(This is Part 6 of a series. Go back to Part 5.)
After Appreciation and General Outcome questions I ask Specific Outcome questions. These are also "How...?" questions, but getting more specific. A good start is:
How can I have really great health and vitality?
In asking this, we might picture the types of foods we'd like to eat, the good night's sleep we'll get, the exercise we'd like to do, the walk we'd like to take and so on.
(Of course it's good to keep in mind that if the day goes another way and we eat a fatty dessert or don't get the walk in or whatever, we want to be willing to be at peace with that too.)
Another area among Specific Outcome questions are the ones having to do with relationships. These can be tailored to whatever our situation is. For example...
How can I have a better relationship with my children?
How can I have a better relationship with my husband?
How can I manifest a really great soulmate romance?
How can I have a better relationship with my boss?
My employees? My friend Bill? My Aunt Louise?
...and so on. Let your imagination be your guide. Personally I prefer keeping my questions brief and adding details while imagining the answer. But you may prefer to have the question itself be more specific. For example...
How can I create a great soulmate partnership where we're very in love, romantic, humorous and supportive with each other?
...or whatever might feel right to you. Naturally, in a question like this the exact details added (if any) will depend on your own specific sense of what you'd like.
Another area among Specific Outcome questions has to do with abundance and prosperity. We might want to start with a question or questions such as...
How can I have greater abundance in my life?
How can I have greater success in my job?
How can I serve at a higher level?
...and so on. Then we can get more specific, such as...
How can I become a great ballerina?
How can I serve the poor? The environment?
How can I get ten new prospects this week?
How can I raise $15,000 to start the business?
How can I improve my department's morale?
Again, in this area of specific questions we can let our imagination be our guide. And it's always helpful to ask:
What's important to me?
Questions can also be used on the spur of the moment, in any kind of circumstance. For example:
How can I have a productive and enjoyable meeting?
How can I really enjoy this task (interview, party)?
How can I be conscious and loving in this situation?
What's the best use of my attention right now?
That last question serves as a reminder that, at the level where we seem to exist separately, where we put our attention determines our entire life. Finally, there's the all-purpose question, in two forms, that can be used in all kinds of situations:
What do I appreciate?
How can I appreciate this moment?
Again, the great power of appreciation. In my opinion, appreciation for whatever has shown up—internally and externally—is like a kind of master key in life. And in turn, questions which direct our attention in that direction are like a master key to the master key.
If we spend a good portion of our day appreciating what shows up, externally and internally, we're on our way to having a very good day indeed.
And if a good portion of the six billion of us were to appreciate what we already have in this fragile, sublime and beautiful existence, why, the planet itself might blossom into flowers—even more than it does already.
(This is the end of Part 6. Go to Part 7.)
—jim sloman, 8.6.03 for 3.21.04
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