Welcome to my thoughts on Living with Joy, Purpose, and Conscious Choice.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

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Here, I share my thoughts on spiritual power, relationships, simple living, managing stress, work-life balance, career decisions, money, politics, the environment, and much more.

See my self-help articles including How to Move On and How to Succeed, browse my large collection of Inspirational Quotes, and sign-up for my free Daily Inspiration - Daily Quote email and my Positive Affirmation of the Day email.

The content of all my blogs/websites consists entirely of personal opinion.
See a medical professional for all issues of physical and emotional health.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

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What is Your Dream


Question: I am not sure what you mean by "your dream." Is it something you literally dream when you are sleeping? Is it different from hope? Is there more to it than hope?

My Answer:

Your Dream is your vision for the future - how you want the future to be, and how you intend for it to become.

Your Dream is more than just a hope in two ways.
1. You take action every day to further your dream.
2. You sincerely believe that attaining your dream is possible.

Consider how Martin Luther King, Jr. uses the word Dream in this quote...

I have a dream that my four little children will one day
live in a nation where they will
not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.


Martin Luther King, Jr. didn't just "hope" for racial equality, he worked every day toward that goal, and believed in its reality.

May the world be kind to you, and may your own thoughts be gentle upon yourself.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Friday, October 19, 2012

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My Voters Guide

Are you going to vote in the upcoming elections? How are you going to vote? What issues are central to your decisions? How will your political decisions and political activity affect your life - especially your relationships with your family, friends, and neighbors?

5. To address the last issue first, ensure that however strong your political opinions, please don't lose any friends over politics. If your mix of friends is anything like mine, almost half are avid Conservatives, almost half are avid Progressives, and only a few are undecided or have chosen to distance themselves from any involvement in the election process.

Whoever is elected, we still need to love, honor, and respect our family, friends, and neighbors.


I never considered a difference of opinion
in politics, in religion, in philosophy,
as cause for withdrawing from a friend.
- Thomas Jefferson


4. Life will go on for each of us after the election.

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed
(and hence clamorous to be led to safety)
by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins,
all of them imaginary.
H. L. Mencken

Success is not final, failure is not fatal.
It is the courage to continue that counts.
- Winston Churchill

3. Remember that most of the people you know have already made up their minds. Reserve your political (and religious) conversations for those who value your thoughts and are open to new ideas - or who are just open to a friendly debate.


2. If you are one of the few who has not made a final decision, consider looking beyond single "hot button" issues, beyond your own self-interest, and beyond this year.




Plant trees for your great-grandchildren -
for future generations.
Create the legacy of a better world.
Leave this world a better place than you found it.
Literally planting trees for
your great-grandchildren is a wonderful idea,
but far more important...
use this symbolism - this imagery -
to represent the kind of legacy
you want to leave to future generations.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie


1. Please vote whenever there is an election. Your vote matters very much. Not only does your vote matter numerically, it matters that you are a full participant in your country's future.


Our lives begin to end the day we become silent
about things that matter.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

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Eight Rules for Living Your Greatest Life



Eight Rules for Living Your Greatest Life

1. Honor yourself
Trust yourself, believe in yourself, and always act with honor.

2. Forgive both others and yourself for whatever has occurred.
Anger, hatred, vengeance, shame and guilt only hurt you further. Only complete forgiveness can create a joyful future.

3. Be grateful for all of life.
Be thankful you were born. Be thankful for every moment, for every bite of food, for each small joy. You were owed none of this. Everything is a gift.

4. Choose with open mind and open heart.
Make your own decisions, and make each decision from unconditional love.

5. Act from your vision.
Know your life purpose, and live each day to further that purpose.

6. Take action.
The best intentions mean nothing without action. Take action toward your life purpose each day.

7. Celebrate your life.
Let your life be a song and dance of celebration.

8. Know unity with Spirit and with all of creation.
Everything in creation is of the same masterwork. Everything is one.

Further reading: Eight Points of An Inspired Life - Keys to Happiness

How to Choose Your Life Purpose

Zero-Based Gratitude

Forgiveness

Choose Your Habits, Choose Your Life

Plant Trees For Your Grandchildren

Is there a place for Honor today?

Sunday, October 14, 2012

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Depressed? Laugh!



The next time you feel depressed, try this very simple technique. It also works equally well whenever you are angry or worried.

Laugh! That's all there is to the cure. Get away from other people so you won't feel embarrassed or get asked questions. Then laugh for 60 seconds. If you can find something humorous in your depressing (or upsetting, or concerning) situation, laugh about that.

If you can find absolutely nothing to laugh at, then just force yourself to go through the motions of laughing for 60 seconds. Just the physical activity of laughing will greatly decrease your depression, anger, and/or worry.

Try laughing for 60 seconds, and see whether you don't feel much better afterward.


Another very effective technique is to put a smile on your face whenever you feel depressed, worried, or afraid. Even if you can find nothing to smile about, put your mouth into a smile position. Pretty soon your smile will begin to feel genuine, and you will begin feeling better about your life.

Forcing yourself to laugh or smile isn't just a pretense. Laughing and smiling really do cause physiological changes: your muscles relax, your blood pressure decreases, and your hormone levels change - higher endorphin levels and lower stress hormone levels.