Master the Art of Living - Part 2

There is something majestic about waking up when it is still dark out and watching the sunrise.  It is energizing yet at the same time very centering and grounding.  I think it was built into our DNA.  Since the beginning of time, human beings have always woken up with the sunrise and went down to sleep shortly after sunset.   There was no other option.  Except for a little fire, there was no other option to function in the dark, and our shelters were minimal so it just made sense to wake up with the sunlight.  Also, we did not have big fluffy blankets, feather pillows, and blackout shades to keep us in bed sleeping until the late hours of the morning, and for some of us, the early hours of the afternoon.  Combine that with the need to maximize the sunlight to be able to hunt and gather our food and waking up at sunrise was not only the norm, it was a necessity.

Now fast forward a few hundred thousand years and the things we were once doing as a necessity have become a luxury.  Time for the most part is no longer a concern.  We no longer need to spend entire days scouring the planet in search of food and shelter.  What once was spending days chasing down large animals has turned into fighting for a few minutes over a parking spot, or if you are feeling a bit adventurous, parking in the back and actually taking a walk.  We have traded in waking up at sunrise ready to take on the day for long mornings sleeping in and short drives to the market.  Why? Simply because we can.   We know we don’t have to wake up at dawn anymore or exercise because anything that we need for survival is easily found just a short distance away. When things no longer become a necessity and instead become a luxury, it takes a very important mental muscle to stay on the path – commitment.

I remember years ago when I used to say there was not enough time in the day to accomplish everything I wanted to do.  Then I realized how much time in a day I was really wasting.  From waking up late to watching too much television to spending too much time doing nothing of importance on the internet, I was really limiting my potential through waste.  Now I am doing exponentially more than I ever accomplished in the past with the potential for more time being discovered everyday to do more and be more.  Just this morning for example, I had plans to sleep in a bit later than usual, but the universe had other plans for me.  Apparently those plans were to wake me up at 5:30 in the morning on a Sunday.  But in doing so I am going to be able to take care of my laundry, straighten up my home, write a blog, read, and workout before most people even open up their eyes.  Although this morning wasn’t a part of my plan, it was a part of the master plan.  Now, in order for me to make this an everyday occurrence, it is going to take some flexing of the mental muscle we talked about earlier called commitment.

Commitment does not just apply to waking up early and exercising.  Commitment applies to every aspect of our life.  If you truly want an amazing life, you have to commit to it! You have to commit to making every day better than the last.  You have to commit to yourself and making sure you make your health, happiness, and fulfillment a priority and put in the work to do so.  You have to commit to being the best at your career and working everyday to reach your true potential.  You have to commitment to your relationships making everyday more exciting than the last.  Are you still working on impressing and surprising your partner 5, 10, and 15 years down the line? If not, why not?  Are you present at work, and conscious of every moment, every action, and every project? Do you have a whatever-it-takes attitude when it comes to making sure you exercise and eat healthy everyday, even if that means waking up early, going to bed late, or using your lunch time to do push ups?  Many desire a life that they would love to have but very few are truly committed to making that happen.  It continues to be a pipe dream rather than a reality for nothing other than they do not commit to making it happen. 

Sustained, reproducible success in life does not happen by accident.  It takes an extraordinary and unwavering commitment.  Let me give you an example.  I love what I do for a living.  I love being a chiropractor.  I love helping to transform lives and I take that responsibility very seriously.  I have built the practice of my dreams which is full of amazing people that I get to experience and touch every single day.  When I moved over to Singapore, there were two things that made that possible – faith that my dream of changing the world would come true backed by an unwavering and unshakable commitment to seeing it through until it became a reality.  I commit everyday to making myself better so I can be better for my patients.  I am present and study every adjustment I give to a person and evaluate how I can be more specific, more present, and more powerful for the next patient.  I study every dialogue with my staff and my patients and evaluate how I can communicate more effectively and with more passion in order to create more of a connection in every interaction after that.  This process never stops.  Seventy thousand adjustments later, I still replay every single one and determine I how can be better for the next one.

If you truly want success, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, and financially, you have to be willing to commit.  You have to be willing to live your life outside of your comfort zone and explore into an area of life called your stretch zone.  Commit to being great, and what better day to choose to start than today?

Love,

Matt

Master the Art of Living - Part 1

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As an individual who is on a quest to master the art of living, I am always seeking to differentiate between the people that live extraordinary lives from the ones that live ordinary lives; between the people that have extraordinary relationships from the people that have ordinary, or even worse, dismal relationships; between the people that are seemingly transcendently connected to themselves and the people around them from the people who live their lives in inner turmoil and disconnected from the world around them.   How do we go beyond the status quo and begin to create transformation lives for ourselves and the people around us?  How do we find peace, love, and abundance in all areas of our life, and most of all, how do we live a life of intense meaning and purpose in order to leave this world a better place just because we lived in it?  As I have said before, the quality of the questions we ask will determine the quality of our life.  We are a reflection of where we place our focus.  Where our attention goes, our energy flows, and where our energy flows is where we create our reality.  What are you creating? 

I’ll tell you what I am creating in my life.  I call these the 5 Foundational Qualities to Master the Art of Living.  They are Authenticity, Commitment, Attraction, Decisiveness, and Faith. Each of the next 5 posts will tackle each of the 5 Qualities.  Let’s begin with the first one – Authenticity.

Authenticity is incredibly powerful.  It is the demonstration of your true being down to your very core.  It is the full acceptance of who you are as you are and demonstrating that to the world.  It is embracing the strengths and weaknesses you possess, and even loving yourself for them.  It is defining and living accordance to your highest values.  It is being true to your word and being honest in all that you do.  People that are authentic radiate trust and have a deep connection with themselves that is envious to most people.  The path to authenticity begins with “Living Consciously “ and then full “Self-Acceptance” as Nathaniel Branden describes so well in his book Six Pillars of Self-Esteem. 

You must first be present and aware of everything in your life, from what goes on externally to the feelings and emotions it creates inside of you.  It is full and complete awareness of the “good” and the “bad” in your life.  Many of us are taught to shut out negative emotions and only think positively.  That’s not living.  That’s only half of living.  We must live with the openness and the awareness to allow everything into our life, and be present in the process.  Only from this presence can we move to the next step which is “Self-Acceptance.” This is a level of unconditional, complete, and full self-acceptance of everything about who we are, where we are, and what we currently stand for.  I know this last sentence was full of redundancy, but I really want to get my point across.  You do not get to choose what to accept and what you don’t accept about yourself.  You must accept everything about your current life situation, because only then can you transcend who you are in the present and take responsibility to create who you choose to become from this point forward.  This is the toughest step for most, yet if you can take steps to fall in unconditional love with yourself for who you are and exactly as you are, you will feel a sense of joy and freedom you never knew was possible.  I am still working on these steps myself, but even a small glimpse into what is possible when I have mastered the art of living authentically through the practice of  “Living Consciously” and “Self-Acceptance” has given me a level of excitement and boyish wonder to what is truly possible which is a world of unlimited possibility.

We only have a very short time on this planet. Every moment passed is a moment we never get back.   We all get the same time everyday to make a difference in our lives and the lives of those around us. What are you going to do with it?

Love,

Matt

What are you scared of?

Are you doing something everyday that scares you? If not, why not? If we were to be truly honest with ourselves, we all have aspirations and dreams that we would love to create in our lives. The unfortunate truth is most people are completely disconnected from where they currently are to where they would love their lives to be.  Many times even if people do know the path that must be taken, they let their egos keep them from pursuing their dreams.  They listen to that little voice in their head that says they aren't good enough, strong enough, you may fail, you may look stupid, it may challenge your previous beliefs and make you realize everything you've known and built your life on is no longer true.  Many people fall victim to the comfort of the known rather than be a truth seeker of the unknown. And the unknown is usually where the sweetest fruit is found.  

How would our lives look if we looked at the ego from a different perspective? What if we took everything that challenged our ego and state of being, and used it as an opportunity to confront and challenge our inner demons and fears as ways of reaching higher and higher levels of consciousness? What if this ego that many people view as bad, is actually there to serve us and provide endless opportunities for growth and fulfillment? Unfortunately, there is no cookie-cutter manual to joy and fulfillment.  It is available to anyone but so few will actually take on the lifelong challenge of discovering it. 

Today was a perfect illustration for me and I share the picture of the moment in this blog.  I was at yoga this morning which proved to be a very challenging class giving me opportunities to try new poses I have yet to do.  One such pose is where you start off in the Crow position where you balance on your hands with your legs off the ground balancing on the back of your arms.  Then you have to shift your body weight forward and bring your face to lightly kiss the ground.  If you lose your balance at this point, you face plant into the ground! From here, you use your arms and core strength to extend your legs in the air and form a 45 degree plank seen above.  It requires the physical strength to perform the pose as well as the mental courage to place your body in a vulnerable position where the threat of smashing your face into the ground is very real.  It was scary and exhilarating at the same time.  

We all have opportunities like these to test our strength and courage on a daily basis.  Whether it be our physical courage in our workouts, our spiritual courage in our faith and beliefs, our emotional courage in our relationships, our mental courage in our finances, business, and everyday life events, there are always opportunities to use our ego and the valuable information we are experiencing in those moments.  This information is usually in the form of emotions, feelings, and physiological changes that go on in our body.  That pit in the stomach is telling you something.  That surge of blood you feel exploding into your brain is telling you something.  Those butterflies you experience in your stomach are telling something.  Take this valuable information, stay present, and ask yourself what you can do to challenge yourself to a greater life.

Go ahead and take the leap.  What are you scared of? 

Love,

Matt