Tag: Ego

Friday Focus – 11/10/17 {Resting In Silence When You Need An Answer}

Have you ever wrestled with a big decision and didn’t know what to do? Then you have multiple conversations with various people trying to hear the “right thing” that will give you the big ah-ha?

I’ve come across this many times  as one of the “various people” as well as experienced this myself whenever I needed to talk things out with friends. However, if there’s one thing I realized throughout the years, it’s that only you know the answer.

There’s something special about resting in the silence. Not thinking, just sitting in silence and resting in that space between thought and feeling, and observing what comes up.

Ask the question aloud and sit in silence. Watch the analytical debate. As you rest in silence longer you will begin to notice which voices (or nudges) are from your small self and the ones from something much greater within you. They sound a little different don’t they? 😉

Of course, some times we may not be able to get the ultimate answer we wanted to hear, but we now realize we are OK with the outcome, the direction we decided to go in. There is now a peace around the decision because ultimately you know you are held. You know that whatever decision is made you now will have one more data point to make the next decision, and the next, and the next.

Lastly, I’ve realized that ultimately life is a dance! How do we want to interplay with life and see the greater picture of what we are composing? Can we allow what is to be and approach any next step as an adventure? Can we love what is and drop the many fearful voices that keep us strapped in anxiety and worry?

So as we rest in silence during moments of distress and decision making, don’t forget one thing: dance. play. allow. lean in. love. and have faith.

You are magnificent no matter what.

In wellness,

Susan

Sharing Your Voice

“Yes, but there are hundreds of people already doing this.”

“But aren’t blogs dead now?”

“I don’t know… what does it matter if I share X when it’s been said a hundred times?”

These are all reasons why NOT to share your voice. Actually, let me clarify: these are all reasons your FEAR would have you not share your voice, isn’t it?

I’m sure it’s happened to us all where you read a book, or listened to a podcast, or even heard your friend say something to you that inspired him/her, and suddenly a light goes off inside that sparked an inspiration so deep it got through to the heart of you. Or maybe you saw a movie that tugged at your heart… only to later find out it was a re-make of a book written 15 years ago.

Well, guess what? It’s been said before but it was the energy, the likeness, the word choices, the person that got through to you…

As A Course in Miracles says, everybody is a teacher to someone and that someone is a teacher to someone else.

Let me be the one to remind you today – your voice is unique. The world needs you!

Who are we to dim our light and be so arrogant as to say we shouldn’t share our voice anyway?

When we do it for the higher purpose of spreading the light the answer is easy isn’t it?

So I encourage you, don’t dim your light. Share your voice when needed. It doesn’t have to be in a big or loud way, it can be in your small actions, a gesture, speaking up for someone, being kind… the ways are endless but it starts with you.

Here’s to being a little more brave and vulnerable, and trusting you have something to offer. Because trust me, you have an impact.

In wellness,

Susan

Our Wholeness

“When you realize the depth of your soul, you know, the wholeness of who you really are, suddenly life gets a whole lot simpler.

In wellness,

Susan

Photo by Gianandrea Villa on Unsplash

Friday Focus – 11/3/17 {Time Is Of The Essence}

Only 2 months left in the year… Can you believe it? I sure can’t. It’s as if with every passing year it goes by faster and faster. Makes me recognize, yet again, how precious our life is and how wisely we need to choose how we spend each moment.

This reminds me of something Naval Ravikant once said, (and I’m paraphrasing) “our time on earth is like a blink of a dragonfly”. It’s true, in the grand scheme of the Universe our time is so short and I often ask myself, do my actions reflect this truth?

So for this week’s Friday Focus I wanted to ask another set of powerful questions we can use to reflect on time. Especially since we only have 2 months left in 2017!

Powerful Questions

  • What were some initial goals I had for 2017?
  • With what I’ve learned in the past 10 months, where do these goals fit in to my evolving Purpose?
  • What matters most in my life?
  • How can I spend these next 2 months so that they can be something to remember years from today?
  • What is one special thing I can do for myself and/or others every day?

Go ahead, spend some time for yourself reflecting on these powerful questions and allow your heart to answer these questions. You may notice some new truths that have been brewing within yourself begin to surface, or some overarching themes that consistently come up.

Speaking of time… don’t forget to set your clocks back this weekend. We have an extra hour to make things extra special 🙂

In wellness,

Susan

Micro vs. Macro

Are you living your life with a micro perspective or a macro perspective? Here’s what I mean; you get rejected from a sales opportunity, a friend, a lover, a job, a client, a barista, whatever it may be… and if you find yourself dwelling in the rejection this is micro living.

It’s important to learn, acknowledge, but what’s more important is to move on and look at the macro picture.

What is the bigger picture of your life? What is your purpose? If you are strong in your own vision of your self and your life the micro doesn’t need to paralyze you.

It doesn’t need to carry the weight you give it.

Give yourself permission to let go. You are precious. You have something to offer. You have an unlimited supply of energy within you if you tap into the right resource states we all have within ourselves.

We give ourselves too much of a hard time for what life is meant to be, which is why so much of this blog is dedicated to bringing greater awareness around neural networks, paving new pathways, mindfulness, and self compassion.

Live with lightness. Enjoy every second. Be grateful for every breath. Hug someone you love.

Live in the macro. It’s where you’re meant to be.

In wellness,

Susan

Unresolved Emotions

Do you often find that unresolved emotions lead to regretful decisions?

Why is that? Well here are a few examples:

1) Anger at someone > “I’ll show him/her!” > Send hasty email
2) Anxiety, depression > Escapism > Open pint of ice cream
3) Regret, shame > Need to fix > Run 5 miles
4) Frustration, angst, sadness > Need to get it off your chest > Call friend in a heated moment, say the wrong things
5) Guilt > Need to fix > Over compensate or over commit to something you, deep down, don’t want to do

I don’t know about you but I have certainly found myself in a number of these situations before… and then I realized there was a key step in-between the emotion and the decision:

SELF AWARENESS / MINDFULNESS / SURRENDER / GOD / COMPASSION

Call it what you need to fit into your framework but for simplicity’s sake let’s call it Awareness.

When you have the awareness right **after** the emotion begins and right **before** the decision THAT is all you need to step back for just a moment.

And in that stepping back can you just sit with the emotion? Where is it in your body? Can you drop into it? What is it really trying to tell you?

Take a moment or two, heck take a week if you must! Take as long as you need until you feel good about your decision and know you aren’t trying to avoid the feeling. We seem to be good at that as we humans evolved.

Last but not least, don’t beat yourself up if you don’t get it each and every time! For some it comes easy and for others it requires a bit more practice, mindfulness, and/or guidance. But but know this: there is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You are everything you need to be and everything is unfolding in your divine order.

In wellness.

Friday Focus – 7/14/17 {Stay In Your Lane}

Good morning beautiful people! It’s absolutely stunning here in Seattle on this magical Friday morning. I hope no matter what season it is in your area you are diving into the weekend with an expanded heart and inspiration.

This week’s theme came to me suddenly but resonated deeply. I may have written about this before but I always welcome the reminder, and it is this:

The time spent worrying or thinking about what others feel/think/act/say to you is their business. Stay in your lane and keep your eyes on your business. 

Take a moment to truly ask yourself, “is this really true?”. No matter what worries you, ask yourself this question. How much of what is going on in your head are your own projections, worries, and fears?

Remember no judgement, only awareness.

As we dive into the weekend take a moment to pause and ask yourself this question whenever you come up against a resistance. Oftentimes you will find the thought you were just thinking is either based in the past or is a future projection. And what a relief that is!

You are free in THIS moment.

May you find a bit more peace, love, and laughter as you head into the weekend.

Namaste.

 

Photo by Tanner Larsen

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.

~Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love

Gives you the shivers doesn’t it?

So I ask again, who are you not to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? What are the limiting beliefs (and therefore illusory truths) that are holding you back?

Take a moment and take inventory of each decision during the course of a day. Imagine these decisions as branches of a tree; where are these branches stemming from? What is the basis (beliefs) of these decisions and how deep do those roots go?

Remember, change can happen but it takes work. Knowing how to catch the beliefs is half the battle and everyone, yes everyone, is capable of creating this change.

In the meantime I implore you to ask yourself two questions today:

  • How are you playing big today?
  • What is one small step you can take toward your true self?

In wellness,

Susan

Friday Focus – 7/7/17 {There’s Nothing Wrong With You}

There’s nothing wrong with you

Are your hormones are a bit wonky? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

Do you feel like crawling under the covers because of a string of bad days? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

Struggling with a health issue? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

Dealing with relationship issues that keep coming back? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

Fighting an intense fear of failure? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

Experiencing grief that doesn’t seem manageable? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

Wondering why it feels like it’s taking a million years to achieve X when for others it seems so easy? Sure
But it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

There’s nothing wrong with you

No matter what is happening in your life just remember this, there is absolutely nothing wrong with you.

Namaste.