Self Improvement and Success

The world offers many different ways to improve yourself. You can improve your body by making it look younger, thinner or more fit. You can improve your mind through education, reading, and sharing in others' knowledge. You can improve your lifestyle by getting a different job, earning more money or buying successively bigger homes and cars and purchasing more material goods. All of these things can make your life appear to be better on the outside. But the outside is not what is important.
The focus on continuously improving yourself on the outside implies that you are not already perfect. And it ignores the fact that the outside is merely a reflection of what is happening on the inside.

You exist in perfection in every part of your life, at every moment in your life.Everything in your life is there to fulfill the purpose that you established for it.

The constant drive for self improvement that exists on a material level serves as a distraction to remind you that you could be better if you were different.

What is wrong with the way you are right now? Will you be happier if you are thinner more educated or drive a new car? Happiness is derived from the inner you, no matter what the outer you looks like.

You can use outside sources to change or improve your life but the mindset that created it is still there. The Self cannot be improved upon because it exists in perfection, as do you.

What you can improve on is the beliefs that you have used to
create your reality and focus on inner self improvement. Once you have accomplished the inner work, the results will be manifested in the outer you. Energy moves from within you to the outside world. Improving yourself on the outside to make the inside feel better is a never-ending cycle that will not lead to happiness or fulfillment.

Finding what brings you joy is the first step to self improvement. Doing what you love and are passionate about will remove the focus from what is 'wrong' with you and your life to creating what you want in your reality. Once you see yourself as perfect on the inside, the outside reality will change accordingly. And the effects will be permanent and long lasting and then you can pursue external self improvement with activities that bring you joy instead of trying to fix what is 'wrong' with you.

This week, consider what you are doing to improve yourself on the outside.

What could you be doing on the inside to make that happen more easily? Remember that you are already perfect exactly as you are and your goal is to bring heaven with its joy, peace and unconditional love into your life. Do that on the inside and it will manifest on the outside.

Jennifer Hoffman

Visit http://www.selfimprovement-and-success.com for other measures of Self Improvement.

Jim Kelley

LIFE IN THE 1500's

The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be.

Here are some facts about the 1500s:

These are interesting...

Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor.
Hence, the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and
men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By then, the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it.
Hence the saying, Don't throw the baby out with the Bath water..

Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof.
Hence the saying . It's raining cats and dogs.

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection.
That's how canopy beds came into existence.

The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt.Hence the saying, Dirt poor. The wealthy had slate floors that would get
slippery in the winter when wet,so they spread thresh(straw) on floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on,they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entrance way.
Hence the saying a threshhold..

In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to
the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while.
Hence the rhyme, Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old..

Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special.When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon..
They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around and chew the fat..

Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning
death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous.

Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf,the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper crust.

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whiskey. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along
the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up.
Hence the custom of holding a wake.

England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the
bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would
have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by the bell or was considered a dead ringer..

And that's the truth?
Now, whoever said History was boring?

Not sure whether any of these are true or not true, but it does make for an interesting read, don't you think?

Jim

One of the keys to reaching your goals is to eliminate any escape routes.

It is tempting to retreat to safety and comfort when challenges and difficulties arise. To avoid turning around and abandoning your goals, you must make going forward more compelling then going back.

When striving towards a goal, you must focus on what you want to obtain and avoid the impulse to go back to what you know and to what is comfortable.

When Spanish Conquistador Hernando Cortez landed in Mexico, one of his first orders to his men was to burn the ships. Cortez was committed to his mission and did not want to allow himself or his men the option of going back to Spain. By removing this option, Cortez and his men were forced to focus on how they could make the mission successful.

Eliminating an escape route creates a compelling reason to focus on the goal and to keep moving forward. However, it is important to keep in mind that although Cortez had his men burn the ships, he did not have them burn the food and supplies.

Cutting off an escape route to increase motivation and create the desire to press on where you might otherwise give up is totally different from throwing caution to the wind and taking undue risks. Reaching your goals still requires prudent planning and managing.

All goals contain a certain degree of risk, but it isn't necessary to create undue risk and stress by not properly planning and thus lacking the necessary tools and supplies to achieve your goal. Take risks, but don't be careless or foolish and simply hope that everything will be okay.

Before you decide to burn your ships, make sure you have the supplies and tools necessary to achieve the goal.

Something like quitting your job might sound like a good way to close the escape route, but it might also be a fast way to bankruptcy if you don't have resources to carry you through.

Creating a savings account balance or having a journey job (a job that is a stepping stone to what you really want) allows you to take the risk of leaving your current job without creating undue risk.

I once took a six-month leave of absence from a job while I was deciding if I wanted to move to a different state. Although it was difficult making the transition as I was very homesick, once I found a job in my new location, I resigned from the job I had waiting for me because I knew it would be too tempting to go back.

Close off the escape routes and make sure that you have a compelling reason to move forward. However, at the same time, make sure that you plan for the risk and have the tools, supplies and resources you need to achieve your goals.

You can't eliminate risk but you can plan for it. Don't just jump in without thinking through the process and having a solid plan for moving forward.

Jim

P.S. For Self-Help tools and resources, visit http://jimsuggests.com/Presents/sis Then select the program that is best for you.

You are NEVER too old to realize your dreams or goals.

Here is a story of someone with that mindset....

62-Year-Old Reaches North Pole

Ever struggle to achieve a goal? I’m about to remove your excuses –forever. Raymond Aaron, at the age of 62, heard about a crazy thing called the Polar Race.

This is a race where a handful of extreme athletes travel 350 miles across arctic ice fields to reach the Magnetic North Pole. Using only skis and sleds. Under their own power. No motors. No kidding.

And Raymond did what many don’t ever do – he finished the race. Alive. So what’s your excuse for not achieving your goals?

Raymond pushed himself beyond human limits – and did something well beyond the abilities of most people half his age.

"The Polar Race is by far the toughest thing I've ever done," says Raymond. "I would never do it again.”

Then he smiles. “But I highly recommend doing it once."

So how tough was it, really?

Raymond spent April in the Arctic, racing to the Pole with competitors half his age, pulling a 100-pound sled, skiing the equivalent of a marathon every day. He lost a pound of body weight every day.

At times, he thought he might die.

At times, he wanted to quit.

But quitting the Polar Race is not an option. If you want to live, you keep moving.

Raymond endured the hardships of the subzero temperatures, fields of ice rubble, and dragging that hundred pound sled behind him. He suffered frostbite on his face.

One night, Raymond lay in his sleeping bag listening to a polar bear rummage around his campsite.

The coldest day of the race came just four days into the three-week ordeal. The race teams forced themselves to move through a bone shattering -68°day.

"It's hard to describe because it's so shocking. Cold wind instantly freezes you. Its just so frightening." says Raymond.

While it was the most difficult thing Raymond had ever done, it also turned out to be the most rewarding.

Completing the race was a triumph few people will ever know.

"I learned that I could go beyond what I thought were my limits," says Raymond. "We are capable of much more than we believe we are capable of."

“Anyone can do just about anything they set their mind to,” Raymond says. “And I’m living proof.”

So, set your goals and start improving on your life area that needs improving.

For resources on Self Help, go to
http://www.selfimprovement-and-success.com

Just do it!

Jim Kelley