Don't Let Clutter Steal your Shine.....

Itsssss Backkkk! Hello Shiners "Shining the Spotlight" is back! I pray that everyone has had a great holiday and are ready to get back to reading some awesome blogs by some awesome Shiners.

I have the pleasure to present to you a wonderful shiner by the name of Alison.  She is the owner of Learn to Embrace the Struggle. She has become one of my good friends of blogging and each and everyday!! So here is her guest post on getting thing together and clearing out the clutter...ohhhhh this is a good one Shiners!! Hey I needed to see this piece myself and I am really getting ready to apply so much of this to my life! Many times when you think you have life under control its just way to cluttered!

                                          Delete. Ctrl X.  Backspace.  

You know which key, or combination of keys, to use when you need to remove items on the computer.

And so it is in real life.  You sometimes need to hit delete--to edit your life--in order to shine like you want to.  

Clutter isn't only about a house bursting at the seams with "stuff."  Every area of our lives is subject to clutter, but, we have the last word regarding what stays--or goes--in our lives.

Mental clutter

Are you worn out mentally?  Guilty of foggy thinking or (gasp!) no thinking?  You probably have too much going on in your "beautiful mind."  Sometimes we need to take a "mental health day" to purge our minds. 

• Choose to focus on positive thoughts and eliminate, or at least decrease, negative thinking.  
• Let go of the multitasking!  It really is less efficient than doing one thing at a time.  A fragmented mind is often a demented mind, but an uncluttered mind is an effective mind.
• Relinquish the title of superman/superwoman!  You don't have to be Ruler of the Universe.  Someone else already snagged that title!

Emotional clutter

We're often unaware of the extent of the toll taken on our lives by emotional issues.  When we vacillate between one end of the emotional spectrum and the other, we become imbalanced.   

• Pay attention to your emotions and behavioral triggers so that your relationships won't be hampered. 
• When deep-seated issues, many of which are formed in childhood, are not addressed, our emotional clutter will disable us from living in the present.
• Focus on the people that truly count and deserve your time, and root out those that don't.  That might mean cutting back on some activities or losing some toxic "friends," but if it lessens your clutter and replenishes your life, go for it!

Physical clutter

We are a generation that wears its body down to a frazzle.  The amount of stress and tension we put ourselves through is alarming.  Why do we do this when the result--poor health, shortened lifespan--is so devastating?

• Combat the physical clutter within our bodies by paying attention to your eating habits and adding exercise into your daily lives.  
• Incorporate practices such as slow eating, yoga, walking, and tai chi, which are proven change-makers.  Sometimes just paying attention to our body language (furrowed brows, hunched backs) and responding by breathing deeply can deflate the tension we carry within us.
• Remember that physical clutter isn't limited to our bodies; it's also found in our surroundings.  There is a proven link between uncluttered surroundings and productivity. 

I've always loved--and try to live by--this quote by William Morris:  "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful."  What better way to invite peace and positivity into your life than by making the areas you inhabit clutter-free, yet attractive!

Spiritual clutter

Here's the thing:  if the three areas we just discussed are cluttered, there's no room for the spiritual, the most important aspect of our lives.  

• We are spirit, gifted with a soul and inhabiting a body; unfortunately, we've reversed the order and thus forfeited much of our peace and joy.  
• Prayer and meditation are God-given pathways to spiritual wellness.  
• As we clear away the hindrances to our relationship with God, we begin to see ways to work on other areas that may be cluttered.

In his book "The Life You've Always Wanted," John Ortberg states that "the enemies of simplicity are multiplicity and duplicity."  Whenever we are pushed and pulled in too many directions, it becomes impossible to keep life simple.  In addition, we aren't true to ourselves when we are ambivalent. 

Are you shining to the fullest?  Are you giving yourself the chance to enjoy a simpler, balanced life, brimming with possibilities, positivity, and peace?  As you press that "delete" button in each area of your life, you'll begin to see measurable and enjoyable differences.  And so will others!

 

To Embrace the Struggle with Alison and myself check her out Facebook or follow her on Twitter!! Its worth it! 

Special Edition....Time to Shine for a Birthday Bash!!

Hey Shiners! I hope everyone has had a great time during their Thanksgiving holiday.  I know I did.

I am sending out a Special Edition of Positively Shining!

                                               

This edition is for a 30th Birthday Bash.  I know many of us are young and vibrant and are hitting milestones in life.  I know for me turning 30 was great!

Well today I am Shining this Special Edition for  Isaac M. Hamm III.  He is turning 30 and he is doing this in a major way. Check out the details below.

“Mr. Philadelphia Socialite”

 Isaac M. Hamm III Charity Birthday Bash!!

PHILADELPHIA, PA., Dec 23, 2011 – Isaac M. Hamm III CEO and Founder of IM3Media.com will be hosting his first annual charity birthday bash.  This event will be held at Gallerie Isada, located 3320 Collins Street from 8:00 P.M. to 2:00 A.M.  Please join us for an unforgettable evening as Philadelphia’s biggest and brightest stars and local businesses come together to make a change.

This is a celebration of a birth but more importantly, it’s a celebration of giving back.  Partnering up with a local ministry called Chosen300, whose sole purpose is to distribute meals and services to the homeless throughout the Philadelphia Region and around the world.  With the hard work and dedication Brian & Shandai Jenkins, and Chosen300, to date, now feeds over 100,000 people a year.

IM3Media.com has established an ongoing relationship with Chosen300, and the community which they serve, over these past previous months. We have put in the much needed time to have built a family bond and we would be remiss if we didn’t want to take it a step further.  We have decided to donate a portion of the proceeds from this charity event to Chosen300.

“Turning 30 is a big year for me but the biggest gift I can give to myself is to give back. Last year I feed the homeless the weekend of y birthday and I felt great doing it. We try to make sure we give back to the community throughout the year whether it is standing at Love Park to feed the homeless or going to a community center or church to help out.” said CEO Isaac M. Hamm III

IM3Media.com is a Philadelphia-based marketing and communications company that offers an array of services. We implement an effective marketing strategy through integration of creative event design and production management.

 

"Shining the Spotlight" Where is your Inspiration?....

Shinersssss.....Its week 5 of Shining the Spotlight! 

This weeks piece is from a young lady that I have gotten to know through Blogger and is pretty awesome. She goes by the name of Kero and her spirit is on fire! So after reading her guest post Skip on over and Shine the Spotlight on her blog!

Here's Kero! 

Where is your Inspiration?

Have you ever got inspired from someone in your life? Well, we all are. But where did that inspiration go?

“When I was a young I wanted to be like Bill Gates, but then my life took a different course…”

Has something like that happened to you? Have you ever heard of such confessions? If yes, the sole reason behind it is that you lost your inspiration. Something seemingly more important popped up in your life and you changed your direction. Make sure you are not the person making this statement.

Don’t lose your inspiration. You might not get inspired from just anyone. There has to be something special about them. If your inspiration aligns with your goals you are in the right direction. Think of all the people and things that inspire you, put them together in the form of an inspiration chart. It can be your hardworking grandfather, teacher, Steve Jobs, a mountain climber, or it can be Eiffel Tower (in case you’re hoping to visit Paris). Make sure that your inspirational chart is realistic. A piece from the fictional world won’t work. So you might as well stop thinking about Spiderman (is he still any popular?), Harry Potter, Hogwarts or any fantasy world. You may dream of going far away to another world but you can’t make it realistic. So be realistic while making your inspiration chart.

Your inspiration chart must consist of pictures put together in sort of a mosaic. Remember that visuals have more influence on your mind than words. After you are done with your inspiration chart, place it somewhere you get to see it more often. Paste it on the fridge, on the wall near your worktable. Anywhere you get to see it every day. The more frequently you get to see it the more focused you will feel and you’ll be repeatedly reminded of your destination. The less frequently you get to look at it, the less often you are able to recall your inspiration and it’s likely that you will stray from your goals.

So, what are you waiting for? Find your inspiration and let you drive your life in the right direction.

I hope everyone has enjoyed her post! If you want to get to know her better check her out on Facebook and on Twitter!  Glad to have seen you all again this week! Stay tuned for more! 

Looking At The Glass Half Full Instead of Half Empty....

Hey there Shiners!

What time is it? Its once again..."Shining the Spotlight" time.  Today I am excited to introduce to you a new and awesomely supportive bloggy friend that goes by the name of Keazy!  He is relatively new like myself in the world of blogging, but let me tell you he has written some really terrific pieces thus far.  He accepted my invitation to Shine the Spotlight and I am delight to do just that! After you have read his post SKIP ON OVER to his blog and Shine the Spotlight on his blog.

                                                 
                       Looking At The Glass Half Full Instead of Half Empty

First, I would like to thank Positively Shinning for allowing me to be a guest host on her blog. If you have not read any of the post she has written, you are truly missing out on the positive energy she gives out. Sometime when I am feeling down or not having the best of days, I go to here blog and read and I put things into perspective. I thank you for that

When I was a child, my parents always instilled in me to remain positive and be confident in the actions you represent. When I got to my early stages of adulthood, the world looked very different to me. People did not carry the same values as me nor did people look at things in positive manner. I began to start thinking the same way as society, thinking that everything in life, the glass was always half empty. Maybe it was the people I was around or the people that took advantage of my kindness and big heart. I do not know how I was sucked into this way of thinking especially the way I was raised. When you think the worst before it happens, most likely you are speaking it into existence.

After years of starting to believe that life was really kicking my butt, my mother asked me a question and she said are you happy? Probably at the time, one of the hardest questions I had to answer. I had to think about it and if I had to think about it, I was not happy. I had so many things going for me that I really didn’t realize it. My mother told me you have to start looking at the glass half full instead of half empty, I taught you better than that. She was right, I did know better and I owed it to myself to turn this thing around. I felt like I lost everything. My personality changed, looked around and my friends and relationships with females were always in disarray, I couldn’t take it anymore. The transformation started to take place.

I started to remove myself from all the people and things holding me back from greatness. Got new friends that were all positive, and are still my good friends to this day, refused to date any female that would always be in a negative mood for no reason. That’s when I realized that just because they might be beautiful on the outside that might not mean they are on the inside. If something didn’t go the way I wanted or thought it might go, I didn’t panic or look at things in a bad way. You can start to see things turning around and it was great. I felt much better about myself and they way my adult life started going.

The world would be so much of a better place if we just start to think positive instead of all things going wrong. When the trouble of life get you down, fight back! Don’t let bad things overcome the person you are and who you want to become. I want to be great, so I am thinking great things, no matter what. I know it will happen because I believe in the power of positivity and I believe in myself. I might not gave everything that I would like but I am thankful for the things I do have so therefore my glass is always half full!

Do you believe that your glass is half full? I challenge you to really think about it and believe in the power of thinking positive!

 To get to know Keazy better make sure that you request him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter, and last but most definitely not least subscribe to his blog A New Beginning

"Shining the Spotlight" Positive Social Good Campaigns in Marketing.....

Wow Shiners Week 3 of Shining the Spotlight and I am hoping you are enjoying this so far. I know I enjoyed reading the pieces before hand and this is why I wanted to shine the spotlight on all of you. This piece is from one of my new found friends that I have met through blogging and goes by the name of Cirquedumot.
Here is a good piece on Positive social Campaigns.....after you enjoy Skip on over and Shine the Spotlight on her blog!



                     Positive Social Good Campaigns in Marketing

How can marketing be a positive in our lives? This is a question that resonates with me strongly. I wouldn’t let preconceived notions prevent you from seriously considering the positives advertising and marketing can bring. The rise of digital marketing has lead to more accountability and ushered in a new way of thinking about how we sell products. PR agency Edelman conducts studies every year on current marketing trends, at the top in 2010:

Social Good

“Eighty-seven percent of Americans believe that business needs to place at least equal weight on society’s interests as on those of business” [Source]

Here is a look at 3 Social Good Campaigns

1. Let Her Jump



This is the ad that inspired me to go into the marketing field. The light bulb finally went off in my head. The notion that all advertising wasn’t worth my time went away. The truth is, many people do it badly! What we need to do is get rid of the ad suck, and start generating campaigns that get people involved with their ideas. I love the positive message of female empowerment.

2. Pepsi Refresh Project



Is their a good cause you want to raise money for? Check out the Pepsi Refresh Project that offers grants to those who submit their ideas. Votes take place every month to vote for the projects that will receive the funding. This is a great social good campaign that integrates social media and word-of-mouth marketing.

3. The Red Campaign



The (Red) Campaign is a charity chaired by Bono from the band U2. The idea is that corporations team up with the charity to offer specially branded products. Portions of the sales are donated to the global fund, whose purpose is to give treatment to Africans living with AIDS. It is also interesting to note that these special items don’t cost anymore than the regular ones. If you buy a (Red) iPod nano, you still only pay $129 for this exclusive item. No costs are passed on to the consumer.

I personally believe that we can generate positive campaigns like these in marketing and sell more products. As individuals we should encourage companies to look for more opportunities to support the social good. I want to know how these ads make you feel? Would you buy them knowing your money was going to support a worthy cause?