by David Bohl, Life Coach and Lifestyle Designer

I know it sounds cliche… but the power of positive thinking really does bring an avalanche of wonderful things pouring into your life.

From your job to your marriage to your social life to your personal interests… it pays to start listening to what your Inner Opportunist has to say.
Think for a moment about a company who lays off thousands of its employees–some that have worked at the company for 20 years. Debbie, one of these employees was the marketing manager of the company. She is laid off after giving 10 years of her professional life to the company–increasing its sales, hiring and mentoring an entire marketing area, and being at the company’s beck and call.

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by David Bohl, Lifestyle Redesign Expert

Maybe it’s a famous wedding planner, talk show host, or a local business man or woman. Whoever it is you admire, and want to be like, has qualities that you want to possess. You may already have these qualities but just haven’t freed them from within yourself yet. Selecting someone who you look up to, who can serve as a mentor or even just a connection who might be able to open doors of opportunity for you, is something worth investigating.

Now comes the question: how do you get Extremely Successful and Busy People to notice you?

Get over the fear.

Before you do anything: let go of the fear. Humans have a habit of putting other humans upon a pedestal, perhaps falsely perceiving that they are somehow unworthy of said successful person’s attention?

So what if they’re famous? They’re still human like you. Whoever they may be “to the public,” they’ve still got a mother and a father, a family to care for, bills to pay and a little child inside of their own head who pipes up every now and again wanting attention and recognition in the most basic of ways.

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by David Bohl, Personal Coach and Lifestyle Designer

All of the major changes in life and society, like the Civil Rights Movement, the call to save the environment, and even women obtaining the right to vote, did not just happen on their own.

People didn’t just sit back and say, “Man, that isn’t how it should be. I’m just going to stand back and see what happens.” These changes came about because someone stood up and said, “I am going to make a change and this is what I am going to do.”

You, too, have visions of a changed world for you, your family, and your children. You want to see a safer, more environmentally friendly, and peaceful world to live in. You want to see all of these changes, but you really want and need is to become the change that you want to see. You have to do your part to implement the change and influence others to create the change as well. No matter what the change is that you want to see occur, there are ways that you can become the change instead of just being a spectator. Change is not a spectator sport.

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by personal coach David Bohl

With the economy in a slump and questions of whether or not we are in a recession, many Americans are worried about their personal financial situations. The good news is that you don’t just have to sit there and take it under the chin allowing the economy to control you. There are steps that you can take and things that you can do to benefit from a bad economy.

Invest in foreclosures

The housing market has also seen the ill effects of a bad economy. Property values are decreasing, homeowners can’t afford to pay their mortgages, and for sale signs are popping up all over America. Many homes are even being foreclosed upon, so there are banks and mortgage lenders all over the country that now own property and aren’t in the real estate business. They want to sell these properties fast and as cheap as they can. You can benefit from this part of the bad economy by buying and investing in one or several foreclosed properties. You can buy a home of your own at a reduced price or you can buy homes to fix and resell or rent.

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Save Time, Energy & Money!

by David Bohl

Whether economic times are abundant or tight, it’s always an advantage to be a savvy consumer. And whether or not your budget is abundant or tight, it’s always beneficial to know how to shop effectively.

I remember reading The Millionaire Next Door and was surprised to find that a common trait of most millionaires was thrift. I think that’s how a lot of them became millionaires. To me, thrift means spending only when you need to and spending only what you need to.

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from Personal Coach David Bohl

When I was thinking about writing on this subject, I thought about how subjective this actually is. Anyone who is on the quest for a better life most likely has their bookshelves overflowing with “self-help” or “personal growth” books. And if you’re just beginning the journey on your quest for a better life, then you may be looking for someone to help you find the best books out of the thousands that shout down at you from the bookshelves in the personal growth section of your local bookstore.

You may also have gotten recommendations from friends and associates claiming, “You’ve got to read this book. It’s changed my life!” So either you said, “I’m so happy for you,” and ignored their request, or you ran to the bookstore or Amazon.com, bought the book, only to leave it languishing on your already full bookshelf. Or you read it and said, “What’s the big deal? I don’t get it.”

Therefore, choosing a reading list for you is a difficult task. The books we read are a very personal choice. We listen to recommendations, yet, what affects others may not affect us in the same way. Additionally, your quest might be to improve your physical well-being, your wealth, your relationships, your business, or your mental or emotional health. Whatever your focus is on, will ultimately determine the books that will have the greatest impact on you.

That said, the ones I have chosen are classics, so millions of people have endorsed them. Still that doesn’t mean they will change your life, but they may have some impact on you, at least to get you thinking and reading, and maybe lead you to other books that will support your quest for a better life.

So here is my list. With these 5 books, you can’t go wrong. They may become some of your top favorites as well.

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Sometimes the rut that you are in, or the mood you want to change, or the bad feelings that manifest themselves in you are easier to shake than you might think.

Simply take a look around. Is your “best friend” someone who calls you a million times a day wanting you to get them out of their dilemmas or talk them off a roof? Is your mother-in-law trying to make you understand that there is only one way of doing things… her way? Does your pal from work spend more time complaining about the daily grind than actually grinding? Maybe the sour taste in your mouth is not coming from you at all but from those that surround you.

Seek Out Happy and Successful People

You will find that more times than not the ones who like their jobs, have a smile on their face, who never complain about things being unfair or that life has dealt them a hand of lemons are the same people that are content in their own lives… winners. They don’t have to put on an act; it’s how they feel.

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“Early to bed and early to rise will make a man healthy, wealthy and wise.”

We’re all familiar with this old proverb, popularized in Benjamin Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Almanac.” And in this day and age, most people will do just about anything to give themselves a mental edge, including hitting the sack early and rising with the dawning sun if need be. But aside from this anecdotal option, are there any proven ways to increase your brainpower? Absolutely.

Memory games 

According to a recent study reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers have discovered that playing memory games (such as matching pictures on face-down cards) can improve your “fluid intelligence” - your ability to solve new problems - because both memory and fluid intelligence seem to use the same neural pathways. Once thought to be set in stone, the news that fluid intelligence can be improved by intentional exercise is considered a breakthrough result. So haul out those memory games and get busy getting smarter. Read Post

We all live in a framework of ideas, beliefs, and actions known as our comfort zone. It’s what we know and what we’ve always done. But when we get to a point of discomfort either because we’re bored, unhappy, or just ready to spread our wings and move to the next level, our comfort zone becomes our discomfort zone. And if we don’t do anything to move beyond our self-imposed barriers, we become too comfortable in our discomfort zone. At this point it’s no longer a comfort zone, but more of a familiar zone.

As human beings if we’re not growing, we’re stagnant. And if we want to grow, our comfort zone will hold us back. So we’re always needing to stretch the limits further and further out. There’s no growth if we stay inside our comfort zone. When you stay where you are, we call that being stuck. Maybe you’re unconsciously stuck, that is, you don’t realize you’re unhappy, because you’re numb and have become complacent staying where you are. Maybe you’re consciously stuck because you don’t know what to do to move beyond your comfort zone. You’ve tried different strategies but nothing seems to move you to the next level.

Now here’s the paradox. Read Post

Feeling tired and sluggish? Rundown and anxious? Maybe even a little depressed? Although your first thought may be to check in with your doctor, it turns out that a special pill or diet may not be what you need to feel better - you might just need to go outside.

Get Your Vitamin D(irt)

Researchers have recently discovered that exposure to certain bacteria in the soil actually trigger the production of serotonin, the “happiness” brain chemical: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6509781.stm

But it’s not just about feeling better, it’s about actually being better. Because not only does serotonin make you feel good, it helps keep you healthy, as well. Research shows that there’s a direct link between serotonin and immune function, with indications that this happy-making neurochemical helps trigger healthy immune responses. (However, you can get too much of a good thing. There’s evidence that serotonin-boosting antidepressants can over-stimulate the immune system, leading to autoimmune issues. Something to ponder if you’re considering the Rx route.)

The Effect of Sunlight on Moods Read Post