BlissNamaste’
Hopefully this moment finds you in good health and excellent spirits. It is no secret that my life tends to be blissfully busy at times. When the year started I vowed that I would write my newsletter on a weekly basis. So many wonderful things were happening with the studio and due mostly in part by the prayers and support of those who read the newsletters. For the past few months it’s been a real challenge to stay on track. From meetings to classes there was always something that caused me to miss my deadline.

Yesterday, I identified time in my schedule to write the draft of the newsletter but as luck would have it everything ran over and I didn’t get to it. I abruptly woke up at 2:00 this morning and unsuccessfully spent 30 minutes trying to get back to sleep. Knowing that there was a reason I was awake at such an ungodly hour and after a full day’s, work I meditated to see if there was a message. Unable to concentrate, I turned on the television and happened upon the PBS network. Dr. Wayne Dyer, one of my favorite authors, was doing a lecture based on a new book he has written entitled Excuses BeGone!.

In the lecture Dr. Dyer discusses 18 main excuses that we tell ourselves that keep us from living our lives fully and how to change these self-defeating thinking patterns. Three really hit home and spoke to my current situation:

It will be too difficult. I didn’t do the newsletter despite my schedule shift because I thought it would be too hard to be creative and inspiring.

Do you find yourself avoiding things because, in your mind, you see the task as too difficult to take on? I’m learning that I tend to amplify the amount of work it actually takes to get certain things done. So if this is the case, we can simplify the task(s) at hand by just thinking about how easy it will be to accomplish.

It will take a long time. For me, this goes hand in hand with the first. I always try to stick to a schedule and keep all activities as short and sweet as possible so I can fit as many tasks as needed.

Is there something in your life you want to accomplish or try but feel it will take too much time? Patience is definitely a virtue and greatness sometimes takes time to achieve. Instead of thinking about how much time things will take, think about how wonderful it will feel after you’re done.

I can’t afford it. The current state of the economy has many of us singing this song. From the household bills to other objects of desire, we may tell ourselves that we can’t afford it. By making the excuse of scarcity we are speaking it into our existence. If we choose, we can all live a prosperous and abundant life.

Towards the end of the program Dr. Dyer said that we allow our concerns and worries to take root in our subconscious if we reflect on our problems before going to bed. A good way to remedy this is to reflect on the positive instead of the negative 5 minutes before going to sleep. So “I can’t pay all of my bills this month” becomes “I am financially blessed and all of my bills are paid on time” or instead of “I can’t seem to get ahead” think “my life is a constant progression and I am advancing constantly.”

So today, let’s ALL let go of the excuses and live the life of our dreams!

Om Shanti,
Brooke's smilethe Yoga Diva