Empowerment Articles

One of my great joys lately is getting a pedicure. This treat used to be reserved for special occasions. I had one the day before I got married and then didn't have another one until almost 20 years later. I'm a frugal person, and out of the desire to use my discretionary income for things that I need and not necessarily for things that I want, I denied myself a regular pedicure.

Events in and of themselves do not create stress. It is the meaning you give to these events that causes the stressful reaction. What you have something mean about you or your possibilities is what spins you into a cycle of reactive stress - or a calm deliberate thought process that leads to a healthy outcome. There are two ways you react to stress: emotionally and physically. Emotional reactions to stress are as varied as there are perspectives on any of the events of your life. The bodily reaction to stress triggers, however, is more hardwired.

Your most important aim in life is to be happy, to be calm, confident and relaxed and to feel in complete control of every aspect of your life. Just as your car runs more smoothly and requires less energy to go faster and farther when the wheels are in perfect alignment, you perform better when ...

There is a phrase, “That person rubs me the wrong way,” that basically means the person (though it also could be a situation) doesn’t make you feel good. You, at times, do this with your thoughts (most of us do); so what works to shift this? Esther Hicks of Abraham fame has a video on YouTube, “Now Is Where All Your Power Is, Part 2,” where she likens feeding negative thoughts—any thoughts that take you out of feeling good—with rubbing your hand on sandpaper.

A group of anthropologists at Cambridge were conducting research on the concepts of pessimism and optimism. Their subjects were two young boys: one a pessimist and the other an optimist. The pessimistic boy was put in a room full of wonderful toys. The optimistic boy was put in a room with nothing but a barrel of manure. When the scientist looked in on the pessimistic boy one hour later they found him complaining about this toy that didn't work, that one needed fresh batteries, the next one wasn't the rights color, etc., etc. Recording their findings, they moved on.

Quite often in life, those things which are most simple and obvious are also the most profound and difficult. Things like love and money. And jou aling. Taking the time to pause and reflect, to focus on yourself, and to express to yourself what you find couldn't be a more natural impulse. Most people, while hurtling pell-mell through existence, want to take a breather now and then. But getting there, actually stopping other things in order to sit down with a journal, seems

Just about every small business owner I know wants a successful business because they value freedom. Most of us have been employed at some point in our lives and know what it’s like to work for someone else – you’re accountable to them, all your efforts conspire in the direction of making them successful and furthering their vision. Remembering what it’s like to be employed by someone else offers a stark contrast that probably contributed to the decision to start your business or downright pushed you there. Your time and freedom is a highly valued asset.

The quality of your life is greatly impacted by the quality of your thoughts. Your thoughts are capable of empowering you or demoralizing you. Your thoughts can lead you to greatness or they can lead you to depression. You are the only person who can control the quality of your thoughts. Why ...

The purpose of this article is to discuss what we at Protect consider the first stage of real self defense/personal protection; Avoidance through awareness and intuition. Often in our industry there is a lot of lip service paid to avoidance and awareness, but not too many really understand the depth of what this means or just how vital this aspect of training really is. This is self defence in its purest form. There is no way we can cover anywhere near the full scope of this

The year is 2008, and we move forward toward a new beginning with the onset of spring, longer days and warmer temperatures. We have weathered many emotional and spiritual storms this past year and emerged stronger, with more resolve to take charge of our lives. Take Charge: So how do we take ...

“Self-sabotage is when we say we want something and then go about making sure it doesn't happen.” - Alyce P. Cornyn-Selby Unde eath any unwanted self-sabotaging pattern of behavior is fear. These undesirable experiences can include career self-sabotage, any form of addiction, workaholic or ...“Self-sabotage is when we say we want something and then go about making sure it doesn't happen.” - Alyce P. Cornyn-Selby

Spring has finally here in Atlanta and that always means changes. Those changes have already started, we just don't see them. They're taking place deep underground where roots are spreading, plants are drawing the nutrition they need to flower and flourish. Whether you like it or not change is always happening aro

Harry was an average twenty-eight year old male who was enjoying his life. He had had his share of difficult experiences but had come through it all unscathed and now anticipated the life ahead of him with his many dreams. As he set out on this particular day, just an average day, he fully ...

You Have What It Takes: Getting ahead in business is not just about technical or sales know-how or knowing the ins and outs of your company. It’s about people to people. No matter what business you’re in, you’re in the relationship business. Making a positive and a lasting impression on the people you do business with is critical to your success. So first take a look at what people skills you do have that will win people over.

Bridge the gap from failure to success with scheduling. Time management! What a concept! I think everyone loves to have their hand and their control on the dials and control of their time. Don’t you? In this short article, I do my best to give you some access to the way you are relating to your time and your schedule that might make a difference for you. I will not tell you how to do it, but I will assist you to see how you relate to your time and your schedule.

“Innovation,” “Collaborative Leadership,” and “Trust” are three terms I’m seeing tossed around quite a bit in the articles and books I’m coming across. I agree that we are in need of change—in fact, transformation—but what I’m not seeing much of is how to confront reality. What does it take to develop innovation, collaborative leadership, and trust?

Are you working your tushie off - always going, going, going and never getting anywhere? Are you doing everything you can to grow your business or move up the corporate ladder yet are stuck on pause? Are you uncomfortable or anxious when discussing money with your partner? Are your bills paid at late or at the last minute? Are your financial and business (revenue generating) documents disorganized? Do you wake up in the middle of the night worrying about your financial future? If you answered yes to any of these questions you may be a money avoider.

A famous billionaire once said that even ordinary streets are paved with gold if only one will spend the time to see why. Everyone could make wealth but the problem often is that a person is too preoccupied with negativity that the eye fails to see. The following are misplaced belief systems that are firmly established in the human psyche that blinds the eye hindering the possibility of creating wealth. The creation of wealth is directly proportional to the amount of hard work that a person is willing to take.r

In his book Public Speaking For Success, Dale Carnegie gives accounts of many people of knowledge who did not publicly share what they knew, purely because they were gripped by the fear of public speaking. When I first stepped into the public speaking arena, I thought that confidence was all that I needed to become an impactful speaker. That was far from the truth.

When failure comes, be more determined than ever to succeed. The more feeling there is in your thought the greater its power. You steadily and surely become in the real what you constantly and clearly think that you are in the ideal. The more you believe in yourself the more of your latent powers and possibilities you place in action. And the more you believe in your purpose the more of your power you apply in promoting that purpose. To him who thinks he can, everything is an

Tip number 1: Get serious! Make a decision to go all the way to the top of your field. Make a decision today to join the top 10%. There is no one and nothing that can hold you back from being the best except yourself. Remember, it takes just as long to be great as to be mediocre. The time is ...

I was having a conversation with my mother the other day about some material I was writing in the food section of the survival guide. The topic was grocery shopping, and I was explaining about the articles I had written related to saving money on groceries and how to feed your family on a budget. As I was busy telling my mother about the things I had just recently learned about online coupons, the Sunday paper, and how to buy the cheapest items she was right there expanding on those things that she already knew as well as introducing me to a dozen things I still did not know.

You must have faced obstacles in your life time. I can safely say that every single human being on the face of this planet would have faced obstacles in their lives, and will face obstacles in the future. Sometimes we tend to exaggerate what an obstacle is, and we may get disempowered in the process. Firstly, let’s have a look at what an obstacle is. For some people, an obstacle is a blockage, a road block, a hurdle, or it is something which they put in the ‘too hard’ basket. For others, an obstacle is an opportunity, a challenge, or a rewarding experience.

Success leaves clues, it always has, and it always will. Follow these steps to success with a burning desire to succeed and you will achieve anything you desire. 1. You have to know exactly what you want to achieve. Anyone who has achieved greatness in the past has known exactly what they have ...

If you've ever felt the effects of an inferiority complex, you'd know how it affects one's confidence and ultimately one's self-esteem. Inferiority complex usually comes as a result of you comparing yourself to or someone comparing you to someone else or to a particular "standard" of behaviour or lifestyle. We all love the feeling of approval and acceptance.

When you feel you lack direction in life, business, or retirement, it’s frustrating. It doesn’t have to be this way, if you have two things clear in your mind. You feel you lack direction if you don’t have a destination point envisioned in your mind. A destination point, in this context, is a specific desired result—a vision of what that ideal result is. There are several things that hold people back from putting time into their vision for life, business, or retirement:r

My unique multi-cultural upbringing exposed me to how; many people live in other major parts of the world; such as Europe, Asia and Africa. Although I came from an affluent and privileged background; I ended up working closely with all kinds of people from diverse classes including; social ...

The only real measure of business leadership is results. This requires the ability to act boldly with no guarantees of success. The greatest obstacle to overcome is fear of the unknown. \ The Key to Confidence\ Most fear however, is rooted in ignorance. The more knowledge or skill you have in any ...

Success Unleashed! Interested in accelerating your success quotient? I recently sat down with my friend and colleague, Jack Canfield, co-creator of the phenomenal bestselling “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series because he has a gift for translating concepts into practical steps we all can use to create what we say we want. In this interview you’ll learn about his personal success journey and how you can apply his “Success Principles” to get better results.

Team dysfunction is at the heart of much organizational dysfunction. After all, people comprise teams and teams create organizations. Or, let’s work backwards: if we want to improve organizations, we need to develop individual people. Notice I said, “develop,” not “fix” or “improve.” Our view of personal growth historically also comes from a paradigm of lack or negativity—something must be wrong if you don’t know it all—which is why so many leaders pretend they already know everything.

Perfectionism can kill you. Bold statement. Sad but true. The frenetic obsession to have the perfect body is literally killing some people. A nose job or a face lift isn't enough. Once that's done, then the boobs, lips, hips along with every wrinkle must be enhanced, puffed, sucked out, lifted, stretched and shaped into the ideal body. Uh-oh, there's another wrinkle and off to the scalpel you go!

If you’re an avid or even sometime reader of many of the personal growth and development resources available, you’ve probably come across the word “authenticity”, but what does that really mean? What does it mean to “be authentic”? According to http://www.merriam-webster.com/, authenticity means being real or genuine, not copied or false; being true and accurate. In other words, authenticity means not blindly following the crowd. It means not changing who you are just to fi

If you’re aware of the Law of Attraction and have a basic understanding of how it works, then you will know that how you feel is extremely important in what you’re going to attract. Time and time again I have proven to myself that when I feel good about anything at all, that is when ...

Persuasion power can help you get more of the things you want faster than anything else you do. It can mean the difference between success and failure. It can guarantee your progress and enable you to use all of your other skills and abilities at the very highest level. Your persuasion power ...

WHAT IS VOICE MOVEMENT THERAPY? Developed by Paul Newham, Voice Movement Therapy (VMT) is an Expressive Arts Therapy that uses the voice as a link to personal growth and mind-body healing. Utilizing very specific vocal components VMT accesses the deeper layers of mind and body memory, and can provide relief from emotional pain, depleted energy, and creative blocks. As a result the mind-body-spirit experiences freedom and authenticity.

Last week my left ear got plugged up and it was difficult for me to hear out of it for about 48 hours. It was scary and challenging. Thankfully everything was okay, it's all clear now, and I'm able to hear just fine out of both ears. Having this happen was yet another example of how easy it is for me to take something simple, but very important (like hearing), for granted. Sadly, we often don't appreciate the simple things in life until they're threatened, impacted, or taken away from us in some way. What if we did appreciate the simple things all the time, in an authentic way?

How to Know Your Variable Costs to Increase Profits in Your Small Business If you don’t know your variable costs you don’t have the information you need to maximize the profits in your small business. You don’t have the information you need to price your products and services. You can't operate your small business with the accuracy and precision to maximize your profits. Variable costs are a key com of your profit and loss statement. What Are Variable Costs?

There is positive momentum and negative momentum. Are you creating positive momentum in your life, drawing the things you want in your life, or you pushing it away? Here are ten suggestions (or reminders) to help you focus on what really matters. 1. Take some time to decide what you want specifically to clarify your fu

Did you know that more than 90 million people purchased anti-aging products in 2004, as reported by the National Consumers League (NCL)? Is it just me or does it seem like we're constantly being told that growing older is a bad thing? Everyday we are bombarded with advertisements for anti-aging products.

Too pooped to put one more foot in front of the other? Is your favorite part of the day the moment you get to dive into bed and shut the world off for a few hours? Does the mere thought of the days ahead suck the life energy right out of you? I know how that feels. I've been there -- for years. I complained I was tired all the time. People said I needed to eat more. Tried that, still felt the abyss of an energy void.

So many decisions to be made every day !! How do we choose what is right for us personally? rnThere is an overabundance of information available.rnThere seems to be an equal amount of pros and cons on any given subject.rnWhich vitamins & supplements are really necessary? Do we move on or stay?rnIs this right or wrong for us? Which advise will we choose to follow? Everyone has an opinion on what we should do.rnHow many times have we said...I knew better? Here is a simple Sway

Over the next 7 days do these 7 simple exercises ... and see how much your life will improve. Choose To Be Happy Happiness is a choice. You can choose to be happy. Choose to be happy, every day. Take A Break Too many things to do? Not enough time? Stop. You need a break. Now. At a minimum take a minute, and do "nothing". Look out the window, daydream, think of something luxurious, think of something good. For yourself. This important little exercise can refresh you and help

Throughout the developed world, we have moved from an era of manpower to an era of mind power. We have moved from the use of physical muscles to the use of mental muscles. Today the chief sources of value in our society are knowledge and the ability to apply that knowledge in a timely fashion. ...

A recent survey found that eighty percent of people are not satisfied with their work. Most people wanted a more meaningful life – do you? Are you confused about what you want? Perhaps you are facing a layoff, or are in transition? Maybe you are considering starting your own business or ...

I was busy in the kitchen this weekend. I had a yen to cook something that would slow-cook in a crock pot. I love how a house smells when there is something yummy getting ready for my tummy. A friend called. She was complaining about her exhausting weekend. Relatives were staying with her. Each had an opinion of how she should live her life. Her career, potential relationships and even what she wore was picked apart and critiqued. Well-meaning family members had different ideas of who she was and what path was the 'right' road to travel in her struggle for success.

I challenge all my couples in my practice to create a higher standard for what is possible in their relationship. I think all of us believe that we are capable or deserve a great and fulfilling relationship. Yet if you take a good hard look around, you will find examples of a lot of mediocre and damaged relationships. Of course there are exceptions. But that is not what I have seen.

The holiday season is officially upon us. The history of this special time of the year is one of gratitude and giving. 'Tis the season to be Jolly, right? For many, the modern holiday season is often marked by stress and anxiety, strain and worry, apprehension and insecurity. Dreaming of the season rarely conjures up the overflowing peace, joy, and love that come from true thanks and true giving. Here are a few common stressors that might be draining your joy this season: Not enough money to buy the things you want for your friends and family.

All of us can benefit from tips that will create successful outcomes to any negotiation whether it's with our boss, spouse, or prospective business partner. Here are some sure winners for your next negotiation. Whether you realize it or not, we’re negotiating all the time with our spouses, our friends, at work and even at play. Negotiation is a skill like any other. You’re not born with it but it can be learned. Proficiency grows with practice. Here are some tips that will have you negotiating successfully every time. Know What You Wantr