Fulfilling Prophecies

LIVE IT UP eNews!                                                                                March, 2006

1. On Self-fulfilling Prophecies

2. Recipe: Apple & Coconut Cake

Hi there!

Well, this newsletter is very late because life has been keeping me too busy. Right now, I am in Sydney with some work and should have some time free on Monday and Tuesday to play a little. My clients have been enjoying contact with me for work supervision, performance coaching, giving up smoking and confidence issues of late.

It’s so rewarding for me to see you being your best! If you know anyone who would like to feel as good as you do, get him or her to give me a call.

Cheers, Narelle

1. Self-fulfilling Prophecies

Many people continually portray a negative view of future events. A common statement is “wouldn’t it be awful if (and a description of something terrible and ghastly follows)?” In sporting circles or life, one will create a more positive future by focusing on pleasant and enjoyable future events.

In psychological terms, you create your own self-fulfilling prophecy, through prophesying for good or bad. Negative and personal prophecy can be particularly damaging because constant pessimistic or self-denigrating mental input keeps piling up.

By loading up thoughts with negative statements such as “I’ll never be as good as John”, or “I’ll never get this right”, or “It’s just too hard for me” or “I bet we lose this game because of me” your emotions will also feel the strain, reducing self-confidence and self-esteem.

This negative mental and emotional diet may continue your spiral downward, so that you fall into the category of a ‘low-expectation’ person. Low-expectation because you don’t expect much of yourself. Once a poor foundation of low-expectation has been laid, it is challenging to strengthen a weak infrastructure, but it can be done.

Positive reinforcement

A healthy mental diet of positive reinforcement of your achievements, capabilities, willingness to learn and practise, aids in creating positive self-fulfilling prophecies. This of course feeds positive emotions and increases your self-confidence and self-esteem. Additionally, you expect more of yourself and can be classified as a “high-expectation” person.

Interestingly, people around you respond to your own expectations with positive reinforcement and increased time, instruction and coaching for “high expectations”, but decreased attention, poorer quality of time and fewer instructions for “low expectations”. To get the attention you need, you have to want it, and expect it, and look for it, with increasing happy and even grateful responsiveness.

The bottom line is this “It’s up to you”. Individually, you want to maintain a healthy mental and emotional diet ALWAYS, in order to create a positive self-fulfilling prophecy. A famous quote (so famous I can’t recall who said it), is worth thinking about: “If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got!” Is your future looking good?  Give me a call so we can make it look great!

Minerals or Vitamins, which is better?

I think a lot of people don’t understand the importance of minerals to the nervous system. So much is made of vitamins that we forget the role of minerals in repairing, and maintaining the whole electrical system of the body.

Every single communication that takes place in the endocrine system (think of every gland in the body that secretes hormones) requires minerals to feed and nurture hormones. For example, when you are under stress, minerals are just as important as vitamins, because your adrenal glands need extra support from minerals. So, drink lots of vegie juices, take a mineral supplement and watch your energy increase, and your mental health.

2. Health Tip: Apple & Coconut Cake

3 Green apples – peeled, slightly cooked and chopped

1 cup sugar

1 cup SR flour

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup coconut

125 grms melted butter

1 large egg – beaten

Method:

Mix dry ingredients and apple.

Add melted butter and then egg and mix well.  If too dry, add a little milk.

Cook in a round tin

Cook at 180 degrees for 35 to 40 mins.  Use a skewer to test that it is cooked through.

Serve with

A happy family, whipped cream and icecream!