Teresa joined me to talk about her recent book, Pausing…Long Enough to Notice. My intrigue in her book was piqued when she offered it to me and told me to think of a question I had, then open the book to any page and the answer would appear. Skeptical though I was, I still participated and was astounded by the results.

The question I asked myself was, “What are my next steps?” and I opened the book to a page where my finger was pointing to a sentence that started, “The next step is…” I almost fell over.
The book is incredibly powerful. I recommend you grab a copy for yourself. You can order it from Teresa at www.TeresaDHuggins.com or through Amazon.com.
So what advice did Teresa have to share with everyone? It’s pretty simple stuff, yet powerful at the same time.
She started with describing how she starts her day, and she recommends that everyone start with some deep belly breaths first thing in the morning, as breathing from your belly (as opposed to your chest) reconnects you to your body. Then imagine your day. If you don’t have a plan for the day, imagine the possibilities, and complete the sentence, “Wouldn’t it be fun if…”
When I pointed out that the world has not been much fun lately, at least where the economy is concerned, I asked her advice on how to address this, so as not to let it bring us down.
I love her response, where she talks about the re-balancing going on right now. The economy is off balance, and it is simply in the process of finding its balance again. This is a great concept to use any time you get knocked off balance. You cannot re-balance when you’re stressed and frantic. It requires calmness, so pause…and notice what you’re feeling, and then do what you can to re-balance yourself.
Feeling inspired by her answer, I asked Teresa to talk about the challenges many people experience around focus and attachment. Specifically, I wanted her advice on how to remain focused and yet unattached to the result (which creates expectations).
Teresa shared her practice, which is to hold the intention of what she wants to accomplish, and actually picture it in her mind. Then she metaphorically cuts the string to that balloon and watches it float away. So she sees what she wants, but does not attach to it. In fact, Teresa detaches from it, which opens her up to trusting, allowing and inviting what is to be.
Teresa also shared that it’s important to release the how, yet focus on what or why. She gave a phenomenal business example that I can’t give justice to in this article, so you’ll have to listen to the call (CD enclosed – enjoy!).
Teresa also offered some other great nuggets of advice, such as:
  • Your business & your life should be about what brings you joy and how you can share that with others and make a living doing it!
  • Passion moves people, so operate there. Connect to the feeling the product or service you offer provides, and let go of any apology attached to sharing it. Engage people in sales by focusing on what you want them to feel, not what you want them to buy.
  • It doesn’t matter what you say, it only matters how you make others feel.
In closing I want to say that I hope all of you have someone in your life like Teresa, who, to me, is the epitome of calm in a joyful vessel. It’s important to have someone like that in your life, someone who you can focus on when you’re in a crisis, and will remind you to keep your calm and Pause…long enough to notice.