For many people adult autism is just the way of life. They have to endure living with this disorder, which can be very difficult because they can’t function as normal people can function. For some people, they have learned to accept this disorder and live with it, but what makes it really difficult for some, is how those around them treat them and by society in general. As a society, we should try our best to study and learn and understand what adult autism is and not just for those who were diagnosed with this disorder. By learning as much as we can as a society, we can better help those who have to live with this disorder for which there is no known cure for. After all, these are people too, just like the rest of us and are just as important as everyone else’s. This Disorder is Not a Curse There many people who do not see adult autism as a curse. In fact, there are many people who actually enjoy being autistic. They considered being autistic a part of who they are and wouldn’t have it any other way. They don’t want to be cured; they just want to be accepted by everyone. Yes, they too have strengths and weaknesses like everyone else, but most of all, they are people and have every right to enjoy life just like you and me. Generally speaking, autism starts in infancy. What this means is that this person has been living with this disorder for some time now. Autistic adults see the world differently from others. Their five senses work normally, however their brains just process the information differently. The way information is processed and stored and interpreted are slightly different from that of a normal person. Some experts believe that this may cause some of the more detrimental effects of autism, such as fits and tantrums. Reacting to the world normally would be extremely difficult for someone that already has a lot of stress and anxiety. Heightened Senses With some individuals, they have heightened senses or uncontrollable senses. What this basically means is that very often they can’t decide if they’re hungry or stuffed, hot or cold. Some autistics can’t stand bad, strong odors or loud noises; and most do not like being touched or any other forms of contact from other people. Often times, they will reject hugs and kisses or any other acts of affection. Some people will see this as weird or unusual. Trying to socialize with others can be a real challenge for people with adult autism. That is why it is a good idea to get them involved in programs and activities that encourage human contact and teach them how to socialize with others. And just as important, we must educate those around us about this disorder, so that we can assist autistic adults in their struggle to fit in. By teaching others about this disorder, we can hopefully develop into a more understanding and accepting society.

It’s a New Year and a fantastic time to give your personal brand a jolly-good overhaul. You are like a diamond with many facets. So why not show some of your facets to the world? Here is a 3-point plan for bringing out your best this New Year: 1. RETHINK YOUR PERSONAL IDENTITY Are you tired of always being asked to take the minutes because you’re “the organized one?” Or never being taken seriously because you’re “the funny one?” Or always getting stuck with the numbers job because you’re “the analytical one?” People only see what we choose to project—either consciously or subconsciously. So how about thinking outside the box of “good old you” and adding a bit of spice to your personality. Here’s a five step plan for doing this: 1. Ask five friends to describe you in just five words (and be open!). Pool the results together and pick the two core qualities that are most important to you. 2. Get the same friends to tell you what qualities they’d like to see you bring out more. Pool the results together and pick just one quality you’d like to emphasize over the next three months. 3. Create your brand message with the final list of qualities (e.g. I am dynamic, organized and empathetic). 4. Make a list of changes you need to make if you live and breathe this brand message in every part of your life. 5. Take action. Be radical. Make it happen. 2. CHANGE YOUR PERSONAL STYLE Changing your style can be one of the quickest and cheapest ways to bring out your best self. If you look good, you’ll feel good. So what is the best way to reinvent your personal style? Who better to ask than style diva, Nicky Hambleton-Jones, presenter of 10 Years Younger and founder of www.tramp2vamp.com. “The quickest way to start is to ask people what your current style says about you and compare this to the brand message you would like to give out,” says Nicky. “If there is a discrepancy between the two, work with a personal stylist to identify the best way to close the gap without losing site of who you are.” Nicky’s top tips are to: – define what message you want your style to give your audience – capitalize on your strengths and bring them to the forefront – be comfortable and confident with everything you wear – avoid following the latest fashion trends – don’t lose sight of the person you are 3. DEVELOP YOUR PERSONAL PRESENCE You know people with a great personal presence as soon as they walk into the room. They have that “je ne sais quoi” about them. They’re confident and very comfortable in their own skin. Only 7% of our personal impact comes from what we say and a whopping 93% comes from how we say it with our voice, facial expression and body language. So take another look at your brand message. How aligned are you really? Here are some out of the box ways of developing your personal presence: – practice deep diaphragmatic breathing to bring more volume to your voice – take a singing class to help extend the range of your voice – do a Pilates class to improve your posture – try laughter yoga to bring a twinkle to your eye – do a day course in modelling to learn how to walk well in stilettos – walk up the stairs at work to retain that healthy and vibrant glow – try ball room dancing to improve your natural sense of rhythm – do something “stretching,” like rock climbing, sky diving or even pole dancing

Did you notice how some people are just so insanely happy? Sling all the insulting barbs you want or hurl impossible tasks their way and yet they keep on ticking. Blissfully. Happily. And that makes you drip with envy all the more. A small segment of the population come factory-built with a natural propensity for positive outlook. They’re hardwired with copious amounts of zest. This zest easily shields them from the buffets of life that normally faze the rest of us. Recently scientists discovered how the naturally occuring-drug serotonin flows more generously in such individuals. Serotonin is magic. It’s a chemical produced in the amygdala and can give far more pleasure signals than cocaine or marijuana can. No wonder happy people are unstoppable! They’re simply cocooned in bliss that rose-tints the blight of the world! Wouldn’t you love to experience their reality? Try these three tips now! 1) Discover what you REALLY want and enjoy your passions. Is it drawing? Painting? Designing web pages or collecting toys? The more you do what you want, the faster you pump out serotonin and create an inner zest.Take time out and hobnob with folks passionate about what they do. Did you notice how the air about them literally crackles with energy? And it’s infectious! Everyone about them feels simply great! 2) Give unconditional love and respect. Face it, connection with others creates that warm fuzzy feeling inside. That fuzzy feeling expands into unmitigated, explosive joy when done regularly. Imagine how unstoppable you’ll be when you feel loved- and are loved! Spread the warmth and you’ll float on cloud 9. 3) Take an inventory of your thoughts. The next time a depressing, critical or evil thought swims into view, ask yourself ‘Does this Serve Me Well?’ If it doesn’t, chuck it! There’s no point entertaining darkness- no matter how logical it may be. Fly high!

In my St Albans Motivation Courses, I offer Hypnotherapy, NLP and Life Coaching. Hypnotherapy is a deep state of relaxation that allows unconscious changes to be made easily. NLP stands for Neuro linguistic programming, which are different techniques and strategies to help you communicate more effectively to yourself and others, and have greater control over your emotional state. Life coaching is a means of establishing where you are now, where you want to be in the future and setting up goals or steps that will help you to get to wherever it is that you want to be. Once someone has decided upon their course of action, they may want to stick with that (so decide to only use St Albans Course for Hypnotherapy) or to use a combination of the different therapeutic interventions to gain maximum advantage. Almost all one to one sessions are Ј65.00. Quit smoking sessions are Ј120.00 and that particular session is a one off session with 6 months support, during which time you can come back for free if you need to. St Albans quit smoking courses have an 85% success rate with one session, a 98% success rate with 2 sessions and 100% success rate with 3 sessions. All of the St Albans quit smoking sessions are conducted using hypnotherapy. During the St Albans Motivation Courses of treatment, I recommend between 2 and 6 sessions, but it really is individual. What I say to the people I treat is “You will I when you feel better. Then you can tell me.” I always think that the individual is the best judge of how they are feeling, more than I am, so if you want more sessions you can have more, if you want one and come back for top ups every now and again, that that is fine too. The key is to have flexibility and find out how St Albans Motivation Courses will work for you. Of course, it is not just adults that have lack of motivation problems. Children can feel a lack of motivation too. That I why I am very pleased to announce that St Albans Motivation Courses, will be discounted to Ј55.00 for children. Prior to qualifying as a hypnotherapist, NLP master practitioner and life coach, I worked as a nursery nurse (NNEB) for over 10 years. This means I have full Criminal Records Bureau Clearance, along with my insurance and many years experience with children and young people. If you have a child who has issues with their levels of motivation, it is a good idea to have this problem treated as soon as possible. Of course some motivational problems can be due to life circumstances, such as during the teenage years, and these sorts of problems will usually pass, however there are other times when it is worth seeking further help, particularly if the child is: 1) Aged under 12 years and not feeling motivated 2) Due to be taking important exams 3) Has had an emotional trauma, such as a loss in the family, divorce or illness. Allowing these sorts of issues to remain un resolved can have an impact on that child’s future and later life. I can shape the direction they choose to take in life, as well as shape their beliefs about people and how to react in stressful situation.

Many people understand the concept of setting goals in life to empower themselves. What most people don’t know is that goals require a constant stream of force behind them to keep them alive. In other words, you need to push them all the time to make them come true.What do I mean by force and push? To force something is to compel through pressure or necessity. To push a goal is to apply enough force to the goal to keep it fresh and empowered. This constant pushing of your goal, while necessary, is also a detriment to effective manifestation of the goal itself. Goals are artificially created by the mind and backed up by concepts and beliefs in order for them to work. Take away the concepts and beliefs that give them the foundation to live and they will evaporate in no time. How does this look like in practice? Let’s assume you have a goal to lose weight. As you may already know, it is important to set your goals precisely. So let’s say you want to lose 25 pounds over the next 3 months, starting today. This goal needs a foundation to work. You need to have some sort of motivation that encourages you to do this. Let’s look at some reasons you may want to do this: * You want to look attractive to others * You want to look attractive to your partner * You believe that you are overweight * You want to fit into your favorite dress or pants again Whatever the reason is, you absolutely need to have one, otherwise you won’t have the motivation to start. And the mere act of starting is the challenging part as you need to change some of your usual behavior and concepts in life. We all know what a challenge changing your behavior and concepts can be! Behavior is changed in the physical domain, concepts are changed in the mental domain. This double whammy of physical and mental change is what makes a simple thing like weight loss such a challenge to bring off successfully. Successful goals always come from a corresponding change in the mental domain. Why is this? Simply, it is because your mind and your thoughts are what create your reality. If you change only your behavior, you will have only short-term success. In time, you will fall back to your old pattern of behavior – the very thing you tried to change in the first place! So lets assume you are in the second month of your weight loss goal and your partner leaves you. What happens to your goal about losing weight? It doesn’t work anymore, it vanishes and evaporates into thin air. You just took away the foundation and the motivation for your goal. As you can see, the problem with goals is that they depend on life circumstances – and they are always forced by mental concepts. How About Dreams? Your dreams are powered by source, by the ultimate power of consciousness. Your dreams are the recognition of what you can do with your unique gifts and talents you have brought into this life. Every person comes with a unique set of talents. These talents lead to a unique way of expressing themselves through various forms of creativity. Universal creativity is really what powers everything behind all manifestation. Occasionally, we utilize unique properties of this creativity in specific ways. With this creativity you are able to serve other people and in return you get rewarded with a form of energy. In our western civilization, the most common reward is often money. In summary: You discover your strengths, gifts and talents. You find ways to use them that very practically enrich and support society. You are in service to others. By the way, being in service in this way is life’s ultimate purpose. Your dreams are powered by your unique creative abilities. These abilities are like a never-ending fountain, the wellspring of your life. They will always be with you, in good times and bad. They are completely independent from mental concepts. They are powered by your true nature. You can deny them, but you can’t get rid of them. Even on the worst day of your life, your dreams still exist. If you don’t live your dreams, you must constantly suppress them by mental concepts like: * I am too old to start * I don’t know how to do it * Nobody will be interested in it * My friends will hate me when I do it * You name it! I have used the words force and power to associate them with goals and dreams. To understand the concepts behind these words I highly recommend David Hawkins book “Power Versus Force. Here are a few definitions from the book that help define the idea of power versus force: * Force is associated with the partial, power with the whole * Force must always be justified, power requires no justification * Force always creates counter-force and its effect is limited by definition * Force is a movement, power is a skill * Force always moves against something, power doesn’t move against anything at all * Force is incomplete and therefore has to be fed energy constantly * Power is total and complete in itself and requires nothing from outside * Force constantly consumes while power energizes, supplies and supports * Power gives life and energy, force takes these away * Power is associated with compassion, force is associated with judgment * Force requires proof and support, power is inarguable and not subject to proof People who fulfill their dreams are the happiest people on earth. They do what’s in their nature. It is completely irrelevant what kind of dreams you have. Dreams don’t need to fit into anything. They don’t need any approval. They don’t need any money to start. Goals are temporary fixes of your mental desires that do not provide you with lasting happiness. The new car will get old and rusty, the new house will lose its charm over time, and if your goal is to create the perfect partner you will begin to see your partner’s imperfections over time as well. Your dreams are a recognition of what you truly are and how you can contribute to this world. You will never do anything else in your life but this. There is no true retirement from the contributions you can make in this life. You live this dream to your very last breath. Embrace the dream! Be the dream!