Pass the Story

http://www.heatherdakota.com/books.html

I just received the proof for Pass the Story! A dream that started almost three years ago has come to fruition. Cheers to "Wo-manifesting!" I wanted to share a little bit of its history, and of course, a story!

Several years ago, I was sitting around a campfire with a group of women I didn't know. Quite frankly, I had very little regard for women. I thought all of them were bat-shit crazy, backstabbing bitches, including myself. None of us was good enough, worthy enough, smart enough, or beautiful enough. WE weren't enough...period...end of discussion. These were my experiences, my words, and my story. All of our stories become filters through which we see reality.

Face-to-Face with YOU

"Fear keeps us focused on the past and worried about the future. If we can acknowledge our fear, we can realize that right now we are okay." ~Thich Nhat Hanh

Porcupine brings a sense of joy and curiosity to bring you out of the muck of grief.
Engage Porcupine Medicine to help you stay afloat through troubled waters.

When I lived on a farm in Kentucky many years ago, we had a cistern for our water needs. About once a month or so, we had to put a stick into the cistern to see how much water we had left. There were various measurements on the stick to determine the amount of water in the cistern.

In the last month, I did a test on myself and found that my Energy Cistern was running on low or very low, which invited a big bunch of Fear to come visit me. It was the general sticky like Velcro kind of Fear. I worried. I had anxiety. I couldn't sleep. I was in full-blown panic mode. Two weeks ago, my warrior-Self was ready to do battle with this monster. It was almost an obsession to "get to the bottom of why I was feeling these feelings." That's a lot of "doing" and not a lot of "being." Sitting with Fear is no joke. Luckily my intuition stepped in and made me realize that I had to get very clear on what is real and true for me in this moment.

Find Your Place and It Will Nourish You

Hummingbird Medicine brings Joy, Happiness, and Love. Find your place and it will nourish you.

 "We are Divine enough to ask, and we are important enough to receive." ~Wayne Dyer

Hiya Gorgeous,

Phew...what a month it has been! Spring is showing me what rebirth is really all about, and it's not necessarily all sunshine and roses. I've been in a releasing and death phase for the past two years. Finally, the Phoenix is rising from the ashes of my former life. The stories I believed in are no longer valid, and I had to break my heart in order to regain my soul.

Last year was a test of human endurance, confidence in myself, and trust in the Divine.

Love Note #12

Love Note #12; Wise Woman Alchemy

Pick a direction and take action. If you stay with indecision, you will get wet.

P.S. And it really doesn't matter which direction. All paths lead back to love! Cool, huh?

Love Note #11

Love Note #11; Wise Woman Alchemy

The Earth is beginning to wake up from her winter nap. Take care of her, and she will take care of you.

P.S. Everything from the flowers to the trees and stones to the animals are our relations. Treat them well.

Friday Fun Zone #2

Self-care Kitty woke me very early this morning, but I was able to do something I don't get to do often enough...meditate with my camera.

Today's thoughts:

"Every morning is permission to start over." 


Have a beautiful day!

Your permission to start over

Mockingbird Morning

Golden Morning Warbler

When Grandmother Moon Wakes You, Listen!

When the Universe is calling, listen!

Happy Friday, Wise Women! I hope everyone in the US had a wonderful Turkey Day with family and friends, and everyone else had a day filled with love and laughter! I definitely did, but there is something stirring in me. Something from deep within calling.

Grandmother Moon calling

At 4am, self-care kitty woke me, "Hey human, hey, hey, hey..." When I finally peeled my eyes open I was greeted by a warm glow in the room. I grabbed my camera and saw this. I'm not sure what is bubbling up from the depths (I don't think it's turkey), but it has me flummoxed, excited, and looking in the shadows. I may have to get outside and really listen to spirit today.

How have your soul callings been going? What's stirring in you?

Passion is a One-Night Stand

"Passion is a one-night stand." ~Elizabeth Gilbert

Recently, I heard Elizabeth Gilbert talk about passions and purpose. They seem to be the buzzwords of the last several years. You always hear and read that you MUST find your passion and purpose in order to be happy. It's important to find your purpose and you find it through your passions. Huh? Really? Who made this rule and why didn't I get the memo? Okay, that's great advice if you have a clear one.


Oh and I bought into it hook, line and sinker. Makes sense. Everyone wants to be happy, right? Did I really believe it. Truth be told, not really. And boy did I struggle with it! My passions are all over the map from tiny houses and helping women with their businesses to art and writing. How do you combine those? And if my passions lead to my purpose...good grief. I don't even know where to begin there.

4 Steps to Cleanse, Clear, and Release In Your Business Each Year

2015 Releasing Ritual

For more than 10 years at the end of each year, I go through a cleansing, clearing, and releasing ritual in my life and business. It is a great opportunity to reflect, re-member, and release what no longer serves. I usually take November and December to do this, so I don't feel rushed to get it all done in a week, or something silly like that. Focus on one area at a time!

Here are the 4 steps that I use:

1. Choose an animal guide. This year my guide for reflecting, remembering, and releasing is Ibis. During a journey, Ibis explained that I needed to bring more balance into my life, revive and restore my heart and soul. Therefore, I will be working with her during this phase. You can find out more about journey work here.
2. Cleanse, clear, and clean EVERYTHING! This means from my spiritual tools to sweeping and mopping the floor. My inner world and outer world both get a thorough going through. This includes backing up and clearing out computer files and paper files, gathering tax papers, putting old notes in a new idea journal, and feng shuiing my space. I sing the song Holy Mother that I heard from Pixie Lighthorse several years ago for all of my inner and outer cleaning. It connects me deeper to the tasks of cleansing, clearing, and cleaning.

Mining the Inner World For Your Business

A Journey to the Spirit Realm looks and feels like this.

 
What is journey work? I get that question a lot!

Here's what it is and how I use it to help other women soul-o-preneurs:

A journey is a powerful meditative state and the gateway to non-ordinary reality. Ordinary reality is the world we can see, touch, and feel in our every day. Journeying is the method that I use to access other worlds where the spirit helpers are found. These unseen forces have guided and protected you since you were born. Non-ordinary reality is the realm of the spirit, of visions and dreams, and the sources of your energy, creativity, passions, and love. Being there is an honor and a blessing not just for me, but for those I journey for. I bring back wisdom and words of empowerment that relate to you and your business.

How it's done: 

The 5 P's of Being a Soulful Business Woman

I started my soulful career at 5 years old. You see, I had just received my first camera, a Brownie to be exact, and it needed film. I didn't have enough money saved up and my parents thought it best for me to earn the money anyway. I thought for weeks about what to do to make money. Brainstorming was in order, and a technique I use to this day. I decided that everyone likes flowers in their house, so I headed out to an obliging field and picked the prettiest wildflowers I could find. There were purple ones, white ones, and yellow ones. Perfect!

 
 

Field of Wildflowers and the 5 P's of being a soulful business woman

I took them home and put them in water. The next step in my plan was to draw these beautiful flowers. Luckily, I had reams and reams of computer paper. The old kind that was big and perfed with green lines on the back. I drew and colored about 20 different views of these flowers, had a little PB & J, and headed out the door with my wares in my little red wagon. I know it sounds cliché and more than a little old-fashioned, but it worked!

Looking back on those times, I definitely had the 5 P's of being a soulful business woman.

5 Lessons from Ant to save a Soul-o-preneur Precious Time

5 Lessons from Ant to Save a Soul-o-preneur Precious Time

I've been watching the sugar ants in our kitchen (that we've been trying to encourage to go outside), but they are determined to march across the kitchen floor, up the kitchen counter, and over to the sink. They stop to chat with each other briefly, but are constantly on the go. Then, it dawned on me. There are a lot of them because they are small. They are constantly on the go because their only job is to feed the queen and the nest. As Soul-o-preneurs, we're running our businesses a lot like Ant searches for food. Here are a few lessons that we an learn from Ant:

Stay focused. Your time is precious, so make sure you're focusing that time on the things that are going to move your business forward. These things are: creating products, marketing your services, and laying your business foundations. Staying focused on one thing at a time will get everything done faster.

Stay organized. In order to save time, organize everything from your files (hard copy and online) to your work area. Make sure that you are using a system that works for you. After all, you don't see Wolf using Ant's systems.

Know and write down your processes. If you create a system that works for you (i.e. a product launch, filing system, or marketing system), write it down. This will help you grow your business in the long run. As soon as you're able to delegate a task, someone else can step in and do it just the way you've always done it, because you have a process.

Delegate. You don't see the Queen Ant coming up and looking for food, because that's not her job. She has delegated the job of gathering food for the nest to the worker ants. You can do the same thing with tasks that are not your strengths or that you simply don't like. There will always be another Soul-o-preneur whose passions can step right in and get the job done. And then, we're spreading the energy/money, love, and all of us get to shine our lights.

I know. I hear you...it costs money, but how much is it costing you in time? Your time is a limited resource as well. Most importantly, is the task taking up time that could be devoted to creating for your business?  If so, delegate it! And where there is a will, there is a way!

Communicate your needs. Don't sit in silence and suffer. Spending your precious time researching how to do a task is not an efficient use of your time. If you haven't got it within an hour, it's time to ask everyone you know if they know how to do it. Someone will know or can recommend someone to you.





These tips will help you save time now and in the future.  If you want to grow your business, it's really important to work smarter, not harder. Working 80 hours a week is not serving you or your tribe. Implementing some of these tips will have your business working for you, not the other way around.

For more tips, techniques, and support, head on over to the Wise Woman's Society. What Lesson from Ant intrigues you most or that you already use in your business? Leave a comment below.

How to Spin a Web for your Business

A Soulful Business is like Spider's Web

I've been seeing a lot of spiders lately.
I've been thinking a lot about my business, too.