In working with single clients looking for love, I’ve run into some commonalities with regards to traditional feng shui Do’s and Don’ts. This list is compiled from my experience of working with single clients wanting a relationship. These, of course, would also apply to those in a relationship looking to deepen their commitment.

Here we go…

1. Don’t have a teddy bear on your bed.

2. Don’t have only one nightstand.

3. Don’t have one side of your bed up against the wall.

4. Don’t have your old yearbooks on a bookshelf in your bedroom.

5. Don’t have images of single people or single animals in your bedroom (or anywhere in your home).

6. Don’t have a mirror across from your bed.

7. Don’t have love letters, memorabilia, or any reminder of your ex in your bedroom (or anywhere in your home).

8. Don’t have decor items grouped in 1′s, 3′s, or 5′s. For example, don’t have one candle. Instead, have two candles grouped together. Same with pillows on your bed, etc.

9. Don’t have pictures of family members in your bedroom.

10. Don’t have trinkets, collections, furniture, or anything else from your childhood in your bedroom.

In my life coaching practice, I often come across two types of people: those who are making good money but don’t feel fulfilled in their job and those that feel fulfilled but not making enough money.  In either case, the Career and Life Purpose section of the Bagua Map should be considered.

Are you in alignment with your work?

Do you want to be doing something else?

Could things be going better at your job?

Do you feel purposeful in your job or career?

All of these questions relate directly to the Career and Life Purpose section of the Bagua Map.

How can you boost this area of your life?

The Career and Life Purpose section of the Bagua Map is located in the bottom center.  (If you don’t have a Bagua Map, you can get one as my free gift here. It will explain how to align it.) If your front door is centered on the front of your house, you are walking through this section.  This makes your home very supportive for you in this area as the front door is the strongest energy coming into your home. The front door is considered the primary mouth of ‘chi’ and therefore laden with opportunities coming through your door and into your Career.

No worries if your Career and Life Purpose Section is not at your front door.  There are other ways to boost this area of your life.

This section is associated strongly with the Water Element. This makes this a great area to place a water feature.  This could be a bird bath outside your home in this area or a decorative water fountain inside your home in this area. If fountains aren’t your thing, then try a picture of water. You don’t want gushing water like Niagra Falls or a stagnant pond either.  Flowing water is best.

Other ways to bring in the Water element is by using glass, mirrors, and wavy shaped items.

The color associated with this area is black. That may seem odd, but there are some cool ways to incorporate black into your space.  Check out this post for ideas.

Always make sure this area is clear of clutter, especially if it’s your foyer.  You don’t want any blocks for your new opportunities to come through the door. Place items associated with where you want to go with your life, not items associated with the past.  Out with the old, in with the new is the rule here. And, as always, incorporate your intention for your career with each change you make, even if your intention is for more clarity.

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Feng Shui Your Own Home with my new Feng Shui Master Course!

TOO MUCH SPACE

With my recent clients with too much space, they were both bachelors who didn’t know what to fill the extra rooms with.  But I’ve also come across this issue with many clients – single, married, and even families.  It may seem crazy, but having too much space can be stressful.  No one likes to waste space.  And if your budget happens to be tight, it can also be expensive to furnish too much space.

It is important to use all the space in your house. By underutilizing rooms in your house, you are underutilizing aspects of yourself. Energetically, it is important to ‘fill’ all the rooms of your home. I recently heard a story of a woman who closed off one of the bedrooms after her significant other left. The room was going unused and receiving no energy.  She had cut off a part of herself.

This is not to say that you should go and dump a bunch of junk in a room to fill up the space. Instead, designate a function for the room. For one of my bachelors, we decided to designate an empty room as a study/music room.  He had bookshelves and music equipment in his bedroom that was disrupting his sleep and a misplaced desk in the living room.  We created a new space leaving his bedroom with a more defined purpose: sleep.

It doesn’t take much to fill a space. It could just be a meditation cushion and your ipod.  But it has a function, and most importantly, your energy.

When someone is not taking up all their space in their home, they are not living up to their full potential in their life.

TOO LITTLE SPACE

Having too little space is the more common problem.  When we have too little space, we are allowing other things to take our energy. If you live in a small space, then you are at a time of your life where you must be extremely efficient with what you allow in your space.  You are forced to be a minimalist.  Otherwise, you will be feeling claustrophobic with the walls of life coming in on you.  You might be feeling stagnant with no movement in your life, feeling like there’s no way out, or feeling like you can’t move.  Choose minimalism instead.

Here’s where to start…

It is essential to weed out anything you no longer love or use.  This is the definition of clutter.  To break it down even further, you must get rid of anything that no longer serves your highest and best interest.  This could be anything from old papers to furniture. There is no price tag on furniture.  When you allow clutter into your space it is the same as allowing other people’s unwanted energy into your energy field. It is a boundary issue.  This includes storage units! (One exception is if you are traveling or in transition.)

Unlike the person with too much space who is not utilizing all his energy, the person with too little space is giving his/her energy away to others for the taking. Either one will show up somewhere else in your life.

Like Goldilocks it is important to find the amount of space that is just right for you. Some people prefer vast space and others prefer more cozy spaces.  Find what works for you and fill the space with your energy consciously and deliberately.

Whether writing fiction or non-fiction, blogs or books, a writer spends her day pouring herself out, emotionally and intellectually, onto paper and into the world. It can be a very vulnerable place. This is one reason why having an office space is so important and, more specifically, having your own office space – a space that is yours and yours alone without distraction.

Location

Bloggers usually work from home, again, thanks to the low overhead. But, finding adequate office space comes with challenges. If square footage is an issue, then home offices become an afterthought only to find themselves sharing space with a guest room, kitchen table, or the corner of the living room. And so it takes some creative planning of a space to make a home office work for writers.

The first step is to select one location for your workspace. Ideally, this is a designated home office. But, it could be a sitting chair, your bed, or the kitchen table. Whatever the space, it is important that you make this your space. In other words, this is the place you go to write. Similar to meditation, when you use the same space, it will help you drop in quicker to the flow. Also, in doing so, you are making writing a priority.

A note about writing in coffee shops: Some people need the stimulation of other people around them to get motivated to write. For others, however, it can be very distracting. So, experiment and notice what works best for you.

Desk Placement

The most important consideration for any office is desk placement. When sitting at your desk, you should be in “Command Position”. Simply put, this is the position that makes you most ‘in command.’ Every room has a Command Position. The Command Position emerges from our instinctive need to have visible control of our environment.

The ideal Command Position would be with a view of the door from your chair, a view out a window, and a solid wall behind you. This may mean moving your desk into the room away from the wall. If this is absolutely not possible, then place a mirror to where you can see the entrance in the mirror. If you do not use a desk, but instead a counter or even your lap, it is still important to face the door entering the room. You want to feel in power and confident in your space – whether you are home alone or working amongst a 100 colleagues in a business office.

In this photo, the writer’s office also doubles as a guest room. The desk faces the door, but is not directly in line with the door (that would result in too much chi energy coming in). It would be better if the window was not right behind her. Why? A wall behind you provides support and for writers in an isolated profession, feeling supported is crucial. Keeping the blind closed is helpful so that there is not a feeling of being exposed.

Clear Clutter

Also notice in this picture the lack of clutter. It is imperative to have an uncluttered space when writing. Our mind is directly affected by our environment. So once you designate your workspace, then declutter it.

Size of Desk

The size of your desk will depend on your preference. Everyone likes or requires a different amount of surface area. For some, an executive-size desk makes them feel more powerful. For others, it’s just another place to collect clutter. I prefer a desk that will fit my laptop, tea, and my cell phone. I work virtually paperless and prefer to keep everything either on my phone or computer. In this picture of my previous office, you can see that while my desk is relatively small, it takes center stage in my office. It faces the door without being in direct line and not being right in front of the window either. Find a desk or surface that fits your style and is comfortable. If you are physically cramped, then your creative juices will not be free-flowing.

As said in Field of Dreams, ‘if you build it, they will come,’ and so is the case if you designate a workspace that feels good to you. You will be more likely to write, enjoy writing, and be successful in your writing.

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Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com.

Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

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When explaining what feng shui is I often liken it to yoga as well.   Both are about improving the energy flow within the space – whether it be a room, the body, or an entire home.  Also in yoga and feng shui, the first step in improving energy flow is to remove energy blocks.

Where yoga and feng shui diverge paths is in accessibility and application.  Most are willing to try out a yoga video or even a yoga class for an hour, but getting a taste of feng shui is a bit harder.  I find that most people get a book, try to understand it, and then give up.  Similar to knowing where your left foot should be in Crow Pose, knowing where your couch should be from reading a book is challenging.

You are then left with the decision of whether to call in a feng shui expert for help, or not.  The benefits of doing may not be overwhelmingly clear, unless a friend or some other trusted person has touted a positive experience with hiring a feng shui consultant.

So here are the reasons you should consider feng shui-ing your home:

1. You will feel better physically. Our home is an outward manifestation of our self.  When you make changes to your home, you are making changes to yourself.  By moving a few pieces of furniture or accessories, my clients often report feeling a difference in their breath immediately.  Imagine what improved breathing can do every day over time!  Feng Shui actually brings about positive changes in the body.   Within your home is an unseen world of energy.  Energy is being emitted from the Earth, from your furniture, and from your clutter.  This energy affects you physically.  Feng Shui helps eliminate harmful energy patterns and direct the energy for optimal living.  Many clients also report better sleeping following feng shui.

2. You will feel better emotionally. Everything is energy, especially emotions.  Everything in your home – from the walls to the boxes in your closet – are affecting you on some level.  For example, have you ever thought about the energy in your home lingering from past occupants?  Energy, particularly from trauma, can get trapped in areas without adequate flow.  This energy forms energy patterns which you too could fall into.  Have you ever lived near a home where it constantly goes up on the market for some reason.  Or a house that everyone who moves there gets a divorce.  This is because of a stuck energy pattern in the home.   More common energy patterns are having the same argument over and over – particularly in the same area of the home. Clients have reported to me that problems, such as arguments or even bed wetting, significantly improved after a feng shui space clearing.

Another way in which your home is affecting you emotionally is through your stuff.  Our stuff, particularly those things we have a hard time letting go of, is baggage of emotional energy.  This is the same as storing or stuffing emotions in our body.  When you let go of clutter, you are letting go of old emotions that are no longer serving you.

3. You will feel better mentally. Scientific studies now prove that a cluttered environment does in fact lead to a cluttered mind.  If our visual space is not in order, it affects us mentally.  We can not think or focus as clearly.  There are also studies that now show a correlation between a cluttered environment and depression.

By using the Bagua Map tool, feng shui can also help you focus on your intentions and personal goals.  Each area of your home holds an energy portal for every area of your life, i.e. health, wealth, love, career, etc.  If you are not using feng shui, then you are underutilizing these treasures of energy awaiting you. In Chinese metaphysics it is said that feng shui is 33% of our luck.  I don’t know about you, but I’m going to make use of every percent of luck available to me.

4. You will feel better spiritually. Like our body, our home is sacred.  Unfortunately in ways that we abuse our bodies, we find ways to abuse our home.  However, by becoming conscious of this, we can change bad habits and patterns that will emanate out in all areas of our life.  When you think of your home as a sacred space, you begin to respect yourself in a new way.  Ultimately for me, feng shui is about loving your home.  And when you love your home, you will love yourself.

Like yoga, there are so many benefits of feng shui and everyone gets something different from it.  From a practical consideration, it is really inexpensive.  Aside from a consultation fee, feng shui costs are minimal, if anything.  In fact, you will usually end up making money off belongings you realize you no longer need.   By rearranging your existing items, you will have a completely new space and feel so much better.

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Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com.

Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

I oftentimes run into two types of people: those who are feng shui skeptics and those who are feng shui lovers. So just how much stock should we put into feng shui? Clearly there must be something to a 5000-year old practice, right? And why else would businesses in Asia construct buildings based on feng shui principles. According to the Chinese practice, feng shui brings good luck to those who apply it to their homes and businesses.

But what about those who have painted their entire Wealth Corner purple with not a hint of change in their finances? Or those who have placed pairs of pillows, nightstands, and candles in their bedroom just to find themselves sleeping alone?

As usual, the truth usually lies somewhere in the middle.

According to Chinese Metaphysics, success or luck is derived from a combination of 3 factors:

-Heaven Luck

-Earth Luck

-Human Luck

This is known as the Cosmic Trinity.

If you divide each of these equally, that means each of these account for 33% of our fate.

Take a closer look at each one to see if you are taking advantage of all areas of your Cosmic Trinity:

1. Heaven Luck is also known as our Astrology or Natal Chart. We’ve all experienced times when we felt like we were going against a river. You may have wondered or even referred to your chart to see what was going on to explain your run of bad luck. And then there are other times when everything goes your way. It’s in these extreme good and bad times when we feel like we have little, if any, control of our life and destiny. This is your Heaven Luck. Is it possible to trump or override your Heaven Luck? Keep reading…

2. Human Luck is our conscious intentions. This is the aspect in which we feel like our life is in our hands. We are in control. We have free will. Our fate is in our hands – at least 33% of it. The more we make conscious choices, intentions, thoughts, the more we will be in control of our Human Luck. Have you ever come across someone who just seemed to live life in default. They just took what life handed them. This is a case of not using their 33% of Human Luck. On the other end of the spectrum, we sometimes think we have more control over our lives than we really do. This is usually when Heaven Luck or Earth Luck kicks in and teaches us a valuable lesson.

3. Earth Luck is the Feng Shui aspect of our success. Have you ever lived in a house that just seemed cursed? Perhaps as soon as you moved in everything seemed to go wrong. This is an extreme example of how feng shui can affect our lives. Generally speaking though, the energy flow in our home will have a direct impact on our own personal energy flow. This will in effect impact all areas of your life – from finances to love to health. If you don’t believe me, then try living in a house with a missing Wealth Corner!

   The Bagua Map contains nine areas of your life, the energy of which are all contained in your home. Some or all of these areas may be energetically blocked or need enhancing in one’s space, which is the essence of Feng Shui. Ultimately, we are directly affected by the energy of Mother Earth. The plot of land we live on is our host and we must live in accordance and in harmony with it. There are some plots that are more auspicious than others, as well as floor plans, furniture selection, and so forth. How we direct the energy in our home greatly affects how we direct the energy in all areas of our life.

I always encourage my clients to use conscious intentions (Human Luck) while applying Feng Shui remedies and enhancements (Earth Luck) to make a much more powerful punch – 66% to be exact. You can also apply the Heaven Luck to the equation by appropriately integrating the five elements into your home based on a personal Five Elements analysis.

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Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com

Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

Yin Characteristics:

Sensitive, Nurturing, Slower Moving, Intuitive, Relaxed, Imaginative, Quite, Introverted

Yang Characteristics:

Excited, Rational, Direct, Mental, Enthusiastic, Outgoing, Changeable, Logical

Ideally, we want a balance of each of these. When we have too much of either, it leads to the following imbalances:

Too Much Yin:

Depression, Weight Gain, Accumulates Clutter, Past-Oriented, Cries Frequently

Too Much Yang:

Anxious, Future-Oriented, Hyperactive, Emotion-less, Reactive

We all tend towards being too yin or too yang in times of imbalance and can use our home to help bring us into balance. If you are more yin, then you want to balance out your tendencies with yang qualities in your home, and vice versa. For those who are more yang should bring in more yin qualities into their home. Here’s how:

Yin People Should Bring in Yang Qualities:

Large windows, open floor plan, skylights, high ceilings, light colors, natural light, Tall furniture, hardwoods, minimalism, mirrors

Yang People Should Bring in Yin Qualities:

Small separate rooms, Closed doors, lower ceilings, covered porches, small windows, more trees and shrubs, rugs and carpet, window coverings, low furniture, low light, dark colors

Take a look around your home and see if your home is more yin or more yang. Is this the best energy to balance your personal energy? If not, make some changes and see if your energy changes for the better.

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Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com

Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

This is a repost of my article that appeared on

Although I don’t have any linguistic rules to back me up, I feel like it’s not coincidental that the word “HOME” includes the word “OM” and has the same prefix as the word “HOLISTIC.”

Holistic living is being more and more embraced with conscious eating, preventive and alternative medicine, and simplicity. Holistic implies being ‘whole’ or looking at the ‘whole’ picture by looking at our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing as a whole, not in parts.  Historically, in the West, we have put a priority on physical health, while in the East there has been a focus on spiritual health.  Both are now being embraced and united with a holistic lifestyle.

And now our home is becoming to the forefront as another component of living holistically.  More and more people are realizing that their home can be a source of healing – a place of essential change.

Our home is second to our body as our physical dwelling on Earth.  It is so closely related to our mind and body that the two have oftentimes throughout history been used interchangeably in religions, architecture, and in dream analysis.

And this I know is not coincidental.  For the last four years, I have gone to people’s homes to help them with energy flow, clutter clearing, and even color selecting.  And what I realized early on is that our home is a mirror of ourselves.  And as we make changes to our home, we are making changes to ourselves.

The energy patterns within our self – physically, mentally, and emotionally – are also present within our home.  Have you ever had a great massage or bodywork where you left feeling great.  And upon returning home, you fell right back into your old patterns – maybe your shoulders started to slump forward again or your breathing returned to being labored.

If the energy flow in your home is ‘off’ then the energy flow in your body will be off. Energy flow in your home can be affected by furniture, accessories, clutter, and the quality of energy.

Here are a few things to consider to make your home part of your holistic lifestyle.

1. Furniture blocks: For the best feng shui, you want the energy to ‘meander’ through a space.  So imagine yourself as energy (because you are) coming through your space.  Do you bump into any furniture? Do you hit corners sticking out? Are there tight places that feel constraining?  Too much furniture can be major blocks of energy.  And if they’re in your house, then they’re in your life in some form.

2. Emotional Clutter: Clutter is stagnant energy.  So if you feel stagnant in any area of your life, then there’s probably clutter lurking somewhere in your life that has taken form.  If it’s your love life that’s stagnant, then clear out stuff from past relationships.  If it’s your career that’s stagnant, clear out your office. If it’s your body that’s cluttered, then clean out your cupboards, fridge, and clothing closet.

3. Inventory Your Accessories: Like a great outfit, accessories are essential. They can make an outfit.  But if overdone, they can ruin an outfit.  So is the case with accessories in your home.  Take inventory of the accessories in your home.  You should love everyone of them.  Don’t use accessories to distract.  I find that people who use too many accessories in an outfit are subconsciously trying to distract the attention away from them personally and to their clothing instead.  Don’t let your accessories distract you.  Love everything in your home, including yourself.

4. Clear the Energy:  No one likes to sit at a table in the restaurant before it’s been cleared by the people who sat there before. And no one certainly wants to live among the energy of the previous owners of their home. You don’t want to be subjected to the energy patterns of those before you.  If you have never cleared the energy in your home, now is the time!  It’s quite simple and effective.  Sage smudging is the most common method by which you light the end of a sage bundle and waft around your house.  Add your intention to the mix as well.  You can also try my hand-blended Smudge Spray which is quite effective as well and smells fabulous.

So as you become more conscious of your diet, exercise, spirituality, and so forth, become conscious of your home as well.  As you love your home, you will love yourself.

photo credit

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Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com.

I am just about ready to harvest my first tomato of the season.  Following it up will be cucumbers, lettuce, kale, and many more tomatoes. This is by far my most successful garden ever.  Why? Because all five elements are in place and well-balanced.  I placed the garden in the perfect sun spot; the ground has never been built upon; and the soil/fertilizer I used is chock full of nutrients.  And, yes, due to the 98 degree Spring we have had in Nashville, I have been watering it!

Nature is always the perfect template to refer to when talking about balance.  And I realized that my garden is the perfect example of all five elements being in perfect balance.  This balance of the Five Elements shows up everywhere in our life.  Afterall, everything on our Planet is comprised of the energy of these elements – fire, wood, water, earth, and metal.

In fact, if you have ever gone to acupuncture, you may have thought of it as the needles stimulating the chi along meridians, which it is.  But it is more than that. The overall objective of acupuncture is to bring your five elements into balance. Like a plant, which is predominately wood, we are all dominant in one of the five elements, which sets up corresponding benefits and challenges. And like weeds in the garden, toxins and stress can take over if not managed properly.

Just like acupuncture, feng shui is also used to bring about balance of the five elements in your home.  In fact, using the five elements in your home can positively affect your health.  Again, referring back to my garden analogy, think about each room of your home as a garden. And then think about if you overwater or underwater your garden.  Or perhaps it doesn’t get enough sun or proper nutrients.  Ideally, each room in your home should support you and help you grow.  And like the weeds in a garden, clutter can quickly take over a space preventing you reaping the fruits of your labor.

If you are interested in learning what your personal element is and how you can use your home’s interiors to bring about your interior balance, book a Five Elements Consultation with me.

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Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com.

We know that everything is energy – our thoughts and most certainly our emotions.  In fact, our emotions are just heightened byproducts of our thoughts.  You can think of it with this simple formula:  Thoughts + Emotions = Energy.  In essence, all of our thoughts and emotions not only help make up our energy field, but are also emitted from us like laser beams.  And guess what?  All of these particles of energy are in your home and immediate living environments, such as your office.

Our home is the single closest space, aside from our physical body, in which our energy is encompassed.  Whatever is going on within your personal energy field – be it illness, negativity, lack, abandonment, fears, and so forth – is also present within your home’s energy. Not to highlight just the negative, it holds the good stuff too.  In fact, like the Law of Attraction, energy does not discriminate between good and bad.

Feng Shui is used to improve the energy flow within spaces.  What this really means is if you are holding, for example, the energy pattern of “fear of failure” (despite your good intentions and affirmations), this pattern is somewhere in your home as well.  It may be lurking within a bad furniture arrangement, a stuffed closet, a stack of cluttered papers, or a piece of art connoting a negative message. These patterns can be sneaky.  Like the ego, they find a way to survive within our energy field despite our conscious good intentions.

Stories I hear from clients speak volumes to the power of Feng Shui.  It changes lives.  When you change your external environment thereby changing energy patterns around within and around you, you change your inner reality. Like the Law of Attraction, it’s quite magical.

The Bagua Map is an often used tool in Feng Shui that maps out where certain areas of your life lie within your home.  I often advise clients that when you make changes per the Bagua Map, in conjunction with a specific intention or affirmation (per Law of Attraction), this is when you really increase your chances of seeing positive changes.

For example, with one client we noticed a huge armoire in her Wealth Corner that was only being used to store clutter.  Not only that, but she didn’t even like the piece of furniture, which was handed down to her from a previous roommate.  This was a prime suspect for an energy block in her finances.  She sold the armoire and in doing so felt a sense of relief, spaciousness, and freedom.  This opened up new space in her Wealth corner, which has opened up new income streams for her.

Where do your energy blocks lie within your home? While a feng shui professional can be highly beneficial, you can start on your own.  Here’s some tips to get you started:

- Look for those areas of your home that you don’t use or don’t like going into.  This may be on a conscious or unconscious level.

- Notice what areas hold the most clutter.

- Look for pieces of furniture that constrict certain areas of your home.

- See your home objectively.  Even if you love your entry console, if you bump your hip on it every time you walk by, then it’s blocking energy.

- Periodically clear the energy in your home with sage, smudge spray, or any other clearing method.

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Get your FREE Feng Shui Bagua Map + Goal Sheet DOWNLOAD HERE!

Tisha Morris is a feng shui expert, life coach, and the author of Feng Shui Your Life. For more information, visit www.tishamorris.com.