One of my favorite little books of wisdom is "As a Man Thinketh" by James Allen.

The theme of the book is the power of our thoughts. Below is one of my favorite passages, which I memorized years ago:

"Man is made or unmade by himself; in the armory of thought he forges the weapons by which he destroys himself. He also fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choice and true application of thought, a man ascends to Divine Perfection; by the abuse and wrong application of thought, he descends below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all the grades of character, and man is their maker and master.

Of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age, none is more gladdening or fruitful of divine promise and confidence than this — that a man is the master of his thought, the moulder of his character, and the maker and shaper of his condition, environment, and destiny."

How do you interpret this passage? What impact did it make on you? How can living by it help you live a greater life?

I'd love to hear your comments and experiences, so feel free to leave a useful comment. I also encourage you to get the book and read it—often. It's about $6 and can be read through in about an hour, though you might want to take longer to digest all the amazing ideas in it.

Smile Often. Laugh Daily. Dream Big. Live Fully,

HANDBOOK FOR LIFE

Health:
1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
4. Live with the 3 E's — Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy
5. Take time to pray.
6. Play more games
7. Read more books than you did in 2010 .
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:
11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't over do. Keep your limits.
14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
16. Dream more while you are awake
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn.  Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more.
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree...

Society:
25. Call your family often.
26. Each day give something good to others.
27. Forgive everyone for everything..
28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
30. What other people think of you is none of your business.
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:
32. Do the right thing!
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
34. GOD heals everything.
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up..
37. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.
38. Your Inner-most voice is always happy. So, be happy.
39. The best is yet to come.
(Author Unknown)

Live Fully,

You just gotta doing something crazy once in a while to be living fully!

I'm plunging into the icy cold Atlantic on February 5th, 2011 (wearing a prom dress) to raise funds for the Special Olympics.

Crazy? Definitely!
Fun? Sort of. (A group of us is plunging together wearing prom attire and will warm up afterwards with some schnapps!)
Forgettable? No way!

You can make a donation by visiting my FirstGiving page: http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/lisa/2011-polar-plunge-winter-festival by February 5th, 2011.

Or find a plunge going on where you live and sign up to plunge!

Live Fully!

Forgiveness is not for or about the perceived "offender." It is for and about US.

It is not about saying what the person did was "okay." It is about saying WE choose to be okay despite it.

Holding on to resentment continues to keep you tied, energetically/spiritually, to the other person and/or the event.

When you can allow your self to release the person and experience through forgiveness, you free yourself from the cord that keeps you connected and held back or re-opening the wound over and over again.

But, HOW do you forgive? Especially when the hurt is very deep or the hate is very strong?

Here is a forgiveness prayer my minister, LeRoy Lowell, used for himself to heal some really deep pains and the ways he hurt others because of them. He said it every day. It helped turn his life, relationships, health and finances around.

All that has offended me, I forgive.
Within and without, I forgive.
Things past, things present, things future, I forgive.
I forgive anyone and anything tht could ever need my forgiveness in my past and present.
I positively forgive every one.
I am free and all others are free, too.
All things are cleaned out between us now and forever."

If you know EFT, it would be even more helpful to tap on your various points as you go through the words a few times.
Let me know of any shifts you get from using this.

Live Fully!
Lisa
***************************************
"Creating healthy, natural, lasting change thru' the power of your mind"
Lisa Smith, MHt, CC, NLP, EFT-1
Life by Design, LLC
www.hypnocoachlisa.com
To contact me directly, call 757-631-9940 or click here to email: hypnocoach@cox.net

BEST OF THE BEACH 2010, SILVER WINNER 2010 for Best Weight Loss Center, Therapy Center, Training Center, Women's Fitness Center; BRONZE for Best Nutritional Studio; 2009 BRONZE WINNER for Best Weight Loss Center

BLOG: Lessons on Living Fully blog.hypnocoachlisa.com

Get F-R-E-E stuff, like a healthy mind & body ezine, 25 Top Ways to Motivate Yourself, a relaxation audio/video, and MORE! www.hypnocoachlisa.com/Free_Stuff_.html

FOLLOW ME:
Twitter: www.twitter.com/MMMCoach
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FB Fan page: http://company.to/LifebyDesign

In case you haven't received this in your email yet, I wanted to pass along these "Life Lessons" written by Regina Brett, a 90 year old woman.

This is something we should all read at least once a week!!!!! Make sure you read to the end!!!!!!

Regina Brett, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio.

To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come...

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Live Fully!

Passing along another good story someone emailed to me.

.. . . Something To Think About . . .

THE SITUATION

In Washington , DC , at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After about 3 minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, and then he hurried on to meet his schedule.

About 4 minutes later:
The violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

At 6 minutes:
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

At 10 minutes:
A 3-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent - without exception - forced their children to move on quickly.

At 45 minutes:
The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

After 1 hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed and no one applauded. There was no recognition at all.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities.

This experiment raised several questions:

*In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?

*If so, do we stop to appreciate it?

*Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made . . .

How many other things are we missing as we rush through life?

Live Fully!

Passing on a great short story someone passed on to me today. Great reminder to make use of our time here—we never really know when we might wake up dead.

I Woke Up Dead this Morning
By Richard Parsons

I woke up dead this morning, and I was quite surprised. I felt pretty good when I went to bed last night. I wasn't expecting this so soon. At least it seems to have happened too soon. God, where did the time go? It seems like only yesterday I was a kid shooting spitballs through a straw and being sent to the principal's office to see the much feared Gertrude Collins and her aerodynamic paddle. Where has all the time gone?

The coffee tasted about the same as usual this morning. The headlines in the newspaper were the same as any other day. Different day, same bad news. I took a quick glance at the obituaries to see if I had made the morning edition, but realized that it was too soon. Except for me, no one else knows that I'm dead. Gosh, it might be days before anyone realizes that they haven't seen me or heard from me. This should prove interesting! It's not like I can pick up the phone now and call someone to let them know that I'm dead.

I decided to go for an early morning walk. It was depressing though, because when I said "good morning" to people, they didn't make eye contact or give any form of reply. They acted like they couldn't see me or hear me, but that was really no different than any other day in the city. In the past, I always chalked it up to their being preoccupied with their busy lives. Now I was beginning to wonder if I had been dead for longer than just today. For an instant I thought that perhaps they were the dead ones and I was still alive. Then I said to myself, "Who would want to be alive in a dead world." On that sad note I turned around and went back home for another cup of coffee. This being dead thing was really starting to bother me.

Just the other day, I was telling a friend about all the things I still wanted to accomplish with my life. Funny now that I said that I didn't fear dying, but rather feared not living. I first made that statement over five years ago when I had my first heart attack and wasn't sure if I was going to live or die. And now, as Job said, "That which I feared has come upon me." If I were still alive, what would I do differently today? Well, that thought is, as they say, a day late and a dollar short. Am I really dead?

All of the sudden, I'm not sure. Being alone, I don't have anyone to ask. God, how many nights have I gone to bed with a bit of sadness and fear about being alone. How often I've thought that if I were to get sick during the night, or needed help, who would be there for me? And if I died, who would know? Hey, is that my phone ringing? Gosh, if someone hears my voice, that means I'm still alive. Hello, hello! Ah shit, just my luck to get another automated telemarketing message. Ironically, this one was advertising life insurance. I should have pressed option one to speak to a live agent, but I thought I'd be bored to death listening to elevator music for 30 minutes. Bored to death! Wow, that statement takes on new meaning now. Actually, I'm bored with death. Come to think of it, what happened to that white light and those angels who were supposed to transport me to the pearly gates? Perhaps there's an energy crisis in heaven too. And God probably had to lay off some angels due to the poor economy. I guess things are tough everywhere.

My mind keeps going back to what I said about my fear of not living. I thought perhaps I would be wiser after death, but I still don't know why I put things off when I was alive. I guess we all think we have plenty of time, and we'll get to those important things tomorrow. Then, suddenly, like with me now, tomorrow never comes. I wanted to get back to writing. There's that book I've been working on; there's those short stories I wanted to write; there's things that I wanted to learn yet. I wanted to spend more time with my grandchildren. There were plans and ideas to help others that I wanted to implement. The older I got the more I realized that there were many dreams still locked inside my spirit, and there was my God given potential that I hadn't fully lived out yet. Now I'm really angry with myself. I hope God forgives me for disappointing him. He invested a lot in me, and I'm not too sure that he received as much return on his investment as he had hoped for.

Perhaps there are other dead people out there who are angry at themselves for the same reason I am. Hey, maybe I could organize a therapy group. We could call it the How to Cope with Regret group. Actually, I would rather be alive and offer a group for the living, especially for those who are like I am, or rather, like I was. People who put off living fully till another day. I would encourage them to "do it now." And I would do another group for those who have no clue about the treasure that's inside them because they're spent a life time believing the lies they've been told about themselves. And yet another group for those who go through life being complaining victims instead of taking responsibility for their lives by putting the word act into action. Of course I won't be able to do those things either. At least now I have a real excuse because, I woke up dead this morning.

Life really is about loving more, learning more, laughing more, giving more, and growing more. Life is about more! It's about abundance; overflowing abundance, not for collecting, but for the joyous giving of ourselves. We are most alive when we live. And we live by discovering the abundant treasure God has placed within. And not just discovering it, but also doing the hard work of digging it out.

I think I'll have another cup of coffee while I wait to see what happens next. I feel very cold now, and the light is growing dim. Mom! Dad! Is that you?

Oh my God! What a nightmare! I dreamt that I woke up dead! I am alive! Thank you God for one more day to live. I promise to live it fully. Would you help me, please? I don't want to wake up dead.

Live fully!

Carrots, Eggs & Coffee (author unknown)

I received this in an email today and wanted to share it with you.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things
were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and
wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as
one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen.. She filled three pots with water and
laced each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she
placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed
ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word...

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots
out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a
bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to
her daughter, she asked, 'Tell me what you see.'

'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did
and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take
an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard
boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter
smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it
mean, mother?'

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same
adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in
strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the
boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its
thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through
the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee
beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had
changed the water.

'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your
door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain
and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat?
Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial
hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my
shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff
spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the
very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it
releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things
are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.

===========

When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate
yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot,
an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you
strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they
just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest
future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until
you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.
Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone
around you is crying.

You might want to send this message to those people who mean something to
you (I JUST DID); to those who have touched your life in one way or
another; to those who make you smile when you really need it; to those who
make you see the brighter side of things when you are really down; to those
whose friendship you appreciate; to those who are so meaningful in your life.

If you don't send it, you will just miss out on the opportunity to brighten
someone's day with this message!

May we all be COFFEE!!!!!!

Live Life Fully!
Lisa

Is your head getting in the way of what's for your highest good?

I recently had a woman come to me for the f.r.e.e. initial consultation I offer when someone contacts me about my services. After we reviewed her pains and challenges, her goals and desires, and what services I could offer to assist her to move from where she was "stuck" to where she wanted to be instead, she asked to "think on it" so she wouldn't make a "rash decision."

This, I have found, is the "kiss of death" for achieving our goals—"thinking" too much about it. That's when we start to listen to the voice that keeps us stuck. My goal is to help teach people to listen to their "inner voice"—the one that comes from intuition vs. logic/safety/fear.

Whether people choose to use my services or not, I want to encourage them to take SOME action after our consultation; to do SOMETHING different than what they've been doing.

Coming to me for a consultation—or even just contacting me—is a sign that someone is in a position of wanting to make a change and ready to do so; they're just wondering if I can be the resource to help them do that. They've realized that what they're doing/experiencing is not working for them and they want something different. But they feel they are lacking something that prevents them from doing it themselves—resources, accountability, support, mindset, a combination.

With one recent consultation, the person told me they had chosen a different hypnotherapist to work with. I congratulated him on taking decisive action by following through with someone, even if it wasn't me. In this other case, the woman "thought her way out of" working with me after she went home, yet didn't seem to have a "Plan B" that she was prepared to implement instead. I wrote her back and asked her to think of some of the things we discussed in the consultation:

* What do you WANT most?
* What is the single biggest OBSTACLE standing in your way right now from getting/having that?
* What is the biggest ACTION you could take right now to remove/move past that obstacle?
* How are you going to get new resources to help you do that?

Remember, nothing changes unless something changes. Too often, we put off assisting ourselves with challenges, hoping they'll just resolve themselves on their own, denying the amount of negative impact they are having on our lives. But all these "put-offs" do is deepen the problem and keep us stuck in a less-than-satisfying life.

What are you "tolerating" in your life right now? WHY are you tolerating it? The EGO voice tries to keep us stuck. Listen to the WISE voice that knows what you deserve and are capable of, and answer the questions I have posed here, then create some ACTION that will move you toward what you want, and a plan (and/or support) to keep you in action. STOP SETTLING and stop rationalizing not taking action or doing something different.
 
One final note: I have been in a "stuck" place many times, held back by my fear/ego voice that rationalized all kinds of "intelligent" reasons not to do something BIG or take a leap of faith to bring me to the next level. It sucked. Once I made a decision to do something BOLD, something different—often choosing to work with a coach or mentor as part of that leap (and ALWAYS with God)—everything changed for the better and I was so thankful for having done it.

Your move...

Live Fully!

I had a boss once that was THE WORST micromanaging, anal-retentive person I'd ever worked with!

I was SO on the verge of quitting so many times while she was my boss, waking up each morning dreading going into work, even though I loved my work and helping people with hypnosis.

I finally remembered what I knew about the law of attraction—what we focus on expands.

I realized I was making the problem worse by focusing on how miserable I was and how much I didn't like her. So, I switched my focus and began to focus on the aspects of the job that I loved and the aspects within her that I COULD like or admire.
I also asked to have a conversation with her to find out her thoughts on why she wanted things done a certain way so I could help her get done what she wanted to and not be fighting her all the time, as well as to get to know her a little more on a personal level. She said she really appreciated that I came to her and asked to have that conversation.

Things were definitely easier between us after that. Although I still didn't agree with a lot of the things she asked us to do or how she went about managing things, I understood her better and didn't get so upset by her requests (she'd had a lot of rejection in her life and therefore had a strong need to try to be in control; she also had low self-esteem even though she tried to come off as highly competent and "together").

Interestingly, as well, within a month of that time, someone else bought the franchise office I was in and she was transferred to another office!

Try to do the same thing with anyone in your life that you are having difficulties with. Have a conversation to learn to understand them (not to make them wrong or point out what you don't like about what they do). Especially try to get to know them on a personal level (being curious but not intrusive). You might be surprised at what you find out. They might even start to feel like you care about them and therefore act differently toward you (and others in the office if you work with them). Focus every day on their GOOD qualities and even compliment them on those. It will change not only you, but also them.

Live Life Fully!
Lisa
***************************************
"Creating healthy, natural, lasting change thru' the power of your mind"
Lisa Smith, MHt, CC, NLP
Life by Design, LLC
www.hypnocoachlisa.com
To contact me directly, call 757-631-9940 or click here to email: hypnocoach@cox.net

BEST OF THE BEACH, BRONZE WINNER 2009 FOR BEST WEIGHT LOSS CENTER

BLOG: Lessons on Living Fully http://blog.hypnocoachlisa.com

Get F-R-E-E stuff, like a healthy mind & body ezine, 25 Top Ways to Motivate Yourself, a relaxation audio/video, and MORE! www.hypnocoachlisa.com/Free_Stuff_.html

Visit my weight loss website:
www.WinningWithWeightLoss.com

FOLLOW ME:
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