Spiritual Thinking Ideas

Rocking the Foundation of Christianity

2009-10-02T11:37:00.001-07:00

Whatever you build a house, you start with the foundation, if you're writing a book, it might be an outline for the table of contacts, but when were talking about Christianity, rarely do any Christians ever research the origins or how Christianity began.

Most Christians assume that Jesus was the one who started Christianity, however, he was Jewish and there is a good chance that he never even thought about starting a new religion. I know, Jesus is God and he knows everything and he knew that he was going to start Christianity. Okay, but what if.

That might not be entirely true. We don't have any proof that Jesus was actually a superior god like being. We can speculate or assume all that we want to, however there is very little evidence to support, that Jesus did anything that the writers of the New Testament, suggested he had done.

I would like to challenge most Christians, to do a little research and quite possibly start rocking the foundation of Christianity. It's much more important to understand Christianity than to call yourself a Christian. Will a little bit of research help or hurt you, as you study Christianity.

You can start by looking at the origins of the Bible, the Council of Nicaea, the Emperor Constantine, the missing years of Jesus in the early Roman Catholic Church.

To understand anything, you must understand its origins. Take some time out of your busy life, to start studying the foundation of Christianity.

Do Christians Believe Everything
You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:
Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a Christian Article Library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.
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Religious Mind Control Or Generational Sin

2009-10-02T11:29:00.001-07:00

If you were raised with certain beliefs and belong to a certain religion, there is a very good chance that your parents followed your religion and share the same beliefs. If you are a Muslim, there's a very good chance that your parents were Muslims. If you live in the United States, there is a really, really good chance that you're a Christian, especially if you live in Texas or Utah.

Is this religious mind control and generational sin or is this truly the way life is meant to live. Your parents and ancestors formed strong beliefs and pass them on to their children. What's wrong with that? Is it a generational sin to pass on what you truly believe? With that question asked, is a generational sin our mind control to teach our children how to fit into society, is it our obligation as stewards.

We often send our children to school, give them a good religious upbringing and then assimilate them into the workplace, almost like robots on an assembly line. We seem to never even question where these beliefs originated, we have no idea where they are going to take us and above all, we have no idea that they are truly beneficial to society, let alone ourselves.

Teaching our children what we have been taught, isn't always going to be right. If you look back in history, at all the beliefs, rituals and facts that have been disproven and are no longer followed by modern man, you can get a pretty good idea what I'm talking about. These people often taught their children, what they were taught. In centuries to come, these truths died out and were replaced by new ones.

Religious mind control can be cured by opening your mind and reading articles like this. You might be talking to someone who you have been taught to fear or even hate your whole life, only to find out that they think like you. They care about their families, feel sorry for others who are less fortunate and usually eat and sleep just like you do. If your mind is open enough, you could realize that you have been lied to and now it's time to start thinking seriously about what you were taught and what you're going to believe in the future.

Religious mind control can be cured through reading books, watching television, visiting other countries and educating yourself about other cultures and religions. The change you make today could affect future generations in your family.

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended books, You Can Have It All

Greg is currently working on a religious help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Properly Exercising Faith - People Who Represent Christianity

2009-10-02T03:13:00.001-07:00

It's your responsibility as a Christian to properly exercise your faith and to express your opinions as such. If you don't know something for a fact, you are obligated to seek and gather more information about these so-called facts.

With this said, if you hear a Bible verse quoted to you by someone and you don't necessarily understand 100% of what they are saying or you think that they might be twisting around the Scripture, it's your obligation to find out, the truth and nothing but the truth.

Let me give you an example of how to properly exercise your faith. An atheist walks up to you and asks you why you believe in God, you reply," Because it says so in the Bible." Wrong.., wrong answer. Because it says so in the Bible, isn't what I would consider a good answer. It's what I would consider to be a controlled Christian answer, simple but untrue.

The minute that you start referring to things in the Bible and you don't really understand what it is that you're talking about, you're not doing Christianity any favors. The minute that you listen to another person quote out of the Bible and start repeating, what it is that they were saying, without clearly understanding the truth, you're simply spreading rumors.

Think about this, the next time that you tell someone something that you heard, just because you hear something three times, doesn't make it a fact. I would like to tell you a little secret, so pay attention, simply because someone within your religious community, who others look up to, say something that sounds believable, don't start spreading rumors, find out for yourself, if it's actually true.

Christian Bible Problems

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. He has been involved in religious research for almost 30 years, and his influence in the Christian community is growing. The Holy Bible, is the core to Christian beliefs and most Christians don't even question it. Was the Bible actually written by men?

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Understanding the Bible

Could Christian Pride Get You in Trouble?

2009-10-02T03:06:00.001-07:00

There's a good chance that most of us know at least one person who seems to be very prideful. These people are often hard to deal with and can easily get their feelings hurt. When someone who has a lot of pride, gets trapped in a corner, they often come out swinging in full attack mode.

When a Christian has a lot of pride, and is faced with a problem about their religion, the opposition had better be prepared, especially if this person is large and intimidating. I'm not referring to every Christian here, I'm not even referring to every Christian with a lot of pride either, I'm referring to Christians who mix their prideful beliefs with factual evidence.

These people can often become stubborn and the more that you push or pull, the deeper they dig their heels in, until they can't even be moved in either direction. It's almost like they're feet are buried in a large concrete slab of cement.

Yes pride can get you into trouble, they key is, knowing how to get yourself out of trouble. When someone approaches you with a question about your beliefs that you don't have the answer to, simply respond with," I will have to do some research and get back with you."

Don't let your pride get in the way and create an enemy out of someone that could provide you with some useful information about other beliefs or even your own religion. Think about it, your pride can often dig holes that you might not be able to get out of.

Eliminate Bible Propaganda

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Does Anyone Have a Direct Line to God?

2009-10-01T18:34:00.001-07:00

I have heard Catholics tell me that the pope has a direct line to God. I don't really know if that's true, but if he does, or anyone else does, I would like to ask them to do me a favor.

I would like them to ask God a few questions, these questions aren't going to be difficult, and we could even make them in yes or no formats, but these answers need to be asked and only God can provide us with the answers.

The first question that I would like to ask God, would be about starvation, why are there so many starving people all over the world? Are we or are we not supposed to be fruitful and multiply? Is overpopulation creating more problems in the world today, than it might have 2000 years ago?

These questions above, could be a little difficult to answer, but they shouldn't be too difficult for someone like God. I believe that God can handle a few tough questions and if the Pope or anyone else has direct communication with God, I would like to suggest something to them, quit wasting your time on frivolous things and start asking God the serious questions, that every one is really interested in.

It doesn't make a lot of sense, to pray and worship to somebody who realistically won't answer or deliver the things that we are requiring. I realize that most religious people are told, that God only answers some prayers or that God isn't ready to answer your prayers yet.

Anyway, if gods not going to answer all of our prayers, couldn't he at least answer some of our questions.

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Could You Be a Married Adulterer? - For Christians Only

2009-10-01T18:27:00.001-07:00

Adultery has been going on for centuries and obviously was a problem 2500 years ago or it wouldn't have been mentioned in the Bible so many times. Could you actually be married to someone and be considered an adulterer? It's time for you to learn all the rules in the New Testament about adultery.

Here's a Bible verse that could get a lot of Christians in trouble. Mark 10:11-12 (New King James Version)" 11 So He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries commits adultery against her. 12 And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."

It looks a little more complicated than most of us could have ever thought. Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, has committed adultery. That means that there are millions of Christians all over the world who have committed adultery.

I've got some more bad news for Christians who might have looked at a woman lustfully. Matthew 5:28 (New International Version Bible) "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." This isn't looking good, for men or women is it?

If you've never been married, but while you were at church, notice an attractive woman or man and had lustful thoughts, about them, you're an adulterer. I know, it sounds a little harsh, but I'm not making anything up here, it's right out of the Bible.

I know things aren't looking good but I would like to leave you with a comforting thought. If you were divorced from your spouse because of an adulterous relationship, things might be starting to look a little different with this next Bible verse.

Matthew 19:9 (New International Version Bible) I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."

These are typical contradictions and they are located throughout the Bible. Mark 10:11-12 states that all divorced people who have remarried, commit adultery. Matthew 19:9 states something completely different, if your divorced and your ex spouse has been unfaithful during your marriage and you remarry, everything is okay.

Are you even more confused than when I started? There's a good chance that you are. I'm even confused and I wrote the article. The real question is, can we remarry or can't we.

This would be a good topic during Bible study. You can start by asking, how many people are adulterers?

Read This Today

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Rethinking Today's Religions - Misleading Our Children

2009-10-01T09:41:00.001-07:00

When I was a young man, my parents told me about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. Every Christmas, there would be presents underneath the tree from Santa Claus and on Easter I would get a basket full of candy and eggs. However, when I was 11 years old, my parents broke the devastating news to me, there was no Santa Claus or Easter Bunny.

As you can imagine, I cried for hours over the frustration and disappointment. For one, I thought that I wasn't going to get any more Christmas gifts, but my parents provided me with the needed psychological relief and told me that they were going to provide Christmas gifts for me, until I died. Even though I was upset, I was relieved and confused.

If my parents lied about this, could they have possibly lied about something else, anything else. Have you ever thought about this and is there a situation in your life today that could be an old habit that never got corrected. Some theme that your parents told you when you were a child that was a lie and they never told you the truth. Maybe they never told you the truth because they don't even know themselves that it's a lie.

Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were obviously disappointments to me and most people that I've talked to about their experiences, with their parents and even their children. Why do we do this as parents to our children, even though we didn't like it when it was done to us. Hard to explain why we can't break certain habits and certain traditions.

I love Christmas and the joy of giving. Even though I am no longer a Christian, I enjoy going over to my relatives homes and spending Christmas or Christmas Eve with them. Now for the bad news, if you were raised to believe in Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism or any other large religious organization. Let me ask you this, do you think that it could be like Santa Claus, do you think the religion you believe in so strongly could be a story that has gotten out of control over the centuries.

I've spent a life time rethinking today's religions and can't find very many facts to prove any one religion is superior over another. Do your own research and find your own answers. Enlightenment could be as simple as gathering the right information.

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg is currently working on a self help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Is Overpopulation a Religious Problem?

2009-10-01T09:34:00.001-07:00

Overpopulation really isn't that hard to understand. People love each other, want to reproduce and have offspring. Their parents took care of them, and they will take care of their children. People love to have families and these families love to have more families. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

Now is overpopulation a religious problem? If you listen to religious text and understand a few simple sentences, you will see that there are plenty of religions all over the world that encourage the multiplication of mankind.

In the Bible, God tells man to be fruitful and multiply. If you read this a little differently, you might take it that God wants men to eat as much fruit as he wants to and plant more trees so that he can have more fruit and be fruitful.

That's not exactly how most Christians read this Bible verse. Christians need to have more children, and their children need to have more children. This is how they interpret the words, to be fruitful and multiply.

I do believe that religions all over the world play an important part in our worlds population problem today. It's not the people who are educated, that are constantly reproducing, in today's world.

Most religions support population expansion, but what are they going to do, once the world becomes so overpopulated, that we can't even take care of ourselves. This should give you another point of view to look at, especially if you one part of the problem and not the solution.

What About The End of The World

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.
His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with superior biblical knowledge , answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

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The Times They Are Changing

2009-09-08T08:02:00.001-07:00

We live in a very interesting time in world history. The evolution of getting to this point has never been so dynamic. Even though all the events that have taken place prior to this point in time have great significance, and the fact that it is what brought us here, our current world environment has been propelled into the 21st century with lightening speed. The advancement of technology in communications, information, and the internet has created the instant information age. And with that our conscious minds have become more inter connected with the world than ever before.

What is interesting is that this phenomenon is the staging ground for all of us to become more enlightened. We are, and always have been connected to the entire universe. We all have roots in the universe because consciousness affects our physical world, which includes all living things right down to the individual cells. Our minds have a great influence on our health and well being and on how we view the world. Our existence in the universe is born of a sense of participation and kinship with all others and all matter. The basic oneness of the universe is the central characteristic of the mystical experience, but is also one of the most important revelations of modern physics, (i.e. quantum physics). But I don't want to talk about quantum theory; I want to talk about the human connectedness, and what I detect as a shift in the thinking of more and more people.

Because of the information age, a fast paced lifestyle, what's in it for me attitude, and a win at all cost mentality, too many people began losing sight of the connection we all have with each other and the universe. The ideal of we are all in this together was fading, and taking responsibility for the common good of all, had begun to disappear. Over the last decade, an exponential amount of negative actions and the pursuits of an ideology of egotism have brought us to this juncture. But there is hope because I see the beginning of a change in the minds of many people.

Now, more than ever people are placing an increased importance on relationships. Taking stock of what really matters, like family, friends, and community. There is a new awareness that we are all connected to the universe, and that human consciousness and the physical world are intertwined. The realization is that there is a profound interaction that exists between conscious mental activity and the physical world itself.

We cannot separate our own existence from that of the outside world. We are not only associated with the earth that we inhabit, but with the furthest reaches of the cosmos. We affect all of those about us, so events such as caring, loving, and confiding exert profound consequences on the universe.

Following the Laws of Attraction, the universe gives us what we want if follow our dreams and our passions, but it also takes away if we lose sight of that connection that exists between us all. I believe that there is a change in the winds of time because there is the beginning of an understanding of this relationship. Maybe, just maybe it could be the start of the new Age of Enlightenment.

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Compassion - A Powerful Doorway to Personal Growth

2009-09-08T08:00:00.001-07:00

What if there was one choice you could make that would change everything in your life for the better? Actually, there is. Its the choice to move out of judgment and into compassion for yourself and others.

Compassion is defined as a deep caring for the pain of others, often accompanied by a desire to help. There is nothing that feels more wonderful and comforting than experiencing anothers compassionate response to our painful feelings and experiences.

However, its interesting that compassion is never defined in terms of oneself. Yet, compassion is one of the greatest gifts we can give to ourselves. In fact, when we give compassion to others but not to ourselves, we often end up feeling alone, worn out, and uncared for.

Jackie is a good example of a person who has compassion for others but not for herself. She is a very caring mother and wife. She listens compassionately to her husbands work problems and does all she can to help him, even when she is having her own work problems. She is always there for her children, helping them with whatever problems arise, as well as for her co-workers. Everyone sees Jackie as a very loving person and she is. So why is she often unhappy? Why is she often so fatigued and depleted? The problem is that Jackie is completely out of touch with her own feelings.

Jackie is so focused on meeting everyone elses needs that she never tunes into herself and her own feelings and needs. She doesnt know when she is tired or when she needs time for herself. She doesnt know when she is feeling sad, lonely, or anxious. Because she has no compassion for herself, she finds herself using food to fill the inner emptiness that is the result of not taking loving care of herself.

Richard, on the other hand, lacks compassion for both himself and others. While it may seem as if he has compassion for himself, he also is not tuned into his own feelings. It seems like Richard has compassion for himself because he does what he wants buys what he wants, goes after what he wants, spends time the way he wants. But his choices are coming from his fears and his addictive need to fill up from outside with things and approval rather than from love and compassion for himself. In addition, he is usually unconscious regarding the effect his behavior has on others. He keeps people waiting, doesnt do what he says he is going to do, and becomes judgmental rather than compassionate in the face of anothers difficulties. Instead of caring when his wife is tired or needs help, he gets resistant and resentful that she isnt there for him or is asking something of him.

A lack of compassion for oneself and others is a major cause of inner and relationship unhappiness. In terms of personal growth, if you were to just focus on making compassion your highest priority both for yourself and for others you would find yourself progressing toward happiness, peace and joy more rapidly than you can imagine.

We move into compassion for ourselves when we know that we have very good reasons for our feelings and behavior, and into compassion for others when we know that others also have very good reasons for their feelings and behavior. These good reasons are the fears and false beliefs that we have absorbed from our growing up years that create our painful feelings and our defensive behavior.

Moving into compassion is a process that takes time and practice:

1. Moving into compassion for yourself starts with noticing your self-judgment. Judgment is the opposite of compassion. When you judge yourself, you are telling yourself that you are wrong or bad for your feelings or behavior, rather than that you have good reasons. Each time you realize that you are judging yourself, consciously open your heart to compassion for yourself. When your intention is to be compassionate rather than judgmental, you will discover that it is not as hard as you think to shift from judgment to compassion.

2. Moving into compassion for others is similar. Begin to notice your anger, irritation, judgment, resentment, or resistance toward others. These negative feelings are the opposite of compassion. Once you notice these feelings, you have the choice to open to caring, understanding to compassion.

3. Each time you find yourself in judgment for yourself or others, instead of judging yourself for judging, move into compassion for the judgmental part of you. If you judge yourself for judging yourself or others, you will stay stuck. If you embrace with compassion the judgmental part of yourself, you will find yourself gradually becoming less judgmental and more compassionate.

Each time you are compassionate with yourself and others, it becomes easier next time. You will discover that focusing on compassion for both yourself and others will move you toward the peace and joy you are seeking. It all comes from your intent to protect against pain with your controlling behaviors, such as anger, blame and judgment, or to learn about loving yourself and others. When your deepest desire is to become a loving human being, opening to compassion is a powerful doorway to that path.

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About The Author

Margaret Paul, Ph.D. is the best-selling author and co-author of eight books, including "Do I Have To Give Up Me To Be Loved By You?" She is the co-creator of a powerful self-help, 6-step emotional and spiritual healing process called Inner Bonding. Learn Inner Bonding now! Visit her web site for a FREE Inner Bonding course: http://www.innerbonding.com or mailto:margaret@innerbonding.com

Beyond Motivation and Passion

2009-09-08T07:56:00.001-07:00

It seems that just as we shifted paradigms in the eighties, we worked synergistically in the nineties; now we are passionate in the naughties. Even my local petrol station has passion brochures at the pump! So what are we passionate for ?

Last October I got some unasked for, but expert, advice from an extreme extrovert to be more passionate. After I had calmed down, I took a long hard look at what I was doing and seriously questioned my passion level. This was after all, expert advice.

My research took me through a motley assortment of superficial pop psychology and self help books, all with Passion in the title and each more inane than the last. Finally I stumbled across a book by Sydney author Peter Wallman, The Wisdom of Passion. He appeared to get to the real core of what Passion is, and after meeting with him I was convinced that he had identified a simple but powerful process for identifying and capturing our core passions. I loved the simplicity of the process and the clarity it brought to me and my business. Now I assist others to identify what it is that gets their juices flowing.

Along the way through research, self analysis and questioning of my clients and others who have Passion Mapped I have identified some keys to passion.

Passion is very personal and unique to the individual.

Most of our strongest passions are kept internalised and rarely expressed outwardly.

The most powerful passions are not material (or sport).

Connecting strongly with our passions creates a magnetic effect We attract people and opportunities.

Eliciting deep passions requires skill, we have learned well from the school of hard knocks to keep this side of ourselves hidden.

When we express our passion, our voices change, our eyes sparkle, and our physical demeanor shifts.

Passion is contagious be very careful.

Passion comes before motivation and way before action.

Passion makes a difference.

I share my story of being told to be more passionate with colleagues and clients and generally get snorts of bemusement. As an introvert, I am not given to bounding into a room, leaping in the air, giving great shouts, or jumping up and down on a sofa Oprahs or anyone elses. So how do I express Passion? Tell me after you talk to me!!!

Passion is not something you have more (or less) of. Passion is inherent and intrinsic.

Last week I had the opportunity to coach 10 leaders and staff members of a niche organisation during three intense days.
Each of these individuals has a determination and a spark in their eyes, a tone of voice and a body posture which unmistakably conveys the depth of their passion about the work they do. Unsurprisingly, the organisations Director is passionately leading from the front - a true visionary leader. I felt honoured and very humbled to be coaching this particular team. Their common focus and harnessed energy, steered by their Director, is making a huge difference to their client base. Truly a high impact and passion based organisation.

One of our tasks as leaders is to uncover and unleash the hidden power of Passion in our employees, to harness and direct this passion towards a common shared goal. Just imagine, if you will, for a moment what your team could achieve this year if they were as passionately involved and focused as the organisation I mentioned earlier.

Kofi Annan said To live is to choose. But to choose, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go, and why you want to get there.
In business our Mission and Values statements spell out who we are and what we stand for, Our Vision statement gives where we want to go, and our Strategy gives us the how. But the why is missing.

Passion is the why!!

Liz Cassidy, founder of Third Sigma International is an author, Speaker, Trainer and Executive Coach and is passionate about facilitating results in the businesses, professional and personal lives of her clients. For more information http://www.thirdsigma.com.au

Getting What You Want - Hey You Never Know

2009-09-08T07:53:00.001-07:00

It's funny. For some people getting what they want is extremely easy and for others, getting what they want is the hardest thing to do in the world. I wonder why that is. I mean, isn't life meant to be fun and challenging and rewarding all at the same time?

SO WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE FOR PEOPLE WHO REALLY GET WHAT THEY WANT?

Well, for starters, most of these people are extremely focused. You see they don't just wish for something and then watch it magically appear. They are focused on exactly how to get what they want. It's like this, you could either build up a list of wishes or a list of future accomplishments.

If you build up a list of future accomplishments, you are going to challenge your brain to find ways to actually get these things. If they are just wishes, you are going to challenge your brain to keep dreaming. And it really is that simple.

So, can you become someone who learns how to focus their mind on accomplishments instead of wishes? Of course you can. All you have to do is learn the methods that will help you to do this. And it doesn't require you to have an Ivy league education or even a college degree. I mean, look at Richard Branson who dropped out of high school and became a billionaire.

Don't limit yourself. Achieve more. It can and will happen when you know how. All you have to do is first believe that it can happen.

Find out ho by going to http://www.successfulfather.com and SIGN up for the FREE newsletter. BOOKMARK the site and keep coming back. When you learn how, it will all come to you!

Bryan Appleton is an author of self-help motivational literature as well as an entrepreneur and investor. He is a single father and has made it one of his life's goals to try and help other people live the lives they are dreaming of.

Numerology and The Number 11

2009-09-08T07:51:00.001-07:00

Seeing the number 11 over and over in your daily
life can mean many things.

Its possible you have prominent 11 in your
comprehensive natal and, or timing charts, which
would mean the number 11 is especially
important to you.

Its common for people to favor certain numbers, or for
certain numbers to mysteriously show up time and again
in their lives, without even realizing that the numbers are
of great magnitude (i.e., position and, or frequency) in
their comprehensive charts.

Or, perhaps it could be purely a subconscious attachment
to the number 11 for any number of reasons.

An article (see Column link on site) dated January 6th,
2006 posted on our web site features more information
about the phenomenon of seeing the same numbers over
and over (whether it is the number 11 or other numbers).

Our Numerology Decoder Software correctly calculates
Master Numbers, can tell you where in your basic charts
you have them and what they mean in those positions.

11 is a Master Number, as are all double digit numbers,
such as 22, 33, 44, 55, 66, 77, 88, and 99. Master
Number is an appropriate term because the high side
of each Master Number represents rare and exceptional
energy originating from outside mundane reality, far
from the norm. But too often the low side of these
double digits manifests, and operating productively
under the energy is like trying to tame a wild horse,
especially when the person lacks the discipline and
general overall capacity to deal with lifes challenges
in the first place. Difficult personal timing as reflected
by the collective patterns of time cycles also symbolically
prohibits the constructive expression of Master Numbers.

11 is not an easy number, especially for material interests.
You want to avoid heavy speculation, for example, if you
have a lot of 11 energy in your comprehensive charts.
There is a huge potential for loss in high risk material
concerns, depending upon the rest of the patterns in the
natal and timing comprehensive charts.

Some of the more challenging traits associated with
the number 11 may include any of the following (other
considerations in the charts collectively either support
or mitigate the energy): Nervous energy, intense fear,
unpredictability, unrealistic outlook, lack of
discernment, religious dogma, fanaticism, insecurity,
hyper-sensitivity, controversial behavior, overly
receptive and vulnerable to the point of being an easy
target, self-deprecation, low self-worth, health issues,
stagnant energy, vacillation, excessive mutability or
changeability to the point of constantly riding the fence
and lacking true personal convictions, dual nature,
excessive idealism and unrealistic spiritual ideas
resulting in a cosmic fu-fu-based dogmatic outlook,
complex personality, untamed, wild inspiration,
emotional volatility, infamy, extreme behavior, or
insanity.

On the high side (again, other aspects/patterns
collectively either corroborate, moderate, or cancel
out the qualities), those with heavy 11 may possess
illumination, unparalleled spiritual awareness (if they
are otherwise grounded, as symbolized by the rest of
the comprehensive charts energy), magnetism, vision,
prophetic talent, charm, grace, inventive inspiration,
and they may have regular revelations to help guide
them on their earthly path. They are often natural
channels and mediums, messengers for the Gods, and
they frequently end up well-known or famous
(frequently very famous). Artistic talent is common,
as are big ideas, high standards, strong interest in
metaphysics and holistic healing, humanitarianism,
and public service, often through their work (although
it may not appear directly as public service).

11 pertains to heightened awareness and those with
plenty of 11 tend to get regular shocking insight about
their life and other people. After growing into their talent,
its not shocking any longer, at least to them. While they
are often vulnerable, they see others as they are, beyond
the personas and facades. They must learn to trust their
insight and avoid going with the expected modes of
thought and behavior. Grounding disciplines, such as
meditation, exercise, or artistic pursuits serve them well.
Those who try to ignore and deny their piercing
illumination risk phobias, obsessions, and even
psychosis.

Those with a traditionalist point of view possessing
heavy 11 who expect life conditions that appeal to
society (out of a desire for approval) are prone to
embarrassing life situations. For example, a messy,
very public divorce, or a daughter who comes out of
the closet in a very public way in a part of the world
where expressing ones true sexual orientation is still
significantly frowned upon is typical.

Again, 11 isnt easy. Those with a potent 11 along with
heavy materialistic considerations in the comprehensive
charts, sadly, are often challenged with integrity issues.
Duplicity and deceit eventually gain them infamy.
Kenneth Lay (The former CEO of Enron was convicted
of 10 counts of securities fraud in one of the most
publicized corruption scandals in U.S. history; Enrons
bankruptcy was the biggest in U.S. history when it was
filed in late 2001.) and Manuel Noriega (The Panamanian
dictator was accused of taking payoffs from a Columbian
drug cartel; in the early 1990s he was convicted and
sentenced to 40 years in U.S. prison.) are two prime
examples.

Divine revelation is intimately tied to the number 11.
The two columns of the side-by-side number ones
comprising the 11 symbolize a channel from higher
dimensions.

Unfortunately those with plenty of 11 are too often
seen as empty-headed. This is partly because its not
easy being in two places at once under the 11 (easier
with other Master Numbers, such as 22 or 77). They
split their energy between the earth plane and other
dimensions, often-times preferring the latter. Its as if
in their most previous existences, they spent more time
in angelic form instead of in human form. Its natural
for them to psychically tap into the mysterious, unseen
levels of being while generating their phenomenal
visions. However, they suffer from not spending 100%
of their time rooted on the earth plane, and it detracts
from a solid feet on the ground existence.

Number 11 demands that one lives their light, no
matter how good or bad that light might seem to
society. To do otherwise makes their life more difficult
than necessary. A compassionate viewpoint and candid
way of life, living within their ideals, allows them to
effectively spread their vision, fulfilling their earthly
mission.

Some great examples of known individuals with heavy
11 energy (in various, prominent positions in the
comprehensive charts) include the following:

*Leonardo DiCaprio, American actor, lead in Titanic,
the biggest grossing film of all time.

*George Patton, American military commander of
WW1 forces. He Claimed he had lived previous lives
as, among others, a Greek soldier and a Roman
Legionnaire.

*Jackie Stewart, Scottish-American pro race car
driver; one of the most famous race car drivers of all
time.

*Gene Wilder, American comedian and actor. Joined
the army in his 20s and spent two years in the
psychiatric hospital ward, which he later drew upon
for his role in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest.

Scott Petullo and Stephen Petullo are identical twins and have been exploring metaphysics since the early 1980s. They are experts in the fields of prediction, personal fate, love life, and past life regression, and are natural psychics and mediums. Get their free report: 13 Spiritual and New Age Myths and 11 Questions to Ask before hiring Psychic. http://www.mystictwins.com - http://www.holisticmakeover.com

Changing Habits Can Change Your Life - Goal Setting

2009-09-08T07:46:00.001-07:00

Creating super habits are easier than you could ever imagine. Most people have something they would like to change in their lives. If you ask anyone, they are usually able to answer this question, "If you could change anything about yourself, what would you change." All the self help and personal development programs and books available today are full of useful information that nobody seems to take advantage of. You've seen the TV commercials and listen to other people tell their stories, about how they lost weight.

Are you one of those skeptics that find these stories hard to believe. Do you think it's possible to create a life changing habit within 30 days? If you don't think it's possible, have you ever tried to change something about yourself you don't like.

If you haven't tried, how do you know it's impossible. If you have tried to create change in your life, did you quit, did you quit shortly after you started. This is often what most people do. They either quit before they start and never even get started, or they quit within a short period of time after they started. Usually these people have an excuse, most of the time their excuse is quite simply, it was harder than I thought.

Creating super habits in 30 days is possible and you don't have to be an over achiever to accomplish this goal. Creating these habits will require some effort on your part but the rewards most of the time are worth the effort.

I challenge you to change something about yourself you don't like within the next 30 days.

Go to the next step for more information.

Finding Something You Don't like about Yourself

Greg is currently working on a self help video library filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Spending My Childhood Around Christians

2009-09-08T07:42:00.001-07:00

I was born in the 1960s and raised in Southern California, United States of America. During that period of time, and in the area I was raised, there was basically one religion that dominated every aspect of mine and my friends lives. That religion was Christianity. When I was in elementary school, I knew one Jewish boy and he looked different than the Christians and even talk different. He was very smart and spent a lot of his time reading, instead of playing at recess.

There were no Muslims or Hindus and it was a predominantly white environment. The first black students I seen was when I entered the eighth grade and by the time I finished high school, I could count all of the black students I had met on both of my hands. So now you have a pretty good idea of my life, living in a white neighborhood that was 90% Christian.

As you can guessed it, I was raised a Christian, but not a regular Christian, I was a Methodist and proud of it, until my parents got tired of the church elders asking for money or if my father could help build the new church. My father explained to them, that he needed to work to support his family and could only contribute, what ever he could to the church and no more. They were very unhappy and made it uncomfortable for us to go to the church anymore.

Hard to imagine, isn't it. Christians asking for money and then when they don't receive it, getting mad at one of their brethren.

Well it was time to switch churches and we are now going to the Crystal Cathedral Church in Garden Grove California. These people had everything and it was a large church. This was before they built the massive glass structure that is presently the church sanctuary. I enjoy going to this church, because we didn't have to go to Sunday school and got to sit with the adults to worship.

By the time I was 15, neither one of my parents were going to church anymore and my life didn't seem to change that much, even though I prayed every night with my brother. Maybe that was it, I didn't have to go to church as long as I prayed every night... By the time I was 18 years old, I was more confused about organized religion than ever before and this included Christianity.

How can someone kill in the name of God? The Muslims were doing it, the Christians were doing it, the Muslims were fighting the Hindus in India and it all seemed normal. It didn't seem normal to me, when I was supposed to love my neighbor and live a life like Christ who never seemed to start fights or even get mad. Maybe a couple of times, over some money, in the Temple.

I have chosen not to be a part of organized religion. I'd figured out that most of our religious beliefs came from our upbringing. This seems to have brainwashed us into believing we are better because were right and know for a fact, that we have chosen to belong to the right religion. What if were not right?

I want to ask you a question, do you think that other religions are wrong and yours is right? If you really spend some time and think about this, you will see, that your religion is not that different than someone else's and neither was their upbringing. Most religious followers, belonged to the religion of their childhood.

Who Is Jesus?

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Greg is currently working on a spiritual videos filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world.

The Importance Of Goal Setting

2009-09-08T02:06:00.001-07:00

You get into personal development, and all it seems since the beginning, is that everyone tells you to set goal. We have heard about goal setting, once, twice, perhaps even hundreds of time! So, why do these motivators, life coaches, and self help books keep trying to get you to set goals?

You may have or may not have heard the term 'Without a vision people perish'. How true! Studies have found that more deaths occur after important public occasions. This is due, not because of an outbreak of violence! The deaths occur because of that vision. At least from looking at the facts, this is a belief I hold. Again it may or may not be true, however putting 1 and 1 together, you get 2. And this looks like the most likely cause of this phenomenon.

Another interesting research has found that more people have heart attacks on Mondays. More specifically Monday mornings! I don't need to say, the very likely cause is that people don't like the work they do! Here is why goal setting is so crucial in our lives.

I wonder how many of those people were so concerned about getting to work early to not have to have another long talk with the boss, that it ended on Monday morning! Goal setting can help us with such a simple thing has getting to work on time, however, goal setting is not just for time keeping.

Knowing how to effectively set goals is the key ingredient here. Effective goal setting allows you to transform your life, if you choose to. If you take a look around where you are, you will see what goal setting has done for man.

While many people go to work, can't wait for the paycheck, and spend life in front of a TV, goals do not mean much. And simply using goal setting strategies for getting to work in time is not doing goal setting its full justice. The house, the room, the building you are sitting in right now, is there because of a person's goal setting ability; and of course translating that into action.

The reason many personal development coaches stress the importance of setting goals is that of being mindful. We are born to the world and find a pretty much straight path through life. First learn, then earn, then get married, have kids and retire. Though we all generally follow the same pattern, life offers us much more to it.

If you really want to live life on your terms, goal setting is the first step. I have to stress the first step, as all too often, people will make the goal setting, and planning phase last from step one to step 10, and take no action!

Are you sick and tired of what you do for work? Are you working in a dead end job? Now we have passed the new millennium, and this millennium is showing us that, yes man and woman, and all can do what they want.

After all, if everyone does what they love, we would have a better world. Films such as the Secret, and several others are helping people see that vision. This may seem like a utopian view, and you may think to go back to work and function as you have. But, realize that people in the main are like ships without rudders, without a goal they don't have a destination, and no daydreaming is not goal setting.

Goal setting needs action, and now more and more people are awakening to the possibility that yes it is possible. I am excited at seeing a world where more people set goals and take action.

From goal setting to goal achievement, Kozan Huseyin has helped many people find there own success story. Learn the true success secrets to setting goals and seeing those goals materialize in reality!

How To Goal Set

Your Success Coach

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The Power of Positive Affirmations

2009-09-08T02:01:00.001-07:00

Positive affirmations are powerful tools to help you manifest what you desire into your life. This is not a new concept but now that science has documented a new energy field, simply called The Field, that they say is the primary component of all things, positive affirmations have new and powerful meanings.

Everything that exists is made up of energy in the form of radiating wavelengths. The denser the form, a rock for example, the lower the energy levels, at the other end of the spectrum there exists things that have high levels of energy. These high energy level forms are things like light, colors, and thoughts.

Yes, thoughts!

You see, the things we think about are sent from us as energy and permeate the things and people around us. Everything starts as a thought! Ford motor company started as a thought in the head of Henry Ford, it was his idea of bringing the automobile to the masses that created the Ford Empire we know today. The skyscrapers that line our beautiful cities, at one time, were thoughts in an architects mind.

In order to understand the power of positive affirmations we need to better understand the power of our thoughts. The things we think about continuously will materialize in time. Therefore, it is important to always think positive thoughts. When you spend your time thinking about what you lack in life, all you will ever have is lacking. In order to acquire all that you wish for you must focus on it with laser accuracy and put a plan in place to achieve it. Affirmations give us this focus and keep us going in the right direction.

Thoughts, when focused on and combined with passion, in time, are manifested into reality. That is the power of positive affirmation, it is the repeated reading of a statement or thought that gets into the sub-conscious mind and radiates from us to attract the necessary means to bring forth that thought into reality.

It is the absolute knowing, with the absence of doubt, that you will acquire what it is you desire. It doesnt matter if it is a material possession, love, or spirituality; we become the things that we think about. Unfortunately, if all we focus on is negative things or wishes all we will ever have is negativity and mere wishes.

By using positive affirmations and repeating our desires and goals daily in our thoughts we begin to manifest them into reality. Suddenly, changes begin to happen in our lives that begin to bring forth our desires. If we want more financial freedom and use affirmations aimed at acquiring more wealth then, almost miraculously, we get the promotion we wanted or our business takes a turn for the better providing the added income we desire.

This must be done in the sense that what it is you desire has already manifested itself. Do not use an affirmation that is stated as a want or desire. A good example in the case of financial freedom would be:

Wealth flows into my life like the water of the streams and rivers to the oceans. I have plenty of income to meet my needs, with lots left over to help my fellow man.

You notice that there is no asking for wealth or money it is stated as if you already have it. By sending this message out into the universal intelligence, the field, it will attract like energies and manifest itself into reality. Things that we perceive as miracles are the fruition of thoughts that have manifested themselves into reality. That is the power of prayer and meditation, God gives us what we ask for, good or bad!

Use this simple guide to let the power of positive affirmations help you in your life.

1. Write down on paper what it is you desire. It is best to keep this personal, sharing it with others only allows negativity into your mind. Society, family, and friends like to tell us that things cant be done. They mean well but you do not want to let those thoughts enter your mind. Memorize the affirmation and remember to keep it in the sense that you already have what it is you desire.

2. In the morning when you have time to yourself repeat the affirmation 20 times. Make sure that it is stated with emotion and passion, not just stated out loud. Envision yourself with your desire and how you will be once it becomes reality. Repeat the process before you go to bed at night.

3. Any time you feel yourself doubting your desire or any negative thoughts enter your mind, clear your mind and repeat your positive affirmation. Do not let negative thoughts or setbacks deter your focus from achieving your desire.

4. Lastly, stay focused and be receptive to opportunities when they present themselves. The path to your desires may not come in the form that you envision! So pay attention and be alert to opportunity.

I hope this article has helped you see the potential in yourself and the power you have when you use positive affirmations. I promise, that if you will use these simple steps as outlined above you will see great changes in your life. It is important to understand that what we think about becomes our realities in life, so be careful what you think about.

Good Luck on your Journey!

There is unlimited power with Positive Affirmation Mark Williams has a web site that is full of Motivational Quotes and Personal Development Strategies that can help you reach your full potential.

Affirmations - Far More Than Just Positive Thinking

2009-09-07T20:23:00.001-07:00

When someone mentions affirmations, the first thing that comes into your mind is positive thinking. The classic positive thinking affirmation was created by Dr. Emil Coue. "Everyday in every way, I get better and better. The idea behind this type of affirmation is to create new positive habits and thoughts. This works very well but, it is only half of the story. There is another type of affirmation and it is just as important as positive affirmations.

The problem is that the subconscious mind accepts any belief without question. For example, the old belief that you wish to replace is that wealthy people are greedy. You have heard this throughout your lifetime and it becomes set in stone in your subconscious. When you realize that you have this false belief, normally, you would create an affirmation that will give you a new belief. For example, you might start using an affirmation like: I am grateful that my wealth grows each and everyday for with great wealth I can do great good.

This is an excellent new belief for your subconscious but, it also creates a problem. Although the subconscious has accepted this new belief, it has also created a conflict in your mind. Although you have created a new positive belief, it has not eliminated the old negative belief that rich people are greedy. Both beliefs are existing side by side in your mind and the old belief still has it's self-limiting effects.

What I use to overcome the old negative thought pattern is what I call a reprogramming affirmation. The point of this is to convince the subconscious that the old self-limiting belief needs to be eliminated from the data bank. Reprogramming affirmations tend to be somewhat more complex than positive affirmations.

For example, my reprogramming affirmation might read something like: Many people say that the rich are greedy but this is a false belief. Rich people have an abundance mindset and readily give away large portions of their income because they know that their is a limitless supply of wealth. For example, Bill Gates out of the kindness of his heart has created numerous philanthropic organizations and given away millions of dollars of his personal worth to help the poverty stricken of the world. He is super rich but obviously not greedy.

The subconscious is not capable of judgment. It runs automatically in the background and helps us make it through the day. It is our conscious responsibility to control and correct any data that is held within it's data banks. Properly programmed, the subconscious will rapidly propel us toward limitless wealth and self-fulfillment. But, only when there are no conflicts within the data of this most powerful of digital computers.

Stan Pontiere has been an avowed self-help geek since high school-more than 40 years ago. For more information on self-fulfillment please visit: http://www.wealthbyaffirmation.com or my blog at: http://wealthbyaffirmation.blogspot.com/

Ever Thought About Self Love?

2009-09-07T20:17:00.001-07:00

By self love I'm not talking about narcissism and lack of regard for others, but true, self love in terms of loving yourself for who you are. Do you? Despite all your weaknesses, perceived faults, parts of your body that you don't like... do you love yourself anyway?

If you can answer yes to that question - Fantastic! If you find it challenging to answer yes - don't beat yourself up over it! Many of us struggle to love ourselves - warts 'n' all. There is no blame here, just self awareness and self acceptance.

Let's look at this another way. There is an Ultimate Being, God, Buddha, Allah, Divine Spirit, Father Mother God, Creator, Holy Spirit, whatever your words for it, we know that there is an overall consciousness that inhabits everything. Is a part of everything. We can see this when we look at beautiful flowers, or landscapes, or stunning sunsets, the smell of fresh air, the taste of tasty food, the sounds of birdsong or rolling waves. Whatever you find relaxing or beautiful is infused with God consciousness. So when you look at, hear, feel, smell, taste, or touch these beautiful things it's easy to feel love for them.

Having accepted that God is in everything, we also then need to accept that God is within us. If we love God for being in everything, we also then need to love ourselves because of this. Otherwise we are rejecting God.

Now I know that these thoughts might be pushing some buttons in people because of the word "God". I make no apology for that. It's a terminology that is easy to use to get across the concept that the Ultimate Consciousness is within us all. Therefore Every Thing and Every One deserves to be loved by us - including ourselves.

Take some time to think more about yourself. Start to acknowledge more the things about yourself that you do actually like. Let go of negative thoughts about yourself that bring you down. You love other people warts and all, try doing the same for yourself. Take it gently, but take another step towards self love and self respect. Start by writing a list of 50 positive things that you love about yourself. It may take you a couple of days and that's OK. Take your time, but do make sure you complete it. Once you have your list can you make it longer? Every time you find something positive about yourself that you love or like, add it to the list and, each day.

Alun is a spirtual life coach focused on personal and spiritual evolution. You can read more about him and his work here http://www.lifesense.co.uk

One Self Help Technique That You Need to Know

2009-09-07T14:41:00.001-07:00

If you wish to get along with others better so that you can improve your marriage, career, relationships or achieve your goals and dreams, then you are not alone. One of the biggest reasons folks fail is that they cannot hold their tongue and spout off their opinions and demand that others see their point of view. Unfortunately, this also prevents them from learning anything new and surprise, surprise they never change their personal point of view.

Okay, so here is something for you, it's a self-help technique one, which you can use. I am going to give you a clue. Rather than, turning away from those who see things differently, ask them about their views, experiences, observations and then continue to engage them in this line of questioning. Then perhaps, give them an alternative hypothesis or explain your observations and thoughts, now you have engaged your counterpart in a friendly discourse and dialogue and not a drop dead, "I am right, you are wrong" debate.

Does, this technique work all the time, no, not always, as occasionally you meet someone like yourself, so opinionated that they fail to see the real world for what it is. You will learn a lot about yourself and a lot about the world and your place in it. After using this technique myself for some 32-years, I am often amazed at how much I know and how easy it is to engage just about anyone in conversation and get into deep and interesting dialogues in minutes. Indeed, it helps me write cool articles too, like this one.

"Lance Winslow" - Lance Winslow's Bio. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/.

Success is For Everybody

2009-09-07T14:35:00.001-07:00

Success is available to everybody. Nobody was born successful.

Success is all a matter of what you want in life and how desperate you are to get it; you and you alone are responsible for your own achievements and success in life.

Success starts with an idea or dream of what you want to become or achieve. This idea or dream must be a desire or passion within you then you stand a good chance of achieving what you want and thereby being successful, other peoples ideas won't necessarily mean that you will be successful.

To be successful you must be motivated and be clear and specific in what it is that you want to achieve. There are certain steps that you need to follow, nothing will just happen and give you the desired results;

You must have a goal.

-You must put in writing what it is that you want (be specific).
-Write down when you want to achieve it (date).
-Write down how you want to achieve it (resources that's needed).
-What are you prepared to sacrifice to achieve your goal?
-Repetition (Read and re-read daily).
-Educate yourself.
-How are you going to share your success?

Now let's look at each of these points by themselves;

1.Formulate a goal.
Every idea or dream will stay just that unless it is put down as something definite that
you want to achieve. Unless you work on your idea or dream and put it down as a definite goal the chances of achieving it is very slim, because with the first obstacle a person encounters the chances of saying it is to hard, become very relevant or I've tried my best.

2.Put goal in Writing.
When it is in writing you will be able to see a month or year from now what it is that you
really wanted to achieve. Ensure that it is realistic and achievable. Very unlikely that any human being can stay under water like a fish for days on end without breathing apparatus. With a goal in writing one can regularly check and see if you are still on track and if it is perhaps necessary to put in more effort or work harder to achieve your goal. Unless it is in writing it will remain an idea or dream and can change as circumstances change.

3.When will the goal be achieved.
Unless a specific date is recorded it will remain as an unfulfilled dream. The date must be realistic and achievable. Ensure that the date allow time for unforeseen circumstances.

4.How the goal will be achieved.
What resources are needed? What assistance is required and where will it be obtained? If physical equipment is required like books, buy it from the outset as it will mean commitment.

5.What will be sacrificed?
If the goal involves studying, then parties and socials must come second to the studies. The goal must be more important than TV or other games. Don't neglect physical activities as a fit body means a fit mind. Don't ignore important people like loved ones or family. Don't push yourself to the point of a burnout.

6.Repetition.
Read your goal at least twice daily and then once aloud, convince your inner self that this is what you want, therefore read with the right emotion. By continually reading your goal you will stay focused. Reading the goal will immediately highlight if any diversions is sidetracking you.

7.Educate yourself.
It is necessary to read relevant information to keep you inspired. You might need some specific information. Books or manuals might be informative as to other people's achievements. Watch informative videos or screen shots. You might even need to join a library, depending on your goal.

8.Sharing success.
Who will you share your success with? Who will benefit from your success? How will you live with this success?

Belief in yourself, hard work and perseverance is some of the key elements of success.
Look at the achievements of any great name in history or just the achievements of any Olympics athlete.

Your success depends on yourself.

Dawie writes on motivational related topics.
You can learn more by visiting my blog, Essentials For Success
http://essentialsforsuccess.blogspot.com

Is Your God Better Than Mine

2009-09-07T09:06:00.001-07:00

If you're part of a religious organization, and were asked this question, "Whose God Is Better" meaning of course, is your God better and stronger or smarter and better looking than the religious competition. Is this something that you believe or were taught while you were young? Obviously you wouldn't think that the Hindu god Brahma is better than Yahweh or Jesus, if you're a Christian. It just wouldn't make any sense to belong to a religion that was weaker than the competition.

It seems like most religions around the world have gods or even one almighty God that is the biggest and baddest god in the neighborhood, maybe even the entire universe.

If we look at the numbers, the Christian God Jesus of Nazareth is the strongest by far. A survey that was done in 2005, showed Christians 2.1 billion strong and growing. With numbers like this, their God must be doing something right. Do you think these numbers are large because of their financial influences in poor countries? Something to think about, how did Christianity become such a large religious institution. They've got plenty of money and pay relatively little taxes. Remember the golden rule, the person with the most gold makes all the rules.

Second on our religious scale are the Muslims, the Islamic religion has over 1.1 billion followers and that puts it at almost half the size of Christianity, but more than doubled the size of the third largest religion by the numbers.

The third largest religion in the world is Hinduism and most of India which is second only to China as the most populated countries in the world are Hindus. Hinduism ranks around 800 million followers.

I'll stop right there. I wanted to give you an idea of religion by the numbers, realistically the Christians and the Muslims believe in the same God but the Muslims recognize Jesus as a prophet and the Christians don't recognize Mohammad at all and Mohammad is the number one prophet for the Islamic religion. But if we put the two of them together, it would be the largest religion by far with almost no competition economically or with military strength.

So to answer our question," Whose God Is Actually Better", I would have to say the Christian God is the most popular and powerful God and the universe. The only problem is, there's no actual proof that Jesus, Mohammed, Yahweh, Krishna or any other supreme being is real. People follow these religions and base almost everything on faith with very little facts that can actually be proven.

I'm not talking about small facts, I'm talking about big ones like, how the world was created, you can choose to believe, anything that you want but until we have some facts or at least something that sounds pretty good, you should probably stop thinking, that your religion is the only way and your God the best. Show some compassion for other religions around the world, their beliefs are no better or weaker than yours.

Hope in Religion

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When Spiritual Means Practical

2009-09-07T08:59:00.001-07:00

In the middle of the last century, Werner Heisenberg, in the process of trying to determine the speed and position of an electron spinning around an atomic nucleus, discovered instead that it was a theoretically impossible task. His path to discovery brought him to the realization that his very presence as an observer changed the observation. Few of us reading this are - or will ever be - nuclear physicists. Yet, all of us have to cope with the problem of perspective as we try to figure out what a balanced life looks like to us right here and now. Our observation - our very awareness - of our own balance (or lack of balance, as the case may be) changes the very conditions of our observations.

Imagine yourself on a moving carousel horse. You're going in numerous directions: serially up and down, and simultaneously around in a circle. Some of parts of the carousel travel with you while you merely watch others spin by. At any given instant, where are you? At least on a carousel you can anticipate where you're going to be in the next second. Your motion is hardly random. Even so, by the time you've figured out exactly where you are in space at any given point, you're no longer there. The same thing happens when we try to figure out what 'now' means: the instant we've figured it out, it has already become 'then'!

Let's dig just a little deeper, shall we? We've just taken a quick look at the difficulties we experience trying to navigate through space and time. Even though our senses are attuned to performing this function, disorientation often accompanies on our perceptions. Now, what happens when we try to improve our life balance? Like Heisenberg, trying to focus on the process of our conscious awareness causes us to become unaware of our surroundings. We can't simultaneously exercise awareness and awareness of our own awareness. When we focus on our own process of awareness, we become less aware of our surroundings.

This sounds all very nice and philosophical, but does it have any practical application? Yes, indeed it does! The only practical way to plot our future course around the carousel is to get off the merry-go-round! Only then can we take the stance of an observer of our own process of living life. Can you think of a time in your life when you've been able to spend some time alone with your thoughts (and maybe with a mentor or adviser) to consider your short-term and long-term future? When was the last time you took a retreat from action? More pointedly, have you ever taken a retreat from action into reflection? The world looks a lot different from the sidelines. Of course, while you're on retreat, your life or business could be taking off in unforeseen (and undesirable) directions.

What if you were able to maintain your active role on the carousel and at the same time have a mirror outside the moving system that shows you your exact position in real time? Where can you find such a mirror that allows you to both live your life and stay aware of your position in the stream of its evolution simultaneously? You don't have to look very far; in fact, you already possess the capacity to perform this minor miracle. We call this remarkable (and often-overlooked) ability 'spiritual intelligence.' This remarkable intelligence (which Dana Zohar calls "the ultimate intelligence") enables you to maintain a higher perspective on the direction your life and career will assume without abstracting you from the mix. You're able to see where you're going while you're deciding where to go.

By fully embracing your spiritual intelligence, you have the opportunity to go on a 'retreat' from the daily grind at will. You get the chance to recharge your intuition and your discernment, and finely tune their functions so that your inner guidance system works smoothly and almost effortlessly. By maintaining a conscious contact with a Higher Power (however you choose to define that), your powers of discernment will allow you to cut through whatever confusion, uncertainty and fear that may threaten to paralyze your decision-making capacity. The baffling dizziness that comes from having too many options with too many consequences will begin to melt away as your destiny emerges from the fog in the light of your spiritual focus.

When you begin to appreciate the critical function that spiritual intelligence plays in informing your decision-making capacity, you'll realize that what at first seemed to be at most a marginal concern (if not just an annoying distraction) is, in reality, the most practical of all your core competencies. How clearly you see your way forward determines, to a great extent, the success of your life and career. How much more practical can you get than that? Get oriented: get spiritual!

H. Les Brown, MA, CFCC
ProActivation Coaching
Website: http://www.ProActivation.com
E-Mail: info@ProActivation.com

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The Power of Gratitude - Gateway to Riches

2009-09-07T03:24:00.001-07:00

Gratitude is said to be the single most positive element to contribute to your Wellbeing, Fulfillment and Wealth

Heartmath conducted an extensive study which showed thoughts of Gratitude are the fastest way to move into your power and influence things around you with positive energy - Athlete's Performance increases, Students Test Scores improve, Executive Thinking and Creativity expand, Powers of Intention grow, no matter what he situation.

Gratitude restores confidence. Gratitude about your current situation - no matter what or how simple, will bring about a feeling of improved wellbeing. Gratitude can help to change feeling alone into appreciating being supported.

The feeling of lack and negativity are often brought on by focusing on what we don't or feel we cannot have. Expand your focus, raise your eyes, look outside your immediate surroundings. Walk around and look to see, or think, of the many things you have access to, which you have no need to own - community, sunshine, the stars, the sight or sound of children playing, a casual hello from someone you meet.

We can even be grateful for things that at first glance may not appear a blessing, such as: * Exercise you get if you cannot find a nearby parking spot
- Cleaning up the house after having friends or family around - think of the special time or what they mean to you
- The early morning alarm - moving into a new day of being needed
- Whatever your income - 2.4 billion people on the planet live on less than $1,000 per year

A large study conducted by Dr Michael McCullough and Dr Robert Edmonds involving more than 700 people separated their field of study into 3 groups of people - those that merely tracked events through their day, those that took particular note of unpleasant events that occurred to them, and lastly a group which focused on being grateful for whatever happened. The third group consistently showed High Alertness, Enthusiasm, Determination, Optimism, Better Energy, Less Depression and Stress, Better Inclination to Help Others, and Ability to Express Love to Others.

You must feel rich to become rich - when you start to feel grateful for whatever you have you will attract more. In today's world Intelligent Quotient (IQ) and Emotional Quotient (EQ) are often thought as important but these both pale when compared with the direct benefits of GQ - Gratification Quotient.

The Power of Attraction which we hear about so much today as so well described in "The Secret" is supercharged through Gratitude.

Gratitude is the fastest path to Riches. Focus on what you have and more will appear. Others will be drawn to your energetic field of gratitude. Riches are more about what you feel than just counting in money. Another Heartmath study showed when we are in a state of gratitude others can sense this up to 6 metres away. This has a direct positive affect on their heart rhythm and their brain waves change to more positive thinking.

Pay attention to what you are focusing on, don't blame or complain this will drain your gratitude. Be grateful for your challenges, create a greater peace of mind and you will open the pathways for opportunities.

Watch out for negative attitudes creeping into your life. Apathy leads to negative thinking. Look for the silver linings in all situations. Slow down, recognise what you already have - especially the simple things in your life, wherever you go. Gratitude will help you feel complete, no matter what your immediate situation.

Gratitude doesn't cost anything but it generates huge riches.

You deserve to be Rich so be grateful and share your gratitude with others. A daily practice of Gratitude will lift and advance all areas of your life rapidly.

Brian Fincham
- Life Coach and founder of Life Development Australia.
Brian has over 20 years Experience Developing and Leading Winning Teams
http://www.lifepathdevelopment.com.au
- a company dedicated to Personal Development and helping individuals build successful home businesses using the proven LifePath Unlimited system.

Learn Something About Time Management From the American Indians

2009-09-07T03:18:00.001-07:00

I don't consider myself an expert on the American Indians but I would like to share a thought about their lifestyle. I was listening to an audio book on the American Indians eating habits, when it got me thinking about something the author said. This might not be a topic of interest for most people but I found it fascinating.

While listening to the audio book, the author made a statement about the American Indians I will never forget. He said "American Indians spend about four hours each day working, gathering and preparing food." If you think about it, that's not too bad of a lifestyle.

I would imagine that we have a better selection and larger variety of food to choose from than they had. This of course would be a benefit to living in our society instead of theirs.

American Indians often spent a lot of time outdoors and for some reason, spending time in nature seems to be a good thing. I know a lot of people that would rather be outdoors than indoors, walking, jogging, hiking, camping and even gardening. It almost seems more natural for us to be outdoors than indoors.

Now with the Indians working about four hours each day, this is a little bit different then our standard workday. Most people spend at least 9 to 12 hours each day driving to and from work and actually working. I would imagine our standard workday would actually be easier than that of the American Indian. I can't imagine some of my friends or family members chasing after a Buffalo with a spear.

Does this mean the American Indians had it right, just because they worked four hours each day and spent more time in nature were doing what they truly wanted to. Know I can't truly say that they had it right, but I can say that they seem to do just fine living with nature.

Some of these civilizations lasted for centuries.

Something to think about, on your daily travels to and from work as you desire to be at the beach or hiking in the mountains. The philosophies we often associate with a good life, could actually be better instead of progressively adding unneeded stress and frustration to it.

Christianity Saved Me

2009-09-06T21:42:00.001-07:00

I would like you to think about something for a minute, have you ever met somebody who has been saved in a Christian church. There's a good chance you know quite a few people if you live in the United States of America. Over the years I've heard people tell me, "I've Been Saved," it can be a new beginning for some or lead to a life of frustration and pain for others.

If you don't know what being saved is, or have never heard of it, let me give you a brief description of a saved Christian. This would be someone who accepts the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior, it's not that difficult and you really don't have to go to church, this ritual can be performed anywhere.

If you're reading this article and would like to be saved, here's how you do it. Get up out of your chair, run outside the building you're in and start running up and down the streets yelling, I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, 1111 times. Be careful because if you missed this by one number, in either direction, you have to start all over again.

Okay I'm just kidding about the running out of the house, and yelling at the top of your lungs, oh yeah and the 1111 times. Anyway the truth about being saved according to the Christian church, is quite simply saying the words to your self or out loud, "I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior."

That's it, it's really quite simple and your saved.

The problem becomes a little bit later in your life and this could be within a few days or even a few hours, if most people don't see a drastic change in their life, they quit their newly founded Christian religion and go back to their old ways.

I hope you have a pretty good understanding about being saved in the Christian religion and you can do it anytime of the day, at any period of your life. If you're going to die and you been a liar, committed adultery, murdered or raped another person, lived a life of crime, ruined the lives of others or even been part of another religion you're whole life, simply state the words "I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior," and you're instantly a Christian. That's a pretty good deal for anyone.

Oh yeah I forgot to tell you, this simple statement gives you a one way ticket to heaven and spend eternity in one of the grandest most beautiful places you could ever possibly imagine, even though you might not have been, what most people would consider a decent person. Now this is looking pretty good isn't it.

Being saved can provide you with a lot of benefits if you're a believer but I forgot to tell you one very important thing about this whole process. There is no hard evidence and most Christians will tell you that they base their whole life on faith and a book written by a man but inspired by, one unbelievable, supernatural and incredible entity.

I've seen a lot of people live their lives tormented from the decisions they've made throughout their lives. If you choose to believe in Christianity, I would suggest you spend some of your time reading the Bible but most of your time gathering information about other religions also. Don't take someone else's word, that this is the way to eternal salvation. I beg you to at least, find out where the Bible really came from, always question your religion.

Education has freed me, to pursue other ideas and release me from the bondage and fear of organized religion.

Understanding Faithful Followers In Religion

2009-09-06T21:38:00.001-07:00

How can you honestly understand someone else's opinion if they sincerely differ from yours? For years I have been trying to understand the beliefs portrayed by organized religions around the world. Whenever someone is explaining part of their religion to me and I bring something to their attention, about their religion, and they don't know the answer, their replies always seem to be based around faith. You just need to believe.

I've been asking people for years, why do you believe? The answers vary from time to time but the essence of the answers are similar. Our conversations seem to start out with a few facts, which leads us into a friendly discussion about their religious beliefs and how they were formed. Whenever I start to dig a little too deep or ask some of these people questions that they don't have the answers to, the conversation always ends abruptly and the word faith always seems to appear.

I feel like this is the easy way out for religious believers.

I'm sure that they get frustrated with me, asking them questions about their religions, that they can't answer. Most of these people won't even bother to find the answers for themselves either, this has often irritated me, but at the same time I think I understand. Most people want to be a part of something but won't take the time to be involved in it. Living a life based on a little information, a lot of hope and the rest completely immersed in faith, seems like a life that is lived without questioning the most important thing in your life.

If I went to a place of worship and asked this question "What's the Most Important Thing in Your Life?" I would imagine most of these people would tell me it was their God or gods. God seems to be the main focus on their lives but they don't seek to understand how he came to be, why he doesn't help the poor, why won't God communicate with us, or even something as simple as understanding some, at the least 10% of your religion.

I don't believe there's anything wrong with living a faithful life. I have faith in things that are out of my control and am still seeking answers to their origins and existence. The sun, Earth, air, water and even God. I suggest to religious, nonbelievers and spiritual people all over the world, to gather a little more information about your beliefs, if they are indeed important to you.

If you want to read something funny and get your daily laugh in, you need to read this, it's funny Using Religion Responsibility . It's based on overindulgence.

Self-Esteem

2009-09-06T15:57:00.001-07:00

We've all heard the word self esteem before but do we really know what it means. I looked up the word self esteem in the dictionary and here's what it said.

1. a realistic respect for or favorable impression of oneself; self-respect.
2. an inordinately or exaggeratedly favorable impression of oneself.

Believing you can accomplish certain things in life, whether alone or with the help from others, often develops self esteem and character in most people. With help from the wrong people, you could actually fall into category number two and developed an exaggerated feeling of yourself. I would consider this someone whose conceded, and we all know at least one person like this.

These people normally have low self esteem and need constant compliments on a daily basis. Some of these people can actually be controlled, by complementing them or telling them what they truly desire to hear. People with low self esteem are often very reactive to problems in their daily lives. These people often blame others for their mistakes, while spending some of their time belittling or ridiculing others to make themselves feel respected.

Believing you can accomplish anything is one of the keys to a successful life. The more things you accomplish, the faster you can build a healthy self esteem. If you've never been good at something or someone in your life, makes you feel bad or tells you, you can't do something, try to avoid these people at all costs until they change to a positive attitude towards others.

If this is a direct family member, like your mother or father, who often makes you feel worthless or stupid, you should try to ignore them and their thinking. Avoiding these people and their conversation, over time will send a signal to them, that you no longer wish to be involved in their negativity.

If you feel like you can't accomplish anything, start with something small, make a list of things you have already accomplished, add to that list things you want to accomplish and set some goals for the future. The key to believing in yourself, is to develop a positive self image.

Using visualization techniques can lead you to an alternative path and self-development. If you're really interested in change, visualization can increase your self-esteem if used with affirmations.

Belief and Achieve.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Spiritual and self-development books can help you with the change your desiring in your life, You Can Have It All

Our Abundant Universe

2009-09-06T15:51:00.001-07:00

We live in a perfect, infinite and extremely abundant Universe. Everything that we could possible need or want is available to us, once we learn to accept it. Part of the spiritual message that I want to impart to everyone is that it's perfectly ok to accept the abundance that comes your way. Not only that, it's also ok to manifest more.

In a limited, finite Universe for one person to have more means that another has to have less. Too many people today trap themselves into poverty and utterly hideous lifestyles because they simply can't envision the infinity of the resources available to them. Much of the training that I want to impart to people is not just that we can live and survive, but that we can live well and thrive.

When a person has a limited perspective then everything that person does must come through the filter of those limitations. Mystic Wolf Press is about breaking free of those limitations and sharing the bounty and abundance of the universe with as many people as possible. I believe that Lao Tzu gets the credit for saying "Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for the rest of his life."

Give yourself permission

In our modern culture we usually look to external sources for permission to do anything. We've become accustomed to being told what we can and cannot do by the government, the church, our family, friends and the television.

The simple fact is that every one of us has the ability to connect to our own inner authority and inner power. Some of the philosophies and exercises in this book will cover this in more detail, but for now I want you to give yourself permission to open your mind and heart and study the information in here from the attitude of "I CAN".

Giving yourself permission is the first step in touching and using your inner authority. It's the moment when you quit reacting to what is happening to you and begin to take charge of your life and chart your own course.

Keeping a Positive Attitude

As you begin to follow this path you're going to experience emotions, feelings and in some cases pain. Sometimes it'll only make sense years later when you look back on it and realize what was happening. In many cases starting your business is like trying to put together a jigsaw puzzle without having any kind of picture to go by.

No matter what happens, or where you feel drawn to go, a positive attitude will make the whole thing easier. I try to look at everything as a test, and that works for my personality. Each individual moment I have choices that I can make. I can be enlightened or ignorant, loving or afraid, loud or quiet and it all depends on my willingness to listen to the inner voices that we all have. The inner voices (spirit guides?)(Yeah, I know it sounds crazy) are an amazing asset to keeping you on the right path and helping you become the person you came here to be.

That kind of insanity requires a positive attitude.

Developing your self-awareness

Becoming the spiritually aware entrepreneur begins with the process of learning to accept exactly who you are, with all your warts, wonders and blemishes.

Your self is just like a blanket that you cover up with or a jacket that you put on. Spend some time becoming completely comfortable with it and you'll begin to see that you can put it on and take it off at will. It's just an external way to identify which self is yours. Once you can get beyond that and see that you don't really exist, then you can really start having fun with this stuff.

Developing your self-awareness is a multi-faceted exercise that encompasses all parts of your being. No matter how good you become at it there will always be new layers to uncover and new things to learn.

At the elementary levels of this business you'll have to look at your physical self, your mental self and your spiritual self and see how you can integrate them into your total being. This is a process that can take the rest of your life, so settle in for the long haul. As you can see this is about much more than just creating a business, It's about creating a businessperson (you) that you can be proud of.

The Law of Reciprocity

Simply stated, the Law of Reciprocity is; "What goes around comes around."

I realize that this sounds simple, almost to the point of being silly, but this incredibly simple concept is echoed repeatedly in every single spiritual path and religion in the world for a good reason. It works!

When it comes to your business it's especially important to remember that what you send out is what you'll get back. If you send out fear and hate then that's exactly what you'll get back.

When you use this principle in your life it's important to remember that what you want to receive is what you have to give. If you want to have more time then give time. If you want more money then give money. If you want more love then give love, etc., etc.

Those interested in really using this principle in your lives are encouraged to read Stuart Wilde's book The Trick to Money is Having Some and Robert Kiyosaki's excellent Rich Dad, Poor Dad series. I can't praise either of those books enough as they've been extremely helpful for me personally.

Dr. Wayne Dyer also talks about this principle repeatedly in his books, as do Louise Hay, Caroline Myss and a host of others. This concept can be used to enhance every part of your life, so look for new ways to use it.

** (Authors note; First, a word about energy. You'll see me use that term a lot in this book, partly because some of these sections are cut from the other books that I've written on meditation. How can I cut those sections out of a meditation book and plop them right down into a business book? I do it because we are not only dealing with money and business but with our relationships to one another and the universe in general!

Money is a form of energy. It's the tool that we apply to various situations as a lever to get things done. When you begin to see that money is only a form of energy then it opens you up to all of the different forms of energy that you can use, rather than just money. For instance, in many cases what we need is not really money, but some other resource such as another person's time or a tool that someone else has. Learn to open up to having the proper energy that you need rather than to just having money. With that in mind I'm only going to refer to energy for the rest of this section. It's up to you to identify and find the proper form of energy that you need for a particular situation) **

When you are using your energy and sending it to someone else, it's vitally important to remember that what you send is what you'll get back. Therefore you'll always want to keep this in mind, even when training in the dojo. As you begin doing these exercises you are going to be using more energy in your everyday life. Even though it's very subtle, people will still be able to feel that energy and respond to it.

If you let that energy run loose and uncontrolled, especially if you haven't learned to balance out your anger issues and emotional attachments, then you are going to offend people and hurt feelings, even when you don't mean to.

As you begin building up your personal catalog of experiences and experimenting with your energy, you're going to be tempted to play with it with other people. Remember to keep your intentions clear and remember that what you send out is what you're going to have returned.

If you want to practice sending energy into other people make sure that you are sending loving and benevolent energy. Even though you'll occasionally be tempted to send a good dose of revenge and retribution out to those you think deserve it, remember the Law of Reciprocity. For my part I try to make a point of sending good energy to those who disagree with me. If they are wrong then I hope that the energy helps them see the right answers. If it turns out that I'm wrong (which apparently happens a lot J) then it's good to send a little 'thanks and happiness' to someone who helped you learn a lesson.

Robert Kiyosaki writes profoundly about the Law of Reciprocity in his books. He makes a great point that you have to give if you are going to receive and that you must give away that which you need most to receive.

If you need money then you must give money. Give it to a charity, or to a 'bum' or to a stranger on the street, but give it just to give it and don't try to have any expectations about what you'll get back. This is important.

When you give simply to give and without any expectation of a return then you are sending out a message to the universe that "I have plenty! I have so much that I can just give it away to help someone else."

Like attracts like. When you have an abundant and giving attitude then you'll find that there is plenty of abundance to share. When you have a negative attitude and won't give because you feel that you don't have enough to share then you are just confirming that reality for yourself.

Spend some time thinking about this and working up to it. You don't have to give away your house and cars. Start small and send $5 a month to PBS or NPR, to an animal rescue shelter or some other charity that you can believe in. You may think that $5 a month isn't enough to make a difference for anyone, but every charity that I've ever seen would be happy with that.

Don't have any expectations about what you may get back for your donation. Do it just to share and in the hopes that it'll help those hardworking folks make the work a better place.

This next section is when we get into the power of Networks so think about this, if everyone in the network that you are going to build also sends in $5 a month to a charity then you are going to get to the point, as your network expands, where you will be single-handedly affecting some real social change. If you want to multiply this then talk to the people in your downline (your network) about everyone sending $5 a month to the same charity.

2006 Robert Morgen. This article may be used by anyone, anywhere as long as the author's bio and links are included.

"Our Abundant Universe" is an excerpt from Robert Morgen's new book The Spiritual Entrepreneur.

Robert Morgen had a near-death kundalini awakening in 1992.

He's the author of 'Kundalini Awakening for Personal Mastery 2nd Edition' and 'The Spiritual Entrepreneur'

Find out more about his books, radio shows and teleseminars at http://SpiritualEntrepreneur.biz

Assume Positive Intent

2009-09-06T10:23:00.001-07:00

"I can't believe anyone would do something so stupid!" How quick and automatic is the leap from believing in someone one minute to flying off the handle in anger the next when someone does something so contrary to our expectations!

When we immediately start to rant in frustration over someone else's action or decision without the benefit of understanding the why behind their motivation, then our reaction says a lot more about us than it does about them.

According to a new study in the International Journal of Psychology, the effects of anger can last 7 days. If being disappointed by others actions immediately makes you see red, then imagine the cumulative affect on your attitude and therefore, on your organization, if you are always at some point on the continuum of getting angry to staying angry to getting over being angry - about something that might not be based on reality!

The next time something happens that you didn't expect or wouldn't have done, stop and ask yourself these five questions before rushing to judge someone's negative intentions:

1. How do I know that the person's intention was bad?

Chances are you're making assumptions and so, are overlooking the possibility that the other person could have had more or different information or another interpretation and based his or her decision to act accordingly.

2. Is my concern self-focused?

Like the father of the family in the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" who lamented, "Why is this happening to me?" every time something didn't go as planned, you are likely more worried about how you will be personally affected by what the other person did more than any real negative consequences to the organization.

3. Were my expectations clear?

No one should be expected to presume to know what you want or when you want it to be done.

4. Could it have been a mistake?

There's an old saying, "If the learner hasn't learned, then the teacher hasn't taught." Someone who is learning or doing something for the first time isn't trying to mess up on purpose!

5. Why am I so angry?

That's really the "$64,000 question." You might need help exploring the reasons behind your outrage and learning how to better control your emotions.

It's a leader's job to gain followers by inspiring confidence. People are so complex, and so different - moved by different motives, controlled by different circumstances, and influenced by different experiences. Before you think the worst, find out the facts, and assume positive intent in the meantime. Most people are doing what they think is best for the right reasons. Assuming that will take you a long way.

Marilyn Lustgarten, executive coach and president of The Star Makers Group, works with leaders interested in achieving good to great performance. She also speaks and writes on strategic leadership issues and organizational transformation. Contact her at http://www.starmakersgroup.com

The Aging of Relationships

2009-09-06T10:17:00.001-07:00

"Yes, I will marry you.....and they rode off into the sunset and lived happily ever after." If only it were that simple. Most of us have visions of our relationships turning out this way, but that is often not the case. Somewhere between the "I do" and "happily ever after" problems arise. Over half of all marriages end in divorce. Of those marriages that stay together, a large percentage are not necessarily happy. What happens? Why do the majority of couples find it so difficult to stay together and remain happy? Just as individuals go through identifiable stages (infancy, childhood, adulthood, old age) so to do relationships pass through distinguishable stages. There are many different ways to name the stages of relationship. We prefer to use the following three stages: Romantic Love (also known as the honeymoon stage), the Power Struggle Stage, and Mature Love.

Many people are familiar with the romantic stage. This is where our lover is in our thoughts 24 hours a day and every moment apart seems like an eternity. We live for the moments that we can be together. We are aglow with love. Everything in our life seems to go well. Colors are brighter, sounds more distinct, foods tastier. We find that we need less sleep. We can stay out with our loved one dancing the night away and still be up early the next morning, energized and ready to tackle the day ahead. If we have disagreements with our partner, we are willing to listen and even let them win. We are in a state of bliss. Then something happens. Instead of continuing along happily in this state, our eyes (and our hearts) begin to shift their focus and we enter Stage 2.

Stage 2 is the power struggle. Most of us are familiar with this stage as the majority of relationships stay here a long time. It is the stage in a relationship where two individuals try to live together harmoniously while still standing up for their individual differences. This is the time when we try to combine two different ways of being and two different backgrounds into one workable relationship. It includes but is not limited to such things as combining two distinct ways of handling money, keeping house, and juggling time schedules with regard to work, hobbies, family, recreation, etc. It involves consideration of differing personal habits and parenting skills, varying degrees of sexual desire, different ways of communication, and more. Is it any wonder that Stage 2 brings to light what we perceive as flaws in our partner's character? She/he charges too much on the credit cards, puts recreation before chores, does not understand why I need to spend so much time with my parents, or has little desire for sex. Differences are difficult to live with, especially when we assume that we are right and our partner is wrong. Our reasoning is: "I've done it this way all my life; can't you see that this is the way it should be done?" Learning how to collaborate with a partner while at the same time maintaining our individuality is the lesson of Stage 2. It can be a lengthy undertaking and usually makes or breaks the relationship.

Some relationships will never go beyond the second stage. The power struggles that occur during this time put the "relating" in relationships to the test. Just as a teenager learns how to become an individual and relate to a world outside himself and his family, an adult learns how to become a partner and be in a relationship. We learn how to get along with others at work, in our community, our state, and in our ever expanding world. Most of us learn skills to go out into the workplace and perform at a job, but few of us learn the skills to communicate and be in relationship. Basic relationship skills can go a long way to move us through this difficult stage of power struggle. Tools such as "I" messages, reflective listening, and a basic understanding of the differences between men and women are an important start. We feel it is equally important to have an awareness and understanding of two basic concepts about relationship: 1) that we alone are responsible for our feelings as well as our actions; and 2) relationships can be used to either heal or rewound the individuals in that relationship.

Marilyn: Having been in a twenty year relationship that I now recognize was one continual power struggle, I can appreciate the flow of my present relationship. Chuck and I both have an uncompromising desire to be in a relationship that works, a relationship that we can use as a path to our spiritual growth. Dr. Wayne Dyer in his tape series Freedom Through Higher Awareness comments: if you have a choice between being right and being kind, always choose to be kind." This is a choice Chuck and I are consciously trying to make in our relationship. When we disagree, we make every effort to deal with those conflicts in the moment. We try our best to go inside and discover how we feel and what our part was in the upset. This is not an easy task, especially since we have been programmed to value being right over being loving. We are used to looking outside of ourselves and blaming the other party. My automatic response to an upset used to be "why can't he understand this, it's so simple!" For the life of me, I could not understand why my partner was so dense; why he could not appreciate that this was the way it was for me. What a world of difference it makes when I can take responsibility for myself. All the blame and frustration disappears. I no longer feel that sinking feeling of disappointment and frustration that I used to feel.....that hole in pit in my stomach that asked the same questions over and over: "why am I in this relationship," and "is it as hopeless as I feel it is at this moment?" In contrast, when I can come from the understanding that I alone am responsible for the emotions that well up within me, then I can look inside and examine those feelings. This is usually easier said than done, especially when those emotions remind me of unpleasant memories about how I was treated in the past. I try very hard to share those feelings with Chuck. Sometimes, the only word I can get out is "ouch," but that is enough to get us started. This effort pays big dividends. It allows us to come to a resolution about our misunderstandings and prevents the build-up of resentments. It is also a path to healing the old wounds and building a new relationship based upon the trust of self and each other.

Chuck: The difference between my relationship with Marilyn and my previous relationships is my willingness to look at what parts I play in our upsets. It wasn't long ago that I felt I was right during most of my arguments with women. I can even remember the times that I knew I wasn't right but still couldn't give in. This power struggle was a pattern I had followed for over 30 years and I don't really know how it started. It has been a slow progression of small realizations that has led me to the point where my relationship is usually more important than my being right. Notice I said usually. There are still times when I know I'm not right or realize that I am hurting Marilyn and our relationship by staying mad, but cannot break out of the old pattern. Fortunately these times are diminishing.

How did I begin on my road to recovery? It began with very intelligent women calmly questioning me about my reasons for staying angry. They wanted to understand what kind of benefits or rewards I received for this behavior. Even when they questioned me during a fight, it was done in such a way that I felt their concern. It was clear that they truly wanted to understand what was happening within me. There was no blaming or ill will.

This process led me to begin to question myself. I went to therapy. I learned techniques I could use during a fight such as active listening, taking responsibility by using "I" statements, fair fighting rules, active listening and more. Finally I decided that I wanted to have a GREAT relationship. Now I work on trying to let go of my need to be right and consciously make the choice to be loving. Believe me, it takes a constant effort within the relationship to maintain that awareness, but it is worth it.....and so is Marilyn!

Marilyn and Chuck: The final stage of relationship is mature love. We have traveled the long road of power struggles to get here and learned what we need to learn from that path. We have completed a 180 degree turn, back to the peace and harmony that we felt with our partner when we first met. Our heart (and mind) has shifted away from finding fault and instead is focused on the specialness of our partner.....the uniqueness that attracted us to them in the first place. We have come full circle. We started out in the Romantic Stage seeing only the good, went through the Power Struggle Stage seeing mostly the negative, and now we are able to hold both. This is an expansive state. It is at this time that we make the conscious choice to put our relationship first and give up the need to always be right. This does not mean that we become less of an individual. It is at this stage that we become comfortable with who we are as individuals so that we no longer feel that we are losing a part of ourselves or our needs in order to have our relationships flow smoothly. In reality, we become more fully alive as we have expanded within ourselves to accept both the positive and the negative in another person.

Many of us have had the privilege of experiencing the rare couple who just seem to flow together. Their love and appreciation for one another glows from their very being. They fit together and feel right and everyone can see it. There is a calm and radiance about them that makes others want to be in their presence. This state of being did not happen over night. This couple has done a lot of work to get where they are. There is a deep level of commitment and understanding between them. For us, knowing that this depth of relationship exists gives us hope for our own relationship. When the power struggles seem overwhelming, we let the vision of this couple give us the strength to stay on our path and just let go. It is our belief that it is within all of us to have this type of relationship. It is a merely matter of choice.

Great relationships don't happen by accident. Learn the secrets to having successful one. Marilyn Hough and Chuck Schmitt, the Relationship Specialists, are licensed Marriage and Family therapists in the Portland, Oregon area. Visit their website at http://www.relationshipspecialists.com for tools and tips on how to improve your relationships. You can also sign up for free bi-monthly relationship hints.

Council of Nicaea Conclusion - The Origins of Christian Belief

2009-09-06T04:49:00.001-07:00

In the year 325A.D the emperor of Rome, Constantine gathered a group of church bishops and other leaders who believes in Christianity. The purpose of the meeting was to define the true God for all Christians and eliminate any confusion within Christ's church.

By the end of this council, Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit were considered one and the same. Before the council, there was confusion about, whether they should believe in one God, two gods or three entities.

Here's a statement from got questions, a popular Christian website, "The Council of Nicea affirmed the deity of Jesus Christ and established an official definition of the Trinity-the deity of The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit under one Godhead, in three co-equal and co-eternal Persons."

This was a pretty interesting article, if you've got time to read it, I would also suggest checking out Wikipedia for more information about the Council of Nicaea.

Here's Some of the Problems I Have with This Small Group of Proclaimed Christians.

If I'm reading this statement correctly, a group of people or religious leaders, 1700 years ago decided that Jesus, God the creator of everything in the universe and the Holy Spirit are the same. What does this mean to you? To me it establishes as a fact that a group of men, at a meeting, under the control of the Roman empire and the Emperor Constantine, made an agreement within the Council of man, not gods, that the Trinity was now a fact.

If this one thing was created by a group of men, doesn't it get you thinking about other things in your religion that might be false or even misleading. These are some of the facts that most Christians tend to either ignore or don't even have a clue that they exist.

I believe more Christians and other organized religions should inspire their followers to learn more about how their religions were formed and where they came from. I cannot verify that the Council of Nicaea ever took place, I'm basing this information on historical writings from man, that I either gather on the Internet or through books. I don't know if any of this is true or false, always use religion responsibly.

I don't need to believe the information, I don't need to believes the information in the Bible, I need to research and gather more information and with this information I can make an educated guess, and be happy with that, I suggest you do the same.

Greg is currently working on a self help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion

Festering Emotional Wounds - How Disturbing Memories Can Remain Bothersome For Years

2009-09-06T04:44:00.001-07:00

Imagine being about 6 years-old, when you ask a friend to play with his or her toy. He or she says, "No." As an adult, you know that if this scenario had happened in your life, it happened because 6 year-olds are basically selfish and do not know how to share. As a 6 year-old, however, you would not have known that that was the real reason. As a way of making sense of the senseless, you might have adopted a negative belief about yourself, as it related to the situation. In other words, you may have suggested to yourself that "I am not good enough." Or, "I am not likeable."

This interpretation may have meant little, except when later, a parent says, "No" and a teacher says, "No." Now, one may begin to use this random life experience, in order to support this erroneous set of beliefs that "I am not good enough" or "I am not likeable."

Within adolescence, a teacher may say, "No" or a date may say, "No." Now, as one enters early adulthood, one may not simply think these things to be true, but one may begin to feel them to be true. The beliefs that we feel to be true tend to guide our actions. If we feel it to be true that "I am not worthy" and "I am not likeable," we are probably not heading in a direction that is consistent with our desires.

The things that we feel to be true tend to guide our actions, as we allow things to happen and do things, consistent with the beliefs. Although these beliefs seem to offer an explanation, however, their assertions are not true. Yet, it may be initially difficult to believe otherwise, since these initial beliefs seem to offer a plausible explanation. The truth, based upon the wealth of one's other life experiences, however, insists that despite what happened, "I am worthy" and "I am likeable." In great part, therapy is a way to resolve disturbing memories, in order to release the erroneous beliefs. As a result, one is finally able to begin to embrace the truth that "I am worthy" and "I am likeable." These new, healthier perspectives begin to guide one into the more positive direction of one's intentions.

http://www.ThePsychologist.com Gerald Solfanelli is a Pennsylvania licensed psychologist and certified hypnotherapist in full-time private practice. As a presenter for PESI, he provides national continuing education workshops for mental health and educational professionals. He also hosts his own website that helps visitors simplify their overall healthcare, by improving their emotional health with popular psychology-related links, best-selling e-books, hypnosis and other FREE self-help programs.

Included within his site is also a FREE hypnosis for smoking cessation instant audio MP3 download, links to discount coupons for other quit smoking aides, and free e-book access to best-selling quit smoking publications. Solfanelli is a member of Pennsylvania's Pre-approved Tobacco Cessation Registry. His American website is accredited by the HON Foundation, a non-governmental agency in special consultative status with the United Nations that promotes health trustworthy information.

Dr Success - A Discussion on Achieving Your Highest Success and Shifting Sands by Steve Donahue

2009-09-05T23:15:00.001-07:00

As a society, we are trained from our earliest years to approach our lives like mountain climbers. From the time we enter school we are supposedly being taught what to pack for life's journey. By our teens, we have often laid out a detailed map and a kit of tools to our life and we are keenly aware of where our life journey is meant to go and where the summit is. Soon after starting that journey, however, we discover that life has its own paths, surprises and unexpected summits and challenges waiting for us.

The author of Shifting Sands, Steve Donahue, builds on an experience from his youth, where he and a friend seized the moment and unexpectedly drove across the Sahara Desert. Steve uses this as a life metaphor for the long journey of crossing an ever-changing desert when we "expect" to be climbing a well-planned mountain. In this book, the author shares that one evening the group had carefully planned their next step in the journey - it was completely laid out, right down to where the hills and sands and markings were. When they awoke the next morning, there had been a sandstorm and everything was different.

This becomes one of the author's core revelations: Use a compass instead of a map. Rather than following someone else's instructions and roadmap to the summit, Donahue encourages his readers to use our own inner compass and intuitive guideposts to plot our path day by day. Life is ever changing, and no amount of maps and markers can really plot our course - and if we think about it, would we even really want that?

One of Donahue's most poignant chapters is, "When You're Stuck, Deflate." When we get stuck in life, we often tend to dig in our heels (or wheels) and just try harder - the old adage, "If at first you don't succeed," ringing in our ears. But in life, like in the desert, sometimes that only bogs us deeper down into the sand. Being hell-bent to follow the map and do something the way we plan, can literally stop us in our tracks. According to Shifting Sands, sometimes we must simply stop, let go, and shift with the changing scene around us. The question thus becomes: How do I let go of my ideas and my ego and move forward?

As an executive mentor, my role is to uncover why we allow ourselves to get stuck and what we do to shift and rethink our direction and our summits. We know through positive psychology that as human beings we are sometimes stopped by our own experiences and comfort level over and over. Our ego will use this as a benchmark to allow us to feel "accomplished." We are thus compelled to repeat only what we know. By using an inner compass, you can use your own "True North" to overtake that mental goalpost and begin to create a different journey and conquer summits higher than we might have ever dreamed to set. As human beings, we like to assume we "know" how things will turn out and what steps we need to take to get there. We are gratefully reminded in Shifting Sands: A Guidebook for Crossing the Deserts of Change, that each life is an uncharted adventure to be joyously relished.

Dr. Success (aka Andrea Goeglein, Ph.D.)
http://www.ServingSuccess.com
DrSuccess@ServingSuccess.com
(702) 243-4040

Wealth Building Habits and Tips

2009-09-05T23:09:00.001-07:00

If you want to be successful, you need mentors or in other words find people that have succeeded. These people can include the ultra rich like Bill Gates or Warren Buffett, but don't forget about the people around you that have created good wealth building habits.

Some of the people have great advice and will need to be listened to very intently, while others need to be put on a list and never spoken to again. If you're going to be developing wealth building habits, you're going to need some advice from wealthy people. Let me make myself clear, when I'm talking about developing wealth building habits, I'm not talking about spiritual, knowledge, Biblical or religious wealth. I'm talking about making money, as much money as you desire or feel you need.

Wealth building habits start with you. Ask yourself this question "how bad do I want or desire wealth?" Really, really, really bad or are you the kind of person that would like to be rich, but that's as far as it goes. Developing any of these habits does not include sleeping in until 11 o'clock in the morning and then complaining the rest of the day about your finances.

Bill Gates used to work 16 hours a day. How many days a week did he do that? These are the questions you're going to find the answers to. If you're interested in making $50 million, you need to find someone who can teach you, how to make $50 million.

It won't be necessary to contact Warren Buffett but I would advise you to gather as much information about him as possible. Wealth building habits start with learning about wealthy people. If they get up at four o'clock in the morning and read the newspaper until six o'clock, then exercise for 30 minutes and start working at seven o'clock, you need to start doing this also. Developing good wealth building habits over time are what most successful businessman and women have been doing for years. Study their habits and start changing yours.

If you do something every day, it will usually become a habit within 30 days.

52 Ways to Live a Better Life by Shadonna Richards

2009-09-05T17:38:00.001-07:00

Infinity Publishing (2009)

ISBN 9780741451675

Shadonna Richards, a Canadian registered nurse, freelance writer and former newspaper columnist, has put together a simple but concise book on how to live a better life. As a nurse working with terminally ill cancer patients, who are told they have only six months to live, she was inspired to write empowering words of wisdom. Richards also interviewed many individuals for her newspaper columns, thus compiling inspirational stories to encourage us to look at our own lives, makes changes as necessary, and to live a fulfilled life. Although her resources are Canadian, the concept of her book is global and I'm sure readers will find similar resources in their respective countries and areas.

"A Gift of Hope" is designed to be used as a workbook, with each week having an exercise to be done daily. For example, the first week starts with "Stay Mentally Fit." The text talks about the stresses in our lives and then gives exercises. The first exercise for the first week is to "Identify, then rectify." Richards says "A crucial part of any solution is locating the problem. Do worries keep you up at night? Go directly to the source of your tension." The second exercise for the first week is "Detox Your Mind." Richards says "We always have a choice. We can choose to dwell on being hopeless in situations or dwell on having hope."

The second week covers "Dare to Dream: Believe that Anything is Possible" and captures president-elect Barrack Obama's "Yes We Can" powerful slogan. Using his story and his dreams, Richards iterates that our dreams can become reality if we persist and believe.

Other weeks cover topics like: Understand That Money Isn't Everything, Reach out to those in Need, and Be the Friend You Desire to Have. For the purpose of this review I didn't have the opportunity to test the system for a full 52 weeks; however, being a student and teacher of transformation, I know it works. Shadonna Richards has provided a book, "A Gift of Hope," to take us to a higher level of consciousness, a place where we can manage our personal lives with ease and contentment.

http://www.readerviews.com/

The Power of Positive Thinking - Books to Consider Part II

2009-09-05T17:31:00.001-07:00

Trusting in yourself makes wondrous things happen to you. These classic guides to self-esteem and success will help you learn how to; break the worry habit; get other people to like you; avoid "the jitters" in your daily work; believe in yourself and everything you do; develop the power to reach your goals, and so much more. The books listed below are just a few of the millions out there, but it comes from my very own personal collection.

The Secret by Rhonda Byrne

If you are not familiar about the well-known movie or book The Secret, I really suggest you checking it out. This book is based on the fact that like attracts like and is formed by The Law Of Attraction. Essentially what you focus on is what you are going to attract back into your life. So if you are worrying about money or your health, you are only creating more financial problems and more health problems. If you cringe every time you go to the mailbox expecting another bill or more bad news, you will create more bills. Obviously this isn't something we want! By attaching negative emotions to your situations you are creating more of it, this is because you are thinking and feeling about what you don't want, in turn making them stronger. The mind is creative, it will create and recreate whatever you think about. When you are fighting something, whatever it may be, you are unconsciously creating more of that very thing.

You Can Heal Your Life by Louise L Hay

If you haven't seen Hay House's Lifestyles series of gorgeous gift books, there is no better way to acquaint yourself than with publisher/author Louise Hay's You Can Heal Your Life. A bestseller for many years, You Can Heal Your Life has been republished with bright, beautiful illustrations in full, living color and exquisite typography--each and every page is a work of art by artist Joan Perrin Falquet. The timeless message of the book is that we are each responsible for our own reality and "dis-ease." Hay believes we make ourselves ill by having thoughts of self-hatred. This book is more of a healing book than anything else, but I do absolutely love the affirmations contained in all of her books, especially this one!

Growing The Distance by Jim Clemmer

At home or in the workplace, change is an inevitable fact of life. How we choose to respond to it - as leaders or as followers - determines our personal and professional growth. Growing the Distance is about developing the leader within all of us. This helps us to continue "growing at the speed of change." A central theme of the book is that leadership is action, not a position. We all need to be leaders regardless of our formal title or role. This starts with inner self leadership and moves outward to influence, guide, support, and lead others. Leadership ultimately shows itself in what we do "out there," but it starts "in here."

Your Best Life Now by Joel Osteen

Just as a forewarning, this is a Christian based book by a Pastor, however it still is an incredible book. Not a lot of religious talk but he instead incorporates a lot of stuff from The Secret such as positive thinking, like attracts like, and believing in good things. I think this was probably one of the first books I read that I really got into when it came to changing my habits and trying to live my best life now! Osteen tells readers that God wants them to prosper, offering examples of obtaining an elegant mansion or a larger salary ("don't ever get satisfied with where you are," he cautions). In seven parts, he details how readers should enlarge their vision, develop self-esteem, discover the power of thought, let go of the past, find strength through adversity, give back to others and choose to be happy.

These books have helped me immensely and I know that they can help you as well, if you put the reading to use as well as the exercises and suggestions all of these books make. Don't just read the book and let it go in one ear and out the other. Really digest it, let it seep into your brain and throughout your entire body. I have seen people literally change %100 from books such as these. And if YOU want to change and want it to change your life for good, then you will really sit down and read!

Apply "The Secret" to your life. Visit this site to see where the Secret Left off. http://www.envisionfreedom.net

Full Moon And How It Affects Human Consciousness

2009-09-05T11:54:00.001-07:00

It has been known for centuries that the full moon can affect people's consciousness and behaviour. Many people may feel wakeful at night with energy streaming through their body for the three days before full moon.

It is only recently that I have discovered why this may be happening. NASA-supported scientists have realized that something does happen every month when the Moon passes through Earth's magnetic tail.

"Earth's magnetotail extends well beyond the orbit of the Moon and, once a month, the Moon orbits through it," says Tim Stubbs, a University of Maryland scientist working at the Goddard Space Flight Center. "This can have consequences ranging from lunar 'dust storms' to electrostatic discharges."

Anyone can tell when the Moon is inside the magnetotail. Just look: "If the Moon is full, it is inside the magnetotail," says Stubbs. "The Moon enters the magnetotail three days before it is full and takes about six days to cross and exit on the other side."

Human consciousness too is made up of electrical activity - which can be measured with an electro encephalograph - and a magnetic aura, or field of energy. A lot of people can feel this field of energy; for example, when you smile you can feel the field of buoyant, glowing energy extending into your aura like the energy field of a magnet.

I have often wondered why I am affected so much by the moon from three days before full moon to a few days after. The magnetotail provided me with the perfect explanation; as the moon charges up when within the tail and becomes much more electrical and magnetic, it is only normal that this increase in power should be felt on Earth.

We all know from astrology that each of the planets, and the sun and moon, have an influence on our feelings, emotions and consciousness. The moon affects our emotions because the moon influences water; just as the moon causes the tides, it exerts a pull on the watery components of our body, and we feel this as emotions. The body is made up of 70 to 80% of water.

Human consciousness is also affected by sun spots and the mass ejections from the sun's corona; these are what cause the solar winds of magnetic energy which affect the Earth's upper atmosphere and give rise to the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights.

I feel it is beneficial if we extend our awareness to take in all these influences of the celestial bodies, as they all communicate with, and have an influence on, each other by the transfer of electrical and magnetic energy - which could also be called consciousness.

Our body has a field of energy - the aura - which is the same as the aurora or magnetic and gravitational field of the planet. We are all One, a part of the Universal Life Force; and it is natural to be aware of the greater cosmic system, which is as much a part of our consciousness as our brain is.

As human consciousness evolves and moves from the individual awareness to an awareness of greater integration within the whole cosmic system, we also expand our understanding of the unity of life and develop a love of all things, in the realization that We Are All One.

By George E. Lockett SSHA, IIHHT -- HealerGeorge(C) Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved. Tel: +44 (0)1286 882701 Visit HealerGeorge's web site: http://www.healergeorge.com to experience the power of Distant Healing or listen to HealerGeorge Radio giving Questions and Answer advice mixed with Spiritual Music. You can also enjoy many free benefits on HealerGeorge, like listening to Free Guided Meditations. Why not order HealerGeorge's Latest book entitled "A Journey into The Self - The Multi-dimensional Nature of Being Human" By George E Lockett. It is all available off the web site. Description: What is this book going to do for YOU? For those who are seeking a complete energetic makeover, as you read it you will feel a stirring and awakening in the depths of your heart. For those who have questions about Shifts in Consciousness, Energy Balancing, and Healing within the body, you will find clear answers.

Be Happy 101: the Happiness Course

2009-09-05T11:47:00.001-07:00

Your Happiness Resources

This time, thirteen is a lucky number. Here are thirteen books that can really help you on the road to finding increased happiness:

1. Authentic Happiness -Martin Seligman
A great place to start. Discover your "signature strengths" and use them as much as you can to produce true, long term gratification in your life.

2.The How of Happiness - Sonja Lyubomirsky
Twelve positive steps you can take to being happier, working on areas you can influence, instead of those you can't change much.

3. 50 Self-Help Classics - Tom Butler-Bowdon
The "50 Classics" series of books provide extraordinary summaries of self help books, respectively on prosperity, success, the spirtual classics and several others. Having these excellent books is like having a self help library at your fingertips.

4. Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart - Gordon Livingston
A best selling author, Dr. Livingston uses his experience as a practicing psychiatrist to help us deal positively with many of life's common problems.

5. Your Best Life Now - 7 Steps To Living Life At Your Full Potential -Joel Osteen
The famous tv evangelist provides suggestions for living a positive life. Christians will be able to relate easily to the beneficial message this book contains, but this book can benefit anyone, whether they are Christian, or if they don't believe in God.

6. The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People -Stephen Covey
Provides an excellent structure for setting goals and accomplishing them.

7. A New Earth: Awakening To Your Life's Purpose -Eckhart Tolle
A thorough, step by step presentation to help you discover your guiding purposes. Even though this book was highly promoted by Oprah Winfrey, it would be a real mistake to think that it is only "a women's book". Anyone can benefit from it.

8. Blink - Malcolm Gladwell
Great stories that emphasize the point that good decisions can often be made by "thin slicing", using a small amount of information that leads us to a decision that might be the same as if we had taken more time and done more research in making it. Our quality of life, and our happiness, is greatly impacted by our decisions and our thoughts . This book present an alternative view for making decisions, without deprecating more traditional methods.

9. George Foreman's Guide To Life -George Foreman
This is not just "a man's book", nor is it a boxing book, it's one that can benefit anyone. It contains excellent practical advice for getting the most out of life.

10. Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
This classic work provides great guidance for living daily life. Its principles are as applicable today as they were in Roman times.

11. The Right Words At The Right Time -Marlo Thomas
Short two or three page stories by celebrities telling what events made positive turning points toward success in their lives. Interesting reading and contains many good lessons.

12. Happier- Tal Ben-Shahar
Let the author share the secrets with you of finding happiness from Harvard's most popular course. Everybody wants to be happy!

13. The Working Poor -David Shipler
This might not sound like a book that relates to happiness, but it is, because its insights can truly help people stay away from things that are going to make them very unhappy. The Pultizer Prize winning author explains what it's like to be part of the working poor. Anyone who isn't, but thinks they have a good handle on this type of life should read this book. It not only encourages concern and assistance, but it provides very valuable lessons on how getting into this state can be avoided. Poverty is not a plus when seeking happiness, so this book also serves as a valuable cautionary story to anyone who is making major decisions in their lives, regarding education, child bearing, marriage and so forth.

We all need to eat to sustain ourselves physically. Make self-help reading a regular habit to support and guide you mentally throughout your life.

Larry Danks is an Assistant Professor of Business at Camden County College in Blackwood, NJ, near Philadelphia. To these books above, I also add my book, Your Unfinished Life: The Classic and Timeless Guide To Finding Happiness and Success Through Kindness. Let it help you be happier, find personal fulfillment and develop higher self-esteem. http://www.yourunfinishedlife.com where samples from each chapter and reviews of Danks' book are available.Comments may be directed to the author at helpfulmedia@yahoo.com

My book, and the others listed above, are all available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and all major booksellers.

Estate Planning - The Life Estate

2009-09-05T06:19:00.001-07:00

The life estate is something every first year law student learns about when they study the arcane and often bizarre history of property law that harkens back to the days of English knights, lords and serfs, and the transfer of property through the ceremonial throwing of dirt clods with oaths of duty to accompany. The life estate is about as old as they come as instruments of wealth transfer go and students love it, because it is relatively easy to understand. Apart from what students love and what is easy to remember, however, the life estate still has practical value today in your estate planning and assets management schemes.

The basic idea of the life estate is that a person can be left a piece of property for life, and upon their passing, the property in question can go to whoever is designated to receive that property afterward. The individual or group who receives the property after the life-tenant passes is called the remainderman or remaindermen, which is useful only in that it helps one to remember that the person who remains gets the property. If, for example, one wants to leave a family estate that has been with the family for many generations to their spouse and then have it immediately pass on to their children or another relative who will maintain the estate for the generation to come, then a life estate might be the perfect vehicle to do so. Another example is the same family estate, left to a surviving spouse until the surviving spouse either dies or remarries. Again, the aim is to ensure that the estate stays in family, a contingency which is threatened by the remarriage because that creates a new marital joint-tenancy, absent any other provision. Often the life-estate was used to keep assets, like the family home, headed down a single line of familial ownership.

However, the life estate has other uses, for example, it can leave an asset to be owned by one person until the death of third person. If an older relative has become incapacitated, such that it is difficult for them to make decisions for themselves, then the asset can be left in the care of another for the incapacitated person's lifetime. An example might be, that Blackacre (the fictitious name for a piece of property used in law schools everywhere) is left in the care of cousin Tilly, until great aunt Nelly's death. Thus, Tilly is allowed to make Nelly comfortable at Blackacre (the family home) until Nelly passes on. In this instance, Nelly's life is what is called, the measuring life of the life estate, and Tilly's ownership ends when Nelly is gone.

On the whole, the life estate may be falling out of use for a number of reasons and being replaced by the much more fluid instrument of the trust. But, the life estate still captures, from time to time, our instincts regarding how property is to pass from one generation to another and that is why it is still relevant even for an estate planner who uses it very rarely. It helps us to ask and to get the answer to very difficult questions, which is part of the act of estate planning. Both the client and the attorney must face tough questions, and the life estate (even if it is sometimes regarded as a legal relic of the past) tells us how people used to answer questions of intra-generational wealth transfer and why. We may use different instruments to bring about our legal ends (or we may not), but even if we do, the life-estate still has relevance in helping us think about the questions that underlie the choices to be made in estate planning.

Ronald Hudkins is an advocate for consumer awareness. He has noted that more than 70% of the American public fails to make appropriate estate plans prior to death or incapacitation and as such; authored an Ebook "Asset Protection and Estate Planning for All Ages" It is available for free download at http://stores.lulu.com/rhudkins

The Ultimate Guide to Mental Toughness by Daniel Teitelbaum

2009-09-05T06:15:00.001-07:00

The book "The Ultimate Guide To Mental Toughness" by Daniel Teitelbaum was not what I expected. Being a former military sniper, I think of mental toughness as the grit and determination to succeed at your mission, no matter what. I think of mental toughness more as discipline and focus to get things done. However, if you read the subtitle, you get a better indication of what this book is about. It states, "How to raise your motivation, focus, and confidence like pushing a button." This is a book on increasing your motivation to achieve goals by using triggers.

If you have read books by Tony Robbins such as "Awaken the Giant Within," or have listened to any of the multiple audio programs Tony Robbins has put out, you may know about triggers already. Tony uses them, and they are a common part of NLP which Tony studied and uses in his teachings. (I personally really like Tony Robbins and have learned much from him, including some on triggering.)

"The Ultimate Guide To Mental Toughness" goes much further into the area of triggers. Teitelbaum's book may be the most complete and user friendly book on triggering techniques out there. He explains why they work in a simple manner, and does not get too bogged down with the why. I felt he gave enough information on why they work, and then spent the rest of the book teaching the triggers and encouraging the reader to actually go through the exercises and develop personal triggers that the reader can use to motivate themselves and keep their energy level high while pursuing and achieving goals. The author uses different ways to emphasize points and motivate the reader to actually perform the exercises and develop personal triggers. It is through actually doing the visualizations and other exercises that you will find out how powerful these techniques can be. The more emotion you put into them, the more realistic and precise your visualizations, and the more intense focus you use, the more these triggers will change your state to positive emotions and "trick" your body into being more energetic and productive.

Many people will not actually use these triggers. In fact, some will say it is a bunch of nonsense. That's okay. Others will find that these triggers help them stay in a positive state, which enables them to do more and thus achieve more. Some of the triggers will work for some people better than others. One good thing about this book is there are many different triggers to chose from. After experimenting with them, a person can choose to use the ones that work the best for their situation and personality.

I still don't know if I'd call this book "mental toughness." That term still means something different to me. However, if you want to learn triggering and visualization techniques to keep your motivation and focus high in order to pursue dreams and goals more effectively, this book is a great resource to learn those skills.

Alain Burrese, J.D. is a mediator/attorney with Bennett Law Office P.C. and an author/speaker through his own company Burrese Enterprises Inc. He teaches people to live with the warrior's edge through his writing and speaking on a variety of topics focusing on the business areas of negotiation and success principles as well as self-defense and safety topics. He is the author of Hard-Won Wisdom From the School of Hard Knocks, several instructional dvds, and numerous articles. You can find out more about Alain Burrese at his websites http://www.burrese.com and http://bennettlawofficepc.com

Discover How to Gain Self Confidence and Improve Yourself With Easy Methods You Can Do Right Now!

2009-09-05T00:41:00.001-07:00

Many people don't have any idea about how to gain self confidence. All of us have our flaws in place. However, we are also useful each in our own way. Therefore, if there is anyone around you who is trying to make you feel useless, then immediately state otherwise. You need to be confident of yourself before exuding it to others.

The more you listen to others who place restrictions on your capabilities the more you start to believe in the impossibility of things. The main thing about how to gain self confidence is to believe that you can do anything you put your mind to if you want to.

Think well about yourself. Be rational about your success and don't blow your failures out of proportion. We all have our good times, and we have our bad times. A confident person will take the good times as it comes and will handle the bad times with much more ease.

If you don't take care of your self confidence you will be stuck in a never ending cycle of low self esteem and depression. Your opinion of yourself will be low at all times. You will never realize your potential. Therefore, it is important to be around people who will boost your confidence and fill your mind with positive thoughts. Stay away from discouraging or intimidating people.

The pursuit of self confidence must come from within. Unless you want to change that about yourself, no one else can. But with the right techniques and tools you can accomplish amazing results.

If you want to discover how to gain self confidence and improve yourself in other areas in your life, check out my review of some of the most effective Self Confidence Boosters available.

Read my Quantum Mind Power Review To Find out More about this powerful program. You dont want to miss out on this Amazing Secret when you can solve your problems Today!

Exam Stress - How Self Hypnosis Provides Self Help For Exam Nerves

2009-09-05T00:36:00.001-07:00

You may feel excessive exam stress when you are faced with a test. It doesn't matter if the examination is for a certificate, degree or a simple measurement of your knowledge base. You still feel stressed about testing and this can lead to an inability to perform well.

Exam Stress and Your Thoughts

When you have excessive test nerves, you are unable to focus your mind on anything except the anxiety. The feelings of anxiousness flood your brain, making it impossible to concentrate. You can get control of your feelings and automatic nervous responses through self-hypnosis.

As you think about taking an examination, your mind fills with negative thoughts that lead to automatic physical reactions that you know all too well as exam stress when you are about to take a test. Your mind also develops images that work against your success as well.

Visualization and Stressed Testing

Your thoughts lead to images of yourself failing in some shape. You have developed a belief that you will not be able to concentrate because of exam stress. The visualization in your mind produces pictures of your inability to concentrate while being tested.

You have created a very strong self-image of a person who cannot take tests well and this leads to the inevitable exam stress that you feel. You can turn your thoughts and visions to your favor.

Using Self Hypnosis to Change Thoughts

You have the power in your mind to change your thought processes in another direction. This is very difficult to do on a conscious level, especially considering that you have put a lot of thought into making yourself a nervous test at the very thought of an examination.

When you use self-hypnosis, you are bypassing your conscious mind to create a new set of core beliefs that can help you feel calm and focused while you take any examination. The subconscious mind is receptive to believe the new thought patterns you instill deep in your mind.

Changing Your Self-Image

You can also use guided visualization thorough a self-hypnosis CD to help you see yourself successfully taking an examination. Your images shift from anxiety and clouded thoughts to relaxation and focus. These powerful images help you strengthen the belief that you can take tests with great ease.

Test-Taking Success

Your new thinking patterns and relaxed image of yourself create a new belief in your ability to effectively communicate what you have learned clearly when you are asked to do so. This sets of a completely new chain of physical responses that are calm and focused.

You can replace the nausea, nervousness and anxiety with a tenacious desire to express your understanding of various concepts. You have the ability and power necessary to succeed and you can tap into your strengths through self-hypnosis. You don't have to let exam stress stand in the way of your success.

J. Seymour is a writer with Self Help Recordings. 'Study And Exam Success' is an excellent recording by Duncan McColl, based on his decades of experience in powerful and classical clinical therapy. To find out more, visit Exam Stress A range of other self hypnosis products can be found here - Exams Self Help All of the recordings on Self Help Recordings are backed by an impressive sixty day guarantee, so to find out more simply click on the links.

Developing a Positive Attitude by Pretending

2009-09-04T19:02:00.001-07:00

Developing a positive attitude creates a positive attitude, just as energy produces more energy. Developing a positive attitude affects your own way of thinking, as well as the thinking of other people that surrounds you. In effect, no matter how bad or rotten a situation may look like, you can make it seem or appear better by at least pretending to have that kind of outlook-even if you yourself do not feel optimistic at all. In this case, even if you are just feigning to have a constructive outlook, the people around you would sense an optimistic energy and would be influenced to the point where they are developing a positive attitude relative to a given situation.

This feigned positive attitude would also have a huge deal of favorable response and influence on anybody that you have to encounter with which can be an answer to your problem as well-even if they're not exactly included in the solution to the problem. If for example, your company is on the edge of bankruptcy, and you really need to visit the bank manager in how to get a loan to rebuild and continue your business despite the financial crisis no matter what. Now, how do you approach him? Of course, you do not want to walk right inside his office with tears welling in your eyes, begging and complaining about how terrible and unforgiving the business is.

Preferably, you would want to walk in with a hopeful smile pasted on your face and telling him optimistic and bright things about the company and your future plans, so he could see that you haven't given up hope on life, and that he could sense that there is a practicable plan in store. The point here is trying to depict or represent a positive attitude that a solution would be found in the offing that you simply refuse to believe the situation is beyond hope, and to let the team understand that you are carrying on and not calling it quits-even if you don't truly believe any of those yourself.

Pretending in possessing a positive attitude is not permitting to telling lies, however. The persons who are involved in trying to help resolve a problem must be told the truth of the situation though. This perception would clean their minds, and help them create good decision in connection to the problem at hand-which helps you also, and makes you believe as if your false positive attitude becomes real as well. In addition, you could fool yourself into possessing a positive attitude also. By feigning that you already have that positive attitude, you play it for so long that little by little, it becomes habitual-a learned stimulus.

This encouraging outlook that you get to portray each and every single day becomes real, even without you being aware of it all. If ever this happens, some people don't even recall or recognize that they were just pretending in the first place! They may begin to think it was for real all along.

The author of this article Amy Twain is a Self Improvement Coach who has been successfully coaching and guiding clients for many years. Amy recently decided to go public and share her knowledge and experience through her website http://www.innerzine.com You can sign up for her free newsletter and join her coaching program.

Meditation Within All The World's Religions

2009-09-04T18:58:00.001-07:00

Many people associate meditation with Far Eastern religions like Buddhism and Hinduism, and don't realize that there are also many forms of Judeo-Christian meditation, as well as meditations from other faiths. Below is an overview of meditation as it is generally viewed within each major religion, along with book suggestions and links to resources with more information.

In Buddhism, observing and stilling the mind are the key to recognizing the transience of all thoughts and emotions, in order to connect with eternal, non-personal awareness. Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World by Surya Das is a great book for learning the basics of Buddhism and meditation.

In Hinduism, meditating is the core practice for merging the mind with the energies operating beneath the physical world, through which the mind can ultimately merge with the source of these energies itself. Meditation is considered part of yoga practice - yoga means 'union' and meditation is considered the primary method for merging our awareness with the divine. Yoga periodicals such as Yoga Journal often feature beginning yoga meditation techniques.

In Kabbalah, often called Jewish mysticism, a form of meditation called 'hitbonenut', which involves contemplating a concept or light itself, is used to attain true, meta-intellectual knowledge. A good book for learning about incorporating meditation into mainstream Jewish traditions is Jewish Meditation: A Practical Guide by Aryeh Kaplan.

Eastern Orthodox Christianity incorporates the 'hesychasm', or Jesus prayer, performed in a meditative, chanting fashion, in order to connect with the heart of faith. For some more info, go to Hesychasm.

Roman Catholicism includes contemplative practices such as the rosary for lay people, and many silent contemplative practices for monastic initiates. St. Theresa of Avila was one of several Catholic mystics who wrote on the benefits of mental prayer. Check out her writings or the writings of Jesuit Ignatius Loyola for traditional Catholic meditations.

In Quaker meetings participants sit in silence, waiting for the 'inner light' to inspire someone to speak. Check out the writings of Mary Coelho, a modern Quaker and writer, for her insights on the role of quiet contemplation in modern Quakerism.

The Sufis within Islam incorporate both energy center and devotional meditation to merge with the 'beloved divine' responsible for life itself. Sufism has many branches and corresponding meditation techniques, but most are centered on love meditations. Check out How to do Sufi Meditation by Kuriakos for more information.

Taoism is the ancient Chinese mystic tradition and philosophy focused on balance and the interacting forces of yin/yang, passive/aggressive, masculine/feminine, and creating/receiving. Tai Chi is often considered a form of moving Taoist meditation. Sitting Taoist meditation focuses on similar themes of balance and flow.

The Bahai faith, a relatively new religious tradition, founded in 19-century Persia, emphasizes the spiritual unity of all humankind and the common themes of all world religions. Check out this information on Bahai meditation.

Lisa Erickson is a mom, meditation teacher, and writer. Visit her blog http://www.MommyMystic.wordpress.com for spiritual book reviews and information on meditation and spirituality.

Books On Financial Freedom

2009-09-04T13:22:00.001-07:00

Financial freedom is the most important thing a person can have, but it can also be very difficult to achieve. Most people will need assistance from an outside source. For those of you who cannot afford to hire a financial expert to manage your finances, there are many books available that will teach you how you can use your money wisely and eventually achieve financial freedom.

There are many financial experts, as well as people who have already achieved financial freedom, writing self-help books for people wanting to free themselves from the clutches of living in debt. The hardest part is choosing the right one. You will need to make sure that the advice you follow is the right one; you do not want to follow the wrong advice and go further in debt.

These books are not very expensive, and they are very helpful. They will be able to give you very valuable advice. There are also books available on the Internet that contain the same material.

If you are able to access the Internet, you should first look for online books on financial advice. This will save you money, considering these are usually free. If you have the need to have a paper copy of the book, there are many places from which you would be able to obtain one. Obviously, bookstores carry books of this nature. You will also be able to buy financial books on the Internet, since most major bookstores have a website where you can place orders. There are many websites available from which you can purchase your book. In fact, some of these websites will offer these books at a lesser price than if you buy them at a bookstore.

Debt is the number one cause of many problems in peoples lives. Getting out of debt is the first and most important step a person needs to take in the process of achieving financial freedom. If you think this task is too difficult to achieve without assistance, then it is best that you buy a book that will aid in your struggle to achieve financial freedom.

Financial Freedom provides detailed information on Financial Freedom, Steps To Financial Freedom, Financial Freedom Resources, Financial Freedom Services and more. Financial Freedom is affiliated with Commercial Equity Line Of Credit.

Self-Help Anxiety Curing Methods to Help You Fall Asleep

2009-09-04T13:15:00.001-07:00

Self-help anxiety curing methods can be extremely valuable if they are successfully implemented and help you with troubles falling asleep. Most people who suffer from anxiety or panic attacks have an especially difficult time getting a good night's rest. A lack of sleep will only heighten the chances for anxiety to take over your day.

For many that suffer from anxiety, bedtime is just another dreaded part of life. The thought of lying in bed in silence and letting thoughts run wild can be outright terrifying. I used to feel like this, and I wouldn't be able to fall asleep without the background noise of the television present. It's easy to let your thoughts take over and begin worrying about all the negative things that can happen tomorrow, or replaying any stressful events of the previous day.

The obvious truth is that these thoughts do you no good, and when you don't get the amount of sleep your body needs to function you're inviting anxiety into your life.

Self-Help Anxiety Tip # 1 - Think Positive

Bringing positive thoughts into your life will benefit you in multiple ways. It's really easy to fall into a habit of dwelling on negative thoughts all day long. We all know someone who takes this to an extreme and it's safe to say that this kind of person is never the life of the party. This type of person can bring everyone around them down, and if they exhibit worry or fear, those same feelings are likely to be become contagious as well.

Contrarily, positive speech and positive thinking can also catch on. Positive thinking can replace the habit of negative thinking. When you lie down at night to go to sleep, the first thoughts don't have to be about how horribly wrong your day may go tomorrow. Instead, you may just get into a habit of feeling great about what potential tomorrow holds and looking forward to the future.

Self-Help Anxiety Tip #2 - Exercise Regularly

If you haven't heard by now, exercise is healthy. I apologize for the sarcasm, but it seems many people don't quite understand just how much exercise can benefit your all around well-being. Sure you'll lose weight and feel good about yourself (as if that wasn't enough reason to exercise), but a regular exercise routine will dramatically reduce the amount of stress and anxiety in your life.

Try jogging a mile or lifting weights for 20 minutes the next time you feel anxiety taking over. After 20 minutes stress melts away and it's often replaced with a sense of elation. Exercise is a potent all-natural stress killer. If you do workout, or have in the past, I have no doubt this rings true for you. If you don't exert yourself often, give exercise a chance. One session won't change the way you look in the mirror, but you will immediately feel the effects of its anxiety diminishing power.

Secondly, on the days that you exercise, you won't be able to ignore the fact that sleep comes with less effort and is often uninterrupted. When you introduce a daily workout regimen into your life, a good night's sleep is a natural byproduct. When you combine the two, anxiety is less likely to be a part of your day, or sleepless night. Practicing both of these self-help anxiety curing methods will benefit many aspects of your life.

If you suffer from anxiety you're not alone. There's help available in various forms. If you'd like to learn some more effective self-help anxiety curing methods, visit Mike's site at:

http://self-helpanxiety.blogspot.com/

How to Escape the Hamster Wheel - Self Help Tips

2009-09-04T07:50:00.001-07:00

Do you ever feel like you're trapped on an out of control treadmill, running faster and faster, working harder and harder, yet not getting anywhere? Right now do you actually feel like you're losing ground, with all the bad economic news and political turmoil? If so, you aren't alone. Many, if not most people in the developed countries are feeling much the same. Trapped and forced to run endlessly, with no hope of ever achieving our life goals. It's been called the hamster wheel life.

We are surrounded by technological marvels. Our standard of living is beyond that of even the wealthiest rulers only a few generations ago. And we have access to an almost limitless selection of products and lifestyles. So why should we feel so trapped and stressed out?

I think we feel this way because we've lost our way. That is, we have lost touch with the traditions, customs, and rituals that people have traditionally based their lives around. Our lives are fast. We are always on the run, always behind schedule, always chasing the next goal. As a result, we experience most of life shallowly. That is, we don't have the time or the energy to delve deeply into the meaningful experiences of our lives. The hamster wheel doesn't stop and we don't have time.

We experience life shallowly. With endless interruptions and distractions, we don't have the time or energy to experience most things deeply or intensely. About the only things that can knock us off the hamster wheel for long are major crises. Family or personal disasters get our attention. So do massive disasters like September 11. But all too soon, we're back on the wheel, running for all we're worth, with our current events and experiences a blur, and our strongest impressions those left over from the latest disaster. No wonder we feel stressed out and helpless to achieve our personal goals.

You can escape the hamster wheel life. You don't have to sell everything you own and abandon modern life either. If you can bring some positive intense experiences into your life, and dive deeply into them, you can transform your experience. It doesn't take a huge commitment of time, or lots of experimentation either.

Until very recently, humans always included these kinds of experiences in their lives. There are tried and true traditions that you can easily incorporate into your own life to counteract much of what is wrong with our modern way of life. What we're talking about here is our natural way of life. All you need is a little help to find your way back to it.

There are nine types of positive experiences that successful and happy people across all cultures seem to share. To learn about these 9 intense experiences, and get yourself back on track to achieving your life goals, visit: http://www.your9intenseexperiences.info

William P. Smith is the author of dozens of how-to books and articles, and is busily working on adding more intense positive experiences to his own life.

Create Joy While Doing Boring Tasks

2009-09-04T07:44:00.001-07:00

There is something about doing chores and routine tasks that most people dread. Is it the repetitive actions-cleaning, laundry, cooking meals, gardening, etc.-that dulls our enthusiasm and imagination?

When I was nine, I remember the wave of boredom that washed over my mind when I was faced with yet another stack of dirty dishes that I was designated to wash and/or dry. No automatic dishwasher. My younger sister was designated to be the dryer, but, often feigned being sick, until the dishes were done, so I often washed and dried. With a family of six and sometimes hired help, the mountain of dishes often seemed insurmountable, especially when it was bread baking day. The huge mixing bowl, spoon, measuring items, and the 4 or 5 baking tins made the pile higher. Not to mention the milk separator needed to be washed, which was like having another stack of dishes-the huge milk strainer and bowl were nearly half my size.

The thought that I could find joy in these routine chores and tasks I was bored with came to me one morning. I realized that I could change my attitude, a different approach and challenge myself to see how fast I could get the task done. The first morning I estimated the time at thirty-minutes to do the breakfast dishes. Breakfast was not a bowl of cold cereal or a protein bar. Breakfast was bacon, ham, or sausage and eggs with pancakes or oatmeal with grapefruit sections or chunks or other fruit. The oatmeal breakfast was the easiest to clean up. I worked as fast as I could muster and was able to finish in twenty-five minutes.

I was proud of my ability to meet this challenge. Wow! I was onto something. From then on I would estimate the time for the stack that lay before me to see if I could beat that time. It worked to lessen the dullness and boredom of this routine chore. I still use this method today, not for doing dishes, as I have the best automatic dishwasher available, but, for all the other chores and errands life produces, it compels me to 'get things done in record time.'

Gardening is my time to commune with nature and have meditative time. Digging in the dirt is therapeutic for my psyche. And to add more benefit on gardening days, I don't need to go to the gym as I have gotten a light workout.

Many people tend to put off what they dislike doing. Surprisingly, as I learned at age nine, the best approach to unpleasant tasks or dull chores is to dive right in and be fully engaged in what one is doing.
You may not cherish doing laundry or mopping the floors, but you can view it as a loving act for both yourself and your family. Or you can add a challenge of seeing how quickly you can accomplish the task and set a bench mark on which to improve upon next time.

Other ways to change your attitude about chores is saying, 'Thank you,' to the universe for being able to have these chores in the surroundings you have-a lovely home and neighborhood. Each morning, see how quickly and neatly you can make your bed and take pride in knowing that you are taking good care of yourself and your environment.

Another way to create a pleasant experience, while doing mundane chores, is play your favorite music, singing or dancing about while you are working. Creating a mental list of all the things you are grateful for keeps your mind occupied on positive thoughts versus the negative thoughts of how boring and tedious the chores are.

You could ask a friend(s) to exchange helping each other with tasks such as: cleaning the garage, basement, painting or wallpapering a room, etc. Remember to look for joy in doing the mundane tasks and chores and all your life maintenance activities will be a source of enjoyment rather than a duty you simply tolerate.

Dorothy M. Neddermeyer, PhD, Life Coach, Hypnotherapist, Author, "101 Great Ways To Improve Your Life." Dr. Dorothy has the unique gift of connecting people with a broad range of profound principles that resonate in the deepest part of their being. She brings awareness to concepts not typically obvious to one's daily thoughts and feelings. http://www.drdorothy.net

Living Well Costs Less Than You Realize

2009-09-04T02:10:00.001-07:00

Actually, it has little or no cost at all. For you see, the ability to live well or have quality in lifestyle depends on where your Human Thermostat is set and the standards and values you hold for yourself.

We are all in business and we all have a life to live. Our business is securing the sustenance required to survive and that we deem important to comfort and continuation such as:

Home and shelter

Food and drink

Clothing and possessions

However, there are others areas of life that must be addressed during the years. Relationships are a major source of emotional extremes and often test the boundaries of comfort and discomfort. Health issues and overall physical and mental wellbeing and stability also eventually demand the attention of the individual. Even death is something that one must learn to face with dignity.

You don't have to go in circles or live in that inescapable rut. Simply turn up your Human Thermostat. Examine yourself with a clear and rational mind. Identify your weaknesses and learn to refine the person you are. Raise your standards as a human being. The quality of your life, what you are and will be and what you have is your choice. You choose to be who you are right now.

Define what it is in life that you envision as living well and the components that make up such a lifestyle. Those should be your focus. If you are ever going to attain a more vibrant and productive life you need to focus on the aspects that define what such a lifestyle means to you.

Stop wasting your time on an existence that doesn't fulfill you as a person.

Raise your personal standards and values

Refine your principles and morals

Redefine your character and personality

Once you learn to change the person you are you will find that the process also changes the results you get and ultimately what you become and have in life. You create your own future in the level of the Human Thermostat. Many of the people who are interested in extreme makeovers and personal change focus on weight, clothing and physical alterations.

True change comes through the revision of how you think and what you base your thought on. Once you think differently your mind responds by telling your body to function in a manner that will make this thought pattern a reality. If you raise your standards and live well your mind accepts this as true reality and guides you along this elevated lifestyle pattern.

Changing your belief structure and the way you live has little cost. Certainly, this is not a call to go out and purchase expensive items. This is a personal challenge to revise who you are and the way you think on a daily basis. Poor people think poorly. They surround themselves and marinade in poor and personal misery. They sit and ruminate over what has or might have been.

People who live exciting and fulfilling lives think at a higher level of quality. They are not accepting of mediocre results and don't seek the easiest or cheapest way. Because they think with quality, they also live with quality. They are not just living better, they are living smarter. Each day they seek out new methods of living a fun fulfilling life.

Think about your life right now. Are you focused on quality and living well or the negative issues and things that you see as problems? You are what you focus on the most. If you focus on problems your life will become a repository of just that. Learn to break that pattern of focusing on only the problems and negatives of life and begin to realign your focus on the quality and purpose of your living years.

AJ Gentry, author of The Human Life Map: The Secret Path Of Life, and Human Excellence Technologies, has pioneered human behavioral research for more than three decades. He invites you to visit the The Human Life Map | The Secret Path Of Life Blog http://www.thesecretpathoflife.com/blog or Hu2 Q&A Blogcast http://blog.thesecretpathoflife.com as he shares knowledge from precursors like Living Dynamics and Success Dynamics.

Success And Survival Tips From The Moab Desert

2009-09-04T02:05:00.001-07:00

Bear Grylls is the star in a series of TV programs which contain survival and success tips. In one episode, he visited the Moab desert. He explained his purpose:

"Thousands of tourists come here to experience the most dangerous desert in America but it is a place from which some never return. My mission - to show you the skills you need to survive here."

The Moab desert in Utah, North America is 3600 square miles of canyons, arches and sheer cliffs. Every year, over a million people visit this wilderness. Take one wrong turn and you could get lost for good.

Bear was taken into the Moab by helicopter to be placed in the position of a stranded hiker. All he had with him was a water bottle, a knife and a flint:

"I am going to show you how to survive in one of the toughest places on earth. The thermal updraft is so powerful here that it is too dangerous to land the chopper. There is only one way down - to abseil."

The chopper hovered at 100 feet. Bear could already feel the heat from the desert floor. He crossed himself and abseiled down. The helicopter disappeared into the distance. Bear commented:

"I am stranded 4000 feet above sea level on a rocky table top called a mesa and it's utterly desolate here and it is very, very hot - it's well over 110 F.

"The biggest killer in these deserts is heat stroke and dehydration and they both come on so quickly.

"In this situation the best advice is to stay put; get into the shade and wait to be rescued but sometimes help doesn't come so I am going to find my own way out.

"I know that two huge rivers run through the Moab, the Colorado and the Green. Finding one of them is going to be the key to getting out.

"This whole desert is going to be full of canyons and dry river beds and if I get down to one of these and follow it, it should eventually lead to a river and civilisation.

"Plants need water so signs of vegetation will show me that water could be nearby but, apart from the sage brush, I can't see any at all."

However, Bear could see the rim of a canyon in the distance He would find shade at the bottom and possibly water. There might be streams that would lead down to rivers.

His priority was to get off the mesa or table top - easier said than done on crumbly, sandstone rock. The descent is often the dangerous part of a climb. The risk when coming down a steep face is climbing into a position where you can't go up or down.

This is called getting rim rot. One man in that area got rim rot. He hung on for as long as he could and then fell to his death.

You can, if stuck, jump quite a distance by keeping your feet together, your knees slightly bent and rolling when you land so that your legs and back take some of the force. Bear made a jump of about fifteen feet. He landed and rolled successfully.

"It is the middle of the day and the sun is now at its hottest so I have to get to the safety of the shade of that canyon as soon as possible. Just being at 110F your body loses about a litre of water every hour and that is before you even start thinking about walking or climbing or moving.

"The longer I am exposed to the full strength of the sun, the greater the danger and the most important part of the body to keep cool is the head and the brain."

Bear cut his T shirt to create a head dress like that of Lawrence of Arabia:

"This will keep the sun off me and save me getting burnt to death. The body's internal temperature is usually 98.6F. Once the body's core temperature hits 105F, you've got heat stroke. When this happens, you become confused; the body goes into convulsions and you could fall into a coma.

"This whole place really is Mother Nature at her most unforgiving and this desert has to be one of the hardest places in the world just to stay alive any period of time."

Bear came across a canyon which he needed for the shade and water at the bottom. The water might lead to a river and then to civilization. Finding a way down could be his only chance of survival.

Bear could not find a way down on one side but climbed a giant boulder that bridged the gap to get to the other side. When climbing always try to keep three points of contact and use your leg strength rather than your arms.

These boulders can be unstable. Utah climber, Aron Ralston, was trapped by a boulder like this when it fell on him in a remote canyon in May 2003. He had to cut his own arm off with a penknife just below the elbow to escape.

Bear made it across but still could not find a way down. Search and rescue have a saying in these parts: "A lost hiker is down in 12 hours and dead in 24."

Eventually, he did find a way down. The shade in the canyons means that the temperature is 20 degrees less than on the desert floor above.

One way to find water is to look for clumps of vegetation and water hungry plants like tamarisks. Sure enough he found a water source nearby but it was stagnant and polluted. Drinking just one drop could cause serious illness.

If he followed the water it could bring him to a river. At some points he had to swim and came to a log jam which was caused by a flash flood. It was too unstable to climb over. The temperature of the water was about 50F.

If he was trapped in the water for just two hours, the body's core temperature would fall below 95F and hypothermia would set in.

Before attempting to swim under a log jam, breathe deeply and slowly to get rid of the carbon dioxide in your body and to lower your heart rate. Then go for it and keep calm.

Bear tried this and got to where he could see some light but then had to turn back. Four minutes is the maximum time any one can hold their breath under water unless you practice regularly. In water this cold, Bear would struggle to hold his breath for more than 30 seconds.

He got through on his second attempt and swam onwards. He came to a dead end. However, there was a way out up a gap in the canyon wall. It was narrow enough to use a 'chimney climb' - a technique originally used for getting out of wells.

Put one leg in front and one behind keeping the pressure in both directions. Eventually, Bear reached the top and jammed his fist between two rocks to pull himself up and finish the climb.

His plan to follow the canyon down to a river had failed and he was now back into the furnace of the desert and had still not found fresh water. Before he could make a new plan, he needed to get back into the shade.

The nearest shade was a rocky outcrop about an hour's hike away. He might find a cave there.

He was getting a bad head ache - half from dehydration and half from the glare of the sun. The history of desert travel is littered with stories of dehydrated hikers.

In Northern Mexico, the Tarahumara tribe can move up to 50 miles a day in the heat of the desert by taking in a mouthful of water and not swallowing it. As they breathe in through their noses the water keeps the incoming air hydrated.

Bear tried this and found it difficult not to drink the mouthful of water. However, he thought the technique worked to a certain extent.

But even his headdress was getting roasting hot in the midday heat - so he took it off and urinated on it. His urine was yellow - a sign that he was dehydrated. The wet headgear would keep his head smelly but cooler; it was on fire and extreme measures were necessary.

He still needed to get into the shade. He found a shady cave and lobbed some rocks in to scare out any snakes. Snakes die if they are out in the hottest part of the day. Like humans, they have to have shade.

Bear decided to rest in the shade and to move on in the early morning next day. This is the best time to travel in the desert. His main priority next morning was to find some water.

When you get up in the wild, shake out your clothing and tip out your boots since scorpions love to get into cool shady places.

If you find a scorpion crawling across you, you could use your thumb and index finger to grasp it on either side of the sting at the end. Only do this if you are an expert and have a quick and steady hand!

He was down to his last few drops of water. He listened for bees and insects or mosquitoes - they always live close to water.

He eventually found some water filtering through the rock and created a small reservoir to trap the water in. It looked murky but was probably slightly better quality than tap water.

He used a trumpet flower as drinking straw. Native Americans used it as a pipe because it has a hollow stem. He drank slowly. Guzzling can make you vomit. He filled his canteen and moved on refreshed.

He needed to find another plan for getting out of the desert. From high ground he could look out for the vegetation which would signal there was a river.

He saw a line of vegetation which strongly suggested the presence of a river. But he needed to find some food to give the energy to reach the river. He found two birds eggs.

Bird dropping, feathers and a broken egg shell gave away their location. All birds eggs are edible. Even the shell is a good source of calcium. He ate one egg raw with its shell but there is a risk of catching salmonella so he cooked the second one by breaking it onto a flat rock.

The heat must have been about 120F. The egg fried quickly and he scraped it up with his knife. One egg provided him with about 80 calories and with important minerals like zinc and iron.

The river vegetation he saw on the horizon was still about a day's hike away but when the landscape is uneven it is easy to go round in circles. Bear used a local plant to keep him heading in a straight line

These are compass cactuses which usually grow towards the south. If several point the same way, you can be confident they are pointing south:

"If I always know where south is, I can keep myself in a straight line while I'm heading for that river."

Bear was missing his family: "This whole landscape is so huge and it makes you feel pretty small and for the first time on this journey I am really missing my wife and two little boys and I wish they could be here to see this because it is just beautiful."

The Moab is part of the great basin desert, the highest desert in the US and the furthest north. It experiences extreme changes in temperature. At night it can drop as low as 40 F.

It was now getting cooler and soon would be cold. Bear collected firewood taking care not to disturb any snakes. He then went hunting. Dusk is a good time for hunting snakes since they are nocturnal hunters.

The Moab is home to a dozen different types of snake and they are all edible. To catch a snake, use a rock to stun it and then pin its head to the ground with a stick and crush its skull.

He came across a little rattler. The rattler was a 'faded midget' which is highly venomous. The snake made a rattling noise to warn off predators. Its poison could kill you if you were bitten and did not get treatment.

The 'faded midget' is a protected species so Bear would go hungry that night.

Mountain lions do their hunting in the dark as well. Bear needed a fire to keep warm and to ward off predators like the lion. Fire is a great morale booster in the wilderness.

In the night, Bear heard some rattling outside his cave. He banged his water bottle as snakes don't like vibrations. Next day, he moved on:

"I've been travelling for three days through the Moab desert in search of a river and, at last, I can see signs that I am getting closer."

He entered an area of dense vegetation and emerged to see a large river with a wind mill on the other side. The only river this size would be the Colorado - one of the most dangerous rivers in America:

"It may look placid but beneath the surface runs a powerful current. Every year unsuspecting tourists are swept away and drowned and along its edges are murky pools that could conceal quicksand."

Quicksand forms when a sandy area gets waterlogged. The sand and water mix to make a sludge that can suck you in.

Bear demonstrated how to escape from quicksand and how to cross a fast flowing river.

You escape from quicksand by not struggling. Lean forward and draw your arms out and put them on the ground in front of you then wriggle your way forward, pulling out one leg at a time, until you can do a monkey crawl forwards.

You cross a fast flowing river with a bed of quicksand by swimming rather than wading. You swim diagonally forward with the current which is deceptively strong in a river like the Colorado.

Bear reached the other side and then headed off looking for civilisation along the banks. He commented:

"If I've learned anything out here, it is just how fast this arid, parched, burning desert can sap the life out of you and, on your own, they say that only the strong and the lucky survive and I don't feel very strong. In fact I feel pretty wiped out but I do feel lucky and for me it is definitely time to start heading home."

Bear had spotted a house and headed toward the door.

We can learn several valuable survival and success lessons from this adventure:

Sometimes it is best to stay calm and do nothing. Just wait for help. If you panic and start rushing about without knowing what you are doing, you could make your situation much worse.

Sometimes it is best not to rely on others to help you. They may not show up. Just rely on yourself to get out of a tough situation. Believe in your own ability.

The power of knowledge is enormous. It can help you stay alive and it can help you achieve your goals like getting a healthy drink of water or climbing down a cliff face safely. Keep learning.

Have a workable plan and follow it. If you reach a dead end change your plan.

Make health and safety your priority. Understand what your body can and cannot take. Be aware of possible dangers and find solutions to deal with them.

Learn the skills which can help you survive and achieve your goals before you undertake anything dangerous.

If necessary, take extreme measures like taking a leak on your head covering.

Look for signs that you are on the right path.

Appreciate the beauty of tough environments but be grateful you don't live there!

If stuck and sinking in quicksand or any other overwhelming problem, keep calm and deal with one thing at a time, step by step.

Don't struggle against the current unless you have to and stay above the traps which can pull you down and stop your progress entirely.

Knowledge and steady consistent action can help you solve most problems. So keep learning and keep moving. Bear Grylls provides a great role model for this.

John Watson is an award winning teacher and 5th degree blackbelt martial arts instructor. He has written several ebooks on motivation and success topics. One of these can be found at http://www.motivationtoday.com/36_laws.php Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety.

Self Help Technique to Developing a Stronger Vocabulary

2009-09-03T20:28:00.001-07:00

We all know that people who have a stronger command of the English Language are considered smart and intelligent. This means more people are willing to listen to them and hear their words, even confide in them with problems and ask for solutions. If you can increase your vocabulary, you will find yourself and your career moving up in the world.

But how can one go about increasing their vocabulary, isn't that an awful lot of work and rote memorization you ask? Well, yes it is some work and yes, you will have to memorize many new words to insure that your new vocabulary is proficient and yet if you will apply a tactical program to combat this problem and a long-term approach, you will find yourself well on your way.

The best way I have found to increase my vocabulary is to take one page in the dictionary each day and read those words 10 times throughout the day, and make sure you use each word twice in a sentence or an email throughout the day. You will have to get rather creative to do this, but that makes it fun. I recommend you get a small dictionary with no more than 365 pages.

Believe me there will be plenty of new words you can add even in a small dictionary. The words that are hardest to use in a sentence are the words that are least likely used and thus, you will actually remember them much easier. Please think on this self-help technique and strategy to assist you in developing a stronger vocabulary and please start today!

Oh and if someone asks you why you are carrying around a dictionary all the time, tell them, they may also need to increase their vocabulary and will surely thank you later, they always do.

Lance Winslow - Lance Winslow's Bio. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/.

What Skills Are Required To Be A Good Translator?

2009-09-03T20:20:00.001-07:00

These days, people all across the globe generally believe that translation is just the involuntary substitution of languages, and therefore anybody can be a translator if she or he knows a foreign language. This perception is completely wrong, just having a good knowledge of foreign languages does not give any 100% assurance that a translation will be rendered reasonably well. In simple words translation requires skill to make the right and good analysis of the meaning in the target language. Moreover, a translator must be aware of the essence of the subject besides having a fine awareness of the language, including language rules, and spelling rules.

However, as the world is getting more globalize, in the past couple of years we are coming across the greatest challenge of text conversion and that is how to find the proper equilibrium between conveying the sense and beauty of the initial text and making the target conversion more efficient and effective. Only talented translators are competent of finding this sense of balance. So having a superior knowledge of the translation subject is just a part of the translation process.

A skilled text converter has something else and it is his/her talent. He or she must have the ability to make a virtual world where the source language author and the target language reader can network with one another. A talented text converter makes the best use of the nuance present in the source text in order to develop a fresh and effective target text.

The service that translators provide to enhance cultures and nurture languages has been noteworthy throughout history. Translators are transferring messages from one language to another, while preserving the underlying cultural ideas and values. Focusing on these facts, today some questions are being raised: what expertise is needed to encourage translating ability? How can someone turn into a good translator? If you are serious about becoming a successful translator, you must be able to fulfill or follow the following criteria:

1: The first and most important step is reading of different translations of different types of texts. An effective translating requires first-class knowledge, so approachable skills should be developed before performing any text conversion. An excellent translator has a complete knowledge of both source and target speech, so you must understand the diverse genres in both source and target verbal communication. It helps in improving reading aptitude in general, and gives insights, which can be subconsciously useful.

2: The second most vital talent required is the potential to write appropriately in both source and target languages. Writing is the chief work of a text converter. You should be well aware of different styles of writing and morals of editing in both source and target language. Factors like editing and proper punctuation usage increase the value and readability of the translation.

3. You should have listening ability to understand and alertness to grasp various expressions, idioms, and specific vocabulary and their uses. This talent is like an intuition and can't be developed easily, so to a certain extent it requires regular practice. Language intuition is like a necessity for all those who want to be proficient translators.

4. The act of translating is like accepting the significance of the source text within the framework of the source-language discourse. Now in order to enlarge this understanding, you must make yourself aware with cultural divergence and the diverse strategies present in the source and target verbal communication.

5. You should also be well aware of diverse registers, styles of speaking, and social stratification of both source and target languages. This socio-cultural awareness, helps in improving the quality of translations to a large level. It is very important to understand that the work of translating takes place in the socio-cultural framework; as a result it is very vital to evaluate translating activity only within a social perspective.

6. In order to develop excellent translation proficiency, you have to become yourself attentive of different knowledge-providing sources like bilingual dictionaries, encyclopedias and learn how to utilize them. Now using dictionaries requires a very technical proficiency. Words have diverse meanings in different circumstance, and therefore you have to perform a repetitive exercise to know the projected meaning of words in a specific situation.

7. In addition to this you should know the sentence structure of indirect speech and different figures of speech in the source language like hyperbole, irony, and meiosis. Having detail knowledge of these figures of speech will further help in changing your flaccid knowledge into active talent.

Finally, you should know that it takes much more to be a good and skilled translator. Talented translators are not made overnight, it definitely requires a significant investment in both source and target speech. For every talented text converter, switching simultaneously between two universes is one of the most demanding tasks. Consequently refined and systematic practice can lead to the development of skills that can further help in being a good translator.

Goihata a language translation company provides language translation services in Japanese, Spanish and English languages in Europe

Achieving Your Objectives Every Time - Goal Setting 101

2009-09-03T14:47:00.001-07:00

If you want to achieve your objectives in sports, politics, leadership, career or business then you are going to have to concentrate on the details, just as much as you do the end goal. In fact, you must break your end goal into little tiny goals that you can accomplish along the way and you must treat these little tiny goals as important as the dream or end goal.

Have you ever heard that saying; "The Devil is in the Details? Well, perhaps he really is and thus, if you do not pay attention to the details the devil will and he will destroy all your chances for success. It's not difficult to break your larger goals into smaller ones, you will find this comes quite naturally when you divide up tasks you need to accomplish when you do most anything.

The difference is that when you apply this strategy to your personal goals it will work just as easy as when you apply this technique to your educational or career goals. For instance, you cannot merely get a PhD in one step. You must take tons of classes, attend all the classes get decent grades, and then do your dissertation, which in itself must be broken down into many smaller tasks to complete such an undertaking.

The trick to achieving your Objectives Every Time is to use a strategy that works for you. I recommend that you try my Goal Setting 101Challenge. Take any goal you have big or small and break it into very tiny bite size tasks, assign each task to be completed a drop dead date, a date in which you must complete it.

Then stretch that out to the date you need to complete it by and schedule yourself out a work sheet and complete each little goal as if it were the big goal. Oh and you must reward yourself along the way for staying on target. If you do that you will accomplish your goal and have more confidence for the next important goal you set. Anything is possible.

"Lance Winslow" - Lance Winslow's Bio. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net

Book Review -- You Too Can Be Famous

2009-09-03T14:41:00.001-07:00

You know the drill. You are a small business owner with a product to sell; or perhaps an unknown writer with a story to tell the world. Or maybe, for whatever reason, the only product you are selling is yourself. In any case, you have a need for lots of publicity; preferably the kind that is free or at least inexpensive to obtain.

Getting free publicity in the age of the internet and electronic journalism should be a snap, right? Wrong! Tap a few search words into Google like "press kits", "or internet marketing" and you find yourself sliding down a slippery slope into a confusing jungle of esoteric terms and offers to solve all your publicity problems for a modest fee, or perhaps a series of affordable monthly payments. It's enough to make you tear your hair out and wonder why all this information couldn't be consolidated and presented in easy to understand, layman's terms.

Enter "You Can Be Famous!" Before I discuss the contents of this handy and extremely useful book, let me make two observations. First, do not be misled by the title. It is a catchy, almost irreverent title that invokes visions of Paris Hilton's latest antics or who's going to be on Oprah next. In fact, my first thought when I read the title was the words of a colleague who told me that I didn't need to write a book to be famous. All you need to do, he said, is to expose yourself on a busy street corner and you will get all the publicity you can handle. "You Can Be Famous!" offers no such advice. It is a serious book.

My second comment is that the author, Danek S. Kaus, knows what he is talking about, and it shows in his writing. He has worked as an editor, staff reporter, freelance journalist, and ghost writer and has published hundreds of articles in newspapers, magazines, and websites. As a publicist, he has helped clients to get free publicity in such major media as USA Today, The New York Times, and CNN. As the saying goes, when it comes to the publicity business, he has been around the block of few times.

"You Can Be Famous!" is made to order for someone like me who likes to attack a new subject in an orderly fashion. In a series of concise and well written chapters, the author leads the reader through the basics, starting with the simple concepts of publicity and advertising; and ending with discussions about such journalistic intricacies as "VNRs" and "B-Rolls." The book contains plenty of sample press releases, biographies and the like for the writing-challenged among us and I especially like that each chapter ends with a review of what was covered, along with a preview of what will be discussed next. In my opinion, these are must have items for any "how to" books.

When "You Can Be Famous" arrived on my desk I was in the process of promoting a book of my own. This afforded me the opportunity to not only review it but to road test it as well. So far I have found it to be enormously helpful and I suspect others who do not have the deep pockets to fund elaborate marketing plans will be equally impressed by its usefulness.

The book promises insider secrets to getting free publicity---and it delivers. Follow the checklist and do your homework, and you'll be on your way!

Ron Standerfer is a freelance writer and photographer who is a frequent contributor to Blogger News Network. His latest novel, The Eagle's Last Flight chronicles the life of an Air Force fighter pilot during the Cold War and Vietnam years. Details of his book can be found at http://www.theeagleslastflight.com

The Quandary With Goals

2009-09-03T09:04:00.001-07:00

Ok, two weeks into the new year. Have you met your goals for this year, yet? Ha! of course I'm just teasing. . .

Was it just me, or did you wade through a new year goal frenzy too?

First, I found myself repelled by the "be all you can be" type new year goal promotions. Last week, I even told myself that I was NOT going NEAR the gym until next month or later! Sure, I'm laughing now, but I was struck by the depth of my reaction to these type of goals.

Then a slew of messages, expressing the idea that "I'm already fabulous," grabbed my attention. THAT perspective felt great! In contrast to the other message, I got excited about my life, and was ready to dive into my amazing relationships, and work.

Whew! I know which approach I'm using! Here's why a feel good approach to goals is effective.

We're evolving creatures-always have been, and always will be. You evolve whether you're sitting on the couch day dreaming or running your 10th marathon! There's just no escaping your personal evolution. From this perspective, our attraction to personal improvement, goals, and New Year resolutions make sense, because they tap into our innate desire to expand.

Consider that your goals reflect what your soul already knows is true about you. On some level, you know that you're ALREADY that savvy business woman , or the mom, lovingly in the middle of her family, or that 145 lb strong and sexy woman. Yes, that is exactly who you are!

And yet, your mind needs to catch up to what our soul understands for your true self to emerge. Until then, you might believe that you need to have, do, or think the right thing to be who you want to be.

Can you see that the quandary that setting goals creates? How do you become who you already are? No wonder new year resolutions are so easy to break, they're unnecessary!

Think about it. How much energy do you expend trying to be the person who you already are?

Yes, of course there is an easier and much more enjoyable way to make room for your true nature to emerge.

Here are two suggestions.

Michael Neill suggests that you take at least a week off from working on yourself in any way. Don't try to change, improve, or fix yourself - just enjoy hanging out with your work, your hobbies and your loved ones.

Try this exercise. Let me know what you noticed? What brought you joy?

Here's a second approach.

Look at your goals, or things you want to accomplish this year, and ask yourself:

"How would I live my life if this goal was already met?"

I imagine that there are some beliefs, and actions within your description that you can incorporate in your life right away, yes? Let yourself step into being the person your goals represent. You're ready, and your goals reflect this.

You'll create a momentum that the universe will gladly match. Now THAT'S a sweet spot!

Judy is a Law of Attraction Coach for accomplished lesbian, bi and queer women who are ready to fully enjoy their fabulous life! Find her at http://www.dreamandflourish.com

How to Quickly Balance Your World

2009-09-03T09:00:00.001-07:00

I remember a dark time when I tried to balance everything in my life and failed miserably. I was like a new circus ringmaster on opening day trying to shape and juggle my roles as a mother, wife and business owner. The stress and fears were lions eating me alive.

How could I balance everything? It seemed impossible. I resorted to researching how others did it by voraciously reading self-help books which screamed at me "my way is best." Instead of finding direction, I became even more frustrated because their advice was conflicting. My life suddenly seemed even more chaotic. I was now angry with myself for not being able to follow what these best-selling authors told me to do. I was also livid, because here I was trying to live "the balanced life" helping others through workshops I gave to companies on effective communication, and I was spiraling downhill. My body began reflecting back to me what I was going through. Gaining weight...dropping weight...then ballooning bigger than ever before.

One day during a meditation I remembered an anonymous quote I once read. "A balancing act is different from living in balance." This struck me. Living in balance is divine order, which is our natural state. In order to live a balanced life I needed to align myself with divine order which is always in balanced. Here is one thing I learned from my meditations on balance which worked for me and I know will help you too:

RECOGNIZE DIVINE ORDER

The way to live a balanced life is to start from the inside out. Recognize you are a spiritual being living in a perfectly balanced universe which is always under divine order. When I look at any chaos in the world, it can all be attributed to man. So with that in mind, I realized I only need to align myself with the divine order which is already operating in my world. The way I could do that was thinking not of chaos in my life, but of everything around me which was balanced.

I began contemplating the seasons, the stars, and the solar system, all operating in divine order and balance. I thought of flowers blooming in springtime. I thought of babies being born and how their tiny bodies would grow. Then my thoughts went deep inside of me. I marveled at the synchronicity of my own body functioning in perfect order. My blood circulates, the cells dividing and multiplying with precision. My organs, heart, liver, kidneys and lungs all synchronize in perfect harmony with one another. I thought of how my muscles contract and relax to help me rise out of the bed in the morning so that I could simply walk across the room. What a miracle. What perfect balance right inside of me. When I take a few moments to stop whatever I am doing to simply take deep breaths, I align myself quickly with the natural balance of life.

We spend too much time thinking of what is wrong with our lives, and what is not work. Is it any wonder we are attracting more of the same? Take a few minutes out of the day to time to think of harmony, beauty, peace and what is working in your life to find your perfect balance and inner peace.

For more information on how to effectively communicate for better relationships, visit http://www.sportingtherightattitude.com

Janet Alston Jackson is author of "A Cry for Light: A Journey into Love," named winner of Christian Inspiration Award by USA Book News Award. She is a personal and professional growth expert. Sign up for upcoming teleconferences for better relationships on her websites: http://www.JanetAJackson.com

Sports Psychology - How to Build Self-Confidence - 4 Things Parents, Coaches and Athletes Must Know

2009-09-03T03:30:00.001-07:00

There are many text books, self-help books, journal articles and magazine articles on building self-concept, self confidence and self-esteem. Because I coach many athletes, I tend to spend a lot of time helping these clients to strengthen their self-confidence.

However, believing in one self is useful and important for just about everyone. It is important for Barack Obama. It is important for kids. And it is probably important for you.

Over the years, I have studied and developed many strategies and techniques for helping people to believe in themselves. When people feel positively about themselves, they tend to grow and they are better able to have rich and fulfilling lives.

Dr. Albert Bandura, of Stanford University, identified four components or life experiences which contribute to building one's self-confidence.

Mastery Experiences-Having a history of doing well at some event, some skill or some task can help to grow your confidence in yourself. So, it is useful to remind yourself of times when you felt you mastered some task or some skill.

Vicarious Learning-Seeing someone else who you can relate to do well at something or succeed at something can help you to believe that you, too, can succeed. A child seeing his friend hit a baseball can start to believe that he can put his bat on the ball with some power too.

Modeling Someone Who Inspires You-When you see someone who you admire do something well, you can imitate his or her actions. Watching a singer perform a song brilliantly can inspire a young artist to do the same thing. This "modeling" can help to grow your self-confidence.

Social Persuasion-Receiving encouraging words from a parent, a coach or someone you trust can help you to feel like you can do something successfully. This, too, can strengthen your self-confidence.

People who do not get any of these kinds of experiences are likely to have little or no self-confidence.

So, if you want to build self-confidence in yourself, in someone you care about or your child, consider facilitating one or all of these kinds experiences. If you do, confidence can build in a short period of time.

Jay P. Granat, Ph.D. is a psychotherapist and the founder of http://www.stayinthezone.com He has written several books and developed several programs to help people perform to their fullest potential at sports, at work and at school. Dr. Granat, a former university professor, has appeared in The New York Times, Good Morning America, AP, ESPN, Golf Digest, The BBC and The CBC. He can be reached at info@stayinthezone.com. His books include Zone Tennis and Get Into The Zone In Just One Minute. He is also the author of How To Get Into The Zone With Sport Psychology And Self-Hypnosis, How To Lower Your Golf Score With Sport Psychology And Self-Hypnosis, 101 Ways To Break Out Of A Hitting Slump and Bed Time Stories For Young Athletes. Golf Digest named Dr. Granat one of America's Top Ten Mental Gurus. He was recently featured in a documentary film on long distance running. Dr. Granat writes a weekly column for three newspapers. He just released a new program for bowlers.

A Review of "Transformational Life Coaching" - A Book For Mentors and Mentees Everywhere

2009-09-03T03:23:00.001-07:00

There are many different indicators in today's world demonstrating that humanity has reached a new level of awareness and appreciation for its own existence. If we look at the shifts in the types of occupations being pursued (and sought after), the abundance of life coaches and personal development mentors is like a mirror held up to our collective psyche. It seems to say that life is a precious experience, and we simply want to be sure that we're present for it in every way possible. To coin a somewhat overused phrase: We seek to live authentically.

In 1977, long before having a "life coach" was something commonly discussed at Starbucks, Dr. Cherie Carter-Scott published her first book on the subject and began a career that eventually, would find her labeled, "The Mother of Coaching." New Species (published in 1978) was to become the first of many books Dr. Scott would write on personal development. The long list includes, "Negaholics," a series of 'Rules' books - including "If Life is a Game, These are the Rules," and her most recent work, "Transformational Life Coaching."

Transformation Life Coaching throws open the doors to Life Coaching School and invites us all inside. Although written for those who either are, or espouse to become, mentors in the transformational movement, this book is an accessible "how to" for anyone. It welcomes all those who have spent time seeking to develop a better appreciation with their own life and how they intend to live it. Chapter 1 literally outlines what to look for and how to choose a coach, offering twenty-five important questions to discuss during the interview process.

In this book, Dr. Scott has created a virtual concordance of information, challenges for personal thought patterns and judgment, practical exercise and reference tools to use over and over. Embracing many global teachings, Dr. Scott often refers to the different chakras, or energy centers, as tools to release the ego and be of maximum service to others. As she explains, "You are in the process of opening up and taking control of your power," and by deeply understanding each energy center, we will be able to literally, "open and close each chakra at will."

Imagine being able to consciously open the fifth chakra (which controls speech and communication) in order to more fully participate in our marriage or work relationships - or being able to close down our first chakra, which embodies survival and security, so that we might be more risky and daring in our professional roles or fearlessly take on new adventures in life.

Dr. Scott has spent most of her professional life traveling the world and sharing her expertise on personal empowerment and development at every turn. On her website she shares that, "Writing a book is not done with the wave of a wand. It takes time to reflect and soul search for the universal truths related to each developmental phase." These same words could definitely be applied to the very journeys that Dr. Scott encourages us to make with our lives.

What we know about coaching is that it is not only sought after, but it is necessary in today's fast-paced world of endless challenges. From corporate teams to softball teams, being coached and coaching others on how to live as appreciatively and authenticity as possible is a proactive way to turn roadblocks into paving stones on your road of success.

Dr. Success (aka Andrea Goeglein, Ph.D.)

http://www.ServingSuccess.com

DrSuccess@ServingSuccess.com

(702) 243-4040

Making a Difference Through Organic Cleaning Products

2009-09-02T21:45:00.001-07:00

Recently, with the advent of environmental awareness that is prevalent in the media through all forms, care for Mother Nature has been gaining grounds as a priority today. I couldn't remember a time in the past where environmental awareness was as active as it is today. Everywhere, you can see all sorts of movies, videos, songs and everything else that talks about being aware of what even the most trivial things humans do, can cause effects on the world that we live in.

So many measures have been suggested and even implemented that aim to make the world we live in a better place for us and for the next generations. Even presidential campaigns incorporate environmental awareness to their platforms and this, I guess, is a strong indication that everyone from whatever nook in the world they may come from should follow suit and begin to start caring for the world.

There are many good examples of doing even simple things that, when done on larger scale and by so many people, can create a great positive impact on the environment. One of these things is the use of organic cleaning products and putting into practice the principles of natural cleaning in general.

Natural cleaning refers to the use of natural cleaning products that help minimize the risk of environmental degradation. Commercial cleaning products available today reek of toxic chemicals that can cause harmful effects to the environment in the long run. That's why, with environmental awareness at its peak, natural cleaning is proving to be a great alternative to switch to.

Using organic cleaning products is the core of natural cleaning. Instead of commercial cleaning products, we should employ cleaning products made from organic materials that are just as effective as those products that contain toxic chemicals. These cleaning products are safe, efficient and are less expensive than those that are manufactured by capitalists. These products contain no harmful chemicals that might ruin the natural flow and balance of nature. They are all natural and go back to nature (like all things do) in a natural way.

Unlike commercial cleaning products which have been synthetically made and may contain chemicals that are either non-biodegradable and do not mix well with the environment, cleaning products made from natural ingredients are completely safe to even use in large doses as they can revert back to their natural form and be reused by nature.

Example of these cleaning products can usually be found in your very own home, right in the comfort of your kitchen. These products include vinegar, washing soda, baking soda, lemon juice, lime juice, lemon and lime peel, among others. These things are common and are most likely bought for other purposes. But they can serve multiple functions, which makes them very cost-efficient.

The products mentioned above are considered the basics - or the basic cleaning products that, when combine well, can be used to makes pastes, sprays and other formulas for other purposes. With these products, you don't have to buy a separate product for a different purpose. All you need to do is a little research and you can create a cleaning product of your own using tested recipes that are available online.

As you can see, these kinds of cleaning products make a very good deal. They can serve so many purposes which make you save a lot more money. They are also safe and do less damage to the balance of nature than commercial cleaning products.

Organic cleaning products are becoming the best alternatives nowadays. Read more articles online if you are still skeptical about natural cleaning products as the new way of cleaning your home in a safe and natural way.

From Greedy to Grateful - Appreciating What You Have

2009-09-02T21:41:00.001-07:00

Not everyone is greedy, but most of us expect a lot out of life and often forget to be grateful for what we have already achieved and obtained. We seem to quickly jump from one accomplishment to the next. We go from receiving good things that we enjoy only briefly to quickly pursuing the next good thing we want. We are, for the most part, a pretty needy and wanting bunch of beings.

If you're at all familiar with the Law of Attraction (LOA), you know that it states that what you put your attention on you attract to you. When you are grateful for what you have, you will be more apt to attract more good to you. When you are greedy and constantly wanting more and the next best thing, you are not stopping to be grateful for what you just received. You are not even taking time to celebrate your success, to enjoy the accomplishment, to revel in having it. What you appreciate, appreciates. That is, what you offer gratitude for grows and more comes your way.

For example, say you wanted a promotion at work and you got it. Instead of making a party for your co-workers or family, you're already thinking about how you can get the next promotion. It's a never-ending list of "gimme's" when you don't offer gratitude. Gimme that new car, gimme that new suit, gimme that vacation. It's all right to want tangible objects and activities in our life that make us feel good, that we feel we've earned by our hard work. However, we become greedy when we don't take time to acknowledge all that we are getting and all that we have.

And if we throw a tantrum when we don't get what we want, that is certainly not being grateful, and we are less likely to get it. If you want to live your life by applying the LOA, you need to be grateful, offer blessings and thanks for what you have now, and more will be added to you. A grateful heart attracts, while a greedy one repels.

A great practice for giving gratitude, which I share with my life coaching clients, is to write in a daily success journal. Every night before going to sleep, write down five things you are grateful for. What was wonderful about your day? Who did you touch? Who touched you? How did you serve? How did you make a difference? What good came into your life? The small things are just as important as the bigger ones.

Are you grateful for your family, friends, pets, house, car, clothes, work, prosperity, health, and more? Write these in your journal as a way of appreciating what you have. Not only will you attract more good, but you will feel good. You will feel filled up with all you already have. Your grateful heart will replace your greedy one.

I am grateful for the moments I share with my wife and children. I'm also grateful for my profession as a life coach, which allows me to help people live better lives. Most of all, I'm grateful that I always have the ability to change.

How about you? What are you grateful for?

Lifestyle Mentor, Personal Coach, Author, Educator, and Entrepreneur, David B. Bohl is the creator of Slow Down FAST. To learn more about this step-by-step strategy for Living YOUR Life YOUR way, and to sign up for his 9 FREE Tips for Finding Happiness in a Fast-Paced World, free teleseminars, free Special Report, free bi-monthly ezine and more, go to: http://www.SlowDownFAST.com

Best Self Help Program - 11 Forgotten Laws Training

2009-09-02T16:05:00.001-07:00

Are you looking for the best self help program? The best one I've found is The 11 Forgotten Laws audio law of attraction training with Bob Proctor, from The Secret. In just a few short weeks, it's made a profound difference in my life.

We all approach self help programs with different needs. Although I'm happy with my life, I felt that I wasn't living up to my potential. I sensed that I could achieve more. Your needs will be different; perhaps you want to manifest a new job, a better income, or happier relationships.

"The 11 Forgotten Laws" is a new law of attraction training program. It's perfect for self help, because it's a six hour MP3 audio program, which you download to your computer. You can listen on your computer, or you can take it with you on your iPod, so you can listen while you're traveling or exercising.

With so many self help programs around, why do I consider that The 11 Forgotten Laws is the best?

Firstly, because it's practical.

It provides information in every session which you can put to use in your life immediately. The essence of the law of attraction is that you draw to you what you think about. That makes sense. However, applying this knowledge was always hard for me, until I started listening to this program.

I discovered that much of what I thought of as "thinking" wasn't thinking at all, and I really began to think, in the right way, and former problems just faded away.

Secondly, because The 11 Forgotten Laws is a conversation, it's not just an audio book. Bob Proctor chats with Mary Morrissey, so you get two points of view, and two sets of experiences -- many of their experiences will resonate with you, because you'll have similar experiences.

Thirdly, I value this program because it's laid out so well. It takes you to a whole new way of thinking and understanding step by step, with exercises you complete along the way.

If you're looking for the best self help program, I recommend The 11 Forgotten Laws. This audio training is a great investment in your future, and will help everyone around you too, as you change and start living the life of your dreams.

Have you tried and failed with The Secret? Here's a breakthrough: the 11 Forgotten Laws. It's complete training, with new, easy ways to bring prosperity and abundance into your life. Julia Denham has been working with the law of attraction for years; it works for her, when you discover the missing laws, it will work for you too. Visit her blog, The Law of Attraction and Prosperity at http://loa-prosperity.com/

Organic Food and Vegetarianism

2009-09-02T16:01:00.001-07:00

In this article, organic food vis-a-vis vegetarianism will be initially elaborated. Organic food has been previously described to be any food - vegetables, fruits, meat, processed food, food by-products - which is free from harmful chemicals and produced using all natural methods, processes and inputs. At some point, it must carry the organic certification seal, but some simple tips to distinguish organic from inorganic food have also been presented. On the other hand, vegetarianism, which has many levels, shall be defined here in broad terms, and that is the edible fruits and vegetables.

For some people, they learned and practiced organic food lifestyle first before becoming vegetarian. For others, they took the vegetarian road first before learning and being organic food consumer. Of course, there are also those who only consider themselves as vegetarian or simply into organic food lifestyle, whichever. They may be conscious of categorizing themselves or simply not aware of it.

Vegetarian consciousness has been more identified with spirituality. This consciousness has been as old as the Eastern Civilization. It is a discipline in attaining Oneness with the Divine or Yoga. Yogis and meditators believe that the physical body, being the temple of the soul, must be clean and therefore has to be purified. Being vegetarian is one way of purifying the body because vegetables eliminate physical wastes and toxins in the physical body. Scientific researches have already presented a lot of healing and cleansing properties of vegetables. An example is the way vegetable fibers do in eliminating wastes.

Organic food awareness, for its part, has been greatly brought about by the harmful effects of artificial and commercial food production. It is actually in advocacy stage as this caters only to a niche market Although it was a natural thing to consume natural food in the pre-historic age until the dawn of commercial production, this awareness was eventually replaced when the need for mass production arose. Therefore, while organic food awareness seems to be much older, the awareness dissipation caused by modernization has made it something new for the present age.

People who are becoming more aware of organic food consumption are indeed in the process of going back, of communing with nature and be at one with it. They would like to be as healthy as the people who once set their feet on earth. With the way cancer and other diseases are shortening the lifespan of people, organic food consumption is becoming a choice.

For vegetarians, this is the same process they are discovering and doing in their life. They also would like to go back, to be home. The Vegans have for thousands of years known the benefits of eating vegetables. These same benefits are the benefits being appreciated by organic food consumers. Both are now learning from each other.

Read more organic food articles and get ready for the organic and natural choice. Browse other related articles by visiting Natural and Organic Food Reviews. The site is dedicated to provide information about healthy habits and lifestyles, list and links to organic food stores and organic food online, campaigns and advocacy on organic and natural food, organic farming and production and a storehouse full of organic food tips. Exchange of information and comments are always welcome.

Rejection is an Illusion

2009-09-02T10:35:00.001-07:00

Does rejection exist? There's no such thing as failure or rejection. Let me ask you when you wiped out on your bike, did you feel rejected? Did you take it personally? No! It was simply a result. And it was simply a result you didn't like. So, you got back on the bike and committed yourself to obtaining a better result. You weren't offended that the bike "rejected" you or you experience "failure". You didn't feel "bad" because it was an "experience" and you probably learned from that experience.

"Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it." - William James Duran

If someone "rejects" you, and it's seldom personal, just a person making a decision. It could even be a poor decision on their part. If you "fail," it's just a matter of not doing something the way you'd like or the way someone else might like. Most opinions - even your own - are subjective. So, don't let the opinions of others dictate how you think about yourself. Compare yourself only to yourself, and set goals for you and your own fulfillment, not to impress others.

"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody." - Bill Cosby

A man named Spencer Silver was working to create a super glue or adhesive. After many attempts Mr. Silver developed a new adhesive, but it was super weak instead of super strong. Many of us would have labeled this experience as a "failure" or "rejection" Mr. Silver classified it as a result and stored the data. Then one Sunday four years later, another scientist named Mr. Arthur Fry was singing in the church's choir. He used markers to keep his place in the hymnals, but they kept falling out of the book. Remembering Mr. Silver's, "result" Mr. Fry used some of the super weak adhesive to coat his markers. Success! With the weak adhesive, the markers stayed in place, yet lifted off without damaging the pages. If Mr. Silver had thrown away his "failure" - Post It Notes would not be here today.

If you believe you've failed you may want to ask yourself some questions. What could I learn from this? How does this result help me? Remember each result is just another experience to learn and adjust bike path. If you don't like your results, change your approach and try for a different result. You might need to fine-tune your skills. Maybe you need to scoot your bike up to the curb when you climb on in order to prevent yourself from falling. Maybe what you need is some help, like a mentor or additional training. Maybe joining a professional organization will give you the contacts and information you need to take that step further. Explore, discover, and research! Find out what you need to do, and repeat, repeat, repeat!

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." - Thomas A. Edison

What is your definition for rejection? Most people define rejection as not obtaining my goal, examples: She turn me down for a date or He won't let me or something along those lines. But have you ever decided what your definition of rejection is or how did you develop your term for rejection?

Take a moment and define rejection in a way that supports your life and instantly your life will change. A student of mine, defined rejection has: "I need to start negotiating" could you guess he was in sales.

Once you have created your new definition practices, practices, practice, remember repetition is the mother of skill.

"Rejection or Failure are illusions the only true rejection or failure is not being allowed in heaven, if you don't believe me ask God yourself" - Bert J. Martinez

Bert J. Martinez

You Were Created to Succeed.

Born in Havana, Cuba, Bert Martinez started school in Spain, and went on to complete school in United States. As a young man he was amazed how some immigrants could a mass wealth or success so quickly while the majority struggle to survive. His curiosity has led to a life study of "Success" to determine what qualities successful people shared. Surprisingly, he found, age, gender, race, family history, education or the ability to speak English determined ones ability to be "Successful." Bert noticed one commonality; without fail, the successful managed their emotions differently. This discovery changed Bert's focus completely and he embarked on a life mission to help people Manage Their Emotions for Success and Fulfillment. His clients starting calling him "The Emotional Engineer" for his ability to wipe traumatic memories, fear, and even phobias in minutes.

http://www.bertmartinez.com or http://www.yourfinalspeaker.com

The Power of Alpha - Instant Meditation - Success, Vibrant Health and Happiness is in Your Hands!

2009-09-02T10:31:00.001-07:00

God has made us awesome and wonderful creatures. He has created us with a mind that can enable us to achieve whatever we set out to accomplish.

Most of us do not realize that we have the power in us to achieve the things that we most desire.

~ Man can shape circumstances, but circumstances should not be allowed to shape the man. We should seize upon circumstances as instruments by which to work. We
are to master them, but should not permit them to master us. ~
Ellen White

Did you know that you can easily re-program yourself to become the person you most desire to be?

How

By slowing your brainwaves to the Alpha Level. You can achieve the Alpha brainwave state by learning meditation techniques that can be time consuming and difficult to master. Or you can achieve instant meditation by listening to sound or music that has been recorded in the Alpha brainwave range.

All the changes that you want to make in your life are now at your fingertips!

~ The greatest discovery of the 19th century was not in the realm of the physical sciences, but the power of the subconscious mind touched by faith. Any individual
can tap into an eternal reservoir of power that will enable them to overcome any problem that may arise. ~
William James

What is Alpha?
Normally, we operate in the beta state. In this state our brain waves range from 15-26 HZ. When we are in the Alpha state our brain waves average range are around 7-12 HZ.

The Alpha state is a state of "aware relaxation". Emotions experienced in the alpha state include a sense of well being, pleasure and tranquility. The Alpha brainwave level appears to link the conscious to the subconscious mind.

At the Alpha level you can re-program yourself and reap numerous advantages. The Alpha brainwave state:

Calms and relaxes your body and mind. The brain's thought process is slowed and the mind is clear. Tension and stress just melts away.

Enhances Positive thinking and Emotional Healing. Releases Negative Attitudes. Research has found the Alpha Brainwave rhythm puts you in a Positive state of Mind and Mood, enabling you to erase your negative attitudes and gives you an overall feeling of Wellness.

When you are in Alpha state you are mentally able to Re-Program yourself to achieve anything you Desire:

Gain Complete Confidence
Stop Addictive Habits
Lose Weight
Release Disabling Fears
Goal Setting and Achieving
Achieve any success you desire.

~ Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will. ~
George Bernard Shaw

Accelerates Healing and enables you to Achieve Vibrant Health

Enhances your Learning Ability, Memory, Creativity and your Ability to Focus, Concentrate and Think more clearly.

Boosts Peak Performance - During speaking engagements, competitive sports and in all areas where peak performance is critical.

You achieve the Alpha brainwave state with ease when listening to music or sound recorded in the Alpha range. The best times to go to your Alpha level are first thing in the morning and again before you go to bed at night.

While listening, think about the things that you want to change in your life and visualize that you have already gained success in that area. Visualize what that looks like physically and what that feels like emotionally. Always visualize your success in the present tense.

For example, to heal an ailment, visualize your white blood cells surrounding and smothering the ailment until it is gone. Visualize yourself completely healthy and well.

Give yourself positive affirmations, such as the positive affirmation by French physician Emile Coue, "Everyday, in every way, I am getting better and better."

Practice Alpha meditation daily and gain the levels of success and healing you have been looking for. You have the power in you to change your life.

Petrea Dishman at http://www.awesomealpha.net

In Appreciation of William Cowper

2009-09-02T05:02:00.001-07:00

The nature of social man is in every human being, so a quest to be individual is clouded by the ideas and dogma of the social mind. Few seem immune to the many diseases of the mind and body that move through societies. In many ways we are trained to be sick. Our inborn desire to nurture causes illness to be rewarded with attention and concern from early age. When we observe new and modern diseases; AIDS, heart disease, diabetes, cancer we note that they now extend to our children manifesting in asthma, autism, and the multitude of imbalances, each bring the rewards of medicine and attention. Medical Doctors suppress the symptoms of these diseases from birth to the coffin and as a consequence you are never done with the medicine of suppression. The medical crisis lurks, but managing your mind and body discourages its appearance. Although medical society invites your dependence, you owe it to yourself to try and avoid the trappings of drugs and Iatrogenic (doctor caused) disease.

These traps include poisons from the modern processed food, modern medical medicine, inherited and modern mental delusion from the mind of others, including modern media and advertising that combine to feed fear into the universal mind creating a circle of circumstance that treats individuals like "straw dogs" (creatures made from straw that before the ceremony were worshiped, but after were trampled in the dirt). The power of big food, big medicine, and the attending hype complete a circle of human fear and destruction from which there is no easy release.

The nature of individual man is the quest of holistic inquiry. How can we find that path through life that matches our individual quest in life? How can we find the awareness to tell the difference between the noise of society and the story from within. William Cowper from his book, The Rush reflects that intention in this short vignette:

"Knowledge and wisdom, far from being one, have times of no connection.

Knowledge dwells, in heads replete with thoughts of other men:

Wisdom in minds attentive to their own."

William Cowper, The Rush

My name is Bill Tallmon. I offer alternative health disciplines in natural health care and give homeopathic and naturopathic consultations for people with both acute and chronic disease. My Doctorate degrees are Naturopathic Doctor and Doctor of Philosophy in Natural Health. I am a long time reader of ancient civilizations and ancient and modern philosophies of European, Greek, Chinese, Indian, Muslim, and other cultures. I am a collector of ancient and modern quotes. My Ph.D dissertation Natural Health and the Biotech Revolution investigates the modern wave of biotechnology and the potential impact on health.

I invite any comments concerning adding to or concerning this article.

E-mail drtallmon@charter.net

Book Review -- You Too Can Be Famous

2009-09-02T04:56:00.001-07:00

The book promises insider secrets to getting free publicity---and it delivers. Follow the checklist and do your homework, and you'll be on your way!

A One Minute Meditation

2009-09-01T23:18:00.001-07:00

Maybe learning to meditate intimidates you, and in any case it's tough to find the time for daily meditation. The solution to both problems is an easy meditation you can learn right now, that will only take a minute to do each day.

An Easy Meditation Technique

Breathing through your mouth expands your chest, but if you breath through your nose you'll notice how your abdomen extends. You see, nose-breathing causes the diaphram to pull air to the bottom of your lungs. This delivers a good dose of oxygen into your bloodstream and brain. It also tends to relax you.

Breathing through your nose is healthier, and it's the basis of this one-minute meditation. You simply close your eyes, let the tension go out of your muscles, let go of your thoughts (to the extent possible), and take four slow, deep breaths through your nose, paying attention to your breathing.

Is Meditation This Easy?

You're not likey to get you into a deep meditative state with this simple exercise. You will get benefits, though. These will almost certainly include a clearer mind and a reduction in stress.

Try to develop a "trigger" for your meditation. You can do your four breaths when you get into the car, for example, or right after lunch each day. A trigger is a place or time that reminds you, so your meditation becomes a habit.

Some may say this isn't "real" meditation, but there's nothing wrong with enjoying the relaxation you'll get from this technique. You can always pursue deeper meditation later, if you wish. In the meantime, remember that not everything has to be difficult to be of value. Why not do an easy one-minute meditation right now?

Steve Gillman writes on many self help topics including boosting brainpower, losing weight, meditation, habits of mind, creative problem solving, learning gratitude, generating luck and anything related to self improvement. You'll find more at http://www.SelfImprovementNow.com

King Solomon's Problems - Is Heaven's Door Open

2009-09-01T23:12:00.001-07:00

The old testament mentions King Solomon as the wealthiest person that ever lived on the earth at that time and there would be no one wealthier than him in the future. Does this qualify him as a rich person?

There is also the story of the talons. This story mentions a master who rewards one of his servants for using the money his master left him to make more money, by investing it. The slave that chose to bury his talons in the ground, to hide and protect them was considered to be slothful and wicked.

Does this mean that all men and women that invest their money and seek profits are good people? Why would these people be considered good and a rich man will have a hard time entering the kingdom of heaven?

Is there a difference between King Solomon's wealth and the rich person in the Bible verse, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

Now maybe these are just stories created by man and has nothing to do with what the Jewish and Christian God really thinks. But if there is a difference between King Solomon and the rich person, what's the difference? Does King Solomon really get to enter the kingdom of heaven?, or as Jesus mentioned, will it simply be harder for him to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Didn't King Solomon build God's temple and create a beautiful world for most Jewish people to live in? If you're not confused yet, you will be if you continue to read more of my biblical verses that just don't make sense.

If you're what I would consider one of God's ultimate believers in your religion but have no proof that it's true, but choose to answer with the simple statement," You'd Need to Believe or Have Faith." I would suggest you read other books about other religions or spiritual living .

This is just one example of what I would consider a story in the Bible. If you truly view the Bible as the ultimate guide for good living, do you get confused with certain statements or Bible verses. This really doesn't answer the question, whether or not someone like King Solomon actually gets to enter the kingdom of heaven. I used him as an example but there are many others that could have a life of riches on earth, but difficulties going to heaven if the statement Jesus made was correct about the rich man in the eye of the needle.

The Power of Alpha - Instant Meditation - Success, Vibrant Health and Happiness is in Your Hands!

2009-09-01T17:44:00.001-07:00

God has made us awesome and wonderful creatures. He has created us with a mind that can enable us to achieve whatever we set out to accomplish.

Most of us do not realize that we have the power in us to achieve the things that we most desire.

~ Man can shape circumstances, but circumstances should not be allowed to shape the man. We should seize upon circumstances as instruments by which to work. We
are to master them, but should not permit them to master us. ~
Ellen White

Did you know that you can easily re-program yourself to become the person you most desire to be?

How

All the changes that you want to make in your life are now at your fingertips!

~ The greatest discovery of the 19th century was not in the realm of the physical sciences, but the power of the subconscious mind touched by faith. Any individual
can tap into an eternal reservoir of power that will enable them to overcome any problem that may arise. ~
William James

What is Alpha?
Normally, we operate in the beta state. In this state our brain waves range from 15-26 HZ. When we are in the Alpha state our brain waves average range are around 7-12 HZ.

At the Alpha level you can re-program yourself and reap numerous advantages. The Alpha brainwave state:

Calms and relaxes your body and mind. The brain's thought process is slowed and the mind is clear. Tension and stress just melts away.

When you are in Alpha state you are mentally able to Re-Program yourself to achieve anything you Desire:

Gain Complete Confidence
Stop Addictive Habits
Lose Weight
Release Disabling Fears
Goal Setting and Achieving
Achieve any success you desire.

~ Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will. ~
George Bernard Shaw

Accelerates Healing and enables you to Achieve Vibrant Health

Enhances your Learning Ability, Memory, Creativity and your Ability to Focus, Concentrate and Think more clearly.

Boosts Peak Performance - During speaking engagements, competitive sports and in all areas where peak performance is critical.

For example, to heal an ailment, visualize your white blood cells surrounding and smothering the ailment until it is gone. Visualize yourself completely healthy and well.

Give yourself positive affirmations, such as the positive affirmation by French physician Emile Coue, "Everyday, in every way, I am getting better and better."

Practice Alpha meditation daily and gain the levels of success and healing you have been looking for. You have the power in you to change your life.

Petrea Dishman at http://www.awesomealpha.net

Primal Leadership - A Book Summary

2009-09-01T17:38:00.001-07:00

Primal leadership takes center stage in this book. This concept goes beyond the set of conventional competencies on the making of a leader. Beyond bottom line figures, this book takes a leap forward with the concept of primal leadership through a keen and in-depth understanding of emotional intelligence and its link to leading and building emotionally intelligent organizations.

The authors explore the idea of leadership as an emotional
function. They propose that the fundamental task of a leader is to create resonance at work, thereby unleashing positive traits and attributes in people. Emotionally intelligent leaders bring organizational success to the fore because they inspire, motivate and foster commitment in people.

Harness the power of primal leadership in this book and bring out the emotionally intelligent leader in you.

Primal Dimension of Leadership

The use of emotion in leadership functions is a primal task that sets leaders apart. Great leaders move people by channeling emotions in the right direction, whether it is in formulating corporate strategy in the boardroom or a series of action items in the shop floor.

Resonance Effect

The positive channeling of emotions that empowers people to be top performers is called resonance. The culture of resonance brings out the best in people. On the other hand, when leaders negatively drive emotions dissonance is created. Dissonance is not conducive to harmonious working relationships as it can undermine peoples potentials.

Key to Primal Leadership

Emotional intelligence is the foundation of making primal
leadership work. An emotionally intelligent leader knows how to handle himself and his relationship with the people he works with in order to drive up performance.

Good Moods, Good Work

A good mood is essential for a team to function effectively. It is crucial for a leader to foster positive working relationships because emotional conflicts in a group can hamper a teams performance.

A study of CEOs from Fortune 500 companies revealed that
positive overall mood of top management people leads to better cooperation and better business performance. This argument takes the view that it is top management that creates the conditions for workers to work well.

Resonant Leader

For emotionally intelligent leaders, resonance comes naturally in their dealings with people. Their actions reinforce synchrony within their team and within the organization. The strength of an emotionally resonant leader lies in the emotional bond he forms which allows people to collaborate with each other even in the face of change and uncertainty.

Four Dimensions of Emotional Intelligence

The creation of resonance is a hallmark of primal leadership that can only be fostered by emotionally intelligent leaders. For a leader to promote prime resonance in a group, it is important to understand the four EI competencies. Interestingly, these competencies are not innately inherent but are learned abilities. According to research, an effective leader typically demonstrates at least one competence among
the four dimensions.

1. Self-Awareness

2. Self-Management

3. Social Awareness

4. Relationship Management

Approaches to Leadership in a Nutshell

1. Visionary

2. Coaching

3. Affiliative

4. Democratic

5. Pacesetting

6. Commanding

The Five Discoveries of Self-Directed Learning

1. First Discovery: My ideal self Who do I want to be?

2. Second Discovery: My real self Who am I? What are my strengths and gaps?

3. Third Discovery: My learning agenda How can I build on my strengths while reducing my gaps?

4. Fourth Discovery: Experimenting with and practicing new behaviors, thoughts, and feelings to the point of mastery.

5. Fifth Discovery: Developing supportive and trusting
relationships that make change possible.

Final Notes

Primal leadership is anchored on emotions. These emotions have underlying neurological explanations to them such as the open loop system. Thus, a leader must work hard to obtain emotional intelligence competencies that will make him a resonant leader
because resonance is the key to primal leadership.

A resonant leader builds a culture of resonance by emonstrating emotionally intelligent abilities that permeate throughout the organization. A resonant leader aims to live a resonant life for him and his people in order to make resonant work. It is this kind of work that builds an emotionally intelligent
organization a kind of organization that can survive the changing business climate because it has built-in processes that can sustain change.

By: Regine P. Azurin and Yvette Pantilla

Regine Azurin is the President of BusinessSummaries.com, a company that provides business book summaries of the latest bestsellers for busy executives and entrepreneurs.

http://www.bizsum.com "A Lot Of Great Books....Too Little Time To Read" Free Book Summaries Of Latest Bestsellers for Busy Executives and Entrepreneurs

Mailto: mailto:freearticle@bizsum.com

BusinessSummaries is a BusinessSummaries.com service.

As You Thinketh

2009-09-01T12:06:00.001-07:00

As a being of Power, Intelligence, and Love, and the lord of his own thoughts, man holds the key to every situation, and contains within himself that transforming and regenerative agency by which he may make himself what he wills.
~James Allen

A few years ago, an engineering firm that I had some training business with went through a major shake-up. The outgoing president had, for years, been the only real "salesperson" within the organization, and as a result, the company was only growing at a rate that was determined by the number of people that he could see in the run of a day, week or year. Because he was the "front guy" for the company, the employees (project engineers, support staff, technicians etc.) were content to just do the job and move to the next project without looking for new business opportunities. The company, while growing minutely every year, was not nearly as productive as it should have been, simply because the employees thought that it wasn't their jobs to be selling, they thought instead that it was their jobs to do the technical work.

Enter a brand new CEO who had a history of creating effective productive work teams that worked together to build the organization. His first priority was to create a company understanding that "everyone sells!" Within the space of a year, company profits were almost double what they were the year before, and were growing steadily.

Creating this philosophy certainly wasn't easy. There were comments like, "I didn't go to engineering school for 5 years to be a salesman", or "I'm very good technically, but I can't sell". One person felt that the change was too much for him, and he left the company for greener pastures.

The new CEO knew that there would be a certain amount of flak thrown into the path of company growth, but he put it down as a necessary risk that he was more than willing to take. He believed that his people could bridge the gap and make the difference, and he made them believe in themselves.

Today, the people in this company are very much aligned to the business philosophy of everyone selling. As a matter of fact, they realize that their secured future within this company depends on them bringing in new business from both existing and new clients. A culture of competitiveness has been created.

No matter what the business practices and philosophies are in the leaders of organizations or groups today, the organizations for which they are responsible will take on the qualities of its leader. The leadership, or lack of it, creates the business culture, and the culture determines how people act and behave. That is the awesome responsibility of the leader.

If the leader is open and enthusiastic and is consistent in promoting the vision and core values of the organization, then you can rest assured that the people who make up the company will be the same way. Business will grow and employees will be productive and happy. On the contrary, if the leader is an inconsistent and thoughtless dictator, then the people will morph into that same picture before long and business will decline and employees will be seen applying for and searching for alternate employment.

Whatever the case, it is the core values and principles of the leader that are followed. In everyday life, as in business, it is the same: we are who we think we are, and we act according to our core values and beliefs. In his book "As A Man Thinketh", James Allen said in the opening chapter: Man is made or unmade by himself; in the armory of thought he forges the weapons by which he destroys himself. He also fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choice and true application of thought, man ascends to the Divine Perfection; by the abuse and wrong application of thought, he descends below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all the grades of character, and man is their maker and master.

So, if it is true that we are what we think we are, and what we think, we are, which thoughts are leading you? Are you an optimist who always sees a better way, or do you have pessimistic tendencies that when you see an obstacle you give up? Do circumstances guide you, or do you create your own? Do you take on a willing attitude towards leadership, or do you hide out in your office?

As you are carrying on with your life and business, remember that people who are influenced by your actions and decisions are watching you, and will emulate your actions. What they see you do, they will do, and what see you not doing, they will not do... so, what kind of leader will you be? Will you set the bar high and coach people to a higher level by training positive thinking and actions, or will you be a dictator and demand that people change and not give them a good reason to do so except that you demand it. Remember that Bad thinking leads to bad decisions, bad decisions lead to bad actions, bad actions lead to bad habits, bad habits lead to bad character and bad character leads to a bad destiny... But right thinking leads to good decisions, right decisions leads to right actions, right actions lead to right habits, right habits lead to right character and right character leads to right destination!

Make this your best week ever!
Paul

2008 Paul Kearley CS, For 22 years, Paul Kearley has thrived in the personal development and coaching business. As a Master Business Coach, Paul's passion is in developing and creating increased potential, and coaching people to create success.

A newspaper columnist, and editor for "E-Motion", his own weekly ezine, and author of 3 e-books, Paul writes articles that address the everyday challenges we all have and face in life and in business, and offers suggestions for success.

If you'd like to connect with Paul to discuss your personal or business strategies or to subscribe to "E-Motion" , simply visit http://www.mustthinking.com or send an e-mail to carnegie@nbnet.nb.ca

Visit http://www.mustthinking.com to review and purchase my NEW E-Book MUST Thinking: An easy four step guide for creating the results you want"

21 Days To Creating Your Dream Life

2009-09-01T11:59:00.001-07:00

Are you one of those people who believe that good fortune, success, blooming health and all the perks of a wealthy lifestyle comes to a select few, who somehow have managed to win life's lottery? Are you one of life's ordinary people - humdrum job, humdrum life? Do you believe the gap between where you are and where you want to be is just too big and can never be reached?

Answer yes to any of the above and you need to read this book.

You see too many of us think that success will always be just out of our grasp; that we will never have the good fortune to have a life that fits on the cover of our favorite magazine, or any publication that we hold dear. What we fail to realize is that this type of thinking is one of the barriers that are holding us back from our success. That's right - if you think that you can't succeed and live the life you want to live, you will be right - every time.

You see, the Universe is a wondrous place and whether you believe in it in a spiritual sense or not, the Universe has this way of looking out for you and giving you what you want, all the time. Unfortunately too many of us spend our time complaining about what we haven't got, and don't take the time to consider that it is our complaints that are coming true in our lives: not our dreams, our desires or our goals. But I am getting ahead of myself. Suffice to say at this point - you have a lot more power to change your life, than you can ever imagine.

You have a desire to change your life - otherwise you would not be reading this. But I am willing to bet that you don't know how to go about it. I am also willing to bet that there is a part of you that is just a bit scared of succeeding - I mean what would that do to your self-esteem; to your relationships with family, friends and co-workers and to the way you live your life? Change is always a scary prospect, but if you are in control of the change process then it doesn't have to be a negative experience. This book will show you how you can control your life to the point where you are living where you want to be, and doing what you want to do, rather than what you are doing right now.

If you have the desire to change your life and move forward now, today, take a chance, go order the book called "21 Days To Creating Your Dream Life" available exclusively at http://www.stephenmark.com

Stephen Mark is an extremely motivated Entrepreneur, turned Author and motivator to help people overcome obstacles in everyday life at work and at play.

"My mission is to achieve financial abundance while sharing my knowledge and talents with others."

Why Aren't You Using the Secrets of Self Help to Be Happy?

2009-09-01T06:33:00.001-07:00

Now that you are reading this article, chances are, you are looking for tips and self help to be happy in your life. In today's hectic world, there are many people who are stressed out so this is not unusual. The real object of human existence is after all to be happy. In fact, this is why we want more money, more quality time, more comfort and so on. As the Dalai Lama said "The purpose of life is to BE HAPPY".

Because the sad part is that there are many people who do have more money, more quality time and more comfort but still feel unhappy.

One of the biggest information searches is for free self help ebooks and personal development articles to help people to be happy.

There is many a free self help ebook online. The key is to find something that feels right for you at the time of your search. There are self help books that were written many years ago by authors of a different era, some were written about a decade ago and some, only a few years ago. The self help books of long ago may be interesting, but these are cumbersome in the fact that the English used is more complex than what we are used to now.

Getting the self help to be happier in life should be simple and straight forward. Like C. Kingsley said "We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really HAPPY is something to be ENTHUSIASTIC about."

I have found a self help website created by Helene Malmsio that has around 200 free self help books in many subjects to suit the various areas of your life that needs some self improvement. It is unusual, as this site doesn't need you to register or pay membership fees, or even to subscribe to a newsletter, to be able to download as many self help ebooks as you want. Some sites actually require you to be a registered member in order for you to use its online self help features which you can access through the links on the site, or through an interface.

The following is an excerpt from the site to help you better manage your emotions:
You might look at the following strategy and think "Oh No! Not more of this simplistic - quick fix - nonsense". Please don't discard this powerful concept just because it is so SIMPLE. Simple doesn't always mean EASY. You have to apply yourself - consistently - with a genuine desire to improve your emotional wellbeing, THEN you will get powerful results.

Go on - Try this straightforward self help exercise - answer the questions and notice how you feel when you think about the answers......

"What am I most enjoying in my life right now?" (as Tony Robbins says, don't say "Nothing!" Instead ask yourself "If I could be enjoying something in my life right now, what would that be?")

Then ask yourself: "What about that do I enjoy?"

Then ask yourself: "How does that make me feel?"

Then next ask yourself: "What am I most happy about in my life right now?"

Then ask yourself: "What about that makes me feel happy?"

Notice how your emotions react to the experience of dwelling or thinking about the good and sweet things in your life. If you like the feeling and want more of it, just keep asking yourself the right questions.
When you start each day asking yourself questions that generate a feeling of pleasure, excitement, enthusiasm, just by the act of answering them, your day gets off on the right path.

Try designing self help questions that suit your life or interests, maybe straightforward ones like

* What am I excited about in my life now?
* What am I grateful about in my life now?
* What am I most looking forward to in my life today?

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to apply this self help strategy, do you? All you need is the DESIRE to improve your day and then make the commitment to actually APPLY it every morning for at least 30 days. It will work.

Any self help tool, no matter how powerful, only works when you work it.
So what is stopping you from using the secrets of self help to be happy? To quote Abraham Lincoln "Most people are about as happy as they make up their mind to be."

Again, the key is to look for places that give you plenty of online free resources and tips on self help to be happy. Then remember, you need the commitment to becoming happier by implementing the tools and technology that you learn from them.

If you would like to get some of those free self help ebook downloads I mentioned in the article , just go to the site below where you can also get hundreds of self help articles on how to be happy and love your life here: http://www.personal-enterprise-self-help-resources.com/HAPPINESS-EMOTIONS.html

3 Steps to Compelling Communication

2009-09-01T06:28:00.000-07:00

Communication is the primary tool we use to interact with others. It is vital in the development of successful business and personal relationships. Helen Keller who was blind, deaf and mute needed to learn ways to communicate so she could participate in the world. Participating in everyday life requires the development of effective, respectful communication skills.

The 3 key steps to compelling communication are Listening, Awareness and Questions

Listening
Sometimes silence is the most effective listening tool available. Have you ever noticed people who frequently interrupt conversations in order to make their point? What is the message to the person who was talking? Other times people rush to speak as a way of showing they understand or perhaps they have a solution to offer. To really listen means to give someone your complete time and attention without judgment or assumptions.

An employee went to her manager for suggestions and support in dealing with a difficult client. As she began describing the situation, her boss kept interrupting her and making assumptions. She never got the chance to fully clarify what had occurred and as a result the recommendations she was given for handling the situation were not particularly relevant. The impact of being a good listener can bring positive returns in not only working with colleagues but with clients and suppliers as well. When you do not fully listen and understand the concerns, how can you deal with it?

Awareness
In order to be truly aware you need to recognize what you are saying and doing as well as noticing other people's actions and reactions. In the work world as you move your way up the ladder of responsibility you will have managers and bosses who guide you and give constructive criticism. However, if you dislike your job or some aspect of the job you need to be aware of how your dislike might be coming across. How do you deal with a colleague or boss with whom you are having problems? What is your response? As you become more aware of your thoughts and feelings about a challenging situation, you are better able to manage and plan your actions.

It is equally important to be aware of how others may be feeling or behaving. If you are interacting with people face to face you may notice their body language. In today's world this can sometimes be challenging as you may be doing a lot of communicating by computer and phone. Therefore it is important to pay attention to tone of voice and the tone of emails. Your awareness and sensitivity of yourself and others invites collaborative solutions to problems and concerns.

Questions
Asking people questions instead of making assumptions is a useful way of gathering information. However the kind of questions you ask and the tone of your voice is key. Questions which are critical and judgmental disrupt communication, whereas questions which come from a place of curiosity and inquiry invite more meaningful conversations.

According to the "Inquiry Institute" there are two main types of questions, "judging or learning." Questions which have an accusatory tone such as "who's at fault, why are they so irritating or why can't I do anything right," generally contribute to people being stuck. Questions which invite possibilities like "What can I learn from this, what are the options and how can we do it differently the next time," tend to produce a more positive outcome. Which kind of questions would you respond to more favorably?

To move your conversations forward in the direct you want them to be going remember to really listen to what people are saying, be aware of yourself and others and ask questions which invite collaboration.

Copyright 2008, Gail Solish, Communication and Relationship Coach. All rights reserved. Visit http://www.actualizeyourgoals.com for more tips and information on communication skills and developing positive business and personal relationships. Subscribe to the monthly newsletter "Actualize Your Goals".

Gail Solish, provides Executive/Personal coaching to managers, directors and executives focused on workplace development and relationship management. Claim your copy of "7 Keys to Effective Communication" Today at http://www.ActualizeYourGoals.com

Self-Help - Happiness - Want a Good Day?

2009-09-01T01:01:00.001-07:00

The Happy Musing for the Day: Sweet Holiday wishes touch us all.

The Holiday spirit is everywhere during the Holidays, inside and outside. Garlands hang from street posts. Sleighs filled with gifts are parked on neighborhood lawns. White lights twinkle around the edge of shop windows and colored lights dangle from the eaves of homes on every street. Children make paper chains to hang on trees. Cards arrive in the mail. Mothers bake sugar cookies and grandmothers bake gingerbread men. Presents are hidden under beds and in closets. Thoughts are of others. Smiles are everywhere. People are happy and wishing others the same. And every wish that goes out touches us all.

I once knew a man in Los Angeles named Harry. In fact his nickname was Never-A-Bad-Day-Harry because that's what he said when anyone asked how he was. The answer was permanently, "Never a bad day!"

Harry had come to this country from Sweden long ago. He was given a sum of money and shoved out the door. He was the black sheep of his family and they wanted no part of him. He got on a ship and sailed to America. By the time he arrived in New York he had lost all the money gambling.

From there he bounced around the country until he righted himself and landed on the West Coast. It was there that I met him. By this time he was settled in business and thriving. I was invited to his home for a party and was surprised to find that his entire place was covered with Christmas decorations - lights, trees, garlands, balls, bells, candles, tin foil and ribbons -- and it was the middle of summer. To Harry every day was Christmas. That's the way he lived. There was never a bad day. Perhaps that's the way we should all live -- full of good wishes inside and out.

Happy Holidays to you!

You may receive FREE Sally Huss' Happy Musings weekly by e-mail and previews of Sally's new self-help downloadable books (10 GREAT THOUGHTS ON LOVE and 10 GREAT THOUGHTS ON FRIENDSHIP) by going to http://www.sallyhuss.com/sallyhuss_signup.htm Also you may download her Have-It-All Formula FREE.

Sally Huss has been creating her bright and happy art, combining it with her whimsical and uplifting thoughts, for over 25 years. King Features syndicated these Happy Musings for newspapers 3 years ago.

You are allowed to use this article as long as you include the resource box, which is the first paragraph above.

Thought Provoking Religious Ideas on Christianity

2009-09-01T00:54:00.001-07:00

Do you ever wonder what ever happened to the Wise men's gifts that were given to Jesus's parents? Nobody ever talks about it and it was never mentioned again in the Bible. If it was mentioned again I would love to have somebody e-mail me some more information on what Joseph and Mary did with the gifts, that were given to the newborn King or in other words Jesus.

I didn't come up with this idea on my own, I was reading a book by George Seaver called Albert Schweitzer "The Man and His Mind." I found the book in a thrift store near Seattle, Washington while on vacation visiting one of my relatives. I heard a lot about Albert Schweitzer from various personal development and spiritual books and thought this book would be give me some insight on the man.

I really had no clue, that I would find something like this within the first few pages.

Here's a quote from the book.

When I was eight my father, at my own request, gave me a New Testament, which I read eagerly. Among the stories which interested me most was that of the Wise Man from the East. What did the parents of Jesus due, I asked myself, with the gold and other valuables that they got from the Wise men? How could they have been poor after that? And that the Wise men should never have troubled themselves again about the child Jesus, was to me uncomprehensible.

Now this is coming from an eight year old child, not someone who has researched biblical scripture their whole lives. What else are we missing in the Bible that doesn't make sense but we were trained to believe in our religions without ever questioning your religion . It's definitely something to think about and the next time you're reading something or listening to the news on TV, try to figure out if it's fact or fiction.

You definitely cannot believe everything you read or hear from outside sources. I heard once that the only things that are truly real are the things that never change. If you think about it, most things change and therefore would not be considered real.

Ponder That for a While.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Here's a good website if you're interested in, religious classics and looking for evidence

Greg is currently working on a religious and motivational articles filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion

Love Addiction, Approval Addiction

2009-08-31T19:28:00.001-07:00

In my experience as a counselor for 40 years, I have found that love addiction and approval addiction are far more prevalent than any other substance or process addictions. We live in a love-addicted, approval-addicted society.

What does it mean to be love/approval addicted? Below is a checklist for you to see if you are addicted to love and/or approval. Believing any of these may indicate love or approval addiction.

I believe that:

* My happiness and wellbeing are depended upon getting love from another person.

* My adequacy, lovability, and feelings of self-worth and self-esteem come from others liking me and approving of me.

* Others disapproval or rejection mean that Im not good enough.

* I cant make myself happy.

* I cant make myself as happy as someone else can.

* My best feelings come from outside myself, from how other people or a particular other person sees me and treats me.

* Others are responsible for my feelings. Therefore, if someone cares about me, he or she will never do anything that hurts or upsets me.

* I cant be alone. I feel like Ill die if Im alone.

* When Im hurt or upset, its someone elses fault.

* Its up to other people to make me feel good about myself by approving of me.

* Im not responsible for my feelings. Other people make me feel happy, sad, angry, frustrated, shut down, or depressed. When Im angry, someone makes me feel that way and is responsible for fixing my feelings.

* Im not responsible for my behavior. Other people make me yell, act crazy, get sick, laugh, cry, get violent, leave, or fail.

* Others are selfish if they do what they want instead of what I want or need.

* If Im not connected to someone, I will die.

* I cant handle my pain, especially the pain of disapproval, rejection, abandonment, the pain of being shut out - the pain of isolation and loneliness.

Living as a love or approval addict is a very hard way to live. You have to constantly make sure you say the right thing, do the right, and look right in order to get the needed love and approval. Your feelings are on a roller coaster from feeling the wonderful feelings that come from getting your love or approval fix to feeling the despair that comes when your supply the source of your love and approval - shuts down, gets angry or judgmental, or goes away.

THE UNDERLYING CAUSE OF LOVE AND APPROVAL ADDICTION

Love and approval addiction is rooted in self-abandonment. Imagine the feeling part of you as a child your inner child. When you are love or approval addicted, you have handed your inner child away for adoption. Instead of learning to take responsibility for your own happiness by loving and approving of yourself, you have handed your inner child away to others for love and approval making others responsible for your feelings. This inner self-abandonment will always cause the deep pain of low self-worth, making you dependent upon others for your sense of worth.

The sad thing about all of this is that love is the most abundant thing in the universe. We live in a sea of love it is always within us and all around us. It is our Source. When you learn to open to Spirit/God/Source, you become filled with love, with peace, with joy. The empty place within that yearns to be filled becomes so filled with love that it overflows to others. You find yourself desiring to give love rather than always trying to get it.

As long as you make others your Source, you will not find the love, peace and joy that you seek. By learning and practicing the Inner Bonding process that we teach, you can learn to fill yourself with love and heal your love and approval addictions.

Margaret Paul, Ph.D. is the best-selling author and co-author of eight books, including "Do I Have To Give Up Me To Be Loved By You?" and Healing Your Aloneness. She is the co-creator of the powerful Inner Bonding healing process. Learn Inner Bonding now! Visit her web site for a FREE Inner Bonding course: http://www.innerbonding.com or email her at margaret@innerbonding.com. Phone sessions available.

Get Your Goals Going With 7 Proven Steps

2009-08-31T19:23:00.001-07:00

Are you tired of your dreams being just wishful thinking or unattainable fantasies? One major difference between a dreamer and a successful person is the ability to achieve goals. The dreamer just dreams while the successful person puts their dreams into action. Goals are the blueprint to making your dreams a reality.

Get your goals going by following these 7 proven steps:

1. Determine your goals. Establishing clear goals lay the foundation of ultimately achieving them. Put your goals on paper. Be specific. When dreams are too vague, establishing goals becomes difficult. Have a clear vision of what you want the result to be. Ask yourself, "What do I really want?" Determining what goals you really want to accomplish will make the steps to achieving them easier to define.

2. Make a Commitment. You must give 100% to seeing your goals all the way through. Adopt a no excuses approach. Be honest with yourself. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to achieve your goals? Are you willing to devote your time, energy, and finances if necessary? Are you ready to make sacrifices? Is your dream worth fighting for? If the desire is strong enough, you will be able to stay on track and let nothing derail you. There is no need to move forward until you can commit.

3. Plan of Action. Now that your goals are clear, you must begin to put them in motion. Develop a plan of action- specific steps that lead to accomplishing your goals. It is amazing how many people stop at just determining their goals. Success is about doing, it is about action. Really focus on your goals one at a time and ask yourself, "What actions do I need to do to accomplish it?" Identify the outcome you want, and decide what steps are needed to move forward.

4. Give Yourself Deadlines. Look at your plan of action and determine at least 3 weekly tasks that will bring you closer to achieving each of your goals. If your goal is to lose 25 lbs. in 6 months, your action tasks could be to join a gym, make an appointment with a nutritionist, and remove all junk food from kitchen. Choose your deadline and stick to it- no excuses, no matter what. You must determine tasks and deadlines on a weekly basis. You can also consider what you want to accomplish in a year, 6 months, and 1 month to help establish your weekly tasks.

5. Get prepared for roadblocks. Once you are on the road to success, you can expect some bumps along the way. It will happen, so you might as well get prepared. What has stopped you before? Chances are those same obstacles will try to stop you again. Learn ways to blast the barriers that keep you from your dreams. Turn negative thoughts into positive ones, surround yourself with supportive people, don't just quit if you can't finish a task, read at the library if you are too distracted at home. Do whatever it takes to keep you on your mission. Always remember your best protection is to keep your eye on the prize. When discouragement comes, close your eyes and visualize achieving your goal. Take it a step further and really feel that moment of victory.

6. Get support. There is nothing like the support of a trusted friend who is willing to help you. They can keep you on track to achieving your goals. They will hold you accountable and ask you how you are doing with your weekly tasks. Knowing that you have to "check-in" with someone is a huge motivator. Go over your goals, plan of action, and weekly tasks with them. You can also do activities together. Determine and agree on how best they can help you. They will be your cheerleader- always rooting for you to win. Establish some time with them at least once a week. Let your friend know where you are and what needs to be achieved for the week. Share with them any successes and disappointments along the way.

7. Celebrate the small victories. It is easy to be discouraged when it takes time to achieve your goals. Experience the beauty and victory in accomplishing all the smaller tasks that lead to your ultimate desire. Celebrating the small successes is a great way to remain motivated and inspired.

You will get your goals going by following these 7 proven steps. Momentum is powerful. Goal setting is one of the most effective tools to transforming your life. So take the necessary action now and make your goals come true today. There is nothing as rewarding, exhilarating, and satisfying as seeing your goals become a reality.

Now get those goals going!

Allyson Spellman- "The Breakthrough Muse" is a life coach and an expert on breakthroughs to success that motivate and inspire individuals worldwide. Her proven techniques for elevating personal and professional achievement refresh, recharge, and renew the way one can achieve greatness, no matter what! To receive her free special report visit http://allysonspellman.com/Test/gen-step1.php

The Power of Gratitude - Gateway to Riches

2009-08-31T13:49:00.001-07:00

Gratitude is said to be the single most positive element to contribute to your Wellbeing, Fulfillment and Wealth

The Power of Attraction which we hear about so much today as so well described in "The Secret" is supercharged through Gratitude.

Gratitude doesn't cost anything but it generates huge riches.

You deserve to be Rich so be grateful and share your gratitude with others. A daily practice of Gratitude will lift and advance all areas of your life rapidly.

How to Eliminate Intrusive Thoughts

2009-08-31T13:44:00.001-07:00

In almost all cases of general anxiety, the driving factor fuelling the sensations is anxious thinking. Without addressing these intrusive thoughts, there can be little success in eliminating the root of the anxiety.

People who experience anxiety and panic attacks frequently have to deal with the negative side-effects of unwanted thoughts that creep into their minds. These thoughts can range from worries about health, concern over loved ones, or even fears that do not make any rational sense at all but continue to linger in the mind.

Sometimes, the unwanted intrusive thoughts come from previous experiences; other times they are simply bizarre, leaving the person worried as to why such strange thoughts are occurring. In all these cases, the person is upset by the anxious thoughts because they are causing distress and worry. I will guide you through a simple two-step process that is in part related to the One Move which I teach but tailored specifically to dealing with anxious thinking.

Anxious Intrusive ThoughtsTackling anxious intrusive thinking effectively requires a two-pronged approach. To eliminate the negative thinking patterns, there needs to be a shift in attitude along with specific visualization tools.

The Attitude Shift It is not the intrusive thoughts in themselves that cause you distress. It is how you are responding to those thoughts. It is the reaction you are having to the thoughts that enables them to have influence and power over you. In order to better understand how unwanted thoughts come about, it helps to paint a playful visual picture of how this happens. This is a fictional example and will help you better understand how to deal with the issue.

Imagine yourself standing on a street and all around you thoughts are floating lazily by. Some of the thoughts are your own, other thoughts are from outside sources you access such as newspapers, TV, magazines, etc. You notice that when you pay attention to a thought it gravitates nearer. The thoughts you ignore float on by.

When you focus and examine a thought up closely, you notice how it connects to another similar thought, and you find yourself jumping from one thought to the next. Sometimes these are practical, day-to-day thoughts such as bills, chores, etc., or the thoughts can themed by the past or a fantasy/daydream.

In our imagined scenario, you unexpectedly notice a thought hovering in front of you that scares you. This thought is called Fear X. X could be panic attacks, ill health, or something bizarre. You find it impossible not to look at the thought, and as you give it your full attention, this causes it to come closer and closer. When you examine the thought, you begin to react with fear as you do not like what you see. You further notice how that initial scary thought is connected to more worrying what if thoughts that you also examine in detail. The more you try to escape from the thought by pushing it away, the more it seems to follow you around as if it were stuck to you. You try to focus on more pleasant thoughts, but you find yourself continuously coming back to the fearful thought.

Intrusive Thoughts...

There is an expression of thoughts sticking like glue. The very act of reacting emotionally to the thought glues the thought all the more to you, and the more time you spend worrying and obsessing about the thought, the more that glue becomes hardened over time. The thought and all its associated connected thoughts are there in the morning when you wake and there at night when you are trying to get some sleep. The thought becomes stuck to your psyche because your emotional reaction to it is its sticking power. Thoughts are a form of energy, neither good nor bad. It is how we judge those thoughts that determines how much impact they have on our lives. Thoughts need firstly to be fed by attention, but what they really love is a good strong emotional reaction to make them stick!

Thoughts that stay with us are first attracted to us by the attention we pay them and then stuck firmly in place by the level of emotional reaction we have to them.

This is an important point. A thought-even negative intrusive thoughts-can only have an influence over you if you allow it to. The emotional reaction from us is a thoughts energy source. Whats interesting is that either a positive or a negative emotional reaction is fine for the thought. Energy and attention is what it is attracted to. Once you are having an emotional reaction to a thought, you will be regularly drawn to that thought until the emotional reaction has lost its energy and faded away.

For example, if someone you know pays you a very positive compliment, you may find yourself unintentionally drawn to that thought anytime you have a spare moment. You probably find it improves your overall level of confidence and mood throughout the day. Sadly however, we tend to focus less on the positive and more on the negative. We seem to forget those positive compliments all too easily and are drawn more frequently to what might upset us. Taking the opposite example, if someone you know insults you, I am sure that you find the emotional reaction to that thought much more intense and probably very long-lasting.

So the basic pattern of thinking is as follows:

If you are not engaged with an activity or task, your mind will tend to wander to any thoughts that you are having a strong emotional reaction to. In general, as they are the ones that you are probably reacting most strongly to, angry or fearful thoughts seem to surface quickly.

What I am suggesting is that the most ineffective way to eliminate intrusive thoughts is not to try and suppress them. Thought suppression studies, (Wegner, Schneider, Carter, & White, 1987) have proven that the very act of trying to suppress a thought, only results in a higher frequency of unwanted intrusive thoughts occurring. This reoccurrence of the thought has been termed the rebound effect. Simply put: the more you try suppressing a thought, the more the unwanted thought keeps popping up (rebounding).

So how do we begin to tackle this problem of intrusive thoughts?

There needs to be a change of attitude. By a change in attitude, I mean a change in the way you have been reacting to the intrusive thoughts. A change in attitude will quickly disarm the emotional reaction you are having to the fearful thoughts. Once the emotional reaction has been significantly reduced, the anxious intrusive thoughts will dissipate. In the past you have probably tried to rid yourself of the thoughts by attempting to struggle free of them.

The trick, however, is not to attempt to be free of them but to have a new reaction to them when they run through your mind. We can never fully control what goes through our minds, but we can control how we react to what goes on there. That is the key difference between someone who gets caught up in fearful thinking and someone who does not.

The thoughts that terrify us are not fuelled by some unknown force; they are our own. We empower them and equally we dismiss them. When you have an uncomfortable thought you would rather not be thinking, your first reaction is usually to tense up internally and say to yourself, "Oh no, I don't like that idea. I don't want that thought right now. The very act of trying to push these intrusive thoughts away and then understandably getting upset when that does not work causes the thoughts to become more stuck to your psyche.

It's like saying to your mind over and over again "whatever you do, do not think of pink elephants," and guess what? You cant get a single thought in that is not related to pink elephants.

As long as you struggle with the thought, your mind, like a bold child, will keep returning to it. This is not to say your mind is maliciously working against you. It is better to compare the mind to a radar scanner that picks up on thoughts within us that have high levels of emotional reaction connected to them.

To not react emotionally to intrusive thoughts you need to learn to disempower the fear factor of the thought; then you must accept and be comfortable with whatever comes to mind. Don't hide from or push the anxious thoughts away.

So to take an example:

Say you have fear "X" going on in your mind. That fear can be virtually anything your mind can conceive. You know the thoughts are not a realistic fear, and you want them to stop interrupting your life.

Next time the fearful thought comes to mind, do not push it away. This is important.

Tell yourself that that is fine and that the thought can continue to play in your mind if it wishes, but you are not going to give it much notice and you are certainly not going to qualify it by reacting with fear. You know in your heart that the thought is very unlikely to happen. You have a deeper sense of trust and will not be tossed around emotionally all day by a thought. Say to yourself:

"Well that thought/fear is a possibility, but it is very remote and I am not going to worry about that right now. Today I am trusting that all is well."

What is of key important is not to get upset by the thoughts and feelings as they arise. To avoid any fearful emotional reaction to the fear/thought give the fear some cartoon characteristics.

Imagine, for example, it is Donald Duck telling you that "Something awful is going to happen. Aren't you scared?" Give the character a squeaky voice and make it a totally ridiculous scene. How can you take seriously an anxious duck with his big feet? This use of cartoon imagery reprograms the initial emotional reaction you might have had to the thought and eliminates any authority the thought may have over you. You are reducing the thoughts threat. When that is done, move your attention back to whatever you were doing. Remember, you are not trying to push the thought away or drown it out with some outside stimulus.

This takes practice in the beginning, but what will happen is that you will find yourself checking how you think/feel less and less during the day, and as it does not have a strong fearful emotion connected to it, your mind will not be drawn to troublesome intrusive thoughts. To put in another way, the thought becomes unstuck and fades away because the emotional reaction has been neutralized. In fact, that is the first step to moving away from anxious thoughtsneutrality. It is as if your mental energy was spinning in a negative cycle while you were caught in the anxious intrusive thoughts. Now, you are learning to stop the negative cycle, and move into neutral (see illustration below).

From this new position of neutrality, you will experience a much greater sense of clarity away from the confusion of an overanxious mind. Moving into this mindset of neutrality is your first step. Thoughts generally lead us in one direction or another -a positive cycle (peace/sense of control and order) or a negative cycle (anxiety/ fear/ disorder). The next step is to adopt a relaxed peaceful state of mind and move your energy into a positive cycle of thinking.

You might have wondered why it is that some people seem more susceptible to worries and unwanted intrusive thoughts than others. You now know the answer to that. The difference is that the people who seem carefree are the ones who are not reacting with a strong fearful emotion to an anxious thought. These people see the same array of thoughts as an anxious person, but they do not make a fearful thought a part of their lives. They dismiss the thought or laugh it off and have a sense of trust that things will work out fine. They see no point in reacting with fear to these thoughts, and that ensures the thought has no power or authority over them. You may feel that you are by nature an anxious person and that you will always react with fear to these thoughts because you have done so for years. That is not the case. Continuous or obsessive anxious thinking is a behavioral habit, and just like any habit it can be unlearned. I have outlined the quickest and most effective way to do this by using a unique shift in attitude. You can undo years of anxious thinking and reduce your level of general anxiety very quickly. All it takes is practice.

http://www.panic-and-anxiety-attacks.com/intrusive-thoughts.html

This article is copywritten material. Any requests for reprinting this article must be made to Joe Barry McDonagh

Joe Barry is an international panic disorder coach. His informative site on all issues related to panic and anxiety attacks can be found here:

http://www.panic-and-anxiety-attacks.com/

Keeping a Positive Attitude During the Financial Crisis

2009-08-31T08:06:00.001-07:00

The President tells us we have staved off a Great Depression with the giant mortgage crisis bail out. The Democratic Candidates tell us that the middle class is dying, people are losing their homes and jobs and the economy is in shambles. We all know that fuel prices are too high and the costs of nearly everything we buy are on the rise.

Treasury Secretary Paulson warns us we are not out of the woods yet and former FED Chairmen Greenspan tells us that this is a one in a century emergency and the 700 billion dollar bail out is the only plausible option. The Commercial Real Estate Industry says they might be next and the retail sector along with car sales are in trouble. GM may need a bail out and the Airlines are all on the verge of stalling out. Corporate America has announced massive lay-offs and huge consolidations, all bad news, very bad news.

So, with all this doom and gloom how on Earth is anyone going to keep a positive attitude? Well, they need too, as "consumer confidence" can often be the difference between economic collapse and a short recession. It's up to all of us now, our leaders have spoken and are taking action, this can work, but not without our help.

It's up to all Americans to think past the mass media hysteria, to believe in our financial system, and to allow it to work through this crisis. After all if you allow yourself to dip into negativity, all you are going to do is cause yourself stress and health issues. And in doing so, you will not be helping yourself, your family or our nation through these turbulent times.

"Lance Winslow" - Lance Winslow's Bio. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/.

Affirmations Don't Work, and How I Finally Got That They Do!

2009-08-31T08:00:00.001-07:00

If you've been around the EFT world for any length of time at all, you'll know it's generally believed that affirmations don't work. Until now that is, with this powerful new work by the masterful metaphysician Dr Sylvia Hartmann, called "Power Affirmations".

I like Sylvia Hartmann's approach to life and healing in general, so when I received an email about her new book I thought I'd have a read of her sales page anyway, even though I'm fairly convinced that affirmations pretty much don't work. Why they don't work is that we all have subconscious but powerful limiting beliefs, or "yes-buts", that trigger an internal argument or discomfort when we make statements that are clearly not true.

But, I trust Sylvia and I know she would not be wasting her time or mine writing about something that just doesn't work. Still, I did think - "What, Sylvia's writing about affirmations? Why?" - before I actually clicked on to her site. And I liked what I read, enough to decide that $20 wasn't a huge risk if it turned out to be more of the same old affirmation stuff, and I bought the book.

At just 40 pages "Power Affirmations" is a quick read in Sylvia's very conversational easy-read style.

Now, I have read a lot about positive affirmations, because part of me wants it to be true that making clear statements about how I want to experience life, will be enough to make it happen. For at least fifteen years I've studied many books and DVDs about affirmations, attended lectures, listened to the audios, run a subliminal program on my computer, and in more recent years even joined a membership site or two, all in the quest to find the key that would unlock the door that I would step through to finally "get it"!

But I never did get it. Everything I discovered seemed like so much soul-searching was required, and constant focus, and it was all something I would put off actually doing until I had more time. And the EFT explanation for WHY I didn't get it made sense; all my yes-buts were getting in the way. I've diligently worked on finding my yes-buts and clearing them, and I know there's a long way to go still.

I also know I've got to "feel" the result I want, because charging it up with emotion makes the affirmation more powerful. I teach people how to process their emotions, I know how to process my own, I GET the emotion stuff. But I just couldn't get connected to the big house or the flashy car or really any other hook. So I also couldn't visualize any of it - very frustrating!

But Dr Hartmann taught me, in two pages, how to put the emotion and the pictures in to anything! It is so simple, and so clear, why didn't I see it before? And that's what I love about her teaching style - she understands where most people trip over the basics, shows you how to step over and up, and then takes you deeply and easily into how and more importantly WHY to create your own affirmations.

She also taught a simple amazingly-powerful way to completely nix the yes-buts. I tried it and felt the most incredible shift in my energy, that was really unexpected. I'll be using it every day, easily and seamlessly!

She also covers things I've not read elsewhere, like meta affirmations and affirmation cascades, and her own unique Vega Pattern.

If you're looking for a book that gives you lists of affirmations about any particular subject, this is not the book for you. There are no lists. Also, Sylvia Hartmann has long explored the evolution of consciousness using the language of magic. This makes sense to me, but it might not make sense to you.

For just 40-some pages, this is an information-packed ebook. More importantly, it's an action-packed ebook, with teaching and tools that actually work! At the end of Power Affirmations, all I can say about it is: I get it. Finally!

If you want to finally "get" how affirmations can and will work for you, and how you can powerfully transform anything about your life, get your clarity from http://www.affirmationsdontwork.info.

How to Write Inspirational Articles for Newsletters

2009-08-31T02:32:00.001-07:00

Inspirational articles were once limited to self-help and religious publications, but they are just about everywhere now. (Think about those wildly popular Chicken Soup books or most of the stories in Reader's Digest, for example.) Inspirational articles can be very useful in newsletters, because they make a human connection between the newsletter publisher and the reader.

Well-written inspirational articles move people emotionally and motivate them to do something or to make a change of some sort. Nonprofit organizations can use these articles to motivate readers to volunteer, write letters of support, or make a donation. Businesses can use inspirational articles to create a positive public image, build brand loyalty, and encourage repeat business.

Good inspirational articles have five characteristics.

1. They are personal.

Inspirational articles are all about the power of personal connections. They should include very personal stories about real people's lives. Don't shy away from the emotion, as strong and powerful feelings are central to good inspirational articles. You aren't speaking to your readers' minds with these articles; you are speaking to their hearts and souls.

2. They involve an emotional struggle or challenging decision.

Clearly describe the struggles, obstacles, or difficult choices that the people in your article have faced. How did they recognize the problem, deal with it, and overcome it?

3. They paint a scene.

Help your readers visualize what the people in your story went through. Describe the physical locations where the events took place. But dont stop there. Appeal to your readers senses of smell, sound, taste, and touch.

4. They include a universal message.

Inspirational articles usually end with an epiphany. They enlighten us or remind us about the essential nature or meaning of some element of our daily lives. These are often very simple lessons -- the importance of family and friends, the joy in giving, the danger in stereotypes, or the value in facing our fears, for example.

5. They are true.

Your inspirational articles must always be true. It is OK to change the names or locations; just state that you have done so. Making up stories to play on your readers' emotions is unacceptable. If you are caught telling lies, you will destroy any trust your readers had in you and your organization.

What would make a good inspirational article for your organization? Think about the stories from work that you tell your friends and family. Consider interviewing a person whose life or work has changed dramatically as a result of your organization. The moments that inspire you to do the work you do will likely inspire your newsletter readers too.

Kivi Leroux Miller is president of Writing911.com, which provides free writing advice, tip sheets, e-courses, and in-person workshops for people who need to write well at work. She specializes in providing guidance to nonprofit organizations on newsletters, annual reports, and other publications. Visit http://www.Writing911.com to sign up for "Writing Tips," a free monthly e-newsletter that will help you improve your writing and your publications.

Do You Live Life on Default Or Do You Participate in Your Life

2009-08-31T02:25:00.001-07:00

It's incredible the number of people who do very little or no planning in their lives. Who is in charge? What is there to be gained from wandering about life from experience to experience without having any idea of where you are going? I like to think of it as though there is an auto-pilot flying your life - sometimes you'll get something that you really want or arrive somewhere you really want to be, but most of the time, you are simply going to get what you get.

In order to live your life with a sense of direction, you have to make some decisions. You have to decide:

Where you are going
What you want to be, do and have
How active you are going to be in pursuing your goals

I'm a firm believer that there is no pre-determined purpose to our lives and that ultimately, it makes no difference if you live your life set to default, or if you take an active role in your life's direction and purpose. I do get the sense that to live our lives set to default is to miss out on some of the wonderful journeys we are able to create for ourselves. If you constantly find yourself arriving at a new destination, that you didn't pre-plan or intend to arrive at, then surely you've simply been a passenger in your life and not the driver. Ultimately though, if you understand that you have the choice to participate or sit back and let it happen, then you make the choice from an informed position. There are many people who are unaware that they do have the choice to participate in life and it is these people who have the most to gain from reading these words.

So rather than being a passenger, decide where you wish to go, who you wish to be and what you wish to have in your life, and then take action and make it happen.

Dan O'Neil offers Life Coaching and personal development training services in the UK. He specialises in helping people improve their confidence, self esteem and work-life balance. Dan also writes a popular personal development blog.

Self Knowledge

2009-08-30T20:51:00.001-07:00

Self knowledge means more personal power. You can more effectively use a computer when you know more about it, and in the same way, you can more effectively use your own brainpower, mind and body when you understand them better. There is, however, one big stumbling block to learning more about ourselves. It is our tendency to rationalize, as demonstrated in the extreme in the following true story.

Jack, while hypnotized by his therapist, was given the post-hypnotic instruction to get up and put on his coat whenever the doctor touched his nose. Once out of the trance, he and the doctor talked. During the conversation, the doctor scratched his nose, and Jack immediately stood up and put on his coat.

The doctor asked why. Jack said "Oh, I thought we were finished," and he took off the coat. A few minutes later, the doctor touched his nose again, and Jack again immediately stood up and put on his coat. "It's getting cold in here," he explained. By the third time, it was getting more difficult for Jack to explain his behavior, yet he still tried to.

Now, is this scenario really unique to hypnosis? I don't think so. We are often just assuming that we know all that goes into our decisions and actions. Like poor Jack, we feel compelled to explain ourselves, and to believe our own explanations. Of course, this isn't self knowledge, but self explanation, or rationalization, and it is one of our strongest human habits.

Self Knowledge Versus Self Explanation

When a child throws a book at his brother, and his mother demands "Why would you do that!?" What usually happens? The child answers, "I don't know," which is true, but entirely unacceptable. With five seconds to come up with an answer, the best psychologists couldn't understand the child's action with certainty, yet a five-year-old is expected to do just that.

Though he may not understand, he learns quickly how to explain himself. With this pressure to explain, it is no wonder that by adulthood, we rarely say "I don't know" when asked about our behavior. Instead, we simply create an explanation. Isn't this a problem if we want true self knowledge? How do we learn the true causes of our behavior if we already have our explanations?

Self Knowledge - I Don't Know

A better approach is to say "I don't know." If it helps, follow it with "Maybe it's because of..." and let the explanations spill out, but don't be too quick to accept any of them. It isn't always necessary to explain.

For example, suppose you are avoiding a certain person. If you never know why you are avoiding them, isn't it better to leave the question open than to accept a false explanation based on a habit of self-justification and rationalization? When you leave questions unanswered, you may someday have a better understanding. A quick answer just means a quick stop in your thinking, and less self knowledge.

Why not just say, "I don't know." Isn't it better to learn to accept your ignorance, and to keep observing yourself? Don't let self-explanation get in the way of of self knowledge.

Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower and related topics for years. For more on How To Increase Brain Power, and to get the Brain Power Newsletter and other free gifts, visit: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com

You Can Achieve What You Want

2009-08-30T20:44:00.001-07:00

Many people find it difficult to set goals because they regard their goals as something difficult to achieve, as an impossible dream so they play it safe by avoiding thinking about what they want all together. Do you feel you are in this trap? How can you overcome it?

We all possess enormous creativity and can imagine anything we want. When we hold ourselves back for a long time from being creative it might be hard for us to free up our imagination. This is just a matter of practice: the more you do the imagination exercise the better you will become at it.

Now imagine, what goals would you pursue, what would you like to do, to have, to become if you knew you can't fail? Just let your imagination fly.

Remember when you were a child and your imagination was unimpeded by all the constraints imposed by our society, what dreams did you have? Try to remember your childhood wild dreams and start dreaming; let your dreams to take you where you want to be. To facilitate this process you can do this after half an hour of dancing or aerobics exercises to lighten up and let go.

Imagine that you are guaranteed the success, what would you do; what dreams would you have? Try to uncover your deepest desires. There must be something that you pushed deep into subconscious mind because you thought it was impossible to achieve; try to revive your deepest desires.

After that don't think about failure, just keep the image of what you want in your mind at all times. Twice a day do this visualization exercise in a deeply relaxed position and feel a deep gratitude as if you already received it. This will imprint your desire in you subconscious mind that will keep you alert to all the opportunities that will help you realize your dream.

Do you need help to make your dreams come true? Visit http://www.pathstopower.net for a free book and more details

Are you interested in natural health, weight loss, energy secrets? Visit http://www.nutrifitpower.com/ezine.html for free reports and more details

Lynn Alex is a Life-Skills Coach, Yoga Teacher and an American Board Certified Holistic Health Practitioner

How to Permanently Release the Pain of Disappointment and Rejection From Your Past

2009-08-30T15:16:00.001-07:00

Old hurts associated with memories of past disappointments have many negative consequences on a person's life. In short they severely constrict the potential of that individual ever achieving a state of joy and fulfillment.

When one experiences a disappointing or hurtful event, be it in one's relational, work or financial life, the memory of that event gets stored in that person's mind/body, i.e. their unconscious mind, along with the associated feelings of emotional pain. These memories, if you reflect on any of them, serve to continually deplete your Life Force Energy. What is the consequence of that to you?

Well for one it is killing you! After all when one's Life Force Energy is completely drained from their Physical Body are they not therefore technically dead?

While you are still alive however, and you have such memories inside you, they "are" killing you and this is associated with many of the following experiences:

Feeling unmotivated to be in life, weak, vulnerable, sad, anxious, depressed, ill, lacking self confidence, lacking self esteem, lacking self worth, unable to trust one's self or others, like hiding or running away from life and so on. All of this equates to you being in a depleted Life Force Energy state.

You see all of one's strength, confidence, self esteem, self worth, resilience, health, courage, happiness, joy, and love for life and so on are inherent qualities of your Life Force Energy. Hence if you are being depleted of it by negative disappointing memories that you carry inside you then you are in a compromised or handicapped state. How does it feel like to "live" (that's a joke) in such a state?

Nick Arrizza MD, a former Psychiatrist and Medical Doctor is an International Life, Executive, Organizational Tele-Coach, Author, Keynote Speaker, Trainer and Facilitator who lives in Toronto, Canada. He is also on Faculty at Akamai University in Hawaii. He is the CEO and Founder of Arrizza Performance Coaching Inc. and the developer of the powerful Mind Resonance Process (MRP).

A 1 hour free introductory MRP telephone consultation is available upon request by visiting my web site or emailing me at the address below. (You will be asked to cover your own long distance telephone charges)

Email: drnick@telecoaching4u.com

Living Well Costs Less Than You Realize

2009-08-30T15:10:00.001-07:00

We are all in business and we all have a life to live. Our business is securing the sustenance required to survive and that we deem important to comfort and continuation such as:

Home and shelter

Food and drink

Clothing and possessions

Stop wasting your time on an existence that doesn't fulfill you as a person.

Raise your personal standards and values

Refine your principles and morals

Redefine your character and personality