“Today, when we stand before crucial thresholds in our lives, we have no rituals to protect, encourage and guide us as we cross over into the unknown. For such crossings we need to find new words … this book Benedictus is an attempt by the Philosopher John O’Donohue (1956 – 2008) to reach into that tenuous territory of change …”

The following poem “For Courage” is from the above book. A number of people who have participated in the 40 Day online Irish Inner Peace Pilgrimage have told me that this poem has been exactly what they needed to hear at a particular moment in their lives. I’ve put a copy of it here for you and remember to experience more of John’s wisdom you can purchase the book at the following link: “Benedictus – a Book of Blessings”

For Courage

When the light around you lessens
And your thoughts darken until
Your body feels fear turn
Cold as a stone inside

When you find yourself bereft
Of any belief in yourself
And all you unknowingly
Leaned on has fallen

When one voice commands
Your whole heart,
And it is raven dark,

Steady yourself and see
That is is your own thinking
That darkens your world

Search and you will find
A diamond-thought of light,

Know that you are not alone
And that this darkness has purpose
Gradually it will school your eyes
To find the one gift your life requires
Hidden within this night-corner.

Invoke the learning
Of every suffering
You have suffered.

Close your eyes
Gather all the kindling
About your heart
To create one spark.
That is all you need
To nourish the flame
That will cleanse the dark
Of its weight of festered fear.

A new confidence will come alive
To urge you towards higher ground
Where your imagination
Will learn to engage difficulty
As its most rewarding threshold!
by John O’ Donohue

To purchase the book click on the following link: “Benedictus – a Book of Blessings”

Related Posts

Join the 40 Day Irish Inner Peace Pilgrimage

To Stand and Stare

Why must we answer the call to awaken?

Be the Change

The next Dare to Dream online course will begin in early June 2010. To receive details and an early invitation just email info@seanmkelly.com

Enjoy the video!

Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.

- W H Murray (1913 – 1996)

When I was a child my Father would bring me to the Easter parade in Dublin, Ireland. Now I was pretty small at the time and the crowds were massive – I was a small boy holding my fathers hand for dear life, looking up at frightening human giants all around me. I never remember seeing any of the parade as we never managed to get to the front row! Luckily though I could still hear the parade as its sounds filled the streets.

What I heard was a sound that moved every cell of my body, that touched every part of me. A sound that inspired me and made me feel like a giant in my small boys body. It was the unique sound of the bagpipes.

As the years passed the Easter parade was stopped and I rarely heard the sound of the bagpipes. Life got busy and serious and childhood dreams were left behind. But they never died!

About twenty years later I had a dream of learning to play Amazing Grace on the bagpipes for my wedding. I had no idea how I would learn it and it was only three months to our wedding! Then I heard there was a bagpiper at the hotel we were getting married in. So I wondered? I wondered would he teach me? Another part of me said he’d probably tell me to “Get lost! There’s no way you’d learn it in three months”. Would I call him?

Well I decided to make that call and he was so open to helping me it was fantastic. And three months later unbeknownst to most people at our wedding, including my very surprised wife, I walked in after the meal playing amazing grace on the bagpipes!

Not longer after our wedding I wondered again? What if I called my bagpiper friend and asked him could I join his band? Now another part of me said “Sean, you’re too old now, get serious and forget it!“. Luckily enough I didn’t listen to that limiting voice, made the call and joined the band. For the next number of years I travelled twice a week, an hour each way and learnt the bagpipes and enjoyed myself to the hilt!

In 1999 my Father died from cancer.  As I watched my Fathers life ebbing away, it reminded me of my own mortality and I made a commitment to nourish my love of music a lot more before it was too late.

One day I sat in a cafe and wondered could I actually get paid for performing and doing what I truly love? As I contemplated this I heard a lady in the cafe say to another lady “and did they play bagpipes at the wedding?” This was the last sign I needed from the universe.

That afternoon I put an advert for playing bagpipes at weddings on an Irish weddings website. And within a couple of months I had my first paid professional music gig. From that moment on I would never again believe that you can’t get paid for doing what you love! You can!

Since then I’ve performed in many countries around the world with bagpipes and guitar, in Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, New York, Washington State, Hawaii, San Francisco, Chicago, Peru (in Machu Pichu & at 4,200m high), Israel, Palestine, Morocco, Spain, Portugal, South Korea, Bosnia, Croatia, Italy, France  and Luxembourg. I’ve had the honour of piping for thousands of people from all walks of life from the rich and famous, to some who live under curfew, to some of the worlds poorest people.

Now suppose I never made that call to ask someone to teach me bagpipes? Suppose I decided to believe I was too old? Or hadn’t enough money? Or the time wasn’t right yet? Or I was too young? Or some other limiting belief. None of the above would have happened and I dread to think how much joy, happiness and absolutely unbelievable fantastic  experiences I would have missed out on. Maybe even more importantly how many peoples lives would I not have been able to touch with the music,  just like mine was as I held my Fathers hand in those crowded Dublin streets filled with bagpipe music from the Easter parade.

Have I played “bum notes” along the way, you bet I have! But it’s better than playing no notes at all! And as the famous psychologist Abraham Maslow (1908 – 1970) said

“Don’t die with your music still in you”

Make that call! Your Dreams can come true!

Sean M Kelly

PS: Remember this is the last week you can vote to help my book “A Pipers Tales – Celtic Wisdom to Nourish the Soul” get to the next round of the Next Top Spiritual Author competition. Just click this link www.aPipersTales.com Your vote is greatly appreciated.

Related Posts

A Pipers Tales

Awaken Your Dreams and Touch Peoples Hearts

Does Visualisation work?

How will you die?

Keep moving forward

Introduction by Sean M Kelly: The following guest post is written by Eoin Cullen. Eoin is an Irish man living in Chicago who got laid off in February 2009, then amazingly turned it around and started living his dream in January 2010! His Mother Anne Cullen lives in Ireland and has attended some Dare to Dream evenings with myself. She put me in contact with Eoin and from September to December I helped Eoin by coaching him on the principles of Dare to Dream and that dreams really can come true.  (if you’d like some online video coaching just email info@seanmkelly.com) This is Eoin’s story.

They say “Things Happen for a Reason” right? Now if you’d told me that back in February of 2009 right when I was laid off after working for a company for 6 years, my response would have been “Take a hike buddy”.

In our current recession I was 110% sure my job was safe…after all I had been working for this company as a graphic designer for the past 6 years and my loyalty to the company had to stand for something right?

I was laid off the day before my annual ski trip and the reason for their perfect timing was so the company didn’t have to pay me for 3 vacation days!!! “I give you 6 years and you cant give me 3 days”!!! Now that was a blow to my system and I began to wonder if I wasted the last 6 years of my career! However I didn’t let it get the better of me and decided to worry about my next move after my ski trip.

The next day I was sitting at the peak of a Colorado mountain, looking out to an amazing view I said to myself “This is my life and I will bounce back from this in a better way.”

Upon my return I started to look for another job but with the recession in full swing many companies cut their marketing budget so the job market was looking pretty bleak. As the months passed with very little freelance work coming in, I started to think about going back to school to study fine art with a focus on sculpture. This is something I have wanted to do for a couple of years and fine art and sculpture is something I really love doing.

My plan was to attend school in the evenings while still working full time, but I never pursued that goal mainly because I simply didn’t believe I could do it! It was much easier for me to stay in my comfort zone working away on a daily basic than to step outside it and deal with possible rejection and the fear of failure…things I was pretty sure were going to be the outcome if I did apply myself.

My mother who always believed in my creative side and wanted me to pursue it even more gave me a book called “Feel the fear and do it anyway” by Susan Jeffers. At first I thought to myself this book is not for me, but as I kept reading it I felt this entire book was written just for me and I couldn’t put it down. The book didn’t end with me riding off into the sunset where everything is great, it gave me the tools to believe in myself and go after what I really wanted.

I started to read more and more about the only school I wanted to attend in order to get my degree. That school is The Art Institute of Chicago which is one of the best art schools in the United States if not in the world. I began by making some calls to the school to see what steps I should take next. The first step was an interview and portfolio review at the school so they could get a better understanding of me and my work. That interview did not go over well and I was told my chances of getting into the school were slim based on my sculpture portfolio. The school said my sculptures were “too classical figurative”. As much as I have the highest respect for classical figurative sculpture it is not really what I love creating. All my work at that time was work I had done in sculpture classes based on anatomy of the body. I was told by the school to stay in touch as they would like to see more of my personal work in the future (outside classes).

At this point I was pretty sure my dream of attending The Art Institute of Chicago was over and now I was back to square one. Not knowing where to go next I contacted the school again for direction and after a couple weeks back and fourth over e-mail and phone I was asked to come back in and meet with someone in person to discuss further. In those couple of weeks I had created at piece I call “The Root”. This piece was created at home and is more along the lines of my personal vision. I brought pictures with me the second time I went to the school and that interview along with my new piece seemed to go over very well. I was asked to create more work along the lines of “The Root” and apply to the school no later then November 15, 2009 and hope for the best.

My second meeting at the school was towards the end of September so as you can imagine the month of October was pretty crazy trying to get all my ducks in a row along with creating new sculptures for my Nov. 15th application deadline. In the middle of October when I had 101 things going and sculpting 8 hours a day I was offered a full-time graphic design job at a great company. If I was offered this job after my first meeting at the school I would have taken it but maybe things do happen for a reason so I decided to turn the job offer down and keep following my dream now that I was back in with a chance of attending The Art Institute of Chicago.

After a lot of work and believing in myself I got all my application material and portfolio submitted before the Nov. 15th deadline. On Friday November 27th four days before my birthday I found out that I was accepted into the school. For my birthday that Tuesday I went to the school and picked my classes. Not only was this the best gift ever but I was also nominated for a Merit Scholarship for my unique voice present in my portfolio. The school awarded me $30,000 towards my education for which I am very gratefu. My first class was January 28 and I’ve been absolutely living my dream since! Now I’m really looking forward to the next chapter in my life as it is a dream come true!

What have I learned over the last 10 months? Believe in yourself and take the necessary steps to follow your dreams and if you hit a wall along the way it’s not the end of the world just find another way to get over it. Looking back now I couldn’t be happier that I was laid off because I am now a strong believer in “Things Do Happen for a Reason”

(to view some of Eoin’s current work see his website www.eoincullen.com )

Would you like some online video coaching to help you realise your dreams?

Here’s what Eoin said in a card he sent me after his coaching:

“The Secret to a peaceful life is not just doing what you like but to like what you are doing”

As soon as I saw this quote Sean, I knew it was the right one to send. Thank you again for all your help over the last couple of months. Talking to you helped me get back on my feet and follow my dreams and realise “I CAN DO THIS”. This new adventure I am starting is very exciting for me, as I am sure it will open many doors, along with making the dream of having an exhibition come true – the invisible into visible! Thanks again Sean. Eoin Cullen

If you’d like some coaching on learning how to turn adversity into opportunity and make your dreams come true simply send me an email at info@seanmkelly.com I welcome All Enquiries

Sean M Kelly

Related Posts

Three Steps to Develop Your Talents

What to do if you lose your job

The 7 Principles of Mindful Wealth

Many of us have dreams and unfortunately many have let those dreams die into the distant past. Every now and again however you come across someone who has had the courage to keep their dreams awake. Not only keep them awake but to take the courageous steps necessary to turn those dreams into reality. One such person is Donna Sirianni whom I came across on youtube. Well if this is not an example of someone who is “Daring to Dream” I dont know what is!!!

If you’re looking for massive inspiration and a real life example of someone who is saying YES to their dreams this video is for you … Be Inspired! Totally fantastic!

Related Posts

A Quadripeligic women to sail around the UK

The Power of Purpose – El Sistema

The Secret Esther Hicks

Why must we answer the call to awaken?

In June of 2007, my family moved to a new home in Bellingham, Washington right on the trail into Whatcom Falls Park–a beautiful park and trail system along Whatcom Creek, full of wildlife, waterfalls and a shade of deciduous and cedar trees.  Gorgeous!  It’s quite a sanctuary of nature there and I was thrilled to be able to walk out my door and be in the woods within a couple of minutes.

Shortly after moving, our family walked down to Whatcom Falls, a 15 minute walk from our door and we all stood on the bridge admiring the powerful force of water before us.     Incredulous that this place is literally in our back yard, we marveled at our good fortune. 

While taking in the ambience at the waterfall, I peered down from the bridge to the water below us.   And staring back at me were the two bright eyes of an owl!  He was perched on the ledge of the bridge, looking up at us.  What a magical moment!  I felt blessed.  He then swooped down under the bridge and landed on a tree branch 100 ft away looking straight into my eyes.  “This is a real gift!” I thought.  What a magnificent bird!  I felt it was a good sign of welcome to our new home.

Later that month, on a return trip to the falls with some friends, I looked over at the tree branch where I had first seen the owl, and there he sat–Again!  I was amazed to have the good fortune of seeing him a second time, and within such a short time of my first sighting.  I started wondering what it might mean.

A month or two later, my cousin and I were taking a walk on one of the many side trails in the park .  As we were chatting, I looked over to my left into the trees, and there was my owl friend once again.  He sat bold and upright, staring right into me, almost as if to say “I have a message for you.”  As I reached for my camera phone to take a photo of him he suddenly swooped down across our path and landed on the opposite bank.  Spreading his wings, he tried to camouflage himself among the brush. 

Now this was my third owl sighting within a five month period or so.  I was starting to think “There must be a reason for this!”  So I went home and looked up “animal totems.”  Here’s what I read…”Animals come to us because they have a lesson we need to learn a power they are willing to share with a friend.  They seek to give us a gift of understanding, universal love, energy, and knowledge (ULEK).  In general, animals remind us that we are part of the earth; that each creature has a place; that each creature has a skill of it’s own; that we have instincts given to us from Mother, wisdom born to us that we must awaken.  The Animal  Totem that comes to you offers you power and wisdom if you will learn to communicate with it, with respect, trust, and understanding.

So here’s what I read about Owl: “Owl has the ability to light up our blind side, enabling us to speak the whole truth, as opposed to only half truth.  Owl is a feminine trait symbolically associated with clairvoyance, astral projection and magic.  When you have lost your way, owl essence will guide you back to your proper path and wisdom.  Owl medicine helps us clear out that which is no longer needed or wanted.”

I saw Owl one more time a couple of months later and my final encounter was a on a walk through the park where I encountered an enormous owl feather across my path.  The feather now sits upon my dresser and is a daily reminder to pay attention to the subtle messages all around us.

I believe that animals are great teachers if we take notice.  And I am noticing more than ever now.  Especially after another special animal encounter last week!

Last Wednesday evening, my daughter Emma and I went to the local coffee shop for something warm to drink .  Just after receiving our drinks, we sat at a table and looked out the window.  People were gathering around outside, circling and staring at something in the street.

We stood up and looked out the window, and there in the middle of the road was a hawk, having just taken a seagull down out of the sky!  Right there in the street and then onto the sidewalk, we were all able to stand within three feet of this magnificent bird.  It was amazing!  It was incredible to be so close to the hawk, and to witness the natural world in action.

Animal control arrived and said that the hawk was a Harris Hawk.  So I went home and looked up the message of the Harris Hawk as an animal totem.  Here’s what it said:

“Harris Hawk – represents cooperation and support from others.  This hawk helps one to spread the word about goals or projects to those people who can be helpful for you. For those who use music to help them soar high above, this is a wonderful totem to be working with as it helps to integrate music and sound as a healing modality.”

Being a musician, singing about peace and love and spreading a message to follow one’s dreams, I feel that once again, the animal kingdom is speaking to me.  What a gift!

Perhaps you may find some powerful messages among the animal friends who cross your path.  Pay attention!! 

Here’s a good video related to what Jenny talks about in the above post.

Jenny Brice is an inspirational singer and songwriter from Bellingham, Washington, USA. She has just released her first album entitled “Dreaming of Peace”. Her website is http://www.jennybricemusic.com/ Jenny is also featured as a guest singer on the album “Dare to Dream” by Sean M. Kelly, Dare to Dream CD link

Related Posts

A Law of Attraction Success story by Jenny Brice

How to Dare to Dream by Sean M Kelly

Keep Moving Forward

Want to receive a weekly inspirational ezine then simply
sign up for the “Be Inspired” ezine below:

	Be Inspired Ezine
	» Signup here

What if the financial turmoil that the world has experienced in the last year or so is a giant financial wake up call for humanity? What if the universe is letting us know that if we choose to operate as we have done in the past being motivated by “fear, greed and insecurity” with the sole aim of looking after number one, namely our individual selves, the price we will collectively pay is far far greater than anything we’ve experienced up to now?

Why was money invented?
Like where did such beliefs as “there’s isent enough money” come from? And who’s interest is such a belief really serving? Like why was money invented in the first place? Well so the shoemaker wouldn’t have to keep paying the baker with new pairs of shoes for a loaf of bread. The shoemaker could give the baker some money so the baker could buy something that he needed from some another trader, such as a butcher. This is the real purpose of money, a means by which goods and services could be exchanged. And of course the aim was that it be a fair and equitable exchange.

Somewhere this simple idea seems to have been totally skewed into believing that the more money I have the more secure I am and almost ludicrously believing that “I’m a better person than you because I have more money!” We somehow lost the idea of the importance of exchanging useful products and services into thinking that what was more important is to get as much money as we can for ourselves (ourselves being individuals, institutions, corporations and such like) no matter what the consequences to other people, the planet, animals, plants and even the universe itself. And to charge as much as we can get away with, just keep everyone wherever possible in the dark!

The “Me feiner” (pronounced ‘may fayner’)
When I was a child in Ireland we had a term for this sort of thinking. It was called “me feiner”. This basically means all we think about is ourselves. Well I guess in Ireland we should have listened to those wise ones who created this term before us because we’ve ended up in a right economic mess now because we were thinking exactly like “me feiners”. Indeed some would say with all the “shouting and balling” thats now going on between all the different groups with their vested interests and their blame games that we’re still thinking like “me feiners”. In fact I wonder are we learning any lessons at all? It would certainly seem we are not learning any of the real lessons that we must learn to create a society that is compassionate, equitable, just and most importantly one where we truly care for eachother.

Well it was with absolute delight and excitement that I came across one, if not the best article I’ve ever read about money today on a website called www.naturalnews.com The author of the article is the creator of this enlightening website and his name is Mike Adams – “The NaturalNews Network is a non-profit collection of public education websites covering topics that empower individuals to make positive changes in their health, environmental sensitivity, consumer choices and informed skepticism”

There are loads of interesting reports, articles, videos on this website well worth browsing. However the one that attracted me the most was “The 7 Principles of Mindful Wealth” . I read it in full for I’m sure well over an hour. It’s a brilliant read and I personally believe some of the solutions to the worlds economic woes are in this financially enlightening article if we act upon the wisdom that Mike shares in his report. However it will not happen in the near future if we wait for “big corporations and institutions” to change their mindsets, it will happen if we as individuals “be the change” and go for it!

To help you learn the 7 principles of the report I’ve summarised it below quoting directly from Mike in the main and adding  a few lines of my own. I do highly recommend you set aside an hour this week, get a tea or coffee sit down and read it in full.  And then of course turn these principles into real wisdom by applying them to your life and/or your business and indeed share the wisdom with others.

Here’s the link to the full report –  7 Principles of Mindful Wealth

And here’s an overview of the 7 principles of Mindful Wealth

Principle #1 Most people limit their wealth by choice
Basically wherever we are right now financially is the summation of all the decisions we have made consciously and/or unconsciously in our lifetimes whether that be as individuals, families, communities, banks, corporations, countries or the whole world. So the question is – how do we make better decisions – both consciously and unconsciously – that will lead us to the mindful financial wealth we truly deserve?  Mike wonders “could a wealthy person have integrity, too? Could they attract financial abundance AND be a positive, creative force in the world?”

Principle #2: Money is not evil.
The way money is EARNED and SPENT is good or evil, depending on the ethics applied to it. Up to a certain point in his life Mike had believed “Money was evil” again one wonders where in the history of economics was such a belief created. Maybe it had nothing to do with economics but more to do with keeping people “poor and ignorant” and under the control of “the few”. I certainly couldn’t imagine the baker and shoemakers mentioned above would have put any such ill-conceived judgement on the nature of money.

Principle #3: Money shall be accumulated (earned) in service of protecting sustainable life. (It shall also be earned ethically, honestly and without deception.)
It’s a very simple principle. It means attracting all the money in the world is a positive thing when it’s done in the service of protecting sustainable life. (That means life that can continue in harmony with the natural environment.)

If money is earned in a way that supports, protects or enhances sustainable, diverse life on our planet, then it’s “mindful wealth” or “good wealth.” If, on the other hand, money is earned in a way that threatens or destroys life on Earth, then it becomes “evil wealth.”

If you earn a million dollars mindfully, ethically and in the service of life, but then you sit on it and keep it all for yourself, is that really being mindful? I don’t think so: Mindful wealth must be redistributed in order to complete the cycle. In other words, wealth that comes from others must be recirculated back to others, and it must be redistributed in a mindful way.

Principle #4: Money shall be redistributed (spent) in service of protecting sustainable life.
Mindful redistribution of wealth means spending money in the service of life. So every dollar you spend goes to support something (or someone) that’s having a positive, creative impact on the planet. In this way, the more money you mindfully spend, the greater the positive impact on the planet!

Did you read that last sentence carefully? The more money you mindfully spend, the greater your positive impact on the planet! I’ll bet you never thought about spending money as bringing you good karma. But it does when you spend it mindfully. And – get this – the more you earn, the greater the positive impact on the world! Thus, when you follow these simple principles of mindful wealth, the planet becomes richer as YOU become richer!

Principle #5: Wealth shall not be hoarded. Earmark at least 10% for regular redistribution to positive-minded recipients and causes.
Poverty is not pious. There’s nothing sacred, honorable or even particularly spiritual about being broke. In fact, as I’ll explain here in more detail, creating and redistributing mindful wealth is a far higher spiritual calling than being broke and lacking the financial resources necessary to accomplish important things (like planting a hundred tropical fruit trees).

Don’t make the mistake I made. Don’t believe that being broke somehow achieves a higher spiritual status than being wealthy. When wealth is attracted and redistributed mindfully, it’s very much in alignment with high vibration, highly-spiritual living.

In fact, earning and spending money mindfully is, at its very heart, a compassionate, loving act. It is a genuine expression of mindful, high-vibration living.

Principle #6: Poverty is not pious.
You do not accumulate good karma by living in poverty. There is a vast amount of wealth in the world, correct? And most of that wealth is either being hoarded or used for destructive purposes that endanger life on Earth. This is happening beacuse the people in control of that wealth do not have the maturity, mindset and spiritual awakening that YOU have. So how, then, can you attract more wealth while improving the world? The answer is surprisingly simple: Shift control of wealth from THEM to YOU!

In other words, if money represents resources and power, then the more money that goes into the hands of responsible, life-protecting people like you, the less money is controlled by irresponsible, life-endangering people like the CEOs of drug companies.

Thus, not only is it better for the world for you to accumulate and redistribute as much wealth as possible, I believe that you have a moral obligation to attract (and oversee the redistribution of) enormous wealth.

Why should greedy, selfish people have all the money in our economy? Those selfish, short-term thinkers have little respect for life on our planet. They’ve made a mess of things. They’ve poisened the land, water and air, they’ve turned forests into landfill, they’ve intoxicated the population with harmful chemicals and hoarded wealth for themselves. If we hope to have a better future for our planet (and all the living beings on it), we have to shift wealth to those who are more mindful.

Principle #7: Natural living advocates have a moral obligation to mindfully attract and redistribute vast amounts of wealth, in alignment with their core beliefs (and with full honesty, without deception).
I believe that the high-vibration people of our time are now tasked with the project of serving as financial collectors and directors; mindfully accumulating — and then carefully redirecting — enormous financial resources

QED
Here’s the link to the full report again for your convenience –  7 Principles of Mindful Wealth

Related Posts

Who’s creating the Recession? Who’s creating Swine flu?

Awakenings – a Global Wake Up Call

Who will you feed – a way out of recession

How to rise above the Doom and Gloom

	Be Inspired Ezine
	» Signup here

Think about the computer you’re looking at right now. Where did it come from? Think about your car. Where did that come from? Think about your career, how did it get to where it is today?

Would it be true to say that all of these creations were born from the invisible realm? After all there was a time when there were no computers, no mobile phones, no cars and you didn’t have a career.

Ok so there was a time when there was no cars. So what brought the car into existence? As I’m sure you’re aware it wasent an overnight process but one of trial and error and continuous improvement. But it all began in someones head. It began as an idea, an invisible thought. It was a thought, something like “oh I wonder could I create some new mode of transport that has its own inbuilt power to move it and …”

How are “things” created?

As far as I’m aware anything that has been created since time began started with an invisible idea, a thought and in time and depending on its nature becamse visible. The car was an idea and in time there was the first car in physical reality. So we can say that the creative process involves taking something that is invisible and making it visible. So what are the other steps?

Ok someone thinks, let’s create a car. What do they do next? They begin to talk about it, internally in their own heads and to other people. Sound is another form of energy, another invisible form of energy. When we talk we are creating sound. When we talk about something specific over and over we are putting more and more energy into whatever it is we are talking about. We are putting energy into its creation. We are manifesting it whether it’s “good” or “bad”.

Is that it? So if I think and talk about something does that create it? Well there is also another important step.

The next step is taking action on it. So I could think and talk about my new invention, namely the car but it’s not until I start to take action on putting it together does it start to appear in the physical world. So I go to my garage and start putting my car together with bits of metal, pipes, rubber and so on. Voila before you know it theres a new invention in the world – a car.

Obviously there’s plenty of trial and error and creative thinking needed to get it all working but the underlying process remains the same – think about it, talk about it and start taking action on it.

Now think about the computer in front of you again? Somewhere along the way it was a thought in someones mind, then it was talked about and then it was put together. Of course note it’s not always in such a linear way it may be acted on then talked about then thought about, then thought about again, then acted on and so on. But the three main steps in the creative process remain the same – think, talk and act.

If you still need convincing think about something else in your life. Your house. Firstly the house didn’t even exist until an architect or a builder thought about it, put it on paper (talking about it) and built it. Then maybe you saw it and thought “I’d love to own that house“, which is a thought. You then told your partner or your someone else close to you “I’m thinking of buying a house”. And then you took action by viewing it, putting a deposit down and so on until you exchanged contracts and owned the house.

In fact if you can think of anything that has been created since time began that hasent got this pattern of thoughts, words and actions please let me know in a comment below. I’d love to hear about it.

Of course even if we know that this is how things are created the real challenge that most of us face is – the willingness to accept the fact that it is us who are creating our lives and collectively our world. As William Ernest Henley wrote from his hospital bed around 1875, in a poem entitled Invictus (unconquerable):

Invictus

OUT of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

So let’s look at what’s currently happening in the world today or at least what’s in the headlines.

Who’s creating the global recession?

Now where did it start. In peoples heads, maybe just a few heads to begin with and then it spread to more heads and we all started thinking “I think we’re about to have a recession”. Now thoughts are creative on an individual level but when many many people start thinking the same thoughts an avalanche of creative power occurs which is enough to create a global recession!

After we thought about the upcoming recession, we all started talking about it, the media went absolutely crazy asking questions like “what’s the recession angle on that story” and found every bit of evidence to prove thats where we were heading – adding more invisible energy to the creative process. Of course then it really hit when we start to act on what we were all beginning to believe – stop spending, hold on for dear life to any money we had, make sure you have a job, start blaming anyone we could blame and so on.

Ok by ecomomic measuring standards we are in what we’ve termed a recession – but who created it? Was it some random happening that just happened or is it just part of some natural cycle?

We’re collectively creating it. And to offer more thoughts about this let’s ask another question. What’s is the predominant emotion at this time? I would say its “fear”. What is fear? It is another form of emotional energy which is adding even more fuel to the fire we say we dont want. The truth is by our collective thoughts, words and actions we’re turning the spark into a blazing forest fire!

Who’s creating the “swine flu”

Without going into detail on it the same process is happening with the spread of “swine flu”. Albeit that we all want to help prevent it’s spread, the most important step is to stop feeding it by thinking about it, talking about it and taking actions that help spread it. The thing that spreads swine flu or any other disease faster than any germs, or dirty hankies or dirty hands is “fear”. Yet on walking into a health clinic last week with my children we counted 24 four posters “warning” about the dangers of swine flu in a room the size of an average living room. Now that’s the sort of publicity that could put the fear of God into people! And to top it all in this “health” clinic, there wasent one poster telling people ”how to become more healthy and fit”!

Our greatest challenge – take responsibility

I could go on about other things we’ve created in our world which we really dont want. Do I have the answer to it all. No. But collectively we can change the direction in which we have been going. We can do that in an instant. But this perhaps is where the real problem lies. How many of us really want to take full responsibility for our thoughts, our talking and our actions? Afterall it’s far easier to hand over the problem to those “who know” or to “blame” someone else. But if we do not take responsibility the problems we say we dont want are likely to get worse.

As a final thought but one, sometimes our generation think we’re at the end of evolution. Afterall look at all the brilliant things we’ve created like the internet, airplanes, cars and so on. Yet who can honestly say that future generations will not look back at us and say “they were a stone age generation because they never realised the truth of the words of someone who had been around a few hundred years before them (1608-1674), John Milton,

“that the mind can make a heaven out of a hell
and a hell out of a heaven.”

The great news is once we are willing to take total responsibility for our lives and collectively for our world – primarily in our thoughts, our words and our actions, we also take charge of our inherent creative power. From this place of responsibility we can begin to create a life that is more in harmony with how we would like to live and a world which is for the betterment of all.

Well if you’re into personal development you’ll certainly have heard of Napoleon Hill and his book “Think and Grow Rich”. Well one of the modern miracles of the internet is that many of the earliest pioneers in the personal development industry whose books you may have read years ago can now be watched on the internet. It was with great surprise and delight I came across this one with Napoleon Hill talking about his meeting with Andrew Carnegie.

It’s full of wisdom and for me the genuineness and sincerity of the man comes across almost as if he’s talking to you personally. Have a small notebook and pen ready when watching this video and enjoy it all. God Bless YouTube!

Be Inspired!

This is the gratitude prayer Napoleon talks about near the end of the video:

“I ask not for divine providence or more riches

but more wisdom with which to accept and use wisely

the riches I received at birth

in the form of the power to control and direct

my mind to whatever ends I desire”

PS:  If you’d like some more inspiration for what to put in your notebook have read of a sample chapter on “How to Create an Inspiring Vision” from the Dare to Dream eBook. If you like what you read you can purchase the book and download it immediately. Here’s the link www.daretodream.eu/tips

If you ever needed a simple explanation of synchronicity and how it works this is a great video to watch. Dr Wayne Dyer puts it into simple language and relates it to something as simple as ice cream. Excellent!