I'm almost finished editing my Puerto Vallarta vacation photos.
Amazing how going away...you realize how wound up you are.
I think too much. Have always been a thinker.
(insert brooding, worrying, over-analyzing, anxiety...stressss)
Often thinking it's my nature, it's who I am...yea nooo.
Then I realize I'm thinking too much.
We're not really thinking beings.
Our thoughts aren't who we are.
We're actually just constantly regurgitating garbage.
It would be different if we were recycling good thoughts, re-using and renewing, making for a better planet.
Nope. Pure waste.
Did you know that almost all of the stuff we think about is the same repetitious garbage as yesterday?...and the day before that...and the day before that?
If it IS motivational and inspiring on repeat about how awesome you are, grateful and propels you to the life of your dreams then...
You're one of a kind.

At some point in time, we just started filling our heads. With thoughts. And too many of them.
I don't believe we're here to 'think' at all.
I believe we're here to feel.
Experience doesn't require to use your head...it's as simple as tapping into your feelings. Using all of your senses.
We recollect a person by the scent of something that reminds us...
A song propelling us to a 'certain time'.
Sunsets fill us with peace.
The ocean soothes and calms.
There's a reason why we go away and relax. Unwind.
Getting out of our head is the ticket to our own freedom.
Sadly we all can't afford to jet set to the Island of Inner Peace nor do we have enough airmiles to cash in.
The funny thing about inner peace and stillness is...
It's not something you look to find or get.
We have it always.
And it's available at any time.

Thinking it was 2007.
I was visiting my brother.
Lots of people, lots of conversation.
The loudest however?
Was the conversation going on in my head.
Like a movie where everything is sorta blurry and in slow motion. Yet the words around me...spinning so fast.
Madness.
I tell people that that was the moment I was convinced I was 'losing it'. Curious if all straight jackets were the same style or could I find something a little less bulky, more tailored? Perhaps it came in a different shade? And what about those padded rooms...I mean that could be fun no? Apparently trampolines have multi benefits so flinging yourself around 4 walls that was covered in Sealy Mattress (hopefully with a eurotop) might even keep me...svelte?
I had no idea why this was happening.
And the anxiety over the worry that...
I really am going to go crazy.
Unless...?
I went back home that day and remember standing in front of my bookshelf.
Let me remind you that I"m a bookaholic so I often have books that I've purchased a LONG time before I even begin to read them.
I grabbed the Untethered Soul (a book recommended by Yoga Journal).
I flipped open to the very first chapter..."The Voice Inside Your Head".
Sold.
How timely.
...game changer.

...Your thoughts have no effect on anything or anybody, except you. They are simply going to make you feel better or worse about what is going on now, what has gone on in the past, or what might go on in the future. If you spend your time hoping that it doesn't rain tomorrow, you are wasting your time. Your thoughts don't change the rain. You will someday come to see that there is no use for that incessant internal chatter, and there is no reason to constantly attempt to figure everything out. Eventually you will see that the real cause of problems is not life itself. It's the commotion the mind makes about life that really causes the problems. - Michael A. Singer.

I have read this book several times since then.
It's not an easy read. And it's an amazing read.
This is a constant practice for me. Still.
However my anxiety is rare.
Moments of peace and pure joy more frequent.
I notice a total correlation to these moments of peace when I'm really not thinking about anything...just doing my thing...and being me.
So often I here desires for more time, less anxiety.
And I want you to know that if I can do it...so can you.
It's not our true nature to worry or think so much.
Because take it from me...you'll waste your life.
The narrative of that 'chatter' or monkey mind as they call it in Yoga...is only a narrative in attempt to control the world around you...
In the name of attempting to hold the world together, you're really just trying to hold yourself together.
And true living is...complete surrender to the unknown.
This life is a mystery.
Live it as such...

When I can free up the space in my head. I'm clear and open in my heart.
Which changes EVERYTHING.
My relationships...the work that I do.
This place of stillness and silence is where all our inspiration and creativity brews.

Whether you're an artist, entrepreneur, or maybe a stay at home mom and whatever your goals and dreams are...
I would love to hear from you and if this is something you struggle with, then I want to help.
I will be offering 30 minutes of FREE phone coaching/consultations for a select few that email me at: jodi@jodirenee.com.
You MUST also send me a brief bio of yourself, what you do, where you're at, what you struggle with and a goal/dream you currently have.
Please note that any changes in life must first be met with real honesty. I'm raw...and don't sugar coat anything. Unless it's the rim of a margarita of course...

let's do this! ...love jodi renée