Manifestation, Meditation & More...in Time for the Holidays

Just in time for the holidays, Hay House is offering a special discount, available only through Dec 11, on so many of their awesome works to teach us how to be the best possible people we can be and how to manifest what we want in life (and who doesn't want a bargain for the holidays?)

Best-selling books, cds and dvds by

Wayne Dyer
Dr Christiane Northrup
including some of my personal favorites:
Louise Hay, You Can Heal Your Life--The Movie (2 DVD expanded Edition), normally $29.95, sale price $10

Abraham-Hicks, Law of Attraction series, set of 12 (including 2 brand new DVDs) $125, a savings of more than $100!!!

and BRAND NEW items such as

Marianne Williamson's "A Course in Weight Loss", book lists for $24.95, get it here for only $16.22 (CDs also available if you'd rather, list $29.95, only $19)

Louise Hay's "Experience Your Good Now!" $12.56 --that's 30% off for this hardcover with CD

Abraham-Hicks "Getting Into The Vortex" guided meditation (book and CD), list $24.95, here only $17.46

Whether you are looking for books for your own personal development or to give as wonderful gifts, you can find them here. These are the lowest prices I've seen--some items as low as $1 and many, many more for only $5! Get music, meditation guides, tools for manifesting abundance...you name it!

Know Your Why

At a meeting the other night a speaker said "to succeed in this business you have to know your why"...that is something I completely agree with, whether it is that business, or any business, or your personal life...especially if you want to experience a change in direction.

It is more important to know your WHY than to know the HOW.

The WHY is about how you feel about it, not how you will accomplish it.

The WHY is what will keep you motivated when things aren't always going smoothly.

The WHY is what gets you energized so you want to get up in the morning.

The WHY is what makes it easy to take the steps that lead to the change.

Many of us choose a why that doesn't inspire us...if you are doing things and it feels like drudgery then I suggest you look at your WHY. If you only come up with with whys that are SHOULDS then dig deeper (or dig sideways perhaps.)

If you absolutely cannot come up with a WHY that gets you excited, can you find a WHY that lets you feel better?

For example, if you hate your job and you have no WHY that gets you pumping about it, try to see if you can focus on a couple positive aspects of your job and then see if you find a why. Does your job provide you with a stable income? Paid vacation? Do you have pleasant co-workers or customers? Does your job provide you with training?

Perhaps your WHY is that you know you are learning and growing as a person, an employee, or as a business person and that you will be able to apply all this growth and knowledge to your next job, the next phase of your life, to starting your own business...

Do any of those WHYs pump you up? Then follow your heart...that doesn't mean you have to jump ship right now...keep feeling that feeling as you work your current job and then next step will unfold...

As long as you know your WHY!

Friday the 13th

Happy Friday the 13th...

This is the third Friday the 13th of the year...the maximum number possible in a single calendar year.

So if you are thinking it is an unlucky day, cheer up, it is the last one of the year. Even better, treat it as an opportunity to recognize that you can change your thinking and your experience!

I love Friday the 13th...it has always been a good day for me. When I was in school if we had tests on Friday the 13th I aced them...and I continue to expect that these will continue to be good days for me in the future.

Take extra time today to think about good things...the things you want to experience in your life. If you have the feeling that this day is unlucky then think about all the things that are already going right in your life. Remember the Law of Attraction states what you focus on expands...be grateful for the blessings you have and give only short attention to any annoyances you experience today.

As you fall asleep, think about what a great day you had...recite all the good stuff.

Then tomorrow when you wake up, remind yourself what a wonderful day Friday the 13th was...

Now you have started a new pattern! And expect the NEXT Friday the 13th to be an awesome day!

Give to Others from Love Not Obligation

Catherine Carey wrote in her blog, Taking Care of Yourself, yesterday about how good it feels to give to others...it is so true--but it is important that when we give we do so for the right reasons.

It definitely feels fantastic to support organizations that you believe in…it is so important to give back to the world…but we often get caught in the idea of “should” contribute.

When we are donating…either our time or our money…we (and the organizations we are supporting) deserve to be 100% behind the cause. Rather than giving out of “should” or obligation, when we give out of love our efforts are multiplied by the universe.

The good feelings we have when we donate out of love are sent out and others feel the energy and are inspired to give to organizations that they believe in, too!

Remember--it is your life, your time, your energy and your money. Give freely...let it circulate...and give in ways that uplift you so that you are circulating love in addition to money! In fact, the circulating of love is more important...and something that everyone can do--even if they don't have physical (fiscal) money to spare!

Weight Loss and Law of Attraction

I know the Law of Attraction works...and it can be used to have success in any area of your life.

I have lost 120 pounds--and it all started with the Law of Attraction.

After being exposed again and again to LoA, I finally made a conscious decision to change my life by changing my thinking. I'd tried changing what I ate and how I exercised and those traditional methods hadn't worked, so why not try changing my thinking.

After all, what did I have to lose? (HA!)

So I accepted responsibility for my weight and became open to the possibility that I could reach a healthy weight. I worked on myself--loving and accepting myself as I was then and the potential that was within.

That is how it all began. I then attracted teachers and tools that helped facilitate the weight loss even further. I use affirmations, I study great spiritual teachers, and I practice loving myself...that is what makes it all work.

I am so grateful for all the teachers who helped me along the way...and if I can help anyone out there who is struggling--please let me know.

Discounting Attraction (the Law of, that is)

I was at a fantastic conference recently.

Heard a lot of wonderful, bright speakers.

Several of whom dismissed the Law of Attraction.

Time and time again I heard something along the lines of--it isn't ATTRACTION, it is TAKING ACTION.

Then, the same speakers would talk about the importance of MINDSET.

Hmmm...last I checked all of that is part of "the secret" aka the Law of Attraction (LoA).

One speaker even said she didn't believe in LoA--if you sit at the bottom of the stairs with your eyes closed thinking about being at the top of the stairs, you aren't going to suddenly find yourself at the top--no, you have to get up and walk up the stairs.

While it was great for a visual and a giggle, that's not Law of Attraction, that is TELEPORTATION! And I agree, I don't think we are there (yet).

The Law of Attraction--truly one of the great laws of the universe (but surely not the only one!)--does NOT state that you don't have to take action. It talks about getting your mind in the right place (mindset) and thinking about what you desire in your life and then being open to the people and ideas that come to you--and ACTING UPON THEM!!!

So really, the Law of Attraction IS the Law of Action.

In What Direction Are You Moving?

The great thing in this world is not so much where we are, but in what direction we are moving.
--Oliver Wendell Holmes

Sometimes we tend to get caught up in where we are right this minute. But of course we know that where we are is merely a result of our past thoughts and actions.

We may like where we are. We may not like where we are. It doesn't really matter. It is still a result of our past thoughts and actions.

Let me remember to be aware of, and thankful for, the direction in which I am moving. That is what being in the "now" is about. I can only control NOW what I am thinking about NOW, not what I did 5 minutes, 5 days, 5 weeks, 5 months, 5 years ago.

We Choose Our World

The way in which we think of ourselves has everything to do with how our world sees us and how we can see ourselves successfully acknowledged by that world.
--Arlene Raven

It all starts with loving ourselves and seeing the possibilities, so that we may receive the many blessings available to us. Or we can choose to not love ourselves, to not see the possibilities and therefore to not receive.

Every day, every minute we have the power to choose our world.

Thank You for the Teachers Around Me

I am so grateful for the wonderful teachers that surround me.

Some of these teachers are "official"--you know speakers, authors, professors, ministers, experts in their fields, etc.

I'm also grateful for the "unofficial" teachers, who frequently do not even recognize themselves as teachers. This might include a neighbor, a child, the shop clerk, someone in line at the post office.

Some of the other teachers that we are surrounded by include all the elements of nature--the trees, clouds, our pets, wildlife...here I have been getting many lessons from some simple natural events--the doves who live in the trees outside my dining room, the horses in the pasture across the street, the glorious sunrises.

I am grateful for the wonderful sense of joy, peace and harmony that I get when I contemplate these wonderful teachers.

Taking Care of Oneself

I "met" someone today through her blog...she is talking about the importance of taking care of oneself...and she referenced my RefuseToDiet blog.

The idea of taking care of self is something I've been covering here. I really appreciate her take on things we can do (actions)--check out her blog!

Taking care of oneself includes our health, doing our affirmations, keeping our hearts centered on love and peace...and really deciding that we deserve good things and setting our intentions that we are open to receiving all the good there is in the universe!

Attitude Is Key

No matter what you want to change about your life, your attitude is the key component.

A woman here in Loveland, Colorado, is an excellent example of this. Like me, she has struggled with weight her entire life. And like me, she made a determination to change.

Unlike me, her success made national television when Jay Leno dissed her as part of the Tonight Show, Headlines segment in November. Apparently her losing 80 pounds was not visible enough in the advertisement and so the comedian poked fun at her.

For a lot of people, that would have been enough to send them to the frig or back to bed. For this local woman, she is using it fuel her desire to achieve her goals of fitness.

What an awesome example for all of us! Whether we want to bring more health into our lives or if we want to attract the perfect mate, more money, the perfect job or our dream home...it is up to us to set the intention and keep our attitude positive and not let other people "take us out!"

Listen to the Messages and Take Action

While we are contemplating the possibilities, it is also important to be open to the messages that we get from the Universe/Source /God /Infinite Intelligence...what you call it is not crucial.

These messages, if we listen, will tell us the step(s) that is in our best interest to take.

I've talked about this before, but it is worth repeating...

Sometimes this will come as a full-blown idea. Other times it will be a tiny step that may seem inconsequential.

The message may come when you are first waking up, in that foggy time between subconscious and consciousness. Or the message may come while you are relaxing in the shower or during meditation.

Or it may come in a physical form--you see or hear mention of the same thing repeatedly, say on the news, in the paper, in the mail, at the water cooler, in line at the store. Whenever we hear things repeatedly it deserves to be paid attention to. It may or may not be a message from the Universe, but if we don't hear it we won't know!

Another way to receive a message is that it may actually awaken you during the night...for example I have been woken up between 4:44 and 4:57 every morning for several weeks to use the bathroom. I believe that I am getting a message (that has nothing to do with the toilet!) My job is to be awake enough to write it down and then ACT UPON IT!

Positive thoughts and words are great...and they are a start...if and when we get the message and the impulse to act, then we must act. At that point the thoughts and words alone are not enough!

Contemplate the Possibilities

Thomas Troward (1847-1916) greatly influenced the New Thought movement at the end of the 19th century. One of his points was that it is by contemplating the possibility of a thing that we can actually bring it about.

Contemplate the possibilities that you want to have manifest in your life.

Be grateful for the possibilities and their manifestation.

To read more about Thomas Troward's ideas check out his books:

• The Edinburgh and Dore Lectures on Mental Science
• The Creative Process in the Individual (New Edition)
• The Hidden Power

Mindset and Making Life Changes

I have used a lot of Mindset tools. They have helped to me completely change my life. In so many ways.

Without them, I am sure I would still be working for someone else instead of being self-employed. I wouldn't have taken the leap because it wasn't in the training I got growing up. I was taught that to be "safe" you had to work for a big company.

Without changing my mindset I would never have bought real estate other than my primary residence. It certainly was not the model I had at home.

With my old mindset, I would still be almost 300 pounds--or maybe I would be even more than that by now. I got there because I was trying to live the life I thought I "should" live...I was living for approval rather than for the joy of what I want in life.

I am not saying these things to complain about my upbringing or blame my parents or anything of the sort. My parents did a really good job--certainly the best they knew how to do. They weren't perfect, but then what human being is?

I'm just pointing out that what I call mindset tools have helped me change my life in multiple areas. Without making a change to ones mind, it is not possible to make permanent change in your life.

Change your thoughts and you change your world.
--Norman Vincent Peale (1898-1993)

Sometimes change requires physical effort. Mostly, I find it is emotional effort--which I think is even harder. I recently found that I was not practicing what I preached. I was "if not disgruntled, I was far from being gruntled" as an old friend used to say. Heck, I was disgruntled! And I think I was expecting someone else to pick me up out of it! Fortunately a friend pointed out to me the energy I was putting out to the universe. This led me to go back to some of the mindset tools I had successfully used in the past, but for whatever reason had let slide lately.

So yes, I have to physically read the books or listen to the audios or watch the DVDs or do the meditation and visualization. However, the biggest action I have to take is on my willingness and excitedness to take the action--my own attitude about it. If I chose to stay all "poop-y" the actions would not give me results because I wouldn't be open to them!

I have chosen to reopen my heart, mind and soul. I am back using the tools. I am seeing changes already. Guess some lessons are not learned with a single run through! I knew that, but it appears I needed a reminder!

Mind Set and Healthy Weight

Seems like everyone is aware that our thoughts are very powerful tools--for just about every facet of our lives.

One of the things that we tend to do when we look at our bodies is to say very negative things about them. How many times have you looked in the mirror and said, "wow, what a great body I have"? If you are like most of us, that would be, uh, not often.

Well, it is time to remember that our bodies respond to our thoughts. Therefore if you are thinking negatively about your body, it will continue to be that negative thing.

So, start with ONE positive thought about your body. It could be a body part that you actually like. Even if it is "just" your eyes or your smile. Start by appreciating that area. Look in the mirror and say (out loud when you can...it has a great power for your ears to hear the comment, but say it to yourself when you don't feel comfortable saying it out loud) "I love you _________, you are beautiful". You can change the phrase, but it's a good start!

Another great tool is to affirm that you are getting better, improving your health, gaining strength, etc. Do not focus on losing weight. Focus on the positive...what will losing weight do for you? Provide you with more energy? Better health? Better appearance? Know WHY you want to drop weight and affirm that you are open to it. For example "I am getting more and more healthy every day."

That's it. It's pretty simple. Start there. Today.