Surrender is not giving up.
Surrender is not giving in.
It’s trusting in something bigger than yourself.
Slowly unfolding.
Something you can’t quite see.
Quietly expanding.
Behind the scenes.
How I Surrender: The God Box
Surrender
Tag: Letting Go
Freedom is realizing you have a choice.
Freedom doesn’t come from holding on.
Freedom comes from letting go.
Again and again and again.
Too often we are hard on ourselves for having to release the same thought, emotion, person, or situation over and over again.
When in fact this is how life goes.
Letting go and surrendering are an ongoing process. And as necessary for our mental health as eating is for our physical health.
We must eat three times a day. And sometimes we have to surrender (thirty) three times a day.
And that’s ok. That’s how life flows..
F R E E D O M
If you only had ONE YEAR to live:
What would you STOP doing?
THE CHOICE IS YOURS
Video of Blog Post: Click Here
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Acceptance: Your Peace Depends on It
Shift your focus.
Change your life.
Acceptance and peace go hand in hand.
When we accept the things we cannot change, we save our energy for the things we can.
Today’s Challenge
Consciously accept the good and the bad that exists in your life.
The rain and the sunlight.
The shadow and the light.
Keeping in Mind
Accepting what is does not lower the bar.
Quite the opposite.
Acceptance shines a spotlight on your inner strengths and endurance – independent of outer circumstances.
Strengths that were fostered in the eye of the storm. ☔️
Courage. Creativity. Wisdom. Perseverance. Faith.
This very moment in time.
And it’s that good feeling that motivates you to strive for more of what’s right for you. Instead of fighting against what’s wrong for you.
HOW DO I MAKE THE SHIFT?
Begin by accepting what is.
Moment by precious moment.
Your wellness depends on it.
Applying this Post in Everyday Life
The 3 to 1 positivity to negativity ratio is one way of applying this post in your everyday life.
Specifically, each time you criticize an area of your life (or something about yourself personally), write down three positive aspects about the very thing you condemned. Hence, the 3 to 1 positivity ratio.
For example, each time you get down on yourself for not working during the COVID-19 pandemic, write down three benefits of sheltering in place. (E.g., more time for fitness, the space to try out new hobbies, meaningful conversations with family members). This daily practice helps to dampen the adverse impact of negativity bias, a type of cognitive distortion, common to all of us.
Likewise, stop comparing your lowlights to other people’s highlights. You never know what’s happening behind the scenes in another person’s life. Good or bad. FOMO is “a story” fabricated in the mind based on snippets of observable behaviour (video below).
Reflection Questions
- How has COVID-19 eased (or increased) the pressure you put on yourself and the people around you?
- What does acceptance “feel” like physically in your body versus fighting “what is”?
- What have you surrendered lately? Let go?
You Can’t Add More to Your Life Without First Letting Go
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3 Ways to Create Opportunity in COVID Adversity: Class of 2020
Three Ways ~ 2020 graduates ~ can bridge the gap between what was ~ and what will be.
- 🎓 CONNECT
- 🎓 CREATE
- 🎓 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
All three resilience strategies described in full detail in the 8 minute video below:
Hold On
STAY STRONG 2020 Graduates!
Growth happens in the s p a c e in between.
This video presentation was created in partnership with the Student Representative Council (SRC) at St. Clair College in Windsor Ontario Canada.
🎓 Please Pass It On 🎓
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Save Your Energy For What Matters Most
Time & Energy Audit
1. What area of your life do you need to slow down in?
2. What area of your life do you need to REV IT UP in?
ABCD Priority List
Make a list of all the things that you have to do today.
Order them in terms of A to D with A being what matters most.
For example:
A Priorities =
Eating healthy.
Studying for final exams.
Getting a good night’s sleep.
D Priorities =
Watching Netflix until 2am.
Repeatedly checking Facebook posts.
Complaining about past relationships.
In this video I walk students through the ABCD process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n69viXICuEo
Our life changes when our priorities change.
What’s on your A list today?
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Breathe. Trust. Let go.
Trust that everything is working out as it should. In divine time. In divine order. For your highest good.
Video: Let Go and Flow
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Empathic Listening: How Can I Support You?
How do you respond when a close friend shares a problem with you?
Are you a fixer or a listener?
If you’re anything like me, my first instinct is to fix the problem.
To try and save loved ones from adversity.
To rescue them.
To make them instantly feel better.
I suggest we do the opposite.
Instead of rushing in, we take a step back.
Ask them what they need.
Give their pain room to breathe.
In doing so, we validate the person and their experience.
Helping them stay true to who they are.
It’s ok to not be ok.
What comes – also goes.
Welcome it all.
Video of this post ⤴️
Come join my YouTube Channel too! 🎥🍿
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What are you ready to let go of?
This post was inspired by a stressful situation that I couldn’t let go of, long beyond its solution. No matter how hard I tried. Day in day out. The worry would reappear. Then someone close to me suggested “I shed the stress”. And a lightbulb went off. Each time the repetitive thought appeared, I imagined a tree shedding its leaves. A golden leaf for every anxious thought. This visualization process made all the difference. And so did writing about it. 📝🍂
If you had a magic wand, what would you ask to disappear in your life right now?
What would you say good-bye to?
Once and for all.
It could be an emotion. Or a thought.
A relationship. Or a job.
A place or a thing.
Stress management is a shedding process ℘ Not an acquisition project
It’s time to let go of what drains you.
Let go of what holds you back.
Let go of what keeps you down.
It could be a mindset. Or a memory.
A situation. Or an attitude.
Write it down. Shout it out.
Stress management is a shedding process ℘ Not a holding pattern
It’s time to let go of what weighs you down.
Release it to the universe.
Declare your freedom.
Vow to move on and beyond.
Once and for all.
Stress management is a shedding process ℘ Not an endurance test
Shed the stress. Let. It. Fall. 🍂
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Breathing Space.
Look up ↑ Breathe ↑ Release
One quick glance to inner peace.
Related Post: Always Looking Up.
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Fear is an illusion.
Don’t be fooled by fear.
Look it directly in the eye.
Fear distorts reality.
Fear exaggerates the truth.
Step back. Take a pause.
Remember who you are.
You have overcome great adversity.
You have faced this phantom before.
This wolf is a mirage.
Only your strength, your courage, and your untapped powers are real.
Resources to help you break free from the illusion of fear:
Understanding Fear: Identifying Cognitive Distortions
Overcoming Fear: Fixing Cognitive Distortions
Repost from October 2017 — Click Here.
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Breathe and Receive.
When I’m struggling to get through a difficult day, I look to the trees for inspiration and refuge.
All they do is give.
And all we need to do is receive.
Again and again.
With every single breath.
And every single step.
Peace lives here.
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The key to happiness.
Let go of what is outside your control.
The next time you are gearing up for another fight with reality. Winter; Traffic; Parking; Deadlines. Try rolling with it. Surrendering to what is. Letting go. No matter the circumstances.
Hold on to what brings you joy.
In surrendering, you save precious energy for the joyful in your life. The meaningful in your life. The soulful in your life. Including this very moment. This is where happiness lives.
Related Post: Letting Life Flow.
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Lost and found.
Every morning and every night I visit my favourite place on Earth.
The great outdoors. 🌿
Where do you go to quiet your mind and free your soul?
Related Post: Taming your monkey mind.
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Letting life flow.
Stressful Times.
The one word I hear repeatedly from students this time of year is drowning.
Drowning in bills. Drowning in midterms. Drowning in research.
Not a pleasant thought. And definitely not energizing.
A sinking feeling that takes student motivation from 100 to 0 in an instant.
By thought alone.
Empowering Lessons.
How can we help students to feel more empowered in the midst of winter weather, too many midterms, and not enough time.
Transforming Stressors.
We meet students where they’re at. By embracing that stressful, drowning thought and transforming it into a peaceful, floating feeling. By helping students feel safe and supported. In and out of the classroom.
Trusting the Flow.
We remind students of their resilience. We show them how far they’ve come. We encourage them to flow with the moment instead of fighting against the current. Then and only then can the focused learning begin.
Video from today's psychology class. 🌊
What helps you go with the flow?
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Hold on. Stay strong.
Trust that you are exactly where you need to be. Good or bad. High or low. East or west. Young or old. Be still. Have faith. Hold on. Stay strong. What you seek is seeking you.💙
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Be here now. Be happy now.
