I have a true story for you. My stories are always based on what I experienced. Very recently a mother came to me with her daughter, she said to me, “Tell my daughter the story of the garden.” This greatly surprised me because I had not thought of that story for a long time, and most of a year had passed since I told it to the mother. So, I began:
“There is a garden you own that is yours and yours alone.” I told her. “No one can enter your garden or no what is there. It is the only thing that at the very end of your life will be there, testifying as to how you tended it. Each day you live, you will see things, hear things and be involved with situations that will occur around you. Some will be quite unpleasant and will upset you. Some will be enjoyable and give you great comfort. There will be unimaginable things that will happen in and around your garden.”
“This garden has to be tended. If you don’t look after it, it will run rampant with weeds that will strangle the good and beautiful flowers and spoil the fruit that can grow and flourish. To tend it, you must be aware and watchful. You must actually weed out the roots that grow and you become aware of that do no good. These roots can run very deep if not lifted up and exposed to the light. If you pretend they do not exist, they will cripple you. They must be acknowledged even if it is to yourself, and you must hold them to some source to have them diminished. These roots are roots of bitterness, prejudice, hatred, judgments, and roots of greed and self-conceit. These roots are very bad. If you allow them to grow, they will harm your garden and you will not bring good in the end.
You also must be become aware of the roots and plants that you would like to grow. You must nurture them, tend to them, give them water and sunshine. These are the acts of kindness, compassion, care, love, encouragement and so on.
Even at your young age, you have already started a garden. Mom cannot help you grow it, no one can. It is yours and yours alone. Listen carefully to what your mind says, and tend it. If you forget it for a few days, you can always go back and check it out. Here is where the wealth of your life will be. Remember these words.”
The child looked impressed. I felt grateful to be the one to tell her about the garden. I hope she tends it well. From what I saw, she has a wonderful beginning.

Faye Kufahl is an author and professional speaker on the topic of how to cope with odd and quirky behavior. she has been a social worker and served the population of Chronically mentally ill for her career.

Surrounding yourself with supportive people who don’t drain your energy is important no matter what you’re trying to accomplish in life, whether it’s building a business or raising children.

Attracting the right people into your life is like having the right teammates on a football team; you’re all focused on the same goal of winning in life.

Just like a football team needs a coach before it can succeed, you should start by finding a mentor. Someone who inspires you and is in a stage of life or business that you want to be in someday. If this person doesn’t offer formal mentoring or coaching, ask them if they’d consider it. Maybe you can offer a bartering arrangement.

When you have a mentor you have access to their network of colleagues and acquaintances. Before you know it, you’ll find yourself meeting new people who can help take you to new levels of success and contentment.

Also, simply observing the type of people your mentor associates with will help inspire you and guide you as you choose new friends.

Wherever you’re at, just be alert to people who stimulate your thinking and are interesting. Be sure to share your thoughts with them too so they can find out as much about you as you do about them.

Wishing you the best,
Richard

P. S. Friendship is a two-way street…So don’t forget to help those people that want you to be their mentor….

Richard is a Master Practitioner of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), Hypnosis, and Neurological Re-patterning™. He is also the co-founder of New You Life Coaching.

Because his interests stem from philosophy, spirituality, psychology, and leadership, Rich’s coaching style incorporates a rare and ingenious approach to understanding and empowering you in an insanely effective manner.

RichardALuck.com

Sometimes when I’m really tired or I realize I won’t get everything on my perpetual to-do list done, I hear myself complaining. My next thought? Oh, it’s just me being grumpy; I’m feeling sorry for myself. It’s then that I remind myself how rich my life is and how much I have to be grateful for. So, today I’ve written a fresh “Gratitude List.” It’s incomplete, of course, but I’ve started.

I’m grateful for :

Every day I wake up feeling grateful that I was born. True; some choices I’ve made along the way weren’t wise, so there were periods of pain. But, as I got better at handling me, they became good opportunities for growing. So if you’ve been there and done that too, don’t be discouraged. Just get up and get going again. We can be content with Today.

Now, you might be asking yourself: “Why take the time to do this exercise? Are there any personal payoffs?” Yes! Just writing my list today lifts my spirits and gives me more energy. There’s a little added spring in my walk and I’m smiling more even though I’m alone in my office. Yes; it’ll work for you, too. Okay, are there any more goodies? Yes! As I check in with my body I realize that I actually feel fuller and more satisfied, like I’ve had a really delicious meal. I feel calmer, less anxious. And yes, you will, too.

So, here’s a final thought: Webster writes that the word grateful also means thankful and appreciative. Is there something that you’re especially thankful for? Are there thoughts or feelings within you or things or people around you that you can appreciate? I bet there are.

If you already have a gratitude list or you’ll be making one, I’d love to see it. Please share. And, in the meantime, I hope you have a feel-good Thanksgiving wherever you are.

All the best to you until next time,

Joan

Joan Chamberlain is an author, therapist, and life coach with over 30 years of experience helping adults, couples, and teens. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Business and Finance, a Bachelor’s in education, and a Masters in individuals, couples, and family counseling. Her book, Smart Relationships, has helped many people achieve the self-awareness needed to see themselves honestly. Its wisdom has helped them work toward improving their relationships with themselves, their friends, and their families.

To learn more about the ideas and concepts presented in her articles, please peruse her website:

http://www.joanchamberlain.com

You can read anywhere about how to create affirmations, what exactly positive affirmations do, and how they work. But it can be a little harder to find tips on how to make them more successful for you. There are obviously as many tips available to you as there are actual affirmations. Everyone is unique in how their mind works therefore there is no set rules on how to have positive affirmations work for you. There are many tips that can be applied to most anyone though. This is what we will talk about today.

Many people know and understand that repetition is a key to success for positive affirmations. The standard practice is to repeat your affirmations upon waking up and right before going to bed. The more that you repeat your affirmations to yourself, the more that you mind will become saturated with the ideas you are trying to convey to it. To this point, it might be a good idea to carry around a physical reminder to let you know that you should recite your affirmative statements. For example, if you put your hands in your pockets often, you may want to carry around a rough stone that will trigger your memory. In other words, every time you put your hands in your pocket and feel the stone, you know that you should repeat your affirmations to yourself. This is the same thing, though less visible than tying a ribbon around your finger, however you can tie a ribbon if that will help you. Anything that will help remind you to say your positive affirmations will be a great thing.

Another good tip for succeeding with your positive affirmations is to create pictures and images in your mind that go with your affirmations. Picture what your affirmative statements should look like to you, and how you will feel and look when they are successful. Even as a mental image, this will be a more tangible thing to grasp for your subconscious mind than simple words. If you state “I have the potential to be successful in my life”, then you are leaving a very ambiguous picture for your subconscious mind. If, on the other hand, you picture what it would look and feel like to be successful, what you would see in front of you, how people around you would react, and the feelings you would experience at this, then you are creating a complete picture for your mind. This becomes much more than just words, it becomes an almost real thing. The image is so clear in your mind that your subconscious can almost reach out and grab it. This will make it so much easier for your mind to be able to accept your positive affirmations for fact.

As I mentioned earlier, there are many, many more tips that could work for you. Over the course of the next few articles, I will expand on other ways that you can help your own positive affirmations become more successful. Read through them and see which ones make the most sense to you and your lifestyle. You can then use any of a combination of these tips to reinforce your positive affirmations, and help them go from being an abstract thought to your new reality.

Richard is a Master Practitioner of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), Hypnosis, and Neurological Re-patterning™. He is also the co-founder of New You Life Coaching.

Because his interests stem from philosophy, spirituality, psychology, and leadership, Rich’s coaching style incorporates a rare and ingenious approach to understanding and empowering you in an insanely effective manner.