Month: February 2016

Dear Readers,

So I heard a speech on Tuesday from my good friend Shauna about what the Dalai Lama has to say about humanity and taking a breath to REALLY take in the person across from you and really live in your present and I have had subsequent conversations about the french fry theory- For more on that you will have to talk to my friend Leanne, suffice it to say its about living in the moment and seizing your life (*and the ephemeral fried food which is only good for about 3 minutes and then its worthless.. Science does not lie*) and really living it. I feel as though I do a very good job of this most of the time but today I was reminded that amidst aggravation and frustration I was talking to a real human and it was my duty to SEE her as a human not as the source of my annoyance. Taking that beat, feeling that mindfulness that Rachel talks about (man I have some seriously wise friends) made a TREMENDOUS difference in the interaction and as a result I feel much more at peace with the world in general.

So my message to you? The next time you feel your ire being raised,  take that moment, look the other person in the eye and see them for the human being they are and give them that breath to be themselves and express their humanity to you and then in doing so, embrace your own humanity….

Think about it….

 

Dear Readers,

Today is a stressful day at work and that is okay, I think sometimes stress is good. It means change (always inevitable) is coming and that you get the opportunity to adapt to it.

The same is true about life. I can choose to stress out about the fact that I am not going to be ready for the 1020  in April or I can embrace the fact that I had a health issue and move past it. For those who don’t know, I pulled my back in January (on my birthday in fact) and I am just this week starting to feel like my “old self” so I am going back to working out but it will be a slow track back. I was talking to my workout buddy about this and she was super supportive and said, “you need to do what is right for you” and it got me thinking.

Where does stress actually come from? I think it has to do with expectations, yours for yourself and other people’s expectations of you. You may or may not know this, but you can’t control what other people expect of you. You can ONLY control what YOU expect of you. So if you are expecting too much of yourself, lower your expectations to something slightly more realistic and in doing so, you will likely lower your stress.

It sounds sooooo simple.. but like most simple advice, its simple to say, HARD to do.

What expectations do you have of yourself and are you causing some of your own stress by being too hard on yourself?

Think About It…. The choice is completely up to you!

Dear Readers,

Yesterday I was a little late for work and because I was I got all kinds of questions about where I was and what was wrong and why wasn’t I there?

I can only surmise because it is out of character for me to be late. It is true, I tend to show up early and stay late.. and most of the time I am at least 5 minutes early to boot. I guess it comes from a military mindset of “if you are on time, you are late, if you are early, you are on time” and a strong work ethic. To be sure there are times when you are late that it simply is out of your control but a habit of being late is not one I have.

I had occasion to run into someone today who made it pretty clear to me that I matter to her and something I said to her a YEAR ago has made a large difference to her finances. I have had similar conversations with some of my readers, team members and clients who have said the same in one form or another. It is meaningful each time I hear it.

I think it continues to shock me because for a very long time in my life I was told by relatives that I did not matter and I believed it for a really long time. It’s only after acquiring people in my life (that family of choice I am always talking about) who told me otherwise (on a consistent basis) that I began to believe it. It took years for me to actually take compliments without sloughing them off like its nothing.

So while this post is about making a difference and about me realizing that I profoundly matter.  This post is also about YOU.

YOU make a difference to someone else, trust me. You might be the difference between that someone smiling because of a compliment you gave them. You might be the only nice word that someone hears today. The text you send to a friend you are thinking of could be the lift they need to keep going through a difficult time.

Think About It.

Dear Readers,

My mom says this .. to me.. a lot. She even put it on a pillow so I would always have a reminder.. In fact, I got two adult coloring books, one from her and one from my husband so I think they are both trying to tell me something.. n’cest pas?

Well that is the point of this post, to relax, relax, relax. Yes, have goals, but take stock from time to time to say.. I did this. and that is great.. Relax, Relax, Relax.

So you want to lose weight? Yes, I do. Well, there is going to be king cake and cookies and things to derail you.. Relax, Relax, Relax.. Choose your indulgence and don’t overdo it… being from New Orleans so the idea of not eating king cake????? .. forget about it! I did have a slightly smaller piece than I would have.. but I did eat some. Relax, Relax, Relax…

You want to run a 1/2 marathon? Okay, well realize it may take a while because you recently had a setback with your back so you have to slow down. Relax, Relax, Relax…

You want to give a TED talk? Okay, well realize you need to hone your message and figure out what you REALLY want to talk about  and then decide if its a message worth spreading.. and then .. Relax, Relax, Relax…. I think you get the picture…

But in case you don’t.. try this on for size.. You will always have something to worry about or wonder about but sometimes it is just as important in the journey to (say it with me) Relax, Relax, Relax

This is a foot picture.. we took it at Multnomah Falls last year on our ‘second honeymoon’ I remember feeling very much at peace.. let me ask you, where do you go to “relax, relax, relax”?

Think About It.