The pages of the past have been written; the story has been read. The pages of the future, these pages are actually in the process of being turned. Who’s doing the turning you may ask?

That’s right, you are.

This entry will not tell you what to do, when to do it, how to feel, nor how to think. It won’t even tell you what to eat, whom to marry, nor where to live.

It will only tell you the truth about your present moments and your tomorrows.

Right now, every opportunity and possibility is open to you. What isn’t true of yesterday is profoundly true of today.

Write the stories however you choose, but never forget who holds the pen.

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Illustration by hellangel1126

Did you know you’re a magician? Well, you are.

The magician can pull a rabbit out of a hat, know exactly what cards are in your hands after countless shuffles and nab a lucky penny right out of your ear lobe.

If you’re unaware of your identity of being a magician, you will be missing out on some of the most precious gifts right at your disposal. And that would be a real tragedy.

Lucky for you, I’m here to remind you of the magic that’s deep within. This magic you can access at any time. It is true, some tricks take a little more time than others to master - but if you don’t know you’re a magician, you don’t do any magic.

Here, at P.I. - we’re all about doing the magic…

Here’s a list of some great magic tricks we can all learn. It may require that we remind ourselves from time to time of our identity, but with a little effort, and knowing who we are, these and others are more than in our grasp.

Some recommended magic tricks:

• Becoming an early riser. That’s right, if you want to do this - there’ s nothing to stop you. You’re a magician, remember?
• Exercising three times a week. It feels good, don’t it?
• Increased fruits and veggies in ones diet. This is a good move on all counts.
• Learn a new skill. Such as, martial arts, painting, even poetry.

Not every magic trick will appeal to everyone. But take a good tea or coffee break and think of those magic tricks you’ve wanted to accomplish for some time now. They are well within your grasp. They are more than doable.

I find that we human beings are the truest kind of magicians. If we really want to do something bad enough, we can do it. We can do it because it is well within our capability of doing so. In the span of our life we come nowhere near reaching our full potential.

A big part of the secret of tapping into that latent potential is knowing it’s there. You’ll never really strive for something that you believe is beyond your grasp. But, when you know you’re capable of it, your energies are catalyzed and move in the required directions. When your energies are properly directed, the outcome can be breath taking. You must constantly remind yourself of your capability.

The only thing ever stopping you, is yourself. When you know you’re a magician, you begin to do the magic.

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Photo by your host Bamboo Forest

Embarrassment is an emotion that is highly toxic and highly unnecessary. Who needs it and who wants it?

Today we’re going to be talking about embarrassment: the cause of it, whether it’s really worth it or not, and what we can do about it.

Is Embarrassment Worth It?

Could embarrassment prevent you from asking a cute girl or guy out?

Could embarrassment coerce you into staying in an uncomfortable, inconvenient, or unfavorable circumstance simply because it would require a proactive move to free yourself from it?

Could embarrassment discourage you from doing what is right, simply because it would be uncomfortable doing so?

What do all of the above have in common? Simple. Embarrassment can cause you to miss out on the opportunities of life. And this is why, it must be conquered.

Choosing not to act on the basis of preventing embarrassment can cause boat loads of regret. But, you will never feel regret for having felt embarrassed. This is the great irony. Embarrassment has never and will never cause regret. Doing something you believe in anyways, in the midst of embarrassment, will always give you great reward and satisfaction. Regardless of whether you succeeded or not.

You act in a way that is unfavorable for you in order to accomplish not being embarrassed. Yet, doing what is favorable for you, while being embarrassed, can give you the most profound sense of accomplishment you could ever possibly have. This level of irony, this one is for the books!

The Cause of Embarrassment

This may come as a surprise, but the cause is our own selves. Some people easily get embarrassed while others are more impervious to it. Embarrassment happens inside our own skin. It’s not a natural response like the beating of our heart, or the picking up of vibrations from our ears. Instead, we kindle the flame of embarrassment. But, we can also put it out.

(more…)

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Illustration by allhailshadow

“Hold it up, hold it up,” shouted my obnoxious teammate. I was merely dribbling the ball down the court, yet he found it imperative to scream this phrase over and over again. Being the recipient of his unceasing yelps, I lost it.

In my heated frustration I snapped back, “hold it up, hold it up,” I continue, “I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME!!!!”

It only got worst from here. I was so flustered by my teammate’s obnoxious shouting that I ended up getting the ball stolen. I lost all focus. Just after this happened, he looks over to me and says, “that’s why I told you to hold it up - see what happened?”

In my response, I take one long look at him and say, “you should be proud of yourself.”

(more…)

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Photo by araswami

If I could have my tombstone say just one thing, it would read: “he was happy for the happiness of others.” If it said this, I would count my life as one lived in fullness and completeness, a life that was worth living.

One of my essential philosophies is the constant engagement of feeling sincere joy for the fortune of others. And indeed — it does take work — this does not come naturally at all. It requires concerted effort.

Being happy for the happiness of others is most effortless when good things are unfolding in our own lives. But when our lives are uneasy and challenge filled, being happy for the happiness of others becomes a challenging undertaking.

When we hear good news about another, sometimes our first instinct is to feel a little resentful. This is only natural, but natural is not always good.

The moment we hear positive news about another, potential feelings of resentment should be immediately confronted and transformed into feelings of sincere joy! Doing so is particularly challenging when the very thing the other was blessed with is what we ourselves yearn for.

If you can put this into practice, you have conquered the armies of many.

One may interject, “yeah, but what do I get out of it? My circumstances haven’t changed by feeling happy for my fellow human being.”

To this I would agree, your circumstances have not changed — but you have.

Consistently finding joy in the good fortune of others is a quality we should all aspire to. One that by no means comes naturally; it is the outcome of an investment of time, effort, and awareness.

How wonderful would it be, if every time we heard positive news about another we felt a surge of joy. This remaining the case — inconsequential — of whether or not they were blessed with the specific things we ourselves have hoped, and dreamed for.

Magnificent this would be.

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A negative thought creeped into my head as I was making tea before the morning light. But I reconsidered; after all, if I had no hands, making tea would be out of the question

I reasoned, sure everything isn’t perfect, but I do have hands.

Let’s examine the proposition:

Steps to Making Tea

1. Pry open canister where the tea is housed.

2. Scoop it out with a spoon.

3. Grab kettle and put water into it.

4. Pour water into teapot (carefully!)

In short, making tea requires many intricate maneuvers of the most magnificent creature known to man: hands.

So, what did I do with the negative thought that intruded my glorious tea ceremony that morning? I said to it, “yeah, but I have hands.”

Can you imagine if I looked like Tom Cruise, had the most beautiful girl friend in the world (or not so beautiful for that matter)? To add to it all, I had a blue Mercedes convertible. I’d be living large, wouldn’t I?

But if I had all that, yet no hands, it would all fall far short of the pleasure of having them. There’s no competition.

We lose sight of the obvious, because we choose not to consider it. Let’s consider.

Next time a thought of negativity intrudes your tea ceremony, or coffee ceremony if you insist - tell the dastardly thing, “Yeah, but I got hands.”

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I’ve been blogging since 7/7/07, ever since the prophecy began; I’ve learned a few things along the way:

1. Athletic Performance

Each blog entry can be likened to an athlete’s performance. Every entry will vary in its degree of excellence - even if all of them are good. There’s a reason blogs have a “most popular” category on the sidebar; those are the ones that outshined the rest. This will be true no matter how much skill you have. The goal then, is to squeeze out as much quality as you can each and every time — just like an athlete.

2. Blogging is Like Any other Craft

Blogging, or as I like to refer to it, writing, is just like any other craft be it piano, archery, or ping pong. You can’t rely on reading about it to perfect it, you must practice it. The more you write, the better you write. The P.I. blog doesn’t just provide you my valued readers with a constant flow of fun, entertainment and enlightenment, it affords me the opportunity to write better.

3. Let It Stew

Just like a good lamb stew, the longer you work on a piece the more it’s given an opportunity to develop. Can you imagine putting a few chunks of lamb meat, some potatoes, and green beans into a pot and five minutes later consuming it? Besides getting food poisoning, it wouldn’t taste so good. The longer it stews, the more flavors develop. Writing is a lot like lamb stew — the more time you give to a single entry, the more you can add and take away from it over time, making it as wonderful as possible.

4. Be a Stumble Man

Stumble stumble man, I wanna be a stumble man… Writing into a vacuum has its own charm, but if you want to get your stuff on the radar screen - it needs to get stumbled. There are many ways to do this. The best way is to write stuff so unbelievable that people feel it’s a moral obligation to stumble you. The second best way, and the way I most often employ is by networking with other stumble users. The more you interact with them, the more likely you’ll get stumbled. Even commenting on other blogs can do wonders. Ultimately, having your blog, “self promote” is where you want to be.

5. Write Damn Good Titles

If you neglect a good title people will neglect your good content. I’m not going to lie — titles are hard! Yes, but so is life. So accept it, and write damn good titles.

6. Make it a Hobby

If you’re going to blog, then count it amongst your hobbies. Let’s face it, blogging aint easy — at least not for me. But it’s fun. If you make a hobby out of it you’ll have more patience while doing it, and last longer, perhaps long enough for it to become profitable.

7. Carry a Pad

If you don’t carry a pad with you at all times, prepare to toss golden ideas into the ether, one after the other. Flashes of inspiration come when you least expect it. Afford yourself the opportunity to record them so you can use them. Blogs are nothing more than ideas that are hopefully well written. Ideas that spark in your mind and then forgotten are ideas that will never be published – no matter how good they are.

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