STRAIGHT UP LIVING

Release What Has Been. Release What Has Not Yet Been. Embrace Now! Let this music guide you as you live this moment!

 

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"Just Enough" is NOT Enough.

 

 
 

"The purpose of life is a life of purpose." 

                                                                                                                                                                      ~Robert Byrne

 

 

Today I was thinking about how so many people approach life with a "just enough" attitude.   Just enough kindness, just enough knowledge, just enough focus, work or effort.  Just enough to get by and that's good enough.  Well, call me "Mr. Bubble Buster", but I'm sorry, because that's not good enough. 

Most people, including myself, speak of all the things they'd like to see in the world.  More peace, love, kindness, compassion, but we will never see any more of these things so long as we take the path of least resistance. There are not many things that can be accomplished by putting forth half an effort.  We are going to have to work, sweat, cry, wrestle, perhaps bleed and maybe even be "inconvenienced".  I do not mean to make it sound as if any of this is a drudgery because, in fact, if one's heart truly desires the outcome, it wont seem like "work" at all.  It will be a joy as well as a deeply rewarding experience.

 

It all begins with the individual (me and YOU!)

If you apply the "just enough" mentality to yourself and to your own life, you certainly will not behave differently toward other people.  If "just getting by" is good enough for you, what are the chances you will have a higher standard for someone else? 

Let's look at a few examples:

• If you hate your job, yet take no action that will lead you out of that job and are therefore miserable, what are the odds you will be able to help another out of the same situation? 

• If you are overweight (barring any physical problems, illness etc) and continue to over eat and avoid exercise, and thus remain obese, how can you ever help to guide someone into a healthier lifestyle?

• If you do not put forth 100% of your effort into seeing that your basic needs are met (food, clothing, housing), you will most likely not give give 100% effort into seeing that another person has their basic needs met.
  

• If you do not love yourself enough to make the necessary changes (and put forth the necessary effort) that will improve and enhance your life, then the odds are you will not love another person enough to help them either. 

 

Do you see the pattern?   It al begins in me and in you.  We must live our lives aware and consciously!  Many of us have switched on the auto pilot and are merely going through the motions each day, all the while lamenting the horrors in the world and in our own lives.  We have all been given a chance to make a difference and we do that by BEING the difference.  We can have a lax attitude about everything, but just know that you'll be getting lax results to match. There aren't any shortcuts, so let's roll up our sleeves and get busy.  It is our actions, the things we do (or do not do) each and every day that tell the real story of what we believe.  I look at my own life, even as I am typing this sentence, and I ask myself "What does my life say that I believe?"

 

 What does your life say about you? 

 

 Life isn't a dress rehearsal, this is the real thing.

 

Will You Live The Truth You Find?

 

 

 

  ~I view my life as a journey.  I seek to learn all I can about life, it's purpose, MY purpose, how to coexist with my fellow human beings, and how to experience all my emotions yet be controlled by none of them. 

I believe my body is just that.  My body.  A place where the real "me" resides.  Connected yes, but not one and the same~

 

~

All of the above thoughts, and more, are almost continually on my mind.  I am a seeker.  I seek to know the truth.  About what? you ask.  Well, about everything!  Recently I asked myself this question: 

"What if I discovered the truth.  The truth about life, why we are here, where we came from, God, the Universe and so  on.  What if I found out in such a way that there was absolutely no room for doubt.  Would I accept it?  Would I embrace it wholeheartedly and adjust my life accordingly or would I dismiss it because it did not fit into my preconceived notion of what I wanted the truth to be?"

 

 

Truth.  We all say we want it and in every situation in life.  The question I ask myself is 

"Am I willing to seek it with a child-like heart, but with relentless dedication?  Am I willing to seek it peacefully, but fight for every morsel of it I find?  Finally, am I willing to live out the truth once I've found it?"

 

What about you?

 

 

Learn To Use...

 

  

  
 The Power of Focus!

 

 

             

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Living The Dream

How can you get what you want in life?  Is it even possible to get what you really want?  The answer is YES!

 

Most people have dreams they wish would come true or goals they want to achieve.  Unfortunately, many of those same people never realize their dreams and it isn’t because they are less capable or lack desire.  What they do need is focus ( and discipline. but that's a topic for another post!)

 

 

What is Focus?  

There’s little doubt that you’ve heard how important it is to be focused, but are you actually implementing it, daily, in your life?  Your life can be the way you desire it to be, but to get there you will need to use the power of focus.

 

What, in this context, is meant by the word focus?  The human mind is amazingly powerful and you can control and direct that power.  You have the power to think on whatever you wish to think about and you can change what you are thinking about in an instant. 

Take a moment and think about a beautiful lake, illuminated by a golden setting sun.  Now think about being in a car and running head on into a semi-truck! Do you see?  In an instant you switched your thoughts from one thing to another. 

Did you also notice that a completely different set of feelings and emotions came along with each thought?  Focus simply means to consciously choose your thoughts and to sustain those thoughts indefinitely.  It is a form of concentration and achieving your goals or realizing your dream requires that you focus your thoughts on what it is you want. 

Focusing on what you want will lead you in the direction of your desire.  It is important to remember that focusing on what you do not want will have the same effect, only you will be guided toward what you do not want! 

My father taught me this concept, years ago, while teaching me how to drive.  He taught me that while driving down the road, and in the distance, you see an object in the roadway that you need to avoid, look for a safe way around it instead of staring (focusing) at the object. 

“If you stare at it you’ll end up hitting it even though you don’t want to.” he said.  There’s a lot of wisdom in that statement.  If you focus on the things you do not want, you’ll end up moving in that direction even if you don’t want to!  That is the power of Focus!  It will override a momentary desire, and by that I mean that if you are continually focusing in a certain way you will develop momentum in that direction. This momentum will not be overcome by a few minutes of discomfort, and that is why it is crucial that you focus your thoughts on things that you do want in your life

 

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If you want more money in your life, you shouldn’t continually think, “I don’t want to be broke, I don’t want to be without”.  If you want to lose weight don’t focus your thoughts on “I wish I were not fat”. That is focusing on what you do not want!  Focus on what you do want! 

 
 

 

 

Feed Your Focus 

In order for your focus to have power and be effective you need to infuse your thoughts with emotion and feeling (Using visualization will help you with this). This is will give your thoughts power and will keep you driven, passionate and motivated!  You know you’re doing this right when you feel compelled to make your dream a reality.

 
 

 

When you apply this type of focus to your dream or goal, it will seem almost miraculous how the way will be made. How solutions will appear and routes to achievement will present themselves.

 

Ask yourself this question. “What must I focus on today in order to create the tomorrow I desire?”