Monday, March 22, 2010

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie.

Dear Friends,

Past is history, future is a mystery, the present is a gift. Yeah present, gift get it? :) Enjoy your presents (BIG MESSAGE). Here are a couple of interesting titbits from this wonderful book. With my comments in braces () of course.

Seventy per cent of all patients who come to physicians could cure themselves if they got rid of their fears and worries.

Carnegie quotes a Dr Montague: "You do not get stomach ulcers from what you eat. You get ulcers from what is eating you."

(Worth thinking about? Many of our bodily symptoms are caused at the emotional level. The body follows where the mind leads. So learning to master your mind can help you alleviate so many bodily issues. I personally think it's due to the body/mind connection being broken or just weak. Your body gives you messages all the time but you just don't listen. In fact we have ignored the messages for so long that now we are not even aware we are getting messages from within. Messages such as:
'Time to eat'.  Our response 'Nope, I am too busy'.
'Take rest, you are tired'. Our response 'Are you kidding, I have tons of tasks to do'.
'Your ankle needs rest'. Our response 'It's just an ache. If I ignore it, it will go away'.
Sounds familiar?)


The first big idea in the book is 'LIVE IN "DAY_TIGHT COMPARTMENTS"
1. Do you tend to put off living in the present in order to worry about the future or yearn for some 'magical rose garden over the horizon'?

2. Do you sometimes embitter the present by regretting things that happened in the past - that are over and done with? (are you carrying the weight of your past on your shoulders. Imagine walking every moment of your life carrying a 100 lb weight on your head or shoulder? Learn techniques to let go of the past. Hypnotherapy can help.)

3. Do you get up in the morning determined to 'Seize the day' - to get the utmost out of the 24 hours? (Is a lion chasing you constantly?)

4. Can you get more out of life by 'living in day-tight compartments'? (Take a pause and reflect on this)

5. When will you start to do this? Next week?....Tomorrow?...Today?"

(Waiting for time does not help. Time will only bring more of what you have been getting already. If you have to change, you need to take POSITIVE steps RIGHT NOW. You are the creator of your future. It's only in the NOW that you can take action to create the future you desire. There are no magical pills to create the future you desire. You have to put in Self Effort and be persistent. But the important thing is to WORK SMART and NOT HARD. I truly believe success is not an accident. You may not like the success you have today but remember you created it, mostly subconsciouly with your beliefs.)

One of the quotes I like in the book is as follows:

'I spent 12 years working with cattle; yet I never saw a Jersey cow running a temperature because the pasture was burning from lack of rain or because of sleet and cold or  because her boy friend is paying too much attention to another heffer. The animals confront night, storms, and hunger calmly; so they never have nervous breakdowns or stomach ulcers, and they never go insame.'  - Dale Carnegie.

The Big Idea: "Shut the iron doors on the past and the future. Live in Day-Tight Compartments".

(Learn from your past, plan your future, but the present is the only moment where you can take ACTION).

Have a wonderful day. Bye for now.