Need Answers? Be Still and Listen

“I say the universe speaks to us, always, first in whispers. And a whisper in your life usually feels like ‘hmm, that’s odd.’ Or, ‘hmm, that doesn’t make any sense.’ Or, ‘hmm, is that right?’ It’s that subtle. And if you don’t pay attention to the whisper, it gets louder and louder and louder.

I say it’s like getting thumped upside the head. If you don’t pay attention to that, it’s like getting a brick upside your head. You don’t pay attention to that—the brick wall falls down. That is the pattern that I see in my life and so many other people’s lives. And so, I ask people, ‘What are the whispers? What’s whispering to you now?” — Oprah Winfrey

How many times have you heard the voice? You know which one I’m talking about… The one inside of you, nudging you to do something.

Maybe the voice is reminding you that the relationship you’re in has gone south or the job you once loved is no longer inspiring or the business you’ve dreamed of starting is ready to be birthed.

Your quiet voice will encourage you to act. Your ego will tell you to be afraid.

Which voice do you listen to?

When I find myself in a space where the whispers are getting louder and louder, I turn to something that has helped me immensely: meditation.

I’d love to encourage you to meditate when you find yourself in those moments, too.

Now, don’t worry or feel intimidated. You can’t do it wrong.

It may feel uncomfortable because your ego is making you think it is supposed to be a certain way.

Close your eyes, breathe in, breathe out and observe your breath. That’s all it is. It is impossible to make a mistake here – trust me.

Yes, you may feel a quiet stillness and then your to-do list may start to yell at you and you might even find yourself starting to panic that you will forget to do that thing and you will want to open your eyes, get up, and grab a pen.

Don’t.

Let the thought go and go back to observing your breath. Over and over and over again.

It is in this place of silence you will hear the guidance you are seeking.

When you routinely take time to meditate, you will eventually get in touch with your voice. It may take awhile but you will find yourself there. The inner voice will start like a feather that gently tells you what you must do and eventually, you will find the entire universe will conspire to make it happen.

Manifestation can look like this:

That bad relationship: he leaves you for someone else because you didn’t have the courage to get out yourself.

That job you hate so much disappears: if you are lucky, you get a small severance package to start over.

That business you dreamt of: you see someone on Shark Tank getting millions invested in the idea you were too afraid to act on.

However, if you take the time to meditate now, instead of letting someone else decide the course of action and the outcome for you, you can quiet down the loud, boisterous voice and tune into the quiet voice instead.

That quiet voice is your inner wisdom. The other one is fear. Tell fear to shut up and go away.

Oprah Winfrey said that the only difference between her and the rest of us is she faithfully listens to that voice and does what it tells her to do, no matter how hard it is.

Physiologically what happens when you meditate is this: your amygdala shrinks.

Your amygdala is the fear centre in the brain. When you meditate this fear centre in your brain gets smaller and you become calmer and more certain about the things you should fear and the things you should do.

Meditation is not just for the woo-woo types, either. There are physiological and psychological benefits to doing it.

Those who meditate know.

In order to gain certainty on how you want to live your life and run your business, you must first seek clarity. Clarity comes from sitting in silence.

Be still and listen. Listen to your heart.

Listen to your own wisdom. What you need to do won’t come from an external source.

The life you want is waiting. You matter. Go make that life one that is worth living.