Turning Blocks Into Breakthroughs

Since 2007, I've been on this deliberate course bust through the blocks I encounter that are keeping me from living the life I feel I'm intended to live...it makes me think of the trip I took to Holland 8 years ago. By my self. I'd been in such a rut that I had to do something drastic. I didn't know what it was, so I asked for a sign. The next thing I saw was Rick Steves in Amsterdam. I took that as the sign. I set a date and made a list of what I needed and all the obstacles I could envision: Money was the biggest challenge on my list - I had to save up $2500.00 in 3 months. This was more than I even made in three months. Convincing my family that it was okay for me to travel alone at 27 to a foreign country was another hurdle. Summoning the courage was a big one as well. The funny thing is that every obstacle that was in my way to seeing that goal through seemed to dissolve under the weight of my focused intention. Just by knowing what possible hurdles were around the bend allowed me to prepare so I wasn't taken by surprise and make mountains out of molehills. Each of my obstacles ended up not being obstacles at all, but rather gifts that gave me the opportunity to gain new insights and develop new strengths and skills. Once I figured this out, my life has not been so dramatic. It's also been something that I want share with others....

I am VERY excited to announce my next Sublime Signs creative workshop on October 23rd: Turning Blocks into Breakthroughs! Here is a video I put together:

Learn more and enroll here

Stress Busting

My husband has been involved in a rather intense course of study lately. A couple of times a week, right after work, he meets with someone to help him study. When he'd come home he would tell me how it went, which would usually involve him telling me that it took a while to shrug off the work day and focus on the material. I don't know why I didn't think of it earlier, but after a few weeks of this, I suggested a simple stress-buster activity (from Dr. Capacchione's "Power of your Other Hand") that I've been teaching to students and teachers as well as participants who come to my workshops. It helps to get both sides of the brain working together, which helps to see things in a more balanced way and develop innovative solutions. Now, my husband does this activity before every study session and his tutor has noticed a significant improvement in how well he retains the information he's learning. I think this activity is so helpful that I made a video, so anyone can learn this simple tool.

If you try it and have a positive result with it, feel free to let me know!

The Five Questions

For as long as I could remember, I'd been in search of a magic bullet that would help me wade through uncomfortable or unfamiliar feelings...I'd work through a challenge with a new set of insights, only to discover they wouldn't work in another circumstance (sound familiar?). While going through the Creative Journal Expressive Arts training program, I learned an arsenal of amazing tools to help me wade through the bogs of my emotional world, but the simplest and most insightful exercise I learned was "The Five Questions". It's not necessarily a magic bullet but it's the quickest way I've found to gain clarity on anything I'm not clear on.

The Five Questions are:

1. Who or what are you?

2. How do you feel?

3. Why do you feel this way?

4 What can I do for you?

5. What are you meant to teach me?

This activity is meant to facilitate direct communication with whatever it is you are seeking clarity on - whether it be an emotion, a physical sensation, a concern...and it's amazing to use with collage work.

One important thing to mention is this is a dual handed activity. The questions are written out with the hand you normally write with and the non-dominant hand responds. Why the non-dominant hand? The simple answer is: it confuses your brain out of thinking in the way it is accustomed to, which produces answers and insights that you wouldn't normally arrive at. The longer answer is: conventional (dominant hand) journalling appears to be a left brained process, because the hand you write with is expressing language...the language and communication centers rest in the left brain. Solving emotional and intuitive challenges (Which are right brained qualities) with a left brained solution is like trying to use a mathematical equation to give you clarity on a heartache. The non-dominant hand is your direct link with the intuitive and emotional arena. Sceptical? All you have to do is to try it for yourself. Think of anything in your life that remains unresolved (consider a simple challenge to start out) and ask it - as if it were a person who has insights to share - The Five Questions. If your non-dominant hand needs a warm-up, the 'Stress Busting' exercise is a FANTASTIC activity.