Author Archive
As A Man Thinketh (Free MP3)
What is the most profitable work you do each and every day? Regardless of your profession, I can tell you with certainty that it is thinking. Your thoughts guide your actions, shape your perceptions, and determine the course of your life.
Have you ever noticed that people who think earn more than people who labor? That’s no accident. Everybody has hundreds of words flying through their head every minute but very few people have learned how to manage that internal monologue to work for them instead of against them. It’s the difference between self-sabatogue and self-actualiztion.
In my book “The Weight Loss Hypnosis Solution” I share a self-esteem boosting exercise based on thinking of yourself with unconditional love and acceptance. That’s because the more positively you think of yourself the higher your expectations for your own behaviors will be. The higher your expectations are the better results you’ll create. It’s all based on that first kernel of thought and everything else evolves from there.
Focusing your thoughts on positive outcomes is also why I constantly tell people to turn off the news. The news is just a perpetual cycle of stress inducing conflict that you have no power to control. The more you focus your thoughts on other people’s problems the fewer solutions you’ll find for yourself.
In my time management program “Take Action Now” I devote an entire module to focusing your mind for success at key points throughout the day. Procrastination, feelings of overwhelm, and disorganization can all be easily eliminated once you learn and practice success oriented thinking.
Wisely directing your thinking toward the outcomes you desire is the basis for all self improvement. In fact, just about every self help book out there today is based to some degree on the classic text “As A Man Thinketh”, which was written by James Allen way back in 1902.
You’ve probably heard of this book but have you ever actually sat down and read it? It’s not very long but it has changed countless lives. It lays out a foundational principle without which personal development is not possible… that we become what we think about.
Since this title is over 100 years old and in the public domain, I’ve taken the liberty of making an audio recording it for you so you can listen to it while you’re having your morning coffee or during your next work break.
Take a few minutes for yourself today and let me read you this story. It’s a great investment of your time and it’s my gift to you, no cost no strings attached. Just go to www.7weightlossgifts.com where you can listen to the entire recording online or download it as an MP3 if you’d like to keep a copy.
I wish you health, I wish you wealth, and happiness in abundance.
Your friend,
Joshua Seth
Dental Hypnosis Pain Control
About six months ago I visited the dentist and he told me I needed not one but TWO cavities drilled and filled.
Well, one of the consequences of being on tour over 300 days a year is that there is no time for those little things things like dentistry… so they end up turning into big things!
When I finally went back to get my fillings yesterday I told my dentist that I didn’t want any Novacaine or pain killers and that I would be putting myself under using my new Pain Control Hypnosis CD (on my iPod).
He was hesitant to let me do this, saying that because I’d waited so long he would have to do quite a bit of drilling.
I told him that I’d used this techneque successfully on other people before, including on a small child in my first Japanese TV Special a couple of years ago.
What I didn’t tell him was that I’d NEVER used dental hypnosis on myself!
I had an important meeting that afternoon though and didn’t want to show up with my mouth numb, slurring my words like I’d just lost a fight. So I put on my headphones, took a couple of slow, deep breaths, and listened…
The next thing I knew, Dr. Bob was waking me up. It was over.
He told me he drilled for 12 minutes, deep into the center of the tooth, and that I didn’t move an inch.
He was amazed at how effective hypnosis was at completely knocking me out. In fact, he now wants my new Hypnotic Pain Control CDs for the patients in his office who are dental phobic.
I know that the idea of having your teeth drilled under hypnosis may seem impossible to some of you, so I’ve included a recording of the call my dentist made to me after I left his office.
Click this link to listen: Voicemail Message from my Dentist
Many of you have asked me to create a Hypnosis Pain Relief CD. Many of you suffer from chronic pain and seek natural, drug free relief. Some of you are afriad of doctors and dentists. Some of you simply don’t like needles.
Although personal results will vary, I can say from personal experience that this CD works. My dentist drilled two teeth for over 12 minutes and I felt absolutely nothing!
If you or someone you know would like to reduce the pain in their lives, you can now order my brand new Hypnosis Pain Control CD here:Pain Control CD
Happy Valentines Day
No blog tip this week. Just a simple Valentines Day wish to you that if you are with someone you love you take the time to tell them so and find a way to spend some time together.
If you are alone then look in the mirror and tell yourself all the great things there are about being you, that unique spark of life that has never been and will never be again, and say “I love myself!” with true emotion. (If you’ve been to one of my live seminars you know just how powerful an affirmation that can be.)
None of us know how much time we have to enjoy this life and the greatest gift we can give ourselves this Valentine’s Day is to remember that so we can live this present moment fully.
Namaste,
Joshua Seth
Hypnosis for Pain
I just had a laser surgery enhancement done on my right eye. Using only very light Self Hypnosis I was able to go through the entire process with no painkillers or Valium. I’m still amazed.
I had thought I’d use the Pain Control Hypnosis CD that I have on my iPhone. I used this recording to have my teeth drilled with no novocain the last time I was at the dentist.
But… when they took me back to do the LASIK procedure they said I couldn’t take the iPhone with me! For a moment I thought about taking the Valium anyway, but then realized it’s not even a painkiller, just an anxiety suppressant. Why take a pill for either anxiety or pain when self hypnosis works without any side effects? A deep level of trance isn’t even necessary in order to manage pain or do any kind of change work. So I refused the pills and started doing deep breathing exercises.
People always ask me after my hypnosis shows if such and such a person was really “under” because their eyes opened at a certain point or they didn’t follow a particular suggestion. The answer is, there are many levels of trance, 50 of them according to one commonly used scale. You only need to be in a very light level of trance in order for thoughts to affect you physiologically.
Our minds are very powerful, they can create pain (both physical and emotional) and remove it as well. All I did was to give myself repeated suggestions that I am becoming more and more relaxed and that every sound I hear sends me down deeper (because the LASIK machine makes a mechanized clicking sound and I wanted to incorporate that into the hypnotic process).
Throughout the entire procedure I did a deep breathing technique called Ujjayi. I teach this technique on my weight loss hypnosis tele-seminar. Basically it’s a deep breathing technique that focuses your attention inward and can calm the mind and the body chemistry easily. It worked great.
I was conscious enough to be aware when the doctor was peeling the flap back on my eye (and doing other uncomfortable sounding things), but I was not conscious of any pain, nervousness, or tension. Even though I have been hypnotizing people for years and have seen amazing results I’m always astounded when I experience those results for myself.
It makes me glad to know how to harness the power of my own subconscious mind for the benefit of myself and others and sad for people who go through life living with pain or relying on a pill to do what a little deep breathing and well-chosen suggestions can achieve just as effectively.
Now I don’t have to worry about getting medication out of my system or feeling drowsy or woozy or having any of the other side effects that I could be experiencing if I had gone the medicated route.
Many times the best medicine is in your own mind.
If you are interested in my ”Pain Control Hypnosis” CD you can now get it on MP3 for $10.
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ARNE SCHWARTZ |
Submitted on 2009/04/15 at 10:17pm Joshua: I NEED TO HAVE THE PAIN SEVERELY MINIMIZED. I ALREADY WEAR TWO MORPHINE PATCHES. CAN YOU HELP ME FOR THE BETTER PART OF THE DAY? REGARDS, arne |
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Joshua Seth |
Submitted on 2009/04/16 at 11:16pm Hi Arne, I think I remember meeting you on a cruise a while back. Do you have the pain control hypnosis CD I refer to in that article? If not, you can download it here: http://www.joshuaseth.com/store It is not a substitute for a doctor’s care, but many people have All my best, Joshua
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Gehenna |
Submitted on 2009/04/26 at 5:12am This is awesome, and I think is something to explore for pain relief during childbirth.. in a mainstream sense I mean cuz I know a few women who have done this. It’s better all round if we can leave drugs out of simple procedures and shortens recovery time. I wonder how many men would be willing to try it for a vasectomy? heh |
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Blog Carnival of Personal Power for 31 May 2009 :: pinkblocks
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Submitted on 2009/05/31 at 2:02pm [...] I just had a laser surgery enhancement done on my right eye. Using only very light Self Hypnosis I was able to go through the entire process with no painkillers or Valium. I’m still amazed. Joshua Seth presents: Hypnosis for Pain [...] |
Known of The UnFear: The Rachael Ray Story
Joshua Seth - Backstage at TV taping
“But I have a valid US Passport and a photocopy of my driver’s license. That proves that I am who I say I am right?”
No go.
Apparently I could have forged the photocopy. And here I thought I’d been pretty forward-thinking to even carry back-up copies of all my important documents with me.
“Listen, why don’t you just have the airport police call the DMV in California and verify that I do in fact have a valid driver’s license by reading them the info that is on this copy.”
Not gonna happen. Turns out it’s illegal to rent a car in the great state of Massachusetts without a physical driver’s license. Game over. Next please!
I was left standing at the rental car counter at the Boston-Logan International Airport, passport in hand, slowly realizing that there was no way I was going to be able to rent a car today. I’d just flown in and was supposed to drive to a college in Vermont to perform my hypnosis show that night but suddenly my license was gone, just disappeared. No idea what happened to it and no amount of searching through my bags turned up anything more useful than the dog-eared, folded up photocopy I was now holding uselessly in my hands.
It was Labor Day. There were about a million other people swarming around me. And it was suddenly very, very hot.Time to call my agent.
When you travel as much as I do, about 300 days a year, you get used to life’s constant little surprises. You learn to just roll with them. As I say in my Seminars, there’s very little in life that we have control over other than our own thoughts and our own responses to external stimuli; so rather than worry about the control we don’t have we can all lead happier lives by embracing the unknown and accepting every new situation as an opportunity to learn and grow.
If you can do something about it, great, take action. If not, then resolve to enjoy the ride and when you see where it’s taking you… then paddle like hell to get where you want to go. Worrying solves nothing.
I was about to be given a chance to put this philosophy to the test. I already knew I was stranded, what I didn’t know was that I was stranded in the wrong city!
“What are you doing in Boston?” asked my agent, “That gig was postponed for three weeks from now. Didn’t you get the email?”
pause…
pause becoming longer pause…
“Uh, no. I got up at 6am. I got on a plane and flew 1,000 miles. But no, I didn’t get an email telling me that I had the day off.” Ugh!
So here I am in Boston, without a license, without a gig, and without a way home. It was Labor Day and there were a few other people trying to get home too and almost all of them had planned it out a bit earlier than me.
Should I have been stressed out? Maybe. I was certainly in an unsustainable situation that was entirely outside of my control. Pretty much the definition of stress. Still, don’t know what good stressing out would have done. Probably just upset me. Instead I bought a bottle of water, found a nice spot to sit in, and called up a few friends to ask them how there holiday weekend was going. Turns out one of those friends, a magician by the pretty punny name of Justin Kredible, was in New York City preparing to shoot a segment for the Rachael Ray show. Her show was paying all his expenses for the week and had put him up in a posh hotel in midtown Manhattan.
Long story short, I bought a bus ticket to the Big Apple and a few hours later Justin and I were walking around Times Square, brainstorming ideas for his big TV appearance while enjoying a bag of hot roasted peanuts from a sidewalk vendor. Ahh, good times 
As we were enjoying the neon lights of the city I was reminded of the time I chose to be homeless during college. I was a philosophy major at NYU at the time and wanted to experience what it would be like. I’d grown up pretty safe and sheltered in a small town in the MidWest and had a fear of losing that feeling of security. I lived out of a backpack and budgeted myself on a dollar a day for food. Sometimes I’d ride the subway all night. Other times I’d meet someone in class and sleep in their bathtub. I only did this for about a month, but ever since that experience I’ve been completely comfortable with the idea of losing everything and starting over. I know from experience that it won’t kill me and as they said in Blade Runner “Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”. I got over that fear a long time ago and now getting stranded is all just a part of the amazing game of life.
Is there a lesson in this? A point perhaps? I certainly hope so. When we learn to let go of our fear of the unknown and instead embrace change and uncertainty as fuel for adventure we open ourselves up to new opportunities, new possibilities, and all kinds of new experiences. Maybe even a backstage pass to a TV show taping
As I write this, it’s a few days later and I’m flying on a plane to Jeuno, Alaska. This was totally unexpected. I do not even have a coat with me. This gig came in yesterday after the TV taping and when it was offered I said “Sure, I’ve never seen a glacier before, sounds like fun!” I’ll let you know.
The wild ride continues.
Leap Year Lasik
With Stylish Spectacles at Age 8
Today is February 29th and this day only comes around once every 4 years!
It’s a Bonus Day as far as I’m concerned. A day to live a life unlike the other 365.
It’s an opportunity to do something as different as that extra space in your
calendar suggests. What will you do to make this Leap Day extraordinary?
What can you do today that will improve your life for years to come?
I’ll tell you what I’m doing… I’m getting Lasik!
I’m a bit nervous about it actually. You see, I started reading at a very young age and strained my eyes so badly that I began wearing glasses when I was just two years old. I wore them until I was 8 and then I used self hypnosis and eye exercises to improve my sight enough that I didn’t have to wear them anymore.
Unfortunately, age has a way of catching up with us, and now that I’m in my 30s I’ve found myself relying upon glasses again. Every time I put them on it reminds me of my mortality and the fact that our parts eventually wear out. A pretty sobering way to start the day. So I’m doing something about it.
At 10:45 this morning I’ll be staring into a red laser shooting beams of light into my eyes. Not something I’d normally do and definitely a way to remember this leap year for a long time to come.
I’ll let you know how it went in my next post. For now though, I leave you with a question: what can you do to make today a day to remember?
Here are some ideas to get you started:
• Call someone you haven’t talked to in years and tell them you’ve been thinking of them
• Forgive someone you’ve held a grudge against and tell them it’s in the past
• Buy lunch for a perfect stranger and don’t tell them you did it.
• Open up a retirement account
• Build a snowman
You’re living life on “bonus time” today… make the most of it!
NOTE: Comments are now closed. Here is what was posted…
Meliza
Wow, you’re definitely making the most of your extra day! What a great decision to make. Good for you.
Judy Lavine
Hey Joshua,
I hope you’ll let me know how this goes for you. I will “be with you” in my way.
P.S. You looked adorable in glasses!
Love, Judy
keith
good luck and best wishes for you!!
Carol
Good luck it will be fine don’t worry.
Joyce Higgins
Thank you for the uplifting remarks about Leap Year and yes it is a free day. I’m sending this on to my daughter so she may enjoy it. Have a really nice day and I’m sure everything will go great for you.
Elisa
You’re going to love lasik! Your eyes get better and better with each new day. I’m not going to wish you luck, b/c you won’t need it. The whole procedure takes less than 10 minutes and you’ll feel even better about yourself than you already do!
bobbi
I wish you all the best.
Tommy Fricks
Been there done that in 1998. One of the most amazing things that has ever happened in my life.
Blessings to you Joshua,
Tommy
George
You’ll love it, great Leap Day Decision.
ros
wow thats great for you …wish you all the best
Denise
Enjoy your new sight!! Now You are close to perfectionism…….seeing clearer beyond….imaginable! Healthly recovery!
Grace
Congrats on getting the lasik! My hubby got the same thing done a couple years back and it has helped him immensly. Just make sure to stay in the dark as long as possible and DON’T try to do anything you shouldn’t while you’re recovering.
I totally spaced it on the whole leap year, so of course, I’m a day late and a dollar short….as usual….haha! I did make the most of it though, and hopefully next time I’ll get to build that snowman…or maybe one of sand since I’m by the Ocean
Joshua Seth
Thanks for your support everybody
I’m headed off to get zapped now!
My Lasik Story
This is amazing!
I can see… all the time… without glasses!
My Leap Day Lasik surgery went great and I’m typing away on my laptop right now without glasses and without the headache that would usually ensue if I weren’t wearing them.
Thanks to everybody who added a comment to my previous post. I read all of your comments right before I left for the surgery and it gave me a big boost
I was pretty out of it when I returned home, but I didn’t feel like going to sleep, so I dictated the following post:
“I am dictating this blog post because I don’t feel like opening up my eyes. I had lasik about an hour ago and now it feels like I have a scratched cornea. This is one of the most unusual experiences I have ever had and that’s saying a lot because I have led a very unusual life.
Ever see the movie “Clockwork Orange”? Remember the scene where he’s strapped to a chair with his eyelids held open while forced to stare at flashing images? This was a bit reminiscent of that scene. They put a suction cup over my eye that forcibly held the
lids open and told me to stare into the laser light. Usually a laser is something I would look away from if it’s pointed directly into my eyeball!
Actually, staring into the red light wasn’t that bad. The unnerving thing was a seeing a hand wiping some sort of an instrument directly across my eye. The hand would wipe and my vision would go blurry. Wipe again and my vision would become restored. A machine had cut a flap in my eye moments before and I assume each wiping motion was moving it around, resulting in the abrupt changes in vision quality. That is an extremely strange sensation.
Now I didn’t see any smoke, like some people had told me to expect. I also didn’t smell anything burning, as people also told me I would. I was glad for that.
The procedure went very quickly. A few minutes at most. Now that it’s over, I’m excited
to see how much my vision has improved but I feel disinclined to open my eyes. I am supposed to be resting but I’d rather work. Is that so wrong?
I could get used to dictating these blogs
All in all I’m glad I did it, but I wouldn’t want to go through it again.
Very strange, very unusual. Glad I won’t ever have to deliver a baby.”
NOTE: Comments are now closed. Here is what was posted…
bobbi
I’m glad your surgery went well. I wish you luck with you new “eyes”.
Audrey
Congrats, but – Oh no! Why did you tell me that? I want to have it done, but the procedure itself sounds so scary. Please tell more about what got you through those freaky minutes – how were you able to tolerate it? And why are you out of it? I want to have it done, but I’m scared.
Janelle
its great that it went well…now i wanna get eye surgery but I don’t know describing what you went through I guess I would get a little freaked too…lol
Carol
Glad to hear that everything went so well!
Judy
Hey Joshua Seth, glad that is over with. Brave, very brave ~ and sounds so worth it. You’re a better “man” than me!
••• with love, judy
keith
congratulations!! glad to hear that it went well!! I guess you can now say you are looking at the world with new eyes!!! enjoy the view!
Eric
Everybody has a different story to lasik. In Singapore, everyone is also so far so good… Did they made you wear an eye-patch that looks like the eyes of a moth or fly…?
nat
so congratulations on how ur gonna look at the world from now on..! no headaches and no more tired eyes. do u think this would “open ur eyes” further more
i’m glad ur glad u did it..!
Denise
Good for YOU!! Glad everything went so well. Don’t think my Stress Hypnosis CD would do the same to me, it helps to be generally a relaxed person.
Gloria
Joshua – Thank you for sharing. You are making a hypnosis believer out of me!
Matthew
I’m curious whether any night vision was lost.
Joshua Seth
Hi Matthew,
I have not noticed any loss of night vision. I was warned that I may experience a “haloing” effect when driving at night, but nothing like that had occurred. I was also cautioned that I may require reading glasses afterward, but that had not been the case either.
The only negative side effect that I have noticed is a broken blood vessel in my right eye which looks a bit erie right now. I was told it will heal within a couple of weeks though. All in all, I’m quite happy with the results. I did a show last night and could actually make out faces in the crowd!
katie
Congrats on allowing yourself greater clarity. I had my lasik in 2001. The BEST present I ever gave to myself. I also did not see nor smell smoke. I did find myself focused on the visual displays that occurred, which I would liken as some special effects in a stars wars movie, perhaps one where a small ship was blasting out from a larger ship. Funny how we can all choose to see things a bit differently. I now have SUPER vision, being as I am 20/15. In darker places, or with VERY small print, I can use dime store glasses. OR if I stand back far enough from text, I do not need them in good light. SInce grade school I had worn the thickest of lenses, and contacts since high school. My eyes got very tired of the contact after 30+ years. I do not feel that my night vision suffers, unless I am very tired, and that is a bit natural. Congrats again. I would recommend this vision correction to anyone that is a good canidate for this procedure.
Dr. Bill
Joshua,
I’m glad you are doing well! You are a great patient, and made my job easy. Thanks for sharing your experience with everyone. Your brother’s surgery went perfect today. Keep in touch.
-Bill
Joshua Seth
Thanks everybody
Audrey, it wasn’t scary at all. I listened to my Stress Reduction Hypnosis CD before I went in and approached the procedure in a calm and relaxed manner. That always helps with recovery from any type of surgery.
Self hypnosis helps to induce deep breathing and create a sort of inner peace that makes those “freaky minutes” fly by. I also have a Pain Control CD available, but I didn’t even need it. It was all over very quickly.
The Top 3 Reasons People Don’t Keep Their New Year’s Resolutions
‘Tis the season for goal setting isn’t it? Year after year we all make New Year’s resolutions with the best of intentions… despite knowing that in a few weeks they’ll be all but forgotten!
Why is this? Why do people vow to drop those extra pounds, even go so far as joining a gym, and then never do anything about it?
I believe it’s because of three reasons: disorganization, fear, and a lack of support.
Whatever your New Year’s resolution is, do the following three things right now and you’ll find it much easier to achieve than ever before:
1. Get Organized
Write down your goal.
Write it down in detail.
State it clearly in the present tense.
Thoughts take on added power when we write them down, but we must write them down in specific ways if we want them to manifest as real in our lives.
For instance, don’t simply write down “I want to try to lose some weight this year”. That’s almost as pointless as not writing your goals down at all.
First of all “try” is a negative conditioning word. It allows you an excuse when you don’t reach your goal, because on a subconscious level you know that you did what you said you would (“Oh well, at least I tried“).
Also, it’s not specific. How much weight will you lose? When will you lose it by?
Finally, it’ not a statement. There’s no commitment in the phrase and therefore no driving force to achieve the goal. If you make a New Year’s resolution like this, even if you write it down, you will fail because you didn’t hold yourself to any kind of a standard.
A much more effective way to state this goal would be to write “I have lost 20 pounds by March 15th, 2009” and then sign your name to that declaration and post it where you can see it every day.
Even better, post it where everyone else in your home can see it every day. That will really create some serious social pressure to see the process through.
2. Turn Fear into Power
Fear can be quite debilitating. You can know you need to make a change on a logical, conscious level (ie “I need to stop smoking because my doctor told me I’m at risk”) but still be resistant on a subconscious level because of fear (ie “smoking is a social activity and I may lose my friends”).
In order to make any real changes in our lives we need to align both our conscious and subconscious attitudes and beliefs. When we really believe we can accomplish our goals that’s when we’ve successfully turned fear into power and used it to motivate ourselves into action.
But how do we do that? Well, I’ve found hypnosis to be amazing effective at turning fear into power, inaction into action.
If you’ve got my self hypnosis CDs, then now is the perfect time to use them.
Take a look at the New Year’s resolution that you just wrote down. Read it back to yourself three times, out loud and with positive emotion. State your resolution more confidently and passionately each time.
Now, listen to your self hypnosis CD. Go on, do it now, it only takes 20 minutes and it’s important to do this so you can inspire your subconcious mind to really believe that you can accomplish this goal.
I’ll wait right here ’til you come back…
Good. I’m proud of you
Now… shout out your New Year’s Resolution 3 times with feeling!
Do this every morning for the next 21 days and you’ll have the powerful motivation you need to see this goal though to it’s successful completion.
3. Find Support
No one is an island. The people we interact with every day have a great effect on our ability to change and grow.
If you’re surrounded by unsupportive people who put you down and don’t believe you can change, then the best thing you can do is stop hanging around them. If that’s not possible, then at least stop listening to them and believing what they say. You are capable of achieving anything you put your mind to in this life and no one else has the power to stop you, unless you let them.
Surround yourself with positive, supportive people who are also interested in improving themselves and you’ll all benefit from the team mentality.
Why try to do it all yourself when there are people and resources that exist that can help you every step of the way?
Create a team of friends and advisors this year that can help you break out of your old routines and reach a whole new level, not just in terms of your New Year’s resolution, but throughout your entire life.
Commit now to ask for help when you need it and use it when it’s offered. You’ll make achieving your goals a whole lot easier when you do.
NOTE: Comments are now OPEN. Here is what was posted previously…
Barbara
Powerful!
and empowering!
your enthusiasm is contagious!
Michael
I partiacularly liked the “write it down” comments. This will help me be clear, focused and committed to my 2008 goals.
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Rich Life Carnival #29 | Rich Life Carnival |
Submitted on 2009/01/24 at 8:53am [...] Seth presents The Top 3 Reasons People Don’t Keep Their New Year’s Resolutions | Hypnotist, Speaker, and Autho… posted at Joshua Seth Blog, saying, “‘Tis the season for goal setting isn’t it? Year [...] |
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Carnival of Positive Thinking |
Submitted on 2009/01/25 at 2:37pm [...] Seth presents The Top 3 Reasons People Don’t Keep Their New Year’s Resolutions | Hypnotist, Speaker, and Autho… posted at Joshua Seth Blog , saying, “‘Tis the season for goal setting isn’t it? Year [...] |
There is Only Now
I’m on an airplane right now, thinking about a conversation I had after my stress seminar this morning.
A man came up to me and asked all sorts of questions about whether I thought my self-hypnosis CD “Unlimited Confidence” could help him with his own lack of confidence.
It seems that every time he has to give a presentation in front of a group he dreads screwing it up (therefore all but insuring that he will) and then obsesses over it for days afterward, feeling miserable the entire time.
I reassured him that this is exactly the kind of issue that this CD is meant to address, but he still seemed hesitant. “But I’ve had this problem for such a long time.” he moaned, “It’s so entrenched.” My answer to him is what I offer you now…
First of all, there is no such thing as time. Time is a fabrication we construct to make our lives seem more linear and therefore more in control. Dwelling on what we perceive to be past mistakes only exacerbates their hold over us. You can do NOTHING about whatever has happened in the past. It is done. There is only now. There is only to decide and to do in the here and now. There is no “entrenched”. There is no “been going on so long”. There is now and only now. Decision. Action. Or nothing.
When I was a philosophy major at one point in my long and winding college career, we were often asked the big questions in life “Who are we? Where are we going? Why are we here?” There are no right or wrong answers to these things, but it is very easy to get caught in the trap of ruminating about them.
“Are people basically good or evil” is another one of these eternal questions. I thought it was very easy to answer. I just asked myself “What’s in it for me?”If I decide that I think that people are basically evil, then I will naturally begin to withdraw from them, isolating myself from those I think might seek to do me harm, eventually becoming a surly curmudgeon with few friends and limited opportunities.
On the other hand, if I decide that people are basically good then I will seek them out and attract more of them into my life. I will expand my circle of friends and invite limitless opportunities. The worst that could happen would be to be taken advantage of from time to time via my Pollyanna naiveté. But it would be a choice, and a price worth paying when weighed against all of the good that would come from seeing the best in people.
Now as is usually the case, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. But truth is what we decide it to be for ourselves; and for me, my truth, the truth that I live, is that people are basically good and so I chose to see the best in them whenever possible.
We all chose what to believe either by conscious action or by default. Whatever was true for us in the past need not be in the future if we simply decide that another point of view is in our best interest in the here and now.
Perhaps believing in yourself, in your own ability to change and grow and embrace new opportunities for personal fulfillment might serve you better than choosing to believe that you are limited by your past experiences. Just a thought.
He just stood there. Sweating a little.
What will you chose to believe about yourself today? Are you going to allow yourself to be limited by your past, or are you going to believe that you have an unlimited future?
The choice is yours and you can make it right now.
Look into the mirror and confidently, with genuine feeling, tell yourself what you’ve decided that you believe to be true.
Now go out and have an awesome day!
What Holds You Back?
In the past few days since my last Blog posting, I’ve flown to Alaska (and bought a coat!), performed my hypnosis show twice and my stress reduction and weight loss seminars once, and spent the rest of my time doing the following:
• Ziplining in the rainforest canopy
• Photographing bears fishing for salmon in the wild
• Visiting two glaciers and reveling in the serenity and silence of the crisp, clean air
• Pontooning in the midst of dozens of humpback and killer whales
• Hiking up the side of a mountain to the foot of a steep and thundering waterfall
What have you done this week?
I don’t ask this to make you jealous or resentful. Far from it. I ask because I enjoy, no LOVE showing people how to live their dreams, but before I can do that they first have to identify what their dreams are.
I’ve found that most people have buried them under years of unfulfilling work, unsatisfying relationships, and resignation to the daily grind.I’m no different… I just did something about it.
As recently as two years ago I was still living in Los Angeles, holding down two careers (one as a hypnotist and the other as a very successful voice over actor) and working about 14 hours a day. I was successful by most common measurements of the term but I was unhappy.
I decided to “throw it all away” and leave a dead-end relationship, a career that paid well but bored me to tears, sell my house, and travel the world.
Two years later, I’m working far less (about 6 hours a week), making far more, spending my time with happy / enthusiastic people, and traveling to places I hadn’t even known existed!
You can do this too.
I’m not saying you have leave your job or relationships. I’m saying you can live your dreams and have a fulfilling life full of exciting adventures, living each day as though it might be your last. You just have to take that first step of overcoming your fears and deciding to take charge of your life. Your time in which to do this is limited.
We don’t live forever folks. In fact, have you ever thought to count up the number of days you have to enjoy your life? How many do you think it is?
Millions of days? Hundreds of thousands of days?Tens of thousands of days?
Actually, you probably have less than 30,000 days to live (365 days x 80 years = 29,200 days). That’s it. Then it’s over.
How many have you used up already? How many have you squandered on meaningless or unfulfilling pursuits? How many more are you willing to throw away?
When I speak to groups and individuals about improving their lives I find that they usually need to progress through the following steps:
• Before you can live your dreams you need to identify what they are
• Before you can identify your dreams you need to believe that you are a person worth living them
• Before you can improve your self-esteem to the point where you can dream big dreams again, you need to take control of your life and stop allowing it to overwhelm you
• Before you can take control of your life, you need to learn certain skill-sets like stress reduction, time and information management, and simplicity of living.
• Before you can do all that you need to change your mindset from one of reacting to your environment to one of proactively creating your environment.
You need to change the mindset that created all of the unnecessary problems in the first place. You need to SNAP OUT OF IT. Whatever your life is at the moment it is the cumulative result of all of your past thinking; therefore, you can change the course of the remainder of your life by changing your thinking now.
I’d like to help you do that.What would you like me to address IN DEPTH in future Blog postings?
• Mindset: how to be a truly happy person and attract great people and opportunities into your life
• Stress Reduction: how to limit debilitating stress and take advantage of motivating stress
• Time and Information Management: how to decrease the number of things you HAVE to do so you can increase the number of things you WANT to do
• Weight Loss: how to become fit, healthy, and active without diets or “exercise”. After all, you can only live your dreams to the extent that you are healthy
• Fears and Phobias: how to quickly and easily overcome any fear, no matter how long you’ve had it or how debilitating it’s become
• Persuasion and Influence: how to use hypnotic language patterns and rapport building techniques to sell anything to anyone so you can finance living your dreams
• Focus: how to cut out all the distractions and get things done once and for all• Dreaming Big: how to discover what you really want out of life
• Self Esteem and Self Confidence: how to truly believe that you are worth having, being, and doing the best that the world has to offer so you can get far more out of life
Please vote for whatever topic most intrigues you from the list above by clicking on the underlined heading. You may click on as many topics as you like and your vote will be counted each time. I will devote myself to writing a multi-part Blog on whichever topic gets the most votes.
(VOTING IS OVER. LINKS ARE DISABLED.)
So, what do you want to learn?
NOTE: Comments are now closed. Here is what was submitted…
Dwain
Wow, your blogs are great! Normally I skim blogs, literally every single one of the 30 I read, but your blog has this draw to it, that keeps readers going and wondering “What kind of trouble has he gotten himself into?”
How you turned such a horribly negative situation into something so positive and good! That was quite the story! Live life one moment at a time I say, I rarely plan ahead and when I do I tell people don’t expect 100% for me to be there, you just never know what might come your way at the last second!
