One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time. ~Andre Gide
I was recently told by a friend that there is a time during delivery of a baby in which the process is so painful that the mom wants to run and hide and to do anything but keep pushing the baby out. This time is so aptly called the transition. What a perfect metaphor for our own life transitions and the transition we are in at this moment in history.
I am seeing it everywhere and feeling it all around me - transitions - from one existence we have known to one we are very unsure of, from an old paradigm to a new. These are very uncomfortable times for many. Some days it is uncomfortable for me, even painful, to go through this transition, that is until I let go or get out of my way, go inward, meditate or do something to release my grip of what I have known and allow something else to emerge.
I have likened it to any time in history in which people have discovered new paradigms and have gone against the grain.
Galileo, known by many as the father of modern science, was very controversial in his time. His studies in astronomy and science that supported the view that the Sun, not the Earth, was at the center of the universe went against the prevailing beliefs of the time. When he defended his views, he was tried by the Inquisition, found suspect of heresy, was forced to recant and spent the remainder that of his life under house arrest.
Columbus, whether you support him or not, when he set off to the west, their were conflicting beliefs at the time that the world was flat or that it had a much wider diameter. Hence, he was scoffed at for the idea of discovering new lands as it went against the prevailing beliefs. But he kept going when others didn't believe, only to (re-)"discover" the Americas and disprove existing theories.
When the pioneers in America crossed the frontier to head west and discover new lands, the same apprehension and fear of the unknown also was faced - and overcome.
There are many more stories like this over history in which visionaries, stepped out of the norm, out of the accepted and out of their comfort zones to find some unknown, that they believed was there and they believed was possible, when others dared not or feared the impossible and the unknown.
I believe we are in a transition like this and when major historical transitions like this come about, we are bound to be uncomfortable. Those of us on the cutting edge are likely to be questioned, doubted, even feared. For what we are discovering dares to question the existing paradigm, to change the current world view and to challenge what we have been taught, what we know and what we believe in.
Transitions can be uncomfortable and down right scary times for everyone. Yet we must remember in these transitions that there may be a period in which we lose sight of the shore for a long time, but we must keep going to see progress. We can not go backwards, that is no longer an option.
We have little choice but to step forward and trust that the steps will appear before us. We may want to stay stuck because we can't see the next step. But something will force us there whether we like it or not, so we might as well move forward in faith and trust, knowing that something better is coming. That is one thing we may surely have learned from history, is that in times like this, moving forward, taking one step forward in the direction of progress is much better than holding on to or standing still and staying stuck with what is no longer working.
In these times of transition, may you let go and move forward to do what it is you are here to do. Learn to trust the process and welcome in the new, rather than resist it and allow the pain, turmoil and transition to persist.
You can find me at www.facebook.com/pilarstella and twitter @pilarstella.
Showing posts with label trust. Show all posts
Showing posts with label trust. Show all posts
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
Who Will You Follow?
When you follow your bliss... doors will open where you would not have thought there would be doors; and where there wouldn't be a door for anyone else. ~ Joseph Campbell
I remember one time I was sitting with my Kundalini Yoga guru and he asked a question to our class about businesses that if a business idea was presented that two people believed and 98 didn't, who would you follow? Many people said the 98. I said likely the two because most likely the two can see what the others cannot see, that is what entrepreneurs do. He laughed and said that it was funny that the entrepreneur in the room would say that and that I was right on.
It was an interesting reminder for me on that day, as likely it was one of the days, that I was up against the wall, uncomfortable in my life because I had chosen the entrepreneurial path. Let me tell you, some days being an entrepreneur really isn't easy. It takes courage and a stomach that many can't handle. Some days I can't handle it.
That day, my class reminded me that sometimes we can see things that others can't see or we can't see things that others can see. Entrepreneurs are often visionaries who see things before others can see them and they create solutions to solve problems, before others. Then once they are up and running, others get it. But they often think the entrepreneurs are crazy in the process.
I definitely have experienced that a lot lately in the creation of my company OneGiving and it hasn't always been easy. Yet, it has taught me a lot about following or, should I say, not following. A friend reminded me along my journey that it isn't for me to follow others but to seek my own truth within. It is something so true that I am learning to live more and more every day.
I used to look outside me for my answers and guidance. Now I may look externally to scan the landscape of what is out there and what is possible. Yet, when I am looking for answers I look within for the answers to come and to follow my truth, my path, my bliss.
I am learning more and more every day that by following my heart, my soul, my inner guidance, and my spirit guidance, that the days get easier and the path gets clearer. I am starting to see my beauty, get clarity for my vision and for my life, and be more confident with each step I take. I am learning to trust in that process that as long as I am following my inner compass, I can put one foot forward even before the step appears and I know that I know that I know that it will show up.
That is who I will follow - I follow myself and trust in my own inner guidance and spirit to show me the way. Follow your bliss and watch as the rest takes care of itself!
You can find me at www.facebook.com/pilarstella and twitter @pilarstella.
I remember one time I was sitting with my Kundalini Yoga guru and he asked a question to our class about businesses that if a business idea was presented that two people believed and 98 didn't, who would you follow? Many people said the 98. I said likely the two because most likely the two can see what the others cannot see, that is what entrepreneurs do. He laughed and said that it was funny that the entrepreneur in the room would say that and that I was right on.
It was an interesting reminder for me on that day, as likely it was one of the days, that I was up against the wall, uncomfortable in my life because I had chosen the entrepreneurial path. Let me tell you, some days being an entrepreneur really isn't easy. It takes courage and a stomach that many can't handle. Some days I can't handle it.
That day, my class reminded me that sometimes we can see things that others can't see or we can't see things that others can see. Entrepreneurs are often visionaries who see things before others can see them and they create solutions to solve problems, before others. Then once they are up and running, others get it. But they often think the entrepreneurs are crazy in the process.
I definitely have experienced that a lot lately in the creation of my company OneGiving and it hasn't always been easy. Yet, it has taught me a lot about following or, should I say, not following. A friend reminded me along my journey that it isn't for me to follow others but to seek my own truth within. It is something so true that I am learning to live more and more every day.
I used to look outside me for my answers and guidance. Now I may look externally to scan the landscape of what is out there and what is possible. Yet, when I am looking for answers I look within for the answers to come and to follow my truth, my path, my bliss.
I am learning more and more every day that by following my heart, my soul, my inner guidance, and my spirit guidance, that the days get easier and the path gets clearer. I am starting to see my beauty, get clarity for my vision and for my life, and be more confident with each step I take. I am learning to trust in that process that as long as I am following my inner compass, I can put one foot forward even before the step appears and I know that I know that I know that it will show up.
That is who I will follow - I follow myself and trust in my own inner guidance and spirit to show me the way. Follow your bliss and watch as the rest takes care of itself!
You can find me at www.facebook.com/pilarstella and twitter @pilarstella.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Trust the Process
Let’s just trust the process. If other people don’t want to trust the process, that’s fine. If other people want to abandon the process, then abandon it. I’m not abandoning the process. I believe in the process. ~Dayton Moore
Everywhere I turn, I seem to be running into people who's lives are turning upside down, or perhaps right side up. Either way, it is a time of great flux and change on the planet and the only thing that seems consistent is change itself.
As I go through this myself, I have found one reminder to keep me calm and sane during this mass process of change and shedding the old: Trust the process! That is, we are entering a time in which so much of the old and familiar is dropping away and yet the new is completely unknown. It is as though we are coming to the edge of a cliff and we can look back and see what was, but as we look forward all we see is a vast expanse of openness. The only thing that we can do to keep moving forward is to take one giant step in faith and trust that the path will appear with every step we take in the right direction.
For many this is terrifying, for others it is thrilling. For me, it just is. While I have my days, that I too freak out and wonder, is everything really changing this quickly? Has everything I know and have known gone away? If so, what is it being replaced with, what is coming? I don't have the answers and while for many months I have tried to figure it out with my logical mind, I have begun instead to let going of trying to get it and to just trust the process as to what is and what is coming.
The last few months have been particularly about letting go and surrendering to what my conscious mind thinks it should all look like and what is coming and how it may unfold. It isn't easy for someone used to always having a plan, to let go like that. But what I have been finding is that the holding on is the painful part. Holding on to what it should look like, how it should happen, the timing of it all and the expectations are what creates the stress, fear and discombobulation! Whereas, when I let go and watch what unfolds, I am pleasantly surprised and mysteriously amazed at what is appearing before me.
As I have been experiencing over and over again when I try to understand it or control it, I suffer a lot more than if I let go and trust the process.
Is your life shifting every day, on every level, in every way? If so, let go of your expectations, of what you think it should look like, when or even how, and let go, trust the process and allow it to be whatever it may become and more than you ever imagined possible!
You can find me at www.facebook.com/pilarstella and twitter @pilarstella.
Everywhere I turn, I seem to be running into people who's lives are turning upside down, or perhaps right side up. Either way, it is a time of great flux and change on the planet and the only thing that seems consistent is change itself.
As I go through this myself, I have found one reminder to keep me calm and sane during this mass process of change and shedding the old: Trust the process! That is, we are entering a time in which so much of the old and familiar is dropping away and yet the new is completely unknown. It is as though we are coming to the edge of a cliff and we can look back and see what was, but as we look forward all we see is a vast expanse of openness. The only thing that we can do to keep moving forward is to take one giant step in faith and trust that the path will appear with every step we take in the right direction.
For many this is terrifying, for others it is thrilling. For me, it just is. While I have my days, that I too freak out and wonder, is everything really changing this quickly? Has everything I know and have known gone away? If so, what is it being replaced with, what is coming? I don't have the answers and while for many months I have tried to figure it out with my logical mind, I have begun instead to let going of trying to get it and to just trust the process as to what is and what is coming.
The last few months have been particularly about letting go and surrendering to what my conscious mind thinks it should all look like and what is coming and how it may unfold. It isn't easy for someone used to always having a plan, to let go like that. But what I have been finding is that the holding on is the painful part. Holding on to what it should look like, how it should happen, the timing of it all and the expectations are what creates the stress, fear and discombobulation! Whereas, when I let go and watch what unfolds, I am pleasantly surprised and mysteriously amazed at what is appearing before me.
As I have been experiencing over and over again when I try to understand it or control it, I suffer a lot more than if I let go and trust the process.
Is your life shifting every day, on every level, in every way? If so, let go of your expectations, of what you think it should look like, when or even how, and let go, trust the process and allow it to be whatever it may become and more than you ever imagined possible!
You can find me at www.facebook.com/pilarstella and twitter @pilarstella.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Faith, Trust and Connecting the Dots
I posted this in my newsletter and sharing it with on my blog. Enjoy, happy reading and happy 9-09-09! May this inspire you in your dreams, start ups and breaking through the every day blockages!
As I move forward in building my company, OneGiving™ (http://www.onegiving.com/), and I get ready to go to investors looking for start up capital, I am finding more and more every day that it is about faith and trusting that the dots will connect, even if I can’t see it from here.
I was recently reminded of this when I re-read Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement Address from June 2005. As he put it, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever…it has made all the difference in my life.”
This really helped remind me to keep moving forward and to trust the process. It made me realize that I am not the only one embarking on a journey to follow my dream, start up a company or stretch beyond my comfort level. So I pulled together some of the wisdom from my favorite recent readings that I wanted to share with you all to help inspire you to push past some of your own obstacles and beyond your self-imposed limitations.
In Steve Jobs’ commencement speech (http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html), his words of wisdom included:
· Find what you love and do it! The only thing that really keeps us going is to do what we love. We spend so much time working, so we might as well spend that time loving what we do. If you haven’t found what you love, then keep looking and don’t settle until you find it!
· Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. We definitely aren’t taught to follow our heart and intuition and often get trapped in living the life that others want for us. Life is too short! Don’t let those voices drown out your own truth! Follow your heart and intuition, it won’t steer you wrong.
· Have faith and trust that the dots will connect. As per the quote above, you may not be able to see how things will work out, but as long as you keep going in the direction of your heart, having the courage and trusting, you will begin to see the magic unfold!
In a talk entitled, “How Not to Die,” Y Combinator partner, essayist and entrepreneur Paul Graham talks about some key tips for start ups on how to survive and thrive (and not die) (http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html). His wisdom included:
· Stay in regular contact with your investors and others. In other words, don’t isolate. This can apply to you whether you are a start up or just someone breaking out of your own limitations. Become part of a circle and community that helps you keep growing, moving forward and succeeding. So often when we hit our walls, limits or obstacles, we isolate and wither away. Avoid this and stay in contact with others to engage, nurture and inspire you to keep going.
· Stay committed and focused. Don’t take on other projects, distractions or “consulting gigs.” Sound familiar? I know it has been a hard one for me. Every month, when I think about the money coming in, I think ok perhaps I should get another consulting gig just to pad the budget a little. But I know I always give 150% to clients and that would be valuable time I couldn’t be giving to 100% focus on the success of OneGiving™. It is scary, but it has really helped me be fully committed to its success and my success and so I am willing to go that extra step, that extra mile, to make it all happen!
· Don’t ever give up! I love this one. One of the things Paul talks about is how if start ups just keep going, they will eventually succeed. So many of us spend so much time planting the seeds, doing the hard work, yet get scared or uncomfortable at the very end and we walk away, we quit before it is time! I have heard before there is no failure, other than quitting, then you are choosing to fail. Food for thought!
Finally, in a book called “Founders At Work,” Jessica Livingston, another partner at Y Combinator, interviewed 32 leading start up company founders that made it to share their experiences in the start up process to help others (http://www.foundersatwork.com/index.html). She wrote about the characteristics that each of these start up founders had in common, including:
· Determination, perseverance and adaptability. I kind of hit on this above, but felt it was worth reiterating. When starting something new, so many of us have a vision of what something looks like and when it doesn’t happen the way we think it should happen, we often cast it off as a failure and walk away. Rather, what she found is that when people are determined, continue to persist and adapt, they look for the nuggets of what is working and adapt their idea and vision to meet where people are at. Having this flexibility and persistence allows for the best of all creations to arise and often makes for a success bigger than we could have ever imagined.
· Put it out there! I totally had to laugh at this one and the following quote from her book, “Don’t worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you’ll have to ram them down people’s throats.” Boy if this one wasn’t the truth. So often we hold things back and are afraid to put our ideas out there because we are afraid people will steal our idea. But the reality if you get it out there, more people can be working in your favor to make it happen!
· Change the world! Finally, my favorite thing of them all, is that when interviewing everyone, she found one major thing they all had in common: they all wanted to change the world!
That is what it is all about after all! Yes, I am building OneGiving™ (http://www.onegiving.com/), a for-profit and nonprofit company, and seeking investors to make them (and us) money. But more than anything else, I am creating this company and this vision because I want to be the change that I wish to see in the world. It is that plain and simple!
That was the dot I needed to keep me going until the next dot appears and I can begin to more clearly make sense of and connect the dots! Thank you all for the inspiration! I hope this may inspire some of you to keep moving forward, step by step, dot by dot, in the direction of your dreams!
You can find me on Twitter @pilarstella and Facebook at www.facebook.com/pilarstella.
As I move forward in building my company, OneGiving™ (http://www.onegiving.com/), and I get ready to go to investors looking for start up capital, I am finding more and more every day that it is about faith and trusting that the dots will connect, even if I can’t see it from here.
I was recently reminded of this when I re-read Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement Address from June 2005. As he put it, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever…it has made all the difference in my life.”
This really helped remind me to keep moving forward and to trust the process. It made me realize that I am not the only one embarking on a journey to follow my dream, start up a company or stretch beyond my comfort level. So I pulled together some of the wisdom from my favorite recent readings that I wanted to share with you all to help inspire you to push past some of your own obstacles and beyond your self-imposed limitations.
In Steve Jobs’ commencement speech (http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html), his words of wisdom included:
· Find what you love and do it! The only thing that really keeps us going is to do what we love. We spend so much time working, so we might as well spend that time loving what we do. If you haven’t found what you love, then keep looking and don’t settle until you find it!
· Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. We definitely aren’t taught to follow our heart and intuition and often get trapped in living the life that others want for us. Life is too short! Don’t let those voices drown out your own truth! Follow your heart and intuition, it won’t steer you wrong.
· Have faith and trust that the dots will connect. As per the quote above, you may not be able to see how things will work out, but as long as you keep going in the direction of your heart, having the courage and trusting, you will begin to see the magic unfold!
In a talk entitled, “How Not to Die,” Y Combinator partner, essayist and entrepreneur Paul Graham talks about some key tips for start ups on how to survive and thrive (and not die) (http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html). His wisdom included:
· Stay in regular contact with your investors and others. In other words, don’t isolate. This can apply to you whether you are a start up or just someone breaking out of your own limitations. Become part of a circle and community that helps you keep growing, moving forward and succeeding. So often when we hit our walls, limits or obstacles, we isolate and wither away. Avoid this and stay in contact with others to engage, nurture and inspire you to keep going.
· Stay committed and focused. Don’t take on other projects, distractions or “consulting gigs.” Sound familiar? I know it has been a hard one for me. Every month, when I think about the money coming in, I think ok perhaps I should get another consulting gig just to pad the budget a little. But I know I always give 150% to clients and that would be valuable time I couldn’t be giving to 100% focus on the success of OneGiving™. It is scary, but it has really helped me be fully committed to its success and my success and so I am willing to go that extra step, that extra mile, to make it all happen!
· Don’t ever give up! I love this one. One of the things Paul talks about is how if start ups just keep going, they will eventually succeed. So many of us spend so much time planting the seeds, doing the hard work, yet get scared or uncomfortable at the very end and we walk away, we quit before it is time! I have heard before there is no failure, other than quitting, then you are choosing to fail. Food for thought!
Finally, in a book called “Founders At Work,” Jessica Livingston, another partner at Y Combinator, interviewed 32 leading start up company founders that made it to share their experiences in the start up process to help others (http://www.foundersatwork.com/index.html). She wrote about the characteristics that each of these start up founders had in common, including:
· Determination, perseverance and adaptability. I kind of hit on this above, but felt it was worth reiterating. When starting something new, so many of us have a vision of what something looks like and when it doesn’t happen the way we think it should happen, we often cast it off as a failure and walk away. Rather, what she found is that when people are determined, continue to persist and adapt, they look for the nuggets of what is working and adapt their idea and vision to meet where people are at. Having this flexibility and persistence allows for the best of all creations to arise and often makes for a success bigger than we could have ever imagined.
· Put it out there! I totally had to laugh at this one and the following quote from her book, “Don’t worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you’ll have to ram them down people’s throats.” Boy if this one wasn’t the truth. So often we hold things back and are afraid to put our ideas out there because we are afraid people will steal our idea. But the reality if you get it out there, more people can be working in your favor to make it happen!
· Change the world! Finally, my favorite thing of them all, is that when interviewing everyone, she found one major thing they all had in common: they all wanted to change the world!
That is what it is all about after all! Yes, I am building OneGiving™ (http://www.onegiving.com/), a for-profit and nonprofit company, and seeking investors to make them (and us) money. But more than anything else, I am creating this company and this vision because I want to be the change that I wish to see in the world. It is that plain and simple!
That was the dot I needed to keep me going until the next dot appears and I can begin to more clearly make sense of and connect the dots! Thank you all for the inspiration! I hope this may inspire some of you to keep moving forward, step by step, dot by dot, in the direction of your dreams!
You can find me on Twitter @pilarstella and Facebook at www.facebook.com/pilarstella.
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