Hit the "Reset Factory Settings" Button.....

....if you are not ridiculously satisfied and thriving in your experience.  You know how on smart devices and some computers there is a "Reset Factory Settings" or "Reset Default Settings" button that you can push when things are not working the way they should.  The speed is not there, the device is feezing up, etc.....and viola', you push that button and everything is back to "normal".

What happened is that the default settings or the settings that the device was developed with are its optimal settings and where it operates as it was designed to and most efficiently have been altered by Apps or add-ons that you added to the system.  Many of these apps or add-on applications cause the smart device to work much less effectively because they were not designed with the whole system in mind.

When you hit the "reset" button, the system does not recognize "Dis-functional" Apps or add-on's and works the way it was designed (thats over simplifying it, but for the purpose of this post will suffice).  The same is true for you and I, except rather than Apps or Add-on's, some of what we believe to be true is what disrupts our naturally efficient thriving manner.

So, are you thriving in your life or are you just existing?  You came into this world built to thrive, evolve, progress and grow.  What does thriving look like?  Well, it's different for everyone but its growing at your essence.  A classic example is that a lot of people operate from a perspective that you go to university, graduate and then get a job, start a family and then essentially exist.  Buy a new car and big house and live happily ever after.  All well and fine, fabulous in fact, unless you stop growing.

How many people have "Aha" or "Hell yeah" moments through out their life because of break through insights about the way life works?  How many times have you heard someone say they are so "burnt out" with their job or their relationship has lost that "passion"?  Those feelings of "Burn Out" or "Passion" or lack there of are not an inherent possibility of the job or the relationship.  They are the feelings you are associating with the job or the relationship.  you don't feel your experience, you feel your thoughts and beliefs.

Everything is about choice.  Do you want to operate from your divine, ineffable factory settings or do you want to operate from beliefs that do not serve you?  Is something Bad or Good, Right or Wrong, Truth or Fiction?  It is what it is, how you feel about it is up to what you think about it!!!  It could be as simple as seeing something you don't agree with or would never do......Do you immediately go into defensive mode and assert "how could someone do that?", after all how you feel about it won't change the incident.  Factory settings would allow a curious thought like "interesting, not what I would do, that can't feel good", anything but a judgmental thought.

Now this is not some Pollyanna new age attitude that is in denial of the physical happenings in the world, its just the opposite, it's being deliberate with your thoughts which cause the physical happenings to change because our actions which cause the physical happenings are predicated upon our feelings.

So what is the take away?  Observe your thoughts!!!  Are they empowering, supporting growth and thriving or are they judgmental?  Thats it!!!  Literally choose every moment to be curious rather than judgmental......being in a state of growth, thriving and curiousness is when miracles happen!!!!!  
    

"Vulnerability is not weakness"....

Vulnerability is likely the single best measurement of courage.  But most people think of Vulnerability as weakness and with that tend to stay away from being vulnerable, or exposing themselves for who and what they are.  And when this happens, we lose touch with who our true selves are, what our true talents are, what our true desires are.

How many times have you been inspired to do something, write something, express your opinion, stand up for something you thought was right or stand up to something you thought was wrong?   But then rather than doing that something, sitting down and writing, expressing your feelings, supporting what you believe in or taking a back seat on an issue you felt was wrong, you avoided or suppressed the inspiration?  If you're like most people, too often.

Who am I to speak my mind, write something, create a piece of art, stand up for what I believe in?  Those are all thoughts emerging from shame, "I'm not creative enough, I'm not strong enough, I'm not an authority on this thing".  Well, where did Da Vinci get his talents?   How did Martin Luther King Jr. create such a large organized peaceful movement?  How did Steve Jobs create Apple?  They put themselves out there and kept doing it after each failure........and you know what, none of them were perfect!

Put yourself out there, stretch yourself....and that doesn't mean to be stupid about it and just argue with someone you don't agree with.  Just simply say;  "I see it this way, what is it that causes you to see it your way?  And do it with an openness to where the other person is coming from in order to understand.  You can still hold your opinion.

Creativity is a huge embracer of vulnerability.  Creating something that has never existed is really putting yourself out there.  Be it something physical or a new policy or a new approach to interacting with customers or even a Blog.  What have you go to lose?  Only the thing you don't endeavor to create!  And when it fails or does not work out, try something different.

"The Dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present.  The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion.  As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew.  We must dis-enthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country."  Abraham Lincoln 

I love that quote, "we must dis-enthrall ourselves...." Dis-enthrall means to free from a controlling force or influence......that being our avoidance of Vulnerability and the shame that prevents us from embracing Vulnerability as an innate part of who we are

Love is what we are born as, Fear is what we learn

That is a paraphrased from a quote by Sir Ken Robinson, and is so true.  Think about it.  A baby has no fear, they exude Love.  And then as they grow up, parents and adults through well meaning intention teach the child of all the dangers that "exist" in the world.  The shoulds and should nots of getting through life unscathed.  Study this, interact with these people, don't interact with those people, strive for this, stay away from that.

Usually, by the age of 6 and certainly by the age of 16, the individual has lost touch with the essence of who they are, their natural talents and desires are suppressed to varying degrees which diminishes as you would expect the enjoyment of their experience.

Have you ever noticed that when you are experiencing a problem or frustration, you are right there.  Even when you perceive that if someone else was different or if the circumstances of the situation were different, the problem would not exist, you are still entangled with the problem......you are involved with the problem or frustration.  Admitting the truth of this is usually missed by most individuals and the starting point of eliminating or reducing the frustration or problem itself.

As you identify a problem or frustration, ask yourself reflectively some enlightening and honest questions such as;

What am I to learn from this situation?
How am I to change to improve this situation?
Where am I to grow in order to alleviate the situation?
What latent talent is waiting to emerge to help in solving this problem?

And the key is, to ask these questions and then just 'be" with them, be quiet.....don't expect the answer to just appear (though if you do it with an open mind and heart, it may).  Sit with curiousness and see what comes.  Be aware that it may come at the most appropriate time, but also the most unexpected......so be open and listen to the thoughts you have.

 

Today....I AM resting in a state of nonresistance-

How many times have you found yourself mired in some negative state because of what is?  And your internal dialogue sounds something like, "What the hell!" or "Why Me!!" or the proverbial, "I can't believe this is happening".  Well, that resistance is the very thing giving that negative state power over you, and what does negative create?  Yep, more negative.  Try just accepting whatever caused you to lapse into that negative state as the fact that it is for now.  After all, you are responsible even if it was not deliberate.


Accepting something doesn’t mean that you like it, or want it to continue. It only means that for the time being, you’re willing to not be in resistance to it and allow it to dominate you.  When you resist, you cut yourself off from the flow of creativity that is always with you.  You are not allowing that creativity to surprise you with the simple solution that always resides in the problem itself.  You're not allowing because you're pushing and pushing is never progressive. 


Accepting things as they are as opposed to resisting them allows you to see the same things differently and in a way that you may very well be surprised with.  You know, the "Blessing in disguise" kind of way.  Think about how many times that has happened to you.  Now think about how many more times that might have happened had you dropped the resistance you held with other situations.  


Don't pitch a tent there, pack it up and move forward.....in other words flow with life, don't resist it, because it is there for a reason and yes, you are responsible for it.  When faced with a "problem", avoid the inclination to empower it by accepting it as a conclusion.  Rather, accept it for what it is in this moment knowing that by dropping your resistance to it, you will see it in a new light.  Do you think the chick or duckling in the egg when it grows so large it is uncomfortable resides in that discomfort?  No, the chick pecks it's way out into a whole new world not previously known to it.


It is what it is, Accept things for what they are now, because that is all they are.  What they are now can change in an instant, when you change you stance on them!!!

Today.....I AM residing in conclusions that are the opposite of my initial conclusion

What?  Well, Alright 75% of them anyway, just to see the difference.  For most people, 95% of the day is spent operating from auto pilot thinking, or the subconscious.  From there, you don't distinguish between your perceptions of reality and reality itself.  So from your perception of reality, you get what you are looking for, because you get what you are and not necessarily what you want.

Try it, what have you got to lose?  Well, if you are not having everything in your life going exactly the way you want it to, what you have to lose are experiences that keep you from having that.  It's true you know, and you are responsible, but its not your fault.....until you realize it and do nothing about it.

For example, if you get cut off in traffic, how many times is your reaction to think "you idiot!" or some other derogative?  And some people then even become aggressive in their own driving.....you have likely seen this.  So what if you noticed that you had this or some other less than positive reaction and asked your self "Is that really true?" or "Do I really know that?".  The answer will always be NO, I don't know this.......but your initial reaction came to this conclusion.  And the point is this, erroneous or even just definite conclusions are of no earthly good to you!!!!  Really they are not.

You can apply this to any situation, and interaction with your partner, an employee, your boss, anyone or anything.  Whenever you come to a conclusion from your subconscious the chances are that it is wrong?  why can I say that with total confidence?  Because the world is dynamic and ever changing, but your subconscious is not.  Your beliefs that may have been true about the way things are, probably are not now because so much has changed but you.  And at best, your conclusions are limiting the infinite potential that exists in an open mind.  Think I'm wrong, ask anyone in Tunisia, Egypt, or Libya.  The conclusion that a dictator controls their life came to an end in the last 11 months.  Let's trust they land on conclusions of optimism and progress moving forward.

Now, I'm not judging, but I am saying most of your conclusions are just stories that fit with your beliefs.  And our beliefs we take as the gospel or truth.  And at the end of the day, the only truth is that we don't know anything as ultimate truth except for what we feel to be right in our heart!!!  Truth to each of us as eternal, divine beings is not a cerebral experience, it's a feeling when we drop out of our head and into our hearts.

So today, I'm going to jump into a conclusion that is the opposite of what I initially thought.....unless it feels too good, then I'll stay with that one, which for me is about 25% of the time.  I AM a work in progress!!!

Today......I AM looking for what is working!!!

Rather than noticing what is perceived to be something wrong, I intend to look for everything that is working.  We tend to see what we are looking for, and my consciousness focused on what is working well mobilizes resources for more things to work well.  This is not just an exercise in optimism, yet there is nothing wrong with optimism.

Missing your family because of travel?  Is that better than not having a family to miss?

Lost your job recently?  Could you find your dream job if you were working 50 hours a week at your old job?

Have a Relationship fall apart seemingly for no reason recently?  Could you meet the person you realize deep love that grows everyday had you been in your old relationship?

This isn't just some Polyanna attitude about life's "Trials".  Life is progressive and expanding......to the point sometimes, that it will pull you by the collar (while you kick and scream) from situations that ultimately are not in your best interest or supporting you on your path.  You know, "yea, though I walk through the valley of death....", well some people pitch a tent there rather than walking through it and call it home.  Don't do that!!!!  Thats Crazy!!

Missing your family?  In your down time away from them, plan how you will connect with them deeper when you get back.  Lost your Job?  Take stock of all the skills and talents you developed at the old job and how you will leverage those even greater in your next opportunity.  Got dumped by the "love" of your life?  Take stock of and reflect on your contributions to the old relationship, and know that you outgrew that relationship.......and adopt the attitude of "NEXT!!!!"  Don't pitch a tent!!!  Progress on, move forward, GROW!!!

When things surprise you in seemingly bad ways....get excited to see what is coming next.  And by the way, take responsibility for everything that is coming into your experience, and I mean everything.  Or are you a victim?  No, I didn't think so.

Today.......Whatever it is you desire......

Give it away.  Thats right, give it away!!!

Why give what you desire away?  Because most people want something (and it does not matter what it is) for the simple reason that they think it will make them feel better.  And they are coming from a perspective of "lack", as in not having it.  They tend to focus on the fact that they don't have this thing that they want (for the purpose of feeling better).  And so "what are they"?  They are a person without this thing that they want......and you get what you are, not necessarily what you want.  And most people tend to just reside in this state of wanting this thing.  Their actions support this state of not having the thing they want.  Their actions are not inspired to support anything else.  

Now if they are in a state of giving this thing they want away, they must be in a state of having the thing they want.  And being in the state, they get what they "are".  I know it sounds like a play on words, but all this comes down to, is being deliberate about your thoughts.

Here is an example.  If you want more free time, help someone else with a task they are working on in order to free up some of their time they would have spent on the task had you not helped them.  I know, I know, you want more free time, and in order to get that you spend more time helping out someone else which takes up your own time?  Thats right!!  If you have the time to devote helping out someone else in order for them to complete a task quicker, YOU are in state of having time......and if you just rest in that state, your mind will stop thinking about NOT having enough time (which is paralyzing in itself), be more creative and the "inspiration" for how to spend your time more enjoyably will come to you.

Want to be happier?  Make someone smile.  Go ahead, I dare you to try it.  Want to feel deeper Love in your life?   Cause somebody to feel more loved, and it shouldn't be some monumental or materialistic expression.  Console somebody that is having a hard day, or call somebody and let them know what you appreciate about them.  

Supply?   If you desire Supply, how can you give that away?  Help someone else gain more Supply.  Seriously, if you want more Money, help somebody else make money.  Help them finish a job, or a refer a client to an associate, or donate something to a worthy cause, or this is a great one.......forgive a debt that someone owes you.  What?  Forgive a debt that someone owes you when what you want is Money?  Thats right!!!  If you had a million dollars in the bank, how much time would you spend thinking about $300.00 that your brother owes you?  Please say none!!!  Otherwise you are going to plow through that million dollars in very little time, and.............be back to wanting more money.  Why do you think there are so many stories about people who win the lottery and are broke again within very little time?

When you take this approach to the things you desire, you change your consciousness to one of having and your actions become congruent with that state.  And in essence what is that state?  Alignment, which is really all you ever need.

   

  

Today....I AM.....

Going to pay attention to my thoughts, particularly if they tend to be critical.  I am going to notice if I am critical of others and myself.  As this happens I am going to just observe these thoughts curiously and ask myself how this line of thought is actually serving me.   I am going to understand that this is not "What" I want to be and with compassion I will deliberately release the thoughts and the energy of these thoughts and step into a more empowered version of myself and appreciate the change I just facilitated.


I understand that being judgmental or critical is resistance and contradiction to my true Self.  It does not matter why I may have been having those thoughts and I do not condemn them or judge them, that would only make them persist.  I embrace them, own them, realize they do serve a purpose in my growth.  I am not a victim of them, I am actually better for having them and releasing them.  They are part of my nature as I move from a perception of being separate from others and all that is to understanding I am connected to everyone and one with the Source of all that is.  At my Essence is Pure Love.


Today, I AM going to experience all that life has to offer anyone that aligns with life and understands that I AM an individuation of something much greater than me.  


What are you going to do today?  Do it Deliberately and well!!!

What if you had no memory....think about it.....

What if you had no memory?  Kind of like deleting your e-mail, except you deleted your entire memory.  How do you suppose it would change your perceptions of life?  Kind of over the top question, you may be thinking........but it's not really.  Your perceptions are based upon your experiences and what you take to be real or "Normal".

So here is a the scenario I want you to think about.  For one day, you can push the delete button on all your memory except for who your best friend is.  Now in addition to being able to erase all of your memory, you are able to be transported to anywhere in the world along with your best friend that you know you can trust totally. 

You are going to visit four places in the world and the first is the border crossing at the US/Mexico border just south of San Diego.  You and your friend are transported and appear just on the US side of the crossing and the first thing you see are thousands of cars and people waiting on the Mexico side to come across to the US.  What would you be thinking?  Remember you have no memory so you have no idea what the scene actually is.  Your first question might be, "What is this place?".  Your friend replies, "It's the border crossing".  Your next Question might be "Border, what is a border?" and your friend explains what it is.  How strange would that be to you?  You might ask, "So what is the difference between a Mexican and an American and why does there have to be a gate and fence and police?", and your friend answers "One was born in the US and one was born in Mexico.  People want to come to America for the opportunity for a better life. Most people in Mexico live in poverty and America has to protect it's borders".  "Protect it's borders from what?".  Can you see how bizarre having a line in the dirt would seem to you with no memory of what was "Normal" to you?

Next place you visit is Tahrir square in Cairo last week as demonstrators were being attacked by the Military.  You appear and see Military personnel beating civilians over the head and limbs with batons.  Mayhem is everywhere.  What is your first question?  "Who are these people?", "Why are the people in uniforms hitting the other people?"  How bizarre would it be to hear that all of these people are from the same country but the ones in Uniforms are the Military who took over the country 9 months ago while the civilians protested the Dictator that had been in power for years, etc. etc.

Next Place is right outside the White House the night that it was announced that Osama Bin Laden had been killed by Navy Seals.  You appear and people are celebrating and waving flags and standing in trees and on fences, so you ask the obvious "What's going on here?".  Your friend sighs because they know how difficult this is going to be to explain.  But they start with "This is the White House, the capital of the United States, which is the most powerful country in the world and the people are celebrating because the President of the Country just announced that Osama Bin Laden has been killed by the United States Military in a covert operations half way around the world"  Your response is "Why would they want to kill someone half way around the world and why are these people celebrating?".  Your friend tries to explain that Bin Laden was a terrorist and launched attacks against the US on American soil ten years ago.......which causes you to ask follow up questions like "why did it take ten years for the most powerful country in the world to find one man?" and ultimately you ask "What is wrong with all you people?  Depending on where you were born your life is substantially better or worse?  You hit unarmed people over the head for occupying a public park? And you celebrate Killing another Human being?"

Now I will leave the fourth place up to you to ponder what questions would come up, but my point is this.  We take for granted that this is just the way life happens and we accept it for the most part and adapt.  We totally lose touch with who we truly are as divine beings that at our essence are created from Love and Love is our natural state and that through that Love we are all connected.  We totally lose touch with the fact that when we judge or do something that hurts another, we are hurting ourselves.  It's not your fault, but it is your responsibility................don't believe it?  Then what do you believe?  Life happens to you?  Well how is that working out?  Take 15 minutes a day, get quiet, get still, fall in love with Life, align with Life, drop out of your head and into your heart and see what comes to you.  I promise it will be Divine.    

It's not your fault, but it is your responsibility!!!

How can it be my responsibility if it's not my fault?  It's not your fault because you have been conditioned to believe for the most part that "Shit happens" or that life happens to you.  It is your responsibility because you participated in creating the "what" that is part of your experience.

Have you ever noticed how when there appears to be a problem, you are there experiencing the "problem".  The experience ranges from just observing the problem all the way to being so immersed in it that your whole whole life seems to be coming to an end!!!!!  Well, even if you are just observing that there is a problem, you are part of it, you are participating in it and you have chosen to do so.

Think not?  Okay, don't take responsibility then, and in the words of one of my favorite people, "how is that working out for you?"  Let me ask you this, Is the economic situation a problem for you?  Are you the least bit worried about it?  Or, does Congress' behavior cause you any concern?  Are you down right pissed off at Wall Street for ruining the Economy?  Are you upset with the 1%'s?   Well, if any of these issues is bothering you and seems to be a problem, you participated in creating it to some degree.......but its not your fault.  Feel better?

It is your responsibility though.  Now, if you feel the least bit of angst about taking responsibility for any problem, that is only an indication of the conditioning you have been under all of your life.  The really good news is that the solution is just a thought away.  Yep, just a thought away.  One of my favorite facts of life is "You get what you are, and not necessarily what you want".  Do you take responsibility for everything that happens in your life?  Or only the good stuff?  Are you deliberate in your thinking?  Do you look at outcomes that are not aligned with your desires and ask, "How did I contribute to that?"

The manager I referred to in my last post was responsible for the lack of her people performing to their potential because she bred mediocrity by rewarding something less than what her people were capable of delivering.  It comes down to two things;

1.  Do you aspire to be above average or to become your full potential?

2.  Are you thoughts oriented on short term results or long term results?

The first one is pretty clear, most people are mediocre in delivering what they are capable of, so above average is slightly above mediocre.  Ugh!!!  The difference in being long term oriented versus short term is the difference between delivering a result and delivering a sustainable, progressive and lasting result.  Look at Wall Street, they delivered a result and were paid immense bonuses based on that result which drove the global economy into the ground.  And make no mistake, they delivered the result because people acted upon their proposition.  Might have been institutions that bought from the bankers, but everyday people participated by delivering the demand for shoddy investments vehicles because all they wanted was return.

A long term thought process for the Manager from the last post would be having candid conversations about her people's performance and developing a deliberate multi pronged plan for influencing those individuals to begin making the effort to deliver what they are capable of.

Make it your responsibility to be deliberate in how you think about things, life, work, family and find the solution within the problem, it's always there.

 

Life is not about creation, It is about alignment!!!

Creation comes from thoughts and since most thoughts are repetitive and or reactionary there is not much creativity happening there.  We didn't come here in this physical time space reality to react or repeat thoughts that do not serve us.  When your thinking is repetitive think of yourself as an artisan, or someone that creates the same things over and over.

As an example, a manager of people that is not being successful in improving her people's performance focuses on the fact that her people are not making the desired change.  "It doesn't matter what I do, they won't change and do the work the way I tell them".  The manger becomes apathetic and resigned to not being effective.  She may even commiserate with peers that are having the same problem.  Day after day not much changes and the same results are achieved from the same repetitive thinking.

Creativity comes from alignment.  Alignment with our true selves and with Life.  It is knowing that we can not willfully birth creativity into our experience, but we can allow it when we align with our higher self and  Life.  When you are aligned, creativity manifests through you as an artist rather than an artisan.

The same manager as referenced above can become aligned by asking some simple questions and then resting with them to see what comes.  Not willing the answer, because she will miss it.  Questions like, "What does this mean for me?"  "What am I to take from this situation?"  "What would it look like if it were different?"  By being curious about the situation and realizing that the solution always resides within the problem, the solution will present itself to the manager.  Sometimes in the most unsuspecting manner, but when she is aligned with her true self and Life, it will be glaringly clear to her.

It might be the urge to go to the book store and when she does, a new book on influence is staring right at her.  It might be the urge to go to her own book shelf and see what book grabs her attention.  It might be the urge to google "persuasion" or "influence" or "change" and she is taken to the perfect website, or blog that sparks her creativity to develop a new plan for working with the situation.

And what is the key word in the previous paragraph of might be's?  Urge!!!  And what is an "Urge"?  Intuition, it's our Higher Self giving us a nudge in order to enjoy the unfolding of our divine creativity.  The Divine creativity that is not allowed to come forth through repetitive thinking.

Now here is the thing.  If you don't allow it to come through you, it will knock, and continue knocking until the knock becomes a sledge hammer manifesting itself as some malady or relationship issue or some traumatic issue that brings you to your knees.   You know the kind of experience that causes you to say "what the hell is happening?", rather than "what is my higher self trying to tell me?"

Life is about alignment, and not 100% alignment, that would be boring!!!!  You create your angst and frustration, and you need to own it, just don't pitch a tent in it and call it home!!!!  
  

Do you believe you can heal yourself with your thoughts?

You can you know. It's all about what you truly believe....what you take to be real. Those are your intentions, that is what you are...and what your are is what you get. So do you believe you are in control of every detail of your experience or are you at the whim of how life plays out.

Is life happening to you or are your responsible for everything in your life? Both are the same, you know. If you believe life is happening to you, you are responsible for everything in your life, both good or bad, because you have chosen that experience of life happening to you. If you believe you are responsible for everything that comes into your experience, life happens to you because of where you are coming from and what you hold to be true. So be deliberate in what you hold to be true and you will create everything that you hold to be true.

And the key is being deliberate in your thinking and what you take to be real.  Being sloppy and hap hazard in your thinking is when things happen for you and you ask "what the hell?"  Being deliberate and open to how what you take to be real will manifest for you creates scenarios that come in your experience and you say "whoa, that was awesome" and you suddenly realize that awesomeness is a result of what you are....what you take to be real.

So back to the original question, Do you think you can heal yourself with your thoughts?  I do, and I am.  I remember setting the intention that I my vision would correct to 20 20 from what it was, which was not very good.  Yesterday, I went and had an eye exam because I need to re-order contact lens'.  So the doctor is doing his thing, asking me "better, 1 or 2, 2 or 3 and so on.....and he says, "huh your vision is getting better".  I just thought "sweet", and then it donned on me that I had set that intention, doink!!!  Of course my vision is getting better.

So I paid the very attractive young receptionist and she commented "wow, you vision got better, don't see that very often", and I said "I'm not very typical" and she just smiled.  The same thing happened when I ordered my new contacts, the guy made a comment about my vision getting better and how rare that is.  He then asked me how many boxes I wanted to order.  I normally just order a years worth to get me to my next annual exam, but without hesitation I said "six months worth" knowing like the sun will rise in the east tomorrow, I will likely need a new prescription within that time as my vision gets better.

I was telling a friend (not a person that believes we create with our thoughts) about the happenings around my vision and my intention and she said "so if it was your intention that made that happen, why aren't your eyes corrected to 20 20 vision now?"......and I said, "because my intention was that my vision would gradually correct to 20 20 vision so that it would be enjoyable for me to experience over time my creation".  She just laughed.

The idea behind enjoying my creating my vision correcting is for me, because it is so easy to take for granted that what you believe is responsible for the immediate manifestations you experience everyday, and this I can enjoy as time goes by and my vision corrects itself.  remember, I had forgotten that I even had set that intention.

Be deliberate and create well my friend!!

Ram Dass' letter to parents of a murdered young girl....appropriate for those that lost loved ones on 9/11 or anytime. Beautiful thoughts!!!

Dear Steve and Anita, Rachel finished her work on earth, and left the stage in a manner that leaves those of us left behind with a cry of agony in our hearts, as the fragile thread of our faith is dealt with so violently. Is anyone strong enough to stay conscious through such teaching as you are receiving? Probably very few. And even they would only have a whisper of equanimity and peace amidst the screaming trumpets of their rage, grief, horror and desolation. I can't assuage your pain with any words, nor should I. For your pain is Rachel's legacy to you. Not that she or I would inflict such pain by choice, but there it is. And it must burn its purifying way to completion. For something in you dies when you bear the unbearable, and it is only in that dark night of the soul that you are prepared to see as God sees, and to love as God loves. Now is the time to let your grief find expression. No false strength. Now is the time to sit quietly and speak to Rachel, and thank her for being with you these few years, and encourage her to go on with whatever her work is, knowing that you will grow in compassion and wisdom from this experience. In my heart, I know that you and she will meet again and again, and recognize the many ways in which you have known each other. And when you meet you will know, in a flash, what now it is not given to you to know: Why this had to be the way it was. Our rational minds can never understand what has happened, but our hearts – if we can keep them open to God – will find their own intuitive way. Rachel came through you to do her work on earth, which includes her manner of death. Now her soul is free, and the love that you can share with her is invulnerable to the winds of changing time and space. In that deep love, include me. In love, Ram Dass

Our natural state is one of thriving!!!

Thats right, Thriving!!! Growing and expanding and becoming more of the infinite potential that each of us actually is. But if that is true, and it is, why is there so much of not thriving taking place in the world today? Because we insulate our true essence of pure potential with an almost incessant stream of thoughts that keep us from thriving. Thoughts like the economy, politics (thats a good one), should and should not beliefs, allowing others actions to derail us from our true self.

How much time during the day do you take to connect with your true self? The infinite, eternal pure positive expansive energy that is always right here with you? Aery fairy? Where do you think you came from? For that matter, where do you think the Universe and all that exists came from? In philosophy classes in school most of us students always were asking the questions "Why are we here?" or "where did we come from?" which are great questions......but I was always fascinated with the fact that we are here and do exist.

Now if your comfortable with the idea that a great creator, created all that is and we are here to serve his/her purpose.....go for it, but how is that working out? Do you know that more people have lost their worldly life as a result of disputes over which religion is truer than any other cause. How would a great creator feel good about that? Or is it that you believe that your creator is "THE" only true creator? That belief is where all the worlds battles have derived from, killing arising from religious disputes. Ugh!!

We are all connected from the same source that makes up everything. all the strife and chaos that the world is experiencing right now is for one purpose. Think of it like a 2 x 4 hitting us upside the head to wake us up. Think about it, when you are thriving, are you judging anything? Are you jealous? Are you envious? Are you hoarding or devising ways in which to gain material goods or currency? Are you arguing your position? Are you thinking only about yourself? NO!!!

Thriving is a state of being. You don't judge, because you know everyone is doing there own thing based upon their degree of alignment with their true self (not to mention, you tend to be surrounded with aligned people). Your not jealous because, well, you just feel too damn good to even have the possibility to go there. Envious? Of what? You have everything you could ever need (as a matter of fact, you have whatever you put your thoughts to). Hoarding or devising to accumulate stuff? Ahh, no, your thriving!!! Arguing is not resonant with thriving and your not thinking about yourself because you don't have a feeling of separation. And how natural is that state of Thriving? The only effort is that of being deliberate with where your thinking is coming from, Alignment.

So how do you stay in alignment? Pay attention to how you feel and if it is in any way a negative emotion, do anything to improve it. Your well being is more important to you and everyone else than anything, because your well being is how we connect with our natural state of thriving. Meditate, practice yoga, exercise, do anything that quiets the mind and see what happens!!! Thrive!!

Where are you thinking?

Are you being deliberate in "where" you are thinking? Or are you in auto pilot and going with what comes up in your experience? Be deliberate and change your experience and change the world!!

Deliberate thinking takes place in your frontal lobe, reacting takes place in the back or primitive brain. It comes down to "do I want to create my day or do I want to react to my day?". Create my friend, that is where progress and expansion comes from. Fear and judgement comes from reacting, ugh!!

And how do you stay in creative thinking? Just ask yourself if what your thinking is serving you in growth or progression. Ask yourself this question and you begin discerning what your thoughts are in the process or doing, either creating a new path or re-acting previous paths that do not always serve your growth and expansion. And what is growth and expansion? Love

Be deliberate, be the Love that you are!!

What is your focus today?

Make it the one thing that is most important to you right now. Don't get distracted by all the little things that always "need" to be done. I know it may seem difficult to do, but at the end of the day, if those little things don't get done, they will be there tomorrow but the most important thing will be one day further removed from being accomplished.

What is the most important thing for you to do right now? The thing that gives you energy and excitement when you think about it....the inspiration that keeps raising its head and trying to get your attention. The thing that is screaming for you to bring it into existence. Go do that!!! Take a day off from the usual grind of work or daily activities and spend your time on an inspired thought......then tomorrow tell me it was not worth the time or you should have done something else!!!

Do what longs for you to participate with infinite potential, do what you love, be the Love that you are.......and see what happens!!

Choosing your own reality.....nobody else can!!!

You choose your own reality every moment of every day. You choose how to perceive the physical experience you have and you choose the physical experience you have. You do, You know that, right?

My favorite story of this is from Abraham telling the story of a woman who is saying that her lover has left her and now she is sad. Abraham tells her "no your not" and the woman says, "I was happy, then my lover left and now I am sad". Again, Abe says "No your not, you're not sad because your lover left you, your sad because you are so removed from your true self". In other words, out of alignment with her true self.

Everything is about relationship, relationship to the external physical world, relationship to each other and the most important relationship being the one you have with you. Knowing your true self, treating yourself well, taking care of yourself, and being honest with yourself. Your true self is infinite. Infinite potential and Love, and if thats true, and it is, where does sadness fit in? The only place sadness is in play for your true self is when you are out of alignment and forget who you truly are.

Sadness has a purpose, its an indicator that you are out of alignment, thats it. The problem is that some people lose perspective and pitch a tent in despair, sadness or any other emotion that does not serve them and they call it home. Make no mistake, its a choice. Don't like where your at, choose another reality.

Too often people lose touch with the perspective of who they are and what they are capable of and unintentionally teach their children to do the same. Essentially, compromise becomes the norm and settling for something less than your worth becomes habit. Ugh! Don't do that!!! Do you Love yourself enough to be true to YOU? Do you? Not sure? Or very confident that you do? Look at what is showing up in your life, are you thrilled with every nuance of everyday? If not, ask what you can do differently for yourself. It's always a choice, choose well!!!

Your True Self finds egoic behavior interesting, not saddening. For instance, your lover, spouse or best friend acts out totally irrationally and maybe even attacks you. Your small self or ego, might attack back as a defense, or might withdraw and question your worth, or fall into despair and climb into that tent. But, your True Self would reflect and find the behavior interesting yet keep it in perspective, knowing the behavior is not coming from the other person's True Self. Any action taken from being aligned with your True Self would be supportive of you and the other person including leaving them alone if they are so steeped in a misperception of who they truly are.

How do you react when accused of something that is just not true? Do you defend yourself or try to convince the accuser of the truth? Or do you ask yourself, "what qualities do I have in play that would lead this person to believe this false accusation?", and it might be that you are so transparent in your actions that the other person just can't process this behavior without missing something. Asking internal questions always brings some wisdom out, which asking external questions rarely does.

Go within and then choose the reality that serves you!!!

"Close your eyes, fall in Love, stay there!!" Rumi.......The Solution is in the Problem!! Redux

Always is and available if we stop, move into alignment and allow it to come to us. But in general most of us don't believe that to be the truth in which case our beliefs don't serve us. So what if you changed your belief about this one thing? What if you believed that the solution for every problem exists within the problem itself? Ah, you would be much more likely to access the solution.

But it's not that simple, because we struggle mightily with allowing things to come to us. We tend to believe that we need to make things happen, or if we analyze the issue, we will find the solution with our will to do so. In truth, the solution surfaces if we get curious, be patient and allow it to come.....but that can be difficult, can't it? But why is that so difficult? Because in our subconscious mind we have been conditioned to believe that through effort and hard work come rewards and outcomes. And we spend 95% of everyday operating from our subconscious mind. That is the level at which real change takes place, actually it's the level where transformation takes place.

This is why affirmations and visualization does not work for so many people. You can say an affirmation as many times as you want, but if your sub conscious beliefs are not congruent with the affirmation, it ain't happening. It's also why affirmations and visualizations do work for so many other people, they believe that they are powerful and creative.

As an example, do you see people as separate from you? Or do you see yourself connected to everyone else? Big difference!!! Which belief system does bigotry or jealousy emerge from? Which belief system does tolerance and compassion emerge from? Which belief system does "organized religion dogma" emerge from? (just to be clear, I'm not judging organized religion). Where does bullying emerge from? Where does victimhood emerge from? Pretty easy to discern which belief system is limiting and which is empowering, right? Please say yes!!

Bullying is a big topic in the news right now especially in light of the suicides around the country making headlines that are associated with cyber spying and bullying. What's the solution? Protesting and exposing the culprits? Obviously some people think so, but protests are not solutions....protests are resistance and what you resist persists!! The solution lies in the problem which is the bullies and the victims don't believe that they are intrinsically connected.....in other words, the belief is that we are all separate and in ultimate reality we are all connected. Any act of violence or intimidation comes from one place and that place is fear. And if you truly believe that you are connected with every other person or every other thing for that matter, what is to fear? Nothing!!

Now this will not sit well with a lot of people, but I trust if you are reading this, it won't be too much of a struggle to get your head around it. The bullies and the victims are in resonance with each other. We get what we are. So if that's true and it is, then what is the "Are" state that is resonant within the bullies and the victims. It's hard to say without knowing the individuals and observing what is consistently showing up for them, but a broad brush approach might say.....they are conflicted. And again, I'm not judging either one, but if either one was consistently in a state of contentment and clarity, would bullying occur? But how likely could bullying manifest from a state of conflict or fear? And bullying can't manifest with only the bully, there has to be a victim, and the victim has to be in resonance on some level with the bully. Sorry, I know thats not easy to accept, but its the truth. We get what we are, not what we want!!!

Allowing the solution to emerge from the problem requires a shift from within. How can you facilitate that shift within yourself? Get quite, get curious and ask some simple questions for the single purpose of shifting from your current model of reality to a more expansive and attractive one. What can I learn? Where am I to Grow? How am I to change? What does this mean? Ask one or all four of these questions and just be with them, don't make any effort to answer them......get out of your head, drop down into your heart and rest there. Something might pop into your stream of thinking immediately or maybe not......it might be an hour later or a day later that an inspired thought "comes" to you and provides you the insight you need for the question you asked.

As Rumi said, "Close your eyes, Fall in Love, Stay there". What problems are there when you are in a state of Love? None, and what are you and I? Pure Love!! How do I know? Because Love is expansive, Love is growth, Love is progress......and what is the Universe? Expansive, Growing and Progressive. What is Life? Expanding, Growing and Progressive........So again, what are we? We are Love, We are Life.......Be the Love that YOU are!!!

Fall in Love with Life and Life aligns with you. Fall in love with yourself and all will be well!!!!

You will never find what you are looking for in love, if you don't love yourself. Lady Gaga

So very True. I love Gaga, She is brilliant. How do you know if you Love yourself the way that you want to be loved? Look at what is showing up in your life!! How are you expressing your love for yourself?

It's always accurate and you can't hide from it. How are you allowing yourself to be treated by the world? That will tell you. Do you compromise on things for the sake of pleasing others desires for how you should be? Not sure that is a good indication on loving yourself.

Think about it. Do what you love to do, be the Love that you are and see how life treats you. Align with your true Self and life will align with you. How do you know if you are aligned with your true self? Do what you love and makes you feel strong and alive, anything less is not in alignment.

Think about it!!! And know I love you.......I'm going for a ride!

Get dat Ass to making people smile!!! Uncle Rush

I'm a big fan of Russell Simmons. Dude is rocking ancient wisdom and the title is a paraphrase of one of his mantra's "Get dat Ass to giving!!", and and he follows it up with "keep giving until they can't live without it".

And he is dead on point!!! Too many people think that giving something away is just not doable, it can't be sustained. But that mentality comes from a perspective of lack and fear. There is no lack, well with one exception......a lack of empowering thinking. Go with empowering thinking, make as many people as you can today smile and see if you feel empowered or drained.

Want to be loved? Love someone else, better yet, love yourself! Want to be happy, make someone else happy......you can't be anything but happy when you make someone else happy.....Try it!!! I dare you!!!

Don't believe me, Ask 50 Cent.....when his first record label dropped him after he was shot up like 9 times, Uncle Rush told him to give his music away....and thats what he did, he gave it to everyone that would take it, DJ's, people on the streets, anyone that would take it. And what happened? So much demand for his stuff that the record labels came after him.....and the rest is, well where he is now.......Get Dat Ass to making people smile today!!!