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Cool Shades for STINK Eyes

Today is a continuation of yesterday’s blog post that was taken from my new book, STINKIN’ THINKIN’ STINKS!  There will be another post tomorrow so be sure to come back!

STINKIN’ Exercise:  Cool Shades For STINK Eyes

Cool shades for STINK eyes will help you see more clearly throughout your day.  They will build your awareness of how you look at things while developing skills to help you manage a bad case of the STINK eye.

To start your cool shades exercise, you will need the following products:

  • seven 3 x 5 index cards (or pieces of paper cut to 3 x 5 size)
  • a pencil or pen
  • a pair of sunglasses
  • seven straight days to do the short exercise (15 minutes each day)

Now, let’s get started.  The exercises below are short but will take seven days.  You can do that, right?

Day 1: Get one index card and a pen or pencil and start looking around.  Your job is to notice all the things that you do not like for 15 minutes.  Don’t apply any judgment to what you notice, just become aware of the things you don’t like or that cause you to feel badly.  Each time you see something that you don’t like or that makes you feel bad or sad, write it down using just one word.  For example, if you see a dirty room, write “room.” If you see someone you don’t like, write his or her first name.  If you see a mean dog, write “dog.”  Use the front and back of the card if you need the space.

 Ideas for how and when to do your exercise

  • walk around your house
  • go for a walk
  • ride in a car
  • go to a sporting event
  • on your way to school
  • between recesses
  • on your way home

More to be posted tomorrow and the rest of the week.  Comeback soon and hey, why not share this on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn?  Thank you!

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How to Avoid Catching the STINK Eye

Below is an exerpt from my new book, STINKIN’ THINKIN’ STINKS!  It is the first portion of Chapter 5 and tomorrow, I will post the next section that includes the exercise, Cool Shades for STINK Eyes.  Enjoy!

“As a man is, so he sees.  As the eye is formed, such are its powers.” William Blake (Mystic, Poet, Painter, and Engraver, 1757–1827)

STINKIN’ THINKIN’ Translation: If you look for the STINK in things, you’ll see a bunch of STINKIN’ things. And if you look for the SA-WEET in things, you’ll see a bunch of SWEET things.

 

Have you ever heard the phrase “STINK eye?”  The dictionary definition of “STINK eye” is as follows: a facial expression of distrust, disdain, or disapproval; also called “hairy eyeball.”  Do you see things from a STINK eye’s point of view?

 Here’s a slightly different meaning to consider.  In this chapter, when you see “STINK eyes,” it will refer to how you see something and, without thinking, turn it into something negative.  This means that you can see something perfectly harmless but with your STINK eye, you give it a negative meaning.  For example, you walk outside and you see two of your best friends walking past your house.  Your STINK eye makes you squint just a little and puts your emotions on alert, creating a very negative attitude as they walk past.  You immediately think they are trying to leave you out.  You instantly feel angry, sad, and lonely.  The crazy thing about this is that you do this in less than a few seconds, without even being aware of it.  You find out later that they are planning a surprise birthday party for you and trying to keep it a secret.  All that STINKIN’ THINKIN’ was just a waste of time and energy.  Wow!  That’s a whole lot of useless STINK in a very short time!

 If you want to have a positive outlook on life, 

you have to get the STINK eye out.

 One way to get it out is to use some “STINKIN’ eye drops.”  You can’t buy them in a store, and they don’t come in a liquid form.  These drops help you become aware that you’re developing a STINK eye, and then they wash the STINK eye away so you can see clearly.

 Too many people tend to look for the bad in everything before the good.  Some even do this consciously, on purpose.  They want to see things from the worst possible point of view so that they can be prepared just in case it comes true.  Well, if you use that strategy, more than likely you will experience the worst case scenario much more often than someone who gets their STINK eye out!

 Dr. Wayne Dyer uses a very effective saying that will help you with a STINK eye.  He says, 

“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

That might sound like a play on words, but what it really does is provide a quick solution to STINK eye.  When you start becoming aware of your STINK eye, you’ll stop looking for bad and start looking for the beauty and good in all things.  And you’ll find that having a more positive outlook on life gives you a lot more energy.

 Look at a mirror on the side of a car. Do you see the words “objects are closer than they appear”?  While that may seem like a dirty trick at first, those words make you aware that what you see in the mirror isn’t necessarily accurate; you need to turn your head and look around the car for yourself. You could say the same about STINK eyes because, if you aren’t aware of how they can distort things, you may not stop to consider what’s really around you.  What your STINK eye tells you is bad may actually be harmless or even good.  When you get your STINK eye out, you’ll start to see the good in almost everything you experience.  There’s an old saying about making lemonade from lemons.  Think of the negative things that happen as lemons, as something that can sour your life.  It’s up to you to decide whether you want to focus on the sour or take advantage of the lemons and make lemonade.  It’s the same with negative events.  For example, when you see an accident, do you notice just the horror of the accident, or do you notice how many people are helping the victims and the compassion they are showing?  The point of view you assume in every situation you face is up to you.

 STINK eyes are very, very contagious.

 They spread like wildfire if they aren’t contained.  For your safety and for everyone around you, there’s a STINKIN’ COOL exercise to keep you avoid catching the STINK eye from someone else.  Consider it a vaccination for your sight.  The solution is called the “Cool Shades For STINK Eyes.”  This exercise can help you see the positive in all situations.  Here’s to your STINK-Free sight.

More to come in tomorrow’s blog post!  Please leave a comment if you like what you “see” here! 🙂

Daily Positive Points

Today’s Message

Anger and resentment must be released.  The longer we hold keep them as our friend, the more damage it does to us and others nearby.  Today, think of at least one person you are angry with or even resent, and say, “I let go of my negative feelings toward you, (name). I forgive you and I forgive myself for having to forgive you.”

Today’s Quote

“Hanging on to resentment is letting someone you despise live rent-free in your head.”  ~Ester Lederer

Positive Points

Hey dudes, how’s it going?  Sweetie here.  I have been crazy busy lately and checked out a bit from the blog after my first post.  I am working on some pretty cool stuff and it will be coming soon.  I got an email from Bill this morning and thought I would share it with you.

Today’s Message
Courage will set you free.  Fear will bind you in chains.  I know that it might be a little scary, but pick one thing that brings you fear and face it.  You will be amazed how heavy fear can be and how much lighter and happier you feel when you face it head on.  Seriously, pick one thing right now.  Take a deep breath and get after it!

Today’s Quote
“Courage does not mean the absence of fear, but the ability not to let yourself be paralyzed by that fear.”  Paulo Coelho

You can also click here to see the full message with all the super cool graphics.  Pretty cool, huh?

Daily Positive Points

Today’s Message
Everything is energy.  Everything.  Sometimes we need to remove ourselves from negative people who do not support us.  It doesn’t mean that we don’t love them.  It just means that we no longer accept their negative energy in our lives.  Say no and send love to them.

Today’s Quote
“One must separate from anything that forces one to repeat No again and again.” Friedrich Nietzsche

Daily Positive Points

Today’s Message
Forgiveness is one of the keys to happiness. I say forgive and live rather than use the diseased syringe of revenge.

Today’s Quote
“An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” Mohandas Gandhi

Emotions – Why?

I was thinking today about why we have emotions and what purpose they could possibly serve us.  Why would feeling angry, depressed, or fearful be helpful to us?  It seems that we are often taught not to experience these or at least supress them.  The reasons we have emotions are quite simple.  They act as a trigger to let us know we need to do something else.  As an example, if you are feeling fear about an upcoming speech you will be delivering,  fear serves a purpose for you to get yourself prepared.  But at some point, when you have prepared all that you can possibly prepare, fear serves another purpose to let you know that you need to change your perception about the event.  Now you can visualize an amazing speech with everyone giving you a standing ovation.  Soak it in.  Feels nice doesn’t it?  When you do this your state will automatically change which is one of the goals of the emotions anyway.

When faced with a negative emotion, use it as a trigger to do two things.  1) Change your belief about the situation and/or 2) Change your perception about it.  In the speech example above, it would work something like this.  My current state is fearful because I am afraid I will fail and be laughed off the stage.  I change my belief about it by preparing for the speech ahead of time and rehearse it over and over again until I feel confident.  By feeling confident, I changed my state from a negative emotion (fear) to a positive one (confident). 

Peace and gratitude,
Bill

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Positive Pathways February 2011

February’s Positive Pathways Newsletter has just been released!  It focused on Prevent Bullying and featured the incredible bullying expert Annie Fox. Checkout the online version by clicking here now or for future ones you can get it emailed directly to your inbox by joining our list link at the top of the page. 

Peace and gratitude,
Bill

Still Bill

I watched an excellent documentary last night called, Still Bill.  It was about the life and times of singer Bill Withers.  He said something in the film that caught my attention.  Here it is:  “It’s okay to head out for wonderful.  But on your way to wonderful your going to have to pass through alright.  When you get to alright, take a good look around and get used to it.”

After hearing that it got me thinking.  I believe a lot of the people today want instant gratification.  They want all the glory but are not willing to do what it takes to achieve the success.  There are no shortcuts to success; however, there are ways to achieve your goals faster.  It is a simple process.  Think positive thoughts, visualize what you want, use a positive vocabulary, and act on your intuition.

With peace and gratitude,
Bill

Positive Pathways Newsletter – Topic: Bullying

I am still working on my next Positive Pathways newsletter.  I am hopeful to get it out this week or next week for sure.  It is TOTALLY FREE.  All you have to do is sign-up by going to any page on idontstink.com and click on the “Join Our Email List” banner at the top of the page.  All I need is your name and email address.  Then you can sign up for the Positive Pathways list or the several others I offer.  It’s that easy!  PLUS, when you sign up, you will get some pretty cool FREE gifts.  Cha-Ching!!

Love and gratitude,
Bill