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  RESILIENCE MEANS NOT JUST SURVIVING BUT THRIVING New book titled Real Resilience draws a mental roadmap to thriving during the pandemic and beyond.   DIXON , Calif.—In recent months the term “resilience” has become the new buzzword. In fact, 2020 will go down in the annals of history as the year that people had to bounce back from the negativity of the pandemic, California fires, racial tensions, political unrest, and a myriad of other disasters. Those individuals who did not understand or discover ways of bouncing back and stabilizing after such a year can now look to the new book titled Real Resilience – Once Upon a Pandemic by Selwa Berbawy Hamati to become resilient and not just survive all these changes, but also thrive in the New Normal.   “ As a certified business and life coach, I have seen people not just survive but thrive through obstacles and chaos many would find overwhelming. That is why I wrote this book,” said Hamati. “I want...

Frequently Asked Questions Q: What is The World Premiere of Me About ? A : Hollywood billionaire movie producer Grayson O’Day has a plan to rid the world of poverty through the power of imagination.   He relocates his operation from Hollywood to The Hamptons, and spends a small fortune to build a prototype movie studio.   With construction complete, O’Day needs only one thing to fulfill his vision: a test subject.   The World Premiere of Me is the story of Duncan Ferris and his unlikely journey from classic underachiever to forerunner of the final age of man: The Age of Mind.   The broad theme of the story is: God has a plan to rid the world of poverty, and that plan travels through the imagination of man.   The story is told as an allegory, wherein all the main characters represent one aspect of the theme.   These include Grayson O’Day (God), protagonist Duncan Ferris (man), antagonist Fenton Hardaway (death), and Bud “The Co...

THE “AGE OF MIND” SHINES LIGHT ON THE MASSES The World Premiere of Me in the spirit of contemporary movies like The Shack takes readers on a tour de force of the power of the mind. May 1, 2018, SACRAMENTO, Calif.—School shootings, negative political news, and an overall heaviness have invaded our society. Sometimes we need to be reminded that these gray clouds hanging over our world don’t have to define our lives. That when we use the power of our minds, we can create anything our imaginations can dream. The power of the mind is limitless – and the new fiction book The World Premiere of Me by Fred Ford suggests we are at the dawn of a new age – the “Age of Mind”. This unique “self-enlightenment” tale is written as a fictional story much like recent movies The Shack or The Alchemist that are simultaneously a story and a nonfiction message that contains “soul nuggets” to inspire readers to use their minds to their fullest. Think and Grow Rich meets The Wizard of Oz...

It’s not easy being a business owner. You experience a lot of pluses – personal freedom, flexible schedules, independent decision-making, and financial success when the wins come. What happens though when your business endeavors start to suffer? The risks have the rewards and the losses too, right? The biggest problem when business begins to decline is managing your outlook and keeping up your morale. As the owner of the business you have to keep a close watch on your attitude about challenges. If your attitude sinks it won’t help your business to increase. Negative attracts negative and positive attracts positive. Problem is when the negative is causing a major drain in your resources and finances you may find it challenging to keep a smile on your face. Having worked on dozens of self-help and business books over the years, I’ve learned a lot about “attitude management”. My own business has faced several challenges this year. Some of those problems were unex...

Here are 10 things I've learned about life: Trust is earned; it is not just given Actions tell the truth, words can lie Integrity and honesty are easy Always check things out and don't stick your head in the sand Faith will get you through everything We only get a few great friends in this life, so treat them right God is our only judge Love is easier than hate Forgiveness heals all Always act with kindness

The dog pile of life sometimes get pretty high. This last week I kept watching one thing after the other pile. It's now to the point where my new motto is to just shrug. Sometimes when it all gets to be a little too much you have to just put your shoulders up and down, and then focus on the moment. I can't recall a time in my life where the pile got quite this high or the mud this deep. What's the answer when the tough times hit? Action! Take action! Keep going and try not to look backward or ahead too much. All we really have is the here and now. Truly -- that's it. We could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that's the end of the show. Even if your show got to look like the circus or the most elaborate play on Broadway, it could all just end. So no backward, no forward -- just today. And despite the pile and the deep mud, I'm going to make it a great day!

I have been working on a self-help book soon to be released by my company 3L Publishing titled Step Aside and Get Out of Your Own Way by Syndee Hendricks . I've also been working on a new program of meditation and hypnotherapy, which ask me sometime about. Hypnotherapy should never be discounted. I have several success stories about it. The sub-conscious mind is amazing. Anyway ... back to Syndee's book. She discusses drama queens and kings in the book. I would have to say that as I've gotten older, more grounded and rational, and aware I've been able to discern these personality types much better. I don't like or invite needless drama into my life. And the more I don't invite it, the less it comes to me. How is that you ask? Drama people cannot knock through what I'll call the "grounded" wall of cool observation. When you learn to ground and stay grounded you are far less prone to provide the necessary response or "fodder" the drama ...

You have to humor me today. I am prone to depression (I will admit it because it takes it out of secrecy and makes it mainstream). When I'm depressed I sleep a lot ... A LOT. I don't want to take drugs for it. The last time I did it scrambled my brain like eggs. I need my brains. So, I do natural things, and I try to recognize what's going on and stop myself from falling into the "rabbit hole". I equate the rabbit hole as a very unfriendly place and really hard to crawl back out. Sometimes though I let myself fully celebrate the rabbit hole with the Queen of Hearts. We often talk about how fun it would be to take some people's heads off and maybe spare the others. It's all talk really. You know over a deck of cards. When I let myself celebrate my dark humor I just give myself a day or so. This self-inflicted pity-party involves howling at the moon, too. It feels great. Try a little howling -- best home remedy around. The depression tends to be triggere...

In business and life it's really important to set and maintain boundaries. The key (and this is important) you can't fold on your boundaries and move them. I've had it explained to me like this, with children they need consistency (they crave it). Consistency shows them the lines. When you show them the line and give them consequences for walking over it, they come to understand that line has meaning (consequences) that are negative. Without boundaries adults have the same problem. If you set a boundary and move it, adults don't know where they stand: what you say has no meaning. When you have a situation, especially one that involves, for example, substance abuse, and you let the abuser continually walk over your boundaries, they will keep right on doing and never hit rock bottom. If you have a worker than fails on his or her job, but she gets to keep her or his job anyway, nothing stops the behavior. Even if it's the two warning principle: do it once and I warn yo...

I had this week that could be described as H-E-double toothpicks LOL ... I used to say that as a kid because you weren't supposed to say hell lest you go to the hot place yourself. And I'm sharing this because it's really only appropriate to laugh at one's self. Not that I didn't have my "cup runneth" over this week (I absolutely drowned in the run-over part), I realized things would be a "work in progress" (love my clichés) before it all got solved. So, I walked into my walk-in closet to pick out what to wear. After standing there in pure distractions for way too long, I just broke down. I bawled in the closet of all places. This makes me think of the overwrought housewife who screams infamously, "Calgon take me away." Here is the deal my many readers, you know what? Sometimes crying in the closet is all a girl can do. It's called stress management. "Release the hounds..."

I have a personal belief that if you're going to position yourself as a subject matter expert on a topic then you might want to set an excellent example in regards to what you're talking about. This premise applies to your professionalism and field of expertise, too. I recently posted a Facebook statement that went like this: it's risky to live in a glass house and throw stones. What did I mean by that concept? The real statement is "those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones." I switched it up to emphasize the risk involved of shattering one's house when involved in the proverbial stone toss. I'm sure you're all now wondering where those two paragraphs are supposed to lead. Now I'm going to story tell so you understand the professional meaning behind these ideas. I've seen this a lot in those who position themselves in the self-help or counseling industries. I happen to know several people who work in these industries. I...

I saw the great Maya Angelou speaking once. Her words are inscribed in my soul. To be able to touch lives with such authentic wisdom, grace and knowledge is a beautiful talent, and she had that talent in spades. My greatest wish is to be so enlightened and insightful that one day I can provide such inspiration and truth to others. As writers we have an amazing talent to share with the world pieces of our souls -- small parts of ourselves that we can bring to the page. It is an honor and a privilege to be graced with the talents to inspire and motivate other people with words. Maya could use words through her stories to accomplish great emotional feats to change lives. Think about it. The talent and gift to transcend time and space with your words and thoughts to transform lives ... to make other people think ... to challenge people to go inward and consider something greater. It is a monumental responsibility that writers are given from the heavens, and so like Maya Angelous use i...

I mentioned this on Facebook. I start each day in meditation. I recite mantras. Two days in a row I was meditating and fell back to sleep. All this means to me is that I am successfully clearing my mind. I've recently been in a bit of a down cycle. You know when things start to just not excite you anymore? My personal relationships have shifted. People have come and gone. I've lost two very close people to me (for different reasons) who had to transition their lives elsewhere. One of the people I pushed the shift out of personal necessity to move on. I thought at the time I would just deal with the losses in one full swoop. Both individuals were very close to me so you can imagine the gaping holes I am feeling. Anyway here I am facing loss and business things started going haywire. Banking problems, client payment problems ... and I started thinking, "Is this outer chaos a reflection of the inner chaos I am feeling?" I had been meditating anyway so I ratcheted up my...

I have learned over the years it's mission critical to "mind" your mindset. Every time I allow fear and anxiety to run my business, it shows up and manifests itself in negative results. Whenever I do small things like meditate and "mind" my mindset to positivity and success, positive results happen. Some people are skeptical about this belief system. They falsely believe that mindset doesn't matter. Business will be what business will be dependent upon the marketplace, supply and demand, and competition. I'm here to tell you the biggest factor that determines success isn't about the market at all. It all has to do with YOU as the business owner. Here's how: Like attracts like . Who is attracted to work with you is based on the Law of Attraction. Positive people attract positive people. Positive people attract more positive, successful people to your business. Positive people spend money without fear, and the net result; it's easier to wor...

We have several great self-help books in the 3L Publishing catalog, and I'm always fortunate in that I get to edit them. Right now I am working on a book titled The Power and Light that is You by Linda Lee, which is a wonderful book that is a guide to self-empowerment. I wish I could tell my story openly and without regret, but I really can't do it for privacy reasons. I don't believe in putting self-limiting beliefs on life. The book teaches us not to limit ourselves -- that we are empowered with our mindset to explore all facets of life. In 2012 when I left my marriage I did so with the intention to find true love. If there is one thing I firmly believe now is that at age 25 vs. 48 I had no idea what I really wanted or needed from a relationship. In 2011 I had met a person who would become very important to me. After I left my marriage I decided to chase the proverbial rainbow even though many, many issues (BIG issues) arose during the pursuit of my aforementioned tru...

Are you a procrastinator? I can be at different times. Do you realize procrastinating is harder to do than actually doing what you need to do? So many do's in that sentence ... DO is the operative word, friend. Expending time and energy "avoiding" something is harder than just doing it. Now for some creative people that so-called procrastination time often isn't at all. I know when I have a project brewing in my head it's because I'm thinking about plot lines and subplots. The time spent meditatively thinking is actual work. Some meditative thought time is work. Sometimes people don't realize that being up in one's head is a part of the process, too. BUT that is the exception. If you are a procrastinator who lets everything get in the way of the task at-hand my best advice: quit avoiding it and just do it ! If it's something you didn't want to do, think of this way: the sooner you do it the sooner you get to do something else you want to do. An...

Have you ever thought about trust? Not just trust in another person, but also trust in yourself. Trusting that a situation will work out the way it is supposed to work. Do you realize that is about releasing the concept of "control" and realizing you are powerless over anything or anyone other than yourself. Trust means going with your gut and knowing that your gut (AKA your heart) will serve you. Your heart/gut has the answers and the "knowingness," and you have to let go and know it will be all right. I am clairvoyant and spiritual. So I have an even larger idea of what my life could look like -- it's one of my gifts. I have a relationship in my life in which I foresaw the future -- and at the time I didn't understand a few things about that vision. I didn't understand how it could be possible. Throughout that journey it continued to seem utterly impossible, too. And then there was an unexpected shift. And the impossible became quite possible, indee...

I don't mind sharing personal experience as long as I think it will help someone else. Gratuitous sharing though isn't on my agenda. If you're going to get personal, a point to it makes it valuable. I have recently realized that I don't have very good self-esteem. I don't hold up very high standards of how I expect to be treated. Time and time again I have found myself in situations where I'm either being taken advantage of because of my generous, good nature or just completely overlooked. We teach other people how to treat us. I never learned to set limits (and I won't get into the reasons why). I have reflected on a few key things in my life, and I'm here to share that anyone (including an accomplished person who has much to feel proud about) can fall into the pit of feeling unworthy. When you fall into that trap you begin to accept the unacceptable. You begin to think, this is all "I" get and all I deserve. Well, I have been slowly making ...

Recent life chats with friends have brought up the roller coaster theme. One of my friends asked me, "Are you ever going to get off the ride, because at some point you might want to do that." Another friend who is less skeptical of roller coaster rides talked about it differently. I liked her reflections on life's roller coaster ride. She said, "Would you rather take the ride with your hands in the air and a smile on your face? Or would you rather scream all the way through it?" Love that question. I told her once about roller coasters, "I used to be afraid of them. And then one day I thought, "Well, hell nobody really ever dies on the ride so go with it." Life is full of ups and downs as I'm sure you've now picked up on the metaphor. I'm exploring my feelings about a long-time relationship I've had where there have been many extraordinary highs and some definite lows. I'll be honest, I've spent most of the ride screa...

When I was younger I wanted security and family. I wanted a good, steady career path. I wanted to find a slow, gradual ascent toward my dreams. Then I hit pesky mid-life. I achieved many, many goals. Yet I found I had many more things to accomplish. In my professional life, I realized I wasn't enjoying the career I wanted. In my personal life, my relationship was lopsided and unsatisfying. Mid-life became not a crisis but a time to make some scary, but important decisions. Was I going to look back at my life with regret? Who wants to regret anything? And why not live the fullest possible life? I never considered myself a risk-taker, but in reflecting on the last several years I realized I am definitely a risk-taker. I started my own company on a shoestring budget, and I have succeeded and stayed in business even during this protracted Great Recession. I also met the man of my dreams. Instead of staying in the status quo and accepting my lopsided and unsatisfying marriage, I decid...