FREAKS! Sometimes they make all the difference...

If you've ever heard of Seth Godin, then you know that he tends to lean so far towards "out of the box" thinking that he is actually not even IN the box anymore, and I can't think of high enough praise for that type of behavior!

In fact, I think so highly of it that I've come up with some ideas on this that will help you in your self improvement and self development efforts, and big props go to Mr. Godin for his continual efforts at educating all of us on these much needed concepts.

I was inspired to write this post after reading one of his latest entries which I highly recommend you check out. It's called 50:1, and it's well worth the very few minutes it will take you to read it.

The basic concept is that people in general tend to live "in the norm". We play it safe, we do what is "expected", and we don't rock the boat.

Oh, there are people who claim to be boat rockers, but when push comes to shove, those same people will bow to the will of "them", and society will continue to roll nicely along with "them" in charge of what happens.

Well, not to throw a big ol' piece of negative thinking out there, but the question does come to mind: "Where has listening to "them" gotten us?"

This concept applies equally to business as it does to our personal lives. We all cruise through life doing what "they" think is best for us, but we fail to realize that each of us has the opportunity every single day to do things differently in order to make our lives a better place to be, which will in turn make the world a better place to be.

Now, does that mean that you need to stop what you are doing and suddenly go on some crusade to save the world? Absolutely not. However, if everyone just took a moment to think about what "they" say is right and wrong - and to challenge it when necessary - then "they" would suddenly lose their control.

"We" would suddenly be in control, and "we" would find ourselves in a position of creating the life that we want, rather than just living the one that was given to us.

In many ways, we are living in a world of duality. On one hand, people claim to be more enlightened and "in charge" than ever before, yet at the same time, we continue to follow the doctrines that have been laid down by the people that came before us.

That's not evolution. That's stagnation.

I don't know about y'all, but I would rather be a freak and evolve!

So, as you go through the next few days of your life after reading this post, just take a few minutes to consider the following:

• When I go to work, am I making a difference by thinking outside of the box, or am I just doing what I am told?
• At home, do I come up with new ways in order to achieve peace, harmony and happiness, or does my life look just like the one that my neighbors have?
• When I spend time with my friends, am I leading the pack, or am I just going with the "greater good"?
• When I interact with the family members and in-laws that don't live in my house, am I speaking my mind, or am I just "keeping the peace"?

Give those questions some serious thought, and refer back to this post frequently if you need a reminder about being YOU, instead of being one of "them"!

Makin' a few copies...

Have you ever noticed how most people in any given culture tend to have pretty much the same daily habits or rituals? In fact, it is that "sameness" that the culture is based on - at least in part.

However, have you also noticed that in any given culture, it is only the people who do things differently than everyone else who rise above and reach a level of success, enlightenment, or clarity that the others either don't understand or don't think that they can reach?

In fact, you can reasonably extrapolate the fact that in order for any culture to grow, there have to be people who try to do things in a different way than everyone else. Otherwise, nothing would ever change!

That society would continue to make copies of copies of copies, etc. The same information would continually be passed down, the same systems would continually be used, and the same results would continue to happen.

Over and over and over again.

Sounds pretty boring right? I mean, who wants to live in a society where nothing ever gets better, or at least more entertaining?

As human beings, it is our drive for growth that actually compels us to move forward in our lives. The Universal energy that each of us is made out of and that binds all of us together (like The Force, for you Star Wars fans) WANTS us to experience new and exciting things.

We were not put on this planet to get to some preordained point, and then just sit there wondering what to do next.

Let's go back to what I said in the beginning. In each culture, it is only the people who do things differently that affect any real change.

As I write this post, sitting happily in the United States of America, I am proud to say that our country is full of these people who know how to think outside of the box.

However, I also have to report the very real fact that there are many more people in America who do NOT think outside of the box, but rather they just go along with whatever is going on in society, doing their best to "fit in and make their way in the world".

Are you one of those people? Are you a copy of someone else's copy? How many times has the blueprint for your life been duplicated by someone else?

It goes something like this:

Grow up. Do good in school. Go to a good college. Get a good job. Get married. Have some kids. Buy an economy car, an SUV, or a mini-van. Start getting old. Buy a sports car. Have some grand kids. Grow old and die.

Repeat.

Congratulations. You've just successfully duplicated the pattern of millions of people before you, and now someone is making a copy of YOU and they are going to do exactly the same things that you did.

Sure the details may change, especially with regard to technical and medical advances, but as a whole, that entire pattern has been done before, hasn't it?

If you are okay with that, then go ahead and step up to the copy machine and stand in line with the rest. There are a lot of people out there just like you who don't want to "rock the boat".

However, for everyone else, here is bit of free advice from me to you:

Don't just rock the boat - jump out!

Swim for the nearest shore as if your life depended on it.

Ignore the people who are screaming for you to get back into the boat.

Disregard the people who tell you that you'll never make it.

Turn a deaf ear to the people who try to convince you to play it safe.

Swim, swim, swim!

Swim towards that shore where you can make a difference in the world!

Swim towards that shore where you can lead a life full of confidence, success, and happiness!

Swim towards that shore where anything goes, and you are free to live life on your own terms, advancing both yourself as well as the human race on the evolutionary scale!

And do you know what will happen then?

You will have risen above and reached that level of success, enlightenment, and clarity that the others either didn't understand or thought you would never reach.

YOU will be running your show. YOU will be calling the shots. YOU will be the "master of your domain". In short, you will be free, and all because you jumped out of the boat.

You refused to be a copy of someone else's copy, and you refused to let anyone else copy you. You scream for all the world to hear that you are ONE, and that you are UNIQUE!

You will be able to live out the rest of your physical existence with all of the trappings of the truly successful - money, freedom, power, material posessions and experiences.

You will be able to truly experience all that this physical realm has to offer, and you will sample it all at your discretion, or you will ignore it completely if it displeases you.

You will "go there and do that", no matter where "there" is, and no matter what "that" is.

In short, you will enjoy the ride.

Then, when you do finally fade from this physical existence, you will realize one very important fact:

We ARE all one. The same energy. The same consciousness. The same memory. The same purpose.

Our time here on this earth is specifically so that we can experience what it is like to be here, and what it is like to be an individual. When you go to the next level - whatever that level is for you - you can then choose to commune with "everyone else".

But for now - in this time and this place - get the hell out of the boat. :)

The Sands of Time

Linear Time. For anyone who isn't as much of a die-hard Star Trek fan as I am, I will explain the basic concept of linear time.

It simply means that things happen in order, and once they have happened, they are done. You can't go back, and you can't go forward. You live in the now (as it should be), and the things that happened in the past or that might happen in the future are - very much so - completely irrelevant.

That's linear time. Barring some future understanding of trans-dimensional travel and/or a working time machine, we are all experiencing linear time at this moment, we've experienced it our entire lives, and we will continue to experience it in the future.

Therein lies the problem if something happens in your life that you didn't particularly care for. Once it is done, then it is done, and there isn't a thing that you can do to change it.

On the other hand, that same concept is a large part of what defines our human existence, so it isn't necessarily a bad thing.

However, if you do happen to end up with something in your past that you wish wasn't there, the fact that we are all on this linear timeline does indeed become problematic.

So, your options are:

1) Just deal with it. What's done is done, and you can't change it. Move on.

2) Keep thinking about what happened, and keep reliving the negativity over and over again.

3) Apply what you learned about what led up to the incident to begin with, and go forth (on the timeline) with a positive attitude, knowing that you will never let that sort of thing happen again.

Option #1 isn't bad, because you aren't causing further injury if you just forget about it. On the other hand, if you don't apply what you have learned, then what is to keep it from happening again?

Option #2 is definitely not the way to go because by the nature of Karma - if you believe in that - or by the letter of the Law of Attraction, by continually reliving any sort of negativity, you will continually attract more negativity into your life. That's the Law. I don't make these rules, I just follow them - just like you.

Option #3 is obviously the best way to go. No matter how bad the experience was, it was a valuable experience for you because you now know how to keep that same thing from happening again. You aren't ignoring the fact that it happened, which would just invite a recurrence into your life, and you certainly aren't attracting more negativity since you are not dwelling on the incident.

So, having properly chosen option #3, you now have a blank slate in front of you. An unpopulated stretch of road that can literally lead anywhere that you want it to lead.

In fact, it is a rather long stretch of road in my very own past that has inspired me to write this post to begin with.

I am sitting in lovely Daytona Beach, FL, and the date is October 28th, 2006. My wife and I are at a friend's house, and we will all be leaving soon to go spend the evening with some of our other friends at a favorite local bar/restaurant called The Ocean Deck - so named because you can literally walk in off of the beach and get a drink or some great food.

I am very happy at this moment because I am experiencing many of the things in my life that I enjoy greatly. Friends, family, great location, and a night on the town with no early morning responsibilities waiting for me tomorrow.

However, a similar set of circumstances existed at a point in the not-too-distant past at this very location, and it was a dark experience for me that I hope you - the reader - can learn from.

I won't get into the specifics of what happened, but let's just say that I had a bit too much to drink and decided that I wanted to walk home.

To Jacksonville.

From Daytona Beach.

For you non-Floridians, that's about an hour and a half in a car, so you can imagine how long it would have taken me on foot!

Now, obviously that was a stupid, drunken decision to make, and now that we have traversed some distance on the linear scale since that incident, myself and the others who know about it get a good giggle when we consider just how ridiculous alcohol can make people - even people as fearlessly logical and "in control" as I am most of the time! :)

The moral to this story is that although I chose option #3 (apply what I have learned), my choosing of that option was not something that I only applied to that particular incident. Rather, it is an entire lifestyle that I have taken on, and I encourage you to do the same.

You see, every SINGLE moment in our lives is a chance to start all over again. People tend to say "after tonight I will...", or "starting Monday I am going to...", or, my personal favorite "in the New Year I plan to..."

Those concepts are utterly and completely ridiculous.

Why the hell would you wait until some other point in the linear timeline to start making sure that your life is everything that you want it to be??? Every MOMENT is a chance to start over!

Every single moment you can bite your tongue and not say something nasty or negative to someone else.

Every single moment you can lower your voice when you are arguing with someone.

Every single moment you can realize that you might have made a mistake, and then apologize.

Every single moment you can stop and think about how wonderful your life is and how whatever negative thing that you are doing is not in your best interest.

Every single moment you can stop, turn around, and head south down State Route A1A to go back to your friends and your family. Or, you can keep heading north, walking further and further away from the people that you truly care about, and who truly care about you.

Why have I spent so much time illustrating why you should put so much value on what could happen in any given moment?

Because, my friends, we are all on a linear timeline, and each of those moments will never come again.

Your life is RIGHT NOW, in this very moment.

Live it, and be happy.

Cheers.

Building a Jewelled Shell

Full credit for the concept of this post goes to one of my favorite mentors - James Arthur Ray. Since my introduction to him during the movie The Secret, I have found his teachings to be as powerful as they are timeless, and I am going to extrapolate on some of his wisdom here.

The problem begins with the very basic fact that as human beings, we want "stuff". That stuff may take the form of material goods and riches, it may take the form of satisfying relationships, or it may simply be a desire for a perfect level of health or spirituality.

Whatever your personal desires are, there is some "stuff" that you want. In fact, you are probably focusing on and working towards getting some of your stuff right now. Since you are reading a blog about self empowerment and self improvement, my sincere desire is that your search for stuff is going very well and that you are manifesting lots of great loot!

However, if you aren't meeting with the success that you desire, or, if you just want to continue on the successful path that you are on, I ask you to consider the following:

Which of the following things is more important? 1) The stuff that you are working so diligently towards gathering up. 2) Who you are on the inside.

Sorry to pop this quiz on you unexpectedly, but the right answer is, of course, who you are on the inside.

Why is that so important? Quite simply because who you are on the inside is not determined by the jeweled shell that you are trying to build on the outside!

Take a minute to think about this with 3 quick examples: Relationships, Money, Spirituality.

Relationships

Whenever you get involved in a relationship, what are YOU bringing to the relationship? You are bringing yourself, and all that comes with all that you are. However, do you NEED your partner in order to be complete?

Of course not! You are who you are regardless of what relationship you are involved in. If you need your partner to "complete" you, then your inner self needs some work, and that has nothing to do with your partner.

Someone once said that if people who are really close - so-called "soul mates" - are so close that they consider themselves to be 2 people sharing one existence, then what you end up with is 2 half people...

I don't know about you, but I'll keep my "me" just as it is, please and thank you, although I am more than willing to share what I have to offer with others.

Money

Money merely amplifies who you already are. If you are a saint who wins the lottery, then you'll just be a rich saint. If you're a jerk who wins the lottery, then you'll be a rich jerk.

Money does not make you who you are! However, by having enough money you have more opportunities to be who you already are. You can't spend your life sitting around and saying "Once I am rich I will...."

This may sound like esoteric B.S., but the truth of the matter is that as you become a rich person on the INSIDE, then you will attract the material riches that you have been chasing for so long to adorn your outside.

Spirituality

This one is a little tricky because the term "spirituality" means different things to different people. However, for the purpose of this discussion, we'll define spirituality as that which gives you strength.

For some people that will be their religious beliefs. For others it will be their intellect or their wisdom and experience. For some people, spirituality is determined by following what they believe their "path" in life is.

No matter how you personally define spirituality, you are now - and you always will be - the only person who ever knows if you are truly following your spiritual path.

Going to church does not constitute spirituality if you don't believe, and if you are just going through the motions. Getting an education to raise your IQ doesn't mean a thing if you don't plan to actually use your knowledge in a pursuit that you will enjoy. Following your chosen path in life can be a waste of time if you don't truly believe - in your heart of hearts - that it really is the path that you WANT to be on.

So, using the above illustrations as an outline, I would now ask you to think again about whether or not who you are on the outside - your jeweled shell - is more important than who you are on the inside.

Finding a perfect partner doesn't mean squat if you "need" that person, or if you aren't bringing yourself into that relationship as a quality person who has a lot to offer.

Getting rich is an irrelevant concept if you don't know how to BE rich, and all you are going to do is continue to perpetuate the same bad habits that have led your life to negative destinations in the past.

Being a highly spiritual person defined as how many times other people see you practice your religion, or how many times you show up for your classes doesn't mean anything unless your inner spirituality is singing with joy, hope, and faith.

So, what is the bottom line?

Focus on being the best YOU that you can be. You will then attract everything else that you need in order to build a beautifully jewelled shell on the outside!

Growing or Shrinking, Living or Dying

One of the many constants in our Universe is that there is really no such thing as "standing still". Oh, it may seem like you're standing still - figuratively or literally - but since the entire Universe is made up of constantly vibrating energy, I promise you, nothing is ever completely "still".

We live in an expanding Universe where the mass of energy that makes up all things is constantly seeking expression through every means possible - including the human existence. That energy wants to grow, and "standing still" is simply not an option.

However, that being said, in the figurative version of the term standing still, many people are doing their best to stay exactly where they are in life, despite the fact that they don't really want to be there to begin with.

Some people call this "settling", others use the term "complacency", while some may be harsh enough to simply call those people "lazy".

In his awesome blog, Ben Casnocha said it wonderfully:

'If you settle for 100% or A+ then you are settling. The crave to improve evaporates. If you feel like you've peaked then you've lost your "intrapersonal culture of improvement".'

What a great way to put it! Congratulations, Ben, you have probably just created one of the new buzzword terms for this generation!

Ben is 100% correct. If you stop kicking, biting, scratching, and clawing your way forward in life, then one thing is going to happen beyond a shadow of a doubt -

- you'll start sliding backwards.

Now, that isn't to say that life is supposed to be a struggle, and I don't mean to insinuate that at all. However, as most people are aware, there are often times in life when we are challenged and we have to fight to get what we want out of any given situation.

Sometimes that fight comes in the form of simply knowing when to turn the other cheek. It may come in the form of keeping your mouth shut when you really want to say something negative to someone else. You may have to fight in the form "sticking to your guns" in order to make your dreams manifest into reality.

Whether your version of "fighting" makes your life seem difficult is just your perception of the circumstances. Everything that we deal with in life is dependent 100% on our point of view. (Paraphrased from the immortal words of Obi-Wan Kenobi for you Star Wars fans)

In fact, if you subscribe to the increasingly well-received concept of Quantum Reality, not only is your life dependent on your point of view, it is CREATED by your point of view!

So, if think that your life is a struggle, and that it is easier to just stay where you are rather than taking the steps to move forward, I will refer you back to the top of this post:

If you are not growing, you are _____________________.

If you are not living, you ____________________.

The question that you have to ask yourself is whether or not you are quite ready to throw in the towel?

If you are, then go ahead and just lay down where you are right now. Life will invariably come by and run you over.

Otherwise, if you are ready to keep "fighting the good fight", then I invite you to use the power of Quantum Reality (as if you had a choice), and read my article 'Become What you Want to Attract'.

Miraculously enough, it seems that in order to be deliriously happy, all you have to do is decide that you want to be.

It will only be a struggle if you are one of those people who was filling in the blanks above...

Shortcut to Success using the "Easy Button"

If someone were to say to you, "You are going to get the same reward whether it is easy for you to get it, or if it is hard for you to get it. You choose which method you want to use.", what do you think your response would be?

Well, unless you are feeling some irrational need to work harder than you actually have to in life, you are probably going to take the easy route, right?

In fact, at least here in America, a very large part of our culture is based on that very concept: finding the easy way. Do you know that right here in the United States of America people used to actually have to GET UP to change the channel on their TV???

Appalling, I know. The reason I know is because my remote is broken right now, so I actually have to do this. I could go buy a new remote, but that wouldn't be, well.... easy!

So, our society continues to search for the "Easy Button" and in fact there is a television commercial that Bryant Sandburg references in his Home Business Blog that shows one of these Easy Buttons.

Bryant provides a great take on the concept of how this mythical "easy button" applies to business in today's world, and I am going to extrapolate his wisdom and put forth the fact that the same thing happens in pretty much every aspect of our lives.

There is nothing wrong with taking the easy way out if the end result of the situation is going to be the same either way. However, if by taking the easy way out you are not getting what you really want out of life, then it suddenly becomes a problem, doesn't it?

And you've done this many times in your life, haven't you?

Of course you have! Don't sit there shaking your head like you have always jumped head first into every situation in life, tearing down walls and mowing down enemies until you got EXACTLY what you wanted by taking the hard road.

However, I'm open-minded. If that does describe you, please post a comment to this blog and tell me all about it. I probably want to get to know you! For everyone else, let's continue on....

Why do we always look for the Easy Way Out?

For most of us, it is simply that we are used to doing things the way that we do them - regardless of whether or not the way that we do them will get us what we want out of life. Our "status quo" is simply easier to maintain than making the effort to effect some quality changes.

All of us have spent money that we shouldn't have spent because we wanted some material goods, or some experience. Then we complain because we don't have enough money.

Everyone has stuffed down a 2,000 or 3,000 calorie feast of artery-clogging burgers, fries, and milkshakes, and then not liked the reflection that we saw in the mirror.

Each of us has taken a job we didn't want or passed up an opportunity at our present job because taking the hard road would have meant putting forth an effort that was outside of our normal realm of comfort. We follow that up by telling anyone who will listen about how much we dislike our job!

I could go on and on with example just like this, and you could easily think of dozens of other examples from your own life about how you refused to go "off the beaten path" because it was easier to stay on the well-trodden road that you were used to.

How has that been working out for you?

By now you may be thinking that this post hasn't given you any real information about that Shortcut to Success that was mentioned in the title.

Not to worry, this IS a Self-Empowerment Blog, after all, so here is the Easy Button that you have been waiting for:

Your shortcut to success is your Feelings.

When you spend money that you know you aren't supposed to be spending, how does that make you feel? Do you feel prosperous, generous, and full of Gratitude that life has given you so much money that you can spend it as if it existed in an unlimited supply?

Or, do you feel guilty? Do you worry about how you are going to pay your Visa bill after springing for the extra $300 worth of souvenirs while you were on vacation, and that one night when you ordered room service for the whole family and it cost you roughly the equivalent of your car payment?

What about when you eat food that you KNOW is going to expand your waistline or your hip size? How does that make you feel? Do you feel thin, sexy, and confident?

Or, do you feel fat, unattractive, and lacking in the self-restraint that it would have taken to turn down that 2nd helping, or that fatty dessert?

How about when you got passed over for a big promotion at work, or didn't get a job that you really wanted? Does that make you feel like someone who can literally have any job that they want, and who is blazing their own trail through their professional career?

Or, do you wonder if you will ever get out of your career rut? Do you try to figure out why others who are clearly not as qualified as you keep getting all of the good opportunities?

By now you should be starting to see the point that I am driving at here:

The way you FEEL about your life is what dictates what life will give you.

We live in a vibrational Universe where all things at all times are vibrating with a certain frequency. Based on the Law of Attraction which states that 'like attracts like', whatever vibration you are sending out will attract similar vibrations back into your life.

So, using the above examples:

If spending money makes you feel good, more financial opportunities will present themselves that cause you to continue to feel good. If spending money makes you feel guilty, you will continue to stay in a financial state that allows you to only spend money in guilty ways.

If eating food makes you feel healthy, lean, and confident, then even when you over-indulge you won't see the effects as badly as someone who has a gluttony-like reaction to eating. Your reaction to your nutrition and exercise program - or lack thereof - is just as important in terms of attracting success as the program itself.

If your feelings about your career options are in line with success, prosperity, and long-term stability, then you will attract whatever it is in your life that brings you more of those same feelings. However, if you feel like you are being "kept down" by the system, or like you really don't have any career options because of your life's circumstances, then the Law of Attraction will ensure that you are correct at every turn.

The moral of this story is that there is no actual "Easy Button".

YOU are the Easy Button!

Now get out there and push it!!

Do You Ho'oponopono?

At this point in the game, the word "Ho 'oponopono" is not nearly as well known as it will be within the next 6 to 12 months, so I am putting forth this basic description of Ho 'oponopono so that you can decide for yourself if you would like to engage in some further study.

Based on what I know, I would recommend that you DO spend more time learning about and practicing Ho 'oponopono, and if you take that advice, Dr. Joe Vitale is the man who you want to learn about it from. Dr. Vitale's passion on this subject is amazing, and as of this date (November 7, 2006) he already has a book in the works on this very subject.

The basic idea behind Ho 'oponopono stems from the meaning of the word, given to us by the Hawaiian culture. Loosely translated, Ho 'oponopono means "to set things right", or, in simpler terms, to fix stuff!

Everyone has things that they want to have fixed, and Ho 'oponopono is not only a powerful way to fix literally everything that you can imagine, but it is so ridiculously simple to use that there is really no reason to not take advantage of this powerful technique.

The basic concept behind Ho 'oponopono is going to first require you to realize the immutable fact that your entire existence comes from within, not from outside of yourself.

John Assaraf does a great job of vocalizing this concept during part of his teachings in the movie 'The Secret'. John says "There is no 'out there' and 'in here'", and that is the very truth of our Universal existence.

We are all one with all things at all times. That may be tough to grasp for some, but it's true. We are all simply extensions of "source energy", which is the very "stuff" that the entire Universe is made out of.

So, if we are made out of this source energy - which we are, and based on Quantum Mechanics, we are all creators of our own existence (which we are), then one very simple truth rears it's head for all to see, and it is quite undeniable:

Everything is your Creation!

Everything that you see, hear, feel, smell, touch, think, remember, or emotionally react to - these are all things that YOU have created. And yes, that includes the good, as well as the bad. Each of these things exists because on some level you want them to exist, which takes us back to Ho 'oponopono.

If everything that you perceive in the world exists BECAUSE you perceive it, can you guess what amazing and God-like power you have at your very fingertips?

That's right. You can either make more of it, or you can make it go away!

No, I'm not talking about creating thousand dollar bills out of thin air, or wishing away annoying in-laws. However, it is indeed possible for you to create your life so that you HAVE thousand dollars bills, or that your in-laws are no longer an annoyance to you.

That tip alone is probably worth the price of admission, right? :)

How is all of this done via Ho 'oponopono? By simply accepting responsibility.

When you truly grasp and get your head around the fact that you are literally creating every single piece of your existence - from the smallest molecule up through the tallest skyscraper, from the most heart-felt Love to the most gut-wrenching hatred - then you realize that you can effect change over each and every one of those things because you are responsible for them being there to begin with.

You do this simply by showing Gratitude for the things in your life that you are thankful for and that you want to grow and flourish, and by showing Forgiveness for the things that you want to go away or diminish.

Now, let's see if you have been paying attention:

If you are responsible for all things in your existence - the good as well as the bad - and you have the power to diminish or to allow those things to grow simply by showing Gratitude or Forgiveness, who are you showing Gratitude and Forgiveness TO?

......

......

......

Okay, time's up. It's YOU! If you created something that is wonderful, you are thanking yourself for doing so, thus ensuring future occurrences of that same positive behavior. If you created something terrible, then you are forgiving yourself for doing it, thus making sure that it doesn't happen again in the future.

Here is where it gets tough to swallow, but these concepts are just as true on a "microcosm" level as they are on a "macrocosm" level:

You are responsible for everything that is part of your existence. I always like the bad news first, so I'll share that courtesy with you (thus creating more courtesy for myself, if you've been paying attention):

Terrorism is your fault. Murder is your fault. Famine and disease are your fault. School shootings are your fault. Taxes are your fault.

OUCH! That hurts, doesn't it? You bet it does. But here's the good news:

Love is your fault. Childbirth is your fault. Families are your fault. Friends are your fault. Medical miracles are your fault. Firemen are your fault. Pets are your fault. A child's curiosity is your fault. Unadulterated JOY is all YOUR fault!

Are you starting to see your power now? You can do it all. In fact, you ARE doing it all. Right now, at this very moment as you read this. You are both creating and destroying your world, because it is all YOU.

When you go to bed tonight and you can't sleep, you created that. When you pass out face down on your pillow and get the best night's sleep of your life, you created that, too.

When you get out of bed in the morning and it's raining so hard that you can't even see your car in your own driveway, that is your creation. When you get up in the morning and you are greeted by a dawn that could literally be the dawning of Time itself (and it is), that is also your creation.

It's all you. All the Good, all the Bad, and everything in between. And you can control these things by learning to control your Gratitude and your Forgiveness reactions to them with Ho 'oponopono.

Different practioners have different methods of invoking the power of Ho 'oponopono, but since I believe in Dr. Joe Vitale (after all, he is MY creation), I am utilizing his methods of invoking Ho 'oponopono, which can be summed up in the 4 phrases that he uses whenever he wants to invoke Ho 'oponopono, which is also called "cleaning":

"I Love You"

"I'm Sorry"

"Please Forgive Me"

"Thank You"

That's it! By creating a mantra of saying those 4 things pretty much as often as you can day after day and week after week, you will quickly come to the realization that by Loving yourself, by Apologizing to yourself when you have done something wrong, by Forgiving yourself for that wrong-doing, and by Thanking yourself for the opportunity to create Good, as well as to stop creating Bad, that you can create your life to be "right".

Remember that the loose definition of Ho 'oponopono is "to set things right". Since you are the sole creator of your entire existence, you have the power to create whatever "right" world that you want to live in, and you can do it by simply saying and believing those 4 simple phrases.

I know that for some of you, all of this may seem incredibly hard to believe. You refuse to grasp the fact that you are literally the very creator of the entire existence that you live, and that you can easily manipulate that existence with 4 sets of words.

So here is one more test for you:

If you don't believe any of this, who created that disbelief?

Think about it.

And yes, I Forgive You.

Doing it in STYLE!

If there is one absolutely immutable fact that can't be denied about successfully interacting with other people, it is that the more interesting or entertaining you make that interaction, the more that person will remember you, and seek future interactions with you.

James Arthur Ray uses a phrase in many of his presentations: "It's not what you do, it's HOW you do it", and he has several very entertaining examples of how he has witnessed that concept in his dealings with others.

In fact, he proves the concept beyond a shadow of a doubt by telling these stories in such a fun and interesting way that you want to watch him do it over and over again. It's not so much the story that is entertaining as it is the WAY that he tells it.

Joe Hauckes over at the Working at Home on the Internet blog brings up a similar concept in his post about how and where your personality or your ego fit into your business dealings. My answer to that is that your personality IS your business, while your ego needs to check itself at the door.

There have been repeated examples of how people have either done business with or done repeated business with someone because of the way that the business owner treated them.

There are probably even more examples of how people have STOPPED doing business with people because of something that the business did wrong. An excellent and horrific example of this is the Bank of America fiasco that was posted over at Boing Boing and many other locations on the 'net. To date, Bank of America has lost over $50 MILLION DOLLARS because they made a stupid mistake with one of their customers!

All of that being said, these concepts do not just apply to businesses. We have all known people that made us smile, laugh, or maybe just feel comfortable or at peace, and what happened? We wanted to see those people again!

On the flip side, we've all known people who "rubbed us the wrong way", and not only do we not want to see them, but we will sometimes go out of our way NOT to see them!

The concept of handling your life with STYLE is one that I bring up because the majority of us are simply not doing it, and in many cases it is a large part of why we are meeting with limited success in life, both in business as well as in our personal lives.

Life throws so many different things at us that we spend most of our time just dodging bullets when what we really need to be doing is shooting off our own happy pills.

There is no doubt whatsoever that the Law of Attraction is working on our lives at all times - whether we want it to be or not. So, if we are running around just dodging bullets all the time and not taking any time to be happy and become deliberate creators of our lives, then we will simply attract more of doing exactly that.

However, if we proactively go out of our way to treat people well (customers as well as friends and family), if we do our very best to provide a great experience for the people that we interact with, and if we keep up a positive and upbeat demeanor, then guess what the Law of Attraction will bring us?

More of that positive energy!

We get out of life exactly what we put into it. If that is simply reacting to the negativity that surrounds us, then all we will have is a life full of reacting to negativity. I'm here to tell you that at least at this point in the game, there is plenty of that to go around already.

I'm not saying that in order to perpetuate the negativity, but to illustrate the fact that if you want to start deliberately creating a life that is abundant in every way, there is more than enough room for you to stretch your "positive wings" and make it happen!

I am very grateful to be witnessing the fact that our society as a whole is on the edge of a major breakthrough in enlightenment that will be akin to us crawling out of the Dark Ages. The thanks for that fact goes to countless individuals, not the least of which being the army of bloggers, forum posters, and article writers on the Internet who are out there every day spreading the good word.

For you Americans, this whole process works in a similar fashion to voting. It may seem like one vote won't make a difference, but in the grand scheme of things, one vote can make ALL the difference!

That same thing applies to you interacting with the people in your life using some high-octane personality that will keep them coming back to interact with you again and again. If you impress even ONE person today with your attitude, and that person captures your magic and passes it on to one person, and then that person catches it and passes it on, and so on and so on it goes...

Someone once said that you could network with the entire world if you only knew the right 20 people.

I don't know about you, but I sure know 20 people, and each one of them would say that I've usually got a smile on my face. Can you say the same?

13 Miles to Graceland

Several years ago a friend of mine challenged me to run a marathon with him. Before then I had never run more than about 4 or 5 miles, but the Capricorn in me was up for the challenge! With no real idea of what it took to train for a marathon, I set out to get into at least good enough shape to cross the finish line skating safely this side of a heart attack...

After running a few long distance routes, I employed the same technique that I encourage in others, and that is to set and accomplish short term goals as a way of stepping slowly but surely towards the long term achievements.

I decided that if I could run HALF a marathon, then anything after that would all be downhill. Having bolstered my confidence by pulling off a few 8 mile jaunts, I mapped out a 13.2 mile route and set off down the road one morning on a circular route that would bring me back to my starting point at the end of the 13.2 miles.

I don't know if you have ever done any long distance running before, but I can tell you that when you are out there and you've got 8-10 miles successfully under your shoes, you start to realize that a 13.2 mile route is... well... long!

As I crossed over the 10 mile mark, I was definitely in the home stretch, but I found myself at the bottom of a long, gradual hill that went up for about a mile before it leveled out. Why I didn't foresee that when I originally mapped out the route is beyond me...

Anyway, my confidence started to faulter, but after running 10 miles (my longest run to date at that point), I was NOT willing to just give up and walk the last 3 miles home. As I'm sure happens with a lot of long distance runners, a particular phrase just popped into my head. It became my mantra for the rest of the journey:

"13 Miles to Graceland"

Why that particular phrase came to me, I'll never know. I've never been to Graceland, and I have also never spent any consistent amount of time as an Elvis Presley fan. My father swears that I had a brief fling with "fandom for the King" when I was young, but I'll never admit to it.

Anyway, I used this unusual phrase as my focus point, I put my head down, kept running, and I made it to the end of the route in just under 2 hours and 46 minutes. Not too shabby for someone who used to think that physical fitness was watching the Olivia Newton-John video "Let's Get Physical"...

The point to all of this rambling is that I accomplished that lengthy goal by employing 2 very basic and very well-known techniques:

1) Setting short-term goals

2) Applying a consistent effort over the long-term

Over at the "A Better You Blog", Patricia has a wonderful list of short-term tasks that can be accomplished or decided upon in only 30 seconds, and it is amazing what an impact such a small amount of time can have on you, or someone that care about.

When you start to add up those 30 second deeds, take it up to a few minutes of doing the right thing, then begin to put forth 30 minutes of effort, take it up to an hour or more of your time towards yours goals, etc., something amazing starts to happen.

After awhile - a very short while, in fact - you will have been accomplishing short-term goals so often that you will have accomplished something HUGE!

Remember, the achievements that we make in life are not done all at once. They are made up of a tiny step here, a small step there, another step in the right direction, yet another, and on down the line.

Too often in today's society we tend to judge both success and failure in a very short-sighted manner. No one ever got rich, lost a large amount of weight, or accomplished something truly remarkable by making one gigantic effort, but rather by applying the principles associated with those positive achievements over and over again on a consistent basis.

It doesn't matter how good you think you are, or how bad you think you are, the truth of the matter is that your journey to your chosen destination begins with one foot in front of the other.

After all, it's only 13 miles to Graceland. :)

Visualization toys at Tabblo

One of the most powerful ways to bring the things that you want into your life is to use the amazing power of our imagination in order to visualize the success that we desire.

Some people call this "positive thinking", but truly effective visualization goes way beyond simply holding an image in your head. However, that being said, the easier that it is for you to hold an image in your head, the easier it will be for you to practice the other visualization techniques as well.

The gratitude filled folks over at Tabblo have come up with a very cool (and free) new way to bring together the images of your life into a format that works best for you, and that is very simple to share with other people.

A "tabblo" is basically a blank canvas that you can easily add images and/or text to using several different design templates that they offer, or you can manually create your own.

Think of a collage of pictures, only online, and completely customizable, and you'll start to grasp the idea. Also, all of the tabblo's can be printed in any number of different formats, even in a book!

To see what I'm talking about, click below to go to the tabblo that I created which I have entitled 'Shopping with the Law of Attraction':

Also, for another great example of the type of things that you can do with Tabblo - including the hilarious picture below - click the picture to be taken to this person's tabblo:

The possibilities are endless, and I want to encourage you to use these types of tools in order to make your visualizations effective!

I mean, if putting together an entire book of your desires and then putting it on your coffee table doesn't frequently remind you to deliberately create your life, I don't know what will.

Also, I have put together a Law of Attraction group there on the Tabblo site that you are welcome and encouraged to join.

The basic idea is that everyone who is using the power of visualization in order to manifest their desires can share visual concepts by keeping all of our tabblo's in one spot. By seeing how other people are visualizing, you make get inspired to manifest new or different things into your life, or you may just be inspired by someone else's pictures, text, or visualization concepts. If nothing else, you'll be entertained for a few minutes, so check it out!

One More Thing

When visualizing, practice the following concepts to make your visualizations powerful and effective!

1. Always feel as if what you are visualizing already exists for you. If you think "I am going to have this someday", then it will always be "someday away". Visualize in the NOW, and your goals will manifest in your life.

2. Never NEED the things that you are visualizing. If you are desperately needing the things that you are asking for, then all you are doing is sending out a "I wish I had this" vibration and all you will manifest is continuing to wish that you had it. Want the things that you are visualizing, Believe that you already have them, and Feel the joy that having those things brings to your life. The Universe will deliver!

3. Visualize as often as you like - the more you do it, the faster you'll get what you want. Also, take advantage of the time right before you go to sleep and right after you wake up to practice visualization. Your subconscious mind is most receptive to programming during those times, and you will get the most out of your efforts when you get your conscious AND your subconscious mind working together.

Okay, that's it, that's all. Now go out there and create the world that you want by finding ways to hold the images of that world in your head. Next thing you know, you'll be living in it.

Remember:

"Thoughts become things... choose the good ones!" - Mike Dooley and TUT 's Adventure Club

Is the water too cold...?

I read two excellent blog posts today about how people learn about self improvement and the Law of Attraction, but then they either don't utilize that knowledge, or they don't follow through on their efforts.

This is a very real issue, and one that I am personally trying to extinguish with the Today is that Day Success Community. I wanted to put a post out here on the blog about this in the hopes of sending a wake up call to some of the people who have seen the need for positive steps, but for whatever reason still aren't seeing their efforts through to fruition.

Antonio over at ThinkBanc points out 2 potential reasons for this; people either don't realize what is possible because they just don't know the details, or - what I believe to more often be the case - they simply don't believe in it.

Concepts such as the Law of Attraction are so foreign to what we have been brought up to believe, that people simply refuse to grasp that they can literally "change their stars" just by learning the proper techniques.

Rick over at Shards of Consciousness has an outstanding post on this same subject, and he adds in 2 more very real reasons why people don't make good on their self improvement efforts.

One reason is Information Overload. Sometimes we try so hard to improve our lives that we can't see the forest for the trees. We buy books, programs, and memberships, yet we don't actually DO the work that it takes to effect the changes!

Another reason that is not so obvious, but just as true, is that some people simply don't want to accept responsibility for making their lives better. After all, it is easy to just lay down and let life have it's way with you. Making an honest and consistent effort to give your life a turn for the better is much more difficult than just sitting on a park bench and watching it all go by.

Rick gets the Self Improvement Cornucopia of Truisms award for this little gem:

"Our thoughts and dreams come and go, whispering among themselves just below consciousness, the inhabitants of our mind that set up residence while we weren’t looking. Occasionally we wake up and see what we were doing."

Is that priceless, or what? That is EXACTLY what happens to so many of us!

The desire as well as the power to manifest those desires are conspiring secretly just out of our grasp, and once in awhile they poke their head up, motivate and empower us, and then they sink back below as we once again fall back to sleep.

Here's the million-dollar point, though. Those dreams and desires - and the power to bring them permanently into the light - are still there.

My own experience has led me to concur 100% with the experts quoted above as to the reasons why we are not dragging those dreams and desires kicking and screaming into the light, and here is a quick review so you can make sure that you aren't one of the sleeping people:

1) Ignorance of the knowledge or the application of the knowledge that can help us.

2) Refusal to believe that we truly have the power to effect positive changes in our lives - short of a miracle or a lottery winning, that is.

3) Information Overload - a.ka. sticking our noses in the truth, yet still managing not to get any on us.

4) Refusal to take responsibility for our own success. Funny thing is that people who won't take responsibility for their success also seem quite adept at not taking responsibility for their failures, either.

Makes you wonder what they ARE taking responsibility for...

The bottom line is that the knowledge and the training that you need to create your version of the "perfect life" are literally at your very fingertips. A few deft clicks of your mouse or a fancy keyboard maneuver and you could be reading the outline to the rest of your life right here on the Internet in a lot less time than it would take you to think of a good reason to not put forth that effort.

Ever since the movie The Secret came out - and even before then - the resources have been available for people to get off their butts and do something with their lives, yet people are still stubbornly refusing to do so.

Are you one of those people who is going to take this opportunity to wake up and start making the changes that you desire, or are you going to just sit there and let this blog post be just another notch in your belt of Information Overload?

The choice is - and always has been - yours.

Remembering Your Role

One of the biggest problems with our society’s attempts at evolving and finding true, measurable success and progress is that people are under the very mistaken impression that as humans we have some set of universal “rules” to live by.

This is simply not true, and the sooner that we - as a race - realize that fact, the sooner we’ll all be taking a giant leap up the evolutionary ladder.

No, I’m not talking about mutant powers (although I am officially an X-men geek), but rather the step up the evolutionary ladder that will allow us to start using our heads for something other than a place to keep dead brain cells during our college years.

Darren Hardy, President over at The Success Training Network, keeps a very informative and entertaining blog that I recommend you get on the distribution list for. One of his recent posts included a very cool and very appropriate clip from the movie ‘The Legend of Bagger Vance’.

I’ll skip the movie synopsis since that is far from my speciality, but I will tell you that you should see the movie, and you should definitely see this clip from the movie, which is posted on Darren’s blog.

The clip is a powerful few minutes with Will Smith while he is helping a boy to understand the difference between who we perceive ourselves to be, and who we really are, which is the point that I am making.

All parts of the Universe are made of the same cosmic “stuff” as Wallace D. Wattles calls it in Science of Getting Rich, and that “stuff” is simply energy. All things - no matter how big or small - are made up of energy.

What is it that causes energy to be in any given form at any given moment? The answer, my 3-dimensional friends, is Intelligence.

There is an all-powerful, all-knowing Intelligence that each of us is a part of, as well as a result of. What you call that Intelligence is totally up to you. Depending on your religious or spiritual beliefs, you will have your own “name” for this Intelligence, but no matter who you are, you believe that something is responsible for all of this.

I’ve never met anyone who believed that this entire existence - whether you believe in the Big Bang or the Garden of Eden - simply “showed up” one day without someone or something pulling the strings.

The Intelligence that pulls those strings is you. And me. And that guy over there. And that cat on your desk. And that bird outside your window. And that spider skulking across the floor. And that cricket out in the bushes. And that…. You get the picture by now, I’m sure.

Every form of life IS life because it wants to be life. It chooses to be life. Everything that happens to us - or doesn’t happen - is a choice that was made on some level, at some point in time, even if we can’t possibly make the mental leap to understand that connection right now.

Everything happens on purpose - both the good and the bad. There is a classic argument that no one would ever WANT something bad to happen to them, but there are just as many ways to explain that concept. I will not get into that right now, but I will defer you to Mike Dooley’s excellent answer to those types of questions, which you can check out right here.

Some of you may have heard the phrase “With great power comes great responsibility”. As you begin to learn more and more about your hand in the creative process of your own existence, you will begin to understand that powerful concept more and more.

In order to claim “bragging rights” whenever you accomplish something wonderful, you must also be willing to brag about the fact that you did something that wasn’t so great. Why would you brag about that?

Because YOU caused it.

You prove with every single act of creation - no matter how big or how small, or how good or how bad - that you have the power of the Universe (or God, if you will) at your very fingertips.

To say that you did not cause a car accident, you must also say that you did not cause the love that you feel for others. To say that you did not mean to stub your toe is to also say that you did not mean to sooth a crying baby and teach it security and safety. To say that you did not put yourself into your present financial dire straights is to also say that you can never be wealthy.

Do you see the point here? YOU are in charge of all of this. Via your thoughts and your actions - but most importantly via your feelings - you are forming the very world around you because you are physically, mentally, and emotionally part of that world!

Every breath you take, every movement you make, every thought you have, and every emotion you feel are all forming your very existence here on the physical plane. Everything you do - or don’t do - makes a difference to someone, somewhere, at sometime - especially to you.

THAT is your Role.

Whew! Kinda scary, isn’t it?? Don’t worry, because here is the best part:

You are here to embrace and understand your power in order to experience this existence. You are not required to stretch forth your hand and part any large bodies of water. People are not waiting for you to cure their diseases. Your job is not to put a protective shield around the earth and hide it from harm.

Your job - which you CHOSE to come here and do is….

drum roll please….

…..

…..

To Experience Life!

That’s it. That’s all. To quote Neale Donald Walsch from his part in The Secret:

“So your purpose is what you say it is. Your mission is the mission you give yourself. Your life will be what you create it as, and no one will stand in judgement of it, now or ever”.

So whether you think big, think small, think good, or think evil, your Role is the Role that you have given to yourself. To once again refer back to Bagger Vance and the quote about our “authentic swing”:

“It’s somethin’ that can’t be taught to you or learned. It’s somethin’ that got to be remembered.”

Remember YOUR Role, and enjoy your life.

Peace, and happy musings.