Shaping Your Future with Intentional Choices

This episode focuses on how distractions in modern life impede our personal growth and fulfilment. The host shares insights on recognising these distractions, the importance of setting intentions, and practical steps to reclaim time for meaningful pursuits while injecting joy into the process. 

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Chapters

• 0:00 Overcoming Distractions and Fulfilling Dreams
• 14:23 Taking Action Towards Achieving Goals

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:38

So, hello, dear listeners, I'm your host, the Gentle Yoga Warrior, and this is Awaken Conscious Conversations podcast. And it's so blustery and windy and it feels like life is trying to come back into the land after the winter, and it's still that transitional month. I see February, march, transitional months between winter and spring. So this is a bite-sized but beautiful edition which I wish to share to you today. I'm actually going on a course, but I really felt as I did my morning walk and also last night, because I tried to record this last night but the sound didn't work and I had recorded it, but then I got further clarification of what I wanted to share on my morning walk this morning. So things happen for a reason sometimes, and this feels like it was a good thing. So let's get started on the podcast.

Speaker 1: 1:33

So we're going to talk today about how and I'm sure you'll probably be able to relate to this how we put off doing things that are going to help us and instead allow ourselves to be distracted. But it's not all our fault in many ways, because the world is designed nowadays to be a bit of a distraction Distraction through food, social media, computers, etc. Yeah, so there's many distractions and these distractions stop us from really being our greatness and being ourselves, and we we kind of, in many ways, I feel like it's an easier option is that if we don't try, if we don't try our best, or if we don't, if we allow ourselves to be distracted and time goes by and then we have the excuse oh, we don't have time to do things. And, of course, life is so much busier these days, don't get me wrong, but there is ways in which I guess, when you are old or if you were to go tomorrow, would you like to look back on your life and think what did I spend the last 20 years doing? Either watching Netflix, scrolling funny videos which are funny sometimes, but excessively scrolling or would you like to cement something that is important to you and the time is now. The time is right now, so let's just go for it. Yeah, biggest obstacle in all this is the distractions that we have.

Speaker 1: 3:05

Biggest obstacle in all this is the distractions that we have. And again, we may think I'll just look at my phone for a moment, but then, before we know it, we've been looking at it for ages. Or I'll just watch one series. But that's how Netflix kind of took over the film industry and by making it so the next episode plays. And, like you know, in the old, in the olding days, when you had yourself to wait a week, uh to the next episode, came out of like any series, whereas now you you can kind of binge watch them, which you know.

Speaker 1: 3:34

That has its place sometimes if you're having like a, a day to yourself where you just want to completely relax and things like that. It's when it kind of takes over everything. And I'm not singling out netflix, because I enjoy netflix like the rest of us, um, I'm just showing an example. It's like it's anything in moderation. So could you moderate your diet of quick fixes diet being our visual diet of what we listen to or hear to hear, and, um, can we change that, limit, that and maybe have that as a small reward at the at the end of doing the things that are going to help you, like reading books, studying, um, cooking a meal instead of just getting a takeaway? That takes time, but then you might watch your next flick series and think, actually I don't have time to to do this, um.

Speaker 1: 4:27

So it's all about these kind of ways of changing our lens and filling in what we can and also then cut ourselves some slack, because some days, like I want to study all this week, I really wanted to study a lot, but then, um, I had relatives on the phone that really needed me to speak to them and they're going through a lot and you know what, sometimes you've just got to put other people first, not all the time, because it's not our job to save everyone. Don't get me wrong. It's not our job to save everyone. It's our job to be shepherds to each other, but not just. We can't. The only person that can save themselves is themselves. But sometimes we've got to do things that are going to help other people, and you know, and you get something back from it as well.

Speaker 1: 5:11

So, in a world where we can become quite singular in our approach to things and there is times where we can do things to help each other, but not from a place of being a martyr, I add that and I've said that a couple of times, it's just sometimes that can be a a way of not doing our things, the things, our dreams, and sometimes these are very valid points, like, if you're busy with your children, um, your family, you've got all these demands and, of course, these can be all very busy, difficult times for people, but, um, there is time to fit things in if we kind of shave away all that useless time that it that's not enriching our lives and instead replace it with time that is going to help us. So example I'm I'm working through this book at the moment and part of the book that I'm working through has journaling in it and like journaling is something that I always think, oh yeah, I must do that every day, or rather I feel like that would really benefit me every day. But then I seem to put it last in the priority where I'm changing that I'm going to make sure that I journal every day, because journaling is like kind of a form of meditation to me. It clears out the subconscious and you can get things down. And even if you you think, oh, I don't want my family to find what I've written or I don't want my friends if I'm ever in all this, and that it's not because just because you're journalist doesn't mean it's necessarily real, it's just you're just dumping out of your head the stuff that is not, that are thoughts. And just because you think something doesn't necessarily mean that is the case and a lot of time it isn't. Thoughts will just happen all the time spontaneously, here, there and everywhere, whereas, are they all right? Probably not, and just because we thought something doesn't mean it's always real.

Speaker 1: 7:43

But getting back to the journaling, I've been doing that for many years, but sporadically, but when I do do it it really has amazing effect on me. So I'm gonna I'm gonna make that promise to myself to do that, because I think that is a key in helping me move forward. I just wonder what promises you're gonna make to yourself to help. Is this something that you can? Is this something that you wanted to do? And, like you know, sometimes we think we have to do everything at once. So I'm going to take a round of things.

Speaker 1: 8:07

Just say you want to be a florist and you've got a full-time job, you've got a family, partner, friends, social commitments etc. And you think this is never going to happen for me. But instead of thinking, oh, I can't do it because I haven't got time to do a full-time florist course, can you start by maybe watching less TV or whatever it is that you do, and then start reading books on flowers and then build up your knowledge and then maybe there might be a slow-paced correspondence course that you could do, and then it's getting you into that field and you can start experimenting and making flowers at home, and then eventually you may be able to find the time to go to college and do it. So there's all these different ways. We can kind of see it. That was kind of just a bit of a random one, but there's all. It could be anything. Or you maybe want to become more mindful, but then, um, you're playing computer games all night.

Speaker 1: 9:04

Um, and how we treat our mind before we go to bed has a very profound effect on our being. So let's, let's, make a promise to ourselves, if we can, to do less of that which doesn't drive us forward and more of that which does, but to remember to have fun in the middle as well. It's important to do things, and even things that you're trying to go for or achieve in life. It's important to enjoy them and to have a lot of fun by doing them, and the more fun you can have by doing them, the better it's going to be for you and for everybody else, because I've seen it with really successful people. We're all successful, by the way. I've seen it with really successful people, not, we're all successful, by the way, but what I mean is I've seen it how, um, they don't see work as work. They actually like love and, um, enjoy it, and they find they love and enjoy it and they find it really moving.

Speaker 1: 10:10

So, micro habits you might be so busy, but is there something that you can dedicate five minutes to, at least five minutes to? But if it's just five minutes, and so be it. That you can do which will enrich your life, and please, let me know how you got on. Can go to my website, contact me there and just let me know how you get on, and I'll be really interested in if there's any particular episodes that you would like as well. So this was a micro episode because of my course, but I just would like to say a big shout out to you all. Um, did you know that this podcast is downloaded in 91 countries From the United States, uk, india, germany, singapore, canada, australia, japan, france, belgium, ireland, italy, spain, the Philippines, south Africa, china, russia, mexico, united Arab Emirates, hong Kong, netherlands, sweden, portugal, thailand, new Zealand, bulgaria, israel, finland, colombia, australia, czech Republic, and the list keeps going on.

Speaker 1: 11:24

So if I haven't listed your country, please forgive me, but I just want to say a big thank you to you all, and I wish I could read them all out. I just want to say a big thanks, and your meditation is not going to be one that you listen to today. Top tips for the meditation is either sit nice and cross-legged on the floor with a nice straight back always nice to sit on a block or a cushion or that's not available for you you sit in a chair with the back nice and straight. The important thing is you're not slouching, and if you're doing something that requires your concentration, all you need to do is just pause this and you can reconvene the meditation at a time that is good for you. If you're doing the meditation, let's begin.

Speaker 1: 12:10

So, for the meditation today, can you get a piece of paper? Nice deep inhalation, a nice deep exhalation, and you're going to continue inhaling. You're going to continue exhaling in and out through the nostrils and we're just going to do that for a few minutes to get our mind into place. Next, we're going to take a piece of paper. If you don't have a piece of paper, try and do it in your head and then write it down afterwards. What is the one thing that you would really like to achieve this year and write that down.

Speaker 1: 13:26

Take a deep breath, think of five real obstacles, that or perceived obstacles that you have, like example, family, lack of time, etc. And then you can write them down. By all means, pause this if I'm going too quick. And then you're going to look at five ways in which you waste your time and just be kind of honest Is it scrolling, is it binge watching things? Is it wasting your time on something else? Just think of things all different ways and could you it's not to say that you can't do the things you enjoy but could you shave some time off these things to allow you to do this thing you want and the thing that you want think of one action that you can take towards that and write it down. So I'll just recap.

Speaker 1: 14:24

So you're going to think of something that you want to achieve, you're going to see what the obstacles are and you're going to see how you waste time and then you're going to take a step towards doing what you want to do. So the obstacles maybe you could speak to people and just say, actually I need a bit more time to do this. You know, half the time we presumed so much. But if we actually had conversations with people generally, we can resolve things, and if that still doesn't work, then continue finding ways you can shave time off. Maybe you could get the earlier train into work and sit somewhere and do the writing or whatever it is you need to do then. That's just an idea I just pulled out of my head, but I hope this was of help to you. I'll be back next week. Wish me luck on my course this weekend and I hope you all have a joyful time. I really appreciate it, so if there's anything you'd ever like me to record, do reach out.