As the new year approaches we have been busy! We have created a fan page for Enrichment Associates. It will reflect the spirit of this Change Paths Blog and our Enrichment Associates site. We invite you to visit and “like” our new page-here!
We also just finished a new Introductory video which we think you will enjoy. If you are new here it will also give some information about us, our values, and our mission.
We are excited to announce the release of Enrichment Meditations Volume 1!
Find out more about this DVD by FOLLOWING THIS LINK.
Enrichment Meditations are a synergy of majestic nature photography, music, and words crafted to inspire reflection, discovery, and the freedom to feel your highest potentials. I invite you to experience them with an open heart.
Enjoy fully the themes visited here. Notice how it is drinking in abundance and appreciation. See what resonates as you align with nature’s energy. Touch the seeds of transformation and watch them grow! Relax and unwind while simultaneously energizing mind and spirit.
Enjoy!
Rich
Find out more about this DVD-CLICK HERE!.
By: Rich Liotta ©2010
In Sometimes We Run… Part 1 two of the primary ways that we run in relationship to our goals were addressed, running away from and running towards our goals (See that article here). There are several more dynamics of our relationship to our goals. This article is about one of the most powerful and effective ways to achieve your goals!
Sometimes we run toward our goals while at the same time running away from something else…
Sometimes we run toward what we want while simultaneously running away something we do not want. It is critical to have some positive future that we are running towards, but we are propelled even more powerfully if there is also something that we are running away from! When what you want to achieve is intensely compelling and when you want to get away from a negative reality, history, or possibility that scares you; you have a formula that produces accomplishment! This is like having a powerful storm behind you blowing hard on your back while you are running towards something you want with all your heart.
Some say that simply having a compelling direction and a goal that pulls you toward it is enough. Some say only think positive, avoid all negativity, only focus on the goal and believe you can achieve it. There is nothing wrong with that if, and this a big if, you can sustain that energy. Possibilities and goals are great, but the here and now is inevitably the reference point from which you move. If that is not defined as something you want to move away from than complacency can creep in and dampen your fire, at least slowing your stride or even worse by placing your butt firmly down in an easy chair.
So develop a clear vision of what you want and what is worth running toward. At the same time know fully all the things that make you unhappy, are dangerous, or that are just not fully satisfying about the status quo. Then the clarity of what you want to run from combines with the clear vision of the somewhere else you want to be. It is the presence of both pictures in your mind’s eye and the contrast between your moving-toward-goals and your away-from-goals that generates powerful incentive and keeps you moving. Also the combination of both keeps your commitment to goal directed behavior more fully in awareness and your motivation strong.
There is also substantial research support for this approach to successful goal setting and achievement of our goals. Gabriele Oettingen and colleagues have been researching what she calls “mental contrasting” in relation to goal directed behavior for over a decade. Much of her work is discussed in the book Psychology of Goals (2009), chapter 6 was authored by Oettingen & Stephens. She notes that the effects of mental contrasting are dependent upon the perception of the present standing in the way of the future. She notes that when engaging in mental contrasting it is first important to imagine a desired future. Only after that should you elaborately consider the present reality and its negative aspects, particularly perceiving the obstacles which interfere with moving towards that future. She has also found that the direction of the thought processes matters. First, perceive the positive possibilities, what you want to go towards. Then elaborate on what interferes with reaching the desired future. The combination is what develops a compelling desire to move forward.
The finding that the direction of our thoughts matter makes perfect sense! If we only focus on what we don’t want and are only in runaway mode we are less likely to progress. When the only goal is avoidance without hopes for the future to embrace you are stuck. But when you can see possibility you know there is a way out, a direction forward, a reason to run toward the better life that you can imagine! With this full context in mind, what you want and what you don’t want, more of your mental and emotional energies are engaged in the process of creating change and transformation. Indeed Oettingen & Stephens cite physiological research that indicates that when both sides of the equation are fully elaborated more of the brain is active; more brain power is engaged!
So in sum, one of the most compelling and powerful ways to achieve your goals is when you have what you are running towards clearly and vividly in mind and at the same time are aware of what you are running away from. This is not focusing on the negative; it is focusing on what you really want and running toward that with intention and resolve! But do that while being aware of what you’re moving away from; not obsessed with it, not giving it loads of energy, just aware. In this manner your levels of intention become aligned and balanced. This is a very smart strategy to achieve your goals! Use it and it will give your stride power and certainty as you go for your dreams!
In forthcoming articles in the series other ways that we run in our attempts to achieve our goals will be addressed. Some of these styles can enhance your effectiveness in achieving what you want, while others may sabotage your efforts.
By: Rich Liotta ©2009
Everything we do is goal directed, whether we are pursuing success, accomplishment, satisfaction, service, love, acceptance, or simply comfort and the absence of pain. Goals are always with us, whether consciously acknowledged or not. We seek them, achieve them, fail at them, savor victory, suffer disappointment, or retool to pursue a new choice. We each have a relationship with, or a way of relating to, our goals. Indeed our relationship to any particular goal we have may be different at different times. Some of the possible dynamics of our relationship with our goals will be explored here. Sometimes we run… is a metaphor that illustrates some of the ways we relate to our goals. What is your relationship like with your goals?
Sometimes we run away…
This is typically true when your goal is avoidance of pain, failure, or discomfort. Scurrying away from danger, real or imagined, is like chipmunks fleeing from the birdfeeder when the cat walks through the yard. Running away is certainly necessary sometimes, but when it is because of fear and anxiety the best you can expect to achieve is safety and comfort. At its extreme the only goal here is avoidance without hopes for the future to embrace. Most aspire for more than that, but many live in run away mode.
There is another run away mode. You know you want something, but you run away as you get close or when you make progress. This is most frustrating because you feel like you have two minds, one that approaches and one that is afraid or uncertain. In a way this is true, we often have two minds. Competing goals are a major challenge to change and growth. For instance, when you go for something your life inevitably changes and your comfort zone is disrupted. Your goal for comfort or safety may feel threatened; so you run away to the familiar. This pattern can be unconscious and messed up if another part of you really wants something! Being aware of this, knowing yourself, can help you choose and not just behave automatically. Consider why you run away sometimes.
Sometimes we run toward our goals…
This is the other side of the equation. To achieve, accomplish, or change you need to be running toward something! You may run toward your goals with determination, though you may have fear and doubt, you’re going for it anyway. You find the resources within to proceed with uncertainty. You find the courage and strength to not run away-back into your old shell. You are not behaving automatically, at least not yet, but consciously and with resolve. There are many ways to run toward your goals and the effort will pay off.
The magic comes when you run toward effortlessly. It can happen. Believe it! This may be with eagerness and fervor, doing everything you can to close that gap between where you are now and your goal. Perhaps for you the goal is always in sight, it is a part of you, and calls to you like a soul mate you are destined to meet. Or you may run with cool confidence and a steady stride conscious of challenges, believing that success is ahead!
Yes, sometimes we run…
Running away and running toward are the most basic types of relationships we have with our goals. How you relate to your goals determines, to a large extent, whether you will achieve them or not. There are more dynamics of our relationship with our goals that will be addressed is posts coming soon. Next time one of the most powerful and compelling ways to run will be presented.
This article was previously posted last year on this site, so I apologize if you saw it before! I wanted it posted close to the newer installments in this series.
I (Rich Liotta) will be presenting some of my recent work at the Canadian Association of NLP (CANLP) in early October. The theme of the three day conference is “Brilliant Success through NLP.” The conference is being held in Montreal, October 1-3. I will be presenting on a topic I have written about here, the article that presents some of my ideas, in their early form is here.
My topic is: Enhancing 4 Practices Vital to Achieving Abundance in Your Life.
SEE THE FULL ARTICLE ABOUT MY PRESENTATION AT CANLP ON THE ENRICHMENTACT SITE-CLICK HERE.
By: Rich Liotta ©2010
The onion metaphor has often been used to describe the process of delving into a person’s psyche. Layers are removed to reveal what is beneath, toward the core. The metaphor reflects the many layers that we have inside us. Most who use this metaphor suggest that peeling away the layers of the onion is the complete story. The assumption seems to be that the awareness that happens as the layers of the onion are 
peeled away changes people. Is it the tears? Is it some magical healing factor that happens by exposing what was hidden to the light of day? Is it revealing the possibilities waiting for expression in the undamaged inner core? Certainly knowing what is within is useful, but usually insight alone is not enough to make real change and to sustain it.
Something critical is missing from the mind-as-onion metaphor. What supposedly happens when these layers are removed? Some unknown aspect of ourselves is revealed; okay then what?
It seems to me that the onion needs to be reconstructed and put back together, layer by layer, to be whole again. Putting the pieces together again, that is what’s missing! If we want to make it into something else entirely, such as salad, slices and layers scattered randomly around may be fine. But to be whole, the layers need to be re-placed or re-formed to complete what has essentially become a three dimensional puzzle. Have you ever tried to put a real onion back together? Not likely, but if so, how did that go for you? There is something about taking it apart that changes it. Perhaps that is the sometimes curative element of peeling away the layers of the onion; yet pieces themselves are not a whole.
Let us consider what these layers are for the human mind-body system. These layers are meanings. They are meanings we make from our experiences, our thoughts, and our feelings. These layers are the emotions, possibilities, limitations, beliefs, and intentions that we developed and solidified inside ourselves through our experience. These layers are fundamentally meanings, often multifaceted meanings, which direct how we live our life and how we feel about our life. Just examining these does not necessarily enrich them, or us, in ways that are helpful or in ways that serve us. It is what we do with that information next that matters.
In order to reconstruct the onion, to make it whole, changing the meanings of each layer and how they are stacked together is needed. Sometimes through our life experience the onion grew with the layers it needed to survive to deal with a lack of sunshine or too much rain. The way the layers formed may have served us then, but not now. Now the layers seem misplaced, out of place, malformed or just unhelpful! To make matters worse, sometimes the wrong layer is on top of another layer. The order of these layers matters, as it affects how we feel, how we function, what we think, and what we believe.
In an onion the layers have a static relationship to each other, a specific layer belongs on top of or beneath another and that’s just the way it is. Fortunately our layers have more options! Our structure is not static. It is a malleable, and perhaps even magical, multidimensional puzzle of onion pieces that can be put together in a variety of ways. People have a natural tendency to feel that things are the way they are, often not realizing the strength and power they have to reconstruct the onion and become someone better and different, an enriched version of their former self. We are capable of true transformation!
Changing the meaning is changing the layers; first by examining them, noticing them, acknowledging them, and then by questioning whether those meanings serve us. Changing the meaning is reconstructing each layer. Reconstructing is also deciding which layers go where. It is choosing which layers to honor and which ones are best discarded. Redesigning and improving ourselves is changing the nature of the layers and transforming them into something different, transforming the meanings. Then we can put the layers back together and reconstruct and revise and remap the layers.
Through reflection you can see the layers of your deeper self and appreciate the possibilities of your higher self. Know that you are capable of choosing how to layer and organize all the pieces to create a whole that manifests your highest goals and best dreams!
Who knows what will be the result. Perhaps what you will have at the end is not an onion at all, but something else, something more wonderful, a self transformed!
This is a 2-minute Enrichment Meditation starring a loon and its calls. Hiking in the Adirondack’s is wonderful and spiritual for me. You never know when a chance encounter will strike a chord of wonder and connection. For me loons and their songs are enchanting. Coming across this loon was a glorious moment! I hope this video will take you there.
This post and video are intended to express one way in which nature is part of the broader “community” in which we all live. All pictures except one were taken in my home territory, the Adirondack Park in northern New York.
The theme of the Enrichment Meditation video is discovering nature’s energy by appreciating nature’s patterns and beauty. You can connect with the energy that surrounds us and increase your energy to create what you want in your life. This meditation combines images, text, and music to stimulate and inspire you in positive directions. To see it directly on YouTube go here, otherwise just click on the screen below.
The following is the text of the video’s message.
Discovering Nature’s Energy:
Nature Connects
Us to the Energy
that surrounds Us
and Is within You.
Energy Grows
within You as You
Are Appreciating
Nature’s Wonder.
Appreciation Is
not just thought,
It Is
Perception.
Notice the Wise
Energies that
Flow all around
Us.
In nature and in Us
there Is Chaos
and Complexity,
Yet…
There Is also
Elegance and
Beauty in
Nature’s Designs.
Look and Listen
for diversity,
Expect
Surprise,
Possibilities
Dwell in the
Variations
most don’t Notice.
Inspiration Grows
as You Sense Fully
what Is Alive and
Changing,
Let Your Thoughts
Blossom with the
Energy your
Senses Can Allow.
Allow into your
Heart the
Abundance that
Exists Out There.
Be curious and
Discover what Is
Now a part of
Your Space.
Appreciation of
Nature Connects
You with Wisdom
and Energy,
Empowering
You to Find or
Create All
that You Seek.
Appreciate all that
Energizes Life and
Enriches
Your Path
Now…
Copyright Richard F. Liotta, 2010
As we enter a New Year it is customary and valuable to reflect on where you have been and on where you are going. It is time consider what you want improved in your life, what you want to be different, and what you wish to change. In that spirit many of us make New Year’s resolutions. But the word “resolution” has some unconscious implications that may not be helpful in actually realizing change. In my view “re-solutioning” is a more useful term to direct you toward a useful path for change. I’ll discuss the reasons for this in this article.
The words we use and how we understand them impacts how we think and the subsequent actions that we take. Specifically, the words we use carry a set of instructions unconsciously. To succeed it is critical that you don’t sabotage your efforts by the implications of the words you say to yourself. A resolution leans toward hoping for a magical transformation. Whereas re-solutioning directs you toward reflection and examination of what really needs to be done to change! It is often these unconscious shifts in meaning, such as from resolution to re-solutioning that can launch you in a more productive direction.
A New Year’s resolution is usually thought of as something like “a firm decision to do or not do something (The New Oxford American Dictionary)” or a decision to do something or to behave in a certain way. Unconsciously this meaning suggests that just making the decision will somehow magically make it come true. If that is true for you, great! For most people, however, it does not work that way. A resolution is static; it has no life, no energy, and no movement; whereas whatever you are trying to change is active and alive. Active and alive wins! Resolutions falter and fade and whatever we wanted to change may stumble for a moment but then finds its stride again. No wonder resolutions fail and we get discouraged. Also Resolution does not necessarily imply a past or a plan. It takes whatever we want to achieve out of context, unsupported by the past and not anticipating the future.
One the other hand, re-solutioning puts the intent back into perspective with richer and more helpful implications. It is not static. It suggests activity, movement, and energy-into the future. Re-solutioning appreciates that change is a process, resolution does not. Re-solutioning also acknowledges the past, the history of the challenge facing you, and solutions you have tried. Re-solutioning leads the mind in more helpful direction. Re-solutioning suggests action, persistence, and adjusting course if needed, rather than magic. It is a more useful frame from which you can implement a plan, seek support, visualize your desired outcome, and all the other recommendations regarding being successful with this annual tradition, or with making changes in general.
Another important idea to consider is this: in some way what you are doing now and want to change has been a solution for you! This is not how most people think about behaviors they want to change, but it is well worth the effort to honestly introspect and discover how the behavior you want to change has been a solution for you. Ask yourself “How is the behavior I want to change a solution for me?” For instance, perhaps overeating is a solution because it soothes you. Perhaps smoking is a solution because it relaxes you. Perhaps procrastination is a solution because it feels good compared to facing what you should do. The “solution” you have been living, however undesirable, has done something for you. So changing successfully involves re-solutioning, such as finding a different way to soothe yourself, relax, and feel good. Similarly, if what you are doing now is filling some need, then that need must be addressed to effectively change the unwanted behavior. So respect that what you want to change was a “solution,” perhaps with undesired consequences, but it was a solution nonetheless. Then you will be more prepared to find better solutions and be ready to start re-solutioning.
Resolution may be what you want in the future, but re-solutioning is what you do now to get there. Save the “resolution” for the appropriate time; for instance, “I’ve been re-solutioning my weight issue for a while now, I’ve changed my habits, I’ve found other ways to soothe myself; I’m really feeling a sense of resolution.” A resolution is a decision or the end state once a problem is solved. But just making the decision does not solve the problem. Notice how the words feel inside. Resolution may give you a feeling of satisfaction, but does it drive you do something? Re-solutioning makes the fact that you need to do something to achieve what you want more real in your mind. That appreciation alone (I need to take action to make it happen) makes it more likely that you will achieve the changes you want to make.
Finally, the difference between making a resolution and re-solutioning is more than semantics. Re-solutioning carries the implicit instruction to do something to get what you want. Re-solutioning directs you toward reflection and examination of what really needs to be done to change. A resolution leans toward hoping for a magical transformation.
Re-solutioning can start anytime, any day is as good as any other, so make the decision and take the actions necessary to make it happen. In some ways it seems strange to me that the New Year is “the day” for change. I’d rather think of New Year’s Day as a day to celebrate growth, change and possibility rather than the day to change per se, but whatever works for you. May everyday be a day when you can choose to make personal changes and to strive for being your best. Consider making a resolution to start re-solutioning instead!
A video to make you smile! It features Mia, an English Springer Spaniel, Adirondack scenery, and a fairy perhaps only Mia can see. Music is “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies” from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite.
