The Secret to Living a Happy Life- Consciousness, Mindfulness, and Awareness

Everyone wants to know if there is a secret to a happy life and what that secret is. Do you wonder if there really is a secret to living a great life?

The answer is yes!  You change your life for better or worse by changing the stories that you tell yourself about you!

Are you living a story that revolves around lack, depression, anger, victimization, or some other disempowered state of being?  If you are, your inner and external life will represent that story. For that reason alone, you must develop a new story, a story about life, and who you are -today! There is always more available for us than our present story of life allows us to see- even the meaning of your experiences. To truly experience abundance in life and a sense of personal happiness we must look at what "life story" we are living.

Your life will expand and grow as you develop  your consciousness and awareness- separate from what society dictates to you should be doing.

Look, I know that there will always be people who choose to exist within societal dogma, locked in to a singular way of thinking, believing that one way is the "right" way. They often need an authority figure to dictate to them how to live their lives.  Sometimes, for some people, this life is satisfying for them and they are happy. Others though, live this way even though their dreams consist of something different, and this dichotomy often leads to unhappiness.

Yet other people sense that the consciousness of the world has been undergoing a shift  to embracing ideas that energy, abundance, self-growth, happiness, a fulfilling life, defining success, and shifting their perspective are within their control. This group is taking proactive responsibility for their experience of life. They are growing in consciousness, connecting with a spirit of awareness, and tuning into the connection with the universal life energy that permeates all of life.

There are many "ism's" that lurk around every corner ready to pounce on us to bring us back into the fold. Commercialism, alcoholism,  workaholism, these are all states of unbalance and lead to unhappiness. These are not the natural, healthy state of being. Many people are grateful for the reminder that success in life is not indicated by a dollar amount stamped on a bank statement.  Nor is success achieving someone else's dream.

True success and happiness comes from following your heart to achieve the goals that have deep meaning for you.

This way the journey you are on – life- will be a thrilling adventure that excites you and embraces all of the many important gifts that you have.

Living consciously is a choice that presents many challenges and offers many rewards.  A large portion of society does not encourage this type of growth. And, it is certainly challenging to maintain a state of consciousness when we are dealing with the negative vibe that seems to surround us presented by the media.  Additionally, we must address our own personal challenges on how to maintain and grow in awareness and consciousness.

The last 20+ years of my life has been spent researching and discovering what truly helps people to live an abundant and fulfilling life.  One thing is guaranteed: It is not what society tells you.

True abundance comes from living in an energy of harmony, mindfulness, awareness and connection. These are not "things;" these are energy, a frame of mind. This energy is not something that is quantifiable (at least by today's standards) but it exists nonetheless. Science is just now beginning to touch upon these possibilities of this interconnectivity.

A life of abundance is not created by idly standing by hoping to attract good into your life.  Come on, if that were true everyone who read The Secret would be living their dreams!  Look around you.  Despite all the hype, this obviously hasn't worked for a majority of people who have tried it; attraction has been proven ineffective. Yet, simply using our rational minds to live a fulfilling life leaves gaping holes and ignores our heart center.  To live a completely fulfilling, abundant, and joyful life requires learning new skills, developing powerful beliefs, and living an authentic life by developing consciousness and awareness.

Each of us is born with intuitive knowledge about what is right for us, but the ability to connect with this insight was “schooled” out of us when we were young. We must reclaim it.  To reclaim mine, I reviewed every belief I carried and determined whether these beliefs were effective in creating a life filled with love, vitality, and balance—the life I wanted to live- or were they getting in the way?  While some of these beliefs empowered my life, many did not.  So, I threw out any ineffective methods I had been taught and started from scratch.

Remember, there are different types of “success.”  At one point, I was "worth" millions.  Months later, when the financial crisis hit and the mortgage and real estate markets collapsed, those very same assets were severely reduced. And, despite having some prior relationship success, it took a complete review of my beliefs to create the love and deep connection I now share with my wife and children.

Here's what you need to know: Our experiences of both “success” and “failure” are how we learn about ourselves. Out of these experiences, the experience of success and distress, we are provided incredible life-lessons that teach us how to define success at our own--and not societal--level. I learned to define success as I see it, not what some external source had put on to me.

You see, at one point I was “worth” millions and then months later, less.  But wait! I’m the same person! Where is my value coming from? Was I going to be “worth” more because of a couple numbers on a bank account?  If you allow the perception of your worth to be extrinsically determined, then the answer is yes; but that's a sure way to unhappiness, dissatisfaction and a lack of abundance- and that's an invaluable life-lesson!

Professional athletes, company CEOs, athletes and performers, have to deal with these types of external judgments of their worth bandied about in the press, but all of us as individuals do as well.  A large part of your success in life comes from being able to move beyond others' perceptions and projections of you to create your life, in your way. Often, what separates out the ability of people to have true abundance in their life is to learn the lessons that are presented to them, while dealing with people criticizing and judging them.

Have you asked yourself if you will allow yourself to achieve balance and abundance?  Will you allow yourself to enjoy true financial success while you are living the life of your dreams?  For this type of life to manifest you first have to believe the story that this experience is possible. Is it easy?  Well, that depends upon how you look at it.  Living in abundance requires personal growth and self knowledge. Is it as easy as some people suggest, that you can discover some attraction "secret" and that you then can simply model somebody else's success to ensure your success?  Does that really seem like that's going to work?

Defining success for yourself emotionally frees you from the invisible bridles of societal compliance. You'll have a huge burden lifted off your shoulders.  Once this bridle has been removed, you experience more abundance in all ways. You can choose to view each situation as one that allows you to move closer to your dreams.

Helping people to manifest their dreams has become a part of my life.  My focus is on helping others to achieve not just a small shift, but a quantum shift in their lives by living authentically, recognizing their personal power, and manifesting their dreams.  I absolutely know that working with people to help them achieve their dreams brings abundance into my life—and theirs.

I've summed up this and other life affirming concepts in the book The 5 Laws of Conscious Living which provides you with a template for courageously creating your life. You will develop your template by reading through the 101 power thoughts that you use to question, examine, and create a life that embraces abundance. Reading this book will help you to:

• Discover the causes of what is holding you back from the life of your dreams.
• Discover how to live in this moment and how to experience abundance in all areas of your life.
• Discover your path for creating your wonderful life.
• Discover a method that shows you how to clear emotional baggage so you can live in the now with complete emotional freedom.

What are you waiting for? You can create the life of your dreams!  Begin to take the small steps that will create the life that you deserve.  A life filled with happiness and abundance on all levels—financial, relationships, health, and career.

Choice Point: For your happiness, success must be internally defined.

For more articles and tips visit: http://donnenninger.com

Peace,

Don Nenninger