Have you read about the Law of Attraction?  There’s been a some news recently (and not so recently) about the idea that you attract what you believe.  Something like, if you think that you are nothing, then you attract nothing.  If you feel and think that you are broke, then no money opportunities will come your way.

It sounds a little “spotty,” and even though I’ve dismissed this theory outright before, I’ve recently had first hand experience that this concept actually works.  Seriously.

The definition of the “Law of Attraction” is the belief that positive thoughts are magnets for positive life experiences and negative thoughts are magnets for negative life experiences; for example “like attracts like.” (Definition from www.urbandictionary.com)

There are quotes from famous actors, musicians, life coaches….everyone really, about this concept.  Again, I didn’t give much thought to it until I began really reading about budgeting,  of all things.  My family and I recently read, “Total Money Makeover,” by Dave Ramsey and a part of what he teaches starts with the concept of adjusting your mindset of changing the way that you view money.  In fact, a LOT of financial gurus have that specific concept in common when they discuss ways of becoming more financially secure.

Now, remember how I mentioned that we just experienced something like this?  I really believe that some life lessons are learned only when we can really understand and appreciate them, but my husband and I were talking about our finances on a long road trip recently, and it suddenly all came together how we were going to go about getting out of debt.  I adjusted my mindset about our monies and I kid you not, opportunities came along to help us make the steps necessary to change our lives.  It was like someone was waiting for me to make this shift in thinking and then the universe was like, “Here you go, Nicole.  We’ve been waiting for you.”

So, with that thought in mind, I came up with the plan to give this concept some serious trial and error over the next month.  I am going to try my best to apply the concept of being open to good things and being open to these positive experiences.  So, starting in June, I’m going to test this theory and see how it goes.  Would you like to try with me?  Have you ever heard of this concept before?  Has it worked for you?

This time of year in my homeschool family, I start to get excited and worried about making changes in our curriculum and also making the decision of whether or not to homeschool thru the summer.

There are SO MANY homeschool curriculum choices and they can honestly get very overwhelming – even for someone who’s been homeschooling for a few years.  This year we are looking at a combination/blend of Charlotte Mason, Thomas Jefferson Education, and Sonlight.  It’s an interesting mix for sure, but instead of going with just one, I figured that I needed more stress this coming year and decided to try them all. (*head desk)

Really, it came down to what I wanted to add and wanted to change about any one particular curriculum and making that work for my daughter who is a visual and kinesthetic learner.  I also wanted to try a different method of portfolio building and tracking; so we are going to see how this goes.

For those that don’t want to spend a lot of money on brand new, but still would like to have that “all in one” satisfaction from a box curriculum, check out local Homeschool Groups curriculum sales – this is the time of year that a lot families go through and decide what they want to keep and what they want to get rid of.  It’s an excellent time to find some great bargains!

As far as schooling thru the summer, I think that we’ve decided that keeping a loose schedule is better for us so while we won’t be as intense with our curriculum, we will still be practicing a little every day.

What about your family?  What are your summer plans?  Are you looking to change your curriculum choice this year? Are you considering homeschooling?

With all the finance books I’ve been reading lately, a common theme is starting to appear with some of the more “happy wealthy” people that are used as examples in these books – they have found a career that gives them satisfaction and when they work, it’s not really work, but more something they enjoy that they are getting paid for.  Obviously there are aspects of every job that are not desirable but is it really possible to find that “dream job”?

Giving this some thought lately I’ve come to the conclusion that maybe it’s not always just “one” job.  Maybe that excellent “middle ground” for where you feel you are meant to be comes about after moving from one position or career to the next.  Or maybe it’s something you create for yourself?  Maybe, it’s finding that after all these years, you are actually where you are meant to be?

Why is it, that when discussing the “dream job” it’s an all or nothing discussion?  Why is it implied that either you have it or you don’t? Why are we lead to believe that if we don’t have this planned out since birth, it will always be outside our grasp?

I’ve come to believe that finding that “dream job” is not something that you are ever going to discover unless you know yourself; and I honestly had no idea about that until a little recently.  Looking back over the years, I feel like I kind of drifted along the current of life and did what I needed to do; never thinking too deep about what I might want to do.  I’ve collected an interesting bit of skills moving from place to place (working at a daycare, credit union, non profit, and an admin job – ALL after a few years in the military in a technical career); and I’ve begun to wonder if maybe gathering all of this experience hasn’t been some ultimate plan to help me get to the place I’m at now.  To find that job (or in my case I feel maybe create that job) that I was meant to do.  Something I needed to sharpen my skills for first.  You know what I mean?

What do you think? Have you heard of someone that felt they had discovered their dream job? Are you working your dream job?