Health and Lifestyle
Labels, Tags, & Stigmas
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Labels, Tags, & Stigmas
Thanks to Jim Haisler who opens and closes our show each week. He continues to serve us and our community well at Heartland Realtor Organization.
One of the challenges we deal with include Technology. Many people are scared of divulging information or knowing how to navigate building a website. Are you a person who needs help with integrating different programs?
It is great fun to learn about websites, internet usage, and technology. Advance your skills in on an everyday basis. John Budd offers his skills for hire at https://www.realsimpletechnology.com
Podcasting Delights
Beware of how you interpret Labels and Tags!
Labels, tags, and stigmas can be temporary. These involve all of us. We have been labeled by our parents, teachers, and others along the way. Linda shares a comment she overheard when she was about 6 years old. As a small child in school, one may misinterpret or be confused by things being said. The comments may or may not be true. We also need to be careful not to label others either. Let this story speak to you and how it may help you jump-start success.
I am shy?
We must take into consideration that many tags are not correct. Some tags and labels are holding us back from striving and moving forward! I want to free you from the things that hold you back. As a counselor, I was made aware that the labels and tags used are very dangerous and hold people from enjoying life. Try new things. Throw away the stigmas that may be haunting you.
THINK ABOUT YOUR CHOICES CAREFULLY
Invite people onto your team to move forward. Feel free to call our office to talk about things that haunt you or things you need to get past. We can be part of the solution.
Remember to take the first step, it may put you on the escalator of success.
Clarity, Focus, and Loving Yourself
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Mini Miracles from Minor Moments this week is about clarity and focus. Trying to find clarity? Are you full of questions? Part of the solution lies in the preparation. We develop a process that becomes a never fail step-by-step list of things to do. Soon they become so habitual that you do not realize you’re carrying them through. Either create your own processes or ask for help. It will make your life easier and help you focus.
Compounding interest is earning money not only on the principal amount but also on the interest you have accumulated. Let’s take that principle and apply it to your life. When you have experienced a defeat or success you have the opportunity to grow. This is true when you are doing business. You may be blessed with a really good opportunity to serve someone or provide for a need they have. You may be able to have a favor done for you and it totally changes how you think or act.
The same is true with any relationship. One good friend introduces you to the people or hobbies they enjoy and now your own life is making ripples. People who value communicating help us communicate better. They help us live a fuller life. Although moments of joy and growth may appear far and few, but they do exist. Some come and go with time. That is true with our spouses, cousins, or colleagues. Learn from them. Collect the minor moments and times of interchange you had with them. That is part of the legacy they leave you. These relationships allow you to like yourself, to find clarity, and to focus on what is important to you.
When it comes to a decision you have made, it can be a blessing or a curse. Learning from it and gaining insight is a valuable piece of living a healthy and happy life. I made the decision to move into my own suite 15 years ago and it was a blessing. It took planning, as well as, asking lots of questions to bankers, business people, and even to myself. Why will this work? Why the move? What will it serve my clients better? How will I promote it and on and on?
What do you want to leave as your legacy?
In Erasing Adversity, (available at Amazon) I write that you don’t want to erase the difficult times in your life. You want to learn from the things you experienced. Valuable insights are the interest on having learned something. Keep adding those “nuggets of gold” and you become wiser and stronger. You can help yourself and other people who connect with you.
Build confidence, communicate more effectively, handle difficult situations and clarity becomes your gift. That is what I call compounding. It is taking those small moments and finding the mini-miracles that bring you satisfaction and joy. You grow in clarity.
As I end this week’s podcast, a shout out to everyone trying to get their life together. Working on yourself is hard, especially when you are reaching out to others along the way, but keep going. No matter where you are. Taking the first step may put you on the escalator of success.
Let the Race Begin
Let the Race Begin
Let the race begin is kind of ironic for me. I have assigned two words for myself as the year begins. More words will evolve each month as the year moves ahead. These are well thought out! I have chosen a few special words to use as a bridge into 2020. Here is a list from another site I discovered.
Slowly
One of the words is “slowly.” I am very guilty of rushing. Rushing to get things done. Rushing to make up for my husband who is slow due to his ailments. Rushing as if time is not my friend. What started this consciousness was a fall I took going into Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. I skinned my face, hurt my right hand and arm, injured both knees and a hip. I never got into the service. The worst part is getting into a car now, I still hurt. Are you also rushed? Time is our friend. Doing things slowly has the benefits of doing it correctly the first time and being safer!
The upside is that I didn’t break anything except my pride. I recognize this is all temporary. I am already mending although it will take a while to fully mend. It makes me more empathetic to those who have permanent injuries and reminds me to slow down. Again slowly is fine, it will ease me into the next month with care.
Sharing
The second word for the month is “sharing.” I need to share my experiences in writing, coaching, counseling, podcasting and speaking. I have been blessed with many stories and I can help you! Now is the time to do this. Expressing with other people need to have affirmed and acknowledged is my way of developing a legacy for future generations.
Now to share a photo of a gift given to me at Christmas from a cousin who had it made especially for us. As many of you know, we build an outside garden house in our yard a few years back that I have come to enjoy around the year. After many names, we came up with The Delightful Den. She had this sign made for it. Isn’t it perfect! The Delightful Den is an extension of my philosophy to Delight in Living!
During the Fall season, I began cartooning. I am sketching ideas to help me see exactly what needs to take shape. You will be seeing some of these as the year goes forward. Simple to say the least.
As with all the topics we share here, self-development is essential. We need to know our values, our concerns, and the direction we will pursue for self growth. We need to develop great relationships and enjoy what we have. Let the race begin for you. Decide you key words for the month. Launch yourself forward by connecting with people you appreciate. Enjoy!
So welcome to 2020.
Feel free to send me topics, and ideas to share. Most of all remember to take the first step, it may put you on the escalator of success!
Are you Ready for A Mental Makeover?
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A Mental Makeover?
“I am sorry for the things I have done and the things I have failed to do.” This is a line from a prayer that made me think about the mistake I made this morning coming here. I failed to put on my indicator early enough. It could have helped a lady nearby. I didn’t intentionally do that, but something I was aware of not doing!
Prioritizing Our Mental Health is Essential
We need to put our Mental Health on a level higher than we do. Mental health has to be equal to our Physical Health in terms of importance. Both are very important. Our mental health is valuable. Are you ready for a mental health makeover? As a Psychologist, it bothers me that people pay for everything, but the one thing that drives their whole life and is most valuable they fail to invest in is their thinking. Yes, invest in your mental health. Do it now. Take time for your mental health – get good coaching. Also if you are a business person or entrepreneur think about registering for our Mastermind that meets online Thursdays at 10:30 CST
Stimulate your Mind with a New Word
On Sirius Satellite, Channel 129, I listen to a Lady by the name of Jen Fulwiler. She is a stand-up comedian, a mom of 6 kids, and a radio host. Her background is programming and has a few different sites. One of these is a site that generates a word of the year. It is a site that provides a word you can use to stimulate your mind to try new things or reprogram your thinking. I love the idea of setting a word to stimulate us to be better. Although if you follow me I believe we need to rest our goals on a quarterly basis and not for a whole year at a time. Maybe this will make you ready for a mental health makeover to feel better. A change of habits that can shine joy and a new direction.
Blessings to everyone as we head into the Holidays. Have a Merry Christmas and enjoy your family and friends. As always take the first step forward, it may put you on the Escalator of Success.
Thanksgiving Blessings
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Yes, ultimately I believe that Blessings in our life flow from God. Throughout each day there are many opportunities offered to us that keep them coming. Our brains allow us to think thoughts that in turn give rise to emotions and then behaviors. A simple example is: If you believe someone is unkind to you, it may make you angry. In turn, you may react in a poor way by being nasty to everyone around you or even physically lashing out. Rather than see the negative things, be kind and gentle to yourself and clarify your thoughts. Then your behaviors will be gentler and more amicable.
Affirmations
Dolly Pardon encourages us to affirm ourselves. “You are good enough!” Yes, you are great! We need to stop criticizing and encourage ourselves and one another. Provide affirmations for yourself. Note the things you are good at doing or enjoy and engage in those activities. Remind yourself or your own gifts. Walking hand-in-hand with others makes everyone’s life easier.
Today’s podcast is about helping yourself and giving yourself good vibrations! Having good thoughts repeated over and over again are affirmations that we can feed to ourselves. Therefore, do it regularly. When we help others carry the load, we help ourselves too! Sometimes it is for a friend, a family member, or our 4 legged friends that we love.
Don’t isolate yourself!
Linda talks about forgiveness and how it keeps us healthy on a physical and spiritual level. The “formula” sentence she shared is “I forgive (name) for (name the specific offense).” Do this for each offense rather than trying to forgive the person for all offenses and work through them one at a time. We need to clear our minds of things that pull us down and the way someone has hurt your feelings, upset you, degraded your work or disregarded you may need to be pulled apart and deleted. Forgiveness does not mean to forget. It means to feel better about yourself and to move forward. Forgive and forgive and forgive. It will help your heart, your mentality, and your days happier.
Align yourself with a variety of fun times and as a result, you will have a well-balanced life. Relax, play, pray, and enjoy. best of all find people who joke and laugh a lot!
Playing is fun!
Join our Mastermind on Thursdays at 10:30 am. You’ll be glad you did!
Working as a Team to Propel You Forward!
Enjoy something special this weekend. Make your days count. Happy Thanksgiving!
Want to get involved in a wonderful race, then join in on the first Sunday of December.
This Sunday is our Community Santa Run!
New Vision and Growth
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Creating New Vision and Growth may mean looking at things in a new way. Turning the ordinary into the extraordinary is a skill. It is taking a grassroots look at the bigger things in life. People accommodate and deal with what they have; many cultures really enjoy simplicity in life.
Pump It Up is the site of a celebration site for children. While watching all the children playing there, it got me thinking about kids being engaged in physical activities. The level of sounds filled me with many thoughts. It made me think of how open-minded we can be when we want to expand our visions. How kids so easily interact with friends. Acting on the example kids set for us can help us reignite and build a desire to grow.
Happy Birthday
What do you need to polish up? What do you need a new perspective on? Is it how you are learning something new. Perhaps you’d enjoy our mastermind group. As a result of joining in you will find opportunities to move ahead rapidly.
Do you have a lot to get done? Linda shares how easy it is to get impulsive and start doing something important late at night. When do sneak things in that have to get done?
If you are interested in hiring Linda to speak connect with us. Linda has topics that can be designed to move your company, community group, or church group. Dates available, rates, and topics can be requested.
Check out the Crystal Lake Kiwanis. It is a great community-minded group. Great people with wonderful hearts.
Our contact number is 815-459-5161. Contact us through www.delightinliving.com
Being Grateful
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Gratitude was suggested as a topic for today because it helps us to embrace the minor moments where miracles show up. Listen to a quick story from 29 years ago. A friend recognized one of Linda’s most important needs at a stressful time while stuck in a waiting room of a hospital.
The friend went out of her way in the midst of a blizzard to provide a shopping bag of her fresh fruit. As it turned out, Linda was stuck there for 5 weeks in an ICU waiting room and a vending machine would not have been the best option. More than the fruit though, it told her someone was recognizing her needs and showing a real concern for her. Wow, don’t we all want to do that for other people? Wouldn’t you want to be that thoughtful person who took the action?
The beauty in that gesture of seeing Linda’s needs and doing something special blessed her then and the memory continues to bring joy even today. It also prompted Linda to give the friend a call in the midst of recording this episode.
Being thoughtful of others is never lost. Whether it is taking the time to send a card, attending an event, showing up at a hospital, or being silently nearby is so important. Expressing gratitude and appreciation to those who reach out to us is good for the giver and the receiver.
Counting our blessings may help to make our blessings count even more. Most of us are blessed with plenty of space to enjoy many physical possessions around us throughout the day. Are you a collector? We do need to be careful and not collect things we don’t need, but also recognize how lucky we are to have things around us that bring us joy. The Cubs hat or memorabilia from an event or trip is a reminder of a fun time. Those are indeed times for us to share our joys, our time, and our talents.
On November 3rd, there was a Busted Halo Daily Jolt. It was that “Gratitude is riches. A Complaint is poverty.” Those few words reminded me of how beautiful gratitude can be! We can be discontented and lament over so many things and find faults if we focus on that!
Stretching ourselves to help others!
We are so blessed to share opportunities. Looking for things with an open mind allows us to spread a little sunshine. A loss of a job may actually be a new opportunity for growth and meeting new friends. A car accident, although not good, makes us aware of the fact that no one was hurt. The availability of doctors when we are sick or having the money to get help is a blessing and something we must be thankful for receiving.
Our office extends opportunities to build relationships and bring clarity to you. Our women’s Entrepreneur group is opening enrollment for next year. Do contact us and enjoy the offerings, you’ll be glad you did.
Take the first step forward, it may put you on the escalator of success.
Keeping it Simple
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Keep Things Simple
Keeping things simple and enjoying life can be sweet. In today’s podcast Linda helps us think about what is important. Whether we are fortunate enough to have the best or everything, or we are struggling to take ourselves to a different level, being thankful is best. Welcome to Mini Miracles from Minor Moments that highlights education, motivation, and spirituality.
As Linda was waiting for her car to have the radio fixed she saw the positive things in the waiting room played out. While people were waiting for their vehicles, many were engaging with one another, and keeping things light and upbeat. Connecting with one another, praying for each other, and listening well help us enjoy life.
Look to People of the Past for Insights
Dwight D. Eisenhower and Linda’s mom also had a few good thoughts that help us. If we need to resolve and do things, it helps us to do them as they come along. We can conquer the issues at hand and deal with them efficiently. In the process of completing work, we learn to enjoy daily work. It can end up bring the fun things into your life.
Let your creativity sore, find a job you love, be with the people that bring you joy. Find things to be grateful for as often as possible. It will elevate your spirit. Carving pumpkins with the family is a good annual event. Many families look forward to the harvesting of apples. Whatever fits your lifestyle at this time, go for it!
When things are going your way, be thankful. Little things make our days move along well. Finding a parking spot can elevate our spirits. Receiving a request to help another person, or getting a phone call is uplifting. What makes you feel great? What helps you with your work that makes it easier? Who has given you insight that helps you many times over? How do you reach out to others?
So what simple things give you pleasure? How can you serve the needs of another person? When have you felt like Queen for a day? Or King for a day? When respect and admiration is shown to you! When has someone extended hospitality to you? Provide hospitality to someone else, it will make you and others feel great.
Today is Halloween and for some it is a Religious Celebration.
Imaginations at Work!
Halloween moments makes for great fun.
The costumes and the kids excitement spills out and makes us all happier. It is a Holiday for some people, All Hallows Eve.
Take the first step forward, it may put you on the escalator of success!
Reaching Out to One Another
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Reaching Out to One Another
Have you ever acted impulsively? Acting on a hunch to sell a sock may be all wrong. Or hurried and made a purchase and then regretted it? Young people often do this because they do not research. Are you sleeping well? How are you making good decisions based on facts and reality? When are you aware of the philosophy you carry about life and do you reach out to others? Have you suddenly realized you are in the wrong job and need to update your skills?
Research tells us about how we contribute to being isolated and upset by looking at our smart phones or other devices by not reaching out. We totally ignore one another when we could be cushioning ourselves and others from the negative emotions that sore through the universe. 3 different university studies tell us people are not engaged with one another. No surprise. Right? We contribute to the problems all around us by doing the same thing. Linda shares about her time at the car dealership that illustrates how we might help one another. Tension seems to brew everywhere; let humor help us reach out to the people we share space with on a daily basis.
Enjoying every day!
Engaging with one another helps us alleviate anxiety, tension, and emotions. So how does this happen. Levity and humor helps eliminate the stress that comes from problems. Laughter relieves our emotions; not our actual problems, but it does put things into perspective.
Take time to listen and enjoy one another. Be patient, respect, and politeness in your day.
Take the first step forward, it may put you on the Escalator of Success!
Traps to Keeping A Focus
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The Traps to Keeping A Focus
Welcome to this weeks Podcast on trying to stay focused and connected to those around you.
Trap #1: The Comparison trap
Appears in many disguises
When we compare the amount we earn..
When we compare the education we don’t have
When we compare our family with someone else’s family
That people have better behaved kids
That others have a prettier house
That the neighbors have a cleaner yard
Someone has a better spouse or even a better behaved dog.
The list goes on …
Trap #2: We are blind to our own gifts.
We don’t use our gifts
We can’t identify our gifts.
It is our responsibility to use the gifts God has given us!
Trap #3: Losing Direction
What happened to your purpose? Your “why” for doing what you want to do and for doing it well!
Your focus is so cloudy that you cannot see the end post.
Something derails you.
You lose momentum and get stuck in quicksand.
Without light, guidance, and a push to regain momentum, you may be sad, still, or sink lower.
Lost, Confused
Trap #4: Seeing only a partial truth
ei. Like driving through a street filled with water that appears shallow enough to drive through. Upon entering it, the car ends up in a sink hole.
Or when a person seems to do things easily, one might assume that it is an easy job. What we don’t see is the endless years of study, practice, and hands on experience.
Challenge is to figure out, “What is stopping you from focusing?”
Here is a challenge to jump in and get involved at our office, with our blogs, podcasts and gain valuable self insight along the way. Contact us to be part of the ongoing development. We appreciate your contributions.
Our purpose changes along the way. We have different skills and opportunities to serve God and our neighbors along the way. Keep you mind alive. Linda suggests a few good magazines to read: Entrepreneur’s Magazine, Experience Life, Success Magazine.
The Loner
Linda stresses the importance of staying connected with one another regardless of the businesses you run, the homes you keep going for your family, or the projects you take on. It is valuable to give and take from the spirit and joy of life to one another.
Join In with Others
A shout out to Scott Harvey, John Budd, Edwin Soler, and Kiwanis friends for their ongoing support and insights.