What Do You Need To Release?

By Dr Robert Anthony

"'Soul' is not a thing, but a quality or dimension of experiencing
life and ourselves. It has to do with depth, value, relatedness,
heart and personal substance." - Thomas Moore

Part of living a deeper, richer life is honoring what is important
to you. You can do this through ritual and celebration. You may be
part of a group or religion or culture that still focuses on
rituals and rites of passage. But, for many, there is not much
formal ritual remaining in their lives.

But, that's OK, you can make your own ritual. Let's take your
participation in this program as an example. Design ways to honor
and acknowledge the shifts and changes you experience as you
journey through the course.

Let's look at some possibilities.

1. Write down what you have decided to release in your life, for
example, your limiting beliefs and stories, and then burn the paper
in the fireplace. Light some candles and make a declaration of
freedom from limitation out loud. You can do this anytime you want
to let go of something in your life.

2. Celebrate the completion of your Follow-up Items by honoring at
least one major insight you had through doing them. You can do this
when you complete one Item or by each DVD or by each month - you
decide how often you want to celebrate. Use fine food, dress,
decorations, candles, etc. to enhance the special nature of the
occasion.

3. Make a commitment in writing to yourself - a contract - for what
you are focusing on in Follow-up. If you decide you no longer want
to fulfill the contract, have a ceremony to dissolve the contract -
don't just blow it off.

4. Write a mission statement for yourself on how you choose to live
your life. Add color and pictures if you like. Frame and display it
where you can see it everyday.

5. Find a special totem to keep in your pocket or on your desk to
remind you of what you value most.

We encourage you to make a big deal out of the little things in
your life - for yourself and your family - create traditions that
honor you and yours simply for being the magnificent people that
you are.

What can you do today to celebrate your life?

Books By Dr Robert Anthony:


Dr Robert Anthonys Advanced Formula For Total Success


Beyond Positive Thinking: A No-Nonsense Formula for Getting the Results You Want 
The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence (Revised)

The Inspirational Story Of Michael Segal

She Never Left My Side

"PUUUSH...PUUUSH," I called out to my friend, but it appeared that there was no use in trying anymore. My car was stuck in the mud and I was on a double date. Being a 16 year old boy, I wanted to make a good impression on my pretty and intelligent date. However, hearing the motor rev with the car still stuck in the mud did not earn "brownie points" for my friend or me in the eyes of our dates.

We continued to push and push, but there was no getting my car "unstuck" from the mud. Sharon, my date, was revving the car's engine while Jeff and I were pushing and pushing. Finally, I said, "Enough!" Embarrassed, I approached Sharon as she sat behind the wheel of my mother's red station wagon. Before I could speak I noticed the gear on the car: IT WAS SET ON "NEUTRAL!"

I set the gear to "drive," instructed Sharon to wait until I gave her the signal to press down on the accelerator, and then went back to help Jeff push the car out of the mud.

That was our first date. Even though it resulted in my getting mud on my slacks, Sharon caused me to have love in my heart. I was "stung" by the Love Bug.
Sharon and I dated seriously throughout high school. I went away to college as Sharon was finishing her senior year in high school. Our love, which was blooming, was only matched in size by our long-distance telephone bills.

The next year, Sharon joined me at the University of Texas. We were so happy. We thought we were at the top of the world. We thought our lives were set. That was true until that eventful evening when in a split second our lives changed forever.

On February 18, 1981, we were studying at the library of the University. It was late and Sharon told me that she had to return to her dormitory to go to sleep. We slid into my car and headed toward her dorm, but, unfortunately, my gas gauge was registering "empty." I pulled into a nearby convenience store, borrowed $2 from Sharon, and walked into the store to pay for the gas.

Things do not always work out as one plans them. Unfortunately, the store was in the midst of a robbery, and one of the thieves forced me into the cooler. He followed me, pushed me to the floor, and calmly shot me in the back of the head -- execution style!

The story does not end there. Yes, the criminal thought I was dead; thus eliminating any witness to the crime. However, when the thieves left the store, I still had a faint pulse.

Very few people believed I would remain alive much longer. That is why the police transferred my case to the Homicide division. That is also why the neurosurgeon when he was awakened at his home to see me at the hospital came quickly but returned home as he believed an operation would be futile.

However, when the doctor returned to the hospital in the morning, he was shocked to see that I was still alive. He told my parents that an operation was necessary, but he added that he would be surprised if I survived the surgery.

I fooled all of the medical experts and survived the surgery. However, the surgeon warned my parents that even though I was still breathing I would probably never be able to communicate with anyone or understand anyone who was attempting to communicate with me. Basically, the surgeon stated, I would be "a vegetable."
Hearing those words, my father told Sharon, "Get on with your life."
Sharon quickly replied, "Mike is my life."

Even though we were not yet married, Sharon believed in the vows, "in sickness and in health." She dropped out of college for one semester to be with me at the Rehabilitation Hospital in Houston where I was eventually transferred. Sharon was spending her time with her "drooling boyfriend in the hospital" while other college freshmen were spending their time at parties.

Eventually, Sharon returned to Austin to continue her college education. Once again we had enormous phone bills.

My goal was to also return to Austin, to the University of Texas, to be with Sharon. Eighteen months after no one thought I would survive, I accomplished that goal. One of the primary reasons was ... Sharon; my love, who refused to give up or give in.

Four years after returning to college I graduated. For me, that meant I could finally propose to Sharon, my light at the end of the dark tunnel. She was the one who would always encourage me to look forward and not to focus on the past.

On a beautiful day in May, Sharon and I exchanged vows and were married. We were meant to be together. We had dated for nine long and eventful years, but I realized at the wedding that it was worth everything. Sharon was truly my soulmate.

We have been married for many years and we have a beautiful daughter, Shawn. We have experienced so much -- some bad, but more, much more, good.
This is not merely a "love letter" to my wife. Rather, it is the story of a girl's overcoming everyone's "rational" thoughts to stay behind with her critically injured boyfriend. To me that shows what kind of woman Sharon is--a beauty both inside and out. Further, it shows the lesson of never giving up on one's dreams. I give Sharon all the credit for my recovery--not me. I don't know where I would be without her--definitely not where I am today.

Sharon, I love you so very much.

Michael Segal, (c)2003 all rights reserved

Other products by Michael


Colour From The Dark 
A Tribute to a Baker

What it Takes to Be a Winner

By Hannah du Plessis

“If you continue to do what you’ve always done, you will continue to get what you’ve always got!” – Yogi Berra

It is easy to be a loser. All you have to do after you failed at something is to continue doing the same thing and being the same way. It really is that simple. Most people are scared of the challenges that being successful will bring, or they just lack the willpower to do what it takes to be successful. The realization that they are going to fail again creates anxiety and emotional unrest which most people don’t like and they return quickly to the familiar world of excuses and justifications.

Unless the cycle of thought patterns is broken in those who fail, they will experience a lower quality of life that lacks the good things in life that comes with success. The truth is: nobody is born a success, and nobody is born a failure. Losers learn from the mainstream: Negative thoughts and negative actions. Winners learn from other winners, change their thoughts accordingly, and do their best to copy their actions.

Losers say: “Don’t dream! Dreaming is impractical. Only fools dream. We are in reality! One should stay in the real world!” Winners, on the other hand, dream and dream big. The great King Solomon said over 3000 years ago …. “Unless people dream they perish.”  Did he mean dream when you sleep? No! He meant one should have a firm goal or objective to achieve.  

If we dream and do not believe that we will accomplish our dreams, the dream becomes just an idle wish, and will never be attained. On the other hand if we remember and do what Napoleon Hill said, we will never fail. He said: "Effort only fully releases its reward after a person refuses to quit."

The following is an example of someone who didn’t quit. See how many times he “failed.”

PORTRAIT OF AN ACHIEVER – Abraham Lincoln

• 1831 - FAILED IN BUSINESS, BANKRUPTCY
• 1832 - DEFEATED FOR LEGISLATURE
• 1834 - FAILED IN BUSINESS, BANKRUPTCY
• 1835 - FIANCE DIES
• 1836 - NERVOUS BREAKDOWN
• 1838 - DEFEATED FOR U.S. CONGRESS
• 1846 - DEFEATED AGAIN FOR U.S. CONGRESS
• 1848 - DEFEATED ONCE AGAIN FOR U.S. CONGRESS
• 1855 - DEFEATED FOR U.S. SENATE
• 1856 - DEFEATED FOR U.S. VICE PRESIDENCY
• 1858 - DEFEATED AGAIN FOR U.S. SENATE
• 1860 - ELECTED 16TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

From the above it is clear that you can’t fail unless you quit.

The great Gandhi taught: “If one advances toward a specified objective or goal, and does not lose ‘belief” in its attainment; even though they may start their journey without the necessary tools or knowledge of how to get there; if they keep their faith and focus they shall most assuredly obtain the required tools and knowledge along the way.”

Let’s look at the differences between winners and losers:

A winner says: “Let’s find out”                      

A loser says: “nobody knows”

                                                                         

When a winner makes a mistake, he says: “I was wrong.”    

When a loser makes a mistake he says: “It wasn’t my fault.”

A winner goes through a problem and deals with it. 

A loser goes around a problem, and never gets past it.

A winner makes commitments.                       

A loser makes promises

A winner says: “I am good, but not as good as I ought to be.”

A loser says: “I am not as bad as a lot of other people.”

A winner tries to learn from those who are superior to him/her.

A loser tries to tear down those who are superior to him/her.

A winner says: “There ought to be a better way to do it.”

A loser says: “That’s the way it has always been done.”

A winner says: “I will find the right people who can help me.”

A loser says: “I will do it myself.”

A winner looks for an answer in every problem.

A loser looks for a problem in every answer.

A winner says: “I will do it now!”

A loser says: “I will do it later.”

A winner says: “I will quit trying and simply do.”

A loser says: “I will keep trying.”

A winner says: “I will create my own good luck.”

A loser says: “I might get lucky.”

A winner makes things happen.

A loser lets things happen.

Now you can see that winners make different choices than losers. They think different thoughts, believe different things, adopt different attitudes, and therefore produce different results in their lives. Now you have the choice to look at the above attitudes, and decide which you want to be; a winner, or a loser. The choice is yours.

They said he'd spend his life as a "Vegetable"...

By Clifford Mee

Imagine if you had a child who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth.

Imagine if he could not walk, speak, or do much of anything.

And imagine if doctors told you that he was going to be a "vegetable" them rest of his life, that you were better off putting him in an institution.

What would you do?

Dick Hoyt was faced with this exact same situation when his son Rick was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck.

But rather than listen to all the doctors, Dick and his wife decided to treat Rick like a regular child.

Soon they discovered that Rick was actually quite intelligent. He learned his alphabet. And he even learned to communicate with a special computer.

But what is probably most amazing is that Dick began to run. And when he ran, he took his son Rick with him.

After that first run, Rick told his dad, "Dad, when I'm running, it feels like I'm not handicapped."

This was the beginning of a special bond between Dick and Rick. They began to do marathons and triathlons together.

Dick pushes Rick while he runs, pulls him while he swims, and carries him on a special bicycle when he bikes.

As of February 2008, Dick and Rick Hoyt had competed in 958 endurance events, including 65 marathons and six Ironman triathlons.

They've literally inspired the world. (Their YouTube videos have been watched MILLIONS of times.)

Now, most of us don't face anywhere near the challenges that Dick and Rick have faced in life.

We can walk. We can talk. We can do pretty much whatever we want.

And yet, at the same time, most of us are just floating through life, settling for mediocrity.

We're letting little things get in our way.

Isn't it time you stopped settling for an average life... and began to unleash your full potential?

Be all you can be!

Books:


Be All You Can Be: A Challenge to Stretch Your God-Given Potential


Be The Best You Can Be

Will You make an Impact in Life that Lasts After You’ve Gone?

By Hannah du Plessis

“What we do in life, echoes in eternity.”  

Maximus Decimus Meridias; Roman general from the film "Gladiator" (2000)

Will you make a difference to the world during your lifetime?

How many people will be touched by your thoughts and actions?

Will the things that you have done continue to live after you are physically gone?

It is uplifting to read true stories or watch movies about people who have had such a profound impact on others so that they are remembered long after they’ve gone. 

Do you have a passion or idea on how you can help a lot of people improve their lives? If so, you need to do something about it. Remember, everything you do will ring in eternity.  If you can help humanity in some way and you don’t, it could affect people for many centuries to come.

So you owe it not only to yourself, but also to the future of your family, your friends and the entire human race to grow and share all your gifts. Maybe your gifts and skills are modest, but to hide them, to not develop and share them, whatever they are would be a great tragedy.

In the words of the 28^th president of the US, Woodrow Wilson: "You are not here merely to make a living.  You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement.  You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget that errand."

So ask yourself this today:

"What can I do to best help the largest number of people?  Why should I?"

Books:

 Be All You Can Be: A Challenge to Stretch Your God-Given Potential

Your Core Concern in Life

By Dr Robert Anthony


"This above all: to thine own self be true. And it must follow,
as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man."
- William Shakespeare

Depending on our Personality filters, we all have a Core Concern
that is at the basis of most of our fear, doubt and worry. We all
spend a lot of time and energy trying to avoid feeling our Core
Concern. Much of this is done unconsciously.

Becoming aware of your habitual Focus of Attention and Coping
Strategy helps shine a light on that Core Concern and the simple
act of awareness begins to loosen the hold the Core Concern has on
you.

I am trying to get you to be more aware of your Core Concern.
I am NOT telling you to get rid of it. Much of the non-productive
behaviour that you engage in is due to trying to rid yourself of
that Core Concern, trying not feel it and especially trying not let
anyone see that you feel it.

What I am suggesting is that you accept it with no judgement. Just
a statement of what is and a release. This is very
powerful. Try it. "Oh, that's just my fear/anger/avarice/etc.
talking."

We spend so much energy trying NOT to feel, but the trick is to
just let the feeling in - acknowledge it, thank it for its
wisdom and let it move on. Like a thought passing through your
mind, a feeling passes through your body. It's alright, let it in,
let it out. Trying to repress or rid yourself of it only increases
its hold on you.

Any time you accept "what is", you release resistance and then you
have much more energy available to you. Is there anything about
yourself that you don't accept? What if you just dropped all
resistance to it? What if you said, "this is what I am and that's
okay"? Wouldn't that feel good? No judgement, no guilt, no shame.
Those are very low vibration emotions and they never help or effect
change. They keep you stuck. In acceptance, there is healing and
movement.

 Books By Robert Anthony:

The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence (Revised)

Beyond Positive Thinking: A No-Nonsense Formula for Getting the Results You Want
Dr Robert Anthonys Advanced Formula For Total Success