Day 127: Elizabeth Lengyel
“It is a type of magic. But the beauty of it is, I think, with inspiration it’s something long-lived. I think when we inspire and we elevate people’s thinking or take them to a new place, we have this opportunity to help them make a shift in their life where they will never be the same.”
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Toni Reece: Thank you so much, Elizabeth, for joining the Project today, and before we begin, can you please introduce yourself?
Elizabeth Lengyel: Sure. I’m Elizabeth, Elizabeth Lengyel, and I think I was mentioning earlier if I were to stick to an abbreviated kind of bio, I’m a radio host, business owner, and teacher. You know, I elevate my audience which includes my radio following, entrepreneurs, and students to new levels and like to think that I engage them in learning how to express who they are, and that includes their genius and their passions, and what they want out of life; their life ambition. That would translate into their work, into their business.
Of course, there’s the informal bio that really excites me because I’m a whole person and, like most people, you know, I have different roles. I’m a mom, a daughter, a sister, a friend. I love to dance. I love sports. I love people, and I think that the connection about who I am is I’m all about raising people’s vibration, raising their consciousness to help them express their own magnificence, whether it’s my teenage sons or their friends or whether it’s a client or my students. I like to think I can raise them up. That’s who I am.
Toni: Well thank you. That’s fantastic! Given such this wonderful description, when you think of the word inspiration, who do you think you inspire and how might you go about that?
Elizabeth: Well, I think … I do like to think I inspire my audiences, you know? I’ve been in business for quite a while, so I like to think that is working very nicely and been able to touch many lives through that. But personally I really think that inspiration for me comes in the moments … the moments of my day.
And so what do I mean by that? Whether I’m working with a client or whether I’m talking with someone at our school or whether I’m grocery shopping or at a car dealership or in a car accident — which unfortunately has happened to me — but you know, who I am being in the moment to me is what creates the inspiration.
I believe that when I’m being inspiring, regardless of situation, it’s about asking those questions, about how can I raise this person up? Like how can I be fully in conversation or communication with them in the moment and where they’re at at the present time? Or how can I help the other person express who they are or what they’re doing? Like regardless of what they’re doing or regardless of the situation, how can I elevate that moment?
You know, a question that’s always … you know how we have self-talk in our minds? I often ask myself the question — it’s so simple — but “Who’s the genius that I see in front of me right now?” And when I do that, I actually have my intuition usually kick in, and that’s what helps me create energy or to create juice. But on the other hand, sometimes … and I know oftentimes I’ve thought of inspiration as something that’s more juicy and alive and energetic, and sometimes I also believe it’s about creating stillness and creating stillness and slowing things down when we need it the most. So it’s about helping people sparkle and thrive, but then also how do we slow things down and help people get back into their own rhythm?
Toni: So when you are working with people or just being present with that person — regardless of the situation — and you find yourself fully present and asking yourself “How can I raise this person up right now?” By doing that, Elizabeth, how does that help them explore their own potential?
Elizabeth: Well I think number one it gives them kind of a blank piece of paper. I know that’s kind of metaphorical, I suppose, but I like to think that I can help people see and perceive things in a different light. I like to think that by my interacting with them and being there fully with them and believing in them and, you know, they’re not having to prove anything to me, just being in the moment with them and engaging them in communication because sometimes as a coach it can be asking some good questions.
Sometimes it’s about sharing with them what we see in front of us. And what I find is that often it can be astounding for a person where it just makes them stop and … I think often in this rat race, and I think sometimes we are living in … you know, people feel like they are kind of a ride on a wheel. They’re spinning and spinning, and they’re going from one thing to the next. And we’re bombarded with information and all kinds of things are happening in our day and age.
I think that what I help people do is to just stop and think and then not only do I share something or ask them something, but I’ll always take it to the next level. So that helps them deepen perspective, I think, on something above themselves.
And you know, that can be really simple. I remember once being on the campus and there was just this beautiful girl that walked by, and I just stopped her and said “I just wanted to tell you, like you just radiate such beauty ,and it’s like you shine when you’re walking, and I just so admire that.”
She stopped and she was kind of blushing and she said “Oh,” and I don’t think she knew what to make of me at first. But I would let it go if that’s what she wanted, but she stopped and she wanted to have a conversation about what I saw in her, and we went for a coffee and I believe I elevated her. To me, that’s inspiration.
Toni: When that happens, that’s magic, isn’t it?
Elizabeth: It is. It is a type of magic. But the beauty of it is, I think, with inspiration it’s something long-lived. I think when we inspire and we elevate people’s thinking or take them to a new place, we have this opportunity to help them make a shift in their life where they will never be the same.
Like when we have a shift in consciousness, we actually, whether we want to or not … I mean, it’s not about our choice even necessarily, because once we know something else to be true about ourselves or once we grow, we are never the same again. We are now changed, and so therefore we have to follow that changed path.
Toni: So when you need to be inspired, what you do? Where do you go?
Elizabeth: I always … that’s a really good question, because I actually believe that the heart of being able to inspire others is our ability to inspire ourselves. It’s kind of like … I don’t know if you’ve heard this saying, you probably have, “You can’t love somebody else until you learn to love yourself.” I think the same is true for inspiration. Until you can inspire yourself — I call it finding your own Zen — you know, how do you help find … how do you help someone else be inspired or how do you help them find their Zen?
I actually think of it in terms of two things, actually; what inspires me as well as who inspires me because I have both in my life. So I guess if I were to think about the what, number one for me is music. I mean, music stirs my soul, and my family would tell you like I have music on all the time, and you can tell what I need by the type of music that I play.
Toni: So give us an example of that.
Elizabeth: Well, when I’m kind of tired, you know, I have one of those days too where I kind of wake up … yeah, I’m looking forward to my day but you know, I’m just tired today and I’m just not feeling really inspired myself today. I’ll play music, something like … this morning it was “Spirit in the Sky” or something more modern like I think it was Good Charlotte, “That’ll Be the Day,” or Billy Joel, kind of soft rock, “Uptown Girl”, something like that, but something with a beat, something that’s really going to be inspiring. Or I often … I take walks every day as well. I exercise every day, so exercise for me is a must-have in terms of stillness and to be able to open up my whole brain in terms of thinking.
One of the CDs that I play almost every day without fail is by Paul Scheele. It’s called “Success Songs” and it’s got a lot of upbeat songs, but they’re really words of courage, words that help you determine and stay grounded in your own beliefs and what you want in life.
I want to talk about CDs that I might play when I want to slow the pace, because I often tend to be very juiced and juiced most of the time, sometimes maybe running on overdrive; hence, why I know about needing to slow the pace. And my favorite CD that I put in when I need to slow my pace — and actually it’s John Assaraf that introduced me to it — but it’s “The Best of the Secret Garden” and it’s like meditational music but better.
Toni: And just for clarification who turned you onto it?
Elizabeth: John Assaraf. John Assaraf was one of the teachers in “The Secret.”
Toni: Oh, okay.
Elizabeth: I spent some time with him learning from him, oh, a couple of years ago now in California, and he was the one that mentioned that I would love this CD. And as soon as I heard it, it was like “Oh my gosh, I need this.” I think he knew that I needed sometimes to slow things down, so I do that.
Other things … like normal things, I guess, opposed to abnormal things, I don’t know …
Toni: No, they’re totally … everything is normal … and besides what does that mean?
Elizabeth: Or everything is abnormal, depending on how we want to look at it.
Toni: Exactly. That’s right. I choose everything is normal.
Elizabeth: But things like movies; you know, some of my favorites are like from “Mr. Holland’s Opus,” “August Rush.” My son actually was asking me just the other night whether I would rent the movie again “Pay It Forward.” They’ve been studying it in English class. “The Titanic” … I know that sounds like wow, that’s kind of … there’s some tough things in “The Titanic,” but movies that provide, I think, role models of courage, will and determination, sometimes extreme focus. Those things I find are very inspirational, bring tears to my eyes and give you that “I can do anything” kind of feeling.
Toni: One of the things that you had mentioned is that there are some” who’s” in there as well that inspire you. And when you said “the stories of courage and determination,” I wanted to make sure that we got to the “who”… because it was very important the “what,” but you said there are some other people that inspire you as well.
Elizabeth: Yeah. From the lighter side — maybe, maybe not, since they are teenagers now — but my children. I find my boys inspire me all the time, and what comes out of their mouths, some of the richness and truths are so fundamental. But they also, you know, they show me what it’s like to risk, to have courage, to go out and believe in something and to try anything, especially when they were younger. And then I’ve tried to, of course, nurture that as they’ve gotten older.
My clients inspire me; so do my students. In fact, I find sometimes I wonder who’s coaching who or, you know, I’m teaching students and then they come up with something incredible and it’s like all of a sudden the roll is reversed, and now I am the student and they are the teacher.
But I also have to say, and this might be more … I mean, it might be something bold to say, but I feel really comfortable with you, Toni, so I can say I also find that my partner inspires me. I find that, and it’s something that’s been proven. There’s been a lot of research done on having a partner where you can be really honest and almost like open the kimono and this whole connection between sensuality and creativity and inspiration.
And so I find that being in a really meaningful yet sizzling relationship — if I can phrase it that way — I find raises our inspiration a thousand fold. It helps us be the best of who we are, and it helps us be connected to someone else.
I am such a believer that we’re interconnected, and my kids will tell you I always say “Independence isn’t what it’s all cracked up to be.” Doing life alone is really no fun. So I find having partners, in this case a life partner, but also partners in your business, partners in your student projects, partners in your community.
And your giving back, I believe, is so instrumental because it’s like this circle; you’re inspiring others, they’re inspiring you, you always elevate both of your consciousness to another level whenever you’re being with someone interdependently.
So the “who” to me is as much or more important even than the “what.”
Toni: Well that has come across incredibly loud and clear and powerful, and I have … the one final question for the Project is, what do you do to continuously explore your own potential?
Elizabeth: I do a few things, and they’re conscious, like they’re written down on my vision statement, you know, when you’re helping clients with their vision and their plan, you always do it yourself. That’s the other thing. When you’re inspiring others, you’re consistently needing to nurture your own soul and inspire yourself.
The first and fundamental thing that I do to explore my own potential is actually in conjunction with nurturing my own relationship with who I consider to be my maker and seeing, again, in relationship with God that everything is possible and to being open to whatever seeds are planted in my mind are planted with purpose.
And so I know that if a seed has been planted in my mind, I have the potential to make it possible. I just have to find out why it’s so important to me. And the “why” creates the inspiration in my viewpoint and creates the juice, and then I know that the right people come into my path to make it possible in terms of how I’m going to do it and what exactly I’m going to do.
The other thing I need to do to be able to really explore my own potential is to find my own space. I need to be able to read, I need to be able to stay up to date with what’s going on. I need to be involved in my community. I need to have other people basically ask me the questions that I’m asking them. You know, challenge me, help elevate me; and I find that in turn helps me grow and elevate.
But being aware and constantly aware … and I mean not just aware of what’s going on around us and through reading, but also even when we’re going to the parking lot, be aware of the trees around you. I know it sounds so cliché-ish, but it’s this awareness that you can see what doors are being opened up for you, and that’s happened to me time and time again.
The other thing I would say is courage to explore my own potential. I’ve often had to be like the lion in the Dorothy, like Dorothy and the “Wizard of Oz” where sometimes to reach my potential is really scary. And when I see that there’s a door that’s opening, you know, it’s up to me to go in, but I need the courage to do that, and so there what I do is really believe in myself. Some of the things we’ve talked about, listening to the right music. The last 45 minutes before I go to bed is fundamental to me, what I put into my brain, because I know that it’s what is going to go through my subconscious at night.
And lastly, I’m going to say what helps me reach me potential is my Smart Phone.
Toni: Your what? Your Smart Phone?
Elizabeth: Smart Phone. My cell phone. I’m not kidding. I mean, I laugh about it, but anybody who knows me knows that I’m a texter. And one way that I love to stay in touch with my clients, with my children, with my lover, with what’s going on in the world is 140 characters. That makes it really fast. I don’t have to write a whole long letter, I don’t need a huge big conversation.
I can send a message at the right time and say “Good luck at that interview. I know you’re going to land it.” I can say “Hey, make sure that you have a stellar day at school today.” I can say “I’m thinking about you and just want to tell you that I’m sending some pixie dust to you.” I can inspire people through my cell and, in turn, I open up the world where people send me messages that have been very inspiring and motivating – all within 140 characters.
Toni: That’s awesome. You know, listening to your interview today I know that there’s a lot of people that are going to really go “Yeah, you know, that makes sense.” And maybe there’s some things, you know, just the ideas of the music and what you do for others but also the way you’ve described them that I think is going be a lot of the takeaways today as well and using the wonderful word of genius which you don’t hear a lot of.
And so what I’m taking away from this is that you really do stay inspired yourself and explore your own genius because, if you didn’t, you wouldn’t be able to elevate the genius in others; and so for that we thank you for coming to the Get Inspired! Project.
Elizabeth: Thank you so much, Toni.
Toni: Take care of yourself, and hopefully we will connect again soon.
Elizabeth: We’ll connect.
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For more information about Elizabeth Lengyel: www.peoplecoach.com
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