As more opportunities and choices become available to us due to the faster, better, more internet culture, our list of things we “should” do consciously or unconsciously grows and grows, with our stress level expanding in correlation.

As this endless list of to-dos continues to lengthen, remember that there will never be enough time to do all the things you don’t need to do. Instead of attempting to win an unwinnable game, prioritize the things that give you life while you are still alive.

What would bring you joy, happiness, fun, and aliveness? Make time for that, no matter what is unfinished. That’s your job.

Choosing to stop investing your energy into something that is no longer supporting you is not accepting defeat. On the contrary, it is claiming your victory.

Having the choice to stop is equally important, if not even more important, than having the option to keep going. If you can’t quit when appropriate, your perseverance is not power.

Remember to call it a loss when it helps you win at what’s important.

To follow up on yesterday’s post, in addition to using what annoys you to direct you to your commitments, it is essential to be willing to be annoying to others.

Your message, energy, enthusiasm, delivery, persistence, or commitment might annoy people. But don’t let those who don’t understand you stop you.

Find your balance between meeting people where they are and being who you are meant to be. And remember, balance constantly changes.

Noticing what annoys you can be invaluable as it can help point you toward what you are committed to.

Staying annoyed isn’t helpful, as it traps us in a state of resistance. However, leveraging irritation to understand what is important to you can be a portal to passion and purpose.

Pay attention to what annoys you so you can reflect on who you want to be.

Decide you will live a life that feels good, so you do the uncomfortable things that are yours to do.

Nothing feels worse to our souls than leaving something important unresolved. Resolutions and revolutions take courage and commitment, and freedom lives on the other side.

Half of contentment is embracing the discomfort of doing what we resist.

You probably brush your teeth whether you need to or not.

You exercise your body so that it can be strong and adaptable when you need it to be.

You do your spiritual work to have the depth you need when life gets challenging.

You don’t have to do anything of these things, and you will be grateful that you did when you need them.

There will be days when it doesn’t feel like you need to do the things you know support you, and those are the most important days to do them, whether you need to or not. Your future self will thank you.

To redirect the energy towards wholeness, practice having the courage to ask a question that won’t likely be asked without your commitment.

Complaining, gossiping, pretending, or arguing won’t certainly elevate us to where we’re meant to go. Instead, what could help is your thoughtful, brave question that reintroduces curiosity and humanness to the conversation.

The purpose of a good question is to change the quality of the energy from fear to love. Sometimes excellent questions lead to more questions, not answers.

When you find yourself spiraling, dwelling, and obsessing, a break is vital to shift your state.

Distract yourself with something helpful, like exercise, fresh air, a good laugh, cuddling, some rest, creativity, or anything else that restores you to your steady, unrestricted, worthy self.

You know what your harmful distractions are; eliminate them ruthlessly. Leverage the useful ones.

The problem might not be that you don’t have enough space, time, or resources; it could be that you are attempting to have too much.

Too many emails, too many knickknacks, too many shoulds, or too many of anything will lead to the experience of “not enough” to manage it.

As you create more space in your life, look to eliminate the things you not only don’t need but are keeping you from having what you want.

Rather than allowing your to-dos to drain your energy and create you to be something you aren’t, what might it look like to practice infusing your essence into your work and actions?

What if you could make your day about breathing life into things rather than letting them drain the life from you?

Of your Self; different than your negative ego.

Your Self with a capital “S” is the divine part of you where your wisdom, clarity, peace, unconditional love and connection to universal truth live. Your most important job is to cultivate your practice of listening to this Self as your guide, rather than allowing yourself to be pulled around by the tempting yet draining distractions of the world, media, and your lower personality thoughts.

The chatter and buzz of the distractions and the voices of confusion never go away, which is why your job is simply practice focusing your listening.

Be a disciple of your Self to get over yourself and back to your essence and contribution.

When you’re feeling stuck, stumped, thwarted, frustrated, or disconnected and you don’t know what the answer is, there is probably a question to ask. That question is:

How can I learn to give more grace?

To serve at your highest level, be clear about your weaknesses and the things you do not enjoy. This is not so you can fix and focus on them, but so you can allow yourself to be supported in your strengths, therefore supporting others in theirs.

When you focus on your strengths and what brings you joy, you elevate your frequency, making an elevated contribution to the people around you and the world. Additionally, when you stop wasting effort trying to force yourself to do something that someone else is excellent at, you open up space for someone else to step into their strengths and joy.

Collaboration, community, and positive change that actually make us happy are only available when you focus on your gifts and support others in doing the same.

We often judge what we envy, when really it might benefit us to appreciating it.

Envy is poisonous as it blocks us and others from the benefits of appreciation, celebration, and connection.

When you inevitably notice envy or judgment creep in, consider what might be triggering it, and see if there is a way you can use the moment as an opportunity to reconnect to abundance through appreciation.

What if you become enthusiastic about sharing why you were doing what you were doing with all the folks in your life? Not just the ones close to you.

Support and inspiration are byproducts of expressing our highest intentions. When people know why you are up to what you are up to, not only will they likely be more supportive, but they might also even be inspired to live more from their own hearts.

Also, sharing your intention allows you to cross-check your motivations. Are you proud to share your why?

If the fear of letting go of something that has given you comfort keeps you from elevating to your next level of freedom and success, remember you can always go back.

Your evolution lies in your discipline to be present and make tweaks and changes as you grow and discover what is truly important to you. Only in your willingness to let go of something that feels good and explore something that might feel great can you open yourself up to how good it can be.

To find the courage to try it on, remind yourself you can always go back. You probably won’t want to once you reach the other side, and you can.

Your body and spirit love the positive body sensations of uplifting thoughts and imaginings.

As you prepare to do what feels like a big lift, take a mental leap to a picture of your future success and relief and allow those feelings to travel through your body. With this image and these sensations as your fuel, see if you can enjoy the process as an extension of success.

Treat yourself as an equal, and you will be able to contribute.

Make your life about contributing to folks rather than earning approval from them, and you will likely find that fulfillment comes way more easily and frequently.

You are inherently as worthy and whole as anyone else. Fear and its cousins like us to think we aren’t, so we stay small. However, the story of our unworthiness is one of the many falsehoods our fear feeds us.

Next time you notice the body sensations of fear keeping you from asking a question, offering something that has the possibility of being rejected, or being seen for where you are in your journey, see if you can transmute those body sensations into the courage you need to love yourself as not only equal but essential to the whole. 

Life is more fulfilling when you act as if you are worthy; it is way more fun.

What if no one or nothing could take away your joy, peace, love, honesty, faithfulness, passion, or any other feeling you value most? What if you knew that no matter how intense the challenges or heartbreaks you may experience might be, they will not make the treasures of your heart disappear?

Just like the sun is often hidden behind the clouds, it is there, and you have faith in that. Furthermore, you have the ability within you to cultivate that same faith in your resilience. The natural, best, most loving version of you is always there, and you can find comfort in that whenever you need it if you commit to remembering it is there.

Your passion may be uncomfortable for others because they have not found theirs yet. And don’t let their discomfort stop you. Discomfort is at the foundation of growth.

Practice love and openness as you express yourself and your commitments. The magic spot for growth is where folks can feel comfortable enough around you to be uncomfortable.

Bring both; comfort and discomfort. Watch the magic happen.