We have a real treat for you today. Lori Anne, the Change Agent, is here to discuss her book, Who Am I? How to Answer the Single Most Important Question You’ll Ever Ask, her audio series, and her life coaching business.For almost ten years, Lori put her own interests and dreams aside telling herself she was doing the right thing because it paid the bills, helped provide for her kids, and was a good career. Thing is, she was miserable, stressed out, and overwhelmed – she just wasn’t admitting it to herself.
Then her 49-year-old mother suffered a brain aneurysm, and she realized how precious each day really is. Coming face-to-face with her own mortality at just twenty-seven years old pushed her to reevaluate the life and choices she'd been making. She wondered, “If I were to step out my door today and not come home, would I at least be proud of the life I’ve lived so far?” At that time, the answer was “No,” and she vowed to take one step every day until she could answer, “Yes” each night. It took years to transform her life, but it took her years before she realized she needed to transform herself first.
Lori received a degree in English and women’s studies in 1999. A constant explorer of how people think and create their lives, she trained as a life coach in 2005 and began working one-to-one with women who felt torn between the reality of their lives and the dreams they ached to create.
WOW: Hi Lori, welcome to the Muffin! We are so pleased to have you with us to share your knowledge and your work with us today. So, let's get started. You have built a business around what many of our readers need help with. To quote you when we discussed this interview: "my business itself is all centered around helping smart, savvy moms bridge the gap between their realities and the dreams they ache to create. It's about looking at ourselves, our beliefs, our habits, how we think etc., and changing from the inside out in order to achieve our dreams." What are a few ways you help moms or women in general do this?
Lori: Whether it’s a one-to-one life coaching session, my book, my audio program, my blog or Facebook page, or the even the free video coaching series I offer on my website, the core of everything I do centers around asking powerful questions that help women reconnect with their inner wisdom. You see, I believe each and every one of us already has everything we need to achieve any dream we have–but sometimes our own thinking and beliefs about ourselves or our situation gets in our way. Our emotions are the voice of our inner wisdom trying to break through. When we feel drained and exhausted, that inner wisdom is trying to tell us to slow down and take care of ourselves. When we feel lost, our inner wisdom is trying to tell us we’ve gotten off track from our personal life’s purpose. When we feel joy, our inner wisdom is letting us know that we’re on track and need to do more. It sounds simple, but so many of us have been taught to put our own feelings aside for the sake of others and keeping the peace, we no longer hear the messages or know how to interpret them when we do hear them. I help women get back in touch with their Self, so that they can build the life THEY dream about. I support them through the inevitable challenges that come up when we go through transition. I challenge their assumptions and beliefs, so that they can uncover the hidden road blocks as well as the obvious ones. We can only truly change our lives when we first change ourselves. So I help women become the person they want to BE, so that they can DO and HAVE what they dream about.
Lori: To live the life we dream about–to really feel that sense of fulfillment and purpose so many talk about–we need to learn one very fundamental thing: how to make, and stand by, decisions that honor who we really are. Unfortunately, many of us have been taught to make decisions based on what someone else thinks we “should” do, rather than what is really right for us. My book focuses on discovering who we really are, why those parts of ourselves are so important, and how to start using that self-awareness to make decisions that re-shape our lives into what we really want, instead of what we wound up with.
I wrote it particularly for women because while all of us are shaped by other’s desires for us, women are taught more explicitly to take care of everyone else first and ignore their own needs and desires. We’re taught that it’s selfish or needy to even HAVE our own desires for our lives. Yet, the opposite is true. It’s far more selfish, in my opinion, to undermine yourself to the point that your children only see you exhausted and stressed out at the end of the day, to feel like you’re not really present with them when they just want to feel loved. What kind of role model is that being for them? We want what’s best for our children, our families, and our friends; so why not find the best in ourselves and learn how to share that?
The book breaks down the process of learning who we are into simple steps, asks powerful questions through journaling and meditation exercises, and helps women create a purpose statement for their lives that’s based in what is truly right FOR THEM. What’s incredible to watch in this process is how tapping into what we’re most passionate about and bringing more of that into our lives really gives us more energy, empathy, and the ability to give even more to all those we love. It’s not selfish at all! It’s incredibly beautiful.
WOW: I feel like you are describing me exactly when you describe your readers and women's beliefs. I'm sure I'm not alone. What format is your book available in? Where can people find it?
Lori: The book is available on my website at http://LoriTheChangeAgent.com. It can be downloaded as a pdf file for immediate access or purchased as a soft cover bound book, also available through my website, as well as on amazon.com.
WOW: You also have a monthly audio series. Tell us about these audio programs and the special deal you are currently offering with your book.
Lori: I’m really excited about the new audio series this year! It’s called Conversations with Lori Anne, and it’s nutrition for the mind. Each month, I’m being interviewed one-to-one on various topics. Each of the topics are coming right out of a survey I did in the fall, where I asked women what their biggest challenges were to achieving their dreams. The first topic, which has just been released, is "Stopping Dream Killers & Receiving Support," in which I talk about what a dream killer is, how to recognize them, and how to stop them, so that you can receive the support you need and deserve to achieve your dreams. It was a lot of fun to record, and I’m thrilled to be able to offer it!
To introduce the series, I’ve created a limited time offer. When someone purchases my book, they can receive the audio program at over half off!
WOW: What a great deal! You call yourself a change agent. What do you mean by this? How can you help women change if they have a different picture for their lives?
Lori: If we want something we don’t already have, we have to change something about ourselves – become the person we need to be in order to have those things. For example, if someone is a workaholic but wants to spend more quality time with their family, then they have to first look at the reasons for the choices they’re currently making that made them the workaholic and begin to shift those. This can be a real challenge!
As a change agent, I help my clients identify a clear vision of where they want to be as well as develop their own inspiring WHY they want to get there. The why is the most important part. It’s the why that motivates us to keep going through the challenges, and it has to be tied to who we really are, or it won’t sustain them. There is a specific process that we all go through when we’re recreating our lives, and I help my clients navigate that process, so that they can complete the changes that they want to make. It’s easy to get lost or even give up; but with support, it becomes much easier.
If someone has a vision of her life that she wants to realize, I can help her figure out where to start, figure out how to go about the process in a way that works for who she is, and support her all the way through it. Together, we build the bridge she needs to get from where she is to where she wants to be.
WOW: If any of our readers are interested in the topics you are discussing and the products you are offering, what should they do?
Lori: There are several things they can do. They can visit my website at http://LoriTheChangeAgent.com and learn more about who I am, the products I’m currently offering, as well as the limited time offer that we talked about earlier. They can even take advantage of the free coaching video series that’s available.
I’m also on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/TheDreamineer) and love interacting with the fans there. And if they’re ready to start building their bridge and want one-to-one support, I’m happy to talk with them about coaching. They can e-mail me at Lori (at) LoriTheChangeAgent (d0t) com about receiving a complimentary thirty-minute coaching session, in which they can experience what it’s like and learn more about it.
WOW: Thank you, Lori, for sharing your business with us today. Is there anything else you would like to add?
Lori: I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the opportunity to be here and share a few thoughts! My mission is to see women everywhere living their own purposeful and meaningful life. I know what’s it’s like to do everything we think we “should” and wind up feeling lost, overwhelmed, and frustrated. I’ve been there! And while there are still the day-to-day challenges, living a life that’s fulfilling is an incredible experience–one I want to give to as many people as possible!
So I hope there’s something here that makes a difference, and I would be honored to hear from the women out there–their thoughts, their challenges, their feedback, their hopes, their stories… I want each of the women to know that no matter what it might look like today, their dreams are entirely doable, realistic, and absolutely worth pursuing!
WOW: Lori, you are an inspiration, and we appreciate everything you have said here today. Muffin readers, don't be shy. If you have a question or comment for Lori, you can leave it here or check out her website or Facebook page. Remember, she gave you her e-mail address, too. OR start with her book and audio series by going to her website!
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Great post.
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