Thriving with A. Lynn Jesus

Today we take a break from the coffin hop to welcome A. Lynn Jesus to the attic. Let me clear the cobwebs and move a few pumpkins around.

Welcome, Lynn. Tell us, who are you and where did you come from?

I am a Pacific NW native, growing up in a small town in the Puget Sound area.  I went to college in Portland, OR and remember looking forward to going as it was drier than where I came from… technically. It took another couple of decades before I “rusted” out and moved to the high desert of Oregon to escape the gray and rain. (Yes! Oregon has desert – who knew?) Now I live in Bend, OR and absolutely love it.

I am the product of mixed heritage – one half Chamorro (from Guam) and one half Irish. The joke is I can probably drink you under the table and don’t piss me off (for all of my 5” ½” frame – make no mistake, I am small, but mighty)! J And even though people try to speak Spanish to me, my last name came from Magellan and I am not Hispanic.

I am a classic over achiever and it took years for me to realize that despite collecting all the signs of success (good grades, college degrees, office in a corporate world, moving up the ranks, married, living in a nice house on the west-side) I realized that I was sorely unhappy. Hence started my current journey.

I found an amazing life coach and began to take 100% radical accountability for my life and my less than stellar decisions. That took a while! Through the bumps and bruises of getting my life in order I emerged a different person. I had to put my big girl panties on and shed unhealthy relationships, including my marriage, and move forward. I am starting over in a sense and now build my life through being of service to others and only keeping relationships that are positive.

I also discovered a life purpose I would have never guessed. I now own my own company, Thriveology. I am a transformational coach, consultant and speaker assisting others to discover their life purpose, create a life aligned with their passion and empower them to play full out in a big bold way.

 

Obviously you’re a writer, what is the name of your book and the general gist of it?

The working title is Define Your Journey – Daring to Live Your Life on Your Terms. It is a personal development genre book. I hope to inspire people to move from where they have let others tell them where they should be (and even convincing themselves that is where they should be) to carving their own path by knowing what they are passionate about and aligning that passion into their life purpose.

The book will address a path to get through fear and feel confident about striking out on your own. I also share my journey through the same process.

The book is slated for a Winter 2013/2014 release.

 

Where did you come up with the idea?

Early on in my own life coaching, I had an Angel Card reading done. One card spoke to how writing is integral in my life. At the time, I thought that was absurd. I didn’t write at the time. And as my transformation happened I began writing more and more. Now I write a blog, contribute as a guest blogger and have 2 programs and a book in the works. I can’t imagine not writing now.

The idea happened as I emerged from my own initial personal transformation. I can best lead and teach by being transparent and sharing my journey.

 

Which of your characters do you like the most and why?

My favorite characters will actually be the readers and the freedom they will experience!

 

Which one do you hate the most and why?

Luckily, there are none.

Sorry, silly question. Who put that in there?

 

You’re stranded on an island and you are granted three things;

The first thing you’re granted is an IPod with only one song loaded, what is it?

I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever) – Josh Groban. But I would happily take any song by Josh Groban.

The second item is a book with the last chapter missing, what is it and who wrote it?

I tend to read non-fiction. My go to book is The Success Principles by Jack Canfield.

And the third thing you’re granted on this island is a lunchbox with a sandwich and a full thermos, yummy, what kind of sandwich and drink would you appreciate?

A sandwich of hearty sourdough bread piled HIGH with roast beef accompanied by lettuce, onion, Dijon mustard, Tillamook cheddar cheese, and a nice and spicy horseradish sauce. Hopefully the thermos is a hydro flask so I can put a wonderful IPA and it would stay carbonated. (I come from the land of craft breweries – Central Oregon currently has 25 craft breweries with 15 in Bend alone, plus there are a few more slated to open by the end of this year.) So it would have to be a cold beer with the spicy sandwich.

 

What is the biggest mistake you have made in your life? Not writing or publishing mistake – any mistake. Even if it happened in 3^rd grade, I wanna know about it.

I think not acknowledging my intuition has been my biggest mistake. Every time I turned a blind eye to it, I have made a not so great choice. I am just so happy I have developed that muscle and now have the courage to stick to my intuition.

 

What would you do for a Klondike bar?

Kick you in the shin and take you DOWN! Remember, I’m small, but mighty!

You’re still stranded on that island and two people show up, the character you love the most, and the one you hate the most, and they both know what you said about them. What do you do?

Actually I seek for my characters mentioned above to seek me out.  I would love to speak with them and see how they are doing, what they are learning and what they are applying to change their life for the better. Guess I get an easy out on this one since my book is non-fiction! J

Yeah, but thanks for answering anyway!

 

Flash round favorites:

Color

Classic red

Sound

Applause

Season

Summer

Animal

Kitties

Smell

It’s a three way tie: chocolate chip cookies baking, campfire and new car smell

Food

Asian/Chamorro

Place to visit

Currently, the UK

Place to live

Luckily I already live where I will always have a base: Bend, OR

Movie

Henry V (Kenneth Branagh version)

Alien

Yes, they are out there.

Number

7

Writing spot

My dining room table, close to the kitchen for easy access to plenty of coffee or wine – depending on how the writing is going

Texture

Chenille

Planet

Kepler 16b – it is an over achiever like me and orbits two stars!

In our system I really like Saturn –  it’s pretty

And last of all, favorite memory-

Just spending time at my parent’s house. We shop and eat to our hearts content, plus it is the only time I can get Chamorro food without having to cook it myself!

 

Anything else you would like to add?

A quick mention of my upcoming program Ginormous Personal Satisfaction (GPS) For Life would be great, if appropriate. Release is coming up and is slated for November 2013. (http://bit.ly/17d1zl2). This program will help people to learn tips and techniques to understand past conditioning, combat ingrained paradigms that do not serve you, and identify emotional triggers.

They can discover their dream life – whether they have just lost sight of their dream goals, or are starting from scratch in discovering their dream life.

People can also read my bi-weekly rants on my blog (www.i-thrive-now/blog).