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Welcome to the 16th issue of Your Guide to the Life You Love! You are receiving this newsletter because you signed up for the newsletter or its companion Ebook, 101 Simple Ways to Kick the Depression Habit & Get Happier without Prozac. Learn how real people have overcome real challenges and worked to get the life they love! We also share ideas about how you can make a positive impact or leave a legacy. Thanks for being here. You are appreciated and you are blessed! DEALING WITH THE TOUGH STUFFToday, September 13, 2007, is the World Day of Prayer, when hearts and minds all over the globe unite to send positive intentions toward each other and toward the earth. Thoughts are things -- especially heartfelt thoughts and prayers--and eventually they manifest in the physical form. Here's a chapter from my award-winning book, BACK TO THE GARDEN: Getting from Shadow to Joy about manifesting positive outcomes by staying focused on them--despite whatever surrounds you! SPREADING IT AROUNDA few years ago, within my own small circle of friends and family, three were dealing with breast cancer; one had experienced two rounds of ovarian cancer surgery and three job losses within two years. Another had dealt with prostate cancer. My father and sister were in the process of divorces. And my dear friend Fred had just "gone to Glory" after his two-and-a-half month knockdown fight with pancreatic cancer. What about all the health challenges, the family changes and the job losses? What are they trying to tell us? ADAPT OR DIEThe earth is shifting so rapidly beneath our feet that it's a matter of Adapt or Die. Use this as fertilizer or be buried in it, like the German elephant trainer who gave his constipated pachyderm an enema and then literally suffocated in the result--this is the truth! We simply must stay focused on our vision of what we want life to be, rather than getting mired in the muck of whatever negative may be happening around us. Regrettably, focusing on what we don't want only draws it to us, especially if we attach a lot of fear or heavy emotion to our projection of the worst possible outcome. Probably any of us would express that focusing on what we do want is somewhat of a challenge when standing atop that mountain of manure. And of course that's when a positive focus and faith in positive outcomes is the most absolutely necessary. PEACHY PERFECTION or HOLLOW VICTORY?What if life were always peaches? We'd have no basis for comparison--no true awareness of how far we've been able to bring ourselves. No sense of victory. Every triumph is hollow when it appears as a hand-off, especially if it hasn't involved your own hard work with shovel, hoe and rake. So get in there and start chopping the clods. Georgia clay is my metaphor because I've been dealing with it for more than a quarter century. Stubborn, rain-resistant, intractable red clay that bakes into bricks every summer. The color is pretty and vivid, streaking out to the horizon in the flat cotton and soybean fields south of the gnat line, where the rolling piedmont ends and the coastal plain begins. But it's a deceptive beauty because of the hardness beneath the art of it. REPEAT OR REINVENT?What would life be like with absolutely nothing to overcome? Rather dull, in my opinion. But that doesn't mean we have to continually create more negative schtuff just because that's all we're accustomed to seeing. As one of my rather unruly artist friends used to laugh, "I'm always making something, even if it's only a mess!" We are not condemned to repeat the past continually. We can make a conscious decision to let it go, and to move on up a little higher. Part of the secret is to learn to appreciate what the lessons offer-- maturity, perspective, stimulus--while learning that we don't have to stay in the same lessons forever. The amount of time we need to work on them is strictly our choice. So hack and hoe and shovel and sift those clods and clay together with plenty of manure as fertilizer--and toss in a little sand of contemplation for a more even soil consistency. The important thing is: Focus on what you DO want.
Need some uplift in getting back on track with your life? Contact me to coach you there! Just yesterday I met with a young woman who is an inventor and a crafter of "cranial prostheses" (wigs for cancer patients--how we do love these euphemisms!) She said that in the 6 weeks we've been doing our coaching, she is MUCH more focused; her life has improved VASTLY, and then she laughed, "You must be magic!" Yes, yes, yes... and always use your powers for good! This is the 8th year I've taught "Get the Life You Love" at Evening at Emory, and when each class ends people clamor, "What's next?" That's why I became a Registered Corporate Coach/Life Transition Coach several years back. From attorneys to top salespeople to engineers, my clients have come to me singing, "Is that all there is?" (Thank you, Peggy Lee) and wondering how they can make some shifts to move forward. If you're struggling to find your heartfelt path and want to work with someone who elicits real results, please contact me at pdcom@mindspring.com. Visit my website at www.patricedickey.com to see how I've helped others get there.
Soothe your brain and get over your Bad Self with just released: BACK TO THE GARDEN: 21 Selected Chapters on Audio! Visit my secure website at www.patricedickey.com to order the CD Audiobook Selected Chapters from BACK TO THE GARDEN: Getting from Shadow to Joy for only $12.95 (plus S&H) and book discounted online to $14.95 or a combination of the CD and book for only $24.95! (Georgia residents will be taxed 7%). The combined order regular price is almost $30 plus tax on a collector's book and inspirational CD. LinksOUR EMAIL LIST SERVICE: Many people ask me how I manage this email list. I use a great service called AWeber. Find out more about them at www.aweber.com ATTRACT MORE CLIENTS: If you want to attract more clients more consistently I highly recommend the Action Plan Marketing web site. It includes a lot of free information and great products that help you be a better marketer, including a great Marketing Start-up Kit. http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?af=496309 EARN A LIVING WRITING: The Well Fed Writer (& Self-Publisher) offers lots of great tips on how you can convert your passion for the word into actual dollars--he managed to do it and tells you how! http://www.wellfedwriter.com/cmd.php?af=507664 |
Upcoming Keynotes & Training EngagementsForsyth County Newcomers Avondale Women's Club Adams Realtors Women's Leadership Exchange Contact me regarding how to Get the Life YOU Love at pdcom@mindspring.com Fire Up Your Group-Hire me to Speak!Testimonial from "Think the Life You Love" for Association of Image Consultants International: "Patrice, thank you so much for sharing your time and experiences with such enrolling enthusiasm yesterday. I can certainly see why you received awards for excellent teaching with Dale Carnegie. I want to be like YOU when I grow up!" Darlene Wofford, president IMAGIZE! Cool Mind CandyOne Saturday night a pastor was working late, and decided to call his wife before he left for home. It was about 10:00 PM, but his wife didn't answer the phone. The pastor let the phone ring many times. He thought it was odd that she didn't answer, but decided to wrap up a few things and try again in a few minutes. When he tried again she answered right away. He asked her why she hadn't answered before, and she said that it hadn't rung at their house. They brushed it off as a fluke and went on their merry ways. The following Monday, the pastor received a call at the church office, which was the phone that he'd used that Saturday night. The man that he spoke with wanted to know why he'd called on Saturday night. The pastor couldn't figure out what the man was talking about. Then the man said, "It rang and rang, but I didn't answer." The pastor remembered the mishap and apologized for disturbing him, explaining that he'd intended to call his wife. The man said, "That's, OK. Let me tell you my story. You see, I was planning to commit suicide on Saturday night, but before I did, I prayed, 'God if you're there, and you don't want me to do this, give me a sign now.' At that point my phone started to ring. I looked at the caller ID, and it said, 'Almighty God'. I was afraid to answer!" The reason why it showed on the man's caller ID that the call came from "Almighty God" is because the church that the pastor attends is called Almighty God Tabernacle!! Whatever you are praying for today, know that you are joined by millions others on this World Day of Prayer. Join My Celebration!Writer's Digest recently notified me that my book BACK TO THE GARDEN: Getting from Shadow to Joy was chosen as an Honorable Mention in the Inspirational category of the 14th Annual Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Awards, so I'm offering an Internet special! Visit www.PatriceDickey.com and the book is yours for only $14.95 plus shipping and tax where applicable. The cover letter said, "Competition was particularly fierce this year so (the) accomplishment is truly impressive."--I'll toast that! Here's what Judge #39 said about BACK TO THE GARDEN. "This really is a delightful book, full of pithy, wise, fun, real, honest, short selections, each to the point and with a message one can carry away to ponder. Written by a woman who has obviously Been There, the book shares, directs, reflects wisdom and understanding at every possible turn--and quite painlessly. The writing is witty, accessible, easy and enjoyable to read, chatty or conversational, on universal subjects, what we will all encounter as we lead full lives. Dickey offers effective ideas, new fresh perspectives, techniques or tools to deal with these everyday problems or situations... The subject titles are fresh and catchy; and the interior design and cover are attractive. I like this book." I'm also honored to mention that the book has previously won Inspirational, Spiritual, Aging, Death & Dying, and 1st Place Nonfiction awards from the IPPYs 2006, Best Books 2006 (two categories) and Atlanta Writers Club, respectively. |
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If you find this Ezine refreshing, please pass it along to your friends and colleagues. Much appreciated! Your Guide to the Life You Love™ Patrice Dickey is a coach, motivational speaker and author of the internationally award-winning book Back to the Garden: Getting from Shadow to Joy. Learn more at www.artofchange.org. If you'd like to submit some Cool Mind Candy for consideration, please email me at pdcom@mindspring.com Thanks! 9/13/07 Copyright © Patrice Dickey 2007. All rights reserved. PERMISSION TO REPRINT: You may reprint any items from "Your Guide to the Life You Love(TM)" in your print or electronic newsletter. But please include the following paragraph: Reprinted from "Your Guide to the Life You Love(TM)" a complimentary Ezine featuring tools & tips, perspective shifts to help enrich your life, expand your horizons and experience Your Personal Definition of success—always including cool mind candy with that hopeful flavor. To subscribe, please visit www.artofchange.org and, if you like, download the Ebook "101 Simple Ways to Kick the Depression Habit and Get Happier Without Prozac." PRIVACY STATEMENT: Your Guide to the Life You Love(TM) will never distribute your address to anyone—honest! ***
Patrice Dickey
Phone: 404-294-9333 |