Posts tagged with “wisdom”
The Key to Accomplishing Goals: Moving from Ego to Spirit
“Change is inevitable. Growth is intentional.” ~Glenda Cloud
My life is over.
That’s what I thought when I got the news that I’d lost my job after fifteen years with two sister companies. I loved this job. I was on the road to becoming everything I thought I wanted to be—a Hollywood studio vice president, well on my way to running a studio someday.
I was doing something I loved, developing stories. And now it was all over.
Have you ever had a moment like that? When the end of something in your life felt like the end of your …
8 Things to Do If You Want to Be at Peace with Yourself
“He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the world.” ~Marcus Aurelius
How can I find peace of mind? It’s a question often asked, but rarely answered in a satisfying way.
Some say peace of mind lies in security. Some say it’s about de-cluttering and finding stillness and calm in life. Some say it’s about acceptance and letting go. I say it’s all about what you do.
Let me introduce myself. I’m an addict. An alcoholic since my teens, I lived most of my life on various edges.
At twenty-one, I was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, …
Why We Need to Create Our Own “Normal”
“If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.” ~Maya Angelou
I had a glimpse of normal when I was a child. It looked like bright splodges of paint on pieces of cheap paper, animals made from bits of wool and odd buttons, and many, many books. Normal was taking exceedingly long suburban walks while pestering my father to supply me with mental arithmetic, to sate an insatiable love of numbers.
The most normal place in the world, my sanctuary, was the library. I loved the plastic covered window seats that would …
5 Questions To Ask Yourself If You’re Not Where You Thought You’d Be
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” ~Rumi
When I left high school, I had no idea about what I wanted to be when I “grew up.” I still had no idea when I left university. There wasn’t anything in me that really burned to be a doctor, a translator, a lawyer, or an artist, for example.
I was a bit of an all-arounder and wasn’t really 100% focused in any one direction. I always thought this was the curse of completing an arts degree (namely French), …
Love, Light, and Other Lessons That Crisis Reveals to Us
“Life always waits for some crisis to occur before revealing itself at its most brilliant.” ~Paul Coelho
There have been more shocking and devastating world events in recent memory than I can keep up with. Hurricane Sandy. Sandy Hook Shooting. Shooting at Portland Mall. Australian wildfires. Club Fire in Brazil. Hurricane Nemo. Earthquake in China. Bangladesh Factory Collapse. Boston Bombing. Texas Plant Explosion. Floods in Midwest. Tornadoes in Oklahoma.
So much loss. Devastation. Pain. Piled one on top of the other with little time to regain our footing in between.
I can hear that fearful place inside me questioning, …
After Tragedy: 3 Reasons And 21 Ways to Find Joy Again
“Life’s challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they’re supposed to help you discover who you are.” ~Bernice Johnson Reagon
My brother died suddenly, at just thirty-nine years old. One moment he was in the midst of a regular working day. Half an hour later he was gone. Twenty-four hours later he was buried.
With things happening so fast, I found myself alternating between paralysis and intense waves of pain, anger, guilt, sorrow, and devastation. I guess we all felt this way. Only it didn’t quite look like we all did/
In between waves of sadness and silence, my brother’s …
We Can Control How We Respond to Things We Can’t Control
“When we can no longer change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” ~Viktor Frankl
Every year, March 13th is difficult for me. This year, I marked the day with a long hike in the woods near my house and an extra-long hug for my wife, Kathleen. My sisters and I called each other and just said his name out loud. Wherever he is, we want him to know he is gone but not forgotten.
March 13th would have been my brother Jimmy’s 64th birthday. He only made it to 26.
But March 13…
5 Lessons from Death to Help You Create Joy, Passion, and Meaning
“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it’s worth watching.” ~Unknown.
Death is something many of us fear. Perhaps not so much our own death, but the mere thought of losing a loved one can be heartbreaking.
On Sunday May 5th, my grandma had a large stroke. She’d baked her last cake, shared her final story, and within the blink of an eye, she was gone. Six days later her life ended, in a hospital bed, surrounded by her loved ones.
She was not only my grandmother, but also the grandmother to five others, …
The Dangers of Staying Quiet: Learning to Ask For Help
“The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.” ~Elbert Hubbard
My right leg lay twisted, broken and disconnected. As I regained awareness, I could hear a primal scream.
It took a while to register that it was coming from me.
At the time, I was supposedly living my dream, but in truth I was drowning in my loneliness. So I had stood almost directly behind a horse I knew was prone to kicking and pulled her tail.
She wasn’t malicious; if she was, I would be dead now, as I had …
9 Ways You May Unwittingly Deprive Yourself of Love and Fulfillment
“Your task is not to seek love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” ~Rumi
Do you want to let go and live life fully?
If you feel that you are missing out on fulfillment and happiness, but cannot put your finger on why, perhaps there is something deeper going on.
Believe it or not, anyone can develop an unconscious habit of self-deprivation. Usually this habit begins in childhood.
Here’s how mine developed.
When I was younger, if anyone approached and tried to attend to my needs, I’d make …
Don’t Let Anyone or Anything Dim Your Inner Light
“The more light you allow within you, the brighter the world you live in will be.” ~Shakti Gawain
I was born with it. I know I was. There was a light within me that showed in my smile, my dancing around the house, my love for life, for friends, for family, and my bright future.
I don’t remember the exact day it happened, I don’t remember the last event that did it, but my inner light went out. I was no longer the happy-go-lucky girl I once was; I became lost in an abyss of darkness and sadness. Happiness …
How Simple Little Happy Habits Can Make a Huge Difference
“Happiness quite unshared can scarcely be called happiness.” ~Charlotte Brontë
Habits are a double-edged human habitual practice—they can be healthy and unhealthy, and can bring us happiness and unhappiness.
We’ve all read about the importance of healthy and successful habits, and how to choose and practice them. But I’ve also recently read about how healthy and successful habits alone don’t necessarily lead to good health or real success. There’s more to it.
What I’m reading now shows that happiness appears to be just as important to well-being and success as lifestyle choices, that happiness alone may actually lead to the …
4 Steps to Let Go of Blame in Your Relationship
“When you blame others, you give up your power to change.” ~Dr. Robert Anthony
After living alone for five years, I moved in with my girlfriend just eight months ago. I knew that I would have to make some adjustments, but I had no idea what they might be.
I expected most of the changes to be around the dynamics of our relationship and spending too much time together. I didn’t foresee any personal growth coming out of it.
But that’s exactly what happened. I grew, and I evolved.
What Sparks a Fight
For both me and my girlfriend, cleaning …
Tragedy Can Help Us Find Our Life’s Purpose
“Sometimes in tragedy we find our life’s purpose. The eye sheds a tear to find its focus.” ~Robert Brault
Just over two decades ago, I happened to be planted in the Midwest. Chicago. The southside to be exact. A location once recognized as a haven for successful black people handling their business while their kids frolicked throughout the streets, making up secret handshakes, basking in the sun and enjoying their youth.
And then, as the years progressed, things began to change; our haven was becoming less safe.
As if a nebulous cloud began to form over our neighborhood with a …
4 Lessons on Surviving and Thriving When Times Are Tough
“Every day may not be good, but there’s something good in every day.” ~Unknown
Five months ago, I was sitting outside with a friend when a mosquito bit me under the arm. I went to scratch the bite and felt a lump on the side of my breast. My doctor sent me for a mammogram, ultrasound, and fine needle biopsy. I had breast cancer.
I am a 44-year-old single mother of two beautiful young girls with primary custody. I am also Director of a psychology practice and self-employed.
The day I was diagnosed was the day I lost the carefully …
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