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What’s the Point? Finding Your Purpose in Life

November 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Karen Pasqualucci -

It has been said by many a great leader that those who do not enjoy their everyday job are missing out on one of life’s great pleasures. How many people can agree that the work they get paid, hourly, weekly, monthly to do is a great pleasure of life? Perhaps the money they receive is worth getting up in the morning for, most would agree that is a motivator, but the actual work itself? Too many people strive only to make it to the weekend. The daily business of work is nothing more than one of life’s punishments.

Work has an impact on the big picture of life, but what about the hours in between, the ones meant for more. Down time? Up time? Me time? What if those hours are wasted away with no real pleasure associated to them either. What are you left with? Work that is drudgery and a personal life without substance.

Going through life without a clear direction or purpose not only leaves a person stranded on their journey forward, it causes added stress and anxiety. What most people do not realize is the importance of having a story, something to hold on to when the turbulence of life bumps you around. A life story will engage all your senses, invigorate your brain to act and react, plan and propose, interact and engage the world around you.

Five Steps to Finding Purpose:

    1. Take time to think – Take the time to ponder what is important. Time is a commodity we throw away for the most trivial things. Spend the necessary time to rediscover who you are and what gets you excited. Carve out moments in your day to reflect and be still.

 

    1. Understand your core values – Write out ten things that are important to you. Values passed down from your family, or ones you have come to believe in on your own. Core values determine if you will gossip, steal, or even wake up early to exercise. These are personal and unique to who are as a human being.

 

    1. Put together a mission statement – This is a one sentence thesis of your life that will guide you through the difficult times when your direction is no longer clear, when everything becomes uncertain. Going back to your mission statement will remind you of the ‘what’ in your life, possibly the ‘how’ and certainly the ‘why’. WHY is the most important motivator there is.

 

    1. Determine the outcome – The power of your thoughts is immeasurable. If you believe you can’t then you won’t. If you think you will fail then you will. It is time to take back your thought life and fill it with positive words that encourage and affirm. When you believe in something you work harder to achieve and success is the natural outcome.

 

  1. Do hard things – Life is not easy. Challenges arise and confront ready to sabotage the good work you have strived and fought for. It is in those moments that leadership, integrity and character can emerge and be the victor. If everyone gave up when life became hard we would live in a desolate and barren existence without the pleasures we enjoy now. Great people build monuments out of the stones their critics throw at them.

What’s the point?

Everyone was created for a purpose. Without one we are just floating along in an empty existence that is meaningless. Write your life story before it is written for you.

Karen Pasqualucci is a passionate, lifelong learner. She is an author, artist, entrepreneur, internationally accomplished speaker/trainer, a third degree black belt in Taijitsu and a homeschool mom of three. She shares her newest insights on her blog at http://DoodleMeanings.com and gives away a FREE Guide to discovering the secrets your doodles reveal! Come and get it!

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Monday, August 29, 2011 – Purpose

August 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.
John F. Kennedy

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Monday, Augus 15, 2011 – Purpose

August 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them.
Dalai Lama

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What is Purpose?

August 15, 2011 By 2 Comments

By Gloria Hamilten -

In a sense, purpose goes beyond our physical and emotional needs. When we look at purpose, we don’t look at it so much as a need but as a higher extension of our reason for being. When we look at purpose, we look at it as something more elevated than the basic physical needs for which we may set goals we want to achieve. Sometimes, we achieve physical and emotional needs simply because the relevant goals just happen to work out, without our consciously doing anything for them to appear in our life.

But purpose goes beyond our immediate needs. It is in a sense identifying our reason for being. What is the purpose of our being here on earth? What is the special influence we are meant to have here? What is our pre-ordained duty to justify our existence? We aren’t just here by coincidence or accident. We each have a purpose for being here. The most contented, happiest, joyous people are those who are living in an ethical way what they perceive to be their purpose.

Purpose is much more expansive than need. Purpose is not concerned merely with survival whereas when we identify our needs, we see them as what we must have to survive in this life. Purpose is freeing, needs are restricting. Your purpose will be found within your passion. Talent may play a role but people can always build up any skill requirement. Without passion, talent can be largely ineffective.

Having said that, your passion, inner fire or inner drive does stem from a certain need, but it’s more a higher self need than a primal human need. Need can be erratic according to whim or immediate desire like a momentary burst of addiction, whereas purpose as a more stable, solid foundation from which to build a life plan. When needs are met, they lose their impetus. Purpose is a constantly evolving plan that certainly builds momentum, but when following your purpose, you are in control because the Universe works with you. When need is the driving force, you can alienate attraction and the Universe because it goes contrary to their Laws.

Purpose does not contain elements of fight-or-flight which need does. Need’s intensity goes through peaks and valleys, up and down, Purpose follows a well-mapped road to its destination. Further, need needs extreme often external motivation which cannot be sustained unless circumstances are drastic, while purpose is motivated from within, from your inner genius.

As you fulfill your purpose, you will automatically also fulfill some of your needs, but these needs will not be met as a result of desperation but by design.

What does this mean? It means that it is imperative that you work out what your purpose is so that you don’t scurry through your days, months and your life just trying to survive. If you don’t have an altruistic purpose for your life, you’ll be living from need to need to need. The result? You feel a void, an emptiness, a restlessness which you will not be able to explain.

We have been given a more complex than lower mammals, an extended brain that longs to be challenged and conversely wants to give back with more neurons to keep being extended.

When you expand your basis needs and live your purpose, you expand your life. As you live this life for yourself, you also help others do the same.

The big question is. How do I discover what my purpose is?

As a start, just ask yourself as often as you remember…What is my purpose? No strain or stress, just let it flow.

Gloria M Hamilten is a recognized authority in the disciplines within Personal Development and Neuro-Linguistic Programming. She has her own training business, and conducts courses for Businesses, Sporting groups and Educational Institutions. Her website, [http://www.lifemappingmastery.com] provides a wealth of informative articles and resources on everything within these genres.

Visit her website: [http://www.lifemappingmastery.com] for your free E-course: “7 Steps To Design Your Life In The New Economy”.

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Our Comfort Zone: A Great Place to Visit, No Place to Live!

August 9, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Karin Marcus -

Ideally, our comfort zone is an individualized, protective world where we feel safe and secure, free from any anxiety producing risks or unexpected twists. Its walls only permit entry to the people, activities, and situations that support us. In stressful times when we are facing major challenges or feeling overwhelmed, our comfort zone can be a healthy place to visit for rest and renewal, a place to relax, be our self, and let down our guard.

The problem is that our comfort zone is a difficult place to leave. Without our knowing, its architect was inertia, who designed an unmovable monument to the past. Our so-called comfort zone was built to protect and enclose the person we used to be, with no consideration or vision for who we might become. Its brick and mortar are old habits and beliefs, which served us well at one time, but are now terribly outdated.

What we once perceived as our castle can become a prison. We feel stuck, bored, and uninspired. We idle away in neutral but are constantly exhausted. Or we expend tons of precious energy maintaining the status quo, while progressing nowhere.

Unfortunately, comfort zones are most often built on a major fault line. The forces that threatened their very existence are the most essential components of life – change and growth.

In truth, our future, all our untapped potential, lies outside the walls of our comfort zone.

So, how can we experience the intended benefit of comfort and still remain free to grow and change? Here are four important guidelines:

1. Have a Vision: It is important to have a vision of the person we were meant to be and to always be in the process of becoming. We must never stop asking, “What do I want to be when I grow up?” At any age, dreams keep us young and free.

2. Keep Stretching: If we want our dreams to come true, then we need to wake up! Unless they are exercised and stretched, muscles atrophy and so do our heartfelt yearnings. We need to actively keep reaching for our dream, moving forward one step at a time.

3. Rest with Purpose: Life is not linear. We can not keep charging forward, higher and higher. We need to find plateaus where we can rest, regroup and play. But we can also use this time to check our inner compass and realign our path with our values and purpose.

4. Be True to Your Self: Lasting comfort comes from knowing who we are and being at home in our own skin. We all have many parts to our personalities, but we need to spend time with the heart and soul behind this cast of characters. We need to invite that Self to come forward and direct our life.

Ultimately, the concept of a comfort zone is an oxymoron. Comfort and joy are the byproducts of a life well lived. They cannot be pursued for themselves and cannot be maintained within a delineated area. Comfort is a reward to be savored in moments of grace.

Copyright (c) 2011 Karin Marcus

Karin Marcus, MS, PCC Professional Certified Coach / Master Retreat Leader
“Let the beauty of what you love, be what you do” Rumi
Karin@Steppingoutcoaching.com
610-667-5247
http://www.SteppingOutCoaching.com.

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Stop Trying to be Perfect

August 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Roy Klienwachter -

In the moment of completing a thought or action, it becomes “perfect,” within our ability to do it. Any process is perfect, in relationship to what it created. In your sojourn in this world you are in a state of perfection trying to get to a place of perfection. Taking the first step on your journey is just as perfect as taking the 100th step or the 1000th. You do not have to try to be perfect, you are perfection in motion.

One of the problems with perfection, is that you measure yourselves against the perfection of others. Every peace of the 5000 piece puzzle is perfect and unique. Why would a round piece think of itself as imperfection beside a square piece. Would not the square piece think itself imperfect in relationship to the round hole it is trying to fit into to.

All of us have a place in the whole picture. All of us are perfect. All of us are trying to fit somewhere. In our journey to find our place, why would we try to be as another piece. It is a dead end road. As we force ourselves to fit in, life becomes difficult, frustrating and meaningless.

You do not have to try to be something you already are. You simply have to accept that fact, to find peace and happiness in your life. Acceptance is the first step in creating something new. You need to know where you are before you can decide where you want to go. You need to know who you are before you can begin to make changes in your life that reflect your new thoughts about who you want to be.

Self destructive thoughts about who you are is not acceptance. You live in a physical world that is created by you, by your thoughts. Every physical object in your life reflects your thoughts about who and what you think you are. They are perfect symbols of your thought process. When you begin to change your thoughts, your symbols will disappear and be replaced by others. You always fit in, because you change the picture to match your shape, your thoughts about yourself. This how life truly works. It is not a fact that you react to your environment. Your environment reacts to you, because you are creating it.

Do not try to be perfect. Know that you already are, and always will be. If you don’t like what you see, change your thoughts about it, and the puzzle will change for you. You always fit in. If you are having difficulties fitting in, then you need to make adjustments. It’s not that you are not perfect, but you may be that square piece trying to fit a round hole. You may be trying to live up to the image of another or the expectations of that other. You need to change your environment or circumstances to reflect your new thoughts.

If you see yourself as a square piece, then you will start doing square things. Your life and it’s circumstances will reflect that thought. If you try to do a round piece thing, it may not work for you.

You have grown up with the notion that you are imperfect and that you are working towards perfection. Know this! You will never be perfect until you know that you are and accept it. You are no less perfect than your creator, because you are your creator trying to act imperfectly. You are part of the puzzle living in the illusion of separation. Divided from the rest through time and space. You are the whole in the process of recreating itself by bringing it’s individualized pieces back to itself. You are perfection, being perfect, trying to get back to perfection, trying to become itself once again. There is nothing you have to do, say or be to get there. Your place is guaranteed.

Live within your perfection and make adjustments to your environment and circumstances to accommodate your new thoughts about yourself. It is only your thoughts of imperfection that cause you to experience imperfection. It’s not necessary. It is a perfect world, because it is our nature to be that way. Look at your world and see what it holds for you. Conflict, war, hunger, disease and struggle are perfect reflections of how you wish to experience your world. They are there because you have created them. You have accepted their existence. If you do not like them, do not deny them, simply give them no thought and they will not be your experience. A doctor would not exist, except for the fact that he creates his patients through the process of disease. A priest would not exist except for the thought that there are sinners who need to be saved. A writer would not exist, except for the thought, that there are people out there who read.

You have gone full circle. There is nothing you have to do, except to create more perfection. You are here to experience all of perfection, that is your only function. You are perfection, creating perfection until you have found your place in the big picture and are joined once again with perfection.

Roy E. Klienwachter is an ordained minister,light worker, writer and author of Spiritual New Age Wisdom books written in simple language with the eloguence of Zen wisdom. http://www.klienwachter.com

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December 5, 2010 – Purpose

December 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment

“Life without a purpose is a languid, drifting thing; every day we ought to review our purpose, saying to ourselves, ‘This day let me make a sound beginning, for what we have hitherto done is naught!’”

-  Thomas Kempis quotes

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Joy Formula – Keys to Living an Authentically Happy Life

September 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Tara McCausland -

Joy isn’t a word we hear very often nor is it something we feel as often as I believe we’re intended to. Joy is more than satisfaction or pleasure which are often dictated by circumstances out of our control. Joy is a conscience, daily choice to see the good in ourselves and the world around us meaning that we and we alone are ultimately responsible for whether or not we have joy now.

While joy is a choice, there are specific and practical things we can each do to increase the joy factor in our lives. This joy formula is: P (2) + B + S (2) = Joy (happy people)

Purpose! Clearly defined, passionate purpose is the fire that keeps our will to do and achieve burning. Knowing our purpose serves as a compass to help us determine what we should spend our time on in a world where everything is vying for our attention. Purpose will also help dissipate darkness and discouragement and keep us moving forward toward our desired goal.

Next is Positive Thought. Our thoughts are what determine our perceptions of ourselves, the people we associate with, and our environment. Our perceptions then become our reality, true or false – good or bad. Norman Vincent Peale said, “Change your thoughts and change your world.” Therefore, watch your thoughts. They are key to your success or the reason for your failure.

Balance! This is critical piece to having joy. Without it, our days are mundane at best and dreaded in the worst case. To increase balance, start with a healthy definition of what balance ought to look like in your life and your current phase. Next, prioritize and plan and make boundaries around your values. Learn to say no to some things so you can say yes to the most important things. Then, make self investing a priority. Reality is, unless you’re consciously and consistently filling your metaphorical cash box, when people come to withdraw from you – there won’t be anything there for you to give. Finally, adjust! Balance isn’t a static state. It’s all about adapting and shifting your weight according to your situation in life. The name of the game is to adjust when you feel your losing your balance.

Strive for personal excellence. Stagnate personal growth will stifle joy faster than your two year old can mess up the living room. On the other hand, continually striving for personal excellence physically, mentally, socially, professionally, and morally produces an inexhaustible source of joy.

Last but certainly not least is Service. Service is to life what yeast is to bread – that’s what really makes us rise! When we forget about our own troubles and help someone else, we are more easily able to find the good in life. When all else fails, serve!

We are that we might have joy – I truly believe that! As you work to integrate this joy formula, I promise that your days will be brighter and you will have the success that you’re seeking personally and professionally.

For more tips on living joyfully, go to http://www.myjoyquest.com

Tara has been in the business of teaching, training, and coaching for over 5 years and is a certified coach.

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Why are you here?

September 25, 2010 By 1 Comment

I went to see the movie “The Nature of Existence” the other night. I found reference to it on a new blog called Greater Spirit and found that it was playing at the Art theater in Tempe – a short drive from where I live. It was its last night in the theater. In fact as we approached the theater, the movie title was being removed from the marquee. The phrase that caught my attention and made me want to see it was : “The simple difference between spirituality and religion is, you won’t kill anybody for having a slightly different version of spirituality” In addition it said:

The filmmaker, Roger Nygard, uses the film to ask the toughest questions often answered by religion, but rarely answered to our satisfaction.


Why do we exist and what are we supposed to do about it?  What started the Universe and was it a mistake?  Does God exist and why does he seem so interested in our sex lives?

I wrote the toughest 85 questions I could think of, about our purpose and the nature of existence, and then asked hundreds of people all over the globe, such as: Indian holy man Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (The Art of Living), evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), 24th generation Chinese Taoist Master Zhang Chengda, Stanford physicist Leonard Susskind (co-discoverer of string theory), wrestler Rob Adonis (founder of Ultimate Christian Wrestling), confrontational evangelist Brother Jed Smock, novelist Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game), director Irvin Kershner (Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back), Stonehenge Druids Rollo Maughfling & King Arthur Pendragon and many more… How would YOU answer?

My first and continuing impression about this film is that, although it is very interesting, it didn’t answer the questions. Admittedly, there are no pat answers.

The slant seemed to be  the old argument that God cannot be proved by science and so,  you can believe if you need to and want to, but there is no basis for the existence of God which makes our purpose here quite nebulous.

There are a lot of things that science cannot prove: love, happiness, well-being. Yes, molecules of emotion are found in the cells of the body, and  the part of the brain stimulated by different emotions can be demonstrated. But the realm of emotions and belief lie outside the purview of science.

The movie touched on some of the esoteric like Padre Pio , a Capuchin monk who had the stigmata and was said to have performed miracles.  It seemed “tongue in cheek” and didn’t take him seriously.

It didn’t touch on the passion of the great mystic poets like Rumi, Hafiz or William Blake who wrote of their deep love of God. Nor did it consider the lives of some of the great Saints like Francis of Assissi and Therese of Avila who lead lives dedicated to God and the betterment of mankind.  It glossed over the deep beliefs in the Great Spirit of Native Americans and missed altogether the insights that people have gained from “going within” in meditation, who reflected on “Be still and know that I am God” or on “The kingdom of God is within you.” It didn’t discuss the stories of those who have returned after near death experiences.

It seemed to go for “off-the-cuff” responses from “the man on the street,” one of whom was a very bright child who believed in no God and no afterlife. It seemed that no one was given the opportunity to reflect deeply before they were expected to answer, not even the clergy from various religions.

How would you answer the question, “Why are we here?”

As I grow older (and older) I would let go of the catechism answer, “to know, love and serve God on this earth and be happy with Him in the next” to say simply, “We were created for joy” and were given free will to choose those things that we think will bring us that joy.

I would exclaim with Rumi “The soul is here for its own joy!” or I would join  with Hafiz who wrote:

Every

Child

Has known God,

Not the God of names,

Not the God of don’ts,

Not the God who ever does

Anything weird,

But the God who only know four words

And keeps repeating them, saying:

“Come dance with Me.”

Come

Dance.

“The God Who Only Knows Four Words” found in The Gift: Poems by Hafiz, the Great Sufi Master, translated by Daniel Ladinsky, Penguin Books, 1999


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True Happiness is There For the Taking

September 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

By Ralston Heath -

Regardless of what you may have been thinking you can have happiness in your life. If you feel like you are bored with your life, then you are not doing what it is that you should be doing. If you are not doing what you should be doing with your life then it is time to make a change.

If you have ever had goals or dreams and then gave them up for “real” life, you may be frustrated. You may even think you have obstacles or fears holding you back from accomplishing the goals you had. Because of this you are not happy. Well my friend, it is time to get past the obstacles and make your dreams happen.

Your life is yours to live

All of us have a passion about something, be it gardening, child care, rocket surgery, and what have you. Do you know your passion? It is your passion that will bring you true happiness, so you need to discover what your passion is and bring it to fulfillment.

We all are seeking happiness, some of us get temporary highs and think this is happiness, it is close but not good enough. Like the athletes who runs a race, their body gives them a big dose of endorphins, and they feel good. They enjoy the high and think this is true happiness, then the endorphins wear off and so does their happiness.

The way to get your true happiness is to find your passion and do it, both as a way to make you happy and as a career. Every passion has the capability of making money, we should not sit around and avoid our passion because we might think we cannot financially survive on it. We can survive, if we figure out the angle to make it happen we will more than survive, we will thrive.

Seeking out your purpose

One way to discover your passion is to do long hours of therapy and counseling. Another is to get feedback from friends and family as to what they think you are good at, and another is to seek the answer from yourself.

One of the best and cheapest ways to seek the answer from yourself is to meditate. Now don’t go getting all tense because of a word, stay with me for a moment and you will discover a secret.

Many people associate meditation with a religion and so think it is wrong as you would be unfaithful to your religion. Using meditation does not mean you belong to a cult, or some other strange and mysterious sect. Meditation is a tool, nothing more. For those who think they are doing anything religiously wrong are simply missing out on something extremely important.

Meditation can help you bring true happiness into your life, and the practice could be exactly what you need to balance out your life. Meditation is one of the most effective ways to change your well being, and it has been proven that meditation generates brain activity on the left side, which produces a positive emotion in the body.

Your life is your happiness

Seeking answers from your self will lead to better and more productive results. It is your life, and to be happy requires you to live your life the way you want to live it, not the way others think you should no matter how well intentioned they are.

If your mom wants you to work at the post office, and you want to be a rocket surgeon, what will happen to your life if you live like your mom wants you too. Will you be happy, or will your mom be happy? While working for the post office may make a decent living you will not be doing what your passion is, you will not have true happiness.

You, and you alone are inside your skin, and you and you alone feel the emotions that are inside you. If I eat a pizza, do you feel full? You must live for you and your happiness.

Be Blessed

Did you find the information useful? Do you want more good stuff? You can find more about it at my Blog: True Happiness

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