Stevie Jewel

Change Your Perspective

Yes, people say over and over that you have choices and that’s true.

You can change your CAREER, you can change where you LIVE, but what a lot of people don’t say is HOW.  Which is often the hardest part.  We can want something but if we don’t start speaking it, taking action, and intentionally moving towards it change can be slow…or non existent. You need to believe that you DESERVE it…even though you already deserve it.  You just need to BELIEVE it…but how?

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How to CHANGE? I’ve put some thought into this and I have two answers. 

It’s your MINDSET and that leads to what I think is the real root…your PERSPECTIVE. Perspective is the personal lens through which we see the world as an individual.  It’s made of our experiences and the stories we have told ourselves about why we are the way we are.

perspective perspective

So how can you change perspective?  The good news is…in MANY WAYS!

Gratitude. We can all feel more grateful when we think about people in third world countries or when a natural disaster happens we all find the gratitude that we live in a place where that’s not happening. That’s perspective. It’s seeing beyond the trees to see the forest and that’s the same kind of thinking you can use to begin to change. 

Value. You don’t need to do or be anything to have value as a person.  You’re here and that’s enough.  Just by being here you matter.   Even if the only thing you do today is breathe, that’s enough.  You don’t have to gain validation through accomplishments if it doesn’t bring you joy. 

Inner Monologue.  How you talk to yourself matters.  The words you say to yourself sink in.  You can change how you feel about yourself.  See yourself differently, see yourself in a light of value. See the gifts, strengths, and natural talents that you have.  Voice out loud to yourself your good qualities even if you don’t totally believe them…yet.  Keep speaking good words over yourself.  Eventually there will be a change, maybe small and slow, but it will change your perspective.

perspective perspective

Sending you INSPIRATION and PEACE and GOOD VIBES always.

Time To Empower

There’s something I’ve been contemplating for the last few months.  Empower.
What does being EMPOWERED look like? What does it mean?  Last week we all heard the news that Kate Spade took her own life.  Then we heard the same news about Anthony Bourdain.  These people were professionally SUCCESSFUL and had, what looked from the outside, to be GOOD LIVES.   Then we all see the tweets, the instagrams, the notes of concern, consideration, condolence.  We have public conversations about being there for people, or watching for the signs.
empower empower empower
But then, time SOFTENS the shock, and life dictates that we continue to carry on.  Not to be CALLOUS or to show indifference but because that’s what must be done, we must carry on. Whether it’s a school shooting, a suicide, depression, lack of confidence, or something else that makes anyone feel unworthy of their own LOVE AND RESPECT, we try to help each other, but when the pain doesn’t present itself obviously we sometimes miss it.
I’ve DECIDED that I’m not going to feel ineffective against these things any longer.  I’m going to actively seek to EMPOWER people to recognize their own worth and potential.  I started to feel a SHIFT in this direction recently when working on my EP because I didn’t want to sing songs that would do anything but make people feel WORTHY AND POWERFUL. I wanted to empower people and to lift them up by making them feel and RECOGNIZE they had inner strength.
empower empower empower
I have known that place of powerlessness in the past and once I realized those feelings I promised myself from that moment on that I would never let my inner power be anything but UNBRIDLED, CHANNELED, and FREE.  So, I’m not sure what this will look like as I move forward, I’m guessing it’s going to be reflected in blogposts, my MUSIC, in interviews, and in other mediums as well.  But I know that I am done seeing people suffer needlessly when I can DO SOMETHING, however small, about it.  We all have every tool within us to discover SELF love, self POWER, and self HEALING, it just needs to be uncovered.
To be honest, even writing this and before posting it, I was thinking, “WHO AM I to say these things?” But then I realized who am I NOT TO? What if it helps ONE person? Because I’ve been thinking these things for a long time, and it’s time to try and INTENTIONALLY help others with these words.  I am not going to let self-doubt hold me back from anything, and you shouldn’t let it hold you back.
empower empower empower
Going forward I hope that I can offer you some INSPIRATION and PEACE; to know that I will be here to empower you with words, songs and music, stories, and good vibes that I’m sending to you always.

I’m on a River Boat Cruise!

River boat River boatI love boating, I think it’s so relaxing to be out on the water.  Especially on a river boat cruise!

I love boating on the lake, taking a ferry, or crossing the English Channel.  It’s so peaceful out on the water and the view as you depart and arrive is just so beautiful, especially if you’re talking about a big boat or a city with a skyline like New York City.  I’ve been on dinner cruises before, but this river boat cruise in New Orleans was such a great time!
 River boat River boat

It was so much fun, and while the food was decent, it was really the experience that made it worthwhile.

Actually, the gumbo on the cruise was DELICIOUS, the rest of the food was pretty typical.  However, the stories from the captain, the views, the history of the city, it was all such a beautiful way to take in another side of New Orleans. The cruise is a couple hours long and you boat out on the Natchez River and then dinner commences in two sessions.
River boat River boat
There is a Dixieland Jazz band that plays great music (as one would expect in New Orleans) while your out on the water.  The captain also gives all sorts of educational information about landmarks and sites, one being the Domino sugar factory.  The boat has lots of historic older elements that the captain talks about as well.  However, the real gem of these tourist attraction is watching the sunset over the city of New Orleans. We were there in May and so the sun was setting behind the French Quarter which made for some stunning views of the city.

River boat

Once we were docked back at shore we were in the perfect location to talk the nightlife of the French Quarter; specifically Jackson Square and Bourbon Street.  While the nightlife of the French Quarter isn’t my typical cup of tea, it’s still an experience that most should see when visiting New Orleans.
Have you been on a boat cruise? What was your favorite part?

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