Archive for Fun
Treasure Maps can help you attain your goals faster
Posted by: | CommentsIn my international bestselling book, This is Your Life not a Dress Rehearsal, I wrote about using a technique I learned, known as “Treasure maps,” as an aid to manifesting your dreams and desires. You may have heard it referred to as “Dream boards” or some other name. The idea is the same, however, I can trace the use of the phrase “Treasure Maps” back to Catherine Ponder in the 1950′s. Of course, I learned it much after that:-)
A treasure map is one of the most powerful visual aids you can employ and is well worth explaining in more detail here.
The first time I used a treasure map was many years ago when I was beginning to rebuild my life. At the time I owned an old beat up car. Actually that is an understatement.
It was a twelve year old hunk of metal that barely ran. It had a vinyl top but most of the vinyl was worn away and what was left was peeling. There was a hole in the floor on the driver’s side that let cold wind in during the winter. I used to place my foot over it. The paint was fading and it did not run very well. My wife, who I was dating at the time, did not even want to ride in it. Whenever we went out we took her new luxury car.
My goal at the time was a new, top of the line Honda Accord. Knowing about the power of treasure maps, I had visited the Honda Dealer and obtained a brochure of the car I wanted. In addition to having a written goal of driving the new Honda, I placed a picture on the wall above my desk where I would see it throughout the day.
One day I took the picture down because the car was in my driveway. I owned a new Accord.
Please do not misunderstand, I am not suggesting that this just happened by itself. The car dealer did not drive by my house looking for someone to give the car to. I had to do certain things to improve my life to be in a position to make it possible. The treasure map helped speed things up by consistently imprinting on my mind that which I wanted.
Whatever you want to have in your life, use visuals to help your subconscious see what it is that you want. For example, if you want to go on a fabulous vacation to Hawaii, get some travel brochures and make a collage of the pictures of beach scenes, hotels, and other images that will give you visual reinforcement for your goal.
When we were looking for our current home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, I created a treasure map using a picture of Georgia and myself, pictures of Bucks County, a headline that said “Bucks County Pennsylvania,” ads for homes, and a picture of the kind of house we wanted. I wrote phrases and affirmations on it as well and hung it where we would see it daily. This helped reinforce our goal in our minds and helped bring it to us.
Visual aids are very powerful, if you doubt this just look at the impact television has had on people’s buying habits. The next time you look at a magazine, notice how much more powerful the ads with photos are as compared to those with just text. You too can use the power of the visual media to help you obtain what you want.
Follow this link if you want to know more about how you can learn to create the life you were born to live.
Thanksgiving Message
Posted by: | CommentsAs long as I’ve been writing Jim’s Jems I’ve made a point of writing a special message for Thanksgiving. This has always been a happy time of year for me but, since the loss of my Mother and Mother-in-law in 2000, it’s also a bit sad.
Today I’ve been reflecting on this holiday, what it means to me and my memories of past Thanksgiving celebrations, both the good and the not-so-good.
Turkeys dropped by for a bite on their way out of town.
I’ve been recalling the years growing up, when Thanksgiving meant a house filled with family, lots of fun and, of course, an assortment of wonderful foods, lovingly prepared by my Mom and her sisters. Though their all gone now, the memories remain.
I remembered the less-than-great Thanksgiving I spent alone in Chico, CA, my only friend, Charlie having been invited to dinner somewhere. I was sitting in a Chinese restaurant by myself with the exception of the bartender, drinking vodka and eating wonton soup. Turkey dinners are not typically on the menu of a Chinese restaurant.
In thinking about these two extremes I realized that one of the things that enabled me to survive many of the lows I endured was being willing to accept whatever situation I found myself in at the time.
I did not have to like it and, looking back, I could and probably should have done something to change it, but not letting it spin me into a depression was what enabled me to survive.
The reality is that we’re all still here and as, my wise Uncle George once said, “When you read the the obituaries if your name’s not there you’re having a good day.”
Hopefully you’re enjoying a wonderful celebration with family or, like us, with special friends.
Even if you are presently experiencing one of life’s many challenges, there are still things you can do to feel better.
For starters, look for whatever good you can find in the situation. While my Chinese restaurant experience could have been viewed as depressing, what made it bearable for me was observing that I had a roof over my head and something to eat and drink. It was not perfect but it could have been a lot worse.
Gratitude and appreciation – focusing on what’s good – in any situation is the fastest path to feeling better.
It’s a fact that it is virtually impossible to feel gratitude and self-pity at the same time. And self-pity is something to avoid at all costs since all it does is make you feel worse and puts you into a tail spin toward depression.
If you are depressed, do something about it. Talk to someone, a friend, clergy, therapist or whomever. Do not sit and suffer in silence. Depression is a real and serious condition.
Personally, my Thanksgiving ritual is beginning the day by writing my “Gratitude” list.
Looking back over this past year, I have so much to be grateful for, including all of you who support the work I do by reading my writing, buying my books and programs, and sharing your lives with me on Facebook and other social media.
I can’t describe how fantastic it feels to hear from someone who has applied something I wrote in their life and created a positive outcome. That’s what gives me juice. That’s why I do what I do.
Sure it’s awesome to be able to earn a living doing something I love but it’s knowing that I’m having a positive impact on people’s lives that gets me out of bed in the morning. That and, of course, our cats looking for their breakfast.
You are important to me and I appreciate that you are in my life.
Whatever your Thanksgiving plans, even if you do not celebrate this uniquely United States holiday, I wish you a happy and abundant Thanksgiving.
Putting the Excitement Back in Your Business and Your Job
Posted by: | CommentsDo you sometimes find yourself just going “through the motions” of your business from day to day? Has the excitement gone out of your daily routine?
What happened? Remember way back when you began doing this? You were excited and enthusiastic about what you were going to do. What went wrong? Where did the excitement and enthusiasm go? More importantly, how do you get it back?
Of course, this may be a signal that it is time for you to make some changes or to “move on.” On the other hand, maybe you just need to get back in touch with why you are doing this in the first place.
If you are in your own business, it may not be possible to move on, so you’d better learn ways to bring back the excitement. There is nothing more depressing than to see a small business owner (or employee) who has stopped enjoying their work. These are the people who sit in their stores or offices just waiting for the day when they can retire. They feel “stuck,” unable to get out. They have lost their zest for living.
Are you one of these people who are just going through the motions? This is surely a “death rattle.” Your life is too important to let it slip by, living a life, as Throeau said, “of quiet desperation.”
How can you put back the zest? For starters, go back to your original business plan or personal journal and re-read the reasons you embarked on this business or career in the first place. What were your goals? You must have been excited back then.
Are these reasons still valid? Do they still ring true for you today? If they do, get back in touch with the “feelings” you had before.
Sit quietly and mentally “go back” to that time. Feel the feelings you had then. Get the juice going again. Relive the experiences that led you to this place. Rekindle the flames you once had.
If you have drifted from your original purpose, perhaps you need to re-think why you are doing this now. In the case of your own business, maybe you need to change or modify your original direction. This could be as simple as offering a new product or service, something that gives you passion.
Perhaps you could open new markets or venture into exporting to get your juices going again. Do something that puts the joy back in your day. Paint your store! Change your tie! Perhaps all you need to do is delegate some of the tasks you dislike and concentrate on doing what you love.
Complete this simple exercise. On a sheet of paper, answer the following two questions:
1. What I really enjoy about my work/business is that I _____________?
This could be that you have the opportunity to travel to interesting places or meet people or help others, whatever you enjoy most.
2. The real benefit to my customers from my work is________?
I know a building contractor whose attitude toward his work changed when he changed his perception from that of simply a contractor to realizing the real benefit of what he did was he helped people turn their dreams into reality. This had a major impact on his self-esteem and, as a result, his income.
Sometimes, I run across a store that still has one of the old signs that read: “Through our doors pass some of the finest people in the world. Our customers.” Maybe it’s corny but I can’t help but feel special in a place like that.
If you are going to a job today just because you went there yesterday, you are in a danger zone. You deserve to be enthusiastic, excited and even ecstatic about your livelihood. Sometimes you have to re-create that feeling.
Remember the words of the late Norman Vincent Peale who said that what happens to us is not nearly as important as how we interpret what happens.
Live with passion!
Do your goals scare you?
Posted by: | CommentsAre you playing too small?
Several years ago, I wrote an article titled, “How Exciting are Your Goals?” It became one of my most popular essays and was reprinted in several national magazines and on-line newsletters; there is even a version of it in my book, 52 Ways to a Happier Life.
As in aside, one of my greatest thrills was when the article was published in the magazine, AdvantEdge, published by Nightingale Conant.
The reason it meant so much to me was that it was opposite an article by Dennis Waitley, whose audio program is what started me on this path some 25 years ago. It did a lot to validate, for me, how far I’d come.
I was reminded of the article the other day while watching a video of Bob Doyle as part of Sonia Ricotti’s new tele-seminar series. Bob was talking about playing small and being reluctant to set challenging goals. You know what I mean, goals that both excite and scare you.
They excite you with the thought of actually accomplishing them because it would be so fantastic.
And the thought of even attempting them scares you because you still think that you are not smart enough, skilled enough, powerful enough, or whatever other illusion is stopping you. Remember that FEAR, False Evidence Appearing Real, is just that – false evidence. You have no bases for being afraid to even attempt your most audacious goals, so why not just go for it?
There is a likelihood that, if the goal is big enough and important enough to you, that you will find a way to accomplish it. If your desire is strong enough, you will be guided to the right resources, people, information, and actions in order to reach you objectives.
If you were to take off the restraints and really played full out, what would you go for?
What goals would you strive to accomplish?
What great things would you attempt if you knew you would not fail?
What are you waiting for?
By the way, if one of your goals involved money and it most likely does, here is something that will help you get started.
Are you living in the past, present or future?
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