It’s time to refocus this blog here onto the things that really matter. I’m sure I’ll still occasionally rant about the injustices and general mess of the world, but that’s not what I’m all about. In fact, I try not to pay too much attention to that stuff at all because it makes it difficult for me to focus on creating meaningful change in my life. I get too wrapped up in the things that are happening beyond my control.
Do you find that that happens to you? Do you notice how when you’re caught up in the news and your favorite tv show and magazines and tabloids, you tend to be more upset? I know, for me, that when I’m focused on the news and the media (but the news especially), I’m not nearly as effective in all the other areas of my life. Perhaps you notice this about yourself too.
Our lives are reflections of the things we pay attention to, where we direct our energies (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual). I recently read an extremely good analogy,
Did you know that your attention is the most precious gift you have? Are you aware that your attention is the blueprint for what happens in your life?
Attention is a Constant Stream of Power From the Source
You can name it source, god, light, consciousness, or anything else you may be familiar with. Here is an analogy that demonstrates this:Imagine that you are watering your garden and you connect your hose to the faucet, which in our analogy will be the source. You choose which flower or part of your garden you want to water.
Now imagine that your hose has holes. The holes represent areas in your life where your attention is not under your control. What happens is you have less water; and besides that, parts of your garden get watered that are not supposed to – more weeds grow! The weeds represent areas in your life where you feel powerless, because you have no control over them.
What happens if we take this example to the extreme? You have no water left for any flowers. Your flowers die and the weeds take over. Meaning: what you want in life doesn’t happen, and what you don’t want happens all the time! All the result of having no free attention. -Thomas Herold
So, how do we plug up the holes to get our attention back? Well … there are many things you can do, such as eliminating TV (watch DVDs instead), cancelling your newspaper and magazine subscriptions (pick up a novel instead), turning off the radio (opting for CDs or MP3s instead).
When we do these things, we eliminate an enormous amount of advertising garbage from our lives. We feel less compelled to keep up with the Joneses and less compelled to buy tons of unnecessary junk we don’t need. We become free to pursue our true interests, the callings of our heart. We can pick up new hobbies, meet new people, make new friends. We can enjoy more of what we have as we let go of wanting everything we don’t.
Those are several very powerful ways to take back control over your attention. If you need some extra help getting over your mental and emotional roadblocks (when we eliminate so much, sometimes it makes us face things we rather wouldn’t), there are wonderful tools available over here at http://www.automaticlifechanges.com. In fact, those are the programs I used to help me overcome severe agoraphobia (housebound for 3 years) and get my life back. Hopefully, your problems will never be that bad … but if it helped me get over that, think of what it can do for lesser problems!
They also have a fabulous little program called unstoppable motivation now, which will help you achieve laser like focus with your attention. Just think of what you could do with that kind of concentration!
Wishing you plenty of focus and a flowering garden!
Namaste,
Lina
AlinaPhoenix's Weblog - Only Occasionally Obscene 