YOUR LIFE A-Z:KING

What Kind of King are You?

KING

 The word KING during this time of Advent brings to mind the story of KING Herod and his dictate to destroy the Christ child, whom Herod saw as a threat.  If you study the Herod dynasty, you will come to understand that KING Herod was an insecure and very weak male that could not stand any competition.  The prophecies of old had long predicted that a KING would be born and he would be KING of the Jews.  KING Herod had ordered the Magi to reveal the location of this important baby KING, but the Magi departed a different way and did not reveal the location.  As a result, KING Herod in his anger and angst ordered that all baby boys under the age of two be killed in the area of Bethlehem.  This part of history became known as the slaughter of the innocents.  Each of us has a KING Herod inside of us.  That inner KING is our insecure, anxiety driven ego.  This inner KING will destroy us and anyone else in our path of perceived control in order to keep our life safe.  This pseudo control slaughters our dreams, ideas, and intuition on a regular basis.  We need to birth within us a different KING.   We need a KING of peace that surpasses all understanding that allows us to be present to our life, and bring peace to those around us.  You choose which kind of KING you are willing to be: Herod or the Christ Child? 

YOUR LIFE A-Z: ORGANIC

GOOD EARTH AND WATER RESTORE US

ORGANIC

To eat or not to eat ORGANIC is a very important question these days and it is riddled with confusion.  ORGANIC is more expensive and as a result not an easy buy in for those struggling financially.  ORGANIC is confusing and reading the label seems to make it more confusing at times.  However, the more you learn the more sense it may make to make the switch.   I found a simple site: www.organic-center.com that keeps it simple and helpful.  However, in order for you to switch to ORGANIC you need a mental buy in that reaches into your belief system.  If you truly do not believe ORGANIC is necessary you are going to consistently choose non-organic because of price point and convenience.  Thus, rather than me or any other medical expert telling you what you should do, take personal responsibility and research the benefits of ORGANIC food and if you still do not believe it is important then don’t do it.  If you want to run your own experiment to see if eating ORGANIC makes a difference, then clean out the garbage food in your pantry and refrigerator and go ORGANIC completely for thirty days.  You may not notice a difference, but that difference may become very apparent once you add garbage food back to your diet.  It really takes less than thirty days to notice the difference.  ORGANIC can become an investment that you make in becoming healthier and making more responsible choices for your health.  If you don’t have your health, you have nothing.  Think about it and then act on it.

YOUR LIFE A-Z:MUSIC

CHANGE YOUR MUISC -CHANGE YOUR MOOD

MUSIC

MUSIC is a powerful additive to change mood throughout your day.  Think about Christmas MUSIC and how old favorites survive year after year.  Some of the songs such as Hark the Herald the Angels Sing and Silent Night have the music re-written for better or worse from time to time, but the words remain the same.  Christmas MUSIC can make you feel eager anticipation of the holiday season and all that comes with it.   Or, Christmas Music can evoke sadness and fill you with a sense of dread.  Not everyone loves Christmas or the music that comes with it. That is not a bad thing.  It is all about personal choice.  It is up to you to pay attention and change the MUSIC you are listening to if you don’t like it.   MUSIC choice is important and I invite you to experiment with it for a week or two.   Listen to something different than you usually do.  Choose from classical, country, pop, new age and a variety of other MUSIC choices and notice how your mood shifts as you allow yourself to engage in the mystical power of MUSIC.  Reflect on your early experiences with MUSIC.  When did you first notice MUSIC and your likes and dislikes for certain MUSIC choices?  Did someone special interest you in MUSIC?  Did you discover it on your own?  Or, are you still waiting to discover how MUSIC can help you heal and enjoy. MUSIC is a powerful additive, so experiment with adding it a variety of your day-to-day activities. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z:NAME

NAMING IS REALLY IMPORTANT

NAME

What is your NAME?  What does your NAME mean?  Do you have any idea why or how your parents came to choose your NAME?   NAMES are powerful resources for your personal stories. Each of your stories started before you were born.  So often when you think about your personal transitions from childhood through to your current age it is easy to focus on the negative things in your life.  And some of you may feel very negative about your NAME. Some of you may even hate your NAME.  If this is the case, then stop being a victim to it and change it. You can choose to be called whatever name you want.  For instance if your name is Edna and you hate that, what would you like people to call you instead?  Next time that you introduce yourself say, “my name is Edna but I prefer to be called Anna.”  After awhile you and everyone else gets use to it and you don’t have to even think about it until you sign legal documents.  If you hate it that much change your name legally.  That is powerful way to actualize your personal power.  NAMES are important identifying labels for you.  If you don’t know the story behind your birth NAME then go on a personal discovery adventure to ask questions of your family members.  Ask, how did I come to be NAMED ___________?  What other family stories are out there about other family members NAMES?   Become a story- teller and story collector of the NAMES in your family.

YOUR LIFE A-Z: FUTURE

WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD? 

FUTURE

The FUTURE is a space in time that is not yet.  The decisions you make today affect your FUTURE.  The choices you make today help create your FUTURE.  However, it is useless to worry about the FUTURE and absolutely silly to think that you can control the FUTURE by the choices and decisions you make today.  The FUTURE is full of the unknown.   Being anxious about the FUTURE serves you no purpose other than to damage the presence of today.  The fact remains that the FUTURE is a double-edged sword that must be prepared for but not counted on.  If we live for the FUTURE, truly you miss the joy of today.  If you ignore the FUTURE completely then perhaps you are living recklessly in the present.   The Twenty-Minute Coach has posted quite a bit about finances, health, and the necessity to have a well-planned and structured life to obtain the most out of today.  If you ignore planning today then you will be like a careless squirrel that has no food for winter and becomes a victim to the fox who is lurking and waiting for the hungry squirrel to come down from his tree in search of food.  If you prepare for the FUTURE by being wise about money and health today then you will be prepared to weather the storms of weather, health and stock markets of the FUTURE.   Being grateful today makes the Future a brighter and happier place to be tomorrow. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z:VINDICATE

SQUARE OFF FACE TO FACE

VINDICATE

VINDICATE yourself from your self-judging and blaming ways.  I am not suggesting that you let yourself off the hook; I am demanding you let yourself out of jail.  VINDICATE and support your inner being.  Build from the ground up.  Get out of your head and down to the root of your being.  Again draw a big circle in your journal and put all of those shaming, blaming, judgmental words into the circle.  Now take a yellow crayon or highlighter and draw a circle around each of those words.  VINDICATE yourself through self –forgiveness.  Let the color of yellow represent light, love, healing and forgiveness.  Each of those words inside your circle keep you trapped in your own jail cell.  It is highly probable that your shame causes you to avoid rather than to VINDICATE.   Avoidance energy is draining and makes you fatigued, fat, and listless.  The energy of VINDICATION is positive, exhilarating, and healing.   If you find a word in your circle that you say, “I can never forgive myself for this,” then seek out a priest, psychotherapist, or coach to help you find away to VINDICATE yourself.  Life is too short to live the blame game.  By choosing to live inside your circle you are really acting like a victim.  Your are unconsciously or consciously saying to yourself, “I am too bad.  I am worse than anyone else.”  Those words are selfish and foolish.  Get over your self and VINDICATE yourself in order to live free. Act today. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z:DETERMINED

BE DETERMINED -REGARDLESS

DETERMINED 

Now that you have called out the battle cry and are headed in the direction necessary to change your life, it is time to plant your feet firmly in DETERMINATION.  Being DETERMINED means being firm in your choice and decision. It means you are resolute to finish that which you started.  Nothing will get in the way of a DETERMINED decision.  Action is the step that you need to take daily to bring your DETERMINATION to life.  Each time you take a step of action you are acting DETERMINED.  Without DETERMINATION nothing gets finished. Without DETERMINATION warriors turn around and go home, football teams walk off of the field, and students quit when life gets tough.  

DETERMINATION is not something you are born with, however, it did require that you have some of it get through that birth canal.  Had you not fought hard to get your 3-12 pound self out of that womb you would have died, smothered in a womb you had outgrown.  There are two major ingredients in this process.  First, your situation that you are currently in has become as uncomfortable as your mother’s womb.  Second, now in order for you to move past this uncomfortable space your life you need to use that same DETERMINATION you had pre-birth to battle yourself into your next life’s choice.  If you have given up on yourself then it is time to get into trenches and DETERMINE to make new, educated, and calculated choices to get what you want.  

YOUR LIFE A-Z: FORGIVE

NATURE IS A SAFE HEALING SPACE

FORGIVE-FORGIVENESS

The words FORGIVE and Forgiveness are complicated and often misunderstood.  Yesterday, The Twenty Minute Coach spoke about Expiate, making right our wrongs by doing some action that costs us energy, resources, and humility.  FORGIVENESS is a more complicated process.  A victim who has been harmed by someone else’s actions FORGIVES by intentionally and voluntarily letting go of vengeful and angry feelings toward the perpetrator.  This is a process of multiple actions and work.  If one FORGIVES before they work through the feelings of hurt, betrayal and anger then FORGIVENESS is an empty action.  To truly FORGIVE is work and does not come easy.  Being hurt is a part of life.  We have a choice to harbor our hurts and become bitter, hostile, and angry old people or we can choose to FORGIVE.  Many times the lack of being able to FORGIVE does not hurt those who victimized us but hurts us instead.  If you notice you have become hateful and bitter, do an inventory of the people and hurts that have built up inside of you.  They are like prisoners and you must release them in order for you to be free.  Emotional freedom is such an exhilarating feeling of personal accomplishment and leaves you with a sense of contentment.  A simple way to start is to write journal letters to those on your list above.  Start there and notice how your heart begins to change over the next few weeks as you choose to FORGIVE those you hold responsible for your pain.  You can’t change what happened, only how you cope with it. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z: UNILATERAL

BE THE KING OF YOUR STUMP!

UNILATERAL

UNILATERAL is making a decision or plan in your own best interest or it can apply to a group of people making a UNILATERAL decision or action for the best interest of the group.  For instance, if you are president of a board and an executive decision must be made immediately, your power as president allows you to make a UNILATERAL decision in the best interest of the board for the time being.  The same applies to your personal life. Now how many things in your life are you waiting for someone else to decide for you? Or are you waiting on someone else to choose first?  Do you have unfinished business that you feel needs to be attended to and you are still waiting to for someone else to get back to you?  Take a strong look at what needs to be accomplished “now” and take back your UNILATERAL power of choice.  You are the person where the buck stops and you have no one to blame if your life is not where you want it to be.  Practice this simple but uncomfortable exercise to develop a sense of acting UNILATTERALLY.  Decide what you want to eat and make food choices for yourself.  Choosing what you want to eat is often a UNILATERAL choice you delegate to others. For instance, how often do you follow other people’s food choices rather than using your voice to ask for what you want to eat?  Do not remain silent when you want Chinese food and others want pizza.  Get my point? 

YOUR LIFE A-Z: RIGOROUS

ATTENTION TO DETAILS

RIGOROUS

RIGOROUS seems to be the right R word to follow Own, Pride, and Quality.  RIGOROUS is defined as meticulous, exacting, scrupulous, demanding, and painstaking as well as many more synonyms.  Are you ready to step up in your life and Develop a RIGOROUS exploration of your life? Choose one goal you want to get RIGOROUS about and start changing it.  Some changes take a clear focus and painstaking plan that you must execute RIGOROUSLY in order to produce the change you want.  Old habits are really hard to break and the messages that those habits send fill your unconscious relentlessly.  You might often experience success and then immediately sabotage yourself by over-sleeping, speeding, or losing something very important.  Next your negative self-talk takes over and beats you up and your fortitude diminishes.  But with RIGOROUS attention to detail, determination, and attending to the goals of your dreams and passion, you will be back on track.  Be RIGOROUS and go forward with leaps and jumps.  Being RIGOROUS requires strength, courage, and determination.  Being RIGOROUS is not for sissies.  Being RIGOROUS is for the serious and those that really are being honest with his/herself!  How bad do you really want if?  If you really don't want it, then please do yourself a favor and let it go, toss that goal to the abyss.  Only be RIGOROUS about things that really matter.  Do not set yourself up for disappointment or failure.  Be RIGOROUS in real matters of your heart.