2 Simple Ways To Reduce Stress and Find More Joy

As we drown in information overload and stay glued to our computers we live an increasingly unnatural life.  There is no way our brain can keep up with the amount of information we are subject to every day.

The amount of electronic devices that deliver information to us grows at an incredible rate. We have smart phones, tablets and don’t forget the lowly personal computer. Many people own all three devices. Billions of websites and hundreds of thousands of apps offer every imaginable type of information at the touch of our fingertips.

We text and Facebook our friends at an astonishing rate , spreading ourselves thin while losing those deep personal friendships that face to face camaraderie creates.

And don’t get me started about business productivity. We all know we are meant to produce at a high rate while the bulk of us don’t receive a raise near the rate of inflation.

Humans are meant to connect with nature. We need to find time to disconnect from the smart phones, take a walk in the woods, breath and clear our minds. I take a walk at lunch every day to get out of the office and see the horizon of the sky expand before me. I always come back in refreshed. I try to walk the dog as much as possible in the woods near my house.  Slowing down the information being thrown at us and reconnecting with nature is a simple change, yet is surprising how it puts a smile on your face and lifts a weary heart.

Seek true friends you can be honest and genuine with. I’m not sure if Facebook or texting is the best way to forge a deep friendship. Having heart to heart talks and opening up to someone, as well as having a shoulder to lean on, is essential to being a happy and well adjusted human being. Without close friends life is that much tougher and uncertain. Deep friendships allow us to express our fears, share laughs and celebrate victories. So the next time you think about texting or Facebooking how about meeting up for supper instead?

Less stress, more joy. It just takes a small effort every day.

Journey To A Stress Free Life

I’ve been thinking and working a lot lately. My mind is buzzing about work and an upcoming presentation deadline. As I was spending some quiet time with the cats looking out the window, it hit me that I’ve allowed life to hijack my brain. I have been missing the quiet moments like looking out the window and watching night fall. It’s such a simple pleasure yet it connects me with my core being and mother earth itself. Life changes are important but don’t let life zoom by without finding joy in the softer moments.

Reconnect with your humanness. Sitting quietly by the window at night allowed me to slow down and really connect with the world. Find your quiet time and learn to love it every day.

Remember to enjoy the journey. You are a human living in a world of many simple pleasures. I’ve been so focused on what this presentation might bring me in the future, I’ve forgotten to just enjoy the journey. It should be fun and creative not a worry for me.

Soft moments can bring a pure joy. When we slow down and breathe, when we just watch the world unfold, when we just BE , those can be the most precious moments in life. It isn’t always about others, it can be just about YOU. Discover your humanity, discover peace, and discover beauty. It’s all around you. We just bec0me too busy to notice.

How I Let Go Of Stress Overnight

If we want to fully let go of the endless negative chatter in your head, try following the techniques prescribed in the book – The Myth Of Stress.

The technique used in this book is called Active insight.  Active insight is about changing your beliefs that drive emotions and behaviour. Changing these beliefs brings a peace and clarity to your mind enabling you to move onto bigger and better things.

Is 100% of our stress internal?  Do we create 100% of our stress?  Yes.

This isn’t a technique that allows you to temporarily escape stress, it addresses it at the root cause.

Here is an example of an exercise I have performed.

A stressful thought that continuously pops up for me is “I should weigh less”

To rid myself of this silly stressful belief and to accept myself I  insert the following

“In reality I should not weigh less at this time because …

“In reality I should not weigh less at this time because I am not exercising daily”.

“In reality I should not weigh less at this time because I eat more than my body needs”

“In reality I should not weigh less at this time because I’m over 30 years old and as we get older we put on weight”

“In reality I should not weigh less at this time because I drink alcohol which is empty calories”

Now I don’t go around with the vague stress belief that I should weigh less.  I’ve accepted the reality as to why I don’t weigh less. I’ve accepted my life and how I got here.

Now I’m ready to move on and change instead of letting this little thought stress me almost every day.

I have insight into my biggest cause of stress. That insight was my vague belief.

Attitude, Happiness And The Meaning Of Life.

We create our own reality in our minds.

The thoughts, dreams, aspirations, worries, excuses, justifications and chat in our mind determine our happiness.  We can directly identify with these thoughts and allow them to constantly sweep us away or we can grow from them, take action when required but choose to primarily live in the beauty of the current moment. The key take away here is “take action.” The world is infinite in its possibilities and each challenge requires an action.  Just worrying about something will not change your life. Deciding to take action and then moving back to the present moment with that action will. We are creatures of consciousness.  We can decide how our thoughts and then actions govern us. It is truly an amazing gift.

We get what we concentrate on.

Do you know what circumstances and issues are directing your life?  Are you overweight, lonely, addictive, in debt? Are these the circumstances affecting your current life?  Have you taken any action to address these? Where do you put your energies? Once this is clear, you can then decide where you need to focus your energies.  So stop worrying, put down the remote, clear your mind and decide once and for all what life changes you need to make.  And always live in the current moment. It is the only moment.  It is the moment of raw truth.

Never mind about the meaning of life.  What is the meaning of your life? Once that is clear you are ready to co-create the world with all your other fellow human beings. Just think about it. And then do it.

How To Save The World – Part IV

I’m regularly grateful to have experienced being a part of this beautiful blue and white planet which slowly twirls amongst a trillion stars. It is an amazing thought if you really take the time to think about it. Picture one of those photos of our planet taken from space and remember that you are actually walking upon that beautiful orb.

Doesn’t everything else seem trivial compared to that thought? We live our lives with hundreds of useless thoughts cursing through our heads everyday and tend to easily forget how truly amazing life on this planet is. Sometimes our thoughts can turn into conditioning or beliefs that lead us to acts of selflessness, cruelty or even war. By now we are all aware that we are slowly ruining our home – this planet. As an animal we have forgotten how to share this planet with not only ourselves but with all other living creatures.

I have written extensively about awareness, consciousness and living in the moment. I’ve written about meditation, conditioning and beliefs. Many times I’ve thought that people don’t give a shit about using “consciousness” to make this planet a better home. People are more concerned about what celebrity had no underwear, how to lose 20 pounds in a week, how to make a million dollars over night, or are just trying to survive. And yes I’ve been guilty of those thoughts as well.

Fortunately, over the centuries humans have overcome some astonishing challenges. The formation of civilizations, revolutionary and religious wars, plagues, great depressions …the list goes on. But now we are faced with the threat of dwindling resources, constant MacDonald’s commercials, and an ever expanding population.

Is it an iPad that will save the world? Or is it a deeper consciousness? Do we resist buying bottled water (the plastic is made from oil, the transportation of the bottles creates pollution, and they stay in landfills forever if not recycled. Birds ingest floating caps out in sea thinking it’s food and even feed it to their young with both dying a painful slow death).

I am certain that the next big evolution for mankind is consciousness and awareness. We are done with the industrial age and the informational age is only choking us. There is no time like now to think before we buy, feel empathy for all living creatures, rejoice in our planet, reduce our carbon footprint and connect with fellow human beings all around the world (hey, maybe the iPad will help after all).

Over the centuries humans have overcome some astonishing challenges. The fight to save this planet has only just begun. I haven’t placed much hope lately in our governments to make any difference. It’s been only one big slobbering orgy at the mutual feeding troughs of government, corporations and banking for years now. Each and every one of us needs to try to clean this mess up.

I hope it isn’t too late.

Are we living just to survive or are we ready to fight? Are we leaving our children a beautiful planet or an orb dying a slow and agonizing death? Are we living in nature or looking at it through the screen of an iPad?

Consciousness and awareness. The next big evolution

Now You Can Find Peace Of Mind And Meaning

There is my inside me and my outside me. Sometimes they seem to conflict horribly. It’s such a pain. My inside me is striving for a life of meaning and purpose, contentment and existential challenges. My outside me is paying bills, buying a new car and renovating the house. It seems lately that my outside me is controlling my inside me. I’m talking about being on a stress and consumer treadmill.

Sometimes I would love to give this all up and live simply in some country, pondering life, meditating, setting up a small foundation, walking the beach and discovering more wisdom and raison d’être.

What is stopping me? There will be no perfect time. I will just have to walk off the cliff one day and take a leap of faith.

An excellent start would be to start meditating again. Meditating helped me clear my mind, find my breath and increase a wonderful sense of inner peace. I was becoming good at living in the moment and appreciating the little things in life.

It’s a small step that has huge benefits. So the inside me is hopping off the stress and consumer treadmill I’ve found lately.

The other day I went for a mid afternoon stroll with one of the dogs in the small forest nearby. It was absolutely beautiful. The smell of earth and trees assailed my senses and it reminded me of those wonderful carefree summers as a kid. The sunlight splashed against vibrant and luminous green leaves. Small forest creatures darted amongst the plants and trees. I was perfectly in the moment throughout the entire walk. My inside me and outside me were in unspoiled harmony.

It’s too easy to fall out of good habits.

I want more of peace of mind and Mother Nature. Screw the treadmill.

Don’t you?

How To Be Happy And Create A Lifetime Of Joy With Your Memories

Just came back from Ogunquit, Maine. I love it there. I love the quiet beach, eating fresh seafood, breathing in the crisp ocean air and talking amazing walks. Why though? The reason is that I have such warm memories of this place. And my memories tell me a story even before I walk on the beach. My future and the joy I find are largely due to my anticipation based on my memories.

I saw a whale come out of the water a few days ago and that tied in to my memory of seeing dolphin’s many years ago in Wildwood.

These memories and the anticipation that comes with them will last me a lifetime.

I’ve written about living in the now and experiencing the present moment many times. During these times I feel contentment but not necessarily joy.

Joy I find comes from remembering the incredible beauty in the stories of my life. I may have experienced stunning beauty on multiple cliffs or felt the peace and quiet of a hot summer day. I have heard the sound of waves lapping on a shore in many places. These extraordinary memories never get old.

When I think about any of these memories of my life I am truly happy and even joyful at times.

Forget about buying stuff, go out and create a lifetime of wonderful memories. That is what true joy and happiness is all about.

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Here Is A Quick Way To Let Go of Stress

With today’s technological advances that keep information flying at us and a constant barrage of advertising, it’s no wonder we have total information over load. The much hyped iPad came out this weekend and I wonder how many people truly need one – probably not that many.

We also tend to get easily lost in the details of life, from what clothes to wear, traffic, dealing with dozens of issues at work and what to make for dinner. So what can we do to bring us back down to earth?

Personally, I like the idea that we live on blue planet (or a ball of dirt if you like), twirling around in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trillions of stars. And we get to be a part of that! So look up at the sky once in a while and think about it. It makes everything seem trivial or at least easier to deal with. Does it really matter if that person honked at you, or what type of car you are driving? Not really.

You get to be a part of this amazing experience of, spinning around on a planet in space. Everything else compared to that falls short. I dare you to tell me otherwise. I dare you.

Life can be truly amazing.

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My path to living a life of Zen is going very well. I am realizing more and more that my inner peace is all in my mind. Here are the main steps that I have been taking to reach a life of total serenity and joy. You can follow the exact same path if you choose to.

• My mind controls my life. When I step out of my thoughts and use my conscience I realize I am in control, not my thoughts , I am more than my thoughts. I can observe my thoughts and let them go.
• I do not worry about money as much. I live in the now and do not think about what I would like to buy. I have everything I need already.
• I am finding more moments of peace throughout the day by shutting off the TV and radio in the home, car and morning shower. I do not hear advertisements for cars or MacDonald’s.
• I have found out how important it is to open my heart to love. This is one of the most important journeys to go through. This is a spiritual love, not necessary an emotional love. I choose to be a loving and accepting person.
• I am not a weak person, I have simply chosen to accept the goods and the bad in life and stopped trying to control what I can’t. I let experiences and thoughts pass through my heart before my mind attaches to them and closes down my heart.
• I ask myself each day if am becoming more free, liberated and happy.

How I Am Learning To Live My Best Life

Opening my heart and finding beauty

I was not brought up in an emotional household. My parents were very strict and unforgiving. Years later I realized that this was the way they cared. Better to have strict parents than parents that don’t care. The worst thing a parent can do to a child is not care. Children want to know that their parents care for them in some way shape or form. I know my parents cared. Now years later, I am on my own spiritual path. I am on a path to open up my heart and to be totally free. I want to be free of worry, doubt, envy and fear. I want to find beauty in all of life’s simplest of moments. I want to live each and every moment to the fullest. Tonight I was watching the sunset turn the sky into ribbons of a deep salmon color. It was one of those beautiful “ah ha” moments. This is what life is all about. Letting go of all those illogical worries and loving my short time on this earth. I want to embrace each moment and open my heart to all of them. Always.

Opening my heart before my mind reacts.

As I drive across the bridge in the morning, I sometimes click off the Audio book I’m listening to and drive in silence. I then hear the soft thumping of the tires on the bridge struts. As my mind quiets I watch the soft, grey morning clouds float off the top of the skyscrapers. I watch the golden rays of sunshine reflect off a thousand window panes, creating a magical splash of vibrant gold across the city. If a driver cuts me off, I feel my heart contract and begin to close. Before my mind reacts I allow my heart open again and let the moment go. I am too much in love with this morning and this life to allow my heart to close and have my mind react negatively. It is going to be a magnificent day. I only have a short time on the earth. This is my path. I am on it now, there is no going back.

Peace

See the world in green and blue
See China right in front of you
See the canyons broken by cloud
See the tuna fleets clearing the sea out
See the Bedouin fires at night
See the oil fields at first light
And see the bird with a leaf in her mouth
After the flood all the colors came out

It was a beautiful day
Don’t let it get away Beautiful day

U2

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