Creating Ease through Organization

Are you living your life with EASE?  I'm not saying EASY!  As my friend and mentor, Tonya Leigh from the French Kiss Life always says, "Ease doesn't mean easy."

When I say living with ease, I mean living calmly, without unnecessary stress.  And the best way I've found to live with ease and minimal stress, starts with the "O" word.  NO!  Calm your pretty little mind over there.  The "O" word I'm talking about is ORGANIZATION.

Now please don't let the word organization freak you out.  We all know there are people who don't feel particularly organized on a day to day basis.  And there are others who continually tell themselves and others that they just aren't organized people.   - can you say, "Self fulfilling prophecy?"

Let's examine what it means to be organized and how it can contribute to a life of ease for you!

1.  PLAN.  You've heard this:  Plan your work and work your plan.  That phrase exists for a reason.  If you sit down for 10 to 15 minutes on a Sunday, you can plan your upcoming week beautifully.  This doesn't mean a rigid schedule - don't worry - it means being aware in advance of what you need to do and choose to accomplish for the week.

I always recommend a date book that you can keep with you, for example MINE !!!  If you have it with you everywhere you go, you can plan your life as you go through your day and not have to be that annoying individual who tells everyone, "Let me check my schedule at home and I'll get back to you."  Ugh!  If you are this person, please be sure to keep reading!  

People who are organized, living with ease and minimal stress are always wondering how the person who keeps their schedule at home manages to get through a day unscathed!   Don't be that person!!!  If you are, you are setting yourself up for extra, unnecessary stress!

Keeping your planner with you allows you to make decisions as you move throughout your day.  Once you write a task or appointment down, then all you need to do is show up for it!  That also means no more feeling as though you've forgotten something.  It means a plan, organization, accomplishment, ease and LESS STRESS!  I promise you this!

2.  DECLUTTER.  If you've visited my website, or read my blog posts over the past two years, you know that I am a big advocate of decluttering.  I honestly think one of my Superpowers is the ability to throw things away!  I will share a secret with you.  When you declutter your life, several wonderful things are going to happen for you!

First, you will feel great because things around you are cleaner and more streamlined.  Cleaning and straightening will take less time, which will free you up to focus on doing what you truly love.

Second, you actually know what you own!  This makes it much easier to shop for what you really need.  It is amazing what we accumulate over the years - and what we lose track of!

Third, you open up space to relax, be creative, and surround yourself with what brings you joy and brilliance!  And - like the tattoo on my arm says, "Suelement L'exquis"  Only the exquisite.  What a beautiful place to start, right?

Fourth, as you declutter all of the different places in your life, you'll find that you create an automatic mindset shift:  What you have will be of more importance to you, and you will take better care of it.
(This is another Blog Post, for another time.!)

3.  SIMPLIFY.   Why do something in one step that can be done in 6?!  Does this sound like you?  I highly suggest going for the 1 step!  Create ease by making chores, tasks and everything else work more easily for you.  Keep things organized so you can do what needs to be done without running around looking for what you need!  For example,

-  Put an outfit together the night before
-  Have a designated place to sit and pay your bills.
-  Keep a running grocery list so you know what you need when you're at the store.
-  Keep a list of Birthdays, Anniversaries, and other occasions so you don't forget anyone.
-  Give away clothing and accessories that you haven't used in the past year. 

-  Keep out only the make up you wear on a daily basis - not everything you own!

If you give this some thought, you can find lots of places in your daily life that could use a bit of clean up and simplification!   Take a week or so and pay close attention to your routines.  If you can think of a way to simplify absolutely any thing you do, DO IT!  It may seem small at the time, but all of the little improvements you make will add up quickly to a bunch of time for YOU!

4.  DECIDE.  Make an on-purpose decision to begin to create ease in all of the areas of your life.  When you spend the time to get your thoughts together, life will open up and become much more ease-filled!  Decide to clean out your car!  Decide to keep a planner!  Pay attention to what is going on around you.  When you declutter your life, you declutter your mind!

When you decide to create ease in your life, you'll find more opportunities will present themselves to you.  You'll feel more joy and you'll live each day with beauty and ease!

Love,
Donna

PS.  If you feel stuck in this area, like so many people do, just get in touch with me.  I'd love to support you through this journey!  Just email me at TheBrillianceFactor@gmail.com  We'll have a blast working together!!!

Who are you relying on....or creating your own cupcake!

Hello, Cupcake!

Have you ever taken the time to think about where you are getting your sense of validation?  Support?  Worth?  Value?  

Many of us are relying on others for this sense of well being.  What???  Sad, but we have all been there.  We see it in young people all the time.  Children are almost always looking for approval from their parents or their teachers, and it's perfectly normal.

But what happens when we bring that neediness into our adult lives?  Well we all must admit that it feels good when we get that validation.  When a boss tells you you're awesome, or your boyfriend tells you you're pretty, we glow a little brighter, right?  At least for a few minutes.  

The lesson here, my cupcake, is that we must not rely on others for our self confidence and our sense of well being.  First, you don't really need it.  You know the areas of your life where you are excelling, as well as which areas need a bit of TLC.  As long as you are aware of where you could use a little growth, you are perfect, just the way you are!  Awareness is key!

Whether you call your faith the Universe, God, or Mother Nature, in the eyes of your faith, YOU ARE ALREADY SHEER PERFECTION!

According to Joel Osteen, we "shouldn't put the pressure of reinforcing our self-worth on those around us.  They've got their own issues to deal with!"

Yes it's great to receive a compliment from people we care about or look up to, but nurturing your self-esteem is really YOUR responsibility, my love!  And mine!

I know how I want to live my life and how I want to relate to others.  I know that I am living the best life I can live and that I'm being a good person to all the people and animals around me!  I am learning the things that I feel I need to learn in order to excel in my career.  I'm surrounding myself with the beautiful things that make my every day living enjoyable.  Building my own cupcake-life!

Believe me when I tell you, this is an ongoing journey full of becoming aware and learning and decision making.  Am I perfect at it?  Hell no!  BUT!  As long as I am doing these things and moving myself toward who I have chosen to become, the better I feel about myself.

This is something that requires persistence and lots of thought, but as I grow, my need for approval from others shrinks!  As that need shrinks, the easier I am to be around, because I'm really ME!  Not a version of me that is only ok if the constant positive feedback is there.

So again, I will tell you, you don't need the reassurance from everyone around you.  You need it from yourself.  And creating a life you are proud to live is the best way to get that reassurance internally - from yourself!

Yes, take those compliments with a smile and a thank you, but don't live on them!  Create a beautiful life for yourself, so those comments are just the sprinkles on your cupcake!  

The cupcake itself?  Your self esteem?...you got that!

Love, 

Donna

PS. If you need a little help or push, get in touch with me and we can work on it together!!

www.brilliancefactor.com

Time to Make a Fresh Start?

Hello Beautiful...

Have you ever heard this quote?

"Every passing moment is another chance to turn it all around."  

This is a quote from Penelope Cruz in the movie Vanilla Sky.  It quote has stayed with me since the first time I heard it, years ago when that movie first came out.  

And honestly my friend, Every passing moment IS another chance to turn it all around!

If you stop to think about this for a minute, you know in your heart that it is absolutely true.  We are 100% capable of examining our lives and changing our habits and mindset any time we choose to do so.  "Not me", you say?  Well let me show you how.

Almost everything we do, every day of our lives comes from a choice we've made.  For example:

We choose to go to work.  Or not.

Choose to over eat.  Or not.

Choose to under eat.  Or not.

Choose to sleep in.  Or not.

Choose to stay up late.

Dress as though we do or do not care about how we look.

Choose to watch TV.

Surround ourselves with beautiful things.  

Surround ourselves with crap.

Choose to be happy.

Choose to do a good deed.  Or not.

Choose to over spend.

Everything we do as we move through every day is a choice.  And believe me when I tell you:  THIS IS GREAT NEWS!!!

Do you feel like you are living a life that is not quite up to what you desire?  Well, YOU get to change that!  Right now!

If your self confidence level isn't quite up to par, change it!  Dress better!  Put on some lipstick!  Get cute!  Read some news!  Learn something!  Clean something up!  Read something inspiring!  These are all things you can do immediately to improve your self confidence.  Every day, when you are getting ready to start your day, you are making these choices.  Why not make better ones?

This is how we create Beauty, Brains and Brilliance in our lives.  By making choices that lead us toward the life we desire.

Any given second, you can say, "I'm done being grumpy for today."  And find something that makes you smile or laugh.  Then practice feeling that happy feeling for the rest of the day.  Yes it takes practice, but it is so worth it!

Any given moment, you can say, "I don't want to be that person anymore." And begin to do things differently.  

Any given hour you can say. "I don't want to be the woman who over eats."  And you can decide to put off that snack for a while longer.

Any given day you can say, "I want to feel elegant from now on."  And you can begin planning the outfit and accessories and lipstick you want to wear tomorrow.

Any given week you can say, "Yes, I'm grateful for what I have, but this is not my dream job."  And quietly begin looking for something that lights you up!

Yes, these are just examples, but they are choices and decisions that you are making every day!  Good decisions or bad, whether they are on purpose decisions or subconscious decisions that you don't even realize you're making throughout your day.  You ARE making them.  

So now that the light bulb has gone on over that pretty little head of yours, don't you think it's time that you got into the Pilot's seat of your private jet and started mapping out your course, rather than living out of habit or default?  

Take the time to decide who you want to become.  Find 20 or 30 quiet, alone, uninterrupted minutes to contemplate this idea.  Once you know who and what you want to be, you can begin making daily choices that will guide you toward that place.  

In this day and age, and at our age, there is no reason for us to live an unfulfilled life!  We can be whomever, and do whatever we want to do!  So who are YOU going to be tomorrow?

Love,

Donna

PS.  Need a push to get you started?  Get these two books and you'll be well on your way!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/s/ref=is_s?k=donna+ferrante

And visit www.brilliancefactor.com

Let's work on this together!!!