If these experiences resonate with you, the next question is, “Did you honor what your gut – your intuition – was telling you?” If not, you probably have a story of frustration or worse to tell about the ensuing experiences resulting from your focusing on something that wasn’t right for you.

To avoid those painful experiences as much as possible, I remind myself to feel for that spark of recognition or resonance. If I don’t have it, I set aside the book or the ideas being shared, for now.

Trust your own gut or intuition to generate a spark of recognition or the opposite sick feeling in your gut if something is right for you or not a good fit. Don’t let others drown out the voice of your inner wisdom, especially when they’re using fear tactics like, “You’ll be left behind if you don’t join my bandwagon.”

You don’t have to make others wrong by making a different choice. In fact, their ideas might be perfect for you later, just not now.

Simply feel for that spark of recognition and if it’s not there now, stay open to it arriving later (or never), with no judgment either way.

This same process can be followed when making big decisions. I wrote about trusting your gut in discerning whether or not the entrepreneurial experience is right for you in the March issue of Austin Woman Magazine. You can read it HERE.

Or, if you’d like some support in developing more trust in your intuition and using it to take inspired action, then consider joining me on April 16^th for the Jump Start to Inspired Action program (early bird pricing ends March 31^st). Find out more HERE.

Wherever you are on your journey to trusting your intuition, start challenging yourself to pay attention to how you feel about ideas being shared before you make the decision to incorporate them as your own.

Make a commitment to not abandon yourself – your inner wisdom – regardless of how many others are trying to convince you to do so. Feel for your spark of recognition and honor it or the lack of it, then move on to the next great idea.

About a year ago, Lisa (not her real name) participated in my weekly talk at the Lake Austin Spa. When it came time to do my aha-generating activity of asking a question and pulling one of 60 images to intuit what that image has to tell you about your question, Lisa didn’t hesitate. She’d lost her father three months earlier and was still deeply grieving his absence from her life. Her question was about how she could heal and positively maintain her closeness to her father.

The image she selected was of a puppy looking into her eyes (the viewer of the photo). Lisa’s immediate reaction was a complete rejection of the value of the image, as she disliked dogs, had experienced allergic reactions to them, and didn’t want the responsibility of one. Needless to say, her overwhelming response was “This is clearly a mistake and NOT the answer to my question.” Her daughter and mother, who were with her at the time, laughed and got it, as they knew about her dislike of dogs.

What gift or Aha! Moment have you resisted receiving?

Weeks later, Lisa was volunteering at a large community event when her teenage son interrupted her and asked for $5.00. She thought he was asking for it to buy some food and handed over the money. Less than an hour later, her son raced up to her screaming “Can we keep it? Can we keep it?” Completely flustered, Lisa had no idea what he was talking about, but saw many eyes focused on her and heard an announcer’s voice over the public address system asking what her son’s decision was about the dog!”

“What dog?” Lisa asked. It turns out her son used that $5.00 to buy five chances to win a dog. With over 1000 entries to compete with, Lisa’s son was the lucky winner of a puppy! Pressured by her son and the people around her, Lisa caved in and said, “Yes, you can keep the dog.”

After bringing this darling beagle home, Lisa’s mother told her stories she’d never heard about her father’s beagle. Apparently he’d had a beagle he was crazy about before he married her mom, and she shared how much he loved that dog. Then, her mother reminded Lisa of the image she’d selected during my talk weeks before!

Each time Lisa tells this story, she says she gets tears in her eyes because it reminds her how much she is loved by her father and how she is truly guided every step of the way. And, yes, her beloved beagle is now Lisa’s best friend…and her son gets to enjoy the dog too!

Sometimes the biggest Aha! Moments come days, weeks, or months later after we miss the first one. And, then — when we remember — we begin know on a deep level that we can’t get it wrong. If something is important and for our greatest benefit, we’ll be reminded of it again and again until we get ‘it.’ Or, we’ll be led directly to what we need.

Aha Moments Book Facebook Wall

One of my passions is helping people step into their greatness by reminding them how to access their intuition and generate more Aha! Moments. I’ve got two exciting group coaching programs beginning on January 31st to help you do this, so 2012 will be your best year yet. Check them out and trust your gut to lead you to the program that’s right for you!

If you live in the Austin area and would like to take part in the next in-person Aha! Austin Coaching Circle, Click Here.

To find out more about and to register for the next tele-conference version of the Aha! Coaching Circle,  Click Here.

In this time of transition from one year to the next, it behooves all of us to be reminded to trust our intuition and not to wait for permission, perfection, or expertise before unleashing what’s yearning to be expressed within each of us:

Take an inspired leap and allow your creative expression to flow.

There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this creative expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost.

The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, nor how valuable, nor how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.” —Martha Graham (emphasis added)

I love how Graham said “the world will not have it.” Feel the power and the stomping of the feet of the world in that statement. We must keep expressing, no matter how imperfect that expression may be. We have no idea who will be touched, changed, and served by what we’re called to share.

Your inner critic and doubter can serve a vital purpose to slow you down in order to wait for the synchronicities or the support, but it should never block you from beginning to express your creativity.

Be assured that anyone who steps in to judge and criticize your creative expression is either: a) throwing up their own inner demons that have blocked them from expressing themselves; b) acting as a mirror for you to come to terms with the harsh judge within; or c) providing guidance (perhaps a bit clumsily, but with loving intent) to simply evolve your creative expression into something that will be even better. It’s up to you to discern which it is, glean from that criticism what you need to, and continue expressing yourself.

What have you been yearning to creatively express? Keep in mind that ‘creatively’ doesn’t mean artistically. It can be a form of artistic expression, but your creative expression might be to fully step into being the leader, manager, or entrepreneur you know yourself capable of being.

How will you give yourself more space to create, express, and evolve in 2012?

Will you do what it takes to keep your creative channels open? The world needs you – - fully expressing and sharing your gifts. Just say “YES!” to whatever your inspired to create and watch how you begin to thrive and to inspire others. Aha!

Join me for my Winter Solstice One-Day Retreat in Driftwood, Texas on Thursday, December 22nd to reclaim your light and re-open your creative channels! www.inspiredleap.com/retreats

Or, join me in January for a Visioning 2012 Webinar or Half-Day Workshop:

http://www.inspiredleap.com/classes/visioning.html

*Photo courtesy of Big Stock Photo

What small act of self-care can you do for yourself today?

I initially ignored my reaction to the noise and picked up a shopping basket. As harsh sounds continued to reverberate throughout the store, I stopped and asked myself if I really needed any of the items on my list immediately. After a clear no, I honored myself and my energy, dropped the basket back where I found it, and walked out of the store.

Yes, I’ll need to go back (to a different store) later today or tomorrow, but that slight inconvenience was so worth it. My body feels like it’s smiling in deep appreciation for my willingness to stand up for and take good care of it. I feel empowered and loved.

The queen of self-care, my friend Renee Trudeau, will be happy to know her message is getting through to me even when I’m temporarily inconvenienced by honoring my need for self-care.  ( www.reneetrudeau.com)

Self-Care. Self-Compassion. Self-Acceptance. Self-Kindness. Self-Love. Whatever you call treating yourself the way you’d treat a much-loved, much-respected, and honored guest, my sense is none of us care for ourselves the way we deserve often enough. What small act of self-care can you do for yourself today? Perhaps it’s simply giving yourself a hug, blowing a kiss to yourself in the mirror, grabbing a few moments for a walk in nature, or mindfully and with great love rubbing hand lotion into your beautiful hands.

Whatever pops into your mind, take the time to do that act of self-care or self-love. Then, take one extra minute to notice how you feel afterwards. Let that wonderful feeling inspire you to moments of self-care more often and witness the positive changes that result. Aha!

**Image courtesy of Big Stock Photo & Elena Ray

A fresh start requires room to breathe and expand into your dreams. What can you let go of in order to create wide open spaces for your dreams to expand into??

I pray that your fresh start is more like mine — a psychological shift or small physical shift — rather than a dramatic start over. And, may those who find themselves rebuilding their lives in a new space receive all of the love and practical support they need.

If you’re able to contemplate creating a positive fresh start, take a moment to consider what you’re ready to let go of physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually in order to make room for and experience the life you desire.

Contemplate a worst case scenario like some around Austin and other parts of Texas are dealing with:  if you had 15-30 minutes to pack a car with your most treasured possessions, what would you take? What if that car could only take the most treasured parts of your personality, your skills, your memories, your habits, and so on?

What would you consciously choose to leave behind? Why not start to leave it behind or let it go now? Why not forgive yourself or others for ‘stuff’ that is just taking up space and energy?

Make room for your dreams. Embrace your chance for a fresh start.

If you’d like support with your fresh start and feel you’re ready for a powerful transformation, join the next Aha! Coaching Circle. We begin on Tuesday, September 13th. Are you being called to complete this circle?

*Picture courtesy of Big Stock Photo

Where do you want your fresh start to take you? What can you let go of to speed you on your way?

Just like back-to-school, it’s a time to let go of what no longer serves us, keep what works, and allow for the new to come in. In this week of transition from August to September,  is there anything you need to let go of in order to bring in all that you desire this fall?

Imagine a move — a shift — taking place at home, at work, and inside. What no longer serves you or is useful? Can files be cleared? Clothes and other stuff taken to Goodwill or sold online? How about any old habits that you intuitively know aren’t helping you go where you long to go?

Leaving the past behind, every moment is obviously an opportunity for a fresh start. But, let’s keep it simple. In honor of the Labor Day weekend here in the U.S., I’d like to declare Tuesday, September 6th as “Fresh Start Day.”

If you knew you had one week to clear out inner and outer clutter, what immediately comes to mind as what you’d let go of? That’s it! I bet that’s all you need to focus on releasing this week in order to facilitate a positive shift forward this fall. Why not try it?

Take an inspired leap this week. What are you inspired to let go of in order to embark upon a fantastic fresh start on September 6th?

P.S. And if you’d like to take your fresh start this fall even further, please join me for the next Aha! Coaching Circle. We start on Tuesday, September 13th.  http://www.inspiredleap.com/ahacircle

**Photo courtesy of BigStockPhoto

Summer is the perfect time to re-read a book that has inspired you in the past.

I’m not sure what the source of the inspiration was, but within the pages of Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor’s book, My Stroke of Insight, I realized my right brain had something to do with it. Dr. Taylor reminded me that it’s our right brain that brings “new insight in this moment so I can update old files that contain outdated information.” (p. 140)

With the unique perspective of a brain scientist who experienced a severe stroke at the young age of 37 and spent almost ten years regaining the ability to use the left hemisphere of her brain, Dr. Taylor makes a strong case for honoring and more consciously using the gifts of the right hemisphere of the brain.

She points out that our left brain tends to get locked into beliefs and decisions and without prodding is unwilling to revisit them: “Many of us make judgments with our left hemisphere and then are not willing to step to the right (that is, into the consciousness of our right hemisphere) for a file update.” (p. 140, My Stroke of Insight).

I’m not the same person I was back in 2008 and am now finding new insights from Dr. Taylor’s book ‘jumping off the page’ and into my awareness. Despite my left brain’s hesitation, I was clearly ready for a “file update.”

Is there a book that you intuitively feel inspired to re-view, or an old belief or decision that needs to be revisited? If so, trust the wisdom of your right brain to shift your perspective and enable you to experience that ‘old’ information in a brand new way.

And, if you feel called to go deeper to discern what needs to shift within you, consider joining me for the July Aha! Tele-Retreat on Tuesday evening, July 12th at 8:00pm Central.

http://www.inspiredleap.com/classes/teleretreat.html

*Photo courtesy of Big Stock Photo

Last night, at my weekly talk for Lake Austin Spa Resort guests, I was reminded of the powerful pull the habit of second-guessing has. I witnessed a guest experiencing an Aha! Moment of clarity about an important personal issue, only to watch her immediately start to second-guess the knowing – - the Aha! – - that arose from an exercise she did to tap into her intuition.

Your inner critic can throw out numerous challenges to your decision, making you feel as if you're in an unfair tug-of-war with yourself.

Sharon (not her real name) acknowledged that she often does this — begins an inner tug-of-war with all of her second-guessing. She experiences an intuitive hit or an even stronger Aha! Moment, but then immediately begins back-pedaling from the answer she received by allowing her mind to start throwing “yeah, buts” in her path.

My niece just experienced this too when she had to declare where she was attending college. After choosing Ohio State University, my sister said Mikaela awoke the next morning second-guessing her decision, taking all of the joy and peace out of an exciting decision.

I’ve tried telling myself and clients during these times to “trust yourself, let go of the worry, and know that you made the best decision,” but this advice ignores the power of the inner critic and all of the brainwashing most of us experienced that told us to value answers reached logically as being better than answers reached intuitively. And, it turns out we’re wired to have a logical, analytical left brain try to dominate the wisdom of the intuitive right brain.

So, I’ve found it’s infinitely better to make peace with this inner tug-of-war, with this second-guessing, by doing the following:

1. Honor, state, and even write down (if you feel inspired to do so), the initial answer you received or made and how and why it felt so right, so that feeling — that knowing — doesn’t get lost in post-decision analysis.
2. Acknowledge the “yeah, buts,” the mental chatter about needing to seek expert opinion, or to get some data to back up the decision. This is a part of you that desires to stay in charge (What were you thinking to bypass thinking in order to reach a decision???) or rears up to keep you safely living and working in the status quo. So, acknowledge the thoughts and thank them for showing up.
3. Schedule an appointment with yourself to give voice to and “hear out” what second-guessing mind wants to tell you. Literally put this appointment on a calendar. When the voices in your head start to challenge your decision, remind yourself that you’ve got an appointment to hear them out and move on. Depending upon how quickly you must take serious action on your decision, that appointment might be later in the day, the next day, or some time during the next week.
4. Begin to take small steps that reinforce and start the forward progress called for from your original decision. Nothing too big or too dramatic. Just steps that help you get more comfortable with your decision (or make you aware of any real discomfort with moving forward).
5. At the appointed time, write down all of the worries, concerns, and challenges connected with the original decision. Get them out of your head and on to paper. Breathe.
6. Having given your inner critic or dissenting voice a chance to speak, connect with your heart (your connection to the wisdom of your soul or Higher Self) and ask yourself if any of these concerns are worth over-turning your decision or perhaps amending the decision.
7. Take action on whatever clarity you gained from this last check in with your heart.
8. Repeat this process as often as necessary in order to confidently move forward.

By honoring the gifts and wisdom of all parts of yourself, you bring blessed inner peace to your decisions, increase your confidence in taking the necessary inspired action resulting from these decisions, and maximize your effectiveness because you’re no longer at war with yourself. It also becomes safe to really listen to your intuition because you know you’ll be engaging — not abandoning — your logical left brain before acting upon your intuitive hits.

Some don’t need this. They decide, whether via intuition or logic, and move on. Some of us do. Make peace with how you’re wired and reap the benefits of your second-guessing whenever it occurs. Aha!

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I have to laugh that the the inspiration for this last day’s post took awhile to gel within me (I committed to writing each day based upon inspiration — none of the posts were written a day earlier). However, more patience and trust are two of the gifts for me from moving to live from inspiration, so I knew the clarity would come before the day was done.

“When you come to the edge of all that you know, you must believe in one of two things: there will be earth upon which to stand, or you will be given wings.” (Author Unknown)

Are you being inspired to wait patiently upon the earth for the next step to be revealed, or are you being called to recognize that you've been given wings and are meant to fly toward your dreams?

I have this quote framed and look at it often. Its meaning to me has evolved over the past few years. Now this quote speaks to me of checking in and trusting my intuition — my Divine inspiration — to guide me to the optimal next step: to do nothing and wait for Divine Right Timing (stand upon the earth) or to fly — to take that inspired leap forward toward an unfolding dream.

For me, the greatest gifts that come from surrendering to the process of seeking out and waiting for inspired action to reveal itself are the increased peace, confidence, trust, and knowing that I can safely go  to the edge of all that I know again and again each day. The information I need to proceed will always reveal itself in Divine Right Timing and sometimes it quite magical and delightful ways.

Only you will know what gifts await you as you move into a deeper level of trust in your brilliance, your intuition, you innate connection to the profound wisdom of your Higher Self and the Divine. But, in these times of global turmoil, I can’t think of a better time to dive in and find out.

If you’ve only read a few of the posts this month, I encourage you to peruse all 30 posts. Not all of them may speak to you, but I promise there are powerful nuggets of inspiration and wisdom within to help you deepen your trust in your inspiration to guide you to the right next action step.

As I blogged about yesterday, the key is to be playful and see this as a game or an adventure. You might start with approaching one dream, goal, or part of your life this way and then expand it into more and more of your life, as you experience the benefits of living and working this way.

Where in your life are you inspired to stand upon the earth, waiting for the next step to reveal itself and where are you being called to trust the wings have been attached and it’s time to fly?

You’re far more brilliant than you think you are. Trust yourself. Take an inspired leap today!

**Photo courtesy of Big Stock Photo

The word “play” kept popping into my mind while getting some tasks done early this morning. I was playing with the idea of blogging about play today (hint as to what I mean by ‘play’) when I came across a party invitation I need to respond to. This is for a birthday party for a dear friend’s granddaughters (whom I adore). They’re turning two this weekend.

The invitation asked me, “Are you ready to play, hang out with all your pals, and have a powered by fun day?” I chuckled and thought to myself, “Who wouldn’t answer yes to that question everyday if they could, no matter what their age?”

Yet, as unrealistic as it may sound, approaching each day from that child-like (not childish) viewpoint is a realistic goal and living life from one inspired action to the next gets us there.

When you began to get in the flow of life, are curious about what inspiration will show up today, and experience joy-filled gratitude for the smallest to the biggest synchronicities that show up, you can’t help but start to live and work “powered by fun.”

I know I’ve written about being playful before, but as we head into another weekend, I feel compelled to reinforce this message, as a playful approach to even the most pressing, serious challenge is guaranteed to get you to the optimal answer and end result better than any other approach. I’ve experienced and witnessed this time and time again.

Inspired leaps and action steps occur when you give yourself permission to approach challenges and your entire day from a playful perspective. I dare you live this day powered by play!

Whether you’re playfully working on the problem directly or engaging in play to take your mind off of it, being in play mode relaxes you and allows information to flow into and through your energy system and enables all of your forms of intelligence: mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual to communicate with one another.

Information you need flows easily to you because your stress level goes down. Studies repeatedly show the crippling effect of too much stress. Most of us remember and feel guilty about the physical toll stress takes on us, but don’t see a way out of the daily grind. However, I think the toll it takes on your ability to think and intuit well is the most damaging.

When you’re approaching a challenge playfully, you’re open and in a state of connection to your Higher Self via the intuitive inspirations that come into your awareness. Consequently, you’re also at your  most brilliant.

From this vantage point, you can access creative ideas and answers to both the pressing work challenges and the question of how to reduce the stress in your life. You’ll also naturally be slowly reducing the stress just by approaching more and more of your daily challenges from this perspective.

I challenge you to get out of your adult head and into your open, curious, childlike, playful heart and soul today and this weekend. How much of a “powered by fun” day can you stand? Go just beyond that and notice how clear your mind gets and how much easier the problems get solved.

What inspired FUN action are you called to take today and this weekend?

**Photo courtesy of Big Stock Photo