These days my heart is beating to the drum of a deeper beat.  Just as life would have it, I am finding hearts everywhere I go such as in this sunflower at the farmer’s market.  I didn’t even see the heart until I looked at the picture to post; they are becoming just that insidious.  Life is flowing with messages of faith and divine intervention these days.  I am slowly beginning to feel more comfortable with the melody over time.  It’s becoming as comfortable as this old green blanket I have that I have been curled up in on this cool weekend in August.  The messages I have been getting have been consistently coming from all directions.  Freedom and inner peace will come when you step out on your own and fully own your awesomeness.   This all brings me back to a Ted talks that we discussed in the past, The Three A’s of Awesome by Neil Pasricha

I loved this talk because I have been on a path of loving all things awesome over the past year.  Give me something that has the ring of a positive life enhancing smiley face with a hug and I am ALL over it.  Life comes with way too many harsh messages that ring of the dark, negative, sky is falling genre that in order to shift my life’s direction I have had to immerse myself in the light and let go of the dark in many ways.  Pasricha’s story of embracing the light is inspiring. Given an opportunity to plummet deeper into depression, he chose to turn towards the sun.  He took an action step that was full of courage and had nothing to do with fear.  That deserves a big HALLELUJAH!  So what are these three A’s of Awesome that he speaks of?

The first A is Attitude. One must have a positive attitude for anything positive to come their way. I had some dog days of winter this year where things felt like they were not only moving at a glacial pace but that they kinda sucked to be quite honest.  It felt like life was just pummeling me from October to May.  My attitude matched how I felt about life.  Needless to say, not many opportunities were coming my way. It wasn’t until I was able to get out of my own way that I set myself on a path towards being more sun shiny myself.  His second A is Awareness.  One must be aware of the present moment which means that they see the world much like a 3 year old.  It is what Buddhists call “beginner’s mind.”  You know the amazement you see in a baby’s eye’s when they are playing with their mobile for like the thousandth time?  That’s beginner’s mind. Always coming back to the present moment as if it never existed before because it actually never did.  These days life is flowing in a way that causes twists and turns.  Even the days that seem like other days are not anymore.  Even when they were, I would try to find little unique moments that I could claim as my special moment.  The last A is my favorite of all…Authenticity!  Yes in order for your world to be awesome you need to be YOU from the core on out.  This means that you embrace how amazing you are and are not afraid to share that with the world.  Now what this doesn’t mean is that you walk around talking about your awesomeness.  That is narcissism.  Instead you walk through the world with a quiet sense of acknowledgement of  who you are, both positive aspects and not so positive, being willing to share all of that with those you encounter in a way that is approachable and real.  Those that are authentic do not hide behind a mask.  Instead they realize that we are more alike than dislike and therefore when you be real you allow others to be real with you too.  HOW AWESOME IS THAT???

For me not being authentic was never an option.  I am either blessed or cursed, depending on how you look at it, with an inability to BS, hide or be someone I am not.  I was never good at lying.  I believe that when I did lie as a kid my parents knew anyway.  I have a very expressive face, the curse of the Italians and I am straight up and direct, the curse of the Irish.  What you see is what you get  It is this authenticity that has helped me be on the path that I am on now.  It is also what has helped me accept the parts of myself that are not my favorite.  In order to be on a path of awesomeness one must realize that it doesn’t mean that you, others or things in life will be over the top fireworks all the time.  It’s life not a movie.  We are all a mixed bag and if we can accept that about ourselves and others then it helps find contentment right here, right now.  I know that wherever I go, and whatever I do, it may not be perfect but it will be real.  I tell my clients that who they know me to be is who I am, and that means it will not always be perfect or feel good.  I will make mistakes and I may even hurt their feelings.  I am human first and foremost. But should that occur, I will always own my side and apologize because that’s what you do when you care about others.  Being on a spiritual path is not easy but for me there is no option,.  If I want happiness, I have to come from a place of open heartedness.  This is living in the messy aspects of life but nothing has been like it ever.  What helps you embrace the beautiful authentic you?  What tips have you found on the path that have helped you be present with the mixed bag inside yourself and others that ultimately unleashes the beautiful you within?

Cheers along the path of awesomeness!