one hat at a time

Welcome to One Hat At A Time News where we encourage folks to dress-up year-round (not just for Halloween). This month's focus is on the inner builder or architect--that aspect of yourself that brings order while operating comfortably amid the debris and chaos. Each month we seek to provide tips and special offers to help you make the most of all the hats you wear.

Play on!

...They Will Come

No wonder Bob the Builder is such a hit with the sandbox set. The Construction hat is down-to-earth, action-oriented headgear that makes things happen. This is the perspective that gets visions and plans out of our heads and into the larger world. It's the can-do attitude and practical skill we call on to fix problems, create new structures, and implement change.

Wearing your hard hat, you'll often notice that before you can build something new it may be necessary to demolish what is already in that space. Or -- as this truth is sometimes expressed -- the forgetting curve can be equally as important as the learning curve.

What structure are you ready to strengthen? Your yellow hard hat provides a constructive point of view when:

• You're resolved to remodel your career, your business and/or your life
• You're rolling up your sleeves to tear down some walls (or constricting compartments or obstructive boundaries)
• You are fearful about the fallout from some action you have taken, or are about to take.
• You've fiddled enough with the blueprint, and now it's time to develop the product, write the book, tackle the project or launch the business.

Don't forget that your Construction hat has a protective function that enables you to venture out amongst the debris. Your hard hat can give you a healthy take on destructive forces and potentially devastating setbacks. Your inner builder knows that fires and hurricanes happen, and that "why me?" is not a useful response. Grab your tools and get out there. See what's solidly standing, and go from there.

What's In Your Toolbox?

Ever notice what happens when someone gets a hold of a really neat tool? They try and use it as often as possible (thus the expression: whenever you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail). Perspectives and tactical approaches can fall into the same trap.

Do you have all the tools that you need to do your craft? What tools in your toolbox are in need of sharpening? What tools are being over-used? What tools do you wish you knew how to use more effectively? One Hat At A Time momentum cards contain a collection of perpectives that help individuals expand their toolboxes effortlessly.

Take our 27-day tool-sharpening challenge:

1. Shuffle your deck of One Hat At A Time momentum cards.
2. Place these cards on your nightstand or dresser.
3. Upon waking draw a card from the top of the pile.
4. Take 10 minutes to read the back of the card and reflect on all the shifts it represents for you (if you journal, you may want to journal on these shifts at the beginning and/or end of your day).
5. "Wear" the hat all day; apply the perspective shifts as you go about your tasks.
6. At the end of the day, "take off" the hat and put the card on the bottom of the deck.
7. Repeat the process, drawing a new card each day.

By the end of 27 days you will not only have sharpened up your tools but probably discovered some new ones you didn't even know that you had.