April 22nd, 2013
(You can make a difference!)
If you had one billion dollars and you shared it with everyone in the world, each person would get about fifteen cents. This really wouldn’t change very many lives.
Our world is a big, big place with many, many people. Whether you have a billion dollars or not, you have a big, big heart with many, many opportunities. How can you best help? Accept that you will never be able to help everyone. One cup of water for the whole garden on a hot day and the whole garden dies. Understand that you are more effective when you narrow your focus. One cup of water for one corn stalk and you have food and seeds for more corn.
Stop worrying about what you cannot control. In other words, stop worrying about the fate of the world. All that does is make you feel impotent and useless. Focus, focus, focus. Who in your family needs help? Who in your neighborhood needs help? What pets need more love? Who do you know that needs a hug, a touch, a compliment? Take care of these needs and you are both empowered and effective.
We are being paralyzed by taking a world view of everything. The way out of this paralysis is to stop worrying about everything and take action on something. Do something but make it a small something and do it with great awareness, love and passion. You can’t make the whole world feel good but I’ll bet that there are a couple of people in your life whose lives would be a whole lot better if you gave them more of your attention and love. Try it. Think small. The rewards are enormous.
(c)2013 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com
April 30th, 2012
How do we feel better when we are not feeling good? The key is inside of you. No, not your heart and lungs and pancreas! It is inside the way you think. The key is to utilize your imagination, that nuclear reactor of stored energy. That same energy that constructed Disney World and Rome and Build-a-Bears. Seriously, I know first hand that if you are not feeling good, the world looks awfully gray and uninviting but imagination, your imagination can change that at any time and any place .
When things seem dark and neither candle nor match can be found, imagine you found them. Imagine, just for a moment, any improvement in any area of your life. It doesn’t have to be real or even possible but go ahead and attempt to see anything in your life as different, as better. I know it’s not easy but all we are looking for is to poke one tiny little pinhole in the dark box we are in when we don’t feel good. That one tiny little hole can bring light to where we are and can also let us see that there is light outside the box. It can be life changing.
When we want our life to change the biggest mistake is expecting that it can all totally change at the same time. Start small. Start infinitesimally small. You can build on that. Flex your pinky finger. It’s working! Feel your earlobe. It doesn’t hurt! Hooray! How’s that eyebrow feel?
When a big ship wants to tie up at the dock, they don’t even try to throw the big rope onto the dock. It would be impossible. They throw a small rope that’s connected to a bigger rope that’s connected to an even bigger rope that is connected to the great big rope that will tie the ship to the dock. Imagine something small that feels good and keep focusing on it. Imagining one small bit of light will get you to places that focusing on a giant amount of darkness never will. Go small and be happy! You can do it if you try.
(C) 2012 All Rights Reserved, Patrick McBride
www.PatrickInspires.com