Spring Planting: Sowing the Seeds Which Yield Your Life

Spring is traditionally the time to sow seeds in anticipation of yielding a healthy and prosperous crop later in the year. Yield, according to the Webster’s College Dictionary, means “to give forth or produce by a natural process or in return for cultivation.”

If the analogy of a garden is used in relation to the development of a life well lived, perhaps cultivating the seeds of your true potential is of worth. A life well lived is about doing what you enjoy and do well.

To develop your potential you might begin to ask:

What seeds do I need to plant to sprout my natural talents?

What dream of mine desires to be cultivated?

What brings me pleasure?

How am I fertilizing my passion?

Innate Talents

An innate talent is our special gift just waiting to be expressed. We do not learn a talent, it comes through us and can be developed with practice and confidence. Talents are the privilege of everyone and often are first noticed in childhood. When properly nourished (or fertilized), a talent can flourish.

A talent expressed without inhibition knows no bounds. When we are truly expressing our talent we do not have to put a lot of thought and effort into what we are doing – it comes easily and naturally. There is a sense of no limitation. We are able to be creative and experience a connectedness and kind of peace which leads to freedom and joy.

If you have not yet discovered your innate talents paying attention to your inner nudges, creativity, desires or passions can be helpful.

When we ignore our desires and passions for creativity in life, we suffer in a multitude of ways, some visible and some not so. Dis-ease is borne in many by the creation of stress-related problems, including physical illness, depression, anxiety, and addictive behaviors. When we do what we are created to do by expressing our innate abilities and talents we experience a feeling of comfort in our bodies and there is an ease to the flow of our lives.

Ask yourself just how many times during the day do you get to be creative and express yourself in a way that has meaning for you. What would you like to be doing to fire the creativity and passion in you?

Doing What You Love

“What I am doing today is important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.”- author unknown

So, what are you not doing that you want to be doing?

What are you filling your life with that is not serving you?

To live in ‘the flow’ it is essential to take stock of your life to determine what is working and what is not working for you. Ask yourself, if there were no barriers, restrictions, financial limitations, obligations, or extenuating circumstances holding me back from creating the life I would like to be living, what would my life be like? What would I be doing, how would I be spending my time or making a living?

In order to answer these questions, it is necessary to form a clear mental picture of things that you want.

Here are some suggestions for getting in touch with that part deep down inside of you that is yearning to be unharnessed and cultivated.

As you write these thoughts down, be real honest with yourself. Trust the ideas which come to you.

❤ Create time for envisioning and getting clear about what you want (you can find ways later for how you are going to get it). Make sure you are comfortable and will not be interrupted. Give yourself ample time for this process.

❤ Relax and be peaceful. When your mind is relaxed you have a greater ability to accept ideas into the subconscious where the development of an idea is influenced by your emotions, intuition, creativity, and spirituality. Once you can envision an idea it is then able to be executed if the motivation and desire is strong enough.

❤ Focus on your skills and talents. Making a list is helpful and think of what particular things you enjoy and do well.

❤ List your attributes, characteristics, qualities and temperament. Knowing yourself is essential for this process of cultivating your life. If you fall short of a long list, talk with others who know you well.

❤ Get clear on what you like to do. Make a list of what you would like to spend more time doing – the things that excite you. Sometimes thinking back to your childhood activities is helpful. We often have a yearning to do what we once loved so much. What we love to do and are able to do naturally is what we have a talent to do.

❤ Tune into your beliefs and values. Ask yourself the following questions to help you determine these. Think about family, friends, and other relationships, as well as, what ideals are important to you and also what you place great worth on.

What is important to you?

What are you willing to give up or not give up?

What were you taught about family, work and life?

How were you socialized to be in this world?

❤ Describe your ideal environment. Where do you feel the most relaxed? Create a mental image of this place. What does it look like and what are you surrounded with? What are the dominant sounds? What fragrances can you smell? Describe how you feel in this place. If you could be anywhere, where would that be?

❤ Identify relationships that support you. Think of the people in your life and what they are like. Are you choosing to be surrounded by people with healthy attitudes that are positive, motivating, and upbeat? Negative energy will rob and deplete your life essence. Find people with positive energy to boost yours.

Planting Seeds to Develop Your True Potential

“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”- George Eliot

Thinking about these kinds of things can stir a lot of thoughts and emotions. Getting some awareness about where you are now and where you would like to be is just the first step. You have just prepared the soil and are deciding what you want in your garden.

Take some time to just be with what you have learned from this exercise. Begin to think about what opportunities there may be for you. Think big and in possibilities. You are now choosing your seeds to be planted. Clear out of your life what you do not need to make room for the ‘more’ in your life. You are now ready to plant the seeds and have begun the process of change with all the trials, tribulations and amazing wonder that comes with it.

Developing your potential in pursuit of a more fulfilling life is both rewarding and challenging. Inspiration and support are the necessary fertilizers you will need as you unravel your life and create it anew.

So now that spring is here, take the time to tend your garden. Plant the seeds of change that will yield what your future holds for you. Take the challenge, be bold and daring and see what greatness comes through when you cultivate what is naturally your special gift.

In the years to come you will have created the most amazing garden ever imaginable!