You owe it to yourself to put something beautiful into the world each day.
The world desperately needs your unique perspective.
The world needs you becoming you.
Life itself is longing for your creativity to express itself as life itself creating life itself creating life itself creating…
Positive change begins with positive expression.
The ideas we put into the world shape our reality and the reality of others. The way we express ourselves, in word and deed, has the power to change our attitudes, perceptions, and the attitudes and perceptions of others. By changing the way we express ourselves, we empower ourselves to make a positive impact on our own life and the lives around us.
What think, what we say, either out loud or in writing, and what we do affects us all in a very real way. It affects the way we think, the way we behave, and the future we create for ourselves and for others. We get to decide, in every moment, and every expression, whether we want to create a world that is more positive and harmonious or more negative and discordant.
Obviously, we are not alone in this, as there are many other forces acting on us and the world around us that we cannot control. Empowerment begins not with focusing on the aspects of our lives over which we are powerless, however, but with focusing on and leveraging what we do have control over. Empowerment begins with focusing on ourselves and how we express ourselves, our ideas, and our will.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Taikyoku Mind & Body and Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
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We are not untouched by the things we speak.
The words we choose have power. They have the power to change minds. Too often, however, we focus on using our words to change others’ minds, not realizing that the words we choose also change the way that we think, the way we view the world, and the way that we interact with others. The easiest way to change the world for the better is to begin by changing ourselves and how we express ourselves within it.
If we are more intentional about the words we choose, we will begin to see the world differently. By being more reflective and less reactive, we give ourselves room to think and others room to be themselves. If we realize that not everything we think needs to be expressed outwardly, our thoughts will actually begin to change. As our thinking changes, so too does our behavior.
As much as our character becomes our words, our words become our character. If we choose words of kindness, we will find ourselves becoming more kind. If we choose words of generosity, we will in turn become more generous. If we choose words of compassion, graciousness, and understanding, we will start to become those things. We must choose our words wisely because they are not only from us, they become us.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
-Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Taikyoku Mind & Body, Severna Park’s Holistic Chamber of Commerce, and Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
If you found this post helpful or meaningful in some way, please feel free to Share, Comment, and Subscribe below.
Meditations on God 