Dorothea Hover-Kramer Talks about Limiting Beliefs and How to Treat Them

Today's special guest is Dorothea Hover-Kramer, author of Second Chance at Your Dream. This new book is the first book to apply the breakthrough insights of energy psychology to stress-free aging. Energy Psychology is an exciting new healing method that changes the vibrational patterns in the body’s energy fields to produce rapid emotional healing and a sense of well-being. With the help of the over fifty exercises for rebalancing yourself offered in this book, you can face the challenges and opportunities of later life to create a time of energy, abundance and joy.

One of the topics from this book discusses changing limiting beliefs. I've asked Dorothea to discuss this topic for us today.

Limiting Beliefs and Three Ways to Treat Them
by Dorothea Hover-Kramer, Ed.D., RN, DCEP
website: www.secondchancedream.com

Have you ever wondered if new advances in science could change the way you see the world? Or, have you thought, “Maybe, it’s too late for me to change my worldview”?

If so, you’re in the same boat with many others who have limiting beliefs about later life and its seemingly downhill path. Actually, some to the strongest myths about aging are being debunked by surprising recent scientific advances.

Some of the prevailing myths held that brain cells don’t regenerate, that new learning is difficult or non-existent after age sixty or seventy, and that our genetic material is a fixed reality. In truth, these myths have been debunked. Neuroplasticity of brain cells is evident in the many ways we can recover from illness to let other parts of the brain take over; or, as hearing decreases, our sense of touch or taste may actually become more acute. Neureogenesis, reproduction of brain cells, happens in people of all ages as science unlocks mysteries of the human mind which is especially supported by seeking out learning activities and novel experiences. The human mind is incredibly capable and flexible when we choose to recharge our interest in life. Similarly, genetic material can express from its protective sheaths to increase cellular healing when we are open-minded and able to release stress. The human body and its electromagnetic energy system are a vibrant accumulation of flexible and capable potentials just waiting to be discovered.

1.The first step to releasing limiting beliefs is to notice their presence. It’s often easier to see negative patterns in others, and from there we might begin to notice a few of our own. Phrases like, “I’m too old for new stuff,” “I can’t change,” “This is just who I am” express a mindset, not a truth.

2. We continue by affirming we are more than the limiting belief and that it’s all right to start by acknowledging someone else’s pattern of thinking you don’t like. “Even though__(state the name)__ believes___(state the belief)_, I deeply and profoundly accept and respect myself.” Repeat this phrase until it becomes natural for you and add a gently rub to the mid-chest, heart center area. This thought pattern combined with touch begins a gradual path to recognizing you are much more than your beliefs, your limitations or problems.

3. We add choosing a positive idea or goal. Thus, the reminder phrase change in this way, “Even though I worry about my future, I still deeply and profoundly accept and respect myself and I choose to do something I really enjoy _(name the activity)___/or I choose to find out more about____ (the new biology and its implications for my life).”

As you open to these possible actions, horizons literally expand. There is so much more to do to fill life with meaning. I recently overheard a conversation at a coffee shop. An elderly man complained to his buddy, “I went to the doctor yesterday and it was a total waste of time. I sat around and wasted the whole day waiting for test results.” The friend replied thoughtfully “Well, I always take a book to read with me, so a trip to the doctor is filled with something useful to do. I also send good wishes to the others in the waiting room because they need all the help they can get. Doctors seem overly busy but I’m sure glad we have them.”

Which view would you like to encourage within yourself? Which is less stressful and more satisfying? It’s never too late to create the life you want with your attitude and intention.


Dr. Dorothea Hover-Kramer is a psychologist and clinical nurse specialist in private practice who has authored 6 books about energy therapies including her most recent entitled Second Chance At Your Dream. She is co-founder and past president of the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology, an international network of therapists and health care professionals utilizing energy-based approaches for emotional freedom and healing. You can visit her website at www.secondchancedream.com.

Five Sales Pitch Fundamentals That Win Business in a Recession by Joey Asher

Today's special guest is Joey Asher, President of Speechworks and author of How to Win a Pitch: The Five Fundamentals that Will Distinguish You from the Competition.

Keeping your current customers satisfied and securing new business is vital to a company's success, especially during tough economic times such as these. Today, Joey Asher discusses the Five Fundamentals found in How to Win a Pitch and how they can help you.


The difference between life and death for many businesses today is one big win – one new piece of business that will allow your firm to ride out the economic storm. If that’s the case for your business, then you better know how to deliver a killer pitch: a new business presentation that allows your firm to stand out from the competition.

Over the last 23 years, my business has helped businesses win billions of dollars in new business contracts. In that time, we have learned that the key to winning business isn’t showing that you’re the “best”. Your prospect usually can’t tell which firm is the best. And if you’re on a short list of candidate companies pitching for the business, all your competition is most likely excellent.

Rather, the key is showing that you’re going to be the best partner for the project. To do that, you need to execute five fundamentals.

Fundamental #1. Present a solution and nothing else. Many of your competitors start presentations by talking about themselves. “Before we start, let me tell you about how our company began . . .” Blah. Blah. Blah. Who cares? Your prospect only cares about is how you can save them money, grow their revenues, or reduce their risk. Detail your plan to help your prospect and tell stories about how the plan has worked for others.

Fundamental #2. Keep it simple. I watched three construction firms pitch to build a new school. No presentation had less than 10 points. None of the messages were memorable. Instead, you should hammer at three messages. “We’ll build your project on time. We’ll meet your budget. We’ll deliver quality work.” Simplicity separates you from the competition.

Fundamental #3. Speak with Passion. If you’re one of three firms competing, you know that your competition can do a great job. Personal style can be the separator. “When it’s close, many of the decisions just come down to who connects with us best,” one CEO told me. Passion in the voice helps you connect.

Fundamental #4. Leave half of your time for questions. Questions address your prospect’s hot buttons. Your competition often makes Q&A an afterthought. Avoid that mistake.

Fundamental #5. Rehearse. “I can always tell who has rehearsed,” said one CEO who has heard hundreds of sales presentations. Most people don’t rehearse much. Practicing sets you apart.

In a recession, the pool of new business is small. Focus on fundamentals to grab your share.

This article is adapted from Joey Asher’s new book “How to Win a Pitch: The Five Fundamentals that Will Distinguish You from the Competition. It is available at www.howtowinapitch.com and on Amazon. To read Joey’s blog go to www.talkingpointsblog.com.

Lizzie's Rake by Hazel Statham--Book Review

Be swept away by an historical romance that will leave you feeling satisfied, in Lizzie's Rake by Hazel Statham.

Infamous rake and Corinthian, Maxim Beaufort, Earl of St. Ive, winds up in possession of a property in Yorkshire after a card game. Traveling to see what fixes would be necessary to make Briarfield ready for sale, the earl finds the former owner's daughter, Elizabeth Granger and her siblings living on the estate. Maxim is drawn to Lizzie, but she refuses to have anything to do with the man who plans to steal her home.

When a suspicious fire destroys Briarfield, Maxim makes plans for Lizzie and her younger siblings to temporarily live on his estate. Sharing an appreciation for horses, but little else, Elizabeth rejectes Maxim's proposal of marriage. Her trust having been betrayed before, Lizzie doesn't find it easy to trust anyone, and the earl's reputation with the ladies certainly doesn't win her over. But the earl is known as "The Indomitable" and he's not about to give up.

This is the second book by Hazel Statham that I've read, and I know I'll be first in line when her next book comes out.

In Lizzie's Rake, Statham has once again created a cast of interesting and complex characters who pull you immediately into the storyline. Other than her complete knowledge of the Regency era and her ability to paint the picture for her reader, Statham's greatest strength is her characters. Multi-faceted, and yet, seemingly simple and straightforward at times, Lizzie, Maxim, and a host of other characters make this Regency romance a charming and delightful read.

A romance novel that every reader will feel comfortable sharing, the perfect combination of characters, an interesting plot, a tiny bit of mystery, and a love of horses work together to create a story that you'll want to read more than once.

Lizzie's Rake by Hazel Statham is Regency romance at its finest.


Title: Lizzie's Rake
Author: Hazel Statham
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
ISBN: 1-60154-465-0
SRP: $11.99 (U.S.)

Crystal Storm and Synarchy Book 1: The Awakening

Today's guest blogger is Crystal Storm, author of the suspense thriller Synarchy Book 1: The Awakening.

Thirteen bloodlines, The Brotherhood, fanatically loyal to their gods, the Anunnaki, have controlled the planet since his-story was written. In 1925 Stefano Vasco Terenzio, head of the Terenzio crime family makes a deal with the Anunnaki to solidify his control over the American Mafia. Clever and manipulative, Stefano’s true goal was to put his family in a position so one day they would be able to turn on their masters.

Two generations later, the shockwave he ignited was still being felt. Now, as the world inches closer to 2012, time is running out. The only thing in the Brotherhood's way is Terenzio, a family now divided as a truly epic battle begins that will determine whether mankind continues existing in a world of lies, or shatters the chains that have held it prisoner since his-story was written.

Shocking yet hopeful, Synarchy slowly unravels the tightly laced reality we have created for ourselves. Blending the metaphysical with conspiracy, fact with fiction, debut author DCS has opened up a world that will force you to rethink everything you believe about your own. The knowledge within provokes the question;do you really want to know?

My understanding of this book is that is combines many different elements: romance, lust for power, betrayal, evil, conspiracy theories and more. I've asked Crystal to discuss the challenges of combining all those elements.

Crystal's turn:

Most books will pick one issue and focus on that, but there was a message I wanted to impart to the readers within the fiction, and it really required that I weave all those elements together. It helps that my mind works in those complex ways so it wasn’t too big of a challenge to combine everything. It kind of popped into my head that I could link this up that way, and do this that way and here we are. When I started putting it all together it flowed really well. There was a lot of back work though, that went into it to make sure that I had all the dots connected when I was finished.

When I sit down to write a scene it starts in my head a big chaotic jumble, like taking the pieces of a puzzle and tossing them into a pile on the floor. Then I’ll begin to weave ideas together, and once it gets going, it can go on for a while. I can spend days upon days locked in my creative world. I’m a little OCD about the details, and I think I suffer from too many ideas syndrome. There were a lot of times when writing I had to stop, grab a pen and a blank piece of paper and make a quick outline, to remind myself of all the plot lines I was tying together. There’s a lot going on in Synarchy and Book Two will be just as intense if not a little faster paced.

I have an index card for every character, it’s got their birth date and any information that I think I need to reference at a quick glance on it. When I was done with the novel, I summarized every single scene on an index card, and then spread them out in chronological order on my floor to make sure the timeline of events made sense, since it goes back and forth a lot. It was in doing this that I realized just how detailed I’d made it!

Ultimately, the readers will let me know if I’ve succeeded in successfully combing all those elements together. I’ll keep my fingers crossed. I hope they enjoy reading Book One as much as I did writing it. Thanks for letting me swing by Cheryl!

CRYSTAL STORM, aka DCS, was born in Alexandria, VA. DCS now lives in New Orleans, LA. Synarchy Book 1: The Awakening is her debut novel. A self taught world student, her studies cover the 2012 mystery, quantum mechanics, metaphysics, parasphysic science, conspiracies and strange phenomenon.

Taking full advantage of the creative energy of New Orleans, she is hard at work on the second book in the Synarchy Series, The Ascension and several short stories loosely based off of a few characters from the book, but following more along the vein of the txt based roleplay game, Synarchy 2012.

You can find out more about the Synarchy Series by visiting www.synarchynovel.com.

You can listen to an excerpt from Synarchy Book 1: The Awakening below:

Vote for No Sanctuary by F.M. Meredith at The New Covey Video Trailer Awards

Hello all,

The trailer I put together for F.M. Meredith's (Marilyn Meredith's) No Sanctuary is now up at The New Covey Video Trailer Awards. Voting is open until midnight on June 19th.

Please stop by and vote for entry # 14 No Sanctuary at http://thenewcoveytrailerawards.blogspot.com/.

Thanks. I appreciate your support.

Dr. Ronald J. Frederick on Living Like You Mean It

I'm very excited to have Dr. Ronald J. Frederick as today's guest blogger. His book, Living Like You Mean It: Use the Wisdom and Power of Your Emotions to Get the Life You Really Want shares with you his proven four-step approach to overcoming fear and connecting more deeply with yourself and others.

Writers deal with self-doubt and fear often. Not only do we doubt our abilities, but we can be afraid of failing, afraid of succeeding, and afraid that no matter what we do it can't possibly be good enough.

With Living Like You Mean It: Use the Wisdom and Power of Your Emotions to Get the Life You Really Want you'll learn to:

* Break through old patterns and get unstuck,

* Open up to the energy and resources inside you and feel motivated,

* Get in touch with your personal truth and put an end to confusion and indecisiveness,

* Experience a profound sense of meaning, purpose, and belonging,

* Deepen and enrich your relationships and feel closer to those you love,

* Realize your true potential and experience greater fulfillment and happiness,

* ….and live your life like you mean it!

Today Dr. Frederick will discuss the power of fear and how it keeps us from achieving what we want.

The ability to live like you mean it hinges on being able to be emotionally present in our lives—really being there for the happy times and coming through the difficult times a much better person. It’s our feelings that make us feel alive and vital, energize us to meet and deal with life’s challenges, and point us in the best direction to get what we really want. Our feelings are what bridge the gap between ourselves and others, enliven our relationships, and help us feel close. Our personal identity—the core of who we are—is largely formed by what we feel and how we react. Our likes and dislikes, what makes us happy, what makes us sad, what excites us, what brings us pleasure, what annoys or frustrates us—all say so much about who we are. It’s in our feelings that we find our true authentic self.

Unfortunately, many of us are uncomfortable with our feelings. We have what I call a “feelings phobia.” We get close to our feelings, start to feel anxious, and avoid them. We do all these things to steer clear of our feelings—behaviours we’re not even aware we’re doing. When we avoid or deny our feelings, when we suppress them, we are in a way denying who we are, squelching our creativity and individuality, and sacrificing our true potential and power. It’s impossible to go the distance, to really live like you mean it, unless we can be fully present with our feelings.

But, as I discuss in my new book Living Like You Mean It: Use the Wisdom and Power of Your Emotions to Get the Life You Really Want, change is possible. We can loosen the grip of fear on our experience and unleash our inner wisdom and power. It all begins with opening our eyes and waking up to what’s going on inside of us. We need to find a way to put the brakes on, slow down, and tune in to our internal experience. In short, we need to develop what I call emotional mindfulness. Emotional mindfulness is about purposely paying attention to our physically felt emotional experience as it happens with the aim of helping us be more consciously aware of our feelings and, ultimately, more fully present with them.

How do you do this? You start by slowing down, going inward and just noticing. At any time you want to, stop and ask yourself, What am I feeling? and then tune in to what’s happening inside you right in that moment. Not what you think should be happening, not what you wish were happening, but what is happening. Consciously direct your attention to your felt experience. Watch and observe.

Each time you repeat this behaviour, each time you bring your focus back to your body sensations, you’re developing a new habit. You’re training your mind to be aware of and pay attention to your emotional experience. You’re opening up to a richer experience of yourself. You’re making room for your creative juices to flow. And, you’re beginning to transform your life.

To find out more about living like you mean it, please visit: www.livinglikeyoumeanit.com.

Ron Frederick is a licensed psychologist and life coach and author of the bestselling book Living Like You Mean It: Use the Wisdom and Power of Your Emotions to Get the Life You Really Want (Jossey-Bass, 2009). A long-time proponent of the power of therapy to transform lives, he co-founded the Center for Courageous Living which offers innovative therapy, coaching, and consulting.

Noted for his warmth, humor, and engaging presentation style, Dr. Ron travels throughout North America as a speaker and trainer, receiving consistent acclaim for his expertise and inviting teaching style. His work has been featured in the APA Monitor on Psychology, Clinical Psychiatry News: The Leading Independent Newspaper for the Psychiatrist, and Lavender Magazine. An invited contributor to several professional books, he has also been quoted on CNN.com.

Dr. Ron is a Senior Faculty Member of the Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP) Institute as well as the supervising psychologist of Abbott Northwestern Hospital’s Park House Day Treatment Program.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Dr. Ron now lives in Minneapolis, MN.

How U.S. and Libyan Relations Influenced the Writing of Gauntlet by Richard Aaron

Today's special guest is Richard Aaron, author of the suspense novel, Gauntlet.

Six hundred sixty tons of Semtex is detonated in a massive explosion in Libya – the last of a deadly stockpile. The operation seems to have gone smoothly, but within minutes of the explosion, CIA agent Richard Lawrence discovers that one shipment of the explosive was hijacked en route to the destruction point. Days later, a glory-seeking “Emir” broadcasts to the world that he is planning a massive terrorist strike against a major U.S. landmark. And he gives a timeline of one month.

Now a desperate chase covers four continents, as the men bent on attacking the United States use every weapon at their disposal to evade the American authorities. Time and again they prove willing to destroy anything – and anyone – standing in their way.

But Hamilton Turbee, an autistic computer mastermind at the secretive and newly created TTIC agency, discovers a way to follow their tracks. His flawed genius gives the nation its only chance at stopping the attack … if the American leadership will listen. As the enemies near their destination, and an attack becomes imminent, it is up to the TTIC team, still without a true leader, to stop the massive explosion that could destroy the lives of millions.

As the world watches in horror, the President asks TTIC two questions …

Where will the attack be?

And can it be stopped…

I've asked Richard to discuss how U.S. and Libyan relations might have influenced the writing of Gauntlet. Here's what he had to say:

In Gauntlet, I needed, for the terrorists to execute their task, a good four or five tons of plastic explosive. I needed a realistic scenario in which this could be accomplished. I also needed a good opening line (“so just how big a crater will it make if we blow up 660 tons of Semtex?”) and a large incendiary event that would grab the reader’s interest and keep it. I was specifically looking for an event that could happen it the real world.

When I started doing research, I found that Libya was a natural fit. That country is on a path of normalizing relationships with the UK, USA, and International Community. This process started in 1999, when Libya acknowledged and accepted responsibility for the murder of a senior British official, and the Lockerbie Flight 103 disaster. At that point, Libya undertook to make reparations for these and other events.

Libya has in its possession a very large quantity of Semtex. It is clear from the records of the Czechoslovakian company that manufactured this substance that Libya, in the mid ‘80s, purchased almost all of the production for an entire year. Out of a very large inventory, only a small portion of it would have gone into bringing down Flight 103 (less than a pound). Libya also supplied the IRA and other terrorist organizations with small amounts of the explosive material. Hence, the demand by the International Community to have this stockpile destroyed is not unreasonable.

It was for these reasons that Gauntlet starts in Libya, where the country’s entire stock of Semtex is being hauled out to the middle of the Sahara desert to be destroyed. This also creates a situation where the theft of 4.5 tons of the Semtex is possible. These aren’t things I made up to fit into my plot. They are realistic, plausible events from the real world that I could use to get the novel going.

PRAISE FOR GAUNTLET BY RICHARD AARON:

"Cutting-edge research, complex plotting and in-depth characterizations lift Aaron's debut, a terrorist thriller. Afghan Yousseff Said al-Sabbhan, who's built an enormous drug-smuggling enterprise, has worked out with his co-conspirator, 'the Emir,' a plan to destroy an American city and bring the country to its knees. Opposing the plotters is the Terrorist Threat Integration Center, a secret agency staffed by men and women drawn from every sector of the U.S. intelligence community. Autistic mathematician Hamilton Turbee, a TTIC employee, is a standout in a vast cast of characters, surely one of the most interesting and endearing heroes ever to star in an action adventure novel. Despite the incredible amount of detail and the constant flashbacks, Aaron keeps the action moving swiftly forward. Some readers may be frustrated by the abrupt ending as well as patches of mundane prose, but all will eagerly await the two projected sequels."
– Publishers Weekly

"First novelist Aaron writes rich dialog and vivid action, not to mention fascinating characters."
– Library Journal

"Incredible, multifaceted… The suspense is almost painful. I found myself on the edge of my seat, biting my nails… This novel is intense!"
– RebeccasReads.com


Richard Aaron lives in a cold, northwestern city with his wife, four children, and various dogs and cats. He has a university degree in mathematics and a masters in law. Neither have anything to do with his burgeoning career as a writer. He worked in the real world for two decades before realizing that he was actually meant to be a writer. Gauntlet was produced soon thereafter.

You can visit his website at www.richardaaron.com.