A lot of us refuse to dream and still believe the myth that life has to be hard and that money is a huge obstacle to our happiness.  A lot of us believe that without a certain amount of money, we have no freedom to chose.  The illusion is that money would give you the freedom to choose.  I say the word ILLUSION because that’s what it really is.  A fisherman in a remote island in the South Pacific fishes during the morning and sleeps on a hammock in the afternoon after a nice lunch.  Is he a millionaire?  Far from it!  He simply does what he loves and lives accordingly.  Was Mother Teresa a millionaire?  No, and yet she lived the life of her dreams helping people in her native India and setting an example of service to the world.  She was probably one of the happiest human beings to ever walk the face of the earth.  Why?  Because she was doing exactly what she loved.

The question is:  Why spend the best years of your life waiting to be happy at the end?  Believing life is one set of hard encounters after another?  Life is what happens now, not 20 years from now.  Let’s face it:  You might not even have the next 20 years.  It is true, isn’t it?  We can slip in the bathtub, hit our head and die – God forbid!  The end.  All we have is NOW. 

Sooooooooooooooooooo, how can you make the best of now?  Hint: 

Always choose what you love!

With energy,

Ana 

Our world is changing because we are changing as people.  We are acquiring a new consciousness.  We are becoming more mature as humans and giving more attention to what’s inside of us.  I don’t believe we are simply reacting to economics.  We are the catalysts of this change, and not the other way around.

That was the message of hope that came to me this morning.  Our priorites are shifting.  As a life coach I could see this happening with my clients and with people whose lives were touched by a spiritual experience or a major change in their lifestyle.  The more we become clear about our priorities and about what’s really important to us, the more we can simplify our lives, become more detached of material things and of feelings that keep us from growing.  The more we get to know ourselves, the more we want to know others. 

We are entering a new era.  A new economic paradigm is unfolding in front of our eyes.  It will be one of living within our means, consuming less, listening more, connecting with others more intensely, questioning our need to work so hard and live to pay our debts, opening up more and letting go of our masks.  It will be an era of true colors, integrity and self-development.  It will be a time of hope.

As we go through this transition, let’s exam what’s really important to us and what our priorities are.  Let’s become conscious that we can create our own reality and that we already started to do that once we became more aware of our holistic relationship with others and with ourselves. 

The moment we started to work on ourselves, began to question consumerism and shifted our thinking, that’s when we started this revolution.  I call it the Revolution of Hope!  Let’s ride it together and begin to create our own reality of hope.  Let’s welcome the new and face the questions head on.  The answers will come and the Light will shine brighter than ever.

With energy,

Ana

Shanah Tovah Umetukah to all - Happy and healthy New Year and may we all be inscribed in the book of life! 

Just click on the link below to see the video:

Dare To Dream

With energy and hope,

Ana

I found myself in a very peaceful place when I agreed with him wholeheartedly.  I had met my nemesis and I knew I wanted out.  I had broken a promise I made to my husband and I understood at that moment that the only person I wasn’t being honest with was my own self.  That was shocking!  I ask my clients to be honest with themselves and here I am doing exactly the opposite!

Right at that moment, I commited to be true to myself and alligned with my integrity in regards to this issue I had been avoiding.  It dawned on me that, unless I made that commitment and put my integrity on the line, I wasn’t going to change.  I chose to no longer lie to myself and to face my shortcoming head on knowing that I can overcome it if I am commited to do it.

The power that came forth from this experience was extraordinary.  It was as if I was breaking this wall I had built beetween me and the Light.  All of a sudden, this wall was shattered to pieces and I was able to see the root of my behavior.  Once I knew where everything was coming from I could begin to heal and to grow.

My husband was a vehicle for the Light that wanted to come in and extinguish the destructive behavior I had.  Once I was open to hear his words I could welcome the Light inside.  I know he loves me and wants the best for me so the messanger could not have been a better one!  I am now commited to change my ways and I asked him to hold me accountable.

This week listen to what the people that loves you the most have to say to you.  Even if the message is not the most pleasant one to hear, try not to react and ask yourself how you can grow from it.  Break the walls you built to protect yourself and let the Light come inside.  After such sublime experience, you will not want to live any other way!

Light it up all over!

With Energy and Light,

Ana

It was amazing to watch Lezak’s drive and determination at work.  He never gave up, went all out and won the race by 8/100th’s of a second.  He said afterward that, for a split second after the turn he thought: “There is no way I can get him!”  However, immediately after this thought, his mind went back to the possibility of winning, to the other possible result that was just as likely to happen - ”There is no way I can lose this!”.  He chose the second thought and gave it all he had.  The result is what we all know now - the US squad won gold.

There are many lessons here for us to apply to our personal life.  The one I want to focus on is the CHOOSING POSSIBILITIES instead of settling for defeat.  If we choose to believe that it’s over, then that’s what we get. 

What we choose to focus our attention on grows stronger in our lives.  We simply need to choose to change our thinking pattern.  At first we need to be aware of what false beliefs and false ideas we are cultivating.  The second step is to create new beliefs and new habits, which will reinforce them.  It’s important to become aware of the old beliefs so that we can create new ones and change the outcome of our lives.  

It all starts with being very clear about what our passions are.  Then we will begin to believe in ourselves, to live an ideal life and to choose to see the possibilities.  More to come about passions in my next entries.  For now, let’s take sometime to contemplate what it means to follow our passions.  We have a clear example fresh in our minds:  Jason Lesak showed us what can happen when one chooses in favor of his passion!

With energy and passion,

Ana  

I

Now, let’s consider the definition of the word “And”:  Used as a function word to indicate CONNECTION or ADDITION.

The use of these two simple words can completely (almost magically) change the meaning of our sentences, our relationships and the way we listen to others. 

When we choose to use “But”, we imediately invalidate the previous affirmation that came up in the conversation.  A classic example is when we start sentences with “yes, but…” - which only negates everything the person just told us.  When they were talking, we were planning our comeback and not active listening to what they were really saying.  

When we choose to say “yes, and…” we connect what the person is saying with our opinion making room for an open conversation where the opinions of both parties have an equal importance. 

The key here is CONNECTION.  Humans seek connection; with one another, with the Divine Essence, with other creatures (think a cute kitten, or a puppy), with nature; only to name some of the most important ones.  Making connections is our natural state of being.  In the case in point, one word naturally connects while the other separates.  There is certainly room for a few “buts” in our lives, however, the “ands” can be used more often than we think and yield extremely powerful results.  

Try this week to introduce a few more “ands” to your interactions.  The formula is simple; instead of a “but” say an “and” during the course of a conversation.  Pay attention to the way people respond to you and the direction the conversation takes.  Notice how the drama is suddenly removed from the dialogue and how your listening skills improve.  

I would love to hear your impressions!  Feel free to report them back to me!

With energy,

Ana

Every so often, a leader says something so simply and clearly that it’s almost impossible to ignore.  That happened last week with Al Gore’s challenge.  More than a quarter of a million people have watched the speech, and major papers across the country and the world continue to write about it.  Watch the highlights here.

He challenged the US to generate 100% of our electricity from sources that do not lead to global warming - and to do it within 10 years.  Meeting this ambitious goal would create millions of new jobs, lead to permanently lower costs for families and help the US lead the fight against global warming.  Watch his powerful speech here. 

John McCain couldn’t ignore it, saying “If the Vice-President said it’s doable, I believe it’s doable.”

Barak Obama said, “I strongly agree with Vice President Gore that we cannot drill our way to energy independece, but must fast-track investments in renewable sources of energy like solar power, wind power and advanced bio-fuels.”

Please take a quick look.  If you have already seen it, please forward it to your friends.  The technology to make this shift is ready.  What is missing is political will - and that’s why we need more people to see this speech and join the Campaign.

Envision a better planet and take action now!

With energy,

Ana

I am offering all my subscribers (and their friends) this opportunity.  Send me a question or a situation you want to be clear about, and I will answer it back within 48 hours at the most.   

My answer can come in the form of another question, an insight, a comment or even a whole free session!  So, take advantage of it and tell your friends as well.  It will be my pleasure to be of service to all of you! 

Why am I doing this?  Firstly, I want to spread the word about coaching and offer an opportunity for people to experience this great service.  Secondly, I want to help change the world for the better and coaching is one of my ways of doing just that.  Thirdly, I would love to have some new clients and inspire them to live the life they’ve always wanted for themselves!

Jump into this opportunity and let others know about it as well!  I thank you in advance for believing in the power of coaching.

With energy,

Ana

We are all amazed by the power of the internet.  We can communicate with one another  extremely fast, buy whatever we want and have all our questions answered in the speed of light.  However, my latest experience with the power of the internet is intimately connected with the power of love.

I volunteer to teach children how to swim at an organization called JAFCO (Jewish Adoption and Foster Care Options - www.jafco.org).  They have an emergency shelter that helps all children in need that come their way (not just Jewish children).  They care for them with amazing love and attention until they have a safe place to go.  Since they happen to have a pool, I saw an opportunity to serve these children.  We all have a blast splashing at the pool every Tuesday morning. 

Recently, all the volunteers got a letter from the shelter administration asking if we could donate basic items such as diapers, soap, lotion, shampoo, pull-ups, etc.  I decided to forward her letter to a few friends and to add my own bit to it letting people know how wonderful this organization is.  I sent this letter to 20 people I know.  Within two days I started to get e-mails and phone calls from people I didn’t even know saying they got my e-mail from someone they knew and that they were ready to help.  I went to their homes and jobs to collect the items they had for me and within one week I had more than 1000 diapers, 500 pull-up’s, brand new clothing items, shoes, toiletries, toys, videos, books and many other items the children need at the shelter.  I had to go to the shelter twice with my SUV filled to the max with all this stuff!  Within ONE WEEK, the shelter received all the diapers they will need for the next six months of operation!  One simple letter written from the heart captured the essence of all that is good inside of people and the response was unbelievable.  I was in shock.

That experience got me thinking about the power of good, the power of passion and, specially, the power of love.  Anything that you enjoy, that nurtures your spirit in a loving way, that allows you to share your love with someone else, has the potential to fill your heart with love.  When we are filled with loving feelings, whether those feelings are directed toward humans, animals, G-d, nature, or simply a love of life, we put ourselves in a position to attract love.

Look for opportunities to express your love this week.  Whatever your circumstances, dreams, or preferences, filling your life with opportunities to express love is always a good idea.

With energy (and love),

Ana

With energy,