Preparing for Joy #1

Last week, being at the start of a new year, we were talking about resolutions. I was saying that resolutions really are not very helpful because we tend to make them and then we forget about them a week or two later. A much better plan to use if you truly want to move forward in your business and personal life is to create goals for yourself.

The reason you want to have a goal rather than make a resolution lies in their degree of success. Resolutions rarely succeed because of their lack of solid backing. They are merely words uttered in a moment of longing, which quickly passes as other needs take their place.

A goal, on the other hand, is a plan you write down. You write it down on a piece of paper and you hang that paper on the wall by your computer so that you see it all the time. You break the big goal down into smaller chunks and put those tasks in your daily planner, working on them one by one to achieve the goal.

Our new discussion for the next several weeks, will revolve around the preparing for, understanding of, and implementing of JOY in your everyday life. There are steps that must be taken to allow joy, rather than fear, distrust and doubt to color your world.

Maybe it sounds a little weird to be entertaining the thought of joy right now. It might be the last thing on your mind these days. I know it’s difficult to imagine a world more chaotic than what we’ve got today. Everyday there’s something new and horrible, another piece of bad news or misinformation that confuses us. And it makes our days so much harder to negotiate.

Being in business, you have enough to deal with as it is. And then with all this stuff going on top of  it… I understand it is truly a challenge. So, of course it’s difficult to imagine that peace and joy are something that you could actually have, with all this chaos swirling around you. But you can. YOU CAN. And YOU MUST for your own sanity and success.

By learning to stay cool, calm and collected in this high-pressure time, in these intense moments that we’re all experiencing, you will find it easier to identify the silver lining that there is in every situation, no matter how horrible it may seem. You can find a silver lining if you’re looking for it. And that’s where joy is.

Joy comes from calm. You can’t have joy, if you’re not calm; if you’re all upset and worried and nervous and all these things are swirling through your head, you are not going to be able to feel joy. There’s no joy in that.

So I want to give you something really fantastic today. You’re going to love this because this is something you can take with you into your daily life and use every single day all through the day.

The moment you feel stress making your knees go weak or your stomach turn over, you will be able to handle it. The Instant Calm Formula is an instant remedy that you can use anywhere, anytime, under any conditions. Five simple steps done 1 at a time and takes only 1 minute.

1. Move 1 step back…
   and take inventory of what’s going on inside of you, what’s happening. Say, “What am I thinking?” “Where is this coming from?” Observe it without judgment from a distance. Say, “Okay, I see it.”

You want to distance yourself a little bit so rather than rushing in to try to put out the fire, and deal with it haphazardly, you take that step back and just be in the present moment. 

2. Take 1 slow, deep breath in and out, and just feel it flow in and out. Let your shoulders drop and your jaw relax.
3. Focus on 1 issue causing you stress.

Now you may have a million things buzzing through your head- “Oh my God, she said this and how am I gonna answer back, and I must take care of that, and there’s that call I have to make (what will I say?) and, and, and… Just pick one.

Okay, I know as women we tend to be multitaskers and we think, “I could be frying the food while I’m feeding the kid and combing my hair” and doing 17 things at the same time, but actually you get food in your hair and the food doesn’t go into the kid’s face because you’re trying to watch the pan so. One thing. Acknowledge it. Don’t try to minimize it: ”Oh it’s not such a big problem, I can put it over here and forget about it.” No no no. If it’s coming up in your mind, you need to deal with it. 

1. Make 1 clear statement to yourself, just one, “There is an answer.”

Affirm to yourself that you have the right to have an answer to your problem. Why not? You were created by a loving Creator, believe this. And so you have the right to an answer.

2. Give yourself 1 minute to listen.

Not with your ears. You’re listening with your inner ear. You are listening to your inner guidance, your inner wisdom, listening for the answer. And you’re trusting that it will come. Very, very important. If you don’t believe it’s going to happen, well, it won’t because you don’t believe it. You’re not trusting in your inner wisdom and you won’t hear it because you don’t want it. You MUST be willing to give it a try. It took me many years to trust my inner guidance completely so if it doesn’t work the first time I understand. Try it again and again.

Nothing is accomplished without effort. We have to put 1 foot in front of the other, 1 foot at a time, to get to the place we want to get to.

This is MarciaGrace’s

Instant Calm Formula
for success, for peace, to prepare for JOY

Move 1 step back– Take your time -put space between you and the tough stuff.

Take 1 deep, slo-o-o-w breath, in, hold, and out

Focus on 1 issue causing you stress

Make 1 clear statement -“There is an answer”

Give 1 minute to listen for your internal wisdom to speak to you

We need joy in our lives because life is hard right now for many, many people and you can help them when you are filled with joy.

Being joyful doesn’t mean you’re going to ignore what your body’s eyes are seeing. On the contrary, your joy is intertwined with compassion. You will find yourself knowing how to help those in need around you. And like a perfect circle, the love you give to others will return to you.

Next week I’ll talk about how joy affects your body. Tune in… 😊

Peace and love always,

MarciaGrace

P.S. Remember, Everything Begins with a Thought