Here in Madagascar we're having a wonderfully rainy Saturday. The sky is grey, the breeze is full on cyclone style, and every hour or so a huge burst of water falls from the clouds. I couldn't be more excited. Rainy days here mean I have the excuse to stay in, write, do yoga, clear energy, and work on plans to grow my coaching business and workshops.

Living in a place where life is much slower I've learned there is deep value in time alone and inwards. Back in the US I'd wake up at 6am, get sweaty either on a trail or on my mail, eat breakfast, head to work, teach at the jail, cram in a few evening meetups, hop to yoga, maybe see another friend, then crash. Even on Sundays I was up and at 'em bright and early.

While I do miss having a big community of friends and a schedule full of life sparking things, I am so happy to now have this gift of settling into time alone with myself. The more that I take time to sit with the uncomfortable sense of unplanned solo time, the more I see my creativity and intuition skyrocket. I don't think this is a coincidence. To tune into life's whispering messages we need to slow down. We need to get quiet. And most importantly, we need to turn our energy into a receptive one. When we go go go we are always outwards, always pushing. When we slow down, we crack open.