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Amy L. Burns, CLCFilled with interesting and inspiring |
Coaching LinksFAQ Services Biography Testimonials Professional Guidelines Resources ContactCategoriesArticles Exercises Fun Stuff Other QuotesRecent PostsA Love Letter The Power of Acknowledgment Dare to Have the Life You Want Managing Our To Do Lists Acceptance in Relationships Handmade Affirmation and Meditation Card Decks I Promise Myself Creativity - Power Thought Card Creativity - May Tele-Gathering The Enlightenment Card
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Tuesday, November 11, 2008A Love LetterHandwrite yourself a love letter. A love letter to you, from you.Sign it. Seal it in an envelope addressed to yourself, and put a stamp on it. Give it to someone you trust and ask them to mail it to you in one month. Forget about it... for now. # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 8:52 AM 0 comments  
Wednesday, April 02, 2008The Power of AcknowledgmentAcknowledge – “to admit or accept that something exists, is true, or is real.”I want to acknowledge myself for taking such good care of myself. Wow - I really have. I have done such a great job noticing when I’m stressed or when my needs aren’t being met, and then being flexible, making changes, giving myself new choices, and creating my experiences. I’ve taken time off when I’ve needed it. I’ve been thoughtful about arranging my schedule, and I’ve gotten out of my comfort zone and taken healthy risks. I’ve been thoughtful about the foods I’m eating, trying lots of new foods, taking vitamins, and eliminated a few foods that seemed to disagree with me. I’m stretching twice a week for nearly an hour each time, I’m taking violin lessons, I’m creating art four days each week, and I’m taking naps on weekends! I am so pleased with how well I’ve been taking care of myself. Acknowledgment is pretty powerful stuff. Think about how great you feel when you are acknowledged by your peers, co-workers, boss, instructors, partner, parents, community, and other folks you love and respect. It feels pretty amazing when someone can see our truth. Often we tend to shy away from acknowledgments. “Aw, it was nothing.” “No problem, it’s my job.” Yet acknowledgments are a divine gift, and when we shy away from them we are not only telling the giver we don’t accept their gift, but we are not allowing ourselves to receive the gift. We are telling ourselves we don’t deserve it! Remember a time when you acknowledged someone for something they did or who they were being. What was their reaction? If they did not accept your acknowledgment, what messages did you receive from that persons response? If they soaked up your acknowledgment what message did you receive from that persons response? Remember a time when you refused an acknowledgment. What was that about for you? What would it have felt like to accept that acknowledgment, to embrace it? When I refuse acknowledgment, I am not in a place of receiving. I’m likely in a place of lack and not feeling very positive about myself or my contributions. If pressed, I will argue against the acknowledgment and even put myself down to prove the acknowledgment wrong. When I am in this space, I am doing a great disservice to myself and to the person acknowledging me. I am telling them to keep their gift, I don’t want it. And I’m telling myself I don’t deserve to feel good. Ouch! When I am open to receiving and I am acknowledged, you will see me open up like a sunflower in the sun. My body relaxes, my ears perk up, my posture improves, a smile takes over my face. My brilliance is being nourished and I grow, I feel safe. When I feel safe and valued, I take healthy risks more often, I learn better, and I notice how awesome everyone else is, too! There are really only two bits of etiquette about acknowledgments. *When acknowledging others, only speak to what is magnificent while being authentic and genuine. Only say something positive, and only say it if you truly believe it. Authentic positive acknowledgment is powerful stuff that really nourishes the recipient. *When receiving acknowledgment, take a deep breath in and really let it sink in – let it just soak right into every cell and nourish you. Give yourself permission to really feel it, and really let that smile take over your entire face. Beam. You are amazing! Make it a practice to acknowledge yourself, too. Acknowledgment from others is powerful, and acknowledgment from yourself is absolutely divine. Not only acknowledge yourself for things you Do, also acknowledge yourself for who you were Being while you did those things (what qualities were present). Yes you completed that project – AND you were totally creative, diligent, and full of integrity while you did it! Acknowledge yourself for trying something new or taking a risk, even if it didn’t work out. In fact, see how many things you can find to acknowledge yourself for in just one day, and how you feel by the end of the day! You can not acknowledge yourself too much – honest. By the way, you’re magnificent! Labels: Articles # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 12:25 PM 0 comments
Saturday, December 22, 2007Dare to Have the Life You WantIt is not because things are difficultthat we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that things are difficult. - Seneca Labels: Quotes # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 2:23 PM 0 comments
Thursday, August 16, 2007Managing Our To Do ListsOften we can become overwhelmed with the amount of things we think we need to accomplish in a day, a week, or a lifetime. Small tasks or big goals and dreams can take over our lives resulting in never ending To Do Lists. While there are many ways to go about completing these tasks, and systems to organize them for more efficiency and productivity, I’d like to offer you something better – a new way of perceiving and experiencing your To Do List.What I’ve noticed is that often there are things on our To Do List that don’t really belong to us, aren’t our responsibility, or aren’t even in the realm of our own control. These things are “shoulds” we’ve adopted from our parents, teachers, friends, religious / spiritual groups, society, and even things we’ve decided we “should” do/be/have/want for one reason or another. They are responsibilities that we take on which don’t belong to us – perhaps they are responsibilities belonging to another person (family member, housemate, friend, employee, etc.) or organization (government, activist group, etc.). Regardless of the source, these things are often out of our own control and we use a lot of our energy trying to control them in various ways – none of which create the result we desire, or lend themselves to a life of ease and joy. When something is out of my own control, I say it belongs to the Universe. It is the Universe’s responsibility or role to make it happen or to make sure it happens, not mine. Some people call this surrendering to God or Source. Part of what allows the Universe to create what we want is when we are very clear about what we want, and we commit to being/having it (this requires belief and trust that it is already ours). When we commit to an result (usually experience or specific goal), and this result is in alignment with our highest good, our true selves, and/or our right path, the Universe moves to make those things become reality. We don’t have to worry about the how, that’s the Universe’s role. Our role is simply to know what we want, commit to it, trust and believe it is ours now, and act only on guidance. One way to gain clarity about how much of the stuff on our To Do List actually belongs to us, and what belongs to the Universe is through the following process. THE PROCESS Separate a sheet of paper into three columns by drawing two lines from top to bottom. In the middle column, write your To Do List – all the things you can do today to create what you want for yourself. In the far left column, write the Universe’s To Do List – all the things you can’t control that you would like the Universe to take care of for you. Leave the far right column blank for now. As you consider the things on your To Do List, also consider the following questions: * How does this fit within the larger vision of what I want? * What is my role? * What are my responsibilities? * What belongs to me and what belongs to the Universe/Source/God? * Is there anything on my list that isn’t mine? * If so, can I release it or give it to the Universe to take care of? * What parts do I want to be responsible for? What part do I love to do? * What parts would I love to allow the Universe to be responsible for? Now, feel free to shift anything from your To Do List over to the Universe's To Do List. The far right column is your To Be List. Write what/who you want to be as you consider each item on your To Do List. You can use the following questions to guide you. * What qualities do I want to embody as I complete this task? * Who/what do I want to Be as I complete this task? * Who/what do I need to Be in order to do this task? The most important part here is not only to Be who/what you want to be while doing your tasks, but also celebrate each item you check off your list. Celebrate when the Universe accomplishes something for you, too. VARIATIONS You can create any number of variations to this process to make it work for you – there is no wrong way to do it – all ways are right. You can focus on To Do Lists for categories, using one sheet to include some or all of the categories below, or using a separate sheet for each category – whichever works best for you. Feel free to create your own categories and category “definitions.” Finances - Your relationship with (giving & receiving) money, abundance Physical Well-Being - Your body, health, sense of physical safety Primary Relationship - Your being/not being in a primary relationship Relationships - Satisfaction with family, friends, associates Personal Development - Your process of growth and self-discovery Physical Surroundings - Where you spend time - home, office, car Rest & Relaxation - Time for regeneration, enjoyment, leisure Profession - Giving and expressing your unique gifts and talents I keep a 2.5 x 4.5 inch notepad with me most of the time. The first page is the Universe’s To Do List. Page two is usually my long-term To Do List, which I update monthly or quarterly depending on how messy it gets. Page three is usually my list for this week / today. I tend to use part of my To Do List page as my To Be List, or write who/what I want/need to Be next to each item. # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 8:53 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, August 01, 2007Acceptance in RelationshipsWhen we are in a relationship with another person, it can be so challenging to remember that even though the relationship between us is part of our life’s journey, we each still have our own separate life purpose, life path and life lessons. And we may not be on the same timeline for learning some of these lessons.This can be exciting and frustrating at the same time. Exciting because we often want to share our solutions and findings from our lessons – sometime we share these because we want to help them figure it all out and get through the tough part. Frustrating because when we share this information they don’t get it! Perhaps they just aren't there yet, or if we're wanting them to use what we've learned, it seems so obvious to us what they need to do to fix things or feel better – but they don’t see it, and when we tell them what we know, they don’t take action! It may help to recall times when we’ve been in their shoes and people have told us about their learning and how they figured it all out and how we didn’t listen because we needed to figure it out for ourselves, even if it took us 10 years to do it. And it may help to recall times when our loved ones were patient with us while we went through this learning without trying to tell us how to do it and letting us figure it out for ourselves while being an ear to talk to, a shoulder to lean on, and full of love and light. They let us experience our journey without expectations and judgment, and accepting where we were even if it didn’t fit with where they were or where they wanted us to be. Labels: Articles # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 5:52 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, June 20, 2007Handmade Affirmation and Meditation Card DecksI've started making mini card decks that can be used for affirmations and/or meditation.Each meditation deck contains 9 cards inside a recycled, painted matchbox, plus one card (image only) affixed to the outside of the box. Each card is an original watercolor painting (not a print or reproduction), containing an image and word on the front, and a short affirmation / mantra on the back. These tiny decks are perfect for your backpack, purse, car, office, or anywhere else you might find yourself needing a quick reminder of your own inner truth. I'm also able to create a custom deck with words and/or phrases of your choice. Or in conjunction with a Self-Discovery coaching session, where we'll generate words and phrases to create your personalized deck. Sample Decks: Sacred Space Tiny Miracles Inner Peace # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 4:21 PM 0 comments
Thursday, June 07, 2007I Promise MyselfJust received an email from The Secret with a special surprise!They created a beautiful version of Optimist's Creed, originally written by Christian D. Larson. Accompanied by music, the screen brings you through 12 powerful sentences, each beginning with the phrase "I promise myself." Labels: FunStuff # posted by Amy L. Burns @ 1:21 PM 0 comments
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