ARE YOU A NEGATIVE or POSITIVE?

Have you ever really thought about the words you speak aloud?  Are they encouraging, positive and empowering – do you speak the same way about yourself? 

Our words are really powerful for ourselves and for others – they can either empower someone or do your words disenfranchise or marginalize?  I do my best to use words that make people feel good and try to surround my ‘self speak’ with positivity.  The energy around someone who speaks with positivity, love and encouragement is infectious – people love to soak up that energy and enjoy being around these type of people.  We all know people who are the complete opposites – everything they say is negative, they are angry about anything they can think of and their words reflect that.  I have made a point to remove myself from that kind of negativity as it really drains your energy.

There was a point in my life when I was angry at the world – I felt that because of all the hardships I have gone through, it justified the anger and hate that I felt.  Until I learned to deal with all that hate and anger – nothing was going to change.  I learned to forgive those individuals for the hardships they caused because without forgiveness, I would never be able to move forward in a positive light.  I completed some inner-child work which included;  telling my inner-child that any past hardships was not his fault and that I loved him.  You can’t imagine how amazing that experience was.  I learned that mirror work was very important –  each morning, I would look in the mirror, look into my own eyes and say “I love you – you are loving, caring and compassionate.  I will make a conscious effort to avoid negative speak and will surround myself with the positive energy of the universe.  Today will be a great day filled with love and laughter and all negativity will not be able to penetrate my positive energy field.”  I found that by doing this – my days were excellent and without conflict.

How do you wake up in the morning?  Do you say to yourself “Oh, I hate mornings – I have to get dressed and go into that horrible office/job” – Waking up with those thoughts only ensure that your day will be filled with that same energy.  Your commute will be horrible, your day will be filled with conflict and negativity and you will end up going him with that same negative energy.  I know – I was one of those people.  I still have days that are challenging – but because I have the awareness, it is much more easier to change my thought process to a more positive mood. 

We all have experience in feeling positive and negative energies.  When you go to a concert – the energy tends to be uplifting, fun, exciting and very positive in anticipation of what you are about to witness.  Collectively – so many people are experiencing the universe’s good energy, it such an amazing feeling.  On the other end of the spectrum –  you know when you have entered a negative energy zone.  Think of a time when you entered a room and the air was thick and all of a sudden, you felt a big shift in your mood – maybe a meeting at work or after witnessing a confrontation between two people – you find that you are drained of all positive energy.  As hard as it may be – the best thing for you to do is to remove yourself from this draining energy. 

I know of 2 people (a friend of over 25 years and a family member) who only attracted negativity into their lives.  I have noticed that both of these people had many similarities – they both spoke very negatively about themselves and everyone they knew.  They both have also experienced very violent incidences in their past neither have really dealt with.  I believe because they haven’t really dealt with those incidences – their anger, hurt and fear grew within them.  Their resentment by those that caused them all their hurt and pain continues to live within them and encompasses their lives so they see no joy in anything – their partners, their children, co-workers etc.  Without forgiveness – we can not move forward in a positive light.

If you have noticed that your day is filled with negative energy, ask yourself why.  If there are things in your past that will not allow you to move forward in a positive light – think about what those things are.  If you need to forgive someone for something they have done to you – FORGIVE THEM because that forgiveness is really for yourself!  Tell yourself you love yourself (remember to look into your eyes when you say this), wake up in the morning and tell yourself “I am glad to be alive, it is a great day to spread love and positivity into the world”.  Allow yourself to be conscious of how you speak to yourself internally – try to remove all your negative ‘self-talk’ and when you speak to others, be encouraging, be positive, be loving, be empowering and be compassionate!  Your life will change and you will only attract people who are like-minded and all those in people in your life that are negative will slowly start to disappear.  Believe me, that is a good thing!

Together, we can make the world a more positive one!      

FORGIVENESS

Are there any people in your life that have wronged you in any way?  Are you still hanging on to all the emotions that are attached to someone who has caused you grief, anger, hate, hurt, pain and suffering?  If you answered yes, it is time for you to let go of that anger and those old feelings and emotions that are limiting you from moving forward.

Forgiving should not be about making someone else feel good about their actions – Forgiving is about YOU and allowing you to move past whatever event that someone has inflicted on to you in order for you to move forward in a positive way. 

Think about how you feel when someone causes you anger or hurt, it doesnt’ feel good – you withdraw yourself, your body tightens, you clench your fists and your teeth – all things that will cause your body to respond negatively.  Allowing these negative feelings to fester will cause you to become emotionally and physically sick and may even lead to serious illness later in life.  When you don’t let go of the past and when you do not allow yourself to forgive yourself or anyone else that has wronged you – you are only causing yourself emotional and physical pain.

Forgiveness does not justify the actions of those that may have hurt you.  You should remember the hurts and pains that others may have caused you – these are opportunities to learn and grown.  Take your experiences and help others that may have been in a similar situation and help them move forward.  It is hard to forgive someone who has committed a horrible act against you or against someone you love, but if you don’t the alternative can be devasting for you, for your loved ones and for anyone else that comes into your life. 

I have forgiven many people who have caused some minor issues in my life – that was easy.   It was much more difficult to forgive people in my life that have caused me so much hurt, pain, anger and suffering but if I didn’t, I would still be hurting and suffering.  What if you forgive someone and they continue to cause you hurt and pain?  How can you move forward in a positve way and contribute to society if someone continues to hurt you?  You can’t.  In my personal experience, I have removed myself from situations and people that I have forgiven but continue the behaviour that I have forgiven them for.  I also try not to judge those I am forgiving becauase I don’t know what may have happened in their past, maybe they are suffering and holding on to emotions from the past that perpetuate their behaviour?

If you can truly forgive – the potential for creating wonderful, positive, healthy and a rewarding life is endless.  Look within yourself and think about those that you may want to forgive in your past and in your current life.  Forgive them and move on!  You may be the one that someone else needs to forgive – think about that and allow yourself to make things right for those that require your forgiveness.  

May the positive energy you give out into the world – find its way back into your heart and soul!

Things You Can Do To Quiet Your Mind

There are so many things that easily distract us in our day-to-day lives – things that can preoccupy our minds and cause much unwanted static.  Television is a primary source to inject our minds with fear, anger, hurt and disappointment.  I believe that most networks want us to fill our time watching meaningless reality television or programs that do not promote positivity in our world.  We are constantly bombarded with negative news stories from around the world about politics, the economy, natural disasters, mass murder, environmental disasters etc…It is hard to remain positive in a world that seems to only want to instil fear, hate, anger and rage.  I have found many ways to ensure that my mind is not filled with the poison that television tries to ingest into us (besides the obvious of turning the television off), here are my 10 favourites:

1.  Exercise

If you have had a bad day – and you have much pent-up frustration and anger inside of you, there is no better way to release this anger than by working out.  Getting the blood flowing in your body is a great way to release stress, anger and the days frustrations.  Start with some light full body warm ups, then 30 – 45 minutes of strength training and ending with a nice relaxing 15 – 20 minute jog.  You will feel rejuvenated having released your frustrations and have a sense that you have accomplished something great for your mental and physical health.

2.  Meditation

A great way to relax for daily tension is to meditate.  This may take some practice (especially for those who find it difficult to silence your inner voice) but once you have practiced a few short meditations, you will find it very rewarding to connect with a higher consciousness.  By quieting our inner voice, we can sync our energies and focus on the things that  are of real importance to us.

3.  Go Back To Nature

A great way to give us perspective on what really should matter in our lives is the natural and beautiful landscapes our earth has given us.  Going back to nature is a great way to forget about our troubles and to quiet the mind.  Listen to the whisper of the trees, the gentle sounds of water meeting with the shoreline and the relaxing chimes of the birds singing.  If you really want to feel connected to our earth and marvel at its beauty – you don’t really have to go far.  Connecting with our earth may even ignite a passion in you to defend its natural beauty.

4.  Learn Something New That Isn’t Too Stressful

If you love art – try taking an art class.  If you love to cook – take a cooking class.  If you love languages or have always wanted to speak another language – take a course to learn a new language.  If you love to dance – take a dance class.  The opportunities are endless and we are never to old to learn something new and exciting.  Never limit yourself to what you can’t do but to what you want to do.  Look at learning new things as fun and good rather than scary and hard – this will make learning something new so much more positive.

5.  Listen to your favourite music and music artist(s)

I always found that listening to my favourite light music has always allowed me to relax from daily tension.  If your music library has been worn out….try listening to new music – especially world music.  I found that New Age and Chillout  music has contributed much to helping me quiet the static in my mind.

6.  Keep a journal

I find that keeping a journal (you don’t have to write in it daily – although you probably will) and writing every time you feel stressed, angry, upset, hurt etc…will allow you to release that stress or whatever pain you are feeling from keeping your feelings inside.  This is a great way to help you understand and pinpoint the exact reason someone or something is bothering you.  Sometimes what is really bothering us is not really what we thought it was at all.

7.  Read a book by your favourite author or take the time to discover a new one

A great way to take your mind of something that has been festering in you is by reading a book.   Reading takes some concentration and the use of our imagination – once you pick up a book you will have to focus on giving those words meaning and bringing them to life.  What better way to escape from our day-to-day lives by creating a world using only words and our imaginations.

We don’t realize how important it is to give our minds a break from the demanding and fast-paced pressures of today’s world.  Many people can’t even function without the help of pharmaceuticals to keep us going – some people need help with sleep, anxiety, depression, stress, nervousness, etc….if we just took the time to quiet our minds and allow ourselves the luxury to really feel and be present in what we feel and what we do – we would be so much more loving and positive with one another.