Holding a mirror up to the beauty of the fall season reveals an intrinsic array of life messages.

In times of chaos, trees, and more specifically, their leaves, unearth advice worth heeding.

Ready to experience their inspiration? Here is how:

>> Sit in a quiet, perhaps even a favorite, place in your home.

>> Envision that you are exactly where you want to be.

>> Now, mindfully flip your senses switch. Turn them on. One by one.

>> Taste. Touch. Sound. Sight.

Fall into engaging your senses in the moment. How do you want to feel right now? Get crystal clear on what that means for you in the fall season. Then use the strategies below to expand upon that thought.

Lessons from leaves in this fall season:

1. Different is limitless.

Every leaf is different in scope. They are a different array of colors, they come in all shapes and sizes, and they come and go from their branches at a different pace. Trees and leaves lean into exactly what they are each day. A tree is still a tree naked or full, colorful or monotone. They stand tall in what makes them unique and embrace the sheer power and beauty of their differences.

Picture yourself limitless. How can you lead with what makes you special? What changes if you do?

2. Stay grounded.

Your roots, like those of a tree, were planted when you were born. Sink into the understanding that you matter. Validate your existence and all that you value. Some of that was taught. Much of that was learned. What grounded you a decade ago or last year may no longer shape who you are. Grow where you are planted. Trees don’t stay the same. Leaves don’t stay the same. You don’t stay the same.

Aligning with the intersection of your roots and this moment now creates the balance you seek. Stand tall in this, like a tree. If you are experiencing a setback and losing your leaves, do so with the empowerment it creates. Letting go allows in. Seek awareness of who you are now. Imagine that you hold your past in your left hand and your future in your right hand. Put your hands together and you hold your present.

Circle back to a time you felt grounded and secure. What was unique about that point in time? Where can you apply those same markers today to support you in tapping into your purpose, your self-esteem, and with it, your sense of gratitude and success?

3. Let it go.

A leaf holds on. Until it does not. Autumn creates a movement from the known of spring and summer to the unknown of fall and winter. Every season has new goals and things to accomplish. If nothing ever changed, nothing would ever change. Clearing out its branches enables the tree to free itself to survive the colder weather, to evolve, and grow, and position itself for what is next. The falling of the leaves is not a loss but a renewal, not a departure but a fresh arrival.

Imagine that you are a leaf falling off of a tree. The wind picks up and carries you. You are an array of color and a sight to behold. You drift from the known to the unknown, from the safety of the tree and its branches, to the free-fall of the wind and the sky. Down and down you twirl. You land. What is different now? What can you recalibrate from the ground up? What are you now free to do? What does this next season of life bring into focus?

 4. Change is good.

The beauty of the fall season is a celebration of life. The colors of the leaves falling around us are like confetti; the crunch of the leaves beneath our boots are a crisp reminder that change is part of life. The air smells cool and clean, often infused with first fireplace lightings and the aroma of nuts and berries of the season. All of this invites in possibility and opportunity in our businesses and in our lives. Change moves us forward, allowing us to reflect on where we have been so that we can plan for where we are going next.

What is possible next if you make decisions that support change in your life? If you spend time holding onto what was, it is difficult to process what is possible. Welcoming change, especially this time of year, sets the tone for the wind down of the year, but also ushers in your ability to drive goals anew and by choice. These new goals are generated not from where you were, but from where you actually are right now.

Get clear on one or two goals you want to support. What can you do next that will take you a few steps closer to what you envision by next month? By the end of November? By 2021?

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