Connecting over Garbage

Connecting with Nature, Getting to know your Coach, Mindfulness, Nature
At first, we saw some garbage, the usual, a few discarded food containers, a coffee cup lid, carelessly dropped or lost by the inattentive visitor. Nothing that could not easily be picked up and collected in a small garbage bag later (and I generally do, because it hurts my eye more to see the garbage than it is an effort to pick it up and dispose of it in a designated spot). It was a hot Sunday. We decided to go for a swim at a place along a river, where the water cascading over sheet rock is easy to access and not too deep. Walking on we came across an abandoned campsite, with bottles and aluminum foil in the fire pit. Right next to it was a good sized…
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Saving One’s Face

Getting to know your Coach, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness
I generally like to present myself well composed and in control of my negative emotions. I don’t like to be seen when my saboteurs (my negative inner voices) get the better of me. Feelings of stress, anxiety, self-doubt, frustration, restlessness, and unhappiness can be very unsettling. I work through strong emotions best by going outside. Walking and running have always worked well for me. Mental fitness activities have added a new and unexpected effectivity for me. I still experience negative emotions, but more and more I feel AND see them for what they are, and that makes it possible for me to step aside and that really takes the edge off those emotions. If you feel alone in and at the whim of negative emotions, I can assure you that…
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Unique Animals

Connecting with Nature, Getting to know your Coach
We have been enjoying the very unique personalities of several domestic ducks. It all began with a few barnyard-mix ducklings in 2021. In 2022, two Magpie-Cayuga ducklings followed. A number of them were males, so we found them loving new homes where they have been enjoying their own flocks of duck-ladies. At the end of this summer, we had one female (Sunny) and one male (Magnum) left. For the second time in her life, Sunny was in the process of laying eggs, and for the second time in my life, I was collecting those eggs. Sunny did not want to accept the fate I had chosen for her – that is, not to have ducklings in late fall. I kept reminding her that it is much more sensible to raise…
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Coaching with #ManuCoach4You

About your Coach, Getting to know your Coach
I work with people with a strong environmental conscience, who want to live a sustainable and responsible life without sacrificing what they love doing and thereby creating and strengthening their authentic self. My target group feels stuck between the responsibilities of (mid-)life, while yearning for more self-determination and connectedness to the natural world and the freedom of their younger years. There might be stress, anxiety, burn-out, and other internal or external conflicts that seem daunting. Through mental fitness training and coaching in, around and with the help of nature, I assist them in carving out time and energy to step into their full potential and experience their autonomy and authenticity. I do that by assisting them in reframing the problems into opportunities for growth. I have a long history of…
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My Wealth

Getting to know your Coach, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development, Philosophy, Self-Reliance
Do you associate wealth with money? I do struggle with the concept at times. Then I remind myself that I have enough. For me, it comes down to making the conscious decision to be happy in the Now. Because NOW is all we have. The past is a memory and the future is an imagination. Most of the time, I have all I NEED in the very moment I am in. It is often the WANTS that I want (!) to pursue. To remain still and just be, let the moment be all I want - that is happiness for me. My wealth is my happiness, the feeling of being enough, and of having enough (or more than enough), right now. __________ How about you? Where lies your wealth? And…
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Introspection for Introverts | Canada Day Gift

Introspection for Introverts | Canada Day Gift

Getting to know your Coach, Goals
Canadians are celebrating Canada Day on July 1. For 10+3 days (starting today), I am giving some of my time, expertise and devotion back: 🎁 My gift to 10+3 people* (in honor of the 10 Canadian provinces and 3 territories) is a 45-minute coaching-call each. 🎁 Book your coaching-call here: Please feel free to share this link with people you think might enjoy this gift: a safe space to hone in on introspective perspectives, and work toward goals. Why? I feel very fortunate and grateful to call this country my home. In Canada I have found freedom, adventures, love, a place to live, a wonderful child, incredible friends, and the liberty to develop and maintain a positive mindset. __________ Manuela Zeitlhofer | Mental Fitness Coach | The Introvert Solopreneur *For…
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Mehrere Perspektiven

Connecting with Nature, Getting to know your Coach, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Essentially, things just are. We attribute meaning to things and events. Sometimes we dwell in the negative aspects or implications of something, when there really are other sides to everything. In coaching we use this principle, and we call it reframing: We encourage a different perspective or seeing something in a different light. Today, I did this with my sandpit: Part of our property consists of a former sandpit that was left in its soil-deprived state. For the past 25 years, nothing more than a few tough grasses, willows and even fewer very tough pines and cedars (all looking like bonsais) have been growing here. In the summer, this bothers my agriculturalist’s heart. Now, with a little bit of snow, the steep banks make marvelous sliding hills. And I wonder…
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Common Ground: Connecting by Taking a Step Back

Conflict Management, Getting to know your Coach
We live behind an industrial woodlot. This time of the year, the guys (male-dominated workplace) are cutting and shredding wood. We see them twice a day on the way to and from the school bus, and we wave at them. They wave back. That is usually the extent of our interactions. Friendly neighbors. When my daughter’s friend came over, I asked the girls to stay well away from any big equipment. I also mentioned that we wave at the guys to say hi. My daughter’s friend’s mother (I am calling her Clara) said that no, they don’t to that, because you never know the intentions of strangers. That comment stirred up a set of emotions in me. Then I took a step back from the situation. I could sense the…
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