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The Force Within You  
By Paul Bauer  

There is a special Force within all of us - within You, my friend. A Force so powerful that many who abuse it lose control of their lives and fall to the darkside. The dark side full of ego, fear, anger and hatred and greed.  

But you have a quality, a special quality within you that can create miracles and masterpieces. This Force Within You is so powerful that you can re-direct the course of history when you decide that you want to contribute to the evolution of humanity and this beautiful but fragile planet. Study the great sages and saints who have walked this earth before us and you will notice a common theme that runs through all of them: reverence for Life and Nature.  

This magnificent Force within all of us has been used to free slaves, save thousands of lives, enable children to realize their inner potential, and to help people like You to realize thief lifelong Dreams. If you choose to use this Force wisely, you will alter your destiny and the people around you in your world.  

What is The Force?  
The Force is the God power (or Creator) that runs through all things. It is the Life Force that makes the rivers run, the flowers bloom, the stars twinkle and the Heart beat its rhythm of life. When you stop to consider all the things that go on without our conscious awareness or intervention, you'll have a sense of just how powerful this Force really is. You can also learn how to channel this Force to your benefit.  
  

How can I use the Force?  
Great question. Like any skill or discipline, learning the art of The Force takes great patience and time to master. Think about any great teacher or mentor that you've had and you'll notice that almost all are over 50 years old. The reason for this is that it takes time and practice to "see through" the normal veils that society teaches people. It can take years to learn the art of quieting your mind - the first and most vital step in mastering the Force.  

The good news is if you have the courage to turn off the noise, the media, and the opinions of other people, the time it takes you to more fully tap this force within you will dramtaically decrease. If, on the other hand, if you choose to depend on others for your spiritual or emotional sustenance, it could take you a lifetime to learn the simplicity that runs through all life.  

As you learn to quiet your mind, you will begin to notice things that you've never noticed before. Life will begin to take on a new meaning, a new depth and joy.  
  

Why is quieting my mind so important?  
Because what you focus on determines what you create - your reality. So, if your mind is a whirlwind of anxiety and unrest, you will create a world of anxiety and unrest. But take the time to slow down, and you'll begin to notice how your anxieties lessen, your breathing becomes slower, your mind and body calmer, and you begin to feel centered again. With a quiet mind, you will form the foundation for building the life of your Dreams. When your mind is overactive, you literally send out waves of doubt, fear and uncertainty that can undermine your health, well-being, and prosperity.  

But, when you take the time to slow down, you'll begin to create more with less effort, and in time even less effort than you ever thought imaginable - no matter what the intention - assuming it aligns with your higher self and your truest desires.  
  
  

How can I learn more about the Force?  
? Read The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell  
? See any of The Star Wars Films  
? Study any Mentor or Sage that you feel a resonance with.  
  

May the warm sun of your imagination flow easily, effortlessly as you make your Dreams real...  

By Paul Bauer  

Paul Bauer owns DreamsAlive.com - Dream Minder Software helps you with the  
day to day process of turning dreams into reality. Visit:  Dreams Alive!   
  
  

The Magic Ingredient  
  
It happens every day. My dentist relayed to me recently that he was about  
to hire a new member for his office staff. I’ve narrowed the applicants  
down to the final four, he offered, and have pretty much decided who it  
will be. How’d you decide? I asked. His reasoning was simple. It echoed  
the results of a nation-wide survey of business hiring executives reported  
in the Wall Street Journal not too long ago. You see, everyone’s looking  
for it. It has incredible value. We like, love, and respect people who  
have it. It’s results seem almost magical. If you’ve already got it, you  
know it (and are undoubtedly reaping the benefits). If not, you also know  
it. The good new is, it doesn’t depend on how well you did in school,  
doesn’t take years to develop, nor cost a bunch of money. What is it?  

Attitude.  

Attitude is a reflection of the person inside. And while the external  
circumstances in your life might go crazy from time to time, you can  
always chart your own path by grabbing onto a great attitude. Viktor  
Frankl, psychologist and survivor of the holocaust in World War II,  
observed the following: We who lived in concentration camps can remember  
the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their  
last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer  
sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing:  
the last of the human freedoms- to choose one’s attitude in any given set  
of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.  

Are you getting the results you want?  

Think about it. Having a great attitude is not the result of having a  
great life; having a great life is the result of having a great attitude.  

Until next time,  
Tim  Autrey  

Copyright ©1999, The Tim Autrey Group, Ltd. Tim Autrey speaks and writes  
as an uncompromising champion of human possibility. Please visit his web  
site at http://www.timautrey.com 
  

Turn Your Problems Into Opportunities  

When faced with problems or setbacks in your life, what is your immediate  
reaction? If you're like most people, you probably curse them. Why did  
this have to happen to me? What am I going to do now? My plans are ruined!  

This response is only natural. However, after the initial disappointment  
wears off, you have a choice to make. You can either wallow in misery and  
dwell on the negative aspects of your situation or you can find the  
benefit or lesson which the problem is offering. Yes, you will probably  
face a period of uncertainty or struggle, but there is always a flip-side  
to the difficulty. You see, a "problem" is often not a problem at all. It  
may actually be an opportunity.  

You probably know or have heard about someone who lost his or her job and  
then went on to start a successful business. In most instances, that  
person will tell you that if he or she had not been laid off, the new  
business would never have been started. How about the times you were  
absolutely convinced that a particular job was perfect for you; you had a  
great interview and just couldn't wait for the offer. And you were  
rejected. Days or months later a new job came along and you realized that  
the first position would not have worked out. The rejection was, in fact,  
a blessing.  

How Adversity Serves Us  
In my experience, adversity can serve us on the following levels:  
1. Adversity gives us perspective. Once you have recovered from a  
life-threatening illness, a flat tire or a leaky roof doesn't seem so  
troubling anymore. You are able to rise above the petty annoyances of  
daily living and focus your attention on the truly important things in  
your life.  

2. Adversity teaches us to be grateful for the many blessings we normally  
take for granted. Through problems and difficulties, especially those  
which involve loss or deprivation, you develop a deeper appreciation for  
many aspects of your life. It's trite but true -- you don't usually  
appreciate something until it is taken away from you. When you have no hot  
water, you suddenly value hot water. Not until you're sick do you cherish  
good health. The wise person continues to dwell on blessings, even after  
the loss or deprivation has passed.  

3. Adversity strengthens us and allows us to discover a reservoir of  
previously untapped abilities. After surviving a difficult ordeal or  
overcoming an obstacle, you emerge emotionally stronger. Life has tested  
you and you were equal to the task. Then, when the next hurdle appears,  
you are better equipped to handle it. Problems and challenges bring out  
the best within us -- we discover abilities that we didn't know we  
possessed. Many of us would never have discovered these talents if life  
hadn't made us travel over some bumpy terrain.  

4. Adversity encourages us to make changes and take action. Most people  
cling to old, familiar patterns regardless of how boring or painful their  
lives have become. It often takes a crisis or a series of difficulties to  
motivate them to make adjustments. Problems are often life's way of  
letting you know that you are off course and need to take corrective  
action.  

5. From adversity, we gain valuable knowledge which we can use at a later  
date. Take the example of a failed business venture: the entrepreneur may  
learn something that enables him or her to succeed spectacularly on the  
next endeavor.  

6. A problem or difficulty leads us to something better. A relationship  
terminates and you go on to a more satisfying relationship. You lose your  
job and find a better one. In these instances, the "problem" is not a  
problem at all, but rather an opportunity in disguise.  

7. Overcoming adversity makes you feel better about yourself. When you  
muster all of your courage and determination to overcome an obstacle, you  
feel competent and gain confidence. You have a greater feeling of  
self-worth and you carry these positive feelings into subsequent  
activities. Sure, you'll have your share of problems and adversities in  
life. I'm not suggesting that when tragedy strikes you deny your emotions  
or refuse to face reality. What I am saying is don't immediately judge  
your situation as a "tragedy" and dwell on how bad off you are. Sometimes  
you won't be able to instantly spot the benefit which will come from being  
in your situation ... but it does exist.  

Don't give up. Continually ask yourself what you have learned from your  
trying experience and focus on moving forward and growing as a person. In  
times of crisis, always strive to maintain an optimistic attitude and an  
open mind -- for this is the environment that will allow you to turn your  
problems into opportunities.  

Jeff Keller  

Jeff Keller is a motivational speaker and delivers his presentations and  
seminars to businesses, groups and trade associations throughout the U.S.  
and abroad. He is the author of the newly released book, Attitude is  
Everything. For more information on Jeff's products and services, visit  
his web site: http://www.attitudeiseverything.com  
  

How knowing what makes you feel alive and passionate can help you more  than just getting "what you wish for".  
By Paul Bauer  

The difference between a goal and a Dream is not just setting a time frame  
for its attainment and then "making it happen". More and more people are  
beginning to realize that their old aspirations that they thought were  
going to make them happy actually make them even more unhappy. A new way  
of thinking has begun in large numbers. People returning to their Dreams.  
The Dreams of their Hearts. Some call it "Living with a Purpose", others  
refer to it as "Right Livelihood".  

Understand that Real Dreams come from your Heart - from your Soul. Your  
Passions in life are inseperably linked with your heart, the place where  
Dreams come from. Knowing this and weaving this principle into your life  
will make profound changes for you and your loved ones and friends. You  
will feel different, more alive, more passionate -more real!  

Realizing your Dreams is a choice! You can decide to take what I call  
"Dream Steps" - those actions that transform your Dreams into reality!  
  

Q. How do I know what my Dreams are and how do I act on them?  
Answer: Ask yourself, "What makes my heart sing?" What have I wanted to do  
for years but haven't done because of some obstacle or belief that I  
perceived?  
Keep in mind that the best time to sense your Dream is when you first  
awake or when you are in a quiet place (preferably in Nature). "When your  
mind is calm, clarity results". Some of the most successful people in the  
world know this, and they make their major decisions from a calm mind.  

Keep in mind that these successful people value balance in their lives  
with major importance.  

Question: "Why shouldn't I just continue working on my goals - everything  
seems to be working?"  
Answer: Ask Yourself, Am I really happy? Or, Am I looking outside for my  
fulfillment rather than inside. You will notice that I often have you ask  
yourself questions - or refer to how you feel inside. The reason for this  
is because deep inside you, there is an incredible source of creativity  
and imagination that you are only beginning to tap. Goals are fine - but  
how do you feel when you accomplish them? Do you feel rewarded? Or just  
like another challenge has been met?  

Know this - Real happiness and satisfaction in life depends upon how you  
embrace what You are passionate about! And only by embracing your passions  
can you achieve the happiness you are destined for.  

For more on how to grow and nurture your passions, click here to see the  
new Dream Minder!  Dreams Alive! 
 
  

FAILURE AND SUCCESS  
by Jim Rohn  
  

Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by the  
person you become.  

Failure is not a single, cataclysmic event. You don't fail  
overnight. Instead, failure is a few errors in judgment,  
repeated every day.  

Don't take the casual approach to life. Casualness leads  
to casualties.  

Success is the study of the obvious. Everyone should take  
Obvious I and Obvious II in school.  

It's too bad failures don't give seminars. Wouldn't  
that be valuable? If you meet a guy who has messed up his  
life for forty years, you've just got to say, "John, if I  
bring my journal and promise to take good notes, would you  
spend a day with me?"  

Success is not so much what we have as it is what we are.  

Success is 20% skills and 80% strategy. You might know how  
to read, but more importantly, what's your plan to read?  

Average people look for ways of getting away with it;  
successful people look for ways of getting on with it.  
  

To order or to get more information on the TTOQ by Jim Rohn,  
or excerpts from the TTOQ by Jim Rohn or Brian Tracy,  
please visit their site and see details on Featured Specials.  
Visit:  Jim Rohn 
 
  

The following is my attempt to answer this often asked question of 
subscribers of The Motivational Message List.   After reading my response, 
I would suggest that you take a few minutes to think about where your true 
motivation comes from. 
 

Motivation is something I have been interested in all of my adult life.  I 
have read several books, listened to countless audio and video tapes on 
the subject, interviewed people who are successful in various areas of 
life, and done a great deal of self-evaluation. 

I must say, to this day, I still find it a fascinating subject!  Everyday 
I apply the techniques I have learned and share them with as many people 
as I possibly can. 

The most powerful lesson I have learned to date, is that motivation must 
come from within.  Sure, people can pump you up, making you feel that you 
can take on the world, but for how long does that last? 

You see, when someone or something motivates you to act, that motivation 
is only as good, and will only have an effect on you, to the degree that 
YOU actually believe and feel PASSIONATE about what it is you are doing.  

Those who are self-motivated truly believe and feel PASSIONATE about their 
actions.  Yes, someone or something may have given them the initial 
jump-start, but for motivation to have a lasting effect, it has to come 
from within.  Please don’t misunderstand what I’m saying here.  ‘Outside’ 
motivation is good, and I believe it is often necessary to get you 
thinking on track.   But in order to stay thinking on track, your 
motivation ultimately, must come from WITHIN. 

How do you get it to come from within?  It’s simple really.  Follow your 
heart and your dreams.  Make those your ‘goals’.   The day that you begin 
to live your dreams, you will begin to feel enthusiastic about life and 
all it has to offer.  And on that day, your true motivation and 
inspiration will come from within. 

All the best, 

Glen Hopkins 
 
 

NITTY-GRITTY REASONS  
by Jim Rohn  

(excerpted from the book Seven Strategies for Wealth  
and Happiness)  
  

Wouldn't it be wonderful to be motivated to achievement by  
such a lofty goal as benevolence? I must confess, however,  
that in the early years of my struggle to succeed, my  
motivation was a lot more down-to-earth. My reason for  
succeeding was more basic. In fact, it fell into the category  
of what I like to call "nitty-gritty reasons." A nitty-gritty  
reason is the kind that any one of us can have -- at any  
time, on any day -- and it can cause our lives to change.  
Let me tell you what happened to me . . .  

Shortly before I met Mr. Shoaff, I was lounging at home one  
day when I heard a knock at the door. It was a timid,  
hesitant knock. When I opened the door I looked down to see  
a pair of big brown eyes staring up at me. There stood a  
frail little girl of about ten. She told me, with all the  
courage and determination her little heart could muster,  
that she was selling Girl Scout cookies. It was a masterful  
presentation -- several flavors, a special deal, and only  
two dollars per box. How could anyone refuse? Finally, with  
a big smile and ever-so politely, she asked me to buy.  
And I wanted to. Oh, how I wanted to!  

Except for one thing. I didn't have two dollars! Boy, was I  
embarrassed! Here I was -- a father, had been to college,  
was gainfully employed -- and yet I didn't have two dollars  
to my name.  

Naturally I couldn't tell this to the little girl with the  
big brown eyes. So I did the next best thing. I lied to her.  
I said, "Thanks, but I've already bought Girl Scout cookies  
this year. And I've still got plenty stacked in the house."  

Now that simply wasn't true. But it was the only thing I  
could think of to get me off the hook. And it did. The  
little girl said, "That's okay, sir. Thank you very much."  
And with that she turned around and went on her way.  

I stared after her for what seemed like a very long time.  
Finally, I closed the door behind me and, leaning my back to  
it, cried out, "I don't want to live like this anymore. I've  
had it with being broke, and I've had it with lying. I'll  
never be embarrassed again by not having any money in my  
pocket." That day I promised myself to earn enough to always  
have several hundred dollars in my pocket at all times.  

This is what I mean by a nitty-gritty reason. It may not win  
me any prize for greatness, but it was enough to have a  
permanent effect on the rest of my life.  

My Girl-Scout-cookie story does have a happy ending. Several  
years later, as I was walking out of my bank where I had  
just made a hefty deposit and was crossing the street to get  
into my car, I saw two little girls who were selling candy  
for some girls' organization. One of them approached me,  
saying, "Mister, would you like to buy some candy?"  

"I probably would," I said playfully. "What kind of candy do  
you have?" "It's almond roca." "Almond roca. That's my  
favorite. How much is it?" "It's only two dollars." Two  
dollars. It couldn't be! I was excited. "How many boxes of  
candy have you got?" "I've got five."  

Looking at her friend, I said, "And how many boxes do you  
have left?"  

"I've got four." "That's nine. Okay, I'll take them all."  

At this, both girls' mouths fell open as they exclaimed in  
unison, "Really?"  

"Sure," I said. "I've got some friends that I'll pass some  
around to."  

Excitedly, they scurried to stack all the boxes together. I  
reached into my pocket and gave them eighteen dollars. As I  
was about to leave, the boxes tucked under my arm, one of  
the girls looked up and said, "Mister, you're really  
something!" How about that! Can you imagine spending only  
eighteen dollars and having someone look you in the face and  
say, "You're really something!"  

Now you know why I always carry a few hundred dollars on me.  
I'm not about to miss chances like that ever again.  

And to think it all resulted from my own embarrassment, that  
when properly channeled, acted as a powerful motivator to  
help me achieve.  

How about you? What nitty-gritty reasons do you have waiting  
to challenging and provoke you into change for the better?  
Look for them, they are there. Sometimes it can be as  
simple as a brown eyed girl selling Girl Scott cookies.  

To Your Success,  
Jim Rohn  

To read more articles, quotes and Q and A from the Jim  
Rohn Weekly E-zine archives, or to get a complete listing  
of Jim Rohn's books, audios, videos and seminar schedule  
or to place an order; please go to  Jim Rohn   
  
  

How to free yourself from your ego and live from your  
True self - your Spirit  

By Paul Bauer  

If we desire true freedom, freedom from any outside 'event' that seeks to  
tie us down, we need to understand the ongoing struggle that our egos  
intend to have with our True selves. Real freedom begins with the ability  
to understand that we are the thinker of the thoughts in our heads, but  
not we are not the thoughts themselves. We create these thoughts, they do  
not create us. We can exercise our ability to 'watch' these thoughts as  
they come in and watch them as they leave-and being aware that watching  
them is a state of strength in itself.  

Q. What do you mean by the phrase "True Self"  
Answer. Your true self is your Spirit. The part of you that has no  
boundaries-no limitations. To understand this is to live your life with no  
fear. Only your ego fears anything. Your True self - your Spirit - knows  
that in order to truly free yourself from your ego and its ceaseless mind  
games, you must face your fears.  

A quote from Guy Finley's insightful book "The Secret of Letting Go" reads:  

"Just dare to proceed even while being afraid. But remember, your new aim  
isn't to be courageous or to try to act strong in the face of fear. No.  
We've seen that this won't work. You simply want to be be more curious  
about your frightened thoughts and feelings than you want to believe in  
them. If you follow this simple but Higher Instruction, not only will you  
start to see these habitual reactions that have been keeping you scared  
and running, you'll actually start seeing through them."  

Try practicing this wisdom in your life. Try to step back from your  
thoughts and sense that you are the thinker of your thoughts, not the  
thoughts themselves.  
  

Q. "How do I know the difference between my true self and my false self"  
(ego)?  

Answer. Ask yourself, "Which provides me more peace?" And sit back and  
watch and see how you react to your own routine thoughts and feelings. As  
you can do this, the light of your True self that once seemed dim will  
continue to brighten.  

Q. "Isn't it better to just move on and not acknowledge the past or the  
pain?"  

Answer. Trying to move beyond a problem without first understanding it is  
like asking for directions from someone who has never traveled the land  
you seek - and with no map. They have been using a map based upon ego -  
What I call the "map of the ego".  
  

Note: If you would like to learn more, click below to see the Dream  
Minder, to help free yourself of old limitations of ego...  
Dreams Alive!