Personal

TRANSFORMATION
How to Use Ancient Wisdom to Create a
New Life of Success and Happiness
For Yourself

Dr. Tim Ong

M.B.B.S.

1
Personal
TRANSFORMATION
How to Use Ancient Wisdom to Create
A New Life of Success and Happiness for Yourself
By Dr. Tim Ong (M.B.B.S.)

First Published December 2004

Copyright 2004 by Dr. Tim Ong
The author has asserted his rights in accordance with the Copyright
Act 1987

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or

reproduced or utilized in any form, by print, electronic, mechanical, or
any other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval
system, without permission in writing from the author.

Book Production by:

The Book of Transformation
Tel: +603-90767480
Fax: +603-90757108
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.bookoftransformation.com

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 Daily Nourishment

Nourish Your Spirit with Stillness

Nourish Your Mind with Knowledge
Nourish Your Heart with Unconditional Love
Nourish Your Body with Living Food
Nourish Your Relationships with Thoughtfulness

- Dr. Tim Ong, 2005

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Books by Dr. Tim Ong

1. The Book of Personal Transformation

2. Meditation: Ancient Tool for Personal
Transformation
3. Mind That Heals, Mind That Hurts
4. A Doctor's Reflection on A Spiritual Life

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Chapter:
1. Mind is the Forerunner of All States
2. Change Your Beliefs and You Change Your Life
3. Principle of Accountability
4. Open Your Heart to Love
5. Whatever You Resist Persists
6. Three Stumbling Blocks and Their Antidotes
7. Attitude of Gratitude, Altruistic Joy and Abundance
8. Creating Your Day
9. Crystallizing Your Thoughts
10. Daily Checklist for Personal Transformation

Final Words

Recommended Resources

About the Author

5
Introduction

My interest in personal transformation started way back in 1986. At

that time, I was still a medical student. There were not as many gurus
then compared to now and good self-help books and resources were
hard to come by.

But I was determined to make a success of my life, and so I laid my

hands on whatever books and resources I could find and learned from
all of them. I had an open mind and that, I realized, was critically
important for my success today. Once I learned the "secrets" of
success, I immediately put them into practice. Pretty soon, I was
reaping the rewards of my faith in what I have learned.

The one thing I learned was that these secrets of success were not
secrets at all. Anyone who has learned this knowledge and put it into
practice in his or her life will DEFINITELY create a success for himself
or herself. All these secrets are nothing but universal laws, and being
universal laws they are predictable and replicable.

It works for everyone!

Anyone who wants to transform himself or herself needs to start with

this knowledge. This book provides you with that critical knowledge.

The knowledge presented here is not new, of course. In fact, it is old -

very old - thus I call this knowledge ancient wisdom. These are the
teachings handed down to us from mystics and sages of old. Their
wisdom is timeless. What I have done here is to present it in a
contemporary manner that you can easily understand.

There is an old saying:

WHEN THE STUDENT IS READY, THE TEACHER WILL APPEAR

I believe in it and I believe that you did not come across this book by
chance. It happens because you attracted it into your life.

However, here's a word of caution.

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The principles presented here may seem simple -- even obvious -- and
there is a danger that because of their simplicity, they may be
regarded as useless. That would be the greatest mistake!

While they are simple to understand, these principles are not easy to
follow, and even more difficult to master. It has been said that even
an eight year-old child may understand them but an 80-year old man
cannot practice them unless he puts in the right effort.

So, spend some time reading and understanding the universal

principles in this book. Then, start re-inventing yourself and your life
by putting these principles into practice in your life. Begin to live your
life well and choose to be the master of your own destiny.

There are ten articles in this book. Each article touches on a very
important principle of success and happiness. Put into practice each
one of them and you will change your life forever.

You will be able to achieve what you want in life.

Remember that knowledge alone is NOT enough. You must practice

what you have learned. I cannot emphasize this enough. Make each
one of these principles a part of your life and you WILL achieve
success and happiness!

To help you put these principles into practice, I've also provided some
useful resources at the end of this book to make it easier for you to
implement them.

These principles have worked for me and for countless others who are
now enjoying their successes and happiness. I'd like you to join the
success club.

To Your Success & Happiness!

Dr. Tim Ong (M.B.B.S)

http://www.bookoftransformation.com
25 December 2004

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 The Book of
Personal Transformation

8
Chapter 1:
Mind is the Forerunner of All States

Our lives and the circumstances we live in are largely the result of our
own thoughts and beliefs. The sum total of our thoughts, if they are
positive, will result in a positive life for us. The converse is just as true.
If we think negatively most of the time, we tend to attract negative
circumstances into our life.

This great truth is known to all mystics and ancient sages. They may
have said it in different ways but they all point to the same thing.

The Buddhists know this as the Law of Kamma. Jesus said, "You reap
what you sow." If you plant an apple seed, you get an apple tree. The
seed is your thought imprint. The apple tree is what is manifested in
your physical world. The ancient Egyptians called this phenomenon...

AS WITHIN, SO WITHOUT

What they meant is that our outer physical world and circumstances
are merely reflections of our inner mental realities.

Our thoughts are energetic waves and they are subjected to the Law
of Sympathetic Resonance. According to this law, when an object
with a specific frequency vibrates and is brought near another object
with similar frequency, it will cause the second object to vibrate as
well.

The classic example for this is that of a singer with a high-pitched

voice breaking a glass. In science classes, this same principle is
demonstrated by bringing a vibrating tuning fork to another tuning
fork with similar frequency. The second tuning fork will start to vibrate
on its own.

In modern times, this universal principle is called the Universal Law

of Attraction.

It is important to note that the second object can only vibrate if it is of

similar frequency to the first object. What this means is that…

LIKE ATTRACTS LIKE

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The same principle applies to our thoughts and beliefs. The more good
thoughts we have, the better our lives will be. The more positive
thoughts we have the more positive circumstances we encounter in
our lives. The same is true with the negative.

Another important principle to remember is that….

OUR MIND CANNOT DIFFERENTIATE GOOD FROM BAD

More accurately, our subconscious and unconscious mind cannot

differentiate the good from the bad. This is because our subconscious
mind largely represents our mind in its natural state - a mind that is
pure and non- judgmental. Thus our conscious mind gets the
important task of being the gatekeeper - guarding the thoughts that
get into our subconscious mind.

If you've ever tried to guard the thoughts that get into your
subconscious mind, then you'll know what a formidable task this is.
The more mindful or aware you are, the easier it is to guard what goes
through your mind. We will deal with this mindfulness or self-
awareness later.

EXERCISE

Start applying these principles in your life by doing these:

1. Guard every thought carefully. Be a conscious gatekeeper to

your subconscious mind. Remember that whatever you think
about, especially when combined with the emotions of desire or
fear, you will attract into your life. So make sure you attract
what you want for your life by constantly thinking only about
what you truly want.

2. Feed your mind constantly with new information, images and

ideas of the person you want to be and the life you want to live.
By creating this inner attitude of your mind, you change the
outer aspects of your reality.

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Chapter 2:
Change Your Beliefs and You Change Your
Life

Our mind is to our body what the software is to the computer. It

controls the body. Whatever words and deeds that come out through
your mouth or your body must first be conceived in your mind. Our
belief system is comparable to the computer's operating system (OS).
It determines....

1. how we respond or react to the external world and

circumstances
2. what we attract into our life.

If you look carefully at yourself, you'll realize that how you respond to
a certain situation is largely dependent on your core beliefs. If you
believe that the world out there is a 'dog-eat-dog world', you'll
respond in a certain way. You'll put on your guard when you deal with
people around you, with a greater degree of mistrust and
apprehension. This is a common mindset in the business world.

Contrast that with your mindset when you're in a sacred place, for
example in a church or a temple. Your responses toward people in
such places are entirely different from your usual dealing with your
business associates. Even your words become softer and gentler. Your
entire mannerism changes.

So how we respond to the external world depends on our core beliefs.

The second fact to remember, and this is important if we want to

change our life, is that our core beliefs also determine what we attract
into our life. This is consistent with the Universal Law of Attraction,
that says 'like attracts like'.

This is because our belief system is like our computer's operating

system. If your computer is running a Windows OS, your mind will
only be attracted to software and programs that are compatible
with the Windows environment. It automatically overlooks
programs for Macs and Linux because you know you cannot run
those programs in your PC. Thus our belief system may limit our
possibilities in life.

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Likewise, if you believe in scarcity (as opposed to a belief in
abundance), you'll attract circumstances into your life that is
consistent with that belief and so you'll find yourself in constant
struggle to accumulate the wealth you want. Note that what you
believe need not be what you want.

What this means is that...

WHATEVER YOUR MIND CONCEIVES AND BELIEVES,

IT ACHIEVES

... without fail!

In fact, this truth is so important that I will repeat it once more.

WHATEVER YOUR MIND CONCEIVES AND BELIEVES,

IT ACHIEVES... without fail!

Like a seed, the imprints in our mind will bear fruit when
circumstances are conducive for its ripening. How fast and whether a
belief manifests itself in our physical reality is dependent on:

1. the strength of our belief

2. the duration we hold that belief.

The stronger and longer we hold our belief, the more likely it is to
crystallize or come true in our life.

By knowing this, we can therefore change our life by changing our

belief systems. What we need to do is to recognize our present belief
systems which are not working for us and replace those beliefs with
those that will work in our favor. Hold these new beliefs long enough
and we'll change the outer reality of our life.

This is the key to re-inventing your life.

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EXERCISE

Here's how you can apply this principle in your life:

1. Sieve through your mind and identify your core beliefs. Write
them down and see for yourself how your behavior has been
consistent with your core beliefs.

2. Select and change the core beliefs that are not working for you
and replace them with those that work. For example, if you
previously believe in scarcity, you should now replace that with
the belief in abundance. Hold this new belief strongly and long
enough and your behavior will automatically change to become
consistent with your new belief and you'll attract abundance
into your life.

That's a certainty!

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Chapter 3:
Principle of Accountability

Once we understand the concept of

AS WE SOW, SO WE REAP

we will understand that whatever we get out of our lives is a result of

what we have planted in our mind. Our past mental imprints
determine our present situation in life, and the mental imprints that
we plant now will determine our future situation.

The ancient sages liken this to planting a garden. If we want a

beautiful garden, we will have to selectively plant beautiful plants.
What is equally important is that we must constantly pull out the
weeds. Otherwise, our garden will be overrun by weeds, obscuring the
beautiful plants.

Likewise, to plant a beautiful life, we must select only the mental

imprints that we want, and constantly weed out the useless or harmful
mental imprints. This, of course, requires constant mindfulness. We
need to continuously guard what goes pass our conscious mind into
our subconscious mind.

What this means is that ...

WE ARE FULLY RESPONSIBLE AND ACCOUNTABLE

FOR OUR LIVES

We cannot blame anyone or anything for what is happening in our

lives. Unfortunately, we often have this unhealthy tendency to blame
someone or something. We unconsciously look for someone to blame
when things go wrong in our lives rather than accept that we reap
what we sow.

Funnily, though, when good things come into our lives, we somehow
believe we deserve them. We rarely look outside for someone to
praise. If we would blame others for the bad things, why do we not
praise others for the good things in our lives?

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Blaming others is our way of avoiding taking responsibility for our
lives. As long as we do that, we will never be the master of our lives.
To counter this unhealthy tendency, we should instead cultivate a
sense of gratitude towards all that we receive.

One of the ways I do this is by repeating the following poem like a

mantra as often as I can remember:

Thank you for the abundance,

Thank you for the wealth;
Thank you for all the happiness,
Protection and Good Health.

Repeat this mantra consistently every night before you sleep and you'll
soon experience the pleasant changes in your life.

EXERCISE

Here are two other methods you can use to cultivate a sense of
gratitude:

1. The Gratitude Book

At the end of each day, review your day and count your
blessings. Write these down in a little note book. You may call
this note book your Gratitude Book. By doing this consistently,
you'll be retraining your mind to focus on the positive aspects of
your life. Why is this important? Because like attracts like. The
more you focus on the positive in life, the more positive things
will come your way.

2. Altruistic Joy
Altruistic joy is a concept borrowed from the Buddhists. It means
rejoicing at other people's good fortune. This practice counters
our tendency to be envious of another person's success. Each
time we rejoice at another person's success, we are basically
planting joyful imprints in our mind, thereby sowing seeds of
joy for our own future.

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Chapter 4:
Open Your Heart to Love

Many people live a life without love.

They cannot love themselves, and therefore they cannot love anyone
else. Some even feel that they do not deserve love. The sad fact is
that without love, no matter what else you have in life, it's not
enough. We need to love ourselves unconditionally in order to live
fully.

The love I'm referring to here is not romantic love.

Love here refers to unconditional, universal love and respect for life
- yours and everyone else's. We are all capable of this type of love. In
fact, if we can strip ourselves of all our negative emotions, imprints
and ego, what remains is pure, unconditional love. That is who we are
underneath all the layers of impurities that we have accumulated.

The problem is that we have forgotten how to love. We have to learn

to open our heart to love again.

OPEN YOUR HEART TO LOVE

There are four steps involved in opening our heart to love:

1. Acceptance
2. Forgiveness
3. Expression
4. Actions

ACCEPTANCE

First, we have to accept that we are capable of love - pure,

unconditional, selfless love! We have to accept the need to express
this form of love in our life in order to live fully.

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FORGIVENESS

Next, we have to learn to forgive - ourselves and everyone else,

especially those whom have hurt us in the past. Learning to forgive is
not a choice. It is a necessity! We need to forgive in order to heal
ourselves and make ourselves whole again. If we cannot forgive, we
cannot move forward. We will continue to carry old wounds and
burden with us. When we forgive, we let go of all these wounds and
burden, and instantly feel lighter and stronger to move forward.

Forgiving does not mean forgetting.

It means we're willing to let go of the past and willing to give

ourselves the freedom to start afresh without encumbering ourselves
with the old wounds. We remember the lessons without bitterly
holding on to the pain. We do not wish to blame anyone anymore.

There are three types of forgiving:

1. Forgiving those who have hurt us

2. Forgiving ourselves for hurting others
3. Forgiving ourselves for hurting ourselves

To open our heart to love, we must learn to love ourselves first. To do

that, we need to start by forgiving ourselves for all our shortcomings
and mistakes. We need to stop blaming ourselves. We stop blaming
others and circumstances. It does not mean that we do not accept
responsibility for our actions. What it does mean is that we recognize
our weaknesses and mistakes and wish to give ourselves another
chance to make our life work for us.

TO ERR IS HUMAN, TO FORGIVE DIVINE

Forgiveness is an expression of compassion. Our compassion should

not be extended to just other beings but also to ourselves. If we are
not compassionate to ourselves, it is difficult to show true compassion
to others. So forgive yourself!

EXPRESSION

Our life is an expression of all our mental and emotional imprints. All
these imprints find expression outwardly in our life sooner or later. The

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sooner they are expressed, the more liberating it feels. Bottled up
inside, the negative imprints can grow into something potentially more
harmful and malignant. We need to give these negative imprints a
chance to be expressed constructively so that we can release all the
pent up energies we hold inside us - energies that can manifest
physically as illnesses and emotionally as fear, anger, frustration, guilt,
doubt and lack of self-esteem.

Here are some suggestions on ways to express yourself and transform

negative, pent up energies into positive, liberating energies.

1. Keep a personal journal

2. Sharing with trusted friends and support groups
3. Professional counseling or therapy

ACTION

Action here refers to actual acts of loving-kindness in our lives. Like all
habits, we need to integrate this into our daily lives in order for it to
become a part of us.

Here are some exercises to help generate more feeling of loving-

kindness towards all beings:

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EXERCISE

1. Loving-Kindness Meditation
Generating unconditional love requires effort at first. The Buddhist's
Metta Meditation is a good meditation to help generate
unconditional love towards all beings.

2. Eliminating Prejudices
Universal love is unconditional and without any bias or prejudice. If
you have a certain prejudice towards certain people or race, try to
make an extra effort to love them unconditionally. For example, if
you are biased against Muslims in general, make an extra effort to
seek out Muslim orphanages or old folks homes to give gifts during
a New Year celebration or a special occasion.

3. Perform an Unconditional Act of Love Daily

There are many things you can do daily to show your unconditional
love. For example, we often do not notice the mailman, or the
garbage collector. In the office, we often do not notice the tea lady
and maintenance staff. Do you know who cleans your office daily?
Make an effort to know these people as a person.

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Chapter 5:
Whatever We Resist Persists

Old habits die hard.

We have the tendency to repeat old mistakes and resist change

although we know deep down inside that change is inevitable. Nothing
stays the same forever. The nature of life is change, so the sooner we
accept this fact and use it to our personal advantage, the better.

People who are successful and happy are people who have mastered
change. They do not stay in their old comfort zones for they
understand that in order for growth to occur, they must have the
courage to live outside their comfort zones. Like a potted plant whose
growth is limited by the size of the pot; it knows that only by breaking
the pot and allow its roots to sink into the ground can it grow bigger
and stronger.

So, today, let us do what needs to be done. Let us…

FACE OUR FEARS

Facing our fears require courage. It means looking at ourselves as we

truly are, stripped of all the masks and façade. It means being truly
honest with ourselves. That is why transformation and re-inventing
oneself is often considered the way of the warriors. This is, as M. Scott
Peck says, the road less traveled.

Let us not be the proverbial ostrich who sticks its head into a hole
each time it faces a threat. Instead, let us be courageous enough to
face our own shadow - our ego! Today, let us begin to be a warrior.

"A man's true greatness lies in the consciousness of an honest

purpose in life, founded on a just estimate of himself and
everything else, on frequent self examination and a steady
obedience to the rules which he knows to be right, without
troubling himself about what others may think or say, or
whether they do or do not do that which he thinks and says and
does." - Marcus Aurelius

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MASTERING CHANGE

Do not resist change for doing so will only end in disappointment.

Since change is inevitable, no one can stop the changes in life.
However, we can always choose to change for the better. We can
always change for personal and spiritual growth.

Here are a few areas we can change:

1. Our attitude
2. Our beliefs
3. Our habits and tendencies in thoughts, words and actions

If you're not the person you want to be yet, you need to make some
changes in all these areas. Examine your attitude, your belief systems
and your tendencies in thoughts, speech and actions. Keep what is
wholesome and beneficial to your personal growth and transformation
and change the unwholesome and harmful ones. This you MUST do if
you wish to re-invent yourself.

ADOPT A POSITIVE ATTITUDE

Our attitude determines our altitude in life. So examine your own

attitude in life right now and see why you are stuck in your current
situation. Then make the effort to replace this negative attitude with a
more positive and wholesome one.

Your first step in self transformation must begin with this change in
attitude. Without this change, you'll continue to be stuck in your
present situation.

EMBRACE AN EFFECTIVE BELIEF SYSTEM

Here are some important beliefs you must embrace into your new
belief system:

1. Believe in your own divinity

2. Believe in unconditional love
3. Believe in abundance
4. Believe in gratitude

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Embracing these new beliefs is like erasing your own software and
replacing it with a new one. These new beliefs will be more beneficial
to your success and happiness than the old ones that have become an
impediment to your happiness. You have outlived your own software
and must upgrade to this new one in order to rise to a new level of
achievement.

CREATE HABITS OF SUCCESS

As we have mentioned earlier, old habits die hard. To change old

habits and replace them with new ones, new effort must be exerted in
our thoughts and speech. In fact, by changing just our thoughts, our
speech and action will automatically change. Here are some exercises
you need to do:

EXERCISE

1. Replace negative thoughts with positive thoughts

2. Understand that words have great power and so use this

power with care

3. Perform an act of kindness every day. Simple acts of kindness

in thoughts, words and deeds, when practiced daily, become
a habit.

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Chapter 6:
Three Stumbling Blocks and Their
Antidotes

Understanding the reasons for our resistance is helpful in overcoming

it. So let's take a look at three major stumbling blocks and their
antidotes.

The Three Stumbling Blocks and Their Antidotes

There are three major stumbling blocks that may prevent a person
from achieving transformation in his or her life. They are:

1. doubt
2. fear
3. inaction

DOUBT

Doubt arises when we do not believe in the truth of what is taught.

One of the problems with doubt is that we normally require proof of
the validity of the teachings. Yet the problem with this particular
stance is that "the proof of the pie is in the eating". If you do not eat
it, no amount of description about the pie by another will give you the
taste of the pie.

In order to know this path, you must walk the path. Only then can you
experience the truth of the teachings.

Even so, for those who require proof, there are ample examples of
those who have walked the path and enjoyed its fruits. All the ancient
sages knew and taught this truth. Deep down inside, even we
ourselves know this to be true. Why else would we respect and be in
awe at the achievements of these ancient sages if we do not think that
their achievements are truly great? But it is a greatness we ourselves
can achieve as well. We just need to walk this less traveled but proven
path.

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The antidote for doubt is faith - faith in the teachings and
achievements of all the great ancient sages and mystics, faith in the
universality of their teachings and faith in our own divinity. And why
should we not have such faith? After all, there are many examples of
people who choose to follow this path and each of them has been able
to achieve the joy and happiness they want.

FEAR

Fear is a characteristic of our ego. Our ego has a great need to

preserve its own existence. In fact, our ego is the proverbial devil who
cunningly blind us to our real divine nature.

Fear arises because in walking this path, we will eventually eliminate

our ego. The destination of this path is the death of the ego. Our ego
knows this and so it works to preserve its own existence by sowing
doubt and fear in our mind. This results in inaction or a resistance to
change.

When we resist, our present form persist. Thus, our ego remains
intact. It saves itself.

The antidote for fear is courage - the courage to accept that we are
indeed divine beings and that we have the capacity to love
unconditionally, even ourselves, or rather especially ourselves. Many
of us feel that we do not deserve love and so shut ourselves off from
this unconditional love that we would so easily give to others. Yet
without unconditionally loving ourselves, we cannot give true
unconditional love to others.

Thus, we need the courage to believe what we know to be true and

the courage to do what we know we must do in order to achieve the
best that we can achieve for ourselves.

INACTION

Inaction is the result of doubt and fear, and laziness. We have this
inert tendency to stay as we are, instead of exerting effort for change.
This is the inertia inherent in all things, the resistance to change. We
prefer our familiar comfort zone, even when we are not happy in it.

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We need to overcome our doubt and fear, and then put in the effort to
change - to overcome our inaction. The struggle is similar to pushing a
big heavy boulder down a slope. In the beginning, the resistance is
great. It is at its maximum. We need to put in extra effort to move it.
However, once it has begun to move we only need to exert minimal
force to keep it moving and soon it will be rolling down the slope on its
own. As it rolls down, it will in fact gather more momentum to
continue moving forward.

The antidote for inaction is therefore effort.

EXERCISE

1. Create a list of the things you fear. Arrange them with your
greatest fear on top of the list and your smallest fear at the
bottom. Then confront this fear in a sensible way and slowly
eliminate each fear from your list, beginning with the smallest
fear and working upward to your greatest fear.

25
Chapter 7:
Attitude of Gratitude, Altruistic Joy and
Abundance

Bertrand Russell, the great British philosopher said, "One of the

greatest discoveries of our time is that man, by changing the inner
attitude of his mind, can alter the outer aspects of his life". This is
what the ancient Egyptians called "As Within, So Without".

To transform our life from the inside out, we need to adopt a positive
attitude towards life in general. Three important attitudes deserve a
special mention here. They are:

1. Attitude of Gratitude
2. Attitude of Altruistic Joy
3. Attitude of Abundance

Most people do not truly understand why these attitudes are

important. Even those who actually adopt these attitudes in their life
may not fully realize the implications of these attitudes.

We can begin to understand the immense importance of adopting

these attitudes in our life when we understand the Law of
Sympathetic Resonance that says, "Like attracts like". In other
words, the mental imprints we have created in our mind will result in
actual corresponding physical reality in our life. It is as though the
mental imprints attract these conditions to our life. In reality, it is the
fruition of the mental imprints, like an apple seed that has begun to
bear fruit. Thus the proverb, "We reap what we sow."

Now, here is why these attitudes are important:

GRATITUDE

Grateful people fix their attention to the good that the universe has to
offer. They expect good things to happen to them and so draw
goodness to themselves.

People who are grateful for what they have or what they have received
focus their mind on what they have, not on what they have not.

26
Although the gift they received may be small or of little value, they are
thankful to have received them; according to the Law of Sympathetic
Resonance, i.e. 'like attracts like'. This sense of gratitude, by focusing
on what they have, will result in more similar circumstances coming
their way. Thus, they will continue to receive.

ALTRUISTIC JOY

Altruistic joy is a concept borrowed from the Buddhists. It is a habit of

rejoicing in the happiness and success of others. This is a good remedy
for ill-will towards others.

People who have the habit of practicing altruistic joy focus their mind
on happiness and success, thus attracting these two things into their
own life. In contrast, if we were to have ill-will towards others, we will
be attracting more corresponding negative situations into our own life.
Thus, it is true that we cannot achieve happiness by inflicting
unhappiness onto others. We can only achieve happiness by giving
happiness to others, and sharing in their happiness.

ABUNDANCE

People with an attitude of abundance are generally charitable and love

to share what they have with others, even when they do not have
much to give. It is not the amount you give that matters. What truly
matters is the spirit in which you give. When you give freely, believing
that you will always have more than enough to go around, this mental
imprint will attract the corresponding condition into your life.

27
EXERCISE

1. Attitude of Gratitude and Abundance

At the end of each day, recite this little poem:

Thank you for the abundance,

Thank you for the wealth.
Thank you for all the happiness,
Protection and good health.

If you practice this little exercise earnestly, you will be

surprised by the positive changes that come your way.

28
Chapter 8:
Creating Your Day

The first hour of your day strongly determines how your entire day
would turn out. If you start off the day grumpily or angrily, you're
likely to end up with a totally grumpy or angry day unless you are
alert enough to catch the mood and actively choose to discard it.

This is why it is always important to get a good night sleep so that

you awake alert, fully refreshed and eager to face another day.
Waking like this is the best way to set the mood for the entire day.

In my own experience, going to bed after midnight often results in an

unsatisfactory sleep. I wake up in the morning still groggy and tired,
and it takes me a while to "warm up" for the day.

Knowing this, I have my own routine of going to bed at about eleven

at night and waking up fresh and fully rested at about seven the next
morning.

The first thing I do when I wake up is to reach out for my little "Book
of Daily Devotion to God" by my bedside. In this book, there is a
good phrase, suggestion or advice for each day of the year. By reading
it, I automatically program my mind with a positive thought. This
becomes my first thought for the day and set the trend for the type of
thoughts I will have for the rest of the day.

The next thing I do is to sit in meditation for 20 to 30 minutes, and

sometimes even for an hour. In this quiet space, I train my mind to be
focused on one single object. With the mind concentrated, there is
peace and tranquility. This peace is useful as you carry it with you
throughout the day, making you a calmer and more composed person.

MEDITATION

Meditation is such an important exercise for the mind that we need to

delve on it a bit more here.

The goal of meditation is to still the mind and one of the ways to do
this is to focus the mind on one single object. This object of meditation
can be anything we choose to focus on, but it should preferably be

29
neutral to our emotion and perception. Many meditation masters
advocate using our breath as an object of meditation. Others use an
image of a holy and respected saint or teacher, or the sound of a
venerated word such as "Om".

It does not matter what you choose for your object of meditation but
what is important is that you stick to this same object throughout your
meditation.

Focusing your mind on a single object is not as easy as it may sound.

Our mind is habitually fleeting and jumping from one object of focus to
another, very much like a monkey swinging from one branch to
another. The only difference, and this is a very important point, is that
unlike a monkey that may stop to rest, our mind never stops thinking -
even when we're asleep.

We all know that old habits die hard. To change our mind from one
that jumps from one topic to another to one that is completely focused
on a single object is not an easy feat. However, with determined
practice and effort, this single-pointedness of the mind can be
achieved. Once it is achieved, you will experience for yourself the
peace and tranquility that is the inherent nature of that mental silence.
On top of that, you will also experience more clarity and insight into
the true nature of your being.

When meditation becomes a natural part of your daily practice, you

will achieve a permanent change in your personality and outlook in
life. Your mind and your life become happier and more focused on
what is truly important in life. You will find a preference to slow down
your life rather than madly chasing after everything as if a 24-hour
day is not enough for you. You will learn to trust your instinct as you
become more comfortable with your divinity. You will realise that you
are a spiritual being experiencing life through your physical body, but
not limited to your physical body. Your goal in life, whatever you
choose to focus on, becomes more easily achievable as your new
positive mental imprints attract corresponding conditions into your life.

In short, success becomes easier.

30
EXERCISE

1. Meditation

Learn to meditate from a good meditation teacher. Then, set

aside at least 20 minutes each day for your meditation practice.
Seriously discipline yourself to acquire this habit of daily
meditation and you will truly experience a transformative life.

2. Book of Daily Devotion to God

Get a good book with daily quotes and tips for the entire year.
Put it next to your bed where you can easily reach out for it
when you wake up in the morning. Read the quote or tip for the
corresponding day first thing in the morning when you wake up
and set your mind in that positive mood for the rest of the day.

31
Chapter 9:
Crystallizing Your Thoughts

All the information and knowledge on self-improvement are of no use

unless you use them to transform your thoughts and ideas into
physical results. Just knowing is not enough to succeed. You MUST
put in the effort to crystallize your thoughts.

There are two levels you must work on:

1. The formless world

2. The physical world

FROM FORMLESS TO FORM

Everything that you see in this physical world was first conceived in
the formless world of thoughts and ideas. Every thought or idea draws
unto itself all the necessary sustenance from the formless, creating
opportunities and attracting resources and other similar ideas to come
together, until the idea achieves maturity and crystallizes in the
physical world.

This is a process of creation and there is a certain sequence to this

entire process of creation. Whether you create a new object or a new
you, the process is always the same.

Whatever it is that you want to achieve in life, these are the steps you
need to transform your ideas into reality:

1. Desire
2. Belief and Faith
3. Visualization
4. Auto-suggestion
5. Specialized Knowledge and/or Experience
6. Organized Planning
7. Persistence

The first four are in the realm of the formless. The last three are in the
physical realm.

32
 GREAT SOULS HAVE WILLS;
FEEBLE ONES HAVE ONLY WISHES

DESIRE

No transformation can occur without a strong desire for success. That

is why the "mass of men live lives of quiet desperation". The majority
of people only wish for good things in their lives without putting in any
significant effort towards achieving them. That is why lotteries are
popular. It's the easy way to riches. We're victims of the "get-rich-
quick" mentality.

Only those with a strong desire for success or change can hope to
achieve what they set out to achieve, for this strong desire is the fuel
that will propel them to greater things. A strong desire is what
energizes your thoughts and push you into action. A strong desire also
draws resources from the formless into your life. Thus you'll meet with
a series of coincidence and synchronicity. You'll start to see what you
could not see before. The outer world has not changed; only you have.

BELIEF AND FAITH

A strong desire is sustainable by an equally strong belief in yourself

and in your goal. Coupled with faith in the wisdom of the universe,
this strong belief and desire will be the driving force in your
achievements.

Develop, then, a strong faith in the wisdom of the universe. Have trust
that the universe will provide you with all that you need to succeed or
be who you want to be. The stronger your faith, the stronger you will
draw the formless resources to you. It is the doubter who creates his
own failure for he fills his mind with "what cannot be" instead of "what
can be".

VISUALIZATION

Visualize the final outcome of your goal or the end-product. Do not

visualize the methods leading to your goal; just focus on your final
goal.

33
For example, if you want to own a Ferrari car in a year's time, do not
visualize how you are going to get it. Just see yourself owning a
Ferrari, driving it, feeling ecstatic as the wind blows into your face
while you drive and so forth. Create as fully and as complete as you
can the entire scene of you enjoying your Ferrari. It is important to
accompany this with strong emotion such as joy and happiness in
owning it.

AUTO-SUGGESTION

Auto-suggestion is the act of constantly feeding mental suggestions

and imprints to your subconscious mind. Remember that your
subconscious mind does not discriminate what is real and what is not.
It accepts totally anything you feed it. So be careful what you feed
your subconscious mind.

When you consistently and persistently feed your subconscious mind

with positive thoughts relevant to your goal, these thoughts will
eventually crystallize into reality. The key words here are consistence
and persistence.

SPECIALISED KNOWLEDGE AND/OR EXPERIENCE

Whatever it is you want to be, you must acquire the specialized

knowledge or skills required for it. Otherwise, your wish is just wishful
thinking.

For example, if you want to become a trainer or motivator, you cannot

just visualize yourself being one without putting in the effort to learn
about public speaking, developing your self-confidence and learning
the required knowledge and skills to be a trainer or motivator. You
have to read up, attend seminars and workshops, mingle with
successful trainers and motivators, and train yourself to speak well in
public.

ORGANIZED PLANNING

There is a popular saying that goes:

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

34
A good plan must be SMART (Specific goals, Measurable results,
Achievable, Realistic and Time-specific). Plan with the end in mind.
Write down specific goals you want to achieve. Your plan must be
workable and practical. And you should give yourself a specific time-
frame to achieve your goals.

PERSISTENCE

Goals are not achieved overnight. All worthwhile achievements take

time. So be patient and consistent in your effort. Have faith in your
goals and maintain your desire to succeed.

As you continue to put in the effort of auto-suggestions and

visualization, you'll soon find yourself attracting opportunities, relevant
ideas and solutions, and meeting people who can and will help you
along the way to achieving your goals.

Remember to have an attitude of gratitude towards those who help

you, no matter how small the favour may be. Maintain also an attitude
of abundance and be charitable in your heart and daily practice.
Delight in the success of others. All these put your mind in a positive
state to receive corresponding abundance and joy from the universe.

EXERCISE

Auto-Suggestion & Positive Affirmations

One of the best times to program your subconscious mind is

when you're about to fall asleep. Try suggesting this as you're
about to fall asleep:

"Everyday in every way, I'm getting better and better."

Be creative and come up with your own program.

35
Chapter 10:
Daily Checklist for Personal
Transformation

To transform our physical life, we must first transform our non-

physical world of thoughts and beliefs for it is here that the seed
begins to sprout into physical reality. Changing the physical is easy.
Changing our mental habits is not, yet change we must or we will
continue to stay in our present circumstances.

After all, if we do the same things day after day, we can only expect
the same results. If we sincerely want to change - to transform our life
- we must change our present mental habits. Our success depends on
it.

Here's a suggested Daily 5-Point Checklist you can use to check

your mental habits and keep your mind in a predominantly positive
mode. Each point serves as a signpost for you to pause, bring your
mind back to the present moment and to re-direct your mind from
your "default" setting to one with a higher self awareness.

You may start with one point and gradually increase to two, three, four
and five. You may even change the sequence to suit your personal
style or be creative and create your own signposts.

The aim is to ultimately be able to keep your mind in your new "higher
self awareness" mode throughout the entire day. The five points are
merely reminders to pause and reflect and be mindful again since we
so often lose ourselves in our daily routines and run on our auto-pilot
program that could be detrimental to our progress.

It is important to have these intermittent pauses in our days because

our "normal" day is often so busy that we are almost completely
unaware of ourselves. Pausing helps us to slow down.

Some people call these "Power Pause"

36
DAILY 5-POINT CHECKLIST

No. Checklist Suggestions

1. Set the Day Right First thing when you wake up,
- Start off the day with a read a positive phrase or
positive mental imprint inspirational tip from a phrase
book. Have this phrase book
next to your bed so that you can
easily reach out for it when you
awake.

2. Meditation Spend 20 to 30 minutes to be

with yourself. Train your mind to
be still and enjoy the silent
communion with your own
divinity.

3. Midday Awareness Check Spend about 15 minutes during

- We habitually go through our your lunch break to list down the
daily life without slowing down positive and negative thoughts
and being aware of our and emotions you've
thoughts and feelings. We experienced earlier. Use a small
need to change this habit and notebook for this. As this
become more aware and in practice becomes a habit, you'll
touch with our thoughts and become more aware of your
feelings. thoughts and feelings, and will
be able to stop your negative
thoughts and feelings before
they can develop further.

4. Develop attitude of gratitude, Before leaving your office, thank

altruistic joy and abundance those whom have helped you in
your work. Be genuinely grateful
for their assistance, no matter
how small it may be. Celebrate
your successes or that of your
friends and colleagues. Be
charitable in your praises and
thanks. Share what you have
with others.

5. Pre-bed Rituals Before sleep, do these:

- A good beginning should A. Recite this poem of
have a good ending. End your gratitude and abundance

37
 day with more positive
thoughts and mental imprints. "Thank you for the abundance,
Thank you for the wealth;
Thank you for all the happiness,
Protection and good health."

B. Do your own positive auto-

suggestion or visualization
exercises.

As you become more and more adept at this Daily 5-Point Checklist,
you'll find yourself and your life transforming before your eyes. Not
only will you become more aware and relax, you'll become more
friendly and likeable. The sum total of your daily thoughts and feelings
will become more positive. As you are transformed, you'll also
experience a positive transformation in the ways people treat you.
Your life will change before your very eyes -- not because the world
has changed, but because you have!

Do this and do it well and success will be yours!

Remember,

MIND IS THE FORERUNNER OF ALL STATES

38
Final Words

I hope you've benefited from the lessons and principles shared in this
book, and that you've enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed
writing it.

Lastly, I just want to remind you again that no amount of knowledge

can transform you unless you make the EFFORT to change. Most
people read motivational books, attend seminars and workshops and
still end up the same as before.

The problem lies in the three stumbling blocks of doubt, fear and
inaction. You will have to overcome them with FAITH, COURAGE and
ACTION!

• Have faith in the truth of these teachings from the ancient

masters.

• Have the courage in overcoming your fear and resistance to

change.

• Take action to overcome the inertia and create a momentum

for real transformation.

The secret to success is not a secret at all. It is faith in the power that
you yourself possess - your mind and your desire for success.

Take action today and see the transformation that MUST surely
follows.

To your success!

Dr Tim Ong
http://www.bookoftransformation.com

39
Recommended Resources
Here are some websites that contain more information
about personal transformation:

1. The Self Improvement Site

http://theselfimprovementsite.com
2. Mind Science 101
http://mindscience101.com
3. Beyond the World
http://illusiontoreality.com
4. The Work of Byron Katie
http://thework.com
5. The Belief Closet
http://beliefcloset.com
6. Why is this happening to me... AGAIN?
Http://whyagain.com
 The Author

Dr. Tim Ong works as a general practitioner in a small township

just outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He has been a doctor for
more than 15 years and still enjoys his work.

He practices meditation regularly and also runs a weekly

meditation class on Loving Kindness in the community that he
serves.

He is grateful to have very supportive family, parents and siblings

who continue to encourage his work in healing and transforming
lives.

You can contact Dr. Ong at [email protected]

Dr. Ong also welcomes your comments and suggestions to

further improve this book.

For more writings and thoughts by Dr. Ong, visit his website at
http://theselfimprovementsite.com