ON A DEEPER LEVEL....

Live like you will never die, love like you've never been hurt,dance like no-one is watching.

Tips For Personal Brainstorming
By Chuck Frey

Everyone has problems and challenges that need solving; they're an inevitable part of living. What many people don't realize, however, is that most of them can be overcome using a simple, focused program of personal brainstorming. Here are some practical tips to help you increase the effectiveness of your personal problem-solving skills:

Step 1: State your problem clearly

Before you start, firmly plant in your mind the idea that your problem can and will be solved. Your job is to find that solution, using personal brainstorming.

State your problem clearly and concisely in one sentence at the top of a blank sheet of paper. Then write down everything you know about your current problem or challenge. Try to isolate and write down specific factors or trends that have contributed to it. Keep in mind that a problem, clearly defined, is already half solved.

By gathering all of the information that you know about your challenge and laying it out in front of you in tangible form, you enable your most powerful problem-solving tool -- your brain -- to see connections, interrelationships and implications in the information you've collected, which would not be obvious if you just kept all of this information in your head.

Think about people who have faced problems or challenges similar to the one you are facing. What strategies or solutions did they use? Then determine if any elements of their solutions can be adapted to your current situation.

Step 2: Brainstorm solutions

As you review your problem statement and supporting information, write down any ideas that occur to you. Don't censor yourself at this point; there will be plenty of time to evaluate your ideas later. Write down every idea, no matter how far-fetched. Your goal at this stage of the personal ideation process is to generate a large quantity of ideas.

Ask yourself: How would a person who is an expert in this area solve this problem? You might want to try this exercise using famous people from history, creative thinkers such as Albert Einstein, or other leaders and innovators that you respect. Your goal for this exercise is to perform a bit of "slight of head" -- to whack your thinking into a different frame of reference to generate fresh ideas and insights.

Divide your problem into its component pieces and write each of them down -- perhaps in a mind map or outline that shows the relationships between each element. Then, try brainstorming ideas for each one. This "slice and dice" technique often works well when you're faced with complex or multi-dimensional challenges.

Envision an ideal future goal or outcome. Then work backwards to the present, writing down the steps you would need to take now to move toward that objective.

If you find yourself running out of ideas too quickly, don't give up. Keep working at it until you have written down at least 20 possible ideas or solutions. Many times, the first 5 to 10 ideas you write down are top-of-mind solutions; often the best ideas take more concentrated and prolonged brainstorming to emerge.


Conclusion

Your subconscious mind likes closure. When faced with an incomplete picture, it works to complete the mental image by inferring the missing information. Your mind works the same way on an unsolved problem or challenge; it loves to dive right in and get the job done.

In closing, remember that you can solve your problems and capitalize on new opportunities using personal ideation. All you need is a pencil, a pad of paper and a quiet "thinking spot" to tap into your creative muse.

Chuck Frey is the founder of InnovationTools ( http://www.innovationtools.com ), a Web site that provides entrepreneurs and innovators with one of the best collections of resources on business innovation, creativity and brainstorming on the Web.

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10 Tips to Becoming a Gold-Dust-Person
By Julie Jordan Scott

"There is Gold Dust in the Air-for me!" These are the words spoken
by a successful business man in Catherine Ponder's classic work,
" The Dynamic Laws of Prosperity". In the opening chapter, his story is included for inspiration.

Lets take his affirmation deeper, into each of our lives. Imagine for a moment gold dust sparkling in the air in front of you.

What would gold dust look like, floating in space?

Now let’s take this possibility to a different level and from
a completely different perspective.

What would that glittering gold dust in the air look if it was
made up of your goals and dreams and plans and projects?

Imagine for a moment what it looks like on Star Trek as someone is
“beamed” up or down. I am picturing the Star Trek of my childhood
where I thought Captain Kirk was just about the handsomest man on
the planet...next to my dad, of course, who I saw as the ultimate
in handsomeness.

Special effects were not at all like they are now..... so there was
more shimmery-ness, less solidity. That is the quality to hold in
your mind's eye as you imagine your goals with that ethereal,
shimmering appearance like Kirk or Spock or Bones McCoy in the
“beaming” process…. That makes it clearer even in your goals not
completely-together-ness.

Tuck that thought, your goals, dreams, plans and projects as
shimmering gold dust, manifest-in-the-making as you continue to
read.

It might also help for you to imagine a person who already
exhibits that gold dust quality. Perhaps someone you know,
someone you admire, or someone from history. Perhaps a famous
inventor or entrepreneur or artist comes to mind.

Who is someone who had a vision, a goal, a practice or
shimmering gold dust of some form or fashion who then brought
that gold dust into complete manifestation?

I immediately thought of people like Julia Cameron or
Thomas Edison or Alexander Graham Bell or
Suzanne Falter-Barnes.

Who comes to mind for you?

Now how do you suppose the person who you are holding in
your mind began walking this path?

Taken one step further, how do you suppose ANYONE walks and
CONTINUES to walk his or her path to becoming and ongoingly
being a Gold-Dust-Person?

Here are ten solid ways of becoming and then fully being a
gold dust person.

1. Gold-Dust-People reach towards and beyond their goals.
They keep their eyes on the horizon as they continue to
journey, being sure to replenish their spirits along the path
so it remains relatively clear.

2. Gold-Dust-People are open to suggestions and learn from
people who are where they are growing to be.

3. Gold-Dust-People have put their goals on paper either in
a linear fashion such as the standard “to-do” list of “life goals list”

or more artistic fashion, such as a dream board or collage or using
a combination of the two through mind mapping or
creating a list which has artful components.

4. Gold-Dust-People request constructive feedback from their
clients, coaches and mentors and discern what to integrate into
their lives and what to put aside.

5. Gold-Dust-People are those who are able to learn life
lessons from the times when life does not go as planned and
place more emphasis on celebrating the fact that they got up
rather than the point that they fell down.

6. Gold-Dust-People take responsibility for their actions and
commit to making amends when those actions interfere someone
else’s capacity to function as a gold dust person.

7. Gold-Dust-People respect their own gifts and abilities,
acknowledging they will achieve the most in life when they
utilize what is special within them. In that vein they do not
minimize their abilities and in fact, they continue to
strengthen them through practice and continued increase in use.

8. Gold-Dust-People have a strong sense of purpose or vision
which supports their goals, dreams, projects and plans. The
purpose and the vision is the foundation upon which the rest
is built.

9. Gold-Dust-People are lifelong students of their own brand of
success, reading, studying and applying new lessons on a daily
basis. They know their personalized brand of success bears
their personalized stamp which is then a light to all who see it.

10. Gold-Dust-People make choices which empower themselves,
their community and their world. Their choices power up the gold
dust, transforming the gold dust into tangible results which has
benefit for all the world to experience.

Take a moment to consider which of these attributes of a Gold
Dust Person already describes a part of who you are being on
a day-to-day basis. If you don’t see anything, ask someone else
you know and trust to look at the list and reflect back to you
what he or she sees.

Commit to strengthening that attribute in some form or fashion
within the next twenty four hours.

Now, more challenging perhaps, is discerning which quality is
completely contrary to you at your current state of personal
development.

Now commit to strengthening that attribute in some form or
fashion within the next twenty four hours through taking
even the teensiest, tiniest action.

To bring this all into one neat, clean and gloriously gold
dusted package, remember how your goals, dreams, plans and
projects looked as they were swirling about you, manifest-
in-the-making?

Now ask this question and take time to answer it. In fact,
you may just want to print this article out and use it as a
template for discovery.

On with the question:

"How can I leverage my personalized gold dust attributes most
efficiently and effectively move from swirling from gold dust
manifest-into-the-making into something tangible, that others
can experience as well?”

Over the next several days, really consider this question as
you meditate, exercise, journal or simply sit and ponder.
Bring it out into the open. Watch as that Gold-Dust takes form.

You have within you the ability to do all that you were meant
to do. You have the ability to be who you were created to be.
You can take all that you know today and bring it all to a
higher level. Join those prosperous people: the Gold-Dust-People.
Commit to do so, today.

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Julie Jordan Scott is the Creator of the Passion Crafting Method
She assists you to Bring Art into Your Business and Business
into Your Art. Request your complimentary coaching session
now by visiting http://www.5passions.com or call 661.325.4116
Coaching and Training for All Budgets

Who Says You Can't Wear Red Shoes?
By Carolina Fernandez

Who says you can't wear red shoes? Or chartreuse for that matter!

Have you bought into the notion that only a few select individuals in this world are creative? Or that the only people who can act artistically are artists? If you struggle with these beliefs, recognize that you are not alone. These concepts are broadly, albeit mistakenly, held by the majority of the world’s population. Even pop culture confirms this sentiment, as evidenced, for example, in the wonderful scene in Father of the Bride 2 when George Banks, played by Steve Martin, having just been told that he is about to become a father again in midlife, yells at his OB/GYN that men his age don’t become fathers! When the doctor informs him that Picasso fathered a child in his seventies, Banks screams: “But he’s an artist! Artists can do whatever they want to do!”

Chances are, you have grown up with the notion that intelligence—and creativity—are measured by a standardized test, like the traditional IQ test developed by Alfred Binet. When Binet came up with his test, he was actually trying to categorize schoolchildren’s potential for learning. This test was his attempt to objectively measure comprehension, reasoning and judgment. Modern day research, however, paints quite a different story of the validity of the measurement of IQ and of creativity. We now know, for example, that each of us possess at least seven measurable intelligences, ranging from mathematical to linguistic to musical to interpersonal, to name a few. Additionally, neuroscientists have found that intelligence is not only located in the brain but in cells that are distributed throughout the body.

So not only are the notions of intelligence and creativity out of whack, but our comprehension of our potential falls short of the mark as well. In short, our capacity for creativity—our brainpower—is much greater than we could ever imagine! You could learn seven facts per second, every second, for the rest of your life and still have plenty of room left over to learn even more. Pyotr Anokhin of Moscow University compared the brain to a multidimensional musical instrument that could play an infinite number of musical pieces simultaneously. In short, each of us is gifted with a birthright of virtually unlimited potential!

So just how do we tap into our unlimited creative power? And more significantly, how do we unleash our power of creativity out into the world so that others may benefit?

First of all, it is imperative that you figure out what in the world you were created for! You must determine your life purpose! Each of us was created with a combination of gifts uniquely packaged into a particular being and given as our birthright. Of the six billion people currently living in the world and the more than ninety billion people who have ever lived, that has never been, nor will there ever be, anyone quite like you. Your creative gifts, your talents, your personality, your mannerisms, your dreams…are unprecedented! No one else in the world can bring your ideas to life in the way that you can. So you must understand, first and foremost, the wonderful idea that God had when He created you, and that for which you were created. Do you have a feeling of destiny, of your uniqueness, of your purpose in life? This is the jumping off point, for if this is still unrealized, you will no doubt flounder with your creative gifts until you discover that uniquely designed purpose God had in mind when He created you.

If you are still floundering, expose yourself to lots of different activities and see what clicks. Dabble in something and see if there appears to be any natural talent. I have always loved the feeling of paint on my fingertips, and of dabbling with brushes and paints on everything from paper to canvas to fabric to wood. But it was not until six months ago that I had the opportunity to take a formal oil painting class to see if I could learn proper technique and develop the eye of a painter. Imagine my excitement to discover that I can indeed paint! I am able to take a blank canvas, mix oils onto a palette, pick up a brush and produce something that actually resembles art! Granted, heavy doses of individual instruction have been critical in getting my work to this level. But I have discovered an area where my natural inclination has met both a natural curiosity and a natural passion such that fruitful progress is being made.

Expose yourself to beautiful music. The genius of the masters will open your mind to increased receptivity for creativity. The research on the Mozart Effect is widely recognized as valid: you increase both intellectual and creative powers when you listen to classical music, particularly that of Mozart and Bach. Their music was composed with particular attention to harmony and melody such that the brain waves of the listener are beneficially affected and creativity flourishes!

Expose yourself to great visual art. Visit museums. Develop an eye for aesthetics. You must develop respect for proper proportion, for symmetry, for balance, and for good line to understand good art. It is only by frequent exposure to the best the world has to offer that this can be assured.

Expose yourself to the performing arts. Delight in the creativity of opera and ballet, of great theater and of movies. Allow your imagination to stretch beyond its usual horizon.

Expose yourself to the world through travel. Taking a break from your typical daily scenery will free up your mind to enjoy different cultures, different accents and languages, different foods, different air, different smells, and different sights.

Study inspirational individuals. You want to be a better golfer? Study Tiger Woods. A better leader? Study Winston Churchhill. More creative? Study Leonardo daVinci.

Encourage productivity. One characteristic of creative people is that they produce. Geniuses never seem to run out of brilliant ideas. Bach wrote a cantata every week, even when he didn’t feel like it.

Think like a child. Get in touch with the child inside you. Look at issues in life and ask: “How would I look at this situation if I was six years old?”

Explore your dreams. Imagine. Daydream. Napoleon said that imagination rules the world. Imagine a world in which your creative talents took hold.

Seek out eccentric people. One of my friends is amongst the most eccentric people I know. She wore a mini-mini-skirt with “Pippi Longstockings” to my elegant birthday party, shocking my staid middle-aged friends who all traded their mini-skirts for mini-vans years ago. She gave me nail polish that changes color in the sunshine for my birthday gift, something most of us would have deemed more appropriate for our seven year-old daughters. She possesses a unique creative flair, without a thought for the comments of others. Her whole persona laughs.

Give yourself the freedom to act creatively. Let yourself act like an artist, whatever that means to you. If it means dressing in funk rather than Brook Brothers, so be it. If it means wearing sterling jewelry loaded with beads rather than 14k gold, go ahead. And yes, buy yourself a pair of red shoes. Or even chartreuse. And wear them. You will feel more creative instantly. Trust me.

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CAROLINA FERNANDEZ is an author, professional speaker, and entrepreneur. She has a passion for inspiring creativity to people of all ages, but a particular joy in helping mothers as they dabble in what is arguably the most creative challenge ever invented: motherhood. Indeed, she gets much of her material from her own brood of four, and has utilized her experiences along with mountains of research in her book, ROCKET MOM: 7 Strategies to Blast You into the Creative Stratosphere. Explore creativity with her at: http://www.rocketmoms.com. As the Director of Children’s Ministries at her church in Coral Gables, Florida, she can be spotted wearing chartreuse clogs. Comments and inquiries: emomrx@yahoo.com.

You know if you have rhythm or not, so if it don’t fit don’t force it. Forget the contract, forget your peers, and be honest. You must be able to look your writing in the face the next morning.

There are times when the writer has to realise that the spaces between the words can be as important as the words themselves. The poet needs to breath, so do the words.

Dictators know the power of words, this is why they burn books. Writers must understand the power at their fingertips, and black writers in particular must value that work they do.

When I write there is a voice in my head, by the time the words reach the page they are echoes from a source within. I have learnt to get to that source through meditation, not everyone wants to mediate, but everyone can just spend a few moments quietly listening to themselves.

taken from here

Benjamin Zephaniah is frequently heard & seen on TV & radio, & in early 1999 was being seriously tipped as the next Poet Laureate. Benjamin was born in 1958 in Black River, Jamaica, he grew up in Handsworth with the other nine children in his family but by the age of fourteen was sent to borstal. Shortly after leaving he was sentenced for two years for a crime he never committed. His first self-published pamphlet of poems appeared, called Pen Rhythm & through the dancehall & sound system scene he became involved in performance poetry. Articles then began to appear about him in the New Musical Express & Black Beat International, & a TV programme followed. In 1982, after extensive gigging in the UK & on the continent, he released the album RASTA. In 1983 & 1985 London City Limits magazine declared him 'Poet of the Year' & in 1988 he was shortlisted for Oxford Professor of Poetry, awarded to the future Nobel prize-winner Seamus Heaney. In the last few years he has acted in BBC TV & radio plays, performed much poetry at gigs & festivals & charity events. BZ appears increasingly on radio & television as performer & cultural commentator. He still performs all his work from memory.

HIS WEBSITE