Hi everyone!
Welcome to the Life List Clubs bi-weekly blog fest. If you aren’t familiar with the Life List Club you can find out about it on the tab up on my header (or click the link). Today, I am guest posting over at Diana Ligaya’s site on The Power of the Buddy System.
I am pleased to have Marcia Richards, the co-founder of the Life List Club, with us today. Marcia’s blog, Married with Stories, is a mix of books, history, writing and goal-oriented content. Welcome Marcia! Take it away.
Jack Canfield – The Biggest Intention Killer
Jack Canfield, co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, is now a life coach and motivational speaker and has established himself as an expert in the field of personal excellence. In the following 3-minute video, he speaks about the Law of Attraction and what can stop it from working for you.
Please watch:
According to Mr. Canfield, doubt is the biggest killer of your good intentions. How many times have people you know planned to lose weight, only to fall off the scale and put the weight back on? Some wonder: Will I be happier? Will I look as good as I hope to? Writers, too, are full of self-doubt: Will people tell me I must have been crazy to think I could write? What if no one ever buys my book?
It’s true. Doubt holds us back, keeps us from attaining the goals we set out so valiantly to achieve. What can we do to change this outcome?
Jack Canfield
Canfield, subscribes to the idea that committing to your dreams (i.e., I want to be rich, I want to be athletic, I want to write a successful novel) and believing in them, will be the positive force that can attract more positive events.
There is no scientific evidence that your thoughts can affect anything external. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that when you commit to a positive thought, you will naturally take the steps necessary to make that thought a reality and attract a positive force that will bring you what’s needed to reach your goal. Others respond in more positive ways to a person who is dedicated to a task and working toward betterment.
Can positive thoughts manifest a positive reality? I have a couple of personal stories that illustrates how it worked for me. You can read one of those stories here, if you like. I don’t believe that positive attitude and committing your thoughts to a particular goal can work miracles every time. For instance, imagine a person who believes that their life-threatening illness will be cured because they state their desire to be healthy and then allow the positive energy to carry them on a journey to remission.
Committing to a positive thought is not enough. What could happen in that circumstance is they may learn of a new treatment that works for them, or research could reveal a new drug, or an acquaintance may hear of the persons’ illness and suggest a doctor who’s having great success in treating the disease. Those possibilities could lead to better health or a cure.
If you decide to look for a new job that is more fulfilling, then a friend calls with a lead for just the sort of job that would interest you, is it coincidence, or did the positive vibes really attract more positive vibes and results? No matter which camp you fall in, Jack Canfield is right. Doubt can only have a negative effect on realizing your aspirations.
Kill the doubt before it kills your good intentions!
1. Do have a positive attitude.
2. Do make a step-by-step plan to get the desired goal.
3. Do you work the plan and enlist support from people you can trust.
How much power does a superlative attitude have over events? Do your thoughts create the reality?
Marcia Richards, a veteran blogger, is author of the blog, Marcia Richards…Married With Stories, which offers posts on writing, mid-life, and history.
She is creating her debut historical trilogy covering the years between 1917 and 1975. The Donnelly’s, an immigrant Irish family struggle with economic troubles and personal tragedy, while striving to maintain their dreams. The trilogy highlights three generations of strong, young women fighting their way to the fulfillment of their dreams, learning who they are what they are capable of, along the way.
You can find Marcia on Twitter and Facebook. If you have any questions about the Life List Club Marcia can also be contacted by email.
Thanks for stopping by today, Marcia! I hope you all will check out my Guest Post over and Diana Ligaya’s site and follow the rest of the Life List Club blogfest writers (found over in my side column).
Peaceful Journeys!
Gene Lempp ~ Writer 
I agree that there’s more to this “Secret” than just having a positive attitude (although I believe being positive is a crucial part of it). You HAVE to take action. Positive action which moves you toward your goals.
You can sit on the couch and wish to be a best selling author all you want. I guarantee nothing will happen.
But if you get off your backside, write the best novel you can, add the best cover, present it professionally, market it appropriately, all while visualizing a best seller. Well, then you have a chance.
Thanks for sharing!
Wonderful post Marcia. I do this all the time without thinking about it. When I’m motivating myself to write, I envision someone reading my finished novel. When I’m in the gym, I imagine my body looking the way I want it to look. I look at it this way – my thoughts may impact what happens, or they might not. But either way, I’m creating a more positive experience for myself by envisioning these things than by imagining an editor tossing my book in his trash can!
Excellent post. I’m a big believer in positivity–in all areas of my life. I have more energy when I believe my dreams will come true. And I eat more chocolate and lounge more when the doubts come! 🙂
Excellent post as usual Marcia, honest, manageable, and smart. I’m glad you included the clip for Canfield’s speech it was humorous and an interesting story of how he connected with the book buyer. Wouldn’t that be an amazing dream come true for us writers? A cross-country book signing! For now, I have keep my positive thinking to finishing the book first. 😉 But this post was awesome. Thank you!
Attitude is everything. Nothing good will happen if you just sit back and wait for it, so hard work is a must, but self doubt is a goal killer. It seeps into our brains and affects our writing and whatever else we’re trying to accomplish.
Thanks for sharing the video!
Loved the post. I truly believe in empowering oneself with positive thoughts to meet your goal, and have a happier life. I commit to it every day – some are harder with others, but it’s the best way to live! Thanks for the great reminder.
Marica, This is so great to hear. I hadn’t ever thought about positive thinking having that kind of power, even though I know it to be a powerful thing. I will think of this post whenever I’m feeling like I’m not good enough.
I think the mind is very powerful and our attitude strongly colors everything we see. If we have a positive attitude and a specific intention, I think we’ll tend to see solutions where we saw nothing before. But if our attitude is negative or our intentions unfocused, we’ll tend to see roadblocks with no way around.
Great post!
I was just thinking about this! I don’t KNOW it will make a difference, but I feel like it might, and really – it can’t hurt. I mean, having a positive attitude makes the wait more enjoyable too, and as writers we know that’s part of it!
Marcia, this is wonderful advice, and something that I need to keep in the forefront of my mind. I have a tendency towards self-doubt, and it always holds me back. It’s when I can stay positive, when I believe that I can accomplish whatever I set my mind on, that I blaze forward. Thanks for the reminder!
I know from my personal experience that positive energy and combined with goals can have an amazing impact on what happens in your life. Great job Marcia, and thanks for sharing.
This is something I’ve recently started putting into practice and it really does make a difference, even if it’s just in the way I handle things. Thanks for the reminder to stay positive.
@Jamila, Kerry and Emily…I was lucky enough to inherit my optimism from my Mom and she was also an amazing example to follow, so i’ve learned throughout my life about its power. I’m glad there are so many others who regularly practice the act of being postive…after all the alternative stinks! Thanks for coming by…it means a lot.
@Jill…:) nothing wrong with an occasional chocolate/lounging kind of day, but I agree…I lean more toward that when I doubt myself or am just having a difficult day. We just need to keep reminding ourselves…nobody likes a pessimist and pessimists get very little done.
@Lisa and Jennie It’s incredible how positive thinking can motivate a person. Bur it can’t be something you do just once in a while…it has to be practiced daily to become a habit.
@Pam, Stacy, Jennifer and Pam—I appreciate the positive feedback on this topic. Sounds like all of you have had experiences where it has worked for you. Having a supportive network helps, too–like all of you.
@Jess I’m glad you liked the video…He’s got the right idea, and yeah, what a coup that would be to get that lucky!
@Shea He’s a little over the top for me, but I agree with the idea. Sounds like maybe you’re good at kicking butts for friends when necessary!
Thanks so much for coming by and commenting…everyone!
Thanks to everyone that came by today. Your words are wonderful and I’m glad that you enjoyed Marcia’s post. She is a wonderful person and a great inspiration to many 🙂
Marcia: Thanks for the incredible post. I’m glad you were able to be here today, it was a pleasure to host you 🙂
Sonia…I wrote Pam’s name twice in my comment #14 when I meant to write your name. So sorry. But so glad to see you. 🙂
Gene, I apologize for coming in so late…had my hand full with my grandgirls today. Thank you so much for being an awesome host.
If all of you commenters don’t know this yet, I’m one of Gene’s biggest fans and I hope you all come by every week to read his Designing from Bones posts…they are the coolest, best researched, well-written pieces I’ve ever read!
No worries, Marcia. I’ve been hanging with my daughters this evening. Family time is important and for many of us the motivation that drives us to want more and pursue our goals. Thank you so much for the excellent compliment 🙂
fabOoolous post! Gene, Thanks for having Marcia. I guess I have my parents to thank, they raised me to always have a positive attitude and to realize that all my dreams can come true! But, the second you feel sorry for yourself, you are your own worst enemy.
Very inspiring post, Marcia! I completely agree with you – your attitude can dictate so much of what happens in life.