Need a Miracle? Get Uncomfortable

"There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle."
~ Albert Einstein

Stretch, Stretch, Stretch and Stretch some more!

I am a firm believer that the Universe always delivers to us exactly what we need exactly when we need it. Sometimes it takes us longer to appreciate and understand the gifts. This is especially true when the gifts appear as garbage.

The month of April gifted me a pretty full bag of mixed garbage. I had just started working solely from home and that space has been dimished by having my sister-in-law and her two children occupying it. This morning I could feel my own skin beginning to suffocate me.

Then I stepped outside and saw a beautiful butterfly, just in time to remind me about the process of transformation. It's the determined caterpillars that squeeze out of their comfortable coccoon through a tiny pinhole. The process is difficult; many will die along the way. The ones that embraced the challenge elevated from slow slugs to beautiful free flying eye-catching miracles.

This morning I realized that in order for me to continue my own personal and professional growth, the universe has presented me with an amazing challenge. It is time for me to stretch my limitations beyond my comfort zone. Just as I have learned to stretch my body with ease at yoga, it's time for me to stretch my mind and stretch it some more.

As I observed my home in complete chaos this morning, I actually experienced a miracle. The boys were running up and down the stairs with their hands all over the walls, fighting over a pair of underwear, their clothes everywhere and their mother already off at work. I truly felt completely calm and realized that five minutes before death none of this was going to matter.

Miracles do not show up in your comfort zone. Next time you are challenged to the point that you want to burst out of your skin, remember that the universe wants to give you a miracle.

Being Happy, Healthy and Fit often means you have to stretch beyond your comfort zone. Whether you want to lose weight, gain strength, become more flexible or less stressed, you will have to stretch, stretch and stretch your self-imposed limitations some more!

Practice patience and push like the caterpillar. Simply apply determination to every goal you set. Approach every challenge with gratitude. Turn your garbage into gifts. Elevate your consciousness and set yourself free. You too, can become a beautiful eye-catching miracle.

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Happiness is a Choice! Choose it!

A smile can brighten the darkest day. ~Author Unknown

Just as you will never get full by simply reading recipes, menus or lists of ingredients, you will never experience transformation just by reading self-improvement books or attending workshops.

Knowledge applied is where the wisdom is acquired and the magic exposed.

Transformation results when you accept your challenges head on. Learn to embrace the opportunities to experience humility; that is where the growth happens.

Often it is easier to see our flaws in others. Last week, I was going to teach an after school program at an exclusive private school. It costs more to send your child here for one year than many people gross annually. I say this only to impress upon you that wealth is not a determinant of happiness; money cannot buy it.

Upon walking in, I saw an old student of mine and asked him how we was doing. One word said it all, "Shitty." He proceeded to tell me all the ways he was a victim in his own life. I was suddenly flooded with compassion. It had nothing to do with the situations he was facing and everything to do with the fact that he really believed these things just "happened" to him.

When he asked me how I was doing, I grinned from ear to ear and replied, "Amazing." Truth be told in the last 2 weeks, I had closed my business, buried my mother-in-law, received stitches and acquired 3 house guests indefinitely. He actually looked horrified by my insensitivity to his issues.

Although we cannot always control our life situations, we can control how we respond to them. Challenge yourself to brighten your darkest moments, next time life presents a challenge, go ahead and apply what you just read, experience the magic; practice smiling.

Life is about making choices. Regardless of what is going on outside of you, Happiness is a choice inside of you.

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.”
Thich Nhat Hanh quotes

Love to Be Right? Learn to be Right! Change your Perspective

Isn't there something so rewarding about being right? This is especially true when you have done a lot of work or research to boost your confidence in your stance. If you love to be right, learn to be right.

I encourage you to take this personal challenge. Set your watch and commit 10 to 15 minutes to cleaning your kitchen. It really won't take long once you are intentional. Do all the dishes and give everything a nice wipe down. It will sparkle. You will feel so proud.

As soon as you are done, enjoy your work for a moment. Feel the feeling of fulfillment that results from being intentional and doing some work. Then go ahead and lay down on your kitchen floor, facing the ceiling and change your perspective. Just look up and start to look around.

I don't want to spoil the fun and tell you what will happen! Just understand that it is possible for 2 people to be seemingly looking at the exact same thing, from a slightly different perspective and seeing worlds a part. Just do the experiment.

Part of being Happy, Healthy and Fit is understanding that there are many ways to look at the same situation and see something unique. Free yourself from the need to be right. Understand that being right doesn't mean someone else has to be wrong.

Next time you find yourself battling to be right to the point that the hair is standing up on your neck and you are calling everyone in your phone to voice your frustrations, remember.... Being Right is a matter of Perspective.

Turn Your Garbage into Gold!

The secret to being Happy, Healthy and Fit is knowing that Positive thinking is the foundation for all success and happiness.

The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, tells the journey of a young boy who searches far and wide for riches and meaning. He travels the globe and meets many guides along the way only to end up right back where he started. He had everything he needed; he just kept looking out instead of in. Alchemy is the medieval process of purifying a base metal and turning it into gold. It is also defined as a power or process of transforming something common into something special. Can you learn from the story of the alchemist and look inside instead of out. Put the newspaper down, file your 401K statement, turn off the news and decide to arm yourself against negative influences. A pure mind cannot support self-doubt, fear or anger. A pure mind represents Personal Freedom.

First we must identify our thinking so we can filter out the impurities. There are four types of thoughts: negative, wasteful, necessary and positive. Let's read those again: Negative, Wasteful, Necessary and Positive. Negative thoughts leave us sad, fearful, guilty, worried and uneasy. Wasteful thinking includes all that time we spend worrying about things that Never happen- you know the "what if?" thoughts. Necessary thoughts include just that- I must stop at the bank. Positive thoughts include creativity, love, inspiration, hope, abundance, harmony, success and happiness.

Now let's look at this analytically, just at a most rudimentary level there is a 75% chance your thoughts are not positive. To make matters worse it has been said that 95% of our thoughts are the same thought recurring over and over again. The great news there is that once we can train ourselves to have only Positive thoughts, we will have experienced alchemy!

Martial Arts training have been used for centuries to turn farmers into warriors and the helpless into heroes. Modern Day warriors achieve success simply by having the discipline to think before speaking. Learn to be a warrior and protect yourself from your own self-sabotaging thoughts.

The mind cannot fix the mind, but must work with the body to slow down the thoughts and filter out the impurities. Find a moving meditation such as yoga or tai chi. Any type of physical discipline will not only purify your mind, but also detoxify your body. Be your own alchemist: Turn your wasteful garbage into Gold!

Winners Choose the Attitude of a Champion!

“Most look up and admire the stars. A champion climbs a mountain and grabs one.”
- unknown

Life hands us exactly what we are willing to accept. In life, the greatest obstacles create the greatest opportunities. We can make excuses or we can be the exception.

Roger Bannister is known around the world for being the first human being to break the 4-minute mile. It is easy to accept that he had a goal and reached it. Where does that desire come from? I recently learned that as a child, Bannister survived a terrible fire and both of his legs were so badly burned that doctors told him he would never walk again.

Bannister has survivor consciousness. This is the state of mind that makes us unstoppable. It is not necessary to experience disaster to create the desire to be a champion.

Whether your goal is to drop 10 pounds, start an amazing business or create a revolutionary product, being Happy, Healthy and Fit means showing up with the attitude of a Champion. Taking responsibility for tomorrow keeps you making the highest and best choices for today.

Your star is waiting; identify your mountain and start climbing. Put the excuses away and decide to be the Exception. Be a Champion everyday!