I recently saw the term “heartstorming” and was immediately taken with it. Heartstorming is in some ways the opposite of brainstorming. You can see the obvious connotation, heart versus brain. But there is a massive chasm between the two and how they may affect our life choices.

In much of the western world, we are taught from birth to honor thinking above all else. We teach our children to be logical, to think things through, to think linearly, to plan and to be rational. While I do not argue that there is no place for this, it is overemphasized and to the huge detriment of most of us. We are taught to make choices with only partial information; that within our heads. Not only have we not been taught to honor our hearts or our spirits, we are taught to ignore and suppress it. Many are not even aware that they have heart longings and suffer greatly because of it.

I worked in corporate American for decades. Heart and spirit were almost never in the equations used to determine the company’s success including the hundreds of thousands of people who made up the company. For the most part, it wasn’t even given lip service. All decisions were numbers based. There are few companies even today that embrace the human spirit as part of their mission statement.

We all know how to brainstorm. It’s taught in the workplace, in workshops and retreats and even in some schools. But who is taught to heartstorm; to look within our hearts and spirits for our purpose in life, our true longings, and our true being? And without knowing who you truly are, who you are truly meant to be, your life’s purpose, and your own soulful yearnings, how can you ever expect to be happy and fulfilled?

Heartstorming is gleaning information from your heart (your inner self, your spirit, your soul). It is not acting on the emotion of the moment, although emotions may be present. It is looking deep within with curiosity. There are many ways to heartstorm. Heart information can come through intuition, dreams, your body’s energy, through thoughts and pictures and sounds, and through synchronicities and signs. You can journal every day your thoughts, feelings, sensations, and dreams. Notice what information presents itself. In my Attraction Circle Workshop last night, several participants mentioned that many of the best things they have attracted into their lives came when they were journaling regularly. If you haven’t tried, start your new year off right by daily journaling. You can do energy work to become more aware of your body, its energy movements, to clear up blocks, and to understand your connection to “all that is”. Art and creative endeavors open a conduit from your heart to your mind. Your intuition can be brought forth and honed so that the intuitive information is always available to you. Intuition is “heart” information. Meditation can quiet the mind (the hero of brainstorming) and consequently, increase your “beingness” (where the heart finds it easy to speak). All of these and more are ways to listen to your heart.

When your heart speaks, listen and take action. Many of us know what our hearts and spirits are asking for, but our head chatter “reasons” us out of taking action. After all, it is our egos’ job to “protect” us and keep us in our comfort zone. Learn to distinguish between head chatter or mind talk and heart talk. Typically they feel and sound differently. With a little practice, you will know the difference. Again, when your heart speaks, listen and take action. You will never be sorry.

If you listen to your head more than your heart, it is not possible to be authentic and true to yourself. The very definition of being true to yourself is to own and honor your life purpose and spirit. If you want more happiness, more joy, more focus, more productivity, more energy and zest, and a better life overall, do some heartstorming; listen and take action.

If you find yourself needing more help in learning about what your heart is trying to tell you, coaching may support your efforts. Give me a call at 713.528.5971 or contact me via email at maf@lifeunfolds.com

Start the new year off with passion, play and purpose! If you are in the Houston area, check out Kay Kemp's new workshop, the Wild Heart Art Painting weekend that focuses on setting your intentions for the coming year.

January 6 - 8, 2005 - Wild Heart Art Painting The weekend painting workshop offers an extended time and space to allow you to sink deeply into the creative process without distractions.

Begin the new year with a renewed dedication to your creativity and how it contributes to your life. This powerful and transformative process invites passion, play, and purpose. The program will include setting intentions for the coming year and exploration of what calls us.

The weekend program is Friday, 6:00 pm - 9:30 pm, Saturday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm (1-1/2 hour lunch break) , & Sun 9:30 am - 1:00 pm .

Cost: $185 with a deposit of $85 due upon registration. Registration deadline December 21, 2005. Deposits are refundable until 10 days prior to start of workshop (minus $25 handling). All materials and snacks are included.

Call Mary Anne at (713) 898-0041 or email maf@lifeunfolds.com for more information and to register. Also see http://www.lifeunfolds.com/attraction.htm for more information.

• Starts January 10th, 2006.
• Tuesdays from 7 to 8:30 pm, four weeks.
• Held in Heights area at the Wild Heart Art studio, in Houston, Texas.
• Fee is only $89.

SPECIAL NOTE: If you register with a friend for the Attraction Circle Workshop, you each receive a 10% discount off the tuition. If you register with TWO friends, you each receive 20% off the tuition.

I've created a list of related books.

I recently told you about a new find of mine, the Spiritual Cinema Circle. I am a member and love it. It's my best new find in a long while. What I like best about them besides the incredible and thought- provoking movies is that you can cancel at any time and you get to KEEP the DVDs. Here is something I just received from them. I know you will want to read about it.

I'm so excited to be able to tell you about a truly wonderful service that's having a great effect on the world. The Spiritual Cinema Circle is the world's first and only transformational DVD club, with wonderful movies that entertain, enlighten and inspire. Their November volume includes a truly magical film: DELIVERING MILO, starring Bridget Fonda, Campbell Scott and Albert Finney, is a delightful and funny tale of birth, life, death and all states in between. Now here's the great news: For a limited time, you can... GET YOUR FIRST MONTH OF MOVIES FREE!

That's right... Join The Spiritual Cinema Circle today, and you can see DELIVERING MILO, along with a great collection of shorts and documentaries, for FREE (all you pay is shipping & handling). Don't miss out on this great opportunity to take an extraordinary cinematic journey of the heart, mind and spirit!

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment to improve the world." -- Anne Frank

"The grateful mind is constantly fixed upon the best. Therefore it tends to become the best. It takes the form or character of the best, and will receive the best." -- Wallace Wattles

“And I will show that there is no imperfection in the present, and can be none in the future, And I will show that whatever happens to anybody it may be turned to beautiful results.” — Walt Whitman

"For fast acting relief from stress, try slowing down." -- Lilly Tomlin

"Every day that you attempt to see things as they are in truth Is a supremely successful day." -- Vernon Howard

"Our limitations and success will be based, most often, on our own expectations for ourselves. What the mind dwells upon, the body acts upon." -- Denis Waitley

I believe the questions we ask ourselves can be the force that shapes our lives.

Ask yourself: "What is the one most important thing I can think about this week to achieve my dreams?"

Dream Board Workshop Get a Jump Start on Your 2006 Resolutions

A dream board is a simple, yet powerful way of making your dreams come true. It is a visual representation of your dreams or goals and your desired outcomes. It is the perfect tool to help you clarify your desires, see your goals vividly, to provide focus, and to imprint this visualization in your mind. Seeing the pictures and words that depict your success repeatedly will help to create the desired outcome in your real life. You will be led through questions that help you clarify your desires, and through all the steps necessary to create the dream board. You will leave this class with a large poster of your dream. This is a really fun class with very serious results! Make your dreams come alive by joining us in this workshop. Class size is limited.

Next Class is Tuesday, December 6th, 2005 From 6:45 until 9:00 pm Only $35 Class held at the beautiful Wild Heart Art (www.wildheartart.com) Studio in the Heights in Houston

Register by calling me at 713.528.5971 or email me at maf@LifeUnfolds.com.

If you haven't been to my website lately, check out the nature photos. I just added a few from our North Carolina vacation. See below for link. You can see all the pictures in all three galleries by selecting the "slideshow" button at the bottom of he page.