To understand oneself is a continuous adventure.
We will never be “done” and we will never reach “the end” of understanding ourselves.
As humans we’re changing and growing each day, week, month and year. Whether that change is our physical bodies as we age, our minds as we learn new things, our hearts as we experience new life moments, or our spirits as we connect with the Earth and/or our higher power.
Change is the constant of life.
At The Restoration Project we serve people that seek to understand themselves so they can live, lead, and work with intention. Our approach, ‘The Restoration Process’, has three main parts and it’s fluid — each part can be intertwined.
The Restoration Process:
- Build Connection
- Restore Intention
- Inspire Action
We can live, lead, and work with intention when we bravely travel inward and follow our own unique path. One of the first steps to understand oneself is to: Build Connection. And in most situations, we say (Re)build Connection because oftentimes it’s been quite a while since we’ve connected to our core being.
Pico Iyer says it well in his book The Art of Stillness, “It’s only by taking myself away from clutter and distraction that I can begin to hear something out of earshot and recall that listening is much more invigorating than giving voice to all the thoughts and prejudices that anyway keep me company twenty-four hours a day. And it’s only by going nowhere–by sitting still or letting my mind relax–that I find that the thoughts that come to me unbidden are far fresher and more imaginative than the ones I consciously seek out.”
(Re)build Connection to yourself, other humans and living creatures, and something greater. This is the first step in The Restoration Process.
We believe the key to a good life and great leadership is mastering the art of looking within ourselves. It’s crucial. If we don’t understand ourselves, how will we best lead others in a positive and effective manner?
This leads us to the next step in The Restoration Process.
To understand oneself we must be willing to explore.
- Who am I?
- What are my greatest strengths?
- Why am I the way that I am?
- Where did I develop my thoughts, perceptions, habits?
- What do I believe?
- What’s meaningful and valuable to me?
- What are some of my gaps?
Reflection questions like these can be thought provoking, challenging, enlightening, and scary. Taking time to reflect and seek the answers that you (and only you) know is a gift. We learn about ourselves deeper and quicker if we’re willing to explore new, challenging questions.
To understand oneself we must be equipped to make a plan.
Creating plans in our working professional lives might be easy and even come naturally to some of us, but crafting a plan and accountability in our personal lives is often harder. This is where your Coach from The Restoration Project can be incredibly helpful.
Cleo Wade says it well in her book Heart Talk, “Life does not always hand us the easy road. Life does not always allow for us to be in the right frame of mind to always do the right thing at the right time. To know this is to remember that you are human. We are not born knowing the best way to navigate the worst circumstances. We are all more than our mistakes. Our mistakes do not make us bad people. Our mistakes, when met with awareness and personal responsibility, are actually what introduce us to our best selves. You are beautiful because of all of your experiences—the good, the bad, and the imperfect.”
Restore intention: explore and define identity, vision, intention, and meaning, then build a plan. This is the second step in The Restoration Process.
We believe strength, grace, and authenticity are required of leaders in order to be successful during times of uncertainty. As leaders we need to be confident in our vision and decision making.
This leads us to the final step in The Restoration Process.
To understand oneself we must be ready for action.
It seems so simple…make a plan and then execute…but this is where leaders and teams tend to stall. Action requires us to change our existing systems, structures, habits and routines. We may think we need to overhaul everything all at once to accomplish our goals, but that’s not necessarily true.
Greg McKeown says it well in his book Essentialism, “Instead of trying to accomplish it all – and all at once – and flaring out, the Essentialist starts small and celebrates progress. Instead of going for the big, flashy wins that don’t really matter, the Essentialist pursues small and simple wins in areas that are essential.”
Inspire action: establish new practices, systems, rituals, and routines. This is the third step in The Restoration Process.
What if you could connect your true intention to your actions so you could live your best life and do your best work every single day? We believe it’s possible if we start with ourselves!
Our vision is to help as many leaders as possible restore the connection between intention and action so we can fill the world with leaders who understand themselves, honor others, and align to something greater to live their best life and do their best work.
The Restoration Process provides an understanding of:
- Who you are
- What you want
- How to live and work in a more connected and intentional way
Lindsay Leahy, Founder and Dream Builder of The Restoration Process says it well in her book Take it All Apart, “This is just the beginning of your journey to reach your potential, and it’s a lifelong one. You will make commitments. Change and transformation will happen. New patterns will be integrated and become part of who you are. A new level of awareness will take place, and then you will get to start the process all over again. Each new transition and change will help you become your highest and truest self—that person you were created to be. With it comes freedom, peace, passion, and hope that you are seeking. As you change for the good, everything else changes for the good around you.”
Are you ready to begin your continuous adventure?
At The Restoration Project we create a positive and powerful ripple effect by changing the way we live, lead and work. Our team helps you listen to your inner teacher and draw out your best ideas. Clients rave about our ability to create safe spaces, challenge them to think and reflect, ask good questions, provide alternative perspectives, put things into a plan, and keep them accountable to execute.
Together, magical things can happen!
Written by: Sarah Watson, Creator of Calm at The Restoration Project.
