Why I’m Grateful

Many of you live in countries that don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. Having a special day to give thanks isn’t necessary to do it, but many of us need a date to slow down and acknowledge all our blessings. I post gratitude on my Conscious Gratitude Yahoo list almost every day. It makes me think about things I’m grateful for, even if life isn’t going as well as I’d like.

Find a day and be conscious all day long of your blessings.

Recognizing all the things you have going for you helps you keep going when not everything goes your way. Showing gratitude for what you have stimulates the Law of Attraction to bring you more. And it certainly makes you feel a lot better than complaining. ☺

While I post my blessings each day, I shall express some of them now. I am VERY grateful:

* I took off the whole 4-day weekend, even though I didn’t post on this blog.
* I have excellent health.
* I have a terrific family.
* I have a career that stokes my passion and stimulates me daily.
* I get to run in Central Park several days a week.
* I have spacious rent stabilized apartment in midtown Manhattan that's super comfortable and convenient, with friendly people working in the building.
* I get to share my blog with so many people from around the world.
* I wake up happy every day.

Recognize your own blessings and focus on them for a while. It's the best way to attract more. This is a short post today since I'm grateful to take time off. ☺

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Law of Attraction in Action: Luck

I'm a bit late this week due to busy but good things going one. This is my fifteenth post in my Monday series on the Law of Attraction, inspired by watching Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life, the movie, expanded version. You CAN use your power to attract all that you need. I do it every day!

Last week a friend shared how it seems that every time she allows herself to feel happy, something happens to counteract that. Now she expects to have her happiness messed up! I completely related, because this has happened to me over and over. And I frequently hear this scenario from others:

Things are going well. You relax in the joy of having life go your way. Then whoosh! The rush quickly fades as someone changes his mind, or a company goes out of business or something weird happens and the good you thought you had falls apart. Then something else happens to counter what you felt joy about. Then something else gets in the way of your happy experiences, until it feels like a pattern you can’t break.

Eventually, you expect something bad to interfere with what makes you happy.

Has this happened to you? This is the Law of Attraction working against your highest good. When you put out expectations that something will dampen your joy, your joy gets dampened by whatever you attract to fulfill that belief. This is an especially hard pattern to break if you’re conditioned to wait for joyful things to fall apart. My friend said that sometimes she’s almost afraid to be happy. I used to have fabulous opportunities, get excited initially, but then wait for them to fall through for some bizarre reason. And they usually did!

Expecting good situations to fall through tells the Universe that you don’t expect the good opportunity to materialize. So they don’t!

Using the Law of Attraction takes practice. It’s not just going through the motions of expecting goodies. If your inner thoughts are doubtful, the results will be too. Having happy experiences fall through can wound your soul, and your faith, if it seems to happen regularly. It’s very common for people to attract a crash and burn after good things seemed to be coming, and then blame bad luck. Once you get convinced you have a lot of, it becomes the excuse for negatives happening. But I don’t believe in bad luck, or good luck.

The *luck* you get corresponds to the message you send to the Universe and how the Law of Attraction brings it back to you.

My biggest spiritual milestone was getting over the hump of expecting something to go wrong when I was excited about a good thing about to happen or subconsciously assuming that something would sabotage the good things that seemed imminent or that I wanted. I felt like I only attracted *bad luck* for years and years and sometimes still have to catch myself since I haven't fully broken this pattern. No matter what I did, things fell through. While I knew my thoughts did it, I couldn’t stop the cycle of using the Law of Attraction to my detriment. I did every spiritual thing I could think of but felt like I was blocked.

For many years, just as I got excited about something going to happen, it fell through. So I came to expect it.

Years ago when I had my record label, I had so many deals fall through for unlikely reasons that I assumed I was jinxed. My lawyer at the time said she’d never seen anything like it. Done deals didn’t happen, over and over. She said I had the worst luck she’d ever seen. I’d get jazzed about an opportunity that seemed definite. But after the initial rush, I’d get nervous wondering if it would go wrong. I felt underlying stress from it but couldn’t stop. My excitement was tempered by expecting disappointment. And my expectations were always rewarded with disappointment.

The more disappointments you experience, the more you expect disappointment in the future. The Law of Attraction picks up on that and makes you think you have bad luck. Then you attract more *bad luck* and the cycle continues as you expect it to continue to happen. I continued having *bad luck* for many years. I accepted that I attracted it but didn’t know what to do. Until I got tired of it happening and made a more conscious effort to send the Law of Attraction a different message.

What you see as *bad luck* is the Law of Attraction responding to negative thoughts. You create it; you have the POWER to change it!

I began by asking God for strength to get past the negative feelings that blocked some of my happiness and interfered with some really good stuff. I got it! With a strong determination to stop sabotaging my joy, it slowly it got easier. I used the Law of Attraction to change my old habits of negative expectations. Now when the old doubts come up when something big is approaching, I can turn it around by changing my thoughts.

When old demons start to make you expect a negative outcome:


* Be very conscious of your thoughts. REALLY pay attention and watch for doubt in the way you view a situation so you can take action to change it.

* Do affirmations to drown out negative thoughts. It’s hard to think 2 thoughts at a time so force the positive ones to stop those that sabotage getting what you want. “I’m excited about_____ and expect it to happen!” Make the effort to get yourself excited so you put that energy out!

* Remind yourself why you deserve it. As a DoorMat, I didn’t truly feel deserving. I had to be convinced. Write down all the reasons and read them aloud. Try saying them in a mirror. ☺ Give yourself a pep talk while you’re there!

* Ask God to help you avoid those thoughts. It’s hard to change negative habits of expecting things to fall through. Acknowledge it to God and ask for support in changing that habit. Putting out the intention to break the habit brings you the support to do so. This was a HUGE help for me.

* Write down your fears and then burn them. What could hurt your outcome? How could the situation go wrong. As you burn your list, affirm, “I expect positives from now on!”

* When you’re alone, shout that you intend to get the good things that are coming your way. I’d scream it all day long when I was first breaking the pattern. It helped me feel more in control and sent a strong message that the Law of Attraction returned to me with better outcomes.

* Release the situation into God’s hands. I mean really put it into God’s hands, ask for what’s best for your highest good and trust you’ll attract what you should.

Just last week the owner of the club that offered to make me a book release party told me the club is moving much further downtown. It's not the location I want. Something like this shouldn't be out of the way. I began to go to that dark place of "why me?" "Why do things that matter so much always screw up?" But this time I caught myself and decided that it just meant there was a better place for my party and now I'm scouting one instead of sobbing, “why do things never work out well for me?” I'm revved instead of feeling like a victim.

Now I know if something doesn’t work out, something better is coming. And I attract it with that mindset.

It's really hard to get past it but if you tell God that you hate expecting to have something interfere with your positive plans and would appreciate support in getting past it, that will be supported. You DESERVE to enjoy consistent happiness! ☺ Take it by taking control of your thoughts and attract your own good luck.

Law of Attraction in Action Series
Law of Attraction in Action: Concrete Use of This Power
Law of Attraction in Action: Service People
Law of Attraction in Action: Kindness
Law of Attraction in Action: Easing Your Way to Joy
Law of Attraction in Action: Smiling in Your Mirror of Other People
Law of Attraction in Action: Age
Law of Attraction in Action: Who Are You?
Law of Attraction in Action: Revenge
Law of Attraction in Action: Too Blessed to Be Stressed
Law of Attraction in Action: Recovering Your Health
Law of Attraction in Action: Respect
Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 1
Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 2
Law of Attraction in Action: Clear Intentions

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

Why I Don’t Quit

People often say they envy my career. I admit that I love, I mean LOVE what I do. Writing and speaking is purely passion driven. Knowing that what I do helps so many people is especially rewarding. People see it as glamorous and fun, especially since I wear two distinctive hats with a few smaller caps interspersed. Writing as a music journalist gets me invited to parties and I interview very interesting people for my books. For one, I had the pleasure of doing a phone interview with country singer Clint Black. He is a doll and it was fun hearing his kids playing in the background. ☺

My hats switch often. Each time the phone rings, I never know what it might bring. Will it be a musician with a question? Someone calling to get help from me to write their book? Oprah’s producer for a return appearance? An editor? So I guess I understand why most people think I live an exciting life. It is a lovely existence on many levels. But the most important one is that I get to do what I want, how I want, in the way I want—most of the time. Passion is what drives the direction!

I see me as living as everyone should—by your passions and faith. Yet with all the wonderful things I love about my career, I doubt most people could live the way I do.

Pursing a freelance creative career can be erratic. There can be long periods of 14-hour days with no let up, rejection, waiting to see what publisher, if any, will sign my next book, then waiting a ridiculously long time for the contract and ultimately an advance check. Then there are the dry spells when nothing percolates an income and my rent is still due. There’s a lot of uncertainty in being a freelancer. It can give a person serious stress, worrying about having enough work to make enough money to pay bills and live a comfortable lifestyle. I’ve challenged people about whether they could hang in like I do when uncertainty goes on for a while.

Yet faith keeps me strong, relaxed and confident that it will all work out.

I haven’t met many people who have the level of faith I do. I always believe that everything will work out and rarely get stressed. During dry spells, I put it out that I’m expecting income earning situations and unusually large royalty checks for my books. I’ve even turned down work for good money when I had nothing coming in because it wasn’t something I wanted to do. Then I say, ”Close one door and another one opens” instead of thinking “Oh my goodness! What have I done?” And ya know what? Something better ALWAYS materializes! ALWAYS!

Strong faith keeps us tough enough to go the distance. Without mine, I’d still be teaching, complaining about boredom and still have at least one foot still in DoorMatville. Instead, I have the best career I can ask for! ☺

People tend to quit when the going gets rough. School gets too hard and she drops out or switches to a less stimulating major that’s easier. A married couple that still loves each other gets divorced because it’s too hard to try to work out the wrinkles. He gives up his dream of having a business and gets a job to have security. The band breaks up because it’s too hard or takes too long to develop the fan base needed to get a career going. She gives up trying to get to the next level of weight lifting because it’s too hard and taking too long. He stops trying to get an agent for his screenplay since he’s tired of the draft from doors shutting.

Think before you stop pursuing something you want. When you stop, the dream is over!
My career isn’t a party. It’s not all fun and games. I have to seriously believe in my ability to keep going. Luckily, I do! It took a while to find my first literary agent. And even a longer to get my first book deal. The book was rejected by everyone, according to that agent. But I wanted to write The Real Deal: How to get Signed to a Record Label and knew musicians needed the info in it. So I put it out that I expected a deal and continued writing and speaking like I already had one. My agent didn’t get me my deal with Billboard. My persistence led me to meet the senior editor who signed me!

Since then I’ve been through several agents. None of my personal growth books have sold easily. But they did sell. All eventually good deals! But I had to stay in the game for that to happen.

Lance Armstrong said, "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever."

If I hadn’t hung in for The Real Deal, I might never have gotten any book deals since I’d have probably quit. I had to leave my agent when she couldn’t sell my second book, yet I found another one who believed in it and got me a really good deal for it. I might still be an unhappy schoolteacher if I hadn’t persevered. As Armstrong said, quitting is forever. I don’t want to lose my dreams and ditch my goals forever. Once you quit, it’s hard to go back.

The tough stuff really is temporary, if you keep going. Decide how badly you want whatever you’re going after. If you’re thinking about quitting on your dream, ask yourself:

* Is this something I’m passionate about?
* What will I lose by persevering?
* What will I lose by quitting?
* Will I be happier if I give up my dream?
* How bad is what I’m doing and what negative effect does it have on me?
* Can I handle it for a while longer?
* How will I feel if I give up my dream?

Sometimes when you’re caught in the moment, it’s harder to think rationally about whether or not you should stay in the game. Step back from it. Ask those questions. Then decide if it’s worth it to quit or if it’s worth it to continue. Sometimes you might not want a goal badly enough, and that’s OK. But if you do, buckle down and hang in. It may take a while but if this former DoorMat could reinvent herself so amazingly, you can too! Tap into your spiritual support, because it’s there waiting for you. Then enjoy the ride!

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

Law of Attraction in Action: Clear Intentions

This is my fourteenth post in my Monday series on the Law of Attraction, inspired by watching Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life, the movie, expanded version. I feel very strongly about helping you understand how to take control of the power you have and run with it. I get so many goodies since learning how to mobilize the Law of Attraction in my favor. I am so mad for the new MacBook Pro I got last week! That wouldn’t have happened without the Law of Attraction’s support.

When I talk about using the Law of Attraction, I emphasize being clear in your intentions. Today I want to elaborate on what that means. There are so many catchwords in today’s inspirations. It took me a while to understand how to use the concepts of the Law of Attraction for my highest good. Now I do!

The Law of Attraction takes your intentions literally. It doesn’t interpret to figure out what you really want. So be as clear as possible in how you word your intentions.

Just yesterday I got an email that a musician sent to his mailing list. I know he’s very spiritual and was surprised that his message sounded negative. A radio station that had supported him had new management, and they’d stopped playing his music. He expressed concern that something he’d already taped for them wouldn’t air. If it did, it could greatly help his career. He ended by asking everyone to email the station to ask them to play his music. He sounded worried.

I wrote back suggesting he be more careful about how he phrased those kind of messages. He sounded like he didn’t expect to get the station’s support anymore, which the Law of Attraction would support. He was surprised that it had come across that way, since he did still feel faithful. I know him and believe he feels that way. But the Universe doesn’t look beyond the literal message. The Law of Attraction brings you what you put out.

Your choice of words can determine what you receive.

As a writer, I’m very conscious about how they can make a big difference in how your message is perceived. Clear intentions are specific and direct. Most people don’t have them. It takes thought and care to create the most powerful mindset to attract what you want. You might think you’re being clear, and then wonder why you got something else.

“I will” is more definite than “I hope to.” The first attracts what you will do. The second keeps you hopeful.

Be clear about what you want. Don’t just pray for a job—be specific about how you’d intend to use your skills. Or write down details of what kind of work would make you happy. If you’re not sure exactly what you want, whether it’s a job, romantic partner, new location, etc., ask for what’s best for your highest good. Often the hardest part of getting what you want is figuring out what exactly that is. Ask for help with that too! Pay attention to how your thoughts affect what you receive. It’s important to hone your desires and add as many details as you can.

Write down your intention and see if you’ve made yourself very clear.

A perfect example of the importance of being specific is a couple I know named Kevin and Kimberly. Kimberly moved from Rochester, NY to New York City. In her prayers, her intention was to marry a man from Rochester. When she met Kevin in church, they knew they were meant to be together. Kimberly laughed when she said she believes her Lord has a sense of humor. She got what she asked for—Kevin was from Rochester. But she wasn’t specific – he was from Rochester, MN! Seventeen years later she’s glad she left that part to God. They have a wonderful marriage and kids so it all worked out.

If you’d prefer to get EXACTLY what you want, express it ALL!

* If you don’t want the job offer you want come to you from a city you absolutely don’t want to live in, intend to get the job where you want to live.

* If you don’t want to meet a romantic partner who drinks too much, doesn’t want kids when you do, works the opposite hours as you, or any other incompatibility that matters to you, spell out what you do want.

* If you don’t want to get an opportunity that isn’t conducive to your schedule, or to find the perfect apartment at a rent you can’t afford or to get a ton of publicity but it’s bad, pay attention to what you ask for and how.

If you’re not attracting what you want, monitor your thoughts and tailor your words to direct the Law of Attraction to exactly what you want. That gives you the best chance of receiving it. Put it out clearly and expect to see results. The power is in YOUR hands, and in YOUR words!

Law of Attraction in Action Series
Law of Attraction in Action: Concrete Use of This Power
Law of Attraction in Action: Service People
Law of Attraction in Action: Kindness
Law of Attraction in Action: Easing Your Way to Joy
Law of Attraction in Action: Smiling in Your Mirror of Other People
Law of Attraction in Action: Age
Law of Attraction in Action: Who Are You?
Law of Attraction in Action: Revenge
Law of Attraction in Action: Too Blessed to Be Stressed
Law of Attraction in Action: Recovering Your Health
Law of Attraction in Action: Respect
Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 1
Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 2

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

I Got a New MacBook Pro Laptop from Apple--FREE!

I’m excited. In my Law of Attraction in Action: Service People post at the end of August, I talked about how being considerate to customer service people attracts a lot better service and other good things. Leo Durocher said, 'Nice guys finish last!' When you believe that, you probably will finish last by being nice. But this recovering DoorMat knows that being a healthy kind of nice fuels the Law of Attraction’s ability to bring you more of what you want.

A combo of considerate friendly communication and a firm intention to get resolution for a problem brings the best possible service.

In the post I just mentioned, I discussed how I had problems with my Apple iBook G4 laptop in varying degrees for over a year. I’d bring it into the genius bar for help and get a small temporary fix. The problem was electrical. Some people suggested I needed a new logic board but the tech guys never thought so. It often buzzed so loud that it made me stressed. I was exasperated by it and my warrantee was about to expire.

My frustration was fired up. Friends told me to make a fuss. I knew it would be easy to let loose with my pent up anger on a tech or customer service person. I’d lost many workdays bringing in the computer, only to have it come back with the same problem in a week or two. But I’ve learned that taking your anger out on a customer service person serves no purpose other than a temporary release of anger while you piss them off. Instead, I nicely called customer service and firmly insisted on speaking to a supervisor.

I didn’t demand it in a hostile way. But I resolutely refused to speak to the tech person and got put through to a Product Specialist.

I was friendly and he listened carefully. When I told him all the symptoms he agreed that my logic board was probably causing the problem. If I’d yelled and screamed about all my inconveniences and how annoying it was, I’d have wasted time in getting it fixed, and, put the Product Specialist into a bad mood. Venting is what we often do when a situation gets us angry.

But, I knew the Product Specialist didn’t cause my problem and I needed his help, so why alienate him??? Yet so many people do.

Instead, we had a nice conversation. He made many notes on my file and I got a new logic board after 9 days of more problems. Five days later the computer crashed and the logic board needed to be replaced again. Again I kept my cool and was courteous to my Product Specialist, who said if anything else happened, he’d give me a new computer. I wrote about that in my blog post. People asked if I believed him. I did. Most were skeptical. Would Apple really give me a brand new laptop?

The promise was put to the test last week when my adapter failed.

The computer wouldn’t charge. I called and got Ty, another Product Specialist. He sent me another adapter but that didn’t work either. He offered one more part. As I waited for it to arrive, other funny things began to go wrong. I’d had it! So I called and said I want the new computer. I’d had a laptop that hadn’t worked consistently well for over a year and was done.

Did I get an argument? Did Ty try to placate me in other ways? NOPE! He just took my address and this week a brand new MacBook Pro arrived.

I LOVE this laptop! It's got a sleek design and has lots of great software. And it’s mine! For free! On Saturday I have an appointment with the Apple store to have all my data transferred from the old laptop to the new. Then I send the old one back to them using the prepaid label they gave me. Everyone involved in the process has been as nice as could be. I put out a nice attitude and it returned to me! ☺

Apple still rocks in my book! I’m such a devout Mac-a-holic and continue to be. I’m so delighted with the great customer service I got. They really do stand by their products and try to give help, at least when you treat the person nicely. I do bet that had I had a conversation with my growl on, it might not have been such a pleasant experience. Now I have an advocate for the future.

Next time you have a service problem, calm down, force a smile, and expect satisfaction.

If the first person you reach doesn’t give you resolution, go higher, and higher until you get someone who can help you. Be friendly. You can be nice while still being firm and letting the person know you expect good service. Create an advocate like I did, instead of being a big ol’ pain in the butt that the person wants to get rid of fast. I chat with all my advocates. Some even buy my books and read this blog. ☺

Next time you need customer service, force a smile, calm down, and speak to the person the way you’d prefer to be spoken to. Courtesy costs nothing but can be priceless for what it can attract. Nice people truly CAN finish first! I sure do.

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

Thanks to Our Veterans!--Operation Gratitude

Today is Veteran’s Day, when we honor the men and women, past and present, who gave their time, service and sometimes their lives to protect our country. While I don’t agree with why we went to war in Iraq, I completely, with all my heart, support our brave troops. My dad was a very proud Lt. Colonel in the army. When he went back to civilian life, he remained in the army reserves, putting in time each year until he retired. When he passed away, he was buried in full uniform and had a military funeral.

So I’m happy to be able to do something in honor of Veteran’s Day. This post is a call for support for our troops. I’ve been a fan of Operation Gratitude for a few years. They send care packages to our troops. Carolyn Blashek, who orchestrates this wonderful organization, sent out a call for help today. I told her that I’d reprint some of it here. She also asked for people to write letters to the troops. They have a Letter Writing Contest. Our troops get lonely and letters help too!

Please forward this link to anyone who might care about helping our troops. If you have a church that might want to get involved, refer them to the Operation Gratitude website. If anyone wants the whole letter, just ask and I'll forward it. So in honor of our veterans, here’s a condensed version of what Carolyn sent:

Dear Friends of Operation Gratitude,
Today, an absolutely amazing individual sent me a follow-up to a story I shared with you last year. His letter speaks far more profoundly than anything I could write. On September 26, 2007 he wrote:

"HI Carolyn, Our unit will be leaving Iraq in a few weeks. I just wanted to thank you for your support of all soldiers over here. Your care packages helped lift morale here greatly and you should know you helped save the life of a young soldier.

We had a soldier who never got mail, care packages, or anything. He did not have much family and as it turns out was planning on committing suicide on Christmas, but because that soldier received your care package it was like a Christmas gift. It made the soldier change his mind. The soldier now writes letters and emails to folks whose names were in the box and the soldier's attitude and outlook on life has really improved. This is not a story--it is true.

We found out when the soldier finally opened up and talked to the Chain of Command about what was going thru his mind and got help for his depression. Your care package made a major difference in a human life. Because of your organization, one less family received terrible news at Christmas time. This has been my third deployment here and I remember how on my first deployment, I almost never got mail and then received a care package from your group. It made me feel much better about being separated from my loved ones.” V/R, SFC J.S.

Today, he simply wanted to send me a brief update and ask again if there is anything he could do to help:

Hello Carolyn, It has been quite a while but I thought I would update you on the soldier whose life was saved by an Operation Gratitude care package. His work attitude and leadership skills have so improved that he has since been promoted to Sergeant and is currently a squad leader and "one of the best" in the platoon he is assigned to, I am told by his platoon sergeant. He has a steady girlfriend and just recently re-enlisted. If you had taken this soldier over a year ago and put him next to the soldier he has become you would swear it was two different people. And it was all due to a care package sent to a soldier by good people back in the states that he had never met before.

Please let everybody there know. As for me, I am leaving the service. Unfortunately, I had a run in with an IED that has ended my military career and left me pretty banged and burned up. I have been in recovery and had a few reconstructive surgeries over the last months. I only have three days left in service. Please continue helping those still over there and going over there. I know we are old news and a lot of folks back home are tired of the news there, but it is important that we not forget those who still serve. We have to remember and support them "until everyone comes home."

Especially on this Veteran's Day, now is the time to express our appreciation to the men and women of our Military who stand strong and stand guard to ensure our freedoms here at home and to promote the ideals of democracy around the world. Now is the time that you, too, can be part of their effort by supporting them on the front lines:

"Thank you so much for your care packages and the inspiring words of support, faith, and encouragement you so graciously and lovingly put together and sent to our team in Afghanistan. It really does make a difference to us over here. As service members, we are called upon to leave behind family, friends, and the comfort of our homes to support our nation. Because we have so much, we also will sacrifice to give to those less fortunate. Some mistakenly believe people serve in the military because we love war; what they don't realize is most of us serve because we love and cherish liberty and freedom and want everyone in the world to enjoy the same as we have in America. God bless you.” Sergeant C.S. and the whole ANA COMM ETT (Afghan National Army Communications Embedded Training Team)

Operation Gratitude is facing its most challenging year since its inception in 2003. Right now, 75% of the 70,000 Care Packages we will assemble for our troops will not reach them without your help. While our Corporate Product Donors have generously provided all the items we need for our care packages, our financial donations have dwindled to a trickle. Yet, our shipping expenses are higher than ever before at $9.30 for postage alone and more than $10 per package overall.

All donated funds are used for production and shipping expenses. We do not expend funds on overhead, fundraising campaigns, direct mail or advertising. We take no salaries. Every dollar donated directly supports our troops. Operation Gratitude sends a care package personally addressed to every deployed service member whose name we receive. We send 100,000--120,000 packages per year, which requires a cash budget of $1.2 Million/year. This Holiday Drive, we will assemble 70,000 care packages. Right now, we only have the funds to ship one-quarter of them.

"We had a tip from an Iraqi child that we gave one of your beanie babies to, who let us know that bad people were making bombs in his neighborhood. The information he gave us led to a major terrorist cell being captured and countless lives being saved. You may not realize this, but we utilize everything you send--we do not waste a thing. Thanks again for what you do.” Captain D.A. US Air Force"

Nothing would be sadder than to have more than 50,000 fabulously full and completed care packages still sitting in our warehouse on Christmas Day. Fifty thousand Care Packages lovingly assembled by our dedicated volunteers that could not be shipped to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan solely because we did not have the funds for postage. We need your help to raise $500,000.00 this month to ship the care packages in time for the Holidays.

All donations to Operation Gratitude are tax deductible. Donations can be made by Credit Card through the Operation Gratitude website or by check payable to Operation Gratitude and mailed to:
Operation Gratitude
16444 Refugio Road
Encino, CA 91436

Today I urge you to partner with us once again to serve the courageous members of the United States Military, who risk life and limb to serve us. Your tax-deductible contribution during the Holidays will allow us to put smiles on the faces of our bravest Americans during a very difficult time away from home and loved ones. They and we will be forever grateful.

Thank you!
Carolyn Blashek
Operation Gratitude

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 2

This is my thirteenth post in my Monday series on the Law of Attraction in Action, inspired by watching Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life, the movie, expanded version. You can find the other posts at the end of this article.

I want to talk more about using the Law of Attraction to attract miracles to you. Last week, my post, Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 1, discussed the first phrase in the Prayer of Jabez by Bruce Wilkinson (Multnomah Publishers). The 4 part prayer says:

“Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain.”

I explained how the interpretation of “bless me indeed” is to ask for lots. The more you put out, the more you get back. God wants you to have miracles but you must be clear about exactly what you want. And ask for it. And affirm that you have it. And truly expect it. The more miracles you get, the easier it becomes to expect more. I know, because I’ve had so many and keep having them.

As you manifest miracles, also focus on doing what you can to help others as the second part of the prayer—“and enlarge my territory”—states.

Wilkinson explains that “enlarge my territory” means to find ways to do good things for other people. Using that part of the prayer is asking God how you can serve Him. How can you give back? How can you make someone’s life better? Giving of yourself to help others attracts a lot more goodies to you. I get so many blessings from people and try to help others whenever I can. Some of what comes back to me is truly miraculous!

What I get may not be from the same people I helped. The Law of Attraction isn’t an equal bartering system.

I’m kind to someone and someone else is kind to me. If someone I help then asks what they can do for me in return, I usually suggest passing on the kindness to someone in need. I’ll get mine when I need it. Whenever I need help with something, someone is there. All my websites have been built by people I didn’t know well yet who offered to do it for free! Kindness abounds in my world! People send me free products. I may never have to buy certain items I use regularly because I get so much free stuff. Just last weekend I went out for coffee and told the manager how much I love their hazelnut coffee. A few minutes later, he came back with 3 packages of it in a bag—because I’m a nice person he said!

After living in my DoorMat world of users and takers, I now create a loving world of kindness, generosity, and miracles. YOU can create a lovely world amidst the chaos of the bigger picture of our world—IF you CHOOSE to!

Be vigilant about how you can help people. If you’re concerned about offering to do something you may not be able to do, remember the third part of the prayer—“that Your hand would be with me.” You’ve probably heard it before but may not have quite believed it. If God brings something that you want to do but have doubts about—whether it’s volunteering to do a tough job, a big career opportunity, trying something you’ve never done before, etc.—He will be there for the outcome to support you.

The key is clearly asking for and expecting the help. Then let Law of Attraction do its work!

Fretting about what you need to do and expecting not to be able to do it sends a message of doubt. The Law of Attraction will support that doubt. Then you’ll be even more sure in the future that you won’t get support or can’t accomplish things. Counterproductive Alert! The Law of Attraction doesn’t dig into your psyche to see what you really want. It brings you back what you expect.

So EXPECT the support you need to get something done well when you take on something. God’s hand will be there with you!

When my book How to Please a Woman In & Out of Bed came out, a friend said, “You have to get on Howard Stern’s radio show.” Yes, I decided I did have to. I put it out as a serious intention. Told people, even on a TV interview, that I’d be on the show within 3 weeks. I was truly sure! When I told the publicist at my publisher my intention, she laughed, asked how I’d do it and then warned me not to get my hopes up as she’d never gotten one of her authors on. I laughed back and said I’d be the first.

Still, she was stunned to call me 3 weeks later to say the show had called to book me. I’d done nothing other than put out my intentions, and make sure the publicist sent a book to the producer.

I was fine until the night before the show. Friends advised me to listen to it beforehand to prepare myself for Howard’s nastiness and jabs. I replied that I didn’t need to, since I expected to be treated well! “Oh yeah, right. Howard Stern will be nice to you. Dream on!” The night before, as I went to sleep, I got nervous. It hit me that I’d be on Howard Stern! What if he was mean to me or tried to embarrass me? I picked up a spiritual book I read from often and opened to a random page. I know that it was no accident. I was meant to open to that spot.

It said that if God causes something to happen, He will be there for the effect too.

I knew where the message came from and fell asleep quickly and calmly. The show didn’t just go well. People asked if I’d hypnotized Howard since they’d never heard him be so nice to any other guest. He did get sleazy. After all, he’s Howard Stern. I rolled with his jokes. But he kept me on for 35 commercial-free minutes, gave my website several times, and kept saying that I made a lot of sense and people should buy my book. I knew all of this happened from EXPECTING to have a satisfying experience and The Law of Attraction fulfilled my expectation.

When you KNOW that you have God’s support, God KNOWS what you need and provides. My appearance on Howard Stern’s show was truly a miracle!

I read Prayer of Jabez just before 9/11. Right after my city was attacked, I knew I had to do something to help. I discovered that they needed many laptops to input the names of the missing people and try to track them. I sent out an email to everyone I knew asking for donated laptops. People forwarded it to others and I began hearing from heads of major corporations---IBM, Time Warner, Intel, and more---all wanting to help and not knowing how. I compiled a list of all the people and notified the 9/11 Fund about it. They asked me to keep it for when they needed it. Soon I became the go-to person for Ground Zero IT needs.

That Saturday, I heard from a VP at Time Warner. She’d been given my name as that go-to person and explained the National Guard needed walkie-talkies at Ground Zero. I explained I’m a writer and had limited contacts. She was Time Warner! But she insisted they needed me to get them. Okay I said. Since it was Saturday, none of the people on the list I’d compiled were available. I didn’t know what to do but kept trying. Then I heard from a head honcho at HBO who was volunteering with the National Guard. They desperately needed the walkie-talkies. What could I do?

I talked to God, saying the prayer and reminding Him that He’d gotten me into this and I now needed His hand in finding the walkie-talkies.

It was after 6PM on a Saturday. I had no one left to call. But all of a sudden I got out the Yellow Pages without thinking about it. I found stores that had walkie-talkies. The first one I called was closed. So I said the Prayer of Jabez, told God I was counting on Him and “randomly” called a second. They too were closed, BUT, there was a message and a phone number to call if this was related to 9/11. I called and the guy provided the walkie-talkies. Incidents like this happened more times as I continued to be asked for stuff to help at Ground Zero. They were nothing short of miracles!

Ask how you can serve and keep your eyes open for where you’re needed. You’ll get the help you need to get through, and helping others—when you can, not by sacrificing your own needs—will come back to you with miracles.

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!




Law of Attraction in Action Series
Law of Attraction in Action: Concrete Use of This Power
Law of Attraction in Action: Service People
Law of Attraction in Action: Kindness
Law of Attraction in Action: Easing Your Way to Joy
Law of Attraction in Action: Smiling in Your Mirror of Other People
Law of Attraction in Action: Age
Law of Attraction in Action: Who Are You?
Law of Attraction in Action: Revenge
Law of Attraction in Action: Too Blessed to Be Stressed
Law of Attraction in Action: Recovering Your Health
Law of Attraction in Action: Respect
Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 1

You’re Getting Older If You Smile When Construction Workers Whistle

Okay, I’m being somewhat facetious about the title of this post. But there's some truth in it! For most of my life I’ve hated walking down the streets of NYC and having to endure whistles and loud comments about me or my body. Construction workers, delivery guys on bikes, and occasionally some other guy had to yell something about a body part or two, or make a general “hey baby, looking good.”

I admit to having a curvy body. In proportion. Some call it an hourglass figure. I’ve always gotten some attention when I walk down the street.

Usually I hate it. “I want to get into your pants” has especially gotten my blood boiling. Being a walk-a-holic, I found comments and whistles distracting to my pleasure in hoofing it around NYC—an intrusion; a distraction from my exercise flow. I power walk and get into a rhythm that gets broken by these annoying men. So I got in the habit of walking with blinders on—looking straight ahead and ignoring any side affects.

I still see myself as hot and sexy yet getting older, especially in a city like NY, can make even a confident girl question if others still think she’s got it.

I recently had a birthday. While I feel great about me, it is a fact that as women age, they’re not considered as appealing as younger ones. I do still feel VERY appealing. Being confident, happy and whole makes me feel like I’m the best I’ve ever been. I run 3 or 4 times a week in Central Park and work out with weights with a personal trainer. I didn’t do either until 5 years ago. But, messages about older women losing their hotness can make a girl wonder if other people appreciate the attractive and sexy woman I know I am.

I’ve loosened my blinders as I walk down the street. Right after my birthday I sped past a group of guys in hard hats and heard the familiar catcalls I used to block out:

* “Oh baby!”
* “Nice!”
* “Shake it honey.”

And I smiled after I was out of their vision.

Since then, my blinders came off more. I noticed appreciative looks from men I pass. Even guys in cars at a light give me the up and down once-over and smile or comment. While I still don’t like men yelling to me on the street, my initial “Grrrr…” reaction to it has changed somewhat. I’ve noticed that lately I also smile when guys look me over with a smile. I'm more amused than annoyed about it these days. Hmmm.. am I going soft. NO!

It feels almost like a validation of my belief that people are SOOOOOO WRONG about women losing their appeal as they get older!

I do know I’ve still got it. Yet I also remember what I’ve heard said about older women and smile, because each whistle and catcall is an unbiased affirmation that people are wrong. I don’t consider myself a cougar. I'm just me! It feels good to have the kind of confidence I do, since so many women, even many younger than me, think they’re getting used up when they approach or reach 40.

These construction workers and other men on the street affirm that a woman who takes care of herself feels and looks good, and gets whistled at.

Age doesn’t determine when you’re over the hill. YOU determine that. I’m still the same woman I was at a younger age. Actually, I’m better, because my confidence is much stronger and I do more to keep my body healthy and fit. I was attractive when I was a DoorMat, but didn’t appreciate it then. I was also thinner. Yet I didn’t put much time into keeping myself looking as good as possible. Why bother? Back then, I saw myself unworthy of nice clothing or good skin care products.

Now I love looking my best because I love me! And as other women stress about getting older, I revel in getting better.

It’s fun to get the admiration I know I deserve, even as my age continues to increase. I won’t deny my body is changing and while I don’t look my age, I don’t look 20 anymore. But, that doesn’t take away from who I am today. A friend pointed out that the main reason I get attention when I walk down the street is because I walk straight, shoulders back, head held high and exude confidence.

Confidence transcends age. It’s attractive no matter how young or old you are!

We can rock at all ages! While men on the street will continue to annoy me with their unasked for attention, I’ll probably hang a smile in my annoyance. But unlike some women who feel like they’re losing it as they age and thinking, “Wow, I must be lucky that anyone whistles anymore,” I think, “Damn, I’m still good and it’s nice that others appreciate that too!”

So don’t place yourself over the hill. Stay on the bright side of it. You're still the same person you've been, even if the packaging is wearing out a little. Embrace who you are and do your best to be your best at the age you are now. Then wear the confidence it brings and see how much more attractive you get! ☺

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

Law of Attraction in Action: Miracles Part 1

This is my twelfth post in my Monday series on the Law of Attraction, inspired by watching Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life, the movie, expanded version.

I want to talk about using the Law of Attraction to attract miracles to you. I first learned about the power we have to manifest miracles when I read the Prayer of Jabez by Bruce Wilkinson (Multnomah Publishers). It’s a teeny book explaining the meaning of a 4 part prayer attributed to a little known man named Jabez. Yet his prayer is included in the bible. It’s simple but profound:

“Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain.”

When Jabez said that prayer, it was answered. I read the book’s 93 pages in one sitting. I had the benefit of being in Vermont for the weekend to relax, so I sat down in a pretty place in a park and just read it. I didn’t expect to finish it but there aren’t that many words on a page so it went quickly. A quick explanation of the prayer that Wilkinson elaborates on so well in the book is:

“Oh, that you would bless me indeed” This means God wants you to ask for miracles. Lot of them! He wants you to have them! This was emphasized in the book.

“and enlarge my territory” This means you should ask how can you serve God by helping others. I do love to help people so this felt good to read about!

“that Your hand would be with me” This was a fantastic reminder that if God brings you something you must do, He’ll be there with you to help you get through it.

“and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain.” This means protect me from being tempted to commit a sin.

This prayer blew me away and got me thinking. When I read the second line, I wondered how I could help someone. There was a couple a few feet away taking pictures of each other against the scenery. So I asked if they’d like me to take one of them together. They were thrilled and explained they’d wanted to ask but didn’t want to disturb me since I seemed so engrossed in my book. So I found a way to help right away!

I was most intrigued by “Oh, that you would bless me indeed” Indeed! Wilkinson explains that God wants us to ask for miracles. Lots of them! After all, if you don’t ask, how can God know what you want? I’ve always expected good things but never thought about it in terms of miracles before. What a lovely thought, that God wants us to have miracles! Since then I realized it’s true, because I’ve had many! Since reading the book I’ve been more focused on asking for and expecting miracles.

It doesn’t matter how unlikely it seems. When you expect miracles, they happen!

One incident continues to remind me that miracles come to those who expect them. I did a 3-month book tour for my last music business book and drove around the US, 10,500 miles, by myself. My New Orleans and Mississippi appearances were canceled due to Katrina, which meant I had a week free before my next events in Atlanta, so I booked a flight to NY to take a break. I had to drive from Mississippi to Atlanta for my 9:30 PM flight. I thought I had plenty of time as I had a late lunch in Mississippi until the waitress reminded me that I’d lose an hour in Georgia, and I’d go through Birmingham during rush hour.

I looked at my AAA triptik and realized they’d left out 2 pages. Birmingham and getting to it were missing so I’d really misjudged the timing! The waitress was sure I wouldn’t make my flight. I hurried back on the road. I did have bad traffic near Birmingham and also many pockets of construction. Driving, I began to panic. I knew I needed to get to the hotel I was staying in when I returned to Atlanta (they were letting me leave the car there) by 8, in order to pre-check in and then have time to wait for their bus to the airport. It was 6:30 and it looked like I had at least 2 more hours to drive. Then I saw more construction delays. I began to think that it would be impossible to make my flight.

As the thought came to me, I shouted, “NO! I HAVE TO make the flight!” I asked God for a miracle, promising I wouldn’t look at my watch until I get there, and put myself and my drive in His hands.

I didn’t check the time again as I drove and drove. I was curious to know how much time I had but kept my promise. I talked to God and explained that I knew if I didn’t see the time, He could do the miracle work without my seeing how it happened. The rest of my trip, I continued affirming that I had to make my flight, and would. There was more construction. Most people would have accepted missing the flight. Not me! As I pulled into a spot at the hotel parking lot, I screamed to see it was 8:05.

I don’t know how it happened. It really was impossible to go the distance I did, in the traffic I had, in an hour and a half. But there I was at the hotel on time.

They checked me in fast. The airport bus was waiting for me. With a little rushing, I made my flight! I have no idea how I got there on a logical level. There hadn’t been enough time. But miracles aren’t logical. You have to ask for them in strong faith, like I did. I was excited as I expected my miracle. Others would have been skeptical. Skeptical attracts negative results. The Law of Attraction reads skeptical as not expecting the miracle. But when you open your heart to a miracle in good faith, it can happen.

Start asking for miracles. If you can’t bring yourself to ask in total faith, ask for support in believing that it can happen.

It’s normal to have doubts. Instead of fighting them, acknowledge them and also acknowledge that you’d like help with getting past them since you want miracles. Start with small ones. As miracles occur, your faith will grow. Life with miracles is lovelier than life without them! Ask and ye shall receive.

Next week I’ll do another post about the Prayer of Jabez and miracles. Read it here.

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!

Do You Want to Win at the Game of Life?

Have you ever watched someone who seemed to possess second-rate skills or talent have a first-rate success? Did it make you wonder why, since so many people who are more gifted or smarter go nowhere? The latter ones may have a key component to success in common—a determination to rise to the top of their game and their careers and they go the distance to achieve it.

Actress Sophia Loren said, “Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. That is why some people with mediocre talent but with great inner drive go much further than people with vastly superior talent.”

All the talent in the world won’t help if you don’t use it. Being the most delicious cookie in the box won’t get you eaten if no one picks you. Being the smartest person in your office won’t help if you don’t open your mouth and show your smarts. Many people waste their natural abilities by not putting them to the test and proving what they’re capable of.

This Recovering DoorMat has learned she can do anything she chooses too. YOU can too!

Think about what you could accomplish if you develop the ability and the inner drive to advance in whatever you want to do. How can you prepare yourself to take the steps to pursue what you say you want? The keys to making progress are:

* Learn what you don’t know. Take a class, get a tutor or mentor, read books, or whatever it takes to teach you what you need before going forward.

* Practice your skills until you improve them and then keep practicing to be as good as possible. Practice may not make you perfect but it will make you better. And the better you get, the stronger your confidence becomes.

* Ask yourself, “How badly do I want [whatever it is you’re pursuing]?” If it’s just a whim, let it go. But if it’s something you want from your soul, acknowledge that. Focus on it. Write it down. Keep in on your mind so you can build a mental momentum.

* Stop making excuses about why you’re not ready or can’t do it. Excuses are self-inflicted road blocks. They say you’ve made a a conscious decision not to go after what you say you want. “I can’t learn to ski since I’m not fit enough.” Give it up or eat healthier, hit the gym and improve your fitness. “I don’t know enough to run the office.” Give it up or educate yourself. Ask lots of questions. Write down what you think you don’t know and find out how to learn it. It's your choice, not your sentence, to let excuses stop you.

* Decide if achieving your goal is worth the effort. Literally make yourself choose if you prefer to complain or make excuses or do what you’ve gotta do to make it happen. Consciously make the choice. And if the choice is to go for it, start doing the work.

* Affirm your intentions. “I trust myself to do____.” “I want___ enough to do what it takes.” “I can do it!” “I’m good enough!” Make up your own affirmations to fit your situation.

* Focus on doing what you have to. Start with one baby step at a time. Do something to move forward, even if it seems trivial. One step closer is one step closer! Then take another. Even if reaching your goal takes time, keep moving forward.

* Push through the doubts or fears or pain if you want to get to the other side. It will be worth it when you get what you want.

This morning I saw gymnast Kerri Strug on a TV morning show. I remembered watching the gymnastics finals in the 1996 Olympics. The US team was in contention for a gold medal and Kerri was last to do her vault. It was all up to her. Everyone thought it was over when Kerri fell and injured her ankle on her first try. She was in pain but needed to stick her landing on the second vault. Most athletes would have mourned their bad luck and allowed themselves to be carried off. Not Kerri!

I held my breath as she focused on her second vault with determination. She did it perfectly, landed on both feet and held it long enough to secure gold for the American team. Then she collapsed from the pain. Some have it, some don’t. It’s hard to stay in the game and not get discouraged or give up because of difficulties. Advancing in any career takes work. Some goals add extra elements of difficulty. You need a strong soul, and strong faith, in both you and in knowing you have spiritual support. Kerri Strug wanted to win badly enough to endure the pain and focus on what she needed to do. Do you?

Kerri is now working with ING to encourage young people to get out and run through a program called Orange Laces. Check it out and donate if you can! She's now determined to help kids become more fit.

If you enjoyed my post, please leave a comment and/or click on the bookmark and write a short review at some of the sites, especially Stumbleupon and Digg. Thanks!