The Most Valuable Commodity

"Time is Gold" -- Not A Cliche Anymore


When we were kids, life was simple: you wake up, get ready for school, have breakfast, spend eight hours at school, go home, do homework, watch a little tv, then back to bed. The same routine happens the next day. All you gotta worry about is your home work, or a test the following day or the next.

Then we all grow up to be adults, with a job, with kids, our responsibilities magnified a hundred fold -- our chores and errands sometimes filling up to the brim. You wish a day was longer, or that you had a clone to do half the work that you're supposed to do. You feel burnt out. You cry out for a vacation, a break, anything!

Let's face reality: you cannot control time! What you have under control is yourself -- your behavoir during the day. Is procrastination your middle name? Are you cool and collected when things do not go according to what you have planned? Changing your actions and reactions during the day is the most effective way you can manage your time.

Here are some tips to help you become "time savvy:"

Know yourself.
The most successful way to start managing your time is to have an honest assessment of yourself. What are your strongest points? The things you do best? Most of the time, the work you need to do that utilizes your "best skills" will be done in less time than the others.

Evaluate yourself - do you find yourself always putting off work? Are you a perfectionist? How do you react when you don't get your work done? Taking note of these things will help you in recognizing the negative things that eat up your time during the day.

If you feel like you can't make an honest assessment of yourself, ask someone close to you, like your partner or even a fellow co-worker. Ask them to inform you how they can tell when you're overstressed. Some people fell that they're okay even if people around them can see that they're not.

Try to observe when you're tense. Sometimes, just simply taking note of tensed muscles will relax them.

Ask why.
Have a clear idea why you want to manage your time -- is it because you feel overworked? Or underproductive? Or do you feel that you're not spending enough time with your family anymore? Keeping the reason in mind will help you focus on managing your time effectively. Whenever you feel like giving up on work and putting it off the next day, just keep reminding yourself why you have to continue, today.

Set goals.
Setting realistic goals, that is. You have to tell yourself how much work you want to be done for a day; but make sure that you consider realistically how much work you can do. Remember, a day is only 24 hours. Even if you're the queen bee of organization, there's only so much that you can do. Accept that.

Recognize time-wasting deeds.
Are you guilty of wasting time on trivial things? Most of us are. You're planning to do your laundry right after checking your e-mail, but you spend too much time checking your e-mail, forwarding, writing your replies. Three hours later, you realize it's too late to do your laundry because it's time for dinner. You're going to postpone doing laundry until tomorrow, when you have other stuff planned to do. Like the laundry, your work piles up. Keeping in touch of course, is essential, but isn't it better to do that after finishing up with work?

Take note of the things that you waste your precious time with, and try to eliminate them. In time, you'll find yourself having the time to do such things.

Ignore interruptions.
It's Sunday, and you're rushing to do a presentation for Monday. Your sister calls you on your cell, and proceed to gab it up for four hours. After talking to her, you rush through the presentation, and sleep at dawn. You wake up two hours later, overtired, stressed, and completely unready for the presentation. Sounds familiar? Interruptions waste your time. You could maybe ask your sister to call you back once you've finished with work? So you could focus more on her, and not on the impending presentation.

You could also set a goal for yourself to avoid personal calls while working. It seems harsh, at first, but this will ensure you get your work done on time.

Put it on paper!
You do not only need to write down the things you need to be done, but one thing you have to put on paper is your goals. This will enable you to check back on them from time to time, and evaluate yourself if you're meeting your goals. Am I still avoiding my time-wasting activities? Check. Am I spending more time with my family? Check.

To do list.
First, a scratch. List all of the things you need to be done. Then, reread what you have written and start prioritizing. Put items on the NOW or HIGH PRIORITY list, and others on the LATER or LOW PRIORITY. Do the things on the "now list" in the morning, or as soon as possible. And when you do have time in the afternoon, do the "later list."

If, during the day, you realize that what you're doing on the "now list" is what you don't need to be doing at the moment, demote it to the "later list" and proceed to the next errand/work you have to do.

Set a time limit.
In each task, it's best to set a time limit on each of them. Of course, you have to know yourself in order to gauge how much time you need to spend on one errand. You can set an alarm in your cellular phone to warn you if you've spent the time you have set on the job. For example, setting one hour for grocery shopping. If you have an idea of how much time you need to spend in the market, you'll also minimize your time dawdling on the shelves and picking things that are not on your grocery list.

Be organized!
You cannot manage your time effectively if your files, or receipts, documents are not in order. You're on your way to the bank but you can't remember which drawers you have thrown your statements in. Then you waste more time hurriedly riffling through drawers around the house. Organization and time management go hand in hand.

10. Maximize your time.
If you know you're going to spend time waiting for a doctor's appointment, why not use that time to balance your checkbook, or maybe take a look at your daughter's term paper that she asked you to comment on? Realize that time is gold, and that you need to be productive each second.

Finally, once you've felt you're improving on managing your time -- give yourself a pat on a back. Maybe, set a time for a spa treatment or a quiet day at a park with your family -- as a gift to yourself, now that you're more productive, efficient, and happy.

CW

Which Type Are You?

Three Types of People

Author Kim Clement says there are 3 kinds of people;

Risk taker
Care taker
Undertaker


Risk Takers; these are the pioneers of life
Care takers; the nay sayers who say to the Risk Takers it can’t be done
Under takers; the walking dead who are not yet in the ground

Interpretations by “CW”



We are going to spend the remainder of our life in the future. No matter our age, the future is where we reside. To be Fabulous At 50 And Beyond, it’s the beyond on which I’d like to concentrate. If you’re 22 yrs old; it’s the years beyond your 22nd year that should to be your focus. Focusing on the future (goals or even better, plans) is what will pull you through the hard present circumstances that occur on your journey.

A journey is rarely a straight continuous route to your destination. The road gets flooded (a tragic death), rock slides (job loss) happen and detours need to be constructed. Detours are not stops. Detours are paths that need to be taken only to go around or through obstacles that pop up along the way. Commit to the journey with the knowledge that Life Happens, and I will not be stopped till the destination is reached.

How do you eat an elephant; one bite at a time? A journey begins with the first step. Something needs to change in our lives to move us from what we have been to where we desire to go. Jim Rohn states; “For things to change, first I must change.” Sounds so simple “CW” how do I start; action; the first bite, the first step? In this journey your initial action is exiting your old thinking.

Exodus; when the Israelites’ needed to change they needed to leave the old life behind and venture out to a new land. The old life was not a good life but the human condition is such that we sometimes choose to stand in squalor because at least we know what to expect when we rise in the morning. Change for the better may be good but it’s still very scary. The care takers and undertakers only see that life could get worse if they venture from the known into the unknown; so they remain in the wash of others who continue to control their life. The Israelites’ exited the old life and followed Moses’, not always comfortably; Moses’ led them to the Promised Land.

God said;”I know Moses’ and “CW” is no Moses’. Ok, Ok, I’m not Moses’. Remember the part about risk taking; there is a risk in following “CW” out of the mundane and into your personal Promised Land. Exodus the land of sameness year after year; remove yourself from the care takers and the undertakers. See yourself at the top of the museum steps, fists punching the sky in victory; you are the Rocky of your life. Give me permission to lead you in your exodus from the old into your Promised Land. And when the journey is at its end and the last liter of air leaves your body, a subtle smile forms on your lips as you say; “That was a frickn’ blast, thank you God”.

Our destination, by definition, lies in the beyond, the future. Fabulous At 50 And Beyond isn’t about age, it’s about preparing one’s self for the journey, the trip to a land where you’re capable of things that may now be unthinkable to you. Follow me into that calm place where all is possible. With a confidence gained by action you will accumulate knowledge and wealth so during the trip you gain the ability to give and support individuals, communities, cities and countries beyond your wildest imagination.

Three types of people;
the important thing is to understand we get to chose the type of person we are or we chose to become.

CW

Make Up Your Mind

"Make Up Your Mind"

It is normal to feel emotionally low sometimes, especially during difficult and trying moments. To dwell in that condition, however, even when the storm has faded away, is unreasonable. Life is a mind game. You can either channel your mind to live your life the way you always want it to be or play puppet to the hands of cruel relentless fate.

They say you are what you eat.

That must also be true with your thoughts. You are what you think. What you think has a direct correlation to what you read, watch and listen too. Your will is an extremely powerful tool that can set the events that will ultimately happen in your life. Your resolve spells all the difference in the world you tread. It can either bring you success or misfortune. Therefore, the best way to do it is to make it work to your advantage. Learn to control your life through a consistently empowering strength of mind.

Think positive.

Do not ignore life’s harsh reality but always take each occasion with an optimistic mind. Yes, an awful lot of things can happen to your life but to let such unhealthy thoughts always preoccupy your mind is a sign of a weak resolve. Do not let your worries get the better of you. Events will happen if they must. If you can control them, well and good; if you cannot, there is no need to bother.

Read between the lines.

You need to learn to go beyond what seems to be and decipher what its genuine meaning is. The petty things that happen in your life might be opportunities for self-discovery and growth. The simplest things can sometimes bring about the most profound changes. Learn to read between the lines and unearth beauty even in the most unsightly circumstance. There has to be something more than just relentless malice. Life has got to be better than that. Concentration camp survivors learned this lesson the hard way. Nevertheless, they tried to squeeze the meaning of their suffering and let hope be their guiding light. They realized things happen for a reason.

Feed from positive sources.

When you were young, you probably thought once you are done with your formative years in school, education stops. You discovered it is not the case. You can never outgrow the need to educate yourself. Your experiences can get you through tough times, but they are not enough. You need to embrace other people’s experiences as well. Life is one big circle of humanity. Be one with the community. Contribute and share your personal knowledge. Study and hear out the rich history of successful people.

Make Up Your Mind to be the best you possible.

CW

Creative Notions
People seem to have the misconception that only a select few are able to unleash a steady flow of creative genius. That is not true at all. The fact is, creativity is very much like a muscle that needs to be exercised in order to consistently give out great results. If you don't practice harnessing creative thinking, this skill will very much atrophy into inexistence. But keep working and this skill will soon come to you in a snap.
So how do you unleash your creative thinking? Well, the first thing is to become a human leech. No, we're not talking about just sucking the blood out of every living being available, we're saying that you should take in as much knowledge and learning you can find. Read everything available -- good and bad, and keep your mind open to the infinite possibilities of the universe. The more you know, the more you'll want to know, and the more your faculty of wonder will be exercised. Prepare to be amazed at little facts that add a bit of color into your life.
Focus on a creative activity everyday. Yes, it's an effort. Even doodling is a creative activity. Don't let anything hinder you. Mindlessness may be a creative activity, but for people who are just starting out to unleash a little bit of creative thinking in their lives, it is helpful and encouraging to have concrete evidence, that, "hey, what I'm doing is getting somewhere." So why don't you try it. Practice drawing for a couple of minutes each day. Bring out your old camera and start snapping photos like crazy. Keep a journal and make a point to write in it religiously. Another cool idea is to write by describing something with your five senses. Try to avoid vague adjectives like "marvelous," "amazing," and "delicious." Before you know it, you'll have built yourself a tiny portfolio, and you'll be amazed at the growth you've undertaken after amassing all those works of art. Who knows, you might actually take to liking those things you do everyday. Pretty soon those things will become a part of you and you'll be addicted to these creative exercises.
Think out of the box -- or don't. Sometimes, constraints are actually a good thing. Limitations discipline you to work within your means. It enables you to be more resourceful. Creative freedom is great, but limitations enforce discipline.
Try something new everyday and let your experiences broaden your perspective. Explore a new district in your neighborhood. Spend an afternoon in a museum to which you've never been before. Chat up someone on the bus. Open up to the people around you. As you thrust yourself out of your comfort zone more and more each day, your sense of adventure grows and so does your zest for life. Think about it. When was the last time you did something for the first time? If it's been a while, I tell you, you've been missing out on a whole lot of experiences that could've added to your growth, emotionally, mentally, physically, or spiritually. Why don't you try bungee jumping today? Not only will you learn, but you will also have plenty of stories to share, enabling you to practice your storytelling skills and making you the life of the party.
Embrace insanity. No, not to the point of practically admitting yourself into the mental ward. As John Russell once said, "Sanity calms, but madness is more interesting." Exactly! Every creative thought was once deemed insanity by other "normal" people at one time or another. Luckily, that didn't stop the creative geniuses from standing by them. The thing is, sanity or being normal confines people to think... well, normally. Withink limits. Creativity is essentially breaking through barriers. Yes, this includes the bizzarre and the downright strange. I'm not saying that you yourself should develop a creative personality. That might go haywire. An example of a creative personality would be George Washington, who often rode into battle naked, or James Joyce, who wrote "Dubliners" with beetle juice for an intense fear of ink, or Albert Einstein, who thought his cat was a spy sent by his rival (or in thinking creatively in this case, the term could probably be "archnemesis.") It's important that your creativity doesn't get you detached from the real world completely.
I hope this article has inspired you to start thinking beyond your "limits." If you follow these steps pretty soon you'll be living a life full of interesting adventures. Unleashing your creative thinking will bring about a new zest for living life.

The Powers of a Positive Attitude
I am going to ask you to something very weird right now. First of all, I want you to listen to your thoughts. Now tell me, what thoughts fill your head? Would you label them as positive, or negative?
Now let's say you are walking down the street with these thoughts. Do you think anyone who would meet you would be able to tell you what’s on your mind?
The answer to number one is up to you. But, the answer number two can be pretty generic. Although people will not be able to tell you exactly what you think, they will more or less have an idea of how you are feeling.
Here's another question. When you enter a party filled with friends, do they all fall silent as if something terrible had happened? Or does everybody there perk up as if waiting for something exciting to happen?
You know what? The answer to all these depends on your frame of mind.
Thoughts are very powerful. They affect your general attitude. The attitude you carry reflects on your appearance, too – unless, of course, you are a great actor.
And it doesn't end there. Your attitude can also affect people around you.
The type of attitude you carry depends on you. It can be either positive or negative.
Positive thoughts have a filling effect. They are admittedly invigorating. Plus, the people around the person carrying positive thoughts are usually energized by this type of attitude.
Negative thoughts on the other hand have a sapping effect on other people. Aside from making you look gloomy and sad, negative thoughts can turn a festive gathering into a funeral wake.
A positive attitude attracts people, while a negative attitude repels them. People tend to shy away from those who carry a negative attitude.
We can also define attitude as the way of looking at the world. If you choose to focus on the negative things in the world, more or less you have a negative attitude brewing up. However, if you choose to focus on the positive things, you are more likely carry a positive attitude.
You have much to gain from a very positive attitude. For one, studies have shown that a positive attitude promotes better health. Those with this kind of attitude also have more friends. projecting a positive attitude also helps one to handle stress and problems better than those who have a negative attitude.
A positive attitude begins with a healthy self-image. If you will love the way you are and are satisfied, confident, and self-assured, you also make others are around feel the same way.
A negative attitude, on the other hand, has, of course, an opposite effect. So, carrying a negative attitude has a twofold drawback. You feel bad about yourself, and you make others feel the same way.
If you want to have a positive attitude, you have to feature healthy thoughts. This is probably very hard to do nowadays since, all around us, the media feeds us nothing but negative thoughts. A study shows that for every 14 things a parent says to his or her child, only one is positive. This is truly a saddening thought.
If you want a healthier outlook in life, you need to think happy thoughts, and you have to hear positive things as well. So, what can you do? Well, for starters, you could see a funny movie, you could play with children, spend some time telling jokes with friends. All these activities fill you with positive stimuli, which in turn promotes positive attitude.
Although it is impossible to keep ourselves from the negative things around us, you can still carry a positive attitude by focusing on the good things, the positive things in life.
And this positive attitude you now carry can be of benefit to other people. Sometimes when other people feel down, the thing people mostly do is try to give them advice. But sometimes, all they need is somebody to sit by them, and listen to them. If you have a positive attitude you may be able to cheer them up without even having to say anything.
If positive attitude is really great, why do people choose to adopt a negative attitude instead? One who carries a negative attitude may be actually sending a signal for attention. Before you get me wrong, feeling sad, angry, or gloomy is not wrong itself. But dwelling on these thoughts for far too long is not healthy either. There is a time to mourn.
As always, if you are beset by troubles, even in your darkest hour, focus on the good things in life, you will always have hope. Problems become something you can overcome.
You do not have much to lose by adopting a healthy, positive attitude. Studies show that such an attitude actually retards aging, makes you healthier, helps you develop a better stress coping mechanism, and has a very positive effect on all the people you meet every day. So, what's not to like about a positive attitude? Adopt one today.

CW

Fabulous Sex

Can Sex Be Fabulous In Our Later Years?

To have it, or not to have it; that is the question. And if you do was it worth it?
A reporter from Akron, Ohio asked me to contribute to a story;

Sex, Relationships Can Get Better With Age
After Kids Leave, Older Couples Need To Reconnect

You can see the entire article by clicking below:

http://www.newsnet5.com/new-years-resolutions/18564965/detail.html


Enjoy, and then enjoy;

CW

God lives in You and Me

What God Wants From Us

God, the one substance, is trying to live and do and enjoy things through humanity. He is saying .I want hands to build wonderful structures, to play divine harmonies, to paint glorious pictures.
I want feet to run my errands, eyes to see my beauties, tongues to tell mighty truths about ME and to sing marvelous songs of My works, and so on.
All that there is of possibility is seeking expression through people. God wants those who can play music to have pianos and every other instrument and to have the means to cultivate their talents to the fullest extent. He wants those who can appreciate beauty to be able to surround themselves with beautiful things.
He wants those who can discern truth to have every opportunity to travel and observe. He wants those who can appreciate dress to be beautifully clothed, and those who can appreciate good food to be luxuriously fed.
He wants all these things because it is himself that enjoys and appreciates them; they are his creation. It is God who wants to play, and sing, and enjoy beauty, and proclaim truth, and wear fine clothes, and eat good foods. .It is God that worketh in you to will and to do, said the apostle Paul.
The desire you feel for riches is the infinite, seeking to express himself in you as he sought to find expression in a little boy at the piano.
So you need not hesitate to ask largely. Your part is to focus on and express that desire to God. And when someone asks you how you achieved such great things God wants the credit; because without God we are nothing; we are because He Is!

CW

Who Influences You The Most?

Who Influences You The Most?

When thinking of influence it is WORDS, whether written or spoken, that influence. And spoken words from an individual we deem important tends to have more sway with us than others. Words can work miracles; words can also destroy!

I influence me more than anyone else; you influence you. When we speak we also; in anything we hear we judge. In speaking critical, demeaning words, subconsciously I'm telling myself I'm a critical, demeaning person. When speaking pleasant, uplifting and positive words and phrases I'm supporting the view of myself that says I'm an individual that helps others and encourages them to do better.

In the last two years I've become very conscious of the times when it's necessary to correct or discipline or even criticize someone. I'm not always successful but I try to adhere to first saying something positive; second to deliver the critique and to finish on a positive supportive note. Words mean things and it's extremely important to choose carefully; ie: instead of "You're stupid", "You're a real asset to the organization; but that was a stupid thing you did and that's really not like you".

TFAR

Thoughts.....Positive thoughts lead to...
Feelings.....Positive feelings lead to...
Actions.....Positive actions and positive words lead to...
Results.....Incredible benefiting results.

I will speak only words which are pure and
good and edifying to the hearer.


CW

Be a Warrior in your LIFE

“Battle Hymn of the Warrior"

( To the tune of Battle Hymn of the Republic.)

A year and a half ago my wife and I attended an event (a kind definition) to something called "Warrior Camp". The five days was sponsored by Harv Eker's Peak Potentials organization. It is a boot camp for life, my definition. It was attended by teenagers to older folks, I was fifty nine at the time. Without exaggeration it was the most physically and emotionally draining five days in my adult life, next to Army boot camp and the experience of war when in Vietnam.

During the five days I was inspired to write the words below to the tune of Battle Hymn. When we look at ourselves as warriors in this life we gain a complete new perspective on our days walking this earth.

Read the words, sing the song, live as a warrior and free yourself.

My eyes have seen the wonder
Of a new and glorious day!
I am knocking out the obstacles
That once got in my way!
I am lifting up my spirit
In the wondrous Warrior Way!
My Life is Growing STRONG!

In the beauty of the morning
I awake to new frontiers!
Where once was doubt and worry
I now overcome my fears!
I have Warrior mind and Warrior heart
Alive for all my years!
My Life keeps Growing STRONG!

Glory, Glory I’m a Warrior!
Glory, Glory I am Warrior!
He is Holy, I am Warrior!
My Life keeps Growing STRONG!

As the years go by
The wonder of the Warrior’s Life is dear.
It’s no surprise that Warrior’s strength
Increase’s through the years.
A Warrior gives with all their heart
And reaps the fruit that bears.
Warrior’s ever strong.

Glory, Glory I am Warrior!
Glory, Glory You are Warrior!
He is HOLY, We are Warrior’s!
Our Life keeps Growing STRONG!

CW