Following on from my last post about Forgiveness and Emotional Intelligence, I had some rather interesting responses which prompted me to write this one. We are close to the end of the year which is a time for reflection for most of us, and in looking back, there may be some aspects of your life that you wish to work on so that you can move forward to 2008 with your sights set clearly on your goals and what you really want to achieve.

Here’s a short summary of that post:

• The only person that suffers from NOT forgiving the wrong-doer or forgiving yourself, is YOU.
• The practice of forgiveness is a simple process which can be done on a daily basis (as long as you are willing to let go of the thing that holds you back.)
• Forgiveness is an integral part of your Personal Development as without it, you cannot learn and move on with mastering your Emotional Intelligence.

Forgive and Forget

An interesting thought that came up in the responses from my friend George, is that as a child, he always heard the saying as it goes…

Forgive, but don’t Forget. It has it’s sense. Sometimes forgive AND forget is also a good idea as you clear out lot’s of stuff.

However, I feel that sometimes NOT forgetting in certain cases is a wise decision just so you don’t get caught a second or even a tenth time by the same story. Sort of like headlights that help you avoid big rocks in the road.

This is interesting because more often than not, we make up our own story about how someone treated us. Something I learned at the Landmark Forum is that we tend to, as humans do, drag the past around with us. Just imagine carrying around a suitcase everywhere we went.

We project the past into the future and live into it rather than letting it go and living in the NOW. Imagine if you didn’t have to carry around that suitcase everywhere you went.Imagine being free from the past, the one that is gone, the thing that holds you back from moving forward and living in the NOW. I challenge you to throw it away. Get rid of it so that it doesn’t weigh heavily on you. What are you left with when you do that. A blank canvas to write whatever future you wish to have… that’s what it leaves you with. Forgiveness is not easy and with a little practice everyday, it will make a difference in your life.

I take George’s comment this way. By practicing forgiveness, it will certainly make you a stronger person. By not forgetting and using it as a warning to not get caught up again in that kind of a circumstance, it is useful. It reminds us NOT TO GO THERE AGAIN.

So to forgive and forget can give us freedom to go on and live a happy and fulfilling life. Create your day with your intentions clearly embedded in your mind before you even get out of bed. Practice forgiveness a little each day… the process gets easier the more you do and remember that attitude of gratitude leads to a life of abundance.

Dedicated to Success.

Well I have to say that I am still buzzing from the Free Hugs day out in Melbourne. I know that this is something that is not for everyone and that’s okay. I would recommend it to all of you if you could take some time out as it did leave me feeling like I had made a difference in the lives of those that came my way… even the ones who took a wide berth, lol.

My six year old daughter wanted to join me on the day and seeing as though I had never done it myself before Monday, I wasn’t sure whether it would be appropriate for her to come along, so I sent her to school instead. It also happened to be the week of dress rehearsals for her first school concert. Imagine how excited I was as a parent to know that my baby girl would perform in front of 1500 people at one of Melbourne’s best concert halls

It’s quite a large school for what we call a primary school, I think around 550 students in all, and at the same time, there is a real sense of community amongst all the parents and children alike. So tonight we went to see the show that they had been preparing for the last couple of months with rehearsals 3 times a week. It was quite spectacular in some parts. They performed in a graduated order from the preps through to the grade sixers.

There were singing and dancing performances of course, and even the 17 x table, but the one that stood out the most for me (aside from my daughters grade of course) was the grade 4 level who performed circus tricks and did it quite well even though there were some that dropped their tokens occasionally whilst juggling.

It was really cool to see the parents and other family members clapping and cheering on the children as they went through the routines as it made it easier of course for the performers to do their thing.

The night ended with one of our national songs called We Are Australian (original, I know). Here is a small excerpt of the song:

We are one but we are many
And from all the lands on earth we come,
we share a dream,
And sing with one voice,
I am, you are, we are Australian

and this got me thinking that we are one in a spiritual sense. We come from all the lands on earth and we are all the same. We all have fears and challenges at times we have to face, and even though we have different colored skin, hair and eyes and a different set of circumstances, we are all connected through this vast universe of ours. If we face those fears and challenges head on and overcome them, we grow as people and a society.


Make a Difference

Something that I learned from the Landmark Forum is that when we meet somebody new, we always try to look good to avoid looking bad and the barriers shoot up straight away. We try to make the best impression possible because the fear of being rejected is so natural that we tend to get defensive without knowing it and after a while, the defenses shut down and we start to relax a bit. We are all the same.

Take out the word Australian from the end of that song and replace it with one, it will apply to all of us as one.

I want you to try something for me and you are most welcome to let me know how you go. The next time you walk down the street and you make eye contact with someone, give them a smile. It will go a long way and make a difference to their day. Who knows, you may even get a smile back

May You Be Blessed

Ange

Hey… I have been rather tied up of late and have unfortunately not been here for a while.  Actually, I am about to embark of the Landmark Advanced Forum tomorrow, so that will take me out of action for a few more days still.

 

I just wanted to come in and let you know what was going on and to say that all is well and I will get back onboard soon with some new and exciting articles for you.

 

In the meantime, have a look at the Landmark Education website found at http://www.landmarkeducation.com  as it well worth your time to investigate this phenomenon further.

 

Yours in Prosperity

 

Ange

Something we learn from the Landmark Forum is to create a way of being rather than doing certain things.  Doing is a function of the body, whereas being is a function of the soul.

We often think that doing certain things will make us happy, like for example, the work we do or the activities we participate in.  Instead, being a certain way is what will make us truly happy.

You can choose to be happy, sad, ecstatic, depressed, strong or weak.  Do you see the difference?  These are all ways of being and by choosing to be, we can overcome our actions which put us in a state that we sometimes would rather not be in.

Be aware of the ways in which you choose to be and know that in an instant you can be whatever your soul truly desires.  Your life always expresses the result of your most dominant thoughts.

Yours in Prosperity!

Ange 

Landmark: An event marking an important stage of development or a turning point in history.

Attending the Landmark Forum has been a wonderful gift for me and I thank my friends Jo Allnutt and Rick Harrison for having the courage and generosity to introduce me to this education.

It is an education for living and I have never before seen in all the seminars I have attended, the transformation of people from Day 1 to Day 3.  Just to give you an idea, Day 1 seems totally boring and no-one gets anything.  Every one has no energy and can’t wait for the day to end.   It’s the longest day ever.  You know what it’s like being in a room with 250 strangers.  Everyone is just checking everyone else out.  All the voices in your head talk to you and say “I don’t want to sit next to him/her”… “I wonder if they’re single?”… “Oh no, late again and I have to sit right up the front… d’oh”.  You get the idea.

So… by Day 3, the atmosphere in the room has totally transformed and you can’t hear the leaders for all the chatter going on.  People are sharing their breakthroughs all over the room.  It has such a positive impact on the lives of people that they leave with a higher sense of motivation and confidence and a real sense of community amongst a sea of strangers.

You get all kinds of people from all walks of  life in the Landmark Forum from professionals to young people, to mums and dads.  In fact, on average, 160,000 people attend this education  every year in locations all over the world!  This is what others are saying:

“Running a business is a complex matter and the heart of any business is people. I have yet to see anything else that has such a positive impact on people’s ability to relate, communicate, and perform as Landmark.”

Paul Fireman Chairman and CEO Reebok International, Ltd. USA

“Call it The Landmark Forum or call it Landmark Education… this is basic training for the mind, the heart, and the soul. It is the most positive transforming experience I’ve ever been a part of. If you want miracles in your life, this is the way.”

Mikio Uekusa, President Akebono Corporation Tokyo, Japan

This is very powerful information to have and for what it’s worth, the more people that know about it, the better a place this world will be.  Check it out for yourself.

Yours in generosity!

Ange