In the midst of being mindful ...

I accidentally put a post on the wrong blog!  Guess I have a bit to learn about mindfulness.

Being mindful

Negative Thought Patterns

What do you know about negative thought patterns?  Do you partake?  Are they part of what makes up the activity in your brain?  If so, it might be time to get rid of them.

Negative thought patterns are negative thoughts that periodically make up part of your thinking.  Although these thoughts are destructive and primarily untrue, we can make their presence a habit, a pattern.

Some examples might help.  "I'll never be able to figure that out."  "I am so stupid."  "I'm not important enough to go there."

These negative though patterns can be the heart and soul of a habit.  Without you even being aware, you might put yourself down multiple times a week, or even a day.

Obviously, these are bad news.  See if you can catch yourself dishing up a negative thought pattern this week.

Why the frown? (1)

Some people tend to frown a lot.  Their facial expression says that they are not happy and possibly angry.  They do not approve of the situation they are currently in.  What causes this?  Can anything be done to help this person?  Let’s consider some steps that a person can take to lose the frown.

People who are happy tend to have good relationships with family, friends and other people in their lives.  These people play an important role because they help you celebrate the good things in life, and hold you up in difficult times.  A relationship is like the bridge that exists between you and another person.  These bridges must be nurtured and maintained if you expect them to remain strong.  A bridge left untended will not support the stresses of life.  Some people talk of investing in relationships.  This is a good analogy since all kinds of investing require that you first give to the cause, and then you will have the opportunity to receive more than you gave.

The way to nurture a relationship is with kind words and actions.  You must express your appreciation for the kindnesses others show you and also for the friendship itself.  Do not take these people for granted – assuming they will always be there.  Be very cautious about critiquing your friends and family and be very quick to apologize at even the possibility that you have offended or done them wrong.  Sometimes we need to set our pride aside, but that is a small price for maintaining the friendship.

This sounds good, but it will not help the serious frowner.  Why is that?  People want to be around happy people.  People who generally wear a smile will have lots of friends and countless opportunities to build and strengthen relationship.  Cold hard fact:  the frowning face seems to send a ‘stay away’ message to people, and they gladly do.  This tendency to avoid the frowning person only makes matters worse.  What can he do?  He will need to force a smile and make the first move towards kindness and friendly interaction.  This is far easier said than done.  Often times, on the inside, the man with a frown just wants to be left alone.  He is well aware that others avoid him, so he considers himself an island.  That is when the frown only deepens.

Amazing Fact About Happiness

Do you think that your happiness depends primarily on your circumstances?  Actually it does not.  According to Mayo Clinic, your circumstances impact your happiness only at a level of about 10%.  Far more important is your personality, which is largely managed by your thoughts and behavior.

We can have some measure of control over our thoughts and behavior, so we actually can take positive steps to make ourselves happier.

Think about moving in the direction of happiness today!

Christianity Works

Christianity Works

Relationship Tidbit

What a woman wants/needs from a man.

A woman is going through a very difficult time.  Her supportive friend encourages her the best she can, and then the woman says, "It would be so nice to have a man to care for me."

That is a powerful statement for a man to think about.  What really impacts a woman in the heart and in the most meaningful way is to be that person who loves and cares for her.  I need to learn from this and bless those I can with this charge.

God help me to care for the women He has put into my life.

Take my job seriously - with balance

This morning while listening to the life story of a pilot, he mentioned at one point that he took his work very seriously.  Given his personality and training, I have no doubt he does it.  What does it mean to take one's job seriously? 

To take one's job seriously, one must work very hard to make sure every aspect of the job is done in the best way possible, the end results are obtained in the most efficient way and there are no tasks left undone.

At the same time, I have been advised that there are certain aspects of  my work that I should not take so seriously.  I need to lighten up a bit.

OK, do you see the problem.  This is like a tug-o-war between opposing forces.  If I lighten up with respect to certain people or issues, then it changes my whole perspective.  On the other hand, if I buckle down and take my job seriously, that will impact all aspects of my work.

Somehow I will need to find the balance.  I think I need more of both the seriousness and the lightening up!  They will just have to get along.