Landscaping Your Life with Alison Smith

If you know you need to come out of the shadows in an area in your life you may it helpful to join Alison in nature and explore being in the shadows and non-shadows to get a sense as she does about your relationship to them both and to understand what stepping out of the shadows might require from you.

You'll find all the links mentioned, the book and the words of the poem here

https://www.alisonsmith.co/how-to-get-out-of-the-shadows/

If you wanted evidence that words have power then the use of deadend for this episode provided evidence of distractions, disruptions and avoidance at every turn – something I think we do when heading for a dead end because it's always an end to something – even if by its very nature it's also the path to a new beginning too.

You'll find all the links mentioned, and more suggestions on alternate words to being at a dead end here https://www.alisonsmith.co/what-to-do-when-youre-at-a-deadend-in-your-life/

After a very successful workshop entitled 'Talk to the brick wall – how to influence those you're struggling with' I wanted to add a few postscripts to an earlier episode of the podcast and share a poem I've written on the subject.

You'll find all links mentioned and the poem here https://www.alisonsmith.co/its-like-talking-to-a-brick-wall/

It's 5 years this month since Can't See the wood for the Trees – landscaping your life to get back on track was first published. Its content has helped inform the structure of all of the podcast episodes.

Do have a listen and see whether a snippet from one of the chapters might be just what will help you get back on track on a situation you're grappling with.

Rather than venture outside into nature and the rainy weather for this episode Alison uses drawing as another means of using nature as a metaphor for a problem you're grappling with. So, get your pens and paper ready and be open to something a little unconventional to enable that breakthrough you've been searching for.

You'll find links mentioned in the podcast here https://www.alisonsmith.co/if-your-problem-was-a-mountain/

In the majority of episodes Alison invites us to join her to find solutions in a landscape that represents how we're feeling whether that's when we can't see the wood for the trees #28, are treading water #23, or life feels like an uphill struggle #25. In today's episode she shares with us a more general technique she uses called a Landscaping Your Life walk that can be applied to any situation you're stuck about.

You'll find links mentioned in the podcast here https://www.alisonsmith.co/going-on-a-landscaping-your-life-walk/

If you're thinking about testing the water about something you'd like to do in your life you may want to have a listen and see what insight you can get as you hear me testing the water at St Andrews beach, Fife - because it's the unexpected that can catch us out.

You'll find the podcast episodes mentioned, words of the poem, book, and how to sign up for LYL newsletter and other links mentioned in the podcast here https://www.alisonsmith.co/what-not-to-do-when-testing-water/

Why it is when we can't see the wood for the trees, are overwhelmed and already too busy with too much to think about we keep planting more trees. In this episode we explore why we wouldn't do this in nature and why it's counterproductive in our own lives too.

You'll find the words of the poem, book, and how to sign up for LYL newsletter and other links mentioned in the podcast here https://www.alisonsmith.co/stop-planting-more-trees-in-your-life/

When we're caught up in the story we're telling it can be hard to see the wood for the trees and identify a strategy or action plan for getting unstuck and back on track. That's when taking to a higher vantage point to see all 360 degrees of options comes in, and that's what we explore in more detail in this episode.

You'll find the words of the poem, book, and how to sign up for LYL newsletter and other links mentioned in the podcast here

https://www.alisonsmith.co/getting-to-a-higher-vantage-point/

It's perhaps a little too easy to get frustrated when things aren't happening as quickly as we'd like – however nature teaches us that patience and timing are everything – sometimes we just need to let the mud settle, or wait for the next tide before we get the clarity we need.

You'll find the words of the poem and how to sign up for the newsletter and other links including an index of all the podcast episodes here -

https://www.alisonsmith.co/do-you-need-to-let-the-mud-settle-before-taking-action/