"Expect your every need to be met. Expect the answer to every problem, expect abundance on every level."

- Eileen Caddy

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Are you battling with a problem that you cannot do anything about?

If so, let it go!

It may not be the answer you want to hear, but once you let go, life lightens up for you.

You see, there are some things you can change and there are some things you can't change.

Learning to accept what is will help your life flow without stress or turmoil.

Knowing what you can or can't change is the key.

For example, you book a camping holiday but accept that you can't do anything to book nice weather. So, if it blows a gale and throws down enough rain to fill a lake, you just have to accept that's the way it is.

You then have choices ...accept the way it is and moan or accept the way it is and have fun.

Accepting what is allows you to bring out your better qualities.

When you stop dwelling on the things you can't change, you avoid anxiety and all those pesky emotions that make you feel frustrated and depressed.

You start to flow with life.

So, if you're in a situation that is causing you some stress, first ask yourself ... Can I change this?

If you can, then do so!

If it's something that you really can't change, then ask yourself ...

Can I accept this?

Acceptance can be challenging because the ego fights it.

It's in our nature to try and control and shape a situation to suit us. When we can't, our ego cries, shouts and makes as much noise as possible.

Realize that it's just your ego that holds you back, and gently accept. 

T.S. Eliot once said...

"Only by acceptance of the past, can you alter it."

Life will flow more freely when you accept what is.

Labels: inspiration, quotes

If the world is a stage and we are acting out the great story that is life then consider this...

There are no rehearsals!

The live performance is right NOW!

But don't panic! Everything is going just as it should.

Ok, so what about preparation? ... What if I do something stupid or forget my lines?

You know, it doesn't really matter.

What do you need to prepare for? You are fully equipped with all that you need to live a full and happy life.

As to acting stupid, life allows for a little silliness.

There's a fantastic lyrical line in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which goes something like ...

"A little nonsense now and then is cherished by the wisest men".

How completely true!

As to forgetting your lines, it's okay to make mistakes because these are what shape us.

Anyway, if you forget your lines or do something silly, you'll make people laugh. And there's nothing wrong with that. It takes talent and a beautiful persona to make someone smile - so that's a bonus!

Besides, there aren't really any mistakes ... just lessons that can help us improve.

So, you're live on stage now.

Let go of the nerves.

Have fun! Give your best and be yourself!

And, don't forget, play out your dreams.

After all, this is your story!

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Are you always finding fault with the world around you?

Are you so focused on the bad stuff that you forget about the good?

Finding faults with the world destroys your inner harmony.

When you're focused on all that you perceive is wrong or bad, you absorb those qualities into your life.

You'll find that you have more hassles, more faulty products and services, and more dissatisfaction.

So, why not focus on the good stuff!

There's absolutely loads of good out there ... more than you can imagine!

And what you can't see, you can "manifest" (as people like to say) ... simply by focusing on good things.

When you seek out the good, celebrate it. 

If you've been complaining a lot of late, shift your focus. Start congratulating those who have given you excellent service or good products.

Be thankful for kindness, no matter how small. 

Show your gratitude for all that is right and good, and notice how the energy changes.

You start to "attract" (as people like to say) positive experiences into your life.

You'll realize just how much good there is and how much better life can be.

Lakeland poet William Wordsworth once said...

"Pleasure is spread through the earth in stray gifts to be claimed by whoever shall find."

So, focus on the good ... the gifts are everywhere!

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Life is a gift.

In fact, every moment is a gift.

And, when you are open to life's gifts, you create abundance.

Life is also a great adventure ... a journey of discovery ... and you receive the journey that is meant for you at this time.

This journey will offer many gifts but you may not always see it until you open your eyes.

In some situations, you may think your particular journey is devoid of gifts or takes you to a dead-end. But just go with the flow and see what materializes.

Be open-minded.

The most difficult journey or challenging adventure always offers the best gifts, so bear this in mind while you're travelling.

Albert Einstein once said...

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."

So, don't forget that sacred gift ... your intuition, your inner wisdom, your sense of exploration, your wild, curious spirit ...

Life is an adventure waiting to happen. 

It is a glorious, multi-color, techno-adventure - right here in YOUR town.

You just have to find it and start the journey.

So where will you find your big adventure today?

What gifts are in store just for you?

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Are you living in the flow of life?

Or are you fighting a raging current? Or perhaps even stuck in a stagnant pool?

Sometimes, we fight too hard to achieve our goals or we slip into inertia purely out of laziness or believing that everything is too difficult.

Often, we place too much pressure on ourselves, trying to conform and keep up with our friends and neighbours. 

Frequently, we may punish ourselves for not being good enough, quick enough, brilliant enough or beautiful enough.

The waters of our life become polluted when we don't trust in the natural flow.

Poet William Henry Davies once said with great wisdom: "A poor life this if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare."

Take your time. Breathe!

Reflect on what's important to you right now.

When we relax into an easy pace, and treat ourselves with tender loving care, life starts to flow.

When we let go of the thoughts of pressure, problems, challenges, stress, desperation, and so on - and reinvigorate those thoughts with positive enthusiasm - we step into our equilibrium.

Everything has its time.

And remember, you don't need to be perfect. You don't need to be anything. All you do is simply be.

So let go of impatience and yearning and limiting thoughts.

Just trust in the flow of life.

Simply BE.

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Are you feeling happy right now?

If so, hurrah!

Spread some of that happiness into the world around you. Smile and lighten up those dark corners in the world.

If you're not happy, then ask yourself why.

What is stealing you from happiness and what can you do to be happy again? Maybe you can just decide... to be happy?

Remember, happiness is quite simply a choice.

You can choose to be happy at any point.

Happiness isn't conditional. It isn't attached to anyone or anything. It's free and represents the joy of living.

Your natural state is happiness, so seize it right this moment.

And do what makes you happy ... live fully; fill each moment with beauty; love; and offer kindness.

HH the Dalai Lama said...

"When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace."

No matter what else is going on in your life right now, you can still have happiness at your heart's core.

You can use the positive energy of your inner joy to resolve other feelings.

So, embrace happiness.

Live your life with happiness.

Be the happy, beautiful being you were born to be.

Labels: inspiration, quotes

I've just received this quote from David Riklan.

Now, for those that don't know, he's the founder of the #1 self-development site on the Web - SelfGrowth.com.

Speaking to his newsletter subscribers, he said:

"I personally believe the Brain Evolution System to be one of the most powerful self-development technologies on earth.

"Double your ability to learn, think like a genius, release stress - just by spending 30 minutes listening to a simple audio recording."

Learn what he's talking about at http://www.trybrainev.com/

Or to uncover more user experiences, visit:

http://www.brainev.com/benefits-research/testimonials.aspx

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Today, I return to my home city of Durham - after weeks of travelling.

I initially visited Frankfurt for filming of The Meta Secret, then to Orlando for meetings with industry experts such as Ed Dale and Dan Raine.

But you know something?

I'm tired, and I'll be thrilled to return home.

To cuddle my dog. To squeeze my nephew. To hug my family.

Freya Stark said: "To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world."

I disagree.

To awake in your own home, with your own routine, with your own comforts and friends surrounding - that is truly the most pleasant sensation.

Cesare Pavese put it more direct:

"Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things - air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it."

Yes, that exploration of the world is a beautiful thing.

But home?

There's truly no place like it.

And if you're not appreciating that today... maybe you should.

Labels: quotes, ramblings

"Write to be understood, speak to be heard, read to grow."
- Lawrence Clark Powell

Labels: inspiration, quotes

"The way to succeed is to double your error rate."
- Thomas J. Watson

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"Courage is saying, 'Maybe what I'm doing isn't working; maybe I should try something else.'"
- Anna Lappe, writer

Labels: inspiration, quotes

"Start every day off with a smile and get it over with."
-- W. C. Fields  

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Labels: quotes

We've all heard that popular saying...

"A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step."

Well, it's actually a slight mistranslation.

A more accurate translation of this quotation from Chinese philosopher, Lao-Tzu, would be:

"Even the longest journey must begin from where you stand."

Rather than emphasizing that first step, Lau Tzu regarded action as something that naturally arose from stillness.

When was the last time YOU were truly still?

When did you last give yourself even FIVE MINUTES to allow your mind to relax?

And what ideas popped into your mind?

What action can naturally arise from YOUR stillness?

Why not give yourself time today - and explore for yourself?

Labels: inspiration, quotes, self-development

“I say to you, this morning, that if you have never found something so dear and precious to you that you will die for it, then you aren’t fit to live.

"You may be 38 years old, as I happen to be, and one day, some great opportunity stands before you and calls upon you to stand for some great principle, some great issue, some great cause.

"And you refuse to do it because you are afraid.

"You refuse to do it because you want to live longer. You’re afraid that you will lose your job, or you are afraid that you will be criticized or that you will lose your popularity, or you’re afraid that somebody will stab or shoot or bomb your house. So you refuse to take a stand.

"Well, you may go on and live until you are ninety, but you are just as dead at 38 as you would be at ninety.

"And the cessation of breathing in your life is but the belated announcement of an earlier death of the spirit.

"You died when you refused to stand up for right.

"You died when you refused to stand up for truth.

"You died when you refused to stand up for justice."

- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
From the sermon “But, If Not” delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church on November 5, 1967.

Labels: inspiration, quotes

"Fortune favours the bold."
- Virgil

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Life is exciting! 

There's just so much you can achieve.

Yet in the desire to attain success, impatience can set in.

If you let impatience rule, then you start looking for ways to speed towards the outcome and in doing so neglect the vital foundations that you need to get there.

Often, it pays to be 'slow but sure' rather than 'fast and rash.'

After all, giant oaks rise slowly from tiny acorns. It takes years of patience for a tree to grow. There are no short-cuts for the oak ... no quick growing formula. It all takes time and nourishment.

As that acorn takes root, pushes through the soil and grows up under the light, it begins to establish its foundations in order to be strong and tall.

Its only goal is to become a great oak tree and it becomes just that in its own time.

So, first things first ... focus on your roots or foundations.

Sai Baba said...

"A house must be built on solid foundations if it is to last. The same principle applies to man, otherwise he too will sink back into the soft ground and becomes swallowed up by the world of illusion."

Whether you wish to succeed in business, sport, science, the arts or simply as being the best person you could possibly be, make sure your foundations are strong.

These solid foundations will carry you so much further through life. You'll be able to depend upon them. 

Concentrate on what needs to be done.

Don't cheat because you'll only be cheating yourself.

Stay focused, work productively, prioritize what needs to be accomplished and just do it!

Remember, all things have their time.

So, like the oak, grow firm roots and success will follow.

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Being spontaneous makes life fun and exciting.

It's good for the soul to break routine occasionally and follow a flight of fancy.

Now, I admit that I'm certainly not a spontaneous type naturally.

But I do make an active effort to be more spontaneous. (I call it "planned spontaneity.")

Being spontaneous is the most natural thing and yet we don't give ourselves enough freedom.

Remember how you felt as a child?

You probably didn't have a strict 'to-do' list for living your day.

More probably, you were out playing, having fun and being totally spontaneous.

Okay, so you've grown up now but that doesn't mean you can't be spontaneous.

You can still have fun, adventure and excitement! You can still go out to play!

Today ... in fact, right this moment ... be spontaneous.

Follow a random thought ... do something new ... go somewhere different ... just act spontaneously and enjoy the experience.

Explore somewhere new.

Take a different path to your normal routine.

Try something that you haven't done before.

Just take a day off, go into the mountains or by the sea and relax.

Being spontaneous leaves you feeling vital and passionate about life ... and it's a feeling that remains with you for a long time.

So, be spontaneous. Go out to play. Let your spirit fly free for a while.

Simply enjoy the moment!

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Here’s another quote by emperor and philosopher, Marcus Aurelius.

"He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the universe."

No truer words!

Harmony most definitely comes from within. And that’s official!

It’s pointless going out looking for it, because it’s already there inside you just waiting to be tuned in and switched on.

Yep, that’s right.

We can tune in and switch on to our harmonious wavelength RIGHT NOW!

By taking time to nurture our souls, work out what makes us happy and start adopting a more balanced outlook, we can alter our experiences so that they become more positive and harmonious.

Marcus Aurelius, in his infinite wisdom, also said...

"Our life is what our thoughts make it."

He really knew what he was talking about.

So, try making your thoughts a little more harmonious today - and see how your life changes for the better.

Labels: inspiration, quotes

"The finest steel has to go through the hottest fire."
- John N. Mitchell

Labels: inspiration, quotes

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus governed the Roman Empire from 96 to 180.

And he's attributed with some fantastic quotes.

Today’s wisdom from Marcus Aurelius is...

"Everything that happens happens as it should, and if you observe carefully, you will find this to be so."

This curious quote suggests that life unfolds for us exactly as it is supposed to and that everything has its time. Life is just as it should be.

If that is the case, and we can learn to go more with the flow of life, there would be greater contentment.

So, today, just try going with the flow instead of trying too hard or forcing a result. Be more laid-back about your day, and see what happens.

Sit back and watch the world go by.

Simply embrace the moment and quietly observe - just as Marcus Aurelius did.

Enjoy your day!

Labels: inspiration, quotes

"If you haven't got charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble."
-- Bob Hope

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"An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness."
- Elbert Green Hubbard

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Labels: quotes

I'm a big believer in giving fate a helping hand.

Simple changes in your lifestyle can reap profound results.

Such as the idea of saying "Yes!" to everything for a week. (Read more here.) Or spinning a wheel to figure out the destination of your next holiday, a la Dice Man.

I'm also something of a coin-tosser!

I regularly flick a penny to figure out which way I should go.

Should I turn left or right? Should I go on the walk tonight, or not? Should I ask her out on a date, or no?

But here's the thing about such mini-gambles.

We already know the outcome we desire.

How many times have you thrown the coin, only to get the wrong outcome... then said "Okay, best of three!"

(Watch the end of this episode of Peep Show for a fantastic example of this!)

Despite our attempt to surrender to fate, sometimes we already know we want to take the risk... and try to use a coin to convince us into the situation.

Well, here's a thought.

The next time you're in a position where you need convincing... where you need a little encouragement to break through your comfort zone...

... Forget the coin tossing altogether.

Just make a pact with yourself NOW that you'll just DO IT, without too much deep thought and analysis to put you off.

In my experience, fate favours speed.

Make the decision. Make it quickly. And get to it.

You already know what you should be doing, so just follow that gut instinct (even if it may seem slightly scary), and put your best foot forward.

Love-lecturer Leo Buscaglia said of risks:

"The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing, and becomes nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot learn and feel and change and grow and love and live."

Think about it.

And have a wonderous, risk-taking, coin-free day!

Labels: inspiration, quotes, self-development