By Lori Hanson
Most people I know like to get presents. Not everyone likes surprises, but we all like to receive a gift. Something that makes us feel good – special and something that brightens our day. Many times the things that make us smile the biggest don’t even cost a lot of money. Sometimes they don’t cost money at all. And that makes them even more special, doesn’t it?
One of the things I’ve learned in the past twenty years of studying mindset is how many gifts we have that we can give ourselves. They are right there, waiting to be discovered, opened up and appreciated – by you. But with today’s technology driven lifestyle, many people are missing these gifts. You wonder why you aren’t passionate about life, you wonder why you have no energy and are sick all the time and sometimes you are even get depressed and feel totally stuck.
Although these symptoms always have ties to your lifestyle, level of health and nutrition, it’s also common knowledge that physical pain is tied to emotional pain. Something I learned from my mentor Bill Harris, “All discomfort equals resistance.” I spent a long time trying to figure out exactly what that meant. Where was I resisting and how could I let it go so I could get rid of physical symptoms I was tired of? How could I release the resistance and live a healthy life free of pain, cravings and addictive behaviors? One thing I learned while walking down this path is that consciousness and awareness are the key to opening the door.
When you live on auto-pilot and you let your schedule, your family, your kids, your boss or your business run your life, you are not living consciously. When you have an excuse for everything you haven’t accomplished that you said you were going to do, you are not living consciously. And when you live your day-to-day life in denial about what is happening and avoid dealing with things that need your attention by numbing out with food, alcohol, nicotine, drugs or screaming at others, you are not living consciously.
The reason “stuff” keeps coming up is because you are being given an opportunity to deal with it. It’s not just about the inconvenience of hurting yourself and being forced to slow down. If you aren’t listening the Universe (or God) has ways of getting your attention and slowing you down so you will contemplate what is happening. The trick is to get the message before it comes to that.
One of the best gifts you have in life is your imagination and creativity. And really connecting with the power of your imagination and creativity comes from being present. Being conscious, in the moment and fully aware of what is happening. Your imagination can scare the crap out of you, by imagining all the terrible things that might happen to you, or you can use that creativity and imagination to experience all the fun and wonderful experiences you want to have.
Taking time on a daily basis to practice being fully conscious, showing up in the moment (vs thinking about what you’ll do in two hours, tonight or tomorrow) will help you tap into one of the best gifts you can ever receive. It’s your present, your gift and it’s right here waiting for you to explore and use it. It will lead you to an extraordinary life, better than you can even imagine today.
Take some time each day, practice being fully present in the moment you are in. Notice when you tune out and aren’t listening to what is happening around you. You’ll be surprised at home often you’re off wandering somewhere else and how much you gain from showing up 100%.
©2013
