“To enjoy our life we have to pay attention to it…We need to foster sustainable performance to use our energy, time and resources in a more mindful and focused way rather than wasting them in stress. We need to be more self-determined in getting on with what we need to get on with at the right time. Mindfulness helps us enjoy our life more, to find more meaning in our life and to help protect us from stress, anxiety and depression.” –Dr. Craig Hassed
Do you know the difference between meditation and mindfulness? The two terms are often used interchangeably; however the practices (while sharing some common ideas) are wholly different from each other. Mindfulness is the ability to exist entirely in the present moment, accepting our thoughts and feelings without judgment. Meditation is the practice of thoughtless awareness, a state of stillness so centered that mind is quiet. It is easy to see why the two could be confused, or how one practice can enhance the other. Today’s entry focuses on how the practice of mindfulness can benefit you and your business.
Ask any business owner and they will probably tell you their biggest challenge is stress. Generally, this stress stems from an inability to turn off thoughts about their business. This is where mindfulness comes in. The tenets of this practice can work in almost any size business, by helping to create an “off switch” and realizing the appropriate times to use it. Mindfulness can help you focus, listen more actively, reduce sick days, become less reactive, increase your productivity and so much more!
Start by identifying the thoughts or tasks that keep the business on your mind. Find ways to either knock out or delegate these tasks. Then allow yourself time and space without distractions to develop your “off switch”. Simple steps like counting or breath work can help us find our center. Other activities such as meditation, exercise, or ample sleep can also aid the mindfulness practice. And always remember, mindfulness is not about changing the world, it’s about changing our relationship with it.
Free Mindfulness and Meditation Workshop
Everyone can benefit from learning or enhancing their mindfulness practice. To give everyone the opportunity to cultivate both mindfulness and meditation, I host a FREE Sunday Gathering on every last Sunday of the month. During each Sunday Gathering, I will teach you methods that will enhance your own relationship to YOU, allowing you to master your internal dialogue, emotional condition, and energy in any situation.
Healthy lunch and snacks, as well as donations, are accepted with heartfelt gratitude!
Become the BEST YOU that you can be! RSVP for the FREE Sunday Gathering at [email protected].
Happy New Year! 2016 is REALLY the best year yet and why?
Because this is the year for manifesting all of our biggest DREAMS and DESIRES! I am going to tell you the truth about Manifesting that is the ‘why to’ and ‘what to’ rather the ‘how to’. The HOW is what gets us stuck and unable to fulfill the dreams and desires we have set forth to manifest.
Why to: When setting intentional objectives called manifestations the ‘why to’ is important and many forget this, which is why their desires may not come true. Did you know that Desire in Latin translates to “Of the Father” What does that mean to you? To me it means, It is my birthright. So get ready to see what is your birthright come to fruition.
1. Clarity. Setting manifestations of our dreams and desires creates an obvious pathway toward it. We need to know what we are aiming for! Many of us know what we want but aiming clearly can be the challenge.
2. Feel it. You have to try it on to know what it feels like. Ask yourself ‘what would it be like…?’ Then it doesn’t feel so big, it feels tangible and you are in the experience of it. Now it IS real.
What to: When setting manifestations the ‘what to’ is important to DO the manifesting.
1. Some say mantras over and over, have vision boards and pictures to look This is fine to do because it puts the desire repetitively in front of the subconscious so that you believe it is real. BUT if you just believe it possible, it isn’t going to happen. An even quicker way is to live it as if it were already occurring. ‘Speak and Feel it into your existence’ as if it were already in your life. Keep your focus on what you desire. Feel it all around you, image it already was your experience, be walking within that dream and desire 100%.
2. Pray with gratitude and forward blessings in the situation. ‘Thank you for ______ because now I can ________’. OR
‘Show me the strategy for the victory in obtaining ______ so that I can continue to contribute in this way.
Tie them together. Feeling it is equally as important as forward thinking it already exists. Back it up with gratitude and knowing that you were granted that desire and can show up in a different way.
1. Know what you want and where you are aiming.
2. Feel it. Be living the experience, it is real.
3. Speak it into existence.
4. Give gratitude because the met desire affords you opportunity to contribute in a big way!
We look forward to hearing how your manifestations become realities and you using them to be the positive reflection you would like to see in the world! Get Generous and share with your neighbors. An abundant heart fills not only you with joy but your environment as well. Remember like energy attracts like energy, so let’s continue to lift one another up and elevate the vibration of our communities and our planet.
Patience is
a very hard word to define. What
I might define as patience may mean something completely different to someone
else.
Webster
defines patience as toleration or magnanimity for the faults or
affronts of others; courageous endurance.
Patience, to me, is gentle, quiet, and compassionate. It’s the ability to show kindness and understanding to ourselves and others.
This time of
the year can really test our patience. Everyone is busy making resolutions,
planning for the year ahead, or just trying to get back on track after the
holiday rush. The new year is a great time to look to the year ahead and set
goals. We may even reflect on our accomplishments from the past year. If there
are big changes you want to make this year, this is the perfect opportunity to
practice patience with yourself. Learning something new is not always easy.
Giving yourself grace and patience to figure it out will benefit you in so many
ways.
When we find
ourselves losing patience, we need to take a step back and figure out the WHY. Sometimes
when we get frustrated with someone, it may be triggering something inside of
us. Perhaps we need to deal with unresolved feelings from our past. For
example, maybe you had a co-worker who constantly showed up late for meetings.
This made you feel disrespected and now anytime someone is late to a meeting,
you are quick to lose your patience.
One way to improve our patience is to do what I like to call mirror work. The next time you find yourself losing patience, take a moment and ask yourself, “why does this frustrate me?” It’s like looking at yourself in the mirror and seeing you, for you. This may require digging deep and really asking the tough questions. In the example above, you could ask yourself, was that co-worker purposely trying to disrespect you? In all likelihood their inability to show up on time had everything to do with themselves and nothing to do with you personally. It’s time to forgive and let that go. Someone being late to a meeting is not a personal afront to you. Learning to ask these tough questions will be worth it. When you find patience for yourself, you find time to breathe and reflect on what’s important.
Once we learn how to show someone else patience, we can teach them by example. It’s like paying it forward, in a way. So, the next time you find your patience waning, take a step back, look in the mirror and work on yourself. May your patience help you show kindness, compassion, and understanding to those around you.
To find out more about mirror work or learn how to become a more patient you, reach out to me. I can help! Schedule a confidential discussion to see how this process works. Contact me via email at [email protected] or schedule a call directly on my calendar.
There is a link between the stuff in your environment and the stuff in your head! I am going to teach you how to let go of these patterns and items that hold us back from what we really want!
If you don’t have clarity on what you want look around your space at what irks you, the “stuff’ that no long serves you. GET RID OF IT!
And you can keep the abundance flowing by stocking your space with WHAT WILL SERVE YOU, WHAT IS MORE IN LINE WITH WHAT IS OF YOUR TRUE NATURE NOW, to keep the abundance flowing.
Now, look at the behaviors that irk you, take note of them without judgment and notice how they do not support you in your life NOW.
This will allow you to begin new behaviors that support you in your everyday life!
Like GI JOE said “knowing is half the battle”. Without clarity on what we do, be, have, we really can’t shift this aspect of our environment or ourselves.
This is how you do it:
Work through each room and let go of 5 things (large or small)
Look at each aspect of self and write down what you would like to shift or change about a behavior that doesn’t serve your true self.
Thank those ‘things’ for all their use and thank the behavior for what it taught you about what you are no longer and release it. (When working with thoughts and behaviors let’s think of them as tangible items, as if you are donating them along side your ‘stuff’ for someone else to use, and have those experience and lessons).
Once those ‘things’ have been let go and/or donated then sit quiet and breathe. Be with the space you have created. Feel the expansiveness of not being tied to the weight and heaviness of stuff .
Envision what you would like to have happen in this next year. What does it look like, feel like, and what would it be like if you could BE _____, HAVE_______, DO_______.
Try it on and practice this. Consistent practice creates consistent results.
Bring ‘things’ into your space that support positive behavior and allow you to be that positive reflection you would like to see in the world!
With all of the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it is easy to get lost in all of the shopping and gift wrapping. There’s so much to do and so little time to do it. Many of us forget the true meaning of Christmas and what it really represents. The birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Many scholars say that Jesus could not have been born on December 25th due to the climate at the time and the shepherds that were watching over their sheep, out . It is speculated, by many, that Jesus was born during the warmer months. Yet, December 25th has been accepted and celebrated around the world for many, many years to represent the beginning of his life here on earth. Now that we’ve cleared that up, let us talk about the true reason for Christmas.
Christ represents love, forgiveness and compassion towards your fellow man. We are all God’s children and we should treat each other as we would want to be treated. If you were to ask a random child to tell you the meaning of Christmas, they may say Santa Claus or receiving lots of gifts. Would they know the story of the sweet little baby, lying in the manger? Would they understand why it is important to think of the less fortunate, especially during this time of the year?
We must always remember those who may not have gifts under a Christmas tree or a warm bed to wake up in on Christmas morning. God loves us so much and all he asks is that we show that same love to one another. That is the beautiful meaning of giving to others during the holiday season. How could we forget to tell this story? We are doing our kids an injustice by allowing them to think that Christmas is about material things and how much money was spent on gifts. There are so many ways to give back to the community during this time of the year. Let’s pass on love and compassion to the next generation. We must make gift giving more meaningful and appreciative. Yes, it is a fun and magical time of the year but the real fun comes in when you are a part of the magic!
So the next time you sit down to go over Santa’s list, remember to tell the story of the precious baby that came to give us hope and love. The true reason for the season!
For many years I was in the ‘push’. Trying to force every experience to be shaped by my perception. I wanted things to look the way I expected them too. But by acting like I was taking on the role of the Creator I wasn’t creating anything, rather pushing it away as I way pushing it to happen.
I see this all too often in our society. We put limits, expectations and boundaries on life dreams and relationships. All this does is add to being stuck in the process of paralysis by analysis. And then we are pushing, striving and driving an incongruent energy with the energy of creation. The energy of creation is one that attracts people to us not deters them from us. This is showing up to life with a NEEDY energy or a LACK MENTALITY.
When you master the art of leading from the inside out you begin to see the shift in your environment and how it responds to you. Angels and helpers start to show up and things start to happen that change how you go about your day to day. And it is more than just being in the flow. Pulling is trusting. And like any relationship it is built on trust and trust may take some time depending on who you are.
So ask yourself if pulling was the person that was the next relationship you had, then how would you treat that person? What would you act like? Like you wanted to be treated, right? Kind, gentle and someone who shows up to support the other.
So that is how I invite you to look at ‘pulling’ or ‘trust’. We all NEED to have trust in the process and it will unfold with beauty and grace when we ask kindly for its support. Remember when you ask this new friend called Pull, Trust or Faith to come around more they will and others will want to spend time with your new friends too.
Pulling is equal to magnetism. When you are in the energy of creation then magnetically you will attract that of what you want to create and will not be pushing for an outcome.
Homework:
1. Develop a relationship with the pull.
2. Practice talking kindly, showing gratitude and loving so that they show up.
3. Make sure you have a care plan in place and you abide by it, so you can recognize the gifts that are brought to you.
4. Rinse and repeat.. adding this to your daily endeavors will change how you magnetically pull what you want toward you.
