It's All About Joy!

Giving Freely

Still Working to Put My Money Where My Mouth Is

I still have lessons to learn around giving without expectation. It’s rather funny how I tested myself recently in this regard.

A couple weeks ago I was having coffee with a friend and we were talking about people who ask for money on the streets. My friend preferred to buy the person a meal rather than give them cash. My opinion was the opposite. He was afraid of feeding their addiction by giving them money without knowing what they’d use it for. I told him I felt like it was none of my business; if I had what they needed and wouldn’t suffer by giving it to them, it was theirs to do with as they pleased.

My friend shook his head initially when I said that. He didn’t feel right supporting a drug addiction or alcohol problem. I told him that was all right for him. For me, though, I wouldn’t feel right asking someone to justify himself or herself when God knows I’m not above reproach. If they’re addicted, well so am I! Everyone is addicted to something. I don’t care if it’s drugs, alcohol, food, cigarettes, approval, love, fitness, drama – it doesn’t matter! We’re all addicts. The egoic mind is the biggest addict imaginable.

From that perspective, the minute I say that my addiction is healthier or more acceptable than your addiction, it’s all over for me from an unconditional love standpoint. 

The very next day, I was given a chance to walk my talk where giving freely without judgment was concerned. I was on a city street with a different friend and we were approached by a guy who needed money. He had a whole story ready for us about how his car broke down, he needed money to buy a gas can, his daughter was with him in the car, etc. Both my friend and I asked how much the can would cost and he told us $9. We each gave him a few dollars. Without a thank you or anything else, he looked at us and said, “This isn’t enough! What am I going to do for the rest?”

At that point I found myself thinking, “Well how do you like that? We give him some money and all he can do is focus on what’s missing. Man, that just stinks.” Not ironically, it became clear to me that the very thoughts I was thinking were also centered on what was missing (his “thank you”). Funny how that works!

At that point I just sighed because I knew I had manifested an encounter with that guy, and I failed the very test I set up for myself. Rather than give him money happily, regardless of his reaction, I attached an expectation to it. I wanted a “thank you.” When I didn’t get one, I ran an alternate scenario through my head where I would have continued standing in front of him after he said, “It’s not enough!” and said, “How about a thank you? No? Well feel free to give back the money then.” (Again, big sigh.)

Funnier still, after I returned home that evening and checked my email, I had a notice in my inbox from an ad network I’m affiliated with telling me how much I earned during the last quarter. I saw it and thought, “That’s it?! That’s not enough!” (Are you rolling your eyes at me right now? I’d love to know, since I did, once the irony struck me 30 seconds later!) Yep, and checking the time on the email it would have corresponded to the same time I was dealing with my (now) friend on the street.
He was me; I was him. And man, what a lesson he taught me.

God help him, I hope he’s a quicker study than I am.

Be well, be joyful, and as best you can, give of yourself freely today!
 

Must Reads: Bloggers I Love

(Part I in what will likely be a long series!)

The best parts of my mornings are sending and receiving email and reading my favorite blogs. The list keeps growing since there is so much good content out there. Every so often I am compelled to just shout from the rooftops how wonderful I think all these people are who write about joy, love, and spirituality.

So consider this post a rooftop, and here’s me shouting some of my favorites:

Peggy at Serendipity Smiles wrote about overcoming her perfectionist tendencies and had this little gem of encouragement in there: “I don’t have to strive for  perfection today, tomorrow or next week. I’m perfect just as I am…I can be a four today, a five tomorrow, a two on Friday.  It’s all good.”
Click to read Dreaming Perfection

Jodi at Joy Discovered wrote about truth – what it is and what it isn’t (and how we frequently mistake non-truths for truth). If you want an eye-opening read, you absolutely have to check out this post. Here’s a great snippet from it, “…how many times have you recounted an incident, and as much as you try to tell only the truth you realize it is quite impossible; you realize that without the other person about whom you are reporting sitting there with you, recounting her side exactly as she experienced it, you don’t actually know the truth. In those situations you realize there is a difference between facts and perceptions.”
Click to read The Truth Will Set You Free

Positively Present always has a fresh energy in what she writes, and this post, in particular, took me all the way back to childhood. See for yourself how growing up is optional.
Click to read Growing Up Is Optional

Nadia at Happy Lotus writes so compellingly and with such peace and love... From day 1, I've been a fan. She wrote a post about the myth of perfectionism, which I loved since I’m a recovering perfectionist. If you find yourself falling into this category, her post is a must-read.
Click to read My Perfection Myth
 
Liara at Dream Builders Australia had the most fantastic post about dis-ease in our bodies, and how to not only view it differently, but in some cases, undo it. If you’ve suffered anything from a cold to emergency surgery, this post has something in it for you.
Click to read 7 Ways to Re-frame Apparent Dis-ease

Mark at The Naked Soul (love that title, by the way!) dissected the topic of self-worth in this post called “What Is Our Value?” Do we use money, love, or other external circumstances to determine how valuable we are? Or can we go inside and recognize that simply by being alive, we’re more worthwhile than we ever dreamed?
Click to read What Is Our Value?

Tess at The Bold Life had a guest blogger (Jan Lundy) who wrote a fabulous post describing how the first 30 minutes of our day sets the tone for how the rest will go. Did you know that? It made me grateful for my morning routine, which is infused with peacefulness and love. Read this to learn how to make more of your days enjoyable, right from the start. (And PS - Tess is also a brilliant writer... so I'll include one of the posts she wrote on Jan's blog here, as well!)
Click to read Mind Fitness: How About a Workout For a Healthy Mind
Click to read 75 Ways to Make The World a Better Place to Be

Oh my God, I laughed so hard when I first read about Millie on Suzen’s blog Erasing the Bored that I nearly fell off my chair. Millie is old, tells it like it is, and isn’t afraid to fart (that’s right… fart!). Please, please, please read this if you want some amazing “living right” advice and also want to laugh.
Click to read Millie Wisdom: Lessons in Living

Lance at The Jungle of Life writes inspiringly and gently, and quite often so succinctly that I’m awed. I absolutely loved this quote he shared from Steve Jobs, founder of Apple, and was greatly encouraged by it. If you’re looking to do what you love or find more meaning in life, read this!
Click to read Sunday Thought for the Day, June 21

Katie at You Can’t Say That on the Internet! is constantly writing from such a space of love – for both her life and her incredible partner, Patty – that I’m moved to tears. The love Katie and Patty share, and how they keep their love growing, is inspirational. The post Joyful Creators is a great testament to how they live their spirituality and love for one another right out loud, and in doing so, positively affect all of us who share this planet with them. Take a look.
Click to read Joyful Creators

And if you like food – to make or to eat – I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Patty’s site, affectionately called The Joyful Chef. I frequently read her step-by-step posts that are full of the most delicious pictures and think, “now I’m hungry.” Best of all, I’ve met Katie and Patty, who live on the opposite coast as me, and they’re even better and more delicious in-person than they are on their blogs! See what Patty’s been up to by reading her latest.
Click to read The Joyful Chef

There are more – my gosh there are more. So please know that this is just a start. I’ll be doing another “Man I love these bloggers” entry in the future and including even more of the fabulous writers who fuel my days and weeks with their brilliance, insights, and love.

What’s In An Opinion?

I spent some time in Seattle recently to attend my cousin’s wedding. While there, I made some incredible new friends, and connected in-person for the first time with a couple I met through the blogosphere (shout-out to Katie & Patty!). Each day when I woke up, I would walk to the nearest Starbucks and everyone I encountered felt like a friend. From the guy on the street who smiled and exchanged pleasantries with me to the baristas serving my lattes – Seattle was, by my yardstick, the best place to be.

In contrast, another person on our trip had a different experience. His encounters led him to think that many people in Seattle were standoffish or indifferent.

“That’s so strange! Everyone I meet seems so joyful,” I told him.

I found his response intriguing. He said it seems likely that we project our expectations onto others, and as a result see only what we’ve projected.

To me that sounded like another way of saying that who we are is what we attract. I went to Seattle with a song in my heart and a smile on my face, and therefore everyone I saw mirrored those things back to me. Maybe it wasn’t quite the case for him, so what he saw was more closely aligned with whatever he brought to his encounters each day.

The thing I like about that story is that it unearths a fundamental truth about hearing other people’s opinions. Have you ever listened to the good opinion of someone else, only to experience that same thing for yourself with the opposite results?

When it comes to people, in particular, I try not to form an opinion about someone until I’ve met them for myself. After all, our interactions with others are projections of what we hold inside us at any given time.

I remember four years ago when I met a new friend at Starbucks. He started chatting me up one day, and the next thing you know, he was treating me to a free spa day where he worked. I had a fantastic time, and felt great hanging out with him in that capacity.

When I told the guy I was seeing about it, he proceeded to tell me how a female friend of his knew the same guy and thought he was sleazy because he used free spa days to try and pick up women. Interestingly, in the four years I’ve known my friend, he’s never once put the moves on me or made me feel uncomfortable in any way, and there have been plenty of times when we’ve both been simultaneously single. Instead, this guy has been a tremendous confidant and a huge spiritual teacher for me. It makes me wonder what that one woman was projecting onto my friend!

My experiences have taught me to listen to others’ opinions and take them for what they’re worth. That is to say, someone else’s opinion and not necessarily my own. Who knows what energy people are putting out or drawing back to them when they form their opinions? All I know for certain is that it’s always best to investigate things for myself.

Just something to keep in mind the next time anyone shares an opinion… And yes, that also includes everything I’ve said in this post. <wink!>

Be well and joyful today!

Paying Attention to Signs Along the Way

I’m a big believer in signs. Over the last ten years, my life has become full of them. Sometimes they’re big, bold signs, and sometimes they’re subtle and soft. One thing remains the same: if I get one, I pay attention and heed whatever it’s trying to tell me.

Sometimes I don’t know beforehand what I’m being told, either, so I just mentally bow down and think, “Okay, something’s happening that I need to pay attention to. Thank you for your guidance today, Universe.”

There was a day I tried to leave my apartment and dropped my keys not once, not twice, but three times. I’m not a clumsy person. I remember thinking, “Okay, angels, what are you trying to tell me?” It was enough to delay me by about 90 seconds, and sure enough, on the road I ended up taking, there was a horrible car accident that must have occurred just a minute before I passed. Maybe that could have been me, or maybe I would have been witness to it mid-crash… Either way, I was grateful for the key dropping event that delayed me.

Another time, I thought I’d try to get in touch with my long lost father, who I haven’t seen in more than twenty years. I was going to be traveling out west near where he lives and thought, “Maybe it’s time for a face-to-face.” So I asked my brother for our dad's contact information and proceeded to send an email. I was nervous in doing so, but thought, “If it’s meant to be, it will be.” A few hours later, the email was returned undeliverable. I thought, “There’s my sign. It’s not meant to be.” I told my brother what happened, and he said, “That’s not a sign! It just means his email inbox was too full and you need to try harder! God doesn’t work in small signs like that. Don’t give up so easily!” I joked afterward that my brother apparently needs a burning bush. Me? A returned email will do, thank you very much!

That’s one thing I’ve learned: the signs aren’t always huge, lights-flashing, buzzers-sounding, “look at me” indications of what we should be doing. Sometimes they’re subtle, soft, and accessible… Our job is to pay attention and tune in to how the Universe tries to talk to us. The better we become at paying attention, the less troublesome it is for the God to reach out.

I’ll give you another example. Someone I know was booking their first cross-country trip to the west coast, and when they found an itinerary they thought they liked (a red-eye, mind you) and tried to purchase it, they were kicked out of the system. They went back in and tried again. Kicked out again. One more time. Kicked out. Another try. Kicked out. (They kept this up for about ten tries, if I remember correctly.)  As I heard the story I thought, “The Universe was giving them a sign…” but this person was determined to conquer technology and get the airfare they wanted. Had it been me, I would have left it for another day, and figured there was something I couldn’t have known at the time that might make itself apparent at a later date.

But that’s just me.

From my viewpoint, short of a burning bush, there are quite a few other ways the Universe tries to get our attention. Here’s some off the top of my head:

• Emails – someone emails us out of the blue talking about something we’ve been wrestling with in our minds. Pay attention!
  
• Dreams – sometimes signs come to us when we’re asleep (if we’re prone to vivid dreaming).
• Mail – I once asked the Universe for a sign as to when a suitable romantic partner would show up in my life. I’d been using the law of attraction to visualize my perfect guy and in my mind, he drove a SAAB. The next day, I received a promotional mailer from a SAAB dealership. It was the first I had ever gotten, and (to this day) the last. I think it was the Universe’s way of telling me, “We’re working on it.”
• Random Book Page – when I want inspiration or a message on a particularly trying day, I’ll pick up a book and ask the Universe to talk to me through a random page. Invariably, I get a golden nugget that helps me make the day better or more meaningful.
• Sudden Candle Flickering – one time I was sitting thinking of a guy I was dating. The idea of him cheating on me flashed through my head. I disregarded it, thinking, “Noooooo… He wouldn’t do that.” Instantly, the quiet flame that was next to me started jumping all around like it was possessed. It then quieted down, at which point I deliberately asked (as if to the angels), “Is he cheating on me?” The flame went wild again! The next day I confronted him and sure enough, he was.
• Songs on the Radio – someone once told me that if you want a sign about something, use the radio. Ask the Universe whatever it is you’re seeking clarity on, and the second or third song you hear is your message.
• Animals, Insects or Other Wildlife – if an unusual bit of nature crosses your path or shows up in your living space, take note and look up the meaning. It could be the Universe trying to talk to you.

What about you? Do you have any stories you can share along these lines? What kinds of signs does the Universe send you?

How God Talks To Us

Last week, I wrote a post called “Those Who Remind Us,” which discussed how the people we encounter are actually mirrors of ourselves. When they talk to us, the things they say are actually us talking to us. Good, bad, brilliant or bland, we’re always attracting to us reflections of ourselves. People reveal ourselves to us and help us to access things previously kept just out of reach by our conscious minds.

Taken another way, since each of us is a spark of the Divine, it could also be said that when we interact with others, we’re actually interacting with God. In that case, our conversations with other people are like having conversations with God.

That connection hit me powerfully a few days ago in response to the book I’ve been writing. I had been asking God (praying, if you will) to illuminate my way as I continue. I have big plans for the book, and yet I’m struggling with certain aspects of it. Within a day of saying that prayer, I heard from a literary expert who shared some positive and negative criticisms of my work to-date. She wasn’t sure that the approach I wanted to take was right, or would attract the kind of attention I sought. Her feedback was wonderful but also a little disheartening. It meant I’d have to reformulate my approach and potentially abandon some of what I’d written so far. I wasn’t sure exactly how to go about doing that, though.

The next day, I talked to my brother about the book and found myself struggling to articulate what it’s about in any sort of compelling manner. At the end of my rather lackluster description, I summed up my premise in an entirely different way. After I spat out my two quick sentences, he grew excited and said, “That’s it! That should be your opening. That’s the kind of stuff Oprah eats up!” I laughed and said, “Huh… I never thought about that before!”

Later on, I tossed the idea around in my head and grappled with the notion of having to retool a lot of the book and come up with a brand new outline. Something dawned on me, though: it wasn’t just my brother talking to me earlier that day. It was God answering my prayer. I told God I didn’t know how to accomplish my vision for the book, so in response, he orchestrated that conversation with my brother to help illuminate my path. The same goes with the literary expert. She was God answering my prayer, and talking directly to me.

It’s like that for all of us, and yet I think our human nature is to view ourselves and situations as completely separate. We see ourselves as separate not only from each other, but (definitely) from God. At most, we might be willing to admit to coincidences in our lives. But divinely intended events? Never! (I sarcastically and dramatically roll my eyes at the thought)

However, nothing in this world is separate or happens by chance. Everything – and every person – is connected to the Whole, which means that wherever you are and whatever you’re doing, the Divine is revealing itself in and through you.

With that in mind, look around you and see which of your prayers have been answered recently. Who’s been talking to you about the things you needed answers to? How, when and where has God been showing up? Let yourself be amazed. I know I frequently am…

Those Who Remind Us

“God needed to place some mirrors around so we could see ourselves. An actual mirror reflects our physical appearance, so what would reflect our being, our true self? What would reflect energy? Enter the laws of the universe: the law of cause and effect, the law of attraction, and Karma itself. God wanted it to be as simple as possible, and he wanted to make sure we didn't miss our reflection. So he made everything a mirror. We attract things into and create our lives through cause and effect. Every thought and action we put out comes back at us. Welcome to the looking glass of life. Take a look around and see your reflection.” From the site Finding Ourselves, by Gregory Campisi  (http://www.finding-ourselves.com/index.html)

A friend of mine is going through a difficult transformation right now, and as a result she occasionally asks me for advice or spiritual wisdom to get her through the day. A couple weeks ago we were talking, and after I shared what I thought she needed to hear, she said, “Thank you. When you say it, it just sounds so right. I really can’t thank you enough.”

Flattered, I had to immediately remind myself that God just works through me. It’s never me doing the talking, despite how much my ego would love to believe that.

So I replied, “You don’t need to thank me. In actuality, it was just you talking to you. You already had the answer within you, but needed someone to remind you, so you manifested me!”

She laughed and said, “Well, you just make it seem so easy and can I just say that I’m thrilled I managed to manifest you as my friend?!”

I laughed a little, too, expressed equal sentiments toward her, and said goodbye.

Afterwards I sort of mused to myself about this glorious life we’re all living, which is nothing more than a reflection of what we believe. As the opening paragraph says, God needed a way for us to see our beings, so he made everyone and everything we come across reflections of who we are.

This theory tends to thrill people when they think about all the good things happening in their life. On the other hand, it tends to horrify them when they realize that with the good comes the bad. Therefore all the unpleasant people and experiences they’ve chanced upon are simply reflections of them, too.

But therein lies the grace and perfection of the Universe. We are able to look around at any point during the day and see exactly where we are in our spiritual progression. The things people say to us, the way we’re treated, the situations we stumble upon or the experiences we have – they are nothing more than a reflection of us. When viewed from this perspective, our true power and interconnectedness with the whole (GOD) comes to life in a magnificent and magical way.

And if you’re reading these words and they’re resonating with you, please stop and take a moment to thank yourself. For truly, all of this has just been you talking to you.

Be well & joyful!

What “Lies” Beneath

So many of us are walking around attracting situations that don’t feel good to us – that cause us to stop and say, “Hey, wait a minute? Why do all these sucky moments keep showing up?”

I know in my own life, I’ve certainly experienced that. Being on a spiritual path you’d think I could sidestep some of that garbage, but no... Fortunately or unfortunately, I’m still human, so spirituality means less of an “up and over” and more of a “oh, so that’s why it’s happening to me…” It’s like having a brighter flashlight is all. 

That flashlight is helpful, though, because it lets me shine a spotlight on whatever mistruths I’ve been holding onto that continue to attract whatever I don’t want to my life.

One of the biggest challenges I’ve had to come to grips with in this life deals with romantic relationships. For a long time I couldn’t understand why they kept failing. What was I doing wrong? I had a knack for inviting only those people into my life who were most certain to be crapweasels. Why? I even had to ask a spiritually enlightened friend once what the heck was going on. You know what he said to me (as I sat there at the ripe old age of 30)? “I think it goes back to your dad.”

My response, “My dad? Come on. I’m 30! I’ve been actively studying spirituality for five years and have let all of that stuff go.”

Apparently not. Letting go from our conscious mind is one part of the equation. Letting go from our deep-seated unconscious mind is quite another. And believe me, if there are things showing up on the outside of your life that you don’t like but can’t consciously understand why they’re there, it’s time to turn to your subconscious. That’s where we store all that “lies” beneath.

The subconscious mind is like a machine. It doesn’t reason or filter – it accepts everything it’s told. True? False? It doesn’t care. It takes all of it. It’s also the part of us that controls our involuntary body functions (heart rate, metabolism, nerve response). So it’s a very necessary – if not indiscriminate – part of our minds.

The blessing and the curse of the subconscious mind is that, indeed, it takes in everything. If someone does something mean to us as a kid, and we never intercept and rewire our thinking to say “That was wrong; we deserve better,” then the subconscious mind will act on the belief that “mean” is okay and start to attract more stuff like it to us in the future. Likewise, if we’re only treated regally in our life, the subconscious stores that away and continues to attract similar treatment to us. (NOTE: There will also be the occasional outlying moments that don’t follow whatever pattern we’ve set up in our lives, and those serve either to steer us onto a better course, or to test our resolve. I like to call those Divinely Intended Moments.)

The good news is that the subconscious, being the machine that it is, can be reconditioned through things like affirmations, hypnosis, or new and repetitive experiences.

An example: When I was growing up I was a cute kid. Throughout my childhood and adolescence, I clung tightly to the idea of “cute.” My brothers, when asked, would say, “Yeah, you’re cute. I wouldn’t say that you’re classically beautiful, but you’re very cute.” So in my mind, I just came to accept that I wasn’t beautiful, but I was cute. OK good. Well, in high school I really didn’t date much, and most of the people I attracted to me were not people I was ga-ga over. On top of that, I was never told in high school that I was beautiful – by anyone other than my mother (thank you, mom). Now cut to college. Someone was thrown onto my path (Divinely Intended Moment) who said, “You’re beautiful,” and I trusted him. In that moment, I began the subconscious rewiring process. Every time he said those words to me, I tucked them away and added them to my newfound belief and since then, have only attracted people to me who have used the “b” word. 

So how does your life look to you? What’s in your life that you like, and what’s there that you don’t? What “lies” could be operating beneath the surface that need you to shine a brighter light on? If you can’t understand why the things you dislike keep showing up, it might be time to investigate how your subconscious mind is wired. Think back to your childhood. That’s when most of our minds were initially programmed. Good, bad, right or wrong – kids are at the mercy of their parents, teachers, relatives and friends. We carry the imprint of what we learned, both directly and indirectly, with us throughout life.

If you can debunk some of what your subconscious has held onto and reprogram it (through affirmations, hypnosis, or new & repetitive experiences that you purposely seek out), you can begin to recreate the landscape of your life and make it as joyful as you ultimately want it to be.

Flowers Fade, But Seeds Remain

Job Loss, Love Loss, Other Loss? You Can Grow Another Flower

In Buddhism, they talk about four sets of vicissitudes we can expect to experience consistently in our lives:

• Pleasure and pain
• Gain and loss
• Praise and blame
• Fame and disrepute

All of us will move between them, swinging from one to the other almost as easily as the wind blows. Sometimes we’ll have pleasure, but that will undoubtedly be followed by pain. We may be up one moment (gain), and down the next (loss). Sometimes we’ll be highly praised, but we can also expect times when we’re severely blamed. The same goes for fame and disrepute.

It simply isn’t possible to hold on to any one thing in life and expect it not to change. Unless the thing you’re holding onto is the idea that the only constant in life is change.

In my own life, I’ve seen this endlessly. The most recent example that comes to mind is the beautiful relationship I entered into last summer that has since ended. I was in such a state of bliss when it began and felt as though I’d been given the world (pleasure & gain). A month ago, though, things changed and I found myself without that same relationship (pain & loss).

Amidst the consistency of change, and in real life applications, how do we cope? Most of us prefer to be experiencing only things that feel good (praise, gain, fame, pleasure).

Although the flower may fade, the seed remains.

From a law of attraction standpoint (manifestation, co-creation, etc.), each of us has within us a seed that “grows” whatever flowers are showing up on the outside in our lives. If it’s job-related, then whatever job we now have (or used to have) is something we grew for ourselves. It wasn’t by accident that it showed up. The same goes for relationships. If we find ourselves without a relationship but wanting a new one, rest assured that the seed within you can and will grow another.

When we find ourselves in a state of having “lost” something or someone, that loss isn’t permanent. We may not be able to bring the same thing or person back to us, but be assured that we can and will attract their equivalent or better because the power is always within us to “grow another flower.”

So wherever you are in life and whatever it is you may be wanting, understand that you have within you a seed that will produce another beautiful and perfect-for-you flower. Just give it time.

Think Success And You’ll Be Success

We become what we think about all day long, whether we realize it or not.

With that in mind, how do you see yourself?

Years ago, I saw myself as a smart, but not necessarily talented girl when it came to business. I always felt I was in the right place at the right time, and that I was “lucky” whenever someone saw something in me that I couldn’t see in myself. A job was a necessary means to an end. Certainly not anything I thought could inspire me, or that I had any say in.

I worked because I had to, and while I was capable at what I did, I never saw myself as being the successful type. I used to say that my career chose me. I didn’t choose it. As long as I kept that thought floating around in my head, I was most assuredly at the mercy of someone or something else.

Then four or five years ago I met a smart, funny, quick-witted entrepreneur who loved to talk about what he believed in – what he felt was good business. I instantly became his captive audience. I soaked in everything he had to say, not only because I liked him, but because it made good sense to me. Soon I became a mouthpiece for his way of thinking and in my job, I turned his words into my actions. I became a doer instead of a “done to.” I began taking the bull by the horns, and as a result I started to see myself differently. The way I thought about myself in a business setting changed, and therein was born a revolution. I became successful.

Without that pivotal incident a few years ago, I never would have seen myself as capable of success regardless of the career I was in. Better still, I never would have thought I could be successful if I ever worked up the courage to quit that job and pursue something I really wanted to do (writing).

And that’s the key.

I became what I thought about most a few years ago. I changed my thoughts from simply being someone who was lucky to someone who was successful. When I did, everything else changed along with it. I began to receive bigger bonuses, better pay raises, and was relied on more by my coworkers and management. I became what I thought about all day long. I became success.

There’s something about lining our thoughts up in a particular direction – hopefully the direction in which we really want to travel (as opposed to a direction we’ve chosen by default). When we do that, we begin taking steps in said direction. Always, always, always we will act as we think. Our actions then produce results that are aligned with what we’ve thought about most.
When we think success, we become success.

So going back to the beginning of this post – what is it you think about all day long? How do you see yourself?

Start looking at areas of your life where you see room for improvement or where you’re not happy. I’m going to bet good money that in those areas, you have some thinking that could be turned around.

Change how it is you see yourself and the things around you will begin to change.

Be well & joyful!

Waving The Wand Of Intention

What Do You Want? State It, Believe It, And Then Watch It Come Your Way

I’ve been living in a very intentional way for the past couple months. What I mean by that is that each day, I wake up and set from one to a dozen intentions for how I want my day to go. I usually start with my new favorite phrase, which is “I want to feel good.” After listening to a Wayne Dyer podcast, I adopted that intentional phrase because he made such a powerful case for how the Universe responds to it. As he said it (and as I believe it), when we set our intentions – whatever they are – the Universe has to conspire to bring about the circumstances that make them a reality. So by me waking up each day and saying, “I want to feel good,” it has to be so! And I’ll be honest with you – it’s been working.

I shared it with a friend, as well, and he’s been using it as his daily intention with equally positive results.

“I want to feel good.”

I think a lot of people wake up in the morning and just cross their fingers that things will turn out okay. I used to be one of those people. Then a few years ago I began learning more about the law of attraction, manifestation and creating the things I wanted in life. The idea that I was in charge of my destiny, and not even as most people view it (hard work with little reward), fascinated me. Thoughts really do become things, but it took me awhile to reach the point of manipulating it with consistency. When I reached that point last year, it was like being handed a magic wand. At first, it felt like sheer luck that got me the results I was looking for many times. I kept practicing, though, and eventually learned new techniques that allowed the law of attraction to work in my life more reliably, and much more often.

How To Be A Successful Manifestor

• Oooooh, That Feels Good! One of the biggest things I learned last year was that feeling is more important than visualizing. When we can step into the space of feeling what it would be like to have whatever it is we want (true love, a fulfilling job, perfect health), we draw those things to us with lightning speed.

• The Broader, The Better. Another big lesson I learned last year was that it’s helpful to paint the life of our dreams in broad-brush strokes. That lets the Universe get creative in fulfilling what we desire most. Plus, we typically don't know what we don't know. What I mean by that is while we might think a relationship with so-and-so will bring us eternal bliss, there might actually be someone better suited for us who we haven't met yet. Rather than put all of our eggs in so-and-so's basket, we should focus on wanting "relationship bliss" and let the Universe do the rest. Some examples of how to word "broad-brush" intentions:

• I intend a wholly fulfilling, intimate relationship with my divinely intended romantic partner now. (Notice I didn’t name names, or say things like “Blonde hair, blue eyes…”)
• I want to feel prosperous and successful every day.
• I intend to have a healthy and balanced mind and body.
• I want to have fun and feel joyful every day.
• I want to starting living life beyond my fondest dreams.

• Think From The End. My most recent lesson regarding living life on purpose has to do with thinking from the end. When we jump ahead to the end result of whatever it is we’re looking for, we instantly activate the energy fields that make it a reality. Thinking from the end means seeing ourselves as surrounded by the conditions we wish to create. When we see them as already being in our life, they have to become reality. Don’t go anywhere near the “Yeah, but that’s not how my life looks right now, so how I can I picture what isn’t there as being there?” Have faith and be creative. Before the first airplane ever took flight, someone had to have the thought that yes, getting a plane in the air was possible. The only thing that ever separates us from living the life of our dreams and living a life by default is how we think about things. If we believe we can attract to us everything we have ever wished for, then we can. If we believe it’s impossible, then it is. Either way, we’re right.

These days, I literally have a thought about something, and it happens. There’s nothing special about me, either, that makes this possible. I just started following the advice I wrote about above. I’ve been so successful lately that I even joked with a friend that one of these times I’m going to think about the State Puff Marshmallow Man and there’ll be a knock on my door! Truly, though, I’ve been intending the life of my dreams into existence. It’s been as simple as starting each day with “I want to feel good,” (or sometimes, “I want to feel God”) and then I move on from there.

Here are some of the things I’ve manifested since March 1 and how long it took them to show up:

• Reconnecting with a college friend who I hadn’t heard from in more than five years. (1 day to manifest; she contacted me.)
• Reconnecting with a high school friend who I hadn’t heard from in more than ten years. (3 days to manifest; she contacted me.)
• New blog readers and reciprocal links on their blog sites. (2 hours.)
• Having enough money to stay on sabbatical until September. (2 weeks.)

Try it. Live your life on purpose by saying “I intend” or “I want” and then watch as the things you want appear before your very eyes.