There I was hovering over a busy ant-hill when thought I heard something. I leaned in a little closer to see what it was. You won’t believe it, but I’ll share it anyway.

“Do you suppose there is any rhyme or reason to any of this?” Dweedle-Ant posed.

“He He He! Of course, Mant! Of course! Just take a look at that cute little heiny and tell me that ain’t no reason. That’s a reason!” bellowed and guffawed Sext-Ant.

“Sure, if all that matters to you is thorax and antennae, Perv!” stated Iman-Ant. “Of course there is a point to it all, Dweedle-Ant.”

“Each and every one of us is a piece of a larger whole. The whole is the colony. While a colony can continue without us, it is no longer the same colony. The whole keeps changing, and yet, it depends upon us for its own existence. It is the nature of Life. Before the flower came the bud, before the bud came the stem, before the stem-the roots, before the roots-the seed, and after all is said and done, all that was the flower is returned to multiple seeds. These seeds varying in the sum totality of the experiences in the journey of the flower’s life.”

“So, you see, we don’t know and experience the future now. We pour ourselves into the now, knowing that a future self that is the sum of everything before (self-included), and aspires to even greater, will have more of the answers than we have now,” finished Iman-Ant.

Sext-Ant yawns and exhales, “Well you mucks can do whatever you want, or believe whatever you want. Me? I’m just going for more T & A, baby, T & A!” And sauntered off with a howl that dwindled to a chuckle.

Wow! They’re not much different than us, eh?

I don’t usually share other people’s written material, particularly if it is already on the web. However, this particular article came to me via email, as I also subscribe to Jon’s great Newsletter. This particular list happened to arrive at a time when I, too, needed the encouragement it offered. It’s never that we’re handling a situation badly, so much as every little piece of encouragement is good and useful, empowering and strengthening us on our individual journeys.

20 Ways to Get Mentally Tough

(Excerpt from Training Camp: What the Best Do Better Than Everyone Else)

1. When you face a setback, think of it as a defining moment that will lead to a future accomplishment.
2. When you encounter adversity, remember, the best don’t just face adversity; they embrace it, knowing it’s not a dead end but a detour to something greater and better.
3. When you face negative people, know that the key to life is to stay positive in the face of negativity, not in the absence of it. After all, everyone will have to overcome negativity to define themselves and create their success.
4. When you face the naysayer’s, remember the people who believed in you and spoke positive words to you.
5. When you face critics, remember to tune them out and focus only on being the best you can be.
6. When you wake up in the morning, take a morning walk of gratitude and prayer. It will create a fertile mind ready for success.
7. When you fear, trust. Let your faith be greater than your doubt.
8. When you fail, find the lesson in it, and then recall a time when you have succeeded.
9. When you head into battle, visualize success.
10. When you are thinking about the past or worrying about the future, instead focus your energy on the present moment. The now is where your power is the greatest.
11. When you want to complain, instead identify a solution.
12. When your own self-doubt crowds your mind, weed it and replace it with positive thoughts and positive self-talk.
13. When you feel distracted, focus on your breathing, observe your surroundings, clear your mind, and get into The Zone. The Zone is not a random event. It can be created.
14. When you feel all is impossible, know that with God all things are possible.
15. When you feel alone, think of all the people who have helped you along the way and who love and support you now.
16. When you feel lost, pray for guidance.
17. When you are tired and drained, remember to never, never, never give up. Finish Strong in everything you do.
18. When you feel like you can’t do it, know that you can do all things through Him who gives you strength.
19. When you feel like your situation is beyond your control, pray and surrender. Focus on what you can control and let go of what you can’t.
20. When you’re in a high-pressure situation and the game is on the line, and everyone is watching you, remember to smile, have fun, and enjoy it. Life is short; you only live once. You have nothing to lose. Seize the moment.

In what ways will you choose to be mentally tough? Share your comments here.

20 Ways to Get Mentally Tough Poster

Download, Print and Share as a Reminder to Be Strong Each Day!

Access additional Training Camp posters here.

Stay Positive, Jon

www.Twitter.com/JonGordon11

A fog rolled in, quietly slithering in low to the ground, imperceptible at first until it was too late to escape the chill soup.

It’s not You, it’s the It!

What the…? Do you even know what you’re talking about?

It! It’s the It, man! You’ve got it, and typically, we’ve all got it in some way, shape, or form. The beautiful thing about it though, is that It isn’t You. It just is what it is.

You, on the other hand, are the pure seed of creation seeking out its fullest potential through growth. Trouble is, you spend so much time in an imperfect world taking the hits that life throws at you, that you don’t even realize that you’re experiencing wounds and stunted areas you perceive as your imperfections. People own it as a life sentence instead of seeing their opportunities!

——-

Tell a story, or just write? Stalled by what I thought might be a clever devil, rather than an authentic self, I questioned. This is a big deal, a big moment, a potential turning-point. Dare I be so bold as to flow with it?

When a bunch of heavy puzzle pieces fall into place, a wave of emotion rushes to every pore as tears of release threaten to flood. The realization of a source that is a cause to so much of life’s difficulties, as I experience it, is profound. Reeling, my brain suddenly feels emptied, and yet, a fog is preventing focus and memory to serve normally through my day. This is some big stuff I uncovered.

It’s interesting: To sit in this experience at this moment, it is simultaneously a pleasing and unpleasant experience. It is full of rich emotions, with below-the-surface remnants of sadness, anger, frustration, and confusion swimming around freely, while a stronger emotion of wonder accompanied by curiosity, has more conscious power, even though it sometimes sees fear. Ready for a big change?

Awareness, now sees the truth as it happens, recognizes the reactions, and the choice to change the old-patterns of reaction to a healthy response living authentically. The exercise of mind, to choose differently, to commit to the process, and to engage actively with that process, will prevail over old-patterns. It’s an interesting fight.

I can see the resistance too. There is a devil in the experience of change that wishes to stay within the security of even the most foul life experiences. It is more afraid of the unknown, than it is of the painful reality it has managed to find some solace within. Even though you and I can sit here and recognize this, we also feel that other sense screaming, “No, this is not the experience of life I signed up for! There is more! Much more!” Pay attention.

Knowing it is one thing. Acting upon it is quite another. Need it be so difficult? We’ll discover more on this as the story and research unfolds.

Tama J. Kieves is a kindred spirit in the world of coaching. I often enjoy reading her email newsletters and this one received today is one of those rare beauties that I’m delighted to share with my readers.

Tama’s Musings reprinted with permission.

(Note: This was supposed to go out on Valentine’s Day, but we chose Divine Timing instead….)

A Love Letter from the Divine…

I want you to know that I love you very much. It doesn’t matter to me if you eat fudge ice cream in your vintage underwear in the middle of the night. And I think you’re precious, not following through on your Gratitude Journal yet, fourth year running. Beloved, I’m not the least bit concerned with those unsavoury thoughts about your ex. I am not limited to momentary facts. I know your shimmering nature. I know how AMAZING you are.

But if I’m honest, I am a little concerned about this. I wonder why you don’t trust the desires that have always been yours. You strive to ignore your wildest dreams because they feel so good, but I thought that surely you’d recognize their unrivalled power because they feel so good. Please know I supplied you with unstinting resources and a hunger strong enough to make any of your desires come true. And surely you’ve noticed a few of the lines I’ve written for you in some of the self-help books you’ve read. I keep putting those books out there and you even keep buying them. But, still, I find you sitting in the corner as though you are an orphan child, as though you’ve been abandoned without a key, a charm, a brand new GPS system and an entourage waiting just for you. I even hear you whisper, “I don’t know what to do.”

But I gave you a Free Pass. I gave you a Free Pass to the life that stirs your blood and strengthens your bones. Yes, of course there are challenges. But I thought you’d enjoy the thrill of the chase that way. I didn’t want to make it easy. I know your strength and capacity. I thought you’d find the deluxe wild ride entertaining. I didn’t think you’d ever believe that circumstances could stop you. You are unstoppable. You are branded with my love and with my infinite energy.  But here’s the thing. When you stop believing in your soul’s desires, you’ve stopped believing in me. When you give up on yourself, you don’t feel my Presence anymore. Now that just destroys me. I’ve sung to you from the radios and sent morning doves and dragon flies to mark your path. I’ve used your life coaches and therapists to tell you the truth. I whisper to you constantly. Sometimes I even press down on your heart or turn the flames up on your blood pressure. I’ll do anything dear one to reach you. I’ll never give up on you. I want you to know what you’re here for. I want you to stop denying what you know. Your doubt is poison. It is not protecting you.

Now I know that you think you will not be rewarded in the world for your singular expression, temperament, and abilities, but I tell you it is not true, dear one. You will know nothing but reward when you share your love. You will transform into another you, the real you, the one without limits, shame, fear or regrets. So dearest Beloved, I send you a thousand roses of Spirit and ten thousand dark chocolates of soul. I don’t want a tryst with you. I want the whole thing, the Grand Love Affair of watching you bloom and heal and let go of every false limitation you’ve ever believed about yourself or the rest of your shining world. These thoughts only make you tired. The truth would have you laughing and clapping and hugging every precious soul around you. I want you to burst through the density of this world with the power of your totality. I want you to know what it’s like to fully trust your love and not look over your shoulder. I want you to know I’ve got your back, your front, your sides, and your soul. I want you to honour your true desires because they are your arrows. And like Cupid, I’ve shot them through your heart. Cupid copied me by the way! Please know that whatever you choose–and whenever you choose it– you are loved and sustained in ways you can’t even fathom from your side of the veil. You are my Beloved and I’m always here for you.  Happy Valentine’s Day….everyday!

—Your Loving Universe

P.S. Stop watching the news so much. Your life is the news.

Tama

©Copyright 2008 Tama J. Kieves. All rights reserved.

Feel free to forward this copy to anyone you think might enjoy it.
Please keep the entire message intact, including contact, logo, and copyright information. Thank you.

Want to discuss this or any other aspect of living your dreams? Please visit our free discussion forum.

Tama J. Kieves
www.AwakeningArtistry.com
The Art of Living Your Dreams

“If you’re this successful doing work you don’t love,
what could you do with work you do love?”

THIS TIME I DANCE!
Creating the Work You Love/
How One Harvard Lawyer Left It All to Have It All!

From the archives August 28, 2006

Getting excited about life can sometimes seem elusive when we’re dealing with many challenges and the associated stress. We always want to experience the best that life has to offer. At times, this preference may have us trying to avoid the challenges life throws our way. Regardless of my preference though, life seems to proceed and the challenge is survived. Along the way, as multiple challenging life situations are simply allowed to co-exist, I discovered an important quality that sustains and fuels my spirit. Not only does this quality help with the journey through difficulty, it also attracts positive experiences that can act as a counter-balance. This quality is gratitude.

Gratitude is more than just acknowledging thanks. It is more than intellectual exercise. It is much more than an obligation. Gratitude is a state of being that appreciates all that is good and welcomed in our life. Gratitude appreciates from the mind through intentional thought that recognizes the richness of our emotional connections with others, and all good things that bless our lives. Relationships are the most significant source for virtually all experiences of gratitude.

Relationship is at play in every interaction and opportunity with another living being. This is one significant reason why pets have been recognized as having a therapeutic and healing effect on patients. The positive experience and exchange of loving energy is present in that moment creating a brief encounter of gratitude, love, and joy. The worry and fear related to a loss of health is momentarily forgotten allowing the fullness of the positive experience to work its’ magic. Taking hold of this perspective, if we acknowledge and allow this focus to become a guiding presence with every connection to another life, I wonder how much more gratitude would be experienced and how much more magic would be enjoyed? I have been enjoying this experience of gratitude and how it positively affects my outlook and each day. With this enjoyment also comes the fuel to go further, not just with gratitude, but also with every other area and dream for my life. A large part of this is the gratitude for the unknown.

The unknown represents the many surprises that show up every day. Too often, we’re so busy with our daily agenda that we don’t take the time to notice the unexpected and discover what surprise might be available for us in that moment. This is when the unknown can be thought of as the Unknown, the Mystery, the Universe, the Creator, etc. Whatever your belief system, there is an invisible element to the beauty and magic that has created all that we see and experience around us every year. Noticing the surprises that show up each day can enhance the experience of the unknown, strengthening the relationship with the Unknown, and increasing the experience of gratitude. With a focus and attention on gratitude each day, the experience of it in your body, in your being, heightens a sense of energy that could be thought of as aliveness. This energy, also a powerful and positive energy, attracts likeness. This is where it is important to know that gratitude is more than an intellectual exercise.

Experiencing, or feeling the energy of gratitude fully in the body is as important as the mental focus on those things you are grateful for. The mental process assists in the transformation to living a life of gratitude. The bodily experience will arrive with consistent mental focus, capturing the negative thoughts and replacing them with a positive thought, preferably combined within the context of gratitude. Consistent effort equates to practicing until this outlook and way of being becomes a habit – a positive habit that replaces one or many negative habits. As you can see, this is not an exercise of obligatory duty, offering kindness, thanks, etc., out of a sense of responsibility to others. This is an act for your own freedom and well-being.

If we are resentful we cannot experience gratitude. Trying to express gratitude out of duty to another is misplaced and misdirected. Gratitude isn’t about what you are giving another. Gratitude is about you – being in gratitude – and what it gives you. This again requires that some attention and focus must be given to the negative thoughts that are preventing the beautiful and powerful experience of gratitude. Inquire within yourself to understand the root that blocks your progress. Acknowledge the weakness once it is identified and invite the weakness to observe while you dance with possibility through exercising gratitude. In time healing and transformation will occur. Be patient with the process and yourself.

Too often we want to see results today, let alone tomorrow. As with the nature of all things, seeds need time to take root and grow. Even here you can experience gratitude, knowing that the Unknown is also acting invisibly upon each see that you plant. The best aspect of this possible reality is that it relinquishes your need to fret and worry about the results. This permits other qualities to arise within your being that also contributes to the fullest experience of gratitude: Faith and trust. Continue with the journey of gratitude and transformation knowing that you are going to see results without worrying what those results should look like. Don’t look at where you’re not, look at where you are and be joyous!

From the archives October 20, 2006 

I’ve been much busier lately. I’ve been getting out more, experiencing more, working more, and enjoying the ride. As a coach, I’m challenged to create my life daily rather than just go about life’s repetitions every day. Going about life’s repetitions for over a decade led to me waking up one day wondering, “How did I get here?” I hear similar views and feelings from many people. I read about it in the papers, see shows that reflect a similar reality, and meet folks at the coffee shop lamenting the same meaninglessness. Meaning in life is important. Rather than talk about meaning and purpose today, as I’ve usually done in the past, I’m instead going to talk about creating my life daily.

As I said, I’m a coach and one would expect a coach to have their shit together or to at least know their shit. A pun or two inadvertently enjoyed there. Now some of you are chuckling and yet, I wonder how many of you are also surprised to learn that a coach has problems? Well, again this would be a matter of perspective.

My business history involved problem-solving and creating and managing change, and these were two of the most common themes and talents I exercised naturally for more than a decade. I was good at what I did and I was good with people. I never saw what was impossible and only focused on what is possible. I rarely took ‘no’ for an answer and frequently inspired other’s perspectives to find the solutions. This is where a problem perspective has the opportunity to transform into seeing what is possible. This is a crucial moment of recognizing the power you have with choice. Choice has less to do with outer outcome or circumstances and more to do with inner being.

Being at choice is important to creating my day. Each day I wake up knowing what I don’t want via past experiences. This allows me to reframe the ‘don’t want‘ into a powerful positive ‘want‘. Stating verbally what I want energizes and strengthens the ownership I have for creating the life I desire. It’s useful to be specific as possible and yet, without data we have little information to be specific with; worse still, with bad data – bad experiences – we have incorrect or incomplete data to state what is wanted. Nonetheless, this exercise opens up power, choice, and possibility for what is to come on this day.

Embarking upon the journey today, I welcome each and every experience and social interaction. Where situations offer it, I am able to articulate and reframe where necessary what I do or don’t want in a given area of my life. Without specifics for what I do want, I may substitute the tangibles with intangibles; qualities that will satisfy my inner spirit. This exercise, being new in action or objective, may require some blind groping initially that are full of intangibles; until enough experience has yielded the information that allows you to clarify the tangibles. This is the art of creating your life.

It is knowing that you are at choice at every moment of every day. Even a non-choice is a choice. Every mistake or bad experience is useful information that offers insight into right action for future choices. Again, knowing that you are at choice allows for mistakes without self-blame. Instead, mistakes are met with gratitude and embraced to enact change that will bring about more positive experiences. Where the future cannot be envisioned, I can project my want with intangibles such as joy, fulfillment, love, or whatever other descriptor that will shift my energy to focus on the power of wants rather than the negativity of ‘don’t wants’. Then I enjoy the journey and the process and embrace the natural unfolding of me and my life. Do we ever stop learning about ourselves?

Try using any combination of the following to help you create your day:

What do I want?
What don’t I want?
Repeated intentionally: What do I want?
What is my passion?
What is my purpose?
What brings me joy?
What causes me to forget the time?
What do I want more of?
What do I want less of?

State as often as possible what I want.
Notice what I’m doing and how or who I am being.
Notice qualities, traits, characteristics, etc. about self and others.

Observe my beliefs and emotions:
Are they serving me?
Am I serving them?
What is it costing me?
What am I saying Yes to?
What am I saying No to?

Be courageous.
Be gentle.
Be patient.
Be love.

Let’s talk about God, baby.
It’s all about You and Me.
There’s always more to see.

God is simply a word of convenience. I use it regularly for that simple purpose. Unfortunately, the word literally robs the fullest extent of possibilities. How can a word have so much power as to steal away the magnitude of what it represents?

Propaganda, egoism, war, religion, culture, politics, greed, corruption, power, fame, and I’m sure a host of other human sins could easily be that trigger. So much has been done… In the name of God… ignoring the vast nature of whom they took for granted. And God didn’t care. I’m sorry if this seems offensive.

I’ve found that something of this magnitude which represents so much more than just a human being on one planet in an entire Universe — and then maybe more — could not possibly be concerned with having to care for a system of Life that functions exactly as it should. In other words, things work exactly how they are supposed to work.

God, Life, Creator, Source, Universe, Existence, Light, Love, Energy, Allah, and I suspect some others, all lead to and refer to the same thing. A mystical force, unseen by the naked eye, often times felt and experienced in a way that is very personal and internal, that transcends and is spoken about in all corners of the world, all cultures, all languages, and has done so since the beginning of time.

What is it? An experience of something far bigger than we are, that creates and gives life, that we are a part of, and that there is still so much more mystery (knowledge) to gain, explore, and acquire before we may ever come close to having a definitive answer. And even then, I’m sure it could be challenged.

It is not a creature of feeling in the way you and I are; it is far bigger than that and encompasses that life-force-energy that drives our sexual and creative urges at their highest peaks, and most likely it experiences / delivers / creates / something, of that force on its’ own accord every second of our up-and-down experience. How?

The simplest answer, the easiest to untangle, is to broaden the concept in our own mind and sum it up with simple words that represent so much in our understanding and experience. Everything that is good, from our experience, represents a fraction of insignificance, in relation to the enormous nature of that entity, easily represented by Existence and/or Universe. Exactness, at that magnitude, doesn’t require precision for our mind to grasp.

Rather than disputing this, I say embrace this common, tribal root level worldwide belief, or better yet, understanding. To help keep the mind open, try not to make it any more difficult to explain than the experience of the wind. To not yet be able to see it, other than through its’ force. However, if it be force, recognize that mysterious force that always sustains and guides life.

Isn’t there something mystical about it?

By the way, my recent experiences suggest this is in some fashion true. In particular, overcoming the quibbling nature of what the differences are that have been dividing everyone for so long, I let science open a way of integrating this idea. This allowed me to accept more, experience more gratitude, see more opportunity, ride the challenging waves, and so much more. The weirder part is how much more exact, and almost perfect everything seems to be. It’s just weird, okay?

Just some thoughts….. nothing hard and fast.

Lee

The conflicted craziness that observes our current cultural and societal reality tears at the heart and mind from time-to-time. Today, being pointed to one of Einstein’s writings, I picked the following that resonates with a strong value I hold dear.

The really valuable thing in the pageant of human life seems to me not the political state, but the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it alone creates the noble and the sublime, while the herd as such remains dull in thought and dull in feeling.

Reading further, his lifetime having witnessed the worst of man’s nightmares and tragedies, including his own hand involved with creating a force of such destructive power, Albert Einstein shares a perspective that he holds passionately. He is not alone.

“This topic brings me to that worst outcrop of herd life, the military system, which I abhor… This plague-spot of civilization ought to be abolished with all possible speed. Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism — how passionately I hate them!

In American Beauty, Kevin Spacey narrates his story. Upon his death, his narration describes a perspective and overwhelming sensation that life is so beautiful that it causes his heart to feel ready to burst.

For some reason, reading the following excerpt, I feel as though this is a piece of the mystery shared by Einstein that has also given me experiences of similar nature.

“The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science. Whoever does not know it and can no longer wonder, no longer marvel, is as good as dead, and his eyes are dimmed. It was the experience of mystery — even if mixed with fear — that engendered religion. A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, our perceptions of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty, which only in their most primitive forms are accessible to our minds: it is this knowledge and this emotion that constitute true religiosity. In this sense, and only this sense, I am a deeply religious man… I am satisfied with the mystery of life’s eternity and with a knowledge, a sense, of the marvelous structure of existence — as well as the humble attempt to understand even a tiny portion of the Reason that manifests itself in nature.”

I’ve struggled for years with religions, new age, spirituality, and whatever the Truth is supposed to represent. After years of toil, exploration, delving through the inner and outer as described by Einstein in his own reflections, I’ve reached much the same conclusion. I believe today we have access to more insight from science than was available to him, though I suspect his intimacy with the subject has him standing on far more solid ground with faith and the art of living faith than most in society today.

There is always so much more…

Lester Burnham, narrating his observations after death in the final moments of the film, American Beauty, says,

I guess I could be pretty pissed off about what happened to me, but it’s hard to stay mad when there is so much beauty in the world.

Sometimes I feel like I’m seeing it all at once and it’s too much. My heart fills up like a balloon that’s about to burst. And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold onto it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can’t feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life.

You have no idea of what I’m talking about I’m sure. But don’t worry, you will some day.

Do you have the courage to let go, to flow, and to grow in gratitude?

Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving a month earlier than their American cousins. Sitting at the computer screen realizing I hadn’t posted anything for a couple of days, I figured I better find something to say. Being single, the holidays don’t mean that much to me and they sort of sneak up unnoticed, and thankfully, will often slip past unnoticed as well. I keep myself busy in many other ways.

As I recalled Thanksgiving, I wondered about the month separating the Canadian and American thanksgiving holiday. Not one to obsess over such trivial matters, a thought occurred that seemed to fit. Up here in the north of the Americas, our winter comes sooner, as does our fall, as does our harvest, and hence, our Thanksgiving. Seems plausible.

This isn’t the theme though is it? Just a curious side-note. Thanks for humouring me.

Thanksgiving is a time to express gratitude. There are so many things, even in spite of the hardships and difficulties I may be experiencing, or have experienced.

After a serious accident, while I may never be the same solid structural human I once was, I am solid and fit and the injured joint is recovering well with good mobility and strength. I suspect this trend will continue.

Here is one that is big and juicy for my world. I love people, and I love to be connected to some friends. What have I got to be Thankful for? This year has seen incredibly wonderful people show up in my social circles. I’m talking about people who inspire and bring out the best in me, people who support the me that I am and encourage the gift of my life to be realized for the benefit of everyone. What a supercharged gift of gratitude that brings to my heart.

With all the struggles of the past years, the broken shoulder of last fall, and the potential outcomes, I’m pretty glad I’m here writing this to you today. Things can happen that will leave you wondering, worrying, and fearful. These things can be an undoing. Somehow, I found the light and kept going to the light (bad metaphor but hey). The worst fears were parked and put away. The faith muscle grew.

How about a little gratitude for sitting there reading this right now. What do you want to be grateful for this Thanksgiving?