Pertinacious Spirit

Have you ever met someone who - despite all odds and obstacles - hangs in there and always bounces back no matter the situation or circumstances? These folks are the Pertinacious. Have you ever watched the Film "What about Bob?" Bob - although not without issue is quite pertinacious (admittedly in a way his therapist is appalled and annoyed by)of course this is what also makes the film funny. I'm not suggesting you be pertinacious in stalking. I am suggesting you should be pertinacious in the pursuit of your dreams.


Take time to figure out what your dreams are and then start moving in that direction, a step at a time each day getting a closer than the day before. It helps to sit quietly in the morning and visualize how it will feel to achieve your dream. See yourself there and keep moving in that direction - when you know the what, you will figure out the how. Once you have the basic idea of the how, you can break it into a series of daily tasks.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

A few words on what it means to be shameless

I have been considering this since I began to explore what wildly passionate, happy and successful people do that others do not. What gets in the way of spreading the word?

What gives you pause to consider and not put yourself out there? Why do we hesitate before clicking the send button on an email? Why do we shudder at the thought we could be criticized or judged harshly? Deep inside our hearts and minds, somewhere there is a monster lurking, he whispers in our ears telling us that if we do that the world will not approve.

So we hesitate, we stop, we think-twice as we were taught to do as kids and we shrink away from the risk of putting ourselves out there. We find an excuse, a crutch to lean on and we let the dream die, the lights go out and we draw the curtain and go back to our hiding place or move on to the next thing. If we really think about it long and hard enough we see how foolish it is to listen to anything other than our Highest Self (who also whispers but is drowned out by the monster).

The Highest Self whispers "You can do it, just try, it could be great, people will love you" We need to listen to this voice more often. Why we don't is simply a matter of habit. We are not in the habit of succeeding and we are not in the habit of believing that we can succeed. We don't often look at our successful side; we don't give enough energy to that part of ourselves that experiences little successes every single day.

Everything you do has an outcome, sometimes it is favorable, and sometimes it is painful. The ones that are painful seem to make a bigger and longer-lasting impression and we cling to those. It is actually the opposite of what we should do. The question now is how do we amplify the whisper of the Highest Self so that it becomes the Battle-cry of the Warrior and can drown out the whisper of the monster? It takes practice and a pertinacious spirit.

Build on and celebrate daily small successes and keep building on them day after day. A way that I do this is I write myself a target list each night before falling asleep, I review it in the morning and I focus on how it will feel to get all or most of it accomplished.

It starts by little changes like going for a walk everyday and then each day going just a bit farther than you did the day before. Learning a few new words in a different language each day and practice them on your family and friends. *Hint* Google translate is awesome for this because it says the word out loud so you can hear how it is pronounced.

Shameless does not mean you are never ashamed - shameless means you are able to shake-off the entire negative and become more mindful and decisive in your actions.
We all have a past, we have all done and failed to do things that we would have chosen to do differently if we had taken the time to think it through. It also means you must be willing to put yourself out there and risk rejection over and over again.
Rejection can be painful; you don't have to live there. If we break-down every time someone rejects us, well we will never accomplish anything worthwhile.

I listened to a talk by Brene` Brown on Shame and I'm including the link for you here.

Daily Dose of Inspiration

While composing my book, I re-discovered art and artistry. Lately I am wanting to attend art shows and support artists projects on a larger scale. It is as if my curious side has reawakened and is egging me on to explore. So for today I will follow that calling and go off on an adventure with my camera. Who knows what I'll discover.


Book I am reading this week~

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Add a little music to your day..

Back to School Shopping with Teens

Shopping with teens is sometimes tricky. The teenage years are when our kids start discovering their uniqueness and experimenting with different styles. My youngest child (13) has recently expressed a desire to dye her hair blond. Parents walk a fine line between being needed and being pushed away. Teens need more emotional support and bonding with family and friends during this crucial time in their lives. As parents we need to understand and support them, yet leave them alone when they pull-away and need space.

Back-to- School shopping is a whole new experience with a teen. Sometimes they hate what you love and you hate what they love, this is natural, albeit frustrating. The best way to handle these differences in style and taste are to council and conciliate. Be a friend, yet be firm. Discourage bad choices without being overly critical by making a joke. Ask why they choose the item, which will give you insight enough to help guide and make suggestions.

Tips for a successful Back-to-School shopping trip are:


1. Let them know the budget and work together to stay within it.

2. Compromise, you may not like all of their choices but be sure to accentuate the positive choices and let them know why “Purple is a great color on you, it compliments your eyes.”


3. You still have final say over what is purchased, if you feel something is too inappropriate just let them know that you are not going to buy it. Suggest they can buy it with their own money (if they have savings or a job).

4. Post shopping lunch or dinner. Choose a place you both enjoy. If you tell them know ahead of time, it may be a great incentive for them to be more mindful and compliant with what they know you will approve, it can also help complete the trip in a reasonable amount of time by encouraging decisiveness.

Happy Back-to-School Shopping! See the offer below to save 20% on your purchase and free shipping.

I am a published author and accomplishing this dream feels amazing!

It happened when I decided that I needed to forget about everything and simply follow my hearts deepest desire. Today at thirty-nine years young, the demands on my time have decreased. It took me a little while to adjust to my new, quieter lifestyle. The state I was in is sometimes referred to as empty nest syndrome. My mind and emotions began to haywire on me and I found myself in an endless swirl and twirl of negative thinking that just about drove me to suicide.

It was the suicidal thoughts that frightened me most. Somewhere deep inside I knew I would never take my own life but I needed to find a way to turn things around. I was not this person, I was a happy go lucky chick who always found enough strength and energy to help myself and those I love through anything. I was a spiritual person who knew how to go inside myself and turn things around.

I sought more positive messages, began to take care of my health and my body, and set aside quiet time each day to meditate. I did a lot of reading on my favorite sites and found the messages I needed in articles, and on blogs. I went back in my mind to the times I felt the happiest and began to allow that happiness to fill me up each day.

The question I asked over and over was who are you on a purely soul level? The answer was a loving and caring human being, who is capable of many things and can master any task with ease. Each day a new answer would crop up and I would embrace it. I am comfortable in my own skin, I like to try new things, I can take risks and make mistakes without letting those things diminish me. I began to treat myself with a greater sense of respect and dignity.

I just completed my first dream project, bigger than anything I had dared to dream before, the stepping stone for an unlimited and abundant life. Change is good. Different is good. The journey is exhilarating. I am free!

You can order a copy of my book here