5 Ways to Find Your Focus

You would like to begin the journey to your dreams, but you aren't sure how to get there. Here are 5 ways to find your focus and create a vehicle that will carry you where you want to go.

1. Start with what you have.
You have to begin somewhere and the sooner, the better so you need to start where you're at. What do you find interesting? What skills can you share or put to use? What resources are available to you right now?
I went on a road trip with a friend and all we knew when we left is where we wanted to end up and that we would be going in my car. Then we set a date and set out. Along the way we picked up free maps at visitor centers as we crossed borders and state lines. The scope of the maps were limited mainly to the sate we picked them up in, they would always get us over the next border and to the next map. We didn't know where we would be camping, but we always found a place.

2. Where were your previous successes?
Think of times in your life that you felt you were getting good results. You were doing something that people were attracted to. Your Creative Soul began as a very successful 5 week course on intuitive creativity.

3. What do you need to learn?
The saying goes "We teach what we need to learn." What do you most want to learn in life? What would you like to prove to yourself? Now find a way to communicate those lessons. Teachers don't always know the answers but they best suited to find the answers.

4. When does time disappear?
Think about this, you may feel that you are wasting your time when you do this activity, so you discount it. Now change your perception of it. Think of it as valuable work time. Decide that activity is creating abundance in your life, perhaps earning you cash. I lose entire days while I am learning about and creating blogs. Initially I would get into a state of panic when I returned from "the zone", feeling I had wasted my day. Now I realize that blogging is my work and my time invested is productive.

5. What do people seem to want from you?
Do others ask for your advice in a certain area or request you to create something for them? How can you give that to others in a way that combines all 5 points?

Now get started in some small manageable way.
Let me know what you came up with as you answered these questions in the comments area below!

You can find this post, along with posts from 14 other blogs, listed in Chat at the Cooler's Personal Change Carnival. Be sure to check it out for inspiring topics on personal development.

How You Can Make New Behaviours Into Old Habits

You can learn anything in life, whether it is a new skill or a new way of thinking, by being be open to the concept that you can learn it and then keep repeating it until you burn good strong neuropathways in your brain. The reason you fall so easily into old habits is because your brain has pathways burnt into it that are easier for you to follow than forging new ones. Think of going for a walk in the woods. The trails that are already there make it much easier to get through. People use them, and animals use them. Even my dog will usually follow the path rather than run through the tangle of scrub. If you want to create a new trail, it will take a greater initial effort to clear a path, but after it has been traveled a few times the going gets easier.

But why would you bother forging a new path? Why not just stay on the well worn path? Well, when my dog takes off into the underbrush, it is because there is something there that has caught her interest and she something good to come from the chase. Since our subconscious is like a happy puppy, you must anticipate good fun in a new direction in order to be willing to give chase and forge a fresh trail. You don't take it personally if the trail is overgrown, you don't see it as a personal short-coming if the trail is over grown, so don't let the forming of new habits become a personal issue.

Give yourself time and permission to learn a new skill, behavior or habit. As you continue to learn new things again and again, learning itself will become easier.

Expect Good Things to Come

My partner wins every time he plays a game, in fact, his whole family does. After contemplating why, even in games of pure chance where there is no knowledge or skill involved, he would win and I wouldn`t, I realized it was because he EXPECTED to win. No big deal, no real competitive nature, just an expectation. That was the only difference I could see between the way we approached a game. To try this theory out I invited him to play a round of dominos with me. I let myself feel a calm expectation of winning these games. I let myself know that it was just the way it was going to be. No hyping myself up or repeated mantras, I just allowed myself to accept this reality on a deep physical level. For the first 4 rounds, I won every time. I could see the frustration building in him and so for one last round I let go of the winning expectation and decided to just let events take their own course. The 5th round ended in a draw and my partner seemed satisfied that he was back on solid ground, so really, I won again.

Years ago I was driving home frustrated and stressed because money had come up short and I wasn't sure how I was going to feed the family until the next pay check. Then I thought, just relax and trust that everything will be all right. When I got home and checked the mail there was a completely unexpected check from the government for several hundred dollars. I just smiled, looked up and said "Thanks!"

This state of expectation is really a physical one. If I am repeating an affirmation in my head but my body is tight with stress then the affirmations won't work. Your body tells the real story of your beliefs. Make a concious effort to relax your muscles and be in a physical state of openess and acceptance. If you get in to this state and then boomerang right back into your tense, closed posture, don't give up! Just keep reminding yourself to return to this state. Relax, remain open, repeat.

So expect and accept all the beautiful things you desire and the universe will be a richer place.

How to Create Personal Positive Affirmations

Affirmations are a strong tool for reprogramming your subconscious to create changes in your behaviours and beliefs. Whenever you learn anything new, the best approach is to a) cut yourself some slack and b) repeat the process again and again. Right now I am teaching myself to type. In order to make it second nature I have to do it again and again so I open up pages of affirmations that I type out and I get results in two pursuits at the same time.

To make the process more effective it is a good idea to get as many of the senses involved as possible AND to make it fun so your body associates this as desirable. If you are thinking of this process with derision and embarrassment then it will create an association with bad feelings and it will backfire. Think of it as an experiment. Take the scientific approach and suspend your disbelief. You don't have to believe either, just remain open and observant to the process. Be in a state of acceptance. Another tool of the scientist we can use is consistency. Do this repeatedly until you see results, then keep doing it to gain a greater database.

There are some guidelines for creating effective affirmations. Use the present tense when you say an affirmation. Treat it as if it is already real and you are currently reaping the joys and rewards of your affirmations. Use as many of the senses in the process as possible, in your affirmation and in your surroundings. A good way to do this is to google videos of what you want to manifest. It amazes me how many free tools are out there to get you started. A good place to go is Musivation where you can download a free money song and you can check it out on my post from yesterday, just look below. I laughed when I first started listening to the song and soon the tune was stuck in my head. Perfect. I can jive to a money tune while I do the dishes or walk the dog!
Another important point is to always use positive wording. Focus on what you want rather than what you want to avoid. For example, I am prosperous creates prosperity while I need money creates need.

Here are some wealth affirmations I created. Feel free to use them for yourself.
1. I can feel the crispness of cash in my hand as I use it for the good of myself and others.
2. I hear the crinkle of dollars as I fill my wallet and my bank account with more and more unlimited cash.
3. Prosperity feels like a refreshing wash of water as it flows to me, around me, clearing debris and creating weightlessness.
4. I can feel the joy that my wealth creates for me and those it touches.
5. I am so abundant that I am comfortable sharing my wealth where it can enrich the world.
6. I feel strength and completeness in my heart and soul that goes out like a beacon, calling wealth to me right now.
7. I feel enriched by the opportunities having money opens up for me.
8. Money is so easy to create, it falls into my hands miraculously.
9. The flow of money is a refreshing stream that I stand in the middle of.
10.I feel the freedom of the endless supply if wealth I attract into my life.

And remember Bob Marley's advice; Don't worry, be happy.

The First 20 Minutes of "The Secret"

I googled "visualize money" and eventually came to this piece of gold. The first episode of The Secret. I will definitely pick up the complete version. Just this short session cleared my brain of all the toxic soup that was bubbling up.

There was also a catchy tune to get prosperity into your subconcious with a link to a free download at http://www.freemotivationalsong.com/. I'm listening to it right now and I can barely sit still to finish this post. Here's the video:

Enjoy!