Today is our daughter's last day of high-school, she graduates next week, schools are ending the academic year, Oprah aired her final show running 25 seasons and somewhere a person died and a baby was born. These are a taste of life transitions. Life overflows with transitions and each transition brings new opportunities to learn, grow and engage the flow of life. Each transition offers an invitation to navigate with awareness or grow new muscles if the transition becomes stagnant. Stagnancy is a kink in flow created by stress, contracted emotion, need to know or any resistance to change.  

 

One of my favorite authors on the subject of transition is William Bridges. In his book, Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes, he identifies three distinct phases that frame the moments of transition. The phases are an ending, a neutral zone and a new beginning. Moments are held in the phases of transition. And, fine-tuning your awareness of these phases allows you to see the moments. This morning I had one of those moments. Just before Katelyn left in the car to drive to her last day of high-school, my eyes welled up with tears. I quickly ran downstairs to the car and gave her a hug telling her how proud I am of her. I felt the sweet energy of this moment and followed it with a spontaneous action to hug her. I could have created a kink by denying the energy and telling myself that I shouldn't be feeling "sad".  Flowing with the moment and the energy was an authentic experience of being connected. The connection created space to move to the next moment in this phase of transition with ease. Today is an ending. Tomorrow we enter a spacious neutral zone, until the new beginning.

 

Life is filled with transitions that we face and maneuver repeatedly, maybe fairly well. However, one area of specialty is financial transitions. Financial transitions add layers of complexity to a potentially unstable space. In my article below, I welcome you to become familiar with the unique texture of financial transitions and how your understanding may support you in creating more space and increasing flow.

 

With congratulations to all of the graduates (past, present and future!),

Gayle

 

1.  Minute one: Sit comfortably in a chair. Locate your buttocks on the cushion and your feet on the floor. Lengthen your spine and bring your breath gently down to your belly center. Close your eyes if you desire.

 

2.  Minute two: Pay attention to your breath in your belly. As you exhale each breath, draw your belly firmly into your spine squeezing out all air. Repeat with each breath, paying attention to the core of your belly on the inhale and the exhale.

 

3.  Minute three: Allow your attention to expand from your belly center to the space around you. Continue to expand your awareness in all directions, left, right, down into the earth, front, back, up into the sky. Sense no boundaries; expand in all directions to infinity.

 

4.  Minute four: Sustaining the vast infinite view, reconnect to your belly center.  Embrace the space between your belly center and infinity.

 

5.  Minute five: Hold your awareness in the space. Sense stillness and peace.

 

6.  Complete your practice by embracing the space with your heart-mind and recognizing space supports every transition. 

Divorce, death, disability, loss of job, sudden wealth and sudden loss are examples of typical life transitions that include monetary considerations. Earlier I described Bill Bridges' transition process including the three phases: an ending, a neutral zone and a new beginning. Financial transitions incorporate these phases as well. 

 

But, financial transitions can be more complex than "regular" transitions because not only are you facing change, you are also adding the energy of money. While money is neutral, your relationship to it is filled with beliefs and behavior and habits that may or may not serve you and the impending change. In over thirty years, I have not experienced anyone who has been fearless in a financial transition. How can you coexist with fear and manifest a healthy financial transition?

 

(Continue reading here)