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Begin with your thoughts …

All creation begins in thought. Before the creation appears, the creator thinks about it, ponders how it will be made, molds ideas in his or her mind. If I am creating by myself, then it is just fine to think about “it” until the time is right, then take action.

But, consider another scenario. You and I are in relationship. I think for months about our intention to go on a vacation. I imagine all the places I want us to go, what we will do there, what it will be like. I am ready to make reservations and I come to you with: “I am so excited. We will do … and you’ll just love … Let’s make the reservations today.” 

Are you as excited as I am? Possibly not. Co-creation? I don’t think so. If we wait until we have a “ready to go” idea … and try to sell it, we’ll likely not get the buy in we hope for.

If you desire to co-create with another human being, then share the journey from the beginning, the imperfect, not ready for prime time thoughts that you are having. Avail yourself of an opportunity to create more expansively – to create from a merging of ideas! It’s quite possible that one plus one does equal three!

What thoughts need to be shared today?

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The Established Norms

Do you find yourself saying things like:

This is how it’s done.When you go to that kind of outing, you must wear this.This is the proper thing to say.

Really? Whatever it is, it wasn’t always like that. Think about it. The proper way to shift gears in a car was with a stick until the automatic was invented. Thick,fluffy down was proper in a warm, winter coat until Thinsulate made less bulky options available. As for the proper thing to say, well, maybe if you are unwilling to rock the boat, be real, take a risk in service of what you really believe in.

Today is an invitation to notice:

Where do I follow the established norms blindly?
What if I don’t?
What’s possible if I break the rules?
What’s it worth?

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Where is your focus?

Do you ever catch yourself passing judgment “at first glance” or “judging a book (or a person) by its cover”?

Old phrases, yes. Yet I bring them up to invite you into a new focus practice. Imagine moving through your days, activities, connections with others in this way:

  • Meet
  • Pause to close your eyes to the outer and breathe in to the inner
  • Stay and respond

What does this mean? It means that whatever the outer circumstance, the visual, the situation you are tempted to react to, you do not react. Rather, you pause and shift your focus deeper and respond from here.

Where is your focus only surface level?
How would you respond from a deeper focus?
What are you willing to practice today?

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Broken parts

Back to shifting gears for a moment. Sometimes the gear slip or skip is more than a rough shift. Sometimes your bike is experiencing one of these symptoms:

  • worn out cassette/gears and/or chain
  • incorrect combination of chain/gears
  • derailleur is out of alignment
  • wrong derailleur/shifter combination

In other words, you’ve got bad parts!

What are the “bad parts” revealed by life’s gear slips?

When switching gears in life becomes hard, consider:

  • are you trying to do too much, shift too frequently?
  • is the activity or relationship “worn out”?
  • is your derailleur tired and in need of rest?
  • is there a mismatch between your desires and the next “gear”?

What would a trip to the “bike shop” reveal?

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Shifting Gears

If you have ever ridden a bicycle with 10 or more speeds, you know that “shifting gears” requires the chain to move from one gear to another, guided by the derailleur. Ideally, the chain leaves one gear and moves smoothly to the next. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work that way. Sometimes the chain skips a gear or slips off entirely. Perhaps you find yourself coasting until you can pull over, put the chain back on the gears, and continue.

What about in life? Every day we “shift gears” many times. Work to home, project to other project, children to spouse, thought to next thought. Often the shifts are smooth. Sometimes, we get derailed.

What do you do when you life derails you?

Do you:

Keep pedaling, hoping your chain will magically fix itself?
Pedal harder and realize you’re going nowhere?

Coast to a stop, pause, fix your chain?