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sfdfmoviereviews · 7 years ago

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Spielberg Reviewed #32 – Ready Player One (2018)

Steven Spielberg is one of my favourite filmmakers of all time. He directed my top two favourite films, Jurassic Park and Jaws. After recently reviewing his entire portfolio of directed films, I realised that I had only seen a small portion of them. So in order to truly realise if his stories, style and direction are in fact my favourite, I need to watch his entire catalogue, starting with his 1971 film directorial debut Duel through to his latest works.

Ready Player One is a sci-fi adventure film based on the novel by Ernest Cline. The film is set in 2045 where humanity escape the desolate real world into the virtual reality of the OASIS. The OASIS was created by James Halliday (Mark Rylance) who upon his death released a video starting a world-wide competition. Halliday hid three keys inside the OASIS which unlocks a secret easter egg. The first person to find all three keys and the egg will inherit Halliday’s entire fortune and control over the OASIS. Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan), a teenager from the poor part of town called the Stacks, and his online friends are in a race against a malevolent corporation determined to have the OASIS for themselves for profitable reasons.

Ready Player One is an epic adventure of wits, skill, and courage. It’s an underdog story, showing time, effort, study and faith in one’s own skill, irrelevant of having the latest tech or endless money and resources, can prevail. This is perfect Spielberg material. It has the adventure of Raiders of the Lost Ark, the technology of Minority Report, the naïve child-like power of E.T. and the dinosaur of Jurassic Park (literally). The journey is exciting and gripping with enough romance to get the ol’ feels working. As always, it isn’t exactly the same as the book. The challenges are different, and some roles have been slimed down and changed but thems the breaks when you are working to a two-hour time limit. I really had a great time watching it unfold.

Tye Sheridan does a fine job portraying Wade Watts, aka Parzival. I’m ambivalent towards him. I don’t like him in the role, but I have no reason to dislike him either. Olivia Cooke is the one to watch. She was very charming in her role as Samantha Cook, aka Art3mis. Every time she was one screen, she stole the show.

As head of the IOI, Innovative Online Industries, Ben Mendelsohn is superb as the diabolical Nolan Sorrento. Even though his character will stop at nothing to win Halliday’s easter egg, he still has room for growth, even if it is evil growth. I have similar feelings towards Mark Rylance as James Halliday as I do with Tye Sheridan. I wouldn’t have picked him for the role and I am not keen on his portrayal but for no obvious reasons. It just doesn’t sit right with me.

The novel is a love letter to 1980’s pop culture which makes Steven Spielberg the perfect choice to direct the film as he had a large role in shaping the culture that the characters in the book so enthusiastically want to emulate. However, the film states to be a love letter to the 1980s but works its magic from the 1970s to the present, mainly I think to broaden their frame of references and also the issues the production had with licencing as some of the rights holders denied use of their characters. Similar to Who Framed Roger Rabbit, there is a lot of fun to see all of your favourite characters come together in one movie and interact with each other. The Chucky scene was particularly fun for me and I’m sure there is something there for you.

The effects that bring all these characters together are top-notch. Nothing looks substandard and it all blends in nicely together.

The score is classic 80s adventure in its design. The frequent Robert Zemeckis collaborator, Alan Silvestri, scored Ready Player One. You would recognise a lot of his music from 80’s films such as Back to the Future, Predator, Overboard and the Abyss, which makes him perfectly qualified to write the music for Spielberg’s homage to the specified timeframe.

Ready Player One is very enjoyable and a great addition to Spielberg’s resume. It’s very fun and a great time spent watching it. It’ll definitely be one I’ll be watching again and often. ★★★★

Special Bonus Content – Spielberg Ranked. I will be ranking Spielberg’s films (thanks to Letterboxd.com for all your film diary needs), not necessarily by which are better films but only on my personal enjoyment and preference of the films.

Ready Player One made it into the top half of my list. There are much better films than this, but you cannot deny it’s entertainment value.

Click here to view all issues of Spielberg Reviewed. The next instalment of Spielberg Reviewed will be possibly a remake of West Side Story. We’ll have to wait and see.

#terry #spielberg reviewed #steven spielberg #ready player one #ernest cline #tye sheridan #olivia cooke #simon pegg #mark rylance #ben mendelsohn

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dont-ever-forget-the-tears · 8 years ago

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I’ve been too busy playing for an update. I guess I should fix that.

After my earlier adventure into unknown territory ended in a terrified retreat, I got myself back on the proper path and arrived in Hateno Village. Before I checked out the lab, I explored the village and found a nice dye shop that could dye my outfit, so I experimented with that. And then I found this very obviously gay guy:

He was a builder and he and his people were tearing down this unused house. And there was an offer among the conversation options to buy it from him? Of course, it was waaaay too expensive... But Bolson offered to bring the price down to 3000 if Link also brought him 30 bundles of wood. ...Which was still too expensive at this point in time. I explored the town some more and discovered a furnace with blue fire. There were a bunch of torches around town, so I set about lighting them all, and eventually found my way up to the lab where I was actually supposed to be going and lit the furnace there. That was apparently what I was supposed to do, because the little girl inside commented on it. And she recognised Link!

This little cutie was actually over 100 years old! She looked like a kid because of an experiment gone wrong, which I found out by reading her diary was because she had tested an anti-ageing rune on herself. Which she had been working on use on old soldiers to build up the Hyrulean army before Calamity Ganon arrived. And she’s the one who put Link in the Shrine of Resurrection and, as I later found out, Impa’s older sister! Using the power from the furnace I fixed, she repaired Link’s Sheikah Slate which added the Camera and Hyrule Compendium. There were a bunch of photos already on it, and Purah said that Zelda had probably taken them, and directed Link back to Impa for more info. She could also upgrade some of the slate’s features for Guardian parts! The only one I couldn’t upgrade was Stasis because I had never even seen the Ancient Cores required. And speaking with her assistant linked my Sheikah sensor with the Hyrule compendium so that I could take photos of things and then use the sensor to search for them! A very handy feature. :3

At this point I thought I’d try out some of my amiibo. Obviously, the first was my Wolf Link amiibo, which I made sure had full hearts the day before I got this game. I tried out the Smash Zelda amiibo I had too, and they gifted treasure and resources. But I got something special from the Link one:

So I took her to the stables and:

So I’m guessing this is why there were conflicting reports about Epona being in the game. She’s only in it if you scan her in. (Presumably. I don’t know if you can find her somewhere else and this is a way to get her early.) Also:

Hee.~ I returned to Kakariko, and Impa suggested visiting the places where the pictures were taken in order to see if it’d help his memory return. While I was in the village, I found this guy who had a lead on where one could find a Great Fairy who was said to reside nearby. He wanted a picture of her fountain in exchange for the information. I found her easily enough, but her power was much reduced. She wanted 100 Rupees to restore her power, and fortunately I had more than enough to do it. And it’s just as well, because she provides a valuable service:

Handy.~ After those enhancements, I returned to the guy and showed him the picture. I was also able to show him another picture, one of the ones that Zelda took. He was able to identify the place as being at the base of Mount Lanayru to the north. I’d also come across another person who had suggested that Mount Lanayru was important: there was a Spring of Wisdom up there said to have been used by Zelda herself.

But instead of going there, I wanted to explore the western regions of the map. While I was heading there, I found a sidequest involving these guys looking for treasure:

lol. And!!! While I was investigating that, this happened:

YOU CAN RIDE BEARS!!! ...Of course, you can’t register them at the stable and they’ll run off as soon as you jump off, but it’s still fun! Anyway, I moved on to the west and ended up near Lake Hylia. And it was around that area that I stumbled on my first memory, completely by accident. I spotted a glowing area and went up to investigate. And it triggered a memory of Link and Zelda taking shelter from the rain. Link was practising with his sword, and Zelda complimented his commitment to his training.

And then she asked what if, one day, he decided that he wasn’t meant to be a fighter, but people around him said that because he’d been born into a family of the Royal Guard, he had to become a knight no matter what. And... Yeah, you’re talking more about yourself here, aren’t you? :(

Also, speaking of Lake Hylia, look what I spotted there:

DRAGON!!! ...I wasn’t sure if it’d try to fight me or not, so I went carefully around the lake. Further along I found some guys camping. One of them mentioned rumours about a GIANT HORSE which I just had to investigate. ...Of course, the guy also mentioned seeing a monster that looked a lot like a horse when he went to check it out himself, which meant a LYNEL. So I took the careful route of approaching from the mountaintop and sure enough there were TWO Lynels along the way. At the dead end of the area, I found the largest herd of horses I’d seen so far, along with one big one, and went down to try to catch him. But he was clever and always ran off when I got close, even when I was sneaking up. Eventually I went back up the mountain and glided down onto his back from there. I required a Stamina Elixir to break him, but in the end I was successful!

This one is very obviously a descendant of Ganondorf’s horse! Of course, I then had a new problem: this beast of a horse would not go faster than a canter, and I had two Lynels to get past to get it out of here. Instead of doing that, I tried forcing him up the mountain, bit by bit, and I successfully got him out of there! And I found another stable nearby to register him at! I called him Demise. :) At that stable, I also did a little horseriding minigame that got me a fancy new saddle and bridle to use, and there was a girl there who would swap out gear and change your horse’s mane, so I prettied Boon up:

Couldn’t change anything about Epona though. (Not that I’d really want to!) There are also options to give your horse a mane in blue and pink etc, it’s amazing. I also found a new GreatFairy Fountain in this area. The fairy there needed 1000 Rupees to regain her power, but she also provides a valuable service:

I wandered around this area a bit more. I explored Faron Woods for a bit and found Lake Floria, where I spotted that dragon again. There was another stable in that area. And I found a nice little fishing village further along the path, and did some sidequests there. Then I returned to Lake Hylia and went north.

Up there I found another stable, and that guy from Kakariko again. He looked at another of my pictures and directed me to some nearby ruins. Another person mentioned a white horse belonging to the royal family being there too, so I went to check it out. I caught the horse first and took her back to the stable:

I named her Hylia to go with my Demise. :) When I showed her to the guy who told me about her, he gave me the royal saddle and bridle to put on her! Then I returned to the area to find the memory spot. It featured Link and Zelda riding their horses, and Zelda thanked Link for giving her advice on how to handle her mount. Then things got serious, and she talked about praying at the springs of Power and Courage, and how they hadn’t awakened anything within her. But she had hopes for the third:

After this I took a good look at the pictures to see if I could identify where some of them might be. One of these was obviously Gerudo in origin, so I took it as an excuse to head out to the desert. Sure enough, I found a stable along the way and Pikango was there again and pointed me to Kara Kara Bazaar, an oasis outside of Gerudo Town. And at the stable, I spotted my first Gerudo lady:

Oh yeah... I know all about them. One thing I learned on my exploration was to always be wary of unnamed travellers. Because they are always not what they seem. They take on the guise of regular people you may spot on the road, but when you speak with them they’ll fight you because they’re actually from the Yiga Clan, a bunch of Sheikah who split from their people to serve Ganon. But they always give Rupees and bananas after you defeat them, so they’re worth fighting. ...The first one I fought took me by surprise and nearly killed me, though.

On my way out into the desert, I ran into this lady:

Different body types among Gerudo... :’) When I approached the Bazzar I got my first look at one of the Divine Beasts:

Of course, I didn’t go anywhere near it. I went to the Bazzar and found the memory spot. It was a memory of Zelda being attacked by the Yiga Clan, and Link swooping in to protect her:

I went around talking to people, and found a Goron and a Rito, and this OLD Gerudo lady:

And I spoke with a Gerudo who was looking for the love of her life and was disappointed that no men saw the appeal in her tailoring abilities. She gave the exposition about how men are rarely born into the Gerudo and how they have to travel to find mates. Also, this lady is relatable:

After I finished exploring this place, I took another look at the photos and left to find another place. I did think about continuing on to Gerudo Town, but that would’ve required some heat resisting clothing or food, which I did not have. I checked out a spot I thought I could manage to find because Hyrule Castle was in the background and after narrowly avoiding a Guardian, I found it! It was a memory of a ceremony for Link as the chosen hero. Zelda was reciting some words as he knelt before her, and all of the Champions were there too. And Zelda looked STUNNING:

SPEAKING OF GORGEOUS WOMEN:

Oh my godddd. Oh my gooooddddd holy shit i’m in love. Those muscles tho shit my god. Please take me now.

...aNYWAY. The Champions were watching the ceremony and Revali said that he was on the same page as the princess regarding Link, suggesting that Zelda didn’t really like him. And then Urbosa said Zelda saw Link as “ a living reminder of her own failures”?

After this, I thought I should return to Impa to see if she had anything to say about my progress, and she gave me a gift!

I returned to the road and found Hestu again near a stable! He’d tried to find his way back to the forest, but had gotten lost. He expanded my inventory a few more times before he remembered where to go and left again. And I found Pikango again and was pointed to another memory. In this one, Link and Zelda were headed to Goron City, and Zelda was talking about making adjustments to Daruk’s Divine Beast. And then she stopped and asked Link if he could hear the voice of the Master Sword on his back.

And I was pointed to another memory, and this one hurt so badly. Link and Zelda were fleeing, and Link lost his grip on Zelda’s hand. Zelda was despairing. The Guardians and Divine Beasts had turned against them. Mipha, Urbosa, Revali, and Daruk were all trapped in their Divine Beasts and she and Link had fled and left everyone to die. She blamed herself:

I hope all those people who saw her like this in the trailer and called her a weak crybaby without understanding what she was going through are having really bad days.

I explored more after this and found the Lost Woods. I tried to find my way through it, but the fog kept rolling in and sending me back to the entrance. I gave up eventually. I’m sure I’ll find some hint about the correct pathway somewhere... And I found another memory of Zelda patching Link up after a battle, and look at all those monsters he destroyed, holy shit:

Zelda talked about her fear that the increase of powerful monsters was an omen of Calamity Ganon’s return.

After all this, I ended up returning to Hateno Village and buying that house! And then I could buy some furnishings for it. After I bought him out, Bolson added a heap of additional furniture for the place for free, and I ended up with this:

From here, I figured I should probably finally head up to Mount Lanayru to find this memory. ...Of course, since I approached from Hateno, I ended up missing the gate I was looking for and just went straight up the mountain. As I approached the peak, the music started to get ominous, and I thought that was a weird change. But once I actually got there, I realised why:

A voice from the goddess statue here said that the dragon was Naydra. It was supposed to be an attendant of the spring, but it had been infected by Ganon’s Malice. After I shot one of the eyeballs on it’s head, it took off flying, and I had to fly after it to continue destroying the Malice on it’s body. It was a very athesetically pleasing battle, but not much of a fight. After I destroyed all the Malice, it was free:

I was told to shoot an arrow at it and, when I did, a scale dropped lose. I was then instructed to offer that scale to the statue, and that unlocked a new shrine! Seeing Naydra made me realise that the dragon I had seen at Lakes Hylia and Floria must be the Faron dragon, and I probably have to do the same with one of it’s scales at the Shrine of Courage. I’m pretty sure that dragon isn’t infected with Malice though, so it should be easier to claim a scale from it. Finding the shrine is probably the difficult part...

After this, I headed back down the mountain and found the gate I was looking for. There was a memory about Link and Zelda returning from Mount Lanayru to the waiting Champions, and it was revealed that Zelda felt nothing at the Shrine of Wisdom either. Urbosa comforted her, and Mipha spoke for the first time, trying to offer Zelda some help by describing what she thinks about when she’s healing, but they were interrupted by a tremor. Revali flew into the air to take a look around, and Calamity Ganon had returned and was at the castle. Revali flew down to relay this news, and Daruk spurred everyone into action. Urbosa wanted to protect Zelda:

But Zelda was not in favour of that idea:

This got long, so I think I’ll stop here. I also found out that one of the memory spots is actually at Hyrule Castle, but there’s no way I’m heading anywhere near that place yet.

#elle plays botw

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umnachtung · 6 years ago

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survey stealin prof

Are you… artistic? angelic? amiable? agnostic? angry? autistic? American? antsy? average? able to live your dream? Asian? Australian? African American? African? Do you own a… cat? car? calendar? cushion? couch? cell phone? cedar chest? cake decorating kit? cot? camping tent? cable for jumping a car? cord? charger? candle? Are you… daring? dangerous? delightful? dainty? diary-free? distressed? depressed? diligent? dead? demonized? a dancer? a damsel? good at drawing? darling? Do you like… elephant ears? elephants on clothes? elephants in general? Earl Gray tea? emeralds? electricity? energy? emotions? earrings? Easter? eggs? elves? English accents? (British) exercise classes? Are you…. free-spirited? fearful? fashionable? fatherless? favored? forgotten? forlorn? free? feisty? ferocious? fickle? feminine? flaky? fanciful? Do you like… green geraniums grass God ghost stories gentlemen goblins gory things glory gerbils goo graduating gypsies ???? glaciers Are you… helpful? heavenly? honest? homosexual? human? hopeful? healing? healed? hurting? a healer? honorable? hateful? hideous? hiding? Do you know anyone named… Ivy? Isabelle? Isabella? Ingrid? Iris? Indigo? India? Indiana? Infinity? Ian? Isaac? Isaiah? Irene? Ivory? Are you… joyful? jolly? a jerk? a jokester? just? a jailbird? jaded? jealous? a June baby? a July baby? a January baby? a jock? a jammer? named Jessica, Jennifer, Jade, Jasmine, Jared, James, Jason, or Jasper? Do you like… kids? kisses? Kix? kilts? kites? kayaking? kite flying? kangaroos? kazoos? kiosks? kings? King Jesus? kindergarten teachers? Korean food? Are you… loving? a lover? lovely? lovable? likeable? a good listener? learning? a leader? loud? lost? lonely? loopy? lustful? loosy goosy? Do you eat… meat? mac and cheese? macaroni salad? mushrooms? McDonald’s food? microwave dinners? mango smoothies? mangoes? mayonnaise? mustard? monkey bread? minestrone? mulberries? mulberry pie? Do you own… needles for knitting? needles for sewing? notebooks? name lists? (i.e., list of names you like) noodles? noisemakers? Finding Nemo? Neopets? nasal spray? nicotine? night lights? napkins? neck ties? new clothes? Would you like to visit… Oregon? the Olympics? Olympia, Washington? Oz? the ocean? Orlando? Oxford? an oasis? Olive Garden? an apple orchard? an open market? Oslo, Norway? the Oval Office? an open house? Are you… pretty? passionate? poor? pesky? perky? proud? playful? personable? precise? perfect? professional? precious? pissed off? picky? Do you own a… quilt? q-tip? quill pen? questioning mind? Queen of Hearts card? quiet room? quarrelsome child? quality life? quiche? quote book? quantum physics book? quail? quick loading computer? questionable vehicle? Have you ever been called… rare? resentful? resourceful? reasonable? racist? rude? round? robust? rowdy? readable? relaxed? real? refreshing? rosy? Have you ever been called… sensitive? smart? sweet? stylish? shy? slim? secretive? sleepy? silly? supernatural? stupid? scared? scary? shady? Do you like… Trix? trick or treating? toffee? turkey? Thanksgiving? tasting new things? trying new things? Truth? tangerines? tambourines? teal? turquoise? teasing? teddy bears? Are you… understanding? useful? unreasonable? unloving? unloved? unpredictable? an uncle? unclear about what you should do most of the time? undecided? unappreciated? under-valued? unclean? uppity? under the weather? Do you like the names… Veronica? Victoria? Valerie? Valencia? Valentine? Victory? Vivica? Vylette? Violet? Viviane? Victor? Vance? Vincent? Velda? Are you… wishful? watchful wasteful? wondering? wonderful? whimsical? a writer? weird? wacky? wild? weak? wealthy? Welsh? woeful? Have you ever had a… xylophone? x-ray? x-acto knife? xerox machine? treasure map with an X on it? card signed XOXO? friend named Xavier? pixie stick? ex-boyfriend? ex-girlfriend? exercise regimen? extra credit project? excellent time? exam? Y–Do you like to… yell? yawn? yodel? yack? yield? knit with yarn? wear yellow? eat yams? visit Yemen? say yes? be yourself? say, “Yikes!” venture over yonder? dream about owning a yacht? Are you… zealous? zestful? Zoe? zany? a zoo lover? a zoologist? a fan to the TV show Zoom? a zebra fan? a zombie? afraid of the zombie apocalypse? a zip-up hoodie wearer? a Zion dweller? a Zelda fan? into zen things?

#survey

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karlybeesims · 8 months ago

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oasis diaries 3 - playing games | a sims 4 story and let's play by karlybeeplays on youtube - watch here

resources

lots

Club tropics by @rheya28

The Lotus Spa - personal build

mods mentioned

functional bag by cocogames

delivery - healthy food, part 1 & part 2 by @somik-severinka

override party dances 2.0v by @stevenstudios

wicked whims by turbodriver (intimate animations + bump & grind dance)

wellness journal by @bbygyal123

functional magazines by @largetaytertots

opening scene animations

steven studios (for all the custom animations in the meeting/office)

kikichain (wicked animations used for Val's spicy day dream) - i downloaded all the animations available on patreon might be under ‘v2.12’ or ‘v2.14’ but I’m not sure what the animation titles might be on other websites

outfits

white blazer by @gorillax3-cc

Please let me know if there are any mods/cc I missed or didn't include that you wanted to know about - you can send this through the ask box

#oasis diaries #oasis diaries resources #resources

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magalhaessims · 10 months ago

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THIRSTY CACTUS DINER - MAXIS-MATCH CC BUILD

Fresh and renewed! One of my very first builds, now with a modern twist! The Thirsty Cactus Diner is the ideal destination for those seeking a brief escape, where you can unwind and savor the perfection of a robust cup of black coffee. Also, I've just created my very first Speed Build Video on YouTube! If you appreciate this type of content, be sure to check it out. I hope you enjoy the video!

NOT CC FREE

Lot Type: Cafe | Bar | Restaurant

Size: 30x20

World: Oasis Springs

Enable bb.moveobjects before placing in your game!

WATCH THE SPEED BUILD HERE

Origin ID: MagalhaesSims (remember to enable custom content on!) DOWNLOAD

CC USED IN THIS BUILD:

NOTE: For convenience, some of the CC is included in the Download Folder. Please put it in your Mods Folder along with the CC linked below.

Amoebae: GF Horizontal Slats & Vertical Beans | Vintage Dining Set | Plastered Style || AroundTheSims4: Diner | Paris (Bench) | Restaurant || AwingedLlhama: Nostalgia Living (Blinds) || Charly Pancakes: Chalk (Kitchen Clutter) || TheClutterCat: BubbleGum | Dandy Diary (Glasses) || Felixandre: Colonial | Paris | Soho || Harrie: Halcyon Kitchen | Klean | Spoons || HouseOfHarlix: Baysic Bathroom | Baysic || LittleDica: Delicious Kitchen | Greasy Goods | Rise&Grind | Summer Party || Max20: Cozy Bathroom | Dining Room Kit | Kitchen Appliances | Poolside Lounge (Plants) || Peacemaker-ic: Creta Kitchen (Mini Frigde) || Pierisim: Coldbrew | David Apartment | Domaine Du Clos | Pantry || RVSN: ShopChef Consumables || Simkoos: Clutter Dump || SixamCC: Private Schools (Fire Alarm) || SurelySims: Kitchen Of Tomorrow | Office Space || Syboulette: Crossfit Reborn (Wall Digital Clock) || Taurus Design: Lilith Chillin’ Areas: Coffee Corner || Zx-Ta: Painting | Retro Diner

The CC Sets above are the main ones I used to decorate this specific building and you can find all the links to the creators’ sites on my Resource Page. However, if you can’t find something specific, you can send me a WCIF and I’ll try to help you find it!

HOW TO MAKE IT FUNCTIONAL:

If you want a more immersive experience with this lot, I highly suggest downloading LittleMsSam’s Auto Employees Mod. With this mod, NPCs will automatically work at the lot, once you place the correct object for them to appear.

Make sure to read all the information available on the mods pages in order to make it work properly in your game!

My content will always be free and right away available to everyone, but if you want to, you can show your support through my Ko-Fi Page. Your donation will always be much appreciated!

Thank you for reblogging: @maxismatchccworld @mmoutfitters @mmfinds @s4realtor @coffee-houses-finds and everyone else for helping me boost this post!

#the sims 4 #ts4 maxis match #ts4 build #ts4 cc build #ts4 speed build #ts4 oasis springs #magalhaessims save file #build #download

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themoneybuff-blog · 7 years ago

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Mastering the abundance mindset (and changing your money blueprint)

Shares 531 Old habits die hard. When you get to be a middle-aged man like me, you have forty-nine years of learned behavior to guide your actions and decisions even when you know your choices arent necessarily for the best. Our mental blueprints (including our money blueprints) are deeply ingrained and tough to change. Dont worry. I havent turned into a spendthrift or anything. But Ive been thinking a lot lately about how certain parts of my past continue to affect me, sometimes in huge and annoying ways. For instance, I fight an ongoing battle against a scarcity mindset. I havent been able to master the abundance mindset.

Scarcity and Abundance Ive been reluctant to talk about scarcity and abundance because the terms have been co-opted by Law of Attraction types who use them to encourage magical thinking. I hate the New Age-y approach to these concepts. I want to discuss them from a psychological perspective. With a scarcity mindset, you believe that everything is limited. Time is limited. Money is limited. Love is limited. This causes you to worry about the future. Youre consciously or unconsciously more concerned with what might go wrong than with what could go right. You make fear-based decisions. Youre afraid of missing out. Youre afraid of not having enough. You have trouble with moderation and often exhibit all or nothing behavior.With an abundance mindset, you believe theres plenty for everyone. Theres plenty of wealth, prestige, and happiness to go around. Youre optimistic about the future. You think things will work out even if there are bumps along the way. You make decisions based on the Big Picture rather than a single snapshot in time. Its easy for you to balance tomorrow and today. Ive written before about my trouble with impulse control. In the past, Ive had problems with overspending, overeating, video game addiction, alcohol consumption, and borderline hoarding behavior. (Im a compulsive collector of Stuff.) All of this the collecting, the addictive tendencies, the lack of self-control stems from a scarcity mentality. But I didnt realize it until a few years ago when my therapist helped me see the source. Because my family didnt have much when I was young, I find it difficult to defer gratification. My default mindset even when life is grand is that if I want something and its available, I should get it now. Somewhere deep inside, I feel as if there wont ever be another chance. My father had this mindset. My mother had it. My brothers have it too. (Like me, Jeff and Tony have both learned to fight the feeling of scarcity in their own fashion.) A Real-Life Example of the Scarcity Mindset Over the past year, my deeply-seated scarcity mindset has begun to manifest itself in another annoying way. Since moving into our new house last July 1st, weve had to make tens of thousands of dollars worth of repairs. About $56,000 of these costs came from the sale of our previous home, but that still leaves us on the hook for $30,000 or $40,000. We have one last project to do before we believe were finished: We want to replace the rotting back deck and install a hot tub. (This was the first project we had planned to tackle when we moved in, but we had to put it off for more pressing priorities.) Kim and I know without a doubt that well use the deck and hot tub nearly every single day of the year. (TMI: Currently, she and I both take several hot baths each week. If we had a hot tub, wed be able to soak together.) Its not a question of whether well get value from building an outdoor oasis. No, the problem is that Ive reached some sort of mental breaking point. Im reluctant to spend another penny on home improvement. Im over it. I hate the idea of cashing out yet another chunk of my index funds. Hate it, hate it, hate it. I feel like thats money Ill never get back. (I feel this way despite the intellectual understanding that wed recoup maybe 80% of our costs if we were to sell the home in the future.) I recognize that this is my scarcity mindset kicking in, yet I cannot shake these feelings. Theyre a part of my money blueprint. Heres the thing: In so many ways, financial freedom depends on casting aside this scarcity mentality and embracing an abundance mindset instead. Financial well-being is fundamentally tied to positive expectations of the future. Lets look at three ways the scarcity mindset can manifest itself and how to embrace abundance instead. Jealousy and Spite For some, the scarcity mindset manifests as jealousy and spite. These folks resent the success of others, financial and otherwise. They find it tough to be happy when something good happens to a friend or family member. Theyre territorial, reluctant to co-operate toward a greater common good. Heres how Stephen Covey describes this flavor of scarcity in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: People with a scarcity mentality tend to see everything in terms of win-lose. There is only so much; and if someone else has it, that means there will be less for me. This type of scarcity mindset is the source of the average Americans love-hate relationship with wealth. Most people want to be wealthy but are suspicious of those who already are. They typical person believes that when she makes money, its a result of hard work and skill. But others who get rich? Theyre lucky jerks who dont deserve it. People with this form of the scarcity mindset dont just hold back themselves but they keep down the people around them. This usually manifests as gossip and griping. Sometimes these people keep score. In extreme cases, they actively work to sabotage the success of others. People with this type of scarcity mindset are a drag on life, a net negative to the world at large. What if you suffer from this sort of scarcity mentality? Train yourself to be happy for others. Recognize that my success does not diminish you. Life is not a zero-sum game. To that end: Dont compare yourself to other people. Focus on yourself, on your own goals and accomplishments. If you must compete, compete with yourself. Strive for constant self-improvement.Practice a win-win approach to life. Look for ways to improve your own situation while also helping those around you. When faced with a conflict, dont try to be the victor; instead, work toward a solution beneficial to both parties.Teach yourself to share. Force yourself to give things time, money, resources to other people. When you have a surplus of something, spread the love. (More on this later.) Jealousy and spite can be overcome, but it takes work. Making the effort is a great way to change your outlook, creating a better life for yourself and the people around you. Never Enough

For others, the scarcity mindset manifests as fear of the future. These people think and act like children of the Great Depression. Theyre so worried about how bad things could get that theyre unable to recognize and enjoy what they already have even when they have a lot. Let me give you an example. I once met with a woman who had over $6 million in the bank. She was my age mid forties and lived a modest lifestyle. She wasnt overly frugal, but she didnt spend a lot either. Plus she had just landed a job that paid half a million per year. Nice position to be in, right? Not to her. She was scared to stop working because the didnt want to run out of money. Based on standard assumptions about inflation and stock market returns, this woman could probably spend $240,000 per year for the rest of her life and still die rich. (Thats without taking into account her new $500k per year position!) Her spending was closer to $50,000 per year, yet she fretted about not having enough. Other folks are more extreme. Ive known retirees who have millions in the bank but who are so frightened of the future inflation! peak oil! stock market collapse! that they wont spend on needed home repairs and health concerns. What good is all of that money if youre dead or your house falls down around you? These folks arent harming anyone else (at least not directly), but theyre doing severe damage to their own well-being. They sacrifice happiness today in order to have more tomorrow but they never enjoy tomorrow. People with this type of scarcity mentality never have enough. No amount of money will allow them to sleep soundly at night. What if you feel like youll never have enough? Unlike those who suffer from jealousy and spite, you should keep score. Do this in two ways: First, keep a journal a standard daily diary. It doesnt have to be detailed. Write down the most important events from your life. And every day note at least one thing for which you are grateful. At the end of each year, go back and re-read what youve written. (This exercise will increase in value the longer you keep at it.)Second, track your net worth and spending. Know how much you have and how much you need. Remember this rule of thumb: For every $25 youve saved, you can probably spend $1 each year without worry. (If youre really nervous, you might change that to $1 for every $30 or $40 saved.) If you have more than enough stashed away and still fret about the future, force yourself to spend. Im dead serious. Pick something youve always wanted to do or have, and go get it. Money is a tool to build a better life. If the tool sits unused, whats the point? Instant Gratification Finally, there are the folks like me, people who find it tough to wait for what they want. Were shopaholics and compulsive spenders. With our flavor of the scarcity mindset, were so skeptical about tomorrow that we enjoy too much today. We want it all and we want it now. A decade ago, when I still struggled with money, I had nothing saved. No retirement, no nothing. What I ought to have been doing was paying down my debt and building a foundation for the future. Instead, I was spending everything I earned on books, comics, and computer games. It never occurred to me to wait. I wanted things now, so I bought them. As I mentioned at the start of this article, my therapist helped me to understand that growing up poor had given me a loathing of uncertainty and an inability to delay gratification. My money blueprint was largely constructed around a fear of missing out. During my transition from spendthrift to money boss, I learned to put off potential spending. I learned to wait for the things I wanted. Like the last group, people with this sort of scarcity mentality never have enough. But the lack manifests in a different way. Instead of needing more money, we need more Stuff. We buy and buy and buy and are never satisfied. Theres no amount of possessions that will make us happy. What if a feeling of scarcity drives you to always want more? Practice the art of deferred gratification. I learned this skill by using the 30-day rule. Heres how it works: When you see something you want, make a note of what it is, where you saw it, and how much it costs. But dont buy it yet.Over the next 30 days, be on the lookout for free or cheap alternatives. Does the library have that book? Can you borrow that tool from a friend? Could the local thrift store have a similar shirt?At the end of 30 days, if you still want the item then consider buying it. In most cases, however, youll find the urge to purchase has passed. Also practice moderation. Recognize that most things in life dont require an all or nothing approach. You can have some, and thats okay. Finally, keep a gratitude journal. The fundamental problem with this type of scarcity mindset is not appreciating what you already have. Force yourself to catalog the good things in your life. From Scarcity to Abundance A scarcity mindset leads to self-defeating behavior. It sabotages your chances for future financial success. Even when a Depression-type scarcity mentality helps you accumulate piles of cash, youre unable to enjoy it. Youre afraid to. Fear is always at the heart of scarcity: fear of failure, fear of the future, fear of missing out. Those with a scarcity mindset cling to the notion that theres a limited amount of everything, and theyre afraid they wont get their share. Well talk more about fear (and overcoming it) next week. For now, you should recognize that in order to achieve financial freedom, you must adopt an abundance mentality. If youre worried about lack, you arent free.

Ive already suggested several ways to fight specific flavors of scarcity. To finish, lets look at a technique anyone can use to move from scarcity to abundance: To get what you want, give what you want. What do I mean? In an amazing article from the academic journal Psychological Science, researchers suggest that giving time gives you time. The authors found that spending time on others (instead of yourself) boosts how much time you think you have in both the present and the future. Many of us feel pressured by the modern world. We feel rushed, as if theres never enough time to do what we want. We feel a lack, a scarcity, of minutes and hours and days. To cope with this, we tend to turn inward. We watch TV. We play videogames. We get a massage. But studies show that wasting time like this truly is a waste. When we spend time on ourselves, we feel like the time is lost. On the other hand, when we give our time to others helping friends or volunteering in the community, for instance we experience feelings of time affluence. Plus our time seems fuller. We feel better about ourselves and what weve done. And as a bonus: Giving time to others not only increases the givers sense of subjective time but can also increase the recipients objective amount of time, such that giving time contributes to the well-being of both the self and others. That, my friends, is abundance in action. The bottom line? When individuals feel time constrained, they should become more generous with their time despite their inclination to be less so. The same idea applies to other areas of your life in which you experience feelings of lack. When I started giving away and selling my Stuff several years ago, for example, I came to realize just how much I had. Before, when I was constantly in acquisition mode, I felt like I had very little. I was wrong. I had mountains of things! If you feel a lack of respect from others, give respect to others. If you feel a lack of compassion from others, be compassionate to others. If you feel like people dont love you, love other people. If you feel broke, donate time and money to the poor. If you feel like youll never have enough wealth, systematically give away some of what you have. In The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey writes: The abundance mentalityis the paradigm that there is plenty out there and enough to spare for everybody. It results in sharing of prestige, of recognition, of profits, of decision making. It opens possibilities, options, alternatives, and creativity. The abundance mindset comes from understanding theres plenty in the world: plenty of money, plenty of love, plenty of time. Theres plenty for everyone both for you and for others. Theres plenty now and therell be plenty tomorrow. Enjoy it! A Real-Life Example of the Abundance Mindset While we were wintering in Savannah two years ago, Kim hustled to get her dental hygiene license for the state of Georgia so that she could earn some money. She spent a couple of days driving across the city, dropping off rsums and speaking with doctors. Soon she started getting calls asking her to do fill-in work while other hygienists were sick or on vacation. She also got an offer for a long-term position at a big office in town. Kim could have taken the long-term gig. In fact, she was tempted. What if I cant find any other positions? she asked as we talked through her options. This is a sure thing. Maybe I should take it in case nothing else comes along. After a few days of internal debate, Kim decided not to take the long-term offer. Im getting plenty of calls from other offices, she reasoned. Ill bet I can stay busy just with the short-term stuff, and thatll give me greater flexibility. Sure enough. Because she refused to make a fear-based decision, because she chose to believe shed have more opportunity rather than less, she was able to pick and choose when and where shed work. She had more offers than she had time. She constantly got new calls asking her to fill in. When we returned to Portland, she used the same experience to find permanent dental hygiene positions. She cast her net wide, then waited for the offers to come. And they came. By exercising patience and an abundance mindset, she landed two gigs that she loves. (Plus, she still gets fill-in offers all of the time.) Shares 531 https://www.getrichslowly.org/abundance-mindset/

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foursproutwealth-blog · 7 years ago

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Mastering the abundance mindset (and changing your money blueprint)

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/wealth/mastering-the-abundance-mindset-and-changing-your-money-blueprint/

Mastering the abundance mindset (and changing your money blueprint)

Old habits die hard.

When you get to be a middle-aged man like me, you have forty-nine years of learned behavior to guide your actions and decisions — even when you know your choices aren’t necessarily for the best. Our mental blueprints (including our money blueprints) are deeply ingrained and tough to change.

Don’t worry. I haven’t turned into a spendthrift or anything. But I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how certain parts of my past continue to affect me, sometimes in huge and annoying ways. For instance, I fight an ongoing battle against a scarcity mindset. I haven’t been able to master the abundance mindset.

Scarcity and Abundance

I’ve been reluctant to talk about scarcity and abundance because the terms have been co-opted by “Law of Attraction” types who use them to encourage magical thinking. I hate the New Age-y approach to these concepts. I want to discuss them from a psychological perspective.

With a scarcity mindset, you believe that everything is limited. Time is limited. Money is limited. Love is limited. This causes you to worry about the future. You’re consciously or unconsciously more concerned with what might go wrong than with what could go right. You make fear-based decisions. You’re afraid of missing out. You’re afraid of not having enough. You have trouble with moderation and often exhibit “all or nothing” behavior.

With an abundance mindset, you believe there’s plenty for everyone. There’s plenty of wealth, prestige, and happiness to go around. You’re optimistic about the future. You think things will work out even if there are bumps along the way. You make decisions based on the Big Picture rather than a single snapshot in time. It’s easy for you to balance tomorrow and today.

I’ve written before about my trouble with impulse control. In the past, I’ve had problems with overspending, overeating, video game addiction, alcohol consumption, and borderline hoarding behavior. (I’m a compulsive collector of Stuff.)

All of this — the collecting, the addictive tendencies, the lack of self-control — stems from a scarcity mentality. But I didn’t realize it until a few years ago when my therapist helped me see the source.

Because my family didn’t have much when I was young, I find it difficult to defer gratification. My default mindset — even when life is grand — is that if I want something and it’s available, I should get it now. Somewhere deep inside, I feel as if there won’t ever be another chance. My father had this mindset. My mother had it. My brothers have it too. (Like me, Jeff and Tony have both learned to fight the feeling of scarcity in their own fashion.)

A Real-Life Example of the Scarcity Mindset Over the past year, my deeply-seated scarcity mindset has begun to manifest itself in another annoying way.

Since moving into our new house last July 1st, we’ve had to make tens of thousands of dollars worth of repairs. About $56,000 of these costs came from the sale of our previous home, but that still leaves us on the hook for $30,000 or $40,000. We have one last project to do before we believe we’re finished: We want to replace the rotting back deck and install a hot tub. (This was the first project we had planned to tackle when we moved in, but we had to put it off for more pressing priorities.)

Kim and I know without a doubt that we’ll use the deck and hot tub nearly every single day of the year. (TMI: Currently, she and I both take several hot baths each week. If we had a hot tub, we’d be able to soak together.) It’s not a question of whether we’ll get value from building an outdoor oasis. No, the problem is that I’ve reached some sort of mental breaking point.

I’m reluctant to spend another penny on home improvement. I’ve over it. I hate the idea of cashing out yet another chunk of my index funds. Hate it, hate it, hate it. I feel like that’s money I’ll never get back. (I feel this way despite the intellectual understanding that we’d recoup maybe 80% of our costs if we were to sell the home in the future.)

I recognize that this is my scarcity mindset kicking in, yet I cannot shake these feelings. They’re a part of my money blueprint.

Here’s the thing: In so many ways, financial freedom depends on casting aside this scarcity mentality and embracing an abundance mindset instead. Financial well-being is fundamentally tied to positive expectations of the future.

Let’s look at three ways the scarcity mindset can manifest itself — and how to embrace abundance instead.

Jealousy and Spite

For some, the scarcity mindset manifests as jealousy and spite. These folks resent the success of others, financial and otherwise. They find it tough to be happy when something good happens to a friend or family member. They’re territorial, reluctant to co-operate toward a greater common good.

Here’s how Stephen Covey describes this flavor of scarcity in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People:

People with a scarcity mentality tend to see everything in terms of win-lose. There is only so much; and if someone else has it, that means there will be less for me.

This type of scarcity mindset is the source of the average American’s love-hate relationship with wealth. Most people want to be wealthy — but are suspicious of those who already are. They typical person believes that when she makes money, it’s a result of hard work and skill. But others who get rich? They’re lucky jerks who don’t deserve it.

People with this form of the scarcity mindset don’t just hold back themselves but they keep down the people around them. This usually manifests as gossip and griping. Sometimes these people “keep score”. In extreme cases, they actively work to sabotage the success of others.

People with this type of scarcity mindset are a drag on life, a net negative to the world at large.

What if you suffer from this sort of scarcity mentality? Train yourself to be happy for others. Recognize that my success does not diminish you. Life is not a zero-sum game. To that end:

Don’t compare yourself to other people. Focus on yourself, on your own goals and accomplishments. If you must compete, compete with yourself. Strive for constant self-improvement.

Practice a win-win approach to life. Look for ways to improve your own situation while also helping those around you. When faced with a conflict, don’t try to be the “victor”; instead, work toward a solution beneficial to both parties.

Teach yourself to share. Force yourself to give things — time, money, resources — to other people. When you have a surplus of something, spread the love. (More on this later.)

Jealousy and spite can be overcome, but it takes work. Making the effort is a great way to change your outlook, creating a better life for yourself and the people around you.

Never Enough

For others, the scarcity mindset manifests as fear of the future. These people think and act like children of the Great Depression. They’re so worried about how bad things could get that they’re unable to recognize and enjoy what they already have — even when they have a lot.

Let me give you an example.

I once met with a woman who had over $6 million in the bank. She was my age — mid forties — and lived a modest lifestyle. She wasn’t overly frugal, but she didn’t spend a lot either. Plus she had just landed a job that paid half a million per year. Nice position to be in, right? Not to her. She was scared to stop working because the didn’t want to run out of money.

Based on standard assumptions about inflation and stock market returns, this woman could probably spend $240,000 per year for the rest of her life and still die rich. (That’s without taking into account her new $500k per year position!) Her spending was closer to $50,000 per year, yet she fretted about not having enough.

Other folks are more extreme. I’ve known retirees who have millions in the bank but who are so frightened of the future — inflation! peak oil! stock market collapse! — that they won’t spend on needed home repairs and health concerns. What good is all of that money if you’re dead or your house falls down around you?

These folks aren’t harming anyone else (at least not directly), but they’re doing severe damage to their own well-being. They sacrifice happiness today in order to have more tomorrow — but they never enjoy tomorrow.

People with this type of scarcity mentality never have enough. No amount of money will allow them to sleep soundly at night.

What if you feel like you’ll never have enough? Unlike those who suffer from jealousy and spite, you should keep score. Do this in two ways:

First, keep a journal — a standard daily diary. It doesn’t have to be detailed. Write down the most important events from your life. And every day note at least one thing for which you are grateful. At the end of each year, go back and re-read what you’ve written. (This exercise will increase in value the longer you keep at it.)

Second, track your net worth and spending. Know how much you have and how much you need. Remember this rule of thumb: For every $25 you’ve saved, you can probably spend $1 each year without worry. (If you’re really nervous, you might change that to $1 for every $30 or $40 saved.)

If you have more than enough stashed away and still fret about the future, force yourself to spend. I’m dead serious. Pick something you’ve always wanted to do or have, and go get it. Money is a tool to build a better life. If the tool sits unused, what’s the point?

Instant Gratification

Finally, there are the folks like me, people who find it tough to wait for what they want. We’re “shopaholics” and compulsive spenders. With our flavor of the scarcity mindset, we’re so skeptical about tomorrow that we enjoy too much today. We want it all and we want it now.

A decade ago, when I still struggled with money, I had nothing saved. No retirement, no nothing. What I ought to have been doing was paying down my debt and building a foundation for the future. Instead, I was spending everything I earned on books, comics, and computer games. It never occurred to me to wait. I wanted things now, so I bought them.

As I mentioned at the start of this article, my therapist helped me to understand that growing up poor had given me a loathing of uncertainty and an inability to delay gratification. My money blueprint was largely constructed around a fear of missing out. During my transition from spendthrift to money boss, I learned to put off potential spending. I learned to wait for the things I wanted.

Like the last group, people with this sort of scarcity mentality never have enough. But the lack manifests in a different way. Instead of needing more money, we need more Stuff. We buy and buy and buy and are never satisfied. There’s no amount of possessions that will make us happy.

What if a feeling of scarcity drives you to always want more? Practice the art of deferred gratification. I learned this skill by using the 30-day rule. Here’s how it works:

When you see something you want, make a note of what it is, where you saw it, and how much it costs. But don’t buy it yet.

Over the next 30 days, be on the lookout for free or cheap alternatives. Does the library have that book? Can you borrow that tool from a friend? Could the local thrift store have a similar shirt?

At the end of 30 days, if you still want the item then consider buying it. In most cases, however, you’ll find the urge to purchase has passed.

Also practice moderation. Recognize that most things in life don’t require an “all or nothing” approach. You can have some, and that’s okay.

Finally, keep a gratitude journal. The fundamental problem with this type of scarcity mindset is not appreciating what you already have. Force yourself to catalog the good things in your life.

From Scarcity to Abundance

A scarcity mindset leads to self-defeating behavior. It sabotages your chances for future financial success. Even when a Depression-type scarcity mentality helps you accumulate piles of cash, you’re unable to enjoy it. You’re afraid to.

Fear is always at the heart of scarcity: fear of failure, fear of the future, fear of missing out. Those with a scarcity mindset cling to the notion that there’s a limited amount of everything, and they’re afraid they won’t get their share. We’ll talk more about fear (and overcoming it) next week. For now, you should recognize that in order to achieve financial freedom, you must adopt an abundance mentality.

If you’re worried about lack, you aren’t free.

I’ve already suggested several ways to fight specific flavors of scarcity. To finish, let’s look at a technique anyone can use to move from scarcity to abundance: To get what you want, give what you want.

What do I mean?

In an amazing article from the academic journal Psychological Science, researchers suggest that “giving time gives you time”. The authors found that spending time on others (instead of yourself) boosts how much time you think you have — in both the present and the future.

Many of us feel pressured by the modern world. We feel rushed, as if there’s never have enough time to do what we want. We feel a lack, a scarcity, of minutes and hours and days. To cope with this, we tend to turn inward. We watch TV. We play videogames. We get a massage. But studies show that “wasting time” like this truly is a waste. When we spend time on ourselves, we feel like the time is lost.

On the other hand, when we give our time to others — helping friends or volunteering in the community, for instance — we experience feelings of “time affluence”. Plus our time seems “fuller”. We feel better about ourselves and what we’ve done. And as a bonus:

“Giving time to others not only increases the giver’s sense of subjective time but can also increase the recipient’s objective amount of time, such that giving time contributes to the well-being of both the self and others.”

That, my friends, is abundance in action.

The bottom line? “When individuals feel time constrained, they should become more generous with their time — despite their inclination to be less so.”

The same idea applies to other areas of your life in which you experience feelings of lack. When I started giving away and selling my Stuff several years ago, for example, I came to realize just how much I had. Before, when I was constantly in acquisition mode, I felt like I had very little. I was wrong. I had mountains of things!

If you feel a lack of respect from others, give respect to others. If you feel a lack of compassion from others, be compassionate to others. If you feel like people don’t love you, love other people. If you feel broke, donate time and money to the poor. If you feel like you’ll never have enough wealth, systematically give away some of what you have.

In The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey writes:

The abundance mentality…is the paradigm that there is plenty out there and enough to spare for everybody. It results in sharing of prestige, of recognition, of profits, of decision making. It opens possibilities, options, alternatives, and creativity.

The abundance mindset comes from understanding there’s plenty in the world: plenty of money, plenty of love, plenty of time. There’s plenty for everyone — both for you and for others. There’s plenty now and there’ll be plenty tomorrow. Enjoy it!

A Real-Life Example of the Abundance Mindset While we were wintering in Savannah two years ago, Kim hustled to get her dental hygiene license for the state of Georgia so that she could earn some money. She spent a couple of days driving across the city, dropping off résumés and speaking with doctors. Soon she started getting calls asking her to do fill-in work while other hygienists were sick or on vacation. She also got an offer for a long-term position at a big office in town.

Kim could have taken the long-term gig. In fact, she was tempted. “What if I can’t find any other positions?” she asked as we talked through her options. “This is a sure thing. Maybe I should take it in case nothing else comes along.”

After a few days of internal debate, Kim decided not to take the long-term offer. “I’m getting plenty of calls from other offices,” she reasoned. “I’ll bet I can stay busy just with the short-term stuff, and that’ll give me greater flexibility.”

Sure enough. Because she refused to make a fear-based decision, because she chose to believe she’d have more opportunity rather than less, she was able to pick and choose when and where she’d work. She had more offers than she had time. She constantly got new calls asking her to fill in.

When we returned to Portland, she used the same experience to find permanent dental hygiene positions. She cast her net wide, then waited for the offers to come. And they came. By exercising patience and an abundance mindset, she landed two gigs that she loves. (Plus, she still gets fill-in offers all of the time.)

The post Mastering the abundance mindset (and changing your money blueprint) appeared first on Get Rich Slowly.

#Wealth

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starandthebullets-blog · 7 years ago

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Here are some of the sex blogs that Google plans to wipe from the internet — and all the reasons why they shouldn't

This week, sexual expression has taken a serious hit after Google abruptly decided to banish adult content from one of the globe's most popular hosting platforms, Blogger. From next month, all blogs containing "sexually explicit" imagery on the Google-owned site will effectively disappear from view when engineers limit entry to an invitation-only system. That means so-called 'adult' blogs will no longer appear in searches, and will be virtually impossible to find. Google has defended the move by arguing there will be a few exceptions to the rule, and that no information is actually being deleted - just hidden from public view. Yet to many it appears that this is nothing but a blanket ban that is passing unfair judgment on sexual honesty. It's also a little prudish and preachy, shouldn't adult users be able to make up their own minds on what they want to click on? Let's think about it: what exactly does "explicit" mean? This ban lets Google decide that for us. There are millions of mini-sites on Blogger, covering pretty much every topic under the sun. And whilst there's probably some outrageous pornographic material on the site that very well may merit some degree of viewer restriction, there are also thousands of fascinating, informative and entertaining blogs that are about to vanish from the public domain just because users have chosen to illustrate a single post with some form of sexual content. Do those blogs truly deserve to be dismissed as smut, and rendered invisible Google categorises LGBT diaries and erotic book reviewers as adult. This is not about illegal content, but simply content Google doesn't like. Take the phenomenally successful sex diary site, Girl with a One Track Mind. In 2004, author Zoe Margolis joined Blogger anonymously, to chronicle the ins and outs of her dating and sex life. Her blog was born from a desire to counter what she perceived to be a sexist double-standard in the media, that chastised women for expressing their sexual desires. It was a huge hit, in part because of the blunt and refreshingly honest account of female sexuality it offered. A certain degree of anatomical detail ensured the site was tossed into Blogger's 'adult' category. But now, her blog could end up being swept under Google's new PC rug just because it tackles real sex head on. Award-winning sex columnist Violet Blue reckons her 14-year-old Blogger site will take quite a beating, too. Her unforgivably erotic blog doesn't just cover topics about pornography, but a wide variety of little-known bedroom facts some may find crucial - for example, consumer warnings about unsafe sex toys. Once Google's new explicit content policy cloaks her explicitly-illustrated blog under a veil of privacy, some 500 links to her site will be killed off in an instant, concealing vital resources for those in search of milf adult tranny cams serious answers. It's difficult to justify that sort of censorship. It's safe to assume this shift in moral policy was created to minimise Google's chances of exposing its younger users to explicit materials. The company has been moving in that direction for the past year or so, banning porn from its ad networks and ensuring that users are unable to monetise adult-oriented blogs. Fair enough, you might think. But let's not forget: Google is now practically synonymous with the web. You don't 'search for it', you Google it. So, for many, trolling for porn on a lonely Tuesday night probably starts on Google. That's not because it's a specially-crafted porn oasis, but simply because it's the most popular search engine online. Yet for all that debauchery, the company's brand value hasn't been tarnished a smidge. So, if there's no damage being caused by showcasing explicit materials, what's the point of censoring them on a single platform like Blogger? Pornography is just one of infinite forms of sexual expression. So, Google doesn't want to be associated with porn - we get it. Yet Blogger was built around the idea that information should be freely accessible in order to stimulate healthy debate. What happened to that? Millions of users have spent the better part of a decade working to construct an extensive community on Blogger that offers a digital, sex-positive network of support. It shouldn't matter whether it's art, advice or strange pornography that most of us don't quite get. This is a sexual cull that goes against everything Blogger, Google, and the internet stands for. Google may like to tote itself as a champion of technological progress - but there's nothing progressive about censorship. If anything, the company has just pushed us backwards.

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careerandmoneystoryteller · 7 years ago

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Aimee Gates Life In Heaven Episode 4 What You Focus On Expands Especially When Aligned With Destiny Freestyle Story by Stella Carrier

Start time 1135 pm Thursday August 3, 2017

Completion time 1157 Thursday August 3, 2017

Aimee Gates Life In Heaven Episode 4 What You Focus On Expands Especially When Aligned With Destiny Freestyle Story by Stella Carrier

Aimee Gates and William Walker discuss what they had just witnessed with the beach concert scene involving celestial spirit guides who dressed the part of musicians Brandy and Allison Goldfrapp of the Goldfrapp group. William Walker has faith that the dreamer is going to follow the guidance but he hopes that the woman still living on earth with the peach and blonde colored hair remembers one thing if she needs more confidence to be on the forefront. Aimee Gates asks William Walker what that means but he explains that he has to allow a certain visitor making an appearance within the next 5 minutes to explain to her more what he means.

True to his word, William Walker has to leave the picnic/party gathering as Aimee Gates notices a smiling and happy 25 year old woman resembling Carly Rae Jepsen in the I Really Like You music video and a 8 year old boy bearing a resemblance to one of the singers from the One Direction Group for the One Thing music video. Aimee Gates waves William Walker a polite farewell for the time being as she intuitively picks up that William Walker is married to the 25 year old woman and the 8 year old boy is actually a son that William Walker and the woman agreed to raise together in the afterlife. William Walker agreed to take both his wife and his 8 year old son to a music concert show that is being featured at the Disneyland California and Busch Gardens Williamsburg Virginia themed hybrid theme park in this world that is just a ten minute walk from the picnic party.

Aimee Gates notices that the spirit bearing a maid robot costume is collaborating with a happy spirit dressed as Ferry Corsten creating a music set mix to the following DJ set mix by Armin Van Buuren; A State Of Trance Episode 825 (#ASOT825)

Aimee Gates follows an intuitive prompting to step outside the picnic theme party building to take in the beautiful scenery of the gardens and theme parks that are just right outside the building. Once she steps outside she sees a male spirit resembling one of the singers from Oasis, two females paying tribute to one of the Ever After High female characters in the episode of Courtly Pleads her case via being dressed as them, and another male spirit resembling Robert Plant in the music video for I’m in the Mood, and another male resembling the lead singer of Train well known for such songs as Soul Sister all relaxing together in a giant Jacuzzi.

Aimee Gates works up the courage to approach them to which male spirit resembling the lead singer of Train explains that he is actually one of her male spirit guides from a past lifetime that she had 300 years ago. He directs Aimee Gates to watch the television screen four yards from the Jacuzzi as it flashes the following words;

An hour from now one of your daughters still living on earth from a past lifetime of 700 years ago is going to visit you at an Ever After High Theme Festival for ideas towards her writing

Please pass on to her the following message;

Proceed writing to your future self that is already living in the heavenly/afterlife realms after your 120th birthday. Within 8 hours of this message you are going to integrate the rest and to work up your self-confidence and courage to do this publicly begin the start destination with a post that you already published online, Do the Same for Your Dream Travel Diary

Resources

Wonderwall by Oasis

Soul Sister by Train

One Thing by One Direction

I Really Like You by Carly Rae Jepsen

Do You Wonder Ever After High Theme Song

In The Mood by Robert Plant

Armin Van Buuren A State Of Trance Episode 825 (#ASOT825) from youtube feat. Ferry Corsten Ever After High | Courtly Pleads Her Case | Way Too Wonderland | Ever After High Compilation youtube music video

Affirmations

I mark a new beginning in the book of my life and wisely use the free time I have been giving to rest and tune even deeper into various aspects of my life-spiritual, athletic goals such as walking more, balancing my writing time with some online courses I have enrolled in etc.

I am in the process of becoming more cool,level-headed, and wise when it comes to how I conduct myself around my current work colleagues and future coworkers as I am now logically and intuitively aware that some of them may follow me to where I may reside within 7 years from now or less regardless if I am a private sector andor a government/military worker/employee.

I am well provided for. I live in an abundant universe.

http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/stage-names.php#.WTqvpOvyucw

http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/dimension-names.php#.WXs6PVWGOcw

Resources and Affirmatio

http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/destiny-awoken-names.php#.WXs611WGOcwns

http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/

My psychic abilities expand each day.

I am creating heaven on earth.

I Call Upon What I Imagine To Be The Influence of Benevolent Spirits From the Heavenly Realms, my higher self, and my celestial spirit ally team for creativity in both my writings and all other areas of my life both present and future

Great Wolf Lodge Williamsburg Virginia

https://www.greatwolf.com/williamsburg/dining-shopping

http://www.jacuzzi.com/hot-tubs/request-brochure/?s_cid=7149&kw=&gclid=CNeg58zVvNUCFYdWDQodkE0AVA

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delectablyweepingnightmare-blog · 7 years ago

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Massive Productivity Savers: Online Fax Service and Other Fantastic Ideas

New Post has been published on http://eduandlearning.tk/2017/06/28/massive-productivity-savers-online-fax-service-and-other-fantastic-ideas/

Massive Productivity Savers: Online Fax Service and Other Fantastic Ideas

If you're a business owner or entrepreneur, then here's a quick riddle for you: What does an online fax service, a notepad, and a mind map have in common?

Simple: they're all key techniques that can save you a great deal of productivity and effort in running your small business!

In today's stagnant economy, it's more important than ever for businesses of all sizes to get as much value for as little money as possible. That's why productivity – both in terms of your own and your employees – has become such a hot-button issue as of late. More business owners are determined to find the small fixes that can have a massive impact on the company's bottom line.

With regards to an online fax service, mind mapping and a simple notepad, they might not seem like much at first; But if you put each of these items together, you'll discover a veritable symphony of time-saving, energy-preserving, productivity-boosting tools that will transform every hour into an oasis of creativity and brainstorming.

Are you ready to learn about these massive productivity savers? Then sit back, relax and enjoy learning about how a fax by Internet system and other resources can help turn your business – and your employees – into a profit-boosting machine:

An Internet Fax Service: If you've never heard of an Internet fax service before, then you'll love what you're about to read: it's a great way to save a bundle of time that would be awkward sending sending faxes to your Clients, employees and prospects. Think of it this way: an online fax service is to faxing as emailing is to sending letters. The overall income is the same (the receiving party gets their information), but the process of sending that information is infinitely sped up.

Using an Internet fax service is essentially the same as email with fax. Rather than wasting time waiting at the fax machine for confirmation that your documents went through, you simply upload the fax onto your computer via a scanner, send the documents via a special online fax service , and the receiving party will receive it from their own fax Machine. This means that you'll cut down on those wasted minutes at the fax machine which could be better spent on something more important … … Like brainstorming that next great business idea or working with your employees on increasing your company's bottom line.

A Notepad: I know this looks like an antiquated tool to use, especially in today's high-tech world. But there's just something about jotting down your thoughts and ideas on a pad of paper – and if you use the following technique, you can turn that notepad into an oasis of fantastic business ideas:

· As soon as you get into work, pull out your notepad and a pencil. Do not bother checking your phone or your email – these are only time-wastes that will eat up valuable minutes that could have sent furthering the success of your business.

· Start writing down everything about your business without stopping. Think of this as your diary for your business – and just like a diary entry, you should not hold anything back.

· Write for at least twenty minutes. If you want to organize the writing in an easy-to-read, manageable entry, then write in bullet points. Once you've finished the twenty minutes of writing, review your list and select the top five tasks, ideas or thoughts that will have the biggest impact on your business success. For example, an idea for increasing customer retention rates will have a larger impact on your business than an idea for organizing your office files.

These five tasks, ideas or thoughts should take up priority during your day; Everything else should be delegated or only take up ten minutes of your time. This way, your time will not be wasted on activities that have little to do with the success of your company.

Mind Mapping: If you've ever seen a bubble diagram, then you already have a pretty good idea of what a mind map is. A mind map is a type of bubble diagram that can help visual learners focus on the tasks that will be the most productive in terms of furthering your business goals.

To make a mind map, write down a major goal you have (one of the top five listed above would work nicely here). Now draw a line from the center bubble and write down specific steps that can help you accomplish those goals. Keep this diagram by your computer to remind yourself of the goals you should be focusing on, not tasks that are productivity-wasters.

Thanks to an online fax service, a notepad and mind mapping, you can reserve your business productivity without taking a chunk out of your company budget!

Source by Rob A Wallace

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