Movement. This can absolutely change your life for the better, whether it’s taking just one step towards a goal you desire, changing jobs, relocating, moving into a new life phase or physically moving your body through exercise, increasing the feel good hormones called endorphins as well as boosting strength, health and energy. Any one of these movements are doorways to becoming more of who you truly want to be...opportunities to shine, grow and start anew with focused intention. The more consciously you move forward, the better the chance you’ll have at manifesting exactly what you want to have happen in the next 3 months, 6 months, and so on.
Movement is the soul of my own practice as I partner with clients to stretch in ways big and small. This is what increases our sense of aliveness, and lessens the possibility of sinking into boredom, getting into a rut or numbing out on things like TV or alcohol. Without stretching and growing, we become stagnant, which can lead to anxiety and depression among other things. The very smallest move forward can lead us out of a bad mood, feelings of dullness, overwhelm and even despair. Enjoy working with these six steps as often as possible, doing them at your own pace.
1) Take ONE step towards your desires for a huge impact.
This is key, especially if you feel overwhelmed by options or unclear about the specifics. One of my favorite discoveries is that all choices lead to growth. There is no wrong decision. Simply take one step forward without focusing on the outcome! Simply choose what feels right for you in THIS moment and take action in order to learn, grow and overcome fear. This has been my mantra for the last 10 years and has changed my life drastically.
What have you always wanted to do that you’ve put off for whatever the reason? Would you like to create new relationships? Take up a new hobby? Start a side business? Become more social? Whatever it is, moving forward with inspired action creates excitement, greater sense of purpose and renewed momentum.
A great example from my own life is how I came to teach dance as a side to my coaching practice. After years of choreographing and dancing as my passion, I decided to attend an open house for a trainer who was promoting her studio. Although we’d only met once before, I acted on this perfect opportunity to reconnect and share my ideas for a class. Just this one step and the conversations that followed, led to an increase in confidence and excitement.
As these things typically go, listening to my desire, moving through uncertainty and taking action led to my first class in her beautiful studio. This led to another opportunity to teach, which led to another. I focused not on the outcome, but only on the opportunity it gave me to grow through taking a step I’d so often contemplated.
My first class only had 1-2 students, but it was invaluable in giving me the chance to hone my skills, experiment and serve, even to a small group. As I moved forward in this way, I was led to new opportunities, and in just a year developed 3 solid classes with a growing number of students. Following my truth in this way, led to more momentum and confidence in other areas of my business and life. Take one simple step! And remember that clarity comes from engagement not thought!! Enjoy the process. Go with what you feel is the right first action, and the rest will fall into place. Maybe not as you expected, but something even better, who knows?
2) I’m a huge believer in physically moving your body each day as it symbolizes literally moving towards what you desire.
Just the simple act of walking can free up what I call busy mind, leading to inspiration and ideas that wouldn’t have risen up while sitting. As part of my practice, I offer walking sessions to help clients align internally, get out of any stuck thinking and allow freedom of ideas to come while moving forward. Walking and exercise of any kind can be a metaphor for moving into more of what you want to create.
As exercise releases negative thinking and stress by reducing the hormone, cortisol, it also increases the feel good hormone called serotonin. This alone is reason to get some exercise, but there is much more that moving provides. Ideally, we get to commune with nature, which heightens our senses and helps us to feel more ALIVE and present to our truth in the moment.
Think of exercise as a way to increase your sense of empowerment, energy and passion. As you move, envision yourself in exactly the place you want to be. See yourself feeling the way you want, having the job you desire, being in the type of relationship you want, and the list goes on. Just stretching each morning, however simply, can be enough to increase your equanimity and sense of purpose for the day. It doesn’t matter how, only that you create your own routine. Remember that this is a metaphor for moving forward toward your desires in life.
3) Visualization and Affirmations.
Do you want to feel more peaceful, energetic or confident? Want to cook more regularly? Would you like to go for a totally new career or start your own business? Make a lifestyle change? It really doesn’t matter what the desire is. The more in touch you become with the details of how it feels to be in this very place, the more likely it is that your desired outcome will happen.
Creative visualization is seeing and feeling what you want in as much detail as possible with yourself in the picture, exactly as you want it to be. Preferably for a few minutes with your eyes closed. Start and end your day like this for 30 days and you’ll see results. Positive affirmations are extremely powerful as well, especially if negative feelings arise. One that I love is, “everything is coming to me, easily and effortlessly.” You can always substitute everything with a word that fits for you. Make up your own. “I am attracting exactly what I need in each moment.” I highly recommend the book, Creative Visualization by Shakti Gawain.
Take some time to write down any desire you have, big or small. Describe in detail what it feels like to have this manifest exactly as you’ve always wanted it to, right now. Write as if there are no limitations on time, money or anything else. Have fun with this. You can start with these statements as prompts:
I am starting to ____. As I do this I am feeling ___. The change I’ve made to get here is ___. The best part of it is_______. I have fully let go of the limiting beliefs that______ , and I am embracing myself fully by ______. Remember that you don’t have to believe it yet! Put down how you want things to be, as if they’ve already happened.
The idea is to use your imagination fully. Remember that what you put out into the world comes back to you. What we focus on comes true for us. As you put energy into how you want to become, you start to claim that possibility as real.
This, along with positive, inspired action as mentioned above, leads to the best outcome. I recommend closing your eyes for a minute a day, taking some deep breaths followed by imagining things exactly as you want them to be. Recite the mantra daily, “this or something better is manifesting for me right now.” Remember to see yourself as having the desired outcome now. Feel how it feels and then release it into the universe. Trust that this or something better is in the works!
4) Cultivate a state of inner abundance.
Without a doubt, this is one of the most important things we can do to attract exactly what we most desire. While taking action is necessary, you will stay stuck if your mindset comes from lack, fear or neediness.
As humans, we all feel these things from time to time. The answer is not to deny the feelings or shun them, but rather to see that they come from a limited part of you, your ego. Ego is the place where we compare ourselves to others and doubt our own brilliance. It’s the part of us that looks externally for meaning, focusing on getting something from someone else. This takes us away from focusing on what we truly want and giving it to ourselves.
The answer begins with gratitude for what you have right now. The fact is that whatever you think the world is withholding from you, you are withholding from the world. You cannot receive what you don’t give. Outflow determines inflow. In other words, what we put out we get back. When your energy is positive, calm, kind and open, you flow with life instead of fighting against it. With awareness, you’ll get better at choosing an open and abundant attitude, even when things don’t go your way. You can also just state to the universe, “I’m ready to feel abundant. I’m ready.”
As mentioned before, if life is seen through the eyes of learning and growth versus perfectionism, it’s always a win. See the fullness of life all around you. Even the ability to enjoy the sun, savor a cup of tea or talk to a friend can be enough of a start. Happiness isn’t having what you want, it’s wanting what you have. That simple statement changed my life as I realized I could stop grasping for more and instead start where I am. Can you feel the relief in that?
We can still strive for anything we want, but it must come from a place of contentedness first, which starts within. Much of that can come from simply becoming aware when the voice of lack and fear arise. Simply acknowledge the feelings without following them. Let them go and feel into what you might be needing right now to feel more alive and engaged. If you’re not sure, no worries. Just watch the uncertainty, fear or lack and breathe through it, possibly moving your body through the discomfort. This cultivates inner space that is sacred and protects you from what I like to call the intruders, or busy mind that can spin into overwhelm and worry.
Both abundance and scarcity are inner states that manifest as your reality. Which one will you focus on today? Use the power of positive affirmations and visualization to see yourself in a state of unlimited flow and abundance.
5) Say yes and think out of the box!
Do this starting now and you invite positive movement into your world. Try new things big and small. Drive a different way to work, go somewhere on a mini day trip that is NOT typical for you. Say yes instead of no to options you’d normally brush off as unrealistic. There is a wonderful book called, “Outrageous Openness,” by Tosha Silver. Just sit with that title for a moment, and make it your mantra for a period of time each day. What might this look like for you?
Sometimes this takes trust in yourself, which also takes practice. TRUST THE PROCESS as your most authentic path unfolds!! Be you as often and in the fullest way possible. When we do this, the universe hears and responds to that authenticity with exactly what we need in the moment to grow and expand. We then feel most aligned and alive! YES...just start your day with this word. As author, Shannon Kaiser advises, ask yourself what your life FEELS like, not what it looks like. So powerful!
What do you want your life to feel like starting today? How can you be outrageously open in this moment? Where do you need to trust yourself more? Just start. Write in a journal, talk to a friend, ask for guidance and then let the answers come to you.
6) Let go of what you don’t need or want in this moment!
Today I’m letting go of ______. Fill in the blank. In a journal, write as much as you want without editing yourself on the topic. Releasing the negative opens up space for the positive to enter our world. Are you bogged down with to do lists you continue to put off? Do you keep saying yes to that friend who feels exhausting? Are you engaging in toxic habits or lifestyle choices? Criticizing yourself harshly? Simply writing down what you want to release is a big step towards actually letting go. What no longer serves your highest self?
So I leave you with these questions:
How can you start to move towards a desire in a small way?
What is already good in your life that you feel grateful for?
How can you increase self care and cultivate inner abundance?
What can you do now that brings your soul joy and raises your vibration? This is an essential part of the manifestation process as the energy you put out is what you will see reflected back.
How can you move your body towards more aliveness and authentic power?
And finally, if you could have anything you wanted with no limits, what would it be? Write it down, visualize it as if it’s already happened and go for all of it with the intention to learn more, experiment and grow. Remember that what we think, we become. Choose wisely to be the observer of fear and lack, without following their lead. Tell them you’ll get back to them after you spend more time with possibility, excitement, courage and outrageous openness!!
Love and light,
Laurie.
Please feel free to check out my website at theforwardpath.com And join my private FB group, Women Empowered From Within. You can find it at https://www.facebook.com/groups/283315048687684/
