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Over the past few months, we have been exploring various approaches to living a more fulfilling and uplifting life, beginning with a series of posts about inspiration, aspiration and the role of a positive focus.
If you have been following these, you know that some readers have missed the point pretty dramatically, even going so far as to claim that I am suggesting that the secret to life is pretending that a negative occurrence is somehow positive.
However, I have said over and over again, that if you are going to make lemonade out of the lemons, you need to start with a positive focus on a positive outcome. Positive focus on positive outcomes - not wishful thinking or denial of reality. Just plain, simple, positive focus.
Some have quibbled about whether or not the words should be vision, purpose, outcome, focus, or some other preferred lexicon. Frankly, I could not care less. The only point that matters is maintaining a focus on a positive outcome, on what matters most to you. And, once again, focusing on a positive outcome is very different from pretending that something negative is positive.
The underlying premise to the value of holding a positive focus on a positive outcome contains two basic fundamentals: (1) energy follows thought and (2) the universe rewards action, not thought.
Energy Follows Thought
Have you ever noticed that if you persist in a thought, some kind of energy will begin to show up? In can be as simple as thinking about eating a favorite food and having saliva show up in your mouth. For those who need something even more basic, have you ever gotten yourself excited simply by holding a thought in your head? There are countless examples that could be developed here, but I think the basic idea should be pretty obvious: hold a thought in your head long enough and you will begin to experience some kind of energy related to the thought.
However, day dreaming about food or sex or a new job or becoming the next zillionaire will probably not be sufficient to create any change in your circumstance. Sooner or later, you are going to have to act on your thoughts, and you will probably need some kind of energy to get you going.
Thought, in this case, a form of thought I am calling a positive focus, is a necessary but not sufficient precursor to creating something in life. That's because, the universe rewards action, not thought.
The Universe Rewards Action, Not Thought
If all it took were a few well imagined circumstances and persistent positive thought, there would be all manner of zillionaires out there. However, it is probably evident to most that you are unlikely to produce much of substance simply by thinking about something.
Sooner or later, you are going to have get up off your duff, get yourself actively engaged in the area of your focus, and start to do the work necessary. Surely it is obvious that results typically come after some kind of effort or energy is expended in a particular direction.
Notice that I did not say that just because you hold a positive thought, something positive will occur. Neither did I say that just because you got all energized about it, something positive would occur. In fact, you can hold a real nice, positive thought about a great outcome, get yourself revved up about it, do a whole bunch of things that you think should work and still come up short.
That's because the universe rewards action, not thought. And, sometimes the "rewards" may take the form of "negative" results or "negative" feedback.
The tricky part here is that when you hold a thought about a positive outcome and take affirmative action in that direction, the universe will reward your involvement, it will provide feedback. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that you are going to get what you were hoping for.
Sometimes, feedback shows up to let you know you are off course. Is that negative feedback? Well, yes, in a way. However, it could be the kind of negative feedback that tells you the bridge is out and you need to take an alternative route. Sometimes, negative feedback has a really positive impact.
Greed, Gratitude and What You Really Want
In my life, I have noticed that the most common reward comes in the form of information or awareness letting me know that something may be missing. The missing elements could be an ill conceived thought, an ineffective set of actions, or a poorly constructed vision of what it is I truly seek.
Sometimes, and more often than I care to admit, the universe has been pretty good at letting me know that I have made my focus more on the material world than on what matters longer term. I call this the greed-experience continuum. On one end of the spectrum, are the material goals I have created for myself. If I am not mindful, careful, and aware, I may just wind up acquiring the object of my greed focus, and come up well short on the actual experiences I am truly seeking.
The universe has lots of ways of letting me know that I am off course. Feedback sometimes comes in the form of missing the mark on what I thought I wanted. Sometimes it comes in the form of helping me obtain what I thought I wanted, only to rediscover that basic truth, "you can never get enough of what you don't really want."
Either way, coming up short, or "winning" and then winding up disappointed have turned out to be great lessons in my personal development. These days, I am working to learn Gratitude for whatever shows up.
Gratitude for the times when I come up short? Sometimes, I don't get what I think I want only to discover that something of even greater value is just downstream a bit. Sometimes the object of my focus can actually prevent me from getting what I truly want.
Gratitude for disappointment? Sometimes, the lesson shows up by achieving what I thought I wanted, only to learn that there is something deeper, something more connected to my real values, a quality of experience that far outweighs the material object of my focus.
We've all heard the now classic cliché about doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. Well, what results show up when you try something? Or keep showing up as you try over and over again? What's the message behind the result or results?
It could be as simple as the universe letting you know that your focus is misplaced, that the desired outcome is somehow off, or that the actions you have chosen won't work. If so, what a great opportunity for Gratitude. Better to learn early that something is off, than to go another 10, 20 or 30 years beating your head against an unmoving wall.
You may want to take a look at one of these two articles about what it is you really want out of life. Last year, I wrote one on Symbols vs. Experience asking you to notice the difference between the material areas of focus you may have in life (job, cars, money, house, etc) and a deeper level of experience that you may be seeking (peace, security, strength, caring). More recently, I wrote a piece about What Do You Want Out Of Life, Really, carrying the theme a bit further, suggesting that what you may really be seeking is something more inspired and inspiring, something that comes from or connects you to the Divine, to your Soul, to Spirit.
Thanksgiving is a great time to once again take stock of what matters most to you in the world. If that happens to be something in the material world, read these collections of articles closely and you will find a handful of keys, old keys to be sure, but keys nonetheless that can help you unlock your own ability to create more of what you seek. Not necessarily all of what you seek, but certainly more.
And, if you have been around the block enough times to know that the scorecard that matters most to you has less to do with your stockpile of possessions, and more to do with the quality of your life experience, then really read these articles closely and you may discover any number of keys that can help you create more of what you truly seek.
For me, what I truly seek in life is the experience of alignment with Spirit, with the Divine. I most notice and experience that alignment when I am caring, loving, and living in a state of inner peace. Gratitude has been a significant key in allowing more of these qualities into my life experience. I will be writing more on the role of gratitude as a key to finding your source of inspiration, aspiration and enthusiasm.
Please do leave a comment below or drop me an email with your thoughts, suggestions or requests for future areas of focus.
Russell Bishop is an Educational Psychologist, professional life coach and management consultant, based in Santa Barbara California. You can find out more about Russell at http://www.lessonsinthekeyoflife.com. Contact Russell by email at: Russell (at) lessonsinthekeyoflife.com
Follow Russell Bishop on Twitter: www.twitter.com/inspiredguy
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It may be true that "right" in a political sense is irrational, but by no means follows that "left" is necessarily rational. The numerous movements and theories that call themselves"left" and "revolutionary" abound in rigidities and can by no means be accepted as guides. Fresh, intelligent thinking is required.
im greedy when I want something.
I want a new wallet and maybe a new graphing calculator
I want a french chateaux, I want an aston martin, I want to travel all over the world and buy authentic goods in every country...
I dont like getting gifts, I like buying myself things I want, I like giving gifts but I can afford to give the gifts I want to give...I like wrapping gifts. Im an expert gift wrapper. I can wrap a standard box in less than a minute.
Why does "the universe" care about humans? Why do people need to think that they are so important?
The universe, The Source, God, whatever name you wish to give "It", does care, but not in a way that humankind understands. Humankind has its own perception on how it thinks The Source cares for them; it's not the same.
As for "Why do people need to think that they are so important?"; that comes from the ego.
Ego is the intellectual belief in the illusion of individuality vs. feeling as part of the whole.
DeeDubya:
Whether you recognize it or not, YOU ARE THE UNIVERSE.
The old axiom comes to mind here, "Action speaks louder than words." Thought and words are the foundation for the action. In the beginning was the WORD. Without words, we have no form to put to thought. Thoughts are powerful and create energy that draws Action as it's partner...
That said, the key for me has been in the defining of RIGHT and WRONG or BAD or GOOD, i.e. Positive and Negative. PERCEPTION is key. When I eliminated that right/wrong thinking, I found it easy to relate to life as just being. The flat tire isn't a bad, it just is. The house fire happened. It is not bad or good. It simply happened; what impact on my life is my choice. It's not that the Universe dictates whether something is right or wrong for you, it's more of evaluating your situation based on what WORKS for you at the moment.
"Is that working for you?" question of Dr. Phil is so accurate for me. Does this policy, procedure, way of life, way of thinking, acting and being working for me...i.e. AM I HAPPY and JOYOUS? If yes, then proceed... if not, re-think, re-direct and proceed...
Very interesting, Grazie !
I am both grateful and greedy. Only liberals believe that individual greed is wrong while state greed is good. As long as no individual rights or private property rights are violated is greed OK, but remember state greed is evil.
In our house we turned the television off - completely - over 16 years ago now. Our children are 22, 24 and 25. They have since thanked us for this.
Because we chose not to deal with the barrage of advertising that tells one what to eat, wear, own, drive, think, desire, care about, not care about, covet, etc., etc. -- none in our house were driven by the need to constantly acquire STUFF. We have a television set that is older than any of our kids (we do watch videos) - and for us it is just fine. Our cars are old, but reliable. Our vacations were always simple ones to the north woods. We are content.
The noise in our house was that of conversations. We listened to each other and entertained ourselves in other ways, especially reading. Our children's relationships with each other are the constant envy of their friends.
We just don't need STUFF. And so there is no greed.
*
The simple fact is that no one on the right, no one who claims to be a conservative or a republican has a modicum of empathy, an ounce of sympathy or any compassion for the working men and women of this nation; the people that make up the 90% of this country, the people that built this country, that have defended this nation from the revolutionary war thru today, the backbone of this country, the people referred to in the little phrase "We the People", the right wing has no clue and no connection with the people. They are the modern day aristocrats with more in common with Marie Antoinette than with people that work for a living.
Obviously you are clueless. 90 percent? The great majority of hard working Americans are conservative. Liberals make up the rest. The academics, the perpetual students, the welfare class. The leaches on society basically.
Clearly you are polarized to and personally vested in your opinions, which are backed by expectations as well. This is the formula for unhappiness, miscontent, strife, and a whole host of other spiritual maladies; however you have free will and may choose to live as you desire.
It's ok to be concerned about this realm, but whatever a certain group or person does isn't really important when compared to the energy they are putting forth. Right now, you are adding strife, adding harmful energy to the All, as well as feeding more energy into the things which you despise, thus giving them more power. You are also choosing to let these things have power over you, which again, IS your choice.
A timely article considering this time of year and also my own particular circumstances, thank you.
I live a rather unconventional lifestyle being that I live aboard my (very modest) boat for six months of the year in Canada. I have learned much about myself since this routine started some ten years ago.
One thing most shocking to those who know me, including my own children, is how little I can survive with and yet be so at peace. It's so easy to sink into a selfish existence here on land. Maybe it's because of all the media influence that I pretty much ignore when I'm living on the boat and away from the States. It's rarely a struggle to feel grateful for all I have been blessed with until I return here.
Maybe I'm putting too much thought and not enough action into my daily life here. I will think further about that. Thanks again.
Valuable insight..
Thank you!
In Taoism or Daoism as the West like to refer to, the highest point comes from the lowest points just as positive thinking comes from negative thoughts. The best decision during a cooperative meeting comes from thrashing out the negative aspect of a new idea and how to overcome them.
Positive thinking is to avoid the previous mistakes; learnig from those mistake then set focus and energy towards what you want to achieve. Positive thinking is not like a bull going charging head on into a china shop.
I have read the arthur' s work many times and he is one who take into consideration all the negativness in order to fomulate positive thinking through his own experiences.
I haved live by this quote since the 80s when I first read it. "I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. "
-Rabindranath Tagore
A very illuminating post. Nicely done.
http://jas
I try not to linger on the negative and for the most part, I am successful. However, there are time when world events, particularly those of a political nature, get me down. Fortunately, I am in a place in my life where I can turn-off those matters which I know I can not change,and focus on what is really important within my personal environment.
If life has provide one with good friends and family, peace of mind and more comforts than most who have lived before us could even imagine, then that person is "in a good place."
When my mother died suddenly in January of 1987, I remember reminding my sister that for most of our lifetimes, our family had been blessed. I told her that there was nothing we could do to bring mom back to us. But, we did now have the responsibility to look after Dad. We did that- my 2 sisters and I! I would not have wanted it any other way. We later took care of an uncle who had no children. It is what family does! My creed is God grant me the power to change what I can, the serenity to accept what I can not change and the wisdom to know the difference. Life is about choices..g
Your post was very moving. Thank you.
The best life is lived in service to the survival of the species, after having figured out the niche one can be happy in while doing the service.
The cosmos is the universe.
http://eco
The species may not deserve to survive, particularly the aristocracy, i.e. the rich worldwide who control over 90% of the wealth and resources of this planet and starve the rest.
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