Are You Listening?

Written by Helaine Iris


Are You Listening? Helaine Iris © 2003

“At any moment, you have a choice, that either leads you closer to your spirit or further away from it.” Thich Nhat Hahn

Last summer my husband and I went away for our anniversary. We went torepparttar White Mountains of New Hampshire for some camping and hiking. Mind you, my husband has hikedrepparttar 123536 Appalachian Trail and his idea of a hike is far different than my idea of a hike.

He wanted to climb Moat Mountain, a two-mile climb with an elevation of 2800 feet. It was a ninety-degree day in August with about ninety percent humidity, otherwise a perfect day for a hike.

Whatrepparttar 123537 heck I thought. Not my idea of a walk inrepparttar 123538 park, yet I wanted to be with him. Part of my intention for our anniversary weekend was to do things he liked to do. I began to climb. Very soon intorepparttar 123539 hike it was clear that I was not having a good time. I was exhausted and it was dangerously hot. He kept asking me if I wanted to turn back and I stubbornly continued.

On and on I hiked. I told him he could go on ahead and I would take it slow. I crawled under bushes to catch any glimpse of shade I could find to catch my breath. I was determined to make it torepparttar 123540 top to prove to him and myself I could do it. Big mistake. A quarter of a mile fromrepparttar 123541 top my body would go no further. I limped my way downrepparttar 123542 mountain and wound up with heat stroke and spentrepparttar 123543 rest of our vacation recovering.

What this powerful experience taught me is to listen. Listen to my inner wisdom; listen torepparttar 123544 messages of my body and pay attention to what’s really happening. I knew there was no way I could make it up that mountain in ninety-degree heat and furthermore I really didn’t want to. I wanted to prove something and I disregarded my own inner wisdom.

Have you ever wondered why you don’t listen?

It is easy to get caught up inrepparttar 123545 frenzy and fullness of life and stop listening. How often do you push through a busy schedule, aware ofrepparttar 123546 stress and ignore a message you get from you body? How many times have you heardrepparttar 123547 voice of your inner knowing clearly giving you a message that you don’t stop and listen to?

Don't Accept Things the Way They Are- Instead Take Action

Written by Caterina Rando


Joan Didion, an American writer, novelist said The willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life isrepparttar source from which self-respect springs.

Often we acceptrepparttar 123535 consensus opinion ofrepparttar 123536 majority as truth. We accept what others say or do asrepparttar 123537 way things are. We accept thingsrepparttar 123538 way they appear to be instead of taking action to make themrepparttar 123539 way we want them to be. If you think "business is always slow in summer", "My manager never listens to me", "Nobody can find a good apartment fast in this market." These are false ideas you have accepted as truth. If you accept these "false truths" as fact you sabotages you ability to get what you want, you put up invisible roadblocks between you and your goals.

As you move through your life start to notice what "false truths" come out of your mouth. There may have been times when it seemed easier to come up with a "false truth" than create a solution. It may have been easier to say "there are no good jobs out there" than to go out and find one, easier to say "there is no way I could win that photo contest" than to enter. It is easier to say "she won't be interested in my product or service" than to approach your potential prospect. While it might seem easier inrepparttar 123540 moment to accept "false truths", it doesn't move your life forward. That makes everything harder.

When you make a commitment to not accepting thingsrepparttar 123541 way they are and you begin to take action, you knock downrepparttar 123542 road blocks that have been holding you back you build self respect, self confidence and you create momentum for your life.

Ask yourself what you might be accepting as "it is justrepparttar 123543 way it is?"

Some years ago I was sitting around a kitchen table one Saturday night with eight of my beautiful, successful, dynamic, single girlfriends. Somebody started complaining aboutrepparttar 123544 fact that there's no straight single men in San Francisco, then someone else chimed in and another and another - it turned into a major Kvetching session and I started to get depressed.

I decided to not accept this "false truth" and instead I took action. I called a friend who was very proactive by nature. We placed a personal ad that said:

Renaissance Men Wanted Young, hot, successful, professional women interested in arts, music, politics, culture, looking to meet men for a cocktail party.

We got over 120 voice mail responses. We listened to each of them, weeded outrepparttar 123545 weirdoes and throw not one cocktail party but, four cocktail parties. We invited 25 men to each and we recruited some other single women to come. We heldrepparttar 123546 events at a plush Indian restaurant that hadrepparttar 123547 perfect ambiance with bright colored murals and silk bench cushions. We purchased a few trays of appetizers and everyone bought their own drinks.

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