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As children most of us had a favorite child toy or collection of toys that we enjoyed playing with. For me, I loved playing with my set of G.I. Joes. Every morning I would wake up and be excited to create another action scene that would range from the living room, kitchen, bathroom, down the stairs, and on the fireplace. The ideas of creating never ended in my mind which is why I was so excited every day to play with them. In fact, the reason I stopped playing with them wasn’t because I didn’t like them anymore, but because I was told by society that as you get older you shouldn’t keep playing with toys like that anymore. My creative spirit still loved the idea of playing with them.
For most people that is what has happened to us now as adults. We have cut off the flow of our creativity to try and do the “right thing” or go down the “successful path”.  When in fact, even if you measured to society’s idea of success there is still an emptiness you carry as you sit at your office or home because you have lost touch with that creative energy you had as a child.

Imagine waking up every morning excited to create your life exactly the way you want. You could eat the foods you want, go to the places you enjoy, do the things that would make you excited and free.
The reason that feels like a fantasy for so many people is because they have been living in a limited way of thinking for so long that now all they can see is how much money they owe, how much they don’t know, the confusion or overwhelming day to day struggles.

In order to get back to our child like self where we wake up every morning excited to play our games, or as adults we wake up and are excited to create the out picture of our day, we must start getting back in the flow.

How do I get back in the flow? The most powerful tool of returning to the flow and being inspired every day is the BREATH. Not just once, twice, or three times, but make a practice each day to spend 10-20 minutes a couple times per day with your eyes closed and breathing. Follow each breath in and out and start feeling all the tension in your body let go and relax.  By doing this we naturally return to our creative flow.
If you have ever been at the top of a mountain before and your about to go down the mountain, if your focused on the fearful thoughts of what bad thing is going to happen to you on the way down then you have completely lost touch with your breath. Any skier that has gone down a mountain will tell you to relax, breathe, and trust as you glide down the mountain.

If you’re like most people, it’s going to take consistent daily practice to learn how to follow your breath. The ideal circumstance is that you’re so aware of your breath throughout the day that you check in with any tension, fear, or stiffness that you might be holding onto. Breathe in and breathe out and feel yourself connecting back to your natural flow, just like when you played with your toys as a kid!

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Just as all things in this Earth do, you are growing. Discovering greater clarity of what you want and what you don’t want. Whether you realize it or not, that small inner voice within you that has been telling you now for a while that it’s time for a change. Not just a small change like a new hairstyle or a new pair of shoes, but rather a change that creates a new beginning, a shift in your whole life. A shift that is visible in your smile, your voice, and your actions.

That voice might be saying to you, “It’s time for a new set of friends that inspire you, challenge you, and grow with you.” You might be saying, “I’m not growing at the job I’m at and I’m really struggling to spend so much time doing something that feels so draining.” Maybe you’re in a place where that voice is saying, “Take it easy on the sugar when you eat! Take care of yourself; get out in the sun and exercise!”

Every new beginning feels the biggest and the scariest. Why does this new beginning feel the biggest and the scariest for you?  It’s the only new beginning that you don’t know the end of the story.

Every new beginning that you have already faced now has either an ending, or a direction. Whereas this new beginning, your new relationship or quest for one, transition in your career, or your new way of eating, or any other new beginning has only the unknown that lies ahead.

Six years ago I moved from Kansas City to Chicago with no job and not knowing anyone.  At that time of my life, moving was the biggest fear I had ever faced.  Every fear imaginable raced through my mind for months before I moved thinking about all that could go wrong. However, I knew that if I didn’t make the move in 5 to 10 years from now I’d look back and say to myself, “I wonder what my life would have been like if I would have moved to Chicago?”

Now that I have made the move and been here for over 5 years it doesn’t even cross my mind as a fear. It seems so natural and easy to be living here. That is the same as every new beginning you will ever encounter. Look back over your life at the new beginning moments where you were scared and not sure how things were going to work out.  Now that you have gone through it, are you a stronger person?  Most likely you attracted people around you that supported you and encouraged you.  Every new beginning that you have been through you have been supported, sourced, and prosperous. What would make this new beginning for you any different?

Take a moment and breathe in…..now breathe out…..

Imagine a big field in the country covered in waist-high grass.  You want to make a path that is visible for yourself and others to see where you are going. If you walk it once, twice, or even three times the grass will eventually stand back up and your path will fade away. However, if you walk that path over, and over, hundreds, thousands of times your path will become clear and simple.  That is what it takes for us to create the confidence to shift into our new path. You must be willing to do your spiritual internal practice over and over and over to move forward in faith and peacefulness.

You have the ability to create your life just as you want it. It’s not selfish at all to love who you are and what you do.  All it takes is for you to be truly willing and eager to do your spiritual practice each day to create the perfect moment for you to step into your next amazing chapter of your life.

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The Moment of Truth

Life happens in a moment.

In a moment you were born.

In a moment you took your first steps.

In a moment you said your first words.

In a moment you made a meaningful school project that you remember to this day vividly.

In a moment someone said something to you that got you through a long road of challenging times.

In a moment you helped a friend at an important time.

In a moment you fell in love.

In a moment your heart was broken.

In a moment you had an idea that changed the course of your life.

In a moment an unexpected person comes into your life for an important reason.

In a moment you read something that made you think about what your life is all about…

Right now, take this moment to breathe in and realize that your life has consisted of moments. There may be times that your life seems to be going day after day, though it is only one moment away that your life can change forever. If you look back over your life you might see that the moments that made the most impact on you, you had no idea it was coming. It’s safe to say that the next life changing moment will come in a way that you would never imagine so be open and ready for the unknown to reveal the next chapter of your life.

The next time you’re walking down the street and that still small voice within yourself says go over and help that woman or go talk to that man, seize that.  The ability to tune in and follow that voice within yourself could be the next moment that will change your life forever.  Can you think of a time that your heart said to do something that just seemed crazy to your mind and to others, but you did it anyway and it opened you to a new understanding of love and joy?  It probably made you extremely grateful that you listened to your intuition and didn’t let fear hold you down or keep you from your new life story.

Don’t let your fear of what others might think of you or the idea that it’s not normal to follow that voice within yourself. Don’t buy into the belief of “I’m too busy to stop what I’m doing and do something out of my plans.”Of course it’s not normal, that’s what makes you so unique and special is that voice within you. But how is anyone ever going to know how unique and special you are if you’re trying to be normal and not look weird? How will you ever know how unique and special you are if you don’t follow your heart?

Let yourself stand out, do what seems weird to most people, and really live the life you came here to live. It’s time we all stop pretending to be someone were not and follow that voice that is revealing the next precious moment of our life. Be grateful for all that you have right now and anticipate the next breath-taking moment.

This week follow your hearts voice. Be unique, be spontaneous, be YOU!!!

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Many of us already know what it would take to live a healthy and happy life. Except there’s one problem…we can’t find ourselves being consistent enough to achieve it. Why not?

I find that when I take time each day to slow down and meditate, I am incredibly peaceful.  I’m not just peaceful during my meditation or shortly after, but when I meditate, I am peaceful through difficult times as well. I am able to somehow be in a struggle, but not absorbed or set back by it.

When I’m not meditating daily, one little thing happens that didn’t go the way I wanted it and I get hurt, angry, or confused.  Are you able to relate with me?

Maybe your practice isn’t meditation. Maybe it’s exercising, eating healthy, writing, gaining knowledge, or something else. All of us know that if we were to keep consistent with what we know is most powerful for us then our goals would get completed, relationships be much happier, and overall life would be in balance.

So what is it that keeps me, you, and us not staying consistent?

What happens for most of us is we get our self on the right path doing what brings us Joy and then all of a sudden we think, “oh I can go one day without that”, suddenly that one day turns into 2, 3, 5…a month…and eventually we find ourselves in a tail spin of stuck and frustrated energy.

-          Set your priorities! If you absolutely know what makes you happy and more peaceful, then make a contract with yourself to schedule your day around that. For example, when I know I might be going out with some friends for drinks or have a busy day, what is best for me is to schedule time to meditate before I go out rather than telling myself I will do it when I get home

-          Tell your partner, children, and whomever that this is important to you (even if its 15-20 minutes a day) and start being consistent with yourself. What will happen is you will have more confidence in yourself, which creates more opportunities, better relationships, and healthier overall well-being.

-          Put a note, sticker, or something up to remind you to schedule around your priority. For me, I wear a bracelet that reminds me what benefits me most and when I see the bracelet it reminds me to stick to my priorities.

-          Vision yourself in the future where you have realized your dreams by being consistent in your every day practice. In your mind, see yourself living with that career that you wish for, happy partnership, or any other dream you have.

-          Take a moment to think of someone in your life that has made a lasting impression on you by being consistent. Even if it was as small as a neighbor that always brings your newspaper to you, a family member that always does a special something just because they know you enjoy it, or even this blog or other inspired writings that are intended to support you in your growth.

You may notice that the people who have made the biggest impact on your life are those who are consistent whenever you are happy, sad, angry, confused, or any other way.
You see, the power of consistency doesn’t mean you have to change your whole day or try to do too much, rather give yourself a small amount of time to do what you love. Live to love your life!

You may also notice that it is generally the small things that people consistently do that make us feel cared for and loved.

If you were to start being consistent with one thing that would make a huge impact on your life, what would that be? Make that one thing a priority starting today, and remind yourself each day the importance it has for you.

Lastly, as you ponder on the individuals lives that have made a difference in your life because of their consistency, think about how you will feel to know when you have been that for someone else and when someone tells you, “Your consistency has changed my life and I want to thank you for being a stand for doing what you love.”

This morning I woke up and for some reason was in a funky mood. I couldn’t seem to shake off the negative tail spin I felt. Annoyed, agitated, and separated for no apparent reason.

So what is it that makes us wake up and for w/e reason feel like a pile of poop?

Whether you’ve felt this today, yesterday, or tomorrow I think it’s pretty natural for humans to go into these dark places.

So what pulls us out and brings us back to our Truth?

CHOICE

At every turn we are choosing our reality. Right now, you either choose to read this email or choose not to. You are choosing to eat healthy or not, choosing to be in spiritual practice or not, choosing to be positive or negative, choosing to create your desired life or not, choosing to follow your heart or not….

I was totally unaware of the reality I was choosing this morning, but what I was aware of, was that it didn’t feel good, and I didn’t want to spend an entire day in that space! Yuck…

Pulling Yourself Back

Take your time…the negative thoughts is where the new, inspired, and positive thoughts are birthed.

You have the power to change your thoughts. I knew what would bring me out of my slump was going to be a huge shift in thought, action, and verbal affirmations. I started by affirming to myself that I am loving and inspiring to others. It felt ridiculous at first, fake!  However, I CHOSE to believe in it. I chose to raise the volume of my voice to a strong, confident conviction. I choose to go into prayer and call all thoughts that happened before this moment the past and release myself from the past, and call forth new beginnings right now. During my prayer I felt a hot, tingly feeling that moved from my belly and throughout my body as tears came to my eyes. My fists clinched with conviction as I stomped my feet and I felt a HUGE YES move into my mind. At that moment I could feel what was trying to pull me down, doubt, fear, loneliness, was no longer a part of my consciousness.

The moment we are aware that we have thoughts that are not of our Truth, even if you feel just “ok”, but not inspired, connected to life, passionate….realize that you don’t have to live that way. You can live in every moment connected to the Love of your being. Choose thoughts that say, I am important, what I am doing is making a difference (even if you feel it isn’t), choose to believe it is! Now is your moment to say, I’m going to spend the rest of my day being grateful for all that I have and all that I am.

So I charge you all where ever you are to get up out of your chair or stand stronger than you already are and begin cheering for yourself, embracing yourself with power. You are the light of the world and it is through you that the lives of thousands will be touched.

Meditation is a spiritual practice that can and will change your life dramatically if you have the patience, understanding, and commitment. In this blog, I plan to share with you some powerful tips on how to deepen your meditation practice and common traits that stop you from going deeper in your practice.

I have now been meditating for over 4 years now and have seen, felt, and shared the inspiration, peace, and freedom that it creates within you. Meditation is your instant access to infinite wisdom, possibility, creativity, peace, among many other universal truths.

I have been teaching meditation as a daily practice for over 2 years now and have found most people who are new to meditating find it extremely difficult to stop their thinking and sit still. In fact, they have shared that the exact opposite happens, that when they close their eyes and start breathing, their mind starts thinking faster than normal about random thoughts.

Don’t think you are an exception and not good if this happens to you because this the most common struggle for people who are beginning to meditate.  When I first began meditating I would get so frustrated because all I wanted was to have my mind rest with no thoughts, though I couldn’t stop thinking about the things I forgot to do or the things that I still have on my “to do” list.

It’s similar to riding a bicycle.  I have never met anyone who said they learned how to ride a bike the first time without falling or crashing. The art of both learning to ride a bike and meditating is consistency AND understanding. When you first began learning to ride a bike you probably had a parent with you showing you how to use the brakes, how to use the pedals, and how to balance yourself as you started rolling forward.

Same with meditation, you can certainly teach yourself through trial and learning, though it helps tremendously to have someone who has been practicing and can teach you simple methods to quiet your mind and body and connect to your inner presence. Besides, we didn’t come here to this Earth to learn and do things alone, we came here to support each other in growing and understanding ourselves and our Truth more and more.

So now I would enjoy sharing with you some basic meditation tips that will help you in your journey of self exploration and creating a more balanced and fulfilled life.

There is no right or wrong way to meditate. There is no “right place” or “wrong place” to meditate. You really can’t do it wrong so do it however and wherever you enjoy!

First, do a few stretches to get your muscles a little more flexible and your chi energy moving. Have you ever noticed after a workout or a long walk that you have a big sigh in your breathing and find it easy to relax for a while?  That’s because your energy is active and your mind and body can be more relaxed when your energy isn’t stagnant. It’s almost a calming down process.

Next, find a comfortable, relaxing place to sit. You may want to dim the lighting if you choose. You also may want to put on some peaceful relaxing music on for the beginning to get your body and mind calmed down.  If you need relaxing music you can visit www.pandora.com and create a station on meditation (free and easy).  I recommend that you don’t use the music for the entire meditation but in the beginning it can be really helpful to just get relaxed.

While you are listening to soft music or sitting in silence, begin to breath in and out of your nose. As you breath, consciously allow your inhale to go all the way down into your belly, expanding your belly out, and then on your exhale consciously let the air move back up through your chest, throat, and out of your nose. Take 3-5 deep inhale breaths back to back and make sure that you exhale out just as much as you inhaled in.

As your reading this now, start breathing in and out slowly.
Here is the most important tip I have found in my own practice that has opened so many doors of peace, clarity, and joy.

FOLLOW YOUR BREATH!!! Let go of your mind, don’t try to stop your thoughts because what you resist will persist. Allow your thoughts to come and go as they please, just keep bringing your inner attention to your breathing. In and out of your nose, follow your breath. The moment you realize your mind is thinking anything and not following your breath, take a deep breath and slowly bring your inner attention back to your breath.

As silly as it may seem to just keep following your breath, it will clear your mind of any thoughts after a while of doing this and allow you to totally lose any day-to-day thinking. You might even find after a while that you lose the feeling of being in your body and connect so deeply to your soul and feel so connected and free to your spirit.

I would recommend if you are just beginning that you start out with 10-15 minutes and then move from there when you feel ready.  Listen to your spirit and it will tell you when its time to begin lengthening your practice.

Another suggestion, find a group of like-minded people to meditate with. The reason for this is you will learn from others different tips, and when your by yourself you are tempted to get up and quit before you get to the place of true relaxation.

Imagine while you are sitting quietly breathing that your body is being massaged and you are getting more and more relaxed. Consciously let go of any tension in your shoulders, neck, and anywhere else that might be tense.

Some common traits that happen to stop you from getting to the next level.

• Sleepiness
• Anxious
• Angry
• Boredom
• Sexual Arousal
• Sadness

Don’t be surprised if all of these and more come up, but don’t let this stop you. Just allow these feelings to come through and keep your attention focused on your breath. In and out, in and out. To help you with this, throughout your work day pay attention to your inhale and exhale breath. Even if your waiting on a train, taking care of your children, in the shower, cooking dinner….what ever you are doing pay attention to your inhale and exhale breath. This will really help accelerate your meditation practice and spiritual growth.

Some people ask me if they should hold an intention while they meditate if there is something they want in their life. My answer to that is this.
When you meditate and only focus on your breath, you will get so connected to the peace that is who you really are that all you desire and need will attract to you.  I have never seen anyone get up from a  peaceful meditation and then get angry at something.  It puts you into a space of allowing and trusting that defines the rest of your day.

Like attracts unto itself. When you are peaceful, joyful, clear, inspired through the practice of meditating, you will attract all that you desire because peace attracts peace, love attracts love, joy attracts joy.  So instead of holding a thought (which you can do) just focus on keeping your attention on your breath and let yourself slip into a blissful ecstasy and then attract others that give out the same energy. What a joyful, amazing planet this would be if everyone were to consistently practice!

Peace and Possibility to you, and remember…FOLLOW YOUR BREATH over and over and over….

Have you ever had a time in your life where it seemed like all your hopes, dreams, desires, goals were not moving at all? Things were stuck and it feels like you keep getting pushed backwards?

Most people base their growth on what they can see with their physical eye’s. However, what I believe is that most often when the biggest shifts happen in your life are the times where it seems like nothing is happening at all. Where you feel like you are trying so hard to get through the struggles, they just keep smacking you in the face.

You may be experiencing a very difficult time in your life right now. Maybe you have struggled for a long time getting a career that interests you, or you have just come out of a relationship unexpectedly, or you have been struggling financially for awhile. There are many scenarios that could be mentioned, though whats happening  is that you are not experiencing the life you wish desire. You want to be happy, peaceful, passionate…yet there seems to be a pull that keeps you in and out of happy-sad, peaceful-chaotic, passionate-stuck.

Can you look back on a time in your life where it seemed like nothing good was happening for you? A time where you struggled or had a tough moment?

Those moments in your life are what shaped you into who you are now and have made you stronger and more wise.  Whatever it was that you went through in the past was exactly what you were supposed to go through to help you grow into who you were becoming. That is the same as right now. Whatever difficulty you seem to be facing, understand that it is not a mistake that you are going through this. You have actually called this into your life to make you stronger in some way. No one else can tell you how or why except you.

The key to overcoming your difficult emotions that come up is….”take time to yourself.”  To some people that may sound stupid, but it is so important. When you stop your seemingly busy schedule to take a walk around your home, write in your journal how you are feeling and how you would like to be feeling, meditate, or do anything that excites your spirit.  Don’t tell yourself you don’t have time to do this, because if you can’t create time for yourself then you will never be able to help others be happy the way you truly want to be happy.

Know that this too shall pass. A famous quote that carries so much wisdom and depth. Instead of focusing on your struggle, find yourself delighting in what you love to do. Place your thoughts on your passion and silently affirm to yourself everyday, “I trust this struggle is teaching me what I need to know and moving out of my life now.” Or come up with a sentence that speaks to you. Let it be one that really shifts your attitude from stuck to grateful.  Having positive thoughts that you really believe will help lift your energy out of the gutters and into greater possibility for your life.

Believe in who you are and that you here to make a positive difference in many people’s lives just by being you.

Believe In Yourself