When Is it Appropriate to Open Your Heart?

When Is it Appropriate to Open Your Heart?
by Maxine Jones

Learning to open your heart takes skill, just like controlling your breathing or training your mind. The goal is to provide a channel for love to flow through you. An open heart gives you a different perspective in seeing all sides of an issue and communicating with others. It also benefits you by lifting your spirits, easing depression, calming anxiety, and providing relief from unhealthy attachments and addictions.

Most of us open and close our hearts as we go through our everyday activities. You can compare this with having a mind that's sometimes focused and sometimes scattered or foggy. No one can be laser-focused every minute of the day.

Not every situation in your life can or should be addressed with an open heart. Your heart opens and closes depending on the situation. It's important to recognize which situations support an open heart and which do not.

Let's talk about when it's appropriate to open your heart and when it's not:

Appropriate

When your mind is silent.
To balance, take a break, fill up, or be nourished and nurtured.
To add quality to life.
When you have time to slow down.
When in community with friends and family members in a loving and safe environment.
When nothing else matters but being with someone.
During times of gratitude.
When you need wisdom.
As part of a health and wellness program to reduce blood pressure and stress, rejuvenate, balance or heal.
For emotional health and balance and in times of pleasure, compassion, joy, peace, laughter, sorrow and grieving.
To quiet a chattering, worried mind.
To support an attitude in which nothing really bothers you.
When you need to have lots of ideas and creative solutions.
To make room to feel connected.
To promote understanding and listening.
To get present and available.
To stimulate greater perception, awareness, comfort, empathy and receptivity in yourself.
To stimulate good feelings in yourself.

Inappropriate

Usually during 90 percent of your day, because your tasks require mental, left-brain function.
During activities and goals that require discipline, commitment and practical functionality, such as competition and negotiation.
When you're taking action.
When you have tasks to be accomplished.
When you're focused on goals and bottom lines.
In handling practical, linear, predictable or planning issues, such as checking off items on your "To do" list.
During activities that require you to be mentally alert.
In strategic planning and development.
During meetings of the minds.
When sharing intellectual, scientific and business ideas and concepts.
During logical and scientific processing.
During daily functions and routines, such as showering, dressing, eating, driving, carpooling, commuting, shopping, paying bills.

Your heart opens automatically when the conditions are right. It's not likely to happen when you're preoccupied, distracted, worried, in a rush, in survival mode, buried under the "to do" list that will never end, or running from one emergency to another.

How do you know if your heart is open? Usually it shows up as a powerful emotional or spiritual experience. Once you get to know the feeling, you'll recognize it when it happens - and be able to open your heart at will.

The power of the open heart can increase your happiness and joy, give you peace of mind and direct you into your greater purpose. To learn how your heart can work in partnership with your untapped power and inner wisdom get a copy of my book Meet Your Soul: Connecting with Your Quantum Power. Click here to buy this book now or to find out more.

Maxine