One of the key determinants in success with any subject is this:  Did you achieve the results you intended?  Let me explain.

When I worked for my husband in his dental practice, I would sometimes enlist the help of other team members to re-organize my supplies closet in the front office.  The result?  Pretty – it always looked good – but non-functional.  The outcome was always disappointment on both fronts – mine and theirs – for several reasons. 

First, they didn’t really work with me and had no idea how often I used things.  Therefore, I would find things I needed daily on top shelves or in hard-to-reach corners, with the things I rarely used in prime locations (middle shelf – eye level.)  The consequences were reduced productivity, frustration on my part for not having things the way I wanted them, and bitterness from my co-workers because they felt I did not appreciate their hard work. 

I’ve learned a lot since those days and I now realize that all of those hard feelings and days of inefficiency (until I could get the time to re-organize the closet myself) could have been avoided if I had observed a few simple strategic steps before starting the project. 

Here, then, are my Best Practices in getting the results you want from your organizing project.

1. Identify your desired results.  Do you just need everything to look neat?  More than likely, you need this space to be functional as well as attractive.  Decide for yourself how you want it to look when you’re finished.  If you can find a photo in a magazine or catalog that represents what you’re going for, keep it where you (and others) can see it during the project.

2. Ask good questions.  Do your research.  This requires asking good questions in the beginning.  Where is the best place to store this?  Who uses this item regularly?  Does anything need to be relocated?  Is there anything else that needs to be stored in this space?  How often does this get used?  When was the last time this item was utilized?  How can I get the best use of this space?  Do I need more shelving, see-through boxes, other organizers of some sort? 

3. Plan the project.  Once you’re answered all your questions, get an idea in your mind’s eye of how things will be executed.  What do you need to do first, second, third, and so on?  Purchase any items identified above.  Don’t forget steps like washing down walls and applying a fresh coat of paint if necessary.  You’ll be amazed at how little things like that make a big impact.

4. Communicate your intentions well.  If you are enlisting help, it can be difficult to speak up when necessary.  People have their own ideas of what organized means, (as I learned), and may get offended if you stop them half-way through completing a portion of the project to tell them they’re doing it wrong.  Have your photos and project plan in hand and go over it before anyone begins.  If someone has a bad attitude or just wants to “get it over with,” let them go.

5. Decide who should execute.  If all you need is a quick fix for getting things to look neat and orderly, just about anyone willing to help will fit the bill.  However, there are times when you are the only person who knows exactly where things should go.  Sure you could try to explain it to someone and that might work, but in some cases, in the time it takes you to explain it, you could have the project completed.  One thing to keep in mind in making that decision is to ask if this person could possibly be organizing for you in the future, or if he would be assisting you with your duties on a regular basis.  If that’s the case, then taking the time to explain how things should be organized will pay off in the long run.  It’s the old concept of, “Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for a lifetime.”  If the help is temporary, use them to assist.  Otherwise, teach.

6. Reassess and make adjustments as needed.  Sometimes that box of paper just won’t fit on the shelf we’d really like to keep it on.  (Another reason to go paperless – ha!)  Moving one item may mean having to re-work your plan.  Be prepared for this and be willing to let go if necessary.

7. Let things settle.  Occasionally it helps to step back and take a break from all the hard work.  If you’re not sure about something, let it sit for a few days and come back to it.  Nothing is set in stone and you will probably be making adjustments on a fairly regular basis anyway.  I do. I’m constantly thinking of better ways to do this or that, or better places to store an item.  While it used to drive my husband crazy, he’s getting used to it and just asks, “Where does the ________ live now?”

Living in an organized, yet flexible, and always changing home is fun, reduces stress, and is a good challenge to maintain!  It is so rewarding to look back on a project and see the progress, both physically and emotionally.  Which reminds me – remember to take before and after photos!

Until next time,

Live Joyfully!

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CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same.  You can read their stories here.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!

Technorati Tags: Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Organize, Success, Law of Attraction, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book

Posted under Leadership, Motivation, Success

Today’s post will be short as I am installing new organizing systems in two closets.  I’ve been doing a lot of de-cluttering and re-organizing lately.  Between my 30-day Paperless Experiment and preparing for my husband’s dental office expansion, it seems like my entire life revolves around finding better ways to store and retrieve things - all sorts of things.

I’m amazed at how much life continues to teach us, especially when we think we understand a subject the most.  Saturday, on a drive with my husband, he asked me if I thought it would be a good idea to put the current reception area television in the new team lounge.  In going back and forth on the subject, considering all the pros and cons, the ultimate decision factor comes down to clutter.  I started thinking about all of the things that are planned for the new team lounge when it occurred to me that one more thing just might put that room over the top - from a “relaxing break from the daily grind” to “over-stimulating room that had just as well not be there.”

So I said to my husband, “I’m worried that it might just be more clutter for the team lounge.”  His response was, “But it could be mounted on the wall and not be clutter at all.” 

The conversation reminded me of another definition of clutter that I fail to mention to audiences and that is, “clutter is anything unsightly.”  When you walk into a room, it should be visually appealing.  Anything that makes the room “too busy,” makes us feel uneasy.  Whether it’s piles of needless paper, disorganized kitchen utensils, old magazines strewn about, too many floral patterns in the decorating, or just too much stuff in too little space, it’s all clutter.  Even unwanted, non-relaxing sound, like that that comes from a television, can be counted as clutter.

So as you are organizing your home, office, and life, take a good look around, listen, and then notice how you feel about what you see and hear.  Get rid of anything that displeases you in any way.  You’ll be glad you did.

Until next time,

Live Joyfully!

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CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same.  You can read their stories here.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!

Technorati Tags: Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Organize, Success, Law of Attraction, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book

Posted under Motivation, Success

I speak and write a lot about planning and one of the key concepts in perfect scheduling is to allow time when you’re planning your schedule for emergencies and flex time.  Notice I didn’t say, “Interruptions.”

Learning to control interruptions is vital to successful time management.  Interruptions cause us to lose time and gain stress.  Time is money.  If someone approached you and asked for ten dollars, would you give it up? Why, then, are we so willing to give ten minutes of our time?

Most of us, women especially, are afraid of hurting others’ feelings or being perceived as not approachable.  Some even fear that not allowing every silly little question to interrupt their focus will cause them to look bad within the company.  But I’ve found that if you communicate to people why you’re doing something and do it with humor, people are willing to accept it, and will even respect you for it.  Let me give you some specific examples.

1. Wear a unique clothing item – like a chartreuse hat.  It can be anything you like, but tell your co-workers and even your boss(es) that when you’re wearing that item it is not a good time to interrupt you.  You’ll be amazed at how much they respect you for utilizing this concept.  Now, you can’t wear the hat all the time, and it could happen that once you get the point across, if you prefer your uninterrupted time in the morning, say between 8:30 and 10 AM, they just might get into the habit of leaving you alone during that time and you won’t have to wear the ugly thing forever.  Try it.  It works!

1. Put a traffic cone in the “door” to your cubicle. Or something else, more legal, that would get the point across.  This is a little more subtle, so you might have to explain it a few times, but eventually, people will get it.  “When the traffic cone is in the way of your entering my space, it means that it’s not a good time.”

1. Close your door. An open door policy doesn’t make you the doormat.  Just because your company expects you to be available to your direct reports, they don’t want you to lose precious focus time for questions that could be dealt with later.  Again, you can’t leave the door closed all day, but a 90-minute segment will let you get a lot of work done.

1. Put a sign on your door – “Is someone on fire?”  This is where humor comes in to play.  If people don’t get what you’re trying to do, explain to the people who work closest to you that the sign is intended to make the intruder stop and think before interrupting you.  An executive friend of mine tells a story of how he used to say, “Don’t call me unless the building is on fire.”  Then one day, the building really did catch fire.  So he changed it to, “Don’t call me unless someone in the building is on fire.”  Luckily, no calls yet – knock on wood!

1. When someone pops their head into your office and says, “I hate to interrupt . . .”  Respond with, “Then don’t.” They will get the message.  It’s a little more off-putting, but sometimes necessary and it works for the right personality type.

1. Post your schedule. Let people know when would be a good time to come back to talk to you.  Post it on your door or on the frame of your cubicle.  You don’t have to put your actual schedule up if you don’t want, just put something that says, “I’ll be taking interruptions between 11 and 12 today.  I’ll be glad to answer your question if you come back then.”  I used this technique myself several years ago when I worked in a corporate setting and what I discovered that people would do is go back to their cube and e-mail me, which was a more efficient method anyway.  Often, they were coming to me to ask that I send them a certain report.  Duh!  And it’s those needless little things like that that break your concentration and keep you from being as effective as you could be.  But it is up to you to control them.

1. Change your internal voice mail message frequently. This is something else I used to do.  I changed my internal voice mail, the one that only people within the company get when they call me, every morning.  I didn’t explain what I was doing every minute of the day, but I would simply say, “I will be available today from 10:30 to 12:30 if you wish to speak to me personally.  Otherwise, please leave a message, or send an e-mail.”  It worked and I never got chastised for it.  The president of the company came to me one day after getting that message and, (he came, by the way, during the time I had specified!) and asked me to help him word his voice message in a similar manner, both for internal and external calls.  We worded the messages very diplomatically and helped him gain some very important focus time.  My immediate supervisors were very impressed and started using the concept themselves.

Like most other things in life, getting control of interruptions is simply a matter of deciding to do it.  And like most other things in life, it’s always worth it in the end.

Until next time,

Live Joyfully!

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CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same.  You can read their stories here. If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!

Technorati Tags: Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Inspiration, Success, Law of Attraction, Life, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book, Time Management, Clutter Control, Interruptions

Posted under Dental Practice Management, Leadership, Motivation, Success

One of the keys to living a successful life is to feel like you’re making every minute count. Think about it for a moment:  Most of us get upset or feel badly toward ourselves when we believe that we or someone else is wasting our time.  In order to feel like we’re living the life our dreams, we assume that there are no wasted moments.  It’s the, “I’d rather be [doing something else.]” lament.

Most of us can accept the fact that to live the life of our dreams we are still going to have to do things we don’t necessarily want to do or find all that fulfilling.  But, we’re willing to “pay the price” sort to speak.

So, if having no wasted time is the goal, how do we achieve that?  Well, there are three keys, and here they are:

Plan and prepare. Do what’s important instead of just whatever is in front of you.  Start thinking of ways that you can save, schedule and consolidate large chunks of time. Use this time to work on important tasks with the most significant long-term consequences.   What are your long-term goals and dreams?  What can you do today to take one step toward accomplishing them? Make every minute count by working steadily and continuously without diversion or distraction by planning and preparing your work in advance.

Accept responsibility and plow through those small, seemingly insignificant tasks.

Use travel and transition time, what is often called “gifts of time,” to complete small chunks of larger tasks.  I’m often amazed at how much writing I can get done in airports, or phone calls I can make while on the road.  I might not have time to write a book, but I can get the outline started.  I can leave messages for the people to whom I delegate a lot of chores as to something I want to change.  Doing these things in little blocks of time here and there keeps me from having to do them when I’m in my office.  I can use that time to write and create new products.

Fully enjoy your time off. Here’s something I catch myself doing and I bet you’ve done the same thing.  It’s four o’clock on Monday afternoon.  I’ve completed everything that I want and need to accomplish for the day.  Do I quit?  No.  I start a new task which often leads into overtime or makes me feel rushed for getting dinner on the table.

Hopefully, I’ve learned my lesson, but if you haven’t, here’s what you’re better off to do in that situation.  Nothing.  Meditate.  Take one hour for solitude.  Read a magazine.  Relax.  If you’ve done the first two steps well, take time for yourself without guilt.  Doing so will make you more productive tomorrow, I promise.

Remember that the great pyramids were built one block at a time. A great life and a great career is also built one block, one step, one task, and often one part of a task, at a time.

Until next time,

Live Joyfully!

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CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same.  You can read their stories here. If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!

Technorati Tags: Time Management, Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Inspiration, Success, Law of Attraction, Life, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book

Posted under Dental Practice Management, Motivation, Success

My 30-Day paperless experiment is bringing up a lot of questions.  My biggest dilemma so far has been trying to find a reliable, portable, digital calendar and note keeper.  My current system is to use Microsoft Outlook for recurring and important tasks, and Microsoft Excel for strategic planning.  My calendar is in a beautiful Franklin Covey planner that I’ve had for years.  This planner is also the central location for other important information and is where I do my weekly planning.  This hybrid system has served me well for quite some time now, I can’t even remember how long – at least 8 years.

I’ve written before about how to replace bad habits with good ones, but how does one go about replacing good habits with better ones?

The challenges I’m coming up against are these:

What if I’m in the car and need to look at my calendar?  Currently, I can easily pull out my planner, while on the phone, and answer the question or make the commitment.  How would that work if I used only Outlook for my calendar?  I have a friend who uses both – she puts her calendar in Outlook so that others in her company have access to view it, but for her own use, she uses a paper planner.  While I understand why she does this, for me, such a practice would be needlessly redundant.  I don’t want others to have access to my calendar.  I know that a lot of my speaker friends are displaying calendars online, but personally, when someone calls to book me, I need to make judgment calls as to how long I need to prepare for the event, what my schedule is really like based on required travel time, etc.  So I can’t see using two systems – that would be creating a bad habit.  Nope – not going there.

My husband’s Palm Treo is not reliable.  Just this weekend his calendar did not sync so when someone called on our way to Columbus, Ohio, he had to put them off until he could get back home to answer their question.  My Blackberry Curve software doesn’t work properly and I had to uninstall it to keep it from crashing my laptop – so it is not a reliable system either.  I suppose I could put everything in Outlook and carry my laptop with me everywhere I go – something about that doesn’t feel right, either.

My husband puts everything in Outlook and then prints a monthly calendar to display on the refrigerator for the “at-a-glance” option.  I’ve tried that before, but my schedule changes too much.  I ended up printing a new monthly calendar every other day.  I found that I was better off to just record everything in pencil and have one master calendar.

I am researching this issue and am open to any suggestions you have.

This, as well as other issues that I will blog about later, have brought up the real question:  Do we want to be paper-less, or do we want to be paper-free?  From the comments I’ve been receiving, I think most of us just want to reduce the amount of paper in our lives from the standpoint of eliminating clutter, useless bulk in landfills, and unnecessary use of our natural resources, namely, trees.

Paper is not the most efficient storage system, but it does serve a purpose.  And this is what the 30-day experiment is all about.

Stay tuned . . .

Until next time,

Live Joyfully!

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CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same.  You can read their stories here. If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!

Technorati Tags: Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Inspiration, Success, Law of Attraction, Life, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book

Posted under Dental Practice Management, Leadership, Motivation, Success

I was given this nine-step system for creating the life you want during an automatic writing session following a long period of prayer and meditation.  I decided to share it.  Do with it what you will.

1. Focus on what you want.  Give it your full attention and fully intend to create it. 

2. Develop true expectations:  You must believe it is possible; eliminate any resistance that pops up.

3. Visualize daily your desired result.  What does it look like?  Imagine it into being.

4. Commit to your dream by removing everything in your life that works against it.

5. Listen to your intuition and follow the guidance you receive.

6. Support your dream with action.  Action will almost always be required but it will be inspired action in joy.

7. Surrender control to the universe; let things happen, don’t make them happen.

8. “In the beginning was the word.”  Your words are the greatest power you have.  Words create everything because words embody the vibration of your energy and intention.  Speak your words; the universe was built on sound.  Start with, “I am . . .’

9. Practice and persistence make perfect.  You must find ways to motivate, educate, and inspire yourself as necessary.  The universe responds to your vibrational offering and the more you practice the vibrational offering of what you want, the faster things will begin to materialize in your experience.

We’ll discuss all of this in greater detail in the days and weeks to come.  For today, I just wanted to give you “the list.”

Until next time,

Live joyfully!

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CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same.  You can read their stories here.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!

Technorati Tags: Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Inspiration, Success, Law of Attraction, Life, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book

Posted under Inspiration, Law of Attraction, Motivation, Success

Since starting my 30-day Going Paperless experiment, I’ve received lots of great tips and have learned several good lessons. 

Jennifer Kumar tagged me last week to write about three lessons I’ve learned from de-cluttering my life.  I find this tag serendipitous since one of the first lessons I’ve learned about going paperless is that you’ve first got to sort all of the paper you’re currently using and storing, and get rid of what no longer serves you.

I’ll provide temporary updates on my paperless meme intermittently over the next month, with one final post compiling all tips at the end, once it’s had time to circulate.  For today, I’d like to fulfill Jennifer’s request and list the three top advantages I’ve experienced in clearing my clutter.  Ready?  Here we go!

1. Increased energy level.  I can breathe easier.  Literally.  And when you’re breathing, you feel better and more energetic.  I don’t know if it’s my allergy to dust that contributes to this – getting rid of piles = getting rid of dust bunnies = breathing easier – and I don’t really care.  I just know that I can take a deep breath, feel good, and hit the ground running.  There’s also something mentally energizing about clean, clutter-free surfaces.

2. Clearer thinking.  Clutter around you creates clutter in your brain.  Again, mental energy seems to stagnate around clutter.  You see that pile, you can’t remember what’s in there, “Are there things I need to do?  Have I forgotten to pay a bill?”  Whatever you piles represent, it’s probably something negative and you need to get rid of all negative energy in order to live the positive, productive life you came here and are intended to live.

3. Quicker, easier decision making.  This is my favorite, and I have a story about this one.  When I was in college I had this roommate named Monica.  She was a very happy and energetic soul.  I never made this connection back then, but one of the things that used to tickle me and my other roommates about her was the fact that she would always return on Sunday night with her week’s wardrobe planned out – and she brought only those clothes, shoes, accessories, etc.  She didn’t go home every weekend, so she would sometimes have to plan her outfits 2-3 weeks in advance!  She always stuck to her schedule, and she never wore jeans unless they were a planned part of the outfit – no jeans and sweatshirts on Monica – she was a Fashion Merchandising major!  We would often laugh at her and then talk behind her back about how much we envied her ability to get dressed so quickly in the morning.  Now I understand.  Can you make the connection?  Because she had only one outfit to choose from on that particular day, there was no decision-making to do.  “What will I wear” crossed her mind only once per week, not every day.

Continuing to reflect on Monica for a moment, I’ve already said she was happy and energetic.  She got up every morning at 5:30 AM to teach an aerobics class at the Baptist Student Union.  She came back to the room at 7:15 to shower and dress and always had her first class scheduled at 8 AM.  She was very punctual also, so washing and drying her beautiful blond bob haircut, applying makeup, and walking to class could have taken no more than 45 minutes.  She was and is still probably the most un-cluttered person I’ve ever known.  There’s a lesson in there somewhere, don’t you think?

Eliminating things you don’t want and being organized simply requires a little strategic planning.  I know for a fact, from personal experience, that the time invested in any planning activity is more than regained in time saved during execution.

Just remembering Monica and recounting her story has been enough to motivate me for today, so I’m off to clear more clutter and research more ways to become paperless. 

Until next time,

Live in Joyous Belief that All Things are Possible!

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You can subscribe to this blog here.

GET CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE NOW When you’re ready to create the life you want, purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. I share my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the law of attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do the same.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.”

Technorati Tags: Paperless, Clutter Control, Motivation, Motivational Speaker, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Inspiration, Success, Writer

Posted under Inspiration, Law of Attraction, Leadership, Motivation, Success

I promised you several months ago that I would highlight products that I found exceptional but to not do so on a regular (read “annoying”) basis.  I have found an outstanding product to share with you produced by the Immrama Institute, and given that is has been awhile since I highlighted one of Brian Tracy’s products, I believe I’m holding true to my promise.

You may recall that in November of last year (2007), I was awarded the Conscious Web Site Award given by the Immrama Institute.  As a result, they graciously allowed me to try their product, free of charge, at my request.  I was very interested, but admittedly, a little skeptical—I mean, how many products of this type do we see in an average day?

Their copy writing sounded legitimate and I was honored to receive the award, so I thought, “Why not give it a try.”  I did, and the results are amazing!

The product impressed me right off the bat because of the high quality.  Since I knew I would be blogging about this product one way or the other, I followed the instructions to the letter, listening to only the first track on the Focus CD for the first several days.

For someone who is a Type A personality, this was a little difficult, but I wanted to do everything right.  I learned to relax a little and that is always a good thing – especially for us Type A’s.

After the first week, the reigns are loosened and you can listen to any of the tracks.

The Insight Program is one CD that is excellent for listening to while you relax, meditate, and recite affirmations.  Personally, I need to use this CD more often.

I suppose because of my personality, I am drawn more to and use the Focus CDs the most.  Focus is a 2-CD set, containing a total of three tracks with varied degrees of heightened awareness.  The Clarity track is “for situations that require relaxed concentration and enhanced clarity, such as reading, or engaging in a hobby.  Clarity may also be used during an exercise session to assist you in achieving the ‘zone’ described by many athletes.”

I started using this track while walking on the treadmill with the intended purpose of just covering up the noise made by the machine.  The actual result was that I ended up getting tons of ideas for new products and things to write about on my blog.  It really does put you in “the zone.”  I stay longer on the treadmill now, voluntarily, and I feel so energized afterward.  This effect alone sold me on the product.  But . . . it gets better . . .

The Focus track itself “heightens your level of focus, attention, and concentration while working studying, or in any situation requiring specific attention to detail.”

I now use this track when I’m writing, especially if I’m having trouble writing.  I’ll admit that some days I forget to play the CDs, but it’s only because I’m feeling so good already.  When I use the Insight program at night, I tend to have better days.

The Envision track “triggers creativity boosts and innovative thinking patters.  Envision is terrific for brainstorming and problem-solving sessions.”

I use this track when I’m having trouble with the website – coding – or when I’m reviewing my goals and dreams and connecting to my higher self.  This is relaxation for a Type A!  And that’s probably why I love these CD’s so much.

I can highly recommend both CD programs because there is something in all of the tracks for everyone.  I’ve just recently started listening to the Insight program as I’m falling asleep and it helps me wind down.

Perhaps one of the biggest side benefits to the programs is that there is no music used on the CDs – only soft rain.  This is good for me because, as a musician, listening to music can be too stimulating at times and even take me off-focus – I try to play the music instead of just relaxing, etc.

I have joined the Immrama Institute affiliate program, so if you’re interested in purchasing the CD’s I’d appreciate it if you’d buy them using this link.  The Immrama Institute website itself is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in brainwave technology.

Until next time,

Live joyfully!

***FOR THE MONTH OF DECEMBER, 2008, ONLY, USE COUPON CODE IMM427 TO RECEIVE $10 OFF YOUR ORDER.

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GET CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE NOW When you’re ready to create the life you want, purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. I share my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the law of attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do the same.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.”

Technorati Tags: Focus, Motivation, Motivational Speaker, Dental Practice Management Coach, Consultant, Inspiration, Success, Writer

Posted under Inspiration, Motivation, Success

I am developing a course for a local college where we intend to teach high school juniors and seniors how to create the life they want.  One of the subjects I intend to cover, and always cover in seminars of this type, is the concept of “fake it until you make it.”  For young audiences, I talk in detail about what that saying means with regard to not lying on a resume or misrepresenting yourself in some way.   I know that this audience, by blog readers, do not need a lecture on that, but I do wonder how many of you are using the power of personas to achieve greater success in your life.  Let me share some of my experiences with you.

One area of my life that I love to explore is the art of a keeping a sparkling clean, clutter-free home.  I find that a well-kept house, inside and out, provides for a more peaceful, easier-to-think-and-create existence.  So one persona that I love to take on is that of Bree Hodge from the ABC show Desperate Housewives.  Now, what exactly do I mean by “take on?”  Well, it goes something like this.

When “Debra” doesn’t feel like cleaning the house, making the bed, taking out the trash, pulling weeds, or anything else that contributes to this desire, I stop and think, “What would ‘Bree’ do?”  BAM!  That’s usually all it takes to get me going.  I mean, if Marsha Cross can play Bree, I can too, right?  It’s fun, and I get so much accomplished.  But your persona doesn’t have to a fictional character.  Here’s another example.

I used to hate grocery shopping.  Then one day while watching Giada De Laurentiis on the Food Network, I saw her shopping.  For some reason, I was mesmerized.  I watched how she interacted with the people helping her and thought, “I wonder if I could get the same reaction from the people behind the meat counter at Kroger.”  Well, there’s nothing like trying something just once to prove it to yourself and guess what – it worked!  Not only did they respond well, but I had so much fun “acting the part.”

I’m finding that the more fun I have in my life the more success I seem to experience; more money comes my way, my relationships run smoother, opportunities and helpful people show up from out of nowhere.

I believe the reason I experience greater success when I’m using a persona is that by developing your persona, you are setting your vibrational tone.  Much like people respond to your attitude, the universe responds to the vibration you send out.  If you behave like a well-organized person, both the people around you and the universe will respond to you in like manner – they will treat you like an organized person.  Doesn’t that just make good sense?

I challenge you today to develop a persona.  It’s fun to pretend.  Some of the most successful people in the world are those who have fun while they work.  Why not give it a try?

Until next time,

Live joyfully!

If you’d like to sign up for retreat information as it becomes available, click here.

You can subscribe to this blog here.

GET CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE NOW When you’re ready to create the life you want, purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. I share my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the law of attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do the same.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.”

Technorati Tags: Motivation, Education, Inspiration, Success, Writer, Motivational Speaker, Consultant

Posted under Education, Inspiration, Law of Attraction, Leadership, Motivation, Success

I’ve been doing a lot of purging so far in 2008.  I have one entire wall of the basement cleaned out, the Christmas tree is stowed with all of its trimmings perfectly organized, and the pantry can breathe again.

I’ve disposed of 35 bags of trash – shush – don’t tell my husband – and it feels fantastic!

But I’m very tired.  But that’s okay – it’s a good tired.  Is that an oxy-moron? 

Speaking of grammar questions - I am having fun in doing my research on going paperless.  What does having fun have to do with grammar?  Well, this week I clicked on a link that led to another link that opened up another link that took me to this link:  Grammar Girl.  Since grammar is very important to me, I strive to keep my skills razor sharp.  (That is not an oxy-moron.)  Finding a fun, non-banal source of quick tips made my day.  I especially like the fact that I can listen to the podcast, read the transcript, or both, which is what I most often do.

Finding this little nugget makes me feel like going paperless is possible.  It seems that there is information on just about every subject imaginable and someone is storing the information neatly and reliably so that we can all have access to it whenever we need it.  It’s as if we’re all connected somehow.  (Don’t worry, I’m not going there in this post.)

My one big dilemma so far is finding the best way to transfer everything from my Franklin planner to something portable.  I don’t like my husband’s Palm Pilot because he has too much trouble with it.  The software that came with my new Blackberry doesn’t work either.  Maybe it’s time for a new, smaller, more portable laptop? 

Sounds like it’s time to assess needs, do some research, and develop a plan.  Don’t worry; I’ll keep you informed.  I always do, don’t I?

Until next time,

Live in Possibility!

If you’d like to sign up for retreat information as it becomes available, click here.

You can subscribe to this blog here.

GET CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE NOW When you’re ready to create the life you want, purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. I share my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the law of attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do the same.  If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.”

Technorati Tags: Motivation, Education, Inspiration, Success, Writer, Speaker, Consultant

Posted under Motivation, Success