Real Estate

Wealth Creation – Part 1 – Keys to Investor Success and Wealth Creation

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“SUCCESS IS EVOLUTIONARY” – Get Educate

It stands to reason that the more knowledge you gain about investing, the more successful you will be, and it is the first of the three criteria necessary to build wealth.

I’m talking about devouring books, articles, and audios (anything you can find on the subject) and then applying what you learn. Knowledge alone will not make you rich. Taking appropriate actions based on your willingness to know.

My suggestion to new investors is to learn as much as you can on the subject of success. Read what successful people did to become rich, especially those successful in their chosen area of ​​interest. Find out what they did wrong so they don’t repeat their mistakes, and find out what worked for them so you can implement those actions.

Understand that dedicated focus is very important to success, but first learn all you can about building wealth and success in general. I can tell you that with all the different ways out there to make money, it will be hard for new investors to focus on just one or two.

New investors may be tempted to try several different investment opportunities at the same time. But if they have forgotten to develop an understanding of how to invest, they may be setting themselves up for failure.

Let’s take real estate investing as an example.

You can become extremely wealthy by investing in today’s real estate market, but where do you start? Do you start by doing short sales or are wholesales, lease options, and “tied too” offers more profitable? Are you concentrating on tax lien reversals or buying property to get out of bankruptcy?

Are you launching into commercial properties like apartment buildings, mobile home parks, office buildings, storage properties, or senior facilities or are you more inclined to want to earn passive income with triple net leases or hard money loans?

If real estate is your chosen field of investment, I suggest you learn about all the investment methods I just mentioned, and when you find one that fits your investment criteria, become an expert in that type of investment, and then watch how fast wealth grows.

Once you’ve mastered one type of investing, you can begin to master a second, a third, and so on. Education is a fundamental ingredient for the success of an investor.

Shopping Product Reviews

How to clean your vehicle’s upholstery

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When you look inside your vintage car, chances are it doesn’t look as good as it did the day you bought it. It is not uncommon for the interior to become dirty over the years with normal use. Learning how to clean upholstery yourself isn’t that difficult and can save you some money.

These upholstery cleaning tips are for fabric interiors only and not leather. We use shampoo to clean the inside of the cloth. We have options when it comes to the cleaning solution we use. You can buy super clean or purple degreaser at any local auto parts house. This works great on carpet and cloth seats to remove stains. You can also use Dawn dishwashing liquid, which we all know is great for fighting grease. Find a five gallon bucket or anything that will hold two to three gallons of water. Fill the bucket with water and add just a little bit of the cleaner, if using a purple cleaner just add a few capfuls until the water changes color slightly. With dish soap, maybe a tablespoon or so. We don’t want a lot of foam and soap we have to get out of the fabric. It’s always a good idea to test a small spot in an inconspicuous area before you start. Just use a white cloth and dampen with cleaner and rub a bit to see if the color is rubbing off on your towel. If so, stop now and call a professional for advice on cleaning up this type of material.

The items needed to wash your car’s interior yourself are a wet/dry vacuum, a scrub brush, and a few towels. Clean small areas at a time for best results, except for the seats, wet the entire seat to ensure there are no streaks. Then you can work on smaller areas of the seat after it’s all wet with shampoo. Use a hand towel to dampen it with shampoo, then gently scrub with a brush and vacuum very well to remove as much water as possible. You can re-wet the damaged areas and vacuum them until you don’t see any more dirt coming out. When you’ve vacuumed it up as well as possible, use a dry towel to scrub the entire seat, which removes more dirt and more water to help dry times. We do the same process with each seat and the mat.

Drying the interior as quickly as possible is essential when you have finished shampooing. If it doesn’t dry in a reasonable amount of time, it will mildew, similar to leaving wet clothes in the washing machine for too long. If it’s sunny, leave the windows open and make sure the car is in the sun. Place a fan in a car window to keep air moving and speed up drying time. If it’s not sunny you can roll down the windows to about 2 inches and turn the heat on full. If you have a small fan that oscillates, place it in the car where you can so it stays secure, and turn it on high. Don’t leave it unattended for too long, and keep checking the carpet and seats to see if they’re dry. If you have a garage where you can leave the windows open all night and a fan running, this would be ideal.

During the drying stage, you may notice some dirt reappearing. When I show you how to clean car upholstery that has had glue spills on it, you’ll see exactly what I’m talking about. You can simply take a dry towel and rub these areas as they dry and it will pick it up. There is no doubt that this is a long and exhausting process when learning how to clean upholstery. There is a lot of bending and scrubbing involved. This is why many people choose to take their cars to a local detail shop and have the interior steam cleaned. Although, if you want to save money and learn how to do it yourself, this is one way to do it and get great results.

Sports

Simple but effective ways to motivate students to attend the virtual flag-raising ceremony

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Every Monday of the week, students are encouraged to attend the virtual flag-raising ceremony, not only as a curriculum requirement, but also as an exercise to hone patriotism among our young students.

Here are some simple but meaningful or effective ways to encourage students to attend and learn the basics of having respect for our flag and the duty to preserve our nationalism.

1. Early Birds – They should be recognized for joining early while the rest were still fumbling for their lappie or whatever. Getting them out of bed, having them wear their best clothes or uniform, and being actively involved is a great challenge for children. And, recognizing their effort and everything must be part of appreciating them as great learners in this New Normality.

2. The most attentive: yes, there are those who are all ears and could really give the answers, immediately, to the questions that come their way. Praying to them for being like this could really motivate others to do the same. So they all have the skills to listen, speak, read, and collaborate with their learning partners.

3. Good Deeds: A simple act of kindness could be a great springboard to welcome them to your session. A brief narrative of ordinary people from the community who did something extraordinary like the boy who found something and returned it to the owner, the garbage truck circling to collect our daily plastic bags, a good Samaritan story, among other stories. of great value. to our apprentices.

4. Hosting – Giving them the opportunity to facilitate the activity could really be a means of building their confidence to become a tech-savvy learner, and the experience could be an exhilaration for them. Yes, relegating the task to them would be a good idea to teach them how to be responsible and creative enough to handle the activity with ease and fun.

5. Showing off your home and family: While organizing such an activity, a student could also share some facts about their family members, their art décor, or any object in their home that could be a topic of conversation. Yeah, the opportunities are endless as to how they can have trust and likeability in their fellow learners’ learning journey and whatnot.

There you have some great ideas for organizing the flag-raising ceremony among students. They would not only be developing their nationalism or patriotic attitude, but also showing their technical and facilitation skills that could be their assets for a higher level of learning in the years to come.

Let’s celebrate all the new discoveries every day and share them with others who might be looking for more fun and meaningful insights while learning in the New Normal setting.

Health!

Technology

MLM – In Shameless Defense of Network and Multi-Level Marketing

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One of the things that tells you that you are succeeding in your online marketing efforts is an increasing number of emails from negative people, saboteurs, and people who are just plain rude.

I recently received one from an IT expert who was well off on his own thanks to stock options and profit sharing. He derided MLM people as “bottom feeders” and said, “I deride MLM as a business model.” Probably very easy to do when loaded thanks to stock options etc. I just hope his company doesn’t go the way of Enron!

To be honest, I scoff at most other business models as an inefficient and sometimes unethical way of doing business. Example One: A small family in China produces components for a larger company for a small margin, the large company then sells products to a wholesaler, the wholesaler then sells to a foreign wholesaler who then sells to a retailer who sells them to the consumer. Now this is a basic model: sometimes the intermediaries can be much more numerous. Either way, the original producer is screwed and the consumer is screwed thanks to the number of intermediaries. This is even worse in the agricultural industry. Go to a farmer and ask him how much he earns for a liter of milk, a ton of potatoes, etc. It will surprise you! They get a pittance off the final shelf price. For farmers to continue to trust large multinationals to do right by them is a seriously flawed business model as they continue to be pushed against the wall. I BOTHER ABOUT TRADITIONAL BUSINESS MODELS.

The largest MLM in the world is the international market for illegal drugs, although they trade in evil and death, they are a vast network of people, from poppy fields in Afghanistan to street vendors in Western cities, the highest estimate is that the world industry is $500 billion. A lot of money for what an MLM is. Should MLM continue to be mocked as a business model?

Multi-level marketing and network marketing are found throughout the business world. Realtors, dealerships, and many other “traditional” businesses often have reward levels based on the number of sales, the sellers under you, etc. The internet abounds with affiliate programs that have various levels to reward affiliates not only for product sales, but also if they bring in new affiliates.

Why is MLM so hated by traditionalists? One represents a threat. It means one more load of competitors. It puts profits from products in the hands of consumers. It means fewer sales bonuses for them and fewer margins for intermediaries. It means that the rich may lose control of the markets they once dominated. Who would be more scared: another multinational with a sales team of 100 people, or an MLM with 100,000 non-professional salespeople? Genuine people power has always frightened those who control both power and the strings of the stock market. Why would you give the profits to the consumer instead of to the shareholders? Of course, it shakes its cage, it threatens its very existence. Instead of a CEO making millions for doing nothing, he would actually have to go out and prove that he can sell a product to be successful. Terribly scared that someone is relying on their titles and their old network of ties to get ahead.

Network marketing and network marketing are also hated by traditionalists because they free people from the slavery of a forty-hour work week. They love it when people have credit card debt. They love that people HAVE to go to work to survive. They love people who have big mortgages. They love that people are CONSUMERS. They do not want consumers to become producers. Spoil the party. They don’t want people to be freed from the “traditional” work (slavery) model.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what the naysayers say about MLM, the only thing that matters is whether you can be successful in MLM.

Business

Micro-Cap Millionaires and the Three Ms of Successful Penny Stock Trading

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To be successful in trading small-cap stocks today, you need to have decent control of three critical areas. By focusing most of your Microcap Millionaires research and picks, while also having a written plan for how you will use the three Ms of penny stock trading. Mental/psychological, money management, and technical/fundamental methods are the main areas to focus on when trading penny stocks. This article will introduce you to these factors and how they relate to trading with Matt Morris Micro Cap Stock Pick Advisory Reports.

Because stocks trade below the $10 price point tend to experience more volatility and large price swings than large caps, feelings of fear, greed, hope, and despair multiply as your investment sinks or crashes. shoot, according to the action of the buyers. vendors, penny promoters, market markers, etc. The main point I want to make about trading psychology is that first of all, a trader must accept the fact that every trade has an inherent risk of loss and failure. Accepting this risk and trading anyway is the real key to success. Especially when you are just starting out, opening a position for something as small as $1000 or $500 can cause big emotional swings. You need to be able to manage the risk from it (discussed in detail later), but you also need to be able to mentally accept that risk as part of your trading business and continue with it. This is due to the fact that the future is unknowable. At any time, other traders can buy or sell in the market and this action will either prove you right and pay you your profits, or prove you wrong and separate you from your hard earned money. He knows and accepts his risk and will be able to trade and invest while enjoying a proper night’s rest every night of the week. But to really gauge his risk, he’ll have to become a mini micro-cap millionaire (M4) money management expert.

Money management is the discipline of measuring and tracking how much you will allow yourself to risk during a single trade, during a single trading day, and how much you can lose in any given trading month. This really comes down to deciding in advance how much you can afford to lose (if the trade doesn’t work out). Then you’ll also want to measure what kind of commissions you’ll be paying and include that. This way, you can make specific decisions about how many shares to buy and how far you might allow those shares to move against you before you call. For properly capitalized professionals, this tends to be the 1-2% of your trading account that is risked on a single trade. This is even when trading multiple positions. Smaller traders who are sensitive to risk may risk 3-5% of their account totals on a single trade. However, new hobbyists with limited capital will often risk 10-20% of their accounts on a single trade. This is a very important decision because the less you risk, the longer you will survive before the inevitable losing streak hits. For example, when you risk 10% of your trading account, a series of 10 to 20 losses could wipe out your account or take a significant chunk of your capital. But with that being said, a trader could also be doubling his account every quarter when he makes big moves like that. Decide how much risk is right for you, make a plan, and stick to it. In this way, you give your trading methods a limited downside, while opening up the possibility of considerable upside.

The trading methods that exist these days are many. When it comes to trading penny stocks, there are several nuances you’ll want to consider when coming up with a turnkey micro-cap trading system. It has some classic technical analysis methods that apply very well to small-cap companies. Daily Japanese candlestick patterns are very useful. The pin bar, harami, engulfing tapping, morning star, hammer, dark cloud cover, and others are very helpful in determining trend reversal trades as well as continuation trades. Classic chart patterns can still be of some use with small stocks. Trends and trading ranges are easy to spot on old charts. More complicated methods like the Elliot Wave are often not as useful as they are in higher volume, liquid markets. The same is true of many studies of the Fibonacci numbers. Moving averages, channels, and momentum indicators like RSI, Stochastic, MACD, and ADX are some of the favorite tools of traders like Matt Morris. Now when fundamental factors are discussed, this is a whole different arena when it comes to penny stocks that will double. SEC reports seem to routinely contain vital information that is only overlooked in press releases, but if decoded they can provide several clues as to where a company’s stock value is headed. Earnings reports are great to see. If you’re trading small-cap stocks on the NASDAQ and Russell2000, you can spend time looking at specific sectors, but you can also check the index before buying or selling shares of a specific company. Pink Sheets and OTC, on the other hand, are a bit more difficult to analyze based on the overall performance of the markets. Often penny stocks simply follow the general market when there is no other news hitting the market. The methods are many and when you are just starting out, it can make your head spin. But with time and guidance from micro-cap millionaires, you’ll understand what specific technical and fundamental factors are best for trading penny stocks.

Trading business is a very large and complex industry. To the surprise of many beginners, there is much more to this business than one might imagine when first exposed to the trading world. With that being said, today we have been able to discuss and delve into some basic considerations about using the three Ms to successfully trade micro-cap millionaires. He learned about trading psychology, he learned about money management, and he learned how trading methods differ with small caps and what to do about it. Obviously, there is much more to learn and more to discover on your journey, trading penny stocks that will double.

Home Kitchen

You can afford a new kitchen with Chocolate Bit-Coin

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With the world turned upside down, and everything we used to count on collapsing like failed chocolate breath, I have devised a new monetary system called “chocolate bit-coin”. Easily baked by yourself using our simple “chocolate bit-coin” system, which comes with our top-secret patented recipe, you can now bake your own “chocolate bit-coin” and use it for purchases at remodeling establishments that accept such types of cook to cufrequency All for only $5,000!

Whether you’re walking down the street, past a showroom, or in a “home hub” strolling through the islands, you can’t help but notice the stunning new kitchens on display. You work hard. You’re a good person. If anyone deserves a new kitchen, it’s you! But how could he afford such a luxury? It is easy! Just send us $10,000 for your very own “chocolate bit-coin” baking kit (and proprietary recipe) and pretty soon you’ll have enough “chocolate bit-coin” to pay for anything you want.

Imagine the pleasant sight of standing in your new kitchen, effortlessly preparing a gourmet meal instead of watching from the poor house. Instead of walking on, regretfully abandoning the momentary dream of what you truly deserve, act now. Just send us $15,000 for your personal money machine.

But if you don’t like to take chances and are still inspired by those beautiful displays, there are steps to take that can lead to a new kitchen without sacrificing everything you hold dear. The most important of these steps is to determine a budget you are comfortable with, AND THEN STICK TO IT! Today, there are kitchen solutions that include new or remodeled cabinets, countertops, and appliances to fit almost any budget. The trick is to figure out what your budget really is, and then find which options fit within that figure.

While you are determining your budget, now is a good time to do your homework. Make a list of what you absolutely must have in your future kitchen and another “wish list” of things you’d like, but could really do without if necessary. Browse websites like houzz and pinterest and when you see something that interests you, save it to a folder so you can show it to your designer. It’s always easier and safer to show someone an image rather than try to explain it, leaving less chance of misinterpreting what you had in mind.

Budget in hand, it’s time to visit a kitchen designer who will work with you to create your “Dream Kitchen” at a price you can afford. They will review your ideas and then transform them into a functional design. Don’t be afraid to share your budget with your designer. Whether your proposed spend is $5,000 or $100,000, if the designer doesn’t know, your plan likely won’t meet their expectations and you’ll have wasted your time and theirs.

A creative designer, with whom you have shared your “wish list” and other wishes, should be able to create an affordable, functional and impressive new kitchen, just for you. Unless money is not an object, you may have to compromise here and there, but the end result will be something you can not only afford, but be proud of.

Or, if you’re ready to take the plunge and invest in our $20,000 chocolate bit-con baking kit (oops, that’s bit-coin), just send us $25,000 and you too could be baking your very own chocolate bit-con “. “, the currency of the future.

Digital Marketing

Interview etiquette and manners

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With the anxious feelings of going into an interview, it can be easy to err on the side of not having the best manners. It’s not about manners like keeping your elbows off the table, but about good etiquette. In a job interview, it can be easy to make silly mistakes that could offend someone and, in turn, cost you the job. Here are some good ideas to help you keep your interview manners in check.

Show up early. Being late for an interview will make a lasting impression, but not a good one. Especially if you are not sure of the location, it is better to leave in plenty of time to find the right building and be aware of possible traffic jams. If you arrive more than 15 minutes early, simply wait outside or in the car before entering the building. It could be terribly awkward if someone has an interview before you and you’re still waiting in the lobby. This is true for both you and the other person. Be early, not less than 5 minutes but not more than 15 minutes. Think of it this way: if you’re late, it means to your potential employer that you can ALWAYS be late. Getting to work, and on time.

Have a great handshake. You don’t have to put on the jaws, but you don’t have to “dead fish” your potential boss either. Your handshake makes a good first impression, so make it count. A firm and confident handshake is the way to go.

Everyone deserves respect. You don’t just need to impress the person you’re interviewing with. It is very possible that the receptionist or someone sitting right next to the waiting area will participate in the decision making. Receptionists are often asked what their first impression of you was, so treat everyone with courtesy. You really never know who is watching.

Never be a no-show. If you find that you really aren’t interested, call to cancel. Don’t waste everyone’s time by just not showing up. You never know in your career who you will have to work with in the future, so it is better not to make enemies before they meet you.

To be prepared. Do your research and learn something about the company you are interviewing with. If you know something about the company, it shows interest and gives you a huge advantage. Don’t waste time interviewing if it really isn’t a company you can’t work for. Also, bring all your reference information, resume and portfolio. Make that preparation really work for you.

Relationship

Teenagers always have a good excuse

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Your teen has a good excuse for everything he does, including hurting you, his brothers and sisters, drinking, using drugs, and failing in school. This good excuse or positive intention is what drives the behavior. The negative behavior will not change until the positive intent has been recognized and fulfilled in some way.

There are two basic things to believe before you start trying to figure out what is driving your child’s behavior. You must first believe that we have a good intention behind every behavior. This will certainly help in the process of determining what positive intention your child is trying to fulfill, as it may otherwise seem incongruous, when what they are thinking, saying, and doing doesn’t match up. You’re faking it, and your teen can spot a scam from a mile away. You must also believe that the meaning of your communication is the response you receive. For example, if you don’t like the answer your son gives you, he should be willing to change the method of communication until he gets what he wants. Let me explain the basic process.

1. Plant yourself as an ally…

You want to know what your child’s positive intention is. That requires you to communicate in a positive way or he will shut you down. In any communication with your teen, he or she has four possible options. He can see you as an ally and open up to you, she can go on the defensive, retreat, or counterattack. Your first challenge is to approach her in such a way that you get the first response from her. That is why you cannot blame, judge, criticize or attribute a negative intention to behavior or communication. You don’t want to be perceived as the enemy. Instead, you are an ally and they need to believe that you think he is a good person; they are separate from your behavior and you are here to work with them.

2. Find the positive intention…

To find their often unconscious positive intention, you can put yourself in their shoes or talk to them to get an answer to the following question:

What does this behavior do for me (you)? … gold …

How does this behavior benefit me (you)? … gold …

What do I (you) want to happen when I (you) have this behavior?

Often there are several positive intentions, all embedded within one another. Once you’ve asked for a response, follow up with the same question: “And what does that mean to you?” Keep asking that question for each intention until you think you have an idea of ​​what its positive intention, reason, or purpose is.

3. Checking it…

Once you think you know what the purpose behind their behavior might be, check it out with them by asking, “So what you really wanted with (behavior) was (positive intent).”

4. Now that you know…

Once you think you know the positive intent behind your behavior, act like it’s true. Tell them that you appreciate the fact that they were trying to do something positive, and offer to help them in any way you can. Comment on the fact that this intention is certainly more in keeping with the type of person you are than the negative behavior. Work with him to find a new behavior that is consistent with the type of person he is and that fulfills his positive intention.

So what does this actually look like in real life? Josh broke into his sister’s room, took the money she had been saving, and went out with her friends. On one hand you think we always have a good reason behind everything we do, on the other hand you are absolutely furious with him.

Give yourself time to calm down before trying to figure out what positive intention is behind his behavior. You have to distance yourself from the incident and become an observer. Once you can switch to observer mode, it’s time to take on Josh. Begin by stating the facts in a conversational manner. “I know you went into Brittany’s room and borrowed her savings.” “That’s pretty unusual of you, don’t you think?” “What did she do for you to take her money?” Notice you didn’t ask her why she did it herself. That is a question that asks for an “I don’t know” answer. He may respond with something like, “I wanted to go out with my friends and I had no money.” He then asks, “What did hanging out with your friends do for you?” “It made me feel part of the group.” “What does it mean to you to be part of the group?” “Makes me feel less of a loser!”

You’ve probably realized by now that Josh feels like a ‘loser’ and took Brittany’s money to be a part of the group and consequently feel better about himself. So you check by saying, “Did you take Brittany’s money so you could be part of the crowd and not feel like a loser?” If that catches your eye, follow up with “I appreciate that you tried to do something positive for yourself and that’s consistent with the Josh I know. What else can we think of that will make you feel more like a part of Hopefully this will open up a dialogue.” between you and Josh.

The behavior still needs to be addressed and Brittany still needs restitution. Now that you two are on the same page, it’s a good time to start thinking of ways to earn the money to pay Brittany back!

Health Fitness

Start with the deeper structures

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In my chiropractic practice, patients in pain commonly ask me if their condition is caused by “tight muscles.” My answer is: “yes and no”. You could say that “yes and no” is not a very good answer and I would answer that it is the best I have for that question.

Pain can be caused by tense muscles, but we must ask ourselves: “Why are the muscles tense?” We cannot forget that the muscles are on the surface of our body. We must also remember that our spinal and pelvic bones and joints are deep and under the muscles. If the pelvic and deep spinal bones are well aligned and moving correctly, the surface muscles will be relaxed. However, if the bones of the spine and pelvis are misaligned and irritate the joints and pinch the nerves, the muscles will tighten and spasm to protect us from further injury to the spine. We don’t like that spasm, but we must respect that our muscles protect us and prevent further injury. It is important to examine the deeper structures first. If we correct spinal and pelvic misalignments with chiropractic care, the muscles will relax naturally.

This brings up another frequently asked question: “Should I get a massage?” My answer is that massages will help temporarily. I’m all for massages, but they won’t completely correct the problem unless the spine is adjusted by a chiropractor.

We also want to use a physical therapist at the right time. If there is a misalignment and physiotherapy exercises target a misaligned spine, all we do is injure it further. So first we have to do our chiropractic adjustments, then the exercise will be fantastic. Of course, the exercises you have learned here at our office are low risk and can and should be done daily.

When we have a spinal musculoskeletal problem, seeing the right healthcare specialist in the right time sequence will prevent us from delaying healing and will relieve pain sooner. I generally like to refer patients to physical and massage therapists after my patients have corrected underlying conditions of the spine and pelvic joints with their chiropractic care.

Remember, chiropractic care helps restore balance and allows our bodies to heal and function well naturally without drugs or invasive surgery. It is important to check the deeper structures of our body first to address the underlying cause of the condition.

Legal Law

The masks we wear to hide our authentic selves

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We were heading to Bloubergstrand on the southwest coast of South Africa, through the Namaqualand desert. When we reached the top of the hill, the sight that began to unfold before our eyes in the morning sun, was nothing short of breathtaking! As the sun rose higher and higher in the sky, the myriad of closed blossoms began to open as they were energized by that orange orb we call the sun, revealing an unfurling carpet of desert flowers of all shades and colors. , covering the desert as far as the eye could see!

Namaqualand was in full bloom. An event that takes place briefly, perhaps a couple of weeks, each spring. As I enjoyed this enlivening and energizing scene, I got to thinking about how we are so similar to those desert flowers. We are so self-conscious and timid, and lacking in self-confidence or so filled with feelings of unworthiness, that we protect ourselves like those flowers do. Flowers have a very good reason to be closed in the form of a bud, the darkness cannot give them the energy they need to open and bloom.

Our reasons, however, are not so logical and scientific. Our ‘darkness’ is man-made and artificial, that is, we create the ‘darkness’ through our misinterpretation of ourselves and our fellow human beings, we refuse to accept ourselves as we are, we hide and crush our spirit because we are too terrified to reveal our true selves to someone for fear of rejection. To continue the analogy, when ‘sunshine’ enters our lives, in the form of an encouraging and supportive friend or anything inspiring (be it a book, a seminar, a talk, a glimmer of divine understanding). and the power within us, etc., etc.) .), we open up and begin to bloom, brazenly and shamelessly, revealing all our glory like that of a beautiful, scented flower of Namaqualand!

Dr. Maxwell Maltz once said, “Even though I would redo people’s faces, my patients still couldn’t blossom. Because the self-esteem problem is within us, it cannot be corrected with surgery, so my patients , they continued to suppress their true natures.”

To further clarify the analogy, consider the rose. She also waits for the sun, in the form of a cocoon. As the soft rays of the sun begin to caress it, she begins to open up, petal by petal, revealing her incomparable beauty to us. Rose doesn’t just look good, it smells good, it feels good, it tastes good, that’s right, if you’ve never tried rose petal jam, you’re in for a treat when you do. Why are we not like the rose? Why do we walk with “masks”? Society and the environment discourage us a lot from showing our individuality.

“Accord” is the very clear message we receive, almost from the moment we are born.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“Why can’t you be more like him/her, etc., etc.?”

“Behave!”

“Stay still, shut up, don’t talk!”

“For!”

“No! Don’t do that. Don’t do this!”

“Nobody’s done it like this before, don’t you try it either!”

“Who do you think you are?”

“You can’t do this, you can’t do that!”

Society in general sends you the unequivocal message to conform! What’s the point of living our lives like everyone else? What new and refreshing ideas will we bring to the world if we do that? Clearly, one of the biggest crimes we can commit is to erase individuality every chance we get. In this way, we would have no ‘Noahs’ to save the world, no Edisons to ‘enlighten’ us, no Fords to get us rolling, no Beethovens to calm our nerves, no Aristotles, etc. etc

OK Let’s talk about this for a while. Why, even though we know the above to be the truth, do we still hide our real selves so deeply? I don’t exclusively know why, nor do I claim to have all the answers by any stretch of the imagination. All I can do is share my odyssey with you as I wandered the dark halls of loneliness and misery with my false mask on well. I watched, green with envy, as others lived life, having the most fun interacting with other people, letting their sun shine through their souls to others, while suffocating mine. I kept burying it deeper and deeper into the darkest chambers of my aching heart. I watched as those among us, who were wounded with a healthy dose of self-acceptance, cavorted and danced through life, laughing and spreading their contagious laughter, while I strangled mine.

I remember a particularly moving moment. A group of us, all young singles, were out on a picnic, blankets spread out under the shade of the trees, thoroughly enjoying each other’s company. And I watched as two friends of mine, a boy and a girl, began to tickle each other, laughter mingling with the sheer delight of the youthful moment, wrestling in each other’s arms as they rolled, and I cried inside. I cried because I longed to live like this, longed with a deep, heartbreaking longing to be able to allow myself to do this, to have grabbed a girl and frolicked on the blanket with her, not with any lustful thought in my mind, but for the joy and purity of the moment. Seeing our problem, as described here, is half the battle won. Of course, most people are not even aware of this problem.

I died a thousand, miserable deaths, before one of the most wonderful women in the whole world (my wife), met me (mind you I said she met me, man, I couldn’t meet anyone if I tried), and the long healing process for one of the greatest emotional misfits to ever walk this blessed earth. It was (it still has this effect on me, seventeen years later) absolute bliss and a lot of fear at first, when he started touching me and hugging me and loving me and whispering sweet words in my ears, aaahhhh, that’s how the world’s coldest iceberg began to thaw , left over and forgotten from the ice age. I am still her very compliant slave, totally wrapped around her little finger, fully enjoying this goddess of love sent into my life to save me from emotional starvation, to cure me of the greatest curse on earth, lack of self-acceptance How did she do this miracle? She loved and accepted me unconditionally (within decent, moral, and uplifting limits, I’m not advocating here, I have never and will never suggest that we accept abusive behavior in any size, shape, or form), that’s it, simple as that, and however, this is the deepest philosophy and the most difficult to put into practice. This, I feel, is another big key, the concept of unconditional acceptance of each other. Without it, we not only crush those around us, but also condemn ourselves to loneliness and frustration.

I found it the most terrifying thing in the world to be my true self, because it is not at all easy to break the shackles of slavery that have enslaved us for so long in solitary and life-threatening habits. I well remember my first hesitant steps. It seemed like this stage lasted forever and I’m still a long way from being the person I ultimately want myself to be, but I’m on the right track now at least, and the journey is sweet and sweeter. as I get more and more in touch with that authentic me inside of me that I have suppressed for so long. I died a thousand deaths as I plunged into uncharted waters simultaneously trying to be my true self and also to discover my true self, because you see, I didn’t know who I was.

Self-discovery is a journey that we all must undertake, for a simple reason. Without self-acceptance life is hell, but self-acceptance is not possible without self-knowledge, and self-knowledge is not possible without embarking on a journey of self-discovery. This can be extremely overwhelming if you stop and think, “Where do I start and how will I know if I got there?” Take heart, dear soul, it’s not that bad, although I also thought it was mission impossible when I first realized it. Above all, let self-discovery be fun, even though it can be bittersweet at times, that’s okay, it’s part of the healing and the journey. My wife helped me tremendously as we opened our hearts to each other, a great key to self-discovery. I had to demolish my own private and personal Fort Knox, which I had built around the real me and share it, piece by piece with my wife, as she opened up and shared her real self with me. Humor and a conscious effort to make the trip sweet also help. Most of us take ourselves too seriously and don’t consciously plan to enjoy our lives. It’s crazy, but it’s almost like we’re waiting for ‘fate’ to sweeten our lives. Why don’t we pick up the phone and meet up with a good friend, for example, and do something healthy and fun?

The other big thing that helped me was books and audiotapes, by the hundreds. I devoured books by legends like Norman Vincent Peale, Og Mandino, Maxwell Maltz, Napoleon Hill, Dale Carnegie, Wayne Dyer, Stuart Wilde, Jacqueline and Jess Lair, Orisson Swett Marden, Barbara Sher, Robert Fulghum, Gerald Jampolsky, Lou Tice. , Mohammed Ali, Winston Churchill, Plato, Mike Wickett and others of that genre. These people (some of them are already dead, others are getting on in years), along with my wife, saved my life. His writings and talks bathed my soul for thousands of hours, filling me with new life, new hope, new love and zest for life.

One of the most liberating experiences in life is to shed the masks we wear and just be ourselves. My whole point is this: we think we have to go around pretending to be someone else. Consequently, we enslave ourselves and become miserable, it’s hard to impersonate someone else, isn’t it? It puts undue stress on us. Well, it’s not necessary. We are unique! People enjoy and appreciate uniqueness and authenticity, so why dress up as someone we can never be and, frankly, don’t really want to be?

I remember well how I slaved in high school. I, along with all the other students in my class, failed an “Afrikaans” language test. The teacher gave us all a tremendous reprimand, she struck a chord within me, I was not going to fail a test again. I learned the lesson word for word, therefore I got an A+ for it. This achievement earned me high praise from the master, however now I had a reputation to uphold. I had to memorize each Afrikaans lesson to get good grades. Now, there’s nothing wrong with that, as long as this is what you want. The problem was, that wasn’t me! I didn’t know how to speak Afrikaans and at the time I didn’t really want to learn, so I put on the mask of an Afrikaans scholar, which I clearly wasn’t, and paid for it.

The incident I just told you about was a Sunday picnic compared to the many, many agonies I went through as a result of wearing my masks. What if I “wasted” forty years of my life? For forty long years I was so afraid of being me that I crucified my authentic self a million times over by covering it up and wearing the many fake masks I made.

Dear friend, do yourself a great favor, throw off the many masks you wear to hide your true self and allow yourself to blossom like the rose. Others will see your beauty for the first time and their jaws will drop, because the real you is wonderfully and breathtakingly beautiful. Flaunt his uniqueness and individuality, don’t suppress it, after all, we’re all drawn to the real McCoy while despising fakery.