Living Authentically...A Worthy Investment

Some of us grew up learning that pleasing others and playing by their rules kept the peace. But it also kept us weighted down and unable to touch our truth. Perhaps with time we learned how to be more honest with ourselves and others, to meet our own needs and not to need the approval of others to get through our days. If we were able to grow out of that phase of living through and for others, we then began to dream our own dreams, longed to be our own person and live the life we hoped for that has healthy intentions, inner peace and compassion of self and others. We have learned that we wish to be authentic with ourselves and others and have this show in our lives.

For some living authentically means taking some risks. Sometimes this means moving, job changes, relationship changes, going back to school, lifestyle changes….you get the picture. And when we make these types of changes, it is not uncommon to receive feedback, often unsolicited, from those who are put off or put out by our changes. They may feel judged. They may feel you are making a huge mistake. They may not understand.

But if we have made these changes and decisions based on much consideration and they are in alignment and in harmony with all that is important to us, we are living authentically. It does not matter what others think. It does not matter if they agree. If we have that heart assurance that our decisions are right for us…then we are on the right path.This does not mean that it will be easy. Actually, trying to live authentically is often met with many challenges, and not only from others in our lives. It means breaking out of our comfort zone, changing our patterns and habits, asking ourselves questions that run deep and dredge up truth that must be faced and sometimes dealt with. But every effort we make to life this life of authenticity rewards us in some way with a life filled with delight, honesty, love, and peace.

And honesty is a big piece of the authenticity equation. The more we are honest with ourselves and others, the more our life begins to look like the life we want to live. But for some of us, it is hard to define our truth. It is buried deep beneath layers of people pleasing, layers of not drawing attention to ourselves or layers of self-deception of some kind. We can also come up with great excuses for not facing our truth; we don't have the time or the skills. Life is so busy after all! But that is the point! Part of the busy-ness of our lives is because we are avoiding the fact that we are not living authentically. This distraction buffers our disappointment or our discomfort.

To find our truth and to find what we need to do or not do in order to live an authentic life we must quiet down, create space for the discovery, make time to find our questions and our answers. Tuning in to who we really are, not our self assigned labels or what others think of us is the beginning of the breakthrough. We will begin to define what we stand for, how we feel, what we believe in…all without pretense or misunderstanding. We will begin to feel passion for life, self-respect and dignity, and a sense of inner truth. And as an added bonus, we will begin to attract people into our life who resonate with our authenticity. People who support our growth and hold love for us in their hearts.

What this means is that we do not have to go it alone. We discover the interconnectedness of us all. We share more than we admit we do. We are able to receive and give freely without keeping tabs or feeling needy. It is life affirming when we find ourselves in the company of someone else striving to live their life authentically as well.

To live life authentically, one must be willing to take the time needed to transform, be willing to take big leaps of faith and small steps - one at a time and be willing to live in the moment, embracing the gifts and lessons as they unfold. Living authentically is investing in a rich life, filled with what we desire, believe in and find meaning in…and it is always worth it!

I am off for the weekend, but will be back again on Monday. Meanwhile, feel free to share with us some of the changes you have made to live an authentic life.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade

Conscious Communication

Let me ask you a question. How are your communication skills? Seriously. Do you find yourself struggling to make a point, interrupt people often, drift off when others are speaking or change the topic to go in the direction of what you wish to talk about? It is not uncommon to be in communication with others and have our attention focused on what our needs are in the conversation. Communication ALWAYS improves when we become aware of the other person’s needs. If we can learn to really listen, then the relationship of the conversation improves. If we learn to listen with compassion and with an attempt to understand, we then let go of the way we filter the messages to meet our own needs.

Attempting to listen with our fullest attention allows us to not only listen to the spoken words of the message, but also the feelings being conveyed. We are embracing the full message, not just our interpretation.

Good communication also means being wise about our word choice. We cannot just speak unedited all the time. Being responsible for the message that comes from our mouth is important. That does not mean you cannot speak your truth. But if the intent of communicating is to relate to one another, why not choose words that can be received by your listener.

To speak this way means paying attention to our intention in the moment, being compassionate to those we are conversing with and being open to all possibilities…releasing our expectations of how the conversation should unfold. Conscious communication, perhaps! It is about developing congruence with others in conversation.

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade

Did I Mention Intention?

How often during the day do you reflect on what you are doing and why? For most, not too often. But if we want to live a more intention filled life this is the best way to discover what fuels your intentions. Imagine going through your day asking yourself what your motivation is for what you are doing. Is it to be of service, is it because it is expected of you, is it because you are hoping to get something out of it, or is it because it because you are being selfish? Any of these reasons and more are possible.

If you spend some time questioning yourself about why you do what you do you may actually discover something about yourself and your actions. Perhaps you may discover that many of your actions and activities lack a purpose. I know we all have a life that requires real activities that are really boring. For me it is laundry! Just can't get too excited about it no matter how hard I try. BUT that said…if I approach doing the laundry with the intention in my heart that I am taking care of my family's needs, or if I take the time to appreciate the beautiful clothing we are fortunate to own, or if I recall the family fun we had while wearing some of the clothing…my energy and intention shifts.

I was once told that I could make going out to get the mail a sacred act. It was said playfully and with kindness. But it also was a statement of truth. I have tried to not be on auto pilot all day long. I try to bring some consciousness to my daily activities as I know that my intention and motives that I carry around with me throughout the day are fundamental to the results I will receive.

Walking out the front too and strolling to the end of the driveway to get the mail…I could do it blindly and wrapped up in busy thoughts, or I could take the opportunity to take some deep cleansing breaths, listen to the birds, and gaze up into the sky and let the sun hit my face. You get the picture.

Obviously, I am not saying that you need to question every single action you make each day. But what if you checked in every once in a while. I was once told by a mentor of mine to set high intentions for myself and my life will bloom like a beautiful flower. Now that is a lovely day unfolding for sure!

Blessings ~ Lisa

©COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade

Being Part of the Whole

How many times have you faced your day an felt as though you were so alone? We go through the phase of thinking that our experience, thoughts and feelings are separated from the rest of the world. No one truly is, as we are all a part of the whole. We create this delusion and imprison ourselves there. We put ourselves in a box that keeps us limited to our personal story in that moment. We limit ourselves to the few people, feelings and life situations around us to support this story as well. If we are able to break out of the cycle of doing this we find we can widen our circle and ripple out. We find that we hold a compassion in our hearts for all living creatures, of all of nature within this universe. It can offer us immense freedom and be a beautiful place for our consciousness to grow.

It often boils down to expanding our perspective on things. If we stay attached to our story we spend our days rationalizing it and justifying why we are feeling the way we do, saying what we are saying and doing what we are doing. If we can step outside of the story and view the many possibilities that unfold before us, if we picture that our view limits itself to only one version of many, then perhaps we can begin to work within the graceful place the universe offers us to be. We are offered an opportunity to embrace the concept of unity and wholeness. We see the various parts that make up the bigger picture or at the least have the potential to.

Living and experiencing consciousness is all about relationships - all relationships. It is a moment to see how darkness can exist within the light. It is a moment to accept that there can be negativity in a positive moment. We can sit with the existence of how the lower relates to the higher. In a state of consciousness we can be with the reality that contradictions exist but do not limit us or define us. We can be strong powerful people and yet have our vulnerabilities. We can be compassionate loving beings and still have a moment of anger.

I once read a quote from Dr. Norma Milanovich and Dr. Shirley McCune that stated, ""Higher consciousness, enlightenment, comes from meaningful experiences and lessons passed with the understanding that there truly is only one law - the Law of Love. When one leads a life expressing this belief, the mind and heart begin to open to new realities, and other dimensional truths become known."

If we embrace this concept, if we live within the limits of the Law of Love, then we become grace filled, compassionate, open-hearted beings that accept all possibilities and have no expectations to fill. We learn that our story is almost meaningless. All that truly matters is the moment, the eyes we are looking in right now, the breath we are taking, the act we are making. If we choose to focus our energies in the NOW and be ultimately conscious of only that … we end the need to prove, to judge, to make conditions. We then can take that energy and make the most of this very moment, to be fully present, to not live in the past or stress for the future.

We empower ourselves to be authentic and truth filled. We look at those in our lives with an open mind and heart and we begin to relate to them on a much higher level. Our inner spirit shines.

What a wonderful place in life to aspire to! Blessings ~ Lisa

© COPYRIGHT 2012 Lisa Meade