This Saturday, May 17th, I’ll be Susan K. Wehrley’s guest on the BIZremedies radio show.

Find out the latest Tips in Creating the Life you Want in the most effortless way!

Tune in to 1130 AM in Milwaukee from 3-4 PM Central Time this Saturday, or click here ( http://www.newstalk1130.com/pages/streaming.html) to listen live via the Web.

Click HERE for details.

Have you ever caught yourself daydreaming about the good times you’ve had in the past or the events you have planned for the future?

Many of us live most of our lives in the past or future, missing out entirely on the present moment. Remembering how good you felt or what fun you had in some past experience often eases the aches of current disappointments. Projecting into the future how you would like your life to be or onto some upcoming plans, offers hope and reassurance if your present is not meeting your satisfaction.

However, if you’ve ever studied the mind and the aspects of time, you would know that the present moment is all that is real, all that actually exists. The past and future only exist in the mind, while the present exists in real time. It’s true the mind is very powerful and can play tricks on us. It can pull up a memory that seems so vivid, you actually experience it through your senses and can even feel an emotional response. Similarly, you may get all excited thinking about the vacation you will be taking next summer, and almost smell the suntan lotion.

Yet, living anywhere but the present can be a form of escape or denial. It’s sticking your head in the sand instead of facing the truth–your life today sucks and you better do something about it if you want it to get better.

What are some ways you can stop time traveling and learn to enjoy living in the moment? Read Post

Our lives are defined by our choices. But often, the choices we make don’t appear at the time to be the important crossroads that they later turn out to have been. We go merrily along our way, taking what looks like a straight and well-defined path, only to realize later how many times we made life-altering decisions without a second thought.

Personal experiences, cultural expectations, peer and family pressures - each of these plays a role in how we look at life and the lives we choose for ourselves. But all of us have a unique and personal role to play in life. For this reason, it doesn’t pay to surrender our life’s choices to the highest (or loudest) bidder.

Reclaiming your uniqueness and your individuality can be a daunting but powerfully rewarding process. The trick is to shut out the clamoring demands of those around us and find a way to listen to the voice inside, the voice of our heart and our soul. Only by doing this, and acting upon what we hear, can we once again get back on our true path and live the life we were born to fulfill. Read Post

A writer instinctively knows or quickly learns that he can learn just about anything through writing about it. In his book Writing To Learn, William Zinsser says, “… we write to find out what we know and what we want to say. I thought of how often as a writer I had made clear to myself some subject I had previously known nothing about by just putting one sentence after another – by reasoning my way. I thought of how often the act of writing even the simplest document – a letter for instance – had clarified my half-formed ideas. Writing and thinking and learning were the same process.”

Not only can we learn about the outside world and complex subjects through writing, we can also look inward. Journaling is the act of putting pen to paper to learn about yourself.

I’ve kept a journal for as long as I can remember. It’s a living document, not a diary, but place to pose questions, to theorize, to create, and even to play. My journal holds the high and low points of my life. It shows what I’ve learned over the years, as well as what I’ve appreciated and what my hopes are for the future.

It’s not as structured as a habit. Journaling doesn’t have to be a daily commitment. Some weeks you may write every day, and then not again for a month or longer. The value of journaling isn’t in the frequency of writing, but the process of discovery.

Read Post

The dinner table isn’t just a place to sit down and refuel. It’s the center of family discussion, a place to reconnect with friends and family and a catalyst for social cohesion. And one of the joys of sitting down to dinner with friends and family is the anticipation of good conversation.

Unfortunately, creative, witty and intelligent dinner conversation is an art that is on the wane. In this day and age of take out, fast food and eating in front of the television, people have lost the need and ability for enlightening talks over the course of a good meal. Learning this art will not only serve you well in professional and social situations, it will enhance your own enjoyment of life and improve the enjoyment of those around you. Read Post

When it comes to finding happiness and fulfillment in the present, sometimes it helps to look to the past. Each of us has a unique family history, and most of us come from a blend of interesting cultures. Becoming aware, or even intimately familiar, with your family heritage can provide you with a greater sense of place in this world. It may explain your feelings regarding spirituality, it may affect your views on other races or those you view as being different from you, and could explain a great deal about your interactions with others.

For example, DNA analysis points to the fact that roughly 16 million people in this world are direct descendants of Genghis Khan, the ancient Mongol king. Ramesses II, Pharaoh of Egypt, had 50 recorded sons and 50 recorded daughters, not counting the children he sired with concubines and illicit affairs. This makes it possible that hundreds of thousands – or more – people could be his direct descendants.

How would knowing such an important piece of your family heritage affect you? Would it change your outlook on life or your sense of purpose? There are a number of ways in which your life can be enriched by understanding the origins of your family.

1. Enriched Cultural Traditions

Each culture has its own traditions associated with various holidays and significant life events. Add depth and meaning to your life by incorporating some of these traditions into your family holidays. Examine ancient festivals and celebrations for their versions of familiar expressions of joy, such as games, dances, or ritual meals. Sprinkle your current family traditions with bits of your ancient heritage and help the past really come alive again.

2. Improved Social Understanding

You may have preconceived feelings or ideas about certain people or groups of people, and not have any idea why. By understanding your family’s ancient heritage you may gain a greater understanding of your own reactions or interactions with people of a different ethnic or social background than your own. It could explain why you feel a certain affinity for some people yet feel uncomfortable with others. Many of these feelings are learned in childhood from family interactions, but having a greater understanding of the origins of your culture may help you gain a greater insight into the beliefs and feelings of your family. This in turn can help you better assess your interactions with others, and provide you with the opportunity to improve upon the personal relationships in your own life.

3. Greater Spirituality

Perhaps you have found yourself uncomfortable with today’s ideas of religion or spirituality but do not understand why. Examining your ancestry can provide many insights into ancient family beliefs, which may in turn explain your current thoughts and beliefs regarding religion. There may be elements in your ancestors’ belief systems that you feel a connection with, and can utilize in your own life to achieve greater fulfillment. There may be deities you feel a particular fondness for, or you may discover rituals or spiritual observations that bring you a greater sense of inner peace. Learn from your ancient family members, and honor them by incorporating a part of their culture into your personal life. You may find it provides you with renewed inspiration to work towards your life goals.

Many times the discovery of ancient family history leads to the desire to honor their sacrifices and hard work through living a better life right now. We gain a greater understanding of our parents, grandparents, and other distant family members. We gain new perspectives on family traditions, which are given a new richness and greater meaning when we can tie them to events in our family history. We are able to keep the ancient heritage of our families alive by passing on knowledge of their beliefs and traditions to our own children, enriching their lives in the process.

Most importantly, we can affect greater change in our own lives by developing a greater understanding of the origins of our personal belief systems. It allows us to closely examine the sources of our beliefs, likes, dislikes, and prejudices and come to conclusions as to how we have nurtured those feelings throughout our lives. By learning the origins of certain negative feelings, we may be able to examine them with a certain amount of detachment and then form new feelings based upon our own life experiences rather than continue with feelings jaded by family history. This could lead in turn to more satisfying and interesting relationships in our futures.

Copyright 2008 David Bohl and SlowDownFast.com. All rights reserved.

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