Category Archives: Motivation

Seize the Merry and Miserable Moments

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Whether your current moment is merry or miserable, you must let go of it if you are to move on to the next.   The miserable moments are only that when we label them that way. The merry moments are only that way because we decided that they were.  This morning I was reflecting on last December and the changes that have occurred since last year this time.  There have been so many.  For one, there were people in my life last year that are gone this year.  Last year at this time, we were mourning my nephew’s tragic and untimely demise at age 32.  Everyone was wishing that they’d spent more time with him and said and done things to let him know how much he was loved.  This year it is my step-mother who passed in July. She lived to be 85-years old.  This morning I was reflecting on how she did not spend the holidays with us last year.  There were many reasons, but mainly our collective somber mood and the weather.  Little did I know that we would not have another opportunity.

“Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.” -C.S. Lewis

While there has been significant loss, at the same time there has been significant gain.  I am not the same person I was last year. Last year this time there was a fear and hopelessness that has now been replaced by faith and expectation.  I have new relationships, new opportunities, and a new sense of valuing life’s little moments.  I am better, mainly because I chose to be better.  I know from my more than a half century of living that we must seize every moment.  We don’t love, laugh, and enrich the world in the past or the present, we do it ONLY in the current moment.  So seize it.

“It’s not life’s big planned events that make the big difference, it is the simple, intimate, and sometimes spontaneous things we do for each other.” Barbara Talley

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out: What Does Barbara Do? or visit  my website.
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Change Is Part of The Master Plan

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It is December, the time of holiday spirits, year-end reflections, and the anticipation or regret of the approaching winter weather. If there is one thing that I know for sure, it is that things WILL change.  All you have to do is open your eyes to see change all around you.  There is new construction where once there were trees or abandoned property. Houses once filled with familiar voices and laughter are now empty or new occupants have staked their claims. The trees which once were spectacularly clothed by nature now stand naked and barren, while simple houses are lit and dressed in their best holiday finery.  Even relationships that we had last year have perhaps changed, some for the better, others for the worse.  And if we are fortunate, we too will  have changed! Remember, it’s not the strongest or wisest that survive, but the one most adaptable to change.

“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” -George Bernard Shaw

“Someone was hurt before you, wronged before you, hungry before you, frightened before you, beaten before you, humiliated before you, raped before you… yet, someone survived… You can do anything you choose to do.” –Maya Angelou

Change is part of the master plan and is inevitable.    Life will happen, with or without our permission, engagement, or opinion. Our only choice is to decide whether we will grow from the change or not AND whether we will drive the change or let it drive us.  You  can fight it, shape it, or embrace it.  So, why not decide to grow, to improve, to be happier, to be financially secure, to become smarter, to become more virtuous and loving, and to make your mark and make a difference.

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Expectations Impact Results

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It doesn’t cost any more to dream a big powerful dream than it does to dream a small insignificant one. I perceived last year as challenging and it was extremely challenging.  I decided that this year would be better and it most definitely was.  I got to go to LA for a screen test, joined the Capital Speakers Club, got many new clients, published a new book, was nominated for Mother of the Year, and still made time for myself and the people in my life.  Get the connection?  Expectations impact results.  So, knowing how the universe works, next year I am claiming and expecting the best year of my life.   What about you?  Do you dare dream a bigger dream or are you so paralyzed by the collective fears of the nation that you feel that dreaming big is futile?

“We tend to live up to our expectations.”  Earl Nightingale

“We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aid, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn.”  Henry David Thoreau

Check out my previous article on the power of expectations and emotions for more on the power of expectations.

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out: What Does Barbara Do? or visit  my website.

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Seven Good Reasons to Laugh More

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Did you know that a hearty laugh can leave your body relaxed for up to 45 minutes?  Or that laughter boosts your immune system for up to three days?  Everyone feels good when they laugh, so why don’t we do it more. Laughter releases endorphins that change your mood for the better.   I was cleaning out some old files and came across an anonymous funny quip that someone sent me in 2006.  It made me smile so I decided to share it with you to pay it forward.   In this article, see if you can find at least seven reasons to laugh more.

“Dear Lord, So far today,  I’m –doing all right. I have not gossiped, lost my temper, been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or self-indulgent.  I have not whined, complained, cursed, or eaten any chocolate.  I have charged nothing to my credit card. But I will be getting out of bed in a minute, and I think I will really need your help then.”  Anonymous

“Humor is infectious. The sound of roaring laughter is far more contagious than any cough, sniffle, or sneeze. When laughter is shared, it binds people together and increases happiness and intimacy, ” writes Melinda Smith, M.A., Gina Kemp, M.A., and Jeanne Segal, in their article ‘Laughter is the Best Medicine.’   Also, read about eight ways to improve stress through laughter at  About.com.  There are probably people in your life who also make you laugh.  Thank them because through laughter they are helping you to protect your heart, increase pain resistance, and help your marriage or other relationships.  Now I’d like you to pay it forward.  If you’ve got a funny story or link that will make us laugh, please comment and share below.

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out: What Does Barbara Do? or visit  my website.

Be Thankful for Your Sight

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This morning when I awoke as my brain was transitioning to the theta brain wave state, I starting thinking about all the things I had to be grateful for.  First of all I was grateful that I had a morning that I could just sleep in late, with no deadlines and stresses on the immediate horizon.  I thanked God for my family, my home, my children, and so on.  I thought about my step-mom who had recently passed and thanked God for her 85 years. I offered thanks for my recent work opportunities and for the people in my  life, like Gina Watkins of Constant Contact.  She had invited me to be her guest at a wonderful gala put on by SCORE, Service Core of Retired Executives.

The more I thanked, the more I remembered to be thankful for.

I decided to read some spiritual text but realized that I couldn’t find my glasses.  I can see pretty well, but some things are blurry, like text in a book or  the numbers on a phone.  Then I realized something else to be thankful for, my sight.  I looked at all the books I’d recently purchased at the Borders ‘Going Out of Business’ sale and realized that without sight, I couldn’t access this new oasis of knowledge.  After each blurry encounter while looking for my glasses, I was powerfully reminded of how important sight is.  I thought about how my day would go if I didn’t find my glasses.  It would be very different from the relaxed one I had planned.  Life presents us lessons all the time and by different methods.  My glasses just happened to be the medium of my lesson this morning.  So instead of being frustrated about not finding my glasses, I decided to just appreciate the sight I had and to be grateful for all the other senses I had. Why is it that we have to lose something before we really appreciate it?  So, think about what lesson life is presenting you today and appreciate the medium that gives you the opportunity to grow!

I’m Barbara Talley, the poet who speaks and inspires.  To find out more about me check out: What Does Barbara Do? or visit  my website.