Coach Carolyn's blogazine of tips, tools, techniques for women who want to live life with more passion, more purpose, and more peace. Discover your purpose to ignite your passion to create inner peace...
Welcome to Day 21 of the Season of Nonviolence– 64 Days of peaceful wisdom honoring the lives and nonviolent principles of Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Cesar Chavez.
Nonviolence begins with learning how to be less violent and more compassionate towards ourselves. We learn by building the courage to speak and act with respect, honor and reverence for our own being.
Eleanor Roosevelt has urged, "You must do the things that you think you cannot do." Practicing these 64 Ways will challenge you to do things that you think you cannot do.
Day 21: INSPIRATION
There are many people who inspire us. Take a moment to reflect upon
who inspires you and what characteristics you most admire in them. See
the potential that is also within you and choose to cultivate these
characteristics in your daily life.
"Cease trying to work everything out with your minds. It will get you
nowhere. Live by intuition and inspiration and let your whole life BE
Revelation." ~ Eileen Caddy Today: As I think of at least two people who
exemplify the practice of nonviolence, I'll acknowledge what it is I
admire about them, what inspires me about them. I'll practice these
behaviors today so that other people may be inspired and I'll share this
insight with at least three other people.
Welcome to Day 21 of the Season of Nonviolence – 64 Days of peaceful wisdom honoring the lives and nonviolent principles of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Cesar Chavez.
Nonviolence begins with learning how to be less violent and more compassionate towards ourselves. We learn by building the courage to speak and act with respect, honor and reverence for our own being.
Day 21: INSPIRATION
“I trust in inspiration, which sometimes comes and sometimes doesn't. But I don't sit back waiting for it. I work every day." ~ Alberto Moravia
In theology, inspiration is defined as a divine influence directly and immediately exerted upon the mind or soul. It is easy to see divine inspiration working in great works of art and music such as the Sistine Chapel or Handel's Messiah. But inspiration is not limited to artists; it is available to all of us. Inspiration is in each insight we gain, each new perception, change in attitude or behavior we experience. The open heart finds inspiration at every turn.
Open yourself to inspiration today. Sit in silence, quiet your mind, and listen for the voice of inspiration. Journal about or contemplate about the spiritual work necessary for inspiration.
Also, think of at least two people who exemplify for you the practice of nonviolence. What is it you admire about them? Practice these behaviors today so that other people may be inspired.
Our lives are always intertwined with other lives. First, our biological family, then our extended family. As we continue to grow and mature, we connect with school mates, teachers, other authority figures, workmates, our chosen life partners, the family we create and media figures. We become influenced by some or all of these people, as we ourselves influence some or all of them as well. In any case, it is said that the average person will influence about 10’000 in a lifetime. It is important that you learn to influence consciously.
Think about this: Your telephone rings and your young child answers it. He tells you who it is. You, not wanting to talk with this person, tell the child to tell the caller you are asleep or in the shower or some other lie. The child repeats your lie to the caller and hangs up. You have just influenced your child in the fine art of lying! Is this the kind of inspiration you want to be for your child? Or for anyone else in your life? Being dishonest, untrustworthy, and manipulative does not bid well as attributes of inspiration.
As you consciously and mindfully create your new life story, you must also think about the other supporting characters in your story. How are you relating to them? How are they relating to you? Are you an inspiration to them and are they an inspiration to you? In our current stories, we mindlessly allow people to move into our lives and influence us; and the influence generally negative in nature. We tolerate it as we complain and sulk about it to others who are doing more or less the same. Then as our lives are spiraling out of control, we point the finger and blame those negative influencers, when it was our choice to tolerate it in the first place.
Once you consciously create a new story, you can eliminate the naysayers and the toxic influencers. See yourself surrounded only by nutritious people who will nurture, support and inspire you – as you will for them. It is your choice who you allow in your inner sphere. Granted, we cannot control everyone who crosses our path, but we can control the quality of the relationships. You do not have to accept every invitation to anger, gossip or slander. You have choice. It would do you well to exercise that choice when it comes to who is influencing you. The late motivational speaker Jim Rohn once said you are the average of your five closest friends. If your five closest friends only get together to gossip and complain, then guess who and what you are?
Make the choice to consciously choose who you spend your quality time with and the nature of that time. It should be to encourage each other, support one another and exchange great thoughts and ideas. Become a conscious inspiration to everyone you meet and your life story will be one of brilliance and light!
