Inner Adventurer

Fear is a Signal

Deer in the headlights? Yes, that’s what I used to look like in many situations. You could see the fear on my face and sense it all around me. My jaw was tight and muscles tense. Every nerve was on edge ready for whatever would come my way. Many times, the anxiety was for nothing at all. 

We all know fear. We’ve all felt it. From a mild twinge to paralyzing terror, it has affected each of us. 

Fear can be your friend. It has taught you lessons you will always carry. When you drop a knife, you know to pull out of its way. When you cross the street and a car is coming toward you, fear alerts you to move quickly into safety. And then there is the hot stovetop. Fear allows you to protect yourself. 

Understanding where fear comes from helps you use see how it works. Fear comes from your mind. Your brain stores and catalogues all your past experiences. As you experience something new, it quickly recalls what it has stored, compares what’s going on now to what it has experienced and warns you accordingly. 

So you can see that fear is a response that comes solely from your past. It is a warning that what you are experiencing now could be cause for protection. There is nothing to say the past will repeat itself. Only if you remain totally energetically connected to a past moment, it is going to repeat itself. There is still choice in this moment, even when you are feeling fear. 

Inner Adventurers realize that fear is a sign of growth, It tells you when you are on the edge of your comfort zone. This is where you make your choice. Heed fear and your comfort zone slowly shrinks to where anything you do feels out of sorts. Use fear as an alert and you gradually stretch your comfort zone wider and wider so more of life feels like home to you. 

Fear is a signal of caution, not of complete retreat. Inner Adventurers are aware of its presence and use it to inform their future steps in pursuit of their dearest desires.  

For more of what Sarah has to offer about living an inner-inspired life, visit InnerVantage

The Frenzy About Susan Boyle

Have you heard about Susan Boyle? She’s the contestant on Britain’s Got Talent who recently amazed the judges with her voice. 

Her unassuming appearance took the judge’s aback. They doubted her. Typical when people judge a book by its cover. When she announced she wanted to be a professional singer, the audience twittered with disbelief. As she started to sing, everyone turned into an instant fan. 

Can you imagine Piers Morgan giving her the biggest “YES” he’s ever given any contestant? How about seeing usually grizzly Simon Cowell smiling genuinely? YouTube is now chock full of her performances. You can experience her incredible talent at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY. 

What’s great about this story is Susan was singing into her hairbrush in front of her mirror in her home in the small set of villages where she lives. She had a dream to sing professionally. She took any fears she felt and didn’t let them stop her. She moved through them, using them to help her. Her spunky comebacks to the judge’s initial questions demonstrate her inner conviction. 

There is a good lesson here for many Inner Adventurers. Too often, Inner Adventurers get caught up in just thinking about what they want. To them, planning it feels like doing it. Fears surface and they feel paralyzed, believing that the feeling of fear means not to do it. They can get stuck living their life too much inside their own being and not taking enough action. 

Winners are born from putting dreams into action. And everyone loves a winner. Susan Boyle is only a most recent example who is winning for doing that – taking action on her dreams.  

What is beneath your unassuming cover that wants to come out? Which dreams might you be sacrificing by thinking too much, overplanning, succumbing to fears or not taking enough action?  

For more of what Sarah has to offer about living an inner-inspired life, visit InnerVantage

Rejuvenating Through Trust

It certainly seems like the last month has gone by quickly. It started with my interview in late March and then into a wave of complimentary calls. Then, life seemed to go haywire. Now things are returning to what feels more like what I am used to having it. Ah, can you feel the release? 

One companion for me on this journey through business and busyness has been trust. I’ve watched these cycles come and go. I know it is a phase that will pass.  

Holding that trust can get difficult. My mind wants say, “Alright, this has been going on long enough” and with a snap of the fingers, it wants things to be different. I realize that is the small part of me speaking and demanding change. So I hold the trust, knowing that I can navigate while accepting what is, even if it is not what I want. 

I’m also grateful for good friends. I feel lifted up by the quality of the relationships I have right now. My friends feel they can speak their minds to me, openly and freely. I take in all they have to day as new insights to consider. What a long way that is from all the judgment and criticism I learned growing up! That makes me feel good about myself – that I’m moving in a direction I’ve chosen and that I’m making progress. 

During all this external frenzy, one relationship did get rocky. Right when I don’t need anything else to balance or keep track of, something really BIG goes wrong. I’m pleased to say that through open hearts and forgiveness, that connection is back on track. Does a relationship ever completely heal from a schism? I say a wholehearted YES, when both sides want it to be that way.  

The Inner Adventurer is willing to experience life. Most things can simply be left to themselves, like a burst of busyness. Other things can’t be left alone, like a broken relationship. With trust, the Inner Adventurer sees where to apply attention and care while also seeing which other things can be left as they are. There is never any need to rush or to push things along. Neither is there any need to resist.  

Working through trust, the Inner Adventurer allows and accepts life just as it comes. How about you? 

For more of what Sarah has to offer about living an inner-inspired life, visit InnerVantage

Navigating

I realize that most people avoid being in distress or inner turmoil. Yet, I have to say that we Inner Adventurers find these times most fascinating. 

I am navigating my recent disturbances and accompanying realizations these days. It is my central most focus of all my waking hours. Amazingly, business churns on despite how I feel and I am still able to be the channel my clients appreciate. Life is miraculous! 

My tool for navigating has been the 4-Step Cycle. My first inquiry has been where I’ve strayed from my integrity. Knowing that I am sensitive, this is always a fascinating question. My answer shows me that I’ve been pouring out too much energy to external things, like work and deadlines, and not doing enough to replenish that energy internally. Darn! Stepped into that pothole again. 

I’ve already started my first steps to getting back into integrity. I’ve been taking extra time to be still and sense my body. This step gets me out of my head, which is what drives me externally. Consequently, I’ve increased my self-care. 

Next comes the adventurous step of awareness. I’ve been careful not to resist, avoid or deny anything. I’ve been curious by asking myself “Could it be this?” or “What about that?” I’ve gone back to my self-understanding through the many assessments I’ve taken. They’ve helped to open up the possibilities of where I’m not in integrity or living for my best self. 

I’ve also intentionally increased my awareness by sharing what is going on with close friends. They have provided several valid insights I didn’t see for myself. Being open to these new insights has made authentic discovery easier than simply doing it on my own. 

Now, I’m working my way into acceptance. This is the hardest step for me because my Type A personality gets in the way here and delays my progress. My mind and my heart battle. My heart just wants life to flow while my mind wants to have everything its own way. It’s time to be gentle with myself and deepen my practices. The ultimate result is rejuvenation that is so healing and wholesome. 

I know action will come when I am ready. For now, the focus is the first three steps, working them as thoroughly as I can. Then, what I do next will spring forth like a budding flower that can’t be held back. 

This is how I’ve learned to handle internal distress. I sink into the 4-Step Cycle and trust it is my roadmap through any difficult time. Learn to master the 4-Step Cycle for yourself. 

For more of what Sarah has to offer about living an inner-inspired life, visit InnerVantage

Being In

image courtesy of www.schultzmuseum.org

Have you ever seen the Peanuts cartoons where Lucy is in her psychiatrist’s booth? Dispensing advice and telling others what they could do can be easy. Living it isn’t.

Sometimes being an Inner Adventurer isn’t’ any fun at all. Being “in” and processing life can often take all you have to give. It consumes much energy and can leave you with few resources left to engage in your daily activities. You simply feel off kilter. 

I’m sharing this with you because that’s where I am right now. I got a major awareness this week around a lifelong pattern. It has shed a whole new perspective on some major disappointments that were a complete mystery to me before now. 

So I’m processing and assessing. Generous close friends are providing insight and support. I’m allowing myself to be with what is and opening to new ways to handle it. 

What I know for sure is “this too shall pass” and I’ll be back as I was before. In the meantime, being in feels the best. 

5 cents please… 

For more of what Sarah has to offer about living an inner-inspired life, visit InnerVantage

 

Living the Busy Life

Most Inner Adventurers don’t like the busy life because it doesn’t provide opportunity to check in and process what is going on for them. I’m no different. It’s not my choice to move from one scheduled thing to another. I like breaks in between appointments to go within. And I’ve been needing those breaks to navigate a busier life. 

I’ve met many fascinating people over the phone this week in quite a few complimentary calls. We talked deeply about what’s challenging them in their lives right now, focusing on how to make progress and stay true to who they are. I adore what I do and it’s a privilege to be able to help others. 

Other pressures this week included production of my monthly newsletter and design of the monthly call. Each got some attention this week and I’m happy with the progress on each of them.  

Here are some things I’ve done this week to stay on track. They may be helpful for you to try, if you choose: 

• I kept my routine. I didn’t stray from what I know works for me. My morning routine is sacred with time to get in touch with my body, awakening who I am for the challenges of the day. Getting centered first thing has always been helpful for me. Work hours shifted a little to meet my responsibilities but nothing too far off of the usual. Bedtime was the same each night and a drifted off to sleep feeling gratified from a good day’s progress.
• I made it a conscious practice to move at a steady tempo. I’m one who can get caught up in the vortex of activity and lose myself. By moving at a steady pace, I let my body tell my mind not to swirl away and get lost.
• Another conscious practice was connecting with myself during the work day. By Wednesday afternoon, I felt tired and out of sorts. So I closed the computer and sat down to rest before I had more calls. I found myself drifting off into a short nap, one that I evidently needed. Deep cleansing breaths with forceful exhales also help to release my tension and rejuvenate me with fresh oxygen.
• I kept up with all the other activities that feed me. For instance, I was able to chat with friends on the phone, correspond with a friend who has an unexpected surgery, attend a lecture series I enjoy and go on my weekly hike.
• I made sure my own needs were filled. Being needy while busy is not a pretty picture. So I held true to what keeps me on course: plenty of rest, relaxation time in the evening and making sure my emotional needs were filled, such as accepting positive comments and compliments graciously while feeling their importance, practicing gratitude and letting nature nourish me at my core.
• I increased my self-care and kept up with self-care appointments. What a delight it was to massage my feet during the day. I relished in my favorite skin crème with the jasmine scent. I had a particularly long and invasive dentist appointment, but was able to return to work without the disruption I might have felt if my self-care hadn’t been so high. I even made sure I was able to keep my hair appointment, so I’d get a delightful neck and scalp massage with the wash! 

Okay, some things have shifted. Doesn’t that happen for everyone during a busy time? I’ve had to be more hardnosed about how I used my time. Yes, this is a Saturday I’m writing this and that is usually a day away from work. However, I made notes about what I was going to write while waiting for my hair appointment to start and I’m listening to music as I write. So this doesn’t particularly feel like work right now. All-in-all, I find those minor compromises for the success I’ve felt this week. 

Life gives us what we most need in the moment. Apparently, it was time for me to be tested by life once again. I’ve found I’m able to handle more than I imagined.  

Life is calling and I’m answering…Do you hear it calling to you? 

For more of what Sarah has to offer about living an inner-inspired life, visit InnerVantage