Can Chocolate Cake Lead to Enlightenment?

In my last entry I talked about the expansiveness of the right brain (ocean), and the constriction of the left brain (drop of water), and how my left brain still gets caught in the “doing” cycle as it attempts to implement the ideas generated from my right brain.

My intention last week was to practice living from right brain dominance, rather than all my energy revolving around “how much I get done” (see last entry).  Each day, I would wake up and ask myself: “I wonder what will amaze me today?”

The biggest shift I’ve noticed from asking this question is that I am noticing how much my children amaze me. Sounds pretty typical – but not when you know how much I get REALLY focused on my work, and on getting a lot done (that high productivity/creativity mode). 

I tend to go there and STAY there – missing other parts of my life like really connecting with those I care about, having fun, taking down time, etc.  This “chronic doing” is a pattern that in the past led me to getting adrenal fatigue.  So take note, you don’t want to go there and stay there.  Trust me on that.

I also found myself being more spontaneous.  On one of my late afternoon breaks, I spontaneously decided to bake a chocolate cake (if any of you know me well, you might be laughing out loud at how out-of-character this is).  I had a TON of fun, my kids joined in, and it really fed my right brain (and my chocolate craving). 

The other biggest insight from this stage of the experiment:

“I am not a doing machine.”  Doesn’t it sometimes feel like life is all about how much we get done? 

In Daniel Pink's book, "A Whole New Mind - Why Right-Brainers Will Rule The Future," he talks about how we are entering the “Conceptual Age:"

“Today, the defining skills of the previous era - the “left-brain capabilities” that powered the Information Age - are necessary but no longer sufficient...and the 'right-brain' qualities of inventiveness, empathy, joyfulness, and meaning increasingly will determine who flourishes and who flounders.”

More on this in my next entry…

Have a great day,

Bernadette

PS: BTW, the Chocolate Cake Recipe I used is SUGAR FREE, DAIRY FREE  and GLUTEN FREE - FLOURLESS.   It uses black beans which sounds really weird, but trust me, it tastes wonderful - no bean taste at all, just yummy, rich chocolate.  It calls for different sweetener options, I found Agave to taste the best.  Click here for the recipe.

ConsciousLeadershipNow.com

Inspired Leadership.Thriving Productivity.Whole Mind Solutions.

Trying To Fit an Ocean Into a Drop of Water

There are some of us who need “productivity coaching” and others who need “slow down coaching.”  These days, I fall into the latter category.  It can be equally as challenging to not be able to focus and get stuff done, as it is to not be able to stop 'doing' and getting stuff done (can you relate?).

Before I go on, it might be helpful to set the stage again on the qualities of left and right brain consciousness (see some of the first entries for more on this).  

Right brain consciousness is the home of our higher mind.  It serves as a gateway to infinite possibility, potential, and co-creation with “life-force energy.”  Big stuff.  It’s where our best ideas and creative solutions come from.  It’s the gateway to meaning, purpose and connection to something greater – to the “whole.” 

The left brain takes those great ideas and possibilities and turns them into form.  Obviously, we need both hemispheres working together.  However, the predominant habit is to be left brain dominant – to stay in the linear “doing” mode – especially when we’re stressed or have a LOT to do.

What I’ve noticed is that as I strengthen access to my right brain, I feel like I’m in a fast flowing river.  I’m downloading lots of great ideas and information from a wide reservoir of infinite potential.  Sounds pretty cool, right?

But what can happen is that the left brain takes all that great information and tries to contain it.  It wants to GET IT DONE.  It wants to control it, solve it, analyze it, keep it on track – almost obsessively.  Imagine trying to squeeze an ocean into a drop of water.  

The result?  Sleepless nights, feeling overwhelmed, and the “not enough time to do it all feeling.”  It feels like an internal pressure, or a “crack the whip” type of inner voice whose job is to keep us on task.  Generally speaking, it’s the “overload” place we go to because the left brain just can’t contain the vastness that the right brain can dish out.

I’ve been able to use my left brain as a helpful assistant to the right brain idea generator in some good ways like making lists, organizing projects, getting support, delegating, and taking action.  And that’s all good. 

But…here’s the catch.  It’s not that fun.  It’s tiring.  It’s never-ending.  I notice that I wake up in the morning and think, “What do I need to get done today?” as a motivator to get going.  I end the day thinking, “What did I get done today, and what do I need to get done tomorrow?”  Ouch!  What a barrel of laughs that is. 

So here’s my commitment (and why I’m doing this experiment in the first place):

I choose to live in right brain directed consciousness (not the other way around – where my left brain ends up habitually running the show). 

How can I step into this even more without short-circuiting?

Here some ideas that came to me this morning:

When I wake up in the morning, instead of revolving my energy around what I need to get done today, or what I got done yesterday, or what needs to get done next week (you get the idea), I’m going to focus my thoughts on things like:

• I wonder what will amaze me today?
• I wonder what I’ll learn today?
• What friend can I connect with this week?
• Do I have some music, dance and play in my life this week?
• What fun things do I have on my schedule?
• I will connect with nature and beauty every day (in small ways)

Yes, I’ll still get a lot done, ‘cause that’s fun too (and necessary right now).  But I’m not going to let it run my life.  I’ve done it that way for too long.  And there are consequences.  I've learned that it’s life-taking rather than life-giving.  It’s not sustainable.

I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going.  Try it with me…and let us know how it’s going!

Bernadette

ConsciousLeadershipNow.com

Inspired Leadership.Thriving Productivity.Whole Mind Solutions.

What happens when we never feel done?

Continuing the thread from the last two posts, I think it's worth looking again at what happens when we are in a "chronic state of incompletion." We are so programmed (stored in our left brain) to always move onto the next thing, that it takes conscious awareness (from the right brain) to break the habit.  Here's some motivation...

When we don't pause in between tasks, and acknowledge what we've just completed, or really feel "done" at the end of each day (and especially at the end of a week), this is what happens: 

• Our nervous system stays in a perpetual state of incompletion - it's like always leaving the switch in the "on"position

•  It becomes harder to turn the switch "off" when we want or need down time 

• We feel like there's "never enough time to get it all done" which causes stress

• Stress releases excess cortisol

• Excess cortisol compromises our immune function

• Cortisol influences hormones and can cause cellular inflammation (now that's motivating!)

We need to practice being "done" each day to train our nrevous system to recognize how to "switch off" and take down time for rest, play, and rejevenation.

Knowing there will always be more to do, try really feeling done today, and enjoy your weekend.

Reminder Tips: Stop the Cycle of Incompletion

Here's a quick reminder on "Stopping the Chronic State of Incompletion."  (see last entry).

My left brain is so used to moving onto the next task, that I thought we  could all use a brush up:

1) Remind yourself you've already done a lot

2) Pause in between tasks and acknowledge what you just completed

3) Take stock of what you completed in 2010 and at the end of each day/week

4) At the end of the day and especially at the end of the week, tell yourself:

"All is complete."  And FEEL it all the way down to your core.  Relax into it.  Practice this until you can access that feeling easily.

5) Celebrate your accomplishments - every day in little ways.  Pat yourself on the back, make a toast with a special beverage, light a candle, tell a friend.

And, especially important: tap into the universal 7 day cycle each week and take that break from the everyday demands of phone, email, lists, appointment, etc. 

REST, PLAY, LAUGH, EXERCISE, GET OUTSIDE, CONNECT WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY.  You'll be amazed at how much better your life will feel.

Happy Friday.

The Chronic State of Incompletion

How many of us do this: when we finish something, we immediately look ahead to the next thing.  We all have this habit to some degree.  It's cultural.  It's our automatic response (left brain).

If we don’t pause, and really savor completing something – down in our core our nervous system stays in a perpetual state of incompletion.
 
Our body then still thinks there’s more to do, and this feeds the “never enough time to get it all done” feeling.

When we're rushing around to get it all done, our system stays in a state of "chronic stress."  And, according to Dr. Christine Northrop and many leading doctors, this impacts our immune, hormones and cellular inflammation, and even our thyroid.

The Antidote

• Remind yourself that you’ve already done a lot
• This sets a signal of internal rest and relaxation
• Sends a message to your brain and body of self-esteem and personal power

Change your Relationship to Time (shift from left to right brain perception)

Life has sped up exponentially in the past 100 years.  We process more bits of information in 1 day than our grandparents did in a year! 

Taking stock of what you’ve already done shifts your relationship to time.

• Realize that 1 way or another, you always have time to get done the things that absolutely have to get done
• This start a loop of positive reinforcement that makes you feel like you have more control of your life.  

 If you perceive that there is always enough time, there will be. 

And that's the nature of the right brain.  

ConsciousLeadershipNow.com

Inspired Leadership.Thriving Productivity.Whole Mind Solutions.

If I Quiet My Mind, Will I Get Anything Done?

In the last entry, I talked about the inner chatter of the left brain.  It may be helpful to know that this inner chatter has developed over time as a means to "keep us going."  We use mental prompts to take action, we use fear and anxiety provoking thoughts to drive us forward, or hold us back.

As we practice quieting our left brain in order to access the power of the right brain, the left brain may feel threatened.  After all, it's been running the show for quite a while.  It may say things like:

"If you quiet me, you won't get anything done..." or...
"You need me to keep you on task..." or...
"If I quiet my mind, will I know what to say, or do? Will I be able to perform, keep up, be brilliant!"

The truth is, brilliance comes from the right brain (soul), and your left brain (ego) knows that.  So the left brain might be feeling a little insecure with your attempts to quiet it and be guided by the right brain.  

As weird as it seems, it's like there are 2 of us - our ego (which is expressed through the left brain), and our soul (which is expressed through the right brain).

Reassure your left brain that you're on the same team. That you both want the same thing.  Let it know you still need it, and that you value its expertise.  We need our left brain's skills to carry out the guidance from the right brain.


Remember, a calm mind is an effective mind.  
A quiet mind is an intelligent mind. 

You'll still get a lot done...in fact, you'll probably get more done.  And it's a lot more fun from your higher mind, rather than from fear, anxiety and comparing and competing.


Keep practicing!  It's worth it.

Inner Voice of the Left Brain

Lately I've made it a practice to notice and observe the inner voice of my left brain.  This is the ongoing dialogue inside my head that informs me of logistics, to-do items, comments, comparisons, etc.

It sounds something like "don't forget to do call this person, I'm hot, I'm tired, I'm not sure how to do this, I don't know enough, there's not enough time to do what I have to do..."  There seems to be 3 general categories of the left-brain dialogue.  I see them as: 

1) helpful sorting of information in order to make a decision or take an action 
2) unhelpful comments based in insecurity 
3) manager/boss type comments about action items, to-do's, etc

I decided to play with these voices and interact with it a little differently.  I began to see the "insecure" comments as needy children wanting my attention (perhaps parts of me that had "split off" or didn't get what they needed).

Instead of trying to ignore them or push them away, I simply listened from my right brain (the compassionate, neutral observer) and every time I'd hear a comment, I'd simply say to it, "thank you, I love you." (derived from the Ho'oponopono Hawaiian Prayer). 

I saw the manager voice as the CEO in my head trying to keep me on track.  Instead of getting stressed or reacting to the voice, I again said, "thank you, I love you."

I did this over and over consistently for a full 2 days. After a while, they began to quiet down.  In fact at one point, when the manager/CEO stood up to tell me something to do, I started to say, "thank...." and it interrupted me and said, "yeah, yeah, I got it." and it "sat down" and became quiet.  It was quite humorous!


It was a great experiment in shifting to the right brain throughout my day, and taking action from a place of true power, calm and clarity.  It found it liberating and expanding.  The left-brain voices are part of me...but they don't need to run the show.  Of course, it is an ongoing practice from here.


Action: Try noticing  your own inner voices, and experiment with interacting with them a little differently.  Find a way that feels right to you to give them what they need, without giving them all of your power.