As I sit here quietly sipping my tea, gazing at the bare branches outside my window, watching the birds and squirrels play their winter games, I’m struck with the contrast between this month and last month. Last moneth was the height of the holiday season, filled with family, friends, rushing about, celebrating, glittering lights, fancy clothes. It was fun, invigorating and frenetic. This week is quiet, catching up on communications and work, taking a deep breath and contemplating the coming year. It’s like a sigh after a big laugh, calming and restful.

Life is much like breath. There are times when you are taking in, and other times when you are letting go. Problems arise when there is not a blance between the two. You are Taking In too much without Giving Back enough. Or you are constantingly Giving without Taking anything back. Until you achieve balance between the two, you will experience some level of discomfort.

As a High-Achieving Woman you are probably dissatisfied with the amount recognition and reward you receive for your considerable achievements. You work harder than most people, and are usually more successful in getting the job done. You may receive a pat on the back, but come bonus time, you’re left peering into an empty envelope. You eventually get tired of complaining to your manager about it, and frequently leave the position or the company rather than fight it. Let’s see how our High-Achieving Woman, Elizabeth handles this:

Continuing our series on High-Achieving Women, we follow Elizabeth on her quest to overcome her communications challenge:

High-Achieving Women:
You’re all about making an impact, influencing the world around you in a positive and memorable way. One big obstacle to doing this is effective communication: to your managers, your staff and your peers.

As a High-Achieving Woman, you struggle with getting your innovative ideas across to upper management. It’s almost like the executives don’t even hear your words.

Elizabeth is a real go-getter, a manager’s dream. You know the type: The Wonder-Woman who is driven to succeed, held in awe (and sometimes fear) by her subordinates, and can always be counted on to get the job done. Her director barely has to manage her; he simply tells her the outcome he wants and lets her go. Do you need the impossible done?

Do you feel like you work harder than your peers and are considered a high producer, but are not adequately rewarded?
Are you feeling frustrated in your current job and don’t know where to go next?
Do you feel like you are not living the life you were born to live?

When practicing yoga this morning (which I've only recently started), I was especially stiff and achey. I'd played golf yesterday for the first time in months, and naturally I'd overdone it - pushed to hard and strained everything. I was a little worried about trying to do yoga with all my aches and pains.

During a meditation that I was doing as part of the Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy Group Session I'm attending, I was being present in my body, being very concious of all the parts. It suddenly occurred to me that unlike what I've thought for years, I'm not a spiritual being 'trapped' in a physical body for the duration. Actually, my body is a manifestation of my spiritual being. It's what I've created to interface wiht the physical world. As my creation, it can be anything I want and spiritually need it to be.

My desk faces the window, and several trees that are filled with wildlife. Squirrels play in the branches, birds alight, twitter and fly away. The branches sway in the wind, or shake in blinding rainstorms, or turn beautiful colors and fall. The sky is brilliant blue, dotted with cottony clouds, or thunderous and grey, lit by lightning, or simply soft and misty.

How can I possibly get work done with all that going on right in front of me?