5 Tips for Uncovering Your Hidden Talents

What’s Your Dream?

The first step of turning a dream into reality is getting clear on what you want to accomplish. Even if you're not sure what you want to do or you've got a bunch of competing ideas to choose from, it all starts with the creative process. Creativity is a way of thinking about the world and your surroundings, and can take many forms -- it doesn't have to be limited to being a painter, writer, knitter or designer (although it could be). If you open your mind, open doors are sure to follow. Are you ready to discover your true potential? The following exercises are designed to get your wheels turning so your creative spirit and talents can be unearthed!

1. Say "Yes." Being open to invitations or activities you might normally decline, whether personal or professional, lays the groundwork for the forward momentum you need to make a change. Think of it this way, sometimes not doing something is really just an easy way to maintain life's status quo. But our goal is to help you start seeing things in a new way, meeting different people, and having unexpected experiences that will lead you toward success, one step at a time.

Take action: Start saying "yes" this week. Accept an invitation, idea or suggestion that you'd normally decline. This could mean doing something new with the kids (for example, making up a story versus reading one), going on a creative outing to a museum or exhibit, or even taking a new route to work.

2. Be afraid. Yes, that's what we said! The more you can step out of your comfort zone in small ways, the faster you'll be comfortable with the idea of turning your dream into a reality.

Take action: Do something that scares you this week. Serve a new recipe for friends and see if they think it's "sellable," test an idea at your child's pre-school to see what other parents think, or make a phone call to get more information on your future product -- even if it's still just an idea. Use fear or doubt to move you forward, not keep you stuck.

3. Clear the clutter. It's important to build a dream on a great foundation, but sometimes, a messy home or even an over-committed calendar can get in the way.

Take action: Get organized. Everyone has a room or corner that doesn't get enough TLC. Clean under the bed, file overdue paperwork, and get rid of anything in your home that's blocking your path or broken. Try one area this weekend and feel the difference.

4. Find inspiration. Everyone needs a role model; it's natural to look up to people who have accomplished amazing things. Martha Stewart is a great example of someone who harnessed her creativity and passion and turned it into a thriving business.

Take action: Find a muse. Research someone who inspires you, who has a story you could follow, or who has a business model you might use for your own project. How did they get started? You might be surprised at how little many very successful people knew about their business before getting into it. They relied on hard work, timing, creativity - and you can too.

5. Get support. Did you know that creativity is contagious? Just try putting yourself in a creative environment and not catching the bug! Isolation has the opposite effect -- it's one of the biggest dream killers.

Take action: Create a community. Find at least one person (up to five or six would be ideal) whom you can check in with weekly and use as a sounding board for ideas. Encourage him or her to bring ideas and act as a point of accountability for each other.

By: Amy Swift, Chief Product Officer,

Resources and Community

For Business, For Life

IT COULD BE WORSE!

If I could turn back the hands of the clock, one course I would study is Philosophy. this is because I like to be both spiritual and philosophical about life and events. Indeed year 2008 is about to take its exit and if I may ask you, how many of the dreams you had about yourself early this year has been fulfilled? The answer may be difficult to provide due to some explainable and unexplainable reasons. Some of the explainable reasons could be that you have not been proactive and working towards realizing those dreams. May be you are procrastinator who postpones what should be done today till tomorrow.

Well, it does not matter where you have been, but what I know is that there is a destiny that you are created to fulfill. So, what is your own problem? Is it that you want to become a millionaire, a business owners, a mother or father, married or looking for a life partner and all seemed not to be working in your favour? Are you failing in virtually all aspect of life? Dont worry! By the time you hear the story other people who had many failures, disappointments, trials, sorrows and loses, and succeeded eventually, you will know that in life there is no "Zero' situation the ultimate nothingness. Your situation can be described as "worse" but you will always have something to rejoice over. If you are looking for a Spanish shoes to buy and you could not, remeber that some do not even have legs at all. The list of your problems may be endless. Your problem will not remain constant; its just a matter of time, it will fade away if you do not fade in your faith and determination. A man of determination overcomes any examination. Know that there is nothing constant in life, except change itself. The Holy Bible says, though weeping may endure till the night but surely joy will come in the morning. That means every problem has an expiry date. According to John Grey, "there is no hopeless situation, except only people who are hopeless about situation." Your situation may look hopeless, relax, take a recourse in God through Jesus Christ who said"cast all your worries, anxieties, pains on Him because He cares for you."

One of the greatest philosopher and motivational speaker, Robbert Schuler says "Tough times do not last but tough people do." Your situation cannot be tougher than God to handle. Another philosopher says " love a man who can laugh in the days of trouble, because he has triumphed." Your dispostion to a problem determine the solution to that problem. Radical situation requires radical solution. Therefore, look at the brighter side of life and be tough wth the siuation and you will see that it will fade away. And most importantly run to God through prayer who can solve that problem for you. Whatever you are passing through is an examination that will show the real man or woman in you. It is a process that leads to promotion as no student is promoted to the next class without passing the previuos class. The beauty of raw gold cannot come out except it passes through the furnace where it is refined to becoame a preciuos and beautiful gem. So every problem in your life is meant to take you to the next level that God intended for you.
Even if you have tried and failed try again and again. Quitters will never win except lose. According to Bern Williams, "if we try and fail, we have temporary disappontments, but if we dont try after failing again, we have permanent regrets."
Dont carry your problems to heart becasue the longer a problem is carried to heart, the heavier it gets. Whenever you failed or have dispponiments, forget aboout it , erase it from your mind and move on. Sometimes our problem is that we dont ewant to froget our past failures. In his best-selling book, Harold Heifer wrote and I quote, "There is nothing we can do about the past but the biggest sorrow is , we can miss the present by fretting too much about the future."
Dont live in the past. Forget past mistakes. Yesterday is a cancelled cheque, today is cash and tomorrow is a promisory note. What lies ahead of us is greater than what lies behind us. Look into the future with hope. The Holy Bible say forget the former things. The enemy of the new is the old. The enemy of today is yesterday and the enemy of tomorrow is today. The type of decision you take today has a great consequence on ou tomorrow whether good or bad. So dream big positive dreams. And follow it up with prayer and you shall surely laugh on day. Above all be very positive in your thinking. As a man thinks in his heart so he is. Believe also in yourself, have confidence in your ability. If you dont believ in yourself who will beleive in you. Remember that success comes in CANs and failure comes in CANTs.