My life right now is full of lessons. Honestly, I love it.  More than I can even begin to tell you.  I wake up each day, knowing that important things are coming my way and I am ready for them.  Some of these lessons are hard – but at the same time they are also very, very good.

I have been immersing myself in writing, whenever and wherever I can.  The 500 words a day challenge I started in January, thanks to Chris Brogan’s prompting has begun to feed my soul in ways that I cannot really even describe to you.  In addition to this, I have been spending more and more time connecting, working and talking with friends and colleagues who are challenging my thinking on every level.  The best part is this: they are also encouraging me to jump into waters that are deeper than I have been in before – ever – in my whole life.  Scary?  Yes.  Good?  Without question.  Julien Smith wrote about the idea of being “in over your head” in his recent blog post How to Change Your Life: An Epic, 5000-Word Guide to Getting What You Want.

Stay in over your head at all times. If you’ve ever wondered why my blog has the name that it does, you now have your answer. “In over your head” should be the state you are always reaching towards– not knowing entirely what you’re doing, having taken on too much, being too ambitious because you’ve made ridiculous promises, etc. All these things are good because they will make you extremely resourceful. You need to find ways to over-promise so that you begin to freak out, at least a little.

At the same time that all of this is happening, there is also something else going on.  I have discovered the incredible feeling that comes from aligning your heart and your mind in all that you do in life.  Each and every day, I am getting better at living my life with intention.  I am finding that I am drawn to people who are authentic in how they live, work and play.  They make complete sense to me. Our values align.  We understand each other.  As Liz Strauss puts it; there is an irresistible attraction that occurs.  It just feels incredibly right, rewarding and joyful. It makes me want to be a better person in every aspect of how I live my life.

I have a lot to do as I move forward.  I am repositioning things in my work and personal worlds.  I am bringing forward the things that fit where I am going and I am gradually letting go of what no longer makes sense in my life.  (I will write more about this soon – so stay tuned.) I am practicing saying things out loud; in other words – my thoughts are no longer safe to simply remain in my head – what were plans, have now become strategies that are quickly transitioning to actions.  Will I do everything right?  Of course not – I will act, analyse and adjust – over and over again in the coming weeks and months.  I will weigh every decision against my overall mission and values so as to ensure my heart and mind continue to be aligned as I move forward.

It is what is right.  It feels amazing. It is all good.  Very, very good.

What lessons are you learning in your life right now?  Are you in over your head and swimming like hell or are you just drifting in the currents?

For the month of February, I have committed to practicing generosity on a daily basis as part of my participation in #12er.

Here are 7 things that you can do today to put generosity into practice:

1. Do something totally unexpected and special for someone that is important to you.  It doesn’t need to be a big thing.  Make it simple….but memorable.
2. Smile every time you greet someone today.  You know…a big, open and happy smile.
3. Write a note to someone to let them know you are thinking about them.  Your Mom, your child, your friend or a co-worker.
4. Run ahead and hold the door for any parent or grandparent that you see struggling with a stroller and young children or for an elderly person.
5. If you ride transit, stand up and give your seat to someone else who really needs it.  Don’t think about it…just do it.
6. Reach out and connect with someone who is new to you.  Ask them how you can help them.
7. Listen to someone who needs to be heard.

This post is part of the #1to31 collection of posts.  Here is how you can join in:

#1to31 posts are simply collections of ideas, strategies, suggestions, tips,  links or other interesting items.  The date that they are posted on corresponds to the number of items included in the post.  When you share your post online, you include the #1to31 hashtag in the headline; so that similar style posts can be easily found online and via Twitter. That is pretty much it!  You can write about whatever areas you are passionate about.  The intention is simply to give you a quick framework that you can build a post from.