Women now need to step into their rightful place in the corporate world.

After decades spent asking to be treated just like men, evidence shows that neurologically, biologically and organizationally women are profoundly different. Research strongly supports the economic advantages of women in leadership roles.

Historically many women acheived a seat in the boardroom or on management teams by “becoming men”. They learned to dress like men, act like men and even think like men hoping that no one would notice that they were women.

It is time for women to achieve and hold these positions by embracing their uniquely feminine qualities.

Women’s brains have a larger prefrontal cortex. This means that they are hard-wired for multi-tasking. This is different from their male counterparts and it is a great advantage for strategic planning and relationship management.

Women have more white matter which connects brain centers, meaning that women pick up signals across a broad spectrum of inputs. Men on the other hand have more grey matter, which localizes brain activity. This means that their strength is in focussing in-depth on a single point.

Women have more connectors between the right and left side of their brain allowing them to easily move from right brain to left brain or from analysis to creativity. This gives them a natural ability to analyze a problem using the left brain [logical center] and then move into their right brain [creative center] to construct a solution.With more connectors women are able to communicate this creative solution to the left brain and apply it to the problem at hand.

With a dominance of estrogen, women’s risk preferences are more stable than that of men. This is supported by John Coates of Cambridge University in his studies where he concludes that economic bubbles are a “male phenomenon”, a result of increased levels of testosterone that contributes to greater and greater confidence and appetite for risk.

It is also supported by a December 2009 article in Business Week stating that hedge funds run by women turned an annual rate of return of 9 percent between 2000, and 2008 versus 5.8% from funds run by men over the same period.

Micheal Ferrary, Ceram Business School, France says “The feminization of management seems to protect against financial turbulence.”.

We can use the results of brain science and comparative biological studies to formulate powerful management teams. By nature, women process information and manage relationships differently than men. Their multi-processing capabilities allow them to simultaneously factor in the needs of all participants and all aspects of a situation. Where men build relationships generally by doing things i.e golfing etc., women nurture relationships by connecting at a deeper intuitive level and developing a deep understanding of the other person.

Pepperdine University released results of 19 year study of 200 fortune 500 companies exploring the link between gender and profit. By every measure of profitability, equity, revenue and assets, companies with the best records for promoting women outperformed the competition.

A balance of masculine and feminine traits on corporate teams will maximize the economic growth of an organization.

Today 97% of Fortune 500 CEO offices and 85% of Fortune 500 board seats are held by men. This demonstrates just how out of balance the industry is. This distorted balance has resulted in financial disasters like we experienced in 2008.

Michael Lewis, Vanity Fair, speaking about the financial disaster of 2008 says that “one of the distinctive traits about Iceland’s disaster was how little women had to do with it.”

Women are hardwired to gather cues, assess the subtle elements of the case at hand, build and nurture relationships and most of all, listen to their intuition. When they attempt to “become men” they lose touch with the very elements that make them most authentic and most valuable. This leaves them unfulfilled and searching for more meaning. Many cope with anti-depressants – now prescribed at record levels. Others are opting out the corporate world in favour of staying at home or moving into more supportive environments. In a time of a drastically diminishing workforce we cannot afford to lose our resources.

Research reveals a strong correlation between corporate profits and the number of women on the management team. Profits increase with gender diversification and the market will favour companies that attract, develop and retain women in leadership positions.

McKinsey & Company have done some remarkable studies entitled “Women Matter”. Follow this link to review this fabulous work. learn more

I also want to credit a wonderful article in Avenue Magazine (April 2011 edition) for much information on “Women’s Work”

Breaking free from the conditioning of your early life and discovering your natural personality style will change your life. You will experience a level of passion and energy far beyond what you consider possible.

Each of us is born with natural gifts, effortless skill sets. Some of us are introverts, some are extroverts. Some prefer intuition while others prefer their 5 senses.  You have a preference to go with your thoughts or your feelings.  When you embrace these natural talents, life becomes easy. You will find yourself energized by your work, passionate about activities. You will go home at the end of the day with energy to spare. This will enhance all of your relationships from the workplace to your home.

Success does not come from pushing harder and faster along the wrong path. Success comes from embracing your nature and moving effortlessly through life.

By understanding your natural gifts and to what level these skills are developed, you find yourself with a clear road map to your success.  You know where to focus your personal development efforts. You understand how to set personal boundaries. Your self confidence solidifies and your self-esteem soars.

This is the formula for success!!

Are you a “Swiss Cheese” communicator?

Many of our corporate and team leaders are extroverts.  Extroverts, by nature,  see the “big” picture.  They are future focused – always wondering what something can become.  This is a powerful trait for leaders but it comes with its own set of challenges.

Extroverts often assume that everyone sees their “big” picture and when it comes to communication they leave out many of the necessary details.  This is often referred to as “Swiss Cheese Communication” for obvious reasons.  So, as a leader it is important that you are cognizant of your directions, always checking and double checking to ensure that the holes are filled in.

Communication is a double edge sword.  On the one edge, it is important to be clear about the message that you deliver.  On the other edge of the sword, it is equally as important to ensure that the message is received clearly.  With both sides satisfied, you have clarity in your communication and a far greater chance of getting your needs met.

The delivery side is obvious.  With awareness, you can check your message and fill in any of the details to ensure clarity.  The receiving side is more difficult. You need to be aware of the communication style of the person that is to receive the message.  Are they an introvert or an extrovert?  Do the like big picture stuff or are details like facts and figures necessary?  Do they listen with their head or their heart?  Are they direct and to the point or more creative?

With the communication equation complete – life is much easier.

Our world is changing at a chaotic speed and people are called to take on an ever expanding set of roles. For women these changes have been profound. Many of us babyboomers were raised by stay-at-home moms. This set a standard that, consciously or unconsciously, we are held to. With the rise up through the corporate heirarchy, we have added a new set of roles without releasing the old ones. Being pulled in so many directions brings us to a level of stress that historically has not existed.

Anti-depressants are being prescribed at an all time high, and the recipients of these drugs are primarily women. This is not a path that can be sustained. Never before has there been such a need for clarity and direction.

Do you really know who you are at the very core of your being? What motivates you? What energizes you? What causes you stress and drains your energy? It seems like the most obvious thing in the world, after all we spend every moment of every day with ourselves.

When using the common personality assessment tools on the market today, studies show that 84% of the population do not know themselves well enough to profile accurately. In a world where upwards of 73% are extroverts, our school systems demand that, from a very early age, we sit still, be quiet, focus and listen for countless hours each day. As children, we are taught to be seen and not heard, not to speak unless spoken to. Such children are much easier to handle for over-taxed parents. All of this, conditions those brand new extroverts to abandon their nature and succumb to introversion.

Studies show that women, with a natural style of Commander, are subjected to the most conditioning of any group. Our society has not easily welcomed the assertive female. It opposes the stereotype of the compassionate, nurturing caregiver that society expects.

This conditioning is so profound that many of us believe ourselves to be introverts. The result of this state of affairs is that many of us extroverts, that have been placed safely in a box, are feeling stifled. We are antsy. We may have all of the trimmings of a happy life but underlying it all is a very strong sense that there is something more. What is it that we are missing? What more could there possibly be?

OUR NATURE!!!  When we figure out who we really are, what our natural strengths are, what our weaknesses are, where we thrive and where we need support, life takes on new meaning.  The energy to effort ratio is reborn, returning to us an abundance of energy for very little effort.  This is when we embrace the full vitality that life has to offer.

It is through the discovery of our truth and the reclamation of our emotions, our intuition, our compassion and our power that we can rightfully and powerfully take our seat on corporate boards and management teams and bring about the changes that are so desperately needed.

“There is no greater power in this world than us, fully clothed in our own authenticity.”

Emerging from the most profound global economic downturn since the great depression, corporations face a great opportunity for growth. As babyboomers prepare to retire, we are entering a time of rapidly diminishing human resources. Corporations need to change their focus to their people.

According to American Insights Workplace Survey, 54% of workers are planning to look for a new job once the economy improves.  This number increases to 71% for workers under 30.

If this were to happen, it seems to me that corporations will just be trading one unhappy employee for another, and paying a lot of money to do it.

People are the soul of every organization.  If all of the people involved in an organization are healthy, empowered, passionate and operating with personal integrity, then the corporation itself will be healthy, empowered, passionate and in integrity.

Gallup reports that only 26% of employees are actively engaged in their work, 55% are not engaged and 19% are actively disengaged. Therefore 74% of employees are unmotivated and uninspired.

How do companies engage their workforce. According to many studies, the problems in companies–and therefore the solutions–almost always boil down to individual managers and leaders. Leaders drive attitudes and attitudes drive performance.

“Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves it is amazing what they can accomplish”

- Sam Walton

It is now time to develop our leaders.  Managers must re-examine ideas about how business works and what drives it. Effectively competing in today’s business climate, requires managers to identify the emotional, psychological, and personal factors in themselves and their employees.

As we emerge from the most profound global economic downturn since the great depression, some questions come to mind. Why did this meltdown happen? What is the purpose of this collapse? How do we emerge from this period with dignity?  The answer to all three questions is “Integrity”.

Why did this meltdown happen? It happened because our corporate culture lost its integrity.

As a Corporate Executive, I have seen business environments deteriorate over the past few decades. Corporations have come to define success solely in terms of return on investment. There is growing pressure to increase profits at the expense of all else – the people, the environment and integrity.

Pressure increases and corporate interests move from the good of “all stakeholders” to the benefits of the “major shareholders”.  As this energy spirals downward, the focus narrows to the interests of the “decision makers” which soon deteriorates into “each man for himself”.

Changes in our personal and corporate environments, over the past several decades, have provided us with a vast opportunity for growth. The speed and the scale of these changes will pale in comparison to what is to come. Trying to run faster on the same track has led people to use avoidance strategies at near epidemic proportions. In greater numbers, people are electing to numb themselves with food, drugs or compulsive activities. Requests for anti-depressants and sleeping pills dominate corporate healthcare programs.  It is time to acknowledge that something isn’t working.

What is the purpose of this collapse? It is to encourage a shift in consciousness bringing the focus back to integrity.

Over 5000 years ago, the Mayans predicted that in 2007-08 we would experience an opening in consciousness along with an economic meltdown. They also stated that we would be entering a time of “ethical considerations”, where truth, ethics and integrity would become the currency of the time. We certainly experienced the economic meltdown. Now it is time to accept the gift – the opening of consciousness, the return of ethics and integrity.

How do we emerge from this period with dignity? We encourage all employees to realign with their inner truth bringing Corporations into integrity.

Corporations are only a legal structure. On their own they have no personality, culture or soul.  They are the totality of all of the people involved. If we want to transform the corporate environment, we must work with the individuals.  If all of the people involved in an organization are healthy, empowered and operating with personal integrity, the corporation itself is healthy, empowered and in integrity.

There are three vital components to health and vitality – purpose, connection and contribution.

Purpose – People need to discover who they really are at the heart level. Not who they should or shouldn’t be to meet other’s needs, but what is true to their nature – their personal integrity. Re-aligning with one’s true purpose will ignite passion, dissipate stress and release a powerful energy.

Discovering ones “Personal Integrity” is accomplished through self-exploration, by taking a real deep and honest look at the needs and desires that reside deep within each of us.  Focusing internally clarifies one’s purpose. When purpose resonates from deep within, it will be powerful and it will be clear.

Connection – The power in the future lies in the building of community. When people establish a deep connection with themselves, they become more open to forming connections with other people and communities. Connecting with others consolidates the passions of each individual into a whole that is exponentially more powerful than the sum of its parts. This only happens when we accept people as our most sacred resource. As we honor their gifts, purpose and integrity, we access a true power that goes beyond a physical push to endure or win.

Contribution – With a clear sense of purpose and a greater community, one’s contribution becomes crystal clear. When contribution is empowered by passion, the benefits of teamwork go far beyond anything we could imagine as individuals.

The World Ahead

The future is glorious and holds so much promise for us.  It will be more brilliant and powerful than anything we have experienced in our past.  We need to shift our perspective.  We need a new set of tools, a new strategic plan.  These already exist.  We just need to adopt them, to understand them and to use them effectively.  The secret is in knowing who we are, what we came here for and what gifts and tools were provided for this task.

Einstein said “The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift”.  Society has taught us to ignore our inner messages and to ignore or discount anything that can’t be validated by science.  We are taught that we can’t know the unknowable.

Intuition is our most powerful tool.  It gives us access to the “unknowable”. To fully capitalize on it, we need to reconnect our mind to our body and spirit.  We must call on our subconscious and intuitive minds.  When we do, we reignite our spirit, which shows us how to operate with integrity, how to remain healthy and energized and how to empower our teams. Our intuition provides inspired thoughts and creative solutions to problems.

Return On Integrity

We owe it to ourselves, to our children and to our children’s children to align with our personal integrity – to be true to our deepest self. Starting now, we have the ability to recognize and embrace this gift, creating a wildly successful and joyful experience for everyone. Powered by integrity and authenticity, corporations will not only survive, they will thrive. We will be able to measure success in terms of “Return on Integrity” instead of “Return on Investment.”

In our culture there seems to be a lot of mystery wrapped around meditation: what it is, how to do it, when to do it, why to do it. We have perceptions about what is right and what is wrong. Many of us get so bogged down in the details that we never bring ourselves to embrace the simplicity of it. So let’s try to de-mystify this practice.

Many of the most notable visionaries of our time credit their creative success to the use of a trance or meditative state.  Among them are; Amadeus Mozart, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Alexander Graham Bell, Henry Ford, Andrew Carnegie, Leonardo Da Vinci and George Washington Carver. Each and every one of these men put themselves into a trance state to access their sub-conscious and intuitive minds. It was from this state that their most creative ideas, their most profound inventions arose.

You may be surprised to know, studies show that the average person is  in a trance or meditative state 2-3 hours of the wakeful day. Each and everyday you practice meditation without even knowing it. Why not take advantage of this powerful state by consciously directing your life.

What is Meditation for today’s world?

• It is something that you already do everyday.
• It does not belong to, or conflict with, any culture or religion.
• It is far removed from any set of beliefs or the distinctions of class or creed.
• It is a simple method of relaxation and exploring the inner dimensions of life.
• It is a practice used by many Scientists, Inventors, Artists and Business Visionaries of the past and present.
• It is stillness, it is silence

How can meditation improve your quality of life, stamina, energy, strength and flexibility, creativity and efficiency, relationships with family, friends and coworkers?

Physically, meditation is known to lower oxygen consumption, decrease respiratory rate, slow the heart rate, increase exercise tolerance, promote relaxation, normalize blood pressure, reduce anxiety, relieve stress, mitigate pain, increase serotonin production, reduce PMS symptoms, enhance the immune system and improve overall body luster and general health.

Mentally and emotionally, meditation aids in increasing focus, improving concentration, stimulating creative thought, accelerating learning programs, tapping into mind over matter, building self-confidence, breaking cyclical patterns, changing belief systems, clarifying situations, issues and dreams, and improving body image.

Creatively and spiritually, meditation aids in accessing Universal knowledge, communicating with Inner Self, Higher Self or Universal Guidance, promoting self discovery, stripping off false layers of identity, releasing past conditioning and experiencing supreme bliss and enlightenment.

One of meditation’s greatest benefits is that it gives you a gateway to your subconscious mind. This is a powerful tool that you can access if you learn how to approach it. Of the sensory input that you are exposed to each day, only a very small percentage is retained in your conscious mind. All of it is stored in your subconscious. Wouldn’t it be great to have access to this wealth of information?

The vast majority of your values, attitudes and behaviors were established during youth, initially through conscious decisions. Thereafter, they are managed through the vast resources and filing capacity of the subconscious mind. Awareness is always the first step to lasting change. By creating new methods of managing these behaviors, triggers or cyclical patterns you can begin to create your life rather than be a victim of its circumstances.

There is no contest between the conscious and the subconscious mind. Ultimately the subconscious mind will prevail. Accessing and working through the subconscious you can modify the directives you operate under loosening the grip of stress, anxiety, cyclical patterns, past traumas and historical experiences on your life. Meditation gives you access to your subconscious mind. You can do this by learning the art of meditation and collecting a set of tools to help you along your journey.

How do you begin a meditation practice?

• Like any other skill set, devote time to practice on a regular basis.
• Incorporate some very basic techniques – learn to walk before you try to run a marathon.
• Don’t make it complicated. Use basic and simple practices that can be employed anywhere.
• As elements are mastered invite yourself to add tools to the toolbox, study some new material, learn some new techniques.

There are three main steps to a meditation practice.

The first step is to bring yourself through a relaxation exercise to prepare your body and mind to open to the benefits of the meditation exercise.  There are numerous techniques to accomplish this and the results vary from person to person.

The second step is the body of the meditation itself. There are a variety of tools that one can use to accomplish any number of goals from relaxation to answering questions or resolving difficulties within ones life.

The third and final step is to come home or close a meditation practice.

RELAXATION

It is always advisable to begin a meditation practice by getting yourself very comfortable, releasing all of the stress that is held in your physical body, letting go of pressures that are weighing on your mind and centering yourself within your field. Sounds pretty basic but at the end of a very stressful day it may pose some challenges. This is why it is good to have a standard practice that you follow which will pull your focus into the present moment. With this practice you will find yourself relaxed and prepared to move into the body of the meditation.

BODY OF MEDITATION

There are various types of meditation that one can choose from. Try each of these and feel which one works best for you. After some experience and experimentation it is nice to incorporate a combination of strategies into your practice.

Passive Meditation
My definition of passive meditation is to sit very still and attempt to have no thoughts or activities cross my minds path. When I began, this was my first practice. It was almost my last as I felt like a complete failure. I had this expectation of sitting still for ½ to 1 hour with no thoughts interfering with the peace that I was trying to create. After many months of practice I was able to keep my mind free for about 3 seconds before some random and unwelcomed thought intruded on my failing practice. This made me feel completely incompetent and a total failure at the art of meditation. I nearly gave up on this as a tool, when I was introduced to what I considered “active meditation”.

Active Meditation
While studying Reiki, I was introduced to a new form of meditation. I called this “active meditation” because there was something for me to do in the process. I experienced bringing infrastructure into my practice through guided meditations or the introduction of meditation tools.

Moving Meditations
As I became comfortable with the art of meditation I began using it in many aspects of my life. I found tremendous value in moving meditation. I could put myself into a meditative state when walking, running, skiing, driving or kayaking. It helped remove stress from my golf game, from business meetings, from presentations. I use it when coaching, teaching and learning. Meditation in these circumstances can translate into mindfulness, a complete and fully conscious pathway to the power of the subconscious and intuitive minds throughout life.

Mantra Meditation
A mantra is “a thought that liberates and protects”. Often it is comprised of meaningless syllables, eliminating random thoughts from interfering with the focus of the meditation. By repeating a phrase or mantra many times over you bring your mind and your energy field into a single point of focus. It is believed that this repetition accelerates the creative spiritual force.

Meditation Tools
As you work with meditation you will become aware of many different strategies and tools. Some examples are: Inner Sanctuary, Relax & De-stress, Healing Room, Image Room, Issue Room, Dream Room, Healing the World, Release to the Universe, Create from the Universe, Converse with Higher Self, Seek Answers, Practicing Forgiveness, Adapt to Change, Getting Out of Ego. An endless array of possibilities are at your disposal for a meditation practice.

COMING HOME
Once the body of your practice is complete, you move to coming home or closing a meditation. If you are meditating in the morning or in the middle of the day you will want to bring yourself back to full waking consciousness. This allows you to participate with full awareness in the rest of your day. If the meditation is done prior to sleep you may choose to drift off into a sleepy slumber and not come back into the conscious world.

Meditation is a very simple and accessible practice that can add enormous value to your life. Adopting a practice can be as easy as setting aside 10 or 15 minutes in your day. The rewards are numerous and profound as a very worthwhile investment in yourself.

As I reflect on my personal and professional experiences I am struck by an interesting parallel between my white water rafting adventures and my experience as a Corporate Executive.

All of my white water experiences had a similar process.  A group of people, of all different experience levels, gather together to maneuver a raft down through unknown obstacles and challenges.  Some are friends and others strangers. A guide at the helm, whom everyone trusts, is assumed to know the river and have the skill to get us safely down it.  But we all know that it isn’t a one-man job.

After introductions and assurances of his competence, the guide assesses this group to identify personalities and skills.  Through this assessment, he assigns rolls and responsibilities aboard the raft.

He recites a very complete script. This explains the mission, the known hazards, the strategies to navigate around them and the rescue plan if one is needed. There are rules of conduct, things like: don’t stand up in the raft, keep your paddle under control, hold onto the guide rope, listen to the guide, follow directions quickly and concisely.  These are the non-negotiables.

He then confirms all paddlers understand and clearly agree to participate fully. All are invited to withdraw from the adventure if they are not in full agreement. Some paddlers change their mind at this point and opt out of the adventure.

During the safety session of one trip I saw the guide eyeing two of my friends who were scared out of their wits.  He quickly decided to put them in the middle of the raft without paddles, the safest decision for all of us. He noticed me favoring my right shoulder and quickly shifted me over to the other side of the raft, capitalizing on my strong side over my weakness. This demonstrates his continued awareness of his team members.

Once he is satisfied that all are positioned correctly we push out into calm waters. The gentle approach gives him the opportunity to see us in action and assess our coping strategies before things become stressful. This is a chance to reposition and re-strategize before we face the real challenge.

As all of us relax into the adventure we come to know our fellow paddlers. Trust is built slowly along the way as we build relationships.  Humor provides a gateway that helps to unify the team.

Heading down the river there are a few more waves and some twists and turns. He reinforces his commands over and over until they are ingrained in our heads. This is a perfect time to test out the strength of the team.  Who can call on their skills, which members digress into negative coping strategies, which paddlers step up and help their teammates through.  It is during these times that you gain insights into the inner working of your team.  Here is another gateway to reassess and reposition.

And through it all, the main job of the guide is to keep the rafters safe and healthy and keep the raft on course.  He positions his team, trains his team and then trusts this solid unified team to navigate the roughest waters.

These great lessons are learned from life’s adventures. We can apply these lessons a work, where we invest over 1/3 of our day, turning it into an enjoyable adventure.

Build a cohesive team

It is imperative to know who you are working with; their personality types, what they naturally do best, what they like to do and what they struggle with.  In business you need to go deeper.  It is important to know what is going on in the personal lives of your team members.  Fortunately or unfortunately, depending how you look at it, you take the whole person onto the team -  not just the skillset. Any physical problems, emotional problems, health problems, marital problems, child problems add stress and can cause a member to digress into coping strategies sooner than the business conditions would dictate. Putting context to these warning signs allows for empathy and support, which helps the whole team pull together.

People can and should be removed from teams if they are not fully aligned with the mission. Image a raft with a key paddler or two, paddling in the opposite direction? To successfully navigate through the roughest terrain, all paddlers have to be working in unison, paddling at the same time in the same direction.  Any one paddler has the power sink the raft. If there are dysfunctional team members, they will have a significant impact on the progress of the entire team.  Eliminate them!

Assign tasks to the proper people

When you understand the personalities of all of your team members it becomes easier to assign tasks. With this knowledge you will know who can power through the roughest waters, who can motivate the other team members, who can care for the wounded and exhausted travelers and who can organize the group.  Armed with this vital information, all tasks are carried out easily and confidently.  Nothing falls through the cracks.

As in rafting, there will be adjustments required along the way.  Some weaknesses may appear that were not previously noticed. Don’t be afraid to reposition people. Flexibility and awareness are key skills.

Create organizational clarity

In business it is vital for all to understand the fundamental concepts that run the business. This means to set a clear and concise course: the mission – what the company stands for, what the objective is, what the known hazards are and how you intend to deal with these hazards. A cohesive management team requires alignment by all members.

Clearly define your non-negotiables

Every company has their own set of non-negotiables.  These are things that are vital to the core of the company.  These are the rules that must be followed no matter what.  They differ from company to company but fairly standard are no gossiping, always use advancing language, tell the truth and no surprises.  These have to be set and communicated clearly and followed by every team member.  They reach to the soul of the company.

Communicate everything frequently and clearly

It isn’t enough to say something once.  Human being learn through repetition of messages from multiple trusted authorities, from a variety of different sources. Every personality type communicates differently. It is not possible to over- communicate the vital information of the company.  Say it clearly, say it often, say it in numerous different ways.

• So, in rafting or in business
• Always know who is in your boat
• Always have a plan
• Don’t be surprised if the boat doesn’t go where you want.
• You can’t always read the waters accurately.
• Sometimes you just have to trust your team to pull you through the rough times.
• Rest and regroup in the calm waters.  There will be more challenges ahead.
• Utilize the calm time to build and revitalize your team
• Don’t throw the good paddlers out of the boat in the calm waters, you will need them when the white water hits.
• Never stop paddling, even when it feels hopeless
• Someone needs to call out the orders.  It works better that way