Self-empowerment

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The Art of Bringing Your Dreams to Life

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Did you know we are wired for expansion, growth and transformation? Even the Buddhist teachings share the wisdom of our innate human need for balance in our lives. It’s important to be grounded in gratitude AND keep reaching and expressing ourselves creatively.

The rub comes in when we get frustrated by feeling our “dream” life is too hard or difficult to reach. Our mind starts displaying a running screen of pitfalls, challenges, road blocks and obstacles to our path that we ultimately believe we can’t overcome.

But, is this really true? Stay with me for a few minutes as we look more closely at this all-t00-common dilemma and how you can overcome it.

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Are you tired of avoiding conflict in order to keep the peace?

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Are you tired of avoiding conflict in order to keep the peace? Like many people who are frustrated by feeling other people overly rely on them, you are probably secretly exhausted and tired of the job. In fact, if truth be known, you would love to take a break from all their drama, excuses, negativity and complaining.

Elevator to enlightenment out-of-order, you must take the stairs

Were you raised to see happiness and joy as something you must sacrifice and struggle to achieve? Yep. Me, too.

Until the day my worldview changed.

In October of 2015 I joined my Mom and husband, Eric, for a trip of a lifetime. Itinerary name: The Holy Lands and Beyond. Highlighted port stops included Israel, Turkey, Greece, and Italy. I’ve always been fascinated by different beliefs and customs that make up the heartbeat of a culture. Walking through ancient ruins and feeling their stories ~ an absolute dream come true.

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Meet the Seven of Fire: Assertiveness and Extreme Self-Care

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Are you frustrated by feeling other people are overly reliant on you? Are you secretly exhausted and tired of the job? You may even dream about taking a break from all the drama, excuses and complaining.

Yet… you were raised, praised and conditioned to be a people pleaser. You know the old mantra, it’s better to give than to receive.

Truth be told, you don’t mind some of the time. Just not all of the time. Why? Because it’s emotionally exhausting. Unsustainable.

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A Remedy for Unrealized Dreams and Disappointments

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One of the most common excuses or complaints I hear around the concept of following dreams is not having what it takes.  Whatever "it" is?  The truth is, we all have dreams and visions of creating something tangible from our imaginations.  And thinking about sharing this with others and enjoying the fruits of our labors can be intoxicating.  Exciting. Yummy!

If we really allow ourselves to dream big, we can easily envision ourselves living a full and thriving life. Laughing. Exploring. Spending time with friends and loved ones. Working passionately in our chosen vocation.  And having the overall sense of living life on our own terms.

But…eventually we come back to our so called "senses" and sufficiently scare ourselves right back into staying small.  The excitement was palpable. The smiles and laughter felt real. Our life was so different. But. But, the doubts begin to settle in.

Saying No To Madagascar....

I heard this phrase recently and I didn't understand the context until I heard the entire backstory. A few years ago Dr. Robert Holden was leading a weekend retreat for the executive Hay House team. He explained the importance of dealing with schedules and commitments. And, that Sometimes You Have to Say No to Madagascar.  Meaning: there will be times in our lives when we have to say no to the one thing we have longed for. Not because we don't want it, but because saying Yes to it would dilute everything else in our life.

Life is an Adventure...(Not a Package Tour)

I literally laughed out loud recently when I heard this passage. I was listening to an internet radio show and the host was giving advice to a caller who was bemoaning their life circumstances. After several minutes the host said, "I'm going to share a quote with you from Spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle--'life is an adventure, not a pre-packaged tour'." Nothing gets quite to the heart of a dialogue like humor. I've heard the reference to the beginning of the saying many, many times. The package tour reference was new to me.

Let Happiness Chase After You...

In the fall of 2015 I joined my Mom and husband, Eric, for a two week Mediterranean Cruise. The itinerary name: The Holy Lands and Beyond.  Highlighted port stops were Israel, Turkey, Athens and Rome.  I have always been fascinated by different beliefs and customs that make up the heartbeat of a culture.  So, the thought of participating in a trip destination that was non-denominational peaked my interest.  Big Time! Always a lover of history I was especially excited about seeing ancient cities, temples and architecture.  In addition to these amazing sights we'd be participating in a Hay House sponsored speaker line-up on days we were at sea.  The amazing Dr. Wayne Dyer was to be our headliner; however, he had passed away a month before the Cruise date.

Remember Rule #6

There's a story about a gentleman who worked in a corporate setting.  He was busy, busy, busy rushing around answering emails, texts, phone messages and worried about the looming deadlines of upcoming projects. One particularly frenetic day he burst through the doors of his boss' office and started talking quickly about the stresses.  His boss interrupted him and said, "Hold on.. hold on.  Remember Rule #6."  At this the worker instantly calmed down, relaxed and smiled to himself.

Think Bigger... No, Bigger!

How comfortable are you with letting yourself think outside of the box?  Often times we aren't even aware of how confined we live.  A good way to check where you are on the "living-in-the-box" or "living-out-of-the box" scale is to check how many times you say No.  No, immediately followed by a self-limiting excuse. And, just to be clear... there is a huge difference between the No that comes from not wanting to over-extend and the No that comes from fear-based living.

Re-energize Your Intuition

We all know the sensation of listening to our gut instinct, but how often do we trust it? In my own experience, it's typically after something happened that went against my better judgement.  I would then say, "I knew it!  I totally knew that was going to happen. Why didn't I listen?"  It wasn't always this way, though.  I'm sure many of you can relate. Have you had these feelings, too? Or, perhaps you already have a healthy relationship with inner guidance.  But, do you trust it to guide you? I mean really trust it? All the time.  Are you a good listener?  Or, have you pushed it to the back burner and relied more heavily on logic and intelligence to make decisions?  

Inner Magic Lamp--(better than a Lotto ticket!)

Who hasn't thought about how wonderful it would be to find a magic lamp? Three wishes. Done and done! But, wait.. how do we truly decide? How can we possibly narrow it down? When pressed most most people overwhelmingly place boat loads of money at the top of the list. After this it becomes more fuzzy because with all the money we could possibly want, what else do we need?  Perhaps we wish for perfect health, creating our own business, traveling more or spending quality time with friends and family.

No is a Complete Sentence

One of the biggest challenges I hear repeatedly from students, friends and family is feeling guilty about saying no.  Who hasn't felt the intense pull of obligation to spend time with someone or attend an activity that deep down you really don't want to? Often times people say, 'I have to do this' or 'I have to do that'.  But, in fact, do you?  Says who? And why?