Is Happiness a Choice or a Feeling?

A good friend of mine sent me a wonderful note on her thoughts around happiness being a feeling rather than a choice. I have always heard that it is a choice and prefer her idea around the matter. This is what she said:

"I used to say "choose happiness", but that hasn't been working ... what I've realized is Happiness is not a choice, it's an emotion that helps us know if we're on the right path, making the right decisions for ourselves. But you can't "choose to be happy"... that notion really gets MOST people mixed up, because they will paste on a smile and tell themselves they are happy and ignore it if there is inner turmoil. That isn't helping them to move forward and heal. That turmoil and sadness can be a true gift!! When we acknowledge our inner feelings that aren't happy, we are guided to taking responsibililty for all that we have created in our lives and make positive changes!! Happiness is an emotion, reflecting our inner state, giving us indication on where we are in our journey... that's what happiness is!! And on the same front, so are anger, sadness, fear... they are all part of our guidance system!! If I've got things to work through, I choose working through them, not "happiness". The final end state IS peace and happiness.. but it's sometimes a lot of work to get there... if you're in pain you certainly can't just wake up one day and "choose it"... (you can choose to work towards an inner state of peace... but you can't choose your emotions)."

I like what she had to say and I agree... what do you think?

Are You Who I Think You Are?

Do I imagine you to be what I want rather than who you are?

Do I really see you as you are or contort you into what I want?

Who are you? Can I remove my aspirations and desires to really see you?

How do I get out of my deluded head and accept you as you are?

How do I stop fantasizing all the wonderful possibilities of you?

My perception is distorted through my lenses of acceptable thoughts. I allow my thoughts and control my thinking or abandon the reins and let thoughts loose to run free without parameters. My mind outsmarts me sometimes. I outsmart my mind sometimes.

I'm going to try my recipe for seeing you as you are:

5 parts abandonment of my expectation of me to change you + 3 parts accepting what is + 2 parts outsmarting my mind = seeing you as you are for who you are.

Jill Fischer,
Director of Gurutropolis

Am I Who I Am?

Do you want to do something in a huge powerful way?

What is your goal? Have you considered doubling it? Come on – expand your imagination. See it – feel it – and let go fully trusting it will happen. Expect nothing but the good.

Louise Hay talks about the analogy of going to a restaurant and ordering your dinner off the menu. You tell the waiter and (s)he goes to the kitchen and tells the cook to make it. Just as you don’t follow that waiter to the kitchen and watch the cook prepare your food, you don’t need to worry about how the universe is preparing your goal either. Let go and trust that the food (your goal) that you ordered will be delivered.

That is not to say that you don’t participate with the universe. With Louise Hay’s example, your participation is showing up at the restaurant, deciding on what kind of food to order and telling the waiter. This would be equivalent to deciding on your specific goal and telling yourself and others that you want it. Back in the restaurant you wait for the food with hunger and anticipation and money to pay for the food. This again is parallel to being ready to receive your goal in making space for it, educating yourself, surrounding yourself with experts interested in your goal, and working on core beliefs you may have about deserving, worthiness, money, etc...

What’s that? You say you can’t do it? You can't double your goal? What is that? Who’s voice is that? Is it yours or your parents’ or other people? Whose perception are you listening to?

Ask yourself:
Am I who I think I am?
Am I who you think I am?
Am I who I think you think I am?
How do you define yourself? Who are you? And why does it matter?
It matters if this perception is holding you back.

In 1960 Dr. Maxwell Waltz published the book ‘Psycho-Cybernetics’ (steering your mind to peace of mind), “turning frustration into a kinetic productive force of confidence”. “Self image sets the boundaries of human accomplishment.”

I started this blog with asking you to double your goal. If this seems outrageous to you – have a look at your self image. Enlarge your self image and you enlarge the scope of your accomplishments. What matters is what you think of yourself. That is where you tap into your power.

When you think of the past – use it to your advantage by thinking of the positive. Think of the gifts you have received from the lessons you’ve learned. Think about the incredible person you are today because of what the past gave you.

Now think about your goal being delivered to you just as you ordered it. Imagine and feel your feelings receiving your goal. Let go of worry and doubt and enjoy the right now. The moment you are in. You may even smell the food coming from the kitchen!

Jill Fischer
Director of Gurutropolis

Why women will rule the new world!

We have grown up in a society where powerful people usually meant people who could control their environment. I think for the most part men are really good at this and that is why most of the powerful people in this world are men. But things are changing, power is shifting. It is shifting from external to internal. True power in the new world will be for those who can be completely vulnerable and allow others to see them for who they are. There is an emotional connection to who we are at the very core of our soul. These people will have the ability to love and accept themselves fully and completely. Thus they will be able to be in even greater service to others. Consciousness is evolving and the past ideas that we've held on to are no longer valid. Big corporations that don't live up to true values are crumbling. There is no stopping it as this is the way our world will be. Each day we evolve and each day we are waking up and seeing the truth. The truth is that we are spiritual beings having a human experience. True power will be the ability to control our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Each of our thoughts, feelings and actions are either expressed in love or fear, that's it, that's all.

So why would I say that women will rule the new world? Its because I think that men for the most part have been taught to be disconnected from their feelings. It is harder for men to really express themselves the way that they want even if they want to because of the fear of judgment from others, especially other men. I personally don't think I hugged another man including my father until I was over 30 years old. We simply weren't taught that it was ok to show our sensitive side. Holding on to these old ideas will keep us trapped in our egos and the fear that we tell ourselves will only be validated by how we have come to judge ourselves and feeling like we have been judged. Women on the other hand have been typically more sensitive and they are more capable of being vulnerable.

I think yoga is a great example of how women are waking up far more then men are in the new world. I practice yoga and meditation and for the most part I am a small minority of men who go to yoga and get it. It is no surprise that there are more women that are practicing. Yoga teaches people a lot of things but it mostly helps people be present and let go of our egos. Yoga is about your spiritual journey and therefore there is no need to compare yourself to other people. We are all guided on our paths and we are learning the lessons that we need to so that we can evolve each day.

In our society men have learnt and feel the need to compete. This competition only leads to scarcity and therefore leads to even more fear; the fear that there is not enough for everyone. The ability to recognize your journey and therefore recognize yourself through self love and acceptance the easier it is to believe in abundance. This belief in abundance will yield for more positives results then competition will ever be able to in our new world.

Robert Gregoire
Director
Gurutropolis

Open to a different point of view
A young man asks a girl out to dinner and she accepts. He then asks her where would she like to go. She states there is a little steak house out of town she would love to go.
He later tells his mom of the new girl and the pending date they have and she has picked a quaint steak house just out of town.
In a casual conversation the mom has with to two friends she tells them of her son's upcoming date at the quaint restaurant out of town
One friend said WOW she must not like him at all because she does not want to be see with him and wants to hide out of town so no one see's them
Friend number two said WOW she must really like him and trust him as she has asked him to take her way out there to a place she always wanted to go and they will be able to talk just the two of them
The same event with 2 very different points of view
Where in our lives could we look at an event from only one view and miss an opportunity

Perfectionism: A Love Story

Do you suffer from the need to be perfect like I did? I can feel your pain. Is there something inside of you that just wants to “let it all go” and be free. I just recently realized how I created patterns of perfectionism. My previous job required me to check plans to send to clients where they were going to be used to drill well sites and construct pipelines in the oil and gas industry. I would always be in resistance to receiving feedback because it was usually very negative. I always felt that no matter what I did it was never good enough. I could literally be 98% accurate and I would only hear about the 2% I screwed up on. I ended up leaving that job feeling very dissatisfied. I continued my search outside of myself for the recognition that I felt I deserved but I couldn’t find it anywhere I looked because my belief of “not good enough” didn’t change.

It wasn’t until I realized that the recognition that I wanted was inside of me all of the time. I shifted from thinking and feeling “not good enough” to “being in service”. I found that I used to be attached to the outcome. I wanted to fix people not realizing that they didn’t need to be fixed. I had huge expectations of others and myself. Recognizing that this wasn’t working for me I choose to let go of the outcome, allowed myself to just be and trust that I could provide what others needed in the exact moment they needed it.

What I found was that the outcome looked different than I could of pictured it but it was exactly what I needed at the time. I realized in that moment that we’re all divinely guided and protected including myself. I started to trust my intuition in the present moment and allowed myself to “let go” of the need to control life. I started to allow life to unfold the way that it is supposed to and I now choose to learn the lessons that are in front of me.

So, why would “being in service” make all the difference? It’s really about recognizing who you are and using your unique strengths and abilities to help others. I now know that I am better able to receive what it is that I need by first giving whatever it is that I can give in the present moment. The recognition that I was seeking all along came in the form of a new love of myself. By letting go of the attachment to outcomes and my unrealistic expectations, I now choose to enjoy the present moment and allow for feedback. I feel more clear and grounded, I don’t judge myself as much and I allow others to see who I really am. This is true power because now I feel that I can be in even greater service to others. Loving yourself first will give you the power you need to let go and trust in the universe.

Robert Gregoire
Director

Gurutropolis