Archive for Salka

Dec
18

In Memoriam: Salka

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I am deeply grieved to report that we no longer have our Director of Marketing…

For the first time in 42 years I come home to a house empty of dogs. I guess you can safely say dogs have been an integral part of my life. They have been my companions and teachers and fellow beings for a long time.

I just lost my final companion Salka, an exuberant, passionate Alaskan Malamute.  Those of you who have followed me and have been reading my newsletter or have trained with me are familiar with Salka.

He was the last of our pack of three. His pack mates, Waiki and Munai, were all named in Quechua words that have deep emotional meaning for Beth and I. Salka means wild energy—the wild energy of the Eagle as opposed to the domesticated energy of the chicken. In Andean cosmology “salka” energy is the wild energy of creativity and passion.

My big boy could not have been better named. He was my traveling companion, breakfast companion and my biggest cheerleader, sitting excitedly on the sidelines watching me play soccer. We once did a road trip through Northern California, hiking near Lake Tahoe and exploring the small mining towns of the foothills.

He had an amazing facility to connect with people. An animal communicator told us that what Salka enjoyed most was making deep eye contact with people—the kind of soul gazing that creates meaningful connection with all kinds, especially children and the vulnerable.

Because of the way he connected with people, I began speaking about him in my newsletter and created a special section—Salka’s Notes—as a way to impart messages from the perspective of a wise being. When I would travel and meet people at different conferences, we often talked about the use of newsletters to communicate our message. Almost everyone commented on how they enjoyed Salka’s Notes. As you can see from the photos, he illustrates the importance of living fully.

As I write this, I acknowledge the tears, the deep breathing and the sense of loss. His loss has made me miss his pack mates even more. Every time I lost one of my companions, I wrote about the lessons that they had taught me. I think one of the roles of dogs in our lives is to be teachers. I can’t tell you how often I would tell stories about my dogs that really imparted meaningful, heartfelt lessons.

Salka’s ultimate lesson for me was to learn to love myself as much as he loved me and to always be willing to connect fully and completely with people I meet. Those of you who know of his loss have reached out to me because you know the depth of my connection with him, especially those of you who have had a Salka in your life.

So this is as much a eulogy as it is a recommendation that you live the Salka life. Feel the creative passion, the heartfelt connections and always be ready to take a walk and enjoy nature.

Salka, I miss you.

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P.S. Do you want to share this post? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry:

Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Newsletter Articles
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Mar
27

Salka’s Emergency

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[written 3/12/12]

Salka endures a chiropractic session for his injury.

I’m sitting on my patio working outside because I am attending to Salka, our Alaskan Malamute, who suffered a fractured scapula on Sunday. One minute he was in a game of chase with Oliver, the Chesapeake Bay Retriever next door, and the next he was howling like a hurt puppy. It was clear something had happened, and I could see he was favoring one of his right feet.

I had just come from my soccer game and was still dressed in my uniform, so I quickly changed shoes, and then we had to get him into the SUV. It was hard not only because he weighs in at a solid 90 pounds but also because he was in pain from being lifted.

The whole emergency vet service experience seemed like going to a hospital ER, but the people were friendlier. He received X-rays, and we had to wait for them to be interpreted. Then after many hours the verdict, a broken scapula, that would not require surgery but does require six to eight weeks of rest. Ha! They don’t know this Malamute, who likes to go for as many walks as possible.

Well, we have had to rearrange our house to accommodate a dog who can no longer get up off slippery tile. We’ve had to pull out old rugs to cover those bare areas. Most of all we have to shift our schedules and enlist Beth’s mother to be sure, at least for the first two weeks, that someone will be home with Salka to help him up and out to eliminate. Poor boy, he is still clearly hurting and uncomfortable.

When emergencies strike, how do you respond? I found myself stepping forward but then being scared and sad and taking out my frustration briefly with the vet clerk when I discovered what X-rays cost.

I could do a whole post on the cost of all medical care, including animal care, but I won’t.  What I can tell you is that I was happy to pay what it cost in order to relieve Salka of suffering. I suppose that I really don’t have a theme for this post other than to get my feelings out, because ultimately what most of my work has been about is helping people respond to the challenges in their lives. So I will keep readers apprised of his progress because after he recovers I want him to go back to his job of helping me promote my work. Salka asked that you keep him in your thoughts, and (LOL) send some positive thoughts and prayers my way also.

P.S. Do you want to share this post? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Salka’s Notes
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May
09

A Time to Walk and a Time to Nap

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Salka’s message this week is that he likes predictability and order in his life. When things get out of order, he’s not always sure how to respond. A lot of times you can create a sense of safety and predictability if there’s order and routine in your life: food time, play time, bed time, etc. When that routine is interrupted, he and his pack mates get out of sorts.

Know your rhythm and adapt accordingly.

P.S. Do you want to reprint this article? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Random Musings
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Apr
18

Do You Avoid Those Who Are Different from You?

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Salka met Ellie, a rescued Chihuahua, at a friend’s house on our trip through California two summers ago. As you can see, Ellie is about the size of Salka’s head. Though she hid from him during their early encounters, they are now best friends.

Do you avoid potential friendships or connections because someone is very different from you? Hopefully your potential friends don’t have to worry that your bite is something they need to be concerned about.

P.S. Do you want to reprint this article? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Relationships
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Apr
12

Do You Make Friends Easily?

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Salka is always interested in making friends. Even though he’s large and looks like a wolf, kids are drawn to him. He actually assumes that everyone likes him.

Once when we were in a sporting goods store, we ran into a father with two daughters. One of the girls came running over to see Salka, and they interacted. The other daughter, who was perhaps 7 or 8 years old, was clearly scared of him. Her father said she had been bitten several years before. Because of that incident, she was afraid of dogs, and they had decided not to get a puppy even though the younger daughter clearly wanted one.

After getting her fathers permission to talk with her, I was able to do some rapid trauma resolution. I then challenged her idea that because one dog bit her in the past, all dogs are biters. I was able to get Salka to be calm and relax and lie down. (He could sense her unease.) Within a few minutes she was able to pet him. When I looked at her father, his eyes were tearing with emotion. He thanked me and, of course, Salka.

Like Salka, your attitude towards others will determine your relationships. If you believe you are going to be liked and can connect with people, you will.

Have you experienced this belief in action? Please share your stories and comments below.

(In these pictures Salka and a few new friends are taking advantage of a temporary river in Tucson. Normally a dry wash, it can fill up within hours. At this time, it had receded about seven or eight feet from just a day and a half before. Within three or four days, it was dry again.)

P.S. Do you want to reprint this article? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Relationships
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Apr
04

An Appeal from Salka

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This is a bit off-topic from my usual posts, but it’s important to me and Salka.

As you can see in this photo, Salka is perfectly comfortable in the lobby of a dog-friendly hotel. In fact, he often goes with me to several dog-friendly businesses. Due to changes in corporate policy, unfortunately, he is no longer welcome at some of the places we used to go. As a result, I may stop going to those places, and I know the same is true for others with companions like Salka. 

Salka understands that the policies may have changed because some of his brethren are not well behaved. Nevertheless, he encourages pack leaders say something to these businesses, because there are many of us who make choices based upon such policies. In fact, Salka and I have already stopped going to a couple of banks specifically because of these policy changes. 

If you are a pack leader with pull, please do what you can to encourage businesses to adopt or maintain dog-friendly policies as appropriate for their clientele. Salka and I appreciate your efforts.

Are there any experiences you’d like to share regarding a dog-friendly business?

P.S. Do you want to reprint this article? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Random Musings
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Mar
30

Is It Time to Work or Play (or Sleep)?

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Like all dogs, Salka has sleep time, eating time and playtime. His energy level is at its highest early in the morning, and he makes the most of that.

We all have a time when we do things better. Take a cue from him and discover what your rhythm is for certain things. If you work best at 3:00 in the morning, don’t “weird out” about it. Work with it!

P.S. Do you want to reprint this article? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Random Musings
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Mar
21

Do You Know Where You Stand?

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If you’ve been following my blog, you met Salka last week this month. (If not, find out more about him here.)

Salka is always acutely aware of his environment and how he fits into it. As you probably know, dogs like to “leave their mark,” designating their territory wherever they go. They will even go out of their way to do this on top of marks left by other canines. I have seen people execute similar—albeit more “civilized”—behaviors in corporate settings, trying to establish dominance and vie for position as the alpha male or female.

Knowing where you stand in relationship to others is important not just for dogs but also for humans. Do you know where you stand in your most important business and personal relationships?

P.S. Do you want to reprint this article? Please do. Just be sure that it remains intact and includes the following bio.

About Terry: Terry Hickey, M.S., is a Certified NLP Professional Coach, Business Trainer and Consultant, a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and the co-owner of NLP Advantage Group. Originator of the Belief Breakthrough Method™, Terry specializes in teaching coaches and entrepreneurs how to rapidly resolve limiting beliefs about wealth and success. His tips and strategies can help you launch yourself into the future you want… NOW. http://terryhickey.com/

Categories : Random Musings
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Mar
14

Have You Met Salka?

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I’d like to take a moment to introduce Salka, our Alaskan Malamute. In Quechua his name means “wild energy” as opposed to domesticated energy. In traditional Andean culture, the role of a healer is to work with wild energy: passion, creative energy, uncensored energy and life force. He’s named for that. I look for that in people, places and things, and he’s a reminder of that.

As someone who lives in the moment and knows how to immediately take advantage of fun opportunities, Salka is a great role model. He will be making regular appearances on this blog to share his reflections on living a positive life. He also plans to star in video clips in which he will comment on aspects of the coaching business and important life issues.

Salka is meditating in his office in this photo.

Categories : Random Musings
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