If anyone can be called a self-help, self-actualization pioneer, it is Shakti Gawain. Years before “manifestation,” “the law attraction,” and “the secret” entered the lexicon, Shakti was sharing daily affirmations, meditations, and mental imagery practices that millions found could help them achieve goals, change habits, relax deeply, and significantly improve overall health and well-being. We hope you’ll enjoy this excerpt from the new 40th Anniversary Edition of her international bestseller Creative Visualization. 

We all yearn to have time for our personal goals and creative dreams. We also know how challenging it can be to stay focused on what matters to us most. In this inspiring interview, Jennifer Louden, author of The Life Organizer, shares practical strategies for heeding the still, small voice within through mindfulness and steady listening. While life organizing has traditionally been approached in a masculine, linear way — set a goal, break it down into achievable steps, and stay the course until you get it done — Jennifer points us toward a more feminine, heart-based approach to goals and life planning that makes room for, and even embraces, chaos and interruption.

Does our world scare the crap out of you sometimes? Do you find yourself feeling powerless in the face of so much violence and division? Would you like to make a bigger difference, but you don’t know how? If so, you’re not alone.

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by our reality and to believe that you can’t make any real, lasting impact amid all the craziness. But you can, and you do make a difference, every single time you show up to life with a kind, open heart. Nothing stands to transform us, our relationships, and our world more than a commitment to live our lives from love.

So when you’re feeling powerless, or discouraged, or just plain freaked out by this reality, take some deep breaths and put your love into action. Here are four ways to do that.