growth – Page 3 – Ruthann M. Wilson

Expect the Best: Change Your Mindset for Success

Expectations are powerful. They can help us move forward or they can hold us back. If you are feeling stuck, ask yourself “What am I expecting?” and see what comes up. This simple, but powerful question will bring awareness to the beliefs and/or fears that are holding you back. Once you have awareness of what is holding you back, you can work on changing your mindset.

We change our minds by replacing limiting thoughts and beliefs with empowering thoughts and beliefs that enable us to create what we desire. It’s a journey and a process. Chapter 4, “Be Willing to Let Go”, in Be True to You: A Practical Guide to Pursuing an Authentic Path is designed to help you change and refocus your mind.

We all experience times in our lives when we are held back by limiting beliefs and/or fear. Embrace these times as opportunities to change, grow, and deepen your trust in the process of life. When we trust the process, we dream big, set goals, work toward our goals, and expect the best for our lives. If things don’t go as planned, trust enables us to ask “What did I learn?”, “How did I grow?” and use our lessons learned to keep moving forward.

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Be True to You: A Practical Guide to Pursuing an Authentic Path is available at Amazon.com

All the best,

Ruthann

In-Progress, LLC | Walk your path with intention, at your own pace

Embrace Growth: Stop Shrinking Yourself

“Don’t shrink yourself to fit into places that you have outgrown.” —Anonymous

Life is always inviting us to reach, stretch, and grow. Sometimes we accept the invitation with a wholehearted yes, and sometimes we decline the invitation through indecision and inaction and stay in places (e.g., jobs, relationships, situations, etc.) that we have outgrown. Although these places may not be ideal, they are familiar, comfortable, known.

We usually know it’s time for a change long before we take action. Inner promptings for change are often experienced as restlessness, dissatisfaction, or a desire/longing for something more. If you relate to any of these feelings, take time to listen to your inner voice and be willing to find new places to grow. It might mean finding a more challenging job, new friendships, or new ways for you and your mate to grow.

Progress requires change, and change begins to happen when you leave your comfort zone.

If this post resonates with you, I invite you to reflect on the following questions.

Where in my life am I shrinking myself to fit into places that I have outgrown?
What do I need to believe and do to grow?
What is one thing I can do [today] to support my growth?

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All the best,
Ruthann

Renew Your Faith: Steps to Personal Growth

I believe life is a personal journey of faith and process of empowerment.

Simply stated, faith is our ability to look forward with positive expectancy. It is not something we find outside of ourselves, it is an inner resource that we awaken to and renew through our thoughts, words, and actions.

Faith empowers us to create our future—individually and collectively. It is deeply personal and influenced by many things—thoughts, beliefs, trust, and experiences.

Renewing your faith is an intentional and ongoing process. There is no right or wrong way to do it. I’ve made a few suggestions based on my own experience and what has helped me along the way.

Reset your mind—release/let go of thoughts and beliefs that limit you and replace them with thoughts and beliefs that enrich, expand, and empower you to create the kind of life and world that you desire.
Trust life as a process—the nature of life is change and transition for the purpose of growth and evolution. Every ending is a new beginning if you are willing to trust the process.
Stay open to possibility—there is more to life than what you can see. Create time and space in your day to prayerfully ask “What is possible for my life?”.
Choose your words wisely—words carry power and energy and shape your life.
Keep moving forward—if things don’t go as you planned, ask “What did I learn?”, “How did I grow?”. Use your lessons learned to help you keep moving forward. If you feel stuck, ask “What is the best thing I can do right now to move forward?” and then do it. 🙂

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All the best,
Ruthann

Live Simply and Authentically Through Your Values

SIMPLY: without ambiguity, clearly

Simplicity is a principle as well as a practice.

As a principle, simplicity is foundational to our lives—a core value from which we build our lives. When our aim is to live simply, truth becomes our guide. We tap into our personal truth with questions like “What is true for me?”, “What do I value most in my life?”, “What is best for my life?”, “What matters most in my life?”.

As a practice, simplicity is a process of staying focused, planning, organizing, and letting go of things that no longer bring you joy or serve your highest good.

Living simply is not about living without. It’s about living with intention from the inside out. Take the first step—identify, clarify, and prioritize your values.

Do you need support? Be True to You is designed to help you clarify what truly matters and create the life that you desire.

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All the best,

Ruthann

Create Harmony: Align Your Thoughts, Words, and Actions

Align: to change something so that it agrees with or matches something else.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

You can create any experience that you desire by aligning your thoughts, words, and actions. It’s a lot easier said than done, but truly transformative when put into practice.

Thoughts and beliefs are powerful—they create your reality (positively or negatively) each and every day. What you choose to focus on will magnify in your life.

This week, I invite you to identify a quality that you would like to magnify in your life and bring your thoughts, words, and actions into alignment with that quality. For example, if you want to experience a greater sense of peace in your life, think peaceful thoughts, speak peaceful words, and create a peaceful living and work environment.

Spend a few minutes in silence and let your heart be your guide in choosing a quality to magnify. Through this process, you will not only enrich your life, you will enrich the lives of others and the world (yes, the world!).

♥

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All the best,

Ruthann

Embrace Change: Be Willing to Change in Order to Grow

“How does one become a butterfly?” she asked. “You must want to fly so much that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar.”

—Hope for the Flowers

I recently re-read a wonderful book titled Hope for the Flowers by Trina Paulus.

It is a light-hearted story about two caterpillars (Stripe and Yellow) and their journey to become butterflies. It has become one of my favorite gift books about trust and transition/letting go.

The process of becoming a butterfly begins when the caterpillar responds to an internal urge to grow and evolve. In order to fulfill its potential, the caterpillar must give up its life as a caterpillar to be reborn and serve a different purpose. As winged creatures, butterflies provide hope for the flowers’ reproduction through the process of pollination.

The journey of the two butterflies in Hope for the Flowers is a great reminder that we too must trust our inner urges/promptings to grow and evolve in order to reach our full potential.

This week, I invite you to pay attention to inner urges/promptings to do something different/make changes in your life and be willing to step out of your comfort zone.

One of the best ways to step out of your comfort zone is to set a goal and begin to take action. Fear of the unknown will keep you stuck until you put fear in its place through action.

Life is a series of endings and beginnings for the purpose of growth and evolution. Our challenge is to trust the process and be willing to let go of the ‘old version’ of ourselves in order to grow.

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All the best,

Ruthann

Be Prepared to Receive: Trust, Prayer, and the Practice of Asking

“Ask for what you want and be prepared to get it.”

—Maya Angelou

I love this quote by Maya Angelou. It is a great reminder that we should not only ask for what we want but believe so strongly that it will happen that we prepare to receive it. The degree to which we prepare for something to happen is indicative of our belief and trust that it will actually happen.

Making requests/asking for things is a part of our everyday lives. We ask for information, directions, meetings, assistance, etc., on a regular basis without much thought or risk. There are times, however, when we need or want something that is beyond what we can see or control. It is during these times that we often go to a deeper place of asking/requesting through prayer. When we pray and prepare to receive, we create conditions for what might seem like magic to happen in our lives.

This week, I invite you to think about the requests/prayers that you have for your life. Are you clear in what you are asking? Do you trust that what you are asking will actually happen? Are you preparing/taking action in anticipation of it happening? Are you open to more than one outcome?

Ask for what you want and be prepared for it or something better to happen.

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All the best,

Ruthann

In-Progress, LLC | Walk your path with intention, at your own pace

First Things First: Mastering Your Priorities for a Fulfilled Life

“Things that matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least.”

—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

First things first is a phrase that basically means things that are truly important should be prioritized over less important things. What are less important things? Whatever you decide based on the type of life that you want to live.

First things first is something we all know, but many of us struggle to put into practice on a regular basis. There is often a gap between what we say is important and what we actually do. Over time, the gap can contribute to feelings of being inadequate, inauthentic, off track, etc.

Becoming aware of where we have gaps is the first step to creating better alignment between actions and priorities. If you are experiencing a gap between what you say is important and what you actually do on a day-to-day basis, take a step back and explore the gap. Use what you learn to make changes/adjustments to your personal and/or professional life.

Here’s an activity, best accomplished in writing, to get you started:

Create a list of 3-5 things that are important to you. Be specific as possible. Put them in order.
Reflect on the past three months and record the order in which these things have been a priority in your life.
Is the first thing on your list, first in your life? If not, why not?
Do the things on your list reflect what you (vs. someone else) want for your life?
Identify steps you can take to align your actions with the order of the priorities on your list.
Ask someone you trust to lovingly hold you accountable.
Take action

Priority setting is an effective tool to create focus in your life. It will help you stay true to what matters most in your life.

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All the best,

Ruthann

As Within, So Without: Understand Your Reality

Are you familiar with the phrase “as within, so without”? It means your external reality (i.e., physical reality that you see) is a manifestation of your inner reality (i.e., thoughts, beliefs, and emotions).

Your inner reality affects how you live your life each day. Many of us are operating on auto pilot, not fully paying attention to how our inner reality is shaping our lives day to day. If your external reality is not what you desire, take a step back and listen to your life to help you make changes from the inside out.

Questions for reflection (best accomplished in writing):

If my life reflects my inner reality, what is my life telling me right now?
- You can make this question specific to an area of your life that you would like to improve (e.g., if my finances reflect my inner reality, what are my finances telling me about my thoughts/beliefs about money right now?)
What seeds (thoughts/beliefs) have been planted in my mind? Are they seeds of faith or seeds of doubt?
What thoughts/beliefs do I need to replace to create the life that I desire? Affirmations are an effective way to replace disempowering thoughts/beliefs with empowering thoughts/beliefs.

Get clear and take action:

Get clear as to what you would like to change, why you would like to make a change, how and when you plan to make it happen.
Take consistent action and trust the process.

All change in the physical world begins with a change in your mind. Take time to listen to your life. It can help you make changes from the inside out.

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All the best,

Ruthann

Stay Grounded: Cultivating Presence in Daily Life

Living in the here and now is essential to bringing your vision to life. Check in with yourself on a regular basis to stay grounded and present in your life.

Questions for reflection:

Do I feel comfortable in my body?
Do I feel safe, secure, and nurtured in my home?
Do I feel connected to nature and the cycles of life?
Am I patient with myself and others?
Am I able to focus, plan, organize, take action, and trust the unfolding of my vision?

I have listed a few practical ways to help you stay grounded and present in your life.

Cultivate qualities that support your whole life

Cultivate patience, structure, stability, and a sense of security in your life.
Seek balance and harmony in your life.

Care for Your Body

Tend to your physical well-being with consistency.
Nourish yourself. Rest well. Move with intention.
Love the skin you are in.

Stay open to possibility

Make time for stillness and silence.
Ask, “What is possible for my life?”
When asked in sacred time, a question becomes an invocation for revelation.

Practice Gratitude

Begin and end each day with gratitude.
- In the morning, give thanks for the gift of a new day.
- In the evening, reflect on the gifts, blessings, or life lessons.

Express gratitude to others. Make a point to call, send an email, send a text, write a handwritten note to someone each day expressing gratitude.

Keep a journal to notice and honor what’s unfolding within you.

Cultivate a deep sense of connection to nature and the cycles of life

Spend time in natural settings.
Make direct contact with the earth
- Put your bare feet on the ground, sit down or lay down on ground.
Let the seasons be metaphors for your life.
Witness sunrise and sunset.
Follow the moon’s phases to shape a rhythm of reflection, action and renewal month by month.

The power to create your life is in the here and now. Cultivate habits and practices that help you stay grounded and present in your life.

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All the best,
Ruthann