Friday, December 18

Volume 18! On the 18th! Haha! HAHA

We are sleepy (late nights) and content (good days) and a little bit slap-happy (😜), and we have so much warmth and appreciation for you. :) You are welcome here, now and always.

lightward.com/newsletter

Wellness, for you and me

Breathing

The breath is a beautiful thing. Have you taken the time to notice how something you do every second of every day is so powerful? I was noticing how grateful I was that Isaac was simply breathing, and breathing well. When we take the time to notice the miracles of our every day, of every second of our experience, the easier it is to recognize the sheer magic of being alive. Our bodies are made up of a trillion tiny things happening all in unison, all put together to allow you to read these words and feel something from them. Do you see it? Do you see how amazing it is to be alive?

A reader sent us a message the other day, letting me know that the breathing technique I shared with y’all last week (slowly inhaling and exhaling as you lie down for sleep) helped them fall asleep more easily, and sleep better through the night! Here’s what they said:

“I started using your breathing technique when I go to bed. I’m falling asleep so fast and staying asleep. I haven’t needed to take melatonin to help me fall asleep in over a week. Before I was taking it every night. I’ve struggled with sleeping since I was a kid.”

Try it! Allow your focus to simply be on your breath as you settle into your sleep. Send me a message if it helps you feel more relaxed or helps you fall asleep quicker!

Limiting beliefs

“You invited me to think about what could be versus what wasn’t possible.”

I love my empowerment coaching clients. Every call, we both leave feeling more grounded and inspired to take the next steps in creating thoughts and habits that lead to living our most potent lives. I get really excited when the lightbulb goes off, like it did for the client quoted above.

Here’s the thing—we are and do and experience a lot of what we think. Now, don’t get me wrong, shit happens. AND (I’m going to say AND), this does not take away from the sheer truth that we can create anything we want to create. The only thing holding us back? From truly achieving, feeling, experiencing, all we want to in this life of ours? Limiting beliefs.

I believe one of the first steps in creating the reality you want to live in is by recognizing the powerfully heavy limiting thoughts that you carry and think about, often without even realizing it. Being a coach (and even in my own personal development), it is loud and clear when limiting thoughts are directing the way for my clients, when they’re operating from thoughts of limitation instead of thoughts of empowerment. When we start to recognize when we are limiting ourselves—in the things we want, in our dreams, in the depth in which we want to experience this life—we open the doors and opportunities to change the habits of these limiting beliefs. Because that’s all it is: habit. And we get to choose our habits.

I love people. And I love studying and following people who are going after their unique desires and dreams. It inspires me. A thread that I have seen, through all of them, is their inherent focus on optimism. Y’all—if you think something’s not possible, it’s not. Straight up. And what I LOVE doing is surrounding myself with people, experiences, thoughts, visuals, words, etc that inspire a deep sense of POSSIBLE. Grounding myself in optimism.

And let me tell you—this knowledge helps with my own limiting beliefs. It helps me restructure my thoughts, and the words I tell myself, into ones that are filled with optimism and believing in what's possible. The words and thoughts you tell yourself (aka your perspective) impact every single aspect of your life.

So, in this next week, give yourself the gift of noticing what limiting beliefs you have. The ones that you just automatically believe to be true. For example, one of my clients apologized for not being concise in sharing something and they said, “Sorry, I’m a horrible communicator. I always have been.” I thought they were speaking just fine, but that wasn’t the point—they were identifying as lacking. Do you see how that statement of identification, spoken to oneself, can be extremely limiting? There’s a difference between saying that, and saying “I’m working on being a better communicator because I have so many amazing ideas in my head and I love the feeling of speaking well and sharing my story.” Do you see how the latter is more open and less limiting? And how it just feels better?

You have all the power inside of you to work through your limiting beliefs and create a reality where your thoughts are expansive, creative and optimistic! So, notice where you are blocking what’s possible, and practice reframing those thoughts/words/actions into things you actually WANT to experience. :)

I believe in you, fully!

Abe

PS—I only have TWO spots left on my empowerment coaching roster in the new year. If you’re looking for accountability and a safe space to explore your growth both personally and professionally, reach out! And, I’m waiving my consultation fees in December. Head to lightward.com/empowerment to learn more.

OUR OPEN HEARTS SHALL
CHANGE THE WORLD

AND US

I’m 32! I had some things to say about that, this week. (Abe did, too.)

My gift to myself, yesterday, was this tattoo:

My tattoos (see “Tattoo stories”, Volume 9) are all reminders of things I know. Things that are real enough within to make visible, without.

I first came across these lines at Damen and Milwaukee, in Chicago—they were printed in white block print, on these anonymous black stickers. (I later found them to be the work of Someoddpilot.)

As I was then, I’m still struck by the notion of just putting essence out into the world, without signing it, without adding a call to action, without making sure that there’s a kickback. Just, meaning, unadorned. It’s exciting to me, in a way that I rarely encounter elsewhere; to me, it’s an invitation to play at a higher level, leaving behind the place where life is planned and published. Like: let’s look each other dead in the eye and exchange truth, without concern for anything else. There’s no currency, no scarcity, no time—just now, just that-which-is.

This is the first tattoo of mine that isn’t rendered for my eyes first. The other two, on my wrists and forearms, are positioned for me. This one is on my chest, facing outward. Thus: it is how I choose to be in the world, how I choose to be seen in the world. We are ineffable, yes; and yet, here we are, manifest. Inexpressible energy, expressed, in chosen form, and chosen word.

Things we’re making

Empowered Human Academy—We are 12 episodes deep into exploring the threads of empowerment across different lived experiences. If you have next week off of work, indulge in these feel-good and insightful conversations.

A Perspective of Joy—This coffee table book showcases images from around the world and statements all about joy!

Lightward Together—Coming soon. ;)

And hey, it’s the holidays! We’re doing a bunch of holiday giveaways on our Instagram, @abelopez—join up, and join in. :D

P.S. By the way: replies are firmly in-bounds. If you’ve got a thing you want to say, hit reply. We’re here, and we love you so. :) 🔆