December 1, 2009

In This Issue

Featured Article: How to Stay Grounded During the Holidays

Announcements

Speaking Schedule

Daddy's Little Girls

Welcome to this week's issue of Appreciation (and Authenticity) in Action.

I hope you and those in your life had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  We all have so much to be grateful for, regardless of the circumstances in our lives.  We spent Thanksgiving at Disneyland – talk about gratitude and fun!

As the holiday season kicks into gear, I hope you and the people around you are able to take a step back and appreciate the magic and wonder of this time of year (and of life in general) even in the midst of the stress and activity (which is what today’s article is all about).

Later today (12/1 at 4 PM PT) you can join me for a free teleseminar session.  I am honored to be a part of the Healing with the Masters series.  For more info and to sign up for today’s free call, click here.

Thanks so much for being on my newsletter list!

With Gratitude,






How to Stay Grounded
During the Holidays

(For this week's audio, click here.)

The holiday season is now in full swing.  If you’re anything like me you probably have mixed feelings about the holidays. I love the excitement, parties, decorations, rituals, music, gifts, connections, and more. However, even these fun things can wear on me. And, the stress, drama, consumption, obligation, expense, and more that often come along with this time of year are not on my list of “favorite things.”

In addition, I often feel like I’m not doing enough, not on top of my “list,” and I sometimes worry that I won’t get everything done in time to make the people in my life happy the way I want to. Can you relate?

This year, especially with all that’s going on around us in the economy and the world, what if we each made a commitment to appreciate the holiday season and enjoy the whole experience – regardless of our circumstances or any external pressure we may feel?  Appreciating the holiday season, as with anything in life, will make it much more enjoyable and much less stressful.

Instead of rushing around in a high state of anxiety and worry about crossing every item off of our never-ending to-do list, we could choose another way – one which will make this holiday season enjoyable, fun, and peaceful for us and those around us.

Here are a few things we can remember this holiday season to make things more fulfilling and less overwhelming:

1) Take Responsibility for Your Experience. It’s important to remember that the stress we experience during the holiday season does not come from the holidays themselves, but from us. We’re always the creators of our own experience and the more we can remember this and live our lives from this perspective, the more empowered we are.  When we stop thinking, speaking, and acting as if we’re mere victims of holiday madness (or anything else in our lives for that matter), we can dramatically enhance our enjoyment and lower our stress.

2) Remember That You Are at Choice. We always have a choice about how we engage with anything. This holiday season we can choose to be annoyed by family members, obligations, forced work gatherings, crowds, prices, or anything else. Or, we can choose to enjoy the magic and fun of this time of year.  We may not always get to choose the people and circumstances around us, but we always have a choice about how we relate to them.  Our experience of the holidays (and of life) is up to us, as it always is.

3) Focus on What You Appreciate About the Holidays. Consciously choose to focus on the things that you appreciate about the holiday season the most. Tell the truth about this to yourself and to those around you. If at all possible, don’t participate in work or family gatherings out of obligation. But, regardless of where you are, what you do, or whom you are with – make a commitment to appreciate what’s happening, the people around you, and the many blessings of this season and in your life right now.

Even and especially when things are challenging, we always have so much to be grateful for. At this time of the year, we can take a step back, breathe deeply, and experience the gratitude we have for our lives, the people in it, and for ourselves. If not now, then when?

While there are always things for us to do, gifts to buy, gatherings to attend, and much more going on at this time of year; we can choose to have this holiday season be one that is filled with authentic peace, gratitude, and joy – if we’re willing to look for, find, and focus on what we appreciate.

How do you relate to the holidays?  What can you do or shift to have this holiday season be one you truly enjoy and appreciate? Share your thoughts, action ideas, insights, and more on my blog here.



For this week's audio message (including additional tips and suggestions) - click here.

Listen to my Interview with Marci Shimoff

I recently had the honor of interviewing best-selling author Marci Shimoff on my radio show, “Let’s Get Real with Mike Robbins.”  Marci and I talked about her mega best-selling book, Happy For No Reason, among other things.  It was a wonderful and enlightening conversation, and I think you will enjoy it.  To listen, click here (and then click on the link to my show with Marci to download the MP3 of our interview for free).  My show airs on Energy Talk Radio daily at 7:00 AM ET and 5:00 PM PT (as well as each Friday at noon PT).  Check it out!

My Articles on Oprah.com

As you know, the folks at Oprah.com have recently published a number of my articles in the Spirit section of their wonderful and popular website.  I’m honored, humbled, and grateful for this.  They are planning to publish even more of my articles throughout the holidays and into the New Year, as well as feature some of them in their weekly Spirit Newsletter.  I’ve signed an agreement with them to be a regular contributor to Oprah.com for the next year and am so excited about this!  It would be fun and exciting to get as many people as possible to read my pieces on Oprah.com, which may lead to more opportunities with her magazine, radio network, and, of course, TV show.

Here are a few ways you can support this:

• Sign up for a member account on Oprah.com (it’s quick, easy, and free)

• Make comments on any or all of my articles (you need to be a member to do this)

• Sign up for Oprah’s Spirit Newsletter (it’s emailed each week on Sunday night and may often feature one of my articles – you also need to be a member to get this)

• Share my Oprah.com articles with others on Facebook, Twitter, your blog, etc.

• Check out my pieces that have been published so far

Michael Beckwith’s PBS Special

Michael Beckwith’s amazing and inspirational PBS special, “The Answer is You,” began airing on PBS stations around the country this past weekend.  Michelle, our girls, and I were at Michael’s Church, Agape, in LA over the weekend and it was incredible, as always!  I had the honor of being invited to the taping of his PBS program a few months ago and it was a magical, transformational evening.  Dr. Beckwith is one of the most profound, wise, and insightful thought leaders and teachers of our time.  You will love this program and it is FREE on your local PBS station (I love public television)!  For a short video featuring Will.I.Am, Debbie Ford, Les Brown, Lisa Nichols, ME, and others about who Michael Beckwith is, click here.  For a short preview of this program, click on this link.  And, to find out more information about it, as well as when it will be airing on your local PBS stations, check out this link: http://www.the-answer-is-you.com/

Healing with the Masters – My session is TODAY (12/1 at 4 PM PT)

You are invited to "Healing with the Masters" a free teleseminar series hosted by acclaimed author, healer and speaker, Jennifer McLean. This 13-week series provides you exclusive access to 24 of the world's leading experts in spirituality, wellness and healing (I am also one of the featured speakers!). Renowned leaders such as Neale Donald Walsch, Marci Shimoff, Gregg Braden, Gay Hendricks, plus 19 more, are providing an intimate portrait of how they achieved success in their respective fields as well as giving you personal insights on how you can easily accelerate your own consciousness and evolution.  The series has been going for a while, but you can still join.  My session takes place TODAY (12/1 at 4 PM PT).  For more info and to sign up for this free teleseminar series today, click here.

Connect with me on Facebook and Twitter

If you'd like to connect with me on Facebook or Twitter, click one or both of these links:

Where I'm Speaking:
Below is a list of where and when I'm speaking for the next few months. Most of these events are for my corporate or organizational clients (i.e. not open to the public). The ones in bold, however, are public events. I hope to see you at one of these!

For all my upcoming public events, check out this link. And, if you live in any of the cities where I'll be traveling and want to contact me about setting up a speaking engagement for your group or company while I'm in town, feel free to contact me.

12/3/09 - San Francisco, CA

12/10/09 - Redwood City, CA

12/13/09 - Santa Rosa, CA (CSLSR)

12/15/09 - San Ramon, CA

1/7/10 – Martinez, CA

1/8/09 – San Jose, CA

1/11/10 – Palo Alto, CA (Unity Palo Alto)

1/19/10 – San Rafael, CA (Marin HR Forum)

1/26/10 – Las Vegas, NV

1/27/10 – Palo Alto, CA

Again, for a full list of my upcoming public events, check out: http://www.beyourselfbook.com/events.htm.

"We had so much fun at Disneyland – we’re grateful that Mommy and Daddy took us there for Thanksgiving!"
- Samantha and Annarose Robbins

To see more photos of us and
our mommy and daddy, click here.