How Do You Choose To Deal With Your Life

"It's choice – not chance – that determines your destiny." --Jean Nidetch

It is not what happens to us in our lives that is important, but how we choose to deal with it. 'Stuff happens', as the saying goes. So what do you do about it?

Realizing that you have a choice is the first step. Lost your job? You can chose to dwell on the past and the 'I wish it hadn't happened', or you can pick yourself up, dust yourself down and think 'It's happened. What can I do now?' Choose to change the way you think. Take notice – hear what your intuition is telling you – listen and pay attention.

What are your alteatives? What are your options? Make a decision. Your decision. Other people's 'negative reactions' belong to them. Choose not to absorb them as your own. Maintain your own integrity and choose to follow the path to your ideal future. What do you need to lea? Who do you need to know? What do you need to do? There is always a range of possibilities to choose from. Now is the time to decide which ones are right for you. It is up to you. Be in charge of yourself. Choose to stop apologizing or making excuses. Don't disconnect yourself from what you truly want – don't compromise if your instincts are screaming for you to follow another path.

Through conscious and subconscious choices the control of your life is in your hands. Even choosing to do nothing, change nothing, is still a choice. Choose to invest in yourself – because you are worth it – time, emotion, money and respect. No one else will value you unless you choose to value yourself.

Kate Harper is based in the beautiful Highlands of Scotland. Check out her website http://www.harpercoaching.com

She works with people who are fed up with moaning about their lives and have decided to do something about it. If that is you, please have a look at her website. She is happy to work with people from any part of the world.

"The distance is nothing; it is only the first step that is difficult." Madame Marie du Deffand

Take your first step today and contact Kate.

Filter Your Choices

Having options and the ability to make choices can be exciting. Whether you are ordering a specialty coffee or selecting a college there are many different ways to have what we want done our way. Unfortunately, for many people all the choices become overwhelming when it is time to choose just one.

That's the reason why people go years without rebalancing their retirement portfolio, buying a holiday greeting card, or eating at a restaurant where the menu isn't already memorized. Having too many choices causes inaction. Humans freeze up when faced with what appears to be too much information requiring too much thinking. To make matters worse, when a decision is finally made we spend hours suffering from buyers remorse feeling dissatisfied what our choice.

Here are five ways you can deal with choices in life and be sure you making the best decision for you. This process of dealing with choices is called "Filtering".

Filter #1 - Know your objective.

Understand what factors are important to you before attempting to make a decision. If you are shopping for auto insurance, you can help narrow the field by understanding that you are looking for a 12 month policy you can pay for in 12 payments from an A+ rated carrier.

Filter #2 - Use the Rule of Three

The best basis for comparison occurs when you have no more than three things to compare. Trim your possible options to three by throwing out the worst options. Of the choices that made it through Filter #1, reject the ones that are not licensed in your state.

Filter #3 - Understand the Trade-Offs

Say you want to buy a used car and it costs $5000, but you know that in three months the used cars will be reduced 20% for quick sale you can see the trade-off of waiting. By waiting you save $1000, but you lose the driving of the car for six months. If the money pales in comparison to the product, buy it. If you cannot decide what to do, wait a week and see if the money or the product has gained importance to you. If not, continue to Filter #4.

Filter #4 - What is the cost of waiting

Procrastination can be costly, especially in financial matters. Missing the open-enrollment of your company's 401(k) plan could mean you walk away from hundreds of dollars your employer would have matched, resulting in thousands of dollars in lost compound interest over the next 30 years. Focus on what you lose by not making a decision and you might suddenly find it easier to pick between the three options you narrowed the field to earlier.

Filter #5 - Accept "Good Enough"

Not every decision you make will be perfect. Content yourself with making most choices be "good enough" and move on to the next decision. Worrying about always making the perfect choice will result in buyer's remorse and cause unhappiness with your life.

Of course, sometimes you will need help in making decisions. For example, seeking the advice of qualified financial advisors can help you avoid making costly mistakes with your money. So go ahead, order a tall skim amoretto cappuccino instead of your usual grande whole latte. You just might decide it is good enough to enjoy.

Roger Sorensen

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Expectations

I promise this really happened.

I frequently sit alone on the pier that overlooks our small lake. I've been told the lake is full of fish but I doubt that it is true. I seldom see the fish jump and I don't see the fishermen reeling them in very often. I slowly grow to believe, without a doubt, that the lake has very few fish in it.

So one day, I'm sitting with a friend on this same pier. I hear the sound of splashing water. I don't think much about it. As my friend and I enjoy our conversation with one another, the splashes become more frequent. I tell my friend how shocked I am that so much activity is going on in the water. He asks me why. I tell him that I had grown to doubt that many fish lived in our lake. My friend looks at me and smiles.

My friend explains that he expects fish to jump in the water. To his way of thinking, if fish do not jump and make splashes, the water is dead. After this, we sit in silence as we watch the fish continue to liven up the space around us.

This experience sent a strong message to me about expectations. I had grown to expect still water. I got still water. My friend expected lively water. He got lively water. Apparently, his expectations regarding the water outweighed mine in a very powerful way.

Can it really be that simple? Do our expectations dictate what we receive?

What kind of expectations do you have about your life? What would happen if you changed your expectations to match the deepest desires of your heart?

I notice that I see more and more fish being caught by the people who fish around our pier. I have no doubt that our lake is full of fish and I now expect to see those fish jumping all over the place.

It is much more enjoyable to be around water that feels so alive!

Beverly Keaton Smith, CPCC owns and operates Embrace Your Gifts and Soar! She is a certified life coach who offers individual life coaching, group coaching, workshops and retreats to women who are ready to discover and embrace their unique gifts so they can live more athentically and joyfully. She is also co-author of The Book of Druthers. To lea more about Beverly, visit http://www.embraceyourgifts.com

How to Improve Your Love Life with the Power of Feng Shui Without Spending a Dime

FENG shui (say "fung shway") is the art of creating a home environment that supports the life you wish to live. A key element of feng shui is creating a smooth flow of chi (positive energy) through your space. Chi likes to move through your home as though it were a gentle breeze or a meandering stream. Where it is blocked, the energy becomes stagnant--like a pond choked with algae and fallen leaves. You are likely to feel blocked in life, and your energy and enthusiasm for matters of the heart will be low. Balancing and correcting the chi of your bedroom helps encourage and invigorate romance. Here are some quick and easy ways to improve your love life by improving the energy of your home:

1. Clean up your bedroom

When your bedroom is cluttered and untidy, the energy in there will be low and slow. Clutter is a sure sign that chi is stuck, so roll up your sleeves and clean the place up if you want to jump-start your love life. Ring a bell, shake a rattle, or clap your hands loudly around the room to clear out old, stale energy.

2. Make room for love

If you want to attract a new romantic partner--or move a casual relationship closer to commitment--make sure there is space for that person in your home. Look at your closets, shelves, and dressers, especially in the bedroom; if they are all filled to capacity with your own stuff, make clearing some room for your current or future partner a priority. Aim to free up 25% of the space in your bedroom for someone else's things. When you are done, take a moment to visualize your loved one's belongings finding a home there.

3. Don't work out in the bedroom

When you exercise in the bedroom, or store your sports equipment there, you bring the energy of hard work and exertion into your romance space. Do you want your relationship to feel like a tough workout? If not, move your workout stuff somewhere else; your relationship is likely to move along more smoothly.

4. Remove old relationship energy

Go through your home--especially your bedroom--and remove anything that reminds you of past failed relationships; this could be an ex-boyfriend's old sweater you find in the closet, photographs of you with a previous partner, a gift that reminds you (unfavorably) of a giver with whom you are no longer in love--anything that reminds you of a love that went bad. No matter how incurable a romantic you may be, do NOT keep old love letters anywhere in your bedroom unless they are from someone with whom you are still blissfully paired up.

5. Remove inappropriate imagery

The images with which you surround yourself can have a powerful effect on your love life. Feng shui clients who complain of difficulty finding romance often have surrounded themselves with images of a person alone. Inappropriate imagery includes anything that represents solitude, loneliness, aggression, hard work, conflict, or disagreement in any way. That old photo of your Dad when he was in the army may be a treasure, but the wartime energy it carries doesn't have any place in the bedroom; find another place to keep it.

6. Open the door to love

Make sure both the front door of your home and the door to your bedroom open easily and completely. Doors that stick, squeak, or that only open partway because of all the stuff stored behind them are blocking the flow of romantic energy and opportunity into your home. A loose doorknob on your bedroom door could mean you're having a hard time "getting a handle on" romance; get out your screwdriver and tighten it up.

7. Create a path for chi

Walk slowly from your front door to your bedroom, pretending that you are a gentle river of chi. Look for any areas where fuiture or other belongings are stopping or slowing the flow of chi, or where chi is diverted away from the bedroom to other areas of the house. Clear a path so fresh chi can find its way to your bedroom and nourish your love life. Make sure all the lights along this route are working, replace any bued-out bulbs, and be alert for dark or dingy coers where you can increase the energy by adding more light.

8. Move your bed

If one side of your bed is against the wall, the person who sleeps on that side may feel confined or disempowered in the relationship. If possible, place the bed so there is equal space on either side, so you and your partner can find equal enjoyment in the relationship. The ideal position of the bed will be on the opposite side of the room from the door, but not directly in line with it. If you can't see the bedroom door from the bed, hang a mirror where it will provide a reflected view of the entry.

9. Bring romance chi into the bedroom

Be sure to place romantic imagery in these two key places in the bedroom: the wall opposite the foot of the bed (where you naturally look when lying in bed), and whatever area of the room you first see when you enter. Beautiful, romantic artwork is always good, as are fresh or silk flowers and anything in pairs (such as birds, cherubs, candles, or decorative pillows). A round mirror is also good for the bedroom, as the shape signifies completion and unity. Look around your home for whatever says "romance" to you, and find a good spot for it in your bedroom.

10. Clarify your intention

Make a collage of images that symbolize your perfect relationship, and place it where you will see it every day. If you are already in a relationship, invite your partner to make a collage with you, to represent your intention to build a joyful and loving future together.

Copyright © 2002 Stephanie Roberts

This article is based on information in the book Fast Feng Shui for Singles: 108 Ways to Heal Your Home and Attract Romance (Lotus Pond Press, Kahului, HI, ISBN 1-931383-04-9), also available at Amazon.com.

About The Author

Stephanie Roberts is a feng shui consultant in Maui, Hawaii, and the author of the best-selling "Fast Feng Shui" books (rated 5-stars by Amazon.com readers). To find out how you can use contemporary Weste feng shui to help you achieve greater success and happiness in your life, please visit the Fast Feng Shui website.

stephanie@fastfengshui.com

Gratitude 11 Universal Laws for ThanksLiving

The Law of Thanksgiving

It's easy to be grateful around the Thanksgiving holiday. But what if we were able to find ourselves feeling grateful year round? What that might change about your life?

The Law of Who Past

To whom in the past are you grateful? Someone who gave you a break, someone who cared about you, inspired you, believed in you, or someone who simply listened to you? Have you ever sought them out to thank them, perhaps just a phone call to say thanks? As someone who has made those kind of calls, it really feels good to express your gratitude. And as someone who has had the privilege of being on the receiving end of those kind of calls, it sure can make your day, your week, or more.

The Law of Who Now

For whom are you grateful for in your life right now? Have you let them know lately how much you appreciate them? If not, give the gift today!

The Law of Attitude

Gratitude is simply an attitude. The one thing we can always choose each day, in any situation, is our attitude. Therefore, we always have the ability to choose an attitude of gratitude.

The Law of Abundance, Part 1

One great benefit of a gratitude attitude is you become much more aware of the abundance you already have in your life.

The Law of Abundance, Part 2

Another great and unexpected benefit of a gratitude attitude is that, with this consistent attitude of gratitude, you seem to be able to draw even more and more abundance into your life.

The Law of Abundance, Part 3

Author Stephen Glenn has this definition of abundance; "In terms of the population of the planet, you have abundance if, when you wake up each moing, you have:

a choice of what to eat
a choice of what to wear
a job to go to
a way to get there."

The Law of Lacking

If we focus on all the things we want and don't have, we wind up feeling lacking. Not a great state to be in.

The Law of Blessed

When we focus on all the many things we need and want that we do have, we wind up feeling blessed. A pretty great state to be in.

The Law of Focus

Have you ever noticed that what you consistently focus on tends to be what happens? I've also noticed that when we focus on what we lack, we tend to get selfish, looking out only for ourselves. On the other hand, when we focus on our blessings, it's much easier to look out for others as well as ourselves.

Yes, it really can be that simple.

The Law of "Betcha"

I'll "betcha" that if between now and next Thanksgiving season, you focus on developing a consistent, year round gratitude attitude, your life will be a whole lot better this time next year.

Visit SecretsofGreatRelationships.com for tips and tools for creating and growing a great relationship. You can also subscribe to our f*r*e*e 10 day e-program on how to enrich your relationship today, from relationship coach and expert Jeff Herring.

How Five Scientific Laws 15 Minutes and 17 Days Changed My Life

Imagine owning your life and everything in it.

What if I told you, you could lea to accomplish anything you've ever wanted in only 17 days - would you be interested? Would you believe me if I said you could live the life of your dreams with a special 15 minute-per-day scientific "target praxis?"

When I first heard this concept, I didn't even know what a "target praxis" was. Needless to say, I was more than a bit skeptical. But I know what I want. I have very specific goals and anything that might be able to help me reach them deserves my attention.

Think about it. Do you know what you want? Most people don't. So, if you have some idea of what you want - you're already far ahead of most people.

I'm sure you already know, every action you take, either brings you closer to what you want, or pushes you further away from it.

I would certainly hope if *you* discovered the "Scientific Formula for Success," I would be the FIRST person you ran to with the news.

There are certain Scientific Laws, and Sources of Power that gove the "real world."

Magical solutions and wishful thinking don't seem to accomplish much.

I recently found some research based on hundreds of years of study into psychology, personal achievement, and human behavior – science which encourages you to see results for yourself, before making any judgments. No more vague theories.

Actual observable laws - I was excited. Can you guess what the first words out of my mouth were? That's right. "You've got my attention, now prove it."

Here's what I discovered…

There are five laws to this new science of "Simple-ology."

Workbooks, exercises, checklists and daily target praxes really connect you to your unique personal desires. It helps you to realize if you really are committed to achieving what you want, or are content to just dream about it. It makes you think.

This opened my eyes.

What is Simple-ology?

It's a new science designed to improve your mind and increase your ability to retain information. That may sound like a ton of reading, but I found the multi-media video training keeps it fun, easy to understand and entertaining.

On my first visit to the site, I thought I'd found a loophole. A back-door into someone's course materials, or paid membership. The entire course material is accessible online - right from the website. All the videos, workbooks, exercises -- even the required "Virtuosity Book" is right there for the taking.

I'm still going through the lessons in 101, and I can already notice a change in the way my days have been going. I no longer dread waking up in the moing. My memory seems to have improved, and my energy levels have been through the roof.

It's like there's been a shift in the way I've been doing things. My stress level has gone down considerably. My relationships at work and at home seem to be improving. There even seems to be more free time showing up at different intervals during the day.

I will never regret finding this research, and adding it to my schedule. Fifteen minutes a day to stay on the "pathway to power" and get closer to achieving my goals and wants is definitely worth it to me. I've just passed my 17th day and am about to plunge into Simple-ology 102: The Simple Science of Money – If it's anything like Simple-ology 101, I'm about to have another experience I will never forget. Stay tuned!

Skye Mangrum is a student of Simple-ology: The Simple Science of Getting What You Want. She has dedicated a portion of her life to revealing the new science to anyone who knows what they want, but isn't sure how to get it. For more information on Simple-ology and how it can benefit you, see: http://www.Simple-ology.com or send a blank email to: simpleology101@aweber.com to receive "Simple-ology 101" an 18-part video training course for free.

Knowledge is Power So Keep Your Mouth Closed To Keep It From Getting Away

Did you ever wonder why it sometimes seems that communications is lacking within an organization or corporate culture? It is one of those frustrating situations that appear to put a halt to positive productivity. You meander around trying to gather hacked information that you feel is important, yet the one person that should know the whole story "doesn't know a thing." Then, at the last minute, the entire world shifts, and the one person that "didn't know" comes out of the shadows and becomes the hero because they knew the answer.

One of the reasons for such lack of information is "power." It is the ability to hold something back from someone and use that hidden knowledge to perform an action or create an imbalance to accomplish a task. If someone knows something and doesn't tell you the whole story, two of the more common reasons are: Need to Know and Power Plays.

---Need to Know---

With each individual corporate entity comes a corporate vision and a mission. The visions of Corporate America are to make money, survive, and advance technology, healthcare, etc. This vision and mission then trickles down the ranks of the individual corporations and is pieced out and delegated to each subordinate level. Each individual person contributes by becoming involved in one or more of these visions. In most cases, one person won't know the "big picture"; however, they do know that their piece of the pie will help to move the company toward it ultimate vision.

The job of a manager is to take a piece of this overall corporate vision and mission and develop a vision for his group and a mission for his subordinates. This manager breaks his part of the mission into feasible projects that, upon completion, bring the department, group, and company closer to its vision. The only person that usually knows the whole picture is your manager. Above him, only his manager knows the whole picture for his subordinate managers. This, until it ripples back up to the macro-vision of Corporate America.

All of this, just to explain a simple idea? But, it is essential to know why you're rarely given a larger picture of the piece that you happen to be working on. Three of the more important reasons are security, control, and focus.

* Security: If you know the whole picture, then you could potentially take off and do the same thing somewhere else. By only knowing a small piece of the whole puzzle, the company is less conceed that you would jeopardize their market advantage.

* Control: If you know the whole picture, then why would you need a manager? Somewhere in there, a manager must exist to ensure that everything that his subordinates are doing is directed toward a particular objective. Things have to get done and pieces have to fit together. In the middle, your manager knows everything that is important to your group and department and is able to control the individuals in the group by being the central point of contact for information.

* Focus: By knowing too much, managers are conceed that you might lose focus on your own piece of the puzzle. I've seen subordinates who knew everything about everything and they were so busy critiquing and mingling in worlds not pertaining to their work that they never completed anything that was assigned to them. It is essential to maintain focus on your specific objectives to complete your part of your group's mission successfully.

--- Power Plays ---

Power comes from the approach that your peer or superior will not provide a piece of information that is important to you or your job. In this way, it seems that they can use that lack of information to prod you into either looking for yourself or use it to maintain a submissive stance on your part such that "they have all the answers." In this situation, acknowledge that your manager or peer does have all the answers and allow them the opportunity to "impart some of their knowledge" upon you. In this manner, they are able to exert their power while you are able to pick the necessary information out of their ramblings.

Another reason for this approach is to create an imbalance to move a situation in a specified direction. By not providing a piece of information, the manager is creating a vacuum that you must fill. You can accomplish this by examining the missing information and defining or locating the missing piece. Another term for this approach is "delegation."

Realize also that it is not the manager's job to have all of the answers. They are in their position to determine and direct. You are there to define and resolve to achieve the necessary results. In most cases, whether you realize it or not, you are the one with the answers!

--- Peer Power ---

With regard to peers, an individual will sometimes provide disinformation, or lack of information, so that they can act on the information, as opposed to telling others and end up losing their footing, or power, because someone else acted on the information. In this case, you have two options. You can compliment them and allow them the opportunity to exert their power as you extract the information you need from their knowledge. Alteatively, you can find your own answers by searching for the answer through research, the gossip tree, or by asking other peers or your manager. In some cases, your manager will usually refer you back to the one who won't talk since they have "all the answers."

Don't get frustrated in this situation as your peers are working toward objectives just as you. Simply go back to that peer and confront them for the information you need. However, verify the information before you use it, as it could very well be misleading.

---What's next? ---

It is important to realize that, in most cases, the reason for lack of communications is not a personal issue against you. It is a professional issue used to obtain and maintain power and control. If you can lea how to manage yourself and your work within the confines of a given "information play," then you can conquer one of most confusing conundrums of the corporate culture.

Lack of information doesn't necessarily mean "lack of information." It usually means something else. Perhaps someone is about to be fired, a change is in the offing, an imbalance for forward motion is created, or perhaps there is a turf issue playing. Realize that if you feel that you have little information, look around and see what else is going on around you. You just may have more information available to you than you would want to know.

If you don't know the big picture now, prove that you can first handle the smaller pieces and then, as your prove your ability to handle the responsibility, you will eventually be privy to a larger view. At that point, you will be the one with the "power of knowledge."

About The Author

Edward B. Toupin is an author, life-strategy coach, counselor, and technical writer living in Las Vegas, NV. Among other things, he authors books and articles on topics ranging from career success through life organization and fulfillment. For more information, e-mail Edward at etoupin@toupin.com or visit his sites at http://www.toupin.com or http://www.make-life-great.com.

etoupin@toupin.com

Dreaming Perpendicular To Life

The horses on the merry-go-round know something about life that we often forget. They go around and around in their "lives" much as we do. They face forward and move along their path. We do that too. But they have a vertical pole that's physically visible and palpable. They go up and down within the forward thrust of their movement. Most of us prefer getting on one of the horses that goes up and down to riding the ones that just go forward. The kids all run for the horses that will give them the feel of the perpendicular movement.

Our lives would be much more "merry" if we'd remember to include that vertical component in our personal "go-round."

Creating Your Reality

Do you have a clear sense of the role you play in the creation of your reality? Life unfolds before you. You look forward, step forward and live forward into it. The manifestation of your reality, like a red carpet rolling out before you, unfolds parallel to the earth. It runs parallel to your gaze, parallel to the forward movement of your physical jouey. That is the plane of manifestation. If you attempt to dream in that same plane, you will encounter much traffic. Your light-filled dreams will become obscured by the physical density of your already manifested realities. It is a crowded and cluttered place, the realm of the already-created. If you dream there, your new creations will look much like your old ones. The carousel horses know this. That's why they move up and down.

By moving vertically, the merry-go-round ride brings the light of the dream into play. It brings the dream of the unmanifest, rhythmically into the unfolding of the forward reality. That makes the ride much more fun.

This little geometric piece of merry-go-round mysticism can change everything for you. When you lea to dream perpendicular to life, you infuse your creation with brightness. You open the windows and allow a fresh breeze to circulate through the density of your past creations. You bring new possibilities into your previously stagnant belief systems. The results are all good.

Consciously or unconsciously, you have dreamt it all before it has come into form. Since we are mechanically spewing out our perceived realities just before we walk into them, why not create more intentionally? By keeping your dreams vertical and tapping them into the ground with each of your body's rhythms (your heart beat, your foot steps), like the horse, you bring the vertical dream into the horizontal manifestation and together these two dimensions create a reality much more luminous, much more satisfying.

A-maz-ing

Sounds good in theory, but how do we do it? How do we insert the vertical dream into our habitual chuing out of our horizontal realities? There are many techniques using visualization and imagery that will allow you to bring your vertical dreams into manifestation. Rather than reiterate them here, let's talk about those moments when we feel stuck. Let's address those times when we feel so lost in the unwanted manifestation that it is hard to find the feeling state we seek even in visualization. We will use a process I'd like to call "A-maz-ing." If done authentically, its results will amaze you.

We all walk around in our own maze. The maze of our limited ego consciousness keeps us scurrying down blind alleys. It guides us over and over again through our deeply grooved habits of thought and behavior. Everywhere we tu we seem to encounter another wall, another arbitrary choice of "go left" or "go right." With no reliable navigational tools, we can easily become disheartened and depressed, lost in the maze.

In order to free ourselves from the maze, in order to "a-maze" ourselves, we need a vertical perspective. We can find the bird's eye view we need in the form of guidance from our higher self. As long as we look forward, all we see is the next corridor of the maze which can bring on feelings of being trapped, dissatisfied, depressed or discouraged. By tuing our attention from forward to upward, we include our higher self (who sees us in those moments like a dot in the maze). A new possibility comes into play. We can be mystically guided through these puzzling tunnels and quickly step out into the open rolling fields and bright sunlight, into freedom and life.

Following the Light Within

It's as easy as following the light. That's how you do it. It may not be a visible light, but it will be a knowing of light. A knowing of right. A knowing of good. You can feel this guidance with increasing accuracy the more you experiment with it. Abraham tells us "good feels good and bad feels bad."* I've never heard a better summary of the whole process than that. It takes a conscious effort to follow the stream of good that leads you out of the maze. It takes a sincere opening to your own higher self. Remind yourself that your higher self can see your situation from a perspective that includes much of the picture that is blocked from your vision. Ask for guidance. Take it when it comes. A-maz-ing!

Making it Physical

The merry-go-round ride is simple, easy and fun. There is no prerequisite of metaphysical study and spiritual practice before purchasing your ride ticket. The same is true for dreaming perpendicular to life. Just as the vertical movement is built into the horses, it's built into you. With every step you take, the biomechanics of your feet lift you upward. Each step you take guides you up as it thrusts you forward.

Simply tune into the vertical component of your step and you gain access to the perpendicular component of creation. Can it be that easy to dream light into your life? Yes.

© Rebbie Straubing

You can receive Dr. Rebbie Straubing's Free e-Course, "7 Secrets for Manifesting Your Heart's Desire," at http://www.yofa.net

Rebbie is a workshop leader, Abraham Coach, and writer.

To find or harmonize a relationship, visit http://www.GreatRelationships.net

Increase your awareness of Divine Love and begin a meditation practice in 3 minutes at the Affirmative Contemplation website, http://www.AffirmativeContemplation.com

Emotion No Longer a Dirty Word

When I tell some people that we perceive and communicate emotionally and then give logical reasons for it, they are quick to deny it. However, salespeople know this to be true. They lea that people buy for emotional reasons and then rationalize the purchase. Showing someone why he or she needs the item or service will not get you as far as showing him or her why he or she wants it.

The same semantics' happen with perceptions and communication. When we look at the physiology of perceptions, we lea that our clearest memories are ones that have an emotional context to it. The reason is: anything that is highly emotional will come through the amygdala in our brain, whether it is from fear or love, anxiety or excitement. Other sensory information will come directly from the brain stem to the hippocampus and a more select version will come from the cortex.

So whether it was a happy memory, i.e. weddings, special vacation, birth of a child or a sad memory: death, injury, 9/11, or an assassination of a major figure, we hold clear details of what we were doing at the time.

Many people fight hearing this because "emotional" was considered a dirty word for a long time. This group still relates to the old meaning. To them it is about being out of control, or even weak and unstable.

Most people are coming around and seeing it in a new light and as a word that can help them. Those who follow Meta or Quantum physics understand the importance of this word. How it is part of the secret, which many successful people used to acquire what they want in life.

We are taught that clear thought and communication with ourselves, combined with feeling or strong emotional desire, is the path to achieving our dreams and desires. That everything starts with a thought and then the feeling or the emotion brings it into fruition.

It is the half of the equation that many people are missing due to their dislike of the word. But what if you looked at emotion in a new light? What if you saw it as your strength? And what if you saw it as a tool for all you wish to achieve? Imagine the possibilities.

Maria Boomhower, The Master Communicator. won awards for excellence in her field. Her background includes training, video production, & photo joualism. Maria also spent several years studying metaphysics and quantum theories, to bring in the human aspects of helping people.
For a free report on "The 7 Secrets to Communication Mastery" go to:http://www.falconfreedom.com
Discover the Exciting world of Perceptions, go to:Perceptions-Understanding What you are Really Seeing.
http://www.communicationmasteryarticles.com

Here s What I Got Out Of What The Bleep Do We Know

Your mind is so powerful that what you focus on happens. Your intent bends reality, creating vibrations in the quantum field.

Your mind has enormous creative power. You have the power to think, feel, imagine, and intuit. But, even more, you also have the power to focus and attract.

When you focus on something, you emit thought-energy. This thought-energy interacts with the energy in the quantum field and you attract things similar in patte to your thoughts.

Most people, unfortunately, do their focusing unconsciously.

They are NOT choosing with awareness what to focus on.

They allow their minds to run them. Their minds, obsessed with a problem, focus on the circumstances that distress them.

They then attract what they DO NOT want.

Why? Because they focused on it.

They allow their brain to focus on what it has been programmed to focus on.

They get the result of that focusing, usually negative.

Reality is not partial.

Reality is the dance of atoms that interact with your thoughts.

Reality is what you draw to yourself through your attention.

If you want your life to be better, you have to be better. In particular, you have to be more aware of how you think.

What you think matters. It creates your experience.

Resource Box

Saleem Rana got his masters in psychotherapy from Califoia Lutheran University, Thousand Oaks, Ca., 15 years ago and now resides in Denver, Colorado. His articles on the inteet have inspired over ten thousand people from around the world. Discover how to create a remarkable life

Copyright 2005 Saleem Rana. Please feel free to pass this article on to your friends, or use it in your ezine or newsletter. It's a shareware article.

It Can t Be An Accident If You Do It On Purpose 6 Steps To Getting Anything You Want

Have you ever had a time in your life when things were going really well? I mean really well? Effortlessly, as if by accident, you wish for something and the right people, the right circumstances and resources show up. You easily reach a goal that once seemed impossible. It almost seems like a dream – a fleeting moment of luck. What if you could haess that ability whenever you want to achieve anything you want in your life? Imagine…more focus, money, freedom and fun could be yours for the asking. Would you lea the secret? Would you use it?

Successful people attract abundance into their lives with purpose and intention. It is the secret that all people who maintain success and prosperity in their lives share. It's a secret that many don't talk about openly. Why? Most people believe that working harder, longer and with more effort is the key to great success, and they don't believe that success could come any other way. After all, isn't that what we were all taught in school? Get a great education, go to college, and get a job. Well, let's face it – it's not working so well is it?

The truth is I experienced a lot of financial success at an early age. Millions of dollars came into my life. I worked hard to grow a multi-million dollar business. After all, grow a bigger business is the goal, right? Wrong. The pursuit of success led me to an unbalanced approach to life. Work hard, no play, go in early and leave late became my mantra.

I couldn't take it. It had to stop. Somewhere there was a key to finding the balance I craved. But where? Who could tell me the secret? How did successful people have it all – a profitable business, health, family and free time? I asked every successful person I knew to tell me the secret. They all told me that true success comes from mastering the skill of manifesting – bringing into reality the things that you want using your mind. In essence, it is about using the infinite resources of energy, the Universe, to assist you in your quest.

Could it really be true? Could anyone manifest his or her own version of success on a continuous, repetitive and consistent basis? Was there really an infinite source of energy and knowledge, just waiting to help me? I had to find out, and I had nothing to lose. So I practiced, leaed, and great things happened. Today this powerful system is an integral part of my everyday life, and I am proud to share it with you. Do you want great things to happen to you too? Start here and they will.

Step 1. Make a decision to have what you want, when you want it.

This is deceptively simple. It would seem that making the decision to have whatever you want would be easy, but most people are tentative when it comes to being specific. People say things like "It would be nice if..." and "We'll see what happens when...". It won't work. First, you must state that "I am in the process of..." or "I will be" when making a decision. Make sure you're clear on when you will receive the results. You must be resolute, and allow no one (not even yourself) to undermine your confidence in your decision.

So what do you want? Starting thinking and practicing now. Here are a couple of practice sentences to get you started.

- I am in the process of becoming a millionaire by the time I am 50.

- I will be living a life of personal and financial freedom on or before my 45th birthday.

- I am going to have a weeklong Italian vacation in 2005.

Start small. "I'm having chicken for lunch today" is a very decisive statement. "I am going on vacation in Los Angeles for a week in June" is also decisive. Once you have practiced and mastered this decisive language, you are ready to move on to step 2.

2. Be clear about the outcome.

The next step is to be extremely clear about the details of the outcome. This is done in the context of what you DO want, not what you DON'T want. Practice visualizing yourself in the situation you want to create. How do you do this? Once again, the simplest way is to start small.

Think about this: when ordering a salad in a restaurant, you choose the type of lettuce, vegetables, cheese and dressing. You visualize how the salad will look when it arrives at your table. You are clear about what you want. After all, when you're thinking about the salad, you don't have a visual picture of a chicken sandwich in your mind, do you? Of course not! You have a visual image of the salad you wish to eat. It works the same with bigger items, like financial freedom. You must visualize the money, the bank statements, investments or just plain truckloads of money arriving into your life.

3. Detach from the process.

One thing that holds many people back is not knowing "how" to do something. Forget it. The "how to do it" instructions will appear after you have clearly defined what you want.

Take the example of ordering the salad. After you order, you don't have to worry about how the salad will take shape. Every restaurant prepares salad differently, but the outcome is the same - it arrives at your table ready to eat. It is the same with all other events in your life.

4. Expect that it will happen.

Now that you're decisive and clear about what you want and not trying to control the process, set an expectation that what you want will in fact appear. It may not appear in the way you thought or at the precise time. Possibilities you thought were a sure thing may disappear. In fact, you may even experience frustration, anxiety or impatience trying to control the outcome. Ask yourself "what lesson could I lea from this experience" and tu it into a personal growth opportunity.

5. Be Open To Possibility

As I mentioned in the last step, the path to the outcome may (and probably will) show up in ways you never imagined before. It is your job to explore possibility. Suspend judgment of how things should be done based on your past experiences and ask yourself "Is the situation, person or resource that is in front of me supposed to help me on my jouey?" "If so, how?" When you ask the question, you will be given the answers – one step at a time.

6. Practice Gratitude.

Are you thankful for the things you have in your life right now? Do you look at your challenges as an opportunity to grow or a burden that needs to be eliminated? When you practice being thankful for specific events in your life, including the burdens, even when you don't understand why they appear in your life, your ability to manifest accelerates almost to the speed of thought.

Practicing these steps means taking action, being consistent and being open to change. Getting what you want does not always mean that it is easy. Challenges occur. Emotions, other people's negative views and comments set you back. But in the end, it all comes back down to your choice. Choose to get what you want and it will happen for you. That's a promise. Guaranteed.

Stephanie Frank is an inteationally acclaimed author, speaker, and entrepreneur. Take the free quiz "Do You Have What It Takes To Be The Next Accidental Millionaire?" and receive over $1,574 of business building tools and resources at http://www.AccidentalMillionaire.com

How to Predict Your Future

How many times have you seen a friend in a relationship that was going downhill, and you could just tell it was going to end badly, yet your friend was oblivious to it?

It's hard to get past our own biases and see where our own path is likely to lead, but we can often seem to predict where other people's paths are going.

A simple predictive exercise

Take a moment to think about someone you know fairly well but whose life you don't have a major emotional investment in, perhaps a co-worker or business associate but not a relative or significant other. Given what you know about this person, where do you think s/he will be five years from now? What will be the status of this person's career, relationships, health, spiritual beliefs, financial situation, etc? Which areas will improve? Which will decline? Which will remain relatively unchanged?

Don't worry about being perfectly accurate. Just make your best guess. For now, let's set aside the possibility of extraordinary events like death and dismemberment.

You don't have to write them down, but get clear about what some of your predictions will be. Say them out loud or at least mentally verbalize them. Will this person gain weight, lose weight, or remain the same? Will his/her income go up or down? Will s/he have the same career? Will s/he begin, end, or maintain a relationship? Will you two still know each other?

Please take a minute or two to do this now before reading on….

Understanding your predictions

Now let's set aside your actual predictions and instead focus on how you actually made these predictions. What factors did you consider?

Here are some you may have taken into consideration (either consciously or unconsciously):

Did you consider this person's:

* behavior pattes

* habits

* past/history

* environment (home, work environment)

* social relationships (family, co-workers, boyfriend/girlfriend, relationship prospects)

* job/career

* spiritual/religious beliefs

* financial situation (income, cash, debt)

* possessions

* addictions

* health/diet

* physical attributes (appearance, weight, hygiene)

* genetics

* personality

* character (honesty, self-discipline, courage)

My guess is that you considered at least some of the above, either consciously or unconsciously. You probably took a snapshot of where the person is today and where they've been in the past and projected it forward in time. It's like a physics problem. You try to ascertain the object's position, velocity, and acceleration, and this allows you to predict with some degree of accuracy where it will be at some future time.

Make a mental note of whichever criteria on the list above you considered in making your prediction. What else did you consider that isn't on that list? You don't have to write them down. Just mentally verbalize the criteria you feel you used in making your predictions.

It's OK if you made your predictions based largely on instinct and intuition instead of trying to apply some rational criteria. I don't expect you to have used a structured process here. If you relied mostly on your intuition to make your future predictions about your friend, take a guess at what criteria your intuition considered important. Again, don't worry about being perfectly accurate. Just try to gain some clarity as to how you might have made your predictions, even if the actual process your mind used appears mysterious.

What's missing?

Now let me ask you this… How strongly did you base your predictions on the person's own consciousness? Did you even consider this factor at all? Did you consider the person's free will? Did you consider this person's ability to make decisions and thereby consciously create his/her own life? Did you consider this person's goals, dreams, and plans for the future?

Did you see your friend largely as a product of their environment, genetics, current behavior pattes or as a product of their own conscious choice?

Now what would happen if someone you know read this blog entry and used your life as the target for their predictions? Would they make their predictions based on perceiving you as a conscious, highly aware human being? Or would they assume that your consciousness wouldn't really have much say in where you are five years hence?

How accurately do you think your friend's predictions about you would be? Can your future be predicted with reasonable accuracy without reference to your own consciousness?

How much say in the matter does your conscious mind actually have? Is your consciousness running the show or merely observing the show? To what degree are you consciously directing how your life unfolds?

Obviously there's going to be some overlap between your conscious thoughts and your behavior and environment. But to the degree that incongruencies exist, which is the stronger presence in your life?

For example, if your habits and environment are such that you tend to be fairly messy and disorganized, but in your conscious mind you've made the decision to be a neat and well-organized person, which will be the winner five years from now? How would your friends place their wagers? Would they be right?

How conscious are you?

Predicting your own future

How would you predict your own future? Would you apply the same criteria you used for your friend? Would you base your decision mainly on environmental and behavioral factors or on the strength of your conscious mind? Would your decision be based mostly on your past and present or on your consciously chosen vision of your future?

Which criteria would be the most accurate? If a brilliant scientist were to attempt to predict your future as accurately as possible, what factors would s/he find significant, and what weight would be assigned to each factor?

What level of predictive significance would your consciously-chosen goals receive? 0%? 1%? 5%? 10%? 20%? 50%? 90%?

Do you even have a conscious vision of your future? What is it?

How strong is your consciousness?

How strong is your consciousness? Can it alter your behavior? Can it reshape your environment? Can it transform your relationships? How much authority does it wield over your life?

For those who assume the difficult challenge of living consciously, conscious choice is the most powerful predictive factor of all. It's not going to be 100% — even the most conscious individuals don't wield absolute control over their reality. But if you want to predict the future of a fully conscious being, you must lea what that person has decided to make of his/her life. Environment and current behavior pattes will still be pertinent factors, but they won't be the most important.

Have you ever met someone like this… someone who was highly conscious? Have you ever seen someone 100 pounds overweight, but you could sense their conscious decision to lose weight and the indomitable strength of their willpower, and you knew with certainty that there was no way that person would still be overweight in five years?

Have you ever seen someone start their own business, and you just knew they'd succeed, even if they ran into major setbacks?

Can you usually tell when someone's consciousness is strong enough to win out in the long run? Can you tell when someone has enough power to reach escape velocity? And can you also usually tell when someone isn't going to make it?

Have you ever met a person who simply would not be denied, whose attitude was, "I will find a way or make one?" And you just knew they were going to reach their goals….

Such individuals are rare, aren't they? Well below 1% of the people I've met. Highly conscious individuals almost glow with energy. You feel more conscious yourself just being in their presence.

What is your attitude towards greater consciousness?

How do you feel about people who seem to exert more conscious control over their lives than you?

Do you find such people threatening? Do you give them labels such as overachiever, genius, or gifted so as to distance them from yourself? Do these labels make you feel more comfortable about yourself by dismissing the possibility that you could very well reach or exceed their level of performance through your own conscious choice?

What's stopping you from doing the same? Maybe you don't have what it takes to perform at a certain level right now. But do you have what it takes to grow?

Resistance is futile

Becoming more conscious can be difficult, uncomfortable, frustrating, and downright painful. But the pain comes from our resistance to this process. When we cling to what we know after we've discovered it to be wrong, we refuse to accept our own greatest power… our ability to create our lives through conscious choice. We fear the very thing that makes us strongest.

Why do we do this?

I think we resist raising our awareness because it's too painful to admit to ourselves that we've wasted our past. Whenever we embrace a higher level of consciousness, we often reinterpret our past in a negative light. All those years missing out on fulfilling relationships, all that money wasted on smoking, all that precious time lost. We look back and see that all our past decisions were completely and utterly wrong. Our entire lives up to this point have been one big mistake. We picked the wrong career, adopted the wrong habits, entered the wrong relationships, fell in with the wrong crowd. Years… perhaps decades… wasted.

We could simply forgive ourselves and realize that even in the past, we did the best we could. We simply weren't as conscious back then as we are today. Perhaps the past wasn't a waste if we leaed something from it. But we usually don't adopt this attitude right away.

What do we do instead? We defend our past. We throw good years after bad.

We rationalize our past decisions in new ways. But above all we won't admit to being wrong. It's too painful to admit the truth. We cannot say to the world, "The past X years of my marriage/career/family/life have all been a big mistake."

What's the effect of this? Instead of raising our consciousness, we lower it. We sacrifice our greatest powers in the vain attempt to maintain an illusion. We sink down to living like drones instead of conscious beings.

And so we die.

He's dead, Jim.

We defend our past until death. And in so doing, the power of consciousness in our lives is lost. 80%… 50%… 15%… 2%… We reach the sad point of being able to predict our futures without even considering the role of consciousness.

How much longer will you defend your past?

Will you ever be able to forgive yourself for making the worst mistakes of your life? And then can you forgive yourself for living in denial for so long afterwards? And finally, can you forgive yourself the future pain that admitting that mistake may cause others?

Can you forgive yourself for being at a lower level of awareness than you're capable of?

Can you forgive yourself for being human?

Can you say to the world, "Very sorry, dear fellow humans, but I appear to have made an error?" Can you ride out the boos and hisses that will follow your announcement?

Do you think the world will spin off its axis because you made a wrong tu? Do you think you hold the monopoly on poor judgement?

What have you sacrificed to maintain the illusion? Is the sacrifice worth it? Will you die making this sacrifice? What are you really defending?

It's OK to be weak

Another block that keeps us rooted in low awareness is that even when we can summon the courage to admit the truth to ourselves, we may feel powerless to do anything about it. So we find it easier to deny the truth and cling to a feeling of partial strength instead of admitting all is lost.

In my own life, I've found the most useful solution to be this: Admit the truth anyway, and accept that it's OK to be too weak to do anything about it. If I lea that a situation or a behavior is wrong for me, but feel powerless to change it, I've found that it's better to admit the truth of the matter than to deny it, even if I don't feel I can do anything about it — even when I cannot imagine a way out. I say to myself, "I know this is wrong, but right now, I'm too weak to change it."

Make it OK to be wrong. This will keep your consciousness high. It's OK to consciously witness yourself doing something you believe to be wrong or to endure a situation you know to be wrong for you. Be willing to sacrifice your feeling of security (and the conceit that you're perfect), but be unwilling to sacrifice your consciousness. If what you see yourself doing is painful to you, then let it be painful, and stay aware of your situation and the pain it causes you. Don't go dark to escape the pain.

By maintaining conscious awareness, even when it's painful to do so, you build your greatest power. And this will eventually give you the strength you need. Say to yourself, "I may lack the strength to change right now, but I intend to become strong enough to make this change."

I had to go through this process with public speaking. I was not bo a natural communicator. As a young child I was shy and introverted. I dreaded any kind of public speaking, even with small groups. But when I began striving to live more consciously as an adult, I leaed that if I wanted to embrace my chosen purpose as fully as possible, I was going to have to become a communicator. I knew that my path would eventually lead me to do lots of public speaking. I was going to have to share parts of myself in public that I didn't even want to admit to myself, let alone people I don't even know. I was going to have to solve a lot of very challenging problems for myself if I wanted to have any hope of helping other people solve them. And in pursuing this path, I was going to have to risk being wrong again and again, frequently breaking with my past and consciously pushing myself in new directions. But when I first considered this, it seemed like too much for me. Too little security. Too much fear and uncertainty. Too much criticism from others. So I simply said to myself, "I know this is what I must do, but at least for now, I lack the strength to do it. I can't even see how this is going to be possible for me. However, I intend to become strong enough to handle it, whatever it takes."

That's how the power of consciousness works.

It overrides environment.
It overrules behavior.
It overthrows fear.

What if you don't even have a clear goal? What if you don't even know where to start?

Begin with the intention to become more conscious. Say to yourself, "As of this moment, I intend to become more conscious and aware."

The best way to predict your future is to consciously create it.

Copyright © Steve Pavlina

Steve Pavlina
Personal Development for Smart People
http://www.stevepavlina.com
http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog (blog)
http://www.stevepavlina.com/articles (articles)

Steve is intensely growth-oriented. He trained in martial arts, ran the L.A. Marathon, and graduated from college in three semesters with two degrees. He can juggle, count cards at blackjack, and make damn good guacamole. Steve is also a polyphasic sleeper, sleeping just 2-3 hours per day and only 20 minutes at a time. So chances are good that he's awake right now.

Is Imagination The Secret Of Your Success

Imagination is the Difference

Remember - Alice in Wonderland – by Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)?

"There is no use trying," she said, "One cannot believe impossible things."

"I dare say you have not had much practice, " said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I have believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

Memory and leaing, and in our opinion, worldly success, are the result of the practice of Creative Imagination. Sure, unlike oxygen, and water, you can live without it, but its absence strikes you from the Elite 5% of society. To be a spear-carrier does not require believing impossible-things, being a leader in your career – does.

Ray Said

Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald's, defined a entrepreneur as a guy who invests his time and money in creating something to sell to people before- they-know-they-need-or-want-it.

The entrepreneur acts, believes, thinks and feels, As-If - once the public knows of its existence – they will fall over in a faint – after they hand over the money – because it fills their deepest buing-desire.

What makes the entrepreneur so sure?

They imagine a Bill Gates level of success in their mind's eye. They visualize Yankee Stadium filled with consumers begging for their new video game, diet pill or memory book. And they give a Duchenne (eyes-and-teeth), smile of coming success.

Remember when a cell phone just permitted people to speak and hear each other? An entrepreneur argued it must also be a camera, download music, and permit us to view the last episode of Deal-or-No-Deal or Lost - on video.

Now tell me, how did they know in advance that millions, tens-of-millions, would want the supplementary uses – and pay for it monthly?

Focus groups, surveys, and polls – are wrong 80% of the time. The entrepreneur acts on intuition coming from the movie-screen of their mind's eye. Sometimes it comes as a still-small-voice whispering a suggestion in their left-ear – their mind's ear. They see and listen – and they act.

Intuition

All of us have experienced a hunch, an intuition about playing the Lotto or investing in an IPO like Google at $85, but unlike the entrepreneur – we laugh and continue reading the newspaper story about the latest murder. Wait! Is intuition always a sure-thing?

Is it a sure-thing that you will get home tonight and not get hit by a Mack truck; that the company you work for will still be in business this time next year; that the U.S. govement is right, and Iran does not already have a nuclear bomb aimed at us?

Humans hate change, love their comfort-zone, and get woozy over ambiguity. "A horse is a horse, of course, of course," and a zebra is a stripped pony. Maybe.

How to Imagine Vividly

Two scientists at Drexel and Northweste Universities have tracked down the AHA! factor. No soft-science for them, they used a electroencephalogram (EEG), and a functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), to point to what happens in the brain when we experience the WOW! zone – a peak performance.

Rockets fire off (synapses), in our Temporal lobe; that is where conceptual processing occurs; fireworks occur in our Frontal lobe, the site of cognitive power. When these two brain structures interact the result is an AHA! idea.

The rest of the time our Methodical brain activity is produced by the Visual Cortex, in our Occipital lobe. There really is a physiological difference in our thinking systems, and we have AHA! ideas few and far between.

How do we produce more AHA! ideas in the future?

The article appears in the April edition of Psychological Science.

Exercise

We hate the sound of the word – exercise – because it reminds of school and its boring experiences of following the orders of a teacher. Elite people – the 5% who run society – know the answer to the question – Who is the Boss of You? It is Not the teacher, that's for sure.

Here is an exercise to develop your creative imagination.

Choose one of the following: a roll of Scotch-Tape, headphones, eyeglasses, or scissors. Grab a pen and produce ten imaginary uses for the Scotch-Tape.

The second day, use a different item – the headphones – and list twenty imaginary uses for it.

By the third day, try the eyeglasses and list thirty imaginary uses for that item.

Don't laugh – do it for five-minutes, three-days in a row, and your mind's eye begins to become creative and imaginative. For those who must know the how-and-why, the answer is your Right-Hemisphere. Involve your right-brain in manipulating ideas – playing with icons – linking a new idea with old long-term memory – and the result is something new and unique.

Your left-brain is in charge of order, logic, meaning and language. It sits like a judge and analyzes the evidence. Your right-brain controls intuition, emotions, and patte-recognition; it runs holistic thinking and sees the big-picture. Both halves work together to create creative imagination.

W.A.T.C.H.E.S.

Here are seven ways to get creative and enhance your imagination.

Your job is to create mental-movies that involve a link between a new idea, and a image already in long-term memory.

Start off imagining other uses for a specific object – no matter how silly and ridiculous your answer.

It is like a batter in baseball warming up by swinging three-bats; when he disposes of the other two bats, the remaining one feels like a feather, and his reflexes are sharper and acute. These exercises sharpen your imaging reflexes for creativity.

The Seven

a) Weird
b) Animated
c) Three-D
d) Color
e) Humor
f) Exaggeration
g) Senses

Take these descriptions and use them one-at-a-time.

a) An example of Weird is ghosts, witches, or Flying Nuns.

b) Animated - refers to action – running like a tiger, hopping like a kangaroo, flying in a plane.

c) Three-D is how you see the images in your mind's eye; not flat, but with depth.

d) Color is your ability to make the icons vivid, bright or dark, and memorable.

e) Humor is creating a silly, unreal or impractical mental image of a situation.

f) Exaggeration is a eight-legged pussy-cat, a one-footed-dog. How about a six-foot potato sleeping in your bed?

g) Senses are: seeing, hearing, touching, smelling or tasting. When you create a new mental picture using one or more of your senses, and exaggerate what they are doing – it becomes unique and locked into your long-term memory.

Endwords

"I cannot believe that!" said Alice.

"Can-t you? - the Queen said in a pitying tone. Try again, draw a long breath, and shut your eyes."

Do these exercises and you will believe in your Creative Imagination because it is only dormant, not dead!

Why should you bother?

You will help double your memory, and even triple your reading speed by invigorating your right-brain skills. You will improve your productivity, and create solutions to your personal challenges. Best of all – you will join the Elite and enjoy your life more. Feeling good counts for a lot.

See Ya,

copyright © 2006

H. Beard Wechsler
www.speedleaing.org
hbw@speedleaing.org

Author of #1 book on Speed Leaing published by Barron's Educational, partner of Evelyn Wood, creator of speed reading, graduating 2 million, including the White House staffs of four U.S. Presidents.

Establishing Your Charisma Presence

An integral piece of charisma is establishing a presence, so let's examine 3 ways to establish your charisma presence, that will clearly tell all around you "I'm a player and a force to be reckoned with!".

Your Mother Was Right:
"Stand up Straight!"; "Head up!"; "Shoulders back!"; "Chest out!"; "Don't slouch!"; are some other things you heard as a child. Probably without knowing, she was enabling you to display confidence and establish a charisma presence. Your overall posture will make you feel and look confident, while keeping you at ease with your surroundings. As you encounter new situations, pay very particular attention to how you walk, sit, and stand. Even if you're not at ease, follow the rules of posture your mother told you as you were growing up. That posture that tells other people that you are at ease, and they naturally will assume you are!

S-M-I-L-E
A natural friendly smile is one of your most powerful "weapons" in your charisma arsenal and can work wonders if you use it at the right strategic intervals. A friendly smile can be an ice breaker, or it can easily remove resistance. And just generally, it surrounds you in an aura of high self-esteem and confidence.

You Are in the Drivers Seat!
In every situation where you deal with anothers, you need to stay focused on tact and diplomacy. Remember to keep your charisma qualities high so that others will be drawn to you. As analyze situations you'll also know exactly when to speak and what to say when you speak, and how to present yourself in the most appealing way throughout the interaction.

As you look at the world full of people, most lack a high level of charisma presence. It is very easy to stand out and be head-and-shoulders above the rest. When you have it, it shows. And even if you don't have it, as you develop your own high level of presence, you can fake it until you make it. But remember, the trick to faking it is to fake it with sincerity. As your charisma presence develops, you will find yourself no longer faking it, but truly exhibiting an aura of charisma to others around you, where they are drawn to your charismatic charm.

Charles H Smith
Having been a public speaker for more than a decade, Charles has leaed the unwritten rules of what makes or breaks a good first and lasting impression. For more on enabling your charisma, see this new ebook, "The Power of Charisma" - http://www.the-power-of-charisma.com

How Can I Make My Dreams Come True

A wery good question. Where to start from?

Here are some ideas for you:

1. Connect with your dream.
   Set aside some time to dream your dream.

2. Come back and settle on one or two dreams that you can and will pursue. Don't come up with too many, if you want to have a full accomplishment

3. Decide that you will do it.
   This is very important. Many people never come back to real world to take a decision. They remain prisoners of their dream.

4. Tell others that you are going to do it.
   That means you assume the responsibility of doing.

5. Develop a step-by-step plan.
   It is absolutely essential. You must sit down and write out a few things:

6. Set up a timeline. How long will it take to the end?

7. Develop action steps.
   Point-by-point what you will do and when you will do them. "Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action" -- Benjamin Disraelli

8. Assign resources you will need to draw from.
   Who will need to be involved for help or advice?

9. Develop an evaluation tool.
   You need to evaluate from time to time whether you are progressing or not.

10. A celebration.
    Plan what you will do to celebrate. Make it big!

Valerian Dinca is a freelance writer interested in inteet marketing items such as to become an event planner

Driving Force of Dreams

Do you ever have those days when you just don't want to go out and "do it"? It doesn't really matter what "it" is. You just don't feel like doing it?

It is occasions just like this that can either hold us down or lift us and set us apart from the world at large. It is experiences like this that teach us the power of our own emotional mastery. It is the action that divides the "adult" from those still seeking maturity of the mind and heart.

What is it that motivates you? What is it that lights your fires and lifts you higher to become what you have always dreamed of becoming?

I hope you still have dreams.

It is a sad fact that most people have either abandoned or buried their dreams before they reach their mid 20's in age.

Why is that? Why do we surrender to the mundane of this world and give society permission to control us and herd us about like cattle in a slaughter yard?

It's never a single event or experience that causes us to give in and surrender our dreams, our bright hopes for the future. It's a process of a series of minor skirmishes and mental defeats that cause us to surrender what we are or could become, instead of persisting onward into the realms of total success and could-have-been.

You must rise out of the ashes of self pity and self doubt! Take hold of those special relationships that will lift and support you in the pursuit of your possible fantasies and incredible dreams! Set aside the self-demeaning thoughts of what once was or might have been. It is never too late to change and become so much more than you now are.

Take hold of those loving hands that are with you and encourage you. Take hold of those thoughts that would inspire and improve you and the world around you. Take hold of this moment that you, alone, can define, and make the world a better place for your having been here.

Catch the vision of the future. The future that you can be an active participant in where you can choose to become so very much more and so very much more effective and influential in!

But do not wait. Can you feel it? The future is still laid out before you. Your dreams are still out there, waiting for you to take hold of and make them come true!

Bob Curtis has a bachelor's degree in Psychology, and has been writing about the elements of relationships for a number of years. He is the manager of the Essential Sunshine Association, a new website for positive relationship development at http://www.essun.blogspot.com

Life is Love in Action

1. Life is love in action, ponder on this and make it your own truth.

2. Be eaest in whatever you do, assume as if your very survival depends on whatever you do moment to moment. Your happiness is directly proportional to your sincerity towards what is, your eaestness is to attend what is. By all means and resources, attend to what is with whole of your heart. There is no bigger decease than half heartedness. Be careful that you give of yourself totally, whatever the task may be. Do not reserve anything since the more you give of, the more you will be emptied for the new to come. So as a policy, give of yourself so completely that nothing is left of to argue. This is karma yoga which only delivers the goods, the good for you and all.

3. Keep your mind unoccupied so completely that it's absolutely free to attend to what is. When you have a lot of cluttering, the mind is not free to act. All the hanging around anything (concept or thought) is nothing but in vain attempt of mind to seek support where there is no support guaranteed except to attend to what is.

4. Whatever you have, live the life of absolute dedication and work with an honestly that you owe everything to the universe and since everything is arranged by the universe for you so also is your job to serve the universe in whatever possible way you can.

5. When your dedication is absolute, your self conce is nil and so the misery of living the life of worry and anxiety.

6. When you know for sure that what you are seeking and delivering ultimately is nothing but the love in action, you substitute love of action for love of self which is worry and anxiety.

7. Make a point to work for love and not for survival. Love that you owe everything to everybody and your survival depends on everybody and your job is to labor for the sake of love and nothing else. This way love penetrates your psyche and your work remains an expression of love and truth. Rest all are the definitions and labels which has its own utility and that's it and nothing more.

8. The motives which encompass all are always supported by the universal self and you always have to broaden your vision to encompass all. Either you include all in the world or exclude all and embrace the truth in you. Both leads to the same, the single truth pervading the inner and outer.

Death the Teacher

Your lifetime will be summed up in less than a page, and that's being generous. All your striving for glory, all your efforts for fame, all your seeking of love and recognition, will end in a single page of history that nobody will care much to read. Your body and the bodies of those you call friend or foe will fade into the same dust. All of your worldly possessions will pass on. Ungrateful generations will roam the world, ignorant of the ground they stand on.

Our victorious fathers have painted a wonderful illusion of our history. Intermingling half truths with half fallacies. In the glory of their day death hid under a stone until it rose up larger than the sun and devoured them.

Don't be as foolish. Uncover death and invite it over for dinner. It has been falsely assumed that death is a thief. How wrong they have been. Death is a great teacher. When you refuse to consider death, you deny its wisdom. True wisdom of death assures you the greatest use of life.

This article is part of the James Rick Daily Vitamin by James Rick, a daily blog that merges our understanding of spirit with the physical world. James Rick is author of Full Potential, a revolutionary guide to mastering your life in stages. He is also a motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and CEO of two inteational ventures.

More can be leaed at JamesRick.com

It Really Is Okay To Skip To The End

Do you know what you want, but you're not exactly sure how to get it? Perhaps it is an idea for a new business, product, or career but you're not certain of the steps that you will need to take in order to reach your final destination? Has this indecision stopped you in your tracks?

I have three words for you: "Don't let it!"

While it is human nature to want to have all of your ducks in a row before your move onward, and it is said that you should have a plan, sometimes it is much more important to remove the obstacle that "lack" (of a plan to move forward) is placing in your way. I know that I don't have to remind you that 2003 is the year that we will eliminate the word "lack" from our vocabulary, thoughts and lives. (WINK, WINK) Lack comes from the Law of Repulsion, just the thing that we want to deactivate.

When we use works like "I want", "I desire" or "I need" along with how, where, when and what, we are activating the Law of Repulsion because we are focusing on what we do not have. For example, stating that you "want a million dollars" really emphasizes that the reason you want it is because you don't have it. Doesn't it? Lack is again rearing its head! So let's work on putting you in a place to attain your goal. I know what your next question is…"So, if we're not going to worry about a plan, how are we going to achieve our goal?" Am I right?

Well, when you have a true desire about something you want, rather than going to not knowing HOW to make it happen, as Nike would say, "Just Do It!" Go to the end result of what you are wanting and focus on that, not the way that it should be achieved. Use words like "I am", "I choose", "I receive", or "I manifest".

The means and answers will come to you, without you getting in your head about it. Using this practice, you've already made huge strides towards achieving your goals – you've thought of the idea and determined its outcome by envisioning yourself holding the brass ring! You will notice that the people, circumstances and energy necessary to make your end result possible will show up. Just trust your intuition that the middle part will speak up in perfect timing, loud and clear. Here's an example. Jim has been sending out proposals for his firm. As he hits the 'send" button on his e-mail he says, "I really need to land a big account." Did you recognize Jim sabotaging himself by activating the Laws of Repulsion? Good! So did Jim after a while. Instead, he decided to say, "I'm going to focus. I have landed the most wonderful account. I have manifested the largest most successful account in my career. Thank you so much for this account."

What a switch in energy! So what shows up, as a result of Jim changing his way of thinking? Does he get the big account? Well, not initially. That's because Jim keeps vacillating between the Law of Attraction and the Law of Repulsion. He says that he has landed the biggest account of his career thus far, but he keeps attaching "but WHEN?" messages at the end. Jim successfully gets a grip on his thoughts, refocuses, and develops some patience. He sits down to prepare to write another proposal, and decides to take a break to collect his thoughts by checking his voice mail. Jim is delighted to find that he has two messages from a client that is very interested in the proposal he sent out three weeks before. This potential client does indeed bring to the table the largest account that Jim has ever handled.

So you see, ultimately, you have the power to create the things that you want in your life, just like Jim. Just trust in yourself, remain steadfast and resist falling back into the trap of the Law of Repulsion.

Patience is a primary key to your success when manifesting. Concentrate on the end and watch those things you focus on begin to manifest in your reality. Begin keeping a joual documenting the things that start showing up, as an affirmation to the strides that you are making. And always remember to show gratitude for what is coming to you.

Eva Gregory, master coach, speaker and author of The Feel Good Guide To Prosperity, http://www.feelgoodguide.com, has instructed thousands on the Laws of Attraction in person, on the radio and in dozens of teleconference training seminars and programs. She is the author of several books and e-books and has co-developed several telephone-based and inteet-based training courses on the Laws of Attraction. Her most popular program to date is her Leading Edge Living One Year Success Program. (http://www.leadingedgecoaching.com/Living/index.shtml) Eva is regularly featured on radio and in the media and is a recognized authority on the Laws of Attraction. To lea more about her products and services, visit Leading Edge Coaching, http://www.leadingedgecoching.com NOTE: You're welcome to "reprint" this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the "about the author" info at the end), and you send a copy of your reprint to eva@coacheva.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eva_Gregory

Let Spring Find You

Only with winter-patience can we bring The deep-desired, long-awaited spring. -- Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Living in four seasons keeps us accustomed to change. Just as we get use to living in one season, another one soon follows. We can never get too comfortable. Maybe that is why we are referred to, in this part of the world, as "rugged" New Englander's.

Another test of our endurance is the transition into spring. Natives refer to this time of year as Mud Season. It begins as soon as temperatures rise above 30 degrees Fahrenheit. The sun melts the snow and ice while the earth gives a huge heave. The frozen dirt softens and becomes liquid lava that oozes down back roads swallowing up everything in its path.

Many of us have experienced firsthand the results of trying to move through the mud. You don't. You get stuck. Your shoes or boots are literally sucked off your feet. We have to lea to be patient during mud season and resist the impulse to try and maneuver down impassable roads.

Spring teaches us that timing is everything. Digging up the dirt to see if the spring bulbs are growing is fruitless. All things in nature happen in their own time.

Where in your life have you been trying to push the season, not trust your timing, or having faith that you will get to where you want to go....when the time is right?

How do you know when the time is right to launch a new business, change careers, or work on improving some aspect of your life? Begin by paying attention to the signs around you that the road ahead is passable. Signs can come in the form of coincidences, chance meetings, a movie, or a book that falls from a shelf. Doors that were previously closed to you seem to open. Someone says something that offers a clue to where you need to go next. You just have stand still and tune in to the guidance all around you.

When nothing on the surface seems to be changing, trust that new growth is happening. Have faith that the evidence will appear surely as the green shoots from tender plants poke their way through the dirt each spring.

Everything in nature, including us, has an inteal sense of timing. Stand still. Tune in. Trust your timing. Let spring find you.

Nancy Bishop coaches women to expand their thinking, tap into prosperity and live more authentic and abundant lives. Visit her website at http://www.yourlifeyourway.com to sign up for her newsletter and lea more about her coaching programs.

Do You Choose to Believe in Choice Not for the Faint of Heart

What role if any, does 'choice' play in the shape and direction our lives take? Is there a choice in what can and will happen in our lives?

The predetermined 'body/mind'

First of all, what possibly can happen to an individual (i.e. what is possible) is predetermined by ones genetics or physical/biological/psychological potentials and limitations. You cannot grow to be 100 feet tall. If you are a Caucasian you cannot be an Asian. Your eyes cannot see atoms. If you are slow witted you will be limited in your intellectual capacity, even if you work hard to make the most of what potential you have. We come into this world with a variety of predetermined physical and psychological limitations and potentials, and life is played out within these parameters, for better or worse.

Also, what can happen to an individual is limited by the laws of Reality. At this point in time, you cannot jump and stay in the air, due to the laws of gravity that operate here on earth. You cannot physically disappear. You cannot hold your breath forever. And you cannot say "1-2-3 die" and end your life, no matter how hard you wish for that to happen.

An individual can only ever 'be and experience' what they have the capacity and potential to 'be and experience'. We are limited beyond choice by the biological and psychological capacities of the body/mind operating within the laws of Reality.

The random 'stuff of Life'

In the Life of an individual, most of what one will experience is the product of a series of random events. In other words, most of what we experience in Life in not a matter of choice. Things happen to us, beyond our choice. The body/mind we are bo with, the family we were bo into, the geographical location, time period, and sociopolitical environment we became a part of, are a few of many things that simply happen to us, and play a deep role in the shaping of our lives. We do not choose these factors, but they do happen to us.

Most of what is occurring and what will occur around us is simply beyond our choice. Things are happening and will happen, and we are unavoidably in the midst of things happening. Life imposes itself upon us beyond our choice.

The biased and conditioned 'me habit'

Starting at birth, as a genetically predetermined individual lives out its limitations within randomly occurring situations, events, and circumstances, the body/mind of this individual becomes deeply conditioned (habituated) by its interactions with the arising random experiences. The individual develops a conditioned 'desire system' that is based on the positive or negative outcomes of these random interactions and experiences. What's more, one interprets an experience within the biased parameters of the history of the conditioned 'me habit'. One interprets new experience through the biased lens that was determined by past experiences of the body/mind 'me habit'.

Ones past determines ones interpretation of the present, which in tu will determine the course of action one will seemingly choose. The seeming biased choices one makes is determined by past experience and the conditioned desire system that is created by these biases.

The freedom to choose?

Ones Life is the interplay of: the predetermined physical/biological/psychological capacities, potentials and limitations (the 'body/mind') operating within the laws of Reality, the random family we were bo into, the geographical location, time period, and sociopolitical environment and culture we became a part of (the 'stuff of Life'), the deeply conditioned and biased interpreting desire system based on the positive or negative outcomes of the predetermined body/mind interacting with the stuff of Life (the 'me habit').

To summarize, as humans we are an interplay of: a predetermined 'body/mind', limits of laws of Reality a conditioned 'me habit' (self), biased interpretations , random 'stuff of Life',

Where is the CHOICE in all this???

A situation occurs. An opportunity to choose. Yes or no? If a 'yes' arises within awareness, or, an impulse to move towards the affirmative of two options arises, what is it that chooses that 'yes'? The predetermined 'body/mind' and its conditioned 'me habit' operating with the laws of Reality is what 'chooses', based on the biased preferences determined by a history that is itself constructed by the same predetermined 'body/mind' and conditioned 'me habit'.

Freedom FROM choice

For MOST, much if not all of life is lived automatically, that is, out of awareness. A Life lived on 'auto pilot' is already without choice. There is only action and reaction endlessly, like a robot or zombie. When one is Awake or Aware, one is Aware of the possibilities that arise in a situation, even if those possibilities are still limited, biased, and conditioned. But, and here's a big but, it is still the predetermined 'body/mind' and its conditioned 'me habit' that supposedly 'chooses'.

What does this mean?

It means our hopes and dreams, our past and present, our desires and aversions, our personality and potentials, and our family, language, race, and all other events, situations, qualities and conditions simply HAPPENED to the predetermined body/mind and conditioned 'me habit'. A multitude of un-chosen factors came together to create an un-chosen body/mind "me habit" that based on an un-chosen past, seemingly chooses. That sounds amusing, but what does it mean?

It means that there is no 'one' that chooses, but choices seemingly occur. There is no 'one' to decide, but decisions seemingly occur. Ultimately, freedom means a deep realization that what was was, what is is, and what will be will be, and that no 'one' is in control or ultimately responsible for any of it. Freedom means abiding as THAT that is AWARE of the seeming possibilities or choices available to the 'me habit'. Abiding as Awareness. That Awareness Itself does not, and cannot, choose. Awareness is choice-less. 'Choice' is but a another biased idea that occurs to a predetermined body/mind and conditioned 'me habit' within the open space of Awareness, that gives the illusion of 'someone' whom can choose.

The predetermined 'body/mind', the conditioned 'me habit' with biased interpretation, and the random 'stuff of Life' are all but various arbitrary expressions of the one Reality. Awareness is beyond predetermination, conditioning, bias, or choice. Freedom means freedom from the burden of believing there some 'one' with a choice. Awareness is the undetermined, unconditioned, unbiased, and choice-less Reality.

What then, am 'I'? I am an expression of that Reality! I am expressed…as Reality expresses me! There is no choice!!! Choice is the ultimate illusion. Disillusionment is the ultimate Freedom. I am already free. I have no choice.

I am a mysterious expression of the undetermined, unconditioned, unbiased, and choice-less AWARENESS or REALITY that was, is, and always will be the common flavor of freedom, inherent in the vastness of this unending now.

Aaron McNaught is the owner and service provider of a Red Deer based company called: Aaron McNaught Education/Consultations.

As a Public Speaker, Aaron describes himself as a 'Wake-up Artist', which means he helps people remember or 'Wake-up' to who they truly are, beyond stories and descriptions.

As a Consultant, Aaron offers unique approaches to Life Exploration, Healing and Development.