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Change the World: Breaking the Law of My Limits

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What If I Stopped Saying I Can’t?

Change the World!

Those who advise people to follow their passion, no matter where it leads, are believers in intentionality*. Many meditation programs that advise that imagining ‘success’, what one wants to happen, is the first step towards its realization, are believers in intentionality (the second step, they will tell you, is acting in accordance). Those who will tell you that having the courage to ‘real-ize’ what you were always intended to be and do, by living on the Edge beyond the reach of civilization’s safety net, is the only sane way to live, the only hope for us as individuals and as a culture, are believers in intentionality. And so are the ‘power of positive thinking’ and ‘appreciative inquiry’ proponents. . . .

The word intention literally means stretching toward. The word aspiration means breathing toward. — Dave Pollard, How to Save the World

If I say I can’t, you can bet I can’t.
I can argue for my personal limits with a clean, clear case of exactly what I can’t do — certain beyond certain, that I can’t do what I say I can’t. The future is easy to predict when I lay down the law of my personal limits.

Suppose just one time, or maybe once and for all, that instead of the law of my limits, I laid down my can’t do arguments?

I intend to break the law of my limits.
I will do something I once believed I could never do.
I aspire without a care, without fear of failing.
I will stretch toward, breathe toward learning.

If I trip or fall, I’ll simply adjust my steps.
If I get lost, I’ll stop for help.

I don’t need luck, when I can make things happen.

I intend to stop fighting for limits, and start exploring possibilities.

That’s a reality I can make happen.

We can change the world — just like that.
–ME “Liz” Strauss

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If you’re ready to change the world, send me your thoughts in a guest post. Feel free to take the gorgeous Change the World image up there that Sandy designed back to your blog. Or help yourself to this one.

Change the World!

Email me about what you’re doing or what we might do. Let’s change the world one bit at a time together. Together it can’t take forever.

The Mic Is On: $100 Million Winners . . . !!!

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It’s Like Open Mic Only Different

The Mic Is On

Here’s how it works.

It’s like any rambling conversation. Don’t try to read it all. Jump in whenever you get here. Just go to the end and start talking. EVERYONE is WELCOME.
The rules are simple — be nice.

There are always first timers and new things to talk about. It’s sort of half “Cheers” part “Friends” and part video game. You don’t know how much fun it is until you try it.

What Would You Do With $100 Million?

Cash

We might talk about

  • when we would claim the money
  • When would you claim the money – right away or after you get your ‘ducks in a row’?
  • how much money $100 Million is really worth
  • whether to hire an investment consultant
  • whether to work or run a business
  • what we’d buy
  • where we’d travel
  • what we’d give away
  • what we’d do about expectations from friends and relatives
  • And, whatever else comes up,

including THE EVER POPULAR,
Basil the code-writing donkey.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

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What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?

Open Mic 7pm Chgo Time: $100Million Winners!!!!

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Yes the Mic Will Be on Tonight

Join Us Tonight for Tues. Open Comments

The Topic is: What Would You Do With $100 Million?

How would that impact your life? We might talk about when we would claim the money — right away or after some thought — how much money $100 Million is really worth, whether to hire an investment consultant, whether to work or run a business, what we’d buy, where we’d travel, what we’d give away, and what we’d do about expectations from friends and relatives. I bet we have 100 million ideas in our vision , . .

The rules are simple — be nice.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related article
What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?

Change the World: That One Person Is Better

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A Writing Contract

Change the World!

People are inspiring, teaching, and reaching each other in positive ways every day. Phil Gerbyshak is smiling, sharing, serving, asking questions, learning and hugging.

Lisa at Design Your Writing Life took a virtual page Content Done Better by Carson Brackney and another from The Write Path by Diane Penna to forge a contract with herself. Lisa’s contract, like the others, is a commitment to “doing the work you love in service to those who love what you do,” as Steve Farber says.

Of course then, Lisa left a message that it was my turn.

Lisa, this is my answer and my contract.

When I was almost 18 years old, at sunrise in the Grand Teton Mountains, a young man asked me an important question about life that I had never been asked before. Somehow I knew the answer. That answer is the basis for my writing contract with myself and the world.

I will be the kind of writer that strives to keep alive the music of the language, to hold head and heart together in the words, and to write with hope and passion that one person is better because he or she read what I wrote.

I told that boy, “I’ll never know for sure. So I’ll always be trying.”

Thank you, Lisa, for asking the question.

We can change the world — just like that.
–ME “Liz” Strauss

______________
If you’re ready to change the world, send me your thoughts in a guest post. Feel free to take the gorgeous Change the World image up there that Sandy designed back to your blog. Or help yourself to this one.

Change the World!

Email me about what you’re doing or what we might do. Let’s change the world one bit at a time together. Together it can’t take forever.

Open Mic Wrap-up: Inside Our Computers . . .

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Guess What We Discovered!

Along with the memory and hard drives, there are pages of email, novels, spam, dust-bunnies, stars, nebula, water, poetry and music made from words that all live inside our computers.

If you’re in the market to purchase, will it be HP, Dell or Toshiba and laptop or desktop? The price of monitors is low but do you want a 17″, 19″ or 22″ and is it better to build your own or unpack and go? Maybe go with what you want and need and don’t worry too much about the brand.

There might have been more talk about music, health, tap dancing, weather, dessert, SAHDs, trips, acronyms, karaoke, disco, coffee, movies, cleaning, company, MTV, Akismet, widgets, walking, and family than computers. And of course, we shared Klondike Bars and poetry.

Here’s some of the links we shared:

Special thanks to Joe for holding the fort down when I couldn’t be here at the beginning. You’re my hero! And a special apology to Robert and Steven — I’m sorry I didn’t close down the announcement post. I hate it when I do that!

Thanks to everyone for the cool links and for being part of the conversation. Bring more links next week and we’ll post them again. I wish I could quote you all, but I know you have an idea of how much time it takes.

So, for 2007, we’ll just tell the story and share the links that you bring.

After all, how DO YOU explain Open Comment Night, if you’ve never experienced it?

See you next Tuesday? We sure hope so.
–ME “Liz” Strauss and Sandy Renshaw
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What is Tuesday Open Comment Night?