Decide to Transform

Robert B. McGuinness- From Career to Calling: What Does It Take to Make the Leap?

Is spiritual growth a responsibility? What do you think?

My guest on this episode of Decide to Transform, Robert B. McGuinness, says yes. As we discuss on the show, I agree. Spiritual growth is everyone's responsibility. Also, it is our responsibility to live our absolute best life, meaning stepping out of dull frustration and pain and moving into what really motivates us, like our calling.

Robert shares with us his journey from career to calling, one that has been full of gut-wrenching moments and significant, uplifting breakthroughs. Robert also presents what he has learned along the way, and walks us through some important lessons in spiritual and personal growth, which as he points out, is our responsibility.

Make the leap from limited to limitless. Join us.

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Robert B. McGuinness is the Founder and CEO of Soul-Venturer, LLC, specializing in helping busy professionals navigate the journey from career to calling, from simply existing to thriving and on purpose in life. Robert has featured on several national media outlets, including ABC, NBC, and FOX News.

Robert can be reached online at http://soul-venturer.com .

 

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on June 2, 2020.)

Amber Kierra- Blind with 20/20: The Secret to Living with a Vision That Will Never Blur

Amber Kierra began to lose her vision as a child. It is now mostly gone. As you might imagine, this has produced several significant challenges, all of them situations that most of us will never have to face.

Amber joins me on this episode of Decide to Transform and takes us through some of her personal history. From childhood to high school to university and beyond, Amber openly and honestly shares with us the people and practices that have made a difference to her, that have enabled her to cope with the frustration of significantly reduced vision and enabled her to move forward, to thrive and to share her insights with others.

Join us for an honest and hard-hitting episode that is nonetheless full of energy, happiness, and enthusiasm.

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Amber invites you to visit her online at http://amberkierra.com 

 

 

(This episode originally aired on OMTimes Radio on May 26, 2020.)

Surviving Psychological Warfare

As the title suggests, this episode continues our run through some personal exposés and some not-so-beautiful stories, all of which I offer so that you or someone close to you will realize that there is hope in even the most hopeless-looking situation, and that simple methods are available to create lasting, impactful change in life.

Let this episode take you further.

Many people Find themselves in abusive situations. I define "abuse" in a broad sense, not limiting it to physical or sexual but extending it to the psychological realm as well. In truth much abuse takes place here, perhaps the majority of it.

How, then, does one survive psychological warfare? While I invite you tune in to find out, I will offer here that one must first recognize the warfare--the tactics, the manipulation, etc. One must then formulate a desire to break free--yes, that's right, one must decide in favor of happiness. From there, many options present themselves, and we go through some of these on the show.

No matter what your situation, you will find something of benefit in this episode. If you or someone you know needs this episode, please share it with them. 

No one needs to endure abuse and psychological warfare. Let this show shine the light on it. You know what happens when you flip the light on in a dark room: it isn't dark anymore.

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on May 12, 2020.)

Forgiveness and Release

This episode of Decide to Transform has everything to do with life.

All personal growth has to do with releasing what no longer serves us. How do you know what no longer serves you? Well, how do you feel about it? How do you feel about a particular event, place, thing, person?

When we hold on to what does not serve us, we become bitter, anxious, depressed, gloomy. When we let it go, on the other hand, we come to feel a lightness, a fluidity, a sense of happiness that we had been longing for.

Join me for this show as I walk through one of the most effective methods of releasing what no longer serves us: forgiveness. Yes, it is that simple: forgiveness is the way out of pain.

Can't forgive something or somebody? Start with what you can forgive. Many patterns of behavior, abuses, etc. take years to forgive, so please give yourself some grace if you aren't able to forgive it in two or three minutes. Forgive the dog for peeing on the carpet, for example, forgive yourself for lying to your mom when you were eight. Start with what you are capable of right now, and build momentum.

In addition, learn from various world spiritual traditions about the power and the value of forgiveness, of letting things go.

Today's show is all about lightening your load. Release that baggage. It gets heavy.

 

(This episode originally aired on OMTimes Radio on May 5, 2020.)

Standing up to Difficult People: A Personal Exposé

Back by popular demand: the next in a string of personal exposés. 

This episode is born in the crucible of experience. Let me say experience and mistakes. Join me as I walk through some of the mistakes I made in handling and coping with difficult people in my life, in particular my late mother. If you have a difficult family member on your hands, you will want to tune in to see what I did to handle a barrage of persistent negativity.

Standing up for yourself does not always come easily. In fact, it might not come easily at all, but it is essential to a positive state of mind and overall well-being. This episode takes us through some techniques and helpful verbiage that you may wish to consider in your dealing with difficult people (actual results will vary, of course!)

Let me put it this way: you owe it to yourself to insist that you be treated as a capable and competent adult, i.e. respected. This journey--and this show--has everything to do with healthy boundaries.

In fact, you could use an alternate title for this episode: "Healthy Boundaries and How You Can Create Them--And Why You Should."

Yes, let's not forget that last part: "And Why You Should."

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on April 28, 2020.)

Out of My Head: A Stubborn Person's Road to Spiritual Recovery

This episode of Decide to Transform begins a series of personal exposés. These hard-hitting episodes are the result of a conversation with my wife (and also two-time guest on the show) Cindy Garza, who encouraged me to share some painful, personal stories on the air.

We start with "Out of My Head." For many , this phrase means someone is crazy, not thinking correctly. In my case, though, out of my head signified a state I had to reach, a mental place I had to get to.

For years as a young adult, I lived somebody else's life. Responding to pressure from my family, I chose a career path that ticked all the boxes of "status" and prestige but which left me feeling hollow and empty inside. This career--law and its derivatives--never did rise to the level of a passion for me, and I struggled for years to break away and pursue my life's mission.

Do you know someone who is unhappy in their life but hesitant to make a change? Are you that person? If so, tune in today. The changes are always worth it, and as I share my story, I invite you to look at ways you, too, can do things differently. I invite you to think of ways that you, too, can pry yourself out of your head and into spiritual recovery.

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on April 21, 2020.)

Healing the Mind

Who qualifies as a healer, and what does this person do?

This is a question we delve into on this edition of Decide to Transform. People tend to associate healing with the body, with taking a pill or having an elective surgery to make the body better, to cure an illness, to "heal."

Real healing, though, takes place on the level of the mind. The body follows.

Does this sound controversial? It really isn't, even if we were all instructed otherwise in school. This podcast teaches things you can't learn in school. 

Healing is indeed of the mind, and there are many ways to bring this about. On this show we talk about some. In addition, hear from various world spiritual traditions about the healing process, and the results that follow.

These, I promise you, are worth your time.

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on April 14, 2020.)

Critical Self-Care: The Art of Staying Calm

Historical context on this episode: this timely subject aired originally on April 7, 2020, with the world coming to grips with the COVID-19 pandemic and people adjusting to a completely different reality. Never had the urgency for calm been more apparent.

And make no mistake: staying calm is an art, perfected by practice. How one chooses to practice can vary, and we go through some of the more popular options on the show. Meditation is certainly one of them, but there are many others.

What would it benefit you to remain calm in life? For starters, you would liberate yourself from the habitual grind of unhelpful and negative emotions--you know how you respond to situations. Could you do better? 

Calmness brings level-headed decision making, and as you know from listening to this show, it is all about decision. Decide to remain calm, and if you are not, then decide to practice one of the techniques we discuss today to bring yourself closer and closer to a state of equilibrium where you are less likely to get thrown, and even if you do the period of chaos will not last. How is this? You will be able to bring yourself back to your state of mental balance.

Calmness is indeed a superpower. Join me and learn how to cultivate it.

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on April 7, 2020.)

Transformation 101: Our Limiting Stories

We conclude the Transformation 101 series with a hard-hitting show about our limiting stories. We all recognize them: these are the stories we tell ourselves to justify inaction, or to justify haphazard, unfocused actions that do not lead to transformation. 

Here are some examples: "I'm too old," "I'm too young," "I don't have enough time," "It's not for me," "I don't have the right background," etc. 

Are you saying some variant of this to yourself?

If so, you are not alone. Everyone has allowed these fictions to run our lives. The good news is--you guessed it--we can choose to do something about it. 

Tune in to this episode as we examine some of the more common limiting stories and how you can recognize them, then how you can choose to believe something else instead.

You will have noted the theme that there's a lot of choice involved. Exercise it. 

For additional information, see my book Decide. 

 

(This show originally aired on OMTimes Radio on March 31, 2020.)

Transformation 101: The Two Truths

The Transformation 101 series continues in this episode with an examination of the Two Truths, Absolute and Relative.

Those familiar with Eastern spirituality may have some experience with this concept. If this is new to you, I invite you to tune in, as we will walk through the meaning of each and how they interrelate. Hint: they don't. We will also spend some time examining why a person should care about these concepts, why they are relevant.

In sum, Absolute Truth simply is. Whether you call this God, Spirit, Source, the Universe, etc., the ultimate ground of all being is unaffected and unstained by the Relative, i.e. the myriad "truths" of the world, in which each of us appears to be having our own personalized experience. The world of the Relative is the world of separation and suffering; the Absolute is Love and joy and eternal abundance. 

It is my hope that by tuning in you will uncover some of the ways we impede ourselves in life, and that you will take away some practical tools for choosing the Absolute at all times, which you absolutely, positively can do.

 

(This episode originally aired on OMTimes Radio on March 24, 2020.)