A Great Day Gets Better

You know how you have those really good days?

On those particular days, you effortlessly attract a pile of good stuff without trying.

My brother-in-law, Marc Lefkowitz and I ride mountain bike trails every chance we get. Last weekend, we went to the trail that epitomizes mountain biking in Ohio. It's called...Vulture's Knob. A great name that conjures Mountain Dew commercial imagery.

Anyway, Sunday was a perfect day to drive to Wooster and ride this trail. When we arrived, we were startled to find about 50 cars parked at the trailhead (there are normally 2 or 3). It turns out that a race was about to start in 25 minutes and we had no intention of competing that day.

We did, however, race to the outhouse, throw our gear on and stumble over to the authorities to ask if we could get out there before the official start. They said, "go for it."

So, we rode. Actually, we rode with a purpose, like we were on a mission. We rode faster than ever because we didn't want the "experts" to catch us while we were enjoying the experience.

When we finished, we realized that we had just ridden faster and better than at any other time this year. It was exhilarating! By the way, the experts were still nowhere to be seen.

It was exciting. We had such a great time because we were inadvertently pushed to a new level.

You know how that feels, don't you? On the drive back we were looking at the scenery and taking it in with great enjoyment when Marc spotted something really cool . . .

A huge field of sunflowers that looked like a postcard from Tuscany

When you feel good, you tend to attract more things that make you feel better. The opposite is also true. If you turn your thoughts toward better feeling images, it becomes easier to find other things to feel good about.

Click here if you want to watch a short slideshow of the area around the mountain bike trail.

Marc writes a really great blog about sustainability, by the way. You can check out his stylings at the Green City Blue Lake website.

Who Likes Change? (Part Two)

Welcome back to Part Deux of the blog that began last week.

By the way, the “secret” about that audio recording that you heard by Candice two weeks ago (you can click here on Poissons d’or to listen, if you like) is that she played it on a keyboard.

Anyway, so Candice and I were depressed because we were holding on to that great Kauai vacation moment on the beach and, consequently, not living in the moment upon our return. We weren’t accepting that the great moment on the beach in Kauai would inevitably change.

But something really cool happened next. We started thinking about ways to get back to Kauai more often. This eventually morphed into us looking for ways to simply get that feeling back, Hawai'i or not.

We began reading books...I mean - lots of books. Books on finances, the subconscious mind, music, educational approaches, psychology, success, quantum physics, goals, spirituality, ecology and real estate. We totally immersed ourselves in a new project that turned out to be a course in dramatically changing our lives.

At first, we didn't look at it that way. We were still looking at this self-directed education as a means to an end, rather than a total transformation.

But, things began to change (there’s that word again)...and I have to say that things changed quickly.

Our creativity began to blossom as we thought about new ways to teach music, inspire others and develop ourselves. Sure, growing pains emerged because there were still things in our lives that were relics of our old way of thinking. Believe me, these relics caused some stress as they rubbed up against our shiny, new concepts.

But, we began to look at the old relics as growth measurement tools. Most importantly, we began to accept the presence of the old along with the exciting promise of the new. Perhaps even more significant was that we began to accept change. Welcoming change feels risky at first, but it becomes really exciting with practice.

In fact, here is a good quote from Deepak Chopra (slightly paraphrased):

“Most people are prisoners of the past and the known, yet the known is more rigid and more scary than the unknown”.

Why?

Chopra goes on to recommend that we remember that each moment has infinite potential and that the known serves to limit our potential if we hold onto it. He recommends that we factor uncertainty into our lives.

That philosophy began to take hold for us. I got that quote from a video of his that I watched entitled, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success.

Back to the story. In the past, I tried to force my way through nearly every activity until I got what I thought was the desired outcome. But my brut force approach left me feeling annoyed or even empty at the end when I achieved a goal. Have you done this? If so, I'm sure you may have experienced some dissatisfaction.

This new approach is different.

I began practicing gratitude for all the things that were coming into my life. Yes, I began listing five things at the end of every day that I appreciated about my life - big or small. When you start looking for things to appreciate, it is amazing how many more “I am grateful for...” list items appear. If you've never tried this, see if you can write down five things that you are grateful for when you go to bed. Try it for a week and see if it has an impact on your outlook and your experience (which are one in the same).

I won't go into a long list of all the things that have happened over the past two years, but I can tell you that letting go of that wonderful day in Kauai led to me accepting change. A revolution in my attitude and daily practices took place (Candice shares a lot of these list points as well). As a result:

I give more.

More than ever, I appreciate the splendor of nature. This is true in spectacular paces like Banff National Park or in my own backyard.

We travel to great places on a regular basis (including subsequent trips to Hawai'i).

I have a new resilience following bad news.

I almost never have reason to complain.

Our occupational and creative skills have never grown more dramatically than in the last two years.

Our career projects have become innovative and engaging.

Our finances have completely changed for the better.

Even my back pain issues have disappeared.

Even experiences with our families are transforming. You get the picture. I attribute a lot of this stuff to the fact that I practice accepting change, good or bad, from moment to moment. It helps me to stay present. It helps me focus and it brings me great joy. By changing the approach on the inside, the outside became a new reality.

There is still a lot of transformation to occur, of course. I am not suggesting that I have this change thing mastered. My hope is that in sharing this story, it may inspire something inside of you. We all have the capacity to accept change and allow great things into our lives (whether or not you think you deserve it - you do!).

Every life is a fantastic opportunity. Every moment holds infinite potential so I hope you go for the things that make you fired up!