My personal development plans for 2011

Although I will be keeping myself open this year, I do have some things bumbling on the horizon which I will share with you as they come to fruition.

First up is a 8 day yoga retreat with Glenn Ceresosi a well respected Iyengar Teacher and I know him on a personal level.  Glenn is known for breaking through boundaries and after 5 or so years of yoga, I am looking forward to using this time to go much deeper.

Then in March I am off to Adelaide to do a shamanic, Peruvian Ayahuasca ceremony.  I have been fascinated by this since a friend came back from South America raving about it.  Through some connections I made last year, I have somehow come across a group that have invited me to join them.  Not for everyone, and I am sure some people will have alot of preconceived ideas as it does involve some mind altering concoction.  Nevertheless, I am sure you will be interested in what happens!

I have also committed in October to become a facilitator in the Pathways To Manhood program, something close to my heart.  It will be a 5 day program, which will be the first step to being able to help young men make the transition to manhood and also connect with their father on a more meaningful level.  If you haven’t read “manhood” by Steve Biddild then it comes highly recommended; it explains alot of how society has created the men of today ( and many of their issues!)

Finally, I will going back to Acting, joining “The Actors Pulse”, not that I have any illusions of live performances, more as a environment to continue to build on my ability to be aware of, connect ot and be able to express emotions.

I am sure there will be some other spontaneous stuff that happens and of course, everyday life provides plenty of opportunity to learn and grow!

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About Mark Taylor….

My personal development plans for 2011

Money and Spirituality

By: Janardhan McIntosh – Prema Shanti Yoga and Meditiation Retreat

Do not confuse what you do with who you are, when you are in your integrity in every aspect of your life, when you listen to the dictates of your conscience, then there is never a conflict of interest between what you do for a living and who you are as a person. Being on a spiritual path means total integrity in your words, thoughts and actions, when all three are in harmony there is no conflict, it is always the test of the mettle of a man, or women, to be in their integrity in all times, places, and circumstances. This is a daily challenge we all face, integrity, you either have it or you don’t. Your conscience will tell you whether your integrity needs fine tuning. Your spiritual path is your daily life, financial remuneration for the work you do provides the motivation to move forward and to excel in life, its what you do with the abundance once gained, is where the dilemma lies, do you hoard, and protect your money, do your possessions own you, do you measure your success as a person by what you have, or by what you do? Ultimately you own nothing but your good deeds and your bad deeds, these are all you take with you when you leave your body behind, the reality is, nothing is yours permanently, sooner or later you leave it all behind, the spiritually aware person knows this fact, and seeks the permanent over the impermanent

Money and Spirituality

Peats Ridge Festival

I recently went to Peats Ridge Festival, which was great opportunity to try some new modalities in the personal development space.  The timetable was extensive with workshops all day long including all types of yoga, meditation, tantra, dance etc.  The “healing haven” program is below for you!  There was all another area for more dance orientated workshops which is below as well as a whole eco living suite of workshops.

So if you want to go on  a workshops frenzy there is a plenty of choice.

I particularly liked the kundalini dancing.  Not being a great natural dancer (especially sober!), loosing myself in the music at 10:30 in morning was liberating.  I seemed to be in a bit of a kundalini mode as I enjoyed the kundalini yoga too, and it was quite different to other forms of yoga I have done before with more of a focus on energy generation.

Laughter yoga didn’t do it for me.  The idea is that you do a number of forced exercises (i.e. pretend to be a lawnmower) until you eventually can laugh spontaneously which is a good for you.

Of course Peats ridge is not just about the workshops, so other aspects I really enjoyed included racing around the water pistol area (always good to act like a 5 year old.  Going mental in the sugar shack int he afternoon, a Xavier rudd type session in the chai tent, random drumming, a fantastic dance with young aboriginal kids; two cute gals singing open mic from a caravan and having the time of their lives  and best of all simply going with the flow, losing track of time and remembering spontaneity and lightness.

About Mark Taylor….

Peats Ridge Festival

Personal Development Forecast 2011

For those of you in the alternative / personal development scene, you may well know that 2012 is being voiced as the day of reckoning when there will be a seismic shift in consciousness.

I don’t have a strong opinion on that side of things, although I have noticed a continual but gradual increase in openness and acceptance of many streams of personal development.  I also sense an underlying but not necessarily conscious dissatisfaction with the way society is progressing and the ongoing breakdown of things that keep us grounded and essentially happy.
Having said that, I have yet to see much movement in the mainstream corporate / business / government environment; a few pockets here and there, but self interest, money making, and ego building are still the major drivers from what I observe!
For a 2012 type shift to occur it will take society leaders to embrace and drive the change, and it still feels a way off to me.
So, my forecast, is for more of the same with a incremental increase in importance v other more capitalist drivers…

About Mark Taylor….

Personal Development Forecast 2011

How to reduce stress..

By: Janardhan McIntosh – Prema Shanti Yoga and Meditiation Retreat

Stress and anxiousness are created by the mind. This is caused by your fear and inability to cope with circumstances that you feel are beyond your control, fear is rampant upon the planet, and is basically all illusion created by the mind. We try to control all aspects of our lives, and stress and anxiety are the results. Learning to let go of the need to control is the beginning of self mastery. As you become aware that your mind is the battleground causing all the turmoil in your life, that you are not a victim of circumstances, that you have the tools of detachment and discrimination at your disposal, this gives you the confidence to deal with the everyday challenges of life. Practice meditation for clarity and peace of mind, and yoga for physical and mental health

How to reduce stress