Being Poor is a Sin!!

As mentioned in one of my previous posts being poor is a sin. I am reading the most incredible book about the laws of prosperity. As someone who has read The Secret and other books along these lines I have always been stumped by the fact that I cannot seem to find the way to do the things that they appear to take for granted that everyone should know.

Thinking it was just me I started to ask around among my friends who had also read The Secret and they had experienced the same thing. Now don't get me wrong The Secret was great and I even bought the DVD but at the end of the day I did not know how to get started on my way to where they were. I needed - literally - a step by step guide on how to start.

Well believe it or not when you need something and you ask for it, it usually appears. This is what happened to me. Completely out of the blue, someone I know introduced me to this book and said they thought I might need it.

Wow do I need it and I feel that there are many others out there who need this sort of advice.

You see it is not just about wishing and hoping that something good will happen, it is doing something about it. It is about knowing what to do in order to create your life as you want it.

IF you are interested in this book and a chance to change your life forever then please take a look on my website, http://www.soulenergyrising.com, it is on the front page, and order this amazing door to your future.

Change!

For several years now I have been reading information on what others have to say about the incredibly vast subject of Mind, Body and Spirit. I have read up on Nutrition, even done courses, Healthy Exercising, even participated in such like and Spiritual healing, am a trained healer. I have come to the conclusion that no matter how unimportant it seems, every tiny piece of information on these subjects helps someone out there. We are all so individual that what one person says might make no sense to us but another says the same thing in a different way and the penny drops! This is why there is so much information out there, it is saying things in different ways to reach many different people. There is also the point to take into consideration that each of us is on a different stage of our journey so we will need to see things from where we are right now. Right now I am very interested in, as I mentioned in my last post, the fact that so much is being written now on how we are responsible for changing our own world and the way we think will reflect our world. This is an incredibly simple concept but an incredibly difficult one to put into place for the majority of us. I think in today's society we want a quick fix to whatever is going on, be it at work, home or in our lives generally but if we want to change our way of thinking and change our world we need to take the time necessary. If we plant a seed we do not expect the plant to have grown within a day, it needs time and nurturing, so how come when we start some of these new ideas and exercises to change our way of thinking we expect it all to be sorted within a week. When you decide to go down a particular path on your journey that you feel is difficult, don't turn back, always give yourself time to walk to the end of the path, no matter how long it takes and throughout it all be positive and believe in yourself. So if you are ready to change, however small that change is, do it and move forward no matter how scary it seems. Change is good! Change is positive! Change can be in any area, the way you eat, the way you exercise, the way you think whatever and wherever the challenge is you can do it. The only one stopping you is YOU!!

SELF IMPROVEMENT AND SUCCESS

Yesterday I spoke about unlocking your self-improvement power and today I want to talk about how self improvement can lead to success.

Everything that happens to us happens for a purpose and more often leads to something quite unexpected. Instead of locking yourself up in your cage of fears and crying over past heartaches, embarrassment and failures treat them as your teachers and they will become your tools in both self improvement and success.

I remember watching Patch Adams – such a cool movie - and thinking what incredible insights this movies gives into human psyche. If you haven’t seen it – you really should - Hunter “patch” Adams is a medical student who failed to make it through the board exams. After months of suffering in melancholy, depression and suicidal attempts – he decided to seek medical attention and voluntarily admits himself into a psychiatric ward. His months of stay in the hospital lead him to meet many different kinds of very sick people. He met a catatonic, mentally retarded people, a schizophrenic and so on. Patch found ways of treating his own ailment and finally realized it was time to get back on track. He woke up one morning realising that after all the failure and pains he had gone through, he still wanted to become a doctor. His most important asset, a positive attitude, and that brought him self improvement and success. He didn’t only improved himself, but also the lives of the people around him and his quality of life. Did he succeed? Needless to say, he became one of the best doctors his country had ever known.

So, when does self improvement become synonymous with success?
Where do we start?

Here are some tips……………

*Stop thinking and feeling as if you’re a failure, because you’re not. How can others accept you if YOU can’t accept YOU?

*When you see hunks and models on TV, think more on self improvement, not self pitying. Self acceptance is not just about having nice slender legs, or great abs. Concentrate on your own inner beauty.

*When people you know feel unhappy and low about themselves, help them move up. Don’t go down with them. They’ll pull you down further and you will all end up feeling inferior and dejected.

*The world is a huge classroom for lessons and mistakes help you learn. Don’t feel stupid and doomed forever just because you failed on a science test. There’s always a next time. Think about what you learned by failing that test. (You won’t make that mistake again, will you?) Make room for self improvement knowing that you are on the most amazing journey of life, full of adventure, fun and excitement, if you allow it.

*Take one thing one at a time. You don’t expect others to change overnight so don’t expect it of yourself. Self improvement is a one day at a time process.

*Self improvement results in inner stability, personality development and then …. SUCCESS. Success comes from self confidence, self appreciation and self esteem.

* Set meaningful and achievable goals. Self improvement will not turn you into an exact replica of Cameron Diaz or Ralph Fiennes. It is about, finding your own individual beauty and personality that you have hidden within, and creating an improved and better YOU.

*Little things mean a lot to other people. Sometimes, we don’t realise that the little things that we do, like a pat on the back, a smile, saying “hi”, “hello” or “good day” to someone or telling Mr. Smith something like “hey, I love your tie!” are simple things that mean so much to other people. When we’re being appreciative about beautiful things around us and other people, we also become beautiful to them and we feel wonderful inside, so go out and spread some joy each and every day.

*When you’re willing to accept change and go through the process of self improvement, it doesn’t mean that everyone else is. The world is a place where people of different values and attitude exist. Sometimes, even if you think you and your best friend always like to do the same things, together, at the same time, it is more than likely that she would decline your invitation to join you on your journey of self improvement. We are individuals and can only go through such changes when we are ready, but don’t give up on your friends if they react this way, it could very likely happen that, as you progress and they see the changes in you, they could be inspired to do the same.

It’s always a reassuring feeling to hold on to the things that you are familiar with and change can be quite traumatic but, if you are ready, throw away the fears and worries and enjoy. A very famous quote says that “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” We are all here to learn our lessons. Our parents, school teachers, friends, colleagues, officemates, neighbors… they are our teachers. When we open our doors for self improvement, those who are to help us on our way will appear and we will journey onwards knowing that we are heading towards success and happiness.

UNLOCK YOUR SELF IMPROVEMENT POWER

When we look at a certain object, a painting for example – we won’t be able to appreciate what’s in it, what is painted and what else goes with it, if the painting is just an inch away from our face. But if we step back a little further, we’ll have a clearer vision of the whole work of art.

Until we reach the point in our lives when we are ready for change and all the available information that will help us unlock our self improvement power, things can be staring us right in the face and we do not see them. The only time we think of unlocking our self improvement power is when everything gets intolerable and we begin to see those things that were staring us in the face.

Change can only come when we are ready and with so much information we need to take things slowly. We cannot change from one day to the next but we can become more aware of who we are and what we want from life.

Self improvement is about our own innermost feelings and how they reflect out to others. If we are in a mess then that is the way people see us. If we are angry and unhappy that is exactly how the world sees us. Even though we try to hide our feelings it is there deep in us and our presence exudes these feelings which others pick up on, usually on a subconscious level.

It is very strange how we hang on to the familiar, no matter how uncomfortable it is, even knowing that we need to do something about it. The reason is that it is all within our comfort zone and the hardest thing is to step outside this zone and make changes. We only change when there seems to be no other way, when we can no longer go on as we are. We get to a point that we no longer think about whether it will be good or bad or comfortable or not we just know that things have to change in our lives and that we are the only ones who can change them.

The only time most of us ever learn about unlocking our self improvement power is when the whole world is crashing and falling apart. We think and feel this way because it is not easy to change. But change becomes more painful if we ignore it.

Change will happen, like it or hate it. At one point or another, we are all going to experience different turning points in our lives – and we are all going to eventually unlock our self improvement power not because the world says so, not because our friends are nagging us, but because we realized its for our own good.

Happy people don’t just accept change, they embrace it. Now, you don’t have to feel a tremendous urgency before realizing the need for self improvement. Unlocking your self- improvement power means unlocking yourself from the cage of thought that says “its just the way I am”. This is such a poor excuse for people who fear and resist change.

Most of us have been programmed, just like computers, we take on board everything others say believing that it is true and then we repeat these facts to ourselves and others. For example: Sylvie repeatedly tells everyone that she doesn’t have the guts to be around groups of people. She heard her mom, her dad, her sister, her teacher, say the same thing about her to other people. Over the years, this is what Sylvie has come to believe. She believes it’s her story so what happens every time a great crowd troops into their house, in school, or in the community? She tends to step back, shy away and lock herself up in a room. Sylvie not only believed in her story, she actually lived it. Sylvie now has to realize that she is not the person in ‘her’ story. Only she really knows who she is and only she can start the journey into finding her true self and letting this very important person be.

Self improvement may not be everybody’s favorite word, but if we look at things from a different point of view, we might have a greater chance of enjoying the whole process instead of counting the days until we are “fully improved”. Three sessions a week at the gym will result to a healthier life, reading books instead of flicking through magazines will improve your knowledge and understanding of life, going out with friends and peers will help you take a step back from work and unwind. Believe it or not just when you are enjoying the whole process of unlocking your self improvement power, you’ll realize that you’re beginning to take things in a much lighter way and you will feel so much happier. Life really is what you make it, it has nothing to do with any one else, you are solely responsible for your own happiness. Remember to treat yourself as you would like others to treat you.

Happy as You Want to Be

Almost everyone will have heard the hit single 'Don't Worry, Be Happy' by Bobby McFerrin. The song has a very catchy way of conveying its message, of being happy, to everyone.

As said on my previous articles living a happy and optimistic life is very good for your health. It also actually protects you from the stresses of life and stress is linked to some very undesirable diseases. So we need to be in control of how we feel and change it if necessary.

Here is an interesting quote I found:
'The only thing in life that will always remain the same is change'.
We have the power to make the necessary changes if we want to and when we find ourselves in unbearable situations we know in our hearts that, if we want it to, it too will change.

Social networks or relationships are essential to happiness, but people are different and we need to accept people for who, or what they are. It is important to avoid clashes and constant arguments and to let go of any kind of resentment that you have. Try and understand why you feel resentful, and is this resentment justified? When arguments seem unavoidable try to understand that sometimes other people’s reactions to a situation have nothing to do with you. It is, more often than not, the case that you have touched a raw nerve by something you have said or mentioned that has caused the reaction. If you know in your heart that what you have said, was said, without malice, and with good intent, then know that you are not at fault and what you are experiencing is the other person’s reaction to something in their lives that is painful. If possible, walk away, do not react, agree with whatever they say and you will feel much happier and less stressed.

Happiness is actually found in everyone, increasing it is a way to make a life more wonderful and also healthier. To be happy is relatively easy, just decide to be a happy person. Abraham Lincoln observed that most people for most of the time can choose how happy or stressed, how relaxed or troubled, how bright or dull their outlook will be. The choice is simple really, choose to be happy.

There are several ways by which you can do this. Being grateful is a great attitude. We have so much to be thankful for. Thank the taxi driver for bringing you home safely, thank the cook for a wonderful dinner and thank the guy who cleans your windows. Also thank the mailman for bringing you your mail, thank the policeman for making your place safe and thank the power of the universe for being alive.

News is stressful. Get less of it. Some people just can't start their day without their daily dose of news. Try and think about it, 99% of the news we hear or read is bad news. Starting the day with bad news does not seem to be a sensible thing to do.

Manage your time. Time is invaluable and too important to waste. Time management can be viewed as a list of rules that involves scheduling, setting goals, planning, creating lists of things to do and prioritising. These are the core basics of time management that should be understood to develop an efficient personal time management skill. These basic skills can be fine tuned further to include the finer points of each skill that can give you that extra reserve to get the results you desire.

'Laughter is the best medicine'. Laugh and laugh heartily everyday. Heard a good joke? Tell your friends or family about it, spread that happiness. Express your feelings, affections, friendship and passion to people around you, don’t be afraid to be vulnerable. Vulnerability is one of the greatest gifts and strengths available to us. Allowing yourself to be vulnerable, enables others to express and acknowledge their feelings to you without fear of ridicule and with complete trust. Let go of anger or frustration, it drains your energy and can make you ill. Instead take a look at why you are angry, and laugh at how silly it really is, or look at who you are angry with – did they really deserve that?

Working hard brings tremendous personal satisfaction. It gives us a feeling of being competent in finishing our tasks. Accomplishments are necessary for all of us as they give us a sense of value. Work on things that you feel are worthy of your time.

Learning is a wonderful experience so try to learn something new everyday. Learning also helps us our horizons and opens up opportunities for the future.

Another great and relevant quote from Abraham Lincoln:

"Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be."

So what is your day going to be like today?????