Designing a Passionate Life

How to Design a Passionate Life Aligned with Your Values - Resulting in More Joy and Fulfillment

"Are you Suffering from Passion Deficit Disorder (PDD)?"

Hello, I'm Paula Harvey, and I'm a Certified Professional Coach (CPC) and Passion Test Facilitator and I can help you identify your top five passions and design a life that is aligned with your passions and eliminate PDD. How do you know if you are suffering from Passion Deficit Disorder (PDD)? 

Sign up for my free PDD report and find out. Simply type in your name and email address and click Send it to me and you will receive an email with the link to download the free report.

Reinvigorate your life with passion. Living a life aligned with your passions is the secret to a life filled with joy and fulfillment and I can help you. I offer online ecourses, ebooks, teleclasses, free teleseminars, group, and one on one coaching. I would love to get to know you and help bring passion back to your life. Sign up for my free PDD report and watch for future posts.

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How to Stop the ANTS

Designing a passionate life requires that you recognize and kill the ANTS that invade your life. I was watching public television the other night and Dr. Daniel Amen was giving a talk called "Change Your Mind - Change Your Body". He is a physician and psychiatrist who has done a lot of research on the brain/body connection. It was an absolutely fascinating topic about how our brains are of different types and that once you figure out your brain type, it's easier to loose weight.

Tools Used by Olympic Athletes

Designing a passionate life includes living with focus, commitment, and passion for what you are pursuing. I think that all of the athletes in the Olympics are great examples for all of these. I hear story after story about the injuries, personal tragedies, and other obstacles that occur for many of the athletes. We see them at their peak performance and it looks like the road to the Olympics was easy and normal for them. We are seeing the end result of many years of dedicated focus and practice.

Many of them face injuries that seem insurmountable, but they find some way to work through them. The speed skater who almost lost a leg and only started skating last October and Lindsey Vonn who suffered a severe shin injury that was extremely painful when she skied, the woman downhill racer who fell in the downhill and flew 190 feet in the air and returned the next day to race, battered and bruised to win a silver medal. The stories go on and on and so do the athletes.

I think we can learn a lot about from these athletes. To accomplish what they accomplish, with the obstacles they faced, they have to focus, focus, and focus some more. The downhill skiers know how crucial visualization is to a successful run; the snowboarders get into a zone before their run by using music. The tools these athletes use can be used by all of us to move forward in our lives.

Take a moment and imagine what you could do with a fraction of the focus they use or the power of visualization if you applied it to your life. Get inspired and observe the athletes and see how you can apply some of the same tools to your own life.

Follow their examples and live your passions. Sign up for my free PDD report now.

12 Tips for Business Success

Designing a passionate life requires implmenting principles. I found this article with 12 tips for business success and I think that the tips the author lists can also be used as principles to guide your life.

As you read the article, see how you can apply these tips or principles to your life. And of course, if you're in business, see how you can apply them to your business.

Click this link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34736736/ns/business-success_in_hard_times/

Creating a Vision that Draws You To It

Designing a passionate life is includes creating a life vision that draws you to it. It's not about pushing yourself because you've set a goal and a deadline, or because you want more money or what you think money will bring you. It's about creating a vision around your passions that is so clear, so real, and so appealing that it draws you towards it. You want to take action and you want to work towards your vision. You are drawn to the perfect actions to take, you see the possibilities, the opportunities, and you are clear about what actions to take and not take.

Learning From Experiences

Designing a passionate life depends on learning from your experiences. Our lives are a culmination of all of our experiences as well as a series of experiences. The key is to learn from those experiences so you can affect the outcome of new experiences in your life. If you seem to always have similar outcomes to similar experiences, then you are approaching the circumstance with the same mindset and your experience won't change.

Taking Action

Designing a passionate life includes taking action. As you take action towards living a passionate life you will experience different results, some successful some not successful. It's very easy to look at the results of an action and experience disappointment if it didn't turn out the way that you expected it to. Each result that you experience is a stepping stone to the next action. Always remember that the results are none of your business because you cannot control the outcome of the results. I know that sounds strange but let me explain.

Let's look at disappointment. According to Wikipedia; disappointment is the feeling of dissatisfaction that follows the failure of expectations to manifest. Similar to regret, it differs in that the individual feeling regret focuses primarily on the personal choices that contributed to a poor outcome, while the individual feeling disappointment focuses on the outcome itself. It is a source of psychological stress. 

For example, a football team is disappointed because they lost the championship game; or the Olympic Silver medalist who is disappointed because she didn't win the Gold medal. In both examples, these people focused on the failure of the outcome because it didn't meet their expectations, rather than on what they DID accomplish.

When you take action there are unforeseen elements at work that have an effect on the results. You can't control all of these elements and when you focus only on results that don't meet your expectations and then you are disappointed. These results become roadblocks and then you give up and stop taking action. All successful people have failed more times than they have succeeded. They look at the results, regroup and try again. The key is to take action and continue moving forward. Fail as many times as it takes to keep moving forward.

Think about any successful person that you know of, and I would guess that, if you asked them questions or did some research on their journey to success, you would find many failures along the way. One thing shared by most successful people is a passion for what they do.

Results are important in that they teach you what worked and what didn't work and that's all. Learn from your results, adjust and try again, and eventually you will experience more successful results. The secret is to keep trying. What is your next action toward living a passionate life?

Please share your comments about this post.

How To Create Your Purpose Statement

Designing a passionate life includes a clear understanding of your purpose. When you live with passion and purpose your life becomes fun and fulfilling. I believe that your passions are the clues to your purpose. Use your passions to lead you to your purpose. When you know what you are passionate about it's easier to get clear about your purpose. Your passions and purpose both arise from your heart. It's important to go within when doing this exercise.

Setting Your 2010 Intention and Theme

Designing a passionate life includes setting an intention and theme for the year. An intention is some form that you can see at the end of the year, or the what. For example, I write a book by the end of 2010; or I find a job that is aligned with my passion and I am surrounded by the people that make it fun and fulfilling; or I am debt free and have $15,000 in savings. The idea behind an intention is to be very clear about what it is you intend to create. After you write your intention, always keep it in a place where you can see it. This enables you to keep focused on that end result. The end result will manifest the method on how to get there.

When you are deciding on your intention, let your mind come up with ideas and then check in with your heart to see if it resonates or not. Is your intention aligned with your passions? How does the intention feel? Do you get excited when you think about it? Does it inspire you? Let it sink in and right now, don't worry about how you are going to get there. Make sure your intention is in synch with your heart.

You also want to set a theme for the year. A theme is the 'how' for the year. It is like background music that is always playing. What do you want playing in the background of your life? The theme is how you want to experience the year and as a result how you want to feel at the end of the year. It's about the journey itself, not the destination. By selecting a theme for the year, you can move towards your intention in a way that feels good to you. It doesn't have to be hard, tough, a lot of work, or draining. Examples of themes may include: I step into my power with Grace, Ease, and Joy; I experience life with ease; I have plenty of time to do everything; or I make connections that enhance my life. Decide on the 'how' for your year.

As you go through the year, keep your attention on your theme and intention. Write them out and post them where you will see them everyday. Setting your intention creates clarity and you will see the opportunities and possibilities because you are clear and you have your attention on your intention.  You will see the steps to take to manifest your intention. Begin the process now and take action when you are inspired.

Create the 2010 of your dreams, live passionately. Sign up for my free PDD report and take that first step.

2009 Completion and 2010 Creation

Designing a passionate life includes acknowledging yourself and what you've completed. By doing this you create space for new things to appear in your life. The end of the year is a perfect time to do this. I have provided a exercise for you to do just that. Use this exercise to acknowledge what you have completed in 2009 and state what you want to create in 2010.
 
2009 Acknowledgement
This exercise serves:

• to remind you of what you've accomplished and created
• to recognize and acknowledge what you have learned
• to re-evaluate the vision of what you desire or want
• to recognize what you can let go of

Enjoy this process. Recognize and acknowledge what you have accomplished. Immerse yourself in the energy of creation and be very clear about what you want to create. This process is a work in progress, as is all of our lives. We're never done. Think big and have fun doing this exercise. Get connected to the energy of your passions.

Part I - Completion 2009
What did you create in 2009? Make a list of what you created in your personal life this year. For each item on your list, answer the following questions.

• What have I accomplished by creating this?
• What energized me or filled me up by creating this?
• What drained my energy?
• What have I learned in this process? (In what ways did I grow from this?)
• What can I let go of? (What am I done with learning and ready to let go of)

Part II - Creation 2010
Ask yourself the following questions for the new year:

• When you imagine having lived a passion filled life at the end of 2010, what is different from your life today?
• List 3 to 5 things that if you create them, will move you towards living a passionate life in 2010.
• List the things you want to complete.

Repeat this process for the following areas of your life:
Business
Spiritual
Physical
Other?

What are you passionate about right now that will propel you forward into the act of creation in the year to come? What are you doing to live a passionate life? Sign up for my free Passion Deficit Disorder (PDD) report and find out what you can do about it.

 

Which Actor or Actress Represents Your Character Traits?

Designing a passionate life includes knowing your values, passions, spirituality, and character traits. My husband recently asked me a question that I found rather intriguing and thought provoking. So of course, I want to pass it onto you. If you are in a romantic relationship, it is a really good question to ask each other.

The Question:
Which three actors/actresses would you pick that have character traits similar to your own and then describe the character traits that you share with that person?
(Of course, we don't really know the actors/actresses but we have a perception of them and we give them character traits from that perception, which we relate to.)

The Answer:
The first person picks three people and explains the character traits that he/she shares with the actor/actress.

Before you do this exercise, I would set some ground rules for sharing this information.

Ground Rules

1. Take turns asking the question
2. When your partner replies, simply listen, give no commentary at all, yes that means say nothing about what they said. Don't turn it into a major discussion.
3. Thank your partner for sharing.

You are both sharing a part of yourself and making yourself vulnerable to the other person and both of you want to be accepted for who you are, so offering commentary or disagreeing with the person's assessment could cause an argument and perhaps even damage to your relationship.

I found that it gave me insights into how my husband sees himself in the world and gave me a new understanding of him in one particular area of his life. It was enlightening. It helped me to see things from his viewpoint and as a result, I'm more understanding. This goes a long way to creating a peaceful relationship.

Designing a passionate life may include romantic relationships for you. Understanding your partner's viewpoint goes a long way to creating the type of relationship you want. Start living passionately, and sign up for my free PDD report now.

 

 

Nurturing Yourself during the Holidays

Designing a passionate life includes many the different holiday seasons and all of the activities that surround them. It's very easy to get caught up in the seemingly endless list of activities to participate in, errands to run, and people to acknowledge during this holiday season. It's very easy to get caught up in the doingness, get stressed, and loose sight of what the meaning of the holidays are for you.

You may find yourself drained of energy, feeling stressed out by all of the things to do, and occasionally experience dread rather than joy at the holiday season. When you are planning all of your activities make sure to include time in your schedule for yourself. You have to reenergize yourself or your will not have any energy to give to the events and people in your life that you love. Take a look at some of the time-out ideas below and pick one or two that feel right to you or come up with your own ideas. Most importantly, make time to recharge yourself.

Time-out Ideas

1. Read your favorite book
2. Exercise
3. Meditate
4. Practice your spirituality
5. Spend time in nature
6. Get plenty of sleep
7. Watch inspiring movies
8. Listen to people who inspire you
9. Eat foods that nourish you
10. Participate in your favorite creative activity
11. Breathe deeply
12. Schedule time for yourself on your calendar

All of these practices can help you reduce your level of stress and increase your level of joy and fulfillment for the holiday season. Enjoy the holidays with less stress. Take care of yourself.

What is Success?

Designing a passionate life requires that you define what success means to you. As I work with people I find that many have ideas about what success looks like based on the culture they live in, family beliefs, or listening to other outside influences. All of these outside influences can cause you to put unnecessary pressure on yourself. What society or other people see as successful may not be how you define it at all. Therefore, in your eyes you may feel like a "failure". It's time to question your ideas about what success means to you.

Book: "The Root of All Healing"

Designing a passionate life includes great health. Without it, following your passions can be difficult and often times impossible. Perhaps one of your passions is your health or you know someone who struggles with health issues. I've run across a woman by the name of Misa Hopkins who is selling a book on healing, called "The Root of All Healing". I like what I hear from her and I've read the first chapter and I'm intrigued so I ordered my own copy of the book today.

Check it out and if it feels right to you or for someone you love give it a try. I do not receive any monetary compensation for suggesting this book to you. If you'd like to see what the possibilities might hold for you or someone you love, you should check it out here:

The Root of All Healing

Let me know how it changes your life, or the life of someone you love.

Live in great health and with passion.

What to do when life feels hard

Designing a passionate life includes spots when life just doesn't seem to work out at all or the way you had it planned. It is the nature of life to have ups and downs. The secret is to know when you are in the down times and have a number of tools to help you move through that down time and to keep you moving forward back into the flow and high times.

In a recent conversation with a fellow coach we were talking about how some of our clients have been going through some really tough times right now. As a result of this conversation we decided to talk about it and come up with some suggestions on how to make it through the times when life feels hard and you really don't have a lot of hope.

To hear our conversation click the link below:

When life feels hard

Happy Thanksgiving

Designing a passionate life includes spending holidays with family and friends. Today is a day to give thanks for all that we have in our lives; familiy, friends, health, and home. I know that I am thankful for all of you who read my blog and take action in following your passsions.

While you are giving yourself the gift of time and when you are moved to do so, please watch the video from Marianne Williamson called "Turning Fear Into Inspiration." When you are done with the movie answer the following questions and feel free to use the comments on the blog to share.

What one passion in your life do you want to take action on in the next 3 months?

What action will you take towards living that passion?

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and live passionately.

Saying Thank You

Designing a passionate life includes gratitude. Since we are in the week for Thanksgiving here in the United States I thought it would be appropriate to talk about gratitude.  I do believe that living in gratitude is key to living a passionate life because gratitude is saying 'yes' to your life. It opens you up to the possibilities and the energy flow of action and abundance. I don't think we celebrate gratitude just one time a year and then we're done with it. It's a way of life, of opening and letting Source flow through you.

What Does Love Look Like?

Designing a passionate life includes giving and receiving love. I thought I had a pretty good handle on what love looks like and I was blown away and humbled by a video that I saw for the first time today. This video has been around for two years so you may have seen it but it's worth another watch.

It is the story of a father's love for his son. It shows us that when you are passionate about something that comes from your heart, you will find a way and it will happen. One action step at a time. The accomplishments of father and son are incredible and I'm sure they took a lot of planning, hard work, and passion. I can't even begin to imagine the obstacles that they confronted and worked through. 

I don't need to say more. Watch and witness what Love looks like. Click the link below to view the video.

What Love Looks Like

Both Sides of the Argument

Designing a passionate life with balance includes writing down all the ya-buts that come up after you identify your passions. After you identify what you absolutely love and what makes your heart sing, often the self-doubt arises. Your self-doubt can arise in a variety of ways but one common way is what I call the choir or those voices in your head that just won't stop listing all of the reasons why following your passions won't work. There are usually two sides to the chatter, the voice coming from your heart that states all of the reasons why it's a good idea. Then there is the negative choir made up of multiple voices of naysayers. These voices are often a combination of your own self-doubts as well as the doubts of family members and friends.

Stopping the Hiccups

Designing a passionate life includes stopping the hiccups. Let me explain. I'm talking about the actual physical hiccups that you can get and what I'm calling the hiccups of life. Stay with me here. I will connect the dots. I got the hiccups today and I expressed my frustration with having them to a friend of mine. My friend's face lit up and he said, as people often do when you have the hiccups, "I have the perfect solution and it really works, just try it!" I don't know how many times I've heard different solutions for stopping the hiccups but I humored him and listened. What he said resonated with me and I knew it would work and I wanted to prove it to myself.

How to Stay Inspired

Designing a passionate life includes living from inspiration. I'd like to define inspiration before I talk more about it.  Inspiration is acting or moving either your intellect or emotions. I see working from inspiration different than working from motivation. Motivation is defined as a need or desire to take action. To me inspiration comes from a place of power, creativity, and connection from deep inside of you and you feel the desire to take action. To me, inspiration is a lighter energy than motivation. Motivation feels like "willing or forcing" myself to take action rather than being moved to take action. Both inspiration and motivation move you forward but from a different type of energy. Right now, I'm focused on inspiration.