Spring is Springing - a Great Time to Eliminate Clutter and all Limitations!

’There are two worlds; the world we can measure with line and rule and the world we feel with our hearts and imagination.’ - Leigh Hunt

Spring is springing and summer is on it’s way and this is my first blog on my new website - hurrah! I hope you like it and find it helpful. It’s also a great time to do some spring cleaning and de-cluttering of your life including house, office, finances, work, relationships, wardrobe, etc. The less clutter around you means the less clutter in your mind. I’ve always found it fascinating that the ancient Oriental philosophy of ‘feng shui’ helps us to understand that our homes are a direct extension of ourselves and by looking after your home you are ultimately looking after yourself. Worth remembering when you’re spring cleaning……..

We’ve experienced some intense energy so far this year from the universal forces of nature - so replenishing and self-care are important. I’ve had to overcome my own resistance with this way of thinking because I didn’t want an ordinary life - which is why it’s taken me a while to fully embrace this new consciousness. We are born with this knowledge but it gets overrun by our educational programs as we are growing up. However, I always knew I was half way there in my thinking which is why I’m fully embracing it now. When I first read Arianna Huffington, Marianne Williamson, Louise Hay and many others, I felt I’d come home - this spiritual knowledge nourishes your soul.

My mission is to bring this knowledge into education - so here are 10 practices I have found helpful and Spring is a great time of year to start practising them:

1. Get fit and healthy. Wake up just a little earlier and move your body out in nature - a fast walk or run, whatever works for you, and savour nature and connect to that higher universal energy and say what you would like to achieve that day... think of it as having a check-in with a higher power. Make it non-optional - like brushing your teeth!
2. Get creative - practising writing and saying affirmations and visualisations daily can change your life. Remember, the vibration of your words and thoughts carry tremendous power. Speak of what you want, not what you don’t want. Your words are your thoughts that become things soonest. Start a morning journal as Julia Cameron suggests. Write 3 x A4 pages before your ego defences are in place. I’ve found this exercise very helpful when I lost trust in the creative process. The truth of the creative process is that it cannot be forced. Great work takes time.
3. Start a mindfulness practice by cultivating quiet time and silencing the mind for just a few minutes. Focusing on your breath reduces stress. I gather meditation can knock 7 years off the age of your brain so it’s really worth practising!*
4. Repair one relationship. Understanding what you seek from a relationship is more important than what you seek in a partner. I’ve managed to turn old lovers into friends - no-one can change what you shared and that’s never going to go away - authentic relationships are the best foundation - too many people are looking for the right person instead of trying to be the right person.
5. Refuse to fear fear. Instead, follow the fear and build daily confidence. Fear is a sign of growth, anyway.
6. Change a belief. Be your authentic self by loving, accepting, acknowledging and appreciating yourself more and learning to be more
   satisfied with who you are and your place in the world. Don’t follow cultural stereotypes - follow your true calling.
7. Forgive yourself and make sure your worst enemy is not living between your own ears!
8. Embrace change. See, hear and feel every imaginable detail - they represent marker points along a journey of inner evolution being taken by our highest consciousness.
9. Eat great healthy food A balanced diet makes your body thrive and raises your body’s vibration. Also drink water to cleanse and remove toxins. A good detox energises you.
10. Rest - get enough sleep - a great day starts the night before - so a good sleep pattern is like a good meditation and helps the body heal itself by supporting cell renewal.

AND HAVE FUN AND GO OUT TO PLAY! Listen to music and just dance! Music can heal so much - better than most medicines!

Summer is on its way - hurrah!

’Take a quiet walk with Mother Nature. It will nurture your mind, body and soul.’ - Anthony Douglas

*PS Good to hear that Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, (along with Goldman Sachs, TFL, etc) has offered to his staff ‘mindfulness’ classes to help them be in the moment to help reduce stress with the ‘less is more’ mantra………is the city finally changing from ‘greed is good’? Let’s hope so.

Spirituality in Business

Jane Fuller

'At the root of our secular age is the fatal error that has led us to regard organized religion and the spiritual truth that man embodies as one and the same thing. This has caused millions to deny the reality of the latter because they have rejected the former. The impulse to know ourselves - which, after all, is a key component of spiritual seeking - is as deeply imprinted within us as our instincts for survival, sex and power.' - Arianna Huffington

Apologies for not being in contact sooner however, I've been researching the above title "Spirituality in Business" and I am slightly overwhelmed with the amount of material I have garnered. I have travelled to New York and spoken with Chairmen and CEO's; taken workshops with Hay House and The School of Life and in the process met Ryan Holiday (whose book 'The Obstacle is the Way" I can highly recommend) and the wonderful Arianna Huffington who needs no introduction. Her book Thrive is a best seller about the Third Metric on redefining success and creating a happier life. She believes we need to redefine what it means to be successful in today's world by showing the profound and transformative effects of meditation, mindfulness, unplugging and giving - everything I've been talking about in earlier blogs. Arianna shows the way to a revolution in our culture, our thinking, our workplaces and our lives. She understands it takes time to be human. I believe your mindset can limit your success in business - so not only is a spiritual practice smart but it's essential too. Can this please be taught in schools from a young age - it starts with education.

Before I started writing my first blog nearly 2 years ago - I talked to a number of business people whose view I respected, about wanting to bring spirituality into business. I was told by most of them that the corporates wouldn't like it and it was best I didn't mention the word 'spiritual'. Well never being one to shy away I explained 'that's exactly why they need to listen". We were still in the depths of the recent deepest darkest financial crisis and I believe that one of the major factors in the failing global economy was a lack of values in the corporate and banking world. They'd lost their way - money, greed and power had taken over. That doesn't make them bad people just bad behaviours. I think the movie 'The Wolf of Wall Street' - a true story about corruption in Wall Street in the 1990's before the recent financial crisis - best exemplifies this madness! Money and power was the only way to go and in the process don't think too much about ethics and values because no-one else is and of course there isn't the time. Greed was still good.

I think many people felt disillusioned with that culture and mindset and began to look for a deeper connection within themselves and their lives. I believe it was during those dark days that people generally began questioning and searching for a new way of living and working with a yearning for some degree of spiritual connection. And it's not just a certain demographic but the top tier of the corporate world who are dipping a toe into the spiritual waters - which means if they are then they'll want their businesses to reflect these values too. Erin Knowles who is a lifestyle curator for UHNW individuals says "The true elite are seeking enlightenment to fill the third metric of their lives.  My clients are starting to look within - they have partied hard, shopped hard and now they're exploring their inner health and spirituality. Because there's no point in having lots of money if you're not happy." I could feel the tide change with friends in business a few years ago and it's not just here in London but it's taking place on a global scale in New York at Goldman Sachs and HSBC to individual billionaires and people in their 20's and 30's upwards. They are looking for more meaning in their lives and business.

This does not mean we cannot enjoy consumerism - when you buy a new dress, you're buying into a beautiful piece of energy. This means I can enjoy that experience as much as a 'reiki' session with Dr. Susie Anthony - which I can highly recommend - but how many dresses and Chanel bags does a girl need? Psychological research shows that a core element to leading a happy life is to spend part of your time thinking about ideas or purposes that are bigger than you are. It's about perspective........

Not all industries are this evolved though - when I was running my own film production company the mantra in my industry at the time was 'we're 24/7 here' and everyone was expected to be available 24/7. This evidently has not changed at all since I left the industry and I believe it is deeply unhealthy. I wanted out over a decade ago and redefined my life and my view on success. Life isn't about power and money - although it helps - it's about so much more. I refer to my blog of January 2013 - 'Meaning is the new money'. After decades of pursuing riches, wealth seems less alluring and meaning has become the new money.......... People are realising that something is missing - to coin that wonderful song title phrase by Peggy Lee "Is that all there is?" echos in my ears........

Modern spirituality is centred on the deepest values and meanings by which people live. I am not religious but I'm spiritual and I want to acknowledge the importance of this in my life and it appears that many other people and their businesses do too. In fact you can be even more successful with this way of thinking and working so the economies can only flourish! Just imagine the spirit of your brand.........

Namaste

PS They used to say that politics and spirituality don't mix but Marianne Williamson - another fabulous spiritual leader - is running for Congress in District 33 of California. If I could vote for her I would but another acknowledgement that the world is changing and spirituality is being recognised as an important and political factor in peoples lives

PPS Can I recommend The School of Life website for The Philosopher's Mail  Another site that embraces spirituality and an antidote to The Daily Mail..........

PPS Arianna has personally asked me to be a voice on the Huffington Post - I'm chuffed and honoured

Have a great week!

'This life is too short for our souls'  -  Goethe