To succeed, you have to break old habit patterns and establish new ones. As you change your mental attitude toward your goal, you’re left with an empty shell of the old one. By succeeding on each small step towards your goal, you create a habit of success.
The amazing motivational speaker and thought leader, Zig Ziglar, passed away this week at 86 years of age. He taught millions about the fundamentals of sales, success and how attitude makes all the difference. He didn’t even begin his career as a motivational speaker until he was in his 40’s.
As a speaker, he encouraged others to believe in themselves. Ziglar emphasized that a positive attitude must be followed up by action before success could be achieved. To listen to his inspiring podcasts, visit http://zigziglar.libsyn.com/
In this video, he tells the story of a woman who complained about her job, changed her attitude about it, and changed her life.
by Linda-Ann Stewart
The reason for this winding path is that the subconscious doesn’t like change. It figures that your old beliefs, attitudes and behaviors have served you well. For your subconscious to establish a different direction, you need to be persistent. When you’re dedicated to making a change, this reassures your inner mind that you consider the new area suitable. Then, your subconscious needs to take its time getting used to the fact that you’re in strange territory, and make sure that it’s safe to be there. Once it’s gotten comfortable, it’ll allow you to cover more unknown ground.
If you change too much, too fast, without this process, you won’t have a firm enough foundation when the winds of stress blow. Stress can overwhelm any new attitude or behavior, and cause you to go back to what’s most familiar. The subconscious will channel its resources to deal with the crisis, rather than direct them to altering your life.
Also, too much change at any time is stressful in itself. In this case, too many adjustments would overwhelm the subconscious and it would sabotage any progress. Even though it may be frustrating, taking a step back to consolidate your gains actually helps you in the long run and supports eventual success.
Each time Becky stepped back into the relationship, she added to her knowledge and wisdom. When she’d move away from it, she integrated more of what she’d learned. Finally, when she realized that he wasn’t ever going to be different, she made the final break.
If she’d left before she’d assimilated all that she’d discovered, she would probably have recreated the same situation in another relationship. Instead, by allowing the natural course to play out, she ascertained which characteristics to avoid in a partner, and what ones to seek.
When you feel like you’re stalled, or have even taken a step back, realize that it’s part of the process of change. It gives you more wisdom, strength, and understanding for when you begin moving forward again. When you retreat and regroup, integrate and consolidate, it means you ultimately advance further and faster.
Affirmation
The Universe wants me to have my desire as much as I want it for myself. I recognize that getting to my goal may take me on a winding path. If I have setbacks, I keep my desire in sight. I learn from each step back I take, and use the knowledge to advance me further along the path. The entire process of change works for my benefit and my eventual success. Perfect action is always taking place as I pursue my desire.
Copyright 2012 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
by Linda-Ann Stewart
Becky spent months trying to break up with her boyfriend. Although she knew he wasn’t right for her, he’d be so sweet and accommodating when she’d try to split up that she’d slip back into the relationship.
Things would be fine for a few days, then something would happen and she’d be reminded why she needed to move on. And the process would start all over again. Each time she repeated the cycle, it got more apparent why the relationship wasn’t going to last long term and she discovered more about herself.
Change is like that. It rarely tracks in a straight line. Whether you’re progressing in your career, or making personal changes, you’ll probably take detours and side trips along the way. It may feel like you’re going backwards for a while, and you could get discouraged. Fear not, you’ll soon be moving forward again.
Setbacks are part of the process. In a recession, businesses have to pull back and consolidate, strengthening their financial positions. In this recent recession, stores have had fewer products, shorter hours, and less staff. They have to let go of less profitable merchandise to focus on goods that are more popular.
Businesses that are creative and innovative thrive when the economy gets better. Retreating to stabilize your financial structure means you’ll be better prepared when the time comes to expand.
The same is true of personal development. Generally, when making changes, you take two steps forward, then one back. For instance, it takes a smoker an average of four attempts to quit before they succeed. Each time, they discover more about their triggers and strategies that work for them. Any kind of improvement goes through the same type of learning curve.
When you diet, your body can get stuck at a particular weight. If this happens you may lose heart and give up. It’s simply getting adjusted to a new set point. Your body is adapting to being lighter, and once it does, you’ll quickly drop a few more pounds.
Even in your professional life, you probably won’t have a straight path to the next level. You may move laterally for awhile, gaining more experience and developing your abilities. This gives you a better track record and stronger background for when you are promoted.
Copyright 2012 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
Optimists learn to be positive, and it’s a skill you can develop. The benefits of positive thinking make it well worth the effort. Here are a couple of tips of how to assess what kinds of thoughts to let into your mind.
Copyright 2012 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
Dr. Robert Anthony is one of my favorite authors. He writes simply and directly about how to use your mind in a constructive way to get what you want. In this simple and fast guided meditation, he leads you to visualize what it is that you want. Pick the goal you wish to accomplish and allow your mind to follow the directions in the meditation. Done every day, this simple 12-minute mind programming technique will attract what you want. The only way this method will not work is if you stop using it. Learn more about Robert Anthony’s The Secret of Deliberate Creation.
Some positive thinking philosophies tell you to avoid charitable works and those who are poverty stricken. The theory is that you might get sucked into their consciousness, and lose your empowered viewpoint. That you could become sympathetic and then part of the problem. Or that you wouldn’t hold the “needy” as powerful enough to heal their wounds or overcome their problems. Somehow, leaving them to their own devices is supposed to empower them to “pull themselves up by their own bootstraps.”
However, I’ve observed people who follow this idea tend to become judgmental and contemptuous about those who are less fortunate. This doesn’t fulfill the spirit of the ideal. Instead, it creates a callousness that negatively impacts their character and undermines the positive attitude that they mean to cultivate. It tends to breed a sense of arrogance and superiority.
Insulating yourself from others’ suffering may mean that you don’t get the opportunity to develop compassion. In a recent study, those who are in the lower socio-economic classes are more responsive to suffering and more compassionate than those in the more affluent class.
The UC Berkeley researchers conjecture that the upper classes aren’t “coldhearted,” it’s just that they haven’t had to deal with the challenges the lower classes have. Therefore, their theory is that the upper classes don’t recognize the distress expressed by people.
Becoming aware of when others are experiencing distress, suffering and anxiety is the first step to becoming more compassionate. With compassion, you can be aware of others’ emotions without getting drawn into the problem. You can then choose a response that can best support and empower the sufferer.
Emotional Intelligence, which has been called more important than I.Q., is the ability to perceive and label yours and others’ emotions. It’s said that this skill is necessary for you to fulfill your full potential in your personal and professional life. So it’s even good for your success in life to be more aware of how other people are feeling.
Compassion opens the heart, reduces stress, promotes success and encourages happiness. Being concerned about the well being of others improves your own.
Inspired by the article: Lower Classes Quicker to Show Compassion in the Face of Suffering
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
Television, ipods, and Internet all take up our attention. Texting, email, and cell phones keep us connected to each other all the time. All the noise, contacts and distractions fill up our consciousness to make a never ending din that prevents us from having any privacy or quiet time.
It takes time and energy to stay current with all our social networks. Unfortunately, it also keeps us from turning inward and listening to our inner selves. With this much social interaction, there’s little mental space left to be introspective, creative or productive.
Businesses and schools encourage group interaction to learn and create. But creativity blooms in solitude and quiet. “An artist requires the upkeep of creative solitude,” says Julia Cameron, author of “The Artist’s Way.”
In “The Artist’s Way,” a 12 week course for blocked creatives, there is one week where the reader cannot read anything or watch television. This assignment allows the mind to fill the well of creativity. If the mind is drunk on others’ creativity, it gets lazy or overwhelmed. Details drug the mind and it won’t have enough resources to hear the still small voice of the inner self.
Many companies are now insisting their workers have time away from email, phones and other interuptions. They’re more efficient and able to get more done in less time, because they’re more productive.
Social interaction, teams and groups have a place and a role to play. But if individuals are to be more productive, they need to have some privacy. They need to be alone with their thoughts and their projects to let their mental processes simmer. Once they’ve had time to work, they can surface to bounce ideas off of friends and coworkers.
Too much solitude encourages stagnation. Too much collaberation discourages individual ideas. We need to balance both. And if we want to be able to listen to our inner selves, we need to turn off all the devices that constantly scream for our attention. Instead of our focus being outwardly directed to our social networks, we need to turn it inward and allow the well of our inner life to be filled.
Inspired by:
The Rise Of The New Groupthink
Tame The Email Beast
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
I am your constant companion,
I am your greatest helper or your heaviest burden.
I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.
I am at your command.
Half of the tasks that you do,
you might just as well turn over to me
and I will do them quickly and correctly.
I am easily managed,
but you must be firm with me.
Show me exactly how you want something done;
after a few lessons I will do it automatically.
I am the servant of all great people
and alas of all failures as well.
Those who are great I have made great,
those who are failures I have made failures.
I am not a machine,
but I work with all the precision of a machine,
plus the intelligence of a person.
Now you may run me for profit or
you may run me for ruin.
It makes no difference to me.
Take me, train me, be firm with me,
and I will lay the world at your feet.
Be easy with me and I will destroy you.
Now, who am I?
I AM CALLED HABIT
(Author Unknown)
“Your Infinite Power To Be Rich: Use the Power of Your Subconscious Mind to Obtain the Prosperity You Deserve”
by Joseph Murphy
Joseph Murphy is one of my favorite authors, and this is one of my favorite books on prosperity. As with his other books, this one is full of affirmations and examples of how others have succeeded using mind principles. He describes a three step process of refusing to think negatively, affirming your goal throughout the day, and imagining it as you go to sleep at night.
Dr. Murphy addresses various issues, such as feeling worthy to be wealthy, how God wants you to be rich, how God is your employer, how to use your imagination positively, the law of gratitude, the power of your words, and explains many of the mental laws. His books are very easy and enjoyable to read, and I’ve learned something new from every one I’ve read. Over the years, I’ve used his affirmations to improve my life.
~ Linda-Ann