Dr. Dahan's Daily Wisdom - Motivational Podcast

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 396 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond There is a story in a Talmud about a man who noticed that he was sitting by a stone, where there was a drop of water that kept on falling onto that rock. Those drops were unified but consistent. As he looked closer, he saw that in the rock, actually, the water had made a dent, a hole. It then occurred to him that this rock which was solid and made up of elements of total constriction allowed the water to make a hole in it. Yet water is so soft and almost evaporates if you leave it anywhere long enough. So, how could it be? And so he thought, if the rock itself could have a hole in it made by water, his mind, he was at the time in his 40s, could also absorb knowledge, wisdom, and he could therefore change himself. And so he did. He became one of the greatest men at the time, and wrote and elucidated on thousands of ideas and concepts. As a matter of fact, it is told in the Talmud, that he had over 24,000 students. Quite amazing, i

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 395 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond There is an interesting concept about the difference between water and fire. You see, the two cannot quite live together; let me explain. If water comes too close to fire, it will extinguish it. If the fire on the other hand is too hot, then it will make the water evaporate. So how do these two live together? There is a way they can live together. If you put the water in a pot and there is a metal separating them both, then the fire can go under the pot and heat up the water. Isn't that interesting? Now, from those two antithetical entities, there is now peace between them and they can live together, and the fire is helping the water become boiled so that you can use it for different things: to take a bath, to drink a cup of tea or coffee, to do whatever you wish with it. You see, what that it needs, however, is that “separation”. So let me give you perhaps some advice, if I may. Between a couple, there always has to be a time

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 394 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Have you ever thought about your life and what is stopping you from being the person that you wish to be? A writer once wrote, "The decision to be happy is actually the decision to stop being unhappy." Interesting, isn't it? At every single turn in your life, in every single moment, you have the opportunity to choose. Happiness is a decision; it's up to you. Now, you could be blocking yourself though and you can work on some of the most common interferences in your life. This includes, worry, regret, disappointments, conflicts that you see and discontent. You could say that you're lacking strength or capabilities, or you don't have the passion, or things are ambiguous. You could blame it on the fact that you're not successful or that you have doubts; that your dreams are not coming through; that your vision is being blocked, and that the goodness that you expect or feel you deserve is just not there. You could think of all these

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 393 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond I once read a story about two people who were stuck on a mountain. One immediately worried and started thinking, how will we get down? What will we do for food? How are we going to live? What will happen to my family? While the other immediately focus on the beauty of what was around. That person was able to look and admire, and appreciate the breadth of the amazing scenery. This is quite interesting, isn't it? At times we have the opportunity to look at things and recognize the beauty, recognize the goodness. Others, beat themselves up and think of the negative aspect: what is going to happen? What will be my future? What if I die? It's a deep thinking that we have within ourselves. So we can focus on the positive and live a better life. But then you ask, what about the negative? I'm not saying that you should forget the negative, ignor the challenges, or the grief that you're living with right now; I'm not saying that. What

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 392 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Everyone is looking for happiness. No matter who we are and in what circumstances, this is what each person in the world is looking for. This is what we long for. Happiness is the experience of the sheer joy of being alive. Now you see, it's such an important value that the Declaration of Independence identifies its Pursuit as one of only three undeniable rights. Isn't that amazing? You think about that. Now, most people think of happiness as being a time constraint concept: “if” I had this and “if” I had that, and “if only” this would happen. The “if-only” is the condition to the happiness. Happy people are accepting of themselves, and they don't spend precious time in regret. They accept others. They accept what they have and they realize who they are. There is a study reported in a journal in neurology which found that-happy and older people are less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease. Isn't that amazing? Studies also f

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 391 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond It is quite interesting to see how the world has evolved and keeps on evolving in that direction. Our wonderful world has become a consumer society and it hasn't stopped. We want more stuff and whatever we can get, if we don't get it, the media, the advertising, and the companies out there try to make us feel bad that we don't have that extra stuff. We need the latest computer, the latest phone, the latest car, the latest gadget, the latest clothes, the latest of anything, and it never stops. There's always more. There's always greater. All of it is there to entice us and there is a lack of nostalgia that if we don't have it, then we will not be satisfied. Quite interesting, isn't it? And it doesn't stop. Well, this will certainly cause us never to be happy. We're being bombarded daily with messages that make us feel miserable unless we consume more. It's an attempt for all these companies and projects out there, to make us feel

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 390 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond There is something which is in my own ways, a disease and this is my interpretation of it. I think many other people agree with me and that is to “envy others”. To be envious of others of what they have or the things that you should have, brings about such animosity in you, looking at them and saying, "How come they have that? Why don't I have it? I'm envious of what they have." If you look at your friends and they have more than you do, there's another question you need to ask: “Are they happy with what they have?” And this is the question that you will have to ask yourself: in pursuit of what you want to get, will you be happy at the end when you do get it? That's a question to ask. Think about it. There is a way that wise and experienced people have told us to react, and that is you should be envious of those who know more than you, those who have knowledge, understanding, wisdom. For that, you should be envious. But you sh

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 389 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Negative self-talk is something which is truly burdensome for everybody. Think about it for a moment. What that means is that in your mind, for whatever reason, you say, "I can't do this. I'm such a loser. I'm not good at this. I've made so many mistakes. Oh my goodness, I have two left hands. I'm not able to do this in the proper way. I will never reach that goal." On and on, and on, continuously putting yourself down. Why would you do that? You'll say, "Well, it's a fact, it's the truth. Look, I can't do it." The truth is, if you are given a task and something comes to you, it's not a haphazard circumstance. It's not just a random happening. It is because you can do it. It is your opportunity to shine. This is your ability to do what you can do for this world. Now, you might impress yourself, but not if you keep on talking negatively. This negative self-talk can only be detrimental and destructive. It will turn you into a catas

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 388 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Interestingly enough, there are people who live in ways where they see danger everywhere. You tell them, "By the way, have you checked your email?" And they respond, "Well, I can't check it now because I don't have the right access around the people that I'm in" When you ask them, "What does that mean?" They say, " Well, I don't want anyone to see my password." Have you gone and logged on to some of the projects you have? These people would often answer: "Well, I can't do this now because I don't want anyone else to see it." Or they hear news that and right away, they think that it's a most likely terrible news. They see things, and they think of the worst. They see danger everywhere in their lives, in the lives of others, and everything that they do is cautiously done. Everything brings harm to them. Now, whether it's the body or the mind, it goes in the “state of emergency”. Interestingly enough, there's a concept in scien

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 387 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond The pursuit of happiness is a subject that many people discussed over the last several thousand years. Now, I learned recently that according to the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America, it is an unalienable right. In fact, it says by one of the authors, the desire to be happy is at the root of all human endeavors. It doesn't come in the form of an ideal job or a perfect mate, or winning a lottery ticket, not at all. It is that once you get rid of expectations that are not real, but rather focus on what you've got, the authentic happiness can be yours. It's interesting, isn't it? The fact that it is, according to the Declaration of Independence a “right”. So everyone has that right, as a citizen of the United States of America, and it is written in the Declaration of Independence to be happy. Why would the forefathers, of this beautiful country make that a “right”? Very simple. People have been prosecute

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 386 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Imagine what a very wise man said “A soul may descend to this world and a live 70 or 80 years in order to do another person material favor or perhaps even a spiritual one”. This is quite an interesting statement. Can you imagine that? Knowing that you are here down on Earth for a certain amount of time and let's say, 70, 80, 90 years, however many years a person lives today, and that is to do one favor to another person. Isn't that an awesome responsibility? The ability to see the world every single day as an opportunity for you to do better. So imagine if you could open your eyes to see only the good in every single person no matter who they are, no matter what they do, that's what you see. Imagine that you could see the positive in every circumstance and when these things happen, that's what you see. It's something that is positive and that you can turn into a greater opportunity. And imagine the opportunity that you see, is

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 385 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond A wise man once said, that “Every single thing one sees or hears is an instruction for his conduct in the service and his mission in this world”. This is the idea of service, to comprehend and discern in all things or in all ways in which to serve to the mission. Now, many people would argue, saying, “what is really my mission?” Your mission in this world since you were born, is very simple. It is to be the best that you can be by using all your abilities, all your talents, all the things that you know to make this place a better place. This could be by speaking, perhaps writing, cooking, singing, walking, working, whatever it maybe. If you are good at something, that talent was given to you for a specific reason. This ability to do whatever it is that you have, is a talent given to you for one specific reason: to use the most of it in this life and change the way the world sees all of the things that they see. By knowing thi

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 384 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Have you ever thought of the way that you can enhance your life and make it more beautiful and attainable for everyone to be happy, including yourself? There is a straightforward way. It's simple, it is common and it is equally applicable and suitable to every single person on Earth, and this matter, actually is a very close to you. In-as-much as this technique involves an uncomplicated way. Here it is: it's to arouse and kindle the light of the love that is implanted and concealed in the heart of other people. It is accessible to everyone. Now, this love is already found in the heart of every single person but it is in a concealed way, and utilizing this approach makes it very simple for every single person to reveal it and actualize it. What it does, is make it shine forth with an intense light, like a flaming fire. This is in the consciousness of the heart and the mind, and ultimately. It enables a person to surrender his sou

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 383 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Isn't it interesting how sometimes you have an idea, a concept, something that you're thinking about and we often use the expression "It is at my fingertips but I can't put my mind or my heart, or clearly find what it is? I could feel it on my fingertips." Now, why is this concept about the “fingertips”? It's interesting. People say this because the fingertips are very sensitive. As a matter of fact, if you've ever given chills to a child or caressed his skin, you find that by using your fingertips, the child is soothed. This movement of striking, brushing calmly, in a very quiet way, soothes the child. The fingers of the hand, have this ability to soothe people. This soothing is because we feel through touch, and the touch itself is at the tip of those fingers. So the fingertips have this ability to change someone else's mood, feeling or affection just because of where it is. This concept is quite interesting if you think abo

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 382 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond There are two approaches to grow that should be taken in consideration. One is you must do everything that you can in order to change. The first thing that you need to do in this case is to fight your evil completely. You can't take baby steps in this case; you have to come out swinging all the way. For instance, if alcohol is your challenge and you say, "I'll have only three drinks instead of four," you will never win. Taking small steps in the right direction it's like building a sandcastle on the beach: it will be washed away by the first wave of the raging sea. So another concept to consider here is, you need every single ounce of energy to fight the darkness outside. And this is the good news with this first approach, that “tomorrow it will be better and a bit easier”. You will need only less of the efforts, and eventually, you'll get rid of the darkness completely. That is the first approach: full swing, full strength. He

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 381 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond In life, you can do whatever you wish. That is the dignity that we were given as human beings. Quite amazing, but it's truthful. You see, however, the miracle is not to finish; the miracle is having the courage to start. Every single process, every single ideas and inspiration starts with a step, the first step. And your job won't take care of you at any given time; you have to take care of it. Also, your friends and family will, because life is an adventure in forgiveness, not of the things that have happened but the things that we want to do. If you did good, celebrate that you have G-d on your side and He was there with you in your good work, and if you fell on your face and things didn't happen to be the way that you wanted them to be, then celebrate that you have G-d on your side who didn't abandon you when you fell. Life as you see is not about waiting for the storm to pass; it's about learning how to dance in the rain, and

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 380 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond If you want to build a new city, the first thing that you have to do is you have, often, to destroy everything that is in its pathway so you can rebuild. This destruction is not negative; it's actually something which will turn out to be positive. So first, we have to plow the field and bulldozer everything that is there. The plowing itself is something that is necessary so that you can rebuild and put something new: much nicer, much greater, much better. This new concept, this new building, is going to bring so much more to the world and yourself and everything that you do. It is the same thing with our personalities. In order for us to change, we have to, metaphorically speaking, plow ourselves. That means we have to soften our hardened psyche so that new growth can take place, and we have to overturn our previous selves. This will make way for our new self, the new person that we want to be. So the plowing is important; the p

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 379 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond If you want to become better or change your life, the first thing that you need to do is you need to turn away from bad, things that are evil. By turning away from evil, you will then be able to do good. Now you might ask, "Why can't I do both?" Well, if you keep on doing the things which are not good, it's going to be very difficult and challenging to do the things which are good. Let's take, for instance, a bad habit, something of like addiction, something which is not good for you. You don't have to stop it all the way, but you certainly have to start by making the decision that you will decrease that negative activity and replacing it with something which is good. So if you're eating, for instance, too many foods which are not good for you, to cut all at once will be challenging, difficult, and often, impossible to achieve. But you could certainly start eating less of that particular food which is not good and start replacin

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 378 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond Last night, my grandchildren were visiting me. They were all laying each on one little cot, one next to each other. They're all cousins and all four of them were laying with their faces towards heaven. Four angelic faces. Children who are sleeping is the most beautiful painting that you could have. It's artistry in its ultimate level. It's something to cherish. Seeing young children sleep, knowing that they are dreaming, knowing that they are somewhere in heaven thinking and loving one another. They were there, they did not know that I was standing there, but I was watching them. What a beautiful thought, what a beautiful picture, one that I will never forget. Looking at children gives us the ability to dream and see that our dreams are possible and not just possible for us but possible for them, and we pray and hope every day that these children will grow up to be productive, good human beings, and that they save the world from

Daily Wisdom  – Motivational Podcast – Day 377 – Inspiration: Above and Beyond I want to share with you an experience which I had yesterday. As I was walking, I passed a young couple, and the woman looked at me and waved and I said hello, and they said hello to me. Interestingly enough, they asked me, "How are you doing?" I said, "Thank God, very well." The man answered back, "Great." I asked him, as he was walking right by me, "What about you?" He said, "Better every day." I was so astonished by that beautiful answer, better every day. Imagine seeing your life as though every single day is a simple yet focused entity on its own, and every single day you imagine that this day is the last day of your life and you try to make it better than the day before. By doing this, you look at your life and try to improve it continuously, and that's what this man said to me: better every day. This means to me, and I'm not sure of all the details, but I can only assume that this man had analyzed his life that morning