ARE YOU IN INTEGRITY?

"In order to live a rich life, everything about who you are must be one, in alignment, and in pure harmony."
-- Suze Orman

For clear and honest expression, our thoughts, speech and actions must all be congruent. We will not stand in our power if we are inadvertently sending mixed messages-if we say one thing and do another.

I found it helpful to consciously identify the values that matter most to me. With these values in mind, it's easier to ensure I'm living them.

"Honor your integrity and you will be repaid many times over with increased prosperity."
-- Sanaya Roman and Duane Packer

*** Tackle your financial challenges holistically!

STRUGGLING WITH A DECISION?

"You can conquer almost any fear if you will only make up your mind to do so. For remember, fear doesn't exist anywhere except in the mind."
-- Dale Carnegie

My anxiety level spiked the other day as I wrestled with whether to choose option A or option B. I was so afraid of making the wrong choice!

And then I remembered, with deep gratitude, Susan Jeffers' sage advice: There are no wrong decisions! Whatever we might choose in life will bring valuable experiences if we are open to receive them.

"Lighten up! Whatever happens as a result of your decision, you'll handle it!"
-- Susan Jeffers

BE ON VACATION - TODAY!

"A loser seldom lives in the present, but instead destroys the present by focusing on past memories or future expectations."
-- Muriel James

I had been feeling really tired, and so I began planning a one-week vacation. I became aware of how desperate I was to leave responsibilities behind and simply do nothing for a while. Fortunately, I quickly realized how insane it is to expect one little week that is months away to meet all my needs for freedom, joy, play and relaxation.

Life is only worth living when we experience the gifts of vacations in delicious moments, day in and day out. Qualities like freedom, play and joy do not depend on external conditions. They can be realized any time, if we open to their presence right now.

I'm happy that I will be going on vacation, AND I'm doing more to look after my needs as they arise each day.

"You had better live your best and act your best and think your best today; for today is the sure preparation for tomorrow and all the other tomorrows that follow."
-- Harriet Martineau

TRAVEL WITH AWARENESS

"...focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it."
-- Greg Anderson

Travelling brings me wonderful opportunities to build awareness. When I get into the car, for example, I set an intention to drive well and stay alert to what other drivers and pedestrians are doing. When I realize that my mind has drifted and I've slipped into autopilot, I gently bring my focus back to the present.

It's also a time when I can pay attention to my reactions. Does irritation arise when someone drives too quickly or slowly, or when I get stopped by a yellow light? Being aware of the irritation gives me the opportunity to acknowledge and then release it. If I choose to, I can be at peace anywhere - even on the road!

"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going to fast -- you also miss the sense of where you are going and why."
-- Eddie Cantor

*** Awareness is the key to all change.

A NEW VIEW

A friend shared this moment of awakening. She was moaning, "I never get anything done." Her companion replied, "Perhaps you never get EVERYTHING done." Oh... of course!

A shift in perspective can bring both understanding and release.

"Besides learning to see, there is another art to be learned -- not to see what is not."
-- Maria Mitchell

What is personality? What is soul? How do they interact? Experience the power of living soulfully in the present moment.

FEELING SAFE

"Oh the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are -- chaff and grain together -- certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away...."
-- Dinah Craik

We cherish our best friends and our special communities because we feel safe to be vulnerable when we're in their embrace. And yet I have discovered that as long as I identify with my self-image, with my ego, there’s no safety possible anywhere. When the ego is on watch, even a dear friend's truth may trigger reactions like anxiety, self-criticism and fear.

The only true safety exists in living the truth of our soul, our essence.

"Open your body and your mind to the subtler levels of experience, letting go of your attempt to control, to be right, not worrying about appearances, not trying to be safe."
-- Stephen Levine

*** Restart building a new foundation for your life. Clear blocks and transform your life.

GETTING DOWN TO ESSENTIALS

"Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials."
-- Lin Yutang

Do you feel a desire to simplify your life?

If you say 'yes,' then set an intention to reduce the demands, stimuli, interruptions and busyness in your life. We each have the power to do this - we simply have to begin to say 'no' to those activities that don't directly serve what we want for our lives.

Everyone of this planet deserves to have some free time to think, relax and have fun. If you long for this, begin now to clear your plate and allow a new level of experience to happen in your life. Take charge. Eliminate time wasters. Make some decisions about what matters to you.

"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak."
-- Hans Hofmann

*** Step by step, progressively learn basic meditation methods to relax, concentrate, focus, reflect, contemplate and illuminate.

THINKING OF POVERTY OR WEALTH?

"Being poor is a frame of mind."
-- Mike Todd

What do you think of money?

Our beliefs create our reality. If you have struggled with money most of your adult life, chances are that something happened when you were young to create limiting beliefs around money and prosperity. Look back to your early years. What beliefs did your parents and other influential adults have about money? Chances are you're also carrying those beliefs. Are they serving you?

"The law of abundance is that everything replicates after its own kind. Like is attracted to like. If you want more wealth, concentrate of wealth; think thoughts of abundance and wealth."
-- Delfin Knowledge System

*** Tackle your financial challenges holistically!

TIME TO STOP SEEKING?

"If there are so many seekers, why are there so few finders?"
-- Eckhart Tolle

Perhaps we've misunderstood the whole concept of a spiritual journey. The term 'seeker' means we are looking for something we believe we do not have now. It places all hope on the future because as a seeker, we haven't yet found our salvation.

Tolle encourages us to experience the truth of who we are by being present right now. If we do that, we don't have to seek anything. We already have everything and can relax and rejoice in the power of being.

"There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of the present moment. A man's whole life is a succession of moment after moment. If one fully understands the present moment, there will be nothing else to do, and nothing else to pursue."
-- Hagakure

Our process is clear. First 'know yourself' - your personality and direction in life. Then 'create a plan'. Next 'heal yourself and what holds you back. Then you can expand and 'grow yourself'. Are you ready to commit to changing your life for the better?

WONDER-FULL!

"...we can't survive without enchantment... the loss of it is killing us."
-- Thomas Moore

"There is one thing that all true spirituality has in common, whether that spirituality is derived from faith, from science, from nature or from the arts - a sense of wonder."
-- Andrew Schneider

"There are only two ways to live your life: One is as though nothing is a miracle, The other is as though everything is a miracle. I believe in the latter."
-- Albert Einstein

"We live in a world of theophanies. Holiness comes wrapped in the ordinary. There are burning bushes all around you. Every tree is full of angels. Hidden beauty is waiting in every crumb. Life wants to lead you from crumbs to angels, but this can happen only if you are willing to unwrap the ordinary by staying with it long enough to harvest its treasure."
-- Macrina Wiederkehr

*** Do you feel an urge or calling in you to be or do more?

A NEW LOOK AT OLD ATTITUDES

"I can change. I can live out my imagination instead of my memory. I can tie myself to my limitless potential instead of my limiting past."
-- Stephen Covey

I was eating lunch with a friend who shared that she disliked one of the vegetables on my plate and hadn't eaten any since childhood. I suggested that sometimes our tastes change and maybe she could give it another try. She did, and to her surprise, she enjoyed it. Her world became a little richer as she opened to new possibilities.

Is there something in your life you might be willing to give another try?

"Change. It has the power to uplift, to heal, to stimulate, surprise, open new doors, bring fresh experience and create excitement in life. Certainly it is worth the risk."
-- Leo Buscaglia

*** Awareness is the key to all change. Begin to trust yourself more deeply as you uncover new dimensions of who you are.

THE KEY TO THE FUTURE

"The future is not some place we are going, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made. And the activity of making them changes both the maker and their destination."
-- John Schaar

We've been taught to look forward to our future. Somehow, we believe, things will be better then. But the future is not available to be lived - we can only live NOW. So what are we doing to live best right now? What are we doing now that will bear fruit when we reach some future now?

"Let him who would enjoy a good future waste none of his present."
-- Roger Babson

*** Awareness is the key to all change. Begin to trust yourself more deeply as you uncover new dimensions of w

REMOVE THE FILTERS

"You got to look at things with the eye in your heart, not with the eye in your head."
-- Lame Deer, Medicine Man of the Oglala people

Whenever we're thinking, our experience is being filtered through our minds. For example, when I say to myself, "What a beautiful sunset!" I am not fully experiencing the sunset because I am involved with the words in my mind.

Explore letting go of the thoughts, the words, and connecting directly with your experiences. Tune in to the silence and the sensations in your body. Be aware of the spaciousness this brings because this is truly living in the present moment.

Being present doesn't mean that we have to abandon thinking entirely. That's not feasible, of course. But we can experiment with what it's like to stop thinking once in a while!

"Only in quiet waters things mirror themselves undistorted. Only in a quiet mind is adequate perception of the world."
-- Hans Margolius

*** Awareness is the key to all change. Begin to trust yourself more deeply as you uncover new dimensions of who you are.

WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

"It is never about how good your voice is; it is only about feeling the urge to sing, and then having the courage to do it with the voice you are given."
-- Katie in 'True to Form' by Elizabeth Berg

How often have you allowed fear and your inner critic to stop you from doing something you were inspired to do?

Helen Keller said, "Life is either a grand adventure or nothing." When we allow fear and criticism to stop us in our tracks, we give up that grand adventure. What a waste!

"Be an all-out, not a hold-out."
-- Norman Vincent Peale

*** Do you feel an urge or calling in you to be or do more? Then honour it and open to more meaning and fulfillment by exploring your life purpose. Maybe it is time to do life instead of life doing you!

GROWING THROUGH AWARENESS OF MONEY

"What is [the role of money] in the search for meaning? Is our relationship to it one of the chief factors that keeps us in our prison, or could it also be a tool for breaking out, for awakening to a life filled with intensity of purpose?"
-- Jacob Needleman

How do you relate to money?

Money is a powerful tool for growth. Pay sharp attention to your thoughts, emotions, reactions and actions where money is involved. Don't judge what you find; just be aware of what's going on. Your growing awareness will automatically support changes in your behaviour.

"What we're after in Prospering is nothing less than a major shift in consciousness-in the attitudes, beliefs, and ideas you have about yourself and your relationship to money."
-- Jerrold Mundis

*** Tackle your financial challenges holistically!

ATTACHMENT

"The soul that is attached to anything, however much good there may be in it, will not arrive at the liberty of divine union. For whether it be a strong wire rope or a slender and delicate thread that holds the bird, it matters not, if it really holds it fast; for until the cord be broken, the bird cannot fly."
-- Saint John of the Cross

"Attachment to spiritual things is... just as much an attachment as inordinate love of anything else."
-- Thomas Merton

"The tighter you squeeze, the less you have."
-- Zen Saying

Access your own inner wisdom by tapping into your subconscious and intuition. Release stress, blocks and negative emotions, and spark imagination and greater vision. Go deeper....

CONSCIOUS COMMUNICATION

"If we want to be compassionate we must be conscious of the words we use. We must both speak and listen from the heart."
-- Marshall B. Rosenberg

Conscious communication requires us to be truly present to what is occurring. When we are unconscious, we both speak to and react to others out of habit. And in the face of what we perceive as someone's judgment and criticism, we automatically (and unconsciously) defend, withdraw or attack.

To communicate consciously requires attention to two areas:

I need to speak from awareness of what I am perceiving, feeling and needing, and
Through watching and listening, I need to be aware of those same needs in others.
"When we focus on clarifying what is being observed, felt, and needed rather than on diagnosing and judging, we discover the depth of our own compassion."
-- Marshall B. Rosenberg

Explore your typical defence mechanisms in our Know Yourself workbook.

Become aware of your subconscious limitations, your character strengths, weaknesses and potentials, your life challenges, gifts, talents, and your deepest desires and aspirations.

LIVE LIFE FULLY

"Time is life. It is irreversible and irreplaceable. To waste your time is to waste your life, but to master your time is to master your life and make the most of it."
-- Alan Lakein

Refuse to feel USED by life! Make full use of it instead.

To do this, we initially need to take control of the time of our lives. Time management is life management, from the inside out. It's an INSIDE job. You already have everything you need. You have the power to create a life of meaning, fulfillment and joy.

Your challenge is to find what works for you! Review the literature but make your own decisions. To do this, you'll need to:

Get to know yourself -- your desires and passions, rhythms, styles, challenges, needs and habits.

Be aware that you always have choice. Claim your independence and power to choose what is right for your life, moment by moment.

"Until you value yourself, you will not value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it."
-- M. Scott Peck

MAKING LIFE OUR OWN

"Life is not lost by dying; life is lost minute by minute, day by dragging day, in all the thousand small uncaring ways."
-- Stephen Vincent Benet

What's needed for a new relationship with time and life?

Intention -- Get really clear about what you want.

Desire -- How much do you want something new for yourself? Know your motivation. Desire brings the energy for change.

Belief and/or willingness to trust you can have what you want. If belief is lacking, can you believe in the possibility that you can find a new way of living?

Perseverance, discipline -- It takes time and effort to change attitudes and habits. We can't expect a new life overnight.

Acceptance, both of what's happening now and of who we are. Until we honestly and openly accept our present situation, we cannot change it.

A willingness to try something new.

"It is so easy to waste our lives: our days, our hours, our minutes. ... It is so easy to exist instead of live. Unless you know there is a clock ticking. So many of us changed our lives when we heard a biological clock and decided to have kids. But that sound is a murmur compared to the tolling of mortality."
-- Anna Quindlen

GROWING OURSELVES

"The great thing in the world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving."
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes

We are all on a life-long journey. It is a search for who we are and why we are here. It is a journey that expands our consciousness.

There is an urge within each of us to move forward in life. It is an urge to become more whole, to find more meaning, and eventually to help others. It is human nature to strive for a sense of well-being.

We all go through the same growth cycles, though our experiences may appear entirely different. By understanding the process of personal and spiritual growth, we can work more effectively with the process, instead of fighting and resisting it.

"We can learn to be the catalysts for our own change."
-- Sarah Ban Breathnach

CHANGING CONSCIOUSNESS

Why should we care about raising our consciousness? When we set an intention to change and grow, we begin a journey in which we move from coping, to learning and finally, to the enjoyment of living.

Here are some of the shifts we move through:

From dependence on the clock, to charting a direction, to moment-to-moment guidance from intuition.

From doing things right, to doing the right things, to being your true self.

From lack of self discipline to having personal willpower to being completely willing to express our essence.

From being out of control, to being in control, to trusting and letting go of the need to control.

With each step, we experience greater freedom, fulfillment and joy. Worth going for, don't you think?

"Every human has four endowments - self awareness, conscience, independent will and creative imagination. These give us the ultimate human freedom... The power to choose, to respond, to change."
-- Stephen R. Covey
*** Awareness is the key to all change.

GOING FOR GUILT-FREE PLAY

"There is no pleasure in having nothing to do. The fun is in having lots to do and not doing it."
-- Mary Little

When you're tempted with a promise of pleasure, does guilt promptly spoil it for you?

For many of us, the work ethic still rules supreme. It keeps our life out of balance and our health at risk. There will always be lots of work to do. We can't wait for it to go away to enjoy ourselves.

Today, we invite you to become aware of your attitude towards rest, relaxation, pleasure and fun. When you give yourself a break, do you carry guilt through it? Deep down, do you believe that you don't deserve to have a good time, that you haven't earned a holiday? If you do discover these thoughts, send them packing.

"Guilt is the source of sorrows, the avenging fiend that follows us behind with whips and stings."
-- Nicholas Rowe
*** Step by step, progressively learn basic meditation methods to relax, concentrate, focus, reflect, contemplate and illuminate.

AWARENESS THROUGH LOVE AND FEAR

"There is nothing holier in this life of ours than the first consciousness of love -- the first fluttering of its silken wings -- the first rising sound and breath of that wind which is so soon to sweep through the soul, to purify or to destroy."
-- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Our inner journey takes us through the following stages relative to love and fear:

UNCONSCIOUS LOVE: When we are born, we exist as pure love but we are not conscious of our love.
UNCONSCIOUS FEAR: Our souls have set the stage for our evolution. As we grow, unconscious fears arise in our personalities that draw experiences to us that wound us.
CONSCIOUS FEAR: Our wounds bring pain and suffering that enable us to become conscious of our fears.
CONSCIOUS LOVE: When we've suffered enough pain, we are motivated to move through our fears to consciously experience the love that supports all.
"Love is but the discovery of ourselves in others, and the delight in the recognition."
-- Alexander Smith

Our process is clear. First 'know yourself' - your personality and direction in life. Then 'create a plan'. Next 'heal yourself and what holds you back. Then you can expand and 'grow yourself'.

THE EYES OF THE SOUL

Today, we want to share a passage from Martia Nelson's book, 'Coming Home':
"My greatest teacher was the experience of living in split realities: personality and true self. Personality is our daily companion, our conscious self that sees the world through the eyes of limitation and dutifully keeps us informed about what we can and cannot do. True self, on the other hand, patiently stands by, offering the unwavering knowledge that a state of vibrant well- being and unlimited possibility is our true nature, a birthright that can be lived if we choose to do so. ... True self simply refers to the aspect of our being that is completely aware of its expanded nature no matter what we may be experiencing at the time."

Whenever we feel constrained, fearful, unworthy, inadequate or anything we deem to be negative, we have identified with our personality. We can always choose to view the same situation from the perspective of our soul.

"As a Witness, you begin to discover that you are not that which you have been observing; you are not those things that you have been noticing about your body. Instead, you are the noticer."
-- Wayne Dyer

WHY DO YOU WANT MONEY?

"Money is not required to buy one necessity of the soul."
-- Henry David Thoreau

Money is nothing more than a medium of exchange. While we may want more money to get out of debt or to have more cash to play with, we want to set goals that represent more than just making money. And so we might ask, "What do I want money to do for me?"

Look to the values beneath money. What is happiness to you? What things, qualities, service, purpose do you value in life?

"If all the gold in the world were melted down into a solid cube, it would be about the size of an eight room house. If a man got possession of all that gold -- billions of dollars worth -- he could not buy a friend, character, peace of mind, clear conscience or a sense of eternity."
-- Charles F. Bunning

*** Tackle your financial challenges holistically!

HOW MUCH OF THIS IS MINE?

"The collective energy generated from the feelings, thoughts, and attitudes of the almost six billion people on this planet creates an atmosphere or 'consciousness climate.' Surrounding us like the air we breathe, this consciousness climate affects us most strongly on energetic and emotional levels."
-- Doc Childre and Howard Martin

Feeling angry, sad or anxious? You might ask, "How much of this is mine?"

Those of us who are sensitive sometimes pick up on emotional, mental or physical energy in the environment. It feels like ours - we really do feel the emotions or physical or mental symptoms. But really, we are processing 'generic' energies that belong to others or to humanity as a whole.

Opening to the possibility that our experiences may not be completely ours helps us detach from them. When we don't completely identify with our thoughts and feeling

"If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear ... as it is, infinite."
-- William Blake

*** Restart building a new foundation for your life. Clear blocks and transform your life.

QUESTIONS THAT AREN'T HELPFUL

"We accept many notions because they seem to be the logical answers to our questions. But have we asked the right questions?"
-- Harold L. Klawans

Sometimes we ask questions for which we really don't want the answer! Nonetheless, when we ask a question, our subconscious minds will get to work to answer us.

Here are some examples of questions we want to avoid:

What's wrong with me?
How long could this take?
What could go wrong?
How much trouble could it be?
How hard could it be?
Asking questions can be empowering - as long as they're smart questions!

"The uncreative mind can spot wrong answers, but it takes a very creative mind to spot wrong questions."
-- Anthony Jay

SMART QUESTIONS TO KEEP HANDY

"Quality questions create a quality life. Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers."
-- Anthony Robbins

Last time, we talked about questions to avoid. Today, let's consider some that are truly empowering:

Is there a message for me in this experience?
What's the gift in this situation?
What can I learn from this?
What's the most loving thing I could do now?
What's the most important thing for me to focus on now?
What would I do if I knew I could not fail?
What would I do if there were nothing to fear?
"A prudent question is one-half of wisdom."
-- Francis Bacon

Access your own inner wisdom by tapping into your subconscious and intuition. Release stress, blocks and negative emotions, and spark imagination and greater vision. Go deeper...

LOOK INSIDE FOR DIRECTION

"If you see your path laid out in front of you -- Step one, Step two, Step three -- you only know one thing... it is not your path. Your path is created in the moment of action. If you can see it laid out in front of you, you can be sure it is someone else's path. That is why you see it so clearly."
-- Joseph Campbell

What? No one to follow? Now that's a scary thought!

And yet, that's what life asks each of us to do - to chart our own path. We are each unique. We're told our uniqueness is our gift to the world. And so why would we even want to follow in someone else's footsteps?

Can we trust ourselves to carve our own trail?

"To know how to choose a path with heart is to learn how to follow intuitive feeling."
-- Jean Shinoda Bolen

*** Do you feel an urge or calling in you to be or do more? Then honour it and open to more meaning and fulfillment by exploring your life purpose. Maybe it is time to do life instead of life doing you!

HIGHER PERSPECTIVES

"Bias and impartiality is in the eye of the beholder."
-- Lord Barnett

According to Andrew Schneider, the radical difference between personality awareness and soul consciousness is a difference in perspectives. Acquiring a soul perspective allows us to see things differently - and we always see a more inclusive, universal picture. This expanded view adds to an understanding, enjoyment and appreciation of life.

If I insist on hanging on to a personality perspective that is contrary to a soul perspective, the two perspectives will clash. This challenges me to find a way through to a deeper truth than I previously knew. This kind of tension between soul and personality positions is typical of the prelude to transformation that is a vital part of the soul journey.

"I shut my eyes and all the world drops dead; I lift my eyes and all is born again."
-- Sylvia Plath

TIME FOR STILLNESS

"We're so engaged in doing things to achieve purposes of outer value that we forget that the inner value, the rapture that is associated with being alive, is what it's all about."
-- Joseph Campbell

The sages all say that the path to liberation is found in entering the stillness within. To experience that stillness, we need to be willing to regularly stop the activity for a while.

How do we do this in a busy life? We set our priorities. Perhaps it means giving up a TV program or using a coffee break to grab a few moments of solitude. Perhaps we have to ask our partner, relative or neighbour to give us 30 minutes of time away from the kids. If we really want something, we can make it happen.

"Learn to pause... or nothing worthwhile will catch up to you."
-- Doug King

*** Step by step, progressively learn basic meditation methods to relax, concentrate, focus, reflect, contemplate and illuminate.

SEEK UNION OVER SEPARATION

"Beliefs separate. Loving thoughts unite."
-- Paul Ferrini

Our ego focuses on how we are different from the rest of the world. We connect with soul when we experience how we are the same.

Any time you separate yourself from other people or from situations, you know your personality is in control. At such times, shift your perspective to build connection and you will move into soul.

"As a holistic being you shatter the illusion of your separateness and reveal your connection to everything. This empowers you in a way that the ego-driven self could never contemplate."
-- Wayne Dyer

ACCEPTING REALITY

"...self-contempt never inspires lasting change."
-- Jane R. Hirschmann and Carol H. Munter

I can suck myself down into a deep, black hole when I focus on what I think I SHOULD be... more loving, sexy, productive, whatever. Thinking I should be something else means I'm not good enough now. This is poverty thinking and a guaranteed way to be miserable.

I can let go of this suffering by accepting WHAT IS. I can say, "This is how I am right now and that's okay."

When I first tried this, I could say it but not believe it. Then I began to experience the freedom this perspective brings - just by changing my mind! Now I'm beginning to believe it. What a gift!

"When we stop opposing reality, action becomes simple, fluid, kind, and fearless."
-- Byron Katie

WE EXPERIENCE WHAT WE BELIEVE

"You are free to believe what you choose and what you do attests to what you believe."
-- A Course of Miracles

You most likely believe that your experiences have taught you what is real and what is true - at least for you. However, what you may not know is that your beliefs - conscious and unconscious - have determined what you would experience.

Experiences do not determine what you believe. What you first of all believe is what you will experience. It follows, then, that if you wish to experience life in new ways, you need to examine your belief systems.

Change your consciousness and you'll change your life.

"Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can."
-- Richard Bach

SPEAK KINDLY TO YOURSELF

"What is this self inside us, this silent observer, Severe and speechless critic, who can terrorize us, And urge us on to futile activity, And in the end, judge us still more severely, For the errors into which his own reproaches drove us?"
-- T. S. Eliot

How do you talk to yourself? Would you talk that way to anyone else?

Our thoughts create our reality. How do you typically think about yourself? Do you berate yourself for being stupid, sloppy, forgetful or insensitive? Do you watch yourself with interest, respect and compassion? Stay alert to your self-talk and let go of judgments that don't serve you.

"Self-acceptance is my refusal to be in an adversarial relationship to myself."
-- Nathaniel Branden

Our process is clear. First 'know yourself' - your personality and direction in life. Then 'create a plan'. Next 'heal yourself and what holds you back. Then you can expand and 'grow yourself'. Are you ready to commit to changing your life for the better?

LIMITED PERSPECTIVES

"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music."
-- Friedrich Nietzsche

We never have enough information to enable us to fully understand the truth of the reality around us. And there is never only one correct perspective about anything.

Knowing this helps me let go of my tendency to label things as good or bad. I suffer least when I can accept reality just as it is. And I benefit most when I open my heart and mind in appreciation.

"If you are pained by external things, it is not they that disturb you, but your own judgment of them. And it is in your power to wipe out that judgment now."
-- Marcus Aurelius

*** Awareness is the key to all change. Begin to trust yourself more deeply as you uncover new dimensions of who you are.

BEWARE OF DUTY

"Should is an ordinary, everyday word -- except when it is used to indicate an order that may not be refused. Then should becomes a finger waving under the nose. ...Should users build prison cells for themselves. They are so focused on what they should do -- that they cannot think about what they can do, what they might do in the future."
-- Dr. Arthur Freeman and Rose Dewolf

Many of us have been taught to do our duty. What does this imply to you? For me, 'doing my duty' means doing something I really don't want to do. My heart's not in it, and so the energy for the act isn't there. I have to force every move. Usually, there's underlying resentment. When this is the scenario, tasks may get done but there's no gift to the world.

We do not truly serve the world if we give to others but neglect our own truth and our own needs. It's only when our own needs are fully met that we can generously and whole-heartedly give of ourselves. It's not selfish to look after ourselves -- it's essential!

"To serve is beautiful, but only if it is done with joy and a whole heart."
-- Pearl S. Buck

*** Do you feel an urge or calling in you to be or do more? Then honour it and open to more meaning and fulfillment by exploring your life purpose.

TO SUPPORT OR NOT

"It is not helpful to help a friend by putting coins in his pockets when he has got holes in his pockets."
-- Douglas Hurd

Are you struggling financially because you are helping another adult who is being irresponsible around money?

Without intending to do so, we can keep people dependent when we are willing to financially rescue them. Enablers typically feel it's their duty to help out. They may see giving money as an expression of love. Unfortunately, they may lose their own financial security as a result.

As hard as it may be to do, the solution may lie in forcing the dependent to find his or her own way financially. In this case, it's not selfish to not lend a hand -- it actually serves the highest interests of all. Learning personal responsibility can be a tough road but it's a necessary one for empowerment.

"Few things help an individual more than to place responsibility upon them and to let them know that you trust them."
-- Booker T. Washington

AWARENESS


"Relative to the level of awareness that is possible for us, our ordinary state of consciousness is as far from a direct experience of reality as sleep is from waking consciousness."
-- Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson

"The thought 'I exist' is not the same thing as the awareness of one's own existence. ... Thought is not the same thing as consciousness."
-- Jacob Needleman

A person asked Buddha:
"Are you a God?"
Buddha's reply was
"No."
"Are you an Angel?"
"No."
"Then what are you?"
"I am Awake."
-- Unknown Source

*** Awareness is the key to all change. Begin to trust yourself more deeply as you uncover new dimensions of who you are.

OPENING THE HEART

"Everything is made of light; everything is alive. The Great Mystery of life has little to do with intelligence. The universe is not an intellectual process. The intellect is helpful; but our hearts are the wiser part of ourselves."
-- Mellen-Thomas Benedict

Heart is a word that refers to many different levels of our being. Essentially, it is the love aspect of soul, capable of making direct, intuitive contact. Soul love is not emotional; it is highly impersonal and intelligent, capable of grasping the essence of someone or something without any projection on our part.

Appreciation significantly turns on the heart. Appreciation is not an emotion that arises spontaneously, but a soul quality we can choose. The more often we choose to be appreciative, the easier this choice becomes and the more frequently our heart opens to give and receive love.

"If you open your heart, love opens your mind."
-- Charles John Quarto