Breakdown to Clarity!

Last week I had a bit of a breakdown. It happened early one evening. My poor husband was the only witness, and therefore the sole victim. It consisted of some bitching, and crying and every time my husband thought it was over, I started over again. I know I made the same points at least five or six times. It lasted for a couple of hours and was the result of a culmination of stress and PMS.

Though it took me 24 hours to fully recover, it was the best thing that happened to me all week! Why you might ask? Because on the other side of that breakdown was the clarity I had been searching for for the previous several weeks. And clarity is power.

Sometimes it takes a breakdown to get clear about what you're doing, why you're here and where you're going. When you get really busy and focused on accomplishing tasks, you jumble yourself up and if you don't watch out, you'll have a breakdown like I did. It's like a clogged drain or dirty gutters. If you don't clean them out every once in awhile, you have a bit of a mess.

It's OK to have an occasional breakdown, but I would recommend a little regular maintenance to avoid as many as possible. For me, the best way to avoid breaking down is by taking a walk. I feel instantly calmer and more centered after a walk. Another way I regain clarity is by reciting my affirmations.

So the next time you feel that you're on the verge of a breakdown, take some time out to exercise and say your affirmations. If you don't have any affirmations, write some. Make sure they are in the present tense and positive. For example, one of my affirmations is "Lucrative opportunities always come my way!"

Oh! And remember that you're more vulnerable to these breakdowns when the hormones are high. So be aware of how you're feeling and release stress and tension in whatever way works best for you.

Be Thankful!

Since Thanksgiving is a week from today, now is the perfect time to talk about gratitude. In my book, "Live with Intention: Ten Steps to Creating the Life of Your Dreams," (which will be available in January 2008), one of the chapters is titled "Gratitude." It opens with a quote by Oprah, "Be thankful for what you have and you will end up having more. But if you concentrate on what you don't have, you'll never have enough."

In the "Gratitude" section, I give my readers space to make a list of what they're grateful for. Maybe you're not in the exact situation you want to be in. Maybe you truly do feel that you deserve more out of life. But take yourself away from being a victim, and reflect on what you do have. Did you know that the majority of the world's population survives on less than $1 per day? We really are fortunate to be in the situations that we are in.

That being said, it is also healthy to dream big and to expand your horizons. That is what my book is for. When is the last time you used your imagination? When is the last time that you took yourself out of your current circumstances to dream about where you want to be in your life? If you're like most people, it has probably been years since you have done this. I encourage you to take time today (and everyday) to write down five things you are grateful for. And be looking for the release of my book very soon!

Are You Ready to Make A Shift?

Today I am so excited about my husband and I's new business Synergy Shift (www.synergyshift.com). Our mission is to imspire and empower people to shift their thinking and live to their fullest potential through our musical and motivational events.

We decided this summer that we wanted to create a company together. We didn't have the first clue as to how we could make that happen. Over the last couple of months things have been really falling into place for us! We are beginning to see the manifestation of our vision!

We know that the Law of Attraction works and that our only job on the planet is to decide what we want, to love and respect others, and to wait with patient expectancy for the manifestation of all of our deepest desires. By doing what we love and loving what we do, we are living from our highest selves and therefore opening up all channels of inspiration and insight.

Go to our website www.synergyshift.com to sign up for our newsletter and to hear some of Chris' awesome music!

Attitude is everything and everything is attitude!

I am sure you have heard many times in your life to improve your attitude to get better results. For example, when I was a teenager my mom used to say, "With that attitude, you're not going anywhere." When I was a middle school teacher the principle would say, "To be a good teacher, you have to have a good attitude." Knowing that attitude is everything and everything is attitude, what is attitude? It is word that you may find is difficult to define.

I have found a great definition for attitude. Attitude is the combination of your thoughts, feelings and actions. It isn't any one of these things separately, but the culmination of the three that create your being, your outlook and your life.

Your attitude starts with your thoughts. Are you controlling the thoughts you let into your mind or are you letting them control you? Did you know that you have the power to control your thoughts? It is perhaps the greatest power that we have as humans. It is what separates us from animals.

The second piece of your attitude is your feelings. And guess what? Your thoughts create your feelings. It is impossible to have good thoughts and bad feelings and vice versa. Your thoughts and your feelings are like two peas in pod nestled tightly beside one another. They are inseparable.

The last piece of your attitude puzzle is your actions and it is impossible to act on something that you're not thinking and feeling about. Action is the bridge between the nonphysical world of your thoughts and feelings and the tangible world of results.

Your thoughts lead to your feelings which lead to your actions which make up your attitude. And your attitude is what creates the results you get in your life. Attitude truly is everything and everything is attitude!

Happiness Depends on Ourselves...

The title of this blog is a quote by Aristotle that I picked out when I was about 12 years old to hang on my wall. Though I probably didn't consciously understand it's full meaning when I was a pre-teen, I know that my higher being was right in tune with it's message. Today I understand it's meaning even more and later in my life I will understand it even better.

Happiness truly does depend on ourselves. There is no outside circumstance, person or object that can make you feel joy, for it is within where life's greatest wonders lie. Inner peace and joy are your birthright and your purpose for being. When you feel harmony on the inside, it is because you are in alignment with your higher self. In the moments when you feel bliss, ask yourself, "How may I feel this way more often?" and let the answer flow to and through you. Have you ever heard the saying "Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it."? Your life and your happiness depend on you, so make the best of every moment!

Sometimes you have to say "no" to redirect yourself downstream

Saying "no" can be hard for me. I have always been the type of person to have many different commitments, most of which have been related to working harder to make more money. For example, when I was a full-time Spanish professor at the community college, I also taught a Monday evening class at another community college and worked part time at Banana Republic. Though I was working a lot, I didn't feel like I had any more money. In the last couple of days I was faced with a scenario that forced me to re-evaluate my commitments and my ability to say "no!"

Though I am now a life coach and motivational speaker, I have still been doing my other side jobs , teaching one evening class at the community college and working a few hours here and there at Banana Republic. This fall, I had the opportunity to take on two classes at the community college instead of one. Initially, this sounded like a good idea since I felt that I needed to extra money.

As I accepted the idea of teaching two classes instead of one, I found out that I would have to teach on Wednesday evenings instead of Monday evenings because of a scheduling conflict. I had already committed to two life coaching clients on Wednesday evenings, so I would have to rearrange my schedule to accommodate them on another night in order to teach at the college on Wednesdays.

Then it hit me. I am the one who caused the scheduling conflict in the first place! I remembered that I told my director in the spring that I would not be teaching in the fall because I was starting a new career and needed to let go of some commitments.

How had I forgotten that? Well, my highest self obviously had not forgotten and arranged for this conflict to arise as a sign for me to let it go! Though I didn't initially see this situation in this light, when I considered how I truly felt about teaching the Wednesday class I realized that I didn't feel in sync with the downstream direction of my life and my new career. I emailed my director and let her know that I would not be able to do the Wednesday class and instantly felt a little freer.

I probably wouldn't have been as willing to let go of the class if I hadn't just read the new Esther and Jerry Hicks book The Astonishing Power of Emotions. Last night, as I was reading a couple of sections (for the second time) aloud to my husband it struck me that I was not following my "downstream" emotions on the issue of the class. The book suggests usingyour emotions as your guide. When you are feeling bad about something, you are paddling upstream and against the current. When you are feeling good about something, you are flowing downstream and with the current.

The key is this: EVERYTHING you want in your life is downstream. Though this is hard for us to embrace in American society as we constantly force situations and make them work, this powerful book emphasizes the importance of allowing the current to turn you downstream when you are having upstream thoughts and feelings.

The next time you are questioning whether or not something is in alignment with your highest self, ask if the decision makes you feel as though your paddling upstream and against the current or downstream and with the current. When you're feeling good, you're in the flow and are moving in the direction of the fulfillment of your desires. When you are feeling bad about something, do what you can to feel better and let go of the oars of forced effort and allow the current to take you downstream.