Meaningful Archives — Page 37 of 41

Five Essentials For A Long, Happy & Healthy Relationship

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Aware, Meaningful, Sustainable, Thankful

Real love takes more than flowers once a year!

I’ve never considered myself an expert on relationships. Instead, I’ve always thought of myself as extremely fortunate that I had such a great marriage and partnership. But this Valentine’s Day is a year when Thom and I will be celebrating our 35^th wedding anniversary and I can honestly say I love him now much more than when we first got together. So, upon reflection, I might not be an expert, but I do believe that along the way I’ve learned a few things that makes for a happy life between two people.

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Are You an Innie or an Outie? —Spiritually Speaking of Course!

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized

Happy SMART Day Everyone!

Do you know whether you’re and innie or an outie? While those terms usually refer to a belly button, they apply even better when you are asking about a person’s spirituality. In other words, is your spiritual life inner-directed or outer-directed? And it doesn’t really matter what religion you practice. If you live your life based upon what others tell you to do, be, have or care about—even if that “other” is a spiritual leader of sorts—then you are outer-directed. If you instead listen to your own soul—especially in matters of the heart and spirit—then you are an innie. A huge part of living SMART 365 is learning the difference and then following the still, small voice within. [Read more…]

When Is Enough Enough? And Five Tips To Help Find Out

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized, Thankful

Click On Photo for Video

Over the weekend, Thom and I had dinner with a friend whose lifestyle changed dramatically in the last couple of years. Our friend, Tami* was single for most of the 30+ years we’ve known her. Then a couple of years ago she married a very wealthy man. Although Tami was always financially secure in her life, she now admitted how great it was to never have to worry about bills or finances ever again. Unfortunately, her joy was short-lived. Within five minutes, she began complaining about the high amount of taxes she and her new husband would be paying for 2011 along with the drain her new husband’s adult children were on the family. Later she grumbled about how unfair it was of the current political administration to even consider raising her tax rate. The conversation was a great reminder that it is easy to forget that our sense of well-being, comfort and peace of mind has less to do with how much money we have—and everything to do with how we think about it. In most cases, regardless of how much we actually have—we only have enough when we think we have enough. [Read more…]

Seven Surefire Reasons Why Everyone Should Start A Garden

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Aware, Meaningful, Sustainable

“Why try to explain miracles to your kids when you can just have them plant a garden.” –Robert Brault

Starting a garden has been a goal of mine ever since we moved into our new house nearly a year and a half ago. Just like every one of us, I had dozens of great excuses for why it was easy to put it off and not get started. Still, slowly but surely Thom and I began taking steps towards creating the perfect space on our small urban lot. This last weekend I finally put the plants in the soil. Now I have a vegetable garden and regardless of whether anything actually bears fruit, I can begin reaping the many benefits offered by such a time-honored and humble activity. [Read more…]

A Tale of Two Colonoscopies

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized, Thankful

Happy SMART Day Everyone!

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” so begins Charles Dickens classic novel, “A Tale of Two Cities.” But that statement and the major themes of the story apply to most of the experiences of every person on the planet on a regular basis. Do we allow the tragedy, inequity and oppression of life’s circumstances to beat us down—or like some characters in the book, do we reach for resurrection and transformation? Even situations as routine or pedestrian as a colonoscopy offer us each of us a similar choice. It’s SMART to always remember that decision is up to us. [Read more…]

Retreating to Mindfulness and Timeless Awareness With Lama Surya Das

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized

This weekend Thom and I attended our first Dzogchen Buddhist Retreat. As seminar junkies, we’ve taken tons of spiritual classes and workshops of an hour or two here or there that focused on Buddhism or meditation. But this was our first official “retreat.” And while an evening and one day may not appear to be much of a retreat, it certainly served to get us out and away from our usual lives. More importantly, it pulled the focus of our attention away from our usual thoughts and concerns, and placed it instead on the experience of “mindfulness” or inner awareness and spiritual compassion. That switch of focus is a SMART thing to do every now and then, regardless of who you are or what you call it. [Read more…]

Work Less—Live SMARTer!

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized, Sustainable

Working Hard? Or Hardly Working in Hawaii…

Do you think you work too hard? You’re not alone. Many people I talk to, especially those younger with families, report being over-worked, overwhelmed and clearly unable to take even a moment to pause and reflect on the direction of their life. We all know that chronic overwork increases our stress levels, endangers our physical health, triggers depression and decreases our “life satisfaction.” So why do we continue to put in long hours? And what’s the solution? It’s likely that the simple answer is to work less and live SMARTer. In fact, there is evidence that working less not only increases the quality of an individual’s life—it is also much better for the entire planet.

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Your Brain—It’s SMART to Use It Or Lose It!

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized, SMART Book Reviews

Click on Photo for Video

Is the human brain considered plastic? Yes, but unfortunately many people don’t know it. And, even though science now proves that the brain can structurally and functionally reorganize itself, many of us still live our lives as though we are stuck with whatever nature or God provided. Instead, ongoing studies now show that not only does our brain change in size and function throughout our lifetimes; certain areas compete for specific territory within the brain verifying a “use it or lose it” quality. For those of us who want to continue to embrace the best life has to offer, we’d be wise to continue to grow our brains on a daily basis.

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Failing Forward and Other Ways To Re-Create The Future

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful

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I’m like most people. I don’t like the idea of failure. Failure usually means I’ve done something wrong or wasted my time. But what if failure were one of the best ways to experience a lifetime of forward growth and momentum? And what if when I’m not failing on a regular basis, I’m not doing much of anything at all? Like the statement, “grow or die,” maybe we’d all do well to start seeing the act of failing as a step on the path to a happy, exciting and SMART life.

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The New Year—A Blank Piece of Paper Awaiting Inspiration

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Aware, Meaningful, Sustainable

As a writer, it’s easy for me to imagine each New Year as a blank piece of paper awaiting my inspiration. But when you think about it, that metaphor actually works for everyone. Every year we all have the potential to start over with a story—our personal story for sure—and any other story we want to create. And because this year is 2017, you may be already creating a year filled with all sort of drama and possibility. Or, it’s also likely that this year will just be a carbon-copy of last year. As usual, the choice is up to us.

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