“Most people give up just when they’re about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game one foot from a winning touchdown.”
            – Ross Perot

I have a lovely short two minute video to share with you, and I hope you’ll see why I feel it’s so vitally important to watch it.

It’s a perfect reminder of how life works, and why we can’t always believe that what our eyes see, is all that there is.

To rely only our five senses, may limit us. Yet it’s so easy to do, and it can be so convincing.

The process of life can be mystifying! Sometimes it seems nothing is evolving, when in truth we just can’t see it with our eyes.

Cultivating Faith can be a massive challenge. Of course, it’s easy to have Faith when we have signs “proving” it. But it’s much harder to have Faith when we have no obvious clear proof, and when looking at our surroundings, we may even see contradictory evidence.

So, when the road has been too long, or it feels that things just will not change for the better, when it appears that all your steps are getting you nowhere, and your efforts are failing … watch this video again.  And let it be a reminder that what you see isn’t all that’s happening.

With every tiny step you take toward your goal, and every “seed” of action you plant, trust that it’s all working together… even when for a moment, you see no proof.

We must not only see with our eyes, but with our inner vision. Miracles are always unfolding. Sometimes they’re just slower than we’d like them to be.

 “Never give up, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.”
Harriet Beecher Stowe

 “Many men fail because they quit too soon. They lose Faith when the signs are against them. They do not have the courage to hold on, to keep fighting in spite of that which seems insurmountable. If more of us would strike out and attempt the “impossible,” we very soon would find the truth of that old saying that nothing is impossible…abolish fear and you can accomplish anything you wish.”
                         – Dr. C. E. Welch (founder, Welch’s Grape Juice)

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

Do Your Eyes Deceive You? originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on January 21, 2013.
http://www.kaizenvision.com

I choose to review this book Vision, by Gordon D’Angelo after learning that 100% of the profits from this book will go to charities around the country. That was enough to capture my attention, well that and the subject matter, of course! …since strategic steps toward living your vision is aligned with personal kaizen.

Having read countless books and taken countless courses on goal setting and life design, I often feel there’s not really much more I can learn about the different approaches to making things happen in life. However, I can always benefit from a fresh approach, to up my own life game a bit more, and re-think my own strategies and systems for making things happen.

So, how does this book differ from other goal setting books?

The strengths:

1. Its blueprint for “Strategic Visionary Planning”

2. Its detailed examples of how to use this technique to grow business.

One can apply this technique and plan to numerous aspects in life, but its special oomph is that it shows you how to apply his techniques to grow/increase business. A must read for any business owner or sales professional.

Who is this book ideal for?

This book is great for those who want a pragmatic approach to using results driven vision to help them create the success they desire. Often times books and training on goal setting, visioning, and life design use more whimsical concepts and refer to the law of attraction which turn-off a certain type of person. For those who would prefer a book that doesn’t refer to law of attraction, but rather prefer a solution that involves clearly defined actions and initiatives with measurable results as part of their plan for success, this is that book and that technique.

It’s also a great book for anyone who feels they’ve fallen off track on their goals. I happened to read it at the beginning of this Holiday season when numerous holiday preparations were absorbing my energy and taking me away from my own vision and life goals. It was a great reminder to re-align with my personal mission and to consciously use my time wisely and not let it slip away into the numerous activities that are screaming for attention and action.

I must highlight that with its use of detailed business examples, this book especially  ideal for any sales team, sales manager, business owner, or entrepreneur.

How to get the most out of this book:

I recommend reading it once through in one sitting if you can, and then working it through it from front to back as a workbook.

By reading it through cover to cover in as short a time as possible, it will provide you with an overall clear picture of his technique and how to use it. It won’t create the change you seek, by simply reading it through once, but it will give you the big picture that will allow you to take your time working through the process the second time go through it.

A look inside the book:

The author speaks about time as our main gift, and to perpetuate our energy in whatever we do, otherwise we are on that “life treadmill” of busyness which prevents us from success we desire and the success that is possible for us.

” Perpetual energy is a great way to win the day. … I know a lot of people who work their tail off and don’t get the results they want. If you’re not perpetuating energy you’re running on a treadmill. You’re moving and getting nowhere… Every day can be won.”

The author clearly distinguishes between the vision and the activities. When mind is focused on creating and clarifying the vision, at that time, mind is not focused on the activities to get there. There is a time to come up with (or create) activities, or initiatives, and have them tied to a desired result and intention, but not during the time of creating the vision.

These distinctions make this book a great blueprint for those who have been challenged on creating their successes, or for those who have not yet done this type of work.

Much like differentiating between the vision and the activities, the author distinguishes between activity and results. By having a definable intention, we can create our activities with results in mind. “Activity does not win the day. Activity helps the day. Results win the day.”

Summary:

The book has plenty of real work examples to help the reader understand how clear their vision is, how measurable and definable their initiatives are, and how to use this information to refine their process. 

If you need to discover (or re-discover) your vision for your life, or you’re looking for an action plan to help you turn your desires into action, you’ll need to find an approach that works for you and  find one that relates to your desired course of action.

If you’re a logical, pragmatic type of person who prefers to implement a specific strategy and course of action, and you’re someone who wants to build their business (increase revenue and customers) then this is the book for you! It really is its best asset, as it relates the logical business mind to life vision and creating an action plan for yourself.

P.S This book would make a great gift for this Holiday season.

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

Vision, Your Pathway to Victory – A Book Review originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on December 5, 2012.
http://www.kaizenvision.com

I confess, I LOVE the holiday season! For me it starts just before Halloween, my very favorite holiday, and then I delve into the bliss of gratitude and play around with images of fall leaves in my mind as I welcome in Thanksgiving.

Well now, those two have come and past for the year, and Christmas is on its way!

But the fact remains that many of us will go through varying degree of stress, since, well; the holidays aren’t always merry and bright.

So how do you preserve your inner well-being through this emotional and often stressful time?
Seriously, I’d like to know – so tell me in the comment section please

What I suggest is a simple, effective, small thing we can all do that will release stress, and help us rise above any inner unrest.

Breathe.

Yes, I said breathe. But, listen just a bit more here.

When I began studying singing with one of my greatest voice teachers we would spend the first 20 to 30 minutes breathing, deepening each breath, one deeper than the one before. I would lie on my back in the voice studio next to the piano and my teacher had her hands under my back and said “try it again. BREATHE.” Exasperated, I would say, “Diana, I’m breathing. I feel it.” She wouldn’t let me stand up until she felt me breathe into my back, which is when she felt my back expand, not until then was I allowed to stand up and begin the vocal exercises. I was usually a bit light headed at that point, because I just wasn’t accustomed to taking in so much air.

After our lesson Dina would often say, “Don’t you feel better after you sing?  It’s like everything in life is okay.
You know, it’s because we breathe deeply when we sing, and we release all of our emotional junk …ahhhh, let’s breathe some more.”

What is a deep breath?

Many people typically tend to breathe with shallow breaths. When we breathe deeply our shoulders will remain down and not hike up to our ears.  When we breathe deeply, we breathe from our bellies (you may have heard ‘breathe from your diaphragm’) our abdomen literally expands so much that our sides and backs expand at the same time. We become balloon like.

If you’ve been breathing shallow breaths your entire life, it may take a while before you’ll feel the full balloon action happening. Just keep working towards it.

To find out if you’re a shallow breather, Put your palms against your lower abdomen and blow out all the air. Now, take a big breath:

• If your abdomen expands (balloon like) when you inhale, and air seems to flow in deeply, you’re on the right track to breathing deeply

• If your abdomen scoops inward (like sucking in your tummy) that’s a shallow breath, and most likely your shoulders reach up towards your ears.

Now let’s begin:

Either sit in a chair or lie on your back when you do this. I recommend lying on the floor.

If you have someone with you who can watch that your shoulders do not rise, and can have their hand on your back to feel your back expand, that would be great! If you don’t, then bring your mind’s attention to your shoulders, your belly, your sides and your back and see if you can be your own guide.

Take five slow deep breaths.

The reason for 5 is that you give yourself 5 opportunities to have your deepest breath.

1. Try – Put your hands on around your waist and feel what happens as you inhale. Do you feel your sides expand, your stomachs expand and do you feel your back expand?

2. Play – Play with numbers. Try breathing in for a slow count of four, pause for two counts at the top of your inhale, and exhale for a slow count of four.
On each new breath try to increase by one count, so on breath cycle number two you inhale for a slow count of four, hold for a count of two  or three, and exhale for a slow count of five.
By your 5^th breath you are inhaling for a slow count of nine, pause, and exhale for a slow count of nine. Do this within reason, if you feel light headed, stay with a smaller duration such as a four count. It may take you a while before you can build up to longer deeper breaths.

3. Focus – Be sure to focus just on your breath and the count. See if you can be free from excess wandering thoughts. Try visualizing the numbers as your count, give them a specific color. The more you can keep your mind focused on your breath, the less wandering thoughts you have, this strengthens your mindful state, and your ability to be completely present in the moment – connecting your mind and body.

4. Aware – Notice how you feel after your fifth breath, the one that you had a nice long count inhale, a pause, and a long count exhale.

Do you feel more centered, relaxed, and mindful of your body and thoughts?

Throughout the day, at any given moment, find moments to stop and give you the gift of 5 consecutive deep breaths.

This type of deep breathing will release a large amount of tension. It may make you feel a bit light headed if you’re not used to breathing deeply. And don’t be surprised if deep slow breaths bring tears to your eyes, it will release emotions. Let it flow out.

This type of breathing will activate a mindful state, and you’ll be more aware, more conscious, and more present in the moment. This state of mindfulness and acute awareness often lifts one up out of any negative emotions simply by bringing one’s attention to the present moment, and filling your awareness with the depth of just being in the here and now.

Feel free to do this for five or ten minutes if you wish. Or just work with the 5 deep breaths. It’s a great way to snap out of stress and other negative states of being.  If you really enjoy the therapeutic nature of breathing deeply, you may want to continue beyond just 5 breath cycles.

Remember, the reason for 5 breaths, is that you give yourself 5 opportunities to have your deepest breath.

Helpful Links:

Simple Stretches for Stress Relief 

Relieve Stress With a Simple Detox Bath

These links for more info on diaphragmatic breathing:

Harvard Health

Mayo Clinic

Dr. Weil

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

One Simple and Effective Way to Release Stress and Experience Mindfulness originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on November 28, 2012.
http://www.kaizenvision.com

If it wasn’t for rain there wouldn’t be rainbows. We’ve all heard that right? But what about when it rains boulders?

When life smacks you down so hard, so fast, you feel stuck under a boulder with only more coming down.

Pretty hard to think about rainbows then!

But one amazing man, who’s been under one of those boulders, continues to amaze and inspire me as he is able to keep his spirits in a consistently strong positive place. He has an unwavering positive perception, and has held on to it for what felt like an eternity on my side watching from a distance.

His words and his reality blow my mind. His mindset reminds me how far I need to grow in terms of mental discipline and deep rooted optimism.

I have tried to write this and share it with you over last several weeks, but each time it fails to convey the power, yet I cannot stop feeling the need to share the inspiration of his story.

For many of us, we may “know” life is cyclical, but experiencing it is another thing all together, right? When life rains boulders, many of us have a hard time seeing the positive and living in the faith that the upside is coming. What we thought we “knew” becomes hidden and lost under blankets of doubt and despair, by the reality we experience.

So here’s a snippet of his story:

After about five years, this man asks the love of his life to marry him. She says yes! They hardly have a moment to share the news, before suddenly he’s in the hospital. At first it seems like it’s something small and easily fixable. But then… a turn. Test results are turning out strange. Things are becoming less and less normal very quickly, and no one knows what’s happening.

More tests, days pass, more tests… and…

It goes from strange, to worse, to bad, to OMG really freaking bad!

We learn that he’ll be in the hospital for a month, and at best he’ll have a month or more of recovery if all goes well. It seems like the team of doctors are playing a guessing game. Then they say they’ll need to drill through his brain and are concerned about infections. I hold my breath, and wait, and pray.

On the one hand I want to congratulate his fiancé on their engagement, since it’s been only 24 hours or so since he asked, and she said “yes”…but how can I? At this moment. It just feels so wrong.

Over a week later, I finally have the chance to speak with him.  He’s stuck lying down in a hospital bed with tubes coming out of his body. He can’t even sit up. He can just lie there, in an incredible amount of pain that most of us could never fathom. He’s on intense amount of medication, so when we speak he talks slow and it takes a lot out of him. But here’s the magic:

“Ya know Aileen, I’ve been thinking about my wedding.”

At this moment I do my best not to burst into tears.

I say, “Really? …what are you thinking?”

He said, “well you know, I’m stuck here and I can’t do anything. I don’t want to think about the amount of money I’m losing in lost work or how much this is going to cost me, or anything else – and so I’ve been wedding planning.”

At this moment, I can’t stop smiling!

He sounds like an exhausted, intoxicated person. His voice is smiling. I can feel his joy.

He goes on to share his wedding plans, all the way down to unique ideas for cake toppers that he asks me to look for. He goes into song choices, after party, and numerous lovely details including the getaway car.

At this moment I have so many emotions flying through me. Trying so hard not to cry, I am stunned at his response to his current life situation/reality. He’s able to connect with thoughts and feelings of bliss, joy, happiness. In this situation!?!

Situations far, far, smaller have had me in a tailspin of negativity and hopelessness.

But, to experience a person choosing true happiness when his life is dramatically compromised and a team of doctors are trying to figure out a solution – HOLY CRAZYNESS! To witness this, wakes me up inside.

What I once believed about my own faith and inner strength are challenged. I have my own battles that I’m wrestling with and they seem so small. Where is my faith in my own life, as I witness his unyielding faith and mental discipline?

About ten days later and several surgeries later, I get to speak with him again. Feeling hesitant to ask, but wanting to know… How do you stay positive? How do you keep your mind on your wedding plans and not fall into depression and anger?

I hesitate to ask, in-case this question would start a downward spiral.

I change the question to  - “How do you stay so positive? Is it natural, or is it effort?”

He responds very simply, “ya know, I just don’t know any other way.”
(I’ll Paraphrase here – he continued…) Shortly before I came into the hospital I found out my book keeper made a mistake and I owe a ton in taxes. At first I was incredibly angry. Then my mind switched and I thought Wow I must have had a really great year last year in order to owe that much in taxes. If I stay on track this year, I’ll make that much again.
“I want to feel good so I change the way I look at things.”

Now Wayne Dyer can say it endlessly “Change the way you look at things and things you look at change,” but when this man says it – and in this situation… it gets very real very fast! It’s one thing to say that and believe it when life hasn’t knocked the breath and stuffing out of you, but to say it, and believe it, and live it when your smacked down hard by this type of life boulder? Well, that’s just totally different.

This amazing man happens to be self-employed and this happens to be his busiest time of year. Instead of focusing on the money lost, how he’ll handle his clients, the money to be owed in medical bills, and the added tax bill… his thoughts are on how awesome his colleagues are. He counts his blessings out loud listing off how lucky he is that he was able to get his clients taken care of by his colleagues, and how his fiancé was able to handle phone calls, since there was no way he could talk on the phone or handle any business at this time. Yes, at this time he was truly counting his blessings and feeling so deeply blessed and lucky!

I hope I can one day master my own mind to such a degree that I can live in a space of focusing my thoughts, emotions, and energy on bliss.  Not just some of the time, but all of the time and especially when it’s raining drops of water, but I’m reacting as though it’s raining boulders.

To experience someone focusing on joy when his life situation is so frightening and extreme, is mind-blowing!

I hope you and I are able to take a healthy dose of encouragement and inspiration that no matter what our life situation is, we truly can guide our thoughts and emotions. We may not like our life situation, it may feel overwhelming, but this man lying in his hospital bed with tubes and things connecting his body to equipment, unable to even sit up, if he can focus on his love and their wedding, we can see clearly that we don’t have to “embrace” or like our situation, but we can choose where we focus our thoughts and allow our emotions to follow.

Several weeks have passed, and now he’s home recovering. Having spent a month lying down in a hospital bed, and undergoing endless tests, poking, prodding and surgeries he’s finally home with his love, and his dog.

In just a few short weeks of being home he’s been able to get most of his vision back, a lot of his balance back, he’s been able to blow past the walker move on to walking sticks. He’s now blown past those and for the first time in about two months he’s finally been able to go outside and take a walk with just his own body.

He’s still got a long healing road ahead, but he’s come so far nothing will stop him. He is:

Unbeatable!

Unstoppable!

Eternally Faithful to God and Life

Unyielding Positive Spirit

Unwavering Optimism

… and my inspiration.

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

When Life Rains Boulders originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on October 8, 2012.
http://www.kaizenvision.com

“When you improve a little each day, eventually big things occur. When you improve conditioning a little each day, eventually you have a big improvement in conditioning. Not tomorrow, not the next day, but eventually a big gain is made. Don’t look for the big, quick improvement. Seek the small improvement one day at a time. That’s the only way it happens – and when it happens, it lasts.”
                ~ John Wooden

I do love the wisdom of John Wooden! What he says about life and basketball, I relate to life and ballet. No matter what your passion …be it ballet, basketball, or anything else in life John Wooden’s wisdom is brilliant.

Many of us have inadvertently set ourselves up to fail by striving for big goals without putting small steps in place to reach those goals.

When you set smaller more realistic goals, it is much easier to succeed at them. Small steps to success give you the feeling of achievement. Over time your small continuous steps will yield your desire. Small steps work!

Each time I see an improvement in my dancing, I think of how “kaizen” ballet actually is. There’s no way to magically leap through the air in a full split with only a few months of practice. It takes working the splits every day and getting them a little bit better; getting the knees a little bit straighter; getting the feet a little more arched. Then it takes practicing daily to get that shape to happen off of the ground and in the air.

Small continuous improvements made consistently, that’s the magic of kaizen.

Below are eight steps you can do to take your dreams and goals and apply the kaizen way.

8 Steps to Living Personal Kaizen

1. Break Down Your Questions – Dream as big as you wish, but break it down to small questions and avoid the “ BUT HOW.” Ask yourself questions like, “What is the first thing I can do to…?” or “Can I spend a few minutes daily doing…?” Asking small questions helps you find the next steps to take; the ones that bring your closer to your goals. You may not how you’ll get there, or how it will happen. But you can find smaller answers, such as a step that’s in the direction of your overall goals. Allow the path to be created along the way.

2. Make time – I’ve come to learn that there never seems to be time, even for the retired. So look at where you can realistically make a section of time and then discipline yourself to make this important appointment with yourself and do only that thing you said you would. Much like saving money, don’t wait to see what’s left over and save that, there may be nothing left. Budget your resources in advance.

3. Keep it positive – It is imperative to have a positive perspective. Although it may not be “natural” for you, it’s worth the discipline to cultivate it into a habit!. The journey of small steps can feel, well… small. This can mean we feel like “we’ll never get there” or “it’s so far away.” So every once in a while take a look back at how far you’ve come. Remind yourself that small steps in the desired direction lead you to your goal; sitting around just dreaming or talking about them will not get you there. When you’re not feeling positive, reach for gratitude and celebrate your successes. It is imperative you find a way to commit to keeping positive along your journey. In the end you’ll discover how much more fun the journey would have been if you had been positive and found ways to enjoy it.

4. Reframe Fear – Big goals. Big dreams tend to bring about fear and doubt. Taking small steps helps to move past the fear more easily. It may sound easier than it is to do, but, turn fear into excitement. Go into your affirmations “I’m so excited about…” “This is incredible – I’m walking right into opportunity …..”  Reframe the fear and turn it into something positive and useful.

5. Reward Yourself – Set mile markers and reward your accomplishments. Maybe you went to the gym for five days in a row, or you saved an additional hundred dollars this month, or you made 20 phone calls ….. set a doable mini goal that’s part of your overall road-map and reward yourself for achieving your goals. The rewards should be appropriate to the goal, meaning that if you are trying to eat healthier, rewarding yourself with a chocolate cake might be a bad idea. If you’re rewarding yourself for saving money, I wouldn’t recommend the reward being that you spend it.

6. Break down the goal  – Break it down from general to specific. Outline small steps you can take to take to implement it. You don’t need to create your master plan or have all the details figured out,  begin with the broad strokes. If you’re wanting to start working for yourself, it’s okay if you haven’t figured out all your services and pricing yet, just start putting yourself out-there and you’ll adjust and grow along the process.

7. Be consistent - If you land on “pause” and mess-up the process, just start up again and be kind to yourself. We are humans, not machines.

8. Visualize  – See yourself achieving your goal – and visualize yourself achieving your small steps. The more your mind sees it, the more likely you will take action and follow through.

Don’t try to perfect your plan before taking action. No matter how perfect your plan;  it will undergo change along the way. Succeed by approaching your goal in small chunks, or steps.

The longer you stay in inaction, the more chance fear has to grow and inertia takes over. So keep moving!

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with one small step”    -  Chinese Proverb

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

Personal Kaizen – The Art of Making It Happen! originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on July 5, 2012.
http://www.kaizenvision.com

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”
~ Anais Nin

Sometimes courage doesn’t feel strong and courageous. Sometimes it just feels like you’re doing something incredibly uncomfortable, scary or intimidating.

Sometimes courage feels anything but courageous, and often times it feels unsexy and unglamorous.

Often when I think of the word courage I see an image of the heroine from Hunger Games, and other images of warriors who swiftly move past fear to fight for their mission. Yet when I look at my own journey, obstacles, and challenges, I don’t often feel courageous. At times when I’m my most courageous, I’m shaking and I feel timid and small.

Regular “everyday courage” can look very different than an image of a warrior.

It might look like an agoraphobic walking outside and taking a walk around the block.

It might look like a shy person speaking up for themselves.

It might look like a person walking into a job interview, or a person walking out of a career.

It might look like a person pursuing their dreams even though they haven’t figured out how.

Along the journey towards our dreams we may find ourselves feeling doubtful, intimidated, and unsure. We may encounter uninvited situations and set-backs; we may make mistakes and find ourselves second guessing ourselves.

Courage is going from idea to action.

Courage is taking the next step no matter how much fear and doubt arise.

Courage is doing the things that are scary, and hard to do, regardless of how many times we stumble and stop or pause.

Courage is getting back up, and re-committing yet again.

Courage is moving forward when we’re not sure of how we’re going to it, or what lies ahead.

Courage is moving past fear, doubt, and insecurity and moving into action.

Courage is facing your fears no matter how massive you feel they  are.

Wherever you are along your journey, follow your dreams even when it’s messy. Taking the next steps, and the leaps of faith, can knock the breath out of us for a moment. Excuses may arise, and obstacles will show up. Courage is moving through it! The only way out of fear, is to take action. Just think, how much less stress we’d feel if we allowed ourselves to trust the process along the way.

Trust in yourself.

Trust your courage.

Yes, you do have it in you!

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

The Truth About Courage originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on May 25, 2012.
http://www.kaizenvision.com

Meditate, Connect and Thrive!

an interview with Angela Artemis from Powered By Intuition

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you  know I’ve mentioned Powered By Intuition many, many times. Angela has the unique ability to help a person connect to their intuition and learn how to use it in thier own life.

I feel blessed to have learned about her work two years ago. Her work has allowed me to develop my intuition, and like many of her readers and students, we’re learning how to speak intuition, how to hear it, how to connect with it more and more.

Since I’m so crazy about her and Steven’s Re-Awakening Program and I can’t stop talking about it, she’s allowed a special giveaway!

YES,  one lucky winner will receive the complete Re-Awakening Program with its bonuses (one of the bonuses  is the binaural beats  audio and video that’s mentioned in the end of the interview – pretty neat!) The winner will be one of you who  leaves the best comment on why they should win the ReAwakening and share this post on Facebook letting people know about this fabulous Re-Awakening Program.

I’m truly thrilled to have the opportunity to interview Angela today, and because I feel her work it’s such a gift for all people, I’ve decided to have both a written version of the interview and the an audio. This way you have access to her pearls of wisdom whether you  prefer to read to listen.

So without further ado:

Click to play the audio:  

Q. What made you decide to develop your intuition? Was it hard to connect with it and trust it?

A. I had intuitive flashes from the time when I was a little kid. It just “happened” all the time. I heard things and saw things (spirits) that scared the hell out of me when I was a kid that my mother insisted was my imagination. Sometimes my mother even accused me of “spying” on her or listening to her phone conversations because she would insist I couldn’t have known the things I told her without eavesdropping. It was very traumatic. I was scared of both the “dark” – the things I supposedly wasn’t seeing and of my mother’s wrath so, I never really tried to develop it. I had to sleep with a night light on until I was a teenager.

When I was eleven I got my first deck of Tarot cards. I had an obsession with playing cards growing up. I didn’t know why at the time. Whenever we went to shopping, I always wanted my mother to buy me decks of playing cards. I was attracted to cards that had colorful pictures on the back such as the Patti Duke set – but, each time I got home and opened the deck they all looked alike on the inside; there were no pictures. I didn’t know it then but, I was searching for the Tarot.

One day we got a Lillian Vernon catalog and I saw a deck of Tarot in there. I begged my mother to send for them them. I don’t think she knew what they were for or she wouldn’t have ordered them for me. She knew I liked “playing cards” so she sent away for them.

As soon as the cards arrived – I knew exactly what to do with them. I started reading for people right then and that was how I began developing my intuition. It wasn’t a conscious decision at all. I believe I must have had this knowledge from a previous life and that’s what drove me to seek out cards with pictures on them.

The funny thing was though, that I was so good at reading for others but, not for myself. I never trusted what I got for myself. It took decades for me to begin trusting my own intuition as it applied to my own life. When I was sure about another person – I was sure, no doubt about it. When it came to myself I was never sure…it was quite maddening.

Q. What made you want to teach others how to connect with their intuition?

A. I realized that not trusting my own intuition caused me to make many mistakes in my own life. I went into the wrong career, married the wrong person and on and on and on. I wanted to help people learn to trust their intuition so that they would never have to go through what I had.

Q. When talking with others about  getting in touch with their inner wisdom/ intuition I’ve heard people say, I’m not psychic, I can’t predict the future – and that’s there reason for “not having intuition” so,  how would you explain the difference between being a psychic and being a person who can connect with their intuition?

A. Your intuition is your own inner guidance about your life, safety and well being. The word intuition has been misused because a lot of psychics prefer to call themselves intuitives. I’m guilty of this too. I should probably stop calling myself an intuitive and just say – I’m a psychic. This is where the confusion has come from.

Your intuition is based on feelings you get such as gut feelings about things. For example, when you know someone is being dishonest or you get a gut feeling that something is wrong. These feelings are your intuition.

Your intuition is there to communicate things to you non-verbally via your feelings in order to guide you and keep you safe. Intuition in humans evolved form from basic “instinct” not unlike the instincts that animals possess, to ensure that our species thrives. As humans evolved in consciousness instinct evolved into intuition.

It’s very subtle but, if you learn to tune in you will understand it. It’s like watching a silent movie we know what’s going on even without words. Intuition is your own non-verbal guidance system. You have to want to tune in and you have to want to understand this guidance.

Being psychic involves seeing visions, hearing information, knowing things emphatically and feeling things as well. It goes beyond being intuitive. When you are psychic you connect beyond the self to others, the past, present and future. We are all intuitive but not everyone is psychic and the truth is you don’t have to be. So, the short answer is you don’t need to be psychic to be intuitive but you need to be intuitive to be psychic.

If you don’t hear your intuition it is only because you don’t choose to tune into it and develop it. It is a sensing mechanism all humans have. Not using it is like going through life with blinders on and using only your other four physical senses.

Q. I’ve heard you say that everyone is capable of having intuition and connecting with intuition. For someone who can’t recall ever having intuition, what advice would you give them?

A. If you are happy, fairly successful and satisfied with your life then, you are hearing your intuition whether you know it or not. Frankly, if your life is going well there’s no need to develop your intuition. Intuition is your own internal guidance system. Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke.

If you’re experiencing problem and after problem – you are definitely not it touch. If you’re life is one of constant struggle you need to develop your intuition more than anyone and start listening to this wisdom.

You must learn to get quiet for a period of time each day and “listen.” Meditation is the best way to develop your intuition. People who don’t hear their intuition are suffering from two problems. They either don’t want to hear this guidance because they are afraid of their own internal dialogue or they have suffered from abuse that undermined their confidence and ability to trust that they know what’s best for themselves.

Meditation addresses all three issues; fear of their own internal dialogue, insecurity about their ability to make the right decisions and hearing their intuition.

Q. What advice would you give to someone who struggles to hear their intuition – or connect with their intuition? Perhaps they’ve tried before and maybe it “worked” at times, but not at other times.

A. Practice is the answer. I was like that when I was a girl. My intuition came through whenever “it” wanted to. I was not in control. When you create the intention to develop your intuition and start attending classes and working with a teacher you can and will overcome this. You must test yourself a couple times of week – challenge your intuition with little experiments and build your confidence that way. The more confident you become in your ability the more consistently your intuition will come through and come through for you at will instead of “willy nilly.” I have a whole chapter devoted to this in my new book, “The Intuition Principle.” It’s a very common complaint among people who are interested in developing their intuition.

Q. I heard that a person might choose to have a physic reading when they feel stuck and can’t seem to connect to their intuition. Is that something you help people with?

A. When you are stuck many times you can’t see what’s blocking you – even though it is usually right in front of your nose but, a psychic can. I will get an immediate feeling about someone when I connect with them energetically. Frankly, I’m kind of like a person wearing a blindfold stumbling around in a big old barn. I “bump” into all these things and then describe them to my client. The things I “bump” into are huge but, because the person is so emotionally wound up in their problem they don’t see these “huge” things that are right in front of them.

When you connect someone to the issue that’s holding them back they feel “relieved.” It resonates with them as the right thing. When they connect and acknowledge it then they can move forward in their lives. Sometimes, people are just insecure and they need to hear it from someone else like me to feel validated in their own beliefs. Once they get the validation or “second opinion” of an objective party like myself they can move on.

Q. Some people only try to connect to their intuition when they are in some sort of crisis mode, such as relationship issues, financial issues, job change/career change issues.  What are some reasons/benefits we can give people to encourage them to connect with their intuition all the time, or daily? How does connecting with intuition benefit people in a day-to-day basis, or a  non-crisis time?

A. Frankly, if you  were to connect to your intuition on daily basis instead of waiting for a crisis you probably wouldn’t be in a crisis in  the first place. Your internal guidance system/intuition would have steered you in the right direction and away from the things that got you into that mess in the first place. I know this first hand, trust me. That’s why I do what I do now. I learned the hard way.

Another reason to connect with your intuition on a daily basis is to not only develop trust in it but, to know how it feels when it comes through for you. When you’re upset and in a crisis- that’s no time to begin asking your intuition what to do. Your emotions will override your intuition and you won’t hear it. All that adrenaline in your system puts you in fight or flight mode. You’re just too hopped up on adrenaline to calm down and hear your intuition. Your body wants you to fight or run…that’s very different from being calm, detached from the outcome and emotionally centered; which is what you have to be to receive intuitive guidance.

The thing to do is have a strong meditation practice in place that you can turn to when you are emotionally distraught and use it to calm down. When you are calm then you can ask for intuitive guidance. When you feel calm and detached from the outcome of the problem you will hear your intuition.

Q.  For those that don’t know about your “Re-awakening” program, I’d like you to share a little bit about the benefits of guided mediation for cultivating inner calm and connecting with mediation. How does guided mediation work, how does it help people?

A.  Guided meditation works by engaging the mind. When the mind is engaged in listening or “visualizing,”  you stop thinking. The secret of meditation is to stop thinking. When the mind is constantly going you don’t relax.

The reason why we need to meditate today more than ever is because our minds are going 24/7. We are always plugged into something whether it is our phone, computer, tablet, television of radio. We never give our minds a rest. This is very stressful.

When we calm our minds down our entire lives calm down. Panicked and hectic thinking creates the same sort of circumstances in your life. Think about a motorized treadmill. Your mind is constantly being stimulated and going like that treadmill. Unless you get off of it you’ll keep going like that until you have a heart attack and die. Meditation shuts down the treadmill.

Meditation is the restful state your mind requires to create inner peace and equilibrium. As above so below – as within so without. When you’re at peace on the inside your life circumstances will mirror back that peace.

Q.   One more question about your “Re-awakening” program,  you and Steven offer a bonus that has binaural beats  both audio and video, what are these? What are the benefits? How do people use them?

A.   Binaural beats are soo cool! They synchronize the brain’s hemispheres so that you experience certain things such as feeling very relaxed, being able to go to sleep easily and deeply, increase clarity and creativity, sustain energy levels and even enhance intuition. This is a great achievement of modern science. We can create the results we want by using certain sound frequencies in each ear that stimulate the brain hemispheres. It’s awesome you have to try it!

The video binaural beats you use throughout the day to refresh and re-energize. You can take a 5 minute break in front of your computer and watch this video with headphones on. Your mind is stimulated by the sound frequencies and the colors and shapes you see on your computer screen.

The audio ones you use like a meditation. You can listen while lying down on your bed or while reading or taking a walk. These are the ones that you can use for to achieve the different results I mentioned earlier.

 Resources:

Re-Awakening Program (10 guided meditations,one Guided Meditation Instruction Manual,three eBooks: Guided Meditation, The Miracle of The Heart, and The Power of Silence   (I love these guided meditations and The Power Of Silence book. Also love that it comes with an instruction manual. I’m haivng fun with the  binaural beats too.)

Angela’s Book  - The Intuition Principle  (I’ve read it twice and love it! Phenomenal book )

Angela’s Website  www.PoweredByIntuition.com (this is Angela’s website)

Special Giveaway:

Remember there will be one lucky winner who will receive the complete Re-Awakening Program with its bonuses.
The winner will be one of you who  leaves the best comment on why they should win the ReAwakening and and share this post on Facebook letting people know about this fabulous Re-Awakening Program.

Please share your thoughts by adding your comment.

Connect With Your Intuition – Interview with Angela Artemis originally appeared on Kaizen Vision on April 13, 2012.
http://www.kaizenvision.com