Daily Lift by Rabbi Zelig Pliskin

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#1144 Self-Talk of Persistence and Perseverance

Being persistent is the number one pattern that will enable you to create success in your life. When you persist and persevere until you reach your goal, you can accomplish so much more than if you give up when you are bored or when challenges arise.

One thing is true of everyone who has reached large goals. They all persisted until they succeeded. Many people start worthy projects, but they give up before they reach the goal that they set for themselves.

Self-talk is the source of someone's ability or failure to persist and persevere. What is the self-talk of persistence?

"I'll keep on going as long as it takes. What I'm working on is worth the investment of time and energy."

"As I build up the habit of persisting, I can accomplish many more things in my life. So it's not only the present project that I will be completing. Finishing this project will help me achieve in more and more ways."

"I feel great about being persistent. I am building my entire character in the process."

"I see the goal that I am striving for. I am enjoying every step along the way."

Always learn from your past successes. Think of instances when you persisted and were later glad that you did. What did you tell yourself to enable yourself to persist? Tell yourself similar things when you want to persist in the future.

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#1145 See Yourself Succeeding

Today, see yourself transforming difficulties into triumphs. The more difficult the situation, the greater the victory.

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#1146 Practice Accepting

It is much easier to tolerate suffering if prior to the experience you mentally visualize yourself in the negative situation and practice accepting it.

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#1147 Grow From Each Challenge

Preparing to master the challenges we face gives our life purpose and meaning. Actually doing well is a source of great joy. Those who realize that life is for growing and developing from each and every challenge, each day of our lives, live a life of joy.

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#1148 Life's Journey

You make your life journey more meaningful and joyful when you choose wisely in the here and now. It’s always “now.” And as long as you are alive, you are still on your life’s journey.

Every step of the way, you have the memories of every great and joyful moment of your life. In your brain’s great archives, you have memories of everything positive from any time in your life.

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#1149 Living Life One Moment at a Time

Your mind and soul can choose to think, speak, and act wisely and meaningfully wherever you are at any given time. You live your entire life one moment at a time. You only need to choose to think one wise thought at a time. You only need to choose to say one positive sentence (or word) at a time. You only need to choose one meaningful action at a time. These all add up.

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#1150 Magnificent Gift of Life

When you wake up in the morning, the rest of your life begins again. How will you act on the momentous occasion of a new beginning? What would enable you to live today fully alive and energized?

When we wake up in the morning, we are off to the start of a new day. We start off each morning with an expression of gratitude to the Source of our life for giving us the gift of life today. A question that will enhance your life is: “How can I utilize this magnificent gift in the best possible way for today?”

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#1151 Soul Is On A Mission

Your soul is on a mission from its Creator. You are unique. Only you are you, now and always. Only you have your unique life mission. Your loving Father and awesomely powerful Creator loves you and wants you to succeed.

The situations and occurrences throughout your life are Divinely orchestrated to elevate you and your character. The questions you ask yourself about life create you and get you to focus on a direction. The Torah verse states (Deuteronomy 10:12) : “And now, what does the Almighty ask from you?” Please note the important word, “Now.”

This is a question that we need to be aware of many times throughout each day. “Right now, what am I being asked to think, say, and do?”

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#1152 Today Only Day That Exists

Today is the greatest day of your life, because today is the only day that exists. All your earlier days are part of your mind’s memory bank. All the future days haven’t occurred yet. So today just has to be the greatest day of your life.

The way you experience the day will be different if you decide to view it as the greatest day of your life, right now. Today is the only day that you get to choose what you will think, say, and do today.

So think about it: What are some of the greatest thoughts that you could think on this great day in your life?

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#1153 The Story of Your Life

We each have a story of our life. How we choose to label the story will have a major impact on whether we will experience much happiness or much sadness.

Two people might have very similar life experiences, but one person will keep his main focus on the things that he was happy about, while the other focuses on the opposite. One person focuses mainly on his achievements and successes, and how he can keep developing himself and achieving even more in the future. The other person focuses mainly on his failures and limitations. One person’s life is full of gratitude and appreciation, while the other person’s life is full of resentment and regrets.

How you label the main theme of your life is the key to whether you live a life of spiritual growth and fulfillment, or a life of materialism and disappointment.

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#1154 Soul Is On a Mission

Your soul is on a mission from its Creator. You are unique. Only you are you, now and always. Only you have your unique life mission. Your loving Father and awesomely powerful Creator loves you and wants you to succeed.;

The situations and occurrences throughout your life are Divinely orchestrated to elevate you and your character. The questions you ask yourself about life create you and get you to focus on a direction. The Torah verse states (Deuteronomy 10:12): “And now, what does the Almighty ask from you?” Please note the important word, “Now.”

This is a question that we need to be aware of many times throughout each day. “Right now, what am I being asked to think, say, and do?”

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1155 Ideal Way of Being Right Now

We all have patterns of speaking and acting. We also have an ideal self: the way we wish to be. Unnecessarily limiting thoughts hold people back from becoming their ideal self. They basically think: “I would really like to be ‘this’ way. But the reality is that I am not like ‘this.’”

The truth is, if you have an ideal “way of being,” in mind, you can speak and act in ways consistent with that ideal right now. Since right now you are in this present moment, and in this present moment you can choose to speak and act any way you choose, you always have the magnificent ability to speak and act the way you wish to be.

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High-Priority Goals

Making and reaching high-priority goals creates a meaningful life. This is one of the most important concepts for anyone who truly wants to live a happy life. Certainly, gratitude is an important element in happiness.

Kindness is another important element. But together with gratitude and kindness, a life devoted to high-priority goals is a vital element for happiness.

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#1157 Concentration: Focusing On Now

Totally focusing on the present moment is the key to concentration.

Thoughts about the past, be they positive or negative, prevent concentration. Similarly, worrying about the future keeps your mind away from the present moment. Thinking about anything but the immediate task at hand is distracting. Integrating the message that “life is now” will make it easier to keep your mind focused on the present. This attitude will help you concentrate on what is right before you.

To study effectively, we need to focus our total attention on what we are reading. To listen wholeheartedly, we need to focus our total attention on what someone is saying. To pray with all our heart and all our soul, we need to focus our total attention on the words we are saying to the Almighty.

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#1158 Greatest Highlight of Today

The start of each day is a great time to condition your mind to be on the lookout for the most joyful, inspiring, and spiritual experiences of the day. At the start of each day we are given a body and a soul as a gift from our Creator. We can make many great choices and decisions.

Every single day of your life has its highlights. When we wake up in the morning and reflect on the joy of being alive, we can wonder with curiosity, “What will be the greatest highlights of my day today?”

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#1159 Beneficial Self-Talk

Remember this beneficial self-talk about your self-image: “I will view each day as a gift from my Creator. Right now, I am grateful to my Creator for all the good that I have experienced from the day I was born until this moment. Each and every day I gain more knowledge and wisdom. Each and every day I am committed to adding to the good that I can do. As long as I am alive, I will keep growing and developing my character. I will see myself as a soul who is on a Divine mission. My goal is to love my Creator and to love other people. I wish to bring joy to my Creator and joy to other people.”

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#1160 Bring Out the Best in Others

You can’t control anyone else’s way of speaking and acting. But by upgrading your own way of speaking and acting, you are more likely to bring out a better way of being in the other person.

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#1161 Grow From Each Moment

Right now, in each present moment, your life is perfect for you to continue fulfilling your life’s mission. Each moment of life provides you with opportunities to develop your character and elevate your life.

Some moments will give you exactly the experience you would want. Grow from each of these moments. Some experiences will not be exactly what you would choose. You may wish to be someplace else or to do something different at that moment. Grow from each of these moments.

Your thoughts can make every moment meaningful.

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#1162 One Day at a Time

You only can live at one time: today. Rejoice and celebrate when you have what you need for today. This way you will be able to experience a sense of abundance each and every day.

Gain the benefits of living with abundance one day at a time. Some people are so worried about the future that they forget to experience the full benefits of abundance day by day.

Remember this rule: Having enough for today gives you abundance for today. Imagine how much you will benefit from living with this attitude.

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#1163 Elevate Your Past

You can mentally elevate your past thoughts and actions. You can look back at the past and use your present level of love for the Creator and love for other people, and think about the choices you would now make in those past situations. Using your present knowledge and wisdom, you can imagine yourself speaking and acting at your best and your wisest in those past situations.

Reviewing the past situations and encounters with your present wisdom can enlighten your soul right now. You are also filling your subconscious mind with your present knowledge and awareness. This gives you added inner resources for the future.

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#1164 Release Stress and Tension

As you keep building up a greater appreciation for being alive, you realize that tension can be a reminder that you are alive. Every moment of life is precious and is a reason to celebrate the fact that you are alive.

Thinking is a reminder that your brain is working. Since your brain is working you can choose to say to yourself, “Right now, I am alive and I choose to release all stress and tension.”

Let any form of needless stress remind you to create mental scenes that are conducive to being calm and relaxed. You might have a favorite serene scene, or you might enjoy creating new ones.

Tell your entire muscular system, “Muscles, relax.” Hear your muscles responding, “Thank you for reminding me to loosen up and let go.”

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#1165 Focus On Gratitude

To create more happy and joyful moments in your life, you need to keep your main focus on what you feel good about right now. By focusing on gratitude, you feel great love for our Creator, Who is the Source of all that you have. By focusing on gratitude to everyone who has helped you in until the present moment, you feel greater love and appreciation for all the many people who have benefited you in some way.

This one change of focus creates consistent happiness for people who have previously created consistent unhappiness for themselves.

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#1166 Your Focus Creates Your Emotional State

When you feel happy or joyful, ask yourself, “What am I focusing on right now that is giving me these good feelings?” The more time you spend focusing on similar patterns, the more time you will spend feeling happy and joyful.

When you feel unhappy, ask yourself, “What am I focusing on right now that is causing me these distressful feelings?” The less time you spend on similar patterns of focus, the more time you will feel happy.

Fully understanding that your focus creates your emotional state, for better or for worse, is one of the most important lessons we can learn.

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#1167 Experiencing Moments of Joy

A person experiencing difficult and challenging life situations won’t be happy. But he can still choose to say and do many things that will enable him to experience moments of joy. For example, a person who just lost his job isn’t happy about it. He has a mortgage and is worried about how he will make the payments. But while he is thinking about what he can do to support his family and make the payments, he can still take actions that will be a source of meaningful joy. He can help a young child cross a busy street, or he can encourage someone who needs an emotional lift.

When a person makes a blessing before and after eating, he can be joyful that he is connecting with the Infinite and Eternal. He will still need to find solutions to his problems, but the moment of joy will put him in a better frame of mind for thinking more clearly.

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#1168 Joy in a Challenging Environment

A person who finds himself in a challenging environment is likely to find it difficult to maintain happiness. But he will still be able to create moments of joy throughout each day.

Moments of joy add up. The more joyful moments you experience, the easier it will be to create even more moments of joy. And when you think about your life, these moments of joy will automatically come to your mind.