Month: March 2010

Beyond Happy Thoughts to Empowerment

Today’s Thought:

“Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action.”
~ Benjamin Disraeli

beautiful smileMany people equate positive thinking with naiveté. Thinking “happy thoughts”, they point out, in the face of tragedy or difficulty is unrealistic.

There seems to be a defensiveness in that line of thinking. It renders as, “If I let my guard down enough to think ‘happy thoughts’ when things are tough, I’m going to get hurt. So, I’m going to steel myself against that possibility by thinking negative (um, realistic) thoughts.”

I can’t think of a better time to think “happy thoughts” than in the face of struggle. The challenge is whether or not you can. It’s not so easy to face down injustice, sadness, depression, and hatred with a sense of peace and a wise smile. It takes incredible strength and fortitude to do that and we, this blogger included, often fail miserably.

Negativity (um, realism) is like a powerful gravity well sucking us into its depths. We become caught up in negativity (um, realism) and we find ourselves getting more negative (um, realistic) by the moment. A “happy thought” is a very good thing at that moment. it changes the perspective. After all, the overwhelming majority of stresses we feel in our lives are rooted in our thinking. Maybe, just maybe, changing your thoughts changes the situation.

“Happy thoughts” are beneficial, but only a beginning. Empowered thinking is the ultimate goal. Empowered thinking changes the dynamic from throwing “happy thoughts” against a stressful world to actually feeling strong enough to act for change.

Three elements of Empowered Thinking

  1. Thought aspect – you have to think positively. Belief and commitment are important in any endeavor. Positive thinking is imperative to maximize those attributes. Positive thinking is the basis for empowered thinking, but empowered thinking is more than just positive thinking. It incorporates two more elements.
  2. Knowledge aspect – you have to be informed. In achievement pursuits, know what you are trying to achieve and be informed on what is going to be involved in succeeding. Knowing that ahead of time can help you prepare mentally for it. When empowering your thinking to critically evaluate information (such as in politics) you need to know as many of the facts as possible. Positive thinking and a lack of information do not allow you to take powerful action.
  3. Action aspect – empowered thinking is more than just thinking and knowing. Empowered thinking includes action. If you have incorporated the first two elements, your actions can be motivated and informed.

While “happy thoughts” may provide you a kind of protective shield; empowered thoughts help you break out of your shell and move forward towards a better you, a better life, and a better world.

Stay inspired!

Ray

Ray Davis is the Founder of The Affirmation Spot and focuses on empowering minds to think positively, achieve goals, and live dreams.

anunnaki_cover_full_colorRay’s 2015 speculative fiction novel, Anunnaki Awakening: Revelation, is turning heads. Where did humanity really come from and where is it going? This is Book 1 of a trilogy. The Awakening has begun!

Learn more about the trilogy and order your signed copy today at AATrilogy.com.

The Night Sky: Our World Miracles II – The Affirmation Spot for Monday March 29, 2010

There are miracles all around us! Our world is filled with them. It’s easy in our hustle, bustle lives to forget to breathe and see those miracles.

Thankfully, in our modern age, more of our world’s miracles are right there for us see from the comfort of our computers. I’ve always had a strong interest in the night sky. I don’t know all my Messier objects. In fact, that much awareness would ruin the experience for me.

I have always found looking into the depths of space an exercise in looking face-to-face with eternity. How vast and ancient those stars are. Are there other civilizations out there going about their business as unaware of us as we are of them? Finally, there is just the raw beauty of it.

Today’s miracle is a time lapse video of the night sky I discovered on YouTube. It was captured at Ayers Rock – one of the most remote locations on Earth in central Australia. So far away from city lights, this magnificent view of the night sky is practically unrivaled anywhere in the world.

Hope it provides a moment’s reflection and reminder of the miracles all around us.

Stay inspired!

Ray

Risk and Reward Quotes and Affirmations

woman_eyes_closed_sun_rsRisk and reward are two concepts that form a pair opposites in our world. Where there is one there is always the other. Everyone wants the rewards, but only some are wiling to take the risks necessary to find the success they desire. Today I am posting some famous quotes, original quotes, and affirmations about risk and reward.

May they inspire you take a chance and go one step beyond your current limits. You might surprised by success, happiness, and satisfaction you discover there.

  1. “We live in a Universe where risk is the currency of reward.”
  2. “The failure to risk failure usually leads to success in failure.”
  3. “Life’s rewards are not a zero-sum game. They are an ever expanding pie that grows as we all grow.”
  4. “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” ~ Anais Nin
  5. “To feel things deeply in our world, is to risk insanity. Not to, is to risk not living at all.”
  6. “The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it but what they become by it.” ~ John Ruskin
  7. “When we risk nothing we are really risking everything.”
  8. “If your life is free of failures, you’re not taking enough risks.” ~ H. Jackson Brown
  9. “Love risks everything for the hope of everything. Hatred risks everything for the hope of nothing.”
  10. “Sharing is its own reward, but usually not its only one.”
  11. “Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes &having fun.” ~ Unknown
  12. “Life never gives you any more than you are willing to risk.”
  13. “Believe me, the reward is not so great without the struggle.” ~ Wilma Rudolph
  14. “The world is full of opportunity and peril and a little of each in the other.”
  15. “Losers visualize the penalties of failure. Winners visualize the rewards of success.” ~ Rob Gilbert
  16. Affirmation: I know that great rewards come with risk. Today I willingly risk it all for my dreams!
  17. Affirmation: I understand that every big breakthrough risks the wrath of conventional wisdom. My idea is so big I take that risk willingly.
  18. Affirmation: Today I push through the risk and claim my reward!
  19. Affirmation: Every relationship risks heartbreak, but there is a relationship out there for me that is worth every risk!
  20. Affirmation: My thoughts are mine! My words are mine! My actions are mine! My rewards are earned!
  21. Affirmation:  Today I an rewarded by the trust I place in others. As my trust grows, so do the dividends.
  22. Affirmation:  Today I courageously challenge my unknowns and reap big rewards!
  23. Affirmation: I see the events in my life not as reward or punishment, but as opportunities to learn and to grow.
  24. Affirmation:  Always and everywhere, I recognize and reward my true accomplishments.

Follow your bliss. Experience your bliss. Become your bliss.

Ray Davis is the founder of The Affirmation Spot. He’s spent more than 25 years studying personal development and especially writing, recording, and using affirmations to achieve his goals. His eBook – The Power to Be You – offers 416 life-changing and original quotes, ideas, and affirmations to take you to new levels of achievement and reflection.

anunnaki_cover_full_colorAnunnaki Awakening: Revelation, Ray’s first novel,  is turning heads and opening minds. Humanity’s past is checkered, secret, and dangerous.

White House Correspondent Maria Love is on to the story of her life and with the help of an Anunnaki leader seeks to unravel and reveal history’s biggest conspiracy. The Awakening has begun!

Whatever I Need Always Comes My Way – The Affirmation Spot for Wednesday March 24, 2010

Today’s Affirmation:

“Whatever I need comes my way.” (hear this affirmation)

During a very difficult part of my life, I used to say this one about 100 times a day. I also used to listen to it when I went to bed at night. I found this thought very effective at responding to the negative thoughts that ruled my life at that time.

It’s a simple affirmation, but contained in it is world of faith, hope, and awareness.

  • Faith: The affirmation communicates faith in its implicit understanding that everything happens for a reason. I know that assertion has almost become trite conventional wisdom. Nonetheless, even science acknowledges discernable patterns in the universe. The Earth does not suddenly begin orbiting the Moon. The ocean tides do not flow in reverse. There is a certain perfection to things. Are our lives an exception? Hardly. When you look back at your life you see that so many things that did not seem to make sense in a moment made perfect sense given perspective. There seems to be a kind of plan to things. You can have faith that the new things coming into your life will also fit into that plan and provide you new opportunities to grow and expand.
  • Hope: The affirmation communicates hope in that it reminds you that there is a flow to things. You are not stuck where we are. New things are coming to you all the time. The universe and your life are in motion constantly. When you get stressed or depressed it is often because you create solidity to a momentary setback. It feels permanent, but it is not. Every day brings new possibilities. “Whatever” is an open book and reminds you that anything is possible.
  • Awareness: The affirmation communicates awareness. Notice it says “whatever I need” not “whatever I want”. The concept here is that there is a certain intelligence or wisdom in the events, people, and things that come your way in life. There are no accidents. Because that is so, you can be confident that you have the wherewithall to handle these things. You really can take lemons and make lemonade. You can handle setbacks and move forward to new levels of achievement.

Stay inspired!

Ray

The Power of Persistence – The Affirmation Spot for Wednesday March 17, 2010

Today’s Thought:
Success is not just about winning. Wins come and go. Success is about persistence all the way to your dream.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all. Today is a day when people think about being lucky. Luck certainly plays a role in life’s success, but your odds of success go way up when we work single-mindedly toward our goals.

The Greek historian Herodotus wrote: “Some give up their designs when they have almost reached the goal; while others, on the contrary, obtain a victory by exerting, at the last moment, more vigorous efforts than ever before.”

He was speaking of the quality of persistence. You know stick-toitiveness, an unwillingness to give up. It is the first and mandatory prerequisite for all success in life.

Think about it. Have you ever seen anyone win a 100 meter dash by stopping at the 50 meter mark? Have you ever seen a football team leave the field in the third quarter and win? Have you ever seen a best-selling author who stopped after a few rejection letters? The first two instances would result in disqualification and the latter instance – well, that person would never be known as a best-selling author.

Life always disqualifies us when we give up. No dream ever came true by quitting half way to it. We need persistence. We need an attitude that reminds us, in the face of setback, that we are on a mission to accomplish something big.

History has few tales of those who almost did something. We remember those who actually accomplished. There is no record of those who stopped when one more try would have made all the difference. Who almost invented the light bulb, the automobile, the computer? There might have been thousands of people who almost did, who had the potential, who woulda, coulda, shoulda. We only remember who actually did.

Give today your all! Give your dreams your best! Leave nothing on the field in their pursuit.

The question you have to ask yourself today is, “Am I the next J.K. Rowling?” or “Am I the next Michael Jordan?” or “Am I the next person who was almost one of them, but remains forever anonymous because I gave up just short of the goal?”

A greatness lives within each of us and it is there for us to discover when we stay persistent.

The choice every single day is ours!

Stay inspired!

Ray