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When you live your life by the law of Prosperity, you can create
all that you need. True prosperity starts within the mind and
means more then just money. Ideas, dreams, wishes, thoughts, are
all a part of your prosperity consciousness. So, whenever you
focus your attention on a specific idea, wish or whatever,
whether it’s positive or negative, it will become real.

Once you know that the power of the mind can attract whatever
you focus on, amazing results can happen. If there is enough
faith behind your request, there is enough power within you to
make it happen. Know, too, that your natural association with a
Higher Power is the true source of your prosperity. Having a
spiritual belief is an important part of this source.

Prosperity is made up of many things and may include some of the
following sources:

1. Good health and healthy living (and eating!)

2. Great relationships with family, spouse, friends, neighbors, co-workers, associates

3. A fulfilling career

4. Continued mental and emotional growth

5. Satisfactory and worthy material possessions

During times when you feel happy and all is right in your world,
you can actually create your own destiny. From those positive
feelings, focus your thoughts on a definite purpose. From that you
will experience true prosperity. Everyday make your purpose the
central point in your thoughts. Keep thinking about your vision.
This creates your attitude. Then your attitude will determine
how much success and prosperity you’ll have in your life.

The way you look at the challenges you face everyday, and the
way you react to them forms the way things are attracted to you.
If you start your day in a negative mood, you can bet that
negative things will happen to you. The opposite is also true.
When you’re in a good mood, you attract positive experiences.

This too, holds true for money. When you give, you get back
much more. Though, at times you can see that the giving is
unbalanced because you’re trading one value for another. Think
about the moments when you gave away something of value to you.
Was it given in a begrudging or angry manner, or with an
expectancy of getting something in return? When that happens,
you pay a price. Instead, be conscious of your attitude and the
way you give or the way you handle your money. Spend it and give
it responsibly. Do it cheerfully. Become the kind of person who
gives with kindness and prosperity will find you.

The path to true prosperity includes three steps:

1. Good Health

2. Happiness

3. Wealth

All three steps must exist before you can reach true prosperity.
Before you can tap into the source that creates your prosperity,
it may be necessary to experience the kind of challenges that
shapes your character. Learn from your own mistakes and those of
others. Be ready to become the kind of person it takes to be
trusted and blessed with true prosperity.

You can always attract prosperity by thinking, speaking, and
feeling in a certain way. Have you ever noticed how your money
gets taken from you involuntarily when you don’t give it with a
cheerful, loving attitude? It may not happen immediately, yet
inevitably, unexpected expenses like your car breaking down,
your child needing new dental work, or some household item
having to be replaced, will come when you least expect them to,
and when you can least afford them. So, as you give, let go of
any guilt, self-pity, or ill-wishes toward others.

Remember: Prosperity won’t happen if you hold on to resentment
or revenge. Replace any negative feelings you may be holding and
open your mind to receive outcomes that are extraordinary. With
this attitude you can challenge the universe and create more
outcomes that are good. And as your wisdom and character grows,
so will your prosperity.

Gerri D Smith publishes and hosts an inspirational newsletter for women business owners and individuals eager to improve, and entrepreneurs willing to learn more. And it’s Free! Subscribers to her newsletter receive many well-written articles, special reports, business offers, free affiliate programs, contests, resources filled with motivational support, business and personal image improvement, and supportive ideas to help you reach your goals. Subscribers are saying:

“Can’t wait to read more!” - Olive Hinnant

“I am a woman in business and often feel alone. Today I red your” “Use Your imagination to Create the Self you Want” (Article). Thank you for the spiritual enlightenment!”
- J. Amelita Facchiano, Ames, IA

“Thank you for your words of encouragement it’s so uplifting to read the word alone with wisdom attached to business sense. Keep flowing a positive breeze my way. Once again thank you.”
-Elizabeth Woods, San Jose, CA

“Thank you, Gerri! You are an inspiration to us! I hope you have a wonderful and powerful new year ahead in all aspects of your life.” -DBFord

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.

There are other useful definitions in this field, for example, creativity can be defined as consisting of a number of ideas, a number of diverse ideas and a number of novel ideas.

There are distinct processes that enhance problem identification and idea generation and, similarly, distinct processes that enhance idea selection, development and commercialisation. Whilst there is no sure fire route to commercial success, these processes improve the probability that good ideas will be generated and selected and that investment in developing and commercialising those ideas will not be wasted.

Overcoming Blocks

There are essentially two groups of blocks, the first being evaluation apprehension or evaluation anxiety and the second being task hindrance.

a) Evaluation Anxiety blocks include: fear of being unoriginal, fear of being perceived unintelligent, negatively assessing own ideas, risk aversion, the illusion of difficulty etc.

b) Task hindrance blocks include: lack of finance, no access to decision makers, lack of appropriate resources, no movement of ideas etc.

As blocks can be grouped into two, so resolutions can be grouped into two.

a) Psychological and Cultural resolutions. These include engendering a culture of psychological safety and freedom, individuals becoming aware of their own evaluation apprehension and consciously countering, developing confidence through improving their task competency and success rates etc.

b) Structural resolutions. Organisations creating management structures that allow direct access to decision makers, tangible movement of ideas, access to knowledge bases, reduced competition for resources etc.

These and other topics are covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity & Innovation, which can be purchased (along with a Creativity and Innovation DIY Audit, Good Idea Generator Software and Power Point Presentation) from http://www.managing-creativity.com/

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author’s name and site URL are retained.

Kal Bishop MBA, is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com/

Have you ever said those words to a partner or to yourself? It’s an important statement to make because it’s often the first step towards truly realising that ill treatment you have experienced is not a reflection of your value.

But that is all it is: a first step.

This week a woman spoke up in one of my domestic violence recovery workshops and said she was coming to terms with the break-up of her latest relationship. It hadn’t been as bad as previous relationships, she said. There had been no physical violence. But she had found herself emotionally ‘carrying’ this man. Over time the burden had become heavier and heavier.

And then, her face contorting with the difficulty of actually speaking the words, she added tremulously: “It sounds awful to say it, I know, but I deserve better.” Then she stopped expectantly, almost as if she was waiting for the sky to fall down on her, or the other women to hiss or throw their paper coffee cups at her.

Needless to say, it didn’t happen. They were probably thinking about how she had had to screw up her courage to speak those words.

At that point a connection that has been a long time coming clicked into place in my brain and I asked her if she would allow me to challenge her on that statement. She nodded bravely, but apprehensively. Had she been staking too high a claim to life’s riches?

I said: “I dispute the fact that you deserve better, Liz. You deserve the best.” The atmosphere in the room became electric.

Nobody deserves better. As unique, precious human beings who have made do with crumbs, while generously nurturing the other people in their life - every abused woman deserves the best.

Actually, I believe that every human being is deserving of the best that life has to offer; love, care, respect, consideration, far more than material goods. The key is to understand that this abundance can be freely available to all. Owning your own share does not reduce the amount that is available to all. It doesn’t mean depriving other people. Your abundance only increases the available store.

Deprivation occurs when you encounter those people who have, or believe they have, nothing to give; people who believe their best hope of attaining comfort is to cut off your source of supply and drain whatever resources you have.

Hence the question arises: Better than what? Better than the worst relationship you’ve had? Better than nothing? Better than the proverbial ‘burnt stick in the eye’?

How much better is better? How much better do you deserve things to be? 10%? 20%? 50%? And how soon can you claim the better life that you deserve? Now? Or does it have to be a long, slow, wearisome process? Is it yours for life, or can it be taken away from you again?

Liz sat blinking like an owl in strong light as she processed these ideas. What clinched it for her was realising that her deserving the best deprived nobody. Rather, since it meant that she would no longer be running on empty, she could share the generosity of her spirit even more constructively than she had in the past. (Not least because, from now on, she will steer clear of those people who would rather drain her resources than uncover the wellspring of their own.)

When Liz said: “I deserve the best”, she made no apologies for the statement she made. It sat well with her.

Because there is something far more compelling about speaking words out loud than just thinking them, I asked the other women to join in also. A chorus of “I deserve the best” filled the room.

That group of women who generally apologise for their existence had no problem declaring that they deserve the best.

Focusing on a modest improvement in their circumstances kept these women thinking small. It kept them focusing on doing just a little bit better than what they were used to doing.

Raising the bar unconditionally transported them into a different place; the place where their dreams, beliefs and values still grow. In that place they knew and felt that they deserve the best.

What about you? You deserve the best, don’t you? So why not just say it out loud to yourself a few times a day? It makes a great mantra. And you’ll never know how much more at peace with yourself you’ll feel until you give it a try.

(C) 2006 Annie Kaszina

Annie Kaszina Ph D, is a coach and writer who has helped hundred of women to rebuild their confidence and their life after an abusive relationship. Annie is the author of “The Woman You Want To Be”. This ebook will teach you how you can love yourself first, so that you can create strong self-belief and build the fulfilling future you’re looking for on firm foundations.

To find out more and sign up to Annie’s free bi-monthly ezine visit http://www.joyfulcoaching.com You can email Annie at: annie@joyfulcoaching.com

Feel free to reprint this article on your website or in your ezine, just include the resource box.

Are you tuned in to reality? Am I tuned in to reality? No, it isn’t a radio station or a television channel. My thesaurus gives many definitions of reality but the definition that pops out at me is truth. If mental health demands reality, then lies must mean an emotional upheaval at some level. You are probably asking yourself how important truth is but something happened to me today that I am now asking myself is there anything more important than truth? When you think about it, what else is there but truth?

Today I experienced a friendship that was broke because of lies. I think as friends, we can accept shortcomings, annoyances and many other things but if truth is not there or never has been there, then we don’t really know that person. Truth finally emerged today like a bright light. Once that light was seen, all kinds of lies that begat lies were seen. So the downside of finding out someone has lied to you is that you don’t even know who they are. Maybe they don’t even know who they are. They are like a spider caught in it’s own web, the web of deceit. Maybe they refuse to see the lies that they tell themselves, so it inhibits them from knowing who the real, authentic “me” is. You feel like saying, “Will the real you please stand?”

I don’t mean this to sound self -righteous. I can think of a few times when I lied. It certainly did backfire on me. It caused not only hurt to others but also to me. So please don’t think I am preaching to you. I am talking to myself, as well.

Was the war in Iraq based on truth? Was Hitler truth? Being in debt is also an untruth because when we are in debt we are spending money that we do not have. Our country is plagued with credit card debt, as never before in history. Debt is an untruth. Debt is not facing reality. It is living beyond our means. It is living in a way that we are not being real with ourselves as well as not being real with society.

Truth counts in our emotions. If we do not allow ourselves to grieve or be angry, it will catch up with us in a variety of ways. If we are sad and we allow ourselves to be sad, we are healthy. If we deny any emotion, we can’t help our self because we don’t know why we are acting the way we do. A child doesn’t try to hide emotions. If he gets angry, you know it. He cries or lashes out at you but then, when it is over, it is over, emotionally.

Now, I just want to bring up a something else about truth. It is my opinion that in some areas, truth is not an exact science. Read on.

I went to a seminar once and the question on the table was, “What is truth?” After much discussion, the instructor revealed that truth is what you perceive it to be. I guess that is why people get into arguments at baseball games or they debate religion or politics. Their truth is truth. It is what they comprehend or grasp to be true. I may hear someone say something that sounds sarcastic; you may hear him say the same thing, but you don’t note the sarcasm. Which one of us is right? I guess that means we both are right because we both see it in our mind a certain way. At that point, we just have to agree to disagree.

I am not writing this article to lecture anyone. It is merely to explore truth in our lives.

I am so much happier if I am true to myself, as most of you have certainly found out, also. In fact, from now on, I think I will try even harder to be more truthful with others and myself. Did you ever commit yourself to a project or a trip that you really did not want to do? I have. I was then angry with myself for not being truthful.

In summary, we could say that truth or lack of truth affect our emotions, financial status, relationships, state of our country and all of life itself.

Children are truthful most of the time until they learn otherwise. They won’t hesitate to tell you if you have freckles or wrinkles. As my granddaughter expressed to me with pure honesty and love when she said, “Grandmother, you are the best wrinkled-eyed grandmother I ever did see.” Somehow it didn’t make me feel old or ugly. It made me feel warm inside because this child could be so very truthful and together we faced reality.

Webster’s New World Thesaurus, New Revised Edition, Prentice Hall

Francine Larson

Has an AA Degree From St Petersburg College.
Taught Nursery School, Children’s Choir,
Paraprofessional for First Grade

Co-Author of Character Keys to a Bright Future.
Writes poetry, short stories and articles.

Unlimited Minutes published by www.Taborri.Com
Zach and the Wishing Well by Just for www.Moms.com See Zach’s story at: http://www.justformom.com/articles_full_text_page.php?article_id=927
Personal: Married, four daughters

Her web site is: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso4qht
(Three Teacher Press)

Self-care is the path to creative expression. By paying closer attention to your self-care, you can have easier access to your creativity, to your muse and to your inner strength and resilience. You’ll also have more energy, more tolerance for others and yourself and more confidence in your work.

Start. Have you been procrastinating about something? Do you need to update your resume so you’re ready for that next audition or show? Edit the last chapter of your book? Call that gallery owner? Learn that new piece? Well, just start. Set your timer for 15 minutes and remind yourself that as soon as it goes off you can stop.

Stop. Today, just for five minutes, STOP. Stop and listen to what your inner muse might be trying to tell you (if it could just get your attention). This process will be easier and more effective if you consciously relax your mind and body first - a few deep breaths might be enough, or a few minutes listening to your favourite relaxing piece of music. If you have the time, try a progressive relaxation exercise where you imagine a ball of light traveling through your body and relaxing each muscle as it passes.

Turn around. Turn around your negative perceptions. When you start beating yourself up for procrastinating, remind yourself that you worked for 15 minutes on that project today! If your inner critic is telling you something else, try this method from my “Performance Readiness” worksheet. Write down everything your inner critic is saying to you. Now, imagine it’s saying those things to a small child. Then, for every statement, write down what you would say to comfort and encourage that child and show them another way of looking at things.

Play. Speaking of children, just for today, approach your art as child’s play. Paint with your non-dominant hand, play a new instrument or write a song or story using only words that start with the letter “d”. What are some other playful things you could try?

Rest. Do whatever it takes to get a good night’s sleep. And, just for today, rest when you feel tired. Not getting enough rest and sleep is one of the most direct ways we sabotage ourselves and our health. When’s the last time you bounced out of bed in the morning, eager to start the day and feeling completely rested? For tips on getting a good night’s sleep, see my Genuine Self-Care article at www.genuinecoaching.com/news/selfcare-aug2003.pdf.

© Copyright 2005, Genuine Coaching Services. All rights reserved.

Linda Dessau, the Self-Care Coach, helps artists enhance their creativity by addressing their unique self-care issues. To receive her free monthly newsletter, “Everyday Artist”, subscribe at http://www.genuinecoaching.com/artist-newsletter.html