New York Times bestselling author of more than 300 books, articles and audio programs, Dr. Eldon Taylor, discusses his just-released book, I Believe: When What You Believe Matters. He shares some of the results of over 25 years of research, plus personal and other anecdotes that demonstrate how our beliefs affects our health, and personal and professional success. For example, when both an individual and his or her physician share the belief that a cure is possible, it’s much more likely that it will occur for those living with serious illnesses. Our environments and the inner messages we tell ourselves also have a profound effect upon healing and wellbeing. Eldon has developed a patented InnerTalk program and includes a free CD with his new book.

He also discusses the dichotomy between the value of visualizing good health and the need to detach from specific outcomes in order to empower healing. From a spiritual standpoint, when we turn our requests over to a greater plan and Higher Power, miracles happen. He shares an effective prayer for detaching: “This or something better according to the highest good of all concerned.” He recommends thinking of ourselves as an experience or verb, rather than a noun. When doing this, we define ourselves by the relationships we have with others rather than material possessions. To Eldon, integrity is the foundation of his most important beliefs and values.

At the end of the interview, Mary shares a ‘meant to be’ story about three signs that recently brought comfort to a grieving mother. For more information about Eldon Taylor and how you can obtain numerous gifts (including a free gift from Mary) after purchasing his new book, please visit www.eldontaylor.com.

Listen: Eldon Taylor

All healing is self-healing, coming from within, according to Dr. Susan Allison in her new book, “The Empowered Healer: Gain the Confidence, Power and Ability to Heal Yourself.” She illustrates this by sharing her personal story of fostering healing for her husband who was diagnosed with larynx cancer, part of which was inoperable. By using a powerful use of a meditative trance involving visualization and calling in guides and helpers, all trace of his cancer disappeared ( although it did reappear years later). Dr. Allison explains how each person’s path toward healing differs, so a program of healing must resonate individually. An effective healing team consists of both a “spiritual” network of guides and an “earthly” one that includes a medical doctor plus whatever holistic therapists are most useful.

The belief that we can heal ourselves is crucial. Intuition is “God’s reset button” so it’s important to tune into the wisdom that comes from it. Our bodies, minds and spirit are our friends in the healing process. Dr. Allison’s book contains several exercises to help us tune into these sources of information. In discussing the difference between miracles and self-healing, she offers the insight that we are co-creators with God, as ‘part and particle of God’, when we do our own work yet also allow the Spirit coming through us to foster healing. The first step toward self-healing is to clear any negative beliefs about ourselves and deal with unresolved issues. Another technique is visualization so Dr. Allison shares a simple visualization technique that involves going to a personal sacred space in your mind. Meditation is another powerful tool for healing, by creating a peacefulness inside us, enabling us to handle health challenges with grace. Another important step is the “Buddhist Breath” meditation, which also helps with sleeping. To learn more about Dr. Susan Allison, please visit www.empoweredhealer.com.

Listen: Susan Allison

This week’s guest is Joan Steffend, popular TV and personality and author of And She Sparkled. Although her professional success and personal accomplishments have filled her with gratitude, Joan always felt as if there was much more to life than what she had already achieved. Her book is a little gem of wisdom about a young woman who learns to honor her own specialness and brilliance. Joan describes how the book relates to her own experience of not feeling valued enough and how this insecurity affects so many of us, despite the outward appearance of our success. She shares suggestions for how parents can help their children “find their sparkle.” She also provides information about how doing meaningful work helped her ‘find her sparkle’, especially regarding her current passion, a non-profit organization, Peace Begins with Me Project. For more information, please visit www.joansteffend.com.

Listen: Joan Steffend

Do you often feel overwhelmed by ‘information overload’ caused you to be constantly distracted and disorganized? This week’s guests will help you! They are the co-authors of a fascinating book, Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life: Train Your Brain to Get More Done in Less Time. Paul Hammerness, MD is a clinical researcher on ADHD and assistant of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Margaret Moore, aka Coach Meg, is the founder and CEO of Wellcoaches Corporation, a leader in building international standards for professional coaches in health and wellbeing. She also is affiliated with Harvard Medical School as a founding advisor of the Institute of Lifestyle Medicine.

Dr. Hammerness and Coach Meg have developed six “Rules of Order” to help us better manage our emotions and harmonize and focus the various “thinking” parts of our brains. When our mind is better organized, we become better-focused, more attentive, less distracted and able to adapt to new situations. We discuss their book’s organizing principles or “Rules of Order” that are the hallmarks of an attentive, focused brain, one that can shift, adapt and function at maximum effectiveness. The first step is Taming the Frenzy which gets the thinking areas of the brain more engaged to help manage negative emotions and manage distractions. Second step is Sustain Attention, which helps us become more mindful of how we are feeling and how to stay more focused on our tasks. Applying the Brakes, the third step, means exercising “inhibitory control” when we become able to restrain or regulate our attention. In discussing step four, Dr. Hammerness explains how to “Mold Information” and not jump to a different task and use our memory to stay focused and become better organized.

Coach Meg explains step five, “Shift Set”, the ability to be flexible in thoughts and behaviors. She provides tips for improving our memory, including the value of shifting perspectives rather than being rigid, which enables us to be more “cognatively agile.” Cognative flexibility enables us to shift attention fully to something else yet still be able to return and complete other tasks rather than multi-tasking. The final rule of order is “Connecting the Dots”, which can enhanced by working with a coach to help us elicit new insights and perspectives to obtain new clarity and focus, enabling us to “connect to the dots” and see the big picture and act on it.

For more information about our guests and their new book, please visit: www.organizeyourmind.com

Listen: Dr Hammerness

This week we discuss the incredible memoir written by our guest, Rob Cabitto, author of The Fractured Life of 3743: A Journey to Redemption. Rob is a Native American Indian from the Karuk Tribe, and 3743, his tribal roll number, identifies his Native blood and heritage. After nearly being set on fire by his biological father and because of the severe addictions of his parents, Rob was put up for adoption when he was five years old. He shares his story of living untethered to any spiritual, tribal, or social belief system and the consequences associated with living an amoral lifestyle. His young adult years left him homeless, penniless, jobless and battling numerous addictions, bereft of meaning or direction. Rob speaks authentically about how he overcame tremendous obstacles as a child only to make self-destructing choices into adulthood.

Rob also informs us about how some of the Native American traditions, including a vision quest, helped him heal. His journey toward wellbeing is insightful, inspiring and filled with a universal message of hope. For more information please visit www.robcabitto.com.

Listen: Rob Cabitto

In honor of American Heart Month in February, we’ve invited cardiologist Steve Smalley, MD to provide a comprehensive overview of invaluable information about how to determine the risks and prevent heart disease. He also discusses the symptoms of a heart attack, which are often different for women, and what to do immediately after someone has one. Some of the most significant risk factors are family history, smoking, poor diet, inactivity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. For a healthy meal plan, Dr. Smalley recommends the DASH diet as the best overall diet, especially for lowering blood pressure. The concept of “broken heart” syndrome is also explained, including how it is caused by stress and grief. He emphasizes the importance of incorporating stress reduction techniques including the programs and classes offered at Well Within.

For Twin Cities listeners, Dr. Smalley will be discussing the value of moderate amounts of dark chocolate and red wine at a special Well Within event in Lake Elmo on February 16, from 6:30-8:30pm:, Protect Your Heart with Wine and Chocolate

Listen: Steve Smalley

Dr. Julie Chen, an internal medicine physician, helps us understand the effects and symptoms of stress, including the importance of managing it before it becomes overwhelming. Stress cues include jaw pain, eating differently, sleep and exercise disruptions, getting colds and other illnesses. The effects of stress include increased inflammation and has a great impact upon our physical health, including heart disease. She recommends cognitive behavior therapy, which can be very helpful because it teaches us to reframe and rephrase our perception of certain situations. In this way, we can use our minds to come up with new ways of thinking and perceiving to alter behavior in a more positive way. The correlation between sleep and stress is that we must have enough sleep to repair and heal ourselves in order to better deal with everyday anxieties and stress. Dr. Julie provides tips for how to determine the optimal amount of sleep, and how to get that amount of sleep. She recommends certain supplements and herbs that can help with sleep disorders, reducing stress, and increasing energy. Green tea and exercise are also very helpful for energy. To learn more about Dr. Julie Chen, please visit www.makinghealthyez.com.

Listen: julie chen

This week’s guest, Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, discusses her book, Set Free to Live: Breaking Through the Lies Women As a internist who listens to her patients’s stories, she has learned that women often tell themselves seven lies about areas of their lives. These areas concern perfection, envy, image, control, balance, emotions, and limits. She has found that lies about balance and envy/image are two of the most common ones women tell themselves. Tune in to learn how to live more authentically, especially in these areas of your own life. For more information, please visit www.drdaltonsmith.com.

Listen: Set Free to Live Free

Margaret Benefiel, PhD, is a spiritual director to corporate executives and author of numerous books, including The Soul of a Leader: Finding Your Path to Success and Fulfillment. She discusses the meaning of leadership as being “conscious of our influence on others.” She interviewed influential leaders like Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and shares what “soul” means to him and his work with the Truth in Reconciliation Commission in South Africa. Prayer and spiritual direction was crucial for him during his leadership of that process. For Tutu and other leaders, spiritual guidance helps them become more soulful leaders by helping them find how God is directing them and enables them to respond to God’s nudges to act. A leader’s spiritual journey often includes “dark night of the soul” experiences that can lead to growth and wisdom. Gratitude is also important for individual and a group’s wellbeing. Developing a culture of gratitude can be a powerful tool in the work place when incorporated into leadership training and for showing appreciation to both employees and customers.To learn more about Dr. Benefiel, please visit www.executivesoul.com.

Listen: The Soul of a Leader

As a dynamic inspirational speaker and business owner, Naomi Rhode, CSP, CPAE, has been helping individuals and corporate clients discover passion and purpose in their personal and professional lives for over 40 years. She discusses the importance of good communication by connecting deeply with others for a more meaningful work life. After surviving a stroke that left her temporarily blinded and paralyzed, she continues to live with ongoing pain with dignity and grace. Learn how a crisis can become an impetus for tremendous spiritual and personal growth by embracing one’s ‘new normal’ with a positive attitude. Create a life mission statement to help identify our purpose, then passion becomes the fuel for fulfill purpose. Another effective tool is to determine a theme for each year to provide guidance about how to live a more meaningful life. For more information, please visit www.naomirhode.com

NOTE: Host Mary Treacy O’Keefe and Naomi Rhode will be featured presenters at an upcoming conference in Minnesota on January 20-21:, Fire of Hope: A Girlfriends Getaway for God

Listen: Finding Purpose and Passion in 2012