How to Win Each Day

It's an up-and-down life we bear, each by our existence. Each day comes and each day goes and varying are our fortunes and misfortunes alike. And if there's one thing we truly wish to do it's to win each day. Each day is a contest of experience.

Each day we want to be our best; to be at our best, and to enjoy the best.

There is a way to ensure that our thinking is aligned to receive what's best.

The ability to win each day is no science; rather, it's an art form of constant conscious curious expression. Therefore, we can train ourselves in being open. We become open, even to the cloudiest of emotions and the scariest of thoughts. Winning each day is not drowning in fear. Winning each day is having the courage to just be.

PENSIVELY ACTIVE BY OUR THOUGHTS
As an image in thinking, by curiosity we engage with our inner world even as we live from the waking moment. This is the receipt of experience combined with a sort of instant messaging service that takes place in our minds.

Receiving experience and enquiring into it, our curiosity burgeoning, we learn to accept what is. We judge less the experience, and open ourselves into the spiritual space usually unknown and mysterious in the human realm.

When we are pensively active by our thoughts, we engage in an active sense by what comes in, but we are pensive regarding how we react. In other words, we don't react.

We learn to be pleasantly accepting of all our thoughts and experiences - as much as we can be.

***
As the subject of experience, we quickly learn, and, as we look over the day we just had, we assess it. Not all of them pass. Not all of them have been won. But this fact doesn't defeat the idea of how to win each day.

Each day has its own beginning, and that beginning must commence with hope. If it doesn't, our days tend to be unbearable, even if by bearing them we do so in a way that proves problematic for other people.

A day of utter defeat, as assessed at the end of the day's proceedings, is not the end. It's merely fuel for learning. Yesterday is fuel for learning.

How will tomorrow be different? How will we win that day? We see, here, the idea of winning each day is not winning every day. That would be totally unrealistic in this life.
This is the idea that each day can be won. It's a possibility. Each day starts with that potential.

***
One day's thoughts are enough for anyone. We can win one day by our thoughts, today. Even if today becomes a disaster, tomorrow holds fresh hope. But, today, by our curiosity over our fear, we can avert many wayward notions. Perspective wins the day.

© 2012 S. J. Wickham.

Steve Wickham is a Registered Safety Practitioner (BSc, FSIA, RSP[Australia]) and a qualified, unordained Christian minister (GradDipBib&Min). His blogs are at: http://epitemnein-epitomic.blogspot.com/ and http://inspiringbetterlife.blogspot.com/

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How Do I Quiet My Mental Chatter So That I Can Meditate?

Have you been told that you must stop your thoughts entirely so that you can meditate? This restrictive belief prevents many people from exploring meditation, and leads to a division between the self and the mind. Such needless fears about mental chatter may prevent you from enjoying meditation as a meaningful activity -- something that you can practice in a mindfully focused, and yet truly personal way.

Even if you do quiet the mental chatter somewhat, your attempt to make the chatter completely cease produces resistance and self-judgment. When you realize that mind chatter does not stop you from meditating, then your meditations become easier, and deeper, because you are not divided against yourself.

You are not trying to stop the mental chatter. And you are not preoccupied with the chatter, either. Well, you may ask, just what are your options when you meditate? You can notice chatter, without deeply listening to it. Of course, when you are not judging it, then it is easier to just let it be, and that leaves you free to meditate.

You may still wonder, though, how can you meditate with chatter in the background? Meditation is awareness, and you can let the chatter in the background be there. It is part of the awareness -- part of the scenery -- and so it becomes harmless. Let the chatter be like wallpaper -- irrelevant to you. Just let it be.

But you have heard that meditation is an activity that must be done according to strict rules, and you still worry that you must follow these rules exactly. Don't fear -- you can participate in valid meditations, without restricting yourself with narrow, limiting rules. Your centered, mindful attention gives you many options for accessing genuine meditative experiences.

Your consciousness is unlimited, and your focused consciousness is much more capable than you may have realized.

The narrow, limited ideas that people have about meditation are many:

- The notion that you have to sit in a certain way,
- and that you must be entirely free of any thoughts,
- and you have to breathe in a particular pattern,
- or perhaps you must be in a specially approved spiritual building,
- with special spiritually approved people,
- for a specific period of time, at a certain hour of the day, etc.

Throughout history, teachers attempted to establish some guidelines about meditation and spiritual awareness. Their intentions to define standards for achieving a positive meditation experience were sincere. However, they did not appreciate that meditation is a vast mountain, with many valid pathways leading to the top of that mountain.

Meditation is centered awareness, and it takes place in any circumstance where you practice mindful, integrated awareness.

When you explore awareness, you are, of course, utilizing your consciousness. And consciousness is so amazingly vast that it transcends limited beliefs about the conditions required for meditation to take place. When you are doing an activity with genuine mindfulness, your attentive presence creates a sacred space, wherever you may be.

Please don't indulge in the excuse that your thoughts or circumstances somehow prevent you from having a real meditative experience.

When you learn to cultivate balanced integrated awareness, gently unifying your breath awareness with your body, your heart, your mind, and your soul, then you discover that you really do have the means to move forward in your spiritual path. You come to recognize that love, wisdom and common sense are living principles within you.

And if there is a bit of mental chatter, just smile at it, and thank it for sharing, and continue with your meditation.

As you release the constrictive beliefs about so-called correct meditation, you find that meditation is something that you can explore in many ways, in many circumstances, and at any time -- such as this splendid moment now. Welcome to this moment -- take a breath, feel your living presence, and discover the gift that your awareness is sharing with you now.
Many Blessings,

Joel Bruce Wallach
Founder, Cosmic Living - spiritual instruction - tele-classes and home-study mp3's

Experienced spiritual instructor Joel Bruce Wallach helps you learn practical self-healing methods that unite your body heart, mind, and soul. He shares inspiring metaphysical teachings that put you in the driver's seat of your own spiritual awakening. You explore ways to cultivate a deep waking meditative state. You learn in a positive atmosphere that is centered and grounded in highest truth and common sense -- a safe sacred space.
http://cosmic-living.com/

- Inspiring live phone conference classes
- Self-paced home learning via mp3s
Listen to inspiring mp3 samples from the tele-classes here: http://cosmic-living.com/group-sessions-archive/

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We Are Spirits In This Material World

Most people do not think about the fact that our bodies are just a vehicle for our real self, which is a spirit. We are attached to this third dimension, which is material, and we forget that there are other dimensions and facets to life.

Because we are spirits, we are far more than just our bodies and this world. We focus on what our body needs and wants and forget that there's something else going on inside. Our spirits need attention and love every day.

* Do you feed your self every day?

* Do you take a bath or shower every day?

If so then you need to start thinking about feeding and cleansing your spirit. It's so critical to realize you are inside of a vehicle, and the spiritual side needs to be nourished, cleansed and loved. Many people do not really love themselves and they are looking for love in every face that they see. Real love is within us, and it takes some work on our part to find the source of love inside of us.

When we die, we discard this body, and we become a spirit. Death is the birth of your soul. In the spirit world there are no genders such as male and female. We are pure energy, light, and love. We can take on the semblance of who we were in life or even someone or something else. It is quite unlimited.

I have had people ask if it is a sin to be gay. I reiterate that we are as one in spirit, and there is no male or female. Surprisingly God does not judge our sexual selves. In spirit the biggest judge of us will be ourselves. We will have time to review what we have done-good or bad and be able to work on bettering our spirit.

If you are gay, please do not be concerned that you will be condemned to hell. Continue to develop your spiritual self, help others, and live in love as much as possible. This is all that is required of any person no matter what their sexual orientation, race, social status, or religion. This attitude of condemnation comes from religious teachings and not from a spiritual truth. What is taught in books is not necessarily spiritual truths. The true essence of God is love. If you believe that God is love, how could you believe that he would condemn anyone? The true judgment on the other side comes from ourselves as we view what we did in this life.

It is important to develop a spiritual life here as this is going to benefit you after this life. The spiritual life develops in our worship and praise of the Divine Spirit (God). In the spirit world we continue to grow and develop, and we still have free will even there. We are not sitting on pink clouds playing harps. Developing our talents and interests are foremost as we progress in the spirit world. We're helping others in the spirit world and helping those back in this dimension develop their soul. We work as a unit for the good of all.

Spirits often continue the occupations and interests they had on earth. If the work on earth was not right for them, they can change what they do according to their real talents and interests. All work is done in the spirit of love.

Once I was in meditation and I contemplated what life would be like without God. Suddenly I felt such an emptiness and coldness. That is what it feels like without a God. It became very clear to me in this meditation that God is the light and the love that keeps the universe functioning. No one can fully grasp what God truly is, but I know what the feeling is without God.

I frequently visit the spirit world during Astral Projections and have seen different areas of spirit. There are wonderful places to visit and see. There are also areas that are not filled with the light and those who cannot move out of the darkness stay in this area until they can accept change, love, and light. Believe it or not there are souls that do not want the light. There are souls that are lonely and lost in the spirit world and cannot take the full impact of love and light from the Divine Source.

A client contacted me to channel the spirit of the young man, 25 years old, who committed suicide. I have done hundreds of channelings, but never for a suicide. I was able to reach this young man, and I found him hiding in Spirit because he was afraid of all the changes around him and the spiritual beings that were trying to help him. He communicated with me and he said that he was frightened. I am sure that this was because he was not prepared for life in spirit and he went before he had the knowledge that would have made it an easier transition.
This conversation ended up being between me and him rather than with the client. It did not matter that the spirits were loving and trying to help him; he needed contact with a human in the third dimension, which turned out to be me. Interestingly as I was talking with him, a young man named Aaron that I had channeled before, who had been a murder victim, appeared and he took this young man away and they sat down and I could see that he was comforting and helping this young man understand where he was. Aaron gave me a nod as though everything was going to be okay, and I left at that point.

Now you can see the importance of preparing yourself for life after death. How do you do this? It's really not too complicated.

* Pray
* Give thanks to the creator, God.
* Quiet your mind through meditation.
* Trust what ever you feel or see-the message is different for each person.
* Live a life filled with compassion and kindness.
* Trust that everything will work out for the best good in your life.

Now you can go forward in this material world and not feel so overwhelmed. From the moment we are born we are preparing for our life in spirit. Please do not go without being at peace within. True happiness always lies within you. You just have to find it!

Cherokee Billie has a doctorate in Naturopathic medicine with many areas of expertise and high educational background in many fields. Cherokee Billie is a world renowned Clairvoyant Psychic Medium who works with serious individuals interested in their search and quest for information. http://www.cherokeebillie.com

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Poise in Pressure Times In Order to Relax

Noting the conscious presence of the remotest hypertension - yes, it's okay to admit we get anxious - we have an important opportunity. Only in the current instant can we relax - or, more accurately, be in a state of relaxation.

THE MADNESS IN ANXIETY
We worry numerous times, consciously and unconsciously, 50 minutes, 30 minutes, and 10 minutes before an important appointment. We pace up and down frantically within ourselves. Where is that energy going? It's going to waste.

Yet we may all do it. We all fall for the lizard-brained venture proffering tension that has no good purpose. There must be something better we can do to relax better.

There is madness in us all, and certainly the specific madness of getting ourselves wound up over the avoidable is poignant.

The madness in much of our anxiety is as much about the inner conflict as anything. We battle with different concerns on different levels within different spheres, and all this goes on within the one organism: us, alone.

There is the mind grappling with the heart; the conscious with the unconscious; thinking versus feeling; the present versus the past (regrets) and against the future (fears); the intrapersonal clashes with the interpersonal; there are polar differences between time and space, etc.

No wonder there is anxiety and hypertension when we must harmonise so many realms of being. Little wonder we may be occasionally angry, confused, and upset. Being conflicted within is a common human challenge.

TOWARD SPIRITUAL UNITY WITHIN
The goal for poise in pressure situations is that we might feel more relaxed in our thinking, decision-making, and enjoyment of life. The idea is that, in any of these events where tension comes, we might otherwise be able to accept the tension and serenely move on in handling life better.

This accepts that tension is part of life, as are conflicts, and in acknowledging that we will be conflicted within, we don't fight the conflict and make it worse, as if to panic or resent it.
Spiritual unity has to be about being open to life. Only in accepting the difficult can we be at peace with the difficult. We see other people arranging peace of themselves in difficult circumstances, so why not us?

Poise in the moment of pressure in order to relax has no angry fight about it, but it does fight gracefully for unity within. It's about advocating a safe place for ourselves, and not exposing ourselves to overload, impossible relational dynamics, or task nuances beyond us - as much as possible. We do what we can to protect ourselves. If we won't protect ourselves nobody else will do it for us.
***
Hypertension and modes of anxiety threaten to rob our joy and awareness from our present moments. When we acknowledge the concern and allow it to sit there, calmly thinking about it, in perspective with the best of our lives, we can enjoy more poise in pressure and be more relaxed.
© 2012 S. J. Wickham.

Steve Wickham is a Registered Safety Practitioner (BSc, FSIA, RSP[Australia]) and a qualified, unordained Christian minister (GradDipBib&Min). His blogs are at: http://epitemnein-epitomic.blogspot.com/ and http://inspiringbetterlife.blogspot.com/

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Enjoying Each Other to the Fullest

People are lonely because they build walls instead of bridges.
~Joseph F. Newton~

I tried to find a list of our country's ten favorite foods. None of the lists matched but they did agree on peanut butter, hot dogs, ice cream, pizza and hamburgers. If you threw them all into a blender and pureed them, how tasty do you think the end result would be? All the flavors would get lost in the process.

Now what if you took all your favorite experiences in life and tried to have them all at once? Same result: system overload. You would not be able to relish any of the experiences. Yet many of us try to do as much as we can as fast as we can and try to do it all at once.

One example is our over-reliance on technology and overindulgence in its inventions. Lately I notice people constantly pawing their communication devices, afraid they will miss something. Despite reminders to be considerate of others, I find it difficult to get through a reading, lecture, movie or live performance without the jangle of at least a few cell phone ringtones.

At restaurants and parties, people often feel the need to have their devices in view or at least in hearing distance at all times. No matter how much a conversation might entrance them, their cell phones frequently seem to take precedence and the conversation is put on hold to see who is ringing in.

Back to the blender example. Trying to experience everything at once dilutes and pollutes each element. Once we did not have so many distractions. If we were lucky enough to be in the company of someone we cherished, we devoted all our time and energy to being with that person. Now we seem bombarded from all directions. Television blasts us with high voltage ads for things we probably don't need or even want. Computers beckon us with ties to the far flung reaches of the world in a fraction of a second. Tweets, text messages, email and voice calls remain ready to usurp all of our time and energy if we let them.

What can we do before we are sucked into hyperspace? We can start by realizing that our devices are tools. They don't own us. We own them. We don't need to answer their signals. We don't even have to turn them on. Instead, we can choose to tune into the reality around us rather than the electronic signal demanding attention.

We have the power to choose where we place our attention. We can choose to stay in the moment in which we find ourselves or to flee at the least distraction. We have become so accustomed to answering every ring that we might not realize our insult to the person in front of us whom we put on hold. Instead we can respect that person and let our device save the message until later.

Life Lab Lessons

• Decide whether you or your phone is in charge.
• If your phone is in charge, give it a vacation.
• Respect the ones you're with.
• Work on resisting distractions.
• Take control of your experience.

Joseph G. Langen is the author of Commonsense Wisdom for Everyday Life, Young Man of the Cloth, The Pastor's Inferno and Navigating Life: Commonsense Reflections for the Voyage. He also distributes a free newsletter on commonsense wisdom topics, Sliding Otter News. Learn more about his writing and publishing through Sliding Otter Publications at: http://www.slidingotter.com, http://www.slidingotter.wordpress.com Contact him at:

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Premium Mind Control Software for Enriching Yourself

One of the most intriguing parts of the human body is the brain. It does not only store a person's memories, but it also keeps the heart beating, directs the muscles and so on. In addition, the brain exists in four major states, but due to its complexity, only several patterns of these states interact at one time. This predominant state of mind is determined by the particular brainwave frequency that the brain is producing. For instance, if one is in the beta state, one can experience to trace levels of Theta and Alpha states but minimally. In order to attain a given state of mind one can use various mind control software and other brainwave entrainment methods.

One can use the software program to influence their moods, enhance their brain activity as well as inducing specific mind states. One can select the Beta brainwaves on the software to stimulate the brain to produce Beta waves that range between 13 to 30Hz. These are the fastest waves and are mostly found when one is awake. They are associated with outward awareness, arousal, active perception, engaged mind and evaluation of certain data via senses. Beta waves are also produced when one is angry, worried, hungry, afraid or surprised.

In order to increase one's creativity, imagery, memory, visualization one should choose the Theta brainwaves that range between 3Hz to 7Hz. These waves inspire a person to dream more, plan for the future besides allowing free-flow of thoughts. These waves have been linked to stronger emotions and intuition. Stimulating the production of Theta waves advances one's problem solving skills and improved learning ability. Adding on to that, one is able to absorb a lot of information. Actually, this state of mind has been found to be the most powerful for a person learning a new language.

The Alpha waves ranging from 7Hz to 13Hz are the best when one wants to attain a tranquil state of mind. They are associated with relaxation and deep meditation. In addition, Alpha brainwaves create a pleasant inward awareness and integrate the mind and body. Finally, there are the Delta brainwaves ranging from 1Hz to 3 Hz. These waves are associated with an increased release of growth hormones. These waves are very beneficial to patients as the increase the chances of healing quickly.

It is important to note that brainwave entrainment can take place naturally. If one was to stay around a person playing a musical instrument such as a guitar at a steady rhythm, their brainwaves could entrain to match the guitar frequency. In the guitarist is plucking the guitar at about 7Hz, then one would start feeling a deep relaxation and sometimes one attain other states of awareness. So far, there has been no documented danger of using brainwave mind control software in enhancing one's life. In fact, the method has been scientifically proven to achieve desired results such as helping a person to overcome feelings of fear, depression, and anxiety and so on. With this in mind, medical expert and scientists are delving into deeper research on brainwave entrainment technology to discover other benefits.

Click Here to get your Free "Success Accelerator" Brainwave Cd today! Unleash your Mind Power potential to attain the lifestyle that you want. Go claim your Free Cd today!

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Trying To Make Adjustments? Use This Great Advice!

Personal development, like positive thinking, can assist you improve yourself and your life. The following advice explains easy ways to improve your personality, moral character, and lifestyle.

If you are nervous around large groups of new people, work toward overcoming this by simply going with someone you rely on to the movie theater. Doing so will push you to venture to a public place, though one in which you will certainly not have to interact with others. This will help get you used to being in the same area with numerous people.

Find people you can connect with. This will help to enhance your self-esteem as well as give you a bit of a break from the kind of people that spend their time badmouthing your ambitions and goals every chance that they get.

You will be healthier and you will go beyond you ever thought possible. It's a well-known proven fact that a healthy body is a happy body. When your health is good you think sensibly and make good decisions. You also save money on medical expenditures. In other words, better health is one of the most satisfying goals you can achieve.

By being a leader, you can help to improve your personal development. Although there are many different explanations of leadership, the most popular being "influences". Carefully assess your own ideas on leadership. Which past events have had major, confirmative effects on your life? How did you use those events to improve yourself? What do you feel makes you an excellent team player? By knowing yourself and your objectives better, you can more quickly integrate into a leadership role with others.

When building a plan for personal developments, include the values that are most crucial in your life. Value your characteristics and skills and learn to love yourself.

We all make mistakes which includes making poor diet choices once in a while. Stress can damage your body, and life is way too short to worry about every little thing.

Read up on what other people have done to achieve success. A good way to not make mistakes with your profession and personal life would be to learn how other people discovered their path to achievement. Knowing that other people have succeeded at the same goal will make it seem more achievable to you.

You should have ideas on how you can fix the parts of your life that are pulling you down, whether it's your own attitude or habits. Apply these easy tips laid out here to get you that much closer to making yourself superior and living the best life you can.

Career coach is the certified professionals who deal with career choices and helping you improve your chances in landing a job. Anyone wishing to give their life a different direction, whether in a personal or professional way can experience benefits from working with a life coach.

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Stop Complaining and Take Action!

So I have to say that one of the things that drives me crazy is when people tell me all their problems and why their life sucks but when I give them opportunities and tools to change that they ignore it and continue to complain.

I have an acquaintance that has the same conversation every time she sees me. It goes like this: "My health sucks, my marriage sucks, my husband spends our money frivolously and doesn't help with anything. I have no money and need some. I'm so tired all the time."

Now numerous times I have provided opportunities to get into a business that would make her more money, I've offered to help her assess her skills, I've given her the tools to shift her mindset. My frustration is that when I offer these opportunities there is always an excuse on why she can't follow through. She's in a bad mood, she's tired, etc. I have stopped offering. I listen to the rant for a few minutes and politely move on. I choose not to let her pessimistic, miserable attitude leach onto me.

If you are complaining about things in your life that you don't like, change your story. Take action on the opportunities that arise and move out of the place you say you don't want to be in. If you are staying in that place and repeating daily to whomever will listen that you are miserable and everything sucks than you are just bringing more of that onto yourself.

Shift your mindset. Find the good in your life and change what you don't like. One of my all time favorite movies is "Fried Green Tomatoes" and if you haven't' seen it you should! Throughout the story one of the main characters starts out miserable and as she bonds with this new friend she starts making changes that she was afraid of making before. She starts to feel great about herself and you see the change.

I love seeing the change in my clients when I coach them. I love helping them, watching the action they are taking and celebrating those wins one by one with them. It's why I do what I do.

So before you retell someone the story of your sucky life, rethink that and instead tell the story the way you want it. Look for the good and focus on that instead of the bad. Let me know how it works for you!

Erin Alli is a Virtual Business Manager, Business Coach and Writer. She has 13 years experience as an office manager and the skills to teach you how to manage your time, stay organized and make your business run more efficiently while you become increasingly more successful. For more information on the services Essential Assistance provides, please contact Erin@EssentialAssisting.com or visit http://www.EssentialAssisting.com. For info on our full team please visit http://www.TPAdminTeam.com

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Start Managing Stress

The vast majority of my clients and indeed the majority of wonderful people that I meet all have one thing in common: Feeling overly Stressed. In this crazy world that we live in, most people spend the greater portion of their days taking care of everything in the world, except themselves. The main reason for this, I would offer, is because we have been conditioned to believe that if we work hard we will find success.. and by working hard, our forebears meant sacrifice and suffering.

Looking at folks who lived during the Great Wars or through the Great Depression you can see that you had to be willing to really work hard, often physically, and sacrifice, often emotionally, to get ahead in life. In their days this might have been true, but in modern times, our struggles are mostly based on the fact that we have too many options. Very few of us are as focused as we should be on the things that are truly important and we squander our energies and our time, at useless or irrational endeavors.

The effect of this constant buzz, the roar of white noise in our minds from the continuous stimulation, is that we never truly relax, jumping from one crisis to another, multi-tasking our little hearts out along the way. On top of the intense stimulus, which robs us of our focus and energy (it takes VAST energy to focus, and we waste it on the constant drone of information) many of us labor under the misconception that to be selfless (truly focusing all energy on others, instead of ourselves) that we are living a life of meaning and grace.
Self centered is not selfish; self centered infers balance, to have balance one must use one's energy wisely. And we all are necessarily self centered; we can only truly ever understand our own perspective, because our experiences, which no other human being has ever shared or will ever share with you identically, are the filters by which we understand the world.

Literally, no other person will ever understand life in the exact same way that you do. This is the very definition self centered.

One of my favorite quotes is 'Only a rich man can be generous.' To me this means, if I don't have a surplus of energy (money IS energy) then you can't share it with others. If you wish to take care of others, especially if you gain your self worth through doing so, then why not do it the best you can? When you take care of yourself you have more to offer others, it's that simple. The sage wisdom of stewardesses: 'When the oxygen mask falls down, put yours on first so that you then can help the people around you.'

One of the best ways to begin to take care of yourself is to start introducing silence into your life. Give your brain waves a chance to slow down and stabilize, which in turn allows your body to relax. I have worked with hundreds of clients on an array of issues, but Stress is the core issue, 90% of the time. The best way to reduce stress is to reduce the amount you have to pay attention to. Focus takes more energy than you can fathom... begin practicing moments of mindLESSness, to encourage more mindFULLness the rest of the time. Silence and trance are incredible healers..

I have put together the following tips so that you can begin to weave silence and stillness into the fabric of your days:

1) Stop.
Just stop everything once in awhile. If you notice yourself getting tense or moody or tired, stop. Take a few deep breaths, imagining (feeling) tension and stress drain out of your body. Take a nice slow, deep breath, hold it for the count of five, then purse your lips and exhale very slowly, trying to count to ten. As you breathe out, say to yourself, relax and release, relax and release. With daily practice you will soon be able to relax your mind almost instantaneously. This is a form of Self Hypnosis.
 
2) Drink water.
Over 80% of your body is water, water refreshes your cells, cleanses your body of toxins, physically, mentally and emotionally. Think of how great it feels just to be near water, water has a pure energy and a frequency that settles our frequencies. Try to drink 48-64 ounces a day, if just starting out. One of the quickest ways to get your health back on track is to give up soda completely, it's poison (it is by far the easiest thing to give up when using hypnosis. the body knows it is filth). Drink water constantly, just sipping. Have a stainless steel water bottle with you everywhere you go (tastes way better than plastic, doesn't contaminate your water and will last for years saving the earth of nasty plastics). I can't emphasize this enough, water is the gateway to health..

3) Walk.
Walk whenever you can. Park in the farthest away spaces when appropriate, take the stairs once in awhile when appropriate. Go for a walk when you get home from work, consciously releasing all you've been thinking about and processing, allowing you to refresh and renew in the evening, free from the weight of the past. Walk with your loved ones, have meaningful but relaxed discussions with them. Walk in the morning before work to clear your head and calm your mind, creating a calm base from which you can operate during the day. Walk even if it is only ten minutes. Walk and breathe, grounding yourself in this moment right now, the only moment that truly exists.

I guarantee if you start to utilize these simple tools during your days, you will begin to feel lighter, fresher and freer, more positive and more productive.
Take good care of yourself, it's the greatest thing you can do for the world.

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How To Get What You Want In All Aspects of Your Life

"I'll never have a sexual life like other women."

"I'm too wounded to have a good sexual life or relationship."

"It's just not in the cards for me."

"Everyone else is fixable-but me."

"My perfect relationship just doesn't exist."

I hear these things all the time from people-women, especially. People often go to a place of disbelief about having what they really desire because on some level it's safer to believe they just can't have it. If they just accept that they can't really have what they want, they don't have to do anything different, challenge themselves anew and risk the possibility of it being true. So they just decide it's inevitable.

It's only true if you believe it to be.

You create your life, every minute of every day.

This scarcity belief is a way to protect the self from further hurt and it keeps you small. If this sounds like you or someone you know, you probably come by this pattern in an honest way, probably from your family of origin. You learned not to ask for too much, or you took in some idea of your own unworthiness. You heard "no" a lot and it reinforced that you can't have what you want. It was so ingrained that you began to truly believe it. If you can't see out of that hole of victimization into a place of healing change, you will continue to believe it.
I know you can have what you want. I have experienced it. I have watched it happen for others over and over again, when they take steps towards identifying it, healing this wound, and going for it. You can do this too. If you decide you want to have another experience and begin to take steps in that direction, you will have it.

People who have feelings like this usually feel really stuck, frustrated and on a deep level, unloved. They don't possibly believe someone could love them that much, they could have an experience that good, an orgasm that big, a dream like that come true.

It's a false belief. And if you have it, it's one to begin healing immediately, because you are not living and you are cutting yourself off from all of the pleasure, joy, love and amazing life experiences you are meant to have. You get to have all of it:

Sexy, loving, supportive relationships

The career you dream of

Work you are passionate about AND that makes you money

Big satisfying orgasms

A fulfilling sexual life
 
A lot of love in your life
Caring friends
Fun experiences
Realized dreams

You are not special. You are not the only one who is unfixable. None of us are "unfixable" if we want to heal. Healing requires work. It requires taking action, the support of people who love you and will work to help you, willingness to do what it takes, and commitment to your own happiness. When you put those things in place, there is absolutely no way things won't shift. They have to.

So if you are feeling stuck in some place of lack, some place of "I could never have that," begin to take a look at who taught you this. Where did that belief come from? If people in your life have it, then you can have it too.

One of my mentors likes to say that if the idea for what you want is there, than the answer or solution is already there. That thing you have a desire for is already there waiting to be claimed. One can't exist without the other. All you must do is claim it. End your disbelief.
If you have believed in this lack for a long time, it will take some time to unravel it. And you can do it. Will you decide to claim the pleasure, joy, love, relationships, and gorgeous experiences that are your birthright? You are not meant to be miserable and deprived. You are meant to be free and creative. What life are you creating for you in this moment?

Amy Jo Goddard thrives on helping people develop sexually empowered lives, deeper intimate relationships, more abundance and more pleasurable sex. A sexuality educator, trainer, author, performing artist and activist, she travels to colleges, universities, communities and conferences teaching workshops and speaking about sexuality. She has taught workshops at such schools as Barnard College, Princeton University, Vassar College, NYU, & Gallaudet University. A professional trainer of sexuality professionals, medical students, college students and youth for fifteen years, she has taught courses at the City University of New York and the University of California at Santa Barbara. Amy Jo is co-author of Lesbian Sex Secrets for Men and contributing Author of All About Sex, among other writings. She has worked in various women's and queer communities as an activist and advocate. Amy Jo maintains a private sex coaching practice and facilitates her six month sexuality program for women, The Sexually Empowered Life, in New York City. She can be found online at http://www.amyjogoddard.com and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Jo-Goddard/348841508485024

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Amy_J_Goddard

How To Start Loving Yourself

Do you love and accept yourself? Accepting yourself means that you love yourself for the way you are right at that moment. It doesn't mean that you stop making improvements to yourself. It just means that you don't have to change to be lovable and good enough.

You are good enough, just the way you are.

Why doesn't everyone naturally love themselves? We are born loving ourselves but somewhere along our journey this may change. Maybe a parent or teacher tells us that we aren't good enough. People tell us we need to look or act a certain way to be acceptable. But that isn't the case. You are good enough. And once you realize this and start loving yourself, your life will dramatically improve.

The most important thing you can do in your life is to love yourself. It's more than having confidence, it is knowing deep inside yourself that you are unique, you are special, and you are lovable - exactly the way you are at this moment in time.

An exercise to get started on loving and accepting yourself:

1. Get some journal, paper, or a notebook and list anything you don't love or accept about yourself. It can be anything from physical items, behaviors, whatever comes to mind.

2. Take the list and for each one listed write: a) Why don't you like this about yourself? b) Is it something you can change?, c) If so, what can you do to change or improve it?, d) If this "thing" didn't change and you were on your deathbed and reviewing your life, would it really matter to you? Some times we think a particular is horrifying but when you step back and look at it in terms of your whole life is seems a lot smaller of an issue or problem.

3. Make a list of ideas and steps you could take to try to change each item you listed if you still wanted to change it.

4. Now - for the big step - make an agreement with yourself that you will make a commitment to try to make improvements but that you will love yourself right now, just as you are.

5. For additional help, start using affirmations such as those listed at the bottom of this article to help in loving yourself and making positive improvements.

When you decide to accept yourself fully and completely, miracles happen.

A good example of this is when I became addicted to prescription pain pills. I didn't like myself very much at the time. I felt so much guilt over getting severely addicted and ruining my life. I didn't think I would ever be able to forgive myself. When I would go to 12-step meetings I would quietly cry to myself because I felt so ashamed.

But once I made a commitment to love and accept me, even though I had totally messed up and gotten addicted, miracles did happen. It was like I dropped a ton of bricks that I was carrying and my life got better and better every day.

Know that you are good enough and remember:

1. It's okay to want to improve things about you and that is healthy.

2. Don't wait to accept yourself after the changes (I'll be okay once I lose x number of pounds). Be "okay" now.

3. The sooner you accept yourself the way you are really love yourself, the faster you will make improvements and it will be easier and more rewarding.

4. And know: You are good enough. Right now. You are lovable and deserving.
Affirmations:

It is safe for me to love and be loved. I am lovable.
I am good enough, just as I am.

I am lovable and I deserve to be loved.

In this moment, I am perfect, whole, and complete.

I consistently speak the truth.

My intuition improves daily.

Good, good, and more good come to me now.

I am enthusiastic about my life.

The more good I notice in my life, the more good that comes to me.

I relax and trust my intuition. I am always Divinely guided.

I easily forgive and release the past.

I see my pure, perfect self. Just as I am, right now, today.

I allow change in my life and am willing to learn and grow.

It is safe for me to forgive others. It is safe for me to forgive myself.
 
My life is harmonious and peaceful.
 
I am peaceful, joyful, and radiant.

I am responsible for my own feelings. Others are responsible for their own feelings.

My love is a powerful healing force on the planet.

I love myself unconditionally.

It is safe for me to be myself. I am authentic.

I keep my thoughts positive and I am empowered.

That which is not for my highest good, now easily fades from my life.
I am self-motivated and Divinely guided.

I eliminate anything I don't want to make room for what I do want.
I take responsibility for my own life.

I choose to have a positive attitude.

I believe in myself and my abilities. I take positive actions everyday.
I completely and totally love myself.

I want to be the best that I can be.

I have freedom in my life.

I am worthy of all that my heart desires.

I claim my right to be happy!

Angela Andrews overcame many obstacles in her life including a long-time battle with obesity where she weighed 350 pounds and a life-threatening addiction to prescription pain pills. She has learned to create a life she loves and she is committed to helping other love themselves and their lives. Check out her book Love Yourself Guide for more ways you can love yourself and your life and check out her website for free downloads at http://www.life-you-love.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Angela_Andrews

6 Tips To Help Build Self Confidence

Webster's dictionary states "self-confidence is a confidence in oneself and in ones powers and ability." Feelings of self-confidence based on your appearance are purely in your mind, meaning your confidence depends on your personal thoughts and perceptions about the way you look. If you could change the way you think about your appearance, you can change your level of self-confidence.

Here are 6 tools to help build self-confidence:

1. OWN IT - Don't wait for it to happen, take charge now, TODAY. Be responsible for yourself, realizing you have the power to implement change in your life. No one can change your self-confidence, make you feel a certain way or control the things occurring in your life but YOU!

2. CREATE AN ACTION PLAN - Write it down. For example if you want a new job. Outline your dream job, (hours you want to work (from home, part-time), what are you good at, what would you'd be willing to learn) or are you starting over? Do research, read books, browse the internet for opportunities. If you continue moving toward your goal your self-confidence will increase as you realize you are making strides towards the goal even if it's just educating yourself.

3. ACT - Act as though your confident even if it feels forced. Smile more and act as though you are confident and you will be. Hold your head high, make eye contact and smile. This alone will make you appear more confident.

4. BE POSITIVE - Display a positive attitude. Stop complaining and lead by example. Be positive and compliment others. A positive attitude towards others will give back positive feedback so in the process your self-confidence will grow.

5. GET A MENTOR - Establish a relationship with a mentor. This person can share some insight into the skills they use to build and maintain self-confidence. For example this person can be a superior at work or from a club your involved in. This individual should be someone your comfortable talking with and you see as being very confident and look up to.

6. LOOK IN THE MIRROR - Last but not east take care of your personal appearance. Although inward beauty is very important outward beauty is a reflection of what you may feel inside. Start building your self-confidence by dressing nicely, maintaining good posture, smile often, exercising and making sure your skin is looking its best. Great skin helps radiate confidence.

Jami Queale

http://www.jamisjuggle.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jami_Queale

Who Do You Need to Forgive? - Letting Go to Let the Good Stuff In

I'm not a religious person, but I have recently found out about the importance of forgiveness in my life. I had a situation that was blocking a lot of good stuff in my life and I traced it back to this situation, with this person, and I realised that to be able to move forward, I had to forgive. MY, that made me grind my teeth.

Why should I forgive? I didn't do anything wrong, it's all their fault...
OK... stop. Sometimes we have to realise that we are absolutely complicit in some situations that hold us back, we take part in them. Maybe not in a conscious and willing way, but by complaining about it, rather than acting on it or walking away. I've done it; more than once, and so have you.

Ask yourself, "what do I get from feeling like this?" Is it beneficial to you in any way to feel twisty and upset about this person, this situation, and the bad feelings it generates? Write down your feelings and if they are all negative (and I suspect they will be), tear up the paper they're written on and start from scratch.

So, here's the trick. Just forgive.
Forgiveness doesn't mean you have to like the person who has wronged you. It just means that they're not living rent-free in your head any more. You're not condoning bad behaviour, you're maintaining your well being. So, wave away the person or thing that's causing you pain, along with your best wishes, and let go. Visualisation works here and I always imagine myself high above them in a hot air balloon. Whatever works for you, do it.

Forgiveness heals all sorts of situations and clears the way for the good stuff for you. The person who has wronged you most likely doesn't give you a second thought, in fact, may not have realised you're hurt. You're doing all the carrying of heavy baggage. So, what would it feel like to put it down?

What opportunities will be open to you? How much money can it make you because you're more positive and grounded and happier? If your forgiveness involves a situation over money, then you need to make this happen so that you can be open to more prosperity in your business.

Forgiveness isn't instant, it takes work, and some gritting of teeth. But just do it and see how much good stuff comes your way. We get what we give. Worth remembering.

Paula Jones is a qualified coach at Sugarbox Coaching and works with small business owners who are struggling with motivation or the pressures of mid-life. Turning a crisis into an opportunity for business and personal growth is a speciality. To find out more, visit http://www.sugarboxcoaching.com

To try a taster of coaching, pick up the free 7 day email confidence course, value £97 at http://forms.aweber.com/form/50/1762922050.htm

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Paula_F_Jones

The Will To Live!

Do you just merely tend to survive? Is this what life is all about? Can one really find a reason for our existence? Is there a way to enhance your quality of life so that you can increase the probability of attaining the reason(s) for which you live? I hope you will be able to think of practical answers to these questions for yourself after you have read this short article.

A knowledge of why you live is possible once you have been able to determine your direction in life. On ascertaining this direction, you should set your life goals that will guide you towards the attainment of your desires. The writing down of these goals provides clarity as to the reasons why one exists. It can be likened to a football match, where if there are no goal posts (or yard-sticks) to strive towards, then what is the point of playing the game? In the same way, you may say "what is the point of living if there are no aims or objectives to strive for?"

A goal in life provides the reason to live. Holding on to one's goals by faith makes life worth living. A goal is a step in your journey, and not a destination. The attainment of a goal is not an intended point of rest or retirement. It should provide the encouragement to carry on.
If you do not have life goals, then make it your goal today to begin the process of establishing your lifetime goals. In addition to these lifetime goals, there are six primary goals that you should have, which will provide the required boost for the attainment of your life's destiny and contribute immensely to your quality of life. These goals should be read or written out daily, until it becomes a habit for you, in order to help maintain focus and provide the power to attain your life's mission.

1. Being - Your spiritual nature and daily commune with your Creator. You must also train your ability to handle pressure or even criticisms as they will inevitably show up as a result of your commitment to your dream.

2. Time - Discipline is required in order to ensure that you spend your time wisely. It is important to factor in time alone with yourself and adequate rest periods. Rev Legh Richmond (1772-1827), an English clergyman, once said that "There is a time to be born, and a time to die, says Solomon, and it is the memento of a truly wise man; but there is an interval between these two times of infinite importance." 

3. People - Harness your most important relationships regularly, especially your family, followed by your master-mind partners (like-minded people that you have chosen to associate with for the attainment of a specific desire or purpose).

4. Brain - Daily development by study and thinking processes. You can develop the brain through use and activity in a similar way to how muscles are developed during regular physical training or practice.

5. Physical - Those things that will help your body function properly, such as the need for daily physical exercise and careful selection of one's food intake (don't become a fanatic though!).

6. Money - A statement of how much money you want to earn (or give away, wisely) within a specific time period. Have specific knowledge and be conversant with your income and outgoings. Avoid the guess syndrome, which causes you to think that your income is greater than what it actually is, and/or your expenditures are less than what they actually are.

7. Recreation - This is the time for fun and relaxation. This could be with family, friends, self or however way it works for you. Create time to enjoy the life you have. It is an expression of gratitude.

People are usually excited with the thought of impending activities, such as vacations, work or business prospects and/or ceremonies. Usually these are planned events. It suffices to write that your life is in your hands to direct as you desire - so take responsibility for it and plan it well. Get enthusiastic about your life - it is relatively short and time passes by very quickly. Give yourself the reason(s) to live. Start writing down some of the things you desire to achieve in your lifetime, today.

To your dream's accomplishment!

Do you know what you really want to become in life? Have you ever wondered why some people tend to be happy in what they do and contribute immensely to the welfare of humanity and enjoy personal rewards as a result of this, whilst others wonder why they exist at all. In his practical books, Kola answers the above questions from his experience of having found answers for himself: you will discover practical and tested guidance that will aid your connection to your dream and its accomplishment. His books have been written as journey towards destiny, in which the reader is encouraged as a fellow "traveller" who determines his own course. Go to http://www.getkola.com and http://www.thenigeriandream.com for more information.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kola_Olutimehin

Overcoming The Mental Inertia To The Attainment Of Desire

"There are no limitations to the mind except those we acknowledge." (Napoleon Hill)
Do you sometimes find that the mere thought of the tasks you need to get done actually weary you? This weariness has the habit of leading to procrastination, which generates no desired results.

In addition to this 'old man' procrastination, there are other obstacles or challenges that may stand in the way of the attainment of your life dreams. These obstacles are those scary heart-throbbing visions that you see when you take your eyes and internal vision away from your goal and destination. They seem as overwhelming giants and often times they are real! You may identify with some of these, which are discussed below:

• Lack of adequate education. This obstacle leads to a feeling of inadequacy to carry out the required action steps for the fulfilment of your dream. It is unwise to think that what is taught in schools is all the education that you need. You may bridge this lack by acquiring the relevant education or seeking out those people who possess what you need. This education must be practical and applicable to your pursuit.

• Lack of focus. This results in the inability to develop your powers of concentration enough to think through the whole process, from the beginning to end. You may overcome this by persistence in your practice of focussing on a certain subject.

• Indecision which paralyses action otherwise known as analysis paralysis. It has been said that successful people make decisions quickly and change them rarely, while unsuccessful people make decisions, if at all, very slowly and change them frequently. Once a firm decision has been made, then the adequate action steps may follow.

• Refusal to listen or yield to counsel. Openness with all matters and topics proves your flexibility. I once heard the phrase, blessed are the flexible for they shall never be broken!
• Greed and the desire to get rich quickly via unfamiliar schemes. Often times, greed causes you to do the wrong things, and may result in a loss of what already existed. Be content with what you planned to obtain and protect yourself from unknown risks as far as possible.

• Fear of taking risks. All risks should be taken with adequate knowledge, but fear prevents one from taking any steps at all. Protecting yourself from unknown risk, does not insinuate that you insulate yourself from all risk!

• Inability to create and/or maintain good relationships. No one is an island, and your success is linked to your associations. Secure and maintain peace with those around you and guard your relationships conscientiously.

• Lack of adequate rest. A restful mind helps you to make sound decisions. Know your body and understand how it functions. It varies for people.

• Giving in to the reluctance that shows up on your mind. I will not be sincere if I insinuated that I jumped and acted on every opportunity that I perceived. Often times, I have moved ahead with reluctance because I was used to my familiar territory. These action steps have generated some desired results.

Dreaming requires thinking what others will consider to be crazy, as your dream may not make sense until it is revealed. It did not make sense for Bill Gates to dream about 30 years ago, of a computer on any person's desk, talk less of it being in a majority of homes as it is today. However, Bill took action in spite of the voices of naysayers and the obstacles that would have occurred in his mind.

I am sure that you can think of other obstacles that you may have faced personally or heard about. It is very rare to walk the path of life without some of these making their presence known. Be prepared to overcome them, and remember that nothing ventured is nothing gained!

To your dream's accomplishment!

Do you know what you really want to become in life? Have you ever wondered why some people tend to be happy in what they do and contribute immensely to the welfare of humanity and enjoy personal rewards as a result of this, whilst others wonder why they exist at all. In his practical books, Kola answers the above questions from his experience of having found answers for himself: you will discover practical and tested guidance that will aid your connection to your dream and its accomplishment. His books have been written as journey towards destiny, in which the reader is encouraged as a fellow "traveller" who determines his own course. Go to http://www.getkola.com and http://www.thenigeriandream.com for more information.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kola_Olutimehin

How to Fear Less in Life

Perhaps it is already an undeniable truth that we live in a state of constant fear everyday at anywhere which could be derived from almost anything. Nonetheless, generally people could go by ignoring their own fears as life has to go on one way or another. Or there could be those that have yet to realize fully on how much one has to put up with in life at times.

Everywhere, there could be people suffering or worrying about different things such as physical ailments, financial woes, relationship breakdowns, job terminations, stresses that arise from the environment and so on. Otherwise, people may also fear living in a way that goes beyond our control and are inevitable; such as growing old, failure to live up to certain expectations, being unloved, having low self worth, feeling not beautiful or good looking enough or not wealthy enough and the list goes on.

Subsequently, there could be so many things that could make a person feel unhappy because of the little added up fears and worries in our everyday life. Sometimes those little worries or fears plague us out of nowhere; whether or not it appears relevant to another. And at worst, there are the kinds that live within us that hardly goes away; our inner fears.

When life becomes a lot more troublesome or fearful, then what we ought to do is to first understand the root causes of what we are feeling and what our fears are. After that is to then address our fears by facing those underlying issues in order to manage or resolve them more quickly. For example, if one fears having a serious disease, then by all means seek accurate and precise answers to those symptoms of the ailment; take on medical treatment after that. Steps like this help at identifying the factors that cause us more disadvantages in the long run. They also provide better insights for us to learn to better resolve the issue. Ignoring our own problems that causes us to worry may just makes things worse.

Another important step is to establish concrete plans which allow us to act upon. Ensure that these plans help at solving the problems. Start by gaining a better understanding within ourselves before making those plans; as this proves a more effective measure. Not all causes of fear can be eliminated; however, it certainly helps to identify what troubles us deeply. It may be best to seek further knowledge that helps at identifying the reasons behind what prevents us from taking on the right approach; by getting through the sources of our fears.

For example, could it be a childhood phobia, some very bad experience in life, a kind of addiction, a health condition, an unshakeable belief or some unknown reason?

Certainly, for all that we have to fear, there are controlling factors that pull us to be abide by them.
Consequently, to be able to understand better of all that happens to us and within ourselves; it may reflect to us that certain things are truly just a matter of choice. In order to lead a more worry free life, we ought to make wise decisions and stick to them on good causes and reasons that are clear. At times, one has to be prepared to make sacrifices or to let things go even. But whatever it is that we fear, we ought to stay strong to choose our directions instead of giving up and be succumbed by it. What we fear may have composed our life without us knowing. Therefore, what is crucial at addressing and defeating the fear within us is to also acknowledge and accept ourselves for who we are. Simply, change what and where we can along the way for the better and start to live life a little bit more fearlessly.

If you like this article, please read as well Keys to Unlocking True Happiness

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Karen_Chai

How to Be a Confident Conversationalist

Whether you're at a work function, social event, BBQ, or out with the executive team, sometimes you'll need to start a conversation or keep one going. We all admire people who have a flair for engaging others in conversation. They put everyone at ease and never seem short of something interesting to say.

People who do this well appear confident and enjoy themselves a lot - yet, like any skill, the ability to initiate and lead a conversation can be learned and practised, when you know how. Following are simple skills to become a great conversationalist:

Look the part. Your body language says a lot about you. Even if you don't feel confident, you need to look it. If you are standing, always have your feet planted firmly on the ground (avoid swaying, leaning, balancing on one leg, shifting). Stand tall and strong, shoulders square and your chest open. Your arms may be by your aide, clasped in front or, depending on the situation, you may be holding a drink.

Eye contact is crucial. Whether you are talking or listening, look at the other person; eye contact means you connect and engage with the person you are talking with. Try to avoid distractions - there is nothing worse than conversing with another person while they are looking around the room. Your aim is to make the person you are talking with feel as if they are the only person in the room.

Smile. A smile makes you appear warm and welcoming and puts others at ease. It communicates, "I am happy to see you".

Listen well. Practise active listening skills so you really hear and understand what others are saying and, at the same time, encourage others to keep talking. Active listening skills include eye contact, nodding your head, open body language, leaning in to hear what the person is saying, and making appropriate responses. Use verbal aids such as "I see", "really", "tell me more", "that's interesting" to encourage the speaker to continue and show you are listening and interested in what they are saying. And don't interrupt the speaker - be a genuine listener.

Don't talk about yourself. When making conversation, talk about what interests the other people or person you are talking with. Your challenge is to find out what it is that inspires them. Capture their attention by asking questions about themselves and their interests. Open ended questions are great for this. These are questions that start with: who, what, where, how or why.

For example:
"How did you become involved in this area of work?"
"What do you think about..."
"How was your holiday?"
"What you are your current challenges?"
Keep conversations going with bridges. Sometimes you will speak with people who respond to your open ended questions with very short answers. Bridges keep them talking. These include:

"So what happened next?"
"What did you do then?"
"Why do you think that happened?"
Once again taking an interest in the person and extending the conversation.
Practise makes perfect. If you want more confidence in conversation skills, practise any of the techniques above. There are hundreds of opportunities every day to practise these skills and form good habits. Go ahead: listen, be open and ask questions - have fun!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Maureen_Bell

Self-Confidence - The Driving Force Behind Greatness

Ever wondered what is it about great people that make them what they are? Not all of them hail from good families. Not all of them have received great education. In fact most of them were poor, had a hard life, and did not get many opportunities. But when they did get one, they grabbed it with both hands and made the most of it with whatever resources they had.
This is what sets them apart!

The belief that they had in themselves that they are capable of doing whatever it takes to achieve their goals. This confidence in their self is the driving force behind the success of every great person on this earth. Confidence is one of the most powerful assets you have. You could be incredibly skilled and talented, but without confidence in your abilities, you will never use your full potential.

A lot of our characteristics are inherited from our parents. If you see new born babies, they are not all the same in the way that they behave. Some babies are anxious while others are relaxed. Some babies are happy while others are irritable. But not all happy babies become happy grown-ups and not all irritable children grow up to be irritable adults. Our inherited talents, temperaments and personality have only so much to do with what we can become.
It is our belief in self that gives us the power to achieve whatever we want to have!

Every skill can be learned. Every talent can be acquired. Any disability can be overcome. If you have the confidence to learn, to perform and to achieve, anything is possible. You might be where you are now because of things that were out of your control, but that doesn't mean you can't make changes now to help you improve your self-confidence. You can learn how to gain confidence. It is always in your hands to become in charge of your life. And, being confident means doing just that.

When we think of confidence, what we are looking at is a set of behaviors. A confident person acts, thinks, feels and reacts differently to a person who has low self-esteem. If you look at each of these four areas, you can see a certain pattern in the way confident people behave. The best confidence tips deal with all these areas.

To become confident you need to truly believe that you are the driver of your own life and it will take whichever direction you want it to take. Learn how to become the king/queen of your own life. Studies also show that people with high self-confidence and good self esteem tend to be happier in general. This should be your goal on your journey to being a more developed being.

In the words of the great Marcus Garvey, "If you have no confidence in self you are twice defeated in the race of life. With confidence you have won even before you have started."
So, go ahead and be a winner!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Merle_Wilson

Are You Subject To Peer Pressure?

A few years ago now, a lady was coming home from her late night job, when she was suddenly attacked by a knife-wielding maniac and stabbed multiple times. She lived in a built up area, with apartment buildings all round.

Apparently, lights were going on all over the place, but not one person called the police nor made any attempt to help her. It wasn't as though people didn't hear her. She screamed and screamed, but no-one did anything. When the police finally arrived, she was dead.

What would you do? Pretend nothing's happening, or at least call the police. One of the names under which this sort of behaviour falls is 'bystander apathy'. You see something wrong happening, but you simply stand there and don't do a thing about it.

Suppose you see someone trip and fall heavily in the street. Would you go to their aid? Or, because no-one else is bothering to help them, would you simply walk on?

An experiment was carried out by two psychologists not so long ago, directly linked to this 'bystander apathy'. They gathered a group of students, and told them they were conducting a study on life at the university. One student had to sit alone in a room and talk into a microphone for two minutes about their experiences at university.

Now, this was happening in a number of rooms, but all the voices were pre-recorded However, the 'subject' didn't know that these stories were pre-recorded and merely thought they were the voices of other students taking part in the study. Now remember that in truth there was only one student. All the other voices were pre-recorded, but this one student thought there were at least another half a dozen students.

The one 'live' student listened to voice after voice, each one lasting for two minutes. One voice was from a 'student' who said he suffered from epilepsy. He carried on for about thirty seconds, then suddenly his voice began to become panicky.

"Oh my God, I'm having a seizure. Someone please help," etc. The one student, thinking there were a number of others in the same experiment, made no effort to help. He was anxious, yes, but didn't help.

On the other hand, a similar experiment in which the student knew he was the only one, did help. In fact, 85% of those in that situation helped, because they thought there was no-one else. It's most interesting. There is most definitely not safety in numbers.

If you have a fall and there are only one or perhaps two people around, you stand a far better chance of help than if you find yourself surrounded by people.

The moral seems to be;don't fall in the middle of a crowd!

Hypnosis and Psychology are such vast subjects, but you'll learn a very great deal by clicking onto http://www.thehypnosisattraction.com which is Mike Bond's Website. Not only that, but you'll find a FREE audio tutorial on http://www.thehypnosisattraction.com which, if used properly, will prove of tremendous value to you. And don't forget to click on "Downloads".

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Killing The Habit: Being Unproductive

Every night before I go to sleep,I ponder upon what I did the whole day and what I will to in the next. And more often than usual, I contemplate on how unproductive my day was. So I try to make a plan and say to myself that I will do something significant the next day, And again, and the end of the day I still end up doing nothing really productive. This bad habit has been going on for quite some time now. And here comes a point in my life where I would stand up and say this is enough.

I noticed there are also people like me,struggling to kill procrastination. And as I listen to their stories, I begin to see a pattern. I begin to see dotted lines in between what they want to do, and what they actually did. One thing lead to another so to speak as I observed I wrote down particular habits that needed to die to be successful in your quest to be more productive. Below is a list of tips on how you could kill the habit.

Set your priorities
I am not the first to say this, and this might be utterly obvious to almost all of us. Set your priorities, Learn which task is more important than the other. Create a hierarchy of the tasks you need to do and accomplish them in that order. I would suggest a 3-step-system that works something like this;

• Write down your tasks to be done.
• Number them 1 to 3, 1 being MUST DO TODAY NO MATTER WHAT and 3 being Do Today.
• Begin!

Lists are your friends
To have a better understanding of your priorities, you should master the task of making a list. I don't mean a list that just involves writing down your tasks. You need to have a detailed list. Here are some of the things that you MUST do to your list.

• A list of your things to do (Pretty Obvious)
• Order them using the 1 to 3 hierarchy method stated above.
• Include an estimation of time needed to complete each task.
• Use colored markers or paper to catch your attention.
• Put the list where you spend most time in, Like in front of the computer, T.V.

Shut off distractions
The number one killer of productivity is a good old distraction monster. Ever had a trip to the kitchen to open the refrigerator,and then suddenly stop and say What am I doing here again? Distractions could range from food, games to problems. Most often you don't even see any of these as a distraction and therefore subliminally thinking you are doing something but your just killing time. You need to follow your list. Anything that is not on your priority list, you can do it after the items on your list. Try to discipline and regulate yourself.

Focus Fire!
You need to devote your time and skills to one task at a time if you want to be really productive. It is highly advisable to multi-task because this could lead to other distractions and more stress. You might fool yourself that jobs would be faster if you multi-task, But do not fall for this. Just Follow your list as it is and you'll be okay.

Stress is lethargy in disguise
How many of us are just plain stressed of the thought that we are wasting our time? Well you should stop stressing and start doing. Because the fact of the matter is, stress is a productivity killer as well, It consumes a lot of energy and pressures you. Don't stress out, take time to relax and again, follow that list and everything is gonna be okay. To make it clear though, I said take time to relax. BUT not that much time,I mean you might have a task for one hour and rest for 3? NO. You'll have better time to rest and relax if you have already completed all the tasks you have today.

DO IT NOW
The simple fact that you are reading this article means that you are looking for ways to help you get rid of your problem with productivity. This means you are motivated and is willing to do what it takes to kill this bad habit. Right now as you finish this article, you feel as if you're ready to go, ready to take on a new leap. Well, You can! and what better way to start than to start NOW. Start now! Do not let distractions or stress or any of the mentioned above deceive you into a procrastination spiral! You are now well equipped with knowledge on how to avoid bad habits. Do it now!
Good luck!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rhed_Netherpearl

Focus On Goals

Having plans to obtain goals are important and will help you stay organized. Having a plan that will help you stay focused will keep you on course. So what you end up with is two plans for the same goal. For example; if your goal is to lose 25 pounds, your plan could be to go to the gym three times a week. And your plan to stay focused could include putting up a sign on your bed room door that states "Do your morning sit-ups", or asking a friend to exercise with you three times a week. Staying focused may even mean not going to places you use to visit or abstaining from hanging out with old friends. Such as not hanging out at a bar if your goal is to stop drinking, or not hanging out with single friends of the opposite sex if your goal is to stop cheating on your spouse.

This might sound stupid but there are some people who believe that they can still hang out with the same old crowd and survive the pressure. It might not be impossible to do, but it only puts you at high risk for failure! A large number of these people end up back doing their old habits. If your friends really care about you they will be understanding as to why you don't hang out with them any more. Also remember that your recovery might be enough motivation to help inspire one of your old friends to have a change of heart and move in the same direction you did.

5 helpful tips on staying focused on a goal:

1. Talk to yourself. Tell yourself what your going to do. Look in a mirror and tell yourself every day "I am not going to drink alcohol today", or "I am not ever going to cheat on my beautiful spouse again", or "I will not eat junk food today", or what ever it is that your struggling with. It would even be wise to memorize a personalized one paragraph motivational speech that you tell yourself everyday. Words have power!!! Use them to your advantage.


2. Tell others about your goal. Telling your close friends and family members about your goal could give you more reason to not give up! It doesn't matter if they support you. The fact that everybody knows could work as an additional reason and constant reminder of why you can't quit pursuing your goal.


3. Ask for help. Don't let pride stand in your way! Getting help from friends, or family, or church members, or professionals could be the one thing you need to stay focused. Also others may have more insight on how you might be able to better reach your goal. Just having someone else to consult with can be helpful in relieving stress, increasing motivation, and maintaining your focus.


4. Make a time table.A goal should be measurable. Have a date that you want to have your goal reached by. A date can motivate you and keep you away from dragging your feet and risking losing some amount of zeal. Having a date will also help keep you focused on finishing what you've started in a timely manner.


5. Make short term goals related to the ultimate goal. Your short term goals are steps toward the ultimate goal. For instance; your ultimate goal may be to lose 10 pounds, but your short term goal might be one pound a month. Or your ultimate goal may be to read a 900 page book within a year, but your short term goal might be 3 pages a day. Short term goals show our progress and give feelings of accomplishment while pursuing the ultimate accomplishment.

Patrick Jaye Hardine is a United States war time veteran who writes positive motivational poetry. In his latest book, My Private Road, he discusses the importance of short term goals, long term goals, and what a goal must be comprised of. For more information please visit http://www.myprivateroad.com

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Take The Plunge and Jump In The Deep End

Have you ever been faced with a situation in life where you had two choices about how to do something? One could be to do nothing and the other could be to take a risk and go into the unknown. How many of you did nothing when faced with this challenge? How many of you took the risk and went for it?

Most of us, when faced with a decision to act on something, tend to back away from the challenge and play it safe. We decide to exercise our right to caution and stay secure. We have been taught from a very early age to overt risk at all costs. There are too many consequences, setbacks or drawbacks that we'd have to face if we took the plunge. We never give ourselves the opportunity to discover what it feels like to take the road less travelled in life. We spend most of our time journeying on a path that is familiar and comfortable. Even though this may feel better, we land up being in stasis and don't actually progress. That's not to say that we then need to always take risks though. A balance of both caution and risk helps us move forward in life.

So what is the benefit of taking risks? Doing things that we wouldn't normally do? How much can you learn from being in an environment that you know so well, that hardly ever changes and almost always produces or yields the same outcomes? Taking risks and diving into the unknown will certainly test your resilience, commitment, courage, ambition, motivation and so much more. Your boundaries will be pushed and extended and what was once comfortable, may become uncomfortable for a time. By taking this road, our minds can open up to possibilities beyond our wildest dreams. Nothing great comes without paying a price. If it was that easy, we'd all be jumping in the deep end and taking the plunge. It's difficult and challenging and this is the main reason why most of us avoid it.

My advice is - TAKE THE PLUNGE! Push yourself, challenge your comfort zone and your boundaries. You may surprise yourself and do something amazing with your life that you never thought possible. The greatest discoveries are made when we do the unexpected and go beyond our own fears. When you hold yourself back, not only do you deprive yourself of your own self-discovery, but you also deny others from experiencing your greatness.

Dr Greg Schreeuwer is an empowerment coach and kinesiologist who specialises in helping people activate their inner child and genius in order to fulfill their true purpose in life. Take a look at his new eBook called, Action Your Life, which can be found at http://parallelpractise.com/action-life/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Greg_Schreeuwer

How To Enjoy the Present and Get Out of the Past

I once saw a photograph of the 1950's that showed bears in a national park leaning on a car and looking in the window as the sight seers were taking pictures of them with their windows down. The caption under the picture read, "Even bears were nicer back then."
We often hear people longing for the good ole' days. But were the good ole' days really that good? Is the present really all that rotten?

Better Interest Rates Now
In the early 80's interest rates were about 15% or more. The payment for a $100,000 house on a thirty year mortgage would have been $1,680.61 per month. You would have paid $345,449.85 in interest after 30 years. The total amount you would have paid after 30 years would have been $492,699,85.

Today at 4% on a $100,000 dollar house you would pay $581.58 per month. You will pay $67,119.51 in interest after 30 years. The total amount you will pay after 30 years is $209,361.51. Are these really the bad ole' days.

Better Unemployment Rates Now
In 1981 unemployment was above 10% for more than 10 months. Unemployment rose above 10% for only one month recently. The story goes on and on.

Better Cancer Therapy Now
Just a few decades certain cancers were an automatic death sentence, but now they are usually cured through modern medical advancements. If you needed an organ transplant a few years ago you were out of luck. Now there are many lives saved through organ transplants that have become routine procedure.

Better Heart Surgery Now
In many cases certain heart surgeries are outpatient, whereas a few short years ago any heart surgery put you in the hospital for days and sometimes weeks.

Better Cars Now
My dad's 1968 Oldsmobile Delmont 88 died at 125,000 mile mark. We thought that was amazing. Most cars were dead by the 60,000 to 75, 000 mile mark. Now, it is no big deal if a car gets 150,000 to 250,000 miles. Were those really the good ole' days.

The Bible warns us about looking at the past and wishing we were there.
1.The Israelis looked back to Egypt where they had been slaves and wished they were there again. They didn't like the responsibility of freedom.

2.; Lot's wife looked back to the burning cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and longed to go back to a city that had become lawless and violent. A city where her daughters were raped and abused. She became a pillar of salt. Her death led to her husband committing incest with his other daughters in order to produce a family. The Moabties and the Ammonites were the result.

Jesus Warned Us About Glorifying the Past
In Luke 9:62 Jesus said, "No man after putting his hand to the plow, if he keeps looking back, is fit or prepared for ruling in the Kingdom of God". Let's quit looking back and look forward with new vision and rule and reign in Christ.

I'll guarantee you that bears in the 1950's were as deadly as bears today!

Byron has been a motivational speaker for over 25 years speaking nearly 200 times per year. He is putting his years of research and experience into writing and on audio.
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