by Danielle on June 11, 2009
OMG, you guys. It feels like it’s been forever.
I’m working feverishly behind the scenes on my next big things. Recovering from board exams for one. Yikes. That was a really crazy push. It was three solid weeks of non-stop test preparation and another three weeks it seems for my brain and my body to start to consider feeling normal again. It made me think a lot about how easy it is to let everything go (like, um, eating normal food perhaps!) when something that stressful comes along. And, how hard it is to get back on track. But more on that later over on my new health, wellness and sustainability blog, Somaphile.
Which brings me to … Somaphile.
It’s up! I’ve been talking about starting this blog for what seems like an eternity. I had to almost tie myself to a chair to keep studying for boards instead of designing my new blog because I was just so excited. And, truthfully, I did sneak a few days in before my heavy studying began just so I could launch it on Earth Day. Give me a break. I’ve been studying science and other left-brain stuff for like five straight years. The designer in me is just about ready to burst.
So although it seems a little dusty over there, there is a lot going on in the background (including a lot of catching up with all the crazy stuff that has changed since I was a web designer several years ago, which basically means learning it all over again — and loving every minute of it) and it will be buzzing with activity soon!
I’ve also been working on beefing up this site.
As I said in my last post, I’m working on some simple, low cost web and marketing information/templates for people just starting a new business that don’t know squat about the web and don’t feel like they have money to pay big bucks designers. The inspiration came from watching my fellow classmates at chiropractic school squirm when it came to anything related to business and marketing. Probably because although our school attempted to teach us about such things … well, its not a business school. A lot of chiropractors (and naturopaths, acupuncturists, massage therapists, etc.) start out on their own, things like business and marketing become real important, real fast.
Since I have this background, I want to create something to help my compadres. And, because there is this insane lag time between graduation and when licensing happens it’s also a way for me to earn a little income on the side to make those hefty student loan payments. So win-win. Yay! I love win-win.
In the meantime, I’m going to use this site as a place to funnel some of the amazing information I’ve found on the net after days and months of scouring. There is support out there for small business owners — some really amazing content that is free or really low cost that beats the pants off of any formal education I got.
I just think there is so much good coming out of the alternative health care movement and we have a chance to really make a difference for our patients and communities (and the planet!). We can’t do that hidden inside the office hoping our right people will stumble upon what we do. Learning to a. find that unique thing you do and b. tell people about it is an art. It’s really not that difficult (technically speaking) but can bring up all sorts of resistance — especially after being as fried as we are coming out of such rigorous programs. I’m hoping that the information I provide here is simple, practical and helpful.
So, there you have it. My update. Both this site and my other site, Somaphile, will see lots of changes and growth over the new several weeks and months. If you are here now (hi!), pardon the dust for just a little while longer.
by Danielle on April 30, 2009
I’ve been getting a ton of questions about websites and marketing — cause, you know, we didn’t really learn that stuff at all in school. Not the real life version anyway.
I’m working on putting together some basic, getting started information for healing practitioners soon. It will be packages like Getting Started with Your Own Website for a Fraction of the Cost of Hiring a Designer, some basic Marketing for Dummies stuff and a few website templates to help get you started.
All without the typical smarm you get with traditional marketing information. I mean we’re healers. We’re not going door-to-door selling vacuums. (Not that there is anything wrong with that, really.)
In the meantime, I’ve been studying with some really amazing, heart-centered small business folks.
Havi Brooks from Fluent Self is a genius when it comes to heart-centered marketing (she calls it “biggifying” because the even the word “marketing” is too smarmy for her. I call it “marketing” because I used to be a full-on Corporate Whore).
For those of you uncomfortable with the whole used-care salesman feel to marketing yourself, but you really do want to get some people in the door somehow, her website might be a great fit for you.
She is putting together a telecourse this Sunday on getting good testimonials. For chiropractors (and any service professional really) testimonials can be extremely helpful in getting more people in the door. Anything to give potential new patients a sense of trust in you. And, getting good testimonials can be tricky.
She’ll be going over things like:
- Exactly what to say to people so that when you ask you don’t have to feel gross about it and they won’t resent you for asking.
- Why she never gives testimonials, but the one thing you could do to get a really good one from her anyway.
- How to get referrals even when you can’t talk about what you do.
- How to ask for testimonials and/or referrals without making it seem like you’re asking.
Seriously, guys. She’s good. I wouldn’t send you to her if the quality wasn’t really high. I can’t speak for everyone, but at my school, we just didn’t get good quality business education!
And, you can get a serious discount on this already way too low priced course by answering a simple question easily answered by reading a couple of her most recent blog posts. If you can’t find the answer or just don’t feel like it, ask me and I’ll just give it to you.
Oh, and if you can’t make the telecourse at that specific time, no worries. She always sends out a recording after. You can pop it into your MP3 player of choice and listen while you are out on a run or whatever.
But sign up for the course BEFORE it starts on Sunday. Even if you can’t make it to the live telecourse.
Sign up for the Stuff Havi Thinks You Should Know (about how to get really, really great testimonials and referrals without feeling gross about it or making people hate you) course.
Cheers and happy practicing!
by Danielle on February 24, 2009
I’ve had a mild obsession with going green and being healthier lately.
The more I learn about my impact and begin to implement healthier changes in my life, the more questions I have. With more questions comes more answers and it becomes obvious that everything is connected.
What you eat, how you feel, what chemicals you put in your body and your environment — all of these things matter. You begin to see the chemicals in the bathroom cleaners — that we paradoxically use to get that sparkling white idea of clean — get flushed down the drain, into the water system which come back to you in the forms of your everyday food and water. Those chemicals give you cancer. And, they give the entire the entire planet cancer.
It seems daunting at first. But, really. It’s not.
Because, once you start — you can’t stop! You begin to realize that not only are the changes doable, but they are necessary.
For me, it started with this nagging little voice that said, “What are you so attached to, really? What are you afraid of, really?”
I’ll tell you what I’m afraid of! I’m afraid that when I actually look at how bad my impact is and how lame I’ve been, I’ll never be able to look at myself with any respect again and will implode into the guilt and shame of it all.
Once I realized I was perhaps being slightly over-dramatic — I put my big girl pants on and started gently wading out of denial. I just started where I was. I mean, it is what it is. This is where I am. This is where we are. Let’s just deal with it, pull ourselves out of the matrix and get on with it already. We’re living in insanity right now!
I began where I always need to begin when I need to change a bad habit. With simple mindfulness. I became more aware of my daily life. My routine, the things I used and for what purpose I used them, my own health. I surrendered to the possibility that it’s all related. I started by just paying attention and asking a lot of questions — trying not to judge myself and with the intent to just raise my awareness.
I developed a simple curiosity.
About things:
What am I using this for?
How is it made?
What is it made of?
Is it good for me?
Is it bad for me?
What is going to happen to it when I’m finished with it?
What sort of impact does it have on the system as a whole?
Could this impact come back to harm me?
About my routine/process:
What am I doing this for?
Is there a better way?
Is this good for me?
Is this bad for me?
How does this feel?
Some of the answers became immediately obvious once I asked the question. Some answers needed digging. (Thanks, Internet!) Some answers were so complicated that they just get tabled for the time being. But the question plants a seed.
Shocked by my own complacency.
As I started educating myself, I was amazed by own denial and subsequent impact. And, here I thought I was a good person!
The good news is, once I got out of denial it was amazingly easy to stay out of denial. And, a whole new world opened up to me. I automatically made changes that were easy for me. The curiosity became infectious and leached into other parts of my life. It’s no longer just about de-cluttering, or greening my lifestyle. It is also about my health and well-being — from doing more yoga to cutting out the chemicals in my life. From eating more nutritious foods to dusting off the cobwebs in my head.
I’m not sure when it happened, but before long I passed the point of no return. Now, I can’t not consider these questions for every one of my actions.
I kicked off my 33rd year with a lot of Virgo Rampaging. De-cluttering my desk turned out to be just the tip of the iceburg … of a huge mountain of stuff that’s needs to be sorted. And, I find myself more than happy to sort it. It has become a meditation. It has given me a sense of empowerment in the midst of all the chaos.
Stay tuned for more about what I’ve done, what I’m working on and a few confessions along the way. In the meantime, I’d love to hear any tips, tricks, trials, tribulations, what-have-you from you about your greening/getting healthier experiences.
by Danielle on January 20, 2009
I learned how to knit this year. I can’t even remember exactly when but I think it was in the summer. My sister taught me a knit stitch and then I was off to the internet to learn the rest. What I have discovered is a lovely way to ground myself.
I tried a few times to make scarves with complicated patterns. This just frustrated me and got me stuck in my head. Once I allowed myself to just keep it simple, I discovered the zen of knitting. I can just knit and knit for hours, listening to great music, a podcast or just basking in the silence. The activity of knitting keeps me engaged just enough to not wander off in my thoughts to all sorts of other things. But, it’s not so complicated that I get frustrated and give up. The great thing is there is so much room to grow … right now I’m very content with the simple, basic stitches and patterns but as soon as I’m ready to advance, I can. At my own pace and my own time.
When I learned that my brother and sister-in-law were having a baby, I knew it was time for me to try making a blanket. This was the next advancement for me. I decided to keep the pattern very simple. My husband and I went out and found some whimsical yarn and I came home and went to work.
At first, I was super anal about it and kept starting over every time I made a little mistake or felt like the pattern was too complicated or not cute enough. I was too attached to the perfection of it. Days would pass without working on it. I felt this familiar procrastination tug. I was secretly hoping that this wouldn’t turn into another one of those unfinished projects.
But I really wanted to do this for my brother and sister-in-law. And for my new baby niece.
I realized that I would never finish the damn blanket if I stayed so focused on the perfection of it. So, I untangled the whole thing and decided to keep the pattern super simple. And I would focus on just the knitting — if I messed up, I would do my best to fix it then and move on.
So I stitched and stitched and stitched.
Knitting became a meditation. I listened to music that filled my heart and knit, knit, knit. Sometimes my mind would wander and I would make a mistake. Then I would back up, fix my mistake and get back into my groove. I knit so much that my body would start to hurt.
Knitting became a form of yoga. Tugs of pain in my neck or back would remind me to put myself in better alignment — sit up straight, shoulders back, abs strong. The pain would go away and I would keep knitting. Pain would settle back in right as I noticed my mind was wandering and I was making a mistake.
My body and mind started working together. {Break through!!!}
When I was on skein six and seven, I was listening to a podcast about Buddhism. Something I’ve always had an interest in and never could find the time to learn about. I ended up learning a lot more about mindfulness, meditation, restlessness. It helped me go even deeper into meditation and the knitting became even more fluid.
Before I knew it, I had only one skein of yarn left. I was almost finished! We got a call that very evening that labor was about to commence. While my husband was giving his little bro a pep talk, I was finishing the blanket. As Oliva joined the world, I completed her blanket. This blanket that was at first filled with frustration but ended up giving me peace of mind. That blanket was filled with a lot of great energy … I could feel it as my hand brushed over the lumpy stitches of soft wool.
Thank you Oliva, for teaching me about mindfulness and giving me a reason to deepen my mediation and yoga practice. I hope this blanket serves as a source of comfort for you for years to come.
by Danielle on January 3, 2009
I kicked off 2008 by taking three months off from school. I was so. Completely. Fried. I don’t even remember what I accomplished, if anything, during this time off. At the time I felt like a complete loser for not doing all these projects I should have done. I mostly spent time on the internet being a Super Dork. But, man. I needed that break. I think everyone around me needed that break.
It was messy. I cleaned it up …
Went through my Virgo Rampage earlier in the year. That was the best thing I’ve done in a long time. During this time I got back into yoga and meditation. Both seemed easier somehow and I’ve actually stuck to a regular practice of both. The effects on my body and mind are very subtle, yet incredibly profound.
… and, discovered my excitement for all things green.
This process created a space in my life to bring my attention squarely on the planet and inspired me to really make a commitment to going green. It really does start with the small things and the small things are pretty easy to implement. I have become a little addicted to this process of creating rather than consuming, reducing my waste, lessening my dependence on oils and chemicals. Now look for opportunities to go green all the time. This has changed my outlook, given me some peace and I’ve already noticed a huge difference in my pocketbook. I really look forward to a clean and green 2009 and am sure it will be a huge source of content and conversation for this blog!
I was lost and then found myself on the web.
I also discovered blogs and podcasts this year. I knew they were out there but never really found anything that hit this close home. Then I found The Fluent Self, People Building Podcast and Hillary’s Yoga Podcast. I haven’t sent a letter of proper gratitude to these women yet. I’ve been too speechless.
And deep, deep, deep in a lot of self-work.
And, unable to fathom how to even begin to thank them for the rich content they provide. There are tons of other great sites and shows I have discovered but these three were at the core of my awakening this year. I very much look forward to becoming more interactive with such positive, uplifting and insightful people.
In 2009, I will become a doctor.
It’s exciting. It’s scary. It’s incredibly humbling. It’s bewildering in some ways.
And I very much look forward to helping people with move past their stuff around getting healthy. I know how hard it is, I’m knee deep in it myself. So I have TONS to write about. There will be a blog with a health/body specific focus from me in the near future. Stay tuned!
And the transition continues.
I am totally in the middle of a transition. The beginning of ‘08 was some hard stuff.
Man, I was tired.
The end of the year found me with unbridled optimism and a glimpse of peace. Can’t really complain about that. I don’t see the transition from ‘08 to ‘09 to be a black-and-white, this-thing-stops-and-the-other-thing-begins at this specific moment kind of change over. I just can’t do resolutions like that. I do know that in 2009 my life will change in ways I can’t totally comprehend. My intent is to simply focus my body, my soul and my mind to become as open and prepared as possible to what lies before me.
