Affirmations are an effective way to help change your mind set. An affirmation is a statement in present tense which is positive in nature. It may not be something you truly believe in about yourself but wish to see as the real you. Write it down and read and re-read them a number of times in a day. Affirmations have a strange way of helping us change our life. They work on our sub-conscious brain and give it the power to turn our thoughts into our reality. If you write them as wishes or hopes, they will remain as wishes or hopes but if you reinforce them as facts they become your facts.

Your list of affirmations would be personal to you and would have what is your core need to be. However there are a few universal affirmations which if you add to your list, you would benefit greatly. Here are an auspicious number of examples of the evergreen.

1. I am a confident and self assured person.
2. I am in control of my life and emotions.
3. I am happy, calm and relaxed.
4. I have the potential to succeed and I maximise it at all times.
5. I am grateful that I get things the way I want.
6. I am an important person in my life and in the lives of all I know.
7. I love myself and am proud of myself with all my strengths and limitations.
8. I have the power to make my own destiny.
9. I have the ability to empathize and be compassionate towards others.
10. I forgive myself and others easily.
11. I am happy and grateful that my life and my world are always beautiful and bright with lots of goodness to look forward to.

What you tell yourself is what you will make your reality to be. So train your thoughts… you are the master of your destiny. Cheers to your success!

Saloni Sawnani

Each and every one of us faces new challenges everyday. Adversity does not ask our permission before presenting itself; and the pain it brings along with it can be very overwhelming. Even so, we need to realize that in every equation that a challenge poses before us, pain assumes a value of great significance only if we allow it to be so. If we feed it by focusing on it, it wields a power that can kill, else; not.

We often hold on to pain – almost as if – were we to let it go we would feel a sense of loss. As if choosing to cling on to it will find us the solutions we are looking for. Just as we can become habituated to all things in life, so also we can become habituated to pain. We begin to accept it as part of the problem and continue to bear it as best as we can. This need not be so. All that is needed is a change of focus. Pain needs support to stand tall; from today stop lending it that support. Choose to be free of pain, physical or otherwise. You have it in you to do so. Choose the experience; eschew the pain. A friend once told me that all energy can turn to positive energy if we so choose it to be. It is an incredible thought; a thought that enables us. There is no negative energy – only that which has not been energized positively.

We spend so much of our time and energies on looking at the cloud and hunting for the silver lining that we forget that the cloud is in the blue sky that envelops it. The cosmos compliments us; we only need to be aware of those compliments. Think about it – hasn’t every negative experience brought about positive learning? Then why view the negative as negative; why not acknowledge it as a part of the positive? Look at it as the first fraction of the beautiful whole. Real beauty does not lie in perfection – it lies in imperfection. So look at all the blemishes that life offers you as the contrasting elements that highlight the beauty of your living experience. Am I revealing some big secret to you? No. I am merely reminding you of what you already know.

Truth has many facets. We hold on to the one we find most appealing. Ultimately it doesn’t matter what facet we choose to look at, for the whole is always a diamond radiating brilliance.

From today, look for the hidden meaning in all your experiences. Look for the higher messages that they bring to you. Every experience is borne of our choices, conscious or otherwise. You ask a question of the Universe and it will answer. Learn to recognise the answers when they come to you – whether it is luck in physical form or a part of pluck that you display. From today see the larger picture. Look beyond the pain and see the painting. Like I said, it is only a fragment of the beautiful whole. From today choose to know that.

Dr. Ripal K. Kotak

Feelings are always either positive or negative and they guide our thinking accordingly. So obviously there are some constructive thought patterns and there are some self defeating thought patterns. The constructive ones focus on abundance while the self defeating ones focus on lack. What do you focus on?

A few examples of thoughts stemming from negative emotions like sadness, anger, resentment, hatred, jealousy, fear, helplessness etc would be:,

• No one understands me.
• Only I know what I’m going through.
• So many years of my life have got wasted.
• Other people are just far more lucky.
• Why me?
• Things will never go right for me.
• If only people would co-operate more.
• When I’m right why can’t others see it?
• Why do I have to fight/struggle for everything I deserve in life?
• Life is not fair.

Do you notice a common thread among all these statements? You can add a few more of your own also and you’ll find the same common thread linking them all. Its the thread called ‘self pity’. Most of us love indulging ourselves in self pity and use our book of 1001 excuses to justify why we have a right to indulge ourselves. We let our negative emotions engulf us to such an extent that all these thoughts seem extremely rational and practical. Any one who says anything to the contrary actually knows less and understands lesser.

You have a choice. You have a choice to either live with your book of ‘1001 excuses’ or rewrite a book called ‘1001 solutions’. There is ‘NO PROBLEM’ in the world that does not have a solution but usually we land up focussing all our time and energies on the problem that we have no strength to either find solutions or implement them.

So how can you start writing this new book? It is pretty simple. Just do the opposite of the above. Focus on all the positive emotions you experience like happiness, calmness,  love, excitement, enthusiasm, confidence etc. You will notice that your thoughts will begin to change to thoughts like:

• I’m in control of my life and can shape it.
• People will support me when I ask for it.
• I can overcome the challenges life poses in front of me.
• I can always make a fresh start and make it big.
• Opinions differ. I can always agree to disagree and let go.
• I am as lucky as everyone else.
• If I keep at it, things will go my way.
• Life is fair. It gives us all the ups and down.

Sometimes negative emotions are more overwhelming than the positive ones so it maybe difficult to experience those positive statements. Don’t get disheartened. Feelings follow thoughts just as much as thoughts follow feelings. Choose your thoughts and repeat them… watch your feelings change.

Like they say “we can’t change what life presents us with but we can change our response to what happens”. You have the the power to let your thoughts control your feelings or be a slave to your feelings. Don’t spend time and energy wishing life were different or better… Make It.

Success has a ‘p’ language of its own? Do you know it? Add the ‘P’ to each letter of the word and have fun!

‘S’ – Plan. Only when you know where you want to go can you go there and reach it. So first things first, set your goal. Understand the direction you want to start treading. Be specific. Your goal can’t be I want to be happy in life. It has to be concrete like, want to positively touch lives of a million people through my profession and blog and that would make me happy.

‘U’ – Passion. Love what you do because only then can you do it well. If your heart is not there your head can’t support you for too long. Intellectually we can only achieve moderate success but when our heart and soul is in what we do, sky is also not the limit…. the universe probably is!

‘C’ – Patience. “Patience is a virtue.” They teach us that in school and we forget all about it the moment we are out of school! We are forever in a hurry to do. Do whatever comes our way as long as we ‘do’! Relax, wait, watch… things will go your way.

‘C’ – Persistence. In the rat race to achieve we forget that the tortoise won the race (remember the fable about the hare and the tortoise). Most of us try to become the hare, have a burnout and sleep. The successful are slow and steady (steady being the key word) Things will not always go as per plan but keep at it. Persistence pays in more ways than one.

‘E’ – Praise. Appreciate your efforts every single small or big step of the way. Most of us only focus at how far we still are from our goal rather than how close we’ve come to it. Imagine if you had to climb a ladder looking only at the top. Chances are you’ll miss a step and fall backwards. Watch your step, focus only on the next step and once you’ve climbed it, smile and tell yourself “good job done”.  Before you know it, you’ll be right on top!

‘S’ – Positivity. Keep your mind positive. Read positive literature, hear positive music, watch positive movies, write positive stuff. There is plenty of positive around, find it within and outside of you and use it. When you fill yourself with positivity your environment will automatically begin to become positive and together positive growth will happen.

‘S’ – Pray. Whether you are an atheist or you believe in God, trust the fact that there is an energy unknown to us which supports us. Believe in it and keep the faith. Your trust in yourself and the energy will give you the strength to plan, be passionate, patient, persistent, praise worthy and positive.

So go ahead and bring your childhood back. Play the game of SpUpCpCpEpSpSp. You’ll come out a winner for sure!

Instrinsically most of us are very greedy… we like to get as much as we can and keep it all. We are hesitant to share it and like to keep it as close to our chest as we can. Hoard as much as we can, keep it all deep within…

The funny thing about life is that this greed principle doesn’t apply to money alone. Its a pervasive attitude. We also save and cherish our negative emotions. We keep them close to us as though if we were to let go of them we would let go of our being.

Think about it, most of us spend most of our day focussing on what we lack, what is missing, how life has not been fair, why the neighbour has more, why people are unfair, how the politicians don’t do their job well…. More than 50 percent of our waking hours are spent in cribbing, criticizing, feeling sorry for ourselves etc. So guess what happens to more than 50 percent of our sleeping hours? The same thoughts run in our head and reinforce themselves. Net result, more than 50 percent of our life goes in anger, frustration and resentment.

Do you wish to break this negative cycle of life? Well you can if you choose to.

Is it going to be easy? Sure its going to be easy if you allow it to be. Needs just a little effort.

Is it going to be worth the effort? Yes, you will experience a new sense of being and satisfaction.

So where do you start?

“Let Go”

Let go of all the negative emotions. Write them on a piece of paper and burn it. Throw the ashes in the sea so they go far far from your life. I’m not joking here or talking off my hat. I know it sounds like that but I challenge you to do it… I know I’ll be posting your life changing story next.

So what would you do with this sudden void you’re going to experience now that you’ve burnt all the negativity? Fill it up… there is plenty of positive stuff around.

For the next 6months say something nice to yourself and everyone you meet everyday. If you don’t find something nice to say, don’t say anything. Just stay away from finding fault with yourself and others.

Share. The more positivity you share with others the more will come back to you. The same problems would seem less worrisome and the solutions would come more easily.

Keep the faith. Rome was not built in a day, nor can your old habits change in a night. Keep the good work going consciously day after day… the nights will feed your subconscious brain and before you realise life would’ve changed!

Saloni Sawnani

For all of you wondering about the same out there, here’s the rationale of why I do and what I do what I do.

Just like our body needs a vacation to recharge so does our mind. When we go on a holiday we choose a location where we get the ‘feel good’ factor. It’s a place away from the daily routine and norm. Similarly our brain needs a getaway everyday. It needs the ‘feel good’ factor to keep it charged.  Make the most is a “top vacation resort” for the mind. It’s designed to recharge your battery with positive energy. It is away from reality so that you can enjoy the holiday and invigorate yourself.

It is also important to understand that our brain is like a computer. Our hard disk (subconscious brain) is filled with a number of pre-loaded programs (our conditioning from childhood/life experiences). Some of these programs are outdated and slow down our functioning. They benefit with regular updates and occasional re-programming. Make the most is like a data base to check on the new available software and to reload new programs. You can always choose to stay with your old ones or use this as a platform to give yourself some positive options.

Just like when you want a healthy body you feed yourself healthy food, when you want a healthy mind you feed it good thought. Thinking does not change reality but thinking opens doors to various ways of dealing more effectively with the reality. Make the most provides good food for your mind to help you open new doors to effectively handle the realities of your life.

Successful people say that the only thing that has helped them reach where they are is their attitude. They have all faced adversity in their life at some point of time or the other. It’s their attitude that has helped them reach the altitude they’re on. ATTITUDE… that is what helps us MAKE THE MOST OF LIFE and that is what ‘www.makethemostoflife.net’ is all about!

Saloni Sawnani

We all know what love is. We’ve felt it at one time or the other for people around us, who form part of our life. I am not talking of romantic love. I am talking of the deep sense of affection and bonding that we feel for people we care about, whether it be parents, children, friends, or someone else. Unconditional love does not require any of these to be exceptional in any manner, we love them just as they are; their joy forms our joy, their pain our shared burden. We have faith in them; we think highly of them. Their success or failure does not change our opinion of them. To us they are perfect just the way they are; their strengths, their weaknesses, all form a part of who they are and that is who we love and cherish. We accept them with their idiosyncrasies and their peculiarities; we don’t judge them for who they are, instead we love them for it.

Now I want you to ask you if you feel the same way about yourself. Do you love yourself? As children we didn’t judge ourselves, as adults we do. Do you accept yourself just the way you are? Do you like the way you look? Do you think you are successful? Do you think you are worthy?

Our opinion of ourselves has more to do with our success and failure in life than that of others.

If the success or failure of people you care about doesn’t affect the way you feel about them, why don’t you extend the same courtesy to yourself?

It doesn’t matter how rich, good looking, or successful you are. What matters is how you perceive yourself and those around you.

Every snowflake is perfect. So are you. Unique and perfect. Love yourself for who you are, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health. Love yourself with all your frailties and weaknesses. Your pimples form as much a part of you as do your dimples. Enjoy them both.

You may not be the best in your field, you may not be the best looking, or the most successful… but that should not stop you from loving yourself.

Every fiber of your being resonates with the melody of the Universe. You are as much a marvel as the other wonders the Universe offers. Just open your eyes and see. Every pebble, every stone, every weed is perfect. They are all part of the whole, each making their own contribution to the world.

With love comes faith, with faith comes belief. Learn to trust yourself. If you face a setback believe in yourself enough that you will see yourself through troubled times. If you fall don’t chastise yourself for falling, instead applaud yourself as you stand up again.

You are precious just the way you are. You do not need to do or achieve anything to prove this. Know this. Love yourself the way you are. You are here and you belong. Just as everyone else.

In Jab We Met, Geet says she is her own favourite. Why don’t you become your own favourite. Look at yourself with the same loving eyes with which you see the ones you cherish.

Go ahead. Have a love affair with yourself. No one deserves it more.

Dr. Ripal K. Kotak

That’s what the morning alarm should to say…

To keep your spirits happy and high

Smile and keep away all sigh.

Look in your mirror and what do you see

The wonderful person you call “me”.

Give yourself five compliments for the day

It will boost your confidence a long long way.

Find your dream and make a plan

Show everyone that you can.

Write it down for you need to commit

Come what may, you won’t quit.

Faith, hope, courage and desire

That’s what will not let you retire.

Always focus only on what is good in you

Because that is what is going to see you through.

Make lots of friends and ignore all foes

Don’t bother to settle scores.

Dish out love, trust and companionship

Win peoples heart that is the secret tip.

Things may not go your way

But you must not go astray.

People may not respond the way you like

So let them go take a hike!

You stay on track and read your goal

It’s your dream and your soul.

You are the master of your life

Don’t let others take your drive.

Life is full of ups and downs

Of giggles, laughter and some frowns.

Focus on the positive that comes your way

And happiness will forever be there to stay.

When you go to bed tonight

Say a little prayer and you’ll feel light.

For God takes care of us all

Just thank Him and he’ll hear your call.

Remember, if you think happy, you feel happy

You feel happy, you do happy.

When you do happy, you are happy

And life gets all happy happy!

So what do the 10% people who are successful in life do? They work on their attitude. Some of the richest people in the world (for eg. Bill Gates or Dhirubhai Ambani) are not well literate but are well educated in the principles of success. They have in them “the attitude to success”.

So how do we change our attitude? Well, we need to change the way we talk to ourselves. Our sub-conscious mind believes whatever we tell it. Tell it good things and good things will happen.

Bob Proctor, a famous coach, picked up from Napoleon Hill’s book ‘Think and Grow Rich’ 5 power statements that can be a good start for us to change our self talk. Here goes…

Power Statement No.1

“Kindle in you, in your mind the fire of hope, faith courage and tolerance. If you have these states of mind and a working knowledge of the principles described, all else that you need will come to when you are ready for it.”

Power Statement No.2

“There’s a difference between wishing for a thing and being ready to receive it. No one is ready for a thing until they believe they can acquire it. The state of mind must be believed and be a mere hope or wish. Open mindedness is essential to belief. Closed minds will not inspire faith, courage or belief. No more effort is required to aim high in life, to demand abundance and prosperity.”

Power Statement No.3

“All achievement, no matter what maybe it’s nature or it’s purpose, must begin with an intense burning desire for something definite. Through some strange and powerful principle of mental chemistry which she has never divulged, nature raps up in the impulse of strong desire that ‘something’ which recognizes no such word as impossible and accepts no such reality as failure. Failure is never an option”

Power Statement No.4

“Lack of persistence is the weakness common to the majority of people. It is a weakness which maybe overcomes by effort. The ease with which lack of persistence can be conquered will depend entirely upon the intensity of ones desire. The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desires bring weak results. Just as small amount of fire makes small amount of heat, if you find yourself lacking in persistence, this weakness can be remedied by building a stronger fire under your desire.”

Power Statement No.5

There are 4 steps that lead to the habit of persistence.

1. A definite purpose backed by a burning desire for its fulfillment.
2. A definite plan, expressed in continuous action.
3. A mind closed tightly against all negative and discouraging influences, including negative suggestions of relatives, friends and acquaintances.
4. A friendly alliance with one or more persons who will encourage one to follow through with both plan and purpose.

Think about them. Write them down if necessary. Read them over and over again. Execute them… Life will change directions.

There is a lot more to learn from Bob Proctor and if that is what you want to do you can click on the link below.

http://store.sixminutestosuccess.com/?aid=592196

There’s nothing stopping the 90% to be in the 10% except their attitude. Which side do you want to be on?