Purpose

How can we align purpose with our intentions so that our actions move us forward in the direction of our vision? There is a distinction to be made between activity and action. Activity will endlessly fill time yet not necessarily lead us in the direction of making manifest the desired vision we hold which would bring us closer to the engaged sense of contentment we seek. Activity is action without intent. For the sake of efficiency and personal success, how can we identify the distinction between keeping busy, and moving the needle closer towards the life we want to live? If we can future-vision ourselves already living the life we want to live, then we can reverse engineer the steps that lead us there. With each choice we make we are either moving in the direction of our dreams or we are not. Movement is always happening, and it is our choice in which direction it takes place. When we are anxious or concerned that we are not where we should be we tend to make choices based in fear and comparison. What would happen if we calmed ourselves by turning inward towards our imagination and breath as we envisioned where we want our choices to lead us? If we can take a moment to infuse our actions with intention we will rediscover that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

Let's sit up straight and close our eyes as we spend five minute relaxing into our breathing while we envision how we wish to feel in the life we want to live. Let's experience that future feeling now so we will recognize it when we arrive there later. And in so doing, we will make the later now. Let's become familiar with who we already are instead of waiting another moment to become ourselves. We are who we are later, now. Just ask the acorn!

That Feeling. Yes; that One!

What is that feeling you are trying to ignore? You know. That uncomfortable one. The one that is nagging and pulling at your sleeve (trying to get your attention while you turn your gaze to everything else); everything else that feels familiar, and easier, and certain. Do you find yourself keeping busy running around from one thing, and person, and situation, to the next? Isn't it in those in-between moments when that uncomfortable sense of questioning starts to arise? It seems that we will do anything to avoid being uncomfortable, yet when we try to escape, in whatever ways we do, we find that uncomfortable feeling lurking in the background, laying dormant, and starting to creep back to the surface after the honeymoon period of newness starts to diminish. A question worth asking is: Are our feelings dependent on our outer circumstances? What would be the honest answer if we asked ourselves if we would feel the same way we do no matter where we were? We all seem to want to be happy all of the time, yet the expectation of that is exactly what keeps us from experiencing being content. Contentment is about embracing where we are and what we feel. We may think we are seeking the outer validation that often comes from achievement, but aren't we more fulfilled with the contentment that comes from an inner sense of purpose? If we can calm ourselves down right here where we sit, perhaps the very feeling that demands our attention, like a child needing its parent's acknowledgement, is asking us to follow its calling into the revelation of the present moment.

Let's sit up straight right now. Breathe in through your nose for a count of three. Take a moment to feel your lungs filled to capacity. Now breathe out for a count of six. Let’s close our eyes and spend a minute doing this together while we make friends with what has been that uncomfortable feeling which we've tried to ignore. What would happen if we welcomed that feeling into our home with the same embrace that we would give those we love. Let's see...

I.O.I.

Intention. Optimism. Integrity. This trinity is the foundation by which the best of our visions become manifest. Before investing in any thoughts, uttering any words, or starting any endeavor, we would do well to ask ourselves if each of these aspects is aligned within us and with each other. The very awareness of the relationship we have with these aspects of our being is success inherent, and whatever goal we set for ourselves is sure to be obtained if this is how we set sail. Even if the winds shift, and unforeseen elements come into play, the fact that the port from which we set forth was built upon the I.O.I. foundation assures that every leg of our journey is worth the discoveries we find along the way. The goal becomes less of a destination and more of a signpost that marks the passage and arc of our quest, having passed through each way station on our adventure that was a destination in its own right, imbued with presence and authenticity. Each moment is a teacher if we are good students who are paying attention to where we are instead of where we are going. What vision do you hold that gives you passion and fulfillment? What journey are you willing to take that is worthy regardless of when and if you ever reach a final destination? What life do you envision for yourself that would make the experience of I.O.I. not only necessary, but natural? The journey is who you are, and our intention, optimism, and integrity are the winds by which we fill our sails. Let's begin...

Here Nor There

As we observe the world right now there seems to be an elevated level of stress based on people feeling that the new normal isn't exactly...normal. We fear being out of control, and react with worry, and even physical pain, based on our need to define ourselves and our situation while we obsess over an outcome that we can't predict. We wonder if what we are experiencing is temporary, or if we've wandered into some unknown land from which we may never find our bearings or our way home. When we shift out of the comfort zone where we had created a familiar identity, two things happen: we scramble to try to get back to what we know, like a swimmer caught in the currents of a rushing river who struggles to grab onto a solid landing on the shore, or we project into the future some upcoming time when things will 'settle down' into a better version that, in retrospect, will have been worth the elapsed sacrifice to our peace. We cling so hard to needing to define who we are within a narrative we understand, that we often lose sight of surrendering ourselves into the process of life, and thereby limit our potential opportunities. Who are we when we are in the midst of transitions, not yet having arrived where life is leading us, but no longer in the busy habits and routines that we had taken for granted before they were suspended due to unforeseen circumstances? Who are we when we are not the we we had come to know? What would happen if we practiced sitting still with everything exactly as it is today, right now, in the perfect, present moment. Let's close our eyes and sit up straight. Take a deep breath in through your nose, and let it out through your mouth. Let's do that for a minute. Now, let's close our mouth and allow our breathing to take on its own pace and rhythm.

How does it feel to just sit still in this moment and let ourselves experience what it's like to not have to fix anything? Just surrendering into being in this moment, with nothing to do, nothing to accomplish, nothing to prove, nowhere to be? Just right here, right now.
Let's find out...

Response-Ability

We seem to take our life-philosophy for granted when things are going well. It is only when life challenges us in ways that force us out of our comfort zone that we have a chance to experience the difference between what we think we believe, and how we really feel. Isn't how we feel a habitual series of emotional reactions from which we create the narrative and memories on which we base our identity? True choice seems to come from our ability to take responsibility from a place of creation, as opposed to defending our survival from a habitual state of reaction.

Responsibility. Our ability to respond. Response-Ability: A cultivated, creative force within us that grants us access to take action beyond the limits of previous definitions of our personality. Isn’t our personality just the narrative we've created based on our past experiences, as opposed to taking responsibility for who we choose to become?

Where in your life do you feel challenged at the moment, and how can you take responsibility for responding in a creative way which is not limited by who you used to think you were? True growth, freedom, and transformation are born beyond the box of our self-definition. All options are available, including the ones we’ve never considered choosing before. For fun, why don’t we identify one area of our life where we can choose to break the habit of reaction. Let's take a deep breath right now and consider taking the risk of putting down our fear so that we can find out what might happen if we took an approach we have never allowed ourselves to take before. As an experiment, let’s try that. Ready...go!

Expectations

Isn’t the only question, really, ‘How do I choose to feel in this very moment?’ 

It seems that it takes some more questions to explore an answer to that: 

Let's consider that fear is our loudest invitation to love. When we're scared, why do we think that suffering with worry and anxiety are our best answers to alleviate our underlying terror of being out of control? What would happen if we breathed into the not-knowing? Who are we when we let go, for a moment, of all the judgement and energy that it takes to constantly live up to who we think we’re supposed to be to ourselves and others? How would it feel to be less attached to the narrative of who you think you are? Let's take a breath right now and let go of who we think we're supposed to be. All we need to do is tune into this present moment, and the rest will just fall away on its own. It's really that simple. The rest of it will be there to pick up again, if we so choose, so why not put it down for a moment. Really, what do we have to lose, except the illusion that we are in control of everything? Let's luxuriate in the relaxation of this present moment. Just because we can choose to, if we want. So let's...

What if?...

Are you more attached to an outcome, or how you plan to get there? Is the process of getting there an excruciating obstacle or is it an intriguing journey? Are you allowing yourself to be happy now where you are or do you think that your ability to relax and enjoy your present moment is on hold, awaiting for your outer circumstance to look the way you think it should before you can let yourself relax? What would it take to luxuriate in where you are right now, in this very moment, as we surrender to the thought that there is no place else to be even if we wanted to? Let's consider that the best way to achieve everything that we think we want is to be right here, right now, in the potency of this very moment. Let's sit still and sink deeper into a state of relaxation for just three breaths, as we temporarily suspend our belief that there is something more we can do in this moment that would bring us any closer to where we want to be. Let's close our eyes and just take three deep breaths in through our nose and out through our mouth and spend 30 seconds just sitting still. Let's see what happens. Ready...relax.

Wow. I heard the crickets at night, and felt my heart beating in my chest. I noticed all the nuances of this present moment that we often take for granted and barrel over. How did it feel to pay attention to being present where you are? Consider that you have the choice in any moment to shift your attention, and by doing so can notice how your outer world can reflect your chosen inner state of being. What would happen if we took one minute each day to do this? What do we have to lose by finding out? Who would we be if for one minute each day we didn't define ourselves by what we were supposedly accomplishing. What if?...