sacred journey

Sacred Journey to Your Best Work

By Charlie Mitchell

Sacred Journey to Your Best Work © 2015 Charlie Mitchell 2

Contents

Sacred Journey to Your Best Work ............................................................................................ 1

About Charlie Mitchell, FRSA ..................................................................................................... 4

Background ................................................................................................................................ 5

Different ways to take part ........................................................................................................ 6

Welcome! ................................................................................................................................... 7

How to use this self-study programme...................................................................................... 8

The guide ................................................................................................................................ 8

The suggested creative resources.......................................................................................... 8

Agreement for our working together ...................................................................................... 11

This is your time ................................................................................................................... 11

Be true to yourself ............................................................................................................... 11

Know when you need help .................................................................................................. 11

Be kind to yourself ............................................................................................................... 12

Make space for your journey ............................................................................................... 12

Be present ............................................................................................................................ 13

Appreciating we are equals ................................................................................................. 13

Taking notes ......................................................................................................................... 14

Potential ............................................................................................................................... 14

Reflection ............................................................................................................................. 14

You decide! .......................................................................................................................... 14

Enjoy the journey ................................................................................................................. 15

My commitment to you ....................................................................................................... 15

Your commitment to yourself .............................................................................................. 15


Questions to get you started ................................................................................................... 16

Work ................................................................................................................................. 16

Personal ........................................................................................................................... 17

Sacred Journey to Your Best Work .......................................................................................... 18

Stage 1: Our tribe ..................................................................................................................... 20

Stage 2: Wisdom of others ....................................................................................................... 21

Stage 3: Rites of passage .......................................................................................................... 22

Stage 4: Consider our challenges and changes to our best work ............................................ 23

Stage 5: Mindfulness and reflection on our best work ........................................................... 24

Stage 6: Defining your self-purpose and your best work ........................................................ 25

Stage 7: Undertake the challenge ............................................................................................ 27

Stage 8: Preparation for your best work ................................................................................. 28

Stage 9: Presenting ourselves and our best work to the world .............................................. 29

Stage 10: Death: what we choose to leave behind ................................................................. 30

Stage 11: Symbols with meaning to support our future journey ............................................ 31

Stage 12: Celebration ceremony witnessed by the tribe ........................................................ 32

Enjoy the next phase of your journey! .................................................................................... 33

Reflection sheet ....................................................................................................................... 34


About Charlie Mitchell, FRSA

Charlie brings positivity and creativity to all her coaching,

facilitation and guest speaking. She is passionate about helping

people to develop and progress in a holistic way, in line with their

values. This has led her to work across sectors, often bringing

people from different backgrounds together to learn from each

other.

She has done a variety of one-to-one coaching with a diverse range of people including young

people facing multiple challenges, middle managers and senior leaders. She has been an

Executive Coach as part of national leadership development programmes. She has developed

a range of coaching courses, including nationally recognised ILM coaching qualifications, to

support coaches with their development, and promotes reflection to enable coaches to

develop their work effectively.

For more information visit:

http://uk.linkedin.com/in/charliemitchellcs4u

http://uk.linkedin.com/in/charliemitchellcs4u


Background

I have had an incredible journey through my life, developing my work, having my amazing

children and exploring what is really important to me. I have faced many challenges at

different times, including facing homelessness, challenges with my own mental health,

supporting close family with theirs, battling with my weight, low self-esteem and panic

attacks. I have also challenged myself to overcome my fears by going in a microlight, running

(and walking) the London Marathon, and travelling to parts of India that have not been visited

by Westerners before.

My life’s journey has led to me explore a diverse range of tools and techniques that might

support my own development. I have been incredibly

fortunate to work with hundreds of amazing people,

supporting them on their own personal and

professional journeys. I have taken the aspects of

these pivotal moments that have had the biggest

impact on me and my clients and put them into one

place. Sacred Journey to Your Best Work has become

that place.

As I looked at how to present my findings, the words

‘rite of passage’ kept coming up for me. I have taken

the road less travelled; I have left the reassuring

shoreline to cross the unknown sea; I have stepped

into the darkness not knowing where light would

come from. These reflections have led me to do

research into ancient rites of passage and the

processes that were used. I realised very quickly that

my pivotal moments fitted directly into a common 12 stage process that many rites have in

common from across the world and over the years.

Sacred Journey to Your Best Work was born! It had its own first rite of passage!


Different ways to take part

This booklet is intended as a self-study programme that you can work through at your own

pace and in your own time, developing your own journey through the process I have

developed.

However, there are several ways you can take part:

Use the booklet by yourself

Get coaching from me to support you through the process, where I can help you to

stick to the programme and work with you to help you get the most out of it

Take part in a 6 week online programme that gives more information about each

stage, we work through the process together,

alongside others. This has the benefit of

accountability and a ready-made tribe to

support you through the process

Take part in a 12 week programme that goes into

greater detail and gives you the opportunity to

integrate the process further

A weekend residential, with 12 individually

designed workshops, each powerful in their own

right, which follow the process. This is a very

deep experience that is only available to people

once they are ready to take part and

participation in the 12 week programme is an

entry requirement

A yearlong emersion in the process, combining coaching and residential workshops,

where the tribe is pivotal to the process. This may be particularly of interest to those

who would like to be able to use the process as part of their coaching practice as there

is an opportunity to become a licenced practitioner at the end of the year


Welcome!

Thank you for taking the time to join me on this journey. There are so many different ways

you can spend your time and I appreciate you deciding to take the time to experience this

approach to developing your best work.

So many people amble from one day to the next knowing they want things to be different and

yet not actively doing anything about it. We have all heard of people who have stumbled over

good fortune, whether that’s happened by winning the lottery or becoming an overnight

celebrity because of particular talent.

However, we also hear about people who lose their money as quickly as they gain it, or whose

success has brought them an equal measure of challenges.

This 12 stage approach to developing your work is from the inside out. It is about helping you

to gain different perspectives on aspects of your work that you take for granted: ‘well that’s

just how it is’. It is about giving you the time, space and tools to have some ‘ah ha’ moments

that will change how you see yourself and your work forever. Once the light has been

switched on, you forever more know that darkness is not the full story.


How to use this self-study programme

Here are some ways you can use the guide and suggested creative resources mentioned.

The guide

There are many ways to use this guide. You can start at the:

Beginning and read all the way through, doing each of the activities in turn

Beginning and read through first, then go back and do the activities

Section that interests you the most and then decide where to go from there

Flip the guide open and start wherever your eyes land on the page

I am a firm believer that wherever you start you will find the parts that are most useful for

you. Life’s lessons are all around us, just waiting for our eyes to happen upon them. Where

we start is irrelevant. What we do with what we have is vital.

The suggested creative resources

As we work through the programme together I will refer to some creative resources that you

may find helpful. As always, use the things you are drawn to and leave the things that don’t

appeal. You do not have to use everything. As in all of life, you choose. Consider:

Nourishing hand cream

o To help you develop positive habits

A journal

o To use daily?

o As a success diary?

o As a gratitude diary?

o Scrapbook?

A magazine and newspaper

o For making a vision board?

Colouring pencils and pens

Modelling clay


Paper, scissors, glue

A small candle

Whatever you decide, you have all the resources you need. Create the

space and welcome change into your life.

Whenever you see this picture it means an opportunity to be creative. What inspires you

right now? Enjoy!

You can use the creative resources mentioned, or any others that you would like to use, in

any way that suits you. Try different things. Start with something that seems familiar and

each time you use them, try something slightly different. Doing things differently will help

you to get a different perspective. Sometimes the bits we fear the most, we need the most.

Be brave. Be daring. And be astounded. Small creative changes can led to significant results.

You could try:

Cutting pictures you like out of the magazine and putting them together – what do

you notice?

Cutting out words or phrases – what stands out?

Writing in different colours

Writing some in pen and some in pencil

Using the pencils as paints

Noticing which colours seem important – what is that telling you?

Combining your own words and picture with magazine cut outs

Going 3D with modelling clay

Going 3D with modelling clay and picture / words from the newspaper

Using poetry to express how you feel – no one else need ever see this – it can be for

your eyes only and the experimentation can unlock hidden compartments in your

soul!

Mind mapping can help you consider options

Take photos of things that stand out and add your pictures to your journal

Record you voice expressing what is important and play it back to yourself – what do

you notice?


Record a short video of something that grabs your attention and decide how you can

incorporate this into your creative process

Notice how your body feels, where you are holding tension and what feels good

Use your senses to fully experience your world – what would your ideal situation smell

like and sound like?

What else do you want to try?

Be willing to give new things a go, and see where they lead you. Refer back to this list as you

progress through the programme, to provide you with even more inspiration for the activities.


Agreement for our working together

Whenever I start coaching either one-to-one or in a group, we decide what will help us to

work together effectively. While you and I might never meet, I feel it is important for you to

consider these aspects, and for us both to make a commitment to this journey.

Why make a commitment? Your decision to commit to the coaching process is vital to

ensuring the changes you make are effective, rewarding and sustainable. Here are some

suggestions about aspects that you may want to consider. It is for you to decide what is

important for you.

Use your creative resources to make notes in your journal of the things you want to

remember. You can draw pictures, use coloured pens or pencils – it is up to you!

What intention would you like to set for completing this programme?

This is your time

It is your responsibility to decide what you want to focus on and determine what action you

will take. Make the most of your time – whether or not we pass through this way just once

we might as well make the most of it! What will you focus on?

Be true to yourself

As we go through this programme you will find out more about yourself, about what you like,

what you don’t like and what is really important to you. Be true to yourself and do not

compromise. What do you value?

Know when you need help

Everyone needs extra support at some time. There is a great Indian saying: we are all

supported by 1000 hands. People have helped us since before we were born, putting clothes

on our bodies, food in our mouths, building the cars we drive and TVs we watch. Occasionally,

something will touch you deeper than you expected. It is alright to get extra support. I have

referred a number of people I have worked with on to counselling, which can work really well


in tandem with coaching, to help you find peace with the past while getting excited about the

future. Who are your allies?

Be kind to yourself

It is really common for people to be self-critical when

they start to examine their lives and consider how they

make improvements. Sometimes areas that previously

seemed alright suddenly seem flawed, under the

microscope of our focus. This is natural and

understandable. It doesn’t mean it is time to beat

yourself with a big stick.

You can appreciate the work you are doing, appreciate

the steps you are taking and be secure in the knowledge

that you are doing the best you can with what you have.

We are all on a journey that started in different places

and will take us to different destinations. No other journey will be quite like yours. No one

else can make the contribution you can make.

Take some deep breaths, with your feet flat on the floor, and relax your shoulders. No matter

what has gone before you have an opportunity right now to choose your behaviour. Choose

compassion and start with yourself. How can you show kindness to yourself right now?

Make space for your journey

Consider where you are sat as you read this. What is going on around you? Where are you?

Who is with you? What will help to make this process more physically comfortable for you?

It is worth spending a little time making sure you are in a relaxed place, with space to do the

activities, whether that is at a table or on the floor. You may want to get some old newspapers

or cover the area you are going to use, to keep your space clean and tidy.

Make a commitment to have half an hour available at a time where you have peace and quiet,

giving yourself the best opportunity to immerse yourself in the programme. As the mother


of two young children, I know first-hand how difficult this can be. I also know that it is

possible. I have done childcare swaps with friends, got up early and gone to bed later to make

sure I have even 15 minutes a day to dedicate to me. This nourishing time makes all the

difference and gives you space to reflect. Commit what you can on a daily basis. We are what

we repeatedly do. What do you repeatedly do? What can you do differently?

Be present

Regardless of what has happened before, or what you would like to happen in the future,

enjoy this moment right now. Here and now is a great place to be. When we actually take

time to notice our current situation, we often find we are actually safe from immediate harm,

that we have some kind of roof over our head, that we probably know where our next meal

is going to come from, even if none of this is as we would like it to be.

You may want to start this

process by answering some

questions (at the end of

this section) that I

encourage all my clients to

complete before we start

working together. This can

help you to appreciate

what you have achieved

and consider what you

would like to be different,

while grounding you in the

present, where you are right now.

Appreciating we are equals

I go into the coaching process with clients, appreciating the knowledge, skills and experience

they already bring with them. We meet here as equals. I appreciate your unique journey

that has brought you to this point. Now is the time for you to appreciate your journey too.


Taking notes

I really recommend you take notes as you go through this process. You are welcome to write

and / or draw in this guide as we go through, highlighting the areas that are of interest and

writing your comments. Keeping a journal can be a fantastic way to gain insight into the

workings of your mind, themes that reoccur and to be able to appreciate the progress you

make.

I highly recommend Julia Cameron’s The Artists’ Way as an approach

to journaling if this is an area of interest for you. Just ten minutes a

day of free writing, a stream of consciousness including anything that

comes into your mind can help to unravel our thoughts about our

lives and clear space for peace and harmony. Don’t read back

through what you have written for at least 6 weeks and enjoy finding

the progress you have made!

Potential

I firmly believe we all have potential to grow and develop. While that growth is very different

for different people, it is valuable all the same. I like the saying ‘Performance is potential

without interference’. I hope this process will help you to get rid of some of the interference

and focus on developing your potential.

Reflection

I encourage all my clients to reflect between our sessions in order to maximise the time we

spend together. I have included an example reflection sheet at the end of this guide to help

you with this reflection. It can be adapted to suit your requirements.

You decide!

Ultimately, you decide what will be helpful for you. This is intended as a guide for you to

adapt to suit your needs. If there are activities that don’t suit you, leave them in favour of

the ones that excite you.


Enjoy the journey

The destination is never going to be

fantastic if you have had a horrendous

journey. Make sure you enjoy the process.

It is supposed to be enjoyable! Use your

resources as you wish: to play, to learn and

to grow – you’ll be surprised how much you

get out of the process.

My commitment to you

I promise to share with you the best of what I know, in the good faith that you will use it to

help benefit yourself and others.

Signed: Date: 06/07/2015

Your commitment to yourself

Decide if you really are prepared to commit to the process. If you

are, allow yourself 3 months to make changes, and try at least

100 times before you give up. Change does not happen

overnight. It takes doing something consecutively for 20 days to

create a new habit. If you miss a day, go back to day 1 and start

your 20 days again. Your commitment will pay off, especially

when you remember to be kind to yourself.

Your life will change beyond your wildest dreams and you will

look back and not believe the distance you have between where

you are now and where you started.

When you are ready to commit, sign here:_______________________ Date:__________

Well done for taking the first step – may it be the first step of many on your transformational

sacred journey.


Questions to get you started

You can answer these in words, using symbols or pictures, to gain clarity

about where you are right now. You can use your creative resources to cut

out pictures and words that represent answers for you. You can have one

picture per question, or create a collage of pictures, similar one to the example on page 4.

Work

What does your best work mean to you?

In 5 years’ time your best work will be…?

What would you most like to accomplish with your best work?

What words describe how you feel about your best work to date?

What aspects of your best work motivate you or give you energy?

Tell me three to five aspects of your best work that you are most proud of:

What has been your biggest disappointment about your best work?

What are your key aims for your best work?

What stops you from doing your best work?

What compliments or acknowledgements do you hear most often about yourself?


What learning would support your best work?

Personal

What do you contribute that is unique?

What special knowledge do you have?

What do you believe in?

What behaviours or beliefs do you hold that help you to achieve success?

What behaviours stand in the way of achieving success?

What do you do when you are really up against a barrier or obstacle?

What activities have meaning and spirit for you?

Take a moment to read through what you have written so far...

What two steps could you take immediately that would make the greatest difference in your

current situation?

1.

2.

What are the main areas you would like this programme to focus on?


Sacred Journey to Your Best Work

The Stages

I have developed a 12 stage process which I will explain in more detail over the coming pages.

This is based on research into ancient rites of passage from across the world, and common

stages of those rites. My intention is to provide a path for your journey. How you decide to

use the path is up to you.

The first three stages of the process are the groundwork. These set the scene and get us

thinking about the processes involved and what can support us:

Stage 1: Our tribe The aim of this section is to help you to think through who your tribe could be.

Stage 2: Wisdom of others This stage helps you to identify people who have already trodden this path, who have shown

courage and overcome obstacles

Stage 3: Rites of passage

Here we find out how rites of passage have been used to support a specific journey through

live, and the similarities and differences with our own journeys

The following 3 stages encourage you to separate from your previous experience of your

work, in order for something new to be able to grow:

Stage 4: Consider our challenges and changes to our best work It is vital we build trust in ourselves, to allow ourselves to be honest about our work and our

difficulties with that work

Stage 5: Mindfulness and reflection on our best work This is the time to process your journey so far and what you need for the next phase


Stage 6: Defining your self-purpose and your best work An opportunity to see your best work in a different way and to get different perspectives on

what is really important

The following 4 stages are the transition from your previous experience into your new

experience of your best work:

Stage 7: Undertake the challenge Here you commit to undertaking an extreme experience that will give you the confidence to

face your fears about your best work

Stage 8: Preparation for your best work This is an opportunity for you to review what needs to be resolved in order for you to move

forward into your best work

Stage 9: Presenting ourselves and our best work to the world Here we consider our outer confidence, voice, appearance and gravitas in presenting our best

work to others

Stage 10: Death: what we choose to leave behind This is a final chance to review what no longer serves us before we step into our best work

The final 2 stages are where we incorporate our best work into our future lives:

Stage 11: Symbols with meaning to support our future journey We consolidate what we have learned and develop our own symbols to support the

integration of our best work into our daily lives

Stage 12: Celebration ceremony witnessed by the tribe Finally, you present your journey, celebrate what you have learned and gain recognition from

your own tribe for the journey you have undertaken

How do you feel now? Use your creative resources to show how you feel,

or write a poem to show how you feel about the journey ahead of you.


Stage 1: Our tribe

The aim of this section is to help you to think through who your tribe could be.

No man (or woman) is an island. We all depend on other people for our survival, whether we

recognise it or not. Rites of passage were traditionally undertaken within a context of a tribe

or group of people. There may have been aspects that the individual did on their own.

However, their tribe witnessed, acknowledged and often supported the process in some way.

Stage 1 is an opportunity for you to think about your own tribe. In order to be able to get the

most from this journey, it is important to have the right people supporting you. Those who

are determined to see you succeed, who want to help you celebrate, and can even help to

pick you up if you fall.

Here are some questions to help you think about creating the best tribe for you:

Who is helpful and supportive of you doing your best work?

Who is already a big fan of your work?

Who would like to see you progress?

Who could you confide in about going through this process?

Who could you buddy up with to do parts of it together?

You may only want one, two or three people to be your tribe through this process. You may

want many more. You know what is right for you.

How will you prepare them to support you effectively?

What do you need from them?

What do they need to know and what do you want to keep private?

If you do not currently feel you have enough people, or would like to seek out new people,

how will you go about this? Where else can you look?

Getting this part right will make the rest of the journey dramatically more successful,

enjoyable and likely to be completed. Remember to thank your tribe for their support.


Stage 2: Wisdom of others

This stage helps you to identify people who have already trodden this path, who have shown

courage and overcome obstacles

It is so helpful to be able to see other people

who have already been able to walk the path

we want to walk. In times gone by, we would

have been very connected to our elders. We

would have lived with parents and

grandparents as a matter of course. We

would have been more connected to our

aunts, uncles, cousins and extended family.

We took for granted the wisdom of the older

people in our tribe and drew on their strength

as we moved through our lives.

Now, we live more independently in the western world. And this is not always a positive

experience. We are disconnected from that wisdom that served us in the past. And yet it is

still there. It sometimes takes more seeking out.

Here are some questions to help you think through identifying the right wisdom for your

journey:

Who has already walked this path?

Who has tried and succeed?

Who has learned along the way?

Who could be an important positive influence on your journey?

Which famous person could be an inspiration to you?

Which person closer to you could you learn from?

How can you find out more about their lives and their journeys?

If there is no one who has done exactly what you hope to do, who else has wisdom

that could support your journey?

For you, what is the most important aspect about others’ wisdom?

How can you use their journey to support you, even if you never meet?

Sacred Journey to Your Best Work © 2015 Charlie Mitchell

22

Stage 3: Rites of passage

Here we find out how rites of passage have been used to support a specific journey through

life, and the similarities and differences with our own journeys. So what is a rite of passage?

“An official ceremony or informal activity that marks an important stage or occasion

in a person's life, especially becoming an adult”1

So what are examples stage of life that of rites of passage could apply to?

Where people move from one phase in their life to another

Progressing from being a child to an adult

Getting married

Dying

What sorts of ceremonies are common?

Coming of age:

o First menstruation

o Sweet sixteen

o Wedding

Religious:

o Bat and Bar Mitzvah

o Baptism

o Confirmation

o Vision Quest

Academic:

o Graduation

What are the significant rites of passage in your own life?

Which have been planned?

What about unplanned events that have tested you and forced a transition from one

phase of your life to another?

1 Taken from: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/rite-of-passage [Date accessed: 7/7/15]

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/rite-of-passage


Stage 4: Consider our challenges and changes to our best work

It is vital we build trust in ourselves, to allow ourselves to be honest about our work and our

difficulties with that work

Answer the following questions:

What is holding you back from doing your best work? List 50 reasons

Of those 50 reasons, what are the biggest 10 barriers?

Take each one in turn: what do you need to do with this barrier to overcome it?

Who can support you in overcoming these challenges?

Who has already overcome this challenge and can shed light on the next steps you

could take?

What will you do with the other 40 barriers?

Which can you let go of?

How will you let go of them?

o Write them down, tear up the paper and let it float away on the wind?

o Burn them?

o Put them in a biodegradable bag and float them down a river?

o Put them in a bin away from your house?

o Give them to someone else to destroy?

o Put your head back and laugh at their ridiculousness?

What do you need to change about your life to do your best work?

What do you need to change about your tribe to do your best work?

What do you need to change about your finances to do your best work?

What do you need to change about your peacefulness to do your best work?

What else has to change?


Stage 5: Mindfulness and reflection on our best work

This is the time to process your journey so far and identify what you need

for the next phase.

Take some time to relax. Make sure you have no distractions. Turn off

your phone. Make sure your children are taken care of elsewhere. Allow

at least half an hour and ideally 3 hours, to truly immerse yourself.

What have you enjoyed so far?

What have you noticed?

What has surprised you?

What has made you laugh?

What have you remembered that you had forgotten?

What have you found difficult?

What do you need more support with?

Who is best to help you with that?

How can you be even more kind to yourself during the rest of this programme?

What will ensure you get the most out of the rest of this programme?

What else is important to reflect on?


Stage 6: Defining your self-purpose and your best work

An opportunity to see your best work in a different way and to get different perspectives on

what is really important.

Start with a clean piece of paper and the intention for your best work to

reveal itself to you. Make use of all your creative resources to create a

representation of your best work. This is about engaging with your right

brain – the creative side. Do not think too deeply right now about what seems to be

important. Just grab images, colours, textures, shapes that catch your attention. You could

collect images or words from magazines. You could use your modelling clay. You could write

words. This is a time to allow your best work to emerge.

What do you notice?

What is your creation telling you about your best work?

What has it shown you that you already know?

What is new for you?

When do you do your best work?

How do you know that is when you do your best work?

What makes your best work special?


What does your best work look like?

What does your best work smell like?

What does your best work taste like?

What does your best work feel like?

What does your best work sound like?

How does your best work feel in your heart?

How does your best work bring you stability?

How does your best work bring you variety?

How does your best work bring you love and connection?

How does your best work bring value to your life?

How does your best work support your contribution to the world?

How does your best work help you to grow?

What does it tell you about your self-purpose?

How can you bring more of your best work into your life?

What more do you need to do in order for your best work to flourish?

What else is important to notice about it?

Any other comments:

Take a photo of your creation and put it on your phone, on your laptop, print it out and put it

on your fridge.


Stage 7: Undertake the challenge

Here you commit to undertaking an extreme experience that will give you the confidence to

face your fears about your best work.

So at this stage on the residential programme, you would complete a firewalk. This would

involve you beginning by writing out all your hopes and fears. You would be involved in

building the fire, helping it to grow and appreciating its help in the next stage of your

development. You would go through a process to help you make the most of the firewalk,

including developing your own belief about what is possible by breaking an arrow in the

delicate, hollow part of your neck.

You would take it in turns to throw your fears into the fire, naming them if you wished to

release them to the power of the scorching flames.

You would take turns to throw your hopes and dreams into the fire, naming them if you

wished to release them to the power of the scorching flames.

You would finally prepare yourself and walk through the burning embers yourself, safe in the

knowledge that nothing would ever be the same again. You may surprise yourself, after the

first time, by wanting to walk again and again, by yourself and with your comrades,

overcoming your fears and stepping into your dreams.

This is an extreme way to challenge yourself.

What challenge will you commit to?

Previously I have:

Fasted for 24 hours for charity

Run half marathons

Run the London Marathon

Given birth to my children at home without medication

Overcome fear of flying by taking a microlight flight

What will test your limits?

What will push your boundaries?

What will extend your belief about what is possible?

Who, from your tribe, can help and support you through this process?

What else do you need to make this happen?


Stage 8: Preparation for your best work

This is an opportunity for you to review what needs to be resolved in order for you to move

forward into your best work.

Already you have been through quite a process. By reaching this stage, you have been

committed to your best work, and taken the time and effort to make it happen.

There may be some final steps that will take your best work to the next level. Review these

different areas and consider what preparation you still need to do in each area in order to be

able to offer your best work to the world:

What other aspects are not listed and need to be considered?

What other preparation do you need to undertake in order to be able to do your best work?

Who else can you approach for feedback on how to prepare for your best work?

What do your tribe say?

What do words of wisdom say?

What else is important?


Stage 9: Presenting ourselves and our best work to the world

Here we consider our outer confidence, voice, appearance and gravitas in presenting our best

work to others.

The journey we have undertaken so far has been, for the most part, about the changes you

can make internally within yourself. At this stage, we start to consider how we present

ourselves and our best work to the world. This can be a daunting prospect as we may have

interacted with the world in a certain way up until this point, perhaps being shy about our

best work, holding back and not genuinely showing the world the truth of our expression of

our essence. Now is the time to do things differently. To bravely step forward. To

courageously reveal our truth. To know it will not suit everyone, and to go ahead anyway.

Someone important to me once said that I did not have gravitas, and I struggled with this for

a long time. It took me many years to realise that they were right. When I was trying to be

someone else, to pretend my best work was something other than it was, when I was too

fearful to honestly show the world the essence of my real work, then I did lack gravitas.

I no longer feel this is an issue. When I am connected to my best work, to my true purpose,

when I am honest with myself and honest with the world, I find my voice. I find my back is

straighter, I am taller, and I am ready to take the steps necessary to bring my work into the

world.

What else do you need to feel fully confident?

What will ensure your voice is strong?

What changes do you need to make to your appearance so that it is congruent

with your best work?

How can you unleash your gravitas?


Stage 10: Death: what we choose to leave behind

This is a final chance to review what no longer serves us before we step into our best work.

We are coming to the end of the transition between the previous phase of our life and the

new phase of connecting fully with our best work. This gives us a final opportunity to review

our journey so far, and identify the things that we still carry and no longer serve us.

We have discussed already ways of letting go, and you can use the same process that you

have tried already, or you can try a different approach. The choice, as always, is yours. Here

is a reminder of the ways you can let go:

Write them down, tear up the paper and let it float away on the wind?

Burn them?

Put them in a biodegradable bag and float them down a river?

Put them in a bin away from your house?

Give them to someone else to destroy?

Put your head back and laugh at their ridiculousness?

What else would be helpful?

This time signifies the death of the previous phase. The end of the previous way you have

worked.

The only option from this point forward is to go ahead and embrace your best work.


Stage 11: Symbols with meaning to support our future journey

We consolidate what we have learned and develop our own symbols to support the

integration of our best work into our daily lives.

We have been through a powerful process and are emerging out the other side. If we were a

butterfly, we would be lying on a rock, having struggled out of the confines of the chrysalis,

and would be drying our wings in the sun before we take our first magnificent flight.

Butterflies have been a symbol for me for many years. At different times I have felt like the

caterpillar, with no connection to the beauty of the butterfly whose potential lay within me.

I have felt at different stages of the chrysalis, from the beginning where the caterpillar still

exists, to the middle where all that exists is the knowledge that enormous change is

underway, and through to the emergence or the butterfly.

I have found it incredibly helpful to have symbols around me to remind me of my journey,

and to keep me on track when I lose track of how far I have come.

The butterfly reminds me of the endless change, the

cycles of life, the potential that the caterpillar can

never see fulfilled, and the struggle through the

stages which is vital for the butterfly to develop

wings strong enough to fly.

The ring next to the butterfly reminds me of the

endless nature of life. It continues on forever, even

though our forms may change. Energy does not

end, it simply changes shape.

The ring on my thumb reminds me of the

importance of diversity. The importance of

respecting our differences, in others and in

ourselves. Appreciating the contradictions and

loving the lessons they can teach us about our own

truth.

Finally I keep the ashes from my firewalk in my purse, to remind me of my strength and of the

wonder and mystery of life, which can be purified by facing the heat of the furnace.

What symbols will remind you of your journey?

What will help you to bring a little of your journey into your everyday life?

What else?


Stage 12: Celebration ceremony witnessed by the tribe

Finally, you present your journey, celebrate what you have learned and gain recognition from

your own tribe for the journey you have undertaken.

You have come so far. The final stage is so important in ensuring your journey is integrated

properly into your life. Do not, under any circumstances, miss this stage out!

How would you like to present your journey?

What would be meaningful for you?

Who would you like to share it with?

How would you like to prepare them to share the experience with you?

What do you feel comfortable sharing about the journey itself?

How else could you share it?

What can ensure you give your journey the recognition it deserves?

This section may take some planning in order to come up with something appropriate. It

could involve several stages, and presenting your journey in different ways to different

people.

When we celebrate a journey together we ask people to speak about their journey in front of

their tribe, and guests that they want to invite to share in the experience. They present the

information in a way that is meaningful to them. Some have been hand drawn, some done

on the computer, some through poetry and even through dance. We have taken photos and

shared special food to mark the event. We have presented certificates that people can keep

to remember their particular journey, and given them a present that they can take with them

to continue their development in the next phase of their lives. We have encouraged them to

share their experiences of their presentations and groups have often formed a bond that has

lasted long after the programme has finished. What feels appropriate for you?


Enjoy the next phase of your journey!

Thank you for allowing me to walk alongside you as you have taken the time, effort and energy

to move into this next phase of your journey. I sincerely hope you have found it even half as

enlightening and transformational as I did when I undertook these activities myself.

If you would like to have regular positive updates do keep in contact:

https://www.facebook.com/SacredJourneyToYourBestWork

@Sacred_Journey_

uk.linkedin.com/in/charliemitchellcs4u/

If you have enjoyed this process, remember there is a 6 and 12 week course that goes into

more detail about each stage, a residential weekend and yearlong programme to support

coaches who wish to be able to use this approach with others. I also take a small number of

clients on a one-to-one basis, to support their sacred journey in a very personal way.

Your feedback is really important and has already been used to develop this guide. Please do

let me know your thoughts as I love to make sure my work is as relevant and effective as

possible: [email protected]

With warmest wishes for the continuation of your journey,

Charlie

Charlie Mitchell

Creative Coach Trainer,

Author, Speaker

https://www.facebook.com/SacredJourneyToYourBestWork

http://uk.linkedin.com/in/charliemitchellcs4u/

mailto:[email protected]


Reflection sheet

Date:

This week I plan to:

What actually happened?

What did I do differently at the time, to what I had planned?

How did I feel about it while it was happening?

What went well?

What could have been improved?

Other viewpoints: (if any)

How do I feel about it now?

Action plan: (SMARTER: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Resourced, Timebound,

Ethical, Reviewed)

sacred journey

Documents