Archive for June, 2010
Wednesday, June 16th, 2010
The other day I had a casual conversation with someone and we got talking about some of our past experiences. The conversation transitioned to the recall of some times when we were really challenged – training really hard with a team, going on few hours of sleep during certain school times, etc. I noticed that even though these experiences are not something that I want to go through again, I am still glad that I had them. It was a similar story for my friend. Then I started to recall other conversations that I had with people over the years, and if my memory serves me well, most people did not regret having their experiences, but they would not necessarily want to have them again. A similar theme emerges from interviews with some very successful people – they are glad they did what they did, but now knowing what it takes, would not eagerly do it over again.
Does anyone know what psychological mechanism is at work here?
It’s fascinating – we are glad that we had the experience, but would not want to go through it again. Well, if you like the outcome, why not go through the experience again? When I think about it, the main reason I would not want to go through the experience over again, is because I know what it takes. But then I’m glad that I had the experience because it now contributes to who I am as a person.
If you have any thoughts you’d like to share, please do so.
Until next time,
V
Tags: Happiness, Human Behavior, Irrational Behavior
Posted in Psychology, Success | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, June 15th, 2010
My advise – don’t worry so much about what other people think. I wrote several times on fear and how it is usually the primary offender in keeping us from taking action. I think, and I hope that you’ll agree, that a big component of fear is our concern about what others will think of our choices and our actions. Another way to think about it, is to consider how you would feel about a given choice if you knew, with absolute confidence, that no one would ever know about its success or failure. Whenever I try that to think about it that way, a lot of the fear goes away. But that is not what I want to talk about today.
We established that people care a great deal about what others think of them, which contributes to the feelings of fear, that I am sure we have all experienced. The interesting thing is that as you, and me, and my neighbour, and your friend, and your friend’s friend, and everyone else worries about what others think of them, they do not leave much time for worrying about others. That is where the notion that ‘you are the person who cares most about you’ comes from. Following that logic, it seems that people don’t really care that much about the choices of others, but they think that everyone else cares about their choices. What that says to me is that I should not care so much about what other think about my choices, since they likely won’t think much of them anyway.
Does that make sense? Your thoughts?
Until next time,
V
Tags: Action, Fear, Human Behavior, Irrational Behavior, Personal Power, Success
Posted in Psychology, Success, Taking Action | 1 Comment »
Monday, June 14th, 2010
Join me in knowing that…
There is only one thing happening – the flow of Energy into form, through form, and out of form. Like other processes in the Universe, the flow of Energy is guided by the precise and impersonal Law that has no capacity to judge, evaluate, or discriminate, and can only respond to each and every person who uses it. The Law is invisible, yet I can see Its effects everywhere I look. I know that my feelings, which I constantly release into the world, put this Law into action and, as a consequence, I experience life accordingly. I choose to live life in a state of gratitude, joy, love, and peace, knowing that the more I experience these awesome states, the more I will continue to experience them. I’m thankful for my life, for the beauty that surrounds me, and for the people I have the privilege to know. I let go, and I let it be. And so it is.
Until next time,
V
Tags: Ernest Holmes, Science Of Mind, Spiritual Mind Treatment
Posted in Spiritual Mind Treatment | No Comments »
Friday, June 11th, 2010
Affirmations are great and they are the reason this website exists. The way they are phrased is very important, so let’s review some of the basics of affirmations.
Affirmations are supposed to be affirmative, positive statements, should have ‘the speaker’ included in them, and need to be stated in the present time. To expand a little bit on the basics, affirmations are supposed to talk of what you want instead of what you don’t want. So, if you are dealing with a health issue, the affirmation should mention something about “being in a healthy state and feeling great”, instead of “not feeling sick and tired anymore”. You sense the difference?
Whenever writing or saying an affirmation, make sure to feel included. I wrote a post a little while back where I shared a comical story of what could happen when you do not feel like part of whatever it is that you are affirming.
Finally, affirmations should be stated in the present tense. If you say “I will be healthy” you are sending your energy to the future. However, saying “I’m healthy” when you are not can feel awkward. So there is a little trick that I read somewhere for phrasing affirmations. Instead of saying “I am” start your affirmation with “I’m in the process of” – that puts the statement in the present and at the same time keeps it more true, since the end result can be ‘in development’. I personally really like that trick. Have fun with your affirmations!
Until Monday,
V
Tags: Affirmation Triggers, Affirmations, Energy, goals, Success, The Secret, Universe
Posted in Affirmations, Neo-Spirituality, Success | 2 Comments »
Thursday, June 10th, 2010
Just to be clear, I know very little about this field – I have never met or even talked to a sports psychologist. My guess is that the job of a sports psychologist is to help athletes work through any mental issues that they may have. So for instance, if a player is afraid to shoot the ball and is instead always looking to pass, I imagine that a team psychologist will address that confidence issue in some way. Or if the player had a really bad game, a team psychologist would help the player get over that game and leave it in the past; if the player has a good game, however, maybe they’ll try to work on carrying that momentum forward. Essentially, a sport psychologist tries to get the player’s mind to help him or her instead of getting in the way.
If that is at all accurate, it sounds very similar to psychologists in other fields – they help you get your own mind to play for you and not against. A lot of self-help materials deal with the very same concept. When you hear players give interviews, they often mention ‘faith’ in themselves and their team and ‘belief’ that they will win. The interesting thing is that when two teams compete for the ultimate prize, players on both teams believe that they will win, but only one team wins. Taking Law of Attraction into the count, who wins? The team that believes more? Or the team that doubts less? What about the fans – in town and around the world? Or do all the beliefs and doubts balance out and a better skilled team wins?
I am just curious to hear what you think…
Until next time,
V
Tags: Energy, goals, intentions, Law Of Attraction, Neo-Spirituality, Success
Posted in Neo-Spirituality, Psychology, Success | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
We have all heard the “get the good grades, a good education, and then your life will be set” from our parents or our teachers or someone else. I have heard it countless times, and even bought into it for a good part of my life. Good grades are often a must if you are pursuing an academic career. Overall, a degree can definitely open some doors for you, but only doors in a given building where a degree is required (and remember, “C’s get degrees,” so good grades are not a necessity). That being said, I definitely do not subscribe to the idea that good grades or degrees are essential to successful, fun, and fulfilling life.
An interesting article was sent to me earlier, and it is well worth a look. It is entitled “100 Famously Successful People Who Skipped College“. The level of success that these people have attained in their careers is astounding and many of their stories are very inspiring.
While formal education is not a prerequisite for success, ongoing education in your field is a must. In this context education encompasses all the possible ways that you can improve your knowledge, skill, or ability on a given subject. It can come in a form of reading books and magazines, finding things online, attending conferences and trade shows, or listening to experts in the field talk (just to name a few). It is by being the best in your field that you’ll make yourself very valuable and irreplaceable to your customers or employers.
Until next time,
V
Tags: Action, Education, goals, Inspiration, Money, Personal Power, Success
Posted in Success | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, June 8th, 2010
Most of you have probably been in the situation when a romantic relationship comes to an end and you, or your ex, says something along the lines of “Let’s be friends!” Whether it comes out of guilt, or possibly the desire to be close in order to re-kindle the relationship in the future, or something else entirely different, people often try to be friends after the relationship goes to the pooper. Now let’s define ‘friendship’ as well here. By ‘friendship’, I do not mean that the two people are civil when they run into each other on the street or at some New Year’s Party; being civil is easy as long as the break-up was civil. What I mean by ‘friendship’ is when the two people actually continue to be friends and hang out, share stories, call each other, etc.
I personally have never been able to maintain a friendship with an ex. Frankly, I never really wanted to in the first place, so that’s not very surprising. However, I have seen people maintain a friendship for some time. I’m can’t speak to the quality of that friendship – it was probably different – but people still hung out and spent time together, so they were definitely more than just ‘being civil’.
So I wonder, what makes it possible to maintain that friendship? My theory is that the probability of having a post-break-up friendship is negatively correlated to how hurt/upset the people are due to the break-up. The more emotionally invested one is in the relationship and the more hurt one is when the relationship ends, the less likely the friendship is. What are your thoughts? I’d be very curious to hear what people who have been able to maintain a friendship after a break-up think.
Until next time,
V
Tags: Happiness, Human Behavior, Relationships
Posted in Psychology, Relationships | 1 Comment »
Monday, June 7th, 2010
Life is an amazing mechanism made up of countless intertwined symbiotic systems with incredible order, beauty, symmetry, and laws. Life unfolds with power, elegance, precision, and purpose. It is a humbling realization to understand and feel and connectedness of the life systems of the World. One thing is connected to the next, with all things being in one way or another connected to each other, and me being connected to All. Reality takes place on many levels with a very powerful one being the level of thought. With my thoughts I shape my perception of reality, and so I choose to find and welcome Beauty into my life. The more I recognize all the things that are beautiful, the more beautiful things I experience. So in this very moment, I plant a seed of Beauty in the fertile soil of the impartial Law that only says ‘YES’. With gratitude, I water this seed and allow it to manifest in my life. I let go and I let it be. And so it is.
Tags: Ernest Holmes, Science Of Mind, Spiritual Mind Treatment
Posted in Spiritual Mind Treatment | 2 Comments »
Friday, June 4th, 2010
I was browsing the web the other day and came across this ‘online pdf manual’ that caught my attention. It wasn’t very expensive – $40 – with a full-refund guarantee. I’m not new to the Internet, so I know that there are legitimate people selling things online as well as crooks. I have no problem trusting big names online, but I am somewhat careful with the little guys. Once you send them the money, you never know what kind of product you’ll get back and whether or not they will honour their money-back guarantee. Even though it wasn’t one of the big companies, it also wasn’t one of those 10-mile long web pages with colourful fake testimonials from Jake N. and Mandy B. I thought about it for a few seconds and decided against the purchase in fear of wasting $40. And then it hit me…
How many times do I waste $40 in other ways? I have no problem going to a movie with friends or going out for dinner, which adds up quickly to well over $40. Sure, I get enjoyment out of it, but the benefit is short lived and in some ways can be considered a ‘waste’. But here I was contemplating whether or not to get this manual that may actually have some ongoing benefits for some time to come. When I noticed that, I thought how interesting it was that so much thought went into getting something unfamiliar of great potential benefit vs the amount of thought that went into saying ‘yes’ to a movie.
Has this happened to anyone else? Have you thought twice maybe about buying a $15 book, only to spend $20 at a coffee house 2 hours later?
Until Monday,
V
Tags: Human Behavior, Irrational Behavior
Posted in Psychology, Taking Action | No Comments »
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
A new feature has been added to Affirmation Triggers home page, and it is the ability to send an affirmation to another person’s phone as a text message. All you need to know is the phone number of the person you want to send the affirmation to, and their service provider. If you don’t know the service provider, you can always send the same affirmation a couple of times and change the service provider from the drop-down-list – the right one will go through. Unless there are some network delays, a few seconds after you click ‘Send’, they will receive a text message from ‘The Universe’ on your behalf that will contain the affirmation.
Getting your own affirmations is great, but getting a good affirmation unexpectedly from someone else is surprising and very powerful. It is a fantastic way to offer some words of kindness or encouragement and to let the other person know that you are thinking of them. I hope you will enjoy this new additional way of using the website. This still needs to get polished, so if you have some tips or suggestions, please send them along. I’ll see what can be implemented.
Until next time,
V
Tags: Affirmation Triggers, Affirmations
Posted in Affirmations | 1 Comment »