Do you need a hug?

How often in your life do you reach out to someone else?  Do you give them a hug for no reason?  The quickest way to finding a more joyful life is through helping others.  Sometimes it’s as simple as giving them a hug.  More can expressed in a hug than almost anything else.  I remember a few years back there were a couple of college students that went to big cities with signs that read “Free Hugs”, almost everyone who went by stopped and got one.  The news reports that talked to people afterwards were told that that simple act made their day better.

We get so caught up in our own lives that we forget the impact we can have on others.  We need to open our hearts and minds and give back to the people around us.  I’m not saying we should put up “Free Hug” signs but instead I’m challenging you to do something for someone else every day.  Whether it’s a hug, opening the door, carry the groceries or paying for the next coffee.  These random acts of kindness become greater than us.  We begin to see a ripple effect across our community and eventually throughout the world.

In lives that are way too over scheduled we tend to fear having down time to connect with our true self (soul).  We need time, we need to get out of our own heads and connect with who we truly are (love).  By volunteering, giving hugs or random acts of kindness we move away from ourselves and discover that by giving we receive.  Often we receive more than we ever give but the return isn’t the reason to do it.  The reason to help others gives us joy like no other and moves us beyond our ego that tries to control everything in our lives.

So do you need hug?  I’m here to give you one, anytime or anyplace through the computer or in person.  I’ll give you a hug, I’ll tell you how special you are and hopefully I’ll make your day better or change your life forever.

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the day: “By giving to others we open our hearts, move away from our mind and discover what true joy really is!” 

Be the Change

One of my favorite quotes is from Mahatma Gandhi “Be the change you want to see in the world”. This resonates with me so much because I truly believe that everything has to start from within you.  If you’re walking through your life waiting for something to happen, it rarely will.  Every thought of what’s possible only comes to fruition by taking action to move towards that possibility.  This is the reason more people aren’t manifesting their dreams; lack of action.  So ‘To be the change’ simply means to take action yourself and not sit back and wait for something to happen.

We all have the power to change the world within us and by individual small steps every day we do change the world but it’s up to you.  You decide to be the change, no one else can do it for you.  It is true that most of us have a tremendous support system around us of family, friends or maybe even co-workers that will help us through some of the normal struggles of life when we need them.  But this support system isn’t there to help us change the world.  It’s there only to support us and give us the strength and confidence we need to be the change.

I realize that change scares a lot of people but the world will change with or without you.  You can determine how the world will change for the better.  You have the power to make every day the best day yet!  You have the power to determine your own path!  You have the power to see the path open before you because you took the first step!!  Believe in yourself, you are magical, you are love and you can make a difference!!  Just always remember that everything starts from within you.  You write your own story and if that story was filled with pain and despair in the past, you and you alone can release the past, release the pain and create the life you’ve always wanted.  Take the first step towards your dreams.  Give God/universe the opportunity to open the door you’ve always been looking for by being the change you want to see in the world! 

Believe in yourself, believe in your dreams and know by taking the next step every day towards your dreams they will be manifested before you know it!!

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the day: “Be the change you want to see in the world!” Mahatma Gandhi

Stop the World…I want to get off!

In this day we all get far too busy, we end up with full calendars and no time for ourselves or our loved ones.  This has been happening to me a lot lately, I go into a week with very little going on and end up with no time between, the Chambers, my new business and other community events that people want me to attend; my life feels like there’s just no time!

I am very happy that the people in my community are embracing me and my talents and want me to get more involved in their organizations and events.  I actually love that I am becoming more involved because I live in a great community in the mountains of Colorado.  The downside is time, time away from the business (sometimes) and time away from my lovely wife, often. 

So what do I do to make sure that I have time for myself and my family?  I follow a few easy steps:

1.       Remember always to enjoy the moment.  Even when it gets very busy, slow down, take breath and enjoy where you are and what you’re doing.

2.       Schedule time for yourself.  Sometimes when our lives get so busy we forget about taking time for ourselves, we need to do this!  So if this means blocking time on your calendar just for you, do it!! And don’t give that time back, keep it as any other appointment on your calendar.

3.       Listen to your body, often when we get busy we can go beyond our physical needs as well.  We can get so run down that we are not effective in anything we are doing.  Make sure you are listening to your body and only pushing yourself to a place you feel comfortable.  Always ask yourself, how much of a time commitment is this and can I do it effectively.

4.       Listen to the people you trust, often when we are unwilling to follow the advice of #3 above the people closest to us can see the effects on our physical body as well as our mental state.  Be open and listen to those you trust and begin to act on their advice.

5.       Always be grateful; be grateful for what you can do, do not get caught up in what you cannot do.  You can make a difference by your actions and help others in your community by your involvement only if you keep your obligations under control.

Life is a wonderful gift and by sharing yourself with your community you take a big first step to a more joyful life.  It is through service to others that we as a world community can make a difference.  Whether it’s just locally, regionally, statewide, nationally or worldwide.  Get involved and make a difference today!

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the day: “When the world around you gets to crazy, stop, take a breath and be grateful for the difference you make in the world.”

I believe in Miracles!

Yes it is true, I believe in miracles….do you?  To me, the journey to a more joyful life includes seeing miracles in everyday life.  When most people think about miracles, they think about life changing events.  These can absolutely happen but the key to living a more joyful life is finding the small miracles that make a difference in your everyday.

What are everyday miracles?  They can be anything from someone allowing you to go first in line to finding $10 in a jacket pocket when you needed some cash.  The idea behind miracles is simple; the more you pay attention to the small ones in your life the more miracles will appear.  So much of life is about what we pay attention to; if we see only pain and sadness we begin to see more pain and sadness, if instead we focus on the good in people and are grateful for their help; we see more people being helpful to us.

Think of it this way; have you ever toiled over a decision on buying a car and once you make that decision you start to see everyone driving the same model of car you decided on.  Focus brings thought into the world!

The next two things that are important to continue to see more miracles in your life are: Gratitude, even when you focus on a million dollars, be grateful for the $100 you didn’t expect.  Action, in order to move forward with anything in life we need to take that next step.  The same is true with miracles if we sit back and wait for them, we may never see them.  Instead what we need to do is take steps towards what we want in our lives, then miracles will appear.

We all get too wrapped up in ourselves, we prejudge our self not worthy of miracles, so they don’t happen or if they do we don’t even notice.  Pay attention, know that you are worthy, believe that anything can happen if you take that next step and watch the miracles appear in your life.

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the day: “Miracles happen in everyone’s lives; open your heart, pay attention and be grateful for every one that appears!”

In Nature find Life!

Do you try to get back to nature?  Or do you avoid the outdoors?  I personally find great solace in nature and I believe that regardless of whether you spend time outdoors or not, nature has many lessons for us to learn. 

Life mirrors nature whether we want to believe or not.  Everything in nature has its time and place, in life it is the same way.  We try so very hard to hold onto our accomplishments and success….our “summer”.  We believe life is only about what we can accomplish, how we can find our next success.  But, I believe that through the winter (down times) we can find the strength to grow again and flourish even better than trying to hold onto something that had its time already.

Growth in life is the only path to enlightenment and if a person feels that there is no more room to grow because they have everything they want, they are not being honest with themselves. Everyone has something that they are missing in their life, sometimes this void can be a great motivator to find your next success. But, if we turn to nature and discover the natural rhymes of our life we will find everything much easier to move forward.  By truly listening to our body and feeling when it is time to move to the next season in our lives we give ourselves a chance to grow even greater than we were before.

Nature shows us that with every winter there is always another spring and with every summer there is a fall to reap the harvest.  The mightiest oak would never grow as tall or strong if all it had was summer to enjoy, it would instead never be prepared for the cold of winter and would fade away when winter came.

Our lives are about possibilities and every day we open a new chapter.  Do not fear the winter time in your life because through our trials we grow, like the oak, to be stronger than we were before.  Listening to nature will always bring you back to who you truly are, as with nature everything and everyone is connected.  Our journey in life is to know this and by knowing it to affect the world in a positive way.  Are you up for the challenge?

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the Day: “Listen to nature and find your true place; for everything and everyone has its mission, once you discover yours your life will change.”

Who am I to judge?

In this fast paced world today; where we need to make decisions in split seconds, we’ve become a society filled with judgement of others.  Why is this?  I’m not 100% sure.  I only know that we have no place to judge another person.  People come into our lives for a reason and sometimes that reason is to push us to change.  It can be very uncomfortable to be around people that feel like they are attacking you and challenging you on every front.  But often these people are sent to us by God/universe only to help us move into a better place.  We all get far too comfortable in our lives and often we need something or someone to move us out of our malaise, to move us forward in our lives.

Do you want to be judged?  I think the answer for many us of is a resounding NO!  Then why should we judge others?  The answer is simple when we get to the true core of the issue.  We judge others because it makes us feel better if we can put someone into a category that we feel comfortable with.  “Oh, that person is just angry at the world” and because of that I don’t have to pay attention to them.

Now there are always exceptions, if you feel threatened it’s always best to err on the side of caution.  But, most of the people that come into our lives aren’t here to threaten us, they are just here to show us a different way.  I am a firm believer that everyone is in our life to teach us something or we’re in their life to teach them something.  When we open our heart and truly listen to the people in our lives we can hear what we need to hear.  All too often though our ego gets in the way and muddles the true message.  The ego wants to be right, the ego wants to put this person into a place that we feel comfortable with, and ego wants to win!

Life isn’t about winning in every moment, life is about finding joy in every moment and opening our heart to the people that come into our lives.  You never know how important the next person you meet could be in your life & the opportunity that that person gives you can be lost if you act from the ego and judge, categorize them and dismiss them.

So who am I to judge?  I have no right to judge anyone, I accept the good and the bad of everyone that enters my life.  I am here to listen and to learn.  The only way I’ve been able to move forward in my life is to learn from my mistakes, to learn from my success and to learn from the people that come into my life.  I hope you’ll open your heart and truly listen to everyone that comes into your life.  I believe if you do, you will find more joy in each and every day!

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the day: “By judging others we diminish the message that they are here to tell us.  Open your heart and truly listen and your life will change forever!” 

To Begin Again!

Over the past year or so I have republished all of the original blogs from ‘Journey to Joy’ I did this to reintroduce the blog to people that never read the original postings.  I have decided to begin the blog again, with the hope of posting at least 2-3 times a week.  I hope you will welcome this new content and I hope that this blog can again help thousands of people.  As with the original blog I promise this will be an easy 5 minute read with a positive message to help you learn to live a more joyful life, if you haven’t read the original posts, I invite you to but it’s not needed to enjoy the new ones.

What do you fear the most about starting over?  Is it the fear of the unknown? Or the fear of the past?  Since I decided to republish these blogs, I lost my job and started my own business.  I have worked hard in my life to not allow fear in my life.  This isn’t to say that I don’t have moments of fear, I truly do.  I love where I’m living in Colorado and would be sad if we had to leave because of my decision to give up my previous career as a tax accountant and start my own travel business.  I believe there comes a time in everyone’s life that they have to ‘reinvent’ themselves and get back to what makes them happy.  I decided to change my life by getting back to 2 things that I love; travel and helping people. 

I am thrilled with this decision but still have my moments of doubt.  The greatest fear any of us have is the fear of the unknown!  We can never predict what will happen tomorrow or even in the next hour.  The truth about life is all we have is this moment right now, in this moment everything is possible.

The problem for most of us is that we are unable to stay in the present moment because we hope for a better life tomorrow or we’re stuck in what happened yesterday.  No matter what happened in the past we need to move beyond it by letting it go.  I know this isn’t always easy, it took me years to work through some of the things I’ve been through in my life.  I came to one conclusion in regards to this, I wouldn’t be the person I am today without going through everything I’ve been through in my life.  I love who I am, it took me a very longtime to say that but because I now can I can move beyond my past.

The second issue is the dream or promise for tomorrow.  I love to dream, I believe in hope, but the way to make those dreams come true is to enjoy where you’re at now!!  By changing the way you look at things in this moment you can begin to change your life.  Find joy, find wonderment, be grateful for everything you have and your life will begin to change forever.  I know this because it’s happened to me.

Till next time,

Bill

Quote of the day: “The way to begin again in your life is to find joy in this and every moment.  One moment at a time you will change your life, forever!”