Posts tagged ‘How to get inspired’

May 18th, 2010

A Few Inspiring Notes

I’ve been hearing a few inspiring quotes a little over here and a little over there.

Here’s a few tidbits I’ve been learning about that I wanted to share with you here:

A few posts ago I talked about Oprah’s recent episode on, “Women, Food and God.” Something else she said really shook me to the core. She talked about how she still struggles with being a people pleaser. That no matter how successful/powerful/wealthy she is, whenever she has to say, “No” to someone, a part of her is afraid inside. It brought her back to a time when she was beaten by her grandmother and was not only forbidden to fight back, but to express her pain. Oprah said every time she is put in a situation where she has to say no, she is reminded of that. She doesn’t just feel bad about doing so, but in that moment she feels like she is a child, a child who will be annihilated.

I wonder how much of us quench our passions and suffocate our desires because as children we were not given a voice or the ability to express our needs. I wonder how much of our dreams are put on hold because of it. How much of who we are and who we aspire to be gets passed up because of someone told us we can’t do it.

Dealing with past fears isn’t something you can do alone. If you’re on a path towards your dreams, but feel stuck, afraid, and uncertain, don’t stop now, keep going. Seek professional help if you need to. You will get there. You just need the support, self-compassion and the help to do it!

If you need some extra motivation, Oprah.com has a great article with advice from 8 top coaches.

April 24th, 2010

How Goofing Off Can Make You More Productive

I’m stuck on item #6 of The Joy Diet and would like to stay here awhile please. Making 2 treats a part of my every day has been a blessing. Not just for my soul, but for my wallet too.

Sometimes we get so focused on our goals or obsessed with daily superficialities (iphone, ipads, gossip, buying a home, etc.) that we lose sight of the here and now. This actually works against us and our ultimate goals-to be happy, successful and to feel whole.

I know because I’ve been a workaholic lately. Digging my nails deep into the present and throwing it all in there. I’ve been reading books and articles online, crafting not2shabby things and taking classes all in the hope of making me better at something. I ended up spreading myself thin with nothing left to give and worse-with nothing left to show for it.

Have you ever been there before?

Sometimes like the empty room in a home that needs to be filled we allow worry and fear to inhabit it instead of giving time, patience and faith to let things fill it organically.

Know what I mean?

It’s what happens when an empty dining room table gets replaced with junk or why the fear of no job/relationship makes way for jobs/relationships you don’t want. Out of fear comes desperation and more things we don’t want or need in our lives. Out of faith comes the life we’re destined to live. The latter takes courage to get there.

Goofing off helps.

Last week of The Joy Diet was an easy one. And surprisingly it brought my passion back. I stopped crafting, writing, and reading things related to my career. Instead, I flipped through fun magazines and watched a few episodes of Oprah. It just so happens that I caught two shows related to my passions (Earth Day and a show about people in their dream jobs). It reminded me about my passion to help the environment, why I write, and why I sacrifice time and money to do what I do. It inspired me to write this post and gave me the hope I needed to continue on the journey in faith, not fear.

Here’s a Joy Diet Challenge:

Take an hour or a few hours a day or even a week if you can and devote the time solely to you and your passion. It could be riding a bike, taking a hike, rediscovering your love for art by visiting a museum or watching a movie. Just do something unrelated to your career. Have fun and you’ll see passion, excitement and joy returning to your life-the fuel necessary to help manifest the life of your dreams.