Aligning Yourself With Your Passion

It's been a while since I last posted on this blog, and I'll explain the reason in a few moments. First, let me say that this post could very well be a continuation of my previous post: "From Darkness Into Light".

In my previous post I explained how I had finally been able to answer the eternal "Who am I?" question that everyone sooner or later asks themselves. Today's topic speaks of what comes after you've been able to answer that question.

You see, in my case, I was able to answer that question with a conviction unlike anything I've ever experienced. I clarified what my main goal and passion in life is, and I made a few good choices that moved me closer to fulfilling that ideal. A few months went by though, and nothing. I haven't made any further progress, and my once crystal clear vision has become blurry and out of focus.

I've been working in financial services for the past five years, and while it's a great industry and I get to work with diverse and interesting individuals, it is not what I am supposed to be dedicating my life to. This year has been, for me, the lowest production year I've ever had, even though some of my colleagues are doing just fine. This is a clear message that God and the universe are trying to tell me: I AM NOT ALIGNED WITH MY PASSION.

I believe that we are all on a path of self-growth and self-discovery. We all have different stages we need to go through, and when we get stuck in one of these stages, the world will let us know.

Why didn't I struggle during the previous 4 years? Quite simpy because I wasn't ready to move to the next stage of growth. I first had to experience other situations that I've since experienced, and for that reason the work I know and do so well has become more difficult, and the sales have become more scarce. God is trying to tell me something.

I read many books and listen to many audio-books, mostly of self-help, business or spiritual genre. I generally try to avoid books of any one particular religion, because of it's divisive nature, however, I just finished listening to "It's Your Time", by pastor Joel Osteen yesterday. Joel's messages are always more inspiration and less doctrine. His message in this book is this: Believe you have a higher purpose and that God is ready to bless your path towards your destiny. This message resonated with me, and it got me in the right spiritual and mental place.

Then today, something wonderful happened. A seemingly insignificant act led to an incredibly encouraging message that a stranger sent to me. This person had found my blog, and was moved by, what she called, the power of my spirit. The fact that she went out of her way to seek me out and send me an email is incredibly humbling, and my heart was full of joy after reading her message.

It's not coincidence that this just happened today, a day in which I again felt aligned with my purpose, and had complete faith in God that my dreams will come true. What this has clearly indicated me, is that God is ready. God is willing. He's only waiting for us to take that first step toward our higher purpose, and he will release so many blessings into our lives that we won't believe it at first.

Don't waste time, and don't ignore your destiny. As long as you are aligned with the right purpose, YOUR purpose, the blessings will be there waiting for you.

:) Much love to ALL!

From Darkness Into Light

The greatest and most important discovery you will ever make in the self is to realize, right down to your very core, WHO YOU ARE.



Who Am I? This is a question I asked myself time and time again throughout childhood and adolescence, even young adulthood. Each time I asked, I felt the answer slip away from my grasp even more. It wasn't until about two years ago that, after a very long and painful period of internal turmoil, I was able to be broken down enough, shaken up enough, to find the answer to that question. Out of deep suffering, my truth emerged. It seems sometimes that the only time we can see the light is when the room is dark enough.



This period of my life is one that I'm extremely grateful for. I have gained more clarity of purpose from that one event in my life, than anything else I've ever experienced. Of course, it is very unlikely that you will remain positive during difficult times. It's in our nature to try to move away from suffering and pain. What we fail to realize though, is that those experiences can be our greatest teachers, and it is through those experiences that we grow as individuals.



Always try to remain open to the world and it's challenges. Don't move away from suffering, because you don't know just what lessons the universe is preparing to teach you. There will always be situations come your way that will seem negative at first. Don't judge them. Keep moving forward with a spirit of gratitude, and be confident that a great lesson will emerge from that seemingly negative experience.



Love to all! :)

Do You Construct, Or Destruct?

The title of this post asks the question: Do you construct, or destruct? What I mean by that is quite simply that your words have power. They have the power to uplift, encourage, motivate and inspire the people you communicate with and your own self. On the other hand, they also have the power to hurt, ridicule, demotivate and put down those same people, including yourself!



If you think about this principle for a few minutes you realize that you play a very important role in the mood of the people around you. When someone comes to you with an idea, a dream, an aspiration or a goal, how do you respond? Do you criticize that dream? Do you knock it down with endless scenarios of negativity and "what ifs"? Or do you offer praise for thinking outside the box, or encouragement for having the guts to go after what he or she really wants in life?



How do you think this person will feel and react after you just dissected and criticized their dream? Personally, I think anger is one of the first emotions to rear its ugly head. After that, resentment might kick in, and in some extreme cases, this person might even try to hurt you back by offering one of those, "well, I think you're just this and that". Most of us can agree that this negative mood of hostility and resentment has absolutely nothing good to offer to either the recipient or the source.



On the other hand, some words of encouragement are going to have the absolute opposite effect. A "good job", or an "I believe you can do it" will energize and lift the spirit of the bearer, and I might add that it will lift your spirit as well. There's very few things as fulfilling as knowing that you just made a positive contribution in some one's day. The feeling you get when someone leaves happier and more at peace after having conversed with you is both exhilarating and addictive.



I'd suggest that, whenever someone asks for your advise or input, take a few seconds before responding to think if your comment is going to construct, or destruct. Figure out if that negative comment is REALLY necessary, or if it's just your own way of safeguarding your ego by proving just how smart you are.



By saying this, I'm not at all suggesting that if someone comes to you for advise, and you know, for a fact, that there's a flaw in there somewhere, that you wouldn't RESPECTFULLY correct them. But do so in a way that encourages that person to become better, to learn more and to believe in themselves more.



This also applies to how you communicate with yourself, by the way. What you say to yourself has a great deal to do in how your life turns out. This is where the I CAN, versus the I CAN'T mentality comes in, but I'll save that for another post. ;)



Before I end this post, I want to share a link to an amazing film I found, which clearly shows what I mean when I say: You words have power! Please take a moment to watch it, and share it with others. Trust me, you will not be disappointed!!



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbk980jV7Ao&playnext_from=TL&videos=YFLC1-Zshoo



So before you offer your insight next time, think about what you are going to say and how that will affect the recipient and yourself.



Love to all! :)

How You React Makes All The Difference!

So I was driving to the Metro station this morning with my wife and son when, all of a sudden, the lady behind me flicked me the finger. A few seconds prior I had put on my turn signal, saw that she was slowing down, and made my move into her lane. I guess she didn't intend to let me cut in and her slowing down was just coincidence, which made her very upset and prompted her to show me her nicely manicured middle finger.

In return I showed her my two fingers, middle and index, making the "peace" sign. That was easy. What took a little effort was what happened within me after that. I started picturing her face and repeated "God Bless You", to myself, and focusing on loving this person who was obviously having a more difficult morning than mine. I felt so at peace after doing that, and that feeling has stayed with me throughout the morning, which is awesome!

This got me thinking about a couple of things. Number one, it reminded me of the best explanation of being "at peace" that I have ever heard: "When you wish for your worst enemy the same level of happiness you wish for yourself". Think about this one. If you make it a habit to continually pray for those that you have had challenges with, no matter what they have done to you in the past, you will find a peace unlike anything you have ever felt.

The next thing that I thought about was this: "The way you react to your circumstances makes ALL the difference". Again, absolutely true. Think about this turn of events in my aforementioned scenario: Lady flicks me off. I get upset, yell at her and try to block her way through. This is how our days would likely progress:

Her: She was already in a bad mood. This encounter with me just made it worse. Her co-workers are likely to hear the story in such a way that is going to lower the collective consciousness of the workplace. So, all of a sudden, something that affected two people is now affecting many more.

Me: I'm all worked up about this situation. When I get to work my co-workers are going to hear about it, and my mood is not in the right place to help clients. Again, what affected two has the potential to affect many. And on top of this, if I'm impatient or rude with a client, we risk losing business. Now we have one former customer who is more than willing to share his bad experience with anyone he comes across.

My wife: She's upset at me for going off on someone else. I'll definitely hear about it later that evening, which is potentially going to upset us even more and might have us not talking to each other for another day.

And I won't even venture into thinking what kind of repercussion this event would have on my 3 year old son, but I know it will not be good.

I know this is an over exaggeration of the story, but the point is, if your reaction to a negative behavior is another negative behavior, where does that negativity stop? Who stops it? How many more will be affected by it? It's sad but true, this type of reaction WILL trigger more and more hostility, to the point where people get killed over what began as a road rage incident.

We have the option to not let these events get to us. We can turn a negative behavior into a positive experience. We have to have an open mind, and more importantly, an open heart, in order for this kind of love to permeate onto others.

;^) Love to all!

"Are You My Mommy?"

I have at least ten topics running through my head for tonight's blog post, but I'll just ignore them all and go with something that happened a few minutes ago, as I was getting my 3 year old ready for bedtime.

Please excuse the graphic nature of this story, but it's all relevant to the main point I want to make. :) My son's bedtime ritual begins with the potty. We lure him to the potty with the promise of an exciting book being read as he... does his business. I, being the Dad, always try to add my own repertoire of special effects to the stories, be it "Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See?", or "Oh, The Places You'll Go!". Needless to say, he really enjoys those few minutes sitting on the throne before he jumps into the tub.

Once in the tub, he, his submarine, his boat, his boat's captain (otherwise known as "the dude"), his transformer and sometimes even his Buzz Lightyear, all have the time of their lives splishing and splashing and doing their best to get Mama or Papa all wet.

Right after he gets out of the tub, and for as long as I can remember, he asks for a hug. Not just a short little hug, but a full-on embrace. It's as if he's saying, "Thank you for these really special moments you spend with me".

After that it's off to his room to get his PJ's on, and then back to the bathroom to brush his teeth and comb his hair.

Tonight, I started brushing his teeth and then handed him the toothbrush and asked him to continue. He didn't grab it quickly enough and it dropped to the floor, making a bit of a mess. I immediately picked it up with some frustration, and before I could mutter out a word, he looked at my reflection in the mirror and asked, "You're not my Dad anymore?". I couldn't help but laugh and give him a big kiss, and told him that I am always going to be his Dad.

He then re-phrased and asked if I was upset, and of course I replied "No!". He couldn't hide his smile. It was a very special moment, and I know that it's these insignificant little moments that we're going to remember for years and years to come.

As parents, we'll typically come home longing for some R&R, but when it comes down to deciding whether to be on that chair relaxing, or jumping around and making funny noises with your kid, you better choose the option that will build your kid's self esteem up! That kid will grow up quickly, and if you want to be a major influence and guide in his or her life, you better become involved RIGHT NOW!

So, bottom line: Cherish the time you can spend with your kids. That's a time that you will NEVER regret investing. It will never, ever lose value. In fact, it's guaranteed to compound your child's probabilities for success in the future.

:) Love to all!

Happy Dads Day!

The reason I'm saying Happy Dads Day, as opposed to Happy Fathers Day will be explained shortly. For now, let's just see what one of the definitions of "father" is:

"A Male person whose sperm unites with an egg, resulting in the conception of a child". (thefreeditionary.com)

You don't need to be all that involved to be a father. After all, even a sperm donor could be called a father based on this definition of the word. Being a Dad, however, is a whole different story. A Dad is involved in his child's upbringing. He's the guy who alternates with the Mom to check up on a crying baby at 3am, or to change the messy diaper, or to take her to ballet, or to take him to little league practice, or to console her when a boy breaks her heart, or to teach him about treating a woman with respect. Being a Dad is exactly about that: being. It's about being there for your kid(s) when they need you, and even when they don't.

It's never an easy job, but it is one of the most rewarding jobs ever. We can all remember getting a little frustrated with our parents as kids, sometimes a lot frustrated, but in retrospect, I can certainly understand why they were being tough in some situations that at the time didn't make a whole lot of sense. It's important for us, as parents, to remember that we're not here only to be our child's friend, but to be their guide, counselors and "retaining wall" when they get a little carried away. Sometimes you even have to be a bit of a dictator in order to catch their attention. The "my way or the high way" approach isn't very popular nowadays, but on occasion, it can be necessary.

I've been researching and studying the psychology of personal development for some time now, and I am 100% certain that the input we receive as children will most always be linked to how we perform and view ourselves as adults. It is crucial that we instill in our kids a sense of acceptance, love and belonging in what can otherwise be a pretty harsh world. By showing our kids that we love them and are proud of them just for being themselves is the first and most important step in their development. There's a wonderful book by Dr. James Dobson that I recommend to everyone, called "Hide or Seek: How to Build Self-Esteem in Your Child". In that book, Dr. Dobson talks about what we, as a culture, admire and sometimes idolize in people (beauty and intelligence), and about what we can do to better equip our child for success in his or her path to adulthood.

The main point to take away from this post is that we are ALL special. The very fact that we were able to be conceived, despite the numerous obstacles the sperm faces when trying to reach the egg, is amazing. Add to this that we survived the stages of pregnancy, and then our birth, and then our upbringing, is proof that we are incredibly special beings, and it is OUR job as Dads and Moms to show this to our kids. We must love our kids unconditionally, and praise their accomplishments in a way that builds them up, not breaks them down by merely criticizing what they did wrong. They need to focus on what is possible, not on what isn't.

Happy Dads Day to all you Dads out there. You have an amazing job, so keep it up!!

fes

Welcome!!

Ok, so this is my first post. Let me start by telling you that the reason I'm starting this blog is because my main passion is to help others in any way I can. Plus my wife can't take many more of my rants, so I need an outlet. :)

The main focus of this blog will be to raise our collective consciousness, and to get us more in-synch with our inner greatness. For so long we have been programmed to believe that there's only "so much" that we can achieve, when the reality is, our future can be as bright as we can dream it. I truly believe that if you have a dream, you also have the required traits to achieve it.

Anyway, this is my brief introduction, so I won't go on and on, but please check back and I promise you won't be dissapointed!