While I love nature and trees and plants, I don’t have much of a green thumb. But I finally couldn’t stand it any more. I grabbed the pruning scissors and snipped off all the sick or dead leaves. I didn’t know the best place to cut them – at the root? higher up? - but I snipped away, anyway.

It was like giving yourself a bad haircut, where you can’t stop, and you keep trying to even it up and it gets shorter and shorter. When I was done with my little rampage, the plant looked almost bare. I prayed I had not done it irreparable harm. I tossed the cut leaves into the woods and waited to see what would happen.

About a week later, while again doing my morning jumping ritual, I noticed a change in the lily. The leaves were shiny, erect and strong looking, and a dozen or so small leaves had poked up from the soil. And there was even a beautiful white lily blooming!  Apparently, my risky experiment had been just the ticket. The plant was thriving.

I had a sudden realization, also known as an epiphany: it seems that cutting the deadwood out can literally release a ton of energy and lead to magnificent renewal.

So I asked myself: what deadwood in my life could I proceed to prune mercilessly, knowing it would “juice” me and give me renewal? Trust me, I came up with a few answers! And I ask you now, what deadwood in your life can you snip out? Don’t be afraid of a “bad haircut.” Whether you’re dealing with employees, relationships, clutter, too many clothes, too many projects, let go of the unnecessary that’s dragging everything down and make room for the new!

Reprint permission policy.

970-672-4946

Contact me here.