If you want this… practice that

Posted on September 17, 2023 by Bhanu Misra Marya

I was able to get over a summer reading slump with a fast paced thriller – which I thought meant I could then start another book that peaked my curiosity. I love personal success and personal dev books (unfortunately, they are also the cause of me being 1 book behind schedule on my “read 12 books in 2023” self-set challenge).

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Although I also believe these types of book don’t necessarily help someone, unless that person actually executes on said advice. However, books can be eye opening and for me personally I like to spread the word so to speak. Whether it helps me create content for this blog, a caption for an IG post or an insightful tweet, I feel it lets me help raise the vibration of this planet, even if the wisdom only reaches 1 other human.

Anywho, the reason why I shared that thought process was because if you are out there and you are not sure you should share you idea, opinion or art (remember as long as you aren’t hurting anyone) – you should do it anyway. When we share something, we always put our own unique spin on it – which inherently makes it compliment the millions of other ideas that already exist. So in conclusion – I may not execute on everything I read in a personal success book, but I’m sure to share the wealth of knowledge! But because I want to continuously up my creative game (this?), I need to get more comfortable with sharing (that!)

On the note of sharing… I’m also sharing a quick list on how to raise your vibes when you want to get to the next emotional level/frequency. Want to read more on this topic, check out more from my blog: here, here and here.

Abundance ↔ Gratitude

Joy ↔ Service to Others

Freedom ↔ Laugh More

Calm Mind ↔ Nature Walk

Intuition ↔ Meditation

Peace ↔ Journal

Confidence ↔ Self Compassion

Review, Refocus & Readjust – Mid year goal review

Posted on July 25, 2023 by Bhanu Misra Marya

As we round out the first half of the year and slide into the second half, I thought it would be a great idea to provide some inspiration to reset, readjust, restart and refocus.

Review your goals and determine priority
Before blindly continuing to do something that may no longer be serving you, take some time to review your goals. Maybe you’ve plateaued in some areas, or maybe you haven’t given enough time to one area of your life. Even better, maybe you’ve accomplished a goal and it no longer requires your attention. Creating self awareness is really important and it’s also a good idea to get organized in a way that makes sense to you. Maybe writing the goals that you will continue to work on on a sticky or using a Moleskin to help refocus an area where you’ve been lacking.
Disrupt and edit your routine
Once you’ve figure out what you want to focus on, redesign your daily habits to meet those goals. It’s true what they say…success is a series of small wins. Use your day planner, Gcal or Notion to structure your day and include activities that help you work towards ticking off those goals by end of year
Level up, track your progress & give yourself grace
As you continue your goal achievement journey, do you best to stay accountable (whether that is through a private IG account, blog or good ol’ pen & paper). I’m a big believer in documenting your life and it’s always nice to see how far you’ve come. But what’s even more important is giving yourself grace. Working towards your personal and professional goals are not meant to be invigorating and inspiring so remember to take breaks/rest, celebrate your wins and smile!

Activities to build mindfulness into my day

Posted on February 27, 2023 by Bhanu Misra Marya

As a working mom, blogger, etsy shop owner, wife, home owner – I’ve become really aware of how mindfulness plays into my day. My ability to focus, being intentional, doing this without rushing and not multi-tasking. I know mindfulness is important to me because it’s helped me have a greater enthusiasm for life and higher self esteem. Read on to learn some activities I’ve started incorporating mindfulness to help me observe my thoughts & practice the art of leisure.

Mindful art / art therapy

I’m still guilty of multi tasking. But I’ve found when I’m making art (painting, mixed media, photography) I don’t actually multi task! Making art is a great way to express myself beyond words. It encourages us to be present in the moment & experiences, through noticing the sensations we are experiencing as well as how our art (the way the paint moves or how the picture I just captured looks on my digital display) responds to our input.

Listening to solfeggio music:

Ever step into a spa and feel immediately relaxed? Spas help you relax because of their environment. And part of that environment is the music! I recently found solfeggio music and how the different tones can help you promote benefits to different parts of the mind and body. The use of tones and frequencies music dates back to ancient Sanskrit chants (read: Om) but the modern science is fascinating. Apparently DNA become more healthy (ie show increased UV absorption) when they were exposed to different tones (such as the Sanskrit chants). Further research confirmed that the certain frequencies of the Earth’s ionosphere matched that of the human brain wave patterns! (Notably the frequency that encourages cell regeneration & healing) Most musical instruments were tuned to match the earth’s vibrational frequency so by default listening to solfeggio music (specifically designed to recreate the earth’s & human brainwaves) can help you feel at ease and change the your DNA!

Deleting social apps

Mindless scrolling is the most obvious of activities to remove from your day. I delete social media apps which immediately stops the scrolling for no reason. This then improved productivity because I am more focused!

Anytime gratitude & visualization as often as I can

Being able to take control of your self talk/the voices in your head is an important way to be mindful. Not letting negative self talk run a muck in your mind can be prevent by training yourself to see the good (have gratitude) and be positive (visualize something that would be help you think the opposite of the negative self talk).

How to make better to do lists!

Posted on January 15, 2023 by Bhanu Misra Marya

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To do lists are the micro levels of my big dreams. Big dreams are astronomical, may take months or years to achieve them, require persistence and consistency. Consistency is where our daily to do lists come in.

I do want to preface this post by saying the following:

we shouldn’t be slaves to our to do lists
to do lists don’t own us
to do lists are meant to serve us

So if your daily to do list, post it or weekly planner spread is making you feel bad about yourself – throw it out, take a beat and start over again when you are ready!

We shouldn’t feel productivity debt (feeling like you always need to be doing something and rest is not deserved unless your to do list is completed) from not completing everything on our to do list & there is nothing you NEED to do to earn your existence.

But when you are ready to schedule the day you want to make it amazing – read on!

Side note: I’m writing this as I was feeling overwhelm trying to use notion. Notion is meant to be a tool to keep your life organized but there was too much scope creep in their product – for me at least. The idea that it might also need to look aesthetic, link to a Spotify playlist and my Pinterest mood board was a little too much. So I realized I need to step back and figured others might need to too.

So how do we make our to do lists work for us?

Figure out your big dreams, goals, priorities and projects. But also think about the habits you want to build and routines you want to have.
Pick a medium that works for you. Could be paper or digital, simple or complex. You’ll also want to choose a template: Is it just 1 sticky note for the day, or multiple colour coded ones, is it a weekly spread planner or an hour-by-hour list of tasks. This can obviously change but it’s a great idea to try something out.
Fill your list with your daily living + tasks that will help you got to your big goals. Example are meetings, but also your workouts (goal: to focus on fitness). It could be having lunch with someone and blocking 2 hours in the morning for writing (goal: to write a book).
Pick something to fail at. Not everything has to be checked off and not everything has to be done well. So knowing what can be moved to another day vs a non-negotiable will help you stay intentional and not feel like you aren’t moving forward.

Remember – it’s all about getting to outcomes (not getting things done). Your to do list should be on your side helping you build intentional habits and keep you 1 step closer to your goals!

How to come back to your higher self

Posted on January 8, 2023 by Bhanu Misra Marya

With 2023’s first major lunar event just passing us, I thought I might be a good time to talk about how we can really show up as our true, authentic selves. I’ve been fascinated by the moon forever, but more recently, I love tracking where it is in the sky, the phase and how we as human’s have been connected to the moon for millennia.

The moon helps us identify with ourselves. But understanding ourselves is a journey and on that journey there will be phases (pun intended) where you are truly in tune with yourself and times where you feel like you can barely see yourself at all (…just like the phases of our moon).

So it’s in those darker times, where the moon is not visible and you are struggling to live as your highest self, that we need to find our ways back to your path – your true authentic self.

Try these activities the next time you feel like you need raise your vibes and come back to your higher self.

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Gratitude: In the morning, randomly through the day and before bed. I always write a gratitude list in the morning, use the DayOne app to quickly write a gratitude list at any time of day and then mentally say what I’m grateful for before bed.
Love for yourself & others: Love comes in all shapes and sizes, even more so, the the love you have for yourself. Take time to care for your self (whether that’s acting on your goals, washing your face consistently, doing your favourite hobby or taking a weekly bubble bath). When it comes to others, making time for friends and loved ones, hugging and forgiving quickly are equally important.
Eat high vibe foods: When I’m eating processed, fast or fried foods, I immediately feel my vibrations sink. Not only do my jeans feel extra snug but I’m usually in an energy slump and crabby to myself and others. When I’m eating clean and a variety of foods it’s easier to feel good about myself, my environment and my situation.
Consume high vibe content: It’s not only what you eat but what you listen & watch that can effect how your higher self shows up. Listening to a TedTalk > scrolling Instagram should be a reflex. And believe it or not, after 5 days of switching to affirmations, motivational podcasts and learning new things on youtube and TedX – you’ll immediately find Social Media draining and not want to scroll!
Be active in nature: A walk outdoors is the immediate cure for a bad mood. Thats what I tell my daughters and what I remind myself as well. Fresh air can do wonders for your soul. Still trying to get out more often (only once a week because of the colder weather) but also trying to be creative about it (whether that’s a walk to the library with the family or a walk around the community center when my kids are in karate lessons).

Blogmas | The biggest lesson I learned this year

Posted on December 16, 2022 by Bhanu Misra Marya

I was recently scrolling through TikTok and some someone post about what the biggest lesson that they learned this year. Without even watching the full post – I immediately thought about mine…(goes to show how mindless show intense my multi tasking is!)

I figured it would make a great blogmas post…

The biggest lesson I learned this year was maintaining consistency with my self growth practices.

Now as I’m saying that I realize it sounds very simplistic. But I realized not being consistent actually creates bad habits. Or rather, being consistent creates good habits. And for me those habits are helping me grow and develop.

So here’s the kicker: I find myself only being consistent with my self growth and development rituals (quality journaling, outdoors walks, forrest baths, deep meditation, creating content, making art, reading, learning) when I’m needing to change* something. And then, as soon as I achieve* that something I for some reason decide to de-prioritize those rituals.

Maybe that de-prioritization comes naturally because that thing I achieved takes up more of my time. But I’ve realized that I can’t let it. I need to be consistent with my rituals because they are the only thing that will support me in the long run.

Want more? Follow my Blogmas 2022 journey here!