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Feb 2, 2010

The Great Secret

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Some days I just don’t know which way to turn.  I may feel paralyzed, fearful or just plan ornry. Here’s the great secret: no matter how paralyzed, fearful or upset we might be, there is an immediate solution.  Bless it all and just keep on breathing.

Thoughts are energetic things.  They leave their imprints on ourselves and those around us. Long before we discovered the truths of quantum physics, the Chinese had a saying, “Though the bird of sadness may land on your head, don’t let it build a nest.”

We allow negativity to build a nest when we fail to observe the subtle and not so subtle presence of negativity.  Most of us are inundated with TV, the radio, and of course of newspaper or online home pages and negative friends or colleagues.  A steady diet of this low level negativity may turn the most optimistic individual into a pessimist, wearing us down through association.

Take heart, the secret of secrets is no secret at all.  Love it all, love yourself through whatever apparent mess you are in, and know that gratitude and forgiveness will lift and restore you Soul.

I don’t know about you, but life is sweeter when there is a diet of joy, laughter and contentment…so choose where you eat!

Filed Under: Love, Self Awareness, Spiritual ·
Jan 28, 2010

The Great Entrepreneurial What-if?

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What if I make a wrong move, lose money, blow a deal?

The what if’s will take you out of the game.  Any game.

What are your what-ifs?


Filed Under: Peak Performance, Self Awareness · Tagged: , ,
Jan 24, 2010

Friend-Power

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Friends are the stuff of life.  Good friends are solid gold. They tell you the truth you don’t want to hear, and just know when you’re in need. Many of us have other friends who suck our energy and drain us with their neediness.

I’m blessed with friends who show up in the most amazing ways. They offer their gifts, kindness, honesty, and playfulness. They offer their time. That is priceless!

Let’s face it, we are wired for connection.  We may think we can do it ourselves. Maybe we can. But life is so much sweeter when the joys and sorrows are shared.

Don’t have a close friend around?  Become your own best friend. Lift, inspire, and support yourself in every way possible. Then share that with others.

You will automatically begin to attract people that lift, inspire, and support you.  You may be surprised to find your energy higher, your smile wider, and life sweeter.

Oh, and those negative friends, they will likely disappear.

Filed Under: Communication, Kindness, Self Awareness, Spiritual · Tagged: ,
Sep 29, 2009

Ask, then Ask Again

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Asking for what we want is not always as simple as it seems.

I’ve noticed that women, in particular, don’t ask directly.  Take for example, a conversation I recall with my husband many years ago.  “Honey, we’re out of milk.”  Nice statement, but it didn’t ask him to bring any home!  Challenges, challenges, challenges.  Expecting our spouse to mind read and translate “we’re out of milk” into “bring it home” sets us up for a starring role as a major victim! Not only that, but the only thing we’re likely to get is a good dose of resentment, self administered.

Manipulation or expectations are guaranteed to get us in trouble.  It takes great courage to ask for what we want.  First off, we might not get it.  Secondly, it may come with strings.  Third, what happens if our request doesn’t meet with someone’s approval?  Fourth, we may lose our sense of security of we get a “no” and lastly, we let go of control when we ask someone else for something.

There is a condition prior to effective asking.  To get what we really want, we need to know precisely what we do want and why. Such clarity increases the odds of success.

Knowing what we want, and why frees us from the bondage of manipulation or plain lack of awareness. Awareness of what drives us to behave as we do sets us up for success, and removes us from being at the whim of others.  When that happens, our need for approval, security or control will lesson dramatically.

Here’s a challenge for you:  Start small and begin asking for what you want.  Take the time to know yourself, know your preferences, and know what pushes your buttons!.  If your why is in alignment with your purpose, it’s easy to ask, and ask again.  Make someone’s no a “not yet,”  particularly if it is in business.  Effective asking is also a function of effective timing.

Don’t despair, practice makes asking easy – and you just might get what you want.

Filed Under: Peak Performance, Self Awareness ·
May 15, 2009

Yarn with an Attitude

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Have you noticed that it’s crazy out there in the world these days? Thank goodness I don’t often dwell on the negative news that we’re fed. The last few days, I’ve had enough of my own inner mental chatter to fill all the tabloids and then some. While I don’t have a lot of control over what stories the media covers, I can choose what I read, and when I read it.

It’s the same with my mind. I get to choose when and what I dwell on. Thank goodness most of the time I can tune out the naysayers that live inside my head. Some days it is easier than others to pick myself up, dust myself off, and find something funny about the situation at hand. Other days it takes commitment. Add a little grace and humor, and the tide will eventually turn in joy’s favor. Breathe in, breathe out, find humor. Let go. Repeat over and over. Remember that eventually things change. Be grateful. Forgive. Look for the lesson. Laugh at myself. Note to file: This (fill in the blank) will eventually pass. Keep breathing. Relax, breathe more, have patience and trust.

Today was one of those days. My feet had no sooner hit the floor than I realized that my mood was in the basement! I didn’t want to work on myself, nor did I feel like forgiving anyone nor anything. It was clear that I needed a break from my inner media channel, so I had a cry (ah, the joy of a good conscious tearing to clean out the pipes), talked with a friend, and set out to do my morning meditation. Instead, I sat down and reached for my crochet needle. I had this really amazing Italian yarn that was just calling to me. It was long and fuzzy and so much more inviting than stilling my unruly mind. Yarn won hands down.

I love when the invisible is made visible. The little fuzzies absolutely refused to cooperate with my well laid plans to ease my way into meditation. It didn’t take long until I realized that my yarn was my meditation! That lovely yarn mirrored my state of mind. In a flash, I knew that I’d copped an attitude with myself around my perceived inability to install a new shopping cart on my (almost brand new soon to be released) website. I saw that the solution to my frustration was really simple! Do one little fuzzie at a time. Give up the lurking self-judgment and enjoy the process.

My yarn mirrored my own attitude, but mercifully I didn’t respond to my yarn the way I’d responded to my shopping cart experience. All I did was focus on each knot as it presented itself, follow the little fuzzies to the source, and untangle them. It was tedious work, but about 20 minutes later I realized that cooperating with my uncooperative yarn put me in a happy state of mind. I’d been fully engaged in the process. That set me free and set me loose to experience an amazing day of breakthroughs.

The day, which began in the basement, ended up in the penthouse. The view is a whole lot better from the top…

Filed Under: Frustration, Self Awareness ·
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