WE MOVE INTO THE NEW YEAR WITH GREAT RESOLVE TO CHANGE OUR WAYS — quit smoking, lose weight, clean out the closets, and get rid of the physical clutter in our lives. We pledge our selves to work on removing those “bad habits” and letting go of stuff that’s no longer useful.

By all means, let us fight the battle of the bulge, let go of the things that no longer suit us, that take up space or are unhealthy habits. But, what about the emotional clutter in our lives? Can we also resolve to rid ourselves of emotional chaos — emotional patterns which absorb valuable energy from our quality of life and the quality of our relationships?

As we approach the New Year and reflect on what we want to change in ourselves, let’s not forget to reflect on the emotional parts of our self. These too are areas that need clearing of old clutter: old emotional habits that keep us in an internal state of chaos, emotional habits that we write off as harmless, but really are not, habits like worry, self-doubt, anxiety, perfectionism, depression, fear, and anger.

These emotional habits can create a tremendous amount of clutter in our lives and prevent us from truly being who we are. These habits get in the way of deepening relationships, they get in the way of our professional performance and they get in the way of our experience and quality of life overall.

To add to our own personal emotional chaos, we live in the midst of anxiety-producing scenarios on the world front. We see it all played out daily in news and print media. That anxiety ripples over into us, from a worldview, a national view, a community view — and it only compounds the stress we already feel in our personal life.

With today’s fast paced lifestyle many people are craving a deeper, more meaningful experience of life. We want to get back to a peaceful center, a loving heart, living from our core values and creating a life that is results producing.

What can we do? Can we go within and seek an answer? Are there tools we can use? What if there was a new way of approaching what we are feeling inside? What if we could embrace the truth of ourselves and listen to that still small voice within?

We are the solution we are seeking.
There are tools for living a balanced life, tools that can help us go within to check on how we respond to life situations. There are tools that can help us in the moment to adjust our emotional habits and not react the same old way, as well as tools that can help us find new heart perspectives and give us a fresh view on our relationships, our life and ourselves. There are proven tools with which we and the people we are close to can change our lives.

For over a decade the Institute of HeartMath, a non-profit research organization located in Boulder Creek, California, has researched how emotions affect our health, our performance and the quality of life. This research resulted in the HeartMath® system. What makes this system unique and sets it apart from other self-help methods is that it is the only scientifically validated system of stress intervention techniques and tools that quantifiably and dramatically boosts the health and performance of individuals and organizations. HeartMath tools are designed to facilitate positive change to start shifting the ratios and finding more inner balance.

We will all have emotional challenges; we are human beings and that is an inherent part of our nature. However, we can learn to use situations of emotional discord to flex our heart’s power to come back into balance quickly. We can turn emotional upset into a dynamic learning experience. We can consciously choose to build a different pathway out of the emotional chaos instead of being a victim of it.

Adding to Global Solutions
Taking personal proactive steps towards shifting our own emotional chaos ultimately can tip the world scale towards more stability, peace, and calm. We can set our foot on the path of better living, not only inwardly, but globally as well.

When we individually take responsibility for reducing the stress, anxiety and upset in our own lives, it multiplies exponentially. It sets an example for our families, friends, neighbors and our workplace peers. As each one of us sets forth on a mission to establish a feeling of well being, peace, calm and value in our own life, it does ripple over into others.

“ To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.”
-Confucius

It is in the space of a balanced heart that we can go deeper and look at how we can help resolve issues at hand, within and without. Going full-circle we get back to the most important action we can take — start with the only person you can truly change, yourself.

Having the resolve to start shifting the ratio of old emotional patterns and finding new solutions and perspectives within ourselves truly would be a new start and a great New Year’s reSOLUTION.

Heart Focusing Tips
Below are suggestions from HeartMath® on learning to feel the difference between the head and the heart and for connecting with the power of the heart. Following these suggestions with sincerity will help you to recognize the difference between head perspectives and the heart's perspectives on challenging issues. For detailed information on HeartMath's proven techniques refer to "Overcoming Emotional Chaos; Eliminate anxiety, lift depression and create security in your life" by Doc Childre and Dr. Deborah Rozman (Jodere Group 2002). The techniques are easy to learn and apply.

Take the significance out:
When emotions are engaged in a problem it can add too much emphasis to the problem triggering feelings of confusion. Learning to take the significance out can help you get the objectivity you need to get a clear perspective on the problem. One way to do this is to imagine for a moment it is someone else's problem. Step back, look at it objectively, and ask yourself what advice you would give to them. Then apply it to yourself.

Manage your frustration and anger:
If you're starting to fume with frustration or anger shift your attention to the feeling of appreciation. Appreciate someone or something in your life that means a lot to you. Taking a moment to engage the heart and focus on something you appreciate helps you to realign with a more coherent heart state. From here you are much more inclined to see things more clearly and make better choices on how to handle a situation.

Stay with your aim:
Remember what is important to you. Focus on your heart and ponder or reflect on what your deeper core values are. What is your aim? Each of us can find qualities in ourselves, in our lives, or in others that we admire. Focus on these qualities - follow your heart and stay on track with the things that generate good feelings about ourselves and our choices.

© Deborah Rozman 2002

Artwork courtesy of and copyright by Daniel B. Holeman, who invites you to visit his Visionary Art Gallery web site - Awaken Visions.

We invite you to share your experiences, opinions and questions on this article. Please visit the PLW Community and leave your comments.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Deborah Rozman, PhD., is a psychologist and author with thirty years of experience as an educator and business executive. She studied attitude change theory at the University of Chicago, and developed innovative programs for parents and educators to enhance emotional awareness in children. She taught transpersonal psychology and conflict resolution, authored 5 books, founded and directed an innovative elementary school and teachers' training center, and served as Executive Vice President of a biotech company where she directed sponsored research projects with Harvard University.
Deborah has been working with Doc Childre since 1987 and in 1991 became Executive Director of the Institute of HeartMath, overseeing research and development of HeartMath books, publications and training programs. In 1998, she became Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer of HeartMath, LLC and today is Executive Vice President for Quantum Intech, Inc., overseeing strategic alliances and the expansion of HeartMath technologies worldwide. She continues to serve on the Institute of HeartMath's scientific advisory board. Dr. Rozman is a key spokesperson for the HeartMath system, giving media interviews and keynote addresses on heart intelligence and intui-technologies for executives, scientists and health professionals throughout the world.To find out more about HeartMath visit their web site at www.heartmath.com.