Living Out Loud

Nurture your dreams

(a Thought for the Week)

 

 

"When you follow your bliss... doors will open where you would not have thought there would be doors; and where there wouldn't be a door for anyone else." ~ Joseph Campbell  "If one advances confidently in the direction of one's dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours." ~ Henry David Thoreau "Nobody succeeds beyond his or her wildest expectations unless he or she begins with some wild expectations." ~ Ralph Charell

The Reiki way to living in the now

Just for today, I will not anger

Just for today, I will not worry

Just for today, I will be grateful

Just for today, I will work with integrity

Just for today, I will be kind to others

How powerfully simple, and simply powerful are those statements?

These are the Reiki principles, and the "just for today . . " element is crucial.  No need to make a lifelong commitment.  Just make a commitment for right here, right now.  That's all we really have anyway!  And the beauty of it is, that in making that simple, short-term, commitment everyday, you could actually be making a life-changing commitment to yourself over and over - but without any pressure.

You could so easily apply this principle to any new behaviour you want to adopt.

Just for today - I will speak my truth without worrying about the judgement of others

Just for today - I will make healthy food choices

Just for today - I will meditate for fifteen minutes

And on and on it goes.  The possibilities are endless.  When you choose to do something that serves you well just for this one day, and you notice the benefits afterwards, there is an increased likelihood that you will choose to do it again tomorrow. 

And choosing to do something right now is very different to deciding to do something now and forever.  In deciding to adopt a new behaviour for evermore, you remove the element of choice in the future, and turn it into a "should".  That then leads (at least in my case) to resistance.  But I think that adopting the Reiki way will lead to far greater success in developing new habits.

Just for today, I choose behaviours that serve my highest good.  What do you choose?

Lighten up!

(a Thought for the Week)

"I can think of no better way of redeeming this tragic world today than love and laughter. Too many of the young have forgotten how to laugh, and too many of the elders have forgotten how to love. Would not our lives be lightened if only we could all learn to laugh more easily at ourselves and to love one another."  ~  Theodore Hesburgh

 

"You can turn painful situations around through laughter. If you can find humor in anything, even poverty, you can survive it." - Bill Cosby

"Enlightenment means to lighten up.  Don't take yourself too seriously."  ~  Deepak Chopra

 

Photo by Tela Chhe

I forgot about Awareness

Last week, I was on the final leg of my meditation teacher training.  And the subject of Awareness came up quite a bit, because when you meditate regularly you will naturally develop a higher sense of self-awareness.

And on the first day, as I heard the word coming up, it dawned on me: OMG, when I wrote A is for  . . . to kickstart my A-Z of Happiness series, I totally forgot to include Awareness!!!  And Awareness is the starting point!!!!!!!

How utterly remiss of me. 

When I first began writing on the subject of personal development, Awareness was my hot topic.  And here I was, leaving out the most fundamental building block of the whole process of taking responsibility for becoming a happier person.  So I thought to myself, I better put that right as soon as I get back home.

And then when I did get home, Neale Donald Walshe sent this timely reminder:

On this day of your life, Hilda, I believe God wants you to know....that awareness is not a gift that some have and others cannot attain.  Awareness is your birthright and your inheritance. You have it now.
 
It is not a question of whether you have it, but of whether you are using it.  All human beings have the gift of Awareness.  Yet not all are aware that they are Aware.  When you are aware that you are Aware, your experience of Awareness shifts to a new level.  That is why this is being sent to you today. You called this forth , out of your own inner Awareness. This is You, waking you up. 
 
Today, walk in Awareness. Do so by simply choosing to do so. Allow yourself to be aware of every person's feelings, of what fits perfectly and is 'right' in every  moment, of what is wanted and needed from you as a healer and a messenger Right Here, Right Now. Walk in this Awareness, and watch your life change today.

So, without further ado, let me rewind.  When it comes to the A-Z of Happiness, A is for . . .

Awareness; Accepting the Present as it is; Affirmations; Attention & The Law of Attraction; Attitude

Awareness is the foundation of the points that followed, and everything else that comes under every other letter.  Because without awareness, you cannot change your attitude, thoughts, beliefs or behaviours.  In order to be proactive about your own happiness, you need to consciously choose your perspective and your approach to life.  You need to be aware of your beliefs and your thought patterns before you can make the conscious decision to change them.  And often, we are completely unaware of the subconsciously held beliefs that are sabotaging our ability to create the lives we wish for.

So, if you're going to apply any of the tips that I have outlined already, or will outline as we continue from E to Z, you're definitely going to need to tap into your self-awareness. 

If you're already there, that's great!  You're off to a flying start.  But if you would like some tips on how to develop greater self-awareness try the following:

• At the end of each day, journal about how you felt during different experiences, and what thoughts did you have immediately prior to, during and after each experience.  Identify which activities you enjoyed, and what it was that you appreciated about them.  Likewise, what would you prefer to leave out of your schedule and why?

• Pay attention to your body, and its response to the food you eat, the activity you participate in and the company you keep.  Your body will always have a response of either comfort or discomfort.  Start to really notice when it's experiencing discomfort (often this can be subtle and we can miss it).  Then ask yourself how you can move towards greater comfort - this will move you towards your higher good, whether it's physcially, mentally, spiritually or emotionally.

• Identify your beliefs, values and needs.  Do your beliefs serve you well?  (Refer to B is for . . . for more on why this is important and what to do about it if your beliefs are limiting you).  Are you honoring your own personal values (click here to download an exercise to help you identify your top 5 values)?  Are you crystal clear on what your mental, physical, spiritual and emotional needs are?  To be happy you need to have all your needs met, and the first step in that process is knowing exactly what they are.  Make a list today...

• Meditate!  Meditation quietens the mind and the body, and this quietening down will help with the other exercises.  In fact, before doing the exercises to get clarity around your beliefs, values and needs, it would be a great help to meditate for a few minutes right before hand.  But quite apart from that, people who meditate regularly begin to notice after a while that they're naturally more self-aware, along with a great many other side benefits (stay tuned to future posts to learn more).

I hope those tips help.  And again, I apologise for leaving out the foundation to this whole series.  I'll try to do better in future ;-)

The series so far:

A is for . . .

B is for . . .

C is for . . .

D is for . . .

Let go and let God

(a Thought for the Week)

"As your faith is strengthened you will find that there is no longer the need to have a sense of control, that things will flow as they will, and that you will flow with them, to your great delight and benefit." ~ Emmanuel Teney

 

Photo by Kevin Dooley

"We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us." ~ E. M. Forester

 

"The road of life can only reveal itself as it is travelled; each turn in the road reveals a surprise. Man's future is hidden." ~ Unknown

Make the world a better place

(a Thought for the Week)

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Free Hugs

 

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world."  ~  Anne Frank

 

"If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, and then make a change."  ~  Michael Jackson

 

"You must be the change you want to see in the world."  ~  Mahatma Ghandi 

The A - Z of Happiness: D is for . . .

Deliberately create your day

Believe it or not, it is possible to radically alter how you feel without changing your circumstances and here is a simple technique to help you do this:

 

Each morning, before you dive head-first into your day, think very clearly about how you want your day to be, and most importantly how you want to be during the day.  If you want, you could even write it down in a small notebook - I did when I first started practicing this technique - so that you can handily refer to it later in the day whenever you notice you're no longer centred in that place of being. 

 

But whether you do it in writing or in your mind's eye, the most important thing is that you decide how you want your day to go, and then focus on that for at least a few minutes before you get started.  The more energy you can put into these thoughts, the better your day will be.  

 

So if you normally spend your journey to work thinking “Ugh, I have to do x and meet y, and I’m tired and stressed", or other thoughts along those lines, try going over and over in your mind your new script instead:

“Today I get through my workload productively and effectively. I’m relaxed and confident and I capably deal with every situation whether it is planned or unexpected.  I feel great all day and enjoy what I’m doing and the people I’m interacting with.”

Substitute the above for whatever you want from your day and be amazed at the difference it can make.

 

When I first tried this technique I was in a very sceptical place.  But I was also so miserable at work that I figured I had nothing to lose.  So I opened my mind just enough to give it a go.  I had such an amazing day it really blew my mind, and I have never looked back : )

 

Try it and see for yourself! 

Detach from your Desires

"Life is a tide; float on it.  Go down with it and go up with it, but be detached.  Then it is not difficult."  ~  Prem Rawal

 

If you could let go of all your attachments you would also let go of the source of much of your unhappiness.  Attachment to our desires is about more than our material desires, but also our emotional and spiritual desires.  It's attachment to how we think things should be, or how we would really like them to be. 

 

It can be attachment to the idea that we have to have full physical health in order to be happy, or that we have to be sad for a time if someone we love leaves us.  While these ideas may seem logical, it actually doesn't have to be that way.  These are merely beliefs.  And, as discussed in B is for... they rule our lives, BUT they can also be changed if they don't serve us well.

 

The concept of detaching from our desires is one I am constantly working on, but I see time and again how important it is to my happiness.  Having desires is not an impediment to being happy - it is natural and normal, and is what gives us impetus to get out of bed in the mornings and live our lives.  But being attached to having our desires manifest is a very real obstacle - to our happiness, and in fact to the manifestation we wish for.

 

Attachment is an obstacle to having what you want in your life, because it is resistance to the way things are unfolding.  And what you resist persists.  When you cling to the idea that you cannot be happy unless things happen in a certain way, then you are closing down other avenues that could lead you to where you ultimately want to go.

 

To be happier and more content, no matter how things are unfolding, the approach to aim for is preference: