Being introduced to new things.

It's our calling, our lot in life. To teach. To learn. To grow. And if we are really lucky, we encounter some pretty cool things along the way. We visit some majestic and magical places. We will do amazing things.

Today I want to encourage you to be open to see something new. Something beautiful. New life. Nothing says 'Tis the season' quite like baby ducks. They abound here where I live and each time I see them, it brings me joy. 

And spring is such a time of renewal for me personally. My health. My journal writing. My care and concern for those I hold dear. This is not worry or struggle or fear. It is great faith in that we are all where we are supposed to be. Doing what we are meant to be doing. And becoming who we are meant to be. For this Spring Season, anything you chose can be new.

The flower blooms in a reaction to many things in alignment with it's intended purpose.
As we take a single appreciative action today, we bloom in a similar way. I heard earlier this morning about a business man who journaled only the positive, affirming things that happened every day in the course of his business day. His coach suggested that as he journaled the action, to include a higher level of intentional appreciation. My heart did a happy dance at hearing this and I could barely wait to pass it along to you here today.

I believe this is an evergreen philosophy about journal writing. Our energy changes completely when we use sincere appreciation with our journal disciplines, be they personal or professional. I set the intention to be appreciative when I write. It helps fetch and form words that portray my inner passions and desires.

And why would one want to pursue this course of action? When we share our light, it expands. What we care about is more meaningful. It is soul-full-ness of the most selfish nature that gives away more than we can possibly get! Oh, how I love the way that works. And it is a muscle that gains strength every time we flex it. As each petal of a flower contributes to the beautiful bloom, so do the many things we appreciate provide bounty in our lives and others we care about. And when we capture the thought, the things that commands a moment of our attention, we have a unique advantage not available to the bloom...capture, ponder, and wonder. Appreciation has legacy legs. It marches to the beat of our heart. And when we journal about it, it is sealed into our DNA, helping us in yet unimaginable ways. 

I say Go For It! Get out that pen and spend 2 minutes writing about something you really appreciate today. Then see how you feel. About you. About life. Go. Bloom yourself! 

...and There is a way to create time.
You must anchor yourself to what is important. And to do that, we must #setasidethetime

What is your daily practice or routine?
We live in a time where we have to schedule and protect our 'personal' time. We look at our days and weeks and months...and mornings to carve out a few precious moments to connect with our inner-being. Grounded and centered, we are stronger and more aligned with what really matters.

And what really matters?
Our values remain at our core, but need to be visited from time to time to shine, polish, add and subtract. Time changes us all. Flexibility and cooperation create ease and comfort as well as the excuses to put many other important things ahead of our own needs.

And what of privacy?
Don't sign up for that class. It is full of expectations that are commonly dashed and full of bucket-sized holes that you can drive a truck through. It's more of a stake in the ground and a declaration of your space in time.

Create time to go within and connect to your true self.
​Reflect and #meditate on what you know (for now) and what matters most today. Build some discovery and recovery into the day just in case the wheels try to fly off the bus. Your #journal craft is worthy of the investment of a few minutes most days. Have reverence for something truly special that you are in control of (mostly). And be. Be with yourself for a time that generates a brighter light for all of us.

Today I gave a voice to this idea that has been beating inside my chest for over a year. I stood up in the center of a room full of people and declared it. And here it comes, ready or not. 

My New Project
"The Power of the Positive Pen; Your Writes to Pursuing Your Passion and Purpose" by Janet L Arnold  ©2016 is being created, one word at a time. I have stood at this gate, as words begin to line up, before. It feels so familiar and delightful and frightening all at the same time. I have this idea, vision, and collective muse running amok, teasing the tips of my fingers. Only when my pen is put to paper as I mind map and make every effort to organize these thoughts, do I have any sense of peace. This is THAT time...When I cannot NOT write.

The Story
In my first book, the inside looked out and found safe passage to express the old story. Over the past year, I have learned the power of my story, and learned that we all have a story. We write our legacy story every day with our behaviors, actions, beliefs and character. In the blink of an eye, our story can change, whether we intend to change it or life changes our story. 

Being Coachable
I am blessed to be surrounded with people who are guiding me, coaching and caring for me and helping me create the story that I WANT to be told. When the history of my life is recorded, I'd prefer to have my pen on the paper. What I have learned is that we can write any story we want to. The mystery is where we discover our true desires about what we want and how our legacy begins to reveal itself. The effort comes to bear when we intentionally guide the next chapters of our stories. We meet the characters and become entangled in their stories, changing the course of the end of the last chapter. Writing and re-writing, on and on it goes. Again, I prefer to have my pen on the paper. 

Community
As this idea began to surface, I see a community that contributes the next words, plots, subtitles and chapters. Through our positive presence and influence of our words, keeping our passion and purpose in front of us, we are writing the legacy of the next generation and all that follow after it. Our digital age is commanding new paradigm shifts in how we chose to interact with our world. It requires an intentional connection with those who we hold dear, those who help us with the building blocks of our lives. Our pen on the paper engages our head and our heart through the miracle of the hand that rarely rocks the cradle any more. I feel compelled to keep the light turned on in the rooms that house our work, our words, our relationships, our legacies. 

Pick Up Your Pen
I have some fun and entertaining exercises for us to do to shine a light on what really gives us joy. Journal writing remains at the core of this curriculum, and it is my intention that we never graduate. As each passion is revealed and each purpose realized, others follow to lead us into our legacies of potential.

Stay Positive
There is one rule with this project. This must remain positive. My promise to you is that this is a positive space. Come here to spend 'spa-time-with-your-mind'. The 'Newsog' will deliver only positive content. It is my hope that you begin to feel the influence of positivity that begins to flow through your life like the ink through your pen. Your job: Positive Inking!!
Begin with a new journal, notebook or even in the comments below. For the next few days, use words that reveal your joy. Include words that hold your joy in context, i.e. Who? What? Where? When? Why? 

Until next time, think in ink.
Janet

#passion #purpose #journalwriting #legacy #story #community #newsog #intention #potential #positivethinking #thinkinink

I heard this said out loud last year. The words stuck to me like velcro. I think about it every time someone leaves their grocery cart anywhere but where it goes. When someone leaves a pile of brand new clothes on the fitting-room floor, inside out. When a young girl who appears to be about 12 years old tells her dad to 'hold the door' for me while I struggle through with an arm load of stuff.  And when I notice these things, I wonder if it is a reminder of a lesson I am destined to learn from these well-worn words. 

Sometime last year, I locked my words up within. Writing only occasionally and floundering with my consistent journal practice. No wonder then, that I ended the year wondering what lessons I had learned. I wasn't willing to share the struggles and shine a light of awareness on the compromises and weaknesses I danced around most of the year. I neglected self-care of my deepest feelings and concerns. When did I stop trusting my words? When did I stop nourishing my soul?

It was when the new 'Busy' Body showed up!! New work schedules and new responsibility. I let 'Busy' rule my 'Relief'. 

A very clear indication of how much I need to awaken my consistent journal writing practice is the constant beating of it in my chest. The words insisting to be expressed. That is my purpose, after all.

With a healthy sigh, I welcome the words of 2016. I expect that their consistency will lend consistency to other areas of my life where consistency is helpful and significant. 

Why do we search for peace?

I believe there is nothing that quiets the mind in the same manner that joy will. In its exuberance, initially, we raise our pulse, quicken our breath and our tone and pitch change to indicate great satisfaction, albeit another octave higher and usually louder. Our movements are likely more grand, and I am convinced that our eyes must surely twinkle. We are more conscious of our manners, and are more apt to step into new directions we might not have considered before. We awaken to more possibility and promise. The peace follows. 

Satisfaction, of course is relative. And it can change to the degree that each passing minute marches by. Which is exactly why it needs to be recognized and acknowledged for where it fits in this moment of life.  Most of all, allow it, I say! Often we neglect satisfaction after working so hard to achieve it. We move on to what is next before fully enjoying our much sought after satisfaction.

Sum of its parts

It fascinates me that of all the strength and power of any of these words, they are all stronger when used together. A cake is more than flour, for a simple illustration. Joy can be as small or large a part as is necessary to create magnificence. We are only few short next steps away from there at almost any given time. How we roll out our joy this week, depends on the other ingredients, in the right proportions. Blend well, to stir up all the ingredients. Do what you love, have faith for God's plan to reveal itself in your life, where peace, love and joy manifest in copious quantities. Or, just do it for the joy of it. Either way, count it as a win! 

Pushing forward or holding back?

This image holds much mystery to me. Fool's errand or heroic gesture perhaps. Or was this me on more than one occasion this past week. Here's some good news: I get to try it all over again. Whew! Nothing holding me back!

Leadership is my main focus, of course. I am highly motivated to perform well. If I can't fix issues, I find someone who can. It helps to be well connected, and that is a part-time job in itself. The business of connection is so rewarding, and accomplishes much, albeit rarely realized. I was blessed this week to see 'too much' in a brief view, and shared that with many. Recognition can be a weighty challenge for those who do things every day that make a difference and humbly think 'it was not that big a deal.' Yes. It was. Yes. It is. 

Eyes wide open.

I have a particular challenge this entire year that requires attention to the smallest of details. I used to think that when you are hammer, everything looks like a nail. I am finding plentiful progress in this challenge to be fleeting. One step forward and two steps back. Wait. Is it that I am simply looking over my shoulder? What an epiphany! Resolving this aids in the progress to push forward. To awaken inside radiates and I feel a child-like happiness. The smallest things have the potential to get the momentum moving. It is the movement. It is the action. When it comes to these blessings, too much or very little are not the point. Blessings should be acknowledged. First things first.  

Nothing changes if nothing changes

Imagine how boring a vacation would be if the scenery didn't change from one mile to the next. A ship cannot sail without the wind blowing from one place to another.  There is something special about how we arrived at the point we are in our lives today. It is not the same as yesterday. The day has changed. We have changed in some small way, or to the degree that we want to change. For some, that is a quantum leap. Others are not comfortable with the uncomfortable nature of things when they are new. 
And taking on something totally new has challenges yet unrealized. I say, "Bring it On. Full steam ahead."

Tried and True Blessing

This week we once again share globally a grand blessing that applies to all. It is my wish for all I know, every traveler I encounter, and for my friends and family, near and far. It represents all things changing and in contrast, the one thing that never changes. It is a wish for all the worth it inherently possesses. To the degree I am able to wish it so, it is for you. All of you. It is my hope that you soar with all the air you wish for under your wings, and correct your coarse if needed for safe passage.

Report back the experiences you have from time to time. I hope your journaling experience is growing and your awareness is revealing much that perhaps you missed before your conscious awakening. This practice contributes to your wellness by connecting your heart to your hand. Where many things are accomplished at these two extremes, look for the revelations. You will find them in the winds of change.