Build a Strong Personal Foundation » vibrant after fifty

What Does it Mean to Evolve Your Life?

Kristina — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:17:04 +0000

I like to think that I have learned the difference between personal development and personal evolution. It has taken me time to appreciate the difference. For most of us real personal evolution happens in the second half of life. That is when we are conscious of our inner need to live authentically. I see personal development as the steps in evolving our lives towards expanding our potential.

Personal evolution is the discovery of becoming who one is capable of being by letting life unfold without tightly controlling the outcome. It is based on accepting and loving who one is and discovering who one is capable of being. The challenge becomes to expect oneself to live life to the fullest.

Here is an example of what I mean. A neighbor of mine had been divorced many years and yearned to meet someone who would value her. Yet in her mind she doubted that it would happen. She was right. She was hoping for a prince but did not see herself as a princess. She did not feel good about herself and the men she dated reflected that. In order to meet the kind of person she envisioned she first had to evolve her life so that she felt that she had something of value to offer. After focusing on upgrading her life several years later she met a man who was looking for a competent self assured partner. She had evolved herself into becoming just that kind of woman.

When we truly listen to ourselves we do hear our dreams. It is often easier to rationalize these dreams away as being unreachable or silly hopes. If instead we honor them and apply effort and persistence to reach them we will indeed be living life to the fullest.

Snowed-In

Kristina von Rosenvinge — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:35:26 +0000

We are snowed-in. Twenty inches makes for a beautiful winter wonderland.

The snowfall made me aware of how important it is to be flexible. My weekend was planned with shopping, the grandkids coming to decorate the tree and spend the night, buying and mailing last minute presents and baking cookies. Everything, except for baking cookies, had to be put on hold.

Instead, I decided to go with the flow and enjoy the snow and the warmth of our house. We watched a movie, shoveled snow-an endless task- and relaxed. It made for a very pleasant day. I had to remind myself that whatever had to be done would get done just not as efficiently as I had it organized in my mind. In order not to be anxious about the undone tasks I literally have to tell myself to let it go.

I see flexibility as a conscious activity. We have a choice to make: keep fretting or decide to accept what we cannot change and make the best of it.

Vibrant After Fifty Blog Talk Radio Show

Kristina von Rosenvinge — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:58:53 +0000

Today’s radio show was again on strengthening emotional energy. The focus was on establishing good boundaries. In order to make the most of life after fifty we need energy and having strong boundaries frees us so we can make our dreams a reality.

Are you familiar with the phrase: Circle of Confidence? I think it is a wonderful way of describing our boundaries. The smaller our boundaries the less confidence we have and the larger our boundaries the more confidence we have. In actuality boundaries are imaginary lines that we have around ourselves. They define us – where we start and where we end. For instance someone with weak boundaries will let others make decisions for him/her. They will have trouble saying appropriate NOs and feel taken advantage of.

Three ways to increase the level of confidence:

1. Believe that you have a right to feel good about yourself.

2. Develop confidence by taking responsibility for yourself.

3. Allow others to help you build your level of confidence.

As your confidence grows you will experience a change in the invisible boundary circle around you. You will trust yourself more and go after what you want. You will follow through and make your second half of life the best time of yur life.

Blog Talk Radio Show

Kristina von Rosenvinge — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:48:38 +0000

Is it really possible that I have not blogged for almost a month? During part of that time I visited Finland and Estonia. In both places I connected with friends and family. One of the highlights was attending laulupidu (songfest) in Tallinn which takes place every 5 years. There were over 24,000 singers dressed in colorful folk costume on the cavernous stage together. Since my heritage is Estonian it was a great joy for me to be there. Twenty years ago the Estonian people had a spontaneous “singing revolution” which started the chain of events which led to Estonia regaining its independence in 1991 from Russia.

Now I am back to doing new exciting things business wise. On July 16 I am launching my radio show: Vibrant After Fifty. The show is for baby boomers and beyond who want to make this the best time of their life. I will be sharing “how to” suggestions for recharging your life and renewing your spirit.

Most people when they reach their second half of life find themselves thinking about how they want to live the rest of their life. This inward looking is part of that stage of life. In order to keep growing and recharging ones life it is necessary to have energy. We can get new energy in two ways: physical and emotional. In this show I will focus on creating emotional energy for self growth.

In order to live vibrantly after fifty there are three things that we need in order to grow.

1. Energy – for living fully

2. A vision – which gives purpose for living

3. Action – in order to create the life we want

The VIBRANT AFTER FIFTY blog talk radio show will be on Thursday, July 16 at 1 PM EDT. The call in number is: 347-884-8543. This is a weekly show held at the same time every Thursday.