As we turn the calendar to April and step into Spring, we get a boost of renewed energy from the waking up of the world around us—turning greener and warmer. For some, thoughts turn to spring cleaning, spring fitness and getting out and about more. But often we do not necessarily think about spring cleaning our thoughts and our minds, and we keep ourselves in our routines.

We may feel reenergized as the weather changes, but feel tethered to our routines and expectations. An uneasiness or restlessness sets in and we are conflicted. Our thoughts are saying one thing and our souls are saying another. In some circles, this is called Spring Fever—a combination of conflicting emotions, including a sense of comfort and renewal and lack of ambition.

With Spring upon us, it is a time to do a mental reboot and to give yourself a fresh outlook and new perspective. It is a season to shake off the dust, remove the heavy clothing and to lighten up. Just as we get comfortable in our sweaters and hats and look forward to getting under the covers in the Winter, our thoughts can get weighed down and want to tuck away under the blankets—thinking it is a safe, warm place.

We don’t want to go out into the chilly world—in a way, not wanting to confront what we need or want to change. So now is the time to throw off those blankets, kick off those boots and change your mindset. It is time to spring clean your self.

If you are feeling weighed down by routine and expectations or you are approaching decisions and what you do from a place of fear or anxiety, lighten it up with first changing your own internal or mental conversation.  Start to shift your thinking. In short, pay attention to what you think about and why. 

Once you do that, flip that on its side. Fill your thoughts with intention, hope and aspiration. Fear, worry and expectation are such disablers. Focus on removing them as driving forces in your life.

If you are feeling unmotivated or overwhelmed, unplug from the distractions (and devices). Getting caught up in drama, social media and the self-imposed “to-do” lists are excuses to avoid spending time with yourself and giving your head time to clear and reset itself. Maybe it is the unfamiliar or unknown that keeps us keeping ourselves distracted, but every once in a while it’s good to stop the multi-tasking and get in tune with yourself. Do not underestimate how your mind and mood can be influenced by all the input and noise around you.

Work on letting things go. If you are holding onto resentment, anger, shame, embarrassment, sadness, etc., from the past, acknowledge it and then let it go. Nothing in the past can harm you unless you allow it to. If you are spending way too much time thinking about the future and your next steps, step back into your present and be present.

If you are feeling like just wanting to get outside and get some light and fresh air. Listen to yourself and just do it. No excuses or “but first I have to  . . . “. This is putting yourself back into what you think is a safe or comfort zone. Listen to your soul and try something new or different. Plus, getting outside helps you tap into the earth’s energy—helping you to be grounded and calm. Make an effort everyday to get outside and to reap the benefits.

Take advantage of this Spring season to get back in touch with you, to refuel your soul and untether yourself.

Along the path of life we magnetize or attract to ourselves many things–experiences, relationships, information, emotions, behaviors, and more. As we journey through our life, we resonate more with certain things, places and people, and along the way we pick up things that become part of who we are and that adds to the uniqueness of us.

For many this is an almost unnoticeable process. We tend to go through our lives not keenly aware of the impact of our experiences on ourselves and changes that are constant. Many take for granted the people put on their path, not recognizing even the impact of a quick encounter with a stranger.

Yes, sometimes people come into your life (and you into the lives of others) and you know right away that they were meant to be there. There is no coincidence. People do not just randomly appear in our lives. There is always a reason and a “meant to be.” 

Sometimes we are meant to connect with a person and open up to them in order to grow as a person. Sometimes, we are meant to meet someone to inspire them or to meet someone to become a better version of ourselves.

All our experiences and the people we encounter are, some would say, part of the bigger picture.  A random person coming into your life could very well be part of your life path. There are people who are destined to be in our lives.

Each of us is born with unique talents, ideas, personality and mentality—but we are all connected. As we grow though life there are some people that may have a missing piece that we may need or that we have that they need. There is something universally powerful guiding us—that guides us in the directions we are destined, and the people we briefly encounter, the people that are more constant in our lives, relationships from the past, etc., all contribute to who we are and what we are to accomplish in life.

It is important to keep in mind that while our higher Self and powers will provide us with opportunity to bring important people in our lives, there are also externalities or forces that enable distractions. It is equally important to be cognizant of the people appearing in your life and to follow your instincts if they are there to positively contribute to your life or if they are a distraction or a low vibrating force.

It seems that many people are in a rush these days, like we live in a ‘fast food’ society of instant gratification. From fast food joints, to driving on the highways where everyone is pushing around the next guy to get ahead, to the instant communication tools we have at our disposal in the form of smart phones, tablets, etc., speed is the name of the game. It even seems as if time is speeding up, which if you ask anyone else if this is the case in their own experience, most would agree so.

Also it seems as if there is a pattern we humans have built up to normalize this constant quickening pace of society and life. We have structured time and our work schedules to accommodate this ‘rush’ and speeding up effect. We have even labeled the term – rush hour, to describe the periods of the day when the demands of traffic and business are at there peak.

I guess there is nothing wrong with getting things done faster, or having faster service. Sometimes faster is better in fact depending on the situation.  I don’t think it is necessarily a question of right or wrong, but more of a question of what and why. More of a question of awareness. What are you sacrificing as you rush through your day if indeed you do? Things to ponder.

As the old saying goes, ‘slow and steady wins the race’ or ‘stop and smell the roses’ is another popular one. Many times we rush to go somewhere or get something done that we forget important things in the course of doing so, and even sometimes have to start over. I’ve done it so many times myself I’ve lost count! It also just seems to me that everyone is in such a rush to get ahead of the next guy, or be the first one to get something done, that our society praises these types of people that do, so its no wonder why it’s the norm.

The other day for example we got hit with a snow storm and I just felt this pressure at one point in the day that I needed to go out and shovel because every one else was doing it, although I didn’t feel quite ready to yet. Maybe it’s just me, but it almost seemed like a race of who was going to get their area shoveled out first. There were people shoveling before the storm was even over. Like I said before, getting ahead is not a bad thing and in a lot of cases can be a good thing. A lot of times we can even miss out if we wait around too long.

So it’s a balance in my opinion. My main point is that we shouldn’t allow others to pressure us into the fast paced rush of the world that is becoming the norm these days. Of course we have to adapt, we all have deadlines and timelines to meet, especially regarding work. The problem lies in when we end up rushing through the things in life that don’t need to be rushed. It starts to affect, and infect all areas of our life.

The quality of our life experiences can take on the form of a blur, where it seems we also miss out. You hear people say it all the time, I can’t wait until… (insert blanket statement). But we end up missing out on the moment and being present when we approach life this way. It seems peoples patience has become shorter as well and many of us just want to rush off on vacation somewhere just so we can slow down and take our time. Maybe we should integrate this type of pace more into our daily lives when possible.

So again awareness is key, and in the rush of the fast paced flavor society has taken on these days, sometimes doing the opposite of what most others are doing and slowing things down can help us tremendously in ways we don’t yet see. So when you can, stop and take a deep breath or a few, take a long look around, smell the air, feel which way the wind is blowing, slow your motions down, take a drive in the slow lane, forget about time, let it all go by you and just observe without judgement.

I think I’ve said it before, but as one of my old martial arts teacher used to say, ‘the slower you go, the faster you’ll be’… I put my own spin on this and say, ‘the slower you go, the more aware you’ll be’.

Sometimes navigating life some days feels like you don’t have all the verbs and the nouns in the sentence, or like you are working with one word that can have a variety of meanings. In short, like you do not have the full context. You do not have all the pieces and are looking for context clues as a source of information to help understand the world in which you are living—what is happening around you and why is it happening.

With so much change going on around you it can be easy to feel out of context with your life, or to start defining yourself by your circumstances. What is the perspective you hold on your life? Do you see yourself as interesting, capable, adventurous, fun, bright, etc., or do you see yourself as struggling and not successful? Which context would serve you best? Do you focus on the content of your life versus the context?

Here’s an example. Often we make (like New Year’s Resolutions) measurable, concrete goals (the content) without the context. Context is the setting for an idea or experience and the way in which it can be fully understood. Context impacts the setting of the content. 

When we talk about making change in our lives this often involves deep reflection, setting intentions and accepting ourselves—but sometimes we miss the context piece. And it can be quite tempting to identify yourself by your circumstances.  So the question that rises to top is how do you shift how you view and define yourself? It should not be by your circumstances or how others define you.

Look closely at how you describe yourself—who you are and how you contribute. This is a big clue to how you see the context of your life. For many of us we identify ourselves by our role, our job, where we live, where we came from, etc.  Taking a fresh approach to describing yourself requires you to look deep inside yourself—how you see yourself, how you feel about your value to others and how you want to contribute to the context of your life.

The good news is that you can cultivate who you want to be. And a first step is to value your individuality. Remember also that you are not your surroundings. You are not your body. You are not your circumstances. As Leo Babauta, Zen Habits, says, “Being different is what makes you who you are. It means you’re daring to live your own life, on your terms, with your values. It means you have courage to stand out from the mainstream. It means you’re interesting. Hug those differences, be grateful for them, own them. Be proud of them.”