a tickle of words to create smiles

Posts tagged ‘Health’

Inspiration

Inspiration. Feel your way and move into your inspiration.

Inspiration is an internal movement or feeling that drives people to do something of significance. It is a positive emotional state that gets people going because their hearts are in a happy stir. This is what gets a person to act on whatever their dream or goal may be. Inspiration can come from God, nature, meditating, people, events, music, movies, art, education… inspiration can come from anything especially if it something new to them.

Nature is one of the best sources of inspiration as everything in nature is balanced so beautifully. The cycle of life and the movement of energy in nature is wonderfully orchestrated, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Energy flows from the nutrients of the soil into the roots of plants and into the systems of animals. As animals pass waste (through their systems) or die, their wastes are broken down by bacteria back to the nutrients that are then returned to the soil.

Standing in the midst of such bustling activity is truly inspirational. As we approach the vernal equinox you can see evidences of spring awakenings as the apical meristems bud forward on every tree and shrub. The songbirds are returning and are starting to nest. The weather is getting warmer, the days are getting longer and so the inspiration flows.

Meditating and simply sitting in quiet can bring inspiration. After one is able to quiet his or her mind, then true inspiration from one’s inner wisdom will rise. For many, sitting in silence and allowing the mind to quiet down is quite a challenge. Soft, instrumental meditative music can be helpful, as one sits in a comfortable position and breathes deeply.

If there is too much noise in your head, a great activity to do first is to write all the thoughts that are floating around in your mind. You can also doodle these thoughts until you feel your mind grow quiet. Then, try meditating again. Another good way to meditate is to repeat one word or a sound in your mind or aloud softly, like “breathe” or “ohm”. There is not one absolute way to meditate; simply do what is best for you to get you into a quiet space. Sitting out in nature also helps many people to get to a quiet place in their mind so they can mediate and become inspired.

Conversations with others can equally be stimulating and inspirational. These conversations can be with like-minded people or with completely polar opposites, where there may be some debate. A person can gain perspective that way, even is he or she does not agree on an issue or topic. Brainstorming with others, especially where there is an intention or goal in mind, can be a very good source of inspiration and shift a person to act.

Inspiration can come from all forms or genres of music, art, movies and events. There are multiple sources of inspiration as long as you are open to them. Try doing something different and new like: a new beverage or food, a new activity or visit a new shop or café. Strike up a conversation with someone new. What is something you have wanted to try or do? What is stopping you to just try it? See if that inspires you. Some good questions to ask yourself are: What would I do if I had all the courage in the world? Who would I like to emulate and why? What would they do? What do I feel most passionate about? What brings a burning desire in my heart? What fires me up? What is my source of inspiration? Feel your way and flow into your inspiration.

Related articles

Category:

Inspiration, Intention, Life, Psychology, Relationships

Tagged with:

Authenticity

How does one define authenticity? Authenticity is the state of being real, truthful, genuine and/or sincere. One of the hardest things to do is to be authentic when you do not know who you are. Defining yourself and your purpose builds confidence and authenticity; furthermore, with authenticity, you build relationships based on love and trust.

That is great if you know who you are; but, suppose you are not clear on your purpose and/or who you truly are? A good place to start is to place yourself in front of a mirror and state your name, “I am…[insert your name]” Then follow this up with all those positive affirmations that you know are true about yourself, “I am smart; I am open to new ideas; I am a good listener; I am a good friend; I am a great parent; I am wonderful spouse; I am…” Allow the list to go on and on.

Then write these positive affirmations down on notes you can stick all over the place to remind you of exactly all the wonderful things you are. Also, consider all the activities and events that bring you joy. Write these down in a notebook or journal, along with all the positive affirmations. Reflect on these, as these begin to define who you are authentically.

Guess what? You are what you think you are. You become your words and your thoughts. Also, you get to choose those words and thoughts every single day and every single moment of your life. There are many methods to help people clarify who they are and their purpose. A phenomenal way to gain clarity is through life coaching and/or mental health counseling. Now, consider the following, are you being true to yourself and others? What are you thinking right now? Are they positive thoughts?  Remember, thoughts become reality.

Related articles

Category:

Education, Inspiration, Intention, Joy, Life, Psychology, Relationships

Tagged with:

Balance

Have you ever felt off-balanced or out of sorts? Most people have. What does balance look like and how does one define balance? Balance is a state of equilibrium, where one is in a place of contentment. One can think of balance as being in a place where it is neither hot nor cold. It is warm and comfortable; it is purple, orange or green; it is maybe; it is something in between the extremes. Balance is about being in the middle. Visualize a circus performer balancing on a tight-rope and walking slowly and deliberately. That is one way of looking at balance.

How can balance be applied to one’s life or how can one get balance in his or her life? Awareness is the first step to achieving balance. Stop, look and reflect and see what might be causing the imbalance. An unexpected event can cause imbalance in one’s life, such as, a car accident or losing one’s job. How does one cope with life-altering events? Change your focus from the life-altering situation and look at the big picture. How?

The best way to change your focus and get back into balance is to ask a few questions: What is the lesson in all of this? What is the positive side in this situation? Where is the opportunity in this situation? How can I bless it and move back to a place of equilibrium? And, what can I laugh about this situation in my life? Andy Dooley has a fabulous you tube video that address how to feel good. Feeling good can equate to feeling balanced as long as one is feeling good when he or she is back in his or her routine and balanced again.

Seeing a negative situation from different perspectives can help one achieve balance. Talk to yourself as if you were looking at yourself as another person, in other words, try to be objective. Balance can be achieved when people address themselves with their given names. Self-dialogue could look something like this: (The person’s name is Joe or Mary.) “Hey, Joe/Mary, yes life is less than perfect right now, but look at the blessings in the situation… it is a blessing to meet talented people in a different field of expertise, it is a chance to learn something new, it is a blessing to see things differently; yes, it hurts right now, but now different choices and decisions can be made about the future…”

One can also achieve balance by sitting in quiet, which means take time to sit alone in silence and simply breathe slowly. Focus on the breathing. If one needs more centering and focus, then one can pray or meditate. A person can pray for balance or simply state over and over in his or her mind: “I am in balance” or ” I have balance” or “I am balance.” Ambient music or sounds of nature in the background may help to create an environment conducive to prayer and meditation. Using aromatherapy is also a great way to create a tranquil environment.

When one is in a state of overwhelm there are three things he or she can do to get balance again. First of all, one can make small movements toward the source of the overwhelm like needing to lose 50 pounds or putting together a major business proposal.  A person can take little steps; it is movement, albeit small, that will ultimately get a person to his or her big goal. These mini-goals could be like letting go of one to two pounds a week or tackling the business proposal in chunks (such as researching it or writing it in fifteen minute bites).

The second thing one can do is not get hung up on perfectly moving toward his or her major goal. It is still a movement toward his or her goal. When one is moving toward a weight loss goal, he or she need not get caught up in the minutia of having to follow a weight loss plan perfectly. If one had a lapse of judgment for a snack or meal, this does not have to sabotage the efforts one has already put into his or her weight loss progress. An individual can simply take ownership of that one mishap and make the next decision a better one. In creating a business proposal, writing something is better than writing nothing at all. One can always edit his or her work after the proposal is completed.

The third thing one can do is to create a support system or delegate some of the responsibility of that overwhelming goal. With a business proposal, one can seek others to do the research so he or she can work on the writing. With weight loss goals, one can seek a support system with others who also wish to lose weight. They can hold each other accountable, dialogue about the challenges they have had, and celebrate the small and large victories.

One of the best things an individual can do to get from a place of imbalance to balance is to do something totally different. If one is traditionally very independent and almost never communicates his or her challenges to others, then, perhaps it is due time for this person to seek guidance from an expert or counselor. If one continues to do what he or she have always done, then he or she will continue to get what he or she have always gotten (a quote adopted from Anthony Robbins and edited by Dr. Angela Kowitz Orobko). Here is an amusing thought that Albert Einstein shared, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Does this suggest many people are insane? Perhaps. 

Consider this, how can people shift their thoughts and emotions toward balance? How does it feel?

Related articles

Category:

Education, Inspiration, Intention, Joy, Life, Psychology

Tagged with:

%d bloggers like this: