Love Your Children? Hate the Chaos?

Don't get me wrong. I love my children – immensely, unconditionally – and would not trade, give away or accept any other option that might be presented to me. But (and this is BIG "but") I hate the chaos that came with being a mother. Before having children, I adhered to a daily ritual of getting a coffee in the morning, sitting down to write my three pages of "stress dump," and then 20 minutes of meditation focusing on being centered and having a proactive day.

I truly thought I would be able to keep some (if not all) of this ritual in place once my son, who is now three, was born. But reality set in quite quickly, and it took me almost 10 months to find my groove again. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to do it, but I did. Then in May 2011 I gave birth to my daughter, and the groove I was able to find is once again changing.

Chaotic? Yes. Manageable? Yes. What did it take? Three simple steps (Remember Coach Karen's three simple steps to managing chaos and emergency life situations is I.C.E.) and a lot of self-patience!

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Powerful Questions

When we journey through life in a state of consciousness that is more awake and more aware, we begin to see the power behind the questions we ask. When we are able to ask not just the right questions but powerful questions, we open ourselves to achieving greater results and success.

I remember before becoming a mother how I would chuckle at friends who would get caught in circular conversations with their toddlers: you know, the “But why?” to every answer they provided. As I have become more aware, I realized the power behind the toddler’s intention. Children are like sponges and want to learn and soak up every piece of knowledge they can and by asking a “why” question to succeed in drawing out more information from the individual with whom they are engaged while remaining unsatisfied with the response, hence prompting the “but why” circular conversation. Now as adults we are able to ask more appropriate questions that draw out the exact knowledge we yearn to receive. We move beyond the “why” to the land of “how” and “what” questions.

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Surviving vs. Thriving: Can You Spot the Difference?

We hear the buzz word “thrive” all over media outlets these days, but can you spot the difference in your own life between when you’re thriving and just surviving? One medical organization has been embracing the buzz word “thrive” for the last two or three years, and every time I hear or see its commercials, it definitely gives me goose bumps. The power behind thriving can move obstacles and challenges like giant earth movers clearing debris in a disaster area: quickly, efficiently and with great results.

What prevents us from moving from survival mode into truly thriving? There are organizations and individuals that are excelling at what they’re doing even in this challenging economic time. So how do they do it? What motivates them to continuously move forward and step into or stay in action?

Before answering, let’s take a look at an exam¬ple of what it means to be just surviving versus thriving in an area of our lives to which we all can relate: our physical wellness.

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Five Steps to Improve Your Spiritual Health

What does the term “spiritual health” mean? We all have our own perspective of what both “spiritual” and “health” mean in a general sense, but when we talk about spiritual health we define it as “a sense of wholeness.” For example, when we feel sick, we have two options: either we get better and recovered, or we don’t and complete our life cycle by finishing the connection with anything living. Some believe Spiritual Health is an art of healing: the ultimate medicine, a remedy that cures your inner sight as well as your spirit. There are those who believe it also provides you with the capacity of loving yourself unconditionally and reconnects you to your talents and gifts, which helps in feeling fulfilled with your life.

A healthy “spirit” does take a little extra effort, as it becomes a daily priority to embrace. In the beginning it is on your “to-do” list, but after a while it becomes second nature and a habit that for the most part you begin to do subconsciously. But what does that mean? Well, each day you will need to give spirit a top-level priority to do such actions as thinking positively or focusing on your successes and not your so-called failures. And your next question is most likely “Really? That simple, eh?” And my response in most instances is a simple yes. But it is not without effort and time before your perspective will shift to see it being just this simple.

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Social Entrepreneurship: What Is It?

Is profit the sole focus of entrepreneurship? Is maximizing returns the only thing that matters? If we answer these questions with a yes, we would not be doing justice to a whole class of social entrepreneurs—people devoted to bringing social change through their business ventures.

Social entrepreneurs are in the business of touching lives. Such individuals do not believe addressing social issues is the responsibility of the government and large corporate houses alone; they take it upon themselves to champion the cause in which they believe. Social entrepreneurs go beyond philanthropy to bring radical changes in their society and put forth new and sustainable models of businesses with a cause.

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Visualization and Intent in Reiki

Visualization and good intent are two elements that, if combined with Reiki, can make the therapy all the more powerful. Visualization is a very powerful exercise on its own, and conjuring up a mental image of what you want helps your body and mind focus on accomplishing the goals you have set for yourself. When you visualize Reiki healing the body parts you are channeling energy to, you end up using two complementary techniques to heal the same part, thereby making the therapy even more effective.

Even when visualization techniques are used while healing someone else, they help in amplifying Reiki’s power. Reiki practitioners are the channels through which the energy flows, so when a practitioner conjures up mental images of the energy healing the body parts of the recipient (of Reiki), the energy becomes stronger…

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