Prophetic Piles

Every Monday, I have a standing date with two other soul-mates.  We spend between 90 – 150 minutes exploring the current place in this game called life and specifically in our business endeavors.  It is an amazing gift we have chosen to give ourselves and we have rarely missed a week.  It is quite stunning.  

Today, I was in an interesting state-of-mind and situation.  I had to stay outside during the call because the “precious” pooch had chosen that time to be needy and he would bark if I took him in, or left him out alone.  So, as I was connecting with my ‘people’ I was also connecting with my ‘pooch’.  

As I paced the yard I noticed the abundance of piles.  You know the kind of which I speak.  So, in order to ‘triple task’ I decided to get some bags and pick up the piles…did I say they were abundant?  

It turned out that in the time that I was picking up the messes, it was my turn to share the adventures and lessons of my week.  So in essence I was quadruple tasking…dog-sitting, people-connecting, poop-picking, and soul-bearing.  

I was overt about my ‘business’ with my callers and as I bent and huffed and puffed, I also spewed my stories. Essentially I picked up shit while I shared my shit.  I found it quite entertaining.  

The amazing and curious thing is that when I was done with my turn, so were the piles, THEY WERE ALL GONE.  Amazing.  The call carried on and the others did their sharing and then we circled back to me before the close of the call…and wouldn’t you know it, I was bending down to pick up a new fresh pile just as it was my time to speak again.  REALLY.  Quite a message there, eh!

It does beg the question that as we share and process our junk, so do we ‘clean up our shit’.

I was going to say ‘food for thought’, but I have a feeling I’ve turned your stomach a bit.  Oops!

Release

My word for today is:  RELEASE.

Besides undressing the tree and finding homes for our new gifts, I’ve done other ‘releasing’ type activities like unscubscribed to a few websites and emptied most emails from my inbox.

I was also compelled to do a metaphorical release of my limiting beliefs that have been circling my head probably for my adult life but on loudspeaker this past fall.  I did this by putting them into the “Old Story Pot” on the website Good Vibe University (where I’m a member).  This is a brilliant forum (within the website) to articulate your limiting beliefs and release them.  Then other members support that release by either offering positive reinforcement, a new perspective, or a virtual ‘high five’.  This is what I threw in the pot today:

I release my disempowered thoughts and feelings around my worth, deserving and access to money and fabulous things in my life. More specifically…

• I release the thoughts…’my life has always been blessed, who am I to want more’.
• I release the feelings and compulsion to ‘ask permission’ for things I desire in my life.
• I release the feeling that I need to ‘earn’ my wellbeing and abundance.
• I release the suffering and ‘playing small’ that has been a result of the above thoughts.

 In turn I invite the thoughts/statements:

• I am worthy beyond measure.
• I get to decide what I want and how much.
• I allow more expansion into my life and I deserve even more than I can articulate or know in this minute.
• I am here on earth to share my gifts and talents with others and I allow more and more people to experience them than I can even think possible.
• I deserve what I have and I deserve even more and better.
• Life is good.
• I trust myself.
• The Universe/God supports me.
• I get to decide.
• I choose THIS AND BETTER! 

What would you throw into the pot?  Release it here and we can start with a clean slate in 2013.  Namaste

 

Reflection

It is that time of year, where I’m drawn to reflect on how my year went and what I intend to bring into my life for the coming year.

As I grow more and more deliberate about creating a life that I love, this process organically comes to me and the process takes on a life of its own.  With the intention of reflection and exploration, I’m often effortlessly brought to the exact resources to support me in articulating my learnings and my desires. 

What if all it takes for us to gain the necessary insights for our growth at the end of a year and expansion for the new year, is to believe that the right information, and the right processes, and the right people will show up to support us? 

Right now I am in the thick of my process, that has come to me by way of a list of questions, not unlike the ones found here on a new site I found just a moment ago that I can tell is going to inspire my photography….but for now it gives me more questions to reflect on for the remainder of 2011.  Just finding this site and these questions already provides the evidence to my ‘what if statement’ above.  I learned the power of “What If” a year ago…What If It All Goes Right? .  What if…what if I shoot for the stars this year?  I like the feel of that question.

Five Squared

This morning a fun little exercise came to me….popped right into my head.  It is a solution to a current motivation problem I have.  I feel that some days I think of all the things I “need to do” and overwhelm happens.  Then the time zappers come; Facebook checks, refrigerator checks, email checks and back round again.  Before I know it, I have done not much of anything (or so I tell myself).  I am pretty sure I am not giving myself credit for what I really do accomplish….and for some reason it still ‘isn’t enough’. 

My “exercise” is based on the thought “What if I set goals that are meaningful AND manageable and if achievement of those goals determine whether I’ve been successful or not?”. 

Soooooo….For the next 25 days I will attempt this little ‘5×5 Exercise’….if you didn’t notice by the way, 5×5=25 (genius right?).  Here are the list of 5 things I will do 5 of…and if I accomplish each of these 5 things, my day will be a success AND if I do it for 25 days (accommodating for holiday travel), the MONTH is a success!  

1. 5 “to dos” (related to either running my life and/or business)
2. 5 minutes of meditating
3. 5 glasses of water
4. 5 chores…5 minutes a piece
5. 5 media checks (can check email/Facebook five times in the day)

Bonus –  I would like to exercise 5 times a week!

If you know me at all, you’ll know that this isn’t my first “challenge”- see here, here and here..  I like challenges…and I like what they do for me. 

Just for kicks –  Here’s to the number 5 means….numerologically speaking

The number five is all about changes.  The changes can be from good to bad or vice versa.  On the positive side, it is associated with new and visionary ideas, quick thinking, expansiveness, daring, versatility, action, curiosity, exploration, promotion, and freedom.  Negatively, the number is also associated with restlessness, edginess, dissatisfaction, hasty decisions, discontent, impatience, and boredom.

Blooming

I am overjoyed that my Violet plant has bloomed again.

I bought this plant in full bloom some time ago and then they blooms faded.

 

I watered and loved the healthy succulent leaves…but…

I had a lack of trust that those beautiful blooms would arrive again.

 

At the first sight of a bud I was giddy with anticipation.

 

I still had doubts because the buds look so wound tight and small that it didn’t make sense how that could bloom into this…but alas, one by one they are opening to this rich royal purple and I am in love and I am in awe and…

 

I am a little bit disappointed in myself for doubting that they would come.

 

Which leads me to the question, what else am I watering and caring for in doubt versus trust?  What seeds of opportunity have I planted and then left because of doubt or fear.

 

These fresh new Violet blooms are my invitation to remember to care for my desires in a place of trust and anticipation. 

Green

Among my tribe of Martha Beck coaches, there is a ritual that has been handed down by one of my teachers/mentor Pam Slim.  It comes from a Native American practice where you light a green candle on a day that has “8” in it.  Today is February 28th…so I’ve got my candle lit.  The intention is to wish prosperity and abundance for oneself and for all.  I cannot say I always remember to do it; but when I do I have such a sense of peace about me.  Today’s prosperity prayer has such an interesting meaning to me because in the past two weeks I’ve committed to taking a harder look at my money beliefs and my journey to “financial sovereignty” (a term I learned from my other teacher/mentor Michele Woodward).  This weekend I a) made a big financial decision for myself and chose to tell my husband versus ask (an old habit) b) I sat down with my husband (over a yummy meal) to discuss my goals toward building a different and healthier relationship with our money and to talk goals for ourselves.  Since I’ve lit my candle, I’ve paid out the big financial investment (from (a) above) and I’ve also noticed that I see money everywhere at the moment…a dime in my car, $5 that belongs to my kids, a balance in my Paypal account, a discount for a program I’m starting.  This flow of abundance both in and out feels very very “rich” and healthy and kind and loving.  That is the relationship I am building with money.  I feel as if I’m beginning (actually restarting) my journey to financial sovereignty from a space of openness, excitement, clarity (ish), and desire.  That feels really really good.  So…today on our green candle day, I wish you peace, prosperity and abundance, it is our right!

Productivity – flow and no-flow

Some days I feel as if I’m a slow as a slug and not producing anything.  On those days if I look back, I had no clear deadlines or ‘ends’ to work toward.  Maybe if I don’t see a clear deadline I can a) create one or b) take that day off of feeling as if I NEED to be productive. 

And then there are those days…you know them…the days in which you feel as if you’re on fire and that you’re accomplishing things that make you feel super good, on top of it…AND the house gets cleaned, and you remember to mail birthday cards, and dinner is planned ahead of time.  Its as if extra hours were put in that day without you knowing it.  Those are my flow days.  I am having one today.  I have a few different ‘things’ going on at once and I am efficiently responding and producing toward completing these ‘things’.   AND I showered, AND the beds are made, AND I’m even able to write this blog….AND there are still more hours for me to do more, AND I don’t mind that there is more to do.  So…maybe on these FLOW days, I ratchet up my ideas of what I want to accomplish and just go for it…so that on my “no flow days” (as described above), I can feel fairly confident that I earned it in some way.

Another reason for my burst of productivity is that I just listened to the book Getting Things Done by David Allen…the biggest lessons I learned are…WRITE STUFF DOWN and think of the NEXT very specific step for each ‘to do’ item and write it down too. 

I’m outa’here!  Gotta do my next thing!  I’m on fire!

Happy in the NOT

This is the image I came home to after a very active but all around great day yesterday.  It was my little high-five with Mother Nature.  The clouds were yellow and I was reminded of this little video I had stumbled upon.  I did not blog as much as I wanted to this week and I have no regrets and I have no excuses and both (regrets and excuses) are things I’m trying to remove from my life…so at the end of the day, I feel successful about NOT blogging.  

 

Is there something you’re judging yourself about NOT doing.  Is there a way to find a reason to be proud about NOT doing it?   It feels kind of naughty (or NOT-y)…in a good way! 

Push me, Pull me

The theme of playing small (versus big) keeps bubbling up for me in my gremlin thoughts.  I am trying to figure out what the deal is.  On one hand, I am judging myself for not ‘just going for it in a big way’ and on the other hand I’m recognizing that “where I am right now is JUST PERFECT”.  I feel like a push-me-pull-me horse.  Part of me likes the little slice of life I’m purring along creating, and part of me believes that bigger and better things lie out there for the “making and taking”.  So, what do I do, right now, to ease the tug?…I play!  I play with writing the “big story”.  I also play with writing the “small story”.  I sit with each and decide what best speaks to me at the moment. 

Through all of this tug-o-war, I KNOW that I am safe, that I am supported AND that everything I am doing is right because “it is what it is” and nothing more (or less).  I find comfort in making peace with “what is” first and then playing with the options for the future.  That feels less like push-me-pull-me and more like progress (even if it happens to be small).

Avoidance

I am avoiding a few emails.  They’re meant for the next phase of PTA activity.  I have a little love-hate relationship with my PTA role.  My love is that I am personally making an impact in the school’s achievement and success, the hate part is…its the PTA for god sakes (think all of the generalized thoughts about PTA mom…and I am NOT that…but have to pretend).  I never saw myself as a PTA mom and so I’m a little “out of my skin” with this role.  However, I know I’m good at what I’m doing.  I can see the impact I have.  I “get to” witness my kids’ education from a proactive perspective.  There is a lot of upside…but the downside can trip me up sometimes.

 

When I procrastinate it can either feel like avoidance OR sometimes I almost have a 6th sense that waiting is a good thing.  There have been times where procrastinating has actually served me well like when a project gets canned before I’ve spent too much time on it OR waiting a little has allowed more answers and information to form so the task can be done more swiftly.  However, there are some times when crappy stuff needs to be done and there are no ‘good reasons’ for waiting except that you abhor the thought of doing what you need to do.  I think I’m in the latter situation. 

 

In the “old days” I would get my dictator whip out and just sit myself down and do it in an un-empowered way, but today, I’m going to devise a plan that feels a little more proactive and fun.  So the goal is…send emails out to key people regarding the next wave of communication (this will be a monthly activity).  It will involve 2/3 emails.  I will set a timer…for 20 minutes.  What I get done in that 20 minutes will be adequate for today.  I will assess the amount of work left to be done.  If it involves another 20 minute stint (or more), I’ll save it for tomorrow.  If it is a few more minutes, I’ll get ‘er done.  When my 20 minutes is up!  I get a juicy reward…to finish my book today Women Food and God by Geneen Roth.  As a bonus:  if I beat the clock…I get to start a new book! 

 

Now I’m excited to get these tasks done.  What a difference 20 minutes makes (that is how long it took to write this blogpost)!