Start with Yourself

Start with Yourself

November 29, 2017

Nibal Petro Henderson HeadshotIntro from Alana:

When I put out the call for November posts, one member of the CLC Community and Guest Blogger, Jill Breuer, reached out to encourage me to talk with Nibal Petro Henderson and to try to convince her to share her story this month.  Connecting with Nibal was a pleasure!

Nibal was born and raised in Kuwait to Palestinian Christian parents. She spent the first 13 years of her life in the Middle East until her family immigrated to America when she was 13 years old and she landed in Houston, Texas. She likes to think of herself as a Palestinian-Texan – it’s her own little category that the census bureau has yet to acknowledge!

Nibal attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas where she studied Psychology and Political Science. She is certified as a life and business coach and works with her clients to discover their goals and to build a roadmap to reach them. She helps her clients navigate the path from dreams to reality. She loves to teach and speaks to audiences about the importance of having a growth mindset and the role of self-talk in achieving success. She is currently serving as the Director of Training at New Directions Behavioral Health where she is focused on developing training strategy and building out a leadership development program for this fast-growing company.

Nibal’s core mission and calling is to help people. She helps people in her role as mother, wife, sister, daughter, and friend. She shares her messages of transformation through her speaking and coaching. Nibal is married to her best friend, Drew, and together they have three children.  Join me in welcoming Nibal to CLC!

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Man in the Mirror” by Michael Jackson.  Guest post by Nibal Petro Henderson.

I’m starting with the man in the mirror

I’m asking him to change his ways

And no message could have been any clearer

If you wanna make the world a better place

Take a look at yourself, and then make a change

— “Man in the Mirror” by Michael Jackson

I like to tell people that I’m on Nibal 5.5 and already have 6.0 and 6.5 in development. After the nervous laughter has died down I explain to them that I use that self-talk to remind myself that change is possible and that we are all a work in progress. After all, Apple just released iOS 11.1, continued growth and improvement is key to survival!

I love to talk to people about change and how it is within their reach. We are all a decision away from changing things in our lives – it’s really that simple. And also that hard because after the decision comes the commitment.

I was recently invited to participate in a mentoring summit at a local company. As the session wrapped up I was approached by a man asking to speak with me. As he leaned in and took a breath I knew he was about to share something important so I leaned in too. “You changed my life” he said and as tears fell from his eyes they welled up in mine. This man had heard me speak earlier in the year and took my message of change to heart. He bought the book and set out to change his life because, “I don’t want my son to have the same fixed mindset.”

It’s always an honor to hear about the impact of my message on others. As I related the story to my family that night at dinner – with tears falling from my eyes this time – I was hit with two thoughts.

  1. It’s important to know and understand your calling. Mine is to help people. But it’s even more important to be confident in that calling so that it lives and breathes and grows within you without constant external confirmation. I’m not discounting the joy of having people share the impact you’ve had on their life – what a privilege! Instead I’m cautioning those of us in the ‘people’ business to beware of living and dying by that praise or lack thereof.
  2. Your calling is not attached to a title or a profession. Instead, it should be a very part of every fiber of your being and a thread that runs through your life and everything you do. Your calling is who you are and not what you do. The best work we can do is to understand our calling and live it out.

It was my calling that led me to present a workshop at the Central Exchange. At that workshop were three women from a local company who heard my message and decided it was one they wanted to share with their colleagues. And it was at that company that I was able to share my message of change and fulfill my calling to help people. When you’re in the people business – you can’t afford to miss any opportunity to network and build relationships. Your calling cannot be fulfilled otherwise.

In 7 years, my youngest graduates from high school. That’s when Nibal 7.0 is scheduled for release. Stay tuned!