The Challenge

Let others lead small lives but not you
Let others argue over small things but not you
Let others cry over small hurts but not you
Let others leave their future in someone else's hand but not you.

Jim Rohn

The Simple Joys

My day started in an excellent manner with the twenty five minute walk to the tube station on a beautiful sunny April morning.

The clean air, the cool , fresh breeze on one side of my face and the gentle sun touching the other side. I breathe in the air and exhale gently. The Cafe with the black tinted floor length glass front and the chrome and wicker tables and chairs laid out on the pavement. The little charity shop, a garage , a boutique , a pizza place all standing cheek by jowl. The whish of traffic accompanies my walk to the station. The upholstery shop nextto the bus stop , the biscuit coloured clock tower with the golden dials on a bright blue background the Edwardian edifices with the shops on the ground floor , the estate agents, the banks , the Post Office , the Korean restaurant.

I enter the station as a red double decker bus moves slowly pass the station, and a crow flies in the distance.

Planning

Do you find sometimes when you visualise the coming day you have it divided into two main slots- the time you are going to be at work and the time you ae going to be at home. What about the amount of time put into planning those slots.Do you actually write down how you are going to fill those slots. To give some structure I find it useful to use the three stone , sand and jar model.

List three important things you need to do in each slot. More than three, it can become overwhelming just like if you are trying to fill the sand before the stones. The idea is to prioritise, do the most important things first. We need to get the stones into the jar followed by the sand and not the other way round.

Be the change

The world will only change when you change yourself.

Embracing change is essential for our continued personal growth . The key is to learning how to transform any perceived problem into a force for positive change. As human beings we have an inifinite capacity to dig deep and transform which most often occurs in those periods when we are feeling stuck or fearful.

Sometimes in life we have to take the long way to reach our destination but it is the long way which is often the shorter way. It is wise not to swim against the tide because it expends too much energy but instead let the tide take you where you are supposed to go and then after you have reached the bank , walk to your original destination.

Work on yourself to be the change instead of trying to change others. Only when you change the world will change.

The Secret

The new DVD and book 'The Secret' is based on the Law of Attraction which purports that thoughts are things and they become reality. Our thoughts bring about vibrations and this manifests into reality. Whatever we focus our attention towards and our intention, it manifests itself.

There are some practical tips. For example if you would like to bring someone in to your life to share your life with that person then begin by making space for that person. For example you would always lie on your side of the bed leaving the other side empty for that person. Similarly you should clear half the space in your cupboard to make room for the clothes for the person you are intending to come into your life. Hmmm!!

As regarding financial freedom, repeat affirmations such as 'money comes to me easily and frequently' . Visulaise cheques coming in through the post rather than having thoughts and stomach churning feeling thinking they are bills.

I read somewhere that when we visualise we should think of ourselves after what we wish for has happened. For example, when looking for parking space most of us visualise an empty space but instead we should have the picture in our mind of our car already parke in that space.

Doing more important than outcome

The most important thing is the doing rather than the outcome.

Arthur Ashe

Practice the law of detachment. Just keep doing what you are meant to do and don't worry about the results. Wisdom lies in the lessons you learn while you are on the journey rather than arriving at the destination.

Let go

Once there lived a village of creatures along the bottom of a great crystal river....Each creature in its own manner clung tightly to the twigs and rocks of the river bottom, for clinging was their way of life, and resisting the current was what each had learned from birth. But one creature said at last , 'I am tired of clinging. Though I cannot see it with my eyes, I trust that the current knows where it is going. I shall let go , and let it take me where it will. Clinging I shall die of boredom. ' The other creatures laughed and said 'Fool! Let go and that current you worship will throw you tumbled and smashed acrss the rocks, and you will die quicker than boredom'. But the one heeded them not, and taking a breath did let go , and at once was tumbled and smashed by the current across the rocks. Yet in time, as the creature refused to cling again , the current lifted him free from the bottom, and he was bruised and hurt no more. And the creatures downstream to whom he was a stranger, cried, 'See , a miracle! A creature like ourselves, yet he flies!'... And the one carried in the current said 'The river delights to lift us free, if only we dare let go. Our true work is this voyage, this adventure.'

Excerpt from Richard Bach's Illusions.

No man is an island

We write not to inform but to connect. No man is an island, we do all need each other. A hundred years from now most of now on this earth will pass on to the next world and it will be our children to whom we pass on the mantle. While we are here , should we not just give out some of our love we hold within us to our fellow human beings. Show kindness and be gentle for there is nothing greater than gentleness.

Come and play

When you put your trust in your Creator and know that everything is unfolding as it should you learn to enjoy the present moment. You start to find joy in the ordinary things, the sound of children playing outside, the hum of the cars in the distance , the comforting glow of a declining spring day and the knowledge that you spent your hours just the way you wished. You give thanks that you had three glorious days of sunshine to mitigate the low temperatures felt before.

When you shut out all the chatter in your head, stop all thinking and access the stillness within you, and hold on to it as long as you can , then there is no greater joy. You are a part of this world yet you are not. You take part in this world but you are also of another world.

The daffodils are in bloom , a blackbird flies past, the grass feels alive, the skeletal branches of the trees are no more but a mass of bottle green baby leaves and pink flowers. The wispy clouds sail through the cerulean sky and the warm sun smiles benignly on the children below.

I want to join with their play. Why is it that we do not let the child within us come out more often?

Play rejuvenates and revitalises us and the best by product of play is laughter. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, our body's natural painkillers and results in a general sense of well being.

Laughter is inner jogging. Norman Cousins

Radiate happiness and joy

You can be, do, have anything you want. Give love to everyone you meet , only do what gives you joy, and things and people wil become attracted towards you like a magnet all conspiring to make your dreams a reality. Whatever you ask for is already there , you just need to manifest it and that is through your actions. Thoughts are things. Your thoughts create your feelings which in turn will translate into action. So be mindful of what you are thinking. Monitor your thoughts constantly and shun any trace of negativity. When you focus on what you want and not on what you don't want all the forces will be unleashed to make your dream a reality.

Whether it is your dream home, or you dream partner, or your children getting top grades , or earning a fantastic living doing what you love to do, or being radiantly healthy you can have it all. You just need to make the decision and then committ yourself to action. Small steps on a daily basis working towards your life goals will eventually get you there. Think what you can accomplish in five years, ten years, twenty years or even thirty years. The sky is your limit and the world really is your oyster. This magnificent universe is full of abundance so claim your share in it. Remember that God wants you to have what your heart desires.

The first step you can take is to express your gratitude to your Creator who has already given you so much. You are already wealthy except that you do not know it and God wants to shower you with more blessings , wealth , health and happiness.

The secret is in being , being the person that God wants you to be . We tend to look at life in the wrong order. We think that if we had lots of money then we can do whatever we want and then we will be happy. In fact it works the other way round. You have to be first , then do, then have . If you work on being the wonderful human being that you really are and cast off all the grime that has gathered around you over the years through limiitng beliefs and needless baggage you can now shed it to reveal the true diamond that you really are. Or think of yourself as the perfect sculpture like Michaelangelo whom David sculpted to bring to the world the beautiful piece of art that was always there in the stone.

Act as if. If you want the perfect relationship , then imagine that you are already in the perfect relationship and he or she is already in your life. If you want financial freedom act as if you already have enormous wealth. Never use phrases such as 'I can't afford...'

Set yourself a goal that YOU believe you can achieve. The motivational speaker, Jack Canfield set himself a goal of earning $100,000 by the end of the year after attending seminar given by W. Stone. He was onl earning $8000 per annum as a teacher but he set himeself this huge goal to see if it works. After four weeks he got his first idea to make the $100,000 . He had written a book and he thought to himself that if he could sell it to enough people he could reach his target. At the end of the year he made $92,000 and combined with his teacher's salary it amounted to $100,000.

Seek and you shall find. Ask and it will be given.

Live your life form the future backwards.