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Thoughts from the Barn

Information Intake

What You Read and Listen To Matters

One of the most critical areas of tidying up that will help us mentally, physically and spiritually is our information intake. With endless access to digital gadgets, it is easy to fall into the information jungle. The books that we read, the podcasts that we listen to, and the websites we visit have an impact on our lives. If you find yourself trolling Facebook for hours a day or plopping down on the couch each night and mindlessly watching TV until you go to bed, it is most definitely time for some information intake clean-up. I am going to list what I have come to use as my top podcasts and books in 2018 for self-enrichment. The next time you pick up your phone listen to one of these instead of wasting time in the addictive digital jungle.

My Favorite Podcasts for 2018

1. The Mindvalley Podcast
The Mindvalley Podcast is one of the greatest up-and-coming self-help podcasts out there today. With its brilliant host, Vishen Lakhiani, this podcast profoundly pulls together a vast variety of insight and inspiration from the world’s top teachers and thought leaders in personal transformation (such as Tom Chi, Neale Donald Walsch, and John and Missy Butcher).

As perhaps the most well-rounded personal development podcast mentioned here, The Mindvalley Podcast explores juicy ideas throughout a multitude of lifestyle topics — from learning how to learn to access flow states, to running a kick-butt business, to be the best version of yourself possible,

By |2019-01-09T10:18:59+00:00January 9th, 2019|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments
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Declutter Your Body

Declutter  Your Body

In my first blog about tidying up, I gave you many examples of how to declutter your environment.  Although that was a good start, we aren’t done with this tidying business.  I want to talk to you about your body.  How does one clean-up their body?  Well, just like in your environment, I invited you to get rid of things that don’t make you feel good or bring you joy.  The same goes for your body.  Stop using your body as dumping ground for food that might taste good, but makes you feel bad.

A Fine-Tuned Machine

I image my body to be a high performing machine.  Something that I need and want to handle with the best of care. Consider this.  If you owned a Ferrari would you put cheap gas in it?  Would you add sugar to the tank to help it perform better?  I am guessing not, because the result would be disastrous.  The same goes for your body.  I think of food as fuel.  I know what foods make me feel and look good and I know which ones don’t.  I only consume ‘fuel’ that allows my body to operate and feel it’s best.

It Is Simple But Challenging

Taking excellent care of your body is simple.  It comes down to making good choices.  Is it easy?  No, and therein lies the challenge.  There is no magic pill.  It takes commitment and discipline.  You have to decide how important your body is to you.  The trouble is, we

By |2019-01-08T10:45:45+00:00January 8th, 2019|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments
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Are You Ready To Clean Up Your Act?

It’s Time to Get Tidy

Well, is the confetti from ushering in the New Year out of your hair and carpet yet?  If not, this might be a great time to consider doing a little cleaning up in all domains of your life.  On New Year’s day, a friend of mine texted me as asked if I had seen the Netflix series one of Marie Kondo’s “Tidying Up.”  I hadn’t for two reasons, one, I don’t have Netflix and two, the first day of the launch of the series was that day.  Coincidentally, I was making notes to share a series of posts with you, so I did some research on Marie’s series.  By the way, she is also the author of the book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.  I don’t think that Marie’s series will make for riveting reality TV, but I do appreciate her concept of letting go of anything in your life that does not bring you joy.  I invite you to do your research on tidying up, and in the process, I hope you find a shit-load of joy and happiness.

Here, I offer you my first in a series and brief suggestions on areas of your life that will likely benefit from some clean-up.

Environment

1)  Desktop on your computer:

A cluttered desktop can be stressful.  Each time you look at it, you can launch yourself straight into overwhelm which is no way to start your day.  There are many apps and lifehacks to assist you in managing

By |2019-01-03T11:57:06+00:00January 3rd, 2019|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 11: We Prioritize Time

Prioritize Time

Do you prioritize your time?  I had an excellent opportunity to absorb the importance of using our time wisely and for a useful purpose.  A dear friend recently passed away and here is what I learned at his funeral.

Stay true and be you —

Annie Create a Life You Love
Participate in the Online Edition of Lines In The Sand Join Us Now

By |2019-01-03T12:03:14+00:00December 9th, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 10: We Are Thankful

We Are Thankful

Gratitude and being thankful is talked about a lot, but I wonder how many people spend focused time each day in gratitude?  It can be easy to get caught up in the dynamics of a day.  One can get sucked into the chaos so quickly and then if we are not careful we can spiral into overwhelm and stress.  Think about it.  The mere fact that we wake up each morning with a beating heart, breathing in and out without thinking, with a roof over our head, and electricity and running water.  That’s just a start.  There is so much.  Be present enough to notice and then be thankful.  Allow your brief time on this planet to be filled with goodness, share that goodness, and no matter what, be thankful. Stay true and be you —

Annie Create a Life You Love
Participate in the Online Edition of Lines In The Sand Join Us Now

By |2019-01-03T11:03:34+00:00December 5th, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 9: We Talk To God

Talk To God

Habit 8: We Talk To God. Yes, this is one of the habits of highly joyful, successful, and content people. This requires you to spend some quiet time each day. And, appreciate instead of expecting. Say thank you. Ask God what His will is for you. Don’t pray only when you ‘need’ something. Talk to God for guidance, and support, and knowledge. Ask how you can serve. Be willing to be your best self. Stay true and be you —

Annie Create a Life You Love
Participate in the Online Edition of Lines In The Sand Join Us Now

By |2018-12-15T14:38:36+00:00December 3rd, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn, Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 8: Set Your Intentions For The Day

Intentional Living

Habit 8 of Joyful, Successful, and Content People: We are intentional in our living. We set intentions for how we want our day to go, our desired outcome of meetings and phone calls. Our desire for our health and wellness. Start setting some intentions and see what happens. I do this during my ‘quiet time’ each morning and right before lights out at night. If you are interested in learning more about the “Be”-Attitudes Kit/Cards go here: www.beattitudeskit.com
Start living with intention! Stay true and be you —

Annie Create a Life You Love
Participate in the Online Edition of Lines In The Sand Join Us Now

By |2018-12-15T14:14:50+00:00December 1st, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 5: They Embrace Fear

Embracing Fear

As counter-intuitive as it sounds, embracing fear is a habit of highly joyful, successful, and content people.  This article by Tess Marshall gives 11 Tips to Embrace Your Fear.  It is a good read.  Have a look.

Everyone has fear. Some of us choose to ignore it, deny it and stay stuck in it. Others learn to embrace fear, befriend it and move beyond it.

You might envy people who are reaching their goals and living their dreams. You might ask, “Why not me?” “When is it my turn?”

The difference between you and the people who succeed and the people you admire is they are willing to work and overcome their fears in order to get where they want to be.

They are willing to fail, take risks and work long hours. They are willing to face rejection and invest their energy and money. They are willing to do what it takes.

Don’t allow your fear to grip you body, mind and spirit. Don’ allow your fear to wage a fight with you and your dreams.
You can learn to shrink your fear and build your confidence and courage.

The next time fear leaves you in a paralyzing state try these exercises.

1. Track your fears

Write down your fears in your journal. Next to each fear, write down it’s origin. Write down how it has controlled you in the past?

Set aside time and reflect on what you’ve written. Don’t judge your fear. Your goal is to understand it and give it space. Fear loses its hold when

By |2018-11-14T13:38:54+00:00November 14th, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 4: They Read

Habit 4:  They Read

The benefits of reading are vast.  Have a look at Lana Winter-Herbert’s article on Why You Should Read Every Day

When was the last time you read a book or a substantial magazine article? Do your daily reading habits center around tweets, Facebook updates, or the directions on your instant oatmeal packet?

If you’re one of the countless people who doesn’t make a habit of reading regularly, you might be missing out.

Reading has a significant number of benefits, and here’re ten benefits of reading:

1. Mental Stimulation

Studies have shown that staying mentally stimulated can slow the progress of (or possibly even prevent) Alzheimer’s and Dementia,[1] since keeping your brain active and engaged prevents it from losing power.

Just like any other muscle in the body, the brain requires exercise to keep it strong and healthy, so the phrase “use it or lose it” is particularly apt when it comes to your mind. Doing puzzles and playing games such as chess have also been found to be helpful with cognitive stimulation.[2]

2. Stress Reduction

No matter how much stress you have at work, in your relationships, or countless other issues faced in daily life, it all just slips away when you lose yourself in a great story. A well-written novel can transport you to other realms, while an engaging article will distract you and keep you in the present moment, letting tensions drain away and allowing you to relax.

3. Knowledge

Everything you read fills your head with new

By |2018-11-10T11:40:36+00:00November 13th, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn, Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments
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Habit 3: Meditate

Habit 3:  Meditation

There are so many benefits that come as a result of meditation.  This article by Jonni Pollard points out 20 reasons to meditate.  Have a look.

There are literally hundreds of commonly experienced and scientifically validated benefits of meditation. We’ve compiled the top twenty that will make you want to start meditating right now.

We’ve broken them up into two main categories – the physical health benefits and the psychological benefits.

Physical health benefits of meditation
  • Meditation literally grows your brain… both in volume and thickness. This doesn’t just make you smarter; it increases your memory, attention, self-awareness, and self-control alongside a whole list of other desirable qualities.
  • Meditation increases blood flow to your brain… the brain can’t function without a strong steady flow of blood to it. The stronger and steadier the flow, the better the brain functions.
  • Meditation reduces cortisol production, a stress-induced hormone that suppresses the immune system and can make you feel anxious nervous and unsettled for no real reason (other than having too much cortisol in your system).
  • Meditation reduces blood pressure and heart rate, which alleviates unnecessary pressure on your heart and arteries.
  • Meditation increases neuroplasticity. This is the brain’s ability to organize itself, adapt to demands and enables you to become more efficient in the learning process.
  • Meditation increases the production of good neurotransmitters including serotonin and dopamine, both of which play a huge role in controlling our moods. It’s understood that low levels of serotonin cause depression.
  • Meditation triggers the parasympathetic nervous system, which enables us to rest and recover from
By |2018-11-10T11:15:37+00:00November 12th, 2018|Categories: Thoughts from the Barn|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments
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