Empowerment - The Voice In Your Head Is Not Who You Really Are - You Are The One Who Observes It


By Tony Fahkry

You Are Not Your Thoughts

The biggest lie perpetrated by mankind is the idea that the voice in your head is who you really are.

It's easy to understand why people believe the narrative in their minds because thoughts are real. They come at you every moment of the day and are unrelenting until they wear you down.

To illustrate how much we identify with our thoughts, years ago while meditating, I experienced no thoughts in what was a tiny pocket of time and believed I did not exist.

It was short lived because the experience frightened me to the extent I generated a thought in the next moment to confirm my existence.

This took place within a few seconds, yet it felt like an eternity.

Authors Steven C. Hayes and Spencer Smith explain in Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life: The New Acceptance and Commitment how we form a conceptualised self which is difficult to move beyond: "The exciting part about seeing your own conceptualized self as something you hold on to arbitrarily is that truly new narratives may be possible that are, right now, outside of the story currently being told. But it can be frightening to open up to possibilities that go beyond your conceptualized self. If you are not your thoughts, then who are you?"

In this day and age we're inundated with external noise. It has become more difficult than ever to tune it out, yet simultaneously it is taking place within our minds.

Thoughts do not confirm your sense of self as apparent in the earlier quote.

They are transitory and fleeting electrical episodes in the mind. You don't know what you will think next until the thoughts emerge.

Similarly, you may be tired or hungry and notice your thoughts are scattered.

In contrast, when feeling energetic, your thoughts are more positive. This is when people claim they are at their best and indicative of who they are.

I would argue you are not your thoughts at your best nor at your worst.

Who are you then?

You are the receiver and observer of your thoughts. You are the radio receiving and transmitting thoughts, but not the thoughts themselves.

As alluded to in the title, you are the person recognising the experience of the thoughts.

You add context and meaning to what you experience and label it as good or bad judging by how the thought makes you feel. This is not necessarily a bad thing because human beings are meaning-making machines.

It's wired into our genetic disposition to make sense of the world, yet it can also be a double-edged sword if things go wrong.

Thoughts are mostly neutral and have little meaning save for the meaning you add to it.

I enjoy Mary O'Malley's point of view in What's in the Way Is the Way: A Practical Guide for Waking Up to Life in which she writes: "Life created the mind as a tool for manoeuvring through Life, not to be in charge of it. The mind is a wonderful servant, but it is a horrible master. Giving it the task of being in charge of Life has created the world of struggle that most people live in all day long, keeping them cut off from peace and joy."

A Pebble Dropped In The Pond

The greatest victory you can undertake in your personal development is to recognise you are not your thoughts and detach from them. This is difficult to do and requires discipline and self-enquiry.

I have come to respect and pay attention to negative thoughts such as those imbued with: fear, anxiety, anger, etc. by observing them, not responding to them.

This took many years of practice and meditation. Before that, I was constantly dragged down by negative thoughts because I believed the narrative they espoused.

For example, if something unpleasant happened, I experienced negative thoughts that spiralled out of control. They turned into destructive emotional states and soon enough I was caught in a storm of pessimism.

There came a point where I had enough and started meditating in the evening to help me sleep better.

Once I became accustomed to meditating, I started journaling my thoughts and discovered a theme interweaving throughout my thinking process.

I objectively traced the thoughts and examined the underlying mechanism behind them.

For example, if I consumed alcohol and caffeine on particular days, my thoughts were erratic and impulsive.

Similarly, if I consumed a carbohydrate-rich diet high in sugar, I observed the same erratic thoughts.

It wasn't until I switched to whole foods and eliminated caffeine and alcohol from my diet that my erratic thoughts subsided alongside the other work I was doing.

I realise this is an extreme intervention because alcohol, sugar and carbs are key components to a Western diet. Nevertheless, I was prepared to do whatever it took to gain peace of mind.

It's said the mind is likened to a calm pond of water, whereby a thought is a pebble dropped in the pond. The ripple effect of the pebble has an undulating influence on the mind and body.

I'm not suggesting you need to go to the extreme I did. In fact, it took two years of observations and what many nowadays call hacking one's health to notice what worked and what didn't.

During that time I lapsed often, yet it was important to discover how my diet and moods influenced my thoughts.

I embarked on this because I wanted to inhabit my body completely, without a cocktail of chemicals dictating my quality of life.

Sure, I miss foods rich in carbohydrates but the inner peace I gained far outweighs the moments of pleasure carbs offer.

I mention this to highlight how the voice in your head can be influenced by external factors.

If foods and stimulating drinks can influence your thoughts, the voice in your head is not the real you but subject to what you put in your body.

Even Negative Thoughts Are Useful

To gain a better understanding of your thoughts requires becoming self-aware and mindful of your inner world.

Loch Kelly explains this in Shift into Freedom: The Science and Practice of Open-Hearted Awareness: "One of the most important things to learn is how to separate awareness from thinking, and then we can see that thoughts and emotions are not the centre of who we are."

Many people are driven by their unconscious desires and constantly react to their external environment.

They are governed by what takes place outside, it becomes difficult to make sense of what is happening within.

To summarise the plan I undertook to make peace with my thoughts:

1. Journal my thoughts.

2. Be mindful of the foods I consumed.

3. Know how alcohol and caffeine affect me once they are consumed, particularly in the ensuing hours and days.

4. Observe my moods throughout the day while paying attention to external triggers.

5. Be aware when my blood sugar levels drop which depletes glucose to the brain. This can affect thoughts.

It goes without saying: be sensible and do not experiment with yourself if you are depressed or suffer from a mentally diagnosed condition. Seek professional advice and guidance. This is not intended to replace professional treatment, nor do I expect it to be taken as advice.

Thoughts themselves are not the problem.

The voice inside your head is something you can observe and turn the volume down on.

It is unwise to get rid of negative thoughts because they can serve a purpose.

I discovered this through many years of self-enquiry. It requires integrating them into the wholeness of your being rather than try to abolish them completely.

All thoughts have their place in the mind, even negative ones.

The key is to dissociate from negative thoughts and choose empowering ones in their place.

By turning down the volume on negative chatter you allow the authentic self to emerge.

To live a remarkable life, you must take consistent action in spite of your fears and doubts. Download a   FREE copy of my motivational eBook, NAVIGATE LIFE and embark upon your journey of greatness today!

Empowerment - Multi-Dimensional If You Please


By Alexa Keating

Many people are unaware of the new energy field Planet Earth is moving into. It is commonly referred to as 4D or the 4th Dimension. It is accepted among scholars that our planet has moved from the first and original dimension to the second and finally into the third dimension we have existed in for slightly more than 36,000 years. That is a long, long time to develop habits, ideas and foundations for civilization to progress through. Every reader was born into and existed in the 3rd dimensional energy field. What does this change mean and why is it important to us, the planets inhabitants?

In some fashion we are all aware of the passage of time, some acutely so. Rarely do we allow our thoughts to drift into or try to imagine another dimension. It is almost impossible to imagine something we have never seen and are barely aware of. Yet time passed, lots of time and it happened. We arrived here in a dimension that was far progressed beyond the first or the second one. We are aware of advances perhaps back to 2000 or 3000 years. But 36,000 years; it's hard to go there for anyone! This current time we believe is filled with technological advances will one day be referred to in the annals of history as barbaric and simplistic.

Imagine an approaching hurricane with wide bands surrounding it that contain some of what the actual storm will bring. We refer to these as the outer bands. That is exactly where we are in approaching the new dimension. We have begun to feel the change even if we do not understand what it will bring. A planet approaching a new dimension is a graduation of sorts and something to celebrate. Just like a graduation, there will be enormous opportunities combined with the challenges of change. The complete entry into this new energy is more than 80 years away. Every new decade of babies born into the newer energy field will be more aware of what will be than what was. They are born with enhanced genetics that equip them for this new experience. That 90% of our brain that we always said was dormant is actually multi-dimensional proving this was always a part of the plan for humanity.

Should we ignore this or try to understand it and benefit from what is already available? The choice is yours, as always. What is changing? One vitally important thing that is beginning to be available to us is understanding intent. That is a small word with a huge impact. In the new energy we will see and have a sense of real knowing about the intent of every person we encounter. Imagine how this can change our lives. You will always know if the person next to you or approaching you has a benevolent intent or has practiced charm to deceive you or harbors the intent to harm you! You will be able to know what their real intentions are and then make a far better choice about how it can impact your life. The final choice will still be yours but deceit will be far more difficult to engage in. We will exist in a time far more engaged in truth in our future. But how can you take advantage of it now?

We must consciously begin to read the energy of other people. But how can we do this? Practice taking even a slight moment for your mind to be still and listen. You have to engage your gut to learn this. Allow the signals from your 'gut instinct' to be relayed into your consciousness. Try this with every new person, place or situation you encounter. Be aware of what is before you and then instinctively direct your attention to what your gut interprets from the signals you are receiving. It is the place where real truth is discerned. In this newer energy these signals are felt much more powerfully because there is less interference in the transmission of them. Tune in and don't ignore the information you receive. It can alter the course of your life and help you avoid costly and painful mistakes.

This is just one of the many new opportunities opening to us in the new energy as we adjust and learn to become multi-dimensional, as we were created to be!

This article is an excerpt from the upcoming soon to be released book "Quantum Consciousness.' To learn more about this author please visit http://www.arkconnect.com. To learn more about her available books, please visit http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=alexa+keating+books or your favorite bookseller.

Software - Best Practices Of UI/UX Design To Retain Users


By Anubhuti Shrivastava

According to a report, 77% of users stop using an app within the first three days after download. What can be the cause of their soon exit? The answer is following the wrong UI/UX practices. There are several lifestyle applications designed for the users to use in their leisure time. Now the challenge is how to develop an ideal user experience design for your mobile app. With the help of below-mentioned practices, you can turn your app into users' favourite.

Create A Positive First Impression: The ultimate goal of the UI/UX design of your app should let your users feel that they are a valuable asset for your business. You should ensure that the users must get a positive vibe when they first time visit your mobile app. Design the signup/login features as easy and seamless as possible. You might be required to gather customers' information during the onboarding phase. It can be a frustrating process, but you can design it cleverly. Only ask the questions which are absolutely essential and allow your users to skip steps associated with the questions having less value. If you need an authentication code, then never email it, but send it through a text so that the users' engagement with your interface should not get interrupted. Craft a user-friendly and simple interface which will encourage users to browse your app further. Do not overload your mobile app with a lot of test tutorials, but incorporate visual cues which will make the users understand the functioning of your app in an interesting way.

Build A Feedback Loop: Research and create feedback loops in your app in order to keep users hooked on to your app. One such example of creating loops using motion design can help the users to understand what's going on with the help of visible signs and symbols. In this, you use motion to reinforce every action of your user. For example, Apple's "horizontal shake" is one of the best examples of negative feedback loops. When you enter the wrong password on your iPhone the popup window "shakes" back and forth. This motion gives the users an instant understanding of the problem. Each step of your app should be crystal clear to the users. Users will get frustrated if they will not be able to understand every step they take on your app. It will push them either to delete the app or stop using it.

Redesign Or Tweak: You can begin with MVP (minimum viable product) as a strategy for gaining critical feedback in the early and most crucial phases of the development of your mobile app. Users will not generally give reviews when your app works fine. But in case of any glitch, you will surely get critical comments. You should tweak your app on the basis of these reviews. Do not try to redesign the UI/UX design of your app completely unless there is some serious issue. It is because you will lose your customer base if you do this. Despite this fact Target, Harley-Davidson and even Apple are a few big brands which have successfully undergone complete rebranding. Users might complain about these tweaks initially but later on, they will get adapted to it because these modifications will give a smooth experience to them only.

A great UI/UX design will let your mobile app thrive and flourish successfully. Follow the above practices and develop an exceptional user experience design of your next mobile application.

Business Advertising - Think Newspapers Are Yesterday's News? Think Again


By Wolfgang Franke

Mark Twain had this famous response when he read about his "death" in the newspaper:

"The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated."

Now the tables have turned. The death of newspapers is being reported when millions of people worldwide are still reading the daily news. Such irony. Saying newspapers are finished is the ultimate fake news.

A single newspaper report is still one of the most powerful drivers of opinion. More powerful than a trending Twitter posting, a viral Facebook post or a top Instagram hashtag. Just ask the unfortunate vacation property owners in and around Playa Del Carmen, a popular resort town on the northeast coast of the Yucat�n Peninsula in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, otherwise known at the Mexican Riviera.

In February 2018, just weeks from the peak tourist season, they were preparing to welcome thousands of vacationers eager to escape a long, hard winter. The hordes of sun seekers included my wife and myself. We were booked to spend a week in late March at our favorite winter get-away: the Iberostar Grand Paraiso, about thirty minutes by car from Playa Del Carmen.

Then came the shocking news that a tourist ferry in Playa Del Carmen was "bombed" on Feb 22, 2018. The following story, supported by a video (    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgO9VPFBNyU ), was even more disturbing. Twenty-five people injured! The U.S. Embassy warns travelers to stay away from the ferries and parts of the Caribbean resort city!

Two weeks later, another "bomb-like" device was found on another ferry. It was removed without going off. On March 21, the day we left for our holiday, the U.S. Embassy removed its warning.

So what do you think happened? Did the sun-seekers ignore the news? Did the hotels do their usual booming business? Based on my findings, drawn from an admittedly small sample size, the answer would be a resounding no.

The bad news, once released, trumped everything. It could not be reversed -- no more than you can put the toothpaste back in the tube.

Evidence of the fall-out created by the news report was easy to find, starting from the moment we entered customs at the Cancun Airport and breezed through in record time because there were no lines (Exhibit A).

When we arrived at our resort, virtually nothing was the same as usual: there were fewer guests on the grounds (Exhibit B), several of our favorite specialty restaurants were closed for most of our stay (Exhibit C) and I could get any golf tee time I wanted, and actually had to change my original tee time because there were no other players in that slot (Exhibit D).

Need more? While playing my second round of golf with just one other player (Exhibit E), we adopted a single player (Exhibit F) who was one hole behind us. He turned out to be a friendly fellow from Mexico City who rents an apartment in Playa Del Carmen. "It's normally fully booked at this time," he told us. "This year, nothing." (Exhibit G)

All because of a single news event. Remember that the next time somebody tells you newspapers are yesterday's news.

Read my marketing blog, Wolf Bites (   https://www.wordsatwork.ca/en/why-wolfbites-intro-small-business-marketing-blog.php ), for more observations and comments on marketing and the media -- and what it all means for the average small business owner.

How to Tell Someone They Are Hurting Your Feelings


By Rosina S Khan

Do you often get hurt by what people say? Don't suffer in silence. Let them know gently and tactfully that they are hurting your feelings. How do you do that? Read on to find out.

Consider the following scenarios:

A lady sits next to you in a bus and comments on your newly dyed hair. You have seen her before on the same bus but you don't like her recent comment. In fact, you think you like the new dye in your hair while the woman said your previous original hair was much better. You feel upset. But you let her know your feelings. Tell her you are disappointed in her comment and that you wanted to try something new for your hair. All of your friends and acquaintances except her have complimented on your new hair style. Tell her directly you deserve an apology from her.

Your mother is looking at the transcript of your completed semester for your undergraduate program. You have got mostly A's, a B and a C. Your mother tells you that you should have worked harder and got all A's. You feel unhappy because you have put your all into your studies and that is the best you could produce. Instead of keeping it in your mind, say it aloud and let your mother hear you. Ask her if you don't deserve credit for such results because your plate was full studying and doing on-campus jobs along with cleaning your apartment for regular cleaning inspections by the authorities.

You have lost weight catering for the needs of your family and maintaining a balance between work and home. One of your relatives comments that you looked better three months ago but now your appearance is rather stressed out and unbecoming. You get fired up at the comment because she has hurt your feelings. You rejoiced privately before meeting this relative that you were back in shape and you could fit into all your previous jeans. You actually celebrated it until this relative comes and destroys your happiness. Tell her directly that you are happy having lost weight and being back in shape. All of your friends and colleagues have wanted to know your secrets because they really like the new YOU so much. You think your relative should shed some weight now and let her know that so that she looks better and can move about freely. You think losing your weight is an asset for you because good health will keep you away from all kinds of diseases. Doesn't she think the same?

Summing up, this is how you address people when they hurt your feelings and you are back to your joyous and jubilant mood and spirit.

Rosina S Khan has authored this article. For a wealth of free resources based on stunning fiction stories, amazing self-help eBooks, commendable articles, quality scholar papers, valuable blogs and terrific academic guides, all authored by her, and much more, visit: http://rosinaskhan.weebly.com. You will be glad that you did.

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How To Grow Your Email List With A Contest


By Jon Allo

You should be building an email list of prospects and customers. You constantly need to add new prospects to fill your sales funnel, and once someone buys a product from you, that person is more likely to buy something from you again in the future.

A great way to broaden your email list is to hold an online contest. Contests not only allow you to create something useful and beneficial for your audience on a particular topic, it also creates more engagement, usually daily with your target market.

You can create a contest or competition where everyone has to submit their email address to enter.

Who Is Your Target Audience?

If you don't know who your target audience is, you can't do anything - from creating content, to developing products, to holding a contest. Knowing your target audience lets you know when, what, why, where and how you'll move forward. Everything you do is about your audience and what type of value you can provide them.

The Goals for Your Contest

One goal, in this case, is obviously to grow your email list. But are you wanting to promote a specific product to the list that you build? Do you want to launch a new product and make sales? Know the goals for your contest so that you can make sure that you're doing what needs to be done to meet that goal.

The Right Tools for Your Contest

There are many tools that you can use for contests. Each social platform has its own approved contest software. If you want to run a contest on Instagram and Facebook, check out ShortStack.

Market Your Contest

Don't have a contest without also adding the marketing element. Consider it just like you would with any product you want to launch. You're going to want to run some online ads, and share widely on all social media platforms. Social networks like Facebook and Twitter are absolutely perfect for marketing your contests and getting sign-ups.

Follow Up

When the contest is over follow up with everyone. Announce the winner and interview them. Also interview the top three entries. Send email messages that you've pre-planned to everyone who entered and everyone who signed up during the contest.

Holding a contest to grow your list is an excellent way to accomplish your list-growing goals. Treat the contest as you would another product so that you promote it, launch it, test it, and improve it for the next time.

Online contests are a great way to engage with your audience and add grow your email list. When people are engaged and interacting with your business it helps drive sales and profits. To learn more about running a contest for your business, download my free checklist, Running A Challenge at    https://jonallo.com/challenge

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