gdp's Comments

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 02:01:39 +0000

All the posts above this one capture the best of this note... so I won't repeat.I loved what Brian said about Jesus and Buddha rebelling against the standards of their day... "Flow" has moved to the top of my "must read" list.

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 01:26:25 +0000

That is an important distinction, Chris, and one I hadn't thought of... "The PNote process may bring back lessons I have learned beofre, but even more important they sometimes pull out of me lessons from my own experience that I hadn't fully activated." I've been studying all this stuff for many, many years - - and now realizing that there is much I understood intellectually, but had not "fully activated" -- the time is NOW. Cheers!

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 01:23:05 +0000

333 & Chris -- THANK YOU! 333 - I was sitting at the hospital this morning tumbling into a mini-depression when my blood test results showed my counts lower than last week (not a good thing)... and then had an AHA! moment like yours... and it was awesome. Thanks so much for sharing your story, it brought the morning back to me. Chris - your posts and responses make me think... and I love to think. Thank You! Make your day magnificent! Linda

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 01:18:59 +0000

You Rock, Brodie! Thanks for sharing your flip with us! Linda

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 01:13:40 +0000

giggle!

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 01:12:55 +0000

Chris, I love you responses - always so very thought provoking! As I read the opening quote in Lissy's post, what stands out for me are the words, "...perceived by the individual..." I don't see a contradiction with the Big Leap - I see this fitting in perfectly because this quote is talking about THE PERCEPTION of the opportunities... being equal to... (what the individual perceives as his/her) capabilities. Am i making sense or just adding to the question?

FinerMinds : Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Day 16 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 2 Feb 2010 01:04:25 +0000

I love the "go clean your room" story, Bernard! Reminds me of the Zen master's response when asked "what is the path to enlightenment?" His response was, "Chop Wood, Carry Water." It is in doing the most mundane tasks (for me, washing dishes!) with total focus that changes everything - but lso speaks volumes about our integrity, yes?

FinerMinds : The Pursuit Of Perfect By Tal Ben-Shahar - Day 15 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Mon, 1 Feb 2010 15:20:24 +0000

Good Morning, Chris! It is 10:15 a.m. here in sunny (but frigid) Detroit, Michigan USA -- and I have not seen the PN note for today. But I have, on my office desktop, the link to the "list" that shows the weekly list of the books to be covered.... so I popped that off and transferred the Audio file to my iPod & listened to it on my way to the meeting I am waiting for right now. Yes, that I am more "aware" of what is happening in me and around me is the coolest --- this morning I was at the hospital having mid-chemo cycle blood tests. They weren't as good as I hoped for, and I started to plummet... and then I Remembered... and changed my perception of what is happening. Now the day is awesome. Have a MAGNIFICENT day! Linda

FinerMinds : The Pursuit Of Perfect By Tal Ben-Shahar - Day 15 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 13:38:59 +0000

Congrats on the HUGE breakthrough!

FinerMinds : The Pursuit Of Perfect By Tal Ben-Shahar - Day 15 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 13:36:20 +0000

Chris - I, too, have been labeld a "pollyana" for always finding the positive side of things. This note caused me to do a happy dance!. Happy Saturday! Linda

FinerMinds : The Pursuit Of Perfect By Tal Ben-Shahar - Day 15 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 13:32:52 +0000

I think the "glitch" in sending this note out was divinely orchestrated; had it come at the "scheduled" time I might not have gotten the message I did. Looks like most of you received it sometime Friday 1/9. It didn't show up in my email box till 8:00 a.m., Saturday 1/30. Yesterday, when this note "should have" arrived, I was in a meeting where a woman spoke of her experience in a meeting we had both attended a few days earlier. Her interpretation of how the room full of people reacted to what she said in that earlier meeting was diametric to mine. So the big "Aha!" for me in this note was Tal Ben-Shahar's statement, "The basic premise of cognitive therapy is that we react to our interpretation of events rather than directly to the events themselves, which is why the same event may elicit radically different responses from different people." (The "Event -Thought-Emotion" Idea) Early in the Note we are given the "Time to Fail" idea... which reminded me of John Maxwell's book, "Failing Forward." Maxwell basically says if we aren't failing several times a day, we're not trying hard enough. Of this point I remind myself daily! Have an Optimalistic Day! Linda

FinerMinds : Overachievement By John Eliot, Ph.D. - Day 12 Of The PhilosphersNotes Challenge

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:15:45 +0000

Thank you, Ethan! What a great story!

FinerMinds : How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci By Michael Gelb — Day 10 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Sat, 23 Jan 2010 02:22:42 +0000

Hi Katrina - I've gotten my three best friends to buy it, and we're planning a quasi-discussion group about it as we all read it. So far, it's been very insightful and my journaling about it has proven fruitful! Happy Weekend!

FinerMinds : How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci By Michael Gelb — Day 10 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 20:41:04 +0000

Enjoy, Mark! I have LifeJournal on my little micro-pc. It's a great tool! I don't carry a sketchbook, but always have some kind of notebook with me as well. Some things just belong on paper rather than in the computer! Let me know how the software goes for you... Happy Friday! Linda

FinerMinds : How To Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci By Michael Gelb — Day 10 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 19:21:02 +0000

Hi Mark -- "Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" - wow, I read that a long, long time ago and loved it. I also have "Zen and the Art of Making a Living" tucked away somewhere. This PN challenge has reawakened me - I had forgotten how much I love books like this, and journaling about what I learn through them. By the way, if anyone is interested here, there is a software package called "Life Journal" that is awesome - Check it out! Happy Weekend - Linda

FinerMinds : Paulo Coelho — Day 7 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 14:43:16 +0000

Thank you, Chris! I love the concept of Coelho and Socrates as a "midwife" - and will take that thought with me through the day - as a writer, that is my new goal! Strange as it might seem to some, I am enjoying the ride through cancer and chemo - I have gained much insight into myself, and realized how very fortunate my life has been. A few weeks ago, while sitting in the chemo clinic, I met a 17-year-old girl who had just had a complete hysterectomy because of ovarian cancer. She was heartbroken, as was her mother. Later that day (my treatments are 7 hours long) they brought in a woman my age, who looked in her 80s rather than her 50s, who really had given up on life. My chemo nurse commented on the difference between us - and I sent a silent prayer that this woman would soon have her desire - whether that be to stay here, or leave the planet. With both of these women, I realized how fortunate I have been to have a good and happy life, a wonderful family, and the opportunity to make the rest of my life the best of my life, as Burt Goldman says! Much gratitude to you - Linda

FinerMinds : Ask And It Is Given by Esther & Jerry Hicks — DAY 5 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 23:02:42 +0000

I have to agree with Craig Bowman on his assessment of "The Secret" as "a little too much about material possessions and wealth." To me, "The Secret" was kindergarten in the material world, while the earlier (and much better) film, "What the *Bleep* Do we Know?" and the books that came out of it (such as "Evolving Your Brain") was graduate school. That said, my big "take away" from "Ask and it is Given" actually circles back to "The Big Leap." Gay Hendricks says "each of us has an inner thermostat setting that determines how much love, success, and creativity we allow ourselves to enjoy..." This falls right in with the statement in "Ask and it is Given" that "...a sort of Universal Manager sees to it that all thoughts that match one another line up." Both books get into the "Emotional Fuel Gauge" concept, which is a great visual. What I loved most was the simplicity of the three steps: 1)Get clear on what you want. Know that you wouldn't have the desire if you/the Universe didn't have the ability to bring it to life. 3) Joyously and enthusiastically do the next little thing in front of you. Oh, and Craig, I love this quote, too: "Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they're yours." Just like Henry Ford said, "Whether you think you can, or think you can't, you're right." Thanks for an awesome first week of Philosopher's Notes, Brian and Vishen! Make your day Magnificent - Linda

FinerMinds : How To Stop Worrying And Start Living By Dale Carnegie — DAY 3 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:23:20 +0000

Dear Chris -- Thanks for joining me!

In one of the fundraisers some friends did for me (I have no medical insurance & cancer treatments are unbelievably expensive), one of the items was \"Take a Nap with Linda\" -- people paid $5.00 to \"sponsor\" a 20-minute nap for me on a specific day. Everyone (including me) thought it was very amusing.

Organic diet: there is a wonderful cookbook called \"The Cancer Fighting Kitchen\" by Rebecca Katz. This book is fabulous for everyone/anyone, not just cancer patients. All organic, all so yummy you'll be amazed! I ordered it from amazon, along with another book by Katz called \"One Bite at a Time\" which is also for cancer patients, but full of recipes everyone will love.

This philosopher's notes challenge is yummy, too!

Make your day magnificent!
Linda

FinerMinds : How To Stop Worrying And Start Living By Dale Carnegie — DAY 3 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:04:05 +0000

I'm lovin' it, Brian!

And just FYI, I told a room of 38 women to get to your site today - -

Thanks for the \"magnificent energy,\" (it's yummy!) and know I am recycling it back to everyone here!

Happy Wednesday -
Linda

FinerMinds : How To Stop Worrying And Start Living By Dale Carnegie — DAY 3 Of The PhilosophersNotes Challenge

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:05:18 +0000

Thanks, Chris! I decided the day I was diagnosed that I was the one that would beat the odds. I began a 100% organic diet (it's amazing how much better "real" food tastes!) and have changed my meditation practice somewhat to focus a bit more on physical healing. My oncologist keeps asking why I am not getting sick from the chemo - and I keep telling her it is my diet and my attitude. I love the thought that as I sit her typing this message, my heart is taking little naps... it's a very appealing visual! Cheers - Linda