Book Review: Listening to Your Inner Voice
Jet lag is a pain!
I’m finally back in the States. The picture above is my mail, which I haven’t even started to go through yet. I’m totally exhausted. My body still thinks its six hours ahead of EST. In other words, when it’s noon, I’m thinking it’s dinner time and by 4 pm, I’m ready for bed!
As I am readjusting to the new time zone, getting unpacked and tackling this pile of mail, I thought I would share a book review that I’ve been meaning to put up on my blog. I will have a new Story Photo post for you on Monday, plus my regular post for next Thursday is in the works. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this book review. It really is a great book to have in your library!
Courage is Yours
Ages ago, I received this book as a gift. I really liked the title, Listening to Your Inner Voice. Prior to getting this book, I had not heard of its author, Douglas Bloch, but I thank him for writing this book. My copy is now dog-eared and looks used, but in a good way.
In Listening to Your Inner Voice, Block writes about many different topics dealing with finding and expressing your inner sense of purpose, working through resistance and pain, and letting the Universe guide and assist you.
There are 52 meditations in the book and each is two-pages. The first page is an inspirational discussion about the topic and the second page has suggestions for affirmations and a relevant quote.
My favorite meditation is the one he wrote about courage. Here’s a passage from it:
“People ask, “How can I have courage when I’m afraid?” The answer is clear. Courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to move forward in spite of it. When fear comes up in your life, fully feel and experience it. If you try to push it away, it will only expand.
Say to your fear, “I acknowledge you. But as I connect with my higher knowing, I see that you are not in alignment with my true calling. Because I have the courage and the faith to follow my heart, I am moving ahead with my plans in spite of you.”
I love the idea of having a conversation with my fears! I also like that Bloch recommends that we should take the action that scares us, trusting that once we start moving, our fears will recede. He suggests the following affirmations to help us get started:
I listen to and follow my inner voice.
I feel my fear and proceed anyway.
I act to please myself rather than others.
I courageously move forward in the direction of my dreams.
I am true to myself.
When I’m afraid to do something, I will often turn to this book and the section about courage. Reading it reminds me that fear will stay with me as long as I hesitate. Once I begin to move forward, however, it loses its power over me.
I highly recommend this book. It’s only 147 pages, but I’ve found so much inspiration and motivation in it, that I want to share it with you. Just in case you want to read more about the book, visit it on Amazon.
I want to end this post with the quote from the Courage section:
“Come to the edge,” he said. “No, we will fall,” they replied. They came to the edge. He pushed them…and they flew.” ~ Appollinaire
I hope this book will help you lift your wings and fly:~)
"Stand the test of time by placing your roots deeply!"
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{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Sounds like a really really great book… Love this line, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to move forward in spite of it. ” I will ponder this today…
I suggest you do the same as to attempt to go through all that mail…lol.
BTW…I created a new blog while you were gone…check it out some time
http://whimsywispers.blogspot.com
Carolines last blog post..WOW…I said that?
This really sounds like an inspiring read. Thanks for writing about it. Adding it to my To Read list right now!
PS – Definitely check out Caroline’s new blog. It’s great!
PPS – Good luck with all of that mail!
Positively Presents last blog post..how to find your calm before you lose your cool
Thanks for this — I particularly liked the point about being willing to fully experience your fear, and realize that it’s just a set of sensations that can’t actually destroy you, and that if you can survive the fear you can almost certainly survive doing whatever you’re afraid to do.
@ Caroline — ME TOO…that’s my favorite line in the quote. I can’t tell how many times that line has helped me with I was afraid to do something…like tackling my pile of mail and the bills that I forgot to set up for online payments before I left:~)
I love your new site…it’s a lot of FUN!!!
@ Dani — I hope you will look up the book. Douglas Bloch has a way of inspiring his readers in a positive way…I think you’d really like it!
I did check out Caroline’s new blog and love it!
My mail is now sorted…your post, “how to find your calm before you lose your cool,” was very helpful the first days after I arrived…I really needed it:~)
@ Chris — Excellent point! I couldn’t have said it better:~)
Oh I love this book and have read it several times….thank you for the reminder.
I had a French teach once say that the first part of the word courage is like the French word for heart…..the second part make it an action …so courage is the heart taking action – moving forward / leading over the rational mind
When I told one of my children when younger that idea she replied well my heart is raging over this! I laughed and thought this is true…we need a bit of the mind to keep the heart from raging out of control!!
Thank you
Patricias last blog post..Thinking About My Dad
Thanks for the great book review. Your insights encourage readers to open their minds and welcome new levels of awareness.
Travel can indeed seem to take a toll on the physical body, but only if you permit that. As a person explores astal travel, longer-distance, physical travel seems to flow more smoothly. One learns relaxation on different levels.
Liara Coverts last blog post..10 points on power of choices
Hi Sara. Welcome home! This book review is inspiring. What I feel is that when we step forward we are making the unknown more known to us… just by taking a step forward. Fear doesn’t have a chance.
Davinas last blog post..365 Days & Still Blogging
@ Patricia — I like the what your French teacher said, “heart taking action!” That a nice was to think of courage. Like your child, I can think of many times when my heart has also been racing:~)
@ Liara — I’m glad you liked the book review! I appreciate your comments about travel. I think it’s usually the return that causes the most stress, especially since I went from temperatures in the lower 70’s to those of 100 degrees or more Fahrenheit! I need to learn more about astral travel…it’s something I’ve haven’t experienced to my knowledge, but I do find it interesting. Thanks for sharing:~)
@ Davina — So TRUE:~)
Oh-I love this post!! I teach a class called Listen to Your heart and Success Will Follow with Education to Go and I want to add this book to my MUST read.
So, so, so helpful. Thank you for sharing this even when you are tired! Wow-I am looking forward to the rest of your goodies when you are state sane again!
Cynthia Christiansons last blog post..Money Is My Heart
@ Cynthia — Your students will like this book…if only because it’s a really easy read. On the other hand, the more you visit it, the more you get from each meditation. Yes, I must say sanity is slowly returning….whether or not that’s a good thing is up for question:~)
@ Cynthia — Your students will love the book…if only because it’s a very quick read. However, the more you read the meditations, the more they sink in. I hope you enjoy it:~)
p.s. I like your site very much!!