03Dez 2024 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

How to Embrace The Aging Journey

About your Coach, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Yesterday I went for a health check. The doctor told me that everything is mostly fine. There are just a few small things that could be counteracted. For example, the natural aging process. Hormone deficiency, fat around the middle, and muscle loss were mentioned. Medication was contraindicated. Suggestions for optimal nutrition were made. The doctor also suggested endurance and strength training twice a week. In addition, one could counteract the hormone deficiency, preferably with creams. As I sat listening to the wealth of information and suggestions, I also asked myself to what extent Western medicine attributes positive aspects to the aging process, or whether the focus is purely on the body bending to life. That sounds rather deterministic, doesn't it? What about, for example, wisdom, empathy, and a greater sense…
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28Mrz 2024 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments
Challenging Compassionately & Directly

Challenging Compassionately & Directly

Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Uncategorized
Coaching is pointing out what I sense, hear and see to benefit the client.* The magic of coaching is in the set up and in the intentions. And it works. My superpower is that I am very empathetic and I listen exceptionally well, which creates an open and safe environment that bubbles with prospects. Another potential lies in the way coaching challenges a person’s thinking and beliefs compassionately and directly. Here is an example: Imagine someone who keeps putting off making arrangements regarding the succession of their business. Said person is in their 70s and their health has become a bit fragile. Asked in the right context with a compassionate intention, a direct challenge would be: “What if you were not able to attend to your business, starting tomorrow and…
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02Mrz 2024 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments
Think in Positive Terms & Increase Your Potential

Think in Positive Terms & Increase Your Potential

Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Nature, Problem Solving
You have probably heard that our subconscious brain cannot process a negative command. In simple terms, when you are told, “Don’t think of a pink cat!”, you cannot help but think of a pink cat (mine had blue whiskers). And this brings me to my topic for today: Everything we create starts with a thought, then comes language, and communication, and slowly the world is created and recreated. Here is a thought to practice with: Imagine peace More: If you want to dive in deeper, think of a recent challenge and formulate it in positive instead of negative terms. An example: Instead of telling myself, “I want to spend less time sitting” (negative term), I say, “I spend more time walking” (positive term). See how one’s focus shifts? Walk more…
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02Feb 2024 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Gratitude Changes Life As We Know It

Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Are you a glass-half-full or a glass-half-empty person? Whichever one you are, you are right, and this perspective likely shapes how you see the world in general. Another metaphor is that every object casts a shadow in the daylight, and depending on your perspective, you might stand in the shadow or see the shadow that something is casting as dominating the whole picture. Gratitude compares to stepping into the sunshine and seeing the “other side” of things. It is just a matter of perspectives. Every position is subjective. We are free to change our perspective. What are you grateful for today? Photo by Mayur Gala, Unsplash 2024 ________________________________ Manuela Zeitlhofer | Mental Fitness & Nature Coach
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29Sep 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments
European Starlings in North America | Contemplations about Invasive Species

European Starlings in North America | Contemplations about Invasive Species

Connecting with Nature, Mindfulness, Nature, Personal Development
A Story about Three Baby Birds A few years back, an old lady asked me to raise three newly hatched starlings that had she had found at the foot of a big old tree. Reluctantly, I took them in, and lo and behold I was able to raise and release them successfully. Whenever I see or hear starlings since then, I like telling my daughter that those are our three starlings saying thank you. Today, a extraordinarily big flock of starlings landed around the house and well beyond the creek. They were so loud it was both amazing and a little bit intimidating. Afterwards I thought about writing about this, as in "I had rescued the starlings and they came back with all their friends to thank me", when I…
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16Aug 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Finding Your Wild Self & Living A Full Life

Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Manuela & Anya, 2022 The doors to the world of the wild Self are few but precious. If you have a deep scar, that is a door, if you have an old, old story, that is a door. If you love the sky and the water so much you almost cannot bear it, that is a door. If you yearn for a deeper life, a full life, a sane life, that is a door. ― Clarissa Pinkola Estés (Photo by Sandra Grünewald, Unsplash, 2023) One of my doors is behind the pain and loneliness I experienced when I was a toddler, in a hospital, for several months, tied down so I would not fidget with my leg (it was in a cast), or stand up (which might have jeopardized the…
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08Aug 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

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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28Jun 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Minding the Little Things

Connecting with Nature, Mindfulness, Nature
Leopard Frog I just came across a very small (what I believe to be a) leopard frog. Why I saw it? – Because it moved. Once it stopped, I had a hard time finding it again. Can you spot it in the picture-insert? Leopard Frog, June 28, 2023 When I held out my hand the frog jumped on it. It did not stop but kept moving, and I felt fortunate to get one shot with the little amphibian in focus. I am sharing this experience, because I felt so passionate about this sighting, so amazed at how tiny, how perfect and how fragile this little frog is. That created a sense of responsibility and reverence in me. What I learned from the encounter: Frogs are amazing. Life is precious. I…
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14Jun 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

In the Face of Negative Emotions

Getting to know your Coach, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness
What is the Gift of Negative Emotions? I generally like to present myself well composed and in control of my negative emotions. I don’t like to be seen when my negative inner voices - like my inner critic - 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 are always doing wonders 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. You Are Not Alone If you…
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14Jun 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Spirit Plants

Connecting with Nature, Mindfulness
When I lived in the Yukon, I was given a handful of Haskap berries. I harvested the tiny seeds and started them. I planted the little plants in a raised bed. They survived winter after winter, and after a three years they produced their first fruit. When I left the Yukon, I took some seeds with me. The whole story repeated itself, and we had our first berries last summer. This summer, we have such an abundant harvest, which made me think that Haskap bushes are definitely my spirit plant: They are easy going, produce fruit very early in the season and for an extended period, they are abundant, appreciative of what I can give them, they are decorative, and they are not of interest to little harvesters like chipmunks…
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06Jun 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Your Body Has You Covered

Connecting with Nature, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness
When the fog is too thick for you to find your way around, your body knows where to go. That might be a bit of a metaphorical exaggeration. Please bear with me as I unroll my thoughts: Unfortunately, our area is currently experiencing dense smog from wildfires in this and other provinces of Canada. While we cannot really smell it (unlike yesterday, when the smell of a cold fire pit hung in the air), my chest felt heavy this morning, I felt reluctant to take a deep breath, and a headache was (and is) lingering. I pointed out to my daughter that there are people who spend their lives in conditions like this, where the air is polluted all the time. And how lucky we can be that this is…
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05Jun 2023 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

When Life Happens

Mindfulness, Personal Development
We live on the side of a beautiful creek. In the spring, the water level is fairly high and the current is fairly strong; strong enough so I can swim in it without moving in relation to the shore line. It is perfect: cool, refreshing, clean. The birds are singing, the mosquitoes cannot get to me, and all I see is nature. I have a tendency to forget this beautiful setting, when the water level drops radically later in the season and the flow comes to a halt, until the creek is full of long algae. That is partially due to the fact that this creek drains from a lake that is dammed up so the people with cottages around it can enjoy the water all summer, when there is…
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29Dez 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Pictures Touch

Mindfulness
I use pictures in coaching to evoke reflection, inspiration, and associations. Something in a picture might evoke an association, a thought or a feeling that wants to be talked about. For example: In a coaching session, a client might say that they feel stuck. I might show them the following card, and they in turn can share what they see, and what the card makes them think about, thus getting the person “un-stuck”. Question: What does that card make YOU think about? Please comment or send me a message. Source: Dixit Board Game __________ If you are curious about more thought-provoking questions and inspirations, I am looking forward to meeting you in a Free Discovery Meeting:
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14Dez 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

The 3-To-1 Positivity Ratio

Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Research shows that our brains are hard-wired to over-emphasize the negative experiences we have. Due to an evolutionary survival mechanism called the “negativity bias”, the human brain holds on to and amplifies the negative much more than the positive. It was more essential for our distant ancestors to remember the experience with the dangerous bear, than the beautiful field of flowers. According to Dr. Barbara Fredrickson (University of North Carolina, 2009), we need three positive experiences for every negative emotional experience in order to keep a positive mindset. According to her, we can actively build a collaborative relationship between our survival minds and our thrive minds. This 3-to-1 ratio should be maintained both in thoughts and feelings, as well as in interactions with people that matter to us. 1 2…
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02Dez 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Playing to our strengths

Connecting with Nature, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
What Playing to Your Strength is Playing to your strength means doing what you are doing well and with passion, rather than doing other things that drain you with a lot more effort. An example: A friend’s son was assessed for ADHD. In the process, it was found that he is simply a kid who needs more physical exercise than he was getting in school and at home. It was not easy, but the school and the parents found ways for him to get more play time outside and more time when he is unplugged from any technical devices. This story led me to think about people in general: - Are we living our lives playing to our strengths or are we just playing along with the structures we find…
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23Sep 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Judgement is Disconnecting

Conflict Management, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Judging others, circumstances, or oneself is stripping an event of its embeddedness into the system it occurred in. – Manuela Zeitlhofer (2022) (photo by Eskay Lim, Unsplash, 2022) Have you ever noticed yourself judging others, circumstances and yourself (!) with a very sharp and self-righteous mind? And has it ever happened, that – in comparable situations – you found yourself full of compassion, or curiosity over the mistakes and wrongdoings of others and yourself? If you can relate to both, you might sense that... …judgement comes from within, because ever external circumstance can lead you to either be judgemental or compassionate. (Some contributing factors might be the self-care you treat yourself with, and how full your reservoir of self-love is.) …there are factors inside of you that sabotage you, your…
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03Aug 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

My Animal Teachers

Connecting with Nature, Mindfulness, Personal Development
Minding The Little Things Series Dora & Speckles, June 21, 2021 After I had written my previous two posts, a racoon attacked and killed one of our ducks: Dora, a little black female. I was reminded that nature is neither good nor bad, nature just IS. The racoon needs to eat. The ducks don’t fight back. (And I failed to keep them safe, as our electric netting fence was not strong enough to keep the racoon out.) We have been planning to get a dog in September. Too late for Dora, but hopefully the dog will deter any predators and keep our remaining ducks safe. I am still sad about loosing that little bird. And I am contemplating what it means to be human, and to have the choice to…
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28Jul 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Animal Communication

Connecting with Nature, Mental Fitness, Mindfulness, Personal Development
For many people, animal communication is something that only the 'gifted few' can achieve. This of course is entirely untrue as we were all born with the ability to talk to and hear animals. Holly Davis, Animal Communication With All Species __________ Challenge: Communicate with the next animal you see. Then drop me a note! What have you learned? “Starlings”, by Manuela Zeitlhofer, May 28, 2020 __________ Manuela Zeitlhofer | Authenticity & Mental Fitness Coach
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28Jul 2022 by Manuela Zeitlhofer No Comments

Animal Teachers

Connecting with Nature, Mindfulness, Personal Development, Philosophy
How frequently do you interact with animals in your daily life? – Chances are that those interactions are scarce, or limited to pets. Our societies might have separated humans from animals, seeing humans as superior to animals. Yet, we admire certain qualities in specific animals. What can we learn from animals? How about patience, living in the Now, connectedness with the intricate web of life we are part of, responsibility, attentive listening, living in tune with the natural world, and sticking together. (inspired by 10 Important Life Lessons we can Learn From Animals) __________ Can you guess which animals possess then traits listed above? – This can be a rewarding activity to do with your child! Also, you might want to observe animals around you to see which traits they…
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