For the past ten years I have been pretty much into personal development. Well, as a teenager I was already a bit interested in not-so-mainstream topics such as the power of the human mind, psychic phenomena and plenty of other metaphysical topics. It comes to no surprise that my peers thought I was a bit weird, you know how it is.

So when I got hooked on to personal development topics later on in life, I was already primed for certain ideas and insights. It came easier for me to hop on from one book or one topic to another without needing a stretch of time to digest certain ideas. I got pretty sucked into it. I read heaps of books, started off my blog Soul Hiker and wrote a few hundred articles to share my insights and experiences with others following the same path.

In those ten years of learning and practice, I did come a long way with a wealth of inner growth but also many pitfalls. What is more relevant is that I have also arrived at a solid practical realization – a kind of a key that unlocks some doors without having to knock them down really. That key is Simple Living or the idea of simplifying life in order to shed away what is unnecessary, inauthentic and a hindrance to your life purpose. The concept might seem obvious but somehow hidden none the less.

Brandon West, Contributor
Waking Times

It is my intention to achieve and maintain a state of balance, bliss, love, rapture, inspiration, and peace; in essence, to live from a higher state of energy.

I believe that this is the ultimate desire of every human being. Regardless of the specifics of the desires and dreams that an individual may have, who among us does not desire for these qualities to infuse our lives?

Therefore the question isn’t if this is what we want or not, because of course it is. The question is how do we attain these six qualities of an extraordinary life?

Acting On Our Creative Desires

HUMAN EVOLUTION   It is one of the laws of this universe that no thing remains stagnant; all is ever evolving. Humans are one species on earth with the capability to consciously choose the pace they want to evolve. There is no thing on earth that has ever been created or experienced that was not first a thought, then an action. Think of something you wish to experience or gain. Make a clear intention and muster the belief that it is now in the process of coming to you.

Use your physical senses to visualize what it will be like when it arrives at your door. If there are steps you need to take to make this a reality, take the first step. Once completed, take the next step. Watch for signs along the way. Learn to live in the moment, fully present; for it is in the present that you will receive the gifts. Set your intentions for the highest good for you and all involved and ask that they come to you as gracefully as possible. Expect to experience coincidences that will lead you to your destination or possible solutions that you hadn’t dared to even dream of. As you begin to understand the power within, it is likely you will begin to shed layers of behaviors and belief codes that currently rule your life, keeping you from experiencing all that you desire.

A report recently released from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development shows that the United States and Israel have the worst inequality in the developed world.

Although the divide between rich and poor is at historic levels for the majority of the 34 developed member nations, the US and Israel have distanced themselves from the fold. The OECD discovered that in the US, the richest 10% of the population earn 16.5 times the income of the poorest 10%. In Israel, the richest 10% earn 15 times that of the poorest. In comparison, the average wealth gap in OECD nations is 9.6. The rich earned approximately seven times as much as the poor in the 1980’s.

It was also recorded in 2012 that in 18 OECD countries, the bottom 40% of households owned just 3% of the wealth while the top 10% controlled 50%.

In the US, the wealthiest 5% has nearly 91 times the amount as the average citizen.