We must be the change we want to see in the world. We can see and feel it and help each other to create it.

Our outer world is a reflection of our inner world. When we change ourselves, when we bring more of our authentic, worthy, self-confident selves to the table, we can move mountains and support others to do the same. We are all interconnected.

The key is to start with our inner landscape and make positive changes there. This can feel challenging, and that’s okay. Anything worth having is worth fighting for.

We have been warriors for a long time. It takes courage to be true to ourselves and advocates for change. It takes courage to let go of what hasn’t been working and keep stepping forward.

We don’t have a shortage of courage. We just need the right tools and support to be and do our best, and that includes letting go of the need to be perfect or living our lives based upon the opinions and expectations of others.

When we know what we are moving towards and keep stepping, that’s when the magic happens!

Here’s two simple, life-changing tools that you can apply today, to change how you feel, full stop, as you do what needs to be done.

Key #1: Breath Work to Let Go

What happens when you feel stressed? When you just remember a deadline due tomorrow? When the school calls because your child is sick and it’s the worst possible time?

Here’s what happens: Fight or flight breathing – short shallow breaths.   Which results in feeling anxious and overwhelmed.

Breath Work can turn this around, can signal to our body to relax, release, soften and let go.  Simply breathe in through the nose and out through the nose, allowing the out breath to be longer than the in breath. 

We need to breathe to stay alive, so we can practice this calming breathing technique wherever we are.

Key #2: Eat That Frog

Thanks Brian Tracy. He wrote the book by this title, and it changed my life.

Eat That Frog is simple and easy to apply. Are you ready to stop procrastinating (e.g., Ugh, I wish that would go away) and do what needs to be done with calm assurance, grace, ease, and flow.

Sound too good to be true? It’s not. It’s just practical, common sense.

What does Eat That Frog mean? It means that you 'eat' the biggest, ugliest, slimiest frog in your in-tray at the beginning of each day. You don’t set it aside until later. You handle it first.

If there’s a phone call you need to make that you wish was already over, make that call before you do anything else.

If you need to prepare for it, do it. If you need to consider how to best handle the conversation, make a few notes. Then take a few deep breaths and make the call.

And, if necessary and prudent, follow up with written confirmation as to the content and agreed up action(s) or what next discussed in the call.

If there’s a report you need to prepare or a document you need to write, breath, get yourself in a calm, centered space, do the research, write down some notes or an outline, ask for inspiration, and just do it!

Then what? Pat yourself on the back and acknowledge yourself. You’ve just eaten the biggest, ugliest, slimiest frog. You didn’t procrastinate or wait until the last minute. Congratulations!

Now, tell yourself that anything else you do today is icing on the cake. It will be nice to accomplish, but it’s not necessary. You did what absolutely had to be done.

With this attitude, and the relief you feel because that frog is not hanging over your head, and conscious connected breathing is there to help you when you need it, life can start to feel remarkably different.

It's like resetting your internal clock to inner calm.

And that helps you to feel more confident and capable because you are connecting with a more relaxed and calm state of being.

AND it’s inside of you, so you are not looking for anyone or anything else to make it better . . . that’s empowering . . . and, from this relaxed and calm place, you are not trying to get anywhere, you are enjoying the process, the present moment of your life.

It’s like one ripple in the pond is breathing to clear yourself of negativity and relax and the second ripple is stepping towards what you previously would avoid or put off, and handling it in a creative, user-friendly way.

These ripples are cumulative.

The more you practice breath work and 'Eat that Frog', the more they become a part of who you are, the more you turn the tide toward what you would like to experience, the more you appreciate and enjoy your life.