Joy of Being Comments
“I took the course in January and it brought so much of my life’s pattern into one cohesive thread and really moved me into high gear.
This course is about YOU; and I mean the capital YOU. It is about your life’s purpose and becoming very clear about what it is and how to fully develop it. It is not a conversation in narcissism; it is about bringing your gift to the world… and it is about how to make sure it (your company) and what will follow are your most authentic expression.”
Rich Duncombe, Hewlett Packard
“Things have been going really well. The time spent at Alderbrook was exactly what was needed. Leading up to those days in May it felt like I was on a non-stop roller coaster making my way through each day being physically present in conversations with others but not mentally. My mind was always two or three relationships ahead of who was in front of me. There was no depth, just surface contact. The pleasure that I once found through connecting with others was missing. The joy of being… being with others was missing. The time spent at Alderbrook allowed for the time of reflection into my previous stands. These stands reminded me that I had a choice in who I wanted to be and how I wanted to live my life. There was no one placing obligations on me but myself.
I left the course continuing my inquiry of what is truly my “thread” and what really gives me joy in my life. The whole topic of “just being” as I move forward has been one of the most powerful concepts for me. It has allowed me to once again stand in my commitments and fully embrace my mission… Nurturing Love.”
Jim Huffman, Town and Country Markets
“What has shifted for me on occasion is the ability to be present … to just “be” and not to be always thinking about the next thing on my list. Now, I’m still stumbling through and having many “whoops” moments, but I am seeing the power of my “being” and its effect on those around me. Perhaps what has shifted in my thinking is that I have value in the present.
One thing that broke open for me was the paradigm I’ve been living in regarding my work, family, health and wellness, time and so on. This paradigm is driven by my fears and not joy, light and love. I want to change that – magic happens when I do. I’ve seen and experienced it. I know when it happens and it is truly beautiful. I need to invest in being prepared to receive the wonderful gifts God has provided for, to live in gratitude and to serve. There is an ease when I think of this.
So, what I am committed to is managing my thinking (and therefore, fears). A few weeks ago I was searching for a book and one practically fell off this shelf. It is called, “As a Man Thinketh” and my dad gave it to me back when I was 12 or 13. I never really made an attempt to read it until adulthood but I read it once again and this time it really spoke to me. As I think .. so I am. When I stand in love and light, I see that in my world. When I stand in fear and judgment that is also what I see. The power is in the choice and that is my challenge.”
Susan Allen, Town and Country Markets
“The Joy of Being a Life Worth Living,” or as I refer to it, “The Joy of Being”, was a powerful experience for me. Your previous workshops and retreats prepared me to be fully open to the Joy and to understand how to do the work.
The course set up was brilliant, sequentially leading us to the promised land! I loved the solitary work… I went much deeper than I ever have in any other course. The domains concept was easy to understand and at once useful and powerful.
Something amazing happened to me during the Joy course; I re-membered that I am a Human Being, not a Human Doing. There’s no turning back and it is awesome!
Amba, you have created a masterpiece, this was a beautiful, joyful piece of work.”
Angie Aliabadi, South Tacoma Auto
“With the terrific exercises Amba designed for the Joy of Being a Life Worth Living, I was able to spend time with myself engaged in a sorting out process I have never done in this way. There is something about owning that I am a teacher – and that I was chosen to be “trainer,” “coach,” “manager ” “thinking partner,” and even “leader” in many respects because of my gifts as a teacher – that has enabled me to really step up to more opportunities to honor and use those teaching skills in my current life. I have taken on a major project that includes sharing from my many years of business experience and skills to help reshape the operational side of a business I care deeply about. I have also taken on three new coaching relationships in behalf of leadership development, all of which came to me as requests. Coincidence? I don’t really think so. I believe that finally standing in the space of what being a teacher means and owning that has attracted more opportunities for teaching into my life.
So I am grateful for the inspiration all of you provided during our three days together, and to Amba for her magic with course design, and for the gift of life that enables me to share that legacy I mentioned during our work together – my real legacy of giving away the gifts I possess while I am here to share them, not the list of items contained in my Will.”
Susan Keith, Coach
“Having just completed the Joy of Being a Life Worth Living last week I feel an amazing velocity in my life and a lightness of my being.
I truly believe that each of us is born with a unique set of gifts and talents to bring to bear into the world. We have a golden opportunity to offer these gifts to others, and to the world. Failing to do so is the unfortunate loss of this golden opportunity.
For me, The Joy of Being a Life Worth Living is all about discovering and taking action toward creating a future that is that golden opportunity. It is a deep and meaningful conversational structure to catalyze the discovery of my unique thread – a thread that only I was born with. I’ve come to believe that this thread is the intersection of my essential nature, my deepest passions, and my unique gifts and talents.
Having discovered, rediscovered, and clarified my unique thread, my attention turned to how that thread meets the world. During the course and subsequent to it, I’ve made intentional and powerful choices to rigorously let go of elements and domains of my life that are not in service to me and my vision of my future. At the same time, I’ve chosen to move toward elements that are in service to me and that future.
I’m excited and joy-filled, knowing deep inside that this future is no one else’s to create, only mine. And I feel a sense of grace knowing that the external world I am both living in and creating connects all the way down to my thread, my core.”
James Bailey, Financial Advisor
The following was written by two people who are married to one another: he had taken the course previously, and then they took it together:
“After witnessing the transformation that Ryan had gone through after taking HOL and HOMD, I knew that I needed to be a part of this transformation as well. Taking Joy of Being and Heart of Leadership expanded our marriage vocabulary and tools of communication with each other. By finding my own purpose in life I could see where we needed to be as a team, and I could be that support for Ryan in his purpose in life.”
Adrienne Joy
“Joy of Being is an intimate course all about personal discovery and creation. To be in that place together—it was special. There’s no doubt it changed the way we see and hear each other. There is also an action-oriented side to the partnership of marriage; learning to live together, to clarify requests, to watch for hidden expectations and to be patient with each other through it all. Where Joy of Being provided a space for us to solidify and deepen our foundation, Heart of Leadership provided a context, awareness, and tools to sharpen our day-to-day ways of relating with each other. It’s actually hard to imagine our marriage without both of these courses.”
Love,
Ryan Joy
“Why take the Joy a second time? Because to journey in life is to navigate an ever changing shoreline. I see the conversation of The Joy as THE conversation of our lives, a continual honing in on what brings us joy and what outward expression of our Selves and our WORK fulfills us in every moment. Without purposefully placing myself into this solitudinal conversation on a regular basis, having a rigorous conversation with myself, and continually correcting my course so I’m headed to my true north, I find myself adrift in the circumstances of life. And these days, we have circumstances galore that can have us crashed up against the rocks of life, waiting for a life boat!”
Denise Kelly Ballweber, Coach
“We are in the midst of redesigning and transforming our company to create a future for the leadership that fulfills their passions and dreams both professionally and personally. It occurred to me recently that the process we have gone through would have been enhanced had the leadership all taken Joy of Being. I think had they completed Joy of Being, they would have already identified what was really important to them relative to their careers and personal lives, which in turn would have lent clarity to the design of the future of the company. I say this because, upon completing Joy of Being, I had a much clearer focus on what was important to me, what I wanted to do, and when I wanted to do it. Frankly, for me, Joy of Being, has been the most impactful piece of work I have done with you.”
John McGowan, J.R. Abbott Construction