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Sunday, October 3, 2010

Inner Peace Warrior Resources

Inner Peace Warrior
Resources
to
stay alert 
and
recenter 
anywhere. 




Try this 1-minute yoga breathing exercise to boost blood oxygen for alertness and productivity:


Inhale slowly and deeply into your belly. 

Each time you exhale, it will be for a slightly longer amount of time.

Inhale counting to two

Exhale counting to  two

Inhale counting to two

Exhale counting to three

Inhale one - two

Exhale one - two - three -  four

Inhale one - two

Exhale  one - two - three -  four -  five
Do this a few times, then start breathing normally.
This helps oxygen flow into your blood, clearing your head and helping you to focus.

A second resource is the Inner-Ease™ Technique from HeartMath.org:


(1) If you are stressed, acknowledge your feelings as soon as you sense that you are out of sync or engaged in common stressors— feelings such as frustration, impatience, anxiety, overload, anger, being judgmental, mentally gridlocked, etc.

(2) Take a short time out and do heart-focused breathing: breathe a little slower than usual; pretend you are breathing through your heart or chest area.

(This is proven to help create coherent wave patterns in your heart rhythm—which helps restore balance and calm in your mental and emotional nature while activating the affirming power of your heart.)

(3) During the heart-focused breathing, imagine with each breath that you are drawing in a feeling of inner-ease and infusing your mental and emotional nature with balance and self-care from your heart.

It’s scientifically proven that radiating love and self-care through your system activates beneficial hormones and boosts your immunity.

Practicing will increase your awareness of when the stressful emotion has calmed into a state of ease. The mind and emotions operate on a vibrational level. Slowing down the stressful vibration helps re-establish the cooperation and balance between heart, mind and emotions.

(4) When the stressful feelings have calmed, affirm with a heartfelt commitment that you want to anchor and maintain the state of ease as you re-engage in your projects, challenges or daily interactions.

For the complete free booklet The State of Ease from Heart Math click the link below the photo:


                          
                                     http://www.heartmath.org/state-of-ease

Try these out and let me know how they work by leaving a comment.  More strategies to come, so if you like these, subscribe to this blog so you won't miss any of them.  Feel free to contact me if you'd like more help de-stressing and enjoying your life more at work or at home.  ~ Jude

Friday, September 24, 2010

Inner Peace Warriors


In the workplace or in the world, do you carry an unshakable peace within you?  Do you radiate joy and calm to all whom you come in contact with?  Would you like to?  Become an Inner Peace Warrior! (c)


Peace versus Warrior.  Are these at odds with each other or can we find a way to bring them together for our greater good?  Cultivating habits (some might say spiritual in nature) to build up our inner strength is one of the best ways I know of to ward off stress and stay balanced, even joyful, in the midst of what seems like undeniable chaos and pressure. 



Recently, our school system implemented a new testing and intervention program designed to help students get the help they need more quickly.  Great!  The drawback was a steep learning curve, more to do in less time, teachers feeling like everyone was breathing down their necks, and the pressure seemed unbearable. Combine that with personnel changes, new technology systems, no raises...the weights were piling on.  The tension began to rise. Teachers, administrators, assistants, and office personal alike began to feel the heat.


One of my core values is to be of service.  I felt a need to do my part to help lower the stress within my own school.  It wasn't enough anymore to just "be a good example" of grace and balance anymore.  I came out of the coaching closet and let my fellow teachers know there was another part of my life that I'd love to share with them.  Hence, the Inner Peace Warriors has been born.

We'll meet once a week, share successes, lift each other up, and coach each other through these trying times.  We'll also start developing some habits that can help us stay centered when stress threatens to pull us off center: breath work, small moments of meditation, detachment, and gratitude.

Get ready to take back your true nature, stand in your own light, and reclaim the power that has always been yours. The Universe wants nothing more than to provide you with a life you love, so that you can share this feeling with others. We've all dropped a pebble into a pond and watched the ripples spread out across the surface, calm and serene. Be the pebble. Share the love. Change the world - bit by bit.

To  access some of the resources I've accumulated so far, go to my facebook group Stress Free Teacher Zone (type in the search bar) or contact me at jude@stirringthespiritwithin.com. 

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Hearing the Spirit Within ~ Intuition

"Only when we find the quietness in our own minds can we begin to hear our inner teacher, so that we may receive some intuition. Only when we are ready to recognize and value the wisdom that we carry at the core of our being will we turn our attention inwards and 'listen in'. But it's been a long time since we truly listened, so a little practice and patience will be needed. Sit down, be quiet and listen in at some point today and you might be surprised at what you hear. Then do it again tomorrow. All you need to do is remember that you are the listener and not the noise." ~ Unknown

What is your definition of Intuition? Is it trusting your gut, an instant knowing, or something else? The dictionary says Intuition is a direct perception of truth, fact, etc., independent of any reasoning process/a keen and quick insight. Do you believe it could be Spirit or the Universe talking to you?

For much of my life I looked to the outside rather than my inside for guidance and validation. Experts must have known better than I. Family and friends’ opinions seemed so important and superseded my own. When asked why I believed what I did, all I could answer was “because I do” and therein was the hint I was missing for so long. A feeling of what was right or wrong for me.

What holds you back? Is it emotions or ways we react to situations based on past experiences?

What moves you forward? Feelings or acting in alignment with your core values or authentic self. Align here and the Universe seems to encourage things in your life to fall into place.

In a recent workshop I did on intuition a participant asked, "How do you know the feeling you get with a new idea is intuition and not fear?" My answer was that you should feel open and energetic about the choice and not constricted or dragged down by it. The very next day another coach I know, Nina East, founder of the Personal Growth Princess.com posted in her blog: "The key distinction is that inner guidance always brings relief (sometimes coupled with excitement), almost always whispers, and never criticizes. If you hear a yelling voice in your head - and you aren't in imminent physical danger - chances are it's your fear talking, not your intuition. If you hear a voice chastising you for not having done something, that's not your inner guidance." (used with permission).

Practice strengthening your intuition muscle! There's no limit to where it can take you. 

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Under Stress? Just Breathe!

Are you a teacher or in the education field? Do you feel harried by the principal coming in with her checklist? Under pressure to get the kids to "perform" during testing season?

Maybe you are in another helping field or job where the expectation to achieve results is breathing down your neck, or you'd just like to learn how to act instead of react in stressful situations in order to be your best self always.

I recently held a call where we discussed what happens when we're stressed and what to do about it:

 What's working for us now and what isn't working.  What are the effects on our lives when we continuing reacting the same way as always?  I guided the attendees through the steps of a one minute meditation moment.  We brainstormed when and where we can use this technique.

I challenged us to try this technique at least once a day for 30 days to see what happens.

If you missed the call, below is a brief synopsis--

I have a technique I use to relax in the moment whenever I'm faced with a situation that I feel myself tensing up against. In my mind I visualize myself standing on a mountain top facing a lovely sunrise. I open my arms out wide and soften my heart,breathing in the wonder of that moment and breathing out any tension within.

I drop my shoulders as I take a few deep belly breaths and remember this situation does not define or control me. This person speaking to me is coming from a place of need within them. It's less about me and more about them. This helps me see that I can hear what they are saying without reacting to it in a way that closes me off. I can then act in a way that expresses my highest self more completely.

Recently I read about Martin Boroson's One Moment Meditation: Stillness For People on the Go - He describes his version of obtaining the same benefits from a minute (eventually, a moment) of stillness, thereby helping us achieve the same peaceful, calm centered feeling that puts us in that OM zone.

It's all about being able to quiet the mind in a stressful situation or tensing when we are multitasking,and pushing the reset button on life in the moment. Embrace the feeling of what is happening now and allow it instead of resisting it. When practiced enough you can learn to detach, step back out of the stress, and act from a place of grace and compassion.

If you'd like to try this practice of meditation in the moment:commit to a minute a day (when you are not stressed) for 30 days. Use a kitchen timer. As you get comfortable, count the number of breaths you take in one minute, then you will be able to do this anywhere by taking the same number of breaths to relax. Then try reducing the number of breaths by one and see if you still get a sense of calm from it. Eventually you will be able to De-stress in a moment and come up with your own moment of meditation.

Try it stuck while in a traffic jam or while on hold on the phone.
*Disclaimer* Keep your eyes open in traffic! My average when deep breathing is 8 complete breaths or 10 if I am breathing normally. When someone says something at work and you feel that burn creeping up on you--excuse yourself for a breath of air or slip into that quiet spot within.

So right now, scan your body. Are you tense any where? Does your back or neck hurt? On a scale of 1-10 what is your stress level?

  • Set your timer for one minute.
  • Sit up straight yet relaxed. Lay your hands in your lap comfortably in your lap.
  • Put your feet on the floor to ground yourself to the power of the Earth.
  • Close your eyes.
  • Think of the top of your head as being open to all the Cosmic energy and wisdom of the Universe.
  • Settle in and just notice your breath.
  • One minute elapses--DING!

Now scan your body again--From 1-10 how stressed do you feel?
What did you notice? Please comment and let me know what worked - was there an resistance? Continued practice of just one minute will make this an automatic response when you need it.

Listen in real time and do 1 minute of meditation now.
Tap the volume button to increase it.




Saturday, April 3, 2010

Gratitude and Growth

Beauty & Growth from the toils of winter


Let me thank all my friends now and say "You've helped make me who I am"!  What motivates me is motivating others to see the goodness already in their lives now.

Look around you right now. What can you see that is a miracle of creation, growth, or motivation?
  • The tenacity of a squirrel chasing a robin away from his stash of acorns or his nest.  
  • The beauty of the budding forsythia, daffodils, or Easter Lily.
  • The cool moist air on your face.
  • The stalks of pussy willows that represent the possibility of blossoming and growth.
  • The gift of friendship. 
  • The ability to be active.
  • The abundance of food.
  • Family gathering around you
What is good in your life right now? What would you like to have more of and how could you take steps toward getting a little closer to that goal?

What are you willing to let go of to have that feeling that you are in harmony in mind body and spirit?

Many of you already know one of my favorite quotes is from Lao Tzu. I recently realized there was a second line to this quote.

"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.
 When I let go of what I have, I receive what I need".

So get up off the couch, get dressed and go, live your life NOW.

Relax-Renew-Refresh-Rejoice



And don't forget to have some fun too!




Saturday, February 13, 2010

How'd I Name My Business?



Explaining how I came up with the name of my coaching business goes back to telling how I came to life coaching. In 2005 I sustained the loss of both parents and my marriage. The following summer I attended a weekend retreat entitled "Moving Onward and Forward with Your Life". The sessions evolved around: What are your core values? What are your deepest fears and limiting beliefs? If nothing stood in your way what would you like to do with your life?

I realized I had no dreams, hope, or goals. My life had revolved around others: how could I please them, be a better person according to their standards, and live up to their expectations. I didn’t know who I was, or what I wanted to do and be.

Our presenter was a life coach who offered a sample session to anyone who was interested. I signed up and CLICK--my inner light had been turned on! It was then and there that I knew what my passion and vision for the future was. I'd always enjoyed listening to and helping others with their problems, and brainstorming with my friends, family. This seemed like a perfect fit. My Spirit within had been stirred immeasurably. A goal and a plan began developing.

When I got home, I immediately hired a coach. Our connection was eerie. We had many of the same beliefs about being whole and capable right now. We had similar spiritual connections that made this seem more than a coincidence. I knew THIS was what I wanted to do too and it felt so right. Things were falling into place. I began to learn about synchronicity.

By stirring my own spirit, by awakening to my inner wisdom and highest self, I began evolving into who I always had been, but had covered up, pushed down, or forgotten about. My perspective on my life began to change. I found a quote by Lao Tzu that said “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” I began to let go of who I thought I had been for so many years as someone’s daughter, wife, and mother. I began accepting that I am strong, have my own wisdom, and am complete without anyone or anything to make it so except the Universal Source of love and light.

So stand in your own light and take back your own power to live your best life by stirring the spirit within you today. I would be honored to help.

My coaching involves -

•Clarifying and distilling your Values-Purpose-Needs-Wants

•Validating & building on your strengths to help you create the life you want

•Finding out what has worked for you in the past and what hasn't

•Uncovering what stands in the way: Fear? Uncertainty? Lack of Knowledge? Self-Sabotage?

•Helping you shift out of a way of thinking that may has kept you stuck with questioning, deep listening, and shared insights

•Co-creating a plan of action

•Challenging you to step into it and move forward

•Helping you create supports to sustain momentum

•Letting you fly...

Jude Eastman M.Ed.~Life & Soul Coach
Thrive where you're planted and grow towards the light~YOUR inner light!

http://stirringthespiritwithin.com/
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