Fear Busting « The Inspiration Nation

July 25, 2007

Lessons from crabs about why we must be vulnerable

Filed under: Fear Busting, Personal Development — tshombe @ 12:45 am

What do crabs know that we humans have trouble understanding?

What? Have no idea?

Neither did I, until Dov Baron explained this phenomenon. The blunt truth is that crabs willingly make themselves vulnerable in order to grow.

It’s a strange paradox that many of us have difficulty — some are openly resistant to even the idea — allowing ourselves to be vulnerable when we may cognitively know that growth (both personally and professionally) requires the courage to be vulnerable.

And the common crab can teach us a thing or two about the value of embracing risk and vulnerability in the interests of growth.

What I didn’t know about crabs (that once mentioned to me I see as plainly obvious) is that their skeleton (called an exoskeleton) is on the outside of their bodies. It is hard and inflexible, and it’s main function is protection. For example, if a bird or other like predator pecks at or attacks the crab, the crab’s exoskeleton serves as armor, as a barrier from and against the blows.

This same structure, because of its inflexibility, also (ironically) becomes a ceiling for growth and development of the organism.

The crab intuitively knows that, in order to grow, it must back out of its shell. Tthis is what the crab, in fact, does.

The process of shedding the exoskeleton is called molting. As reported by Brian Handwerk of National Geographic News, "They pump themselves up and inflate their gut, and that increased pressure will cause the old outer skeleton to crack, so that the crab can back out of it."

The only problem is, now without a protective skeleton, the crab is open to attack; it is now vulnerable. However, if it were to remain within it’s restrictive shell, it would suffocate.

So it is with us.

We’re trained (particularly men) that vulnerability is the ultimate death, that it will pierce the heart, leaving us disgraced and pitiful.

But, what if you were to outgrow your armor? What could you do, have, or be if you refused to suffocate in your protective shell?

When you decide to live your life authentically and honestly by discarding your exoskeleton, you are indeed more open to attack. At the same time, however, it’s simply not possible to grow and become all you are meant to be by staying where you are.

What might you be holding onto (in the name of protection or self-preservation) that may be keeping you from realizing your dreams?

What might be wonderful about letting that go?

July 8, 2007

Healing The Mind With Ho’oponopono

Filed under: Fear Busting, Gratitude, Love, Relationships — tshombe @ 10:50 pm

In a blog entry on Finding Inspiration and Opportunity Amid Customer Complaints that I wrote last year, I referred to a Joe Vitale story about a man (Dr. Hew Len) who used the ancient Hawaiian practice, Ho’oponopono, to heal an entire ward of mentally ill patients.

The following is an article written by a nurse who shows how this ancient practice has very real and practical applications in life and work in our modern day.

I’d love to hear what you think about it.
– TB

Healing The Mind With Ho’oponopono

This week, I witnessed the advent of electronic charting in our workplace, and am gratified to be learning for once and for all how closing the mind and opening the mind yield two entirely different results.

I view the IPROB computer system as a fragment of myself.

(IPROB is the new OB/GYN based computer program upon which all of us must now chart our patient’s medical record where we work).

Ho’oponopono is an ancient Hawaiian healing technique that nurses need to learn in order to survive as a thriving, active and beautiful healing component of the health care system.

Using computers and other advanced technological machines in our work tends to make a nurse feel separate from her patients.

The strange temptation arises to gaze at the computer whenever I am in the middle of charting something. When my patient speaks, I glance her way, glance back at the computer; glance at her, glance back at the computer, like some sort of multi-tasking geek.

The reality is, that these technological advances can free us up to be a healing presence for our patients.

But until I feel at peace with the machine, I can never feel at peace with anyone or anything else.

A mind divided cannot be in harmony, which is what our patients want from us: a well balanced and harmonious, happy healing presence, taking good care of her and making her feel good about being in the hospital to begin with.

As soon as we come to see the IPROB machine as ultimately meaning nothing, and that we make up our meaning about it and about everything else, then an awakening occurs.

What I think about the IPROB machine is a reflection of my mind, is not a truth or even a fact about it.

When I view IPROB as a problem, I am interpreting, remembering, comparing and judging any memory I have about this and all similar memories, certainly not living in the present moment.

Imagine two exact same scenarios experienced by two different people: One nurse decides that she loves IPROB. Consequently, she is efficient, moves patients through the system quicker, spends more time with her patients,and barely has any problems or glitches in the system.

Another nurse decides that she hates IPROB. The computer continually loses her entries, freezes up and shuts down.

I am somewhere in the middle, hating it and loving it, trying to make philosophical sense of it, with varying degrees of success and failure.

The mind creates the sress and fear, the balance and well- being in these examples.

So where does the practice of Ho’oponopono fit into my perception of what I see as a problem with electronic charting, with nurses leaving the profession, with the nursing shortage, and with my own feelings of powerlessness regarding all of it?

Firstly, Ho’oponopono teaches that problems and situations do not exist outside of me, (or you), as we perceive them.

Perceptions are reflections of our thoughts.

If I perceive an outer manifestation as a problem, then I have the opportunity to recognize that I am 100% responsible for creating it, thus having 100% responsibility for erasing and cleaning the problem and all my judgements and criticisms about the problem.

The perceived problems is simply a shared memory that we all have in common, back to the beginning of humanity.

We clean and erase these problems by inwardly and incessantly chanting: I love you, Thank you, I am sorry (for my part in creating this problem), Please Forgive me (for my part in creating this problem).

We inwardly and incessantly chant even before perceiving the problem.

I feel relief by this practice because if I am 100% responsible for creating all aspects of my life, and if all of it without exception is an inside job, then I can work on it within myself without depending on anything or anyone else.

At the same time, the phrases I love you, Thank you, I am sorry, Please forgive me are directed to my higher power, divinity, the angels, God/ess.

We let the unseen forces solve all "problems" as we chant our phrases.

Ho’oponopono is an ancient Hawaiian healing technique that nurses can use to save themselves, save our profession.

This is a spiritual practice that in its simplicity, fits well into modern life. It applies to every single problem our world is having at this time: violence in our schools, homes and communities, drug and alcohol addiction, deep depression and sadness, suffering of all kinds.

None of it is "out there."

If I see it, it’s mine.

My responsibility is to take 100% responsibility, to stop the blaming, stop the finger pointing.

Bless Ho’oponopono: Bless all the spiritual practices that bring us peace.

Kate Loving Shenk is a writer, healer, musician and the creator of the e-book called "Transform Your Nursing Career." Link To Millionaire: Awaken Your Secret: http://www.nursingcareertransformation.com/MillionaireSecret.html
Check Out Kate’s Blog: http://www.nursehealers.typepad.com

Comments (4)

May 23, 2007

Fear-busting inspiration from Marianne Williamson

Filed under: Abundance, Fear Busting — tshombe @ 6:30 am

You may be already familiar with the following inspirational quote attributed to best-selling author and spiritual activist, Marianne Williamson.

Whether it’s fear of success or fear of failure (or inadequacy) that keeps us from pursuing our dreams and becoming all that we are meant to be, Marianne’s words of love and wisdom still ring true.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Do these comments inspire you? What do they mean to you?

What impact have they had on you, and how you’ve handled fear of failure or fear of success?