Let Freedom Ring! Stop Holding Yourself Prisoner

One day a man was walking down the street on his way to work. As he walked down the street, there were dogs on just about every front porch and they would bark as the man walked by.

However, there was one dog just sitting there whimpering, whining and moaning.

The man wondered why this dog wasn't barking like the other dogs and why he was whimpering. He couldn't figure it out, so he just kept walking to work.

The next day he was walking down the street and heard all the other dogs barking EXCEPT the same dog who was moaning and groaning just as he had been doing the day before.

The man walked past for an entire week and every day the dog would be there moaning and groaning. Finally, he went over to the owner who was sitting on the porch and asked,

“Sir, is there something wrong with your dog? He's been sitting here moaning and groaning, whimpering and whining for an entire week."

The owner said, "Well, he's actually sitting on a nail."

"What!" exclaimed the man. "Why doesn't he get off?"

"Well, it just doesn't hurt him bad enough" replied the owner.

This dog is like most people who feel pained by their current situation ... a job they hate, an unhealthy body they want to get in shape, a city they no longer want to live in ... Yet, as months turn into years they remain in a situation, moaning and groaning, whimpering and whining.

Perhaps they are not hurting bad enough to get up and do something about it. So they remain in a prison of their own making.

This Fourth of July, set yourself FREE by taking the first step to getting off that nail! Sign your own Declaration of Independence.

Declare yourself free from small thinking, indecision, doubts, other people's opinions, scarcity, and fear-based thoughts that hold you back. Let freedom ring! Embrace BIG thinking, decisiveness, self-confidence, abundance, and positive thinking that allows you to unleash your authentic brilliance.

Spring Clean! Release The Old

Spring is here and what a great time to release the old from your life!

Recently, I was guided by signs from the Universe to "cut the cord," on a toxic situation and release the old energy. Ultimately, I cleared out the associated items from my home, reorganized my space, and soaked in a salt bath.

Release The Old
If you are holding on to a situation that no longer serves you, it may be time for you to release the old from your life.

The situation may be a job, a relationship (business or personal), or a living space. Listen to your recurring thoughts and feelings about the situation. What are they telling you? Are they telling you to let go?

Are you holding on to a person or situation that seems to be letting go of you? These may be signs for you to release the old.

Create Space For The New
When you cut the cord and release the old, you create space for new opportunities to come into your life. Removing old items from your home or work space can be a great first step to releasing the old.

Sing, pray or listen to empowering music during the process. Doing so will help you feel empowered as you take inspired action to create your next chapter!

After clearing and reorganizing your space, relax in the tub, journal about your experience, or write affirmations about the positive, new experiences you intend to create.

What To Do When You Want To Be Recognized As A Genius

Recently, a successful businesswoman asked what I thought she could do to take her success to the next level. She explained that she had been working on a HUGE project and was hoping it would really put her on the map.

I Want To Be Called A 'Genius'

“I imagine receiving publicity for my work and hearing people say, ‘you’re a genius!’” she added.

As soon as she expressed her desire to be called a genius, I recognized an opportunity for her to achieve her next level of success.

I shared the following, “One key to achieving that level of success lies in the understanding (and the acknowledgement) we are vessels through which a Higher Power communicates.”

Whether or not we are aware of it, many of the brilliant thoughts and ideas we generate come to us through something greater than ourselves.

When we give credit to a Higher Power, rather than seek praise to satisfy our egos, we acknowledge we are instruments that have been guided to create magnificent work.

Check out this article that asks, When did people shift from having a genius to being a genius? 

Successful People Who Live By This Principle
A few weeks later, I listened as financial guru Suze Orman expressed the following thought:

“People sometimes say, ‘I want to be like Suze Orman. I want to be the next financial guru of this planet.’ What I’m thinking is, ‘Only if you give God credit for what you do.’ If you think you’re the doer you’ll never be me. You can be an empty vessel and be the vehicle for God’s words and work.”

Elizabeth Gilbert, who wrote the sensational book-turned-movie, Eat Pray Love, shared a similar message in this funny and delightful TED Talks.

Author Steven Pressfield (War of Art) also believes a Higher Power flows through him while he works. Pressfield says he looks at the words on the page knowing they did not come from him.

As you consider how to take yourself to the next level or whom to give credit for your creative brilliance, recognize you are a vessel for the work of a Higher Power. You will go much farther!

A Powerful Tip For Your Next Meeting or Interview

You’re about to walk into an important meeting or job interview. You’ve skillfully prepared your presentation. You’ve fine-tuned your resume.

Your goal is to close a contract, get hired for a new job, or receive a promotion. You’re hoping the outcome works in your favor. We’ve all been there.

Here’s a powerful tip for creating a positive outcome:

1. Be aware of what you are feeling and doing. For example, you may be feeling nervous (even desperate) and you may want to control the situation.
2. Inhale. Then upon exhale, release those energies.
3. Focus on the energy of love. Visualize yourself sending love to the people in your meeting.

Why This Approach Works
We are spiritual beings living a human experience. When we send love to others we connect with them on a spiritual level. They pick up and receive the beauty of our energy and may interpret this as ‘having a good feeling’ about you.

The energy of LOVE is very powerful. It is healing and transformative. According to the Law of Love, love eventually perfects all. When we come from a place of love we flow with the divine order of the universe.

Trust The Outcome
When Simon Cowell came to the U.S. to pitch American Idol, he was turned down by everyone except Rupert Murdoch. Simon now realizes that not getting those initial deals was for the best because they would have resulted in bad partnerships.

Whatever the outcome of your meeting, trust that it is for your highest good.

The Missing Ingredient From Your Wish List

Have you ever wanted to win an award? Get a promotion? Become a successful businessperson? Be the next BIG thing?

If you answered “Yes,” you’re not alone. When someone expresses these wishes I often encourage him or her to examine the why behind the wish.

Money, a feeling of accomplishment, and a sense of self-worth are typically expressed as reasons for wanting to achieve such goals.

The Missing Ingredient
While there is nothing wrong with the reason each person identifies, sometimes there is an overlooked nugget… a deeper reason that lies within their hearts.

This nugget, when unearthed, is akin to striking gold! What is this nugget? It is the gift of serving something greater than yourself.

Choosing to serve something BIGGER and greater is a missing ingredient from many wish lists. That is to say, when your reason for achieving your wish goes beyond you and your needs, it becomes a magical experience.

Greatness Graces Your Doorway
You are more likely to achieve your wish. You feel more fulfilled, the word “success” takes on new meaning, and greatness graces your doorway.

MLK Said It Best
Martin Luther King, Jr. embodied what it means to serve something greater than oneself. In his Drum Major Instinct sermon, he asserts:

[When I die] tell them not to mention that I have a Nobel Peace Prize—that isn’t important. Tell them not to mention that I have three or four hundred other awards—that’s not important. Tell them not to mention where I went to school. I'd like somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to give his life serving others.

Choose to serve something bigger than yourself and allow greatness to grace your doorway.

When You Look In The Mirror What Do You See?

Each morning when you get dressed, what do you see when you look in the mirror?

Do you see flaws? Do you pick yourself apart? Do you criticize yourself?

It is not unusual for some of us to look at our reflection and see something we want to tuck, lift, tone, or tighten.

Our focus may then shift from criticism of our physical appearance to self-induced character assassination.

Some look at themselves and see a failure, a loser, or “tired and beat down” as one woman recently described herself.

All of us have endured painful experiences. Those experiences serve us in ways we may not understand. As Pastor Rick Warren, author of Purpose Driven Life explains, “God never wastes a hurt.”

While we can acknowledge our pain and express our emotions as part of the healing process, it is important to understand that our experiences do not define us as failures or losers.
  
To think of yourself as anything less than magnificent is to deny your inner treasures.

Our words have a powerful effect on our reality. So, when you look in the mirror, make positive affirmations (not self-criticisms) the norm, not the exception.

Here are a few affirmations and words of self-love you can repeat as you look in the mirror.

I am a Divinely created masterpiece.

I live a life of purpose and meaning.

I love you.

I open my arms to receive all the good the Universe has to offer me.

I live from a constant flow of positive abundance.

I am Divinely guided and supported at all times.

You may choose to create your own affirmations. You may also choose to put your affirmations in writing and place them around your home and/or work space as visual anchors.

This F Word Can Sabotage Your Results

There’s one word I’ve heard people use repeatedly without realizing it's sabotaging the results they want to achieve.

As you may know, there are certain words that are disempowering because of their effect on our subconscious and their powerful effect on our reality.

For example, using the word ‘can’t’ creates the belief – and ultimately a self-fulfilling prophecy – that there’s something you can’t do or can’t achieve.

So, what’s the word I keep hearing? It’s the word ‘fight.’ I hear comments such as, “I’m fighting a cold” “fighting the battle of the bulge” or “fighting poverty.”  

Why Fighting is Ineffective
When you fight something, it tends to fight back. The situation escalates into aggressiveness and can lead to war.

In A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle makes a good case against achieving results using a mindset of war citing the ineffectiveness of the war against crime and drugs.

War is a mind-set, and all action that comes out of such a mind-set will either strengthen the enemy… or create a new enemy.” ~ Eckhart Tolle

A More Effective Approach
Instead of fighting a situation, work with it not against it. Do not think of yourself as fighting a cold. Rather, acknowledge a cold as your body’s way of letting you know you have a virus.

See yourself working in harmony with your body and your choice of treatment to heal and recover.

Fighting poverty? Fuggedaboutit! Acknowledge poverty as a temporary situation that has presented itself for a reason. Sometimes such situations lead us to our purpose and our true self – the authentic self that does not operate from the disease of ego.

In fact, in 1976 Buckminister Fuller foretold that in fifty years humanity will realize there is enough for everyone, everywhere.

Look at situations in your life and consider how you can work with them rather than against them. There is no peace to be found in fighting, so choose harmony. You reap greater, longer lasting results.