Love, Life, and the Law of Attraction

Enjoy the Sunset

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 08:05:00 +0000

The 14th Century Poet Put It This Way

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 05:38:00 +0000

Consider how corrupted the human mind can become. I use the word "corrupted" in the sense that we are born with the freedom of the mind to do, be, and have anything we want. As we grow, societal pressures and "norms" (whatever that means these days), make us bury all of the things we long for. But the truth is, we still all have within us the dreams and ability to have everything we want.

We sense that there is some sort of spirit that loves the
Birds and animals and the ants.
Perhaps the same one who gave a radiance to you in your mother's womb.
Is it logical that you would be walking around entirely orphaned now?
The truth is you turned away yourself, and decided to go into the dark alone.
Now you are tangled up in others, and have forgotten what you once knew.
And that's why everything you do has some weird failure in it.

Set yourself free.

Peoplejam.com - Find some great articles on the LOA!

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 20:58:00 +0000

Hi Everyone,

I know I don't usually do this, but I want to recommend those who are interested in more spiritual living and law of attraction articles to visit PeopleJam.com Not only can you start to find some of my articles there, but you'll also find a lot of other great independent authors talking about similar subjects! Enjoy!

Book Review: HE'S SCARED, SHE'S SCARED, by Michael Carter and Julia Sokol

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:08:00 +0000

After writing "Men Who Can't Love" about commitment-phobia (I can never figure out if that's two words or one so I take the easy way out and use the hyphen), enough complaints about it being biased against men prompted the author(s) to do a follow-up book to fill some holes. I suspect that probably making hundreds of thousands of dollars off of the first book was another good reason for this follow-up. Let's see if the sequel is as good as the original.

This book is very similar to Men Who Can't Love and uses many interviews and studies of many men and women who have been screwed, both literally and figuratively in relationships. Some of my favorite stories include the lady who was engaged to be married, had a wedding date set, and then her fiance joined the Peace Corps and left the country two days before the wedding...without her! This is a fun, and great book once again explaining the crazy thought processes of commitment-phobes (there's that hyphen again) and how they disqualify and run away from great partners. Her Mom is fat so maybe she'll be fat - write off. I don't like the way she holds a fork - write off. She's too short, she's too rich, she's too...you name it. I've been doing it my whole life.

I liked this book a lot. It was pretty much the same as the first one, but better organized. It didn't go so much into how to fix the problem other than to recognize it, and seek a therapist! But that's fine because just reading it made me feel less crazy. I could have sworn I saw myself on many of the pages and felt comforted that I was not the only one who has acted weird. The part where he talked about how the more you love a guy the more he resents you for loving him hit a good chord with me since I went through that and began resenting the girl in the same way.

Again, I highly recommend the book, even though it is repetitive. Even though the book was supposed to address how women are also phobic, I think the author just sprinkled in a couple of female cases just to appease some critics - the book is really about how crazy we guys are. Besides, naturally speaking it's mostly us men who are programmed to spread our seed among many and in this way it's harder for many of us to make a commitment to just one person. If you liked Men Who Can't Love, you'll like this one as well.

Hopeful versus HopeLESS Romantic

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:20:00 +0000

Are you a hopeless romantic, yet your love life is a never-ending tragedy? Why is it that your friends who are the least romantic people you know seem to have all the luck? The answer is so obvious it may scare you. The reason you can't find love despite your strong disposition towards it is because you are a hopeless romantic! "Hopeless" means you don't have hope. Go look it up in the dictionary if you don't believe me.

hope·less [hohp-lis] –adjective
1. providing no hope; beyond optimism or hope; desperate: a hopeless case of cancer.

2. without hope; despairing: hopeless grief.

3. impossible to accomplish, solve, resolve, etc.: Balancing my budget is hopeless.

4. not able to learn or act, perform, or work as desired; inadequate for the purpose: As a bridge player, you're hopeless.

Because you love the idea of romance so much, you watch the movies, cry at sad endings, and have a rich fantasy life. These things are great, but love is abundant and easy to find. It sounds nice to be labelled a "hopeless" romantic and also think yourself as one, but if you're having trouble finding a love of your life, then realize that you are what you think you are. By being hopeless all the time, you will perpetuate this state of hopelessness. It's never too late to change.

Start being a hopeful romantic. Take a break from loving those romance movies, and ladies, stop reading those romance novels. Seriously. Do you know how many over 30, single females I know who complain about not being able to meet the right guy? Talking to them I found they all had something in common - they all read romance novels. (Recently some of them are even reading romance novels about vampires, which is even more disturbing yet intriguing at the same time). No one I know who has a relationships or is able to find love easily ever reads that stuff. It skews your mind. Just take a break from it and find your inspiration in reality, not in fiction. The reality is, if you look around you, the world is filled with tonnes of loving couples, marriages and joy.

You can have love also. Stop associating with hopeless romance and ground yourself in reality of love. It's everywhere and it can't wait to come back into your life.

CD Book Review: THE SECRETS OF THE POWER OF INTENTION, by Wayne Dyer

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 19:00:00 +0000

Auuuuhhhhhhmmmm....auuuuhhhhhhhhmmm. So I thought this CD would reveal some words of wisdom which were a secret. I couldn't wait to stick this in the CD player and have my life transformed. Besides, I kind of like Dyer and the things he says, which mimic much of Hinduism and earlier teachings of the LOA. This review will be short since the CD is actually less of a discussion and more of a series of sounds.

Wayne starts off the CD discussing how in the ancient times, cultures at one with the Universe were able to manifest their desires through different sounds. Sending certain sounds out into the Universe helped attract their desires. The two main ones are "auhm" and "ohm". Basically, most of the CD is Wayne doing this humming, interjecting a nice saying about manifesting your desires in between each humm. I tried following the CD a few times and maybe I was humming a bit too much because I felt dizzy by the time I got out of my car!

There were a few good moments with some of the statements about being connected to the universe. I don't think this is one of those relaxing CDs since it requires quite a bit of effort to hummm the way Wayne does it. Also, if you listen to it in fast forward it sounds like he's having sex. For girls out there who love him maybe you'll like it? For those who are fanatical check out the CD, you might like it. Whether this stuff works or not is up to your imagination. I think I'll stick to his books for now!

Surrender Part 1 of 2

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:07:00 +0000

Perhaps the biggest piece of the puzzle in allowing the law of attraction to work effectively is the ability to surrender your desire to the Universe. The Secret talks of this in another way - unwavering faith exhibited by acting and believing that you already have received what you asked for. While this is a necessary component, I believe that true surrender is the real magical ingredient to manifesting what you want.

Surrender does not come easy. When so many law of attraction books discuss keeping your desires at the forefront of your mind, and just as many promote vision boards, etc., why on eart would I be talking about surrender -a nd more importantly, what the hell is "surrender" anyway?

To me, surrender means to bury your desire in your subconscious and stop thinking about it. This sounds counter-intuitive but consider the times in your life when your dreams or desires have actually come true. Consistently, when you stopped thinking about, worrying about, or ruminating about it. It is when you stop caring that suddenly the Universe starts moving in your direction.

Consider the following examples:

1. how many of us have wished they could meet a great guy or girl but never can? Finally, frustrated, you give up on your search and guess what happens? There's a reason so many people say they met their soulmate when they least expected it and had given up looking.

2. have you ever had a difficult time getting a job? You may search for months or longer and you finally get one. But guess what happens as soon as you get one? All of a sudden you start getting job opportunities and offers that you never even asked for.

I could continue with examples but there is a common denominator to the manifestation of my desires - they have all occurred when I stopedt hinking about them and focused my attention elsewhere. Ultimately, even without knowing, I had surrendered my wish and only then did the Universe do its magic and in some of the most wonderous ways that I can't begin to explain.

So how do we stop thinking about a wish and "surrender"? Tune in to part 2 for the answer to that!

Surrender Part 2 of 2

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:55:00 +0000

How To Surrender

Surrendering can be difficult. It's like telling someone not to think about a pink elephant. Don't think about a pink elephant. Are you not thinking about it yet? Of course you are! So how are you supposed to stop thinking about something you want? After all, it must be important to you if you want it, and if it's important to you, then you're thinking about it - probably regularly.

The irony is that although "what we think about, we bring about", what we stop thinking about, we also bring about. I have found that while thinking about things works, I am able to attract much quicker when i stop thinking. Why is there this dichotomy? it may be that thinking about something actually serves as a barrier to allowing the Universe to unfold in the way you need it. People do not realize that there is an extremely fine line between believing that something is yours and doubting that something will ever be yours.

Simply stated, when we place too much emphasis on thinking about our dream car for example, it shows insecurity and doubt that we'll receive it. If you really had your dream car you wouldn't be thinking about it anymore and would probably have moved on to wishing for something else.

The best way to "surrender" is to make your wish, then concentrate on other things, like another wish! It takes practice, especially when you may desperately need something and need it right away. But just keep wishing for other things, and keep moving on. Keep distracting yourself. Everytime a doubt enters your mind, remember all of the times your dreams did come true and renew your confidence that this one will manifest as well. But it will manifest when you surrender, and not one second sooner.

Book Review: FINDING YOUR OWN NORTH STAR, by Martha Beck

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 07:00:00 +0000

I first heard about Martha Beck after that friend of a friend of a friend who watches Oprah told me that Martha was on the show and talked about the law of attraction. In fact, not only did she talk about it, but she had several books on the subject. A sucker for LOA books, I decided to read one of her first mainstream books, Finding Your Own North Star.

This book is much more than a Law of Attraction book. It is more like a therapist-in-a-book, book. The book discusses how we already have programmed into us the things that would make us most happy and how many of us feel depressed and in despair because we are doing things that go against our true desires. Martha describes how we each have an "internal compass" and if we were to tune in to it, we would live blissfully. Babies and children have it, but as we grow up, societal norms, expectations and conditioning detach us from our internal compass. Martha writes about what to do to tune back into this internal compass, including how to heal emotional wounds. She discusses how many of us lose touch with this compass because we have emotional wounds which we don't even know about!

As we are able to tune back into our compass and follow our gut, the law of attraction will start to work wonders. I don't recall if Martha explicitly referred to is as the LOA since she wrote this book before the LOA was mainstream, but she did discuss how when you are in tune with the life you are supposed to be (ie. the life you want to live), bizarre coincidences will begin to happen which will elevate you and make you reach your goals even faster.

This is a true self-help book but more importantly it helps the reader figure out what's holding them back and what they want to do with their life. Many of us are not doing the things we desire for any number of reasons - maybe we think the profession we want wouldn't pay properly, or the partner we want wouldn't be accepted by our family. Who knows! But I can personally attest that when you block out all of the corruptive noises and just keep following the inner impulses within you (no, not the ones that say kill that guy that just cut you off on the road), strange and great things start happening in your life. The problem these days is we think and analyze too much instead of working from feeling. I recommend this book for those who feel lost or if something is missing in their life. Probably you are way off course, but don't worry, with the right work you can find you way. We all can.

Film Review: WHAT THE BLEEP DO WE KNOW?!, by William Arntz

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 16:48:00 +0000

I had heard about this flick a couple of years ago but didn't know what the !@## it was about so didn't watch it. Now that I know what What The Bleep Do We Know is about, I am glad I watched it and highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the science behind how the law of attraction works.

The movie has an underlying story in which the protagonist is played by none other than Marlee Matlin. It follows her unhappy life as she constantly replays her ex-husband's infidelity in her mind while she struggles to get through each day, trying to figure out where she went wrong in life. This story however is overlaid with a very wide variety of interviews with physicists ranging from metaphysicians to quantum physicists to spiritual types and other medical doctors. Considering the credentials of many of them, one can assume the science they discuss has credibility. Using simple language, fun illustrations and animated graphics, one can learn the fundamentals of quantum physics and see how this science is not as scary as it sounds.

It is fascinating to see proven experiments which show that our observation of the outside world actually influences what happens at the physical level. It sounds like mumbo-jumbo, but if anyone is interested, please look up the double-slit experiment. Another amazing one was the Emoto experiments in which he wrote different words on bottles of water. The picture on the left had "you make me sick" written on the bottle, whereas the photo on the right had "love and gratitude" written. Here were what the water crystals looked like as a result:

There's no debate about whether this is true or not as it is the building blocks of quantum physics. Since the science is still in its infancy, no one understands how it works, they just know it does what it does. They have also proven that the same object can exist in two different places at the same time, seemingly destroying our limited concept of "time".

This was a great movie for those who are interested in the scientific side of The Secret (did I mention one of the main people in The Secret is also all over this film?) and I highly recommend the book as it is even better. While still a developing science, it sheds a flood-light upon how the law of attraction is something that is actually possible (and real as many have experienced). Of course, it helps that there is a short sex-scene and a hot blond bending over in a mini-skirt. While the movie is a bit long (i think it was almost two hours!), you can definitely watch it in parts. I give this one a strong recommend.

Book Review: THE SECRET OF LETTING GO, by Guy Finley

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 16:01:00 +0000

So I first borrowed this book because I thought it was about using surrender to be able to more easily attract your desires. I was wrong. However, the book was still appropriate for me at the time since I was still hanging on to old memories of what could have been. I'm glad I borrowed this book.

Guy Finley has written this book as a sort of variety show. He has chapters which include interesting short stories, such as one in which a guy spends years digging in a cave for a hidden treasure only to find that once he stops trying to find the treasure it turns up in the most unexpected place. Guy also uses a lot of one-liner lists about letting go, for example "if you knew to do something differently, you would have." He goes on to discuss how letting go is freeing and means living in the present day to day instead of getting caught up in the past with regrets. I actually enjoyed reading the book.

Interestingly though, the better I felt over time, the more depressing the book was to read! I think that's a good sign though - when a self-help book sounds depressing that usually means you've been helped and are getting better. I checked out the author's website, and he has some online videos, however if you like the way he writes, I would recommend just read the books since the mystique of who is writing this nice material adds to its credibility in some weird way.

For those of you who think they have some old baggage they need to get rid of, I moderately recommend this book. You definitely don't need to read it from front to back - it's more like one of those things you can pick up, open it up to any page and get a sample of inspiration. But I think this is a better book for those with deeper wounds from their past. It might not cure you but if you can open your heart a bit, it may help guide you towards greener pastures. And those pastures will not have cow dung in them.

Aspects of Commitment Phobia, Part 1 of 3

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 16:16:00 +0000

Commitment phobia is one of those pop-culture terms which people throw about without really understanding its meaning. More often than not, the term is one that women use to describe men who don't want to settle down with them. Often the case is that the guy has doubts about that particular person and doesn't want to hurt their feelings. Other times, the guy (or girl) may just have a difficult time deciding what to do. I write this to shed some light on commitment-phobia so that you can decide whether you have it, and also to understand that it's not necessarily a bad thing as its connotation might have you believe.

For years I struggled with making small and big decisions. It was interesting because I just thought I was over-analytical (which of course helped me do extremely well in school). I also recognized it as indecision, which it was. But throughout the years I never thought to attach the term commitment-phobia to my persona. Looking back though, I have had time to see how the indecisiveness of making small decisions lends itself to having a fear of making a commitment. The real fear is making a decision about something that you think you can't undo.

Do you have the same issue? Take a look at some of these examples to see if they sound familiar:

1. do you find yourself taking a long time to decide which restaurant to eat at? Then when you get there it takes you longer than everyone else to decide on what you want to order. Finally when you do order you call the waiter back, change your order, then regret your decision later.

2. do you prefer being on a month to month term with your cell phone because you don't want to be locked into a contract, for example, being stuck with one company for over a year?

3. are you renting a place or did you bite the bullet and buy a place? Or are you on a month to month tenancy so that you can pull out at any time? Also, do you hold off on buying any decent furniture, for years, because you figure you'll take care of all of that stuff when you finally settle down and buy a place?

4. when you make plans with someone do you find yourself only tentatively agreeing, even though you have no other plans at that time? Do you find yourself canceling those plans for no reason other than to stay home?

5. when deciding between two things, jobs or something at the supermarket do you find yourself always whittling your choices down to two things, then mulling over for a ridiculous amount of time, which one of the two you should purchase? No matter, what you choose, you always end up questioning your decision.

6. have you avoided applying for jobs because you're afraid that you might, *gasp*, actually get it?!

If any of these situations sound familiar to you, you may also be suffering from an aversion to commitment. It's not just indecision which makes these seemingly simple decisions difficult and excruciating, it actually has some roots in being afraid of committing to the wrong thing. Ultimately, whether we are conscious of it or not, we are always afraid of choosing the wrong thing. But I promise you, there aren't wrong choices for most things. So you ordered the Big Mac instead of the cheeseburger - maybe you would have enjoyed the cheeseburger more, but guess what? That wasn't the last meal of your life and next time you can order the cheeseburger.

Aspects of Commitment Phobia, part 2 of 3

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:00:00 +0000

Roots

In order to fix the problem, it helps to figure out where it began. When it comes to relationships, many who have a phobia of commitment often come from homes where their parents are divorced or the relationship between their parents was turbulent. For others, a tragedy during their childhood years made them subconsciously fearful of committing to something out of fear they would get hurt again. It may even be more straight-forward - they once made a bad decision which had a big impact on their life. While they may not have realized it at the time, this programmed them to question their decision making abilities for thereon in, thereby creating indecision, fear of committing to a decision and ultimately wreaking havoc in their personal and social lives.

For myself, I have had a difficult time figuring out where my indecision arose. I used to be great at making decisions and sticking to them. I come from a fairly stable home so I can't blame it on any divorce. I believe my commitment issues arose from three areas. 1) several years ago I chose one school over another to do my MBA. The experience ended up to be unpleasant and I always felt like I would have been much better off at the school that I turned down. 2) letting other people influence my decision making process, and 3) seeing friends marry and settle down with people that are probably not the greatest. So for me, over time, these things made me phobic of making wrong choices.

Take a step back from yourself and ask yourself what goes through your head every time you have to make a decision. Whose interests are you considering? Yours, your friends, society's? Also, consider that the magnitude of most of the decisions you make each day probably aren't nearly to the extent you think they are. People decide to get married, have babies and buy houses much quicker than many of you out there reading this would take to decide whether you should eat at McDonald's or Burger King. And I'm not exaggerating.

Justification

Of course we can each justify our lengthy decision making process. By being overly analytical perhaps we have avoided settling down with people that were no good for us, or turning down a job that would have made us miserable. But how many great things have we missed because we mulled it over too long? I want to tell you something from someone who is still fairly young - life is SHORT. You all know that. In the blink of an eye, ten years can pass. And while you were waiting, moaning and mulling things over, life was passing by, people were getting married, having kids and having fun. In fact some people were already getting married for a second time (and who knows, maybe a third!).

I tend to now believe that it is better to make a decision that may be wrong later, than to not make any decision at all and later fantasize about what could have been. Especially for commitment-phobes, one of our greatest assets is our fantasies, however that is also our greatest liability. Our rich fantasy life makes us always think ahead to what might be if we wait a bit longer and commit later, but in the meantime when we lose out on something good, our fantasy mind goes into overdrive wondering about how great life could have been had we made a decision.

It is never too late to change. But the first step comes with recognizing it. Too often the term commitment-phobe is thrown around and marginalized so people don't pay much attention to it. But if someone calls you that or if any of the examples above seem to fit you, take a step back and look at your life and you daily routine. Maybe you do have commitment issues that go beyond simple indecision. Perhaps you actually have a fear of committing to things.

Aspects of Commitment Phobia, part 3 of 3

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 04:44:00 +0000

Baby Steps

Once you recognize you have a problem, don't go out and ask your girlfriend to marry her tomorrow. That's not the solution. I don't mean to sound like an alcoholics anonymous group, but take baby steps en route to your "recovery".

Start with the small things. Next time you go to McDonalds, tell yourself you'll take one minute to decide what you want and no matter what your choice is at the end of that minute, you'll place your order and never think of it again. All this talk of McDonalds is starting to give me a Big Mac attack. Gradually, bit by bit, you'll see how much easier your daily life is and how much quicker you make decisions. Once you feel comfortable, you can move on to bigger things, such as deciding where to go for a weekend vacation. The key in all of these instances is to stop thinking about the decision once you've made it, and move on to the next part of your life. Eventually you'll see how easy life flows when you just keep making decisions without looking back. In fact, you would be shocked as to what opportunities start presenting themselves for your benefit.

Also remember if you're in a bind as to a decision, in most instances you already know what you want. We refer to it as our 'gut' instinct. Chances are when you are hungry, you already know exactly what you want to eat, but your consciousness kicks in and starts making your choice much more difficult than it needs to be. There is a reason why your first choice on a multiple choice test is usually the right one. The same goes for making decisions. Once you are thoroughly in tune with your gut and listen to it without questioning it all of the time, you will be amazed at what the universe will deliver to you.

In Closing

In closing, I'm not sure how this blog entry ended up being so long, but I don't care either. I just want to tell you that there are lots of great girls and guys out there for each of you. Seriously. No one is saying you have to get married tomorrow, or even force yourself into a relationship, but do spend some time to figure out if maybe you spend too much time trying to make decisions and suffer from a phobia of commitment. If you do, chances are, you see it in many areas of your life and not just in relationships. Take time to work on yourself. Remember - baby steps. Before you know it you'll realize that each decision you make is not the end of the world, and in many cases may be the beginning of an entirely new and better one.

Book Review: A NEW EARTH, by Eckhart Tolle

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0000

A friend of a friend told me about "A New Earth" so since I needed something to distract my mind, I decided to read it. But it was a friend of a friend who recommended it, and not Oprah since I don't watch Oprah. It was a friend...of a friend.

This book is marginally related to the law of attraction but worthy of being reviewed since it focuses on shedding all of your negative thinking, past regrets, and worries about the future. Even the author mentions how once you are able to enjoy the present moment without carrying around self-defeating thoughts, somehow good things start happening, and those desires you had in your heart begin to manifest. Don't get me wrong though, manifesting is not what the bulk of this book is about. However, this book is one method that some may find useful if they want to clear out feelings of depression or regrets about the past or worries about the future. This will in turn clear the way for positive thinking which is the key ingredient to attracting what you want.

I don't usually feel any emotion when I read books, but this is the first book that I actually felt uncomfortable reading. The whole tone of the book was very eerie, disturbing and depressing. The author says that we are all insane (can't really disagree with him on that one), and how we need to just focus on every thing we do in front of us. Although I know this wasn't his point, it almost came across as though we were to walk around as present-focused robots. As humans however, we all identify ourselves by our past experiences and our future desires. I thought the most interesting part of this book was the description of the "pain-body" which is essentially a subconscious addiction to pain/anger that we all carry around and want to feed. This addiction is why society gravitates towards negative news stories, and killing in movies.

I recommend taking a look at this book in a bookstore or borrowing it from the library before you commit to buying it. See if the tone suits you. The Power of Now, the predecessor to this book, said the same thing but with a much nicer tone. It made society seem hopeless but more importantly didn't make me inspired about feeling better either. I wasn't feeling great before reading this book and considered murder-suicide after reading it. (just kidding in case any of you are suddenly thinking of calling 911).

Reflections of You

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0000

As we live day to day it's easy to think that the rest of the world is getting crazier and crazier - just watch the news. But have you ever watched yourself? Sometimes the craziness is actually within you, not without, and the world as we see it is a reflection of our own self. There are a number of ways to do this in order to ultimately improve yourself and the quality of the life of the people around you.

Perhaps the best way to surface your own issues is to look at your friends and family and ask yourself, what are the things about those individuals that make you feel anger, or what do they do that make you lose control of yourself and your emotions? If you would just take some time to reflect upon this, you may find that often the very things that you hate in other people are the very traits that you also carry with you! Does their constant procrastination drive you crazy? Perhaps you procrastinate also and are really angry with yourself. Use these reflections to improve yourself instead of trying to "fix" the other person.

As a personal example, I have always found that people who appear to lack backbone, and are too overly accommodating people seem to lose my respect. In fact, in some cases when people are very timid, it made me actually feel a bit of hostility towards them for not standing up for themselves. I realized later in life that I used to also have those same traits and as a result, I was really getting angry at the reflection of myself that I was seeing in others.

As the law of attraction and quantum physics will attest, the outside world is simply a reflection of you. Everytime you feel anger, seize the moment and be grateful - you are being given an opportunity to figure out what inside of you needs fixing. We all know that living with anger can literally take years off of your life, but it's never too late to change. If you are willing, take these reflection of the outside world to improve your inside world and when you do, before you know it the outside world will also change.

Film Review: Under the Tuscan Sun

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 19:00:00 +0000

Usually I don't review Hollywood type movies such as this, especially after talking about how Hollywood's view of romantic love has been improperly programming millions of people for years and years. So, after promising I would stop watching these types of movies, I decided to watch another one since I'm a masochist apparently. In all seriousness though I was assured this one was not your typical love story and I would appreciate it.

I did. The story is one of a lady who is an author, Diane Lane. She gets ditched by her husband for a younger broad. Convinced to take a trip to get over the shambles of her life, Diane Lane takes a trip to Italy where at the spur of the moment decides to buy a house (more like a big estate). The movie tracks her new life there as she tries to recover from her heart-break and rebuilds the house, perhaps symbolic of her trying to rebuild her life. As she searches for new love she finds a plethora of characters in the scenic little town of Tuscany who teach her about faith, healing, and manifesting your dreams. I won't ruin the ending, but she gets everything she desires, although not in the typical, syrupy Hollywood style.

Believe it or not I thought this movie was great. It had gorgeous scenery and romance which was not unbelievably over the top. More importantly, there was a re-occurring theme in this movie which was no accident by the writer - stating your desires, surrendering those desires, having faith, and following the signs. Over and over the movie was explicit about this. In fact, I have seen few movies which so explicitly discussed the law of attraction. One of my favorite quotes from the movie was the following:

"Signora, between Austria and Italy, there is a section of the Alps called the Semmering. It is an impossibly steep, very high part of the mountains. They built a train track over these Alps to connect Vienna and Venice. They built these tracks even before there was a train in existence that could make the trip. They built it because they knew some day, the train would come."

In this movie Diane had bought a house, and desperately wanted to have a marriage and a family there but she couldn't see how it would ever happen (she had no husband, and was living alone). The sales agent had told her about those train tracks indicating that you have to proceed as though what you want is going to happen - the physical manifestation of your dreams will happen with certainty. This is what The Secret referred to as "unwavering faith". Sure enough, without even realizing it, by the end of the movie, all of the protagonists dreams had been granted. What I liked about this movie was that those dreams did not happen in the way she expected they would, but they did come true nonetheless.

If I could summarize this movie, I would say it is about releasing or surrendering your desires to the universe in order to have them manifest. It is a movie of hope, that it is never too late to move on after a heart-break and find love again. But first, you must make a wish and let it come true.

Manifestation versus Destiny

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 17:10:00 +0000

For non-believers of the law of attraction (aka The Secret), they point to destiny and that everything that is supposed to happen is already written in the stars. Essentially, they believe that they cannot alter what is already going to happen to them. The law of attraction on the other hand preaches quite the opposite, professing that there is no pre-defined course and that at any moment a shift in our thinking can deliver us anything that we so desire regardless of our current situation.

I believe that the answer lies somewhere in between. It would be unfair to say only one force is working over the other, meanwhile I review books such as The Alchemist which illustrate how important signs and omens are and how we need to follow our intuition to achieve our dreams. Running to the "destiny" argument is easy to do when things are not working, or bad things seem to keep happening to us, especially if those negative situations seem to keep occurring no matter what we do - it can seem at times as though we are cursed. There may very well be something called destiny at play, however I contend that it is not immutable and can be changed at any time.

That is to say that at any given time, the status quo that is our life is in fact leading us to some destiny, such as us getting married to a girl named Diane, living in New York City, having two kids then dying at the age of 80. However, if we take a more active step in the creative process by visualizing what we want in terms of where we live, what type of person we marry etc, we can alter that so-called destiny that we are currently headed towards.

If we were truly prisoners of one destiny, why is it that people who are positive and adamant pursuers of their dreams seem to always accomplish them? Believe me, these people did not become positive after they achieved their desires - their positivity helped manifest their desires. If there were really one destiny, no matter what they did, they would only experience failure upon failure upon failure in pursuit of their desire. But we all know that this is rarely the case - those who fail and try again, combined with a shift in attitude always find prosperity. Clearly, they are not prisoners of anything. Neither are you.

My point? Get up on the inside. It's easy to get discouraged in life, especially when we face setbacks. I'm not here to thump bibles, but there is something to faith and believing you can change the course of your life - however you have to believe you can do it and be clear about what you want. There is a destiny for you to fulfill but it's only the one that you want to fulfill, not one that is written in some imaginary book somewhere in the sky.

Book Review: THE ALCHEMIST, by Paulo Coelho

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 23:45:00 +0000

I began to hear more and more about The Alchemist and finally decided to borrow it from the library. Having sold over 20 million copies, I had high hopes for this book and it did not fail to deliver.

The Alchemist is the story of a young Shepard living in a small village who has a longing to see the world. After having a dream about the Egyptian Pyramids, he decides to pursue his dream and risk his comfortable life in search of the pyramids. Along the way he meets a variety of people including a gypsy who convinces him there is a treasure waiting for him at the pyramids. The boy goes on to meet a shopkeeper, a king, and the list goes on. Each person in the book acts as a symbol or a sign for the boy to keep following what he set out to accomplish, and that is finding a treasure at the pyramids. The book follows the boys trials and setbacks as he keeps trying to find the courage and follow his new path. Despite constant struggles and insurmountable odds, the boy is always able to find the signs and follow them in such a way that they eventually lead him to his dreams.

This book was fantastic. It spoke to everything ranging from religion, faith, following your dreams, and the law of attraction. The message I got from this book was quite clear - when you have a desire to do something, "the universe will conspire in your favor" to bring you what you want. To allow the universe to act accordingly however, you have to be willing to follow the signs along the way and accept that while things may not happen in the manner you hope or expect, they are all somehow working with you to deliver your dream. That thing you thought was a set-back was really an omen, guiding you on your way so that you would eventually be in the right place at the right time. But you have to roll with the punches and stay positive and determined. Just like any successful person will tell you - never give up on your dreams. Be persistent. As for the main character, he proved that anything is possible when you believe in yourself and the universe.

This book was a quick and easy read - you can easily read it in several hours. In fact, they are currently making it into a movie starring Laurence Fisbhurne, slated for release in 2009. If you are looking for some inspiration in life, this is worth your time. It can show you that everything happens for a reason while en route to fulfilling your goals. Just don't give up too soon - like the protagonist in this book, he had many chances to give up and go home. Although he made sacrifices along the way, he never turned back prematurely. You shouldn't either. I highly recommend this book.

Definition of Insanity

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:43:00 +0000

I read this somewhere and thought I would post it since it may help you realize that you need to change something in what you're doing if you want something new. It's the definition of 'insanity' that alcoholics anonymous use. Don't take offense alcoholics:

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, each time expecting a different result."

If you keep attracting the wrong type of guy or girl into your life, or no guy or girl at all, change what you're doing. It make take some courage, or a lot of courage, but you have nothing to lose. Once you detach yourself from the outcome you'd be surprised at what change can bring you.

Live Like No One is Watching

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 08:00:00 +0000

How often do we do things, not do things, or behave in certain ways to appease an imaginary audience? Have you eaten at a restaurant alone? How about going to the movie theater alone? Have you ever felt self-conscious about being affectionate in public or worrying about what people would think about your girlfriend or boyfriend?

Live like no one is watching. Too often, we don't lead the life that WE want to lead because we are afraid of attracting criticism from our parents, friends or other peers. Even worse, some are afraid of what the world would think when they step out in public, acting as slaves to imaginary people that couldn't care less! For those of us who are self-conscious and insecure, we may also feel the need to impress others or at least avoid humiliation. You may be limiting your life with these boundaries and living in a very confining box without even realizing it.

Live like no one is watching. If something feels good to do or someone feels good to be with then forget the rest of the world and what they might think. This has everything to do with making yourself your first priority, and everyone else a distant second. I am not saying to do things that harm others or disregard other people's feelings, but if you really want to care about someone else, you have to take care of yourself first! It will feel un-natural at first since you may have spent your whole life placing yourself in second position whether consciously or unconsciously. Unless we are talking about making a sacrifice for your family member or close loved one, remember that people in general are watching out for themselves and there is plenty of everything to go around. You should not give up what you want so someone else can have it - if they want something they can go get it.

Here are a few things you can do to get yourself into the "now", shed those limiting beliefs and most importantly, shed that imaginary crowd of people you think are scrutinizing you everytime you leave your house:

1) if it feels good to you, do it
2) monitor your thoughts and make sure you are considering your needs first
3) if you catch yourself feeling as though people might make fun of you if you do something, affirm to yourself that the people that matter to you would accept your decisions
4) go see a movie alone, or eat at a restaurant alone - do things that would normally make you feel uncomfortable or self-conscious so that you can realize that in reality no one is sitting and judging you
5) avoid making decisions for other people all of the time, but be prepared to give your advice

When you practice some of these things you will notice that it will feel a bit lonely at first. If you are the type of person who has spent their life believing that everyone is monitoring your every move or scrutinizing you, this process will feel lonely in the sense that you'll quickly realize that everyone is busy living their own lives with their own problems and isn't really paying that much attention to you. In effect, you'll realize that this imaginary crowd of people that you've been living your life with everyday never existed! As you learn to live like this, you'll feel a weight lifting off of you and a mental and physical freedom you may never have experienced before.

Live like no one is watching. Life is very short and you owe it to yourself to have and do everything you want. Don't be one of those people that have regrets. The only regret you will have is from one day coming to the realization of all of the things you didn't do, or could have done but didn't because you were worried about what other people would think. Live like no one is watching, because in reality, no one is!

Book Review: EAT, PRAY, LOVE, by Elizabeth Gilbert

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 08:30:00 +0000

Like many books, this one gained much fame after the author was featured on Oprah. When I first heard about it, I never fathomed that I would read it, but of course this year I’ve been doing everything I said I wouldn’t.

After reading the book I was curious about what Elizabeth Gilbert looked like. I mean, whenever one spends a book talking about a divorce, getting nailed by a 50 year old Brazilian guy ten times a day, and giving her “ass” away to someone, one is always curious – is this girl hot? Well for 35 years old, she was moderately attractive so I was surprised she’d be worried about finding love. But hey, we all hit the panic switch at certain times in our lives.

In a nutshell, this book describes the hell the author went through as she shed an unhappy marriage and then a rebound romance. On the verge of suicide, Gilbert decided to take a year off to travel to Italy, India and then Indonesia where she ate, prayed and loved (ie. bumped uglies) respectively. The purpose of this foray around the world? To heal from the pains of these broken relationships, and find herself all over again. (and to get material to write a book so that she could make a million bucks).

The book describes Gilbert’s mental state and her adventures in Italy where she packed on pounds having fun eating. It actually made me want to go to Italy. The more interesting part of the book involved the months she spent in India where she joined an Ashram and learned to meditate – this was probably where she made the most progress as supernatural things happened to her and she learned forgiveness. Finally, the trip to Indonesia was the most exciting part of the book since more characters were involved including a medicine man, expatriates who had turned into beach bums, and a needy family which almost jacked tens of thousands of dollars from the author. This last segment was also the redemption for the author as she once again found love as soon as she stopped looking for it. If you want to find out how that turned out, you’ll have to tune in and buy her next book!

Eat, Pray, Love did not live up to the hype that it had received on Oprah, however I do recommend it as it did have some interesting parts to it which may be kernels of wisdom for some of you out there. The most important part for me which I have read over and over again was the part about soul-mates and how they are meant to come into our lives and then leave – and in the process they teach us about our obstacles, addictions and everything holding us back in life. Basically these people are reflections of ourselves. Of course I loved this part because I truly feel that is what happened to me in my life. Yeah, yeah, break out the violins.

This was a fairly quick and easy read. For anyone going through a break-up who thinks life will never be the same, I recommend this book. Life will not be the same, but that is a great thing if you have learned to grow and become more “you” out of the experience. As the author says, the heartbreak sent her over the edge, but if it weren’t for them she would have never recaptured her true self. I can relate. Maybe you can as well.

Mental Programming and Relationships, Part 2 of 2

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 23:57:00 +0000

Do you think love is difficult? Think AGAIN. “Open your eyes” (yes, I did steal that line from Vanilla Sky). Look around you – have you noticed that everyone around you is hooked up, and in love and having babies? Do you think that the rest of the world is magically lucky in love and you’re unlucky? Give me a break! The reality is that we all share something in common in the world and that is we all want to love and be loved. It is our nature as human beings. So if we all have this in common, why believe for a second that it is some impossible feat. If it were, there would rarely be marriages, and I would not see so many happy couples everywhere.

So before you blame the “outside” on your difficulties in the area of love, take a look on the inside. When I took a closer look at myself, here are some of the horrendous things that I had buried in my sub-conscious as pertained to relationships and love:

-I would be secretly happy when I would hear people were breaking-up because something inside me felt that people were better off single

-For some crazy reason I began to believe I was better off alone. I used to say things like this to my friends and never even realized it!

-When my parents would ask me if I was ever going to get married, I used to tell them that I never wanted to get married and that I liked living alone too much

-I used to pursue unavailable women

-When girls wanted to be involved in my life, I would push them away and never wanted them to change their life plans for me since I believed that everyone should be “free”

-Relationships were supposed to be temporary

- In my last relationship I engaged in very atypical and bizarre behavior – I remember once thinking to myself while trying to provoke a fight “I don’t need you, I don’t need anyone!!!”

Yes, I am insane. No, I have not seen a psychiatrist…yet. Understand, I had no realization that I was thinking these things, as strange as it sounds. But the truth is, I never took a step back and realized how skewed my thinking had become over the years. I strongly urge you to take time off from actively thinking and monitor your passive thoughts as it could very well be that you also have such ‘limiting beliefs’ about love which are holding you back. Similarly, if your relationships are fine and you always have money problems, take a step back and ask yourself what are your beliefs about money. The world is your oyster and if something is holding you back from achieving a conscious desire, more often than not, it is a limiting subconscious belief.

It’s never too late to change your thinking and reprogram your mind. You may be shocked about how contradictory your beliefs are compared to your desires, but don’t blame yourself – we are all programmed in some way or another. This same programming which may have been sabotaging relationships can equally make amazing ones for you. The first step starts with you – are you willing to take it?

Mental Programming and Relationships, Part 1 of 2

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:45:00 +0000

As we run around in a hypnotized state day to day, we may not realize how oblivious to our thoughts we are and why we do certain things. Thanks to being bombarded with media from all directions, many of us have been programmed to behave in certain ways and we don’t even know why we’re doing the things we’re doing. If you can, take time everyday to observe what your thoughts are. If you look closely, you may be very surprised and shocked.

Have you ever taken a step back from yourself and observed your thoughts? If you find that certain areas of your life are consistently yielding the same, crappy results, meanwhile other areas are functioning well, then perhaps you are a victim of faulty programming in those unyielding areas.

For myself, I have been successful in most areas of my life, however the thing I desired most - an amazing relationship - seemed to be an area where I was consistently falling short. Having taken a step outside of my own mind for several months, I have come to find how my attitude and programming towards loving relationships has been completely wrong and this has been influencing my real-world experiences.

Programming comes from all directions and we are bombarded daily. From the romantic movies we watch, to the heartbreaking endings we see in TV shows, to romance novels - you name it. But programming isn't limited to just the media. Living in a turbulent household, or witnessing a divorce as a child can have major impacts on what you subconsciously think about relationships as well.

For myself I came to realize that movies and things my mother used to say had the biggest influence on how I viewed love and relationships. Because I used to love romantic movies, many of which had sad endings, I began to be convinced that "true love" was a life-long mission and nearly impossible to find in the world. The more of these movies I watched, the more I associated with them. It wasn't until last year I realized that my favourite movies included:

1) Before Sunrise
2) Before Sunset
3) Vanilla Sky
4) Titanic

Notice a trend? There was heartbreak involved in all of these movies. (I know some of you are going to say Before Sunset is not heart-breaking but that is up to interpretation!). As a result, I began to believe that love was this amazing-magical-feeling-love-at-first-sight thing you had to feel right away, otherwise it wasn't real. What a land of make-believe I had been living all of these years! As a result of believing that love was supposed to be hard/impossible, I had turned away some great potential mates since I didn't feel this love explosion upon laying eyes on the person. Boy have I been wrong. (tune in tomorrow for Part 2).

Film Review: YOU CAN HEAL YOUR LIFE, by Louise Hay

noreply@blogger.com (Three) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 18:27:00 +0000

After watching Oprah one day (alright don't laugh just yet), Louise Hay was on and they discussed the new DVD version of her book, You Can Heal Your Life. I have not read the book, and much like I did in high school, I thought to watch the movie instead of reading the book. Besides, it is supposed to be about the law of attraction, so how could I resist?

The movie is a mix of an underlying story acted out by a lady who basically hates her life, and real interviews with Louise Hay and a variety of other life coaches and clients who have used her techniques to turn their life around whether it be physically or spiritually. Most of the examples are of physical healing in this movie. Louise Hay talks about how she used to be a model, then later got cancer and was able to heal it in great part to her own self-healing methods. Even though she is much older now you can tell she was probably very do-able when she was younger.

The main premise of this DVD is that daily affirmations, ie. "I love and accept myself", or "I am happy and healthy", actually work at the physical level. Basically, if you keep saying something, you can heal your mental or physical illness so long as what you are saying out loud is in alignment with what you hope to accomplish for yourself. It doesn't even matter if you don't believe it since Louise Hay believes that by planting the seed of hope within you, it will grow, and ultimately manifest itself in reality.

I remember when I used to watch Saturday Night Live they used to always have this ambiguously gay character named Stewart Smalley (sp?) who used to look in a mirror and say how much he loved himself and how much people loved him. He didn't believe a word of what he was saying and constantly broke down, much to the laughter of the audience. I myself used to think - what a load of crap these self-affirmations were.

I'm not sure what to believe these days. Anything is worth a shot. While I do not have any physical ailments, I did come out of this feeling a bit better. Well, I started off feeling bad since I couldn't believe I was trying to equate myself to the pathetic lady acting out a crappy life, but at the end of the day the message of positive thinking is what is important so in that regard, it was worth it.

To tell you the truth I'm open to anything and everything! This DVD was worth watching. I'm not sure I would pay $20 or $30 for it, but if you can buy a used copy from Amazon or Half.com or borrow it from a friend, then I recommend it. Whether affirmations work to bring what you want into your life will be for you to decide.