If you want to live longer, be happy, healthy and successful, all you have to do is tell yourself that you

can do it by tapping the healing forces within There is no greater joy than a healthy, positive life. You feel exhilarated, energetic, happy and on top of the world. A sense of total well being permeates your mind. The future looks bright. You feel good to be alive. Great, but how do we get out of our innumerable worries, tensions and fears that the increasingly competitive life burdens us with? Simple! Tell yourself that you are good, healthy and capable. That is the power of positive affirmations. Such affirmations are also called self-suggestions. It is a powerful tool for transforming your inner self into an amazing health generating, self-healing entity. You can record these affirmations on a tape synchronized with pleasant instrumental music and replay them often to make them more effective and permanent. SELF-INDOCTRINATION Psychology says that our mind controls our body. So, taking charge of your mind becomes a vital factor in keeping your body healthy. You can do this through affirmations that establish the power of your mind. Try: "With the power of positive thinking I now take charge of my body to maintain perfect health, strength and happiness unconditionally, now and always, so be it." When you repeat this, the misleading programs of your mind will be erased. It is said that we are never given a wish without the power to fulfill it. Each person is capable of programming his own mind to achieve what he desires. You can tap this capability by following a few simple steps. But before you begin, make yourself totally relaxed and be consciously willing to adopt the method. Attuning yourself with nature guarantees an overall healthy life. To modify this statement into an affirmation, say: "I attune myself with nature to stay healthy now and forever." You can have the right kind of food by affirming: "I can attract healthy food to keep myself fit, healthy and strong, everyday." You can develop the habit of exercising your body and mind by affirming: "I can easily get up early in the morning everyday to exercise and keep fit and cheerful." In case you are an insomniac, all you have to do is repeat: "I can relax into sound sleep now and wake up revitalized, alert, bright and cheerful early in the morning. It is done. So be it." Sometimes, social influences play their part in either inducing or encouraging negative thinking. This is the stage where most doctors give up the case as incurable. So, to find the right doctor, suggest mentally to yourself: "I will locate the right doctor who can cure me completely in a simple, easy and positive way, now and always." Your health problems can be dissolved by affirming: "I can now dissolve all my health problems, worries and fears easily, quickly and successfully in simple, easy

and positive ways. So be it." MAGNETIC RELAXATION Unlike sleeping, magnetic relaxation requires you to be physically at rest but subconsciously alert. When your conscious mind is relaxed, the positive suggestions seep into your subconscious. To achieve maximum benefit from relaxation: Sit in a comfortable chair or lie down on a bed. Let go of all the tension by repeating to yourself: "I can now relax comfortably. I can now relax my body. I can now relax my mind. Easily, quickly and positively. Now I can enjoy the state of alert relaxation peacefully." Let a feeling of soothing comfort take over. Let go of yourself totally. Feel a universal healing energy surrounding you and getting absorbed into your body and mind. Feel a cool breeze around your body. Visualize a white sparkling light pouring through your head down your body and seeping deep within you. Think that soothing and healing forces are vibrating within and radiating from you. Maintain a positive and peaceful state of mind during the session. Also, take precautions that you are not disturbed. Mentally repeat to yourself: "Day by day in every way I'm getting better and better and better."

This is a general formula that will heal you of all sickness. Emile Coue, a French doctor, recommended it for physical, mental and emotional well-being. It can be mentally repeated as many times as possible. MAGNETIC ABSORPTION The subconscious has the knowledge, power, wisdom and understanding to heal and maintain perfect health. It is the interference of negative suggestions that causes ill health and weakness. So, whenever you feel that something is not right, use affirmations to get back on the right track. Here is a simple one that can be absorbed into your subconscious to keep your body fit: "Attuned with universal healing powers and the source of life, all my body organs are now becoming normal and fit, and they will function perfectly to maintain excellent health, strength and vitality up to a great age." USING THE SUBCONSCIOUS The subconscious mind is perfectly programmed with a survival package in the form of universal instincts that can be synchronized with conscious programs to live in harmony. Accepting your subconscious instincts relieves you of half of your health problems. The subconscious is always receptive to suggestions that transpire from your conscious mind. So keep your conscious mind filled with creative, positive, pleasant, peaceful and productive thoughts. When you repeat an affirmation in a relaxed state of mind, it works wonders. To retain these suggestions, repeat them often, till you feel confident that they have become a permanent habit.

The subconscious mind is an all-powerful, omnipresent and omniscient gift. Peace will prevail in your life when these conditions are maintained. So, affirm often: "I most willingly accept healthy, happy and self-healing success programs of my subconscious mind consciously for total fitness, now and always." It is easy to program your subconscious to integrate your inner healing power into a self-healing force. All that you aspire for will come to pass. New friends, new relationships, new ideas, new thoughts and new plans can motivate you to become a powerful optimist. So affirm: "Today I am a new, dynamic, and optimistic futurist flooded with positive thoughts of successful self-healing." VITAL LIFE ENERGY Magnetic energy plays a vital role in self-healing. The more energy you generate through eating, breathing and exercising, the longer you will live with health and happiness. It is said that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes out of his mouth. When we speak to ourselves in positive terms, we tend towards self-healing. We can build up positive statements like: I am healing myself positively. Positive energy is keeping me healthy. Healing myself and others is easy for me. I have the positive habit of deep breathing. Today I am feeling better than ever before. Tomorrow I am going to be perfectly all right.

FEEL YOUNG, LIVE LONGER Age is an attitude of the mind. When you think youthful, you feel youthful. Energy can also be enhanced by being active, alert and awake most of the time. In my experimentation with autosuggestion, I feel that new frontiers can be explored in the process of evolution. Some of them are: Assert firmly to reverse aging. Take it as a challenge. Use the countdown method to feel young and energetic after 50. Subtract the number of years that you are over 50 from 50 and affirm that age constantly. For example, if you are 55, all that you have to do is to count downwards the years of your age by subtracting five from 50 and imagine that you are 45. Now build up positive magnetic statement like: "Today I am 45 years young."

The second phase is to regain the natural color and abundance of youthful hair on your head. But consistent practice coupled with firm determination is required on your part. You can begin the practice right now by affirming: "I am determined to regain all the hair on my head with its natural youthful color as soon as possible." Mentally repeat it 21 times just before you go to sleep at night. SELF-HEALING IN SEVEN DAYS The magnetic self-healing schedule that follows is an invincible method that can take you to the height of perfect health, strength and happiness. After practicing it for a period of seven days you will find that all your past health problems automatically disappear. The watchword here is consistency. All that you have to do is read the affirmations as soon as you get up in the morning and before going to sleep. It has

cured me. It can do the same for you. Now read the following: I'm relaxed, my body is relaxed. My mind is relaxed, my emotions are relaxed. I am now totally relaxed. I am getting better, stronger and happier forever.

Now make yourself comfortable. Read the affirmation given below focusing your eyes in a half-closed manner as if you are reading it half asleep. Hold your breath comfortably and read each statement twice. Relax after reading it. Don't hurry. Don't worry. You will see the difference from the very first day. After you practice the magnetic affirmations for seven days, let go of it. You can always come back to the seven-day program whenever you feel the need. You can mentally repeat each affirmation for the whole day but remember to hold your breath while doing so. Now repeat: My body and mind are clean and energetic. I love my body. Today I am becoming strong, powerful, dynamic, happy-go-lucky and attractive. Today I can choose to take total interest in regaining perfect health successfully. Today I assert, affirm and relax with total freedom to heal myself with the power of thought. Today I am on the way to recovery easily, quickly and successfully to become healthy, happy and free. Today I have regained normalcy with the power of positive thought successfully. Today health and energy are vibrating and radiating from me.

Do it for seven days at a stretch and discover the new, optimistic you who can take anything in his stride. It only takes a little belief and a little determination to change your life. Have you ever thought about the fact that there is never a moment when you are not thinkingthat whatever happens in this world begins with a thought? Here are five simple steps to help you manage your thoughts and achieve success and happiness in life BE AWARE OF YOUR THOUGHTS Start watching your thoughts, without identifying with them. Watch them as a detached observer. You may even get carried away by your thoughts. Never mind. It is natural especially for a beginner. What you need to do, whenever you detect this, is to take yourself out of your thoughts immediately and get back to the process of thoughtwatching once again as a detached observer. Do not get perturbed by your thoughts. Don't condemn or justify them. Don't try to control them. Just watch them. After some time, you will come to know what your negative thoughts are about. Now concentrate on all the positive thoughts that you

can replace these thoughts with, in order to switch over to a more positive attitude towards them. Our attempt should be to cut down the quantity of unnecessary thoughts and to improve the quality of the necessary ones. Keep yourself busy. Simple food, deep breathing and relaxation exercises also help manage your thoughts easily. Expect less from others. IDENTIFY NEGATIVE THOUGHTS Keep a logbook. Jot down your thoughts. Write down happenings of the day. Were they positive, appropriate and adequate or were they confused, superfluous and negative? Could you notice the interval between the happening and your response? If yes, could your foresee your negative thoughts? If not, what can, you do to notice this interval? Was there any discrepancy between words and thoughts? If yes, was it justifiedcould you find a better way of harmonizing your words and thoughts? Was the verbal response necessary, appropriate and adequate? Sometimes we talk to others, or simply to ourselves, or think about something just like that. Ask yourself what provoked you to take the initiative to start a conversation. Was it essential? What was the purpose? Did it serve the purpose? If no, then why not? Did it use any unnecessary and emotionally charged negative words? Were the words used in thinking, inner dialogue or in talking to the other person, precise, appropriate, adequate and positive? Did you feel happy or satisfied after the interaction with the other person or with your inner self? Can you find ways of improving your performance as a thinker or a speaker? Keep in mind that logbooks are meant to get you started and make you aware of your negative thoughts. It is far more important, however, to be aware of these thoughts when they are just taking birth, rather than leave them for later analysis. Be conscious of the interval that separates the event from thoughts with which you respond to the event. NEGATIVE THOUGHTS Imagine a strong sun radiating a powerful light. Use this mental sunshine to kill your negative, undesirable thoughts, emotions and images as and when these are detected. Take this sun as a mighty weapon which is always on the alert and which automatically chases any negative thought and kills it with a flash and then withdraws. Don't forget to imagine that this sun is your faithful friend and is extremely kind to you. Keep a note of how many times you need to call the sun for its services. There will be a gradual increase, followed by a drastic fall. This is so because initially the number of times you call on your mental sunshine increases gradually as your awareness of your thoughts grows. The drastic fall is because what we do not use (the negative thoughts, in this case), we tend to lose. REPLACE WlTH POSITIVE THOUGHTS A vital step in this process is the immediate replacement of all negative thoughts by the positive ones. The shorter

the interval between the disinfecting and the replacing stage, the better it is. Longer intervals between these two events weaken the impact of the positive thoughts. Our success and happiness depend on identifying our goals precisely and chasing them effectively, both of which, in turn, depend on how well we manage our thoughts. The quality of our thoughts decides the quality of the outcomes we land up with. Thoughts have the power to materialize themselves because they are instrumental in channeling energy towards the physical or mental condition they are about. External situations and the remarks of others can harm us through our thoughts but only to the extent our thoughts allow them to. So think positive. Talk positive. Read positive quotable quotes of great people. Surround yourself with posters and cards bearing positive messages. Keep them on your table. Hang them on the walls. Paste them near the bathroom mirror and on the doors. Stick them on your watchstrap. Keep them on the refrigerator. Have them on the dashboard of the car. Slip them under the glass of the table in front of you. Slide them in the inner side of the briefcase you carry. Find other suitable places where you are bound to look at them every day. Remember that these messages will stale with prolonged use. So keep changing their position and contents. Do not let the momentum of these thoughts get weaker. Use them appropriately in response to specific negative thoughts. The replacing thought must be positive in every sense. Apart from being inspiring and assuring, it should also be suggestive. For example, if you confront a negative thought, "I can never succeed", it will not suffice if you replace it with "Sun! Attack! I can succeed". This kind of replacement may not be effective, for it sounds like wishful thinking and lacks assurance, depth and penetrating certainty. It is better to break your replacing thought down into more definite and specific steps or instructions. The replacing thought in this case may be: "I can succeed. By earlier failures I have become rich in experience and have come to know specific areas that require special attention. I will jot them down and systematically think of the ways in which I can improve. I shall plan. And then stick to it. There is absolutely no reason why I should not succeed. I will assess, plan, execute, monitor, modify and carryon with the plan, and finally succeed. In fact, I think that success has already been achieved and only time separates my thought of success and its transformation into reality. I am committing myself to all that is required to achieve success. I am a river that knows no obstacles. I shall find my way anyhowand if there is none I shall make one." REINFORCE Thoughts like these can be further reinforced with emotions and images. All this may take longer than one single replacing thought, but these are far more effective since they allow you to divide the desired target into workable units. Focus on a pleasant event that took place in the past. This way your thoughts will turn positive and your emotions and images will reinforce each other, resulting in an overall positive attitude. By Santosh Babu No belief is right or wrong. It is either empowering or limiting

Ever heard the story of the four-minute mile? For years people believed that it is impossible for a human being to run a mile in less than four minutes until Roger Banister proved it wrong in 1954. Within one year, 37 runners broke the belief barrier. And the year after that, 300 other runners did the same thing. What happens if you put an animal in a pond? Any animal, big or small, will swim its way through. What happens when someone, who does not know how to swim, falls in deep waters? You drown. If an animal who has not learned swimming could escape by swimming, why not you? Because you believe you will drown while the animal does not. You have used a computer keyboard or a typewriter. Ever wondered why the alphabets are organized in a particular order in your keyboard? You might have thought it is to increase the typing speed. Most people never question it. But the fact is that this system was developed to reduce the typing speed at a time when typewriter parts would jam if the operator typed too fast. These three cases show the power of our beliefs. There is no other more powerful directing force in human behavior than belief. Your beliefs have the power to create and to destroy. A belief delivers a direct command to your nervous system. Have you heard about the placebo effect? People who are told a drug will have a certain effect will many times experience that effect even when given a pill without those properties. I use a snake in my workshops for children to show them how unrealistic some of their beliefs are. Students of a school in New Delhi, India, said snakes are slippery, slimy and poisonous. After doing an exercise for changing beliefs, they handled my snake and found it to be dry and clean. They also remembered that only three types of poisonous snakes exist in India. Have you ever scanned the 'to-let' advertisements in newspapers? Many say 'South Indians preferred'. Why? Many house owners told me that it is easier to get South Indians to vacate. The belief was that South Indians do not have the guts to fight. Now you figure out the impact of LTTE supremo Prabhakaran and Southern sandalwood smuggler Veerappan in changing this belief! It is also our belief that determines how much of our potential we will be able to tap. So you better examine some of your beliefs minutely. For example, do you believe that you can excel in whatever you do? Do you believe you are bad in mathematics? Do you believe that other people don't like you? Do you believe life is full of problems? What are your beliefs about people? No belief is right or wrong. It is either empowering or limiting. A belief is nothing but the generalization of a past incident. As a kid if a dog bit you, you believed all dogs to be dangerous. To change a particular behavior pattern, identify the beliefs associated with it. Change those beliefs and a new pattern is automatically created. I read this incident in a New York newspaper. "She met him in a singles' bar and

they talked for a while. He offered her a drink and she enjoyed his company. Then he offered to drop her back home. While driving back, she realized that they were moving through narrow and strange roads. 'Oh God where is he taking me?' she thought but did not have the guts to ask. She cursed her decision to get into his car. All of a sudden she saw him taking a turn back into the highway just near her house. Smiling, he said: 'I took a short cut'." Did this story end the way you thought? Review your beliefs now and find out which ones are empowering and which ones you need to change. Stress at work is a relatively new phenomenon of modern lifestyles. The nature of work has gone through drastic changes over the last century and it is still changing at whirlwind speed. They have touched almost all professions, starting from an artist to a surgeon, or a commercial pilot to a sales executive. With change comes stress, inevitably. Professional stress or job stress poses a threat to physical health. Work related stress in the life of organized workers, consequently, affects the health of organizations. What's It? Job stress is a chronic disease caused by conditions in the workplace that negatively affect an individual's performance and/or overall well-being of his body and mind. One or more of a host of physical and mental illnesses manifests job stress. In some cases, job stress can be disabling. In chronic cases a psychiatric consultation is usually required to validate the reason and degree of work related stress. Working on a project on stress at work, Andy Ellis, Ruskin College, Oxford, UK, has shown in a chart how stress can adversely affect an employee's performance. In the early stages job stress can 'rev up' the body and enhance performance in the workplace, thus the term 'I perform better under pressure'. However, if this condition is allowed to go unchecked and the body is revved up further, the performance ultimately declines and the person's health degenerates.

The signs of job stress vary from person to person, depending on the particular situation, how long the individual has been subjected to the stressors, and the intensity of the stress itself. Typical symptoms of job stress can be: Insomnia Loss of mental concentration, Anxiety, stress Absenteeism Depression, Substance abuse, Extreme anger and frustration, Family conflict Physical illnesses such as heart disease, migraine, headaches, stomach problems, and back problems. Top

Job stress may be caused by a complex set of reasons. Some of the most visible

causes of workplace stress are: Job Insecurity Organized workplaces are going through metamorphic changes under intense economic transformations and consequent pressures. Reorganizations, takeovers, mergers, downsizing and other changes have become major stressors for employees, as companies try to live up to the competition to survive. These reformations have put demand on everyone, from a CEO to a mere executive. High Demand for Performance Unrealistic expectations, especially in the time of corporate reorganizations, which, sometimes, puts unhealthy and unreasonable pressures on the employee, can be a tremendous source of stress and suffering. Increased workload, extremely long work hours and intense pressure to perform at peak levels all the time for the same pay, can actually leave an employees physically and emotionally drained. Excessive travel and too much time away from family also contribute to an employee's stressors. Top Technology The expansion of technologycomputers, pagers, cell phones, fax machines and the Internethas resulted in heightened expectations for productivity, speed and efficiency, increasing pressure on the individual worker to constantly operate at peak performance levels. Workers working with heavy machinery are under constant stress to remain alert. In this case both the worker and their family members live under constant mental stress. There is also the constant pressure to keep up with technological breakthroughs and improvisations, forcing employees to learn new software all the times. Workplace Culture Adjusting to the workplace culture, whether in a new company or not, can be intensely stressful. Making oneself adapt to the various aspects of workplace culture such as communication patterns, hierarchy, dress code if any, workspace and most importantly working and behavioral patterns of the boss as well as the co-workers, can be a lesson of life. Maladjustment to workplace cultures may lead to subtle conflicts with colleagues or even with superiors. In many cases office politics or gossips can be major stress inducers. Personal or Family Problems Employees going through personal or family problems tend to carry their worries and anxieties to the workplace. When one is in a depressed mood, his unfocused attention or lack of motivation affects his ability to carry out job responsibilities. Job Stress and Women Women may suffer from mental and physical harassment at workplaces, apart from the common job stress. Sexual harassment in workplace has been a major source of worry for women, since long. Women may suffer from tremendous stress such as 'hostile work environment harassment', which is defined in legal terms as 'offensive or intimidating behavior in the workplace'. This can consist of unwelcome verbal or physical conduct. These can be a constant source of tension for women in job sectors. Also, subtle discriminations at workplaces, family pressure and societal demands add to these stress factors.

Top

Because change is constant in life, stress is an integral part of it. Since we don't want to perish under it, we have to adhere to the bottom line for survivaladapt. Following are some of the long-term tips to survive stress: Even if we feel secured in a habituated life, the truth remains that changing with the times makes one's position more secure. In today's business climate, you must continually be prepared for changes to avoid stress and survive in the competitive world. Find and protect whatever time you get to refresh, re-energize and re-motivate yourself. Spend quality time with your family. This can be an excellent source of emotional and moral support. Avoid giving in to alcohol, smoking and other substance abuses while under constant stress. Develop positive attitudes towards stressful situations in life. Give up negative mental traits such as fear, anger and revengeful attitudes, which actually germinate stress. Try to revert to holistic relaxation and personal growth techniques such as meditation, breathing and exercises, to remodel your lifestyles. In case of chronic stress consult a health professional. Reduce workplace stress by celebrating your's or your colleagues' accomplishments. Adapting to demands of stress also means changing your personality. Improve your line of communication, efficiency and learn from other's experiences. Don't be complacent. Be prepared for any change physically, emotionally and financially. But, when you are under stress at work, some simple practices can help: Sit straight and comfortably on your seat, and try breathing exercises. It will relax your nerves and muscles. Relax and count backwards (20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15.) Try creative visualization Top

When under severe stress, an individual fails to take clear-cut decisions, reevaluate and reassess the priorities and lifestyles, and ultimately, tend to fall into unproductive distractions. This can be described as a classic case of 'burnout'. The 'burnouts' often engage in reckless or risk-taking behaviors. Starting from glamor and sport celebrities to common men, 'burnouts' are found everywhere.

Chronic Responsibility Syndrome is a kind of burnout where people get mentally and physically exhausted from their workload. The symptom is often described as "there's simply too much work to do, and no one else can do it but me". Typically it will occur in hard working, hard driven people, who become emotionally, psychologically or physically exhausted. You are at risk of burnout where: you find it difficult to say 'no' to additional commitments or responsibilities you have been under intense and sustained pressure for some time your high standards make it difficult to delegate to assistants you have been trying to achieve too much for too long you have been giving too much emotional support for too long Often burnout will manifest itself in a reduction in motivation, volume and quality of performance, or in dissatisfaction with or departure from the activity altogether. Top Are You in Danger of Burning Out? If you feel that you are in danger of burning out, the suggestions below can help you correct the situation: Re-evaluate your goals and prioritize them Evaluate the demands placed on you and see how they fit in with your goals Identify your ability to comfortably meet these demands. If people demand too much emotional energy, become more unapproachable and less sympathetic. Involve other people in a supportive role. Acknowledge your own humanity: remember that you have a right to pleasure and a right to relaxation Learn stress management skills Identify stressors in your life, such as work, or family. Get the support of your friends, family and even counseling in reducing stress Ensure that you are following a healthy lifestyle: 1. Get adequate sleep and rest to maintain your energy levels 2. Ensure that you are eating a healthy, balanced dietbad diet can make you ill or feel bad. Limit your caffeine and alcohol intake 3. Try to recognize your spiritual needs that may have been buried under the mires of worldly pursuits Develop alternative activities such as a relaxing hobby to take your mind off

problems Have You Burned Out? If you are so de-motivated that for a time you do not want to continue with what you do, then take some time off Alternatively, try to switch to another area of activity within your organization. If you come back later, you may find that you have started to enjoy the work again, and can take on only those commitments that you want. You may, however, find that you have absolutely no interest in continuing with what you are doing. In this case it may be best to drop it altogether Take support and counseling of near and dear ones to bring change to the current situation Enroll yourself with some meditation or yoga classes (to ensure group spiritual practice), gyms, aerobics or sports clubs to switch your focus, and to reorganize your priorities If you are in late stages of burnout, feeling deeply de-motivated and disenchanted with your job or life, get help from a good psychologist.

There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want. ~Bill Watterson, Calvin and Hobbes The mark of a successful man is one that has spent an entire day on the bank of a river without feeling guilty about it. ~Author Unknown

Charlotte Bronte
Posted by woman on 19-May-20063109 people have seen this quote.A

ruffled mind makes a restless

pillow.

Will Rogers, Autobiography, 1949

Posted by Orion on 13-Oct-20052426 people have seen this quote.Half

our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save. ~Will Rogers, Autobiography, 1949 The time to relax is when you don't have time for it. ~Attributed to both Jim Goodwin and Sydney J. Harris