Happy New Year!

CHARLES SCHULTZ PHILOSOPHY

You don't actually have to take the quiz. Just read this straight through and you'll get the point. It is trying to make an awesome point! 

Here's the first quiz: 

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world. 

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners. 

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America contest. 

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer prize. 

5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress. 

6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners. 

How did you do? 

The facts are, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners. 

Here's another quiz. See how you do on this one: 

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school. 

2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time. 

3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile. 

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special. 

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with. 

6. Name half a dozen heroes whose stories have inspired you. 

Easier? 

The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care. 

"Don't worry about the world coming to an end today ...... It's already tomorrow in Australia." 

----- Charles Schulz-----

Veteran's Day

This Wednesday, we honor those who have served our nation in the military.  Veterans Day rightly draws our attention to these men and women.  Many of our lives have been touched by family and friends who are or who have been in the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force or Coast Guard. 

To each and every Veteran,  Thank You for your sacrifices and our freedoms.

"The willingness of America’s veterans to sacrifice for our country has earned them our lasting gratitude.”   —Jeff Miller

Human Nature

While we're striving to change our life or wishing things could have been different, we forget to 

pay attention to what you need, Sounds simple right.

Oh I’m hungry, I need to eat.   Oh I’m thirsty, I need to drink. Oh, I’m emotionally upset, I need to go for a run and then have a bath.

It’s real easy to get all hung up on ‘doing things right’ and ‘getting better’ all the time; However, we’re so damn good at deferring and denying our needs, that most of us have no skills at all around meeting our needs.

Our body needs rest, we plough on. We need to be heard, we don’t speak up.

Sometimes, we need to remind ourselves that it’s okay to be just as we are. It’s okay to let things slide sometimes, it’s okay not to be perfect, or to have mastered anything

Mastering life means knowing exactly what your needs are and meeting them, no excuses. 

Kindness

Has someone gone out of their way to help you or someone else? Has someone just said something that made you feel better? Are you simply thankful because someone or something made your day a little brighter.

Well how about showing your gratitude with a little thank you note or writing in a gratitude journal.

"Gratitude is a quality similar to electricity: it must be produced and discharged and used up in order to exist at all"   ~William Faulkner

What's your mindset?

Everyday starts with you and your mindset.

Do you have a growth mindset (open minded, flexible) or a fixed mindset (cling to tightly to a single way of thinking)?

For me it is not one way or the other. Your mindset is about your attitude to life and all its challenges. 

How we experience reality is determined by the beliefs we hold and the lenses through which we choose to view the world. Our mindset is the key to the lives we lead. It cannot be over emphasized that your energy goes where we focus our attention and awareness. Pay attention to what you are paying attention to.

Often we’re discouraged because of some tough challenge or obstacle in our way. But a shift in mindset can change everything: 

Life presents us with a wide array of opportunities. It is not about preventing obstacles, but rather, how we can overcome them. When you allow these obstacles to control your life, they have the effect of sabotaging your efforts --- and Even worse, you feel stuck, frustrated, and helpless.

Don't let your fears consume you — 

At every moment we surround ourselves with words and deeds generating a vibration that can create happiness or unhappiness. Your mind and spirit is the most overlooked and under appreciated components of your well being.

 Our brains are powerful and can cause us to imagine the best or the worst. Our task is to contribute the best of our energy to every situation with understanding our effect. 

Thought and words are energy. A positive attitude helps us cope more easily with the daily affairs of life. 

Humor

What makes you laugh or be happy?

Take Action

Food for Thought:

                        “No matter what we feel or know,

                          no matter what our potential gifts or talents,

                          only action brings them to life.”

                                                        ----Dan Millman

Have good weekend!

Curiosity

Every life has a story. Everyone has a story. I think we all forget that sometimes. As we run our errands, fill up our gas tanks, we dismiss nameless faces who carry stories just like ours. There are common threads among all of us. We are One.

The bright side of things

We all know that life is too short to squander and yet, most of us find the time for it anyway. Sure, life is challenging, but it makes up for it in a thousand myriad little ways,  you just have to notice them. 

Returning back to work

It's always overwhelming when you come back into the office from vacation. Your email inbox looks like something exploded in it, and the endless meetings seem to keep popping up in your calendar alerts. How in the world can you transition back from vacation bliss to the daily grind? 

You’re enjoying yourself and then you come to an uncomfortable realization: it’s time to go back to work. Making the transition from vacation to work may not be an event you look forward to, but it’s going to happen sooner or later. There are ways to make re-entry less traumatic.

Things I  learned on vacation: You’ve spent countless days waking up late, binge watching your favorite TV shows, and laying on the beach. You may be tempted to pile on meetings and projects as soon as you get back to make up for lost time, but at least don’t aim to do it all on the first day. Accept your limitations. A lot of stuff can wait.

Balance comes to mind: Body, Mind and Spirit – Ensure  you have a Work –Life Balance

Stay In Working Shape

Inspire Yourself

Prioritize Task

Remain Flexible – 

Fun

To have as much fun as possible. If you want to have fun, you have to get into the right mindset and embrace every opportunity for a good time. Enjoy what life has to offer.

Possibilities

Form your mind around possibilities- HOPE  

Every change is opportunities-- you have the right to your choices and the consequences of choices_ take the path toward choices and you narrow the chaos. 

Focus on what matters to you -your passion- you will make mistakes - pay attention to what matters it is your driving force

Action

If you feel stymied or you are balled up and twisted in knots, take courage and leap. The Power is You.

Take the time to discern what really matters. Respond instead of react.  Take life into your hands. Walk your talk. Discern what is your next move is. All actions has an effect so be responsible and not reactive. You are going to have human interactions -moments- emotional challenges –and move away from being in place of fear.  Be entertained and creative endeavor is the next move. Focus on what matters to you -your passion. You will make mistakes but pay attention to what matters,  it is your driving force. Your judgement is sound and your actions will be successful. A gentle reminder not get caught in the world of fear, greed and suffering. Enjoy the journey. 

Happy Birthday USA!

It's hot out there, friends! Do you drink enough water? People tell me they drink enough water (Sometimes I tell myself that lie too). I believe we believe we do. But, more people these days feeling weak, and tired. Those are symptoms of dehydration. Try coconut water from time to time. If you don't like the taste of it, add a little juice. You will be amazed at how quickly you will feel refreshed after drinking it.

Balancing

Many people these days are taking a good look at themselves and their lives. They look at how they interact with their family, how they conduct themselves within business matters and how much time they spend on making the all mighty dollar and the illusive career. people are trying to find the right balance of life's daily events. Whether on a conscious level or spiritually sub-conscious level importance of maintaining a balanced lifestyle.

That means taking care of yourself through nutrition, exercise, even the mundane requirements of keeping clean, paying your bills and ensuring you have a roof over your head to live under. These are all part of the practical balance of life. 

Again, too much of a good thing can be bad for you. Just as someone who is always ‘out there’ in spirit needs to be grounded, the opposite may be true as well. Someone who is so focused on the physical may need to rise up a little and balance their life with a little perspective of mind and spirit.

Balance, balance, balance.  

Do not allow your spirituality to become a false and unrealistic contentment that you escape to. Live a wholesome, functional life. Work hard and be rational, focused and goal oriented. However, to keep from getting too immersed in the regular materialistic world, we also need to maintain a reflective, metaphysical mindset, realize that there are higher dimensions, and benevolent spiritual vibrations which we can call upon to help us in our daily lives. This will give you a peacefulness, an inner joy which allows you to balance material demands with spiritual needs.

Food for thought:

"Everything changes when you start to emit your own frequency rather than absorbing the frequencies around you, when you start imprinting your intent on the universe rather than receiving an imprint from existence".

-Barbara Marciniak

Love

Today is 'love you day' send to everyone you love. I received this email from friends.

A strong woman knows how to keep her life in order. Even with tears in her eyes, she still manages to say 'I'm Ok' with a smile. Send this to a strong woman. I just did. 

She can deal with stress and carry heavy burdens. She smiles when she feels like screaming, and she sings when she feels like crying. She cries when she's happy and laughs when she's afraid. Her love is unconditional.There's only one thing wrong with her. She forgets what she's worth! Pass this to every beautiful woman you know. Remind her that she's unique. I love you girl. 

Fun Day

 Do the Hokey Pokey And turn yourself around. That's what it's all about.

I remember The Hokey Pokey being entertaining for kids and adults alike. For me the Hokey Pokey song is a metaphor for living life in general.

Think about this --All of life is about movement. Life is a dance. The fact is that there is an ebb and flow to life. There are highs and lows. There is bitter and sweet. There are gray days and sunny days and it’s all part of the package. 

If it were  sunshine and roses all the time we’d probably get bored pretty quickly. How many times in your life  you are faced with challenges.

Life gets hard. We all know the difficulty. When I am faced with  something I cannot change, 

I remember to change my focal point – and turn myself around. To Distract myself. To Do something different. Because Creating a temporary shift helps you to refocus, to focus within. It brings me a sense of hope and infinite possibilities.  

I can look ahead with a new set of eyes. Everyday is a new day. A new beginning. You can create such a change in seconds. Have a Fun Day. 

Universe

George Carlin: "I love individuals. Every person you look at, you can see the universe in their eyes if you're really looking."

I believe that God, infinite intelligence, Source (whatever you want to name it) is inspiring all of us all of the time. You are already connected to the Source. Each of us has a direct connect to the Divine.

God is never apart from you but a part of you. You are one with everything. Our relationship with God is organic. It is not a religion that we practice, it is us, who we are and what we are. All that is, all that was. All you see, all you do not see and everything around you. Everything is interconnected.

Recognize the belief that the life force, the divinity, the Self or the God in me is the same in all. I believe, Life is our greatest possession. All of life is a gift. It is Truly incredible, it is Truly amazing.  

Our Spiritual Path

Food For Thought: One of my Teacher’s made this comment

You do not need to look for a grand path through your life. Your path is the one that you are on. You cannot be on a wrong path.

Perhaps you’re wondering what exactly is a spiritual path and what are the secrets to walking it? Well, the spiritual path is not really a linear path that one walks from A to B, but rather a deepening and opening to know Thy self.

Whatever spiritual path you find yourself on is the right path for you in this moment of your life. Even if you don’t think you’re on a particular path, your soul is, and it is right on course, totally devoted to fulfilling its mission and completely aligned with its destiny. To Create. To create joyfully.

To truly walk the spiritual path you must live it. It is a very personal and individualized experience. It is flowing, growing and ever changing and expanding. There's no hurry to get there. It's a journey. It is the ultimate experience in life which everyone is seeking.

Self Aware

Everything in the universe begins with and revolves around two things: words and thoughts.  They impact others, of course, but they can also have an impact on us. Become aware of the words you are using. 

I was in a workshop about using more positive words. Choose words that create more joy. At the workshop we learned to turn this concept into focus actions. Here is how: 

Every chance you get --Start using the phrase  get to rather than have to.

You don’t need to become compulsive about this, but start intentionally. Think about this, (Get To) uses the language of inner power, opportunity and privilege rather than (have to) which uses the language of duty or being a victim. Notice the difference it makes in your attitude. Rather than dreading or resenting an activity, you can be thankful for it.

For me:

• I have to workout this morning; I get to workout. What a privilege to be healthy and be able to care for my body.

• I have to write a new blog post. I get to write one. What a privilege to have readers that actually care what I have to say.

• I  have to stop by the grocery store on my way home; I get to stop by the grocery store. What a privilege to live in a place and at a time where we don’t have to forage for food.

You get the idea. Since we cannot prepare for every eventuality that occurs in life, our point of power is to strengthen our ability to seek options by looking at situations from as many different angles as possible. Perception.

Take time to filter your thoughts before you speak them. Eliminate the thoughts that will bring you nothing but negative feelings and trouble. Speak words that make you feel joyful and loving.

 Your ability to be happy and successful in life is directly related to your ability to control your own thinking.   

Live

“It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”    Leonardo Da Vinci

It’s easy to wind up in Lazyville or Procrastination Land a lot. To get things done you need to take action. Things seldom happen on their own. Enjoy the journey.

Life 101

Food for Thought:

        “Things are temporary, relationships last forever.  Nothing can 

          replace the time we spend investing in the life of another.”

                                                ----Roy Lessin

The simplest things in life give me the most pleasure: I love spending time with friends and family. I always enjoy the company. Have a great weekend. 

Spirituality

Exploring the meaning of Spirituality. Spirituality means something different to everyone. For some, it's about participating in organized religion: going to church, synagogue, a mosque, etc. For others, it's more personal: Some people get in touch with their spiritual side through nature, private prayer, yoga, meditation, quiet reflection, music, art, a community or even long walks. Spirituality is different for everyone.  

• Spirituality is the wellspring of divinity that pulsates, dances, and flows as the source and essence of every soul. Spirituality relates more to your personal search, to finding greater meaning and purpose in your existence. Spirituality is seen as a path toward a higher state of awareness. Spirituality is an inner journey to know thyself.

• Religion is most often used to describe an organized group or culture. Religions usually act with a mission and intention of presenting specific teachings and doctrines while nurturing and propagating a particular way of life. 

I define spirituality by means of knowing one's self, having a sense of purpose in life, feeling connected with others and achieving one's full potential. For me, this means tapping into the wisdom within. 

Spirituality is being inspired by finding  joy in everyday things, cherishing life and feeling the interconnectedness of the universe. Ultimately the goal is about deepening your relationship with your true self and live life as consciously and aware as possible and striving to realize your fullest potential as a human being.

Spirituality is seen as a path toward a higher state of awareness. Know thyself – inner journey. To truly walk the spiritual path you must live it. It is a very personal and individualized experience. It is flowing, growing and ever changing and expanding.. 

I keep finding myself, a little more each day.. I am in constant search of learning. I am in constant search of learning about self with a sense of wonder and joy. 

Life happens through us. Life is to be lived—You are the author of everything that happens to you.

Endless Possibilities

Here’s one I wish I could persuade every person to believe and understand: 

        “Your future depends on many things, but mostly you.”

                                        ----Frank Tyger

Mothers

                      

This weekend you will see lots of commercials. There will probably be a tagline at the end about thanking moms on Mother’s Day, then they’ll show you their company logo.

That sounds cynical and There is nothing wrong with those commercials. Although they’ll clearly feed off the soccer mom stereotype. A lot of mom’s do drive their kids, and their kid’s friends, back and forth from practices.

But that’s definitely not what I think about when I think about my Mom in the role of sports mom.

I remember the meals she cooked. I remember her being home after school. But most of all, I remember that my mom taught me what true toughness and hard work was all about.

Her work ethic always amazes me. She was a single mom, and while it took me a long time to realize it, the amount of work she did to manage the house and raise two children was remarkable.

Heck, even now as I pull my hair out at times while home with three cats, I realize just how incredible this really was. Thank you mom for everything!

MOM --WOW (With Out Words)

No doubt about it, mom is a central figure in our world. So as we celebrate Mother's Day next Sunday (5/10/15) we ought to pause and think about mom's influence in our lives.  

She has taught me so much.  I think of all the lessons she has modeled for me throughout my life in topics from boys to academia to love in and of family to the meaning of true success.  I looked to her (even as a slightly rebellious child) for a standard of morals, I asked for her assistance in grammar when typing up an essay (even through college), and now I heed her lessons in balancing my life, work and passions (even if I think I can do it all myself.)  All the while, she is my teacher, one with the honored and sacred name of Mother.

My mom's classroom was her kitchen but she also taught me in the back yard and while washing windows during spring cleaning. She instructed me when we went to the grocery store and when we walked to the bus stop to go shopping downtown. In her school of life, she never picked up a piece of chalk, but there were hundreds of times she picked up my broken heart and helped me piece it together again.  Mom taught me more than just practical life skills.

My mom is probably like yours. Her picture never appeared on the front page of our hometown newspaper.  If your mom is like my mom, you've attended a similar school. Maybe you skipped class sometimes. Maybe your report card shows some ups and downs. But her classroom has been open to you and, at least at times, you have learned important lessons from her.

As she looks back on her years she sometimes wonders (as we all do) if she's made a difference in the world. She has. She has taught me. From sewing to baking to cleaning to laughing to praying, her class has gone on for years and I have been her student. Not a straight A student I'm afraid, but one who has fallen in love with the teacher.

This week, for Mother's Day, Thank your mom for being your first and best teacher.

There is a lot of talk at school about the importance the family has in relation to students’ success.  We also know how vital it is to create and sustain a positive collaboration between school and home.  As my students left me Friday afternoon, I couldn’t help but think about how much those boys and girls look up to the woman in their lives: mothers, grandmothers, even aunts and big sisters.  They are our students’ first teachers.

Next Sunday, I will celebrate Mother’s Day with my extended family. Through this busy time getting ready for this fun event, it’s important for me to stop and think about my mothers: my grandmothers, my aunts, and my one and only Mom.  They all play such a large role in who I am.  They help to shape me through what they have taught me and continue to teach me each day!

To all the Mothers – I wish you a wonderful week end!

Friendships

Let's face it, great friendships are priceless. Good friends can lift your spirits, make you laugh, and remind you that you are loved. Everyone needs friends, and you probably have always had at least one.

 Friendships can have a major impact on your health and well-being, but it's not always easy to build or maintain friendships.  

The most important thing to remember:

• We respect each other

• We are honest with each other

• We communicate clearly with each other

• We support each other

• We don’t hold grudges against each other

• We enjoy spending time with each other

• We maintain healthy lives and other relationships outside of this relationship (friends, family, activities, extracurriculars, identity, etc)  

I am blessed, my Friends celebrate good times with me and provide support during bad times. For me, developing and maintaining good friendships takes effort. The enjoyment and comfort friendships provide, however, makes the investment worthwhile.

Smiles

     

“Our work-a-day lives are filled with opportunities to bless others. The power of a single glance or an encouraging smile must never be underestimated.”

                                                ----G. Richard Rieger  

Gratitude is a great reminder to me to always count my blessings.  Life presents challenging circumstances almost every day. It is easy to lose sight of the good things happening around us because we are consumed with the negative. Feeling gratitude is an important practice that I bring into my daily practice. 

Feel grateful for all that surrounds you, grateful for the gifts that life gives you and grateful for your awareness. You are alive and here on this planet and that is something to feel good about.

Smiling and laughing can have a positive effect on your well-being. We could all do with a bit of cheering up every now and then, So give a gift that is worth more than money --Smiling – What a wonderful word and what a wonderful action to take. 

All the research in the world cannot define the warmth of a smile. With smiles, your days will become lighter, more joyous and more bearable even on those hay wired days. A smile is so simple yet so powerful. It takes but a moment but the memory of it lasts forever. It does not cost us anything – Think of it this way it is a small gift you are giving. 

Did you know, a smile is one of the strongest communication tools, and many spend their entire lives not knowing how to properly use it. Does this include you? By practicing this one simple gesture, you can improve your communication skills, and begin helping others around you feel joy, happiness, and accepted

"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy."

                                                   ~Thich Nhat Hanh

Spirit Within

“The body heals with play, the mind heals with laughter and the spirit heals with joy.” – Proverb

How does body, mind and spirit fit together?          

                                                    

The body, mind and spirit work as a system of energy.  The three are interconnected. We connect our body, mind and spirit to keep energy flowing within us. It is not limited to our physical bodies. Everything is composed of energy: biological, chemical and spiritual.This energy flow can be abundant or restricted, depending on our 'state of being' in each moment and it changes constantly.

Nurture your body, mind and spirit. Make each day count. It is a process (that I learn daily) that involves shifting away from the natural inclination on what is wrong to having a positive mindset focused on your purpose.

Our state of being is our overall feeling of health and wellness. It refers to how balanced we feel on all levels of our being. 

Whether we are happy or sad, sick or well, disconnected from spirit or not, we are either in or out of alignment with who we really are.

When we practice self awareness, even in difficult times, we can see these thoughts for what they are – thoughts. We know that we are the observer of these thoughts and we can choose whether to utilize these thoughts or not. We can choose our intentions.

What it really boils down to is be the best you can be with the resources that you have available to you because what you have to you heralds its own sort of perfection.  

When we live in balance with mind, body, and spirit, life flows more naturally, more easily. 

April 1st

You have an effect and you are effected. Share  your Gift and Participate with Life. Thank you for being on this planet at this time.

Strong Roots

“The body heals with play, the mind heals with laughter and the spirit heals with joy.” – Proverb

How does body, mind and spirit fit together? 

The body, mind and soul work as a system of energy.  The three are interconnected. We connect our body, mind and soul to keep energy flowing within us. It is not limited to our physical bodies. Everything is composed of energy: biological, chemical and spiritual.This energy flow can be abundant or restricted, depending on our 'state of being' in each moment and it changes constantly.

Our state of being is our overall feeling of health and wellness. It refers to how balanced we feel on all levels of our being. Whether we are happy or sad, sick or well, disconnected from spirit or not, we are either in or out of alignment with who we really are.

Nurture your body, mind and spirit. Make each day count. It is a process (that I learn daily) that involves shifting away from the natural inclination on what is wrong to having a positive mindset focused on your purpose.

When we practice self awareness, even in difficult times, we can see these thoughts for what they are – thoughts. We know that we are the observer of these thoughts and we can choose whether to utilize these thoughts or not. We can choose our intentions.

What it really boils down to is be the best you can be with the resources that you have available to you because what you have to you heralds its own sort of perfection.  When we live in balance with mind, body, and spirit, life flows more naturally, more easily. 

ME = WE

I Love Being Me!    

This is not your typical conversation starter ---but Let me suppose this….. What is the most precious thing you have in the world?

The greatest gift you can give is to be Yourself – To know Yourself – self awareness. You are exactly as God created you –You are whole and complete – perfect. You are enough. Not because you did, said, thought, bought or created something but just by being on this planet.

We do not have to do anything unique nor extraordinary ===we just have to allow our self to
Be.  Now it is just to remember we are enough.

     

There is this song that I love, ‘This little light of mine”  I chose this song because of its truth.  When I am feeling self pity and loss, and I sing this song, I am uplifted. It brings me a sense of hope and infinite possibilities. I can look ahead with a new set of eyes – everyday is a new day. A new beginning. When I am at my highest best and I sing this song, I am motivated to be more --Everywhere I go, gonna open up my heart and let it shine.

Let ME, the beauty of me shine everywhere  -- in my actions, in my words, in my thoughts and in my body language.   I Love Being Me!

Yes, I have my challenges/obstacles --- Challenges are apart of life – it helps us grow. Life happens through us  Life is to be lived.

I choose to Look for the good in all that I behold. The amazing part your sense of who you are determines what you perceive as your needs and what matters to you in life.  I am devoting a period of time to pleasure, rest and relaxation this week. How about you!

Spring

Spring is in the air and I am loving it!  

Spring is the season of new beginnings. The spring season is full of transformations. The temperature rises to a more bearable degree. Fresh buds bloom and animals awaken and the earth seems to come to life again. Aside from the weather's transformations that occur in the spring season, we are transforming our lives, too.

In the dictionary, Spring is a verb, sprang; sprung; springing.

1. to rise, leap, move, or act suddenly and swiftly, as by a sudden dart or thrust forward or outward,or being suddenly released from a coiled or constrained position:

to spring into the air; a tiger about to spring.

When spring rolls into our lives, we start to pick up the slack that winter instilled inside us of becoming sloths. No more lounging on the couch. — in the spring you want to go outside and do more. With longer days and the ability to get out and about, we can all come out of our hibernation and get a bit more active. Spring is a great time to explore.  I hope you will find something that inspires you!

Joy

I was in a wonderful workshop on Saturday called "A Joyful Sense of Self".   Joy is feeling good by what you do and think. You want more Joy in your life, see the beautiful truth that everything happens because it is a creation. WE are constantly co-creating. Everyday is a new day.

We learn from our experiences. See the pain, see your past, see your mistakes as apart of life. It is not feeling fear that stops you, everyone feels fear at times, it is hiding or ignoring your fear that gets in the way. The concealment takes all of your energy and leaves none for enjoying your   life. Make friends with your fear, and then live life. Play with life. You are in control of You. 

Joy and Happiness is based on your perception. See your life for pleasure and joy - a different way of looking at your life. The greatest possibility today, I make choices from a place of Joy.

                                                                                                       

Balance and union

"We cannot accomplish all that we need to do without working together."

~Bill Richardson

You cannot do everything yourself. Accepting help is not a sign of weakness, but a growing process that helps you progress. 

We all have different opinions and experiences, so when people work together, more ideas get generated. Plus, team members can act as a sounding board, deciding which solutions are the most suitable. Working with others means you’re not alone. Whenever you have a question or problem, there will be other people around to help you out. We all have our individual strengths and weaknesses. By working in teams, we can take advantage of a much wider skills set. 

When everyone is working together towards the same aim, it is much more likely to be successful. 

In the case of the bee, we can observe a highly social insect operating within a teamwork-based community. Worker bees elect a queen, and take special care of her until she matures. All the members of the hive work together to support the queen. They do this in order for the queen to insure life, and continuation of the colony. This is symbolic of a family working together for the benefit of the group. It's symbolic of teamwork too. 

Food for thought: Sometimes we need reminding that there is no "I" in "teamwork". We may need to self-evaluate. Are we more concerned with being "right" or having our own needs met than being concerned for our community? 

Sunshine optimizer

Food for Thought (I really like this one.):

        “What great thing would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?”

                                                ----Robert H. Schuller

This simple question posed by American pastor Robert Schuller may help inspire us to try to accomplish our goals. I like thinking about hypothetical questions, and this one is a good start. Most of us have some kind of dream trapped within us that has somehow become stifled by the fear of failure.

So it’s good to think about this question and bring your answer to the surface. 

The problem, though, is that most things that are worth doing involve a real possibility of failure. Taking fear out of the equation, what are your biggest dreams?  So go ahead and start thinking about your greatest aspirations. Instead of thinking about what you would do if you knew you wouldn’t fail, maybe a better question is… What’s truly worth doing and taking steps towards it?