PLEASE READ ENTIRE MESSAGE. FEEL FREE TO SHARE IT WITH FRIENDS... ------------------------------------- Affirmation.....ACTION! Affirmation.....ACTION! “Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.” ~ Michael Jordan “Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.” ~ Anais Nin POLITICAL CORRECTNESS I have never been a fan of political correctness. To me, it has simply represented people lying to one another. America has done an excellent job of teaching people that they get further ahead in life by lying and not telling the truth! We cannot give everyone the death penalty every time they say something that we dont like. People are entitled to their opinions/values. Oftentimes, those opinions/values cant thrive in the midst of positive interactions and dialogue. They oftentimes provide teachable moment. Moments we dont get when people refuse to share their true feelings/thoughts for fear of reprisal. For those of you that enjoy watching people lose their reputations and jobs when they make a mistake, how would you feel if that person is YOU or someone you care about? America will never get better if we cant have constructive dialogue about these issues! I welcome a chance to create an opportunity for people to share their true feelings/values in an environment that leads to positive, constructive dialogue. ### MY DEATH A high school classmate recently reached out to me via Facebook. He had heard that I had DIED! Wow! After reassuring BOTH he and myself, we shared a few moments and caught up on each others life after high school. Made me think of how reckless people are in sharing information about others. How reckless are you? Do you share information with little regard for its accuracy? Think about this: For although you only told a few lies here and there, the storm of gossip took hold of those lies and spread them far beyond your grasp to undo them. You can regret what you said, but you can never fully undo what you’ve said”….. ### ATTITUDE IS ALL THAT MATTERS from Smile for No Good Reason by Dr. Lee Jampolsky Have you ever noticed that two people can confront the same circumstances with very different reactions? This is a matter of attitude and nothing else. Freedom is being able to say, “Rich or poor, alone or with a mate, physically healthy or not, employed or laid off, I believe that peace of mind is possible.” We have all experienced what it is like to be having a perfectly fine day and have a situation or crisis arise that sends us into a tailspin. It may be something small like a traffic jam making us late, or something more severe like the loss of a job. Our response can seem automatic. Though at first it may be difficult to accept, freedom depends on recognizing that you’re not upset because of what occurred, you are upset because of how you perceive the situation. Key to Attitudinal Healing is recognizing that you are not a victim of the world. Another way of saying this is: There is absolutely nothing in the world that has the power to ruin your day. If you are upset, it is because you have directed your mind to be so. Initially these truths can be hard to accept because you have become so accustomed to giving your power away. Every time you blame another person for your unhappiness you are giving your power away. Stop blaming and start healing. How you perceive a situation will determine your experience and your reaction. Let’s imagine that you have a favorite coffeehouse that you frequent. The staff knows your name and always has a warm and friendly greeting as you walk through the door. An extremely grumpy woman whom you have never seen before serves you this particular morning. She appears preoccupied rather than caring about you or what she is doing. As she pours your hot coffee a good portion spills in your lap. Despite your jumping in shock, no apology follows. Your experience is anger: both toward the waitress and the owner, Joe, for hiring such an incompetent person. Then, a friend of yours at the next booth says, “Isn’t it great that Joe hired her!” “Great! Are you out of your mind? She just spilled hot coffee in my lap and walked away,” you reply with your best indignant voice. “Oh, you didn’t hear the story?” your friend whispers. “What story?” you angrily reply, still drying off your new slacks, wondering how you will go through the day looking as though you wet your pants. “Yeah, Joe didn’t know her from Adam. He read in the paper that her husband had died last month in a car accident. Apparently her husband’s health insurance stopped, and she was looking for another job in order to pay for her sixteen-year-old son’s chemotherapy for leukemia,” your friend responds. Now, you still have hot coffee in your crotch, but are you still angry? Unlikely. The only thing that shifted was your perception and attitude. Through discovering a reason to be compassionate, your entire experience changed—and there are always reasons to be compassionate. An important part of healing (i.e., letting go of fear) is developing compassion. Instead of going out in the world and finding plenty of reasons to be upset, go out and discover reasons to extend love. There are thousands of reasons waiting for you right now. A helpful thought to remember is that a miracle is nothing more than allowing an old grievance to become a current compassion. If you ever run short on reasons to be compassionate, remember there is always one good reason: It makes you feel better than anything else you could do. ### People will always have opinions about YOUR decisions because theyre not courageous enough to take action on THEIR opinions. To get what you’ve never had, you must do what you’ve never done.” ~ Thomas Jefferson ### For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone. ### Introduction from UNCOMMON SENSE by Nido R. Qubein People tend to order their lives according to “conventional wisdom,” a generally accepted set of principles that may include centuries-old folk sayings or that may have arisen from contemporary experience. These sayings and beliefs have become so ingrained in the public mind that they are often referred to as “common sense.” In both your business and your personal life, following conventional wisdom is usually the “safe” approach. But, the people who make a remarkable difference in the world are typically those who examine conventional wisdom with a critical eye, using “uncommon sense.” Most people don’t question conventional wisdom. It’s just “the way things are.” Others see it as a handy starting place for examining their own values. Using uncommon sense, they often discover wisdom that is far from conventional. Somewhere along the way, someone questioned conventional wisdom, examined it from all sides, developed new principles, and produced human progress. Common sense told the medieval world that the Earth was the center of the universe and the sun revolved around it. Copernicus followed uncommon sense to a new understanding of the universe and our place in it. Uncommon Sense is not aimed at turning conventional wisdom on its head or debunking the wisdom of the ages. It seeks, instead, to encourage a creative look at things often taken for granted, to provide fresh insights into old verities. I have lived long enough to acknowledge the value of wisdom based on generations of experience. I have also lived long enough to know that those who follow conventional wisdom uncritically may end up in a rut that leads nowhere. So when I hear someone quote an old saying that suggests it’s the wisdom of the ages, I start looking for footnotes and often find them with the nuggets of uncommon sense they contain. That sort of skeptical examination has served me well, and I recommend it to those who want to enjoy, discover, and achieve fulfillment in their lives. The conventional explorer, in crossing a stream, may look at the stones rising from the water as islands of stability in the swirling current. And that they may be. But the creative explorer will stop and turn the stones over to determine whether priceless gems might lie beneath or what veins of gold might be incorporated in their mass. Ancient adages are like those rocks in the stream, assuring the crosser that it’s safe to step here. Those old saws serve a useful purpose. But unless we’re willing to turn them over and look at the other side, we may never know what nuggets of wisdom, what omens of triumph, what uncommon principles lie underfoot. ### It can never be too early to impact someones life. It can be too late! Booking speaking engagements for November, December, January, February. Lets talk SOON to avoid scheduling conflicts. Stay Strong! Stay Positive! Steve Birdine Affirmations In Action! 317-590-6484 youtube/stevebirdine Twitter: @SteveBirdine TODAY IS THE FIRST DAY OF THE BEST OF YOUR LIFE!
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 23:00:47 +0000