Three steps to heart-based living

by Ronna Prince  — 

Living in the heart is a balanced place. In finding that balance, we make room for more joy and peace by embracing the wisdom of the heart.

Dive in, tune in and lighten up. It seems that today we are inundated with messages about living in the heart. It is the latest catch phrase, but really, what does it mean?

It means living in balance with emotions and thoughts. It means allowing one’s heart to lead the way in decision-making and actions. It does not mean letting unchecked feelings rule your life or letting unexpressed feelings limit your interactions and connections with others.

Most of us have been brought up to be logical and rational, stuffing and hiding our emotions. I am convinced that analytical and mind-based approaches are what got us where we are today — mired in many of the distressing situations we see in our own lives, in communities and on a global scale. I also believe that we will not be able to solve these problems because of this.

So the question to ask is: How do we really embrace heart-based living and be effective as leaders and decision-makers in these times of change? We can do this by using a heart-based approach, which can be distilled into three simple steps: dive in, tune in and lighten up.

It starts with a choice to go into the heart-based feelings and explore what is there. If we cannot or will not do that, it means that we are putting a veneer over the truth of our existence. Mastering our emotions through the heart is the key to this time of intense transition. When we check into our hearts, we tend to make wiser and more compassionate choices and, with that, we are able to live more peaceful and connected lives.

 Step 1: Be willing to dive in to emotions locked inside the heart. This does not mean re-experiencing traumas of the past. Rather, it is to acknowledge that your heart had to shut down in the past as a way of dealing with the hurts we all experience, to one extent or another.

When we dive in to the heart, we are really just allowing the awareness of feelings and emotions to surface. In this step, we dive in to touch what has been locked inside. We follow the breath into our hearts and listen. We can ask: “What is in my heart?” Usually it is revealed as a two- or three-word message, such as: “I am afraid;” “Be careful;” or “Go for it.”

 Step 2: Tune in to the feelings behind these initial pearls of heart wisdom. For example, “What is my heart telling me?” If the phrases “I am afraid” or “Be careful” pop up, we might need to spend some time allowing the associated emotional imprints to emerge. We do that by feeling whatever is there and accepting it, no matter what it is — fear, anger, sadness, depression, happiness or joy. Tune in and allow it to move and flow.

As we allow ourselves to tune in to these emotional states, we move the energy. When energy moves, there is room for heart wisdom to emerge. Tuning in to the heart takes practice, because we are used to turning to logic to find answers. But the truth is, our hearts know. Our minds will rationalize or justify. But the authentic tuned-in feelings of our hearts will always lead us to compassionate and wise choices.

 Step 3: Lighten up. This is an essential part of the three-step process. It means that, after we do some intense emotional healing, we have to consciously choose to relax, enjoy and embrace the gifts in life. At first, we must focus on this and make it a priority, because when dealing with our emotions, we can easily get stuck in a state of perpetual healing and forget to enjoy each day.

In this final step, we commit to looking around and seeing beauty and joy, even if it is just in a small thing, such as a flower, a bird’s song or the smile of a loved one. Living in the heart is a balanced place. In finding that balance, we make room for more joy and peace by embracing the wisdom of the heart.

Ronna Prince is the founder of Modern Mastery™ and co-founder of the nonprofit organization Global Wholeness Corp. Based in Scottsdale, Ariz., she is an intuitive counselor, life coach, workshop leader, inspirational speaker and songwriter. She is the writer and producer of the film Sacred Journey of the Heart. sacredjourneyoftheheart.com and modernmastery.com. 

Reprinted from AzNetNews, Volume 32, Number 6, December 2013/January 2014.