Issue # 42 August 2006

Dear Impish one,
You are the reason for this newsletter. I'm dedicated to
supporting the "imp" in you - especially this month to
Igniting your Mind Power!

You're receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to it,
you're a member of "The Imp Community" online, or a friend
passed it on. Sign up or unsubscribe at the end.

A special welcome to new subscribers! Earlier editions are
archived: http://www.theimpjournal.com/archives/

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1. Feature Article: Ignite Your Mind Power!
2. Coaching Q&A: Do? Be? Do? Be? Do?
3. News, Comments, Success Stories, Winners
4. Inspirational Message to Ponder  

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1. Feature Article: Ignite Your Mind Power!

I believe YOU have incredible potential and a passion that is
yearning to be expressed. And, I believe, your passion is
your gift to the world.

That is the focus of my new website http://www.TheImpLady.com 
(which is online but not yet complete nor operational.)

On this new site The Imp and I will be offering a number of free
resources to help you start (or accelerate) unleashing your
passion and potential.

One of the resources will be an e-book "Igniting Your Mind Power
- 7 Great Tips to Improving Your Mental Productivity."
Here are excerpts from 3 of the tips:

From tip #2 To Train the Brain Include The Food

"Calories, shmalories," pipes up The Imp, "forget calories. It’s
the nutrients in food that count!"

Your brain works best on the best of raw materials. There are
hundreds of nutrients - minerals, vitamins, enzymes, the right fats
and proteins. And you won’t get them just by popping supplements.
Many nutrients, no doubt, have not yet been isolated or named by
scientists.

Super-charge your brain naturally. To get started, the best sources
are fruits and vegetables. Raw is better than cooked. Enjoy, for
example, a luscious bunch of grapes or a colorful salad.
One online resource is http://www.NutrientRich.com

By the way, have you noticed that large meals make you sleepy?
Especially if you’ve ingested mostly refined carbohydrates.
When your body is focussing on digestion, blood is diverted away from
your brain. If you need to stay alert at work or school, eat smaller
meals and healthy snacks.

The Imp Lady’s Green Smoothie is a great starter for the day.
(I use only organic ingredients.)

Place in a blender:
1 ripe banana
juice and a little zest from half a lemon
One heaping tablespoon of raw tahini
(that’s ground sesame seeds, available at health food stores)
small chunk of ginger root
lots of greens - kale, lettuce or other leafy greens
Add a little water and more as required.
Blend until smooth and enjoy. Sweeten with a few drops of stevia
if desired. (Stevia is a natural herbal sweetener)

From tip #3. Sleep Zone: Brain at Work

Did you know that during sleep you have fantastic brain power
working for you? From the previous day’s experiences, your brain
categorizes and stores information, decides what is IMPortant,
solves problems and more... such Incredible Miraculous Processes!

Your creative subconscious mind works best when your conscious
mind is asleep (or pleasantly occupied and distracted from a
‘problem’).

Make it a habit at bedtime to ‘program’ your mind. Say something
like this to yourself:

"Tonight while I’m asleep, my creative subconscious mind will be
working on (a specific challenge).
I will be guided in thought and action toward a solution.
I trust that creative options become available to me.
I may be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is!"

With sleep deprivation, your brain goes into dysfunction mode.
Your intellectual capacity drops significantly (but you won’t
realize it has) and your health is seriously compromised. Sleep
experts still agree that the average adult needs eight hours and
younger people at least nine hours.

ZZZ... "Night, night," soothes The Imp, "want me to tuck you in
and sing a lullaby?"

From tip #4: GIGO

Like computer lingo, garbage in, garbage out, the same principle
applies to your brain. Let’s focus on Great Input, Great Output!

Reading is one of the best and easiest ways to keep your mind
sharp. Find time, make time - while commuting, in the bathroom,
while eating lunch, relaxing in the evening (reduce or eliminate
time watching TV), bedtime... Make it a goal to read at least
20 minutes a day. By the way, getting up early to read is a great
way to start the day.

Sometimes choose subjects completely new to you.

Listening time can be just as valuable. Listening to the radio
while driving has been called "chewing gum for the ears" by
Brian Tracy, a very successful motivational speaker. There are
hundreds of tape/CD programs available from which to learn. Make
your driving time a University on Wheels.

Become smarter by associating with smart people. Gain knowledge,
great insights and fresh perspectives from others.

Choose to be with the winners not the losers.

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2. Coaching Q&A: Do? Be? Do? Be? Do?

A quote from Socrates is "To be is to do."
Sartre stated, "To do is to be."

It's like which came first the chicken or the egg?

A client, Jan, was an aspiring writer. Her life was very full
with family responsibilities and a job. Her goal was to spend
some time each week writing. To squeeze it in somehow.

One week during our call, Jan ruefully admitted that her writing
hadn't gotten done that week. As she discussed things that had
filled her week, Jan mentioned that she runs regularly every day.

That brought up a very interesting phenomena we discussed.

"Mindsets".

A mindset is a state of being. We have permanent mindsets and
temporary mindsets. For those areas of our life for which we have
a permanent mindset (state of being) then the 'doing' follows
automatically.

For example, if you are a tidy person, you have a habit of putting
things back in place immediately. It's second nature.

For someone living with clutter, tidiness becomes a temporary
mindset when they can no longer stand the chaos and not being able
to find what they're looking for. So for a short time they focus on
organizing their living space.

The challenge is adopting a new mindset and having it become a
permanent state of being. In Jan's case, she was a Runner - it was
second nature to spend time running. Her mindset of 'writer' was
not yet a permanent state of being.

It takes a lot of focus and determination to maintain a new mindset.
That's one reason why working with a Coach makes such a difference!

You can probably think of goals you didn't achieve. Think back -
are you aware of the mindset you had?

A desire will remain just a desire unless you start with the mindset.

Do? Be? Do? Be? Do? My answer is "Be". Focus on keeping yourself in
a desired state of being.

Another example is 'being peaceful'. If that is a state of being
that's important to you - you choose to feel peaceful rather than
being in a state of turmoil - then the doing follows. You meditate
daily, you let go of resentments, you forgive others , etc.

Another example: if the state of being healthy is a priority, then
you easily say no to the junk food.

Let the 'doing' naturally follow from a state of being.

The Imp has been in the background chuckling while I've been writing
this. To see why, be sure to see the quote at the end of this
newsletter...

What challenges are you facing on your journey to greater self-
empowerment? When your question is answered in this column, you'll
receive a complimentary 40-minute coaching session by phone or
a set of whimsical imp notecards.

Client names are changed to protect identity and maintain
confidentiality.

Go ahead! send your questions to:

Your question will be answered promptly.
No waiting until the next newsletter.  

Do you really have what it takes to live a life of Inspiration,
Magic and Passion? To find out, take The Imp's Quick Quiz and
apply for a complimentary 40 minute phone consultation.
http://www.theimpjournal.com/quick-quiz/ 

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3.News, Comments, Success Stories, Winners  

Two points here leading up to something:

1. One facet of The Imp is play. (Articles about play are in
Issues #17 July 2004 and #35 January 2006.)

2. One theme in The Imp Journal is "Investigate Many Pathways: Your
exploration may evolve into a whole new direction for your life."

With the above two points in mind, as soon as I heard about the
"Right to Play" Organization I knew I wanted to share it with you.
It's definitely "impish".

Right To Play is an athlete-driven international humanitarian
organization that uses sport and play as a tool for the development
of children and youth in the most disadvantaged areas of the world.
Their Mission Statement is "Creating a healthier and safer world
for children through the power of sport and play."

There are volunteer opportunities and please consider making a
donation. Check out http://www.righttoplay.com

There are 3 ways to win a "Live a Life of Inspiration, Magic and
Passion" tote bag.

1. Request game cards and mark your location on The Imp's guest
map. It's fun! There's only one rule to this game - don't get
caught doing it!
http://www.theimpjournal.com/where-in-world.htm  

2. During the first month as a new subscriber.  

3. When you become a member of "The Imp Community" online,
which happens automatically when you purchase The Imp Journal:
Guided Journal Writing for Personal Empowerment, Vol.1
http://www.theimpjournal.com/order-journal.htm  

This month's winner, Dorthi W. of Comox, B.C., recently purchased
The Imp Journal.

A complementary totebag also goes to Povis Law. Povis is the
artist who drew The Imp illustrations for me when she was
a student at the Emily Carr School of Art in Vancouver, Canada.
She's now back living in Hong Kong.

Did you know The Imp Journal provides a step-by-step plan for
personal growth with 23 weekly themes? And online bonuses!

Now 23 weeks can be a long time to stick to a personal growth
program. (your Mindset?) So I've created IMPowerment - the
Mentoring Program to accompany the book. It's a group program that
takes you completely through The Imp Journal's personal empowerment
themes with support each step of the way. More information at
http://www.theimpjournal.com/mentoring-program.htm

There are a number of far more sophisticated programs online than
what I'm presently able to offer. One is "Healthy, Wealthy n' Wise"
- the folks from whom I bought the book The Passion Test which
really helped me get back on track with what The Imp and I are
all about.

Every other week they have telephone interviews you can listen to.
In their words, "Give us 60 Minutes every other week and we'll
get the world's top experts on self-growth, health and wealth to
reveal their most powerful, most clever, and most useful methods
for creating the life of your dreams -- 100% FREE."
Check it out at:
http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/aftrack.asp?afid=374167 

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4.Inspirational Message to Ponder  

The Imp encourages you to write the quote on a card, read it
regularly, and then journal about your thoughts, insights,
feelings and, especially, actions.

"To be is to do". Socrates.
"To do is to be." Sartre
"Do, be, do, be, do." Sinatra

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Please share this "IMPressions" newsletter with your friends. 

Look for your next newsletter in mid-September.

Warmly, "The Imp and I", Beverley ;-)

Beverley Howden, M.Ed.
"The Imp Lady"
Author, Speaker,
Personal Empowerment Facilitator,

1-250-897-0992

 

The Imp is the delight of my life starting over in 1993.
My other website is www.StartingLifeOver.com

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