I take after my Dad and love doing jigsaw puzzles. It's a great way to change the way I'm using my brain in the middle of the day and the focus feels relaxing and meditative. ​

A neighbor gave me this one below and, as you can see above, written on top of the box was “missing 1 piece”.

As I made the puzzle, I thought it was really interesting that every time I couldn’t find a piece (after really really searching for it), I decided that it must be the piece they're referring to that's missing. Eventually, though, I found the piece. Ugh.

It reminded me of what typically happens when we create new habits. We're all in but, when it seems a little hard or the conditions don't seem right, we might give ourselves an out... aka "Just this one time". It's our missing piece.

Unless we commit 100% of the time, every day can act as the missing day. Living in the 99% can be burdensome because it creates a need for constant decision-making about something we've already decided. As Jack Canfield says, 99% is a bitch; 100% is easy. There’s nothing to decide when you’re committed 100%.

So, as you approach the inward time of winter, take a step back to see what healthy habit would be beneficial for you to install 100%? How might you mix up your exercise routine, get more sleep, or commit to one part of a healthy food plan? It's the perfect time to re-assess our self-care routines, especially as we're still in the continuation of this pandemic.

And by the way, whatever you commit to doesn’t need to be hard or huge. It's actually best if it isn't. In my Habits Made Easy program, I highly recommend that you make your new habit silly small - so small it's impossible to not be done every day. For example, commit to having one more glass of water, go to bed 10 minutes earlier, walk around the block as a mid afternoon break, end the day with a gratitude reflection. Simple and small.

Regardless, it’s your choice. It’s always your choice. My recommendation is to make it 100%, otherwise the question “Is today the day?” will loom over you and you'll never have your puzzle being complete.

100%: This is when change really happens.

Sending you lots of Peace and Love
Shanti

In and of itself, life is complex. There are a stream of moving parts, going in many different directions, and it can feel like herding cats to get clear and find clarity. Things are complicated.

The one word that jumped out from the feedback of my just-finished Creating Coherence with Heart: HeartMath Experience program was “simplicity”. The simplicity offered by the HeartMath tools and techniques made coming into the heart accessible. It's a non-complicated process that “really gets to the heart of the matter and cuts through the huge mess I feel sometimes”. 

Isn't that what we all need right now? Uncomplicated clarity and coherence.

Coherence is a real, measurable state characterized by increased order and harmony in our physiological (bodily) and psychological (mental) processes. It’s an optimal state for health and wellbeing and for building deeper connections with others.

The simple tools and techniques we practice in Creating Coherence with Heart offer this… in a kind and gentle way…without diminishing the complexity of your life. Gratefully there's real change to the dynamic nature of the complexity, leaving you with more energy and vitality to attend life as you ultimately prefer. 

If any of this sounds good to you, please check out program details HERE. The next 5 week session of Creating Coherence with Heart begins Wednesday November 4, 7:00pm via Zoom. 

Initially I was going to wait until after the upcoming holiday season was over to start the next session but my gut is telling me that we need these tools now. With Covid continuing, the celebration and togetherness time that we're a custom to will be very different this year and staying in the heart in a new way can be just what we need. I hope you'll join me.

​Sending you lots of Peace and Love
Shanti

How much of your daily routine is dependent on technology? What would happen if you didn’t have it? How much pain or angst would you feel? I was a little surprised.
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As I’ve shared before, I completely unplug on the weekends. OK, perhaps the occasional Netflix show as a resting place at the end of the day, a quit check for texts, or to post my latest activity on Facebook (‘cuz ya know, the world really wants to know what I’m up to - haha) but, beyond that, no work = no need to be on.

So I thought.

Last night, at the end of a hot and muggy day, I went to chillax and watch my new favorite show “Love on the Spectrum” (I love people in love) when Netflix wouldn’t connect. Checked a few other things including my laptop and nothing. No wifi connection. Very calmly (so proud of myself), I unplugged and plugged the cable connections back in several times. Nothing. All the lights are on, though. Hmmmm.

I won’t bore you with my next hour+ of time but, after calling Comcast, the reveal is that my modem is kaput. Complete connection just not being made. Nothing for me to do but wait until the fixer-dude can come out today between 2:00 and 4:00pm. (By the way, I’m giving myself high 5’s and am seriously proud for the no freak-out, gratitude, and pleasantry I had with the Comcast rep. In my olden days, I wouldn’t have been so gracious. Yay me and growth!) I figure out a work-around for the 2 hour on-line training I’m giving this morning (fingers crossed that my phone works as a hotspot).

In the meantime, since I’m my own science experiment, it’s really interesting how many times I reach for my laptop to check this or that; to look up the foods that provide zinc, my desire to watch YouTube conversion van videos, use Dictate to write this blog post instead of typing, and just basic Facebook scrolling and email responding. None of it’s possible without this internet connection… well, at least not without using my precious phone data that I need for my morning training.

Looking at the positive, here’s a few benefits I’m noticing from this little blip: 

• I went to bed earlier to read and ended up asleep earlier since reading at night zonks me out.
• More meditation time this morning.
• A sense of leisure and spaciousness… although my Monday morning energy is usually go-go so I did feel twinges of impatience in the background.
• Awareness of how much I really do rely on this piece of technology, not just in big blocks and obvious ways like on-line trainings but the little things like looking up a recipe or seeing what little animal eat my garden tomatoes (argh).

It’s not a total surprise at how much I rely on technology for life and it’s been interesting to feel the pull towards it for the 12 awake hours I’ve been without it…. or maybe it felt more because I couldn’t have it (you know how much you want something you can't have). Either way, it makes me want to unplug from this tether even more.

How about for you? What would your day look like without the ‘net? Unplug that modem and find out for yourself (haha. I just so LOTS of eyes bugging out of heads). It’s an interesting experiment to see how patience and creativity rises… or doesn’t.

Sending you Peace, Love, and a technology perfect day,
Shanti

P.S. And for curious minds, the AM training went without a hitch and Comcast came at 2:31 and was done by 2:45. Righto!!

If you were to offer three words to describe what it feels like when you’re fully in your heart, what would they be? ​

A recent gathering of friends shared inclusive, understanding, forgiving, tranquil, confident, validating, grateful, comfortable, at ease, learning to be myself. Pretty great... and I made a pretty picture with all of them.

If you were to offer three words to describe what it feels like when you’re in your head, what would they be? 

While I didn’t ask this of my friends, I might say intense, analytical, focused, confused, constricted, indecisive, judgmental. While not all bad, that’s a lot of mixed messages.

An obvious difference between the heart and the head, at least for me, is the quality of presence I have when I’m in my heart. I’m present to whatever or whomever. There’s openness, flow, receptivity, and trust. I’m not hooked into my agenda of task mastering one thing so I can jump to the next, excluding data that doesn’t meet my standard of what I want or really like (a.k.a. judgment), or flipping back and forth trying to make the best and most perfect decision.

With heart, things in life just are and I meet them where they are just as I am. It’s a refreshing way to live and each moment feels alive. It's pretty darn wonderful!

So how to live more fully in the heart, especially during these ever changing and disruptive times? (2020 has surely been the biggest convoluted mess I’ve ever experienced!) How do you come into heart? What are some activities or intentional ways of being that help you to be there more often? It’s different for everyone and I’d love to hear what it’s like for you. 

For me, it’s setting the stage with morning coffee time on the back porch, eavesdropping on all the chatty birds. It’s purposefully tuning in to my heart and what’s alive for me there, meditating on spaciousness and acceptance so I can bring that intention and energy for forth. Heart is also pausing periodically throughout the day to rest and offer space as a transition in between different work activities (slow to know). And then, of course, my end of day gratitude and appreciation practice – what worked well, how did I contribute, and what does my body and mind need to rest.

Living from heart builds awareness, inner strength, personal choice, fortitude, intuitive connection, and resiliency... all desperately needed as we're experiencing these magnificent societal changes.

Over the coming weeks I’ll be sharing more about the heart and its transformational qualities. Stay tuned. Stay connected. Stay in heart.

Sending you a ton of Peace and Love,
Shanti

I'm sending you and all of your loves ones many blessings for continued health and safety. I'm here for you and what you may need. Just reach out by replying to this message and let's talk. I have SO many tools to support you in reducing, managing, and even thriving with stress. Let me be a resource!​

Every day you're facing new and unknown challenges from a variety of different sources and directions. With all of the changes, it's easy to feel disheveled and anxious. Navigating those emotions, and the effects they create, takes diligence and practice. In the beginning, it can take the strength of heart to stay in the heart.

As such, I thought you might enjoy a peaceful pause with this Come to Calm & Easy ocean meditation. The visual is from Jenness Beach in Rye this past weekend. It was very calming and peaceful to take in the negative ions from the ocean, to look out over the expanse and feel Oneness, and to gaze upon the beautiful and amazing blue sky that is bright and fresh. Enjoy!... and please share.
I'm also sending along a Ted Talk from Amy Cuddy. She shares the research around the Power Pose and how we can shift from a position of weakness to strength simply by standing in Superwoman or Superman pose for two minutes. It decreases our cortisol level and increases testosterone, offering a sense of empowerment, control, and strength to do what's right and needed. Enjoy this as well.

Peace and Love to you!
Shanti

Want some big wins every day? Pause periodically and check in with your WIN - What’s Important Now.  
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We all want more time. How to not fritter the precious moments on things that don’t really matter and just lead you down a path covered in shiny objects that are costly to productivity and skillful attention?

We all want to feel accomplished. How to stick with the priorities, stay energized, and not use a boat-load of motivation and willpower to get things done?

We all want the feeling of flow. How to adapt easily, instead of resisting hard, to the changes that invariably take place throughout the day?

You got it! By keep WINning.

Instead of trying to cram the day into the way you think it should go (aka creating more stress and tension), take a moment to pause so you can re-assess and decide what the next most important thing to attend to is. Oftentimes it’s not what you had initially planned but it does keep you ahead of the change game.

I check in with my WIN every time I’m done with a deep work block, complete a task or set of emails / phone calls, come back to my desk, or take a mini ultradian body break. It makes a huge difference!

Try it on and see how you can win with your WIN.

Sending you lots of Peace,
Shanti