Masami's Essentials
Through my observations while working with individual clients and presenting workshops, I've developed and learned the following concepts which can be very helpful for keeping the mind focused, body relaxed, emotions cleared and spirit attuned. I will be expanding the list here at Masami's Essentials.
Courage
Courage comes from the French word Coeur, which means the heart, as the seat of feelings. It takes courage to express your heart and live from your heart center. Sometimes difficult situations or uncomfortable topics arise and challenge us, but by tapping into the strength of the heart, we can always speak from the most compassionate part of us. Remember, courage is contagious!
Curve Ball
Throw yourself a curve ball to avoid stagnation, habitual patterns, and to shake up your automatic routines. Try a new restaurant, a new radio station, a new route home, tea instead of coffee. Be open to surprises. This will help to bring greater awareness to your activities. What you do is less important than how you do it.
Disequilibrium
True learning is a state of disequilibrium. The discomfort it produces is a necessary ingredient for personal growth.
Effortless Effort
In Japanese, the phrase "hara hachi bunme" means "80% full". It is intended to remind us that using the correct amount of energy in a task can produce a sustainable sense of "effortless effort', rather than burnout or feeling spent.
Everything Changes
The only guarantee we have is that everything changes. So stop resisting and stop controlling. Feeling stuck or feeling apprehensive about something is a sure sign that you are resisting this Universal Law. It's not just the things we don't like. Everything Changes.
Help YourSelf First
"Put on your own oxygen mask first before assisting others.” We have all heard this important safety announcement enough times after boarding an airplane that we just tune it out now. But there is wisdom in focusing on yourself and your needs before projecting them on others. Learn about yourself first before judging others for flaws you see in yourself. Become clear on your desires and goals before seeking other people’s approval or advice. Make yourself a priority. Learn about YOUR Body, Mind, Emotion and Psyche and be the expert on who you are. True learning begins with you!
Oneness
We co-create the universe that we live in and everything is interdependent. We are all connected, so what we say, feel, think, and do can change the way world turns. When you change, everything around you changes, so even though you might feel like you are being treated unfairly by someone on the street, at work, or at home, you can change the way you look at the situation and realize what part you have been playing to perpetuate the situation. You are a part of the whole and you can actively choose to change the situation that you are in.
Playfulness and Laughter
Stay Curious! Creative ideas come from trying out new things and being playful. Don’t take life so seriously. Place your hands on your belly and laugh out loud several times a day. Watch children laugh, play, and discover. And laugh with them. Don’t lose touch with the child in you!
Practice Kindness
What do we need an outside critic for, when we are already our own biggest critic? Introduce true kindness into your life. Say kind and gentle things about yourself, and stop the critical voice that tells you, you're a failure, unacceptable, or unlovable, before it becomes too loud and you start to believe it. Stop treating yourself as the lowest denominator or the limiting factor and be the best cheerleader for YOU. If you can't do this for yourself, no amount of encouragement or support from others will have any lasting positive effect. Looking for an outside acceptance or validation cannot open the truth in you.
Slow Down and Pay Attention
More and faster are not always better. Only when we de-clutter our lives, slow down, and pay attention to subtleties of the moment, do we begin to notice the small changes that are happening. Our brains can only learn to recognize and process new information if it is presented in a slow, deliberate rhythm. The true You is already here, so what is the rush?
Stay Flexible
A tight body only reinforces rigid thinking. Build body flexibility, mind flexibility, emotional flexibility, and spiritual flexibility. Be open and available to new ideas, thoughts, concepts, styles, feelings, and teachings. Often we become rigid in our own feelings and we use same responses without awareness; always with anger, sarcasm, annoyance, avoidance, or fear. What if you smiled at the discomfort today instead?
The "What"
In the long view of our lives, "what” matters more than “how”. Develop a clear purpose and focus on where you are headed. What does that look like? When you get so caught up in the how of getting there or accomplishing something, you lose the vital energy, the flow, and the focus for the greater vision. Have a clear vision of the “What” and trust and be open to the process that is given to you. How it happens will depend on your clarity and strength of intention.
The Answer is Always in YOU
“The best teacher is in you.” No matter how much you seek for the “right” answers outside of yourself, you will not find them there. What you need is already in you. Teachers of all kinds assist you and guide you in your own path, but they are not there to walk the path for you. It is up to YOU, the authentic you, to move beyond the first precarious steps and gain skill to master your life.