By: Leah Grant

Imagine having a newborn dropped off on your doorstep wrapped only in a blanket with a note attached that reads, "Take care of me."

For the sake of argument say you wanted a baby so this is like a windfall. You bring the child in the house and it only takes a couple of moments to realize that you have no diapers and no formula, so out you go (or you send your husband) to buy the necessary items.

When he returns, you change and feed the infant and begin rocking her to sleep, but once she drifts off you are at a loss as to where to put her. You don't have a crib, a playpen or even a stroller.

You and your husband start making a list of the items you are going to require in the coming days to properly care for this little life. The list grows longer and longer. The cost of the items quickly exceeds your budget. You start wondering if you can keep this baby.

While this story may seem crazy, this is how many people start their businesses. They want a business, so one day they make some business cards and say, "Here I am world, hire me."

As with the child, it doesn't take long for them to realize that they need some essentials to do the bare minimum for their business' survival, so they rush out and take care of those things.

Once those pressing needs are handled other things surface. As the list of items they either need to buy or need to do grows, it becomes apparent that the business requires more care and feeding than initially thought. When the cost of everything is calculated it's likely more than they anticipated.

At this point, doubt around whether they should have started the business in the first place and whether they can make it successful if they keep going creep in smothering the initial passion for the idea.

But it doesn't have to play out like this.

The ultimate moment is not where we stand in times of comfort or convenience, but where we stand in times of challenges and controversies; knowing that the difficulties in life are not intended to make us bitter, but to make us better.-Linda Cheatham

You can read more "Nuggets of Inspiration" at www.allthingsencouraging.com.

If you need uplifting, just visit this website for words of encouragement. Here you will find short nuggets of inspiration or longer inspirational articles that will encourage and uplift you.

Janine Scott-Lowe, MD is a Family Physician who practices in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, taking care of the soldiers and family members of the famous 82nd Airborne Division. She is also the author of two great books: "Reflections" and "Inspirations". You can find info about her books here.

Be sure to check out her blog where you will find great inspirational articles.

www.allthingsencouraging.com .

By Suzy Strempke

What is the one thing that will always make you feel empowered?

It is the ability to make a choice. The problem is that we often forget that there is a choice in absolutely everything. Even if external circumstances prevent us from doing what we prefer, we have a choice in how we are going to approach the situation. We have control over our attitude, thoughts and feelings.

Being "Stuck"

I often hear people talk about being "stuck" at their jobs. When asked why they don't move to another job that would be more fulfilling, their reply: "I can't because I need the health insurance" OR "I can't because I've built up my retirement" and it goes on.

Do you notice anything interesting about those responses? They all revolve around the word "can't". The word can't is disempowering... it's pretty reasonable to assume if your thought processes around your job involve the word can't, that you would feel "stuck", because according to you, you can't do anything about it.

What else did you notice about those responses? The one thing that I find interesting about them is that if you really dig deeper, you often find that these individuals place high value on their health insurance benefits or retirement packages and although they are unhappy and dissatisfied, the value of these benefits outweigh their dissatisfaction. So, essentially they have made a choice... the benefit to cost ratio tips in favor of the reason they stay.

Empowerment Via Choice

Here is how we are empowered through choice: We are empowered when we are aware that we are choosing something.

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THE 2009 LAMPLIGHTER AWARDS December 12, 2009

The 2009 LampLighter Awards is a semi formal event that will take place on Saturday December 12th, 6:30 pm at the Progress Energy Center for The Performing Arts in Raleigh.

The Light 103.9 FM and your Local McDonald's Owner Operators look forward to seeing you at The Light 103.9 FM 2009 Lamp Lighter Awards Show.

Tickets will be on sale soon at all Ticketmaster locations and online at Ticket Master.Com.

This year's performing artists include:

• Vickie Winans
• Martha Munizzi
• Darwin Hobbs
• Vanesa Bell Armstrong
• Marshetta Parker
• Vickie Winans