Be Alive and present in all you do!

‎"Don't ask yourself what the world needs... ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." 

~ Howard Thurman

New Article: An All Consuming Fear

We just posted an article by Cynthia Corsetti about the fear of leaving an abusive relationship. Cynthia is a Management Consultant and Career Coach. To read "An All Consuming Fear", click here.

I believe I can

“Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.”

― Mahatma Gandhi

Even if you don't do what you love, you can love how you do it!

I love Mama Gena (Regena Thomashauer). Besides being flat-out fun, she offers some practical advice for empowering yourself to make the most out of every minute. Her latest blog post is spot on. I have copied her article below, but you can also check it out at her blog:

http://www.mamagenas.com/broke-and-cranky-job-i-hate/

Broke and cranky at a job I hate

There was a day, before The Pleasure Revolution.
An ordinary “plain old, plain old” before the Womanly Arts.
When I had been working at my “bridge job” for about 10 years too long. You know a bridge job. It’s that job you take that you don’t really invest yourself in, because your plan is not to stay there very long, because your plan is to move on to bigger or better things, but you kind of find yourself not moving on to bigger or better things for a really, really, really long time.
It was a very long bridge, this bridge.
And, basically, it went nowhere.
Nowhere that I wanted to be.

And the longer I was on this bridge, the more cranky I felt, the more irritated I became, the more I felt like…jumping off.
What kind of co-worker do you think that made me?
Fun?
Not a chance.
Pleasant to be with?
Not so much.
Perpetually irritated was more like it.
Up for advancement?
No way. The last thing I wanted was to be identified as “good”—because getting a promotion meant this bridge job was my career, and that was the last thing that this “High and Holy Highness of Perpetual Irritation” desired.

What did I want?
I wanted to live my passion, to live my voice in the world, to contribute, to be of service, to make change, and to make a fortune.
This was never going to happen at the restaurant I was working in.
What did make the change for me?
One simple thing.
Which was the last thing in the world I felt like doing.
But it’s the only thing that ever works.
And this is something that I still do, every day of my life.
What is it?
I will tell you later.
Just kidding.
I am going to tell you now. Really.

It’s actually very simple—you don’t have to change anything about your outer circumstances. But if you do this thing that I am going to tell you—with your whole heart and soul—everything will change.
Ready?
Good.
What I began to do was to live my passion, and lunge for my desires, right here, and right now—no matter the circumstances.
I began to care passionately about my job.
And the people I worked with, and for.
I became the best at what I did, and enjoyed the hell out of it.
I loved seducing cranky customers and making them happy.
I loved taking great care of the boss and the manager, and seeing how I could contribute to making everything work better.
I created community and fun with my co-workers.
Why?

Well, I was exhausted from playing small.
It was eating away at my body and soul.
So, I decided to live my passion, right there, where I was.
Just for the fun of it.
And soon I wasn’t working in a restaurant anymore.
My passion moved me on, to the next opportunity, which led to the next, and the next, and so on, which led, eventually, to the creation of The School of Womanly Arts.
Your passion is your power.
Yeah, you got that right.
Living your passion is living your divinity.
And you can do that today.
Bridge job or not.

So, what I want to know from you—right here, and right now—is this:
On a scale of 1-10, how much do you connect with your passion on a daily basis?
How do you live you passion while you are still at your version of a bridge job?
Have you ever found yourself in that desperate place of feeling like the temporary job you have has become way too permanent?
What do you do to connect with your passion in the midst of a work slump?
Let me know in the comments below.

And if you want to help another woman live her passion, please share this blog on Facebook, Twitter, email, etc.

With so much love and pleasure,
Mama Gena

Yes, there really is a book in progress

My book is coming along nicely. I am an Interior Designer by trade, and doing design projects has slowed down the book progress a bit. Anyway, it still proceeds and will be out in the not too distant future. I'll keep you posted.   
Meanwhile, enjoy this quote I love from Abraham...

It is as easy to create a castle as a button. It's just a matter of whether you're focused on a castle or a button.

I know I will be focusing on enjoying writing a great book while creating some spectacular design projects for my clients!