Category Archives: Joy

Why Small Moments Matter

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Reading up on the latest future trends and technologies, I can sometimes geek out. I’m fascinated to know what might be coming. We have entered a phase of accelerated change—things are going to happen so quickly and I do believe that many of the new technologies will be able to transform our world. The big key to all of this is to find your own inner peace and joy.

In all that I do, I have a core message that is simply choose love over fear. If you can live each day focusing on those small moments, looking for joy and all that is going well, you’ll find that at the end of the day, you can string these moments throughout the day (often bridging over the challenges and negativity) to realize that it was a pretty good day. And doing this every day means your weeks turn out pretty good, and in the end, chances are you’ll live a pretty darn good life!

This is a way of practicing gratitude very consciously.

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A concept I share regularly with others is that you need to watch closely what you “feed your brain.” It’s so easy these days to get bombarded with negativity. You really have to make an effort to counter balance all the negativity with a lot of positive information. One of my latest favorite tricks (especially on my Facebook feed) is looking at awe-inspiring images. I’ve liked several pages that just post amazing pictures so my newsfeed is filled with beautiful pictures. And it makes me feel joy!

Appreciation is one of the fastest ways to feel better too. Whether you are showing gratitude to others or for those small moments, it shifts your way of looking at the world. You see things from a more positive light. I’m not saying it’s always easy. It’s very similar to a muscle that needs to be trained. If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it. So make that conscious choice each and every day.

The last thing I’d like to share is how you can keep your own peace. Just imagine the eye of the storm. It’s always calm and lovely while there’s a raging storm going on all around. Be that eye of the storm in your life. Make that choice! Learn to not go into knee-jerk reactions but rather, put a pause in, a space, where you can choose exactly how you want to respond. You can do this through taking three deep breathes before saying anything, taking a walk, being very mindful and be aware of your emotions. Don’t let things get to you, keep that peace inside of you and you will be a positive force to be reckoned with that will help to calm others as well. I promise that!

You are welcome to download one of my favorite tools, the Joyometer, at www.KarinVolo.com to help you learn to manage your emotions.

There are so many tricks we can use to consciously work on gratitude. What are some of your favorites? I’d love to hear about them.

Change Doesn’t Have to Suck: 3 Strategies for Dealing with It

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Changes Ahead sign against a blue sky with rainbow. Concept of situation change for the better.

Life is Change, Change is Constant….Growth is Optional

We often think that people are resistant to change. The truth is that life is ALWAYS changing, no matter what happens. Just like water flowing through a stream, life needs to flow and expand. What happens to water when it is stuck in a puddle? It becomes stagnant and eventually it stinks! The same is true for our lives. We are meant to grow and expand.

The Universe is in constant motion, continually expanding at 1.3 billion miles per hour! We are in a time of accelerated change in our world now too. In this century, we’re not going to experience 100 years of change—it’s going to be 20,000 years of change!

Humans are a very adaptable species. It’s how we have survived so far! I often enjoy having conversations with people from different generations. What I have learned is that we have different phases and in each decade, the challenges we face change with time. Right now, I’m in the sandwich generation with children and my elderly mother. And having teenagers is very different from young children. Before I know it, they’ll be out of the house and it’ll be time for a new phase again.

It is how we manage change that makes your life either a great ride or total misery. How adaptable are you? Do you resist or embrace change? Are you afraid or ready to take it on? Here are three helpful strategies I’ve learned along the way to manage change.

1. Life Is Happening FOR You, Not TO You

“Why is this happening to me?” is one of the most disempowering questions. It robs us of our power and puts us into a victim mentality where you feel out of control. When you ask, “why is life happening FOR me?”, you get different answers. It gives you an opportunity to look for lessons and growth. It helps to reframe challenges in a way that is very empowering.

2. Expect Change

When you know that change is constant, you don’t get quite as surprised with anything that might be changing. Of course, make plans and take steps to progress but also know that there generally isn’t a straight line from A to Z. It’s a very zigzag line. To paraphrase Steve Jobs from one of his famous commencement speeches, you can connect the dots looking forward, only looking backwards. So sometimes things happen that don’t make sense now, but it might in the future.

3. Go With The Flow

I can’t even tell you how often this one has helped me. If you are rigid against change, then it can hurt. But if you are fluid like water, then you can much more easily accept the changes and adjust as needed. Take a deep breath and try to see things from a new perspective.

These three strategies are all based in a deeper foundation of trust. Know the power that you have within you to create your life. Our thoughts and words are powerful so put yourself in the driver’s seat and create the life you want to have!

3 Proven Actions to Having More Joy and Happiness in Your Life

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There are more than 7.4 billion people on the planet right now. The essence of what all people want comes down to four main things: love, peace, joy, and abundance.

I believe that people have an innate emotional set point—a place that a person returns to over and over on the broad scale of emotions we humans experience. So for example, I have an elderly relative has worried her entire life because she’s gone through many difficult times. Now that her life is actually better than it has been in a very long time, she still searches for things to worry about because that is where she tends to be most comfortable—and her brain is conditioned to this. Another relative from the same generation is always looking on the bright side and tends to have a very positive outlook. She’s full of energy and sometimes I can’t even keep up with her. Just comparing the levels of health with these two relatives shows me how your levels of happiness really does make a difference, especially over time.

During one of the toughest times in my life, I developed a way to become very aware or conscious of my feelings…and worked diligently to try and stay in a positive frame of mind. This tool is called the Joyometer™ and it is what I like to call a “mood management system” to help you stay aware of what you are feeling and how you can actively work to get yourself to a higher emotional state of being. (You can download the Joyometer here.)

Having had the good fortune to connect with hundreds of people through my work, and interview numerous thought leaders and change agents who are leaders in their field, I’ve found that there are three consistent strategies that people who are happier and living more joy filled lives actively work with to better their emotional state. They are the 3 G’s to Joy & Happiness:

Gratitude

Regardless of whatever is happening in your life, you can always find something to be grateful for…you are reading this right now and you are breathing! Finding things to appreciate and be thankful for in life helps you shift how you look at the world.

If you focus on what is going well, the tendency that more good will happen will generally increase. Gratitude helps your overall emotional well- being, helps you sleep better, increases your confidence and also betters your relationships. It’s a great way to lift you out of a funk.

Growth

Nature is constantly changing and our universe is continually expanding. As humans, we are happier when we are growing and learning on some level. We are meant to be pushing the boundaries and trying new things. People often say they are afraid of change but the reality is that life is constant change. Growth is optional and we can take a conscious effort to strive to be better and open our minds to new perspectives.

Just as water stagnates when it is still, so do we humans. It’s much healthier to be flowing like a river. When our basic needs are taken care of, it is natural for us to seek new relationships, new challenges, new jobs, and learning new skills. It’s a part of human nature to grow and that helps increase our levels of happiness as well.

Giving

Giving is the third strategy to increase the joy in your life. When you can help others, it will bring you a new perspective and studies show as we see others thrive, we feel better. Giving has three different levels:

  • Philanthropy — such as writing a check at the end of the year for a charity, there is very little interaction and not a deeper emotional connection although the act is most certainly appreciated.
  • Giving Back — for example, a mining company would give back to a community by planting parks and reforesting an old mine, there’s a feeling of doing something good to better a situation.
  • Contribution – an example is volunteering with elderly or homeless, something that is more interactive with time and energy and also having a deeper emotional connection and understanding of doing something for the greater good of all.

Random acts of kindness will increase your own level of happiness and joy in ways that you might not even expect. The deeper the emotional connection in the giving, the more positive—and lasting—impact it will have with you.

When you consistently practice these three actions of Gratitude, Growth, and Giving, you will notice how it brings more energy and vibrancy to your own life. Play around and experiment with this for a week and see how it makes a difference, not only in your life but also those around you.

Laughing your way to good health

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Be deliberate in finding ways on a personal level to stay focused on gratitude and joy. Bring more laughter into your daily life (see the infographic below for great tips). Love your family and friends, appreciate the good we have in the world because we are in the process of a rebirth. And in order for that to happen, the old systems must be revealed and made obsolete with new systems that will give rise to a much better world for us all. I truly believe we are on the way to a much better place so stay focused and choose love over fear each and every day. Laughing is a wonderful way to relax and feel better.InfoGraphicKV-Apr2016