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Chinese New Year Resolutions: Modern Psychology for Success

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Gung Hoi Fat Choi – Happy Chinese New Year

oragami dragon
Chinese New Year Resolutions. Re-energize your resolutions and Feng Shui intentions

Use Chinese New Year for a fresh start.

Chinese New Year is a time to feast on traditional foods. Chinese New Year Resolutions is an opportunity to re-energize and re-formulate those January 1st resolutions that are running out of steam. New Years is also a great time to review and renew your Feng Shui intentions.

Because Feng Shui is an ever-growing art and science we can use the insights of modern psychology and philosophy to make more effective intentions. Richard Holton, a philosopher at MIT with more than a decade studying choices, decisions and willpower has the following insights:

Tips for Powerful, Effective Resolutions:

  • Making resolutions without specific actions will make you feel good about yourself, but will not change your behavior or give you the outcomes you desire.

    Make resolutions that are specific, with positive do-able action steps that can become part of your routine. And then do them.  Instead of saying “I will lose weight this year.” say “I will eat no more than X grams of carbs a day for healthy weight loss” or, “I will exercise x times a week to achieve a healthy weight of XXX pounds.”

  • Once made, don’t overthink your resolutions.

    “You can sabotage even the most effective resolution by indulging your thinking mind and rethinking it too soon and too often.” says Holton.

    A good resolution is a rule we make for ourselves and follow. It is a choice made that eliminates other choices,

    and the chances to talk yourself out of doing something. If you are on a low-carb diet overthinking can lead you to rationalizing a pasta dinner to yourself with “it won’t ruin my diet.”

  • If a resolution is difficult to keep ask yourself what is getting in the way.

    Look deeper into your motives, emotions and rationalizations. You can gain some positive learning from a “failed” resolution. If you can’t stick to a low-carb diet ask yourself what is preventing this? Do carbs boost your mood? Do you crave sweet carbs? Is this the right diet for you? Are you really motivated to lose weight at this time?

Learn more about psychology and resolutions and intentions with Why Your Subconscious Sabotages You & How to Use Psychology to Craft Successful Resolutions.

Celebrate the New Year with Traditional Foods

Eat a juicy orange-color citrus fruit (orange, tangerine, or clementine). The orange color of the fruit symbolizes gold which represents wealth. The sweetness of the fruit establishes a sweet year for you. If you are on that low-carb diet, eat fish, which symbolizes prosperity.

If you want to learn how to use Feng Shui Intentions to improve your life, contact me for a personal consultation.

photo by Brett Jordan

3 Tips for Powerful Feng Shui Intentions: Intention is Faith plus Action

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“The attempt must be made; the outcome is irrelevant. Right action is a pale material reflection of the divine, but reflection it is, nonetheless. Define your goal and exert reason to accomplish it by virtuous action; success or failure is secondary..” – Iain Pears, The Dream of Scipio

 Feng Shui without intention is just moving stuff around.

Arranging things is important to enhancing and balancing the chi energy in your home or workspace. But to get the best results you must add an intention.

What is an intention? A wish, a dream, a goal, a prayer? It is all of these. But to make your intention come true you must include action to make your goal happen. No passive wishing. You must add your own energy into the mix. With your intention, think of the steps you need to take to make your dream come true. And then start doing them.

Postcard handwritten intention poem
Intentions are faith plus action plus letting go. Writing down your intention is one step.

 
 

If you want to meet your Prince or Princess Charming, you are not going to find him or her sitting at home. (Unless you have a crush on your UPS person.)

  • Get out and meet people,
  • Get involved in organizations,
  • Do things you enjoy.

I can’t think of a better romance attraction magnet than enjoying yourself.

If your intention is about business or career success:

  • What steps do you need to take to make it happen?
  • What do you need to learn?
  • Who do you need to meet?

Get out there make your dream come true, then you will bump into Good Luck.

I teach my clients a beautiful intention ritual to help them clarify their goals, the steps toward that goal and how to offer this to God/The Universe.

The essence of this ritual is:

  • Have faith in your intention,
  • Be active in making it happen – use your energy to create more energy
  • Let go of the outcome – this is easier said than done, but important

Do your best.  Live and act in the moment. Trust that what you need will come to you.

And be mindful of your blessings with gratitude. Read this post about The Seed of Happiness.

If you want help visualizing the changes and blessing you want, here is a post about a powerful way to use Vision Boards.

If you want a Feng Shui consultation to improve the energy in your home or workspace,  improve the energy in your life, and activate your intentions, please contact me at 781-643-8697.

photo by julie jordan scott

Feng Shui: Private Intentions are More Powerful Intentions

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Intentions are an important aspect of Feng Shui cures. The physical object or cure is simply a vehicle for your intention. I have written about how to make your intentions more powerful. Check this out.

stairway to the sky, feng shui intentions

When novelists are asked what they are working on, some say they don’t like to talk about current projects. They have a deep awareness of intention and the creative process: “you can either talk about it, or you can do it.” Note: any intention is a creative process.

Modern psychology has recently documented that private intentions are more likely to be achieved and the thinking behind this phenomenon. A recent article in Lifehacker  describes how your brain handles intentions. Please note: when I am talking about intentions, I mean active (not passive) plans to reach your goals. When you talk about your intention with others your brain processes this talk the same way it does action, the result is a “premature sense of completeness.” Your brain can’t tell the difference in the “identity symbols” that make up your self-image between talk and action. Your brain is satisfied and you don’t act, or need to act, on your goals.

We have all heard about the self-styled writer who has spent a lifetime talking about his/her great novel, but hasn’t sat down and written it. Another example is talking about going on a diet, rather than simply doing it.

It feels counter-intuitive to keep intentions and goals to ourselves – we are encouraged to seek and share support – but staying quiet about your intentions and focusing on the actions that will reach your goal will allow your brain to support you rather than sabotage you.

Private intentions are successful intentions. As the slogan says: “Just do it.”

PS – It’s OK to ask for help with specific steps toward your goal as your work to achieve them. Just don’t get caught in the trap of thinking about it, talking about it and not doing it.

photo by ClaraDon

What are your thoughts on  and experiences with intentions?  Share your comments below. Thanks!

Powerful Feng Shui Intentions: Three Secrets

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I read an article in Oprah magazine by Martha Beck on how to create a vision board. She wrote about her new awareness of what makes a vision board work. This got me thinking about intentions and how to take them to a deeper and more powerful level.

Rather than a vision board with photos of thousand dollar bills, a hot sweetie and sunsets on the beach, find images that speak to and reflect your deepest self. Use your imagination and intuition. You may be drawn to something that doesn’t make sense in the present, but will reveal itself in the future. Martha Beck writes, “The board itself doesn’t impact reality; what changes your life is the process of creating the images-combinations of objects and events that will stick in your subconscious mind and steer your choices toward making the vision real.”

vision board
Vision board

I encourage you to choose images that reflect the feelings and experiences you want to have – the settings and specific people may be different than you imagine today.

Whether creating a vision board or doing an intention to go with your Feng Shui cures there are three things to keep in mind:

  1. Look for unfamiliar images that speak powerfully to your inner self. Why images? Because they impact your subconscious without your analytical conscious mind getting in the way. The best images will give you a visceral response – you will feel it in your heart, chest, or belly, or they will take your breath away. I love photos, paintings and sketches of flowers. I don’t know why they take my breath away. I don’t have a garden or even a green thumb. Someday I will learn what this attraction means and I’ll let you know.
  2. Let Go of the Outcome. Once you have created your vision board or done your intention – let it go. Give it up to God/the Universe/the Laws of Physics. Chasing something or grasping after it will repel what you seek to draw into your life. Rick Segel, fellow-member of NSA and nationally respected expert on retail marketing, wrote about how he, a skeptic, was convinced. He cut out a picture of his dream car. Then he forgot about it until a couple of years later when he found the photo behind his desk a week after he ordered the exact same automobile!  Now Rick did not wait for his dream car to passively appear in his life, he works hard at what he does and loves. Which leads us to…
  3. Work and Openness to Opportunity Rather than sitting back and waiting to receive, its time to work.  Start working to create the life/the world you want, while being open to unexpected opportunities and help.

This is a delicately balanced process:

  1. Focus on the essence of what you want and being open to leadings in the form of unfamiliar images and symbols
  2. Let it go and trust that what you need will come in the right way at the right time.
  3. Work to make it happen and bring opportunities and help into your life.

If you want to read Martha Beck’s full article click here.

photo by Julie Jordan Scott

 

The Best Gift is Love: The Feng Shui Spirit in the Gifts You Give

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This week Nordstrom announced they would not decorate their stores for Christmas until after Thanksgiving. Every other retail entity is already pushing shopping for Christmas. Buy, buy, buy. But what are you buying? What are you giving?

The pressure is on. But as you hand over your credit card, you know in the pit of your stomach it is not something your family member or friend really wants or needs. It is just something to give; someone to check off your list.

handmade things contain the energy of the creator
A handknit sweater. Too tiny for me to wear, but too cute not to share.

The chi or energy of the maker is in everything, including the gifts you give. People who are seriously into Macrobiotics believe the energy and emotions of the person preparing a meal is in the food.  Maybe that is why the meals prepared by a much loved grandmother, aunt or father tasted soooo good. They were made with love.

I have a handmade sweater that always makes me feel special whenever I put it on. Something I don’t experience with a machine knit sweater. I have a hand-thrown cereal bowl. I love the way it feels in my hand when it is filled with hot oatmeal with cinnamon and raisins. I get the whole sensory experience of texture, smell and appearance; something that is diminished with a factory made bowl.

I would like to think the person who knitted my sweater chatted and laughed with friends while her needles clicked back and forth. I would like to think the potter who sold the cereal bowls to me at an open studio event enjoyed the process of molding the clay in her hands while it spun on the wheel.

A suggestion: if giving and receiving a tangible gift is important for you and your giftee, then consider taking advantage of local craft fairs and open studio events to buy something that is not only handmade, but is made locally.

How to add the Feng Shui Spirit to Your Holiday Gifts

Maybe you could make something and imprint your love and intention into it. That way the gift is a vehicle for your love and care. Instead of spending hours buffeted by crowds at the mall, you could relax in your kitchen and make batches of biscotti, spiced nuts or chutney. Then creatively wrap them. Or you could make holiday ornaments. Consider making this a family project. If you are not talented with cooking or crafting skills, then take advantage of the craft and art events in your area.

Let friends and family know ahead of time you will be gifting in a simpler way this year and giving gifts from your heart.

If this handmade/homemade idea doesn’t fit you or your family and bought gifts are the only way to go, then please, take a minute before you wrap each gift to attach your love and best wishes for the receiver into the gift, whatever it is. Your best gift is your love.

How are you sharing the Feng Shui spirit this holiday season?  Share your ideas in the comments below.

photo by squirrel_cottage