Yesterday, I learned about the still point. This amazing space is used by craniosacral therapists and osteopaths, and can be leveraged to release old, stuck patterns in the body. For those who practice yoga, many achieve this still point during savasana, the final relaxation after the active portion of the yoga class. From the still point, if you observe your body, you'll notice that tension melts away. Pain is unrecognizable. All that exists is the joy of the present moment. The still point can be accessed through the breath. Here's a quick tool to get there. Take in a deep breath, and pause at the top of your breath. Drop into the stillness that exists there. Scan your body and take note of any and all sensations that appear. You can release your breath, and continue to breathe, and remain in this still space. If you find yourself shifting out of this still space, which will typically continue to happen until you've had lots of experiences of staying in that space, just take another deep breath, and sink into the still space at the top of it. The more you note your physical sensations, the more you easily can recognize and shift yourself back into that place. How did this tool work for you? What was the still space like for you? Please share your experiences below. I'd love to hear your thoughts. "I'll think it through." How often do we say, hear or think that? In our society, the intellect is king. We are taught not to make emotional decisions, to wait until we're in a rational thinking space, to make sure we've weighed the pros and cons of important decisions. And there is merit to looking at both sides of a decision, being calm and using our brains. But we don't often hear about the drawbacks of making an intellectual decision. Our intellects often process decisions according to other peoples' standards. For example, according to our societal standards, the best job for you might be one where you can earn enough to afford a house in the nicest neighborhood, drive a fancy car and go on vacation each year. But the best job for YOU might be one where you feel inspired, alive and like you're living your true purpose, regardless of the paycheck. What we're not often told is that the mind has a flaw. It works based on past programming, much like a computer. If the software hasn't been upgraded - given different tools for decision making - it will continue to make decisions in the same ways it has in the past. Which may or may not be working for you. It's time to step into a new paradigm of decision making. Leading with the heart. Did you know that the heart has 40,000 neurons? That it can work in close partnership with the brain to share information? We can tap into the tremendous wisdom of the heart by acknowledging it as an authority in our lives. Our heart taps into our core knowing, our body's innate wisdom system, which contains the subconscious information that our brains may have talked us out of believing. For example, our heart will know when a job is not right for us, no matter how good it looks on paper. It will know when a relationship with a given person is in our best interest. And so on. The best way to tap into our heart's wisdom is by re-familiarizing ourselves with our heart space. If you haven't already, try this Heart Opening Meditation. Then, next time you're making a decision, large or small, move your awareness into your heart space. Ask: how would it feel to make this decision? Note your body's reaction. Then: how would it feel to make the opposite decision. Take note again. The heart shares its knowledge with us in many ways, but the most obvious ones are bodily sensations. A feeling of discomfort, panic or unease indicates a poor fit. A feeling of harmony or excitement is a green light, even if there's a bit of apprehension mixed in, as often happens when we stretch our boundaries. The heart isn't a familiar authority to many of us, but once we reestablish our relationship with it, we'll find ourselves in touch with an inner guru to rival the very best minds on the planet. Have fun, and please share your experiences in the comments! <3 I am so excited to share the next stage in my work with you! It is my mission to support people around the world in realizing their potential. I have now launched a youtube channel to share original - and transformational - meditations that can help you conquer your limitations and find inner freedom. Is there a tool or technique you'd like me to share here? Please let me know what you most need in the comments. Thank you! Check out My YouTube Channel! And, as my gift to you, a meditation on releasing stuck emotions. Transition times help us by bringing subconscious assumptions to our conscious minds.
When we make major decisions, it is important to get clear on who we are and what we want to create in the world. This process isn't always straightforward, and the bumpier it is, the more clarity it can bring you, assuming you're up for riding the waves of unexamined beliefs. Our beliefs - conscious or unconscious - shape our actions, which shape our results. So it's important to ask yourself about your beliefs in order to be a more conscious creator of your reality. I'm in the process of deciding with my family what kind of school is best for my children, which is bringing up lots of unconscious assumptions to be evaluated and consciously chosen or discarded. I'll take you through the process of a values decision through the lens of a school choice conversation, so that you can apply it to your own major (and minor) decisions: 1. To get clear, first identify the values that are important to you. For me, the top values are: Respecting others' inner knowing (especially children) Self sufficiency (within a network of interdependence) Respect for nature Cultural lineage and identity 2. Next, prioritize the values in order of importance to you (or your family, partnership, etc) with your top values on top. Mine would look like this: a. Respecting others' inner knowing (especially children) b. Respect for nature c. Self sufficiency (within a network of interdependence) d. Cultural lineage and identity 3. Finally, look at the options you are considering and evaluate how well they match your values. Which option would be most aligned with your top values? You can even assign numerical scores to the options and add them up. (a = 4, b = 3, c = 2, d = 1) School #1: d only = 1 School #2: a, b and c = 9 School #3: a, c, and d = 8 School #4: a, b, and c = 9 Then make your choice. If your gut instincts are not being factored into the number, see what they might have to tell you about this decision. Is there another value that is not being weighed here? Make sure to add it in. Emotions are an essential part of our experience. In Conversations with God, Neil Donald Walsch describes them as energy in motion. And as long as our emotions stay fluid, we are free to go with the flow. When our emotions get stuck, so do we. Stuck in old patterns, habits and self-defeating behaviors. All of those behaviors, ironically, were designed to avoid feeling the emotion in the first place. Many of us get over attached to our emotional experiences. Instead of just going the flow, we hitch our horses to the emotional cart and end up getting taken for the ride of our lives. A metaphor can illustrate the internal road to emotional fluidity. Let's say you have a magic carpet. And that carpet represents a disruptive emotion. For the illustration we'll say it's anger, since there are many emotional taboos against anger in "civilized" societies. Most of us hop on the magic carpet, and start listening to what it has to say. Those angry words lead us to angry feelings which lead us to angry actions. And once we've gotten on the carpet, it's very seductive to stay on the ride, with all its highs and lows. But what if, instead of hopping on the carpet, you stayed open to its message, and allowed it to pass through your experience? The act of staying open and neutral is the key to staying present to life's possibilities. The moment we grasp - or climb on the magic carpet - we become attached to an emotion. And yes, a "positive" emotion like happiness may be more desirable than a more destructive emotion like guilt, but attachment takes us out of the miracle of the present moment, which is where all the emotional magic happens. Imagine if, rather than riding any particular emotion, which by its very nature is limited to that particular emotional frequency, whether dialed up or down, we stayed open to the wide range of emotional experiences available at any one moment. What would it be like to be tuned in to the very richness of life? It's like taking off a pair of colored sunglasses, to let all of the beautiful light in. As we move into the new year, consider challenging yourself to stay open to your experience. It will take time and effort, but it is an option available to you in any given moment. And you can choose it again and again. It's astounding. Just 8% of new year's resolutions actually work. You may take this as a sign to give up, or you may want some tools to manifest your goals in a way that is more powerful. This blog is for those in the latter camp. One definition of quantum is "a discrete quantity of energy proportional in magnitude to the frequency of the radiation it represents." In order to actualize your New Years Resolution, you have to put in what you wish to get out. That means actually experiencing your goal as realized in order to pull it into existence. The more senses you can pull into this activity, the better. THE EXERCISE Let's say you want to lose weight. Take a few moments to answer these questions. How will you feel when you lose the weight? Imagine you're at your ideal weight. Are you light, exuberant, confident, etc? What do you feel like doing now that you've attained this body (go shopping for a new wardrobe, go out dancing, hiking, etc)? What does it feel like to do those activities in celebration of your goal? Can you start doing any of these activities now with the same level of enjoyment? If so, begin today! What does it look like when you're at your ideal weight? Project a mirror in front of you and examine your newly slim self from every angle. What do you see? What will your body feel like when you lose the weight? Find a body part that is representative of what you want to achieve. If it's on someone else, make sure you have permission to touch! Feel the firm muscle and skin, and know that it's yours. Project that knowing on the rest of your body, like an energetic shower. Decide how you'll celebrate this achievement. Say it's by baking a wholesome version of your favorite cake (I highly recommend Chocolate Covered Katie for vegan/gluten free/healthy ingredient decadent desserts). What will it smell like to succeed? What will it taste like? Mmmmm... THE REASON IT WORKS Our minds are scared of change. They hold onto the present moment, like it or not, because it is the known. What is unknown is laced with fear. When you can introduce the unknown and make it both knowable and pleasurable to your mind, your emotions and body are liberated to follow suit. Like attracts like. So the more you step into the feeling and sensing state of what you want, the more strongly you draw it into your reality. Set out to celebrate your achievements before they manifest, and see what happens! It's nice to give, but the most powerful gifts come from a place of power. Imagine coming out of the holidays more peaceful than before. You deserve to move back into your emotional center and get grounded. And it takes far less time than spinning your wheels. The holidays can be unsettling. As stresses pile up we move out of our center, causing energetic imbalance. We eat more in order to feel more grounded, and feel discouraged as our weight rises. The solution is at your fingertips. An energy tune-up clears out the static, enabling you to find your center. Energetic rebalancing can take just 15 minutes. Book your energy tune-up on either of the last two Sundays in December. Claim your free gift today at: http://www.miriamjkatz.com/thankyou.html In the energy healing community, there's a lot of focus on clearing out old energy, whether in our physical or energetic bodies or our homes. And for those of us who have experienced blocked or stuck energy, we mostly just want to get it out.
But the adage about turning problems into opportunities holds true for energy clearing too. The block or fear that drains your energy can actually be transformed into a source of love and inspiration. I'll be sharing more on this as I move more strongly into this area, which I feel is deeply connected to my purpose here on earth. But I'll give you a bit of background on what I'm talking about. For many years now, I've been battling my inner demons. We all have areas of our life that need extensive focus and experience in order to gain lessons before we can move more fully into our power. One of my pivotal areas is a series of deep-seated fears that stem from being wide open to the energies of others, as well as the world of spirit, and being deeply unsettled by those experiences. While I may talk about "battling demons" I actually liked to believe I was transmuting or releasing my inner demons, since fighting things just locks them more strongly into your energy. But like most of us, when I'm scared, I just want my problem to go away. What I've been playing with over the past few months is the idea that not only can things be sent away, but they can actually be transformed into a source of light. One way to describe this process of transmutation is turning demons into angels. Our demons may be scary, but inside each of them is a transformational lesson for us. Once embraced, that knowing can be an enduring source of love and joy. My clients have been reflecting this truth too, as they step forward with blocks and fears that are being released to reveal truths about their own paths and passions. As we unlock what was once hidden, we are called to greater and greater experiences of truth. What fears are blocking you from stepping into your power? What lies are hiding your truth? It's time to shine a light on that which most scares us so that we can become the transformational light bringers that we were born to be. THE ILLUSION In our world, which is dominated by left-brained, rational thinking, most of us are taught that the purpose of work is to earn money and prestige. This idea directs us to search outside ourselves for value (money and recognition) and thus engage in work that never fully meets our inner needs. As we look outside of ourselves for fulfillment, it's only natural that we also begin to look outside of ourselves for guidance to achieve those goals. THE TRUTH The truth is that each of us has a powerful internal navigation system that can be used to create all we want and more. And that work, something we often think of as difficult and arduous, can actually be enjoyable beyond our wildest dreams. I know all of this, for I have been able to shape work using gifts that make me feel as if I've been plugged into the bounty of the universe. And in this exclusive, first of its kind workshop series, I'll be teaching my secrets to you. The truth is, we make things much harder than they need to be. The truth is, plugging into your own GPS system is easy. It's a matter of bringing your attention to the things that really count. And the truth is, I can help you get there. THE WAY HOME In this 5 week teleclass exploring your life purpose, we'll travel together toward your deepest inner truths, those can help you remember what you came here to do. Some highlights of our 5 week class include:
I invite you to join me on this exciting journey and step into a reality that inspires you beyond what you dreamed possible. Sign up for our waiting list and I'll keep you in the loop as more details are revealed. Fill out my online form. Use Wufoo templates to make your own HTML forms. If you've been following my work for several years, or if you peruse the older posts in my blog, you know that I've made a shift over time from focusing on career alignment to focusing on alignment of the spirit. But the truth is that the two are inextricably linked. As we listen to the stirrings of discontent in our heart, we start to notice areas that need an overhaul. For many, work is that first and most obvious area. Work is what we do for the most conscious hours each day, it's how we publicly define ourselves (i.e. "I'm a lawyer"), and it's how we make our mark on the world. When we're unhappy at work, it seeps into other areas of our lives. And the "work" of figuring out our life's work is also an multidimensional activity. It helps us to identify and remember our connection to this world and its inhabitants. I'm about to announce a partnership between myself and you, between my old focus and my new, between your spirit and your livelihood. And it's a big one. As we move into the new year and get ready to step into new possibilities, I'll be offering an opportunity to explore your heart's desire and how to step into it in a real and tangible way through a soul-aligned career path. A group of fellow seekers will join us for weekly calls, creating a warm and supportive group of travelers walking the path to inner freedom together. Interested? Join our waiting list by signing up here: Fill out my online form. |