Did You Really Mean That?

I was driving on the highway the other day behind a truck that had a bumper sticker on it. As I read the bumper sticker it gave me the idea for this article. The bumper sticker read: "If you ain't a Buckeye fan, you ain't s**t." Well, I have no idea who the Buckeyes are and it really isn't important, because what struck me was how often we say things that we don't really mean and, more than that, what it actually means for us in terms of what we attract to ourselves in life.

In this particular example, the assumption must be from what it says that if you are a Buckeye fan then you are s**t. I'm pretty sure that's not the meaning that was intended, but if you think about it, that's exactly what it's saying.

Being aware of what you say is particularly important when you think about the Law of Attraction, the principle that what you focus on is what you attract. This includes what you say. So, for example, if you frequently exclaim that someone is "a pain in the neck" (or some other body part) if you started to develop neck problems you probably would not associate it with your statement. But the Law of Attraction would tell you that this is exactly what's happening - you develop the neck problem as a result of what you habitually say.

I play tennis and it's a wonderful sport. It can also be very frustrating when you hit a shot that doesn't go where you want it to go, particularly if that means your opponent wins the point. Go out onto any public tennis courts and I can just about guarantee that you will hear people shouting things like: "you idiot", "how could you be so stupid", "what a pathetic serve" and so on. These are all things that people are shouting at themselves, not at their opponents. I must admit to being somewhat guilty of this myself from time to time, but now when I do it, I at least stop and cancel out what I just said.

If you think about it and just listen to people you'll hear them saying things all the time that reinforce just what they don't want in their lives. Things like:

· I can't afford it
· I always end up in the longest line
· Nobody ever listens to me
· The economy is so bad, everything's a struggle right now
· I hate being bored
· I hate being stuck in traffic
· So and so is better than me
· And so on...

In just the same way that we need to monitor our thoughts, to be aware of what we're focusing on and putting energy towards, we also need to be aware of what we say. We often say things without even realizing just what we're saying.

I was once a member of a mastermind group that met twice a month. The purpose of the group being to help the members grow both personally and professionally. We became aware of the fact that each of us had a tendency to be negative about ourselves in certain areas and would say things that were not helping us achieve what we wanted. So we instituted a fine. We each had our own statements or things that we needed to avoid saying, and each time we were caught saying it, we had to pay $1. It worked very well because it really helped to make us aware of what we were saying and how frequently we were saying it. We used the money we collected to go out to lunch - and of course, some members ended up contributing a lot more to the lunch than others!

If you like a challenge, then try this. You may have to ask someone else to monitor you - someone you spend a lot of time with, because it can be difficult to notice it yourself. The goal is just to be aware of when you say something that you really don't mean and that is really not helpful to you. Once you're aware of it, then you can change it. If you catch yourself saying something that you really didn't want to say, then you can always say 'cancel' afterwards, or change what you said to a more positive statement. For example, instead of saying "I can't afford it" you can say "I choose to spend my money on other things right now", or something similar.

Paradise Or Hell?

What would you do if you could travel to ANY place in your mind? Where would you end up? Hopefully, it'd be some place sane and safe, a place of some type of tranquility. I know what some people think, and if the place they'd image instantiates right then and there, they'd be in one LOONY place. lol. . .Thank goodness that doesn't happen though, or does it?

On your average day, what would you say your thoughts correlate? I mean what's the main drive behind your thoughts. Is it financial worries?? Financial blessings?? Thoughts of anger? Happiness? Are you tired of working that 9-5 job and need a vacation?? Or is that as close to a vacation that you're getting this year? You could already be in that place you think of most. If in your mind you're thinking, "My GOODNESS!! This job is SO stressful. It's just Hell on Earth," and that's your constant. I'm here to tell you. You're at that instantiated place in your mind. It's come to reality and you didn't even see it appear before you, probably because it's been walking right alongside you. It's in GREAT company, so why should it go elsewhere? Or should I say, why shouldn't YOU go any place else? It's like I've said about our mentality, it's got to change before anything else will. And that's a point I DO drive home.

Don't think you're going to instantiate the beaches of the Bahamas when you're mindset is the slums of Kingston, Jamaica. Harshly put, but you DO see the picture. Sometimes you need to just go away, just get away from it all to clear your mind and come back renewed. However, if your "friend" is tagging along with you, you may as well have stayed at your "Hell on Earth" job or situation. Because you being on "vacation" and your mindset still on everything that's negative and wrong in your life, guess what. "Nothing changes, if nothing changes." You're still in "Hell". It just looks better. Yet, the problem is right there with you on the "beach,"chilling and sipping on whatever you're sipping on--probably a double of it.

Periodically throughout the day, you should take a few minutes for yourself, and take your mind away. Take it on a vacation to wherever you want to go. HOWEVER, leave everything else behind. Go by yourself; you don't need any "sipping buddies." Like the lyrics said in the past, "Free your mind and the rest will follow." If you REALLY want to free your mind, physically get yourself out from the troublesome environment. . .even if it's a LITERAL vacation. Once you're away from the stress and the pests. . .take yourself to "paradise,"while being in paradise, physically. The experience will help greatly.