Do you want to be happy? Everyone I've ever met wants to be happy. Yet, the startling truth of the matter is that true happiness is elusive for many people as evidenced by the rapidly increasing use of anti-depressants. Check out the following astonishing statistics:
According to relationship expert and researcher John M. Gottman, Ph.D., the chance of a first marriage ending in divorce over a 40 year period is 67% and half of all divorces occur in the first 7 years! (source: The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work, Three Rivers Press, N.Y., 1999, page 4). If everyone wants to be happy why is the divorce rate so high? Why are so many people depressed? Why is there so much fighting and killing in the world when everyone just wants to be happy? What's going on here?!
I believe there has to be peace and contentment within before there can be peace and
contentment without (in your life and in the world).
According to career counseling expert and researcher Nicholas Lore, the creator of the Rockport Institute Career Choice Program, 10% of people look forward to going to work and see their work as a vehicle for full self-expression. 20% of people enjoy their work most of the time but their satisfaction depends on circumstances. 30% of people neutrally accept their work without a struggle. 30% of people go to work because they are forced to by circumstances and 10% consider their work "career hell." (source: The Pathfinder, Simon & Schuster, N.Y., 1998, pages 11-13). Nicholas also looked at the effect a person's career satisfaction had on their health, relationships, longevity and self-esteem. Predictably, the people who loved their job also loved the rest of their life. They had high self-esteem, increased resistance to disease, increased longevity and better relationships. They also were generous with themselves, often participating in service to others. At the other end of the spectrum, the people that didn't like their work found that career stress contributed to difficulties in relationships, resignation in life, erosion of self-esteem, shortened life-span, diminished immune functioning and negative effects on their health. I have learned so many mind-boggling (to me) aspects of people that I feel compelled to share some of my insights on this website.
So what do truly happy people know and do that other people don't? This has been a burning question in my mind for the last 20 years (and I'm sure in many other people's too!) and I hope that this website will provide some answers. In 1998 I had the good fortune of reading Stephen R. Covey's internationally best-selling book, "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." It was a life-changing book for me because I had many epiphanies. One of Stephen's habits is habit number 5, "seek first to understand, then to be understood." It reminded me of what Jesus said:
"And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the speck out of your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother's eye." (The Holy Bible, Matthew 7:3-5, NKJV)
I realized that I needed to "remove the plank from my own eye" if I was to be of any use in helping other people! I also realized that I needed to understand other people more deeply and intimately. So, I began (1) healing and transforming myself (my beliefs, my inner dialogue, my distorted perceptions of reality, etc.) through "inner work" and (2) learning about other people on a much deeper level (their beliefs, inner thoughts, and distorted perceptions of reality). I wanted to understand how different people's minds and emotions worked. I became fascinated by what motivated people on a subconscious level and what made them tick. I wanted to know what their subconscious values and beliefs were. I wanted to help people design a life they would love, from the inside out! I still have many questions and many exciting areas of research that I am looking into and that is why I am offering free astrology and numerology reports via e-mail to anyone willing to fill out my Self-Awareness Survey. I hope my website is helpful to you!
Next: 
