Stucture and Flow

I've been having this reacuring metaphor come up as we prepare for our next Move Freely, Live Deeply event on Sat. Missy has been working a lot with structure and finding how it can aid in flow, where the assumption often says that flow and structure are opposed. For example by planing out life you would perhaps guess that the option of "living in the flow" may be limited... I used to think this was true and have come to believe otherwise.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not much of a planner, and probably never will be, but structure can come in many subtler forms and in this lies a key for combining magic and direction. Imagine a river as it flows towards the ocean. all along its path are banks which keep it contained within a certain course. Imagine for a moment that those banks were permeable and unreliable. The once strong river could be reduced into a scattered flood, or swamp rather quickly. This is often the end result for a river as it reaches its goal spreading out vastly into the arms of the receptive ocean.

In this metaphor I can really grasp the benefit of having some structure, as it relates to carving out the life you desire. Every detail is not important to know in advance and impossible to grasp anyway... but the constraints of vision and purpose can become the steady banks guiding you to a broader expansion and connection.

I personally love to open to the perfect flow in life, whether it is slow as molasses or fast as a raging river. All of the dimensions of such an experience offer there own unique blessings and perspectives. Expansion and contraction are both natural in the flow of intuitive living, and the embracing of what is can cure suffering in a hurry. My goal is to have an inner drive of purpose and vision, perhaps manifesting only as a feeling, but enough to guide me into the arms of the divine union of the small incarnate ME with the infinite wisdom and connection of the universe and all that is. It is like accepting all the power and magnificence that you are while being immensely humbled by the perfection of your place in the whole.

(Painting by Ted Hayward... see link on right!)

Love and blessings,
Chief ME

Paid and on Purpose!

I can only begin to tell you how jazzed I am right now. Completely thrilled with my last four days and even more excited to share some of the learning and insights I gained with you.

As you mostly know I'm an artist to the core, and have been experiencing that archetype in it's positive and negative ways for many years. I've always done creative things very well and have excelled in certain pursuits. And there are those things...see long division, a few blogs ago, that I have struggled with and continue to avoid as much as possible. Well, this has been great in many ways in my life and I feel tremendously blessed to have been able of giving so much focus to that! Also I became an expert at living on the wind, learning how to live on little and find the deep abundance in every experience. Unfortunately I have ended up like so many other young people following their dreams. I wasn't starving but I have been down to $20 many times! Not the best feeling when you're mission is to inspire people to live successful, authentic, brilliant lives! So the good news is, I've been paying attention and taking responsibility to change that, because only I can shift that perception of myself.

This weekend I spent at a workshop called the Million Dollar Marketing and Soul Intensive. Most that know me well would laugh at my name beside all but intensive in the soul department. So yes this was a big stretch for me, and at the same time, I am here to make a difference in people's lives, and whatever it takes to do that, I'm in! Many things became clearer for me by going to this thing and I am excited just to share a couple of them and hear how it has helped open up my mind to a plan for moving my dream into action.

The one thing I learned that is so important for creatives and spiritually based people is understanding that the most effective way to offer their gifts to a large audience and get them to the people who need those gifts, is to understand the value in what you have to offer in terms of what it will do for folks when they engage with you and what they will miss out on if you don't reach them. And because your gifts have great value you should be compensated for giving those gifts. When we get paid we feel empowered and energized to do more. I think one of the challenging concepts is how to put a price on these things, and the conclusion I've come to is that it is not the number that matters but how you feel about it. For example I have been charging $20 for my cds for a while now and I came to that decision because I know they are worth it and it feels good to me when I know I'm valuing myself and my work. This is not to say I don't give away tons of them or accept less at times, but the important thing is that i honor myself in the transaction knowing that the music has true value and they will engage more with that value because they paid for it. We value what we pay for. The other thing is that when I have more money I can do more of the things I need to do in the world. So I'm taking the reins and responsibility to accept and leap into this place of power.

The journey into authenticity constantly brings up the need to value the self. By it's nature, authentic being is from one perspective a place of oneness. You may not always experience the amazing bliss of a oneness consciousness but you can draw down the understanding that you are equally a piece of the equation as any other. Stepping up to one's value is a key piece in being authentic and expressing, giving and receiving from a place of power and transformation.

I will keep you posted as I implement these new parts in my life and and new business.

Much love and thank you for offering your thoughts.
Chief ME