habits

7 Things Successful People Never Say

2014-06-03 By Monica 1 Comment

Have you ever noticed that the most successful people share a certain kind of attitude? For example, successful people don’t spend a lot of time complaining. They’re busy taking action and creating their success. As you read the following list, think about whether you hear yourself saying any of these things. If you do, consider how you might shift to a more positive and success-oriented point of view.

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5 Ways to Get Back On Track When Things Fall Apart

2014-02-11 By Monica 2 Comments

It was all going so well. I was making significant progress toward my goals. I established a consistent yoga practice. I was eating healthier. I was keeping up with my blogging schedule, doing well in school, and just feeling great about life and my direction in general.

But then a week ago, I realized that almost everything was off track. I hadn’t been to a yoga class in almost two weeks, my eating habits weren’t healthy, and my focus on work and projects was abysmal.

Why? Well, as most of you have probably experienced in your own lives, the unexpected happened while a major life event was underway.

Is Being A People Pleaser Making You Miserable?

2013-08-28 By Monica 3 Comments

Do You Say “Yes” When You Should Say “No”?

We all want to lend a hand and help out where we can, but sometimes saying yes can cost us our own happiness and peace of mind. I know I hate to disappoint people when they need help, and I may even be too much of a “people pleaser” sometimes. Do you find yourself doing the same thing?

This “can-do” attitude has certainly helped me in my career and in climbing the corporate ladder. I became the Chief Operating Officer at a managed care company before I was 35. There’s no doubt one of the biggest reasons for my success was my willingness to take on big projects and work long hours without complaining. I was the go-to person for tough assignments.

What Is That “Yes” Costing You?

My “success” came at a big price however: I missed spending quality time with my family. When I was home, I was exhausted. I had also gained some extra weight and started to experience health issues. While I earned a decent salary, it wasn’t commensurate with the amount of responsibility I had. It turned out I was too agreeable when it came to salary too. I was working hard, but not very smart. I was miserable.

What Are Your Anchor Habits and Why Do You Need Them?

2013-06-25 By Monica 3 Comments

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” ~ Aristotle

An anchor is a device that is used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. When the vessel starts to drift away from its intended location, the anchor helps protect it by securing its spot and not letting it drift too far away.

When you think about it, some of our habits serve as anchors for us. When we start to drift away from where we want to be, there are certain habits you can start doing that will almost immediately help bring you back to your center and to your intended direction.

Activities or Practices That Help Anchor Us

One of my anchor habits is yoga. If I maintain a regular yoga practice of at least once a week (twice or more times per week is better, and daily is ideal), then it is much easier for me to maintain my other health and fitness habits of eating more vegetables, drinking eight or more glasses of water per day, maintaining a healthy weight, and relaxing more and being present in the moment. When I stop doing yoga, I tend to drift out to sea a bit, my healthy eating habits start to slip, and I feel more stressed and less like myself.

Anchor Habits At Home

Another example of an anchor habit that we often see in the home is keeping a clean sink. You will find if you are able to keep your sink clean, meaning the dishes are all washed and put away or in the dishwasher, it is easier to keep the rest of your house clean. Once a few dishes start to stack up on your sink or counter, it can be easy to begin to drift and before you know it, you have a much larger mess. Making the bed is another example. If you have the habit of making your bed every day, it’s easier to stay on track and anchored with the rest of your room.

Leave Negative Energy Behind in the New Year with a Burning Bowl Ceremony

2011-12-30 By Monica Leave a Comment

“Nothing is predestined. The obstacles of your past can become the gateways that lead to new beginnings. ” ~Ralph Blum

For many of us, last year was a bittersweet year filled with both triumphs and challenges. As we look forward to the new year, one powerful tool you can use to help bring a fresh start to the new year is the Burning Bowl Ceremony.

The Burning Bowl Ceremony is a long-used tradition in many new thought churches. It is a powerful way to transform those things in your life that are no longer serving you and that you don’t want to bring into the new year. The ceremony is often used at the new year but can be used anytime you want to create a fresh start. Some people perform the ceremony on a regular basis because it is so powerful.

The Burning Bowl Ceremony helps bring closure while also presenting optimism for the future. 2012 is still a blank page, now is the time to ask yourself what you want to create and who do you need to be to make that happen.

For this ceremony, you will need several small pieces of paper and a source of fire. You can use a fireplace, outdoor fire pit, or simply a fire safe bowl or dish in an open area.

Before you begin, take a quiet moment, breath deeply and connect with your heart. On the pieces of paper, write down anything that no longer serves you that you want to release. These can be specific issues you had during the past year or other larger issues. Be completely honest with yourself about what you want or need to release, no one will see your list.

Some examples include:

Health issues
Fear, jealousy, anger
Bad habits
Unhealthy relationships
Negative thoughts or emotions

Once you have your items listed on the pieces of paper, turn them over. On the back side, write down what you want to replace those items with, for example:

Good health
Love
Good habits
Healthy, loving relationships
Positive thinking

When you’re ready, focus your intentions on releasing the negative and welcoming the positive into your life. Carefully place your papers into the fire. The fire in the Burning Bowl is a symbol of transformation and helps shift the energy. If you’d like, you can end the ceremony buy burying the cool ashes when it’s complete.

What New Year’s Eve traditions do you have? Have you tried the Burning Bowl Ceremony? Share your thoughts below.

Finding Focus in a World Full of Distractions

2011-07-08 By Monica Leave a Comment

“Our thoughts create our reality — where we put our focus is the direction we tend to go.” ~ Peter McWilliams

Finding focus may be the biggest challenge individuals face in our time. Information streams non-stop from our radios, televisions, computer, social media sites, and our mobile phones. With this almost never-ending noise, it’s no surprise that many of us feel stressed and overwhelmed at times, wondering how we will ever keep up with everything. The truth is, we can’t.

Pablo Picasso said it best, “Without great solitude no serious work is possible.” We all need time away from the noise, time to reflect and time to create. In Leo Babauta’s new book, focus he says, “Our ability to focus will allow us to create in ways that perhaps we haven’t in years. It’ll allow us to slow down and find peace of mind. It’ll allow us to simplify and focus on less — on the essential things, the things that matter most.”

In focus, Leo, author of one of my favorite blogs, Zen Habits, goes on to give ways to simplify your life and schedule, and find a greater focus. A few of these include:

Disconnect: Find time each day, and possibly for an entire day or week, to just disconnect from technology.
Separate your day into times for creating and times for consuming and and communicating, “and never the twain shall meet.”
Develop focus rituals such as morning quiet time or starting off the day by putting together a simple to-do list.
Clear distractions: remove unnecessary distractions from your work environment, and from your life. We got rid of cable television almost a year ago and have no regrets, we can still watch movies occasionally without a television being on all the time.
Only use email during pre-set times, constantly checking your email and responding to others is a time and energy drain. Establish set times for this task and communicate it to others so they know when you will respond.
Simplify, simplify, simplify – Just like Thoreau used to say, simplifying your life will make it easier, more enjoyable, and allow room for you to focus on the important things.
Do work that excites you – When you wake up in the morning, think about the things you need to do and allow yourself time to work on those projects that excite you.

What things do you do to help you focus? What are the challenges you face?

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