Life-Design

Hello again, friends!

I missed you last week but it was essential for me to pause and simply be. My grandmother recently passed away and I needed time to sit with the news, to reconnect with family, and finally — to rest.

With the news of my grandmother’s passing, everything was put on hold for a little, as feelings demanded to be felt and surrendered to. The grieving process is a strange one, with unpredictable waves of peace, then disbelief, mixed in with pangs of sorrow that hit you out of nowhere. I’m not sure that I can (or ever) will fully comprehend the totality of losing someone you love, or of the sureness of death. We fall for forever every time, despite knowing that death is natural and will happen to us all — and generally, to our grandparents sooner rather than later. Still, it catches you off guard.

I wasn’t planning on fully delving into grief today. I wanted more so to connect on the issue of time. But the process of losing someone reawakened something in me. This need to be the observer in my life again — to take a step back, to reassess, and rebuild.

I’m recognizing more and more how the feeling of being constantly rushed, along with my own expectations of productivity had a hold of me, even though there was no need for the acute intensity of it all. Sure, the energy of modern life is quick and easy to become submerged in — but I have more control of my experience with time and productivity than I initially thought.

Life-Design:

Something I’m deeply passionate about is what I like to call “life design.” To me, it means being boldly intentional about our goals and desires and creating our own individual blueprint for how we want our lives to look like. Each person’s values and personality are unique, and the way the different facets of our lives come together (our careers, relationships, and schedules to name a few) should reflect that as best as possible.

If we’re not consciously aware of our own desires and value systems, it’s easy to fall into societal conditioning and give into that gnawing pressure to do this or that on some sort of timeline — whether it be marrying by a certain age, or striving for a version of “success” you may not even agree upon.

The point of life design is to determine your own definition of success and of a good life. Not society’s. Not your family’s, nor your friends. It poses you to determine what is of most value to you, and to consider what you’re willing to do in order to reshape the way you structure your time and energy according to those values.

Part of my own journey has involved shedding what others expected of me — particularly the pressures I felt most strongly from my grandmother to succumb to a type of life I didn’t want to live.

In grandma’s ideal reality, I would’ve been a doctor, an accountant, or worked in any sort of office, honestly. Something conventional and easy to define. (She never understood what “life coaching” was, and I stopped trying to explain). I also would’ve been married to a handsome prince (literally, a prince) and stayed close to home, forever.

But my wild soul was stubborn and loud, and I answered its call, which took me around the globe, searching searching searching for my own version of a good life. Most of the time, that just meant freedom. Freedom to travel, to explore, and to be on a creative path. It then evolved to finding my purpose and turning my passions into a living, which is what I’m currently working on.

But the striving became too tiring. I demanded a lot of myself on a daily basis, struggled with comparison, and became worn out. Luckily, I didn’t fully burn-out, but I suspect I was headed there. This pace became my norm, my auto-pilot — until recently.

Every so often, life calls for a re-design.

These days, I am working on appreciating time. Not being so quick to spend it on accomplishing task after task, but really sulking in the moments. It looks like:

Giving myself the space to enjoy the process. Focusing on one thing at a time, and delving into one fraction of a project at once. Meditating for longer, allowing myself to do things for fun, or simply relishing in a cup of coffee or the way the sunshine feels on my skin after a long winter. It was a decision to redefine success as the enjoyment of the little moments that make up a day; a lifetime.

The days feel longer, with more profound focus, and there’s been a birthing of new ideas. Overall, it’s a better relationship with myself and with time. I can breathe, and remember that it was never a race to begin with, it was more like a road trip headed home.

xxGabriela

Simplifying Into 2020

Winter is in full bloom in New York yet I’m still very happy to be here. Just the other day I was in Puerto Rico for work, contemplating whether I should move abroad somewhere sunny near the water, and though nothing is really off the table for me, I know that I am in the right place at the right time now.

I’ve been melting into some sweet time off, refusing to fly anywhere else. It’s nice to feel as though I actually live in this great city and to enjoy the pleasantries of ordinary life — my own bed, in my little brick-walled room, taking the subway to different parts of the city, writing at my go-to coffee shop, and meeting with friends! Shout out to my supportive friend Ali, who just moved here and made my world a little brighter, too! 🙂

Traveling a ton and not really having an ordinary life (whatever that really means) has increased my gratitude for simplicities — but above all, for the sensation of being grounded in a place and in myself. Routine and familiarity can be really good for the soul. I think we just need to be aware of becoming complacent & overly comfortable with something that isn’t serving us. That is when we reassess & rearrange. Despite our trying though, life is always in flux, so we will eventually need to adapt ~ and that keeps things exciting.

As you might tell, themes of stability, grounding, and simplicity have been flowing through my mind lately. (My last newsletter was about revisiting core needs — check it out here if you haven’t read it).

Sometimes life gets complicated, our minds run wild, and worry and anxiety can take hold. For me, it often manifests as this sensation of “being all over the place.” When this happens, I’ve found it helpful to sink into some routines: journaling, exercise, cooking, and sleeping at consistent times, to name a few. They remind me to lean into the moment and into the day with steady ease. They ensure I am taken care of before tackling any tasks.

I’ve noticed that lot of my stress and anxiety comes from thinking “I’m not doing enough.” It’s the never-ending “to do list,” a large appetite for creative expression, and the drive to succeed and achieve that both inspires and drives me crazy.

I don’t want to lose the spark to create, but I also want to make life easier for myself, so I’m choosing to come into 2020 with some renewed simplicity.

I recently watched a video by Sorelle called “Work Less and Achieve More” which resonated and inspired me to share some insights with you. In the video she talks about how our society is obsessed with constantly “doing” and when we scale back and actually do less, we can create with more passion, and subsequently, more impact.

These are some ways you can scale back at the end of 2019 & into 2020 in order to support your physical and mental health and ultimately create more joy and impact with the work you do/make. Of course, feel free to create your own list and to adjust as needed 🙂

When it comes to the “to do list”: remove the shit that you’re never going to do/ don’t really have to do. Just.Let.It.Go. Prioritize and set forth three main tasks for the day. If inspiration and creativity call, do that. Have fun.
Prioritize what consistently makes you feel good. Pump your energy into it. For me it’s writing. Despite having interest in other things, like making videos, or podcasts — writing is just what feels most natural and cathartic to me, so that’ll come #1.
Listen to your body. It knows what you need. Rest? Movement? Play? Nourishing food? It’ll let you know if you tune in.
Before starting something new, ask yourself: “What is my intention behind doing this?” Is it out of joy, service, passion, or because it’ll make you feel more worthy and loved? Know that you are inherently loved/beautiful/complete/ beyond measure and nothing can make you any more or any less.

Let me know what you think and how you choose to simplify before 2020.

Tipping the Scale

I recently recorded a podcast about creativity, intuition, and co-creating with higher source.

It was inspired by a desire to express my creativity in different forms. While I have a little routine down of writing and making videos, my intuition led me to see what other ways I could share my message, and I was called to try podcasting again, which felt very fluid and free.

It’s good to step out of our comfort zones as creatives, to play, and to not be so rigid with our work and ourselves. As I have shared, I’m working on dropping the strict demands I have on myself to create a certain type of content on schedule (when it isn’t feeling good or aligned), and to let my work feel energizing and fun!

I would like to explore what it means to be a “hard worker” in a much different way. To view my projects as “play” and as a time to connect with higher source, using my passions as a form of mediation. Perhaps by tipping the scale in this playful direction, I will actually find balance between freedom and tangible results.

It’s a process that requires intuition, self-compassion, enthusiasm, and drive.

If you yourself are a creative, or are just curious about exploring your own intuition when it comes to creating or making decisions, then check out the podcast here.

“Your Worth is Not Measured by Your Productivity”

Hello friends,

It’s my pleasure to be writing this newsletter again. It’s been on the back of my mind for a while now. My new career as a flight attendant has taken center stage and I’m adjusting to this lifestyle change day by day. The newness of it all has been exhausting at times, and while home, I’ve spent countless of hours in bed, watching Game of Thrones. (I know, I’m still catching up!)

I’ve tackled with various emotions while being in “rest mode” ―sometimes feeling totally justified in taking the time off to completely relax, and other times not being able to let go of the list of things I “should” or “could” be doing instead. One of those being this newsletter.

The couple times I tried to start writing, my words felt lost and scrambled. I was frustrated at myself for not being able to accomplish this one task, and to let you down in a sense.

I’ve scrolled through Instagram and questioned how some of the people I look up to (coaches, entrepreneurs, spiritual teachers, artists) are seemingly so able to constantly create and finish their work; how they have mastered a state of flow that’s entirely elusive to me. I’ve compared myself and felt bad about where I am in my own journey― how far away my goals can sometimes feel. And I think: If only I could be consistent. If only I could DO MORE..

The more compassionate side of me advises towards self forgiveness and patience. It was not the right time to be writing, until now. My energy, my inspiration and creativity ebb and flow. Sometimes they are harder to grasp. Sometimes I will not live up to my own standards of productivity. I can work towards accepting that and championing the little successes I do have. Because they are enough. And if you feel this way too, you too―are enough.

I don’t have the answers on how to achieve that perfect state of flow, where you can seamlessly create and take every day actions towards your goals, but some advice I can give you is that it all gets better when you’re kind to yourself.

You can either feel bad about what you haven’t yet accomplished, or appreciate where you are now compared to the past. What are the positive baby steps you finally decided to take? How has the relationship you have to yourself changed for the better?

I could feel bad about all the time I went without writing or being productive, or I could be proud to be writing today. I could call myself lazy for all the hours in bed, or I could marvel at the opportunity I gave myself to rest, when in the past I wouldn’t have let myself.

It’s so important to pay attention to the way we speak to ourselves and whether we’re building ourselves up or down. Self criticism can seep in the most subtle ways, from comparison to guilt. It’s the underlying belief that we are not enough, even though we truly are no matter what we do. I am Still enough if I watched Netflix in bed for the rest of my life― and that is a lesson I keep coming back to.

Everything else we choose to do, all our dreams and aspirations, those are icing on the cake in this extraordinary experience of being. And you, simply being here, is wonderfully enough.

Love,

Gabriela

Create.

I’m going about my business and projects as if they’re a real job from now on. What do I mean by that? I mean that I’m giving myself deadlines, assigning daily tasks, and holding myself accountable. After all, I am my own boss. I never took that part to heart before. I was much too lenient with my personal deadlines and would easily get distracted throughout the day. Before I knew it a week would escape me without much achieved.

Now, I aim to step up my content creation. I want to enhance my ability to come up with new ideas as well as ways to express them–but overall, the goal is to balance out the amount I create vs. consume. It was so much easier to just be a consumer: listening and watching other inspirational people thrive and create. I was inspired, but didn’t do anything with that inspiration. I didn’t enter the dialogue myself.

I believe that creativity is a muscle. I’m learning to work through my imperfections when it comes to exercising it. I didn’t like to create and put anything out there that didn’t feel polished enough, or resembled the effortless excellence of other people’s works. The thing is, without stumbling, trying and failing, I can’t get better. Nothing happens when I wait for all the elements to come together. Time leaves me.