HeartBeat

Wherever we are in life is temporary. We are in a constant flow of choice and change.  Positive change cannot happen with a negative mindset. Letting the past maintain its grip is immobilizing. Of course, we all have made bad choices. So, learn from them so that they define and fuel your future choices not your present state. We naturally evaluate risk vs reward, and we can say "Yes" or "No" to certain opportunities, or we can stand still throughout the chaos. Either choice triggers the next series of events. The bigger the decision and the more choices, the more impaired the decision-making process becomes. It seems intimidating and only becomes manageable when we gain more courage and confidence to accept where we are and then to take bold action. Here's the thing, when we are present in the moment we find meaning, even in the bad stuff. Life’s about being at peace with your past, your present, and your future. It is about being content with the choices th...

The word karma has been tossed around so much that its true meaning has been distorted. In pop culture, karma is often defined as people get what they deserve, a transaction. We think that when someone does something bad, something bad will happen to them in return. We may even believe that there is some tabulation calculating the good and the bad, keeping that in check as though karma is part of our legal system. Karma is Sanskrit and actually means action . Every action has a natural consequence, a cause and effect. We put forth bad karma by means of selfish actions. When we constantly defend or promote ourselves this is selfish. Maybe we manipulate others to get what we want. Perhaps we project our insecurities onto others. By reacting with anger, jealousy, and defensiveness all the time, we are conditioning the mind for anger, jealousy, and defensiveness. Karma's punishment is connected to your inner peace and happiness. We feel this every day, and it’s not stored for futur...

In life there are givers and there are takers. And in some cases, there are those who can balance both. We can easily see the people in our lives who we define as takers. Those who only perform if they are getting something in return. We can clearly identify those who are extremely selfish with their time and resources. They may appear to be successful but make no mistake, takers are toxic. No one wants to be defined as a taker and they may honestly feel as though the little they do give is quantifiable. On the other hand, givers often don't put themselves first, but they tend to be the most successful. They also tend to be happier. What elevates givers successes is their ability to time-block opportunities to help others. They set an intention to meet people where they are at, and they use their natural skills to offer help. Beware, it's easy for givers to be guilt-tripped into giving. So, setting boundaries is critical for your well being. So here's the thing, the mor...

The jury is still out on open office spaces. Open office space was designed with the concept of increasing collaboration and creativity, but it also creates unwanted distractions such as ringing phones and vibrations from devices. It's not only happening in businesses. The failed attempt at open school floor plans of the 1970s has similar implications. The premise was to increase critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration. Teachers found the open spaces to be a challenging environment for teaching and learning, particularly in regard to the noise level. Now those open concept schools use temporary partitions until permanent walls replace them. In my opinion, the design failed because teachers were not trained on how to use the space effectively. The current trend within classrooms, we see flexible seating plans - similar to the business model of open office space. It doesn't matter the venue or the age, the research shows that distractions in open spaces negatively im...