"Green With Envy"
This is one of my absolute favorite coaching exercises. I discovered it through my first coach, Suzy Rosenstein.
"When is a time you felt surprisingly envious about what someone else was doing?" It might be a job, a place they live, a lifestyle....
When I ask this question, people usually IMMEDIATELY know exactly what they are "green with envy" about.
Envy or jealousy doesn’t have to be a bad thing. It can be a clue to what you really want- your hidden dreams. And it might not be that exact thing you want but it points you in the right direction.
For me, it was a small community yoga studio I visited on Kauai a few years ago. I love everything about it- the breeze, the light, the space, the singing bowls, the park outside with children's voices and laughter, the coffee shop across the way, the community, and the feelings I felt in the space-- calm, support, relaxation, presence, peace, spaciousness, laughter and joy.
It was a place that honored many of the things that I value- health, wellness, mindfulness, connection, kindness, beauty, nature, teaching, community, purpose, intention, transformation... I think about it often.
Maybe someday you may find me there, or more likely in my own health and wellness space, teaching mindful yoga, coaching, promoting health, selling singing bowls and drinking coffee in community. My exact end goal is not formed yet, but this vision has served as a guidepost post in my own transformation. Especially when the road is bumpy and hard (and of course it often is.)
When we connect with what we are "green with envy" about, we learn about ourselves and or underlying authentic desires, especially when we think we don't know what they are.
Interestingly, and perhaps prophetically, the yoga studio is called "Metamorphose Yoga." Metamorphose means to change in form or nature; to transform. Transform is what I have done since that moment and my passion is to help others do the same so they can live in more alignment and find more joy.
I encourage you to think about moments when you have found yourself "green with envy.”
And then "start by starting" by working to create just one small thing that is part of that dream today.