Two Patterns of Thought

People have two basic forms of thinking patterns, one is constructive and the other is destructive. Melancholy people often live their life in review, too afraid to attempt new things because of their past failures. This form of thought pattern is destructive in nature because it demolishes hope. You will find this to be true with those who have been hurt in relationships, experienced divorce, or been disappointed with a business associate. Whenever a melancholy person initially becomes excited over a new business idea, they will put their life in review and recall the difficulties of starting and not succeeding in business. Therefore, after careful examination of their past failures, they will conclude that their ideas will never work. This person is often sad and depressed because the things they would love to do are reduced to his or her historical blunders.

The other form of thought pattern is constructive because it helps to build a healthy outlook on one’s life and personal future endeavors. These people often see things in preview. They would rather focus on tomorrow whether than presently live the regret of the disappointments of yesterday.

“When it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened.”

–John M. Richardson, Jr.

Where is Your Focus?

People who often succeed in living their life’s perspectives are those who learn from their past, focus on their present to develop for their future. This kind of person loves to get up in the morning because they look forward to doing something they have never attempted before. They do not live their entire lives trying not to rehearse the past, but rather preparing for the future. They are not familiar with living in the safety zone. In fact, the safety zone is very uncomfortable for them because it suppresses their creativity and locks them in a cavity of routines.

Are you the kind of person who often focuses on “what use to be” or one who loves to channel his or her life in the direction of “what ought to be?” Are you one who has to squeeze the worth out of living or value living because of its worth? Make your choice and decide today!
Charles F. Kettering once said,

“My interest is in the future because I am going to spend the rest of my life there”

If you are not concerned with your future, you are someone who has no clue where you are going. Allow your future perspective to be previewed instead of your past being constantly reviewed.

Technorati Tags: disappointments, melancholy person

There is a rhythm to life that can easily become broken and that is when life’s priorities are out of sync. When people find themselves unhappy after achieving success, getting the girl or guy of their dreams or after landing that six figure job, it is because they are finally awaken to the reality that having things or accomplishing one’s goals does not necessarily translate into happiness. The disharmony in their life creates a repugnant and unpleasant feeling. They were under the assumption that happiness is the ultimate reward of success, but that depends solely on the priority the individual gives to their success.

Generally, people think that their dreams and priorities will automatically synchronize, but this is the furthest from the truth. True synchronization is when a person deliberately places their wants, needs and desires in the correct order and are completely content with that sequence. You may ask, “What is the correct order?”

There is a general order to the rhythm of life, but not all arrangements fit all. The order of your priorities may not be the exact order for me. The Rhythm of Life is putting life’s priorities in perspective.

Two men looked out through prison bars. One man saw the mud; the other man saw the stars! It is often just a matter of perspective. Before you consider changing jobs, churches, or spouses in hopes of finding the fulfillment you seek, examine your attitude. If your attitude is not right, then it does not matter where you work, how much you are compensated or even what you do.

There is an innate quality that is in every human being and when that quality is disrupted, so is life. God is that quality which gives life its quality and rhythm, not things. Counting numbers is just not the same starting with the number two. It is virtually impossible to sincerely start your day with God and end up out of sequence.

Technorati Tags: achieving success, happiness, rhythm of life, synchronization

Divorce statistics show that there are a number of reasons why marriages fail. On the other side of these reasons are a good number of reasons why marriages succeed. However, why do we love to narrow our sights in on the negative aspects, as though couples should spend the majority of their energy trying to prevent these reasons from affecting their marriage? When this happens, the debris of our struggles slowly eats away at all the good reasons for enjoying a successful marriage.

According to divorced couples, the number one reason that marriage fails is due to either a lack of communication or poor communication. There is a positive side to this negative scenario. Couples who are happily married report that they enjoy communicating with one another.

I do not claim to have all the answers for enjoying marital bliss; but I just happen to be the author of a book about marriage entitled, “msHow to Fix Your Marriage without using a Hammer.” I am also a clinical counselor certified by the State of California. This may mean absolutely nothing to you, but for what it’s worth, having over twenty years of experience helping people from rocky marriages to rocketing careers should account for something. In my previously mentioned book, I wrote about the solutions more than the problems. I figure this way, if you are busy doing what is required to have a good marriage, you will not have time to be concerned with what can destroy it. The dos will far outweigh the don’ts. People must be honest with themselves and with their spouses. Working on yourself is far easier than trying to fix your spouse. However, without exaggeration, most people are external when it comes to problems and finding solutions to those problems.

Scenario: Have you ever lost something and instinctively blamed someone else for it because the item was not where you thought you left it? If couples will look introspectively at themselves, they will not point the finger of blame at their spouses. Marriage can work, if you learn how to work it.

Join my FREE 1 Day Marriage Tune-Up on May 2 @ 1:00pm at the beautiful auditorium of Christian Joy Center in El Paso, Texas. If you are in town on this date come by and enjoy one of the most insightful afternoons of your life. It will be worth it!

Technorati Tags: divorce, Divorce statistics, ending marriage, successful marriage

Everywhere I go, the average Joe knew nothing about the Stimulus Bill, but they wanted it signed immediately. Now that the Stimulus Bill has passed unanimously through Congress and the President signed it into law, the next scary agenda is health care. With the billions needed for this new proposed Health Care Bill, no one is truly answering the question of where America is getting this money.

The real frightening concern is a socialist government is being formed. America once prided itself in being the most successful capitalistic society, but now our government has engaged in privatization by owning at least forty percent of Citibank and controlling Freddy Mac and Fanny Mae. It will be interesting to see what becomes of this.

Controlling your world should not be left in the hands of the government nor should it be left in the hands of special interest groups. You are not a creature of circumstances; you are a creator of them. I refuse to leave my life up to fate, especially knowing that I am full of God’s creative and explosive power.

Seven things are necessary for you to do in order to navigate your way through these uncertain times. Others have already applied these tactics to control their future economy and the results were exhilarating for them, to say the least. Rehearse these seven navigational principles and they are:

• Trust God and ask for directions. (Each individual’s problem is unique)
• Balance Your Bank Account(s). (This will help start you at zero)
• Negotiate with Creditors. (Even though you are not behind in your payments)
• Work on getting rid of high interest and long-term financing. (Exchange for short-term)
• Look for new ways to reduce your debt. (Abandon companies before they abandon you)
• Increase your giving towards God’s work. (When you take care of God’s business, He will take care of yours)
• Have faith in God’s ability in you to conquer and dominate your world.

Do not allow problems to control your life; continue to control your life while walking through problems.

Technorati Tags: economy, health care, stimulus

Primetime television is pushing the limits to what can be viewed and seen on television at a time when most children are watching. Pornography has exploded on the internet leaving eighty percent of the people between the ages of seven to seventy vulnerable. While our athletes are viewed as heroes, treated like gods, and overpaid like corporate CEOs, we continue to experience a decline in the quality of goods, embezzlement from top corporate giants, and reckless behavior from those who are supposed to be examples in the faith. I cannot help but think that somehow we are being left to our own stupidity and evilness.

• Forty-two percent of all runaway youth confess to living a gay-lesbian lifestyle.
• Among youth ages 16 to 24, Hispanics accounted for 41 percent of all current high school dropouts in 2005. However, they only made up 17 percent of the total youth population. Black and Hispanic youth are more likely than non-Hispanic whites to drop out of high school.
• In 2005, 6 percent of non-Hispanic whites ages 16 to 24 were not enrolled in school and had not completed high school; compared with 11 percent of Blacks and 23 percent of Hispanics. The high rate for Hispanics is in part the result of the high proportion of immigrants in this age group who never attended school in the U.S.
• Asian youth, with a dropout rate of 3 percent, had the lowest dropout rate among all racial and ethnic groups in 2005.

America’s pool of leaders will come from this pot of delinquents. Frightening to say the least that America’s political leaders cannot see that we created this entire mess by passing laws that encourages individuality and do what feels good even if it is at the expense of others. Our economy did not become this messy by itself, it took politicians lining their pockets and legislation designed to keep people struggling financially.

So, where is God in all this? We kicked God out; if there is such a thing. We do not want God involved in our government, our national policies, our commerce, our laws, our educational system, our marriages, etc. Historically, this nation was better off with God; and our present condition makes it obvious that our nation and world continues to get worse without Him.

Technorati Tags: asian youth, high school dropouts, hispanic youth, youth, youth population

It is between these ages that 98 percent of the American public is preparing for a career, building a career, or preparing for retirement. Ninety-five percent of assets and liabilities are acquired between these ages. Unless you have a Trust Fund with millions waiting for you at age eighteen, you are most likely to fall into the temptation of getting into debt for college tuition, buying a car or home, etc.

Most people do not have the kind of savings account established where they can withdraw $150,000 for the purchase of a new house. Therefore, debt reduction should be considered a viable option. This does not mean that you should not aim for total eradication of your debt; it simply means that if you aim for the moon and you so happen to fall short, you will at least be among the stars.

I was once asked a question by a studious young man, “How long will it take to get out of debt?” My answer was in the form of a question. I asked,”How much debt do you have opposed to the amount of money you have left over once your normal monthly expenses are satisfied?” If your answer is that you have a deficit every month, getting out of debt is going to take some time. If your answer is that you carry a surplus of $500 or more, considering how much debt you are carrying, it is still going to take time. You build debt as if you build wealth, over time. However, time is one of your greatest assets when it comes to debt reduction.

Join me and the hundreds of others by signing up at the top left hand column of this post for the “Taking Control of My Life” Campaign, which will give you the kind of information to help you redirect your focus and kick your life into a higher gear.

Technorati Tags: business debt, debt reduction, Get out of Debt