Laurie's Lowdown

What Are You Creating?

lauriejoslin — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 14:10:21 +0000

Have you ever noticed that when you’re feeling confident and truly happy with yourself, you naturally give more? You want to give – you don’t feel like you have to give. It’s a feeling of abundance, rather than scarcity. When we’re feeling scarce, we feel the need to be selfish, to hold on to things and not give them away. We’re afraid that there’s not enough. We’re protecting ourselves in some way.

It’s similar to when you’re ill - you don’t have the energy to do what you’d like to do. When you’re not feeling good about yourself, you don’t have enough to give to others. You’re depleted, and in some form or another, you’re afraid.

It really does boil down to fear. Selfishness is a form of fear. Generosity is a form of love. When we are selfish we are worried that there’s not enough of something. Take money, for example. If we’re constantly feeling like there’s not enough, we certainly won’t feel like we can give any away. That energy around the feeling of scarcity will repel the kinds of things you might need in your life to create more money. No matter how much money you have, feel grateful for what you do have, and the energy will transform your scarcity into abundance.

The type of scarcity I hear the most is “there’s not enough time!” Think about it – if you are clear about what you want and you’re living your life in alignment with that, respecting yourself and others, then you will have plenty of time to do the things that are most important to you. Maybe you’re trying to do too much? If that’s the case, just ask yourself “why?”. Perhaps this could be a form of selfishness?

If you’re not naturally feeling generous, look inside to discover what’s going on. What are you most concerned with? If you are generous with yourself, if you take care of your needs first, you can then be generous with others. If you keep your body healthy, you’ll have the energy and drive to do things. If you keep your soul and your mind happy, you’ll have the energy and drive to give to others.

Mother Theresa said “ Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier.”

We can’t genuinely do this unless we’re taking care of ourselves first. Accomplishing this goal takes just a frame of mind. You can create abundance, or you can create scarcity. Can you believe in your heart that there really is enough? Enough time, enough energy, enough money, enough love? Can you believe that you will be fine no matter what? Can you love yourself enough just the way you are? If you want to make a change, that’s OK too – do it with love and fun, rather than fear and judgment. Give to yourself what you need to make yourself happy and then you won’t have to try to give to others. It will come naturally.

The White Knight Burden

lauriejoslin — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:43:57 +0000

I was really getting fed up with all the work being dumped on me. I seemed to be getting more than my fair share. It didn’t make sense. I was being rewarded for my can-do attitude with more and more work, while others seemed to be skating by. And this wasn’t happening without a personal price. I was tired when I got home. Too tired to have the energy I’d like to have with my family and friends. And to think about doing something for myself was a joke!

Yup, I had it bad – the “White Knight Syndrome!” I didn’t even realize that I was creating all of this. My ego needed it – taking on all that work, staying late at the office, not getting enough sleep – it made me feel worthy, or special, or connected. I’m not really sure exactly which need I had. It doesn’t really matter. It wasn’t healthy. And I was doing it all to myself.

How empowering it was when I figured this out. I have to admit that is was by watching someone else suffer from it at a much greater level that helped me become aware. I was doing the same thing. And subtlety blaming everyone else for it! The sympathy I was getting from my family and friends was just fuel for the fire.

Was it because I was raised with that guilt that you had to take care of everyone else to be worthy? Did I interpret “don’t be selfish” type messages to mean “you must suffer?” Was it because I was a middle child of 14 and wanted to please everyone? Again, it really doesn’t matter, because once I became aware, I could choose. I didn’t have to be stuck in the past any longer. It was total freedom. No more being a victim about it!

Yes, at first I missed the attention, the feeling sorry for me, the nostalgia of my victim days. Especially as I watched others receiving it. But I realized that this was not the kind of attention I wanted. I wanted to be happy, to work “smarter not harder,” to be free.

That was so many years ago and yes, I still feel an emotional pull once in a great while, but for the most part, I feel free and totally responsible for where I find myself today. My generosity comes from a healthy place, without sacrificing myself. In fact, I have more energy now to help others and work productively.

So when you find yourself feeling frustrated, overwhelmed, wishing you were somewhere else, wanting someone to feel sorry for you (and the list goes on), pull out that mirror, take a good hard look in it, and smile. Because this is your path to freedom. Only you can make the choice to change. And hey, believe me, it’s worth it!

Since thoughts are something that we can control, why not spend the day choosing positive thoughts?

lauriejoslin — Fri, 07 May 2010 15:55:30 +0000

Why not think about positive things, rather than mulling over all the things that have passed and you can’t change anyway? Or dreading and worrying about all the negative things you can imagine happening?

Did you know that our subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between reality and fantasy? That means, if you think positive thoughts, your brain will believe it. You will start acting as if it is so.

Since you are going to have thoughts, why not choose positive thoughts?

Can you imagine what they would think if they saw me right now?

lauriejoslin — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 00:00:53 +0000

Do you ever wonder how others would perceive you in certain situations? Like a day when you work from home in your pj’s, with no makeup on and you never brush your hair all day? And then you think of certain clients and how they probably never look like this. In fact, some of them probably iron their pj’s! (LOL) It’s really comical, some of the thoughts we have. Obviously those are just stories we all tell ourselves. If you want to really get interesting and dig deep, start asking yourself “why” you’re thinking that. See if you can get to that underlying fear. Expose it. Laugh at it. And move on!

“Anyone watching a ship from land is no judge of its seaworthiness…

lauriejoslin — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 00:03:41 +0000

…for the vital part is always underwater. It can’t be seen.” -Unknown

We’re really good at filling in the information that’s not there. And sometimes that may be necessary, for survival, or to avoid an accident. Sometimes we have to act quickly and do our best with what we have. But there are lots of times when we just do it habitually – we just fill in the information because our mind isn’t even aware that we’re doing it.

Have you ever talked with someone on the phone, and then after some time, you finally get to meet that person and he/she looks nothing like you imagined? We automatically make assumptions. This one might not be harmful, but think of all the assumptions you might be could be harmful!

You affect the bottom-line!

lauriejoslin — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 16:58:43 +0000

According to Chief Learning Officer magazine, leadership accounts for about 14% of team cohesion, and the cohesiveness of a team accounts for 28% of its performance. So, in a department where the revenue goal is $100m, with a cohesive team, they could reach $128m; if they lack cohesion, they could bring $72m – a $56m difference!

Consider how much you can impact a person’s performance, whether they report to you or not. Think of your mood, the way you interact, even the words and tone you use. As humans, we know we have this influence (we do it all the time in our personal lives). Think about using it to influence in a positive way – always remembering that what you say and do, does have an impact on those around you. You can spread poison, or you can spread “the good stuff!” Especially if you are in a management role, your ability to trust, respect, communicate, solve issues and problems – all have a very direct impact on productivity… and quite frankly, it impacts whether you, and others, will enjoy work (which again, impacts productivity)!

Life is short – enjoy work!

Does Your Training Have Stick-Ability™?

lauriejoslin — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 18:27:30 +0000

The number one complaint about investing in training is the fact that it rarely sticks. We’ll share 3 steps that will ensure stick-ability™!

Join us April 22, 2010 at 2:00pm EST (5:00pm PST) for a Live Event with Laurie Joslin!

http://vokle.com/events/2175-does-your-training-have-stick-abilitytm

Triune Live with don Miguel Ruiz & don Jose Ruiz

lauriejoslin — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 18:21:39 +0000

Triune partners, Sheila Applegate, Ken Stone and Meagan O’Nan, together with internaltionally renowned authors, Don Miguel & Don Jose Ruiz, (The Four Agreements~ The Fifth Agreement) and Grammy-Award winner Joanne Shenandoah invite you to spend an evening opening up to a refreshingly new approach to spirituality.

Palace Theatre
Syracuse, NY

April 16, 2010
7:00 – 10:00pm

$35.00 General Admission

More info & Register

“Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens…

lauriejoslin — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 18:18:33 +0000

…not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events, and outcomes. It is a catalyst, a spark that creates extraordinary results.” -Anonymous

From the first moment of your day, upon waking up, pay attention to your thoughts. For many of us, our attitude is not of abundance; we’re thinking “not enough!” We wake up thinking “I didn’t get enough sleep” or “there’s not enough time to exercise, or eat a good breakfast, or walk the dog”. Pay attention to your first thought of the day. Try changing it to “I got enough sleep for now.” Or, “I’ve got the time to exercise this morning – I’ll briskly walk the dog, and eat a good breakfast like oatmeal and fruit.” There’s plenty of time to do the most important things – when we change our mindset about it, magically, it all fits in! Give this gift to yourself – you deserve it!

What (or Who) Are Your Priorities?

lauriejoslin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:52:33 +0000

Think of the top 3 things that are most important to you in life. Are you living in accordance with those priorities?

How about the top 3 things that are most important to you in your job? Are you working in accordance with those priorities?

Align yourself to do the things that are most important to you. Be aware of how you are spending your time. You get to choose.

Enjoy it – it’s the life you are creating!