Review of The Secret - June, 2008

Book Review: The Secret by Rhonda Byrne


by Tom Butler-Bowdon, CityWire United Kingdom





http://www.citywire.co.uk/personal/-/news/other/content.aspx?ID=304406

Recipe 38- Shift into High Gear

We all experience swings in our mood states from time to time- you may feel happy one moment, frustrated another and sad or grumpy at other times depending on what you are focusing on. This is inevitable and some what controllable (unless we are dealing with a mood disorder that needs to be treated by a medical doctor).
Prepare ahead of time to be ready to shift thoughts by making a list of shifters. Write down those thoughts that could quickly change a negative thought and evoke a positive feeling or at least a feeling of relief. Don't expect to go from total frustration to joy instantaneously. But if you can feel a bit of relief of hopefulness, you are on your way.This will start the chain of reaction of attracting more and more positive thoughts.
When a negative thought enters your mind let it go. Say to yourself "I will receive what I choose to think. My feelings will guide me. " Then replace the negative thought with a shifter thought from your list. If one doesn't work, try another. The key is to refocus and feel the good feeling that attaches to it. Try being fully present in the moment and focusing on all those things that support your well-being;look around and be thankful for all the small things.

The Choice is Yours

Listed in our book are over 42 recipes and exercises you can choose from to get going and living the secret everyday. This has been done purposely. The choice is yours. As the creator of your own life...you must be the designer of how you are about to create your reality. I like the idea of being able to structure my life in a conscious and deliberate way.
Only you can choose things that will keep you on track- choose the ones you are attracted to. And be simple- only select a few. You'll find that you will be doing more and more as the days go by. You will get tired of some and replace them with others. The activity we get the most emails about is the vision board. People enjoy doing this activity and it is such a good reminder. We'll focus on this in the next blog.

Staying On Track

The most difficult part of living the secret everyday for me is staying on track. I don't know about you but it is so easy to 'lose your way' and revert to old ways...that is to living unconsciously and by default.We all have such busy lives with to-do lists so long that they don't let us come up for air. We get into our 24/7 mode and literally neglect ourselves. This is one of the reasons I actually wrote this book. I didn't want what I learned from The Secret to be a pleasant memory not followed 3 months later.
I find that the best way to 'stay on track' is to daily remind myself that I want that joyful life and to live it deliberately.I make it as simple as possible.I use different recipes but never too many that will be too much to remember. Currently I have selected just 4 exercises from the book I do daily including reciting the mantra; using post-its to remind me to be grateful, meditating and creatively visualizing and writing in my journal ( which is part of the book).

Accepting Where You Are To Move On

A few more words on the importance of gratitude. Gratitude is all about accepting where you are in order move on to the joyful and abundant life. When you are genuinely grateful for what you have and where you are in life now, you allow that feeling of well-being to stream through you. You are going with the 'flow ' towards all that you want. Conversely,complaining about not having what you want puts you in a resistive state and manifests what you do not want.
Most importantly: it doesn't matter where you are; all that matters is that you accept where you are and feel good about it. Life is about being happy now and the Law of Attraction will do the rest.

Vacation Your Mind

It's been a while since my last post since I decided to take my own advice and vacation from my world of responsibility. Its wonderful to take that trip to Hawaii if you can afford it for 2 weeks... where you only focus on having a wonderful time and vacationing. Alternatively,you can do it at home. Clearing your mind of everyday worries and to-do lists is a fabulous exercise to do daily. Take a few minutes each day and decide to give your mind a vacation. In our book we give step-by-step exercises to relax, meditate or creatively visualize for this very purpose of clearing your mind and aligning yourself with your Source. Try it.

Is Eat, Pray, Love about Living The Secret?

Yes, yes and more yes. There is no doubt in my mind that Liz Gilbert's journey to find inner peace and happiness is all about her journey living The Secret. This is truly one woman's journey that is every woman's journey to find that life of joy waiting for her. Inspiring, honest and beautifully written we are able to get into the mind of a woman who is focused, faithful and on a mission to find beauty in her own world. This is a book I will read over and over again- can't say that about a lot of books. It is on the top of my list.

Her travels to Italy, India and Indonesia are only the backdrop for her quest to find herself. We don't need to travel round the world to make such a journey- all we have to do is search inside ourselves so we too can open the doors to our life as we open the doors to our mind and heart. We must focus each and everyday as Liz did. It does take effort and practice in order permanently change our lives :"to prevent leaking away of (the) innate contentement." (E.Gilbert). She says it so elegantly in her book, "The best we can do ...in response to our incomprehensible and dangerous world is to practice holding equilibrium internally- no matter what insanity is transpiring out there.' '(p.206 Eat,Pray,Love). This translates to living our lives with conscious awareness and deliberateness. That is The Secret.