Action, Synchronicity and Freedom

Dr. Carlos Letelier did not wait for magic to happen to create his successful oral surgery practice.  He continually took action, so he was prepared when synchronistic opportunities presented themselves.  The result -- he created a life of freedom for, and with, his family. 

As a young man, Carlos traveled the world with a backpack and as little as $50 in his wallet.  He took action to follow his dream to travel, and believed, and did find, odd jobs everywhere he traveled to support his dream.  He continually sought opportunities to learn.  He used those opportunities to continue his education (where he meet his wife and business partner). As a young man, those opportunities looked like medical training.  As a young doctor, those opportunities looked like securing the assistance of a first rate consulting firm to build the foundation of his practice.  He is reserved, yet adventurous.  He is a risk taker, yet grounds his optimism with preparedness.  He feels fear, yet never allowed fear to stop him from taking a risk. 

By stepping out of his comfort zone – leaving his native country Chili, where his entire family of origin, including his identical twin remain today – he allowed unrelated events to come together to pave the stepping stones of his life.  He did not dream of being an oral surgeon as a little boy.  He did not dream of living in Las Vegas.  He is doing both very successfully.

What Carlos did was follow his heart, informed by his head.   That is synchronicity in action. That is how magic happens.  That is how miracles occur.  That is the energy your dreams need to become reality.  When grounded optimism meets prepardness, synchronicity is in action.

Dr. Success Challenge:  In the United States this is what I call Freedom Week.  What action are you willing to take to free yourself from your fear of clarifying your passion and living a life on purpose? 

Thank you Sarah Stuart https://www.facebook.com/magic.sarah.stuart for the graphic used on this blog.

And in the words of Dr. Hew Len, "Wishing you peace beyond all understanding."

Andrea T. Goeglein, PhD

http://www.FaceBook.com/DrSuccessPhD
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DrSuccess@ServingSuccess.com

Don't Die Thank You

Take AIM on Happiness

Now that the new Don't Die book is complete and on the market, its time to get back to the great teachings and teachers of Positive Psychology.  The following is a blog post by Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener.  To learn more about Dr. Biswas-Diener's work and the learning opportunities he offers, go to:

Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener
Positive Acorn, LLC
www.positiveacorn.com  

There's more to this pleasant feeling than you think!

A few years ago a friend and colleague of mine-- Sonja Lyubomirsky-- wrote a book about the science of well-being called "The How of Happiness." In this book Sonja reviewed much of the empirical evidence for various ways that a person might achieve happiness: cultivate a habit of gratitude, plug in spiritually, let go of sour feelings through forgiveness. The How of Happiness was timely and important in that it addressed what is, for many folks, the single most pressing question about happiness, "How can I get some more of it?"

What many people fail to realize, where their own emotional good life is concerned, is that there is an equally crucial question: when is happiness? Many of us simply assume that happiness is an emotion we experience in the present and it therefore makes sense to find pleasant and rewarding tasks in which to engage. There is, however, more to the story..... there is a psychological "happiness timeline" during which happiness is constructed, much in the same way your story of your wedding day or trip to Paris is constructed.

In a book published the same year as Lyubomirsky's, my father-- Ed Diener-- and I introduced readers to the "AIM" model of happiness. In Happiness: Unlocking the mysteries of psychological wealth, we separate into three distinct components: attention, interpretation, and memory.

A- Attention:  It turns out that what you pay attention to in the first place is what your mind becomes filled with! This is why a daily habit of gratitude can be helpful; it shifts your focus to the ways in which the world is good and in which you are fortunate. This is not a matter of naively overlooking the bad, of course. Rather, it is a matter of NOT overlooking the small good daily events.

I- Interpretation: This is classic cognitive psychology. Are you the type of person who feels appreciative when your boyfriend brings you flowers or are you the type to immediately suspect him of wrongdoing? We all have thinking habits and interpreting the events of daily life is one of these. To improve your happiness try consciously considering alternative explanations before jumping to an emotional conclusion.

M- Memory: Happiness does not just exist in the present but also can be drawn from past events. Try savoring past successes, enjoyable experiences and other golden memories by making a habit out of looking at memorabilia or trading stories with a spouse or friends. You will be surprised to find that you can draw actual happiness-- right now-- from events that have taken place long ago. Rather than looking for increased happiness in a better future you can mine your past experiences to pay out happiness dividends!
This week, set a challenge for yourself to undertake at least one of these three approaches to happiness.

Thank you Robert for a great post. 

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