3 strategies to breakthrough self-sabotage...

“Problems cannot be solved at the level of awareness that created them.” –Albert Einstein

as a mentor and coach, i facilitate breakthroughs...this is really ALL i do for my clients...

i walk with them as they breakthrough and claim their soul-based authentic power and passion...

i find that there are basically two types of clients:

• one who does the same things with the same mindset with the same routine day by day, month by month, even year by year...and
• one who accepts challenges, embraces change, and adapts their plans accordingly...

i often find that clients are their own worst friends...why do i say this? being your own best friend can propel you into your wildest dreams while self-sabotage can keep you stuck, blocked, or even paralyzed from moving forward and claiming your best life and career!

you cannot walk the same path every day and expect to end up somewhere else -me

you cannot keep doing the same things that brought you here and expect a different outcome...you have to find new strategies and, this is the biggie, actually implement them...

how do we get to the place where my client experiences and even expects breakthroughs?

3 key strategies to breakthrough self-sabotage...

1. Be quiet and listen to your authentic inner voice...not the inner critic, but the true voice that knows exactly what you need to do to achieve your goals. Stop listening to others or worse, buying into their well-intentioned suggestions or ideas. Accept and understand that they are on their own journey and are looking through their personal filters. It is easy to confuse their path with yours. Take time every day to quiet your soul and connect with your inner guidance system that is always 100% correct. Trust that you know what is best for you.
2. Learn that fear, doubt, and chaos are the signs of a breakthrough...if you reflect on your past you can probably find several examples of this. When you experience any tightness or painful feeling, practice connecting with it deeply and allow it to lead you to the opportunity it births. It is almost always a occasion for growth...personally, professionally, emotionally, spiritually, financially, etc. The more chaotic, painful, and frustrating the circumstance...the bigger the breakthrough.
   
3. Stop chasing perfect...perfect is impossible period! You know the drill. You must know everything...have every possibility covered...have every duck in a row...have every i dotted and t crossed...it must be just so...I am just picky! Face it...all of this is just a delay tactic, procrastination, self-sabotage at its finest...and the single biggest stumbling block for many. When you allow yourself to embrace the 'done is better than perfect' attitude of most highly-successful people, you are well on your way to fulfillment and achievement.
   

Trust your intuition, embrace fear, and let go of perfect...these steps will lead you to more authentic power, more fulfillment, more balance, and more profit.

Take Debbie Ford's self- sabotage quiz to see how you rank.

my morning meditation...

i wish to share with each of you the peace and the comfort i receive on my morning walk by the sea...it begins very early, sometimes it is still dark...at other times the sky is beginning to show the promise of a new day....as i continue to walk, prayerfully...meditatively the first glimpse of the sun is often as the top edges of the clouds above the horizon become tipped with the flames of the sun...this morning i was not alone as a beautiful, 4-foot tall great blue heron was feeding at the edge of the sea...
sometimes she poses for me..today she was skittish and flew south after a few photos...
i watched as her wings spread wide and she glided down the coast...i am blessed to have her near for even a short time...when i turned to walk again the sun was beginning it ascent preceded by rays reaching into the heavens...this is my favorite moment...just before the sun appears...
the the sky turns sienna and golden as the sun climbs above the clouds...and then...
it bursts forth...a brilliant white light in the golden sky...and her rays seek me over the ocean...
and i stand in silence as i feel the warmth touch me cheek...and thank God for the gift of a new day...
i soak in the scene so as to remember everything...i breathe in slowly the salty scents of the sea...and i am truly captivated...mesmerized...
it rises higher above the ocean...and the rays become more intense...and i smile...
the water covers my feet as i stand in awe at the beauty...the majesty of this special moment in time when i am alone with the sun and the sea...and my life is full of meaning and i understand why i am here...

for today is going to offer me a perfect chance to seek, then to study and experience the grandest answers...as i watch...listen, and before the end of this day, i will have a chance to be Divine...for someone is counting on me to be.

"When we settle in our hearts and minds that God's Word can be trusted, we solve a lot of problems in our lives." -Tony Evans, God Can Not be Trusted (and Five Other Lies of Satan)

the heron left behind a feather for me this morning...someday soon i will share the meaning of the feather...

are you going to finish strong...

Nick Vujicic...courage every day...

it really only matters that you finish...not how...

the glory that is to be revealed to us...

in times of severe stress and stormy seas, i remember my faith...

"Then the rainstorm came over me; and I felt my spirit break. I had lost all of my belief, you see, and realized my mistake." -Seal, Love's Divine, Seal IV

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. -Romans 8:18

i am rejoicing and in deep gratitude this Sabbath for i believe that the current circumstances of my life are to build my virtue and teach me patience and trust...my life lessons...i told a friend this week that i had become fearless...and for this i am most grateful...

Sabbath Song...almost every Sunday I post about my sacred life, my faith, or my spiritual walk...I invite you to write your own song on your Sabbath...please take the Sabbath Song badge below and use it on your blog...


i am moved to share about my religion this morning as there are many myths about Catholicism...one that always pains me is the misconception that Catholics are not saved...we are baptised as infants and confirmed at the age of 12-14. Confirmation, in the Roman Catholic faith, marks the coming of the Holy Spirit into your heart...the completion of our Baptism. This is the time when we accept Jesus as our Saviour...similar to 'being saved' as in the Protestant faith.


this is what i believe: The Holy Spirit is the bond that links God the Father with his son Jesus...a link of love and communication that never sleeps...each of us is a child of God through Baptism... sisters and brothers of Jesus...i view every human being as my brother or my sister and treat them with the love and respect i have for my siblings..as with my biological siblings, sometimes it is easier to do than others.

when God looks on each of us, he sees in us the image of his son...there is an unbroken stream of love and communication binding us to the Father...and that stream...that bond is the Holy Spirit...even though, at times, we feel like we may have lost that connection...


much of the time i do not feel like a temple of the Holy Spirit...yet it is when i feel unholy and unable to pray that the Holy Spirit speaks for me to the Father “with sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26).


as i grow older, i realise that prayer is not about finding beautiful words or petitioning for our needs...nor is it about making speeches to our Lord...but rather tuning inward toward the Spirit of Jesus...who is always there, linking me to my heavenly Father...one of my most special memories is the day I realized that my prayer had transformed from a monologue into a dialog...it was an awakening for me...and my prayer life has been richer and more fruitful as a result...

i begin each morning by the sea where "the glory that is to be revealed to us" is revealed to me...one tiny tidbit at a time...i spend almost two hours in meditation and prayer...i am blessed to be able to have this time in this beautiful setting that is revealed in my photographs...life is good...thank you God for giving me the circumstances of my life...

i rarely get political...but i have had no health coverage for over a year and no way to get the medications i need for many months now...but the health care thing has cause much dissension between some of my friends who really believe that we will be pushing their grandmothers into an early grave and that Obama is like hitler because he can energise our youth...all i can say is Lord help us... read this for the best topic i've seen on the whole debacle.... and i beg you don't believe everything you hear on faux news...

trust...

i am learning to trust...

i am so loving this new blog by suzie...what am i grateful for today...if you look at her pictures, you can see how simpatico we are... i posted this there this morning...

i am grateful:

1. to be alive today
2. to be able to walk on the beach every morning
3. for the sunrise
4. for the place and circumstances of my life today
5. for the path i am on toward TRUST

and i am eager for what's coming...

i am learning to trust...even when it appears that trust is being washed away...it is still there...

the courage to stand in my own truth...

for those of us in the midst of realizing that our plans for ourselves may be different from those of our destiny….life can be confusing, exciting, terrifying, enthralling…and more than a little off balance…so I ask for the ancient path…and walk in it…

at a crossroads...which way to go??

“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient path, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Jeremiah 6:16)

to the reflective mind, i am in the midst of a major spiritual transition where i am to grow my higher wisdom…i have created all the experiences in my life…to learn specific lessons, hopefully gaining wisdom and understanding within the process…if learned, i integrate the lessons into my being…if not, i am bound to repeat them until i do…

i must admit that my perception of a perfect world may be skewed…i have been searching for a way of fitting or molding my future according to the conditions unfolding in my life…i did not choose them…i did not even see them coming…but they happened nonetheless….

in 2008 the focus of my energies shifted to survival…my long-term goals dissolved into immediate life-saving concerns…and my personal world became very small…job loss leading to bankruptcy and foreclosure does this...

practicality is the main goal of each day (and i am so not practical)…forward visioning has been put aside until i become more centered…i find myself betwixt and between reality and possibility… the confusion, illusion, and delusion can get the better of me if i allow it…i choose not to allow it…

so i am embracing the prospects and possibilities of a destiny much different than what i had planned…

during this journey i have been forced to take inventory and open baggage that had been so carefully tucked away….i am confronting my worst fears-loss of security, my job, my home…but i am discovering a new strength…a new wisdom…even a new power (if i dare to speak it)…

i realize that i am moving into a new paradigm where my sense of restriction is vanishing…my fading commitments and obligations have become obstacles to my getting to my new and improved future…

i thought trust was my only issue…but i have learned during this time of bankruptcy, foreclosure, and job loss that i do not know how to receive…

earlier this month a friend became very upset with me over my inability to accept the offers of help i have received…she said i was like the man standing on his roof in a flood who kept refusing help…of neighbor on a cow, a man with a rowboat, people in a power boat, and a rescue helicopter…all the while he prayed for God to save him and kept saying, “No thanks, I have faith in the Lord, the Lord will save me.”

the waters rose higher and higher and eventually the man on the roof was washed away and drowned. Upon arriving in heaven, the man said to God, “Heavenly Father I had faith in you. I prayed to you to save me and yet you did nothing. Why?” God shook his head and replied “I sent you a cow, two boats and a helicopter, what more did you expect?”

this week i spoke to a friend who was in Spiritual Direction formation with me…she said i needed to let others minister to me so that when i am able i, in turn, will be able to minister to others…

so simple, so profound…i am learning to open my heart and receive…

why is this so hard for me? i have always been the one with the solutions…a helper, a giver, a fixer…i ‘prided’ myself on being the one with the God-given wisdom to serve others…

P R I D E that nasty little fault of mine…so the inability for me to find the right, best or any solution has shattered this prideful self importance which is really rooted in low self-esteem…yet i was standing within the pool of prideful self-pity refusing to see the offers of help for what they were…OFFERS OF HELP!!!

a hand of help offered by those who care about me…and i was stubbornly refusing to receive…

“There are so many opportunities available to you in your world. All you need to do is be open to see them. Complaining about life and your circumstances blinds you to what is right in front of your eyes – and that is the possibility of you being “in-charge” of your life and not your complaints running it for you” -Yvonne Rice

this is a big one for me as i am struggling between trying to control everything and letting go and letting God be in control…and i am not even sure how to do this…

i remain conflicted…i know God helps those who help themselves and i also know i need to get out of the way and let God work…but i am unsure exactly how…how to get out of His way…

any suggestions?

short of sitting on the couch until ‘they’ come and put me out of my home…i do not know how to stop working toward bankruptcy, foreclosure, and trying to find employment

each morning i ask for guidance and direction and i believe that what comes to me is what God is sending…even though it feels uncomfortable and unpleasant…and i would prefer to be anywhere else doing anything else, yet here i am 13 months past my job loss still holding on somehow…

if i stop and allow myself to sit with this for a moment, i am amazed…how on earth am i still here in the home i love when my saving account is depleted, foreclosure papers sit on my desk, collection calls overwhelm my phone line, and i am surviving on raman noodles…yes, one can survive on nothing else but raman noodles for several months…but that is another story…

God has indeed been good to me this past year…He has sent me help exactly when i need it…a small commission job…help from my church…help from my family…nothing in excess, but just enough to survive another few days or weeks…and that is how it has been…

i believe that i am going thru this so i can help others in the future...allowing people to minister to me so i can minister to others...does this make sense...and i have decided to stand in my own truth even if i am judged...

this is my path at this time and i claim it and embrace the fruits of it to come...

if you know of anyone who would benefit from reading my blog recounting my adventure in foreclosure, bankruptcy, and job loss please pass the link along...

down...but not out blog!

long night's journey into day..

Let us pray with those who are anxious for the light at the end of the tunnel. "Only those who walk in the dark see the stars."  Mark E. Thibodeaux, God, I Have Issues

long night's journey into day...

this is a powerful post...my Sabbath Song...those of you who follow me know that the past 18 months have been a time of much trial for me...every level of my life has been affected and i have been shoved way out of my comfort zone...

yesterday morning in a coaching session with my Jack Canfield coach Dave...everything was going along fine until he asked me, "Do you believe 100% that you can change the circumstances you find yourself in right now?" 

POW  WHAM   ZAP....a moment of perfect clarity...this is why i find myself struggling right now...i am only about 50-50%...and that, my friends, is exactly what is holding me back...

you know the saying by Napoleon Hill, "What ever the mind can conceive, and believe, the mind can achieve."

well idea generation has never been my problem...i have a BIG imagination and can brainstorm with ease...and i have a seemingly endless supply of clever ideas pouring from me...but the piece i am struggling with is the belief...and belief is what is holding me back from achievement... believing at 50% will get 50% results...DUH!!!!

belief in the idea and my ability to achieve the end result has somehow been damaged during this long dark night of the soul i have been in for 18 months...it must be repaired...

i asked God during my morning meditation for help and guidance...when i looked up i saw the above image i titled "long night's journey into day..."

a few minutes later this image appeared...

i send rays of light to lead you out of the darkness into a new day rebecca

believe...believe...believe

(r)Evolution of (r)Ebecca...Day 7

my life purpose print - 2009*

I have created a business honoring my soul, my values and my vision. I stand firmly in the knowing that life and business are never really separate…so you will see that my approach to mentoring is holistic taking care of every part of you–spiritual, physical, emotional, social, intellectual, creative and material. This is the basis for my Lifestyle Business model.

I have a lot of business knowledge to give women, especially spiritual women business owners. I have been mentoring people for the past 15 years, usually on a one-to-one basis. I have helped them build wildly successful businesses doing what they love.

I keep talking about my path and journey, so you will understand the process I went through to get where I am today. And the Evolution Revolution I experienced.

Learning to embrace fully the creative part of me has always been easy–apiece of cake. When I was struggling to make money doing what I love, I made the conscious decision to become an expert in business management and practices. The student of all things business became my analysis addiction. And that addiction propelled me into expert status. With that hard-won expertise, I have helped thousands of people learn to be skilled entrepreneurs.

But too much of anything can be just that…too much! I realized I was spending so much time exercising and developing my business muscles that other areas of my life began to atrophy. And when a good thing causes paralysis by analysis, you have to (re)Group big-time.

I began to search for balance in my life and my business and gradually my business evolved into a lifestyle business–one that supports who I am, honors my way of life, and aligns my passion with my purpose.

About a decade ago, having mastered the creative and business paths of my life’s journey, I felt the stirrings of something else. Something that had always been an important part of my life and who I am…my foundation–my spirituality.

My spirituality has always been a part of how I operated my businesses because it could never be separated from the me I am. Although I never had the courage to verbalize it, my spiritual self managed to come across in my books, articles, speeches and teaching. People were coming to me to learn art making and/or business, and leaving with life-altering breakthroughs. These are typical responses of my students:

“I came to learn how to be a faux finisher, but Rebecca changed my life. She taught me how to value myself as a woman and honor the talent I have, plus so much more.”

“I still have my rock from your speech a few years ago.” (He takes a rock from his pocket and shows me) “That day was a turning point in my life and my business. I learned that I could charge what I needed to charge and not feel guilty about it. My wife and family call you our angel.”

“I was getting a divorce and was so depressed and afraid when I met Rebecca. The three days I spent with her mentoring, teaching and befriending me changed my perception, my life and my soul. I was able to reinvent myself and create a thriving business doing what I love. Thank you Rebecca from the bottom of my heart.”

So I began integrating the spiritual, the creative and the business parts of me to form a new business model. During this process I learned three life-changing things in the past few years:

1. My Life Purpose is…Visionary Spiritual Leader, Mentor and Healer with a Big (global) Job to Do. This means I am here to create new groundbreaking ideas and be a spiritual leader, mentor and healer on a massive scale.
   
2. My Life School is...Love and Service. This means I am here to develop my ability to love myself and others while staying present with my feelings no matter the circumstance; not to stuff my emotions, withdraw or go out of control. I am also here to develop my ability to be in service consciousness while I learn to serve joyfully without an agenda; to help, not control; to service others without neglecting myself.
   
3. My Life Lesson is...Emotional Authenticity and Self-Sacrifice. This means I must open my heart, feel the feelings and embrace fully all aspects of my personality while learning to nurture without burdensome obligation, self-sacrifice, self-indulgence or selfishness.

It was in attending this life school and doing the homework of the life lessons that I became an Holistic Soul Proprietor™ and a Wealth BEing™. Because I have clarity of my purpose, my life and my business have blossomed beyond my wildest dreams. Now I am comfortable to live amongst this ability to build a life while serving others and guiltlessly making money doing what I love.

This all brings me to my new business model and the launch of my new business venture…

Rebecca E. Parsons Holistic Wealth BEing 

and Wealth Being Mentor

Mentor & Midwife to Heart & Spirit Centered Lifestyle Entrepreneurs

–helping them birth the business of their dreams!

I will help you....

1. Affirm & Live the Purpose of You 
   
2. Level Up from the default circumstances of your life

   
3. Guiltlessly earn piles of money doing what you love


   
4. Create your personal economy


   
5. Honor your soul, your values, and your lifestyle

My life purpose is to help you become an Holistic Wealth BEing...

* Ask about a custom Life Purpose Art Print of your hand with a hand analysis to reveal your life purpose, school and lesson!

(re)Branding...Day 6

New Business model: Mentor & Midwife to Heart & Spirit Centered Lifestyle Entrepreneurs...



What exactly is this Rebecca? I will define the terms and then lay out the elevator speech below…

men·tor (mntôr, -tr) n.  v. men·tored, men·tor·ing, men·tors Informal
1. A wise and trusted counselor or teacher.
To serve as a trusted counselor or teacher, especially in occupational settings. To serve as a trusted counselor or teacher to (another person).

mid·wife (mdwf) n. pl. mid·wives (-wvz)
1. A person, usually a woman, who is trained to assist women in childbirth.
2. One who assists in or takes a part in bringing about a result: To assist in bringing forth or about.
3. A person qualified to deliver babies and to care for women before, during, and after childbirth

life·style also life-style or life style (lfstl) n.
A way of life or style of living that reflects the attitudes and values of a person or group.

en·tre·pre·neur (ntr-pr-nûr, -nr) n.
A person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture. The owner of a business who attempts to make money by risk and initiative.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.


Rebecca E. Parsons Mentor & Midwife to Heart & Spirit Centered Lifestyle Entrepreneurs...



A wise and trusted counselor or teacher. who is qualified to assist a business owner in creating a new business (before, during, and after launch) that will honor and support the life style and values of the owner and create wealth.

How are you going to do this Rebecca? I will tell you exactly how in the next post (r)Evolution of (r)Ebecca

(re)Purposing...Day 5

Off into the unknown…somewhere over the rainbow…

I continually as myself, “Why oh why can’t I???” and the answer is always, “I can!!!”

So what are my plans…I had to stop planning!!!! I understood that I could not keep doing what I have been doing (endless hours of research that I came to admit is avoidance or what my friend Antoinette Sykes call paralysis by analysis) and hope to end up somewhere else…so I had to stretch myself and do some things that I am not comfortable doing…I order to climb out of the hole I was in…

It seems ironic that I have to leap off a ledge in order to climb out of this hole…But that is precisely what I had to do…so leap I did…onto The Path to My Purpose ™…

First I made a new daily schedule… If you want something you’ve never had, you must do something you’ve never done…

6 am – 8 am Hour of Power (Prayer, Meditation, Centering)
8 am – 12 pm Write/publish articles, work on e-book & websites
12 pm – 2 pm break
2 pm – 5 pm Make art and/or mentoring sessions
5 pm – 7 pm Social Media interaction and e-mails and blog
7 pm – 11 pm Journal, unwind, walk on beach, play with pets

I had to get off the social media circuit…and connect first with my self and God, then with my business which is my purpose, and finally with others. So I mapped a workable plan for myself that honors my work style and values and allows me to accomplish and manifest my purpose.

I am (re)Purposing over 25 years of work and knowledge coupled with the life lessons of the past few years into my new business model:

Mentor & Midwife to Heart & Spirit Centered Lifestyle Entrepreneurs...



What exactly is this Rebecca? I will define the terms and then lay out the elevator speech tomorrow in (re)Branding…

(re)Invention...Day 4

discernment…

The intention is set and now I must make decisions. I have no choice…and I also have nothing to loose…so it is time to step out on this fog-covered path and make the map along the way…

How do you make decisions…big as well as small? If you take the time to look deeply within yourself, you will find that you have unique biases, which affect your decisions…and ultimately your life.

Wikipedia defines bias as follows:
Bias is a standard point of view or personal prejudice. especially when the tendency interferes with the ability to be impartial, unprejudiced, or objective. The term biased is used to describe an action, judgment, or other outcome influenced by a prejudged perspective. It is also used to refer to a person or body of people whose actions or judgments exhibit bias. In this context, the term “biased” is often used as a pejorative.

It goes on to state that in psychology, cognitive bias is bias based on cognitive factors. One type of cognitive bias is confirmation bias, the tendency to interpret new information in such a way that confirms one’s prior beliefs, even to the extreme of denial, ignoring information that conflicts with one’s prior beliefs. The fundamental attribution error, also known as “correspondence bias”, is one example of such bias, in which people tend to explain others’ behavior in terms of personality, whereas they tend to explain their own behavior in terms of the situation.

In the Five Steps to Decision Making from The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, the Jeuits say:

Biases in unique persons – There are two basic exaggerations in the way with which people make their decisions. Some people put closure on the decision-making process too quickly; others keep avoiding placing closure on the decision-making. The first group is made up of “closure artists” who appear to enjoy the making of decisions. They make decisions quickly. They easily come to closure on what-should-I-do or what-needs-to-be-done questions. However, they are inordinately eager to cut off the considerations of some variables. After all, too many variables would make their decision-making more difficult and their lives too ambiguous! The second group is made up of “avoiders” who appear to avoid conscious decision-making until the circumstances force them to act. They often fear the burden of responsibility for mistakes because they do not want to face the fact that, as humans, we are never cognizant of all the variables.

Discernment for me is somewhere in between. As an entrepreneur, I am a quick decision maker…kind of a gut feeling pattern that I embrace. During this period of my life, depression has made me a waiter looking for aspects, which generally become more evident as the movement is allowed to unfold. Perhaps it is avoidance or fear, probably both.

Fear is normal as we work through it and learn to trust ourselves again. In the back of my mind is the fact that I have done something to bring me to this place of transition-this place of many crossroads, and I have to choose one and go forth without a clue as to where I am going or how I will get there.

I have to believe that quote: “Sometimes you just have to take a leap and build your wings on the way down”-Kobi Yamada….when I so don’t want to jump…

It takes courage to allow yourself to grow…to step off that cliff, blindly not knowing if someone is there to catch you, or how far down it is, or if there is something to break the fall. The metaphor seems to hint that you will just have to flap those wings until you build the strength or the skill to fly…on your own.

Do I have discernment…perhaps!

Do I know which path to take…perhaps!

Am I full of fear…Yes!

Yet I am on the move, taking that leap of faith today and trusting that, even if it is the wrong direction, God will make it the right one…

(re)Engineering...Day 3

putting one foot in front of the other on this path to my future….

How do I work through this process and reengineer my life and my business? All I know is that I am stepping out, one unsure step at a time…along the way I made a remarkable discovery…you don’t have to know the end to begin…

My path has been anything but a linear process. One day I would feel strong and able to make plans…the next I was scared sh..less…the next restless and dazed…and always an unbearable fatigue. There were, and still are, major highs and lows…times when I thought I was coping and getting stronger…and times when I knew that I was not.

My way of coping is to withdraw…go within and make art and journal. This helps me focus and create a new paradigm…one where I am proud of my past accomplishments, understand the value of the life lessons…and can build upon those.

I am still in the process of reengineering my life…and creating new opportunities for growth and learning…my love of writing brought me here and it may prove to be the greatest gift for healing and reinvention.

turning point…
This (r)Evolutionary journey I find myself on is a transition of major importance…to my life. Of this I am sure. It has been awkward and painful while enlightening and strengthening…I cannot explain it quite yet, but I know it is about growth into my spiritual maturity.

One Tuesday in March I came to a crossroads, one where any direction I headed was going to be a stretch…indeed the biggest risk of my life. I was going so far out of my comfort zone that I wanted to retreat, yet I knew I could not. I had to go forth on a new journey. As uncomfortable as it was…I took the first step.

I have said before that I have such a difficult time asking for help that I almost never do it. I had a life-changing opportunity present itself but I needed some way to take advantage of it. The decision had to be made within 48 hours or the opportunity was gone. So I set an intention to make this happen. And, as so often occurs when you ask, Tuesday morning someone called and during the conversation I asked her if she would invest in me. So we struck a deal, I would mentor her as she builds a new and exciting business. The money for this just appeared…I had manifested the outcome I desired.

So I am investing in my future and myself and taking a giant leap of faith by taking that blind first step toward financial security and success again.

I say success ‘again’ because I have had a successful career for many years in graphic design (award-winning), art (juried competitions) and business guru (well-known author, writer, speaker, teacher). I do have name recognition, and now I must learn to capitalize upon all those years of hard work.

On a roll, I set a 90-day goal. I am chronicling the journey by recording every step I take and the emotional movements that occur. I will share the good and the less than good moments. I trusted that I would create a valuable business model that:

1. fulfills my life purpose,
   
2. is in service of others, and
   
3. makes an income to sustain me and more.
   

The intention…

On or before June 15, 2009, Rebecca E. Parsons will launch a thriving business that supports her emotionally, financially and spiritually or something better!

The intention is stated…the plans are being drawn…the trust established.

embracing change...The Purpose of Me...

new day...new life...new biz...new haircut...yes i decided to wipe the slate clean & i whacked the hair off...it was draining all my energy...don't you love the flair earring...

change...re-Engineering...transformation...i am bubbling over with joy and excitement to share with you...

i got very quiet and listened to my inner voice...mine has been screaming to me for several months now...so i took the difficult/faltering/hesitant first step, wrapped in the fog of fear, blindly onto my then unknown path...

and that one action, done with little more than blind faith, has aligned my passion with my life purpose...and given me the belief in my power and strength...and, best of all, it has opened the way for me to embrace all the dissonant parts of myself and marry the Inner BEing to the Outer BEing into a single focus...

i have such clarity of purpose now and it comes from a place of love, not fear...

i have been struggling for years with the false belief that i had to keep separate my business life and my spiritual life...while i was getting somewhere in my business, it was taking a discernable toll and stealing too much of ME to get there...because, DUH!!!...i was not operating within my life purpose...

for those of you who have studied with me and read my books and articles, i am sure that my passion for you to succeed did come through...for those who have been to my retreats and/or my  creativity workshops, you came much closer to discovering the inner BEing...when i decided to go into formation for spiritual direction, none of you seemed surprised which helped me realize that the Inner BEing must come through everything i do...the first in a series of BIG aa haa moments for me...

for years i have been trying to MAKE it happen, when all i needed to do was let it BE...and live the Purpose of Me...

once i stopped DOing and began BEing...and clearly understood doingness is the function of the body and beingness is a function of the soul...i leveled up from the default circumstances of my life and stepped confidently out on my path in full trust and belief that i am BEing who i was placed on this planet to BE!!!

Rebecca E. Parsons the Passionate Spiritual Leader and Mentor with a Big Job to do!!!

building my wings...blogaversary week giveaway...UPDATE!!

WINNERS ANNOUNCED!!!

my 3rd blogaversary is this week...i will be having a BIG GiVe AwAy ...prints of the works on this post to three lucky winners...in a comment you MuST tell me how you built Your Wings...if you become a follower of this blog at top right, you get an extra entry...if you tweet about it or facebook about it, you will get an extra chance...just let me know in your comment what you are doing!!!...1 entry per person please (i will add the extra's before i pick)...please spread the word!!! i will announce the winners on wednesday!!!

you can share it by clicking the share this link right now...

'golden wings' - 2009 venetian plaster, acrylics, 18K gold on canvas
WINNER 9 - Carla J Schuchman

"Do what you love, and love what you do. DO WHAT YOU LOVE, AND LOVE WHAT YOU DO!...I want you to go to the edge of the cliff, jump off, and grow your wings on the way down. Don't worry about having the wings, they'll come." -Ray Bradbury

so i am in the process of building my wings...i jumped off that cliff earlier this week...and i have not hit the ground as yet!!!

'on silvered wings' - 2009 plaster, acrylics on canvas

WINNER 18 - tlc illustration tara

and this free fall seems to be freeing me...

opening me wide to ALL the possibilities

of my LiFE...

and my He♥rT...

have you ever just stepped off the edge,

without a plan or a safety net...

and met your best self on the way down?

i am finding

strength

and purpose

and wild abundant joyfulness

my wings have indeed come

and my eyes are seeing with new clarity

all that lies before me....

'acceptance" 2009 plaster, acrylics on canvas

WINNER 13 -rochambeau constance

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. -Marcel Proust

heart broken open...

i was going to post the results of my weekend adventure with the twiggleberry-dews, but that will have to wait until tomorrow...i had such a profound experience during my meditation this morning, i feel compelled and led to share a portion of the awakening...

'heart broken open' - 2009, journal sketch

i do not usually bring something so personal to this place but i am encouraged to believe that it just might help others who are struggling with something at this very moment...

during my meditation i was feeling heartbroken, desolate and in pain...both physically and spiritually...as i look inward, i find that i am unable to ask for help and, even when it is offered, i find it difficult to accept...yet, i have the capacity to willingly offer and give help as empathy is a large thread running through my nature...and i admit that i might, just might, need help at this time...

while journaling after my meditation this morning, i had a moment of clarity when i wrote, "the brokenness of my heart might, just might, be necessary for me to open my heart and accept help from God, friends, and even the universe."...albeit a forced opening, but an opening nonetheless....

'heart in a box' - 2007, acrylic on paper

now this opening of my heart is extremely painful...no, it is excruciatingly painful to the point i want to keep my heart in a box so it will be protected (actually it has been in a box for most of my life...you can read about it here and here...and even here...I write about trust issues a lot)

so my heart must be broken in order for it to heal...healing comes on gentle whispers to me, not in a roaring flood...healing is a gradual, sometimes difficult and almost always painful, journey for me...

'pieces of my heart' - 2009 acrylic on canvas

this opening up and pouring forth from my heart to yours is perhaps necessary for my healing to begin for a step toward acceptance begins the long journey into healing...from what was a small fissure, the tiny crack in my heart seemed to grow and the pieces of my heart were flung asunder...like a million tiny stars that blanket the sky on a clear night....

gathering these pieces of my heart together, fusing and mending it slowly is where the healing is leading me...that tiny fissure that i thought was bad and frightened me at first glance...is perhaps best viewed as a good thing, a necessary thing...for true authentic healing comes by going through the pain and coming out on the other side better...stronger...more alive...

i am not writing today in sadness or self-pity...that road has taken me nowhere over the past year...i write wholly within acceptance and awareness of my smallness in this vast universe of ours...embracing the fact that i am in the midst of healing...my spirit and my life...and it is painful...

my heart is indeed broken open...pouring forth to those of you who are ready to hear my story...and begin your own journey...

if you like this post and other here, i would love you to become a follower of my blog...please click the link at top right column...and i promise to keep the posts thoughtful and artful...