Author: angelos

The reason your anxiety is still here…

anxiety-sketch
I’m against “killing” anxiety.
 
When it comes to anxiety and negative emotions, there are thousands of articles out there on respected websites with a title of the type: “BEAT your anxiety, KILL your anxiety, GET RID OF your anxiety”.
 
But that’s exactly why anxiety is still there. Because you’re trying to kill it, to fight it, to run away from it!
 
If you want to feel better, ACCEPT your anxiety, WELCOME your anxiety, LOVE your anxiety.
 
LOVE yourself with your anxiety.
 
I’m also against asking “WHY I feel the way I feel”.
 
The chronic sufferer is suffering because they’re constantly asking WHY they’re suffering.
 
Why do I feel anxious?
 
Why can’t I stop thinking?
 
Why do I still feel that pain in my chest?
 
The obstacle to feeling better is you constantly asking why you’re not feeling better!
 
The habit of asking “why I feel the way I feel”, shows an unconscious attempt to escape from whatever you feel, to run away from it, to get rid of it right away.
 
But as the old saying goes, “what you resist, persists”.
 
Try for a week to allow all your emotions to be, to flow, to move.
 
You will feel better. Or maybe not. Still OK.
 
And if you start feeling better, don’t try to hold tight to it.
 
Allow those positive emotions to go and welcome those negative emotions back.
 
And let them come and go and come and go…
 
Have a lovely day and keep creating,
 
Angelos xx

PS: If you’re still meditating to stop your anxiety, I’d encourage you to stop meditating! Now you know why!

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You don’t find your passion; You CREATE it!

angelos-beach-waves
To find your passion, you have to be willing to look for it.
 
And when you finally find it, the time spent looking for it was not a waste.
 
The way I look at this is that your passion is not something you “find” technically.
 
Instead, you *create* your passion.
 
You let your passion manifest in your life because of the person you become along the journey towards finding your passion.
 
Looking for your passion is a dynamic process in which you grow, expose yourself to new experiences, things, people, to life itself.
 
This journey creates the “passion”.
 
Because, you, as a person, change while looking for your passion.
 
You are a different person now than the person who started looking for his passion 5 years ago.
 
Had you “found” your “passion” (the one you found today) 5 years ago, you would have not seen it!
 
You had to become the person you are now to be able to recognise your passion.
 
Had someone said to me 5 years ago that coaching would be my passion, I would have laughed!
 
Because I was not there yet.
 
If I had done a BSc. and PhD in “Coaching” (there isn’t such a thing) in my early 20’s, I still wouldn’t be able to coach anyone after graduation!
 
And even if you could have found your passion earlier, you didn’t waste your time.
 
Because the person you are now can fuel his passion with 10x more experiences, lessons, wisdom accumulated in the process of finding your passion.
 
You are the ONLY person who walked all these other unique paths to get to that one destination, ie. your passion.
 
Others may have got their earlier than you or walked different paths to get there.
 
You bring things to the table that are unique. That’s your advantage. You didn’t waste your time.
 
Someone who becomes a teacher after having spent years in the corporate world is a unique teacher!
 
A former biologist who becomes a doctor is a unique doctor.
 
A coach who used to be a musician, an engineer, a mathematician, a banker, a marketer, is a unique coach.
 
Get on this journey of exploration. Be open, curious, try, taste different things.
 
It’s the only way to find, or better say, create your passion.
 
Your passion is you, your own unique journey.
 
Love, Angelos

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If you think the door will open for you, it will.

open-door

People are constantly opening doors and windows for us.

The interesting thing is that some people will see the same door as opened while others as closed.

It’s how we ourselves perceive what others do for us.

If we walk around with our heart open, doors will open for us.

At every curve of your career (and life), doors will open for you if you think they will!

And sometimes all you need to do is smile at the door. <3 

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Can’t say no to unhealthy food or a bad habit? Try this 1min fix!

Next time you’re ready to eat some unhealthy food, ask yourself the following questions:

Is this food going to help me become who I want to become, ie. fit and healthy?

Is this food going to help me achieve my vision?

Is this food going to give me the energy I need to create something beautiful today?

Do you still feel like having that food?

It works! Try it!

Do this for any bad habit that’s no longer helping you become the person you’ve decided to become.

Love, Angelos

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The sea has made me a better coach

the-sea-is-my-muse

The sea has made me a better coach.

The sea is another coach of mine!

The sea is my muse!

Seeing this beauty every single day… inspires me to do good, to serve my people, to do work that matters, to live every day intensely.

I transact with the sea every single day in my life now.

And you know what?

All transactions with this beauty are credit ones!

The sea credits me with inspiration.

I take this inspiration and I give it to my clients.

I am only … the middle man! 🙂

Think about it…

If something as beautiful as this exists, my clients’ life can get as beautiful as this!

Everything is possible for them to create … just like … this beautiful creation itself!

To be precise, this is how it works…

When I see this beauty, I’m confident enough to convince my clients that their life is as beautiful!

NOW! Today! Right now! Without them changing anything!

And when they realise that…

When they see that beauty themselves…

The beauty that they couldn’t see before…

They are ready to make their lives even more beautiful, ie. achieve whatever change they want in their lives…

Sometimes (even better) they realise they don’t’ have to change anything…

They just couldn’t see that beauty…

They couldn’t see the sea inside them…

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If you’re thinking to quit your job… read this!

do-you-want-to-quit-your-job-read-this

YOU ARE THINKING TO QUIT YOUR JOB…

But you feel you’re not ready yet… 

Let me tell you this.

You will never feel 100% ready to do it.

You will never have enough money before you quit.

You will never have figured out exactly what you want to do next.

You will never feel 100% safe and secure and confident.

Quitting your job is a decision to make a jump and dive into the water. 🌊🌊🌊

It will feel uncomfortable, risky, but you know what?

You will never regret that you made that jump of freedom.

It will not just be a gift to yourself. You OWE this to yourself!

And you owe this to us!

If you don’t jump, we all are worse off… 😞😞😞

WE NEED YOU here in the deep sea, we need your light, your talents, your creative power and …

… you’re sitting there on your safe rock trading the gift of life for another paycheck.

Another year/month/day spent on that rock is the biggest risk one can take in this life! 

Quitting your job or anything that’s not right for you (same applies to relationships and other things) is a decision to explore life, find other islands and destinations even if that feels like you might die in the deep sea.

Well, it’s better to die in the deep sea rather than lavish on a safe rock forever.

But, the truth is… You will be safe! 💪

Life will reward you for making that jump!

Because there are others in the deep sea ready to guide you and support you until you find the island that’s right for you and your spirit.

And when others see you swim in the deep sea, they’ll take the courage to jump too.

That will be your impact…

So, my good friend, take your Wilson with you and sail away NOW as Chuck Noland would do! 

FREEDOM NOW! 🙌

Loving you,
Angelos

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To those who’re making good “bread”…

bakery-in-lefkada

This is what happened today in the bakery shop… 

… that fueled my inspiration and desire to do better work.

I recently discovered the best bakery shop in my town.

They make delicious bread there. 🍞

I mean… I can just have their bread for lunch!

Their bread with some Lefkadian extra virgin olive oil!

Really dangerous bread!

But what’s even more dangerous is that Anthoulla, the owner of the bakery, always makes sure she throws some more of her creations into my bread bag saying…

“That’s on me! You pay only for the bread!”

And when my wife is with me… her generosity can go crazy!

“How are you, my Katya? Here’s a pumpkin pie for you to try!”

Sometimes I feel all the extra bonuses cost more than the bread I pay for! It’s getting uncomfortable! 🙂

Today as I was waiting in the queue… this picture on the wall caught my attention.

Here you can see the first founders of the bakery, ie. Anthoulla’s dad and her late mom.

The picture was taken in 2004 when Anthoulla’s parents got an award for the best olive oil cookies, a traditional recipe of our island.

– Do you see that lady? That’s my mom, Papanti, said Anthoula. She was a sweet and kind lady. Not because she was my mom…everyone used to say that.

– I’m sure she was. I can tell, I replied.

– Whatever you see here… everything is her own recipes! She passed away four years ago.

– Well, she’s still with us Anthoulla, I replied. Look, you’re still making her bread, her bread is on our tables every day, Katya loved the pumpkin pie last week, you and I are talking about her right now. I just took a picture of her, she’s in my phone. And… I can see Papanti in you.

– Yes, Angelos. She’s still here. You’re right!

Anthoulla smiled and then tears started rolling down her face.

~~~~

I’m writing this about Papanti right now.

Papanti inspired me today.

And although I don’t run a bakery shop, I make bread every day for my clients. We make bread together!

My bread is the love I give to my people, every interaction I have with them is another olive oil cookie, a cookie of love, a piece of me.

All this makes me think…

Our bread, our work, our vision, whatever we decide to do with our time, can have an imprint on the world that will stay here and can change the world even when we’ll be gone.

Our bread can change the way others think about their own bread.

Your bread can help others make better bread.

“Our work can change the entropy of the system forever. The limited time we live in this life can shift the world to a new direction forever”, as MIT Prof. Constantinos Daskalakis once said.

Tell me what you hear.

If you relate to all this, what do you want to do?

To all those who’re always striving to make better bread,

Angelos

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An unusual letter of recommendation for my client and teacher Luke

angelos-luke-coaching

I almost cried while writing this recommendation letter for my client.

What do you do when you’re asked to write a recommendation letter for someone?

You go to Google, download a template and start working with it.

That was my immediate reaction when I was asked to write a letter for Lucas who was applying for a teaching job abroad.

But then I thought…

Do I need a template to write about Lucas?

Is there a template out there any close to the journey we’ve been on together with Lucas, our marathon coaching conversations, his achievements, his attitude to life, the dreams and the vision he has for himself and the world?

Why another letter with the usual “I strongly recommend Lucas for this position without any reservation” BS?

I’ll write a few words from my heart, I thought.

But … is it worth it? Most likely they will not read my letter with the same attention and care that I’m planning to write it.

You don’t know… They may pay attention, they may not, but…

Lucas will certainly read my letter carefully. Isn’t that enough for me?

I’m writing this letter for Lucas!

And I did.

And writing this letter was one of the most heartfelt things I’ve done in my life.

It wasn’t another transactional document that would soon get lost in an email server somewhere.

For Lucas, this letter was one of those old ink-and-paper letters that one keeps in a safe drawer for life.

I treated this letter as some more work with Lucas, a form of encouragement for him to keep creating for himself and others.

Isn’t it fascinating when you see everything you do as a gift to someone, an opportunity to be of service to someone?

And then, an “admin” black-and-white task, such as that of writing another recommendation letter, becomes work of art, a gift of appreciation, an inner introspection, a joyful and healing activity for yourself.

Let’s write a few words for Lucas then!

File → New → Document.

My Letter for Lucas

Dear Ms. Smith,

This will probably not look like the typical recommendation letter.

My name is Angelos and I’ve worked with Lucas as his life and career coach for the last year.

I’ll tell you why I would hire Lucas based on my own criteria (not necessarily the right ones) of who is a good teacher or who could be a great teacher.

Having worked with professional teachers, three things stand out to me when it comes to a teacher’s success.

#1: Being a teacher but also a student. How can you teach someone anything when you’re not a student yourself? When I say student, I mean, a lifelong student.

How can a teacher understand a student’s struggles with learning a foreign language if the teacher hasn’t learned a foreign language himself or herself?

Lucas speaks Russian very well and I can confirm that because I am fluent in Russian. If I were to learn English, I would have more respect for a native English teacher who speaks other foreign languages. This is definitely not a rule, but this shows something, don’t you think?

Lucas’s decision to hire a coach like me shows his commitment to self-growth. He’s invested in his own personal and professional development. I’d definitely trust a teacher who goes to seminars, classes and engages in relationships in which they are the students, wouldn’t you?

#2: Teach, teach, teach! No one can become a great teacher by reading books and attending a course on how to teach. A teacher gets better by teaching people.

Throughout this year, I’ve challenged Lucas to teach as much as possible. He got creative, he joined websites and communities where English learners hang out, he offered his time to students, he made mistakes, he went through all the “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do here”, he found ways to motivate his students, he gathered interesting materials, he worked with students of different age, background and needs and … became a great teacher.

#3: Love for your students. In my humble opinion, this is the element that makes a teacher stand out and … not only a teacher. I should have probably started with this point. This is what makes the students gather around a teacher when the class has finished because they just can’t get enough of the teacher’s love. This is what makes the students dream. This is what makes the students want to pass that love on to their work and others.

Lucas has an immense love for his students. Teaching for him is an act of love. That love goes further than teaching the conditionals or the passive voice to his students. He’s not just a teacher; he’s another coach for his students! He’s there to inspire them, to motivate them, to fight against their fears and limiting beliefs. He’s there to love them enough so they may learn and grow!

Because think about it… Today all the information is there available for free for those who want to learn English or anything. What a student needs in our days is inspiration, motivation, and … love.

Lucas has inspired me in our coaching relationship. He inspires me every day by showing how much he cares about his students. He inspires me when he goes deep into the “why” of his students, i.e. “Why learning English is that important to you?” He’s not there only to correct their grammar mistakes. He’s there to hold their vision, as the English language is a tool that opens new horizons for his students.

The person that is writing this letter used to work as a foreign language teacher in Russia. He speaks four languages and has a passion for language learning. He happens to come from a family of teachers and has so much love for this profession. While I’m writing these words, Ms. Smith, honestly, I’m getting emotional.

For me, it’s been a privilege to work with Lucas and help him on his journey of becoming a better teacher but also a better person.

Forgive me if I sounded any didactic in this letter. It was not my intention. You could be a mentor for me. I just shared my little experience with you and why I would hire Lucas if I were you. It’s the deep respect I have for this man and what he wants to create for himself and his students.

Please feel free to contact me if you have further questions.

With love for the teaching profession,

Angelos Georgakis

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What listening really means and why it’s important for me

angelos-more-listening-for-2020

I want to wish myself MORE Listening this year…

More listening means less thinking (the “bad” thinking, worry, anxiety…)

Less thinking means a quiet mind.

A quiet mind means peace, tranquillity, happiness, space for new fresh thinking, the “good” thinking, ie. new insight.

You either think or listen.

Even a meditation master who can stop their thinking, they’re still in a listening mode.

They’re focusing on their breathing, ie. listening to their breathing.

The opposite of listening is having a busy mind.

A busy mind blocks the channel that connects you with the universal wisdom, the intelligence, the energy that’s always there for you to tap into, if you decide to listen.

Children are good at listening! Children suck you in. They take you in. They absorb you.

And all of us going… “I’m curious… what are they thinking now?”

That’s the thing. They are not thinking. They’re listening. 🙂

You can’t figure out the solution to a problem by thinking.

Constant thinking over a problem will not give you the answer.

Forgetting the problem and going for a walk, ie. more listening (a meditative walk, connecting with nature) will give you the answer.

Less thinking will open the space for new insight to come to the surface.

I want more listening for myself in 2020!

More listening will help me understand and serve my clients better this year.

More listening will help me learn better from my coaches and teachers this year.

More listening will help me see the direction I want to go more clearly.

More listening will help me connect with my inner wisdom.

OK. That’s enough for New Year’s day!

What can I wish for you now, dear friends?

I want to wish you whatever will serve you best this year, no matter whether you see it or not right now.

Because sometimes we wish ourselves the wrong things. ☺️

With all my love,
Angelos

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My client surpassed me!

my-client-surpassed-me

I want to share my win with you…

A moment of breakthrough…

A moment where one of my clients has achieved something that I have yet to do myself!

I have been working with her for some time. She is dedicated, inspiring and growing like crazy.

She had changed her vision and decided to pursue her business as a coach.

I was supporting her through the process and helping her through the resistance and roadblocks that came her way.

And then it happened, it came out of the blue, with no heads up she told me what happened.

She had her first client offer to pay her almost DOUBLE what she had been charged by me for our coaching!

My client ROI is scheduled to almost double and she is a single client.

How incredible is this?!

I had to celebrate and realized that I had been apart of something that I myself had not yet achieved.

This instance is wonderful and I am so proud and find myself renewed by her victory.

I literally went mental yesterday! I was jumping and shouting during the coaching session with my client!

It took me a few minutes to come to my senses and continue our session!

I’m a happy man. You guys make me happy. You inspire me.

I don’t have clients. I have a very big family. My people are my family. Our work creates an amazing bonding between us. It’s the most wonderful feeling of all feelings.

I don’t remember celebrating my own victories the same way I celebrate the victories of my people.

But I know its my own victory too.

My victory is their victory.

What a great thing in life, isn’t it?

To be able to partner with someone and see them succeed.

I have yet to experience something more powerful than that…

Love, Angelos

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