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Laughter

Written by: Zig Ziglar

Article Overview: Laughter is a great stress reducer. If you have never read Norman Cousins’ account of his experience of self-healing as described in Anatomy of an Illness, I encourage you to do so. When diagnosed with an incurable illness, he brought a movie projector into his hospital room and watched reel after reel of old classic comedy movies, laughing himself into hysterics. He found he could relieve his otherwise significant pain on a consistent basis through laughter. That practice, along with some other novel therapies, resulted in his healing. He left his prestigious journalistic career and taught on the faculty of a major medical school about the power of the mind and emotions in healing the body of disease.

Laughter

Laughter is a great stress reducer. If you have never read Norman Cousins’ account of his experience of self-healing as described in Anatomy of an Illness, I encourage you to do so. When diagnosed with an incurable illness, he brought a movie projector into his hospital room and watched reel after reel of old classic comedy movies, laughing himself into hysterics. He found he could relieve his otherwise significant pain on a consistent basis through laughter. That practice, along with some other novel therapies, resulted in his healing. He left his prestigious journalistic career and taught on the faculty of a major medical school about the power of the mind and emotions in healing the body of disease.

Next to love, laughter has been described as the second-most powerful emotion we can express. It has been said that laughter is like internal jogging—it stimulates the respiratory system, oxygenates the body, relaxes tense muscles, and releases pleasure-producing chemicals in the brain. You cannot laugh and be mad, laugh and be tense, laugh and be stressed. Laughter is low-calorie, caffeine-free, and has no salt, preservatives, or additives. It’s 100 percent natural and one size fits all.

Laughter is truly God’s gift to humankind. You can get high on laughter but never overdose. Laughter is contagious—once it starts little can be done to stop it. Laughter never felt bad, committed a crime, started a war or broke up a relationship. Laughter is shared by the giver and the receiver. Laughter costs nothing and it’s non-taxable. Laughter is a trend-setter. If we can find ways to laugh first thing in the morning, it may in fact set the trend for the rest of the day.

Let me close by telling you the most important use of laughter I have ever discovered: The ability to laugh at ourselves. I stopped taking myself too seriously years ago and it was the best decision I ever made. Don’t get me wrong—I’m still serious about what I do. But not so serious that I can’t be the first one to laugh when I mess up (which happens all too often—it’s why I spend so much time laughing!). When you’re the first person to laugh at yourself, you leave little room for others to laugh at you.

This is adapted from Zig’s book Better than Good.

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Article Tags: additives, anatomy of an illness, chemicals in the brain, classic comedy, consistent basis, gods gift, incurable illness, journalistic career, laughter, movie projector, norman cousins, novel therapies, power of the mind, preservatives, respiratory system, rest of the day, self healing, stress reducer, tense muscles, trend setter



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Re: WHAT BRINGS TEARS TO YOUR EYES ???? - Just one mans opinion . . . . Tears and talking out loud with yourself will lighten your mental pain. Tears,like laughter, are an emotional release...It is not a sign of weakness. Tears, Laughter and screams are simply emotional safety valves. They keep you mentally fit so you could move forward . . . one day at a time. Barry
Women Entrepreneurs On The Rise - Are you a women who owns her own business? I believe that empowered, successful women are one of the keys to causing our world to change to a more peaceful and community oriented society. Did you know that women are now contributing to nearly half of all new small businesses?. Maybe through your business you want to make a difference and of course you also want to have prosperity. According to the Woman's Financial Network, women start businesses at two times the rate of men. While women are starting more businesses than men, they often find it harder to get things going and to sustain them over the long term. What can women do to be more sustainable in the long haul? Business is all about relationships. You have probably noticed that women are more relationship oriented and having that natural bent serves well in the business world. Women tend to be better listeners and develop stronger relationships with customers, clients, and vendors. Developing supportive relationships is also what sustains women. One women I have worked with shares, " Building my business has been about creating a team and investing energy into teach person, knowing that I cannot do all this alone. Men like to be the alpha male and do it themselves. But I need and want to be part of a community." Another women shares. "Mentoring has been crucial for me. I have enjoyed having a female mentor that shows that it is possible for me as a woman to make it." Women need a community and to be with other women entrepreneurs. Fulfillment comes from sharing business, personal, financial and spiritual fulfillment through connections with other like-minded women. Women's support comes from being in a circle, talking, and sharing. In the earliest women's enterprises, this is how it has worked, whether it was quilting bees or canning vegetables in the kitchen. Women have always needed to connect with one another and talk. Women business owners benefit from sharing with each other in many ways including, • Reducing work stress • Confidence building • Self- esteem growth • Laughter • Sharing challenging situations • Life-work balance • Learning from each other Does all this sound good? Here are three suggestions. 1. Find a couple other women who own businesses in your area and set up a regular meeting at a cafe. It is a nice break from work and also can offer support and sharing of resources. 2. Join a women's networking group. Not only will you meet other women but you might benefit from the monthly presentations. 3. Join a facilitated women in business group. This has the benefit of being more focused and committed. Whatever your business make sure you are one of those who succeed in the long run. Find support, find other women to talk to, and once you are successful be a mentor to a new business woman. Being able to give back is the icing on the cake.


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