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How to break through your glass-ceiling

Joerg Kuehn · Mar 31, 2021 · Leave a Comment

mar1 1024x576 - How to break through your glass-ceiling

My initial plan was to write about the late Sir Roger Bannister, who many of you may know because of his remarkable achievement in breaking the seemingly impossible 4-minute-barrier for a 1-Mile-Run on 6th of May 1954.

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For many years, runners had tried to achieve that in vain, but after Bannister did it, several other runners were able to quickly follow, because the “invincible (psychological) barrier” had been broken.

While an article in the science of running somewhat debunks Bannister’s myth, I strongly believe that in real life we all struggle with this kind of “glass-ceilings” from time-to-time. I want to take a moment here to share my own recent “psychological barrier”, since it might provide you some-food-for-thought on how to break through your own glass ceilings.

As part of my studies with the UK National College for Hypnosis and Psychotherapy, in mid-February, I attended a course on how to support clients struggling with PTSD and traumatic experiences. Up until the time I took this course, I had studied for two years and had definitely learned new knowledge, tools and therapeutic approaches. But, if I am being honest, I had not yet felt the internal conviction and confidence to truly put all this psychotherapeutic knowhow to work and make a real difference in my clients lives.

This course changed this and broke my glass ceiling.

What are you most looking forward to?

Joerg Kuehn · Jan 26, 2021 · Leave a Comment

jan0 1 - What are you most looking forward to?

On the 5th of December 1914, Ernest Shackleton, together with 27 brave men, left South Georgia in the Southern Atlantic Ocean on a ship with the telling name Endurance.

jan2 - What are you most looking forward to? Their goal was to become the first to cross the Antarctic continent by foot… a gruelling 1,800 miles (2,900 km) journey.

But weather conditions were terrible, and on the 19th of January 1915, the Endurance became frozen in an ice floe, turning Shackleton’s mission of exploration into a mission of desperate survival.

After drifting north in an icy lockdown for 9 long months, the violent movements associated with the breaking of the ice exerted extreme pressures on the ship.

On the 24th of October 1915, water began pouring in, leaving Shackleton no choice but to abandon the Endurance. For another 7 long and freezing months, with temperatures around minus 30 Degree Celsius, the crew camped on large ice floes, hoping to be carried to mainland.

But on the 9th of April, 1916, their ice floe broke into two and Shackleton ordered the crew into the three lifeboats in a desperate attempt to reach the nearest land. After five harrowing days at sea, the exhausted men landed at Elephant Island, a deserted place far from any shipping routes, giving the men a low chance of rescue by means of discovery. But for the first time in more than 16 months spent in brutal icy lockdowns, they had solid ground under their feet. It must have felt good.

Yet they we far from safe, and so one of the lifeboats was launched on the 24th of April 1916, with Shackleton and another 5 sailors in an attempt to reach the South Georgia whaling station…830 miles (1,330km) away!

The small life boat sailed through the stormy waters of the southern ocean in constant peril of capsizing.

The surprising modern insights of an old tradition!

Joerg Kuehn · Dec 22, 2020 · Leave a Comment

The word “Heimat” has a special meaning for me and many people in Germany, as it represents the area where we grew up, with all our personal experiences, memories, values, traditions and people. My Heimat is at the foot of the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) in the Eastern part of Germany.

The Erzgebirge is famous for its longstanding mining tradition. In 1168, the first silver ore was found near today’s Freiberg. The mining industry in this area produced silver and iron ore as well as lead, cobalt, nickel, zinc and uranium until the end of the 20th century.

The job of the miners was very hard. Working hours were incredibly long and the work was intensely tough, as they faced life threatening conditions hundreds of metres below the surface.

As winter approached, it got even tougher, as the miners would not see daylight for weeks and months, leaving their homes in darkness in the early morning and returning home after sunset. It is, therefore, understandable that these miners had a natural and strong longing for (day) light as a symbol of life, safety and hope.

Stumbling on Happiness

Joerg Kuehn · Nov 25, 2020 · 1 Comment

I grew up being told I had a cat allergy. In October 2014, when my future wife Anne moved in, she brought along her cat, Sebastian. Initially, I was not sure this would work, but it soon became clear that not only was I not allergic, but life with a cat was a new and enriching experience. He added peace, playfulness and calmness to my life. Unfortunately, due to diabetes and other complications, Sebastian passed away in October 2015.

After a few month of “cat-less living”, we decided to get a new one. Entering Mrs. Wong’s cat shelter, we were greeted by more than a hundred cats. Our “target cat-specification” was very clear: black and male with a long-tail similar to Sebastian. Beginning to look around for that “perfect-fit”, one cat seemed highly interested in us and even jumped on us (s.picture). This cat was the total opposite of our target specification, as she was female and three-colour with only half a tail.

The next day, I asked my wife: “Do you think there was any meaning behind this cat jumping on us, almost choosing us? Should we go and get her?” Anne said yes, and soon the cat, which was called “JW2,” came home with us (JW – abbreviation of “Jurong West”, the district of Singapore where she was found). She was “off-spec” … but had chosen us.

Why am I sharing this story?

The answers are inside – not outside!

Joerg Kuehn · Sep 30, 2020 · Leave a Comment

It was the 3^rd of September 2003 when Medical Manager CEO Michael Singer received a panic call from his division’s attorney. The FBI was raiding his R&D facility, along with several other locations across WebMD, a publicly listed company in the field of health information services. The FBI confiscated 1.2 million email messages, 1,500 boxes of files with more than 3 million pages of documents, and 830,000 computer files.

A few weeks later the reason for the FBI-inquiry became clear. It turned out an employee, who was internally investigated for taking dealer kickbacks, had informed the authorities about his dealings, alleging the company board was fully aware of these illegal affairs. He was hoping to cut a deal for himself.

Despite Michael Singer’s career as the CEO of a division with more than 2,500 employees, he lived a quiet, spiritual life in “the woods” where he moved in his early twenties to learn “how to quiet the voice in his head.” All his life, he had been practicing “how to surrender” and create “inner peace.” This federal investigation offered a massive challenge to his inner peace. If things turned out badly, he might end up in prison.

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