Posts Tagged ‘success’

Staying out of the cracks may even be tough on Sundays. My husband and I enjoy our Sunday ritual of eating breakfast and “reading” the Sunday paper. I “read” the ads and my husband reads the headline stories. I love looking at the ads and how they are displayed and what’s new for the week. We have a local glossy magazine that periodically is included in the paper and the pictures are quite stunning. Sometimes, when I look up I see the expression on my husband’s face as he is reading. I can tell what he’s reading isn’t good. I cutely say “What uplifting story are you reading, honey?” Then my husband shares what he has just read which 95% of the time is a deflator. It zaps any positive energy you might have had before breakfast right down to zero.

We finish breakfast. My husband leaves with his focus and thoughts on lack: the lack of integrity of people, the lack of money, the poor housing market or the horrible things happening in our schools. However, I’m cheerful after a bit of visual stimulus and actually some quite beautiful images. My mind is open to what comes next in the day and my mood is uplifted being with my husband and having enjoyed the rituals of Sunday morning breakfast. The amazing thing is the majority of the time I never do more than look at the ads. I don’t run out shopping. (My husband said he was really happy about that.) I get my tiny bit of “current events” but not by reading the newspaper. I have friends who don’t watch the news at all or read the newspaper, but for me I like to be just slightly aware of the outside reality although I don’t want to I live in it. I know I choose either consciously or unconsciously the awareness I live in.

After the weekend I just experienced, I think the question I want to pose to you is what are you filling up on? What is the reality you want to live in? Do you spend a lot of time focusing on the outward things? Something that didn’t go the way you expected because you thought it was out of your “control”? Or what’s not perfect at work and in the world? Or are you turned inward and focused on that small detail that didn’t fall into the perfect place and yes, somehow you are blaming yourself for it? If you’re like many of us, you can easily get caught in the cracks of what’s not working. I know it’s very easy to do when we are peering in the darkness of what’s going “wrong”. With my clients I have found this to be one of the hazards of a calendar that’s so full they are continually moving. They forget they have a hand in the businesses of life, instantly forget the good and lose their confidence when a shadow appears. If you don’t stop, you don’t have time to see the bigger picture – just the cracks and shadows. If you don’t stop, you don’t change your reality. You keep it going just like a hamster on one of those hamster wheels.

It makes me think of noise canceling, the white noise machines that cancel out other sounds. It cancels out other options. When you fall into the crack you automatically delete what’s positive. As my friend Margaret in Australia says, your brain is deleting all the time. You can’t possibly take in all the stimulus that we are bombarded with every second. Even as you read this you may be deleting the sounds around you or the sun coming in the window. Maybe as you read this ezine, you’re deleting another email or doing something else. You delete things all the time. But you don’t want to delete your successes! Unfortunately, when you stay in the cracks you automatically delete your successes.

We have “programs” installed from when we are children because our society focuses on disasters not successes. We focus on weakness not strengths. What’s important is you can choose what you delete by simply choosing to delete something different.

What are you filling yourself up with now? What are you going to delete so the light shines in? Stay out of the cracks! Celebrate your successes and delete the things that don’t uplift you. That includes the inner voice that tells you where you have failed and where you are succeeding.

Bonnie

P.S. I found a great shadow-buster to help you stay out of the cracks. For all of you who love Twitter, Facebook, and apps and would like a new app for your phone or iTouch look for a daily dose of positive energy “Kindness App” by Pam Grout, a colleague and the author of God Doesn’t Have Bad Hair Days. It’s fun, uplifting and inspiring and I know it’ll support you in a quick and simple way to focus on the success in your days.

We all know it’s always darkest before the dawn – the world is at its most gloomy before the light can start seeping through the waves of darkness. In several faith traditions, this is the week of darkness before the light. “A week” you say? I know it feels longer than a week. I have spoken to many people who have felt that the darkness and chaos started last week (or last year or over the last several years) and I have felt the same way. Even the most grounded, successful and spiritually-trusting people have been challenged. I know this may be a turbulent time whether it’s the small dramas, the busyness of life or the ongoing bigger issues that concern you. How do you find those beams of light, take care of yourself and not drop all the balls you have in the air as you put out fires at home and work, meet everyone else’s needs and take care of your family all while staying connected and trusting? That’s a good question, and it’s one I ask myself and my clients routinely.

I want to share with you what I know can support you in connecting to the “light” this week or any busy day (or week or year) in your life. However, I hesitate to suggest this to you as I have consciously left it out of my conversations and writings as many of you may consider it a “dirty” word. Here is goes…one of the best ways you can find your way out of the dark and into the light is to meditate. Yes, I wrote it. If Oprah can use the word, I know it’s okay for me to use it, too. But I can hear you now — I don’t have time, I can’t quiet my mind, that isn’t for me — and I really understand. I started out feeling that way also.

Here’s the good news. Everyone can “meditate” because it’s easier and less time consuming than you think. It takes you out of the dark and gives you a peek of light. And, we do it all the time already — meditating is just focused attention. It’s about being open and listening and being present in the moment. I looked up the word meditation and it comes from the Indo-European root med – meaning “to measure”. Meditation has been defined as: “self regulation of attention, in the service of self-inquiry, in the here and now.”

Many simple meditation techniques ask you to focus on your breathing. Focusing on your breathing engages your left brain, keeping it from trying to figure everything out, and allowing you freedom from other thoughts. The key (coming from the Buddhist tradition) is taking your mind out of the mix even for a short time and allowing the space, “the wiggle room”, for the answers or inspiration to surface. (There’s more on wiggle room in the last blog post). So if you stop what you’re doing and focus on your breathing — you’re meditating.

Step it up by using self inquiry-questions before you start such as “I wonder how this darkness and chaos will lift?” Or “What is the most important thing for me to do next?” Or “I wonder how it would feel if I wasn’t ______.” The answers will come either now or later if you give them the chance. Just four easy steps: Stop what you are doing, take a deep breath, ask your questions and then focus on your breathing. Try this for one to three minutes — that’s all! Then notice what is different, the lightness you feel…and keep noticing. Keep noticing what’s different.

Meditation can take place during many activities, not just when you’re sitting still with your eyes closed. It can come when you are writing in a journal, as you do routine chores, or while taking a walk. Just staying in the present moment noticing with your senses what you are doing. It’s all about focusing in the moment…the moment you have right now.

I know how difficult it is to make the best choices in the midst of too much do, in the middle of chaos and drama. I would love to help you! So I encourage you to take a “meditation break” and let the best choices for you and your life come to you in the “light”.

Resources to find some light in your life

Listen to “3 Minutes of Light” Meditation in the Jacuzzi Room.

The Soothing SoundPaths™ to Serenity: The Virtual Spa™ CD (available in CD or downloadable version)

Walking Meditation by Thich Nhat Hanh and Anh-Huong Nguyen

The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh

One-Moment Meditation: Stillness for People on the Go by Martin Boroson

Transform Stress in 30 Days with One-Moment Meditation®
My wish for you is that you connect to the light of meditation,
Bonnie
PS Post and let us know how “meditation” helped you let in some light. Thanks for posting,when you post it really helps others on the path!

You can change your bubble of reality, even though sometimes you may find it difficult to imagine. After reading Bartlett’s book, The Physics of a Miracle and listening to his CDs, I knew deep inside what Bartlett was talking about rang true to me on a profound level. It confirmed what I have witnessed with my clients and myself many times. We do have the ability to shift and create changes in many places in our life – in the little and big challenges in our bubbles. Just playing (that’s an important word) a bit with the concepts, I saw magic occur. After experimenting further, I felt the strong energy of change that I had read about. I continue to be very hopeful and excited as I pursue changing my bubble of reality even more and supporting my clients in shifting their reality more quickly to what they desire.

This past weekend I attended a Matrix Energetic Workshop with Dr. Bartlett. I had a strong desire to “sit” in the energy and learn more about how to shift my reality bubble. You may think that Bartlett is a bit of a “crazy guy” (he says that about himself) but he allows you to be your “crazy self” and not judge you for it. In fact, he honors and respects your reality. When the workshop is over, you know this man is brilliant with his vast knowledge of medicine, religion, Quantum Physics and much, much more. However, he would tell you that isn’t what’s important. It’s probably not, but for some it may be a reference point of creditability. My impression of Bartlett’s mission and purpose is to find as many people as possible and teach them how to shift their reality bubble.

Physical Reality Shifts Right in Front of Our Eyes

How crazy would it be if a person’s bubble includes a possible neurological disorder and then it doesn’t? At the workshop, one of participants from the audience walks unsteadily on the stage with help of a cane but when he leaves the stage he walks off the stage holding the cane in his hand. I think you would agree that is a miracle. (The next day this man held the cane just in case he needed it and two days later he didn’t even carry the cane. You would have never known he could barely walk before).

There was just enough room in his bubble of reality, just a little “wiggle room”, to think that things could be different. Did Bartlett focus on what was wrong? No! He placed his observations of the “problems” on an imaginary clipboard and then created a shift. Then, Bartlett directed his focus elsewhere using two other points of reference partnered with fun, laughter and his strong belief there was another bubble of reality in which this person walked without a cane. Sound a bit strange? Maybe or maybe not? I remember a quote from the bible where after Jesus healed someone he said you can this and more.

How do you shift your bubble and create the magic? Find a small space, those moments where you have just a little wiggle room. The space where you can find trust in your heart, where what you want is possible. All you have to do is think of a situation. It starts on the inside…the inside of you… from a deep desire in your heart. Stop right now and think about something you desire…, stay in your heart space and let that thought go. Now move your focus to a success you have had or a gratitude for something in your life. Just the simple act of moving your focus shifts your bubble. Remember, the more you think about what you don’t have the more you create that. Bartlett suggests you put what you want on an imaginary clipboard. Allow Spirit the Divine or God to work out the details. How do you do that again? Move into your heart. Ask open ended questions: what would it be like? What will be the next step? But don’t answer them! Let your right intuitive brain go to work and give your left brain the steps. You job: Feel it from your heart space and then switch your focus to something else . Stay away from what you don’t think you have or what you don’t want to happen.

Focus on those uplifting synchronicies. The ones that surprise you, where people show up and experiences happen in a way that you noticed seemed amazing. Focus on that! The more you focus on those kinds of miracles, even when things are challenging, you’ll find more magic will happen in your life and the more you will shift from what you didn’t want to a life that you truly desire. I know how powerful you are in many areas of your life. I know you can shift your bubble in other areas of your reality too!

For more information on Matrix Energetics visit MatrixEnergetics.com.

Three critically, important questions can pave the way for your success this year. I have read, coached (Empowerparties.com) and experienced the success of these powerful questions. I believe you’ll find they will give you a more direct connection to your dreams and intentions as you move into 2010. After you have asked these questions add another dimension. Make your desires visible through writing and pictures. This starts creating your new reality for the year. The first question to ask yourself is: “How or what was successful for me in 2009 and why?” The answer to this question is vital to your success. This isn’t as much about what you did, as it is about the components that made you successful in achieving your desired outcome. The second questions is: “What would I do differently in the areas I didn’t achieve the success I desired?” This isn’t about blame and shame. It’s just an evaluation of events. The third question to ask yourself is: “What do I have to support me to be successful that I didn’t have in place last year?” To reach new goals and intentions we have do and be different. These are really dynamic and powerful questions to guide you in keeping what worked and changing what didn’t. After you have pondered and written down your answers you are then ready to start to create a plan for success this year. Have fun. Here are a few of my favorite support “things”.

A Few of My Favorite Things

Over the holidays I once again watched the musical The Sound of Music. I love the song My Favorite Things “Raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens …”. The song gave me the idea to share with you a few of my favorite things to shift my inner and out worlds for success, peace and change. I wanted to share them with you to support you in realizing your dreams and making 2010 the success you desire.

Of course one of my new favorites is something here at SerenityPathways, The Virtual Spa® Gift Package. This new three month Virtual Spa® Membership gives you access to the many rooms in the spa filled with ways to relax, release, and refresh yourself 24/7. A new addition to the membership gift package are daily one minute audios. Many of my coaching clients have said they would love to put me in their pocket to carry with them between sessions. (I think it might be a bit dark and crowded in someone’s pocket:)) So added I added an extra feature to the three month membership in the spa. Every day, for three months, not only will you have access to over 24 rooms in The Virtual Spa® and get a spa weekly tip filled with great ideas to nurture your body and soul … you will have your Spa Coach (yes, that’s me) in your pocket everyday, with an inspirational one minute audio boost coming to your email daily and a gentle reminder to visit the spa!

Not Just Any Harp Music

I have had Amy’s magical and healing music in my home for 6 years. I have also had the honor and joy of recording a CD with Amy. Amy’s music has been healing, calming and transformational in my life, my families, clients and friends. The research behind the relaxing and healing that can occur while listening (the body can heal once it is in a relaxed state) of these CDs is just amazing. These two are my current favorites and have gotten me through the tough times and relaxed and balanced me in my daily life. http://www.serenitypathways.com/relaxation.htm (For her full collection visit AmyCamie.com)

Elyse Hope Killoran, President of Choosing Prosperity From the Inside Out

Our journey (my husband and I) began or continued in Elyse’s Prosperity Partnership Program – a powerful “place” for spiritual business owners and anyone on the spiritual path especially if you want to move forward in your life or business. The offerings from Elyse can support you in being the person who can align with your innate ability to create prosperity…from the inside-out. The Anchoring Prosperity CD is a great way to start visualizing your intentions, seeing yourself being where you want to be in 2010. It is a CD you will listen to many times over! To find out more visit: http://prosperityportal.com/ or http://choosingprosperity.com

For Parents

Tami Gulland is a wonderful colleague and friend. She is an empathic and talented coach and parent of two children. I have had the awesome opportunity to witness some of her incredible ability for transformation and miracles in families close to me.

Restore Harmony Within Your Home and Family with Tami Gulland

Positive Psychology is something that has really pulled me up and into who I am. It changed the way where I started with clients in counseling and where I always start in my coaching practice. I found that part of self nurturing is to find your gifts and strengths which leads to stronger relationships, paves the way to move through challenges more easily and is the natural path to happiness in life.

Here are some of my favorite links to finding your strengths and gifts and claiming your happiness now!
www.AuthenticHappiness.com
www.viacharacter.org
At these two sites you can start finding the best of who you are as you identify your gifts and strengths.
HappinessProject.com I haven’t bought the book yet, but you can be sure I will.

Books I couldn’t leave out!

Positivity by Barbara Fredrickson

I love how she found the science on why how positive thoughts and 10 minutes of quiet can change your daily reality from chaos to more ease.

Happy for No Reason
Marci Shimoff did a fabulous job of bringing happiness to a level that everyone can understand.

My newest favorite is The Physics of Miracles by Richard Bartlett. Don’t read this one unless you want to start changing your world. It is a bit mind boggling what we can change by just connecting “two points of light”.

Writing Down Your Soul by Janet Connor
A friend and someone I have watched totally transform her life living Writing Down Your Soul. This is a must for anyone who wants personal guidance and enjoys writing. In February, Janet will teach you more secrets about harnessing your writing and guidance in a new course called Plug In! The Intersection for Writers and Other Creatives.
This ten-week teleseries is unlike anything else. It is the first in-depth exploration of The Intersection and it is designed specifically for writers, speakers, and other creatives. It merges new and very powerful spiritual practices with your craft infusing your work with access to limitless creativity and guidance. The result? You create a unique message that cannot help but find its expression in the world. All you have to do is Plug In to the incredible power of The Intersection.

I could continue but I said just a few of my favorite things. I would love if you would post a comment and share one of your favorite “things” that have inspired you and supported you in your success. “Rain drops on roses …”

Enjoy your success in 2010,
Bonnie