Answer To The Anonymous Question I Received...

The Universe has amazed me once again with synchronicity. Just last night, I was somehow drawn to watch interviews with Byron Katie -an American woman who struggled through 10 years of depression, rage and self-loathing and who spontaneously woke up one morning in a state of constant joy that has not left her for 22 years. What transformed her life? Byron Katie suddenly understood that when she believed her own thoughts, she suffered, and when she simply questioned these, life became effortless.

After her major awakening, Byron Katie created a simple 4-question process called "The Work" that helps people break free from their limiting thoughts. She has helped millions with The Work and Byron Katie is now known all over the world. She has written many best-selling books, was featured on countless shows such as Oprah and is in high demand for workshops and public speaking everywhere. You can imagine how thrilled I was when she agreed to be featured on my website in a interview for Conscious Living Solutions in August 2015.

Like I said, last night, for some reason, I wanted to know more about Byron Katie even though I had already interviewed her in the past. Her process really resonated with me and reminded me that we are not our thoughts. Some authors, such as Eckhart Tolle, are brilliant at explaining this concept, but when it comes to applying it in our daily lives, it can be a little overwhelming and discouraging. Byron Katie figured out an easy, practical way for people to start freeing themselves from their minds -which is the most direct path to end suffering. It's free, available on her website and accessible to all.

So what's the synchronicity I was referring to? Well this morning I received this anonymous message via my website:

"I really wanted to start my spiritual journey, but what troubles me the most are my thoughts. I get afraid of things that I have never done and these thoughts continue to wander in my mind until I become frustrated. I have learnt that thoughts create our reality according to the law of attraction and these thoughts which are actually my fear are generated again and again against my wish. These thoughts can actually become my reality. Tell me what I can do to stop these thoughts."

As soon as I read this message, I knew that the best resource I could offer would be "The Work" of Byron  Katie! We can't stop our thoughts, but we can become more aware of them. We can remind ourselves that who we truly are is much more than our thoughts. We can invite more stillness into our lives in order to allow ourselves to experience the deep peace of being without the compulsive need to do, or think all the time.

Whoever you are, dear anonymous friend, I hope this helps! Thanks for your question. You are mirroring what millions of others are also asking at this time. I believe that we were somehow connected through your question, the web, Byron Katie and my sudden impulse to watch her videos last night! The Universe works in miraculous ways!

Thanks for reading,

Lise

www.lisevilleneuve.com

Nobody Ever Taught Me THAT In School...

School's back in full gear for many of us. Believe it or not, every morning when I wake up, I feel extremely grateful to have the opportunity to home school my kids. I'm not going to lie, we don't like being rushed in the morning! We're now starting our 5th homeschooling year and I feel like we're really starting to get the hang of it. We know what works for our family, and we're more confident about this alternative way of life.

In anticipation of all the people who will be asking the kids 'What school do you go to?' this year, I think we will just call ourselves L'Académie Francophone Villeneuve-Carver. Sounds legitimate, right? That should at least reduce the number of awkward conversations with cashiers who think homeschooling is only for hillbillies. But hey, this post is not really about homeschooling. It's about the Art of living.

I wish that someone had taught me about the Art of living a happy, fulfilling life when I was a kid! I learned plenty of practical, interesting facts in school and University, but like the majority of us, I had to figure out the  most important questions on my own: What makes us truly happy? What's really important in life? What can we do on a daily basis to create a fulfilling and meaningful life? How do our thoughts matter? Where's the nearest Starbucks? Good, you're still paying attention.

The bottom line is, school didn't teach me that happiness is a choice I make every day. Did it teach you that? Maybe I just went to bad schools. Lol. I just felt like I had to go to school and things were largely out of my control. I never knew that I was creating my reality with my thoughts. I didn't know that my emotions were my inner-compass and that I could wilfully move myself up the vibrational scale of emotions. Nobody ever taught me that I would eventually get what I focused on, even if I was focusing on what I didn't want! If I had known these things, I would probably have felt much more empowered and confident. Thankfully, times have changed and these notions are now becoming more widespread, even in some schools.

Back to homeschooling for a minute. One of the things I love about it is that I can sneak in some of these 'Art of living' notions when challenges come up with the kids - because they always do- especially during school time! When the kids get frustrated or discouraged, I can immediately intervene and help them become more aware of the thought patterns that are creating their negative emotions. This helps them keep things in perspective, and it may prevent really bad habits from eventually forming. I can remind them to focus on what they wish to reinforce in their lives.

Education is super important, and it becomes even more powerful when it's combined with a growing self-awareness. As their teacher, I get to practice teaching mindfully each day, and that's a real gift!

Here are some of our rules at L'Académie Francophone Villeneuve-Carver:

Teachers:
1. Thou shall stop teaching immediately if you are unable to give loving, compassionate energy.
2. Thou shall stop teaching your lesson if there is no sense of joy, play and wonder in it.
3. Thou shall remember: your energy sets the tone. Be in the moment. Breathe.

Students:
1. Happiness is a choice you make every day. You are in control.
2. Your thoughts create your emotions. Choose your thoughts wisely.
3. You get what you focus on, so focus on what you want, not what you don't want!
4. You are the creator of your own reality. Your intentions are powerful.
5. Negative emotions tell you you're out of alignment. Raise your vibration!

Wishing you a wonderfully mindful school year!

Lise Villeneuve
Creator of Conscious Kids -downloadable mindfulness stories & activities
Get your free mindfulness card deck here
www.lisevilleneuve.com

My Grown-Up Tantrum, Part 2

If you missed Part 1 of this post, you can catch up here: http://lisevilleneuve.blogspot.ca/2015/02/my-grown-up-tantrum.html

To summarize, a recent unpleasant experience made me wonder how to know the difference between an intuition, or "gut feeling", and a fear (created by our negative thoughts). I was a little confused by this because of what I know regarding the law of attraction (our thoughts create our reality). When I experienced intense negative feelings that were pushing me in a certain direction, I didn't know if I was creating more negativity by focusing on those thoughts, or if I was receiving some kind of intuitive warning signal. Have you ever been in a situation like this? Any other metaphysical geeks like me out there?

I pondered on this question for a couple of days. My first thought was that intuition would probably not feel so heavy and overwhelming. It would feel more like receiving a neutral, informative message. I reminded myself that we receive intuitive messages all the time, but these have to be invited in first, and they never interfere with our free will. Fear, on the other hand, is a child of the ego. It is extremely emotional and has an agenda: to increase our sense of control. Fear hijacks our bodies and overrides intuition.

I asked myself "what emotional state was I in the night before my tantrum occurred?" The honest truth was that the entire day before Rob and Théo drove off, I was focusing on the snow storm and was already worrying. The seed of fear was planted and my thoughts kept feeding it. My threatened ego wanted to be in control again, so it overwhelmed me with anxiety and led me to believe that the only way to feel better would be by preventing Rob and Théo from driving. It even tried to convince me that I was receiving some kind of intuition from my higher self. I'm onto you...ego!

For those of you who are not familiar with the ego, the higher self and the voice in our head, I realize this probably sounds a little schizoid and neurotic. It sounds like there is a voice inside of me trying to control me. Well, I hate to break it to ya, but there is, and it's also in YOUR head right now! (unless your name is Eckhart Tolle) Go ahead and make it say "hey gorgeous, it's me, the voice in your head." Really, try it. I know you heard it. Now, if you were able to hear it and observe it, it means that there is a space between you (the observer) and it (the voice). That realization, my friend, is the beginning of the awakening process. But let's go back to intuition versus fear for now.

Thanks to the law of attraction (I just want to bug Rob a little, I know he's still skeptical about the whole LOA thing), I found a fantastic article on the web written by Suzy Singh (Negative Thinking vs. Intuition) Suzy beautifully describes how intuition and fear feel in our bodies (and how they relate to the different chakras). If you are wondering at all if what you're feeling is coming from intuition or fear, this article will make it crystal clear for you. Thanks Suzy Singh!

After reading that article, I was relieved to conclude that my paranoia was fear-based and not an intuition at all. Rob and Théo's safe return home confirmed that. I can now blame my insecure, controlling ego for having told Rob "there will be consequences if you go ahead with this drive" on the morning they left. When they came home the next day, the very first thing Théo (5) did was whisper something in my ear. He said "what's daddy's consequence?" Rob and I laughed so hard we almost became incontinent for a second. Take that, ego!


Warmly,

Lise
www.lisevilleneuve.com
www.consciouslivingsolutions.com
www.soul-spa.com

My Grown-Up Tantrum...

“Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you need? Because this is the experience you are having at the moment.” -Eckhart Tolle

The other day, I experienced what you might call a grown-up tantrum. I certainly don't feel proud writing about it, but this is exactly what I signed up for when I enrolled myself on the Conscious Living Solutions blog : honesty, transparency, authenticity. Also, this is how we learn and grow, through the contrast of our good and bad feelings and experiences. When we go through something that makes us feel terrible, we can make a conscious choice to clearly identify what we would prefer next time. This empowers us to understand and manifest what we DO desire.

My tantrum was essentially born out of fear. Rob was about to go on a long road trip with little Théo after it had snowed 20 cm the previous night. It was 5:30 am and they were getting ready to leave. I felt nauseous at the thought of them driving on icy roads. I checked the road reports, and it wasn't looking great. I was overwhelmed with anxiety, pleading with Rob to change his plans, but to no avail. In my desperation, I even muttered something ridiculous like "there will be consequences if you go ahead with this." I felt powerless, sad, angry and gripped by fear while I watched them drive away. To make matters worse, my monkey mind then said "hey, guess what, Lise, you are focusing on them being unsafe on the road, and you are fuelling that with heavy emotions...you might actually be manifesting an accident!" To which I replied "Shut up, stupid voice in my head".

Sometimes trying to grow in awareness is just not a sexy process. I sat myself down, started to breathe, and decided to focus on their safe journey, since there really was nothing else that I could do at this point. I surrendered to what I was feeling and just sat with it, observing how that felt in my body. Then I started to wonder "how do I know if these intense negative feelings were an intuition (gut feeling), or just the by-product of my negative thoughts? If I were about to board a plane and suddenly started to feel nauseous and fearful, shouldn't I be paying close attention to these signals? Maybe my intuition is warning me about impending doom. Or... are my paranoid, negative thoughts actually increasing the chances of this unwanted experience to unfold?"

What do you think? How do we tell the difference between sensing that something is about to happen and creating that experience with our thoughts? Where does intuition fit into the law of attraction? Hummm....

Well, stay tuned for the conclusion of this story in my next blog post.

Thanks for being here! Feel free to express your ideas / comments!

Lise
www.lisevilleneuve.com

Dear Daddy: Can I Tell You A Secret? -by Emma

Hey Daddy?

Did you know the movie "The Secret" is on Netflix now? I really enjoyed watching it and I even wrote up a summary (yeah, mom made me!). Would you mind checking my spelling? Thanks dad, here goes...

"The Secret" was written and produced by author Rhonda Byrne. She's Australian, just like the cast of H2O! Anyway, Rhonda's father died and she was looking for ways to come out of depression and despair. What she discovered was a secret that certain important people knew about for thousands of years but never wanted to share. This secret is the Law of Attraction. Here are the highlights of the Law of Attraction (in order of appearance in the film):

-Our thoughts actually become things
-A positive thought is 100 times more powerful than a negative thought
-We have about 60 000 thoughts per day, so it's much easier to monitor our feelings instead of every single thought (because our feelings are the result of what we have been thinking)
-When we feel good, we attract good things. When we feel bad, we attract negative things
-Simply shifting our negative feelings can change our whole day
-When we feel bad, we can learn to change that in a few seconds (by listening to music, by thinking about or doing things we love and enjoy)
-The Law of Attraction is a creation process that has three steps. 1) Ask 2) Believe 3) Receive
-Gratitude and visualization are powerful processes that help us get what we want faster
-For a relationship to work, we need to focus on what we like about another person, not what we don't like about them
-Complaining about things just brings us more negative things
-Only WE have the control to create our own happiness (not others)
-Disease cannot live in a body that is in a healthy emotional state
-Putting our focus on disease creates more disease in our body
-We become what we think about
-It's important to focus on what we want, not what we don't want (mom said something about you not wanting to end up in a group of crows? Not sure what she meant)
-Energy flows where attention goes
-Everything in our Universe is made up of energy, including our bodies and our thoughts
-We are the designer of our destiny
-Our purpose is the one we give ourselves
-Our goal is to experience joy every day

That pretty much sums it up! I felt great after watching this documentary because it gave me the feeling that I can do just about anything with my life by focusing my thoughts and noticing how I feel.

Thanks for reading! Mom also said something about you appreciating the "Coles Notes" version of this movie. Now you are all caught up!

Emma (10 years old)

Dear Rob, Are You Serious???

Dear Rob,

I enjoyed your first post, and it made me realize that we really need to be clear about what the c-word means to us. I know it makes you cringe, so maybe we can use the term "awareness" in the future, but for now, let's go back to the dirty consciousness word.

You wrote about your yak "He looks pretty conscious". You also wrote "Consciousness is one of the only things you really have. You get it when you're born, and you have it (in most cases) until you die." I'm thinking, do they have enlightened yaks in Tibet? Are we born as little Buddhas, fully aware of our spirits, or higher-selves, beneath the drool? And what about the majority of humans, are we predominantly conscious beings? 

Well, as you were making yourself a latté today, I inquired about what you really meant. You explained to me that the c-word has been loosely defined and interpreted by many different authors (such as Deepak Chopra, Eckhart Tolle...etc), but its true meaning goes beyond words and language. For you, a synonym of being conscious would be "being awake". That explains the yak, the drooling babies and the rest of humanity. Now I can agree with you. Yes, they are awake (except when they are sleeping, then they are not conscious). So, just to be clear, when we are talking about "Conscious Living Solutions", we are not talking about "Awake Living Solutions." We are talking about Aware Living Solutions. Is the a-word better? Awareness?

Anyhow, let's move beyond the word, the concept, and agree on a meaning. How about this definition by author Nathaniel Branden (The Art of Living Consciously):

"Living consciously is a state of being mentally active rather than passive. It is the ability to look at the world through fresh eyes. It is intelligence taking joy in its own function. Living consciously is seeking to be aware of everything that bears on our interests, actions, values, purposes, and goals. It is the willingness to confront facts, pleasant or unpleasant. It is the desire to discover our mistakes and correct them. Within the range of our interests and concerns, it is the quest to keep expanding our awareness and understanding, both of the world external to self and of the world within. It is respect for reality and respect for the distinction between the real and the unreal. It is the commitment to see what we see and know what we know. It is recognition that the act of dismissing reality is the root of all evil."

Does that resonate with you? Maybe our readers have other definitions of living with awareness they'd like to share in the comments below? I'm enjoying this process of blogging with you already because it's creating an interesting dialogue between us. We are able to move beyond "honey, can you take the trash out?" By the way, here is where the "bitch chore" keyword came from. The good  news: you will get $1 for taking out the trash (if you don't forget and drive off to Calgary).

Now, regarding your comment "I guess my goal is to not get murdered". Um...I'm going to have to find a way to make you watch The Secret. Seriously dude, don't mess with the law of attraction, it works whether you believe in it or not! Think of yourself as a gigantic magnet. There is no difference between "I want" and "I don't want", you will get whatever you focus on, so we are going to stop focusing on your murder right now. Oh, one last thing. Forget about the banners at your funeral. Did I mention how powerful visualization is? Start visualizing that cold, crisp beer while you are comfortably watching The Secret, feeling empowered and blissful...

Time to lighten things up on this blog. You have a natural talent for that, so you get to pick the next topic!

Love,
Lise

www.lisevilleneuve.com

Is This Really Happening?

My heart is ready to explode out of my body today...in a good way! I just can`t believe this is happening...

Let`s back up a little. This is a picture of me at my CD release party back in Montreal a few years ago. As you may know, I decided to quit the music business and instead continue spreading a message of health and happiness as a holistic healer. My CD was released with my first book, and the entire package, including the songs, is all about following your heart, staying aligned with who you truly are and understanding universal laws in order to make your dreams come true. I believe spreading this message and empowering others to become the best possible version of themselves is my life's purpose. I can sing it, I can write about it, I can coach people on an individual basis...it doesn't really matter which way it comes out!

I've always been a strong believer of the Law of Attraction, but I've been practising it more intensely lately. One of my intentions has been to bring some of my music 'back to life'. I started writing these intentions in my journal a couple weeks ago and wonderfully strange events have been happening! I've been receiving emails from people congratulating me for my CD (it was released 7 years ago!) I've been receiving royalty cheques for substantial amounts (for international radio play that I was not even aware of!) and, today, the producers of Radio-Canada in Montreal will be broadcasting my duet with the wonderful Daniel Lavoie accross Canada (5:25 in Edmonton on Friday, Dec 6, on 98 fm).

Although I know my songs have been getting some radio play here and there, I've never actually had the chance to hear one broadcasted live! This is going to happen for the first time in my life today, and I'm just soooo excited about that! This is truly a dream coming true...one I can check off my list now! Never underestimate the power of clear intentions and focused energy! This is truly the fabric of miracles.

Warmest wishes,

Lise
www.lisevilleneuve.com

How To Create The Life You Truly Want

I finally get it. After years of soul searching, studying, and experimenting, I can now say that I understand how I've slowly been creating the life I truly want, and I also know how to help others get there. This has been my lifelong passion, and I have shifted from inspiring people through music and writing (as a touring singer-songwriter and author) to empowering individuals directly as a holistic therapist.

I love being able to make a difference in peoples' lives. There is so much unnecessary suffering in our hearts. When I meet someone who's at the end of their rope and I'm able to guide them towards a brighter perspective -and eventually, a happier, healthier life- I know that I'm doing the work I was really meant to do. Today I'd like to share some insights to help you understand how you can create the life you truly want.

The Biggest Illusion
Our senses deceive us. You may think that your computer is solid and static, but it's not! Quantum physicists tell us that everything in this universe is made up of vibrating energy fields, including you. That means that everything has its own frequency, or vibration. Even your thoughts are vibrating energy particles that have their own frequency.

You may wonder how any of this affects your life. Well, say you wanted to lose some weight. Most of us would approach the problem of being overweight like this : "I see some unwanted fat here, I can touch it, it's real, so what I need to do is find a solution on the physical level to remove the fat. I'll try dieting and exercising." Will this work? Sure, you can get results that way, but what are you going to do about the thoughts (conscious and subconscious) that caused you to make the wrong choices and created that fat in the first place? If you remain unaware of those thoughts, they will eventually sabotage your short-term success and you will gain weight again.

The biggest illusion is that we believe the best way to control our physical reality is through our physical senses. We look for solutions to most of our problems on a physical level : "If I work more hours, I'll experience more wealth; if I look better, I'll attract a partner; if I find the right doctor, I'll be able to heal from this illness". We are skipping an important step here. Everything that has manifested into your life is the direct result of a thought you believed, somewhere down the road. Your thoughts create your reality. If you don't like that reality, the fastest way to change it is by changing your thoughts! Remember, if everything is made of vibrating energy, it makes sense that thoughts are the precursor to physical matter.

The Rules of the Game
Energetic vibrations are not just random and chaotic, they follow a universal law. Energetic vibrations that match are attracted to each other, and vibrations that don't match are pushed away from each other. You may have guessed that this is called the Law of Attaction. Again, how does this affect your life? Well, you have your very own energetic vibration. It changes from day to day, depending on how you feel and how well you take care of yourself. So, imagine that today you feel great and you have a very high vibration. Following the law of attraction, what do you think you are going to attract in your life today? Like attracts like, so get ready to be a magnet for other high frequency (or positive) circumstances, people and events. The same goes that if you feel down, you will unfortunately attract what you are emitting. Your life today is a perfect reflection of your most frequent thoughts. The good news is that you can learn to control your thoughts, as opposed to letting them control you.

The Key
You hold the key to transforming your life once you develop true awareness. Becoming aware is waking up from the reality you have been creating "by default". You then realize you had the power to shape your reality all along (by becoming aware of your thoughts).That can be scary for some. Now that you know YOU are the ultimate creator of your life, what are you going to create? What do you want? There are no more excuses to play small. It's time to raise your vibration and start attracting all the good stuff!

How to Change Your Reality
You may be thinking, "Ok, I understand all of this, but how can I control my thoughts and raise my vibration? Or, you may be saying "I've tried, and this law of attraction stuff doesn't work". Well, it's not enough to simply understand the concept and think good thoughts. It's all about practice, practice, practice, each and every day. This is actually what I specialize in. I provide tools and techniques to raise your awareness and increase your vibration on an energetic level over a period of 6 months. I teach you how to:

• Become more aware of core limiting beliefs and negative thoughts, and then change them
• Tune in to your emotions and higher self
• Take great care of your body / mind / spirit (nutrition, exercise, meditation, self-expression)
• Use consistent, regular, positive focus to reach your goals / intentions
• Learn to gravitate towards what brings you joy and peace

The Life You Truly Want is Built From the Inside Out
Once you understand that your life today is a direct reflection of your most practised thoughts, you can confidently decide where you want to go from here. The sky is the limit! The life you truly want is within your reach. You just need to plant those "dream seedlings" inside you and create an environment that will allow them to grow and manifest in your outer reality.

Are you ready to get to work?
It's time to walk the talk! Contact me today to set up a free consultation. Please visit my website for more information.

Warmly,

Lise
Holistic Therapist / Reiki Master
www.lisevilleneuve.com