Daily Inspiration 10-31-14

"Millions saw the apple fall, 

but Newton asked why." 

-- Bernard Baruch 

Sometimes people say that there are no silly questions. I wonder. . .

Here's a thought I had recently. How much would the water level drop at the coast if all the ships in all the oceans were lifted out of the water? Every time a ship is built and put in the water, a good deal of water is displaced. In fact, that is how they often measure ship size by the weight of the water they would displace, or that would spill out of a completely filled container.

Here's another question. How low was it before ships were ever put in the water? How about one more. If a ship is put into the Indian Ocean, would that have even the slightest effect on the Pacific ocean?

Sometimes a guy just wanders through the day with silly thoughts and silly questions.


"The Larger The Island Of Knowledge, The Longer The Shoreline Of Wonder." -- Ralph W Sockman

Spread Some Joy Today--by just enjoying yourself today. Who knew it was that easy?

Daily Inspiration 10-30-14

"We often take for granted the very things 

that most deserve our gratitude." 

-- Cynthia Ozick 

Up until the last few years, I wasn't grateful on a regular basis. There might be whole days or even strings of many days without the thought of gratitude for something. Sad, but true. But, I have turned that around completely now.

Each day now, I find myself grateful for more and more things in greater quantity. I now practice it all my waking hours to the point that now hardly an hour goes by without my having gratitude for something or someone. It is closer and closer to pure joy and awe.

I'll give you some examples. Trash collection. The more I think about this service, the more gratitude I have for it. I take the trash out and put it in a receptacle and once a week the truck comes and takes it away. Can you imagine a month without trash collection? We would be buried.

Here's another: running water. In terms of history, it was a nanosecond ago that we had to go down to the creek with buckets and carry it back to the house. If you wanted hot water, you had to heat it on the stove. Just think what it took in labor to have a hot bath. Now, I just get in the shower and turn it on (probably the other way around. . .) and there it is. It is effortless. Anytime I want a drink, I lift the handle and there it is clean cool water.

These two things are commonly taken for granted, yet other than a roof over my head and clothes on my body, they are at the top of the list of things that affect my life. There is a long list of these kinds of things that we can focus on and be truly grateful for every day. Like the computer, I'm typing on and the Internet I'm connected to. It is all so awesome to contemplate.

How about the weather? I look forward every day to experiencing the weather. Frankly, I could care less now what the weather will be like, but that I enjoy every moment of it. Yesterday we had 30-50 mph winds all day. It was glorious. Cloudy, overcast, sunny, cold, warm, rainy, dry, they are all so perfect and all so very interesting. I used to complain about the weather. I NEVER complain about the weather now. Each day is like a snowflake--all different in some way and each unique.

These are just a few examples of how I find gratitude in every single hour of every day. It is a whole new world for me in my later life. You might say, I have been reborn. I can now find joy anytime I decide to open myself up to experience it. There are no limits to how much gratitude I can have. The more I find, the more I find.

This change has been gradual and has really moved quickly in the last few years. There is a book I read that really had a large influence on getting me started on this path. It is Power In Praise by Merlin R Carothers. Books that I read later kicked it into high gear. Some of these books are, The Gratitude Effect by Dr. John Demartini, The Astonishing Power of Emotions by Esther and Jerry Hicks, The Power of Intention by Dr. Wayne W Dyer, and many others. Their influence of directing me toward gratitude for everything has been life-changing.

You will find, as I have, that becoming a gratitude finder will be the best thing that will ever happen in your life. Ever.


I Am Thankful Every Waking Hour! 

Spread Some Joy Today--Feel the joy that comes from being thankful every hour. It's okay to smile outwardly. Inside your ecstatic! Way cool.

Daily Inspiration 10-29-14

"As human beings, we are endowed 

with freedom of choice, and we cannot 

shuffle off our responsibility 

upon the shoulders of God or nature. 

We must shoulder it ourselves. 

It is our responsibility." 

-- Arnold J Toynbee 

I love that phrase, "freedom of choice." I was thinking about freedom of speech and that out of love and respect we allow others to say that which they will. At the same time and within the same love and respect, each of us has the right to choose that which we are willing or interested in hearing. I guess you could say that with freedom of speech, we must accept freedom of attention.

It's almost election day and for the last couple of weeks, I've received a plethora of odd sized flyers and publications about the candidates. Of course, it is them talking about them, and it reminds me of resumes. I think resumes are such a waste and I would never believe one, and for the same reason, I suppose, I feel that way about those political resumes I just mentioned. Blah, blah, blah. How they are crime fighters, baby kissers, independent thinkers, brilliant strategists, all out for jobs, and other such ideals seems to be the way they always approach elections.

That caused me to think that I could care less what they have to say. The thing that might interest me is what they do, and what they have done, and not from their point of view, but my own or that of those I trust.

I like how Ian Percy states, "we judge others by their behavior. We judge ourselves by our intentions." It seems to be the other way around in most elections.


"Love Is A Choice You Make From Moment To Moment." -- Barbara de Angelis 

Spread Some Joy Today--by remembering that regardless of what is, you always have the choice of what to think, and how to feel. Think joy, feel joy.

Daily Inspiration 10-28-14

"If you judge, 

investigate." 

-- Seneca 

Maybe you've heard someone say, or maybe you've said to someone, "they have a bad marriage," or "that was a bad business decision," or "their behavior is so bad," or "he has a bad temper," or "that was a bad move," or "what a bad choice that was," or "business is so bad," and hundreds more.

Questions: Was it really bad? Was it all bad? What specifically was bad about it?

I had a thought the other day and wrote it down. It was this: What is good about bad? What is right about wrong? What was fantastic in the terrible?

In yesterday's sharing, I mentioned learning from Anthony Robbins and his book, Awaken the Giant Within. I know this is where my idea the other day came from. It comes from page 201 in the hardcover volume that he calls The Problem-Solving Questions. There are five of them, but I only want to focus on number one right now. That question is, "What is great about this problem?" This led me to ask, "what is good about bad?"

So, what is good about bad? It is impossible that anything is all bad, or all good for that matter, so there have to be things that are good about bad. The life-changing key to asking these kinds of questions is a renewed and more whole perspective of life in general.

Let's try a few. Let's say you're broke and you're barely getting by and all you can think of is how little you have and how much you want some more money. I've been there and know that feeling. It sucks. Big time. So, what is good about this? You might scream, "nothing is good about that." But, that isn't true, so let me ask, "if there could be something good about it, what might it be?"

Some possibilities: you always wanted to know what it was like to be broke and now you're experiencing it for real. Or, now that you are here, there is only better from this point." Or, look how much I have learned about what not to do about money, so I am going to make a list of better choices so that I need not experience this again. Or, I'm seeing now how my lack-mentality or lack-thoughts have brought me to this place. Now I can change those thoughts to prosperous thoughts and draw more from the world of abundance. There are a long list of positive aspects that can be seen if one only takes the chance to open up and look.

Whatever the problem is, whatever is perceived as bad, or wrong, find the wherewithal to ask Anthony's question number one: What is great about this problem. Or what is good about this bad? Everything is perception and perception is one of the most malleable things in our life. It is as easily changed as we allow it to be.


"Questions Change The Resources Available To Us." -- Anthony Robbins 

Spread Some Joy Today--by asking good questions. What is great about today? How does that make me feel?

Daily Inspiration 10-27-14

"It's not what happens to you, 

but how you react that matters." 

-- Epictetus 

As I grow and become a more calm and joyous person, I still have what feels like automatic reactions to things. It might be a statement someone made, a criticism directed toward me or something I was a part of. I know it is my ego and my ego is the one reacting, but I am ultimately in control of that aspect of me as much as any other, so by virtue of the idea of practice, I improve the results over time.

What is true now is that even though I may initially react and even open my mouth and speak back to the perceived attack, I catch myself in action and take back my control and sensibility. I might even stop mid-sentence, but stop I will. And, over the years of practice, these outbursts of emotion are less, and they are absolutely less intense and far shorter in duration. That is what I love about practice.

My goal is a calm consideration and if I am to react, I want to react with love. Life is way too short to go around being upset about trivial things--and believe me, in the scheme of life and death, all this stuff is trivial. Besides, when someone is attacking another for whatever reason, it really isn't about the one they attack, it is always about themselves and how they feel and think. We create our own enemies inside ourselves. That's still too deep for many, so I promote practicing calm consideration and love in all our reactive moments.

Anthony Robbins helped me with some vocabulary on this subject and others by simply changing a typically overused word or phrase to something different. For example, go from, "I'm so pissed at you!" to "I'm quite tinkled about you right now." That changes everything. If it doesn't get you laughing, we can dig deeper into Anthony's word and phrase arsenal.

I quoted this from Mr. Robbins back in 2012 in the February 12th Daily Inspiration, and it is easily worth quoting again from his book, Awaken The Giant Within: "From Tinkled To Turbo-Charged -- What would your life be like if you could take all the negative emotions you ever felt and lower their intensity so they didn't impact you as powerfully, so you were always in charge? What would your life be like if you could take the most positive emotions and intensify them, thereby taking your life to a higher level? You can do both of these in a heartbeat."

Go from being angry to disenchanted, anxious to expectant, disgusted to surprised, exhausted to a little droopy, frustrated to fascinated, overwhelmed to in demand, stressed to energized. Then go from being awake to raring to go, cool to outrageous, determined to unstoppable, energized to turbo-charged, good to vibrant, happy to totally blissed, strong to invincible.

These are the kind of word changes I have so much fun with when people ask mundane questions such as, "how are you today?" or "what's new with you?"


Going From Pumped Up To Soaring! 

Spread Some Joy Today--It's as easy as flipping a switch. You get to flip it.

Daily Inspiration 10-26-14

"Almost all absurdity of conduct 

arises from the limitation 

of those whom we cannot resemble." 

-- Samuel Johnson 

You see the lives of well known people such as, Steve Jobs, and others who found their place in life and continued on that path to greatness. On a more personal scale, we might see those in our family or from our list of friends who find something they are good at and then they do that all their lives becoming experts at what they do.

Often when we might think of these people, we might think they had passion for what they did and that drove them on toward greatness. It does make sense that they would have a passion for what they were doing and even though it might be a life-long passion, we find that even more endearing.

I had this thought the other day that I have had a number of mini-passions, rather than one lifelong passion. I had a passion for playing guitar and singing; albeit without lessons, but it was a mini-passion. Then I had a passion for songwriting, and then recording music, working sound reinforcement, then just being a musician. I had a passion to sell things on eBay and get a shooting star rating. I've had a mini-passion for commercial trucks, teaching, being a sales manager, writing a book, being a husband, and the list goes on.

What I've come to find is that these mini-passions are just perfect for me. If we really looked at Steve Jobs, we might find that he too had a lot of mini-passions, yet so many along a certain path, yet off the path enough that it wasn't one long passion.

In addition, as I look at what I've read about Steve Jobs and his life, it was adversity that caused his real rise to fame. It was getting fired from Apple that led to his greatness because it caused him to become great within himself. I can relate to that because I've had a similar situation where I got fired and it led me to places I never would have thought of and all of them a substantial improvement.

So, where ever you find yourself, I think allowing the passions within you to express themselves is perfect and being concerned about whether they have a long lasting presence is a waste of energy. Go with the flow however long it lasts and move on to the new passion. I'm hoping that with myself and with you that those passionate thoughts will keep a steady stream of excitement and suspense.


A Long Time Ago, A Friend Said To Me: "When The Surf Is Up, Hang Ten!" It Is Still Great Advice. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Choose to have some fun today. It is always that easy.

Daily Inspiration 10-25-14

"He who trims himself to suit everyone 

will soon whittle himself away." 

-- Raymond Hull 

I was talking with an old friend today who shared some of the mentors that I was reading and listening to in the mid-80s like Anthony Robbins and others. In addition, after I was not in this persons life anymore, she was following the edicts and advice of some friends who were also studying self-help and some organized help services to help become a better person.

What was interesting in this conversation today was that she said that at some point she just decided that she was not in need of being fixed and that there wasn't anything wrong with her and so she just let all that stuff go.

Now, of course, there are things that we all need to continue to learn to expand as beings on this planet, but chasing the latest self-help guru is not for everyone. Some will obviously benefit from that, but others, like my friend, have heard enough and decided to pursue their life ambitions and life experiences rather than try to be someone who they are not.

I applaud that decision and that she was consciously choosing to accept herself the way she was as being already whole and not in need of change at that time. This may also change, but I could tell that she felt so good about her choice back then.


Accepting Ourselves The Way We Are Is Always Our Own Choice. . . So Is Changing. We Are In Control. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by taking what resonates with you and leaving the rest for someone else. There is no joy in resistance.

Daily Inspiration 10-24-14

"Henry Ford, poor and uneducated,

dreamed of a horseless carriage,

went to work with what tools he possessed,

without waiting for an opportunity to favor him,

and now evidence of his dream belts the entire earth.

He has put more wheels into operation

than any other man who ever lived,

because he was not afraid to back his dreams."

-- Napoleon Hill,

Think and Grow Rich

I love Henry Ford. In my heart, I have always sort of been a Chevy guy, but I love Henry Ford. The quote above is a good part of it. He believed in himself and he had a strong desire. He had to have said to himself many times, "I'm going to get 'er done, no matter what it takes." Well maybe without the drawl. . . However, he has been known to say, "I want it and I'll have it!" Now, that is a pure power right there. Pure power. Desire, commitment, determination, follow through. An amazing man.

Have you ever felt so strongly about anything you wanted? If you did, you must have received it. There is so much power in the decision. To say, "I'm going this way!" And, then confidently, going that way. Believing all the way.

Or, beginning on a project knowing full well you don't have everything you need and doing it anyway, expecting it to all work out well. That, my friends, is courage!

I've heard people say, "you have to count the cost," or, "wait until you're ready, the time is not right," or, "what do you know about ______?" A lot of dreams and ideas get washed away like a wave covering the sand on the beach with those comments.

Here's an idea for you: Any of you have children? Did you have it all planned out up front before the moment of conception? All the issues were covered and consulted with experts? All financial preparations made prior to the need, like college, tutors, braces, etc.? How about all the emotional coverage? The spiritual stuff too?

How about marriage? Was all that planned out ahead of the need and the funds set aside for the home, furnishings, transportation, children, etc.? The emotional issues? The spiritual issues? The daily issues?

All good, right? Yeah, sure!

Well, you found a way anyway, didn't you? You dealt with it as it was happening, right? You might have even enjoyed the process of the transitions from one place to another. You also made mistakes. Plenty of them. And, of course, you had many, many successes. You dealt with all of them in real time.

So, what's the deal? If you can take two of life's biggest challenges like marriage and children and figure it out, you can do the same with business, your career, the things you've always wanted to do and have put off year after year. If that doesn't give you a bit of confidence, I don't know what will.


YOU'RE GOOD. YOU'RE SMART. YOU CAN GET 'ER DONE. YOU'VE ALREADY DONE IT. YOU'RE WORTHY! YOU CAN ENJOY THE JOURNEY TOO. SO GO 'FER IT! TODAY! START NOW! Give Yourself The Praise You Deserve!

Spread Some Joy Today--Give Someone Else Some Well Deserved Praise (Or Just-For-The-Heck-Of-It-Praise). The Practice Will Help You Praise Yourself!

Daily Inspiration 10-23-14

"After a time, you may find that 'having'

is not so pleasing a thing, after all, as 'wanting.'

It is not logical, but it is often true."

- Mr. Spock, Star Trek

When I read this quote, I related to it immediately. It is often very true for me.

Some recent (last few years) examples: I wanted a very special and very rare electric guitar. I found one, bought it. Then I never played it and sold it. I wanted a treadmill, bought it and I have used it about 5 times in three years. Mostly it takes up space by owning it. I could probably list almost every possession I have and it would be that way, though most of them are just here or in storage, again not being used.

I've thought about this often and it feels kind of weird to want things, finally get them and then not care about them anymore. I think Spock is right: "It is not logical, but it is often true." Of course, I also have things I love and use and continue to take pleasure in.

The thing for me to reconcile is that it is natural and okay to want things. It is also okay to get them. And, if I no longer really want them, or they no longer hold that value I thought they would have, it is okay to let them go again. Sort of like catch and release fishing. It's that the things are just not that important, but the desire is.

This made me think of advertising by P.G. & E., our local electric and gas provider. They advertise that they encourage people to conserve power as if that is critical. The government encourages the same and I'm sure that P.G. & E. does this partly due to government encouragement. But conservation is not the answer.

I see a lot of ads by Shell Oil and Chevron about conservation, using less fuel and how good a thing this is for everyone. That's like a car dealer saying don't buy so many cars. It's so stupid to hear them say that when this is diametrically opposed to what they do as a business. Conservation is not the answer.

The answer is not conservation, it is desire and expansion. The energy solution is new types of energy, and especially cheaper and renewable energy, instead of doing the same things and expecting a different result (insanity). The desire for something new creates expansion until something new arrives.

The same is true with us. We are desire-driven creatures. Desire is good. Holding it down and beating it up is not good. An expansion is a good thing. Believing that abundance exists is good. Creating shortages and promoting that concept is not good.

Play with your desires: I ran across this from Bob Proctor and others. It is big fun and quite rewarding. Take out a few sheets of paper or a notebook. Now, write everything you want until to have at least 101 things. Trips, places you want to go, things you want to do, people you want to meet, situations you want to happen, businesses you want, anything you want regardless of its size or cost. Pay no attention to any of the 'how' part, just focus on what pleases you when you think of it. Pay attention only to 'what' you want, as if the 'how' did not really matter at all.

This will be a powerful thing for you to read again and again and watch what gets crossed off. It is really fun and you will be amazed at how many get crossed off in a relatively short period of time. We are desire-driven. You are in charge!


I Will Get My. . . Satisfaction. I Will Get My. . .

Spread Some Joy Today--Call One Or Two Special People And Tell Them You Love Them. Out Of The Blue Is Cool.

Daily Inspiration 10-22-14

"Strength does not come from winning. 
Your struggles develop your strength. 
When you go through hardship 
and decide not to surrender, 
that is strength."

-- Arnold Schwarzenegger

"What convinces is conviction. 
Believe in the argument you're advancing. 
If you don't, you're as good as dead. 
The other person will sense that something isn't there, 
and no chain of reasoning, 
no matter how logical or elegant or brilliant, 
will win your case for you."

-- Lyndon B Johnson

Rags to riches. Don't you love those kind of stories. It's not always hard work, though it certainly looks like it and maybe it even feels like it at the time. Whether it is hard or not is not the real issue, it's the commitment--the belief in your own ideas and dreams and plans. No one else will be convinced unless you are, so you will need to work on yourself far more than everyone else.

Frankly, I think that is the good news because that is where all the power of your idea is born: in your developing belief. It is easy to think you believe when you think about it and even visualize it and perhaps carry it with you for a time, yet it is the testing of your belief in your own dreams that gives you the strength you really need to succeed.

Isn't that interesting? I know it because I am going through this very thing and I am amazed and enlightened by the realization of what is really going on. Actually, this realization excites me and I am looking forward with keen interest at what will transpire in the year 2015. It will no doubt be a critical year in my growth and the growth of our companies.

The more I see how this works, the more fascinated I become.

Do you have anything that is testing and strengthening you? If you become fascinated rather than frustrated, you can walk confidently through the valley of the shadow of strange times and do it with joy. How cool is that?


I Turn My Frustration Into Fascination! It Is So Much More Interesting And Rewarding.

Spread Some Joy Today--Whatever is testing you can be changed to joy. Fine tune your argument to strengthen your belief. Enjoy the process. It can be fun.

Daily Inspiration 10-21-14

"Formal education 
will make you a living; 

self-education 
will make you a fortune." 

-- Jim Rohn 

There's a movie that just came out on DVD titled, The Ivory Tower. It is about how college in this country has become a serious problem in that there is well over a trillion dollars in student loan debt and what a burden it is on the students and also the country and how one used to be able to work part-time jobs and put themselves through college and now the costs have risen so high and so fast that it is nearly impossible today.

I have long thought that college can be wonderful if someone wants to be there and they are there to absorb all they can, and at the same time, it is equally responsible and acceptable to do something other than college.

Earlier in my life, people would state that you make so much more money with a college degree and yet I've known people with college degrees who are poor. It is said to open up opportunities not open to others, and I have found that to be a falsehood. It is true that it is pushed from the top down and the bottom up as the minimum requirement for success in the world, and that is bunk too.

I work a little in a disadvantaged youth program and in that program they are all also encouraged to go to college. Most will not.

Here's a quote from the movie, The Ivory Tower by Michael Roth, President of Wesleyan University: "Many intellectuals are saying that it would be better if some people don't go to college at all. I think that's an assault on democracy and it's an attempt to keep people in their place and reinforce social inequality." So, according to him, college is the ultimate equalizer, and of course, all colleges are equal as well, right? An assault on democracy? Really? . . . Interesting.

I'm not against college. That would be silly. I'm not against people being in debt. That is certainly their choice. They must have signed the papers at some point and spent the money. I'm not against the need for more education, or so-called higher education. I'm not against people who have college degrees and multiple degrees.

The movie tends to paint a picture of a national problem larger than health care and is expounding on the problems and how they came to be. I am with the movie on the point of the reality of where a college education is now, but I am not much of an advocate of focusing on problems.

I am for the idea that college can be a choice and not going to college can be an equally good choice. I am for the idea of education and including higher education, whatever that is. I am for the idea of life-long learning. I am for the idea of self-education. I am for the idea that all people are equal in their opportunity of education in this country, regardless of how disadvantaged they may think they are. Education is a choice. It is still a choice. We are all in full control of our own choices.

There has never been an opportunity for education as exists in today's world. We still have free libraries. We have free Internet education sessions--even college-level courses online. These choices did not exist even 100 years ago, or even 50 years ago, or even 25 years ago. And. here's the best news: They exist NOW.


If You Think About It, It Really Is A Brave New World. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by listening to your inner knowing. You already know the answer, just allow it to come forth.

Daily Inspiration 10-20-14

"I think of life itself now 

as a wonderful play 

that I've written for myself, 

and so my purpose 
is to have the utmost fun 

playing my part." 

-- Shirley MacLaine 

What a perfect attitude and philosophy for life. I create my own reality. I create my own circumstance. I am the creator of my life. I am responsible and I am fully in charge of it. Nothing external to me has more power than I myself control. I am.

I love how Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel says, "How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone."

Even the ancients decree as Euripides stated: "There is just one life for each of us: our own."


"Wheresoever You Go, Go With All Your Heart." 
 -- Kongzi 

Spread Some Joy Today--by simply and exquisitely being you.

Daily Inspiration 10-19-14

"Mistakes are the best teachers. 

One does not learn from success. 

It is desirable to learn vicariously 

from other people's failures, 

but it gets much more firmly seared in 

when they are your own." 

-- Mohnish Pabrai 

Although I agree that mistakes are great teachers and that doing and missing the mark can have huge advantages to lead toward the ultimate objective. I also agree that it is great to learn from others and their mistakes so that we might avoid the necessity to make our own, and that probably it is our own mistakes that give us the most power of learning.

Yet, there is one statement in this quote that I completely disagree with. Mr. Pabrai says that "one does not learn from success." Indeed, I think we learn as much from success or perhaps even more than from any mistakes. All you have to do is watch children when they are very young and one can see how much children learn from success.

From a willingness to do, there is the potential for success or failure. Although those words can be confusing, each of them indicates an outcome. It is not necessarily the final outcome because each outcome indicates some kind of movement along a path. You've heard the old phrase that two wrongs don't make a right, so two failures don't make success either. Potentially one can make mistake after mistake and never succeed I suppose, yet they can make success after success and grow stronger, wiser, and more fluent in success.

I think it is far more important to praise what is being done well or right, and so success is as much a learning tool as a failure in any endeavor.

The easier way to see this is that they are just actions and results, neither good nor bad, they just are. What we do with those results is the key, and we will typically grow much faster and more surely by stringing successes together.


Little Successes Lead To Larger Ones. Go Forth and Play With Success. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by giving yourself the gift of allowing yourself to enjoy your day fully.

Daily Inspiration 10-18-14

"To practice the process of conflict resolution, 

we must completely abandon the goal 

of getting people to do what we want." 

-- Marshall B Rosenberg 

Today I want to share a most powerful video that holds relevance in all areas of our lives, from interactions with clients and employers, coworkers, spouses, children, antagonists, and more. Maybe even watch twice. See this link to see some of his excellent books on the subject of nonviolent communications: Amazon

"We Only Have What We Give." -- Isabel Allende 

Spread Some Joy Today--by allowing your love to flow freely and without any need of return.

Daily Inspiration 10-17-14

"Life is never against you 

because you are the one 

who is creating it." 

-- Akemi G 

Once we can choose to accept that (and it is a choice), we are purely empowered to never ever be a victim again. We simply make another choice if one we have chosen is not to our liking. You could call it personal responsibility, but I think it is more like ultimate authority.


"When Things Happen, Live Them. When They End, Move On. Accept And Enjoy Bewilderment In The Flow." -- Akemi G 

Spread Some Joy Today--by accepting your own choices and celebrating them.

Daily Inspiration 10-16-14

"There is always a gift in any challenge." 

-- Bronnie Ware 

We're in the Internet business, and specifically in Internet marketing via websites, blogs, social media, etc. It is alive and moving all the time, so there is always something new to learn. As soon as you think you know what you're doing, you find that you're not quite there, nor does it look like you will ever be. It is like a lifetime journey without a destination.

In our travels we have run across a number of IT people. IT stands for Internet Technology and it generally is associated with setting up networks, testing systems, insuring Internet security and such. Some of those we have come across have been so arrogant in thinking they know so much and questioning everything we say. It is like ego's run amok. Of course, arrogance is a fearful emotion, and when we realize this, we know where their mind is really at.

Then sometimes a client will bring a new employee in to work with us and sometimes it feels like against us because they are thinking that they know how it should work and of course, we are not up to speed and in need of assistance. So, there is a lot to tiptoe through sometimes with these knowledgeable people.

Then again--and this is the important part, they are right. We do have things to learn, and they can be helpful in teaching us. They do this most often by bringing up what they see as a problem that we didn't see as a problem. And, if we don't address it well, they will often be persistent in getting their problem answered.

Considering that we have been doing this for seven years, it would be easy enough for us to get arrogant about such requests. We have to remind ourselves that we will always have much to learn about what we do and all of the nuances that are involved.

And guess what? When we let go of the rope of resistance and sincerely search for the answer to their question, we learn. Often we learn something we were clueless about and it reminds us the power and ultimate purpose of challenges. In the last month, we have learned about two such things that are important to learn about what we do. I won't tell you what they were because then you would know how little we know. . .

So there are two important lessons here. One is that in the face of any challenge, it is a really good idea to look for the gift, because somewhere in that challenge, it is surely there. And, the second thing is to choose to remain an eager student. There is always something to learn and it doesn't matter where we learn it from as long as we are open to learning more.


"You Are An Unfinished Work In Progress. One Of The Good Things About Life's Challenges: You Get To Find Out That You're Capable Of Being Far More Than You Ever Thought Possible." -- Karen Salmonsohn 

Spread Some Joy Today--by sending someone a note of gratitude and appreciation.

Daily Inspiration 10-15-14

"Confidence is what we get 

when we take fear, 

face it and replace it." 

-- Tim Fargo 

Sales training is something I've been involved in for a very long time, and I've come to know some things about training people up to do well in sales. In the last many years, I've been more focused on outside sales people which involves going out and finding business rather than awaiting its arrival by default. I've learned even more about that aspect of sales.

I have a sort of "system" about outside sales to insure that when someone is hired for the position the sales person themselves and the manager who manages them will know relatively soon how it is going to go. If the system is not used, it is often more of a guessing game and people will be held longer than necessary and then fail. That's the whole purpose of the system. I always remembered that my mentor Jim Rohn said that "the purpose of training is to find out who you have." I have learned that this is wise and true.

I was thinking a day or two ago about this subject and how I thought that if I could get that trainee's head in the right place, that all would go forward like magic. Isn't that the same thing with our children and when dealing with each other? So, as with salespeople, children and each other, one of the purposes of training, or at least surviving training, is to get their head, and our own in the right place that is most conducive to success.

When you're trying to sell a concept to a potential buyer. You may know they need it and how beneficial it may be, along with what an awesome value it is, but that knowledge is not fully effective until we can transfer it to our prospect. If we could just get their head right, it would be a slam-dunk, right? Of course, that is in essence the sales challenge always. We all know this I'm sure, but I'm now applying that scenario to training.

We have a relatively short window for initial training to do its job. Because we have a short window and results are what we are ultimately looking for, we focus on action. It's what we have been trained to do since childhood. But, it is the mind that matters most. The mind and the heart working together, or rather playing together, along with some knowledge and practice can work wonders quickly enough if properly done.

Some speak of motivation. I want to motivate my team to perform. That's not really how it works, especially long-term. What works best from my own experience is leading them, complimenting them, explaining benefits to them, finding things they do right or well, even when it is not as well as we would do. There is one really good word for that: Encouragement. I have found nothing in my own life, and nothing in my training life that works as well as encouragement. It's okay to find things that are not working to try to get them back on track as long as we find more things that deserve encouragement and praise.

These are the things that get the head and heart in the right place. The system is only a tool to use in the meantime until we can see who we have and then having found them, win them over.


"Nine Tenths Of Education Is Encouragement." 
-- Anatole France 

Spread Some Joy Today--by allowing the real you to show. Take the mask off.

Daily Inspiration 10-14-14

"Did I offer peace today? 

Did I bring a smile to someone's face? 

Did I say words of healing? 

Did I let go of my anger and resentment? 

Did I forgive? 

Did I love? 

 These are the real questions. 

I must trust that the little bit of love 

that I sow now will be many fruits, 

here in this world and the life to come." 

-- Henri Nouwen 

These are great questions and as great as it is to ask them about how we interacted or affected others, it is somewhat more important to direct those questions to ourselves and our own inner life. From that risen plain, we cannot help but be those things to others. You could say that it would then be in our nature, or once chosen and practiced becomes us, and then infects or affects each and every encounter.


"We Have No Idea What Tomorrow Will Bring, But Today Is Overflowing With Potential." -- Allan Lokos 

Spread Some Joy Today--No sense waiting. Choose it now.

Daily Inspiration 10-13-14

"Understanding reduces the greatest 

 to simplicity, 

and lack of it causes the least 

to take on the magnitude of complexity." 

-- Raymond Holliwell 

I was thinking about diets. I've read about and even practiced a number of different popular diets over the years, such as The Belly Fat Cure, Adkins Diet, The Makers Diet, The Wheatbelly Diet, and there are others. I bought the books and on some, I ended up eating the covers, and others I worked at for a while. None worked long term, and that is because I didn't use them long-term as they were so limiting. We all are looking for that magic pill diet that makes it all go away quickly and never come back. That alone creates a multi-billion dollar industry in diet plans and diet cookbooks.

But, I finally found the diet that actually works. I call it the 2-Q Method. Rather than any complicated measuring system, this has none. Rather than counting calories or fat or carbs, this counts nothing. Rather than making a list of good foods and bad foods, this diets makes common sense out of that. Best of all, this diet is incredibly simple, and I'm going worldwide with it right now and not charging a penny for anything. Are you ready?

The 2-Q Method is easy. Q number one is quantity. Pay attention to the quantity that we put into our mouths. If all we ever did was the one-Q, that would certainly work well. How much food does our body need right now? It really doesn't matter too much how often.

Some think 3 meals a day and others think 5, it could be 10 if you wanted, but the main thing to pay attention to is what the quantity is each time. Stomachs expand from volume, bodies expand from the volume. Once you look closely at the quantity issue, it will be obvious that most restaurants serve quantities that are not helpful, and neither is the "happy plate" syndrome many of us were taught as a child. There is social pressure that way, but our own awareness can make sense by realizing that all restaurants have doggy bags.

The second Q is quality. After quantity is in our mind and we are fully engaged in paying attention to it, the next and last item is working upward in quality. The highest quality is going to be natural food. Whether it is plant or animal is not the issue. The lowest quality food will be either imitation food, or food with all sorts of additives to enhance the flavor or to extend the life of the product. Real food has a very short shelf life. The other stuff can be around for a long time.

So there you have it. It is simple. 2-Q's: Quantity and Quality. Never diet again. Be the weight you want. Enjoy your life however it is and in whatever you choose to eat. There's just two simple ideas to keep top-of-mind: Quantity and Quality.

Now, if I stop there, my friend Robin will remind me that this 2-Q Method should really be the 2-Q+M Method. She will remind me to add movement to the equation. Fitness requires movement, and once we get the intake down, some purposeful movement will help keep things in their proper places.


"Life Is Really Simple, But Men Insist On Making It Complicated." -- Confucius 

Spread Some Joy Today--by paying attention to how you feel and then deciding that it is important for you to feel good and then choose thoughts that move you in that direction.

Daily Inspiration 10-12-14

"Everyone wants to be appreciated, 

so if you appreciate someone, 

don't keep it a secret." 

-- Mary Kay Ash 

Money is nice and it is also necessary to some degree to survive in the world we live in, and yet there are things that are far more important and meaningful to most of us.

I've had some accolades, thank you cards and such, but very few have touched me to the point that I have cherished keeping them.

I'll share a couple with you. The first was appreciation for my wife when I was going on a week long trip somewhere about 15 to 20 years ago. I never recorded the date, but it was a while back. I had this idea to put 'I Love You' and other special sticky notes on the backside of kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets, and other places so that she might find them when I was gone.

Most have fallen off long ago, but one remains to this day in an upper kitchen cabinet that doesn't get opened much in comparison to the others:

Another was easily the most special card I have ever received. It is the picture of a little cowboy on the porch playing the toy guitar singing his heart out. I have had this in a prominent place in my office since about 1999. My boss at the time was Ken at Harbor Truck Bodies and he played guitar and knew I did and we played together a couple times just for fun. I came there as an outside sales rep, and in a sudden move, the director of sales and marketing left and Ken asked if I would be interested in helping him out. It required a lot of travel and I accepted without hesitation.

Inside, the card says this:

"Terry, Thanks for making my job easier. Your support over the past weeks is greatly appreciated. My sense is that we are already a better company than before. And it is directly attributable to your acceptance of the Director of Sales & Marketing role. I can not think of another sales exec. in the industry that brings to his or her job such a high level of commitment and quality. Happy Hunting Cowboy!, Happy Trails, K."

There is no amount of money that makes up for that. Though I was well paid, the card was one of the best bonuses I have ever received.

So often, as managers, husbands, wives, teachers, and just plain people, we forget to express appreciation to each other. It is amazing to me that this is the case. I have learned long ago to try to appreciate people every day in many different ways.

I send different thank you notes, cards, and things to my team members with their checks. I compliment people at the bank, say hi to people as I'm walking, smile at people, send them love, and generally try to uplift people where ever I go.

The difference it makes may sometimes seem insignificant on the surface, but I assure you that the person at the bank that I gave a sincere compliment took it home with her and brightened just a little bit of her day. Sending something like this ever so thoughtful and perfectly chosen card that Ken sent me, lasts for years. It has already been 15 years, and I will keep it the rest of my life.

Take a few seconds to find something worthy of a compliment and express it. Take the time and energy to smile at people. Tell your employees and coworkers how much you appreciate them. Spend some money at Papyrus. Send some flowers, a special book, music CD they might like, or just a thoughtful note. What an amazing gift all of these will be.


Here's The Real Bonus: I Get More Benefit By Giving Than Receiving. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Every day this coming week, find uplifting things to say or send to people to show you are thinking of them or that you appreciate them.

Daily Inspiration 10-11-14

"We all make a difference, 

but only a portion of the difference." 

-- Albert K Strong 

I was reading an article about Tim Cook, CEO of Apple in the latest Success magazine. Because Steve Jobs was a larger than life itself icon, there were so many predictions, speculations, and rumors about how anyone could replace such an idol. He has.

It is assumed sometimes that one person makes all the difference. That is not possible. Creativity is a group event. Sure, there are charismatic leaders that can seem to be standing by themselves as if they did it all, but those leaders are very clear on how many people, and how much of their creativity it takes for them to rise as an icon.

If differences are to be really important, there have to be leaders. However, the idea of having one leader who gets all the credit is folly and making it seem that way is just a stage show. Truth is, there are leaders throughout the organization at all levels, and besides, the ones who are not recognized as being a leader are at least as important. It is more like everyone has a place and all places are good. This includes a minority who may seem to be resistance because that has its place too. Many times the way something improves is via resistance.

I love this quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson: "Be yourself; no base imitator of another, but your best self. There is something which you can do better than another. Listen to the inward voice and bravely obey that. Do the things at which you are great, not what you were never made for."

Based on that and knowing that we all make some kind of difference, the truer we are to ourselves and our own special talents and abilities, the more difference we can make. And, that might even include being a leader. But, keep this in mind, a leader is simply a part not apart, but a part of the whole.


Celebrate What Your Own Difference Is. You Are One. 

Spread Some Joy Today--It is now. Let go of what is in your head and just focus on life within you and around you. There is magic in the air.

Daily Inspiration 10-10-14

"He does not believe 

that does not live 

according to his belief." 

-- Sigmund Freud 

I could spend a lot of time on this subject and it is interesting, so I'll share a story of a recent conversation that enlightens where I am on this idea that Freud shares.

It would be so easy to talk about religion and how people say one thing or claim to be of a certain faith and how often they may act otherwise indicating their belief is as Freud said, not really believing. But, I want to go somewhere else that relates to things we do all the time throughout our days.

First, it is funny to me, or rather amazing, how when I might be having a few minutes of conversation with someone that I find much to relate to in these Daily Inspirations. In fact, I am often inspired this way.

Several days ago I was talking with a friend who is a very good salesman. In fact, in my mind, I call him a superstar. He is that way because he is doing what he loves to do. And, having been a sales manager in one way or another for over 40 years, I've experienced a lot of salespeople and how they succeed or not based on their own practiced belief.

In this case, this man has learned how to sell an after sale product in such a way as to make it seem not only easy but incredibly so. It all comes from practiced belief. This product is something that I believe in and I always buy it when buying a vehicle and he has felt the same way for a long time, yet until he began to practice the belief his results were spotty. It is also something that most salespeople don't try very hard to sell, if at all. They often leave it to others to deal with it, but this salesperson wanted to have the control of handling it his way.

He knew it was of value to the buyer, but he thought that price was an important roadblock. At first, he had a certain markup and then later tried more and then more and then more and instead of sales going down because the price was higher, he sold more. As he practiced the belief of the value and understood the value to the buyer, he made a practice of selling it where others would not have. The only real difference was a practiced belief in the value and his love for his customers and how beneficial it is to them to the point that he thinks it is a serious mistake to not take advantage of it. All of this practiced belief comes across to the customer in a very powerful way.

He texted me today to tell me he has done 16 in a row. That's unheard of generally. But he has come to believe so much in the value that he just cannot help himself.

Have you ever talked with a salesperson, contractor, or other vendors who believed so much in what they were doing that it sort of became an act of love to us? There is so much power in this. It often takes many years if ever. This guy has practiced it for a long time, although the massive success with the product I am referring to is newer and has recently skyrocketed.

As we understand more of what we do for a living and find all the nooks and cranny's of how it is of value, and that we have allowed ourselves to love what we do, excellence is a foregone conclusion. That comes from the initial love of the tasks, learning of the lesser known values that are in the thing, and finally from practicing our initial belief. As we practice that belief, it is magical how we grow in many ways.


Excuse Me, Your Conviction Is Showing. . . 

Spread Some Joy Today--by loving what you do whatever it is. That's where the magic is.

Daily Inspiration 10-9-14

"Scars have the strange power 

to remind us that our past is real." 

-- Cormac McCarthy 

As I think about my past living experiences, some of which I have photos of or other memorabilia, I question how real those experiences were even though my memory claims they were. Often, they seem strange, as if it were some other person, not me. I am what I am right now, but back then? The further I travel, the more nonsense it becomes.

William Faulkner said, "The past is never dead. It's not even past." I take this that as we think about the past it is in the present, and look how often we may think about the past which then may cloud or reshape current experience.

I like this quote from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: "You must learn some of my philosophy. Think only of the past as its remembrance gives you pleasure." I hear that and I want to agree with it. In fact, I practice it.

What I find that works the best is to see how I am feeling about whatever past thoughts are in my head. If it causes me tension, regret, or any other ill feeling, I now try to change that feeling upward by choosing a better feeling thought about that event or situation. As I do this and keep choosing a better feeling thought, even a little step at a time, that event or situation from memory comes up less and less often.

They say we are not perfect, yet we are. It is only how we think of that and our point of view of it. I think Jane Austen has it well and any time I can find pleasure in a past experience it is good. That includes the ones that felt that way immediately, along with those that I entice into that arena. After all, I am the controller and the creator of my own thoughts--or at the very least, the allower of them.


Here's To A Joyous Present, However That Comes! 

Spread Some Joy Today--Do you think it is silly or shameful to walk around all day long with a smile on your face and a blatantly joyous attitude? In some circles, it may be a reason for concern. So be careful. Choose wisely. Of course, my choice is why the heck not? Which makes me smile all the more.

Daily Inspiration 10-8-14

"Praise is the sunlight to the human spirit: 

We cannot flower and grow without it." 

-- Jess Lair 

As a manager (and this is advice to parents too), keeping track is not about finding out what others do wrong, or not well. It is far more about finding out what they do well.

Although it is important to see what needs to change to do better and by keeping track we can see some of that, it is way more important to find out what they do well.

I was talking with a longtime and dear friend today and he told me what I already knew. He said that he only does a few things really well and though he has many other tasks that are often required of him, he doesn't excel in those. He only excels in a few areas. Since I've known him since 1989, I know the things he is truly good--well, to be sure, not just good, but excels at. I also know the things he has accepted the challenge on that weren't in his excelling interests. Though he does okay, and he has the heart for helping, it is in certain areas that he excels in.

Having been a manager for well over 40 years, I can assure you that when you as a manager or a parent find the things that they are really good at and that their heart is fully engaged in, those are the things that will lead you as a parent or a manager on to greatness in allowing and encouraging that they focus on those things.

So often as manager, parents, teachers, we think we need to make sure that people are well rounded or some other baloney. It is special enough to come into this life and find things that we are not only excellent at, but those things that we are enthusiastic about and love to be a part of. It behooves all of us to find ways to make those things happen with less distraction.

I remember calling a car dealership once some time ago and the receptionist was what I would call a superstar. She even said what her name was. I was blown away. What always amazed me about the car business was how important the phone was to business and how little the executive managers were interested in making that a great experience. Instead, they found other things for them to do until answering the phone became an interruption to them. Now so many have answering voicemails with numbers to punch and so on. I am absolutely positive how much a really attentive and engaged receptionist's value is to a business. This is just one example at how we tend to take people away from what they are good at and make them busy-looking instead.

Back to the topic at hand: Pay more attention to what people do well or do right and less attention to what they don't do as well or where they miss the mark. Sure it is okay to pay attention to the numbers, but let us not focus on the negative story from the numbers exclusively. Let us find the positive story in there--even if we have to look for it.


Ask This Question: What Did I Do Well Today? How Did I Excel? What Value Did I Bring? How Was I Of Value? 

Spread Some Joy Today--You don't correct a child by applying logic and helping them see what they did wrong or are doing wrong. You say, STOP! Now do it this way. A child comes home with a report card that has two A's, three B's, and a C and a D+. What do we focus on? It isn't normally the A's and B's, but that would be far better than focusing on the others.

Daily Inspiration 10-7-14

"There are certain things in life 

where you know it's a mistake 

but you don't really know it's a mistake 

because the only way to really know it is a mistake 

is to make that mistake 

and look back and say, 

Yup, that was a mistake. 

So really, the bigger mistake 

would be to not make the mistake 

because then you'll go your whole life 

not really knowing 

if something is a mistake or not." 

 -- Ted Mosby, 

How I Met Your Mother 

Well, there ya go. . .


It's Only A Mistake If You Think It's A Mistake, Or If You Call It A Mistake. Or, You Could Call It An Experience! 

Spread Some Joy Today--Tuesday's are always good for that task.

Daily Inspiration 10-6-14

"Wrongs cannot be righted by punishment." 

-- Albert K Strong 

Whether we are trying to punish someone else for wronging us, or we are punishing ourselves for our failed attempts, it is all the same. We cannot right wrongs through the method of punishment as a tool or a strategy. It just doesn't work. It never has. It never will. Yet, often we persist in thinking that it does or that it will.

I think that punishing ourselves is something we do far more than punishing others. We hold an ideal and we miss the mark. Our disappointment glares at us and we find ways to punish ourselves for our failure to perform. It could be as simple as a diet that we began and then after day one or two had trouble maintaining.

Or maybe it was worse--a habit that we wanted to change. Trying to change a habitual pattern is our most punishable offense. Whether it is relative to a daily habit like eating certain things, or certain amounts, or smoking, or drinking or make a list. Everyone has their own list, I'm sure. Habits are automatic. That's why they call them habits. Failure is a given; however, success is only on the way.

Maybe it is about how you spend money. Maybe you have credit cards you don't want to use and you do anyway. You need that thing, whatever it is. Buying now and paying later is a very enticing habit. So, you charge it and then you lament about it.

Perhaps a friend said the wrong thing at the wrong time and you did not only take offense, you felt hurt and abandoned. This is worthy of punishment, right? So, you punish them by ignoring them, or blowing them off, or talking to others about them as they did about you.

You were passed up for promotion and you have not only been the most deserving, but the one with the utmost patience, but your patience is over and you're sick and tired of the ways things have been going.

Well, this list could go on to infinity, so I'll stop here. Punishment never works. Not for others and what they supposedly did to us, or in ourselves and how we didn't meet expectations of our own design.

Here's an idea. Let go of that rope. Lay it down. There is nothing--absolutely nothing to be gained from this struggle with whomever that opponent is. Just lay the rope down and refuse to engage in that activity. Instead, choose a better feeling thought. Choose one that lifts you up and lifts the other up. The President is doing the best he can with what he has to work with, or not. It doesn't matter. It's not in your control.

Consider this famous quote by Ronald Niebuhr: "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." . . . And, as we are using the courage to change the things we can, give us a sense of humor and peace in however that turns out.


Whatever It Is, If You're Not Feeling Good About It, You're Out Of Alignment. Let Go Of The Rope And Take A Break. You Deserve A Break Today. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by letting go of judgment of any kind. That act alone is one of joy.

Daily Inspiration 10-5-14

"The unthankful heart. . . 

discovers no mercies; 

but let the thankful heart 

sweep through the day and, 

as the magnet finds the iron, 

so it will find, in every hour, 

some heavenly blessings!" 

-- Henry Ward Beecher 

This quote came from the mid-1800s and yet it is one of the closest renditions of the Law of Attraction I've seen. Perfectly stated and both ways attract their like. It is such today as it always has been.


Sheer Perfection In Operation. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by attracting joy.

Daily Inspiration 10-4-14

"Try to be a rainbow 

in someone's cloud." 

-- Maya Angelou 

When you are looking at clear blue sunny skies and feeling good, it will change. No need to worry, it's normal and natural. In nature, blue sunny skies develop clouds and rain. It's a wonderful thing and personally, I look forward to the changes no matter what they are because it is changing.

Some people are feeling the clouds and maybe they are even dark clouds and rain is being threatened. In these situations, they often remember the clear blue skies of another time and how they wish they were there right now. And, even though they have the power not believing as they are at this moment, we can all be benefactors in being a rainbow in other people's clouds.

This doesn't mean that we join them in their cloud, but that we send the color of hope and better feelings with our intentions and our expressed love. We don't even have to be in the same city, state, or even the same country because thoughts and love are universal exchanges that travel light years in moments.

If you know someone is hurting a bit and though there may be great distances between you, close your eyes and think of them and lavish love and well being on them. No need to expect anything except that they somehow will receive it. That's it. It requires no more. Reach out and intend those loving thoughts on those who need them now.

At the same time, we can be a rainbow in our own clouds. No need to wait and hope someone will come and give us love. Alan Cohen offers a great phrase: "If you can't be with the one you love, be the one you love." Reminds me of a twist to a Crosby, Stills and Nash song from the 70s. Or was it the 60s?

How do you do that? Well, I have my ways and maybe they will help a little. First, I love movies, but when I feel clouds in my space, pretty much any movie by Nora Ephron will cheer me right up. I don't even have to be very down, but just feeling like I need a little pick-me-up. Tonight I watched My Blue Heaven one more time and laughed and smiled the whole way through. That put me right back where I'm feeling great again.

You can be the rainbow in other people's clouds and you can be the rainbow in your own cloud. All you have to do is care enough to offer up some loving thoughts for them and for yourself.


Embrace Your Opportunity To Be Of Service. 

Spread Some Joy Today--Keep a short list of things that make you laugh and make use of the list when you need it. Or, maybe you just want it. Either is good.

Daily Inspiration 10-3-14

"When you're so out there 

in the public eye, 

people are constantly criticizing 

every aspect about you." 

-- Gwyneth Paltrow 

I can't even imagine going wading through the volume of criticism that famous people do. They have to get really good at allowing others to have their opinion while they hold a different point of view about themselves or their work. Their joy and their sanity depend on it.

On a far less public level, each of us deals with a certain level of critical opinions of ourselves or our behavior or things that we do. Often these criticisms are not openly expressed, but they are there. It might be a spouse or close friend, relative, co-worker or others. Truth is, everyone has an opinion, and to that everyone is entitled.

There are two things that are important in my mind to deal with this once and for all time. The first is to love ourselves, praise ourselves, accept any so-called flaws and also accept our perfection. We are all a constant and never-ending work in progress. We grow, become more, change. A wonderful mantra is one I shared a few days ago from Dr. John F. Demartini: "No matter what I have done or not done, I am worthy of love."

The second thing is that we can choose to not reciprocate criticism on others. Every one of us has likes and dislikes. That is how we create. We know what we don't want, so that leads us to choose what we do want. But, we have no need in going around publicizing all the things we don't like. It is far better to spread a different and more positive message.

If we love others, we can uplift them in many ways. Who knows who was criticizing them in the last few weeks, or what they have been going through in their lives. That goes for all people including famous ones, and especially those we may have fundamental disagreements with. We don't need to agree or even like them, but loving them is allowing them to be who they are while we are who we are.

Next time someone criticizes you for anything, accept it as their opinion and it may even be true about you, but no matter what you have done or not done, you are worthy of love.

Next time you are thinking about being critical about someone else, accept it as your opinion and that it may even be true from your perspective, but no matter what they have done or not done, they are worthy of love.

As we learn to turn our critical thoughts into loving thoughts, our entire world changes right before our eyes.


It's A Brave New World. 

Spread Some Joy Today--When was the last time you complimented someone openly? Spread some joy today by doing it often.

Daily Inspiration 10-2-14

"Prosperity is not without 

many fears and distastes, 

and adversity is not without 

comforts and hopes." 

-- Francis Bacon 

Having been observant in business and many businesses without necessarily a specific notion in mind, I have noticed something about planning that caused me to write down this phrase the other day: What if it works?

Sometimes I have seen businesses planning for problems, creating fall-back positions and what they will do if it doesn't work out. Maybe they are venturing into something new, or at least something a little off the path. If they take these steps, can they cancel effectively and get back to safety? I've seen many businesses grow in this way because they actually did venture out. And, I've also seen how quickly some will turn and leave before the opportunity had a chance.

So, it seemed to me logical that it would only be fair to put at least as much energy into what if it works, then what if it doesn't. Do many plan for success? What issues will need to be dealt with when it is successful? How will expansion happen?

My favorite quote of all time reminds me of this. It is by William Shakespeare. "There is a tide in the affairs of men when taken at the flood leads on to fortune." Of course tides ebb, but they also flow. It seems rather smart to prepare for both.


What If It Works? What Then? 

Spread Some Joy Today--by finding joy in your commute to and from work, or while going from one errand to the other. People do the strangest things while behind the wheel of a car. I'm smiling and laughing a good deal of the time--especially around town.

Daily Inspiration 10-1-14

"Self-talk reflects your innermost feelings." 

-- Dr. Asa Don Brown 

A couple of days ago, I quoted Dr. John F. Demartini from his book, The Breakthrough Experience. I've read most of his books and have enjoyed each. And though I've read a lot of books in general, it is often going back to them again for whatever motivation causes me to reopen it, and therein I find another diamond, another blessing, another enthusiastic morsel that inspires me in some way. That happened again today.

Since taking quotes out of this book, I still had it out and decided to read bits here and there near where I borrowed the quotes. Here I found a short section titled, I Am Worthy of Love. He tells a story of an AIDS patient who was given a couple of weeks to live and Dr. Demartini held his hands and told him over and over this phrase: "No matter what you have done or not done, you are worthy of love." He got the patient saying it over and over until his heart opened and he began loving himself. 

So, this morning I went for a walk with Charlie and all along the walk I repeated in my head, "No matter what I have done or not done, I am worthy of love." I must have said it a couple hundred times at least. Then, as someone else was walking by, I would say in my mind to them, "No matter what you have done or not done, you are worthy of love," repeating it several times, then returning to the first person and myself.

This was a gem of a bit from this book for me and I know that I am not alone in that I've had some things in my life that I would rather not share, that I haven't felt good about and have long ago buried them hoping to never think of them again. This simple little phrase has such power in it and it is the perfect thing to repeat in my self-talk and I am going to have fun with it for a long time to come.

Try saying it to yourself: "No matter what I have done or not done, I am worthy of love. No matter what I have done or not done, I am worthy of love. No matter what I have done or not done, I am worthy of love."

Then, practice saying it to special people who have passed on. I found myself saying it to my late wife, my mother and father, sister, people I've worked for in the past, and more. I said, "No matter what you have done or not done, you are worthy of love. No matter what you have done or not done, you are worthy of love." Now I believe they are in a place of total love and so they don't really need this from me, but I felt a need to say it to them to release any tidbit I was not letting go of.

As well, say it to those you come into contact with everyday--strangers, co-workers, bosses, vendors, relatives, you name it. Say, "No matter what you have done or not done, you are worthy of love." You know, a side benefit is that while you are doing this, there is little or no room left in your mind for negative self-talk. How cool is that?

There is a certain peace in actually doing this. No one needs to know you're doing it, and that is perfect. It creates a warmth and peace in your communications with them, and expands your love for yourself at the same time.


It's Such A Simple Thing To Do With Huge Benefits. 

Spread Some Joy Today--and by doing any of this above, joy will be spread.