Positive Thinking: Changes You Can Make Now

The plan for presenting/publishing this follow-up to The Psychology of Positive Thinking is to introduce it with a YouTube video and blog and a modest email announcement effort. Following that will be frequent blog postings of the content as the book progresses, until the entire book has been posted. At some point during this process when the manuscript is complete plans are to publish it as an EBook through Kindle.

This book is an updated edition of The Psychology of Positive Thinking to be presented in a new kind of “chapter book” format. It will be available as an EBook; (periodically through Kindle’s promotional program for free.) It is intended as a self-help self-development guide for self-empowerment. The original edition was primarily concerned with consciousness, and how we think with our brain. Here we go further into body, mind and spirit; and see ourselves as the emotional quantum energy beings that we are.

The book presents an updated positive thinking model, incorporating the important additions of emotions, positive energies, and the spirit. It will be presented as a type of “chapter book”, divided into semi-independent small chapter sections dealing with one concept at a time. This will increase understanding, enable us to focus and work on one concept at a time, and simplify our positive changes. It is meant to be experienced, as well as read and understood. There will also be a Companion Blog Site of the Chapters of the book, which will mirror the EBook chapters as they are developed.

The model presentation will lead the reader step by step to the goal of self-empowerment through:
• Quotes from the Scriptures
• Wisdom from ancient cultures: ”qi” energy techniques
• Embedded empowerment commands (NLP technique) to promote positive experiencing for the reader (such as the embedded message “You Can” italicized in the book title.)
• Links to FREE websites of experts with interesting, often motivational explanations of key concepts.
• Supporting evidence from the fields of science, medicine; researched and documented.
• Links to videos on YouTube, TedTalk etc. that are available FREE with cutting edge info on research and technology.
• Links to FREE audios and videos for learning and participating in guided meditations, listening to brainwave entrainment audios and other new self-development technologies.
• Accompanying action step suggestions to help manifest small changes into your reality.

This is intended to be a voyage of self-discovery, and enlightenment of one’s own reality.

New book in Progress, Changes You Can Make Now

Five years ago I published The Psychology of Positive Thinking. It was based on the previous fifty years of research in psychology, the neuro-sciences and NLP. It was about how we think and behave from Newtonian physics point of view that is too materialistic. More recently, cutting edge neuro-science, technology and quantum physics have made discoveries that are changing the way we see ourselves. The physical world, indeed the universe started from a “singularity” of energy exploding outward at the speed of light. As these energies became entangled they coalesced into masses and motion and space, forming the heavens and the earth. This knowledge significantly revises how to Think Positive; the revision will be called The Psychology of Positive Thinking: Changes You Can Make Now.

So while we appear to be material beings living in a material world, we are really made up of these coalesced, entangled masses of energy. The “space” separating us from each other and everything else is simply the illusion created by our ever-expanding universe (energy expanding at the speed of light.) Cutting edge quantum theory is telling us that the energy vibrations that underlie reality take on mass only as a result of being captured when being measured, or observed. Some theories claim that this measurement or observation must also include the involvement of consciousness.

IF THIS IS SO, if the observations on the part of our consciousness do in fact create reality, we are far more responsible for events than we give ourselves credit for. And it behooves us to think positive thoughts: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)

Stress vs. Flow model of Mind/Body/Spirit

Continuing with Michelle Bersell’s (see previous blog) line of reasoning, if your path is blocked you can make that block part of the path. She says that the “stone on your path is not a stumbling block if you read what is written on it.” When we treat that stone as an obstacle or a stumbling block it is stress which is stemming the flow of the path. That is resistance. When we practice acceptance, and ‘read what is written on the stone’: that is Flow. We move congruently forward on our mission.

When we accept and experience life as Flow we remove the resistance stumbling blocks that are the mass that weighs us down. The body part of our Mind/Body/Spirit slows our mind and chokes our spirit. Just as a ray of light turns to mass when a photon is captured by being measured, as we experience stress and flow we become heavier and lighter accordingly.

Mission Possible

Getting past previous self-doubts and fears clears the way, and makes the discovering and pursuit of your mission possible. Aligning yourself, your passions, all of you in body, mind and spirit congruently with your mission make your Mission Possible. It is like taking your automobile out of “park” (or reverse) and putting it in Drive. In terms of the Energy Flow model we can now move forward on our mission the positive energy of positive emotions.

At times nagging fears or self-doubts may threaten your congruently Positive Flow with their negativity. When this happens, Michelle Bersell shows us an elegant way to re-frame that negative emotion and actually use its energy in a positive direction. Her advice is to “Feel Every Emotion as Love” (F.E.E.L.) 1- You need to recognize the positive intent of your fear (most fears are from childhood where they occurred to keep you safe, but are no longer true) 2- recognize that negative emotion is outdated but has a positive emotion message of love. As you become conscious of this the emotion becomes positive, and empowering. Michelle has a four step process for this she explains on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIfkLvj3E6k&feature=player_embedded .

Whenever a negative emotion threatens, turn it around and make it positive by using Michelle’s neat re-framing technique! Michelle also has a F.E.E.L. training video that she provides to us for FREE here: http://www.michellebersell.com/feel-kit/training1.html . Thank You Michelle!

What is your Mission?

Do you have a direction for your life, a mission? If so you are to be congratulated! Many of us are too caught up in the downstream flow of life as it occurs to pay much mind to where we are going. Others may never have considered having a mission, or felt empowered enough to make the difference that having a mission implies. But it also implies direction, flow, and happiness in pursuit of a worthwhile goal. And it is something unique to you.

Chris and Janet Atwood, co-authors of The Passion Test suggest that if you follow your passions they will lead you to your life’s purpose, your mission. They have a website that is devoted to helping you along "the effortless path to discovering your life purpose:" http://www.thepassiontest.com/TPT/Home/index.cfm . They have a FREE “passion test” and helpful information about discovering and pursuing your mission.

Marci Shimoff, co-author with Jack Canfield on Chicken soup for the Woman’s Soul best selling series has also written Happy for no Reason. She suggests we can look for happiness and love from within ourselves, and bring that to the table. Some YouTube video interviews explain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_V74zL6Fo8 and part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=VXERNViRi9k&NR=1 . Marci offers some FREE coaching/newsletter at: http://www.happyfornoreason.com/Home.asp .

Perhaps we can bring/find our mission to what we are already doing; as Marci suggests. We find happiness and love, important ingredients of Mission, Within. The other ingredient that Marci and the Atwood’s, along with all the great Psychologists and spiritual leaders mentioned the previous posts is service to others. And the Scriptures agree, when we serve others, we serve God.

Purpose-driven Life

What will You Do? This question posed in the previous post is there for each of us to answer in our own individual way. Mostly we don’t pay attention. Or answer it superficially “I’m going to the store” or “I’m going to fix dinner” while on autopilot. Rick Warren, who wrote the all-time#1 best-selling book A Purpose Driven Life writes about a deeper, spiritual answer; the meaning in and for your life. He explains it on a TedTalk here: http://www.ted.com/talks/rick_warren_on_a_life_of_purpose.html . What on earth are you here for and where is your life force leading you; What is your Mission?

Victor Frankl, who was a holocaust survivor, psychotherapist and university professor, wrote about this in his famous book Man’s Search for Meaning: “Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone's task is unique as is his specific opportunity to implement it.” Following is a short TedTalk excerpt of Frankl on this subject: http://www.ted.com/talks/viktor_frankl_youth_in_search_of_meaning.html

In terms of our body/mind/spirit positive energy flow model, mission is critical. Our mission is what we love, really, what we give our life for. It is the God-given positive direction for our life. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi has been studying the peak experiences and Flow of those creatively pursuing their mission in life as he relates in his book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. Mihaly finds that flow is greatest when doing something that helps others, to be able to work to our heart’s content on a mission. He relates this in his TedTalk: http://blog.ted.com/2008/10/23/creativity_fulf/ .

So the answer to “What will you do?” may well be found in your mission, or perhaps in finding your mission. And as Mihaly suggests, happiness flows best in the service of others.

Positive Thinking is not enough

Positive Thinking is not enough. The battle is only half won once we clear out the negative emotions; we need to take action steps along our life’s journey. We need to continue on our mission. Tony Robbins points us in this critical direction in his TedTalk: http://www.ted.com/talks/tony_robbins_asks_why_we_do_what_we_do.html . We need to make three action step decisions: 1) What am I going to focus on? 2) What does it mean? 3) What am I going to do? AND WE NEED TO DO IT EVERY MOMENT, IN THE MOMENT.

Given the above, and that we have cleared sufficient blocks to Flow, we need to set, start, or continue our life mission. As Tony suggests, progress is made with action steps, which occurs in the NOW (right now!) Eckhart Tolle, coming from an entirely different direction, would agree- your power is in the now. And in Truth, there is no other time but Now.

What will you do?