The psychology of belief tells us what is really going on behind the scenes when we act, interact, and react with one another.

Because our beliefs are the driving force in our lives, I think that pausing to acknowledge and assess our beliefs is time well-spent.

Do you sometimes become attached to your beliefs...so much so that you have difficulty seeing things from someone else's perspective? Our beliefs have the power to build us up as well as destroy us. Take a moment to pause with me as we discuss how our beliefs have an extraordinary effect on our relationships, our families, our communities and our world.

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My yoga teacher in tonight's class repeated this phrase several times – "This is your edge, this is your practice. There are no judgments. Just breathe. This is your breath. This is your practice". Such simple advice. So simple that it can get easily overlooked. We have the capacity to easily turn something simple into something complex, don't we?

I can't count the number of times I have shunned the idea of getting to the edge for fear of failure. I remember not wanting to even go to Yoga because I was afraid I wouldn't be good enough. I hadn't practiced for a long period of time and was convinced that I would make a fool of myself if I tried. I entertained all kinds of self-limiting beliefs, giving in to my fears and doubts. 

There is a beautiful quote about standing close to the edge by American writer Kurt Vonnegut, "I want to stand as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all kinds of things you can't see from the center."

This invitation, to s...

Do you feel powerful in your business? Where does that power come from? Do you bring that power to your business intentionally? 

Richa sat down with friend and Driven to Excel founder and CEO, Steve Dorfman, to answer a few of these tough questions. Steve is also the host of the show "We Mean Business" where he interviews business executives, subject matter experts, and authors who give insight into just what it takes to build a successful business and life. 

Steve Dorfman is quite the acomplished businessman having earned the title "Salesman of the Year" 7 consecutive years! Steve's mission in business is to "Inspire others to be a hero...for their customers and clients." Richa shares her philosophies on gratitude, being present, simplicity, and her ever-popular Pause in this interview. She also opens up about what she thinks about people who consider her work "fluff". 

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Do you honor silence as a time for reflection? Silence is not the absence of something but the presence of everything.

 It is a gift you give yourself to notice your inner dialogue. Give yourself the permission to just get quiet. Break the cycle of busy-ness and doing and allow the emptiness and silence that follows. An empty vessel has space to receive.

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I was the new girl in 8th grade. My family had just moved from Hyderabad to Chennai in the Southern part of India. It was an all girls school and my 8th grade class had quite a few cliques in it. Around half a dozen groups of 3-4 girls, whispering, giggling, and gossiping. I never really felt like I fit into any of these groups, I had my own set of issues going on I guess.

Leaving my besties from my previous school, St. Anne's, in Secunderabad was proving rough. I had been there for three years, 5th through 7th grade and had made really great friends. I really really missed them. Thirty years later, I am still connected with the friends I made then. 

Now in the new school I felt awkward and didn't know how to relate to an entire new class. I took the route I knew best, I pretended to not need friends. But the entire time I was longing and hoping that someone would want to be my friend, laugh, giggle and play with me too. I really missed laughing and was beginning to get pretty l...

I hosted the most recent Pause For Power networking luncheon last week on June 19th, a day also known as "Juneteenth". It was on the 19th of June in 1865 that the last of the African American slaves received news of their emancipation. Although the declaration of emancipation happened in 1863, it took almost 2 and a half years for the slaves in Texas to receive the news. If only Twitter or Facebook existed back then!

Rightly called freedom day in Texas, the coincident Pause for Power event on Juneteenth inspired me to lead my audience into an inquiry of the state of our own personal freedom in our lives today. What does freedom mean to us? Is freedom just another word?

History books the world over tell stories about the fight for freedom, and many of these struggles are still ongoing. The fight for freedom from oppression and segregation; the fight for independence from colonization; the fight for women's liberation including the right to an education, the right to vote, the right ...

It was the I AM Love and Aliveness Retreat in February 2011. The weather had been terrible for the past few weeks but this weekend was looking great. The snow had started to melt, the roads were clear and the sun was out. But that was in Northern VA where I lived, not in Berkeley Springs, WV where the retreat was going to be held. The cabin we rented was atop a small hill and the roads leading up to the cabin were most definitely covered with thick ice and snow.  Vehicles, a no go!

My team and I always arrive at least one day before the retreat. The retreat began on Friday morning, so my team, Nicol, Mina, Dawn and I were there on Thursday morning. Mina and I were driving to Berkeley Springs together as we received the phone call. It was Dawn. She informs us that the road leading up to the cabin, coincidentally called "Breathrough Way", is covered in thick snow and ice and she can't get up to the cabin.

I am driving my car as Mina turns to her left and looks at me.  We both, smilin...

Do affirmations really work? Can standing in the mirror reciting one affirmation after another truly attract positive things to your life as the Law of Attraction suggests?

 The answer is yes...BUT simply going through the physical motions of reciting or writing down your affirmations is not enough. In order for affirmations to truly help you reach your full potential, you need to develop a sense of inner awareness.

Ask yourself, "Are there negative things that are going on in my life or in my mind that are actually sabotaging my ability to attract what I want in my life?" If the answer is yes then it's time for you to Pause for some personal reflection; discover who you are and why you are who you are. These discoveries will help bring down the walls that are blocking the power of affirmations in your life, and will allow you to better and more effectively use affirmations to create the success you desire.

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How many times have you told a little white lie thinking it was no big deal? After all, no one got hurt, right? But we all know that one lie leads to even more lies, and eventually you end up in a situation that spirals out of control and becomes completely exhausting. We tell lies for many reasons, but when we are not speaking truthfully we are not being authentic. We are actually holding back what we really want to say.

Listen as Richa explains what damage not speaking your truth is actually causing in your life. What can you do on a daily basis to live a more truthful and honest life?

 How many times have you told a little white lie thinking it was no big deal? After all, no one got hurt, right? But we all know that one lie leads to even more lies, and eventually you end up in a situation that spirals out of control and becomes completely exhausting. We tell lies for many reasons, but when we are not speaking truthfully we are not being authentic. We are actually holding back wh...