Finding Your Joy Spot.

Jae Gordon



We have speakers at our Wow meetings, people who teach and encourage and help us grow. I never planned for this, having Wow be a place to learn and change and challenge us, but it happened. My intention was to make new women friends at a time when I didn't want to date, and it has turned into a magical experience, each Wow meeting bringing the joy of making new friends and the pleasure of becoming closer with old friends, and the excitement of coming to know ourselves in a deeper and more meaningful way. Lots of big words there, and I didn't mean to sound lofty, but I think I'm trying to say that creating WOW and sharing in the lives of these beautiful women is a treasure I didn't anticipate. And for which I am deeply grateful. You ladies are all a blessing to me and I thank you.

What has put me in this joyful state? It was meeting Jae Gordon (http://www.jaegordon.com/) who joined us last night at our monthly WOW meeting and spoke about The Joy Spot! Jae is an accomplished woman, an attorney and author who has spent her life learning and growing and challenging herself, listening to that little voice inside of her and following her dreams. She is a loving and kind and joyful woman who was generous enough to take the busy freeways in Los Angeles to find my little house and share herself with a roomful of strangers. And change our lives in the process.

See, Jae writes that, in order to find joy, we must come to really know ourselves, to recognize those old scripts we learned from past experiences that have motivated our actions and kept us from creating the life that we really want. I'll let Jae tell it in her own words:

Seven Joyful Choices:
1) Own your choices - this emancipates and empowers you.
2) Be honest with yourself - undo conditioning and limiting beliefs.
3) Adjust your thinking - so that your life doesn't happen TO you, you make it happen.
4) Use your emotions as a guide, not a master.
5) Get quiet for a few minutes every day - so that the true you is revealed.
6) Listen to your body - it never lies.
7) Live in gratitude.

And Jae says to remember that:

--It's never too late to change your life - even tiny changes can be life-altering.
--Every day lived truly is worth a lifetime.
--Only YOU live your life.

Then Jae suggested that we think about how we would create our life, how our life would look, if there were no obstacles in our way. The ladies shared their lists and some said that they would be doing more volunteer work, they would have a delicious man who adored them at their side, that they would travel more, that they would live overlooking the ocean. And then we all realized that everything we listed as "wishful" was clearly obtainable and achievable, that we could really make those precious things a part of our lives NOW.

I remember years ago, sitting in a group of single men and women and being asked a similar question, what would we do with our lives if money and time were no object. I realized that I'd always wanted a college degree and a few years later, at the age of 42, I enrolled in my first college classes. It took me ten years to graduate and those years were full of excitement and challenges, and yes, joy for me. I received my diploma in the mail on my mother's last birthday, two days before her passing, and I haven't seen it since showing it to her. I can only imagine the pleasure she must have felt seeing the proof of my accomplishment in her last days. When we seek and fulfill our dreams, think of the ripples it creates in those around us, in those who are given courage by watching us walk through our fears, in others who are moved to achieve their dreams because we did, and in those who love us and want us to be happy.

So I say, Bravo to Jae! Thanks for your delightful company during dinner, thanks for allowing us to enjoy your friend Shannon, thank you for your wisdom, and thank you for sharing from your heart the lessons you have learned about living joyfully. I look forward to hearing about the joys your lessons will bring to my Wowettes who listened with their hearts to your inspiring words.