Choose Joy

This morning, I planned to eat a quick breakfast in front of my computer, trying to get a head start. Last week was so busy that I woke up feeling behind already, so I chose to jump on the treadmill of Too Much To Do before I was even out of bed.

However, life often has other plans for me. As I passed through the living room, something caught my eye on the back deck – a tiny profile so minute I'm not even sure how I noticed it.

 The hummingbird sat resting on the hangar holding his feeder.

I stopped and stood perfectly still, not wanting to spook my visitor. He seemed perfectly at ease, a posture I'm not used to seeing this particular little neighbour take. Normally he buzzes from flower to flower, darting around the yard and disappearing so fast I sometimes think I've imagined him.

Right now, however, this tiny soul sat at rest, watching everyone else hurry – namely the finches on their feeder nearby and me. His movements were so relaxed I could almost imagine him taking a deep breath, enjoying a quiet moment in the sunshine that highlighted his brilliant colour.

Then, with a movement so quick that I barely noticed the transition, his wings whirred, he dropped down to sip a bit of nectar and left on his morning rounds.

Did you know that Hummingbird is a symbol of joy in many traditions? He's a reminder to laugh and enjoy life. I needed that this morning. After my visitor left, I took a deep breath and sat at the table with my breakfast to enjoy a few moments of quiet before my day began.

This morning I chose joy rather than overwhelm and it changed everything.

 

Finding the Joy

"We all love times of joy.  And we all want more joy in our lives.  But
how much joy is already there?  Joy that you might be failing to
appreciate? "

Read the rest of this wonderful reminder to pay attention at Randy Gage's Blog.
 

 

Finding Your Why

Do you see visions? I’m not talking about out of body experiences here but rather – do you have an idea of what your Ideal Life would look like?

What part do you dreams and gifts play in your Vision? Do you know the difference you want to make in your world?

Visioning should be the foundation for everything else you do in your life. In my coaching practice I often come across people who scoff at the idea of a Vision Plan and throw up barriers and reasons why it won’t work for them. Those barriers and reasons most often come from a place of fear; Fear that their vision is too powerful; Fear that they will be required to move out of their comfort zone;  Fear that they might have to actually do something and that it might be too late.

What they find, once they complete the visioning process, is joy, motivation and a sense of being in the right place.

Wouldn’t you rather be pulled along by joy? In order to create that pull, you need connection to your core values & purpose.

Making up a vision can feel like a fairy tale – entertaining but not 'realistic' but any act of creation is simply making something up. And the greatest truth about our own lives is that we get to make them up.

Your vision is really more than pure invention. It's based on who you are, what you are passionate about & what you yearn to create in the world.  Whether you realize it or not, you're creating your tomorrow right now.  Why not do it on purpose and make it the one you want?

A warning here – A 'How' will kill a good 'What' every time. Don't worry about the details. Dare to Dream big. The how’s come much later in the process and they usually take care of themselves.