The Efficiency Journal by Misha Saidov – Spotlight and Giveaway

April 10, 2023 By Leave a Comment

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will award a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

This journal, created by renowned coach and psychotherapist Misha Saidov, will help you become the hero of your own life. It was created to assist you in setting important goals, reaching them, and winning. It will support you along the way, especially when you find yourself lost or confused. The Efficiency Journal will help you stay on track.

You don’t need to schedule your day by the minute. If you want to succeed, you only need to complete three key daily tasks, set goals that fit into 12-week sprints, and honestly reflect on your results once a week.

You will learn to manage your energy and analyze your actions, achievements, and experiences.

The result will be a formed character, created by daily volitional actions.

What’s inside?

– Weekly and daily planning sheets
– Space for summarizing weekly results and for reflection
– Wise thoughts and tips along the way

Any goal reduced to daily tasks will be achieved, no matter what.

FOR WHOM IS THIS JOURNAL?

For those who want to succeed in business, improve themselves, move forward, maintain their motivation and eliminate distractions.

Many of us have meaningful ideas that could change the world. Without embodiment, they will remain just a dream. A dream about the future.

Enjoy an Excerpt

In 1910, in the center of Paris at Sorbonne, the president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, gave a speech.

One of the passages of the speech became known as “The Man in the Arena”:

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Do you ever find yourself asking: “Who am I? The one in the arena, or a spectator?”

About the Author:

Misha Saidov, a life performance coach and author, is the founder of IMCP (Institute of Metacognitive Programming) and Think Meta, a coaching company that conducts 4000+ client sessions per month.

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Ten Things People May Not Know About Me by Marie McGaha – Guest Blog and Giveaway

April 5, 2023 By 7 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Marie McGaha will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Ten Things People May Not Know About Me
I’ve been in this business for a long time, so I’ve done many interviews and my bio is all over the internet, so coming up with ten things people don’t know about me might be a tough one!

1 – I just got married on February 4, 2023

I was twice widowed, and my second husband, Nathan, died from a stupid cancer that has a 5-7 year survival rate, but he died seven months after diagnosis. I was totally lost. After twenty-three years of marriage, I was unprepared for the loss. The paperwork alone was unbelievable, and I was almost convinced the heart-wrenching grief would kill me. But through a lot of screaming and crying, and constant prayer and bargaining with God, I was finally able to pull myself together. I visited my youngest son and his family in California and stayed several weeks with my oldest son in Utah, and then went back home to Idaho to get my house ready to sell. It all led me to buying a house back in Oklahoma where my late husband was born and raised, and I had lived there since 1989. And living here was the best thing that ever happened to me. I was able to buy a house outright, found a nice church, and because of that church going to a church in nearby Arkansas, I met the man I would marry, Pastor Dan. For me, it was love at first sight, but it was several months before we actually got together due to his position as pastor. I never thought I’d find love again, but I am head over heels with Dan!

2- I’m a farmer

Yep, I live in a rural area with a 12-acre farm that includes my kids, Charlie, a fila Brasiliero mastiff; Artie, a Schnauweeniehuahua; Lucy Liu a double dapple dachshund; and Boo Boo Baby, a tiny Chihuahua. We also raise pigs, chickens, and I have a horse named Horse. We grow a garden for vegetables, and I cook everything from scratch.

3-I’m a baker

Baking is my hobby. I bake everything from bread to cinnamon rolls, cakes, cupcakes, cheesecakes, and I bake specialty birthday cakes and wedding cakes.

4- I love romance

I love writing romance, but I also love watching romance, especially Christmas romances!

5- I went to 25 schools

My father was part gypsy, or at least that’s my conclusion. He moved us all over the country and in the sixth grade alone I went to 3 different schools! I hated it, but it did prepare me, in a weird way, for being a writer and for trying new things and not being afraid to do anything life presented to me.

6- I gave birth to 7 kids

Yep, I had seven kids naturally, and all the labor added together took only six hours! I am one of those women who didn’t experience labor pains and the longest birth was 45 minutes. That was the first one, so it took a little longer!

7- I know American Sign Language

My father was best friends with a man named Albert who was a deaf/mute. He used to sit around the table with my dad and they signed. I was about 4 years old, and I picked up some of the signs quite easily. In college, I took two semesters of ASL, and now, I use it in church during praise and worship. I use interpretive dance and sign language along with flags to express my love and devotion to the Lord.

8- I was ordained in 1996

I was ordained through the Full Gospel Pentecostal Churches International after diligently studying through the Baptist Bible School, and Derek Prince Ministries. I’ve continued my studies over the years, and I’m also a licensed Chaplain and have worked in hospice.

9- I developed a drug and alcohol program

I’ve worked as a drug and alcohol counselor in many settings, including drug court, probation and parole, and in an all-male prison on a unit with 164 men and me. I often get asked if I was ever afraid, and the answer is no. I treated them with respect, and they treated me the same way. Through this experience with inmates, addicts, and alcoholics, I developed the Free to Live Free of Drugs and Alcohol program that will be released soon as a self-help book.

10- My favorite book I wrote is Cross The Line

This historical romance is set shortly after the American Civil War during the period of time of known as the Indian Wars. It is an interracial romance between a former slave and the daughter of a former slave owner. It’s historically correct and I had so much fun researching this book, that I forgot it wasn’t real!

Life is the journey we take on our way to Heaven. It’s not easy, it’s not pretty, and sometimes, it’s downright difficult. However, we have an Advocate unlike any other, Jesus Christ. In Shine His Light, the author uses scriptures and her own life lessons to help others get through the bumpy spots.

Enjoy an Excerpt

When I was a kid, the series “Star Trek” was the greatest sci-fi show on TV, with the most up-to-date special effects. People disappeared in the transporter, we saw the Enterprise fly through the stars at warp speed, and of course, we saw really strange people and creatures from other planets. Sometimes, the planets were inhospitable and wouldn’t support life as we know it, so the crew moved on.

Of course, it didn’t take long for technology to leap forward and when I watch the old “Star Trek” episodes now, the special effects seem so antiquated, they’re something we laugh about. We can take what is already there and turn it into something better, something brand new and more efficient but we can’t take nothing and turn it into something. Only God can do that.

When God’s Spirit hovered over the face of the waters, He did not think it was inhospitable or that nothing could ever come from it. God looked at the waters and thought, I can make dry land. I can make light. I can take some of that dirt and form a human being. And that is exactly what He did. But He did not stop there, He formed a human being from a pile of dirt and then, He did something remarkable, He breathed His own Spirit into that pile of dirt and gave it life. That pile of dirt became the first man—a living, breathing, moving, thinking person. And God said it was “very good.” Up until then, everything created was called “good,” but man and woman were “very good.”

About the Author Chaplain, author, editor and inspirational speaker, Marie McGaha lives in the beautiful Ozarks of southeast Oklahoma. After losing the love of her life, Nathan, Marie returned from the mountains of Idaho to their native home where she lives with a houseful of yapping furbies, pigs, chickens, and a horse named Horse! She attends Family Praise & Worship and is very grateful for her church family and their support. Shine His Light 4, the final book of the series, is due out next spring.

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Racial Justice at Work by Mary-Frances Winters and The Winters Group Team – Spotlight and Giveaway

April 3, 2023 By 3 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Mary-Frances Winters and The Winters Group Team will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour bvanner to see the other stops on the tour.

Creating justice-centered organizations is the next frontier in DEI. This book shows how to go beyond compliance to address harm, share power, and create equity.

Traditional DEI work has not succeeded at dismantling systems that perpetuate harm and exclude BIPOC groups. Proponents of DEI have put too much focus on HR solutions, such as increasing representation, and not enough emphasis on changing the deeper organizational systems that perpetuate inequities—in other words, on justice. DEIJ work diverges from traditional metrics-driven DEI work and requires a new approach to effectively dismantle power structures.

This thought-provoking, solutions-oriented book offers strategic advice on how to adopt a justice mindset, anticipate and address resistance, shift power dynamics, and create a psychologically safe organizational culture. Individual chapters provide pragmatic how-to guides to implementing justice-centered practices in recruitment and hiring, data collection and analysis, learning and development, marketing and advertising, procurement, philanthropy, and more.

DEIJ pioneer Mary-Frances Winters and her coauthors address some of the most significant aspects of adding a justice focus to diversity work, showing how to create a workplace culture where equity is not a checklist of performative actions but a lived reality.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Justice is not neutral.

After decades of keeping politics, conflict, and anything beyond the job description out of the workplace, we are recognizing the collective harm and inequities that often arise as a result of organizations’ commitment to being “impartial,” “neutral,” or “apolitical.”

Consumer researchers surveyed 168 managers across various industries about brands taking sociopolitical stances. Researchers found that regardless of the manager’s political affiliation, surveyed managers saw a fictitious organization that did not support inclusive policies such as LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights as less committed to community and social responsibility and less profitable. So do we need to shift from a neutral workplace, and how does this relate to creating a just workplace?

Neutrality Upholds the Status Quo

Neutrality stems from the intent to reduce harm, but its impact can be seen as detached, bereft of emotion, and exacerbating harm. Neutrality preserves the status quo without acknowledging the complexity associated with different cultural values and the harm we continue to perpetuate against marginalized groups. Neutrality is more about equality than equity. Equality asks us to treat everyone the same. Equity requires us to treat people differently based on different needs. Equal rights laws in the US require employers to refrain from neutral policies that may have a “disproportionate effect” on certain groups of employees as it is a form of discrimination.

However, even with such legislation, we continue to practice equality and neutrality. The result? Initiatives or changes that support equity and justice at the workplace are often framed by skeptical leaders and other employees as pushing a progressive “agenda” that goes against the status quo instead of the true intent: amplifying our diverse values. This negative connotation creates more resistance and polarization by misconstruing what justice is, halting DEI initiatives, and stifling change. In actuality, justice aligns the intent of being inclusive with the impact of reducing harm and increasing benefit for all in the workplace.

Operationalizing justice requires us to be intentional in programs, policies, and behaviors in validating ways of thinking and being other than those that prioritize dominant (white) cultural norms. We must intentionally create equity by bringing validity and power to values, truths, and ways of being, living, and thriving that have been dismissed as “unpractical,” “not our culture,” “inefficient,” or “wrong” compared to the dominant culture.

About the Author:

Mary-Frances Winters is the founder and CEO of the Winters Group Inc. She was named a top ten diversity trailblazer by Forbes and a diversity pioneer by Profiles in Diversity Journal, and she is the recipient of the prestigious ATHENA Award as well as the Winds of Change Award conferred by the Forum on Workplace Inclusion. Winters is also the author of We Can’t Talk about That at Work, Inclusive Conversations, and Black Fatigue.

The Winters Group Team contributors are Kevin A. Carter, Megan Ellinghausen, Scott Ferry, Gabrielle Gayagoy Gonzalez, Dr. Terrence Harewood, Tami Jackson, Dr. Megan Larson, Leigh Morrison, Katelyn Peterson, Mareisha N. Reese, Thamara Subramanian, and Rochelle Younan-Montgomery.

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To Listen of the Lord’s Jesus Christ Voice, Holy Spirit by F. Dumanjug – Spotlight and Giveaway

March 28, 2023 By 7 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. F. Dumanjug will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

My encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, came with his all plans, instructions, and directions about this project. It is all perfect for me. Says the Lord, “You will write a book from your journal.” The Lord says, “I can’t wait to have people get that book.” The Lord wants to reach out to people around the globe, to return to him, with repentance, and believe and accept him by faith in order to be saved by his grace and mercy, that the Lord Jesus is a true living God, and his spirit live within us. The Lord said, “This book, I will make it happen, and it will be done.”

My childhood has been very difficult, not knowing what my future holds in life. Almighty God gave me guidance, and he allowed me to do what I needed to do according to my plan in life. But not with God’s plan. Living in Australia has given me opportunity to achieve my goal in life. When I reached the point of perception in life, the Lord Jesus Christ gave me a free will, which I should follow. The worldly living is only for today and now, or I can choose to follow Christ for eternal life after earth with rewards in heaven. The breath of the Almighty gives me life, and new creation.

Isaiah 55: 9: “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” I live in Christ right now, I don’t make decision for myself, I consult the Lord Jesus and depend on him for what the Holy Spirit wants me to do. To glorify the Lord our heavenly Father, amen!

Such as Behold I am coming soon! just a matter of time! keep looking up! be ready for a wedding banquet is being prepared for his people! It won’t be long now! Anyone makes sure you don’t miss it! The Lord Jesus is waiting for the last souls. But won’t be forever! because there’s a time due!

Decide now, tomorrow will be too late.

Enjoy an Excerpt

MY LOST SOUL

First, I would like to give you a bit of a background about myself. I was born in a poor family in Ozamis City, Philippines. My mother was a Catholic believer. I am the oldest in the family. I have five sisters and three brothers; my father was also a Catholic. Our house was next to a chapel in this village. All my siblings, our whole family, was brought up Catholic. My mother believed a ritual, spiritual belief that whoever of us in the family was sick, she would call her uncle to treat the sickness. When I was sick, my mother advised a massage to manipulate dislocated bone in the arm, or in the foot—stuff like that. Then it was healed. When my younger sisters were ill, my mother’s uncle did these food offerings. He normally brought the food outside the house, and right there he did a spiritual ritual somewhere in a quiet place, for about an hour. Then, when he finished performing the offerings, he would bring the food back inside our house for us to eat. I was only nine years old at that time. My mother taught me to attend a festival called Santo Niño in Clarin, one of the provinces in Ozamiz, where they celebrate every year. My mother believed it was a good thing to be involved in. As a child I did not know what it meant, what I was doing, or why—only that my mother had told me to do it. During childhood I counted the number of days my mother went to church, and I wanted to go to every Sunday. However, we were not allowed to leave the house on Sundays, even to go to church. All my siblings were involved in making rice cakes—that was our parents’ business back then. We made them and sold in the market, in order to survive, to put food on the table for our family.

About the Author: F. Dumanjug is an Australian author who writes to share the message of God. A devout Christian, she has overcome challenges in her journey to fulfill her calling as an author. Through her writing, she hopes to inspire others and help them understand the power of faith.

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Things to Know if You’re New to Writing by Jonathan Weeks – Guest Blog and Giveaway

March 17, 2023 By 4 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Jonathan Weeks will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

THINGS TO KNOW IF YOU’RE NEW TO WRITING

–When you consider the time it takes to develop, write and edit a manuscript then figure in the time spent on the submissions process, your pay rate usually comes out to less than $1 per hour once you have actually signed a contract. It’s best to write for the sheer joy of expressing your ideas as opposed to the prospect of getting rich.

–Anyone who writes is technically a writer. But not everyone who submits their work will end up being published. Rejection is intrinsic to writing. It’s a rough business. As writers, we take risks and put ourselves out there only to have our ideas shot down time and time again. Embrace the process. Learn from it. Don’t ever take it personally.

–The submissions process is a lot like playing the lottery. You can’t win if you don’t play. If your aim as a writer is to get published, then the only way you can completely fail is to stop writing. As long as you’re still churning out words and ideas, you are still in the game.

–Self-publishing is a sure-fire way to get your words in print. But if you don’t have connections and marketing skills, you won’t sell many books. It sounds harsh, but it’s true. Kindle Direct Publishing is an attractive option to many. There are over 12 million books currently on Kindle. A majority of the self-published ones will sell less than 100 copies. If you intend to self-publish, make sure you have a realistic marketing plan.

–Know your audience. You can’t write in a vacuum. You should be reading other people’s work and paying attention to what types of books are selling. The tastes of readers change over time. Follow the trends. Adapt your work to fit the current climate. More than 70 percent of adults still read books. There’s a large audience out there. You just need to know how to grab their attention.

In the 1950s, America entered the television age. And Mickey Mantle, a country boy from Commerce, Oklahoma, was made for the moment. Signed by the New York Yankees as a teenager, he made his major league debut in 1951 as a right fielder alongside Joe DiMaggio. When DiMaggio retired at the end of the season, Mantle inherited not only Joltin’ Joe’s position in centerfield but also his stature as the face of the franchise. His boyish good looks, breathtaking power from both sides of the plate, and blazing speed on the basepaths made him an instant superstar. He won league MVP three times, came in second three times, was a 16-time All-Star, a Triple Crown winner in 1956, and a seven-time World Series champion.

Mickey Mantle’s career was the stuff of legend and in this book, Jonathan Weeks tells us why. Mantle’s extraordinary (and at times incredible) tales carry readers on an enthralling journey through the life of one of the most celebrated sports figures of the twentieth century.

Enjoy an Excerpt

THE SPOOK LIGHT

For more than a century, residents of the Tri-State Missouri, Oklahoma, and Kansas area have talked about a paranormal phenomenon known as the “Spook Light.” The light has been described by witnesses as an orb of fire about the size of a baseball or basketball. It flickers, dances, and spins—typically in an east to west pattern—while hovering above the treetops. When observers attempt to walk or drive toward it, it disappears.

According to popular legend, the “Spook Light” was first observed by Native Americans along the infamous “Trail of Tears” in 1836. Since then, a number of ghostly stories have circulated regarding its origin. One of the oldest tales centers around a Quapaw Indian maiden and her lover, who leaped to their deaths after the girl’s father forbade them from marrying. Another oft-told yarn involves the spirit of an Osage tribal chief who lost his head in battle and continues to search for it by lantern-light.

The “Spook Light” is commonly seen along a desolate stretch of road near the town of Quapaw, which is located just six miles from Mantle’s hometown of Commerce. The Yankee slugger grew up with these campfire tales and, like many teenagers of the era, enjoyed the associated benefits. By the time he was in high school, the deserted route known as Spooklight Road (or “The Devil’s Promenade” to some) had become a popular make-out spot. In his 1985 autobiography, Mantle remarked, “If you happened to be waiting at the Spook Light and you happened to have a girl with you, it was a pretty good place for necking.” Mantle’s first social outing with his future wife, Merlyn, was a triple date to Spooklight Road. The youngsters piled into Mantle’s 1947 Fleetline Chevy, which he had purchased with his Yankee signing bonus. Though Mantle was paired with another girl that night, he ended up asking Merlyn out on a date after he “struck out” with her friend.

The “Spook Light” continues to be an enduring legend despite scientific research conducted during Mantle’s teen years. In 1945, it was proposed that the phenomenon was caused by the refraction of vehicle headlights over a range of western hills. The following year, an Army Major named Thomas Sheard stationed a vehicle in the region he believed the so-called “Spook Light” was emanating from. He instructed the driver to flash the vehicle’s headlights at a designated time after dark. Observers in the vicinity of Spook Light Road were able to see the flashes. In 1965, Popular Mechanics magazine recruited professors from the University of Arkansas to investigate even further. They confirmed that distant headlights on Route 66 were being distorted by waves of heat, producing the phenomenon.

Those who still cling to paranormal explanations maintain that the “Spook Light” was seen long before the invention of automobiles and is, therefore, an unrelated phenomenon. The first verified written account of the eerie spectacle didn’t appear until 1935. Multiple sources have claimed that a booklet on the topic was released in the 1880s, but concrete evidence of it has not been uncovered. Detailed information about the ethereal orb—complete with driving directions to Spook Light Road—appear on the Joplin, Missouri official website.

About the Author: Jonathan Weeks spent most of his life in the Capital District region of New York State. He earned a degree in psychology from SUNY Albany and currently works in the mental health field. He has written several sports biographies and two novels, one of which was a posthumous collaboration with his father.

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SPARK Your Goals! by Azim Jamal – Guest Blog and Giveaway

March 16, 2023 By 3 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Azim Jamal will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

SPARK Your Goals!

In Part 3 of my new book, SPARK: Journey from Success to Significance, I cover the “A” in SPARK, or the concept of Attraction and the important part it plays in our quest to fully ignite our inner SPARK.

In short, the foundation of Attraction is Attention to goals.

It is said Success and Significance are the only goals one needs, and everything else is but a wish list. A person with average ability but crystal-clear goals will do better than a highly intelligent individual with no clarity around his or her ambitions.

It is important to not only have clarity in your goals, but to also know what the purpose is behind each goal. In Part 2 of the book, I cover how Purpose is a valuable ingredient in defining one’s path to Significance.

Purpose brings clarity and focus, and answers the question: Why do you want what you want? Purpose is an anchor. It helps with alignment and is an energy driver. If the ‘Why’ is not strong, the ‘How’ becomes difficult.

And once your efforts are aligned with a higher purpose, your work becomes a way of connecting to your spirit. You are able to remain effective, work with integrity and focus, and be a source of inspiration to those around you.

Purpose and Attraction are key connectors in our pursuit for Significance!

Along the way, you are bound to face some obstacles and hurdles. These obstacles can be internal or external. Encountering difficult people; facing economic downturns, and inhospitable work environments are just a few examples that constitute external obstacles. While the internal obstacles are your own prejudices, fears, lack of self-discipline or focus.

However, obstacles have the power to affect you only when you take your eye off your key goals. In fact, obstacles should act as mediums for opportunities that create breakthroughs. This aspect of Resilience is the “R” in SPARK and covered in Part 4 of the book.

As a simple example, in professional sports, scoring more than the opponent and winning the game is the key goal – the main objective. This usually requires getting past an opponent or defenders (the obstacles). If we have clear focus on the goal, we will find a way to get past the defenders. Such is the case in our professional life. When we find that things are getting unmanageable (the obstacles), we can break our tasks into smaller pieces (clear focus). Our goals can be semi-annual, quarterly, monthly, or weekly. We can even further break down our weekly goals into daily achievements, albeit small ones. In the end, the alignment of our daily actions with our goals is the secret sauce to moving past obstacles and achieving our objectives.

So, where to begin? First, it is important to ask yourself, are you serious about your business, work, clients, finance, professional growth, personal brand or any ambition you wish to achieve?

Then, look at your actions and you will know whether you have really been serious about your goals. If there is any slack whatsoever, begin today to align your daily actions with these goals!

Here are some steps to empower and bring your goals to fruition:

● Develop a Personal Mission Statement – If you were to pick one thing you must do in your life, what would you choose? Turn that into your personal mission statement.
● Align your corporate or professional mission with your personal mission.
● Create excitement and meaning in your current work.
● Discuss with your employer, team or board how to create a mutually beneficial scenario. If and when necessary, do not hesitate to make a change that connects your work back to your purpose.
● Keep stretching your goals. This will keep you energized and expand your potential. If you are working as part of a team or group, involve as many people as possible in goal-setting exercises. This is a sure-fire way to stimulate an understanding and respect for personal, as well as collective goals. This is ultimately what creates ownership.
● At any and all points where you experience great moments of happiness, STOP and allow yourself to completely and fully experience that moment. Feel the moment, stay with the moment, and ask yourself, “What has made me this happy?”. Maybe, just maybe, you have potentially stumbled into something that connects you with your calling!

Goal setting is powerful, especially if the purpose is strong and there is alignment between your personal and professional goals, as well as between your goals and your actions.

I humbly, but with confidence, share that these simple principles and steps will be the SPARK you need, and will lead you to your life of Significance!

In a world vigorously chasing classic ideals of success, find your spark and become significant.

Your journey starts here.

Meet Steve, a hotshot lawyer fighting to climb the corporate ladder in this inspiring fable. His life transforms seemingly overnight as he is sent to India for a task he considers pointless. But things quickly fall apart. Steve, forced to reconsider his path, realizes that the curveball life has thrown at him is an opportunity to find his true purpose. This spiritual odyssey is about to transform him beyond his wildest dreams.

A powerful lesson follows each chapter, making up the SPARK that transforms Steve’s life: Selflessness, Purpose, Attraction, Resilience and Knowing.

This SPARK is hidden within you too. It may be dormant now, but awakening to it will catapult you from the “Present You” to the “Best You.” It’s time to light up your SPARK today.

Enjoy an Excerpt

“What are you missing in your life?” I’ve put that question to successful leaders all over the world. Not surprisingly, I often hear similar answers: purpose, fulfillment, happiness, balance and the like. What I’ve found is that many of us resign ourselves to vigorously chasing classic ideals of success without realizing that it is, in fact, “significance” that we seek. The truth is, no matter your age, position or status, connecting your daily functions with authentic intentions and values is imperative. Otherwise, we are simply hamsters on a wheel—covering miles and miles in distance, yet never truly moving forward towards our desired destinations. Sure, there is some physical benefit from such rooted motion. But over time, it has a negative effect on matters of the heart and mind, creating a domino effect that has ongoing ramifications for our own lives and society at large. The subtitle of this book, “Journey from Success to Significance,” was borne from my own expeditions and explorations, all of which helped me form a steadfast belief: that we are all destined, by our very nature, to be explorers— pioneers who intrinsically understand that it is the journey, and not the destination, that matters. It is the twists and turns of life that guide our principles. What I wish for you to discover is that a life of significance is not some unattainable, pie-in-the-sky dream. Rather, it is a genuine pursuit that begins with a simple acknowledgment and appreciation of what already lies within you: Natural traits fuelled by a SPARK!

About the Author:Azim Jamal is one of the finest inspirational life-altering personalities with a global following. He is the CEO and founder of Corporate Sufi Worldwide, whose mission is to inspire individuals and corporations to unleash the power within and find harmony between Business, Balance and Beyond.

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The Spirit of Harriet Tubman by Spring Washam – Spotlight and Giveaway

March 15, 2023 By 2 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Spring Washam will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The Spirit of Harriet Tubman, who was called the Moses of her people, is rising again, and we can call forth her spirit to embody incredible strength and unwavering courage. Combining direct transmissions of Harriet’s message with insightful explorations of her life and legacy, this extraordinary book gives us support and inspiration to deepen our roots of resilience and become powerful conductors of love and truth in our own lives.

We can learn how to remain fearless in the face of hatred and confusion. And through Harriet Tubman’s guidance, we will learn how to meet the challenges of this moment with a compassionate heart.

Spring’s previous works have been praised by Publishers Weekly as “bring[ing] considerable gifts for conveying her vision of personal change and offer[ing] vivid, inspiring testimony to the power of Buddhism.” And now, she inspires a new generation of activists to carry her message and her work forward.

Enjoy an Excerpt

One day while meditating in my tree house, it dawned on me that others might be interested in Harriet and maybe others were having a similar experience to mine. As I shared my story, my friend Joselyn encouraged me to teach a class on the Dharma of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. So, I did. I organized a Zoom class to meet on five straight Sunday mornings. I had no idea if this would interest anyone, but I felt it was important for me to share Harriet’s courageous spirit with others. I posted a flyer on the Internet and sent it to my mailing list, and within a week and a half, hundreds of people had registered. These people were clearly interested in Harriet Tubman’s life and how it intersected with the Dharma; my beloved assistant and I were flooded with e-mails from all over the world. I was awestruck and excited. Who would have imagined there were so many people as passionate about Harriet as I was!

Our Sunday online classes were overflowing with spiritual teachings, guided meditations, and gospel music. I shared the inspiring stories I was learning about Harriet and her Underground Railroad allies. I was bringing hope and inspiration to others, and to myself. I got to speak a lot, but so did others. There were so many wise people present, and I called on many of them to share their wisdom and experiences. What started out as a five-week class became a five-month “Church of Harriet Tubman” journey, and it carried us through the presidential election of 2020. Hundreds of people from all around the world brought their open hearts to our Sunday services, and during those two hours together, we laughed, cried, prayed up a storm, and then we danced. So many of us felt this deep connection with Harriet and were also feeling her magic and her power in our daily lives. We uplifted one another so much that we all cried when it ended. It was a multicultural, interfaith, intergenerational, international community. Those two hours each week for five months were beautiful, and downright holy.

About the Author: Spring Washam is a well-known meditation and dharma teacher based in Oakland, California. She is a founding member and core teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center located in downtown Oakland. She is the founder of Lotus Vine Journeys, an organization that blends indigenous healing practices with Buddhist wisdom. She was trained by Jack Kornfield and has studied numerous meditation practices and Buddhist philosophy since 1997. She is a member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council. In addition to being a teacher, she is also a healer, facilitator, spiritual activist, and writer. Spring is considered a pioneer in bringing mindfulness-based healing practices into diverse communities. She has studied indigenous healing practices and shamanic practices for over a decade. She has practiced and studied under some of the most preeminent meditation masters in both the Theravada and Tibetan schools of Buddhism. She currently travels and teaches workshops, classes, and retreats worldwide.

For more information on Spring Washam, or to follow her social media for event updates, inspiring quotes, and images.

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Avoiding Swindlers by Al Rosen – Spotlight and Giveaway

February 8, 2023 By 1 Comment

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Al Rosen will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The book deals with actual situations that resulted in investors losing multi-millions of dollars to financial tricksters. Emphasis is placed upon learning how to detect early warning signs. Financial exposure can be minimized prior to situations deteriorating into bankruptcies. However, individual investors have to take specific actions after doing some homework. Otherwise, the alternative is to lose money by listening to “hot tips,” often involving publicly traded securities.

Some types of commonly seen but inappropriate financial reporting are permitted in certain countries (including parts of North America), even though they deeply aid the financial tricksters. Governments are seriously neglecting investors by not prohibiting certain reporting trickery. Overall, in some regions, investor protection is simply archaic (including allowing false advertising). Currently, investors face serious risks.

The book attempts to minimize technical language. Stress is placed upon encouraging investors to look for specific warning signs before opening their purses and wallets to the growing group of tricksters.

“Avoiding Swindlers” will change the way you look at Canadian investments.

This book was featured on Publisher Newswire’s 2022, “10 Books to Bookmark” list.

The book also received a glowing review from ReaderViews.

Read an Excerpt

CANADIAN IFRS FINANCIAL FIGURES ARE NOT CREDIBLE

Overview

The main objective of this book is to help investors/ savers to shift their reading and learning emphasis to better choose where to invest their money. Swindlers have recently developed several new scams, which are unfortunately being successful against investors. False and misleading advertising is still growing, to support troublesome claims that investor protection has improved. Nonsense. Such protection claims are contrary to the well-documented reality of increased failed businesses. All a person needs to do is look at the recent collapsing batch of marijuana companies. Bankrupt companies are reality. Sufficient learning about these types of deceptions is simply not adequately occurring. Investor deception issues keep piling up. More cluing-in is certainly quickly needed. Early detection of dangers has simply become a necessity, or compulsory for all savers. 1 Considerable attention has to be given herein to the dangers that have appeared in countries that are using IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards; really is not “international” when largely not widely utilized by the U.S.A. and other important countries). IFRS is wide-open to a variety of nasty or investor-scary issues that are examined in the book. How to detect these dangers at their early stage is a priority. As well, other trickery is explained, including several early-detection processes for likely-to-occur con games.

About the Author L.S. (Al) Rosen has combined being a university professor (holding a PhD) with several qualifications in the fields of investigative accounting and reporting (such as acting as a fraud examiner) for over 35 years. He has authored many reports for court cases, and has testified in courts in various countries in many large-dollar cases. Often the allegations are that investors have been deceived by materially misleading financial reports. He has co-authored two previous books, and articles, with his son Mark. They address how and why multi-million dollars of investor money essentially, and often quickly, vanished. Real situations are the subject of these writings. Money was stolen and hardships resulted.

Buy the book at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

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Winter Blogfest: Laura Moseley

December 27, 2022 By 3 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a high quality blank [writing] journal and pen

Winter Wonder: Holidays Without My Mom by Laura Moseley

“A mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.” – Cardinal Meymillod

 My mother fought ovarian cancer and fought valiantly. She beat Stage IV cancer once, was in remission for over eighteen months…and then I received a phone call I never wanted to hear. My Dad stated, “Your mother’s cancer numbers are not getting better. She’s decided not to continue treatment, babe.”

 “Um,” I said trying to clear my throat instead of sobbing. “So, she’s…dying?”

 “Well, essentially, yes. The doctors give her two to six months, honey. She says if her treatment is not working, and all its doing is making her sick, she doesn’t want to live that way,” he explained.

 I was numb after that phone call. My head knew she was right, but I was having the damnedest time convincing my heart. She was living life on her terms, which I respected, but also living on borrowed time.

 We spent Easter with her, where she got to see all of us and to see and hold her great-grandson for the first and last time. She was small and shrunken and a pale shade of yellow, and yet she was the most beautiful and brave soul I’d ever seen. She was happy we were all together, but she was also unafraid.

 She passed away in June and I am bereft. I mean, I’m nearly fifty years old, but I feel like a small lost child who got separated from her mother at a department store. I simply don’t know where to turn. I could always talk to her about all aspects of being a mother. She never judged me harshly and always had a proposed solution when I was talking out my dilemmas, even concerning mothering a child on the autism spectrum (which she never had to do herself). Now, all my conversations are one-sided. Now, all my questions go unanswered by anyone but me. Now, I am the elder Mom, the grand dame. I am the one who is supposed to have all the answers…

 What are the winter holidays going to be like without her???? She has always been a key role in the holidays, just as prominent as Santa Claus himself. She made things happen: she cooked, she decorated, she wrapped presents, she sang, and she recounted stories of holidays past. What NOW?

 Of course, she will be there. In spirit, in stories, and fellowship. She is a part of everyone in my family, so naturally, she is there with us. It’s definitely not going to be the same and may be very difficult at times. I believe that Thanksgiving, Chanukah, and Christmas — the three most family-oriented holidays allow our loved ones to come and sit amongst us again.

 I just know that it will NEVER be quite the same celebration again…as I feel as though winter has set in on my emotions, but I will carry on because I am now a Nana and with my new grandson, Christmas will regain its magic once more…

 

Battle-Scars: Hated. Isolated. Wronged. Disregarded.

Those WERE some of the challenges faced by the authors of GOD Says I am Battle-Scar Free.

PRIZED! ESTEEMED! CHOSEN! POLISHED!

With a personal relationship with God, that is how those same people feel today.

In this seventh and final installment of the Battle-Scar Free series, testimonies are shared from women and men who have “been there, done that.” They come from various walks of life but share one common story: They are SURVIVORS.

Amid a global pandemic (COVID-19), these contributors sought and found healing of their hearts, minds, and souls. Through the expression of their truths, you will be inspired to fight another day. Despite the obstacles they faced, the power of their words and belief in an Almighty God attributed to their very survival.

A single mother of three and grandmother of one, as well as a Domestic Violence/Sexual Violence survivor of over 23+ years of abuse. She works for a federal social services organization by day and is a certified DV advocate in the rest of her spare time. She is a writer, blogger, future podcaster, activist, and public speaker. She loves getting her story out there, to help show victims and survivors that there is hope and that it is SO much better than ever imagined while in active abuse.

 

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Divorce: Just a Detour to your Destination by Neco Beasley – Spotlight and Giveaway

December 16, 2022 By 3 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding a copy of the book to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

So many men and women who have gone through divorce feel that life is over for them. It is time to change that narrative. This is a book of resilience and determination that demonstrates that it is absolutely possible to press on and have a happy and successful life and career following the challenges of a painful divorce.

This book accompanied by the workbook are an excellent starting point for any man or woman going through divorce that wish to push through the pain and go on to live a fulfilling and happy life.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Testing Season

I had a series of traumatic events occur in my life for four straight years in a row. I felt like my faith was being tested. During those times of hardship, I asked God if I was going through trials like Job in the Bible. I experienced several tragedies in my life from 2011 to 2014 … From 2011 through 2014, we walked around in a fog with the challenges we faced. Our scheduled departure for Atlanta was six months away. I was excited to begin the next chapter in my life.

About the Author:

Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, a close-knit midwestern city. Ms. Beasley discovered her gift as a stylist at a young age. She would pack her bag of supplies and walk to her family’s home to style their hair. Neco has been a licensed Cosmetologist for twenty-nine years, and a licensed instructor for thirteen. Ms. Beasley founded Star Network, a program that empowers women to be the best version of themselves while experiencing the effects of a divorce. Neco Beasley believes women should not allow detours to stop them from reaching their destination.

 

Ms. Beasley is blessed with four children and nine grandchildren.

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