They always say the teacher gets more out of a class than anyone. And so was the case for me this time. The following day I had an undeniable urge to rearrange the front room of my home. It is a sort of lounge/sitting area. For some reason, I don’t spend much time there. And so I bought a lamp.

Thirty minutes later, I removed all the furniture and started over. I realized that that the current furniture arrangement was preventing us from wanting to be in the room. In my book 27 Things to Feng Shui Your Life, one of the 27 things is – Make Your Least Favorite Room Your Favorite. And, so, taking my own advice this is what I did. By simply buying a $39.99 lamp, I transformed this room into my favorite room in the house. And because every room in the house represents some aspect of our mind or body, I had been denying some aspect of myself.

Also, on the Bagua Map (Get the Bagua Map iPHone App) this room lies partly in the Career section and the Wisdom section. Now I am ready to ‘shine a light’ on some new aspect of my Career, Life Purpose, and Wisdom! I can’t wait to see what’s in store.

Those rooms in your home that you rarely go into or that you like these least, hold the potential for the most transformation. Some latent talent, skill, idea, or perspective is ready to be discovered. Go find it!

Mapquest

As a feng shui consultant, I am always driving to people’s homes. I’ve never invested in any GPS gadgets. Instead I use my iPhone. For a long time, I simply used the map feature that comes standard on the iPhone. It got me where I needed to go. And then I found Mapquest. It is great! You can set it to where you don’t have to keep refreshing the screen. And it also uses vocals if you so choose. Now there is woman who tells me when to turn. And her pronunciation of street names is pretty impressive. I’ve also set it to use interstates whenever possible. It really has everything that you would need. And, yes, it’s free.

Dragon Dictation

There isn’t much I miss about being an attorney. But being able to dictate is one of them. Now with Dragon Dictation, I can dictate emails or for that matter an entire book (by emailing it to myself). It does surprisingly well and is great for when you don’t want to use the miniscule keyboard to type out an email. Between this and Mapquest, that’s two less gadgets I need to have on hand.

Words With Friends

Yes, I am a nerd. This is my favorite game on the iPhone. It’s a great way to connect with family and friends in a really round-about way. It can make bank lines and boring meetings go a lot quicker while sharpening your mind up as well. It is a definite for anyone who loves Scrabble or word games. Feel free to start a game with me…  my WWF name is Tishka.

iFeltThat

If you’re into tracking natural disasters, then this is the app for you. Seriously though, this app shows you up to the minute earthquakes, including all the stats. If you’ve ever wondered if an Earthquake hit your area, then this app is perfect.

Feng Shui Bagua Map

So yes this is shameless promotion. But it really is an app that I use all the time with clients to show them what area of their home is associated with certain energies, i.e. wealth, love, career, etc. You can feng shui your office, home, desk, or your hotel room for those of you on the go. Click here for more info!

Share what Apps that have changed your life…I would love to know!

Similar to my book to be released April 25^th, 27 Things to Feng Shui Your Home, my goal with this app was to make it simple but informative. The number one thing I hear from clients is that Feng Shui books are confusing. And, yes, I agree. It can be challenging to understand Eastern concepts, particularly when written from an Eastern mindset.

This app is based on the most widely used westernized Feng Shui method, including the Black Hat or BTB Feng Shui method. Accordingly, the Bagua Map is aligned per the front door of the space, not per compass directions.

With this app you will have all the information you need to use the Bagua Map. And what I love about apps is that they are interactive!

FEATURES

• The Bagua Map can be viewed in Portrait or Landscape mode depending on the general shape of the space you want to feng shui.
• Click on each square of the Bagua Map to get all the information you need on that section of your house.
• Provides in-depth characteristics, application, remedies, and enhancements for each quadrant.
• Import or take a picture or sketch of your floor plan, room, etc. from your camera photos and superimpose the Bagua Map onto it for a bird’s eye view.
• Save your feng shui-ed floor plan and create as many as you want.

HOW TO USE

• Align the main front door of your house with the bottom of the Bagua Map screen where it says “front entrance.”
• If your front door is centered on your house, you will be walking in the Career & Life Purpose square. If the door is off-centered to the left, then you will enter through the Wisdom & Self-Awareness section. If the door is off-centered to the right, then you will enter through the Helpful People & Travel section.
• To feng shui an individual room, you will align the Bagua Map with the door entering the room with the “front entrance”. For example, the farthest, left corner of the room from the door will be the Wealth section.
• To feng shui a desk, where you are sitting is equivalent to the “front door,” which in most cases will be centered at the Career & Life Purpose section. For example, the farthest, left corner of your desk is the Wealth section.

To link to your iTunes store to download, click here! Or to find in the app store on your iPhone, just Search “bagua map” or “Tisha”.

I would love to hear your feedback!

I have written many articles on ways that you can incorporate Feng Shui into your life from your desk to your office, and of course, your home. I was recently noticing that my Turkish embroidered coin purse turn wallet was coming apart at the seams. It was time to get a new wallet. What I realized however was that, while my current wallet has a nice energy, it doesn’t allow for much money to flow through it. Afterall, it is supposed to be just a coin purse. On top of that, it was in dire need of a good clearing. It was time to feng shui my wallet!

The first step in Feng Shui is to clear the area. When you clear an area, you clear out the old, stagnant energy making room for something new. This is also the case with your wallet. Similar to clearing out your closet or drawers, clearing out your wallet periodically will allow new energy, i.e. money, to come in. Clear out old business cards, IDs, notes, pictures, etc. This is old energy that is just taking up space. Speaking of, anything representing debt, i.e. credit cards with a large balance, should not be in your wallet…not only for practical, budgetary purposes, but for energetic reasons. It will only attract more spending and debt.

The second step of Feng Shui is to rearrange the furniture, if necessary. In the case of your wallet, do you need a new wallet? Is it big enough? Is it too big? Does it have enough compartments? Does it have too many compartments? Or is it just right! If your current wallet no longer fits your needs, then donate it to Goodwill and buy a new one that does. In my case, I needed a wallet with a specified compartment for bills (preferably $20 and $100 bills). My current wallet simply was not inviting for money to come in.

The third step is to add Feng Shui elements. While you don’t have to divide your wallet into the 8 areas of the Bagua Map, it is important to have designated areas in your wallet. For example, use the built-in compartments for organizing your business cards, family pictures, credit cards, bills, coins, etc. Most importantly, ensure that what you are carrying around is not only a representation of you, but what you want to attract more of into your life.

Also check out my updated article on my 5 Favorite Apps for 2010 here!

For those of you that follow my blog regularly, you know that I am not a techie. So, it is extremely rare that I write about such topics. But I shouldn’t go without mentioning how the iPhone has changed my life. It has changed the way I work, play, and even… meditate.

While the built-in functions of email, calendar, and weather were liberating in their own right (compared to my 4-year old Razr), the world of iPhone apps opened up an infinite portal of opportunities. So much that I feel inclined to share, particularly since a few of these are not in the Top 25 or even 50 of downloaded Apps. (By the way, this is purely a personal endorsement and not financially rewarded in any way.)

1. Pandora
   

   If you are not a fan of Pandora yet, you will be. It is simply the best internet radio available. (If you disagree, please share with me what you think is better. I would love to know.) Pandora.com actually started 10 years ago proving that, like wine, some things just take time. Pandora is not only free, but commercial-free. You have the option of choosing your genre of station or better yet pick an artist. It will then play not only that artist but similar artists. You create the station. It is extremely rare to come across an artist that is not in their library. My new favorite is the Quick Mix feature in which you can mix your stations thereby creating a sort of shuffle iPod effect. Imagine having this access 24/7. You can with the Pandora app. And did I mention it’s free.
   

2. iMantra
   

   For a while I was reluctant to pay for any apps because there were so many great free ones. I then took my chance with iMantra. And, wow, has it turned out to be a great investment ($4.99)! Mantras are the Sanskrit version of affirmations. An affirmation is a set of positive words or phrases repeated out loud or to yourself. The more the affirmation is repeated consecutively and over time, the more the subconscious mind is being programmed to believe it. For more information on Affirmations, see my article, 8 Affirmations for Abundance. As I mention, the traditional mantra practice involves repeating a mantra 108 times consecutively. Mala bead necklaces are often used for this practice for they have 108 beads with the beginning and ending point being a yellow or red tassel.
   

   The iMantra app does the counting for you. Choose how many times you want to repeat the mantra and it will do it for you. Not sure what mantra to chant? It has six categories of traditional mantras, from Hindu to Kundalini to Planetary with a great selection of mantras within each. It also tells you what each mantra means. Not sure how to pronounce the mantra? It does that for you too. Chant along with a soothing male and/or female voice ensuring your pronunciation is correct. Perhaps you want your favorite mantra or personal affirmation that isn’t listed. Simply record yourself in the Personal category and voila! This App alone has revolutionized my daily spiritual practice. I hope you will be inspired as well. Om Shanti Shanti!
   

3. Vegan Yum Yum
   

   Despite what you may think, you don’t have to be vegan to enjoy this App. But, if you are, you will simply fall in love. For anyone who has ever bought or flipped through a cookbook, you know the pictures are the most important consideration in buying the book and oftentimes trying out the recipe. In this App every recipe not only has an accompanying picture, but an unbelievably well photographed picture. Furthermore, the recipes are great! Some simple, some complex. A nice mix of entrees, desserts, and apps (no pun intended). It’s yum yum and definitely worth the price… Free!
   

4. iChing by Astrology.com
   

   There are many different iChing apps available and I can’t vouch for the other ones. I’m sure there are some other great ones out there. This one I know is good and, again, it’s Free. The iChing has been used for over 5000 years ago and is the basis of many sciences, including Feng Shui. It has a strong tradition in assisting people in decision-making. iChing is the Book of Changes based on the yin and yang (opposites, male/female, duality) aspects of every issue. This App is consistent with the traditions of the iChing in its interprations. There are 4 spinners that you stop six times resulting in one of 64 combinations. Ask it a question, see what kind of day you will have, reflect back on the inner meaning of your day, or just have fun.
   

5. Tweetie/Facebook (tie)
   

   These mobile social networking apps are so incredibly useful for wanting to catch up on the go, whether you are traveling or simply waiting in line somewhere. The Tweetie app ($2.99) is a great interface for Twitter. It is visual and content friendly. In fact, I sometimes prefer using it than Twitter itself or other online interfaces. The Facebook app is free and easily linked to your account. Great for for making spontaneous updates or doing a quick check-in on what others are up to. As any social networker knows, you have to stay on top of it. These apps make that not only possible, but easy.
   

   Please share with me Apps that have changed your life…I would love to know!
   

   Photo by rich sipe