"Do not permit the events of your daily life to bind you, but never withdraw yourself from them." -Zen Saying
Getting to the bottom of the Grand Canyon is a perfect metaphor to illustrate this Zen Saying. When approaching the rim of the canyon, stay focused on your outcome, which is to get to the bottom of the canyon. As you walk up to the edge of the canyon and look over, be careful not to let the height overwhelm and bind you in fear. Similiarly, don't give up, turn around and walk away (or get frustrated and jump!). The solution lies in walking along the rim of the canyon, continuously assessing the landscape, and looking a solution. Eventually, you will find the path down to the bottom and success will be yours!
"Do not permit the events of your daily life to bind you, but never withdraw yourself from them." -Zen Saying
2/22/11
2/21/11
The Truth of Optimism...
"The optimist proclaims we live in the best of all possible worlds and the pessimist fears this is true." ~James Branch Cabell
What do you believe about your life today? Is today the best of all days? When I was younger I never understood the movie with Bill Murray called, "Groundhog Day." Now, I understand. Every day is what you make of it. Not everything that happens to us is within our control and influence everyday, however, the meaning that we choose to attach to it is! And those meanings determine the actions we will or will not take. Since life is always changing, anoptimist believes more often that not, that it is always changing for the better! Continue to have an ever-changing, outstanding week!
To your continued success,
James
What do you believe about your life today? Is today the best of all days? When I was younger I never understood the movie with Bill Murray called, "Groundhog Day." Now, I understand. Every day is what you make of it. Not everything that happens to us is within our control and influence everyday, however, the meaning that we choose to attach to it is! And those meanings determine the actions we will or will not take. Since life is always changing, anoptimist believes more often that not, that it is always changing for the better! Continue to have an ever-changing, outstanding week!
To your continued success,
James
2/16/11
Do You Need to Stretch?
The Boring Life of an Office Supply
If you are like me, you may be scared to open the desk drawer that holds all of your office supplies. All of those jumbled up rubber bands, paperclips, staples, thumb tacks, and the pad of sticky notes that has become torn apart and has desk lint stuck to the back. If you were one of these poor mixed up office supplies, what a boring life you would lead. They just sit there all day in a jumbled up mess, ignored and waiting to be used.
Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever felt all jumbled up and confused? Have you felt bored, ignored by others and waiting for something to happen? Have you felt you were living but not really fulfilling your life’s purpose?
There is a solution. Rubber bands need to be stretched in order to hold things together that would otherwise fall apart. Paperclips need tension put on them to hold important papers together that have innovative thoughts, stories and ideas on them. Staples need to separate from the group and be bent in new ways to link thoughts and ideas together long term. Thumb tacks need to be focused and pushed into a specific area to keep things in the line of sight and visible to others. The sticky notes need to be written on with ideas, moments of brilliance and reminders of what is important in life.
Office supplies take on an exciting life when they are used for their intended purpose. The only thing keeping office supplies from having a life of meaning and fulfillment is that they are dependent on others to use them.
Thank goodness that we, as humans, are not dependent on others in order to be stretched and used for a purpose! What a gift it is to be able to choose the purpose of our life and how we stretch, put tension on ourselves, and use the gifts we inherently have!
It is up to you to choose a meaning and purpose for your life today. Let that purpose guide you to make a difference by uniting people or ideas together for a common cause. Put some tension on yourself, separate from the pack, bend yourself and stretch in a new way, and write down your important thoughts and ideas for later reference. Take action to get yourself out of the drawer and do what you were meant to do. Be free from living the Boring Life of an Office Supply.
To your continued Success,
James
919.792.0085
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click here: http://MyOptIn-003.com/?pid=6238070
2/15/11
Thought of the Day!
"A man can get discouraged many times, but he is not a failure until he begins to blame somebody else and stops trying." -- John Burroughs, Writer
Living a successful life means choosing which actions to take in your personal and/or business life everyday. When a person shifts their focus away from actions that are within their control and instead focus on how the results are not what they wanted, life gets difficult. Success and failure begin and end in the mind.
Living a successful life means choosing which actions to take in your personal and/or business life everyday. When a person shifts their focus away from actions that are within their control and instead focus on how the results are not what they wanted, life gets difficult. Success and failure begin and end in the mind.
2/12/11
Be careful what you believe to be true!
Be careful what you believe to be true because everything in life is dynamic and changes; sometime for the better and sometimes for the worse. Example: in 1938, Time Magazine's Man of the Year...Adolph Hitler. You best day could turn into your worst and your worst day could turn out to be your best. Stay flexible in finding a way to turn your worst day into your best and life will be much more fulfilling!
2/11/11
Be a better lover!
Want to be a better lover? Want your partner to love you in a way that really matters to you?
Gary Chapman has a great book called, “The 5 Love Languages.” The premise of the book is that we all experience Love in five general ways or “languages”.
I have converted the 5 Love Languages into a simple acronym easy to remember: The 5 “T’s.” We can love people through:
- Time: as in spending time with our loved one. It could be just being in the presence of the other person or doing something fun together.
- Touch: as in being physically affectionate; whether it be in a sexual way or not. It could be a kiss or a simple hand on someone’s back.
- Tell: as in telling your loved ones verbally how much they mean to you. You might text, send a card, leave a voice message for instance.
- Buy Things: as in buying any type of gifts. It’s important to note that it is the act of thinking about the person, finding the right gift, and trying to make your loved one happy that is the act of love that matters here, not the actual gift itself.
- Do Things: as in doing something that will make your loved one’s life easier or more pleasant. It could be making an extra cup of coffee, running to the store of your own accord because you notice something is needed, or going to an event that you might not have an interest in, but that matters to your loved one.
Although we may feel loved when we experience any one of those “languages”, most of us have a couple of preferred languages. Instinctively, we tend to love others in our language instead of theirs.
Have you ever been baffled to find your loved one unmoved by your loving words or your affectionate touch because he or she is annoyed at the fact that you haven’t brought the trash in? This miscommunication can happen in any type of relationship; with your kids, with your spouse, with your parents. Imagine: you come back from vacation with a gift for son which you thought was the perfect gift for him, he looks at you and gives you a polite smile but you can tell he’s unmoved and proceeds to ask you to sit and watch him play his latest video game. You’re tired and anxious to unpack so you put it off for later and he runs off to play. He never felt loved by you getting him the shirt, and you felt more guilty than loved by his wanting to spend time with you. Sounds vaguely familiar?
While we all understand intellectually that each language is an expression of love, we truly feel loved when that love is expressed in our own dominant language.
So, how do you tell what your Lover’s Love Language is? Simple. Ask the question: “When have you known you were loved the most?” Ask a couple of times and get a couple of different examples. The answers will tell you what speaks their Language the loudest.
I asked my son that question when he was six and he responded, “When we snuggle and cuddle on the couch watching movies.” He is a Time and Touch” person. Just that simple. Knowing that, we switched from candy in his Easter basket, to coupons for extra reading time together, movies, or guy night. My daughter on the other hand, can pass on the Touch, but feels genuinely touched when I take the time to think of her while I’m away and get her a trinket. And she herself spends ours making “gifts” for the rest of the family. As for my wife, I can skip the flowers without worry, and drive the kids to school instead, or fill up her car up with gas. She’s clearly a “Do” person.
And as far as you being loved in your love language, simply tell your loved one what makes you feel most loved. And when he or she loves you in that language, respond and reaffirm the love in theirs. By reciprocating, you will be communicating in a way that deepens your relationship.
On Valentine’s Day, find out each other’s love language! Not only you will learn something, but it might just put the spark back in your love life! Give it a try!
To your continued success,
James
919.792.0085
To subcribe to The Thought of the week,
click here: http://MyOptIn-003.com/?pid=6238070
2/10/11
Interesting Thought for the Day!
Most people do not recognize opportunity when it comes, because it's usually dressed in overalls and looks like a lot of work! ~Thomas Edison
2/2/11
Are You Taking The Path of Least Resistance?
The Downward Rush of the Stream…
Some things in life are inevitable. Every year the seasons rotate through Winter, Summer, Spring, and Fall. Nature is full of examples of the inevitable. Water always tends to flow downstream, taking the path of least resistance until it reaches the sea. It is easy to forget that every thought and action has natural consequences that are also inevitable.
Many actions in life become habits that tend to follow the path of least resistance. I read an interesting statistic by Steve Shapiro on New Year Resolutions that stated “Less than 15% of those over 50 achieve their resolutions every year or every other year, while 39% of those in their twenties achieve their resolutions every year or every other year.”
As a parent and “responsible adult” sometimes the path of least resistance becomes a place of comfort. Being in the comfort zone can provide stability, but it can also keep you from enjoying life to the fullest.
If you think, “I can’t do what a 20-year old can do because I have kids, a job, and too many responsibilities” Think again!
My wife has some friends who, a few years ago, packed up everything and travelled around the world for an entire year (21 countries in all). At the time, their children were in 5th and 6th grade! It was a risk, but ultimately they chose to achieve one of their life goals sooner rather than later. It paid off in many different levels. Not only did they enjoy an incredible life experience, but they created a stunning book along the way and donated all the profits to charitable children’s causes.
While some things in life are inevitable, ask yourself, “Am I going to go with the flow or do something to experience all life has to offer?”
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