Who Says You Can't?

This entry is contributed by Rev. John Horton who is also a world class photographer.

There's an old Air Force saying, "The difficult we do first, the impossible takes us a little longer."

This young lady never listened to those who said, "Oh, you can't do that." Thank goodness she and her mother had the faith.

An amazing story from Korea . Hee Ah Lee was born with several physical deformities. She only had two fingers on each hand. And her legs ended at her knees. Her doctors didn't expect her to live. But she did live. At the age of six she started to play piano. At the time, her four fingers were very weak. She couldn't even hold a pencil. Her mother hoped playing piano would strengthen her grip.It worked. But more than that, Lee found a calling. She now tours the world, playing for stunned audiences. She plays pieces that would be difficult for able-bodied pianists. You'll love hearing her play. Click on her picture above to hear

Dress to Kill

We live in a world where body schema is determined by advertising whims. Women wear high heels for a temporary slimming, bottom lifting and calf tightening effect at the expense of freedom of movement and longterm health of the feet and legs. We put on nylons that make us freeze in the winter and smell in the summer...but someone called them 'appropriate' and we dutifully pull them on like sausages waiting for their casings. We value 'rocks' in the form of rings like the predessors of cavemen and see them as forms of approval and the bestowing of favor. We spend money on wrinkles no one cares about and forget that inside the package is the most precious gift of all..yourself. Nevertheless we live in a world where convention delivers financial comfort and even we are influenced by what we compare ourselves too...

What you see affects what you believe about yourself. It also influences how others perceive you. Make the best of what you have. Most of the commercial world is airbrushed so look at people rather than magazines find a personal style and celebrate it. Remember that true beauty comes from the inside out but it doesn’t hurt to market what you have got. Be yourself…no one else can do it better!

Motivation from the inside out

USA today reported that happy people live 17% longer. Laughter and humor is associated with better health mental and physical, more efficient learning and better choices. Most people in the city will influence 50 people on the way to work. This can have a knock on effect. Atmosphere matters, you have the power to create atmosphere and influence destiny. Think about the power you have rather than what has been taken from you. The way you think can deliver keys to your destiny.



Some reasons why include the way neurotransmitters in our brains work. Your brain was programmed to produce happy chemicals. Drugs sex and rock n roll are a poor and temporary
substitute.

Communication and Cognition (tips and tricks)

Information is available at faster rates than ever before. Ray Kurzweil references something he calls the law of accelerating returns. This means that information is increasing to the power of rather than by simple addition or multiplication. Even with all the new information available people take in about the same information every day as they did at the turn of the century.


What kind of person do you listen to and why? To communicate effectively become that kind of person. A good book for improving relationships and making your voice heard is Non Violent Communication by Dr Marshall Rosenberg. Dr Rosenberg is an international specialist in conflict resolution. I try to apply his principles in my work with people, often when I don’t, I wish I had….There is a lot of free information on his web site Center For Non-violent Communication, he also has DVDs available.


Got trouble keeping up? Are you overloaded with information? Visit http://sparksofgenius.com for tips and tricks to restore memory and improve mental function. Cognition can be improved by brain gyms, bio/neuro-feedback, exercise, diet, memory strategies, meditation and getting enough sleep

How can we nurture seeds of success?

Help someone else get where they want to go

Do something today to bring your dream to pass

Remember "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear"…get ready


Champions start on time…if you are late figure out why and fix it. In my case I have been known to drag my feet when I do not want to show up…sometimes it is important to just say no

Charting Your Course …Foundation reminders

The Journey is as important as the destination…the Journey you make for others is the one you create for yourself. What you give out will return to you multiplied. Aim carefully and give well. Remember people are fragile and they are important. Things are transitory and can be replaced. Relationships are a lot of work but they build foundations.

Sometimes when people are building a place for themselves in life they forget those that are supporting them. Those that support you are part of your foundation. Refuse to neglect them. When you take away from the foundation the structure is subject to stress and collapse. We see this in earthquakes when the foundation is compromised the structure brings destruction. There is a temptation to please those who do not support us. Everyone wants to be included and valued. When people withhold inclusion and you find yourself justifying your position it is time to give attention to your foundation and re-examine your contributions.

What is in it for you and where is it taking your destiny. Time spent on people and positions that can reciprocate and won’t is wasted time. Time spent where people cannot reciprocate is a gift to them and will ultimately help you because in life what you give out comes back multiplied. Your life consists of time, once it is spent it cannot be recovered. Go where you are celebrated.

Change Your Mind…Change Your Life

Recent experiments have shown that we become what we put our minds on. This is an ancient concept. In the book of Proverbs it states "As a man thinks in his heart so is he." Ancient philosophers saw the heart as the mind’s teacher. Recent science shows when people of any age exercise certain skills the brain connections grow to accommodate them. This is known as neural plasticity and can be explained by the adage neurons that fire together wire together. The neurons are like tree branches and they grow little buds called dendrites. The dendrites search for firing places and as they fire they strengthen brain connections.

Mental stimulation creates food for the dendrites so they can mate and produce strong paths. Example: Brains of London taxi drivers imaged by FMRI show growth in spatial areas which are related to finding the way to new areas. In another study participants were taught to play the violin and then asked to practice using only their thoughts. At the conclusion of the study their brains were imaged and it was found that in the area of the brain used to play music growth occurred.

Sports and business psychologists tell us that practicing in the mind produces similar results to doing. Thinking matters!
Zig Ziglar coined the phrase "Life is like the movies…You produce your own show."