Everyday Philosophy
Applied To Your Life
Thoughts & Beliefs
- We are our thoughts. What are your primary thoughts? Meditation & Awareness helps us recognize our thought patterns, leading us to identify repetitive thoughts and then determine if they are serving us or doing damage.
- We are shaped by our beliefs. Just because you believe something doesn’t necessarily make it true.
- You can choose to be happy.
Stress & Coping
- Stress comes from our imagination – how we label things good or bad. We can deal with things better than we realize. Better than we give ourselves credit for.
- The more stress you are under, the more you need to balance this by moving the body. Move the energy and don’t let things stagnate. Stagnation can cause illness and pain.
- Practice doing what you are doing. If you are dealing with a stressful situation then do that. But when your are driving, working, practicing – then do that. Don’t be worried about what you need to be doing next. That is living in the present moment.
- In moments of stress, focus what you feel like during meditation or in nature and call upon that sense of peace within to calm yourself. If you practice regularly, you can return to that peaceful state very quickly.
Change
- Your brain and body are completely pliable. You can shape your brain through your thoughts and actions.
- Once you recognize that the only thing you can count on is change and that change is inevitable, you can begin to let go of how you think things should be. You can then let go of the tension that comes from that way of thinking.
Worry & Anxiety
- Has anyone you have ever known gotten better because you worried about them?
- So much of worry comes from our imagination…saying “but what if?” We are not in the present moment if we are worrying about what might happen in the future. Do what you can do about it in the moment, and then…let it go.
- Guilt and worry are a complete waste of our energy.
- Your best or worst experience isn’t good or bad, it just is. You label and categorize it. Let go of your analytical thinking. It is…what it is.
Attachments
- Love with all your heart but don’t attach
- The idea of not getting attached to things or outcomes demonstrates understanding of the principle of change.
- Do trees get attached to acorns?
Personal Growth and Goals
- If you want to head in different direction than the path you are on, you need to take a different road.
- If you only try to do what you are already good at, there is no growth.
- You stay at the level you are at until you experience what you need to go beyond it. Until you are ready to let go and change. What is your current holding pattern?
- Choose a direction and then let your choices – minute by minute, day by day, move you towards that direction.
Control
- We can’t control the outside world. We can only control our internal environment. Our thoughts and how we respond to things.
- When do we feel frustrated? When we attach to results. Trying to control things we cannot.
- Learn to recognize what you cannot control. Go all out. Do the best you can but don’t attach to outcomes.
Self Discipline & Self Mastery
- Don’t be a slave to your cravings. You decide what goes into your body, how much exercise you do and what your primary thoughts are.
- Work on mastering yourself little by little each day. Notice how you feel and why you feel that way. Maybe certain people stress you, ask yourself why. What can you change? Then work on that - little by little each day.
Gratitude
- Practice “an attitude of gratitude.” It is difficult to be angry or upset when you are thankful.
- Gratitude is one of the greatest things we can practice on a regular basis. Replace your complaint with gratitude.
- End each day thinking about all the things you are grateful for. Run through them in your mind. Over time, you will start to make a habit of looking at the “good” things that happen and not just focusing on the “bad”.
Mindfulness in Everyday Life
- It is a different world when you really pay attention. What are you missing?
- How much time do you want to spend not paying attention?
- Everything we do can be mindful. Formal meditation is just one aspect, one way to practice mindfulness.
Dealing with Challenges
- The people who give us trouble, push our buttons…those are our best teachers
- How much time are you spending sitting watching TV? Watching other people's made-up lives and experiences rather than creating your own?
- If your mind is open, the greatest growth often comes from the greatest tragedy. Only you understand for yourself what you choose to experience in this life.
- If you take life too seriously, your pain becomes too real. Try to visualize a scenario you want for yourself and step out with clarity and see what it is you want to experience.
- Sometimes something happens that seems bad to someone we love but it inspires us to make different choices in our own lives.
Benefits of Meditation Practice
- With a calmer mind you develop a higher threshold for stress.
- When your mind is calm you can focus on solutions rather than problems.
- How much is it worth to you to have calm in the middle of chaos?
- Just consistently sitting down to meditate starts to form something – you strengthen your ability to make good choices. Eventually you will learn to quiet your mind.
- If you know peace, you can make different choices. You make decisions based on clarity rather than emotion.
- Meditation is a training tool to use in everyday life, helping to keep calm and centered even in the worst situations. If you can’t apply it to your everyday life, it is worthless.
Philosophy on Living
- People are so busy making a living, they forget to make a life.
- Find your passion, find your purpose even if today it is to notice the sky, the air, the clouds. Fully engage 100% in whatever you do.
- Is childhood the best time of life? Maintain a beginner’s mind – every day is the best time, the best moment.
- Life is our Teacher.
Connecting with Nature
- Sitting in nature puts you in touch with a different world. Your body and mind will start to harmonize with the natural rhythms in nature.
- Sitting in nature on a regular basis is one of the most naturally healing things you can do for yourself.
- Sit down and stare at a blade of grass for an hour and you may begin to understand the concept of oneness and being connected with every living thing around you.