Don't Listen!

Vincent Van Gogh, the famed Dutch painter, wrote: "If you hear a voice within you say 'You cannot paint', then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced". How often are you conditioned by what others say? How easily are you made change your mind, start doubting yourself, believe that you "can't"? The voice of the world is sometimes too loud for you to resist, so you allow it to become your "inside" voice. When this happens, you can't help but be prey of negativity and lose your self-confidence. If you challenge it, though, and trust in your potential, you will see how capable are you to overcome the non-existent limits that others have created around you.

Light and Shade

If you stand with your back towards the sun, your sight is in shade, but if your turn around, everything becomes clear and light fills your surroundings. This physical experience can be used as an example of how your spiritual attitude can be transformed according to the way you decide to see things. "Seeing" means interpreting the situation you are dealing with, it refers to the attitude you choose to have. If you tend to judge things negatively, your sight becomes shadowy, blurred, you can't distinguish the truth clearly, whereas if you assume a positive way of thinking, you become more alert. You become "aware". The former way of being makes you tense, the latter grants you serenity.

Style vs. Fashion

What is the difference between fashion and style? Some think there is no difference between the two. Wrong! Why? Because fashion is a popular trend while style could be defined as a way of being.You may believe that if you are fashionable, you also have style, that if you wear the latest clothes you are undoubtedly elegant. It is not so. You may follow the newest trends and still have no style. On the other hand, you may wear a simple, even old-fashioned apparel, and look like a million dollars. How come? It seems that style is  an innate quality, a way of carrying oneself, a demeanor that makes one stand out of the "crowd". Can style be learned? It may....or it may not! 
("Fashions fade, style is eternal.", Ives Saint-Laurent)

Your Behavior Matters

Do you ever think about the effect that your behavior may have on others? Do you believe that the way you behave affects the people you deal with on a daily basis? Actually, it does. If you were really convinced of such truth, you would be a little more careful when you interact with those around you. It may happen that you do or say hurtful, unkind things without stopping an instant to weigh the possible consequences of your actions or words. When you take it too easy, when you are somehow careless about your conduct, thinking that it doesn't matter and that you are entitled to express yourself in any way you want...well, think again. You can still do and say what you want without hurting someone else's feelings.

To Know or Not To Know

Are you able to say, "I don't know."? Can you admit your 'ignorance'? Most people can't. By admitting that they don't have any or enough knowledge of a certain fact, happening or situation, they believe they demean themselves. They don't realize that the opposite is true. When you insist on trying to convince another of your incorrect statement or opinion, you end up making a fool of yourself. There is no shame in not knowing something. No-one knows everything. Unfortunately, in our competitive world, many have grown to believe that such admission would be a sign of weakness, of inferiority. They need to feel "superior" at all costs.

You Can Choose

Is your environment beautiful, natural, exciting, uplifting, friendly? Or is it dull, boring, depressing, fake? What makes it the way it is? Besides the physical features (city or country, seaside or mountains, hot weather or dry weather etc.), what mainly defines your surroundings are the people in your life. "They" greatly contribute to your general well-being. Family members and colleagues cannot be discarded so easily, but friends can. It's up to you to decide who you want or don't want to see on a regular basis. You have the freedom to choose your friends according to how they make you feel. Therefore... choose wisely.

At Last!

When you are anxiously waiting for something, it seems that "it" would never happen. You may become nervous, worried, impatient. But whatever negative feeling you let into your consciousness, it won't help.Things have to follow their course before manifesting so... no use fretting! You must learn to relax more, to trust, to "allow"! The right time to reach your goal will come, the experience or the event you long for will happen when it's meant to. You will then say, "At last!" with great satisfaction, proud of having had the patience to see the whole process through.

Worry

Worrying is a natural, typically human feeling. When you think about something you are afraid of, you worry. When you are not sure about the decision you must make, you worry. When the future is uncertain, you worry. When you feel you are not good enough, you worry. When you have the impression that the world does not appreciate you, you worry. Are all these reasons for worrying justifiable? According to your reasoning, they are. According to reality, they are not. Why? Because by worrying you don't achieve any practical result. You only waste the present moment without actually "doing" anything useful.

The "Unknown"

Change is an essential part of life. When you feel comfortable in your situation, you avoid considering the possibility of any variation in your daily routine. Sometimes you may not feel too comfortable, but you still believe that it's better not to take any chance. So you continue to tread on the same path, day after day after day. Finally, even when you are totally uncomfortable and you "wish" for a change, you don't dare to take action because you are afraid. You are convinced that the old road, no matter how much unhappiness it causes you, it's still better than the "unknown". But... is it?

The Reason Why

Discovering the reason why you were born might be a life-changing experience. Finding out what you are really good at, what is that you want more than anything else, feeling a push towards a great endeavor, finding something that will give meaning to your existence.... 

Can there be anything greater and more fulfilling?

Alien or Real?

An alien, in an old science-fiction movie, says: "It's easier to subdue humans by convincing them through faith in a cause, because in this way they believe they are exercising their free will." 

Do you think that this is a technique that only aliens might think of using or is it already largely employed in our contemporary world?

Solitude

Every now and then, try to enjoy some real solitude in order to focus on your own needs. To be at peace, find a space that is only yours, where you can retire, away from the hassle and bustle of the world.

Being and keeping active is a good thing, but not “all” the time. Your body, your mind and your spirit need to relax, need to simply “be”. When you allow this, you are truly “yourself”.

Goldfish vs Dolphin

Why do you believe you have limitations? Because you were taught so. The conditioning that influenced your life till now is so great that – although some might have been useful at a certain time – it generally created beliefs that keep affecting your actions. You were told that you are unable to go beyond certain boundaries, so you are restricted within set limits never to be overcome. You are like the goldfish which, when let out of its tiny bowl and allowed to swim in a large tub, keeps swimming in a small circle because it believes it is still in the tiny bowl. It never tries to go farther because it “knows” it can’t. But the goldfish is wrong. Anyway, you are not a goldfish but a mighty dolphin that owns the whole ocean! But only if you make this choice.

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