Where have I been?

It has been a whirlwind for me the last few weeks.  I have driven from Miami, Florida to Indianapolis, Indiana. Once I reached Indianapolis, I spent thirty-seven hours straight working.  I slept for a few hours and got back to work for a full day.  After I spent the three days working, I drove from Indianapolis, Indiana to Minneapolis, Minnesota.  I spent three days in Minneapolis and then flew back to Indianapolis.  I worked for another three days before flying back to Minneapolis.

I learned so much in those two weeks.  I have discovered that I would really enjoy working with Power Point presentations and the details which are involved in those presentations.  It was very fulfilling to work with people and help them see new things about themselves as they become self-aware.  I have an ability to work with the miniscule details and find that work engaging rather than mind-numbing.  I also discovered that I have a great working relationship with my best friend from college.  He and I are able to showcase our skills as they complement each other very well.

Now that I am back in Minneapolis, I am searching for a good job.  The job search is not very much fun but it needs to be done.  At this point, I am willing to take on any job in an effort to have some recurring income.  My experience has been that I will get multiple offers once I have a full-time position.

Everything in my life is not perfect but it is moving in that direction.  I have much to be grateful for and try to make sure that I mention those things every day.

Taking Back my Life

After spending the winter months in beautiful Miami, I have decided to move back to Minnesota. This decision was made much easier than I anticipated. I thought that the incredible weather, the beautiful people, and the opportunity for wealth would keep me here, forever. What I have discovered is that I have been avoiding my problems rather than facing them. Looking back, I feel that this new beginning was really just my aversion to facing my problems. I made some poor decisions including leaving a wonderful woman when she needed me the most. It is something that I am not proud of at all. I believed that I was leaving a bad situation for a better one. I was wrong. I should have stuck by her side, through all of the hard times. This is what people do for those they love.
My friend has been extremely kind and has tried to get me involved in his business. The only problem is that it is his dream and passion. I am capable of doing the job but I have no passion for it. He was willing to have me work as his personal assistant. This was not an acceptable solution to me. If I am your personal assistant, when do I assert myself and find my own identity? I don’t want to always be in his shadow or following in his footsteps. So, in order for me to lead my own life, I am moving back to Minnesota.
It would be untrue to say that this woman who I left did not play a role in my returning. Whenever we are together our relationship is good. I have decided that I want to be with this woman. It is time for me to commit to this relationship. More importantly, I need to start living my life. My best friend is traveling all over the world. He is living his dream. I feel like I am waiting to start living. Life is too short to continuously wait for the perfect moment to begin living. In a moment of extreme clarity, I stated, “When did I stop living and start existing?” I feel that I am still existing. I have not done enough to really live. I need to push the envelope. I need to be courageous. It is my life and I need to take control of it. I need to stand up for myself. I will never know what I can do if I never take any risks. In order to gain a great reward one has to take a great risk. By remaining in the shadows and walking in the footsteps of my friend, I will never be as great as I can be.
At the end of the day, I have decided that this break was very good for me. It allowed me to take a mental break. It allowed me to take a risk. However, the risks were never my own. I was still hiding behind my friend and his larger than life personality. This break did allow me to determine what was important to me. I am choosing to be with a woman that really loves me. I am going to start my own business. I am going to take chances. I am going to start living!

30 DAYS OF GRATITUDE; Unlock the Door to Abundance and the FULLNESS of LIFE!

Reblogged from Daily Muse:

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"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we  have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order,  confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a  stranger into a friend."~Melody Beattie

Gratitude is a powerful energy. Having gratitude and appreciating all that you have and all that you are is the first step toward creating space for more happiness, joy and increased abundance.

Read more… 661 more words

A great post regarding Gratitude and how you can take actionable steps to increase whatever you need.

Why are leaders considered infallible?

The definition of leadership as defined by Webster is “the office or position of a leader; the capacity to lead; the act or an instance of leading.”  It needs to be noted that nowhere in the definition of leadership or even a leader is there an underlying belief that a leader is infallible or omniscient.  So why is it that some leaders are taken aback when their decisions are questioned?

The question of a strong or thick skinned leader seems to me to come from the whole of society.  It was recently opined that if the males of a country or society were taught that they were infallible and the decisions that they made were not to be questioned, this will lead to the country having a weak leader.  If any person has never been told that they were wrong or the decision that they made was incorrect, how would they react the first time that they heard this type of criticism?  Wouldn’t it be natural for this person to react negatively?  For example, the first time you tell a child, “No.”, there is a reaction of disbelief.  It is hard to fathom that a society could be so arrogant to say that the words and deeds of any person can never be questioned.

A leader needs to be able to make hard decisions and live with the consequences.  Not all of these decisions will be correct or popular but leaders need to have thick skin.  There will be attacks from others who traditionally oppose these leaders and there will be attacks from those who have always stood closest to them.  Wherever these attacks come from, it is never right for the leader to dismiss them without giving them thought.  As leaders make hard decisions, they need to take into account the fact that they are acting in the best interest of the greatest number of people.  If, in fact, the decision is only good for a few people, a true leader needs to recognize this and make a different decision.

One of the reasons that I find this subject of interest is because a country with a weak political leader, i.e. one that needs to be surrounded by “yes men” is a weak country.  There seems to be a fine line between a governing figure that is willing to make the hard choices and one that will make the hard choices but never will admit to being wrong.  A dictator is a great example of a leader that will make a hard choice but often will “quiet” anyone who disagrees with them.

In your opinion, is it possible for society to raise strong, intelligent and wise leaders that are able to see that they will not always have the right answers?

Taking off the Blinders

Have you ever noticed that children have the best time? They are almost always smiling and laughing. I believe that they can do this because they haven’t been sucked in to the minutiae of every day life. They are not concerned with bills, responsibilities or reputation. They seek out the joy in each moment with no regard for what is coming up.

Children have no blinders. They are able to see the entirety of their day in each moment. They live within each moment and exploit it to its fullest potential. The greatest joy of childhood is the ability to squeeze the most out of every experience.

As children grow into young adults, they are told that they need to be concerned with their grades, their reputations, and their looks. By the time that most young people enter college, they have to focus on the little things. It is no longer acceptable by society in general and their peers in particular to be carefree. The added stress of societal demands has stripped them of their yearning for joy. Joy is something that has to be chased and is no longer inherent in each moment. For college age people, Spring Break has taken on a larger importance. One must go away, experience all of the effects of sex, drugs and rock and roll to extract some form of joy out of this week.

As these students take the turn into adulthood, they have been reduced to an evening out on a weekend from which to obtain their little bit of bliss. The responsibilities become larger and more daunting. Joy becomes an abstract idea that exists in an alternate universe. The pressure to be successful increases so that one may take a vacation and try to recapture these fleeting moments of happiness.

What can be done to stem this idea of a need to be stoic, unfeeling and joyless? The most important thing one can do is to take off the blinders. People get ensconced in the tiny details of their life and miss the true beauty that exists around them. For example, on the drive in to work, what did you notice? Did you notice anything or is your drive so routine that you can’t remember it at all? When you get home from work, do you put on your comfortable clothes, turn on the television and watch the same shows?

The joy of ones childhood is still alive and thriving in you! Stop to smell the roses, take a minute to hold a door open for someone, or commit a random act of kindness. This will pull your attention away from yourself and put it on to the world. Open your eyes, really open them, and discover the wonders of the world around you. Remove the blinders and you may be amazed at the joy and happiness that is all around you.

Gratitude

“What I’ve learned is there’s a scientifically proven phenomenon that’s attached to gratitude, and that if you consciously take note of what is good in your life, quantifiable benefits happen.” – Deborah Norville

“Thank you.”  These are some of the easiest words to use and some of the first words that we learn.  It only makes sense that we should continue the rest of our lives using these words.  However, have you ever noticed that some people are reluctant to give thanks or show gratitude?  Why do they feel the need to assume that we are obligated to help them?

It is important to acknowledge the difference between saying “thank you” and feeling grateful.  Have you ever noticed the difference when you open the door for a young person and an older person?  The young person will barely acknowledge your kind gesture.  If they do say anything, it is always without any feeling.  They tend to mumble a “thanks”, look down at their feet and move along as if that was hard.  An older person will look directly at you, make eye contact and clearly say “Thank you so much.”  The younger person said thanks but it wasn’t genuine and there was no feeling behind it.  The older person made sure that you knew, understood, and felt the depth of their gratefulness.  It is as if as you age, you understand the need to feel being grateful rather than just uttering a few words.

As I have had time to reflect on those things that are important to me and important to my life, I have been shown the fact that I was not feeling grateful for what I had achieved and accumulated.  It was this lack of gratitude that led to my losing those things that I cherished the most.  Without getting too in-depth, it is only logical that you would receive everything that you give.  For example, like attracts like; so if you feel the need to have drama in your life, why are you surprised when there is drama in your life?  You attract those things which you think about.  Therefore, if you are grateful for what you have, be it money, health, food, a fine home, you will attract more of those things to you.  Be careful, just as you get what you ask for, if you are constantly scared of  losing your health, wealth, spouse, etc., if you concentrate on this fear, you will attract it and you will get what you have asked for, the loss of those things.

When I get up in the morning, before I get into the shower and start thinking about what I have to do with the rest of my day, I give thanks for a good night’s sleep, a warm bed, hot water for a shower, and clothes to wear.  I feel the gratitude emanating out from my center and the universe responds by giving me more of those things that I am grateful for.  I spend the rest of the day immersed in this feeling of gratitude.  It is important to really feel grateful.  Merely saying thanks will not generate the results you are seeking.

Sabbatical

I am taking a sabbatical from this blog for about a month or so. It is not by choice but I have to do it.

I will continue with my trials and tribulations when I return.

Seek out and demand joy, wealth, and happiness in every day of your life!