Office Feng Shui

I've been doing a lot of research on how to make my office space less dreary and more energetic. The office that I work in is filled with lots of different personalities and energy. Sometimes the energy is overwhelming and causes me to lose focus. At times, I step out of the office just to breathe and close my eyes for a few moments. It helps me clear my mind before I enter the hectic environment again. 

Recently, I have been changing my surroundings to better represent my personality and to allow for the good energy to flow around me. Here are a few ideas that I have found that can help make your office or cube more amenable to free flowing energy.

1) Buy a low maintenance plant. Not only will it help brighten up the place but it will also help purify the air. A few plants that need very little light include the Areca Palm, Peppermint, English Ivy, Lemon Balm, Golden Pothos, and Gardenia. There are several other plants that will work as well but these are a few that I personally like and have the potential to make the space fragrant.

2) Surround yourself with pictures. I know that most of us have photos on our phones and some think it is a waste of time to frame and display photos. I couldn't disagree more. My home is surrounded with pictures in lovely frames and each time I glance at them, I smile.  Having such a photo in your office space will remind you of a good time even if you're having a bad day.

3) Do you have a favorite quote or song? Put it up on your wall or tape a post it to your monitor. I have a gratitude list and I see it everyday. I like to change up the quotes from time to time. It all just depends on my mood but I always keep it lighthearted. 

4) Add some color to your space. Sometimes we don't have a whole lot of space but I make it a point to use colored folders and colorful office supplies. Everything always being white, beige and black doesn't invigorate me. Color it up!

5) Keep your space organized. Disorganization doesn't allow the brain to be able to focus on one task as easily as it could. I try to keep my space clutter free and before I leave every night I make neat piles and to do lists.

6) TO DO LIST! I do LOVE these! I prefer using colored pens on colored paper and creating lists of things that must be done. There is deep satisfaction in crossing off something from a list. Sigh! Beautiful!

7) Desk fountain. Depending on your work environment and space it could be possible to have a mini water fountain running in the background. Not only is the sound pristine but it also helps drown out unnecessary noises. 

8) Himalayan salt lamp. OK so the absolute fabulous thing about these are that they can be left on without any issue. Not only that but they have started making some that have USB plugs to connect right to your computer! How amazing is that? These will help to purify the air around you and they have a warm orange glow that soothes. 

There are a lot more suggestions and ideas out there. I will keep posting as they come to me. 

Namaste.

Another Chapter

Many things have happened to change me in the last few years. I wasn't always comfortable with the changes and often I fought against them because of the anxiety that the change brought for me. The end of a six year relationship can be very difficult in the first place but when it involves marriage it becomes more complicated.

I didn't see the end coming and it all happened very quickly. Looking back, I smile at my former self. I was lost for so long and I didn't want to accept it. I went through all of the steps of grief and experienced every part of the pain that I needed to go through. I was never told how important it was to actually go through each and every life experience at the moment that it was happening. It is a profound feeling to be truly angry, sad, happy and whatever else there might be. Wallow in it, bask in the feeling and then when you are ready...move on!

This post is not to harp on the negative aspects of the relationship. Instead, I am focusing on the things that the relationship and my ex taught me.

1) I am much stronger than everyone thought I was. Truly. Everyone thought I would crumble and fall at the emotional upset. I even believed that I would but I didn't. I am strong.

2) Sometimes your world needs to be turned upside down in order for you to wake up. I was hibernating for a long time and simply going through the motions. I am fully awake now because my perfect world was rattled. I am aware and thankful for his actions because they changed my perspective on nearly everything.

3) I rely on myself. I can provide for myself and I am capable of doing anything on my own.

4) Alone. It is NOT a scary word anymore. Society puts pressure on people to couple up but we don't take the time to explore ourselves.

5) I am open to new thoughts and new ways of life. I have changed tremendously and my eyes have opened to very new paths. I have met amazing people because of this.

6) My heart chakra is now open. I am willing to receive and give love. I am willing to trust people even though I was "betrayed".

7) I am aware that at any moment in my life I can change the situation I am in.

8) Mindfulness has become a way of life. I check in to see where I am at emotionally and physically several times throughout the day. I take a moment to just breathe.

9) I live in gratitude. I am grateful for waking up this morning. I am grateful for every moment that I get to live this life.

10) I am not always in control. This is a big one. We can't control everything and that's a good thing. Life is a series of events and it is the journey that is of importance. We are allowed to just go with the flow. This was a difficult lesson for me because I have always been very type A. I work on relinquishing control each day.


Thank you for allowing me to find myself and experience life. Without your abrupt move, this change would not have happened. I am grateful.

Personal Mandala

I was looking through a book and found this personal goal mandala. I liked it because the author discussed how easy it was to create something like this. I made one for myself and it pleases me to take a moment each day to look at the art and the words that inspire me to move forward.

Anahata

My heart opened yesterday. It was astounding and powerful. I tend to have an inner battle between my ego and my heart. Which one rules? It all depends!

This past weekend I was involved in a discussion regarding the various functions that the heart chakra has and those include love, compassion, balance and peace. When a person's heart chakra is blocked it makes it difficult to accept and embrace love. This doesn't have to be a conventional love between two people but more like an all encompassing love of our surroundings and ourselves. Further, the heart chakra when it opens and expands allows for us to feel a sense of balance and peace. Love NEEDS balance! Healthy love, healthy relationships all need balance. This chakra can give us this fundamental balance. It is all interconnected. Can you feel it?

Yesterday, I was sitting at my desk and a very intense feeling rose through my chest and expanded all around me. I was unsure what was happening but I was in a state of euphoria. I basked in this profound feeling and let it wash over me as I would let the sun warm me on a hot day. My ego was lifted maybe even temporarily forgotten. I didn't rationalize any of it. I just knew that it was something that had to be shared. My heart was open and had not been in a long time. I took that opportunity and with further impulse, hugged another person.

What I felt after that was the equivalent of the feeling one might receive upon entering Elysium. A natural high, an abundance of peace and every part of me wanted to stay in that hug; which had created an impenetrable sphere where no judgment or time could pass. The actual touch lasted no more than fifteen seconds. I didn't want to pull away. Maybe I had left my physical body and all the judgments that were in my head. Whatever it was, I wanted more and the feeling persisted throughout the day.

Bathed in the light, basking in the energy and peace; I smiled. Ego was silent but only temporarily.

The voices of the ego arouse again and I tried to rationalize everything that I felt. Why did that happen? How could it have happened at that time? Did it mean something? There are no answers and maybe there aren't meant to be.

I can understand the need to share energy and the importance of touch and I was reminded when I least expected it.

Abundance of Wealth

"I'm poor" "I have no money" "My debts are burying me alive" "I will never be able to afford (fill in the blank)"

These are not new thoughts. We all worry about this at one point or another. Sometimes it becomes a disease that infests our minds because we repeat these words over and over to ourselves. It might be true that the bank account is low or maybe in the negative. I've been there. I've felt the desperation and the choking feeling of debt and it is not pleasant. Not only that but the dialogue that I end up having with other people is one of desperation as well. They add to the conversation of lacking money, which leads to other complicated discussions of what we do or do not have in our lives.

We are in a tough economic time right now. It is very easy to max out our credit cards, live paycheck to paycheck and allow the crushing depression of this reality to stand on our shoulders. But what if we slightly altered our reality? Instead of repeating the words "I have no money" every day we can change the dialogue to "I have an abundance of wealth". At first it will be difficult to do so and it might even seem impossible. It is so hard to change the way that our mind naturally flows. 

Let me share my experience. I work and I have debt. Sometimes it feels like the debt doesn't want to go away. A lot of circumstances in my life have led to living paycheck to paycheck. I've had to prioritize on several occasions. 

So here we go, every morning I repeat the phrases, "I have an abundance of wealth" and "I am surrounded by wealth". Technically it is true! I am surrounded by a wealth of family, friends, nature and love. I have altered my perspective so that I can move forward and not be held back by a crippling fear. Using this mentality coupled with some debt tactics, I am moving forward in reducing my wealth and I am constantly surrounded by an abundance of wealth!

Namaste.