All you need is trust and a little bit of pixie dust – Peter Pan

I was inspired once again while watching, of all things, the movie Finding Neverland.  

Johnny Depp plays renowned novelist and playwright J.M. Barrie, the creator of Peter Pan.  Mr. Barrie found his inspiration for the now infamous tale through a family of 4 boys that he met randomly one day in the park.  Throughout the movie, he tells the boys that you will never make your dreams become reality unless you truly believe it will happen and envisioning them coming true.

“It's not going to work if no one believes in him”

"He imagines life the way he wants it to be, and he believes in it long enough and hard enough, that it all appears before him"

"He just believes”

J.M. Barrie was quite accomplished in his day, despite his modest upbringing and his decision to pursue a career in literature, and much to the chagrin of his parents who wanted him to become a minister.

Score one more in favour of the powers of positive thinking :)

Now if I could just apply this philosophy to the other aspects of my life, I'd be all set.  Its working wonders for my career, however certain areas of my personal life are still lagging behind.

While I'm thrilled that I finally lost those elusive last 5 pounds, I'm not completely happy with the way I look, and more importantly the way I feel.  I still ride that diet and fitness roller-coaster, however now it’s a weekly ride as opposed to week long or month long bouts.  Progress ???

My weight loss is small but noticeable; I've had several clients and coworkers comment on it - and trust me, they're a tough crowd.  But I'm still not happy :(  Then again, I'm a woman … are we ever happy?

I sense some New Year's resolutions on the horizon, though as I pointed out last year, I typically don't do very well with a Band Aid solution to a lifelong problem.  And last year I proved myself right as I failed yet again to complete the tasks at hand.  I guess I did eventually, but nowhere near according to plan.

Each and every day I notice the commitment and dedication put forth by my fellow trainers, and while I feel inspired and somewhat awestruck, I still hear those rumblings in my head; how I could never do what they do, could never be that discipline, could never be THAT fit. 

Never is an ugly word :(

But 2012 will be different !!  Armed with my new-found knowledge on deliberate creation and the secret to success, I hope to incorporate these values into my physical and emotional beings; the intellectual being is already in a pretty good place ;)

The plan is not to lose any weight per se, but to actually be fit and healthy.  I still have zero control over food, and I still think about it nearly every second of every day.  These past few days have been a holiday food and booze free-for-all, and I feel utterly disgusted with myself.  And again, it’s not merely a matter of just indulging a wee bit and enjoying the Christmas season.  I’ve eaten and drank more in the past 3 days than most people do in a week.

This ride is taking its toll on my body, and while I’m still lucky enough to bounce back fairly quickly from these binges, one has to wonder how long my luck will last.  I’m tired of constantly feeling eater’s remorse … enough is enough.

In the tale of Peter Pan, Wendy tells Hook that in order to fly, you just think happy thoughts; and they lift you into the air.  Well … that and a bit of fairy dust.  The happy thoughts I can muster, now I just need to get a hold of some of that dust.

I do believe in fairies, I do, I do.

The mind is everything. What we think we become – Buddha

Wow, it's been a while ... since I've written in my blog that is.  The good news is I've been a busy little bee. Or is it beaver?  Either way I've been busy !!

Training is going great, and the even better news is I still love my job.  I doubled my training hours from October to November, but I still have a long way to go.  Like most things in life, there are tons of opportunities out there, you just have to go out and get it.

A friend saw a memo on my Blackberry a few weeks back that I had titled "Law of Attraction".  He inquired as to the meaning so I showed him the contents of it:

Fours Steps to Deliberate Creation:

1) Identify what you DON'T want.
2) From that, identify what you DO want.
3) Get into the feeling place of what you want.
4) Expect, listen, and allow it to happen.

I thought he would laugh at me or roll his eyes back in an "oh brother" type fashion, but it turns out he's a fan of the movement, for lack of a better word.  He claims to have used it to get to where he is today, and he's doing pretty damn well for himself.

He recommended another book to me, quite possibly the bible of all self-help books ever published.  It’s called Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill.  It was written in the 30's, making it a bit of a difficult read, but I'm muddling through it as best I can.  There is an updated version referred to as the 21st-Century Edition, however I decided to purchase the original publication and read it as it was intended.

The book teaches you not only how to achieve monetary wealth, but the author claims the philosophy taught in the book can be used to help individuals succeed in all lines of work and to do or be almost anything they want in this world.

Sweet :)

It took Mr. Hill over twenty years to research the book, and the contents are based on his close association with a large number of individuals who achieved great wealth during their lifetimes.

This new (to me) book has a slightly different mantra than the one quoted above.  Rather than having the reader believe riches will flow to you simply by closing your eyes tight, wishing really hard and envisioning it happening, this author explains that you have to work hard to get what you want in life.  Duh !!

He does however, reiterate the theory that you have to think positively and truly believe it will happen in order to succeed.  Part of his intonation is as follows:

Steps for Transmuting Desire Into Reality:

1) Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire.  Be definite as to the amount.
2) Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire.
3) Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire.
4) Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire, and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.

Notice the parts about giving something in return for the money, and creating and carrying out a plan ??  Perhaps it’s time to update my Blackberry memo.

He goes on to say you should write out your plan as stated above, read it out loud daily, and see and feel and believe yourself already in possession of the money.

I had begun to feel discouraged in my work :(  Yes, I was training and progressing with my work load, but quite literally at a snail's pace.  After reading just a few chapters, my outlook started to change.  I think I just needed a quick reminder, something to help me refocus my energies and correct my diminishing attitude.  What I needed was a good swift kick in the butt - no more woolgathering for me !!

With a shift in my mindset my clientele grew, as did my disposition.  And perhaps the best news of all is I'm feeling more positive and enthusiastic about my career prospects than ever before.  I have a new plan of attack, and I didn't even wait to jump on the resolution bandwagon.

To quote another famous Napoleon, Bonaparte that is ... "He who fears being conquered is sure of defeat".

I will not let fear defeat me ... the only thing I fear is spiders ;-)