Fully Engaged with Thomas M. Sterner

For the extended interview, visit youtube at https://youtu.be/zVEcleIC3Ok or sign up for weekly updates at www.MarieBenard.com http://tomsterner.com/fully-engaged/ To be fully engaged in life means that we have clear goals as well as the focus and skills to accomplish those goals with ease and a sense of calm awareness. In his first book, The Practicing Mind, which remains a bestseller in its category, Thomas Sterner set out clear guidelines for developing focus and discipline to achieve any life goal. As Tom traveled and spoke about the book, he kept track of the questions readers and participants at his seminars asked. The answers to those questions — or more accurately, the exploration of those questions — became the basis of Fully Engaged. This new book explores specific techniques, such as thought awareness training and setting goals with accurate data, and demonstrates how using these techniques will not only help you reach your objectives, but will keep you engaged in each moment of your life, throughout the process of accomplishing those goals. Being thus engaged will result in less stress and more satisfaction in every aspect of life. To hear Tom's previous Synchronicity interview visit https://youtu.be/MMYSQAFNeVE www.TomSterner.com 2:25 - Tom shares the importance of learning how to focus and being absorbed in the present moment 4:22 - Tom shares a story from the book about how he faced a very challenging client, and managed to turn it around almost magically (using the skill of choosing his thoughts and responses) 10:38 - do you have any advice for people who are aware of their thoughts but perhaps judging themselves for their negative thought patterns? Tom talks about planning our responses in advance. 13:28 - Tom shares how he turns these challenges into a game and "yield to the force" - and how everyone can win when we put our ego aside 18:06 - Tom talks about struggle and allowing and overcoming it, in order to reach a new level of experience and mastery 21:28 - how can we make a meaningful impact without measuring ourselves against society's expectations of fame and success? Tom addresses how to approach the feeling of incompleteness. 25:35 - a magic question to help with the feeling of not enough / incomplete 28:51 - contentment vs striving for more - happiness and achievement - Tom shares an enlightening story about his early days as a musician and the practice of repetition 33:12 - repetition and practicing mindfulness, happiness, success and being fully engaged or in the zone - the difference between practice and learning 42:07 - practicing life circumstances and non-judgement of where we are in life - Thomas addresses having unrealistic expectations and the mistake of judgment 46:44 - achieving your goals without judgment and worrying about how far you have left to accomplish them - Tom provides a sailing analogy and we talk about being in "the zone." 51:31 - we discuss paradigm shifts and how our brains are changing