Self Improvement

Creativity can be learned. You may think you are not a creative person and creativity is for people like those who sit and write books, songs or create movies, etc. You may think creativity is something that comes natural to some people and you are not in that group, or you just don’t need to be creative.

How can creativity help you in your job, regardless of what kind of job you are doing? Your job may seem very secure and snug right now. However, you need to realize that our economy is cyclic and is never the same, is always changing. Your job may be secure today, but will it be two years from now? There is a huge chance it will not be. Being creative in your job today may help you keep this same job two years from now when things change. Creativity can absolutely help you do a better job today, which will make you a more valuable employee for tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. If you are good at what you do, you can always be better, and the better person is most likely the one who will be kept around when things suddenly change and downsizing begins.

What exactly is creativity on the job? According to Michael Michalko, one of the world’s leading experts in the field of creativity, creative people are those who come up with more ideas in a shorter space of time. These people had good and bad ideas that were generated quickly. Out of the huge number of bad and good ideas will spring some that better solve a problem in new and exciting ways. If you become a person on your job able to generate a huge number of ideas, whether they are good or bad, that at least in that bunch are some that solves the problems of your employer, this quality alone can set you apart from another employee and make you more valuable to that employer. More ideas and better ideas is definitely an asset to any person in any job. Who does not have problems to solve at any kind of job they may be on? Being creative, coming up with more ideas and better ideas is something that can be learned. You may never write that best seller book or a number one hit song, but….be assured that you can learn to be creative enough to do a better job and make yourself a more valuable employee to your employer today and for tomorrow.

One reason people are not creative on their jobs is that with all the recent cutbacks in staff and downsizing trends of the last few decades people live from day to day fairly stressed out and unable to relax and think creatively. Another reason is people often they just can’t think creatively. Because of that mindset they continually miss opportunities that people on the look for creative ideas immediately pounce upon. So what can you do if you fall into one of these categories? Obviously you need to relax, ease your stress and learn to think creatively, so when the opportunity arises, you will be one of those ready to pounce and spit out all those good and bad ideas that among which will be solutions to your employers’ problems.

Assess what you can realistically do and cannot do. You don’t need to get an all or nothing mind-set or the opinion you need to be absolutely perfect or superman or superwoman. Maybe you just don’t have the time to become a creative thinker. In that case, you can hire someone to help give you a creative touch to your work, either to do it for you, or to look over your work and talk it over with you of how you could add some creativity. You need to find someone to bounce your ideas off who is innovative themselves, non-judgmental and enthusiastic. You will be amazed at how many ideas you will be able to come up with.

Another way you can start to learn to be creative is to take a few minutes of your time here and there throughout the day and notice things a little closer. When you watch television, pay special attention to the advertisements and see if you can visualize just how the advertising staff came up with the idea for that particular commercial. Have a childlike curiosity about the world around you and try to see the unusual connections of two things totally unrelated together that can solve a problem. If you practice this routinely you will start seeing associations between totally different things and you will start to become more creative and innovative naturally on a daily basis without doing too much thinking about it or messing up your schedule otherwise just to think creatively. You will begin to come up with more and more ideas that will suddenly stun those individuals you work with. Be aware that you need to learn how to generate thousands of ideas, both good and bad, and don’t be disappointed if most of those ideas produce failure or nothing. The good ideas, however, that produces the solution will most likely be in that batch as well.

One example of an incredible idea generator is Thomas Edison. I always heard that many, many people “laughed” at Thomas Edison and all his ideas and inventions. Thomas Edison had a remarkable number of invention failures. However, those inventions that did succeed solved some huge, huge problems for a lot of people. If you become a creative idea generator yourself just know that you might be quite comical to a lot of people around you until of course, you come up with the one idea that rocks the nation, or in your particular world and job.

Here are some fun games you can play to help you become more creative:

• While you get dressed look at the color of what you are putting on. As quickly as possible, think of as many alternative different names for that color. Keep thinking of new names until you finish dressing.

• Do you ever get caught in a traffic jam? The time wasted sitting in these traffic jams could be used to play a creative mind game. Look the car in front of you. Choose something about the car that catches your eye such as a bumper sticker or the actual color of the car. Say out loud ten thoughts that come to your mind as a result of that part of the car. Now think about a problem you have at work. As quickly as possible list as many ways that what you notice about the car part is similar to your problem at work. Now determine whether or not any of these items might help you solve your problem at work. If not, pick another part of the car and play the game again.
• Another game you play with yourself is when you run into a problem, think, what Leonardo would do in this situation.
• You can also use biblical scripture to creatively find answers to your problems. For every problem a human faces now there is some kind of an example in the many verses and scriptures of the bible that we can use to creatively apply to our problems of today and actually solve them. If you are a minister or a leader of a church congregation, one of your best sources of solving problems in your church and congregation will be from your Bible.

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Author: Connie Limon. Visit us online at selfimprovementbook1.com www.selfimprovementbook1.com and sign up for our newsletters. Self Improvement Book is a guide to information about self improvement, personal growth and self help tips. It is an organized directory referencing information in other websites on the World Wide Web.

Maria Duval has taught that it is extremely important for your well-being to imagine positive thoughts and belief into you such that your subconsciousness will welcome these to the extent that beneficial events like health and successes will blossom.

However, the question here is, how shall one go about achieving it?

The answer is here as follows: by the frequent repetition of positive affirmations.

Repetition possesses a real power. The repetition, whether conscious or subconscious, of negative thoughts, will end up manifesting in unlucky and unfavourable events in your life, whereas, the repetition of positive thoughts from a positive source of belief, will lead to success.

The repetition method is very simple. Keep repeating in your head or say out loud some strong positive affirmations that you may have identified that are truly unique to your circumstances. So before that, you probably have to sit down and analyse what is going wrong with your life and how you are going to change “it positively. That is the crutch of the process. Once you have identify that, repetitions of it will produce a “”very powerful and efficient impact on the subconscious positively.

This principle from Maria Duval goes like this: by concentrating on a positive thought, you create and feel a positive reality. If you concentrate wealth, you will experience wealth. If you concentrate on your job success, you will experience your job success.

Here are a few examples of the positive affirmations for your reference and study. I learn them from Maria Duval and here are some of my own versions that you may like to know.

“Everyday I get up with positive intentions and every night I sleep in peace with the conviction that tomorrow will be better.”

“When a negative thought obsesses me, I twist it around and think about something nice and constructive out of it.”

“Every one of my thoughts has a real impact on my life, I take care to cultivate positive thoughts in myself.”

“I am more and more convinced that great wonderful moments are coming to my life in the future.”

“I want to keep away from people who are pessimistic, depressing, negative and stubborn to positive suggestions.”

“A positive mental attitude is an unlimited source of well-being, happiness, abundance, sucess and health.”

Well, these are just some of the positive affirmations that will benefit you as you seek to transform your life. Of course, this list is endless with unlimited possibilities. Next we should know how to use that positive affirmations.

Maria Duval says that most efficient method is to say them as often as possible throughout the day, in your head or read out. Think about its deeper meaning as you repeat them, allow them to sink into your mind. As you do that, you probably be experiencing a new fresh charge of positive energy that keeps your mind more peaceful.

The most important times to repeat it are of course in the morning when you just wake up or before you sleep in the evening. Furthermore, you can write them down in large piece of papers and stick it on the wall so that you see them regularly. Places like fridge doors, mirrors, bathrooms and car dashboard are terrific too. The subtle effect of this is tremendous as you may not know it. Each time you see those words, your brain will automatically record the positive formula and impregnate it and you will soon see a real change in you as it is a strong mental conditioning by stimulating what you wish to become. Astral forms are created in the process and these forms are vital in your coming successes and changes.

Well, everything in this world results because of perseverance. Do remember perseverance is always a factor in anything we do. When there is negative thoughts coming into your mind at this time, relax by breathing calmly and deeply, imagine a river of fresh water running down your garden amidst the pots colourful flowers.

Mere T. is a spiritual researcher, blogger, conservationist and freelance writer. She has benefited a lot from the guidance of psychic Maria Duval in the topic of spirituality. She lives in New Zealand with her family and she enjoys the serenity of her country as it helps her to build up on her spiritual bonding with the environment. Her Maria Duval blog is tributetomariaduval.blogspot.com Maria Duval - Psychic - Clairvoyant.

Surveys show that religion and spirituality play a central role in the lives of most of the population in human experience. Gallup (2004) found that 59% of adults nationwide say religion is a very important part of their lives. An additional 26% of Americans say religion is fairly important to them. Just 15% of respondents say religion is not very important. About two-thirds of Americans, 64%, belong to a church or synagogue. The religious and spiritual dimensions of culture were found to be among the most important factors that structure human experience, beliefs, values, behavior, and illness (Browning et al., 1990 James, 1961 Krippner and Welch, 1992).

Researchers however, report that some individuals seem to get fanatical about thier religion and develop maladaptive behaviors. Members of the American Psychological Association reported that at least one in six of their clients presented issues that involve religion or spirituality (Shafranske and Maloney, 1990). In another study, 29% of psychologists agreed that religious issues are important in the treatment of all or many of their clients (Bergin and Jensen, 1990, p. 3). Psychotherapy can sometimes be effective in treating religious problems. Robinson (1986) noted, “Some patients have troublesome conflicts about religion that could probably be resolved through the process of psychotherapy” (p.22).

Religious problems can be as various and complex as mental health problems. One type of psychoreligious problem involves patients who intensify their adherence to religious practices and orthodoxy (Lukoff, Lu, and Turner 1992, p. 677). Generally when people speak of addictive diseases they imply a medical problem. In the past few years the term addiction has been used to characterize behaviors that go beyond chemicals. Dr. Robert Lefever (1988) views addiction as a “family disease” involving self-denial and caretaking, domination, and submission (p. ix). Gerald May (1988) states that addiction is a “state of compulsion, obsession, or preoccupation that enslaves a person’s will and desire” (p.14). Shaef (1987) defines addiction as “any process over which we are powerless” (p. 18). She divides addictions into two categories: substance addictions -alcohol, drugs, nicotine, food) and process addictions -money-accumulation, gambling, sex, work, worry, and religion.

Research in the area of religious addiction is deficient, however there were a few older related studies found in the literature. Simmonds (1977) reports that there is some evidence to indicate that “religious people in general tend to exhibit dependency on some external source of gratification” (p. 114). Black and London (1966) found a high positive correlation between the variables of obedience to parents and country and indices of religious belief such as church attendance, belief in God and prayer (p. 39). Goldsen, et al. (1960) showed that people who were more religious consistently showed tendencies toward greater social conformity than did the nonreligious, a finding consistent with the notion that religious people seek external approval. These results are supported by Fisher (1964 p. 784), who reported that a measure of social approval and religion were strongly associated. Religious people show dependence not only on social values, but also on other external agents. Duke (1964, p. 227) found that church attendance indicated more responsiveness to the effects of a placebo. In a study of 50 alcoholics, it was found that those who were dependent on alcohol were more likely to have had a religious background (Walters, 1957, p. 405).

The few research studies aforementioned seem to suggest that religious people develop a dependency on religious practices for social approval. Since religious people seem to be describable in terms of relatively high levels of dependence, it seems useful to borrow a concept suggested by Peele and Brodsky (1975)- that of “addiction.” According to these writers addiction is “a person’s attachment to a sensation, an object, or another person… such as to lessen his appreciation of and ability to deal with other things in his environment, or in himself, so that he has become increasingly dependent on that experience as his only source of gratification” (p. 168).

There are a variety of definitions for the concept of religious addiction. Arterburn and Felton (1992) state that “when a person is excessively devoted to something or surrenders compulsively and habitually to something, that pathological and physiological dependency on a substance, relationship, or behavior results in addiction” (p. 104). They indicate that, “like any other addiction, the practice of religion becomes central to every other aspect of life…all relationships evolve from the religion, and the dependency on the religious practice and its members removes the need for a dependency on God…the religion and those who practice it then become the central power for the addict who no longer is in touch with God” (p. 117).

Spirituality can also have pathological aspects to it. Vaughan (1991) reports that “the shadow side to a healthy search for wholeness can be called addiction to spirituality” (p. 105). He indicates that this can be found among people who use spirituality as a solution to problems they are unwilling to face. Van-Kaam (1987) presents a viewpoint of addiction as a quasi religious or falsified religious presence. He reports that “an understanding of the relationship between religious presence and addiction allows potential dangers of receptivity to be identified in order to realize the real value of true religious presence and the shame of its counterfeit, addiction” (p. 243). McKenzie (1991) discusses addiction as an unauthentic form of spiritual existence. He says that, “addiction is born of the human desire for transcendence which is often perverted or misplaced by societies that encourage their members to seek ultimate meaning in dimensions that have no regard for the transcendent” (p. 325). Heise (1991, p. 11) explores the fundamentalist Christian’s focus on perfectionism, and it’s possible contribution to an increase in dysfunctional individuals, family systems, and addictions.

Until recently, research in this area has primarily focused on religious cults. Estimates of the number of cults range from several hundred to several thousand, with a total membership up to three million (Allen and Metoyer, 1988, p. 38 Melton, 1986). According to Margaret Singer, Ph.D., a psychologist specializing in cult phenomena, “the word cult describes a power structure,…what really sets a cult apart is that one person has proclaimed himself to have some special knowledge, and if he can convince others to let him be in charge, he will share that knowledge” (Collins & Frantz, 1994, p. 30). The Jim Jones People’s Temple mass suicide has been documented in the news, and more recently David Koresh’s Branch Davidian Christian cult. Cults, both destructive and benign, have been with us in various guises since time immemorial. Many psychologists and psychiatrists have become knowledgeable about destructive cults in the course of their work with patients affected by the problem.

Within the past few years, however, traditional Church members have faced their compulsive behavior and harmful beliefs. Doucette (1992) reports that “many people are waking up because they have seen their religious leaders fall. Some researchers believe that the magnitude of the tragedy of religious addiction and abuse was revealed by the TV evangelist scandals documented in the news media which involved: Jim and Tammy Bakker Jimmy Swaggart and Oral Roberts (Brand 1987, p. 82 Woodward 1987, p. 68 and Kaufman 1988, p. 37). These personal confessions have exposed not only how these supposed men of God had betrayed people’s trust, but how many of those who had been abused, betrayed, and bankrupted never seemed to question what was happening and continued to support these individuals.

Booth (1991) states that “the Bakker, Swaggart, and Roberts scandals created a national intervention that served to interrupt the progress of this unhealthy phenomenon” (p. 38). What had previously been viewed as fanaticism or zealotry increasingly began to be called religious addiction and religious abuse. Booth (1991) defines religious addiction as “using God, a church, or a belief system as an escape from reality, or as a weapon against ourselves or others in an attempt to find or elevate a sense of self-worth or well-being” (p. 38).

Other researchers use the terms spiritual and psychological abuse to describe the characteristics of religious addiction. Enroth (1992) says that his book “Churches That Abuse is about people who have been abused psychologically and spiritually in churches and other Christian organizations” (p. 29). He reports that “unlike physical abuse that often results in bruised bodies, spiritual and pastoral abuse leaves scars on the psyche and soul…the perversion of power that we see in abusive churches disrupts and divides families, fosters unhealthy dependence of members on the leadership, and creates, ultimately, spiritual confusion in the lives of victims” (p. 29). The scandals involving TV evangelists created a national intervention by bringing religious addiction and abuse too close to home to be ignored. Those scandals spurred people to act and call for change.

During this period, I had the unique opportunity to conduct a literature review and survey on the relatively newly recognized phenomenon of religious addiction within Christianity in the State of Hawaii for my dissertation while pursuing my doctor of psychology degree (Psy.D) in clinical psychology. After studying the symptoms, beliefs, and stages of religious addiction along with the characteristics of religiously addictive organizations, I came to believe that having an intense faith or religious ferver is not equal to having a religious addiction. Most people experience healthy religion and a spiritual life in which obedience to God is balanced with a freedom to serve others in ways of individual experession.

I also discovered however, that church leaders in Hawaii that were self-appointed (not elected/ appointed by their church) significantly identified more with religious addictive beliefs, symptoms and practices compared to their counterparts.

Multiple Addictions

Compulsive religiosity sometimes accompanies other addictions as the religious addict is seeking to lessen guilt and shame. Since it is impossible to expect treatment for one addiction to be beneficial when other addictions co-exist, the initial therapeutic intervention for any addiction needs to include an assessment for other addictions. In my clinical practice, I have noticed a significant correlation between religious addiction and other substance abuse and behavioral addictions such as chemical dependency, alcoholism, pathological gambling, and food addictions.

Poor Prognosis

We have come to realize today more than any other time in history that the treatment of lifestyle diseases and addictions are often a difficult and frustrating task for all concerned. Repeated failures abound with all of the addictions, even with utilizing the most effective treatment strategies. But why do 47% of patients treated in private addiction treatment programs (for example) relapse within the first year following treatment (Gorski, T., 2001)? Have addiction specialists become conditioned to accept failure as the norm? There are many reasons for this poor prognosis. Some would proclaim that addictions are psychosomatically- induced and maintained in a semi-balanced force field of driving and restraining multidimensional forces. Others would say that failures are due simply to a lack of self-motivation or will power. Most would agree that lifestyle behavioral addictions are serious health risks that deserve our attention, but could it possibly be that patients with multiple addictions are being under diagnosed (with a single dependence) simply due to a lack of diagnostic tools and resources that are incapable of resolving the complexity of assessing and treating a patient with multiple addictions?

Diagnostic Delineation

Thus far, the DSM-IV-TR has not delineated a diagnosis for the complexity of multiple behavioral and substance addictions. It has reserved the Poly-substance Dependence diagnosis for a person who is repeatedly using at least three groups of substances during the same 12-month period, but the criteria for this diagnosis do not involve any behavioral addiction symptoms. In the Psychological Factors Affecting Medical Condition’s section (DSM-IV-TR, 2000) maladaptive health behaviors (e.g., unsafe sexual practices, excessive alcohol, drug use, and over eating, etc.) may be listed on Axis I, only if they are significantly affecting the course of treatment of a medical or mental condition.

Since successful treatment outcomes are dependent on thorough assessments, accurate diagnoses, and comprehensive individualized treatment planning, it is no wonder that repeated rehabilitation failures and low success rates are the norm instead of the exception in the addictions field, when the latest DSM-IV-TR does not even include a diagnosis for multiple addictive behavioral disorders. Treatment clinics need to have a treatment planning system and referral network that is equipped to thoroughly assess multiple addictive and mental health disorders and related treatment needs and comprehensively provide education/ awareness, prevention strategy groups, and/ or specific addictions treatment services for individuals diagnosed with multiple addictions. Written treatment goals and objectives should be specified for each separate addiction and dimension of an individuals’ life, and the desired performance outcome or completion criteria should be specifically stated, behaviorally based (a visible activity), and measurable.

New Proposed Diagnosis

To assist in resolving the limited DSM-IV-TRs’ diagnostic capability, a multidimensional diagnosis of “Poly-behavioral Addiction,” is proposed for more accurate diagnosis leading to more effective treatment planning. This diagnosis encompasses the broadest category of addictive disorders that would include an individual manifesting a combination of substance abuse addictions, and other obsessively-compulsive behavioral addictive behavioral patterns to pathological gambling, religion, and/ or sex / pornography, etc.). Behavioral addictions are just as damaging - psychologically and socially as alcohol and drug abuse. They are comparative to other life-style diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease in their behavioral manifestations, their etiologies, and their resistance to treatments. They are progressive disorders that involve obsessive thinking and compulsive behaviors. They are also characterized by a preoccupation with a continuous or periodic loss of control, and continuous irrational behavior in spite of adverse consequences.

Poly-behavioral addiction would be described as a state of periodic or chronic physical, mental, emotional, cultural, sexual and/ or spiritual/ religious intoxication. These various types of intoxication are produced by repeated obsessive thoughts and compulsive practices involved in pathological relationships to any mood-altering substance, person, organization, belief system, and/ or activity. The individual has an overpowering desire, need or compulsion with the presence of a tendency to intensify their adherence to these practices, and evidence of phenomena of tolerance, abstinence and withdrawal, in which there is always physical and/ or psychic dependence on the effects of this pathological relationship. In addition, there is a 12 - month period in which an individual is pathologically involved with three or more behavioral and/ or substance use addictions simultaneously, but the criteria are not met for dependence for any one addiction in particular (Slobodzien, J., 2005). In essence, Poly-behavioral addiction is the synergistically integrated chronic dependence on multiple physiologically addictive substances and behaviors (e.g., using/ abusing substances - nicotine, alcohol, & drugs, and/or acting impulsively or obsessively compulsive in regards to gambling, food binging, sex, and/ or religion, etc.) simultaneously.

Conclusion

Considering the wide range of religious behaviors in our world today, one should always take into account an individual’s ethnic, cultural, spiritual, and social background prior to making any clinical judgments, and it would be wise to not over-pathologize in this area of Religious Addiction. However, since successful treatment outcomes are dependent on thorough assessments, accurate diagnoses, and comprehensive individualized treatment planning - poly-behavioral addiction needs to be identified to effectively treat the complexity of multiple behavioral and substance addictions.

Since chronic lifestyle diseases and disorders such as diabetes, hypertension, alcoholism, drug and behavioral addictions cannot be cured, but only managed - how should we effectively manage poly-behavioral addiction?

The Addiction Recovery Measurement System (ARMS) is proposed utilizing a multidimensional integrative assessment, treatment planning, treatment progress, and treatment outcome measurement tracking system that facilitates rapid and accurate recognition and evaluation of an individual’s comprehensive life-functioning progress dimensions. The ARMS hypothesis purports that there is a multidimensional synergistically negative resistance that individual’s develop to any one form of treatment to a single dimension of their lives, because the effects of an individual’s addiction have dynamically interacted multi-dimensionally. Having the primary focus on one dimension is insufficient. Traditionally, addiction treatment programs have failed to accommodate for the multidimensional synergistically negative effects of an individual having multiple addictions, (e.g. nicotine, alcohol, and obesity, etc.). Behavioral addictions interact negatively with each other and with strategies to improve overall functioning. They tend to encourage the use of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, help increase violence, decrease functional capacity, and promote social isolation. Most treatment theories today involve assessing other dimensions to identify dual diagnosis or co-morbidity diagnoses, or to assess contributing factors that may play a role in the individual’s primary addiction. The ARMS’ theory proclaims that a multidimensional treatment plan must be devised addressing the possible multiple addictions identified for each one of an individual’s life dimensions in addition to developing specific goals and objectives for each dimension.

Partnerships and coordination among service providers, government departments, and community organizations in providing addiction treatment programs are a necessity in addressing the multi-task solution to poly-behavioral addiction. I encourage you to support the addiction programs in America, and hope that the (ARMS) resources can assist you to personally fight the War on poly-behavioral addiction.

For more info see: Poly-Behavioral Addiction and the Addictions Recovery Measurement System (ARMS) By James Slobodzien, Psy.D. CSAC at: geocities.com/drslbdzn/Behavioral_Addictions.html geocities.com/drslbdzn/Behavioral_Addictions.html

Poly-behavioral Addiction and the Addictions Recovery Measurement System (ARMS)
booklocker.com/books/1966.html booklocker.com/books/1966.html

For more info see: Hawaii and Christian Religious Addiction
universal-publishers.com/book.php?method=ISBN&book=1581122101 universal-publishers.com/book.php?method=ISBN&book=1581122101

Addictions Recovery Management Services
geocities.com/drslbdzn/Behavioral_Addictions.html geocities.com/drslbdzn/Behavioral_Addictions.html

James Slobodzien, Psy.D., CSAC, is a Hawaii licensed psychologist and certified substance abuse counselor who earned his doctorate in Clinical Psychology. He is credentialed by the National Registry of Health Service Providers in Psychology. He has over 20-years of mental health experience primarily working in the fields of alcohol/ substance abuse and behavioral addictions in hospital, prison, and court settings. He is an adjunct professor of Psychology and also maintains a private practice as a mental health consultant.

Creating and using altars are not only used for religious ritual, strictly confined to Eastern religions, or polytheistic worship. In fact, an altar can be these things, but in reality, an altar is defined by its creator. A personal spirit altar can be a practical reminder the important elements of the spiritual journey on an everyday basis, a simple collection of items that makes the creator feel good, or a peaceful area to reflect and rejuvenate.

The depth of meaning of an altar is not established by some unknown mystical force. It can be as light or as serious as the creator wishes. The creation and use of a personal spirit altar is not necessarily sacrilegious or iconological worship. While some may use the altar for worship it is perfectly acceptable to place certain statues or representations of deities or other items to serve as a reminder of some important attributes that the creator wishes to emulate or to invoke particular energies into the creator’s life and space.

There are many reasons to create a personal spirit altar. Among them are:

· A peaceful spot designated for prayer, meditation, or contemplative thought;

· A way to direct positive energies into a living space;

· A memorial for a loved one;

· A way to honor the physical elements (air, water, fire, earth, ether);

· A spot to inspire and celebrate creative expressions

· A reminder of personal worth on a journey toward self-acceptance

· A reminder to express daily gratitude or for manifestation

Home altars are common in many cultures worldwide, both modern and ancient. There is no right or wrong way to create an altar and one may take ideas from cultures and times other than the creators, or the creator may choose to choose and arrange items that simply appeal to the individual. The key is to be conscious about what goes on the altar and its arrangement. As long as the items hold significant meaning, even if that meaning is as simple as the beauty or sensuality of the objects.

If you decide to create your personal spirit altar consider your reason for the altar. What is it for, and what does it represent to you? Then choose items that you associate with the significance of the altar. All items do not need to be added at once. It is perfectly acceptable to add items gradually as you discover them, and to change the altar as you see fit. Be sure to visit your altar each day, even for a few moments, and give some focus to its meaning and purpose.

Lisa D. Branscomb, J.D. is the founder of LifeBliss Solutions. LifeBliss offers workshops, retreats, celebrations, and individual coaching on ways to use sensuality and tantric arts to create a richer, healthier, happier, more delicious lifestyle. For more information see lifeblisssolutions.com LifeBliss Solutions.

Did you ever wonder how feeling good about yourself can affect your health in a positive way? Did you ever think about how NOT feeling good about yourself can also affect your health –in a negative way!

To have self-esteem is a lifelong need and from infancy through old age. Its beginnings are reflected in the smile between mother and infant, as it is manifested in the 50-year old who has just mastered her new computer..
Self-esteem begins with our bodies. Since mind and body are one entity, the smooth, interrelated functioning of our body parts and our brain chemistry provide the foundation for an inherent sense of wellness.

An Individual with high self-esteem has these qualities:

•Perceives himself in a positive way

•Is aware of his own abilities, potential and limitations

•Feels competent that he is in control of his own life

•Is confident and tends to deal with demands and stress in an assertive and effective way

•Feels loved and respected by others

An individual with low self-esteem has these qualities:

•Is more passive and dependent in reacting to stress and demands

•Feels he is not in control of his life

•Is more likely to conform to peer pressure

•Is pessimistic about his abilities

•Tends to be shy

•Tends to be depressed and anxious about the future

•Tends to experience difficulties in relationships

•Rarely assume positions of leadership

The well-established relationship between self-esteem and psychological well-being (e.g., depression, social anxiety, loneliness, alienation; may be an important factor in understanding the self-esteem/health relationship, according to research.

Life experiences produce emotional responses in all of us.. We are capable of a broad range of feelings and all of these feelings have implications for how we view ourselves, our relationships to others, and to the broader world. To best cultivate a philosophy of emotional wellness, it is important to develop an awareness of who you are and how you gain acceptance and understanding of your feelings and ways of expressing your feelings that are respectful to yourself and others. This process begins by realizing that you are a special, unique being worthy of respect and love.

SO WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Ask yourself questions..

How do you see yourself?

—-Stressed, confused, excited, lonely, sad, angry, or peaceful.

How long have you felt this way?

Is that feeling likely to change?

Are you okay with how you are feeling?

SELF-ESTEEM SUGGESTIONS:

1. Set healthy goals, take enthusiastic steps, and accumulate meaningful accomplishments. Take control of your actions and lifestyle.

2. Cultivate the habit of looking at the positive sides of your self, people, and things in life.

3.Take deliberate steps to develop skills and talents to greater levels.

4. Take life’s changes as challenges - opportunities for personal growth, rather than as problems which burden you.

5. Imagine successful events, even if you feel under-confident. Utilize meditation and/ or visualization.

6. Be realistic about your abilities; be optimistic about your possibilities. Accept yourself as a growing, ever-evolving being that is not ’stuck’ in the past or present. Realize the power you have to develop in the way in which you choose.

7. Practice unconditional acceptance for your self and for others.

8. Work towards satisfying your needs in all eight wellness dimensions.

You have the power to feel in balance and be well and healthy. No matter how challenging life becomes, you can feel connected to yourself and others.

Joyce M. Knudsen, Ph.D., AICI, CIM
Originator of Distance Learning Programs for AICI
Distance Learning Examiner for DETC.

Dr.Joyce M. Knudsen is known for two specialties: (1) International Home Study Certification Program for Image Consultants, Worldwide. (2) As a Certified Behavioral and Values Analyst she provides assessments on personal lifestyle development, DiSC Classic, DiSC General Characteristics, Time Mastery, Indra, Team Dimensions and so much more.

Dr. Knudsen is the author of six books on the subject of self-image, a distinguished IMMIE Recipient, honored with the Award of Excellence for Education and was the very first Master Status Member (highest level of achievement) of The Association of Image Consultants, International.

Experience powerful new skills in dressing for success, business etiquette and social skills. You can read more about Dr. Knudsen on her web site at imagemaker1.com imagemaker1.com and you can test yourself to excellence on testingforexcellence.com testingforexcellence.com

Whadda ya know?

Seriously. With absolute certainty, what do you know?
Put aside all opinions, beliefs and theories for a moment and address this one straight question: What do you know for sure? Or, as Thoreau put it:

“Let us settle ourselves, and work and wedge our feet downward through the mud and slush of opinion, and prejudice, and tradition, and delusion, and appearance, that alluvion which covers the globe… through church and state, through poetry and philosophy and religion, till we come to a hard bottom and rocks in place, which we can call reality, and say, This is, and no mistake; and then begin…”

In other words, let’s cut the crap and figure out what’s real. The cogito does exactly that, and it’s very simple. The question is: What do you know?

The answer is: I Am.

All other so-called facts are really non-facts and belong in the category of consensual reality and relative truth, i.e., unreal reality and untrue truth.

::: Cogito Ergo Sum

Cogito ergo sum is the equation that proves the fact. But first, before we go on, let’s ask what else we know. What else can be said for certain?

Nothing. We don’t know anything else. And that’s the real point of the cogito. The importance of I Am isn’t that it’s a fact, but that it’s the only fact.

I Am is the only thing anyone has ever known or will ever know. Everything else, all religion and philosophy, is nothing more than dream interpretation. There is no other fact than I Am. The cogito is the seed of the thought that destroys the universe. Beyond the cogito, nothing is known. Beyond the cogito, nothing can be known. Except I Am, no one knows anything. No man or god can claim to know more. No God or array of gods can exist or be imagined that know more than this one thing: I Am.

We can’t avoid letting this topic drift briefly into the Christian realm. When Moses asked God His name, God answered, “I am that I am.” The name God gives for Himself is I Am.

Note that I Am is unconjugatable. It allows of no variation. God doesn’t say, “My name is I Am, but you can call me You Are, or He Is.” The cogito, the I Am equation, does not extend beyond one’s own subjective knowing. I can say I Am and know it as truth, but I can’t say you are, he is, she is, we are, they are, it is, etc. I know I exist and nothing else. Understood thusly, I Am, aka God, truly is the Alpha and the Omega; the entirety of being, of knowledge, of you.

::: The Line Is Drawn

The cogito is the line between fantasy and reality. On one side of the cogito is a universe of beliefs and ideas and theories. To cross the line is to leave all that behind. No theory, concept, belief, opinion or debate can have any possible basis in reality once the ramifications of the cogito have fully saturated the mind. No dialogue can take place across that line because nothing that makes sense on either side makes sense on the other.

We all think we know what the cogito means; this is an invitation to challenge that assumption. If professors of philosophy truly understood it, they wouldn’t be professors of philosophy. Alfred North Whitehead said that all philosophy is a footnote to Plato, but all philosophy, Plato included, is rendered obsolete and irrelevant by Descartes. Nothing but the subjective I Am is true, so what’s the point of prattling on?

The cogito isn’t a mere thought or an idea, it is an ego-eating virus that, properly incubated and nurtured, will eventually devour all illusion. Once we know the cogito, we can begin systematically unknowing everything we thought we knew, and unraveling the self we aren’t.

::: Life is but a Dream

There is no such thing as objective reality. Two cannot be proven. Nothing can be shown to exist. Time and space, love and hate, good and evil, cause and effect, are all just ideas. Anyone who says they know anything is really saying they don’t know the only thing. The greatest religious and philosophical thoughts and ideas in the history of man contain no more truth than the bleating of sheep. The greatest books are no more authoritative than the greatest luncheon meats.

No one knows anything.

::: Disprove it for Yourself

Anyone wishing to deny these statements about the meaning of the cogito need merely prove that something, anything, is true. By all means, give it a try, dash your head upon it, but it can’t be done. Cogito ergo sum, however, isn’t the endpoint of inquiry, it’s the starting point; it’s a tool that helps us see, without intermediaries, exactly what is true and what isn’t.

How great is that?

::: About the Author

“Jed McKenna is an American original.” -Lama Surya Das

Jed McKenna is the author of “Spiritual Enlightenment: The Damnedest Thing” and “Spiritually Incorrect Enlightenment”, published by Wisefool Press. Coming in 2005: “Spirituality X” and “Jed McKenna’s Notebook”. Visit WisefoolPress.com WisefoolPress.com to learn more.

I believe it is time to speak up and out about our most precious values and convictions. For the 54 years I have been on the planet loving, compassion, kindness and charity have been taught mostly behind the walls of our religious institutions. Those values were not discussed much, if at all, in the halls of schools or offices.

As a child growing up in a very conservative religious area of the country this split between the head (rational and provable ) and the heart (innate knowing) confused me. I very quickly resigned myself to the hypocritical two-sided personalities of the adults in my life and adopted the same dualism as a young adult. In my mid-thirties I discovered that speaking from the heart took courage, inner strength and some care to move beyond the easy fall-back beliefs of the crowd. And there appeared to be an invisible veil of repression shrouding any voice that articulated a more compassionate point of view.

Today, those of us who teach and preach to the ‘choir’ are feeling an innercalling to bring a more progressive spiritual message beyond our circle of influence. That shroud of illusion, fear and shame is being challenged. I talk to people every day who no longer want or can remain quiet about the absence of peace as a viable national security option, honoring of the sacred in all life as a foreign aid policy and stewardship of the earth and her diminishing resources as our new bottom line. Words are powerful! Speaking authentically resonates deep within. But often times we silence our voice and abandon our ideals because we are unaware of the sabotaging inner voice of fear. What I have discovered is that speaking up and speaking out is often derailed by unconscious thoughts from our head. And the ability to move beyond those inner roadblocks a learned and practiced skill.

Here is a series of questions to assist in getting to that quiet voice of what is true for you. Moving beyond a knee jerk response establishes a line of communication that can be tapped when we hear the call to present a different point of view.

What is it that I want to say?What are the limiting beliefs or fears? Where is the power?What did I learn?

Step One: What is it that I want to say?

Your first response may come from defensiveness, fear, judgment, anger or some strong emotion. You may hear something like this inside. “I want to tell them how wrong they are”“I need to change their minds.”“I’m really upset by what they said and feel out of control.” These human responses often drive us to fire off a response that is emotionally charged and not grounded in our being. We feel it immediately. And because our words carry a charge our listener is engaged on the same level. The results are usually unsatisfactory because no one is actually heard or honored. Acknowledge that level, take a deep breath and go deeper. What is behind that knee jerk reaction? Finish the sentence this way and discover if this resonates.“I want to tell them how wrong they are so I can feel in control. So I can feel like I’m right.“I need to change their minds because their ideas bring up fear, anger, upset etc.“I’m really upset by what they said and feel out of control so I need to create separation and distance between us.”

Step Two: What are the limiting beliefs or fears?

Underneath defensive and reactive responses is usually a deeper limiting belief or fear of being judged – by the other or ourself.Examples:“This will not be popular.”“You don’t really know what you are talking about.”“Don’t rock the boat right now.”“It’s not that important. Just walk away.”“There you go starting an argument and ruining the party.”“They won’t like me if I disagree.” Acknowledge this next level of excavation and keep going.

Step Three: Where is the power?

Perhaps the timing of this question seems strange. But I have discovered that power lives just beyond the habitual limiting beliefs, fears and judgments. And the Heart is it’s home. What does your heart request you say?Try these opening phrases to encourage the heart voice.“My experience is…”“I long for…”“ What is important to me is…”“ What I value more than… is …”“I believe that …”“What I have discovered is …” True empowerment comes from speaking what the heart wants to say rather than the rapid fire response of the head. The secret ingredient of heart-speaking is truth. Truth is centering and grounding. Speaking one’s truth begins to shift the energy of contraction into expansion. Breathing gets easier. The nervous system quiets. The mind is still.

Step Four: What have I learned?

Probably the most important question of the four, learning requires that I stay conscious of the movement inside and let go of what no longer serves me. A fear or belief that has conditioned my behavior all my life may drop away. A habitual response that has given me momentary control or superiority will be discarded. My willingness and ability to understand my inner dynamic may shed light on another’s inner dynamic. The combination of new revelation, new understanding and new experience creates the new paradigm shift.

Now that’s a place of power! Are there circumstances where maintaining silence also sends a strong message?Absolutely. And the more that you check in with your heart the more discerning you will be in those situations. Each person will have a unique way to uncover and discover their empowering voice. I encourage you to practice these simple questions in service to your quest to express the truth that lies within. And finally, powerful words from a German Pastor…

In Germany they first came for the Communists,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant.

Then they came for me —
and by that time no one was left to speak up.
- Pastor Martin Niemöller

About the Author:

Rebecca Skeele, President of Make It Heaven LLC, is an author, speaker and master facilitator who teaches cocreating heaven on earth. She is the author of You Can Make It Heaven: How to Enrich Your Life with Abundance and Loving and numerous articles supporting personal and spiritual growth. She combines her extensive years as a spiritual counselor and coach, two Master’s degrees in Spiritual Counseling and Spiritual Science, her certification in the Noetic field of consciousness and her study as an non-denominational minister to support conscious choice and awakening to the truth within. Her new course, Becoming a Spiritual Scientist: A Course for CoCreators is offered in Santa Fe, NM and Austin, TX.

The 3 BIG Realties

We all use the word reality as though it had one common meaning that we could all agree on. Sometimes maybe we agree but often we don’t. There are 3 really big and very important realities that we all have to deal with one way or another.

1. The world out there. This reality is pretty obvious to some of us but less clear to others. This is the world of hurricanes and muggings and train wrecks. The world of all the unpredictable disasters as well as all of the unexpected good surprises. Finding the 20 dollar bill, going to a movie and meeting your future spouse. We have almost no control over this world at all. We can’t do anything to completely protect ourselves from a drunken driver or a suicide bomber or cancer or whatever.

2. The personal world. This reality is also pretty obvious to most of us (though some of us seem oblivious). This is the everyday just doin’ your own thing reality. Right now you’re reading this article. You know you’re reading and you might even be aware of your reaction to what you’re reading. This reality is one over which you exercise (well to be more precise, one over which you can exercise considerable control. You could decide to stop reading this right now for example. Or could you?

3. The Genetic Master This reality is hidden from most of us, yet most of us are living out multiple genetic programs. These programs determine much of what we do, what we like, what we don’t like, what we believe, what we want, and a host of other things. When scientists initially began studying DNA they were looking primarily at specific physical attributes as being genetic. It’s only fairly recently that science has come to recognize that not just physical characteristics but complex behaviors are entirely genetic.

OK, I hear you say, so what? Well, the really big question for all of us whether we know it or not is “Who’s running the show?” What you need to understand is that the genetic programs aren’t really serving you. They’re serving the species as a whole so you (as a being in reality 2 above) don’t have much significance for them. They’re doing their own thing and most of the time they’re dragging you along whether you like it or not.

Now really, in many ways that’s just fine because quite often your program of wants, needs and desires coincides with the genetic program’s. But often they don’t coincide. Sometimes we see in other people this really big disconnect between the person and their world (between reality 1 and reality 2). Some guy really thinks that whistling at that beautiful woman is going to work. His genetic code (reality 3) compels him to do it. Does it work? Maybe. Or maybe everybody looks at him and just thinks “what an idiot.”

As individuals we run into a lot of conflict because we live in a very complex society that has a lot of rules and quite often those rules aren’t in keeping with what our genetic program is telling us. The program says “Go ahead and hit the creep.” The rules say “You better not”.

All of this is pretty much OK. Most of us learn to curb some of our impulsive behaviors well enough to get along. some of us have a harder time learning it and so we have prisons.

What’s important in all of this is the knowledge that the genetic programs are part of us because they work really well for the species. The challenge for the individual is to understand your own genetic programs well enough to be able to consciously use them to advantage yourself. The obstacle is all the stuff we learn to do and not do.

Up until recently we didn’t really have any way to discover which of the thousands of genetic programs were dominant in our own lives. The Human Design system has changed that. It is now possible to discover exactly what genetic programs are compelling you to act.

Kip Winsett is a licensed Human Design Analyst and transformation coach who helps others rediscover their own truth and mastery. You can visit his site at hdspro.com hdspro
. Human Design reveals the specifics of your core, wired behaviors. It clearly and precisely defines your own personal, natural strategies for decision making, for bonding and much more. Once you rediscover who you are you will find that you can trust yourself and then life becomes effortless.

Take advantage of this powerful system now. Visit hdspro.com hdspro

today to order a free chart, check out special offers and learn more about Human Design.

I owned and managed my bicycle and lawnmower shop for 28 years. I started very small in a one room shop. With hard work and lots of good people working for me the business grew and grew.

One Saturday, I found myself with many high school and college students working in my bicycle and lawnmower shop. We had a good size inventory of bicycles on display and lots of new Snapper Lawnmowers.

Saturdays were extra busy. Customers were lined up bringing in their bicycles and lawnmowers to be repaired. Many customers were standing by the parts counter, wanting to purchase parts for their lawnmowers and other lawn equipment.

The shop was good size and very busy with people all over the store.

Three telephone lines were ringing off the hook. A long line was at the cash register checking out their purchases. We had music playing in the shop, however with all the activity going on, it was not even heard.

I answered the phone, “International Bicycle and Lawnmower Shop. How may I help you?”

The voice on the other end was my beautiful Mother.

She said, “Hello darling! How are you?” I said, “Ma, I can’t talk right now, we are very busy. People are all over the place, I will call you back as soon as I can.”

My Mother said, “That good that your so busy. That’s what you want!”

After I hung up the phone, I thought about what my Mother said. “That’s what you want!”

I realized after reflecting on those words, that is what I wanted all along. All of my efforts were being realized. I want what I do.

It is not what happens to us in life, it is what we do about what happens to us that puts us in charge.

How may I serve humanity? What can I do?

Mike Marino, Jr. aka “In Person,” is the co-author of two books and a Distinguished Toastmaster who helps people fall in love with learning. He speaks and writes on the love of Knowledge is the root of all good!. To book Mike for your next association meeting, conference or corporate event, contact Mike Marino, Jr. In person 504 833 4405 or email mailto:marinojr@bellsouth.net marinojr@bellsouth.net
Proud member of the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau.
All presentations are available in PowerPoint or Keynote.

In the last two years, I have attended at least a dozen real estate-related tradeshows, and I have met hundreds of entrepreneurs and business professionals. I pass each vendor booth with a smile on my face, eager to meet the next group of people. I, like everyone else, reach into my pocket and toss my business card into their fishbowl in hopes to win that fuzzy beach towel or basket of wine. Unfortunately, I never seem to receive a congratulatory phone call, e-mail or letter informing me of my winnings. In fact, I rarely ever hear from my new found booth buddies ever again. Do you? That is why I believe in a little place call, “Business Card Heaven”.

Each year, companies shell out hundreds and thousands of dollars on tradeshow vendor booths, brochures, pens, squishy stress balls, fancy displays, gifts, prizes, you name it! The overall purpose is obvious – drawing more attention to your booth with these goodies heightens the opportunities for potential clientele. If this is the “obvious” answer, then why do 99.9% of all companies disregard the Golden Rule of follow-up?

Reason number one may be summed up in one word alone, “Incentive”. Trade show booths are rarely run by commissioned people. As a Manager for McDonald’s, would you expect your salaried employees to work after-hours in efforts to drum up more business with no additional pay? You may laugh, but this is the very same concept. Of course, salaried employees play an important role within many company functions. However, whenever salaried workers are put in charge of following-up with potential customers, the outcome of a “deal closed” does not directly affect the employee the same way if he or she were a commission-based employee.

The lack of follow-up does not solely fall upon the shoulders of the employee. Many business owners simply do not understand the principles of consistent and proper follow-up etiquette. Some booths are manned by the actual business owner. Surely, they will follow-up, right? Wrong! Business owners are typically too busy putting out fires and reacting to proactive marketing tactics. They spend a good chunk of money on the booth and marketing material, get a client or two, at most, and seem to be content with the outcome.

You’re now wondering, “How can I be more effective at networking and follow-up???” First off, if you run a booth, within 48 hours, you should be “touching” the individuals who dropped their business cards into your fishbowl. Now, I don’t mean literally hunting down and physically touching each new prospect. I mean calling, faxing or e-mailing them. You can easily do this in a non-threatening way by saying something along the lines of:

“Thank you for stopping by my booth, XYZ, Inc. I hope you had a fantastic time! I did want to let you know that our company does XYZXYZ, and if you are ever in need of my services, please feel free to call or e-mail me personally and I would be more than happy to assist you. Also, if you would like to be on our FREE e-mail distribution list to receive updates on XYZXYZ, simply reply with the word ‘ADD’ and you will be added to our preferred-client e-mail list!”

You do have an e-mail list, right? Well, you should. I have had people buy houses from me that were on my list over a year ago and told me they had been waiting for the right opportunity to work with me.

Another common error made time and time again in regard to network marketing effectiveness closely correlates to the beautiful business card you’ve carefully designed and spent a pretty penny on to create. Tradeshows are the perfect opportunity to show off this custom made card. However, when you are speaking with a new prospect, be sure to ask for their business card first. The ball is now in your court and you choose where the path of communication leads during post-tradeshow atmosphere. Do not, I repeat Do Not place your hand on your “holster”, more commonly known as “pocket”, awaiting your opportunity to present your name, your business, your, your, your!!! If the individual asks for your card, then of course present them with one. Remember, the chance of a possible follow-up from them is highly unlikely. This does not mean they did not like you, nor did they want to do future business with you. It simply means that your card has gone to “Business Card Heaven”.

Ray Higdon - mailto:ray@buyahousefromray.com ray@buyahousefromray.com
RLH Holdings - BuyAHouseFromRay.com BuyAHouseFromRay.com
Future Wealth Club - FutureWealthClub.com FutureWealthClub.com