bliss

Symptoms of a Personal Growth Spurt

June 10, 2013 by Christine Rose Elle

When I was in the eighth grade I was 5 feet tall and weighed 132 pounds. Over the summer I had a massive growth spurt and entered freshmen year at my current height of 5’6” and skinnied up to 102 pounds. People hardly recognized me when I walked through the door on the first day of school. (PS, the days of 102 pounds are over…)

To this day I can remember how I felt during that summer of growth.

It wasn’t awesome.

I felt frustrated, crabby, giddy, chubby, unsettled, impatient, stuck, negative, horny (I was 14…I don’t know what to tell you. Boy crazy.) hungry, nauseous, and my limbs ached.

This was not a time of inspired delight.

I was a bear and I am pretty sure my mom wanted to kill me. I would sigh dramatically and give her a really hard time about what she ate. Fried eggs made me gag and she loved them.

Going through this change made an imprint on me that was so significant, that I now recognize periods of growth in my life because of it. Only now most of my growth spurts are mental, spiritual, or creative. But the symptoms feel the same.

I am going through one now.

Only instead of my body chubbing up with the fat reserves it needs to grow, my mind is plumping with all the amazing stuff I am learning and the insights I have been having. All my resources are invested in development at the moment. So when I am crabby that I don’t have extra time or money I remember the depth of investment I am making for growth.

Growing my business, expanding my insights, and funding my long-term goals are making me mentally chubby.

I know I am about to have a massive outpouring.

Being patient until the flood gates open is sometimes a very frustrating endeavor.

But open they will and I know the huge sense of accomplishment, relief and joy that comes with growth will be worth all the difficult moments. In fact, it is the difficult moments that make the growth happen.

So take heart if you are going through your own personal growth.

Stay with it.

Gentle repetition over time is key.

If you have put time, energy, money and endless other resources into a project, and nothing is happening, know that this is a normal part of growth.

Here are a few symptoms to recognize if you are about to have a growth spurt.

♥ You feel more frustration than normal.

♥ You have been consuming knowledge such as classes, workshops, Ted Talks etc.

♥ You are impatient and anxious like a runner about to hear the starting gun blast.

♥ You can’t sleep because you are constantly thinking about your project. (Or interest, or class…)

♥ Your self-talk gets a little more negative. (This is never going to happen, I can’t do this, I hate being broke…)

♥ You go unconscious in vulnerable areas such as eating, spending, etc

♥ You feel unsettled.

All this crazy is actually really great news. Important, meaningful shit can sometimes be painful. Stay with it, because when the dam finally bursts your best stuff will surge forward.

Stay. With. It.

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Filed Under: Feel Better, Work Better Tagged With: bliss, Growth, Massive Growth, mindfulness, money, Path, Personal Growth, Spurt, Symptoms, The Symptom, well-being, wellbeing

Modern Makeover Self-Care with Style FREE eCourse

June 3, 2013 by Christine Rose Elle

At last! I am soooo excited to announce my F R E E eCourse, Modern Makeover Self-Care with Style!

My journey to making a living from what I love has been amazing, but not without many bumps and bruises. But isn’t everything worthwhile in life that way?

I consider this self-guided eCourse to be the first phase of finding your bliss, and making a living from doing what you love.

If you are like me and have a dream about doing something that makes you happy while getting paid for it, and sharing it with others, then this is for YOU!

Here is what is included in this 3 part workshop:

Part 1 Sleep with Style. Find out how I used mindfulness to go from crummy insomnia to a restful nights sleep…ZZZZZZ

Part 2 Eat with Style. Once upon a time food stressed me out so much that I only ate rice cakes for like a year. Charlie took me away from all that. Just kidding. Loving kindness and mindfulness changed it. Find out how.

Part 3 Body with Style. *Sigh* Body image….if I could go back and smack the crap out of the people who told me I was chubby as a kid, I would. Gleefully. Since time travel hasn’t been invented yet, developing a new relationship with my body is a wee bit more practical. I’ll share how to think of your body in a whole new way.

So there it is. Phase one!

It’s the underpinning of well-being. The push-up bra of the soul.

All you have to do to get Self-Care with Style is sign up on my mailing list, and Part 1 Sleep with Style will arrive in your inbox, followed by Part 2 Eat with Style two days later. Part 3 Body with Style shows up on day six after sign up.

I hope you enjoy Self-Care with Style. It is my goal to give you the most helpful information on your path to finding your bliss, and doing work you love, sharing it with others and making a living! All with the most delightful eye candy!

Please share this link with your best girlfriends!

How to Follow your Fear to Find your Bliss

May 13, 2013 by Christine Rose Elle

Everyone wants to find their calling and follow their bliss.

For most of us our calling may not be obvious right away and fear prevents us from finding it.

Learning to face our fears is essential for personal growth. Turning fear into courage is where the growth happens.

Don’t try to conquer your fear before you start your journey. The only thing that will do is keep you paralyzed in fear, unable to make a step.

Sometimes recognizing what we are afraid of is just as hard as finding our calling. Learning to recognize when something may be important to your journey, is an important part of finding where your growth resides.

How to recognize things that might things of importance on your journey to bliss.

♥ You are afraid of it.

♥ You get activated when you think about it.

♥ You are jealous of other people who do it.

♥ Painful feelings may arise when you do it.

♥ You feel exhilarated after you dip your toes in and try it.

♥ It requires flow. (Creative engagement)

♥ It is undefined, unlabeled within you.

♥ You make up reasons or have a story you tell yourself why you can’t do it or have it.

♥ Someone else told you that you shouldn’t do it or have it.

♥ Someone else made you afraid of it.

♥ You know instinctually that you are supposed to try it.

♥ It requires consciousness and presence to do it.

♥ Other people will have a reaction, good or bad.

♥ There is uncharted emotional territory associated with it.

♥ You dreamed of it as a kid.

♥ You would do it or try it even if you couldn’t make money off it.

♥ Imagining your life without it feels sad and full of regret.

♥ There is an aspect of it that requires a leap of faith.

♥ There is a part of it that makes you feel silly or ashamed.

If any of these things pop up for you, that is a great sign to go exploring for your bliss.

And check out this fantastic film Finding Joe by Patrick Takaya Solomon. It’s a beautiful documentary about Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey to finding your bliss. Super inspiring!

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Filed Under: Feel Better Tagged With: bliss, Calling, Conquer Your Fear, Facing Fear, Fear, Meaningful Life, Your Bliss, Your Calling

What Creative Women Know About Success

April 22, 2013 by Christine Rose Elle

If you talk to any creative woman who has followed her passion and is making a living from what she loves to do, she will have not only many stories of how she got there, but also tons of advice.

Finding and following your passion is not easy. But that is good news because nothing with meaning, significance and the potential for personal growth ever is. It is a challenge because it is meaningful. We care about it, and we don’t want to mess it up.

Well, I am here to tell you that you can’t mess it up. Oh, yes you will make mistakes. I have made so many now that I find them amusing instead of mortifying.

The only real, true, deep and horrifying mistake you can make is not to try to follow your bliss.

After talking to, listening to and learning from all different kinds of creative women, here is some of what I find to be true.

What creative women know that might help you along your way:

♥ There is no such thing as perfect. Stop caring about perfection. It is impossible, and keeps you small.

♥ You are never too old to follow you bliss.

♥ You authenticity is your currency.

♥ You are unique, and people wan to hear what you have to say.

♥ Fear is a part of process.

♥ You need other women, so don’t be douchey.

♥ Boundaries and knowing how to say “No,” gracefully is an essential skill.

♥ You must charge what you are worth, then deliver.

♥ Other people have a lot to teach us. Learn to listen and to be curious.

♥ Write your goals down, then break them into smaller parts.

♥ Negativity and complaining have no place in the world of the visionary dreamers.

♥ Lose your attitude of ‘scarcity.’ There is plenty for everyone.

♥ Take risks that may have the potential to embarrass you.

♥ Creativity begins with a willingness to be vulnerable and make mistakes.

Please share this post with a woman who is following her dream and could use a loving pep talk or a reminder that, “Hey! You are not alone, and I believe in your dream!”

And give us a tweet! @XtineRoseElle Things creative women know about success. #bliss #shithappens #youcandoit

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Filed Under: Feel Better, Work Better Tagged With: A Woman, bliss, Creative Women, Path, Success, Things Creative, Wisdoms, Woman, Your Bliss, Your Journey

Searching for Your Bliss: A Few Tips for Getting Unstuck

March 25, 2013 by Christine Rose Elle

If you feel stuck on the journey to finding your bliss, consider changing your relationship to your situation.

Lets face it, we all get our fair share of cards. But lets not stack this deck against ourselves. Self-sabotage plagued me for years. I didn’t even know I was preventing myself from living my best life. I was convinced I was a victim. The deck felt stacked. One day I decided to stop bitching about my cards and try something a little different. I changed my relationship with my cards. Turns out my hand wasn’t shitty at all, I was just so wrapped up in thinking it was.

There are blessings everywhere. A meaningful purposeful life is what you make it. So dig in, design your bliss, put it on paper and make it work for you.

Here are some essential tips when searching for your bliss:

♥ Never, ever wait for inspiration to strike you. That is not where it happens. Inspiration happens in the moment, doing what you love.

♥ You don’t have to be a fully healed healthy person to begin your bliss. Just begin, make mistakes. Be the glorious imperfect person you are.

♥ Even though the process of passion discovery has steps, it is not linear. You don’t conquer one aspect then move on. This is a lifestyle. Elements will flux.

♥ Be flexible. Living an inspired lifestyle means flexibility and attention to your overall well-being. We are human. We err. We fail and we get back up. We have great days that feel wonderful and we have days in which we wish we could stay in bed and not deal with the world. That is the human experience.

♥ Don’t try to solve your problems first. Awaken to your situation mindfully, some stuff will just work out naturally. Trust that solutions will come to you. Following your bliss does not mean that you will finally get there and all your problems will be solved and then you will be in raptures. No such animal.

♥ Place a high value on your life and living it in a way that cherishes yourself so deeply that you inspire others. It means choosing your reactions to the good and bad stuff in your life. It means developing a new relationship to your life, and the cards you have been dealt.

Finding your bliss is fun, getting to know yourself is fun. Underneath your victim story was an amazing, wonderful, talented woman dying to come out. Invite her to the party.

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Filed Under: Feel Better, Uncategorized, Work Better Tagged With: bliss, Essential Tips, Findings, relationships, Search, Situation, Stick, tip, Your Bliss, Your Relationship

How to Change Your Life In Five Minutes Each Day

June 2, 2012 by Christine Rose Elle

Change your life in only 5 minutes per day.

Spend 5 minutes every day doing something blissful and wonderful. Set the timer and immerse yourself in something joyful and simple.

Here are some suggestions:

♥ Cuddle you dog. Pay special attention to the pink belly portion.

♥ Stretch your arms, touch your toes.

♥ Write in your journal.

♥ Close you eyes and listen.

♥ Hold hands with someone you love.

♥ Make tea and sip it.

♥ Look at an art book.

♥ Soak your toes in warm bubbly water with scented salts.

♥ Sit on the grass, search for four leaf clovers.

♥ Listen to your favorite song

Practice cherishing daily.

It’s like a deep breath for your soul.

Photos: Blonde via Favim, Vintage Dandelion by All The Beautiful Things by Loreta.

Bliss 101

March 20, 2012 by Christine Rose Elle

How do you find your bliss?

Asking yourself these questions will help point the way.

What do you love?

What makes time stop for you?

What is the thing that when you share it with other people makes you feel alive?

Your bliss will have value to others. It will feel purposeful.

Your long term sense of bliss is achieved by simply accessing your short term bliss. Choose to recognize something in this moment that has a quality of meaning.

Your bliss is unique. Only you can find your own bliss.