Abundance - Spend, Spend, Spend, is that the answer?

Abundance Scale - 7/10
I am really into the idea of spending with joy! Spending my money on things I love, pretty things, things that taste nice and things that I love doing (anything to do with Salsa and going on lovely trips to new, exciting places).

What to do though when my spending is more than my earnings on a monthly basis?

One part of me wants to carry on in the knowledge that I live in an abundant world and always have enough! But another part wants to dig its heels in, put the breaks on and say "stop, you are being seriously irresponsible!"

I would like to think that one day I will spend my money on the things that I love, always feel in the flow and not doubt, for a single second, that it should be any other way. However, the resistance I am feeling on and off at the moment, suggests to me the need for balance in terms of spending behaviour.  What does that balance look and feel like? For me, it is a slight change in our habits. So for example, how much do we usually spend on us and what about reducing it slightly and then saying "ok what would we like to spend it on?"
This has uncovered an interesting point for me: saying "Yes" to the things I do want to do or experience and "No" to the things I'm not bothered about or don't want to do! It will be a good exercise for me in being true to myself and making choices that will really benefit or uplift me.

I would love to hear any tips on how you balance your spending habits to help you stay feeling abundant!
http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=987

How do You Deal With Disappointment?

Yesterday I went for a very slow and gingerly walk with Megan puppy dog (actually 3 years old - but always a puppy to me!) due to my bottom injury (see Day 1). I was pondering over my disappointment at not being able to go to Salsa or drive to Geneva to continue networking for my coaching business. I know that I don't always deal with disappointment easily and get frustrated at things seemingly not going how I think they should.

I got home and there, sat in my email inbox, was my daily dream builder from Mary Morrissey. This is how it started, "How Do We Deal With Disappointment?" Talk about synchronicity! The rest came as follows:

I remember a time in the airport I was very disappointed that my flight was delayed by several hours.  I wanted very much to go home and see my husband and our kids but engine trouble caused the plane to turn around and come back.  There was a lot of temptation to just be frustrated and whine a bit. 

I bet you have times in your life when you feel exactly the same way.  I was thinking to my spiritual took kit and how I have learned to deal with disappointment in the past.  One of the tools I remembered is to do a blessing list.  Just start paying attention to your blessings.

I felt blessed to have a place I really wanted to get to.  I felt blessed to have people I really wanted to be with.  I was grateful that they noticed the engine trouble while we were still on the tarmac.  My blessing list went on and on. Before long, even though I still would’ve preferred to be home, my whole energy and my whole emotional center was different.  I had changed my energy. 

I don't know if you are dealing with disappointment today or not --But if you are, try what I am suggesting.  If not, put it in your spiritual tool kit and the next time you feel some disappointment, do a blessing list.  You’ll find yourself in a brighter place in no time.  

www.MaryMorrissey.com

Despite being flat on my back today, not wanting to move for fear of making this injury worse, it has given me the time to notice what I like to call the magic (some would say coincidence) of the universe. I feel like I have had so many gifts today, in one form or another and my belief in abundance is thus further fuelled!

Watch this video!
Paul Parry thank you for being the provider of this gift and reminder that I am very lucky. Some of you may have seen this video but I dare you to watch it again without the welling up of a tear!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RU7w0Z35XEE

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=2664

A Conversation Between "MySelves!"

I was feeling in the flow when I wrote my post yesterday, it felt good in more ways than one. Firstly, it was great just to get "stuff" down on paper and secondly it helped me feel more trusting and positive about life in general and the amazing power of our beautiful universe!
An interesting thing happened to me this morning however. Without knocking, in barged one of my saboteur voices, putting me down and making me question what the hell I was doing posting such trivial information on the internet for the whole world to see! The voice of the saboteur, a slimy gollum type creature, with sharp teeth & sallow skin had the following to say about my blog:
"It's not interesting, in fact it's boring! Where is it going to get you? What's the point! You'll only embarrass yourself and people will laugh at you! You are setting yourself up for failure and disappointment!"

On the otherhand the part of me who enjoyed writing the blog had the following retort:
"I find it interesting and it's fun writing about stuff that I like. I help Michele connect with her sense of aliveness as well as her spiritual side. I help her trust that everything is going to be ok and that it is safe to put herself "out there". What if writing this blog serves to help her feel more abundant and release any inner limitations regarding her capabilities? And what if just one person reads it and is able to benefit from it in some way!?"

It seems that my saboteur in the guise of gollum wants to keep me toeing the line, doing "normal" things and not drawing attention to myself, for fear of embarrassment and disappointment. I can see how he wants to keep me safe and is trying to serve me.

I do get where he is coming from. But the part of me which wants to say "what the hell, just go for it, it's not going to hurt you or anyone! You never know where it might lead" is much stronger these days. I suppose this comes from taking the plunge and leaving a long term career in teaching, moving abroad and starting a new business from scratch.

If I look back and think of all the risks I've taken I definitely don't regret them (although maybe I would have done some of them slightly differently). Stepping across the comfort zone line is always a challenge,  but one that I will keep doing in the knowledge of the feelings of expansion, growth & aliveness that result from taking those steps!

I would really like to recommend the work of John Kent from the UK. John is a trainer & facilitator in "Voice Dialogue". This is a fascinating and extremely beneficial technique which enables us to embrace and respect all the many selves that exist inside us. The great thing is that by not making any of these selves wrong, it helps us to gain balance and awareness in our lives. It has helped me enormously and is also a really fun process to experience. Here is the website link:
http://www.voicedialogue.org.uk/home

To be or not to be Abundant?

Abundance Scale - 5/10

I start off my Abundance Diary with a whinge I’m afraid! This is because today I am struggling with feeling abundant! I’m just being honest! I have torn a muscle in my bum and can hardly sit down (if you want to find out how I did it read on….).  The worst thing about this is it means I cannot go to Salsa tonight! Boo! I have fallen completely in love with Salsa dancing. It makes me feel alive, excited and above all I have so much fun. I have the biggest grin in the room, so says my hubby. And I know this too as my cheeks ache by the end of the night! Plus I’m sure that the other guys in the class who have to dance with me are looking at me weirdly thinking “why is she grinning so much, is she slightly insane or does she fancy the pants off me?”

I was desperate to go the class tonight (despite the fact I have to travel over an hour to get there and there is a guy who likes to ping my bra strap – oh well, if that keeps him happy!) but, hubby Matt reminded me that my health and well-being is my numero uno value. Humph! When did he get so wise! He is right though, and as much as I want to go I need to rest my body otherwise I risk not being able to go for a much longer period. Double boo!

Abundance is my BIG WORD. I love it. I love feeling it and when I do, I feel life running through my veins. I feel joyous, happy, expansive and in the flow.

Whoops, nearly forgot to tell you how I tore my buttock muscle! Well, I would like to say I did it overstretching during one of my Yoga classes (I am a Yoga teacher). Unfortunately, I have a slightly less virtuous & seedier story to share! I was at a party nearly 2 months ago now and we were having a good old boogie, as you do, when some clever soul pipes up “who can do the splits?” Still having retained some of the competitive spirit from my sportier days & being the valley’s Yoga teacher I thought I would volunteer my expertise! To cut a long story short, 5 minutes later sliding into the splits on my weaker leg, with tights on, on a slippery floor, there was a pop! The pop was not another bottle of fizz being opened but came from the inside of my bottom! Ouch!

Now the thing is, and this may appear fluffy and wishy washy to many people, my Life Purpose is to help others see and feel the greatness and abundance of the Universe! Told you, wishy washy! I found this out after taking part in a number of exercises during my training to be a coach. After the training I sort of just left this information on the back burner not really knowing what to do with it. However, just recently I have noticed how it keeps coming up in my mind and it just seems to feel right! Another part of me is now shouting out upon hearing these words, “how can this be right, you are not always abundant, so how can you help others?”

Here is my challenge! To work on my own feelings of abundance so that I live it, feel it, breathe it, ooze it from every pore in my body! Then surely I help others tap into their own sense of abundance and not forgetting, the abundance of our wonderful, magical universe! And I say magical because it surely is magic? Have you ever really tapped into how the universe provides for you? Watched things unfolding before your very eyes? And held your breath in anticipation of what is coming next? Sometimes it actually freaks me out how things seem to work out! Whether this is an opportunity coming my way to help improve my business or meeting someone new who really helps me to be more authentic, more real so that I experience the feelings and qualities that I long to have in my relationships. But once I start to look at the gifts that are brought to me, this is what gives me the hope and faith that the Universe truly does have our best interests at heart and is working to help bring us our desires.

Once we begin to tap into the abundance of the universe we can really connect with our own sense of abundance. Of having enough money, love, good health, happiness, time, peace, joy. When we connect with this place we feel that everything is okay, we are in the flow of life and are being supported.

I have a great quote which sums this up in simple words better than my own:

"Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into." Wayne Dyer.

I love this as I think it highlights the fact that many people think of the word Abundance in purely financial or wealth terms. And therefore it’s something we work hard to get or we are just lucky and acquire as a result of being born into a rich family!

To finish off my daily write up I’d like to say that I know that I do have a choice about how I look at things and therefore how I feel. So bearing this in mind I decided, upon waking, despite my disappointment at not being able to go to Salsa & really feel that wonderful sense of aliveness and fun that goes with the swinging of the hips (snake hips as my friend Sarah calls them!) that I can still tune into these feelings if I really want to.

The first thing I did was put my headphones on and listen to 2 guided meditations courtesy of Youtube. By imagining myself taking part in activities which I already know help me feel alive and full of joy I can turn my focus towards a much more positive way of thinking and feeling.

Here are the links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vevDOPpYmg&feature=mh_lolz&list=FLue6-Idj_BygS1BDliVWTYw

http://www.youtube.com/user/IntuitiveWudotcom