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How To Be A Better Writer

How To Be A Better Writer

I ask myself this question every day… The best way to tackle writing is threefold: first of all you need to read read read.  The only way a true writer can hone his craft is by reading as much as you can.  It trains the brain to think like a writer and to recognize good writing.  When I was a kid, my parents had a rule that I was only allowed to watch tv after reading 2 books per week.  I guess you could say my addiction to tv lead to creating an avid reader.  My father wasn’t too choosy about what we read, just as long as it was a book.  I tended to gravitate towards sci-fi, and still remember some of my greatest influences were these novels-- Fahrenheit 451 for example.


      The second way to become a better writer is to write as much as you can.  I sometimes think of writing like the stomach flu--you gotta get it all out and once you do, you feel much better--however, the process itself is gut-wrenching.  I wrote 9 unpublished novels before I got my first acceptance letter from an agent and publisher.  I would write day and night, and even when I was supposed to be writing copy for City Year (my first job out of college).  My novels were deep dark Bret Easton Ellis/Jay McInerny type of writing--so stuff only a select group of people was really interested in reading.  Once I signed with my first agent, he gave me the best advice.  He said to read John Grisham and write stories like that because that is what people want to read and that is what sells.  

     This brings me to my third point--which is more a point about actual writing.  When you are writing a book, think of writing in page numbers--like 15 pages per day.  This gives you a definitive start and finish.  I find myself getting into trouble and procrastinating when I don’t have definitive deadlines.  It’s easier to see the light at the end of the tunnel if you know you have 5 pages left of the 15 you set out to write versus just writing til whenever.


If you follow these three points you will already be ahead of the game.  When you get to a stopping point, have a trusted reader read your writing and give you constructive criticism--and don’t be afraid to go back to the drawing board.  Editing is part of writing too!


I thought I was a terrific writer in high school. When I reached college, my Shakespeare professor told me I had a poor grasp of idiom and asked how long I had been away from the old country. In grad school, I couldn't pass the exam to opt out of the basic writing course.

Now, I write for a living. A book I wrote was named an award-winning finalist for a national book award. My newsletter won an award for publication excellence. I've published poetry and received a "Bravo" from a MacArthur Fellow (a genius award winner).

I don't know how people become good writers, in general. But I can tell you how I became a good writer in two genres - exposition and poetry. And they involve two different paths.

The path to becoming a good writer of exposition (writing that explains things) was pretty brief and direct. When I flunked the writing test in grad school (business school, not English), I was encouraged to take a class in writing taught by a PhD in psycholinguistics. I learned to write clearly and effectively in those three months.

Here's what we did. We read a piece of writing, usually something fairly technical. Then we wrote a letter or factual document about it. Then we sat down with someone unfamiliar with the material and taped them as they read it aloud. We called this a "psycholinguistic protocol", or for us, just "the Protocol". As the subject read our writing, they also described the experience of trying to understand it - "it was a tragedy, terrible functioning", "OK, I thought I had it. I get what a tragedy is. But terrible functioning? Are you referring to the tragedy or to how the hammer worked?" And like that. Through the whole document.

Then we rewrote the document. And sat down with another subject and another, until we could get the document as clear as possible. Strunk and White was our bible.


  1. Read, read, read, read, read, read. Everyone else said this also because it's true. But not just anything, read various styles of writing, and create a basic taxonomy of styles of writing that you can refer to mentally, in a mindset that's more like concentrated practice than just breezy reading. Pay attention to structure, tone, form, use of (or wilful disregard for) grammar, and cadences, etc.
  2. Learn how to break down basic sentence structure. Know what a gerund phrase and subordinate clause are, or a sentence splice. You can ignore the "rules" but you need to know them.
  3. Clarification to #2 that's the most important: identify instinctively the subject, verb, and object of your sentences. Every sentence has 'em, at least subject and verb. This isn't a firm rule but there's an excellent chance that your sentence's perceived meaning hinges on them, no matter how complicated. That last sentence by the way was "there" "is" and "chance" mind you, not the thing that looks like a sentence and follows the word "that." Now that you know what they are exploit them. Chances are there's a better verb than variations on "to be" like "is" "was" "has been" to be had, for one example.
  4. Write. But don't just write whatever comes to mind (though you should do that too): write to form. Now that you're being observant of how certain styles are structured and their conventions you can try for yourself. Attempt to mimic the way certain kinds of prose are written.

Sunday

Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People

Become a Friendlier Person

1. Don’t criticize, condemn or complain.

2. Give honest, sincere appreciation.

3. Arouse in the other person an eager want.

4. Become genuinely interested in other people.

5. Smile.

6. Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest

and most important sound in any language.

7. Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.

8. Talk in terms of the other person’s interests.

9. Make the other person feel important - and do it sincerely.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Win People to Your Way of Thinking

10. The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it.

11. Show respect for the other person’s opinion. Never say, “You’re wrong.”

12. If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically.

13. Begin in a friendly way.

14. Get the other person saying “yes, yes” immediately.

15. Let the other person do a great deal of the talking.

16. Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers.

17. Try honestly to see things from the other person’s point of view.

18. Be sympathetic with the other person’s ideas and desires.

19. Appeal to the nobler motives.

20. Dramatize your ideas.

21. Throw down a challenge.

Be a Leader

22. Begin with praise and honest appreciation.

23. Call attention to people’s mistakes indirectly.

24. Talk about your own mistakes before criticizing the other person.

25. Ask questions instead of giving direct orders.

26. Let the other person save face.

27. Praise the slightest improvement and praise every improvement.

Be “hearty in your approbation and lavish in your praise.”

28. Give the other person a fine reputation to live up to.

29. Use encouragement. Make the fault seem easy to correct.

30. Make the other person happy about doing the thing you suggest.


Fundamental Principles for Overcoming Worry

1. Live in “day tight compartments.”
2. How to face trouble:
a. Ask yourself, “What is the worst that can possibly happen?”
b. Prepare to accept the worst.
c. Try to improve on the worst.
3. Remind yourself of the exorbitant price you can pay for worry in
terms of your health.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Basic Techniques in Analyzing Worry
1. Get all the facts.
2. Weigh all the facts — then come to a decision.
3. Once a decision is reached, act!
4. Write out and answer the following questions:
a. What is the problem?
b. What are the causes of the problem?
c. What are the possible solutions?
d. What is the best possible solution?

Break the Worry Habit Before It Breaks You
1. Keep busy.
2. Don’t fuss about trifles.
3. Use the law of averages to outlaw your worries.
4. Cooperate with the inevitable.
5. Decide just how much anxiety a thing may be worth and refuse
to give it more.
6. Don’t worry about the past.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Cultivate a Mental Attitude that will Bring You Peace and Happiness
1. Fill your mind with thoughts of peace, courage, health and hope.
2. Never try to get even with your enemies.
3. Expect ingratitude.
4. Count your blessings — not your troubles.
5. Do not imitate others.
6. Try to profit from your losses.
7. Create happiness for others.

The Perfect Way to Conquer Worry
1. Pray.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Don't Worry about Criticism
1. Remember that unjust criticism is often a disguised compliment.
2. Do the very best you can.
3. Analyze your own mistakes and criticize yourself.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Prevent Fatigue and Worry and Keep Your Energy and Spirits High
1. Rest before you get tired.
2. Learn to relax at your work.
3. Protect your health and appearance by relaxing at home.
4. Apply these four good working habits:
a) Clear your desk of all papers except those relating to the
immediate problem at hand.
b) Do things in the order of their importance.
c) When you face a problem, solve it then and there if you have
the facts necessary to make a decision.
d) Learn to organize, deputize and supervise.
5. Put enthusiasm into your work.
6. Don’t worry about insomnia.

How to Win Friends and Influence People



“It isn't what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it.”


“Don't be afraid of enemies who attack you. Be afraid of the friends who flatter you.”


“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."



“Any fool can criticize, complain, and condemn—and most fools do. But it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving.”

“When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and vanity.”


“Talk to someone about themselves and they'll listen for hours.”

"Everybody in the world is seeking happiness—and there is one sure way to find it. That is by controlling your thoughts. Happiness doesn't depend on outward conditions. It depends on inner conditions.”

When dealing with people, let us remember we are not dealing with creatures of logic. We are dealing with creatures of emotion, creatures bristling with prejudices and motivated by pride and vanity.”


“Actions speak louder than words, and a smile says, ‘I you. You make me happy. I am glad to see you.”


“Personally I am very fond of strawberries and cream, but I have found that for some strange reason, fish prefer worms. So when I went fishing, I didn’t think about what I wanted. I thought about what they wanted. I didn't bait the hook with strawberries and cream. Rather, I dangled a worm or grasshopper in front of the fish and said: "Wouldn't you to have that?"

Why not use the same common sense when fishing for people?”


“The difference between appreciation and flattery? That is simple. One is sincere and the other insincere. One comes from the heart out; the other from the teeth out. One is unselfish; the other selfish. One is universally admired; the other universally condemned.”



“Names are the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”


“A man convinced against his will

Is of the same opinion still”

“You can't win an argument. You can't because if you lose it, you lose it; and if you win it, you lose it.”

“I have come to the conclusion that there is only one way under high heaven to get the best of an argument— and that is to avoid it. Avoid it as you would avoid rattlesnakes and earthquakes.”

“If You Want to Gather Honey, Don't Kick Over the Beehive”

“By fighting you never get enough, but by yielding you get more than you expected.”

“A barber lathers a man before he shaves him.”

“All men have fears, but the brave put down their fears and go forward, sometimes to death, but always to victory.”

“criticism is dangerous, because it wounds a person's precious pride, hurt his sense of importace and arouse resentment.”

“If some people are so hungry for a feeling of importance that they actually go insane to get it, imagine what miracle you and I can achieve by giving people honest appreciation this side of insanity.”

“To be interesting, be interested.”

“Winning friends begins with friendliness.”

“Why talk about what we want? That is childish. Absurd. Of course, you are interested in what you want. You are eternally interested in it. But no one else is. The rest of us are just you: we are interested in what we want.”

“arouse in the other person an eager want. He who can do this has the whole world with him. He who cannot walks a lonely way.”

“If you argue and rankle and contradict, you may achieve a victory sometimes; but it will be an empty victory because you will never get your opponent's good will.”

“Only knowledge that is used sticks in your mind.”

“John Wanamaker, founder of the stores that bear his name, once confessed: "I learned thirty years ago that it is foolish to scold. I have enough trouble overcoming my own limitations without fretting over the fact that God has not seen fit to distribute evenly the gift of intelligence.”

“The chronic kicker, even the most violent critic, will frequently soften and be subdued in the presence of a patient, sympathetic listener— a listener who will be silent while the irate fault-finder dilates a king cobra and spews the poison out of his system.”

“Once I did bad and that I heard ever. Twice I did good, but that I heard never.”

“We are gods in the chrysalis.”

“Always avoid the acute angle.”

“If you tell me how you get your feeling of importance, I'll tell you what you are.”


“If your temper is aroused and you tell 'em a thing or two, you will have a fine time unloading your feelings. But what about the other fellow? Will he share your pleasure? Will your belligerent tones, your hostile attitude, make it easy for him to agree with you? "If you come at me with your fists doubled," said Wood row Wilson, "I think I can promise you that mine will double as fast as yours; but if you come to me and say, 'Let us sit down and take counsel together, and, if we differ from one another, understand why it is that we differ from one another, just what the points at issue are,' we will presently find that we are not so far apart after all, that the points on which we differ are few and the points on which we agree are many, and that if we only have the patience and the candor and the desire to get together, we will get together.”


“We are interested in others when they are interested in us.”

“IN A NUTSHELL FUNDAMENTAL TECHNIQUES IN HANDLING PEOPLE PRINCIPLE 1 Don’t criticize, condemn or complain. PRINCIPLE 2 Give honest and sincere appreciation. PRINCIPLE 3 Arouse in the other person an eager want.”


“The only way I can get you to do anything is by giving you what you want.”

“Instead of condemning people, let’s try to understand them. Let’s try to figure out why they do what they do. That’s a lot more profitable and intriguing than criticism; and it breeds sympathy, tolerance and kindness. “To know all is to forgive all"


“Bernard Shaw once remarked: ‘If you teach a man anything, he will never learn.”

“Criticism is futile because it puts a person on the defensive and usually makes him strive to justify himself. Criticism is dangerous, because it wounds a person’s precious pride, hurts his sense of importance, and arouses resentment.”

“The Value of a Smile at Christmas It costs nothing, but creates much. It enriches those who receive, without impoverishing those who give. It happens in a flash and the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None are so rich they can get along without it, and none so poor but are richer for its benefits. It creates happiness in the home, fosters good will in a business, and is the countersign of friends.”

“I consider my ability to arouse enthusiasm among my people,” said Schwab, “the greatest asset I possess, and the way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement. “There is nothing else that so kills the ambitions of a person as criticisms from superiors.”

“Emerson said: “Every man I meet is my superior in some way. In that, I learn of him.”


“The only reason, for example, that you are not a rattlesnake is that your mother and father weren't rattlesnakes. You deserve very little credit for being what you are”


“Instead of condemning people, let’s try to understand them. Let’s try to figure out why they do what they do. That’s a lot more profitable and intriguing than criticism; and it breeds sympathy, tolerance and kindness. “To know all is to forgive all.” As Dr. Johnson said: “God himself, sir, does not propose to judge man until the end of his days.” Why should you and I?”


“And the pathetic part of it is that frequently those who have the least justification for a feeling of achievement bolster up their egos by a show of tumult and conceit which is truly nauseating. As Shakespeare put it: “ … man, proud man, / Drest in a little brief authority, / … Plays such fantastic tricks before high heaven / As make the angels weep.”


“People who can put themselves in the place of other people, who can understand the workings of their minds, need never worry about what the future has in store for them.”


“The secret of his success? “I will speak ill of no man,” he said, “. . and speak all the good I know of everybody.”


“The legendary French aviation pioneer and author Antoine de Saint-ExupĂ©ry wrote: “I have no right to say or do anything that diminishes a man in his own eyes. What matters is not what I think of him, but what he thinks of himself. Hurting a man in his dignity is a crime.”

“The reason why rivers and seas receive the homage of a hundred mountain streams is that they keep below them. Thus they are able to reign over all the mountain streams. So the sage, wishing to be above men, putteth himself below them; wishing to be before them, he putteth himself behind them. Thus, though his place be above men, they do not feel his weight; though his place be before them, they do not count it an injury.”


“Napoleon was criticized for giving “toys” to war- hardened veterans, and Napoleon replied, “Men are ruled by toys.”


“PRINCIPLE 1 The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it. PRINCIPLE 2 Show respect for the other person’s opinions. Never say, “You’re wrong.” PRINCIPLE 3 If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically. PRINCIPLE 4 Begin in a friendly way. PRINCIPLE 5 Get the other person saying “yes, yes” immediately. PRINCIPLE 6 Let the other person do a great deal of the talking. PRINCIPLE 7 Let the other person feel that the idea”


“It costs nothing, but creates much. It enriches those who receive, without impoverishing those who give. It happens in a flash and the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None are so rich they can get along without it, and none so poor but are richer for its benefits. It creates happiness in the home, fosters good will in a business, and is the countersign of friends. It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and Nature’s best antidote for trouble. Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is no earthly good to anybody till it is given away.”

“Whenever you go out-of-doors, draw the chin in, carry the crown of the head high, and fill the lungs to the utmost; drink in the sunshine; greet your friends with a smile, and put soul into every handclasp.”


“about 15 percent of one’s financial success is due to one’s technical knowledge and about 85 percent is due to skill in human engineering—to personality and the ability to lead people.”


“It was this desire for a feeling of importance that led an uneducated, poverty-stricken grocery clerk to study some law books he found in the bottom of a barrel of household plunder that he had bought for fifty cents. You have probably heard of this grocery clerk. His name was Lincoln.”


“First, arouse in the other person an eager want. He who can do this has the whole world with him. He who cannot walks a lonely way.”


“A person’s toothache means more to that person than a famine in China which kills a million people. A boil on one’s neck interests one more than forty earthquakes in Africa.”


“As the Readers’s Digest once said: ‘Many persons call a doctor when all they want is an audience.”


“It is the individual who is not interested in his fellow men who has the greatest difficulties in life and provides the greatest injury to others. It is from among such individuals that all human failures spring.”s

“I consider my ability to arouse enthusiasm among my people,” said Schwab, “the greatest asset I possess, and the way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement.”

“is his or hers. PRINCIPLE 8 Try honestly to see things from the other person’s point of view. PRINCIPLE 9 Be sympathetic with the other person’s ideas and desires. PRINCIPLE 10 Appeal to the nobler motives. PRINCIPLE 11 Dramatize your ideas. PRINCIPLE 12 Throw down a challenge.”

“Talk in terms of the other person’s interests.”

“Action springs out of what we fundamentally desire ”


“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all”

“I shall pass this way but once; any good, therefore, that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.”

“IN A NUTSHELL SIX WAYS TO MAKE PEOPLE YOU PRINCIPLE 1 Become genuinely interested in other people. PRINCIPLE 2 Smile. PRINCIPLE 3 Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language. PRINCIPLE 4 Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves. PRINCIPLE 5 Talk in terms of the other person’s interests. PRINCIPLE 6 Make the other person feel important—and do it sincerely.”

“Buddha said: ‘Hatred is never ended by hatred but by love,’ and a misunderstanding is never ended by an argument but by tact, diplomacy, conciliation and a sympathetic desire to see the other person’s viewpoint.”

“Control your temper. Remember, you can measure the size of a person by what makes him or her angry.”

“Praise is sunlight to the warm human spirit; we cannot flower and grow without it. And yet, while most of us are only too ready to apply to others the cold wind of criticism, we are somehow reluctant to give our fellow the warm sunshine of praise.”*”


“I will chum with you, and suffer when you suffer, and laugh when you laugh. I will bite my tongue when impatient words come. I will keep saying as if it were a ritual: "He is nothing but a boy -- a little boy!” “it was necessary to bait the hook to suit the fish.”


“The world is full of people who are grabbing and self-seeking. So the rare individual who unselfishly tries to serve others has an enormous advantage.”


“Shaw once remarked: “If you teach a man anything, he will never learn.” Shaw was right. Learning is an active process. We learn by doing.”

“You cannot teach a man anything; you can only help him to find it within himself.”

“A great man shows his greatness,” said Carlyle, “by the way he treats little men.”

“Every man I meet is my superior in some way. In that, I learn of him.”

“I consider my ability to arouse enthusiasm among my people,” said Schwab, “the greatest asset I possess, and the way to develop the best that is in a person is by appreciation and encouragement. “There is nothing else that so kills the ambitions of a person as criticisms from superiors. I never criticize anyone. I believe in giving a person incentive to work. So I am anxious to praise but loath to find fault. If I anything, I am hearty in my approbation and lavish in my praise.”

“Wanamaker learned this lesson early, but I personally had to blunder through this old world for a third of a century before it even began to dawn upon me that ninety-nine times out of a hundred, people don’t criticise themselves for anything no matter how wrong it may be.”

“If you want to know how to make people shun you and laugh at you behind your back and even despise you, here is the recipe: Never listen to anyone for long. Talk incessantly about yourself. If you have an idea while the other person is talking, don’t wait for him or her to finish: bust right in and interrupt in the middle of a sentence.”

“was proud of them because he himself had painted them. The order for the seats amounted to $90,000. Who do you suppose got the order—James Adamson or one of his competitors? From the time of this story until Mr. Eastman’s death,”


“By becoming interested in the cause, we are less ly to dis the effect.”

“Say ‘Hello’ in tones that bespeak how pleased you are to have the person call.”


“If there is any one secret of success,’ said Henry Ford, ‘it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle as well as from your own.”






“the only way to influence people is to talk in terms of what the other person wants.”






“When a study was made a few years ago on runaway wives, what do you think was discovered to be the main reason wives ran away? It was “lack of appreciation.”






“If there is any one secret of success,” said Henry Ford, “it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle as well as from your own.”






“PRINCIPLE 1 Don’t criticize, condemn or complain. PRINCIPLE 2 Give honest and sincere appreciation. PRINCIPLE 3 Arouse in the other person an eager want.”






“The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.”






“To repeat Professor Overstreet’s wise advice: First, arouse in the other person an eager want. He who can do this has the whole world with him. He who cannot walks a lonely way.”






“That is what every successful person loves: the game. The chance for self-expression. The chance to prove his or her worth, to excel, to win.”






“Did you ever stop to think that a dog is the only animal that doesn’t have to work for a living? A hen has to lay eggs, a cow has to give milk, and a canary has to sing. But a dog makes his living by giving you nothing but love.”






“mistakes did I make that time?’ “‘What did I do that was right—and in what way could I have improved my performance?’ “‘What lessons can I learn from that experience?”






“When dealing with people, let us remember we are not dealing with creatures of logic. We are dealing with creatures of emotion, creatures bristling with prejudices and motivated by pride and vanity.”






“Mind you, I got this reduction without saying a word about what I wanted. I talked all the time about what the other person wanted and how he could get it.”


“Judge not, that ye be not judged.”






“I have heard, in such a way as to believe it, of your recently saying that both the army and the Government needed a dictator. Of course, it was not for this, but in spite of it, that I have given you command. Only those generals who gain successes can set up as dictators. What I now ask of you is military success and I will risk the dictatorship.”





“Abe Lincoln once remarked that “most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” He was right.”


“There is nothing either good or bad,” said Shakespeare,”






“Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”


“If we are so contemptibly selfish that we can’t radiate a little happiness and pass on a bit of honest appreciation without trying to get something out of the other person in return – if our souls are no bigger than sour crab apples, we shall meet with the failure we so richly deserve.”






“Publilius Syrus, remarked: ‘We are interested in others when they are interested in us.”






“Here lies the body of William Jay, Who died maintaining his right of way – He was right, dead right, as he sped along, But he’s just as dead as if he were wrong.”






“Actions speak louder than words, and a smile says, ‘I you. You make me happy. I am glad to see you.’ That is why dogs make such a hit. They are so glad to see us that they almost jump out of their skins. So, naturally, we are glad to see them.”






“As Lord Chesterfield said to his son: Be wiser than other people if you can; but do not tell them so.”



s


“All men have fears, but the brave put down their fears and go forward, sometimes to death, but always to victory”


“Daca ceea ce doriti sa faceti este corect si credeti in el, porniti spre implinire! Puneti visele inainte, si nu conteaza ce spune gura lumii daca va confruntati cu infrangerea temporara, caci poate ca lumea nu stie ca orice esec aduce cu el germenele unui eventual succes.”


“A man without a smiling face must not open a shop.”






“Be sympathetic with the other person’s ideas and desires.”






“Let's realise that criticisms are homing pigeons. They always return home. Let's realise that the person we are going to correct and condemn will probably justify himself o herself, and condemn us in return.”


“It isn’t what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it.”






“So the rare individual who unselfishly tries to serve others has an enormous advantage.”










“But what do average people do? The exact opposite. If they don’t a thing, they bawl out their subordinates; if they do it, they say nothing.”


“Shaw once remarked: “If you teach a man anything, he will never learn.”


“The thing for you is a burial permit. You have only to speak and I will see that you get it.”


“outright to his friend Edward L. Doheny. And what did Doheny do? He gave Secretary Fall what he was pleased to call a “loan” of one hundred thousand dollars. Then, in a high-handed manner, Secretary Fall ordered United”


“to be genuinely interested in other people is a most important quality for a sales-person to possess—for any person, for that matter.”


“FATHER FORGETS W. Livingston Larned Listen, son: I am saying this as you lie asleep, one little paw crumpled under your cheek and the blond curls stickily wet on your damp forehead. I have stolen into your room alone. Just a few minutes ago, as I sat reading my paper in the library, a stifling wave of remorse swept over me. Guiltily I came to your bedside. There are the things I was thinking, son: I had been cross to you. I scolded you as you were dressing for school because you gave your face merely a dab with a towel. I took you to task for not cleaning your shoes. I called out angrily when you threw some of your things on the floor. At breakfast I found fault, too. You spilled things. You gulped down your food. You put your elbows on the table. You spread butter too thick on your bread. And as you started off to play and I made for my train, you turned and waved a hand and called, “Goodbye, Daddy!” and I frowned, and said in reply, “Hold your shoulders back!” Then it began all over again in the late afternoon. As I came up the road I spied you, down on your knees, playing marbles. There were holes in your stockings. I humiliated you before your boyfriends by marching you ahead of me to the house. Stockings were expensive—and if you had to buy them you would be more careful! Imagine that, son, from a father! Do you remember, later, when I was reading in the library, how you came in timidly, with a sort of hurt look in your eyes? When I glanced up over my paper, impatient at the interruption, you hesitated at the door. “What is it you want?” I snapped. You said nothing, but ran across in one tempestuous plunge, and threw your arms around my neck and kissed me, and your small arms tightened with an affection that God had set blooming in your heart and which even neglect could not wither. And then you were gone, pattering up the stairs. Well, son, it was shortly afterwards that my paper slipped from my hands and a terrible sickening fear came over me. What has habit been doing to me? The habit of finding fault, of reprimanding—this was my reward to you for being a boy. It was not that I did not love you; it was that I expected too much of youth. I was measuring you by the yardstick of my own years. And there was so much that was good and fine and true in your character. The little heart of you was as big as the dawn itself over the wide hills. This was shown by your spontaneous impulse to rush in and kiss me good night. Nothing else matters tonight, son. I have come to your bedside in the darkness, and I have knelt there, ashamed! It is a feeble atonement; I know you would not understand these things if I told them to you during your waking hours. But tomorrow I will be a real daddy! I will chum with you, and suffer when you suffer, and laugh when you laugh. I will bite my tongue when impatient words come. I will keep saying as if it were a ritual: “He is nothing but a boy—a little boy!” I am afraid I have visualized you as a man. Yet as I see you now, son, crumpled and weary in your cot, I see that you are still a baby. Yesterday you were in your mother’s arms, your head on her shoulder. I have asked too much, too much.”


“Become genuinely interested in other people.”










“To change somebody's behavior, change the level of respect she receives by giving her a fine reputation to live up to. Act as though the trait you are trying to influence is already one of the person's outstanding characteristics.”


“If a man’s heart is rankling with discord and ill feeling toward you, you can’t win him to your way of thinking with all the logic in Christendom. Scolding parents and domineering bosses and husbands and nagging wives ought to realize that people don’t want to change their minds. They can’t be forced or driven to agree with you or me. But they may possibly be led to, if we are gentle and friendly, ever so gentle and ever so friendly.”


“People who smile,” he said, “tend to manage, teach and sell more effectively, and to raise happier children.”


“That’s why encouragement is a much more effective teaching device than punishment.”










“Remember what Lincoln said: ‘A drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall.”



Accepting and Releasing Emotions



Accepting and Releasing Emotions

Denying Your Feelings

by Madisyn Taylor


It's always best to acknowledge our feelings so they may rise to the surface rather than keep them suppressed and turned into anger.

Dealing with powerful emotions can be challenging, especially when we are going through chaotic, sad, or cruel experiences in our lives. Often, it can seem like we have only two options for dealing with our feelings so they don’t become too overwhelming. We may let our feelings out in an immediate and visceral way, or we may bottle them up by suppressing our emotions inside our bodies. Most people make the second choice, repressing their feelings in an attempt to deny them. The truth is that there are many positive ways to deal with emotions, and experiencing your negative feelings doesn’t have to constitute a negative experience. Denying your feelings is not only unhealthy for the mind and the body, but it may also rob you of valuable information you could be learning about yourself and your life. Suppressing your emotions can even impede your short-term memory. Acknowledging your feelings can help you better understand them and help you recover naturally from change, stres! s, and grief.

If you find that facing your feelings head on is proving too difficult during times of emotional distress, you may want to explore alternative ways of expressing them. Otherwise, the emotions you deny could morph into unconscious anger or self-hatred. Expressing your thoughts to friends or family can be helpful. If you don’t feel ready to share them, try giving them words by writing down what you are feeling. Give whatever you are feeling simple words like “livid” or “angry” or “excited” You can also funnel your feelings into a creative outlet, physical exercise, or chores. Even just accepting and speaking your feelings out loud to yourself can be a healing release. In releasing intense emotions, it is most beneficial to acknowledge the feelings, allow yourself to feel them, and let the feelings go. Those who are willing to experience and release their feelings without judgment also find that their lives become less stressful. Breathing deeply, going for a long walk, or doi! ng a constructive task can help you respond to your feelings in a healthy way.

While burying negative or uncomfortable feelings can numb the pain, it also may inevitably dull your ability to experience your more positive and pleasurable feelings. You may find yourself afraid to open up in the future for fear of getting hurt. The feelings we deny aren’t limited to anger and sadness. Suppressing our happiness or excitement can be just as unhealthy. In learning how to express your intense emotions in a healthy way, you are giving yourself the freedom to fully experience the more joyful emotions that come with being alive.





QUESTION: I need help understanding how to become conscious awareness.

 How do I look at myself on the inside. I am struggling with this.ANSWER: Becoming conscious of your self takes practice. It begins with meditation and reconnecting to your inner being by "feeling" the subtle vibrations of truth and love within. As you continue to stay committed to your spiritual practice your chakra system will be begin to open and E~X~P~A~N~D. Your chakras are portals to your higher consciousness, once you begin to expand them, you will begin to tap into MORE of your true self.

When we begin the spiritual journey our chakra system is contracted and filled with distorted beliefs and energetic blocks. These blocks, "block us", from all the tubes and channels within our being that lead to the higher wisdom and love from our God Self. It will take time, patience, dedication and faith to remain committed to our inner healing so we can release the cobwebs that create static interference within our being so we can discover our truth. If it were easy ~ the whole world would be healed and connected to their truth, and we would have Peace On Earth. Humans naturally want to take the easiest, quickest route.....in essence, people generally want someone else to do the work for them. This is what I call the external path....the ego, which "Edges God Out." We look outside of our SELF, instead of inward, when clearly Jesus and Buddha have both shown us the way: "The Kingdom Of God Is Within".

Nothing Happens Suddenly

It’s sometimes tough to accept, but nothing happens suddenly. We don’t awaken one day and find a full grown tree in our front lawn, because in the world of physicality, there is always a process. 

Every action we make plants a seed in our lives that will manifest something positive or negative.

A good deed today may manifest a blessing later when it is needed most. 




QUESTION: How do you open, align, balance and activate the chakra system?

ANSWER: Chakras are energy portals to our higher consciousness and multidimensionality. Humanity has lifetimes of stored pain, trauma, unprocessed emotions, distorted energy forms and karma stored within the chakra system, which blocks us from an unadulterated connection with our Higher Self and the truth of our selves in the multi dimensions. At this time on the planet, the energetic distortions and karmic miasims ~ held within the chakra system ~ are being dislodged by the increasing photon light or christ light from the photon belt, galactic sun and heightened inner Earth energies. Because of this, many people are facing a spiritual healing christ-is or crisis in their life as they move through periods of the "dark night of the soul". This is actually a very positive sign of the clearing of the 7 seals or 7 physical chakras that are blocked with distorted energies. Energies that no longer serve us are coming up to be released and transmuted into a higher vibration. This is a process of soul alchemy....where we turn our darkness (lead) into the LIGHT (gold) of higher awareness and truth. The radiance of the gold energy from our crown chakra is our very own Christ Consciousness being activated within our being. Once it is activated we then have to fully integrate it into our seven chakra system and this is the process of stepping into our SELF-mastery.

As Christ says, "The Kingdom Of God Is Within" ~ Luke 17:21. In Revelation 8:6, it says "The seven angels who had the seven trumpets got ready to blow them." These are both symbolic of the "Return Of Christ"....the return of our very own Christ Consciousness, which directly relates to the clearing, activating, aligning and balancing of the seven chakra system/7 seals. Each chakra has an angel or a higher aspect of our self that is connected to these energy portals to our higher consciousness or multidimensionality. As each chakra is cleared enough for 51% of our dormant creator/kundalini energy to rise from the root chakra upwards to the crown chakra....the seven seals are broken and the trumpets will play. The chakras are located on the front and back of our being, and they are shaped like trumpets. In essence, once the kundalini energy is able to fully rise up the chakra system along the central LIGHT column (spine) the divine marriage of our shiva/shakti, our masculine and feminine energies will occur and our chakra system will become unified where we attain ONENESS with our Higher SELF and All That Is.

In order to heal and balance the entire chakra system, we need to make changes in our way of thinking and in our way of being. We also need to incorporate more spiritual life force energy into our energetic system so the higher vibrational energies can heal and transmute the energetic distortions with our chakra system. Energy is eternal....it never dies. Our lower vibrational energy must be transformed into a higher vibrational frequency in order to ascend our consciousness.This requires soul alchemy and dedication to the "Spiritual Practice" of the transcendence of the ego and shadow consciousness, as well as, meditation, visualization exercises and any other spiritual practice you may feel drawn to such as energy healing, yoga, tai chi, chi kung etc...

Chakra clearing is a journey, and if we are going to work with our chakras we need to work with all of them, as they are intimately connected and directly affect each other. Even after the kundalini rises, and the Christ Consciousness is activated.....the Christed energies need to be brought down and FULLY integrated into our chakra system so we can BE the living Christ's we have awakened ourselves to BE....and this is not an easy process. It takes effort, self observation and the willingness to transcend those things within our being that are being shown to us. "For once we were blind (blinded by ego consciousness) but now we see (clarity of soul consciousness). Self honesty and the willingness to SEE ourselves is the key to our self mastery and salvation from the 3rd dimension of separation, egoic/shadowy and dualistic consciousness. Once we face God, we face the SELF....any attempts to remain in denial about our inner workings and negative behavioral patterns will continue to lead to ignorance and tough soul lessons.

Every message I post on the "HOW TO RAISE YOUR VIBRATION" Facebook page, and my book "RAISE YOUR VIBRATION" are meant to help people attain a more life affirming belief system and lifestyle so we can each raise our vibrations high enough to attain our very own Christ Consciousness. Chakra work, is spiritual work ~ true healing is spiritual healing. It is the healing of our energy and consciousness! In order to heal the planet, it starts with the SELF....nothing will change until "each person" chooses to be pro-active in the process of soul alchemy. Once each person activates and integrates the Christ Within we will bring Heaven here down on Earth. Heaven is a state of consciousness. ~Sabrina Reber

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Fall Weather Apple Pie
For the Crust
1½ cups macadamia nuts, soaked for 2 hours
1/½ cups walnuts or pecans, soaked for 2 hours
? teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
Pulse in food processor until crumbled well. Do not over process, as the nuts will get too oily. Check as you pulse, scraping down sides. When mixture sticks together when pinched with your fingers, it’s ready
to put in your pie dish. Gently press in pie dish to form the crust.

For the Filling
4 cups dried apples, soaked in 2 cups apple juice to reconstitute
3 cups fresh apples, coarsely chopped and tossed with 1 tablespoon lemon juice
7 medjool dates, soaked until soft
2 oz. Irish moss gel, soaked overnight (see instructions below)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
? scant teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon agave or maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of Himalayan sea salt
You can make dried apples in your dehydrator or purchase organic naturally dried apples from the farmers’ market, health food store, or online.
When apples are hydrated, strain juice to make Irish moss gel. *see directions for Irish Moss below
Place chopped moss in blender with 1 1/2 cups apple juice. Make more juice if necessary. Blend adding water if needed to make a thick gel.
Be sure the mixture is completely smooth and thick.
In food processor:
Place 3 cups chopped fresh apples, Irish moss gel, medjool dates, cinnamon, nutmeg, sweetener, vanilla, salt in a food processor and blend until smooth.
In a mixing bowl, combine apple mixture from food processor together with dried apples and blend with a spatula until well incorporated. Pile into piecrust. Top with topping and thinly sliced apples (see photo). Sprinkle with cinnamon. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
For the Topping (this makes the pie extra special)
1 cup pecans, finely chopped
4 medjool dates, chopped fine
1/4 teaspoon vanilla


Can be chopped in food processor or by hand. Mix together to make a small chunky texture and crumble over top.
Refrigerate pie to chill and set.
*How to make Irish Moss: Soak Irish moss over night in water to cover. Rinse several times and clean out any dark pieces of moss attached. For this recipe I soaked 1oz. of dried moss. The moss will turn white and become swollen when ready to use. Overnight soaking is best. Drain and cut into piece and blend with water in blender, however in this case we are blending with the apple juice that was used to soak the dried apple instead of water. A smooth paste consistency is what we are looking for. Add water if necessary a little at a time until smooth and no fine pieces remain. Will last in the refrigerator for approximately three weeks. —












Stuffed Tomatoes and Mushrooms

Ingredients


5-6 baby portobellos or any mushrooms you like and 2 big tomatoes


Filling:

1 cup walnuts

2 cloves garlic

2-3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1-2 pinches of Himalayan or Celtic salt
handful of fresh basil or teaspoon of dry basil
Blend all ingredients until smooth
Marinade for mushrooms and tomatoes
4 tablespoons of tamari
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Methods/steps

1) remove the mushroom stems and marinade the mushrooms.
2) Cut the top of your tomatoes and take the pulp out.
3) Marinate the tomatoes with the caps.
4) Put mushrooms and tomatoes in a baking dish, fill them up with filling mixture.
5) Pour the some of your marinade over top of you mushrooms and tomatoes and dehydrate for about 2 hours at 46 degrees or lower (optional) or just eat it fresh. I tend to cut the tomatoes in 3/4 and mushrooms in half for kids to enjoy
6) Pour the rest of the marinade over your dish





Creamy white chicken alfredo lasagna one of my favs !!!
Ingredients
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts
1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained, chopped

1 pkg. (8 oz.) KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese with a TOUCH OF PHILADELPHIA, divided

1/2 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2 cup chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 cup tightly packed fresh basil, chopped, divided

12 lasagna noodles, cooked


Directions

HEAT oven to 350°F.

COMBINE chicken, artichokes, 1 cup mozzarella, Parmesan and tomatoes. Beat cream cheese, milk

and garlic powder with mixer until well blended; stir in 2 Tbsp. basil. Mix half with the chicken mixture.

SPREAD half the remaining cream cheese mixture onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; cover with 3 noodles and 1/3 of the chicken mixture. Repeat layers of noodles and chicken mixture twice. Top with remaining noodles, cream cheese mixture and mozzarella; cover.

BAKE 25 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining basil. Let stand 5 min. before cutting to serve.


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