I’ve been fasting today. I do it four times a month and am seldom bothered by hunger (I’ll explain why later). But today was different and in the afternoon at around 5.00 PM I had “demon hunger” and couldn’t concentrate on some computer work that I was doing. I really felt like eating something!

I contemplated taking some fruit, which is generally a good idea whenever you are in this kind of predicament. For example, suppose you are trying to lose weight by cutting down on high calorie snacks in-between meals, and all of a sudden you get the “munchies” well if you eat an apple or some other fruit it sometimes does the trick and your hunger is gone.

But instead of grabbing an apple, I resorted to a “yogi trick,” I drank two glasses of lemon water. I made it by squeezing lemon into the glass and adding a bit of salt and water. This lemon water drink is great for giving strength and it also works to allay the hunger. I drank and then went back to work (which includes typing this blog entry). So if you really want to stick to your fast, before you to for fruit, try the lemon water.

And remember one thing: you will not go to hell if you take some lemon water or eat a fruit. Fasting is not a “religious” act (though it has value if you use the time that you save from shopping, cooking and cleaning and do something spiritual during the gained time). Fasting will help you to maintain your health, so do your best to do it regularly (twice a month is great).

Now, I promised to tell you how I usually avoid hunger altogether on the fasting day, so I will do it. Before you begin a fast you have to prepare yourself physically, and most important mentally.

Let’s start with mental preparation. The night before the day when you will be fasting you have to remember that tomorrow is the fasting day and set your mind to it. It’s final, tomorrow you are fasting. If you have this kind of determination, then your desire to eat will not even start working on the day of fasting. It just shuts down. It is amazing but it is true.

If you don’t make this kind of mental preparation then when you wake up you will be thinking of breakfast or of eating sometime. If you decide to fast right then, on the spot, you will also think about why it might be good to eat (you can always find a reason!). And in the midst of this quivering mind-set hunger usually wins the day! So make up your mind the night before and you will be surprised at how helpful it is.

Second, and this is why I was hungry today, prepare yourself physically. The day before the fast make sure that you get enough liquids and also enough calories. My meals yesterday must have been too skimpy and that is why I got hungry. In any case the day is almost over and tomorrow I will dig into some yogurt and fruit!

Criticism is difficult to handle. None of us likes to hear the bitter truth about our mistakes and inabilities. But we face Criticism in life everyday and cannot escape it. We also v others so we know that it is a two way street. How to handle Criticism?

What To Do When We are Criticized?

Listen to the criticism and before you react to it, think about your strengths. That will give you positive input and make you ready to face the criticism squarely. Even if it is true that will give you the strength to face and do something about it other than an angry retort. Otherwise we may begin feeling angry and sometimes worthless.

Content of criticism-

Is the criticism true? Or it is misinterpretation of the facts? You may at times set aside your fears and emotions and look at the situation clearly. If need be ask the other person more details and their beliefs. Probably they believe something different than you. Once you talk to them and ask them about what can be done you will be on path to recovery rather than destruction.

The truth-

We criticize others. We believe that to be true. Similarly somebody criticizing us may feel that they are right and the criticism may well be true. What would you do then? What should we logically do when we know that we are weak in something? We should strengthen, right? So rather than worrying about the weakness, make that point strong in your life. Think of ways to improve and do it slowly.

Grudge and what to do about it-

Are you focusing on the person who criticizes you or on the content of the criticism? If you focus on the person your focus will shift to other person’s weaknesses and you will strike back with your list of criticisms. Instead focus on the criticism itself. Leave that person aside.

How to Handle Self Criticism?

There is a distinct difference between self criticism and criticism by others. Most of us are too happy to agree with whatever we bash ourselves with but when some body else tells us the same thing we attack right back. If I tell myself that I walk slowly that is Ok, but if my friend tells me the same thing, I take umbrage and tell them that that is not true at all. Why do we look at criticism so differently?

The trouble with this-

The trouble comes in two ways. If some body tells us something that is true we tend not to agree but if we criticise our selves wrongly we are too ready to accept that and go into a bout of depression. Expressions such as – I am no good, I am of no use, I always fail, no body appreciates me and so on are readily heard when some body criticizes oneself. The person believes them all and all efforts of self-help go to waste.

What to do-

If we treat both criticisms differently we will surely be in trouble. What should we do then? Let us look at this in another way to solve the problem. Remove the person who is making criticism from picture and only look at the criticism. Remove yourself or anybody else. That way you will only be paying attention to the criticism and will have no biased view. After this look at the criticism for truth. Is there any truth in this statement? Think logically and let no emotion enter the thoughts. With logic you will be able to analyze the situation clearly. If the criticism is wrong you will conclude that it is wrong and not true and vice versa. If you were to think about this any other way you would have reached a wrong conclusion.

There has never been a more opportune time to follow your heart and realize your dreams. However getting to the pot of gold is not always easy. It takes dedication, commitment and the willingness to do whatever it takes.

So how do you go on when the going gets tough. When you have dug and toiled, day after day, week after week, and you experience all kinds of disappointments and frustrations.

When you have used the best scientific data, indicating the best locations to dig and are still not finding the rich deposit, which you know is there somewhere. Or when you have developed the best looking website, developed the best product and what you think is the best sales copy, and you still fail to make the sales that you know should follow?

Do you say it is not working and give up, like the gold prospector in Napoleon Hill’s classic “think and grow rich”, who stopped just 3 feet from his pot of gold?

What do you do when everything you know, doesn’t seem to work?

The best thing to do is to take time out and become still. Yes, stop toiling for a while and make some quiet time, because it’s no use just hammering away if you are hitting at the wrong place.

The quiet time will help you reflect on what you have done so far and gain some new perspective. Take a book that has inspired you countless times or the Bible and read.

Don’t put pressure on yourself trying to find an answer, just let yourself go, any whichever way and the answers will come.

Take a piece of paper and just write. What about? Anything really. You can write about the confusion you feel.

Talk to yourself, not negative stuff that will make you feel worse then you already do, but tell yourself that you are getting the answers you are looking for. Don’t talk as someone who is without hope but talk like someone who knows it’s only a matter of time.

Most importantly though, listen to yourself, and then try again using some of the new insights you have gained from your inner person, your subconscious.

Sometimes, you’re at the right place, you just need to go 3 feet further down or 3 feet to the left, or right. Or sometimes the time just isn’t right and you just need to wait a little while longer.

But these are things no scientific data will ever tell you. This is something which comes from inside you, your subconscious mind which knows everything.

That is why it is important to take time out and listen, because if you don’t you may just miss the key you need and waste an awful lot of time and money.

Here’s something else you can do. Every time you feel discouraged or a little afraid, go and read about your icons or heroes. How they started out. How they felt, when they were still at the bottom, the things they said and did when it really got rough, and be inspired. If possible try and trace a childhood friend of your heroes and talk to them.

In his classic, “Think and Grow Rich” Napoleon Hill describes how his subjects held imaginary conversations with great men who went before them. The result was that afterwards they became more inspired.

Imagine having an intimate, one on one conversation with Bill Gates or Henry Ford, and asking them all the questions you’ve always wanted to ask them.

It would be awesome wouldn’t it. When you come out of there you will be so focused on your goal that nothing anybody say will discourage you.

Something else you should do is to continuously remind yourself that everybody who is now successful, was once at the very place where you are now. The important thing is that they didn’t remain there.

If you are serious about attaining your goals you will also not remain there. But remember, it requires commitment and dedication even through the tough times.

Oh, how sweet it is to hold that prize after all the struggling. That’s when you realize all the trials and tribulations were worth it. But you will never savor that experience, you will never know how good it feels when you give up.