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Tag Archives: inspiration

Controlling the Little Voice in Your Head

After my last post about fear, I wanted to talk a bit about the Little Voice in your head. You know, that little devil on your left shoulder (she sometimes has a twin on the right shoulder), who is constantly chattering and making you doubt the things you want to do? It usually crops up when you are about to embark on something new, something exciting, something you have never done before. It’s the Little Voice you hear saying, “What Little Voice? I don’t have a voice in my head.” Yup, that’s the one!

I call mine my “Saboteur”.  I named her this because she always pops up at the worst possible times to sabotage my thoughts,  ideas and inspirations. She makes herself known when I’m making choices that will bring me personal growth. She doubts me. She tells me I’m not good enough, or smart enough, or strong enough, or brave enough, or pretty enough. The list goes on… She is the one who convinces me NOT to do things that I want to do. She convinces me that my fears are real.

The purpose of the Saboteur is to protect you. It’s self preservation. She wants to stop you from doing things that will hurt you or bring you down or break your heart. Her goal is to keep you in your comfort zone, where she knows you’ll be safe. The problem with this is that it stunts personal growth and holds you back from many of the amazing opportunities life has to offer.

So here are a few things that I’ve learned to do to keep my Saboteur at bay:

Filter the Chatter

The great thing is that as soon as you identify the Saboteur talking, you can shut her up. Filter through the chatter and identify which parts are really you talking and which parts are the Saboteur doing her thing. Usually the Saboteur will be the one filled with doubts, while the True You is the one saying, “I can totally do this!” Be selective of the chatter you allow yourself to believe and ignore the rest. The Saboteur will try hard to come out on top, but you need to be stronger than her.

Change Your Self-Talk

“Change the voices in your head, make them like you instead.”  (P!nk, F**kin Perfect) This is so important. If you are constantly feeding yourself negative self-talk, you will do nothing more than bring yourself down. Tell yourself how great you are! Look in the mirror and admire yourself, rather than be critical about the tiny things you don’t like that nobody else probably even notices. Recondition the Little Voice to be a positive one, rather than one that feeds you constant self doubt.

Remind Yourself of Past Accomplishments

When your Saboteur tells you that you can’t do something, remember a time that you accomplished something big! Remind yourself that challenges are there to overcome, and that the last time you ignored your Little Voice, you achieved a big win and did amazing things that made you feel empowered!

So I’ll leave you with this, if you don’t like the story that your life has become, tell yourself a better one! And don’t let your Saboteur get in the way of that! You deserve to live an amazing life! Live a life you love!

If You Don't Like the Story Your Life Has Become, Tell Yourself a Better One

© 2010 Mariska Richters Photography
Sanur, Bali, Indonesia

 

Contagious Inspiration

I woke up this morning to the following message in my inbox from my friend Catherine Bendall in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Hearing that you are spreading contagious inspiration is an amazing way to start a new day!

“Hey! I just wanted to say I read your blog this morning, and it really inspired me. Last fall Charlie and I had been feeling the same way, dreaming of days in exotic cultural rich places… A life without shackles to a desk, back problems, mortgage stresses etc etc… So we said what would make you happy today. A trip to India was my dream, so we booked within a week and went. When we returned, that feeling came back… As I knew it would.

This week we are listing our house with the hopes of a move West. But what we realized is after we sell our house, why do we need to buy another one in Calgary right away, why do I need to get the same job there. Why can’t we take this freeing opportunity and see where are sails take us.

I read your blog at 6 am when I woke up today and it truly inspired me. So today is the day I start the process to do what I want. It might take a couple months to save and plan but that’s the fun part! At breakfast we talked about a round the world ticket and where we wanted to see and experience. It was a nice breakfast;)

So thank you!

And sure enough I get to work go to the office kitchen like I do every morning, and the only mug left is this one;) a sign or what!

Good luck in your journey!”

Thrilled to be 30 Coffee Mug

Quick Have Fun Coffee Mug

Thank you so much, Catherine for your message and encouraging words! I’m so happy that the adventure I’m about to embark on has inspired at least one more person to live life to their full potential!

Too many of us are living a cookie-cutter “formula” life. One that is expected and already drawn out for us by our parents and/or society in general. If this is the life you envision for yourself and this makes you happy, then go for it! It’s really all about being happy. I just know that, although I saw this for myself at one time, this “formula” is no longer the life for me.

So, I encourage you all to take a look at your life. Are you happy? Are you inspired? Are you living a life you love? If not, what’s missing? What could you be doing that you are not? And the big questions: What’s stopping you?

If you are not living a life you love, I challenge you to take life by the horns and make your dreams a reality! Do what makes you happy! We only have one chance at this life and the whole “one day” mentality is one that makes so many people (me included, until now) miss out on an extraordinary adventure full of inspiring experiences! Life is yours to enjoy, so break out of the mold and enjoy it!

Get out there! Live a life you love!

 

Little People

I spent last week on Vancouver Island, and spent some good quality time with my almost-three-year-old nephew and godson.

I love the simplicity that life carries for children. Their constant questions and curiosities, innocence and trust, freedom and imagination. These are truly things to admire in the little people all around us. We, as adults, should all aspire to rediscover these things within ourselves. I believe that if we could recapture even a fraction of our childhood, we might see the world through completely different eyes…

With that in mind, I hope you enjoy the following images and I invite your feedback and comments. Enjoy!

 

Cache

Father & Son 32

Children at Play 9 Children at Play 8

Child at Play

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Emily & Megan 11 Emily & Megan 21

Emily & Megan 25

Photo of the Day: Sunset at the Gorge

This was the sunset at the 2009 Dave Matthews concert at the Gorge after it had rained all day. The sky opened up with a double rainbow and this was our gorgeous sunset right behind the stage. Amazing!

For more pics of this beautiful sunset and other sky images, please visit the Set on Flickr!

Sunset Clouds at the Gorge, Washington