As we head into the holiday season, there are a few things I want to talk about, chief among them what I consider the most important aspect of everything we do in life.

And that is . . . faith.

Faith is everything.

But I don’t mean faith as in religion. No, I mean something more like trust, belief, confidence, conviction. Faith in yourself. Faith that the Universe will not let you down. That everything works out perfectly as it should. And that even when we don’t understand why or how or when, the Universe is conspiring on our behalf to fulfill the life we desire.

This kind of faith is what I call a Knowing.

It’s knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt. It’s 100% belief. Absolute confidence. Total conviction. You know it. Fully, completely, no question.

And this is where we mess up, friends.

Because we *think* we have that kind of Knowing but we let the doubt in somewhere along the line. Just before the thing we want comes to fruition. And instead of getting what we were after, we’re let down.

Do we blame the Universe? Our neighbors? Our family?

Unfortunately, yes, we do. But we must realize and understand – it’s NOT their fault. If you want to lay blame, go look in the mirror, dear. Take responsibility. Because that’s where it starts.

It starts within. Nothing is without.

All the answers you need are right inside you.

Know without a doubt that you are a powerful being. Know without a doubt that you can do great things. That the dreams you have can be reality. And that they WILL be reality if you have faith.

Faith is everything.

Until next time . . . keep blazin’

Wishing you success, love + fire in your belly

So, as I mentioned in my 10 rules post a few days ago, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. Because I’ll tell you what – living a life of mediocrity scares the shit out of me. And although I’ve been somewhat content in the past to live that life of conformity and mediocrity, it’s becoming harder and harder to continue.

The thing for me is, it’s not that I fear what others will think – because I could honestly care less – it’s more that I fear myself. Fear what I’m capable of. Fear of who I am. I know I’m capable of doing great things and that just scares the hell out of me.

But there comes a point where your fear of NOT doing what you’re meant to do in this lifetime is GREATER than the fear of actually doing it. It’s at that point which I found myself a little more than a year ago.

Here’s what I know -

It’s all about trusting your own genius. Deliberately choosing to speak your own truth. Regardless of what other people think. It’s about standing up for yourself and not waiting for permission from anybody else. Because the bottom line is this: only YOU know how to live your life.

There are no answers out there somewhere. All you need is right inside of you. And all you have to do is grab hold of it and push through the fear. I guarantee that YOU are greater than your fear. The only way to handle fear is feel it and then do it anyway.

It’s pretty frightening to realize you have that much power, isn’t it?

And I’ll tell you something else – the truth is – you have even more power than THAT, even though you may not realize it right now. It’s there.

And all you have to do to tap into it, is look within. Look to your inner strength, your wisdom, your purpose. You have an inner guidance system that will lead you if you let. Listen to that still small voice inside.

Sometimes, though, you need a little push and that’s what I’m here for today.

So, here it is . . .

Realize that you ARE enough. Know that you are worthy and intelligent. You don’t need to justify yourself to anybody and you sure as hell don’t need anyone else’s approval.

Realize that just because it’s right for someone else, doesn’t mean it’s right for you. Stand up for yourself. Because if you don’t, nobody else will. Your job is to be YOU, not a clone of someone else.

Do it because you want to, not because somebody else (including me) said you should. Your life will become your own when you finally understand that it’s truly the only way to live.

And you’ll know you’re finally on the right path when there is no trail and YOU are the one clearing the way.

Until next time . . . keep blazin’!

I’m going to have an Around the Web post for you very soon and I think you will really like the links I’ll be sharing. They’re just as awesome as the ones I shared with you on August 24th. By the way – sorry it’s been so long since I shared any new links!! I hope these next ones make up for it.

But anyway, today I want tell you about some strategies I’ve been using that I think are working well.

As you know, my whole premise this year has been to CREATE my own life. And of course, that means doing things I really want to do, nurturing healthy relationships, enjoying my children, continued study of design and writing, and just a whole myriad of other things. I don’t want to live just an ordinary life of waking up every day, commuting to a job I hate and then waiting to live my life at retirement.

For some people, that may be fine. But for me, it isn’t.

I’ve never been one to just go with the crowd or do what everybody else was doing. I have always tried to make my own way and be my own person. So, this year has been all about doing that to a higher degree and really putting into place all of those things I’ve always wanted for my life and my family. All those things I allowed myself to put on hold years ago (even though I knew better).

As they say, there’s no time like the present! Right?

And so one of the things I’ve been doing to help eliminate my own procrastinating tendencies is to immediately put things in my calendar when I think of them. For example, if I decide at 9:30 pm on Sunday night that I need to make a phone call Monday, I go ahead and schedule that call in my google calendar and add a reminder. Then, 10 minutes before I want to make that call, I will get a pop up notification on my computer as well as a text message on my cell phone to remind me to make the call.

Super simple.

You know what I’ve learned lately? Getting things started is more important than getting things done. Know why?

Because when procrastination is minimized, confidence is boosted. And when you boost your confidence in yourself by doing something as simple as getting started, you not only feel better about yourself but you also realize it’s probably not as hard as you thought it was and therefore you are more likely to finish it.

In other words, the simple act of starting almost guarantees the end result of actually getting it done if you just begin.

So get started, take action on the steps you know you need to do and pretty soon, what was once an overwhelming task is completed.

It’s kinda like putting some cookies in the oven and turning on the timer. You KNOW when that timer goes off, you’d better get to the kitchen and get those cookies out of the oven before they burn. Well, getting started is kinda like that. You put something in the oven (aka – set it up as a reminder in your calendar) and when the timer goes off (the reminder note pops up or your text message rings), you know it’s time to get them out of the oven before they burn.

Let me tell you something, there comes a point in life that you have to stop listening to the naysayers. You have to just put your blinders on, put your earplugs in and go about your business. Because you know what? No matter what has happened in your past, the truth is, you LET yourself listen to those naysayers. You and only you. The choice was yours to make and you took the safe road, the same road everybody else takes.

And if that’s not the life you want, well, the time is now to wake up and start living. You have the ability to live your dream right now. Just begin.

I challenge you right now to do this:

• First, acknowledge that YOU are the ONLY person to blame for the way things are.
• Second, believe that it’s ok to just drop it and move on.
• Third, get out a piece of paper and a pencil and start writing down what you want out of the next six months and the next year.

And then, put things in your calendar. Set timers. Set reminders.

Then do it!

Until next time . . . keep blazin’!

There seems to be a trend among many of the trailblazers out there . . . it’s called minimizing. It seems like everyone who finally decides they’re going to just go after their dreams no matter what those around them say, ultimately ends up at the point of realizing ‘stuff’ just gets in the way.

Now, that’s not to say one can’t be prosperous or one can’t buy ‘stuff’ – it simply means sometimes the stuff cluttering your space is no longer useful. And when you change your whole ideal for living, some things often simply have to go. That stuff no longer serves a purpose for you or perhaps if you’re honest, it never did serve a purpose. (Well, it’s only purpose, maybe, was to stroke the ego or “keep up with the Joneses.”)

Anyway, it also means that you think twice (or even three times) about buying something new. Instead of just buying it because you want it or whatever, you begin to examine the why behind it – “Why do I want this? Do I really need it?” You know what I’ve found is very helpful? Put it back and think about it for a day or two – you might (usually will) ultimately decide you DON’T want nor need it and your dreams will thank you for not bringing it home.

Over the past week or so, I’ve begun cleaning out closets, dressers, boxes of old stuff and have a whole pile of things my family no longer needs that I’ve offered to local folks on freecycle. (Freecycle is a free community group where people can post things they want to give away. There’s probably a chapter near you if you’d like to sign up. I highly recommend it!) We also were given a newer stove over the weekend and our old stove is on it’s way to a new home as well.

In addition to that, this minimizing thing has prompted some much needed repairs to things we DO need to keep – like the bathroom sink, for example. It’s been clogged and slow draining for a while. We tried to fix it a month or so ago and nothing worked. So, this weekend, we had a friend who does remodeling and general handyman type stuff come help us out with it. He also did a tune up and fixed a leaking coolant hose on my van as well as helped us pick up the new stove.

I don’t necessarily think minimizing your life or your stuff is a requirement for being a trailblazer but I would certainly encourage you to get real with yourself and decide whether or not you TRULY need all of the stuff you currently own. If you’re anything like me, I’d venture to guess the answer is you don’t. And if you do find you have too much stuff, I encourage you to give it away if at all possible instead of selling it. Paying it Forward is a great way to boost your own self-confidence and feel like you’re making a difference in the world. It’s those good feelings that create the good vibes that help keep things in flow, too, so make giving things away and doing small acts of kindness a habit.

If you can’t bear to give something away, go ahead and sell it and then maybe donate a portion of the proceeds to a charity or your local food bank, school, library or something like that. Non-profit groups can often use extra funds or supplies. And again, you create a happy feeling all around you and that allows the Universe to conspire on your behalf in making your dreams come true.

So, as you go about your week, ask yourself “Will minimizing my stuff help me achieve my goals?” And if you answer yes to that question, next ask yourself “How can I minimize my life/stuff?”

Aren’t your dreams worth it?

Until next time . . . keep blazin’!