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Pushing Your Way Through Life:

Are you pushing your way through life or allowing it to unfold with ease and grace?  I pushed my way through many aspects of life for decades, because I didn’t know there was another way to live!  This blog explores ideas for bringing more ease and grace into your life, especially when you have challenges.  

The bottom line is, like the title says, pain pushes while vision pulls you forward.  What in the world does this even mean and how does it look in everyday life?

The Gift of Clarity:

I recently gained more clarity on this.  My intention in this blog is to share my experience and the steps I now use to accept where I am, as I move forward to my next highest outcome. 

By the fact that you are reading this blog post, you may know that doing this blog was first an idea in my mind’s eye.  It came to me through a guest speaker in a writing class who is a very successful blogger.  I didn’t take action at that time, as my plate was full, and I wanted to devote my writing time to other endeavors. 

Vision Pulling:

A few years later, the idea resurfaced when I was clearing an old regret from 40 years earlier.  That moment inspired me to start a blog!  (A link to that blog post is found below.*) 

I began the process by writing several draft blogs and getting feedback from fellow writers. 

After having about four good draft blogs almost ready, I thought “Maybe it’s time to refine and publish them?” 

I made an action list of what this would take and considered the timing.  I was particularly inspired by one idea: start publishing this blog on your next birthday!

“YES, that feels wonderful!” I declared, both excited and uplifted by the idea.  Mostly wonderful, that is.  I could tell that part of me was resisting this idea, even though I still had a couple months of lead time.  Something didn’t feel quite right about it.

Effortless Answers:

To help me figure out what was going on, I turned to my trusty and favorite way to allow answers to come effortlessly — letting my subconscious mind work on the issue while I sleep!

That night, before drifting off to sleep, I asked my subconscious mind to sort through my feelings by writing this intention in my journal:

“My desire beyond all desiring is to know the Divine ever more deeply.  Out of this connection, I merge my will with Divine will.  In terms of serving with my blog, I AM guided accordingly.”

As I drifted off to sleep, I was pondering my sense of urgency to get my blog up and running on my birthday; what is that about?  And what is not quite right about this idea?

Releasing Resistance:

The next morning the topic was definitely on my mind; I immediately wrote several pages in my journal, simply jotting down what came to mind.  The first thing I noticed was that the feeling of urgency had subsided a bit. 

“It is a possible choice.” I wrote.   

As I continued writing, I realized that the angst I had been feeling was related to an old fear resurfacing about not wanting to do something wrong.  That is a core wound for me and now, when it shows up, I rejoice that I am consciously aware of it in the moment, instead of being upset with myself for going there again.

The Power of Thoughts:

So, what did I think I was doing wrong?

• Not moving fast enough
• Not being ready to get my work out there
• Not doing what is mine to do
• Not doing God’s will for my life

That is when I remembered one of my favorite quotes by Michael Bernard Beckwith: “Pain Pushes, Vision Pulls.”

How Can BOTH Be True?:

Okay, here’s the big question: Is this idea (of posting my first blog on my birthday) a result of Pain Pushing or Vision Pulling? 

“Both” I wrote and kept writing for more clarity.

I put Pain Pushing on the left side of my paper and Vision Pulling on the right side of the paper like this:       

Pain Pushing	Vision Pulling
I am not moving fast enough	This blog is an inspired idea
My pace is not good enough	The Art of Ease & Grace message is an inspired idea
I want permission to pause for a bit	Doing it with ease and grace is an inspired idea

Do you see now that Vision Pulling comes from inspired ideas?

 

From Pain Pushing to Vision Pulling:

Once I became aware that not-enough-ness was the old pain pushing me, it started to unwind, and I felt more relaxed.  From this more spacious vibration, I wrote a new Vision:

“I write my book and start publishing my blog, with ease and grace, in perfect Divine timing.”

Ahhh.  That felt like a much better place from which to create this blog.  After knowing about and experiencing the wonder of living with ease and grace, I don’t want anything less in my life.  Below I have summarized some steps you can take to allow ease and grace to flow through your experience, even when challenges arise.

Summary of Steps to Move from Pain Pushing to Vision Pulling:

1. Take time to slow down from your busy life. You may want to schedule time in your daily calendar (as little as 5-10 minutes can work) to allow inspired ideas to show up.  During this time, you could sit quietly, write in your journal, spend time in nature, or do mindful movements.  There are many options.
   
   
2. Be patient with yourself.  Creativity, when previously unrecognized, is shy.  It takes focused intention and time.
   
   
3. Consistency produces results.  It may take time for your inspired idea to show up.  It will show up!  Simply stay the course.
    
   It may also take time for the inspired idea to take form.  In my case, I waited several months for clarity even after I created the vision to allow things to flow in Divine timing.
     
4. So, how do you recognize an inspired idea?  Notice how you feel about the idea as it surfaces.  Is it coming from your heart rather than your mind?  Do you feel excited or enthusiastic about it?
    
   If you are feeling frustrated that your inspired idea has not shown up yet, take a moment to feel those feelings.  Is this your pain pushing you?  I used to resist resistance; now I am grateful when frustration shows up because I know that feeling alive and peaceful is on the other side of that feeling!  If you would like help addressing your resistance, check out my blog on Releasing Regret and Feeling Alive.  (A link to that blog post is found below.*)
    
5. Where do I take my inspired ideas now?  Rinse and repeat!  You can use this same process again to follow the thread of your ideas and allow them to unfold, in all areas of your life.  This will give you access to your creativity and life force with more ease and grace than ever before.
   
   Now that you are clear that your inspired ideas can come from Vision pulling, allow your inspiration to continue to pull you to places you haven’t even imagined yet.  An overall feeling of being and having enough is an amazing foundation for allowing more of what you want to flow to you.
   
   The three keys to living with ease and grace may also help you as you move forward.  The keys are summarized on this page, below this blog post.

I would love to hear about your experience.  Are there any areas of your life to which you would like to bring more ease and grace?  Do you think your pain is pushing you or is your vision pulling you?

I invite you to continue exploring The Art of Ease and Grace with me in future blogs. 

• If you would like to get an email notification when future blogs are posted, please click HERE to join my mailing list.  At this time, my audio blogs are only available by email. 

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~ Carol McNulty-Huffman,

Best-Selling Author & Inspirational Speaker

artofeaseandgrace.com

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A Peek at My Next Blog Post:

Your Intention REALLY Matters

• Both love and fear are motivating factors and yet they come from different foundations.  Is your self-care rooted in love or fear? 
• Join us next month to explore ideas for shifting your vibration, especially around self-care,  from fear to love.   

Summary of the Three Keys:

• The three keys to living with ease and grace are Vision, Vibration and Grace.  Vision is about setting a Vision for the long-term or an intention for the short-term.  Vibration is about stepping into the Vibration of that Vision, so that it can easily manifest.  Grace is a wind that is always blowing — a power flowing through our experience more and more as we open to receive it.  

• The fact is these keys are already at work in our lives, whether we are aware of it or not!  Noticing these keys allows us to access them more consciously and use them to create a life of greater ease, grace, and flow.

• To learn more about Grace Click HERE

• To learn more about Vibration Click HERE

• To learn more about Vision Click HERE

• To learn about the Birth of this Blog, and releasing regret, click HERE*

We are continuing our conversation about the art of ease and grace, between blog posts, in my private Facebook group (Art of Ease and Grace). Click HERE to request entry.  You can also email me at carol@theartofeaseandgrace.com or send a message through Messenger to make that happen.

If you would like to get an email notification when future blogs are posted, please click HERE to join my mailing list.

Listen to the Full Blog at the Top of this Web Page.