Friday, July 15, 2011

Finding Your Passion - Tips and Tricks to Finding Your True Passion

Finding your passion or life's purpose can at sometimes seem very difficult. What if we don't have a driving passion for anything? If life seems less than passionate, don't worry you're not alone. Life doesn't have to be mediocre, and even if you're not passionate right now about something, with a little help you can spark an interest in something and quite possibly turn that interest into a passion. If you're currently struggling to find your passion, here are several tips and tricks to get you going in the right direction. 

Go back to your childhood. Remember when you were young and could entertain yourself for hours just day dreaming or playing silly games? It's amazing how curious and wondrous we are as children, and how quickly we forget all the things we loved to do as a child. Revisiting your childhood can get you back in touch with something you once loved to do. Maybe you used to paint when you were little, and enjoyed it very much, but many years have passed since you've enjoyed those past times. Why not try doing something you used to love but no longer do. This could really ignite your passion and add meaning and fulfillment to your life. 

Model someone who is passionate. A lot of times it's a good idea to model the success of others. If there is someone you know who is passionate about something, why not try to model their behavior. If you look up to someone, or want to be more like someone, it's ok to model their behavior so long as it's moving you in the right direction. Sometimes it's ok to fake it till you make it, eventually it won't be fake anymore and you can become passionate in time. 

Help someone. A lot of people are passionate about helping others. When we help someone we feel a sense of good, and a sense of purpose. Some people specifically like to help a certain group of people, like the elderly, or children, or at risk teens or immigrants. Generally speaking, people are good, and they want to feel good about what they do. Why not help someone and see how it feels. Maybe help a neighbor do their yard work, or cook a meal for someone elderly you know. You just might find a new found passion in helping people. 

If you don't already have a hobby or interest, go ahead and just try something. Maybe you always wanted to dance, but you felt goofy in front of others, or maybe you've always wanted to sing, but thought you had a bad voice - who cares! Why not go ahead and just try something, you might be really surprised at the outcome, you may find your passion doing something you were always too embarrassed to try before. 

There are many ways to seek out your passion and find meaning in your life. These tips are designed to bring the passion out in anyone. You may be skeptical at first, but with some persistence you will find something that you can be passionate about. Sometimes we find that we have been passionate about something the whole time, we just needed to rediscover old pastimes and interests. 

Our Perceptions Create Our Belief

Our personal beliefs are created from our interpretation of our perceptions. These beliefs create the perception we have of ourselves, or in other words, our self-concept. 

If we were to write a description of our self-concept and then take a look at our lives, we would see that our lives conform to our own self-concept. Why is this? 

We form our self-concept as children. Before the age of six, children perceive events and accept what they are told by their parents and guardians as fact, and so register these events straight into their subconscious where they are stored permanently. Some of these more extreme events influence how we behave for the rest of our lives. 

A positive example of this is where a little boy is asked at a party to stand up in front of a crowd and sing. People are laughing and joking but the boy takes no notice. At the end of the song everyone claps and praises the little boy for how well he sang. This feedback is taken by his subconscious as encouragement and it has no problem allowing the child to perform again in the future. 

A negative example of this would be the same event, with the little boy being asked to sing in front of a crowd at a party. He gets up; puts his little heart into the song and again people are laughing and joking. This time he perceives they are laughing at him and so feels rejected and is too upset to hear the clapping at the end. 

This same event, but perceived differently, creates a high emotional state and because of the openness of the child's mind, now registers in his subconscious as a negative experience. As one of the functions of our subconscious mind is to keep us safe, this means from now on standing in front of people is a situation to be feared and avoided at all cost. 

Over the years this event might be consciously forgotten but the subconscious never forgets and will not let the child, even as an adult, stand in front of a crowd. This event will now unconsciously dictate the boy's behaviour for life and this in turn, contributes in the manifestation of his life's circumstances. 

This boy's options in later life will be determined by his subconscious belief prohibiting him from getting involved in any event or occupation where he will have to speak in front of an audience. 

Most people have beliefs resulting from similar events that happened in the early part of their lives and often they are unaware of them. 

Some of these beliefs can be beneficial; some are small and are only an inconvenience. Others destroy lives. The positive beliefs serve us and for the most part are not a problem. 

The destructive beliefs restrict us from engaging fully in life by negatively affecting how we deal with finances, health and relationships. These positive and negative beliefs combine to drive our unconscious behaviour. This in turn manifests our life's circumstances. What we manifest reflects back to us who we are, and what we believe. 

"Every man, wherever he goes, is encompassed 
by a cloud of comforting convictions, which 
move him like flies on a summer day." 
Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) 

This process, whereby our subconscious mind dictating our behaviour, causing its reflection back to us through our life circumstances, is commonly understood to be karma. 

When we have empowering beliefs, the perceived effect is called good Karma and life seems to flow. When our beliefs are destructive, the perceived effect is called bad karma and we suffer. 

"The sower may mistake and sow his peas 
crookedly; the peas make no mistake, 
but come up and show his line." 
Ralph Waldo Emerson 

The word karma translated from Sanskrit means action. However it is not in fact our actions, but the unconscious intention behind our actions, that creates what is termed as karma. 

When the suffering from bad karma becomes painful enough, and as we become more and more frustrated by its results, we are eventually forced to become aware of the real cause of our suffering. This empowers us with a choice, to discard the cause, and with this we grow in consciousness, or to remain as we are and resign to continued suffering. 

The suffering of bad karma can be avoided by becoming conscious of what is happening in the moment and observing objectively what is driving our decision making process. This gives us a chance to respond appropriately to events and not react in the way our subconscious memories dictate to us. 

Becoming aware or present in the moment to what is happening and choosing to ignore our subconscious input by acting appropriately, will change our beliefs over time. In changing our beliefs, this will automatically change our behaviour and this in turn will reflect in our life circumstances. 

This process and resulting new and higher level of consciousness, creates for us good karma. 

Karma is not a result of us doing something good or bad so something good or bad will happen to us in return. Karma is because of what we believe. Our actions cause an interaction with our circumstances; this creates an environment that reflects back to us, our subconscious beliefs. 

"Behaviour is the mirror in which 
everyone shows their image." 
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

Most people believe circumstances in life have us where we are, but it is the way that we believe we are, that brings about the circumstances in our lives. 

Ultimately karma is just karma, it is not good or bad; it is only a measure we can use to calibrate our conscious actions. 

The Subconcious Mind

The Subconscious Mind 
Our subconscious mind automatically run programmes which keep us functioning on an unconscious level. The following analogy explains how over 99% of our thinking is unconscious. 

For this analogy the captain of a ship represents the conscious mind and the crew represents the subconscious mind. The captain's function is to plan a course to a particular destination and to give orders to the crew to proceed to that destination. 

The crew's function is to take the orders from the captain and carry them out accordingly. This all works well as long as there is a well-trained crew that is capable of taking and correctly following orders. 

The crew has been trained to go to one port and one port only. The captain now gives orders to go to a new and different port. The crew acknowledges the orders and proceeds to carry them out to the best of their ability i.e. they go to the one and only port they have been trained to go to. 

Being unaware of this, the captain, believing that his orders are being followed, goes to his cabin to sleep (unconsciousness). The result is the crew brings the captain and the ship to the same old port. 

The function of the conscious mind (the captain) is to decide objectives. The function of the subconscious mind (the crew) is to realise these objectives. 

When properly trained, the subconscious mind is capable of taking instructions from the conscious mind and following them through without any further instruction. However, when the subconscious mind has been poorly trained, and is running the only programme it knows, the results can always be predicted i.e. when the conscious mind sets a new/different objective, the subconscious mind, being unable to deviate, automatically keeps to its original programming and brings about the same old results. 

A poorly trained subconscious has to be consistently monitored by the conscious mind in order to achieve a desired outcome. 

Example: A person decides to go on a diet. 

The conscious mind sets a goal to reach a certain weight by a certain date. To insure the success of the diet, exercise is started and calories are watched. Meanwhile, the subconscious, having a pre-programmed set-point on weight that it is unable to change, will always work to return to that setting. 

The diet starts to work; the weight begins to fall off. The subconscious sensing this is contrary to its programming, starts to present to the mind reasons to abandon the diet, using desires to instigate self talk such as, "another little bit will not matter", "I am entitled to an extra slice", "I can start again tomorrow", etc. 

The conscious mind, believing the subconscious mind understands its instruction and will follow through to realise the new goal, feels no necessity to supervise the progress and drifts into unconsciousness. 

The subconscious mind, being unable to deviate from its programming, produced the same results that it has always produced i.e. the diet fails. 
(The result is the crew brings the captain and the ship to the same old port.) 

Even when the diet appears to have been successful and the target weight has been achieved, unless the subconscious set-point on weight has been changed, the subconscious will continue working diligently until it has succeeded to restore the pre-diet weight. This cyclical process is why weight loss programs that do not take this process into consideration are problematic. 

The subconscious mind is diligent in finding our weakest point of resolve to get its own way. It uses the imagination incessantly through our senses, e.g. "that apple pie smells delicious", and then justifies its belief, by presenting the thought that it is deserved. 

The conscious mind uses logic, such as, "eating the pie will ruin your diet", to make its case, but the imagination is far more persuasive than logic. 

Imagination will always win, except when we have made a conscious decision and consistently monitor and be aware of our thoughts and behaviour. 

We have set points in all areas of our lives that our subconscious programming strives to maintain. 

In finance this is revealed in the number of lottery winners that return to their original financial status, or worse, after a few years. On an unconscious level the winner's subconscious belief is they are undeserving, and so feel ill at ease with money. This causes them to unconsciously act in a manner that repels money. This process works both ways; when a person's subconscious feels deserving of money it will steer them to behave in a manner that will attract money. 

Knowing that imagination is the vehicle the subconscious uses to get its way, we can use this knowledge to our advantage in overcoming our limiting beliefs and programs, to bring about our desired outcomes. 

The function of our subconscious is to serve us, it will create the reality that it is programmed to create. If it is not monitored it will perform this function to the best of its ability, and will manifest, through our behaviour, our hidden beliefs, whether these beliefs serve us or not. 

Like the captain of the ship, that stays conscious and monitors his crew, we can, by monitoring our thoughts and using the gift of imagination with consciousness, project our desired outcomes from our imagination into our world, and have them realised effortlessly. 

"I am the master of my fate; 
I am the captain of my soul." 
William Ernest Henley 

"The Push" Texas style

Today I was privileged to witness an amazing lesson in nature that directly 
relates to many human experiences. 

I was on an air boat and skimming along the Brazos River in central 
Texas. This particular portion of the river has some high cliffs and bald 
eagles. OMG!! With binoculars, we could see the giant bald eagle nest perched on the side 
of a bluff. One of the adult bald eagles was circling and seemed to be 
beckoning ...the other adult would fly up and then back to the nest repeatedly. Then the 
baby eagle appeared, so cautiosly and seemed to be pleading for the safety of the nest. It was being 
pushed from its comfort zone. It's call for nurturing and safety was so 
distinct and desperate. 

Still, it was forced to the edge of the nest. WOWWW!! 

I could actually see the eaglet looking out at the vastness expansion of open 
space, and pleading for the safety of its nest. My heart was breaking open for 
the desperation in this little eaglet's heart. My heart also went out to the 
parents. They had invested and sacrificed much for the potential of the 
offspring's maturing and maiden voyage to soar high with the dignity, grace 
and majesty of what it was created to be. 

The baby eaglet stood on the outer sprigs of the nest and spread its wings and 
flapped its wings but its talons wouldn't let go of the sprigs in the nest. The eaglet 
did flapped its wings several times and then I could see the edge of the nest give a little 
from the swishing of its wings. Then it was with a peacefullness of forgetting 
to "cling" that the baby soared and the cry of desperation became the 
declaration of VICTORY!!! 

I cannot begin to tell you of the number of experiences I have seen this very 
thing played out in our humanness, but to see it in nature brings such 
exhilarating Validation!! 

This reminds me so much of the book, "Even Eagles Need A Push". Whether we are 
privileged to be giving the push or blessed to be receiving the push, it is a 
wonderful reminder that we are in nature's spiritual flow. 

Get Out Of Debt For Free Proclaims Bad Credit Debt Consolidation Home Loan

So you have decided to go for credit card debt elimination and are wondering on what the techniques for credit card debt elimination are. As they say, let's take the bull by its horns and lay it all flat on the ground. There are generally 2 recommendations which are most common for credit card debt elimination: controlling the expenditures and consolidating debt. Let's check both of those credit card debt elimination recommendations and examine the list of issues that you can do for attaining credit card debt elimination using these suggestions: http://getoutofdebt4free.com/Debt-Consolidation-Program/1. Control your urge to spend: The first thing to complete for credit card debt elimination is to control your expenditures. Here we are talking about the payments you make utilizing your credit card. Keep in mind that the primary reason being your getting into credit card debt is uncontrolled expenditures utilizing your credit card. So if you are really serious about credit card debt elimination, this really is one thing which will help in credit card debt elimination by stopping accumulation of further debt. Here is what you can do to control your expenditures:a. You need to remain away from appealing offers that are put-up by numerous shops and stores. Don't purchase something that you do not really need desperately. After all you're searching for credit card debt elimination not supplementation. http://getoutofdebt4free.com/Debt-Consolidation-Program/b. Leave your credit card at home. In the event you really-really need something, then you can fetch your credit card from your house. This may prevent you from yielding to the too-attractive-to-resist sale offers (that are really there all of the year round). This credit card debt elimination technique, once more, works on the principal of 'prevention is better than cure'. This may prevent unplanned expenses from occurring.c. Prepare a monthly budget and stick to it. This really is truly a very important credit card debt elimination measure. This spending budget will form the basis of your credit card debt elimination plan. So in the event you deviate from your budget, your credit card debt elimination plan will go for a ride.2. Debt consolidation: Debt consolidation or moving from high APR credit cards to a reduced APR one is generally the first step (the first reactive step) for credit card debt elimination. Listed here are a few things which you need to do:a. Do not go for your first balance offer you come across. Analyse various offers and select the one that best suits you. This may be an important thing for you credit card debt elimination strategy. Initial APR, Initial APR period and standard Apr, all need to become considered. http://getoutofdebt4free.com/Debt-Consolidation-Program/b. Study the fine print on the balance transfer offer and check the terms and conditions on these. These may affect your general credit card debt elimination plan.c. Compare other benefits e.g. rebates, reward points, etc, before you really determine to go for one of the offers.Credit card debt elimination is about correct preparation and discipline. So make your credit card debt elimination plan and stick with it. 

Black Belt - What is it Truly?

These are common martial artists and not Black Belt good quality in my college. I would by no means give them permission to check, it would cheapen the expertise for individuals that go above and outside of the minimal demands. Anyway this type of university student quickly quits immediately after getting their Initial Dan due to the fact they did not actually grow to be a Black Belt and they are material with their black piece of cloth. As a aspect note, it has been my experience, usually talking, it is the most talented students who are natural martial artists that fall into that class. They rely solely on their expertise and natural skill to get by, never ever truly excelling the way they could if they had been ready to put forth 100% energy. They have a tendency to be the actual whiners! These folks are NOT Black Belt superior. On the other hand some of the greatest Upper Dans I have identified commenced out with no purely natural capacity or expertise whatsoever, usually they have a very difficult time putting a person foot in front of the other. But they function difficult, sweat, go via unlimited repetitions, place in as quite a few classes as doable under no circumstances slacking for a moment.I trust Common Choi Hong Hello there unveiled the magic formula to what it normally takes to grow to be a Black Belt in his College student/Instructor Romance (Sajeji Do) "#two. A excellent university student will need to be willing to sacrifice for his art..." (The Condensed Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do, Normal Choi Hong Hello there, page 45.) Regrettably, most folks misunderstand this precept due to the fact they misunderstand the which means of the word 'sacrifice'. I would like to place this into viewpoint mainly because so numerous individuals give the notion of sacrifice a unfavorable connotation. That is to say folks believe sacrifice is a lousy factor. Sacrifice is a fantastic matter! The very best definition I have run across of sacrifice is: "The offering up of a thing excellent, for a thing improved." (Ezra Taft Benson)Now let's place Common Choi's precept with each other with this definition of sacrifice a pupil who needs to turn out to be a Black Belt have to be willing to give up anything great, like casual time or other hobbies, for a thing superior, being a Black Belt. This mindset, along with information and talent are how college students become Black Belts.In my martial arts practical experience I have satisfied people who are so focused on perfecting their method for Dan testing that they eliminate sight of establishing a true Black Belt character. This type of individual could be extraordinary in demonstrating bodily skill, but are missing in the demeanor demanded for a greater rank in Taekwon-Do. As the stating goes "a wrench in the hand of a gorilla is not a tool." So even a pupil with the biggest talent not having the character is not a Black Belt and can be a threatening blend.In my school, a university student doesn't just make a Black Belt by turning out to be proficient in kicks, blocks, strikes, designs, phase sparring, self-defense, breaking and tournament competitiveness, Check Requirements, I do not imagine in typical Black Belts. 

Black Belt - What is it Definitely?

The usual, dare I say, the normal university student does not give any thought to Taekwon-Do or martial arts exterior the college. This is tragic due to the fact Taekwon-Do can benefit the university student in their lives outside of the instruction hall! A person who has turn out to be a Black Belt can properly translate his or her instruction and expertise into all facets of their lives.A 1st Dan is not a vacation spot at the stop of a very few ages trip, but a benchmark in a existence prolonged journey. The other phenomenon I can't comprehend is the First Dan that quits just a handful of months right after obtaining his Belt. Obviously this person has place in the time and energy only to pad their resume with "Black Belt". This sort of attitude is not uncommon amid martial arts college students. I have certainly not been capable to get at ease with the idea of individuals that function tough for numerous years to examination for their First Dan Black Belt only to give up (there is that "Q" phrase once more) pondering they have produced the ultimate accomplishment in Taekwon-Do. That is like a twelve 12 months previous quitting school following producing it through the sixth grade saying that they have completed the greatest in education.The excellent that martial arts is a way of life has eluded the Very first Dan quitter. These pupils have earned a Black Belt, but they have not grow to be a Black Belt. So their resume will appear fantastic, but they will not get the total advantage that a Black Belt has to supply throughout a daily life lived as a legitimate martial artist. A everyday living lived as a Black belt is rich and rewarding as the lessons discovered in the dojo permeate by all the other elements of a person's existence. No one in Taekwon-Do tests for a Black Belt, they examination for a To begin with Dan, if they pass the check they are still deemed a starter, there are eight much more degrees to go!I just want to reiterate that this is my philosophy and definition of a Black Belt. I am not stating that I am perfect and other people are wrong. I am just placing out my tips in hopes that all those who are in agreement can discover a home in my school. People who disagree will need to get the time and place in the hard work to come across a school that much more closely mirrors their concept of what a Black Belt is.It looks that all people I converse to who has even the smallest volume of understanding about self defense or the martial arts - has some type of popular method, tactic, or weapon. And however, the actuality is that you will have to have a really high degree of talent - or luck - to be ready to use any "favorite" ability in a true-earth encounter.What I suggest by that is this - to have and depend on a 'favorite' something, implies that the condition that you find by yourself in will allow for that strategy to apply. And, with all of the probable attacks that could be thrown at you - with all of the environments you could discover on your own in when it takes place - with all of the variables that could arrive up... 

Still Life Photography Techniques

There are many mediums to choose from in photography. Often a person will begin with still life photography and work their way towards portraits, wildlife, or landscapes depending upon their interests. Still life photography teaches a person to use light and shadows to find the emotion of the object. Here I will discuss many different aspects of still life pictures. Still life expresses the photographers self while using in animate objects such as pottery, flowers, candles, leaves, and fruit. The first step in still life photography is the lighting. You will want the object to have light from a single direction, so that you can cast shadows as well as light on the object. This will give it a depth of field, and dimension. You will need to choose whether you want a soft or harsh light. The more harsh the light the more shadow you will have. Often in still life reflectors are used to tone the light down. The best type of lighting for still life photography is side- lighting because you will attain more contrast between the object. With still life photography, you have color control. You can choose the colors of the objects you use. When choosing the colors say with leaves and fruits you will want a contrast in colors, but retain a natural look. Harmony is the best word to use when attaining color control. The color will attract the viewer’s eye, so if it is displeasing to you the chances are your viewers will find it just as displeasing.With still life, you can choose an abstract motif. You may choose to put two objects together that do not make sense, but create a moving picture. You might have an interesting cut on fruit, such as a melon to reveal the inside core. The angle of the cut and the meaning of the picture will require thought from the viewer. Some viewers see different from what another viewer might see. This happens in the art world daily. What one thinks represents art another finds unappealing. Never let these influence your dreams and stop you from becoming even better in your work as a photographer. You can also have control of variations. You can use the same subject repeatedly with different backgrounds, arrangements, and other objects. The key is to avoid clutter while creating contrast. The rule of thirds of composition is a great way to utilize still life objects. You can create a pattern based on the rule of thirds. Setting up the arrangements and trying several shots will lead you to finding the harmony between the objects. You may think still life photography lacks the depth of other mediums; however, it can be used as a stepping-stone to greater photography. Still life can include an arranged garden to please the eye or a natural look. You can use natural light to offset the shadows and find the contrast. Still life inside or outside creating the arrangements is just one way to find pictures you will wish to display or give to friends. Remember lighting, color, and variations on arrangements will provide you will tons of subjects. Applications for still life photography can include taking photographs for magazines. Often magazines have still life photos to show flower arrangements or decorating ideas for the home. With the many choices in photography, still life takes a special eye for arranging objects and understanding lighting techniques. With all of photography being art you need to pick the subjects that will speak most to you and make them speak to others. These types of pictures go well when deciding to sell your photos or display them for the public. All pictures whether you think it or not may be just what someone wants to display and may offer to buy it. This helps you start a real goldmine of a business if you feel confident with your work. 

How To Live a Longer and Happier Life by Being Optimistic

According to a recent article in Mayo Clinic Proceeding, the difference between optimists and pessimists was about twelve years of living. The Mayo research involved examining personalities tests in the early 1960's to a group of 800 people and then following the subjects for thirty years. This enabled the researchers to scientifically measure the relationship between attitude and longevity. Their findings clearly demonstrated that the mind and body are inseparably linked. Among their findings was the fact that pessimists had a 19 percent greater risk of death for any given year than the average person, let alone the optimist. 

In another study on aging and optimism conducted in Oxford, Ohio, the results showed that people with a positive attitude lived 7.5 years longer than people with negative attitudes. This study involved 660 people age 50+. The study examined attitudes toward aging. Subjects were asked if they agreed or disagreed with a wide range of questions related to positive versus negative thinking. The results showed significant difference in longevity between the two groups. 

If being positive is so good for us why isn't everyone an optimist? Are we genetically wired to be one or the other? Or, is our attitude a reflection of our environment and upbringing? In reality it's probably both. Some people are probably more naturally optimistic, while others are naturally more pessimistic. However, whatever your hereditary or environmental predisposition is remember. we all have choices. If your thinking leads to poor health, one of those choices is to change. One of our greatest assets is that we are all blessed with the ability to change and adapt. 

Every setback, every problem, and every challenge in life offers us options on how to perceive and respond to it. The key is not the problem or challenge but rather how we respond to it. 



Martin Seligman author of Learned Optimism: How To Change Your Mind And Your Life: "The optimistic individual makes the most of his talent....The optimistic individual perseveres." 
So, what separates optimistic people from more pessimistic people? Seligman says it's the way we explain events and outcomes to ourselves. If something good happens to us, how do we explain it? Was it luck? Or was it the result of our talent? 
How do we explain the bad things that happen to us? Is it that conditions just weren't right? Or did the bad event happen because we're somehow horribly flawed as individuals? Will this flaw follow us around like a black cloud the rest of our lives? 
After extensive research, Seligman concludes that optimists and pessimists attribute the reasons for success and failure differently. Pessimists tend to attribute failure and bad events to permanent, personal, and pervasive factors. Optimists tend to attribute bad events to non-personal, non-permanent, and non-pervasive factors. They also do this for good events. 
"Permanent" is defined by Seligman means factors that will be with you throughout life. "Personal" factors are those that relate to us as individuals. Seligman describes "pervasive," as factors that affect our efficacy in other parts of our life. 
Seligman writes: "Finding temporary and specific causes for misfortune is the art of hope. . Finding permanent and universal causes for misfortune is the practice of despair." 


A while back I fell off a ladder and broke both my wrists. For several months I couldn't work, couldn't drive and was dependent on others to care for me while I went through a period of physical rehabilitation that seemed to last forever. I could have become depressed and cursed my bad luck. Instead I chose to embrace the opportunity it gave me to learn how to accept help graciously from others. Since I had been self-reliant all my life, this was a capability that didn't come easy. After a short time I learned that as I released the old belief that "I must do everything myself", it became easier to embrace the belief that, "It's okay to let others help". By letting go of my old beliefs I became amazed at the outflow of assistance I received and how I grew as a person as I received it. Those months of rehab could have been the worst days of my life. Instead they were a period of great learning and fortification of my own resilience. 

If you're on the fence on this subject, consider these observations of the obvious: 

. People who believe they can't - don't! 
. People who believe it's impossible - never succeed! 
. People who believe they can't win -- lose! 
. People who believe life isn't worth living - die! 


As I said, the choice is yours. You can live a longer and happier life or a shorter and unhappy one. All you need to do is be positive. This doesn't mean you should become what Seligman describes as relentlessly optimistic and ignore the realities you face. It means understanding the realities and then approaching life in a positive manner. I observed this first hand when a close friend of mine was informed that there were no more treatment options available for his cancer. He was told he had 3-12 months to live. He and his family chose to focus on the 3-12 months he had to live and filled and not the eventual outcome. They filled the time with appreciation, joy, love and life. He's still alive and loving life. one day at a time. 

Here are a few tips for developing a more positive outlook on life: 

1. Find a role model and learn how they react to life's issues. 
2. Associate with positive people. 
3. Stop spending time with negative people. 
4. Become aware of when you are thinking positive. When you do, reflect on the situation and identify other situations (either in the past or future) where this approach would be an asset. 
5. Practice being positive. Select situations where you can prepare positive responses. Remember practice makes permanent - not perfect. 
6. Catch yourself when you are thinking negatively. Examine your thought process and ask yourself if there might be a different, more positive response to the situation. 

Summary 

Remember, nobody is 100% positive or negative all the time. The key is to increase the percentage of time you spend being positive. The more you do it, the easier it will become. Your reward may or may not be a longer life. But it most certainly will be a happier one!

Improving Yourself and Your Life

There are ways and reasons for self-improvement. One of the most important steps is positive thinking because it can bring about success as well as creativity. Believe it or not, this can also act as a stress reducing wonder. When you eliminate the negative thoughts, you are opening the door to positive results using your subconscious mind. 

When you include positive thinking, you are ignoring the bad things and taking your life in your hands in a positive way. Eliminating pessimism is one of the best things you can do to get your life back on the right track. There are many things that are possible when you do this such as becoming a success magnet, problem solving, attract wealth and more. 

There are also health benefits when you adopt a plan of this type. You can increase your life and scare away depression as well as immunity to colds. 

Goal setting is another important step for self-improvement to bring good into your life. Nothing comes by itself because it takes planning. You have to work for it and earn it. Goal setting will help you to develop a road map of where you want to and need to go in life. With a plan in writing you can set goals easily. With a combination of the two, knowing where you are and where you want to go, you can send yourself in the right direction. 

One of the reasons why people may not lead a healthy, meaningful life is that goal setting is non-existent. Chance dictates their lives and this is not the right route to take. Rather than controlling the circumstances, they end up letting fate rule instead of influencing their future themselves. Setting goals can help you reach your goals and make your dreams come true. You can successfully run a business, become a millionaire, use goal setting for problem setting and be more creative in your everyday lives. 

You can tap into your subconscious mind for guidance and intuition if you use it the right way. You can do this. The first step is to learn meditation skills because there are many benefits from it, one of them being the development of intuition. 

You can get help in your dreams while you sleep directly from your subconscious mind. It can help you with mind shifting in a positive direction and also find resolutions to problems. The guidance you receive can help you in your daily lives and help you to live a better life.