Posts Tagged ‘Thinking’

Developing an attitude of gratitude is one of the most powerful practices we can develop. Be on the lookout for opportunities to be grateful, find things to be grateful for in the midst of problems or challenges, and talk about your gratitude frequently…to as many people as possible. Constantly be on the lookout for good and then name it when you see it.

The attitude of gratitude helps us not take people and things for granted. It keeps us open and receptive- even a bit humble-which opens the channel for more good to come to us.

In order to express gratitude, we have to shift our focus from the negative and put our attention on all of those things we are thankful for. It is very easy to forget Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever considered that wanting something to make you happy is a sure way to make yourself miserable? Can happiness be created by something outside of you?  Does happiness exist in the car, the house, the job, the spouse? The idea that happiness can be created outside of you is an ill conceived notion.   But, can you be without want?  Consider Mooji’s way of looking at “want” and the “wanting” of happiness…a few short minutes that may change the way you look at life.

Is it “immoral” to walk away from your mortgage?  If you are underwater on your mortgage and owe $500,000 but your home is worth $250,000, what belief (conscious or unconscious) keeps you paying your monthly mortgage payment?  If your home is worth half of its original purchase price and you can walk away and rent a home for much less than your current mortgage payment, why do you choose to continue making the payments?

Let’s examine this concept more closely.  The monthly payment on a $500,000 home purchased in 2006 and financed with no money down (very realistic for that time period) at 6% would be approximately $3000.  Add taxes and insurance to that amount and your payment would conservatively be about $3500.  Let’s assume the value of the home is currently $400,000 which is very, very optimistic.  If you continue to make your payments Read the rest of this entry »

I wanted to share a story that I read today. The story has to do with the gift of listening…

“Decades ago the editors of Psychology Today magazine staged an experiment to establish the effects of listening and asking easy, probing questions. Staff members flew to LAX from New York. The editor flew in later, with the intention of meeting his seatmate and getting to know him on the five-hour flight. For the duration of the flight, the Psychology Today editor asked questions and listened. He asked more questions based on what he felt his seatmate wanted to talk more about, and avoided areas he felt he didn’t. His total “purpose for being” during the five hours, was to have the conversation be all about his seatmate.

As suspected, throughout the flight the seatmate never asked anything about the editor, not even his name. Read the rest of this entry »

Volkswagen had just launched the VW Beetle in 1960 to the U.S. market. Detroit was busy making vehicles which were expanding in size to suit growing baby boomer families. The Beetle was certainly unique in looks but that didn’t appear to be such a good thing..it wasn’t selling. To top things off, the round, lady-bug-like vehicle was produced in Wolfsburg, Germany at a plant recently controlled by the Nazis. To solve the problem, Volkswagen hired ad campaign manager Doyle Dane Bernbach. Mr. Bernbach came up with a print ad featuring a very small picture of the Beetle in the upper left hand corner of the page with the words Read the rest of this entry »