“BEING Through The Negative”

“There’s always stuff that happens in our lives that we do not want”

Its how you approach it and how you weather it that makes All the difference in the world.  Read on and find out how to BE through the negative and return to the positive. Read the rest of this entry »

Our powerful bodies

Section #28

I have said for many years that the human body has proven to be BOTH the most frail and the strongest of things on this earth.  Its terribly amazing how diseases can ravage, yet wonderfully amazing how resilient, versatile, and stoic our bodies can be.  They need help, however, from the minds and our life force. That’s what this section is about…. Read the rest of this entry »

Counterclockwise

Scientific American often has great articles about the human mind.  The one that I will reference today is again, quite satisfying.  You can read it here. 

From the article:  “Counterclockwise: Mindful Health and the Power of Possibility
by Ellen J. Langer. Random House, 2009
When she was in her 20s, Harvard University psychologist Ellen J. Langer fainted occasionally, and doctors said she might have epilepsy. She decided to take the matter into her own hands, mentally “catching” herself sooner and sooner when she felt faint, until the fainting disappeared. That empowering experience set the tone for her remarkable 30-year career, much of which she has spent figuring out how to help people take almost miraculous control over their lives.”

It goes on to explain how test subjects lost weight, gained weight, appeared more youthful, became healthier all as a result of their perspectives in particular situations.  An example is given of cleaning staff in some Boston hotels who were told that the work they did every day definitely satisfied the government guidelines for a healthy lifestyle.  Guess what?!  They started to become more healthy.  Then there are the elderly gentlemenwho were ‘taken back in time’ by having them live like they did when they were younger… they became more youthful and healthy — they also gained weight, which was a desirable outcome.

AMAZING.

The highs and the lows of life…

“Life is a gift when you know how to create and enjoy the highs

and survive and build strength from the lows.”

This quote is from the “about DRL” section of this site.  I didn’t really remember writing it until a good friend mentioned something about it hanging on many office walls in her hospital. 

At this, I twisted my head and said, “what is hanging on many office walls in your hospital?” 

“Your quote!” she said. 

“What quote?!” I remarked ever more intrigued.  Well,  you get the idea. Eventually she got out her Blackberry and brought up my page and read it back to me.  “Wow,” I said.  “That’s pretty good!”

I smile even now.  What I wrote was and is true and I am very honored that Heidi has it on her wall and others have taken to making photocopies and putting it on their walls….  Absolutely fantastic. 

What is very interesting to me is that I forgot that I wrote this little line, and even more so, that people would be inspired by my words.  Thank you!  Thank you; thank you.

Its amazing what effects we have, every day.

You are Who You are … Now

Section 19 of The Synergy in Life System.

You are Who You are Now – Not Who You Were

No matter what you believe you were, you must understand that you are only who you are right now.  Now is the only true reality, and the only moment that actually exists.  You are not the story of your past.  If you do not like your past and perhaps think you are unworthy of affluence then change your now, as you cannot change your past.  You have only NOW to be.  You are not your story, your past conditioning, or the past.   Read the rest of this entry »

Beyond Ego-centrism !

Big word — ego-centrism.  It explains young kids.  They believe themselves to be the center of their own worlds.  Their egos are central to their experience.  Somewhere during the toddler years, almost every child has a profound experience of realization.  They realize that they are not in fact the center of the universe.  That they and others share a larger system in a dynamic dance.  Mankind had a similar – albeit slow — realization when the theories of Copernicus in the 1500’s were supported by Galileo in the 1600’s hundreds through the use of the telescope and mathematics.  It was at this time that mankind slowly began to accept that the earth is NOT the center of the universe.  An interesting parallel. 

A funny thing happens when children realize that there are in fact other people that have needs and wants that might conflict with or compete with their own.  They start to group.  A new phase starts and this new phase is punctuated by the coming together with others in ways that allow groups to identify themselves.  It is an extension of ego-centrism that I call social ego-centrism.  The structure of singular ego doesn’t go away, but is largely consumed by and morphed into a group ego.  This group then thinks that they — their likes and dislikes, their drama, triumph, and difficulty — are the center of the universe.  It is from this construct that we see prejudice, distrust of others that are unlike ourselves, stereotypes, and many other less than helpful mindsets that impede growth, development, and performance. 

The question that arises from this discourse is: “in your family, social group, or work-group do you transcend social ego-centrism and discover the liberated capacity for high performance, or do you live within your universe center, unable to see the systems you exist within?”    Gaining objectivity is the gaining of perspective that leads to the ability to change, adapt, leverage for power, and design systems for positive gain.  Living in the center of social ego-centrism is living lost in a tiny yet encompassing universe that generates, feeds upon, and supports itself in impotent ways.

Can your group see itself?

Does Optimism Make You Live Longer?

Optimism is related to longer life in a new Scientific American quoted study.  Check it out!  I love the second comment left on the SA page after the article!  Hilarious.  Question: how does optimism relate to energy that you can control?  Are you in charge of creating optimism?

Beliefs are Important

Beliefs are Important

How do you operate the most powerful organ of your body? Your brain:  if it is left on its own, it reacts, runs off on recursive thinking loops, and generally does a lot of things that are not useful to your overall state of performance and success.  I wrote about the idea of directing energy in positive ways in Energy is Useful if we Know How to Use it… on the 21^st January 2009.  An absolutely important precursor to our either using thoughts effectively or just wasting critical energy is BELIEF!  Scott Gallagher is a prominent key note speaker and program facilitator who helps people live more effective lives.  He delivers his inspiration far and wide and talks extensively, helping people through THE POWER OF CHOICE.  He helps people overcome addictive behavior, and fundamental to his talks is the importance of belief.  Continue with this article to read a few of Scott’s own words about belief…. Read the rest of this entry »

~ Confront the Elephant ~

This blog post has a special guest from the field of health medicine – Heidi Paul BSN is the manager of Health Promotion and Prevention Services in a major Canadian city.

How to deal with those things you DON’T want at work.

There are things about your work and work environment that you likely do not like.  If these things are commonly disliked throughout your entire corporation or through the group you work with most closely, then they exist as part of a social system.  Thankfully, systems can be influenced.

Systems are collections of interconnected and interrelated parts that we can say have an aim or goal or purpose, and those parts can most certainly be human beings; that is why there is a branch of systems thinking called Human Systems Thinking.  This post starts to deal with Human Systems Thinking in a very practical way that you will want to bring to your work or even to your family. Read the rest of this entry »

Hit the Wave ~ Head on

This is a great story metaphor you can use with your kids or even with yourself.  What’s the best way to handle difficulty?  Well, if you’ve lived for any length of time, you know the best way is to gather yourself together (synergize) and handle it head on.  Read the rest of this entry »