Daily Inspiration 8-31-14

"No matter what 

 accomplishments you achieve, 

somebody helps you." 

-- Althea Gibson 

Sometimes, I think we might have an illusion that we accomplish things on our own. Often, people are singled out, whether in history, or in current affairs, or big businesses such as Steve Jobs and Apple, so that many think they were the creators when in all actuality, they may have been very influential, but not one, including Abraham Lincoln, did it alone. They all had help, and many of them had a great deal of help, though naught may be recognized as providing such.

A better way is to understand this from the start and not only accept the assistance, but embrace it. Probably, with many, recognition alone is sufficient reward, to others appreciation. What an inexpensive way toward accomplishment.

Some may contribute in tiny ways, and others in grand fashion. In any case, it is well to acknowledge and appreciate all in the best ways suited to the volume and quality.


Being A Leader Is Not Nearly As Lonely A Job As It Might Seem.

Spread Some Joy Today--by dropping the rope of finding fault with yourself or your actions, or lack of them. Joy is in this direction.

Daily Inspiration 8-30-14

"Don't stop your vacation 

because you think 

you have to go back to work." 

-- Alan Cohen 

I live two miles from Interstate 80 in Fairfield, one of the busiest corridors in northern California between the San Francisco Bay area and Sacramento. Certain times of the day or week it gets very busy. This is especially true for typical Friday evenings after 3pm, but a holiday weekend like this Labor Day, the eastbound direction looks more like a 5-lane parking lot as it did yesterday and it began early in the day before noon and was still going strong after 6pm. Maybe I should have said creeping strong.

Anyway, as I drove over the freeway a couple of times yesterday and saw this spectacle, I wondered why someone wants to get into that flow. I thought, wouldn't it be better to create your own weekend and forget about all that traffic and stress? That's right, make your own Labor Day 3-day weekend next week, or the week after, or August or October. Heck, since you're choosing, it could be any time you like. How about spur-of-the-moment? There's nothing like a spontaneous 3-day getaway. Who says the government needs to agree with you as to when you get a 3-day weekend? Who's in charge, anyway?

Then I thought that if you like the feeling of being on a vacation, why not have that feeling more often? How about any time you dang well feel like it? How about every weekend? Better yet, how about all week long? That feeling, after all, is not a physical thing, but a mental thing. Rather than allowing the calendar to create the feeling, just decide to have that vacation feeling all the time.

A year ago, I became a Tommy Bahama guy. I've always loved Hawaiian style shirts and have owned a number of them, but never the quality of the Tommy Bahama. I wear them all year long. I now have quite a number of them and whether I am wearing nice slacks and good shoes, or shorts and flip-flops, they help me to be a little unique, and more important to me, they help me to feel as if I am on vacation even when I am working, helping clients, teaching classes, whatever. It's just fun for me. Now keep in mind that not all of these wonderful shirts are flowered, but they fit and feel the same so I can look more dressed up or down as my choice.

I love this quote by Deepak Chopra: "The most creative act you will ever undertake is the act of creating yourself." This is our life and we do get to create it any way we want.

When you get back to work after this holiday weekend, consider the words of Seth Godin: "If we can fall in love with serving people, creating value, solving problems, building valuable connections and doing work that matters, it makes it far more likely we're going to do important work." And, I would add that it will feel more like a fun vacation too.


Have A Great Vacation! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by deciding to feel good as often and as much as possible. Find better and better feeling thoughts until you find joy.

Daily Inspiration 8-29-14

"We must be willing 

to get rid of the life we've planned, 

so as to have 

the life that is waiting for us."

-- Joseph Campbell 

I've been considering this very thing for more than just a little while in recent time. It is intriguing, to say the least, and I am, after much thought, willing. That doesn't mean that I know yet what to do, but progress has been made in opening the realm of possibility. It remains to be seen, and I expect that I will have a front row seat.


"The Big Question Is Whether You Are (I Am) Going To Be Able To Say A Hearty Yes To Your (My) Adventure." -- Joseph Campbell 

Spread Some Joy Today--by letting go. Too many ropes to pick up and none of them are helpful. Just let go.

Daily Inspiration 8-28-14

"Never underestimate your power 

to change yourself; 

never overestimate your power 

to change others."

-- Wayne Dyer 

I was talking with someone on the phone today and we had a lot in common, and it was suggested that I might talk to a friend of his to share some of my philosophy and help convince them to change their ways.

It has taken me most of my life to finally figure out the fantasy in this scenario. I have learned after trying so hard and in so many ways that it is virtually impossible to change someone else to our way of thinking. . . unless. . . and this is a very big UNLESS, they are seeking that change for themselves. Generally what will happen without their seeking will be to cause the other to put their guard up, pick up the rope and fight against all foes. In other words, any attempt is more likely to cause a deepening of their current position rather than us thinking there will be some kind of conversion.

I have a lot of opinions as we all do. Yet on topics that are controversial no matter what country you're in, I keep it to myself unless, and only unless, I am asked specific questions demonstrating at least on the surface that that person is seeking. Then, I will share my point of view, otherwise, it will amount to nothing.

Somehow we think that in relationships, including marriage, that we need to think alike. That's garbage. Have things in common? That can be helpful, but believe all the same things? Garbage. It's even a waste of time to consider that fantasy. Knowing what I know now, I can see how one spouse may agree on the surface, and yet withhold the true feelings for the sake of superficial harmony. It's okay. It's better to accept that we can disagree and still live in harmony, because we can, and we must because no two of us will ever think exactly alike.

If you're trying to convince another, it is better to allow them to change themselves. Take your time. Let it be. It's okay. Even different religions can get along nicely while holding different views, yet allowing some similarities to bring us partially together. It is much more beneficial than thinking we may convert them without their full and complete permission and agreement.


We Have More Than Plenty To Focus On Just Dealing Effectively With Ourselves. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Bang a gong, get it on! Or, what the heck, just enjoy your day as fully as you can today. That's all that really matters.

Daily Inspiration 8-27-14

"Change brings opportunity." 

-- Nido Qubein 

I was thinking about change and how often we might feel that we don't like change much unless of course, it is fully to our benefit and perfectly timed. Good luck with that.

What I was realizing is that without change, nothing moves, and nothing happens. Change is necessary. It is desired when we realize that we cannot live without it. Aristotle said, "Change in all things is sweet." He had it down pat.

Sometimes we might think that we need to change for the better because what is or has been being less than perfect. I don't think that has anything to do with it, except that whatever decisions we make are always made in the hopes of feeling better.

It is more about expansion than anything. We are expanding beings, the Universe is expanding, and that is what we want: expansion. Some might call it growth, but I like the word expansion better. We cannot help but expand and change is the only way it can come about.

So many of the quotes I've reviewed about change put change in a positive light and that it is necessary and good. I agree. It's when we are in a rut, or doing the same things over and over without even thinking about it that things get dull. That contrast leads to a desire for a change. We can only sleep so long and then we just have to get up and get going.

Movement is life. Change is movement. When I understand the value of a change in this way, I look forward to the change and the opportunities.


"Change Alone Is Eternal, Perpetual, Immortal." -- Arthur Schopenhauer 

Spread Some Joy Today--by building on your list of positive aspects daily. A great way to start is at the top of the page, write "I love. . ." and then fill in the blank lines. Call it a joy-builder and a life-enhancer.

Daily Inspiration 8-26-14

"If you can't win by reason, 

go for volume." 

-- Bill Watterson 

The process of change is not as full of reason as we might like it to be. It is often full of righteous indignation, superior attitudes, and just plain ego and stress. The best way to deal with it then and not only survive, but thrive, is to do as they do in Judo and let the momentum of their actions fuel their realizations.

Let's say you're a manager in an organization and that you have a certain level-headed philosophy that is not only successful but healthy for all involved. Now, let's say that the upper management is used to doing things a certain way, and your way is not that way. This conflict can grind the whole thing to a stop, or if not that severe, create a great deal of frustration on all sides.

I just rented the movie Hoosiers again because it is such a great movie and this was the case with the new coach. The town menfolk gathered to tell the coach how they've always done it and wanted to make sure that he knew how it should be done, but he was having none of it. He made his own choices and almost lost the position as a result, but at the same time, he won the championship with the same exact decision and commitment.

To me, what this says is that it is best to be ourselves. However, in being ourselves, standing firm with our own philosophy, we have to remember that we are not alone. We need not bow to others, but it is to our mutual benefit that we take them into consideration, and see if we can develop as much cooperation as possible.

I've been in several of these scenarios and found that I could have my way as long as I could demonstrate that it worked. Of course, I knew it did and I got very creative about demonstrating how it worked and in what ways it was beneficial. Without this cooperative attitude, I would have never been able to succeed as I did.

It's not about the right way and the wrong way. That is so old-school. It's a lame argument. And, it has nothing to do with cooperation. It is the opposite of that.

Here are the best things I have found to do in these kinds of tumultuous situations. Focus on you and what you are doing and forget about what they are doing. Again, it isn't about who is right and who is wrong, there are too many ways for a thing to get done to deal with that. Stop thinking about what they are doing or not doing and just perform yourself or with your team. Next, find ways to demonstrate that performance in written ways that the other parties understand. Show them on paper and in reality. Keep good records.

As with the basketball team in the movie, winning games changed the support structure and attitude. It applies here too. Be the best you can be. Create the best team you can create. Don't spend any attention on what other people are doing or not doing or whether you get enough support or not. Do it anyway. Do it well. Do it like you were meant to do it.


Shine! Have Fun! Focus On What Feels Good Not What Feels Crappy.

Spread Some Joy Today--Let them see the shine in your eyes. Don't let others foul your own joy. Your spirit is yours.

Daily Inspiration 8-25-14

"Practice presence. 

Embrace the place 

where life happens." 

-- Eckhart Tolle 

I learned a lot from Eckhart Tolle, and probably the single most important thing I learned was to practice being present. That is no small thing. It is huge.

My life flows smoothly and hardly ever rushed anymore, but much of my life was like so many I see around me, rushing here, there, phone, texts, emails, crises, problems, issues, disappointments, frustration and, well. . . I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. Some get so focused on their own importance that they are in fear of taking any time off, or delegating, or asking for or paying for assistance. It's not a happy life as I recall so well. In fact, it seemed to be full of problems. If it wasn't one thing, it was another.

A couple of years ago, I read The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. It had been out for several years, but it wasn't on my radar. Once it was, I couldn't put it down. Since then, I have been practicing taking my head away from my perceived problems, and focusing on being here and now and at the same time releasing thought.

One of the really easy ways to do this is by taking a walk. Charlie and I did a leisurely long walk today, and it would be common for me to be thinking about all sorts of things so that my mind is spinning around. I sort of enjoy thinking that way, but also keeps me away from being present. So, I practice shutting up my self-talk by telling my mind to shut up and then I look at a tree or bush and focus on a leaf, the tree trunk, the leaves on the ground, and pretty much anything around me. I don't take them all in at once but focus on one thing at a time.

I walk by a bush that has a thousand different colors of green leaves. I am amazed. Sometimes I stop and commune with a tree trunk for a few seconds, touching it, and sensing the living part of it. It is really easy with Nature, but it also works just fine on any man-made object as well, such as, a great looking car or truck, catching a glimpse of someone's eyes for just a moment, Charlie sniffing an intriguing spot.

We went 4 miles today and I was practicing the whole way. Many times, I found my mind wandering, so I would purposefully bring it back and begin again.

And, here is the most beneficial and interesting part of this practice: There are zero problems there. There are no issues. There are no deadlines. There are no frustrations. There are no ills whatsoever. What there is would be only and completely the present moment as if it were a haven from the everyday world. I look at things with interest but don't let my mind offer a bunch of thoughts about it. Instead, it is just appreciating the moment and what is here.

I try to do this in my office or while I'm driving or doing something, and I am getting better, and I need more practice there. But, that little escape into the present of taking a little or long walk is a magic relief valve.


The Peace Of The Present Moment Is Like Stepping Into Another World. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Let go of the rope. Focus on your joy.

Daily Inspiration 8-24-14

"There are many things 

of which a wise man 

might wish to be ignorant." 

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson 

What I put my attention on will increase in my life, and I have learned that I have control over my attention. Often, I've been habitual as so many of us have in allowing my attention to go where it doesn't serve me. The biggest change that I have experienced in my life is the realization that I get to choose what I focus on, what I listen to, what I watch, to whom and what I allow my attention.

Often people have said to me, 'did you hear about _______?' I probably say my usual, 'no.' Then they might say, 'don't you want to know what's going on in the world?' I have to admit that I'm not much interested in that because generally, the news is negative things that I don't want in my life, so why would I pay attention to it. So, then they might say, 'well how can you converse with people without knowing what is going on?' But, talking about those things just makes it more and more dominant in my experience, so I purposefully ignore it to my ultimate bliss.

As Esther Hicks and Abraham say, I've become a selective sifter. If it uplifts, enlightens, teaches me something I want in my life, it comes in without restriction, if it is going to bring me down, cause me to have fear and worry or concern, I have no use for it. Besides, the real truth about news is that it is an extremely small bit of the activity in the world and the vast majority of the activity is positive, not negative.

How about looking at the world from a point of view of being in love with all that is around us. It is a life-giving point of view. Ralph Waldo Emerson expressed it nicely in this way: "He who is in love is wise and is becoming wiser, sees newly every time he looks at the object beloved, drawing from it with his eyes and his mind those virtues which it possesses." The object beloved can easily be anything or anyone to whom we allow our attention. This attitude will change everything for the better.


What A Great Way To Live.

Spread Some Joy Today--by looking through the eyes of love.

Daily Inspiration 8-23-14

"There is no man so low down 

that the cure for his condition 

does not lie strictly within himself." 

-- Thomas L Masson 

Isn't it interesting how when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. . .

I used to sell a lot of books on eBay and at one time had around 15,000 of them in a warehouse, so I was buying and selling all the time. I only have a small number left and one of the books that I had online for years that didn't sell was on one of my bookshelves and as I passed by the other day, it beckoned me to pull it out and open it up.

It is an old library book last checked out in 1970 and was published in 1913. The title is The Great Diamond Hoax and Other Stirring Incidents in the Life of Asbury Harpending. Long title. I thought it was old and in great condition and it would sell, but I was wrong. It was meant to be on my shelf years later so I could pick it up and actually for the first time read a bit of it. Well, it is so fascinating and is about early history of California and such and learning about this most interesting man brought joy and laughter in my joy. It was my fortune to find this book and begin reading it.

I'll tell you just a tidbit that I gleaned from the beginning of the book. He was brought up to be well educated, from a well to do family of means. His "father was one of the largest landed proprietors of Kentucky, in the southwestern section of the State. That was still on the frontier of the Far West." At 15 he ran away from college and tried to join the Walker Expedition going to Nicaragua, was caught and escaped and ended up back home "in a condition that made the Prodigal Son look like 30 cents." His father knowing that his son was smitten with the adventurous spirit, suggested that he go to California and gave him a liberal grub stake when he turned 16.

Asbury Harpending at 16

He went to New Orleans found that his paper money was almost worthless because back then each state made their own, and he found that Louisiana had no desire for Kentucky's money. Yet he had enough for boat passage and had a $5 gold coin left for the rest of his trip. Back then, $5 dollars was enough to do a lot.

On the boat the conditions were deplorable and a boat designed for 400 had 1,000 people on it. There were two stores of fruits that the purser had in two storage areas he was to sell at the destination for a profit, but with so many people, the food ran out very early and the crowd ravaged one of the two fruit stores eating every bit in sight. Then Asbury had the idea to offer a sum to the purser who was probably going to lose the other store the next day, and they agreed on $10, so Asbury gave him the $5 gold coin and said he would bring the other from a locker or something.

Asbury then found a man who was a good sales barker, and began selling the fruit 5 for a half dollar. They sold all the fruit, paid off the purser and Asbury had $400 remaining. He went on to earn many other fortunes in many ways, but this first incident taught him that he had within him the will to succeed and the creative power to consider options that others had not considered. He felt that he was beneath being a "fruit peddler" but found it's ultimate outcome to be more than satisfactory. Now he had enough money to get a good start in California.

I would love to tell more but this is too long already. What I loved about this was one, how young he was. He was only 16 at that time. Two, I loved the fact that he was open to creative ideas and situations. Three, he had talent and also needed help to supply talent he didn't possess, so he hired that. Four, he was focused on the end result of what he wanted most: to get to California, survive, and thrive. Five, he knew he could be self-reliant and acted accordingly, and six, he loved the adventure, or in other words, he loved what he was doing. Last but not least, he learned in this and other adventures to go with the flow of things rather than swimming against the current, and he not only learned to go with that flow, he learned how doing this was beneficial to him.


There's Nothing Like A Grand Adventure! Of Course, 100% Of That Is Mental, So We Can Feel That Way Any Time We Choose. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Allow. Flow. Thrive.

Daily Inspiration 8-22-14

"The greatest weakness 

of most humans 

is their hesitancy 

to tell others 

how much they love them 

while they're still alive." 

 -- O. A. Battista 

Some years ago, I did a consulting work for three years with a company and the main manager I dealt with regularly could not tell his father that he loved him. I was amazed. His father was the head of the business and there every day, but whether at work or at home for family meals, he just couldn't bring himself to say those three words directly to his father. He told me that he loved him, but could not tell his father.

This reminds me of someone who has little or no patience. I learned early on that patience doesn't come, but requires regular practice. The same is true with love and especially expressing that love vocally. Yet what a difference it makes in people's lives when you tell them.

I used to keep that idea about saying I love you to myself as well, and then many years ago, I began purposefully practicing it. First I would focus on feeling it, then I would find a way to practice it by saying it. Sometimes it might be in writing, other times vocally. Sometimes on the phone, other times in person.

I love my clients and so I would tell many of them how I felt. It was fun. It seemed a bit awkward at first, but the more I did it, the more joy I received from doing it. Some of my clients are nose-to-the-grindstone types and saying I love you to them was even more fun. They didn't know what to say or do. At first many of them said nothing, sort of like they didn't hear me, but later, they let go of that big old rope and relaxed in the joy of that feeling themselves.


What A Wonderful, Delightful Gift That Costs Almost Nothing (Maybe Just A Dinky Bit Of Effort), Yet Is So Valuable. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by saying 'I love you!' And, by the way, I love you too!

Daily Inspiration 8-21-14

"You cannot get through

a single day

without having an impact
on the world around you. 

 What you do 

makes a difference." 

-- Jane Goodall 

Jane Goodall added just a bit to this quote by saying, "and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make." I would interpret this just a tiny bit different that might make a huge difference by changing the word 'have' to 'get.' So it would say, "and you get to decide what kind of difference you want to make." I believe we always get to choose if we want to.

The more I learn about life, the more clearly it resonates with me that we are spiritual beings having a physical experience. It also means that we all come from the same source and we are all connected in ways that are hard to imagine in this physical life where we perceive ourselves separate from each other and everything else. I think that the underlying truth is that as Jane Goodall says, that we cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around us. We likely have little or no idea of that impact, but it can be dramatic or small, yet it becomes part of the whole.

Consider some of these ideas:

You are genuinely kind to someone and you did not know that this day was one of the lowest points in that person's life. This act of kindness may have been very small to the giver and a life-changing event to the other.

Maybe something you said in the way that you said it was the impetus to a decision in another that set them on a whole new life adventure of joy and success.

It could be just a look on your face which was a physical manifestation of your inner thought which someone across the room noticed and felt and they became inspired and wanted to feel the way that you appeared to feel.

Perhaps your act of generosity without any ulterior motives was noticed by someone who has been reluctant to express their generosity, and as a direct result of that moment became a more generous person.

Maybe you offered to help someone by giving them instruction from the skills that you have acquired over time, and this bit of training set them on a mighty successful and profitable path.


We may never find out in what way we have touched another that created a benefit to them, but it is certain to me that we will have some kind of impact. Perhaps we can be lucky enough to learn of some of those instances, but even the knowledge that may bring us a bit of joy and wonder is a tiny fraction of the reality of the effect. Knowing this effect and its strength may encourage us to take better care of the opportunity of affecting others. That's why I changed the word from 'have to' to 'get to.' It truly is an opportunity, and when accepted with a joyous heart changes the world in very positive ways.


The Best Way To Have The Best Impact Is Simple: Just Be Yourself. Not The Way You May Have Learned To Be, But The Way You Really And Truly Are Deep Inside. 

Spread Some Joy Today--because you just can't help it if you're joyous.

Daily Inspiration 8-20-14

"I'm at my strongest when I'm able to let go

when I suspend my beliefs as well as disbeliefs

and leave myself open to all possibilities. 

That also seems to be when I'm able 

to experience the most 

internal clarity and synchronicities."

-- Anita Moojani 

Albert Einstein is famous for saying, "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."

I just finished Anita Moojani's OUTSTANDING book, Dying To Be Me, for the second time, and it was even more powerful in the second reading for me. Here's a woman dealing with cancer for four years and is at the end stage with organs shut down and has a near-death experience that causes her to not only come back from death but to do it so quickly that the medical teams could not believe it was possible. Not only could they not believe it, but they also refused to accept it and gave her chemo drugs for weeks after they knew there was no cancer there.

You'll have to read the story and her revelations after, but what I wanted to point out about this is that the medical team has rejected the idea of miracles for so long that they couldn't believe in one--even when it was right in front of their eyes. As Einstein said, "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." Anything is possible to those who believe in possibilities.

Though the doctors are looking on the inside, it is not in the way that Anita explains when she said, "I believe that the greatest truths of the universe don't lie outside, in the study of the stars and the planets. They lie deep within us, in the magnificence of our heart, mind, and soul. Until we understand what is within, we can't understand what is without."

She explains it another way: "Words taken literally or held as ultimate truth can keep us stagnant and stuck, holding on to old ideologies. I now know that everything I need is already contained within me and is completely accessible if I allow myself to open up to what I sense is true for me. . and the same is true for you."

We are far more powerful than we realize when we connect to the miracles all around us.


Look Around In Awe Today At All The Miracles. 

Spread Some Joy Today--See your life full of joy and it will be just that.

Daily Inspiration 8-19-14

"At any given time 

the universe is giving you 

the best result possible." 

-- Deepak Chopra 

Consider the possibility that the universe gives us the focus of our thinking and giving us the best possible result based on that asking. Then, if what we are receiving is not what we are wanting, the question would be with what we are asking rather than what we are receiving. Perhaps we are asking with a lot of doubt. Maybe we are even thinking about how things don't happen well for us.

I was listening to someone who is normally positive the other day, and he said, "it's just my luck for that to happen!" He wasn't referring to a good or beneficial thing, but something that based on his inference was a common result in his life that he didn't much like, yet he talked about it as if it was the way it is in his life as if fate is his deserved result and that the fate is looking unfavorably on him.

Luck has nothing to do with it unless that is what we offer up. A better idea would be to say it the way we want it to be rather than the way it seems to be or the way we are perhaps used to receiving. Sometimes it is very hard, or at least it seems that way, to go against the way things have been for us.

The first step that I have learned that is changing my life in this is to tell a different story. I love the phrase that I picked up from Esther Hicks, "things are always working out for me!" What a wonderful phrase to say over and over again until you actually believe it to be true. Things are always working out for me. I just cannot seem to get it wrong. Good things are coming to me--in fact, they are seeking me out for well being and joy. God is giving me all things good and for my own good and to my ultimate benefit. Everything is always working out for me! 

So, I recommend that it is good to consider that what Deepak Chopra said is very true: "At any given time the universe is giving you the best result possible." We can decide to take full advantage of this by accepting that idea and realizing more clearly exactly what we are asking and what conversations we have about ourselves with others.


"Ask For Nothing Less Than Inspiration." -- Deepak Chopra 

Spread Some Joy Today--by accepting your role as a creator of your own life. Creating some joy will benefit you and everyone around you. Let go of the rope and allow joy.

Daily Inspiration 8-18-14

"The way you help anyone

is by soothing them. 

And so the way you help yourself 

is by soothing yourself." 

-- Abraham & Esther Hicks 

We cannot lift people up by putting them down. If we are to be of service in any capacity that we may be involved in, we must find ways to uplift people enough to help them see their worthiness, value, and power as much as we can. The way to do that is by soothing them and finding positive aspects about them and looking for what is right instead of what is wrong.

I was talking with a young man today who is a senior in high school and he was in a class that revolved around video and news much like a television news show might be but on a much, much smaller scale. He was the director and responsible for achieving results through a team of others. One person was resisting and though each person was supposed to do each task so they could gain experience in different positions, this person just wanted to do one position. The director wondered what to do about that.

Having been a manager for 40 years, I said that it is best to put people where they will excel. When someone wants to do a certain thing, it is likely that this is the best place for them. Encourage him to touch the other aspects, but to focus on the part he likes, and allow others to do the same.

My experience with bad management is trying to have everyone do everything. Great teams, whether in business or in sports or elsewhere are great because they take the best talents of people and put those people and talents together in the places that serve the whole in the most effective manner. So, we need to lift the players up by having them matched to what they desire and what they are good at.

In this way, we can be soothing. Being soothing is also effective in dealing with conflicts with teams, spouses, and others. Again, in soothing, we are finding what is right, what works, allow understanding.

Yet, as important as soothing others can be--and it is--we may often forget to pay attention to the most important person who is ourselves and helping us thrive. As with others, soothing ourselves is so perfect. We are our worst enemy more often than not and with many people, beating ourselves up about mistakes, missed opportunities, and a long list of so-called failures minor and major is an ongoing activity that is not the least bit helpful.

Just as with others, we need to find what is right, to admit that we are okay, that we matter, that our desires are valid, that God or the Universe loves us, that we are okay just the way we are and that we are in fact, love. We will also benefit from making a much longer list of our attributes to do everything we can to point out our wellness and our value.

Truly, we all may benefit from taking fewer things so seriously. We are all worthy, all valued, and all loved.


Take Time Today To Sooth Yourself So You Can Benefit Others. 

Spread Some Joy Today--What's working in your life? Make a list. Make it long.

Daily Inspiration 8-17-14

"No act of kindness, 

no matter how small, 

is ever wasted." 

-- Aesop 

Consciously practicing kindness never hurts either. . .


"Wherever There Is A Human Being, There Is An Opportunity For A Kindness." -- Seneca 

Spread Some Joy Today--through your kind attention.

Daily Inspiration 8-16-14

"True authority dwells within you." 

-- Alan Cohen 

Though it is good to hear about wisdom from others, all wisdom is within you. We are always connected to Source Energy, or God, or the Universe, and even though we may ignore or feel that we don't understand that connection, it is there. As we release any fear about that, we may allow ourselves to dip into it any time we choose. Basically all anyone else can do for us that is inspirational is to help guide you back to this place of our own knowing.


Anything That Resonates With You Is Connecting You To Your Own True Authority. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Take the day off, or at least part of the day off and just chill for a while.

Daily Inspiration 8-15-14

"Do I love you? 

My God, 

if your love were a grain of sand, 

mine would be a universe of beaches." 

-- William Goldman 

I was meditating today and the idea of being adored came to me. I wondered how many people have experienced what it is like to be adored? Better than this, I wondered how many who have experienced the idea of it, and then actually allowed it to be?

Tasha Alexander said what many might think of when being adored. She said, "it's delicious to have people adore you, but it's exhausting, too. Particularly when your own feelings don't match theirs." I get that concept, but that is more like worship I think than adoration.

To me, adoration is more like unconditional love. Many times we might think that somehow we aren't deserving of that kind of attention, but we are. Sometimes we might think that we have to return all of it or it won't be valid. Not true. Unconditional love has no measure. All we need do is allow it.

I don't go to church anymore, but I was a worship leader until 2006, and as a songwriter, also wrote a lot of songs for church with many of them trying to express the love of God, or Jesus as I knew it to be. Often that was different than was taught in church, but that's another story.

One of the songs that I probably put my whole entire soul into every time I sang it in the church was called, Nobody Loves Me Like You, Lord. It's short and starts with the chorus saying, "Nobody loves me like you, Lord. Not even one. No, not even one. Nobody loves me like you, Lord. Not even one. No, not even one. There is no one like you, not one." It goes on to say that even when I am at my best and when I am at my worst and even when I walk away, His love is like an open door and inside that door, I am complete forevermore.

It's not about religion. I know for sure that I didn't create all of this, so whatever that power is, I know for certain is loving us as fully as we ourselves will allow. We may not often plug into that, accept it and allow it on a regular basis, but it just doesn't matter, because whenever we do and will, that adoration and unconditional love are there to comfort us like no other can.

I felt adored. I appreciated being adored. I am enthralled with being adored and being loved fully without condition. It is very rare here on the ground, but it is always available within by just letting go of the rope of resistance and allowing that love and adoration to wash over us. Today, it washed over me again, and it does every time I allow it to do so. I too must let go of that rope and release myself. I recently committed myself to a regiment of about 20 minutes or so a day to meditate and let go of everything. It is working. I am remembering what it is like to be adored.


Allowing Is The Single Most Powerful Action We Can Take. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Allow your love to flow freely and experience the joy in that allowing.

Daily Inspiration 8-14-14

"To me, 

ideas are worth nothing

unless executed. 

They are just a multiplier. 

Execution is worth millions." 

-- Steve Jobs 

The late Jim Rohn was one of my early mentors in personal development. I remember the first cassette tape I got from a friend in a multi-level marketing business who was trying to get me involved gave it and a few others for me to listen to. I was mesmerized by Jim's folksy, and yet common sense approach to becoming better.

On one of his tapes that I listened to, later on, he told the short story of a guy who decided to build a building. It was going to be a skyscraper! He borrowed the money, hired some people, and set about clearing the site and bringing in supplies and building materials to build the building.

Each day, he and his team would bring more supplies and building materials. It was getting crowded on the construction site. The next day was more of the same. It got to the point that people were wondering if he was ever going to use those materials and build something. But, he just kept bringing more stuff in anticipation of getting going on the construction.

Soon the lenders were discouraged, along with the engineers and construction workers and the money stopped flowing. When the money stopped flowing, everything came to a halt. Here was a site with so much building materials and yet after many weeks of preparation, absolutely nothing got built.

Now, on the surface, it might be easy to say that this guy was just loco. But, let me ask a question. Does any of this sound familiar to you? Or, how about if not you, that you might know one or more people that resemble this scenario?

Sometimes it might look like our efforts are constructive and then again, we may need some more information. . . or help. . . or approval. . . or. . .


Like Steve Jobs Said, "Execution Is Worth Millions," Figuratively And Sometimes Literally.

Spread Some Joy Today--Let go of the preparation and simply execute on your joy. It is thought, but even more than this, it is action!

Daily Inspiration 8-13-14

"The true secret of giving advice is

after you have honestly given it, 

to be perfectly indifferent whether it is taken or not, 

and never persist in trying to set people right." 

-- Hannah Whitall Smith 

This quote is indeed great advice and I have learned it from experience. Yet, what is even more important, when we can achieve this, is to never give advice unless it is requested by the party we are giving it to.

Sometimes it is merely, or rather, blatantly, our ego run amok. Many times this advice is meaningless small talk, but that is a great place to bring awareness so we can catch ourselves before we cross into a more important territory.

The truth is as I have seen it over and over again from experience, that people generally don't want advice. They may not even want it when they ask for it, but we will let that be their problem.

A better way? Share your experience and experiences. Share what you've learned and how it benefited you. You're not then an adviser as much as an observer.


There's No Fun In Pushing A Rope Anyway. . . 

Spread Some Joy Today--Where did you hide that joy button? Let's uncover it and push it often today! People might think you're breathing rarefied air. Let them think what they will!

Daily Inspiration 8-12-14

"We are subjected to many illusions

in our daily life. The greatest one is 

the one that keeps us trapped in giving 

our energy to what always has been." 

-- Wayne Dyer 

Back with Dr. Wayne Dyer and his book, There's A Spiritual Solution For Every Problem, I found a fascinating analogy that really helps me see the past in a different light, so I thought I would share it.

From the quote above, he goes on to say about what he calls The Greatest Illusion, "This illusion is characterized by the belief that "The past is the reason why I am continuing to believe in these ways." In some of my earlier writing, I have referred to the wake of a fast-moving boat. The wake is the trail that is left behind and nothing more, just a trail that is in back of the boat. You don't need to be a nuclear physicist to understand that the wake does not drive the boat. Nor does the wake of your life. It is simply the trail that is left behind."

How many times have we all let our past dictate our future by giving it far more attention that it deserves?

Wayne goes on to say, "The wake cannot drive the boat. The wake of your life does not drive you today. But the present moment energy that you put into the events and actions of your past, explaining or excusing your continuing problems does affect your life today. That is the source of those problems, and absolutely nothing more. Just like it is the present moment energy being generated by the engine that makes the boat go forward. The trail that you've left behind cannot drive your life today unless you convince yourself that this is the case, and that is why I call it the greatest illusion."

I thought that was such a powerful way to look at our past and the present and the problems that we think we have today. Excellent.


It's Just The Wake. . . It Has No Power Of Its Own. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Enjoy yourself today. Just for the fun of it.

Daily Inspiration 8-11-14

"Anything you remember 

seems to be the way it was 

because that is how 

you are choosing to remember it." 

-- Alan Cohen 

When I was in grade school around 3rd or 4th grade, I remember playing a game that we called telephone where a number of us would sit on the ground in a circle and one person would whisper something about a sentence long to the person next to them and then they would repeat that exactly to the next and the next until the last person would say it aloud. Then we would compare with the person who started it to see if it matched. It never matched. It always got morphed somewhere along the line. It seemed like we always had about 8-10 people in the game, but what came out at the end was often so funny compared to what was started down the line.

Memories are like that I think in that we may often remember things so differently than even someone who lived through an event with us. It's called perspective and we each have a unique and totally individual perspective. We may agree from time to time, and maybe even more often, but the details will most likely not match.

As memories get further in the past, they may be modified even more to where we are only remembering bits and pieces, and even combining bits and pieces differently as we speak of a memory in different situations. We might call that a memory of convenience.

One thing that I have noticed with memories of people who have passed from this physical life is that I have a pronounced tendency to remember the best, or better things about them, than the things that I didn't like or were painful in some way. Again, that means I am remembering in bits and pieces and arranging them to suit me.

I think it is especially helpful to purposely rearrange details of the past to suit how we want our lives to be today. I don't think we need to go back and find the pain and try to understand it, but rather, to soften any pain felt today by rearranging and re-membering the way things were. It's not so much blocking it out as it is making peace with it. I know some people who carry hurts from the past with them like a badge of courage, but all that is doing is making today so much less than it could be.

One of the best ways to deal with the past is to treat it by practicing your unconditional love. (You are practicing, right?) So often I have used the analogy of the tug-o-war rope and that we are warring with ourselves carrying these hurtful thoughts into the present, so a great way to deal with it quickly is just to picture ourselves physically dropping that rope. Once the rope is dropped, we can cover the whole scene by bathing it in love--even picturing a warm-colored glow descending over everything we see.

We can do the same thing with memories that create fear in us today not just things that have caused hurt. In both cases, softening and re-membering the past is one of the best things that we can do to make today a better place and a happier place.


"Never Underestimate Your Power To Change Yourself; Never Overestimate Your Power To Change Others." -- Wayne Dyer 

Spread Some Joy Today--Practice your unconditional love. You can start with likable people so it is easy, then work up to people you hate. Of course, once you do this, you won't hate anyone ever again.

Daily Inspiration 8-10-14

"Love makes no comparisons." 

-- A Course in Miracles 

One year ago today, my wife, partner and friend passed to a place without worry, sorrow, or any unhappiness. Last year, I took a few days in this format to celebrate just a few things about her life and I am still celebrating; albeit not so publicly. For the last year, I've been realizing just how blessed and lucky I was to be a part of her life for the last 26 of her 60 years. In fact, I've realized a number of things.

One of those things is that life can pass on at any time. In Nancy's case, she went through a lengthy illness, in the case of my father when I was just 13, it was in a moment. If I look back on the entire volume of arguments Nancy and I ever had, it is all now completely insignificant. Of course, therein is a powerful lesson for all that are still alive: don't let your ego rule. It's not about who is right. None of that stuff means anything, really. It's best to let go of that rope as soon as possible.

I've learned that unconditional love is the only love that makes any sense. When our egos get involved, it is always love on condition, and there are often a lot of conditions and they keep changing. But unconditional love never changes. It also takes practice and I've been practicing it earnestly for several years, and in the last several years with Nancy too. She helped challenge me to practice it.

She also helped challenge me to develop patience, which is another thing that requires practice. She helped me practice patience and I couldn't possibly be more grateful for these two gifts than if they came attached with a few million dollars. They are worth far more than money anyway.

Some things haven't changed. I still feed the birds, buying bird seed in 40 and 50 lb. packages. I make sure the bird baths are clean and water is full and fresh. The hummingbird feeders are being cared for. I water the indoor plants but they are not doing as well as when she cared for them. I'm just doing some of it because it was important to her and over the years, it became important to me too I guess.

I've been alone (except for Charlie), but not lonely. It has been a good time where I could be quiet and learn to enjoy this change. I thought seriously about moving, but decided to just stay. They say the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, but more often than not, it is just over there instead of here. I think having moved 43 times in my first 37 years, that living here in one place for 28 years so far has meant a lot to me.

Though I removed a lot of things from the house, there are yet hundreds of reminders and hundreds of photos reminding me of Nancy like the one I've shared here that was at a Valentine's Day Dance while we were taking a break from the dancing. It was before gray hair.

As I look at some of my favorite pictures like this one, I see the love, passion, and joy that we shared so many times over the years. Of course, as in any relationship, it is not all passion and joy; however, there was more than enough for a lifetime. 


Allow Your Loving To Be Without ANY Conditions.

Spread Some Joy Today--Expand your joy by loving all those you come in contact with.

Daily Inspiration 8-9-14

"If it wasn't for dogs, 

some people would never 

go for a walk." 

-- Emily Dickenson 

Well, we know that this statement isn't totally true, but we also know--at least those of us who have dogs--that looking at that energetic, waiting-by-the-door-wagging-that-cute-little-tail dog is so hard to resist being of service to them even though I would rather be in my favorite chair taking a snooze.

And, once out and about following my dog, Charlie, (a tiny specimen), it gives me nearly as much pleasure to watch him find a certain spot in the grass that has just the right smell that it causes him to want to get that smell all over his body, as it obviously does for him.

So, he scratches it, rubs his face on both sides, rolls over on his back and wiggles around down to his tail, then does it again and again and again until he has got all the pleasure out of this particular spot.

Sometimes, depending on the availability of grass on certain walks, this may happen several times. I often wonder what that smell is that is so darn good, but then, deep down, I think I already know. I have often felt that way myself, without the leash, of course.


There's Nothing Quite Like It. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Walk yourself, or take your dog. Either way, it's good. There is joy everywhere.

Daily Inspiration 8-8-14

"Stop giving energy 

to the things 

you don't believe in." 

-- Wayne Dyer 

Continuing with Wayne Dyer's book, There's A Spiritual Solution To Every Problem, the chapter 4 title is the quote above and it leaped off the page at me hitting me right between the eyes so to speak. I know that there are many things that I don't really believe in, yet I have given them far too much energy anyway, and it wasn't to my benefit in the least.

At the top of this chapter, there is a wonderful and telling quote by Michelangelo where he says, "I began to understand that the promises of the world are for the most part vain phantoms and that to have faith in oneself and become something of worth and value is the best and safest course." We so often give energy where it does us only harm and forget the true power that we have in ourselves and in our connection to God or the Universe in the process.

Wayne tells us, "keep in mind the central principle that guides your lifetime in this material universe--as you think so shall you be--seven little words that form the basis for transforming your life. Everything begins with a thought." He adds, "How you look upon the world and the images you have within you determine what you will get in your life. And make no mistake about it, all your thoughts form a bastion of energy that you radiate outward to create the circumstances of your life."

This particular post speaks to harnessing our own innate power by giving our energy to what we want rather than to what at the moment is called reality. Since everything begins in the invisible, for us to focus on the visible and use that as a determination of how we are going to feel or act, is just what Michelangelo was referring to I'm sure. He was choosing to focus on his own power, his own connection to God rather than to what he sees around him in the world.

In our "real world," we might be a salesperson who is not doing so well and is focused on the "reality" of not doing so well and creating fantasies of what the bosses are thinking and when the ax will fall and a hundred other scenarios. But, if we trust that we are in this position and that we have access to the power of God through our connection there, and we know that God is good and wants nothing but good for us, how can we possibly get so down? Only by looking at what we don't believe in. Or, is it that we do believe in that and not the connection with God or the Universe?

There are untold numbers of references I could entertain here about business and personal relationships, even International conflicts. It all comes down to what we choose to give our energy to. Truly, others only make choices for us when we relinquish control to them, otherwise, we are in full control--and in all cases, we are in full control of what we choose to think.


We Can Trust Ourselves And Our Connection To Source, Or We Can Choose Otherwise. It Is Always A Choice. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Accept your power and make your own choices.

Daily Inspiration 8-7-14

"It takes great learning 

to understand that all things, 

events, encounters, and 

circumstances are helpful." 

-- A Course In Miracles 

Wayne Dyer states in his book, There's A Spiritual Solution For Every Problem: "Great learning is an understatement! It takes great faith and courage to begin to view our lives in this way."

Later, he goes on to say, "Our conditioning is so strong that we often have far greater faith in our problems than we do in our ability to no longer have them. We often display a much greater faith in the power of cancer, heart disease, or AIDS than we do in the power to heal them."

To put it all in context, he says, "Our best thinking is exactly where all our so-called problems exist. If we couldn't think about them, they would not exist." And he adds, "You cannot send problems out of your life by attacking them or understanding them in more depth."

What I find true in many cases is that we want to attack them, or prior to attacking them, we want to fully understand them and all the ramifications that may be involved. This is particularly true of disease. I know this from experience that studying it has little or no effect on healing, but it has a huge effect on continuing along that path.

Solutions require different thinking than examining or discussing the problem. As Albert Einstein said so well long ago, "The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking which created them."

The easiest way to solve problems without losing our sanity is simply to acknowledge them as what they appear to be, bless them for what benefits they may contain, and then let go of them so that we can change our focus to solutions instead of focusing on problems. Once acknowledged and then appreciated, they become less of an issue already and this more naturally leads us toward the answers we thought we were seeking, but in truth, we were just beating the drum of the problem in lots of different ways. Hence, letting go is the best place to begin.


All Problems Are Mired In The Past. Solutions Are In The Present. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by connecting with people today and giving them your love and attention.

Daily Inspiration 8-6-14

"By recognition of its existence, 

we invite the power to be known by us." 

-- Wayne Dyer 

I was just beginning another Wayne Dyer book from 2001 called, There Is A Spiritual Solution To Every Problem, and on page 5 of the first chapter, I ran across some outstanding advice that goes way beyond just this book, but is a perfect affirmation or statement to God or the Universe for a lot of things that we perhaps know a little bit about but not much more.

Here's the quote: "For example, in this first step when you are faced with a problem, I suggest that you create a personal affirmation such as: 'I may not know exactly how to access the spiritual solution here, but I fully recognize that a spiritual solution exists.' By recognition of its existence, we invite the power to be known by us."

I don't know about you, but I know in my life that when I have a problem (and that is a very wide field), I am constantly seeking solutions through thinking, logic, comparing the past with the present, hoping for a better future, and so much more. In all respects, I am trying to solve it myself--and frankly, not doing a very good job of it either.

But with the sage advice of Dr. Wayne Dyer and others, we can simply accept that we don't have the answers, give it to God or the Universe so to speak, and allow the answers to come from a place we may not fully understand.

In real-world terms, it is like a guy (like so many of us 'guys') who is a bit lost on a trip and yet refuses to ask for help for directions. We 'guys' know of what I speak. We think we can figure it out. After all, how hard can it be? I used to be a pilot so I know north, south, east and west and I can sort of see myself from above to aid me finding things, but then, sometimes I can't. Even on a recent trip to SoCal when I got lost at around midnight, I thought I knew what to do. But, truly, I needed help.

So Wayne's advice is wonderful because it encourages us to allow for help from the source, or rather the Source of everything who has the power and the full knowledge of what we need when we need it. And, even though we get in the way and try to take charge sometimes, the real answer for us is in letting go and letting God.


I Am Open To Guidance And Support. I Recognize The Power That Exists That Is In Full Support Of Me. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by going from not feeling so good to feeling a little bit better, then a little bit more and more, until soon enough, you are in joy. So INJOY!

Daily Inspiration 8-5-14

"Hope is independent 

of the apparatus of logic." 

-- Norman Cousins 

Hope is such a turning point for so many people. It alone can make the difference between a person continuing to live or choosing to die as Viktor Frankl explained in his book, Man's Search For Meaning.

Hope is also the turning point in the scale of human emotions where it turns from negative to positive emotions. There are many emotions higher on the scale than hope and all the negative ones are below it, so it becomes the emotion of change in that respect.

Our ego loves logic to help make sense in a strange and varied world, and hope could care less about logic. Since hope and optimism are in the same vicinity of each other, I love this quote by Norman Cousins where he says, "optimism doesn't wait on facts. It deals with prospects." Neither hope nor optimism needs logic or facts, and frankly, that is their ultimate power to help us change.


"The Capacity For Hope Is The Most Significant Fact Of Life. It Provides Human Beings With A Sense Of Destination And The Energy To Get Started." -- Norman Cousins 

Spread Some Joy Today--by simply appreciating everything and everyone around you today. Mentally find things to appreciate and watch what happens.

Daily Inspiration 8-4-14

"The only person 

whose respect you need 

is your own." 

-- Alan Cohen 

Once we have our own respect, it seems ridiculous we wouldn't also have that of others. It seems to me that this is the best place to start: within.


R-E-S-P-E-C-T   Y-O-U-R-S-E-L-F! 

Spread Some Joy Today--by allowing your joy to expand and flow. Sprinkle some here, some there, a little all around today. People are craving it and don't even know it.

Daily Inspiration 8-3-14

"What you get 

is what you choose to see." 

-- Albert K Strong 

The whole idea of right and wrong has created unlimited fantasies. It also seems that it is like human nature to focus on what is wrong in a misguided attempt to make it right somehow. Another fantasy. Carl Jung put it so well a long time ago when he said, "what you resist persists." The harder we push against something, the larger it becomes. The more we fight something, the stronger it becomes. There is no percentage of success in pushing against or fighting anything in the hopes of making it something we do want instead of something we don't want.

Fighting cancer is made to sound like a fight worth fighting, yet cancer is now one of the largest enterprises in the history of the world. Billions of dollars are involved. Wars have been fought since the dawn of time and somehow we fantasize that "right" won out over "wrong," or good over evil and so on. George Bernard Shaw put it well by saying, "war does not decide who is right but who is left." The war against drugs has actually increased drugs, rather than decreasing it. In fact, there are so many laws against things that have just made them more.

None of these attempted remedies work and will never work because they are pointed in the opposite direction. They are focused on what is not wanted instead of simply turning and focusing on what is wanted instead. Cancer is not cured by fighting it, promoting it, studying it. Cancer is cured by focusing on health, not the illness. We don't win wars by having bigger and better weapons of mass destruction. There are no winners in war. All are winners in peace.

The other thing to remember, or realize is that there are certain benefits to fighting against things. Most of those benefits are economically focused. If there were no benefits, there would be nothing to fight over.

In any case, it is never what is outside, but what is inside that counts. It doesn't matter what we may perceive others doing to us, or circumstances or things happening to us or catching or contracting this or that, and it doesn't matter who's fault it is because blame is also on the outside. What matters is only how we think about those things and then choose to believe or do by what we choose to focus on.

In my own life, like most others probably, I have found it so much easier to find fault, persecute and inflict who is wrong, speak about eradicating all the evils in the world, and generally becoming more aware and spreading awareness about things we don't really want. I've often grown weary of pushing against things and especially noticing what is not right, or not right yet. With this attitude, it seemed like it never would get right.

Now, I am turning. I have been playing with turning for some time now and have been practicing it, wanting it to become natural in me. It's not how I was taught, but it is what I have now learned, and it feels so much better. The value of my emotions is telling me in which direction I am focused. This helps me to realize I am in total control of my choices of focus. I am now regularly making better choices for me. I will let the rest of the world do as they please.


It's Not Hocus-Pocus. It's Focus-Focus. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by focusing on what you want rather than what you do not want.

Daily Inspiration 8-2-14

"There is no passion 

 to be found playing small-- 

in settling for a life that is less than 

 the one you are capable of living." 

-- Nelson Mandela 

In taking a few minutes to look back on my life, I can see that I have done a lot of things, learned to do things I didn't know how to do, took risks, often followed my passion, and in the rear view mirror, it all came out perfectly, although, at the time, it may not have appeared that way.

Yes, I have done a lot of things, a lot of different kinds of jobs, except. . .

Except for those things that I couldn't figure out how to do. Except for those things that I didn't feel qualified, or even worthy of doing. Except for those things I was afraid of.

One list may look long but it is really short in comparison to the other. . .


I Wonder What That Other List Would Have Been Like. . . 

Spread Some Joy Today--by reaching out to at least one person you haven't talked to in a while. Since you're on a roll, you might try two. . .

Daily Inspiration 8-1-14

"Judgments prevent us from seeing 

the good that lies beyond appearances." 

-- Wayne Dyer 

The ego is very strong and often taken for granted in our lives. Because the ego wants to be number one and everyone else is secondary, judgment of others is a given, and often those judgments are based on assumptions and poor information. Yet, allowing the ego to control us is our own choice. We can choose to let it rule or we can rule.

Today, I went downtown and on the way back I had the passenger window down for Charlie to hang his nose out in the air. At a stoplight, the car behind the car beside me had a lady yelling with anger about this and that and that and this. I thought maybe she was on the phone with someone but I could not see her from my vantage point. She went on for the length of the entire red light.

As the light turned green and we began moving, I was curious to see the person in the car, but they got in behind the person behind me and I did get a glimpse from my mirror as they got in the turn lane to turn left. It was a man and a woman and the woman was on the passenger side. At first, I thought how loud it must have been in his ear for me to hear it two cars up! It was obvious that she was extremely upset and in disagreement with someone.

It would have been normal for me to think what a loudmouth she was and fantasize about why she might have been upset, or to think she is just crazy or something else. At that moment, I thought about loving everyone else on the planet, and I decided to send her love mentally and spiritually. I was lifting her up to her highest self and pictured her bathed in the glow of the love of the Universe, encouraging her to accept it and benefit from that better feeling perspective. I did that for about a mile or two after they turned.

Then I realized that rather than making up judgments about others where ever they find themselves in their travels, that I would simply offer loving thoughts and uplifting thoughts just in case it helps in some mystical way. Who knows if it works or not? I'm not sure that even matters. What matters most is that it works for me.


The Power Of Love Is Undeniable. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by sending your loving thoughts vocally or silently.