Browse Empowerment

Communication is at once easier and more challenging than ever thanks to the availability of high tech devices and programs that can keep us connected to anyone, anywhere, anytime. Now might be a great time to map out a personal communication strategy and review whether your time and energy is being spent creating and delivering the messages you’re actually intending that others receive. Here are some tips for self-reflection and ideas to support you as you act as your own communication coach. Identify your preferred communication style…

Have you ever noticed that the people who have lots of connections to other people seem to be more healthy and happy than those who have few or no connection to others? This is no coincidence. Connections are the essence of life. At a very basic level, it is our connection to other people ...

I sometimes find it challenging to honor my own feelings – especially if what I want or feel seems to be at odds with other people, or my emotions don’t seem to be “appropriate” to the situation. While I’m not someone who tends to hold back sharing my honest opinions, desires, and feelings and, over the years, I’ve gotten quite a bit of feedback from people close to me about talking too much, dominating situations or conversations, and being selfish – unde eath all of this is a deep fear that my feelings and desires aren’t as important as other people’s.

Who better to talk about adversity tha Christopher Reeve? He said, “When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked “What is a hero?” My answer was that a hero is someone who commits a courageous action without considering the consequences…Now my definition is completely ...

Yup, that’s what I said. Do I have your attention? Alright, let’s talk. I’m not advocating acting as if no one else in the world matters. What I am saying is how many of your decisions are based on what you think someone else may think or say? Do you follow your dreams or do you worry what someone would think of you? Do you step outside your comfort zone or stop short so people won’t question your actions? Do you see where I’m heading with this? Growing up, I’ve lost count of the times I was told not to do or say something because: • What would the neighbors think…r

A basic element in leadership is trust. To trust means that you have confidence and faith in whomever or whatever you are trusting. Trust is in fact, essential for almost every facet of our lives. When people talk about trust, they talk mainly in terms of gaining, earning, or reclaiming trust as an exte al phenomenon. And no doubt, trust is the easiest thing to lose and one of the hardest things to reclaim in human relationships. How do you gain trust?

Having respect for others sets you up for increased success in life. The more you extend this respect throughout your life, the more you can benefit. Having respect for others lays the path for a more convenient life; a life outside of isolation where others are willing to play a part in your success. 6 Important Benefits Of Showing Respect 1. Respect Begets Respect Having respect for others creates respect for you. 2. Career Doors Are Opened Discovering how to show respect t

The most essential factor is persistence - the determination never to allow your energy or enthusiasm (Passion) to be dampened by the discouragement that must inevitably come. James Whitcomb Riley When you have the energy to fuel your passion, success is sure to follow close behind. The 1-2 ...

A significant period of our daily life is spent pleasure-seeking, or more coherently ‘happiness’ seeking. The thing about happiness is that it is short-lived; it is great while it lasts, but invariably at some point, the mood of happiness will not last… and then, on we go again seeking the next shot of happiness. This roller coaster of emotion and experiences will be familiar to nearly everyone we know, and more importantly to ourselves – this meandering of mood is likened to, or expressed in words like treadmill, rat race, and ‘same old same old’…

Take Stock: Now is an ideal time to pause and take stock of you. What is it that you are truly grateful for? Often, we take for granted what we have without ever noting its importance. A female client once came to me, depressed and feeling that her life was void of true meaning. She was financially fortunate and there was much in her life that others would have envied. During one coaching session, I asked her what she had to be grateful for. She looked at me with disbelief and was silent. Sadly, she couldn’t think of anything. Gratitude Review:

How are you doing on your most important goals? How do you even know unless you are carefully measuring your progress on each goal? You are not alone. You probably already know that 91% of New Year’s Resolutions -- you know the ones to lose weight, go to the gym, and clean out that junk drawer -- are abandoned in the first three months of the year. I’m not talking about those “goals”, they are more like wishes anyway.

We live in a world of distractions. All day, every day we are bombarded with opportunities to be distracted.

How to Avoid Struggle, So You Can Live Your Life, Now! By Darla LeDoux CPC, ACC, ELI-MP Are you living a "Someday, Maybe" kind of life? Do you think that eventually you will have the life, the career, the business, the happiness you desire, but first you have to ___________ (have $X in the bank, get some more credentials, start a family, lose some weight, discover your purpose)? As long as you continue to believe that, and think thoughts that are aligned with that, and speak

Man is a triune being. He is spirit, soul, and body. We are made in the likeness of God after the Holy Trinity which is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. You are more than just the fleshly body you see in the mirror after getting out of the shower. The real you cannot be seen. The spirit that lives on the inside of your body is the real you. It is the part that is like God. It is the part along with your soul how you communicate with God. You cannot communicate with God through your flesh.

What most people don't realize is that assertiveness has many layers to it. You can be assertive with your spouse, but passive at work. You can be assertive with your friends, but aggressive with your child and passive with your parents. Take this quiz and discover if there are areas in your life where you would be happier being more assertive. 1. I am comfortable asking others to do things for me, without feeling guilty or anxious. 2. I can easily express my opinions to authority figures, such as my boss.

If negative things keep repeatedly happening in your life, you need to work at creating positive energy and I promise you, this is not only possible, but necessary.

What is love? It is unconditional. Anything else is not really love but how to define unconditional love?

When you have a family, own a house, or have prized possessions, you want them to be safe at all times. This means when you leave your house and family for work or a business trip, you expect them to be happy and safe until your return. However, you cannot always count on hope when it comes to security matters, especially when it comes to the people and items you love most. To maintain good security, you might consider investing in several security sensors and detectors for y

Take a look around you. Take a LOOK at your LIFE! What do you notice? Try this on for size ... As a world community of ONE people, nwe are continuously evolving, as nis the Earth we live on. We are nconstantly changing, growing, nand sharing in the energies nthat bond us in being-ness. Now, ...

“Be the change you wish to see.” Mahatma Gandhi What seems to make the difference between those who thrive versus those who strive comes down to the willingness to identify what is and isn’t working in life; and then making the appropriate changes. Yet, studies indicate that most - over three-quarters of us - fail to follow through on the changes we set out to make.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I tornbe brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child ofr God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking sornthat other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. Wernwere born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's inrneveryone.

When folks around you make waves with their alien communication styles, fervent demands, or weird displays of power, you need healthy boundary skills that pop to the surface like a life preserver. Your imagination can roar to the rescue and save the day. To keep a grip on the real you when the ...When folks around you make waves with their alien communication styles, fervent demands, or weird displays of power, you need healthy boundary skills that pop to the surface like a life preserver. Your imagination can roar to the rescue and save the day.

Recently, one of my career coaching clients, let’s call her Nina (not her real name), came to her coaching call feeling discouraged. She had run into a seemingly insurmountable barrier since our last conversation. At the end of her last coaching session she had committed to contact several individuals for informational interviews to explore a professional field she felt drawn to. In previous coaching sessions, she had reached clarity that her innate strengths would serve he

Did you ever think that understanding your child’s behavior and responses to sensory information may be telling you so much more about your child than you can imagine? Could those so called “behaviors” be communicating something to you about who they are and how they perceive the world? Understanding sensory processing can be instrumental in developing awareness and understanding for your child. It can be a basis of communication, a spring board to developing verbal skills and communicating emotion. It can help you determine strategies that enhance interest and skill development.

The reports and statistics are out. The percentage of children who are overweight has doubled over the past 30 years. It is neither a surprise nor a secret – we see it with our own eyes. As our society has made great progress over the years in many areas of health, our children now face a major set back as they are diagnosed with diseases. These diseases once reserved for adults have moved into the younger generation.

I believe there are three kinds of people. There are winners, who know what they want and understand their potential and the possibilities. They take life on. Next are losers, who do not have a clue as to who they are. They allow circumstances to shape their lives and their self-image. I ...I believe there are three kinds of people. There are winners, who know what they want and understand their potential and the possibilities. They take life on. Next are losers, who do not have a clue as to who they are. They allow circumstances to shape their lives and their self-image.

This morning I found Me talking to Myself. This does happen from time to time and I believe part of it may be due to my Bipolar Affective Disorder. But I also believe most of us talk to ourselves from time to time. Often times the words are just comments we would probably prefer to keep to ourselves. Still it is often hard for me to tell if it’s an inner or outer dialogue I am experiencing.r

Anger is a feeling of powerlessness. However, within your anger is a tremendous sense of power, purpose, passion and meaning because when you feel angry, it’s because you wanted to do something and you were blocked from doing it. People usually think of emotions as good or bad and they think that anger is a bad emotion, that you shouldn’t have it. That if somehow you feel angry, then you are not a nice person, or you’re not a spiritual person. From my vantage point, it

The Habit of Breaking the Habit Yes I say there is a habit to breaking habits. And with every habit we posses there most often is a ritual, or process, we follow. I have broken many habits from the physical to the psychological. First let me say that with every habit I broke the experience was only as difficult as I perceived it to be.

I lost 65 pounds and donated all my too-big clothes to charities and shelters. No more size 22 for me! Or size 20, or 18, or 16, or 14, or even 12. Now I wear a perfect size 10 and I love shopping like never before. How did I do it? I’ll let you in on my secret, but first I’ll ...

Become a positive thinker... and that means putting an end to negative thinking. Positive thinkers have all the fun... they enjoy success, the enjoy life, and even when things don't quite workout they find a way and to push forward. Why? Because they have conditioned their mind to not accept nothing less than success.

How flexible are you? For me, it depends - on my mood, how much fear or resistance I have about something, how attached I am to a particular outcome, and various other factors. However, as I look throughout my life (now and in the past), I realize that the situations, relationships, and experiences that cause me the greatest stress and frustration, are almost always the ones where I'm not being flexible. And, on the flip side, the more flexible I am - the more peace, ease, and fulfillment become available.

Rejection can be very painful and if our self-esteem isn’t where it should be ideally (and many of ours isn’t) then rejection can throw us a devastating blow. The ability to handle rejection without turning it inward, attacking ourselves with thoughts of unworthiness and losing our ability to think rationally is not something one can find a quick fix to. The ability to deal courageously with rejection happens naturally as we build up our self-esteem by beginning to love and accept ourselves.

Have you ever slaved away over a 1000+ piece jigsaw puzzle for days and nights on end? You know the kind that have at least 200 pieces that are exactly the same color and are therefore really challenging to find their exact fit in the puzzle? Every time you pass by it, you find that you must sit down just for a moment to work on it, and the moment turns into 5 hours?!@?

Chapter 1 In-Sane Wine Perhaps I am a crazy person or maybe not. If I believe what the doctors tell me then, in fact, I am somewhat insane. Personally I don’t like that word because what is sanity? And if one were truly sane would they not be deemed In-Sane, Insane or even In-Sanity.r

Why do 60% of remarriages fail? This, I am sure you will agree, is a staggering statistic and conce ing to everyone who has been married or living with someone for several years, and is now ready to commit to a new and, hopefully, lasting relationship. With the high degree of divorces, the percentage of people remarrying has also increased considerably. Unfortunately, so have the statistics of re-marriage failure. The survival statistics for blended families are pretty depressing. They say that 60% of remarriages end in divorce within the first five years.

"Art knows no limit, and the artists will never achieve perfection." - Bente Borsum Bente Borsum is a talented actress who performed with the Norwegian National Theatre and was a director of the Norwegian National Drama School. As a mentor and teacher, she works with younger artists who need ..."Art knows no limit, and the artists will never achieve perfection." - Bente Borsum

If you were to rate yourself on how happy and fulfilling your life is right now on a scale of 1-10, with “1” being not at all and “10” being fantastic, where would you rate yourself?

Empathy is one of the most important aspects of creating harmonious relationships, reducing stress, and enhancing emotional awareness - yet it can be tricky at times. I consider myself to be quite empathetic, but notice that with certain people (especially those I don't like or agree with and also with myself at times) and in particular situations, my natural ability and desire to empathize can be diminished or almost non-existent.

My 40th birthday was amazing! I received such beautiful blessings from so many people in my life - it was exciting, wonderful, humbling, and a bit overwhelming. As touched and honored as I was (and still am) by all of the appreciatio I got, I also noticed there were moments when it was challenging for me to fully receive the appreciation and let it in.

In a recent session with my counselor Eleanor, she said something simple, but profound to me; “Nothing changes until you do.” She went on to say, “Mike, you keep trying to control and manipulate the situations, relationships, and outcomes in your life – thinking that if they changed in the way you want them to, you’d then change and things would be better. It actually works the other way around.”

HA!

Grab a travel jou al that has both blank and lined pages, find and unleash your “little kid” excitement for collecting things, and off you go! What would qualify for this kind of adventure, you ask? Definitely the words “travel jou al” sound like you are going on a vacation --- so, let’s say you are. For years you have probably been doing the following: - imagining your visit to a particular place - cutting out and filing away articles about it - collecting clippings from newspapers and magazines - ordering numerous catalogues from travel companies

“There is very little doubt that our universe is embedded in a vastly bigger megaverse.” Leonard Susskind It is slowly becoming reality for many of us that the reality of Einstein’s space-time is one of consciousness, quantum minds and souls. The realisation is also emerging that it is those minds and those souls that individually and collectively create the informational ‘material’ environments through which all evolve.

Take Charge of Your Now: 5 simple steps to restore your personal power By: Barbara Robins What is personal power? When we hear the phrase “Restore Your Personal Power” most of us say “Yeah, that’s for me!” But what exactly is Personal Power? Is it to embolden ...

You’ve been grateful your whole life. In fact, among the first words you learned as a child are the words “thank you”. Your parents taught you when to say it, who to say it to and that you should say it every time something good is bestowed upon you. As you grew up, you found that when you ...

Every family is blended. Even when all the members are biologically linked, the addition of any new member requires special attention. And though new additions are mostly exciting times, blending can be an experience rich in mixed emotions, with joy and stress being at the top of the list. Even the addition of a new pet becomes a blend. Roles change, responsibilities are added, individual attention is lessened and sleep becomes deprived. Crankiness can easily set in. When it comes to the blended family, I think of ours as the Premiere Gourmet Extra Special Roasted Blend.