Have you encountered a log-jam in your business channel? Do you feel that you have outgrown your current position? As I write this, the economy brings uncertainty with it… which is why this might just be time for a lateral career move.  Your new position may not be for more pay… but in the long run, you will be happier if you’re not bored or pigeon-holed into one area of expertise.

Moving to avoid or alleviate stress

Sometimes you just don’t sync with your boss or even your boss’s boss. Ask yourself if it would be worth changing jobs to work for someone else. This can make your work day more pleasant and your mind less stressed when you are off the clock. If despite all effort, you simply do not know how to please your boss or be on the same page, then a lateral career move seems pretty straight forward. It is not worth the stress to work for someone that you have tried repeatedly to work with but cannot. And this can be no-one’s fault. Sometimes personalities and/or workstyles simply do not meld. It’s better to move on than to make both of your lives miserable, or to struggle against the grain each day just to bring home a paycheck.

Moving with the changing times

I have friends that have been in the same position with the same company for over ten years. Though there is something to be said of job stability, the changing times bring changing priorities. Who is to say that such careers will go on indefinitely? Many companies are going “leaner” these days – eliminating positions entirely, consolidating job responsibilities so that one person may be responsible for many more tasks than previously known. If you’re concerned about job stability, a lateral career move will put you ahead of the game by allowing you to get new skills under your belt that may make you a hot commodity for another position, maybe even with another firm. Don’t pass up the chance to move sideways and, in doing so, broaden your horizons and make yourself even more marketable than before.

Moving to exercise your brain

Another reason to change positions and make a lateral career move: you do not feel challenged in your current job. In all of us, there is an inert need to continue growing and challenging our minds. If the only changes in your job are employee turnover and the new rules set out by HR, then it might be time to start doing something else. Maybe it’s a career move in your own company.  Maybe it’s doing the same job with a different company. Or, maybe, just maybe, it’s a completely different career path. Any way that you look at it, changing things up in your career will open new doors and bring new challenges and opportunities.

Moving to provide for your family

The lateral career move decision might also be simply for your family. If you and your spouse believe that the only way for your children to get an education is in the public school system and you do not feel comfortable with your public schools, it might be time to move to a new city. Whether it’s to someplace nearby, or to someplace farther away but with a better cost of living, this could open up options that you had not before considered. Or you could be in a financial bind at the moment. If you feel that a move to a more cost effective area could benefit your family now and in the long run, the option of taking a lateral move might be in the cards.

Move to avoid not moving

In both government and corporate jobs, sometimes a “log jam” to get to the next level is so tight that it makes more sense to make a lateral move. I’ve talked to many people both professionally or personally that have had to make this career move. Especially if you really enjoy your job, it can be difficult to see the big picture. But if you’ve always seen yourself in a position much higher than the one that you currently occupy, it really does make sense to review your options. Corporations post jobs publicly, as does the government. Be sure to speak with people who are experienced in the field you’re interested in pursuing. It can really help in your decision making process.

Whether you’re entertaining the idea of a lateral career move or have already decided to pursue an opportunity, be sure to weigh all of your options. Take care not to burn any bridges… and make sure that above all else, you’re doing this for your personal benefit as well as for the betterment of you family and your future.

Have you made a lateral career move? We would love to hear your experiences in the comments below.

About the writer: this article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST.

More and more people are becoming aware that they have two distinct minds–the conscious and the subconscious. We are generally more aware of the conscious mind, because we spend most of our waking hours there, while we spend our sleeping hours in the subconscious mind. The conscious mind is like the tip of the iceberg that you see above the water, while the subconscious is below the surface.

We think, reason, decide, compute, and reason with our conscious mind. That would make it seem indispensable and far superior to whatever the subconscious mind does. And until recently, the vast powers of the subconscious mind remained fairly untapped. As science continues to explore its depths, we continue to learn more about its capacity as the quiet dynamo behind the conscious mind.

Imagine that the subconscious mind as the puppeteer pulling the strings of the conscious mind. It’s like an enormous warehouse storing all the experiences, impressions, ideas, lessons, and beliefs you’ve ever had. It’s like your computer’s hard drive, that is, if you save your data! And back it up. So when the conscious mind needs to make a decision, for example, it pulls up data from its storehouse or hard drive to help make an informed choice. Now all this is pretty much done unconsciously.

That’s where you can start to harness the power of your subconscious mind. By using it consciously and deliberately, to guide and influence you to make the best choices. And you do that by communicating with it. You ask it questions, offer up problems for it to solve, set up goals for it to achieve–so it can get to work to mine its reservoir to create answers, solutions, and actions. When you have a specific outcome you want to achieve–such as finding the ideal home for your family, or overcoming a health challenge–what you need to do is to tell your subconscious mind exactly what you want in full detail.

Then, leave the how to your subconscious. For not only is it a storehouse of all your life experience, it is also connected to an unlimited, infinite source through its connection to the universal mind, just as your computer is connected to millions of computers through the Internet. Initially, you program your subconscious mind through the conscious mind much as we put data on our hard drive. We read books, take courses, experience certain events–and all this gets recorded onto our subconscious mind. However, and this is a big however, a lot of things get programmed into the subconscious accidentally. For example, experiences we didn’t plan on, and thoughts we didn’t choose to entertain, and beliefs we formed based on misperceptions.

So if you are not getting the kinds of results you want in your life, it’s often in the faulty programming of your subconscious mind. The good news is that since you programmed it, whether accidentally or on purpose, you can re-program it at any time, so you can get the results you want. Although scientists have not come up with a way to simply “delete” unwanted thoughts as easily as you can delete files from your computer, you can override unwanted programming with more desired thoughts, ideas, and beliefs.

How you do that is by putting your undivided attention on what you want to accomplish. Think about your goals, visualize your goals, imagine them already achieved. When you hear any background noise in your mind with the old programming, let your new thoughts get louder and louder, until the negative messages get quieter and quieter. Adopt the attitude that you will not fail, that you will succeed, that there is no other option. And if temporary setbacks crop up, keep moving forward to your goals. Setbacks are just the result of your residual old thoughts. As they get quieter and the supportive thoughts get stronger, you will start to see concrete evidence in your results. When you harness the power of your subconscious mind, you are using your mind’s capabilities wisely and powerfully.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST.

Every day we communicate–whether orally or written. Not a day goes by that we’re not communicating in some way with someone. If you work outside your home, you communicate with the people you work with. Orally, you talk with your colleagues, you present information in meetings, or you train your staff. With writing, you send emails, memos, and letters. You create proposals, articles, or books.

If you work at home, you communicate over the phone as I do with coaching clients, or you call vendors, customers, or associates. You probably spend a lot of time on the Internet maybe communicating by email or through social networking sites, blogging, or your website.

And if you’re not in the active workforce, you converse every day with family, friends, merchants, and people in the community. You email, write letters, send birthday cards, or write in a journal, where you communicate with yourself.

With all this communication in your life, how effective do you think you are? Do people always get what you’re saying? Do they respond as you expect them to? Do they ask a lot of questions for clarification? Do they completely misinterpret your intentions?

There are so many ways we can mis-communicate that effective communication should be a subject taught at all levels of education. So if you’re looking to brush up on your communication skills, here are some tips on how you can get more accomplished in your daily communication:

1. Set clear intentions

If you’re really clear about your message, more than likely the receiver will get it. It’s when you’re ambivalent or murky about what you want to say, that your communication falls short. It comes across unclear and causes mis-understandings and mis-communications.

2. Speak in common terms

Avoid jargon, catch phrases, and acronyms. I just cringe when someone who’s very technical starts spouting the alphabet at me, like URL, or DIGG, or PPC. I honestly feel that the Internet has spawned a whole new language and someone needs to invent a dictionary.

3. Tailor your communication to your audience

If you’re giving a speech to an audience, you will need to tweak it for different audiences. Distinctions can be made for different genders, ages, industries, and interests. A client of mine used to give talks on finding an honest auto mechanic, and you can be sure her talk was different for male and female audiences. The same in daily communication. Surely you speak differently to your children, spouse, teachers, friends, and family.

4. Show respect when you communicate

Your messages will be much better received if you do not use put downs, judgment, blame, or any other negative language. If you are communicating upset or disappointment, you will be far more effective if you explain what you would have preferred to happen. If you want to continue a healthy relationship with the person you’re addressing, share responsibility for the upset and offer corrective measures.

5. Communicate from “I”

I learned this a long time ago when I studied Compassionate Communication. If you want to be more accomplished in your daily communication, make statements that use “I” when you want someone to do something, correct something, or make changes. For example, if you are displeased with a purchase and burst into the local bakery shouting, “Your French bread is crap. It’s tough as leather,” you’ll probably not get the result your looking for. Instead you might say, “I was disappointed with the French bread I bought. It wasn’t as fresh as I would have liked. I would appreciate a replacement.” You’ll probably get what you want this time. Of course, there are many instances where using “you” is very effective such as in marketing messages. “You will be so thrilled when you work with us…” which is much more effective than promoting with “I am so good that I will transform your life…” See the difference?

6. Listen — communication is a two-way street

There is a deliverer and a receiver. Whether you’re talking or writing, there is someone sending a message and someone listening to the message. When someone is speaking to you, listen intently so you can respond appropriately. Too many people get caught up in what they want to say next and don’t listen to the person speaking. When you write to someone, if you are responding to an email or a letter, listen to what they said before you write back. If you listen well, then people will offer you the same gift of listening to your communications.

With a little conscious effort and attention to the way you communicate, you will quickly become more accomplished in your daily communications.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST.

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We all know it’s not nice to lie. And most of us realize that, aside from the little white lies that get lumped under the innocuous (and incredibly flexible) heading of “social lubrication,” lying can be both negative and highly destructive.

But what about exaggeration? The average person would probably lump exaggeration in with lying, although most of us consider it more along the lines of a harmless and annoying fib than serious deceit. But that mindset may just need a bit of tweaking. In fact, a recent study shows that exaggeration, far from being either negative or destructive, may in fact be a vital part of our self-improvement.

According to psychology experts, lying causes stress and significant mental tension. People who are lying, and who have a vested interest in getting away with those lies, tense up when they lie, because trying to remember a lie and make it sound believable takes a lot of energy. But when people exaggerate, not only don’t they tense up, they seem more at ease when discussing those exaggerations than if they were talking about the truth.

This effect was discovered during recent study, published in the journal Emotion, which showed that students who exaggerated their grade point averages did not show the same levels of stress and tension when talking about their grades as they would have if they were lying about something, even when interviewers accessed the students’ actual grades with their permission. In fact, they were calmer than students who had reported their grades accurately. “It was a robust effect, the sort of readings you see when people are engaged in a positive social encounter, or when they’re meditating,” says Wendy Berry Mendes, senior author of the study.

What’s even stranger is that, upon follow up, researchers found that students who had exaggerated their grades later improved those grades – often by exactly the amount they had exaggerated them in the study.

So what’s going on? According to the experts, exaggeration isn’t lying so much as it is, “… an exercise in projecting the self toward one’s goals,” as Dr. Richard H. Gramzow puts it, in a recent NYT article (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/06/health/06mind.html?ref=science). We exaggerate not to get away with something, but to rehearse realities we’d like to create. And in doing so, we sometimes actually manage to make those exaggerated predictions come true.

In fact, it seems that exaggeration is a built-in mechanism for the ever popular “fake it ’til you make it” routine. We yearn for something so bad that we start acting, and talking, like it’s already true. But over time, wishing it were so (and the cognitive dissonance of it not being so) can lead us to making those dreams a reality. “Basically, exaggeration here reflects positive goals for the future, and we have found that those goals tend to be realized,” says Gramzow.

So the next time someone comes up to you and starts to tell you a fish tale of epic proportions, relax. Instead of becoming annoyed at their confabulation, look below the surface at what those exaggerations say about their hopes, dreams and desires. Who knows, you may just be getting a glimpse of their future.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog.

Creativity can be the act of bringing something new into this world. Or it can be the uniqueness of each person that sets them apart from others. In the first instance, you may be creating something with your hands like painting a picture, or with your mind like writing a book. Even though in this case to create is to bring forth, you can’t help but stamp all your creations with your uniqueness. Your picture won’t be like anyone else’s and neither will your book.

So in the act of creation, we are impressing the object with our creativity. We see this aspect of ourselves developing at a very young age. Do you remember your first creative endeavors? Did you build cities with your Lego blocks? Did you make up songs in your head? How did you express your creativity? And was it encouraged, supported, and appreciated? Or was it suppressed by ignorant teachers and critical parents?

Schools typically are set up for each student to conform to the rules and do everything the same as all the other students. I remember a girl in my 7th grade class who used pink to paint the sky, only to have the teacher say, “Skies are blue!” Well, we know paintings are interpretations of how the artist sees the world, so it’s a strong probability that girl never picked up a paint brush again.

And parents, unwittingly, may want one child to be like the others, failing to nurture their differences. “Why can’t you be more like your brother,” is a common phrase in many homes.

If you find yourself lacking in creativity, whether on the job or in your personal life, maybe it’s because you never had a safe outlet for it–either in the past or the present. At work when you come up with innovative ideas, you may have superiors who prefer the status quo. If that leaves you frustrated, you may choose to suppress your creative side and just go with the flow. But if you’re a bit of a rebel, you can continue to express your ideas and hope that someday someone will see your genius. Or you can leave the “security” of a job, and start your own business.

Entrepreneurs are most often a highly creative lot. That’s usually one of the main reasons they start a business, to express their creative ideas, to build something that is uniquely them. And here is one way you can use your creativity to carve out your niche in life. If you look at some of the great inventors, you’ll see that their creative urges propelled them forward even in the face of setbacks. Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford are all great examples.

In your personal life, you often express your creativity through hobbies and leisure activities. Whether it’s gardening, decorating, or sports, you do each in your own special way. You also carve out your niche in your personal life through your creative expression, which is visible in everything you do. How you dress, how you think, how you cook, how you talk. It’s all the little distinctions that make you who you are. Without it, you would be like everyone else and that would make for a boring world.

You are the creator of your world. You bring forth something into the world every day whether tangible or intangible. If you feel at all stuck or stifled in living a life filled with creative expression and creative pursuits, it’s time for you to take action.

Here are a few ways to tap into your latent creativity:

1. Spend some quiet time to get in touch with how you would like to carve out your unique niche
2. Take adult school classes or read biographies to get inspired
3. Have a brainstorming session with other creative friends
4. Join a special interest group
5. Talk to a life coach to help you find out where you shine

The world is waiting for you to emerge as your special self!

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog.

Image by Lakshmi Prabhala.

Here are five ways you can take control of your career and improve your professional life.

1. Open conversations with the upper echelon. Talk to those in charge about where they see the company going and how you can best support that. Find a mentor or two who can share their wealth of experience, guide you around hidden pitfalls and go to bat for you when the need arises. This is not about sucking up. It’s about opening the lines of communication and making yourself visible as someone who is taking active steps to be the best they can be.

2. Keep up with your education and training. Read books published in your field. Read books in related fields, and in general business and personal growth genres, as well. Take every opportunity to get more or advance training, even if you have to pay for it. Go back to school, if you can (check in with HR – companies often offer tuition and other help for employees willing to improve their education). And make a point to connect with and stay connected to those who are teaching you. This way, when opportunities arise you not only have the knowledge to take advantage of them, you have the contacts to help you nail the job down.

3. Volunteer for projects and other opportunities. Don’t wait to be picked – if the project or opportunity seems like a good fit, raise your hand and actively lobby for the position. You may have to bring in some support if the fit isn’t as obvious to others as it is to you (that’s where those mentors come in handy). But be careful not to take on projects that might actually be more of a distraction or a dead-end than a real career boost. Be picky, but be proactive.

4. Keep your own professional file. Keep track of the work you do and the results you achieve. Write these things down in clear, concrete terms (actual numbers are always better than generalizations and vague adjectives). Use this file to record any training, classes or other education, including your notes and contacts. Keep this record up to date and detailed. That way, if you ever need to rely on the information to secure a raise, a new position or a juicy opportunity, you have it at your fingertips rather than having to scramble to pull something together.

5. Build leadership skills. Nothing will improve your odds of getting what you want out of your professional life than a firm grounding in how to work with, inspire and direct people. Take classes and read books on the subject, and do what you can to put yourself in a position of leadership whenever possible. Rely on your mentors and trusted colleagues to help you make the best of these opportunities, and to give you feedback on what you’re doing right and wrong. Listen to any criticisms with a student mind, rather than a defensive or protective one. Remember that he who fails to listen will eventually cease to be told.

Of course, there are many other things you can do to proactively improve your career. Trent Ham offers some excellent suggestions in 10 Techniques to Take Control of Your Own Destiny at Work at The Simple Dollar personal finance blog. The key here is to think ahead and create a plan of action that puts you in the driver’s seat, instead of being a passenger in your own professional life. If you can do that, you’ll find yourself going where you want to go faster, easier and with a lot more confidence.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog.

Although you may not be studying information to get good grades, retention of what you are learning can help your career, your parenting skills, your business, your relationships, your hobbies, and so much more. So it makes sense to acquire good learning skills sooner than later. Skills such as speed reading and good comprehension are useful for all the great information you want to take in.

Here are some more secrets for improving your ability to learn. Most apply to classes, but you can adapt them to any learning situation.

1. Be Prepared. If you’re taking a class online or at a school, study the curriculum in advance so you know what to expect. Engage in necessary prep work like downloading software, getting a workbook, or setting aside the dates for the course.

2. Get and Stay Organized. If you’re a computer note taker, make sure you set up a file folder system that will enable you to find what you need when you need it. Learning good computer organizational skills will save you a lot of time and headaches. If you take notes by hand, keep them in a labeled binder so you can review them later. Keep any other course papers in the binder as well.

3. Be On Time. If you’re taking a teleclass (this is a class conducted via telephone), call in five minutes early. Clear your desk, and have your pen and pad or a new computer file open. For live classes, show up a few minutes ahead of schedule. When you’re on time, you will have your full attention focused on the class, and not on “catching up” with yourself and what you may have missed.

4. Take Good Notes. If you’re unable to listen and write at the same time, just listen and then write notes after the class is over. If it’s recorded, you can review the class and take notes then. You can also ask the teacher for his/her outline, summary, or notes. Review your last class notes before your next class.

5. Establish Your Learning Style. Which is your best and preferred learning style: visual (reading), auditory (listening) or kinesthetic (doing)? When you know your learning style, take classes that incorporate that style. For example, audio learners keep CDs in their car to turn traffic jams into productive time. Book learners may keep a notebook handy to take notes and read as they exercise on the stepper machine or treadmill. When you study, do you need silence or do you enjoy having music playing in the background? Knowing how you learn best improves your effectiveness.

6. Ask Questions. If you’re taking a course online or in a school, make sure to jot down questions as they come up and ask them when you have a chance. I’ve always believed there are no dumb or silly questions. If you need clarification, you won’t continue learning until you have your questions answered. Most instructors see questions as a sign of an alert, intelligent mind.

7. Complete All Assignments. Stay current with your assignments and complete each one. If you’re reading a self-help book, do all the exercises. If you miss a class, find a way to get the assignments–from another student or the teacher. Online classes are often recorded, so make sure to listen to the recording if you can’t make a class.

With information coming at us from so many directions and in so many formats, it’s difficult to sort out what’s important. It’s even more difficult to retain data with so much to store in our brains. Ultimately we have to be more selective in what we choose to learn, and we need in order to develop effective learning habits. Having good study habits can help.

Do you have any tips that weren’t mentioned above? Please share them in the comments below.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog.

Careers and love fulfill us in different but important ways. Having a solid career gives us a sense of accomplishment and self worth, aside from the practicalities of paying the bills. Many people develop their entire identity based upon what they do, elevating their career to a level of great importance in their lives.

Then there are those who measure their success in terms of having a pleasant and rewarding home life. They develop their identities based upon the accomplishments of their children, and derive their self worth through the love and support of a spouse.

So what happens if you cannot or do not wish to make room in your life for both? While the happiest and healthiest people have managed to develop a work life balance that allows for both, it may not be for everyone. Consider these factors when pondering which is more important for you.

1. Your Career May be More Important When You are Young

Many people these days focus on careers first and family later. The reasoning is that, while you are young and unencumbered, you have the time and energy to fully devote yourself to a career. If you have lofty career ambitions while you are young, it may indeed be the time to start making progress towards those goals.

Once you get married and begin to build a family, much of your time and energy – by necessity – becomes devoted to your family. This is as it should be. You should not start a family unless you are willing to devote time and attention to your loved ones.

Many people who accomplish great success in their careers when they are young, and establish themselves in a secure position, are then more willing and comfortable later on to devote themselves to family. By the time they do settle down, they are more prepared to handle the responsibility.

2. Falling in Love can be Better When You are Older

More and more people these days are choosing to wait when it comes to making decisions about family. It is not unusual for people to delay marriage until their late 30’s or even their early 40’s. Delaying family decisions allows you to be better prepared for those obligations, and creates a better likelihood that you are in touch with your most important goals and values. You have had the opportunity to completely grow up, greatly reducing the chances of feeling like you are “missing out.” You have had the chance to purge the foolishness of youth from your system and are now confident with the wisdom of maturity.

3. Choosing Both

If you can find a work life balance that allows you to experience the joys of love and maintain a successful career, you will have a truly happy and rewarding life. A loving family at home can help you celebrate all of your successes, and bolster your confidence through your failures. There are many people out there reaping the tremendous rewards that come with including love and work in their lives, and finding the balance that allows for both.

A life that only has room for a career, or that includes a consuming love that stifles your personal development, is likely not a lifestyle that is healthy or fulfilling. Our personal needs and feelings of self worth need to be met, which is normally gained from having a good career. Our hearts and souls need to be nourished, and we need companionship to support us through life, which normally are derived from loving relationships.

The truly healthy and well balanced person will recognize the benefits of having both. He or she will take steps to achieve the work life balance necessary to assure the continuation of career growth while nurturing and maintaining the health of personal relationships. It is only when we can maintain this delicate balance that we are living life to its greatest potential.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog.

Image by Dirty Feet.

Depending upon our life experiences, each one of us has a different definition of abundance, much of which is learned during childhood. We are taught at an early age to either want for nothing or yearn for more. We learn how to react to those who have much more than us, and we develop our thoughts and attitudes about sharing with the less fortunate. We decide which things we hunger for the most, many times based upon those things that we lacked early in life.

As we grow and develop, we are constantly bombarded by messages regarding wealth, power, money, and greed. Magazines, newspapers, television, and movies all express society’s thoughts regarding such matters, and as time has progressed, we have developed into a more materialistic society. More emphasis has been placed on the ownership of elaborate possessions and such things as spirituality and family values seem to have been cast aside.

This sets us up for great disappointments, since we are taught that we can never have enough. It leaves us striving to reach an ambiguous and unattainable goal – to have “enough.” Yet there is never any definition of what enough truly is.

Happiness in life and an internal feeling of fulfillment come with the achievement of intangible goals, and sometimes we receive the greatest enjoyment out of those actions which help others in need. When we accumulate so much in life in the way of money or personal possessions, it makes it difficult to appreciate those things. However, when we live by more modest means and experience abundance only occasionally, it makes the experience so much sweeter and the enjoyment so much greater. For this reason, our goals of personal development should direct us to a modest lifestyle that allows for true appreciation of our successes, rather than establishing an unfulfilling expectation of constant abundance.

Find Your Definition of Abundance

To help you accomplish this, look to your childhood. What things did you have during your childhood, and what things did you lack? Are your goals for attaining personal possessions or power right now based upon those things you did not have as a child? What feelings do those possessions evoke? Determine which feelings regarding materialistic possessions you still carry with you, which ones have transformed, and why certain feelings have changed. By understanding the origins of your feelings regarding possessions, you will be able to make necessary changes that will restore your life to greater balance.

Determine the Cost of Abundance

Having an abundant supply of personal possessions comes at a great cost, and you need to evaluate whether that cost is really worth ownership of such belongings. Cost involves much more than the monetary aspect of owning personal possessions. Time away from the family, missing your children’s milestones as they grow, loss of sleep, and deteriorating health are all costs associated with maintaining personal possessions.

There is no doubt we must all provide for our basic needs and the needs of our families, but when the importance of owning possessions eclipses the importance of our own personal health and the well-being of our relationships, it is time to reevaluate our values and bring them more in line with reasonable expectations.

Balancing Your Needs with Your Desires

As with most things in life, the best way to achieve happiness is to find a healthy balance. Determine those things you need in life in order to have a comfortable and fulfilled life with your family. Then make a list of your desires – those things above and beyond your basic needs that make your life more comfortable and more enjoyable.

Determine what it would take for you to achieve your basic needs, then determine what you would need to do in order to obtain your desires. Look at the consequences to your personal and emotional well being as a result of attempting to achieve all of your desires.

Finally, balance your lists. When you are setting your goals, ensure all of your family’s needs are met. Then allow for the addition of some of the extras. Ensure you leave yourself personal time for sleep, exercise, and family interaction.

By allowing yourself to experience abundance occasionally rather than pushing to perpetually achieve it, your life will have a greater work life balance. You and your family will have a much greater appreciation for those times when you do get to enjoy life’s little extras, but you will have the proper emotional support and family network to provide you with the greatest satisfactions life has to offer.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog.

Image by tanakawho.

When many people think of spirituality their minds automatically go to religion. This is not, however, an entirely accurate understanding of what spirituality is. Having spirituality simply means believing in something greater than yourself. It can be incredibly powerful to have a sense of spirituality in your life, and very often it can haul you through the difficult times in your pursuit for success, happiness, and fulfillment.

Your sense of spirituality may involve the divine. Our society is rooted in the belief of a supernatural, omnipotent being who oversees our personal destinies. Other people shirk these beliefs and prefer to take destiny into their own hands, and in choosing spirituality invoke the aspects of nature or the cosmos rather than an all-knowing religious icon.

Spirituality is deeply personal in nature. It serves to rejuvenate and enlighten the soul and feed the human spirit. It helps guide our decisions in life and helps to direct our conscience. Recent surveys have shown that the vast percentage of society holds religious or spiritual beliefs. It is also interesting to note that a majority of these people have broken from childhood teachings in order to seek out a belief system that holds greater personal meaning to them.

It is important to examine your own heart and soul and determine what you believe in. Seek out your own spirituality, and take time to honor it each day. Doing so will provide you with a new-found inner peace and resolve, no matter how crazy or hectic your life becomes. Developing your own spirituality helps give you the emotional resolve you need in your quest for self improvement.

Go to Church

If you are having trouble finding your spiritual side, try going to church. If you choose not to associate with any particular belief system, there are now a number of non-denomination churches that focus solely on one’s relationship with God, without invoking the beliefs of any one sect. This may be the exact formula you need in order to develop your spiritual beliefs in a manner you feel comfortable with. If you were raised in a particular church but have just gotten away from attending, try going back. Many churches now offer evening and Saturday services to accommodate busy lives, and the associations you make away from work help ensure you maintain a work life balance in your personal relationships.

Commune with Nature

For those with a more naturalistic side, try getting out and just taking in the beauty and power of the world around you. Go to the beach and allow the power of the ocean waves crashing on the shore amaze you, or take a walk in the woods and focus on the smell of the trees and the earth, the sounds of the birds, and the warmth of the sun. Taking the time to put yourself in the world around you, rather than merely living on it, awakens the depths of your soul to the realization that life is so much bigger and more powerful than we are. It helps bring some perspective into a crowded, busy life. Suddenly that intimidating boss seems so much smaller in comparison.

Meditate

Sometimes finding your spirituality is as simple as communing with yourself. Take time to quiet your mind and allow the rest of the world to disappear into nothingness. Engaging in soul-nourishing activities such as meditation and yoga help cleanse the spirit and rejuvenate the mind.

Any of these activities can put you in touch with forces greater than your own individual existence. They can remind you of the amazing forces at work in the world and help you to channel them so you can tap them when your own energy begins to wane. Spiritual and personal development should begin with the goal of creating a better work life balance, enabling you to achieve success in both your personal and professional lives.

When you discover your own spirituality, in whatever form appeals to you and nurtures you, will help give your achievements and your endeavors to get there so much more depth and meaning. Your personal relationships will become more satisfying and rewarding, and you will begin to live as a part of the world around you rather than just as an occupant walking on the face of it.

This article was written by David B. Bohl – Husband, Father, Friend, Lifestyle Coach, Author, Entrepreneur, and creator of Slow Down FAST. For more info visit his blog at Slow Down Fast blog. Image by Carf.

Book Giveaway Winners

The winners of A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen are: Bones, Chris K, Cathy, Josh, Brian, Asrai, Hunter Nattall, Nez, Meredyth, Shaun, Miles, James Chartrand, Bradley, Kira and Ann_C. Thank you all for your wonderful comments – it was hard to pick just 15. No giveaway this week, but we will be sure to have another one soon.