These Motivational Words are aimed at those who delay some important tasks until the last moment. Motivational Words will shine a powerful spotlight on the Procrastination Disease and provide a way to ensure it no longer undermines your future.

But first things first, lets pretend we are behavioural psychologists and we are pin-pointing the characteristics of The Procrastinator Personality. If you procrastinate you will be able to place a check mark beside many of these behavioural mannerisms:

* Non-essential activities fill our waking hours while important activities get pushed out of mind.
* Missed targets and deadlines are a recurring reality.
* Putting things off is habitual behaviour for you in that it is regular or ‘normal’ for you to have  several unstarted or incomplete tasks needing your attention.
* You probably experience anxiety which you dislike and resent, yet it takes fairly high levels of pressure (i.e. a close deadline) to force you to take action.
* You may not be particularly focused and clear on what you want. This ‘scattered’ mindset allows you to lose sight of important goals and deadlines. Procrastination and being a bit of a dreamer often go hand in hand.
* Procrastination and low self-esteem are intimate bed-fellows, you can’t have one without the other.

If you recognise even two of these behavioural markers of the Procrastinator Personality, then your life is not as great as it could be. You are short-changing yourself. Instead of developing a calm, focused and persistent personality, you are allowing the procrastination habit to sabotage your chances of peace and calm as well as putting your personal success rate into the high risk category.

Congratulations then on admitting that procrastination is a self-defeating habit. Admitting procrastination is the first step in overcoming the problem. The next issue of Motivational Words will provide solutions for dealing with this nasty habit. In the meantime, take action.  I personally recommend a six-week stint of goal-setting. It takes six weeks to break a habit, and focusing on your important tasks and goals will simultaneously eliminate scatteredness and procrastination.

The next issue of Motivational Words deals with how to overcome the procrastination habit.

P.S. If you have anything to share, such as a story that illustrates the high price you have paid for procrastination, be sure to leave a comment at the end of the Motivational Words page. The best way to change is by helping someone else!

For me this passage is particularly relevant because we are selling our family home at a time when the real estate market is pretty sluggish. Not only that, but we live in France and our family home is in Ireland. Both geography – as in great distance – and the economy are difficult odds to overcome. However losing faith and giving into fear only makes the battle even more intimidating. It is a time for cool nerves, ABSOLUTE TRUST IN GOD, and leaving doubt out of the equation. I know that this is the wisest route for us to follow: I can panic and writhe and moan but it will not help us in the least. Or I can surrender my fears and doubts to God and allow pure trust to accompany me throughout the challenge.

Without further ado, here are those inspirational Bible verses***:

“No one realised that Jonathan had left the Israelite camp. (4) To reach the Philistine outpost, Jonathan had to go down between to rocky cliffs that were called Bozez and Seneh. (5) The cliff on the north was in front of Micmash; and the one on the south was in front of Geba. (6) “Let’s go across to the outpost of those pagans,” Jonathan said to his armour bearer. “Perhaps the Lord will help us, for nothing can hinder the Lord. He can win a battle whether he has many warriors or only a few.”

I can find great comfort in the idea that the Lord will help me. Furthermore, no problem is too big or too complex for God to solve. It reminds me of Norman Vincent Peale who wrote something along the lines of ‘if God is for me, who can be against me?’ (the exact wording may not be correct as it is taken from memory).

These inspirational Bible verses remind us that we never really have to go it alone. Gigantic challenges and massive odds can be overcome if we share the responsibility with God. Challenges and difficult times can be a time of learning to trust. Giving our Lord the opportunity to find the most perfect way. It is an opportunity for me to stop meddling and micro-managing and just TRUST. *

**Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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Here are the exact inspirational phrases that shook me up enough to share them with you:
“Irv Konigsberg [a cell biologist and Lipton's professor and mentor]… told me that when the cultured cells you are studying are ailing, you look first to the cell’s environment, not to the cell itself, for the cause.
….. this advice was a key insight into understanding the nature of life. Over and over I learned the wisdom of Irv’s advice. When I provided a healthy environment for my cells [stem cells he had cloned], they thrived; when the environment was less than optimal, the cells faltered. When I adjusted the environment, these “sick” cells revitalized.” (page 19*)

This is one scientist who can really talk. I remember hearing him talking on radio last year, and after 10 minutes I just knew I had to read his book*.

There you have it. Cutting edge epigenetics, a new branch of cell biology, shatters the previously treasured view that DNA and genes control our biology. We now know that genes are not our destiny and we are not victims of our faulty genetic blueprint. Instead DNA is controlled by factors outside our cells, one such factor being thought-energies generated by the positive and negative thoughts we have.

This made me think about toxic environments. Last spring my daughter put her tadpoles in tap water while she cleaned out the aquarium. When she returned two minutes later they were all writhing as if in dreadful pain. Chlorine. It killed them all in under five minutes.  See, Mr Lipton is right, our environment counts.

What is your work environment like? Do you spend time with people who promote your well-being? And at home? How beneficial is your environment? Is clutter and an ugly outlook the first and last view of the world you present to yourself each day? What effect is your environment having on the quality of your thoughts? Are they bright, inspirational, upbeat? Or are they dark, negative, hopeless reflections which are toxic time bombs? Is it time to retrain your thinking?

*Bruce H. Lipton, Ph.D, a medical school professor and research scientist, is the author of these inspirational phrases which are quoted from his mould-breaking, concept-shattering book, ‘The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter and Miracles”, Hay House, Inc. (2008).

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What’s the Secret? How will understanding the power of this secret enable you to take giant strides in the direction of your dreams? This edition of Motivational Words will reveal the power of ‘secret’ knowledge.

Everyone is using the word ‘secret’ nowadays. Advertisers love it as it magnetises customers. Personal empowerment gurus know the emotive pull of sharing ‘secrets’. It sets us apart, initiates us into special spheres of knowledge. Dan Brown’s “Da Vinci Code” played on our desire to find out secrets that have been withheld from mainstream consumption.

So let’s demystify the word ‘secret’. First of all, there is no secret. It is a misnomer, albeit a powerful motivational word, for learning a technique, method, recipe or knowledge bite that works, that most people fail to utilise. So it remains a powerful force harnessed by a select few.

Here’s the secret: People who write goals down are far more likely to realise them than those who don’t. People who write their goals down, and then devise action steps to achieve their goals are even more likely to hit their targets. People who write down goals, take consistent action steps today and every day are almost certain to reach their goals. Add a strong motivation, a clear vision of the desired outcome and you have an unstoppable momentum.

Goal setting followed by persistent action steps is the single most important ‘secret’ you can ever learn. It is the key to living the life of your dreams. It is the key to unstoppable motivation. It is the key to unlimited success, wealth, health, happiness……. Think about this for it is true. You can achieve anything you want if you make it a goal, and take consistent, persistent steps every single day towards it.

How could such a simple concept be considered a secret? Simple. Because only about 2% of all the people on this planet will ever utilise this knowledge. The remaining 98% may set a goal or two, but they don’t think beyond that. No alarm bells ring when they fail to take consistent, persistent actions. So the powerful secret of how to be 100% successful at anything you want remains a secret.

Only 2% of us will understand the full ramifications of ignoring this secret. That 2%, armed with secret, insider knowledge will set the stage for their lives, and become the authors of their own life story. The rest of us are doomed to follow someone else’s script, because we failed to write our own.

Remember the secret unveiled to you in these Motivational Words. Set a goal and take action to achieve your goal at every opportunity. When you reach your goal, set another one. Onwards and upwards. A simple, mould-breaking secret that hardly anyone avails of. It costs nothing; it’s free.

If these Motivational Words struck a chord for you, do someone you love a favour: pass them on. Tell them the secret. Set a goal that’s important to you and then set about achieving it. A Simple Secret. It will change your life every time you use it. It is 100% guaranteed to work every time you use it.

If you want to share your goal and the steps you are taking today to achieve your first dream, tell me about it. Just write your comment in the comment box at the end of the Motivational Words page. In the meantime, I wish you great momentum with realising the life of your dreams.

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We live in a wonderful village with medieval houses (great for my husband who is a stone-carver!). Anyway, the villages here are totally self-sufficient as regards the production of wood for home-heating. Every year the glorious deciduous forests surrounding the village are scanned for trees which need to be harvested as they are either of commercial value or cut down because they are sub-standard. The resulting timber is divided out amongst the households who wish to use a renewable, sustainable source of fuel to heat their homes.

Just guess what our timber allocation for 2010 was? We were given 26 mature trees, including oak and beech plus 16 crowns (what remains after they cut and sell the valuable trunk of the tree). Such an abundance of timber. We will be able to heat our home for free for years to come AND we will season and dry the better logs to make authentic beams and flooring. All this absolutely for free. For nothing.

Of course we are going to have to do the felling and harvesting ourselves according to very strict conservation guidelines. Yet again, the goddess of Abundance smiled upon us. We have been befriended by a single man with a passion for forestry. He will fell the trees and use his tractor to transport the heavy timber down to our yard for seasoning. All this in exchange for a shared meal and a few of my famous fruit pies. He likes my cooking and we enjoy his company. Now we will learn how the French make their forests sustainable from a genuine expert.

We were expecting perhaps three trees at most. But 26. Now that is abundance indeed. A wealth of timber and a guarantee of many evenings sitting in front of a cozy log fire.

Just in case you think these trees are small, the photo above shows my daughter standing in front of a beech tree and gives you an idea of just how tall these trees are. This timber is an unplanned bonus for having the courage to create my Ideal Life.

Do you have an Abundance Story to share with me and everyone who so faithfully reads this blog? What riches are coming your way as a result of Creating your Ideal Life?

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I identify strongly with this inspirational phrase by Fulton Oursler (1893 – 1952), American journalist, author and playwright:

“Many of us crucify ourselves between two thieves – regret for the past and fear of the future”

His Christ-on-the-cross metaphor stems from his Christian perspective. Nonetheless, it is easy to visualise the pain of being in a horrendous situation and finding both choices for action equally unappealing. On the left (our past) hangs regret and on the right (our future) hangs an equally daunting spectre: fear.

I am not much of a regret personality. I have few regrets.

Fear, however, has a greater hold on my imagination. I fear what my life will be like when my mother’s Alzheimer’s progresses and she is 100% dependent upon me. I fear the consequences of not selling our heritage home in Ireland. These fears grip me and I get sucked in by their power. Just like a bar of creamy, luxurious chocolate, I never stop at just one square, I have to go the whole hog. So it is with fear, even a tiny taste of this treacherous emotion and we dive right in. Worst case scenarios are played out and feel terrifyingly real.

Who wants to live with fear and regret? Fortunately we humans are in a position to reflect. Both fear and regret are intangibles. They are merely the product of our imagination. Terrifying and debilitating emotions if we give in to them. I can condition my mind to be disciplined enough to recognise this evil duo for what they are: figments of my imagination.

Mr Oursler’s inspirational phrase is quite accurate: cultivating fear and regret will rob us of the motivation, courage and vision to move forwards in joy and trust towards a brilliant future.

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Interestingly this past week has been an uncomfortable one. Then one of those ‘coincidences’ occurred. The cat knocked a borrowed – and as yet unread – book off the window sill with an almighty clatter. The book fell open and my attention was drawn to a short text about complaining.

The gist of the message was it is pointless to complain about things to the world in general. If you have something to complain about, then take the complaint to someone who can do something about the situation. By taking one’s complaint to someone with the power to change things for the better, there is some possibility of effecting positive change. Complaining to those who are powerless to effect change is merely self-indulgece, moaning and whinging.

The moral of my story is:
If you feel you must complain, bring your complaint to someone capable of redressing the cause of the complaint. Otherwise spare innocent bystanders and never, ever complain to those who are not in a position to effect positive change.

“It is impossible to suffer without making someone pay for it; every complaint already contains revenge.”
Friedrich Nietzsche (born near Lutzen, Prussia in 1844, died in Weimar, Saxony in 1900). A most influential philosopher, his notable contributions included the death of God, herd-instinct, perspectivism and will to power.

In creating my Ideal Life, I am constantly seeking ways of disciplining my unproductive thoughts. The Law of Attraction suggests we attract what we occupy our minds with. Who wants to attract cause for complaint? It seems like my new ‘complaints policy’ might be very simple to effect. Only complain to those who can help if there is a good chance of changing the situation. Otherwise zip it and drop it from my mental horizon too.

“Mrs Woolf’s complaint should be addressed to her creator, who made her, rather than me.”

Cecil Beaton (1904 – 1980), a self-taught fashion and high-society photographer. He photographed for ‘Vanity Fair’, ‘Vogue’ and is famous for his iconic photographs of “young England” of 1920 – 1930. He became official photographer to the Royal Family and received a knighthood in 1972.

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[12] As he entered a village there, ten lepers stood at a distance, [13] crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
[14] He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy.
[15] One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!” [16] He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaratan.”
[17] Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? [18] Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” [19] And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you.”***

Understanding the historical context of having leprosy:
Leprosy or Hansen’s disease is a chronic bacterial disease of the upper respiratory tract and the peripheral nerves, resulting in very disfiguring skin lesions. Popular myth suggests fingers, toes, noses drop off due to the infection, this is incorrect. In fact while affected parts may become numb there is permanent damage caused to skin, eyes, limbs and nerves. Leprosy spreads via close contact and nasal droplets.

At the time of St. Luke, in order to prevent the spread of leprosy, sufferers were expected to keep themselves separate from others, hence the double burden of a social stigma plus enforced isolation. On occasion, leprosy appeared to go into remission, and sufferers were then entitled to visit a priest, who had the power to declare them well (Leviticus 14).  It is interesting to note that the sufferer was a Samaritan, a race particularly despised by the Jews.

What do these Bible verses really mean?
Jesus was travelling through Samaria on his way from Galilee to Jericho, when he encountered ten opportunistic lepers who had sufficient faith to beg Jesus for mercy, and then visit their priests for the ‘all clear’ even before they knew they were cured. This demonstrated their faith in the power of Jesus to heal.  Luke uses this story to illustrate that God’s grace is for everyone, even leprosy-ridden Samaritans.

It is wry that nine out of ten cured men failed to thank Jesus. Interestingly, Jesus indicates it is appropriate to thank God, so it is important to go beyond feeling gratitude, he expects us to express our thanks to God also. We can read between the lines, that only the grateful man discovered why he had been healed – due to his faith that he would be healed.

How can we apply this lesson in faith and gratitude to our lives today?
What I find interesting about these inspirational Bible verses is it was social outcasts (not just leprosy-sufferers but also a despised ethnic group) who had sufficient faith to believe Jesus would and could heal them. I know from my own life, when things have been very difficult I have been at my most receptive to help, from whichever quarter it came. In fact it was this vulnerability which forced my hand to request outside help in the first place. Knowing I couldn’t solve my difficulty alone served to strengthen my faith and trust in my helper.

It is sobering to read that nine out of ten healed men failed to express their gratitude. It causes me to reflect on how much I take for granted. Not only do I need to thank God, there are many people, my family and friends included, who need to hear of my gratitude for their support.

Finally, I love the extra twist in the story. The one man who returned to express his thanks was the only one to discover why he had been healed. Jesus told him it was due to his faith. So, while God is pleased when we give thanks, there may be a second benefit too: we stand to harvest greater understanding by showing gratitude.

In keeping with what I have learned, I thank you for reading these inspirational Bible verses. I hope you will express your gratitude to God and those around you today. I shall endeavour not waste another opportunity for gratitude.

***Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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“Gratitude helps you to grow and expand: gratitude brings joy and laughter into your life and into the lives of all those around you.” Eileen Caddy, MBE (1917 – 2006)

Right now my life seems to be getting faster and faster. Success experts warn of this. The more we achieve, the more opportunities that open up. The more one does, the bigger the stakes are. I am inundated with things to do. So much so that I am at risk of losing track of the purpose behind my targeted activity: to make consistent progress on my journey towards achieving my best-possible life. I am the author of my Ideal Life. As author, surely I get to determine where I go with my plot?

Today I researched this inspirational phrase to get me back in touch with my inner core, my true and important values. Why be hugely successful if it isn’t fun? Why be enormously productive on external fronts and ignore my inner voices? Right now my inner voices are asking me to calm down and take stock. I want to step off the accelerator a bit and take time to be grateful for all the wonderful things that are happening.

Back to gratitude. Living a life filled with gratitude is an expansive space to occupy. Gratitude has a strong spiritual element to it. Gratitude opens my emotional self to high vibrations such as experiencing joy, elation, hope, expectation, trust.

Psychological research into gratitude indicates that individuals who foster the state of gratitude and who exhibit gratitude as a personality trait are genuinely happier, less prone to stress and depression, better sleepers, better able to cope. High gratitude individuals have a higher quality of life which is directly correlated with their gratitude-attitude.

Duality: Gratitude and resentment occupy opposing sides of the coin. The higher we are on the gratitude side of the equation, the more we focus on being at one with ourselves and the universe. When we occupy the ingratitude side of the coin, our attention is on what is missing from our lives. We experience resentment, lack and frustration as primary emotions.

This is the imbalanced state (e.g. ingratitude) I currently seek to distance myself from. With all my emphasis on what I must do, what needs to be done, what I can’t do because I don’t have the time, knowledge or means… well I quickly start to generate feelings of resentment (definitely not a gratitude state!) until these dominate my emotions.

Now I need to consciously go within and reconnect with what is real and important to me, locate the goodness, the generosity, the harvest I am currently reaping. Finding 100 reasons to be thankful, and logging them in my journal,  is but a small price to pay for the rich emotions that a ‘gratitude attitude’ generates. It is time to step off the treadmill of satisfying external demands (which are of fleeting and questionable importance right now) and reconnect with my Inner Self.

I am thankful that this inspirational phrase about gratitude has opened my mind to the psychological benefits of experiencing gratitude, and opened my eyes to the opposite ends of the gratitude-resentment scale. The more gratitude I feel, the further away I move from lack, resentment, and frustration.

* Eileen Caddy under the spotlight:
Eileen Caddy was a co-founder of the Findhorn Foundation which has been dubbed “the Vatican of the New Age”.  Eileen Caddy, a spiritual leader and New Age author, was awarded an MBE by Queen Elisabeth II in 2004 for her services to spiritual enquiry. She mastered the art of ‘going within’ and ‘listening to her inner voice’ for guidance. In 2001 Channel 4 deemed her to be one of Britain’s most spiritually influential individuals.

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Today’s inspirational Bible verses are taken from ‘Numbers’ chapter 11, verses 4 – 6. These Bible verses deal with the Israelites complaining, missing the daily luxuries they experienced in Egypt, and displaying a thorough lack of gratitude.

” (4) Then the foreign rabble who were traveling with the Israelites began to crave the good things of Egypt. And the people of Israel also began to complain. “Oh, for some meat!” they exclaimed. (5) We remember the fish we used to eat for free in Egypt. And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic we wanted. (6) But now our appetites are gone. All we ever see is this manna!”***

What do these Bible verses really mean?
We know the foreign rabble refers to a large group of Egyptians who accompanied the people of Israel out of Egypt. En route to the Promised Land the travelers were insecure as they moved through the wilderness, uprooted and separated from the life they knew in Egypt.

This sense of change and rootlessness caused the crowd to see their time as slaves through rosy glasses. Forgotten were the whips and brutality of their Egyptian masters, their time as slaves. Instead the travelers remembered the fine food, meat, fish and succulent vegetables, that they had eaten during their time as slaves.

What does this ancient group of disenchanted travelers have to do with how we experience life today?
Like us living in an unstable economic climate today, the band of travelers were facing the unknown and finding it challenging to adapt to change and uncertainty. Rather than focus on the new life God was creating for them (a new life in the Promised Land where they could be free, a nation settled in their own land), dissatisfaction reared its ugly head. Grumbling and complaining replaced thankfulness and trust. Selective memories of good food were in the forefront of their minds while they omitted to remember the dreadful experiences of servitude while still in Egypt.

The contemporary lesson appears to be that it is all too easy for us to oversee the magnitude of things we have to be grateful for in times of hardship. When we focus on what we don’t have, dissatisfaction with our lot sets in. Dissatisfaction then colors our perception of life. We complain and feel a strong sense of lack, while this is only part of our current situation. For every lack, there is a multitude of things to be genuinely thankful for.

How can we apply the dissatisfaction and resistance to change the ancient travelers experienced to our lives today?
The human mind is capable of great duplicity, and we are masters of selective vision at any time. We can focus on the rosy aspects of the past, omitting the painful times. Equally we can mislead ourselves and paint our current situation as being far, far worse than it really is by concentrating on the negative aspects and airbrushing our blessings out of mind.

These inspirational Bible verses give us pause to think about what occupies most of our attention right now. Dissatisfaction occurs when we shift our attention from what we have to what we don’t have. Are we thankful for what we have or are we magnifying the sensations of frustration at what we don’t have at the moment?

Today’s understanding of the necessity for Thankfulness:
Christianity and several of the world religions appreciated the benefits experiencing deep thankfulness. The inspirational Bible verses quoted above are but one example of how Christians are exhorted to live a life of thankfulness, putting our focus on the bountiful experience of daily life.

The advent of positive psychology, which developed rapidly over the past decade, has produced convincing evidence that grateful people are happier, more content with life, less stressed and depressed, sleep better, and have a greater sense of control over their lives, less prone to substance abuse, adopt better coping strategies and numerous other unexpected side-benefits. (For more fascinating insights, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratitude.)

New-Age philosophies embrace an ‘attitude of gratitude’ as a stepping stone to well-being and a prerequisite to manifesting abundance. Keeping a Gratitude Journal and recognising the positive is seen as a critical part of the manifestation process.

I hope you have enjoyed discovering how inspirational Bible verses can have a very real application in our lives today. I wish you many reasons for thankfulness and may you experience the life-enhancing gift of gratitude. If these verses inspired you in some way, don’t hesitate to share your gratitude experience.

*** Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996,2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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