Become a Better Listener: Active Listening

The Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln

The wisdom of Abraham Lincoln should never be overlooked. When anyone asks me who I admire most, my answer is always Lincoln. What a man born to a destiny and a time!

“And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the LIFE in your years”

This quote speaks to us about living our years with the BEST HEALTH possible.

I was having a discussion with a friend just today about who knows best what to give our bodies–the doctor who we see twice a year and who knows us by a name in a folder–or US–who live in our bodies everyday and know what it needs.

Sometimes I balk at taking my supplements in the morning–a regime I’ve been doing for 30 years now. And every once in awhile I review the list again–to see if there’s any I’m willing to part with. I always come up with the same answer–NO WAY! I intend on living a healthy fulfilled life so which one of these body enhancing supplements am I willing to stop?

Jan 30 Accentuate the POSITIVE….Eliminate the NEGATIVE!

In a hit song from 1944 made popular by Bing Crosby, the Johnny Mercer lyrics told us to….

“Accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don’t mess with Mister In-Between”

There is nothing more dangerous or destructive than a life of NEGATIVE thinking.

Negative attitudes and remarks are the first sign of a “toxic” person. When you meet someone who always has an opinion, who continually makes excuses, finds fault, places blame and almost rejoices in telling you all the reasons why something ‘won’t work’–you should avoid these people like the plague.

There is nothing ‘realistic’ or ‘noble’ about being negative. These folks will try to convince you that they’re just ‘realists’ ….they help you keep your feet on the ground and your head out of the clouds. Don’t believe them. In fact, take a good hard look at them. What kind of lives are they living? Do they have great relationships? Are they healthy? Do they smile and live with a sense of joy and enthusiasm? I can answer that for you….NO!

Whatever you do, do not allow these ‘DREAM SQUASHERS’ –toxic negative people–to influence your life.

Your Miracle Moments are Waiting for You Now!

There’s a simple story in the Bible that best illustrates what a Miracle Moment really is.

Peter asked Jesus to allow him to step out of the boat and join him by walking on the water.

THAT WAS A MIRACLE MOMENT.

In those few short moments, Peter taught us a lesson that holds within it the SECRET toall success in life.

Let’s look at what happened.

Peter saw Jesus standing out on the lake. He thought it was totally cool that Jesus could do that and he wanted to do it, too. (He KNEW what he wanted!)

I imagine that in the few moments preceding his request to Jesus, that Peter envisioned himself walking across the lake. He could see himself standing out there next to Jesus–defying all sense of reality or what was “possible”. (He created a VISION in his mind.)

When he asked Jesus to call him over there, he was making a bold statement of FAITH. He believed it was possible.

At the same time I imagine that the other guys in the boat with Peter had a few remarks to make of their own (even if they were made quietly). Peter chose to ignore the NEGATIVE and envision the positive outcome.

So what happened? Peter stepped out of the boat, started walking on the water and within a short time, sank.

What You Think About You Bring About

You must guard your mind from negative thoughts and emotions.You are in control of your thoughts. You can put a stop to a negative thought the moment it enters your mind. Is this easy? No, but it is absolutely critical to your ultimate success.

One effective tool for you to use is to REPLACE worry with a positive vision. Worry brings fear, nervousness and frustration. It distracts us and keeps us from operating at our optimum level.

Worry stems from FEAR. And in 90% of all cases, FEAR is negative. Yes, there are times when fear can be healthy–like choosing not to walk too close to the edge of a cliff. But for the most part, FEAR is nothing more than FALSE EVIDENCE APPEARING REAL (F.E.A.R).

The problem with allowing your mind to obsess and worry over something you fear is that by doing so you can actually manifest the very thing you fear into your reality. Remember, our subconscious mind works hard to bring about the thoughts we focus on the most.

So here’s the plan: when you start to worry over something, instead of doing what most people do and imagining the worst possible scenario as being inevitable, begin to imagine that BEST possible outcome you can think of. Instead of obsessing over “what could or might” happen that is bad, begin to vividly imagine that what WILL happen is a good and positive outcome. If you’ll do this, I guarantee that you’ll begin to see GOOD things happen and you’ll eliminate the bad.

 

How to Bloom Where You Are Planted

We can’t always choose the cards we have been dealt, but we can learn to play them. Like a flower that grows through a crack in the concrete, sometimes we have to make the best of our situations and bloom where we have been planted.

You may not be where you want to be in life just yet. You may be working a day job that is not your passion and working on your dream through the night.

Keeping our dreams alive is what uplifts the human spirit. But how can we deal with the fact that sometimes we may have to tolerate something that we do not like to eventually get to where we want to be?

Not everyone can quit their jobs and follow a dream. Sometimes our dreams take time. So instead of getting bitter and upset at your situation, why not try blooming where you have been planted?

Here is how I think we can do that and why it makes a difference:

1) Every step in life prepares you for the next one

You may not realize it, but where you are now is providing you with vital life lessons for your next adventure.

When late producer, director, author and screenwriter Michael Crichton was interviewed about how his training as a physician helped him to be a writer, he said this:

 

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