Stillness

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Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, influence, Marianne Williamson, power, spiritual, stillness

“The only way to gain power in a world that is moving too fast is to learn to slow down. And the only way to spread one’s influence wide is to learn how to go deep. The world we want for ourselves and our children will not emerge from electronic speed but rather from a spiritual stillness that takes root in our souls. Then, and only then, will we create a world that reflects the heart instead of shattering it.”

― Marianne Williamson, The Gift of Change: Spiritual Guidance for a Radically New Life

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

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10 Questions For When You’re Stuck

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200 words, actions, alone, answer, awakening, change, courage, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, energy, Fear, growing up, health, hope, hopeless, life, Purpose, questions, sad, spiritual, stuck, success, transformation

Being stuck serves a spiritual purpose. It is fertile ground for transformation to occur. It tells you that a change is needed. ~ 7 Ways to get unstuck, HuffPost Healthy Living

No one has to tell you. You know when you’re stuck. You know how it affects you; you feel alone and sad and hopeless.

But being stuck isn’t the worst place to be. Think of it as a wakeup call. And getting the right answers often means asking the right questions.

Here are 10 questions I found on Leadership Freak that help me when I’m stuck

1. What do you want?
2. What does success look like?
3. What have you tried that didn’t work?
4. What should you stop doing?
5. What could you try?
6. Which options generate energy?
7. How would you describe the behavior?
8. When will you try it?
9. What will you not have done, if you fail?
10. How will you assess progress?

These questions function well as a screening exercise for me – professionally and personally. I particularly like question 6.

It immediately shines a light on any bullshit answers; in effect, saving me tons of time.

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

How might these questions help you? How do you get unstuck?

Standing On Sacred Ground

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200 words, Burning bush, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, doing the right thing, God, grace, integrity, journey, judging, life, mission, sacred ground, spiritual, vision, Who I am

Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others. ~ H. Jackson Brown Jr.

One of the most life-changing letters I ever received was sent to me from a missionary in Guatemala when I was in my early twenties.

I was new in my faith and struggling with questions of judgment and grace and had written to him about it.

His reply to me referenced the Biblical Burning Bush story found in Exodus.

He told me my journey was my own. That I shouldn’t worry about other people and what they did on their journey. That God would reveal to me when I was standing on sacred ground and when it was time to remove my sandals from my feet.

Why is it that when we discover a truth about our own journey, we feel a need to impose it on everyone else? How does our way of doing something suddenly become the right way for everyone else to do it?

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

What would happen if instead of judging and correcting others, we sought solely to be the best version of ourselves?

If Momma’s Not Happy, Nobody’s Happy

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debt-free, Diana Schwenk, enjoyment, exercise, food, fun, health, Hump Day Chronicles, integrity, joy, living in the moment, love, mission, Purpose, self-care, spiritual

Last week I wrote about how I’ve been procrastinating, feeling vulnerable and then finally getting started on figuring out what I want to do with my life. To read that post, click here or in a nutshell let me recap here. I bought a whiteboard and made lists of the things I love, who I am, the type of environment I thrive in, and some of my strengths and skills.

I told you my next steps would be to look for themes in feedback I’d received from previous colleagues (I didn’t get to that yet, but that’s ok)  and working on the vision, mission and philosophy of another blog I plan to launch soon. I did do this – believe it or not – and will share this with you at some point in the future.

For this post, I want to step back and talk about self-care; taking care of you outside of the job arena. It is an area I often put on the back burner however, and I thought it important to include from the get-go in this process.

~

A few years ago I attended the introduction session of a personal financial management course focussed on getting out of debt and learning to save. They did such a good job of highlighting and explaining the points we would cover in this first session that I never went back again.

I managed to pay off the debt that I’d accumulated on 3 credit cards and save $1000 in case of an emergency in the span of 1 1/2 years:

One of the most important tips in that course was YES pay your debt but also budget fun money,  and this is crucial, pay yourself!

I went on to save more money so that when I left my job (to maintain my sanity) I was able to take a year off and two tropical vacations before looking for another job!

Fun in the sun

Buying something without having the money to do so, just doesn’t make sense to me anymore.

So if paying yourself financially is a good idea, why wouldn’t paying yourself, so to speak, in self-care, while providing your services at work and taking care of your family also be a good idea?

Sadly, this is the part I often neglect.

I felt it important to take some time this week to think about the ways I can commit to taking care of myself.

After all, ‘if Momma’s not happy, nobody’s happy,’  as a past boss of mine used to say.

I want to be healthy enough to have fun and do the things that make me happy for a long, long time.

Food

My whiteboard list includes rye bread, fruit, nuts, veggies, cheese as snack foods and all whole foods for meals: all kinds of meat, potatoes, whatever even if they have fat like avocados and olives and bananas and eggs, etc. If nature has it and I like it, I cook and eat it. And yes, I switched from margarine to real butter!

I’ve heard it said that eating right is more expensive. I’ve got to whole-heartedly disagree with that. (I spend less money now than before and eating good, real food is actually more filling. I have this theory that our bodies crave vitamins and minerals and when we have our fill, we’re not hungry. 🙂

Exercise

I won’t pay for a gym membership! But on my list are walking, Pilates, light weight resistance, jum rope and a good 8 hours of sleep every night. I didn’t do all these things from the beginning. I started with Pilates and began walking to and from work. I can do all these things at home and outside for free. I hate running but who knows, I may add this to my routine at some point in the future. The bottom line is being active gives me more energy.

Spirituality, Meditation and Attitude

Also included on my list is a desire to re-introduce spirituality, faith and a good attitude into my life in a more meaningful way. My whiteboard list includes: an intentional attitude of thankfulness and gratitude, being present in the moment, intentional prayer (to say thank you and ask for blessings for the people I am in contact with).  I truly believe that God is in the Thank You inhabiting the praises of His people. Also I put meditation on the list – never done it, not sure I like it even, but have been feeling a pull to do so. I’m not sure what that will look like but start small right?

Fun, Fun, Fun!

Fun is important to me. My whiteboard list includes: traveling, socializing, dancing, reading, enjoying the great outdoors, blogging and music. I must be intentional about leaving room for these things in my life. I may even meet that man who can put up with me and all my imperfections – who knows!

~ HUMP DAY CHRONICLES ~

What are your personal desires?

How do you ensure that you make time to care for you?

What if

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caring, community, compassion, courage, courteous, Diana Schwenk, diversity, equality, generosity, good character, goodness, happy, helpful, hope, integrity, kindness, love, meaningful, passion, peace, question, spiritual, tolerance, world issues

I know I’m not the first person to ponder what if and I probably won’t be the last.

Even as a child, I would question the way we humans treated each other while at the same time I know full well that, at times, I’ve treated people differently based solely on their appearance or status.

Why do I do that?

I clearly remember wishing that humans would intentionally start marrying people outside of their race and having children. My child-mind wondered how many generations it would take before we all looked alike, spoke the same language and adopted similar values and beliefs.

I still find myself yearning, praying and wishing because isn’t every person worthy?

Isn’t every life sacred?

Realistically, I know that there’s probably no chance we will all become one people, with one language and value system but…

~

What if it didn’t matter if you were black, white, red or yellow?

What if it didn’t matter if you were politically left, right, or in the middle?

What if it didn’t matter if you were educated, uneducated, employed or unemployed?

What if it didn’t matter if you lived in a mansion, an apartment, a hut or on the streets?

What if it didn’t matter if you were rich, poor, or somewhere in between?

What if it didn’t matter if you were Christian, Jewish, Muslim or something else?

What if it didn’t matter if you were straight, gay, bisexual or trapped in the wrong gender?

What if it didn’t matter if you were fat, skinny, short, or tall?

What if it didn’t matter if you were physically ill, mentally ill, or healthy?

What if it didn’t matter if you were young, middle-aged or ancient?

What if it didn’t matter if you were happy, sad, alone or overwhelmed in a crowd?

What if your status wasn’t determined by birth, religion, gender, or economics?

What if it didn’t matter if your hair was blond, brown, red, black or purple?

If your eyes were blue, green, brown or black?

If you spoke Hebrew, Arabic, English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Polish, German, Russian, or Pig Latin?

If you were Asian, African, European, North American, Hispanic, or Middle Eastern?

If you had a high or low IQ, EQ or cholesterol level?

What if you understood that at your core…

that in essence we are all spiritual beings

who just happen to have a variety of different outer shells and experiences?

What if all that mattered was that you had good character and integrity…

that you strove to find beauty and goodness and meaning in others and in all that you do?

that you were:

Kind to others

Thoughtful

Generous to a fault

Courageous

Tolerant

Loving

Encouraging

Helpful

Hospitable

Compassionate

Truthful

Courteous

Passionate

Hopeful

I want to make a conscious effort to live these values in my life. I know I won’t always be successful, there will be days when I fall short but if I can become aware of the times I don’t quite measure up, I can correct myself and begin again.

What do you think? What are some of the things you could do differently?

What if?

Related articles

Every now and then I look at the links WordPress recommends. I was quite moved by the link below. If you have a moment, give it a read. It really is quite powerful.

• What Will Matter – Michael Josephson (tersiaburger.com)