Betty Friedan...is this all there is?

Betty Friedan, author of The Feminine Mystique..and the 'mother' of the feminist movement died last week at the age of 85. I was reading several stories about her incredible life. What struck me was a sentence where she was quoted as saying that in the 1950's, women were expanding their view of themselves beyond being homebound mothers and asking the question "Is this all there is?" as they began the march into the workplace.

The irony of all this is that sentence, "Is this all there is?" was repeated 20-30 years later as women began walking OUT of the workplace! So, if we're not happy at home and we're not happy in the workplace, what's the solution? This was the very question that helped create the Life Puzzle model and my belief that we need to redefine 'happy' as not some role (mother, co-worker) that we perform! Instead, those roles fit into a life we create that honors the 'whole' life--physical, emotional, thinking, sexual and spiritual SELF.

If you start from the premise that you didn't come to this planet simply to fulfill a role--worker bee or supermom, but instead you came to live, learn, love and leave a legacy--as you create your life, you do it from an interconnected knowing of SELF--this includes the 16 core areas, 5 edges that create the SELF. This is a life-long learning model but it also helps you make every 'choice' relative to an awareness of all the dimensions--physical, emotional, thinking, sexual and spiritual SELF vs. the one-dimensional focus of 'what do you do?"

And we need to realize this isn't just about women--this is about men too. While men never went through the "Is this all there is--as a stay at home mom phase"...I definitely hear men asking that question about the work place! And what's harder on men is that they can't usually retreat back to the home! Our culture insists they stay in their jobs for life!

So to everyone who asks "Is this all there is?" as they ponder their roles at work or home, and to Betty Friedan, may she rest in peace, I would say, No...there's so much more! But to find it starts with Self-responsibility--you have to have the guts to step out, stop expecting the 'systems' to provide you with the solution. Instead, go out and create your own. The Life Puzzle model is a framework for doing this--build the 5 edges and discover a strong SELF, then learn the information you'll need to fill in these pieces (and you can do this through the on-line learning center) and you'll discover how much more you are and can be, beyond the roles of mother or worker!

Life Puzzle--the Google for making a great life!

It's funny how a comment can get you to thinking. A friend said to me "Life Puzzle is the Google of how to make a great life". Put in a question about your life and somewhere within Life Puzzle-making you'll find an idea, a direction, or even the discovery of a piece you'd never considered before but which provides the solution for a problem of living life. Which is about what happens when you access Google's search engine too!

As we tossed that idea around I asked her to ask me a question or pose an issue and let's see how the Life Puzzle search engine responds. Her first one was career planning--and we headed to the work piece. Another was addictions and it took us to the feeling and thinking pieces. Credit card debt led to financial responsibility. Heart disease led to numerous pieces--nutrition, exercise, feelings (the emotional component of heart disease), special challenge. Teens getting in trouble with the law led to parenting/family but also to building healthy edges and strong SELF. Obesity led to nutrition, feeling and thinking and also the physical edge. Global warming and we head to the community and environment piece!

Google is the search engine for the world. Pose a question and it will find you some information.
Life Puzzle is the search engine for you! Pose a question and you will find some information to help you in your desire to build a strong, whole and dynamic life! Just as Google doesn't have one right answer--but provides lots of sources and directions to explore, so does Life Puzzle. Within the 16 core areas of the Life Puzzle, there isn't just one right answer but lots of ideas, sources and directions to explore as you find the many different pieces that when pulled together create the whole.

The Google search engine has enabled us to expand the way we interact with the world. I've heard the same thing from so many people who have become Life Puzzle-makers. Before tapping into the Life Puzzle search engine, they had no vision for their lives. Life Puzzle making expanded their vision and the way they interact with the world!

So, I think my friend is right, Life Puzzle is the Google for making a great life! I hope you'll tap into this search engine and begin building a great life!