Overwhelmed? Here's How To Move That Elephant

• Have you ever procrastinated long enough for an elephant-sized pile of to-do post-it notes to congregate on your desk?
• Have you ever taken on a project that is just to big to tackle?
• Are you backed into a corner overwhelmed at the giant-sized task before you?

Uh-oh. You have an elephant in your room.

The elephant is the big dark cloud called overwhelm. When you're overwhelmed you feel like there's an elephant-sized obstacle standing in the way of where you are and where you want to be. Overwhelmed is an unproductive reaction to having too much to do, seeing to many possibilities to choose from and thinking that you don't have enough time and resources to get everything done. One of the universal breakdowns that confront people today who is working to manage the competing priorities of business and home life. Overwhelm is not simply having lots of things to do. Overwhelm has definite emotional overtones which may include stress, confusion, fear, and anxiety. When you're overwhelmed you feel stuck and lack motivation to do much of anything. There's so much to do you don't even know where to begin.

Congratulations! You're a master at creating an elephant. Yes, knowing that you created the elephant in the first place is empowering. Since you created it you can un-create it. You created your overwhelmed state so you can, with certainty, move that elephant out of the room. Here's how:

1. Take a look at that elephant. It doesn't like being in the room any more than you like it being there.
2. See it as a huge pile of small tasks instead of one big massive energy sucking obstruction.
3. Put aside any tasks that are 'for the future' and require no immediate action. Now the pile is smaller.
4. Put aside any tasks that you've taken some action on and are awaiting a response from others. What's left in the pile are 'must do's'.
5. Spread the remaining must-do tasks out in a line, flattening the pile, and pick one small task to do. Do that task.
6. Pick the next task in the line and do that.
7. And the next.

Before you know it, you've easily moved that elephant out of your room, and your life!

Valery is the Founder of the International Association for Inner Wizards. Learn how to tame your Inner Critic, the voice of your self-doubt and fear, and empower your Inner Wizard, your intuition and inspiration, to effortlessly turn your dreams into reality. Everything you need to be, do and have is already within you. Your Inner Wizard is the best coach, guide, guru, teacher and shaman you could ever hope to have. Let your Inner Critic take a back seat, with a blankie and a sippy cup, as you deliberately place your Inner Wizard power in the driver seat as you drive towards your rich delicious life. I guarantee no wrong turns will be made on your life's journey when you are guided by your Inner Wizard. Get free mini-book "Discover Your Inner Wizard" today at http://www.InnerWizard.com.

Overwhelmed? Here's How To Move That Elephant

• Have you ever procrastinated long enough for an elephant-sized pile of to-do post-it notes to congregate on your desk?
• Have you ever taken on a project that is just to big to tackle?
• Are you backed into a corner overwhelmed at the giant-sized task before you?

Uh-oh. You have an elephant in your room.

The elephant is the big dark cloud called overwhelm. When you're overwhelmed you feel like there's an elephant-sized obstacle standing in the way of where you are and where you want to be. Overwhelmed is an unproductive reaction to having too much to do, seeing to many possibilities to choose from and thinking that you don't have enough time and resources to get everything done. One of the universal breakdowns that confront people today who is working to manage the competing priorities of business and home life. Overwhelm is not simply having lots of things to do. Overwhelm has definite emotional overtones which may include stress, confusion, fear, and anxiety. When you're overwhelmed you feel stuck and lack motivation to do much of anything. There's so much to do you don't even know where to begin.

Congratulations! You're a master at creating an elephant. Yes, knowing that you created the elephant in the first place is empowering. Since you created it you can un-create it. You created your overwhelmed state so you can, with certainty, move that elephant out of the room. Here's how:

1. Take a look at that elephant. It doesn't like being in the room any more than you like it being there.
2. See it as a huge pile of small tasks instead of one big massive energy sucking obstruction.
3. Put aside any tasks that are 'for the future' and require no immediate action. Now the pile is smaller.
4. Put aside any tasks that you've taken some action on and are awaiting a response from others. What's left in the pile are 'must do's'.
5. Spread the remaining must-do tasks out in a line, flattening the pile, and pick one small task to do. Do that task.
6. Pick the next task in the line and do that.
7. And the next.

Before you know it, you've easily moved that elephant out of your room, and your life!

Valery is the Founder of the International Association for Inner Wizards.
Learn how to tame your Inner Critic, the voice of your self-doubt and fear, and empower your Inner Wizard, your intuition and inspiration, to effortlessly turn your dreams into reality. Everything you need to be, do and have is already within you. Your Inner Wizard is the best coach, guide, guru, teacher and shaman you could ever hope to have. Let your Inner Critic take a back seat, with a blankie and a sippy cup, as you deliberately place your Inner Wizard power in the driver seat as you drive towards your rich delicious life. I guarantee no wrong turns will be made on your life's journey when you are guided by your Inner Wizard. Get free mini-book "Discover Your Inner Wizard" today at http://www.InnerWizard.com.

Stuck or Exhausted? Stop Dragging The Reluctant

Are you:
- stuck in a rut?
- often tired even though you get enough sleep?
- procrastinating even the easy things?
- finding excuses and reasons why you can't be, do or have what you want in life?

If you answered yes to any of those questions then you are spending your days dragging The Reluctant along. And that's exhausting! Sometimes the reluctant weighs so heavy upon you that you can't move forward at all, so you're stuck, right where you are, unable to achieve much of anything.

What is The Reluctant, you ask?

The reluctant is that Inner Critic within you. It is the voice of self-doubt and fear. It is the part of you that wants to hold you back and keep you safe. Safe is what you know, where you already are.

You created this Inner Critic to help you cope, help you navigate, in your immediate environment when you were a little child. It served as your protector and did a pretty good job of it too. Kept you out of trouble by telling you to follow certain rules of survival. Rules such as 'you're bad if you make mistakes' or 'children should be seen and not heard'. The problem is you're no longer in that environment. And, although your Inner Critic means well, he is woefully misguided.

For example, you may have spilled paint all over the floor and a parent said, in a moment of frustration, "You're a bad boy! Look what you did!" So, the Inner Critic stops you from trying new things because you don't want to make any mistakes and be a bad person. "Children should be seen and not heard" becomes "I have nothing of importance to say" that can then become "I'm stupid". You don't think you're smart enough to take on bigger challenges.

As you grew older, this Inner Critic became a constant background hum that you forgot was there. Yet you continue, unconsciously, to obey its set of rules for you. This toxic belief system about what will keep you safe and out of trouble is guiding the choices you make, what actions to take, or not to take. These Inner Critic rule create the reluctance that drags you down and keeps you from moving forward.

Some people will say that you have to work toward eliminating the limiting beliefs this reluctant Inner Critic holds over you. I disagree. The Inner Critic is a part of you like your left foot is a part of you. You do, however, want to take away its power over you. Notice when you are finding excuses and reasons for "I can't". Those excuses and reasons are the misguided rules. Look for evidence of the opposite. Remember when you learned a lot from a mistake so the mistake benefited you in some may. Remember when people listened earnestly to what you had to say. This evidence is all around you. You just haven't been paying attention because you've been too busy dragging The Reluctant.

Ask yourself:

- What if I could?
- How would my life change?
- What could I be, do or have that I cannot now?
- How would that feel?

See yourself as you would be if you let go of your reluctance, disarmed your Inner Critic, and took one step forward. That one step forward will help you build energy and the momentum to get out of your stuck place. Life flows effortlessly when you leave The Reluctant behind.

"It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult." ~ Seneca

Valery is the Founder of the International Association for Inner Wizards. Learn how to tame your Inner Critic, the voice of your self-doubt and fear, and empower your Inner Wizard, your intuition and inspiration, to effortlessly turn your dreams into reality. Everything you need to be, do and have is already within you. Your Inner Wizard is the best coach, guide, guru, teacher and shaman you could ever hope to have. Let your Inner Critic take a back seat, with a blankie and a sippy cup, as you deliberately place your Inner Wizard power in the driver seat as you drive towards your rich delicious life. I guarantee no wrong turns will be made on your life's journey when you are guided by your Inner Wizard. Get free mini-book "Discover Your Inner Wizard" today at http://www.InnerWizard.com.

Self-Awarness Journey? Your Mirrors Have Blind Spots

The vehicle you use to travel on your road to self-awareness and abundance is self-examination. The process of self-examination is a journey of twists and turns, straightaways with frequent glimpses in your side and rearview mirrors. As you know from your driving experiences, mirrors have blind spots and some mirrors will even warn you that some objects may be closer than they appear.

The same is true with self-examination. There are blind spots and some experiences in your self-examination are closer to the experiences you are having today than they appear. Road blocks to self-examination and effective life transformation stay hidden in these blind spots. If you are driving your car and know that you have a blind spot you will ask your passenger, if you have one, to take a look from their vantage point to see if there's anything in the way of you being able to get to your destination safely. Or, your passenger will see the roadblock or oncoming car and warn you so you can take corrective measures. Your passenger can see what is reflected in your mirror from her vantage position when you can't. If you have no passenger, no other vantage point, you risk being blindsided with an unwanted, possibly damaging, experience.

The road to self-awareness is littered with roadblocks and debris that must be overcome or cleaned-up in order to get to your desired destination - the fulfillment of what you long for. Are you traveling alone on your personal journey? Reading articles and self-help books by yourself or listening to expert speakers will certainly serve as an excellent tool to tell you how to drive a car. Yet they don't know you're destination, your personal passions and dreams, what street you started your journey on or what roadblocks are on the roads you travel on in this very individual journey. No two journeys are the same. Articles, books and lectures cannot map your route, point out your individual blind spots. They cannot relied upon to guide you personally as a passenger on your unique road. These things cannot see what's in your mirror and let you know what is in your way of moving forward if you are unable to see what is blocking you.

The fact that you've pulled your car out of the garage and have begun the journey to self-awareness indicates that you've placed your Inner Critic (self-doubt and fear) in the back seat. That's a terrific start! However, are you allowing him to be a back-seat driver? Is he still yelling out directions and routes you 'should' take? If so, he might as well be driving. And the trouble with his driving abilities is that he does not know how to look forward to see what's down the road let alone be aware of any blind spots. Your Inner Critic thinks that to get anywhere you have to always have your sights on the rearview mirror. And you wonder why the same unwanted experiences keep happening over and over again. Your Inner Critic is trying to get to where you want to go by following what he sees in your rearview mirror.

There is another passenger you could travel with you who clearly sees the road ahead and is able to view the mirrors from every vantage point. It is your Inner Wizard. The journey to connecting with and tapping into the magical power of your Inner Wizard is also subject to blind spots. Having a trusted person there with you to guide you from time-to-time to point out what they see in your mirrors, give you a different perspective, will prevent you from getting lost or side-tracked along the way. Once you're able to completely hear, trust and rely upon your Inner Wizard he will always be your front-seat passenger on any journey you take. You will always have someone to watch out for your blind spots. Just tell your Inner Wizard what your destination is and he will immediately get to work creating a map that will get you from Point A to Point B effortlessly. He will readily reveal what is lurking in your blind spots as you travel safely by. Oh, and he's quite a good conversationalist so you'll enjoy his company along the way.

Happy journeys to you!

ˆTame your Inner Critic and Empower your Inner Wizard. Find out how at http://www.InnerWizard.com. "Turn Your Dreams Into Reality" Get free mini-booklet "Discover Your Inner Wizard" today!

Authenticity: “Be The Change You Seek”

As Gandhi said, "Be the change you seek.". Many people live in a state of quiet desperation or restless agitation. Conditioned in their youth, they are exhausted living their 'should be" supposed-to-be lives. You can get good at living someone else's life yet it's exhausting! You were born to express your fullest potential. You were born to live your rich delicious life and you entered this world with an Inner Wizard. This Inner Wizard is an alchemist who knows how to turn your dreams into reality. It is the voice of your intuition, truth and inspiration. And as a small child you created an Inner Critic, who became the voice of your self-doubt and fear. You turned your power over to this Inner Critic to help you cope, help you navigate through your early life experience. The Inner Critic kept you safe by creating a rule book to live by. And you are living by this same rule book today.

The problem is, most of these rules were based on your misinterpretations of what you saw, heard or felt as a child. "Don't talk to strangers" became "People I don't know can hurt me" and now you fear public speaking. "Don't be selfish" became "It's not good to take care of your core needs". "Don't be stupid" became "I'm not smart enough". See a pattern? If you are not already living the life you dream of your misinterpreted rule book is embedded in your sub-conscious and directing your life today.

You long to be, do or have something you are not. What you long for is who you are! That's why you yearn so desperately for that life! You're deepest desire is to come forth into your experience as the fullest expression of who you are at your deepest core. And when you do, the energy with which you approach your life is unlimited!

The good news is your Inner Wizard is still there, within you. You can learn how to tame your misguided Inner Critic and return the power back over to your Inner Wizard. Your Inner Wizard is the best Coach, Guide, Guru or Teacher you could ever hope to have. Trust its wisdom and you will effortlessly manifest, easily achieve, everything you want to be, do and have in life!

"Whether you think you can or think you can't - you're right!" Henry Ford

Learn how to tame your Inner Critic, the voice of your self-doubt and fear, and empower your Inner Wizard, your intuition and inspiration, to effortlessly turn your dreams into reality. Everything you need to be, do and have is already within you. Your Inner Wizard is the best coach, guide, guru, teacher and shaman you could ever hope to have. Let your Inner Critic take a back seat, with a blankie and a sippy cup, as you deliberately place your Inner Wizard power in the driver seat as you drive towards your rich delicious life. I guarantee no wrong turns will be made on your life's journey when you are guided by your Inner Wizard. Get free mini-book "Discover Your Inner Wizard" today at http://www.InnerWizard.com.

Weight Gain, Fear and the Pussycats

I was having fun watching my two cats play one morning when I had one of those AHA moments. I had one of those 'out of the blue' moments of clarity that enlightened, empowered and inspired me. The pussycats were playing a leap-frog kind of game when the play turned into aggression. Both cats 'puffed up' almost simultaneously. Raised hair on the back and a puffed-out tail are animalistic signs of defensiveness or hostility. In a flash, I thought of the many people I work with who are struggling with weight gain. No matter how many diets or exercise regimens they begin, quit, and begin again they can't seem to shed unwanted pounds. Have they 'puffed up' in fear or hostility? Do my overweight clients have a subconscious fear of losing weight, of the vulnerability of getting rid of their armor of fat?

When you are in a state of fear you cling to your current comfort zone. This fear prevents action. It holds you back. You want to lose weight so badly that it consumes much of your waking thoughts, yet you self-sabotage your weight loss progress for fear of the person you will find under the layers of fat. You are scared of who you are at your innermost core! Being able to stay hidden underneath the extra poundage is a payoff for staying fat. You don't do anything, such as keeping on unwanted weight, unless you get something out of it. Wearing a fat suit has become part of your identity, and taking off that mask would reveal what you are truly like underneath. What if you don't like what you see? Obese people fear being exposed if the fat were gone and they had nothing left to hide behind. They fear of losing weight and this fear is grounded in their low self-esteem.

Fear of weight loss is not uncommon, especially for those who’ve been overweight since childhood. When self-esteem and health goals collide, the body image goals often triumph. If you have low self-esteem, if you don't like, or you reject, who you are you will not be able to make positive changes. The ability to move beyond fear, vulnerability and low self-esteem does not come from a place of disgust or self-rejection. Any diet or exercise regime that you engage in that is inspired by self-disgust will be negative and punitive. It will not deliver the outcome, the weight loss, you hope to achieve. Your body will fight back at every turn with the egoic behavior of self-protection and survival. You will stay heavy or 'puff up' even more because you're beating yourself up more and more. The more you beat up on yourself the harder it is to reach for a healthy self-image and let go of your fear. And the vicious cycle becomes a tired repetitive pattern of weight gain, weight loss, more weight gain.

You are not your body. You are your intuition, personal passions, truth and the voice of your inspiration. Get in touch with that part of you. Discover who you are hiding underneath your body weight protection. Learn how to love yourself, unconditionally, and you will effortlessly shed the shields that hide you. You were brought to this earth to live out loud! Come out of hiding and share your magnificent self with the rest of the world. Everyone has a potential for greatness within. Shine the light on yours, let us see who you are. You are a gift just waiting to be unwrapped.

Discover you - the voice of your intuition, personal passions, truth and inspiration at http://www.InnerWizard.com. Get free mini-booklet "Discover Your Inner Wizard" and turn your dreams into reality!

Empowerment Secret: Find the Pony!

A father is taking his two young sons for a walk around the barn. They come upon a huge pile of doo-doo. "Yuck!, one son cries. This stinks! How awful! Let's get out of here!" The other son, however, yells with glee "Woo-Hoo!" and dives into the rotten pile of poo. "With all this doo-doo there has to be a pony in here somewhere!", he exclaims. Where one boy saw nothing but gloom and doom, another saw and opportunity for a great gift.

This lesson is the secret to empowerment. Every experience comes with gifts in the lessons that can be learned from them. If you have a rotten stinky experience look for the pony instead of running away or blaming others, look for the pony! It's in there somewhere. And when you find it, ride that pony out of the stench and onto greener, cleaner, brighter pastures.

Learn how to find your pony at http://www.InnerWizard.com. Get free mini-book, "Discover Your Inner Wizard", the voice of your intuition and inspiration. Find out how to tame your Inner Critic (self-doubt and fear) and turn your dreams into reality!

Empowering Advice from a Dad: "Grow Up, Move Out"

I often ask successful people what was the best piece of advice they ever got from a parent. What words of wisdom carried them forward as they achieved their personal and professional goals? Responses such as "Don't take anything for granted", "You have to work hard and struggle for success" and "It takes money to make money" are among the most common. I posed this same question to Wendy, a woman I met at a luncheon yesterday. Her quick response was "Grow up. Move out." That was her Dad's mantra to her ever since she was a very young child.

Wendy had a good, loving relationship with her father. He is no longer with us yet his sage word of advice echo in Wendy's conscious every day. The wisdom has changed a bit over the years to 'Grow up. Move on." as Wendy is now a very successful financial planner and the Mother to two beautiful children. "Grow Up. Move out." encouraged Wendy to take full responsibility for her life. She allowed her inner child to grow up without fear and self-doubt while maintaining a playfully creative approach to life's challenges and opportunities. Wendy never empowered her Inner Critic, the part of her that has the ability to hold her back. She always relied on her Inner Wizard, that strong powerful voice within her that is pure intuition and the birthplace of inspiration to guide her. Whenever choices had to be made, especially difficult ones, Wendy remembered her Dad's advice, "Grow Up. Move Out".

And Wendy grew up and moved out fast! She was a respected high school graduate at age 15 and graduated college with honors at 18. She married a few years later and pursued a career in financial planning. Her husband was diagnosed with cancer when she was pregnant with their second child. Her husband did not survive long after the birth. "Grow Up. Move On." the winds of change echoed. So empowered, Wendy navigated the troubled waters of a young widowed mother building a new life for herself and her children. There were many many challenges to overcome. How would the children be cared for? How can she continue to build a career? How do you pick up the piece of a life shattered by such a tragedy? "Grow Up. Move On." Take full responsibility for what you want to experience moving forward.

People sometimes fall-back into old childish patterns of behavior when triggered with a devastating experience. There is a tendency to crawl back to a place where you feel safe, feel protected, and can hide. This desire to grab for any internal comfort that you can find often empowers the Inner Critic, the voice of self-doubt and fear. This is the voice that protected you, helped you cope, in your environment when you were little. You are no longer a child and cannot move on if you are frozen in fear or doubt your abilities or what is possible for you.

Wendy moved on and formed a company with her Father to help others build financial wealth and security. It wasn't long before her father was also diagnosed with cancer. He died within a few months. "Grow up. Move on". Wendy continued to grow from this experience and moved on the become an advocate to empower widowed women to protect and enrich their financial future. Her words of advice for them is "Grow up. Move on." Wendy now teaches others who face the similar tragedies and challenges how to put one foot in front of the other, how to "Grow UP. Move On."

Wendy tells her story with a broad smile on her face. To many, it is a very tragic tale. To Wendy she has lived a blessed life. She continues to find joy and inspiration in her daily life. Each morning presents another opportunity to continue to grow and move beyond her current comfort zones. "Grow Up. Move Out." is the lifelong gift from her Dad that propels Wendy forward as she turns her dreams into reality.

Get free eBook: "Discover Your Inner Wizard" at http://www.InnerWizard.com

Your Relationships are a Mirrored Reflection of You

Each relationship you have with another person reflects the relationship you have with yourself." - Alice Deville.

You have a lot of personal and professional relationships in your life. Some relationships are loving, satisfying, uplifting, supportive and enrich your life experience. You love spending time with these people. They motivate and inspire you. Other relationships are tense, adversarial, problematic, strained, and exhausting. You don't like, or avoid, spending time with the people who drain the life energy right out of you.. The funny thing is that all of your relationships, good and bad, are a reflection of you!

How can that be?

It's very simple, really. You love the good relationships that you have because these people reflect what you like about yourself. They're kind, giving, nice, loyal, fun to be with, and all of the other attributes that you enjoy when you're involved in a good relationship. You dislike the people you have difficulty with because they reflect the parts of you that you don't like. In these people you see something in them, however tiny or large, that you don't like about yourself. If they're needy, they remind you of the times when you have been needy. If they're rude, they're a reminder of the pain you caused others by your own rudeness. If they're annoying they bring out the annoyer in you. If they are liars, they remind you of the time you lied, how that felt and the damage that lie may have caused you or others.

Pay particular attention to the people who bother you, get under your skin, for no apparent reason. These people reflect something within you that you have been unwilling to see.

I'll give you an example.

Several years ago I had a business associate, Naomi, who irritated the heck out of me. Naomi was a nice enough person, never hurt me, but every time I saw her my skin crawled. If she said, "Hi. How are you?" I wanted to run in the other direction. Any time she called with a business related question or invitation I couldn't get off the phone fast enough. Naomi frequently invited me to networking events and I always found some excuse to decline. For some unexplained reason I just didn't want to be around this woman.

Yes, I Found Excuses And Reasons (F.E.A.R.) not to like her. To me, Naomi was a pushy, needy, wishy-washy person who just wanted to cling onto me to advance her career. What I didn't realize at the time was that I had been a pushy, needy, wishy-washy person who clung onto other people to advance my early career. I'd grown up a lot since then and was no longer that person, yet I definitely once was that girl. And now Naomi was reflecting that behavior back to me. And it bothered me to even think of her. I did not want to be reminded that I, too, was once at that very same place in my personal journey of self-awareness and development.

You love what is reflected back to you that you love within you. You dislike what is reflected back to you that you dislike within you. You are neutral to what is presented to you that is not a reflection of you.

Examine your relationships with the people in your life. Identify the attributes you love and like in the people you have a good relationship with. You hold these attributes too. Acknowledge and own them. Love that part of you. Identify the attributes you don't like in the people you have a bad, or troubled, relationship with. You hold these attributes too. Acknowledge and own them. Have compassion and forgiveness for that part of yourself and of the other person for each of you are only doing the best you can given the light you have to see. Granted, some people have fewer batteries in their flashlight than others! Yet they are still doing the best they can. No one deliberately decides to exhibit unwanted behavior. Learn the lesson to add a few more volts to that flashlight of yours. Every relationship, good and bad, brings gifts in the lessons and the light they offer to you. Cherish the gift. It will empower you as you continue to move forward in the direction of living your rich delicious life.

"Life is a succession of lessons, which must be lived to be understood." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Get free Mini-book "Discover Your Inner Wizard" at http://www.InnerWizard.com

The Titan Mindset

The difference between a winner and an 'also ran' isn't extra ordinary skills or talents. Let's face it, people who are at the top of their field excel at their game be it sports, business or personal achievement. In the sports world there are two champions, titans of athletes, who share one unprecedented skill, a titan mindset for excellence. I'm talking about Muhammad Ali and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Arnold Schwarzenegger does not seem to be comparable to Muhammad Ali on the surface. But look closer. Both Ali and Schwarzenegger came from nowhere to win titles. Both men were great physical specimens, but later became known for their wit, humanity and crowd-pleasing nature...not merely for their brawn. And, of course, both men became known as two of the greatest icons of their time. They both had strong competition and were able to overcome stereotypes and false perceptions where others had failed. There was one simple explanation for their tremendous success in their sport and in life: it never occurred to them that they were not champions. They knew, at their deepest core, and at an early age that they were champions. It was only a matter of time before the rest of the world knew it too.

Ali and Schwarzenegger approached their life aspirations with focused determination and were always in complete alignment with that dream. Nothing would get in the way of becoming a world champion. With singular conscious intention matched with an internal confidence, awareness, and conviction they held the vibration of a champion from the moment the dream was birthed. They knew, with certainty, that they were already champions. This mindset carried them forward, delivered their inspiration, as they turned the dream into reality.

Why am I telling you this?

In a seemingly magical turn of events that brought us to this very day, the Universe conspired for me to tell you the story. To make a 30 year story short, my husband Al Satterwhite, just published a photographic book called "Titans". The photographs paired Ali and Schwarzenegger together as world champions who shared a singular mindset for greatness. Al first met Muhammad Ali in 1970 at the 5th Street Gym in Miami Beach when he was assigned by Time, and later Life, to photograph him preparing for his fight with Joe Frazier. Ali was young, brash, and eloquent. He came to know Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1976 when he spent time with him as he trained at Gold’s Gym, shooting trap and skeet up in the Santa Monica mountains, and just hanging out in Venice Beach. During this time, he came to understand what made them both champions. This book vividly demonstrates the qualities of these two men in a series of candid black and white photographs, accompanied by short essays written by well-known sports commentators and writers, Roy Firestone and Robert Baum.

Roy, who also wrote the Forward, is well-known sports broadcaster and entertainer. He has won seven Emmy® Awards and seven Cable ACE Awards, he has interviewed more than 5,000 people, including nearly every major sports figure. He knows what makes these athletes 'tick'. Roy is also a high-school pal of mine. I sat next to him in class for four years as he doodled sporting images all over is notebooks. We were also often paired together in high school plays and Roy is a talented entertainer to this day. He performs his multi-media review before audiences in Las Vegas, at major sporting events, meetings, formal events and conventions throughout the world.

So, when Al mentioned that he was looking for someone who knew Ali and Schwarzenegger to write the Forward to "Titans" I knew just who to call on! The book was published and I have the pleasure of sharing the story with you who are also on your way to turning your dreams into reality. These two titans are an inspiration to anyone who has a dream and intends to overcome whatever challenges present themselves along the way. They steadfastly kept their personal power in the intuitive and inspirational hands of their Inner Wizard and never let their Inner Critic, the voice of self-doubt and fear, influence the thoughts, choices and actions they took to become, and remain, world champions.

If you're interested in learning more of the story you can click on:


http://www.amazon.com/Titans-Muhammad-Ali-Arnold-Schwarzenegger/dp/1854432311/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232200254&sr=8-1

or

http://www.daltonwatson.com/TitansDetailPage.htm

"Be the change you seek." -Gandhi

Valery Satterwhite, Founder
International Association for Inner Wizards
http://www.InnerWizard.com

How Did I Get An Inner Critic?

One of the questions I get asked most is "How did I get an Inner Critic?" That question is usually followed by "How do I get rid of it?" These are both great questions and since I get asked about the Inner Critic so often I'll answer these questions here.

How did I get an Inner Critic?

When you were born you were in awe and amazement about everything in your environment. You wanted to be nurtured and cared for. You were fun loving and happy. Everything you saw, including your parents, was there for your enjoyment and survival. Every thought and action was based on intuition and inspiration. And you began to explore your new world.

In doing so, you saw, heard and felt your experiences. Some experiences were wonderful, some not so great. As you learned how to navigate your environment you started to create a little "Rule Book" to help you avoid the not so great experiences. This book of rules became your Inner Critic - constantly reminding you what you can and cannot do to stay safe and away from unwanted experiences.

The problem is, as a young little child, you were not able to distinguish between truth and belief. You processed your experiences literally. You misinterpreted much of what you think you saw and heard. A parental statement such as "Bad boy" about breaking a toy, for example, became "I'm a bad person" to you. And you wrote in your Rule Book "I'm a bad person. I don't deserve." A teacher correcting a mistake of yours became "I'm not smart enough". A classmate in the schoolyard who makes fun of you becomes "People will always laugh at me". Your Dad coming home from a stressful day at work says "My rich boss just steps on the little people" becomes "Rich people just step on little people". You probably had other unavoidable scars from childhood. This is where the inner critical voice gets started.

You still live your life by this voice, these rules! In any area of your life that you aren't being, doing and having what you want know that your Inner Critic is leading your choices by following the 'rules'.

If you have a rule that "Rich people just step on little people" your Inner Critic will not allow you to become rich because, deep inside, you do not want to step on little people. You won't even realize that the choices you make will be toward making sure that you don't become rich. You will unconsciously self-sabotage to prevent the accomplishment of the success and abundance you yearn for. If you have a rule that says "I'm not smart enough" you will hold yourself back from achieving, or even wanting, bigger career goals.

The Inner Critic loves to be right. It is constantly looking for evidence to justify the rules - constantly seeking examples of 'rich people stepping on little people' and 'mistakes you made to prove you're not smart enough'. The Inner Critic will ignore any evidence to the contrary - won't even see it. And when it can't find any evidence that supports the rule it will create some drama in your life that will become the evidence it seeks.

"We are what we think about all day long." Ralph Waldo Emerson

How do I get rid of my Inner Critic?

Your Inner Critic is part of you. His job is to keep you safe and happy. He means well although he is woefully misguided. The Inner Critic thinks that what will keep you safe and happy is to keep you right where you are - in your current comfort zone. You may not like where you are right now but it's what you know. Your Inner Critic works hard to keep you right there. "Oh, no" your Inner Critic says, "We're not going to grow and stretch or move forward. To scary!" And he holds you back. And you don't feel good. If you're not feeling good that's a clear sign that your Inner Critic is in charge. When your inner voice becomes and stays critical, it drags you down. You will not be able to hold enough love or esteem for yourself to fulfill your potential.

What you want to do is take away the power your Inner Critic holds over you. Let him know that he's no longer in charge. Just tell him "You're not the boss of me!"

Before you can disarm him, though, you have to get be able to recognize his presence. He hides in your subconscious and often you're not even aware that he's there diligently working in the background. The good news is you can get really good at hearing and recognizing his voice. When you hear that self-talk that often starts with "Who am I kidding I can't…", or "I'm not - fill in the blank - enough to be, do or have that" know that this is just your Inner Critic at work. When you are envious or jealous that is another message from your Inner Critic reminding you that your aren't good enough to get what you want. Being able to notice when your Inner Critic chimes in is a big step in taking away his power. You can’t afford to allow him to direct your life. It’s costing you too much.

To strip away the Inner Critic’s power, deliberately look for evidence that violates the rule. As in the above examples, look for rich people who help those who are less fortunate. There are plenty of them. Acknowledge the moments in your life when you were smart enough or good enough. There are plenty of them. You have lots of moments like these every day. Until now, your Inner Critic has blinded you to them. Heck, you had to do a lot of things good and right just to get into a position where you could read this article today.

You have natural talents and abilities. Acknowledge and embrace them! Recognize what your Inner Critic is doing when he tries to hold you back. Gently let him know that you are going to stretch beyond your comfort zone and you will remain safe. Your Inner Critic will be alarmed and will Find Excuses And Reasons (F.E.A.R.) to hold you back. Just take a deep breath and take one step forward, even a baby step. In those moments of fear, ask yourself if the step you are about to take will move you closer or farther away from your goal. Make the choice that moves you forward. Your Inner Critic will see that the bad things he feared didn't happen and will be less scared when you take the next step forward.

Always check in with your self to see how you feel. If you're not feeling good, your Inner Critic reigns. If you're feeling good you've taken the power away from your Inner Critic and have empowered that other voice within you. Yes, you've got a lot going on in that mind of yours! There is another voice! You haven't been able to hear it very often because your Inner Critic has held the microphone until now. This other voice is the voice of your Inner Wizard. You've heard him before. He is the voice of your intuition and inspiration. He is that gut feeling you had when you knew you just made a choice that wasn't going to result in a good experience.

Your Inner Wizard always has your best interest at heart. He knows your truth, your passions and your dreams. Whimsically imaginative and creative, your Inner Wizard will always guide you as you create the future you want to have. He inspires you to think even bigger! Your Inner Wizard scares the heck out of your Inner Critic. Just keep reminding your Inner Critic that you have some New Rules to live by - rules that guide you effortlessly as you turn your dreams into reality.

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." - Albert Einstein

Valery Satterwhite is the Founder of the International Association for Inner Wizards. Learn how to tame your Inner Critic, empower your Inner Wizard and turn your dreams into reality at http://www.InnerWizard.com. Sign-up for the Inner Wizard Newsletter today and get a FREE eBook: "Discover Your Inner Wizard".

The Intuitive Mind: Albert Einstein Quote

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." - Albert Einstein

The intuitive mind is the Inner Wizard. It is the voice of your intuition and inspiration. The rational mind is that of the Inner Critic - the voice of your self-doubt and fear. The Inner Wizard makes choices and takes action based on gut instinct and creative inspiration. The Inner Critic makes choices and takes action based on fear of moving beyond current comfort zones, fear of failure, fear of success, fear of rejection, fear of humiliation, etc.

Inner Wizard decisions will always, without exception, result in good outcomes. Inner Critic decisions will always, without exception, result in unwanted outcomes. Universally. Whether the decision is made by a person, a company or even a government. Intuition and Inspiration = good outcome. Fear and doubt = unwanted outcome.

Examine the decisions you've made in your life. Whenever you made a choice based on a negative feeling - fear, doubt, lack, worry, stress - things didn't work out the way you wanted. When you've acted on pure intuition and a gut 'knowingness' you've enjoyed good results!

It's easy to tell what the choice or the action you are about to take is based on. If it is created through intuition or inspiration you feel good. If it's a reaction that is based in fear or self-doubt you don't feel so good. So, if you're not feeling good about what you're about to do, stop! Re-examine. Ask yourself what you want to create instead of what you are running away from.

The gift is in the rich delicious life experienced when guided by the intuitive mind rather than the reluctant.

Deepak Chopra - "People will suffer most anything.."

"People will suffer almost anything as long as it means they don't have to change." ~ Deepak Chopra

People will stay stuck in a rut even if they don't like the rut very much. Changing, or moving out of the rut - the comfort zone - that they live in is too scary. So, to resist change, they Find Excuses And Reasons (F.E.A.R.) to stay right where they are - even if they are suffering! It's the old saying - the devil you know is better, or safer, than the one you don't know.

This is why New Year's Resolutions are given up on within weeks of January 1st. The Inner Critic
(voice of self-doubt and fear) is only doing his job. His job is to keep you safe and happy. However, your Inner Critic is woefully misguided in what it thinks will keep you safe and happy. He thinks what will keep you safe and happy is to stay with the familiar life experiences.
Your Inner Wizard (voice of intuition and inspiration) knows better. Your Inner Wizard is what inspired you to create your New Year's Resolutions in the first place. He knows your truth, your passions, your desires. When empowered he effortlessly guides you forward as you achieve your goals and create the life you dream of.

How can you tell if you've empowered your Inner Wizard? It's simple. Check in with how you feel. If you feel good, your Inner Wizard has the power. If you feel bad, your Inner Critic is guiding you - with your Inner Wizard in the background yelling "this isn't good!"

When you stated your New Year's Resolutions, for example, you felt good. You felt strong. You were optimistic about what was possible for you to achieve in the coming year. You 'saw' a newer and better comfort zone to live within. And you started to stretch beyond your current tired, old, limiting zone.

And your Inner Critic got scared. He feared for your safety and happiness. So he started serving up those excuses and reasons why you couldn't stay committed to your New Year's resolutions. And you felt badly. This is the point where many people give up on their resolutions and stay stuck right where they one were.

So, as Deepak Chopra says, people will suffer almost anything as long as it means they don't have to change.

The good news is that if you pay attention, if you are mindful that the 'excuses and reasons' are simply the voice of your Inner Critic and do not give this doubting self-talk any power over you, your Inner Wizard will stay empowered and continue to joyfully move you forward as you achieve your goals. Again, your Inner Critic means well. He's just misguided. He is part of you. And as such, you don't want to kill or eliminate your Inner Critic, you just want to take away his power over you.

When you hear that Inner Critic voice inside that might say something like "Who are you kidding? You could never achieve that goal", know that this is merely the voice of a scared little child. Tell him, it's okay. You will be safe. You (empowered by your Inner Wizard) are going to guide your life experiences from now on. The Inner Critic can go along for the ride and gets to sit in the back seat this time - not the driver's seat. Give him a sippy cup and a blankie and your Inner Critic will learn that he is safe even in newer and bigger comfort zones - life experiences that do not include suffering!

What the Heck is an Inner Wizard?

It's a funny thing. People often ask me, what the heck is an Inner Wizard? I respond by asking them if they know what an Inner Critic is. "Oh, yes!" they respond. "I hear that self-talk voice all the time." Responses like that - and I get them often - prove my point.

So many people have an intimate relationship with their Inner Critic who misguidedly holds them back keeping them safe in their limiting comfort zones. "Oh, don't try that", says the worried Inner Critic "You might fail and be embarrassed" or "Who are you kidding? You're not ________ enough to do that (fill in the blank with 'good, rich, young, old, smart, confident, worthy, strong, brave, educated, etc....')". The Inner Critic will always Find Excuses And Reasons (F.E.A.R.) to hold you back to keep you stuck and 'safe' right where you are now. Moving forward into newer and bigger 'zones' is just too scary for your Inner Critic.

You created your Inner Critic when you were a small child - between the ages of 2 and 6 - to help you cope in your environment. During this time you created a little "Rule Book for Life" to help you navigate your way as you grew up. That rule book served you well when you were at a very young age. However, it was written through a young child's perceptions of what what seen, heard and felt. I ask parents if they've ever said something to their children that was completely misinterpreted. They all say that kids misinterpret things every day.

Guess what you did as a kid!

Most of what you wrote down in your memory banks and subconscious "Rule Book for Life" was based on your own misinterpretation of events. And these rules, these misinterpretations, do not serve you today. They only hold you back.

I encourage you to take your personal power away from your Inner Critic and give it back to its rightful owner, your Inner Wizard. Your Inner Wizard is what you were born with before you wrote the rule book. It is the voice of your intuition and inspiration. It's that gut feeling you wished you listened to when things didn't work out the way you hoped. Your Inner Wizard always seeks to move you forward in the direction of your dreams. It will always keep you safe as you continue to stretch into newer and bigger comfort zones. A life lead by the Inner Wizard is the fullest expression of pure potential. And it's a lot of fun!

Post Holiday Blues

A quick note...

As I reviewed the sessions I had with my clients this week I realized that a lot of people seem to be getting the post-holiday blues. There's all this activity leading up to the holidays and Jan. 2nd the momentum rug is pulled out from under and some people land on their butts. A butt-landing often happens right after those New Year's resolutions are announced. Your Inner Wizard charts the course for the new year and your Inner Critic gets scared and works hard to pull you back into old familiar comfort zones. You may not like the zone but it's what you know. Just knowing that it's your Inner Critic freaking out help take away some of its power. Let your Inner Critic take a back seat and empower your Inner Wizard to lead your success in 2009!

In a Funk? Here's How to Dig Out Easily

I have a client, let's call her Kathy, who was in a post holiday funk. For her, nothing seemed to being going right. She was annoyed at her boss and co-workers. She was nagging her boyfriend over little things. She just didn't feel good. 2009 was not starting out with a bang for her. Uppermost on her mind was the new expense policy at work that resulted in her having to pay her own mileage to and from client visits. She works for a large international company. This extra gas expense became a huge issue for her. She did not like the new policy, she did not like the way the policy was presented, and she did not like that because of the varying state tax laws some people within her group didn't take as big a financial hit as a result of the new policy as she did.

Kathy felt like she was being taken advantage of, being lied to (as it wasn't widely known that some people fared better than others with the new policy) and she felt like she worked for a company that didn't care about it's people. She felt like a victim with the new policy. And as a victim she looked at other areas in her life where she was being 'victimized'. The boyfriend left crumbs on the table for her to clean up, she gained 5 pounds with all the holiday parties when she was trying to lose weight, the banks had a new credit card policy that limited her credit line, and so on. She found evidence where she was being taken advantage of everywhere!

Needless to say, Kathy was not in a good place when we started our call.

Oh, and by the way she gained 5 pounds and lost 8! Oh, and by the way, she was given an award for being the "Employee of the Quarter" for that value she delivered by conceiving and implementing a new marketing strategy that was delivering great results.

Say what!?

She didn't see that she was nearing her weight loss goal with the loss of 3 pounds overall. Winning the award was told to me as a bit of an afterthought - and without any enthusiasm.

What was going on here?

A little background...

Kathy originally came to me because she recognized that she was 'negative all the time'. And she seemed to be stuck. Stuck in her work. Stuck in her relationship. Stuck in her life. She felt like something was wrong and didn't know what it was. Kathy had a pattern of constantly finding fault with herself and everything around her. This way of being was rooted in her belief that she simply wasn't good enough. She never got much praise as a kid and when her father died, her 'wicked step-mother' got the big house. So it was from this place of not being good enough that she approached everything in her life. Her experiences were viewed through the lens of "I'm not good enough."

After some discussion Kathy realized that while her Father never praised her much, he did provide very well for her as a child and as an adult and he was always around when she needed him. Kathy was able to recall lots of times she had good experiences with her father - experiences she hadn't thought about in years. Her Father showed his love and admiration for his daughter through providing well for her and 'being there'. He simply did not know how to verbalize how he felt.

Truth is, Kathy didn't know how to praise herself or verbalize praise for others. She only knew how to complain and criticize. And she was good at it! She was especially good at finding fault with herself. When she beat up on herself she felt so badly that the only way to feel any better was to find fault with others. And she was good at that! That was Kathy's pattern. She would find something that she didn't excel at, beat herself up over her shortcomings and then find more shortcomings in her life experiences including work and relationships. Finding shortcomings in work and others resulted in bad experiences with work and others. It was a vicious cycle.

Through our work together, Kathy began to realize that she actually did a lot of things well. She just never focused on what she did right before, her focus was always on what she did wrong. With this new awareness Kathy began to do more things right at work and her relationship with her boyfriend improved. She was doing so many things well that she had an inspiration to create this marvelous new cost-effective marketing campaign for her company that was successful right from the start. The company was so appreciative of her work and wanted to acknowledge her value to them by giving her the award and publicly recognizing her achievement.

Well, this was too much for Kathy's Inner Critic. He was not used to being valued. Not used to receiving acknowledgement. This would change her poor Inner Critic's foundational belief that "I'm not good enough." Mustn't allow that to happen! Oh, no! Must find things to complain about! Must find evidence of being taken advantage of! Must find things that were done wrong! Must crawl back into the old tired comfort zone of "I'm not good enough"! And the roller coaster ride began reeling its way down and around and down again into old familiar unwanted behavior patterns. Kathy would not even allow herself to feel rewarded, valued and acknowledged for more than a few minutes until she 'Found Excuses And Reasons - F.E.A.R.' to crawl back into her negative ways.

This "roller coaster riding" happens. And it will continue to happen the more you continue to stretch into newer and bigger comfort zones. The Inner Wizard part of you guides you to newer and better experiences that scare the living daylights out of your Inner Critic. So, the Inner Critic reacts and tries to pull you back to where it's safe. Hence, the roller coaster ride. That's ok. The good news is that once you recognize that you're starting to roller coaster you can return the power that you temporarily gave to your Inner Critic back to it's rightful owner, your Inner Wizard. Your Inner Wizard will remind you that you're starting to crawl back into former lesser comfort zones. You will know to stop and take a breath. You will ask yourself what you are having your current circumstance mean. You will recognize that the meaning is an old belief that no longer serves you. Instead of looking for more evidence to support the old belief (I'm not good enough) you will find evidence to support the new belief (I am good enough). And you will pull yourself out of the funk and into feeling good again. And back on track to turning your dreams into reality!

New Year’s Resolutions: Let Go of “How”

In this time of New Year's Resolutions give your focus, attention and energy to your primary goal and detach from how you think it has to happen. Let go of the "I have to do this in order to have that so I can be what I want to be" format of goal structuring. It's a good idea to have a strategy to accomplish your goal. However, I suggest opening yourself up to the possibility, and probability, that accomplishment of your goal can happen in unexpected, seemingly miraculous, ways that you could never have planned. Here's a story that will illustrate how detachment from the 'how' can result in desired outcomes.

My friend, Anjali Paul, was born in Punjab, India. She has a B.A. (Honours) degree in English Literature, a post-graduate diploma in Filmmaking and is a yoga teacher. She is also an accomplished writer publishing her 4th novel in 2006, "The Virgin Goddess", available at Amazon.com and Waterstones bookstores in the UK. She overcame severe physical and psychological trauma after a series of accidents, including an accident that resulted in full-body third degree burns, and, despite her injuries, became the recognized writer she has always wanted to be.

Nothing stops Anjali from realizing her dreams. As a writer, she wanted to buy a home that would give her a wonderful place to live and also an inspiring writing environment. She also wanted to have the resources to travel extensively to enrich her writing perspective. However, she had no idea how she would be able to afford such a home and extensive travel. However, owning and living in such a home became her uppermost dream. To subsidize her income as a writer she was offered a part-time job as as office administrator. As fate would have it, this part-time job was with a property developer. That connection lead her to meeting a multi-millionaire property developer who inspired her to create a novel way to help people easily sell their homes in a struggling market.

Anjali sets up a competition for each home seller where interested home buyers purchase a raffle ticket at a very modest price and answer three questions for a chance to win the home. If the proceeds equal or exceed the value of the home the winner gets to own the home at value! And Anjali's company, Instant Haven Ltd., keeps any profit. If the proceeds come in less than the value of the home the net revenue that is generated is split 3 ways). The prize winner gets one-third. The home-owner gets one-third and keeps their home. And Anjali's company, Instant Haven Ltd., keeps one third.

Anjali is now having fun earning significant income. She intends to travel the world this year (and in the years to come) and have lots of earthly and spiritual adventures; she has plenty of time to devote to her writing and has an eye on a home for herself. She has done this in a way she could never have imagined when she set her goals. She just set her intentions, stayed committed to them and let the Universe deliver in a miraculous way!

You can visit Anjali's website to learn more about her and the properties available in competition at http://www.instanthaven.com/.

Welcome to the International Association for Inner Wizards Blog

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” – Albert Einstein

Welcome to the Inner Wizard Blog! You have come to the right place to get Inner Wizard Wizdom tips and express your own Inner Wizard. It is a place where you can let others learn from your own A-HA moments. Those are the moments of epiphany and inspiration or your Inner Wizard “pulled-my-butt-out-of-fire” experiences.

The blog will also discuss how to tame your Inner Critic who some have misguidedly called the Inner Wizard’s evil twin. Seriously though, it’s not evil in the sense that we think of something being bad for us, but it does have a wicked way with words. The Inner Critic has the job of keeping you safe and stopping you from going in a positive direction for your life. You set up the Inner Critic years ago to protect you from getting hurt. However, it is time to give it a different job. He now gets to rid along in the passenger seat as your Inner Wizard shows him what’s possible and that he is, and always has been, safe. Your Inner Wizard is in the drivers seat now the rest of the way as you turn your dreams into reality!