Shine Your Own Light on Today’s Global Recession By Cindy Prosor

What I am hearing frequently in today’s global situation is blame. People who feel helpless and frustrated blame others. Those who blame others are victims. A victim is powerless and helpless. You don’t have to be powerless and helpless.

Crises feed on fear. When we come from fear, we attract more to be fearful of. With more and more fearful people in the world, the world becomes a fearful place. Do you want to live in a world of fear?

Instead of feeling like a victim in today’s world, I challenge you to look for the gift. Instead of pointing a finger at somebody else, I suggest that you focus on what the lesson is, for all of us including yourself. What have you learned? What do you want to do differently? What is the change that you want to see?

In terms of your finances and career, look for opportunities. Become inspired. Even more powerful, help others to see their opportunities. Inspire others by moving from fear and blame…into hope and gratitude. In this way you become a leader, not a victim.

If you have lost money, don’t focus on what you have lost. Instead, focus on opportunities and possibilities. Remember, what you give attention to increases. Leave the past, it’s gone. Be grateful for what you do have and visualize where you want to be. Try on different perspectives. Be flexible, willing and open. What do you want? Where do you want to be? What do you need to do to get there?

I suggest that you let go of status, power and other meaningless ‘stuff’. As many of us are finding out, those things can be taken away very quickly. Instead, cultivate things that are meaningful in any conditions. What do you really value that cannot be taken away? Love, intimacy and caring are the diamonds in turbulent times such as these. Right now is a good time to acknowledge the meaningful things in life that economic challenges cannot rob from any one of us. What are those things for you?

Give to others in a way that you would like to receive. Deepak Chopra states in his book, "The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success,"
“…in our willingness to give that which we seek, we keep the abundance of the universe circulating in our lives.”
It is more important now than ever before that we be here for each other. Find someone who could use a hand up and extend yours. I promise, if done unconditionally your gift will be returned to you ten-fold.

Yes, we are in a time of change. We can see it as a fearful time or we can see it as a hopeful time. The choice is yours. I believe that when we find the things that we are grateful for today and focus on those, the more things we will attract to be grateful for. Gratitude is a wonderful feeling.

Here is an exercise to help you to infuse your magic into the world. It is a three-part exercise.
1, In a journal or notebook, write about three areas of your concern in your life today.
2. Write at least one paragraph each on three people you care about.
3. Do at least three acts of kindness this week.

This above exercise will help to shift your resonance. Imagine throwing a pebble into a still pond. You are that pebble. As that pebble has impact on the resonance of the water, your thoughts and emotions have an impact on the resonance of the world. As your resonance shifts from fear and blame to love and gratitude, it will shift the world’s resonance. And as the world’s resonance shifts, magic begins! Out of your work, miracles can abound.

If you feel like you are ready to make a change but do not feel as if you have the tools, resources or knowledge on how to move powerfully ahead in today’s times, I am happy to assist you to take the first step. Please send me an email or give me a call and reach out today.

What do you think of today's situation? Please post your thoughts on this subject.

Try Something Different

Are you thinking creatively enough?

I'm sitting in a quiet room at the Milcroft Inn, and I'm listening to the desperate
sounds of a life-or-death struggle going on a few feet away. There's a small fly
burning out the last of its short life's energies in a futile attempt to fly through
the glass of the windowpane. The whining wings tell the poignant story of the
fly's strategy: Try harder. But it's not working.

The frenzied effort offers no hope for survival. Ironically, the struggle is part of
the trap. It is impossible for the fly to try hard enough to succeed at breaking
through the glass. Nevertheless, this little insect has staked its life on reaching
its goal through raw effort and determination. This fly is doomed.

Across the room, ten steps away, the door is open. Ten seconds of flying time
and this small creature could reach the outside world it seeks. With only a
fraction of the effort, it could be free of this self-imposed trap. The
breakthrough possibility is there. It would be so easy.

Why doesn't the fly try another approach, something dramatically different?
What logic is there in continuing until death to seek a breakthrough with more
of the same?

Trying harder isn't necessarily the solution to achieving more. It may not offer
any real promise for getting what you want out of life. Sometimes, in fact, it's
a big part of the problem. If you stake your hopes for a breakthrough on trying
harder than ever, you may kill your chances for success.

Price Pritchett, Chicken Soup For The Soul, 1993

5 Reasons to Identify and Honour your Values By Cindy Prosor

Imagine you could...
do what brings you the greatest joy,
be with the people you love,
and use your natural talents and gifts.

That’s exactly what happens when you live in accordance with your personal values!
1.When you honour your values you are honouring yourself. There is a flow, ease and joy in your life when your activities and choices are congruent with your values. You enjoy an internal sense of rightness.
2.When you understand your values, they keep you on track. It’s easy to make the right choices for your own life, every day.
3.Once you have identified your values, and intentionally make choices that honour them, you can stop doing things for the ‘wrong reasons’ – such as pleasing other people and seeking approval.
4.Living in accordance with your values allows you to attract other people who share similar values, so that your time with them brings joy, ease and fun.
5.When your environment—your home, office and community—reflects your values, you will be happy where you are.

What is a value?
Your values are those traits or qualities that are you at your best; they represent your highest priorities and most important driving forces. Some examples of values include family, intimacy, service, adventure, integrity or connection.

Where do my values come from?
Your values can come out of all the happenings and influences in your life – your family, your spiritual and religious beliefs, your friends and colleagues, books you’ve read and much more. Values are not morals or principles, and they are not ‘right or wrong’. Your values are intangible—they are not something you do or have—but they are also not invisible to other people. When you are at your best, your values come across in the clothes you wear, the interactions you have with others and the choices that you make.

Why do I need to understand my values? When you take the time to identify your own values—those things that are your true motivators—you discover what is essential to you. You then have a personal blueprint to help you navigate your life. If your choices and decisions are not in accordance with your values, you end up with dissonance. You become unsatisfied and unhappy; you can even become unhealthy! Understanding your values will keep you on track, every time you face a major choice or direction in your life.

How can I use my values?
Imagine being able to make the right decision for yourself every single time! You will be able to do this with confidence once you have completed the Values Clarification Process. When you make choices that honour your values, you are honouring yourself. A certain joy, ease and harmony appears in your life, and that sense of internal ‘rightness’ feels wonderful.

Your values are truly your foundation and your map to the fulfillment path of your life.

My thoughts on Forgiveness...

If we truly want to live a happier life, we must dig deep and learn to forgive. Forgiveness is the most precious treasure that we can give ourselves and each other.
When we are willing to take responsibility for forgiveness, we are guaranteed a life of peace, gratitude, wisdom, expansion and growth.
If not, we are destined to a life of blame, resentment, pain, self pity, guilt and anger.

To be truly happy, forgiveness begins with our self first. Each time we beat ourselves up for the past, for mistakes or bad choices that we have made, we stay trapped in a shell of toxic shame and self –abuse.

Somehow we think that we deserve this. Maybe we were told that we were bad as a child by a parent or a teacher and part of us believes this. We believe that punishing ourselves will make us a better person or a more humble person.

But this lie will never make us a better person. It will only keep us prisoner to the shame that we continue to carry. Whether in the privacy of our own minds or out loud for all to hear, each time that we criticize ourselves for our own faults and mistakes, we are participating in our own self-abuse. We are telling ourselves that we are bad. We, in fact, become our worst enemies.
If what we desire is a love filled life, we must learn to love ourselves first. That can only happen with forgiveness.

One of my favorite spiritual teachers, Debbie Ford, says:
“Although forgiveness often looks like a generous giftwe are giving to someone else, it is ultimately an act of self-love and a gift we give to ourselves.”

Our resentments hold onto us like a ball and chain, keeping us prisoner to our anger and to the person that we are so angry toward. We think that we will show them by continuing to make them suffer. But we are the ones who are truly suffering!
We continue to try and prove that we are right and ‘they’ are wrong.
Our righteous attitude keeps us locked up in our own misery.
We find a sick kind of comfort in this.

Our freedom begins with taking full responsibility for our part and...
... letting go of blaming others.

The power of forgiveness does not require that we agree with, condone or tolerate abuse or bad behavior. We forgive the sinner, not the sin.

By forgiving, we set ourselves free to create and receive so much more.

By forgiving others, we do not become doormats for them to wipe their feet upon. It is important that we create and set strong boundaries for those who would continue to try to take advantage of us.

True forgiveness allows us to stop being victims and helps us to step into our power and authority so that we will not make the same mistakes again.

When we find ourselves in a situation where forgiveness is warranted, we will usually find anger associated with it. It is important to feel and release any anger that we are feeling toward our self, another person or God. Feeling and acknowledging our anger is an important step toward forgiveness. Clean anger is expressed from our body. It is a feeling. Express it into a pillow, towel or punching bag. I have a hill that I stand on to express my anger. I push my body to the top of that hill and I let it out in a long, loud scream.

It is important to learn from the past, and not let the past leave us laying in its wake. The past is over. It does not matter who was right or wrong. What matters is what you have learned from this experience and you go on to be a better person because of it.

Whether it is over or not, here are a few questions that you might ask yourself:
What is this person teaching me about myself?
How can I use this experience to become a better human being?
If I could do this all over again, what would I do differently?
What are the patterns that I see repeating themselves in my life?
Where might I be in denial?
What is the drama I am creating?
What am I being right(eous) about?
What am I willing/unwilling to change?
What is it to be compassionate?
Why am I taking this action?
How can I use this lesson to heal my heart?

None of what I have written today is easy to do. As Wayne Dyer says,
“It takes much more courage, strength of character, and inner conviction to forgive than it does to hang onto low-energy feelings.”

But if you do not take responsibility for creating your own drama and continue to blame yourself and others for being bad, wrong or guilty, you will continue to create more hurt, anger, entitlement, resentment and pain.

If you are ready to take the courageous step into forgiveness, you will create more peace, self-esteem, love, inspiration, self-respect, intimacy, hope, trust, compassion, freedom, joy, gratitude, generosity, acceptance, responsibility, courage, confidence, humility, and truth.
The time is now.

I am here to tell you, if you seriously want more peace and love in this world it begins with you. Our resonance is what contributes to the resonance of this planet. As more and more of us take responsibility for loving and forgiving ourselves and others, the world will become a more forgiving, loving and peaceful place.

Girls just want to have fu-un!

Yes, it was a FUN time in "The City"! One hightlight being that we 'ran' into Larry's cousin Shelly (on the left) who is one of the most fun people that I know, followed by this beautiful man who met us at the door of Abercrombie and Fitch. A GREAT time was had by all :)

A Dog's Purpose (from a 6-year-old)

A Dog's Purpose (from a 6-year-old)

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to
Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, 'I know why.' Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. He said, 'People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?' The six-year-old continued, 'Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.'

I'm new to blogging and this is my first blog. Please join me in a conversation about life, stepping outside of your comfort zone and playing a bigger game. Moving to New Zealand several years ago was just that for me and I am still adjusting to this BIG decision. But, as Helen Keller said, "Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all." Read more about my BIG year of change on my web site, www.openingdoorswithin.com. Until next time, keep swinging out!
Cheers, Cindy