"the zone"
You’ve arrived at the top, the peak. You are standing and watching the noise below that doesn't seem to reach you. Clouds are no longer obstructing your view. You are unstoppable. You can't imagine how life was before you made it all the way up here, suddenly you find yourself dragged all the way back down to base camp.
Being a human can be a real nightmare when the rules for life -- and for the complex that comprises our human existence -- are unclear. It can be very difficult to move into new realms of capability.
What makes the difference for those who can climb to the peak and stay there versus those of us who find ourselves sliding right back down the mountain -- or even worse – have never left base camp?
I found myself able to reach the peak many times in my life. But those peaks came with heartbreaking falls that made it more difficult to attempt new challenges.
I always thought midlife crisis was about affording the red convertible that would help you ride away from your dashed expectations and off into the sunset. In my mind, the "crisis" was more about those who couldn't afford the red convertible. I never truly grasped the concept of midlife crisis until I could see how my capabilities were diminishing by the day, with no awareness of where they were going.
I remember waking up and wondering how I would start that day. What could I possibly do to turn around the feeling that I was never going to be able to create a sense of well-being and comfort, let alone my dreams. For me, the question, "Is this all there is" would have been a major upgrade at that point.
But I have a strong spirit, and I have never given up. So, 4 years ago, I set out on the greatest adventure of my life. I have named that period my inner Everest expedition. It was really difficult to gain enough perspective to change my perspective. But, I persisted... for about 15,000 hours of intense research and practice and 6-figures worth of resources. I learned everything I could from a very deep dive into neuroscience and psychology to religion and spirituality to achievement sciences and beyond.
What I learned has taken my life in a new direction. I pulled together everything I could to make my life "work" and to make it possible to fulfill the potential that had been lost for so many years. There are two words that describe the basic learning that made the difference for me... "the zone." I found it. I learned to stabilize it. Yet, those two words need a lot of nuances to be useful for others on their path.
So, I set out to create the breadcrumbs that might make it easier for those who couldn't spend an inordinate amount of time and money on such learning but wanted to take the best of what I could offer. That took me down the road of writing books, three to be exact. I have written and illustrated a book series, Creating a Leader, over the past year and a half that shares my findings about the human complex -- the totality of us.
In this series, I look at what makes up our autopilot function and what we can do in more intelligent modes. I share how we can find ourselves in the zone or the state of flow while creating the meaningful visions we hold. I have developed simple frameworks for the zones that represent each of our human experiences and the power we have to create. They are simple frameworks, as are the many stick-figure illustrations I have added to the books. But, simple as they may be, they are nuanced enough to hold great leverage in expanding the comfort zone rapidly. In fact, the entire concept is around taking the mind-numbing complexities and simplifying them enough to make it child's play to use these tools and frameworks. I found that life and creating powerfully are difficult only when you are missing an understanding of the rules of the game, the owner's manual.
Recognizing that most people will not be able to drag themselves to the "peak" by only reading a book series, I also set out to create a program that would allow others to experience the peak state called flow more frequently, by doing the work that is found in the books. That program is called, appropriately, the inner EVEREST expedition. The participants do a base camp training, they "climb" to new levels of growth and ability to create powerfully in their lives for 40 days -- the average time to climb the real Everest, and they end with the peak experience training.
This has become my new life. I am starting "the zone" to build a community and share the lessons I have learned. I am doing this on January 1, 2018. This is also the day the first book, Creating a Leader: Simply Limitless, Stage ONE, became available to the public. The birth of 2018, just one hour ago, promises to see many achieve their visions and goals and dreams as they live in the highly fulfilling state of being in "the zone."
This will be the first of many communications to support you on your journey to stabilize and grow your comfort zone while increasing your ability to create as you intend.
Happy New Year.
Happy New Life.
Kelly McCormack has worked with leaders for more than 30 years. She is an expert in Human Development Technology, specializing in the Ultra-High Performance State of Flow.
Kelly is the author of the book series, Creating a Leader, where she captures solutions found in her decades of intensive personal and professional research and experiences. She offers practical solutions to increase the power leaders have to create. Kelly created the inner EVEREST expedition to help those who are ready to truly live at the peak of their own potential after a short, 40-day program.
