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Tips for Closing Out 2011 and Preparing for a Rockin’ 2012
Thanks to Amber Ludwig for today’s insightful guest post:
We are all winding down the 2011 year (hard to believe it went by so quickly!) and resting up to take charge in early 2012. It is important to really take that time to REST because January is an often hectic month where business owners, like you and me, are eager to expand, build and conquer. We are FULL of inspiration and creative ideas. Many also feel financial pressure from spending a little too much over the holidays, and expansion in business usually requires a budget to play with. Today I hope to provide some tips for consideration to help you through this transition.
20 Thanksgiving Gratitude Quotes
Intrigue-master Sam Horn compiled the best 20 Thanksgiving quotes about being thankful. She writes,
“If the only prayer you ever said was ‘Thank you,’ that would be enough.” – Meister Ekhart
You’ve heard the saying “out of sight, out of mind?”
Keep these quotes “in sight, in mind” so you and your loved ones can live in a state of gratitude year-round.
Gratitude quote #1: “When you drink the water, remember the well.” – Chinese proverb
Gratitude quote #2: “When I started counting my blessings; my whole life turned around.” – Willie Nelson
Gratitude quote #3: “Make yourself a blessing to someone. Your kind smile or pat on the back just might pull someone back from the edge.” – Carmelia Elliott
Gratitude quote #4: “Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” ~ William Ward
Good Customer Service: How to Make Your Customers Feel Special
Two Important Questions About Customer Service:
1. How can you make a difference in your customers’ lives?
2. How can you build the loyalty that makes them come back?
Johnny, a supermarket bagger, heard trainer Barbara Blanchard ask these questions. He wondered what he could do to create memories and make each customer feel special.
And he came up with a terrific solution. Watch this movie, and find out how a guy with Down Syndrome inspired the whole store.
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Has someone made you feel like a special customer? I welcome your comments.
An Inspirational Video by Jana Stanfield
This song —”If I Were Brave” — will uplift your spirits. You could call it a spiritual tune-up. Be sure to watch the video. Enjoy!
Have You Ever Made a Big Dream Come True?
That’s a great conversation question.
I can say YES because TODAY my new, amped-up Web site is online. And my ebook, Do You Squeeze the Toothpaste in the Middle? Playful Questions for Dates & Mates, is available for the first time. HOORAY! I’M EXCITED!!!!!!
If you’re reading this on Facebook, go to http://www.QueenOfConversation.com and check out the new look.
How long did it take to write the book? Shoots, some of my readers weren’t born yet. If I get on Oprah, it’ll be because I had a dream and stuck to it like gum sticks to a shoe.
Friends would say, “How’s that book coming?” I’d say, “I’m struggling with it.” And my heart would sink. I could feel it. When I finished the book, I’d say, “Now I’m having trouble with my Web site,” and my heart would sink. With that kind of self-talk, no wonder my tail feathers were dragging.
The Popcorn Theory: 4 Steps to Show Kindness
Want to show more kindness? Here’s a conversation tip from the family depicted in the movie The Blind Side:
Leigh Ann and Sean Tuohy (pronounced TOO-hee), have a philosophy of life they named “The Popcorn Theory.” It goes like this:
You can’t help everyone. But you can try to help the hot ones who pop up in front of your face. It means that you notice other people, ask them questions, really listen to their answers, and help where you can. It’s a simple philosophy that they put into practice that freezing November afternoon when the Tuohys turned their car around to pick up a boy they saw walking without a jacket. In that heartbeat, all their lives were changed.
- Jonna Erickson, The Costco Connection
Got that? Just four steps to show your kindness:
- Notice
- Ask
- Listen
- Help
A New Pledge of Allegiance for the 4th of July Weekend
A New Pledge by David Ault
by David Ault © 2004
I pledge allegiance to breaking the self-imposed barriers of my humanness. I recognize that my time on this planet is precious and limited. Every day is a canvas on which I can create. Everyday is an opportunity for me to move in the direction of the dreams and the expanded vision I feel inside. By setting aside petty grievances, past mistakes, righteous anger and my broken story, I pledge to move forward and embrace the experience of freedom right here and right now.
I pledge allegiance to the expression of my spiritual honesty. I fully own the fact that my presence here in this body and on this earth is a celebration of uniqueness and importance. Creation makes no mistakes. I am a creation of life, of a higher power, of perfection. My reason for being here matters in the grand divine plan. I must be honest with my contract of life and walk the path of my destiny with conviction, purpose and grace.
I pledge allegiance to the quiet soldier within. I understand that the championing spirit that is already cellularly alive inside of me, that was already in place at the time of my birth, waits patiently for my current belief about myself to join it in its knowing. I march forward towards a history of my own making, wisely, lovingly choosing the means by which I spread my beliefs and convictions. I never make others wrong for their chosen path for I recognize the innumerable roads that lead to the One.
I pledge allegiance to a partnership with divinity. I choose to see others and myself from eyes that already view the wholeness and perfection within. I do not entertain our past damage or encourage us to identify with it for I trust that a grander calling card has been printed for us to distribute in promoting our lives. I champion all of us to celebrate what is working rather than what isn’t.
I pledge allegiance to wise discernment – knowing when to speak and when to remain quiet, knowing when to comfort and when to leave alone, knowing when to intervene and when to avoid rescuing and interfering.
I pledge allegiance to people and projects of substance. I cannot travel this road alone. If there is anything we as a species need, it is each other. I actively choose to support those whose work I believe in with my time, talent and treasure. I joyously give to those whose intention and purpose is for self-empowerment and the awakening of humanity to its personal magnificence. I rally to make others aware of such light bearers and do what I can to support them in furthering their vision.
I pledge allegiance to the freedom from comparison. I once and for all lay down my wearisome, stale beliefs of unworthiness and not being good enough. I know that my past does not define who I am. I am forever evolving, growing and learning. I recognize that I am a marvel. I now choose opportunities to let my voice be heard; to let my light shatter the darkness of futility so that every personal dream is explored.
I pledge allegiance in knowing that things are not always as they seem. Just because something can’t be seen with the physical eye or rationalized by our current mode of understanding does not negate its existence. Understanding the difference between reality and illusion, I move into a fuller acceptance of the non-physical – the mystical, intuitive, soul aspect of living that expands my consciousness and deepens my days.
I pledge allegiance to actions that fulfill the greatest good for all. By becoming a gatekeeper of compassion, tolerance and love, I move into a fuller conviction of pure intent with regard to the words that I speak and the choices that I make. I pursue a win-win in all activities of life.
I pledge allegiance to those who have gone before me, the ancestral lineage whose courage, sacrifice and conviction still live in my bones. I honor the privileges given to me today because of the sweat from their pioneering efforts and the fortitude of their convictions. I give thanks for my responsibility in creating the same for future generations.
I pledge allegiance to a love that has no agenda. I no longer choose to give for what I might get, to manipulate in order to control, to abandon before I can be abandoned, to tolerate because there are seemingly no other options. I choose to love as a way of being. I am content in my choice whether outside circumstances respond or not. In being love, I create fulfillment above and beyond what the human condition can provide.
I pledge allegiance to the sacredness of laughter, knowing that the greatest healing force that exists reverberates from the vibration of this holy and irreplaceable gift. I allow humor, joy and eruptions of laughter to make their home in my heart. I let my physical body respond to the sacred stimulus and biological wonder that laughter creates and vow to keep this attribute alive and thriving all the days of my life.
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Tracey here with your conversation question of the day:
I especially like the section about wise discernment: “knowing when to speak and when to remain quiet, knowing when to comfort and when to leave alone, knowing when to intervene and when to avoid rescuing and interfering.”
- What parts of this pledge speak loudly to you?
- Would you care to add any pledges of your own?
- If you’re in a relationship, especially a new one, I dare you to create a pledge to each other. Feel free to adapt David’s beautiful thoughts. Don’t worry about getting it perfect. Make it a work in progress.
Lessons from the Library, or, Volunteers Don’t Need Prozac
Volunteering at my local library makes me feel good! Wish I’d signed up years ago when I was depressed. Science says my mood uplift comes from a boost in serotonin. I call it a natural high.
I LOVE feeling useful. I’m a mostly cheery person, but sorting book and magazine donations boosts my spirits even higher. Rummaging through the donation bin is like having Christmas morning twice a week. What bestsellers will turn up this time? Will it be the latest Dan Brown thriller? (YESSS!)
Can I borrow it? Right now? Yes, because volunteers get two extra benefits: 1) we can borrow book donations before they go on sale, and 2) we get first dibs on buying books.
Here’s another reason I get a boost from being a volunteer:
I get paid — not in money but in gratitude, which is the currency of the heart. The library staff and other volunteers appreciate us. Every week my “boss,” Clare, thanks me for helping. I don’t need her gratitude, but I like it. I can’t take it to the bank, but I take it to heart.
If you shop garage sales for books, you’d probably enjoy volunteering at your library, too. Or pick something else that appeals to you. If you’ve been downsized or furloughed, volunteer. A hundred worthy causes are waiting for you to step up to the plate. Call one of them now while you’re thinking about it.
Can You Top This Inspirational YouTube Video?
Singer Susan Boyle was the most-watched YouTube video in 2009. This video about a dog that failed at her first “job” gets my vote for super inspiration. After months of training, Ricochet wasn’t suited for being a service dog (“Birds!? WOOF! WOOF!”), but she excelled at something else.
I wonder if there’s a moral in here for us humans, such as chasing birds could cost you your job.
See what you think.
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I welcome your comments. Tell me, what’s your favorite YouTube video? And feel free to have fun with the moral.
Screw New Year’s Resolutions. Do This Instead.
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Every year I make the same New Year’s resolution, which is not to make any resolutions. I blow them by February anyway. Here’s an idea for the new year that doesn’t leave me feeling bad about myself.
I pick a word for the year. It’s a guiding star, kind of a Star of Bethlehem for the wise person I aspire to be. |
After my friend Pam told me about word picking (Thanks, Pam), I added the idea to my computer’s calendar so I’d remember every year.
My brain’s been addled from too much multitasking, so this year I picked “focus.” It’s only January 4th, and already I’m focusing more, multitasking less.
Then two more good words jumped onboard: ”completion” and “connection.” When I told Gaelyn about connection, she cheered and hugged me. Connection is working its magic already.
OK, your turn….What word—or words—sing to you, inspire you to be a better person this year? Please share your words in the comment section so the rest of us can be inspired, too.
BONUS: Use this word-of-the-year idea as a conversation question.
