Saturday, December 12, 2009

The Blurred Lines on the Road Less Travelled

Driving in the recent snow, at night, the usual road marks that help us “stay between the lines” were obscured and it wasn’t clear exactly where I should be driving. It required trusting my instincts and forging new paths in the snow. Approaching stops with extra caution so I could stop without sliding, having enough momentum in order to have traction going up the icy hill without losing control. Even the most familiar areas, that I travel daily, had taken on an unfamiliar look and feel, transformed under a blanket of snow. I was struck with how much it reminds me of the blurred lines that occur in life at times, where you have to take a leap of faith into the unknown, while still exercising good judgment, in order to blaze new trails. I communicated to my children some of the precautions I was taking as we went so that they could learn from the experience while at the same time I had to exude a semblance of confidence that we would arrive at our destination safely even though we might be taking the road less travelled. :)

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

A Special Moment in Time That I Cherish

Several years ago when I lived in the Bay area, I was at a fast food restaurant in line to order food where there was a homeless man in line and everyone was keeping a wide berth around him because he was talking to himself and acting strange. I remember feeling slightly alarmed, because my young children were with me, but kept my place in line. He ordered his coffee and went and sat down at a table next to the entrance door. When I ordered, I got an extra meal to give him. I went over to him and as I put the food on the table, I touched his hand and said "this is for you" and he accepted. I sat at the table on the opposite side of the door but couldn't see him because there was a tall trash can between us. I remember vividly how he looked when he raised up in his chair and I saw him peek just over the top of the trash can, his hair was long and wild looking and he flashed me the most beautiful, toothless grin I've ever seen in my life, but more than anything, the steel blue color of his eyes has always stayed with me. I remember feeling like God had just gazed upon me through those eyes, the feeling was overwhelming.

After that day, I searched for him on many occasions and after some time had gone by, I finally caught up with him at nearby shopping center. I asked him if I could buy him lunch and we ended up having something from the ice cream shop (his choice) and talked a little. I found out that he liked going into a gift shop at the shopping center so I went there later and the shop owner said she was familiar with him, so I left some money with her and asked her to let him pick something out the next time he came in. At a later date when I checked back, she said he had picked a "King Frog" ceramic item that he liked. I found this kind of bizarre and touching at the same time, to think of him in that foo-foo store picking out his King Frog. I have an adorable metal King Frog of my own that ironically reminds me of the day that I felt like I was looking into the eyes of God. Although he will never know how special of an experience it was for me to have met him, I cherish it and will never forget it.

Friday, November 20, 2009

“He who spends time adorning himself knows he is going to a dance”. ~Kenyan Saying

Preparation is the key to securing your future. Are you adorning yourself? You should be, because there’s a dance awaiting you. The dance is the future that you were destined to live. Start adorning yourself. Invest in personal growth. Read books that will prepare you for the future. Develop yourself into the kind of person who will shine on the dance floor when destiny finally says, “Here’s your chance”. Get ready! The quality of dance you expect in your future determines the amount of adorning you will do today. Raise your expectations. You shouldn’t be expecting to go to some mediocre dance. Your goal should be to dance in the most sophisticated dances reserved for the ones who have invested heavily in themselves.
~Herman Najoli “How to Make Your Mark”

Monday, September 28, 2009

"My 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse"

Fall is my favorite season! I akin the seasons to life's cycle and considering I'm in the second half of my 40's, I would venture to say that I am living in what is the Fall season of my life. I want to experience it with the same wonder and zeal that I feel from it's crisp,cool breeze and it's beauty unfolding before my eyes.

I was told by Debbie Ford, author of The 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse: A Breakthrough Program for Connecting with Your Soul's Deepest Purpose
that things are "Never a coincidence.... We're always in sync with the universe..." so, I find the timing of her book perfect for where I am in my journey in life.

According to Debbie, "the Consciousness Cleanse is designed to purify your mind and emotions, bringing you enormous amounts of strength, confidence, and deep inner peace." I am ready to open my heart, mind and soul to these possibilities. In preparation for my consciousness cleanse, I have read the first section of Debbie's book, which is "A Breakthrough Program for Connecting with Your Soul's Deepest Purpose." I have been reflecting on The Promise, The Process, The Preparation, The Practice and the Cleansing Tools that she outlines for the days ahead.

One of the most poignant statements that resonated with me from the first section of The 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse was that "Mediocricity in any area of your life is no longer an option, because either your pain is too great or your desire for having it all is too compelling."

Saturday, September 19, 2009

MY GOALS - Short and Long Term

SHORT TERM GOALS:
Incorporate “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”
~Steven Covey


“The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen”. ~Frank Lloyd Wright

Be Proactive - Assess situation and make it work. Problem Solve

“Just Do It!” ~Nike Running Shoes Advertisement

Work around Obstacles. Ask for help. Choose to “Act” instead of “React”

Begin with the End in Mind - Visualize where you want to be. Think of the “Vision” - Creative Visualization

“He who spends time adorning himself knows he is going to a dance”. ~Kenyan Saying

Preparation is the key to securing your future. Are you adorning yourself? You should be, because there’s a dance awaiting you. The dance is the future that you were destined to live. Start adorning yourself. Invest in personal growth. Read books that will prepare you for the future. Develop yourself into the kind of person who will shine on the dance floor when destiny finally says, “Here’s your chance”. Get ready! The quality of dance you expect in your future determines the amount of adorning you will do today. Raise your expectations. You shouldn’t be expecting to go to some mediocre dance. Your goal should be to dance in the most sophisticated dances reserved for the ones who have invested heavily in themselves.
~Herman Najoli “How to Make Your Mark”

“If you’re going to be thinking, you may as well think big”. ~Donald Trump

Put First Things First – Prioritize, Organize, Discipline

“Are You a Wandering Generality or a Meaningful Specific?”~ Zig Ziglar

Put a goal-oriented purpose and focus to my personal, professional and business life. Identify goals, obstacles, resources and support groups. Make choices based on my priorities.

Relentless Dedication - In order to become a meaningful specific, you must be relentlessly dedicated to making your dream come true. What are you doing on a daily basis that is adding value to your ability to fully become who you were born to be? Are you being true to the voice within you that is calling you to perform at your optimum level?
~Herman Najoli “How to Make Your Mark”

Steady Focus - Steady Focus comes from always having your vision right in front of you. Think about why you have immense success driving every day - the windshield is right in front of you and you are always looking out through it! It’s the same thing with your dream. You must keep it right in front of you. There are many ways that you can do this. Write it down and recite it throughout the day. Design your environment to remind you of your vision every day.
~Herman Najoli “How to Make Your Mark

Think Win/Win and Seek First to Understand and Then to be Understood - Both people benefit

NAMASTE’ – The Divine in me recognizes and honors the Divine in you and in that recognition lies the place where you and I are ONE.

Synergize - Synchronized Rhythm – Ebb and Flow

Flow is the natural, effortless unfolding of our life in a way that moves us toward wholeness and harmony. Things fall into place, obstacles melt away, and whatever is necessary—money, times, work, people, opportunities—appears as needed.
~The Power of Flow: Practical Ways to Transform Your Life With Meaningful Coincidence by Charlene Belitz and Meg Lundstrom

“As individuals, we have control over the frequency of our energy through our thoughts and feelings. If we predominantly focus on good thoughts and feelings, the law of attraction will match those “like” energies to us. We will attract people, circumstances, and events into our lives that will bring positive experiences to us, and we will not be attracted to negative events”. ~The Secret

LONG TERM GOALS:

“Sharpen the Saw”

Eat Well, Exercise, Sleep, Take Care of Yourself, Take Care of your Body, Do Your Personal Best

Reduce Intake of Caffeine, Refined Sugar, Alcohol, and Processed Foods

Stay away from industrially processed food products and food with trans fats and hydrogenated fats. Eating a combination of lean protein and complex carbohydrates will give you the energy you need.

Eat Several Small Meals a Day

By eating more frequently you are then increasing your metabolism, which helps fuel the only thing in your body that can actually drive burning fat in calories.

Portion Control

You don’t have to count calories in this diet, but it is important to get your body familiar with portion control. “Don’t eat until you’re stuffed. Eat until you’re satisfied,”

Drink More Water

Don’t wait until you are thirsty to drink water. If you are drinking enough, you should never get thirsty. Schedule your hydration into your day if you must–and without enough water, your body will not lose weight as quickly as you want.

Boost your Metabolism With Exercise

There is no better way to increase your calorie burning than to gain lean muscle. A pound of muscle burns approximately 50 calories a day, while a pound of fat burns approximately two calories per day–you do the math. Incorporate three, 30-minute strength-training workouts a week.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Twitter That!

The benefits of being on Twitter have been many for me. From a socializing aspect, I have connected with and met many quality individuals both in and out of my local community. They include professionals, professors, artists and other mom's with whom I have things in common. I have become friends with several of my "Twitter Buddies" both on and offline. For a stay at home mom, it has been a wonderful way to socialize and stay on top of what is going on.

A local Twitter user posted about a lost Kindle that was left in a local park. He had the name of the person that it was registered to but was unable to locate contact information for them. The person that lost the Kindle had a name that was not very common, so by using search engines online I was able to find a phone number and address for her in Anchorage, AK. I left a message about finding the Kindle and received a call from her enabling me to put her in touch with the good samaritan that posted about it on Twitter. After a couple of Tweets (Posts) & DMs (Direct Messages) the owner had her Kindle back in her posession. :)

When I first started using Twitter, my family liked teasing me. They don't poke fun at me so much any more since I have won a variety of prizes, ie: water park tickets with cabana, concert and ball game tickets from local tv, radio stations and casinos. I've also won gaming accesories and gift certificates. When tickets were sold out for the Aces game in Reno on the 4th of July, I jokingly posted that I was looking for 12 tickets if anyone had some to spare. Within minutes, I was given the information of a local business that had some general admission tickets left to sell. My family got to enjoy the game and see the fireworks that night thanks to that kind of involvement.

Twitter has been a great way of communicating about everything from deals and events going on to sharing news from power outages and "traffic jams" to avoid. :) An Amber alert that was posted recently spread like wildfire. Luckily, it turned out to be a hoax and no child was in jeopardy, but had it been real, Twitter was an instant way of getting the word out.

There are many new to the Twitter community that post things like: "trying to figure this out" or "I don't get it." You can create any kind of experience that you want on Twitter based on what your interest are and who you follow. You have access to users who you can relate to and who specialize in many areas right at your fingertips!

Monday, June 8, 2009

Eat That Frog!

Meet my froggie. I keep him on my desk as a visual reminder of the lessons I learned reading "Eat That Frog!" by Brian Tracy. If the number of highlighting and underlining I made in this book is any indicator, I LOVED it and found it's messages to be applicable in all aspects of life. I have been recommending it to everyone I know. It is a fast read that you will find hard to put down!




Brian Tracy is a leading authority on the development of human potential and personal effectiveness. Among other titles, Brian is also author of:

Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time .

Excerpt from the Introduction:

The Truth about Frogs

Mark Twain once said that if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog, you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that it's the worst thing that is going to happen to you all day long.

Your "frog" is your biggest, most important task, the one you are most likely to procrastinate on if you don't do something about it. It is also the one task that can have the greatest positive impact on your life and results at the moment. Think of this as a test. Treat it like a personal challenge, and resist the temptation to start with the easier task. If you eat it first, it'll give you energy and momentum for the rest of the day.