CAPC Movie Night: FINDING JOE

April 15th, 2012 by jevon No comments »

CAPC Movie Night:  Watch an inspiring film and then have a chance to talk about it with others.  Films like Finding Joe are great and are made even more impactful if you get the chance to share the experience with others. 
ADMISSION: For admission please bring a not perishable food item or cash donation for the Calgary Food Bank.
TICKETS: http://capc-movienight.eventbrite.ca (free)
Schedule:

  • Doors Open @ 6:30 pm
  • Movie Starts @ 7:oo pm
  • Networking and Appetizers to follow 

Finding Joe – Trailer V.7 from pat solomon on Vimeo.

TRAILER: http://findingjoethemovie.com/

 

Finding Joe press release
FINDING JOE is an exploration of famed Mythologist Joseph Campbell’s studies and their continuing impact on our culture. Through interviews with visionaries from a variety of fields interwoven with enactments of classic tales by a sweet and motley group of kids, the film navigates the stages of what Campbell dubbed The Hero’s Journey: the challenges, the fears, the dragons, the battles, and the return home as a changed person. Rooted in deeply personal accounts and timeless stories, FINDING JOE shows how Campbell’s work is relevant and essential in today’s world and how it provides a narrative for how to live a fully realized life—or as Campbell would simply state, how to “follow your bliss”.

POSTPONED – New Workshop – The Man I Want to BE!

March 17th, 2012 by jevon No comments »

POSTPONED

There have been a few recent developments which necessitate the postponement of this workshop.  At this time we are not able to give this workshop the attention it deserves and when we have a clearer plate will bring this back.  If you are interested in this workshop please let us know by sending an email to us.  Then we can let you know when we are ready to put it on.

Please contact jevon@thewarriorsvoice.com if you are interested in this workshop to be notified of future developments.

 

Men:

Do you feel that you have untapped potential and want to “step it up” in your life?
Are you tired of living a mediocre life, and KNOW you could be playing a “bigger game”?
Are there things you’ve always wanted to do or accomplish and just haven’t got there yet?

Who would you be, and what could you do if you were playing your “A-Game” every day?

If you’d like to find out then The Man I want to BE! is the workshop you want to attend.

By the end of this workshop you will:

- Discover and rediscover some of the strengths you already possess
- Connect with your core values and use them to define a powerful personal vision statement
- Explore the aspects of the Man you want to be and create actions steps to become that man.

Cost: $350 (Includes Breakfast and Lunch, Mid morning and afternoon snacks and beverages)

Schedule: Saturday 9 am – 6pm and Sunday 9am – 6pm

Venue: Quality Hotel Airport (4804 Edmonton Trail Northeast, Calgary, AB T2E 3V8, Canada)

Contact Jevon:
email: jevon@thewarriorsvoice.com
website:http://thewarriorsvoice.com/events/
phone: 403-861-2574
————————————————
About Jevon

It has been said, “Jevon is like an El Camino because he’s versatile, unique, and shamelessly authentic.” Jevon has been involved with coaching and personal development for over fifteen years as a client, solo practitioner and most recently as a coach and facilitator. Using his various life experiences and skills Jevon is honoured to serve individuals and groups in achieving their own goals in an arena that has served him immeasurably.

Jevon is an Associate Certified Coach (ACC), a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF) and also holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Tuba Performance, a post-graduate diploma in Object Oriented Software Technology, both from the University of Calgary. Jevon takes pride both in his educational accomplishments as well as their diversity, as these have enabled him to develop and nurture a wide range of skills and talents.

The Man I Want to BE!

The 30-30-30 Challenge

February 22nd, 2012 by jevon No comments »

What is Coaching?
Coaching is a collaborative partnership between a coach and a willing individual, which connects at the deep personal level of beliefs, values and vision. It enables, through a process of discovery, goal setting and specific action. It is for the realization of extraordinary results. It is based in a body of knowledge, technology and a style of relating that focus on the development of human capacity

So, What is Coaching like?
Whether its called Life Coaching, Executive Coaching, or Leadership Coaching its all basically the same thing. You meet with your coach and through conversation and partnership create the future that you would like to see.

So what…?
If you are still unclear on this topic, are curious about coaching, or would like to deepen your understanding then Jevon at The Warriors Voice has an offer for you.

The 30-30-30 Challenge
I want to give back to the communities that have supported me through the years and challenge myself at the same time. During International Coach Week this past month I met a coach, Charissa of Limitless Life Coaching (http://www.limitlesslifecoaching.ca/), who took on a 30-30-30 challenge. This was such a great idea that I had to use it myself as well, after all a “Great Idea” is a Great Idea.

So I am doing my own 30-30-30 challenge during the month of March 2012. What is a 30-30-30 challenge? I’m giving away 30 coaching sessions that are 30 minutes in length in 30 days. That’s right if you never experienced coaching before or would like to see what coaching with Jevon is like you can at no charge or obligation to you.

This is where you come in. I want to get at least 30 sessions in March and to do that I need your help. Book your self a coaching session with me in March and pass this message along to all of your friends as well. I will do these sessions by phone or by Skype so we don’t even have to be in the same place or even the same time zone.

What’s in it for you?
Learn more about coaching and how it works by experience.
Find, set and meet a challenge or goal of your own.
Take the next step in to your larger world.

The Sweetener
Now to make this a little more of a challenge: I won’t stop my 30-30-30 when I reach 30 sessions. I will keep giving 30 minutes sessions as long as there is March left. Lets see how many sessions one coach can do in a month!

30 minutes of free coaching is yours and all you have to do is ask for it by sending Jevon an email (Jevon@thewarriorsvoice.com).

Ordinary Men, Extraordinary Lives: Defining Moments

January 12th, 2012 by jevon No comments »

Ordinary Men, Extraordinary Lives: Defining Moments
Compiled and Edited by Jim Sharon, Ed.D.
Centennial, CO, USA: Energy for LIfe, 2011, pp. 251

A collection of forty stories told by the men who lived them
I believe Jim Sharon’s intention in gathering these stories was that myself and other men could each see how we are not alone in our journeys. While every story may not resonate with you, within these forty stories a man can find someone else who had to deal with adversity, or an ordinary guy who chose to step into his greatness. In this goal I believe the book is a success.

I have to be honest about my feelings regarding this book. I found it difficult to get into and had to push my self to read it. As I read the forward, by Roy Baumeister, I was inspired and very hopeful that the book would bring forward some points and learnings. As I worked my way through the book I found it difficult to connect to the stories. Now all that I remember of this book is how I felt while reading the forward. I say all of this, not as a negative for the book, but as my honest response to the book.

I found I couldn’t read this book in less than 20 sittings as after 1 or 2 stories I needed to stop and absorb what I had read. I believe that plowing through would have been dishonoring to the men who had shared themselves and experiences and so it took me some time to go through the book. I compare this style of reading with books that have ‘captivated’ me where I can’t put the book down and found it to be a challenge. Each time I’d go to read I wanted to open a book that was easy to read, or gratifying in its content and found my self, like a kid who only had Brussels sprouts left on his plate, pushing through this book. I believe that like Brussels sprouts that this book was also good for me and will nourish me beyond mere immediate gratification.

What I like about the book:
I salute all the contributors for sharing their stories. It is not the easiest task to share ones authentic self and journey, and to have so many men dig deep and provide to the world a story of their experience is truly a great gift. I thank Jim Sharon for putting in the effort to compile this book and get it out in the world. It is my hope that this is the beginning of men sharing themselves and their stories more often in their community. It is this sharing that will allow us all to become greater and more than we currently are.

The Questions:
I am also enjoying the questions about myself that this book has left me with. If I don’t connect with these stories then what am I missing? These are ordinary men — the same as me. If each of these men can find the lessons, learnings, and growth from their experiences then perhaps it is time I connect with mine at a deeper level. What might my world look like if I did connect with these stories?

Final Thoughts
In this case my final thought is a feeling. It feels like this is an important work of literature and one I must revisit as I continue my journey. Perhaps as I connect further with my own masculinity I will connect further with these forty stories and begin to see ways of being previously unavailable to me.

My hope is that others who have read this book will add their thoughts to this review as perhaps hearing other perspectives about this book will enable me to further appreciate the gifts that are available to me through it.

My deepest thanks to Jim Sharon for creating this collection and to all those who contributed.

Jevon

2012 – 12 Habbits

January 2nd, 2012 by jevon No comments »

A buddy of mine shared a link to a blog where the author talk about forming new habit rather than new years resolutions. (http://zenhabits.net/fitguide/) From this blog by buddy has chosen 12 habits that he want to start in 2012 (one per month).

I am not one to ignore at a good idea and so I’m choosing my 12 habits today.

While I’m not going to share all 12 of them with you, as some are private for me, Here are a few of my choices.

  • Presence: Journal at the beginning and end of each day. Morning: Gratitudes, Remember who I am and what I love, Set Intention for the day and set objective to ‘pay attention to’ during the day. Evening: Write down results of what I was paying attention to and reflect. Celebrate the wins and gratitude.
  • Physical Fitness – I have developed the habit of walking every day and I’m now going to expand on that. Create and follow a daily workout routine in addition to walking — should be around 30 minutes in length.
  • The Water Habit: Drink an appropriate* amount of water each day. I done this at times in the past, but I get lazy with it. I can do this again. *Amount of Water = Body Weight (lbs)/2 = number of ounces of water. i.e. 200lbs/2 = 100oz of water
  • Food: Making better food choices. Find/create a food plan which supports me.

While most of these habits are to do with my physical body you should have noticed that none of them have a result tied to them. I believe that if I develop and nurture these habits I be in far better physical shape and health and as a result will feel far more energetic and better about my self and my life.

I’ll keep you posted.

Jevon

2011 – Reflect on your present blessings…

December 31st, 2011 by jevon No comments »

“Reflect on your present blessings, of which every man has many; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” – Charles Dickens

“Celebrate the wins!” – Jevon Hills

Another year is coming to a close and once again I find myself reviewing my journey of this past year and planning for next year. 2011 has been a busy year for me and It feels like I’ve moved quite far down my chosen path.

Coaching
This past year saw me graduate as a Certified Professional Coach (CPC) from the Demers Group – Core Alignment Coaching program. I finally completed the journey I started back in 2008 to become a coach/facilitator and more. I also gathered information and insight into where I would focus my time and my efforts as a coach and coaching business. Through this journey I found my Mission-Vision-Values for my business and my business brand. For those that don’t know, a brand is how people will know you and the work that you do. It is the core of why you do what you do. For me, my brand is A Heart full of Pride.

In May, after graduating, I joined the International Coach Federation (ICF) and I applied for and received my Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential. This membership with the ICF also made me a member of my local chapter of coaches, the Calgary Association of Professional Coaches (CAPC) [I know the acronyms are getting thick]. In late May I received my ACC credential of which I am, if you hadn’t guessed, very proud.

Men’s Work
As I started to building my business I began to think about what work I was called to do. Back in 2008 I started into facilitation/coaching with the intention of bringing men’s work forward, however in January 2010 I read a blog post by Jayson Gaddis who has been involved with men’s works for quite sometime. Jayson had attended a workshop with 40 men’s leaders and 6 women to discuss the direction of The Evolving Men’s Conference. In his blog he listed the out comes of this workshop, the number 1 being “Men’s Work is Dead.”

Imagine my dismay when I found out that just as I was ready to launch into Men’s work I found out I’ve missed the boat. I read a little further and took Jayson’s meaning to be essentially that the men’s work we have had from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s will get us no further. Most men who have been involved with men’s work for anytime have read books like Iron John, Fire in the Belly and King, Warrior, Magician, Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine. This work has been foundational and has got men to where we are today, however it can carry us no further.

I realized that I was in the wake of discovering what the new men’s work could be and could be apart of its foundation. I made a decision. I would form a men’s group and learn from the members what the new men’s work could look like. So in June/July I spoke with many men and send emails out and I founded a men’s group. This group, which now has a life of its own, has helped me immeasurably to learn about what the new work could look like, and also inspired, challenged and pushed me to play my bigger game.

ICF Conference
In September Tarra and I attended the ICF conference which was held in Las Vegas. What an experience! I met many, many folks from around the world who were all in various stages of their coaching careers, listened to presentations from people I’d only heard of, or whose books I had read, and met more Calgary coaches that I had before. (This becomes important as you will see)

CAPC
On returning from Vegas I volunteered to help out with The Day with Masterful Coaches event that CAPC was hosting in November as a tech guy. This provided me the opportunity to live my vision as well as many other opportunities that I hadn’t thought of before. One of these other opportunities was to be a presenter at a CAPC breakfast meeting. I was one of 10 presenters who attended the Vegas Conference who offered to share their experience and knowledge of one of the presentations we attended so that other coaches from Calgary could experience a little of the conference also.

Another of the opportunities that has come out of it will be a big part of my 2012. The more work I did with CAPC as a volunteer the more I realized I had to give to this CAPC and so put my nomination in for the 2012 board. I was slated on the new board as treasurer and I was elected.

Having just written all of that I find it hard to believe that this all happened in the space of about 6 months. Amazing!

My Marriage and Home life
As you might imagine all of the work that Tarra and I have been doing on our coaching has had a tremendous impact on our marriage. The men’s group alone has helped me grow into being a better husband, partner and lover than I ever thought possible. Tarra and I have just past our 15th wedding anniversary and our bonds are stronger than ever. I’m finding new or deeper ways of connecting with my partner and can only look to the future with hope and excitement.

As I mentioned above, Tarra and I went to Vegas together. It was our first journey outside of Canada since 1998 and our first trip together that wasn’t within a 3 hour drive of Calgary. We spent time being together, having fun and falling in love.

This year also saw a great birthday party for Tarra and I. We both turned 40 this year and decided to celebrate by having our 80th birthday party. Many friends came and celebrated with us and much fun was had by all.

Work
I continue to work at Evoco as a software developer and have now been there 6 1/2 years. This is the longest I’ve been in any one place since Elementary school. It was a rough year at Evoco for me. It started with my Manager position being made redundant and me being placed under a new manager on a different team. This new team has had many challenges.

In June I decided that what I was doing for Evoco was no longer what I was passionate about or working for me and I began to look elsewhere for a place where I could be passionate about what I do.

I wasn’t looking for a job or a new place to work Evoco is a great company. They take care of their employees and do their best to ensure that you are able to grow and flourish. The benefits that Evoco offers alone could not be matched by another company – at least not the ones I interviewed at. Rather I was looking for a place where I could do more of what I wanted to practice – coaching and leading. Being a developer no longer held the joy it once had. I continued the search through the summer and into November.

While I searched there were changes happening at Evoco. Small changes at first and then very big changes. Evoco started to become the company I was looking for and while it’s not there yet I am now working in a place and from a place where I can effect a great deal of change with in the company and make it the place I want to work for.

As of December I recommitted myself to working at Evoco and discontinued my search for another opportunity. My intention is to bring about positive changes and make a difference in how we work for ourselves, for each other and for our clients.

Art and Home Improvement
2011 didn’t have any ‘big wood’ in it, but it did have several smaller projects around the house. I built a set of storage shelves into the garage that we could put storage bins into to help us organize. We painted the exterior of our house to freshen it up and it makes a huge difference if I say so myself. I am most grateful to my Mother, Colin and Tarra for the part in the painting project – ok they did most of the work. And Tarra and I got most of our living room done which involved painting, new trim, a fire place (which I built), and a new couch. This past year we also got a new fridge and stove for the kitchen. So while there was no ‘big wood’ we definitely made progress on many fronts.

This year was also the first year I decided to step up and try my hand at acting. I’ve been in the chorus of a show once before and once I played a disembodied voice. This time I managed to land a role of a main character and will be performing for most of January 2012 at the Pumphouse Theatres in Stephen Sondheim’s “Assassins”. I’m learning a great deal about what it means to act and be a performer on the stage. Quite a learning experience.

The Year Ahead
This next year promises to be a big one. Both my marriage and coaching business are the focus of 2012 and they will enjoy all of the attention and passion I can bring to them. Tarra and I are setting some big, and attainable goals, for our year and I know they will really help us up our game.

I hope that you also had a great 2011 with many wins and celebrations. May you experience all the best in 2012.

Happy New Year.

The Man we all want to be.

December 27th, 2011 by jevon No comments »

I just finished watching the movie “Taken”. IMDB’s synopsis of the movie describes it thus:

A retired CIA agent travels across Europe and relies on his old skills to save his estranged daughter, who was kidnapped on a trip to Paris to be sold into prostitution.

One of the most memorable quotes in this film is when Liam Neeson speaks to the captures and says:

I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that’ll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.

At this point he goes and does what he does best. Fights his way through an army of thugs, dirty cops and rich villains to try and save his daughter.

I found myself thinking and feeling he is the man that every man wants to be. He stops at nothing to protect his family and anyone who comes between him and his family will suffer. He is singular in purpose, passionate about his family and never gives up. The biggest difference between Bryan (Liam Neeson) and most men I know is that Bryan spent years training as a CIA operative. He sacrificed his wife, marriage and family for his country. As the move starts his wife is married to another man and Bryan has almost no relationship with his daughter. He sacrificed his whole life to attain the skills that we watch and marvel at through out this film. While he was on his journey to save his daughter I wasn’t thinking about what attaining these skills cost him. I didn’t think, “Yeah, he might get his daughter back but, it cost him his whole life.” It cost him 12 years of his daughters life and his marriage to be able to step in and make the bad guys pay for 3 days.

Is it worth it?
In the moment of being able to accomplish this task I’m guessing yes it is worth it, but should we sacrifice our whole lives on the chance that one day we may have to step in and kick 50 bad guys asses and save our family? I find my self asking the question, how would it be different if he’d been more available and not lost his wife, marriage and relationship with his daughter? Would his daughter even have been put in that situation if he’d been around more, if he’d been there? What would it look like?

It is easy to see how Liam’s character is a hero and very easy to admire this character. We find it easy to see extraordinary men step up and be their best self in extraordinary circumstances and think wouldn’t it be awesome to be that guy. I’d like to put a quote in here, but I can’t find the source to quote so I’d like to paraphrase a quote I hear once and I don’t know where it comes from. ‘The degree to which we put another person on a pedestal is the degree to which we let our self not be extraordinary in our own way’.

Essentially, its easy to step up when our world is coming to an end, but we don’t put the same value on being extraordinary every day when our world is not in crisis. The most recent example of this I watched was BOATLIFT – An Untold Tale of 9/11 Resilience (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18lsxFcDrjo). In this documentary we see how half a million people were evacuated from lower Manhattan during 9/11. I thought well its easy to get organized when there is a clear objective and goal and the world is ending and nothing else matters. What about when our lives are going well, good, great, or awesome? Even the opening frame of the film is a quote, “A hero is a man who does what he can” – Romain Rolland. Note: the quote makes no mention of the circumstances around this action just that a man does what he can. Please know that I do find the Boatlift story inspiring and an amazing tail of human greatness, what I wonder is why don’t we do this when there isn’t a disaster to deal with.

Wouldn’t it be amazing to see a movie about a guy who day after day gives his best self to him self, his family, his friends and his community. A movie where a man does what he can to ensure that his world is taken care of. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just a great husband who loves his wife and family. Nothing remarkable about him except that he is an essential part to his thriving community. Nothing god-like about this man except his great heart and spirit which he generously shares with anyone who needs it. While I find it awesome to admire a man who can do physically stunning feats and kick ass I believe that it is better to be a man within your self, a man within your family, a man within your community and a man within the world.

Imagine the movie of your life. You are on your death bed, your family and loved ones are gathered around you and smiling. Through a series of flashbacks we see you at various ages and periods of your life. In the present day where you are living your last moments each person smiles and thanks you, there are only tears of joy and gratitude. The people around honor you and tell you that your work is done, that you are the greatest man they have known. You are: “The Man we all want to be.” My question is what did you do in each of these flashbacks? Who were you and who are you that people gather to honor you and to thank you for your service?

To all of you men who are practicing this life being the man you want to be I honor you. Continue your work we need more like you.

To those that are called to step up at this point: Congratulations! Welcome it is good to have you with us.

To the women: For every man you know if he takes an action, makes a choice or any time he is the best man he can be, TELL HIM! Let him know how his choices and actions are the actions of a great man, let him know what it means to you to have someone like him in your life.

I look forward to 2012 – The Year of the man we want to be!

P.S – There is a movie about a man who day after day does his best to be his best. If you havn’t seen it yet is is popular around christmas and is called “Its A Wonderful Life”

Do you earn respect or do you instill fear?

November 29th, 2011 by jevon No comments »

We used to call ‘honorable’ men, “God Fearing”. “He’s a God fearing man.” As if to say fearing god made you a good person, or made you the kind of person that would always make the good choice for fear of gods wrath. I find that there are people among us who would lead this way. The phrase “it is better to be feared than respected” comes to mind.

Leading through Fear:

The definition of Fear I use is – “The Anticipation of Pain”. So the inspiration for following the leader is to avoid the potential pain that might come if you don’t follow the leader. Through this lens we are spending our time looking for the worst of possibilities. I guess when you are being motivated by what you don’t what I can’t call this inspiration.

Examples of leading through Fear:

I was bullied most of my school life and often lived in fear of others. I don’t know if the kids that I feared thought to lead in that way, but that is how I navigated the waters. I remember calling it respect, but trust me it was fear. I used to fall in line and do what I thought the person wanted me to do because I feared the consequences, even though I never saw any of these consequences.

I find it neat to juxtapose this reality, that I knew, with so many of the stories and movies in our culture which show the opposite. How many times have we seen plots where the first time a ‘bully’ is stood up to the bully’s power quickly vanishes and he runs away the coward. This was the plot of almost every Popeye cartoon that I can remember.

For example “A Bugs Life” which was essentially the story of the Ant and the Grasshopper? In this particular rendition the grasshopper bullies the ants into giving up most of their winter stores for the grasshoppers existence, even thought there are only a dozen grasshoppers and hundreds of ants. Again leading through fear.

The teen movie 3 O’clock High is the story about a guy who has to face the bully in a fight after school and no matter what this ‘weakling’ kid does he cannot avoid his fate. He eventually faces this terror and even though the bully puts up a fight and eventually runs away the underdog earns the reputation of one who will not be pushed around and earns respect from all of his peers for standing up to his fear.

What got me thinking of this topic is watching examples where people ‘bully’ their way through life. Getting what they want by being belligerent. I believe their power is given to them by those that fear them. I find that these bullies often have little or no self image which provides them with their own source power to weather life’s little trials.

Without someone to push around these bullies are powerless.

Leading with Respect:

I believe the biggest difference in leading with respect with where the leader gets the bulk of their power from. The power comes from within. This sustains the leader without having to diminish anyone. The biggest result of this type of leadership is, I believe, the leader not being threatened when their team/followers are successful. If you lead by respecting the strengths and capacities of another their success adds to your success.

Leading through fear is a Zero-Sum game. By this I mean that someone has to suffer for someone else to fell empowered, stronger, better, whatever.

Leading with respect is a cumulative game. You start with your power and strength and give it to others whom you choose to empower.

So again I ask, “Are you leading by inspiring those around you?”

Anti-Bullying

November 18th, 2011 by jevon No comments »

So Ive been working on an article which involves bullying, but I havent had the chance to finish it yet to publish. We should see it next week. More great stuff happening.

What are you doing with regard to Anti-Bullying

Movement and energy on the ‘Anti-Bullying’ front

November 9th, 2011 by jevon No comments »

Today I had lunch with a friend, colleague and fellow coach.

We had a fantastic conversation and have come to a starting place around this topic.  The ideas are just beginning to form and I don’t want to share them until we have a clearer and fuller understanding, but know this….there will be actions coming in the near future.

I’ll keep ya posted as we go.

What action(s) are you taking?