Tag: MENTAL HEALTH

Awakened Leadership: Harnessing Spiritual Insight for Better Work-Life Balance

As a transformational learning expert and author, I often explore the profound journeys that shape our lives. Two of the most compelling paths are through a spiritual awakening (a shift in consciousness) and personal transformation (due to change or trauma). Each journey, while distinct, offers unique opportunities for growth, resilience, and a deeper understanding of our place in the world.

Both spiritual awakening and personal transformation due to change/trauma significantly impact one’s work/life balance and influence their work life in distinct ways. Here’s how each can affect these aspects:

Impact of a Spiritual Awakening on Work/Life Balance and Work Life

  1. Work/Life Balance:
    • Prioritization of Inner Well-being: Spiritual awakening often leads individuals to prioritize their inner well-being and personal fulfillment over material success or external achievements. This can result in a more balanced approach to work and personal life.
    • Mindfulness and Presence: Practices such as mindfulness and meditation, which are common in spiritual journeys, can reduce stress and improve focus, helping to create a healthier balance between work and personal life.
    • Reduced Attachment to Work Stress: With a deeper understanding of life’s purpose, individuals may feel less attached to the stresses and demands of their work, leading to better mental health and a more relaxed attitude toward work.
  2. Influence on Work Life:
  • Purpose-Driven Work: A spiritual awakening often prompts individuals to seek work that aligns with their values and sense of purpose. This can lead to career changes or a shift in how they approach their current job, aiming to make a meaningful impact.
  • Enhanced Empathy and Leadership: Individuals may develop greater empathy and compassion, enhancing their leadership qualities and improving relationships with colleagues and clients.
  • Innovative and Creative Thinking: The broadened perspective gained from spiritual insights can foster innovative and creative thinking, benefiting problem-solving and project development at work.
  • Ethical Decision-Making: A heightened sense of ethics and integrity often accompanies spiritual awakening, influencing individuals to make decisions that are not only beneficial for the company but also socially and environmentally responsible.

Impact of Personal Transformation Due to Change on Work/Life Balance and Work Life

  1. Work/Life Balance:
    • Adaptability and Resilience: Personal transformation due to external changes often involves developing greater adaptability and resilience. This can help individuals manage work pressures more effectively, contributing to a better work/life balance.
    • Time Management Skills: As individuals navigate personal transformations, they often become better at managing their time and setting boundaries, leading to a more balanced and fulfilling life.
    • Health and Well-being Focus: Coping with significant changes often necessitates a focus on health and well-being, encouraging habits that promote a better balance between work and personal life.
  2. Influence on Work Life:
  • Skill Development: The need to adapt to new circumstances often involves acquiring new skills or improving existing ones, enhancing professional competence and career prospects.
  • Shift in Career Goals: Personal transformations can lead to a reassessment of career goals and aspirations, sometimes resulting in career changes or new professional directions that better align with personal growth and values.
  • Increased Productivity: Overcoming personal challenges can build confidence and motivation, leading to increased productivity and effectiveness at work.
  • Enhanced Interpersonal Skills: Navigating personal changes often improves interpersonal skills such as communication, empathy, and teamwork, positively impacting workplace relationships and dynamics.

Common Outcomes

  • Holistic Approach: Both types of transformation encourage a more holistic approach to life, where work is seen as one aspect of a fulfilling life rather than its central focus.
  • Greater Fulfillment: Individuals who undergo these transformations often seek and find greater fulfillment and meaning in their work, contributing to overall life satisfaction.
  • Resilience and Innovation: Both experiences can enhance resilience and innovative thinking, which are valuable assets in any professional setting.

Whether through a spiritual awakening or personal transformation due to change, individuals often experience a shift towards a more balanced, fulfilling, and meaningful work life. These transformations encourage a focus on inner well-being, purpose-driven work, and the development of skills and qualities that enhance both personal and professional life.

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Angel Carlton Anderson is a Transformational Writer, Speaker and Facilitator…helping people evolve through the natural cycle of change so that they transform into a greater version of themselves, live a life of purpose & lead with impact.  

To Learn more visit:  TransformwithAngel.com

How to Rekindle the Spark Within

Recently, I feel like I have been going through the motions and at the same time, feel a shift in my passion for what I do.  Not exactly a complete loss of passion but definitely a decline to the point where it has caused me to pause and reevaluate everything.  Can anyone relate?  This is a bit of an issue for me since my passion is my business that aims to inspire and motivate people. I make it a point to pay close attention to these alterations and not fight them because I truly believe they are directional signs pointing us in another direction.  So rather than getting frustrated, I asked for help.

On a recent road trip, I bared my soul, opened my frozen heart, shared my deepest concerns, and asked my husband for some honest feedback. Have you ever been totally blindsided by someone’s response in asking for help that it took 2 days just to process the information??  Like I have said before, “truth is absurd when first heard”.  To say the least, I was triggered by his honesty that I obviously wasn’t quite ready to hear.  I had asked for help but instead got an earful on what I am not doing to take things to the next level.  I got a very clear picture on how he sees me “work my passion” through his eyes.  And if I am going to be truthful, I haven’t been treating my “work” with much passion at all. This heavy conversation is what broke the ice exposing an entirely new degree of passion I’ve been missing, giving my purpose an entirely new perspective. 

As part of any transformation process, we need to RELEASE the behaviors that no longer serve us.  But first REALIZE the truth about what needs to change and do something about it, not just sweep it under the rug.  And many times we cannot see the truth when we are stuck in our limiting beliefs about what it’s supposed to look like.  This is when outside perspectives are extremely valuable.  And like I recently learned, we just have to put our ego aside, receive feedback with an open heart, and be coachable. 

I realized finding my passion isn’t so much about where to look for it or even doing something differently.  It was about identifying the blocks and barriers that prevent it from becoming the bonfire it once was or wants to become. I invite you to consider looking at your past experiences that may have caused you to hang on to un-dealt-with emotional baggage like guilt, shame, regret or remorse.  Until you work through and process these emotions properly, your passion can never truly thrive. 

As I prepared to spend the day writing at the beach, I accidentally grabbed my “A Course in Transformation Guidebook”.  Before I set it back down, I thought to myself, “Huh, maybe I need to do my own work to process this passion transformation thing I’m going through.”  So I did.  I spent 4 hours literally going through page-by-page of my own transformation framework that helped me so many times before.  Going through this therapeutic workbook helped me address what needed to be healed. And when I did, I felt an openness and a freedom that was like a burst of oxygen igniting the flame.  I began to feel excitement.  Ideas began flowing through and I could hardly wait to get to working on my next project.  My own Guidebook helped me create a plan and reset my vision.  Not to toot my own horn, but I have to say, it really works!

So when you start to feel your passion dwindle and that awkward imbalance in your life, begin by doing some inner-renovation work.  Start with the blueprint (The Nowhere to Knowing “A Course in Transformation” Guidebook is a great start) then excavate deep down, release those boulders of negative emotions, take an inventory on what’s working and what isn’t.  Come to terms with the fact that just because you’ve been doing the same thing for a period of time doesn’t mean you’re still passionate about it. And life is too short to be doing anything that doesn’t align with our deepest desires.

There comes a time when we have to look at what is causing our passion to fade.  People can feel disconnected from their passion for various reasons:

  1. Burnout: Overexertion or prolonged stress related to pursuing their passion can lead to burnout, causing individuals to feel disconnected or even resentful toward their once-beloved activity.
  1. Pressure and Expectations: External pressure or expectations, whether from society, family, or oneself, can dampen the enjoyment of a passion. When something that once brought joy becomes associated with pressure to perform or meet certain standards, it can lead to disconnection.
  1. Monotony: Engaging in the same activities or routines associated with their passion without variety or new challenges can lead to boredom and disengagement.
  1. Life Changes: Major life events, such as job changes, relationship shifts, or personal crises, can shift priorities and focus away from one’s passion, leading to feelings of disconnection.
  1. Lack of Progress: Feeling stuck or not making progress toward goals within their passion can be demotivating and lead to disconnection.
  1. External Factors: External circumstances such as financial constraints, health issues, or societal changes can limit opportunities to engage with one’s passion, leading to feelings of disconnect.
  1. Loss of Interest: Sometimes, interests naturally evolve over time, and what once was a passion may no longer hold the same appeal. This can lead to a sense of disconnection as individuals struggle to find new sources of fulfillment.

Addressing feelings of disconnection from one’s passion often involves self-reflection to identify the underlying causes and making intentional efforts to rekindle enthusiasm, whether through seeking new challenges, adjusting expectations, or exploring related interests.

Here’s a few ideas to spark that fire in the belly once again…

  1. Solitude. Spend time alone for self-reflection but do not isolate yourself to the point where you become lonely.  People can be exactly what you need right now (see #2).
  2. Ask for feedback.  There are people in your life that have a front row seat at your life.  Ask them what they see and give them permission to provide some honest feedback.
  3. Brace yourself. Prepare yourself for hearing perspectives that may feel wrong, incorrect or untrue.  Then set your ego aside and admit there’s some truth to what is being said. 
  4. Ditch the excuses.  We sometimes get in the habit of making excuses for not doing things.  Yes, even the things we claim to be passionate about. 
  5. Clear the emotional blockages. I firmly believe when we work through the emotional wounds of our past that have caused us to feel guilt, shame, regret or remorse, it blocks our passion energy from flowing.  So talk to a therapist (or purchase my A COURSE IN TRANSFORMATION GUIDEBOOK on AMAZON) to get to the heart of the blockage. 

When it’s all said and done, our passion is the driving force for why we do what we do.  When our passion dwindles, it causes unhappiness, self-dissatisfaction,  impacts our relationships and bleeds into other aspects of our lives.  When left untreated, we soon become bitter and resentful.  This is a serious imbalance that needs to be remedied.  So the next time you feel uninspired, a lack of enthusiasm, or when the zest for life has diminished, take a good hard look in the mirror and work through that unfinished business.  Take the time to make the changes that light that fire in your belly.  Do whatever is necessary to become the next best version of yourself. I promise you’ll be rewarded with a happy, fulfilled life with an inferno of gratification. 

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Angel Carlton Anderson is a Transformational Writer, Speaker and Facilitator…helping people evolve through the natural cycle of change so that they transform into a greater version of themselves, live a life of purpose & lead with impact.  

To Learn more visit:  TransformwithAngel.com