should always be at the forefront of your mind. Is it to make a personal connection/introduction for them? Is it an article that you read that they would really benefit from? Is it a volunteer opportunity to get involved in that would leverage their expertise?
I – Important. Asking questions is important; especially ones that will really help you connect with the important things in their lives. Try these out:

  • What do you like to do for fun when you are not working?
  • What is the most important project you are working on?
  • How can I help you with that?

N – Noteworthy. Once you find out the things that matter to them, don’t forget about them. Just the other day I connected with a woman that I hadn’t seen for nearly a year and I asked about her two boys. She was impressed I remembered she had two boys. I write things down so I don’t forget the next time I see them, important dates, names, interests, etc… One of my favorite things to do is to let people know how much they matter to me through cards. My gratITude cards work great for this.
G – Give more. Never stop giving value is a surefire way you’ll keep these connections strong. Because as Cynthia Kersey said, “Giving is the most potent force on the planet and has significant impact on every area of your life.”

As your inspired life mentor, Janae Bower is passionate about helping YOU live a more balanced, purposeful and inspired life! Her writings, speaking and coaching are the spark of inspiration you need to energize you on your journey of personal transformation.

 

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The Great V-Day Give Away

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Happy Valentine’s Day!

Valentine’s Day is my favorite holiday because it is all about spreading and celebrating LOVE! When I was also thinking about what V-day could mean, I thought of the word VALUE. So I thought on this special day why don’t I share with YOU what I most love and value, which should bring you some more love and value in your life.

I wrote a blog post about this on my website and wanted to share it with you. You are going to love these valuable resources I’m giving away to support your faith, marriage and life! (Click here)


As your inspired life mentor, Janae Bower is passionate about helping YOU live a more balanced, purposeful and inspired life! Her writings, speaking and coaching are the spark of inspiration you need to energize you on your journey of personal transformation.

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Who can you relate to?

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Waiting for my son’s well check-up in the doctor’s office we read a book together. It was one that we read together last year in the challenge reading program that I volunteer for in his school. It’s called Zen Shorts and is a good story with some great messages that have been passed down through the generations.
I was reminded of one of my favorites and this is my interpretation of it. It’s about two monks that are near a big puddle. There is a queen who needs to cross the puddle and her helpers are busy carrying all of her belongings so they can’t carry her. She refuses to cross the puddle so the older monk carries her across on his back. When they are safely on the other side, she refuses to thank or acknowledge him.
The two monks continue walking. The younger monk, who was been stewing about what happened for hours, finally can’t hold it in any longer. He shares his disgrace for how the woman treated him and asked why he doesn’t seem upset by it.
The older and wiser monk responds, “I stopped carrying her hours ago and suggest that you do the same.”
We often carrying things with us much longer than we should that keep us stressed and sabotage our success.
If you want to go deeper on how to avoid the mistakes that keep us from having the peace of mind like the older monk I mentioned above, to I suggest that you listen to the new and free inspirational audio presentation I created on this. Click here.

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Janae Bower is an inspirational speaker, award-winning author and training consultant. She founded Finding IT, a company that specializes in personal and professional development getting to the heart of what matters most. She started Project GratOtude, a movement to increase gratitude in people’s lives.
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Best Version of YOU

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George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright, was asked who would he want to be (anyone in the course of history) if he could go back and do it all over again. His answer was that he would be the man he never was.
The time is now to be the “best versions of ourselves,” as taught by author and speaker Matthew Kelly. We have one life on earth to live. I’ve always been passionate about living without regrets, so I was very inspired by Kelly’s audio presentation that we were listening to at our yearly WINGS (Women in Nourishing Groups for the Soul) retreat with my soul sisters, Sara Zittlow and Julie Wylie.
Kelly discussed the importance of being the best version of ourselves in four dimensions – physically, spiritually, mentally and socially/emotionally. This is exactly what we’ve been doing as a WINGS group for the past 13 years, helping each other soar in our own journey of personal transformation.
One of our retreat traditions is writing a letter to ourselves that we will open up a year from now at our next retreat. It’s a way for us to put our intentions in writing and intend what we would like our upcoming year to bring us. I always enjoy writing these letters and reading them a year later.
Brian Tracy, well known speaker and author, says it another way. At the beginning of this year make a commitment to make this the best year of your life. Then project into the year to the last day of the year on Dec. 31. Give gratitude that it was the best year. Then write about why it was your best year. What was it that you did and accomplished, who were you being and who were you with?
To help make sure that you don’t stay stressed and sabotage your success, I’ve recorded this complimentary presentation for you to enjoy that will help you make sure that you live without regrets and become the best version of YOU! Click here.

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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As your inspired life mentor, Janae Bower inspires YOU to live a balanced and purposeful life. She founded Finding IT and started Project GratOtude, a movement to increase gratitude in people’s lives.

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Believe and be a bit more regal

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So many messages this holiday season are around the importance of believing. I’m reminded of the classic movie The Polar Express in which one of the little boy’s messages to learn and embrace is to believe. Just this past evening I watched a Hallmark movie called The Wishing Well. It had a similar theme for the wishing well in order to work. First those making a wish must really believe in it and second it needs to be the right wish.

A few days ago when I was visioning with a colleague on a upcoming project that we are both passionate about, a beautiful cardinal kept landing on this tree just outside the window. Its bold red color against the white snow background made for a spectacular scene. What lesson does the cardinal want us to learn? Here’s what I found out.

The cardinal reminds us to hold ourselves with pride – not ego pride. Rather, the cardinal asks us to stand a little taller, be a bit more regal, step into our natural confidence as if we were born to lead with grace and nobility. Those who attract the cardinal as their totem are naturally energetic, love life, and happily help others where/when they can. Call upon the cardinal when you are feeling low (especially if you have the winter blues). Also call on the cardinal when you need bolstering for an event you are nervous about – the cardinal is better than B-12 for giving energy and vitality to those who need it!

Our hope is that as you close out the year you’ll be grateful for all your wishes come true this year. Our wish for you is that you have the faith to really believe in all of the great things for this upcoming year. Stand tall and step into this next year with confidence and nobility.

Thank you for investing your time in our blog. We hope that it’s enriched your life in some way and we thank you for enriching ours.

Many blessings to you and yours…

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Janae Bower is an inspirational speaker, award-winning author and training consultant. She founded Finding IT, a company that specializes in personal and professional development getting to the heart of what matters most. She started Project GratOtude, a movement to increase gratitude in people’s lives.

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The Fuel for Your Fire Within

A-man-getting-a-refuel-in-a-station.
The great thing about cars is that we know when we are getting low in fuel. We can just look at the gas tank to see how close to empty we are. Then we know that it’s time to stop at the gas station and fill up.
Wouldn’t this be great if we could do the same thing for us? Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just check a switch to see when our tanks are emptying, so we know when we need to fill up?
The problem is that we don’t. Even if we could, I wonder how many of us would pay attention to it. Dr. Stephen Covey asks the question in his signature program The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People “Have you ever been too busy running that you forgot to fill up your gas?“
Let’s play with this analogy further. Our bodies need energy or fuel to run. So you can think of our bodies like tanks. Each day we have to fuel up until the end of the day when we run on empty and go sleep. The first thing we do in the morning is fuel up. How are you fueling up? It is with a good dose of fuel like exercise, a brainy breakfast, and time with God? Or are you fueling up with quick energy boosters like caffeine, coffee, or negative thoughts from others on TV or the radio?
Most of the spiritual teachers I know or have studied talk about the importance of fueling up with positive things that uplift and inspire. When I spend my morning time in my “God Cave,” I ask God to fill me and fuel me with his love. I do my best to be on empty so I have the space within for Him to fill me up. The times I choose not to get God’s fuel for the day are the days I feel off and long for this inner refueling.
What kind of fuel are you filling up with each day?

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Janae Bower is an inspirational speaker, award-winning author and training consultant. She founded Finding IT, a company that specializes in personal and professional development getting to the heart of what matters most. She started Project GratOtude, a movement to increase gratitude in people’s lives.

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Dysfunctional beliefs

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We’ve all heard of the term dysfunctional people, but today I heard a speaker allude to the thought of having dysfunctional beliefs. Wow, what an enlightening thought. We all do have those thoughts or beliefs in our lives that lead us into dysfunction. When we get our beliefs right is when we do right.
A belief is a thought repeated over and over and thus deemed as a belief. One dysfunctional belief I’ve had and have recently made the decision to cut off this belief entirely from my mindset is that I can’t make a living through the products I’ve created. You see for years I would sell my products “on the side” while the real money I made in my business was through the training and consulting work that I did. For a while that was a belief because it was my reality. But now as I’m trying to shift my reality for that to no longer be the case, I then need to break free of this belief as its dysfunctional and holding me back in my business.
How about you? What dysfunctional beliefs have you had that you would like to let go off.? Please share with us your comments. Make the decision right now to cut it out of your mindset. Like me, you’ll feel this sense of expansion and will see things differently. This will allow you and I to create a belief that is expansive and not constrictive.

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Janae Bower is an inspirational speaker, award-winning author and training consultant. She founded Finding IT, a company that specializes in personal and professional development getting to the heart of what matters most. She started Project GratOtude, a movement to increase gratitude in people’s lives.
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Flying High and Nice Try

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PART 1

Tomorrow is a big day for me. It marks the unveiling of a contest for transformational authors that I entered for my new book on July 31st. Three hundred plus aspiring published authors from all around the world entered their book proposal for the contest.
To even enter this contest, I took a lot of risks and relied on my faith. Whether I’m one of the winners or not, I know that I feel a huge sense of accomplishment just signing up for the contest. As many times with our dreams we don’t even take them seriously enough to sign up for it.
The other thing that I can feel good about is that no matter what the outcome, I do know that I gave it my best. I did everything possible that I could to make my proposal the best possible one that I could submit. One of the things that I did was a “releasing it to God” ceremony I’ll call it.
Before I hit the send button to officially submit my proposal in the contest, I printed off the proposal along with my book cover. I went outside on this gorgeous summer day and in bare feet walked our labyrinth. As I did this, I prayed to God and the angels for gratitude in blessing me with writing this book. Then symbolically and spiritually I gave it to them, releasing it now in their hands. This picture I took as I felt the divine light shining upon me when was doing this.
The other interesting this is that when I was doing my walking prayer ritual a fly landed on my book cover. It stayed on the cover for a while. I didn’t flick it away like I normally do with the flies. I was wondering if this fly guy was trying to tell me something.
I didn’t look up the symbolism of the fly until today, the day before the contest. I was hoping it might give me some insight into what the outcome will be tomorrow. While some of the sources listed the negative aspects of a fly, other sources spoke to my soul about a fly signifying a multifaceted vision and listening to your intuition.
“The fly teaches the ability to greatly multiply prosperity, endeavors and ventures at enormous rates. He shows how to be quick to act and respond to achieve results. Fly aids in demonstrating the power of keen eyesight along with expanding awareness in many directions.”
This gives me hope in how this little insect, just like making progress toward my dream can provide greater insight and prosperity than we know. As I wait until tomorrow, I’ll hold onto the fly’s wisdom.

PART 2 – Flying High

Today’s the day and the fly was right, I was one of the top ten contest winners! I was in awe and so overwhelmed as to all the hard work I’ve put toward the book AND the confirmation that my book is an endeavor that experts in the field deem credible.
One of my prizes is the top access to the transformational author program for 2013, which I’m thrilled about because it was such an incredible program. The second prize I received is that a president of a major publishing company will critique my proposal and if it’s a fit I could receive a publishing contract. Receiving a contract to publish my book and to have a partner to do so is a lifelong dream. I wait with great hope and continue to pray for this opportunity to come to fruition.
The night before I found out my answer there was a fly in our house. I saw my husband smack it with a fly swatter and it fell to its death. Immediately, I thought I hope that’s not a sign for what’s to come.

Part 3 – Nice Try

Unfortunately, I was right with the fly. The next day the dream with this particular publisher is dead. He didn’t feel that how my proposal was currently written would be a fit for their organization. While I’m extremely grateful for his critique, of course I am disappointed that I was not selected. Most successful publishers have been rejected multiple times, and this is not my first rejection either. While this lead is dead, the good thing is that they are other opportunities out there just like there are a ton of flies around. Now I just need to regroup with my dream and get ready to fly in a different direction.

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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.

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Janae Bower is an inspirational speaker, award-winning author and training consultant. She founded Finding IT, a company that specializes in personal and professional development getting to the heart of what matters most. She started Project GratOtude, a movement to increase gratitude in people’s lives.