More Stuff about STUFF
There is nothing wrong with, or bad about, stuff — or wanting stuff. Wrong and bad are judgments that are simply too easy to make. All STUFF, however, does have hidden costs and consequences for us and our world. We could all be a bit more conscious of STUFF rather than being so STUFF-conscious. By this I simply mean that we could all think a little more about our impulses before we simply act on them.
True, leaving the lights on and doors open probably won’t destroy the planet; but many of the things we are currently doing are creating more and more suffering for humanity — and could eventually leave our home unsuitable for human habitation. I’m not suggesting that you rush out and change things you are doing; that probably wouldn’t really work anyway. But I am suggesting that you start thinking about these things — and even consider different ways of thinking about them. When you’ve found a better way, the change will be natural and automatic.
For instance, you don’t have to make yourself stop watching television; but if you found more productive things to do — things that you enjoy more than watching television — then you’d stop watching t.v. and it wouldn’t be a matter of stopping something you like doing. It would be a matter of spending your time doing something you’d rather be doing. All you need to do is consider something new and look for an incentive to do it; the rest comes naturally. Watch this video about STUFF and you’ll see how easy it is to get swept up by something — and how difficult it can be sometimes to realize that you are on "the wide path" to a time and place you really won’t enjoy (even though you think you are enjoying the ride to that place).
The earth will survive. Humans, however, are just another species — just like the millions of species that have already come and gone from this planet. We have hunted, fished, and harvested countless species to extinction; and, not only will we probably suffer the same fate, but our actions are making it increasingly likely that we will probably suffer extinction at the hands of the same foe — humanity. Don’t think yourself bad or wrong; just start thinking. And start thinking positively about your health and the health of the planet. As you think, so it is done. Let the change begin in your mind.
This is a great video, and it is free; so be patient if the page takes a couple minutes to load — enlightenment is always worth the wait!
The Story of Stuff
Awesome Video That is Important to See Before You Start Holiday Shopping
It’s almost New Year’s Resolution time again!
It’s almost time to make those New Year’s resolutions again. One of the most well-known facts about New Year’s resolutions is that people simply don’t stick with them and, as a result, they don’t get that which they resolved to get. What’s the point in making a resolution you know won’t last? The point of all resolutions — like the point of all prayers — is to "formalize" desires in order to increase our chances of experiencing them in our reality.
But what exactly is a resolution? It is possible that people are not realizing their resolution simply because they don’t have their minds completely wrapped around the concept of what a resolution is — or what their resolution is. If you don’t really understand what you want, what you’re doing, or how to best do it, what kind of results do you truly hope to experience? You can learn how to make — and live — your New Year’s resolutions (no matter what day of the year you make them on).
I believe the definitions for, "Resolution," which best apply in this context, are: "To find an answer to…;" "To deal with successfully;" and, "To declare or reach a firm decision about." Of course, it starts with the declarations of our intentions to experience a certain kind of change; and then, perhaps, we reach our resolution and "successfully deal with" that which we wished to change. Essentially, a New Year’s resolution is our declaration of a specific change we wish to make in our life, and our intention to create it. It is a prayer, of sorts — perhaps one you wish to create on your own. As they say, "Declare a thing and it is so;" the best first-step to achieving anything is to make a resolution.
Most of the New Year’s resolutions people make have something to do with breaking old habits — or, changing old behaviors. "I resolve to quit…," or, "I resolve to lose 25-pounds in time for…" In other words, most people resolve to change something about their body, or change some of the things their body does with "its" time. Honestly, if you knew how your body worked, you wouldn’t wait until New Year’s to let it be healthy and happy; and if you don’t know how it works, a resolution isn’t going to generate any real, lasting, positive changes — but it might start you thinking about something different for yourself. Enough of the right kind of thinking always inspires the right kind of action.
People wait until New Year’s, presumably, to join in the collective energy of millions and millions of people making resolutions on the same day — like a club, or a support group… Unfortunately, what most of them are doing is joining in an experiment in group failure — for the comfort, or safety, of being a part of a group. If I wanted something to happen, I wouldn’t go about asking, wishing, praying, or resolving, in the same way most people traditionally go about NOT GETTING what they want. Failed New Year’s resolutions are a cliche; they are so common, that the term, "New Year’s resolution," has become synonymous with, "Something I don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of accomplishing."
If you’ve been hit in the head with a hammer each and every time you pushed a certain red button, Don’t Push that Button Again. If your New Year’s resolutions typically fall by the wayside, don’t keep doing what you’ve been doing. Try and think differently about your resolutions, decisions, declarations, or prayers. Make a resolution you can keep; and then keep it. In order to keep it, you’ll need to think about it quite often, and in a certain way. Most people have casual interests — like fitting into a certain dress, or losing a few pounds, or giving up something they really don’t want to give up — that are so casual they haven’t really thought about them since last New Year’s Day. These are typically the things they resolve to do — maybe because they know they won’t have to change. After all, everyone knows New Year’s resolutions are doomed to fail…
A New Year’s resolution is a twist on the, "There’s no time like the present," or, "The best place to start is at the beginning," philosophies — both of which are true. But, unless you devote mental energy to your resolution, it will fail no matter which day of the year it was made. Resolve to do something that’s been on your mind for some time, and is likely to stay on your mind. Resolutions require changes in behavior — those require changes in thinking. Don’t resolve to do something that you have to REMIND yourself to think about. Resolve to do something you can’t stop thinking about. If you have to keep reminding yourself what you want, you probably don’t really want it too badly. And, if you do know what you want, you might want to think about it, or pray for it, every day of the year — or until you received it. If your goal is the acquisition of some thing, this is a good way to start.
Of course, if your resolution is to have a better memory, you might want to write that down and resolve to read it several times each day… Really. In fact, write your resolution in the form of an AFFIRMATIVE DECLARATION, and put it someplace where you can read it in the morning and before bed. The more you write and speak your resolution, the more you are thinking about it — and the more real it becomes. The whole point of a resolution is to make this "new thing" a part of you and your life; affirmations are an immediate way to start doing that. Affirmations should be like prayers of thanks for receiving what you want exactly as it should be: "Thank you for my wonderful new body, and for making it so easy for me to reach and maintain my ideal weight and Divine health!" If your resolution was something like: "I resolve to achieve my ideal body weight," then that’s a good affirmation. There are many possible affirmations for every resolution.
Pay attention to other signs and opportunities to take steps toward your goal or desire. For instance, if you resolve to be in better shape and play with the kids more, then don’t tell the kids you’re too tired the next time they ask! Go find out what it’s like to play tired! Remember when you were a kid?!? I promise you that you will find ENERGY you didn’t know you had — if you look for it, that is. Think about it; you don’t wish for a strong, healthy, attractive body so you can sit in a dark room on a couch watching the television and eating the junk your body tells you to eat. DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT! In fact, do something kind of like people who already HAVE the same things you RESOLVED to get for yourself.
If you resolved to take control of your health and reclaim your wellness, then you can absolutely do that; but not by complaining about your health to anyone who is kind enough to not walk away when you start talking about your woes. Talking about problems makes them bigger, not smaller; and healthy people don’t sit around complaining about their health — or dramatizing it. Do one thing healthy people do; and then do another, until all of your time is filled with the activities of a healthy person and you have no time left for the activities of an ill person. Start your road to recovery by resolving to speak WELL of yourself; and, if you cannot make yourself believe that you are well, "fake it ’til you make it." You will become what you think yourself to be. Speak well of your self and your health — until you believe it. Only then will it be so.
The truth is, most people simply don’t think about the idea of a resolution, or what it means; they simply "make ‘em and break ‘em." The next few posts will be about "Secrets for Turning Resolutions into Reality;" but these "secrets" aren’t really secrets, and they aren’t just for New Year’s Day. The more you change the way you think, the more your life will change as a result. If you are experiencing things you truly want to change, then you truly need a new way of thinking about those things you wish to change. Stay tuned for some simple and effective ways to create the change you seek — in your mind, body, and life.
It’s Always Better to Bless than Stress!
It is always better to bless than stress! In any of life’s many moments, we can find a blessing, or we can fail to see the good that is always there. In every outcome, we either get what we want, or what we need – perhaps in the form of valuable feedback. It is our job here to learn to see the blessings all around us – and to learn to pass those blessing on to others in any way we can.
In case you need it, here’s some incentive to change the way you think about the world around you. For starters, when you bless a person, they feel it; and you feel it too. When you do something kind for someone, they actually receive a health benefit; and so do you. Even more interesting than that is the fact that anyone witnessing your kind act will also experience the same positive physiological changes and health benefits as the giver and receiver of the blessing. Anyone witnessing, receiving, or performing a kind act experiences and immediate boost in immune function, among other things. For your health, and the health of those around you, it is always better to bless.
The Greatest Discovery Ever!
The greatest discovery you will ever make is not a wooden chest filled with gold coins, or the true location of Noah’s ark, or a new species of plant or animal, or anything of the sort. The greatest discovery a person could ever make is the discovery of the potential of their own mind.
History is full of great minds and great achievements; but those achievements were all born in the mind of a person willing to listen to their own greatness – their own power from within. I can think about airplanes, and flying, for instance; but only because others thought of such things first – and in such ways that great, flying creations naturally resulted.
I say “naturally resulted” simply because everyone knows the only truly verifiable law of human nature is, “As a man thinketh, so it is done…” Other great minds throughout history have said the same thing in many ways; and it is up to us to come to understand what they mean – if we want true dominion over our own lives, anyway. How do some people turn their thoughts into reality — regardless of the size of the thought — when others seem completely unable to control the thoughts they choose to dwell on? There are at least two very different things going on here — two very different ways of using the mind and its ability to believe.
Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge;” and Henry Ford put it this way: “If you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right!” Both men – great and remembered for very different accomplishments – were simply paraphrasing the same teachings Jesus was passing along, and the same axiom investors must come to understand: “Past performance is no guarantee of future success.” It doesn’t matter what we “know” from experience, in other words; it matters what we “think” and “believe” about the future. As William James writes, “Belief creates the actual fact.”
-
The Belief Formula
