Meditation for Your Answers

Self Care & Life Balance 1 Response »
Dec 042011
Does your mind ever feel like a pinball machine? Your thoughts bouncing around like the little silver ball -you spend more time chasing the thought then actually having it?
Have you ever wondered why this happens? It’s because you are over thinking, stuck in your head trying to figure something out. Would you like to know how you can change that?
It’s time to meditate!
Meditation is a practice that’s been around for thousands of years. And it works! I know, it seems near impossible to quiet your mind when you’ve allowed it to take control over your life. Speaking from personal experience, for many years I believed that’s where I’d find answers to my problems. I became skilled at thinking my way to a solution, unfortunately the problem became my increasing stress and anxiety levels. Whenever I needed to make a decision about something where emotion was involved I became indecisive and scared to make the wrong choice. Does this sound familiar?
When we use our mind (the human computer) in a healthy way, we learn to use it masterfully. We use it to give us information, helping us to make a decision and proceed forward. When our emotions become involved we tend to get stuck, frozen on the fence about what to do. You wouldn’t think your mind would steer you wrong, but by using your mind for an answer you can easily rationalize both sides leaving yourself confused about what to do. You may logically determine one answer but emotionally want another.
More complex answers and solutions are found deeper within our intuitive self. Meditation helps you bypass your mind, get centered, allowing you to tap into the wise part of yourself, your inner knowing. Once you get your mind to quiet, the answer can simply show up because you are no longer resisting it.
There are many different techniques to meditate, here are a few to try:
  • Count your breath – inhale as 1 and exhale as 2 (repeat for as long as you like).
  • Imagine on your inhale breathing in a positive affirmation or mantra (peace, appreciation, love, acceptance, joy) and exhale out something you would like to let go of (anger, anxiety, fear, judgement).
  • Use a mandala or other picture to focus your attention during deep breathing.
  • Imagine a stream of white light coming in through your head, filling up your body and flowing out through your feet taking as long as you need.
  • Add a positive visualization to deep, slow breathing.
  • If there is something you want to create, imagine yourself already having it and what it would feel like.
  • Listen to a recorded meditation cd.
Meditating is a very effective tool once you get the hang of it. The key is practice. Don’t expect to do it perfectly. Instead, start out small. If you’ve never had a clear mind, free of thought for more then 30 seconds don’t try to meditate for 30 minutes. If you do you’re setting yourself up for failure and then you won’t want to do it again. Once you are able to meditate for a minute or two, try for five minutes. Eventually you will be able to clear your mind or intentionally visualize with ease anytime you’d like.
I look forward to hearing your experiences and if you have any challenges. If you have additional meditation techniques please share them in the comment section below.

xoxo

Angela, The Goddess Next Door

Posted by The Goddess Next Door

Making Your Home Your Sanctuary

Inspired Living, Self Care & Life Balance No Responses »
Dec 042011

With all of the activity happening in the world today you need a place where you can relax, feel safe and secure. Your home should be your sanctuary allowing you a comfortable space to reconnect to yourself and your loved ones.

When you spend time at home do you feel at peace? Or do you feel overwhelmed and stressed?

Take a moment and look around your environment. What does it reflect back to you? What does it say to you? Is it organized and clean or is it messy and full of clutter? Most importantly, how does it make you feel?

If your home doesn’t give you positive feelings of peace, inspiration or joy take the time to recreate your space. This powerful experience can dramatically shift how you feel, affecting how well you function in all areas of your life.

Not sure where to start? Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

  1. How do I feel when I spend time here?
  2. Is there too much going on in this room (to much clutter, furniture, decoration)?
  3. What can I change that will make me feel more comfortable and enjoy spending time here?
  4. What colors do I love and make me feel good? How can I add more of those colors into this area?
  5. What tangible items do I enjoy (flowers, books, photos, etc.)?
  6. Do those items I value have a place showing their importance?

Your answers will give you a natural place to begin. Start small, changing one area to reflect what you learned from your answers. If you try to change everything at once, the experience will become overwhelming. Try a few changes, take a step back and see how you feel. Continue as long as you enjoy the process. Use this technique for any room in your home, your office or anywhere else you spend a lot of your time. Notice what happens.

If you want to take this to another level, find an area to create a sacred place where you can meditate and listen to your inner guidance. It’s important to find a place where you feel safe and calm. It should be a quiet place free of distraction such as phones, family, pets, work or anything else that can take your attention away from your quiet time.

In creating your sacred space, include anything that is of special importance or spiritual significance that represents who you are and the issues you are working with. Some items you may include are:

  • Red Cloth – Red is a spirit filled color commonly used as a foundation for a sacred area. Red is very powerful, passionate and dynamic; it brings a great deal of energy to any area.
  • Candles – Fire is transformative having the ability to change something into a new material when burned. Lighting candles helps shift energy and increases your focus.
  • Crystals – Crystals (quartz, amethyst, citrine, etc) have various properties that can assist in amplifying, supporting and manifesting your intentions. Sounds strange but it works!
  • Burn sage or cedar to clear negative energy within an area.
  • Water Fountain – Water represents the flow of emotions and is very good for positive Feng Shui
  • Affirmation or guide cards – These can bring something to your awareness to focus on, helping connect you to your intuition
  • Fresh flowers or live plants add beauty, nature, and life to your space.

If you don’t have a place where you can have a permanent alter or sacred space, find a decorative box to hold your sacred items. Take it out when you seek guidance, want to retreat, and relax. Start small and build your space over time. It’s less important about the elements used as the intention you hold while creating your space.

Have fun with it and share your experiences in the comment section below.
xoxo
Angela, The Goddess Next Door
Posted by The Goddess Next Door

Live Your Best Life...Now

Self Care & Life Balance No Responses »
Dec 042011

Do you feel in control of your life?

In the past there have been times when I felt someone else was in charge of my life and it felt awful. I wanted to hide under the blankets hoping everything would change so I could go on with happiness. Unfortunately, life doesn’t work that way.

The key to taking control of the quality of your life and having what you want is a 3-step process.

1.      Identify your negative beliefs.
2.      Get clear on your new vision.
3.      Find and consistently use techniques that work for you.

You may have taken one of these steps before, you may have had an ‘Aha’ moment but maybe you found the positive results lasted only temporarily. There are a few reasons why this happens…

Our negative beliefs are generally formed by the age of 5 and they hang out at the core of our being. You may have some idea what some of your negative beliefs are but because it’s painful to deal with them, we steer clear, taking a detour when we catch a glimpse of those beliefs. Let me help you navigate through and deal with them effectively so you become empowered and they no longer rob you of energy.

Secondly, you probably have a general idea of what you want in life but when it comes down to specifics I imagine your vision gets cloudy. With a cloudy picture you won’t be able to create the clear results you’re looking for. Together let’s define your new vision.

Finally, you must find and consistently use techniques that work for you. Even if you have a crystal clear vision, if you haven’t taken the power back from your core negative beliefs, your results will only be temporary. A perfect example is the lottery winner who ends up worse off financially after winning then before they won. This happens because they don’t have an internal belief system to support having that much money. In other words, their negative beliefs sabotaged their financial success. This is also the reason why they were broke in the first place! Let me guide you through various techniques that will make sure you don’t sabotage something you value.

Can you see the value in this 3-step process of transformation? The goal is for these 3-steps to become a part of your daily lifestyle.

I have been where you are, I know it doesn’t feel good and it may feel like the only way out is a long and hard path. It doesn’t have to be a struggle. These 3-steps are life changing when you consistently do the work. With coaching we create that consistency for you, providing time each week to work with anything that tries to get in the way of your success.

Complete transformation will not happen over night, although most clients feel instant relief during their first session and have noticeable results and life changes within their first 5 weeks. I know…if you’re anything like me you want to see immediate results. I want you to see results as quickly as you do. The key is relaxing into the coaching process. There is a natural tendency to try and figure it out. This is our way to protect ourselves from change, its resistance. I’ve talked before about being activated – having a reaction with strong feelings. This is our clue we aren’t on the right track. No one wants to feel bad, and you shouldn’t have to.

With Transformational Life Coaching and the TransCovery Process  you’re talking to me, a real person, someone who went through this exact same process, and changed her life into an extraordinary explosion of abundance, happiness and pleasure.

As your coach, consider me your most intimate confidante, someone who not only understands what you’re going through but who also is highly skilled to help you. I provide a safe place to unravel your worries and sort through life’s obstacles, offering you an opportunity to deal with the good, the bad, and the ugly, to kick those negative thoughts and beliefs to the curb, and relax into your new life as it is revealed to you.

If this feels right, make the decision to give yourself the greatest gift of self love and we can start rewriting your future. I want to work with you so you too can start seeing positive changes. Isn’t it time to stop waiting for all the people and all the plans to come together? Are you ready for a fresh, new perspective? The life you deserve, the life you want, is a phone call away. You can do this!

xoxo

Angela

Posted by The Goddess Next Door
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