What has been on your mind lately concerning the financial problems going on nationally? You probably have your own financial concerns. My wife and I were talking about how much food seems to cost lately. We live very modestly; I can’t imagine what it would be like for those who are poor.
The auto industry CEO’s are begging to be helped by the government. They all arrived in their private jets with there tin cups in hand. Is there something wrong with this picture? How about the financial bailout that now looks like no one is regulating those who get the handouts and what they use it for. Is there something wrong with the way this handled?
What seems fair to you? Should we bail out AIG and the financial institutions because they make bad investment? Should we bailout the auto companies because they continue to create monster cars with low mileage when they have the know how to create much greater efficiency? Should the executive teams still be getting huge bonuses and severance packages even though people are being laid off and the companies are being poorly managed?
It seems like the loss of jobs of the auto industry would be huge and awful for our economy. Can’t we regulate what we want them to produce if we are going to help them out? Should we really be bailing out an insurance company (AIG) because it is mismanaged? Should we bailout these financial institutions as they rake consumers over the coals with loaded rates for home loans and high rated for credit cards? How do we help our economy and also help the people? The answers are unclear that is why the questions need to continue.
Let’s talk about our own economies. Are you using your skills and talents to maximize your income? Are you saving and investing? Are you paying down your debt? When we are a mess financially it makes sense that our country is a mess also. If we all work on improving our own lives and those around us; if we work from the bottom up then real change is possible. The election of Barack Obama is an example of working from the bottom up. See what we can accomplish.
The last 8 years have been the biggest redistribution of wealth towards the rich in human history. Now we need to work together to shift that wealth back to the majority of people. We can do that if we all come together in search of positive solutions. President Elect Obama says the real bailout has to happen on Main Street. Are you ready for your bailout?
Take some time to think about how you are going to be part of the solution. Your ideas and actions will make a difference.
Today Be Self-Accepting
Since yesterday’s blog, I spent a group therapy session with my clients exploring more specifically about how to reclaim their self-acceptance. I use the word reclaim because innately we are born accepting ourselves but through life we begin to question whether we should be OK with who we are. Troubled parents teach us that we are not OK. Schools teach us we are not OK. Churches preach to us about not being OK in what we think, say and do. From then on our self-talk takes care of the rest. Once we have heard enough critical remarks or questions about who we are we then continue the self-questioning and self-judging for the rest of our lives. The early programming of the mind tends to dominate our self-image unless we change it.
In my 30 plus years as a therapist I have come to better understand how to help people find self-acceptance again. These are some of my findings:
• Change your self-talk. If your inner dialogue is not supportive and encouraging, it must be change to reflect a much more positive outlook about yourself. A simple practice is to daily spend time paying attention to how you talk to yourself. When you are down on yourself, be kind and change it to be supportive.
• Become more aware. Knowing who you are, what you feel, how you think, will expand your awareness. The more you get to know yourself and appreciate your amazing uniqueness, the more you will fell good about yourself. Yes you are totally unique and that is the way it is suppose to be. You are OK no matter what anyone else says or thinks. The Mindful practices in past postings can be very helpful in expanding your awareness
• Live as fully as you can in the present. When you focus on the past, you miss out appreciating who you are in the now. When you hold off feeling good until some imaginary time in the future, you keep yourself from enjoying yourself and your life today. Meditation is a wonderful practice for helping you be present; so is walking meditation. Accept you and your life today and tomorrow will look much better.
• Have an open heart. This is a favorite them of mind as you know if you read my blog regularly. There is a reason for my mentioning this idea often. It seems very clear to me that if you have an open heart you can love yourself and if it is closed you can’t. Not only can’t you love yourself with a closed heart but you can’t really love anyone else in a meaningful way. Having an open heart is transformative for you and the planet. Every day find reasons to love.
• Practice listening to others and being kind. These are two great ideas to help you feel better about yourself. When your really listen to others you get lots of appreciation. I know I do it for a living. This kind of service to others especially those you love makes you feel good about yourself. The second part is even clearer. Acts of kindness always make you feel good about yourself. Listening is one of those acts, so is calling a friend in need, baking cookies for someone who is down, stopping by to visit people who may feel lonely, complimenting a co-worker, volunteering, etc.
• Be purposeful, have a focus and take action. This is a simple formula to build self-acceptance. Find out what your purpose is in this life, focus on making it happen, and take the actions necessary to create success. The more you live with clear purpose and set your sights on making it happen, the better you will feel about yourself. You can do or be anything you set your mind on accomplishing.
• Here are a few more quick ways to self-acceptance worth exploring: forgive yourself, be realistic in what your expect from yourself, keep your mind open to new ideas, practice be patient with yourself, daily do something healthy for your mind, your body, your emotions and your spirit, and lastly find something to enjoy and appreciate about your life every day.
Give these practices a try and let me know how it feels to be accepting of yourself.
What's On Your Mind and In Your Heart Today?
Today I have a collection of observations and questions.
Did you catch 60 Minutes on Sunday with the Obamas interview? It was so refreshing to see these two genuinely sincere andhappy people who are full of humility and purpose. See it here. Our nation will be in the good hands of Barack and Michelle Obama and we the people. How do you want to use your special abilities to make a positive difference for our nation and planet?
The Department of Agriculture reported a 50% increase of children who don’t have enough to eat in America in 2007. This was before the financial mess we are in now. What kind of nation let’s their children go hungry? Do we need a change of priorities?
Did your read that James Dobson’s group Focus on the Family is having to lay off over 200 of their employees because they spent so much money in support of Prop 8 in California? These people who work for this organization now have lost their income, their benefits and have no severance pay. What about this organization’s family of workers and their families, don’t they matter? Is it ok for this prejudicial ideology and the arrogance of its leadership to have such disregard for their own family?
I used to live in Santa Barbara and know the area where the fire is very well from my many bike rides. This is an incredibly beautiful area with many amazing homes. I feel the suffering and loss of those people as I do for the Dobson people. When fellow humans suffer it seems we all suffer. What do you think, can you feel the suffering too? Human compassion is so needed today everywhere on the planet.
While running my substance abuse treatment group last night at work I was struck by the members and all the pain they had as such a young age. It is easy to see why people choose to try to drown out their suffering with alcohol or drugs. I explored with them ways to be more aware, more accepting and more forgiving of themselves. Yes they may have behaved very poorly when under the influence yet I thinking how we all need more forgiveness and acceptance in our lives. What do you need to forgive about your past? How can you be more accepting of yourself today, tomorrow and in 2009?
The world we live in is so full of such wonder even in the midst of chaos, loss and suffering. Take a moment today to remember what you have and pause to feel gratitude. This will lighten whatever load you may be carrying in your heart.
Down With Dogma; Up With Creative Human Expression
As I was finishing writing my blog yesterday a statement came into my mind and I wrote it down, “Creativity nurtures the soul so much more than dogma.” I just finished editing my first novel and it is about our soul and our lives free of the dogma of organized religion. I will share more as soon as the story is in book form and ready to be explored.
Back to the quote, first you know what creativity is and you may experience some or lots of creativity flowing through you. Creativity makes us feel alive and expressive of our potential.
Dogma is teachings or doctrine that is presented by an authority/church and it is to be accepted without question. If you have been the member of any organized religion you have run into dogma. Dogma attempts to close your mind down and negates your heart and intuitive knowing.
Religions are based on dogma, on teachings that supposedly come from some mysterious or higher source and you are expected to just accept what you are told without questioning. This is absurd and doesn’t make any sense. Why would you or anyone just blindly believe what some other human beings are interpreting?
You as a truly spiritual person must ask question to seek the truth. You must find your own answers and create your own relationship with their idea of God, Source, Higher Power or the sacred within.
Creativity is a wonderful doorway to explore and express the spirit in you. Leave the old dogmas and beliefs behind; instead nurture yourself by finding your own way of being in the world.
The dogmas of the past have led to authoritarian rule, to dictatorships, to mass murder in the name of God and other atrocities. Isn’t it time you and the rest of us use our minds and our hearts as we take this country forward. Shouldn’t we question the role religions try to play in our governing?
The free mind and the open heart are true human treasures that can and will make a real positive difference in our Nation and our planet as we together move forward reshaping the world to reflect truth and the innate wonder of humankind.
President Obama Please Consider These New Departments For Our Government
We all agree there is a real need for change in Washington. The system failed us over the last 8 years. The Leadership was horrible and Congress fell asleep at the wheel. I think it is time to reshape how things are done. Here are 10 departments or cabinet positions that would make a difference and advocate for better government:
1. Regulators Department – this department would make sure that corporations, organizations, government all did what was best for the nation. These regulators would be especially important to keep banks, financial institutions, insurance companies, military industrial companies, power companies doing what is best for America not for the CEO’s or the profit margins.
2. Negotiations Department – This department would oversea that all trade deals, all negotiations of services with the government and make sure they are what is best for the people and the nation as a whole. Drugs sales, trade deals, private security forces, Halliburton are great examples of ways we have not kept our budgets realistic and in line for the greater good. No more non-bid contracts for friends of those in power.
3. Peace Department – It is well past time to put the promotion of peace as a top national and world priority. This department would advocate for ways to move troubled situations into peaceful outcomes. Think of the savings of lives and money this department would provide.
4. Values Department – Yes there are higher values this nation needs to live by and they are not necessarily those on the far right. In government and corporations, important values get lost in the pursuit of greed and power. We need clear values to guide our country and a department that holds our nation to higher standards. No more torture, illegal imprisonment, conflicts of interest, dirty campaigns etc.
5. Green Department – this department funds and advocates for new technology, alternative energy sources, less waste, more recycling, and better ideas to make America the world capital for smart innovation that does no harm to the planet.
6. Advocates Department – this department’s purpose is to push for the return to the rule of law in this nation. That means everyone in government and corporations are to act within the laws. The other purpose is to create a better system that would eliminate so many people going to prison. America is becoming the prison nation that does no rehabilitation so the cycles never end. Most people in prison are victims of physical, emotional and sexual abuse as children.
7. Creativity Department – This department would be an advocate to turn our schools and our nation into incredible resources of creativity, new ideas, critical thinking, art, music, writing, drama, dance, humor, and so much more of the yet untapped resource of the people of our country.
8. The Nature Department – This is maybe a subset of a well functioning Interior Department and its purpose is to make being in nature part of every child’s life. Inner city children need to fully experience the wonders of nature, the forests, trees, deserts, oceans, grassland, canyons, mountains and so much more. We adults need these experiences too and there could be retreat centers for adult renewal also.
9. Future Generations Department – this department looks into the future and guides the present to make sure that the future will have clean air, water and systems that will provide for our children, their children and more for at least 5-7 generations. Everything we do now must have the future in mind.
10. Department of Compassion – this department’s purpose is to advocate and provide for the less fortunate. There is no need for hunger or homelessness in this rich nation. Those who are hurting need to be helped because they are often very damaged people. A nation that cares for the suffering can be great, if not it can only be a disappointment.
What would you add? Have a pleasant Sunday and take some time to do something fun.
Is Being Rational More Important Than Compassion?
Is being rational more important than compassion? That is the question of the day. Let’s begin with the idea that in Western Philosophy the rational mind is considered the ultimate in knowing. This belief is the source of endless wars and suffering, ego driven power, corporate greed and the Rush Limbaughs of the world. Why, because the rational mind can rationalize anything. The name of God has been used to rationalize the worst of behaviors. People can lie, cheat, steal, spread hate and fear and do so because they can rationalize it in their minds. The rational mind is ego’s tool to attempt to control.
What is missing here? The heart is missing. Without compassion there is no heart in what we do, there are no higher values, there is no consideration for others or the future of the planet. The compassionate mind knows that we are all connected, it knows that if one suffers we all do, it knows that if there is injustice then no person is truly free.
All human suffering comes from the rational minds determination to protect. The contracting protection of the ego drives wars, greed and the need for power. The opposite of this drive is the realization that we are all one. This is a knowing from the heart, from the expanded mind of one who is liberated from the limits of conditioning.
Take some time to explore the following ideas and allow them to set you free:
• We are all one
• There is no limit to our expansive mind
• There is no limit to our ability to be compassionate
• Liberation is not possible without compassion
• Our mind is so much more than memory
• Our heart is so much more than emotions
• There is so much joy to be experienced in this moment
• Hope is a mind free to expand
• Hope is a heart free to express
Enjoy the day and let you heart be the guide.
Engaged Consciousness In Action
What matters most to you? How will you leave the world a better place? What are you here to do in this lifetime? What have you learning about love? How do you want to be remembered?
These questions seem very relevant in these times of shift and change. The past may represent the life you have lived in preparation for the now of these expansive times. You may have been in life training for being more fully human. You could have been coming into you own as a person rich in possibilities. Maybe all this time has been about gaining confidence or courage to be more of what you feel inside. Speaking of feelings, it could be that you are thawing out from a damaged childhood. Possibly your path of raising consciousness has now got you to the level of insight and compassion where you can really make things happen.
What has been your journey into the present? Have you been in hot pursuit of a more successful life; have you been wandering aimlessly in the desert of inattention; have you been listening, awakening, becoming more aware, surrounding yourself with the toys of life and still the joys of life escapes you; playing lots and now you want more meaning; waking up from the trance your life put you in; or some other journey with the ups and downs of discovery?
Wouldn’t it be great if you could see your life as just where it needs to be and that you are ready and willing to now take what you want to do full speed ahead? Is it the waves of consciousness rising, hope growing, and/or new more evolved thinking that is guiding you? Who you have been up to now is not who you will be in the future. Your realization of what is going on inside opens doorways to self-expression yet unexplored.
Take a few minutes now as you read along to notice your breath as you inhale, feel the rising of the chest, and as you exhale, feel the chest as it relaxes. Notice your body where it touches the chair you are sitting on. Catch the inner dialogue as it hurries by. Right now is where all the action is. Feel the nowness of you in your body, you in your feeling sensations, you in your seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, tasting and sensing the moment, you in your thought filled mind, you in your heart and it’s infinite capacity, and you in the you that knows no bounds of time or body or lifetimes. All of you is here and now and yet you often are barely acquainted with the majesty and potential you posses. In this moment all can be unveiled if you want to awaken by being fully conscious.
As I said yesterday, isn’t your time now? If not now, when?
Insight Into The Middle East
Last night I attend another talk at the Insight Speakers Series in Denver. This excellent talk was by Reza Aslan an expert on the Middle East, Islamism, and how to look at the war on terrorism. He teaches at University Of Southern California and is a Middle East Analyst for CBS. If you have an opportunity to hear him speak you will be a much more informed global citizen. There was much new information and real insight it to the problems and solutions to the war on terrorism.
One point of many points he made that stood out was that religions are playing a larger and larger role in the world. In the 1950’s about 50% of the people were associated with religions. Now 2/3rds align themselves with religions. After the talk I got to ask him some questions. He said the reason he thought there was more identity with religions because as our world becomes more and more globalized, nationalism become less of a way of defining ourselves. I said then this turn to religion is an identity crisis of sorts and he agreed. We agreed that a global world for many may be less comforting and more fearful and that could also lead to more participation in church communities.
My next question involved my own evolution toward being more spiritual and not as interested in religion. He said yes many people are heading that way too and that is reshaping religion. I left feeling very inspired by his ideas and the fact that we are shaping our world by our own evolution of consciousness. This fits with my ideas on my blog yesterday that sense a shift happening and we are all key ingredients. Like each member in a symphony, we must play our parts or the music looses its beauty and what was possible isn’t realized.
Reza Aslan’s next book is due out in the Spring and it is titled, How to Win A Cosmic War. It will be worth reading if it is half as dynamic as he speaks. I thanked him for the light he spreads through his words.
Inspirational ideas are such a blessing to the world. Where do you get your new ideas and inspiration? As we transition toward a bigger and better picture of ourselves and our nation, take time to pursue what lifts you up and turns you on.
Can You Hear The Call?
A massive movement was set into action from this election and you can catch the wave and ride it. With new hope both internally, across the country, and worldwide things will start to flow in very positive ways. Sure as I mentioned yesterday, it will take patience and some time but the inevitable has begun as sure as spring will melt the winter’s coat and leave the stream bulging with the fluid of life.
Under the brightness of this full moon tonight take a walk and listen to the shifting of your heart and the global heart from cautious protection to the budding of new expression. Feel the waves of discontent melting away and optimistic opportunity rising. Let that which has been held back speak up with an affirmative voice. Hear the call of the heart toward compassion. Be the aliveness resurrected from the darkness of loss and failure. Yes freedom will again enter the language and kindness offset the tiredness of empty rhetoric. Hear all that wants to speak to you and let these messages lift you up and inspire your future action.
The cosmic awakening, the consciousness expanding, the human spirit stoked with the fire of possibility and yet to be expressed passion is now set free. Can you feel the activation that is well underway in you to fire up your potential, to rev up you purpose?
To know which way to go is to hear what is known in you, what inner dynamic message is pulsating with a silent intensity. Listen and you will be clearly shown the way that is right for you.
Let the next few months fine tune your awareness and when January 20th arrives you will hit the road running. Your race will be to so how completely and fully you can be you in the most powerful and inspired ways. You at your best is being called into action. Are you willing to go for it with all you have inside?
Tick, tick, tick, Is that the sound of 60 Minutes or has your time come?
Helping The New Presidency of Barack Obama
President-elect Obama met with President Bush yesterday. It seems the disaster called the 43rd presidency is never going to get over. Thankfully it is only a little over two months before the changing of the guard. My wife suggested we start thinking about how we can help Barack Obama as he begins his presidency?
What thoughts do you have about helping our next president Barack Obama?
The following are some thought about the way you and I can make a difference in this presidency:
1. Let President Obama know what your priorities are. The clearer he is about what is most important to the people, the more able he will be to make what we want to happen.
2. Keep the channel open with the president check out change.gov where a new website is just set up to insure a dialogue happens between the people and our new leader.
3. Find out what issues the new president is working on and write your elected representatives in Congress and tell them you want their support in what the President is doing.
4. Talk to people unsure about the new president and share the reasons why you feel he is the right person for the job.
5. Continue to ask question, keep active, learn about the issues that interest you, become an informed voter and act as an advisory citizen.
6. Explore what you hope will change for the better with this new administration and get involved locally with issues that matter to you.
7. Be patient with the process, understand this will all take time, and have compassion for the efforts being made.
8. Don’t give up hope, keep being active and passionate about the issues that are most important to you.
9. What are your ideas? _________________________________________________________________________________________
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Think in terms of the first 1000 days to get things going rather than the typical 100 days. There is a huge mess to clean up and it will take time and all of our efforts.
Are you up to this, to partnering with the changes we all know are needed? Great! I knew you had it in you.
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” Martin Luther King
What Are You Just A Little Courage Away From Realizing?
Last night I listen to the soft and smooth jazz voice of one of my co-workers who performs at a Pub in Boulder on Sunday evenings. She started singing lessons at age 51 and now a few years later she is singing for the listening pleasure of all who turn out to hear her. She is an inspiration to me because later in life she figured what she was passionate about and worked at it until she was comfortable singing in front of people. That takes courage and determination and makes me wonder what in me wants to be expressed?
What in you wants to sing out? Where are you just a little courage away from realizing a secret desire of expression? Are you willing to take the next step?
As the week begins, what are you hopeful about, what do you want to accomplish? What area of improvement are you working on for yourself and your life? See the recent blogs about 1% improvement. Imagine if you took up something that both scares and fascinates you. If you practiced or improved that desire for 100 focused days, you could be well on your way to living your dream.
Will what you want to be, take hard work? Maybe or maybe it will come effortlessly. The work may be in selling what you have to offer, or in learning new skills, or in taking the leap necessary to have what you want. I wonder if you can imagine such a wonderful flow that allows you to manifest what you want to express in an easy and relaxed manner.
I keep on thinking of the Abraham/Hicks teaching about flowing downstream. That lesson is still clearly having influence over the way I view how we do life. I was raised with the images of struggle and am now still trying to extricate them from my thought patterns and muscle memory.
Tuesday is a holiday and I get the day off to do as I want to, yeah! The extra day off gives me some more time to complete one of my writing projects. That project is my 1% improvement project and it will be close to 100% improved in a week or two. This writing of my first novel has been an almost effortless adventure. The only struggle has been getting it edited and even that is easy when I have the time. In a week or two the novel will be done and then I can make it available. It is spiritual story that could cause quite a stir.
Have a week that makes you feel good about yourself.
The Greatness of Potential, Purpose and Passion
It is Sunday morning and I am still feeling the positive vibes of the election results. The Chicago Sun Times has a very nice slideshow with parts of Barack Obama’s speech, check it out here.
Change is coming to America one person at a time. There is in each of us this reserve of potential, purpose and passion that is waiting to be activated. These three p’s are unfortunately mostly untapped in us. Sure most of us a cruising along doing the best we can or at least the best we think we can. The place we fall off is that our thinking, our fears, our programming since childhood has put the brakes on our full realization. Let’s explore some more of what we have stored inside. We need to do so to really feel good about ourselves and our nation is in need of fully charged citizens to resurrect our former greatness.
Let’s start with the idea that you and I have potential in us waiting to be realized. Each of you has unlimited potential. That means that you can be and do just about anything you can imagine. Barack Obama imagined he could become president. How big can you imagine? This unexpressed potential is just waiting for your desire, your ideas, your hopes, your imagination to come alive. What greatness is waiting in you? Take some quiet time today to listen inward and hear your potential calling you. Once you get past the fear of being different and unique there is no holding you back. Stepping into the fullest of your potential will provide you a lifetime of satisfaction and joy.
Yes you do have a purpose. Are you aware of what it is? This purpose is more a knowing in the heart than a figured out collection of thoughts. You have a purpose as powerful as our next President. Can you believe that, if not it is time to stop hanging out in mediocrity and instead pay attention to what is calling for expression in you. You are greatness waiting to happen. There never was or will there ever be on this planet another person who has the same purpose as you do. You are it and if you live your purpose fully every single person and living thing past, present, and future benefits from your expression.
Can you feel the river of passion that flows through you; the stream of well-being that bubbles with energy and aliveness? If you can, let it flow through you life in a way that expands your uniqueness of expression each day. Be alive and full of the joy that comes from being yourself full of passion for what you do as a citizen of the planet. If you don’t know the flow, then it is time to awaken, time to reclaim the heart, to listen to your spirit. There is so much in you that wants to blast off and be who you are here in this life to be. The time is now for you to move to the launch pad and be the rocket of passion you are.
10 . 9 . 8 . 7 . 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Potential, Purpose and Passion will bring Peace, Prosperity and Promise back into your life and the life of our Nation.
Consciousness Wins Out Over Fear
Doesn’t it feel good to have this election behind us? I hope you are happy with the results for president. If you are not, you probably are not a reader of my blog since it tends to be progressive and more about consciousness and compassion. If you are a reader and supported McCain/Palin, I hope you find some way to be ok with the results and together we turn our focus toward making our country healthy again. As I have been writing about lately, personal health and the health of our nation seem to me to be very connected. What do you think/feel about the following comparisons?
• If our nation is at war, it would seem to make the people restless and aggressive?
• If the infrastructure is being ignored and coming apart, it would seem that our homes and communities my also be in disarray?
• If the nation doesn’t have a priority to provide health care, it would seem the health of the individual would be neglected?
• If the government spies on more and more citizens, it would seem that the people would feel less freedom?
• If we put the world’s highest percentage of people in prison, it would seem that the citizens would fear the controls of government?
• If we have armies and polices forces to protect the nation, it would also seem we need regulate corporations to protect the people?
• If unemployment is rising because of government mismanagement, it would seem that people could fear for their financial future?
• If dysfunctional leadership disrupts the nation’s psyche, it would seem that the emotional health of the people might by upset?
• If our Congress is not providing checks and balances, it would seem that the people would not feel represented in this trying times?
• If the egos of greed and power are running the country, it would seem that the people feel unprotected from powerful forces?
• If our government pushes fear, it would seem the people would distrust government and feel unsettled?
There are a number of other comparisons; do these make sense to you? Reverse of this top down influence is the bottom up influence. The more settled and in balance the people are, the more our government will reflect that. Electing Obama in the midst of chaos seems to me to be the people ignoring their fears and choosing hope. This says to me consciousness won out over ego and fear. What does it say to you?
No More Blame, Yes More Hope
I think it is time to stop blaming. We have a big mess going on and once this administration is gone we just need to focus on coming up with solutions. As I stated yesterday, our country is a reflection of us and “the mess” is not who we are going to be from here on out. Hope won on Tuesday when Obama was elected. Now it is time for the lighter and hopeful side of us all to shine forward.
The economy is in chaos and so are many of our own personal economies. If yours isn’t, you are an excellent money manager. The rest of us and our nation have gone off course financially. We can’t live beyond our resources. On the macro level, we can’t wage a very costly war and give all the tax breaks to the rich and expect thing to work out well for the majority of people. On the micro level, we can’t run up our debt and expect to keep on top of things financially. We need hope and healthy solutions on both levels.
The dependence on oil is very dangerous financially and security wise. We cannot continue at such a compromised level of dependency. Alternatives must be generated and we have the technological know-how, abilities and hope to come up with positive solutions. We also have to keep the health of the planet in mind or nothing else will matter.
America has lost its standing in the world because we have gone to the dark side of war making and ego-driven power. No one likes a bully and that has been the mentality up until hope came to the nation. We are all citizens of the world, let think more expansively on how we can all work together. Together we have an infinite capacity to come up with solutions. When the people of the planet have hope and work together we will eliminate terrorism quickly with inclusive solutions that resolve conflicts.
Healthcare in the U.S. is far behind Europe and it is costing the people in ways that are prohibitive and greedy. We need to create solutions by exploring models of successful universal health care and then make it happen here. We cannot have the elderly going bankrupt as they are now due to health care costs. That is obscene and not acceptable when this country has such wealth and hope again.
Yes we need to mobilize because the corporate forces will be very powerful to keep the status quo as it is. When corporations awaken to the importance of serving humanity and all the life on the planet than real hope has transformed the planet.
How’s the 1% improvement going? I am working away tonight on of my projects as soon as I finish my first draft of the post for tomorrow. Let the hope in you expand and have an enjoyable weekend.
Improving Ourselves and The Nation
A couple of days ago I wrote and article about making 1% improvement each day for 100 days. I don’t know about you but I have been distracted by this election and I have not focused on the 1% improvement. I am now ready to do so. Now I can relax after the nation decided to turn itself in the right direction with this election. Hope is in the air again, isn’t it refreshing.
Our nation is a reflection of you and I. If it is all messed up, we need to take an inventory of our commitment to make this a government by the people for the people. The past 8 years seems to indicate that we have neglected our duties and let the politicians do their thing without holding them accountable. It was a mess because we the people got too caught up in our private lives and didn’t participate in the governance of our country.
The 1% plan is a good one for our country too. Let’s say that we improved our system of voting and counting the votes over the next 100 days to insure that the next election goes smoothly. In just over 3 months we would have a greatly improved system that would better assure that our democracy is secure. That would be a good goal of improvement before the next election in 2 years.
A more pressing plan is to improve the economy. Let’s say over the next six months we developed and enacted some new laws, policies and strategies by 1% at a time, day by day until we got the economy going in the right direction. Over these six months there could be 100-150% improvement. Sure these take time but daily effort will bring significant changes.
What do you want to work on in your own life? What area needs some significant increase in quality? My creative expression is important to me and I want to use it to improve my financial health. These combined ideas of creativity and financial well- being seems like an area I can do 1% improvement each day. So that will be my focus. I have three writing project in mind, two of which are partly completed and a new one that seems very timely. Soon you will hear more about these creative expressions and have an opportunity to benefit from their ideas.
My thought is that we can all enrich each other by supporting each other and benefited from the ideas we all have to share.
If you don’t have any areas you wish to work on in your own life then think about something you can improve in your community or in the country. Here are few quick ideas for the community: tutoring, feeding the hungry, help those who can’t get around, and other acts of kindness, which will cause improvement in those you help and improvement in your self-esteem. 1% each time means in 100 times you have a major shift in your life and the quality of the lives you help.
Set a time for you to begin this project of personal advancement. Commit to 100 days and let yourself be amazed at the results.
President Elect Barack Obama
Yes! Yes! Yes! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
"Thank God Almighty, we are free at last." Marin Luther King
The terribly awful presidency of George Bush is finally coming to an end and there is once again hope in our country. I am sure the world breathes a sigh of relief too.
The people of this nation have awakened and snatched back the reigns of government from the ego driven insanity of those run by the lust for power and thirsty greed.
Yes consciousness has spoken and the empowered are now ready to move forward to make a positive difference.
No more unchecked war-mongering and profiteering. Let's be guided instead by the ways of the heart, clear thinking, and the higher values of people who think/feel on their own and have a better dream for America and this gem of a planet we live on.
In this moment, I am filled with gratitude for the opportunities that will be made available for constructive and expansive change. I am grateful for all those that turned out to make a difference because you believed enough in the process to get involved and enough in yourself to become to an empowered force for the good of all.
Yes, it is a beautiful day in America and take some time to feel the joy of aliveness and freedom that we all made happen.
PS. My brother Jim was elected County Commissioner for Clackamas County in Oregon yesterday. He is awesome and will do a wonderful job.
Yeah! It Is Election Day
Today I am spending the afternoon at the Obama headquarters encouraging people to get out to vote. Then I will sing with the choir I am in until 9pm and anxiously get home to watch the election results. What are your plans on this historic day?
Wouldn’t it be better if elections were not so negative? Do you think we could change the tone of elections if we insisted that only the truth be told? There is nothing wrong with pointed out how a person voted or other factual information but to make up things or put false slants on the truth would be best eliminated. How could we as citizen change the nature of elections so that they were more positive and based on ideas, plans and policies?
Let’s clean up politics before the next election and make them more thoughtful, informative and easier to be involved in for the good of all.
Last night I was reading through a simple but inspirational book by Cheri Huber a well-respected Zen teacher. It got me thinking about human nature and how we can have more joy in life. Here are some of her thoughts:
“Nothing needs to change.
You don’t have to get better,
You are already better.
If you think you can do better,
Do better.
Nothing real is stopping you.
The only thing stopping you
Is the thought, the belief,
That something is stopping you.
What stops you is inside not outside.”
I appreciate the simplicity of this message. As we look ahead after this election today, take some time in your thoughts and heart to realize that nothing is stopping you from making a difference in the world. You, free of you own limits, can be a very positive force for change. Together, with all the rest of us who have stopped limiting ourselves, we can bring about amazing results.
Be sure to vote and be the power you have inside.
A couple more thoughts from Cheri Huber’s book The Key.
“Total love and acceptance is the wisest thing you can do.”
“If you want joy, be joyful, if you want peace, be peaceful.”
“We can choose to let go and be free.”
Vote For Great Leadership, Together We Can Do Great Things
Tomorrow is election day and this could be one of the most anticipated elections in our contries history. There will be record number turning out to vote if the huge rallies for Obama are any indication. Voting is essential to demcoracy and we all need to be involved.
Last night on our way home from a dinner with my wife’s family, we talked about feeling disappointed about not being able to converse about politics. Several of her family unfortunately listens to Rush Limbaugh every day and are so sure that they have all the answers that they really have no interest in hearing other points of view. I frankly cannot understand anyone listening to such a stream of misinformation, fear, anger and arrogance.
It is no wonder my in-laws are often worried and depressed. If I listen to Rush, I would be so upset from looking at humanity the way he does. Because they listen to Rush and his intolerance of other ideas they are totally missing out on an opportunity to talk with their children and their families about matters of politics and the world.
Frankly it seems important to be very suspicious of anyone who is absolutely sure they know what is right. Life is an endless journey of learning and growing. No one has all the answers.
You my readers are encouraged to question my viewpoint because it is only my viewpoint. The scope of what you and I let in expands over the years. We get wiser through life, through listening to new and thoughtful perspectives.
Are you still learning, are you still opening to seeing things in more expansive ways? Of course you are. If you have an open mind and heart, you realize there is more to be aware of and learn about. Anytime you think you know it all, you are stuck in a closed place. A closed mind makes it hard to be open to love, to be courageous, to have compassion for other points of view, to listen and understand others, and it is not a fun way to be in the world. Opening means stepping past the limiting beliefs and questioning your thoughts at a deeper level. Opening means paying attention to the guidance of your heart and your intuitive wisdom.
I hope you have a good week and that Tuesday night or Wednesday morning you have reason to celebrate because the election went in a positive way for those you supported. I plan to have much to cheer about because the American people are ready for real change and the right leader will make positive things happen. Together with good leadership, there is no limit to how great America can be again.
If you haven’t voted yet please do and be part of the change that will bring healing and greatness to our nation.
1% Improvement For 100 Days Equals 100% Improvement
Today is the day we move our clocks back an hour, doesn’t it seem we just moved them forward recently? This last 6 months have flown by maybe because so much is going on. There is of course the election, which has been dominating the news and thankfully coming to an end. There has also been the challenges and rewards of life: going to work, paying the bills, taking care of the people we love, keeping ourselves healthy, enjoying life in the ways we do, spending more money on the essentials, building a business or other streams of income, taking time with friends, cheering our favorite teams, walking or tending to our pets, maybe even a vacation tossed into the mix. Yes life just keeps on going on.
Now that November is here the upcoming holidays come to mind. Before that whole rush kicks into gear, what is it that you want o focus on to improve the quality of your life. Tony Robbins, self-help teacher, has an idea that really appeals to me. He says that if we make 1% improvement our goal each day then in 100 days we will have 100% improvement. I suggest that you and I choose and area in our lives that we want to improve and that this month, the next month and into the New Year we set a goal to make it better 1% each day.
Here are some areas to consider improving: relationships with those we love, fitness, financial health, being more joyous, living with purpose, being more of an activist for a better world, remembering to be grateful, letting go of the past, shrinking the ego’s need to control, spreading more kindness, listening to others, being creative, taking time for your spirit, live each day with more passion for life, and of course whatever you want to do or be more of can be your goal. For example, you could even combine several desires for improvement like financial health through creative expression, which would be aligned with being more passionate. Imagine 1% improvement each day and when February rolls around you have 100% improvement in a specific area of your life. Does that sound good or what?
Take the next day or so and think about what you are going to improve on. Then by Election Day set a course for enhancing your life. After the inauguration of the new President (hopefully Obama) you will almost be to your 100% improvement. The new president will be gearing up to improve the country, as you will be gearing up to improve your life.
Let me know what area(s) of life you will be working so I can share ideas to assist you. And don’t forget to vote on Tuesday.
Ego-Warrior Vs Heart-Motivator
Something I read yesterday got my attention; it reported that 1 out of 7 people said they could still be persuaded about who to vote for President. I was shocked since to me there is such a clear difference between McCain and Obama. Here to me is what the differences are:
John McCain is an ego driven warrior. He is motivated by his ego to dominate, to lead because he thinks it is his right. His way of dealing with conflict will be to threaten, to swing a big stick, to generate fear in the people so they will follow. He dislikes being questioned because he thinks he knows what is best for America and we should just follow along. People who live in fear would like such a leader. Someone self-assured and who thinks he is powerful enough to push anyone around will make those who are scared feel protected.
Senator McCain ego-warrior lineage can be traced back through time as the primary model for leadership. The weakness of this model is that it no longer works in a world that is both so explosive and yet more closely connected than ever before. President Bush fits this ego-driven model and because of his nonsense, we are in a big mess. The ego-warrior is also the mentality of many who lead our corporations. They are driven by the need for power and the call of greed, that is the way of the ego. This type leader dislikes regulation and has a endless hunger for control.
If this type leadership is allowed to continue to dominate in the 21st Century there are some clear consequences. One clear consequence most likely will be that the planet we live on will begin to self-regulate to offset our pollution according to the almost all the scientist that matter. This may make Earth uninhabitable to us. Another clear consequence is that we will end up killing ourselves off with all the weapons of mass destruction the ego-warriors have created. Sorry this sounds so dour but when the ego wins out in humanity it can only mean our continued reckless decline. History points our humanity has almost continually been at war and now days a major war will pt and end to us all.
We need to evolve past this ego driven world and it is so needed now. The ego-warrior way can no longer be tolerated if we expect to survive. The financial crisis we are in today is because the ego has dominated. Capitalism dominated by the ego does in no way self-regulate. That is a myth created by the ego. The money we poured into the mess to fix it will be controlled by the ego-warriors and continue the troubles they have created.
Barack Obama represents the heart-motivator type leader. Sure he has some ego or he would not have the courage to run for President. He is however a listener, he listens to his heart, he has compassion. He also listens to his family, which expands his heart. As president he will listen to those around him, he will listen to those who challenge him and to those who represent threats to our nation and the rest of the global community. This ability to listen and communicate is the way solutions are found. This kind of leader brings people together for the good of all.
Senator Obama understands that when people suffer, we all suffer. That is the way of the heart and compassion. These forces will bring health care to all, end world hunger and truly bring peace and prosperity for humanity, This kind of leader not driven by power or greed but by the heart will represent an evolutionary leap towards a world that is sane, healthy and more at balance.
A great motivator is essential to coax us all forward to make the leap in evolution. This is important because the ego in all of us will hold back out of fear. Instead we must open our hearts, which will guide us courageously forward. Senator Obama is a great motivator. Look at the crowds that are turning out to hear him. These turnouts show out hope, our realization it is time to move forward as humanity. All these people that come out sense the importance of humanity moving forward even though many would not word it in this way. There is clearly a need for change and the people know it. Barack Obama knows it and he has said he is not running for himself but for all of America. He wants us all to be empowered because he realizes the times ahead will take all of us moving together. That is the guidance of the heart not the ego at work.
There are a number of other arguments to be made about why the heart-motivator is so right at this time in history but for now what seems important is to vote, be counted and change the course of this nation and the planet. We must elect a president that wants the people back in power to take this government from those who are dominated by ego, power and greed. Vote, Please Vote.