Developing a Positive Attitude by Pretending

Developing a positive attitude creates a positive attitude, just as energy produces more energy. Developing a positive attitude affects your own way of thinking, as well as the thinking of other people that surrounds you. In effect, no matter how bad or rotten a situation may look like, you can make it seem or appear better by at least pretending to have that kind of outlook-even if you yourself do not feel optimistic at all. In this case, even if you are just feigning to have a constructive outlook, the people around you would sense an optimistic energy and would be influenced to the point where they are developing a positive attitude relative to a given situation.

This feigned positive attitude would also have a huge deal of favorable response and influence on anybody that you have to encounter with which can be an answer to your problem as well-even if they're not exactly included in the solution to the problem. If for example, your company is on the edge of bankruptcy, and you really need to visit the bank manager in how to get a loan to rebuild and continue your business despite the financial crisis no matter what. Now, how do you approach him? Of course, you do not want to walk right inside his office with tears welling in your eyes, begging and complaining about how terrible and unforgiving the business is.

Preferably, you would want to walk in with a hopeful smile pasted on your face and telling him optimistic and bright things about the company and your future plans, so he could see that you haven't given up hope on life, and that he could sense that there is a practicable plan in store. The point here is trying to depict or represent a positive attitude that a solution would be found in the offing that you simply refuse to believe the situation is beyond hope, and to let the team understand that you are carrying on and not calling it quits-even if you don't truly believe any of those yourself.

Pretending in possessing a positive attitude is not permitting to telling lies, however. The persons who are involved in trying to help resolve a problem must be told the truth of the situation though. This perception would clean their minds, and help them create good decision in connection to the problem at hand-which helps you also, and makes you believe as if your false positive attitude becomes real as well. In addition, you could fool yourself into possessing a positive attitude also. By feigning that you already have that positive attitude, you play it for so long that little by little, it becomes habitual-a learned stimulus.

This encouraging outlook that you get to portray each and every single day becomes real, even without you being aware of it all. If ever this happens, some people don't even recall or recognize that they were just pretending in the first place! They may begin to think it was for real all along.

The author of this article Amy Twain is a Self Improvement Coach who has been successfully coaching and guiding clients for many years. Amy recently decided to go public and share her knowledge and experience through her website http://www.innerzine.com You can sign up for her free newsletter and join her coaching program.

Basement Remodels Need Careful Consideration

There are many important things that you need to consider when you decide to work with basement remodels. The decision to renovate and remodel your basement can be done by yourself, but unless you have all of the latest tools, legal requirements and construction talent, it is much better in the long run to hire a professional basement contractor to do your work.

You need to first realize that your house was not originally constructed to handle extra additions that a remodeled basement might require. Such things as; the structural modifications that might be needed, the air flow in the basement room area, the heating and cooling system and the costs of these basement remodels.

Choosing a competent basement remodeling contractor should be your top priority. This is one of your first decisions when you decide to remodel. The right choice will make a big difference in the quality of remodeling and cost of your project. There are many ways of selecting a good competent contractor. If you have friends that have undertaken a project like this they are good references. You can go on-line to find contractors in your area.

When you have gathered information in the selection process of your basement remodeling contractor, it is very advisable to select 2 or more and ask them to submit bids on your basement project. This will aid you in, not only getting a competitive price, but if they know they have competition in your basement remodels they will know you are serious in finding a good competent contractor.

Having some basement remodels? Discover practical basement remodeling ideas online and turn cheap basement ideas into dream basements at a budget.

The Purpose of Dreams

Dreams have been somewhat of a mystery to man for a long time. Dreams hold many captive at night wondering if it is reality or simply the imagination working overtime. We have all awoke from dreams upset that it wasnt reality and on the same hand, we have woke up thanking God that a terrible nightmare wasnt a reality.

There are many different theories about the meaning, origin, or purpose of dreams. Some believe that dreams are an extension of our subconscious. In other words, we may dream about things that we think about, whether we are aware of our subconscious thoughts or not. Others believe that dreams are a part of REM or Rapid Eye Movement sleep, which helps to restore our minds and bodies while we sleep. Finally, some people believe that dreams are one mode of communication that God uses to send us messages.

I believe that there is some truth to each of these theories of dreams, but I will focus on the theory about God using dreams as a mode of communication with us and what I believe his purpose in communicating with us through dreams is. Although I do believe that God communicates with us through dreams, I dont believe that every dream that we have is from God or even God attempting to communicate with us. Since I believe that some dreams are from God and others arent, this poses the question, How do you know which dreams are from God and which ones arent?. This is a difficult question to answer because there is no scientific answer to this question. My answer to this question is that you will know in your spirit. In other words, the inner voice will say this dream meant something.

Your spirit may even be troubled when you wake up like Nebuchednezzar was in the Bible after he had a dream from God. In the Bible, in Daniel 2:1, it says Nebuchednezzar had dreams; his mind was troubled and he could not sleep. I believe that this was his spirit communicating to him that there was a message in the dreams for him and maybe others. Also, in the Bible, in the book of Daniel 7:15, Daniel states that after having a dream, that he was troubled in spirit and the visions that passed through his mind disturbed him. When I have had dreams that I believe are from God, the same thing has happened to me when I have awoken from a dream from God. I usually will first remember the dream or many parts of it very vividly. Next, I feel unsettled in my spirit, as if something needs to be resolved or settled.

After establishing that God does in fact, communicate with us through our dreams just as he did with Daniel and Nebuchednezzar, and Joseph in their dreams, you may have been wondering why. Why would God choose to communicate with us through our dreams? I believe that God has 6 purposes for communicating to us through our dreams and it is up to us along with our communication with the Holy Spirit to discern which purpose he has for communication with us.

The first purpose that I believe God uses dreams for is to call us to pray or intercede for ourselves and/or others. Sometimes God gives us dreams to call on us to pray about a situation or for a person. If we have a dream about someone or something that we know is not positive, even if we dont know the interpretation of the dream, we can pray and intercede about the situation or for the individual(s). Prayer changes things, so if we are obedient, we can change someones outcome for the better.

The second purpose for our dreams may be to warn us. God may want to warn us about a direction we are headed in or a decision that we are about to make that may be outside of his will and that may lead to destruction. In the Bible, in the book of Daniel, chapter 4, God gave Nebuchednezzar a dream to warn him. King Nebuchednezzar was warned in his dream, that if he didnt acknowledge that God is more powerful than man and things, his power and riches would be taken away from him. Nebuchednezzars warning was to acknowledge and turn to God or lose his earthly privileges. Having this dream and having it interpreted by Daniel, a Godly man, gave Nebuchednezzar the opportunity to take action to avoid disaster and calamity in his life. God gives us this same opportunity if we heed and are obedient to God.

The third purpose for God give us dreams is to give us hope. The Bible says in the Book of Proverbs 13:12 that "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." You may be experiencing a dark time in your life and you may be tempted to throw in the towel and give up. God may give you a dream to show you the light that lies ahead and to give you hope in your future. Having a visual image of a dream that he births in us gives us the opportunity to think about and hold onto that vision when things arent going the way we hoped or planned.

The fourth purpose for dreams is to encourage us and encourage others. This goes along with hope, but it may be a bit more subtle. God may want us to share a positive dream with the person we dreamed about to encourage them, or he may just want to encourage us that he is with us and hasnt forsaken us.

The fifth purpose may be to give us confirmation about something that he has either already tried to communicate to us either through our spirit or through someone else. Also, if we asked God for confirmation for something, he may give it to us through our dreams.

Finally, I believe that God communicates with us through our dreams sometimes to let us know that he is God. It is hard to forget or disbelieve in the power of God when he is using something like dreams to communicate with people and ordinary people like Daniel and I to interpret dreams.

If you believe that God has been communicating to you through your dreams, do the following : 1. Pay close attention to them; 2. Write them down in a dream journal as soon as you wake up from the dream, so that you capture all of the important details; 3. Obey his instructions and heed to his warnings, in other words, pray for yourself and others immediately when he calls on you, act when he gives you confirmations that require action, always hold onto hope, and always give God all of the Glory!

If you are interested in having a dream interpreted, sharing your dreams with others, or simply being a part of a discussion group and learning more about dreams, please visit my website at www.dreamsinterpret.com. Try it out for free.

Written by : Lisa M. Kohut

Backup Plans Feel Good

Affirmations Don't Work, and How I Finally Got That They Do!

If you've been around the EFT world for any length of time at all, you'll know it's generally believed that affirmations don't work. Until now that is, with this powerful new work by the masterful metaphysician Dr Sylvia Hartmann, called "Power Affirmations".

I like Sylvia Hartmann's approach to life and healing in general, so when I received an email about her new book I thought I'd have a read of her sales page anyway, even though I'm fairly convinced that affirmations pretty much don't work. Why they don't work is that we all have subconscious but powerful limiting beliefs, or "yes-buts", that trigger an internal argument or discomfort when we make statements that are clearly not true.

But, I trust Sylvia and I know she would not be wasting her time or mine writing about something that just doesn't work. Still, I did think - "What, Sylvia's writing about affirmations? Why?" - before I actually clicked on to her site. And I liked what I read, enough to decide that $20 wasn't a huge risk if it turned out to be more of the same old affirmation stuff, and I bought the book.

At just 40 pages "Power Affirmations" is a quick read in Sylvia's very conversational easy-read style.

Now, I have read a lot about positive affirmations, because part of me wants it to be true that making clear statements about how I want to experience life, will be enough to make it happen. For at least fifteen years I've studied many books and DVDs about affirmations, attended lectures, listened to the audios, run a subliminal program on my computer, and in more recent years even joined a membership site or two, all in the quest to find the key that would unlock the door that I would step through to finally "get it"!

But I never did get it. Everything I discovered seemed like so much soul-searching was required, and constant focus, and it was all something I would put off actually doing until I had more time. And the EFT explanation for WHY I didn't get it made sense; all my yes-buts were getting in the way. I've diligently worked on finding my yes-buts and clearing them, and I know there's a long way to go still.

I also know I've got to "feel" the result I want, because charging it up with emotion makes the affirmation more powerful. I teach people how to process their emotions, I know how to process my own, I GET the emotion stuff. But I just couldn't get connected to the big house or the flashy car or really any other hook. So I also couldn't visualize any of it - very frustrating!

But Dr Hartmann taught me, in two pages, how to put the emotion and the pictures in to anything! It is so simple, and so clear, why didn't I see it before? And that's what I love about her teaching style - she understands where most people trip over the basics, shows you how to step over and up, and then takes you deeply and easily into how and more importantly WHY to create your own affirmations.

She also taught a simple amazingly-powerful way to completely nix the yes-buts. I tried it and felt the most incredible shift in my energy, that was really unexpected. I'll be using it every day, easily and seamlessly!

She also covers things I've not read elsewhere, like meta affirmations and affirmation cascades, and her own unique Vega Pattern.

If you're looking for a book that gives you lists of affirmations about any particular subject, this is not the book for you. There are no lists. Also, Sylvia Hartmann has long explored the evolution of consciousness using the language of magic. This makes sense to me, but it might not make sense to you.

For just 40-some pages, this is an information-packed ebook. More importantly, it's an action-packed ebook, with teaching and tools that actually work! At the end of Power Affirmations, all I can say about it is: I get it. Finally!

If you want to finally "get" how affirmations can and will work for you, and how you can powerfully transform anything about your life, get your clarity from http://www.affirmationsdontwork.info.

Developing Wealth Building Habit

Moral Leadership of The Christian Community

The presidential election of 1992 introduced the discussion of
family values as a political issue. Apparently the populous
did not accept this issue as being significant. Christian
organizations were reluctant to enter political activities so
they did not push the concept of family values as being a
religious imperative.

Do some of these issues seem too "political" for the Christian
community to become involved? Are not, however, some of these
issues important enough to be hammered home by the clergy of
this country? When is sin significant enough to talk about
it?

ABOLITIONIST MOVEMENT

"Amazing Grace" was written by a slave trader who came to know
Jesus and his life changed dramatically. John Newton was a
sailor on a slave ship. After his conversion, he became an
Anglican minister and influenced Wilberforce against Slavery.

William Wilberforce, along with John Newton and Granville
Sharp lived in England in the late 1700's. These three men
stopped slavery in England and throughout the British Empire.
Sharp's work led to the emancipation of slaves in England in
1772 while the work of Wilberforce led to the abolition of
slave trade and the emancipation of slaves throughout the
British Empire.

Key Evangelical Christian leaders in the United States
included Samuel Hopkins, Lyman Beecher, Charles G Finney, John
Brown, Theodore Weld, Jonathan Blanchard, and Harriet Beecher
Stowe. These individuals preach Christ for the salvation of
the individual but also saw the total injustice of slavery in
the "land of the free". Abolition was not a hobby with them.
It was also not all they did. They were also Evangelical
Christians. Their efforts led to the abolition of slavery in
the United States and the emancipation of the slaves of
America.

AND NOW

The involvement of Christian leaders throughout modern church
history demonstrates the historical basis of involvement of
the church in secular affairs. Social reform is the business
of the church. Social reform is not "socialism". Social
reform is not "government handouts" or "entitlement". Social
reform is moral leadership.

Christian lifestyle is a moral lifestyle. Moral leadership is
not the imposing of "blue laws" or "religious fanaticism".
Moral leadership deals with life and death issues. It deals
with freedom under God. Christian morals protect life and
property, things that even non-Christians cherish. Decisions
concerning morality must not be left to the atheists and to
the anti-Christians.

Christian leaders must take the initiative in developing a
corporate moral character for the country and the world. We
Christians are the "salt of the earth and if that salt loses
its taste, just what is it good for." These words in quotes
are not my words but Jesus's words. Perhaps we better start
applying the "salt".

Doug Johnson has been writing and online publishing Christian and Social Conservative articles since the 1990's on http://www.IndependentChristian.org/

Doug has been a Bible believing Evangelical Christian since childhood. He has been received into fellowship with the Evangelical Free Church, the Plymouth Brethern, the Assembly of God, the American Baptist, and the Southern Baptist.

In the early 2000's, he was received into full communion with the Catholic Church after careful study of the Catholic Catechism and the Bible. He believes Catholics and Bible believing Protestants should build on what they have in common rather than looking at what is different.

He is presently helping to establish the Independent Christian On-Line Academy at: http://www.ICOLA.us

Doug has an online retail wallpaper business at: http://www.TheWallpaperPirate.com/

Doug is available as a consultant and or speaker. To reach him, use the Contact Us page at any of the above websites.

Developing Wealth Building Habit

Smart Thinking - Saving Money For the Future

While we are all aware of the importance of putting away money for the future, the reality is that saving doesn't come naturally to most of us. When it comes to putting money away, setting "smart" goals is the first step in finding the motivation to save.

What are "smart" goals? SMART is a popular acronym for specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. These five characteristics are vital for setting goals and the acronym provides an easy way to remember each of them.

When it comes to saving money it is important to make sure a goal is specific. Rather than telling yourself that you need to put away a little money each month, set a specific figure. This will give you a balance to base the rest of your monthly spending around, as well as a measuring stick to see whether or not you are achieving it.

Why is it important to have measurable goals? If a goal is not measurable, it's difficult to know whether you are actually achieving your goal. A measurable goal means that you will be able to monitor your success and hopefully this will give you a boost to continue saving.

To really achieve a goal it is important to take an action-orientated approach and hone in on all the proactive steps you need to take to achieve that goal. Ask yourself what actions are needed in order make this ambition a reality. From deciding how much to save, to deciding which savings accounts offer the best deals - all of the actions you take will form a vital part of achieving that goal.

While breaking your goal down into mini-actions is extremely important, it is even more important to make sure the goal set is realistic. Is the figure you have set yourself going to over-stretch your budget? Do you have any major outgoings over the next few months which could hinder this goal being achieved? If your goals are not realistic, they will only cause you anxiety; therefore, it makes more sense to save little and often, as opposed to setting an unreachable target.

The final step to smart goal setting is making sure your goals are timely, which refers to having an overall timeframe for your goal. It can also help to set some timely milestones to monitor your progress along the way. In a similar way to setting mini-actions towards your overall goal, setting mini-milestones breaks the process down into shorter, simpler steps - making the goal seem all the more achievable.

When considering your savings and the savings accounts which will work best for you, it is all about thinking smart. While it may take a little extra time to set your goals the smart way, it could pay dividends in the long-run.

Victoria Cochrane writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content

You Have To Start Somewhere

Change Your Life Forever

Finding something you don't like about yourself is usually very easy for most people. Most of the time you don't even have to ask your family or friends because you have heard them complain about the same thing for years. How many times have you heard someone mention, I need to lose weight?

Here's a list of things people don't like about themselves. If you're one of those people that has a hard time finding something wrong with yourself, you could always ask one of your friends for some suggestions. I'm sure they would like that.

1. The need to lose weight. This of course is one of the worst problems with Americans. Most people need to lose weight and let's not forget there are some people that need to gain weight.

2. The need to stop gambling. As more Indian reservations are allowed to build gambling casinos and of course as the Internet gambling gets larger, I've noticed some people with gambling problems.

3. The need to stop drinking alcohol. The abuse of alcohol has been going on for many years. These people have an excuse for why they drink and most of the time it doesn't make sense.

4. The need to stop smoking. This could be one of the most difficult things I've ever seen my friends and family deal with.

5. The need to stop excessive behaviors. For example, gossiping, cruelty, bullying, lying, cheating, stealing, partying etc. You get the idea.

6. Don't forget the dreaded shopaholic. Most shopaholic's seem to have large credit card debt and can't seem to stop this vicious circle of buying and owing money to their creditors.

7. Working long hours or the workaholic. Sometimes this is a necessity but I would suggest that you change your lifestyle if possible. Reevaluate your reasons for working so hard.

8. Religious fundamentalists. People that spend too much time at their place of worship and soon find themselves feeling guilty if they're not doing something spiritual.

9. The need to be on time. This would include people that have problems giving themselves enough time to get ready for work or school.

10. The need to stop doing drugs. I thought by now, approaching my 50s, that drugs would no longer be a problem in the United States, but it is. It's one of the most damaging things people can do to their lives.

There are plenty of things that people would like to stop doing or start doing. If you're a smoker and you seem to shop excessively near the casinos, I would advise you to start with something small and work your way up to the big stuff.

What are you going to change today about your life? Make a list of things that you're not happy with about your life and start making the changes today that you need to create the life you deserve and desire.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development

Greg is currently working on a personal development video library filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion

Habits To Prevent Losing Things

How to Forgive Someone

Weve all heard the saying, You have to forgive, but you dont have to forget. I wont refute that, but you have to agree that a lot of people use that excuse to never really forgive at all. Are you one of those people?

Lets rephrase it a little. You have to forgiveand you have to forget the anger, the pain, the anxiety, and everything else that comes with someone sinning against you. But you dont have to make yourself a target (even though Jesus did). Sound a little more difficult? This is really the Christian way of life, and its going to be difficult. No one promised you would enjoy it.

So well start with the forgiveness. This is where you have the most control, because its an act of will. You have to decide to forgive, and then do it. Heres a short list of what this involves:

No more daydreaming about your perpetrators pain and suffering.

Stop thinking about the what if outcomes, and accept what happened.

Start praying for the person. Not for their punishment, not for them to see the lightpray for their good and their soul. Say a simple Hail Mary, without meditating on the one youre praying for. Meditate on the words, and dedicate it to your perpetrator. Let God decide how to reward or punish them.

If you can do something nice for the person, do it without grumbling and without reminding them of what they did wrong.

Stop gossiping about them.

Every time you find yourself thinking about it, change the subject. Think about the starving kids in China, your financial problems, Baby Jesusanything.

Now that (believe it or not) is the easy part. Now it comes time to deal with the anger and pain. Sometimes its easy. But in cases of serious violation, or when someone hurts a loved one, the very idea sounds idiotic. And no, youll never completely let go, but you can completely try. And you can start by using some of the techniques listed above.

Youll probably have to take it further. Youll have to swallow those emotions. Bury them deep. Yes, Im going against what every therapist out there is preaching, but talking and sulking is no way to get over anything. Youve had your period of pity; its time to move on. When you feel the flame of anger building inside you, force it to the back of your mind, and let it die. Dont waste another second of your life stewing. Itll take practice, but every day is another chance.

Finally, theres that last part. This is where most of us have trouble. This is also where we have to weigh our duties, and choose whats most important. Here are a few questions to help you sort it out:

Does it involve someone under your protection? Im talking mainly to parents. Our children obviously come first, and were never obligated to put them in danger.

Does it involve a sexual violation? I dont have to go into this. If someone isnt treating your body like a Temple of Christ, then stay away from them.

Does it involve injury? The big question here is How much? A school boy shouldnt offer himself out to the wedgie bully, but a pop in the arm is usually more a matter of humiliation than personal injury. If your body is being harmed by someone, you have a right to stop thembut again, Christ didnt. Also, consider how likely the person is to harm you again. If it was a one-time event, you should let go. On a side note: Repeated domestic violence has several victims, especially children. And track records show that very few offenders only strike once. If youre trying to figure out whether or not to leave such a situation, stoop thinking and get out.

Does it involve personal property? Whos property? If youre raising a family, you cant risk everything and ignore their needs. But ask yourself if the amount stolen or damaged property is worth the hassle of never trusting someone again.

Does it involve your good name? Hunker down and forget about it. The truth will set you free. Lies hurt the liar more than anyone else. If its the truth, then just be more careful of what you saybut dont withhold something begrudgingly.

Written by the copywriters at http://copyforsale.com, where you can find free content for your Christian newsletters and websites.

Aristotle