It highlights some of the key elements of a wonderful book by Rick Carson called Taming Your Gremlin A surprisingly simple method for getting out of your own way ISBN 006 0520221

Originally printed in 1983 and expanded and updated in 2003 (pictured) this book presents a fun and novel way to explore and overcome your inner conflicts. Wonderfully illustrated throughout by Novle Rogers Taming Your Gremlin will help you transcend self-defeating behaviours and beliefs. It is easy to read, laid-back yet powerful and it works!

In a nutshell the natural you is the observer of your thoughts (your higher self) and your Gremlin is the voice inside your head that picks fault in everything and comes up with plausible excuses, blocks and general negativity.

Your Gremlin is the one that right now is saying This sounds silly I dont need another self-help book. The natural you may be intrigued and think: This sounds interesting where can I get a copy?
This is a Mind Map that your Gremlin wont want you to read!

The marvellous Gremlin Training Institute website can be found here:

http://www.tamingyourgremlin.com/

“Where are all your possessions?”

The Zen master replies:

“Where are yours?”

The traveller looks at his two cases and says:

“Well, I am only a visitor here”

The Zen master says:

“So am I. So am I.”

We are all visitors here on this planet. For how long we don’t know for sure and when we leave nothing we have amassed over the years will go with us. The possessions that we think carry such importance are made of the same dust as us in different arrangements. Stuff comes, stuff goes and when we go stuff simply stays and changes hands.

It doesn’t mean you should not have “things”; it’s simply wise to recognise its all temporary. Your possessions are temporary even if you keep them your entire life. You have to let go sometime, so why not let go whilst you still own your items? It doesn’t mean giving everything away either, although you can if you want – it simply means enjoy your possessions in a non-attached manner.

Visualize your favourite possession and then imagine it as a pile of dust. Visualize yourself and then imagine your body as a pile of dust. That’s impermanence – the coming and going of all things including you. The only fear that results about the fact of impermanence (via your thinking) is your attachment to wanting it to be otherwise. What you think you lose if you lose a possession is not the possession – it’s your attachment to it. Your attachment to a possession is thoughts, so really you fret over losing your thoughts about the item. It’s not the item at all; it’s the feeling of incompleteness without the item – an illusion because you are already complete.

Here is a quote from Deepak Chopra in his book “Unconditional Life”

“So long as our happiness depends upon objects ‘out there’, we are their prisoner. We have given our freedom away to things”

You came to the planet with nothing and you’ll leave with nothing. Your possessions are visitors and you are a visitor. It makes sense to enjoy the stay whatever you have or don’t have without making “things” into conditions of or for your happiness

When you discover your passion you feel energised and motivated and your days are filled with intrigue and gratitude. A subject that fascinates you, fires you up and the momentum and enthusiasm are often unstoppable.

Finding a passion is great, having a purpose is even greater; when passion meets purpose – watch out! Awesome things can happen!

Fascination yields a burning, yearning for learning. Naturally you can have more than one passion or purpose; perhaps even a combination of many. Passion spills into an uninhibited ability to capture the flow and you develop a timeless dedication to excel in your chosen field of interest.

When passion meets purpose, you explore the awe of the unknown; tap into the wow factor and become dedicated to making a difference, changing lives and the world for the better and improving yourself along the way. If it lights your fire you have almost certainly found your passion and your passion may also become your purpose.

When passion meets purpose you become fulfilled in your role of helping others, life has meaning and you strive to do your best and be your best. Helping others, in turn, fulfils you.

Passions can change and it’s never too late to discover new ones. Does a subject have you sleeping or leaping? Have you found your passion? Have you found your purpose? Have you pursued them?

How do you find your passion? A great starting point is to ask probing questions such as:

Right now, am I doing what I want to do with my life?

Is this what I really want?

What fires me up?

In what ways might I be able to do the things I love to do?

Find out how you can live your passion and purpose.

One final tip – don’t delay! Go for it!

High speed trains can travel up to 186mph (300 km/h)

If speeds are too high it may be possible to slow catchment down.

Globally, railway networks if laid end to end could circle the Earth over 100 times.

Imagine we could harness the wind power of high speed and other trains.

Long tubes could house rotating one-piece spiral fan blades like a corkscrew effect.

This could provide a constant wind generated source of energy that is manmade and available all day everyday if we can harness it.

If the power could be harnessed this may be a world-changing idea

There was painting a wall there was. There was paint, a paintbrush and a wall there was. There was imperfections, indentations, lumps and bumps, and grooves and humps there was. There was brush dipping in paint, paint flowing on wall there was. There was streaks and dips, blobs and hairs, dust and dried paint there was.

There was patience, peace, calm, senses alive, mind in stillness and paint going on the wall there was. There was timeless time, blankness then brilliance, dim then light, shade then shine, there was. There was aching limbs, sweating brow, sun through the window, wind occasional howl, paint dripping, paint dropping, paint thin, paint thick, paint off, paint on, there was.

There was fluff, dust and dribbles, there was cracks, chips and blisters there was. There was patterns in wallpaper, tiny holes and air bubbles, symmetry, repetition there was. There was no analysis, no argument, no resistance there was. There was noticing, sensing, seeing, smelling, touching, feeling, silent harmony, then gentle brushing, gaps, time, no time, time again, same moment different number, there was.

There was masking tape, newspaper, knife, screwdriver, cardboard, a chair, paint tin, paintbrushes there was. There was a wall, there was me, there was paint. There was dingy there was shiny. There was time, patience, vision, understanding, appreciation, achievement, mind on task, task on mind, there was. There was action, there was accomplishment, there was recall.

There was painting a wall there was.

The sky is like the mind; it can be clear, or cloudy, dark or light, full or empty.

The sky is the ever-present backdrop; the canvas that embraces life on Earth.

The sky is unconditional and embraces everything.

Perfect orchestration; every day a masterpiece – and I ignorantly dismissed it; didn’t even see it, wasn’t even aware that I was ignoring it.

The innocent charm of a freshly hatched chick, the swaying willow and the beaming rainbow, all offering unconditional backdrops to the tyranny of thought swirling in my mind.

Now I see, now I know; now I feel. What has been there all along, I unconsciously escaped from and for year after year it remained invisible. The planet has served me since the first day of my life and carries on doing so whether acknowledged or not. Busy on my behalf, in effortless uncertainty, blossoming, growing and harnessing life and love all around me. I spent years not noticing like a mind within a box. A dream within a dream; often a nightmare trapped in heaven. Hell on the inside; fuelled by my thinking.

Once I noticed the inside I began to truly notice the outside; as if for the very first time.

The gaps between my thoughts shone a glimmer of hope, a place of stillness and silence and brief moments of peace. The quieter I become the more I hear it, the silence and stillness both within and without. The closer I look the more I see it and to think that it was there all along.

It has never missed me – I have only ever missed it. The peace of nature; heaven on Earth.

Awakened from the dream, I regret the delay and I am ever thankful for the harmony this invincible warrior offers.

The invincible warrior of nature.

The nature of love.

The nature of freedom.

The nature of peace.

The peace of nature.

See also:

The Smaller Picture Mind Map
Nature without labels Mind Map
Marvel at the beauty of the planet Mind Map

One man can save a child from drowning
One man can save a life on the operating theatre
One man can share a smile with someone without one
One man can refuse an argument when offered one
One man can show 100% forgiveness
One man can show absolute compassion
One man can share a random act of kindness
One man can let go on receipt of an insult
One man can share however much or little he has to give
One man can offer an ear and listen and hear
One man can discover a medical cure
One man can offer peace
One man can put others first
One man can prevent an accident
One man can guide a blind man across the road
One man can share his gifts with the world
One man can open a door for another
One man can give a simple thank you
One man can give a simple please
One man can look for the good
One man can notice an out of date fire extinguisher
One man can change a smoke alarm battery
One man can change the toilet roll
One man can offer a lending hand
One man can refuse to keep score
One man can refuse to fight
One man can share a useful tip
One man can show leadership despite position
One man can say no when necessary
One man can share a reward-less compliment
One man can refuse to judge unfairly
One man can brave the truth
One man can feed a starving mouth
One man can offer hope where there was none
One man can offer another a seat
One man can cure another’s pain
One man can dry a tear instead of causing one
One man can sing without anything to sing about
One man can refuse to litter
One man can make a dream become a reality
One man can show appreciation for the planet
One man can plant a tree
One man can save an animal
One man can design a better future
One man can leave a positive legacy
One man can offer a solution
One man can save an insect
One man can become a donor
One man can give added value
One man can show unconditional love

A difference is a difference, however big or small. As you go about your day in your own unique way, pause and consider how you make a difference in every little thing you do. Yes, one man can make a difference – the man (or woman) who can make a difference is you.

Not to the point of obsessing over the word – simply to channel your attention towards your intended goal. For example, if you feel you wish to develop more patience, you can gently remind yourself using a single word – patience.

As with affirmations eventually the word can be dropped once it has done its job.

See also: One Word Meditation Mind Map