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Have you ever felt trapped, whether by situations in your life you feel are unfair, or perhaps your own inner doubts and limiting beliefs. Watch this video. Gratitude frees us to be our best self.

LINK >>>  http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=2568

Read more about it >>> Dewey Bozella was locked up for 26 years - a lifetime - for a crime he did not commit. This story is about the triumph of human spirit and living proof of the maxim: “never give up”. One man’s journey to reclaim his life, against all odds; a man fighting his biggest fight outside the boxing ring without any hatred or bitterness towards the system. Dewey Bozella - courageous, persistent, human and finally…free.

Finding Joe, a new documentary based on the wisdom of mythologist Joseph Campbell, will be opening this Friday. I highly recommend it to anyone seeking to discover their life’s work, and “follow their bliss” as they express their talents in meaningful ways that serve the planet. Playing at Riviera Theater in Santa Barbara. Read about it below (from their website):

Finding Joe is an exploration of famed Mythologist Joseph Campbell’s studies and their continuing impact on our culture. Through interviews with visionaries from a variety of fields interwoven with enactments of classic tales by a sweet and motley group of kids, the film navigates the stages of what Campbell dubbed The Hero’s Journey: the challenges, the fears, the dragons, the battles, and the return home as a changed person. Rooted in deeply personal accounts and timeless stories, Finding Joe shows how Campbell’s work is relevant and essential in today’s world and how it provides a narrative for how to live a fully realized life - or as Campbell would simply state, how to “follow your bliss”.

Featuring: Deepak Chopra, Mick Fleetwood, Rashida Jones, Tony Hawk, Catherine Hardwicke, Laird Hamilton, Robert Walter, Akiva Goldsman, Sir Ken Robinson, Robin Sharma, Lynne Kaufman, Alan Cohen, Brian Johnson, Joseph Marshall III, Rebecca Armstrong, Chungliang Al Huang, David L. Miller, Gay Hendricks, David Loy and Norman Ollestad.

“The hero, in living her own life, in being true to herself; radiates a light by which others may see their own way.” —Laurence Boldt

In the 20+ years I have worked with the principles in Zen and the Art of Making a Living, guiding career coaching clients on the quest to discover and actualize their life’s work, I have seen firsthand the power of questions in shaping our lives. As Laurence Boldt says, “For all of us, the question is the Quest-I-on. In other words, the questions we ask or fail to ask shape the journeys of our lives. While most blindly go where the conventional questions of their society take them, heroes consciously choose and earnestly pursue the questions that shape their lives. . . . Will you live your life spontaneously from the heart and its pathless call, or conventionally from prescribed role?”

Many clients come to me full of questions, and almost immediately within the first session, they become aware that many of the questions they are asking are not taking them where they really want to go. For some this process is a big wake up call, for they realize they have not been listening to their hearts or being true to themselves. What questions are you asking? Do you like the direction your life is going in? If not, change your question and your life will change. Go on a quest for your best. The world needs your love.

Was pondering a discussion I had with a client about being guided from the heart, believing in ourselves, and recognizing our gifts. These excerpts from How to Find the Work You Love by Laurence Boldt sum it up:

Love gives us the courage to believe in humanity and in ourselves. The word courage means, literally, “with heart.” It takes great heart—great courage—to believe in humanity in the face of what sometimes seem like overwhelming problems.

It takes courage to affirm that the possible world that many of us have experienced in glimpses, moments of imagination or spiritual insight, is more than an idle fantasy. It takes the courage to say, like Martin Luther King, Jr., “I have a dream”—to affirm against all evidence to the contrary that one day, we shall overcome our fear, doubt, hatred, violence and pettiness.It takes courage to commit yourself to building bridges between the world that could be and the world that is—the courage to say that you believe the world will one day be a better place and that today you are ready to do your part to make it so.

Hello All,

Just home from watching an amazing film: Man on Wire, the 2008 documentary film directed by James Marsh that chronicles Philippe Petit’s 1974 high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of New York’s World Trade Center.

For those coaching clients who have worked with the Creative Empowerment process you will enjoy seeing the Manifestation Formula in full swing, as Philippe moves from Vision to accomplishment. For those who have worked with the Career Empowerment process, you will see the Hero’s Journey, where Philippe, as Parsifal, faces the darkness of the unknown with only a blazing dream he can not shake as he harnesses the powers of the four archetypes — support cast at his side — in following the call of his inner Hero beckoning him from deep within to do it - and he must.

And we are no different. We must in order to live fully answer the call of our inner Hero and make happen what it beckons us to do. Whether you are wanting to create a life’s work or to achieve goals and dreams in other life areas, this film will inspire. Remember, the most important and first step is to have the courage to be aware of what you REALLY WANT, then the courage to take action.

Do you contain talents and gifts that rarely are given the opportunity to fully express, let alone that are even acknowledged? Self- doubt and lack of confidence, procrastination and low self-esteem all arise when our day to day living does not include a healthy expression of our innate talents — our greatest gifts to the world in which we live. Indeed, joy-FULL living comes from talents expressed. So how do we summon the best of who we are? We begin by discovering our life’s purpose. The following George Bernard Shaw quote sums it up:

This is the true joy in life: Being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one, being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.
-George Bernard Shaw

Take some time now at the beginning of this new year to discover a life’s purpose you can put your whole self into — one that will summon all your innate talents. The entire world community awaits you expressing your best self, for it is in doing so that you live the life you were born to live, that you do your part to make the world a better place now, and for your children’s children and beyond.

In looking at the amazing shifts that occurred in my life in 2007, and the lives of many of my life coaching clients, I see a common thread, it all comes back to identifying your  life’s passion — what really gets you excited enough you can’t wait to get out of bed in the morning. Something so compelling you can’t and don’t want to take your attention off of it. Something that really gives your talents full throttle use, and gets your creative juices overflowing. And not just flowing for an hour, or a day then to watch it slip away. But to have tapped into what feeds you on an ongoing basis. So how do you find this? What can support you discovering what really turns you on?  Here are some simple tips to help you discover and nurture your passion.

1) Be persistent: Know that it exists inside of you, and determine to not give up until you have found it.

2) Be Creative: Once you have found it, determine to create the time to make it happen. It is up to you.

3) Be Resourceful: When creative challenges arise know that you have everything you need to make it happen, and that whatever you do not have (whether it be knowledge or resources) that you can attain or manifest them.

4) Understand its a process: Living from passion is a process, not an end result. It is living your real life, doing what you were born to do. Enjoy and embrace the process! Be open and ready for happy surprises!

It has been 6 months since my last post. Wow, and it has gone by so very quickly. There is so much I have to share with you that I have learned in that time which I plan over the next few weeks to post for all to see and share (and please do!)

Today I want to start with some thoughts about bliss — how to invite it more and more into our lives. So how do we know we are in bliss? It can manifest in many ways: in that uncontrollable grin that stretches your cheeks wider than Niagra Falls when you are doing work you love; in those side splitting giggles that bubble up when you can laugh at yourself, free of self-judgment; in an energized contentment right after you have expressed your talents in meaningful ways that serve others. If you want more bliss try this simple exercise (and it really is simple) — Ask the question: Where is my bliss? and keep on asking it. Do not stop asking till you get an answer you are satisfied with. As it is true that we get what we ask for, ask for more bliss and you are guaranteed to experience more bliss!

Here’s to you finding your bliss in 2008!

Susan

Where does change start? Within. Gandhi said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” This requires letting go of trying to control other people, situations, things outside ourselves, and instead putting the focus on directing ourselves, our thoughts, feelings and actions, towards creating what we want to change. Indeed, the energy we put into controlling things outside of ourselves is the very energy we need to make our dreams come alive, the create the changes we deeply desire to see manifest.

Below find some tools to help you master your creative power towards manifesting your full potential self and create the changes you want to see happening, now!

How to Be, Do, or Have Anything,
self-guided creative mastery e-book by Laurence Boldt

Ever wonder why some people are able to live their dreams, while others feel trapped, forced to live a life they haven’t chosen? Is it pure luck, the hand of fate, or super-charged genes that gives some people the upper hand in the game of life? Or could it be that anyone can learn to unleash their creative power and build a life of meaning and joy? This self-guided program reveals the secrets of the creative process in a simple series of steps that even the most rigid thinkers can absorb and apply. You’ll learn how to develop your powers of concentration, overcome indecision and fear, stop procrastination, master discipline, and sustain lasting motivation. Whatever your goal, be it making more money, fulfilling your career aspirations, improving your relationships, or achieving a balanced lifestyle, HOW TO BE, DO, OR HAVE ANYTHING will build your self-confidence and send you down the road to success and a sense of self-fulfillment. Includes powerful thought provoking questions, quotes by luminaries east and west, and is beautiful to boot. Comes in Acrobat PDF format.
To purchase go to: http://www.empoweryou.com/e-be-do.shtml

The Way of the Peaceful Warrior movie, by Dan Millman

I can not say enough about this movie. It is a clear and compelling telling of Dan Millman’s journey in learning to be a peaceful warrior — to live in the here and now, manifesting his full potential and purpose. It gives us pause to consider our own potential — to develop the humility and gratitude to fully experience the beauty and mystery that surrounds us. This movie speaks to the peaceful warrior in each of us, moving us to rediscover life’s larger meaning and purpose. I highly recommend it — a very transformative journey! Order it here: http://www.thepeacefulwarriormovie.com/

How do you get from where you are to where you want to be? In steps. In creating change the hardest part is deciding to take that first step. Once you have made that decision, the rest of the steps follow naturally. So begin, make that decision. Decide to change what you have wanted to change. You have the power to do it. There is no better time to begin than now. Here is some inspiration for the journey:

It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.
-Alan Cohen

Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death.
-Anais Nin

Change alone is eternal, perpetual, immortal.
-Schopenhauer

The important thing is this: To be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.
-Charles DuBois

It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.
-Epictetus

Life is a progress, and not a station.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson (more…)