SSi | An Inspirational Multimedia Company

January 30, 2012
by Jennifer Baumgartner, Psy.D.
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A Closet Makeover Case Study

It's a New Year! What are the internal issues lurking in your closet?

January 26, 2012
by admin
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L is for learn to listen, let go, love, laugh, live
This morning The Soul Salon listeners were treated to another show in the Abc’s of Better Living Series with Denise Taylor. Denise gives her time, live each Thursday morning at 9AM EST, to share the next insightful letter in the series. Today’s letter is L (show embedded above) and as we shared in Denise’s thoughts on L–the importance of laughter was shared. We all know how good it feels to laugh and we also know how hard it is to muster laughter when we may be feeling low. For those times, we shared on the program how it is helpful to have an external source, like a comedian, to begin to lift us from that heavy dense place we may be in.

So today, give a listen to The Soul Salon episode embedded above and listen as Denise share the letter L of the ABC’s of Better Living and enjoy the segments below from one of my favorite comedians, Mitch Hedberg and Denise’s Brett Leake.

January 21, 2012
by admin
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Having fun is for the birds

When SSi talks about “finding your happy place,” this concept is wide open to interpretation. Sometimes we are confused about what the truest form of happiness really is. The big exciting events of life, like a lotto win, are not to be mistaken for happiness. It is a thrill perhaps, or an emotional high, but true happiness comes from doing what we love, with people we care about, and in being creative and in making a contribution of some sort to man, animal or nature. True happiness comes from a level of contentment in simple things–not manic highs that are not sustainable.

This little bird, filmed in Russia shows us that “having fun” is not solely a human idea. He is clearly quite intentional about his plan to have fun. It is absolutely heart-warming to see this intelligent creature repeatedly sled down this roof–not because it helps him gather food or build a nest or attract a mate, but because it is fun.

When is the last time you had some fun? Well, it’s Saturday night, get crazy.

All the best!

Rena M. Reese

Founder, Soul Salon International

Rena M. Reese is the founder of Soul Salon International, an inspirational multimedia company which offers coaching, consulting, web-design, publishing support, and fundraising opportunities for individuals and groups. She is the author of several inspirational titles, a professional speaker and coach as well as the host of a weekly radio program, The Soul Salon. Please visit www.SoulSalonInternational.com and connect with her on Twitter @TheSoulSalon.

January 12, 2012
by admin
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Cyndi Dale with Rena Reese on The Soul Salon Radio Show: A special 3-part series on developing your intuition

Perhaps you have always been aware of your sixth sense and now you are ready to safely and wisely learn to use it. If yes, here is a calendar alert. Set your reminder to listen to Cyndi Dale on The Soul Salon on January 17 when she joins Rena for the first of a three part series about Intuition. If you cannot catch it live you can return to hear the archive 24/7 or download the free podcast on Itunes of the segment (after it airs of course).

Cyndi is a renowned author, speaker, and intuitive consultant as well as the author of many best-selling books and she has graciously agreed to offer this series in support of those interested in both exploring and developing their intuition and psychic senses.

This series is based on her latest book The Intuition Guidebook: How to safely and wisely use your sixth sense and it is suggested that listeners pick up a copy of this rich resource since there is far more information packed in the book than can be presented over the course of the series.

What you can expect:

Program #1 Living in 2 worlds, Understanding your sensitivities, Psychic Boundaries, Why do you receive the info you do?

Program #2 Preparing to be intuitive, Discernment (following the path to safe travel), Defining your gift order

Program #3 Putting Psychic Gifts to practice, Kinesthetic psychic sensitive, Verbal psychic sensitive, Visual psychic sensitive, From psychic sensitivity to spiritual vocation–Unfolding your destiny.

Tuning in to this series will have you learning from one of the most special intuition experts of our time. Remember to set your reminder to listen.

January 11, 2012
by admin
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Awed Daily

On a typical Monday our three children will get up before the sun. The sun will lift into the sky as the kids sit around the granite counter in our kitchen eating eggs and bagels before heading to their classes at the high school.

While this scenario may sound mundane, each is actually quite profound. The Divine law in place that guarantees– to the minute—the time the sun will rise each morning, is awe inspiring. Yet, we are rarely a witness to or awed by a sunrise.

The notion that the polished colorful rock which now serves as our family’s kitchen countertop was long buried below the earth’s surface for millions of years, is awe inspiring. Yet we are rarely awed by a granite countertop.

Each of our children began life as a single cell. The Divine intelligence that told that cell to divide and then divide again and again also infused them with gifts, talents and intelligence. Now those teenagers are learning to drive, are thinking about their future and developing into young adults. Yet, we are rarely awed by teens.

The eggs that provided those teenagers with their first meal of the day have long been debated as to whether they came first, or the chicken required to produce them. That magnificent egg is awe inspiring, but rarely gets a passing thought before being boiled poached or fried.

Familiarity with the awesome components of life can dull our sense of awe. This familiarity can mute the remarkable nature of that which we experience regularly. As defined, awe is a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder. Perhaps we take for granted and do not offer respect to that which has become commonplace in our lives.

I recall feeling a sense of complete awe as I stood at the top of Mount Haleakala on the island of Maui, Hawaii. The feeling came from the view, the landscape that resembled the surface of Mars and the massive nature the mountain. There I was on this teeny island out in the Pacific Ocean, on top Mount Haleakala nearly 10,000 feet high—so high in fact that little grows at this altitude.

But do we have to reach the top of a mountain to be awed?

Awe requires conscious recognition. That consciousness is what defines our human experience. Awe requires that we notice all that is around us and how terrifically unlikely any of it is to exist—and to see how everything is a masterpiece. It has been said that once you can find awe when looking upon anything, you can find awe in absolutely everything. You see, while it is easy to find awe in the tremendous science and courage that put Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins on the Apollo mission which landed men on the moon, how about the not so obvious awe-inspiring parts of life?

Consider the water in your gym-bottle or the water that you added to your coffee maker this morning. The world has been given not one new drop of water since its beginning. The same water we enjoy today for cooking, bathing, and drinking and that make up every cell of our body, has been around since the birth of our planet. That same water we use daily, hydrated the dinosaurs, flowed down the Nile River for the Ancient Egyptians, rained down upon the builders of the Parthenon in Athens, Greece thousands of years ago, and carved out the Grand Canyon. When was the last time you looked at a simple glass of recycled water through that awe-inspiring lens?

Reasons to be truly awed are all around us. If we look with wonder we are guaranteed to feel that reverential respect that the dictionary mentions in defining the word awe. While the word “awesome” is a popular term used to acknowledge something terrific, it has minimized the purest sense of the word. To a child, “awesome” may refer to a new family minivan with DVD players built into the headrests or in getting a trucker on the highway to honk his horn. Perhaps a brand new sheet of bubble wrap would be even more “awesome”.

An adult may exclaim “awesome” after hitting a string of green lights when in a rush or after realizing he or she is on the jumbo screen at a professional sporting event… and that is a start.

Today I ask you to consider the nature of a dandelion, a rock, a bug or the full moon. I encourage you to appreciate the moment after lightning and before thunder, as well as any other Divine law that gives order to our universe. For example, we know that our planet takes exactly 365 and ¼ days to make its yearly trip around the sun. This accounts for the extra day we are gifted with every four years when we celebrate a leap year. The earth makes this journey around the sun– hurtling through space– at about 67,000 mph. Still, with this sort of speed, every Equinox, Solstice, high and low time arrives right on time. Now that is truly awesome.

So when is the last time you truly felt awed? If it has been a while, this likely does not mean that there is nothing awesome in your life, only that you are not paying close enough attention. Look for small things that you come across that are infinitely significant, like an acorn. Listen to the actual sound that silence makes. Find beauty in things not often thought of as beautiful like a spider web or a white dandelion puff. Look for and create reasons to be awed. And then consciously acknowledge it. I guarantee it is what you will feel when you decide to grow a bell pepper or watermelon plant from a tiny single seed.

Rena M. Reese is the founder of Soul Salon International, an inspirational multimedia company, which offers coaching, consulting, web-design, publishing support, and fundraising opportunities for individuals and groups. She is the author of several inspirational titles, a professional speaker and coach as well as the host of a weekly radio program, The Soul Salon. Please visit www.SoulSalonInternational.com on the web, on Facebook and on Twitter @TheSoulSalon.

January 10, 2012
by admin
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What is your addiction?

I was recently talking with a woman about addiction–specifically gambling. We spoke more about the other four well-known addictions: alcohol, drugs, sex and food. She went on to say that she did not have an addictive personality and there was nothing that she was addicted to. I know from my work with people that EVERYONE has an area in life that addictive behaviors manifest or have the potential to manifest. I know people who work very hard to mange their food addiction or offset it with exercise. There are lots of people who are alcoholics who only regard themselves as “social drinkers” or as someone who just drinks every night to relax from a long day. From smokers to nail-biters, addictions seem to be part of our human experience. But more than the food, drugs, alcohol and sex addictions there is another category of stealthy addictions that seem to not be as heavy–but can be just as destructive as the infamous five I just named.

It is possible that many people do not regard this group of addictions as addictions at all–but they generate patterns of action or behaviors from us and also impact what we think of ourselves and how we fit into this world. What are these lesser known addictions? Caroline Myss names an interesting group of “subtle addictions” in the description of a workshop she gave this summer. Those included: Power, glamour, fantasy literature, attention, money, shopping, negativity, propaganda, complaining, relationship crises and a computer social life. I would even add exercise to this list.

Did one of these point to you?

Where the conscious mind may quickly answer “No,” your spirit knows differently. Sit quietly with this list and think of the work you do. Do you love it? If you don’t, why are you still doing it? Think of how you spend your spare time. Do you spend hours gaming–watching negative news–shopping? Do you have a repeating daily regret? One that you swear each night you’ll do better with tomorrow, only to disappoint yourself day after day? Is there a relationship that you know is toxic for you, but you maintain it for what it affords you? Maybe security, connection, status, money, or social status? Do you dive into the weekly tabloids to get info (contrived or fact) on so called famous people?

This kind of life-review is what creates epiphanies that put you mindfully in the driver’s seat in life. These epiphanies help you to ask why you do the things you do—-and call on you to empower yourself to name it and address it. I am not an addiction counselor and I am fully aware of my personal sink-holes. I get better everyday at stepping around them too. These strategic side-steps happened when I asked these questions that I’ve put to you in this post, of myself.

So the question is not “Do you have an addiction?” The question is “What addiction do you have?” It may not be as severe that of, say, Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Lohan or Amy Winehouse whom we lost in 2011, but it is worth asking. Why? Your happy place lies on the other side of this question.

All the best!

Rena M. Reese

Founder, Soul Salon International

January 9, 2012
by admin
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The case for goal setting: Lost people drive slower

This is the time of year that feels freshest for many of us. It is bigger than any Monday morning and bigger than our birthdays when it comes to fresh starts and committing (or recommitting) to something important to us. Each year my husband and I write our yearly goals in a special book we designated for this task. We ask our three kids (now all in high school) to do the same. It is really affirming to look back to previous years to see what we held as important–or challenging. We love to look back and see that there was a time that one of our kids, as a second grader, made it a priority to learn the 8 times tables. Goals give your boat a sail and you literally pick up speed as you head to your desired destination when you commit your goals to paper-and READ them daily.

Think of this…

When you are on the highway and are unsure of where you are or how soon your anticipated exit will approach what do you do? If you are like many people you will stay in the far right lane and probably see (and feel) lots of cars zipping past you. There is a tentativeness to your driving one that will not only get you to your destination slower, but takes some of the joy from your trip. You are probably missing something beautiful around you because you are focused on the signs, the GPS or whatever else that is helping you navigate effectively.

But how about this? How is your highway driving when you know exactly where you’re headed? You are probably a lot more likely to pop over to the left “fast” lane and to set your cruise control. This not only gets you to your desired location quicker, but more efficiently too. This analogy perfectly mirrors life! One you are clear on where you are going you are focused on your desired outcome. You can then better conspire with God to get there!

This is why goal setting really matters to those of us on a quest to live our most full, happiest lives. This practice of setting goals is more than just saying I want to experience more, be more and have more—it is also about I want to give more. When you are successful, happy and using your talents to reach your goals, you are probably lifting up a lot of other people too. I ask you to not just go through the motions, waiting for a yearly 1-week vacation to experience more, be more and have more in life when you can do it daily!

Grab a pen and paper and divide it into six sections. Title each section to match your primary areas of focus. Some examples are:

physical health/fitness
primary relationships
contributions
financial goals
personal development
home/environment

After you have done this, list between one and three things you would like to accomplish in each. So one of the categories above may look like this:

personal development

I will read 25 books this year.
I will attend two weekend workshops at The Mindfulness Center to learn to meditate
I will commit to working with a life coach for 12 weeks to help me hone my vision for my own business.

See how each goal is specific? Instead of I will read more this year (not measurable when it comes to be December 31) these goal is specific. People who are conscious and serious about living full on, will stop and do this exercise and designate a sacred space to record them and mark off their attainment. Those who are content to have this year look like last year likely will not have even read this far in this post. You deserve more in life than you enjoyed last year. You deserve a beautiful home environment, healthy relationships, financial stability and abundance, a career you love and a life that is regret free. Would you be willing to put a pen to paper right now in the interest of those things?

Let me know how I can help.

All the best,

Rena M. Reese

Founder, Soul Salon International

January 6, 2012
by Dr. Michael Harris, PhD
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Help Jody Save Her Finger

this message is forwarded by request...

A friend called and asked for help. Her pinky ring finger had been severed in a car door. The end of her little finger (the entire nail) on her right hand had fallen to the ground. She said she picked it up and put it back on her hand but it fell off again. She went into the gas station and doused it with Young Living Oil, Purification, and stuck it back on again. She said it was really burning.

This accident happened last Thursday and she was out of state. She returned late Monday night and called Tuesday morning. She was in extreme pain and I found her quite anxious. Dr, Ging cancelled his appointments so he could attend to her. Dr. Ging said she had infection but her quick action replacing the end of the finger helped her.

Monday night I woke up with this little song in my head: "One little, two little , three little Indians... Many of us learned to count to that song.

Her name is Jody and she is a massage therapist. If you are a therapist or have every had a massage you know it takes two hands. Presently she can't work and she has no insurance.

Jody needs our help now.

We have "Save The Whales" , "Save The Dolphins", we even save paper bags but how often do we get to help someone save their finger?

She is worried about paying her rent and this drains her energy she needs for healing.

So I am asking you to send her any amount to save the little Indian and say a prayer for her.. If for whatever reason you are unable to send her a few dollars please put her on your prayer list.

Please don't expect a thank you card as it is her dominant hand that is injured and she can't write. Thank you for understanding.

I just want us to rally around and let her know there is a abundance of good people in the universe that want to see her whole and well with all her digits.

Here is her information:

Jody O'Callaghan

3501 Beech St.

Rowlett, TX 75089.

Blessings to you and yours,

Rev. Michelle Taylor

PS: Look at your hands and thank them for serving you. They work tirelessly and endlessly for you. We are so blessed.

Dr. Ging, (www.vitalchi.com) graciously discounted her treatment and Dr. Michael Harris,(www.drmichaelharris.com) gifted her a hypnosis/NLP session to elevate the post stress. Thank you both.

January 1, 2012
by Dianne
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Your 14-Day Plan to New Year’s Weight Loss Success

So…today is THE DAY – it’s a brand new year, a fresh start, a place to begin again. And while it’s likely you have some semblance of a plan to slip back into your skinny jeans in 2012, I’m going to make a safe bet and guess that it’s not your waistline, but your PLAN that needs a major overhaul.

After 12 years as a life coach and fitness trainer, I can tell you that most weight loss endeavors (especially the New Years kind) fail, not for a lack of desire or discipline, but rather a lack of “pre-paving. “

Think about how easy it is when you’re zooming down the freeway to take for granted the amount of surveying, excavating and engineering it took to allow you to fly, top speed, toward your desired destination. Now imagine taking the same trip driving 80 miles an hour down a gravel road. You got it…crash and burn, baby…crash and burn.

So, if your New Year’s plan looks something like this: “Today is the day I stop eating junk and start hitting the gym hard,” I want to offer you a better route – one that might take a few extra days to implement, but one that is guaranteed to lighten your load and make reaching your goals a lot smoother, quicker and easier.

Here is a 2-week Pave The Way Plan that will put your goals, your body, and your life on the supersonic highway to success:

Daily Action Step #1 – Plan to plan. Designate 8 minutes, morning and night, to mentally walk through your day. Each morning jot down 3 major points of focus and a few general tasks you need to accomplish. Each night, check off and celebrate the things that went well, and move whatever is left to tomorrow’s plan. The key is putting pen to paper. The difference it will make is like night and day.

Daily Action Step #2 – Release The Closet Demons. Pull everything out of your closet and only re-hang your favorite, most complete outfits. Add in a few that will serve you going forward, then store, sell, toss or give away the rest, but get it out of there. This is where you start every day, so make it a place of clarity and purpose.

Daily Action Step #3 – Bill and Budget Blast. Weight and wealth are irrefutably connected. If you want to lighten up your waistline, start lightening up your debt, or at least make a plan to begin. Take an honest, factual review of everything, do some math, and get a plan down on paper.

Daily Action Step #4 – Create a Sanctuary. It can be a spare room, a quiet corner, a secluded coffee shop, or a park bench. Have a peaceful, restful place you can park yourself on a regular basis – one that makes you feel happy, focused, safe and calm – a place to plan, decompress, relax or just chill out.

Daily Action Step #5 – Transform Your Transportation. Put your car in the best possible shape it can be right now. You drive around in it every day, and just like your body, it gets you from point A to point B despite how you treat it. Start showing it a new level of respect as well.

Daily Action Step #6 – Back To Basic Health. Air, water, rest and writing – you can’t live very long without the first 3 and won’t be very successful without the last. Start every morning by taking 3-4 long deep cleansing breaths, drink 8-10 ounces of water right off the bat, and jot down a short plan for the day. Repeat right after lunch.

Daily Action Step #7 – Mission Statement. Encapsulate in a sentence or two exactly who and what you are all about. Use this statement as your true-north beacon. Read it every morning and every night. It might go something like: “I am a self-reliant, compassionate and honest person who takes excellent care of my body by staying organized, focused, and deliberate about living a happy, healthy, strong life.”

Daily Action Step #8 – Quiet Kitchen Clean Out. Don’t make the mistake of dragging your whole family into your personal goals by stripping your kitchen clean (even if they’ve all agreed to join you.) Instead, re-arrange the bad stuff so that it is out of your line of vision. Designate a personal crisper tray or a cabinet that is for your use only.

Daily Action Step #9 – Tools of the Trade. Take absolute control of your food by preparing and packing the majority of your meals. Make a daily commitment to carry more food than you need and take it wherever you go, just like your wallet, your cell phone and your car keys. Your must-have list includes a roomy cooler, blue ice, sandwich and snack bags, 1-cup containers, and disposable utensils. For time-saving tips on what to pack, visit http://lovelivingfit.com/legal-meals/great-food-tips/

Daily Action Step #10 – Create a Progress Chart. Relying on the scale alone is a bit like using the gas gauge on your dashboard to determine precisely how far you’ve driven. You’ll get a general idea, but for a clearer perspective you need to use more than one indicator. Make a chart that tracks scale, body fat, and circumference measurements on a weekly basis. To get an instant progress tracker, click the “Free Forms” box at http://lovelivingfit.com/

Daily Action Step #11 – “Before” Pictures. Is it any accident that some of the most powerful transformations you have even witnessed began with a “before” picture? Have a look at a few amazing transformation at our Success Stories page and then decide for yourself. Take pictures…please, and watch what a difference it makes in your resolve.

Daily Action Step #12 – Have an A & B Workout Routine. Be sure to have strength-training and cardio routines that allow for those times when you are stuck at home or at the office. Don’t pigeonhole your plan by relying solely on the gym or special equipment to get your workouts in.

Daily Action Step #13 – Visualize Success. Start sifting through magazines and begin a vision board that you can add to as you find motivating pictures and examples of people, places and things that inspire your desire to keep going. Hang this board where you can see it every morning and night. (Perhaps in your nice new clean closet!)

Daily Action Step #14 – Ready, Set, Go Grocery Shopping. Make a grocery list of whole foods, quick picks, and meal replacements that address eating in different times and in different situations. Pick some standard cook-ahead meals, gather up some fun, healthy recipes and surround yourself with good, delicious food that honors your body and your commitment to stick with these healthy habits for life!

Above all, trust yourself. Take these proven steps one day at a time, in the order they appear, and you have my promise you will make 2012 the year that something truly extraordinary happens.

It’s all about inspiring yourself first, and then going on to inspire the world. You can do it. It all starts with a single, focused, resolute decision to begin taking the very best care of the body and life you’ve been given. From there, the possibilities are endless!

Happy New Year to you and all the best in 2012!

About the Author:

Dianne Orwig is a success coach, motivational speaker, fitness trainer, and founder of LivingFit Online^(TM), a fitness program that has helped thousands of men and women completely transform their bodies and live healthier, happier lives though her less-is-better approach.

For more information on how you can get better results in less time and with less effort than you ever thought possible, visit www.lovelivingfit.com.

December 30, 2011
by Rachel Dack
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Happy Almost 2012!

2011 is coming to a close and we have the chance to embark on a new year with new beginnings, new attitudes, new choices and new relationships. We have a special opportunity to reflect, grow, learn, let go and approach the new year with a better sense of self and greater love for ourselves and for others. We may look back at our mistakes from 2011 and learn from them. We can make healthier choices from now on. We can turn our negative experiences into experiences in which there is learning, greater awareness and healing. We also get to say goodbye to any baggage that belongs in 2011. We can actively choose not to take it into the present and the future by focusing on our goals, strengths, values and relationships that are in the now.

As I spend time reflecting on 2011, I look back with gratitude and courage. 2011 was the right time for me to open up a psychotherapy private practice, start a business and make big choices with freedom and responsibility. 2011 was also the right time for me to discover more about myself and my relationships and as I gained some of the most amazing friends and supporters, I also let some go. Looking back, there was loss with gain, there was fear with bravery and there were endless opportunities to make the world a better, safer, healthier place. For all of these things, I am grateful.

As Melody Beattie states, “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

May 2012 be an incredibly beautiful year with opportunities to create peace within and peace in the world, to affect each other positively, to speak with kindness and to give to others and give to ourselves. May 2012 bring more joy, fun, playfulness, happiness, growth, health, acceptance and abundance.

Wishing you the best as always. Happy end of 2011 and beginning of 2012,

Rachel Dack, L.G.P.C

www.racheldack.com

Rachel Dack is a Licensed Graduate Professional Counselor (L.G.P.C.) and psychotherapist in the state of Maryland. She provides psychotherapy services to children, adolescents, adults and families. She believes in the importance of providing holistic care for those with mental health and/or medical illnesses through the integration of building a healthy support system, personal wellness practices and psychotherapy. Please connect with her by emailing Rachel@RachelDack.com or by calling 301-655-8462.