Inner Peace with Joan Borysenko – Beating Stress and Burn Out

In honor of my upcoming interview with Joan Borysenko on Conversations with the Masters next week, I wanted to share this article, excerpted from Joan’s Inner Peace of Busy People, September, 2003. Beating Stress and Burn Out by Joan Borysenko "Remember-your to-do list is immortal. It will live on long after you're dead." -Joan Borysenko A Stressed Society Comedian George Carlin quipped that he went into a bookstore and asked the clerk where the self-help section was. She refused to tell him since that would defeat the purpose. He could probably have followed the scuffs on the floor. In the year 2000, Americans spent $563 million on self-help books. It's little wonder. Approximately one in three people are sleep deprived, complaining of exhaustion and trouble holding things together. We are an anxious and worried culture. Between 1990 and 1997, the number of doctors' office visits for anxiety increased by 31 percent. The visits for panic disorder more than doubled (ibid). Approximately 12 percent of Americans are depressed, and another 10.2 percent have chronic "low mood." Seventy to 90 percent of visits to primary-care physicians are attributed to stress. And many more people suffer outside doctors' offices where the statistics are gathered. Burnout in Health and Helping Professionals Unfortunately, many of the people who suffer in doctor's offices are the health-care providers themselves. Some are so stressed that they have proceeded to the advanced state of exhaustion called burnout, which is a condition of mind, body and spirit that is distinctly different from stress.  Dr. Archibald Hart, writing for both clergy and other helping professionals makes some of the following distinctions. While burnout is a defense characterized by disengagement, stress is characterized by over-engagement. In burnout emotions become blunted, whereas the stress response is more likely to involve emotional over-reactivity. Whereas burnout produces helplessness and hopelessness, stress produces urgency and hyperactivity. And while both states can lead to depression, the depressions have distinct etiologies. Depression in burnout is secondary to the grief experienced over loss of one's ideals. In stress, the depression is related to the physical need to conserve energy and protect the body. And while stress can lead to panic, phobic and anxiety-type disorders, burnout is more linked to paranoia, detachment and depersonalization. Burnout and Loss of Relationship to Self I think of burnout, which will be more fully defined below, as a critical and dangerous loss of relationship to self. And when the self is lost, there is no longer any possibility of having an authentic relationship with another person. The loss of empathy and the resultant perception of other people as problems to be dispatched rather than as human beings to be evoked, is one of the hallmarks of burnout. The term burnout was coined in reference to professionals in human services-where individuals entered their work with a high degree of idealism and high expectations of helping people and doing meaningful work. Yet they encountered demand from clients that they could not meet, were frustrated by the bureaucracy, and sensed that their skill and dedication were not appreciated. As a result, they withdrew emotionally from colleagues and clients, became apathetic, thought of their work only as a means of making money, and lost interest, energy, and dedication. They became burned out. As a result, they withdrew emotionally from colleagues and clients, became apathetic, thought of their work only as a means of making money, and lost interest, energy, and dedication. They became burned out. -David E. Hartl, Ed.D. The literature on burnout and "compassion fatigue"-the "cost of caring" for others in emotional pain- has burgeoned in recent years. Several studies have shown that the longer people work in the helping professions, the less they tend to enjoy their occupation. The result is a distancing from the patient or client, the opposite of the relationship-centered caring that we seek to provide. Doctors, lawyers and clergy are at particular risk for burnout and have the most problems with drug abuse, alcoholism and suicide, Nurses, nursing home workers, and any healthcare professional who cares for a population where there is significant pain, trauma and likelihood of deterioration and death are also at significant risk for either high stress or burnout. It's easy to forget that life is filled with joy and blessing when your work provides a steady diet of suffering. Dr. William Cone, a psychologist who specializes in stress management cites data (see footnote 5) showing that RN's actually have lower rates of burnout compared to nurse's aides and LPNs. This is attributed to the higher workload for the lesser trained healthcare providers. Burnout, at its core, has been defined as overload, having more to do than you can possibly cope with. In a society where "crazy busy" is the watchword of the day, the healthcare provider is on a particularly crazy-making treadmill. With the advent of managed care, and the need to see more patients in less time, demands on healthcare workers have increased to proportions that often become unmanageable for any sustained period. Insurance forms, bureaucratic hassles, information overload and the need to keep up with rapid advances in one's field is incredibly time-consuming. Add family and community responsibilities to the mix, and the strain can be overwhelming. It is all too easy to put ourselves last on our own list, taking care of everybody else's needs without considering our own. Cone cites lack of professional recognition as another a factor in burnout. He writes, "Some companies feel that paying people for their effort is reward enough. Nevertheless, research shows that money has never been the primary motivator in work. One of my clients once told me, 'If all I cared about was money, I'd be a hit man. The pay's good, the hours are great, and if my clients die, I feel successful.'" In Burnout-The Cost of Caring, author Christina Maslach defines burnout as "a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion marked by physical depletion and chronic fatigue, feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, and by development of a negative self-concept and negative attitudes towards work, life and other people." She offers five cardinal signs: keeping up the usual speed becomes more and more difficult as energy gets depleted; feelings of vocational failure creep in; the work seems less and less rewarding in proportion to all the effort invested in it; a sense of helplessness to change things takes over; and finally, innocence is lost. Cynicism about one's self, other people, society and the world holds up a pervasive negative lens to life. How ironic that idealistic people with the highest motivation to relate in an empathetic, healing manner through their work are most at risk for loss of self, and in the process, the physical, emotional and spiritual apparatus of caring. Most helping professionals who are burned out could write a paper on how to avoid burnout. It's not that we don't know what to do; it's that too many of us simply don't do it. Another factor in self-neglect is simple denial. It's easy to brush off exhaustion, depression, and overwork by doing what we do best-working harder and longer. This might lead to what humorist Loretta LaRoche writes of in her book Life is Not a Stress Rehearsal -a tombstone that states, "Got everything done, dead anyway." Strategies for Maintaining the Relationship to Self In response to my own encroaching sense of burnout, I did what many helping professionals are prone to do. I wrote a book to help other people with the problem I was having. It is called Inner Peace for Busy People: 52 Simple Strategies for Transforming Your Life. The book takes physical, emotional and spiritual self-care skills to a simple level that is hard to resist. Most of the strategies take very little time, other than the suggestion that every person could kick their life into a whole new orbit by taking off one day a week as a real Sabbath. By this I mean a day to drink deeply at the well of faith, family, friends, joy and rest, not a day to catch up on errands. Every day brings a choice: to practice stress or to practice peace. The good news is that finding inner peace, and sustaining a strong relationship to self, doesn't require hours of daily practice. You don't have to stand on your head or stare at your navel. All it takes is a little willingness and common sense. Life is a precious gift to be savored, not an endless series of chores to complete while you complain about being "crazy busy." Remember - your to-do list is immortal. It will live on long after you're dead. Relax and Be More Productive (Excerpted from Chapter One of Inner Peace for Busy People) When I was directing the Mind/Body Clinical Programs, a stress-disorders program at what is now the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, many of the participants were high powered executives. A little brush with a heart attack or cancer had them knocking reluctantly on my door. They wanted to use the power of their mind to heal, but were afraid that learning to relax would take away their competitive edge and dull their motivation. Visions of transcendental zombiehood danced through many minds. Some feared that they would have to trade their three-piece suits for a turban, and a lifetime of navel-gazing and herbal teas. More than once I heard the sentiment that it might be better to forget the whole thing and just die in the saddle. My department chief and mentor, cardiologist Herbert Benson, M.D., knew better. In the late 1970s, he wrote an article for the Harvard Business Review featuring an arcane, but immediately obvious, relationship called the Yerkes-Dodson Law. Don't let the words scare you. Named after two intrepid physiologists, this handy little law looks like an upside-down letter U on a piece of graph paper. As stress increases (the x axis), so does productivity (the y axis). In other words, the more stressed you are, the better your output until you get to the top of the curve, where the upside-down U is poised to start down again. From there it's a rapid downhill slide to poor productivity. Whereas mild to moderate stress helps us power through to-do's, more serious stress gives rise to the un-do's. Let me give you a down-home case in point. If company is coming in an hour and the house is messy, I feel slightly stressed, and challenged to clean up so as to avoid looking like a slob. I get a certain look in my eye, and swoop into action like the white tornado. My husband, Kurt, calls this "getting initialized." My output is truly unbelievable. Like a thousand-armed goddess, I vanquish the dirt and sort the piles. But suppose, on a particularly bad dirt day, I find out that company is coming in ten minutes. The stress is so great, and the job seems so big, that I'm likely to get flustered and confused. I may then be found wandering around the house, looking dazed, with the same pile in my hand for several minutes. My internal wiring is sizzling, and smoke seems to be coming from my ears, because the load on the circuits is too large. I believe that most busy, highly productive people operate in the high-stress range, somewhere on the descending limb of the stress/productivity curve. Their output is still high, but the internal wires are starting to short-circuit and burn. If they learned to relax and shifted back to the left on the Yerkes-Dodson curve, they would find themselves nearer to the top of the inverted U. Their output would actually be greater, while the toll on their body would be lessened. If they relaxed even more-to a point where it seemed like the turban was only another breath away-they would still be able to maintain the same output they had before, when they were burning out. The only workable strategy for maintaining productivity over the long haul is to learn how to relax. There are literally thousands of ways to do that. My hope is that this book will give you suggestions that appeal to your unique physiology and preferences. I don't know what relaxes you, and neither does anyone else. You are the best and only judge of what it is that shuts off the internal dialogue that's always urging you to do more, do faster, and do better. But shut off the internal dialogue we must, if the clever system of body and mind is to restore itself and be available in its full power. This week, put aside an hour a day - yes, I really mean that - to relax in whatever way you enjoy. You will find that instead of constricting the amount of time available for you to get things done, the day will seem to unfold in a more languorous, spacious way. The to-do list will still get done, but you will live to tell about it. Filed under Fulfilling Lives, Inner Peace 101, Inner Peace Practices, Inner Peace Strategies | Comment (0)

Holiday Inner Peace – Being Calm in the Eye of the Storm – 6 Keys

Yes, the holidays are around the corner!  Your life is going reasonably well.  You're focused, "on track" and feeling centered...yet all of a sudden your workload triples, an employee leaves, or a significant person in your life becomes emotionally distraught, or perhaps a death or illness surprises the family.  And, children offer unpredictable challenges too. And then it’s the holidays!  One of my strengths as a coach, is guiding my clients in living and working from greater states of peace, centeredness and balance.  This is the essential ingredient for magnetizing success and fulfillment, whether you are developing a relationship, own a business, manage a team, raise children, trade in the stock market, or are losing weight. Your outside world doesn't have to equal your inside world. Life is always presenting new challenges to strengthen our spirit, expand our consciousness, and foster growth.  Learning how to master accessing the "calm" in any storm is a worthy goal, but it IS obtainable.  What is your current "storm"?  I challenge you to find your center in the eye of it all.

6 Keys to Mastering "Being Calm" in the Eye of the Storm.

1.  Be grounded and connected to yourself. When external chaos arises in our environment, there is a natural human tendency to focus outward on "solving the problem".  When too much of our energy gets tied up "over there", we can lose our center and our power.  This is the most essential ingredient in "successfully dancing" with ANY challenge or difficult situation.  Get reconnected to your power immediately.  When we aren't grounded, we lose access to our intuition, best thinking and resources to handle the situation. Being grounded means being connected to your body, and your power.  Breathe.  Stand up.  Feel your legs under you, connected solidly to the ground. Imagine a steel rod extending down through the back of your spine into the core of the earth, while simultaneously extending up through the crown of your head into the sky.  Breathe.  You may also recall a time in your life when you were exceptionally grounded.  Performing well in sports or business.  The more you become conscious of accessing your power and sense of grounded-ness, the more you will naturally live from this space. 2.  Surrender to "what is". The "storm" is happening.  Okay, so it is.  Quit wishing that "reality" were different than it is. It's raining, snowing or hailing.  You CAN'T control it.  You can't control the stressed emotions or behaviors of another human being.  You can't control events.  You can't control the decisions of customers.  You can't control blocks that come up along the way.  You can't control time.  There are certain steps to establishing or igniting a business.  However, as we see things for what they are, you realize you CAN control your internal emotional experience.  As you are grounded to yourself, you can ALWAYS handle "what is". 3.  Live from the present moment. You can witness a "storm" as a beautiful act of nature, or focus on the damage that may ensue (FUTURE) or the damage already done (PAST).  Focusing on the past or the future takes you out of the present moment, and immediately places you in fear, worry or stress.  Dwelling on a worst case scenario that may never come is wasted energy.  BE HERE NOW.  When we're truly PRESENT to the moment, it becomes clear what the next step is.  In the present moment you have the greatest access to wisdom and guidance.  While anticipating the future is useful, we don't want to live there...especially during a storm.  CALM comes from having ALL of your energy with you in present time. Just as you lose your power and center when your energy is wrapped up in someone else's problem outside yourself, you lose energy when you dwell too much in the future or past.  Be here now. 4.  Consciously choose the higher path. Managing your energy is the theme of this article, as it is the essential ingredient to remain calm and centered...whether a "storm" is present or not.  David Hawkins book, Power vs. Force offers a scale to depict higher energy vs. lower energy emotions (see Soulfully Living Issue #9).  When we are caught up in lower level emotions such as fear, anxiety, guilt, anger, grief or hopelessness, our energy is heavy and dense.  From this perspective, it's easy to see only the "worst case scenarios", as you witness the "storm".  Access to wisdom is limited. However, you can consciously choose to raise your energy.  You may start by accessing "courage" and a "willingness" to change.  You may focus on what you "appreciate" about the situation and your life.  You may start "trusting" the process.  Perhaps you accept "what is"...the circumstances, your own anxiety or the emotional upset of another. Laughing, drinking water, movement, and being present are all quick ways to raise your energy. Looking for the gifts in the "storm" is also an effective strategy.  Just because you got caught momentarily in a negative emotion, doesn't mean you have to live there.  Make a commitment to keep your energy level HIGH.  Make conscious choices.  From a high energy state...decisions are easy, patience is infinite, love flows, and magic happens. 5.  Recognize and anticipate the GIFTS and "perfection" of your current "storm. Often times the greatest crises are the catalyst for remarkable growth.  There are gifts for us to embrace at every step along the way.  Is your business slower than you'd like? Perhaps the gift is extra time with the children or an opportunity to refine your vision.  Is your spouse going through a difficult period? Perhaps this is the juncture for a life-altering change that will ultimately create more joy for you both.  Does it feel that you won't ever complete your enormous task list and your new business will never flourish? Perhaps this is an opportunity to create new systems, and create a new mindset in taking your business to the next level.  Perhaps this "storm" is an opportunity for you to really "get" that you CAN remain calm and centered in the eye of any "storm". There is always a gift. Often there are MANY. 6.   The Dance Between Responsibility and Trust. TRUST that what is to come ALWAYS serves the Greater Good. AND, as life is unfolding...take responsible action. We do the best we can in comforting a spouse, solving a problem, managing our day and defining a strategy.  Part of taking responsibility is also investigating your own reactions, fears or eliminating a limiting belief. Yet, there comes a point when we need to trust the process.  All is unfolding as it should.  Again, leaning too much on the side of responsibility, we're trying to "control the storm", and that doesn't work.  If it's raining out, you may pull out an umbrella, collect the water for another purpose, or just enjoy the experience of it - recognize that all "storms" do come to an end. The question is, are you going to be exhausted and depleted when the "storm" is over...or will you have a smile on your face, knowing you've somehow optimized the storm?  The choice is always yours. Enjoy the season and remember these 6 Keys. Filed under Emotional Muscles, Fulfilling Lives, Inner Peace 101, Inner Peace Practices, Inner Peace Strategies | Comment (1)

Inner Peace and Your Circle of Influence – What is their impact on your life?

As human beings, our lives are shaped and influenced by a myriad of factors, and relationships is at the top of the list.  Think about how much of "who you are today" was influenced by a specific parent, sibling, relative, teacher, coach, neighbor, author, speaker, boss, co-worker, spouse or friend.  Values, habits, behavior, knowledge, skills, passions, hobbies, tastes and attitudes are typically learned through association with others. Yet, as influential as relationships are, most people haven't consciously chosen their greatest "circle of influence".  Fortunately or unfortunately, some people are born automatically in our lives.  Some come through marriages.  Geography plays a role.  Where you work and what you do for a living is a factor.  Even friendships develop through circumstances.  Through this consortium is a variety of individuals that make up our "circle of influence".  Some are negative; others simply neutral by-standers, and often we are blessed with enriching associations that positively impact our lives. Years ago at a Jim Rohn seminar, I heard this statement.

"We become the combined average of the FIVE people we associate with most."

Look at your own life and see how true this statement is.  The five people you associate with most likely reflect your bank account, health, career choices, self-esteem, habits (good and bad), interests, quality of conversation, values and goals.  When you compare yourself to them, are you setting the standard, keeping the status quo or pulling the average down?  Do you LOVE spending time with the people in your life or do tolerate the experience?  Or is it somewhere in between? At the time, I took inventory in my own life and wrote down the names of the individuals I was spending the most time with.  Then, I asked the hard question, "What are the people in my life doing to me?"

People are either pulling you up, pulling you down, or keeping you comfortably in neutral. For me back then, I realized that "upgrading" my circle of influence was in my best interest.  I made a list of 10 people that I would like to spend more time with, and made the conscious decision to spend more time with those individuals I admired, respected and wanted to be most like.  Simultaneously, I limited or eliminated my time with those who weren't really adding much to my life aside from companionship, gossiping and partying it up. It's fun to look back and see that several of the people I admired and respected most, have indeed become good friends that now consider me their equal. More than the conscious decision to go "friend" or "mentor" hunting is the AWARENESS about your circle of influence. Just being present to the impact someone has on your state of being is powerful. Check in with your own life. Who are the five people you associate with most? Who are the ten people you associate with most?  Write it down.  For simplicity, determine which of the following categories describe those in your circle of influence.  While everyone can dance in each of these modes at time, notice which one or two are the overriding. 1. Energy Draining - These are the people who deplete or drain your energy.  They complain, whine, criticize, blame, use sarcasm, condemn, gossip and otherwise focus on the bleaker view of life.  They are pessimistic.  When you spend time with them, you notice the heaviness of their presence, and instantly feel better when you walk away.  These people may be coming to you with their stories and challenges, seeking your support and input. These people aren't about bringing you joy and happiness, or adding anything but a dark perspective on life. SUGGESTIONS:  I personally like to limit my time with people who fall in this category.  However, these people are great mirrors for embracing your shadow or dark side.  Byron Katie's work on "Loving What Is" is particularly useful here. QUESTION: What if my family is Energy Draining? I encourage everyone to love your family members for who they are to the very best of your ability.  And, again Katie's work on "Loving What Is" is useful.  While you may consciously choose to limit your time with them, learning to love them unconditionally is often the greater gift with these individuals. 2. Energy Comforting - These people are likely your friends, peers or possibly family members.  They are a lot like you, and share similar values and interests.  You enjoy being with them, and feel better by being around them.   We all love having people in our lives that bring comfort, acknowledgment, sharing and understanding. The pitfall or trap to beware of here is the word "comfort".  This group is likely to keep you anchored to bad habits, disempowering stories and limiting beliefs that may hold you back. Part of how you relate with each other may be through sharing similar problems and challenges.  The relationship may feel less engaging without a problem to discuss or solve, so problems continue to emerge and cycle. If one of you leaps too far ahead, the relationship may be threatened.  While you may share dreams and goals with each other, there is a tendency to stay "comfortable" with no one moving too far ahead.  Keeping the status quo is the name of the game. SUGGESTIONS: Enjoy and cultivate these relationships.  Become more aware of relating through sharing problems and stories.  Focus more on sharing what you desire and appreciate in life. 3. Energy Empowering - This group of people may also be your friends, but there is a distinct difference as their impact challenges you beyond your "comfort zone". This group may include mentors, authors, leaders, business associates or those deemed wildly successful.  This group sets the example of what you aspire to emulate.  They may have a life that you admire, respect or are striving for. They are an example of possibility to you.  They inspire, empower, lead and challenge you to grow.  They may believe more in you than you do in yourself, and encourage you to live your highest potential.  These people aren't always the "easiest" to be around because their nature demands the best from you. While challenging, these relationships fulfill the need you have to evolve, accelerating growth, success and fulfillment.  Their presence is so potent, that even short time periods are often very influential. SUGGESTIONS:  Consciously seek out more of these individuals out and spend time with them.  Ask them questions.  Pay attention to their habits, values, beliefs and state of being.  See yourself as their peer.  Look for ways that you can contribute value to them. The next step is to write down the 5-10 people you admire, respect and value most. Maybe they are an acquaintance or someone you recently met.  There may already people in your life that meet the "Energy Empowering" criteria, but you'd enjoy spending more time with them. It doesn't matter how well you know them or not right now.  If your list is short, you may want to commit to expanding your circle of influence and "upgrading" as I did years ago. It all begins by simply being aware of how people are positively, negatively or neutrally affecting you.  This is enough to allow you to make new conscious choices. While I've continue to expand my associations through the years, I periodically check in with this potent exercise.  I am also quick to notice the Energy Drains in my life, a limit my associations.  Fortunately, through the years of intention, I am wildly blessed with an abundance of associations that I truly admire and respect.  In recent years, spending time with all of the people I enjoy is the greater challenge.  But, that's a quality problem I'd wish on anyone. Filed under Fulfilling Lives, Inner Peace 101, Inner Peace Practices, Inner Peace Strategies | Comment (0)

Inner Peace: 10½ Keys to Living Fully Fulfilled – KEY #4 – Love Yourself to Pieces.

I met a very special lady in the "healing profession", and her words branded me for life. "If everyone could just learn to love themselves to pieces". They say love is one of life's greatest medicines. And it is a medicine we need to administer to ourselves - generously. I believe that loving ourselves is foundational to living life. When we love ourselves, we take greater care of ourselves, and make clearer decisions that propel our highest good. Some people don't feel worthy of love and goodness, and consistently sabotage themselves. If you're like most people you haven’t practiced giving yourself  "unconditional love". Try this. Clear your mind and relax, you may even lie on the floor. Imagine yourself being bathed in unconditional love. Let those feelings penetrate every cell in your body, from your head to your toes. Let the feeling expand and grow with every breath, until you are surrounded by ten inches of unconditional love. Let it all in.  It feels good, doesn't it? I used to think, "of course I love myself". Then I did this exercise, it changed my life. I didn't realize I could give myself that "warm, wonderful feeling" anytime I chose to focus on it. And loving ourselves is a powerful energy with enormous benefits!!! The more YOU give LOVE to yourself, the more you will attract it in your life. Take 5 minutes each day to connect with this feeling of "unconditional loving". For most of us, it's an unused muscle that will need conditioning. It may feel uncomfortable at first, and I challenge you to stick with it. It'll impact your self-esteem, you'll feel more loving and generous, and you'll begin to attract more wonderful things into your life. Because, after all - YOU do deserve it. Go for it! Filed under Fulfilling Lives, Inner Peace 101, Inner Peace Practices, Inner Peace Strategies | Comment (0)

Conversations with the Masters – Joan Borysenko

"Conversations with the Masters" Hosted By Mary Allen

Joan Borysenko New York Times Best-Selling Author of Minding the Body, Mending the Mind, Inner Peace for Busy People, 7 Paths to God and It's not the End of the World

• Are you, too, feeling "tested" as the world is in crisis?
• Would you like to shift from stress to strength?
• Ready to strengthen your own sense of resilience?

Joan Borysenko

CONVERSATIONS with the MASTERS Tuesday, November 17th 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific (2-3 pm Eastern)

Cost: No Charge

Register Now by Visiting:

www.lifecoachmary.com/joanborysenko.htm

During This Interview We'll Explore: The world is in crisis, but you don't have to be. We all know resilient people who bounce back from hardship to create a more fulfilling life. That's the promise of change. Other people stress out and melt down, losing hope and health. That's the danger of change. The good news is that resilience isn't a genetic gift for the lucky few. It's an easily understood skill that anyone can practice and master. Resilient people and companies face facts head-on, look for deeper meaning, are great improvisers, laugh often, and know how to manage stress. A new kind of natural selection is already having its way with us. We're being prepared to become a whole-brain species and to use the full potential of both right and left brain to recreate the world. * How to hold fear in the palm of your hand without being burned by it's fire. * Putting the 3 Secrets of Resilience to work in your life. * Accessing the genius within you that is ready and able to re-create the world. * What it takes to train your brain for success. * Living with Vision and Purpose regardless of what is going on in the external world. Personal Note from Life Coach Mary: For years people kept asking me, "Do you know Joan Borysenko's work?" Finally last year, I purchased several of her books, including "Inner Peace for Busy People" and instantly realized what kindred spirits we are: both on a mission to expand inner peace and well-being in the world. I admire Joan Borysenko's work tremendously, as she's authored numerous best-selling books, is published in countless journals and speaks to audiences worldwide -- most importantly affecting millions by her life's work. I love how she combines spirituality and science, offering both the practical take-home strategies while addressing the mental, emotional and spiritual components. I'm honored to bring Dr. Joan to the Conversations with the Masters series on Tuesday, November 17th. I hope you'll join me. About Joan Borysenko: This distinguished pioneer in integrative medicine is a world-renowned expert in the mind/body connection. Her work has been foundational in an international health-care revolution that recognizes the role of meaning, and the spiritual dimensions of life, as an integral part of health and healing. Eloquent and inspiring in settings that range from hospitals to hospices, from theaters to conference venues, and from boardrooms to houses of worship, she is a credible bridge between faith and reason. Her brilliance, humor, and authenticity-in combination with the latest research-make her a compelling and inspiring speaker and writer. After graduating magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College in 1967, Dr. Borysenko earned her doctorate in Medical Sciences from the Harvard Medical School, where she completed post-doctoral training in cancer cell biology. Her first faculty position was at the Tufts University College of Medicine in Boston. But after the death of her father from cancer, she became more interested in the person with the illness than in the disease itself, and returned to Harvard Medical School to complete a second postdoctoral fellowship, this time in the new field of behavioral medicine. Under the tutelage of Herbert Benson, M.D., who first identified the relaxation response and brought meditation into medicine, she was awarded a Medical Foundation Fellowship and completed her third post-doctoral fellowship in psychoneuroimmunology. In the early 1980's Dr. Borysenko co-founded a Mind/Body clinic with Dr. Benson and Dr. Ilan Kutz, became licensed as a psychologist, and was appointed instructor in medicine at the Harvard Medical School. Her years of clinical experience and research culminated in the 1987 publication of the New York Times best seller, Minding the Body, Mending the Mind, which sold over 400,000 copies. The 20th anniversary edition, newly revised, was published in 2007. Author or co-author of 13 other books and numerous audio and video programs, including the Public Television special Inner Peace for Busy People, she is the Founding Partner of Mind/Body Health Sciences, LLC located in Boulder, Colorado and the Director of The Claritas Institute Interspiritual Mentor Training Program. Dr. Borysenko's warmth and credibility-plus her lively sense of humor-create a compelling presence. You can access video clips of Joan's inspirational reflections in the Community Members section of this Web site. She also hosts a weekly Internet radio show, Your Soul's Compass, for Hay House and Joan is one of the most popular and sought after speakers in the field of health, healing, and spirituality, her engaging and well researched presentations are perfect both for professionals and for the general public. Filed under Conversations with the Masters | Comment (0)

Inner Peace Quote: Deepak Chopra

“Seekers are offered clues all the time from the world of spirit. Ordinary people call these clues coincidences." - Deepak Chopra Filed under Inner Peace Quotes | Comment (0)

Inner Peace Strategy: 5 Minutes of “Doing” Nothing

5 Minutes of "Doing" Nothing - As a coach, I work with numerous over-achieving clients, who are super "doers". Yet, amidst all the success, they desire more balance in their lives and are intrigued with the idea of "being" more.  BEING meaning... connecting more to yourself...or your soul. Perhaps you, too, desire more balance and more of that divine connection to YOU. The good news is, it’s easy to begin integrating "beingness" into your life. And, every client who has embarked on this exercise has experienced an immediate positive impact. SOULFUL CHALLENGE: Take 5 Minutes each day for the next week, and do "nothing". Just spend time BEING. That means, clear away the thoughts, clear away the action and just be. No books, no journaling, no sleeping, NO THINKING. Nothing. Just BE. That’s it. Too simple? Well, yes and no. Yes, it’s relatively simple to find 5 minutes out of your 24 hours a day to set aside for yourself. Can you do it? Absolutely. The real question is WILL you actually take those 5 minutes for yourself - each day - for a whole week? Deciding to go for it is the easy part. The clients that have taken on this seemingly innocent task, tap into a new sense of awareness.  At first, clients realize how much "chitter-chatter" is going on inside their brains, and how challenging it is to turn OFF the chatter.  Clients also realize how ‘programmed’ they are to do, do, do, and go, go, go.  Doing "nothing" may seem more challenging than doing "doing".  You may feel this also. Yet, as you stay with the process, and let go of the "doingness" and just BE, you will begin to experience an array of benefits, including a greater sense of peace, expanded sense of time and personal insight. Taking control of these 5 minutes is the first step in taking control of your life.  Soon "beingness" will begin to play a larger role in your life. I don’t want to spoil all the surprises for you. Experience 5 Minutes of BEINGNESS for yourself. And, feel free to email me about your experience. Filed under Fulfilling Lives, Inner Peace Practices, Inner Peace Strategies | Comment (0)