Harness Your Power: Breathe!

Stressed?  Overwhelmed?  Pressured and worn down?

Perhaps you could use a break.  Why not create small moments of peace and new energy by switching off all electronic devices and sitting in total silence?  You could go into nature to do this.  Or, you could use the living room couch.  You could even do this in the car.

For five full minutes breathe in and out as deeply as you can.  Feel your breath moving in and out of your body.  Notice how amazing this breath can be.   Let it fill you.  Quiet your mind and simply relax into the moment.  Be.  Simply be present where you are.  Choose a one word mantra like "peace" or "joy" or "calm" or "relaxed" and focus solely on that word as you breathe in and out.

It is okay to disengage from everything and everyone and take a few minutes to refresh and revive yourself. 

Just do it.
Just breathe.
Just step away from the noise (inner and outer).
Just give yourself a few minutes of delicious quiet.

You deserve peace.
Why not create it with this simple daily exercise?

I'm doing the exercise with you this week.

With love,
Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.
http://www.patriciaomoqui.com/

Harness Your Power: Enjoy the Boring

(Maggie, Skye and two friends at summer camp)

My daughter Skye suggested we go see a movie this weekend. We went to see UP! , one of the recent Disney releases. I must confess to you, I love kid’s movies. In the childish antics and humor always appears a hidden message for my soul.

My favorite scene in UP! is when the young scout tells the elderly man how much he loved going to the ice cream store with his father. After getting their cones, the boy and his father would sit on the curb and play a game – the dad counted the blue cars driving by and the boy counted the red ones.

As the scout finishes telling his story he says, “You know, it’s the boring things I seem to remember the most.”

This one line summed up much of my learning the past year. Most of my adult life I’ve had a sense that my life was only meaningful if I was approaching or having a big, exciting moment. I assumed that the small, ordinary, routine moments were unimportant. In fact, I often rushed through them.

I was missing out on so much beauty in life!

Listening to my children giggle in the living room while I do the dishes is joyful. Scrubbing the floors with Skye "helping" me is an adventure. Tucking the little angels in bed each night is something I wouldn't want to miss. Waking up in the early morning hours to make my morning cup of coffee and spend some quiet time in peace is wonderful. Sitting on the couch with my husband after a long day and having a quiet conversation is relaxing.

Little, daily moments like this are full of deep meaning when you are open to experience them. Notice any dread you feel with the ordinary, the routine or the mundane.

Consider stepping back this week and looking at life with fresh eyes. What might you be missing out on?

Loving the ordinary and the extraordinary too,

Patricia Omoqui, The Thought Dr.

http://www.patriciaomoqui.com/

Harness Your Power: Release Excuses

It is easy to feel a "victim" of life. People don't always treat us like we want them too. Financial markets don't move in the direction we hope. Circumstances rarely ever turn out as we planned. In the midst of all these aspects of life that we can't control, we forget that we can control the most important thing of all -- our reaction.

For several years I've observed people in my life wanting to blame outside forces for where they are in their lives. They spend hours complaining, whining and resisting life. They use large amounts of energy trying to find excuses as to why they feel unhappy. I understand. I've been in the same place--fretting and trying to control my life thinking that doing so would make me feel better.

It wasn't until I stopped blaming others that I became vividly aware that if I go inside, I can find peace. I choose how I feel. No one can dictate that for me. I choose what I think. Nobody is thinking for me. It is I who choose my reactions to life. Once I understood that I am the creator of my life experience, my whole life changed from within my heart.

People in my life were still the same. Circumstances remained challenging. The light of hope and peace that sparked within my heart brought new vitality and vision. My perspective shifted: I could find joy even on the darkest of days.

To learn this truth, I had to give up my excuses. I needed to drop them completely. Was life challenging? Sure it was! But, that didn't mean that I had to be an emotional wreck. In fact, I began to see that the "story lines" of my life were fascinating. I observed myself in each circumstance. I found new power to become who I had always wanted to be. Life didn't need to change. I did.

Change begins within. There is no time like NOW for each of us to choose what we want to experience. Are you going to be focused on gratitude today or will you be down in the dumps? Will you feel the frantic fear that is rampant in our society or will you see that we are surrounded by the peace of nature? Your experience of life is dictated by your experience within.

I challenge each of us to look at the excuses we still hold -- to understand why it is we think that we must put off our happiness for a sunnier day. Why wait for a wonderful life? Instead, look within and see that you have the inner resources to create the wonder, joy and peace in this moment.

I write all this to myself as well as each of you reading. I need constant reminders that I am stronger, more remarkable and vibrant than I give myself credit for. I find this when I quiet my mind and connect with my brilliant spirit.

Take time this week to be silent. Listen to the peace all around you. Notice any conflict within. Ask the Universe to guide you towards beauty and joy. You are ready to experience more of this. This doesn't need to happen AFTER circumstances change. It can begin now.

With love, joy and peace,

Patricia Omoqui

http://www.patriciaomoqui.com/

p.s. Exciting news -- I am going to have a weekly 5 - 7 minute spot on Nigerian National TV. You can check out some of the clips that will be airing by visiting www.youtube.com . Search by "Patricia Omoqui" and you can get a sneak peek of some wonderful topics that can inspire your heart.