Manifesting 101 Series Mindfulness

Mindfulness While washing the dishes one should only be washing the dishes, which means one should be completely aware of the fact that one is washing the dishes. At first, glance, that might seem a little silly. Why put so much stress on a simple thing? But that’s precisely the point. The fact that I am standing there and washing these bowls is a wondrous reality. I am completely myself, following my breath, conscious of my presence, and conscious of my thoughts and actions. There’s no way I can be tossed around mindlessly like a bottle slapped here and there on the waves.— The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh. p.3 [ ISBN Amazon.com ]

The art of mindfulness is to be solely in the moment without judgment or anticipation of the next moment. As you are in the moment you are becoming increasingly aware of whom you are at your core. Becoming aware of your physical body or your spiritual body and simply focusing on the moment at hand. So many times we go through our daily lives rushing from one event to the next leaving little if no time at all to stop and become fully aware of what we are doing.

When we come to the point where we do become mindful there is a realization that we are in fact responsible for everything we have in our life. Taking self inventory of personal actions or non actions will bring out good traits and those traits that must be responsibly laid to rest. If you find that you are experiencing overly negative thoughts, or that your actions are hurtful to yourself or others then you must come to the realization that your behavior must change.It can be painful to come to the conclusion that you are causing yourself to suffer needlessly.

Becoming mindful can push feelings up from your root where you have to acknowledge them in the full light of day. Recognizing that you have created ways to shove these feelings deep within, but also have the same ability to create peace of mind through right actions and healthy mindfulness can bring about recovery of mind, body and soul.

Lessons to Being Mindful 1. One thing at a time. There is a Zen proverb which exemplifies mindfulness “when walking, walk. When eating, eat.” Experiencing one task at a time will help the mind stay on that task. If you find your mind wandering to the next task, or something from the past bring yourself back to the moment immediately by forcing yourself to concentrate only on what you are doing. This does take the beginner time to grasp at first. Remembering that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit will allow you to be more patient.

The rule here is to not take on more than one task at a time.2. Do not rush. Allowing yourself the time to do the task at hand slowly and deliberately will help you focus.3. Do not over task yourself. There are only so many hours in the day and trying to over compensate by getting more things done, does not mean that each task you take on will be done well, or mindfully. Learn how to delegate your task if necessary in order to take in fully each and every moment.

You must in the beginning of each day decide what you can and can now live with. If there are matters that must be tended to then they take priority and then if you have time left over then decide what can be done or what can wait till the next day. More times then not you will have to say no I do not have the desire to push myself into taking on to much.

There are some around you who will decide that you are changing and if they care about you they will enjoy the new you, if they are only around you because of what you can do for them, then they will tend to not be around as much as you say no more to them. In between each task allow yourself at least 5 minutes to bring yourself back to center and balance.

Having a fresh mind and present mindfulness will allow you to be fresh for the next task.4. Worry? Tell me did worry ever give you peace of mind? Can worry ever give you more minutes to your life? Can worry ever do anything but rob you of precious time? Of course the answer to all these questions is a resounding no, but even though we can intellectually say that there is no good grounds for worrying about an event; nonetheless it still happens.

The next time you have a nagging need to worry stop and place your right hand on your chest and take 3 good deep breathes through the nose and out the mouth. Why? It takes your conscious mind off your meddling worry and back the present moment.

Manifesting 101 series Gratitude

Gratitude "To educate yourself for the feeling of gratitude means to take nothing for granted, but to always seek out and value the kind that will stand behind the action. Nothing that is done for you is a matter of course. Everything originates in a will for the good, which is directed at you. Train yourself never to put off the word or action for the expression of gratitude." ~ Albert Schweitzer ~

 It is easy to see what we have in our lives, and yet feel that it is not enough. There is always someone who seems to have more than they need, or are careless with what they have. Do they really have everything they need? Gaining things for many seems to be the way of showing how important they are in society. It’s not enough to have a lot of things, but to have the biggest best things. In the end though all of those things will never once say thank you, I love you, you are kind, or you are important.

When you feel yourself stressing because you don’t have the latest thing, or the best of something else; remind yourself that it is deeply important to be thankful for what you have. Just as much as there are those who have exactly what you think you want there are those who have not nearly as much as you do. Also remind yourself that it is not things that show caring it is those who are your loved ones and even those who you just meet in your daily life.

One of the most important lessons in abundance is to give thanks for your current situation. Many times what you are going through is not something that someone else has not already been through themselves. However, when it is happening to you directly you feel like you are alone and that no one understands. In these hours it is important for you to take a few steps back and be thankful for the unrest you feel now will be a stepping stone towards your future.When life gets you down, when you’re hurt, angry, confused or frustrated take a moment to stop place your right hand over your heart, take 3 deep breathes in through the nose and out through the mouth, and search for something to be grateful for.

 It can be anything your family, health, job, roof over your head, the fact that you know you will have a next meal, your friends, anything that brings you immediate comfort.When someone acts unkind towards you remember you have those who care for you, take that experience and use it to be mindful of patience and understanding. When a storm comes and makes a mess of the trees in your yard, or an animal tears up your trash because there is too much sticking out of the garbage can, be grateful and think on those who are homeless.

When you are angry about the hours you have for your job show gratitude for having that job as currently there are since 2001 well over 17 million people who are jobless. When there is suffering anywhere in the world be thankful that you live in a country where you have your freedom of choice.Think on these things Keep a journal of all things you are thankful for in your life. At first it may not be much to write down, but as you go through the 21 days of creating a new habit you will no doubt have many more.Understand that you have free will.

You can choose to make an event more or less stressful. Your attitude about how you perceive the situation will either create peace, or more of the same suffering you have gone through in the past. Do not continue to go to a dry well expecting clean drinking water it will not happen. Change through experience and perspective will be the drive you need to freely make healthy and proper decisions.Realize jealousy has no place in creating peace of mind. Jealousy will only fuel desire to do the things that take you further away from your center, and create only bitterness.

Being grateful for what you have in your life now truly happy this will help guide you to peace and a desire to help others less fortunate. Creating new bonds allowing people to grow out of your kindness this will foster non jealous behavior.Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, what would there be to look forward to? Be thankful when you don't know something for it gives you the opportunity to learn. Be thankful for the difficult times. It is during those times you grow. Be thankful for your limitations. They give you opportunities for improvement. Be thankful for each new challenge.

These will build your strength and character. Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons. Be thankful when you're tired and weary. This will mean you've made a difference. It is easy to be thankful for the good things. A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who realize thankfulness for the setbacks. GRATITUDE can turn a negative into a positive. Find a way to be thankful for your troubles and they can become your blessings. ~Author Unknown~

Manifesting 101 series Forgiveness

Forgiveness If I cannot forgive myself for all the blunders that I have made over the years, then how can I proceed? How can I ever Dream perfection-dreams? Move, I must, forward. Fly, I must, upward. Dive, I must, inward, to be once more what I truly am and shall forever remain." ~ Sri Chinmoy~

We are taught in youth to say we are sorry for things we say and do, but what mostly happens is that we just glare at the person, and say sorry as if we are cursing them with our very breath. In youth we do not fully comprehend the amount of pain that words or actions can cause. We must be taught that the sharpest sword of all is our tongue. Many times we lash out in anger because we feel were are not heard, no one cares so why bother to be compassionate, or even civil.

Where there is no guide to show us what is proper we can tend to go from wrong speech to wrong actions of hitting, and other forms of abuse.If you have been on the receiving end of such hatred then you know it can be life changing. The more pain that is placed on you the more you wish to hide it out of sight. It is in that pain that you will lash out in some form or another. You will find a way to try and make all of that pain disappear. Unfortunately much of the ways you will try will be self destructive.

This self destructive behavior can take the form of, but is not limited to: changing food intake, drugging, drinking, acting out in a sexual manner, unsavory friends, and cutting. All of these behaviors are serious and never should be underestimated at the amount of long term damage they can cause. If you are experiencing any of these actions tell someone immediately. A loved one, a priest, a friend, sometimes even a total stranger.

Take action stand up and say this far and no further can I carry this burden alone.Many wonder if the person who creates the painful action even cares. I am here to tell you that the pain of another is not felt generally by the giver of the physical or mental abuse. The person who doles out the painful action is not trying to understand how deeply the words or the strike hurts the individual. They are self absorbed and unable to deeply feel anything. If they were able to understand, or have compassion then they would know what they were doing was deeply wrong.

You must understand that you are not there in that situation to change them. You are only responsible for your actions and what you do next to help yourself become removed from that which causes you harm.Once you have managed to get to the core of what is causing your suffering you must come to terms with it; how long this process takes is based on individual choice, and experience. Realizing that you can break free of the internal prison you have made for yourself, and learn healthy ways of dealing with stress.

There is one more thing to consider here when you are working through past or present pains; it is the nagging need to understand why someone would hurt you in the first place. A lot of times people who are the close to you will be the ones to hurt you the deepest. If a person loves another how could they do this terrible thing? Many times that answer never comes to light. Again if a person can easily hurt another they are not thinking about anyone, but themselves.

You may never fully understand the root of the problem, but you can change how you deal with it in the next moment.“When you forgive somebody who has wronged you, you’re spared the dismal corrosion of bitterness and wounded pride. For both parties, forgiveness means the freedom again to be at peace inside their own skins and to be glad in each others’ presence."~Fredrick Buechner~

Author Final Note: It is important to know that it is not always the right thing to do to forgive someone who has hurt you, in this case what you can do is forgive yourself for not saying something sooner, or for not being able to take action as it was happening. You are doing something now about it that is what is most important.

Manifesting 101 series Take Action

Taking Action

Once you have learned how to gather your thoughts become mindful of what your intentions are and walk through the path of forgiveness the next step is to take control of your life by changing how you think and re-act.

Action Steps Set both short term and long term goals. Put into place a plan for success in fulfilling these goals.Realize that there will be set backs, and they are a natural part of growth. Use these set backs as learning tools. Remove yourself from negative thinkers these people will never support your growth, and will always find reasons why you can’t succeed.Believe in yourself. What ever the mind can conceive you will achieve.

Think bigger than what you have now. If you train your mind into thinking on successful outcomes you will allow yourself to meet any goal. Have an idea of success. You are only limited by your own thought. Positive Mental Challenges Never say it’s impossible. Never let a set back keep you off your target goal. Never allow lack of knowledge to stop you.

Seek out those who have done whatever it is you are lacking at the time. Never let fear of failure force you into I can’t mentality. Never take an idea and say it’s useless until you have tried all your options. Then try again. Remove yourself out of that box of frustration you have been living in take a step out into the light of reason. Remember always SUCCESS IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER. Food for your mind and

SoulCourage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can loose. Courage does not always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying “I will try again tomorrow.” There are no failures- Just experiences and your reactions to them. Anyone can give up it’s the easiest thing to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart; that is true strength. You are the embodiment of the information you choose to accept and act upon. To change your circumstance you need to change your thinking and subsequent actions. A true friend sees the good in everything, and brings out the best in the worst of things. If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.

Man can live about forty days without food, about 3 days without water, about 8 minutes without air, but only 1 second without hope. Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it’s right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.

A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out. Time goes by so fast and people go in and out of your life. You must never miss the opportunity to tell these people how much they mean to you. When it is obvious that the goals can not be reached, don’t adjust the goal, adjust the action steps. It is difficult to inspire others to accomplish what you have not been willing to try.

People come into your life and people leave it. You just have to trust that life has a road mapped out for you. Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened. Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true. The secret of health for both mind and body is not to morn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.

All your life you are told the things you can not do. All your life they will say you’re not good enough or strong enough or talented enough; they will say you’re the wrong height, or the wrong weight or the wrong type to play this or be this or achieve this. They will tell you no, a thousand times no, until all the no’s become meaningless. All your life they will tell you no, quite firmly and very quickly, and then you will tell them YES!!!

Manifesting 101 series Follow Through

Follow Through ""Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Choose your words, for they become actions. Understand your actions, for they become habits. Study your habits, for they will become your character. Develop your character, for it becomes your destiny." --Anonymous"

Getting excited about changing your future and learning the techniques to handle things with mindfulness and grace can stir a lot of high energy. This excitement can carry you through a vital time in your life, but it is after the newness wears off that it can get difficult, and the temptation to revert to old habits can come back to surface.

What do you do when you know that you need to keep moving forward, but find yourself doubting that things will ever change? Every day, you have got to read, listen to audio programs, talk with people who are on the same path as you are, and surround yourself with things that energize you. Methods for Maintaining a Positive Attitude Choose your thoughts carefully.

You have the power to control what you are thinking. Realize that you can be happy right now doing whatever it is that you are doing. It all comes down to changing the way you think. Read something positive daily. If you are constantly reading about death and murder, your outlook could be influenced negatively. Try reading something positive for 15 to 30 minutes a day so that your mind is anchored in positive thought. Affirm your potential each day.

Make a list of 10 positive things you can say about you, and repeat them every morning. Repeat thoughts like "Success is in me," or "I was born for greatness." You can also have a motivational quote of the day sent to you from sites such as http://www.motivationalquotes.com/ Limit the time you spend around negative people. Try to associate with positive people. Negative people can have toxic attitudes and try to make you think that your ideas are undoable. Combat this by surrounding yourself with people who have the attitude of "I can" and "I will."