Inner Peace is the title of the 13th Wind of the Soul podcast installment. This episode features a reading of the blog post: 8 Tips for Achieving a More Secure Peaceful State of Mind, along with further thoughts on several of the ideas contained in the entry. This episode’s running time is 10:52 and file size for download is 9.95 MB. It can be played via the embedded player in the Audio section, or on your media player by following the Inner Peace link, or in the embedded You Tube players below.

Thanks for joining me for this installment. I appreciate the continued feedback regarding the podcast series.

Related Posts

Self Truths: Part 1
Shaking off Social Pressure to Achieve Self Actualization
Blazing Your Own Trail
8 Tips for Achieving a More Secure Peaceful State of Mind

There are currently 106 blog posts contained at Wind of the Soul. The majority of these are devoted to encouraging the individual to follow their inner-wisdom, explore their creative passion, break free from the ranks of limiting social concepts/expectations and be wary of chasing external “happiness.” While I usually don’t post videos, I was so moved by this three minute and thirty second clip, I wanted to share it. In his 1999 speech, Terence McKenna captured the majority of my thoughts and feelings in the most concise and rapid manner I’ve ever witnessed.

Terence was a poetic genius and wordsmith who consistently stretched the concepts and paradigms of reality. Though he’s passed on, I’m sure his consciousness continues the journey down the rabbit hole, freeing more minds as he goes.

Whether you agree or disagree with McKenna (or me for that matter), the material is thought provoking and causes us to take a step back and examine our existence. Once we stop exploring; stop questioning; stop examining – that’s when we are in trouble.

I can’t vouch for the website featured at the end of the clip, as I’ve never been there, nor have I ordered any of their products.

This video can also be accessed by visiting the You Tube page.

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This installment features a narrative of the blog entry: It Takes a Conscious Village. The episode explores ways to become more conscious and aware during our interactions with children. It’s extremely important we take into consideration the impact our actions have on their development. It’s the development during their formative years which will shape their mindset as adults – in turn, creating an impact on all of society.

This episode’s running time is 6 minutes, 4 seconds and file size for download is 5.56 MB. It can be played via the embedded player in the Audio section, or on your computer’s media player by following this link, or in the embedded You Tube player below. Thanks for joining me for this installment. I appreciate the continued feedback regarding the Wind of the Soul Podcast Series.

Posts Related to It Takes a Conscious Village

8 Tips for Achieving a More Secure Peaceful State of Mind
Evoking Change Through Uplifting Action
Forgiving our Past: Key to Unlocking a Joyful Present
Releasing Attachments to Judgmental Labels
Shaking off Social Pressure to Achieve Self Actualization
Universal Law of Reciprocation

By now, you’ve probably figured out I’m primarily a nonconformist when it comes to my views on personal development, concepts pertaining to metaphysics and life in general. Some of the traditional teachings in these areas of thought resonate with me, but overall, I tend to be more of an independent thinker. This is why the whole theme of Wind of the Soul pertains to following your own guidance, not someone else’s, no matter their clout or level of so called expertise.

I intend for my writing to stand as a reminder; a sign post of sorts along the way. It’s not meant to be a rule book of tired, old, cookie cutter self-help strategies. I would never expect anyone to follow my thoughts or ideas as a code to live by, nor would I want them to. Because of that, my work may not be the most popular, but I’m not trying to win any contests here.

We learn nothing when we follow someone else’s rules. Sure, we become skilled at being “good little citizens/robots” who hope to make our parents, teachers, spouses, friends, employers, country (and let’s not forget about god) proud. But most good little citizens end up unhappy because they’ve spent a lifetime ignoring their own voice and beating down their own inner calling. Often times, they’ve convinced themselves that the desire to change for the “better” is their own, when in actuality it’s stemming from those around them.

Our greatest experiences come when we get outside of living under policies and guidelines, no matter who dictates them. This is when we finally become capable of learning who we are. Now, I’m not at all advocating a life of delinquency or treating people like dirt – I’m talking about getting out from under someone else’s rules as they pertain to our spiritual development, our personal expansion and the course of our life.

So, what does it mean to grow in your groove? Growing in your groove is everything I mentioned in the above paragraphs. Specifically, for the purpose of this entry, however, it pertains to seeing beyond the often cliché advice of breaking out of our comfort zones.

While exposing ourselves to uncomfortable situations can contribute to our growth as well as having new experiences, my problem with people always teaching this concept is, it fails to take into consideration we are all unique. There’s not one individual on this planet who interprets life in the exact same manner as another. When we enter into any experience with the assumption it’s fairly identical for everyone, no matter what, we’re completely off course.

I believe there is a current or a flow to each of our lives. Anytime we force ourselves or challenge ourselves to do something we really have no interest in doing (all for the sake of supposedly overcoming our fear), we are fighting against that flow.

Now, if you have a desire to follow a pursuit, but you feel trepidation about taking action, then extending outside your comfort level is great. However, I don’t believe we should ever take action toward something we have no interest in pursuing, simply because others are pressuring us into doing so.

My dad was in the military, so I spent all of my childhood challenging my levels of comfort. In fourteen years of public school (counting pre-kindergarten) I attended twelve different schools – talk about living in an almost constant state of discomfort and anxiety.

I tend to be more of an artistic, creative, sensitive individual. Each and every time I have worked to break out of my comfort zones, my creativity and my natural abilities become stifled for weeks to months at a time. Only after some semblance of comfort (stability) once again returns, do I feel able to be myself.

For me, my groove is all about maintaining a fairly stable lifestyle (within reason). I grow and thrive in relative stability, not in undesired challenges. In stability I’m more in tune, grounded and aware. My creativity flows and I’m at one with my surroundings. In spiritual terms, I consider these conditions optimal for nurturing growth.

I believe the same can be observed in nature. Of course, nature goes through major upheavals in which everything is out of its comfort zone for a length of time, but as that happens – most things in the affected niche aren’t flourishing. It takes an indefinite period of calm and serenity for many living things to thrive in their natural environment.

I don’t resist change. I understand change to be an integral part of life and the evolution of the Universe. However, I’ve found the more simplistic I keep my life, the better suited I am to embrace change.

For others, they may thrive by constantly piling challenges upon themselves and placing themselves far outside their comfort zones, but we aren’t all that way. Get in touch with your unique nature and never, ever allow anyone to define how that should be for you – not even me.

If it feels good to you, then follow it, if it doesn’t – forget about it. Learn to respect others and their right to either grow in their groove, outside their groove or to simply just groove, minus any major growth. There’s never been one right way to get to where you’re going and there never will be.

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This installment features a narrative of the blog entry: Economic Recession = Rebirth. The episode explores the ability, afforded to us by financial downturn, to reconnect with purposeful, conscious action and intrinsic value. By reconnecting and becoming more conscious, we stop reacting and we lessen our dependence on external items and circumstances for sustaining or inspiring our happiness.

This episode’s running time is 8 minutes, 25 seconds and file size for download is 7.71 MB. It can be played on your computer’s media player by following this link, or via the embedded player in the Audio section, or in the embedded You Tube player below. Thanks for joining me for this installment. I appreciate the continued feedback regarding the Wind of the Soul Podcast Series.

Many years ago, when confronted by the question, “Are you happy?” I distinctly recall my reaction. Though the individual posing it was being completely sincere, I felt it was a ludicrous thing to ask. How could something so simple seem like such a strange query? As she awaited a response; my mind, only partially aware of the ever increasing lull in the conversation, was desperately trying to piece together some semblance of a reply. I stumbled around a bit and timidly answered with, “I guess”. After that, the rest of the exchange was a blur.

Looking back on it now, I understand why I reacted in that manner. It was a subtle form of shock. There I was, in my early twenties, never having contemplated whether or not I was truly happy at the deepest level of my being. In fact, up until that point, I don’t think I even considered happiness an option or an emotion associated with living life. Sure, I had fleeting moments of joy, but real, concrete happiness always seemed to be a nice fantasy reserved for someone else.

For me, life at that point had become completely unintentional. I lived to get things done and that was that. I was working and going to college, but all of my experiences were devoid of passion, drive, purpose, clarity and meaning.

Other than the emotion of fear, I had little reason to get out of bed in the morning. Fear and anxiety became my sole motivators for living. I stayed at a job where I was underpaid and under appreciated because of the fear of trying something new. I went to school, not for myself or because I enjoyed it, but because I was scared of what my family would think if I didn’t go and terrified of what would become of me without a degree.

I engaged in one unhealthy relationship after another because I was fearful of having something worthwhile and someone who honestly cared about me. My relationships (both friendly and romantic) were a reflection of how I felt about myself on the inside. I didn’t believe I was worthy of sincerely being cared for in anything more than a superficial manner, so I found people who were more than willing to oblige and second that sentiment.

Even my exercise program was driven by fear. I worked out to the point of seriously injuring myself on more than one occasion (through extreme forms of weight training) because I was fearful of the alternative: looking “normal” or “average.”

When you have an extremely rigid, fear based mentality, concerning the majority of your interactions and experiences, it’s easy to see how someone can become cynical and devoid of joy. While I wasn’t super successful in terms of material gain and financial wealth, during this phase in my life, I did obtain many of the things we’ve been led to believe induce happiness, yet I was far from living in that state of being.

The “happiness question” planted a seed within me. Though it didn’t sprout overnight, to this day it continues to be the inspiration for everything I pursue in my life. Real, concrete happiness is a state of being which can only be internally realized (not possessed) through the lack of attachment to any outcomes or circumstances, but it has to begin with a realization. I believe that realization is the moment we grant ourselves permission to feel, explore and find out who we are; not the person our family, friends, co-workers, customers, or even strangers expect us to be, but who we are.

If we aren’t granting ourselves permission to explore our true nature, then the majority of our relationships are built on false pretenses anyway. How often do we play a deceptive role or diminish ourselves just to fit in or to make someone else feel content and not threatened by our choices?

When exploring this concept, I’m reminded of a quote by Nelson Mandela:

“Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking, so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are born to make manifest the glory of god that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people the permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

I was miserable because I was conforming to what others expected of me; primarily trying to please people who didn’t care about me; trying to entice people to care about me who were as devoid of joy and meaning as I was; performing unfulfilling tasks for empty paychecks; engaging in pursuits I derived no value from, and attaching myself to every outcome and circumstance – all because I was unable to grant myself permission to find my true nature and break free from the fearful role I was playing. I conformed and played the part I was expected to play, while becoming little more than a scared, twisted-up-knot of misery.

Our light doesn’t shine when we “play the game” that’s expected of us. The game itself is built on fear and the system thrives (while the majority of humanity suffers) as we are playing small and in fear mode. Our light shines when we grant ourselves permission to tear down the walls of conformity; when we take chances; when we throw the rules out the window and grow through self-exploration and unique, individual expression.

None of this is meant to be an excuse to treat others poorly. As we begin to engage in a sincere, honest relationship with ourselves, all of our other relationships will benefit because we will be truly connecting. Some relationships may fall away, but that’s only natural as we grow and make major life changes.

Each and every stage of growth begins with that first step of granting ourselves permission. And, each and every stage of moving closer to recognizing real happiness begins with the same step.

If this entry has been beneficial to you, please consider sharing it with others via the email and social bookmarking links below.

Posts Related to Granting Yourself Permission

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Anyone familiar with the proverb (or Hillary Clinton’s 1996 book): “It takes a village to raise a child”, will recognize my play on words in the title of this entry. While I don’t have children of my own, the psychological well-being during a child’s formative years is a cause that’s very close to my heart. I suffered with severe forms of depression, obsessions and compulsions throughout my childhood. It’s a child’s development, for better or worse, which will continue to impact them throughout the remainder of their lives, far beyond their formative years. I know, because I’m still working on healing my past.

I often talk about changing the world. If it’s true we must be the change we want to see, and I believe it is; shouldn’t that change be directed primarily towards the youngest of minds, as they will come to have the greatest impact on the direction of humanity?

The majority of psychological issues faced by most adults were exacerbated during their childhood. The sad fact: as a nation, the United States has more children with mental health issues than ever before. I’m not talking about institutionalized conditions. I’m talking about “common”, “ordinary” issues like depression, eating disorders, emotional issues, body dysmorphia, etc. If our ways of raising, educating and socializing children are working so well, why are we seeing an increase in psychological trauma?

The argument could be made that we now have more forms of communication which create a heightened sense of awareness about such issues. It also could be said doctors are label happy when it comes to making a diagnosis. While these factors could be contributing to the perceived increase, there still seems to be legitimacy to the statistics. Children are experiencing far more emotional and psychological anguish in their lives than ever before.

I believe the true cause of this resides in “our village” moving farther away from taking conscious, uplifting action as it raises children. We’re all hell bent for leather on taking action this way and that way, but how many times does that action reflect the greater good of the child?

How often are the actions we take primarily for forwarding our own blind agendas, instead of relating to children as human beings and taking into consideration their input? How often do we focus on their perceived shortcomings, instead of providing positive reinforcement of their strengths? How often does our educational system treat them like numbers or cattle, herding them through the system and stuffing uninspired curriculum down their throats? How often are they treated like property, instead of like little people who simply haven’t had a wide range of experiences?

How often is it believed they are resilient and will recover from anything because they are kids? How often do we assume they are similar to one another, regarding how they relate to life and their perceptions of the world? How often do we sell their potential short when it comes to the insights they possess? How often do we teach them to have a competitive mindset? How often do we teach them happiness is only achieved externally? How often does the educational system relate to them as “recruits” who need to be broken so they will conform?

I’m not suggesting we do away with discipline or educating children; though these two areas, as they currently stand, need large amounts of reform and change. I am suggesting we set an example in which we treat them in the exact same manner we would want to be treated. Is it that difficult to let love provide the way in which we “allow” our children to grow and flourish while we simultaneously raise them, whether we are parents, educators, coaches or mentors?

I’m suggesting we’re present with them and we be there for them in the moment (when the moment is available). I’m suggesting we allow them to feel their true feelings, instead of teaching them to bottle everything up inside and to push it all down. I’m suggesting we help them to understand how to empower themselves through feeling their emotions. I’m suggesting we show them how to lift up others instead of beating them down.

I’m suggesting we help them to understand the impact their actions can have, without always resorting to heavy handed punishments. I’m suggesting we teach by example, how to sincerely connect, instead of being fragmented and scatter brained. I’m suggesting we set an example of living life through honesty and sincerity instead of living a life based on false pretenses.

I’m suggesting we allow them to follow their own unique calling (at home and in school), rather than overlaying our own expectations about their future. I’m suggesting, more often than not, we allow them to be and we appreciate them for who they are without requiring any outcome. I’m suggesting we celebrate the unique beings that they each are. And most importantly, I’m suggesting we learn to truly love ourselves, so we can show them how to give love, accept love and be love.

This, I believe, is how our village can become more consciously connected when it comes to raising children.

While these suggestions are not cures, they would go a long way in helping our youth to once again value who they are and to know their self-worth.

If this entry has been beneficial to you, please consider sharing it with others via the email and social bookmarking links below.

Posts Related to It Takes a Conscious Village

Shaking off Social Pressure to Achieve Self Actualization
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Have you ever had an experience in which you honestly felt you weren’t fully responsible for making the decision or the choice to engage in a set of circumstances or an event – it just sort of slipped up on you? This line of thinking is not my normal approach with regards to taking full responsibility for everything in our lives. However, I’m willing to entertain such a thing because I felt something similar regarding my “choice” of becoming a vegetarian in 2008.

Prior to this last year, I had always been a meat eater. That’s not a fact I’m proud of, but it’s something I’m willing to admit. Though I was raised in a household where my mom was a vegetarian, I still consumed meat. Even after embarking on the path of becoming more consciously aware and respectful of all living things, I continued to consume meat.

The contradiction in that last sentence should have been obvious to me at some point, but it wasn’t. Just like so many of the issues I’ve had to face in becoming more self-actualized, my “taste” for meat (as a young adult) was motivated by my own issues of low self-esteem.

As a teenager, I was constantly teased for being painfully thin. This situation only compounded an already burgeoning state of insecurity. By age 18, I began a very serious bodybuilding and weight training hobby, with the hopes of shedding my old appearance. I had grown to hate the body I saw in the mirror and was willing to do almost anything to permanently alter or change it, even if it meant hurting myself in the process. My motto was: “I can’t do anything about my face, but I can certainly do something to fix my body” – somewhat empowering, yet simultaneously self defeating, wouldn’t you say?

Because of my strong desire to outgrow my old body, I began devouring any and all bodybuilding literature, videos, conversations in the gym, etc. Everything pointed in the same direction with regards to a muscle building diet: animal protein and more animal protein. I submersed myself in the lifestyle and lost sight of the consequences of my actions. While this post isn’t about body image (that’s coming up in a future entry), it’s important to point out how easy it is to make unconscious decisions when we’re suffering emotionally. The dietary habits I formed during that decade of self-destructive bodybuilding had become ingrained. Throughout my late twenties and early thirties I continued to eat meat.

However, in 2008, this practice came to a screeching halt. While I’ve been completely aware of the vegan and vegetarian lifestyle for years, my personal change had nothing to do with intentionally emulating these admirable actions (at least it didn’t feel that way). I don’t actually know how to explain the manner in which I became a vegetarian. This takes me back to my statement in the opening paragraph: I didn’t feel fully responsible for making the decision.

I woke up one day, and it was as if my taste buds for meat had been removed. It began with beef in March of last year and worked its way down the list of the other animals (e.g. chicken and fish) I was consuming. Honestly, I attribute this change to absolutely following the wind of my soul, whether I was aware of it or not.

Based on my current path, becoming a vegetarian was the next logical step in my development and evolution. It appears “something” knew that better than I did. Feel free to call it whatever you like: a subconscious motivation, a conscious choice that I chose to overlook, or some form of soulful intervention; all I know is that I’m currently far more satisfied with my food choices, by no longer being responsible for contributing to the slaughter of animals. My dietary intake still includes large amounts of protein, but they now come in the form of protein powders, dairy and soy based products only.

I’m not here to judge anyone’s choices when it comes to eating or not eating meat. Just as I had to go through my own experience of waking up, so will others and I respect that.

However, in closing this post, I will leave you with this concept: if an animal is killed in a violent manner (name a slaughterhouse in which that’s not the case) and a person chooses to eat its meat – that same animal’s molecules are melding with the molecules of the individual; this includes everything the animal felt, coursing through its veins, at the moment of death.

We compound the poisoning of our own vibrational state, by first killing and then eating that which has been violently killed. Yet, if we’re already in a place of psychologically poisoning ourselves on a daily basis, what other actions would be fitting to take, if not those which mirror our own internal turmoil? I’m not defending the killing or carnivorous action; only understanding the lack of awareness in why it’s committed, because I used to be there.

If you enjoyed this post or found it beneficial, please consider sharing it with others. Thanks for supporting Wind of the Soul.

The Conversations With God Giveaway has closed. I’d like to congratulate Steven Labella of San Diego, California, Kirk Ray of Florida, and Ryan Brenny of Hilo, Hawaii. They each won a brand new copy of “Conversations With God.”

“I am not concerned about your worldly success – only you are. You are not to worry about making a living. True masters are those that have chosen to make a life, not a living. Go ahead, do whatever you really love. Do nothing else. You have so little time. Why would you want to waste it doing something you don’t want to do? That isn’t a living – it’s a dying.” – Neale Donald Walsch, “Conversations With God”

The above quote is one of my favorites from the film and it brings us to the second Wind of the Soul giveaway. In this second installment, I’m giving three brand new DVD copies of Conversations With God to three separate winners.

The film, directed by the Co-founder of Spiritual Cinema Circle, was meant to be a screen adaptation of the series of best selling books by the same name. Though the movie doesn’t represent the unfolding of the books – it does impart much of the same spiritual wisdom, as we follow Neale (played by Henry Czerny) through some extremely turbulent experiences.

Neale, like so many of us, prior to discovering the connection to his own divine nature, unconsciously battles his way through life. He has to scrape rock bottom before discovering the inner knowledge, which leads him out of the depths of his despair. And, that’s why this movie is so endearing to me. Granted, it has some very sad and depressing sequences, but the ultimate realization and self-awakening is what’s so inspirational.

Whether or not Neale was/is truly conversing with “God” in a verifiable way is a nonissue for me. If we are capable of quieting the mind and recognizing the creative, energetic, consciousness which flows through us, then in essence we are all conversing constantly with our own inner god or goddess. It’s up to us what we choose to do with those conversations. Neale chose to apply them in a manner which created benefit and value in his own life as well as the lives of millions of others.

Each of us has the same option. It’s up to us if we wish to allow it to work toward that which is most beneficial and advantageous for ourselves and humankind. This shouldn’t be motivated by or stem from a standpoint of following a contrived set of rules, but rather from the perspective of feeling for the inner dialogue which is most fulfilling, loving, nurturing, uplifting and translating it into action. To me, that’s what conversing with god and living life as creative, expansive beings is all about.

I wish all the best to everyone who enters.

Please, only one entry per household. Duplicate entries from the same IP will be deleted. This helps to make it fairer for everyone. There’s no catch here, everything is free – including payment of shipping and handling of “Conversations With God” – I cover all costs. To be entered, all you have to do is leave a comment below, signifying your interest.

Depending upon the volume of entries, comments may only be displayed under this post for a short time. As entries grow, I may remove comments from the post to make it easier for visitors to scroll to the comment box and enter.

When leaving a comment, be sure to include your correct email address. Each winner of “Conversations With God” will be contacted through the address that’s registered with their comment. I will never share email addresses, provided by entrants, with any third parties and you’ll never receive unsolicited mail when entering.

The Conversations With God contest will end at 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on March 28th, 2009. All legitimate entries will then be assigned a number. Three numbers will be randomly drawn to determine the winners.

All three winners will then be notified, via the email addresses they provided, no later than March 30th. If one, or all three don’t respond (with their shipping information) within a week, then one (two or three) more number(s) will be drawn to determine the new winner(s).

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

If you would like to see your spiritual or self-help business promoted through Wind of the Soul and you have some appropriately themed items to distribute in a giveaway, please contact me.

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Though, I’m a huge advocate of being vigilant concerning where we place the majority of our attention, I also understand the importance of being aware of the current economic reality facing this nation. I’m not an economist, nor do I pretend to have the slightest grasp of fiscal expertise. But, perhaps I possess something else which qualifies me to write this post: I’ve had an experience with a situation that’s currently happening to many people. And, in my opinion, I represent a real world example of coming out the other side better off for having experienced it.

Seven and a half years ago, I was displaced from my job of almost a decade (along with roughly one thousand others) when my employer filed for bankruptcy. We were union; I was vested and building on a decent little pension, not to mention having amazing medical, dental and vision coverage. My hourly rate of pay was almost five times that of minimum wage (in 2001).

Due to the great benefits and the literal amount of blood sweat and tears I had invested in my position, I was devastated when our location was unable to escape a wave of closures that rocked the company. There were “rescue” buyout negotiations occurring all around us, yet we weren’t among those being saved.

Furthermore, our fate wasn’t strictly decided in a corporate boardroom. We were also at the mercy of a judge. He ruled in favor of allocating all of the funds earmarked for employee severance packages (mine was worth several thousand dollars) to two individuals brought in by the corporate office. They each cleaned up with close to a quarter of a million for “helping” the company stay afloat for an additional two or three months – so much for doing right by the employees who had helped sustain the company for years.

The weeks following my layoff, initially, were extremely dark and depressing, yet somewhere within the somber mood I recognized that the situation afforded me with a fantastic opportunity to begin anew. Though I had gained great experience from my job and could have probably found a position rather quickly in the same line of work, I realized I wasn’t being fulfilled by that form of employment. I also began to realize I wasn’t living up to my potential, based on my own natural abilities.

Sure, I was surviving, but I was no where near experiencing the feeling of thriving at work or in life. I wasn’t passionate about my choice of vocation, nor did I feel I was providing the type of benefit and service I was truly capable of providing. Deep down, I knew I wasn’t doing something that was important to me – making a major difference in people’s lives.

Though I always gave 110% during my shifts, my talents were being stifled by staying onboard. The company’s Chapter 11 issues couldn’t have come at a better time. The closures forced my hand into taking action. I had reached what I felt was the first major crossroads of my life and it was time for me to choose the path less taken; the one that existed just outside my proverbial comfort zones.

When we, as individuals or as a collective group, experience drastic changes like those accompanying a massive layoff or a nationwide recession, it’s always an opportunity for the individual, as well as the group, to rebirth and reinvent itself. And, while I’m sure there are a million and one surface reasons being put forth to explain why this economic recession has occurred; I believe none of these explanations address the core cause.

A surface issue is always the physical development of that which is brewing deeper within the psyche of an organism. In the case of a recession, the organism just happens to be an entire nation. Inner turmoil (be it consciously or subconsciously) always leads to the external manifestation of choices and options. It’s up to us as to how we choose to respond to the current situation facing this country. We can either consciously act or unconsciously react.

For years, the collective American psyche, predominantly, has selected external accumulation, status and achievement over internal happiness (a form of unconsciously reacting to social conditioning) or else has mistakenly confused these things with happiness. This mentality has helped usher in the all too common physical practice of short changing fellow human beings, in terms of services rendered, for a shoddy, often times overpriced and even unnecessary, end product or outcome.

The more we devalue our own existence through a gluttonous, achievement/status only mindset, whether as suppliers or consumers, we develop a belief in needing to acquire more and more of what we feel is an extremely limited set of resources. Not only are we potentially hurting others, but we are also hurting ourselves by living or functioning outside our means, spiritually and/or financially. As we begin to selfishly pursue and acquire more “things”, we simultaneously find more ways to cheat one another in order to continue acquiring even more.

Ultimately, a nationwide, financial downturn is actually society’s way of unconsciously restoring balance. On the surface it seems like an extremely horrible thing, but I believe there is absolutely a method to what seems like total madness.

Internally and emotionally speaking, I believe a financial crisis occurs because of a loss in faith – not faith in money – but faith in one another. When we no longer trust the majority of those that are providing their services, we become fearful and we constrict our energy flow. This energy flow can be represented in many ways, money being one of them. Unfortunately, some that are providing a true increase in life, through their services, may also be impacted along the way. However, I believe, they will weather the storm or even potentially thrive because they have made valuable service their priority. This is exactly why certain individuals thrived during the great depression. They didn’t excel because they were shrewd, they excelled because they were sincere in their pursuit of service.

It’s for good reason, during times of economic crisis, that people invariably bring themselves back to an awareness of only focusing on what truly matters, e.g. the necessities in life. As we get back to the basics and we focus on necessity, it naturally brings us to a better understanding of intrinsic value. This is what helps lead us to our rebirth and reinvention, if we can eventually see it in that manner.

When we zero in on what really matters (our relationship with our self, our families, our friendships, and our health) and we strip away the rest of the material fluff, we come back to a true understanding of what it means to be joyful for the sake of being joyful. This place of being happy and whole, for the sake of being is what allows us to consciously act instead of reacting to our current circumstances, whether we’re prospering or not.

As I have always stated in a large percentage of my posts – there is absolutely nothing wrong with being extremely wealthy or acquiring possessions. It’s when these things are pursued at the expense of developing our own amazing potential for being loving, joyful, peaceful beings (internally and externally) that we encounter an imbalance.

When we all find the means to channel these beautiful emotions, along with our relative resources and physical talents, into a way for sincerely providing valuable, worthwhile, uplifting service (a form of taking conscious action for the greater good), I believe economic recessions, on a grand scale, could be a thing of the past. Whether they become extinct or not, if you begin living more consciously and sincerely (acting instead of reacting) and you consistently provide and invest your resources in real service for others, you’ll weather any financial storm and even better, you’ll help others do the same.

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This episode is an audio narration of my latest blog entry, Evoking Change through Uplifting Action. It covers embracing internal love, peace and acceptance, for the purpose of following through with uplifting, life-changing physical action. It’s this action which leads to profound personal (as well as global) change.

You can access this episode in several ways: through the audio section’s player, the embedded You Tube players below, or via the following link: Episode #10.

“Evoking Change through Uplifting Action” runs for 12 minutes and 35 seconds. File size for download is 11.5 MB.

Part I

Part II

As is customary for me, when PBS goes into pledge drive mode, my TV spends more time on than it does off. During these pledge drives, you’ll find public television airing more personal development and spiritually based programming. Several days ago, they featured a self-help seminar, titled: The Traveler’s Gift, by Andy Andrews. I first became aware of Andy through his book, Storms of Perfection, in which he shared the personal success stories (which stemmed from the repeated “failures” and persistent drive) of many well known celebrities, athletes and business people.

The point of Andy’s PBS special was to reinforce the idea that each and every one of our actions, no matter how trivial they seem, create an impact; not only in our life but in the lives of so many others – even to the point of reaching future generations.

As Andy stated, “There are generations yet unborn, whose existence depends on the choices you make and the action you take. Because everything you do matters – every move you make, every action you take; not just for you; not just for your family or hometown – everything you do matters for all of us, forever.”

After shutting off the television, I began feeling for how Andy’s words resonated with me and how I’m applying them in my own life:

When we take any action, it not only has a direct impact on that which we are acting upon, but it also has an impact upon unknown or unseen (to us) variables, far removed from our immediate vicinity. For example, let’s take a look at a small derogatory action, such as someone throwing the finger to a fellow driver in traffic.

We assume a gesture such as that only has a direct, relevant impact in that very short moment in time. Rarely do we contemplate the kind of negative momentum that action may create in the life of the recipient, and in the lives of each individual the recipient comes into contact with after that moment, and in turn, each person those people come into contact with. Such a simple gesture can affect the mood and mindset of an individual in a manner far greater than we realize and that mood and mindset will determine their follow-up actions towards others. During the course of a single event, our activities have the potential to impact anywhere from a handful of people to thousands or even millions.

Every one of our actions and deeds creates a ripple effect throughout humanity and the Universe itself, sometimes enacting small outcomes, and at other times enacting greater ones, but the point is they all create an impact and they all count. When we take that into consideration, it becomes more important to consistently perform more conscious acts.

It may seem silly to think something as insignificant as gesturing with our middle finger can change the course of events for a multitude of individuals, but that (in a way) is exactly what it does. You see, the web of existence is so interconnected and intertwined that there is not one single action or deed which can escape causing an impact in our lives and in the lives of so many others. Everything was designed that way for a very good reason: to show us just how our choices can either benefit us greatly as we recognize and promote our unity, or else how they can harm us immensely as we react from a fear based belief in separation.

So, we have to ask ourselves, are the majority of our actions spurring on something positive in others or are they eliciting the opposite response? Of course, we each have to take responsibility for our deeds. Just because we perform a rude gesture doesn’t grant the recipient of that gesture cart blanche for treating anyone they encounter badly. But, it does need to make us more conscientious of our own behavior, whether we are the recipient or the giver. And, once we understand this principle and how far reaching it can be, we owe it to ourselves and others to be more conscientious. Another beautiful thing about embracing this knowledge is the fact we naturally become less reactive (more on this later) when we are on the receiving end of a rude gesture or unkind act.

Coming to the understanding of this concept was not difficult for me, but actually knowing it in my core has taken a while longer; not because I didn’t care about what I did to others, but, because I spent many years not caring about myself. I used to suffer from extremely low self-esteem. As a child, it was so bad; I heavily identified with the character Little Jackie Paper from “Puff the Magic Dragon.”

That may sound sort of humorous, but in essence, I felt paper thin and ineffective, so I assumed my actions and deeds counted for very little and had almost no impact on anyone else. This assumption was derived from my own internal views and judgments about my worth. Since I didn’t care about myself, how could I assume someone so “unimportant” could ever impact others (who I believed to be more alive and consequential)?

Developing an understanding, regarding the impact and brevity of the actions we take, is a natural byproduct of learning to love and respect ourselves and appreciate who we are. Our actions can only be as beneficial or as detrimental as the beliefs we retain in our internal landscape. As we strive to experience more internal growth, through self-love, forgiveness and understanding, we will naturally feel the desire to primarily perform positive external acts and deeds; not because it’s “right” or in abidance with social or religious law, but because it feels natural. In fact, it will become second nature to us, without trying to force it or even having to think about it because it will be a reflection of who we are internally.

Taking positive, impactful action is not about being a people pleaser or doing it for attention. Performing “good” deeds to please others or to show off and garner praise also stems from an inner place of doubting our own value. Performing uplifting, life affirming action should come from a place of truly wanting to make a difference and help others, while simultaneously respecting yourself.

One of my favorite lines from the book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior states: “A [peaceful] warrior acts, only a fool reacts.” The same can be said of creating positive action. If we are already in the internal place of peace and love, then we will act without being prompted (from social pressure) into doing so. People pleasing and performing good deeds for attention are not conscious action; they’re an unconscious reaction propelled by the fear of not fitting in or not feeling worthy of the attention we hope to gain from those we are trying to please. The same can be said of performing a negative or vengeful, detrimental deed – it’s not an action, but a reaction from a very fearful place.

As I speak of making a positive impact, I’m not necessarily referring to huge gestures. They can be extremely small, yet extremely effective. Just as something as seemingly miniscule as throwing the finger can negatively impact others in a big way; a smile, wave, pat on the back or a kind, sincere word can have a pronounced, beneficial impact on the life of the recipient and the lives of those he or she comes into contact with. Imagine the sort of change we would see if each of us received and passed on that type of interaction, with everyone on a daily basis.

Most people think it’s ridiculous to assume each one of us can actually change the world through caring, uplifting gestures (both big and small). I’ll say this: it takes just as much (if not less) physical effort to generate a beneficial act as it does to carry out an action full of anger or hate. The amount of effort required is not what’s preventing us from completely shifting the current world paradigm at the grand scale. Nor is the change slow in coming because we are pinned down by a lack of sufficient supplies.

Everything we need to accomplish this goal already exists in abundant quantity (be it material items or our own kind words). The woman/man power is there. The resources are there. The infrastructures are there. What’s missing is the internal decision (on the part of each person) to move toward that which is represented by love, peace and an uplifting spirit. If we choose to not be internally responsible for how we feel about ourselves and others – as it’s represented by the actions we take – we will never see beneficial change in our own lives or in the planet at large. It all starts from within.

The size of the gesture is a relative thing. If we each do what we can (and then just a little bit more) from where we are, the rest will take care of itself. That’s the beauty in this interconnected web of existence.

Andy Andrews is absolutely right – “…everything you do matters – every move you make, every action you take; not just for you; not just for your family or hometown – everything you do matters for all of us, forever.”

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The Louise Hay: You Can Heal Your Life giveaway has closed. I’d like to congratulate Bonnie of Redding, California and Melissa of Oakdale, Minnesota. They each won the extended edition copy of You Can Heal Your Life. Don’t forget to check the Uplifting Prizes section, in the sidebar, for ongoing giveaways of self-help and spiritual items.

It’s been six months since Wind of the Soul first went online. And, ever since its inception, I’ve been planning to host uplifting giveaways. However, for a variety of reasons, the timing didn’t seem right, so I kept putting the project off. Well yesterday, while viewing Louise Hay’s movie, You Can Heal Your Life, I felt the urge to begin. Anytime I’m positively impacted by that visceral or gut feeling, I follow it.

This first giveaway features two DVD sets of You Can Heal Your Life: The Extended Edition to be given to two separate winners. The extended edition contains four hours of additional interview footage not included in the original version of the film.

You Can Heal Your Life follows a young woman along her journey to reinvent herself through the harnessing of her thoughts and actions. Her trials, tribulations and ultimate successes are mirrored in the dialogue of several spiritual and self-help teachers, throughout the film, including Louise Hay.

Along her path, she’s presented with opportunities, in the form of uplifting messages printed on index cards. Each card contains a piece of wisdom meant to embolden her spirit. The cards concentrate on three key points: change, forgiveness and love. The movie also outlines seven major steps for healing your life: the internal landscape of change, affirmations, challenges you may face along the path, testing the depth of your commitment, forgiveness, the hidden treasures at the center of yourself and learning to accept with gratitude.

I can honestly say I enjoyed the entire film immensely, but my favorite parts were when the speakers touched on the difficulties they’ve overcome in their own lives. I always find such stories to be inspiring and extremely uplifting.

While the movie features noted teachers like Wayne Dyer, Gregg Braden, and Esther Hicks; I was particularly drawn to the philosophies of several of the “lesser known” individuals, like Elon Bonami and Cheryl Richardson.

Cheryl made this poignant statement at one point in the film: “We all go through an evolutionary process, in our growth, where we start out wishing and hoping and believing the Universe is like Santa Claus. And, all you have to do is write your list up and you get what you want. But there’s a commitment to consciousness and action that’s necessary to be able to manifest the things that we affirm or we intend.”

Another great quote from the film was by Doreen Virtue: “People don’t realize their greatest potential because they think it’s from an outside source – when it’s so divinely ordained from within.”

Cheryl’s and Doreen’s statements are examples of what makes You Can Heal Your Life different from films like The Secret. The focus is more on consciousness and our inner power than it is on acquiring things. It’s implied that the “things” are a natural byproduct of the internal changes we make, but they shouldn’t be our sole reason for striving to make those changes. You Can Heal Your Life also focuses on Louise’s work to help others overcome life threatening illnesses, and includes the story of how she healed her own manifestation of cancer.

Good luck to everyone that enters. I’ll leave you with Louise’s initial words of wisdom from the film:

“All of us our on a journey, whether we know it or not. We are all on a journey of learning to express our full potential in this world. Most of us have learned to view our thoughts as a reflection of the outside world; a reflection of what is happening to us. But what if that’s not how the Universe works?

“What if you are creating the story of your life with the very thought you are thinking now? Then perhaps, if we are willing to change the way we think, wondrous new possibilities would begin to reveal themselves to us. And our lives would move in a whole new direction. It all starts with taking the first step.”

Depending upon the volume of entries, comments may only be displayed under this post for a short time. As entries grow, I will remove comments from the post to make it easier for visitors to scroll to the comment box and enter.

When leaving a comment, be sure to include your correct email address. Each winner of You Can Heal Your Life will be contacted through the address that’s registered with their comment. I will never share email addresses, provided by entrants, with any third parties and you’ll never receive unsolicited mail when entering.

The Louise Hay: You Can Heal Your Life contest will end at 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on January 19th, 2009. All legitimate entries will then be assigned a number. Two numbers will be randomly drawn to determine the winners.

Both winners will then be notified, via the email addresses they provided, no later than January 21st. If one, or both don’t respond (with their shipping information) within a week, then one (or two) more number(s) will be drawn to determine the new winner(s).

If you would like to see your spiritual or self-help business promoted through Wind of the Soul and you have some appropriately themed items to distribute in a giveaway, please contact me.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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We’ve all heard the adage – “good things come to those who wait”. I believe that phrase to be true, but there are far more components involved in any accomplishment than just waiting around for the passage of time. However, there’s no denying time is a huge part of the equation. It takes time + emotions + thoughts + consistent, persistent action to = results. If we can develop the capacity to understand the concept of patience, through understanding time’s role in the natural progression and processes of all living things, we will have made great strides in short-circuiting the “I want it now” mentality. While there’s nothing wrong with wanting something to occur faster, it’s important we don’t make that our constant modus operandi.

So very often, in the natural progression of life, rapid manifestation doesn’t occur and for good reason. Just as a sapling doesn’t become a giant sequoia overnight and a ten year old child can’t become a thirty year old adult in a week; neither can our hopes and dreams become instantaneous reality in an unreasonable amount of time. If we constantly expect instant gratification, yet it ceases to come at the rate we demand, we will continue to feel disappointment and frustration; eventually removing all of the necessary components from the above equation. And when that happens, there also will be very little sitting on the right side of the equal sign.

Instead, we must learn to focus on progress and the long term development of that which we intend to accomplish; paying close attention to the subtle changes along the journey. Small, subtle changes indicate momentum and progress towards that which we desire. While the sapling doesn’t immediately become a towering tree, it does develop noticeably throughout each and every year of its life. These smaller, but observable, measurable changes, accruing over time, are what lead to its eventual colossal state.

Thinking in the short term is almost always a recipe for quitting. When we think in the short term and things don’t initially develop in the manner we had hoped, we’re much more likely to give up. When we give up, we settle. The short term mindset causes us to trade in our dreams for something that appears to be a “sure thing”, albeit a diminished version of our initial hopes, because it’s only supplying us with a fake form of quick gratification. It’s quick because it’s convenient and it’s gratifying (only at first) because it appears to come easily.

A person, thinking primarily with a short term mindset, assumes why should I apply X amount of time, physical, emotional and thought energy toward achieving my dreams, at a future date – when I can have a facsimile of what I originally wanted to achieve right now? After all, my dreams were probably unrealistic anyway, right? This is the way in which so many of us talk ourselves into accepting dead end jobs, living in locations where we don’t truly want to live, walking around uncomfortable with our bodies, spending time in unhealthy relationships, settling for less income than we deserve, living with large debt looming over our heads, etc.

It’s a snowball effect that continues to grow, while we opt for less and less and less. We’ve done it so frequently (sometimes since childhood) that we eventually convince ourselves it’s wrong to want more and to have more and/or we just don’t deserve it. The short term mindset, coupled with a lack of belief in one’s self, unfortunately, is what puts far too many people on the fast track to a miserable existence. By trading in their dreams, they sacrifice their passion and succumb to coping and existing, instead of living intentionally.

When I speak of wanting more or our ability to feel deserving of it, I’m not necessarily referring to material items. I’m actually referring to our state of joy and our quality of life. The material items are only there as a form of enhancement, once we have regained the power over how we feel and have chosen to consciously apply that power through our thoughts, emotions and actions. They are by no means a substitute for it.

In thinking from the long term, I believe, we quite naturally develop many of the following unstoppable characteristics of a spiritually/physically successful human being: living with passion, finding ways to follow our bliss, removing most forms of negativity from our lives, steadfast determination, staying true to ourselves, creating a niche where none previously existed, shifting the paradigm, overcoming fears, never giving up, embracing our power, thriving even in an economy that occasionally focuses on lack, realizing there are no true roadblocks keeping us from that which we desire – only momentary impediments, and wanting to uplift and give back to others in whatever form that may take.

Now, I know my above commentary may sound contradictory to one of my main themes at Wind of the Soul: “Each one of us is responsible for creating our reality.” And, if we choose to believe our goals and dreams will take large amounts of time to accomplish, then aren’t we setting ourselves up for that exact scenario to unfold?

I’m not saying we should assume our dreams will take many years to become a reality. In this post, I’m juxtaposing our dreams against the manner in which all living things naturally progress in our Universe and driving home the importance of never giving up. It’s through this juxtaposition that we can begin to understand why we need to think more from a long term mindset. Apply this mindset (i.e. the realization of time’s proper place in the equation) with the other components, and results will undoubtedly show.

One more thing pertaining to living in this manner, as it applies to achieving our hopes and aspirations: long term doesn’t mean we forsake the moment of now. It means we stay present in our current moment, doing all that we can towards accomplishing our goals, while realizing each moment will eventually stack on top of the next, until we find ourselves looking out atop that giant sequoia.

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As is customary for me, every time a public television pledge drive comes around, I have to tune into their broadcasting. Throughout the year, PBS normally has a variety of great programming, but around pledge time they really bring out their “A” game. This is when you can expect to see programs featuring people like Wayne Dyer and Deepak Chopra.

So on Saturday morning, shortly after waking, I turned on the TV to see what my local public television channel was airing. They were already forty five minutes into a show called, The Artist’s Way at Work, with Mark Bryan. Now, even though I was only able to catch the last fifteen minutes of the program, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I always find myself enthralled when watching and listening to what inspires the creative process in artists (or anyone). Perhaps there’s nothing that peaks my interest more than hearing about that which gets the creative juices flowing. To learn what stirs and drives others always tunes me into my own inspiration to create.

During the last quarter of the program, Graham Nash of Crosby, Stills and Nash fame was discussing what prevents him from stagnating as an artist. He was talking about how versatility and variation are often the keys to inspiring his creativity.

I have found the same to be true of my inspiration for being creative. My muse is definitely the variety in my pursuits. This is why I write and record audio programs here at Wind of the Soul, yet I also build Halloween artwork, take photographs, brainstorm gift giveaways and make videos at Season of Shadows. I’m passionate about everything I do or else I wouldn’t do it. And, even though each project is exciting to me, the consistent variety always provides freshness to my work and to my life.

Now, when I speak of creativity I’m not strictly referring to artwork, writing, crafts or music. Each and every one of us is a creator in our own unique way. We are constantly in different stages of creation, even if we are thinking thoughts which have yet to manifest through our physical actions.

Just because you may not pick up a brush and touch it to canvas, doesn’t mean you can’t be inspired to continually create in new ways through variety and versatility. It’s for this reason I’m hesitant to ever limit myself to one primary pursuit. I think it’s far too easy for us to slip into a solitary role and see ourselves as “that person” for the rest of our lives- whether the role is defined by a philosophy, a job, our career, hobby or a relationship. While there’s nothing wrong with inhabiting the skin of that somewhat singular character, I think there is something extremely important about taking creative “risks”. Creative risks are the backbone of every journey and their end product.

A creative risk can be a tough thing to undertake if we doubt our abilities and fear what others will ultimately think. However, without the willingness to venture into those unchartered waters, our creativity and our creative abilities can become stagnant. As we stagnate, we tend to lose even more faith in what we’re capable of accomplishing.

Now, I’ve never been a huge advocate of the face your fears ideology, in spite of the tremendous anxiety and terror you’re feeling inside. I’ve tried it many times and I will admit it can help in certain situations, but there are many more circumstances in which it only reinforces and exacerbates the original fear. Instead, I believe we must re-examine our fear and get a better understanding of why it’s there before we move forward to challenge it, but only if the pursuit is indeed something we consider worthwhile. In doing so, our emotions won’t be so out of control and we won’t be so overly attached to the fear as it rears its head.

I only mention I’m not a full on “face your fear” advocate because I don’t want anyone to feel bad if they’re afraid to employ variety and take creative risks. Again this comes back to finding what you’re passionate about. Once passion fuels your drive, then it’s obviously a worthwhile pursuit and it becomes easier to release the fear involved with taking the creative risk.

The beauty in embracing variety is that it allows us to try so many different endeavors. It seems like a common misconception that we should stick to one thing (get really good at it) and not divide our time among multiple pursuits. Again, that’s fine if someone has a singular interest. But for those of us that have a strong thirst for many different things, it’s comforting and inspiring to know many other creators do as well. Not only do they have multiple interests but their creativity actually flourishes by keeping their pursuits varied. Variation creates a beneficial, synergistic effect among all of their endeavors which continues to further inspire their creative genius.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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Over the years, as I have worked to explore my total-self, I’ve discovered an occasional tendency to try and ignore or hide certain emotions and experiences. If something didn’t feel “proper” or if it didn’t seem to fit into a so called sublime spiritual state of being, then I found the need to repress or ignore it. And when I wasn’t forcing it back into the abyss where it came from, then I was feeling guilt or shame for thinking the thoughts and for taking the specific actions related to the thoughts.

For me, coming into a better understanding of my spiritual side has been amazing; however, it has also caused me to place a lot of undue, unnecessary stress and pressure upon myself. I think anyone that’s engaged in self-exploration and growth will eventually encounter some form of self-condemnation or judgment. As we tune into what we feel is a more aware, connected, conscientious state, it’s not uncommon to hold ourselves to an even higher standard than ever before regarding our past and present emotional responses and actions.

Despite the improved states of awareness we may have achieved through spiritual pursuits, we need to be cautious about denying any part of our human experience. Acknowledging our emotional tendencies and physical experiences is part of the journey. There comes a point, however, when it’s important to understand we must not only acknowledge, but eventually honor all of our feelings and experiences. To acknowledge is simply to recognize (with or without attachment), but in showing honor we are providing ourselves with a form of respect minus any critique.

I’m not saying we can’t or shouldn’t learn to make continuous choices which are more advantageous for ourselves as well as for others. But, I do believe it’s easy to wander into the trap of expecting our human aspects, tendencies and “faults” to fall away once we experience more pronounced inner growth. Because of these unrealistic expectations, we may begin to vehemently deny, repress and/or resent that side of us as it expresses itself. I believe this tendency is, in fact, where the damaging concept of sin stems from. We are definitely spiritual beings, but we are these beings while simultaneously having a human experience, in which there’s nothing sinful.

There are certain biological and physiological drives and responses that will always accompany this physical journey no matter how much enlightened knowledge we possess. That doesn’t mean we are victims, prisoners or unwitting pawns of the human vehicle. It only means it’s important for us to understand these functions for what they are and embrace them as we continue our own growth.

The sooner we can distance ourselves from the concept of having to live some imaginary, saintly, sterile life, just because we are on a spiritual journey, the better. I don’t think we should equate true spiritual awareness with feeling guilt or denial over any of our emotions and experiences. In fact, feeling guilty and sinful have about as much in common with spirituality as George Bush does with being considered a Rhodes scholar. Sorry, I couldn’t resist that one!

We have always been taught that fear and the repercussions from some external power (be it our parents, teachers, pastors, god, the long arm of the law, etc.) should keep our actions and thoughts in line. In other words, it’s ok to be ourselves, just as long as we measure up to a certain ideal or standard. Deviate from that standard and we’re up the creek (at least in the eyes of many). The problem with this logic is very evident- it teaches us to not honor our true feelings and it causes us to find shame in many of our actions.

Once again, I’m not encouraging anyone to break the law or mistreat others. I’m encouraging you to think about why you may feel compelled to not honor all of your emotions and actions, whether they’re deemed proper or improper by society or any form of spiritual or religious teachings. When we can learn to honor every part without judgment, I believe we will have a more whole, integrated, joyous experience. As our lives become more whole, we stop operating from fractured psychological and physical states.

Imagine a jigsaw puzzle. Every disconnected piece may contain snippets of beauty, but in its broken state it’s impossible to see the phenomenal, big picture. And to complicate things further, many of us decide to throw out our own life pieces that we feel no longer fit with our current self-image or understanding. However, when each piece is not only kept but acknowledged for what it is, honored and then joined together- an amazing scene unfolds.

Honoring who we are (even our supposed wrong doings) and leaving condemnation behind does not mean we are doomed to repeat our past, nor does it prevent our own internal and external growth. On the contrary, it enhances our growth. The most disconnected, diminished state of being is one that’s broken into a million pieces represented by fear, guilt, repression, regret and disassociation with our feelings and experiences. Bring your pieces together by embracing the human side (including all of its interesting parts) and joining it with the spiritual side. To ultimately understand they are both one gigantic, intertwined experience, without any real separation, is the ultimate state of honoring who you are.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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As we come in contact with our real values and begin to recognize what truly matters, to us in life, we may find ourselves questioning things like materialism and wealth. There’s little doubt why those in pursuit of their own truths become disenchanted with the ideologies found in capitalistic societies. Consumerism and gluttony are encouraged from the time we are old enough to comprehend words and sentences.

As small children we were completely inundated by these concepts; from the television to the playground. And even if we lived in a household which heavily monitored how we spent our time; we were quickly brought up to speed once we enrolled in the public school system. These “lessons” always managed to find us by way of peer pressure, judgment and downright cruelty.

If you didn’t come from the right neighborhood, wear the right clothing, have parents that earned a specific amount of income, hang with the right people and so forth, then you didn’t make the cut. The message was always the same despite its spoken variations, “You’re one of us, or you’re an outcast.” So, you either conformed or died- socially speaking anyway.

I played the game for a while, but eventually opted for social death in middle school and high school. Admittedly, at times, however, it felt more like a social massacre. The sad thing: this mindset was not limited to the kids. I witnessed many “educators” in their thirties, forties and fifties reiterating and encouraging this same mentality.

Even as adults they were still trapped in a limiting paradigm built on the concepts of conformity, status and measuring self-worth through social circles, physical attributes and material possessions. I’ve yet to determine whether this stems from fear, ignorance or a little of both. Unfortunately, this behavior, as the norm, has not receded; it’s only accelerated in many adults and children. Fortunately, there does appear to be a strong sub-cultural movement, outside the norm, awakening to a shift in consciousness.

Now, the reason I set the stage, so to speak, with some childhood memories; is to highlight why individuals, on spiritual paths, may be coming to the conclusion abundance is bad or evil. For many of us, our initial “awakening”, if you will, came from experiences similar to what I just described. As kids or young adults, we could feel life was about so much more than the petty, shallow experiences being played out before us.

Those of us that refused to be a part of the old standard began associating the concept of wealth with closed minded people from our past (or maybe our present). And even if many of them weren’t truly wealthy, they still talked the talk to prevent their own social “lynching.” Either way, they physically and psychologically represented everything we were working so hard to break free from.

There’s little wonder why so many people pursuing spiritual paths have a bad taste in their mouth regarding wealth and abundance, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Having a somewhat opulent lifestyle does not have to be confused with spiritual ignorance. I believe it is entirely possible to consider yourself a spiritual person and live in abundance.

Many have done a great job shattering the old paradigm in their lives, but in doing so they’ve succeeded in assuming spirituality must go hand in hand with scarcity. Maybe this is also due in part to the ancient tales of avatars and martyrs meagerly existing. As we read or hear about those stories, A) we can’t be certain of what specifically consists of fact and what may be symbolic fiction, B) those experiences occurred thousands of years ago in times which have little resemblance to our own, and C) each of us is carving out our own path which does not have to follow in anyone else’s footsteps.

For centuries wealth has been associated with external power and the desire to exert control over others, in a system that’s extremely out of balance. It’s high time that model changed! If we are truly about paradigm shifts, then shouldn’t we set forth a new example in this arena as well; one in which wealth and abundance can consist of mutually beneficial, free flowing energy exchanges? If we make the shift, to where the majority of our endeavors (entrepreneurial or otherwise) are about uplifting, helping and healing others; then how can there be harm in receiving an abundant flow of resources through such honest, sincere pursuits?

This goes back to the Universal Law of Reciprocation. The more we give from a place of true benefit for the purpose of helping others, the more our lives will naturally be enhanced. Abundance, received from uplifting endeavors, will not take us off our spiritual path or remove us from our “enlightened” pursuits. This form of abundance will actually provide the means and afford us the ability to have even greater, more expansive experiences. While taking inner journeys to better understand who we are is important, perhaps there isn’t anything more important, spiritually speaking, than reaching out to others, in order to help them find their own source of strength. The more resources we have access to, the greater our potential for doing so.

Now, for the irony- as we find ourselves filled up with the joy of knowing our true nature, consistently helping others and surrounded by abundance, the less material items we want anyway. At least, that has been my experience. For the last few years, I’ve noticed a simplification process and a minimalistic attitude toward the possessions in my life.

Yet, I continue to encourage abundance, not because I want “things”, but because I’ve realized the energy flow of financial independence provides me with personal freedom along with the means to continue uplifting other people. Both of these, for me, essentially go hand in hand anyway. The majority of my time is spent creating content that is meant to help others. Without the abundance coming in from donations and advertising here at Wind of the Soul, I would not have the free time to devote to my passions. I feel the greater my platform of prosperity, the more I’m able to give back, whether through my work as a blogger and podcaster or through financial contributions to others.

If someone is completely satisfied to their core and happy living a life devoid of financial abundance, that’s fantastic. I would never tell others what they should or should not have in their lives. In fact, I’ve always disagreed with spiritual teachers that categorize wealth; explaining we aren’t truly wealthy unless each of our supposed life categories is overflowing. In my opinion, wealth is a state of mind, not an estate of material possessions. However, I don’t think shunning an abundant lifestyle or stifling our desires to be comfortable (if that’s what we want); simply because we’ve learned to associate them with a non-spiritual way of being, is necessary or called for.

When we have found the means to uncouple our self-worth and value from our possessions and status, we will have found a true state of happiness and mastery over our lives. As our sense of self is derived from within and our pursuits become more about helping others (even in the smallest of ways), then we will be capable of allowing abundance into our lives from a place of the greater good. Abundance at this “level” will not be about showmanship, social cliques, greed, the latest fads, external power or control, but instead will be about our personal expansion for the sake of enriching our lives and enriching the lives of those we come in contact with.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

Related Posts

Universal Law of Reciprocation
Shaking off Social Pressure to Achieve Self Actualization
The Magic of Giving

A prerequisite or at least co-requisite of persistence (for goal achievement) is an unshakable belief in ourselves and the projects we undertake. Yet, how do we develop and maintain this foundation of belief, in a world which seems so determined to undermine our self-confidence? There’s no single magic bullet for answering that question. Building confidence, if we’ve allowed it to be stripped from us, or if we feel we never truly had “it” to begin with is something that takes consistent work.

I’ve mentioned in previous posts I used to suffer severely from depression and other issues. After spending many years succumbing to that state of mind, I found myself in a void regarding self-esteem and lacking confidence in my abilities. It’s only been through consistently working with the techniques in this post (as well as many of the other techniques found throughout this site) that I have been able to develop a stronger belief in myself, my ideas and my dreams.

That’s not to say I don’t occasionally feel the effects of my past. I’m just better prepared, now, to prevent those negative emotional states from reaching epic proportions. Getting down on ourselves is normal from time to time, but it’s important to find a way out of that mindset as quickly as possible, in order to maintain a strong sense of belief in our abilities.

When we’re upset or depressed, our thoughts are self-defeating. In turn, our actions (if we even feel capable of taking action), from this state of mind, will usually be completely out of sync and often times counterproductive.

Sometimes taking physical action can serve to snap us out of a funk. However, since the accomplishment of our goals requires us to be consistently firing on all cylinders, through our thoughts and actions; it’s important to cultivate our self-esteem and safeguard our positive mindset. This encourages us to take charge of any negative internal conflict before it gets too far out of control.

Just as I mentioned in my previous post, the only difference between people that have achieved their dreams and those that have not- is a relentless, consistent drive to do so. These people have honed an unwavering belief in their abilities and they know their goals will be achieved. Their relentless drive may be fueled by many things, such as: wanting to make a difference, helping others, wanting a better life, wanting to experience various levels of success, having more abundance, having personal freedom, establishing healthier relationships, etc.

The common thread in all of those pursuits, however, is the desire to sustain happiness. We have to realize an inner bliss before our external reality can begin to express it as well. And once we’ve realized it internally, we will have simultaneously developed a stronger belief in our abilities for taking the necessary actions to see it manifest physically.

Below are five techniques for helping with both the internal and external processes:

#1: Love yourself unconditionally.

This may sound funny, but right now, say aloud, “I love me!” Seriously try it- and as you are saying it, pay attention to how you feel. Your feelings will provide an honest indication of your relationship with you. If there is a slight hesitation or if you feel skeptical or doubtful, you are receiving valuable feedback.

Certainly we aren’t accustomed to saying phrases like that to ourselves and that fact alone may make most people feel awkward. But I believe even that awkwardness serves as important feedback. It’s amazing how willing we are to say, “I love you” to someone else, yet we think it’s silly to express it to ourselves in the same manner.

And just because we can say it to someone else doesn’t necessarily mean it’s unconditional love. Many of us have been taught a false sense of love which requires others to behave in specific ways. That concept stems from never developing a healthy love for who we are on the inside and out.

We’re consistently placing conditions on our love of self: “I’ll love myself when I lose twenty pounds.” “I’ll love myself when I have a great relationship.” “I’ll love myself when I make more money.” “I’ll love myself when…” Though we may not say it, our thoughts and emotions reflect those sentiments. How can we really love another if we don’t even know what it means to unconditionally care deeply for the person we spend more time with than anyone else? We must stop treating our own self-love as if it were a carrot on a stick; dangling in front of our faces, always out of reach.

It’s customary to assume someone that’s in love with him or herself is narcissistic, so loving who we are has to be a bad thing, right? I don’t think so. Narcissists aren’t practicing real, unconditional love. They are displaying the same type of fleeting infatuation for themselves that we so often display for others. Narcissists are consumed by impermanent attributes. Their love of self is only skin deep and turns very fickle with age.

Real love comes from a place devoid of requirements. Real love is about caring deeply for who you are right now, despite any supposed imperfections. While there’s nothing wrong with wanting to lose twenty pounds, make more money or have great relationships (after all, this post is about goal achievement through belief), don’t confuse those items with your worthiness.

If you feel you have to achieve something before you can be considered worthy or loveable, you will be sorely disappointed throughout your life. You’ll never connect with true happiness because you will spend all of your time and energy associating it strictly with your exterior.

#2: Live with integrity.

Keep your word regarding self-promises and the promises you make to others. Consistently breaking our word and our commitments indicates a lack of respect for ourselves and those we interact with. This provides a constant feedback loop to our subconscious; implanting the knowledge we don’t have any intention of following through on the smallest of tasks; never mind pursuing our dreams with any consistency.

Since our level of integrity is directly related to our level of self-respect; it’s safe to say we have very little love for ourselves (see #1) if we can’t keep our promises. Living without integrity will always serve to impair our pursuits.

#3: Know you are happening to life.

Life and its circumstances are not happening to you. On the contrary, you are happening to life. This third technique is about getting away from any form of the victim mindset. If we believe things happen to us, then we will never adopt the attitude of being in charge of our destiny. So often we use any excuse possible to justify why we aren’t in a “better” place in our lives.

I believe our thoughts and emotions are intended to serve us, not debilitate us. Actively take charge of your thoughts and feelings, don’t allow them to take charge of you.

To pursue our dreams we have to be open to new experiences and change. If we continue to feel victimized regarding any of our past circumstances, then we will shy away from the changes that must come for our life to take on a different shape.

When you know you are happening to life and it’s no longer happening to you, you will have released your fears and resentments and will be better prepared to adapt to any changes. In fact, you will pursue change because you will see it as a necessary component for the accomplishment of your goals.

There are many resources contained at Wind of the Soul which elaborate further on this third technique. Below are links to three:

Intentionally Reclaiming Our Power
Exploring and Creating Our Reality
Spiritual Winds of Change

#4: Support others and their accomplishments.

When we can provide real support for their triumphs, we are in a place of wanting the best for ourselves as well. If we feel envy over the accomplishments of others, it means, deep down, we do not believe it’s possible to achieve our own goals. Furthermore, we don’t believe we are even worthy of success.

When we are completely confident in our abilities, there will be no room for jealousy in our emotions. As we feel free to celebrate others’ successes, we will be in a place of only expecting the very best outcomes in our own life as well.

Today, find someone you know who has recently accomplished something and tell them how proud you are of them. This simple act may seem trivial, but performing it consistently will help to reshape your outlook on achievement. It will also bolster the recipient’s confidence along with your own. When we uplift others we are also uplifting ourselves.

#5: Apply the previous four strategies while following a course of action.

As we bring ourselves into a more confident place with the previous four techniques, it’s time to start putting our thoughts in motion. While I don’t believe we should pursue something if we aren’t honestly feeling it. I also don’t believe we should wait for some supposed magic moment to pursue those things we are passionate about. This present moment is the best time to begin taking action toward the changes we desire.

Even if you feel there is much work to be done regarding the above strategies; the sheer fact they are now a part of your awareness will initiate the process. Becoming consciously aware is always the first step in any endeavor.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” – Calvin Coolidge

The eleven letter word, titling this post, may appear to move against the grain of many spiritual teachings. There’s no denying, however, it’s one of the most important components for achieving the changes we desire in our lives. A form of consistent persistence, both of thought and action, is required to get the ball rolling on desired manifestation, and ensure it continues gaining speed.

This comes back to the idea of momentum, which I spoke about in Podcast #5: The Inspiration Behind Deliberate Creation. Without cultivating the emotional drive to consistently propel our actions forward, we will more than likely give up long before seeing our dreams reach fruition.

For the remainder of this entry I’ll be using the word dreams and goals interchangeably. I know some inspirational and motivational authors have a problem with the word dreams and they feel there is a distinct difference between the two. Many believe a dream represents something in the ether that’s intangible, while a goal is definable and measurable because of the steps that can be taken toward it.

I feel goals can only exist because of our dreams. They’re too intrinsically linked to separate them. Without the initial desire to think and dream, we would never determine why we needed a course of action in the first place, toward measurable goals. Now, unfulfilled dreams, on the other hand, are different from goals, yet anyone that’s willing to take action in the direction of their dreams is in the process of moving out of the ether and into the physical realm of dream/goal fulfillment.

It’s fascinating to observe the differences between individuals that are able to make major changes in their lives, in comparison to those that fail to do so, despite their efforts. The defining factor (as Coolidge pointed out) is almost always linked to determination- who has developed it and who hasn’t. This trait is something we must build within ourselves by cultivating an inner belief in our abilities.

I used to think people that were capable of realizing really big dreams were somehow special and different from me in very unique ways. It seemed they all possessed similar “secret” characteristics that were germane to their success. However, the more closely I began to examine what made these individuals tick; I realized they also were each quite different from one another. Yet, the one trait they shared was a relentless drive to succeed.

I began viewing them in a different light; suddenly realizing they were ordinary men and women like you and me. Ordinary, other than the fact they knew exactly what they wanted, didn’t care what anyone else thought and learned to perceive possibilities where everyone else saw obstacles. This doesn’t mean they always initially saw the benefit in the obstacles. But they persevered until the blockages could eventually be utilized and viewed as opportunities.

One thing I want to make clear about perseverance: it’s not an excuse for stubbornly running headlong with blinders on. In being persistent we stay true to our goals and consistently move toward reaching them, but we simultaneously are willing to also try new means for doing so. If a particular strategy doesn’t seem to be working, it doesn’t mean our dreams are unattainable, it only means that strategy may need to be tweaked or changed altogether. It’s important to stay open to changes regarding new ways for keeping us on our path and moving forward.

Most people fail to find the means for building an unwavering belief in their goals because they have allowed self-doubt to dominate their mindset. Couple this with a lack of passion for their pursuits; throw in an unwillingness to disassociate from naysayers, negative people and unproductive, time-draining activities- and you have a recipe for giving up before any dream is able to fully manifest.

The Universe is willing to grant us all that we desire, but there’s much truth in the idea god helps those that help themselves. If we are not willing to: reshape our outlook; take charge of our pursuits; release the dream killers from our lives; use our time wisely; and always, no matter what, persist in the direction of our aspirations; then source energy can only provide us with more of what we’ve previously carved out for ourselves.

Begin, right now, by starting to believe in yourself and believe in your dreams. Cultivate that belief even farther by taking action. Each step you take brings you closer to knowing your dreams will be delivered in full. Ignore anything and anyone stating the contrary to your inner knowledge and never, ever, ever give up!

In my next post, I’ll be discussing specific techniques for developing the belief and knowledge, needed to assist us in persevering until our dreams are realized.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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Out of all the emotions that lend themselves to self-sabotage, perhaps none are as potent as guilt. When we carry a heavy heart, burdened by something we’ve done that’s deemed wrong or improper, we constrict the expansion of our being. Guilt has the potential to shut us down in so many ways.

Often times, I have looked to my past and thought, “Why on earth did I do that?” Usually this thought is laced with heavy doses of gut wrenching judgment. The more I dwell on condemning my past actions (actions which cannot be physically changed anyway), the more I can feel myself undermining my potential.

Somewhere along the way, many of us have adopted the illogical attitude we aren’t a good person if we don’t carry around regrets from our past. We grow up believing we should be disgusted with ourselves for making certain choices. After all, no person of good moral standings would dare do something like that (insert any unfavorable action here) and not feel bad about it until the day they die, right?

I don’t mean to suggest we should not learn from our past experiences, nor am I saying we shouldn’t make choices that are more advantageous for ourselves and those around us. I just don’t feel we should ball up all of our supposed misdeeds and hold onto them as a means for re-iterating our unworthiness. The more we dwell on our past actions, the more we continue to lose sight of the present. By doing so, we act out our own inner beliefs concerning our lack of self worth.

Even if we feel being mindful of our past will guarantee we won’t repeat those same actions; we overlook the understanding that the guilt we carry around prevents us from having peak experiences and interactions. If we stay vigilant in remembering our past “mistakes” as mistakes, then there’s no way we are completely free of feeling guilty for what we did.

And it’s impossible to be laden with a guilt ridden conscience and simultaneously be present, aware, joyful and connected to everything we do. The very things we are trying to avoid repeating are continuing to influence us in a negative way because we’re keeping them active in our thought processes.

We also believe that others should feel guilty for their wrong doings. We seem to think guilt is the correct response because it eventually leads to a confession, an apology or a mending of ways. However, endorsing and trying to foster guilt in others via blame, serves to diminish us as well. We don’t feel guilt because we need to make something right for someone else. And we don’t feel the need to endorse its expansion in others so we can feel better. We feel these things because internal mechanisms are letting us know it’s time to make amends within ourselves.

Feeling this way is a sure sign we are ripping ourselves apart internally. While apologies can be beneficial; they often serve to make the person that’s being apologized to feel vindicated and slightly superior. The apologist then walks away feeling diminished in who they are for having to act a certain way to appease someone else.

I want to reiterate, I’m not advocating that we live a life of treating others in a harmful way and then feel good about doing so. I’m advocating releasing the need to measure up to anyone’s standards. And I’m advocating we find a form of inner unconditional love which will always guide us in the direction of knowing the best way to treat ourselves and others.

Feeling prolonged guilt highlights a lack of unconditional love of self. Likewise, any time we demand an apology from others it highlights another form of placing conditions on our loving emotions. We won’t ever find that place of loving unconditionally by harshly judging our actions or expecting others to do the same concerning their own.

When I look back on certain situations from my past and I feel a twinge of judgment or condemnation regarding my behavior or the behavior of other people, I try and remind myself of this: our past can sometimes be akin to walking around in an unfamiliar room in the dark. We are all bound to trip over many things until we can hone in on our surroundings. We stumble often because we are trying many different means for finding our way. If we would allow ours eyes to adjust to the environment first, things would go much smoother.

This adjustment comes from the desire to see more clearly, while consistently slowing down in the midst of our experiences. I believe when we develop an understanding of the true motivation of our past actions and the emotionally motivated actions of others, our eyes begin to bring things into a clearer focus. We are then capable of forgiving both ourselves and other people without having to give (or expecting to receive) any form of emotional reparations. This provides us with an opportunity to free ourselves of guilt.

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Shaking off Social Pressure to Achieve Self Actualization

A topic near and dear to my heart is the idea of people marching to the beat of their own drum. Despite what’s deemed the norm, and often times in spite of it, certain individuals manage to carve out their own unique ways of living, thinking and being. They’ve long since thrown off what’s considered acceptable by society’s standards and they live their lives by tuning into an inner calling and an awareness of what’s right for them.

In my opinion this is one of the fastest ways to become a fully self actualized human being. Self actualization is about more than establishing an identity. It’s about living intentionally and feeling wholeness and a fulfilled happiness that’s not dependent upon things or others. But, it’s simultaneously the recognition that material items and relationships can enhance your experience. However, they by no means have any bearing on your self sufficient state of joy and the knowledge of who you are.

Now, what prevents the majority from following cerebral and physical pursuits that embrace the ideas of wholeness and contentment in their being? In many cultures, societies, and even among family structures, there are two areas which seem to impede such pioneering ways: social regulations and social pressure.

The fascinating thing is societies with strong rules, regulations and laws seem to be a slightly better “breeding” ground for individuals that are willing to question where their sense of self is being derived from. Under these strict conditions, people will begin to become more introspective and doubt the powers that be (at least privately). This line of thinking lends itself to creating a more in tune individual. Citizens in harshly regulated societies are forced into adopting the status quo due to fear of reprisal. And while physically, they abide by the regulations, mentally they withdraw from the external claptrap and propaganda.

In societies where social pressure seems to be more dominant than social regulations, many people appear less likely to think for themselves and are more willing to adopt the group think mentality. People under intense social pressure conform initially out of fear of being rejected and meeting with verbal criticism. Over time the fear of being chastised and ostracized wanes. They eventually give in to the pressure and start mimicking and enforcing the “correct” lifestyle right alongside everyone else.

Many western cultures, like the United States for example, obviously have their laws and regulations, yet they also seem to have excellent conditions for cultivating severe social pressures. I believe much of this stems from the access we have to larger amounts of material resources than many other countries.

This access causes an obvious delineation between the haves and the have not’s. The wider the gap becomes, the greater the strain on the fabric of society. As we begin paying more attention to what we have and don’t have (in comparison to others), than we do to who we are and how we can help one another- we succumb to social pressure.

In this nation, social pressure leads people to engage in activities they would never dream of if they were more in tune with their true selves. You don’t have to look very far to locate someone who’s willing to do unnecessary things to their body, simply to try and please someone else.

From Botox to implants, to living on drugs that aid sexual performance, we are selling ourselves out in an attempt to locate an external form of happiness. And that doesn’t even begin to address what we do to one another and our world in the pursuit to acquire more and more material items.

I know many people fear the direction our nation is going; especially in view of some of the ways we’ve relinquished personal freedoms. However, as long as we are willing to continue playing many of the materialistic, mindless games we’ve been engaging in, government has no need to enforce stricter laws and regulations. We’re already censoring and restricting our true selves for them.

Social pressures are one of the strongest forms of control western nations have over their citizens. The sad thing is we continue to perpetuate that control with very little prompting. We line up willingly.

We’re either killing ourselves to look good or to artificially feel good (via drugs, alcohol, tobacco, food addictions, shopping addictions, sex addictions, etc.). Either way, both types of extreme behaviors originate from a place of physical self loathing and a lack of removing the pressure to always perform and to have more.

In the process, we’ve forgotten to just be. In being, we quiet the external stimuli and we search within; bringing ourselves to a point of knowing instead of a place of mimicking, reaching, guessing, and stumbling.

I don’t believe there’s a thing wrong with having nice material possessions or wanting to look good, or feel good (real happiness, not the artificial kind). The problem resides in the over identification of who we are with these things. Once we learn to relate to our value as solely residing in our appearance, what we own, what we can ingest, or who we can score with; we have succumbed to the very social pressure that strips us of actualization.

We can become so submersed in living in this manner; we never recognize there’s something more. This can go on for years until we wake up one day to an empty shell of a life with very little depth or substance. This is a sure sign we’ve neglected the portion of ourselves that fuels our experience. It’s still there, but it’s stunted.

When we quit doing for the sake of trying to measure up and we start being for the sake of discovering real happiness and wholeness; we will have made an important shift. This conscious shift will take us from living accidentally through social pressure to living intentionally through the knowledge of the inner self.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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A large portion of our personal interpretation, concerning reality, stems from our willingness to slap labels on experiences. Admittedly, it’s extremely difficult to not label items, events and other people, when we consider our entire means for communicating is dependent upon descriptive terms and phrases.

But, we can begin to make a conscious effort, in the language we choose, to rearrange the stamps and marks of identification which are slung around on a routine basis. Even more importantly, we can begin to internally release our attachment and affinity for casting a very specific type of label: the label of judgment.

While there are many forms of judgmental labels, the specific ones I’ll be focusing on in this post are those of right and wrong. We are immediately brought up with the idea that doing the right thing will continue to garner “love” from those in positions of authority i.e. parents, teachers, mentors, relatives, the community, law enforcement, etc. And of course, conversely, we have it drilled into us that doing the wrong thing will bring just the opposite.

The majority of parents and caregivers in no way feel they are literally taking their love away when a child behaves in a manner that’s deemed poorly or unacceptable. However, when parents immediately begin placing conditions upon their responses to children’s behavior, they are in fact placing conditions upon their loving responses toward those children as well.

In other words, do “X” activity and mommy/daddy will be so happy that she’ll/he’ll sing your praises from the rooftops. Do “Y” activity and you will make daddy/mommy very angry and forced to punish you. This, in a sense, is placing conditions on the loving emotions parents are willing to express at certain times. Most would have a tendency to deny it, but it’s extremely difficult to find the emotion of love when you’re fuming mad.

Because of this, children begin to see a trend in the emotional frailty of their parents. As they are constantly reminded of the correlation between their behavior and their parents’ responses, they begin to identify and attach heavily to the labels of doing right and doing wrong or being good and being bad.

Children also begin to believe it’s appropriate (through watching adult behavior) to place conditions on their own responses to their surroundings. Often times, when they encounter something that doesn’t appease them, they have a melt down. Hence, children have tantrums when adults say no and adults have their own emotional tantrums when the kids act up. It’s a learned cycle.

I’m not insinuating we should remove discipline from a child’s environment. I am suggesting we need to find ways to not make the distinction so extremely obvious when children displease us, compared to when they make us happy. It’s this extreme distinction that pounds labeling and the idea of conditional responses to specific behavior into a child’s head.

This doesn’t mean we should ignore our own emotional responses as adults either. It only means we need to do a better job of relaxing and releasing the need to express them so drastically and dramatically. It also means we need to find a balance when disciplining children, especially in the language we use, which is typically filled with words of comparison and judgment. It’s the continued emphasis on labeling that can set some children up for self-esteem issues, ideas of inappropriateness, guilt, chronic fear of failure, the inability to have their own healthy relationships, and plenty more.

Now, why is it so important to identify triggers like these from our own childhood? One, so we can make a difference for future generations and two, so we can understand how to put an end to this learned behavior within ourselves.

On a metaphysical level, I maintain the Universe isn’t making judgments or keeping score over what’s right and what’s wrong. These concepts are all drummed up in the human brain and perpetuated generation after generation. Events are not right or wrong, good or bad. At a deeper level, they just are. By stating that last sentence, I’m certainly not advocating that people lead a life of crime anymore than I’m advocating violent behavior towards others.

I believe once we are capable of reaching a level of understanding how the concepts of right and wrong have been blown so extremely out of proportion, we are already far better prepared to know how to treat others anyway. Someone who is in a position of deep introspection and contemplation has reached a place in their lives where they understand this. They realize their actions have a more advantageous effect when they are geared towards helping rather than harming. They ponder this information only because they are interested in pushing the envelope on the currently accepted ideas pertaining to life’s meanings.

Personally, I don’t lead a life of crime, not because it’s deemed wrong and I might go to jail, nor do I harm people, not because that’s deemed wrong and I might go to “hell.” I don’t do those things because they aren’t congruent with my inner knowledge and my inner desire to help others. I realize I have choices and options and I simply choose to try and lead a life of helping instead of harming. However, many people are in the dark about their options and feel that harming others is the only way to find their power. This doesn’t make it wrong. It only makes it different.

I know this probably sounds like a bizarre stance to take, but it’s all about exercising our ability to try and see beyond the confined ideas of existence, which have been forced down our throats. It’s this very forcing of labels, ideas and situations, onto us, that lead some towards a life of crime. Instead of going inward and finding their power amidst the stillness of their consciousness, they lose their awareness and rebel externally.

As we come to realize we are the source of all things expressing itself through this environment and we also understand we are the creators of our life experience, labels like right and wrong seem rather silly. How could universal source energy (the only thing that truly exists) ever commit something wrong against itself?

This is similar to the concept I addressed in my post “Life Lessons?”. If we are the god source energy and we create our reality every second of our lives (and I believe we do), then how could we ever be here to learn lessons? The only “lesson”, if you want to call it that, which we are here to learn or remember, is who we are and what we are truly capable of doing.

The problem in all of this is that most don’t realize they are god source energy. From that one falsehood stem a thousand more. Yet, they are all based on the original falsehood: that we are not of that which created this entire Universe. This is the very reason I don’t believe there is an ultimate right or wrong, a heaven and hell, or things like sin and karmic debt (not in the strictest sense of the word). These ideas were concocted by individuals that thought they were somehow separate from one another and separate from a deity that was purported to exist at a level far beyond their reach or comprehension.

If others choose to believe in sin, the devil, harsh karmic justice that follows us from one lifetime to the next, and what have you, I completely respect that. Due to our ability to create our own reality, they may very well find variations on those themes popping up in their life experiences, both here, and waiting for them on the other side. However, I choose to try and unfetter my beliefs, as much as possible, to allow my understanding to expand beyond limiting thoughts and concepts. I know there are worlds of existences, waiting out there, which extend outside our most limiting, ingrained thoughts.

Now, I will admit, I do still find myself labeling and judging some things as right or wrong, but the nice thing, these days, is that I catch myself midsentence and realize what I’m doing. As I make more of a conscious effort to relax the need to do so, the portion of my brain, which identifies with these labels, begins to feel the need to engage less and less.

In writing this post, I can see the glaring issues staring at me. If I’m saying that all things simply are and there’s no ultimate right or wrong, then how can I also say labeling and critiquing are undesirable activities? Isn’t that, in and of itself, a judgment call?

Therein resides the “problem” with philosophizing about our existence and the ideas that we are responsible for every aspect of our lives. However, we must be willing to take those steps outside all conventional “wisdom,” or else we are doomed to stay inside the box for eternity.

I realize, at the physical level of existence, it’s not easy to see things which seem unjust and horrible and not attach severe labels of criticism. We all do it, but the more we can direct our attention toward the idea that things simply are, as opposed to focusing on the idea bad things exist, the less we will find “atrocious” events in our midst. It’s ok to have a range of emotional responses to experiences and it’s also ok to view things as good and bad, but we must make a conscious effort to realize a large portion of our responses are programmed and conditioned.

The more open we are to this realization and the more we continue to work on deprogramming ourselves/working with our emotions, the better for us and our children. By continuing to fill children’s heads with labels and critiques, we stifle their open minded, awe-inspiring, creative abilities. And it’s never too late to regain all of those abilities within ourselves as well.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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For years, musicians, in different genres, have touched on the sentiment of today’s post regarding our perspective and how it pertains to opportunity. Two songs come immediately to mind: The rock anthem- You Can’t Always Get What You Want, by the Rolling Stones and the country classic- Unanswered Prayers, by Garth Brooks.

Of course, the Stones were singing about the concept that we don’t always receive everything we desire, but through our continued efforts, we can receive exactly what we need. Garth on the other hand, was referencing the idea that the god source energy provides its most amazing gifts, to us, by not granting certain prayers. However, it’s only in hindsight that we can understand and appreciate this.

Now, I don’t agree with the portion of these two songs that indicates we are unable to have or achieve certain things, whether by our own accord or due to a supposed intervention by source energy. It’s simply a matter of how we pursue our dreams (both through our thoughts and actions), and how willing we are to allow an adjustment of the means for them to manifest in our reality, which determines the outcome.

While we are in pursuit of certain dreams or goals, we can stumble onto some of the most treasured gems of opportunity and possibility. These opportunities could not have presented themselves, if we had not been pursuing our initial desires in the first place. And, they may very well serve as a new and “improved” route for continuing to thrust us forward, regarding our interests.

These paths, which may appear to be alternate to our initial plans, are the Universe’s way of handing us what we were originally wanting; only in a manner which is more appropriate for the achievement of all we desire. You see, I like to take songs like the ones mentioned above and interpret them differently than the way the song writers might have originally intended.

In the case of Unanswered Prayers, the main character had been setting forth the desire to have a great relationship and settle down with his high school sweetheart, but he was disappointed by the fact they failed to marry. Years later, he and the woman who eventually became his wife, run into his old flame at their alma mater’s football game. Bumping into her causes him to reflect on the idea god failed to answer his prayers during high school. Yet, he’s appreciative of this because his old girlfriend no longer behaved the way he remembered.

However, if we look a little closer, I believe his prayers were answered. They weren’t ignored at all. They were delivered to him, only in the guise of someone slightly different than the woman he initially assumed would fill the role. The character made his intentions clear (in this case through prayer) and took action by pursuing a relationship of his dreams. Along the way, certain opportunities presented themselves. And while he didn’t end up with his high school sweetheart, he still received his original intention for a meaningful, happy relationship.

Of course, this is just a song, but creative endeavors like song writing and singing, similar to writing and storytelling, provide the means to get in touch with our core beliefs. This is especially true if we find ourselves identifying heavily with the characters involved, whether we are the writer, listener or reader. We must examine those beliefs in order to understand the direction our lives are taking and what we are receiving.

For example, looking at alternate circumstances as an opportunity instead of a problem typically requires some distance between our initial intentions and the current crossroads we may be facing. We often have to take a new path and try it before we can fully appreciate its benefits. Only when we look back, can we reflect upon where we’ve been and the process it created, thus leading us to an even more advantageous point in our life experience.

The more consistently we can adopt and foster the view of alternate paths being opportunities instead of something dreadful, the more our lives will continue taking shape in a manner which resembles our initial intentions. Occasionally we must be willing to slightly remodel the means for achieving our desires, based upon our own expansion/evolution and what’s finding its way to us. Without this flexibility we may close ourselves off to some amazing experiences that can provide more expansive results than what we are currently achieving.

By continuing to set forth our intentions, establishing our true purpose, and taking actions which are in alignment with these; we will find a multitude of opportunities presenting themselves. This doesn’t mean we have to jump on board each and every one of them. Nor does it mean by taking any one them we have forsaken our original dream. It only means we are on the right path (for ourselves) and the Universe is acknowledging this by reflecting these opportunities in our experiences. It also means the original dream has reached such a point of expansion (right alongside our own personal expansion) that it too must go through some growth to continue keeping up with our new state of being.

So, don’t thank god for unanswered prayers, instead thank god, or source, or the Universe, or whatever you feel fuels your awareness, for manifestations that have been tailored to the individual you continue to become. As you shift and broaden your view point, you will recognize that when you get what you need, you’re really getting what you wanted all along.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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Within the last few months I’ve made some important discoveries regarding the title of today’s post. That doesn’t necessarily mean I’ve gotten good at consistently applying those discoveries, but I’m continuing to try.

I’ve always been the type of person that’s been an absolute perfectionist about endeavors that I feel are worth pursuing- especially anything of an artistic nature or something that’s intended to benefit others. Even if a project sounds great or looks great, after five hours of work, I believe it will be even better after ten hours and so on.

This is the same logic I apply to my writing and audio recordings. Pick out any post, on this site, that’s at least three typed pages long and I can show you ten+ hours of writing that went into that particular post. Pick out any podcast, thirty minutes or longer, and I can show you twenty+ hours that went into creating it. Most bloggers would probably never dream of spending that much time on a single post or recording, but I frequently demand it of myself.

When you love what you’re doing, the hours fly by anyway, so it’s not an issue regarding the time invested. The issue here pertains to my need to sometimes over manage the creative process. While I’m absolutely concerned about my material being beneficial and top notch; much of the over managing stems from a place within me that’s concerned about being accepted (by my readers/listeners) and succeeding as a professional blogger.

Now, I don’t base my version of success on the same merits society typically uses. If I were to do that, it would be safe to say I’ve never been a “success” at anything I’ve ever done. Simply, because I’ve never actively pursued many of the material things and positions of status we’re coaxed into pursuing for measuring our levels of achievement.

Instead, I base my success on the amount of joy I’m receiving from my work and the amount of help and benefit I’m providing to others. These are the goals that continue to inspire me. All of the work I’m currently doing provides me with more joy than anything I’ve ever done in my life, so on that front, I would have to say I’m extremely successful.

However, I have occasionally noticed my readers don’t seem to communicate with me (via many different means) nearly as often as the readers of other blogs; especially those sites that pertain to somewhat similar content. I know many bloggers aren’t overly concerned with lack in reader feedback; in fact, some shut comments down entirely on their sites.

But for me, reader email feedback and comments are an important part of the process. This isn’t about getting my ego stroked. I’ll approve negative reader comments as quickly as I approve the positive ones. Instead, it’s about reaching out to my readers and gauging whether I’m providing value or not based upon your interactions. Even when I receive negative comments, I know I’m stimulating people’s minds.

It’s this area that’s created some concern for me and has at times, led to the occasional doubt about my work and whether or not I’m really making a difference. When doubt starts to creep in, I begin noticing an incessant increase in the need to try and control the creative, expressive process and its outcomes.

In Podcast #5: The Inspiration Behind Deliberate Creation, I spoke about getting out of our own way as much as possible to allow all we desire to unfold. In the post Effortless Passionate Creativity, I discussed the idea when we passionately create, without over thinking and managing, we become a conduit for the most positive aspects of Universal energy. These are life changing concepts I’m fully aware of and believe in, yet sometimes I continue to miss the forest for the trees and catch myself getting in my own way.

This is an area where I’ve learned I have to consistently release and let go. When I first came to that realization, I was a little confused about what letting go meant. I used to believe you had to keep something at the forefront of your thoughts, almost at all times, to really make it manifest. It’s like having tunnel vision. And I wasn’t sure I wanted to embrace the concept of letting go; if it meant that being distracted from my vision would prevent it from coming to fruition.

It’s taken me a while, theoretically working with this idea, to finally, fully realize letting go doesn’t mean relinquishing my dreams for this site or the quality of my work. It means letting go of trying to force my acceptance and my success (based on feedback). It means being myself, continuing to do what I love; having fun, maintaining my vision, staying positive, staying consistent, taking action when it is necessary- backing off when it’s not, and realizing everything will work out.

With that being said, I absolutely appreciate the great feedback I have received. Many of you have sent such amazing messages; they’ve brought tears to my eyes and to you I’m thankful. Others have left messages completely disagreeing with my philosophies and to you, I’m also thankful.

And to those who visit, but aren’t inclined to leave comments and feedback: I appreciate your interest in my work as well. I’m coming to realize your silence may or may not mean I’m making a difference in your lives. Either way, it’s ok because my intent to do so and the joy I feel from taking this journey is what counts (this is true for all of us and whatever endeavor we undertake). Thank you for helping me to learn to let go.

In my next post I’ll be expanding upon this idea and how it can be useful, for the purpose of broadening our horizons, both here and once we move beyond this plane of focus.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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“My company mascot is the bumblebee. Because of its tiny wings and heavy body, aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn’t be able to fly. But the bumblebee doesn’t know that, so it flies anyway.” – Mary Kay Ash of Mary Kay Cosmetics

According to my Webster’s New World Dictionary, circa 1963; the definition of the word placebo is: a medicine given just to humor a patient. I know what you’re probably thinking, “You need to spring for a new dictionary.” After reading that antiquated interpretation of the word, I would have to agree.

Over four decades ago, Webster’s dictionary seemed to also be humoring its readers (right along side most doctors) as it published a definition laced with a hint of mockery. Forty five years later modern medicine has realized there is validity to the placebo effect, beyond placation, but it’s not much closer to respectfully embracing it.

This, I believe, is partly due to a lack of fully understanding why placebos work and a prejudice toward exploring anything deemed unscientific. But it’s mostly due to the desire, primarily fueled by pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies, HMO’s, etc. to not want to know exactly why they work. If their mechanisms were fully understood it could revolutionize the health care industry by putting health and the majority of control over one’s health back in the patient’s hands.

It’s similar to why our world hasn’t made the switch sooner from petroleum based fuel products, to more eco-friendly, green sources of alternative energy – big business is calling the shots and trying to dictate the trends. Unfortunately their trends are not about helping others to live happier, healthier, more empowered lives. This will continue being the case, until humanity’s interest in these subjects is reflected through its buying power on an even larger scale. Then, corporations will have to pay attention.

As consumers, we have to be willing to make more conscientious decisions concerning our purchases, based on how they affect the environment and others. And as patients, we must be willing to do the same where our health’s concerned. We must be more conscientiously aware of our body’s signals and what it’s trying to communicate. We need to start being more present and aware in our thoughts and the choices we make that continually influence our physical, spiritual and psychological health.

The placebo effect is about an individual investing belief in a treatment that is said to have no medicinal value whatsoever (the individual doesn’t know this, just like Mary Kay’s example of the bumblebee), yet the patient markedly improves anyway, solely on their desire to be well. Their improved condition is stemming from their own inner abilities, not from the treatment they think they’re receiving.

All forms of treatment are essentially placebos anyway, whether they’re deemed to be or not. I’m not discounting the fact that drugs and medicines have a physiological effect, but biologically we are identical to one another. The only difference is our individual propensity toward certain diseases and illnesses. Yet, I believe genetic propensities are accentuated and exacerbated by our emotional attitudes.

This is why you can take two individuals with the same illness, and have two totally different responses to the same treatment. If drugs were the only portion of the equation responsible for healing us, then everyone would experience identical response levels. This isn’t the case.

The patient absolutely has to believe in the treatment for it to work. Now, I’m sure there are cases where people with extremely negative, doubting attitudes have benefited from certain treatments, despite their outlook. However, I would wager that their level of improvement and overall well being was still not as pronounced as someone entering into the same treatment with a higher expectation. And the person with the negatively dominated outlook is far more susceptible to relapsing or acquiring another illness.

Our responses to treatment can be tracked much further back, in our individual history, beyond what’s happening at the doctor’s office. The types of results we experience can be traced back to the ways we have assimilated, processed and retained information since childhood. Perhaps, to fully understand why medical placebos can work, we should take their premise and apply it to other portions of our lives. By utilizing a psychological version of reverse engineering, we can harness the techniques that subconsciously power the placebo’s effects.

To fully live the placebo effect would mean we must find the place of knowing that which we want has already been accomplished. It would mean finding a way to believe and then reaching beyond belief, into the realm of knowing. This effect could be achieved in a multitude of ways, but if we are trying to emulate the sugar pill’s application, then we must know something to be true (even before we see it presented in our life experience) and release any contradictory thoughts, entirely. That has to be easier said than done, right? – Absolutely, if that’s what we choose to believe and we aren’t willing to try.

It’s been shown that patients that fully believe in their doctor’s abilities to help them attain wellness, along with the prescribed treatment, respond better than those that are doubtful of the procedures. The patients exhibiting the highest degree of confidence will typically release into their treatment, knowing they are going to get better, and never giving it a second, doubtful thought.

We must emulate that sort of vision and build that same level of confidence; envisioning our goals accomplished. Taking the necessary steps (no matter how small), each and every day, will continue to build the belief in our abilities for attainment. And our reality will begin to reshape itself, in turn reflecting our new beliefs.

You see, the placebo effect knows no bounds. It doesn’t strictly apply to doctors, hospitals and conquering illnesses. It’s about the way we live our entire lives. The placebo effect has little to do with treatment and everything to do with our own state of mind and being.

Here are three ways to start applying the placebo effect in your life, to better aid you in finding that place of knowing:

1. Physically move in the direction of that which you desire. Don’t stall and ponder other people’s opinions over whether or not you can or cannot, should or should not do something. That form of indecisive doubt is what has created most people’s negative take on reality for their entire lives. Literally, be the bumblebee. Take the action (even if it’s miniscule) and before you know it, you’ll be doing those things that were once believed impossible.

Every single step you take will reinforce your beliefs. If you encounter a few problems along the way, so what? Areas of resistance validate the fact you are in motion towards your desires. An object in motion may encounter some forms of resistance from time to time, it’s only natural.

2. Expect the unexpected. Most people use this phrase in a negative way. Turn it around and instead of expecting the worst case scenario; anticipate the very best from your actions. As you begin to live with great expectations, they will become your primary form of anticipation.

Be sure to let yourself off the hook if you still have negative thoughts, despite your efforts. Give yourself permission to do so. If you’ve spent years ruminating primarily in a negative manner, you really have no other recourse until you consistently begin practicing otherwise. Your brain’s become hard wired that way. But you have to make a conscious effort.

I’ve compared the deliberate creation of our reality to physical exercise before, and for good reason. We have to exercise and consistently re-train our brain (which acts as the intermediary between our spiritual self and our physical vehicle) to begin strengthening it to expect the best; before the best can manifest.

3. Surround yourself with a strong system of support. Placebos and treatments primarily work because people believe and have confidence in those that administer them (along with a belief in themselves). You must create your own community that administers belief in you and vice versa. If you’re finding that’s a tall order to fill, based upon the people currently in your life, then it’s time to start branching out and meeting others.

Surround yourself with books, music, philosophies, and affirmations that reinforce the power within you. Placebos can also exert their benefit by allowing you to focus on healing; removing your attention from illness. Employ teachings that shift your focus toward that which is therapeutic and empowering, and then watch your life unfold in that same manner.

These are just a few techniques for beginning to live the placebo effect. Examples are being set around us everyday, which defy the commonly accepted ideas of human potential. If we can dig down to locate the inspiration behind these accomplishments, we can continually come closer to understanding our abilities. Those abilities will never cease to expand as long as we can discover new ways to believe and to know.

If this post has been helpful to you, please consider sharing it with others and/or making a donation. Thank you for supporting Wind of the Soul.

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