Women in the LEAD

Thoughts Are Like Boomerangs

"Thoughts are like boomerangs" -  Eileen Caddy

Catch yourself thinking.  Notice what fills your head.  Each ticking moment, a new thought enters.  You are at choice.  What choice are you making?

How we chose to fill our heads, whether we realize it or not, relates directly to how we fill our day.  Thoughts are like boomerangs in that for every thought we send out, we get a matching response. 

How can we lead by sending thoughts that boomerang out,…ideas, feelings, thoughts and compassion that the world is now crying for?

What one distinct thought can you send out that will boomerang around the world and loop back to you bringing with it a positive feeling?

What are you choosing to send out today?

Maureen Simon

Becoming Visible

So often in life we hide behind reasons for not creating, accomplishing or fully showing up.  For every moment that we hold back, the world loses an opportunity for us to experience and share our greatness.  After closely observing the world around the past few years, I am very clear that the world needs greatness. The world needs innovation, creativity and leaders who can see the whole and work for the whole.

There are some fantastic quotes that point out to me that it is our light that we fear, not our darkness.  It is our ability to create, produce and innovate that scares us more than our ability not to do so.  The quote below is from Nelson Mandella’s inaugural speech and was written by Marianne Williamson.  Its depth and message never cease to amaze me.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light not our darkness that frightens us.

We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?”  Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.  Your playing small doesn’t serve the world

There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.  We are born to make manifest the Glory of God that is within us.  It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone.

As we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fears, our presence automatically liberates others.

Where do you hold yourself back?  Where could your light shine more brightly?  What are you afraid of?  What gifts and benefits would we all receive if you let go of your fear?

Maureen Simon

The Miniature Earth

I was recently introduced to a concept called “The Miniature Earth”. The Miniature Earth is a scaled down version of the world’s population showing a model how the world would look with today’s current ratios in population, health, etc. in proportion to one hundred people.

“ This is how it goes:  If we could turn the population of the earth in to a small community of one hundred people, keeping the same proportions we have today, the outcome would look something like this:

There would be 61 Asian, 12 Europeans, 14 Americans, 13 Africans, and 1 Australian.

Men would make up 50% of the population and women would make up 50% of the population.  Of the village’s total annual expenditures, which is just over $US 3 million per year, $181,000 would be spend on weapons and war, $159,000 would be spent on education and $132,000 would be spend on health care.  If you were one of the lucky out of the 100 people and had food in your refrigerator and clothes in a closet, you would be richer than 75% of the entire world population.”

Source: WWWLUCCACO.com/miniatureearth

When I read this it just reiterated to me the inequity of balance that is taking place in our world.  It highlighted to me the imbalance between those that have and those who do not have.  It pointed out to me that a large percentage of the expenditure in the above equation is spent on weaponry and war.  Where we spend our money is a direct reflection of our priorities.  It told me that we must be living in great fear if we are spending a high percentage on our personal protection.

What is the solution?  How can people live without superiority and take in to account the needs of others in our world?  How can we finally elevate our awareness to understand that we share this planet equally, no one having a greater ownership of it?  When will we be wise enough to understand the interconnectedness that we all share with others?

I believe when we answer these questions in a way that supports all on this earth, that we will live in a world much brighter than the one we share today.

Maureen Simon

Dust Off Your Dreams

“If you have unfulfilled dreams, and visions of greater prosperity and success tucked in a corner of your mind, don’t keep them there any longer.  Dare to bring them out and dust them off.  Dare to begin thinking of the possibilities.”  Catherine Ponder

So often we feel distant and far away from our dreams.  The true art of living includes inviting your dreams and visions in to your day to day life.  There is no need for separation.  There is no need for these visions to feel far away.  How do we dust them off and begin to dare to think of what might be possible.  How do we move from the smallness of our every day thinking to the grandeur of the realm of all possibility?  I have a few things to share that I have personally been working on for the past couple of months:

• Identify your greatest dreams and visions.  Get to know them. Make them your friends.  Be, act and live as though they are already a part of your life.

• Dare to bring them out in your day to day world.  If buying a beautiful home is a dream of yours, surround yourself with beautiful homes (pictures, conversations, etc.).  If creating an amazing partnership in your life is a priority in your life, be very clear about the characteristics you’d like that person to hold.

Observe any small or limited thinking in your day.  These are old habits to break out of.  Replace them, one by one, as they come up with exciting, expanded, exhilarating new thinking.

As we begin to look closely at our dreams and to make them a part of our every day reality, they will no longer be dreams but they will become our reality.

How Our Mind Can Heal Our Body

HOW OUR MIND CAN HEAL OUR BODY

For quite a while now, the relationship between the body and mind has been a conversation echoed across our cultures.  Early psychology paved the way for a deeper understanding of how the mind is informed by our environment and how it dictates the way we see the world.

Rene Descartes, a great 17^th century mathematician and philosopher, opened our thinking in the west to what is now known as mind-body dualism.  Many of the ancient traditions and mystical beliefs have said all along that the body and the mind are intimately linked and interconnected.  Today psychologists and neurologists finally agree.

What does this mean on a day to day basis regarding the way that we live?  If we can believe that our mind can heal our body, what thoughts would we have to think in order for us to live a healthy life?   Recently, I’ve been experimenting with making significant changes in my life.  Some of these changes have required me to look deeper, to take deeper risks and to stretch from a place of comfort to jumping off a large cliff.  I have begun to notice the thoughts that I hold in my mind on a daily basis and I have begun to feel a distinct relationship between these thoughts and how my body physically feels.

In the culture in which we live, it is very easy to medicate, numb and disappear from our thoughts and feelings.  This road allows us to disconnect from our mind and hence disconnect from the natural healing that is available through rich, nourishing thoughts. What specific thought could send powerful healing to your body at this moment?  What comfort do you need?  Do you need to change something that would allow for your body to experience health and well being?

Take a moment and notice during the course of the day, what signs your body is sending you, how it feels and what it may be telling you.  You may be surprised if you listen carefully,  to the deep intelligence our body holds.  Take time to evaluate your thoughts.  Be sure that the thoughts you are thinking will yield the outcome that you want your life to hold and will give your body the health and well being that it needs.

Maureen Simon

Because Society Is Not Happy

“Because society is not happy, society disempowers the individual. And so, every lifetime you have ever participated in, as in every lifetime that we have participated in, we have been reaching for the new thought. Which makes us not popular. There is never a crowd on the leading edge, and we have never been happy anywhere other than on the leading edge. “

Ester and Jerry Hicks

We are a part of a whole – a system.  As I see it today, the system that we live in is not whole or balanced.   People feel disempowered.  It is time to reach for the new thoughts that will feed our souls and the world in a whole new way.  Our thoughts entirely guide our perceptions and the outcomes of these perceptions.  What thoughts are you thinking?  And when you look to see how they are mirrored out in the world, what does your world look like?

What does it take to live on the leading edge?  What are the thoughts that make up your day? What does your day look like?  I believe we must think of a world of equity, justice, care, compassion and respect for all.  I believe that business and nations of power have the potential to be the leaders on the edge.  I believe we each hold an important part on what our world looks like and how we live our day.  What thoughts are you thinking and what choices are you making?

What does your day look like?

Maureen Simon

Is Perception An Illusion?

"Every exit is an entry somewhere else." - Tom Stoppard

"One man's ceiling is another man's floor." - Paul Simon

I guess it's all relative.  What for one person, is a door that closes, is to another an amazing opportunity.  Perspective has always been something that has fascinated me. I remember listening to one of Paul Simon's songs when he sang of one man's ceiling being another man's floor.  I am fascinated by the thought that we all see, experience and perceive things very differently.  It is not only our mood on a given day, our historical perspective and our socialization that effect our perception. There are many other factors such as our level of wellness and clarity, our attitude and beliefs.

Another favorite quote of mine is, "to understand a man (woman)-- walk a mile in his shoes."  The gift that these quotes have given me is a vast sensitivity to the fact that what I am experiencing side by side in the same room with you at any given moment will be entirely different than what you are experiencing.  When I take this thought to a more macro level, I begin to understand people's sensitivities, miscommunications and how wars begin.

How can we each expand our perceptions to take into account the differences and unknowns that our neighbors, friends and perceived enemies are experiencing at any given moment?

Maureen Simon

Compassion is the Golden Key of Perfection

"Within all beings there is a seed of perfection.  However, compassion is required in order to activate that seed that is inherent in our hearts and minds".  Dalai Lama

This quote always reminds me of the extreme care and respect that we need to hold for each other.  Some questions:

• Look around the world that you live in, where do you see perfection?
• Look around the world that you live in, where could you be more compassionate?
• Look around the world that you live in, what is one commitment that you will make to activate the seed of perfection in yourself in one other being?

Maureen Simon

Choices, Creation and the Realm of All Possibility

If we could all realize that now is the time to be the best that we can be, if we could all realize that now is the time to dream our fullest dreams and that from these dreams all will be created -  the world would be an amazing place.  This level of manifestation is available to us everyday - if we could all believe that we are worthy now to thrive, innovate, create and prosper - success, innovation and creativity would abound. What will take for us to awaken to the ease and simplicity that our lives actually hold?  What will it take for us to move from drama and fear to a place of trust and ease?

I've always known the power of choice, the essential role of creation and how both of these lead to unending field of possibilities.  However more and more these days,  I am beginning to see the gifts of trust and ease come alive in my mind and in my life.  Many people are writing about quantum physics and alignment, the common example given is that when water rises, all surrounding water rises to meet it. I have been noticing in my own life that when I make clear choices, involve the right people and have a good feeling about something I am doing, things line up.

It is becoming very clear to me that when I look for alignment and synchronicity in my day  I tend to notice alignment and synchronicity.  A few questions I have been asking myself that have been helpful when making choices, creating, and living to my fullest potential have been:

Does the situation I'm in right now create a positive feeling or a negative drain?  Why?

Are there any consistent signs or themes that are running through my life right now, that I need to pay attention to?  What are they?

What choices can I make today that will unblock energy that is stuck or bring me to greater alignment in my day? What positive changes would be the result of those choices in my life?

Maureen Simon