A Course in Miracles states that all thoughts create form on some level.

And if a belief is just a thought you keep thinking - what are your beliefs about aging?

You know listening is a valuable skill and you know we could all do better! 

Of course being a coach, I have a lot of opportunities to practice this skill - and it really matters. But I also realize it matters to anyone I’m with, not just paying clients. 

So as I practice (daily) sharpening this skill (and I’ve come a long way), I decided I was going to try something new. I was invited to an intimate corporate party held at an office downtown. I decided that I was going to listen more than talk.

There are many ‘break ups’ in life. Here are the popular ones: friendships, romantic relationships, jobs, death.

But any change from what’s normal, that leads to having a different normal, is a break up. The emotional volume that’s created depends on the attachment. The more attached, the more emotion, the more pain.

As I watch and listen to people and learn about some of the struggles out there, it got me curious about stress and burnout and what it actually is. So, of course I searched my spotify for podcasts, and Brene Brown popped up, so I listened. She interviews authors Emily & Amelia Nagoski (sisters). Here’s my small version of the conversation with their strategies. So interesting!

I believe that with the right tool applied to a situation, you will gain a much better result, and without the tool, life is harder.

The thing I always come back to about learning and not staying in the same place, begins with clarity. You’ve probably experienced this, when there is toooooo much to do, you become overwhelmed and nothing changes.

Think about ONE thing in your life that could be better. NOT, if they would change. Where can you change?

"BEGIN WITHIN"

When’s the last time you wrote? As in a letter, journal, email (not for business!) or birthday card. Like really writed. Some true feelings.

I write to you, but I also write to myself on occasion about things no one knows about. It’s typically when I’m trying to sort things out to gain clarity and resolution for myself.

The benefit of the written word is to feel better. Often it is a way for us to let out the things that can be stuck inside. We are often in our heads so pen to paper is a fundamental part of a healing and peaceful journey.

Ohhhhh healing. We are all trying our best, but man, without learning the skills we need to become better, life can stay quite challenging within our relationships. We all have healing to do. It takes willingness, honesty, vulnerability, practice and patience (with ourselves and others).

You’ve heard the quote, ‘believe you can and you’re halfway there.’ - Theodore Roosevelt.

This picture hangs in my bathroom and has for years!

I like this combination:

VISION + BELIEF = MANIFESTATION

Today's topic is about ‘you doing you.’

One thing I’m finding is that I really do beat to my own drum. I know you do also. And it’s important to own it. Especially when someone gives their 2 cents about who you are. Haha.

Think about your life as if it had many levels (floors). Depending on your floor, the perspective (views) change the higher you go. This is what I see as evolution and growth.

So how do you move from one floor to the next? You have to learn the lessons that the floor you're currently on provides. The higher you go, the better the view and the quieter it gets! So that’s a pretty good reason.

I’m trying to think about what makes me angry. Or rather, how I handle it. And how I ‘should’ handle it. When I think about my anger, it’s rare and it’s typically in a romantic relationship that I’m triggered (I know my biggest life lessons are in this arena).

How are you doing in life? Let’s say there are 3 buckets: Would you say, you are content, satisfied or fulfilled? (And as the great Tony Robbins has said, “Success without fulfillment is the ultimate failure.”) The next question would be, is this where you want to be? And what is it going to take to move from one bucket to the next?

Challenges in forgiveness arise when we think someone should change so we can feel better. But this is exactly when we lose our power. That’s what feels terrible.

Also, we fear that in forgiving, we are condoning the behavior, which is not the case. We forgive to free ourselves, not them. When we hold someone in contempt we are not releasing the energy that is keeping us stuck.

The soul is something we all have. We too often pay attention to our minds, but not necessarily our souls. When you feel alive, it’s from the soul. It’s like you have a whisper in your ear that says, yes - this is who you are!The soul is always there, yet we can ignore it. I believe there are things that happen in your life that represent the soul trying to call you home to it. But are you listening? Here’s some things that might be happening:

So often, we are on our treadmills of life, living mostly unconscious (95%) and in our comfort zones. Once in a while (like today maybe), stop and ask yourself why am I doing what I’m doing? The answers may surprise you. And when you get really honest with yourself you might uncover some 'not so great' reasons, along with some great ones that’ll keep you moving on.

I hear the term ‘numb’ a lot these days in my learning. I also see people very much numbed out or numbing out, as it seems. There are various reasons why people end up numb. It begins as a coping mechanism of protection and weeks, months or years later we have forgotten how to feel.

Ways we numb can be (in excess of) alcohol, sleep, video games, Netflix, shopping, procrastination, drugs etc. Pick your poison.

I believe there is a direct link between happiness and doing what you love. Now, of course that doesn’t necessarily mean that you are being paid for what you love, but the question is, do you at least have it in your life? Here’s a question I like to ask people - If we all got paid the same amount of money per year, what would you choose to do for work? It’s interesting how many people stumble on this.

I write to you each week because it’s a part of who I am. I love to care and share. It’s also because it keeps me motivated to do my own spiritual work every day so I can show up and stay consistent in receiving the results this work provides me. That being said, there is so much information and distraction in the world today. So thank you for spending your time with me. 😍Many messages are similar but you will hear them differently from one person to the next. And then one day, you GET it. Your work is to decipher which messages are meant for you. The ones that resonate with your heart.

Our emotions are how we measure where we’re at. This is also measured energetically and vibrationally. So, the less energy you have or the less happy you are, the lower your vibration.

What I’ve found, is if you can just honor where you’re at, without thinking you need to be or feel something else, it will change in time.

The emotional scale is one tool I use to explain why you can’t jump from frustration, disappointment or anger straight up to joy. The vibration is too far apart. Good to know, right?!

Since we are dealing with all kinds of people in this world, we may not always easily see things the same way. Right? One accident and many different stories of how it happened.

We also didn’t learn effective communication, so unless you’ve done some of your own training, many simply lack the skills, which can cause a conflict to escalate very quickly when what you want is a resolution.