Where’s the Fire?

Now and then I like to ask myself: Where’s the FIRE?

Other variations on this question include:

  • Where’s the fun?
  • Where’s the energy?
  • Where’s the fear?
  • Where’s the spark?
  • Where’s the trepidation?
  • Where’s the explosiveness?
  • Where’s the Do Not Enter sign?
  • Where are the dragons?
  • Where’s the passion?
  • Where’s the excitement?
  • Where’s the liveliness?
  • Where’s the lust?
  • What would wake me up?
  • What looks scary right now?
  • What would shake things up?
  • What kind of energy am I craving right now?
  • What would create some awesome memories?
  • Ten years from now, what will I wish I’d done?
  • Ten years from now, what would I like to cherish about this time?
  • What is my spirit craving?
  • What’s the next growth experience?
  • How can I explode the status quo?
  • What’s the next graduation?
  • Is it time to go faster?
  • What would I like to sink my teeth into next?
  • What can I co-create with the simulator next?
  • What makes me feel alive?
  • What would make my future self’s life even better?
  • What would I love to create next?
  • What would I love to experience next?
  • What would I love to share next?
  • What would I like to explore next?
  • What would be truly immersive?
  • What would be smarter than this?
  • Where does my story want to go next?
  • What would create interesting story?
  • What energies are ready to leave?
  • What energies want to come through?
  • Where’s the inspiration?
  • Where are the synchronicities?
  • Where’s the cooperation from reality?
  • Where’s the invitation from reality?
  • What is reality offering next?
  • Where are the powerful offers?
  • What role deserves more energy flow?
  • What project would light me up?
  • Where’s the commitment?
  • Where’s the commitment that’s too big?

When I feel that life has become a little slow or predictable, and I’m ready for a fresh phase of action with more variety, I like to ask one or more of these questions to invite some different energies to start flowing through.

These questions help me get my mind aligned. If my mind resists these questions, I know it’s not ready yet, so then I’ll ask different questions regarding what it wants to experience instead. It may want more downtime, more rest and recovery, or more clearing and processing of existing projects. I’ve learned to tell the difference between token resistance that’s easy to override versus a deeper and more rational form of resistance that raises genuine objections to address.

I can also feel the readiness in my body if I just consider kicking off several weeks of high-stimulation flow. Does my body generate some internal excitement when I focus on that idea? Or does my body feel like it wants to slink away and cocoon itself a bit longer?

I love stimulating projects and experiences, but a fiery approach to life day after day isn’t sustainable for me. I can maintain that kind of flow for a few months sometimes, but then I feel a deep need to switch gears, slow down, and slip into a different mode of living, usually for several weeks but sometimes for several months.

Alternatively, I can flow from one form of stimulation to a different form and have it feel more sustainable, like having a flow of social and travel experiences between creative projects. But if I stick with the same energy signatures for too long, my body and mind tend to reject it eventually, leading to this “I need to get the hell out of here” feeling.

Intentionally I also like to shift gears by voicing these intentions to reality:

Let’s speed up! I’m ready to go faster.

Okay, let’s slow down for a while. I could use a break from this pacing.

This works very well. And it’s way better than trying to push ahead faster when it would feel more aligned to slow down… or maintain a modest pacing when I’d love more growth and stimulation.

Changing the pacing is just one way to modulate the energy flow, but it can be very effective. You can also change the level of social engagement, the level of variety (travel is great for that), the depth of intellectual challenge, the financial risk (or potential gain), the forms of self-expression you utilize, and many other factors.

“Where’s the fire?” and its many siblings are great questions to ask when your current energy signatures are feeling too yawn-worthy and mundane, and you’d like to invite new energy signatures that feel more lively, stimulating, and sparky.