Mind Map Inspiration

Everyday miracles of the planet

Paul — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 07:58:34 +0000

This is a mind map about gratitude and appreciation for some of the everyday miracles of the planet.

I am grateful for having a life
I am grateful for being able to breathe
I am grateful for the ability to walk
I am grateful to those who love me
I am grateful to those who care and share
I am grateful to those who help
I am grateful for my pulse and heartbeat
I am grateful for my teeth
I am grateful for my skin
I am grateful for my bones
I am grateful for my hair
I am grateful for my brain
I am grateful for my senses
I am grateful for my thoughts
I am grateful for my laughter
I am grateful for my fun
I am grateful for my joy
I am grateful for my humour
I am grateful for my music
I am grateful for my positive progression
I am grateful for feeling worthwhile
I am grateful for feeling inspired
I am grateful for feeling motivated
I am grateful for feeling appreciated
I am grateful for feeling helpful
I am grateful for feeling trusted
I am grateful for feeling useful
I am grateful for feeling alive
I am grateful for feeling on purpose
I am grateful for feeling committed
I am grateful for feeling passionate
I am grateful for the sunshine, wind and all weathers
I am grateful for animals, insects and birds
I am grateful for nature and seasons
I am grateful for water
I am grateful for warmth and the cool
I am grateful for food and shelter
I am grateful for drinks
I am grateful for my health
I am grateful for my shoes, socks and clothes
I am grateful of my umbrella in the rain
I am grateful for a hat in the cold
I am grateful for all the simple things in life
I am grateful for the wonders of the planet
I am grateful for the oceans
I am grateful for the rain
I am grateful for the sun and moon
I am grateful for waterfalls
I am grateful for forests
I am grateful for fruit
I am grateful for vegetables
I am grateful for bushes
I am grateful for trees
I am grateful for stars
I am grateful for day and night
I am grateful for blossoms
I am grateful for storms, thunder and lightning
I am grateful for the sky

I am grateful for the everyday miracles of the planet both large and small. The real diamonds; the affordable diamonds of everyday miracles.

What everyday miracles are you grateful for?

What might you add?

I hope you enjoy viewing my Mind Maps – there are hundreds more planned here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog plus ongoing creativity and drawing tips. If you are not already subscribed, why not do so now via RSS or Email

Also available: E-Books designed to help you create stylish and artistic mind maps of your own.

If you know someone who could benefit from this post and others here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog please share with them.

Follow me on Twitter @mindmapdrawer

Share and Enjoy:

Positive Gut Feeling

Paul — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:26:54 +0000

Your mind can produce thousands of thoughts; your body “feels”. Your mind can overload you with options, ideas, possibilities, choices, indecision and uncertainty to name a few. Your body “feels”. Your mind can find all manner of proof to justify its logic, to validate its position or belief. Your body “feels”. You could say your body is unbiased; gut feeling, instinct, intuition – what you feel, not what you think.

Here is a quick experiment:

Try saying to yourself – “Body, I am…” and then make up something you are not. Then try the same phrase using something that you are. See if you can sense a feeling inside for each statement. The incorrect one may make you feel colder than the real one; or you may sense a “buzz” in your body when you use the correct statement. The feeling comes anywhere, not just in one area and often appears as a “fizzing” or warmth; ten times more powerful for correct answers. From experience this doesn’t always happen; sometimes you can’t feel anything. Don’t force it, make it effortless, simply allow and you may feel the inner buzz. Better results come when your body and mind are totally relaxed (see the Free 85 Page E-Book “Stop Thinking” for meditation tips and techniques for quietening your mind)

Part of consulting your gut feeling is being willing to let go; be comfortable with not knowing, embrace uncertainty and allow answers to come rather than directing them. Consider for a moment animals and birds; they don’t talk yet instinctively they have a “knowing”. Similarly, on occasions we know answers yet don’t always know why we know.

I use 5W 1H a lot – it helps question un-investigated thoughts. You can also use the 5W 1H system to ask your body questions.

In my experience “I feel” has less error potential than “I think”. Almost as if your mind can be fooled yet your body can’t. Try experimenting with “I feel” rather than “I think”; allow yourself time to explore and have patience, because you may not get instant results.

Try it in areas that do not matter; such as watching a talent show and choosing a winner; try selecting in one round who you “think” will win using your normal logic, then in another round ask your body who you “feel” will win and see which method works best for you. For example, you might say “Body, I feel (name of person) will win” – naturally this can be a long-winded exercise if there are many entrants! Use “I” when asking your questions and no need to say it out loud. Compare logic using your thinking against asking your body – see what works best for you. Perhaps you prefer a combination of both? Maybe you don’t think it works at all?

When you consult your body I feel it works best to ask what is right for you personally, not for others. This isn’t magic; I doubt you’ll pick the winning lottery numbers, or maybe you will; who knows?

Try experimenting with asking your body and consulting your positive gut feeling; see if it works for you.

The Positive Gut Feeling Mind Map comes from SET 12 – Uplifting ideas Mind Map Set

I hope you enjoy viewing my Mind Maps – there are hundreds more planned here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog plus ongoing creativity and drawing tips. If you are not already subscribed, why not do so now via RSS or Email

Also available: E-Books designed to help you create stylish and artistic mind maps of your own.

If you know someone who could benefit from this post and others here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog please share with them.

Follow me on Twitter @mindmapdrawer

Share and Enjoy:

50 Uplifting ideas

Paul — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:54:37 +0000

1. Respect your body and life
2. Respect the planet
3. Respect wildlife and nature
4. Respect other cultures
5. Respect other people’s beliefs
6. Respect other people’s tastes
7. Respect other people’s choices
8. Respect other people’s opinions
9. Sample other people’s beliefs
10. Sample other people’s tastes
11. Sample other people’s choices
12. Sample other people’s opinions
13. Sample non-judgment
14. Self-improve rather than other improve
15. Read inspiring books
16. Listen to inspiring CD’s
17. Listen to inspiring Podcasts
18. Listen to inspiring DVD’s & Videos
19. Read positive and uplifting stories
20. Read good news
21. Try dropping fiction
22. Learn from the famous
23. Read about high achievers
24. Read biographies
25. Learn about Top 100 (or 10) best in their field
26. Break bad habits; replace with good
27. Be thankful
28. Appreciate what you have
29. Repel negativity
30. Celebrate life
31. Focus on what matters
32. Focus on what is important
33. Enhance senses
34. Enhance awareness of thinking
35. Learn meditation
36. Learn breathing techniques
37. Marvel at your surroundings
38. Marvel at the basics
39. Enjoy simplicity
40. Listen to birdsong
41. Listen to nature
42. Listen to the weather
43. Practice positive action
44. Practice positive speech
45. Practice positive thought
46. Look for the good
47. Cherish how fortunate you are
48. Enjoy sunsets
49. Enjoy storms
50. Harness your inner smile

Here is a jpeg of the list and mind map:

For a PDF version visit the Mind Map Inspiration Website

The Uplifting ideas Mind Map comes from SET 12 – Uplifting ideas Mind Map Set

Also available: E-Books designed to help you create stylish and artistic mind maps of your own.

If you know someone who could benefit from this post and others here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog please share with them.

Follow me on Twitter @mindmapdrawer

Share and Enjoy:

Mindfulness

Paul — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 07:57:10 +0000

Mindfulness; awareness of present experience and being aware of your thinking can change your life. It takes practice and daily observation to notice your thoughts and environment yet no time at all to explore and experiment. You can try it right now as you read this Blog Post. As you read, become aware of your environment and how your senses and your body are relating to the space around you. Notice also any thoughts you might have about what you are reading and other thoughts unrelated to these words.

Awareness of thoughts and environment helps anchor you in the present moment which in turn also helps you consider the bigger picture – things going on outside of your own thinking and experiences. You could travel the world via your own thinking without going anywhere!

A great experiment is to observe an object whilst focusing your attention entirely on your breathing. This encourages thoughtless awareness – observing the object without thought, labels or judgments. A tricky exercise at first because the mind wants to analyse the object yet by focusing on your breathing you can sense an acceptance of the object without labels. Observation of breath reduces your thoughts and helps you stop thinking which encourages relaxation and also aids meditation. This exercise helps you tune in effortlessly to the present experience; which is being mindful.

You might also call it noting or noticing, for example, to notice when you pick up a cup that you can feel the cup, noticing the liquid as you drink and recognising the temporary nature (transience) of all of it.

Mindfulness is simply being aware of whatever you are aware of. Not being physically aware (or mindful) of environment can lead to tripping on the stairs or spilling drinks and the like. Not being aware (or mindful) of your thinking can lead to being dragged away from the present moment by past or future thinking.

A further useful exercise is to sit in your garden or in nature or go for a walk in the country and focus entirely on your surroundings. Watch the wind, watch nature, birds, animals, enhance your senses; simply notice where you are and as a consequence the appreciation is greater.

Further reading:

Books that helped me detach from constant identification with thought:

Stop Thinking and Start Living by Richard Carlson
Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Buddhism: The Plain Facts by Robert Mann & Rose Youd

Recommended Audio:

Mindfulness for Beginners (Audio CD) by Jon Kabat-Zinn

Also available: E-Books designed to help you create stylish and artistic mind maps of your own.

If you know someone who could benefit from this post and others here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog please share with them.

Follow me on Twitter @mindmapdrawer

Share and Enjoy:

Compass of Now

Paul — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 07:46:20 +0000

When you take yourself away from the present moment you can only really do so through your thoughts. Being elsewhere could be likened to a compass; you can be here, yet your thinking can take you away from here and in multiple directions. Your thoughts can transport you back to the past or project you into the future and both of these directions happen in the present moment. Not time travel – thought travel.

Losing the present moment is like seeking; your thoughts can be searching for something, anything other than what is happening right now. Resistance, escapism, possibly even boredom or impatience can creep in and lure you away from the now and only via your thinking.

Avoidance of the present moment can cause inner turmoil and worry; wishing you were somewhere else instead of accepting this moment, or expecting a better moment; anything other than “this”. Most anguish is past or future.

Embracing the now means being fully surrendered to the present moment, aware of your surroundings and not seeking reasons to resist where you are right now.

Embracing the present moment means being here now rather than reaching for the compass to take you away from now.

Being here now doesn’t require a compass.

Wherever you are, wherever you turn, wherever you go – that’s the now.

The compass of now points here.

The Compass of Now Mind Map comes from SET 16 Letting Go Mind Map Set

Also available: E-Books designed to help you create stylish and artistic mind maps of your own.

If you know someone who could benefit from this post and others here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog please share with them.

Follow me on Twitter @mindmapdrawer

Share and Enjoy:

Mind Map Inspiration

Everyday miracles of the planet

Related Posts:

Positive Gut Feeling

Related Posts:

50 Uplifting ideas

Related Posts:

Mindfulness

Related Posts:

Compass of Now

Related Posts: