Pushing myself to be one with the greatest good for both myself and the universe has been a persistent goal. Recently, I thought to myself, “why not share this journey” with the clients I absolutely adore. What serves my greatest good may also serve yours. 

Where do I start? Expanding my perception is a must. I love new concepts and ways of thinking and being. Books have been a great resource in this department. I find audiobooks work best for me. I can find many for free from Spotify and also the local library app, Libby. I’ll often read spiritual or self-help books with an open mind to fully believe and integrate the new ideas into my life for a short time span. Then I’ll sit with it and respond in a way that serves me. I ask myself, do these new habits, perceptions, and way of life align with my core values I’ve set for myself? Do my core values still fit for me? If they do I keep them, if not I let them go, and thank them for the experience. The books that expanded my perceptions the most so far:

•  7 Habits of Highly Successful People (Stephen Covey)

• The Personal Librarian (Marie Benedict & Christopher Muray)

• The Power of Now (Eckhart Tolle)

• Raise Your Frequency Transform Your Life (Selina Maitreya)

Stephen Covey’s concept of creating your core values to set your life around instead of a person, a religion, a job and how it will save you much failure in life. If your world revolves around anything besides what you have decided is your true core value it will never work. He said to visualize your death and decide what people would say about you right now. Then think, wouldn’t it be nice if people thought (fill in the blank) of me. What core values would that person you’d like to have? Start implementing them. 

The restructure he writes about to better manage your time throughout the week to cut out more of the unimportant things and plan for the things that matter the most was a fun tool to incorporate into my daily routine. Suddenly in the same 24 hours a day that everyone gets I felt I was doing more of what filled my cup, and what mattered most to me. I remember watching a video of one of his seminars where he asks someone to fill a jar with a combination of large rocks, pebbles, sand and water. The items would only fit if they placed the larger rocks first, then the pebbles, sand and finally water. He gave each item a different task someone might find themselves doing in a day. (water = scrolling through emails) (rocks = Core Values for someone i.e. Quality time with loved ones) and so forth. When you start with the meaningless things first to fill your vase, suddenly the most important things in life don’t fit. Organizing your week with core value in mind allows for time for the things that truly matter.

Another idea within this book was our preprogramming, and how it affects our perceptions. He shows a drawing with two figures shown within but depending on your preprogramming you’ll see either one or the other but rarely both. Depending on the photo he shows before showing you this drawing will determine which figure you see in the drawing, and it’s nearly impossible to see the other figure after the preprogramming has taken place. I sat with this idea for such a long time and found it within many more of my readings. Now, it’s hard for me to believe any one opinion or way of life is the correct or only way. This is why I continue to try and expand my perceptions. The preprogramming that took place as a child growing up in rural Nebraska in the 90’s is ever so apparent as I let go of limiting beliefs that were created as a child.

The Personal Librarian shifted my perception of time, space, regrets, and what ifs with a short story. A story where so many lives are happening all at once. Trying on a life the character wishes she had proven to fail her over and over until she finds herself back into the life she was originally living. I’m bogged down by the end of the week with how many choices I’ve had to make. By the time my husband asks what I want for dinner my response is usually “I don’t want to make any more decisions today, just decide and tell me what it is.” I’ve also been so depressed my body felt numb to everything and I’ve felt “what is the point, What is the purpose, why should I continue this way”. This book helped me to see how the tiniest of interactions, choices, and actions can make the biggest impact for the entire universe, and even if feeling like I’m not exactly where I want to be or thought I should be, the path I am on has probably done tremendous good for the whole of the universe. This concept serves me. 

I’m pretty sure Eckhart Tolle’s book, The Power of Now, has been featured on the Oprah Winfrey show twice for its influential perceptions. What good is the mind if you can’t shut it off? Is anything really the matter in this very moment, or are your thoughts creating the problems? I’m not even quite sure how to explain the concept fully. I just know this book absolutely changed my life for the better. Not every idea in the book served me, but many do. This is one I sat with and practiced for nearly 1 year before deciding if it was working for me or not. If you can play with the idea of the gray area, I’d recommend it. If you find yourself more black and white I don’t think this one would serve you as well. This is a man who plans for nothing, believes in nothing in particular and just is. Experiencing life, and the energy of each moment. Peacefulness, quietness, and calmness was brought on for me with these new ideas. 

Raise Your Frequency Transform Your Life is a book about energy. There are so many religions, so many beliefs and disbeliefs, but there is one thing I find that connects all of them, and it is energy. Controlling my energy is a practice I see as serving both my highest good and also the highest good of the universe. A word switch resonated with me from this book, and I actually wrote it down in my journal to continue to practice it on a regular basis to increase my positive energy. Offering a light expansiveness in my chest. 

• Good/bad switch to serves/ doesn’t serve

• React switch to reflect or respond

• Thinking about switch to sensing into

• Focused switch to present

• Proud of switch to happy for

• Goal switch to intention

• Understand switch to aware of

• Boundaries switch to guidelines

• Seek/Strive switch to receive/choose

• Work at it switch to sit with it

• Think about it switch to sense

• I think that switch to I wonder if

Another useful tool I found within this book was the idea of switching negatives like “This asshole just cut me off and now is driving so slow” to something of more positive energy like “Wouldn't it be nice if people were respectful even while in a hurry.” Or even “Isn’t it curious that I get so upset at other people when I drive.” By taking a moment to check myself but without judging harshly, just observing, I find myself in a more positive attitude throughout the day. I’m able to speak to myself in a kinder way and my responses to others are more kind. I feel like I have more energy to get through my day. 

I’m constantly finding new and old books that are new to me to explore.

Finding growth throughout my life while I apply one lash at a time.