In this third month of the year, I promised to share with you our third Bagua area of focus: Family & Ancestry. But then I got a bit distracted planning this awesome challenge I have starting up next week! (if you haven't signed up yet, make sure you do so here.)

So on this last day of March, I have for you a tip sheet all around how to set up the Family & Ancestry (& parenting) area of your home in a way that will offer you the full support you deserve in this area of your life. (Not sure where the Family & Ancestry area of your home is? Check out my blog post on how to align the Bagua Map over your space.)

The Family & Ancestry area is all about deep roots--your long line of ancestors, the deep rooted family ties, the deep learning that often has to happen to make these relationships successful. 

This area is governed by the Wood element (think deep rooted trees, green plants and new spring growth). There is movement to this element, but it is slow and deep (not fast and furious like fire energy). 

Pay attention to this area of your home if you have struggles or stagnant places around this area of your life. I'll give you an example. 

I know, just like me, you've experienced the way that things collect on all your surfaces. 

This is the Law of Attraction at work, where like attracts like. You put one item down on a clean surface and the next time you walk by, there are 5 things! 

Today's brief VLOG is about the incredible power and ease that can come when everything in your home as a Place of Purpose. 

With two kids running around, I'm a sucker for ways I can make my home easier to maintain, ways I can spend less time dealing with my stuff and more time enjoying the stages of their childhood. 

Today's VLOG is all about creating the space that allows you to focus on the positive aspects of your life. Knowing that there is a positive and a negative side to EVERY situation has been game-changing for me. It comforts me to know there is ALWAYS a silver lining, even when I can't see it.

Listen in to find out how you can change your game as well, and bring more happiness into your life--both through your choice of focus and the environment around you.

You're not alone if other people's stuff in your space is driving you crazy, frustrating you, making you feel like you have no control over the state of your space. 

This, amazingly, even happens to people who live alone, with the handing down of family heirlooms, gifts and boxes of stuff upon the death of a parent or grandparent. 

And of course it applies to all the people out there who live with a partner or children, a loved one, a parent, a relative, a friend, a roommate. 

I know, because I've been there too: in a state of major frustration that I was the one constantly picking up other people's stuff, that I was the one who cared, that no one was able to put anything away WHERE IT BELONGED. 

If this frustrates you as well, I have a short video log for you all about other people's stuff. It might help you feel more in control of you space and your emotions, then again, it might not be what you want to hear...

There is a growing bulk of research that links trying new things to being happy.*

And yet studies suggest we fear an unknown outcome more than we do a known bad one. Fear is one major thing that holds us back from trying new things and from being happy. But the age-old adage: if you want something you’ve never had, you’ve got to do something you’ve never done, could never be more true.

The main reason I see people getting stuck in a rut is because we’re too busy (and deep down, just plain scared) to try something new. Our society is plagued by real or perceived time bankruptcy.

But what if people took more control over their time and optimized their use of it?

Time is a precious resource. Do you treat it that way? 

I don't mean to imply that we should be working in all of our time, or even doing. Really, what I mean to ask is do you spend your time in ways that make you happy? That's the ultimate test, if we are happy as we do. 

There is much to do in life that is not necessarily at the top of our bucket list of things that will "make us happy." The real test is if we can be happy as we do all of the things we find ourselves doing in our normal day-to-day... in this present moment. 

You know that stuck feeling where you can’t imagine how you would even begin a project?

You want a space to be different, you want a part of your life to be different, but you’re nowhere near inspired.

That’s how my office has felt this month. It functions relatively well, but was beginning to fill up again with all the things that needed to be done, fixed, sent (those things seem to attract themselves to this space!). 

And yet, here we are, in February, a month of focusing on the Self Knowledge & Wisdom area of home and life and--you guessed it--that’s exactly where my office falls. I wanted the space to feel & function even better. I wanted more clarity around my inner work. But I just couldn't get started. 

We all yearn for (and benefit from), that work-space that inspires us, that lends us focus and productivity--that all powerful ability to be in the zone.

And last weekend I had an opening.

There is one room in your home that hands down has the greatest impact on your well being... 

You'll also find out one thing you can do to begin to improve this space in a way that will impact your health, your relationships, your work life, your home life, you name it. 

Still wondering what room that is?! Watch the short video below!

Today's video log is a glimpse into how you can find and look to the Self Knowledge & Wisdom area of your home in a way that can inspire you afresh and help you appreciate where you are right now.

Creating a space (however small) that accurately reflects YOU--the growth you continue to make and the aspirations you have in life--is incredibly helpful for those days when your inspiration flags.

As we come squarely into the month of February, love is in the air. 

I've never been one to place much import in Valentine's Day, but I think that was because the marketers got to me and I thought the holiday was all about buying things for your loved ones. Don't get me wrong, flowers and dark chocolate are fabulous, but if you know me, you know that stuff is not always my cup of tea. 

Now the holiday makes me think about all the depth there is to the notion of love, all the ways to shower love and attention and show your appreciation for your loved ones. 

And so, in this month where our focus is on Self Knowledge & Wisdom, I have a short little video log for you where I share alternative ways to shower love and appreciation on your loved ones (and yes, of course, it has to do with your space :)).