Activate Your Inner Genius

 Here’s the deal: you are brilliant. Don’t go around telling people that, because it just doesn’t go over well. All of us are brilliant, it’s just that we use our brilliance to a hugely varying degree. Want to know the key to using more of your brilliance? Here it is….ready?

Learn to trust yourself. Not just any old self, but your deepest, quietest, wisest self that has the big picture capacity to see your entire life and all that you are. This means you have to get still, quiet and calm enough to hear that still, small voice from within you that is no less than your inner wisdom, your cumulative life experience, your emotional intelligence, and yes, your spiritual awareness.

 So, there is this you that goes through each day, feeling occasional frustration, fear, worry and possibly anger. That comes from “badfinding,” that is going from problem to problem, issue to issue. And there is this other you, the brilliant you, that is activated when you start practicing Goodfinding and the Art of Appreciation and looking at all of the beauty and blessings that surround you in each moment. Your inner brilliance is joyful, therefore you must be feeling joy to connect with it. The practice of Goodfinding will move you closer and closer to joy, thereby connecting you with the amazingly wise, loving genius within you. Read the current Goodfinding newsletter here, and preview the Goodfinding audio program here.

Your Amazing Body

How many body parts and organs of yours have always funtioned perfectly and given you no problem? How much time do you spend appreciating those? Doing so is Goodfinding in your own body, and will raise the functioning of your immune system! It’s just not necessary to suffer and struggle as much as many people do. Your body is an amazing self-healing organism, and it knows how to take care of almost anything that goes wrong. The more you trust your body, the better it will work for you. Meditation is an excellent way to tune into your body and help it to be healthy and create fabulous emotions for you.

 How many physical problems have you had that have just gone away? How much time do you spend thanking your body for taking care of that? Your body is alive, and it is listening. Be good to you. Take care of your body and it will take care of you.

The Art of Anticipation

 Look forward to the life you choose. Practice the art of anticipation, and like a child before a special event, let your mind enjoy the positive possibilities that lay before you. Think of all of the good things that have happened in your life that thrilled you at the time. Look at those and say to yourself, “All this and more.” Use the incredible power of your imagination and face the reality that you are creating and re-creating your life in your thoughts and emotions moment by moment, day by day. Expect the best for yourself, and keep your feet planted firmly on the ground. Take care of yourself and your life, and anticipate great joy and prosperity.

Help Yourself To Happiness

 If you would like to help yourself to a little more happiness in your life, go to authentichappiness.org, Dr. Martin Seligman’s Positive Psychology web site. Follow the questionnaires link, where you can assess your happiness, gratitude, optimism, perseverance and strength of character. Other assessment tools allow you to take a look at your capacity for forgiveness, your work-life satisfaction, your attachment style in relationships and your meaning in life. Self-awareness is not always easy to come by, but  authentichappiness.org will definitely help. And the good news is, the more you know yourself, the better you will like you.

Giving Makes Us Happy

 Ode Magazine reports on one of the longest-running social-science studies of our time, which demonstrates that, “Giving Makes Us Happy.” We have known for years that a good thing to do when you’re down is to reach out and help someone. This study, and the book based on it entitled, “In The Course Of A Lifetime” examine what the authors call “generativity,” which is basically described as the willingness to give to others. It shows that generous giving makes us healthier and happier throughout a lifetime that otherwise might appear difficult and filled with hardship. When you give to others, you remember the wonderful person you are.

Relax and Breathe

 ”The only sound Samantha heard was the soft passing of her own breath. The silence pressed in from all sides. The otherwise brave warrior’s heart was pounding, on the edge of terror. A quiet voice spoke from the back of her mind. “What bothers you is not the silence. It is the noise of your own thoughts and the sensations they give rise to. Relax and breathe. Relax and breathe.” Grateful for this awareness and puzzled as to its source, she felt the pounding in her chest begin to subside. Taking several deep breaths, Samantha remembered why she had come—for exactly this—to become more familiar with herself and her inner world.” (This is an excerpt from Dr. DeFoore’s new book, Serai: Bringing The Children Home.)

We Are Here To Serve You

 ”We are here, and ever have been. We are before you, lighting your way, yet we live inside you and through your history. We are your ideal, your true nature, your destiny and purpose. We will reward, empower and motivate you from within, and we will always be just slightly out of your reach. Our purpose is to take you beyond yourself into the realms of greatness from which you came and which you will one day again call home. The more you remember us the stronger you will become, and the greater our presence will manifest in your life. We enter through your thoughts, and by the force of your will. We are here to serve you.” (This is an excerpt from Dr. DeFoore’s new book, Serai: Bringing The Children Home.)

The Value of Your Positive Emotions

 One of the most powerful teachings I have run across lately comes from Jerry and Esther Hicks’ book, The Law of Attraction. The authors suggest that our emotions are a kind of guidance system, designed to strengthen our connection with our Inner Being, or spiritual nature. The idea can be summarized in this way: when you feel positive emotion, it is because you are resonating and in alignment with your spiritual nature, and negative emotions mean you are out of alignment. So, it is very important that you feel good, not just for a moment, but deeply and most if not all of the time. Your emotional/spiritual system is designed to bring you lasting joy and peace.

You Are Magnificent

 When is the last time you sat back and took a look at yourself? If it’s been a while, take a few minutes every day for a week and think about all that you do. Whatever your limitations or perceived failures, you are a contributor to the world around you. Think of the people who admire you the most, and consider that they might not be wrong about you. Look at yourself through their eyes, and recognize your beauty, grace, brilliance and good heart. Deep inside there, in the privacy of your thoughts, you know that you have only the best of intentions. Look even deeper now, and catch a glimpse of your wise, loving, spiritual self. Live, laugh and love from who you truly are.

Kids and Dogs Helping Us

 Have you ever noticed how children and dogs help adults to strike up a conversation? Most of us are a little shy about just launching into a dialogue with a stranger, but insert a cute child or dog, and all of a sudden there’s a friendly, safe common ground for communication. We need to connect with each other. In his book, Love and Survival, Dr. Dean Ornish tells us that connection and intimacy is good for our health, just as isolation is not. Enter the angels—children and dogs, unconditionally offering up their loving and sometimes playful presence to anyone around. Maybe they are just reminding us of who we truly are inside. Loving and playful.