The unofficial “father” of the life coaching industry, Tony Robbins has long been a household name.  And in my opinion, rightfully so.  His book Awaken the Giant Within: How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Destiny! has been acclaimed by many respected leaders as “must read” material.  Written in 1992, the book examines a large range of topics including goal-setting, neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), relationships, and personal finance.  To this day, many people credit Robbins and this book in particular for their financial and personal success.  Awaken the Giant Within is a practical, easy-to-read, life-changing book, which enables all of us to grasp the tools to release our full potential and awaken the giant in us all.

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So — I wish you all a happy, healthy, prosperous new year, full of gratitude, and love, and FUN!

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There are many hilarious and seriously heartwarming videos of their various “missions” on their website, which I highly recommend you visit.  They will put a smile on your face.

I hope you all are staying warm and enjoying this wonderful holiday season!

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“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
~ Albert Einstein

Holidays are such joyous times. It’s easier at this time of year for many of us to find the beauty, the miracle, in the smallest things.  In MJ Ryan’s Attitudes of Gratitude, we learn that our attitude is our choice, one thing over which we will always have control. As we approach the new year, it’s nice to keep this in mind.  Every cup is as half-empty as it is half-full, so may be the perception of our lives.  I’m hoping we can all make 2010 the year of miracles…the year of seeing all of the miracles all around us.

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“Gratitude helps us to return to our natural state of joyfulness,” Ryan writes, “where we notice what’s right instead of what’s wrong. It makes us feel complete, that we have everything we need, at least in this moment.”

Included in the book are many stories of noted, as well as ordinary people, many who had gone through sometimes unimaginably difficult hardships. A Buddhist monk who lived through several wars in Vietnam expressed that, “Suffering is not enough. Life is both dreadful and wonderful […] How can I smile when I am filled with so much sorrow? It is natural — you need to smile to your sorrow because you are more than your sorrow.”

In this important, now classic bestseller, Ryan shows us that it is a measure of our humanity to have the freedom to choose one’s own attitude, in any circumstance that life may throw at us.

And that makes all the difference.

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“How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and the strong—because someday in life you will have been all of these.”
~ George Washington Carver

Ah, the power of acceptance! We can all contribute to the flow of love through the universe.  All our energies make a difference in this world, through even the smallest or grandest acts of love.

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“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one.”

“We cannot do great things on this Earth, only small things with great love.”

It’s winter, the economic times are really tough for a lot us, and yet, almost all of us have the ability to help someone else who may have a greater need than our own.  Sometimes all of the sorrow and anguish that exists in the world can seem overwhelming.  We think, “what good can my small donation be?” Not so.  Everything helps.  And as we help others, we help ourselves.  Generosity, selflessness, is an act of our humanity.

As such, two completely modern, ingenious ways to give to charity came across my path this week.  One gives shoes to third-world children.  The other, gives books to the same needy kids around the world. Read a little bit about TOMS Shoes (every pair you buy, a pair gets donated), and Room To Read and the Fledgling Wine initiative launched between Crushpad and twitter (every $20 bottle of wine you buy, $5 goes to books for kids).

Happy winter to you all!

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“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.”

Often mistakenly attributed to Nelson Mandela, it is really the brainchild of Marianne Williamson, a spiritual activist, author, and lecturer, who has become something of an American Guru.  Perhaps the biggest selling self-help book of all time, A Return to Love was one of the first books ever endorsed by Oprah Winfrey and spent more than 39 weeks on the New York Times best sellers list.

And rightly so.

Her first of nine books, A Return to Love is based on her experiences as a teacher and lecturer on the self-study guide A Course in Miracles. Williamson shares her insights into how the practical application of love every day can provide an answer to the problems that confront us, whether these are in our relationships, our careers or our health.

The book is honest and inspiring, and it has changed many lives. Some have even described it as unearthing a treasure. We often forget that the concept of joy is also a part of the human condition. William explains that we must cultivate happiness.

I highly recommend A Return To Love, and hope that if you’ve not yet read it, you’ll enjoy it, too.  Here is the complete famed quotation to inspire you:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

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“Each person’s smile at a particular moment constitutes a unique event in the history of mankind.”
~ Rene Dubos

Life gains more meaning when we express our love for others.  It’s always easier to love the ones closest to us.  But on those gems of days when we feel just wonderful, walking down the street as if it were the best and only place to be, it’s possible to love even the strangers we come across.

Most of us know what it’s like to receive a surprise act of random kindness.

This is an easy one to give back.

A kind smile can change an entire day.

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First up is A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose.  The author of the incredible The Power of Now, Tolle’s A New Earth is a #1 New York Times Bestseller and was chosen by Oprah Winfrey for her book club.  In this book Tolle gives us the tools to get us to the place where we understand the benefits of raising our awareness, and more importantly, he actually gets us to want to do go do it.

From Publisher’s Weekly:

According to Tolle, who assumes the role of narrator as well, humans are on the verge of creating a new world by a personal transformation that shifts our attention away from our ever-expanding egos. This idea is well realized through Tolle’s remarkably well-paced narration. Naturally, the author understands his material so thoroughly that he is able to convey it in an enjoyable manner, but Tolle’s gentle tone and dialect begs his audience’s attention simply through its straightforward approach. Something about this reading just seems profoundly important, whether one agrees with the material or not, and listeners’ attention is sure to be captured within seconds of listening to Tolle’s take on the universe in which we live. Originally released in 2005, both book and audiobook were reissued when Oprah Winfrey chose the title for her book club this year.

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