The Chi For Yourself guest this week is Jennifer Louden, author of The Life Organizer. Jennifer is a personal growth pioneer who helped launch the self-care movement. She’s written fivebooks on well-being and whole living, a national magazine column, and she can say that she sat on Oprah’s couch.
You can hear the interview with Jennifer Louden this Thursday March 6th at 4pm Eastern time, 1pm Pacific at chiforyourself.com.
Article…
Making a (Genuine) Living: Putting Who You Are Into What You Do
I just returned from Central America. I’m considering moving to a home outside my native United States. I am grateful to be able to make surch a trip, and for the reasons I made it. Doing print and audio/video related work allows a person to live just about anywhere in the world while doing the things he or she feels inspired to do. One of the areas of my life where the small “inner voice” becomes my navigator is the type of work I do. I’ve felt this way since I was a small boy, but I’ve learned that what I do and who I am are two distinctly different things. I would advise anyone to make that important separation. And I’ve also felt the satisfaction of knowing that what I’m doing is what I must do- kind of taking a page from Maslow’s idea of Self Actualization.
So many of us feel that to present who we are to the world means to point to our occupation. But society puts different professions on different levels and it’s easy for a person to feel “less than”. Less than for holding what others see as a menial job. Less for being in a not very glamorous position. But history is full of the names of people who have been able to give us their skills and talents while holding down jobs seen as ordinary. Whether you’re in real estate or retail, a business person or a bus driver, your worth is folded into who you are an not what you do for a living.
Doing something that you enjoy and lets you meet your needs while allowing you to live in line with your values will always be more fulfilling that being in a high-status job you dislike. But it’s possible to find happiness in most any line of work. That’s because what you are doing is often not as important as how you you’re doing it. There’s much to be said for a good attitude. Couple that with good intentions and you can turn a so-so working situation into one that fulfills you because of your attitude.
If your efforts are benefiting others you’re adding value to the world. And if you’ve found happiness in your work and you feel that you’re living genuinely while also getting your emotional and physical needs met then you are are adding value to your life. If you’re sweeping streets then be the best street sweeper you can be. Know that you can bring your ability and skill to us no matter what work you do. Choose to be of service and your choice will be a wise one.
We’re off to the resolution races- lose 20 pounds..move to a nicer address..take that tropical vacation.
May I suggest some inward inspection to start the new year? Ask yourself:
What is happening in my life?
How is my health?
How is/are my relationship(s)? Really, how are they?
How are my finances? Do I enjoy my work?
Just a few ideas to take care of the inner self so that the outer results might be more satisfying.
Happy New Year!
Don’t’ forget that we’ll be launching another year of first run Chi For Yourself episodes on January 9th. Our guest on that day will be Meagan McCrary. Meagan is a Los Angeles based freelance writer and yoga teacher who has worked one-on-one with some of the entertainment industry’s leading professionals. Millions of us practice yoga, but what kind is best? We’ll “pose” the questions to Meagan at 1pm Pacific..4pm Eastern time. You’ll be able to hear the interview live on the Start page of chiforyourself.com.
Meagan McCrary
And finally, we say goodbye to 2013 with a heartfelt thanks to the guests whose Conscious Talk helped to keep us on course toward genuine living! If you missed any of the shows you can catch up here..
Finally got the Dr. Bernie Siegel interview edited and up on YouTube. If your listening preference runs toward the ‘Tube then you can hear Bernie here:
Some talking points from the interview:
Bernie’s decision to leave his surgical practice to pursue a different kind of healing
How drawings help to expose patient problems
Why declaring “war” on a disease is not the best way to approach it
Getting nurturing modalities into mainstream medical practice
Some things that caregivers should keep in mind
The week of December 2nd saw an encore presentation of Chi For Yourself. We heard the 2012 interview with Jason Lincoln Jeffers. Jason is the author of The Next Human:A Guide to Personal and Collective Evolution. In this time of shift Jason brings us his own message for the evolution of humanity.
Click on the BlogTalkRadio logo to hear the show:
Allen Klein
Our final first-run interview for 2013 is scheduled for Thursday December 19th. Our guest will be Allen Klein, AKA “The Jollytologist”. Allen returns to Chi For Yourself with another book: Always Look on the Bright Side. We get started at 4pm Eastern, 1pm Pacific time. You’ll be able to hear the interview on Google+ Hangouts or at chiforyourself.com on the Start Page.
If you missed the interview with Kuwana Haulsey last week, you can listen to it here:
Here are some talking points from that show:
The birth of Kuwana’s daughter helped her focus her attention
Having a child helped her ask for what she wants in life
She sees kindness as a trait to pass on to her kids
The antidote to overwhelm is to let go of perfectionism
A mother’s fear for her children now and in the future
Learning compassion for yourself and others
This week’s Chi For Yourself is scheduled for Wednesday November 13th at 3pm Eastern, Noon Pacific time. Our guest will be Annemiek Douw..Join us at chiforyourself.com.
ANNEMIEK DOUW, MSc is a management coach, lightworker, medium, energetic therapist, trainer and author. Her personal experience with long-term illness combined with her own work as a healer have led her to see the soul as an internal compass that continuously guides us. She has worked with clients at many levels, with the intention of teaching them how to read this compass for themselves. Annemiek Douw is the author of 21 Layers of the Soul: Healing the Karmic Ties with Friends, Lovers, Family and Enemies.
Finally got the problems with the BlogTalkRadio/Echo Bodine post ironed out. We seem to have our challenges with BTR from time to time and if you listened to Friday’s (attempted) airing of Chi For Yourself you know what I mean. So if you didn’t get to hear Echo on BTR here’s a fresh (and corrected) version of that interview..
Here are some talking points from last week’s show with Echo Bodine:
Describes the soul as a sort of ‘personality’
Wrote the book after watching the dying process
Says we should ask the dying about their lives
What grieving is like for a psychic
She’s not afraid of what death will bring
Some very well known souls are doing well on the ‘other side’
We start out this week by saying Happy Thanksgiving to our friends in Canada!!
…and, don’t forget this week’s guest will be talking to us on Wednesday at 1pm Pacific time. You’ll be able to hear Kuwana Haulsey discussing motherhood and her book Everything I Needed To Know I Learned From My Six-Month Old when you visit the chiforyourself.com ‘Start’ page.
The scheduled guest for October 24th (Thursday) is Erica Tucci, author of Radiant Survivor: How to Shine and Thrive through Recovery from Stroke, Cancer, Abuse, Addiction and Other Life-Altering Experiences.
And I promised to tell you about a show planned for later this month- In fact, on Halloween. Our scheduled guest will be Echo Bodine. Echo is the author of What Happens When We Die: A Psychic’s Exploration of Death, Heaven, and the Soul’s Journey After Death. She’ll offer us answers to some of life’s biggest questions: Is there a heaven? Are there people who have been there and come back? Do we have souls? Can we communicate with deceased loved ones? It’ll be Echo’s second visit to Chi For Yourself and you can hear it On Thursday, October 31st at 1pm Pacific.
Echo Bodine
That’s the lineup for the rest of the month. Plan to be with us!!
If you didn’t get to hear Chi For Yourself guest Thomas Bien talking about happiness last week you can listen to the show by clicking on this player:
Before we put the happiness topic away for awhile I want to tell you about some of the guests we plan to bring to you in upcoming episodes, and healing is definitely the operative word here..
October 24th at 1pm Pacific- Erica Tucci (Radiant Survivor) talking about healing from a serious illness.
November 13th at Noon Pacific time- Annemiek Douw shares her case histories of healing.
November 21st at 1pm Pacific- Dr. Bernie Siegel returns to CFY to talk about The Art of Healing.
All the interviews are scheduled to be streamed on the Chi For Yourself home page…should there be any changes, you’ll hear about them here in GenuLines.
Now, for that one last mention of healing..and it comes from a great source!
Article:
Looking for Happiness in “All the Wrong Places”
By Marci Shimoff
I was 41 years old, stretched out on a lounge chair by my pool and reflecting on my life. I had achieved all that I thought I needed to be happy.
You see when I was a child, I imagined there were five main things that ensured a happy life: a successful career that helped people, a loving husband, a comfortable home, a great body, and a wonderful circle of friends. After years of study, hard work, and a few “lucky breaks,” I finally had them all. (Okay, so my body didn’t quite look like Halle Berry’s–four out of five isn’t bad!) You think I’d have been on the top of the world.
But surprisingly I wasn’t. I felt an emptiness inside that the outer successes of life couldn’t fill. I was also afraid that if I lost any of those things, I might be miserable. Sadly, I knew I wasn’t alone in feeling this way.
While happiness is the one thing that we all truly want, so few of us really experience a deep and lasting fulfillment that feeds our soul. Our Founding Fathers even guaranteed us the right to pursue happiness, so why aren’t we finding it?
Because we’re looking for happiness, in the words of the old country western song, in “all the wrong places.”
That week I threw myself into the study of happiness. The culmination for me was when I discovered a state I call Happy for No Reason, a neurophysiological state of inner peace and well-being that isn’t dependent on circumstances. I believe this is our essential state.
When you’re Happy for No Reason, you don’t need to manipulate the world around you to try to make yourself happy. You bring happiness to your everyday experiences rather than trying to extract happiness from them.
Most of us spend our time struggling to string together as many happy experiences as we can, like beads in a necklace, to create a happy life. We do our best to find just the right beads that will fulfill us. Being Happy for No Reason, in this analogy, is like having a happy string. No matter what beads we put on our necklace–good and not so good–our inner reality, the string that runs through them all, is happy, and we experience an unshakeable positive state inside.
So, how do we get there?
I found the answer in the lives of the 100 deeply happy people I interviewed as research for my book Happy for No Reason. The only difference between happy and unhappy people is that they have different habits. In fact, I identified 21 core happiness habits that anyone can practice to be happier.
One of the most important habits that happy people share is that they let love lead. Although they have the same fears, pain, and disappointments as the rest of us, they’re able to keep their hearts open and flowing. This is the key to making your life–and every relationship in it–successful and fulfilling.
How do you let love lead? Here are three tips to get you started:
1. Reach Out and Touch Someone. Schedule time every day to call or visit someone you love or care about. It doesn’t have to be a long call or an elaborate outing. Remember to focus on expressing your love or care for them, rather than looking for them to fill you up.
Taking the time to connect with someone from the level of your heart has been shown to make the actual rhythms of your heartbeat coherent, which is correlated with increased calmness, strengthened immune system functioning, normalized blood pressure, and improved general well-being. For some people, a much-loved pet can be a great heart connection. What’s important is focusing on the bond you feel radiating from within you that links you to the special beings in your life.
2. Spread Lovingkindness. One way to power up your heart’s flow is by sending loving kindness to your friends and family, as well as strangers you pass on the street. Next time you’re waiting for the elevator at work, stuck in a line at the store, or caught up in traffic, send a silent wish to the people you see for their happiness, well-being, and health. Simply wishing others well switches on the “pump” in your own heart that generates love and creates a strong current of happiness.
3. Hang with the Happy. We catch the emotions of those around us just like we catch their colds–it’s called emotional contagion. So it’s important to make wise choices about the company you keep. Create appropriate boundaries with emotional bullies and “happiness vampires” who suck the life out of you. Develop your happiness “dream team”–a mastermind or support group you meet with regularly to keep you steady on the path of raising your happiness.
“Happily ever after” isn’t just for fairytales or for only the lucky few. Imagine experiencing inner peace and well-being as the backdrop for everything else in your life. When you’re Happy for No Reason, it’s not that your life and your relationships always look perfect–it’s that however they look, you’ll still be happy!
Author’s Bio:
By Marci Shimoff. Based on the New York Times bestseller Happy for No Reason: 7 Steps to Being Happy from the Inside Out, which offers a revolutionary approach to experiencing deep and lasting happiness. The woman’s face of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series and a featured teacher in The Secret, Marci is an authority on success, happiness, and the law of attraction. To order Happy for No Reason, newly released in paperback, and receive free bonus gifts, go to http://www.happyfornoreason.com/mybook
Overheard
“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Before we get to this week’s article I want to remind you of this week’s Chi For Yourself guest…
Boys are quickly falling behind girls in school, starting as early as the second grade. Academic research gathered in May 2012 revealed that student populations in U.S. colleges today are only 40% male, due in large part to poor grades earned throughout middle and high school (featured onGreatSchools.org). We will be talking to Cynthia Gill. She’s the co-author of Jump-Starting Boys: Help Your Reluctant Learner Find Success in School and Life.
Cynthia Gill
Cynthia joins us on Thursday, August 22nd at 1pm Pacific Time. Again we plan to stream the interview via Google + Hangouts. You’ll see the screen on Thursday on the “Start” page of chiforyourself.com.
(Article)
Down But Not Out: Feel the Feelings and Keep Going
During a recent period of feeling kind of “blue” I was reminded of the waves of emotions that can roll through our lives un-anounced. These can range from the down days just mentioned to the darker depression-like moods. I dealt with those heavy feelings earlier in my life. I referred to those as “situational” since there were some troubling issues that had to be faced. When I ran a search on the definition of emotions I found : A natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others. Definition 2 read: Any of the particular feelings that characterize such a state of mind, such as joy, anger, love, hate, horror, etc. The key word in the first example is ‘natural’.
Your first reaction might be to turn your feelings away. You might push the feelings down, put them on hold until later, or use distractions to get your mind off of things. You can deny them or indulge in them (often called wallowing). And there’s a cliche to match every situation- ‘I don’t have time to think about that now’, ‘It’s always something’, or ‘I’ll take care of it later.’ But what you’re feeling is neither positive nor negative. It’s all part of being human.
If your choice is not to experience intense feelings they could become embedded in your physical body. When they set up shop deep inside you they can have an effect on the way you look at the world. The worst case scenario is that they can be so troubling as to cause illness. This is a good time to monitor your thinking, too. One of my very favorite figures in the Human Development field is Louise Hay. She puts it this way, “The thoughts we choose to think are the tools we use to paint the canvas of our lives.”
You can bring out the feelings, front and center, to experience them in a safe and enriching way. When I feel the need to do this I pretty much drop whatever was planned for the day, if possible, and get to the feeling place. You may have a more demanding schedule, so how about a date- with yourself? Pick a safe, secure, and comfortable place along with a time when you can be alone. Start by remembering the circumstances that touched off the emotions you’ve been putting off. When you’ve stirred up the emotions let yourself FEEL them. Don’t block them. Cry if you feel like it. Let any thoughts that come up come through. And be gentle with yourself. This is not a good place to judge what’s happening.
Recognizing your emotions instead of pushing them away helps you stay emotionally healthy and goes a long way toward truly conscious living.
Well, there we were- all dressed up and nowhere to go! Thursday’s planned interview stream with Cynthia Gill did not come off as scheduled, apparently due to some scheduling confusion. So, I’ve put in the request to Cynthia’s publisher to re-schedule, preferably in mid or late August. Cynthia is the co-author of Jump Starting Boys. The book gives parents a thorough look into possible reasons why their lads are struggling in school. She includes case histories, take-action checklists, and helpful tips.
On this week’s Chi For Yourselfyou’ll hear the interview with Brad Warner, Zen monk and author of There is No God and He is Always With You. During our discussion we touched on the God-or-no God question and a number of others. The show will air onBlogTalkRadio.com on Friday, August 9th at 1pm Eastern, 10am Pacific.
Ponderous, man! Consider this from speakingtree.in-
The breath, the body, the name, all the forms and shapes in the universe, “It’s all the same like branches of a tree just as one goes deeper and deeper one becomes aware of the fact that the self is consciousness and diversity is a mere mirage. The one who realizes the consciousness is the true self he shall be free from experiencing the mirage as reality..Read the article.
and on a related note, from the New Indian Express:
This whole world reveals the true consciousness within, like the waves rising in the ocean. Knowing that you are this essence, without a doubt, be that form of consciousness without any quivering attachment to the world of movement, names and forms. Read the article…
Tony Burroughs reminded us that we can design our day, not to mention our lives. Manifesting is his thing, and it can be yours, too. This week a guest offering from Alan Charter and his own thoughts on getting what you want for your life..
How To Let All The Prosperity You Want Come Into Your Life
by Alan Charter
In this article you will find solid self-help advice to assist you in working through your problems and attaining the level of success that you desire. The techniques presented here will train you to hone in on potential problems before they get out of hand and negatively impact your life. The tips are simple yet effective.
To achieve successful personal development you need to do more than just set goals. You should visualize them, too. How will it feel when you achieve them? What will the experience be like? This visualization process will motivate you by making your goals seem more tangible. It is also a process you can repeat as often as needed to restore your enthusiasm.
When suffering from a lack of confidence, you should try to engage in physical exercise or a type of sport on a regular basis. Not only will this improve your body shape and therefore your confidence in your looks, exercise releases endorphins which stimulate the mind and body to a natural high.
Always try to present yourself in a positive light. While you should not worry so much about what someone thinks of you, if you need to promote yourself, you do have to be understood. Just do well to be yourself so that you don’t paint a false persona for people just to get their business.
Remember that regardless of the few or the many things you are wishing to improve yourself and your life, you have natural talents that others do not. Capitalize on these talents and abilities as they can bring you to new level or even act as a stepping stone for a new career path or business venture.
Celebrate your successes as you work through your personal development plan to keep you engaged and excited about the process. Do not focus so much on the end result that you fail to recognize the steps you take to get there. Personal development and growth can sometimes be difficult, and acknowledging the small successes along the way keeps you motivated.
One key tip to self-help success is to start by choosing small goals. Whatever part of your life you are trying to improve, it will be much harder if you try and tackle the problem head on. Rather, start setting up small goals you can easily achieve, and this will motivate you to continue on.
Keep flashcards in your pocket! Yes, flashcards are an old fashioned approach to learning but they are also a proven approach. Make miniature flashcards in the desired subject matter and pull them out when you are waiting at the doctor’s office, riding the subway or in any other situation where you have time on your hands.
This article offered advice with respect to seeking Self-help . Many people, for many different reasons at different points in their lives seek help. Each situation and solution to each problem is different. By reading this article you will have the information to get the help that you need when you need it.
About the Author:
Grab this free video of strategy training to learn how to eliminate self-limiting beliefs and understand the secrets of prosperity consciousness. Only limited seats are available. Check this out for more useful information on how to make your dreams reality.
Well, if you were watching on Thursday you saw NO interview with Zen author Brad Warner. I wasn’t able to reach him, but I’ve asked his publicist to re-schedule us for another time.
Meanwhile, the Karuna Cayton interview on Buddhist Psychology is subbing for Brad Warner this week. I think of Karuna as my Buddhist ‘pinch-hitter’. Listen to that show here:
(click on this logo)
Tony Burroughs
We’re scheduled to hear from Tony Burroughs on July 25th. Tony is the author of Get What You Want:The Art of Making and Manifesting Your Intentions.
…and I’m expecting a definite August date for our interview with Cynthia Gill.
Cynthia Gill
She and Pam Withers are the co-authors of Jump-Starting Boys: Help Your Reluctant Learner Find Success in School and Life. She talk about findings that boys are quickly falling behind girls in school, starting as early as the second grade.
Article
Today a look at finding peace..big job but somebody’s got to do it. That somebody can be you says guest blogger Connie Sears:
Some Tips About How To Find Peace
by Connie Sears
When one is not at peace with oneself, one will not be able to live life to the fullest. Consider what happens when you cannot concentrate on what you are doing or if you are always unhappy. This can have a profound effect on the quality of your life. It will be helpful to learn tips about how to find peace.
One of the simplest things you can do to promote such a feeling is to get rid of clutter. This can be pretty hard to do given the many tasks that have to be accomplished in a day. You must remember however that your home is your refuge from the outside world. Going to a clean and clutter free house will be a relief after a long day at work.
The surest way to achieve happiness and tranquility would be to figure out what you love and do it. Do not be afraid to go out there and explore. Be open to new experiences as this can give you valuable insights about yourself, other people, and the world. Hopefully, you can discover what you can do for the rest of your life.
One should be true to oneself. If you live to please all the people around you, then you will just be making yourself unhappy. Choose your own path but at the same time show some concern for social norms. Find that balance between making your own decisions and maintaining a healthy relationship with your friends and family.
The right attitude toward life in general is also a factor. When you think about it, you will have good and bad experiences. A lot of people take it very hard when something bad happens to them. It is important to remember that these things can happen. Accepting the duality of life will help you move forward.
It helps to look for ways to improve oneself. One way of doing so would be to identify your bad habits and to be willing enough to do something about it. You do not have to instantly change something. Take little steps. If you want to be more fit for example, start by taking a walk in the neighborhood instead of engaging yourself in an intense full body workout immediately.
Life can be very stressful so it is important to take breaks along the way. If you are at work, set aside some time for sipping on your beverage and relaxing. Time away from the computer should help refresh your mind. You can practice meditation or take up a new sport during your leisure time.
One must also remember to have positive thoughts. It is very easy to get stuck on the criticisms you have heard but mulling over this is useless. These will only serve to prolong the agony. When you find yourself remembering such experiences, start thinking about things that have made you happy.
The question of how to find peace is a question that has plagued many individuals. It is difficult to achieve a goal or feel happiness when you do not feel good about yourself. If you want tranquility, then you have to take steps to improve yourself and address all your needs.
About the Author:
Read more about Pointers About How To Find Peace visiting our website.
The Chi For Yourself guest this week is Jennifer Louden, author of The Life Organizer. Jennifer is a personal growth pioneer who helped launch the self-care movement. She’s written five books on well-being and whole living, a national magazine column, and she can say that she sat on Oprah’s couch.
I just returned from Central America. I’m considering moving to a home outside my native United States. I am grateful to be able to make surch a trip, and for the reasons I made it. Doing print and audio/video related work allows a person to live just about anywhere in the world while doing the things he or she feels inspired to do. One of the areas of my life where the small “inner voice” becomes my navigator is the type of work I do. I’ve felt this way since I was a small boy, but I’ve learned that what I do and who I am are two distinctly different things. I would advise anyone to make that important separation. And I’ve also felt the satisfaction of knowing that what I’m doing is what I must do- kind of taking a page from Maslow’s idea of Self Actualization.
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