“The Lion King” and “Aladdin” Get the Best of a LaGuardia Situation Episode 139, Season 6

There’s nothing as powerful as a switch in focus. In this podcast, you’ll learn from a surprising source how to help you turn an unanticipated negative situation to your advantage. 

 

Check out this latest episode!

The Amazing Power of Scent

 

I recently tried a new hair product that promised to “tame those pesky fly-aways,” and since it was reasonably priced, I thought it was worth a try. It didn’t tame much of anything, but gosh, it smelled delightful. I said to my BFF, “Smell my hair. Isn’t that great?” She sniffed and said, “It’s OK, I guess. So where do you want to go for lunch?

Oh. And then I remembered: scent isn’t the same for everyone. What smells wonderful to one person can smell just sort of all right to another, and vice versa. What smells awful to one may just be “not so bad” to another.

The hair product makes me smile every time I catch a whiff of it. That, frankly, is what is important about scent. Our emotional response to it is the basis of aromatherapy. Scents are known to directly access the brain, which in turn releases various hormones that can help support our well-being and alleviate stress. Our reaction to scent is ingrained, automatic, yet often specific to each individual. Sure, some smells are repugnant to all of us, but the degree to which we are offended or bothered by them is different for different people.

We can use our individual reaction to scent deliberately, to evoke a desired emotional response. The easiest way to find out what might work for you is to go to an aromatherapy store (no, you can’t do this on Amazon), take a deep breath as you sniff a particular scent, and see if it brings a smile to your face. If so, great, you’ve found a scent that awakens pleasing sensations for you. If not, simply move on to a different aroma. The deep breath matters, as the scent needs to get carried into your brain, so to speak, and breath facilitates that.

Then what? What do you do with that little bottle of lavender, let’s say, tucked in your pocket?

For example, you’re having a rough day at work. Your boss is being a jerk, your colleagues are worse, and you feel trapped in a job you dislike more each day. Will taking a whiff of lavender fix your work issues? Make your boss or colleagues treat you better? Your work easier? Nope. However, taking a few deep breaths of a scent that pleases you can relax your nervous system, calm your mind, and soothe you just enough for you to consider an alternative solution to whatever is bothering you. If you allow it to. That is the bottom line. You have to allow a scent to work for you, otherwise, well, it’s useless.

Sometimes, just a moment of scent-based soothing truly is enough. Try it! There’s much to gain, and nothing to lose.

 

How To Find Success At Work: What Would Your Favorite Action Hero Do? Episode 138, Season 6

Are you tired of getting absolutely nowhere at work? Why, despite your best efforts, do you never seem to be the one to land the raise/bonus/promotion and achieve the success you know you deserve? Instead, it seems you land belly up in despair and depression a good deal of the time. In this podcast, you’ll explore how to get yourself out of repetitive “ain’t it awful” – and get yourself in the right mindset for success.

Check out this latest episode!

Happiness Is A 5:1 Deal – It’s Scientific! Episode 137, Season 6

Happiness can be elusive. How can you be happy when you feel that you can’t do anything right? That all you ever get from your partner, child or boss is critical comments, no matter how hard you try? Rather than figuring life is just like that and it’ll never get better, discover in this podcast a different, far more powerful and empowering approach to happiness.

 

 

 

Check out this latest episode!

You’re Not a Failure, You Just Need a Different Approach

 

                                Photo Credit: Mike Lin, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

“A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” Christopher Reeve

If ever someone was justified in describing what it takes to get through life’s most trying times, it’s surely Christopher Reeve, whose story of Superman success, accident-engendered paralysis, and a further story of creating a new and successful life for himself is well-known.

But what about you and me? Most of what we deal with in our lives is less dramatic, yet “stuff” happens to all of us. Stuff we must either rise above or sink below, and frankly, rise above seems a lot more appealing.

So what stands in the way? Why don’t we, like Reeve, find that strength to persevere? Why do we, too often, give up and simply announce, “Well, that’s life. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.” We decide we just aren’t good enough, smart enough, talented enough, whatever the “enough” is for you. We brand ourselves as a failure, and that’s that. Sigh.

But what if, bear with me here, what if it’s not about you? Sure, the “stuff” happened to you--the lost job, missed promotion, dependence on alcohol or drugs, miserable finances, partner leaving you, on and on--but that doesn’t mean you are a failure. It means you failed at something. There’s a world of difference between the two. If you failed at something, there’s always the possibility you might succeed at it eventually, or find something even more interesting to you to succeed at. Maybe not now, but sometime. With a different approach.

Ah, yes. Because that’s what generally is the problem—your current approach. If Reeve had insisted he could only be successful as an actor equipped with 4 functioning limbs, he’d never have had the life he created for himself after the accident. Instead, Reeve adopted a different approach. He used his knowledge of the acting world to become a successful director and to act in roles beyond action hero and more, using his paralysis as a plus, not a minus.

Any one of us can follow Reeve’s example. Step back from your issue, look upon it as a challenge to come up with a different approach, heck, 10 different approaches, and go for it. Persevere. Assume that you will find a more successful approach, something that allows you to go beyond your problem, or around it, under it, totally outside of it, so that you achieve success and happiness. Maybe with your original goal, maybe not. Maybe with something entirely different you would never even have considered, but for this supposed “failure.”

You are not a failure. Never were. But your approach? There are a multitude of different approaches to any difficult situation. One of them, if not many, will work for you. Just think of Reeve and--rock on!

What Improv Theatre Taught Me About “Yes, and”, Episode 136

Ever wonder why some conversations get stuck before they’ve even really gotten started? Why do you get into fights rather than getting things sorted out? Learn how to unblock discussions so you can have meaningful conversations that actually get somewhere instead of ending in a fight. In this podcast, you’ll discover a powerful yet easy way to do just that.

Check out this latest episode!

What I Learned from Yucky Fish, Episode 135

How do you prevent your attention from always being diverted to stuff you don’t like, don’t want, and never asked for? Why does all this clutter get in the way of you having the good life you deserve? How can you free yourself from the negative? In this podcast, you’ll discover an easy way to shift your focus so you can experience what is truly yours to enjoy.

 

Check out this latest episode!