Category Archives for "Belief"
Your beliefs are your foundation, guiding all your thought and behavior.
Your beliefs are your foundation, guiding all your thought and behavior.
“I am what I am, I’m Popeye the Sailor Man.” Could it be that simple?
I hope you remember or know of the old cartoons, “Popeye The Sailor Man“? If not I suggest you watch a couple on YouTube so you will see what I’m talking about here. It is an entertaining way to get a huge life lesson, believing in yourself. Yes, we can get personal growth from cartoons.
Something that happens on every episode is that Popeye goes from being lackluster and in an undesirable situation, to an energized, self-confident fireball taking care of business.
The analogy I see here with Popeye is that he transforms once he realizes who he really is and what he is capable of. Which is what we all can do.
When Popeye remembers who he really is, his arms bulge out, his eyes light up, is energy increases, he gets ideas that help him get out of a fix, he’s determined, and he gets things done fast . ..and he feels good about himself! . . . and he gets the girl!
When he knows who he is and what he is capable of, he does not hesitate, wonder, or ponder the fact, he just goes into action as if guided by a greater force. We all can do this! The people who KNOW that they are a certain way, can DO a certain thing, or even have something, just KNOW it!
There is no, “I wonder if?’ it’s just a matter of when. In our physical reality, there is a time lag, a gestation period between our thoughts and the experience. This is so that every little thought we have does not come out immediately in a physical form.
If this did occur, our life would be like that movie The Mask, where the character played by Jim Carey did physically enact everything he thought, as he thought it. If our knowing and belief that we actually are a certain way is strong enough, the not experiencing of it in the now, is not enough to deter us or to allow doubts, fears and worries take over.
Knowing who and what you are is different that wondering and hoping . . . it’s a belief! And yes, it is a choice. The reason we may not be enjoying everything we desire in life is because we are not in total belief of it, we are in a state of hoping or wanting. When in hope and want, we are separating ourselves from what we desire. When we believe, we have total confidence in ourself, our abilities and our actions.
Believing in something, even if unseen, places it in the now – whereas wanting something places it in the future. There is actually only now, there is no future in reality, you can only experience something NOW. Thinking about something as in the future is really thinking that you want it in your now at some point. So until you bring it into now, it will always be in the future.
This can be tough to grasp, but it is the difference between actually experiencing something and wanting it. Most sages and now science say that the only true reality is NOW. People who appear to be, do and have so easily are doing this, and they may not even be aware that they are. In their minds, they ARE the successful person, they HAVE lots of money, they CAN do certain things, even if they are not yet experiencing them!
So, with Popeye, is it the spinach? No, that’s just a metaphor for what it takes for him to wake up and realize who he really is. In reality, it’s our thought that does this. But just easy as it is to open a can of spinach and eat it, you can flip the switch on your thoughts.
One of the key ‘works’ of life is to come to the realization of who you truly are and what you are capable of, then to accept it completely with total faith, even before the related physical manifestation shows up. You must BE something in your belief before you will experience it.
On a personal level, this is what is meant by, I AM that I AM. It’s a declaration of self. Whatever you declare and believe yourself to be, do and have guides your experience in life. This is not just a wanting affirmation, it must be total belief. If your mind is saying, “yea, but” you do not believe!
Declare who you are, and believe it!
Everything that you do is an outflow of energy which effects whatever you are part of. And, you are part of the universe we all live in. You may be aware that your attitude and actions effects the people you are around, but actually it effects everything. Your thoughts, feelings and actions are all energies that contribute to the collective energy that radiates throughout the world. Carl Jung coined the term, “collective unconscious” which refers to the totality of all shared experiences of the human race. He was certainly not the first to talk about this vast database of human awareness that not only makes up all that has been, but of all that could be. We are all contributing to it and are all influenced by it.
On top of all that, there is something else that is effected, you, the individual. Whatever thoughts, beliefs and perceptions you have will be supported and expanded by your mind, that’s just part of it’s job the same as it keeps your heart beating without your constant attention. Everything you think and do is reenforcing a belief of some sort, helping you to continue to do the same with less and less conscious thought.
So, are your thoughts and actions really supporting what you say are your principles, what you want to stand for? Or are you acting and reacting based on thought programming you have not considered to question? If you say that we should be treating all people equally, are you? Maybe you are most of the time, but what about those certain people or situations? We all have advice for other people on what they can do to make the world a better place, when we can’t actually change anyone, except ourselves. As you change and align your thinking and actions with the ideals you desire, it effects everyone in a positive way not just by direct contact but through the collective unconscious.
What you are thinking and doing is contributing to the overall consciousness of your family, your community, your country, the world. In recent years science has proven what the great spiritual leaders have espoused for centuries, we are all part of the collective unconscious which is energy constantly interacting and changing form. Many of the beliefs you now have were passed on to you through the consciousness of the people around you, your parents, relatives, close groups and community. And you are unknowingly perpetuating these same beliefs.
In order to change this constant repeating of the same beliefs and related actions one must choose to take command of their thinking. David R. Hawkins, in ‘Power vs Force’ states that the first major step to raising our consciousness is in accepting personal responsibility. And our responsibility starts with our thinking. Our ultimate power lies in our command of our thinking. We can consciously question our thoughts, our beliefs, our perceptions and our actions and determine which ones presently support what we want. We can release or alter thoughts that were put into place years ago so that we are more congruent with the direction we want to be going with our life today.
As we upgrade our thinking we are not only helping ourselves, but also everyone around us and the world as our energy becomes part of the collective unconscious. How we effect the world is part of our responsibility, we are the only ones who can do anything about it.
Personal growth and development is an ongoing process and many people seeking to make changes in their lives know that any success comes from changing their thought. But also many find this to be not as straight forward as they thought. With the movie, “The Secret” the Law of Attraction has been brought out and embraced by many, but the movie actually is just a basic introduction on the Law of Attraction not a full blown ‘how to’ course.
Unfortunately many are left thinking that all they need to do is think their way into any success or new life experience. Managing your thinking is a large part of how you make changes but not all there is to it. It does not help that some teachers just do focus on the changing of your thought without delving any deeper. This basic part of The Law of Attraction deals with only your conscious thought, but does not get into the power your unconscious thought holds over your everyday thinking, feeling and behavior.Continue reading
Here in the US we have a new president as most know. We can hope that some new and different things can come as the result of this. Something that I noticed as being very interesting and positive is the comments I saw from many people when interviewed after the Inauguration.
I noticed how quite a few people said that now, since Obama being the first ‘black’ president, all things are possible. Now first, this is a good thing to see so many people have been able to allow their perspectives to change because of who has been elected.Continue reading
Are you a done with yourself or are you continuing to discover more
about yourself, seek personal growth and development?
You see it all around how science keeps going, discovering more and more
about the world and universe we exist in. As technology improves, which
is change, science is able to understand more about our universe plus
obtain more ways to describe it all. For example, this picture of a
supernova remnant was not possible just a few years ago even though the
object was there.
This is how life is, ever expanding in its awareness of itself. Plus,
the increasing awareness of humans to what is already there. Much of the
change seems to not exist or that the change is very slow, but it is
there. Everything in the universe grows and changes we are certainly not
excluded. We have the ability to continue to change and grow throughout
our entire life, including our final change here, death.
But at the same time there are so many people who are ‘checking out’ so
early. Getting tired, feeling aches and pain, feeling beat down –
telling themselves they are wearing out -that it’s too late. I’m not
trying to tell you that pains should be ignored, but how you look at
them can have a huge affect on the power they play in your life.
The biggest factor to your growth is your thinking. What you think about
your life and your growth determines what you see, feel and do. If you
see possibilities – you will see them, and if you see the ‘end’ in your
mind, you will see it in your life. If you think you are too tired, sick
or whatever – you are.
Time to check yourself:
· How are you the same today as you were 10 years ago?
· How are you different?
· What are you doing that you thought were not possible for you a few
years ago?
· Do you look at things in the same way you did several years ago?
· Do you see possibilities for your life or feel hopeless?
· Do you feel that your life continues to move on or do you feel stuck?
· Are you open to new ideas and concepts or do you want to keep things
the way they are?
· Do you feel your problems hold you back, sap your energy and nix your
motivation?
· Are your dreams alive or have you given up on what you want in your
life?
Can you change any of this? Well yes you can – much of it. Many times we
let one thing affect all of our life. We allow our attitude and outlook
to be clouded when one thing has happened when we don’t need to.
Certainly there are situations where something may temporarily set you
back but it does not need to be for all time. Only you can determine if
you are temporarily off or if it has been too long. You will need to ask
yourself honest straight questions about it. The easy answer is of
course, “I will just suffer a little longer” but maybe not the best!
The truth is that a broken foot does not come with a bad attitude,
that’s our choice. A marital separation does not come with resentment
that carries through all of your life, that’s our choice. Because
something did not work out for us does not mean nothing ever will,
that’s our choice to think so. The thing to be careful for is that when
something that appears negative happens don’t allow it to affect all of
your life any more than is necessary.
Ask yourself some key questions that help enhance your self awareness so
you discover how you think and feel about everything. There is always
more out there for you if you allow it and if you are open to recognize
it. When you are clouded by negative reactions it may not seem so, but
you can always change and grow. Your outlook on life is a choice –
yours. You are never done, unless you choose.
John Halderman – More on daily life actions to support a better life,
https://www.effectivepersonaldevelopmentblog.com
Have you written off your dreams because you think you are too old?
Think about this, more and more Olympic athletes are over 30 and some over 40. The 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing China has more athletes over 30 participating than any time in history. Do you realize how difficult it is to make the Olympic team in a country with a lot of athletes trying to get on the team and where there are many young athletes competing for the positions?
Dara Torres, 41-year-old swimmer for the USA, just got two Silver medals and she out swam her much younger competitor during the last leg of the relay. She has successfully balanced the rigorous training needed with being the mother of a 3-year-old daughter.
Ekaterina Karsten of Belarus, competing in the women’s single skull rowing, brings home a bronze medal and she is 36. This is her 4th Olympics, she has won three gold’s and one silver in this event in those efforts proving she has remained in top shape for many years.
Romania’s Constantina Tomescu is 38 and just won the gold in the women’s marathon. In fact at the halfway point she was in 26th place before she gathered speed to end up finishing almost two and a half minutes ahead of the second place finisher. She finished 20th in the 2004 Olympics but has improved steadily in the last four years as she has gotten older in age.
Oksana Chusovitina the 33 year old German gymnast received a silver medal on the vault. My two daughters were both involved in competitive gymnastics, I know how physicaly brutal this sport is. She has stated that if she is able to qualify for the next Olympics she will, she will be 37. She said, “if I can I’ll do a sixth Olympics.” Is she giving up on what she loves? She says, “I don’t feel 33, I feel 18.” She not only made the German team, she took 3rd place amongst all competitors, most of which are about 16 years old!
Jason Lezek, the US swimmer who helped Michael Phelps win the two team relays, is 32 swimming against athletes 10 to 15 years younger. He has shown that he can still compete in finals in the Olympics as well as other international events.
The ability of athletes continuing to compete at such a high level as they age can be attributed to several factors; more financial support for athletes, better sports medicine, more understanding about diet, but mental perspective and determination is at the foundation of it all. It definitely can become more difficult physically to train as a person gets older and the drive to continue must be strong. But the decisions you make based on your perceptions are the determining factor to what you will motivate yourself to do.
These older athletes are redefining what is possible as we get older. Their success shows what we are capable of when we have the vision, motivation and determination. More importantly is shows that more people are able to see themselves in this role as they continue to get older. When you can see something as possible you are more likely to find the ways to bring it about.
The demise of ones abilities begins with their perception of what is possible and not possible. So often people fall into the mental trap of thinking they are too old for something or that it is not appropriate for an older person. This is just not the case in all instances. Your physical abilities and mental drive is governed by your perceptions of what is possible, what you ‘should’ be doing and many times the influence of others.
This concept does not just apply to sports, any endeavor that you have stopped allowing yourself to see as possible is not necessarily dead, unless you condemn it in your mind. Take time to assess your deep wants and desires and rather than staying with restrictive perceptions, take a fresh look at it. You will discover that many times it is your own mental decisions that have stopped your progress and squelched your dreams, not your actual abilities.
Harland (Colonel) Sanders did not even start franchising his chicken until he was 65 years old, you may have heard of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
What is really possible for you ‘if’ you were to follow your dreams without telling yourself no?
John Halderman
More life changing concepts at Effective Personal Development Blog