"You've created your own monster, you know", my mother said
ominously. My Rex cat, Houdini, had just burrowed his way inside
my sweater for the third time that morning, letting out a squeal
of indignation when I tried to resist.
Houdini has separation anxiety. But in his tiny little mind,
separation means I've been out of his site for at least two
minutes. Or I've closed the bathroom door and left him on the
other side. Or he hasn't had his ears scratched or his belly
rubbed in eons (about ten ...
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February 2nd, 2012 in
Home and Family
Think back on all of the things you set out to do at the
beginning of the year. Think back further to those things you
promised to do by the time you reached thirty or forty or fifty.
Any regrets? How many things on that list have you set out in
full determination to do, but in the end, that devil on your
shoulder warned you against starting, telling you that you're
too old, too young, too out of shape, too afraid? Too often we
listen to that nagging voice telling us that we 'can't' or ...
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January 30th, 2012 in
Self Improvement
Copyright 2005 Patric Chan
How many people do you hear complaining about their job, where
they live, how little money they have, or how they can never
take a vacation?
How many times have you heard those same people, when they hear
about someone else who made a lot of money from an idea, say,
'I could have done that!' But yet, they didn't.
And they continue to complain about where they are in life.
A friend of mine owns a dog grooming business, and she buys
supplies from another pet ...
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January 20th, 2012 in
Self Improvement
An inspirational poster can really inspire us!
Its benefits to us are based on scientific principles of how our
minds work. Almost every inspirational poster has both images
and words. Once in a while, one may just have words, but when
that happens, the words are usually done in a very artistic way.
Different parts of our minds respond to words and to images:
generally, the left side of the brain is more logical and
word-oriented, while the right side of the brain is more global
and ...
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January 17th, 2012 in
Self Improvement
I am not a therapist. I do not do therapy. I am a "Performance
Consultant". I teach people how to produce the results they want
in their lives using the most effective methods. Change will be
fast, fun, easy and lots more fun! You like fun, right?
I'm not much interested in talking about or analyzing your past.
I want to know what you want for now and for the future. I can
show you how to neutralize the bad feelings from the past
rapidly and easily.
What do you want? You say you are ...
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January 7th, 2012 in
Self Improvement
What is your level of engagement? I'm talking about your level
of involvement in your own life. If you check in with your
spiritual, mental, emotional and physical selves, what do they
tell you about how engaged you are in LIFE? If you had to put a
score on yourself between 0 and 100, how would you fare?
Are you frightened of resolutions? Try engaging yourself. If you
think you'd like to focus on a resolution for the New Year, the
following is a great place to start: ...
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January 5th, 2012 in
Self Improvement
There seems to be an epidemic these days of depression. Everyone
I talk to, it is experiencing some degree of depression. As I
wonder about the cause of this twenty-first century phenomenon,
I think of my great grandmother who raised my dad in the back
woods of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan during the Great
Depression.
She had a hard life raising twelve children and two
grandchildren, seeing two die as toddlers as well as two as
adults with cancer. She supported her sick husband who ...
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January 4th, 2012 in
Self Improvement
What Are YOU Making It Mean? Helaine Iris © 2002
'You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as WE
are' -Herb Cohen
It all started with a perfectly innocent question from my
husband. 'Honey, can we compare our calendars, I have some
things I want to schedule and I'd like your input?' Happily I
agreed and pulled my chair up to engage in the conversation.
After looking at the fullness of my husbands schedule and
realizing he still had MORE he wanted to fit in, I responded,
'Hey, ...
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December 27th, 2011 in
Self Improvement
A.Can you change your personality? You cannot change your basic
temperament styles but you can influence your behaviors and
thereby your personality. The biggest mistake I've seen is
someone who has "put on" behaviors that were not theirs'
naturally until it has become habitual. It is almost always
obvious and often painful. An example is a phlegmatic who felt
is necessary to put on an outgoing sanguine style for so many
years that it has become a habit; however it is clear that this
is not ...
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December 26th, 2011 in
Self Improvement
Last week I had the opportunity to serve as an advisor for a
group of high school students as they went through a week long
Entrepreneurship program. The program was very educational (for
me as well as the students) and the relationships I formed with
the students and other advisors are very dear to me. What's
funny is that I almost didn't go because the program was in
Youngstown Ohio, and I live in Cincinnati. In order to get
there, I had to drive 5 hours.
Okay, so some of you are thinking, ...
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December 21st, 2011 in
Self Improvement