2024 - Why Struggle? Podcast - Week 7 - Be Kind

Why Struggle? podcast with Barbara J. Faison shares ideas, insights and simple practices to live an intentional life and thrive. Enjoy meditations, affirmations, and practices along with musings from daily living. This is an episode about how I mind my mind and manage less desirable thoughts.

Transcript

Greetings and welcome to the Why Struggle Podcast.

I'm your host,

Barbara J.

Faison,

And my intention with this podcast is to offer ideas,

Insights,

And inspirations so you can live life better.

Greetings and welcome to 2024,

Week 7,

Be Kind.

This is an episode about how I mind my mind and manage less desirable thoughts.

There is still a lot of stuff going on in the world and in our personal lives.

Welcome to life.

I do believe that being loving to ourselves and others is the answer to most situations.

The truth for me is that there are many times I may not be in the space of being loving toward others.

However,

I can usually make the choice to be kind.

Being kind may be stepping away from a conversation,

Choosing not to share my perspective,

And not saying anything at all.

Yep,

Being quiet.

Do you ever have random thoughts?

Of course you do.

We all do.

Are you being kind to yourself when you do?

Learning to be kind to yourself when we have these thoughts that pop up that we likely don't want or like is a practice.

What are you saying to yourself when you have these thoughts?

Are you upset or mad because you had a thought you didn't like?

Or are you being kind?

Let me tell you,

Learning not to beat yourself up is a whole thing.

A whole thing.

Scientific research says we have anywhere between 60,

000 and 80,

000 thoughts a day and a large percentage of those are subconscious thoughts.

Subconscious thoughts are playing in our mind all the time.

It's how we are able to breathe,

Walk,

Move without having to think about it unless we choose to think about it.

The brain takes in everything and processes it,

So it's important that we are discerning about what we listen to and immerse ourselves in.

What we have the ability to do is to redirect our thoughts.

So how do you do that?

I created my version of affirmations that I call go-to phrases,

GTPs.

These are phrases I interject when my mind starts to go down crazy circle,

Silly street,

Or anxious avenue.

Through practice,

I learn to be aware of these thoughts and I start to say my GTPs.

A few of them are,

All is well in my world,

Things always work out for me,

I am in the right place at the right time with the right people doing the right thing,

My timing is always divine,

I am wise and make the best decisions now and always.

So what does this do?

This allows the thoughts to settle down.

Train your brain,

Be kind to your mind,

And learn to redirect your thoughts.

It is practice.

Here's what you do.

One,

Choose one to three go-to phrases,

They may be affirmations,

Scriptures,

Or whatever you desire that will calm your body and mind down so you can refocus.

Two,

Repeat these phrases throughout the day,

Even when you're not having unwanted thoughts.

Three,

When you have the unwanted thoughts,

Continue to repeat the phrases out loud or silently.

Four,

Practice,

Practice,

Practice.

Five,

Notice when you immediately begin to use the GTPs and pat yourself on the back.

Oftentimes it's easier to be kind towards someone else first,

So you can start out that way and eventually you can be kinder to yourself.

Here's today's excerpt from my book,

Audiobook,

Why Struggle,

Life is Too Short to Wear Tight Shoes.

It's called Be Kind.

Be kind.

Think about the last kind thing you did for someone,

Something that was unexpected.

Are you smiling?

You should be.

Being genuinely kind to someone can lift your spirits and take your focus off what you don't have.

We all want to be loved and appreciated.

Kindness transcends culture and language.

In a world where our differences seem to separate us,

A gesture of kindness is one way to acknowledge our sameness.

If you are in the line at the grocery store and the person behind you only has a few items,

Why not let that person check out ahead of you?

Such an effort is a simple kindness that might have major benefits for you and the person you helped.

Practice.

Pledge to do one kind thing a week.

Increase it to one every other day.

Increase your kind acts to once a day and watch your life and heart bloom.

Affirmation.

I openly share joy and love to all.

End of excerpt.

Kindness starts with me.

Love starts with me.

Everything starts with me.

Another one of my go-to phrases is,

Peace of mind is mine.

What's one of your GTPs?

Feel free to reach out to me if you'd like to share your thoughts with me.

Barbrafaysonllc at gmail.

Com is the best way to reach me.

And if social media works better for you,

LinkedIn,

Facebook,

And Instagram are best.

Our next Breathe with Barbara live session is tonight.

We're live from 8 to 9 p.

M.

Eastern and you can register on my website at barbrafayson.

Com slash store.

The card I pulled for us from my Relax,

Listen,

And Trust Your Inner Guidance card deck in this moment is number two question.

How can I take a moment for myself today?

Hmm.

Can you step outside and take in nature?

I think that's what I will do.

Walk outside and take in all the beauty I can see.

Considering breath work or meditation as a tool for living life better,

Here are a few resources that can support you.

On the second and third Wednesday of each month from 8 to 9 p.

M.

Eastern,

I host my Breathe with Barbara live session that includes gentle movement,

Breath work,

Meditation,

And silence.

These gatherings are intimate about six to eight people and only $15 a session.

You can find the link to register at barbrafayson.

Com slash store.

If you prefer to have a teacher for instruction,

I offer one-on-one sessions as well as group sessions with a minimum of three people.

Send me an email or message through the contact form on my website if you're interested.

If you prefer using apps,

I encourage you to check out the Insight Timer app.

It is the number one app for free meditations for sleep,

Anxiety,

And stress and I have over 50 meditations,

Book excerpts,

And my courses for premium members and more on the app.

The link is insighttimer.

Com.

My meditations are posted free on other apps including Aura,

Meditation Station,

Spotify,

Pandora,

YouTube,

Apple Music,

Amazon,

And more.

Just search for Barbara J.

Faison as the artist and you'll find me.

I'd love for you to follow me,

Put me on your monthly playlist,

And choose the notification bell to learn when I have posted new meditations.

You can also find upcoming events and where you can meditate with me.

All of the links are on linktr.

Ee slash Barbara Faison.

I hope you will check out my YouTube channel,

Barbara Faison,

Where I share ideas,

Insights,

And reminders to be in the present moment called Breath Breaks and more.

If you'd like to take a breath break,

You can find over 50 on the Breath Break playlist.

Be sure to subscribe,

Follow,

Share,

And leave a comment if you joined.

Feel free to share your thoughts,

Ask a question,

Or just say hello to me via email at barbarafaisonllc at gmail.

Com.

Thank you for your support and being on this journey with me.

Until next time,

Keep breathing and do something new.

Be well and be kind to you.

Keep breathing.

Reviews

This is such a good way to go about my day. Thank you 🙏

Wonderful - such a lovely & lighthearted approach to a rewarding practice - one that is very simple, yet not always easy. You have given me hope that it’s possible to experience greater ease and be more consistent with incorporating this practice into my daily life 🧡 thank you!