Category: - Welcome to Clutter Mastermind Organizing Services

Show me an example My title page contents

Soft Heart Emotion Regulation Tool

10/1/2012

Soft Heart – a place to regenerate and find renewed balance from the Institute of Heart Math is an emotion regulation tool. Your Soft Heart is a warm place of compassion for yourself, a place of ease and self care.   A useful metaphor for Soft Heart is a warm, calming bath. Imagine yourself soaking in this bath in your heart, easing away tension and anxiety little by little.

Your first step, before entering the "soak," is to recognize that you’re feeling disturbed, overwhelmed or depressed.
Remember, it’s not the issues that cause your low-ebb feelings as much as the significance
you’re giving them.
Now, find your Soft Heart attitude by feeling love, care or appreciation for a person, pet or
something you really care about. This helps you get into a soft place in your heart and increases your effectiveness when feeling care and compassion for yourself.
Soak and relax any unwanted feelings in the compassion of the heart, letting the
significance dissolve a little at a time. Take your time doing this.
Keeping your attention in a Soft Heart can allow more coherent heart rhythms to emerge,
helping you recoup mental, emotional and physical vitality.
Respect the fact that you are human, living in challenging times. Allow yourself to ease
and rest in the comfort of your Soft Heart to recoup energy.

As you move in slower motion for a while, you’ll find that your emotional energy delicately
recharges and your vitality and heart buoyancy eventually will return.

P.S. The above has been adapted from the e-booklet The
Power of Emotion.

How to Remember Names

9/30/2012

From Silva Method:

Tip #1: approach everyone with the attitude of
openness and friendship, and the willingness to start a relationship (whether professional or personal). When you’re interested in someone, you remember more about them.

Tip #2: Tell yourself that you’re good at remembering names. Remember what you say, is often a self-fulfilling prophecy. You can’t improve your memory by telling yourself that your memory is good… It already is! The human brain is an amazing data storage facility. Once data is entered, it remains there forever. The problem is retrieval of that data… start reprogramming yourself with positive self-talk.

Tip #3: Shift the focus from you to the other person.
Focusing on remembering their name, on what they do, what their interests are, etc., takes you out of the spotlight, and quickly begins building a relationship. Don’t worry about making an impression by focusing the attention on yourself. The best first impression you can make is to show the person that
you are interested in them.

Tip #4: Use tools. Ask for business cards. Write down their name and contact information. You can even do this when you run into someone you’ve already met whose name you can’t recall. People love to give out their business cards and are usually flattered to be included on your contact list.

Tip #5. If someone’s name is foreign, hard to pronounce or complicated, become fascinated with it. Repeat it, ask for help with pronunciation – put the focus on the person, saying you don’t want to mispronounce their name – and ask about its origins, spelling, etc. People usually love talking about themselves! Make a real effort to pronounce their name correctly. And remember – if you travel to a foreign country, YOUR name may be complicated and foreign to other people!

Tip #7: As you meet people, say their name in your head several times during the conversation. Focus on putting the name to the face. We remember things with a combination of visualization, imagination and associations. Try associating names with something that catches your attention about the person or reminds you of them: their work, their appearance, where they’re from, etc. Rhymes work very well if you want to use word-association.

Tip #8: Introduce yourself first if the other person is hesitating and there’s no one making introductions. Big smile, open handshake, eye contact and “hi, I’m…” shows confidence and openness. Even if you’re not feeling confident, make yourself do it. It’s a few seconds of awkwardness that could result in a lifelong friendship. Go out of your way to establish contact first.

Tip #9: Always remember that the sound of a person’s name is (to them) the sweetest sound on Earth. You create an immediate bond when you address someone by name. The person you’re speaking to will no longer be “that guy who came in and bought my product” – he will be “Joe Smith, my newest customer.”

Silva Method Headache Control Relief

9/28/2012

How to Use Headache Control First, enter the alpha brainwave state. This not only relaxes you quickly and dissipates much of the stress that’s causing the headache in the first place, but it is also the most suggestible brainwave state. This is the state in which you do your self-reprogramming. Applying Headache Control while in your normal waking beta brainwave state will not be effective.

Headache Control is self-programming to release a problematic, painful symptom of stress: your headache. While in the alpha state, use the five-step process for solving any problem, to solve the problem of having a headache:

     1. State the problem – you are stating that you have a headache, and that it is an undesirable feeling

     2. State the goal – you re stating that you want to be headache-free, feeling normal and healthy

     3. Establish a plan to reach the goal - you are programming the process into your mind; that as you count down from five, the headache will dissipate with each count

     4. Implement the plan – you are counting down, as you’ve programmed yourself, and the headache is dissipating with each count

     5. Claim your desired end result - you are headache-free

Using the five-step process, you are programming yourself to release the headache.

Making Your Plan

9/27/2012

So it has been 2 weeks since the start of the challenge:   have you made a plan yet? Do you know what you want to accomplish in the next 100 days? Did you take the time to do some introspection and journaling? It's never too late to start.

Keep in mind that planning is not meant to cram more into your day but to simplify the routine tasks in your life as well as to schedule important or fun things that need to be done. With the goal of living more simply in mind, you will have more time for joy and connecting to your passion if you plan. What do you want to do more of? What do you need to do less of in order to free up some time? Plan for some fun seasonal activities and actually schedule them.

Look at what do you need to do every day to maintain your life. Create a daily checklist so things flow easily and you don't have to think about it. Eventually this flow becomes habit.

Create a weekly "to do" list for things that need to be done that week and don't overfill each day. Be reasonable about your expectations and remember to be gentle with yourself. If you get more done than you planned, celebrate!

Now it's time to deal with your goals. What do you want to accomplish in the next 3 months? Do you want to create a new habit? Do you want to focus on your health? Do you need to prepare for big holiday plans or life events?   Break it down into baby steps. Pick 2 items for each of the next 3 months that you want to do. Then pick a focus for each week based on those priorities.  It might help to focus you if you look back at the last 3 months and re-prioritize. Do the last set of goals still matter to you?  Circumstances might have shifted and the old goals are no longer a priority. If they are still important to you, re-focus and decide on what the next steps are to make it happen.

Remember that the urgent tends to get in the way of the important and sometimes at the end of the day you wonder why you didn't get anything done. By taking time to actually plan, you will be able to accomplish more because you have a roadmap to where you want to go.

Stop It!

9/25/2012

In order to simplify your life, you might need to look at things you do that fill it up that might not be alignment with who you are right now.

Do Twitter and Facebook really enhance your life? Are you willing to give up TV? Does checking your e-mail every hour make you feel better about yourself?

Some activities are habits that you don't recognize as harmful, yet in reality they take time away from what you say really matters to you. Actions truly do speak louder than words and you need to look at the payoff versus the cost of anything you do without being mindful.

For me, I spend time on facebook sharing inspirational quotes and photos and quirky humor with family and friends I know. I try to keep my friends to a low number because frankly having too many facebook friends means too much information streaming by on a daily basis. I have family and friends all over the country and it is my way of touching and being touched by who they are on a regular basis.

To that end, I have cut way down on reading e-mails: I have unsubscribed from many lists I am interested in because it is just way too much data to process when you prefer simplicity. I rarely watch the news or read a newspaper: I figure if there is something I really need to know, someone will tell me. If I have a few moments I will scan headlines on my computer to keep up; if not, I won't.

If I want to know something, I'll research it. I have realized I only want to add new information in snippets; one might consider that less than intellectual but I am no longer in school so I don't have any "required" reading anymore. I cringe when someone wants me to "analyze" something. It's different if I am passionate about something, but you can't be passionate about everything!

It's time for a reality check, but please be gentle with yourself. There are only so many hours in a day: how are you going to spend them?

6 Thinking Hats by Edward de Bono

9/24/2012

I came across this process and thought I would share it with you. When you need to make a decision, it is helpful to view it from many angles and perspectives. A mixture of rationality, intuition, creativity and even resistance and negativity works best in figuring out the best possible outcome. Each 'Thinking Hat' is a different style of thinking as explained below:

White Hat:
With this thinking hat you focus on the data available. Look at the information you have, and see what you can learn from it. Look for gaps in your knowledge, and either try to fill them or take account of them.
This is where you analyze past trends, and try to extrapolate from historical data.
Red Hat:
'Wearing' the red hat, you look at problems using intuition, gut reaction, and emotion. Also try to think how other people will react emotionally. Try to understand the responses of people who do not fully know your reasoning.
Black Hat:
Using black hat thinking, look at all the bad points of the decision. Look at it cautiously and defensively. Try to see why it might not work. This is important because it highlights the weak points in a plan. It allows you to eliminate them, alter them, or prepare contingency plans to counter them.
Black Hat thinking helps to make your plans 'tougher' and more resilient. It can also help you to spot fatal flaws and risks before you embark on a course of action. Black Hat thinking is one of the real benefits of this technique, as many successful people get so used to thinking positively that often they cannot see problems in advance. This leaves them under-prepared for difficulties.
Yellow Hat:
The yellow hat helps you to think positively. It is the optimistic viewpoint that helps you to see all the benefits of the decision and the value in it. Yellow Hat thinking helps you to keep going when everything looks gloomy and difficult.
Green Hat:
The Green Hat stands for creativity. This is where you can develop creative solutions to a problem. It is a freewheeling way of thinking, in which there is little criticism of ideas. A whole range of creativity tools can help you here.
Blue Hat:
The Blue Hat stands for process control. This is the hat worn by people chairing meetings. When running into difficulties because ideas are running dry, they may direct activity into Green Hat thinking. When contingency plans are needed, they will ask for Black Hat thinking, etc.

Next time you have to make a decision perhaps this tool will help you ...

Making Choices Without Guilt

9/23/2012

“Life is a sum of all your choices” ~Albert Camus

When confronted with the reality of too "so much to do ... so little time", slow down and look at your choices with a new filter to avoid feeling overwhelmed. There will always be demands on your time, both self-imposed and those coming from others. You don't have to join, read, subscribe to or do everything that crosses your path. There will always be plenty of opportunities and sometimes you have to look at the timing. Rather than cramming more into your already busy life, what will you be willing to give up in order to make time for something new? What is the life you want worth to you? Don't make decisions based on the easiest solution or out of habit. Don't do something out of a sense of guilt or obligation but make the decision based on how you will personally benefit. Are you passionate about it? Is it in line with your current priorities, values and goals? Will it help you expand your energy or constrict you? Will it make your life simpler?

All decisions aren't a matter of life or death; some just naturally matter more than others. All you can do is make a decision based on your current priorities and what you know now. If you procrastinate, the energy around the decision gets stuck. Do some research; make a pro and con list. The important thing is not to stay in analysis paralysis because then the decision gets made for you. Don't let your fear stop you. Once you decide ... take some action. Modify along the way: flexibility is important. Always remember: you always get a "re-do" if it doesn't work out the first time.

"There comes a time when the pain of continuing exceeds the pain of stopping. At that moment, a threshold is crossed. What seemed unthinkable becomes thinkable. Slowly, the realization emerges that the choice to continue what you have been doing is the choice to live in discomfort, and the choice to stop what you have been doing is the choice to breathe deeply and freely again. Once that realization has emerged, you can either honor it or ignore it, but you cannot forget it. What has become known can not become unknown again."
- Gary Zukav

You Want a Physicist to Speak at Your Funeral by Aaron Freeman

9/22/2012

Powerful so I had to share this ... everything is energy ...

HeartMath “Increasing Energy” Tip

9/21/2012

Look at life as an energy economy game. Each day ask yourself the following questions:

Are my energy expenditures — actions, reactions, thoughts and feelings — productive or nonproductive?
During the course of my day, have I accumulated more stress or more peace?
Where and when do I need to activate the power of my heart and intentionally choose sincere feelings such as appreciation, care and love?

The goal of asking and answering these questions is to help you learn to stop energy leaks deliberately and on demand, so you increase your energy reserves and ultimately spend more of your day at an optimal, regenerative level of energy.

How to Do Walking Meditation by The Silva Method

9/20/2012

Walking meditation is best done outdoors where you can walk freely (as opposed to indoors, where you would have to be aware of the limited space available and use conscious thought to remember to turn around and navigate in tight quarters).

First, find a level place to walk. Running tracks at schools are great; if none is handy, a paved or level dirt path is suitable; avoid rough terrain or busy locations full of distraction. Sorry, but leave the dog at home! It’s tempting to want to multi-task and walk Fido at the same time, but you can’t focus on walking when your attention is on the dog.

Before you begin, establish awareness of your body and your environment by noticing how you are standing – your posture, whether your eyes are ahead or downcast, whether you feel energetic (tall) or lethargic (slumped). What is the environment like? How is the temperature? What do you see, smell and hear? Is there a breeze? Are there clouds or bright sunshine? Take a few deep cleansing, relaxing breaths, and set your intention to become mindful of the experience of walking by saying, “walking!”

Begin walking. Focus your awareness only the sole of each foot and how it interacts with the ground; focus intently on how it feels to push off the ground, lift the foot, move it forward and step back onto the ground. When your attention wanders, gently bring it back, just like when you focus on the breath during sitting meditation. Let your mind’s chatter be nothing more than background noise and stay focused on the steps.

If you have trouble quieting the mind, stop walking, and mentally say, “thinking!” Pause for a moment, set the intention again: “walking!” Then, begin walking again. Don’t overdo this – it can get frustrating if your mind is particularly noisy. If that happens, become aware of your thoughts while you walk, don’t attach to them and just observe. Soon the chatter will quiet down and you’ll be able to refocus on walking.

Start with 15 minutes and work up to longer periods as your ability to hold your attention increases. Or, you can do walking meditation for 15-30 minutes and follow it up with a sitting meditation. This will bring balance into your practice. You can alternate walking and sitting meditation from day to day to enhance your present-awareness and keep your practice fresh and to develop your abilities.