Continue reading »]]> Do you want to live the best 2012 you have ever lived? Do you want amazing success in your life? Do you want to actually have the year you want to live?

After making the decision to say “YES!” to all of the questions, the next step is to write down what you want.

Script your life!

Write down your 2012 year like it was a movie script. Well not exactly like a movie script. You do not need that format. All you need to do is write down the year you want to live. The important part is to have fun. Have fun when you are writing down the life you want to live in 2012.

Write down what you want to accomplish, how you will feel when you accomplish what you want, how it will smell, how it will look like, how it will sound and how you are celebrating your wonderful life.

Notice what is not there? Nowhere did I say, “Write what you do not want.” You already know what you do not want, why put more of your energy into what you do not want. No reason to write down, “I do not want to be ______” or “I want a better _______” or “I would change _______ about my life.” Be bold enough to claim what you want! Just write it down. You know you want to!

Example:

Image by 401K via Flickr

2012 is going to be an amazing year for Brett Dupree and Joyous Expansion. My business continues to grow as I serve more and more wonderful clients. I feel wonderfully healthy as I dance to Dance Central 2 for hours! I enjoy doing over 100 push ups in  row. I am dating a wonderful woman and she might be the one! My home is clean and a perfect reflection of my clean proactive mind. Looking at my bank account fills me with joy as I watch my savings account grow and grow! 2012 is a wonderful year of wonderful and amazing growth!

Huh, I did not realize I liked the word wonderful so much. I look forward to your wonderful 2012! If there is any way I can serve you, do not hesitate to contact me at brettdupree@joyousexpansion.com.

Write your script below and I will put my joyous energy into your wonderful script!
Wonderful WONDERFUL WONDERFUL!

Continue reading »]]> Where’s the beef? I’m lovin’ it. Finger licking good. Dude, you gotta get a Dell? Choice of a new generation. Everybody needs a little KFC. Every kiss begins with Kay. Napa know how.

The above are all examples of short sweet statements that companies use to get you to buy their products. They work because they are short and sweet. Plus they display them anywhere they can to get it stuck in your head.

It is very effective marketing and it is time to use that marketing to your advantage. When it comes to your 2012, create a theme. The theme of your 2012 should be a short and simple statement. One of my most successful clients used, “Woman of action.” Simple and too the point. She used that slogan over and over again and became that woman of action she wanted to be.

When choosing a theme, decide on what you want to work on and how it excites you. The exciting part is very important. The theme should at least be as exciting as getting a Big Mac. You want to be energized every time you think, say or read your theme. If you are making a 2012 scrapbook or vision board, put the theme on top. Use it to keep you inspired and motivated.

My theme is “Back to the Basics.” I am picking three areas of my life that I am focusing on in 2012. Three basic areas. My health, finances and home are going to be energized in 2012. Last year it was “Ripples to Tidal Waves.” I made big changes with that theme and made big leaps in my life and business. Now it is time to get the basics down to create a bigger base so that I can create a bigger structure! 2012 is an amazing year. Ride the Wave! (That would be a good theme, you can have it, free of charge.)

What is your theme for 2012?

Continue reading »]]> Make the decision that 2012 is the best year of your life. If you want to live the best year of your life it makes it a lot easier when you make the decision that is going to happen. Mark it down on your calendar, write it on your mirror, make the 2012 is going to be amazing vision board, and shout it out from the rooftop. It is time to make the decision that 2012 is going to be a wonderful magical year.

You will be surprised by the power of making the decision that 2012 is going to be the best. That is where the magic happens. You when decide on having an amazing future by making the present the best it can be. Be bold and take control of your life.

Lets go 2012! The best year of your LIFE!

Image via Wikipedia

To quote Howard Dean, “YYYYEEEEAAAAAAA!!!!!!!”

Continue reading »]]> My last blog talked about the differences between creating projects instead of goals. Today I am going to go deeper into the aspect of the goals being destination focused. Goals are destination focused. Living your life going from goal to goal to goal, is

Image via Wikipedia

telling yourself that you will only be happy until when you have completed the goal. Soon you will be looking back at your life wondering where all the time went and why you spent so little of it enjoying yourself.

If you view your goal like taking a vacation then the joy of your vacation would be getting to the end point. Which of course means that your endpoint is at home. If that is the case, why even go on vacation? That is because the fun of the vacation is the stuff in between leaving home and going back that is the point. The memories, the sights, the sounds, and the good times are the reason you go on vacation.

Switching to a more project oriented viewpoint or direction if you go by Richard Bandler‘s The Secrets of Being Happy, is that you look at your life more about how you got there. You will avoid the empty feeling that can come from reaching your goal. The, “well I did it, but now what?” You will be ready to take on the next new project.

Oh the joys of life! Of course this is build up for my next blog about building your wonderful 2012. Look forward to it. I command you! Just kidding. Also remember, don’t stop believing and hold on to the feeling.

Continue reading »]]>  

I love reading and I love learning. Reading new books allow new perspectives.  While reading Supercoach: 10 Secrets to Transform Anyone’s Life I had one of those experiences.

Image via Wikipedia

The book talked about using the word project instead of the word goal. There is a lot of power in words. Think to yourself of a goal that you want to accomplish. Notice how the goal is in the future and has a failure date. Turn that goal into a project and notice how those feeling shifts. Project is something that you are working on now. Just switching the word from goal to project takes what you are working on from the future and puts it in the present.

You will also notice that it takes away the failure date. You might have dates you would like to complete the project, however a project can go on if you do not make a date. You would have to create a new goal if you do not make it. Using the word project breaks the contract of disappointment.

I am looking forward to playing around with this idea more in 2012! I am excited for next year as I am excited for today! It is all part of my projects.

What are some goals that you are going to change into projects?

Continue reading »]]> Last blog was about looking at the areas that you want to improve. The goals you came up a little short on. There are many blogs and information on how to use the negatives in your life to improve. That is why people triumph hitting rock bottom so they can improve their lives. You do not want to fall into the trap of just looking at the pain to improve. The biggest downfall of this behavior is that you will need that pain to improve your life. Life is a constant growth. Embrace that the only thing in life that is constant is change. It is your choice if you need negatives to change or if you can also use the amazing positive aspects of your life.

With that idea it is important to celebrate your life. As stated in my 8 Keys to Joy, Celebrate your life. After writing the things you come up short on be sure to write down what you did well. What goals you did accomplish, the miracles you manifested, the wonderful joyous aspects of your life and the wins. This allows you to look at your life and notice the things that are going right. Plus you can learn from these and find new more exciting ways to improve your life. You can look how well you did in one aspect of your life and see how you can use that in another aspect. Life isn’t all about paining and then gaining. You can gain from joy.

Personal celebrations

I will share with you my top three celebrations of this year of 2011. Three things that I am celebrating today and learning about what I can accomplish.

1. Making it to District in International Speech Competition: My ability to speak in front of people improved 10 fold during the International speech competition. Winning my club, area and division contests were a huge confidence builder, however the main benefit was the hours I spent honing my speechcraft. It also didn’t hurt that people still come up to me and tell me that their speech touched them.

2. Getting my life coaching certification: What a joy it was to get my life coaching certification and join the culture of coaches. Years of hard work and dedication has paid off. I was able to learn a lot about myself in the process and improve as a person as well as a life coach.

3. Launching a book: Going through the process and actually seeing the book in physical form was a very special thing. So far I have booked two radio interviews and looking forward to a third one in June.

What I learned is that when I set my mind to something and enjoy myself I can accomplish a lot. The joy I felt while going through each process of the top three accomplishments was something special. I loved writing the chapter for the book, going through the speech competition and every class I took through Invite Change.

Intention: With great joy I love accomplishing miracles as I serve humanity.

And remember, CELEBRATE!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ6zr6kCPj8

Related articles

• Happiness Improves Health and Lengthens Life (joyousexpansion.com)

Continue reading »]]> Today’s guest is Kirstan O’Donavan is the owner of Top Results Coaching.  She works is a personal and business coach. She has a similar message with mine so I have agreed to share her message with my readers.

Here are ten tips and good habits that you can incorporate into your days to make them more
positive, feel better and see better results….

Focus on solutions; not problems. If something is going wrong in your life, it is normal for most people to focus on the problem and how bad it is. Normally you find yourself asking how this can happen to you, why this is happening, I have such bad luck, etc, and you wallow in your problem. You run this situation over and over in your mind like a video on auto-replay, again and again – and does it ever help?

I am inclined to think it doesn’t. Feelings associated with these thoughts also make us feel
worse – so if you combine all of that together, you can imagine how terrible you will feel. So
why not focus on the solution? You can’t do anything about the problem –as I prefer to say, the
challenge – so redirect all your energy to the solution. Stop focusing on the problem, the bad,
try to focus on what you are going to do now. You can´t change what has happened so why
give more energy to the negative. Look forward and find the path that will take you out of your
current situation.

Look for the lesson & gift in every situation. Whenever something good happens,
it is easy for us to see the lesson or the gift in the situation, or not even think about it. But
when something bad happens to us, we can only see the bad. The experience is actually only
feedback that what you are doing isn´t working and you have to readjust your course. So why
not look for the opportunity? We normally see the opportunity months later…have you ever
heard yourself saying ¨now I know why that happened¨ or ¨if that hadn´t happened, I wouldn’t
be here¨. Train your mind to be positive and look for the lesson in every experience, good or
bad

Question your thoughts. Your thoughts and beliefs are made up of all your experiences,
relationships with family, friends and partners, everything you have seen and heard. They are
not facts about the world. If your thoughts are not serving you, this is just and injustice towards
yourself. Be aware of your thoughts, change the negative thought patterns, and the results will
be priceless. Ask yourself different questions – instead of thinking, I don´t have money, I can
never afford that, ask yourself “how can I find a way to afford that?” Become conscious of the
thoughts, feelings, beliefs and attitudes that are creating your world.

Take responsibility for them and choose those that serve you. Take control of your thoughts or
they will control you.

Try to think towards joy and happiness. Being positive really does have a big effect on
your day-to-day life. You will attract positive experiences, your feelings will be more positive and
you will feel better. Nothing good comes from negative thinking. Start anew; choose to believe
that anything is possible.

Take responsibility. Take responsibility for your actions and behavior. Most of us are

inclined to never look at ourselves, but always at other people, pointing fingers, “he did this
and she said that…” You need to take responsibility for who you are, not the way anybody else
is. Everyday when you go to bed, ask yourself if there was anything about my behavior today
that I want to change tomorrow. Everything starts with awareness; and remember that the way
you react will always affect the way the other person will react to you each and every time. The
more you take responsibility for your life, the more you will be able to change it. Responsibility is
freedom and empowerment.

Make peace with yourself. Love yourself. If you don’t, how can anyone love you? You are

an accumulation of the past – this is not who you truly are forever. If you have negative habits
you want to change, find that strength and make the change. Intention and awareness are the
first step. Nobody is perfect, ever, so don’t hold ideas that you need to match up to this person
or that. We all possess the same qualities, perhaps in different quantities. Start respecting
yourself and you will feel a big shift in your daily emotions and feelings. The more you love and
accept yourself, the less you will judge others. We all make mistakes. Seek to forgive, love and
understand yourself.

Forgive yourself and others. Forgiveness of others and yourself can be said as the

ultimate mind-body-soul detox. It frees you from negative and damaging emotions and it sets
you free from draining attachments. It can also set you free from feelings of guilt, shame or
undeserving which block you from happiness and success. In forgiving another you are also

forgiving yourself. It is an immensely powerful and the most gracious gift you can give yourself
and others. Many people don´t speak to loved ones for years because they can´t forgive; who is
the real loser there?

Nourish and energize your body. For most of us, the same excuse is often heard; “I

don’t have time to eat well or to exercise”, “I don´t have enough time to cook”. The importance
of health is not fully understood until it is too late, until we have a life-threatening disease or
condition. Just by eating a little healthier every day, you will wake up with more energy, you will
feel more vibrant, alive and willing to do things, more revitalized and ready to take on the world.
Your body is your most precious gift. Many people are overweight, saying that they don´t have
time to exercise. Going to gym is not the only form of exercise. I have many techniques you
can use to exercise at home – while watching tv, while working, while travelling. There are no
excuses, and the benefits are immeasurable. Also, ensure you sleep enough; you will not feel
good if you are tired, you will most probably feel irritable, unhappy, with no energy and feeling
negative.

Identify your passion and follow it. We all have a passion. Some people say “I wish I
had a passion” or “other people have a passion but not me”. This is not true, we all do. Some
of us just do not know what it is but taken through a series of exercises, it soon appears and
literally lights you up. If you cannot live from your passion, try at least to incorporate it once a
week in your life. Painting, riding, going for walks in nature… whatever it is. If you really don´t
know, a professional can help you to get clear on your passions.

Make a list of things you want to do in life. Write down the things you would like to do
in your life before you die. It does not have to be extreme, lets say wanting to go to the moon for
example, but things you would love to do but don´t make time for. Try to do at least one of these
things a month or even every few months. By doing things that we love, we feel more alive,
vibrant and we enjoy life much more.

Live in the present. Most of the time our thoughts are either in the past or in the future. Past
thoughts are normally associate with feelings of regret, shame and frustration. Thoughts in the
future are related to feelings of anxiety, apprehension or stress. Try to bring yourself into the
present, enjoy each moment. Trust and surrender to life unfolding. The famous saying says it
all… Past is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift, that’s why it’s called present.

Focus on gratitude. When you wake up or go to sleep, even when you feel bad, remind
yourself of all your blessings. Just having two legs, eyes and a healthy body are reasons to be
grateful. Feeling grateful puts you into a state of happiness that automatically lifts your soul.
Being grateful opens your heart and the more you value and appreciate something, the more
there will be to value and appreciate.

Continue reading »]]> Yesterday I wrote in my blog December to Remember I wrote how December is a good time to look back and plan ahead.
What makes the look back and planning ahead valuable is the ability to be honest with yourself and have at least judgement as possible. By least judgement as possible is to not give yourself an excuse to feel bad for the things you wanted to accomplish but didn’t. To be more accurate I mean negative judgement as celebrating accomplishments is a form of judgements. Learn from your mistakes or missteps. That is how you grow as a person. Life is a practice and the way you improve anything is deliberate practice. As discussed in the book, Talented is Overrated.

You are not done with growing up as a person until you die. Making the slight adjustments will allow you to make the changes you need to live the life of your dreams. You can even make intentions out of them.

Looking at my year there are a few goals that I did not accomplish like I wanted to.  I am not where I want to be in my health, vocation and financial goals that I made last year. Luckily I realize that one of the keys to joy is to give up the illusion of being done.  That is relevant to me because I thought I have learned enough to get those areas of my life handled in 2011. What I have to learn in all three is practically the same. The remembering that life is a practice. I put to much emphasis on the results rather than the process. The process of the constant working on myself and self improvement. Hitting a wall, learning from that wall and then moving through the wall with new lessons. Without noticing I created new contracts for disappointment.

My intention is, “Through complete self love, I express my inner joy through owning the strength of my being as I continually expand my being from the inside out.”

I look forward to an amazing 2012!

Continue reading »]]> The beauty of December is the fact it rhymes with remember better than any other month. December falls at the end of the year and it is the best time to remember the following year and reevaluate your goals and celebrate your accomplishments.

Image via Wikipedia

Look back at your year and look at what you have done. Have you reached your goals? What have you learned from the past year?

What did you fall short on? How can you take what you learned from that and take it to the next level?

Since we use a 12 month calendar, December is the month to look back and start to plan. So today, take time out and look at what you have done.  That is the first step to planning a wonderful 2012.