LIFE of Life

You may not have heard of LIFE Leadership yet but I'm sure that you soon will. This amazing company has inspired us to be the change we want to see in the world. That we should reach out to the widows and orphans (James 1:27); those women who are alone in this world and the children who don't have a stable two parent family. Also that we help improve the literacy rate in our country like the employees at corporate headquarters are doing.

Upon hearing Chris Swanson's talk about the things he's seen, we knew we had to do something for the women and children in our area. We contacted Avail in Antigo, WI and asked them if we could help. They agreed.

We chose to do a car wash to raise funds for whatever they currently need. We also wanted to do somehting that our kids could participate in. That's one of the beautiful things about this company' they want to teach this next generation what we should have been taught or wifh we would have learned at a much younger age. Showing our kids the selfless example of washing 32 cars and trucks and getting nothing out of it for ourselves. Well...we did reward everyone with an ice cream from McDonald's after but that came out of our own pocket.

 

Four hours + 32 cars + 8 adults + 8 kids + soap, buckets, sponges, water + smiles + $290.00 for Avail. We magnet bombed anyone that gave more than our asking price. We had two come through because the automatic car wash didn't get their car clean. We had one gentleman bring through three of his vehicles. The Antigo County Store let us use their water and parking lot. The Family Dollar let us use their restrooms (kids go often).

When we delivered the money to Avail, they were very thankful and very interested in LIFE Leadership and what inspired us to do this. Keep your eyes out for us coming to a town near you or join us in our efforts and become part of the solution.

Your Input

I was listening to an audio yesterday morning titled Change Your Life by Changing Your Mind. In it the speaker, Dan Hawkins, mentioned that when his daughters need an attitude adjustment he requires them to listen to more learning cds for a few days. And it works.

So, I decided to try it. I played that cd over and over again during the day. Amazing. Whenever the kids where in listening range of the cd player, they had a better attitude. Whenever they were out of listening range, they started arguing and trying to assert their authority over each other. It was wonderful.

I tried it with a different cd today and it didn't work so well. May have been the cd or it may have been just God showing me that there is no easy way to raise children.

Either way, the cd was amazing and it really makes you think about what you are putting in your head. What other people are placing in there for you. What it is all doing to your attitude and your thinking?

I've been pondering taking notes on what I think about all day long because there have been some points in my days when I wonder how I got there. It would be amazing to be able to look back over my thoughts and see which words led to which words, which caused me to end up on this thought. The long version of taking control of your thoughts and thinking on what is true, right, and good.

What have you been wondering on lately? Where has your mind been going lately? And has your attitude been following it or leading it?

Lift each other up

I went and listened to a leadership speaker last night. He said something about having "a garage full of soap" and it sparked something in me.Why is it that people, in general, look down on anyone who starts working a home-based business? Why don't we, as Americans, lift each other up when someone is honestly trying to get a better life by doing something different? If it's something that they believe in, something they see as a great product or service, why aren't we helping them more instead of warning them that it might be one of "those things" and they should be careful? Why don't more of us encourage and empower our friends and family to become and do better by doing something different?

I don't mean that we should buy everything that our family is selling. We don't do that now. Our friends and family are selling us things every moment of every day, just most of them aren't getting paid for the selling they are doing. You sell your worth to your family and friends because if they don't see the worth in being around you, why would they. You sell the books you read, the movies you see, the music you hear, the tv you watch because you see a value in it that you think your family and friends would also enjoy. As far as I know, we don't get paid for those few things. If you could host a gathering in your home for one of your friends or suggest other friends to them if you see they would enjoy that product or service, that would be a greater help to them than buying yourself most of the time. It would show that you believe in them and that you believe they can succeed at what they've put their minds too.

Home-based businesses have gotten a bad rep over the years. The companies today are trying to overcome that reputation because most of them really want to help more people become better and do better. There are companies out there who are out to help others more than to help themselves. They are rare but you can find them if you look.

The economy is changing, the world is changing. We need to come together and lift each other up rather than  tear each other down in order to make ourselves feel better. Time to come together and show the world what we can do when we all work together instead of working against each other.

Thanks for listening. I feel better now. Now go out and believe in someone who needs it.

Dream Big

What's your dream?

I got to listen to an amazing gentleman last night. He talked about how the country is getting apathetic and complacent. People have forgotten how to dream and dream big.

Do you still dream? Is there something you still want to do in life? Or have you become complacent and just accepting that this is what life is going to hand you?

What's your dream?

I'd love to hear that  people out there are still dreaming.

Brain Overload

Have you ever had one of those days where you weren't all sure that your brain was working and where it feels like it physically hurts? That's my head today. 

Hubby and I spent a great weekend with some friends at a seminar in Louisville, Kentucky. We laughed alot. We played together. But mostly we learned alot. My brain is full.

To top it off, all of the girls came down with the most recent strain of the flu. The first one got it the day before we left. The second one got it the day we left. The third got it the day before we came home. And amazingly, they got it in proper order from oldest to youngest. I felt horrid for Grandma coming in to all of this. Felt even worse when we found out that Tiny is allergic to Tylenol. 

We also had the car battery die right before we left to go and right before we left to come home. Silly car.

The weather was absolutely beautiful out there. We had 50s and sunshine. Didn't have to wear a coat one afternoon. The other days came with wind. Come back home to Wisconsin and it's below zero. This morning taking the girls to school (yes, two out of three are better) and it was -11 according to the car. This afternoon to pick them up it was -8 and both of those were without windchill. I felt like we had missed Wisconsin and hit the North Pole it was so cold.

It was such a full weekend. I think my favorite part was running into Mark Macdonald again. We met him about nine months ago at a LIFE Seminar. He was teaching about how to create a system that causes your body to work at it's full potential. What caused my hubby to go and meet him was that my hubby had been having severe chronic back pain that would radiate everywhere. He was fed up with the pain and feeling like his body was limiting everything he wanted to do. The doctors couldn't find any reason for the pain and had labeled it as this horrid disease that would eventually fuse his spine together. When my hubby heard Mark Macdonald speak about what his wife had gone through and how creating a system has led her to living an almost completely pain free life (we are human after all and sometimes we fall off the path), my hubby waited in line for over an hour to talk with Mark to see if there was any advice he could give on where to turn next. Mark confirmed that my hubby was already on a good diet plan but that he needed to be stricter on it and he suggested a few books to read. As of this past week, my hubby is almost completely pain free (because we are all human, things happen that throw us off schedule). When Mark Macdonald heard this news he was ecstatic (which tends to be his energy level almost every time we talk to him, he gives every moment his all). He told my hubby that he was going to share his story from stage this weekend. How cool is that? But it gets better. Mark Macdonald has shared stories he's collected but never mentioned a name...until this weekend. Wahoo! I just about fell out of my seat when he said, "My friend Mitch..." Mark said his name! I can't wait to get the audio copy of it. It was so cool. Because it speaks volumes for using systems to get things done. I know the thing that brought it home to my hubby was being able to pick up our tall girl and dance with her in his arms. He hasn't been able to do that in quite a few years.

With all of that great excitement and the rest of the good news we accumulated, I am full. I've also been reading some great books that are keeping me going and preparing for our next Women's Ministry event this weekend. And I think the middle one isn't out of the woods yet from the flu. She made it through school and fell asleep before dinner. She's still sleeping and won't be woken.

Looks like this is going to be an exciting and full year for us.

1913 - a book review

Oliver DeMille is an amazing thinker. I've read two of his books now and found that he inspires me to do better in my life and to teach my children all the things that they might be missing out on. Not that I don't already try to do that, I just never thought of focusing on the history of the things before.
 This was an amazing book. The back of the book is a great teaser for what's inside, "Three critical events in 1913, followed by a corresponding event in 1936, together struck a resounding blow to America's freedom. In fact, they triggered the greatest Turning Point away from freedom in modern times. What were these dangerous events? Why do so few American citizens know about them - especially since they dramatically and negatively impact every detail of their lives? Most importantly, how can their effects be reversed and freedom restored?"

Doesn't that just make you want to pick up the book and see what you've been missing and what you could be working at harder to make this country better? I know I did. I also knew that I enjoyed Mr. DeMille's style, so there was no downside to taking on this book.

I forced myself to read it in small chunks so that I could digest all that he says. It was really the only way to read it because there is so much information.

I enjoyed learning that all the branches of government except the Supreme Court could be checked by others and that Jefferson tried enacting an amendment to fix this but it was never adopted so the Supreme Court continues to consider itself above the other branches of government. Also, that the common people used to follow the Supreme Court's cases. I don't remember the last case I heard about which tells me that I am lacking in important information because I hope they are not getting paid just to sit around and wait for a case. I need to get more informed.

I enjoyed learning that since 1936, twelve of the thirteen US presidents have drastically increased US spending over the levels of their predecessors (the thirteenth tried but didn't succeed). And that of the thirteen presidents leading up to 1936, only four significantly increased US per capita budgetary spending. Looks like a case of one-up-manship to me. Or the greed finally set in. Makes me wonder when we'll get a president who will make sure that the government isn't paying inflated items just because they're the government and everyone wants something for nothing nowadays. It makes me wonder what I can do to stay informed on these matters. Mr DeMille says that you need to make sure to read the fine print in everything in-order to find out what it's all really about.

I loved this quote, "Where political freedom is concerned, inalienable rights and freedoms must be applied to everyone equally. This is the main purpose of government, and when it falls short of this (or tries to do much beyond protecting equal rights), freedom for all is decreased. History is absolutely clear on this point."

I loved this one too, "Only a few people got on the Mayflower, but this event changed the world forever. Only a few sailed with Columbus, or even knew of his journey. Only a few stood firmly for their religion while the roman soldiers herded them into arenas to be slain by lions. Only a few participated - both for and against - in the life, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus Christ." This summed it up that it won't take all of us to turn this country back around, just a dedicated few who are willing to educate themselves and teach others and take a chance on the unknown for a belief in something better.

Mr DeMille takes a moment in the book to touch on President Calvin Coolidge. He shares what a great thinker he was even if he is portrayed as weak in our textbooks. There are two quotes Mr DeMille shares that I think you may like.
First, "Individual initiative, in the long run, is a firmer reliance than bureaucratic supervision...We do no need more knowledge; we need more character. We do not need more government; we need more culture. We do not need more law; we need more religion. We do not need more of the things that are seen; we need more of the things that are unseen...If the foundation be firm, the superstructure will stand."
The second, "We have been successful beyond others in great commercial and industrial enterprises because we have been a people of vision. Our prosperity has resulted not by disregarding but by maintaining high ideals. Material resources do not, and cannot, stand alone; they are the product of spiritual resources."
These tell me that we need to inspire more dreaming and goal setting in our kids. Goal setting should be taught day one in school; what do the kids want to accomplish this year? We know what the teachers want to accomplish, but what about our kids. I bet if we asked them, they would be more excited about school, be more involved in their learning process and our schools would excel overall. Give them a reason to be there. It's not always fun working on other people's goals, but your own...that's a different story.

I loved Mr DeMille's definition of freedom. "Put simply, freedom means one has the ability to improve his situation in life - whatever it may be."

And the slap in the face excerpt: "When people lose their freedoms in such a system, it is always the people, not the system, which have failed. The people have all the power, but they must choose to exercise it.
If the people understand freedom, read history and the Constitution and the great political and economic classics, and stay actively involved in maintaining their freedoms, the complex arrangement of constitutional freedoms will not fail."
Which tells me that I need to get out there and dig for information that I want to know. I need to stay informed on who is making decisions for me and what those decisions are. I can't blindly stand by the wayside and let those who are supposed to be more informed than me make all the decisions because by the looks of things, they aren't who they've been telling us they are.

We are all human and we are all programmed to look out for ourselves. We need to overcome that and start thinking about our communities. The people we interact with every day, what impact do we have on their lives and them on ours and how can we improve the interaction in-order to begin the shift towards more freedom. If we start caring for each other, we won't want to rely on the government so much. We'd rather receive from those we know instead of those who say they have our best interest at heart....because they are only human after all.

Washing my brain.

A friend of mine said something to me this weekend about how LIFE sounds cultish to her when I talk to her about it. She quickly added that even though it sounded cultish, the information was good and the reason behind it was good and she would like to check it out more.

This made me think about brainwashing. Especially after I heard a joke about it on a cd yesterday.

After how I started yesterday with my thinking, I was excited to end the day on a high note thought wise after spending the day putting good information in my head rather than letting myself talk myself down again. I spent the day brainwashing myself.

I don't know about you, but I would rather brainwash myself than have someone else brainwash me. I'd rather listen to audios that teach you something or lift you up than listen to the radio and risk a song that could damage my subconscious when I'm having a bad day. I would rather read good books than watch tv and have to watch all those commercials and whatever it is that the show is putting in my brain as "normal".

So, go ahead and proclaim that I am being brainwashed. I Am. I am brainwashing myself rather than allowing someone else to brainwash me. Who's washing your brain?

An Interesting Weekend

Not quite sure how else to describe it. Learned a lot about a lot of things. I think the best thing I learned is that I love my hubby and we are growing stronger together. These past two years have been a struggle and pain to get to the point where we are seeing each other's buttons and learning not to push them and that the other isn't intentionally pushing them. Like at breakfast the other morning. He went down early to do some planning with friends of ours and let me sleep in a little. When I got down there, I got my coffee and stood next to him to ask if I could sit with him. I didn't just plop myself down because I didn't want to sit in the middle of a conversation because they were across the whole table (which is ok, I was looking for some direction in where to sit). His response, "Sure, just don't sit on me." Not a bad response...it was the tone that set me off and the fact that I didn't know if that meant sit next to him or across from him. So, I put down my stuff at the table next to him and went to get into the breakfast line. Found out later that he was a little concerned about that response and my response to it. It was ok. I just wanted to walk away so that I didn't say something stupid that I couldn't take back and I didn't want to make a choice that would cause another one of those statements to happen again. Because I was tired and only had so much control before I wouldn't be able to stop it from ruining my whole day and potentially my whole weekend. So we're learning and we're laughing together.

Now, looking back over that paragraph, you are probably wondering what kind of weekend we had. My hubby wanted to use our Christmas money to go to a LIFE seminar in Ohio (we live in Wisconsin, that's an 11 hour drive). Since he was so excited about it and the information that he has been reading and listening to has been changing his attitude about a lot of things, I decided that it would be a good thing to support this. Besides, it would be a weekend away at a hotel with my hubby and some great friends. It would also mean that the kids would get a bonus weekend with Grandma. Seemed like a win-win all around. The kids let me know that their weekend wasn't as good as ours was. So, we just continue to Plan-Do-Review. Because we're doing this again in April.

Our minivan became a limousine. I got to be the only girl in group again (until we met up with the rest of the gang) just like old times. We got little sleep. We got lots of laughs. We even had a few good cries (emphasis on good). Got to eat some great food as well as food that I knew would fuel the body. Got to learn a lot. Took 17 pages of notes. So my plan for today is to read through them again and share the highlights with you all. Because you don't know if one of these bullets is going to be the one that your brain needed today. So kick back and enjoy some old-fashioned truths.

• Make sure that it's not about you.
• Developing Kids Who Love To Read (an audio that I think I need to listen to)
• Something fun and it will improve your life.
• Feel accepted so they are not afraid to walk around as themselves.
• The world is demanding for more leadership. (Not necessarily top ranking, just the ordinary people who are not afraid to make changes to better our lives like many ordinary Americans have been doing over the years. There just seems to be less of them currently.)
• Facebook is so big because people are looking for community and acceptance.
• Lead with your good attitude.
• It doesn't take a lot to stand out in today's communities.
• Inspiration over instruction.
• Your success is you becoming a better person.
• I'm always going to be the project, I will always have to work on me.
• Even the tiniest light is the light of hope.
• God moments.
• Be a person that people are willing to play poker over the phone with.
• Releasing the old to capture the new.
• The wisdom of the ages is hidden in the pages.
• What's the next thing I need to do? (I think I can put that in every hour of my day so that I don't get lost.)
• It's to live a life of no regret
• Stop trying to convince your critics.
• Be good at self evaluation but don't beat the tar out of yourself.
• You're growing, it's just not showing up yet.
• The lessons you teach your children are the ones that you need to learn.
• Believe in the end of the storm...and if it's not good, it's not the end.
• Yeah we're weird, because normal is not working.
• Law of magnetism.
• Go touch your dream and make it a reality.
• The value of something is what it teaches you, not the cost.
• Do they have what you want?
• We are a leadership development company.
• Ask questions to find out what they mean, don't make assumptions.
• You're building a pipeline; it takes effort and time.
• Your belief has to outweigh their disbelief.
• Only one with the guts willing to say, "this is wrong and I'm going to change it."
• tougher skin + softer heart = hard work
• Integrity is getting mad at the same things God gets mad at.
• Integrity overcomes circumstance every time.
• Provide for the next generation.
• He or she that asks the questions, is the one in control.
• Ambitiously lazy = willing to do any amount of work to get out of working forever.
• Successful people act without evidence; they act on faith.
• A stay at home parent gives more quality/quantity time with their kids in 3 years than a working parent  does in 17 years.
• Facing The Giants
• There's greatness in this room, don't waste it.
• Start with the basics and stick with the basics.
• You need to earn it, you need to prove yourself.
• I don't know if I made any sense. I do know that you just need to keep learning.
• Sometimes people are just stupid and don't want to do it.
• Most people find fault in the world like they're going to get paid for it.
• Don't avoid your problems because they are there wherever you go.
• Trust is character and competence.
• Peas and carrots (yes! They actually said, "peas and carrots" on the stage. I was so excited.)
• God was back in my heart and I didn't even know that He had left.( She was renewing her faith.)
• I welcome you to your future.
• Take responsibility for your thinking.
• Humble yourself or God will do it for you.
• Jealousy, even in secret, is like putting a hole in the bucket.
• (I got to the end of Saturday night it seems. 3 hours of sleep with studies from 10am-4pm and 7pm-2am. I cannot read some of these words.)
• So, I put that thought on the shelf. (don't need to carry it around with you)
• I was an eruption looking for a place to happen.
• The only thing holding you back is you.
• Felt surrounded and cornered as well as loved. ( Loved that because you need to focus on the love at those moments.)
• There wasn't just two of us in our marriage, there was three.
• It doesn't all make sense yet.
• Eternity's not one of those things that you want to be wrong about.
• You'll never outrun God.
• You won't win a fight against God.
• God brings the increase.
• Can you imagine seeing Jesus's miracles in person? The apostles did and look at what their response was.
• It's ok to be aware of the storms of life. Just don't take your eyes off of Christ while in the storm.
• A sin is something contrary to what God teaches.
• There are people with a positive attitude going to hell where a positive attitude won't last too long.
• You're going to be dead longer than you're going to be alive.
• Whatever you focus on expands.
• Burn your boats when you get to the island so that there's no possibility of retreat.
• Quit thinking so hard. Think while learning and then go and apply it.
• If you give yourself an option, you'll take the option.
• Keep it simple and keep it fun.

It was an amazing weekend filled with amazing information. I can't wait to see what I get to learn in April. Today in the mail we got John Maxwell's Put Your Dream To The Test and some audios on respect, fitness, and history (from what I'm gathering from their titles).

If you would like more information, feel free to pop on over to www.the-life-business.com

If you see something that you would like to read or listen to yourself, just enter #61261383 for the member number when asked.

Looks like I have another book to add to my list. Counted 9 that I want to read RIGHT NOW. Hungry...time to go feed my mind some more.