NATURE : Communicating with trees

When you feel alone or simply upset or stressed there is a magic possibility to get back to yourself and allow you to feel more confident / relaxed again: get the support of a tree.

How can you do that ?

Situation: You need to "take fresh air" because you do not feel good (for whatever reason really)

What you need: a good pair of shoes to walk (in a forest or park), easy clothes (so that you can become dirty if you sit on the ground),  an old newspaper (to sit on :) and something to write on.

What do you do concretely?
- You head towards a forest or park around your place (the closer the better)
- When you feel it is a quiet and appealing environment, you start looking up around for a tree. Not whatever tree, but an inspiring one. One you feel attracted to or that you specially like or have noticed.
- Once you have found a tree "talking to you", go towards it.
- Observe the tree from a very close angle without touching it. Do you still feel comfortable and attracted to it? Do you feel welcome (that is a very important)? If yes...
- Then install yourself comfortably on the ground or on an old rock or old trunk very close to the tree, lets say 50 cm. Ready to start for 15-30 min depending on your available time.
- Just say hello to the tree (if you have not done this already) with words or in silence, as you wish. No need to touch it.
- You just observe the tree now for about 15-30 min (no need for a time clock, as it should be an easy time): its texture, its size, its roots, its colors, its leaves, its trunk, its height, its width... whatever you can observe with your eyes. Potentially you might want to touch the textures.
- While observing the tree, pay also close attention to your thoughts and what comes up in your mind, what touches you ? what comes up in your mind ? do you recall suddenly a special past situation or future scenario ? Just write down whatever you observe about the tree and about your thoughts. Both can give very valuable information about you.
- Once you feel it is good for you and you have sourced what you needed, you can say bye to the tree and go a bit more distant to it (5-10 m depending on the situation of the tree). Observe it again for another 5-10 min or so, standing, you might see other aspects in this new perspective. Write it down again: what you see in the tree and what are your thoughts, perhaps your feelings.
- Thank the tree for what it has given you. What are the key take aways of this encounter? What is your commitment?

NATURE : OBSERVE THE TREES around your place (in the city yes :)

What a surprise the other sunday. I was making a little walk (15 min) around the block. I had just read before that an article on old protected trees in the country. So my look was apparently programmed to look at trees. I did not put the mode on consciously obviously, it just did happen.

In these 15 min walk, I was just amazed, how many different trees there were. Despite the fact that I live in the center of town since over 10 years. Depending on the cities you might need to walk a little bit more, but astonishingly, there is alway a park around the block. In London, New York, Milan or Zurich.

This is called: "Steering the direction of the attention". In other words, what we look for, we see.

I did not count the different trees exactly, but there were at least 50 different species and I could not name them (therefore looked up in an encyclopedia at home: learning always learning).

What is potentially just beside you and you cannot currently see?
Try to look at the trees around your place for example. Perhaps it might lead your attention to something of more interest in a second step, who knows...

This is also a great exercise to practice to simply distance ourselves from the daily activities or a intense day. It allows to "LOOK DIFFERENTLY" at the world.

Good discovery I wish you!

COACHING: Take real care of your key personal projects

"You see, we don't know what our goals are. We learn our goals only in the process of getting there... You don't know what the baby is going to become. Therefore, you wait and take good care of it until it becomes what it will." Milton H. Erickson, 1979.

Your personal project is like a little baby. You need to take real good care of it in the meantime it GROWS and becomes INDEPENDENT. This is a wise advise from the greatest hypnotherapist Milton H. Erickson.What is the project you would like to pursue and are only currently in early phase ? Write it down (best would be in a place where you can always see it, again and again. Protect it very carefully (you might well select the people you share it with, to ensure they don't want to "kill" it before it is born) and continuously support its growth (very little steps by steps). All success I wish you!