January 2nd is not always the best time of year to celebrate your birthday, friends have had enough celebrations and uninspiring employment may have started.

For a recent “special” birthday I behaved as Royalty – I had an “Official Birthday” in August, lots of friends and lots of fun.

Today started with brilliant sunshine and a balmy 8 degrees which continued all day !
My presents included chocolate, salt, potential feathers and a self-inflicted black eye!

You may ask how or even why?
First, a little story….
In September I went hiking in the Jura mountains( France) with a small group and had a fabulous time.

During a visit to an ancient salt mine at salins-les-bains, I discovered a Lindt chocolate with Fleur de Sel or in other words- Salt.
It is fantastic – or at least I think so. Definitely in the same category as chili chocolate and worth exploring.
Amazon.co.uk stock it at this link: Fleur de Sel

So that is the chocolate and salt!

I also received a voucher for a Bird of Prey experience at a future date.
I find raptors fascinating and am really looking forward to it.
Here is a photo I took of a Little Owl at a raptor centre some time ago, there are no images of real
raptors in my collection.
That’s the potential feathers!

Today we visited Wimpole Hall, a leisurely stroll on a beautiful day. Unfortunately the restaurant was
full and service very slow. Beautiful walled gardens, rare breeds, cuddly pigs and more…

OK, the self-inflicted black eye !

As I was keeping fit and healthy last week on a local trim trail, being over enthusiastic,
my hand slipped on a rope and I hit myself  quite hard!
Visitors to Cambridge Speakers Club tomorrow evening will see the remaining bits!
No photos of the black eye, here is a photo of where I did it ….
We now have some friends coming round to dinner….
If this is an indicator of how 2012 is going to be, then roll on 2012.
In these changing times a positive loving attitude is essential for all of us.
A good start is always helpful and I will presumably be reminded to return to this post during the year when
I may have been less cheerful!
Thank you in advance

Wishing you and Abundant, Positive, Loving Cheerful and Successful 2012.

I look forward to your comments and sharing of this post.
If you feel I can assist you to have a better year, please contact me at:  http://www.differentlight.org/contact/
Jim

My suggestions for a low stress 2012 are:

• Make your resolutions achievable
• Make them measurable
• Do something for you every day – and enjoy the moment
• Laugh every day
• Thank somebody every day with a smile
• Find something beautiful around you every day
• If you struggle with something, consider a training course
• On a bad day, remember that at any time you are probably doing the best you can
• Look for the positive in all situations
• Watch the news less – focus on the positives
• If you must watch TV, be discerning – do you really want to watch That Program?
• Feel gratitudel for something every day
• If you can’t fix a situation, send positive thoughts toward it and don’t worry about it
• If possible, walk daily and listen to birdsong
• Consider meditation, it can really bring clarity and simplicity into your life

I appreciate your comments below.
Wishing you a happy and low stress 2012.

So what about the bad attitude at Tesco you may ask?

Store staff were friendly and very helpful at Customer Services.
Our experience was really positive.

The checkout was another story.

The checkout operator looked frustrated and unhappy. I asked if it was a difficult day.
They replied “IT IS GOING TO BE A REALLY HARD DAY”!

Now that really is a classic case of setting the WRONG intention.
It is most likely they will have a very stressful day, even if the customers are all pleasant to them.
The Power of Intention is massive.

Start out with a positive attitude and you will have a Good day or experience.

Start out with a negative attitude and you will have a Bad day or experience.

It was inappropriate to make a positive suggestion in those circumstances.
I really feel for them and hope they will sometime learn the Power of Positive Intention.
It could really change their life for the better.

Wishing you Positivity and Success – and reminding you to start or ( re-start ) with a Positive Attitude.

Your ( Positive! ) comments are appreciated below. If you think I can help you be more positive or confident, please contact me by telephone, email or find me on Twitter or LinkedIn

Jim

As we grow we change our habits and usually change our beliefs through experience.

We may reach a stage where our forward progress and confidence really drops without any obvious reason.

This could be due to our “old beliefs” no longer protecting or supporting us and may become a serious problem, leading to:

• Low self esteem
• Career stagnation
• Health issues
• Financial issues
• Relationships breakdown
• High Stress levels

For example: as a child we may have been frequently told to not show off, in practice this means we grow up with a “little voice” inside which limits the way in which we express ourselves.
We effectively have a “safety net” or barrier around us, constantly limiting our interaction with others, our Health and our Wealth.

How does it affect our health?

When we are unable to achieve what we want, first we may be disappointed, and as it repeats we become stressed.

Stress = Health issues.

In the same way as we can outgrow our mental barriers, here is a physical example of a tree outgrowing a safety barrier and becoming stressed.

Tree breaking old limitations

A protective safety barrier was put in place years ago to prevent vehicle damage.

No doubt it was highly effective.

As the tree has expanded, the “safety barrier” has become a means of it’s destruction.

It is embedded in the cells of the tree leading to diseased growths in an attempt to absorb or “deal with” it’s old protector.

In practice, both the protector and the protected are being damaged.

The second photo shows a wider view with extensive diseased sections higher up,
presumably caused by the stress and trying to “cope” with the situation.

This is a perfect analogy of what happens when our old belief systems no longer serve us.

Stressed tree breaks barrier

How do we solve the problem ?

We need to remove the old limits and heal the wounds.
For the tree, this is straightforward, we remove as much metal as possible, with minimum damage.

For ourselves, we first have to recognise what the origin of our “cage” or barrier is.

This is the way to our stress solution.

This is always an emotional issue, not a logical one; so the first step is to:

Stop thinking about it !

Yes, stop thinking and start feeling.

To quote Albert Einstein ( approximately):
“We cannot solve problems with the same way of thinking as we created them”

Find a quiet place where you will not be disturbed.

Turn off phones etc.

Ideally, sit in Nature where it is comfortable and without too many people around.

Stop thinking about the problem.

Start feeling into why we feel so bad.

Where in our body does the “hurt” live ?

( For example, when we focus on feeling “powerless” or bullied, we are likely to feel a sensation in our stomach area. A relationship issue may be felt in our heart.

It does not matter where we think it should be, it is fantastic that we have found it)

Now we focus on the feeling.

While breathing gently, keep our focus on the area of the sensation.

Be like an explorer with a huge imagination.

What does it look like in there ?

What does it feel like in there ?

Keep on paying attention to it.

What does it need to make it go away ?

What do we need to change in our lives to reduce the stress ?

( We may not like the answers, but does the stress or the solution feel best ? )

Working in this simple way can bring huge insights into our area of un-ease.

Simply letting our awareness increase around our actual feelings enables us to be informed about the reasons why we are un-happy.

We can then choose to work with these reasons from a position of real knowledge, and not from the opinions of others.

This is not an instant solution, it is the start of a new self-awareness program which can be used in all areas of your life.
I have used this technique successfully for many kinds of issues, mental, physical and spiritual.

If you require assistance, do contact me at  http://www.differentlight.org/contact/

or check the forthcoming events:  http://www.differentlight.org/events/

Good luck with your search and DO leave a comment.

The time is upon us now. This special date and time occurs only once every 100 years, so it is our only chance to appreciate it.
It inspires love, awe, fear or questions in many people.
However you feel about 11:11:11, why not take the opportunity to pause and consider:

• The bigger picture of our lives,
• Our relationships ( especially with ourselves )
• Even bigger things…
• Consider the beauty of nature,
• Consider the amazing interaction of man and being.

For now, if you are not “into” meditation, then spend a few minutes considering these very special images below.
Let us focus on the uplifting, heart-opening images, let go of our “mind-stuff” and allow in the Love.  Namaste  Jim

I have gained the Right to be HAPPY
I have been called a happy person by some; especially since I completed my Energy Healing training some years ago.

That was 3 years of a deep, deep self-exploration, which reached parts I did not know I had.
Not all of them were pleasant !
But I felt like a new person afterwards, much more alive as I discovered a depth and richness to life I had thought could only be lived by others.

Of course the self-exploration continues, but usually much gentler and lighter.

Acquaintances have frequently commented that I am far too cheerful and that I have an infectious enthusiasm when describing what I do.

Yesterday I found a massive limiting belief that has been holding me back all my life.
Right now I believe that I am now at the happiest stage of my life to date.

Yesterday, I was due to attend an event exploring what makes us happy.
I have been aware of this event for several weeks, and have really resisted posting my 10 point happiness list on their website.

So what was this resistance ?

Allow me to share with you my experience.

Yesterday, I was going to attend a “Happiness Project” evening.

A suggested action was to post 10 things on their forum which made you happy.

I had put it off “until tomorrow” several times.

As the afternoon rolled on, I felt a deep gnawing discomfort around my heart and I was literally unable to write the 10 things which made me happy, yet I had a long list in my head.

Over a period of a few hours this terrible “dread” crept over me which I could not understand;
I knew it was definitely my emotional pain but unlike anything I had ever experienced.
In a brief focused meditation, I found something which shocked me to my core.

Somehow, before the age of six, one of my grandmothers impressed on me that nobody had the right to be happy.
To compound my belief even further, it appears that one of my parents led me to believe that it was shameful to admit to being happy.

When I worked with this, forgave them and let the feelings of shame evaporate, I slowly realised this has been a core issue throughout my life.

Within 1 hour my whole physical experience changed;

• The feeling of dread disappeared
• My body became warm from the inside
• I experienced a great feeling of being unburdened
• My hidden stress is gone
• I feel a whole new sense of freedom
  

and last night….

I slept like a very happy baby

Now that I am aware of this, it can never be a problem again !

It appears this inability to allow myself happiness has limited me in virtually every area of my life.

Not just personal issues, but even down to having difficulty finishing projects.

If the project was properly finished, then I and everybody else would be happy, including me !

Now, less than 24 hours later, I can see many areas of my life which have been limited by this ingrained belief.

It feels amazing to achieve this life-changing breakthrough as I often help my clients experience.

Roll on the future !

Watch this space !

Do Leave a comment !

Realising I had a major problem, I used my energy healing training to quickly overcome my fears and started to focus on the Toastmasters Competent Communicator program in July 2008.
This is a series of 5-7 minute speeches on any subject, each one focuses on specific aspects of good communication.

It proved to be a fascinating journey observing my successes and failures, and providing deepening insight into my emotional balances and the sources of my fears.
Technically, my “failures” included my natural habit of speaking too fast, and being of an enthusiastic nature, trying to squeeze in far too much material within the time limits!

From a healing perspective, I was able to identify and clear most of my fears completely.
Childhood fears about being seen, being heard, about being believed, what will people think of me; do I have the right to say this?, and more…….

I also found many hidden strengths and considerably improved my people skills.

The club gave me the support and techniques needed to tackle some of these points, but the really deep work was my own healing experiences.

Soon I had experienced speakers asking how I managed to be so relaxed.

I gave a few short impromptu group relaxation sessions which were very well received.

Within a year of joining, I felt I needed to give something back, so volunteered as Vice President Education for 2009-10, not quite realising the magnitude of the task. However, I surprised myself by running extra meetings and special events, and expanding on my leadership roles.
At that time I had not even considered the possibility of being club President – now I have just completed my term for 2010-11, and we have achieved the President’s Distinguished Club award – the top club award!
Continuing my journey of self-discovery, I am now area 41 Governor for 2011-12, and enthusiastically looking forward to helping five clubs improve the skills and quality of life of their members.

I love it ! I love to see the transition from nervousness to confidence and eloquence, with direct eye contact in conversation.

Especially I love helping one to one clients make great leaps in their confidence and delivery.

From “I am not sure” to confidently delivering on video as if they have been practicing it for years.

My path of combining Toastmasters and Energy Healing has become very powerful, enabling me to become expert at fast track Confidence and Success coaching, enabling my clients to make huge leaps in their presentation and speech delivery.

When we have the initial confidence and poise, we can really benefit from regular practice sessions

So what has myToastmasters experience given me?

• Hugely improved people and communication skills
• My old comfort zones have been continually tested and expanded.
• Confident impromptu speaking skills
• Improved body language.
• The ability to teach confidence and communication skills
• I have started enthusiastically business networking and giving presentations which I would not have considered a few years ago.
• Significantly reduced stress due to improved confidence.
• I faced my fears and did it anyway.

What have your experiences been?

Perfection has been achieved ! The new concept, product or creation has arrived !

Throughout history many great artists have only been recognised after their death. Why?

Brilliant engineers, scientists and artists have been recognised as brilliant creators yet have failed to sell their product or make a good living during their lives.
Take Nikolai Tesla for example ( http://www.teslasociety.com/biography.htm).

So, why should highly intelligent and motivated people fail to succeed in what should be a relatively simple task?
Creativity is based on our intuition and is related to the left side of our brain.
Sales and marketing skills are logic based and related to the right side of our brain.
The really self-destructive aspect may be more subtle.

In a real-life case, a friend, Brendha D. an artist in France has had great difficulty selling her paintings.

I am not an artist, so am not qualified to comment on their style or quality !

When we worked together it emerged that she had two very conflicting desires:

A) she really wanted to sell them for financial reasons.

B) she considered them as her babies.

As a woman, selling her babies was not a natural instinct!

Consciously, Brendha’s strongest desire was to sell some of her many paintings for financial reasons.
Only by careful questioning and intuition did the maternal relationship emerge.

We are now working with this relationship, it is an ongoing role for her to visualise her paintings going to a good home and monitoring her feelings to ensure she really is in alignment with selling her paintings. An update will follow in a few months.

( Brendha has given me full permission to publish this information and more to follow.)

 I look forward to your comments