The Holiday season inspires gift giving, goal setting and spreading ideas like peace, love and joy. It’s also when so many people look forward to taking a break and spending time with family and friends.
Perhaps as we dive into the season of gratitude and love, and take a breather, it would be an opportune time to expand those feelings beyond the normal thought patterns and spread some love to a few new concepts.
Some of these ideas are often considered challenging and can be viewed negatively, others we may just overlook. What if you identified an idea that currently creates some struggle in your life and learn to love it?
Below are ten ideas for you to consider adopting an attitude of adoration. Any one could transform your life if looked at with a new, fresh perspective. When you fall in love with ideas, your beliefs change on a deep emotional level and that impacts the actions you take and the course of your life.
Choose one or more concepts below, and make a positive perspective shift as a gift to yourself this season:
1. Change– Learning to embrace change is a key to happiness and well-being. It’s a given that change will occur, from our cells to our external world, everything is changing every moment. Resisting change may be the automatic response, but seeing change as positive and progressive is exhilarating. What are the opportunities that change can offer? How will you make the most of them?
As my mom used to say, if change makes you sad, it’s because you’ve had so many good experiences in your current situation, and that is something to be grateful for. I would add that there is no reason not to think that the next chapter will bring equal or better experiences.
2. Spontaneity – For people who live by systems, calendars and controls, there is something to be said for the occasional unplanned action that comes from a more intuitive place. Often times, it’s the impulsive move that introduces you to an experience, person or vision that changes everything, or at least makes for a great day.
If it were possible to plan perfect lives, we would. It’s the trial and error that create lives of depth and interest.
3. Your Fellow Human– It is a no-brainer to love the people you choose and invite into your life. It is more difficult to feel fondness and compassion for those we share the planet with but do not personally know.
For anyone who has been treated by a nurse or lent a hand by a stranger, it is sometimes more profound when you feel a connection to someone just by virtue of shared humanity. Create that connection by your own actions and the world becomes a much friendlier place.
4. Money – Developing a positive relationship with money and continuously improving that relationship impacts every other aspect of life: health, relationships, business and certainly wealth. Financial situations create a sense of powerlessness and stress for so many, resulting in limiting beliefs that sabotage efforts to improve their lives.
Choosing to befriend your money, to pay attention to it and to focus on ways to better relate to it will move it from being “that thing” that prevents you from enjoying your life to the partner that nurtures your dreams. This takes work, but as a starting point, ask yourself what it would take to feel more positively about money? Do just one thing regularly that gets you to pay more attention to your money.
5. Nature – If you are not noticing and loving nature on a regular basis, you are most likely not taking the time to enjoy the outdoors or quiet your mind and take in the beauty of the natural world. Loving nature in theory is okay, but actually being a part of it engages us with our own true natures in a way that can’t be replicated.
We find our spirit when among the trees or by the ocean or watching the sun come up. Experiencing nature in whatever way works for you is a form of meditation. Diving guidance, creative ideas or solutions to problems are often found there and come to you effortlessly when in that setting.
6. Faith – Defined by Webster as: “complete trust, confidence or reliance” (without proof or evidence), faith is very useful as an overall principal or to be used in specific decisions for which there is no clear cut answer.
Learning what to have faith in (perhaps it’s your own inner voice), and when to use it, is a great tool to help you move forward. Faith is instrumental when you want to take a step and aren’t sure where you might land. It is useful for venturing into the unknown and may make all the difference when big decisions need to be made.
7. Learning – Right behind loving change comes a genuine interest and desire to learn. Tony Robbins says, “you are either growing or dying” and you grow by continuing to learn. What you learn is your decision, but consciously knowing that you should continue to learn and grow will keep you young, sharp and vital, no matter your age.
If you are frustrated by your career, business or income, what could you learn that would make a difference?
8. Yourself – If there is anyone on this planet you should either love or learn to love, it’s you. Once you matter to yourself, dramatic shifts happen everywhere. As you would with a friend, take the time to sort through what is great about you and how you contribute to others and the world. Develop enough self awareness that you can tell your inner critic some new stories, find compassion and enjoy your own company.
9. Questioning – Asking the best questions will illuminate the best answers. Oftentimes we don’t ask ourselves questions at all, but make blanket statements, often starting with “I can’t because…”
When you ask a question, you give the universe a chance to answer in unforseen ways. Ask yourself “what if I could (be, do, or have) _____?” and see what comes about, who shows up or what opportunity presents itself.
When circumstances are unfavorable, ask open ended, positive questions so you can find helpful answers. Learn to love the process of finding and asking great questions. Pam Grout’s E Squared is a great book on the topic of manifesting what you want by asking.
10. Possibility – The idea of possibility is similar to the notion of abundance. As Einstein said, “The most important question you can ever ask is if the Universe is a friendly place?” (vs. a hostile place). If you believe that the Universe is overall a friendly one, then your attitude is optimistic and the possibilities seem endless.
Certainly if you spend time embracing the ideas above, you will be able to see possibility and hope for yourself and others.
It is great to spread a blanket of positive energy out into the world, but when you focus on specifics, you are more apt to experience personal growth and expansion. So, love a new idea.
