Recent Articles From EvanCarmichael.com http://www.evancarmichael.com/ http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Life-Isnt-FAIR.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Life-Isnt-FAIR.html Purposeful Pondering Question for Today: Are You Living a Grace Filled Life? A few years ago, my daughter, Amber, went through her 'that's not fair' phase. Seemed like every time I turned around I heard her say, "but that's not fair." Didn't seem to matter much what the 'that' was she was talking about, life just seemed to be unfair all the way around. Have you ever thought that way -- that life just isn't fair. Well, I want you to know that you're right. Life isn't fair. It's actually rigged in YOUR FAVOR. That's right. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Quit-Trying-to-Change-Your-Life.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Quit-Trying-to-Change-Your-Life.html Several weeks ago I received the following message from one of our readers. My heart went out to this troubled soul who wrote: "I've come to the point that I believe in nothing, my self esteem is in the gutter, and I don't know what to do with the rest of my life. changing careers and going back to school just seems too daunting. I need the line of work that I'm in to pay the mortgage even though I think I'd rather be doing something else." So I wrote back: "My heart goes out to you. It really does. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Im-Dying--But-Not-to-Worry.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Im-Dying--But-Not-to-Worry.html What a way to start off an article -- "I'm dying but not to worry." Well, it's because as I approach my 60th Birthday I have noticed a new relationship evolving to life and to death. It started when I heard this past week that Dom DeLuise had died at the age of 75, and for the first time, I counted up the difference between his age and mine. And even though I'm not the greatest at math, it only took me a few minutes to figure out the difference was only 15 years. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/The-Power-of.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/The-Power-of.html The following distinction may challenge your beliefs and stretch your ability to try things on, but I believe if you make the effort you will find this to be one of the most powerful tools for living on purpose. Remember, these coaching distinctions are intended to stretch your mind and consciousness into new ways of thinking and relating to reality that will ultimately enhance your life and give you a deeper sense of purpose and prosperity. So, try this basic premise on: You’ve never created anything in your life! http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/All-is-In-Divine-Order-Even-When-it-Doesnt-Look-Like-It.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/All-is-In-Divine-Order-Even-When-it-Doesnt-Look-Like-It.html All is in Divine Order and working perfectly even when it doesn't at first glance look like it. "Take this economic crisis -- while it may not match our preferences for how we'd like it to be, it's the perfect outcome to expect when you have a small number of ego-centric people hungry for power and run by greed making the decisions and policies while everyone else casts a blind eye of ignorance and complacency." Brad Swift from meditation While participating in John Randolph Price's 40 Day Prosperity Plan that includes meditating each day and then journaling, the above statement flowed from my pen. Upon reflecting on it later, it felt true and worthy of expanding upon. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/The-Universe-is-Calling--Will-You-Heed-the-Call.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/The-Universe-is-Calling--Will-You-Heed-the-Call.html "The soul is like a wild animal -- tough, resilient, savvy, self-sufficient, and yet exceedingly shy." Parker J. Palmer from Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation In our last issue I made a distinction between one's life purpose and a calling or vocation. As you may recall the Life On Purpose Perspective offers that your life purpose is more about who you are as a spiritual being and what you came here to this life to be and to experience, while a calling or a vocation often has more to do with what you choose or are lead to do as an expression of your purpose. Of course, on one hand anything that you do in life can be enhanced when it's 'poured' into the context of your life purpose. For example, several years ago with Life On Purpose Institute was just getting of http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Is-there-a-Place-for-Destiny-in-Your-Life.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Is-there-a-Place-for-Destiny-in-Your-Life.html I recently read an article online that asked the question, "Where will you be in 25 years?" then invited me to first consider where I was 25 years ago as an way of introducing the role of destiny in our lives. I found the exercise interesting and worthwhile so I thought I'd share it with you. Where were you 25 years ago in 1983? Me, I was 35 years old. I'd graduated from veterinary college 9 years previously, and I had purchased my own veterinary clinic (a former out patient clinic of a larger hospital) for the rip roaring price of one dollar, which was about all the savings I had at the time. The rest of the purchase price, if memory serves some $26,000 was financed at the local bank. Not long after, the loan that started at 12% shot up to 19%. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/What-are-the-Upsides-of-This-Major-Downturn.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/What-are-the-Upsides-of-This-Major-Downturn.html Well, we've all heard plenty about the major down turn that we're in the midst of. The news media is having a real hay day with it all. Unemployment continues to rise, home foreclosures are everywhere, and no one seems to know quite what to do about it all. But let's take a step back and look at this from a different perspective. Let's say for the moment that we live in a universe where there are no accidents. I know that can be a bit of a challenge in its own right, especially when it looks like there's been a major accident on the universal freeway, but I don't think so. I think it's more likely that we've been paid a visit from the Universal UPS Truck. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Freeing-Ourselves-From-a-Downward-Spiral.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Freeing-Ourselves-From-a-Downward-Spiral.html Some people call them vicious circles or cycles. I prefer to think of them as downward spirals of life. I’m referring to those periods that we can all become trapped in like the whirlpool of water as it drains from the tub. If we're not careful and mindful these downward spirals can suck the life right out of us. They’re like the Spiral of Fulfillment in reverse. When we find ourselves trapped in such a downward spiral we life can look and feel pretty bleak. Here are a few simple and effective steps you can use to free yourself of such life draining periods. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Blueprint-for-Building-a-Business-On-Purpose.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Work-Life/4374/Blueprint-for-Building-a-Business-On-Purpose.html Have you ever seen a skyscraper being built? If so, you know that for the first several weeks or months, very little appears to be happening, at least above ground. That's because the initial work is focused on building a solid foundation. The higher the skyscraper is designed to be, the more solid the foundation needs to be to support all those stories. The foundation of a Business On Purpose is what I refer to as "Clarity of Purpose...