Judy's Journey

New projects

2009-08-25T03:36:00.000-07:00

I'm blogging about my own change process at www.judyrees.co.uk and my new project is taking shape at www.xraylistening.com

New site now live

2005-09-13T09:59:00.000-07:00

My shiny new web site is now live at www.purpleflash.co.uk

Bear with me while I sort the blog module out!

Just because it's impossible...

2005-09-12T10:13:00.000-07:00

"There's no use trying" said Alice "one can't believe impossible things". "I dare say you haven't had much practice" said the Queen ... "Why sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."
Alice in Wonderland

Want to increase your capacity to achieve the impossible? Why not try a Pizzawalk?

Suddenly things are moving...

2005-09-09T09:14:00.000-07:00

I've been sitting here waiting... and waiting... and waiting... for so long it seems unreal to know that in just a few days I'll be out of here.

This company has been my "lab" for eight years. At one time it was everything to me.

Now it's going to be just a memory.

If any of my guinea pigs are reading this: "Thanks for all the fish!"

It's been great working with you. Good luck with your next adventures - I'll be willing you on.

Free NLP taster session anyone? Contact me at judy.rees(at)gmail.com

Perfect

2005-08-30T08:29:00.000-07:00

I dreamed last night that everything was perfect.

That I was perfect, that you were perfect, that everything was just as it should be.

Have you imagined that perfect stillness, that perfect peace?

Because the fact that it can be imagined means that it can be experienced - right here, right now, and forever...

If I were to blog today...

2005-08-25T15:35:00.000-07:00

I'd tell the story of what happened to me in the last few days and weeks.

Of an adventure in the frozen north: a week of cosmic energy, sunshine and synchronicity.

Then a time to regroup, to collect my thoughts, to breathe deeply.

Then thrown into the pit of snakes. Pitch-dark and screaming. And all for my own good.

And then rescue. Peace. A brilliant genius. A new life. It'll never be the same again.

On the other hand in some ways there's no need for me to use this blog now. I can speak my mind aloud! I can say how I feel, without fear. And there's no going back.

It's a fantastic feeling!

More steps in synchronicity

2005-08-06T13:24:00.000-07:00

Did I tell you how much I love walking, running, or cycling alone in the hills?

How the fresh air fills my heart and mind with new ideas, how the movement thrills my body with new ways of being?

And did I tell you about the synchronicity engine?

Like a cobweb glistening in a summer morning hedgerow
Fine threads link leaf to twig, twig to blossom, blossom to grass
Send a thought-shimmer through gossamer
Hear an answering shiver from a distant dreamer

Warm, still, soft days when the butterflies play
Enjoying the scents and riding the breeze
The web is gentle, waiting, waiting
Peacefully connecting...

It's then a dream links to another dreamer,
An idea takes solid shape in space-time
Somewhere, somehow, the web casts a crystal dewdrop
Holding a rainbow...

Fabulous fear!

2005-07-27T11:44:00.000-07:00

Glitzy and glamorous
Simmery and shiny
Elegant and ecstatic
Fabulous fear

Dark and mysterious
Satin and velvet
Power and presence
Fabulous fear

Whining and worrying
Frozen and shaking
Screaming hysteria
Fabulous fear

Swallowing cities
Spinning through space
Crossing whole continents
Fabulous fear

A pinprick of pleasure
A taste of excitement
A mind-body blowout
All fabulous fear

Dumb-ass sorceror!

2005-07-26T12:17:00.000-07:00

Ever watched a supreme sorceror out chasin' wimmin?

On Sunday night, I watched one trawling the bars of Nottingham with a sidekick nearly 20 years his junior.

They were a magical comedy turn: stunning the prettiest girls with their hypnotic stories, then walking away empty-handed. Didn't they notice when they were winning? Apparently not.

Dumb-ass!

Still, violets are blue... or purple.

2005-07-21T16:20:00.000-07:00

It's just a ride...

2005-07-17T17:10:00.000-07:00

I've just manifested a carousel!

Complete with horses and steam organ: only the music was wrong. But I got the Dambusters (aka "Here we go") so it's close enough

"Normal people" maybe don't go round manifesting their dreams and fantasies into the physical realm...

And "normal women" apparently don't ask which is the scariest ride on the fair and then go on it on their own...

But the guy in the bookshop didn't bat an eyelid when I suggested that the Illuminatus Trilogy might be moving itself from section to section - from Mysteries to SciFi to Fiction to MindBodySpirit - to see what might happen if it did...

What a fantastic ride!

I wonder...

2005-07-15T11:35:00.000-07:00

What if love were the answer?
What if the poets of all the ages told the truth?

What if it were possible to trust another person
To know every secret, every dream,
And to love and be loved in return?

What if sharing your world meant freedom, not captivity,
Adventure, not aggression,
Excitement, ecstasy, openness?

Maybe the sorceress and the wizard...
Magical passion and enchanting moments...
Riding together to the furthest horizon...

A magic bus

2005-07-13T18:31:00.000-07:00

What if the secret of perfect happiness was on the Number 11? Would you climb aboard?

You’re on the journey of a lifetime… and everyone on the bus has a special question, just for you.

Simple stuff first from the friendly driver: “What would you like to have happen?”

Gentle probing from the young mum sitting nearby: “How will you know when you’ve got it?”

The boys upstairs are sharper. “What will it look like? What will you hear? How will it taste?

And there's the commuters: "Is it really important to you? Can you make your dream wilder? Wider? Wiser? More wonderful?”

You work your way round, your head spinning with new ideas, new insights, new approaches…

At last there’s just one more person on the bus. He’s the drunk, and he’s asleep at the back of the bottom deck, clutching a can of Special Brew. He’s scary.

You could wake him, and absolutely anything could happen. Or you could push the bell… and miss out on perfect happiness.

What would you do?

Satin sails

2005-07-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

…the jewel grew deeper and deeper, misty, dreamy, destiny, drawing the eye that notices still deeper, still…

Stepping softly down, the sorceress soon left the portal far behind and plunged deep into the dreamscape opening up before her…

A wide ocean and a little boat… and a grail to be won, a dragon to be slain, a fortune to be found, a wild horse to capture...

Setting sails of purple satin into a sky of deepest midnight

Bejewelled

2005-07-10T21:50:00.000-07:00

The sorceress rides out through the forest of wisdom. Each tree holds a lesson; each new glade a subject to explore; each blade of grass a smiling face; each fallen log a chance to dream. She fills her lungs with the bright air, the rich smell of leaves, earth, bracken... and waits entranced as the setting sun sends shafts of golden light to cast soft spells on the forest floor...

At twilight she comes to an ancient hall. Silence. Tethering her mount she approaches the massive oak door and gently pushes - it opens easily. Inside, the room is deserted, abandoned in the midst of a feast. A fire still glows in the huge fireplace, the table piled high with food, the glasses filled. The long, wooden benches have been pushed back, hurriedly. A mystery?

In the jumble of leaves and straw around the doorway, a glimmer of purple. A jewel, a dark treasure. Its deep colour seems to draw the eye inside the eye inside... a purple flash. Inside there is movement, swirling vague, purple mists, then shapes, then figures, then faces.

Inside the jewel, the dream.

Bungee jumping without a rope

2005-07-08T16:28:00.000-07:00

Wheee! I've been scad diving

Inspired by a suggestion to "make this the day you resolve to stop feeling fear, forever", I was hoisted up in a crane then dropped into a cargo net.

Not sure I've quite cracked the "not feeling fear" bit, but I certainly looked less fearful than my fellow jumpers!

The sequence I use to calm myself, and which worked in this case, is:
Notice the physical sensations you're feeling - notice where they are, what they are
Realise that they are physical sensations and they carry no meaning in themselves
Accept them
Unfocus your eyes and drop into peripheral vision
Ensure there is saliva in your mouth
Conjure, in your imagination, the special picture and the special sound you use for reassurance. For me, the picture is of a particular person and the sound is the theme tune to "The Wombles".
Do the thing you're afraid of, and survive!

Wheeee!

"Don't write about fear at a time like this!"

2005-07-07T17:25:00.000-07:00

Fear?

Like the guy on the radio just now who was trapped in pitch darkness in a tube train this morning, smoke billowing about, people screaming hysterically, smashing windows with their bare hands and then being afraid to jump out onto the line for fear of electrocution...

like the station announcer who had to remain at his post to keep repeating the order to clear the station immediately, despite the shaking in his voice, with no idea whether there's a bomb within range...

like the doctors from the BMA who ran outside to treat the wounded despite the obvious danger of a secondary device...

they were all afraid. And they carried on, did what was neccessary, despite (or because of) their fear. Big credit to them and every one of today's heroes.

All of London has been afraid at some time today. London's friends and relatives are afraid in their turn. Soon the whole world's afraid... without any sign of immediate danger.

Notice that fear. Notice where in your body you feel it, whether it's moving or still, hot or cold...

I'm not going to suggest you change that feeling unless you want to. Maybe it's appropriate for you to experience it fully, right now. Notice it's your feeling to have exactly as you feel it's right for you, now..

And notice that fear won't stop you being a hero, if that's what you want to be.

Frames, Fear, Feedback and Freedom

2005-07-06T09:15:00.000-07:00

The story of this blog is a story of storytelling. If the objective truth is that there is no objective truth, all that matters is the stories we tell ourselves; the metaphors we choose to drive our lives.

I could choose a frame like this: "I'm a supperannuated hack sitting waiting for the sack. Scrapheaped to mark my 40th birthday. The bastards."

Or I could choose to be a magical sorceress setting out on a quest for freedom and perfect happiness.

Both fit the available "facts", and I know which one I prefer. So I'm choosing to live that one.

My life used to be ruled by fear. I was painfully shy, terrified of revealing anything about myself to other people for fear of what might happen if I did. I daren't even look at them to see how they were reacting to me - I used to think I didn't need to since I could "feel" it anyway. The only "safe" way to be was to shrink and shrink and shrink until there was nothing left of me, shut the nothing in a box and put it away.

NLP practitioner training with Reg Connolly got me out of the box and allowed me to stretch my limbs again. I could look people in the eye, ask for feedback, notice how people reacted to me, reveal some elements of who I might be, experiments with new ideas and new behaviours.

That was fine until this April, when I decided it was time to go for Master Practitioner. Suddenly, without warning, on the first morning of the course, I was hit by a giant, all-consuming wave of fear. I turned and ran. The wave passed. Then another. It passed. And another. And another. And another. And finally, a black wall of fear that stopped me in my tracks, unable to move forward or back or up or down or scream or breathe…

Luckily, Jamie was there with a lifebelt… and that wave, too, passed.

How do you know when you feel fear? Maybe your heart pounds, maybe your mouth feels dry, maybe butterflies in the stomach…

Maybe that feeling could be labelled "excitement". People pay serious money to ride rollercoasters, watch horror movies and jump out of planes, just to experience this feeling. Maybe this feeling is fantastic!

And when I tell this story it's just a story. It's a story of frames, fear and feedback. Ultimately, for me, it's a story of freedom.

Judy

Half full or half empty?

2005-07-05T14:10:00.000-07:00

What you focus on increases.

The brilliant (and cuddly) Jamie Smart asks, rhetorically: "Look at me. Have I been focussing on press-ups... or pies?"

So I've been focussing on how I want my life to be. I'd like more synchronicity, more helpful people, more mind-bending ideas, more positive feedback, more opportunities to work with people who make me feel great... and the scope to fulfill my destiny by telling stories that change worlds.

In just a few days, I've been astounded by the results. Bring it on!

Another friend, Shiri Gill, suggests: "Whatever the universe gives you, ask for double."

So, I think I'll supersize life!

And if you happen to be a brilliant hypnotist or NLPer, or an NLP researcher, who's looking for a master of the written (and published) word - drop me a mail :-)

2005-07-05T14:00:00.000-07:00

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

Apparently. I hope you know what that means, because TBH I don't.

Many thanks to Adam Eason for the suggestion.

2005-07-05T07:58:00.000-07:00

This is me! I'm still trying to figure out how to crop the pic... All hints and tips welcome :)

Quantum non-local phenomena

2005-07-04T15:30:00.000-07:00

I've had a fantastic weekend, away from it all in the Cotswolds - and experiencing non-local phenomena.

I'd set my frame by posting this on an NLP forum, as an answer to someone else's problem:

"I think it's a perfect opportunity for you to do some change work "content free"! If your hunch is correct, then by pressing her to tell you what she's stressed about she'll just feel more pressured and get more stressed, because at the moment she can't tell you. It's the rules.

Instead, take her somewhere with a beautiful, open view. Go walking, cycling, or horse-riding. Watch films about freedom. Talk about big dreams others (not you) might have. Get her into a lovely relaxed state and encourage her to dream the biggest, most fantastic dreams she can - but she's not allowed to tell you the content, for now! She has the dream experience, you experience the curiosity...

When she's itching to tell you and can't bear to keep quiet, insist she tells you not the actual content, but a story which is "a bit like" what she's thinking - a metaphor. Then listen."

So I took off to take my own advice, walking solidly for two days and staying in the youth hostel at Stow-on-the-Wold.

Peak experiences included finding a lavender farm, where the fields were the colour of Milton Erickson's pyjamas and the smell was intensely magical. Take the smell of lavender. Quadruple it. Add a layer of sunshine and a breese of citrussy cut grass. Breathe deeply...

The second day was hot and sunny, and just as magical.

In the afternoon I was walking through riverside meadows, on mown paths through tall grasses. Turquoise damsel flies darted everywhere, and a flock of brown velvet butterflies flew in formation like starlings.

I'd lots to think about, including my future career etc. And some mundane things - I was due to lend quite a rare book to a stranger on the web, Chris, and should ask him for something in return. But what? In mid-afternoon, it struck me: ask him to find Matt (someone I'd met only once, but who lived in the same city as Chris).

It took him about five minutes after I asked Chris this morning. Matt turns out to be his NLP trainer, who was training Chris's group - though with Chris not present - at the time the thought struck me. He claims to have been talking about me in a story for the group at that particular moment. I'm getting that independently checked out now :)

Spooky? No. Just a non-local phenomenon...

2005-07-01T10:18:00.000-07:00

Deep beneath the mountain, a giant sleeps in a hall of crystal….

Fire at the castle. Flames flick and lick the windows, burning higher, brighter, stronger. Blistering, searing, sighing. Timbers crash. Heat builds, glowing, growing.

With a sudden flash of steel the magician rides out of the flaming tunnel, proud on a white charger, cream robes trimmed with sparkling, shimmering silver.

Raising her banner of red and gold, she spurs her horse and thunders towards the green hills.

The quest begins…

Current enthusiasms...

2005-06-30T16:00:00.000-07:00

Running round my head at the moment are two songs: Jem's "Just A Ride", and the old Northern Soul classic "(Got the) Sweetest Feeling" - can't remember the artist. Both brilliant. Both setting me up for a fine time.

Puzzling me at the moment is the question of whether there's an optimum degree of "wanting" something that makes the universe switch on its synchronicity systems and deliver the goods. I'm due to see Gary Outrageous tonight at Richmond NLP Group, who talks about creating "wanton desire" in one's customers. To me, that's not always a good thing...

Interesting me at the moment is a thing called Human Design. Lance Aittchisen at The Human Design Library is doing me a chart at the moment. He says it works, it's amazingly accurate. I can't see how it can, except by encouraging self-acceptance in general.

Exciting me at the moment is the idea of self-disclosure and the risks involved, hence this blog...

Hello!

2005-06-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

I'm here thanks to a suggestion by Stephen Cotterell of Building Better Outcomes in Brighton.

No idea what's going to happen with this, but here goes...