The Art of Wellbeing - Tambra Harck

If you listen to mainstream news, or read it, or talk about what's being reported, it's easy to lose focus on how amazingly abundant and joyous life really is. That is one of the inspiring things about the "Occupy" campaign that is happening now... and spreading across the US and the world. Standing together to say, "Enough," is empowering.

And yet, there's a great deal of focus on the "split" ... and a split, whether it's between the 1 and 99%, or by race, gender, sexual preference, or any of the other things we habitually focus on, keeps us from the sense of well-being, joy and love that we all long for.

Recently I asked a group of 30+ business people how they feel when they engage in the "bad economy" talk that has now been going on for more than three years now. Or what happens as they think that the changes in their lives or in the world are out of their control or influence.

Their overall response: They feel awful.

It's natural to feel awful when you are inundated with fear and doubt and greed and partial truths (lies), presented in hyped up expressions; especially when you aren't grounded in your own KNOWING that life is meant to be joyous, loving and rich in experience and meaning.

I define the word awful as a feeling that is uninspired, sour, unsettled, sickly. These emotions don't promote service or growth. Over time, if you continue to feed the awfulness, your health will be adversely effected, the quality of your relationships will diminish. While in the mire, I know I can not create or see beauty, or uplift my own spirits, let alone those of others! None of us can. So it becomes imperative for you and your dreams, and your loved ones, and the planet as a whole, to create a different way.

You've heard this before. From me - from others. Hey, you may have even been the one talking about it. But here's the truth, if you are not -- every moment -- in the precense and practice of it, you don't know it's power.

I'm talking about Gratitude and Appreciation

How do I know you'll benefit from Gratitude? I can't prove that you will. Only you can do that. I truly hope you will, and that you'll share with me what you discover in the experience.

Here's a simple practice for elevation your experience and expression of Gratitude:

Start by thinking of one thing you're grateful for.
Let the thought expand into your feelings. FEEL your gratitude, emotionally and in your senses. How does it feel in your body? Notice the changes in your posture, your breath, in the small muscles in your face.
If there's a person, place, sensation... that accompanies your thought, you can visualize, imagine the touch, taste, smell, story that expands it in your awareness even more.
Begin a list. Maybe yours will be a journal, or you'll use your blog. Write everything you're grateful for here. Look for the feelings and evidence that your life is overflowing with love!
Share your gratitude with others. Both with those closest to you, and people you meet randomly throughout your day.
Ask others to share their gratitude with you too. I learn so much about my friends, family, clients, as they tell their stories of appreciation. Plus, expressing gratitude brings all of us into feelings of joy. It's contagious!

Caution: Try not to wait until you are in the frame of mind that you can't think of what you're grateful for. And if you're in that frame already, start with "I am grateful for my breath." (There's nothing like your breath to remind that you are alive! ... and to bring awake the experience of Being Present!)

I have found in my work (and in my own life) that a Practice of Gratitude can and will:

Elevate your mood.
Amplify praise.
Improve your perspective.
Remind you that we live in an abundant world.
Transcend fear.

EnJOY!

Spiritual mentor, author and inspirational speaker, Tambra Harck, guides clients and audiences to empower themselves through accessing their innate wisdom, creativity and true desire. Her warm and insightful nature makes her a powerful speaker, often creating unexpected ahas and expanded possibility. One of Tambra's passionate missions is to facilitate soul-level transformation with visionary leaders to create new definitions and experiences of success in the world today.