Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Wishing For Riches - Self Help Tips

Anybody can wish for riches, and most people do, but only a few know that a definite plan, plus a burning desire for wealth, are the only dependable means of accumulating wealth.

This statement is at the beginning of Chapter 13 from the book "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill.

There are so many different methods, from so many different people, but most people don't know where to start, or plan their way to success.

I have heard some people mention the hardest part is actually starting, while others say you have to start somewhere, anywhere but start. Starting is usually the hardest part for most people, they get defeated by their own beliefs and of course never even start.

Fear of failure and fear of success, seem to be at the top of the list when thinking about starting a business. It's always been hard to imagine people being afraid to succeed, when this is what they seem to desire the most.

Wishing for riches can motivate you to start, thinking about the many different ways to succeed can motivate you to plan. A burning dire to succeed well often motivate you to start and create a plan eventually.

The key to creating wealth is developing habits and good daily habits performed over a lifetime, most of the time, will lead you to wealth beyond your wildest dream's. Sometimes this wealth is going to have nothing to do with money.

Get some books, talk to some people, watch some biographies about successful people throughout history, find out what they did and start paving your own trail. But you're going to have to start somewhere.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing, marketing and personal development.

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

Accomplishing Your Goals
Betsy Chasse

Monday, March 30, 2009

Eastern Wisdom

Step One

We admitted that we were bound by the illusion of ego-created pleasures and that our life was full of suffering.

Step one allows an individual to admit and recognize what is controlling his/her life. It is a chance for the person to become aware of the immense control that the ego has in their life and what this demanding control is causing in regards to the self-created suffering. This awareness is necessary in order to initiate the process of internal growth and recovery from the demands of the ego.

Step Two

Came to believe that the universal consciousness, that pervades the cosmos and resides within our being, could restore us to our true nature and eliminate suffering.

This step allows one to tap into that which has all power the universal consciousness. This source will allow for connection with the pure-self and the true nature of the universe. This restores the individual to pure-thought and right-action in order to get rid of self-created suffering and karma.

Step Three

Made a decision to detach from our insatiable ego and the illusory world and connect to the pure consciousness of the universe.

This step is about taking the initiative to begin searching for the true-self and detaching from the illusion of the ego. Once this decision has been made practice of meditation begins. This is a crucial step upon our journey because it gives us hope that there is something else besides the world of boundaries and limitations.

Step Four

Contemplated and expressed in written form our desires, fears, regrets, and attachments of the ego without judgment.

This is a vital step, which requires meditative and analytical thought about the nature of our worldly life without passing judgment on the past. We begin to realize that these actions were part of our illusion of what reality was and realize that now through meditation and growing awareness that we DO NOT have to act this way again.

Step Five

Allowed ourselves to become fully aware of our egoic attachments and delusions in an accepting manner.

This is when we look at all the past actions and currents attachments of step four and recognize the true reality of the illusion. We now are able to let go of the past and live in the present moment with full awareness.

Step Six

We were entirely ready to let go of the delusions of the mind and surrender to the omnipresent universal source.

This step is the letting go of the illusions of the past and creating a commitment to surrender and practice the principles of eastern wisdom. It is important to state our readiness for change and acknowledge it within our self, as well as the universe around us.

Step Seven

Contemplated and gained awareness of our shortcomings without judging or condemning ourselves, but allow total acceptance and forgiveness of these ego created quandaries.

This step is crucial for one to accept that they are not their ego or minds. We can overcome our shortcomings and come to know our true self, which, is the perfection of pure consciousness.

Step Eight

Began to nurture and practice compassion and forgiveness for ourselves and others who we harmed by our past actions.

This step focuses on relieving guilt and regret for the past and beginning now to realize that those actions do not define the self. Also discussed concerning this step would be the ability to eliminate suffering based on karma by right actions and right thoughts in the present moment where reality exists.

Step Nine

Directly apologized with compassion and sincerity to ourselves and to those we directly and indirectly harmed.

This is an action step that allows us to explicitly offer our amends to ourselves and those we may have harmed in our past. This step is a continuation of step eight and allows the guilt and regret to further diminish and eventually be released fully in order for us to immerse ourselves in the present moment.

Step Ten

Continued to seek awareness of our true self and practice right thought and right action in each moment of our lives.

This step focuses on becoming aware of ourselves on a daily basis and beginning to live our lives fully and sincerely in each moment based on the true nature of reality.

Step Eleven

Sought through the practice of mindfulness and meditation to improve our connection with the universal consciousness.

This step is meant to be practiced on a daily basis to improve awareness and detachment from the egos desires. This step will help one maintain recovery and stay focused on the illuminating truth of the universe.

Step Twelve

Having become one with the universal source we continued to practice these principles in each moment of our life, acting as models for those seeking the peace and tranquility of these steps.

Finally, this step discusses the continuation of these steps in our moment to moment existence and to share this way of life with others that inhabit this world. To share this wisdom with others is the primary goal of these 12 steps, which in turn benefits the individual as well as the universe as a whole.

My hope is that through the application of these steps at least one human being can discover the principle truth of the universe and escape the suffering of the egos demands and desires.

Copyright 2006-- Richard A Singer Jr.

About the author: Richard A. Singer Jr. is a practicing psychotherapist living in the Cayman Islands. He is formerly of Pennsylvania and has a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology. His daily inspirations have been included as part of Chicken Soup for the Recovering Soul, from the bestselling Chicken Soup series. His own recovery from addiction impassioned him to help others find courage, determination and peace, and has made what some would call "work" the love and purpose of his life. To learn more about Mr. Singer, visit his Web site, http://www.yourdailywalk.org or E-Mail him at RAS9999@aol.com

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Developing Real Psychic Power

In this article I'm going to cover a great tip for developing psychic powers and the magical and mysterious skill of practical clairvoyance. Many of us LONG to tap into the same stream of sensational skills that so many famous psychics, mediums and clairvoyants REGULARLY seem to access, and in my PERSONAL experience, ANYONE can learn how to cultivate these very same skills. So continue reading as I share my top tip for developing psychic powers of your own. Read on..:-)

Timeline Intuition

This is a great tool for learning to "map" your future by simply intuiting the past. It's a bit complex to describe in one short paragraph, but the essential theory is this: Our lives are, for the most part, pre-determined along a series or sequence of possible choices, and their consequential outcomes. Much of this is laid out as part and parcel of your "karma" so to speak, and the choices you make a long the path are fundamentally yours, and yours alone. (which lead to either soul development or regression) By looking back at your past choices, the IMPORTANT ones...you can map out a series of 7-10 important crossroads that you met, and you can track your current state of awareness (or life situation) DIRECTLY from which choice you made at each of those seemingly odd forks.

Future Extrapolation

You then take the very same thought process and apply it to the mapping of FUTURE forks that are upcoming (some schools teach that there are 21 major decisions we will each make in this lifetime) and by doing so, you are able to effectively intuit, or "see" (and feel) a very predictable future. It sounds harder than it is...trust me, it's not only a BLAST to do, it's very accurate, incredibly entertaining, and truly ILLUMINATING as a lens by which to look at your own higher purpose, and how to get there in a hurry! (even if it means BACKTRACKING a bit to get there..:-)

And of course there is SO much more....More that lies possible in YOUR life if you only open yourself up to the possibilities. Simply START by opening your mind, spirit & enhanced AWARENESS and ride the supernatural surfboard into the wild, wacky and wonderful world of the unknown..:-) It WILL rock Your WORLD...I promise..;-)

Who Else Wants to Experience Radical Inner Peace & Magnificent Well Being?

Read on...to discover how to experience almost MAGICAL psychic POWERS blissful meditation and SO much more.......quickly, easily and magically even if you are a complete novice and have no idea what you are doing!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Reading Feng Shui Books

Quite simply, a different style of living. If you're the kind of person who eats the same food week after week, shops and the same stores and only socializes with a few people, feng shui is probably not something you're going to be interested in. However, if you're someone, who wants to try something different, the Chinese philosophy of feng shui could be something that you, just might be interested in.

Where can you find feng shui books? Of course we all know you can find them at your local bookstores like Barnes & Noble, Amazon and other online sources. Here's something that might be a little new age or something that most people often forget about, how about going down to your local public library. Public libraries are a great source for books and if you don't like them, you never had to pay for them.

Feng shui books have become popular in the last 20 to 40 years and seems to create an environment out of your home. The Chinese have been practicing this for over a thousand years and it almost has a mystical power to it. If you're tired of the same old house and would like a little change in your life, I would suggest using some of the simple methods, suggested in these books.

One $20 book on home building or feng shui, can save you lots of money, if you're willing to do a little research and the labor to complete almost any home building project.

By the way, if you're interested in learning how to repair a roof, build your own house, interior decorating, structural engineering, building a deck, gathering some more information about home painting or even remodeling your bathroom. Our online home building bookstore can save you money if you're willing to do the work.

You can learn a lot by reading feng shui books and I would suggest, that if you're interested in interior design or even spirituality, these books will provide you with the information, you need to create a little change in your life

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more building stairs books and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry

Inspiring Or Controlling

Solutions For Dealing With Know it Alls - Don't Let Anyone Push You Around Anymore

Over the years of dealing with people, at work or wherever I was, I have found some of these close minded people to be extremely hard headed and this often creates problems with anyone who doesn't agree with them. You probably know someone like this and they are often hard to relate to.

Some of these close minded people will offer their opinion on any subject at any time, whether you ask for it or not. I once had a man tell me something about my business that was wrong. I suggested that he contacted a government office to get the correct information, if he was even interested. He continued to tell me, that I didn't know what I was talking about and I should contact a government agency to verify his information. I believe he just wanted to argue.

This never has made any sense, if you have some facts and can show them the information and it actually makes sense, wouldn't this be a step in the right direction.

I've tried to figure out where these people were coming from and why they wouldn't take the time to gather factual information or at the least listen to what you had to say, sensibly, usually you have already listened to their opinion and when it's your turn to speak, they have no interest in what you have the say.

These people seem to live in a life of turmoil and confusion, while constantly trying to impress others of their intelligence and this often leads others to an impression of ignorance, not knowledge. While they are explaining to you something in your business or a subject in which you are what others would consider an expert in your field, they will spend hours trying to convince you that they are right and you don't know what you're talking about. Even though you have facts to back up your comments.

These people often create problems in your life and should be avoided if possible. I suggest you have fun with them and lead them to believe, what they truly desire in life and give them the illusion that you personally believes they are the smartest people in the universe.

I have done this more than once, to these hard headed geniuses and had a lot of fun with it. Most of them will talk about subjects they have no information about. Look something up in an encyclopedia or on the internet that you think most people wouldn't know anything about. Ornithology would be a good to have fun with.

Not to change the subject, but there's a great story called the cookie thief story, it's one of my favorites and really puts close minded people into perspective.

Don't let these people control or ruined your lives, either have fun with them or explain to them that your tired of listening to their superior closed minded and hardheaded ignorance of useless information.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. If you have problems and would like to learn more about Achieving Your Ultimate Goals, visit our website today

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

Saying No To Street Bums

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Over Deliver in Your Business Or Someone Else Will

When you decide to undertake a new business or internet enterprise or if you already have a business be prepared to deliver the goods. That is over deliver. If you want to stand out amongst the countless mediocre businesses that are out there, give of yourself and share all the resources you have at your disposal. This is not only a good philosophy to adopt, but it is mandatory.

There is way too much competition and too many alternatives available in todays' marketplace to offer some run of the mill product or service and expect people to be satisfied. Others may get away with it, but that doesn't make it alright to perpetuate this practice. Make it your mission to blow your customers away with the value you offer. You may fear this will exhaust you or overwhelm you, but I can assure you the opposite is true.

Outside forces tend to come into play when they are truly necessary. If your mission is to help others and offer a business, service, or program that is of value it will get noticed, and as such others will rally behind this system and actually contribute to and multiply your efforts. You will find this reaction energizes you and inspires you to offer even more value. Also the concerted effort behind this cause will gain momentum.

So few people actually make themselves available to spend the time assisting their newly recruited clients or customers and offering them the assurance and support they need. By simply going the extra steps and taking the time to answer questions, offer training, return phone calls, return emails, and show your concern; you are fostering more trust and a stronger bond that will pay off in the long run. You're establishing long term relationships and ties that carry on.

Learn a lesson from the top businesses or noted personalities who are among us today. What are the commonalities? What qualities do they share? Above all they are givers. They blow people away. Disney World does this, Walmart does this, McDonald's does this and even Brittany Spears. All in their own way, they offer something and they don't hold back. Fan or not, this is undeniable. Walmart has teams of marketing experts seeking out name brand goods to offer at lower prices. Disney always surprises us with the latest in animation and technology. And yes, Ms. Spears may take a detour or two, but she ultimately shares her talent and is rewarded because of that.

If this sounds foreign to you or like unnecessary baloney, I would encourage you to reexamine your intent and your expectations for success. A customer can always buy from someone else or a new client can always seek a service elsewhere. Don't let them. Don't be concerned with "the how" as much as the effort. If you put forth more effort, even more than you think you possess, you will most assuredly enjoy the rewards, and in most cases more than you can gauge by a bank account.

If this has been helpful and you'd like to learn more Go Here for more marketing tips.

James Broadfoot is an entrepreneur, web publisher and online marketing specialist. Take a Look Here to see what else he's up to.

Change Your Life Forever

Finding something you don't like about yourself is usually very easy for most people. Most of the time you don't even have to ask your family or friends because you have heard them complain about the same thing for years. How many times have you heard someone mention, I need to lose weight?

Here's a list of things people don't like about themselves. If you're one of those people that has a hard time finding something wrong with yourself, you could always ask one of your friends for some suggestions. I'm sure they would like that.

1. The need to lose weight. This of course is one of the worst problems with Americans. Most people need to lose weight and let's not forget there are some people that need to gain weight.

2. The need to stop gambling. As more Indian reservations are allowed to build gambling casinos and of course as the Internet gambling gets larger, I've noticed some people with gambling problems.

3. The need to stop drinking alcohol. The abuse of alcohol has been going on for many years. These people have an excuse for why they drink and most of the time it doesn't make sense.

4. The need to stop smoking. This could be one of the most difficult things I've ever seen my friends and family deal with.

5. The need to stop excessive behaviors. For example, gossiping, cruelty, bullying, lying, cheating, stealing, partying etc. You get the idea.

6. Don't forget the dreaded shopaholic. Most shopaholic's seem to have large credit card debt and can't seem to stop this vicious circle of buying and owing money to their creditors.

7. Working long hours or the workaholic. Sometimes this is a necessity but I would suggest that you change your lifestyle if possible. Reevaluate your reasons for working so hard.

8. Religious fundamentalists. People that spend too much time at their place of worship and soon find themselves feeling guilty if they're not doing something spiritual.

9. The need to be on time. This would include people that have problems giving themselves enough time to get ready for work or school.

10. The need to stop doing drugs. I thought by now, approaching my 50s, that drugs would no longer be a problem in the United States, but it is. It's one of the most damaging things people can do to their lives.

There are plenty of things that people would like to stop doing or start doing. If you're a smoker and you seem to shop excessively near the casinos, I would advise you to start with something small and work your way up to the big stuff.

What are you going to change today about your life? Make a list of things that you're not happy with about your life and start making the changes today that you need to create the life you deserve and desire.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development

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

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Religious Views Based on Hoping

I was told by an advertising executive one day that all of your advertisements need to deliver some sort of hope for the people you're trying to persuade into buying your products. Funny, if you think about it, I got some and great advice about life from someone in the advertisement business.

Most people are looking for hope, in everything they do. Most of our daily activities revolve around hope and this gives our lives some sort of direction. If you believe in an almighty being and creator of the universe, often you will try to please him, ....or her, ....or it, in hopes of entering the kingdom of heaven or the promised land after you die.

Often our fears will increase our levels of hoping, the fear of doing something against your religion can often inspire you to become a more spiritual person, a good and moral person. Fear of making the wrong choices will inspire us to make better, moral choices, all for the sake of acquiring a ticket to Heaven or Nirvana. You're hoping, your good deeds on earth will earn you a place in heaven.

Most people are afraid of dying and leaving this world, for good. They don't know where they're going and that seems to scare most people. If we can offer someone a little hope, that they are going to a much better place than here, we can often ease the pain and suffering associated with death. I have to admit, most religions of the world promise another world, after we're done with this one.

If you're living a honest and moral life with the hopes of living a bountiful life in heaven, could you be wrong. What if you're seeking Hope in the wrong religion? If you're a Christian and the Hindus are right and you're wrong, do you get to enter there eternal kingdom.

Think about this question, I'm about to ask you. What if spend your whole life studying your religion and it's wrong? There is no heaven and when you die, that's the end of your existence

Have you ever wondered why you believe in your religion and someone in another country or even a couple of miles away believes in something entirely different.

Don't get mad at me or yourself, simply think about the question for a while, this question has transformed my life and put me on a wonderful spiritual path of learning.

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

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

Could We Be Wrong

Greek mythology is taught in most schools during some time of your education, if you grew up in the United States. I remember looking back at the Greeks and thinking, "I can't believe these people were that stupid, who believes that there is a God of the ocean or one for love." I couldn't believe as a young elementary school student, that these people got caught up in these beliefs.

I mean come on, I was a Christian at that time and there was only one God, how stupid can these people be or misinformed about the way things really and truly are. It's kind of sad, but all the people in the past that did not accept Jesus Christ as the one true God are all living in hell. Well, that's how I thought when I was a child.

Some of the mythological stories are about pain, love, happiness, plotting, scheming and power. Now we're talking about something that most people can understand. These gods were just like regular people, except some of them had extraordinary powers and if they used them poorly, they would have to answer to the gods god, Zeus.

At the time in history, that the Greeks believed and their gods, they were one of the most civilized groups of people on Earth. They had some of the best and brightest scholars around. The Roman Empire and some of the United States government was based on information provided by Greek scholars.

Have you ever thought about your religion as being wrong? If we now know that the Greek gods and goddesses do not exist, do you think our modern day beliefs can also be wrong. If we could go into the future 1000 years, could children be studying about Christianity, Islam or Buddhism, like modern day children study about Greek mythology and other beliefs that we view today as unbelievable or impossible.

The Greek gods and goddesses made sense to the citizens of Greece in the past. Do you think in the future that our modern day religions will be viewed in the same way as we now view Greek mythology.

Looking back at the past, often inspires me for a better future.

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

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

50 Psychology Classics

Monday, March 23, 2009

Religious Freedom For Life

In the United States of America, we believe that we have this freedom, and it gives us the choice to belong to any religious organization in the country. We can even make up our own religions, if we want to. I have the right, in this country to start a new religious movement, without any persecution from the government. The government might choose not to persecute me but I would imagine, that other religious organizations will.

First Amendment to the United States Constitution - Freedom of Religion, of Speech, of the Press, to Petition, and to Assemble.

This must have been very important to our founding fathers. A lot of people left England to come to America, before the United States Constitution was ever thought of. Before there was even a United States of America. People have been coming to the English colonies for over 150 years before the First Amendment was even signed. Often escaping religious persecution.

Religious freedom was very important to America's ancestors and founding fathers. We can only study history to find out how important religious freedom actually was. In the United States today, we really don't give it much thought. What religious freedom really means and the hardships and battles throughout history. They sacrificed, so that we could reap the benefits today.

Freedom of religion isn't the same today as it was 300 years ago. The country's leaders often dictated what religion you could belong to. This was the end of your religious freedom but today things are different. Organized religions have become extremely influential and powerful in today's world, often influencing governments and world leaders. When will these large religious organizations become powerful enough to take away our religious freedom. Do you honestly think things are getting better, or are we soon going to have one or even a few religions throughout the world.

How many Christians do you know that do most of their business with other Christians? How many Jewish people choose to do the same thing? I don't consider this religious freedom. In the State of Utah, it's well known, that if you're not part of the Mormon Church or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you're probably not going to prosper, unless you convert to their religion. This might sound like, something you would expect back in the stone ages, but it still goes on today.

Religious freedom is a lot more than just being able to choose your own religion. It's becoming a choice economically, politically and of course socially. At what point do you financially make a decision to become part of a large religious organization, out of necessity. The simple need to feed your family. I believe religion is going to become a bigger problem in the future than it ever was in the past as we see more financial and political power forming in these religious organizations.

I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm simply suggesting that we start associating with people from other religions or spiritual beliefs. We could learn a lot if we just open our ears and close our mouth. Become part of the solution and not the problem.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended authors, Norman Vincent Peale Books

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

How to Stay Positive No Matter What

Now more than any other time in our recent history is as important that we find ways to stay positive no matter what. Why? Because your success depends on your mindset, not on the economy or on the marketplace. How do I know this to be a fact? I've interviewed hundreds of top producing real estate agents all over the USA and Canada, and when I asked them the secret to their success, unquestionably and without a doubt and independent of each other, they all said the same thing, "My mindset."

These are top producing real estate agents that have been in the business for sometimes 10, 20, or even 30 years. They've been through up times, down times, and all kinds of different markets, and they said without a doubt it was their mindset, and I feel that this is kind of a best kept secret. I think when times get tough, people start to look outside of themselves for answers and what they really need to do is look inside themselves and ask themselves the question, "How can I stay positive, how can I stay hopeful, how can I stay optimistic?" And this article will provide you with some tools to make it easier to be in a positive mindset no matter what.

The first tool is to really stop watching, or listening, or reading the news. Why, because the news is based on negativity. The news amplifies fear and negativity in order to capture more listeners, more readers, and more viewers. The media is a business like anything else and there's a saying called, "If it bleeds, it reads." So the more scared they can make people, the more people will buy more newspapers to find out what's going to happen, or turn on the TV more, or in some way stay fixated because they're in fear, they stay fixated on what the media is telling them.

The second tool is stop being around negative people. Your colleagues are going to want to constantly come up and talk to you and tell you how bad it is. Maybe your clients or prospective clients are going say to you on the phone how bad it is, and even friends will do the same thing. You will go through a day and everybody will want to tell you how negative it is. Here are my suggestions. First, avoid those kinds of people that are negative and second, if you're stuck with them in an elevator or your car, I suggest you do what a former client of mine does. When the other person is talking negatively, my client just tunes them out and just says, "Well that may be true for you, but that's not true for me." It's like an inner mantra "It may be true for you, but it's not true for me." You're creating your own inner environment.

The third tool is a technique that I've used with my clients this past 12 years as a real estate business coach. It's a very powerful tool called The Stop Technique, and there's three steps to it, and the first step is just called Stop. The way it works is that if you start to notice your mind going in a negative direction such as, "Oh I can't succeed in today's economy. Oh I just don't have what it takes to be successful or to make money. I have to work really hard and struggle and sacrifice." Any of those negative thoughts that will bring your energy down, your job is simply to catch those as early as you can in the beginning and say, "Stop." Take a deep breath, and then put in a positive new thought.

You can put in your choice of however many positive new thoughts you have ready in your aresenal. If some of your negative statements are about yourself like, "I'm not good enough, or I'm not smart enough, or I'm not experienced enough," or whatever those kind of disproving thoughts, I would say a really good generic thought to put in, an empowered belief to put in is, "I love and approve of myself unconditionally." That takes care of those self judgmental statements. Another kind of self limiting belief is something that you continually tell yourself, "Oh well, to succeed I'm going to have to really struggle, and sacrifice, and stress out, and work hard, and then I won't have a life." If that's been your primary belief then you put a stop on that when you hear it coming, and in inside you're saying to yourself, "I'm not going there. I'm not going there." You take a deep breath and positive new thought could be, "I'm committed to working smarter, not harder."

One of the things that's great about this technique is that it really forces you to become aware of what you're thinking from moment to moment, and it's what you're thinking from moment to moment that will create a negative or positive mindset. If you're continually thinking negative thoughts either about yourself, or the market, or about money, or any of that, then guess what, you're going real fast into a negative mindset. Then what happens is what you believe tends to come true, and it becomes a self fulfilling prophesy. For example if you tell yourself, "I don't have what it takes to succeed in today's market," and you tell yourself that over, and over, and over again, your thoughts will create your reality and then you'll find that you don't have what it takes.

Henry Ford said, "Whether you believe you can or you can't, either way you're right,". The way to create a positive mindset is to continue to bring your thoughts back to, "I can do it,". You need to have unwavering faith in your ability to be successful. The way you do that is to retrain your mind. The stop technique is the most powerful technique for retraining your mind, but you may have to use it a few hundred times a day at the beginning. Your mind has been going down that negative track in a very undisciplined way for a long time and like wild horses that have been all over the place, you now have to reign them in and that is going to require a lot of vigilance at the beginning.

Dr. Maya Bailey, author of, Law of Attraction for Real Estate Professionals, integrates 20 years of experience as a psychologist and 12 years as a business coach with her expertise in the Law of Attraction. Her powerful work creates a success formula for real estate professionals ready to double and triple their incomes. Get Dr. Maya's free report, 7 Simple Strategies For More Clients in 90 Days, by visiting http://www.90DaystoMoreClients.com Also, check out her new Success Program, designed to help you get focused , motivated, stay on track and create a Positive Mindset, no matter what. http://www.positivebuzzsuccessprogram.com

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Natural Laws of Success

Jim Rohn wrote in his book The Five Major Pieces To The Life Puzzle, it is by an intricate design of nature that success is a condition that must be attracted and not pursued. We achieve rewards and we make progress not by our intense pursuits, but by what we become, for it is what we are that finally determines the result we attract. "To have more we must first become more" is the essence of his personal development philosophy.

Today when the lopsided model of personal development where the stress is more on techniques, the words of wisdom culled from all that have been written about success and happiness from times immemorial brings into stark contrast everything that is wrong in the personal development philosophy. The quick fixes taught by innumerable institutions reflect the growing confusion about Personality Development aimed at symptoms than any attempt on cause. It is no wonder that in the knowledge millennium when knowledge is said to be doubling every eighteen month we see more unhappiness and frustration than light of knowledge and wisdom.

The natural law is that of Character Ethic. What we are intrinsically. Success and happiness is achieved by becoming more, more of love, honesty, justice, courage, integrity, humaneness, feelings for the community, public good and for the fellow human. What we see instead is a stress on the outer personality, public image, public speaking, outward cheerfulness and pretended positive attitudes. Whatever we might be inside, we are taught to put a facade of manners, looks, gestures and language.

Imagine a situation where you meet an unreasonable customer and you put out the most positive outward expressions while you are fuming inside. It does not communicate the best of sincerity and you lose the customer anyway. On the other hand if we exercise the character ethic of being good to a fellow human being, we may try to understand his unreasonableness and show more sympathy towards his views.

When the inside feeling is one of sympathy we may even point out his unreasonableness without rancor or animosity and customer is more likely to understand our viewpoint. The character ethic being strong there would be certain equanimity and pleasantness and the customer has to respond positively to the natural and open negotiation with him.

It is not that techniques are not important. The various personal skills and techniques do have its value in bringing a system and projection of our natural personal traits more effectively. What ever our character should naturally reflect in every act of ours. Whereas being focused only on techniques will be seen as manipulative and whatever gains, will be short term and eventually be seen as failures.

Emerson has brilliantly explained the character ethic "What you are shouts so loudly in my ears that I cannot hear what you say."

R.G. Srinivasan is a managerial professional, Writer and Author. He writes a regular blog on home business with interesting articles, resources, personal experiences and links useful for work at home professionals at http://www.homebusinessresourcesonline.com/

Love Addiction, Approval Addiction

In my experience as a counselor for 40 years, I have found that love addiction and approval addiction are far more prevalent than any other substance or process addictions. We live in a love-addicted, approval-addicted society.

What does it mean to be love/approval addicted? Below is a checklist for you to see if you are addicted to love and/or approval. Believing any of these may indicate love or approval addiction.

I believe that:

* My happiness and wellbeing are depended upon getting love from another person.

* My adequacy, lovability, and feelings of self-worth and self-esteem come from others liking me and approving of me.

* Others disapproval or rejection mean that Im not good enough.

* I cant make myself happy.

* I cant make myself as happy as someone else can.

* My best feelings come from outside myself, from how other people or a particular other person sees me and treats me.

* Others are responsible for my feelings. Therefore, if someone cares about me, he or she will never do anything that hurts or upsets me.

* I cant be alone. I feel like Ill die if Im alone.

* When Im hurt or upset, its someone elses fault.

* Its up to other people to make me feel good about myself by approving of me.

* Im not responsible for my feelings. Other people make me feel happy, sad, angry, frustrated, shut down, or depressed. When Im angry, someone makes me feel that way and is responsible for fixing my feelings.

* Im not responsible for my behavior. Other people make me yell, act crazy, get sick, laugh, cry, get violent, leave, or fail.

* Others are selfish if they do what they want instead of what I want or need.

* If Im not connected to someone, I will die.

* I cant handle my pain, especially the pain of disapproval, rejection, abandonment, the pain of being shut out - the pain of isolation and loneliness.

Living as a love or approval addict is a very hard way to live. You have to constantly make sure you say the right thing, do the right, and look right in order to get the needed love and approval. Your feelings are on a roller coaster from feeling the wonderful feelings that come from getting your love or approval fix to feeling the despair that comes when your supply the source of your love and approval - shuts down, gets angry or judgmental, or goes away.

THE UNDERLYING CAUSE OF LOVE AND APPROVAL ADDICTION

Love and approval addiction is rooted in self-abandonment. Imagine the feeling part of you as a child your inner child. When you are love or approval addicted, you have handed your inner child away for adoption. Instead of learning to take responsibility for your own happiness by loving and approving of yourself, you have handed your inner child away to others for love and approval making others responsible for your feelings. This inner self-abandonment will always cause the deep pain of low self-worth, making you dependent upon others for your sense of worth.

The sad thing about all of this is that love is the most abundant thing in the universe. We live in a sea of love it is always within us and all around us. It is our Source. When you learn to open to Spirit/God/Source, you become filled with love, with peace, with joy. The empty place within that yearns to be filled becomes so filled with love that it overflows to others. You find yourself desiring to give love rather than always trying to get it.

As long as you make others your Source, you will not find the love, peace and joy that you seek. By learning and practicing the Inner Bonding process that we teach, you can learn to fill yourself with love and heal your love and approval addictions.

Margaret Paul, Ph.D. is the best-selling author and co-author of eight books, including "Do I Have To Give Up Me To Be Loved By You?" and Healing Your Aloneness. She is the co-creator of the powerful Inner Bonding healing process. Learn Inner Bonding now! Visit her web site for a FREE Inner Bonding course: http://www.innerbonding.com or email her at margaret@innerbonding.com. Phone sessions available.

Power To Change

How do we find power for change? There are some basic practices that will help us to make meaningful changes in our lives. The power to change lies within each us. We must recognize the value of learning positive practices that will help us to make dynamic changes in our lives. The power to change is within our grasps.

Action is one of the key elements to change. We must be ready to take some kind of action for change to take place. Positive talk is good, but action must be in the picture for effective change to take place. You must have a plan of action; list your steps. Do not put your plan of actions to far out in the distance future. Taking action sooner then later will help you to feel good about your change.

Another element that supports the power to change is motivation. When we begin to take positive actions toward change we often become motivated. Motivation is like a flame that turns into a fire. Our motivation will help us to continue on the road to successful powerful changes in our lives. Motivation is a by product of right actions, if there are no right it will be hard to get motivated.

Focusing must be part of the process to having the power to change. If we are not focused, it will be hard to change. We will expend a lot of energy without the ability to focus. The ability to focus will increase our ability to make positive changes. Our power to change is related to how focused we can become. By becoming more focused we have the power to make more changes.

In positive writings and books we can find the strength, courage and power to make real changes in our lives. The set aside scriptures can be used as a main source of gaining the courage needed to accomplish this task. Let us find the time to read these types of writings. A regular habit of reading the right materials will give you the strength for powerful changes.

The power to change is within our reach; we must walk the path.

I retired from United States Navy in 2003, after serving over 21 years of enlisted active duty onboard several different ships and a few shore assignments. I am married. My wife and i have two daughters. We have two dogs, Chow Chow's, to be exact. I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Liberal Arts (Focus area Psychology) from Excelsior College class 2004. http://belwrites.com

Do You Ever Loose Your Keys - Planning Advice

You obviously don't need to read this article if you rarely lose your car keys. However if you misplace your car keys often and have a pretty good relationship with your locksmith, it's time to change these bad habits into good ones.

One of my friends, recently lost their car keys. I would like you to listen to what I'm about to say and see if it makes sense to you. Most people get two keys when they buy a car. This means, if they lose one key, they now have a spare key. When they lose their first key, this should give them a pretty good clue that the second key is now the only key, if they wish to drive their car.

Does that make sense? If you lose your first key, you don't have a second or spare key anymore. Now is a good time to purchase a spare key or have one made. Don't wait until you lose the second one, unless you are planning to change your bad habit into a good one.

Now let me get back to my friends who recently lost their car's key. The car they were driving was a new Honda and you can't go to the locksmith to get another key made. You have to order one from the Honda dealer and this key cost them over $200. That's a lot of money for one key.

Now my friends lost both of their original keys and now have one key to operate the vehicle and this key cost them over $200. Now if I had to pay this amount of money, I would make sure that I never lost this key ever again. I would do whatever it to to change my old habits and create some new ones.

How hard is it to get in the habit of placing your keys inside of your purse. Placing your keys in your pockets and then only removing them when you are going to place them inside of a drawer, container, cup, bowl or on a shelf in your bedroom. If you place your keys in a drawer, this will keep them out of other people's temptation.

If you choose to lay your keys in a bowl, in the kitchen, there's a good chance someone will take them or another member of your family could lose them. Place your keys in a protected area, do not leave them out in the open ever.

If you want some tips to prevent you from losing your keys, simply talk to someone who rarely if ever loses their keys. Most of these people have simple and easy to follow tips. You can consciously create a habit that can save you money and frustration in the future.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing and personal development.

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

Friday, March 20, 2009

Take the Job Then Do it Right

If you have an older home there's a good chance you have one by six diagonal floor sheeting and some of the knots have fallen out by now. Some of these large knots can create safety hazards for your home. Performing major remodels or whole house renovations on older homes you can run into quite a few problems with these kinds of wood floors.

One of the first things I do is remove the carpeting and padding. This exposes the floor sheeting for further examination. By the time I am done with all the plumbing and electrical repairs underneath the subfloor it seems that some of the 1 x 6 has been damaged. Your first thought of course is just to replace the 1 x 6 that is damaged and be done with it.

This is one way to approach the problem, another is to repair the 1 x 6 that was damaged and install half inch plywood over the existing floor sheeting. Please make sure the floor is level and has no humps or dips in it before you start installing the new plywood over the existing floor sheeting.

I ran into a problem like this on one job where the contractor was in a hurry to finish the flooring and chose to go right over the existing floor that was out of level. The bad part about this is when the homeowner chose to go with expensive wood flooring throughout his home. When you walked in to the front of his house you felt like you were going out to a small wheelchair ramp for about 10 feet and then of course it felt like you were going down for another 6 feet.

In order to repair this properly it would've taken the other contractor about 24 hours to repair the floor. In this case the homeowner would have been glad to pay for the repair after the fact. Sometimes when contractors mention a potential problem down the road and how much it will cost to repair that problem, most homeowners cannot see the value in the contractor's opinion at that time.

I felt sorry for the homeowner because this was not what he wanted and he was upset with the contractor but the job was done. This is my warning to any contractor, handyman or home repair specialists. When installing a new plywood floor over an existing floor to strengthen it up, use some common sense and repair the floor correctly or don't do the job at all.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on building and remodeling your homes in Home Remodeling

Caring About Others Problems

Thursday, March 19, 2009

War Losers Are Criminals - Military Leadership and Something to Think About

How many wars have been fought over different beliefs and religions? I've been alive for less than 50 years and through the span of history this is a very small amount time but yet I noticed certain patterns by studying history and being part of it.

Why do we accept war as a necessity or a need to acquire something or instill a certain belief into someone else? Is it because we know, we are absolutely right and we know for a fact 100% that our way of living is better than theirs? What makes the winner of the war right and the looser wrong?

I was watching a movie that Robert McNamara made called The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara. I never really put two and two together but he mentioned something in the movie that got me thinking. His superior officer mentioned to him one day," You Do Realize Robert, If We Lose the War, We Are Going to Be Tried As War Criminals."

I never really thought that just because we were right and they were wrong, our military leaders could be executed. But were right aren't we and their wrong, isn't this why we were fighting World War II. The Germans and Japanese were wrong in doing horrible things. We tried their military leaders and found them guilty. After they lost the war of course.

I guess when I was a kid playing baseball and my coach told me "That the winner takes all." This also applies to real life, war, beliefs, society and what were forced to belief. If you study the wars throughout history, you will notice that most of the winning sides acquired benefits from the losers and sometimes even property. Makes sense doesn't it, winner takes all.

Losing a war doesn't make you a criminal, if you're trained as a superior leader, doesn't this involve killing people or are there specific guidelines that military leaders should follow. Are there specific rules and did the Americans and English follow these rules during World War II. Sometimes we need to study leadership books to gain knowledge and skills to become a better leader.

The concept of creating war criminals because they have killed others during the war, will probably never make sense to me. War is a horrible and cruel thing to bestowed on any country and with it comes many acts of horror, it's war and there's only one objective and that's to win, at all costs. If were going to put the losing side on trial, shouldn't we also find out more about the crimes the winning side committed during the war.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. If you've never heard Ernest Shackleton, I recommend you read the book Shackleton's Way it will give you a new perspective on leadership

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

Thinking Outside The Box

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

How Watching Tv As A Boy Made Me A More Disciplined Adult

When I was a kid at primary school, way before I graduated to the darker days of high school, I used to believe there were three kinds of hero:
The superhero - guys like Batman who could kick butt despite looking pretty dodgy in their day-glo outfits
The anti-hero - like the Incredible Hulk who tried to do good but still got treated like an outcast
the everyday hero - normal people like you and me who could do superhero things, with just a little bit of training
Although the first two kinds were cool enough, you never felt like you could be just like them. I mean, how many times would an overdose of gamma personally hit you? But the third kind Anybody could be like them, even a scrawny little kid like me, and nowhere was this more true than with the 'Kung Fu' TV series.

Maybe it was because it was so normal that I liked it so much. The hero didn't look like the Hulk on steroids, and he didn't have need to wear a mask to hide who he was he'd take on everyone and be proud to show who he was. All I knew was that between 1972 and 1975, at exactly 6.00pm in the evening, I'd be in front of the TV, hunched just like a meditating Chinese martial artist myself.

It was also the first thing to introduce me to one of my favorite actors as well, David Carradine, who played the main character, Kwai Chang Cain. Okay, so he may not be the greatest actor on the planet, but you show me someone who is as laid-back cool as him and I'd bet David Carradine could lay the smack down on them. The fact that he was actually a trained martial artist made 'Kung Fu' an even better TV series, since he was just as scrawny as I was!

Born of an American father and Chinese mother, Cain is orphaned and becomes an outcast, and maybe I related to that, as my father died when I was very young, too. Taken in by Shaolin monks, they turn this scrawny little kid into the guy that even Bruce Lee would respect. Discovering he has a half-brother called Danny, Cain (as an adult) sets out on a journey across America to find him.

Although no specific episodes stood out for me as a kid, I always remembered the little sayings in every episode the philosophy of why I should strive to become a better person through discipline and honor. It must have worked, because 30 years later, I'm one belt away from achieving my black belt in karate.

When I found out that you could get the complete 'Kung Fu' TV series, I almost peed my pants (my strong karate discipline stopped me, of course!), since I never enjoyed the newer version of the series (which also starred Carradine as a descendent of Cain, and was shown in the nineties). Now all I need is my own little brood in my dojo, so I can share with them what made me the man I am today.

Yoshi Kundagawa is a freelance journalist covering the martial arts world. Too much time at his computer eating donuts reduced him to couch potato status. He's on a quest to recapture his youth and fitness. You can read his blog at http://www.martialarts3000.com

Norman Doidge

Wishing For Riches

Anybody can wish for riches, and most people do, but only a few know that a definite plan, plus a burning desire for wealth, are the only dependable means of accumulating wealth.

This statement is at the beginning of Chapter 13 from the book "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill.

There are so many different methods, from so many different people, but most people don't know where to start, or plan their way to success.

I have heard some people mention the hardest part is actually starting, while others say you have to start somewhere, anywhere but start. Starting is usually the hardest part for most people, they get defeated by their own beliefs and of course never even start.

Fear of failure and fear of success, seem to be at the top of the list when thinking about starting a business. It's always been hard to imagine people being afraid to succeed, when this is what they seem to desire the most.

Wishing for riches can motivate you to start, thinking about the many different ways to succeed can motivate you to plan. A burning dire to succeed well often motivate you to start and create a plan eventually.

The key to creating wealth is developing habits and good daily habits performed over a lifetime, most of the time, will lead you to wealth beyond your wildest dream's. Sometimes this wealth is going to have nothing to do with money.

Get some books, talk to some people, watch some biographies about successful people throughout history, find out what they did and start paving your own trail. But you're going to have to start somewhere.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing, marketing and personal development.

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

If Only I Had This

How to Relax Your Mind and Ease Your Stress in 60 Seconds

Have you ever felt like the earth is spinning faster and faster each day? That you always feel there are so many things to do in so little time? That you feel like the hands of the clock are moving so fast or in some cases so slow?

Well, let me share with you that all these feelings are actually being manipulated by your MIND. Every single thing we do these days is identified and controlled by our minds. For example, you're identified by your own mind, you think who you are. You also use your mind to identify and judge others.

Therefore, it's small wonder that we always feel stress, restless and tense. Because we are always on a race with our minds. Well, time to learn how to RELAX and UNWIND. Cut your mind some slack!

Here is how to relax your mind in 60 seconds...

Focus on your breathing. This is not the usual breathing exercise described in many self-help books. What I'm trying to share with you is to be aware of your breathing. You can do this anywhere, it doesn't matter. I just want you to notice or give attention to your breath.

When you inhale, try to feel the air coming into your nostril. Similarly, when you exhale, try to notice the air coming out from your nostril. Also, notice that your lower abdomen is expanding slightly when you inhale and contracting when you exhale.

If you take a short breath, notice that it's a short breath. If it's a long breath, notice that it's a long breath. In other words, just act as an observer - to observe and notice how you breathe. Just do this for 60 seconds, and you will immediately feel the "stillness" in your mind.

Do this practice daily every time when you feel there is stress or tension. It will bring calmness to you almost immediately. It's easy to do and can be practiced anywhere and anytime.

Another of my favorite way to unwind and relax my mind is by using what is known as meditative sounds. There are many variaties, the one I use is called Binaural Harmonics. What I normally do is just put on a headphone when I'm travelling by bus, train or plane. You can also listen to it when you're driving.

The meditative sounds are specially designed to stop your normal thought or mind patterns, bringing your mind to an altered state of consciousness. In a layman term, it basically means to get rid of all the clutters in your mind and instills calmness and stillness into it.

Listening to meditative sounds on a regular basis not only can relax your mind but it also helps to relax your body and allow you to think more clearly. If you want more information, you can watch a video at my blog (see link below).

Go to how to practice basic meditation to watch the meditative sounds video for more understanding (scroll down a bit to watch the video when you reach that page). More personal development tips on various topics can also be found at my blog.

50 Self Help Classics

Monday, March 16, 2009

Satan's Little Kingdom

In 1967, the world was abuzz with something sinister going on in San Francisco, CA. A new church had arisen, a church dedicated to the Devil. Created by a former musician and magic enthusiast Howard LaVey who renamed himself Anton Szandor LaVey, it performed public rituals supposedly dedicated to the glory of Satan and the celebration of Earthly pleasures and delights.

Every Friday night, LaVey and his friends and followers conducted a black mass that was a purposeful perversion of Christian church traditions. The music was a corruption of Catholic hymns. The altars were nude women. Semen and milk were used instead of wine. And crowds of reporters looking for shocking pictures and juicy stories (especially reporters for men's magazines) snapped away at the show in front of them, writing story after story. Many Christians were aghast in fear that Revelations 13 was slowly starting to play itself out especially as the Church of Satan's membership grew by leaps and bounds.

But hidden from the cameras was an internal struggle within the Church. The whole point of the Church was to scare and shock Evangelicals and Catholics. It was a show, a performance and many members joined for the glory of being associated with the infamous church, its naked altars and sinister allure. In an interview, Tom Blackwood, a former Priest of the Church shared that when it came to its membership tally, LaVey would pad the numbers.

"If you sing a song with Satan in it, write a book or some articles about Satanism or black magic and you're in."

LaVey also realized the problem of Satanists joining the group just to scare the willies out of Christians among their family and friends. In a Newsweek interview in 1971, he addressed the problem head-on.

"Satanism is developing two circles, an elitist group which I always intended my church to be, and the faddists who are becoming Satanists because it's the thing to do."

He was growing tired and frustrated of just spooking people he didn't like very much. He wanted to practice what he called real Satanism. Combining Nietzsche, Rand and supposedly some writings of the infamous Cabalist and Hermetic Aleisteir Crowley, LaVey preached an ideology that celebrated the human being and all the inherent flaws, imperfections and pleasures the human form entailed as divinity in its own right. While Ayn Rand preached that people should only worry about themselves and their own personal interests, LaVey took the concept one step further and said that each person was a God or Goddess.

But that caused even more of a problem, especially after LaVey's death and the subsequent splintering of the Church. Each member was a supposed divinity and free to create his or her own doctrine. These individual doctrines competed with each other and leaders of small Satanic groups were constantly fighting with their flocks which often thought they created a better magic theory after a year or two of listening to the High Priest. As Blackwood puts it...

"Because LaVeyan Satanism teaches that each human is a God, everybody thinks he's Zeus or Thor. So what happens when you get Thor and Zeus in the same room? They're going to fight. Satanists today bicker endlessly about what's true Satanism and who has the best theory of it."

When LaVey stopped all public ceremonies in 1975 and worked until his death to create a real culture of celebrating the individual and Earthly pleasures, he unwittingly engineered the splintering of the Church. The infamous Black House from which the group was ran since the 1960s was demolished in 2001 after its condition declined so much, it was deemed unsafe for habitation by the city. The current leaders of the Church of Satan are now based in New York City. They advertise some events and a radio show but the original group that made headlines in the 1960s and 1970s is no more. Satan's kingdom on Earth is limited to a small number of people busily engaged in arcane arguments over the finer points of what they think is black magic.

This article is featured on Weird Things (http://gfish.wordpress.com), a blog that explores the strange, unknown, technology, space, science and strange things with a skeptical and analytical eye.

50 Self Help Classics

Sunday, March 15, 2009

The Magical Power of Gratitude

I remember when Oprah began encouraging everyone to write their own gratitude journal. I started one but it just felt like one more thing to do. Instead I tried to experience feelings of gratitude by simply thinking about 3 things I felt grateful for every day, either upon awakening or just before bed. Naturally, there were lots of mornings and evenings when I forgot to do this.

Flash forward 7 years and "Wow! What a difference!" Today, I'm surrounded by beauty, space, privacy, and other forms of abundance I couldn't even have imagined before. And now I find my gratitude comes naturally. I can't even open my eyes without feeling an amazing sense of appreciation for all that I've created in my life.

Is there a connection between all that I have and the depth of gratitude I feel?

Obviously, this didn't happen overnight. I wonder, when did gratitude become so effortless? Gradually, for sure. And how did it become such a natural state of being? Profound, genuine, effortless gratitude is so powerful in creating anything your heart desires, it's well worth doing whatever it takes to get to that place in your life.

Like anything else, you start small. You consistently exercise that "muscle." Over time it gets more powerful. As your efforts are rewarded with less and less effort, the use of gratitude becomes second nature.

Sometimes, I still find myself wondering whether such deep and genuine gratitude will be enough to sustain this exquisite lifestyle? Will simply feeling genuinely grateful for all the beauty and abundance that surrounds me now lead to a mindset that thinks differently and acts accordingly?

It's truly a grand experiment at this time. Stay tuned to find out if my happily ever after is self-sustaining. My blog will keep you posted with interesting and inspiring audio clips, video and super short articles to jump start your mind so you too can easily create a life of radiant health, deeply fulfilling relationships and permanent prosperity.

At http://www.stressfreepersonalfinance.com we specialize in inspiring tools to set you financially free. Plus there's free articles and audio to continually inspire you on your path towards financial freedom, radiant health and healthy, fulfilling relationships, because when you have enough money you can easily have all that!

While you're there be sure to download the FREE special report, "The 7 Affirmations That Took Me From $10,000/Year to $10,000/Month and the Powerful Techniques I Used to Synchronize Them with My Body & Mind" when you sign up for our free inspirational newsletter, Pathway2Abundance @ http://www.Pathway2Abundance.com

Socrates

The Magical Power of Gratitude

I remember when Oprah began encouraging everyone to write their own gratitude journal. I started one but it just felt like one more thing to do. Instead I tried to experience feelings of gratitude by simply thinking about 3 things I felt grateful for every day, either upon awakening or just before bed. Naturally, there were lots of mornings and evenings when I forgot to do this.

Flash forward 7 years and "Wow! What a difference!" Today, I'm surrounded by beauty, space, privacy, and other forms of abundance I couldn't even have imagined before. And now I find my gratitude comes naturally. I can't even open my eyes without feeling an amazing sense of appreciation for all that I've created in my life.

Is there a connection between all that I have and the depth of gratitude I feel?

Obviously, this didn't happen overnight. I wonder, when did gratitude become so effortless? Gradually, for sure. And how did it become such a natural state of being? Profound, genuine, effortless gratitude is so powerful in creating anything your heart desires, it's well worth doing whatever it takes to get to that place in your life.

Like anything else, you start small. You consistently exercise that "muscle." Over time it gets more powerful. As your efforts are rewarded with less and less effort, the use of gratitude becomes second nature.

Sometimes, I still find myself wondering whether such deep and genuine gratitude will be enough to sustain this exquisite lifestyle? Will simply feeling genuinely grateful for all the beauty and abundance that surrounds me now lead to a mindset that thinks differently and acts accordingly?

It's truly a grand experiment at this time. Stay tuned to find out if my happily ever after is self-sustaining. My blog will keep you posted with interesting and inspiring audio clips, video and super short articles to jump start your mind so you too can easily create a life of radiant health, deeply fulfilling relationships and permanent prosperity.

At http://www.stressfreepersonalfinance.com we specialize in inspiring tools to set you financially free. Plus there's free articles and audio to continually inspire you on your path towards financial freedom, radiant health and healthy, fulfilling relationships, because when you have enough money you can easily have all that!

While you're there be sure to download the FREE special report, "The 7 Affirmations That Took Me From $10,000/Year to $10,000/Month and the Powerful Techniques I Used to Synchronize Them with My Body & Mind" when you sign up for our free inspirational newsletter, Pathway2Abundance @ http://www.Pathway2Abundance.com

Christianity Saved My Life

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Improve Your Life This Year

We have a tendency to put off improving ourselves. We know there are things that we can improve in our life and even things that we should improve, yet many people procrastinate. Next year will be the year that they make the changes that they need to. Next year will be the year that they make their life better. Why not make next year this year instead?

When we put things off it can be because of many different things. The two most common ones are fear and the feeling that we do not know how to change. But the truth is that we can whenever we want. There are countless resources that you can use to help you to improve your life. You can further your education so that you make many improvements along the way.

When we are afraid, we are powerless. Take the power back and put it where it belongs. With you! You don't have to wait for anything to come along for you to decide to make your life what you want it to be. The better equipped you are and the more resources that you use to improve your life, the better off you will be.

Learn what you can do and what steps that you can take to make the life that you are living right now everything that you want it to be. Make this year a year of action and stop putting things off. Attract what you want and make sure that you do indeed get it!

Learn how to attract love, money, or happiness or all three in YOUR LIFE NOW! Go to http://www.successfulfather.com and SIGN up for the FREE newsletter and BOOKMARK the site and return as often as you can!

You can attract the life that you truly desire! All you have to do is learn HOW!

Bryan Appleton is an investor/entrepreneur who has dedicated himself to teaching others how to achieve their dream life. He is also a proud single father with one son.

You can publish this article as long as you leave it intact and in full as well as keeping the URL link clickable.

Friday, March 13, 2009

Book Notes - A Book Overview on Twelve Pillars

Twelve Pillars, by Jim Rohn and Chris Widener, is a short, easy to read story about a man named Michael Jones, who feels that his life is at a dead end.He meets an older gentleman, named Charlie, who shares with Michael twelve "pillars" that have helped the owner of the house Charlie maintains, Mr. Davis, achieve great success.The story is somewhat predictable (I'm not going to tell you how though, you have to read the book), but effectively conveys each of the pillars. I presented these pillars to a group of college students a few months ago, and thought they would be good to share with you too.

Pillar 1 is "Personal Development."This pillar highlights that you can achieve only to the level where you are.Key points on this pillar are success comes when you develop yourself beyond where you currently are; read books, attend seminars/speaker engagements, study the best people; and implement and integrate what you've learned.These points remind me of the definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. To get different results, you've got to change what you're doing. "The only way things are going to change for you is when you change."

Pillar 2 is "Total Well-Being," which is "three dimensional health." The three dimensions are the body (physical), soul (our intellect, emotions, and will), and spirit (part of us that transcends this world).The Spirit is your core, the soul is the next layer, and the body is the outside layer.You need to work on all three, don't just work on one to the detriment of the others.The relationship between the three dimensions highlights the need to be transparent, sincere, and genuine.Let people see you as you really are. "You should make sure the outside of you is a good reflection of the inside of you."

The third Pillar is "The Gift of Relationships."Relationships represent the "most beautiful highs" and the "most tormented lows" of life. Relationships are the backbone of our existence.Twelve Pillars explains that relationships are like a garden, you have to cultivate them.Once you get them up and running, the maintenance to keep them growing is much easier."Time, effort, and imagination must be summoned constantly to keep any relationship flourishing and growing." People say that money that makes the world go around, but I believe relationships are what make the world go around because things get done through people.

Pillar 4 is "Achieve Your Goals."I've heard and read many times that you should write your goals down.Writing them bring them into reality.A side benefit of achieving your goals is that you become a better person."The major reason for setting a goal is for what it makes of you to accomplish it."Something I learned from someone elsewhere is that plans will change, but your goals will stay the same.A good approach for checking your progress is "Plan, Do, Check, Adjust."

"The Proper Use of Time" is the fifth Pillar.There are two types of pain, the pain of discipline, which weighs only ounces, and the pain of regret, which weighs tons.Don't procrastinate, the end of your life will come sooner than you expect; don't wait until it's too late.Remember that when you spend a day, you have one less day to spend, so spend each day wisely."Every day has many opportunities, but only one best opportunity."The best opportunities are those that align with your overall goals.Know the difference between the urgent and the important.

"Surround Yourself With the Best People" is Pillar 6."Don't join an easy crowd; you won't grow.Go where the expectations and the demands to perform are high."People have an amazing power to influence your destiny.Every relationship you have is an association, be it positive, neutral, or negative.Ask yourself the following questions about your relationships.Who am I around? What effect are they having on me? What have they got me reading? What have they got me saying? Where do they have me going? What do they have me thinking? What do they have me becoming?Then ask yourself if you're good with the answers.Categorize every person you meet.Is he or she someone you should disassociate with, have limited association with, or should you expand your association? Surround yourself with winners, successful people who exhibit and live consistent to values and skills you want to acquire and develop. You become like those you hang out with, so be picky.

Pillar 7 is "Be a Life-Long Learner."Most of your life is lived after formal education."Formal education will make you a living. Self education will make you a fortune."Self education is about what you teach yourself and what you learn along the way so you are constantly improving and growing. Learning is the beginning of wealth, health, and spirituality. Read books, observe successful people, reflect on your own experiences; learn what went right and what went wrong.Help others by sharing what you've learned. "All of

Life is Sales" is the eighth Pillar. Sales means influence and influence is the key to a successful life; learn the art and skill of influence."One key to having influence with others is to have others perceive you as a person of talent and virtues."Your talent and virtues represent your character and skill.Be a person of strong character and increasing skill and you will always be growing your influence.

Pillar 9 is "Income Seldom Exceeds Personal Development." Money doesn't solve the problems of life; you can lose it, be sued for it, or it can be stolen. What's important is what you become because, "What you become directly influences what you get." Become a million dollar person.Remember, even if you lose money, you have the skills to earn it again.

"All Communication Brings the Common Ground of Understanding" is Pillar 10."Communication is two or more people working together to find the common ground understanding.And when they find that common ground, they are positioned to have tremendous power together."Communication is hard, yet important in all relationships.It's about what you say, how you say it, when you say it, and the receptiveness of who you say it to. Make sure you really listen. The character behind listening is caring enough and valuing the other person enough to want to listen.People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.

Pillar 11 is "The World Can Always Use One More Great Leader."Anyone can be a great leader, all is takes is mastering the art of influence. Leaders make a difference through servant hood."To lead others is to help them change their thoughts, beliefs and actions for the better."Be interested in people, not just in what you can get from them.Help people with more than just their jobs, help them with their lives. A critical component is the leader-follower relationship, which must be built on trust and integrity.Great leaders are real, they know where they are.Great leaders have an optimistic vision, they know how to get to a better destination and work towards that vision.Another quote I like that captures the essence of leadership is, "The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly."

Finally, Pillar 12 is "Leave a Legacy." Life is short. You can't choose how long you will live, but you can choose how well you will live. "Live a life that will help others spiritually, intellectually, physically, financially and relationally.Live a life that serves as an example of what an exceptional life can look like." The path we walk has been prepared for us by others who have gone before us. So live your life in such a way that it will serve those who come after you. Blaze a trail that will allow others to move forward in their lives faster than if they had to blaze the trail themselves.

As you can see, the twelve pillars are interdependent; you can't just focus on one and neglect the others.The bottom line is that you have a choice about your life,"Make a Living or Design a Life." I hope you find value in these pillars and will be inspired to pick up Twelve Pillars and apply the pillars to your life and business.

Happy Business Building,

Yoli

Yolanda Allen is a program manager working for the US government. She owns a home based business specializing in financial education and uses the internet to market her business. Yolanda and her business partners teach other business owners online marketing and have set a goal to create 100 millionaires by 2012. To learn more about Yolanda's business, marketing system, and business partners, visit http://www.YBAMarketing.com

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Change - The Secret to Coping

There's an old saying: "The only constant in life is change." If that's true, and I believe it is, you'd think that we'd all be quite adept at living our lives in the midst of a changing world. Yet, mention the word "change," and people get worried. Even when we seek change - in government, in law, or in our own personal lives - when the change actually occurs, we often have a difficult time adjusting to it.

The secret to understanding how to successfully cope with change is actually quite simple: It all comes down to transforming our attitude, from one of resisting change to embracing it. That's right - by changing how we feel, we can transform a negative experience to a positive one. It's even possible to move oneself from hating change to loving it!

Resistance to change is a natural result of fear, and fear is a natural response to something we perceive as threatening or dangerous in some way. Any change, even one we think we want, can have a domino effect, causing unexpected ripples of change in other areas of life, which we perceive as threatening. The key word in the last few sentences is "perceive." When we begin to think positively about something, we change our perception of it, which changes our feelings about it and, therefore, our attitudes.

Think about this: the physiological symptoms of anxiety (fear) include rapid or irregular heart rate, rapid breathing, lightheadedness, and sweating. Interestingly, these are the very same symptoms we experience when we are excited about something! Think of the last time you rode a roller coaster. If you feared the ride, you probably had all those symptoms, called it nervousness, and hated the experience. If you didn't fear the ride, you probably experienced all those symptoms, called it excitement, and had a great time. It's all a matter of viewpoint.

To change your feelings you have to change your thoughts. There are many ways to accomplish transforming your way of thinking about something. Following are just a few of these tools for taking control of your thoughts and attitudes. When trying out these techniques for the first time, start with something small - a change or event that doesn't carry a lot of emotional "charge" for you.

1) Look at the bright side.

List three or more positive outcomes that could result from this change. Be creative. Be farfetched. How could this event or change "backfire" into something great?

2) Say Yes!

You have to want to change your attitude and believe that you can change how you feel. When you feel threatened, however subtly, by an unexpected change, literally stand tall, open your arms wide, and loudly proclaim, "Yes!"

3) Embrace it.

Visualize the change coming into your life and, with it, all the positive changes you listed in step one. Imagine each of these positive events causing other good things to happen. Imagine yourself embracing this new event or change of circumstance and, if possible, physically act out the embrace as you imagine it.

Finally, to reinforce the idea that change is exciting, make a small, intentional change, every day. Eat blueberries in your cereal instead of sliced bananas. Try a yoga class instead of kickboxing. You'll begin to see how much fun change can be. And speaking of kickboxing, these tools are also great for kick-starting your creativity any time you feel stuck.

Amber Lea Starfire is an agent of change and loves to create solutions that transcend limits. Her passion is helping others realize their own creative, expressive, and physical potential by developing new ways of thinking and doing. Amber is Publisher and Editor of The Writer's Eye Magazine (http://www.thewriterseye.com), a freelance writer, professional portrait photographer, bicyclist and mother. Contact her at - http://www.amberstarfire.com

Sally Jenkins

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Seven Great Benefits of Reading

I read something the other day that was extremely disturbing. Apple founder Steve Jobs was quoted as saying...

"It doesn't matter how good or bad the product is, people don't read anymore. Forty percent of people in the U.S read one book(1) or less last year."

To me, this is a VERY SAD statistic. Personally, I can think of nothing more important , and ,of more value than reading.

Alarming? I'd say so. If the adults aren't reading , do you think the kids will grow up as readers? We all know that kids mimic our actions and not our words.

Here are 7 Great Benefits of Reading I came up with....

1. Great Vocabulary Builder.
2. Stress buster, and relaxer.
3. Great for learning and education.
4. Keeps your mind sharp and fresh.
5. Sets a good example for kids.
6. Helps with your Spelling.
7. Helps form a common bond with others.

Writer, former pro football player and Fox Sports analyst Tim Green once said.... "Everyone likes to read. They just need to finds something that is of interest to them." Some like the sports page, some like a good mystery, others like self help, and still others like People or Star magazine.

Here is a great challenge offered by our friends at Shelfari.com:

They basically ask the reader to attempt to read 50 books in the next coming year. If that's too many, then set your own goal of 40,30, or even 20 books. You'll be glad you did.

What are your thoughts/what benefits do you get from reading?

About the author::

TA Smith is the founder and creator of Smile-Therapy.com
A graduate of UMASS, Amherst.
A former Dale Carnegie graduate.
Smith loves to golf, ski, read, walk his chocolate labs, and listen to jazz and country music.
Smith's motto: Work hard, have fun, help others and make people SMILE.
creator@smile-therapy.com
http://www.smile-therapy.com

Thomas Troward

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Law of Attraction Frustration

The law of attraction has frustrated many people and they will say that it doesn't work. You may have seen the movie, The Secret, or one of the specials on TV done by Oprah or Larry King. Have you tried using its principles? There are usually very specific mistakes that are made by someone just learning to attract the things they want. Those mistakes are easily corrected.
  • The Law of Attraction always works

This universal law is an energy that is available to everyone, all the time. You have used it since forever. Maybe what you have attracted is not what you prefer, but the law has followed your instructions to the letter. Then why hasn't it worked the way you want?The rules are that what you focus your attention on, will come into your reality. So what you experience today, has been caused by what you thought about and talked about long before this. What you complain about and worry about today, will be what you are drawing to you for your future.
  • So what blocks what I want?


Most likely, it is old beliefs of not being worthy of having it. Your value and self-esteem has been established for years by situations and people around you. They haven't done it on purpose; their own self-esteem has not been very high, so they couldn't help but teach you as they were taught--that YOU aren't enough. A belief is only a thought that has been repeated over and over until your mind accepts it as true. It doesn't have to BE true.
  • Holding onto old ideas doesn't help

Holding onto those old beliefs is no longer supportive of what you want to accomplish today. Those beliefs were chosen by you to protect your emotions in the past. The key word here is CHOSEN. You made a choice--a decision about what happened. It doesn't follow that the decision you made was actually true. But thinking about it over and over and talking about it has allowed your mind to accept it as true, and this is what is blocking you from being able to attract your desire.
  • You have an inner guidance system

By listening within, to the promptings and guidance you receive, you will find answers to help you remove those old beliefs and blocks and create the life you desire to lead. Life flows easily for you when you learn how to program and listen and obey your inner whisperings. Walls that you keep hitting your head against, will crumble and you walk free.

If you want to learn to listen within, you can download a free ebook, Learn Listening Within

Mareen Robinson, a published author, columnist and teacher of the Law of Attraction is offering tips, techniques and other goodies to learn to accelerate the Law of Attraction. Visit her at her website: http://yourmagicwanda.com

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Spiritual Healing

Spiritual healing is the oldest type of healing known to humanity. There has always been some form of spiritual healing available in all tribes and societies: our own Druid tradition of healing and spirituality, the North American Medicine man, the wise men and women who occupied a special place in every tribe, helping to heal the sick through the power of the spirit, and to guide the tribe in times of crises, and in matters of life and death. Due to many people's disillusionment with traditional religions there has been a huge upsurge in interest in the whole area of spirituality in recent years.

Spirituality in its broadest sense concerns the exploration, the awareness and the integration of spirit with our other physical, mental and emotional sides to create balance, harmony, wholeness and meaning in our lives. Spirit is that part of ourselves which is eternal and unique to each individual. Yet spiritually we are connected to all other life forms in a transpersonal way, each being a vital part of the whole. People who wish to explore their personal spirituality need not have any specific beliefs, as the spiritual experience can be viewed humanistically - as the link between all earth-life, between the whole of nature, animals and human beings.

What is Spiritual healing?

Spiritual healing is the channelling of healing energies through the healer to the patient. It re-energies and relaxes patients to enable their own natural resources to deal with illness or injury in the best possible way. By directing energy, usually through the hands, the healer seeks to supplement the depleted energy of the recipient, releasing the body's own healing abilities to deal with the problem in the most effective way for that individual. The healer asks for healing to be channelled from Spirit, God, the highest level of light. Unlike faith healing, it is not required that the patient have faith in the healer or in the healing process in order for healing to take place.

Benefits of Spiritual healing

Spiritual healing can be beneficial for anyone who feels that they lack harmony of body, mind or spirit. It can be given for any illness, stress or injury. There are no conditions placed on the type of healing which the patient may require: the Spirit of the patient gets exactly the kind of healing it needs to distribute to the mind or body it occupies. Healing always takes place in the manner in which it is needed. It can be helpful in a wide range of physical and psychological conditions, sometimes to a remarkable degree: the medically diagnosed nature of the illness appears to be irrelevant to the outcome, and case histories range from the relieving of everyday stresses and strains to the recovery of people who had been previously medically diagnosed as being terminally ill. In all these cases spiritual healing seems to have made a vital contribution to the patient's recovery.

Spiritual healing has no side effects and is complimentary to any other therapy. It is completely non-intrusive as there is no touch used by the healer. The healer's hands are raised about a foot from the patient's body while the patient is sitting comfortably during the channelling of healing.

Absent Healing

Any person who asks for spiritual healing will receive it. If the healing is requested by one person for another, then the healing chain is set in motion between the person who requested it, the person who it is requested for and Spirit. The person does not have to attend for Spiritual healing in this instance. Each person's name who requires healing is written in a special book, kept specifically for this purpose. Periodically the healer can read each new name entered in the book and ask Spirit to grant this person spiritual healing. Each person is kept on the absent healing list for one month. Whatever healing is required then takes place. There have been many recorded cases of miraculous healing taking place using absent healing, even when the recipient of spiritual healing was not aware that healing had been requested for him/her.

What does Spiritual healing feel like for the recipient?

Many people say that they experience some of the following sensations during spiritual healing: heat, cold, tingly feelings, the feeling of being really taken care of, a feeling of expansion and a new awareness of their spiritual being. Sometimes the recipient doesn't feel anything in particular, just a sense of deep relaxation and peace. It is recommended that a person attend for spiritual healing at least three times, with approximately one week between each session, to maximise the benefits of spiritual healing. I can still vividly remember my own first experience of spiritual healing, some six years ago. One of my friends had recommended that I try it but I was quite sceptical and needed a lot of persuading to try it. I remember sitting in the healing chair in the Irish Spiritual Centre, feeling this amazing feeling of love and expansion, as though I was literally radiating a brilliant beautiful energy. Spiritual healing is still my own favourite form of healing when I feel in need of a real boost of energy: six years later I'm still at the centre, but now working as a Spiritual healer.

Extract from Irish Guide to Complementary and Alternative Therapies by Lucy Costigan, published by Wolfhound Press, 1997

http://www.lucycostigan.com/lucycostigan/

Lucy Costigans career has been quite eclectic. She has worked as a magazine editor, a technical writer, a counsellor and spiritual healer, and a programmes facilitator. Lucy holds Masters Degrees in Equality Studies (UCD, Ireland), and in Research (NCI, Ireland). From an early age Lucy has been on a quest to discover the ultimate meaning of life.

Lucy's books have been reviewed on RTE (Ireland's National Television and Radio stations), on BBC radio, and in various international publications. RTEs popular Sunday Show dedicated a full-length program to her book Bullying and Harassment in the Workplace (Columba Press, 1998). Lucys books include: Irish Guide to Complementary and Alternative Therapies (Wolfhound Press) Bullying and Harassment in the Workplace (Columba Press) Winter Solstice: A Novel (iUniverse) Social Awareness in Counselling (iUniverse) What is the Meaning of Your Life (iUniverse) Course in Consciousness (iUniverse) Women and Healing (iUniverse) The Transformation of Yvette (iUniverse).

Lucy lives in her native town of Wexford, Ireland.

Mary Baker Eddy