Archive for ‘Get More By Doing Less’

October 9th, 2012

What We Can All Learn from KONY 2012 Filmmaker Jason Russell

{surprise flowers from my husband.}

I’m ashamed to say I didn’t hear about Kony 2012 until Oprah’s Next Chapter. Then I found out about filmmaker Jason Russell’s sharp rise to million YouTube viewers fame and steep drop to a nervous breakdown hell. I’m not going to go into the details here. For that, you can see clips from the original video below.

What I can say is that hearing his story moved me in a significant way. And although I haven’t ever went on a public tirade or garnered a million viewers, I can relate.

Why?

Because there is a part of us that deeply desires to make a difference. There is a vast calling within us to fix the injustices of the world. And I believe there is a hidden sense of guilt that passes over us every time we watch the news, pass a homeless person or hear about a tragedy. If given free reign and voice to express our passions, how far would we go to control it? Would it consume us?

We never think about that when pursuing our dreams.

We think about getting there. We drool over the life we’ve been painting in our minds. We pull our energies to focus on what needs to get done. We don’t think about how we will deal with it when it comes.

I think we can learn a lot about Russell’s journey.

To prepare for the life we want, to brace for the wave of pulsating energy coming our way to get us to our dreams, we need to take time now to breathe. We need to surrender to the moment we’re in right now. We need to taste the salt from the ocean as much as we inhale its beauty in our memories.

When the wave comes we can surrender or become engulfed in it. Russell’s story teaches us that the only way to survive the impact is to be present, still and strong in who we are right now. On a small scale, it can teach us how we cope with life. It is the difference between allowing your breath to heal you and wash away your thoughts versus allowing it to obsessively take over your mind. You can relinquish your control over what is or you can use your energy to fight it.

In the end, if every challenge is a teacher, then allow this moment, this current challenge to be the quiz before the big test.

Right now, stop what you are doing, close your eyes, and feel the you that sits in your body. Be present in the knowledge that you are more than the things that you do, the dreams you accomplish and the success you have. You are that and everything else. Be still and acknowledge your perfect existence in an imperfect world. In doing this, you will practice shutting down the egoic mind to hear your true self.

Yes we all need to go to work, to write, to create, to tend to our children, to take care of our lives. But within the busyness of life there is peace. Let Russell’s story remind us that presence and stillness are just as important as achieving and making a difference. When life gets too hectic, remember restoration, rejuvenation and rest are always just a breath away…

Jason Russell: Why the Kony 2012 Phenomenon Was Like a Tsunami

Within 24 hours of its release online, the Invisible Children documentary Kony 2012 had more than a million views. In a week, it reached 100 million. Filmmaker Jason Russell says that what started as a wave became a tsunami. Watch as he explains what was going through his mind when the film became a phenomenon.

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February 8th, 2012

Forgive Me Fellow Friends…

while I sit down and sleep.

{found on pinterest}

Lately, I’ve been having dreams that tell me things like, “Slow down. Savor more.” No joke. But the irony is that I can’t sleep. I take this as a sign that my health’s wonky again so I probably need to take it down a notch.

This also means checking Facebook and Twitter may be excruciating these days because it’s an energy sucker that reminds me of all the things I won’t be doing in the next few days.

Forgive me while I take a slumber and take care of myself.

Have you done that lately?

Have you been running the never-ending treadmill because you’re “dying” to catch up with the rest of the world? Or have you been shutting down early these days in favor of sweet slumber and family QT (quality time)? I hope you’ve been choosing the latter. And you don’t need a blog wake up call to remind you that walking on the wild side isn’t meant to be a permanent thing. Unless you want to wake up with an irreversible disease. Not fun.

But if you do need a wake up call, I’m happy to offer it. Read day 1 of my Get More by Doing Less Challenge to start.

We’re barely gracing the surface of 2012, let’s keep trudging on. But can we do it at a turtle pace? Can we walk quietly for the sake of feeling the dirt beneath our feet instead of running quick to get to the end of the road?

Valentine’s for You

And while I’m at it, I’m vowing to make February the month of self-love. Anyone else with me?

Instead of paper hearts and sweet chocolates, I’m devoting the short month to taking care of myself. (P.S. Part of my self-care was getting crafty so I made both in a DIY Valentine for family members. Will share those soon.)

This means:

  • you have permission to make a dent on your couch for a whole day watching bad TV and catching up on never read, but meant to read magazines.
  • it’s okay if the laundry isn’t done, the dishes are piled up and the floor needs sweeping.
  • saying, “No” is not only an option, but that it may be necessary.
  • saying, “Yes” to yourself is mandatory.
  • that you will for one hour a week (at least) put yourself first.
  • that it’s okay to spoil yourself and forgive those that see it as selfish and don’t see the value of doing so. {they’re just jealous}

For me, this means a haircut I’ve been meaning to get, more time lying doing nothing, meditating and feeling okay with missing the gym every once in awhile. I vow to take care of myself before I get sick. I don’t want to get a double dose of sickies again (I caught the flu and a cold in one month recently).

If you’re in and want to celebrate with me, let me know what you’re going to vow to do this February.

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March 16th, 2011

If You’re Tired & Wired, You Need to Read This Now

Adrenal Glands BookIt’s Wednesday. I’m tired. Are you? I’ve been given the gift of a second chance. This time I’m going to learn from my mistakes and not over do it so that my illness doesn’t become life-threatening.

Will you do the same or will you work yourself to the grave?

This is a harsh post, but one I hope you will take to heart. If you haven’t already done so, take my Get More by Doing Less Challenge. And if you have completed it, “Congratulations.” If you’re still in the process, keep going.

I received an email in my inbox today and was surprised and delighted by it. Hay House sent me information about a book called Are You Tired and Wired? It’s about the fatigue women feel and how it can be related to adrenal dysfunction (something I have).

They sent me a free pdf of the first chapter. And I wanted to share it with you. Read it and maybe it will save your life. Maybe it will convince you to stop overworking yourself, putting everyone else’s needs before your own. Maybe, just maybe you will get the wake up call you need. That’s my hope for you.

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February 21st, 2011

One GMDL Challenger Reports On Her Experience

Lisa Verdi is a woman with a business after my heart. It’s called MindfulBIZ and it’s all about helping creative entrepreneurs create a sustainable business through something we all could use some help with-designing a clutter free and focused website.

When she decided to take the Get More by Doing Less challenge I was pretty excited. Not only did she take the challenge, but she wrote down her experience here. Want to see if accomplishing less brought her more? Read her guest post below.


Confessions

One of my intentions for this year is to switch off from my business off when it’s time to pick up my kids from school.  I really love working on my business so much that it rarely feels like work, but I’ve noticed that I distract myself with busyness after my most productive time of the day is over. Far too often than I care to admit I’ll be checking my email or Twitter, catching up with the blogs that I follow or commenting on a business forum instead of being present with my family or making time for other activities I enjoy.


The Challenge

Brandi linked to a video about work-life balance and this message really resonated with me: you must take responsibility for setting the boundaries you want in your life.

I decided to give myself a challenge: unplug the computer between 3pm and 9am.

I was pretty good at meeting the challenge but there was one night when I turned on the computer after the kids were sleeping and my husband was late coming home from work. Plus Friday and Saturday nights were excluded from the challenge because that’s when my husband and I usually watch a movie on the computer.


The Uphill Battle

It took a few days to get into the new routine. The first morning of the challenge I definitely felt disorganized and lost. I ended up doing a lot of reading online instead of my tackling my to-do list in the morning. Throughout the week I noticed I would start to feel stressed in the early afternoon when I looked at the clock and thought that time was running out.  And just before 3pm I’d find myself rushing to squeeze in the last few tweets or emails. It always took me a while to relax after I shut down the computer.


The Result

I can honestly say that I felt more present with my kids after school. We did some activities together like shoveling show and reading a book or talking about their day at school. During the bedtime routine with my kids I was more relaxed because I wasn’t rushing to get back on the computer. I also stopped eating breakfast in front of the computer.

My house got a bit cleaner because I used the few minutes before 9am to put the dishes away or do some spot cleaning. Most nights I went to bed earlier than usual too.

I’m a big believer in the idea that letting go creates space for new ideas and opportunities. Before the challenge I had been too busy ”working” in the evening to see the bigger picture. I got real about how many extra hours the busyness added to my work week.

I thought about my ideal lifestyle and how many hours per week I will choose to work.

In The Big Leap (a book I finally finished during this challenge once I stopped “working” in the evenings!), Gay Hendricks presents the idea of Einstein Time. When you live in Einstein Time, YOU are the source of time so you can make as much of it as you want. Time is abundant. In contrast, the old paradigm is that there’s a finite amount of time. When you think there’s a scarcity of time, you always feel rushed or like you’re running out time as I experienced during the challenge. When you take ownership of time, you stop being a victim of time.

I’m still wrapping my mind around this concept, but it does seem to be the key to Doing Less and Getting More.  And I probably wouldn’t have discovered the idea if I hadn’t slowed down!

My next challenge is to notice how often I complain about time. Will you join me? See how often you think or say “I don’t have time to do that right now.” or “There aren’t enough hours in the day!” It’s the first step to taking ownership of time and MAKING it yours.

Isn’t that exciting?! I’m so happy for Lisa. If you find her as inspiring as I do and want to learn more about her and her business, you can check out her blog at MindfulBiz.com. Thanks again Lisa!

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February 17th, 2011

GMDL Day 21: The Final Day of the Get More Doing Less Challenge

{flickr photo by: Tambako the Jaguar}

The Preciousness of Time

Perhaps no one expressed it better than my grandma. With the early stages of Alzheimer’s reaching in and tugging at her memories, time seemed to fall soft, and slow like the sands upon an hourglass.

Being with her was both frustrating and peaceful. At the time, I did not realize it felt like toggling two worlds-one was part of the world I was still in and she had left. It was the world of accomplishments and getting things done.

It was a world she had been the star of. She was always busy. Busy bee crafting, cooking, baking and cleaning. I don’t remember ever seeing her sit down and just talking with me.

Then the other part was somewhere new. Alzheimer’s stole her short-term memories and wrapped it up, hid it so no matter how hard she looked she could not find it. Instead, she smiled effervescently at a young child, rocked a baby doll, laughed at feeling happy being with family and feeling immense gratitude for being in the presence of a beautiful flower.

This was not the grandma I knew. But this is the grandma I had always wanted to know.

Alzheimer’s & Living

My grandmother’s Alzheimer’s touched me greatly. I blogged about it here and I wrote a newspaper article about it in the past. And although sadness and grief takes over me every time I see her suffering, I am reminded about that one moment in time. I remember the moment she stopped being busy and just stopped to enjoy her life.

The End of the Road

We’ve come to the end of the road. It’s been 21 days of doing less and I’m exhausted. It’s been a challenging challenge learning how to accept who I am separate from the tasks that fill my life.

One by one as I let things drop and slide, I faced my fears of feeling inadequate. I was reminded what it felt like to move in time with my mind instead of trying to catch up to it.

I spent more time with activities I love and put less weight on accomplishing them. In the 21 days that I’ve done this, I haven’t had an article published or a job accepted. But I survived. I enjoyed my life. I enjoyed moments dancing in the den with my husband. I spent moments in silence. I found my song and was reconnected with my purpose.

What have you accomplished or not accomplished?

As we end this challenge, I hope you will continue to bring a little bit of doing less into your every day life. As a lot of nutritionist will tell you, “it’s not a diet, it’s a lifestyle.” As we come to the end of the road, let’s continue to appreciate and love our lives.

Daily Challenge: Whether it’s writing, working, or playing, do one activity and fully be present in it. Learn to be mindful in everything you do from now until the end of your life and you will not only find happiness, joy and peace along the way, but you may even find yourself- that present-minded happy person I discovered in my grandma that day.

Thank you for supporting me on this challenge! If you have been inspired or touched by any of these posts, please share them with those you love and leave me a comment here.

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February 16th, 2011

GMDL Day 20: Awakening to Your Life

{flickr photo by: yellowcloud}

If you haven’t picked up a copy of The Book of Awakening: Having the Life You Want by Being Present to the Life You Have by Mark Nepo you are missing out.

I heard about it after Oprah mentioned it as one of her favorite things. And now it’s become mine.

The book is broken up into short introspective, daily lessons and it is beautifully, if not, poetically written. Nepo’s prose and intuitively way he expresses his intentions makes me catalogue Mark Nepo as one of the people I wish I could write like. I find it lifts me up, provides insight and reflection at the end of my day.

But when I got to February 1 (I’m a few weeks behind), I had to hold up and pause because there was something very important about this chapter that I knew I needed to share with you:

Live Slow Enough

What does it mean to, “live slow enough?” Here’s an excerpt from his February 1st entry:

“Follow anything in its act of being-a snowflake falling, ice melting, a loved one waking-and we are ushered into the ongoing moment of the beginning, the quiet instant from which each breath starts. What makes this moment so crucial is that it continually releases the freshness of living. The key to finding this moment and all its freshness, again and again, is in slowing down.”

Isn’t that beautiful?

On top of the importance of observing our environment, he also mentions how sad it is that we are all running around so fast and for so long, that only two things can stop us: “illness or breakage.”

Isn’t that sad?

But it is true. Illness is what keeps me motivated on this daily challenges. And I hope that it won’t be what stops you from a too busy existence. My biggest regret is thinking and rethinking last year and wondering if there was anything I could have done to prevent the chronic illness that I have. I often wonder if I had lived my life enjoying it and worrying and stressing less, I would not be in the situation that I am in.

I don’t want that to happen to you.

Keep up the journey we are near the end.

Daily Challenge: Do one activity in slow motion. Whether it’s taking a shower, washing the dishes or even going for a walk. And as you do so, observe how you feel, be conscious of every motion. Sometimes slowing down gives you insight to a problem. Sometimes it gives you a sense of peace. Other times it feels as luxurious as a mini vacation. Try it. Then let me know what you think.

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February 15th, 2011

GMDL Day 19: Possessing Awe

This post all started with this photo:

Are you an entrepreneur wanting to take your business to the next level? Have you ever wanted to fulfill your dreams as a freelance writer? Are you a writer who wants to find a way to increase your client list?

###

You may not think doing less can do that for you. But it can.

How?

Imagine for a moment what it’s like to be a conscious entrepreneur. You are focused on your clients. You have the energy and the time to give your clients your best. That’s what it’s like when you spend less of your time on unnecessary tasks and more of it on things that are important to you.

Part of that has to do with this three letter word: a-w-e.

If you are possessed by awe, you are enraptured by the moment. The feeling some define as “flow.” Time melts away like ice cubes on hot concrete. And there is just you and what every it is you are trying to accomplish.

To get to that feeling of wonder and appreciation, you need to drop all the things in your life that are not supporting your vision.

This journey that you are on requires a light load. Minimize your baggage and learn to let go of the things in your life that are preventing you from an awe-inspired life.

Stop holding on with desperation at every job that comes your way. Forget about perfecting every single thing in your life.

And spend more of your time reveling in what and who is in front of you.

The more moments you spend in awe, the greater your awareness of possibility. You are opening up a space in your life for whatever you desire most to fall into place.


Here’s your challenge for today:

Do one thing that fills you with awe.

1. Visit a museum where you can admire creative expression.

2. Read a book that invites awe into your life.

3. Surround yourself with people who you admire.

4. Listen to a song that fills you with awe.

Do it and let me know how the experience impacts you, in BIG and small ways.

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