The sun was a glowing orb framed by dark-rimmed clouds. Ever present the sun. The light. I was reminded again about how the light of the sun is always there. It doesn’t have to try, it’s ready to show up, to shine through as the beacon for all that is and will be. It's comforting. Light was my word for 2022. As I was filling the dishwasher about a year ago, the phrase flowed into my mind: 2022, the year of light. My intention for the year was to seek the lightness of being, to follow the light of my spirit in all areas of life. Today, there is much to ponder and reflect on. To share. So, what has come to light? In random order, here are a few things that have bubbled up and stayed with me. Perhaps it will spark in you things that have come to... Read more →
Creativity
I started a 30-day cleanse this week. It's a fairly intense protocol with two shakes a day along with supplements and a healthy meal. So, for the next month I'll be shaking it up. A lot. Getting rid of my body's toxins and getting healthier. It got me thinking about other ways one can begin shaking things up. A great start is to form a group to share and support, other shakers who are equally committed to bringing on change. That's exactly what a few of us are doing together with this 30-day challenge. Our collective ideas lend themselves to more than just a nutritional cleanse. Maybe some of them will spark ideas for doing a little shaking of your own. Make a commitment - Take one thing, like a cleanse or a new skill or fitness routine or social venture and become a little consumed. Make room in your... Read more →
This is a fantastic compilation of well researched ideas on how to spread your message and promote yourself and/or your blog/site. I've already started to incorporate the ones I hadn't heard of before. Some of these are also excellent suggestions if you're promoting an event or upcoming show. Courtesy of Andreea Ayers of LaunchGrowJoy. Andreea gives some blogging tips and then breaks down the 30-ways-to-promote ideas into five essential categories: Social Media, Bookmarking Sites, Your Contact LIst, Other Blogs & Syndication. Brilliant! I just had to share the wealth. If you enjoyed this Thought Changer, please click the little green button below this post and thank you for sharing! And, please visit us on our Facebook Page: Facebook.com/ThoughtChanger Cindy Yantis is the Thought Changer Blog creator & curator. She is a freelance writer living in Los Angeles. For more info: CindyYantis.com Read more →
A recent dinner with dear old friends conjured more than just catching up. Sure we did a quick rewind through the last three years since seeing each other. But, with this particular family of friends I always leave much more grounded and inspired than I was at hello. And, we echoed many stories being told around many dinner tables right now, stories of challenges faced, jobs changed and upcoming choices being made. There was a shared rekindling taking place. It's the same theme after every encounter with my friends, the Googasians. I left them after dinn er and walked across Ocean Boulevard in Santa Monica to gaze out over the ocean. It was vast and dark and mysterious. But, stealing the scene from the ocean was the ferris wheel whirling on the Santa Monica Pier which was bustling with activity. The ferris wheel was a sight to behold. At night... Read more →
The First and Last Word
"In Love With Words" That's the title I gave one of my Pinterest categories. I'm a bit late in the game on Pinterest, but I've become slightly obsessed. It's one of the most creative time sucks ever invented! My love affair with words only intensifies with each passing day. As a writer, the hunt for the perfect word is a mind-bending expedition that can end in a second or can become a witch-hunt for that elusive term or turn-of-phrase or line of dialog. While procrastinating last night, which is really another way of saying my brain was germinating on the right words to put on paper, I went on the cool wordart site, Wordl, where you can create word clouds. I plugged in some words from this blog site to create a Thought Changer Cloud. It came out looking like this: Bravo. Word. It reminded me of an article I... Read more →
I was lost in the abyss. At least the abyss also known as the Second Act. I’m in the midst of drafting a screenplay that I was commissioned to write and my deadline is quickly approaching. Before starting the script I wrote a loose outline so that I know the major plot points and how the movie ends, but filling it in with interesting scenes that drive a compelling story is where I was stuck. I had all of these fragments floating around in my head as to what came next but they became so convoluted that it was causing inertia, which is exactly the opposite of what needed to happen with a looming deadline and a very patient producer waiting for a delivered, that being, an exceptionally delivered, finished script. I needed a more detailed guideline than the loose outline, something to help me sort out what comes next,... Read more →
During a recent cocktail discussion with a friend we got on the topic of travelling and living abroad; I mentioned that at some point in my life I'd like to live in a small town in France. "It's definitely in the realm of possibility," I said. Later I got to thinking about the Realm of Possibility and what a powerful place that is. I picture a place of vibrant color, of swirling thoughts and images, of forward moving energy that is at once knowing and brave as it forges toward the unknown, of leaping without fear and without a net. A place where yes rules and no is not part of the vernacular, where ideas spawn action. A place where a sense of quiet and calm lives amidst the questions and on the precipice of possible becoming probable becoming actual. The Realm of Possibility. To my way of thinking it's... Read more →
By Cindy Yantis It was announced in Variety last week that the Tony Award winning play, The Normal Heart, is finally being made into a film, and with no less than the brilliant Ryan Murphy directing. I found this news particularly exciting because I witnessed firsthand the very beginning of the fast moving surge that's culminating with the film. My friend, actor and producer David Youse, had the spark of an idea to bring Larry Kramer's 1985 masterpiece back to life for its 25th Anniversary. He had Mr. Kramer's blessing, then hired Oscar & Tony winner Joel Grey (that's David and Joel to the right) to direct a star studded reading at The Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles which has raised over $175,000 benefiting several AIDS organizations. A New York reading starring Glenn Close followed which really created a buzz. Broadway producer Daryl Roth took the play to Broadway and... Read more →
by Cindy Yantis I recently pulled the classic film, "Pride and Prejudice," off my shelf to watch it again. To say the story is infused with entangled connections is an understatement. In fact, in the days of Jane Austen, people's lives were all about relationships; they were the number one rule of the time, making the right connections and nurturing those ties that bind. It got me thinking about my own relationships, which had already been on the top of my mind because I have been on the receiving end time and time again of such meaningful connections, particularly as of late. It also got me thinking about what it means to build and sustain relationships in our lives. This article could have just have easily been entitled, "Want a Friend? Be a Friend," because in order for the connection to be true and lasting, it's important to give as... Read more →
Do Genius and Obsession Walk Hand in Hand?
"Music is the mediator between the spiritual and sensual life." ~ Beethoven I saw this brilliant show last night at The Ahmanson in LA, the original Broadway cast in the Tony nominated play, "33 Variations." The story dissects Beethoven's obsession with his composition of 33 variations on Anton Diabelli's waltz, told via a musicologist's own obsession with Beethoven's obsession. The musicologist was portrayed mesmorizingly by Jane Fonda. It got me thinking about how both of their obsessions led to true genius by "33 Variations" playwright Moises Kaufman. Does obsession lead to genius? Can it? If it's channeled in the right way? Is it curiosity with purpose, or a need to fill a never-ending hole? Is it ever satisfied? Dorothy Parker said, "The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity." Well, if this is what curiosity leads to obsession leads to genius looks like... I want some. Read more →
"You've been given a great gift, George. The chance to see what the world would be like without you." ~ Clarence in "It's a Wonderful Life" What a great line from an iconic movie. I saw the Frank Capra film on the big screen for the first time this year at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. It was such a treat seeing it as a feature film with 300 other rapt moviegoers, popcorn and all. The comment we made as we left the historic theatre was "they don't make movies like that anymore." Then, last night a friend took me to see "West Side Story" at the Pantages Theatre. It's truly the perfect evening of musical theatre, the brilliant re-telling of Romeo & Juliet set to music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. After seeing both of these treasures that have stood the test of time and whose... Read more →