Balancing Time

Living is so much fun with all the vast possibilities it allows us.  In one day, you could learn about modern art, learn how to make exotic drinks fit for mini umbrellas, sign up for a Mandarin language class, and experiment with a new sake and Sapporo combination.  And during the slow times, you can dream about having a show on the Travel Channel, plan your next book, and research zip lining in your next tropical destination.  Yet when is your mind just too full to consider any more possibilities? My mind?  Full all the time with all the things I’d love to do.

Sometimes we have to consider how much extra time there is in our day and make decisions as to what is most important to us.  For despite all the beautiful opportunities presented to us, there’s still only so much our minds can handle.   What happens is that when we make too many plans, nothing gets done. Because although we start our new projects with verve and vigor, often we realize that all of those other things we’ve started before haven’t been finished yet–and now we’re overloaded with tasks that seem like chores.

So despite all of the wonderful stuff we can learn and do, start one and finish it so you can add another accomplishment to your list.  After all, there will always be something else to start.

Is the Media Manifesting Our Future?

As much as I love to watch Anderson Cooper, I can’t bear to hear him lament on the economy.  I’m not singling him out, but rather the material he and other anchors deliver in gut-wrenching, spirit-melting droves:

Forty-eight states and the District of Columbia post unemployment rates rise in May, while only one state – Nebraska – registers a decrease.

Property crime rates rise in state

Skeleton of Caylee Anthony had tape over mouth, report says

How is the Law of Attraction affected by the inundation of this endless negative news?

Since the Law of Attraction implies that what we visualize, feel and desire will be manifested in our physical world, it’s just possible that:  the more this information remains in the forefront of our consciousness; is the subject of our conversations around coffee; and is overheard and absorbed by our children, the more of it we’ll continue to see.  If the Universe delivers more of the same, then we are sure to experience more of the negativity presented to us by the media.

I’m not suggesting that you should avoid watching television, reading the paper or listening to radio news, but when is enough enough?  The media itself is not to blame, for in their eyes they are only delivering what we ask for.  But what if we asked for the good stuff?  What if the happy stuff was delivered at the beginning of a newscast, much as a performance review is delivered by our bosses?

“I really think you’ve made some great improvements in your efficiency, Kimberly, and your attendance record is impeccable.  You work with integrity and it is obvious you strive to learn.”

and then…

“There are a few areas on which you may consider spending a little time.  For instance, your reports contain typos that a quick spell check could prevent, and perhaps your tone of voice on the phone could be a little softer to those in need.”

The POSITIVE, and then the NEGATIVE.

Could we see Anderson try this?

“Today marked a great improvement in the reduction of polluted water in South Africa thanks to the concerted efforts of the country’s major mining companies, who are adopting practices that reduce mining-related runoff into the country’s waterways.  Further work is still required to provide safe drinking water for the country’s 44 million residents.”

I don’t know about you, but I would be much more willing to donate time or money if I felt it would actually make a difference in continuing the upswing of improvement.

I have no idea how to put this into motion, so if you know Anderson, please send him my way.

Do you really deserve that?

Manifesting things is great fun, and it becomes easier with practice. Many of the things we’d like to manifest are intended to replace something we already have–something we whine or complain about and wish we could improve upon. The beauty of it all is that we receive what we THINK about and FEEL. Let me break that last statement down into parts using an example. Suppose we’d like a new car:

We THINK about the car. Maybe it’s a Lexus, a sage green IS250 with caramel colored leather interior. We can formulate the thought of the car, based on those we’ve seen sitting next to us at a red light, or at the dealership when we visited last Saturday. This part is easy.Do you really deserve that?

The second half of manifestation is the FEELING part. We can see ourselves behind the wheel, adjusting the seat, popping in a CD and turning up the tunes. Our hearts beat faster, the excitement builds, and we say to ourselves that we REALLY want this car.

But do we really deserve to have it?

It’s nice to have beautiful things, and for some, driving a coveted and dependable vehicle would be a great improvement to what they have now. But what if your car is just fine? What if the payments fit your budget, repairs are at a minimum, and it shows no signs of deterioration? OK, it may not be shiny, it may have key scratches on it and a few door dings. Have you appreciated your present car for what it’s given you all these years? Or do you find yourself complaining that it’s old, ugly and out of style?

Learning to appreciate what we have is paramount to getting more of it.

So next time you start the manifestation process, ask yourself “Do I really deserve that?” If so, then donate your old car, with blessings, to those who will appreciate it for what it is. The thanks you give will open the door to acceptance for the newer, shinier model.

Right back ‘atcha

This week I realized that the old adage “You reap what you sow” is another result of manifestation.  Now, I would like to report about something good that I did that came back at me, but no such luck.

It all started with a rotten day and my taking my frustration out on a innocent co worker who was simply reporting a drawn-out version of “no.”  She couldn’t do what I wanted, and so I lashed out and walloped her with insults;  she was not the cause of the system’s incompetence, but only the messenger.

I later apologized to her for my rude retorts, but only after I was caught with the help of a recorded call monitored by the quality assurance department, which happens to include my boss.

The next day, I mistakenly sent a customer to a wrong department, and was sent a nasty email from a member on the receiving end of my customer’s distressed email.  She admonished me for not being supportive of my customer, for dumping him on a department that could not address his problem.

She basically ripped me a new one, and rather than respond with something snotty and irrelevant to the situation, I took the email as an indication of what I’d manifested for myself:  just what I sent out.

The lesson:  what you send out with feeling–no matter whether it’s a good feeling or a bad, misdirected one–will come back to mess with you.  And then you know how it feels on the receiving end.

Crossing another Goal off of my List

If anyone can say that manifestation works, here I am on the soapbox again.

My first book is finally published.

Completing a book in 30 days was the goal, and it was #8 of about 16 goals on my list. Those who were dubious about the quality of a book that was written in such a short time should comment only AFTER they read the book! For when I went over the final galleys, it was plain to me that I did not write this from my conscious mind. In fact, I must say that I really don’t remember much of the thought processes involved in the writing of it, yet I knew that my fingers were typing, I printed it out, and no one else was there to help me!

How was it done? The same simple steps:

I wrote down my goal.
I stared at it a while.
I closed my eyes and I saw it as FINISHED.
I felt proud, content, satisfied that I had finished what I had started.
I told all my friends that my book would soon be published.

And then I moved on with life.

It didn’t take too long to get the inquiry: “Would you be interested in writing a companion book for Neale Donald Walsch?” It seems that people are so influenced by his writings, and they asked for assistance in the application of the theories taught there.

I chose Home with God: In a Life That Never Ends, because I had dealt with so much loss in the past few years. Home with God addresses what occurs after our physical death. Whether or not you are religious or not, spiritual or not, afraid or not, the book will change your life in some way.

Check it out here, and let me know what you think. Love to all!