A Mirthful Spirit by Mary Huntley & Edna Thayer - Book Review

Beaver's Pond Press (2007)
ISBN 9781592981656

"A Mirthful Spirit" uses stories, research, quotes, poetry, tips and suggestions by two scholars in the field of mirth and laughter. More than a guidebook for embracing mirth and laughter, "A Mirthful Spirit" provides guidelines for incorporating humor in the workplace, hospitals, and schools to improve productivity, wellness, and creativity.

One of the best things about laughter is that it is contagious. By teaching yourself the techniques and tips for living a mirthful life, one of the biggest benefits is that you will soon find yourself surrounded by people dispersing the joys of living with a mirthful spirit.

From the physical benefits (Initiates Internal Jogging, Thwarts Infections, Alleviates Pain) to mental benefits (Lightens stress, Increases brain-cell functioning), "A Mirthful Spirit" provides a handbook for healthy, happy, humor-filled living.

"A Mirthful Spirit" closes with an intriguing section on the historical and cultural highlights of humor. Even humor has evolved and matured from its beginnings (ridicule) to the healing powers of mirthful living we can access today.

"A Mirthful Spirit: Embracing Laughter for Wellness" is a perfect bedside companion and coffee table book; this is certainly a book to put on your gift lists. Not only will the receiver benefit from the wisdom among its pages, all will benefit from the gift of spreading mirth. Reading "A Mirthful Spirit" will change your outlook on life. Not only will you become happier-everyone will feel your joy and start laughing with you. Huntley and Thayer are firm believers in what one of their heroes, Patch Adams, says, "The most revolutionary act we can commit in the world is to be happy." Go buy a copy of "A Mirthful Spirit" and you too can laugh your way to wellness.

http://www.readerviews.com/

Living Life in the Divine Flow

How would you like every moment of every day to feel like one miracle happening after another? How would you like to accomplish your goals and realize your dreams without undue struggle or strain?

Its possible. Its called living life in the divine flow.

Whether you are consciously aware of it or not, there is a divine flow in your life that is continually guiding you toward the effortless fulfillment of your hearts desires. The trick is learning how to recognize and cooperate with that flow, instead of blocking or restricting your experience of it.

Fortunately, thats not a very difficult thing to learn how to do. In fact, there are two fundamental steps that you can take right now to begin living life in the divine flow.

Step one is to simply pay attention. The divine flow is continually guiding you toward the effortless fulfillment of your hearts desires . . . continually! But to take advantage of that guidance, you must be aware of the subtle ways that the flow is attempting to guide you.

Here are three ways that you receive guidance from the divine flow:

First, you are continually receiving direction from your own intuition. Your intuition is the most valuable and reliable source of guidance you have. It is the spirit of the divine within you. It is the spirit of the divine that is you! Your divine spirit always knows the next right step to take. And it is continually trying to tell you what that step is. So take the time to slow down, get quiet, and listen to that still, small voice. Honor it. Respect it. Follow it.

A second form of guidance comes to you through the wisdom of others. The divine flow often speaks to you through the people who cross your path. It is through their wisdomtheir intuitive guidancethat you are often led to your next right step. That doesnt mean that you have to accept and act on everything that everybody says to you. But you should at least be open and receptive to others, and willing to consider what they have to say.

A third way that the divine flow communicates with you is through signs, coincidences, and synchronicities. These occurrences are not mere chance or happenstance. They are meaningful. They are divinely designed to open doors for you and create opportunities for you in direct response to your desire. But you have to pay attention to those signs and synchronicities. And you have to act on them. You have to go through those doors and take advantage of those opportunities.

Which brings us to the second step for living life in the divine flow: You must let go of what you think you know. The divine flow often guides you to your good in a way that is far differentand far betterthan anything you would ever come up with on your own. But to take advantage of that guidance, you must be careful not to hastily dismiss it or overrule it because you know better.

That doesnt mean that you have to forget everything you have been taught, or ignore the conclusions you have drawn based upon your experience. It simply means that you must keep an open mindand realize that there is always more to know than you currently know. As certain as you are about something, if you are willing to admit that there could still be something that you just havent considered, you will leave an opening in your mind that is wide enough for divine direction to get through.

So there you have it. Let go of what you think you know. And pay attention to the flow. Stop trying to force things to go they way you think they should go, and be willing to move in a direction that is different from what you planned on or expected.

Do those two things, and you will begin to live a life that is dramatically more fulfilling, immensely more joyful, and, on top of it all, remarkably effortless!

Steven Lane Taylor is a spiritual author and speaker now living in Sedona, Arizona. Since the publication of his book, Row, Row, Row Your Boat: A Guide for Living Life in the Divine Flow, Steven has been sharing his message with congregations and organizations all across the country. For more information about Steven and his work, to see where he is speaking and conducting workshops, or to sign up to receive his free weekly inspirational email, visit http://www.rowrowrow.com

Power of Positivity

It is entirely possible to always adopt a positive frame of mind. This can be aided through changing our physiology, paying attention to the language that we use and standing guard over our belief systems.

A positive mental attitude is a powerful prerequisite for motivating ourselves to live the lives that we so richly deserve. It is a must. A positive attitude is a prerequisite for achievement. Without it, little is possible. More can be achieved with an attitude of positive expectancy and anticipation than can be achieved with an attitude of worry and fear.

Positive expectancy leads to a life that can be lived fully and with complete fulfillment. We will be much more inclined to live a life of joy and focus doing what we want to do and doing whatever it takes to achieve that, rather than living a life of fear and worry focusing on all of the 'disasters' that may befall us. The truth is, these 'disasters' may befall us and they may not. As we know, we get what we focus on. This may seem like a clich and yet the reality of it cannot be denied. The key really is not so much about whether 'disaster' may befall us, rather, it is what we do with the 'disaster', how we respond to it, and that is really what makes the difference.

Being positively focused does not mean that you will not feel down sometimes . It does mean, though, that these times become fewer and fewer and last for shorter and shorter amounts of time. It also means that in that place of not feeling entirely positive it is possible to be in that place for that short time knowing that you will come through it, using the strategies I have identified and those you will identify for yourself

I know when I am feeling positive and being positive, it feels like all things are possible. I have many of my best thoughts, my best ideas from this place of positive energy, positive focus. I step into a place of no limits, where all of my limiting beliefs just wash away. An attitude of gratitude is also very significant here. Being grateful for the many lessons and many blessings that life brings us enables us to get stronger, even though in the moment of the lessons (that can otherwise be called challenges) it might not feel as though they are strength-building experiences. I believe that we are never given more than we can bear and in the moments of what might feel like life-threatening, soul-destroying experiences I do take time out to remember that, no matter what, I can handle it because of my fundamental belief that we are never given more than we can handle.

I have recognised that I do have a huge ability to achieve great heights in whatever I choose to do. Residing in this place of certainty enables me to know this beyond any doubt, and it is the power of positive focus that helps me know this. It elevates me to another plane. Being positively focused takes me out of complaining and into taking matters into my own hands to make things the way I want them to be. The questions that I ask myself are entirely different when I am in a positively focused place to when I am a place of negativity. The focus really is on, what can I do here and now to take me to the next level? What do I need to do to enable me to positively focus on coming up with a solution? How can I creatively address this challenge/situation/problem? What do I need to do to get the outcome I want? What do I need to do right now? What can I ask others to do?

The more I locate myself in the landscape of YES I want to do this, I can do this then the question of HOW becomes my focus, rather than I want to do this, it feels impossible so I won't even attempt it. Do I falter sometimes? Yes, I do, of course I do. Do I get up and dust myself off and get on with it? Absolutely. A key focal point for me to remember is every step towards our dream are dreams ultimately fulfilled.

Do not shut yourself down to the art of the possible. It is stunning how many people wire their brain to focus on the impossibility of it all, as they perceive it. When we do this, what comes through are all the reasons that make what you want to do impossible and so crushing the very thing that you say you want. We need to stand guard over our internal dialogue, the dialogue that sabotages the will of our best endeavors.

Some of the internal dialogue that is very prevalent and recognised by many centres chiefly on not being enough, as in.......

I'm not intelligent enough

I haven't got enough money

I haven't got the support

I don't want to do it on my own

I won't succeed

I'm too fat

I'm too thin

I'm too ugly

I'm afraid to succeed

I'm afraid to fail

I'm not good enough

Nobody loves me, etc.

This list could go on forever. In creating these limiting beliefs in our own minds, all that is being done here is that we are creating a false scenario with false evidence to support it and living in a negative fictional land created by us and supported by what has been bought from negative past experiences and then transposing it into the current environment and making it the reality. This becomes self-fulfilling. A false reality created by you and seen as evidence that what you say you want is impossible. We need to find ways to effectively manage this fear.

To download your free 200 page Licence to Live Self Development e-book which is Jam packed with development tools and techniques, quotes, thought provoking ideas. And most of all it challenges you to lead your best life - please go to http://www.answerlife.co.uk/productsnew.html

Hyacinth is a Master Practitioner of NLP and a Master Hypnotherapist. She is a Coach, Consultant and Trainer. Highly regarded and ensures that her solutions are informative, exciting and presented in such a way to ensure all learning styles are catered for. She works with personnel at the highest levels in the private, public and voluntary sectors, up to and including members of the board.

How to Get What You Really Want

I love Wayne Dyer and here's one of his great videos

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 new habits 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 article 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.

My Parents Motivation Using Fear

Sports Psychology - How to Build Self-Confidence - 4 Things Parents, Coaches and Athletes Must Know

There are many text books, self-help books, journal articles and magazine articles on building self-concept, self confidence and self-esteem. Because I coach many athletes, I tend to spend a lot of time helping these clients to strengthen their self-confidence.

However, believing in one self is useful and important for just about everyone. It is important for Barack Obama. It is important for kids. And it is probably important for you.

Over the years, I have studied and developed many strategies and techniques for helping people to believe in themselves. When people feel positively about themselves, they tend to grow and they are better able to have rich and fulfilling lives.

Dr. Albert Bandura, of Stanford University, identified four components or life experiences which contribute to building one's self-confidence.

Mastery Experiences-Having a history of doing well at some event, some skill or some task can help to grow your confidence in yourself. So, it is useful to remind yourself of times when you felt you mastered some task or some skill.

Vicarious Learning-Seeing someone else who you can relate to do well at something or succeed at something can help you to believe that you, too, can succeed. A child seeing his friend hit a baseball can start to believe that he can put his bat on the ball with some power too.

Modeling Someone Who Inspires You-When you see someone who you admire do something well, you can imitate his or her actions. Watching a singer perform a song brilliantly can inspire a young artist to do the same thing. This "modeling" can help to grow your self-confidence.

Social Persuasion-Receiving encouraging words from a parent, a coach or someone you trust can help you to feel like you can do something successfully. This, too, can strengthen your self-confidence.

People who do not get any of these kinds of experiences are likely to have little or no self-confidence.

So, if you want to build self-confidence in yourself, in someone you care about or your child, consider facilitating one or all of these kinds experiences. If you do, confidence can build in a short period of time.

Jay P. Granat, Ph.D. is a psychotherapist and the founder of http://www.stayinthezone.com He has written several books and developed several programs to help people perform to their fullest potential at sports, at work and at school. Dr. Granat, a former university professor, has appeared in The New York Times, Good Morning America, AP, ESPN, Golf Digest, The BBC and The CBC. He can be reached at info@stayinthezone.com. His books include Zone Tennis and Get Into The Zone In Just One Minute. He is also the author of How To Get Into The Zone With Sport Psychology And Self-Hypnosis, How To Lower Your Golf Score With Sport Psychology And Self-Hypnosis, 101 Ways To Break Out Of A Hitting Slump and Bed Time Stories For Young Athletes. Golf Digest named Dr. Granat one of America's Top Ten Mental Gurus. He was recently featured in a documentary film on long distance running. Dr. Granat writes a weekly column for three newspapers. He just released a new program for bowlers.

You Can Do It If You Want Video

Get off your butt and start your life in motion today.

Question Your Religion

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

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 motivation help library filled with great subjects 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.

What Happened To The Wise Men

Using Your Emotions to Create the Beauty From Within

Have you ever been in the room with someone who is truly beautiful? Are you entranced by the clothes, their looks, how their hair is done, how they walk, talk or speak? Where does beauty come from?

We have all heard the saying, 'beauty comes from within' which on the days that your hair does what it wants, you have chosen the wrong shoes to go with your outfit or you just don't feel your best, means nothing. Compliments are thrown to the wayside and you are not able to enjoy your accomplishments.

When you are experiencing those dark, ugly moments, what is going on in your head? Stop! Listen and hear what you are saying to yourself. It is true that you create your own beauty and it does come from within. What you say to yourself creates a light-filled beauty or a person from the dark side.

Your Self-Talk

Your self-talk is affecting your emotions, decisions and how beautiful you feel each day. Our thoughts affect our mood, our health and how we live each day. So, if you tell yourself that you are beautiful, guess what, you are. And that beauty will show in how people react to you when you are doing business, with friends or family.

Self-talk is a deeply ingrained, generational habit. It is like having a computer chip downloaded with instructions that you play over and over and believe is your reality.

These habits can even be measured. There is an evolving research field known as positive psychology. Dr. Sonja Lyubormirsky, in her book, The How of Happiness, states that as much as 40 percent of our happiness "is left for the intentional activities that we can choose to engage in . . . the things that we do and think every day of our lives."

By engaging in thoughts of self disapproval we bury our beauty under dark, negative feelings about ourselves. It affects every aspect of our lives and limits our possibilities.

Learn to create your most beautiful self by monitoring how you are feeling. When those dark moments appear, watch them, stop them and search your mind for an alternate, beautiful way of seeing and feeling about yourself.

The following exercise is one of the most powerful I have ever done. You may surprise yourself at how beautiful you are.

1. Write about how you see yourself. Include the dark, negative aspects that you hear yourself saying constantly. Be brutal, this is the ugly, dark side.

2. Write about who you want to be. How beautiful, wonderful, delightful, kind, enjoyable, exciting, loving, great, accomplished . . . etc. You know that person you see when you walk in a room that you want to be around because you feel so great when you are with them. Write about that person, it is you.

When you are done writing these two scenarios, read them. They are two completely different people. You will probably surprise yourself seeing how wonderful you are. Keep the one about your beauty close and read it often. This is the person you are and can become with practice.

Some other suggestions:

Be aware of what you are thinking

Shoot down those negative thoughts with positive ones

Find some books or CDs on positive self talk

Use them daily

Envision a world of beauty with you in it

Work at saying only positive statements

As you are creating your own beauty make sure that you spend time each day noticing the beauty around you. When you appreciate this beautiful world your beauty becomes a part of it and you will carry it with you everywhere.

Find your beauty, carry it with you and give it to others. Your beauty is needed in this world.

Tana Dean is an ecopreneur, author and speaker. Her book, available on her website, Your Money, Your Power: 10 Ideas for Mindful Spending to Create a Healthy Green Planet coaches us on how to create a more healthy, peaceful planet using our daily financial decisions and actions. She designed and developed her internet eco business website TanaDean.com with articles, products and resources. She also offers her favorite products, Certified Organic Skin, Home and Nutrition. Her site focuses on Abundant Lifestyle, Green Living and Healthy Bodies. She is a Reiki Master in the Usui Shiki Ryoho tradition.