Within this gypsy soul identity, I can feel so certain in some areas of my life. while feeling unsure in others. This lifestyle has allowed me to be more at ease with uncertainty, by forcing me to get grounded outside of my safe space, which usually is my home. It’s taught me to surrender and trust the journey I am on. I am becoming someone who relies on character more than on things to be beautiful, to be whole. And truthfully, though my “I am not enough” or “I am not smart enough” gremlin still shows up, it is not as boisterous as it once was. Thank goodness!
As I am constantly seeking for the next new thing, I thought to just share my findings with you via a blog. Welcome to The Gypsy Soul Diaries - a blog that captures my curious nature as it seeks out new experiences. Allow me to share some recent discoveries:
Willpower Doesn’t Work:
During an intense three weeks of coaching, I was feeling disappointed with myself because I was having a challenge with maintaining my healthy habits as I traveled. I was in a different hotel room every couple days, at times waking up not knowing where I was. When this is my reality, my commitment level to stay on course with my stretching, my work out and my food falls by the wayside. That’s when I feel frustrated with my lack of self-discipline.
Then, as if the universe heard my angst, it delivered an email titled “Willpower Doesn’t Work.”
I immediately opened it and listened to an interview with Benjamin Hardy. Once the interview was over, I felt all of my grievances melt away. And so, I had to share my ah ha with you.
The interview began with this thought, “If you rely on willpower to improve any area of your life, you are doomed.”
Benjamin now had my undivided attention!
Basically he went on to explain that in today’s environment where we have become addicted to our technology, which inevitably has been able to serve us brilliantly, it has also made us reactive, at times unable to be attentive to our surroundings and make quality decisions.
Willpower is a finite resource, we only have so much of it and then it’s gone. Therefore we are basically dealing with decision fatigue. After we’ve made so many decisions throughout the day, our ability to make quality decisions diminishes.
So we need to set up our lives in ways that allow for certain decisions to be made for us, in order to operate on autopilot and have decision energy left for what’s important.
In fact, Mark Zuckerberg said in an interview that he wears the same grey t-shirt at most public events because “I really want to clear my life to make it so that I have to make as few decisions as possible about anything except how to best serve the community.”
In that moment I felt relieved and excited. I instantly realized how I can make some adjustments. For example, when I travel, I never drink enough water while I coach.
One of my usual requests has been to always have a big bottle of water to satisfy my thirst. Most people tell me, no worries, we have a water fountain at the studio and you can drink all day long. Here’s the thing, they don’t realize unless I see a big bottle that needs to be finished at least twice per day, I forget to drink enough.
After listening to the podcast, it’s like I finally had permission to truly ask for what I needed in order to ensure my bowl movements were normal, which made me happier (yep, now you know why I am not regular).
The next day, not only did I make a request to have a big water bottle, I also made a request too remove all chocolate filled bowls while I was coaching. I explained what I learned and the dance studio owner was more than willing to help. So he hid the chocolates, YAY!!!
I’m giving you a brief idea of what I learned but I do suggest you listen to the podcast and see how it resonates with you. Be willing to ask for what you need because it’s one less decision you don’t have to worry about and will ultimately save your energy for more important work…like writing this blog! 😉
http://halelrod.com/benjamin-hardy-willpower-doesnt-work/
My Birthday:
As I mentioned I’ve had an intense three weeks. I was in the New England area for one week (five different studios per day) then jumped on a plane to the Midwest (four different studios in a week) and ended in Boston to do five other studios per day. Now, I’m not saying this to brag - I’m sharing this more to let you know I was feeling indifferent about my birthday. It was just another day; no big deal.
Then, something started to happen the moment I woke up on April 23rd. I was getting texts, calls and Facebook messages by 6 am. And when I arrived at Cambridge studio, the staff entertained me with a song and dance, a cake and lots of hugs. All this was before 1pm. The day just kept getting better and it even spilled into the next day in Natick.
Why am I sharing this with you? Because I truly felt the power of kindness.
Kindness is such a simple behaviour, but I have to tell you, each act of kindness left an imprint in my soul. Each hug, each smile, each letter, each message filled my heart and gave me energy to move through my intense week of ten hour days.
Share your kindness, it lifts a person more than you know. It lifted me up when I was feeling tired from my travels and frustrated with my physical state of imbalance. Call someone you haven’t heard from, send someone an appreciation message. Leave an imprint on their soul.
Art:
Before I left for my home 3 weeks ago, I had one day of play, so I went to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts with a friend. It was wonderful to share some quality time with him while he expressed his excitement about what we were seeing. At one point, I fell upon a feminine sculpture on a wall (not sure how else to describe it)...and she left me breathless. I sensed her vulnerability, her sensuality and her beauty.
Take a look for yourself and let me know what you think:
www.instagram.com/pattycontenta
Thanks for being patient with my sporadic emails. I will do my best to bring you on my gypsy journey through my diaries.
Sensually Yours,
Patty
