THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE HELM TO MAKE THINGS HAPPEN!

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As of January 2021, there are over 1,750,000 podcasts in this world. 36% of Canadians and 50% of Americans are podcast fans. Why and how would someone like me, a brain tumour survivor, venture into the world of podcast hosting?

“Taking the Helm” came to fruition after I was challenged by internationally recognized speaker, Michael Angelo Carusso. About to graduate from Michael’s “Present Like a Pro” course, he asked me to host an interview with him. Imagine how I felt at the time! With great trepidation, I accepted Michael’s challenge and thank him today for pushing me in this direction.

In the beginning, I became increasingly worried about remembering the next question and could not be engaged in the conversations. With valid concerns about my memory, I always had notes for reference, and still do. Now, no interview happens without a “get to know you” call and a great deal of advance research on my guest. Those notes no longer drive the interview. I now allow myself to refer to them without apology, bumble over some words, and sometimes repeat myself. It is what it is. I am who I am.

This podcast has impacted many people’s lives in a positive way. By giving guests a platform to share their own stories, they in turn empower us to take action in our own lives.

One year later, “Taking the Helm” now launches a new interview every Wednesday. Our courageous guests have each endured a crisis, tragedy, or challenge in their personal or business lives. Yet, they have opened new doors and are sharing their journeys to help others make conscious and positive choices. Entrepreneurs as well have disclosed their strategies of collaboration, marketing, and promotion. There’s something for everyone!

In celebration of these remarkable people, we’ve captured many of their quotes in two Youtube short videos. I thank each one of our guests for so passionately sharing their experiences and making a difference in the lives of others.

Most podcasts today are only provided in audio. Taking the Helm is published every week in audio and video, as you can see above. Look for a new podcast episode every Wednesday on my Youtube channel and on most podcast apps. You can also search the archives of all interviews on my website. Perhaps one of our previous guests can help you make the change in your life you’ve been looking for.

Thank you to you, our listeners and viewers as well as our sponsors who continue to make this podcast possible.

Aspiring Author? Unsure of Your Next Step? It’s Time to Publish!

Are you a writer and hoping to publish but you have no idea where to start? My writing sat on a shelf for almost two years. When I knew I wanted to publish and started to look at options, complicated is the adjective that comes to mind! As a new author in 2017, I was taken aback about how much I did not know. Write, edit and publish a book - shouldn’t it have been that easy? How naive I was!

Four publishing options? How do we decide which one to take? That momentous decision is only one step as we continue to write. I chose to follow the Indie route and hired a consulting company for my first book. It was one of the best decisions I made. Experts were made available to me at each phase of the process, from editing to cover design and publication. Their knowledge and experience guided me as I learned how to navigate this new world. Did I make mistakes? Most certainly, but isn’t that how we all learn?

For my current book, I’ve selected a form of hybrid publishing (there are many different options within this publishing path alone). Beta readers are giving me honest feedback for the final formal edit. The public cover reveal of “Jackson” is on the horizon. It’s a very exciting time for authors - our launch day is within reach! But getting there doesn’t happen overnight. It’ a process.

It’s time to start planning the pre-sale, launch and book signing events. but what does that look like in a pandemic? There are countless options, some quite unique. We’ve all had to find solutions to problems we never imagined possible a few months ago.

There are many tricks of the trade leading to publishing, distribution and promotion. What I offer to aspiring authors is second to none. Time To Publish is a four part series and most importantly, personal and interactive which is why I limit each session to no more than 5 people. It’s driven by your goals, not mine. Save money and time while gaining knowledge and tools. Time to Publish also includes the complete course presentation slides with links to resources, access to Lynn between sessions, a Certificate of Completion as well as a Freedom Writer’s Pledge badge for social media sites. Immediately following the last module, you will be invited to join our exclusive, private Facebook group, a community of writers. Contact me for a free consultation. The next series begins Wednesday, August 12th! You won’t regret it.

My Gift to You - WHO WOULD HAVE IMAGINED?

Six weeks ago, who were you spending time with? What were you doing?

Two of our children were finishing mid-terms in pursuit of their degrees. Our oldest was in the midst of his research, studying for his PHD. Ken and I were ripping out our old kitchen and replacing all the “pieces” step by step.

I was excited to have been a guest speaker at three events at the end of February and beginning of March and looking forward to those booked for the future. My college students had all begun their field placements with success. My podcast series was off and running and second book entering the cover design stage. My husband, a retired police officer, was working part time as a FEDEx driver.

FULL STOP.

We were hearing reports of a virus overseas. We’ve had them before. Wasn’t that too far away to really worry about in Essex County? The Covid-19 journal I began a month ago attests to how quickly things changed… daily if not hourly. Unprecedented, to say the least.

If you’re out of the country, come home.

Your travel insurance will be suspended in 10 days.

The border is closed. Vultures are cleaning out the grocery stores.

Local shops, small business owners are shut down with two days notice.

Schools and childcare centres are closing.

Only essential services remain open.

HOLD ON!

Retired medical practitioners and first responders are being hired back to work. Health care workers are on the front line. We’re searching for masks, face shields, medical gowns and ventilators. Field hospitals are being created. Businesses are re-tooling to make what we desperately need to survive. An entire generation in Italy and Spain have now been taken by this thing. It’s coming our way. One. Ten. Fifty. Almost three hundred…confirmed cases in our county and continuing to grow. People are ill, fighting for their lives. Long term care and retirement homes are locked down. Over one million people in Canada are now without employment.

Today, we say, “We have to flatten the curve.”

Today, nurses, doctors and first responders are staying in hotels or living in trailers to keep their families safe.

Today, we’re checking in on family and friends through online video chats.

Today, elementary, secondary, college and university students and teachers have moved to online learning, including myself and my children.

Today, we line up and wait six feet away from each other to enter a pharmacy or grocery store.

Today, we suffer heartache and can’t visit those in hospitals or palliative care…can’t come together to grieve the loss of a friend or loved one.

This is more than real. It’s incomprehensible. The coming weeks and months will be like nothing we have known before. People we know and love will fall ill. Businesses will close their doors permanently. People will have no job to go back to. Reality is about to smack each of us in the face, if it hasn’t already.

The world is giving us time to re-set in countless ways. Environmentally, we’ve had a drop in global emissions, waterways are running clear, air pollution has dropped substantially in major cities around the world. We have direct evidence of the positive impact we’ve have as human beings on our planet, because we’ve been forced to. We can’t ignore this and go back to the way things were. We have a responsibility to learn and re-envision a new normal with the power to create what that new normal will be - for ourselves, our communities and this world. This time can also be seen as a gift for those of us blessed to be staying home. Time to self-reflect, heal, read, be with our families...Time to find ourselves and what really brings us happiness and fulfillment...Time to take a stance and decide that we’re not going back to the treadmill of “stuff”. We’ll move forward with a new sense of purpose and realization of what really matters. Let’s not settle for anything less.

Today, I’m making masks as my “gift” to people. Who would have ever imagined?

If you could go back in time…

Once a month, I get together with two long time friends for a walk along the trails somewhere in our county. The Chrysler Greenway runs for 42 kms along the length of the old railway lines, giving us countless locations to choose from. Walking in nature is uplifting in and of itself, but catching up with friends during that time makes it a perfect two hours.

A short time ago, we decided to meet close to the area where I lived during my childhood. From the time I was 10 years old, my mother and 3 siblings lived in a farmhouse on the outskirts of McGregor, Ontario.

My friends and I started walking south along the trail, where trains used to barrel by, a couple of acres behind the farmhouse. Almost immediately, I started pointing and sharing memories: “That was the corn field we loved to play hide and seek in; There’s the remnants of the barn where we used to laugh hysterically as we jumped into the hay loft; The field where the horses roamed; Where my sister screamed as she fell and broke her collar bone…”

My mother used to say she had to “steal from Peter to pay Paul” to save for rent and make ends meet every month. We couldn’t afford to heat the upstairs in the winter and closed off that area of the house. We ran a water line from the well once a week to fill the reservoir in the basement. We were happy because that’s all that mattered to my mom. Family - there is nothing more important. She instilled that in each of us and her legacy lives on.

Smiling, I had a vision of myself as a 10 year old, running through the corn fields and stopping suddenly. The young, “me” glanced over to see her 56 year old self walking by. Time Warp! What had she imagined her life would be like 46 years later? What was that young girl thinking of in those times? Her dreams? Her fears? My dreams and fears as I struggled to figure out my life’s path.

If you could go back in time would you change anything? It serves no purpose to dwell on what could have or should have happened. But, are we achieving our goals? Have we overcome obstacles by challenging and confronting our fears? What’s stopping us from finding our “why” and true purpose in this life? Reflecting and learning from the choices we made along the way can guide us now and in our futures. Perhaps in the coming weeks, as many of us self-isolate due to the COVID-19, we can take this time as an opportunity to refocus, reconnect and make positive choices for ourselves and those we love.

Conscious, positive choices

As an educator for 31 years, I loved my career. The concrete evidence of the direct impact I had on my students drove me forward every day, regardless of what role I was in. That’s what it’s all about, and should be.

Yet, there is conflict, too often. Whatever our profession, conflict is part of life. Not only in the world of work, but in our own homes. Aren’t conflicts a good thing? Shouldn’t they drive us to discussions and deeper understandings of the issue and possible resolutions? Without them, how would any organization move forward? Differences of opinion are wonderful and needed, but when we react and don’t use the tools at our disposal, the end result is increased worry, stress levels and negative affects on our own health. How do we take personal control and rise above it?

Awareness. The first step to facing conflict has to be becoming aware of our personal responses in any given situation. Do we engage in the negative dialogue in the lunchroom and perpetuate the downward spiral? Do we complain about co-workers, family members or neighbours? Do we argue with our partners over things that are inconsequential? Why do we initiate or engage in negativity?

What if? What if the next time someone tries to pull us into their own conflict, we choose to not engage? Do we choose to not enter that downward spiral? Do we choose to become aware that participating may have negative consequences? What if we could become aware that our own actions could be the cause of conflict before it even starts? I’m not suggesting we walk away from issues that matter, but how much of the stress in our lives is avoidable by conscious choice?

Over the holidays my husband and oldest son began a conversation about the pros and cons of proportional representation in Canadian politics. They are polar opposites, and needless to say, they each spoke their piece. I caught myself wanting to jump in, getting upset over some of the arguments that went against what I believed was right. I entered “defensive mode,” so to say. Because I caught myself, I immediately made a decision to not engage, but to listen and ask questions. I listened to understand, stopping myself from becoming upset. It made a difference. The conversation continued while I agreed to disagree with some, but not all of the points that were made.

I made a conscious decision not to engage and “argue” my points, finding middle ground. My blood pressure stayed steady, with no anger, no stress. I continued to enjoy our time together throughout the evening. No one walked away, upset about something we each care about.

As we move through our day, we can learn to be aware of what we bring to any given situation. We can pause before engaging and consider what other options are at our disposal. We can reset our reactionary mode by learning to be aware and making the conscious choice to rise above what is pulling ourselves and others down. We won’t only decrease our own stress levels, but those around us and maybe, just maybe… change the outcome to a positive one!