No… this is not some kind of silly love story   Far from it, as you may have read in some of my previous posts I am always trying to find ways to improve the way we do things and live our every day life. Why? well that’s simple, to get a more fulfilling and enjoyable life.

The other day I was watching an interview with Susan Boyle. It was really great to see her rise from the auditions of Britain’s got talent to the successful star she is today. Despite her achievements she still appears to be the same Susan she was before her major breakthrough. It turned out that she had already been singing and doing auditions for the past 23 years or so. She believed in her own abilities, and knew somehow she would get her chance to shine someday. I believe that her persistence was fed by her passion for singing. Because singing is her passion and she loves it so much. She did it with all her heart, literally “putting her heart into it.”

The headline suggests to use your heart, but it’s not just that simple. There is more to it. It’s also about not sacrificing or maybe I should say compromising yourself. Be true to yourself at all times and under all conditions.

“Put your heart, mind and soul into even your smallest acts. This is the secret of success.” ~Swami Sivananda

Stop slaving yourself for people that don’t care about you. It also means to be wholehearted and do things well. We all know it may take only a little bit longer if we do things right. If we just don’t make it look like what we do is only a routine, but give it some extra effort. Working with good spirits also makes us feel good about our job or achievement once we are finished.

Sometimes we also have to look beyond our own personality. Nowadays we are often very self centered. But if we take interest in others and show some concern and love, it can be possible that we evoke a similar kind of spirit in others. It may not work every time, but one day we may achieve the full circle and we made life  a little bit better then it used to be.  I am looking forward to speak to you soon again.

Photo Credit : Lightning Teeth

“A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are.”

To accept yourself for who you are can be a big issue, and for some quiet a challenge to achieve. I have been stretching myself to great lengths in order  to get accepted  and understood by certain people, but overlooked to accept myself first. I believe accepting yourself works  like the very same principle that says that to love someone you have to love yourself first. I mean it’s quiet clear, how can you love someone else if you don’t love yourself first!

I realized that life is much easier and more comfortable when I stop explaining myself if I feel people misunderstand me. I mean does it matter why I do what I do… whenever? I think it doesn’t because society tends to be very self centered. Most people, not all I have been speaking to for the last year or so only care about their own well being. So instead of spending time on things that are not so essential to yourself  it’s better to realize where you stand and move on.

Life is to short to waste on  matters that are obsolete to us. Time we can use much better for things that DO matter to us. Things that make us feel good instead of miserable.

As we know standing still is going backward,  Our direction and aim should be “forward, as occasion offers. Never look round to see whether any shall note it… Be satisfied with success in even the smallest matter, and think that even such a result is no trifle. “~Marcus Aurelius

I am looking forward to speak to you soon again.

Photo Credit: evinoryan88

First of all I would like to wish all the readers of this blog a Sparkling & Prosperous New Year.

Looking back on the past year I realize one thing… I want change! Normally we assume change is meant to  make things better, but change can be manifested in many forms. It can be a good change, or a change for the worse!  There is many things in our lives we can change, some alterations that are made can be temporarily, but some may be irreversible. Therefore it’s good to know the consequence of a change before it’s made.

Anyway….

The other day I was thinking about vows, and about making vows, but I instantly realized that vows didn’t bring me any further. It only gave me bad feelings when I broke them.

The changes I want to make are not that dramatic. I want to just do some things different. It’s like fine tuning my own actions in order to get better results. In a way that I know I have more control, and thus create more certainty that I am on the right track. I have tried many things, but if for example I make a goal sheet and I only look at that sheet the next time I think and start to update it, I know something is not right. I know I have to do things different! The goal sheet was there but it had no function. I have to do something instead that aligns with things I do in my every day life.

I know that if I change and do things different, I will certainly get different results. My goals stay the same, but my methods of achieving will change just a little bit.

Photo Credit: flightlessxbird

On my daily strolls across the digital boulevards I see an increase of people stating they are ’‘Living The Life’‘. First of all that’s great for them, but it’s also interesting. It’s interesting because if everyone would have some sort of a purpose in life, everyone could be living the life!

I say it like this because on a daily basis we all meet people from all walks of life, and the majority of them are definitely not living the life. Many work 40 or more hours per week to make a living or simply to survive. That said, that’s all they do and sometimes all they will ever do! Oftentimes they are also doing their jobs with a healthy dislike. Think about it… their misery already starts when they go out the door on the way to work. All the time thinking about another day ahead of them to do things they don’t like. The sad part and salt on the wound is that they wil be spending a big part of their total life doing things they don’t like!

A couple of weeks ago I spoke to a woman that had to work long hours every week in healthcare for the elderly. She stated that she don’t like what she does, but said she had no choice because first she needed the money and second she didn’t have the appropriate education to go out and do what she really likes.

I asked her what kind of job  she would really want to do. She said that she really wanted to work as a sales representative in a ladies clothing boutique. I told her that if she really wanted to do this and would do what it would take to accomplish this, it wouldn’t have to be something that would be impossible to do.  She said that she thought it be impossible to do this, and it’s not good to dream and stand with both legs on the ground etc… Well at some point I rested my case because it was clear I couldn’t change her mindset. Only she could do that!

‘This is only one example, but it’s clear that if someone is not prepared to change the mindset nothing will ever change. Because of this always be stuck in the same sort of trap, unhappy, denying themselves a better and more fulfilling lifestyle. If the desire is visualized maybe 50% of the job is already done.

The other day I read an interesting quote by Henry Ford, he said: ’If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.’ It says  life is full of opportunities, we just have to be willing to grab them. To be Living the Life or not is basically our own choice and in our own hands.

Photo Credit:  Jef Aerosol

A friend is, as it were, a second self. ~ Cicero

You know… It’s not that often that you meet someone that you want to be a friend of or that you can call a friend. I was fortunate enough to have met a new friend just a couple of months ago. I remember that it all began  with a  simple follow on twitter.

It’s funny to realize that nowadays we have  all sorts of media to communicate with, and we use it  as if it’s the most normal thing in the world. It is also amazing that because of this, one can make friends from around the world even though you have never met in person.

Anyway, I  digress…

In a relative short period of time I learned a lot from my  friend. I looked up against him and noticed traits in him that I would have liked to have myself. Now that I write this I realize that what I saw was someone with all the characteristics and qualities of a natural LEADER…

So what happened is that I wanted to be like him, and I thought I could do this by doing certain things more or less the same as he did. Kind a like the way they teach you in marketing businesses. I quickly learned though that many things can be copied, but leadership in a certain field is definitely not one of them. I mean for a part it can be learned by skill, but another part is that a stronger leader has natural leadership traits combined with skills! It is natural!

After some talk ‘n thinking my eyes are opened now. I was already going in the right direction, and didn’t need to wander off my path to find the greener grass elsewhere. I will be persistent and keep going with discipline. The positive feedback I get all the time is a good reference that I am doing things right.

When I say that I just be myself it may sound simple, but it doesn’t take much to  imagine that for some this so called simple thing  can be a real challenge.

Woohoo,  I digress again…

At first I had to write it down, but now my  game plan is forming itself. I no longer have to jot it down because it is always with me now in the form of my mindset. I can recommend everyone that is in need of directions to ask a friend or find a mentor whom can help you point out or lead the way. It is really strong.

To my friend I like to say ‘Thank You’. It may seem insignificant and a natural thing to do, but your motivational talks and examples have helped me incredibly.

Photo Credit : Springstone

It must be a week or so that I have this Beatles-song on my mind. Because of that the connection to writing this post was an easy one. I mean, when you think of it, the sun is always associated with positive things. If you have been following this blog you know that most of my posts are more or less  about the good sides of life, the ‘celebration of life’.

Almost every morning for the past three years I have been picking up tarot cards. In a reading I do for myself I ask what the day holds in store for me and I pick up 2 cards. When I first saw someone do a card-reading I was having doubts and I was very skeptical. Now after 3+years I have to say how surprisingly accurate a reading can be.

Early this morning at 2 a.m. just before I went to work, just like every other day I picked up 2 cards. First I picked up the ace of swords and after that I picked up the sun. I don’t know, but when I pick up a card like the sun I know something positive is going to happen. I can say this because of experiences of the past.

As I was driving through the countryside this morning a hare ran into my car and got killed. I’m not sure but I think that this may have been representing the ace of swords.

This afternoon I went out for my weekly jogging work-out. I started jogging about a month ago, but until now it was hard. I could only walk a couple of hundred meters before I got out of breath. Until today I had short 20 minute exercises in which I would switch between running and walking.

I had some advice from someone in my village who is a more advanced jogger, and so as I started running I kept my pace in check. After a couple of hundred meters my body started to protest and wanted a break. But I didn’t stop and kept going. The result is that I ran 40 minutes nonstop. When I came home I felt a certain pride that I had been able to do this. Now I am very excited that I proved myself I had the persistence to do this, and I want more.

Now you might be thinking ‘big deal’ millions of people around the world are jogging or running. To me however it is another milestone in my life, because around 5 years ago I was a heavy smoking couch potato. I quit smoking for some years now, and changed to a more healthy diet. I start to feel better every week, I can not imagine to be a smoker again and I am also getting in better shape.

If I can do this everyone can do this. All it requires is a little bit of discipline and persistence. This is just one example I wanted to share with you. But actually it can be replaced with anything you want to do in your life. You just have to do it, be disciplined and persistent. Then one day you will see that the sun is going to shine for you also. In fact your sun may shine so bright that you have to wear shades

When we moved into our current house seven years ago we had a different expectation of our surroundings and of the village we live in. Before living in our village we were used to life in the big city which is a much more impersonal and anonymous kind of life.

To say that the past seven years have been an incredible lesson of life would be a huge understatement! I will not digress with examples too much, but  the most important lessons learned were those of the daily interactions with fellow villagers. Some villagers are good and kind spirits, but many are downright devilish!

‘Sometimes we just have to accept people the way they are’.

That’s easier said then done, negative behavior and gossip make up an important part of the traditional folklore and daily pastime here. I may be saying nothing new here, apparently it is the nature of humans.

I started this blog as some sort of extension to my aspiration of a couple of years ago. My aim of being positive and live a positive life. Now more then ever I sense that there are really both positive and negative charged people surrounding us. What I’ve experienced is that it’s oh so easy to be negative, but it takes some effort to be a positive and uplifting soul.

Oftentimes when I try to approach someone in a positive way I get suspicion or total misunderstanding in return. It confuses them because they are not used to certain high  levels of positivity. I can give a thousand reasons for this but when you take some time to think this over you may get the point.

‘When you find peace within yourself, you become the kind of person who can live at peace with others.’

‘And their behavior’ is what I would like to add. That’s a one liner with a big meaning. It’s not easy, and those whom feel a need to justify themselves are always flabbergasted when I stay positive and  I don’t feel the need to justify myself in response to them.  As I said it’s been a long and hard lesson, and there’s still some way (who knows how long) to go.

From time to time I look back and think this over, and I can see the progress being made. To some it may go at dazzling speed because they are unwilling to learn, they are  standing still and thus going backward.

I am looking forward to talk to you again.

photo credit by: ecastro

It’s interesting sometimes how you meet people, and more important how they have influence on you. One person I am getting to know better through his blogging is Steve Buelow, you can find his latest post over  here.

Steve has written many posts on leadership. What I noticed about some of these posts is that some contain parts that are so to say ‘right on target’.

This 2 parts come from the post :Leading From The Street…? Part III 

‘You see, leaders always attract the attention of other people, and their thoughts, feelings, and actions carry added weight…

Now please understand… the fact that someone possesses the ability to influence… and the desire to lead… DOES NOT make them a good leader’

These parts really struck me because I have been active in internet marketing before in a company that was throwing around with titles for every little progress an independent contractor made. Needless to say that this company was filled with a lot of wannabe leaders on all levels.

One day the director I was working closely with told me that to motivate someone he  literally put a feather up that persons a**. After he said that he instantly realized what he just said/did, but the damage had already been done. All the goodwill and hard work to build our business had been destroyed with one simple sentence. Needless to say that since that moment I lost my  trust in him.

Now I am wondering….

A lot if not most of the internet marketing companies claim that there is a leader in all of us. They claim that if you work hard and put the necessary effort you can grow into this and learn to be a leader. Is there really a natural leader in all of us?

to be continued…

photo credit : bingO