Resolution Support

[H2O_Keeper]

I have had the pleasure to work with a few life coaches and they all say a big part transitioning from dreams in your mind to success is the accountability of your actions to get from "A" to "B"....This all ties in after defining what’s your life goals and what you are willing to trade for it.

In order to help support the actions necessary to your goals is to create an accountability system. I have a vision that if that at least within TFP we define to our fellow users we say what our goals are we have created an accountability system to yourself and others. At the end it only matters what YOU desire as your dream and actions but putting it out into the universe creates attraction to your life, premise of http://thesecret.tv/

I thought no better time with the traditional "New Years Resolutions" upon us than to start a thread for such a system. I realize this is a far reach for TFP and that’s why its in the “Coffe Bar”. We all have a common thread of Pool Care goals at a minimum and thought putting your plan out to the universe via TFP will create the accountability that this year YOU will do whatever it takes to reach the goals you put out there for the new year.

Personally I am still finishing my goals that I want to make realizing there will be trade-offs for what I decide (mostly due to just not enough hours in the day to balance it all). I will post my list soon but thought I would put the thought starter out now.

 

[Guest]

Nothing secret about "The Secret" or the "Laws of Attraction". This info has been bouncing around the New Age Community for years under various guises. The best implementation of it, IMHO, is Shakti Gawain's book "Creative Visualization". (I was a manager in a Metaphysical Bookstore for many years...my brother and sister-in-law owned a chain of 5 of them and have read extensively on the subject.) It's all just a rehashing of Arcane Knowledge that is centuries old. Even Ecclesiastes said that bread cast upon the water will come back to you. It's all right in front of your face if you just open up your eyes.

 

[H2O_Keeper]

I agree there are a lot of “guru’s” out there on the topic and different twists on the same core concepts. My intent with the thread was to have YOU put out there your own personal “Resolutions” so you will have to put some thought into it and the forum can help you create some accountability for it.

IMHO the best source and not just the latest trend (ie “The Secret” for example) is the author Napolean Hill.

( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleon_Hill )

 

[chem geek]

Regarding "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne, she gave an E-mail interview from The Associated Press here. With regard to events in which massive numbers of people have died (e.g. the Holocaust or even 9/11) she says on the one hand that "there is no one to blame", but on the other hand that:

In a large-scale tragedy, like 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, etc. we see that the law of attraction responds to people being at the wrong place at the wrong time because their dominant thoughts were on the same frequency of such events.

Now, this doesn't mean that they thought of the same exact event, but if their dominant thoughts and feelings were in alignment with the energy of fear, separation, powerlessness and having no control over outside circumstances, then that is what they attracted.

What I find most interesting is how Einstein is referenced (see the link). This is similar to how Dr. Bruce Lipton extends the obvious connections of mind and body (for example, the placebo effect) into relating quantum waves and energy to macroscopic healing energy. One starts with science, which is very specific in observations, repeatability and predictability, and then transitions into speculation, abstraction and faith. It's a shame because the core science is very good. We just have to leave it at that or at least make clear the separation between that which is science and that which is not.

There have been scientific studies that on the one hand showed that people (even in large numbers) praying for someone did not result in any statistically significant change in outcome (for operations, etc.) while on the other hand the patient's own attitude was weakly-to-moderately correlated with a positive outcome. Those who were depressed did the worst as did those who were extremely upset, those with a neutral or positive attitude did better, but those who had a fighting, even crusty, attitude did the best. My best guess is that this may have more to do with adrenaline and related hormone levels than anything else where an elevated level of stress improves the body's immune system, but too little and especially too much stress is detrimental. Unfortunately, the study did not measure hormone levels so this is just speculation.

Visualization techniques have been shown to be effective by extending "practice" time without actual physical activity, but still required some baseline level of real physical practice to be highly effective. I haven't found any studies showing that such visualization had a statistically significant effect on healing, but if it prevents people from getting depressed or extremely upset, then it would be beneficial as noted above.

As for resolutions, I believe if everyone were to resolve to have more compassion, that would be a good first step. Wake up each day, snap your fingers, and choose to help each other.

[EDIT] Interesting thing about Napoleon Hill. My father took the Dale Carnegie course during his youth and for a time became a teacher of it. He was very successful later in life, but it took a long time to get there. It was pretty clear that keeping focus and sticking to basic core beliefs were helpful, but it was also clear that there are many factors not in one's control. Though we don't control some things outside of us, we do control how we react to them and for those things we do control or influence, we can improve the odds. [END-EDIT]

Richard

 

[New2Me]

Personally I am still finishing my goals that I want to make realizing there will be trade-offs for what I decide (mostly due to just not enough hours in the day to balance it all).

First, you must free yourself from "want", and focus on "need". Here, I'll get you started with Maslow's hierarchy of needs:
1. Biological and Physiological needs - air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep, etc.
2. Safety needs - protection from elements, security, order, law, limits, stability, etc.
3. Belongingness and Love needs - work group, family, affection, relationships, etc.
4. Esteem needs - self-esteem, achievement, mastery, independence, status, dominance, prestige, managerial responsibility, etc.
5. Self-Actualization needs - realising personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences.

Personally, I would put in 2.a. A Trouble Free Pool! You will never be able to add more hours to the day, so the only way to "balance" is to cut out unnecessary time expenditures, and remember to breath in and out on a regular basis. A six sigma life can only be achieved with YOU as the benchmark; YOU will never be Tom Cruise, Barack Obama or Heidi Clum, But THEY will never be YOU either! :blah: If finances are weighing you down, give Dave Ramsey a listen. I don't agree with all of his ideas(I think debit cards are EVIL :grrrr: ,) but he makes it easier for most people to see how much they waste money, and I think he's very funny and entertaining too!
Joyous Good Tidings to all, with wishes for a Very Happy, Prosperous New Year!!!

 

[H2O_Keeper]

Perhaps you will say I have drank too much of the Motivational”cool-aid” but I do sincerely believe one can to a major extent control their own destiny.

Pretty much all of us have had some major challenges after a medical, physical, financial, or emotional hardship. And I must confess there are occasionally things that come into your life that are unwanted, unplanned, and unexplained.

Living in a “Free” country we are able to go around with our own beliefs, values, and goals within our goggles of the world. Having this freedom gives us the power to control our world. More than you probably realize or want to admit. You are not just “stuck” in your circumstances, you just have challenges in making a change. A brief soap-box tangent:

You see a guy on the street asking for money. Appears to be homeless and you decide to help and give a few dollars. Most would stop and wonder after the fact did this person just take your money to go buy alcohol or really go feed his family per the sign. In my world, it doesn’t matter you helped a person in need. If I sincerely believe I helped the man feed his family then mission accomplished. You may think I am just naïve then to his intent, but it really only matters what I think of it.

At the core level your thoughts lead to your actions which lead to results. The entire coaching, motivational series, industry is all based on your own personal growth. If you don’t have a plan for growth then you will wonder around in the circle of sameness. You will do what you have always done and get what you have always had. You end up spinning wheels in your world.

I can not substantiate my beliefs on this with theoretical numbers to prove what I am saying is true. But I can tell you without a solid action plan with accountability if your personality needs it you will only have a “New Years Wish List”. Stop dreaming, start doing.

I am done with my preaching here and know it’s not just to the choir. If you sincerely want a change in 2009 for you and your family make the plan and work it. I can just tell you from my perspective I would rather view the world through my optimistic and positive glasses than cynical ones.

Perhaps my thread has turned into challenging self help methods but as long as it touches others that’s all that matters. My intent was to help you achieve your pool care and personal goals in the new year.

- To Peace and Love

 

[chem geek]

Self-help, a solid action plan, and accountability are one thing. The Secret and ideas that thoughts alone are all that is needed or that actions without proper thoughts don't work are something else. Please don't take my criticism of one part of what you wrote as criticism of the whole -- it wasn't. I get particularly plugged in when certain self-help teachings try to relate things to quantum physics as any sort of proof of their correctness.

Richard

 

[H2O_Keeper]

Self-help, a solid action plan, and accountability are one thing. The Secret and ideas that thoughts alone are all that is needed or that actions without proper thoughts don't work are something else. Please don't take my criticism of one part of what you wrote as criticism of the whole -- it wasn't. I get particularly plugged in when certain self-help teachings try to relate things to quantum physics as any sort of proof of their correctness.

Agree totally the concepts are valid in "The Secret" but they glance over the entire action part. Thats why I gravitate more towards the Carnegie/Hill teachings. The science to support the concepts are fascinating to me as well! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Did not intend to seem offensive to your facts if thats how you read it.

I only referenced the movie/concept because I thought some readers may relate to that more than the authors brought up in this thread. They actually did a better job on the Oprah Specials discussing the laws of attraction and action than the movie. James Arthur Ray did a good job with it on the episode I recorded.

It seems though most all the people in the business world who's company make it big went a lot deeper in their passion and resonance if you will, for their goals to become reality. Maybe its just plain ole drive that got them there, but I think its deeper than that. Thus I am a beleiver that if you say it aloud and create your accountability by putting it out to the universe you will be more prone to do what you say. If you dont you are lying to yourself and to those around you.

As a side question for the technical aspects of this thread if anyone beleives telekinesis is real could this mean our thoughts can attract things as well as move objects?

 

[chem geek]

It's well-known that people behave better when they believe they are being watched, regardless of whether they are actually being watched. There's also a very recent study showing that people are about twice as likely to behave better and keep things clean when the environment is clean compared to when there is graffiti. There's certainly a built-in component of our behavior (regardless of whether it's nature or nurture) that seeks approval or at least following close to social norms for most people.

For many people, memorization is improved when saying something aloud and writing it down -- it may simply wire-up the brain in more places more effectively. So saying something aloud, especially around others, certainly puts all of the above into play. As for those with success, it's really all over the map. Some are dominant contributors, some are brilliant, some pick good people around them, some inherit wealth, etc. CEOs are a unique instance and there are many books and studies trying to define what makes the best companies the best (Good to Great being one I most recently read).

Wikipedia has a decent summary of the state of telekinesis here. Clearly, if it was a pronounced effect, then one could theoretically move others minds if one only knew what to do, but I wouldn't hold your breath. For more direct approaches, there's "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. I've met people who had an eerie effect on my feeling and can see where such charisma can be very powerful and used to help or to hurt people, but I haven't seen anything studying this effect trying to figure out its source. It might be like other forms of attraction where there are subtleties of look and scent -- science certainly hasn't figured that one out!

 

[launboy]

Oh wow. And to think I thought this thread was going to be about Screen Resolution Support so you wouldn't have to scroll back and forth.

Adam

 

[gtm]

I get particularly plugged in when certain self-help teachings try to relate things to quantum physics as any sort of proof of their correctness.

As a physics person of sorts, I couldn’t help but share some thoughts of my own that are more or less inspired by one of my favorites, Richard Feynman. I think you’ll know which thoughts are whose.

“I think I can safely say that nobody understands quantum mechanics.”

I believe, or maybe I just hope, that this quote was mainly intended to explain why everyone in the world feels free to use quantum theory to justify almost any thought that comes into their heads.

“It doesn't matter how beautiful your theory is, it doesn't matter how smart you are. If it doesn't agree with experiment, it's wrong.”

He didn’t say this often enough. Pretty much the fundamental definition of science, isn’t it? If only I could get the grad students to “grep” it.

“The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool.”

I have this one framed on my wall and I make all my students memorize it. Obviously I think it’s a pretty good single rule for doing science well. If you can’t catch your own mistakes before sending them out for someone else to do find, you’re going to have an awfully hard time with peer review. To paraphrase, the more you WANT it to be true, the less likely it is to be true. But I still think I’m good looking, regardless of what Julie says.

“Physics is like sex: sure, it may give some practical results, but that's not why we do it.”

Sorry, completely irrelevant, but I just always liked this one. Along the same lines, in his “Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman” book, he also talked about writing papers and lectures in the strip bar on the corner by his apartment. During my postdoc in Honolulu I also lived a block from a strip bar and tried to emulate the master. No papers or lectures were completed. I guess it has something to do with one’s ability to focus.

What was I talking about?

Cheers, Gary

 

[H2O_Keeper]

Wikipedia has a decent summary of the state of telekinesis here. Clearly, if it was a pronounced effect, then one could theoretically move others minds if one only knew what to do, but I wouldn't hold your breath.

I didn't get that deep into my research before asking about Telekineses but did find the same link and it still hints as if its not officially proven.

LOL Launboy.....Perhaps a new "Deep End" thread series for the Coffe Bar...lol

Well I think I lost my audience for a basic post your New Years Resolution here try. That's okay we got the readers if we can keep their focus that long, lol, engaged with an open mind of positive thinking/planning.

 

[waste]

I've been following this and have waited to respond. A 'new age' approach to pools? ( ) Please don't get me wrong, I've read some of the books/ authors mentioned It never worked for me, but I probably didn't 'do' it fully I do believe that there might be some things that the scientific method can't handle, but believe more in what it can! However, as a former student of psychology, I DO believe that how one views the world will effect how one reacts to it, AND that you can control how you view the world (see Richard Carlson's Shortcut Through Therapy)!

New2me - Maslow? did you study HRM - I took a lot of psychology in college and only ran across the hierarchy of needs in HRM classes (2 of them) as well as the motivator/ hygiene stuff. As with what else has been said here, it comes into play

As for quantum physics (hang in there- it's a long quote)

[copied from The StraightDope with no permission this was authored by Cecil Adams]

Cecil, you're my final hope

Of finding out the true Straight Dope

For I have been reading of Schroedinger's cat

But none of my cats are at all like that.

This unusual animal (so it is said)

Is simultaneously live and dead!

What I don't understand is just why he

Can't be one or other, unquestionably.

My future now hangs in between eigenstates.

In one I'm enlightened, the other I ain't.

If you understand, Cecil, then show me the way

And rescue my psyche from quantum decay.

But if this queer thing has perplexed even you,

Then I will and won't see you in Schroedinger's zoo.

— Randy F., Chicago

Dear Randy:

Schroedinger, Erwin! Professor of physics!

Wrote daring equations! Confounded his critics!

(Not bad, eh? Don't worry. This part of the verse

Starts off pretty good, but it gets a lot worse.)

Win saw that the theory that Newton'd invented

By Einstein's discov'ries had been badly dented.

What now? wailed his colleagues. Said Erwin, "Don't panic,

No grease monkey I, but a quantum mechanic.

Consider electrons. Now, these teeny articles

Are sometimes like waves, and then sometimes like particles.

If that's not confusing, the nuclear dance

Of electrons and suchlike is governed by chance!

No sweat, though--my theory permits us to judge

Where some of 'em is and the rest of 'em was."

Not everyone bought this. It threatened to wreck

The comforting linkage of cause and effect.

E'en Einstein had doubts, and so Schroedinger tried

To tell him what quantum mechanics implied.

Said Win to Al, "Brother, suppose we've a cat,

And inside a tube we have put that cat at--

Along with a solitaire deck and some Fritos,

A bottle of Night Train, a couple mosquitoes

(Or something else rhyming) and, oh, if you got 'em,

One vial prussic acid, one decaying ottom

Or atom--whatever--but when it emits,

A trigger device blasts the vial into bits

Which snuffs our poor kitty. The odds of this crime

Are 50 to 50 per hour each time.

The cylinder's sealed. The hour's passed away. Is

Our ***** still purring--or pushing up daisies?

Now, you'd say the cat either lives or it don't

But quantum mechanics is stubborn and won't.

Statistically speaking, the cat (goes the joke),

Is half a cat breathing and half a cat croaked.

To some this may seem a ridiculous split,

But quantum mechanics must answer, "Tough @#&!

We may not know much, but one thing's fo' sho':

There's things in the cosmos that we cannot know.

Shine light on electrons--you'll cause them to swerve.

The act of observing disturbs the observed--

Which ruins your test. But then if there's no testing

To see if a particle's moving or resting

Why try to conjecture? Pure useless endeavor!

We know probability--certainty, never.'

The effect of this notion? I very much fear

'Twill make doubtful all things that were formerly clear.

Till soon the cat doctors will say in reports,

"We've just flipped a coin and we've learned he's a corpse."'

So saith Herr Erwin. Quoth Albert, "You're nuts.

God doesn't play dice with the universe, putz.

I'll prove it!" he said, and the Lord knows he tried--

In vain--until fin'ly he more or less died.

Win spoke at the funeral: "Listen, dear friends,

Sweet Al was my buddy. I must make amends.

Though he doubted my theory, I'll say of this saint:

Ten-to-one he's in heaven--but five bucks says he ain't."

— Cecil Adams

8) :lol: :lol:


I hope those of you who ~understand quantum physics will accept my giving a 'primer' on the subject for those who may have only heard of it in passing!

H2O_keeper - hope you keep this thread going!!

 

[Butterfly]

Oh wow. And to think I thought this thread was going to be about Screen Resolution Support so you wouldn't have to scroll back and forth.

Adam

Me, too! But, as it turns out, it is kinda' like a good book that I just can't put down!

Enjoying the read. :-D

 

[H2O_Keeper]

Well for the last two posts requesting to keep this thread alive I can chime in on my perspective for more controversy about the laws of attraction....At a minimum I do believe if the proposed frequencies that are claimed to be generated are real and not just measurable than obviously this supports the verdict is still out.

Due to some personal experiences and my own interest of paranormal and telekinesis I am on the side of the fence that these things ARE real. And my take on it is that we can control objects and there are things that science can't disprove than to me it seems plausible the laws of attraction are real.

I guess in my world if I believe that even if I learn in my lifetime that it is not proven by science it has at least given me the right mindset for positive action. KInda like the entire religion perspective if you believe in evolution or not (Yes I realize I just opened up several more cans of worms

Here is an interesting link I found somewhat objective but they were the opposite of mine about Telekensis and trying to show some "theory" to dissaprove it:

http://www.thekeyboard.org.uk/Telekines ... antasy.htm

Try this one for some scientific proof that at a small level it does exist...

http://www.princeton.edu/~pear/

 

[budster]

Very interesting thread, I must say. This will be a challenge for me, as a traditional pool industry person, who tends to classify those who cry "pool-stored" as "pipe smokers" (meaning stereotyped 'engineers'). My overall goal here will be to offer my experience to the end that pool owners are happy with their pools, spas, grills, etc., if from a more traditional view. I will ask your support in keeping me accountable for my suggestions in that spirit. I also am here to learn from this non-traditional perspective.

As to the personal achievement philosophies expressed, I'm pretty eclectic. I don't think anybody has the "secret to success or happiness" in the bag, but I'm not critical of whichever road you travel to get there. IMHO if you make a decision to action, then "just do it." One can waste plenty of time and money obsessing about the technical details of the best vehicle to get you to the airport on time, and still miss the plane.

Merry Christmas to all. :santa:

 

[H2O_Keeper]

My two cents on the last post...

Once you do your own soul searching to what is the important things in life for you and get clear on your goals/dreams and not just your wish list there really isnt that much energy in it. If you beleive in daily readings of your affirmations to help re-enforce your attitiudes and directions I guess thats 5 minutes a day. The topic affirmation if you are not familiar with it is spelled out well in the source Waterbear quoted and can be found here, page 27.

I have my own interest in laws of attraction and the such if they are real or not but that’s not something you should get bogged down with….You should not get analysis paralysis over this. Define your plan and work the plan with a positive approach and that will get you started.

Have a wonderful day all at TFP.

 

[chem geek]

I found this particular research here very interesting. Perhaps it's not one's thoughts that cause the opportunity to knock, but one's attention to answer the door when it does.