Sonia Marsh - Gutsy Living

My Gutsy local TV interview without preparation

June 13, 2011 by Sonia Marsh

Sonia Marsh on The Write Now Show

Back in April, I wrote a post about my first local TV interview. Several of you asked me if I was going to post it, and after a slight delay, and some editing, here it is if you’d like to see it. Now I realize I need media training and preparation. (I had no idea of the questions I would be asked ahead of time.)

Sonia Marsh on “The Write Now” show, Laguna Woods, California, April 2011

Now talking about videos, Marla Miller, (author, blogger at Marketing the Muse, RN, Query letter expert and coach) started a wonderful concept for women over 45 called, “Women over 45 speak.” She is asking women over 45 to submit a video and a bio to her about “anything you want for 3 minutes. You can promote:

yourself
your business
your cause
even your grandkids if you want.

What I love about Marla, is her Gutsy attitude about women and aging. She says society expects women as they age to disappear, to go quietly, or to chase the anti-aging cream. You can listen to her video on this topic and learn more about submitting your own three-minute video.

Remember the post about: “Are you stuck in a rut, make a life list?” where I suggested you make a life list? Well Rob-bear, and others thought it would be a good idea if we shared for example, ten items on our life list, and I think that’s a brilliant idea.
I hope you share 10 items on your Life List on Thursday June 16th, so we can compare. I shall share mine.

Are you ready to make a 3-minute video? What would you like to talk about?

Are you stuck in a rut? Make a life list

June 9, 2011 by Sonia Marsh

I’ve been stuck in a rut, going to bed around 9 and waking up at 5. After my cup of coffee, I jump in the car and head to the gym. There I ride the reclining bike followed by the same weight training routine I started 28 years ago. Even my dinners fall into a set routine: grilled chicken, turkey and fish, week after week.

Photo credit Candy TX

My life has pretty much become one boring routine, and I don’t do boring well. That’s when I get the urge to take a trip abroad and experience a new culture; but like most people, I can’t afford that. So I have to change something in my daily life but what? Start hiking? Visit new places in my local area? Sign up for a yoga class?

I feel like I spend my life in a cubicle (kitchen) in front of my computer screen for eight hours a day, including weekends. I need to rediscover joy and passion and make daily life “Gutsy.”

Last weekend something changed within me. I almost canceled my trip to Portland, and that would have been a disaster. You see I was scared of being one of the few middle-aged people to attend the World Domination Summit. (No this has nothing to do with politics or religion.) I soon found out that we were 500 people of all ages and all professions who believe you should make your passion your life. It’s about taking risks and quitting your cubicle job, if you’re fed up with it, and doing something that’s important and meaningful to you.

I was surrounded by inspiring people who have taken risks to pursue their dreams. For example, Judi Ettenberg, decided to save her money and quit her attorney job in New York, to travel the world. She is now a writer and you can follow her journey on her blog Legal Nomads.

Sonia (me) and Maggy

I made new friends.

Maggy from London who is fearless, and Brenda from Michigan, who has recently become fearless.

Maggy loves African music and plans on living there soon. As a mother and a wife, Brenda told me she’s been afraid to try new things. Her new motto is to say, “yes,” right away, and so she went sky-diving for the first time at the conference.

When Karen Walrond, a former engineer and a current (though non-practicing) attorney, spoke about “Adventure occurs when you embrace possibility,” and that not all of us can travel whenever we want to, this resonated with me. Karen talked about the importance of writing down your own life list.

So what is a life list?

A life list is not a bucket list. It must contain about 100 things and in addition to the awesome things you want to do, it must also contain some of the mundane.

For example:

Take a gentle yoga class
Take a ride in a hot air balloon
Make your own ice-cream
Learn how to paint
Start a blog
Start hiking.
Start a gourmet dinner club with friends

I realized that I can make changes which may not seem big, but they make a difference in how I feel.

If you feel like your life has temporarily stalled, and you’d like to jump start it, here are ten more tips on how to get out of being stuck in a rut.

Do you like the idea of a life list? Please share some things you want to change in your daily life.

Give up your fears and get in the driver’s seat.

June 6, 2011 by Sonia Marsh

When over 500 Gutsy people of all ages, and all nationalities converge in the Portland Museum of Art, you can be sure of one thing: there is a ton of energy bouncing around.

And when the theme of the event is, “How do we live a remarkable life in a conventional world?” with a mix of all kinds of artists, students, young and less young, entrepreneurs, travelers and non-profit leaders, you know that this is a group of people who are not afraid to take risks, live their passions and get back in the driver’s seat.

Chris Guillebeau when I met him on his book tour in LA.

Chris Guillebeau wrote, The Art of Non-Conformity, and decided to put together this event during his 63 city Unconventional Book Tour. Together with an eight-member team, as well as many volunteers (those dressed in blue T-shirts in the video below), Chris created an “awesome” event. This seems to be his favorite word.

Highlights from WDS in Portland, Oregon, June 3-5. 2011

Some of the speakers in this video are:
Leo Babauta from ZenHabits, who’s topic was how to change your habits. follow the path of simplicity, and something we rarely hear, “Have zero goals.” Leo said he used to make weekly, monthly and yearly goals, but that became too stressful to achieve. So now he claims that by, “Letting go of goals, you’re free of the management of your goals.” I personally like his suggestion. Leo continues, “When you don’t have a destination, there’s no failure.”

Jodi Ettenberg from LegalNomads,

“Jodi knew she wanted to travel to faraway places.” She worked as an attorney for five years in New York and saved her money so she could travel. She says, “Find your passion and keep on the path despite the obstacles.” She believes that by keeping an open mind, freelance opportunities come to you, and that you have to believe in what you do. “We all have fear and anxiety, there will always be negativity and criticism, because people can’t understand.”

There were so many inspiring authors, world travelers, artists and TEDx speakers, like Neil Pasricha from 1000 Awesome Things, that I shall share in future posts.

Chris Gullebeau has an amazing question which I’d like you to think about.

1). “What do you really want to get out of Life?”
and the second part to this is:
2). “What can you offer the world that no one else can?”

Please share your answers with us.
Thanks for stopping by.

If she can do it at 74 so can we.

June 2, 2011 by Sonia Marsh

Ernestine Shepherd 74-years-old

Photo credit blackfitnessblog

What’s happening to women in their seventies? It seems like more and more are entering the Guinness Book of World records, and Ernestine Shepherd is no exception.
You may recall the post I wrote called: “Is 75 the new 45?” with “Paddy” Jones, the English salsa dancer with the flexibility of a young woman.

Well now we have Ernestine, and I’m even more motivated to keep lifting weights after watching this incredible 74-year-old woman. She’s a body builder and didn’t start working out until she was 56. Her goal is to inspire and motivate others to become fit naturally. She doesn’t take supplements or steroids and believes that you need to stay determined, dedicated and disciplined. She runs ten miles a day, at 4 a.m., and follows a strict high protein diet, starting with three liquid egg whites a day.

If you’d like to see her senior fitness class, please click on another short video here. She is on a mission to help and inspire everyone, young and old alike to get fit. As a personal trainer, she even trains men in their thirties.

I’m inspired by this one Gutsy lady. Are you? Her motto is: “Don’t let life pass you by. You can be fit.”

I’m off to the gym to do another set of bicep curls, and tricep extensions, what about you?

Memorial Day and what it means to me

May 30, 2011 by Sonia Marsh

My son during parent weekend at New Mexico Military Institute

Memorial Day has taken on a whole new meaning in my life. Let me explain. Like many Americans, I believed it was a holiday signifying the start of summer barbecues, beach days and a vacation on the horizon.

But now that my seventeen-year-old son enlisted and started a nine week Army Basic training program, I have developed a new appreciation for what young men and women go through, and what other service men and women have done for us, and continue to do for our country and our world.

I’m embarrassed to admit that I have often taken our freedom for granted. If only we lived in a peaceful world where every single person on our planet could fall asleep without the fear of being killed, raped, and had a safe place to live.

For the next nine weeks, my 17-year-old son, like all the other soldiers during Basic training will learn the following Seven Army Values:

* Loyalty
* Duty
* Respect
* Selfless Service
* Honor
* Integrity
* Personal Courage

“These values form the basis of your soldier character and they sustain a soldier in times of both peace and conflict.”

His daily training schedule will be the following:

Army Boot Camp 5 a.m. – Wake up
5:30 a.m. – Physical Training
6:30 a.m. – Breakfast
8:30 a.m. – Training
Noon – Lunch
1 p.m. – Training
5 p.m. – Dinner
6 p.m. – Drill Sergeant Time
8:30 p.m. – Personal Time
9:30 p.m. – Lights Out

And finally, let’s not forget the gas chamber training:

As explained on the basic training website: “The gas chamber is probably the most mentally challenging exercise you will have to overcome at basic training. Recruits have to breathe Ortho-chlorbenzylidenedimalonitrile. Wow, that sounds scary. Actually, it is just the active substance of CS gas. You might recognize the name better as the common riot control formula called tear gas. Now, the bad news is yes, you will have to go into an isolated room and breathe this gas in your lungs and it does sting a little bit. The good news is as soon as you walk outside, the exercise is over.”

For those of you who have fought for our freedom, and for those families who have suffered the loss of a loved one, please forgive my lack of understanding. I finally grasp the sacrifice that your son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister, husband, wife, lover, friend, cousin, uncle, aunt, or other relative has gone through. No words can express the gratitude that I now feel.