ESSENCE OF MARRIAGE

Most marriages commonly start from "a boy meets girl" story that developed into a special relationship bonded by love, commitment and trust that seem to be never ending. That beautiful union is eventually sealed - in a rite of marriage - by a vow of fidelity and love for each other and only death can break them apart.

Generally, people decide to marry because of LOVE and the happiness and fulfillment it brings. Others go into marriage for convenience; companionship or security reasons while some individuals follow the words of the Bible. There are also a few people who give in to the pressures of family and society that's why they marry. If you and your partner are thinking of tying the knot anytime soon, this article will give you a better understanding of the essence of marriage and this will hopefully serve as your guide in making that BIGGEST decision in your life and how to make it work.

A good marriage is unique to every couple. There is no model for perfect marriage. Finding the right person who shares your meaning of an ideal and blissful married life is the key to it. Between you and your partner, there should be love, trust, respect, open communication, honesty, humility, appreciation and a good sense of humor, sharing of responsibility and absolute commitment and fidelity.

A marriage will work when there is no pride between you and your partner and when you can still love each other even during times of distress or when things don't turn out right. You must know how to accept both your faults and being able to forgive.
Another factor that can make your marriage click is to become each other's best friend. You must share similar goals and hopes like a team and you should have respect for each other's families. Most of all, keeping the romance alive, spending time together and enjoying a good sex can certainly make your marriage better and exciting.

We all know by now that not all marriages are a bed of roses. Some have been difficult but couples succeeded to save them. Unfortunately, there are others that ended up in divorce. Making a marriage work is a mutual effort by the couples and it takes work. Communication plays a vital role in keeping a good marriage. Couples should be able to discuss issues concerning their relationship, including children, work, and sex or even household management. What is important is that couples should spend quality time together despite hectic schedules and do something together that they both enjoy.

Whatever your reasons or purpose for getting married, don't forget that the ultimate foundation that will make it work is the LOVE that you both shared from the time you two met and made plans of spending your life together forever as husband and wife. So, don't let that love fade away!

Maximizing Your Potentials

Beginning today, don't wait for anyone to make you feel good. Become your own best friend.
Here are three steps to help you get started:

* 1. Look inside yourself to see what gives you the most satisfaction, and then go for it.
* 2. Become familiar with the people and places where you feel respected and valued.
* 3. Learn to encourage yourself. Make it a natural habit.

When you don't value yourself as a person, you may not be able to recognize all of your strengths. When you begin to encourage yourself, you'll become more satisfied with your life. As you begin to recognize and value your own strengths and resources, you'll start to give yourself more positive messages. As you become more satisfied with yourself, you won't feel a need to compare yourself with others. Instead, you will note your own progress and set your own standards. You'll feel like working with people, not against them.

Now, here are ten steps to help you build your self-esteem.

* 1. Adapt the attitude that you are a responsible and dependable person. Others will respect you and come to you willingly.
* 2. Do things for others before they ask you and without waiting for recognition. In other words, do things spontaneously for others because you want to; don't wait until someone says you have to.
* 3. Freely contribute your opinions and suggestions with your family. You'll feel better and your family will benefit.
* 4. Participate in the decision-making process at work, at home, and at civic clubs. When your actions show people that you make and carry out responsible decisions, they will respect you much more for having done so.
* 5. Accept the mistakes you make for what they are: simply human errors. Realize that making mistakes is part of being human. Learn from them and move on.
* 6. Focus on the why of your actions rather than on the what. Look at the effort and energy you put into doing something and the reasons behind it rather than looking so much at what you do.
* 7. Become an expert at looking for the positive potential in yourself and others. By learning to tune in to yourself and others, you'll become an expert on building closer, more trusting relationships.
* 8. Have confidence in your ability to make good judgment. As you start believing in yourself, others will, too.
* 9. Develop the habit of expecting positive things to happen. Even when disappointments set in, expect positive things to happen. You'll soon learn that they will.
* 10. Look at different ways of seeing a situation. Use your creative abilities and look beyond the first right answer. Self-esteem is having the I-CAN attitude in what you say and do.

Remember: When you maximize your potential, everyone wins. When you don't, we all lose.

Mail: thewavesofdestiny@yahoo.com

How to overcome discouragement

If you have a goal, then you’ll probably face a lot of discouragement. Rejection, criticism, frustration, obstacles and failure are all part of the package.

Instead of affirmations, motivate yourself with ideas. It's been found out that ideas flowing are a far better remedy for an emotional setback than telling myself I’m a good person. Generating new ideas, solutions and goals can snap you out of a negative state.

Here are some motivational idea-generating tips:

1.Do Something Creative. If you’re recovering from a particularly disappointing setback, getting new ideas won’t be easy. Trying to tackle the problem directly may backfire. Instead, spend a few hours doing something creative and relaxing. Drawing, painting and building can start your idea-generators going in the background before you try to motivate yourself.

2.Listen to Audio Tapes. It’s a good idea to have a few motivational audio tapes. These can help steer your thinking away from negative thoughts and towards new ideas. The content of these programs isn’t usually groundbreaking, but where it starts, you can usually continue in generating new ideas.

3.Journal. Write down all of your ideas on paper. Explore any problems you face and start thinking of possible solutions. Writing is better than just thinking, because you have more control over where your thoughts lead. Journaling gives you an added layer of control over your mind.

4.Review and Plan Goals. Go over your goals. Review, change them and set new ones. Setting new goals can restart the enthusiasm you might have lost after a setback. When you get stressed after a particular negative result, tweaking your goals and reminding yourself of them can start you on the flow of ideas once more.

5.Meditate. Meditation can help if you treat it as an interactive self-dialog. Practice your breathing and visualization until you can start creating other characters in your mind. You can then “talk” with these characters to sort through problems. The intense focus combined with relaxation can often give ideas you would otherwise miss.

6.Exercise. One of the major symptoms of depression is a lack of energy. While your temporary setback might be nothing compared to full-blown depression, a bad mood can drain the energy out of anyone. Exercising can be the first step in reversing this trend by boosting your energy. Even going from apathetic to angry can be a stepping stone to rebuilding your enthusiasm.

7.Posture and Body Language. Standing and moving as you would if you were in an enthusiastic state can be enough to trigger the feelings of enthusiasm. Dont take this as a magic cure-all, but if you are feeling down, the first step should be to adjust your posture.

8.Spend Time With “Idea Magnifiers”. Some people can do a great job of magnifying and reflecting any enthusiasm you have. Spending time with these people and avoiding negative people can also help. This step isn’t as easy as it sounds. Identifying the people that actually cause a change in your mood rather than the people who tolerate your complaining is critical.

9.Achieve Something Easy. A good way to look at motivation is like a ball rolling down a hill. If it hits an obstacle, all of the momentum stops. However, only a slight push forward can start the ball rolling again. Take on a simple task you know you can accomplish. Organize your office. Go to the gym. Empty your inbox.

Motivation is Built in Steps. Starting with a small idea-generating activity can be better for recharging your motivation than with a big one.

Mail: thewavesofdestiny@yahoo.com

THE POWER OF IMAGINATION

Imagination is the ability to form a mental image of something that is not perceived through the senses. It is the ability of the mind to build mental scenes, objects or events that do not exist, are not present or have happened in the past. Memory is actually a manifestation of imagination. Everyone possesses some imagination ability. In some it may be highly developed and in others it may manifest in a weaker form. It manifests in various degrees in various people.
Imagination makes it possible to experience a whole world inside the mind. It gives the ability to look at any situation from a different point of view, and enables one to mentally explore the past and the future.
It manifests in various forms, one of which is daydreaming. Though too much idle daydreaming may make one impractical, some daydreaming, when not being engaged in something that requires attention provides some temporary happiness, calmness and relief from stress.

In your imagination you can travel anywhere in the speed of light without any obstacles. It can make you feel free, though temporarily, and only in the mind, from tasks, difficulties and unpleasant circumstances. A developed and strong imagination does not make you a daydreamer and impractical. On the contrary, it strengthens your creative abilities, and is a great tool for recreating and remodeling your world and life.

This means that we should think only in a positive manner about our desires, otherwise we may create and attract into our lives events, situations and people that we don't really want. This is actually what most of us do, because we don't use the power of imagination correctly.

Lack of understanding of the power of the imagination is responsible for the suffering, incompetence, difficulties, failures and unhappiness people experience. For some reason, most people are inclined to think in a negative way. They do not expect success. They expect the worst, and when they fail, they believe that fate is against them. This attitude can be changed, and then life will improve accordingly.

Understanding how to use your imagination correctly, and putting this knowledge into practice, for your own and others' benefit, will put you on the golden path to success, satisfaction and happiness.

Email: thewavesofdestiny@yahoo.com