Energetic Communication Video Series Part 2 - Interpersonal Vibration

EPISODE 2 GOES DEEPER INTO THIS COLLABORATIVE ONLINE SERIES.
LEVEL UP YOUR SOCIAL & EMOTIONAL AWARENESS!

Join us right here on the Hike It Out Coaching blogosphere as I get into conversation with Energy Worker and Curandera, Claudia Parada. In this 4 part video series on Energetic Communication we’re going to take you through several energetic pathways to bring awareness and action to the ways we can get to know our inner emotional landscapes. As we go deeper every month on Energetic Communication, we’ll be examining what happens to us when we share space with other people and how that can impact your ability to be in relationship with ourselves and others.

In Episode 2 we get into the understanding of what it’s like to listen and manage your field of energy when you’re in contact with another person. Interpersonal Vibration is that dance we do when we’re in community with others. Paying close attention to your own vibes and what’s going on inside of you in a situation may just as well be hard enough, but insert a situation where at least one other person’s vibe is influencing the feel of the room? What do we do then?

In video 2 of 4, we talk about these “vibes” in the room and what happens when we’re listening to each other energetically. Listen in on the full episode of our conversation as we hit three points:

• From the lessons of listening to your intuition from Episode 1, we can start recognizing what is your own energy vibration and what is the other person’s vibration and story

• How we can cultivate our agency in each interaction so we are empowered to decide how we want to hold interactions in our life

• Move forward in the relationship with clarity and intention while protecting your energy

And if you’re so inspired to get in on the dialogue,
please do contribute your thoughts to the comment box below!
We’d love to hear from you!

• What’s your vibe like?

• What do you notice about your own vibe in tricky situations?

• What have been some powerful examples of your ability to discern between your vibe and others’ vibes to utilize your awareness and hold the conversation with agency?

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO VIEW THIS CONVERSATION.

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Energetic Communication Video Series Part 1 - Quieting of the Intuition

WE’RE STARTING 2019 OFF WITH A COLLABORATIVE ONLINE SERIES
TO HELP YOU LEVEL UP IN YOUR SOCIAL & EMOTIONAL AWARENESS!

HERE IS PART 1 ON “QUIETING OF THE INTUITION”

Join us right here on the Hike It Out Coaching blogosphere as I get into conversation with Energy Worker and Curandera, Claudia Prada. In this 4 part video series on Energetic Communication we’re going to take you through several energetic pathways to bring awareness and action to the ways we can get to know our inner emotional landscapes. As we go deeper every month on Energetic Communication, we’ll be examining what happens to us when we share space with other people and how that can impact your ability to be in relationship with ourselves and others.

We begin our series with a talk about what a “QUIETING OF THE INTUITION” means, how we’ve noticed it’s presence in our work, and what simple solutions we can offer to begin awakening our inner wisdom.

We all have intuition. It’s the part of us that says, “fight or flight”. It’s that gut instinct that sends you a message about something you’re observing or experiencing. When it comes to creating ways to navigate situations, create boundaries with others, it’s often intuition that tells you what you should do. But, more often than not, if we don’t recognize this message from our bodies, what are the consequences.

In video 1 of 4 below, we talk about the various reasons for our intuition may be quieted down, which can often lead us to make decisions that are either misguided, or divert us from a decision we originally wanted to make. Listen in on the full episode of our conversation as we hit three points:

• How can we recognize when our own intuition is quieted, dimmed, or dismissed?

• How we’ve learned from real life situations when we’ve quieted our intuition.

• Awakening of the intuition is something we can implement as a practice of empowerment.

 

And if you’re so inspired to get in on the dialogue, please do contribute your thoughts to the comment box below! We’d love to hear from you!

•  How has this quieting shown up in your life?

• What do you notice about yourself when you decide to NOT go with your intuition?

• What have been some powerful examples of your intuition allowing you to thrive in who you are?

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO VIEW THIS CONVERSATION.

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5 Steps to Shift From Madness to Mindset

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting the same results”

— unknown

At the end of last year (2017) I offered you a deep reflection tool that allowed you to recognize the changes in behaviors you were able to make that year...

And in recognizing those changes in behaviors, I hope you were able to see those as a major step forward. If you haven’t done that exercise, I suggest giving it a try before doing this year’s activity. Because you might be surprised by how much growth you’ve been able to accomplish with just behavioral shifts! You can do last year’s activity by reading about it here. It includes some downloadable worksheets too!

Now, to take your reflection even deeper towards
transformation, this year’s tool will help you understand your mindset. I can talk actions all day long and you can engage with actions that change the way you do things, but if you’re mindset, or beliefs around those actions aren’t aligned, you’ll often find yourself reverting back to your old ways.

Take this upcoming “New Years Resolutions” season where we typically see folks committing to “a better diet”, “more exercise”, or some other form of better living. When the enthusiasm and stamina around that change wears off, say around February or March, excuses start to take over. Without a strong mindset aligned with that change, belief systems from other people, societal norms, or just those stories you developed on your own can take over a derail your plans. The madness sets in.

So, as a way to make your shift a holistic and solid one, we’re going to focus this year on shifting from this madness of varying beliefs in your head to developing a strong mindset that sets you up for making an actual change that is aligned and long lasting.

So what does a successful shift from madness to mindset look like?

Simply put, these 5 steps can help you put some back into it! Below I give you some examples to help jumpstart your reflection and I also encourage you to download this worksheet and FULLY engage with the activity.

1. Name what you want to change. Bottom line it.

   In 2019 I want to change the way I eat to have a more plant-based diet

2. What are your beliefs (madness) around that shift? For instance, what goes on in your head when you think about making this change in your life?

   a. Plant based diets are healthier and will help me lose weight

   b. It takes too much time to prep food for a more plant based diet and I’ too busy

   Where did they come from? You, someone else, societal norms, etc…?

   a. I see it all the time in the media, a couple of people in my community swear by the a plant-based diet reversing chronic illness and other things, and ever since I started eating more plant based foods I feel better about my overall body

   b. I grew up with fast food and TV dinners, so making food from scratch is too time consuming and I’m a really busy person

3. Determine which of those beliefs serve to your benefit versus ones that result in preventing you from making a successful, long term shift. Can you add an action to take to make that change?

   Example

   Mindset - I see it all the time in the media, a couple of people in my community swear by the vegan diet reversing chronic illness, and ever since I started eating more plant based foods I feel better about my overall body.

   Action - 3 out of 7 days in a week will be a plant-based lunch

4. Bottom line your mindset in a statement. This is the part that shifts from madness your mindset. Affirm it and ritualize it into an affirmation or reminder to yourself, especially when you have the urge to revert back to old habits. Write or draw this statement out and put it on display in a sacred place in your home so you can see it and recite it at least once a day. Do this for at least 21 days!

   a. I make time to have more plant-based foods in my diet because it supports my overall health

5. Keep yourself accountable by looking back every week and tell someone.

   • How many times were you able to implement the change?

   • How many times were you able to state your mantra (mindset) to yourself?

   • Celebrate the wins and when you’ve been consistent in using this mantra and don’t be hard on yourself if it’s not perfect! Your mind is, after all, conditioning itself to a new norm! But also don’t have a gallon of ice cream, instead, share with someone who supports you that you reached your weekly goal!

   Tip: If you’re not consistent, next week, customize the action so that it fits better into your unique life and try again. It’s all good as long as you don’t quit all together!

Finally, its always a good idea to have at least one “transformational buddy”; someone who can witness your change and cheer you on! I personally would shamelessly plug that hiring a coach is the ultimate game changer! But if you’re not yet ready for that type of investment, I’ll leave you with some final tips to identify who that buddy can be:

• Someone you trust and has been a natural and true champion of you all along

• A person who can keep their personal agenda out of your goals and be an active listener

• Someone who can empathize, not sympathize with you

Good luck in the next year of change towards your best life!

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The Messages in the Flames

In the wake of our most recent wildfires…

the overwhelming sadness of our reality hit me in a way that validated what I had written about just a few months ago in, “Nothing Left to Justify” . This time I felt this overwhelming feeling of, “it’s really happening” come over me. As I sifted through my emotions and what I was “seeing”, the compounding tragedies of Thousand Oaks, CA came to mind. This was the incident and the moment that hit me with validation. As reported in the Washington Post, it was “non-stop chaos” for this community. For me, it was the incident that brought my connections of the violence of people and nature’s destruction much closer to each other; in fact literally, into the same location.

While I was engaging in conversations with my community, a common struggle to find ways to come to terms with what is going on in our world and “how do we manage all of this “chaos” and find a place in our individual hearts to do something about the devastation without being stifled by hopelessness”. So, a sister healer, Claudia and I decided to have a 1:1 conversation to discuss in more depth what my visions have been and what they meant to the larger view of “where does that leave us as a people moving forward?”. We hopped on Instagram LIVE and talked through some of her key observations of these fires as I discussed aspects of viewing them from a place of our nature identity.

In general what this conversation held where some key moments outlined below

• honoring those impacted by the devastation, loss, death, the rescuers, and those continually helping community on the grounds

• having conversations about these fires but not understanding how we can contribute meaningfully

• support and healing through the experience and after care plans acknowledging the grieving process

• the lack of knowing how to connect to nature and who we are traditionally as a result of societal norms and how the impacts of this disconnection are greater now

• the messages in the flames being one of nature mirroring how we as people treat each other

• being able to recognize fire of the element that brings in swift change and rebirth, knowing how this is a metaphor for our collective society to focus on moving forward

• the work ahead is to look into you and your own conflicts, healing through those points will bring more harmony to the Earth

It’s no doubt that for us in California, our year-long fire season has in itself, ignited this need

to search more deeply into our lives and become more aware and observant of what’s actually going on around us. I end this video by reminding our audience that there’s nothing separate about a seemingly minor argument you have with another to the potentials of this energy being reflected in the behavior of nature’s systems.

We are nature, nature is us

View the conversation in full by clicking the video below. Comment and subscribe my youtube page and let’s continue this conversation!

 11/21/18 IG LIVE @la_clandestina_ @hikeitoutcoaching This was a 1:1 conversation with my sister healer, Claudia to discuss more in depth what my visions have been and what they mean in the larger view of “where does that leave us as a people moving forward”. We hopped on Instagram LIVE and talked through some of her key observations of these fires as I discussed aspects of viewing them from a place of our nature identity.

THANK YOU FOR READING!
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Intention at the Core

Hiker: Kaya Sattva
Photo: Raynelle Rino

My healing hikes go deeper than a walk in nature with a group of like minded folks that seek an escape from the everyday hustle and bustle of life. We go inward from the notion that being outside/doors is healing in itself. During my healing hikes you are actually engaging in a contained self healing process. And it’s a process I guide with ritual and ceremony throughout; from before the hike is scheduled to the moments when we close and I, myself must engage in my own self care to realign my energy.  

What I mean by intentionality

From my perspective, hiking with an intention is the most accessible way to reconnect to nature to a point that we are RELEARNING OUR COMMUNICATION to the elements. And to reconnect this way is to practice the very ways our ancestors lived with nature, pre-colonization.

One of the most important steps during the hike is the pause to really think about your intention. “What exactly are you here for? What are you needing from nature today?” I always remind hikers, the more direct (or bottom-lined) your intention, the more access nature has to send you its messages. Hiking without intention is like walking with the aforementioned notion; that being outdoors is healing in itself. That’s true and important for sure, AND I’m claiming my unique gift of being able to guide others through a healing process that is unapologetic about going inwards for personal growth. I’m focused on my connection to support you in living your their best life and to walk through the trenches and climb up the mountains. In a sense, I’m taking hiking from a recreational activity into a deep healing process. And that requires and demands intentionality.

The importance of intentionality being at the core of my hikes is that it heals us as a people on so many levels.

Having an intention during my hikes…

• creates a clear purpose for why are you’re even here and you know something is going to happen

• creates meaning in the experience and doesn’t waste energy. Nature never wastes energy, it’s just transformed into something else; a law of Nature we often don’t realize or remember. For instance, when we release our trauma/negative energies from our bodies, we ask Nature to take it and transform it to something new

• brings back the importance and process of paying more attention to the world around you, resulting in better navigating your world. Essentially it creates more awareness

• allows us to practice and reclaim our pre-colonial ways of connecting to nature. It acknowledges that we ALL are indigenous to some land on this planet and ALL had some way, form, ritual, ceremony, tradition that honored and worked in accordance to Nature’s laws and elements. Our ancestors practiced specific rituals and ceremonies, many of them in direct connection to seasons, cosmic events, patterns in the environment, etc… There was intention in everything our ancestors did

• allows a process that requires the reconditioning of our instincts and beliefs as our personal power because we’re going back to basics. Instincts, looking at nature, feeling the universality of it, and applying it to your life with intention can heal any broken relationships in our life as well as the disconnection from nature and land caused by colonization. We are a part of nature, so we function as it does.

Intention in all the things

Intention at the core of my hikes is important in getting the most out of the experience and I also want to emphasize how intention is needed in all the things we do, especially for the choices you make for your wellness. Just as I mentioned our ancestors had intention for everything…in today’s world of hyper information, abundance in ways to go about things, and the capitalist system…our ability to hone in on an intention for any one thing gets more difficult.

I see our struggle to regain our ability for intentionality when I see the need for rituals to come back into life. For instance, when clients are challenged with overwhelm or a heavy work load, often times its routine, structure, or balance that is wanted and needed to manage the chaos. This, to me is call to bring in ritual to the day. As a universal approach, ritual is like your quick morning meditation, your breath exercise to ground you mid-day, your soothing stone…whatever it is, we all have a need to find an anchor.

It starts with your intention for that anchor

So, what exactly do you intend to get out of ______________ [insert wellness activity here] _________________?

If you’ve picked up a healing tool like a stone or amulet, what exactly is your intent in using it? How exactly are you connected to it?

Giving yourself permission to take time to really connect to the things we do and choices we make, allows for more power to engage with the tool and its support for us

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Nothing Left To Justify

Everyday, every week, more and more I’m connecting today’s current events as metaphors about ourselves and our place in this world, identifying them as our “moments of truth” . For instance, this summer the gruesome killing of our young princess, Nia Wilson gave me the most clear message about what this tragedy is telling us about ourselves. Let me break it down for you, based on what I experienced here as an Oakland resident:

A couple of days before her killing, a local restaurant posted a call for a community counter action march from their venue to an expected meeting by a right-winged group, The Proud Boys. As the the hype intensified and community began answering the call to hold a counter, peaceful celebration of unity, I felt a sense of sadness and disappointment. Because what I actually saw were people in the streets screaming in anger towards the police and the flared up rage against the system being played out once again here at home. The sadness and disappointment was really rooted in my fatigue of all the death and violence happening here and questioning when will we actually stop resisting and be still to think about an actual way forward? I’m tired of seeing the resisting, the fighting, and the clashing. I’m not empowered by that anymore.

Then as I woke up the next morning to the horrific news that another young black life was violently taken at a BART station by a white man, I realized that this became the real moment of truth. Because as the day progressed, speculations and headlines in media questioned whether there was a connection to Nia’s murderer and the visiting Proud Boys. “Word around town was that he was one of them”, some of the posts read. But what we would soon learn about the killer was that he actually was a local resident who’s spent many years in and out of jail and had some mental health issues, unaffiliated with the right-winged group. So presumptively,

racism wasn’t the justification. It was mental illness.  

(AND side note: I believe racism is a mental illness)

So can we even blame mental illness for this attack? It can’t be blamed AND serve as a way forward! Where does that blame lead us to anyway? Another hurt or attack on another, probably. So, the big takeaway for me, with respect to this particular story, was that we as a people HAVEN'T BEEN PAYING ATTENTION TO THE RIGHT THING. We aren’t listening to the core of the issue and taking action in the right way. Blame is NOT the name of the game, but the STILLNESS, finding the humanity of the situation is where we must be to open up a path forward with healing that leads to a solution.

Treyvon Martin’s parents spoke about what they’re advocating for isn’t a race issue, it’s an issue about right and wrong and that ultimately it’s about not hurting each other. When Nia’s family spoke during the press conference shortly after her murder, they gave us clues as to what we should be paying more attention to. At least, that's what my deep listening was telling me. They said, “stand down, don’t react”. They called on community to stand down and be still [while the suspect was still out there].

My intuition’s bottom line from all this? Well, since I'm an intuitive connected to Earth, the way I'm seeing this is...

The more we pay attention to REACTING to these incidents as we have been doing in resisting, the more and more gruesome the next incidents of violence will be

And violence in every form; whether between people or in the extreme violence of Mother Nature onto this planet. The pains and hurts caused by humans onto each other are not separate from the Earthly destructions happening on our planet right now. That the more we continue on the way we have been with each other, the more vicious our environment will respond with its own destruction. It's all connected, I believe. 

So when will we as a nation, as a community realize that we need to be present with these realities and awaken to it FIRST before taking action? When will non-resistance be the expected next step after harm? To me, being present means going INWARD to “see”, to “listen deeply” to what our community leaders are telling us, requesting of us even, to do. Going inward means really opening up in a way where you can see these heinous crimes and the people who commit them as sharing something in common with you. Going inward means seeing the destructive natural events as connected to your own rage or exploitation of resources.

Because if we can't reach that connectedness with ourselves, the people around us, and the land we live on, 

There will be nothing left of ourselves to justify our actions towards one another

There will be nothing left of this planet to justify our misuse and disconnection to our planet and all its beings

There will be nothing left for us to LOOK TO, to justify why things happen the way they do

There will be nothing left to look at but each other

So in conclusion,

what are the first steps in your awakening or awareness of our interconnectedness of ourselves and our place in this world? I realize its a journey, as it has been for me. That some of the beginning steps include

• taking that difficult look at yourself and asking where the hurt exists?

• what kind of hurt is it?

• and what's available for me to begin the healing process?

Because when we begin to heal ourselves, we begin to heal those around us and the land in which we walk on.

The time is NOW, to understand our world more deeply. The time is NOW, to understand ourselves more deeply. The time is now because the world in which we know it is having its veil lifted. The systems and ways of thinking that are misaligned with the laws of nature are being broken down, so are the areas of land that have not been cared for sustainably. 

I truly believe the way forward begins with YOU.

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ MY STORY. IF YOU ENJOYED THIS PIECE, PLEASE SHARE WITH OTHERS AND JOIN IN THE CONVERSATION BY COMMENTING BELOW!

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MEET THE COACH

Raynelle Rino, CPC

A long time social sector professional, Raynelle began her career in the sciences as an ecology field researcher then moved onto environmental education and social justice at the grassroots organizational level in the Bay Area. Her love for nature and youth development brought her to teach in unique settings like alternative high schools, environmental justice neighborhoods, parks, and juvenile justice facilities.

In 2016 Raynelle started Rino Consulting Solutions, a nature-based consulting firm that provides coaching and consulting services for professionals and other businesses. It’s mission is to support and inspire the leaders of today to live in the confidence of their identities as they move through a world in the midst of social, racial, and environmental transformation. Raynelle is a graduate of Humboldt State University with a BS in Biology, a Rising Leaders and 2042 Today fellow, and lives in Oakland with her husband and daughter.

The Last Episode of Your Telenovela

I used to joke about Filipino melodramas and movies because the story lines were always so predictable. Given I have minimal understanding of the Tagalog language I knew in general that the stories were always the same; lots of crying, cheating, lying, someone's parent always dies, there's several verbal altercations and insults thrown around and like all melodramas (or as they're called in Latin America, The Telenovela) the story takes FOR-EVER to progress. That's how they get you craving for more until you're hooked!

As I became a mother I began investing more time on improving my communication skills, engaging in my own healing, and leveling up in my professionalism. Then, I started seeing these shows in a different light. I started to realize just how toxic these stories were. As a conscious woman of color I couldn’t simply see The Telenovela as entertainment. They were negative and disempowering messages of women and relationships.

I've always craved positive portrayals of women and
healthy relationships because that’s
what I would want more of in my life

So speaking about my “leveling-up” in my career, I came across a really hard lesson in how I was portraying myself during presentations. After one of my training I shared my background then a colleague of mine offered her feedback and said I was using a lot of “self-deprecating” language. I guess I wasn’t thinking about how I talked about myself, but naively would just talk about my story the best way I knew how. But her feedback put me on this mission to find out what was behind all the negative self-talk and figure out what I needed to do to change my story language.

Living in a patriarchal family structure and society were obvious components influencing my disempowered female stance. And maybe cultural components played a part in being “humble” about my accomplishments, maybe not even acknowledging them at all. At the end of the day I knew I had to understand myself more deeply to know how to SHIFT and talk about me in a positive and impactful way.

Language has energy and words carry weight

So, when I reflected back on that self deprecating talk, I remembered that the story about my not finishing graduate school or not wanting this or that in my career, revealed language that focused on the negative aspects of my life. But in my mind at that time, I didn’t think it was a big deal because it was my truth. The biggest lesson was that it really didn’t matter what the outcome was of my specific story, people will remember more of the energy you bring to the room.

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel" - Maya Angelou

When I do deep listening with clients I pay attention to the language and words they choose when telling a story or giving a response. Just like my colleague pointed out for me, these are the underlying ways our notions of self-worth can manifest. It can passively reveal some of the hidden beliefs we have about ourselves that may not necessarily come from our own beliefs, but beliefs that other people/society have about us. So when negative self talk happens acknowledge it then get curious about it; where does it come from? How has it served you?

Over the years I’ve discovered more of the complexities that have played a role in this self-deprecating language. There’s so much ongoing work I do like self-reflection, spiritual healing, even reframing simple sentences in email responses, the list goes on and on...it’s FOR REAL challenging sometimes. But if I can offer you three simple ways to reflect on your own story language perhaps we can see how our empowering stories can add so much more to this world, YES?

Here are some reflections I offer you...

What you choose to talk about is what’s most important to you

Without judging yourself or having any expectations about your story, think about those stories you tend to tell others about yourself. Continually sharing specific stories that focus almost entirely on the situation (vs. how it impacts you) is a sign that something hasn’t been resolved in that story. Bring awareness to the drama.

• Are they mostly positive or negative accounts, opinions, or beliefs?

• Can you still feel the rawness in the emotion from that situation each time you tell it?

• What larger lesson is attached to this repeated story or topic?

• What’s important to you about the stories you choose to talk about?

Listen to yourself

There’s no harm in simply recording yourself talk. Oddly enough this action can reveal a lot about how you sound to yourself! Or if you have a trusty mentor or friend who is willing to actively listen to your stories, share with them the stories you hang onto. Ask them for some constructive feedback. You can even have them just ask the questions above after you talk.

Time to level up. Write the last episode of your Telenovela! NO MORE DRAMA!

Write that final episode about the person you were before you realized you were in a telenovela! Gather all your main characters and predictable scenarios for this episode. Consider this your character’s last chance to stay the same cycle of drama, or story line. Then set them free with an epic ending. 

• What disheartening stories do you have about your life?

• What happened to you that created the negative outlook?

• Have you given yourself permission to accept these situations?

Now, the challenge; create a new path with a different story language!
 

• How will you put an end to the drama? Do you (as the main character) die? Transform?

• And who is this new person you’re writing about NOW?

THANK YOU FOR READING!
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MEET THE COACH

Raynelle Rino, CPC

A long time social sector professional, Raynelle began her career in the sciences as an ecology field researcher then moved onto environmental education and social justice at the grassroots organizational level in the Bay Area. Her love for nature and youth development brought her to teach in unique settings like alternative high schools, environmental justice neighborhoods, parks, and juvenile justice facilities.

In 2016 Raynelle started Rino Consulting Solutions, a nature-based consulting firm that provides coaching and consulting services for professionals and other businesses. It’s mission is to support and inspire the leaders of today to live in the confidence of their identities as they move through a world in the midst of social, racial, and environmental transformation. Raynelle is a graduate of Humboldt State University with a BS in Biology, a Rising Leaders and 2042 Today fellow, and lives in Oakland with her husband and daughter.

Life Re-traumatized & How I Stopped the Cycle of Harm

Life Re-traumatized

& How I Stopped the Cycle of Harm

Yes, working in prisons isn't for the faint of heart. It takes a certain type of person to be there on a daily basis. For me, it was one of the most rewarding and meaningful experiences of my career. In addition to that, I always tell people (mostly for people of color) if they have any interest in working in prisons don't do it. Well, don't do it unless you are fully aware of what you're getting into AND you've got a strong self care plan, fully loaded with resources and allies inside & outside of the facility.

When I first started working in juvenile justice facilities I knew what I was good at. And that was to reach and teach environmental education to "high risk" youth populations. What I didn't know was that I was experiencing compounded trauma by placing myself in these situations. Let me be more explicit about what I mean by compounded trauma.

As a woman of color working in direct service to said communities, it wasn't until I left my last non-profit where I was now able to observe a more privileged white woman doing a very similar job of educating in prison. After being an observer to her facilitation, I realized just how traumatizing it had been for me to have done this kind of work as a conscious (woke) woman of color. During her facilitation I noticed that when the dialogue from one student touched on a statement about the actual system of oppression that prisons represented, she listened, but her response redirected the dialogue to focus on something more superficial. I can't remember what she started talking about specifically, but I knew that was the point of difference for me. And I was triggered by that. I felt the dialogue was shut down, that the student wasn't validated or nurtured in their beliefs about "the system" and there was no space to continue to dialogue around that.

I started to sense that unlike her, (with checked assumptions here) who she can do the J-O-B, be in these facilities with these communities, then go back home to something different. I couldn't do that. I didn't have the privilege of putting my blinders on whenever, to not find commonality with my students in the way I looked, maybe the ways in which I grew up and had similar lived experiences and emotions as my students, etc... Then on top of that, I had to go home and wonder why there was so much trash on my streets and broken down cars, why did another kid got shot at the corner store?, why is it such a struggle to just get ahead in life?...

I realized then, thatI worked in trauma,
"walked the streets" in trauma,
and I went home to trauma.
I had no rest. 
 

The serendipitous part of that moment was that I finally came into a reconciliation about the differences between privileged white folks working in these communities and my own identity as a POC doing the same work.

I was more prone to being re-traumatized while on the job

But on my long drive home from that observation I came into that knowing. I said to myself, hey the men in that facility have gained so much growth, healing, and a safe place to process that I can't disregard that. If she, (privileged white woman) can do it, handle it, continue to proceed after so many years, then good for her! She's able to facilitate and impact these men and this program needs to keep it going! So, now that I reached that reconciliation, I had to make my next move. How then, would I continue to do the things I'm good at and loved to do while still working with my community WITHOUT getting re-traumatized? First,

I needed to find a way to END my own daily
CYCLE of trauma

I needed to begin my own HEALING

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So what were my first steps in this journey?

Gather (get a hold of) myself
Gather my tribe of support
Figure out what needed to be healed
Start practicing

During that specific time in my life where I was in that prison observing this woman, I had just gotten laid off from my last position. And that lay off didn't go down as a mutual agreement in any way. I was emotionally vulnerable and I felt a little lost, mostly defeated. Still I held my ground and trusted that there was a bigger purpose for me. And that there must be something behind the pattern of losses and frustrations of working in non-profit environmental organizations. I was reminded from a good friend that I couldn't possibly take on all of the blame for how things turned out for me; that there are always those components of this system at play here. 

So in trying to figure out what needed to be healed, I doubled down on figuring out where I needed to be next. I continued working with a small and special group of women as a support system to heal daily as well as to develop my spiritual awareness, I engaged fully in my coaching certification program and utilized our practice sessions to address these specific pain points, and I asked for more of myself to just surrender to my spiritual path as a healer.

No doubt its constant work, learning, and growth.
But my everything and every part of me is affirmed every time I'm with a client
or out with a group on a healing hike; I'm now walking my path.

I say this to many of my clients in exploration and wonder around what is next. I say, pay more attention to the things that bring you light, levity, and fulfillment. Those are the places you want to go towards. And for those places that aren't so bright, maybe they are darker in feeling, they are places of hurt or bad feelings AND approach them head-on and ask in the most direct way, "What are you here to teach me?" 

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ MY STORY. IF YOU ENJOYED THIS PIECE, PLEASE SHARE WITH OTHERS AND JOIN IN THE CONVERSATION BY COMMENTING BELOW!

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MEET THE COACH

Raynelle Rino, CPC

A long time social sector professional, Raynelle began her career in the sciences as an ecology field researcher then moved onto environmental education and social justice at the grassroots organizational level in the Bay Area. Her love for nature and youth development brought her to teach in unique settings like alternative high schools, environmental justice neighborhoods, parks, and juvenile justice facilities.

In 2016 Raynelle started Rino Consulting Solutions, a nature-based consulting firm that provides coaching and consulting services for professionals and other businesses. It’s mission is to support and inspire the leaders of today to live in the confidence of their identities as they move through a world in the midst of social, racial, and environmental transformation. Raynelle is a graduate of Humboldt State University with a BS in Biology, a Rising Leaders and 2042 Today fellow, and lives in Oakland with her husband and daughter.

"Waiting For Them to Leave or Die..."

I found myself saying this a lot in my career as I made an effort to climb into organizational leadership. Coming from an industry where progress was stalled one way or another by leadership, new ideas were met with skepticism and fear, it was an easy excuse to just get through the day to day. It was that last ounce of hope I would give myself saying, "I can just wait for them to leave or die, then things will change, it will get better"

But knowing me, that wasn't going to last long. I needed to leave or it would crush my soul to stay! Now, don't get me wrong, if you're feeling the frustrations of a stagnant organization or one where your values aren't aligned, I'm not saying you should leave, but what I AM saying is

 THERE ARE OTHER WAYS  TO BE   IN A SITUATION

For me, I realized that I can either be in REACTION to the situation or I can TAKE ACTION ABOUT the situation. So, what action did I take? I started to pay more attention to the PATTERNS that were showing up in my overall career as well as personal life experience. I realized that those patterns were actually messages telling me where I should or shouldn't be. And I say this to a lot of folks seeking their purpose, 

"Whatever dims your light, move away from it. Whatever brightens or gives more light,
move in that direction."

Even after I reflected on the many things in my life that brought me joy and invigorating challenge, I still didn't now how to step forward. Now, as a coach, I realized what was missing in the process was a step I'll call

"NAMING"
 

Sometimes all it takes is just one quick and highly impactful session to simply NAME what life is placing in front of you to take the next step forward.

If you're at that stage in life of wondering, "what else could I be in life?", I encourage you to reach out to me for just a quick 20 minute talk to determine where you are in your journey towards a happier more fulfilling life's work and to set some goals! 

Today, I know for sure that the "naming" step is just one of the three beginning steps I've laid out for the introductory level of work I do in supporting others through their journey. As we begin with naming what life is presenting you, we can get deeper into your knowing of Self and build your AWARENESS.

But I didn't get to the "naming" on my own. I had help. With the guidance of many others with their own life and professional experiences, I found those names. They knew the names of situations, they new the names of similar behaviors I was experiencing. And I took those as my tools to move forward. 

I had to NAME my situation. I had to NAME what I was feeling, experiencing, and reacting to. Because without naming, I wasn't able to validate my situation or experience and contain it into a thing to work on. Without a name I would have no direction to look or walk towards. I was goal-less. 

Curious to know what happens after
you name it?

Sign up for the newsletter to get information about what happens next! 

A Directional Tool for Supporting Your Life's Purpose and Passion

Who knew that something as simple as the directional compass can support and guide you through any of life's challenges and wanderings, both literally and metaphorically? Well, it wasn't until I began looking into more traditional healing when I realized the compass we were taught as young children also had some powerful significance for our ancestors and how THEY walked through life. In my work today as a nature-based coach, the compass, or Medicine Wheel is the central piece in reconnecting people to nature. 

I even found it a valuable reflection tool for business development. As I was guiding high school students through a workshop on entrepreneurship, I gave my own story as an example of how my journey was reflected in the Medicine Wheel. So, I wanted to offer this priceless knowledge over to you as another reflection tool.

Download the activity and get deep into a reflection on your life's purpose.

Specifically, this downloadable activity is ideal for

• someone wanting to start a business or begin a major project
• a transition time where your next step can go one direction or the other
• if you need to re-evaluate where you are in life and need an organized way to sift through your thoughts

It'll help you to

• Intentionally reflect on YOUR PERSONAL PASSION, YOUR STORY, and YOUR SERVICE BACK TO
  OTHERS
• Reflect on what it will mean to you to begin walking this path or walking in it with more
  ownership
• Connect to the universal compass, the Medicine Wheel, and their respective natural ELEMENTS involved in developing your true path.

To deepen your exploration and walk into your true path with a guide, book a quick consultation with me by visiting my Contact Me page

When My Dreams Started Coming True

I don't really speak openly to too many people about my lucid dreams, although they've been a significant part of why I'm here doing the work I do.

While exploring my spiritual identity, I was seeing a spiritual healer and going to therapy. I would say at that time in my life, I really needed both types of support to help me through both personal and professional challenges. Naturally, I thought I should bring up dreams during sessions because they were just so intense. Little did I know they were messages guiding me towards my path.

Take for instance this featured photo. I took this picture at Point Reyes, on the Tomales Point Trail earlier this month. I had the dream about this place about 8 months before I actually hiked it. So when I get there, I decided to take the photo exactly how I remember seeing this trail in my dream.

I knew it was this location I dreamt about because of the distinct cliff sides on either side of the trail. In the dream my feet weren't exactly planted on the ground. I was flying over the point seeing people happily enjoying their time on the beach (probably Stinson Beach) on a hot and sunny day. I was also with a group of women walking back towards the trailhead at the end of a long hike. Of coarse, at the time I had the dream I had no idea this was an actual real place. I just knew I went to this amazing location, with women, on a very gorgeous an joyous day. And I FELT like it was near.

So here's where this summer dream comes true this winter: Not knowing much about Point Reyes area, one of my dear friends requests that I lead a group of women for a healing hike several miles North of Point Reyes as a part of their retreat. Going about my usual planning process, I look up trails in the area and find recognizable pictures of Tomales Point. Bingo! "I've been there before"

Now, that's just one simple example of how one of my dreams materializes into my real-awake conscious life. And you can probably say that was meant to be that I be there and lead a hike with the women. But this happens to me often and with dreams that are much more vivid and intense in situation. 

Earlier, when my spiritual awareness was just waking up, I would feel so overwhelmed by the dreams and the intensity of my experience that it would really spook me out. I would wake up with such clear, intense emotional residual from being in the dream that I couldn't help but write it down or share it with my partner, and reflect deeply on why that came to me.

I remember having an intense dream while I was working with adjudicated youth. I was also questioning why I loved the challenging work so much because I was torn about leaving my students. In this dream, I was with my students at a near by beach, when an old indigenous man walked slowly up onto the shore of a lagoon, pushing onto the shore, a mummified young boy on a rafter. He had been shot. As this man stopped on the shore, he looked me square in the eyes with such intensity, non-verbally telling me to "look at what's happening to them". Then I woke up. 

That intensity is why I actively sought out council and guidance. And that guidance really put things into perspective for me, affirming for me that the ancestors are speaking to me, guiding me, and showing me messages I need to see, process, and connect to what I'm doing here on Earth. The guidance also helped me realize that the communication IS TRUE and a gift I should hold with reverence. Now, I live in more confidence with my dreams and reflect on them with more discipline and awareness that there's a deeper message available for my spirit to guide me through this real-awake-conscious life.   

My dreams are really just extensions of who I am and how I'm walking in this world in communication with the ancestors and The Divine.

Why share this with you now? I truly, truly believe that we as a society are hungry for spiritual connection. In times where we're experiencing extremes in dualities, ideologies, violence, climate, we're facing the options of spirituality to find our answers, or to find our calm center, to stay grounded and not lose hope or faith. I live as that example to surrender to anything your spirit is guiding you towards. Because it's the magic our souls are crying for these days and the magic our ancestors are looking for us to RECLAIM.

The dreams I have and me sharing what it means for me to experience my dreams is my way of validating that our thoughts, believed to be abstract, are REAL.

Pay attention to them and how they show up in you because I know they are ways in which your true gifts are showing. 

Do you know how your gifts are showing up in your life? I'm curious!

Share with me your thoughts, questions, curiosities in your spiritual connection and drop a comment below!

Your Year-End Deep Reflection Tool

So it’s the end of 2017 and the perfect time to get into reflection mode and see how all the events of this year impacted you and what you want to declare in the coming year for yourself. As a transformational coach, I’m here to offer you a deeper kind of reflection because what’s the point of keeping those reflections floating around in your head or aimlessly written in your daily journal? You can put a meaningful process into your annual reflection by taking it step by step until you take action!

If you received the newsletter, you probably downloaded part 1 of this reflection, have done it, and are ready to dive deeper with part 2 (below). And if you’re not getting the newsletter, make sure to sign up by clicking here. You don’t want to miss the next offering!

Let’s get started.

The purpose of this reflection is to elevate your view on the past year (or after a period of time where you’ve been working on your self development). My specific prompts will allow you to put pen to paper to

• notice shifts you’ve made in mindset, attitude, and choices

• find celebrations you might not have been aware of

• Reflect on the year’s cumulative impacts on your growth & development

Part 1

Steps

1. Take a look at the first prompt, “I Used To...” Think about  who you were at the beginning the year. Focus on areas such as your

   • View on something/someone

   • Choices you made

   • Undesirable/previous habits

2. Now,  compliment the first column to the next column, “Now I...”.Think about what you did to change what you used to do and bottom line this as a statement. If you haven’t made a change, leave it blank.

3. Next, take a step back and CELEBRATE some of the key shifts you’ve identified.
   Do this by adorning your statements with celebratory drawings next to some of the biggest or momentous changes that happened!

4. Now, take a deep breath!Congratulations! You’ve (we’ve)  been through alot this year. There’s always much to celebrate!

Part 2

Now that you’ve reflected on the shifts and changes that happened throughout the year, it’s time to put some action to them and begin to actually live in your new way of being!

Steps

1. Prioritize your accomplishments. Look at your list of “Now I’s...” and pick one or two that really stand out for you in being significant changes you’ve made.

2. Take those statements and transform them into, “Now THAT I...” statements of declaration. Name/bottom line/reframe what it is you are now able to do. This step helps you declare that you have stepped into a new way of being. See the example below.

3. Put it out there with “I Want to…”
   Now that you have the awareness of who you are, state what you want in your life to support this new way of being.

(Continued from part 1)

Take this last step to
reach a pathway towards transformation!

Ask yourself:

What FIRST STEP can I take to create what I want in life to support this new way of being?

Download Part 1
Download Part 2

Book a complimentary 15 minute coaching session to guide you through this specific reflection and land a solid FIRST STEP to welcome a FIERCE 2018!

The "Being" and "Doing" Identity Crisis

Earlier this month I had this crazy idea that I would fast on Thanksgiving Day. When I mentioned it to my partner, his response was, "Well good luck with that!"

But the idea came to me because I was reflecting on the land-based work I do that is centered on giving gratitude for the Earth, its stewards of past and present, and our ancestors. I mean, that's my thing, right? Reconnecting people to nature and its elements, guiding folks into the process of sensing and feeling the elements in their bodies and "inner landscape" so they can start thinking about what that experience means to their outer, physical landscape/environment.

Ultimately, I began asking myself, "What Am I Doing?"

There's no doubt in my mind that the work I've stepped into has brought me closer to my true path. And the many signs around me confirm that this is what I'm here to DO and I know that 

But now, the deeper question for me became,

Well, "Who am I being in this work then?"

Am I really identifying with what I'm doing as a reflection of who I'm being in my work? Am I working on what I say I'm about? Do I even have the permission to do what I'm doing?

And in this moment specifically, I began to question why the sudden revelation to fast on the one day of the year where everyone else around me is consuming everything? I realized that I was always aware of what "Thanksgiving Day" truly represented; also known as "Thangs Taken Day", this "celebration" of abundance and gratitude was only possible through the genocide of the indigenous peoples of this land. How am I supposed to continue walking my path of nature connection and reclaiming ancestral practices of intuitive living if I'm celebrating a time when it was all violently taken away? 

Then the words started to come to me

 REVERENCE, MOURNING, SILENCE, REFLECTION

All of that combined, meant to me, that FASTING ON THIS DAY is what I need to do to align myself with what my service to the world is. Let it be crazy to most! For me, its this message I was sent to align my identity in what I DO to who I'm BEING as I walk this path. And that was a feeling of REVOLUTION! 

So, I'm not saying that you should join me in fasting, but I do encourage you to begin asking yourself those deeper questions, 

• What are you doing? or What impact do you bring to this world?
• Who are you being? or What personal values are you honoring in your work?

These questions are important to self-development but can also apply to organizations that are looking to find more of a solid foundation, revisit a mission or vision, or create a new identity. 

By looking at the two identities we hold in this world (diagram below) we can really begin to understand who we are in both society and the grander scheme of the world. 

Click on my About page where you can reflect for yourself who you identify as in society and in nature. Ask yourself these questions:

• Where on the triangle does your work fall under? Is it fulfilling a basic need or is it bringing service to those closer to the peak? Am I creating or perpetuating equality?
• When do the elements show up for you in life? Do I gravitate towards watching the stars more, or do I find reprieve when I'm closer to water?

Then use your insights to draw upon a specific intention to bring more awareness of your values to your life.

When you look at how you answered the questions above, notice any information coming up. This process could bring up your Value Set. Make a list of what values are important to you and if possible, name your top 3 values!

Now examine:

• Are you aligned with your identities in both society and nature?
• Do any conflicting ideas come about when looking at the two?
• How does it make you feel to think about these two identities? 

Finally, in this process remember to be gentle with yourself. Many times when we start to recognize disconnects or misalignments, our inner critic will come in and make us feel bad or guilty about it. Just know, 

LIFE IS A JOURNEY!

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FEEL LIKE YOU NEED A COACH TO GUIDE YOU THROUGH THIS PROCESS? SHOOT ME A DIRECT EMAIL TO BOOK YOUR FREE 15 MINUTE CONSULTATION! 

In these 15 minutes we can walk through this identities activity and start to build a plan to begin aligning your work to your higher being!

The Growing Up To Do With Nature

As natural disaster levels intensify, I can't help but connect what's going on in Nature to what's also going on with our collective understanding of each other. I don't think its a coincidence that we're seeing unprecedented scales of hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires, simultaneously to shifts in our understanding of societal structures such as power, patriarchy, and race. As we are waking up consciously to our social structures, Nature herself is also coming in with her message, unapologetically. Perhaps there's a correlation there? I'll leave that up to you to ponder.

So now that Mother Nature is saying, 

 "We're playing a different game now,
and its a grown up game. So listen deeply
and do differently,"...

what do we do now? How can we really start to THINK and DO in a way that we haven't before? I think it's time to play that grown up game of listening to her. So, what will it take?

INTUITION
Flex your intuition like your survival depends on it. The next time you have that gut feeling, trust it as your truth all the time. If you have a "bad feeling" about it, don't do it or hesitate for a healthy pause. And in that pause, think about the very first image or word that comes to your mind when something doesn't feel right and ask, "what was that image/word about in relation to that discomfort?" You can also scan your body for the location of the discomfort or tension and try to draw on what that body part represents. Ask yourself about that connection, maybe think creatively about the metaphor embedded in the body connection. 

FEELING & SENSING
When we take the daily observations and attach an emotional feeling or intuitive sense to it, we're actually putting into action our listening. And this is what Nature wants since we don't "speak the same, literal language", our senses are there to help guide us towards knowing, or sometimes, survival. Even if survival means surviving that difficult conversation with your boss, being able to feel and sense your way through things allows you to be PRESENT in the moment and make more mature decisions about what to do. Challenge yourself to "feel" more of life. 

GET BACK TO BASICS
This is exactly what we do on our healing hikes. We get back to the basic interaction with nature, which is so much more than just "spending more time outside". To get back to the BASIC way of moving around our world will only serve us well because the evidence is in the way our ancestors lived. They survived the world many thousands of years by living simply with the land; they had a deep relationship with her. But how do we do that in this modern world and still follow the ways in which they lived? One simple beginning step is to be outside in a different way with the land. And that's one of the first steps we take when we gather; 

We give GRATITUDE and ask for PERMISSION

Do this every time you go out and I guarantee you, your relationship with Mother Nature will shift! You don't have to make a huge ceremony out of it. Just think about the words in your head and be honest and intentional about being grateful and humble about your presence.

If the tips above have ignited more curiosity, I encourage you to explore and practice outside! This is the essence of growing a deeper relationship with Nature. And answering the cries of Mother Nature doesn't only mean being more "sustainable" in our lifestyles. In addition to making greener and sustainable decisions, it also means having a deeper and more mature relationship with her and connecting with her in ways we're not used or ways that have been taken away. Reject the belief that we have no language to communicate with her and listen to the lessons of our ancestors that lived with the land.

Like what you read? Have something to contribute? Want to share feedback? Leave it in the comments and let's get to talking!

 

What's Yours, What's Mine In This Struggle

Healthy Boundaries...

has been one of the most common themes coming up in my work. Lately the folks reaching out to me for support have a general need to understand how to "not hold onto" someone else's issues. So, I thought it be fitting to write a little bit about a strategy I use everyday that helps me be present with clients (and people in general) without bringing on my "stuff". It also helps me manage the negative energies I know are not mine. In this day and age where we're seeing so many extreme differences in opinions and perspectives in mainstream media, it's no wonder this communication strategy has been coming up as a need.

I've learned to hold relationships with safety and healthy boundaries by practicing SELF MANAGEMENT.

 

What is self management?

It's basically a way to check yourself during dialog and recover from it. Whether it's assumptions, judgements, or wounded triggers that come up when we're talking to each other, managing how you're impacted can be significant step in shifting the energy towards healthier outcomes. It's difficult to practice, I know from experience! But when we're faced with a conflict that affects our deeply rooted moral values and beliefs, the easiest way out is to react in some defensive way. It's always okay to protect yourself! But the challenge I present to you is much like the challenge I present to you on healing hikes; get quite, invite the silence in and create a space of mindfulness for yourself and the other person.

Below are just some steps you can do to begin the practice if a conflicting conversation presents itself to you. Pause and remember to manage yourself, first!

1. Notice that you were triggered
   - What was said or witnessed that caused you some harm or discomfort?

2. Notice HOW it triggered you INTERNALLY
   - Did it cause you anger, judgement, or bring up a bad memory or association?

3. PAUSE AND PERMISSION
   - Whether it's taking a deep breath or disengaging your attention to the other person to listen to your own internal conversation, taking a pause after you've recognized an internal trigger is a critical step in giving yourself permission to step into self management.
   - Give yourself permission to be fully present and aware of the uncomfortable feelings. Although challenging, those uncomfortable feelings are important messages for you. 

4. Follow your intuition more deeply and lead yourself to SAFETY
   - If pausing leads you to stay silent, stay silent and deeply reflect on the moment later with yourself. Maybe ask yourself WHERE in your life story did that trigger/feeling come from?
   - If pausing leads you to speak up or out, remember to replace JUDGEMENT with CURIOSITY. Ask questions in a more open ended way so you have more opportunity to listen, maybe even to create more space for you to pause. This leads to the last step...

5. Get used to listening more
   - If you've come across this blog via my newsletter, you know that this month I wrote about a local comedian, W. Kamau Bell and his ability to self manage on his CNN Series, United Shades of America . I also mentioned that when he spoke during his book tour, he made it known that in order for him to "not go crazy" talking face-to-face with people that actively organize around some of the most extreme and divisive beliefs in this country, he knows he needs to (1) let them do all the talking and (2) just listen. He also mentions that he FIRST goes for a long walk to decompress. I had to mention that, of coarse!
   
   So when we give people to opportunity to keep talking while you listen in silence, you're actually giving them space to show themselves more fully. And this can give you a world of information and insights as to where they're coming from and give you time to not do much work for them, but you're actually taking care of yourself in the process by self managing. 

 

Did this help you in any way? Have you tried self management?

Do you think it could help someone you know?

Comment below on your thoughts or share this with someone you know would benefit from it.

The 4 Essentials to Pack for Our Journey

I call this work a journey, because that’s what it really is. There are no hard stops or starts with me, there are cycles. As you are actively living your cycle of life, I am as well. The moment we cross paths is when we explore where each of us are on our paths. As your coach I make sure to pack these essential items I know we’ll need as we move forward. We actively co-create how these function for us as a strong foundation and as tools to cultivate and nurture our unique relationship. 

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If you are ready to step into this deeply transformational journey with me, schedule a quick 15 minute consultation to discover if my supporting you in nature is right for you! 

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SAFETY
Safety is synonymous to sacred space. Your body is sacred, your identity is sacred, the places we visit in nature are sacred. And so is the space between the two of us as we grow and develop on this journey.
On group hikes I've created sacred space by calling in the four directions and the elements they hold as a way of grounding us into the physical surroundings. I've witnessed plenty of hikes when we're walking in the middle of tourist traps and as soon as the group needs to gather and talk, because we've created sacred space through ritual, people begin to disperse and give us space!
In the coaching practice the initial steps of creating safety is called, creating a conscious relationship. From stating our preferred pronouns to designing ways in which we'll check in with each other when times get challenging, these are all ways that we create safety and ensure a process where we both are seen and heard. 

ACCOUNTABILITY
Accountability is one of the key things that is sought after in coaching. After all,

"A goal without a plan is just a wish" -Anthony de Saint-Exupery

And setting goals can be a straightforward process, but making a plan to meet those goals....well that's where you can end up with a bunch of wish lists! As a coach, I'm with you on this path to keep looking upwards and onwards with an actionable plan to meet your goals. I'm a dynamic coach, so whether I'm behind, along side, or in front of you, I bring with me accountability in the form of empowering and challenging you to meet your goals with the best of your resources. The process of being held accountable is also something we can co-create because achievability of your goals also depends on me meeting you where you are while challenging the best parts of you. This brings us to the next item I take with me...

Just like the spokes of a bike, balance and alignment creates a smooth ride and cyclical rhythm. Imagine where you can go with your wheel of life! 

ALIGNMENT
These, "best parts of you", are some of those many parts that make you a whole person. Sometimes we don't even know all the parts of us and that can create some roadblocks to meeting our full potential. Awareness of these parts can support an understanding of how they serve us, or not. Working towards aligning those parts to your core values creates a more "balanced wheel of life" ready to ride whatever type of terrain comes its way!
You can read more about this process of alignment and balance from the April blog post, Inner Balance & Alignment  And I assure you, this process of alignment is fairly critical in opening up the pathways to your true self. It allows you to be acknowledged in all your parts. This brings us to our last essential item to pack...

RECONNECTION
It feels like FREEDOM when you're aligned with your core values and can be seen and heard as who you truly are! Alignment can take you there. And what I'm offering is my unique gift of guiding someone into feeling this truth in your heart AND IN NATURE. Because WE ARE A PART OF NATURE, I truly believe that reconnecting with nature means we reconnect to our true essence and open up direct pathways to self-determination. To know how nature works "out there", we can also understand how the nature "within" us works.
I guide you through a profound process in nature that takes us back to our basic knowledge and understanding of our place in the world. Everyone knows that feeling of happiness, freedom, lightness, and pure joy when spending time outside. Coaching outside in nature reignites and reclaims your natural abilities to heal and find answers for any of life's challenges. It's both profound and empowering. 

Here's what one client, Alexis had to say about a session that involved a hike:

"...she guided me through the process of tuning into my inner guides and challenged me to relinquish my fears so that I could embrace my own light. We began our journey with a brief but important “check in” wherein she encouraged me to create and hold onto an intention for myself. During our hike she provided me with many opportunities to inquire about the process but also to voice any revelations that might have surfaced from our meditative hike. She helped me to tap into my own strength and urged me to trust in the answers I was receiving. It was at that time that she utilized her gifts once more to help me make connections that I hadn’t noticed before. Eventually we made our way up the quiet hillside toward a warm setting sun and rested while my heart processed all that I had learned. It was a truly awesome experience to feel so grounded and at peace with the world but more importantly with myself."

If you are ready to step into this deeply transformational journey with me, schedule a quick 15 minute consultation to discover if my supporting you in nature is right for you! 
 

Racial Justice Every Step of the Way

Back in 2014 I published what would be a key blog post of my career; taking a stand against what I felt were problematic practices of “diversity and inclusion” panels and discussions. My Shapeshifting the Panel piece was me taking a stand against the tokenization, the parading of our POC identities and experiences to predominantly white audiences as an illusion that we were doing something to “solve the problem” of diversity. It was a key post in my career because the article was picked up by a manager in the US Forest Service and I was invited to participate on an advisory council for the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail, which then landed me a board appointment for an award winning news magazine, High Country News.

This blog post opened up my voice.

I remember writing the piece over the course of just a couple of hours. I started with my heart rapidly beating in frustration and determination because I knew what I did and experienced on my last diversity panel was something I wanted to let the world know. I wanted the community to know why it was problematic. I also knew I wasn’t going to let my voice be violated by opening up the pathway for defensive responses, blame, or ranting. It needed to come from ME in every sense of the wording, flow, and emotion.

I knew I needed TO OWN this piece.

So looking back on where I was in my personal AND professional development, I can see how those parts of my story are now being implemented in how I function as an independent agent with Rino Consulting Solutions. My values of social and racial justice are more clear.

So how does it show up in my practice?

I focus on THE WORK from a JUSTICE LENS
When I was vetted to serve for the US Forest Service I had to make sure this wasn’t exactly what I was standing against. I asked what would my positionality be with the council, why they wanted me there, and made sure this was an invested working group, not just a talking piece for the agency. I made sure the entire council as a whole was diverse in participation and perspective.

In my Open Space Equity Presentation I challenge the notions of where our separations in environmental engagement come from by looking at the evidence in land use, historical colonization, and the socio-economic impacts of how we engage with the environment today. I show the systems at play and how our personal value sets influence the decisions made in our urban environments. I connect the evidence to show how social and racial justice are embedded in the landscape. Doing the work means presenting a different perspective and understanding how that impacts our personal value sets, which then drive our passion to participate in change and make choices.

We talk about the systems at play for perspective and knowledge

I do racial justice, NOT diversity and inclusion
I remember one presentation I did for a college group really bombed. I mean, really bombed. I lost the audience, there was silence when I was done, and the post Q & A session seemed to just perpetuate my frustrations with diversity work. I heard later that I left the audience drained of their energy, lost, and I seemed really bitter to them. And I was.

I became stuck. I didn’t know how to think differently about how I felt about “diversifying the industry” and my participation in this work in my career. Until a close friend of mine listened to how I spoke about my frustrations with diversity work. And when she said to me, “You know, I’ve always been confused about why so many organizations don’t understand that there’s a big difference between ‘diversity’ work and ‘racial justice’ work. They’re not the same thing.” Instantly it became clear to me! I do racial justice work, not diversity work!

Mind you, diversity as a “body of work” is more than a thing, it’s a BEING. And some strategies like increasing the number of POC staff is a stopgap to cultivating your being a more diverse entity, culturally. It just gets you the numbers. Racial justice on the other hand, focuses on the actual systems of society that create the separation of communities, land, economics, power, status, and the disparities in industry engagement. It gets to the belly of the beast and works from the core. And I'm presenting THAT as the take away or starting point for the work. That’s what I do.  

So, going back to my bombed presentation. I had another opportunity to present to a similar audience. This time I changed the words on my presentation from “Diversity Engagement Strategist” to “Racial Justice Centered Engagement”. And I focused in on the language and content from a racial justice lens. What was the response from the audience? They wanted to know more about racial justice and what I meant by that. They shared stories of feeling the same ways in the workplace or in internships, and one student  even came to me after the presentation crying because it brought up similar emotions and challenges in her identity at her agency. She found deeper moments of relating to me and my experience as a WOC. I have to say, I think I landed that presentation!

Calling IN, not calling OUT
I consider myself a super-duper empath. The level of sensitivities I have with people and energies  around me are so enormous sometimes that I’ve actually had to devote intentional time and investment understanding how to manage my sensitivities. That’s the healer in me. So, when I see people in pain emotionally and physically it affects me A LOT.

In previous experiences as a training participant AND facilitator I’ve seen too many instances when activities done around power and privilege go nowhere the next day or just go south. I see and feel the pain and frustration. If not held and cared for in its delicacy and safety, triggers can bring out the ugly parts of us. I could shovel out a bazillion articles of what happens here, but I think we've all been around the tension in a room with diverse perspectives talking about race, power, and privilege. Why do I (1) want to risk being a part of that and (2) make efforts to try and manage and facilitate those types of incidents? That work drains me and always just leaves me with all kinds of negative feels. Or I have to go home and do all this extra work to decompress and level my emotions out. 

What’s my conclusion and solution to this? I believe in doing A DEEPER KIND of work in these trainings. At the root of all of this we long to be seen and heard on our own individual terms AND as a source of greatness to the world. I want to see EVERYONE achieve THIS. So, bringing in deeper practices of communication skills to the individual level allows people to OWN their experiences. Also, understanding when and if the processing needs to happen in the safety and privacy of the individual, within a shared identity group, or in solitude. Identifying safety is a key approach I began to implement in my trainings and a key component of how I coach. 

So, instead of asking folks to role play their power position or act out some implicit biases, I challenge folks to focus on language and deep listening during dialogue. I challenge folks to reach deep into their life and values and understand WHO THEY ARE FIRST before taking action. I offer tools that reach into our human condition after presenting our divided societal condition. I guide the development of individual growth towards impacting community growth, safely and effectively.

By knowing who we are in the world can we navigate it to create a world we want so that we are seen and heard on our terms

I CALL YOU INTO YOUR IDENTITY and reveal your unique gifts.

Check out what I did with Gateway Mountain Center’s Team by subscribing to my newsletter!

I choose to begin with the INDIVIDUAL
developing deeper communication skills IN SAFETY

Personally, this choice brought me some NEXT LEVEL adulting and resulted in some major shifts in my life and the people around me. And because I've practice this approach myself, I know how to hold this process for others. More importantly, when we take personal responsibility, it lands the overall responsibility of creating change in the world to the individual, not others!

Racial justice IS self-care
I have to credit my business coach, Anthem for handing this one to me! He said that when we’re not working on racial justice we’re not taking care of ourselves. It was a reminder and validation that all the self-care time and investment I have done and continue to do in my work simultaneously informs and develops me. All of these challenging times; the times I felt stuck and times I felt like I was talking to crickets in the room were all meant to be there for me as 'trail markers' for which direction to walk next.  

And the way I feel about my walk is that it is more in alignment today with who I am and the values I hold in my life. What's your walk like?

What are your thoughts on a racial justice lens? Does any of this resonate or trigger you? Let me know by commenting below or forwarding to your awesome community of change makers!

Healing Our Soul Wounds

I first came across the concept of Soul Wounds when I saw this conference posted on Facebook. I was at the beginning stages of my healing journey, triggered by all the happenings in my life, mostly difficult circumstances. I was teaching at a juvenile detention center, going to therapy and practicing personal spiritual healing, and unearthing my ancestral information awaiting my DNA results. Seeing the two words, 'soul' and 'wounds' created a deep visceral response in my mind. I identified with it. 

The stories of struggle and pain I held throughout my life now had a name AND I was able to see that the stories of trauma experienced by my ancestors helped shape who I am today

Click on the conference's website to listen to all the amazing talks

The fascinating information I listened to on this website gave me insights to things such as

• Epigenetic research showing that the traumas my ancestors experienced are passed down as memories in our DNA molecules

• How collective trauma recovery can be done with community support

• And trauma, in essence, is when our sense of our identity is compromised by a tragic event,

• And so much more

What was missing for me in some of the research was the aspect of the healing I will always believe in, which is incorporating nature as a tool for healing trauma. I did, however come across this article highlighting the author and psychologist, Eduardo Duran as he wrote about soul wounds from a Native American perspective. This online article in Counseling Today, Trauma and the soul wound: a multicultural and social justice perspective reveals a non-traditional approach to understanding trauma. From the article, 

"Duran encourages mental health practitioners to address three levels of interventions when working with people who are suffering from trauma:

• Working with individual clients who are experiencing problems due to trauma

• Providing outreach, advocacy and healing services to the larger community of which the client is a part

• Engaging in efforts that are aimed at what he calls “healing the land”

...Duran discusses the importance of counselors working to “heal the land.” He emphasizes the American Indian belief in the vital interconnections that exist among all animate beings and inanimate entities, as well as the spiritual energetic connections that exist between all people and Mother Earth. He further notes that the current trauma being inflicted on the Earth by our collective polluting and poisoning of the global environment has a significantly negative and traumatizing impact on our own mental health and sense of psychological well-being. "

Our steps towards healing trauma heal our soul wounds when we hike. You can also say we are healing the land by being there, drawing upon a heightened awareness of the surrounding environment, giving gratitude, and asking for permission are ways we are healing our relationship with the land. Walking in meditation reclaims the same ancestral practices of communicating with the elements and all the life around us. Sure, it may be more evident on our vicarious trauma healing hikes, but in every gathering, in every circle and dialog we are practicing the steps that allow us to heal as we endure our everyday suffering. The simple act of acknowledging the four directions is one initial step in our ceremony. 

Finally, as we exist in a world in which traumatic news and events are now somewhat normalized, we must remember that our collective healing is an important part of our continued effort to keep fighting for justice through this transitioning time. As some researchers discussed in the conference, we must recognize the different types of dissonance that comes from our trauma and find ways to reintegrate into our societal structures stronger than before our trauma entered our lives. This is the goal; to be more equip in navigating our lives and live in our true and full identities as whole, complex, and beautiful beings. 

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Behind the Scenes Planning for Healing Hikes

The work of healing hikes runs deep into our inner work so necessarily, the planning process calls for an intentional time in crafting. Here's a brief overview of what happens when Tereza and I connect our healing spirits into a walk through these local majestic places. 

***

Its all about INTENTION. Of coarse its important to know why we're even out here. For Tereza and I, we're empaths and healers and our work is deeply connected to nature. So our intentions are always of being that vessel to support our hikers through their own inner processing. For the clients we guide on the Vicarious Trauma Healing Hike Workshop, a clear intention needs to be there as well. That's why when we talk about this workshop we have a brief consultation call to understand how we can best support the group. For pop-up hikes and others I lead on my own, many of you know we begin our grounding process with crafting a clear intention for the hike. I often prompt hikers with questions like:

• What challenges do you want to work through today?

• What [information] does your heart need today?

• How can this community gathered today and nature support you?

WITHOUT a clear intention, it's like what I say to my partner every time he asks me where something is around the house and I know he didn't look hard enough -

"MAYBE YOU'RE LOOKING WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED"

***

LOCATION, location, location. For me, finding the right location doesn't mean we only hike in specific parks. It means I need to find the time to go out there and CONNECT to the location no matter where it is. Nature is everywhere, even in our busiest city parks and tourist traps. The "location" only matters to me in being able to support a deeper dive into a healing process vs. walking casually in a group like you would as a social recreational activity. So before any hike I look a map of the surrounding location (city) and I look for hiking locations in natural areas and ask myself:

• What area of this park calls me to gather a (particular) group or person?

• What's happening around me that gives me insights on how I can hold sacred space for someone?

• Are there sacred (legally designated or not) places within the park?

I walk on my own, often in silence, doing the same meditative walk I facilitate on hikes so that I CAN COMMUNICATE WITH THE LOCATION. When Tereza and I do this together we communicate with each other as messages (insights) come up for us, individually. And often times it means we each breaks off into individual meditations when the cues come. 

***

Connecting the TEACHINGS to the LANDSCAPE. This is one of my favorite parts of the process where I get to use my unique approach in blending my academic ecological knowledge to the teachings of our ancestors (indigenous spiritual principals, oneness, wholeness, and interconnectedness). I'm reminded each time I'm out scouting with Tereza that we compliment each other! Her elder wisdom is rooted in Curanderismo; strong, solid, much like a nurturing grandmother and I am the younger healer connected by a modality that has yet to be claimed a name but still evident, empathic, and flowing with the natural dynamics of the land and the people gathered. 

In order to connect these teachings to the actual landscapes, Tereza and I often have conversations with these guiding questions

• What are the self-care and wellness needs of the group and are there ecosystems in the area they can walk through to connect to their personal growth and healing?

• What is the history of the land/landscape and can it inform our hikers on accessible ways to revisit on their own time if needed?

• Are there any parts of the trails ideal for deeper reflection time? 

As an example, on a recent visit to a mid-peninsula park, Tereza and I were planning for a private group. This park has vast areas of wetlands. So the teachings of wetlands as buffer or "filter" zones where salt and fresh water meet before going out into the ocean. It serves is a good connecting point for a group if a presenting challenge comes up around not knowing how to "filter" out the saltiness or muddiness in our life. Wetlands are homes for specific species that function ONLY to be that filter of "stuff" before reaching its next destination. We can then ask a hiker,

• Who or What can you call on in your life to help you "filter" out the parts of your story (or behavior) that no longer serve you?

***

GIVING THANKS and PERMISSION. Probably the most important part of the planning process. It is often the part that we take for granted when we go outside. And I too am still guilty of coming onto a site without the proper ritual of GIVING THANKS and ASKING PERMISSION. But it's a very important piece and one Tereza and I have done at each location to honor the natural cycle of giving and receiving; the circle of life. 

To be grateful in our minds for the open spaces and access to nature is one thing. To take it a step further and acknowledge all the forces of creation that make it possible to be in our outdoor spaces and ask for healing is another. A moment on each hike, even on prep-hikes is given for a ritual of gratitude and asking nature for the permission to do the work we are about to do on that land.

It is a sacred ritual we do to serve as our best, whole selves and it is a time where we honor the ancestors that have cared for and nurtured the land since time immemorial. It is also a sacred ritual you can do EACH TIME you are out in nature. 

 

Join the next hike and experience the intentions we craft for you to go deeper and make connections to your health and wellness in nature!

*hikes are often posted on Instagram, Facebook, and Eventbrite. Private hikes are also available by booking online at www.rinoconsultingsolutions.com or emailing me directly at raynelle[at]rinoconsultingsolutions.com

SPECIAL APPEARANCE: Fist Up Film Festival & Upcoming Hikes

JOIN ME TOMORROW (5/16) AT E14 Gallery in Oakland
7pm-10pm
for the 8th Annual Fist Up Film Festival

for a special appearance after the screening of Independent Lens Documentary, Ovarian Psycos and other short films

 

 

I will join in on the post-screening conversation about healing, trauma, organizing, and the healing hikes that have mobilized the local community to go outside to reconnect with nature and our ancestors

Watch the trailer here

From PBS.org,

"In this excerpt from Independent Lens documentary Ovarian Psycos, Andi Xoch, one of the members of the Ovas bike brigade, talks about growing up as the child of Mexican immigrants in East Los Angeles and Boyle Heights, where Mexican culture was everywhere. This was the birthplace of the Chicano civil rights movement, in which women were respected core community organizers. Maylei Blackwell, author of Chicana Power!, talks about how she sees the Ovarian Psycos as a natural extension of this movement in which women are empowered to speak out."

 FILM INFO

Event is free and open to the public. Register on Eventbrite before they sell out.

Upcoming Hikes

Wednesday, May 17th
Coyote Hills Regional Park
Fremont, CA
9am-11am
Meet at the Quarry Staging Area parking lot
$5 parking fee
$30 Heart Offering

Friday, May 26th
Alum Rock Park
San Jose, CA
6pm-8pm (sunset)
Meet at the free parking lot
$30 Heart Offering

Wednesday, May 31st
Berkeley Location TBD
9am-11am