Black Zen And The Weekly Wellness

As active meditators, we can be quite comfortable alone or left to our own devices for long stretches of time. Solitude is no longer scary. The "need" for a romantic relationship can sometimes be replaced with personal fulfillment and a contentment with life just as it is. It's a pretty sweet place to be. While we look to stay focused on our areas of personal growth, is it fine to remain single and let that be where our time and energy is invested? If so, what happens if how we feel about our single status changes? For some of us, we reach a certain point in life where partnership becomes important (i.e. the desire for marriage and kids or even just to experience companionship). It is here that our personal growth may become tied to growing with someone else. With both options on the table, do we choose to remain single in an effort to maintain a deep and growing spiritual life or does our spiritual life become enhanced with the introduction of relationships...

Has anyone else found themselves taking bad advice from folks who “knew better” or mentally kicked yourself after seeing what happens when you don’t follow your gut? Too many times in our lives we know which path to take, but then, something or someone convinces us otherwise. We’re here to remind you that your intuition is ALWAYS right. The only gap in communication is when we’re not listening to that inner voice. When we take the time to pause and listen, we tap into our natural instincts. These are, by nature, designed to keep us from harm and push us toward our highest potential. It's from this place that we begin to make powerful, life-affirming choices that truly align with what we need. We become okay with knowing that what we’re doing may not look like what everybody else has going on…

You know that moment in Monopoly when you pull the card that says, "advance to go collect 200 dollars"? Well, gratification can feel like that. You get to bypass all of the circumstantial pitfalls to land in a neutral place, where you finally get a reward. While feeling #blessed is gratifying, gratitude is not just a momentary high. It's an emotion, and more importantly, a mindset that lasts long after you've received the initial jolt of joy and fulfillment that accompanies being thankful. And before you roll your eyes and think, "Oh crap, another annoying article about how to be grateful by going out to pet puppies and pick up babies in my spare time," stop and ask yourself if you truly believe you're incredibly lucky to be living your life right now. If the answer is no, then it could be that gratitude is camouflaged by your perspective…

You may or may not have heard the term “influencer marketing” before but it describes a person with the ability to sway thoughts, ideas and even purchasing decisions. Social influence occurs when a person’s emotions, opinions, or behaviors are affected by others (well said Wikipedia, well said). Given this knowledge, how much does what we take in (from influencers, to the food we eat, to the toxic news we ingest) impact our ability to grow? From social media, radio, tv, google, water cooler conversations, food, alcohol, you name it, there is the prevalence to take in something, or at the very least, to be influenced in some way without noticing that it’s happening. This week’s wellness is dedicated to sustaining our progress towards our personal and professional goals by monitoring and consciously choosing what we consume…

In last week's wellness, we talked a lot about how to start living more strategically and really setting up the conditions for our success (both personally and professionally), but what happens when the vision of our long-term goal is obscured by a collection of incorrect assumptions? It's the equivalent of trying to run a race with a twenty-pound backpack – it’s going to slow you down! In assuming that what we want will be hard to get (perhaps based on past experiences or current circumstances), we unintentionally rule out the possibility that, under the right circumstances, our goal is easier to achieve than we think. The point here is, our options come down to what we believe is available. Sometimes, because we've never seen our "it" before - whether that's being financially stable, feeling comfortable in your own skin, being in a healthy relationship, etc. - we don't know what to expect and this "unknown" tends to create unnecessary fear and uncertainty. When we operate out of fear, we naturally move more

For this year, our new year's resolution list should include: stop making resolutions and start putting boots on the ground in service of our vision and life goals. This week's wellness is all about how to build a vision, but more importantly, how to plan the steps to getting there and then actually follow-through on those action steps. The secret strategy here - always be thinking a few moves ahead! This is the year to boss up and stop playing our lives like it's checkers, when it's actually chess…

Since Winter is a time of reflection, we found ourselves looking back at all the great topics we've covered in 2017. We received such a warm reception from our readers and we hope these letters have either reinforced what you already know, awakened your secret superpower or maybe even taught you a thing or two about how to use your secret sidekick for 2018. This past year, we've covered everything from how to change your story to building a kick-ass squad and even how to fail gracefully. We often talk about how to incorporate wellness into our daily lives, and if we're honest, your Black Zen team has recently been so hard at work that we haven't taken our own advice. We are always encouraging you all to know what you need and make choices accordingly, so it's our turn to walk the walk and take a much needed break. This holiday season, it's all about laying low and giving ourselves time to re-charge. As we take some time to unwind, we of course will have you in mind and look forward to reaching back out with o

The holiday season is upon us and meditators do the holiday season right! While we may get a bad rap around the social set for being woo-hooey, I assure you some of us know how to turn up! Granted, we do try to be thoughtful about how we navigate our good time. From the holiday parties to the festive meals, we try to rock with a little self-control, a whole lot of joy and make sure we're acknowledging and enjoying the peace of the present moment. So, for the meditation rock stars out there, this week's wellness is all about how to show up for the holiday season as our best self and turn up in true mindful form - being present, joyful and peaceful about all of it…

We’ve all heard the expression, “to thine own self be true,” but what’s implied here is that a “self” has already been clearly identified. How well do we really know ourselves? In many cases, our perception of who we are is dependent, or at least linked, to how others see us. And while sometimes that projection is accurate, who we are is still being curated by someone outside of ourselves. This is where being true to ourselves comes into play. Externally, it can be something as simple as discerning likes and dislikes without social proof. Internally, it’s being aware of and accepting our shortcomings, while still acknowledging our strengths and not letting others dictate what’s possible within that framework…

The holidays are a time to be with our families, either the ones we were given at birth or the ones we’ve chosen over time. This togetherness usually prompts our family to ask – or for us to ask ourselves – “What’s going on in your life?” In certain years we’re able to answer this question clearly, but in most cases, there’s either so much going on that we’re unsure of where to even begin or there's nothing going on and we have zero to share. Once we’re aware of where we are in our lives, it’s much easier to have conversations around what we’re doing. If we think of our lives like seasons, each one requires something different. Once we know which season we’re in, we’re able to move forward with confidence, intention and a newfound patience with our process. After all, that’s how seasons and nature work. The sunset doesn’t get pissed when the stars come out and the leaves don’t curse the tree when it’s time for them to fall. It’s all a part of the process and life will unfold as it should…

Call us nerds, but we've always found the idea of a treasure hunt exciting! Even as far back as elementary school, choose your own adventure books seemed like the most fun and interesting ones to read. So, it's probably not much of a surprise that our team is currently obsessed with escape rooms. And in true Black Zen form, we knew we had to share some of our insights and discoveries since there were so many great parallels to life. In our very first excursion, we learned a lot about how to play the game and these following tips may help you out as you navigate life, new adventures, your next career move, or all the above…

In a world full of noise, both figuratively and literally, sometimes silence is golden. It can be the most powerful tool at our disposal and, even though it can feel counter-intuitive at first, over time it creates a peaceful stillness that is unshakeable even in the most trying of circumstances. Meditation, in its simplest form, is the practice of intentionally quieting the mind. It’s finding stillness amidst our busy schedules and opening ourselves up to the possibility of living more full, peaceful and balanced lives. This week’s wellness is full of tips, tricks, and things to remember as you start or navigate your way through your own meditation practice…

Almost every superhero movie starts with the main character not knowing just how badass they are. It takes some major circumstance of threat or danger to bring out the latent abilities that were inside them all along, and often they are delighted and surprised at their own strength and super human qualities. They begin stepping into their destiny as soon as they discover their hidden powers. If we really think about it, this sounds a lot like the plot twists of our own lives. Turns out, we're all just superheroes walking around ready to save the world, or maybe just someone, when the time comes. Once we know our power and learn how to harness it and use it wisely, we step into our destiny. And that, is when the story gets good…

From my vantage point at the base of the mountain looking up, I saw a circular object start to roll down. It only took a moment to realize I was standing at the bottom of the path and so inevitably this rock would crash right into me. I should mention it never occurred to me to move, as if there was some reason I needed to stay there and see how this all played out. Just before the collision, a light breeze blew by and the rock was quickly swept away into another direction. As it drifted by, I realized it wasn't a rock at all. It was a hollow, nearly weightless tumbleweed. And this got me thinking, how often do we treat situations in our life as if they are massive rocks when they are actually more like hollow tumbleweeds…

Out of all the Jim Rohn quotes, one of our favorites is "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." Truer words were never spoken. At Black Zen, we consistently look for ways to create the best conditions for our success and our peace, and the most important factor we've found in achieving this has been surrounding ourselves with amazing, ambitious and authentic people who inspire us to be our best. And while there was so much good advice to choose from in this week's articles, we've narrowed it down to the top 3 types that are crucial to have in your friend squad...

So many aspects of life can be difficult to comprehend while you’re in the throes of living in it. To make sense of it all, sometimes having a larger perspective on life is key. But how do we step back far enough to see the forest when we’re hacking our way through the trees? Sometimes the wisest piece of advice comes from those who have already lived it, and the best thing we can do is listen and learn. People who have been through and “seen some thangs” offer us the ability to learn without having to go through all the muck ourselves. That said, we’re devoting this Weekly Wellness to sage advice. And to our surprise, the best advice comes from the most unlikely sources…

With all of the books and articles about how to work on relationship goals, for this week's wellness we sought out to find advice that was not only novel in its simplicity, but actionable tips that could easily be applied and provide immediate results to any relationship. Whether you're in the honeymoon phase, trying to relight the spark with your significant other, or secretly wishing you had a bae to apply these tips to, there is something in here for you! We found delightful and surprising advice on love that will help all your relationships- romantic or otherwise...

Our prescription for getting back on track and aligning our to-do list with what we say we want is simple - STOP. Stop trying to fit it all in. Stop trying to squeeze the minutes out of every day and trying to read email while watching tv, cooking, and multi-tasking in general. Since none of us have figured out how to add more hours to the day, it makes sense that something will eventually have to give. We can't do it all in one day and being busy doesn't necessarily mean we're moving forward. If our to-do list don't move us closer to our ultimate goals, then what was the point of all that time and energy spent…

Failure and success are more linked than we think and the word failure can be turned on its head and actually used to launch and motivate yourself. It is one thing to fail, and quite another to fail forward into the next opportunity to learn or travel a new avenue that presents itself as a result of what seems (at the time) to be a setback. What we’ve found to be true in the articles this week is that despite the initial sting, the blessing of failure leaves us nowhere to go but up…

There are plenty of times in our lives where taking in too much of the news, interacting with difficult bosses or co-workers, or even just the internal pressure we create for ourselves when tackling our never-ending to-do lists can start to put our minds and bodies in a hyper-charged state of stress and anxiety. It’s a feeling where every nerve in our bodies is at attention and we feel like we need to be “on” all the time since disaster could be anywhere. For some of us, we may even live in neighborhoods or homes that are filled with volatile behavior where someone could pop off at any moment. In this week’s wellness we uncover how to stay peaceful and happy in the midst of these trying situations and give practical tips on effective stress management. We even share advice from a certified bomb disposal expert (who has the epitome of a stressful job!) on how to stay calm despite any circumstance…