Do You Feel You Set Your Goals Too High?

The beauty of goal setting is that it helps expand your imagination. Setting a goal should stretch you in terms of dreaming big but not break you. There's a difference between dreaming big and dreaming the impossible.

Its amazing  how many times students say, "I seem to set my goals too high and then I'm never able reach them." Have you ever felt that way? Are your goals just out of reach?

Setting a goal means that you now have something to aim and work toward. You can now focus your time and energy toward something you want to achieve - you are now focused on the future. Dreaming big should be motivating, not discouraging.

The purpose of a goal is to give you focus and direction. A well-written goal will help you aim at those things that are productive, empowering and exciting. A goal is too high if:

• The time in which you decide to achieve it is too short and/or unrealistic.
• It is physically, emotionally or mentally impossible to achieve.
• You do not believe you are worthy, deserving or able to achieve it now or in the future.

A huge part of goal achieving revolves around belief - belief in yourself and the ability to stay the course to make your personal and professional wants and desires reality.

Have you taken a good hard look at your goal achieving belief system:

What do you believe about your ability to finish what you start?

What do you believe about your ability to step outside of your comfort zone and try new things?

Do you truly believe that you are a worthy and deserving of achieving and enjoying the good things in life?

What do you believe about being successful and enjoying the rewards of success?

A goal is not too high if:

• You believe in yourself,
• It is within the realm of possibility to reach,
• You have a burning desire to achieve this goal and,
• You work toward achieving it consistently and in positive ways!

A well thought out and well written goal takes your big dreams and gives them the ability to become reality. This quotation by Ralph Vaull Starr probably says it best:, "Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul. Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal."

So You Think You're Not Creative, And You Dont Care ?

OK, hang in there for a minute with me... just a minute...

What does the word 'creative' mean and why does it matter? One definition of creativity from dictionary.com is "resulting from originality of thought, expression, etc." This definition is just perfect because  it means everyone is creative; everyone has original thoughts and ideas. Where people get hung up is during the expression of those thoughts and ideas. Expressing the idea can take many forms, from speech-making to painting a picture to composing music to putting together our own unique style to cooking a new recipe to painting your bedroom bright orange...you get the picture!

Why is all this important, especially to women and girls? Besides being fun, one very important reason is because there is an innate connection between creativity and intuition. How do these two connect in a meaningful way? Being able to express our creative idea in a manner that stays true to our original idea is an exercise in self-esteem building. Learning to rely on our intuition is a key element to building self-esteem. And all this starts in the brain, specifically in the right side of our brain. Our culture, indeed our world, values left brain thinking (logic, structure, verbal skills, fact-based decision-making). Therefore, from an early age, our right brain (creativity, perception, visual, spatial), gets ignored and over time, becomes figuratively 'flabby' from underuse, if not stimulated. Our educational system focuses almost entirely on left brain functions in math, science, and language. Due to the need to increase or maintain student scoring in these areas, as well as a lack of funding, the focus on 'right-brain' curriculum such as art and music is greatly reduced or eliminated all together.

So, how does all this work? Well, the right brain comes up with an idea; the idea can be related to a DIY project, solving a problem at work, the arts, how to resolve a conflict, etc. If you are inspired to action by the idea, the brain then comes up with way(s) to express the idea. The brain also edits the different ways it might express the idea, as well as the actual expression of the idea, to make sure the end product really does convey the original idea. As we work through this process, we unconsciously store the experience of the process in our knowledge bank where it can be recalled later, partially through intuition, in another idea expression experience.

Consciously choosing artistic ways to exercise creativity and intuition puts both into overdrive! Now, you may be saying "but I can't even draw a stick figure"! I say forget that internal negative voice and go with the flow! If you don't know where to start, you can begin with something as simple as a doodle coloring; you know, the thing you did when you were a kid where you drew connecting squiggles all over the paper and then chose your favorite colors to color in each area? Yeah, that one! First, draw the squiggles all over the paper. Now, consciously choose your favorite colors and begin to color in the areas. While you're doing this, think about how nothing you do in this exercise can be 'wrong'; connect with your 'inner child' and let it flow! When you're done, put your picture in a prominent place...on your desk, on the front of the fridge, anywhere you can see it and continue to reconnect with the experience.

A Youth's Time out With God !

Although you've blessed me

with a heart full of good intentions

I know there have been times

when I have disappointed you


At times I have acted selfishly

At times I have been judgmental

At times my pride got in the way

allowing precious moments to slip away

untouched by my sense of compassion


Thank you for blessing me

with a heart full of good intentions

and for the strength to recognize

I have received far more than I have given


I vow to try harder

to think before I speak harshly

to show my softer side more often

to share laughter and catch falling tears

to accept others for who they are

to live honestly and completely

to love myself and to make you proud of who I've become

What Your Handwriting Says About You!

Handwriting analysis is truly an intriguing concept. It is a technique (similar to body language) used to interpret

human behavior in areas such as achievement/work habits, thinking styles and even social skills. You

 can also analyze doodles, drawings, paintings and sculpture. This skill can be used for many purposes including: recruiting, marriage compatibility, career guidance, child development, etc.  Sylvia Friedman, a certified Handwriting Analyst in Chicago,  in a recent interview talked about how the process works.

Sylvia explains, “Your handwriting is the blue print of your brain. How you think, feel, behave- your personality- comes through in handwriting. Many companies use me for the hiring process. HR can interview someone and they are pretty intuitive, but there are a lot of things they can’t see. When I do an evaluation for a company, I give the pros and cons after a candidate submits 3 pages of “their story” to me. I write a report on whether I think the person is a good fit for that particular job. Handwriting is a very powerful tool!”

Try it out on yourself or a friend! In cursive, write a 1 page letter about your life. Compare your handwriting to Sylvia’s criteria and see if it unlocks any secrets… According to Friedman: HANDWRITING ANALYSTS LOOK AT A NUMBER OF THINGS…

SIZE

·         Small handwriting- research-oriented, good concentration, methodical, not always social

·         Large handwriting- people oriented, outgoing, outspoken, love to entertain and interlock Right in the middle- you like to be with people, but value your own time

·         SPACING Good deal of space- you need your freedom, to do things in your own time, don’t like to be overwhelmed or crowed.

·         Very little space- it shows a tremendous about of irritability and constant pressure on yourself HOW LETTERS ARE SHAPED

·          Rounded letters- indicates creativity, artistic abilities (writing, painting, acting, etc.)

·         Pointed letters- shows you are more aggressive, intense, very intelligent, curious

·         Connected letters- you are logical, systematic, make decisions carefully LOOPING Loopy handwriting- very social individual, huge imagination, sensitive to criticism

·         Not loopy- more isolated, reclusive, within themselves

·     

            DOTTING YOUR I’s

·         Right over the I- attention to detail, organization, emphatic in what you say or do

·          High over the I- shows great imagination To the left- procrastinator

·         Circle your I’s- visionary,

·         child like Slashing it- overly self-critical, don’t have a lot of patience for inadequacy or people that don’t learn from their mistakes, irritation

CROSSING YOUR T’s

·          Right in the middle- you are personally safe Short crosses- shows a lack of determination

·         Long crosses- great determination and enthusiasm, can be stubborn

·         Very top of T- you’re an idealist, ambition, good self-esteem

·         Cross downward at the top- you dominate your environment, authoritative nature O’s Open- you are talkative, social, able to express your feelings, have little secrecy Closed- you are very personal, limited sharing of your personal feelings, introvert

LEAD IN’S OR EXCESS FLOURISHES

·         Lead in’s (or excess flourishes) - shows family orientation is important to you

·         Lack of lead in’s (or excess flourishes)- you tackle problems in a direct, practical way, unhampered by sentimentality

 MARGINS

·         Writing all over the page- you can’t relax, constantly thinking

·         Left hand margin- you live in the past

·         Right hand margin- you are always looking towards the future

PRESSURE

·         Tremendous pressure- very intense, may have some evil qualities, aggressive, blow up easily

·          Average or light pressure- laid back, go with the flow

DOODLES

·          Boxes- you need structure, stability and order

·         Flowers- idealistic, romantic, creative Triangles- perfectionist, structured, people that feel stuck- don’t risk easily

·         Circles- dreamer, creative, takes thinks personally, visionary

·         Smiley faces- illusionary, wanting life to be beautiful, optimistic

·         Color inside the box or shape- you are very intense, serious, worrier, can suggest sign of temper because of tension or frustration

PUNCTUATION MARKS

·         Lots of exclamation marks- ego is involved, you want to be understood, passionate

SLANT

·          If you write upward- you tend to be optimist, hopeful, honest, ambitious, motivated

·         If you write downward- you tend to be negative, slightly depressed, dishonest

·         SPEED

·         If you write things quickly- you are impatient, dislike delays or time wasters

·         If you write slowly- more organized, more methodical, more self reliant

SIGNATURE (this is your public self image!)

·         Legible- shows integrity, confidence, leadership, open to show your true self

·         Not legible- very private person, hard to read or understand.

Now check what those things you continually scribble on paper realy mean