5 Top Personal Development Links 2/11/2010

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It’s been an illuminating and life-shifting week. I’m incredibly grateful to my blogging buddies.  They really care about others and about the world.  Their thought-provoking articles touch and transform me.

In the same way, my heart is filled with appreciation for all the thoughtful comments left at Always Well Within.  Your words, your insights, your inspiration nourish and inform my life in remarkable ways.  Thank you to everyone.

Without further ado, here are a few exceptional articles that primed the pump this week.

1. The Danger of Being Selective with Our Friends by Andrea DeBell at Britetalk

Andrea magically wrote a wonderful article that captures exactly what’s been brewing in my brain as I see personal development bloggers telling us to trim negative or draining people from our lives.

Andrea says, “Lately I’ve been hearing a lot people talking about how they should surround themselves with people that are successful if they want to be successful. Or that they need to be around spiritual people if they are on a spiritual path. Or that they need to cut off negative people from their lives if they want a more peaceful life.  This concept usually intrigues me. Is it really important that we be around people that are like us or that aspire to similar things as us?”

2. How to Be An Eco-Advocate without Coming Off as a Freaky Green by Bill Gerlach at The New Pursuit

Positive change depends on skillful and compassionate communication.  This article presents invaluable tips on how to communicate effectively instead of creating more of a mess.

Bill asks:  “Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve wanted to advocate for something but just didn’t know the best way to approach it?  If your wanna-be advocacy is anywhere near the Eco-Zone, you’re likely conscious as coming off as that Freaky Tree-hugger type. Or the Crazy Left-Wing Hippie. Or even the Armageddon Doomsday Greenie. Fear not though! This post will help you find angles and approaches for engaging people in sound, logical and appealing ways that benefit you, them and this little planet we all call home.”

3.  Voting for Poverty by Raam Dev at raamdev (dot) com

What’s the cost of a cup of coffee?  In this powerful article, you will be challenged to think more clearly about the impact of your actions.

“I am not that important. You are not that important. Nobody is worth more than a human life. Circumstances don’t exclude some of us from shouldering this responsibility. It’s our problem and humanity owes it to itself to take care of its own.”

4.   A Free, Simple 10-Step Introduction to Meditation at What Meditation Really Is?

Meditation is a wonderful way to improve physical health, reduce stress, enhance your relationships, and bring more peace, happiness, and confidence into your life.  Above all else, meditation is the way to reconnect with your true self, the innermost essence of your mind.

The Course Introduction explains, “Meditation is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself in your life. It gives us the stability and confidence to live well, no matter what we’re doing.  At the same time, we hear so many different things about meditation that it can sometimes be hard to know where and how to begin.  This course aims to answer some of the questions you might have, and to explain why meditation can have such a powerful effect on every aspect of our lives.  Most importantly, you will get the chance to experience meditation for yourself.”

5. Volkswagen Super Bowl Ad Is An Anthem to Gen X by Penelope Trunk at Brazen Careerist

It’s useful to pause every now and then and take stock of cultural changes.  In this article, Penelope Trunk enumerates the positive effects of Gen X on American culture.  Do you see what Penelope sees or is this simply the view from the upwardly mobile?

Penelope says, “It’s also our heyday because Gen X values are front and center. And we’re about family. We don’t earn as much as Baby Boomers did because we work such fewer hours. We’ve downsized our careers to take care of our kids.  We’ve taken back the dignity of working part-time. We’ve deconstructed stay-at-home parenting as a respectful career alternative.”

Please enjoy the links!

Thanks for reading. If you enjoy this entry, please spread the word by using the share buttons below.  And, I would love to hear from you in the comments. Thanks!  I appreciate your support.  Sandra

26 thoughts on “5 Top Personal Development Links 2/11/2010”

  3. Hi Sandra! Thanks so much! I’m truly honored to be included in this impressive list of bloggers. I’d like to thank you for always providing such amazing content with great wisdom. I’m always happy to visit your blog. Your bright personality, humble character, and beautiful honesty shines through every post.
    Thanks for making the web a better place with each post. Loving blessings, sweetie!

    • Andrea,

      I’m so inspired by your uplifting spirit. I’m so happy to include you here. I appreciate your courage in taking a different view in this article and the you do so with gentle yet powerful clarity.

  5. Sandra — So many thanks for including me in this list of amazing pieces (and leading me and others on to them). I’m humbled! Once again, you always seem to find a way to brighten my day. Be well!

  6. The excellent observation about negative people reminds me of a story I can’t remember very well. Perhaps you know it and can help me remember it better. The students of a particular Buddhist teacher did not like one of the people in the group who was always so negative, always grumpy, never helping out, a real thorn in their sides. Finally, he left and the students were so relieved. But the teacher ran after him and convinced him to come back. The teacher thought he was one of the most valuable members of the community.

    I was in a meditation group once which included a woman who just grated on me. She couldn’t be quiet when we were supposed to be quiet, she interrupted, and she went off on tangents and talked too much. I felt so irritated around her.

    Over time, I learned more about her personal life. She was a gifted artist who took care of her invalid mother. She had a huge heart and would help anyone. I came to admire her so much and I was so ashamed of how I had judged her so harshly.

    I am among those who might quickly sign up for the eliminating negative people idea, but this post has made me reflect much more deeply on what lovely roses I have found among the thorns.

  7. Hi Sandra .. thanks for sharing the links – I’ll definitely look at the meditation one .. and have read the others and the comments above. We just need to think where we are in life compared to so many others, and then give, share and smile to our family, friends, neighbours and people we see or know about ..

    Thanks -Hilary

  8. Thank you for this post. I’ll be checking out these sites when I have the time to. I’m currently busy “fixing” my personal site as it has been moved off the wordpress.org install and back to wordpress.com free hosting. The meditation site looks very interesting.

    As you know from reading my blog posts I haven’t bought into the get rid of negative people from your life thinking either. Everyone we meet is our mirror and what we dislike seeing in others is what we suppress and repress in our self. One does not get rid of family and close friends just because they are “difficult”. One looks at the image and then looks with oneself to determine what part of oneself one does not love and then takes on the inner work that’s indicated.

    Truth be told as well as me learning many lessons from so-called negative people in my life they have learned many lessons from me by dealing with my negativity.

    I don’t remove every weed from my gardens either. Some provide shade and nutrients that my food and herbs benefit from. Maybe this is a useful metaphor. :)

    Thanks again.

    Love and peace,
    TiTi

    • Hi timethief,

      You have a special perspective. Your approach and Andrea’s underscores what is sometimes the difference between personal development and spirituality. Naturally, it can be uncomfortable to look in the mirror, but it can be an enormous blessing for our self growth. Thank you for sharing this metaphor. That’s an interesting parallel with your garden. What came to my mind is the way that some weeds are actually beautiful. Thanks for this valuable contribution. Wishing you well with your blog transition.

  9. Sandra, your blog has been a portal to some of my favorite new bloggers. (I love you how you introduced Bill’s — “how to communicate effectively without making more of a mess.”) I’m off to check out Andrea’s — I’ve been chewing on a similar issue for a while and am looking forward to hearing her thoughts on it!

    • Jennifer,

      It makes me so happy to hear that my blog has been a portal to some favorite new bloggers for you. Thanks for telling me. I love sharing the bloggers I love. I’ll be curious what you decided after reading Andrea’s article.

  12. Number 5 spoke to me instantly as a baby boomer mom and I hopped over to check out the commercial and what Penelope Trunk had to say. I did not realize that Gen X were all about staying home and taking care of family. The commercial is great too. I also assumed it was a boy.

    • I’m glad you found that link interesting. I didn’t realize that about Gen X either and that’s why I wonder if it’s really true. Thanks for the comment.

  13. Hi Sandra,

    It is always exciting to see the list of articles that you have put together for mention. They are always chosen for good reasons. I love reading Andrea’s blog! She is such a warm and loving person! Also, she has so much wisdom to share that there is a certain peace and serenity about the way she writes.

    Voting for poverty by Raam Dev was also very thought provoking as you said. It is the harsh truth we would rather not face and it does make me consider my actions in a totally different light. There is much we could do to be more socially responsible.

    Thank you for sharing all these lovely links! :)

    Irving the Vizier

    • Irving,

      Thanks for your enthusiastic appreciation. People are so magnetized by Andrea. She’s a perfect example of how love transforms our being with the added does of wisdom you note. The Raam Das article is a challenging one. I’m glad it spoke to you.

      I appreciate your feedback and wish you well.

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