Inspire Yourself !

3 simple ways to get in touch with creativity
by Jen Tartaglione

When you think of the word "creativity," you probably have a picture in your mind of a mad scientist creating a Frankenstein, or Jackson Pollack splattering paint on a canvas. Creativity is a broad term encompassing everything from the arts and sciences down to a child crafting their own fantasy world on a playground. But what does creativity mean in your life? How can it help you reach your goals?

Put simply, a spark of creativity is enough to inspire us to persevere through hardships and turmoil, whether it's a breakup, loss of a job or if you're just stuck in a rut of monotony. A spark of something new is exciting and can ultimately set you off on a path that maybe you hadn't thought of before. Try out these tips to get the creative juices flowing in your life!

Morning Ritual
You may not be thrilled to roll out of bed when your alarm starts ringing, but morning is the part of our day when we are fresh and rejuvenated. Start your day by writing down everything on your mind in a journal. Worries and insecurities from the day before, interesting dreams you had, or even what's in store for you in the day ahead - whatever's on your mind, write it down uninhibited! Stream of consciousness writing allows everything repressed inside of you the opportunity to get out in the open. This will give you perspective and insight as to the state of affairs in your life, as well as your future goals.

Do art
You may remember this activity from grade school, but collages are a great way to express yourself as an adult - your likes and dislikes - in your own unique way. Instead of spending big on a new coffee table, why not take your old one and make an interesting spread of your favorite photographs? If you're into music, make collages of CD artwork and frame them on your walls. If you really want to do something artsy and fun, make yourself a vision box - take a box and decorate it with collages of things you like and then keep personal mementos or personal goals stored inside. Whatever it is that strikes your fancy, collages are simple ways to inspire you.

Wander
Most likely, when you leave your house, you know exactly where you're going and how to get there - probably opting for the shortest distance. But life is too short to focus on reaching just Point A and Point B. Oftentimes when we get lost or allow ourselves to wander, we discover new places we never noticed or new ideas we never got in touch with. Set aside time each week to just wander - go for a walk, ride your bike, whatever - and make a conscious effort to take in everything around you. Colors, smells, sounds - maybe you never saw the community garden near your house, maybe you never tried that hole in the wall Thai restaurant or maybe you never noticed the used bookstore down the street. If you set aside the time to get lost, you're bound to find new things you just never had the time to see.

Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. -Franklin D. Roosevelt

Creativity is not just about painting a timeless work of art or writing the novel of a generation - rather creativity is an expression of yourself, helping you to enrich your life with the added pleasures that are unique to you.

How to Love without Fear !

"Nine times out of ten we're our own best psychic! But people find it hard to listen - even to themselves - if they hear something they just don't want to hear. Clients hang up on psychics when they are given information that doesn't fit in with their beliefs," divulges Randall ext. 9228. "They are so stuck in the past that they have no room for the now." This is the enlightenment he shared with a client who was divorced and in her mid-30s.

With 20 years of experience and more than 100,000 readings (he keeps records) under his belt, the Clairvoyant, Empath and Shaman (who studied with elders of the Blackfoot nation) explains, "It's when we learn to die daily, as my Native American grandmother used to say… or just let go of old thoughts, things, clothes or even change the furniture around occasionally, that we make room for making better choices."

Irene (not her real name), was fearful of getting hurt by the new man in her life, even though she honestly could not find a solid reason for her fears. As a divorced teacher, she had met a seemingly wonderful man at a teacher's convention and they had immediately fallen into friendship. Before long, friendship turned to love and that's when Irene called Randall.

"I am suspicious of Adam (not his real name)," Irene told Randall. "I don't know why, but I think he's cheating on me. Is he?" she asked the psychic who gets impressions about what's going on around a caller from their voice.

"This is a common question," Randall admits, "and a very serious one. I use all of my gifts and tools to make sure that I don't lead anyone in this situation the wrong way. If I am wrong, there can be damage or repercussions."

"I immediately got the feeling that this was a good guy. I can read the energy of a person's intimacy and they seemed to be well connected. The first thing that happens when I get on the phone is I get a visual. I can see, pick up sounds and even scents. I also looked into Adam's astrology and saw a good connection between them. Usually I can see 'a wolf in sheep's clothing', someone who is manipulative or deceptive. I see a gray cloud over that person's head, but with Adam it just wasn't there. I did pick up that there had been cheating, but I got a strong sense of it having happened in Irene's past," Randall indicated.

Irene admitted that after ten years of marriage, her ex-husband had run away with his secretary. That had happened five years earlier. When he finally assured her that he saw nothing in her new relationship to warrant any suspicions, Irene asked Randall to look into Adam's future to see if he was capable of cheating on her. In analyzing his astrology Randall found no indicators of cheating in his birth chart. To help her be rid of her negative energy, Randall suggested that she burn frankincense, sage or sweet grass and meditate on following her heart.

"The next call I got was from Adam, but I didn't know this," Randall remembers. "The caller asked me about the state of his relationship with his girlfriend and I used the same words to describe their relationship as I had used with Irene. He was amazed! As I spoke to him I was able to give him even more validation about the reading. Someone from the other side was coming in - my hair still stands up on the back of my neck when I talk to someone else's dead relatives," admits Randall, who has traded psychic methods with John Edwards in the past. "I told Adam that a large older woman who wore a cross around her neck had recently died in a suspicious manner. He agreed. When I told him it was suicide, he said I was correct. His mother had died just six months ago, from an overdose of prescription medication."

Adam explained that he had also called to thank Randall for the solid advice he had given Irene. Randall explained that he would have to help her put aside her fears. Adam told Randall that perhaps it was time for him to share something painful from his own past - he too had been cheated on.

"The next time I heard from Irene, she was still dealing with her fears. She really loved him and he was almost too good to be true. She was afraid of making any moves forward in the relationship. She wanted me to check every which way that I could that Adam would be faithful to her. I did - and I also gave her an affirmation to repeat with breathing exercises: The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."

Randall recently received an appreciative call from the couple. "They now believe that they are on the road to everlasting love and grateful that I was able to put them on this path. I reminded them that they had made good fearless choices - that these choices take us where we ultimately want to be!"

Make A Decision - Any Decision!

Tips for making up your mind
by M. McMahon

Should you move or stay put? Should you quit your job or hold out for a promotion? Should you re-commit to your partner or go your separate ways? Whether the big questions - or just deciding what to wear - always have you stumped, learn to say hello to your inner decision maker and say goodbye to wishy-washy thinking. Here are some tips for making up your mind and getting on with your life!

Trust your first thought
If you think of yourself as someone who can't make up their mind - you're wrong. Your mind makes itself up in a fraction of a second. Trust your first thought. It sounds so simple, yet we debate ourselves to death. Your mind and spirit know the direction of your heart, all you have to do is follow it. Everyone's got a story of giving a situation another chance when they had a feeling from the start that things just didn't feel right. But they mistrusted their first thought and hung in there and lived to regret it.

Please yourself
Decisions made purely to please someone else breed resentment. Decisions to please yourself raise your self-esteem and stop feelings of victim hood. If you have been in a pattern of pleasing others, this might shake up the people around you. But taking care of yourself first leads to relationships with healthy boundaries and more room for growth and joy.

Inner wisdom
Know that your inner life is not determined by decisions made about the physical world.It may feel like this is the biggest decision of your life. It's not. The biggest decision you make everyday is to live in the moment, fully present. If your peace rests on the physical world, you will live in a nightmare of trying to control the outcome of all your decisions. The matter at hand is important, but it cannot dictate your inner happiness and peace. You must detach from the outcome of all of your decisions.

No big deal
Everyone knows not to sweat the small stuff, but real freedom comes when you don't sweat the big stuff. Making decisions out of fear and scarcity only leads to more fear and more scarcity. There is plenty for you in this world. There is plenty of time to reach your goal. There are plenty of people to help you.

Take the first step
Start by defining the decision that is before you TODAY. Not in the future or heaven forbid replaying a decision from the past. Everyone who accomplished anything in their lives will tell you they did not know every step they needed to take to get to their goal. So, take that first step before you know the entire map. Your feet will be shown the way.

Clarity is the light that shines through indecision. Each time you trust yourself in a decision, your intuition - that first thought - grows stronger and stronger. Decisions made to please others feel like lugging rock up a hill. Trusting in yourself is like letting go of the rock and climbing the rest of the mountain light and free.