The Evil Motivation of Money

The Evil Motivation of Money.

via The Evil Motivation of Money.

A Wounded Soul

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A Wounded Soul

By R. Kilani

I sat down in a chair at a salon parlor,

A woman, next to me, looked swamped with clamor,

With her cell phone in one hand and a cigarette in the other,

She spewed some nasty words.. Oh brother!

What an angry woman, I said, but little did I know,

That the person sitting next to me started to seem like a foe,

Her cigarette ash was heavily landing on my lap,

Which made me think of nothing but to give her a slap.

Shrugging her shoulders with eyes open wide,

I knew the voice provoking her on the other side,

Was belittling her feelings and yet enjoying the ride,

And she was just one more soul it victimized.

I wanted to interrupt her but realized that wasn’t the way to go,

As she hung up and her tears started to flow,

Kneeling on the floor as weak as can be,

Her heart was obviously broken and her eyes could barely see,

That there is so much to life than abuse,

Which every victim woman or a child deserves to refuse.

I introduced myself and offered my help as a coach,

And wanted to make her feel I’m someone she can approach,

She took my card and promised to call,

She said she only wanted happiness, “That’s all!”

But unless she was internally happy, who can please her soul?

“No man, money, house, car or store,

Can bring back to me a dignity that he stole!”

I explained to her there was more to life than that,

But she looked like she’d just been clubbed with a bat.

“Give it time”, I said, and “we’ll work it out together”,

“Unless you choose to let go, you’ll be miserable forever”,

“But if you move on, you’ll set yourself free and feel better”.

“I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get out of this”, she said,

“For the pain inside me every night, haunts me in bed”.

So we got in touch and watched our partnership grow,

With each phase marking a significant goal,

A dishonorable man, with whom she obsessed,

Became a dead history she conquered with success,

A light in her life continued to shine,

Where everything, previously destroyed, later seemed fine.

Copyright 2012 Wisdom Within Consultancy. All Rights Reserved for Wisdom Within Consultancy and Wisdom Within Coaching.

What Is Coaching & How Is It Good For You?

Coaching is the best career decision I have ever made in my life. It has benefited me before benefiting my clients, especially in experiencing the gifts of feeling non-judged and knowing you can completely trust someone with your own secrets.

A lot of people always ask me what coaching means. So I thought I’d dedicate this small post, explaining what coaching is, and how is it good for everyone, despite their age, gender, circumstances, etc.

The following information is taken from the following source: International Coach Academy Pty Limited Module 1, 2002.

The International Coach Federation defines coaching in the following way: “Professional coaches provide an ongoing partnership designed to help clients produce fulfilling results in their personal and professional lives. Coaches help people improve their performances and enhance the quality of their lives.
Coaches are trained to listen, to observe and to customize their approach to individual client needs. They seek to elicit solutions and strategies from the client; they believe the client is naturally creative and resourceful. The coach’s job is to provide support to enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that the client already has.” (ICF website, 2006) Coaching is strongest in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia, Singapore and New Zealand, and is reaching more and more countries all the time.
Coaching is a comparably new profession. It blends the best concepts from business, psychology, philosophy, sports and spirituality. Although coaching combines skills from other disciplines, it is a distinct process of supporting others to create an ideal life. Coaches work with clients on a variety of topics: from business and professional issues to personal and spiritual concerns. A coach is an advocate, a sounding board, a cheerleader, an accountability partner, a truth teller and a supporter.
Coaching involves dialogue between a coach and a client with the aim of helping the client obtain a fulfilling life. This is achieved by helping the client establish what is important to them and by clarifying their values. With the client‟s input the coach co-creates value based goals and a plan to achieve them. Through collaboration, the coach supports the client to achieve these goals. A coach offers many things to the client during the coaching process such as:

1. Support to discover the answers within him or her self.
2. Clarification of values.
3. Co-creation of a plan for how to achieve what the client really wants.
4. A sounding board for new ideas.
5. Support in making life changing decisions.
6. Challenge to expand their views beyond their perceived limitations.
7. Direction
8. Acknowledgement
9. Encouragement
10. Resource of informationThe following clip explains further what coaching is:

Why Do We Still Feel Tired?

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Daily exhaustion has been a very confusing topic for me, because I’d sleep, eat healthy meals, walk daily, etc. Yet, during the day, I’d still feel tired. If you’re someone like me, then the following article may interest you:

Your Guide to Never Feeling Tired Again

WebMD Feature from “Redbook” Magazine

Source: Article Link: http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/your-guide-to-never-feeling-tired-again?page=

By Nancy Rones

22 ways to tackle life’s biggest energy zappers.

Every day, 2.2 million Americans complain of being tired. Most of us chalk it up to having too much to do and not enough time to do it in, especially during extra-busy periods. But often the true culprits are our everyday habits: what we eat, how we sleep, and how we cope emotionally. Read on for some simple, recharging changes that can help you tackle all of the energy stealers in your life.

Energize Your Diet

Why is it that filling up on pasta or Chinese food for lunch leaves us snacky and sleepy an hour later? Or that falling short on fluids makes us forgetful and foggy? Fact is, eating habits play a powerful role in how well we function on every level. Below, six top fatigue-fighting nutrition strategies to chew on.

• Have breakfast… even if you don’t feel hungry. You’ll be a lot perkier: Studies show that people who eat breakfast feel better both mentally and physically than those who skip their morning meal. British researchers at Cardiff University even found that spooning up a bowl of breakfast cereal every morning is associated with lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
• Eat every three to four hours. Having three smallish meals and two snacks throughout the day can keep your blood sugar and energy levels stable all day long, says Roberta Anding, R.D., a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Note the word “smallish.” Supersized meals demand more of your energy to digest, which can leave you feeling lethargic. At each mini-meal, get a mix of carbohydrates (which the body uses for energy), protein (which helps sustain energy if needed), and healthy fats like those found in fish, nuts, and olives — these fats and protein contribute to meal satisfaction, so you don’t go hunting for sweets an hour later and wind up with a short-lived sugar high and subsequent crash. A few meal ideas: a low-fat yogurt parfait with berries and a couple of tablespoons of whole-grain granola; salmon over mixed greens with whole-grain crackers; and beef tenderloin with a baked sweet potato and asparagus.
• Fill up on more fiber. Fiber has a time-releasing effect on carbs, so they enter your bloodstream at a slow and steady pace, giving your energy staying power, says Anding. When choosing your mini-meals (see above), include fiber-filled options that add up to the daily recommended 25 to 30 grams of fiber (the average person gets only between 10 and 15 grams). Some suggestions: a bowl of raisin bran (5 grams of fiber per cup); black beans and cheese wrapped in a multigrain tortilla (beans have 7.5 grams per 1/2 cup; one tortilla has 5 grams); air-popped popcorn (3.6 grams per 3 cups); an apple with the skin (3.3 grams); and whole-wheat spaghetti (6.3 grams per cup).
• Fuel your brain with omega-3s. Found in fatty fish (such as tuna and salmon), walnuts, and canola oil, these essential fatty acids play a role in keeping brain cells healthy and helping you feel mentally alert. Another potential bonus: Omega-3s encourage the body to store carbs as glycogen — the storage form of glucose (blood sugar) and the body’s main source of stored fuel — rather than as fat.
• Stay hydrated. Water makes up the majority of your blood and other body fluids, and even mild dehydration can cause blood to thicken, forcing the heart to pump harder to carry blood to your cells and organs and resulting in fatigue. Also, ample fluids keep energy-fueling nutrients flowing throughout the body, says Nancy Clark, R.D., author of Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook. To gauge your hydration, Clark recommends monitoring how often you urinate. You should be going every two to four hours, and your urine should be clear or pale yellow in color. Tip: Besides drinking more, you can also consume foods that naturally contain water, such as yogurt, broccoli, carrots, and juicy fruits, like watermelons, oranges, and grapefruits.
• Watch caffeine intake after noon. Typically, consuming a moderate amount of caffeine — 200 to 300 mg, the amount found in two to three cups of coffee — can make you more energetic and alert in the hours following, says Anthony L. Komaroff, M.D., a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. But when caffeine is consumed in large quantities — or anytime in the afternoon or evening — the quality of your sleep that night can take a nosedive, leaving you with heavy eyelids the next day. One caution for those who are highly sensitive to caffeine: Although switching to a decaf latte in the afternoon sounds like the answer, researchers at the University of Florida found that out of 22 decaffeinated coffee beverages tested, all but one contained some caffeine.

Energize Your Spirit

• We’re all familiar with physical exhaustion, but mental strain — sadness, boredom, worry, anger, and general stress (the biggie) — can take an even heavier toll on vitality, completely wearing you out. Life happens, and these difficult emotions will, too. But if you react wisely, your brain and body will rebound — along with your vim and vigor.
• Splash some water on your face or take a shower when you’re feeling burned-out. Some 55 percent of study participants reported using these types of “water therapy” to successfully increase their energy, according to findings in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Apparently, a little H ₂ O refresher can instantly help take the edge off when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
• Suit up in a “power” outfit to beat the blahs. Fight the tendency to throw on sweats when you’re feeling sluggish. Although it may seem counterintuitive to slip into the skirt you save for special occasions, it helps to look in the mirror and see an energizing image — not a deflating one that confirms and reinforces your internal state, says Alice D. Domar, Ph.D., founder and executive director of the Domar Center for Complementary Healthcare in Waltham, MA. Dressing for success will give you a big mental boost every time you catch sight of your reflection (or receive a compliment) throughout the day.
• Vent your feelings. Keeping fear, anxiety, and stress pent up inside may seem like a grown-up way to deal with these emotions. But discussing negative feelings with another person can ease them far better than keeping them bottled up; by airing them, you reduce their ability to sap your stamina, says Komaroff, who is also the editor-in-chief of the Harvard Health Letter.
• Turn on some tunes. Listening to music is one of the most effective ways to change a bad mood, decrease tension, and increase energy. Consider this: Runners in one study who listened to music while on the treadmill ran faster than those who jogged in silence — no matter how loud the volume or how fast the tempo, according to new findings in the journal Ergonomics. Other research suggests that music effectively distracts you from feeling fatigue. Try burning a CD of your favorite songs and playing it anytime you need a pick-me-up. (If you exercise, so much the better — but the music will move you either way.)
• Let go of grudges. Nursing a grudge prompts your mind and body to react as if they’re under chronic stress, increasing your heart rate and blood pressure and potentially resulting in an impaired immune system and exhaustion over time, according to a study in the journal Psychological Science. On the other hand, practicing empathy and forgiveness after you’ve been wronged makes you feel as if you’re back in control, which keeps the body’s stress responses in check. The next time you find yourself harboring ill feelings, repeat a stress-relieving mantra to yourself, such as, “Forgiveness makes me a happier and stronger person.”
• Take belly breaths. When we’re under stress, we’re prone to take “chest breaths” — short, shallow ones, says Domar. Chest breathing brings less air into the lungs and reduces the supply of energizing oxygen to the body and brain, leaving you physically and mentally drained. The goal is deep, diaphragmatic breathing — like that of a sleeping infant: When you breathe in, your belly should round and fill like a balloon; on an exhale, your belly should slowly deflate. Of course, remembering to practice deep breathing isn’t the first thing on your mind when you’re under the gun, so as a visual reminder, try posting a tranquil picture (such as a pool of water or your kids smiling) with the word “breathe” next to your computer, or anywhere you tend to feel on edge.
• De-clutter a corner. Go through that teetering pile of papers or overflowing closet and clear it out. Clutter can make you feel out of control and overwhelmed, especially when you’re already feeling stressed or down. Plus, simply accomplishing a goal, no matter how seemingly minor, can be energizing, says Domar.
• Do some good. Acts of altruism can lend a little pep to your step. In fact, one study in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior found that volunteer work can boost your energy in six ways: It enhances happiness, life satisfaction, self-esteem, sense of control over life, physical health, and mood. Find short- and long-term volunteer opportunities at volunteermatch.org and charityguide.org.

Get a Restorative Rest

When you have a lot to do (um…always), usually the first thing to get squeezed off your agenda is sleep. But miss out on shut-eye and your energy, positivity, productivity, and memory are sure to suffer. And nearly a quarter of American adults aren’t getting enough rest, which has led to an epidemic of daytime sleepiness, according to a poll by the National Sleep Foundation. The key to bucking this trend is to brush up on sleep hygiene. Try these steps for starters.

• Cut back on TV and computer time after 8 p.m. If you’re already a night owl (you go to bed late and sleep in on weekends), the bright light emitted from television and computer screens can make falling asleep at a decent hour even harder. The reason: Light suppresses the production of melatonin, a hormone secreted at sunset that tells the brain that it’s nighttime, explains John Herman, Ph.D., director of the training program in sleep medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School at Dallas. And when melatonin levels are low, your brain is fooled into thinking that it’s still daytime — and remains raring to go. Whenever possible, wait until the next morning to tune in and/or log on. If you must use light-emitting technology at night, try to turn it off an hour or two before hitting the sack.
• Hide your alarm clock. Watching the clock to see how long it’s taking you to drift off or how much time you have left before your alarm goes off can result in a poor night’s sleep, says Kelly A. Carden, M.D., medical director of the Sleep Health Center Affiliated with Hallmark Health at Medford in Medford, MA. This hypervigilance keeps the brain awake and alert and prevents you from slipping into deep, restorative sleep. The easy fix: Set your alarm clock, then either face the numbers away from you or put it on the floor, in a drawer, or across the room.
• Give your pet his own separate sleeping space. At night, pets snore, jiggle their tags, move around a lot, and even hog the covers and bed space. It’s no wonder that 53 percent of pet owners who sleep with their pets in the bedroom have some type of disrupted sleep every night, according to a study from the Mayo Clinic Sleep Disorders Center in Rochester, MN. Consider relocating your furry friend’s sleeping quarters to another area, even if it’s just his own bed in your bedroom.
• Lower the thermostat. For a good night’s sleep, make sure your room is comfortably cool — enough so that you need a light blanket. This ensures that your environment is in sync with your body’s internal temperature, which naturally drops during the night, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Studies suggest the ideal sleeping temperature is between 54 and 75 degrees; anything cooler or warmer may cause you to wake up.
• Skip the nightcap. Alcohol depresses the nervous system — the system of cells, tissues, nerves, and organs that controls the body’s responses to internal and external stimuli. So while sipping a glass of wine before bed may help you nod off, the sedative effects wear off as your body metabolizes the alcohol, which may cause you to wake up in the middle of the night and have trouble falling back to sleep. Alcohol has also been shown to interfere with the body’s natural 24-hour biorhythms, causing blood pressure to rise and heart rate to race at night when it’s normally calm and relaxed. You don’t have to give up that evening cocktail entirely to achieve sound sleep — just try to avoid alcohol within two to three hours of bedtime.
• Get your exercise. While scientists don’t yet understand why, aerobic exercise has been proved to help you fall asleep faster at bedtime, spend more hours in deep sleep, and wake up less often throughout the night, says Komaroff. At the same time, vigorous exercise can act like a stimulant (which is a great daytime energizer), so schedule your workouts in the morning or afternoon, when you need a boost the most.
• Follow the 15-minute rule. If you can’t fall asleep, or if you wake up and can’t get back to sleep within about 15 minutes, get out of bed and do something relaxing that will help clear your head, such as reading, meditating, or knitting (but not watching TV or surfing the Web). Then, once you feel sleepy again, go back to bed. If you stay put and fret about being awake, you’ll only make yourself more anxious — and less likely to catch the z’s you need.
• Write down your worries. During the day, jot down any stressors that are weighing on you, says Carden. Then, do some mental problem-solving before your head hits the pillow — or, if you’re falling short on solutions, tuck your list away and resolve to brainstorm ideas during your morning shower or commute to work. Just knowing you’ve established a plan for tackling your to-do’s will make you feel like you’ve made some progress, allowing you to relax, drift off — and wake up the next morning ready to take on the day.

We Tested and Reviewed the Latest Pick-Me-Uppers

H ₂ O Plus Energize Spa Collection: “I’m not sure if it was the citrus scent of the body wash and scrub or just the warm water, but I did feel more awake after my shower.” (h2oplus.com)

TravelSox Odyssey socks: “I was skeptical, but I wore these socks during a five-hour flight, and they really made my legs feel more alive and less cramped than usual.” (travelsox.com)

LifeWave Energy Enhancer patch: “It may have been psychosomatic (or what I ate for lunch), but after I put these on, my heart started to race and I felt queasy and sweaty.” (lifewave.com)

FOOSH Energy Mints: “I enjoyed the strong, minty taste, but I didn’t notice a significant difference in my energy. But I’m not sensitive to caffeine, which is the active ingredient.” (vroomfoods.com)

G Pure Energy drink: “The ginger ale taste was nice, and while I wasn’t ready to leap tall buildings, it gave me a second wind to tackle some work when I got home from the office.” (gpureenergy.com)

 

Originally published on March 1, 2007

What Is Awareness?

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We may mistake awareness for being aware of what others have that we don’t, what they do that we do or don’t, or what their lives are like in comparison with ours. Being awareness is not being aware of things ‘outside’ ourselves. Such line of thinking serves to only compare who we are and what we have to standards that are or aren’t met by others. It is like a defensive mechanism, through which we define our understanding of ourselves and our lives from potential losses, threats, failures, or disappointments. So for example, if we are defining our being as someone who has a nice car, great career, wonderful relationship, fun parties, and so on, this is the way we are going to compare ourselves to others who are and have these elements in their lives. These elements – through such definition – become labelled as ‘Happiness-Generating Factors. The problem with this understanding is that it is set outward, and promises to always look outside of ourselves to seek happiness.  Therefore, it is like dedicating our lives, time, energy and soul, to walk a long mile that is never-ending in the desert, in promise of a sip of water.

Becoming aware is such a crucial internal process, through which we live our lives and go about choosing our actions. Being aware is understanding the patterns that interpret our connection to the world around us, as well as ourselves (our feelings, beliefs, values, spirit, and body). Total awareness in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is achieved through self-actualization, the highest level in the hierarchy.

Developing self-awareness is increasing your knowledge of yourself; i.e. forming an understanding of your identify within the world around you. Awareness can be stretched in diverse dimensions. The spiritual dimension is one of them, whereby one connects with their higher self, and feel their connectedness to the universe.
On the bodily level, there is awareness of the physical manifestations of the body, thoughts and feelings. Trying to engage your Self helps you check in regularly on it, which will serve in making you a happier person.

Listening to your Self, body, thoughts, feelings and actions, will help you understand who you are, what you really want in every situation (what choice you want to make), where you want to go, and how you want to be remembered after you pass away.

Awareness is a time and effort-saver that – once ignited – sets you on a voluntary journey toward inner peace and happiness with a no-going-back policy.

Three ways to increase your self awareness on the physical, emotional and spiritual sides:

- Keep checking in with yourself every time you exhibit certain signs of upset, stress, anxiety.

- Get in the habit of celebrating positive emotions and thoughts when they come up.

- Meditate/pray or listen to music while contemplating a positive matter.

 

Life is so beautiful. It’s about time we took off our sunglasses and saw it for what it really is.

 

~~Peace~~

Nervousness

Do you catch yourself sometimes when you are exhibiting classic signs of nervousness, like shaking your leg while standing or sitting down, feeling a faint trembling in your hands and a fast-palpitating heart, biting your nails, or feeling out of breath and a tightness of chest?

We may have become so used to experiencing these feelings that we have stopped feeling them anymore. Our lives have taken a fast pace and so have we, in terms of responding to daily chores, duties and tasks.

Nervousness can be caused by several causes, to list a few:

• Having been upset previously by someone, yet you have been too busy to respond to them and sort things out. However, you are still carrying the negative emotion at heart.
• Having so many things to do during the limited hours of the day, which gives you a fake sensation that that day will last forever and so will your energy; that you got plenty of time to do whatever you have to do, in addition to extra matters that come up.
• Knowing you can’t accept anymore chores yet you can’t say No to whoever is assigning them to you. Therefore, you end up carrying more than you can bear.
• Wishing to achieve a certain goal, which you remind yourself of every day, yet you keep getting distracted by other matters, which can sometimes be even more urgent than the goal you had set for yourself.

Whatever is causing to subconsciously feel nervous has to be addressed in conscious mode. “The subconscious is a child”, as Byron Katie says, and it believes whatever we are telling it. Therefore, if we gain more awareness around this state of feeling and being (nervousness), we may have more control over our prioritizing mechanism, and the choices that we make on daily basis.

Here are some of the ways, through which you can develop the habit of catching yourself regularly exhibiting signs of stress or nervousness:

- Have a Stop-And-Leave-Your-Spot technique: Always keep checking with yourself on how you feel at that point of the day. As soon as you catch your leg shaking and you feel your blood boiling up to hit the top point of your head, make sure to leave the place where you are (your desk, house, car, etc.) and moving to another spot, where it is safe, refreshing and different. Ask yourself about 3 things: How do you feel? What are your thoughts around the matter in mind? And what are/were the actions corresponding with your feelings and thoughts?

- Do something nice for yourself at least once a day: Keep reminding yourself of it. It does not have to be costly or requires further planning. It can be a simple flower with the color and style that you like.

- Do something nice for other people at least once a day: Doing something nice to others always makes us feel great. It also reminds us of how connected we are to other people, whether they are family or not. Listening can be one effective and inexpensive way to do so.

- Remind yourself of the good things that come your way at the time you go to bed. Never allow anyone to deprive you from your Before-Bedtime thoughts. This is a great opportunity for you to become aware of the day’s events and news, connect with your spiritual self (larger self) through contemplation, which often enables to generate creative solutions to certain problems in your mind.

- Keep reminding yourself of who you are and who you always want to be: You are unique, and so is everyone around you. Do not allow comparing yourself to others to block you, and do not allow comparing others to you make you feel superior. Either way, you are blocking yourself automatically because you are disconnecting from your larger self, larger life purpose.

- Finally, Remember Your Thoughts Translate Into Action: You are what you think, as Dr. Wayne Dyer said repeatedly. The way you thinking of yourself, your life, your kids, etc. is what you are going to have constantly. So end the vicious cycle of self-criticism, pessimism and fear, and try to contemplate more positive concepts about yourself and your life.

You are a truly unique person. If you do not think so, a coach can definitely help you arrive to this proven conclusion.

~~ Cheers ~~

Confusion Nation

Our lives these days have been characterized by one grey cloud that has been enveloping us, leading us to feel confused towards almost everything around us (e.g. whether to go for a Big Mac meal while starving, whether to continue chewing aspartame-filled gum is bad for health, whether to take an action toward someone/something that is causing us emotional upset, whether to feel good toward how well we did at a presentation at an important event, whether to stop ourselves from wondering if someone is interested in us, whether to go for the second drink, etc. We are so confused even though we live today in a world of scientific certainty towards almost everything we know. We have enough truth and mass media in this day and age, yet we still grow more and more in confusion each day.

Is it human nature to keep wondering and feeling insecure or is there something really fishy about what we see and hear each day?

In this light, I would like to share with you an interesting clip by Tony Robbins on how to achieve a free mind, resolve your confusions, and ultimately feel fulfilled.

Free your mind, make sound choices about everything, including your thoughts and emotions, and grow further and further in spirituality.

~~Peace~~

Good & Bad Are Two Great Teachers

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One of the miracles in our lives is that we are constantly faced by two great teachers: The Good & The Bad. The Good may teach us a lot of good things, but The Bad can teach us profound lessons that may be crucially decisive in the choices we make in our lives.

Life can be so tricky sometimes. We face the good and the bad, yet we may never notice that both currents are teaching us a lot of valuable lessons. It is almost like we get in between two strong yet contradicting waves, each pushing us towards a different direction.

Live your life to best spiritual standards you can get, consult your conscience as often as you can, feel your pain as well as others, contemplate, meditate and celebrate. Then, you will be more likely to stop focusing on your own worries and fears of failure and you will commit to a better plan of actions with the insight that no matter what downs you get, you will still benefit from them by learning to avoid them in future endeavors.

The following is a short story by the famous inspirational writer, Paolo Cuelho, that recommends considering the good and the bad are two great teachers, to find the good even in the bad, with the objective of learning and moving on to better destinations.

“The master met one night with his disciples, and asked them to
build a campfire so they could sit and talk. “The spiritual path is
like a fire that burns before us,” he said. “A man who wants to light
the fire has to bear with the disagreeable smoke that makes it difficult
for him to breathe, and brings tears to his eyes. That is how his faith
is rediscovered. However, once the fire is rekindled, the smoke
disappears, and the flames illuminate everything around him — providing
heat and tranquility.” “But what if someone else lights the fire for
him?” asked one of the disciples. “And if someone helps us to avoid the
smoke?” “If someone does that, he is a false master. A master
capable of taking the fire to wherever he desires, or of extinguishing
it whenever he wants to do so. And, since he has taught no one how to
light the fire, he is likely to leave everyone in the darkness.”

Peace and love to everyone who’s reading my posts.

Razan

Do An Act of Kindness Every Day

When I first heard Dr. Wayne Dyer talk about this, I remembered the several incidences, in which I had been nice, helpful and supportive of others, sometimes even just by listening well to them. I am the kind of person who wakes every morning with a clear mind, naturally inclined to be in a good mood, and appreciative of sunlight (whenever available). Yet, the events of the day that follow may not necessarily go well. This is where reality kicks in, stress levels rise up, mind preoccupation takes over leading to total exhaustion (mentally and physically) at the end of the day.

Yet, when I wake up again the next morning, I would have forgotten what was preoccupying my mind the night before, and I choose to start my day with a smile and an optimistic aptitude towards life and others. Then, upsetting events happen and so on.

Dr. Dyer’s advice of doing an act of kindness has been one good habit that I had been doing for years without noticing that it had been contributing to my levels of positivity, inner strength, levelheadedness when I needed to make important decisions and renewing my faith in God, fate and mankind.

Seriously, if we commit daily to doing at least one act of kindness to others (even if it means that we let a driver pass before us), we may be amazed at the major positive effect it has over our sense of connectedness to others, to ourselves and to the values that we hold.

Personally, I have found that entering a place with a nice smile and a poised attitude makes a world of difference in the conversations that happen consequently. Big issues turn into smooth solvable ones, and feelings of resistance from my or others’ side seem to fade away, favoring the voice of logic and mutual understanding between us.

For years, I have been practicing starting most of my days with optimism, happiness and a sense of kindness towards myself and others that it had turned into a habit, without me being aware of it, until I read that gesture by the fabulous Dr. Dyer.

In our lives, we have cultivated many habits; some we are aware of and some we are not; some are good, others are not. So how good will it be to cultivate a positive habit (for a change) that has good returns on ourselves as well as others, and refreshes our sense of connectedness?

So what act of kindness have you done today? How did it make you feel?

Here’s a tiny optimistic gesture wishing everyone a very prosperous day ahead and a beginning of a fun weekend!

Be the light you want to have in your life.

Cheers!

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What Makes Us Happy?

This funny talk by Dan Gilbert explains what makes people happy. It comes in two parts, so I’m embedding both onto this page.

Looking inwards provides us always with a clue onto what affects us, how we react and what choices we make in our lives. This explains then why we behave the way we do.

Enjoy!
Part 1:

Part 2: